a fourth edition nor respecting the Sungskrit, as its being read with - ease by pundits from all parts of India seems a sufficient proof of its perspicuity. Relative to the other three we have been careful to obtain all the information in our power. Respect. ing the Orissa version, Mr. John Peter who labors in Orissa, writes thus in a letter dated 20th December, 1811: "I have engaged nine persons to read the Orissa Scriptures for the purpose of ascertaining the character of the translation; and I have read them to many others. They all de. clare, "This is the Orissa language;" though some say, "there are some Sunskrit words in it." This latter fact is unavoidably the case, as none of the dialects of India contain a suf. ficient stock of current words to express every term in which the mys teries of Gospel doctrine are conveved.

Of the Mahratta version a gentle man who has resided some years in that country, and who has distributed a considerable number of copies, writes thus to Mr. Ward; "Tell Dr. Carey that the style and language of the Mahratta New Testament are well understood and much commended. Mr. J. who knows something of Sungskrit and reads the Mahratta very freely, mentions it with great praise." He also adds, "Mahadeo, to whom I gave a New Testament, has nearly read it twice through, and seems greatly interested by its contents. Kistna has read the New Testament through once, and seems equally interested as Mabadeo. Bhuwanee is reading the New Testament through a second time, and seems rather more warmly attached to it than the other two. Narayuna a youth, is reading through the New Testament a second time to his mother and others of his family. His mother often declares her love for Jesus Christ and speaks of the glad tidings to her friends."

We have received information that the Hindeef version has been sought

We apply the term Hindooee or Hindee to that dialect of the Hindoost'hanee which is derived principally from the Sungskrit, and whick before

It

and eagerly read in Orissa, at Malda, at Patna, and even as far as Agra, which places embrace a circuit of more than a thousand miles. seems also to have been read with interest around us; copies having been requested by natives of various parts of India frequenting or resid. ing in Calcutta and its neighborhood. Among others, several from a battalion of sepoys stationed within a few miles of us, but among whom we have never been, have repeatedly come to Serampore soliciting copies of this version; and in some instances, they have afterwards employed us to bind them at their own expense. The demand for the Gospels and the Acts (which were stitched in a separate volume) has indeed been so great that we have reprinted a small edition to complete the New Testament again. But nearly every copy of it thus com. pleted anew was given away prior to March last, when we resolved on printing a larger number of what would be the third edition of the Gospels, and the second of the rest of the New Testament.

These circumstances relative to the three versions just named, great. ly encourage us, and give us reason to hope, that imperfect as they at present may be, they yet render the Sacred Oracles intelligible to the poor and the ignorant as well as to the learned; and by unremitted attention to the improvement of every succeeding edition, we shall at length be enabled, through the divine blessing. to accomplish a work which appears to us so important, and give the nu merous millions around us a faithful and perspicuous version of the word

of life.

II. We now advert to the Progress made in Translations within the last ten months, which indeed has not been very great, as much of our at tention has been directed to revising and preparing for the press those already translated. The progress made has been chiefly in the sungskrit,

the invasion of the Mussulmans was spoken throughout Hindoost'kan. It is still the language most extensively understood particularly among the com mon people.

In

Mr. Lassar have thus satisfied themselves, the double page is set up in the new Chinese types cut in metal, which is perhaps the work of half an hour for one of the youths studying Chinese: a few copies are then taken off and one given to Mr. Lassar, the Chinese assistants, and to each of the youths, for their perusal and remarks. When none of us are able to suggest any further alteration, the double sheet is printed off. This method necessarily requires much time, and permits us to advance but slowly in printing, particularly at first; but the peculiar nature of the Chinese language, differing as it does from all we are engaged in beside, seems to demand this care. Nor will it be ultimately any real loss of time to the work itself; for although we do not expect that even this care will render the first edition perfect, as its accuracy must of course be in proportion to our knowledge, yet we have reason to believe it will free it from any very gross faults; and the knowledge and experience daily gained by this method, in conjunction with the continued study of the most esteemed Chinese authors, will we trust at length enable us to purge it of these, and to proceed in the work with an increased degree of speed as well as of certainty.

The following are the versions in which copy has been revised and prepared for the press. In the Orissa, copy has been prepared to the 20th chapter of the 2d book of Kings. In the Hindee, to the 26th of Numbers. In the Mahratta, the copy is ready for the press to the 2d of Deuteronomy. In the Shikh, to the 4th chap. ter of the Acts of the Apostles. the Telinga, little has been done beside preparing a grammar of the language, which is now in the press. In the Chinese, the Gospel by St. John is undergoing a third revision, and the first chapter is now in the press. As the public have taken an interest in this version that demands our warmest gratitude, it may perhaps not be disagreeable to them to be made acquainted with the mode we adopt in thus revising, as this may possibly enable some learned and candid friend to suggest an interesting hint on the subject. It is this: with Griesbach before him brother Marshman goes through the corrected copy, sentence by sentence, with Mr. Lassar, and then slowly reads to him the English from the Greek of Griesbach, that he may judge of the meaning and spirit of the whole by seeing it in its connexion. When a proper portion is thus prepared, two copies are taken of it, one of which Mr. Lassar takes home with him (for in his daily course brother Marshman and he constantly sit to gether,) that he may weigh it when alone, judge of the Chinese idiom, and avail himself of any idea arising from his acquaintance with the Ar. menian version, esteemed so excellent. The other, brother Marshman examines in the mean time with a nother Chinese assistant, takes his o. pinion on every new character, and where any clause seems obscure, causes him to write down his idea of its meaning in other Chinese words. When brother Marshman and

But

III. We have also had an opportunity of extending the translation of the word of life to the language of Assam. A pundit, a native of Assam has been procured, and the nature of the dialect carefully investi gated. The character current there is found to be Bengalee, and the construction, and at least nine-tenths of the words are identically so. the grammar differs. The terminations of the nouns and verbs vary so much as to render a native of Bengal scarcely intelligible to one of Assam. Perhaps the difference may be as great between the two languages as between the Hebrew and the Chaldee: It is at least equal to that between the Chaldee and the Syriac. On maturely weighing the matter therefore, it appeared well worth the labor to remove that slight philologi. cal barrier, and allure the Assamese to the perusal of the word of life by

giving it to them entirely in their accustomed mode of speech, especially when it can be done without the expense of a new fount of types. The translation is advanced to the begin. ning of John.

The death of that eminent philologist Dr. John Leyden having left unfinished several translations of the Gospels, we have retained a Pushtoo or Afghan moonshee, and by steady application we hope to be enabled in due time to carry forward the trans. lation in this language.

IV. Instead of mentioning any new editions which have issued from the press since our last memoir, we are called to bow in silent submission to a most awful and mysterious dispen. sation of Divine Providence. March 11th, when the Pentateuch in Mah. ratta and Bengalee was nearly printed off, the New Testament in the Skikh and Telinga languages in the press, together with the Hindoost'hanee by Mr. Martyn, and a second edition of the Hindee, and a large edition of the Tamul New Testament, it pleased an all-wise Provi. dence to suffer a fire to break out about six in the evening, which, after being resisted for four hours with all the help we could procure, baffled every effort made to stop it, and increasing, in about two hours consumed the building and all the printing utensils therein. In addition to extensive founts of English types, one of Hebrew and two of Greek, there were destroyed no less than fourteen in the various languages of the East, among which were founts of Arabic, Persian, Deva-naguree, Chinese, Burman, Mahratta, Skikh or Punjabee, Telinga, and Tamul. This calamity was heightened by the loss of about 1400 reams of English paper, great part of which had been deposit. ed with us by the Calcutta Auxiliary Bible Society, for the sake of printing editions of the New Testament in Tamul, Cingalese, and Malayalim, and by the destruction of books and manuscripts which has cost nearly a thousand pounds. The nett loss, including the buildings, amounted to about sixty thousand rupees, £7,500 sterling, exclusive of the pa

or

per belonging to the Calcutta Auxiliary Bible Society.†

Yet amidst this melancholy dispensation of divine Providence it was easy to discern traces of its tender care. The Presses, which could scarcely have been replaced in India, being in a room adjoining, were got out unhurt; and to our inexpressible joy we, the next day, found uninjured among the ruins, the Steel Punches of the various Indian languages which had taken us nearly ten years to get made, and which it must have taken almost as many years to replace, independently of the expense, as they are made by only two artists in Bengal. Of above 4000, however, scarcely 70 were found missing. Af. ter maturely weighing this dis pensation of divine Providence, we felt convinced that it did not free us in the least from the duty of pressing forward the work of publishing the Sacred Scriptures, but rather called for increased exertion therein. That the printing of them therefore might suffer as little delay as possible, we resolved on immediately commencing the work anew in a commodious building we had formerly let, but which had been given up to us four days before the fire broke out. There, with the melted metal, we begun casting afresh the various founts of types in which we were printing the Scriptures; and through the good hand of God upon us, we have been enabled in these four months to get ready a fount of large types in the Devanaguree for the Sungskrit Scriptures and of small ones for the Hindee; and also founts in the Tamul, Orissa, Bengalee, Mahratta, and Shikh lan. guages, in all which we are now printing some part of the Scriptures: namely the New Testament in the Hindee, Shikh, and Tamul languages; (the last an edition of 5000 copies at the sole expense of the Calcutta Auxiliary Bible Society,) the Pentateuch in Hindee, Mahratta, and Bengalee; and the Historical Books in Orissa and Sungskrit. The Chinese movea

flt hence appears, that the loss was considerably less than was at first fear. ed.

ED. PAN.

ble metal types we had brought into such a state of forwardness prior to the fire, as to be ready for printing the Scriptures with them; but they were then all melted down. We have however kept the Chinese type cutters incessantly employed ever since, and have now the first sheet of John in the Chinese press.

Nothing further remains but the pleasing duty of acknowledging the supplies by means of which Divine Providence has carried forward the work this year. Part of these con. sists of a donation from the Corres. ponding Committee of the British and Foreign Bible Society of £1000; for which we beg you will tender the British and Foreign Bible Society our warm and cordial thanks.

Another most seasonable supply is is the sum of £ 901 received by you from a great number of friends to the Scriptures both in England and America, mentioned more particularly in your Periodical Accounts, No. XX. and to whom also we beg you to present our warm and grateful acknowledgments.

The last sum we mention, which demands our gratitude as evincing a love to the cause of God far above the value of the sum given, is a present of 20 dollars sent us from America by a friend of the word of God.

Dr.

The sums stand thus:
EXPENDED.

To learned natives for assistance in the various languages, 10 months, 6034 4 7 Balance, 9218 3 5

The balance of last year we are unable to give with accuracy, as the account was burnt at the time of the late fire. As we previously sent a copy to you, however, we beg you will supply the deficiency.

We have to add, that although we have editions of various parts of the Scriptures in the press, we have been unable, through the late fire, to carry any of them to account, as we never place any version to the account of the public till it be wholly printed off. This in the present instance makes a difference in the balance of more than 8000 Rupees; that sum having been expended by us on the editions now in the press though not yet carried to account.

The following is a View of the State of the Translations as already detailed.

1. Sungskrit, N. T. Printed. O. T: Pentateuch printed; historical books printed to 2d Samuel. Copy prepared to 2d Chron. ii.

2. Chinese, N. T. completed; St. John in the press. O. T. Translated to 1st Sam, v,

3. Bengalee, N. T. Third edition printed and nearly distributed. O. T. Second edition of the Pentateuch printed to Leviticus iv.

O. T.

4. Orissa, N. T. Printed. The Hagiographia and the Prophets printed; the historical books printed to 1st Kings. Copy prepared to 2d Kings xx.

5. Mahratta, N. T. Printed. O.T. The Pentateuch printed to Num. iv, Copy revised to Deut. ii.

6. Hindee, N. T. 2d edition in the press. O. T. The Pentateuch printed to Exodus ii. Copy prepared to Num. xxvi.

7. Telinga. Matthew in the press. 2. Kurnata, Matthew revised for the press.

9. Shikh, N. T. Printed to Luke, vii. Copy revised to Acts iv.

10. Cashmire, N. T. Translated to Rom. ii.

11. Burman. N, T. Copy prepared to Luke xviii.

12. The Assam, N. T. Translated to John vi.

13. The Pushtoo, or Affghan, N. T. commencing.