resolved, that a letter every two months be addressed to the secretaries of the Bible Societies with which they have been in correspondence, stating the progress of the revision, and detailing the method of conducting it in committee. In accordance with that resolution this letter is written.

A letter to your address, dated November 22d, last year, and forwarded in duplicate, will have informed you of the committee's progress up to that time, and of the business then in hand. The arguments (which are to be laid before you and our missionary associates in China, and alluded to in that letter,) having been made ready for the press, the committee resumed their daily sessions. At their first meeting, (January 5th,) the Rev. W. C. Milne appeared, and took his seat in the committee as delegate, having been elected by the brethren of the Ningpo-Shanghai station, in place of the late Rev. W. M. Lowrie, whose decease was mentioned in our former letter.

The hours for our daily sessions (from 10 A. M. till 2.30 P. M.) having been fixed upon, the committee resumed the work of revision, commencing with Matthew i. 23, on which verse they stopped last July. Our daily progress has since varied from three to eleven verses, closing to-day with Matthew xi. 3.

The word Oos has been left untranslated, the committee, as you have been already informed, being unable to agree on the manner of translating that word; IIvevpa when referring to the Trinity, has been left in like manner untranslated. On all other points, thus far, there has been much unanimity.

The text followed by the committee hitherto, is that edited by Bloomfield. On this point we shall write you more fully after having conferred with our constituents at the several stations, only remarking here, that on this point of preferring Bloomfield's text, there is perfect unanimity of opinion in the committee.

The following are among the works constantly referred to by the committee: Mr. Jewett's Edition of the Received Text; Bagster's Polyglot, folio edition; Griesbach's, Campbell and Boothroyd's, Robinson's, and Bloomfield's Greek Lexicons; Liddell & Scott's do; and Bretschneider's; the Englishman's Concordance; Schmidt's do; and Winer's Grammar of Greek Idioms.

Of native lexicography and classical literature, we have the most approved works of the Chinese, embracing as large a variety as can be desired: we have also all the principal versions extant, that have been made of the inspired scriptures into this language.

In regard to native assistants, it may be mentioned, that in addition to each member having his own, there are three others in attendance on the sessions of the committee: one, the teacher who accompanied Mr. Milne to England; another, a literary graduate, who was baptized in Shanghai two years

ago; and a third, a native of this province, who was brought up within the pale of the Roman Catholic Church, and who is able to read Beza's version of the New Testament, of which there is a copy always before him. These men, being from different provinces, and of different habits and education form a very respectable body of assistants. All of them are intelligent and well educated; and one of them has such a knowledge of the Chinese classics, that he can turn to any paragraph, phrase or word in them, with almost as much ease as the reader of the English Bible can make his references by the help of Cruden's Concordance.

It may be interesting to you to know something of our method of procedure in committee. According to rules laid down for our guidance, before entering on the work of revision, each session is opened by reading a portion of scripture, and prayer, by the members of the committee in rotation. The minutes of the last session are then read, and also the portion of scripture revised at that meeting, and any corrections therein made that may be deemed necessary.

mittee;

The portion for the day (which is always previously assigned and carefully studied by the several members of the committee,) is now taken up. The Chinese Text is that furnished us from the stations of the General Comand the portion at present in hand is Matthew's Gospel, from the Ningpo-Shanghai station. Of this the chairman reads a verse; and if there be, in his own mind, or that of any one of the others, doubts or questions regarding the original of which it is a translation, these are first considered, and the meaning of the passage ascertained. Next, the translation of the principal words, their arrangement, the construction of the sentence, the rendering of the particles, &c., are taken into consideration; and when these are all settled, the rendering of every Greek word is recorded in a book kept for that purpose-a Greek-Chinese Concordance,—and each member of the committee takes a copy of the verse thus revised.

This, in few words, is our method of procedure. You will be sorry to learn, that on account of his continued ill-health, Dr. Boone has been able to sit with the committee but once since our meetings were resumed, in January. He hopes, however, to be able ere long to join us in this work.

From yourself or associates, the committee will be happy to receive any suggestions you may think desirable. The work is, we feel, one of very great difficulty and responsibility, and well may we say, in the language of the Apostle, "Who is sufficient for these things?" It is however a great en couragement to be able to believe, as we do believe, that in our behalf are enlisted the prayers of multitudes, in the church of Christ, who desire the triumphs of the gospel among the Chinese.

In behalf of the Committee of Delegates.

Very truly yours, &c.,

E. C. BRIDGMAN.

The following very interesting letter has come to hand since

the anniversary, from Bro. Thomas S. Ranney:

MAULMAIN, February 22d, 1849.

REV. W. H. WYCKOFF, CORRESPONDING SECRETARY

OF THE AMERICAN

AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY.

MY DEAR SIR:

Your esteemed favor of September 5th, 1848, was received on the 17th inst., and I take pleasure in giving you a prompt, though it must be a brief

answer.

The printing of the revised edition of the Sgau Karen New Testament, owing to various causes beyond my control, proceeds slowly. The continuance of two printing offices in these provinces, and the consequent division of materials for Karen printing, are the principal reasons why the work does not proceed faster. Undoubtedly economy and facility of execution require that there should be but one office for printing in all languages, in which missionaries labor in British Burmah. The translation of the Old Testament into Sgau Karen is in constant progress. The dealings of Providence seem to be remarkable in regard to the translator. After having been deeply afflicted and brought near to the grave, so that hardly strength was left him sufficient to reach Calcutta on his way homeward, (and indeed we were prepared to hear of his burial in the ocean), as though for the special purpose of doing a great work, in giving the Bible in their own tongue to the Karens, he is raised up again and brought back to Maulmain, as though by the Spirit of the Lord, where, with but few interruptions, he is permitted to continue his work. But a tremendous anxiety is felt lest he should not be spared to complete this great task.

The printing of the Pwo Karen New Testament will be commenced as soon as the Executive Committee shall have approved the resolution of the Karen mission to abandon the Pwo Karen character, formerly and now in use, and adopt the Sgau Karen.

Some pains have been taken the present year, to ascertain pretty correctly the number of Christians in the Tenasserim and Arracan Provinces, and in Burmah proper; I mean among the Karens. It is found that in the Tenasserim Provinces, there are about 1,600 baptized believers-in Arracan and Burmah Proper, 4341. Besides these, there are in Burmah Proper, of true and tried Christians who have lacked opportunity of baptism, 5,124. In all therefore, baptized and unbaptized Christians, ELEVEN THOUSAND AND SIXTY-FIVE! and these 11,065 are without the Bible or New Testament. Can Christians in America live without receiving their daily portion of the word of God? What better argument do you need to call forth all the warm sympathies of the Christian heart, than to tell him that here, where but a few

years since the only religion that existed among a wild and ignorant race of people, was that of offerings to propitiate the anger of demons and the worship of evil spirits, there are now more than eleven thousand Christians waiting and hungering for the word of God. Some of these Karens can read the Burmese language, to supply whom, recently a few copies of the Burmese Bible were sent to Arracan, from whence one of the brethren writes, "the Burman Bibles have increased rather than satisfied the desire for them, and we shall need another supply." It will be a sad event indeed for the Karens if their translator of the Scriptures should be taken from them before the work is completed, and I have no doubt that the prayers of these thousands are daily offered that his valuable life may be prolonged.

Very truly and affectionately yours,

THOMAS S. RANNEY.

BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY'S REPORT.

LONDON, MAY, 1849.

TRANSLATIONS.

In the work of TRANSLATION, the chief part of the Report of the Committee refers of course to the department of BIBLICAL translation. In Africa, the Gospels of Matthew and John in Isubu have been completed, and the books of Genesis and Exodus. Other portions of scripture are also ready, and wait only for printing. For the use of schools, a volume of scripture extracts has been published. The grammar and the Gospel of Matthew in Fernandian, prepared by Mr. Clarke, have also been printed during the year. In Central America, Mr Kingdon has been engaged in improving his version of the Gospel in Maya; and Mr. Jenkins at Morlaix, has completed the New Testament in Breton, and has circulated throughout that country nearly the whole of the edition. He speaks of the openings there as cheering in a very high degree. The liberality of the Religious Tract Society has recently placed at the disposal of himself and his brethren the sum of £100 to be employed in translating and printing Barth's Bible Stories, and other books, suitable especially for the young. Many thousand tracts have been printed by him during the year, at the expense of the Paris and London Religious Tract Societies. Tracts on the doctrines of the gospel, as opposed to the errors of the Romish church, have also been printed by Mr. Law of Trinidad, who has been supplied by the Religious Tract Society with paper for that purpose. At Delhi, our aged brother Mr. Thompson has printed several thousands of tracts, and has a promise from the same Society of whatever paper may be needed for future publications. His knowledge of the people, their language, and modes of thought, renders his labors in this department peculiarly acceptable.

The BIBLICAL labors of our brethren in Calcutta have been confined during the year chiefly to the three vernacular languages of India-the Bengali, the Sanscrit, and the Hindi.

In HINDI Mr. Leslie has completed his new version of the

New Testament, and there have been printed

Mr. Thompson has translated Daniel into the same language, and there have been printed

In SANSCRIT the first volume of the Old Testament has been printed to the extent of

And of single Gospels

In BENGALI there have been printed of single Gospels

Of the Psalms

And of the Proverbs

Making the total printed during the year

2,500 copies. 9,000

1,000

2,500

5,000

- 33,000

5,000

1,000

- 59,000

Or since 1838, of 639,057 volumes; or, in all, from the first, of 887,122. The number of the scriptures circulated during the year amounts to 48,157 volumes.

The printing of the remainder of the Old Testament in Sanscrit, and the revision of the New, are advancing steadily; and reprints of the New Testament in Bengali, Hindi, and Hindustani, are in preparation for the ensuing year.