gratifying advance has been made. Village chapels have increased in number. In the sacred city of Ambohimanga, which foreigners may not enter, two Churches have been gathered which meet for worship outside the walls; and on one occasion one of the missionary brethren addressed a vast congregation in the open market near. In Vonezongo the Churches have increased. Far away to the south of the capital, the visits of our brethren to the Betsileo awoke new life among the converts; and, among the forests of Tanala, the noble princess Ittovana has declared herself a Christian.

The most conspicuous manifestation of the sympathy of the Queen and her leading nobles in this advance of religious opinion appeared in November last, on the opening of the second of the Memorial Churches, the Church at Ambohipotsy. Thirty years ago, in March, 1836, on a Sunday morning, the little prison of the capital at Ambatonakanga was opened, and a young woman was led forth to be put to death. She was just thirty, fair to look upon, and of gentle manners; and her face was lit with that bright radiance which springs from the conviction that God and heaven are very near. She walked forth with firm step; she was surrounded by the guards; and though going to die, she began to sing in a joyous tone the hymns that she had loved. Followed by a crowd, of which some hooted, and some were lost in wonder, she passed through the city, towards the dreary ditch at the south end of the long ridge on which the capital is built. The scene before her and on either side was one of unusual beauty. East, west, and south, the broad, green plain of Imerina stretched to the distant horizon, presenting to the eye bright gleams of lakes and watercourses, of fertile fields and wooded hills; amongst which nestled the rich villages, and the flocks and herds were feeding in peace. She saw it not. She saw not the smiling land, the taunting crowd, the cruel executioner; she only saw the face of her Lord. Descending the hill, she kneeled to pray, and so praying she was speared. No common honour descended on her that day; she was the first martyr of Christ's Church in the island of Madagascar. "Strange is it," said the executioner, "there is a charm about these people; they do not fear to die." Thirty-two years have passed away. Again the crowds gather at the "White Village," and another woman comes down to pray, the object of attraction to all eyes. But this is the QUEEN of Madagascar. On the white ridge which overhangs the ditch where Rasalama died, stands a handsome church, with its lofty spire, which has been erected to her memory, and will bear her name upon its walls. The church is crowded with Christian worshippers, and vast numbers are compelled to remain outside. The Queen, not a persecutor, but a friend, comes to join her people in dedicating the church to Christian worship; and, in special sympathy with the occassion, offers her Bible for pulpit use. The Prime Minister, whose predecessor had assigned Christians to death, now urges his countrymen, in stirring words, to believe in Christ, because he is the Saviour of the world. To all who are present, ruler and subjects, the occasion is one of unfeigned joy. Once more the Queen and her Christian subjects met before

the year closed. On Christmas-day the palace court was crowded by converts wishing to present their congratulations, and, at the Queen's request, they sang some of their hymns and offered prayer. The Report of the Mission speaks of 20,000 hearers added to the congregation during last year; and returns the converts at 37,000 persons, including 7,000 members.

Now we hear, on the very eve of the anniversary, that the Queen herself has been baptized. Humbly and simply, like one of her subjects, she has sought instruction from her native pastors; has told the story of the growth of her convictions; and has not been afraid to confess her faith before the people. The missionaries write thus to the directors :—

"The most important matter I have to communicate this month is that on Sunday, February the 21st, the Queen and Prime Minister were baptized by Andriambelo, in the small palace which was built by Mr. Cameron for the late Queen. A large number of the leading officers were present, and the fact was made as public as possible. On the Friday evening before baptism was administered, Andriambelo and Rahanamy, one of the pastors at Ambohipotsy, were sent for, to converse with the Queen and Prime Minister, and to examine them as to their belief in the Saviour, and their reasons for wishing to be baptized; and their answers, Andriambelo says, were very satisfactory. In conversation, she told them that in former years, when she was still a girl, one of the former Mission preachers, at present copastor in one of the churches, was appointed to teach her reading and writing; but he, being afraid of the Queen, did not say a word to her about the Saviour or the Gospel. Her late brother was at that time acquainted with Andriantsiamba, one of the four who were afterwards burned at Faravohitra, and he used to receive visits from him. This man, Andriantsiamba, took occasion to speak to the young girl about the Saviour and the salvation of the soul. And this, the Queen says, was her first introduction to some knowledge of the Gospel.

"The Prime Minister also states that, during the same days of darkness, he received a copy of the Scriptures from one of the last of the martyrs, Razafinarina, and that he used to keep it hid within the court-yard, in a part of the enclosure where the Queen kept her fighting bulls. The ways of God are wonderful, and we possibly may at the present time be reaping fruit from seed then sown in tears."

No convulsions have attended this mighty change. Nor force, nor guile, nor penalties, nor personal influence, have been employed to produce it. The influence has been lofty, pure, divine. The memory of the faithful dead; the consistent example of the living; the open Bible; the earnest preacher; the power of the Spirit; religious freedom; these have done it. The doctrine has dropped like the rain, and speech has distilled like the dew. With the calmness of conscious power, men have preached; in the calm enjoyment of civil freedom, men have listened and thought. And so the Church has grown. So, in stillness and in sunshine, like the great Temple, this new habitation of God has been rising to His praise.

"No workmen's steel, no ponderous axes rung;

Like a tall palm the mystic fabric sprung;

Majestic silence!"

From Report of Londom Missionary Society.

THE QUEEN OF MADAGASCAR AND THE ROMISH PRIESTS. Mr. William Pool, who is engaged in building the chapels in Madagascar, writes a letter to the English Independent, under date April 5, 1869, in which we find the following interesting statement :

"Since the opening of the Memorial Church at Ambohipotsy, and the attendance of the Court at its consecration, the French have been constantly urging the Queen to be present at a service in their Roman Catholic, chapel at Imahamasina; if I hear correctly, there had been a thinly attended service for some time on Sabbath afternoons. Report says that to accomplish their object many arguments have been plied, and among others that the Treaty recently concluded requires that they be treated as the most favoured nation.' On the other hand the Court made many excuses, the whole of which clearly indicated their reluctance to comply with the request. At last consent to visit the building was obtained, and on Thursday, March 25, the Court went. In order to give éclat to the occasion, a throne was prepared and richly decorated for the use of the Sovereign. The chapel itself was decked out with that artistic skill for which the French are proverbial; the altar, &c., sharing, of course, very largely in the decorations, and exhibiting many artificial lights. Outside long hangings and festoons conveyed the idea of a travelling theatre, the resemblance being so nearly similar to that one has seen at large country fairs. Moreover, music was to do her part, and a laudatory National Anthem had been got up for the occasion,-in short, everything which ingenuity could accomplish likely to attract and please the monarch was done. At about eight o'clock the Court left the palace, escorted by guards as usual, preceded by the Queen's band. At the building the Queen was received by the French Special Commissioner and the officiating priests. Her Majesty having advanced half way up the building, stood still, and the Prime Minister then presented 'Hasina' on behalf of the people. (This payment of 'Hasina,' or a dollar of allegiance, still obtains among the people on the commencement or completion of any building of importance.) This done the Queen turned to leave, when the Special Commissioner took hold of her arm, urging her to occupy the seat prepared. The Prime Minister said, "The Queen came to take Hasina because the house is hers.' The Commissioner replied, I see there is no love, only hatred to France.' The Minister rejoined, 'There is nothing in the Treaty to compel the Queen to pray with you;' and the Court left, their stay in the chapel scarcely exceeding twelve minutes. The Roman Catholic congregations are said to be considerably reduced (they were never very large) in consequence of this visit of the Court."

THE TAHITIAN MISSION.

WHEN Tahiti first fell under the French Protectorate, fears were enter, tained respecting the stability of its people. By God's blessing on the means of grace, they seem at the present time to be more spiritual and more firm in their attachment to the truth than ever. Several young pastors, trained in our Tahaa Institution, have been warmly welcomed among them, and their numbers are larger than for some time past:

"The statistics of the year, so far as we can obtain them for Tahiti and Moorea, are as follows:

over 9000

2800

1260

Roman Catholic Congregation, Members and Scholars, Natives 700 "Hence we see the Roman Catholics cannot yet number, in their schools, congregations, and churches altogether, in Tahiti and Moorea, more than one-twelfth of the native population as theirs. The other eleven-twelfths are nominally Protestant. Without reckoning the schools and congregations of the Protestants, the Church members alone of the Native Protestant Church, are about four times as many as all the Roman Catholics in their schools, congregations, and churches together."

From Report of London Missionary Society.

PROTESTANTISM IN SPAIN:-A DIVINE GOSPEL AND A DIVINE PROVIDENCE.

Ar the Meeting of the Evangelical Continental Society, held on the 19th of May, statements of deep interest were made touching the progress of religious freedom and Christian truth in Spain.

I. FROM THE REPORT.-All things seem to encourage the hope that religious liberty has been secured in Spain, the home of the Inquisition. The right to freedom of conscience has become part of the Constitution, and ministers and members of the Parliament have nobly striven to set forth the true principles of liberty of worship. One speaker in the Constituent Cortes had declared that "A religion accepted and not believed degrades rather than elevates, and makes the country which enforces it on its subjects, not the hearth, but the dungeon of the soul." Another speaker had made a striking allusion to some recent discoveries which had been made on the site of the stake at which so many martyrs suffered. "Go," he said to the Cortes, "to the Calle Nucha de San Barnardo, turn to the right, and there near the statues of Daoiz and Velarde, you will see the Quemadura of the Cross. I could have wished that these discussions should have taken place over that horrible spot, so that those who defend religious unity might see it. The Quemadura of the Cross is a grand geological cutting. Nature is a grand book, and it opens its pages in the geological strata. The Quemadura is a grand book, and opens its pages to us in the strata of calcined human bones, earth, coal, then earth, bones, coal again, and so on. Not many days since I saw a boy turning over that rubbish with a stick, and he drew from it three grand discourses in defence of religious liberty, three objects of great eloquence: they were a piece of oxydised iron, a human rib almost calcined, and a plait of hair burnt at one of its extremities." The Committee of the Evangelical Continental Society has opened correspondence with three Spanish Committees, and has engaged to undertake the support of one evangelist, and is prepared to provide for a second agent. They earnestly solicit contributions for this new field of labour, regarding it as of the greatest importance that evangelists and Bible-readers should be sent out to proclaim "Christ and him crucified," as nearly twelve millions of the people are unable to read.

II. FROM SPEECH OF REV. W. P. TIDDY.-The correspondent of the Star newspaper stated that on the 12th of May, 1669, exactly 200 years ago, eighty-five persons were put to death, among whom were twenty Jews, five of whom were women. During that very month [1869] the remains of these persons had been discovered. He regarded this discovery as the finger of Providence pointing them to the evangelisation of Spain. Why were not these remains found last year? If they had been, the Government was then sufficiently strong to have hushed it up. How was it that this discovery was made at the very time that the Chamber of Deputies was discussing the question of religious liberty? It seemed as if the finding of

those remains was an indication to the friends of religious liberty to go in and possess the land. Many of those who had embraced the Christian religion, and who loved Christ, found in that country a martyr's death, while others escaped to foreign lands. Perez, one of the predecessors of Valerie, translated the New Testament into Spanish, and left his fortune to carry on his work. Ten years after his death, in 1569, the whole Spanish Bible was translated and published. He would have them mark these dates :-In 1569 the Spanish Bible was published; in 1669 the auto da fè celebrated, the remains of which had just been discovered;-300 years after the Bible had been thus translated, and 200 years after these persons were brought to the stake, the Evangelical Continental Society were privileged to commence their operations in Spain.

In 1865 he (Mr. Tiddy) visited Spain, and fancied before he went there that he had seen Popery in its worst as well as its best aspects; but he had not conceived the degradation and demoralisation to which Popery could reduce a population when there was not Protestantism present to counteract its effects. The Inquisition had its effects on the national character; they were afraid to open their minds even to their own families; it was father bringing the son to the stake, and the son bringing the father. It was said that 30,000 persons in some thirty years denounced themselves to the Inquisition in hopes of more lenient treatment than if denounced by their families, of whom they were in fear. He inquired for a copy of the Bible, and was shown two editions, one costing 25s., and another 40s.; in the windows of the same shop he saw the most objectionable French novels openly exposed for sale. Religious liberty had been proclaimed in Spain, but many of the Spanish Liberals were infidels. He could not feel surprised that, having seen religion only in the form of a degrading superstition, they had refused to bow down their intellects to it. The attention of the people of Spain is now seriously turned towards religion. The Holy Scripture is circulated abundantly; the chapels that are open are crowded, and in one of these fifty communicants sat down at the Lord's table. One chapel at Madrid contains 900 to 1,000 persons, and is presided over by a gentleman who was brought to the knowledge of the truth about ten years ago; he it was who was instrumental in God's hand in bringing Matamoros to the same knowledge. The pastor of one of these chapels was a converted Roman Catholic priest, who celebrated the Lord's Supper to eighty communicants. In Malaga there has been a Christian community ever since the days of Matamoros, and while Queen Isabella was still ruling, an edition of the New Testament was secretly printed, bound, and distributed. Although religious liberty was now established in Spain, there was no knowing how soon revolution might again break out, and what turn it would take. He trusted that the efforts made in Spain would be vigorously seconded by the Christian friends in this country, and that their ministerial brethren would bring the matter before their congregations. He trusted, if this was done, that next year they