with a few of the more respectable passengers, were removed on board the frigate, where they were detained until he had effected a landing on the island of Ardnamurchan, which the following extract from a contemporary annalist shews he soon accomplished:-This mighty Montrose, having gotten the king's patent to go upon the Covenanting rebels in Scotland with fire and sword, and either bring them under subjection and obedience, or otherwise destroy them all, their lives, lands, and goods, gives order to this Alaster M'Donald to ship his soldiers and land them in Ardnamurchan, an island belonging to Argyll, and destroy his country, and promised to meet him in Scotland. M'Donald takes the sea, and the eighth of July lands in the aforesaid isle of Ardnamurchan, plunders the haill goods and gear, kills the inhabitants, and burns the haill country; takes in a strong castle, and mans the samen with all provision necessary. To this castle, called Meagrie or Mingarie castle, situated on the eastern coast of the island, he removed his prisoners, and committed them to close and rigorous confinement. Here they suffered incredible hardships; until at length Mr. Weir, worn out with long confinement, fell sick, and being destitute of every necessary accommodation, his strength rapidly dec.ined; and, after lingering a few weeks, he died. The following interesting notices of the capture and imprisonment of these brethren, and of the character and death of Mr. Weir, were written at the time by his fellow-sufferer, Mr. Hamilton, and are now, for the first time, published from an authentic manuscript.

"All that knew Mr. Weir from a child of ten years or thereby, might have discerned in him a perpetual preparation for death, by his grave and holy behaviour. But when our Lord saw his time of departure approach, he set him apart in a marvellous manner to make himself ready for eternity.

For, first, according to the appointment of the General Assembly, held at Edinburgh, 1643, he went to Ireland and spent three months in painful preaching of the Gospel, viz.: all April, May, and June, 1644, almost every day. He laboured in spreading the Covenant of God with Mr. William Adair, minister at Ayr, who together presuaded the people to embrace the said Covenant in Carrickfergus, Antrim,

Derry, Raphoe, and Enniskillen, and in all theeraine,

country Churches which lay about there, the Lord working mightily with them. In the time of his travell in Ireland he helped to give the communion at Derry with Mr. William Adair; at Newton, in the county of Down, [June 23,] with Mr. John M'Clelland; and at Killileagh, [June 30,] with Mr. James Hamilton. In those two places he gave the communion upon the last two Sabbaths of his being in Ireland, God seeing it meet to make him take a double meal, because the journey was great before him, and he was to go in the strength of that

food to the mountain of the Lord. Upon the second day of July, which was the last day wherein he was in Ireland, he preached at Donaghadee on Hebrews, twelfth chapter, and three first verses; the matter of which sermon did much refresh him in all his sufferings afterward. Upon the same second of July, as he was returning from Ireland with his wife, master James Hamilton, minister at Dumfries, Master David Watson, father-in-law to the said Master James, with Master Thomas Johnson, preacher, and many other passengers, were taken prisoners at sea by a Wexford frigate, called The Harp, wherein was Alaster Macdonnell, general-major to Antrim's forces, coming along with three ships more, full of soldiers, to invade Scotland. The said Alaster determined to keep the said prisogers till he could get his father, Coll-Macgillespie, alias Colkittagh, and his two sons, brethren to said Alaster, relieved for them. Wherefore he took seven of the said prisoners aboard in the frigate, leaving the rest in the prize whence these seven were taken, viz.: Mr. David Watson, Mr. John Weir and his wife, Mr. James Hamilton, WilJiam Hamilton of Glasgow, William Irving of Dumfries, and Archibald Bruce, a dweller beside Hamilton. These seven were kept prisoners in the said frigate till the 15th day of July at night. They got not liberty jointly to exercise worship together; but every one did, as he best might, apart: only they had now and then conferences of what they read, for their Bibles were spared to them by the good providence of God. And also when the frigate was pursuing any bark or boat, the said prisoners, being all closed under decks and alone, took opportunity to pray together. Upon the said fifteenth of July, the said prisoners were carried from the said frigate to Castle Meagrie, and were all put in one chamber together.

"Every day, twice, the said Mr. Weir and Mr. James Hamilton did both of them expound a psalm, or a part of a psalm, the one praying before and the other after the said exposition. This they did in the hearing of those other fellowprisoners which were above named, so long as they were together, which was till the twenty-third of September, in which time they had proceeded in expounding to the eighty-first psalm.'

“During their confinement, their sufferings were much increased by an unsuccessful attempt of the Marquis of Argyll to obtain possession of the place. He sent a party to beleagure the castle, thinking to liberate the prisoners with strong band, but that attempt failed him; for after that he had, for seven weeks together, beleagured it, his captain was forced to give over and leave the castle and prisoners in it, who, during the time of this siege, suffered incredible hunger and thirst, having nothing to drink but the rain-water that fell from heaven on the b bartisans of the castle, which they were forced, because of the thick mud, to seethe through their teeth, they

winking all the while, for they could not look upon the green glut that was with it; and their meat was for most part unground rye, which they were sometimes forced to grind betwixt two slate stones, for their extreme hunger. Much misery they suffered all the time of their captivity; but all was nothing, in respect of these seven weeks during which the castle was beleagured.'

"Though Macdonnell had successfully repulsed this attempt of Argyle, yet, finding the maintenance of eight prisoners too heavy a burden, he took steps to rid himself of a part of them. On the third of September he liberated Mrs. Weir, she being then near her confinement; and on the twenty-third, the three merchants, Messrs. W. Hamilton, Irving, and Bruce, 'were relieved on bond and caution for paying their ransom; and master Thomas Johnson was also relieved because he had no charge in Scotland, though he had been a minister in Ireland. The three ministers, to wit, masters J. Hamilton, Watson, and Weir, are kept close; and Alaster gave strict orders, that upon no condition any of them should be let free; for he resolved that they should liberate his father old Colkittagh, and his two brethren, Archibald and Angus, that were then prisoners, taken by Argyll; but the marquis, carrying a great indignation against all the clan, specially against old Coll, would not liberate them.' Their captivity, therefore, assumed a very hopeless aspect. No prospect of relief appeared, and their spirits began to despond; but the consoling truths of that Gospel, which they had so faithfully preached, sustained them, and though their flesh and heart failed, God was the strength of their heart, and their portion for ever.' It was at this period that Mr. Weir became indisposed. On the second of October he first complained of sickness; and on the sixteenth he died, with great peace and joy,' in the thirty-fourth year of his age. Mr. Hamilton and his father-in-law, Mr. Watson, were left alone, and spent a gloomy winter in that secluded and cheerless castle. Mr. Watson sunk under his sufferings, and died in the month of March following; but Mr. Hamilton was graciously preserved, until after many efforts on the part both of the General Assembly and the Scottish parliament to procure the release of this esteemed minister, he was at length, by an exchange of prisoners, liberated on the second of May, 1645, after an imprisonment of ten monthe."

APPEAL BY THE DIRECTORS OF THE SCOTTISH MISSIONARY SOCIETY, RELATIVE TO THE URGENT NEED OF FUNDS.

THE Directors of the Scottish Missionary Society beg most earnestly to solicit the attention of the Auxiliary Associations throughout the country, and of the Friends of Missions in ge

A

neral, to the great and increasing defalcation in their funds for some years past, as will appear from the following statement of the receipts, exclusive of sundry repayments, and of contributions for specific purposes :—

1833-4,............................................£4351
1834-5,........................ 3621

From this statement it appears that, since 1834, the funds of the Society have been decreasing every successive year; that the receipts for ordinary purposes for the present year, as compared with their amount for that year, have fallen off more than £2,400; and that in 1837 they are even upwards of £1,200 less than in 1836.*

Such a defalcation in the funds of the Society cannot fail to create in the minds of the Directors much anxiety and alarm. They are perfectly aware, indeed, that the establishment of Missions by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, and by the United Secession Synod, combined with the transfer of the East India Mission to the General Assembly, and various circumstances in the character of the times, will account to a great extent for this depression in the funds of the Society; but still they trust the Friends of Missions through.. out the country will not abandon it in its difficulties, and that at a time when the calls to increased exertion in the West Indies, the chief field of its operations, are so many and so urgent, and the encouragements are so great and so powerful. The West Indies present at this moment the interesting spectacle-a spectacle never perhaps before witnessed in the an nals of the world-of about SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND hu man beings emerging from the degradation and wretchedness of slavery, and rising to the rights and privileges of freedom. There is no portion of the human family which has such powerful and peculiar claims on the justice, benevolence and sympathy of Britons, in consequence of the great and multiplied wrongs which we, as a nation, have inflicted on their race for between two and three centuries, both in our colonies and in their father-land. There is, at the same time, no class of heathens in any quarter of the globe who manifest such a disposition to embrace the gospel. Within the last fifty years there have been more converts made to Christianity in the West Indies, than in all the rest of the heathen world put together; and as the great act of emancipation comes into full operation, there is the prospect of a still richer and more abundant harvest.

*In the sums now stated, are not included about £600 raised for Mr. Waddell's Church and School, and for the Church at Port-Maria, nor the contributions lately received for Negro Education, these being special objects.

The Directors of the Scottish Missionary Society have peculiar pleasure in stating, that the accounts from their Missions in Jamaica were never more cheering and encouraging. There are some thousands of the Negroes under the care of the Missionaries, and enjoying the benefit of their instructions; Christian Churches have been formed at all the stations, and, in connexion with them, there are upwards of one thousand communicants. In the schools there are about fifteen hundred scholars, of all ages, and of both sexes. The Sabbath is more

strictly observed; marriage is on the increase; Bible, and Missionary, and Temperance Societies are establishing; prayer meetings are numerous, and well attended; and family wor ship is daily observed in many of the Negro families. "In a very short time." says Mr. Waddell, "this island, lately a moral wilderness, will, I trust, become a fruitful field. A more rapid improvement is taking place in it, than, so far as I know, in any other part of the world. Already the wilderness and the solitary place are glad because of the work of the Lord, and the moral desert is beginning to blossom in the beauties of holiness.'

The Directors have, at the same time, frequent and urgent calls to extend their operations in that interesting quarter of the globe, to establish new stations, and to increase the number of their Missionaries, Catechists, and Teachers. Liberal assistance is offered by some of the White people, for this pur pose, and even the Negroes themselves address us in the words of the man of Macedonia, " COME OVER AND HELP US.” 11 39

The Directors of the Scottish Missionary Society would now ask their Christian brethren throughout the country, Shall they continue, or shall they abandon-Shall they extend or shall they diminish their exertions in this most interesting field of Missionary labour,-a “field already white to the harvest," and which promises to reward so richly the toils of the husbandman? They do not suppose there is one Auxiliary Society, or a single friend of Missions, from the one end of the kingdom to the other, who will reply," Abandon them-Diminish them.?”' They feel confident the general cry will be, "Continue them→ Extend them." But in order to this, it is necessary that the Directors should have not simply a verbal but a practical answer; it is necessary they should have CONTINUED ExtendED support. Without this it is vain-it would be delusive to encourage them to advance; this would only involve them in greater and more inextricable difficulties. Should there be no increase in their funds, it will be impossible for the Direc. tors to extend their operations; should there be a still further defalcation, they will be under the necessity, however painful, of diminishing them. If, therefore, Auxiliary Societies, Collectors, subscribers, and other friends of Missions, who Housed formerly to contribute to our Society, iety shall withhold their wonted contributione, they will thereby endanger the useful