In 1804, the Church Missionary Society sent mis sionarics to Sierra Leone, with the view of introducing Christianity among the neighbouring Susoos. From several of the chiefs they met with the kindest recep tion, and the greatest encouragement ; but to others, their proposal of teaching them " good things" seemed very unaccountable, and even almost ridiculous. What they had hitherto known of white men, prepared them to view with surprise and suspicion any desire of Chris tians to settle among them with a benevolent design. The object to which the missionaries principally direct ed their attention, was the education of the young,—a measure which they pursued on an extensive scale, and with considerable success. But while they prosecuted their labours with disinterestedness and zeal, they had to struggle with difficulties of no ordinary kind, most of them arising out of the iniquitous traffic in slaves. It may appear to us a very extraordinary circumstance, that the inhabitants of Africa should cling to that as a blessing, which we had abolished as her greatest curse ; but the fact is, the slave trade had, from time immemo rial, been the main support of the country, and the re moval of the slave factories stopped the whole trade of the natives, which could not fail to be felt as a serious evil, until some other profitable traffic was established. Hence they hailed the appearance of a smuggling ves sel on their shores, and, on a short notice, supplied her with a cargo of slaves in exchange for tobacco and pow der and rum, which quickly spread idleness, disorder, and misery, through the whole country. The governor of Sierra Leone having sent armed vessels to destroy the slave factories, and to capture the smuggling ships, the Susoos became extremely exasperated against the missionaries, imagining it was they who communicated information to hint of the arrival of smugglers on the liver, though they in fact scrupulously avoided inter fering in matters of this description. The two settle ments which the missionaries bad established in the country were burnt to the ground ; and the enmity to them became at length so general and so violent, that in 1818 they retired with a considerable number of the children to Sierra Leone. A similar establishment, which was formed on the Bullom shore, was also aban doned, chiefly in consequence of the pernicious influ ence of the slave trade.
But while the slave trade has unhappily blasted the prospects of the Church Missionary Society in the So soo country, and on the Bullom shore, it has opened to them a wide and important field of usefulness in the colony of Sierra Leone. After the abolition of this ini quitous traffic, multitudes of ncgrocs, captured in smug gling vessels, were brought to Freetown, and, as they were in a most wretched forlorn condition, they were settled in towns in different parts of the colony, and were supplied with food and clothing at the expense of government, until they were able to maintain them selves. In the principal of these towns the Church Society established missionaries and schoolmasters, who are proceeding in their labours with every prospect of success. In January 1819, the number of adults and children attending the schools in Sierra Leone was no fewer than 2104.
In 1721, Mr. Hans Egcdc, a Norwegian clergyman, proceeded to Greenland, with the view of attempting conversion of the inhabitants to the Christian faith. There, amidst numberless difficulties, and hardships, and dangers, he laboured with unwearied patience and ''er52verance, but with little appearance of success.
Though the Greenlanders often listened to him with wonderful attention, and approved of all he said, it was evident they understood little of his instructions. It is worthy of notice, however, that the immortality of man was a favourite doctrine with them. It pleased them to hear that the spirit did not die with the body ; that the body itself would be restored to life at the last day; that friends would meet together in another and a bet ter world ; and that they would be no more subject to sickness and sorrow. In Greenland, the Danish govern ment afterwards established a number of other colonies, (See Art. and in the principal of them supported missionaries. Many of the Greenlanders have now embraced the Christian faith, and its benefi cial influence is obvious in promoting civilization among them ; there is a marked difference between their manners and customs and those of their pagan country men.
In 1733, Christian David, Matthew Stach, and Chris tian Stach, three or the Moravian Brethren, proceeded on a mission to this cold inhospitable country. " There was no need," says one of them, " of much time or ex pense for our equipment. The congregation consisted chiefly of poor exiles, who had not much to give us, and we ourselves had nothing but the clothes on our backs." No description can equal the difficulties, and dangers, and hardships which the Brethren had to en counter, especially during the first years of their resi dence in that dreary region. By the Greenlanders they were treated with all the caprice common to savages. Sometimes they appeared very friendly to them; at other times they behaved with the greatest rudeness. If the missionaries stopped with them more than one night, they employed every kind of art to entice them to their wanton dissolute practices; and when they fail ed in this, they endeavoured to weary and provoke them, by mocking and mimicking their reading, singing, and praying, or by accompanying these sacred exercises with their hideous howling, or the beat of their drums. All this, and much more, the Brethren bore with pa tience, meekness, and serenity ; but the savages, instead of being softened by their gentle behaviour, were only encouraged to abuse them the more. They pelted them with stones, climbed on their shoulders, seized their goods, and shattered them to pieces: they even attempt ed to spoil their boat, or to drive it out to sea, which would have deprived them of their principal means of subsistence. Cheerless, however, as were the prospects of the Brethren for several years, they at length beheld their labours crowned with remarkable success.
"Fired with a zeal peculiar, they defy The rage and rigour of a polar sky ; And plant successfully sweet Sharon's rose On icy plains, amid eternal snows." CowrER.