come.

failed to contribute before because no deputation visited them, excuse themselves from this duty now, under the idea of waiting till a deputation does The secretary is quite prepared to visit as many places as possible; but the fact that nearly all require to be visited within the space of three or four months only, and most of these on the Lord's day too, at once shows that he cannot by any means cover all the ground; and the Committee are well aware that any large amount expended on deputations specially engaged would not be approved of by many of their supporters. They have, therefore, earnestly to request that the friends of the Society will, as far as possible, render their support without obliging the Society to incur the heavy charge of a general system of deputations.

"AS FOR THOSE IRISH, WHY, LET THEM GO.”

Such was the answer given by a gentleman in a country town, when applied to for his subscription to the Baptist Irish Society. As the applicant turned, with a heavy heart, from the door of this former supporter of our mission to Ireland, he could but ask, and "Whither would this English Christian let those Irish go'? and Why ?" If our views of the method of salvation by Christ, as the only atoning Priest, be correct, then "those Irish," if so unheeded in their superstitious trust in human priests, can "go," as far as we can learn the future destinies of men from the declarations of Divine Revelation, only to that dread despair from which the Christian should seek to rescue his fellow immortal. Such was not the spirit and language of Christ. He did not say, let even those Samaritans go; His language was, "the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." And to his disciples he said, "freely ye have received, freely give."

And then, WHY should "those Irish" be so abandoned by Christian Englishmen? Faults they may have, but with all their faults they are a noble race; worthy of all the generousness that an English heart can feel; and fitted, when renewed by divine grace, for the highest services that Christian men can have to perform. It cannot be, that the Irish, as a people, are beneath the notice of English Christians.

Evangelical effort among them has not been so successful as could have been desired. But have our evangelical missions to Ireland so far failed as to warrant the exclamation, "As for those Irish, why, let them go." We are not unmindful of the proverb, "Comparisons are odious." It would be an invidious task to institute comparisons between missions to Ireland and those to other lands. But of evangelical efforts in Ireland we can confidently say, they have been productive of an amount of spiritual good which would utterly forbid such an abandonment of the work there. One thing we have found, that persons who have spoken of missions to Ireland as though they were unworthy of support, because they are unproductive of results, have commonly inquired but very little into the real state of the missions which they have so repudiated.

The Baptist Irish Society has done great good; it is doing good still; and if favoured with support at all proportioned to the claims of the mission, it could engage in further efforts on which the divine blessing would doubtless rest. There are many churches and many individual Christians in England, Scotland, and Wales, who have proved their love to Ireland and to evangelical truth by long and well-sustained liberality; but there are many others by whom help is seldom if ever rendered. We are assured that there are but few who would say, "As for those Irish, why, let them go." We trust that such as have not for some time taken any part in evangelical effort in behalf of that people will be induced, by the painful incident thus referred to, to afford prompt and liberal support, that the Committee may be cheered in the new efforts they are making, and that the Word may be preached more generally in a land where so much need of evangelical truth obtains.

A GOOD EXAMPLE.

It is not often that we hear of prayer for Ireland; still less of a prayer meeting devoted specially to this purpose. During the past month the pastor of a considerable country church in the West of England having announced that, on the following Lord's day, the annual collection would be made in behalf of the Baptist Irish Society, suggested that the prayer meeting to be held the next evening, should be devoted to special supplication for success to attend our efforts. And then information was read from the Irish Chronicle; and four brethren gave expression to the earnest prayer of the assembly in behalf of Ireland. Ireland needs a place in the prayers of the church as well as India. Why should she not have it? Happy would it be if prayer meetings for Ireland were of more frequent occurrence. May many other churches follow this example; and then we have no doubt the sentiment expressed by our correspondent in this case would be applicable to theirs also:-" It was a good meeting, and I hope the collections will be in accordance with it." Prayer and liberality are commonly found in union.

THE RURAL POPULATION OF IRELAND.

MR. WILLETT labours in a wide extent of country in the county of Sligo. He speaks of his prospects as being encouraging, though the companies of people to whom he preaches, in various houses throughout his district, are small. Speaking of the character of the people whom Protestant teachers commonly reach, he says:

"English people form an idea of the are the spell-bound Romanists of this people we preach to from the Irish peasan-country; a people that very seldom hear try that go over to reap their harvest. I the gospel preached, and to whom the

wish it were so, but it is not. Those men, missionary has very little access. What dressed in home-spun frieze cloth garments, he does, he must do by private intercourse.

penances, performing stations round holy wells and sacred ground, hanging bits of rags on the bushes in honour of the saint whose holy place they visit. Such things we witness here in Ireland. Gross dark

If any of them go to hear the word some saint, repeating their Ave Marias and preached, it must be by stealth, for it is at Paternosters, counting their beads, doing their peril to listen to a heretic or Bible reader. Ireland may very properly be compared to India for darkness, idolatry, and superstition. It is pitiable to behold a heathen adoring a god made by his own hand. It is even more so, in this country, to see men kissing a stone cross or a relic of

ness covers the people. If any country needs the gospel it is Ireland.”

CONTRIBUTIONS,

Received on account of the Baptist Irish Society, from Jan. 21 to Feb. 20, 1858.

The thanks of the Committee are presented to Mrs. Beetham, of Brooklands, near Cheltenham, for a valuable box of clothing, &c., for the Irish.

Contributions of this kind are very acceptable, on account of the distress that is felt by many of the poor, with whom the agents of the Society constantly meet.

SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DONATIONS will be thankfully received by the Treasurer, THOMAS PEWTRESS, Esq., or the Secretary, the Rev. CHARLES JAMES MIDDLEDITCH, at the Mission House, 33, Moorgate Street; or the London Collector, Mr. W. F. CAREY, 1, Vernon Terrace, Portobello Road, Kensington Park; and by the Baptist Ministers in any of our principal towns.