“A door of usefulness has been opened ‘among those of mine own nation’ at Benares, where I have been enabled to attend every third Sunday, and now materials are collecting to build a place of worship with, by subscription. Some of the principal people there oppose the measure by their private influence, though they have given money for the work. The report of the death of one of the chaplains above, renders me anxious, lest I should be removed before this scheme is accomplished; but I know the accomplishment of it rests not with me. I now confine my public engagements to the mornings, except one service in Hindoostanee on Sunday evenings. I have mentioned a native Christian who reads and expounds the lessons on these occasions, so that my labour is but small when he is present. Just now, he is at Benares, with a view, if possible, to establish Christian worship among a number of Portuguese and native Christians, who reside in various capacities there. He goes from house to house among them, but has hitherto had little success. Only three attend worship. I may remind you, [that] he conducts public worship according to our Church form, translated. The Gospels we have, and I have translated the principal particulars of the Old Testament history. I may mention that the wisdom of God is manifest here, in recording the faults of the Old Testament saints. A maxim among all classes of Natives, seems to be, that every person, by obeying his own religious guide, will attain eternal blessedness, and several of the Mahomedans have been offended, at my asserting that Moses, Abraham, David &c., were sinners: the proving these saints to have been sinners by nature, as ourselves, overturns this conceit and makes them to seek out a Saviour, who is himself in no need of salvation. To this point, when I have opportunity, I always bring a Mahomedan, carefully avoiding disrespectful mention of his Prophet. The Hindoostanee women attend, though not in such numbers as at first, yet regularly, and I have no doubt some of these most despised of the human race, will be found at the right hand of the Judge, in the great day. A few evenings since, a poor blind creature caused my heart to joy exceedingly, by her artless commendation of the Redeemer; any praise of myself might have arisen from servility, but, the epithets she applied to our Lord, could have been learned only from the Scriptures. For some time much of my attention has been directed to the education of some native christian boys. Watts’ first Catechism they can repeat, and a prayer for morning and evening in private; two of them have begun Persian and make quick progress: there are in all five, from seven to twelve years old, and some younger children