It was at this time that Mr. Corrie, at the suggestion of Mr. Thomason, addressed a letter to the committee of the Church Missionary Society in Calcutta, on the subject of missionary schoolmasters. In that communication he observed:-- “Agra, April 6, 1814. “The circumstance lately come to our knowledge respecting the provisions in the Honourable Company’s new charter, for affording religious instruction to our fellow subjects in this country, leads me to submit the following considerations to your notice, to be forwarded [to England,] if you approve, for the consideration of the Church Missionary Society. “The state of those descendants of Europeans, and others professing Christianity, at the different European stations, has always appeared to me worthy of attention, both as it respects themselves, and as a medium through which the natives in general might be approached, with the greatest success. There are many persons of the above description at Berhampore, Monghyr, Bagulpore, Patna, Dinapore, Buxar, Benares, Chunar, Allahabad, Cawnpore, Agra, Delhi, Meerut, and other inferior stations. “At each of these places, a schoolmaster might be placed with great advantage. His ostensible, and indeed first duty, should be to educate Christian children, and to conduct public worship for native christians. The Divine blessing would, doubtless, attend the education of these children; and some of them would be led to choose the work of instruction; and would go forth among the natives, with tenfold advantage over any European missionary. As these people are in general very poor, the schoolmaster must be supplied with a maintenance, and, together with the christian children, should give instruction in English to as many children as he could attend to. The Native christian children might learn the principles of religion in Hindoostanee; and be farther instructed in the language of the country, by means of native instructors, under the superintendance of the European master; whilst the latter would instruct them in English, and thus open to them the stores of European learning. Many of the natives would rejoice in an opportunity of having their children taught English, _gratis_; and the necessary intercourse with a schoolmaster, for this purpose, tends greatly to remove prejudice, and to prepare the mind for the reception of Divine truth. At each of the above stations, a way appears to be prepared for the propagation of the gospel; and a soil made ready, as it were, to receive the seed of christian instruction, the fruits of which would spread through the land.