144 < KVLO.N BRANCH — ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



highly favoured Fatherland enjoy, but the Lord's churches 

 in distant India can also glory therein, of which your Lord- 

 ships shew yourselves to be true patrons, by contributing 

 every thing that can serve to enlarge our boundaries even 

 among the blind heathen. Proper, therefore, that we 

 acknowledge this our happiness. Proper, that we give 

 your Lordships a faithful account of the state of God's 

 church in Ceylon, which is entrusted to your guardian- 

 ship, that your Lordships may know how it is situated 

 and how it prospers. This is no doubt our reasonable 

 duty and obligation, and as we persevered therein - year 

 by year, so on the present occasion we adopt the same 

 course — and report with all due respect, that the Lord's 

 church in this island, by His goodness, continues to 

 enjoy peace and tranquillity, and is led forward in the 

 knowledge and ways of God. It is however lamentable 

 that the love of religion is here so exceedingly cold, and 

 worldly mindedness so great and universal, as also, that 

 in proportion to the largeness of the Lord's vineyard the 

 laborers are too few, of whom several are worn out by age 

 and infirmity, and that to such an extent as to disable them 

 any more to discharge their duties at all, or as required. 

 Besides which the clergymen of Colombo, Potken and 

 Saakens, (both of whom are not among the strongest) have 

 applied for their release, which the former has already ob- 

 tained from the authorities at Batavia, and will probably 

 depart thither within a very short time ; while the latter is 

 also in the expectation of obtaining his wish next year. 

 The ordinary work of preaching to the Dutch portion of 

 our flock, consisting of 490 members, is, as last year, per- 

 formed by the two reverend gentlemen above named — 

 though, in the extraordinary preaching turns, the Rev. Mr. 

 Wetzelius takes his share, having been, by order of the Go- 

 vernor, attached to the service of the seminary, besides 

 preaching and administering the Holy Sacraments to the 

 native congregations of Negombo, Caltura and Cotta, as 

 was communicated to your Lordships last year, by extracts 

 from the Resolutions of the Honble Politic Council here, 

 by which your Lordships will have been informed of the 

 release from the Rectorate of the above seminary granted 

 to the Rev. P. Kalden. On the 3rd of November the or- 

 dinary annual examination took place in the presence of 

 His Excellency the Governor of this Island, the Honble 

 members of the Politic Council, the clergy and several 

 others ; when, at its commencement two students, Abraham 



