CEYLON BRANCH ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY. IS 



approved of by their body being subsequently opened out of 

 their meeting, secondly, to the instructions of the East India 

 Company to all their Colonial clergy namely ; that by every 

 opportunity of the returning fleet, that is, once a year, the state 

 and progress of religion and of schools should be communicated 

 in writing to the respective classes, from whom, with the appro- 

 bation of the Company, the clergy had received their instructi- 

 ons ; as also to the XVII Representatives, in order that these may 

 issue salutary orders accordingly; that however neither to the 

 classes nor to any private individuals, but only to the Company 8 

 should anything be mentioned in writing touching the position 

 condition or concerns of political, military or commercial affairs 

 in India; as contrary, thirdly, to the 39th article of the Bata- 

 vian Ecclesiastical " orders sanctioned and issued by General Van 

 Diemen and the Council of India in 1643, which says. Inas- 

 much as no one may divulge any letters of the consistory, it 

 is hereby forbidden, for the sake of preventing any mistakes, 

 to the ordinary or extraordinary Scriba to take with him out 

 of the consistory either to his dwelling or elsewhere the re- 

 solution book, the letter book, or any other letters and papers 

 belonging to the secretaryship of the Church, except alone the 

 Register of Baptisms and Marriages ; but all letters, resolutions 

 &c. shall be written and answered in the meeting. The con- 

 sistory further explain that their letters were forwarded to the 

 Governor for transmission under cover of official despatches for 

 the sake of security, and that they were drawn up and sealed 

 in the meeting always in the presence of the Commissary Poli- 

 tic, who as the organ of the Government, had sufficient cog- 

 nizance of all transactions. It was moreover the practice on 

 such occasions to depute two members to the Governor to in- 

 form him by word of mouth of the communications made to 

 the home authorities. The result was that the Governor de- 

 clined urging the matter, intimating his intention to submit it 

 to the Company, and leaving it to the consistory to make their 



