CEYLON BRANCH — ROYAL ASTATIC SOCIETY. 45 



The Rev. Mr. Cronenburgh who had returned to Holland 

 applied to the Company to allow a certain Singhalese youth in 

 Ceylon who had given much satisfaction, when under his tuition, 

 to come over to Holland to be prepared for the ministry. The 

 Company disapproved of it, thinking that if he was promising 

 he could be employed on the spot, if not as proponent, as 

 catechist ; stating that a similar trial had been made of one from 

 Batavia, who did not answer their expectations, but proved more 

 unserviceable than serviceable. As successor to Mr. Ruel, who 

 was the greatest Singhalese scholar in Ceylon at the time, the 

 classis had engaged Mr* Riemersma, who expressed his willing- 

 ness not only to go cut to Ceylon, but to take upon himself 

 exclusively the Singhalese department. 



In 1700 there were in the Colombo district 39 native Churches 

 and schools, Galle and Matura 31, Jaffna, Trincomalie and Bat- 

 ticaloa 38. For want of better supervision which was owing 

 to the small number of ministers, the Singhalese congregations 

 were in a poor state ; in the Colombo district things were more 

 satisfactory ; several of the inhabitants could give an account of 

 the hope that was in them, and 90 additional communicants were 

 received in that year. Several little religious works were trans- 

 lated into Singhalese. The reports and correspondence for 20 

 successive years contain little that is remarkable. The great 

 want of additional ministers was the reigning topic, which con- 

 tinued till 17 18 when five were sent out at once, of whom two 

 were for Jaffna and two for Galle. About this time, when the 

 seminary began to supply Singhalese and Malabar young men, 

 native proponents began to be employed. At Jaffna there were 

 two Malabar, and at Galle two Singhalese proponents. 



In 1711 the Rev. Mr. Conyn submitted to the Governor his 

 new translation of Matthew, Mark and Luke. The version was 

 carefully examined with the help of the Interpreters of Govern- 

 ment, and pronounced good, 



