SOUTHERN AFRICA. 
affecting ; and their voices were in general sweet and har- 
monious. Not more than fifty had been admitted as mem- 
bers of the Christian faith, by the ceremony of baptism. 
There appeared to be no violent zeal on the part of the fa- 
thers, which is the case with most other missionaries, to swell 
the catalogue of converts to Christianit}^ being more solicitous 
to teach their trades to such as might chuse to learn them. 
Adopting the idea of the ingenious Count Rumford, their 
first great object seemed to be that of making men happy, 
that they might afterwards become virtuous, which is cer- 
tainly much sounder philosophy than the converse of the pro- 
position. 
It would be supposed that men like these, so truly respect- 
able in their missionary character, and so irreproachable in 
their conduct, would be well received and encouraged in any 
country ; yet such is the brutality and gross depravity of the 
peasantry of this colony, that a party, consisting of about 
thirt}'', had entered into a confederacy to murder the three 
teachers, and to seize and force into their service all the young 
Hottentots that might be found at the place. These horrid 
wretches had actually assembled at a neighbouring house, on 
the Saturday evening, intending on the following day, in the 
middle of divine service, to carry their murderous purposes 
into execution. Luckily for the missionaries, they had in- 
timation of what was going on through a Hottentot, who de- 
serted the service of one of the intended assassins for that 
purpose. They laid their apprehensions before Sir James 
Craig, who, in consequence, issued his injunctions, in a letter 
to the overseer of the post of Zoete Melk valley, that no in- 
