and dumb-to educate youth for the sacred ministry---to advance knowledge, and to relieve the wants and miseries of the sick or suffering poor. To those of his fellow-citizens, however, who are peculiarly interested in the wide circulation of the sacred scriptures, perhaps the chief excellence in the character of the deceased, is the ardent and affectionate zeal he displayed in the Bible cause. The efforts he at first made, notwithstanding the infirmities of age, and much unexpected opposition, to establish the American Bible Society his munificent donation to this institution at its organization-his subsequent liberality to aid in the erection of a depository-the devise of a large and valuable tract of land-and the deep and undiminished interest he has taken in all the concerns of the National Society ever since he was chosen its President-while they spread his fame through every region of the globe, will consecrate his memory to the hearts of his fellow-citizens in America, and his fellow Christians throughout the world.

But if his public services, and his private worth, claim the tribute of general esteem and affectionate remembrance; the closing scene of his life is not less calculated to console his friends under the heavy loss they have sustained, than it is to edify and support the departing Christian.

In the full possession of his mental faculties, and in the assured persuasion of his approaching dissolution, his faith was firm-his patience unexhausted, and his hopes were bright. While with paternal solicitude he exhorted those around him to rest on the LORD JESUS CHRIST-as the only true ground of trust-while with solemnity and tenderness he commended a dutiful and affectionate daughter,-his only child,to the care of his surviving friends; with humble resignation he expressed his readiness--his "desire to depart in peace to the bosom of his Father in Heaven; and the last prayer he was heard to articulate, was,-" LORD JESUS RECEIVE MY SPIRIT."

TESTIMONIAL OF AFFECTION.

From the Minutes of the Managers of the American Bible Society

The Board of Managers of the American Bible Society, while, in common with their fellow-citizens, they sensibly feel the loss which the Christian community has sustained in the removal, by the death of the Hon. Elias Boudinot, of one of its most valuable members, have reason more especially to lament that which their institution has suffered in being deprived of its venerable President.

When the Managers carry back their recollection to the period which preceded the formation of this Society, and review the laborious and persevering efforts of Dr. Boudinot to accomplish the interesting object; when they consider the noble example of beneficence which he soon afterwards presented in the generous donation of ten thousand dollars to its treasury, and of one thousand dollars since towards the erection of a Depository; the unremitted interest, which, under the pressure of acute bodily suffering, and the infir mities of advanced age, he continued even afterwards to evince in its concerns; his great exertions, notwithstanding the personal inconvenience and pain to which it subjected him, to attend its stated anniversaries; the dignity and amiableness with which he fulfilled the duties of the Chair: and the pious and affectionate counsels supplied by his official communications; they deeply deplore the chasm that has been made in their body by this afflicting bereavement. To the will of an all-wise Providence it becomes them to feel unfeigned submission, and to accompany this act of duty with the expression of their grateful acknowledgments to a merciful God for his goodness, in prolonging beyond the ordinary measure of human life that of their illustrious patron; in per. mitting him to witness the rapid growth and prosperity of the cherished object of his affections; in conveying to his heart the consolations of that blessed Book which he had made the standard of his faith and the rule of his conduct; and in ena. bling him to close a well-spent life with the full hope, through the merits of his Saviour, of a blissful immortality beyond the grave. The Board of Managers would not only derive from these cheering recollections consolation for their loss, but incitement to an increased measure of exertion in that work which so engrossed the affections of their lamented President, and, while they are diligently employed in diffusing abroad the Word of Life, encouragement in seeking to realize for themselves its inestimable benefits.

With the mourning' daughter of their deceased friend, for so many years the partaker of his joys and sorrows, the companion of his journeys, and his amiable assistant in well-doing, the members of this Board sincerely sympathize; and they respectfully transmit to her this feeble expression of their feelings towards her venerable parent, as evidence of the affection with which they wish to embalm bis memory, and the sincerity with which they condole with her under the bereavement she has experienced.

casion the name of Pomare, and conferring on his son that of Otoo. Thus he became the first subject of his own child, and, as regent of the state, continued to manage the affairs of government, and to support his son's dignity with all his weight and influence. Eimeo acknowledged the young king's authority, and his dominion was no where openly resisted, except that in Taiarabu discontent for some time prevailed.

On the day appointed for investing him with the Maro Oora, or red sash of royalty, (which ceremony may be regarded in the light of a coronation,) this part of the regal insignia* was laid on the Morai. The Taala Orero, or public Orator, (supposed to be the High Priest Manne Manne,) opened the ceremony with a long speech, which set forth the rightful authority of the young King to the royal dignity, and afterwards invested him with the regal cincture. Motuaro, chief of Eimeo, first paid homage to the young King, who was borne on a man's shoulders, and Mosurrounded by all his chieftains. tuaro had brought with him from Eimeo three human victims, from each of which the priest scooped out an eye, and presented it to the sovereign on a plantain leaf, plucked from a young tree in his hand, accompanying the presentation with a long ceremonial discourse. The bodies were then removed, and interred in the Morai. A similar ceremony was repeated, in rotation, by the chiefs of the several districts of Otaheite, some bringing one, and some two human sacrifices, fixed on a long pole, which were buried after the presentation of the eye.t

*The Maro Oora was made of net-work, and thrummed with red and yellow feathers.

†The reason assigned for this horrid oblation was, that the head being reputed sacred, and the eye the most precious part, they were to be presented to the King, as the head and eye of the people. During the presentation, the King was required to hold his mouth open, as if devouring it; by which means, it was imagined he received additional wisdom and discernment! It was

The young king was at this time about 17 years of age, very large limbed, and promising to be of equal stature with his father, who was 6 feet 4 inches in height. In the opinion of some, he had a solid and thoughtful aspect, but in that of others, his countenance seemed to indicate a feeble and vacant mind. His Queen, Tetua, was the relict of Motuaro, and was about his own age, and rather the larger of the two. Her countenance was pleasing and open, but of a masculine cast, and widened by the usual method of pressure, called touroome.

The above-mentioned events happened previously to the arrival of the Missionaries, who left England in the ship Duff, in August, 1796; and at the time they landed (March, 1797) the power of Pomare and his son Otoo was so greatly confirmed, that none dared any longer to dispute their authority.

Pomare gave the Missionaries a cordial welcome, and afterwards treated them in a very friendly manner; but the conduct of Otoo was, to say the least, sometimes very ambiguous, and considering the tyrannical disposition which he at that time displayed, and the barbarous state of the natives, they regarded it as a special mark of the kindness of Divine Providence that they were suffered to dwell peaceably among them.

Notwithstanding, Otoo, as well as his Queen, occasionally visited the Mission

also supposed that his tutelar deity presided at this time, to accept the sacrifice, and, by a communication of the vital principle, to strengthen the soul of his royal pupil. Hogs innumerable were strangled on this occasion, and immense quantities of cloth presented. The royal maro, (or sash,) worn only on that day, was again deposited in its place in the Morai, and the canoes, (deemed sacred,) in which the human sacrifices had been conveyed, were hauled up to the same sacred repository. The King and chiefs then departed to devour the bogs, turtle, fowls, fish, and vegetables prepared for them in the greatest profusion, and to drink their intoxicating yava. The feasting and heivas lasted two months, and more than one of the chiefs paid for their excesses with their lives.

aries; and on one of these occasions he excited no little surprise, by asking one of them to teach him the Hebrew language, and by manifesting much anxiety to know whether the king of England was acquainted with it.

In the year 1802, the conduct of Otoo incidentally occasioned much alarm to the Brethren, and, indeed, exposed them to no little danger. Having seized a billet of wood, belonging to the people of Atahuru, which was worshipped as their supreme divinity, an insurrection broke out, which assumed a portentous aspect. Providentially, however, at this critical moment, the ships Norfolk and Venus touched at the island, and Pomare, availing himself of the assistance of their men, gained some very important advantages over the insurgents; so that the immediate danger was by this means averted, and in the beginning of the following year tranquillity was completely restored.

On the 3d of September, 1803, Pomare was removed by a sudden stroke of death,* while passing to an English

* The father of the elder Pomare, whose death is noticed above, was an Otaheitean, but his mother was a Raiatean. He was born in the district of Opare. The Missionaries, at the time of his decease, supposed him to have been between 50 and 60 years of age. In person, he was the most respectable man whom they had seen; tall, stout, and well-proportioned; grave in countenance, majestic in deportment, and affable in behaviour. As to his morals, he was a poor ignorant heathen, under the dominion of a reprobate mind; a most devoted idolater, regarding nothing as sinful but a neglect to pray and sacrifice to the gods. As a governor, some complained that he was oppressive, who, however, would probably have been not less so, had the same power been in their hands. He was a peaceable man, and it was generally agreed that a far greater degree of tranquillity had been enjoyed during his reign, than while each of the larger districts continued as independent states. He was also an active man. Erecting houses, building canoes, and cultivating the ground, were employments in which he appeared to take great delight. He always showed a fondness for foreigners, especially for Englishmen. Policy, as it promoted the stability of his government, was doubtless connected with this partiality; and he supposed that every Englishman was expert in the use of arms. We have already observed that his behaviour towards

brig, which had just arrived; and the entire government devolved on the shoulders of Otoo, who also now assumed the name of his father, Pomare. After the death of his father, he was enabled to maintain his authority without opposition, and he, as well as his mother Edeah, assured the Brethren that they should not be molested in the discharge of the duties of their mission.

From this time the King, whom we shall now call Pomare, seems to have conducted himself in a more friendly manner towards the Missionaries. He had for some considerable time resided in Eimeo; but on his return to Otaheite he took up his residence near the mission-house at Matavai. In one or other of the apartments of the brethren he would frequently spend nearly the whole of the day, amusing himself with writing, in which he had then (1806) made considerable progress. His behaviour was now very kind, and even generous, towards the brethren, but hitherto he showed no inclination to embrace Christianity, or even to receive any religious instruction whatsoever; and when the subject was introduced, either in conversation or in writing, he artfully contrived to put it off. In the month of August, 1806, Pomare lost his Queen, Tetua.

In the following year he wrote his first letter to the directors, dated January, 1807, from which it appears that his prejudices against Christianity were in some measure abated; at least, that a degree of conviction was produced on his mind. This letter, which was com

the Missionaries was always friendly; but there was great reason to believe, that it was very considerably influenced by motives of self-interest. His behaviour towards them, during the latter part of his life, they were disposed to think less friendly; but this they ascribed to their having plainly declared to him and his countrymen, the object which had induced them to leave their friends and native country. Nevertheless, he would sometimes attend their preaching, (which however, he was reported to have ridiculed,) and never debarred them from attempting to plant the Gospel in Otaheite, or in any other within his jurisdiction.

posed entirely by himself, began thus: "I wish you every blessing, friends, in your residence in your country, with success in teaching this bad land, this foolish land, this land which is ignorant of good, this land that knoweth not the true God, this regardless land. Friends, I wish you health and prosperity: may I also live, and may Jehovah save us." In 1808, Pomare was involved in war with a party of his subjects, who attempted to deprive him of his authority. The struggle was long and obstinate, and its results disastrous. On this occasion the houses, gardens, &c. of the Missionaries were destroyed, and they, as well as Pomare, were compelled to flee from Otaheite to the neighbouring islands. In the following year, as there seemed no prospect of the King regaining his authority, all the Brethren, except Messrs. Hayward and Nott, repaired to New South Wales, whence, however, five of them returned in 1811, at the earnest request of Pomare, whose authority was then re-established. The king now discovered towards the Missionaries an increasing partiality, and appeared happy only when in their company. In July 1812, he declared to them his conviction of the truth of Christianity, and his determination, in future, to worship Jehovah. He also expressed deep repentance on account of his past wickedness, cast away his idols, endeavoured to persuade his re

*The log of wood which formed the body of the great god Oro, which had so often occasioned wars in Otaheite, was set up in the King's kitchen to hang baskets of food upon; a most despicable use, according to the ideas of the Otaheiteans. His family idols, in 1816, he delivered to the Missionaries, accompanied by a letter, in which he thus expresses himself:-" Friends, May you be saved by Jehovah, and Jesus Christ, our Saviour. This is my speech to you, my friends: I wish you to send those idols to Britain, for the Missionary Society, that they may know the likeness of the gods that Tahiti worshipped. If you think proper, you may burn them all in the fire; or, if you like, send them to your country, for the inspection of the people of Europe, that they may satisfy their curiosity, and know Tahiti's foolish gods!" The Missionaries concluded to send them to England, and they are now deposited in the Society's Museum.

lations to embrace the Christian religion, and proposed to the Missionaries to build, without delay, a place of worship for the true God.

In the year 1814, the number of the natives (including some of the chiefs) who had renounced idolatry, and professedly embraced Christianity, amounted to fifty, and from this time the number rapidly increased, until, in the following year, it amounted to about 500. Some of the idolatrous chiefs of Otaheite, exasperated at the progress of the new religion, formed the horrid design of destroying the Christians, root and branch, but providentially the latter, receiving timely information thereof, took refuge in Eimeo. In this island Pomare then (July 1815) resided, and having at length ascertained that there was no hostility on the part of the chiefs against him, he went over to Otaheite, taking the refugees under his protection. On the 19th November, however, while engaged in public worship, the Christians were furiously assaulted by the idolaters, and an obstinate engagement ensued, in which Pomare obtained a complete victory. The unexampled lenity and clemency with which the King treated the conquered, and their families, on this occasion, produced the most favourable effect on the minds of the idolaters, who unanimously resolved to embrace Christianity, and trust their gods no longer. The King was now, by universal consent, restored to the government, in which he has not since been, in the slightest degree, disturbed.

Subsequently to this period, Pomare has shown himself, on all occasions, the friend of Christianity and of the Missionaries, and has joined hand in hand with them in such measures as appeared likely to promote the destruction of idolatry, and the dissemination of the Christian religion among the islanders. He has also taken a great interest in the business of the printingoffice. On the 16th of June, 1817, he came over to Eimeo, on occasion of the first composing for the press, and,