! Gofpel of God only, but also our own Souls, because ye Thefe Things have been fulfilled in the Church (f) Their Writers have told us, that their carrying Religion into the Eaft Indies, was only fubfervient to their Trade in thofe Parts; that they built Churches, or pull'd them down, as more or lefs ufeful to their Commerce. So Fryer Peter of Lisbon, in a Letter to Fryer Diego in Portugal, dated from Cochin in the Eaft-Indies, 28 December 1589. relates; I had great Conference with the King of. Pegu and his chief People,they demanded of me many Questions, touching the Law and Faith of Jefus Chrift, and touching the Ten Commandments. And the King gave his Confent, that our Order fhould Build a Church in his Country, which was half builded, but our perverfe and malicious Portugals pluck'd it down again. For whereas it is a Country wherein our Na tion gains very much by their Commodities, they fearing, that by the Building this Church, there would be greater Refort thither, and fo their Trade fhould be impaired, if their great Gains fhould be known unto others, than those which found this Country out at firft; therefore they were fo unwilling that the Building of this Church fhould go forward: Our Portuguese here, which are in this Realm, are worfe People than the Gentiles, &i, Hackluit Voyages Fol. Tom. II. p. 102, fefs'd They themselves tell us, That the Spaniards, in their first Discoveries of that new World, (g) preferr❜d their Gain infinitely before any Godliness whatever; examin'd the poor People about Gold, not about Religion; feeking not them, but theirs, Baptizing them only for a Token and Mark of Property to New Masters; giving them Beads and Croffes, as Hooks and Baits to draw out Things of greater Value from 'em; and after all, taking a way their Lives, if they could not produce fome referv'd Ranfom for them. They confefs again, that the favage Indians were fenfible of this horri ble Abufe put upon them, and did shake their Heads, and fhew great Indignation at it. (b) They obferve, that the Spanish Governours and Leaders made Ufe of the Priefts and Fryers, only as Setters to them; and yet were fometimes fo jealous of the Priefts interfering in their Profits, that they forbid them Entrance into fome Towns of great eft Trade and Treafure; and quarrelled with them often for making their Slaves idle with Prayers, and (g) The Inftances are large and many, given by Peter Martyr Barthol.de Cafas, and other Eye-Witneffes. (b) The Notions the Indians had of them and their Religi on, were thefe: They looked upon them as a fort of People entirely eaten up of bafe and covetous Defires; and that they would do any thing for fordid Gain; and therefore they have held up pieces of Gold to them in Mockery: Ho Chriftians (fay they) here's Gold, here's Gold! Intimating, there was the Thing they Admir'd and Ador'd; they knew very well it was the governing Idol of their Souls, and that whatever refpect they pretended to God Almighty, it was this only that they Worthip'd in their Hearts; and therefore the Spaniards have heard them fay, Look upon this Gold, and behold your God. It is for this that you have Subdued us, and done fo many Mischiefs; 'tis for this that you Game, Blafpheme, Curfe, Quarrel, Steal, commit Rapes, and practise all manner of Luft and Villany, &c. See Dr. Harris's Colle&t. of Voyages, Fol. Vol. I. p. 798. and (i) fuch as they thought impertinent Offices of Religion. We cannot boast, that all our Proteftant Bre-, thren, or all our Fellow-Subjects are clearly innocent of thefe fordid shameful Crimes. Too many Complaints have been made, that fome of our Planters have formerly obftructed the Converfion of their. Slaves, from a ftrange Sufpicion that they would be then of lefs Value to them. (k) And that fome of our Traders among the remoter Indians, have artfully incited them to Wars and Battles, that after a Victory on either Side, they might purchase Slaves in greater Numbers and at eaffer Rates. I wish thefe Men could take the Sin and Scandal upon, (i) The infatiable Covetoufnefs of the Spaniards, who mind nothing but to amafs together heaps of Treafure, makes them unwilling to fuffer any Priests or Monks to come into thofe Cities where they are Mafters, &c. Relation given by the Bishop of Chiapa, Engl. Tranflation, 8vo. p. 116, 123, &c. for fear their Worldly Intereft fhould receive da mage, becaufe (fay they) it makes the Indians idle, to Affemble them together, and Inftruct them in the matters of Reli gion; for all the time they take up to Preach to them, they detain them from the Work impos'd on them. Sometimes when the poor Indians have been affembled for their Instructi on in Chriftianity, the Spaniards have infolently accofted them with Cudgels in their Hands, and with other Cruelties; which is a great Scandal to our Religion, and a mighty Ob ftacle to their Converfion. ibid. (k) See a Sermon, intituled, Trade preferr'd before Religion. By Morgan Godwyn of Chrift-Church in Oxford, who in his Preface before it, tells us what he calls a moft dreadful Story, related to me (fays he) by one that had fpent fome time in those Parts, of the Behaviour of fome of our Factors towards the Natives of a certain Place called Jacketra upon Java, who, defirous to be Inftructed in Chriftianity by the English, were most unchriftianly denied the Favour; they for footh dreading leaft their apt Scholars fhould thereby come to improve their Faculty in the Mystery of Buying and Selling, (as if that alfo were a Mystery of the Gospel) which in time might leffen their Gain, and fo fpoil all. upon their own (1) Heads, and not caft a Reproach upon our Religion and our Nation. An infinite Reproach it is for any Chriftian People to facrifice their Religion in the Sight of the Heathen, for a little worldly Gain. (m) We thank God, this Society cannot be fufpected of any indirect Dealings in that Kind: We freely give a Part of our own Substance, and we are faithful Stewards of the Gifts and Benefactions of others: Our Miffionaries are chiefly fupported out of the common Fund of Charity: We do indeed believe that the Trade B (1) Some Letters from our Correfpondents in thofe Parts, efpecially in South-Carolina, have complain'd of this Practice in fome English Traders or Factors, who have gone up to Trade with the Indians bordering upon Florida, &c. Letter from Goofcreek dated October 20. 1709. --I am told ftill, if ány thing oppofes the Publishing of the Gofpel among the Indians, it fhall be the manner of carrying on our Indian Trade, chiefly the fomenting War amongst them for our People to get Slaves. (m) The Author of A Preliminary Difcourfe concerning the Character of a Miffionary, prefixt to An Account of the Success of Two Danish Miffionaries, lately fent to the Eaft-Indies, 1711. 8vo. puts in this Paragraph. The Gentleman that attended Sir Thomas Roe in his Embaffy to the Great Mogul, in the time of King James I. about the year 1615. confirms, in his Defcription of the Territories of that Prince, what hath been complain'd of by the prefent Missionaries in their Letters. It is a moft fad and horrible thing (fays he) to confider what Scandal there is brought upon the Chriftian Religion, by the Loofness and Remifness, by the Exorbitancies of many which come amongst them, who profefs themselves Chriftians, of whom I have often heard the Natives (who live near the Port where our Ships arrive) fay thus in broken English, which they have gotten, Chriftian Religion, Devil Religion; Christian much Drunk, Chriftian much do Wrong, much Beat, much Abuse others. Where he alfo takes Notice of the exact Justice and Honesty of the Hindoes or Heathens, trading with the Chriftians. Thefe after having fet the lowest rate upon the Goods expos'd to Sale, and being yet offered far lefs by the Chriftians; in thefe Bargainings were apt to say, Doft thou think me a Chriftian, that I should go al out to deceive thee? Trade of this, Nation would be very much improv'd by the Advancement of Religion in thofe Parts; but even this is left for a happy Confequence, and not propos'd as an immediate View: We labour and pray for the Succefs of our Labours, expecting no other Returns, but our Acceptance with God, and our Reward in Heaven. "III. A Third Hindrance of the Gospel, will be "our practifing Injuftice, Fraud and Oppreffion, "inftead of providing Things honeft in the Sight "of thofe Heathens we labour to convert. The good Apoftles had nothing more at Heart, than that the Name of God fhould not be blafphemed among the Gentiles. And they were fenfible that nothing would more tend to it, than for Chriftians to break the Laws of Nature, and the Rules of Gentile Honour, in doing the bafe Things of Difhonefty and Fraud; for this would turn the Hearts of the Heathen, alienate their Affections from the very Faith or Profeflion of fuch Men, who at every Advantage to be caught, would be the Deceivers and the Robbers of them. The Law of Nature has fet up an even Balance in the Minds of all rational Pagans, and in their mutual Dealings they defire to be weighed in it, knowing without any other Law, how to be a Law unto themselves in the Equivalents of Commerce; and how in their own Thoughts to judge of Right and Wrong. Hence it was truly divine Wisdom in our Saviour to eftablish his Gofpel upon thefe Foundations of the common Senfe of Mankind, the Doing unto others, as we would they should do unto us. The Difciples built on the fame Foundation, of having their Conversation honeft among the Gentiles, (1 Pet. II. 12.) and of providing for best Things, not only in the Sight of the Lord, but alfo in the Sight of Men; because the contrary Arts |