Iam at aloss to express my Gratitude to You 3 for Your unbounded Goodness to me during My Residence at Johnstown: and particularly at my Departure--I shall allways retain a most gratefull sense of Your Generosity : And that it may please God long to prolong your Life, and possess you with a good state of Health will be the Constant prayers & wishes of One who has the Honor of subscribing Himself (Sir William)

Your much obliged & very Humble Sert R. Mostry.

P.S. Please to present my best Respects to Dt Dease, and Compts to Mr Daily &&--

New-York Ap*' y¢ 11" 74,

MEMOIR OF THE REV. JOHN STUART, D. D.

THE LAST MISSIONARY TO THE MOHAWKS.

The conversion and civilization of the American Indians engaged the attention of Europeans at an early date. The christianizing of the Iroquois especially became the object of the Jesuits of Canadaas far back as 1642, and a few years afterwards Father Jogues laid down hislife on the Mohawk river, for the Gospel. The Dutch who first colonised these parts, did not give the subject much consideration. The clergy at the Manhatans succeeded in teaching one young savage the prayers so that he could repeat the responses in church, and also to read and write well. Hewas then furnished with a Bible and was sent to evangelize the heathen. But he pawned the book for brandy, became a thorough beast and did more harm than good.' |

The government of New York did not make any effort to christianize the Five Nations further than to pay, for some time, a small salary to the clergyman at Albany to attend to the wants of such Indians as might apply to him. The Rev. Mr Freeman of that city translated a great part of the English liturgy, the morning and evening prayers, the litany, the Athanasian Creed, with some passages of the old and New Testamentinto the Indian tongue, but those professing to be christians in 1710, are represented as "so ignorant and scandalous that they can scarce be reputed Christians."2?