Page:Williams and Calvert, Fiji and the Fijians, New York, 1860.djvu/556

 518 FIJI AND THE FIJIAl^rS. Gospel, he has many good qualities, but he fears lest, by embracing religion, some of his people should leave him, and he should thereby lose some of his little riches. Lately his old men wished him to make an oflFering to their god, and pray for rain. His answer to them was, * When it rains all over Fiji, and not at Mbua, then the oflering shall be made to the god. Jehovah only can give rain ! ' The light is breaking in upon the darkness ; and the day will follow. " October. — This is a sifting time for our churches in Fiji, and a time for mourning. The Heathens are raging and the people imagining many vain things, since Elijah Yerani, with two of his brothers and a Teacher, has been murdered. His death is felt very much through all this part of Fiji, and many who became Christian through his influence are now ' ready to halt,' and others, as at the death of Stephen, are ready to flee ; but we, while we mourn the death of Stephen, remember that He who sits in the heavens shall laugh at the seeming triumph of His enemies ; and, although He may permit Stephen to be taken, can lay His mighty hand on some Saul, and raise him up to spread the glory of His name. greater number need converting. I have had to expel several of the young men from Class, and put them in instruction classes. These youths have been led astray by a heathen custom, against which they had been warned, but did not resist the temptation. As they had been warned not to mingle with the Heathen in these practices, I felt it a duty to take a stand against such inconsistency, and enforce more distinction between the Church and the world. The Heathen will rejoice, as some have joined them ; but our strength does not consist in numbers ; and we think it best to * keep our rules, and not mend them.' " Thus, we have trials from the Heathen, and trials in the Church ; but still we have one consolation : Truth is gradually icinning its way : some of our members are more devoted to God : a few have turned from Heathenism, among whom is the sister of the Mbua Chief, who was a determined hater of Christianity. And we have free intercourse among the Heathen. "Enoch Latui — one of our best Tongan Teachers, who was taken to Rotuma by the Rev. John Waterhouse — lately died. He has been ill for several years, and has been laid aside for the last year. He suffered much from a severe pain in the back, supposed to have been caused by a blow which he received, while engaged in prayer, from a drunken Rotuman. He was an example of piety while he was able to get about ; and an example of patience while conflned to his bed. He died in peace. He was a spiritual child of the Rev. John Thomas. for such spiritual children as Enoch Latui ! I do not expect soon to meet his equal. that my last end may be like his ! " 111 August, 1854, Mr. Moore was removed to re-occupy the Eewa Station ; and the Rev. John ^lalvern was placed in charge. While he took care to do with his might whatsoever his hand found to do, in every department of Mission work, Mr. Malvern was specially mindful here also of the school department ; and he soon had erected a very neat school-house, part of which is shown in the right-hand side of the frontispiece. On the 27th of May, 1856, he wrote as follows to the General Secretaries : — " The handsome present of clothing from our Cheltenham friends has come safely to hand ; for which we are very thankful. They will be a great help to our wives, and a blessing to these people, who are so much in need of such things. " I am sorry to inform you that my health during the last six months has failed. The heat of this Station has overpowered me. My general debility has been so great, that I
 * In this Circuit, of those in the Church a few are living nearer to God, while the