indisposed to appear at the Government House on the 23d, St. George's Day, when Mr. Bayley, the acting Governorgeneral*, gave a splendid entertainment in honour of the King's birthday.

The heat and the long drought were now felt as unusually oppressive, even by those who had long been accustomed to the climate; and had been much against the recovery of the Bishop's strength. He was greatly revived, however, by a heavy fall of rain on the 27th of April.

Among other important enquiries in which the Bishop now engaged, was the general state of the schools in connection with the English Church, and particularly those supported by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. Although he had not visited them, he was no inattentive observer of what was going on in the Hindoo and Mahometan colleges in Calcutta. He was also a watchful visiter at Bishop's College, and examined the students in the College-hall as often as he could find opportunity. To secure the best interests of that noble institution, on which his main hopes of promoting the Christianising of India were centred, was the object of his most anxious concern from the very day of his arrival at Calcutta. On the 15th of May, Ascension Day, the Bishop consecrated the chapel and burial-ground at the College.

On Sunday, May 18th, the Bishop held his first ordination. The following Sunday, being Whitsunday, he preached again at the Cathedral, and afterwards assisted in the service at the communion, though he was unable to administer the elements. Such, indeed, was his state of bodily weakness at this time, from the heat of the climate, that he was obliged to have cushions placed to support him in the pulpit, and actually preached on his knees; and in that posture delivered an eloquent and energetic discourse on Romans iv. 5.

A meeting of the Auxiliary British and Foreign Bible Society was held at Calcutta, June 18th, when the Bishop, who was foremost in every undertaking which had for its object

* Lord Amherst had returned to England.

the diffusion of the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, became Patron of the Society; and, preparatory to the business of the day, was presented with a complete set of the Society's Oriental versions of the Bible.

. The time had now arrived, when the Bishop was to commence the visitation of his diocese, and he had fixed to begin with the Presidency of Bengal; which alone he expected would occupy him for eight or nine months. Notice had been given, some time before, that he would this year confirm at all the principal stations or districts in the Archdeaconry of Calcutta; and, desirous to obtain the best information he could respecting the actual state of the diocese entrusted to his charge, he had previously circulated questions, to be answered in writing by the Chaplains at every station; the answers to which would have furnished a mass of valuable information as to the state of the church in India, if it had pleased God that the Bishop should have lived to finish the work he had taken in hand; but that work was to be left to another; his strength was sinking under it.

On Friday, the 20th of June, he held his visitation, and delivered his charge to the clergy at the Cathedral, which was fully attended. The day had been fixed with the hope that the rains would, by this time, have set in, and the heat become less oppressive; but unfortunately none had fallen for a long time, and the weather was more than ordinarily sultry; the thermometer on that morning being 92° in the shade. The Bishop returned to the palace quite exhausted with the heat; and from this day may be dated the beginning of his last illness. He made an effort to receive his clergy at dinner in the evening, which he was desirous to do, having something that he wished to say to them in private, He passed a restless night, and was very unwell. The next morning Dr. Nicholson pronounced the attack to be of the same nature as those he had suffered before, and to have been brought on by the heat and over exertion of the preceding day; and that he would soon recover, if he could be got away from the scene of his anxious occupations at Calcutta, and proceed up the river on his visit

ation journey. Arrangements for that purpose were therefore made with all possible expedition; and on the evening of Tuesday, the 24th, the Bishop, accompanied by Mrs. James, embarked on board his pinnace, under a salute from the Fort.

For above three weeks, during the course up the Ganges, the Bishop's health suffered various fluctuations. On arriving however, at Bhagulpoor, in the province of Bahar, on the 16th of July, he was so ill, that it was with difficulty he was moved on shore to the house of Mr. Nesbit, the magistrate, where he was most kindly received. Such was now the alarming nature of the Bishop's symptoms, that Dr. Spens, the medical gentleman who had attended him from the Presidency, and Mr. Innis, the surgeon of Bhagulpoor, urged an immediate return to Calcutta, in order that Dr. Nicholson's decision might be had upon the necessity of taking measures for the Bishop going out to sea with as little delay as possible. It was determined to return, and no time was to be lost; but it was not till the 23d, that the acute pain was so far alleviated, that it was thought prudent to remove the patient from Mr. Nesbit's house to the pinnace. The Bishop and Mrs. James then began to retrace their voyage to Calcutta, which, by the great exertion of the rowers, they reached on the 31st.

The Bishop was now something better, though still so weak as not to be able to go ashore, nor equal to the exertion of putting on his clothes. The Governor-general and Lady William Bentinck most kindly sent immediately to offer the use of the Government House, which was much nearer the river than the Bishop's palace, in case it should be found advisable to move him on shore. But as soon as Dr. Nicholson came on board, he gave it as his decided opinion that it was best he should not be moved from his pinnace; that no time was to be lost in getting him out to sea; and that Penang was the destination he should recommend for the present, until there should be strength to bear the voyage to England; for

* Lord William Bentinck had recently arrived.

that he ought not, on any account, to think of remaining in India, a decided enlargement of the liver having taken place, though it appeared to have been giving way to prompt and skilful treatment.

It was at first proposed that the government yacht should take the Bishop to Penang, and orders were given to prepare her for sea immediately. But it was afterwards thought more advisable that he should have a passage in the Honourable Company's ship Marquess Huntly, Captain Fraser, which was then lying in Saugor Roads, and ready to proceed direct to that island, on her voyage to China. On Wednesday, the 6th of August, he left the Chandpaul Ghaut, and proceeding down the river from Calcutta, reached Fultah, twenty-five miles, that evening; Dr. Spens accompanying in the pinnace. For the last two days distressing sinkings and faintings had come on, but he now repeatedly assured Mrs. James that he felt himself better as he approached the sea, and talked, with his usual cheerfulness, of the excellent arrangements she had made for his comfort.

The weather being calm, they were fortunately able to go down the whole way to the ship in the pinnace. On the evening of Saturday, the 9th of August, they reached the Marquess Huntly, lying at the new anchorage below Diamond Harbour, when every thing was extremely well managed by Captain Fraser for putting the Bishop on board. A cot was lowered, in which his mattress was placed, and he was swung easily up the side of the vessel, and was soon comfortably placed on a sofa in the cabin. He was much pleased with the way in which it was done; his spirits were raised by finding himself at sea; he was free from pain; he thought that he was certainly better, and for some days the hopes of all around him were raised; but the shivering fits which shortly came on, followed by violent perspirations for three successive evenings, and the increase of distressing hiccups, had convinced Dr. Spens, as well as Mr. Stirling, the skilful surgeon who now attended him, that he was really getting worse. On Thursday, the 21st, it became evident that human skill could do no more,

and that his end was fast approaching. Mrs. James, seeing this, made up her mind, with the fortitude which became her, to the trying task of communicating to him the awful truth. The way in which he received this unexpected intelligence exemplified strikingly the virtues of resignation and pious submission to the will of God, and gave a practical proof, far beyond any that words could give, how prepared he was to die. After a momentary pause, he thanked her most warmly, and said, "If it is so, my hope and my firm faith are in Jesus Christ!" He was then silent, and soon fell into a quiet sleep; on awaking, he again expressed, in the most tender manner, his thankfulness for the unreserved communication which she had made to him. He afterwards fixed that they should receive the holy sacrament together the next morning; and at intervals, in the course of that afternoon, calmly gave directions about his papers; and having instructed Mr. Knapp to add a few lines, which he dictated, to a document relating to the Bishop's College at Calcutta, (which was now his latest, as, on his arrival, it had been his earliest care) with great effort he held the pen, while his hand was guided to make his signature to it; and having done that, he said, "Now every thing is off my mind!"

The next morning he received the sacrament with Mrs. James. During the administration of the holy rite he was quite collected, and afterwards showed the subject on which his thoughts were dwelling, by making many Christian reflections on the state of the soul, as strength remained for utterance, which was now only in a low whisper. He expressed, also, his confident hope, that as he had given up his prospects in England, his health, and his life, for the sake of the church, something would be done for his widowed wife, and his fatherless children.

As evening came on, it was evident his strength was sinking, and that the hour which was to close his useful and active life was now drawing near. The pulse, though at 170, could hardly be felt to beat. The feet became cold, and the eyes dull, the hands refused any longer to answer the grasp of