ake a
stand, to continue in their faith, and to defend themselves to the very
last extremity.

The Japanese army pursued the christians, and laid siege to the place.
The christians defended themselves with great bravery, and held out
against the besiegers for the space of three months, but were at length
compelled to surrender, when men, women and children, were
indiscriminately murdered; and christianity, in their martyrdoms,
entirely extirpated from Japan.

This event took place on the 12th of April, 1638, since which period no
christians but the Dutch are allowed to land in the empire, and even
they are obliged to conduct themselves with the greatest precaution, and
to carry on their commerce with the utmost circumspection.

_An account of the Persecutions against the Christians in Abyssinia, or
Ethiopia._

Towards the conclusion of the fifteenth century, and soon after the
discovery of the Cape of Good Hope, some Portuguese missionaries made a
voyage to Abyssinia, and were indefatigable in propagating the Roman
catholic doctrine among the Abyssinians, who professed christianity
before the arrival of the missionaries.

The priests, employed in this mission, gained such an influence at
court, that the emperor consented to abolish the established rites of
the Ethiopian church, and to admit those of Rome. He soon after
consented to receive a patriarch from Rome, and to acknowledge the
pope's supremacy.

Many of the most powerful lords, and a majority of the people who
professed the primitive christianity, as first established in Abyssinia,
opposed these innovations, and took up arms against the emperor.--Thus,
by the artifices of the court of Rome, and its emissaries, a most
furious civil war was begun, and the whole empire thrown into commotion.
This war was carried on through several reigns, its continuance being
above 100 years, and the court constantly siding with the Roman
catholics, the primitive christians of Abyssinia were severely
persecuted, and multitudes perished by the most inhuman means.

_An account of the Persecutions against the Christians in Turkey._

Mahomet, (the impostor) in the infancy of his new religion, tolerated
christianity through a political motive, as he was sensible, that even
in those early times it had several powerful espousers among the
princes, who were his cotemporaries. As a proof that this was his sole
view, as soon as he found his doctrine was established on a more