132 



CONGREGATIONALISTS. 



The above does not include the hosiery-mills, 

 nor any of the mills known as woolen-mills 

 where large quantities of cotton are worked 

 up in woolen mixtures, or in imitations of 

 woolen hosiery and underwear. The con- 

 sumption of these mills can not fall far short 

 of 200, 000 bales. 



New England still remains the great center 

 of the cotton industry, manufacturing more 

 than five sevenths of the cotton consumed in 

 the United States. The capacity of the New 

 England mills has increased since 1870 from 

 114,900 looms and 6,498,000 spindles, to 185,- 

 700 looms and 8,806,000 spindles, while the 

 consumption of cotton has risen from 275,- 

 639,000 to 503,312,000 Ibs. ; of the latter 

 amount 260,365,000 Ibs. were used in Massa- 

 chusetts. The most suggestive result shown 

 by the census statistics is the growth of the 

 cotton industry in the South. In 1870 the 

 Southern mills had 11,000 looms and 417,000 

 spindles. They now have more than 15,000 

 looms and 714,000 spindles. This is a large 

 increase of mill capacity, but the progress 

 made is more forcibly shown by a comparison 

 of the consumption of cotton. In 1870 this 

 amounted to 45,000,000 Ibs., and in 1880 it 

 had increased to nearly 102,000,000 Ibs. The 

 population of the cotton-growing States has in- 

 creased during the ten years from about 8|- to 

 nearly 11 millions, about 39 per cent. ; that of 

 the New England States from nearly 3 to 4 

 millions, not quite 15 per cent. ; that of the 

 whole United States, 30 per cent. 



CONGREGATIONALISTS. I. UNITED 

 STATES. The following is a summary of the 

 statistics of the Congregational Churches of 

 the United States, as given in the " Congre- 

 gational Year- Book " for 1880 : 



During the year the denomination has col- 

 lected contributions for benevolent purposes 

 amounting to $1,098,691, and for home expen- 

 ditures, $2,594,228. 



The receipts of the American Home Mission- 

 ary Society for the year were $266,720, and 

 the expenditures were $259,709. The Society 

 had employed 1,015 missionaries, who had sup- 

 plied 2,308 congregations and missionary sta- 

 tions and established 86 churches, and who re- 

 turned about 6,000 additions to the Church. 



The Seventy-first annual meeting of the Amer- 

 ican Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mis- 

 sions was held at Lowell, Massachusetts, Octo- 

 ber 6th. About 1,500 delegates were present. 

 The Eev. Mark Hopkins, D. D., presided. The 

 total receipts for the year had been $430,752, 

 and the expenditures had been $495,074. Of 

 the receipts, $103,657 had been contributed 

 through the agency of the three woman's boards, 

 and $2,800 had come in the form of special 

 contributions for the new mission in Bihe, 

 Central Africa. The statistics of the mission 

 showed that an increase had taken place in 

 every item except in that of the number of 

 missionaries. A hundred preaching - places 

 had been added, eleven churches organized, 

 2,500 members added, and 500 additional 

 scholars enrolled in the higher institutions of 

 learning, and 1,000 pupils in the common 

 schools. About $50,000 had been contributed 

 by members of the churches of the missions. 



