GAME-PRESERVING IX TIIK rNITKD STATES. 





British Friends. The tabular statement of 



membership in tin. 1 London Yearly Meeting shows 

 ;i growth for each year aliout equal to that of the 

 population at lanre. The erowth, however, is not 

 by that natural increase that might be expected. 

 Friends record cadi year about b">0 births and about 

 2-~>o deaths, a net loss of 100 heads, which has to be 

 made up by acquisitions from outside before any 

 increase can be chronicled. The result is that of 

 every three persons who enter the society only one 

 enters by the gate of birth : for those admitted dur- 

 ing the middle periods of life appear in the list 

 only at death. The children of mixed marriages, 

 however, are not admitted at birth. One of the 

 principal sources of supply to the membership is 

 found in those associations of the best of the work- 

 ingmen known a< adult schools, in which 42,000 

 pupils were returned, two thirds of them adults. 



The session of the London Yearly Meeting began 

 May '21. At the fin-t sitting a letter was received 

 from the woman's meeting stating that a woman 

 Friend wished to visit the body. The woman, a 

 young lady Friend, was received, and made an ad- 

 - full of religious fervor, which was very ac- 

 ; tile to the meeting. It is not unusual for the 

 Yearly Meeting to be visited and addressed by 

 woman friends, but the visitation generally takes 

 place at a later stage of the proceedings, and this 

 was the first instance in which it has occurred at 

 the opening session. A woman visiting the meet- 

 ing thus has first to present her call or conviction 

 of her duty to do so to the Woman's Meeting and 

 receive its sanction. Perhaps the most important 

 11 of the Yearly Meeting was the granting, after 

 long and deliberate consideration, of the "wom- 

 an'- charter," whereby the Yearly Meeting will 

 henceforth consist of both men and women, and 

 persons of either sex will have an equal voice in the 

 decisions reached. It is understood, however, that 

 both separate and joint meetings will continue to 

 be held. A request of several Friends was granted 

 permitted to hold meetings for young Friends 

 for '-the exposition of the positive message of 

 (Quakerism to the world to-day and the spiritual 

 meaning of the teaching for the souls of men." A 

 minute was sent down to the subordinate meetings 

 asking them to consider what new effort they can 

 make for the benefit of those around them. The 

 holding of the '-preparative meetings." which now 

 takes place monthly at the close of a Sunday morn- 

 ing for worship, was authorized to be made on 

 weekday evenings: and the meetings may be occa- 

 sions for the reading and discussion of papers of 

 congregational interest. A proposition was offered, 

 -; deration of which was deferred, to authorize 

 the preparation beforehand of a programme of the 



discussion "On the State of the Society" by a com- 

 mittee, who-hoiild have a few papers written. 1L\ tin- 

 time for the discussion, and give notice of it. A 

 discussion on social purity resulted in the meet- 

 ing's resolving that a letter on the subject be sent 

 down to pa: 



The annual meeting of the Friends' Foreign Mis- 

 sion Association was held in London, Mar 25. J. 

 B. Ilodgkin presided. A letter was read from the 

 committee of the Church Missionary Society asking 

 sympathy and prayer for the three years' centenary 

 effort of that society. It was not' the aim of the 

 scheme to magnify any particular agency. Diversity 

 among the Christian churches was not inconsistent 

 with unity of purpose and of guidance. The chair- 

 man referred to this letter as one more testimony to 

 the fact that real missionary work broke down the 

 barriers, and showed the heathen the real unity of 

 Christendom. The treasurer of the society reported 

 that the year's income had been 12.771. including 

 1,837 in legacies and special gifts, while a further 

 sum of 2,000 from those sources had been placed in 

 reserve. The expenditures had been 3.560 for Mad- 

 agascar. 1.664 for medical work (toward which the 

 London Missionary Society had refunded .100 1. 4.- 

 979 for India, and' 1,193 for China, with 896 for 

 home expenses and 182 for life assurance. Last 

 year's deficit of 1,240 had been reduced to 405. 

 The annual report represented that the inauguration 

 of French rule in Madagascar appeared to have had 

 beneficial results in many ways. The former op- 

 pression and injustice were ended, laws against the 

 sale of intoxicants had been re-enacted, full reli- 

 gious liberty was promised and the Government 

 was considering means of mitigating, if not abolish- 

 ing slavery. The French authorities had uniform- 

 ly treated the missionaries with courteous considera- 

 tion, the assistance rendered by them to the French 

 sick and wounded having doubtless contributed to 

 this kind feeling, and were now using and paying 

 for the greater part of the missionary hospital. A 

 deputation of Protestants from Paris had produced 

 an excellent impression on the natives. All the 

 missionaries of the association were now in the cap- 

 ital, where the schools were as largely attended as 

 ever ; but steps were being taken to revive the 

 country congregations. A Foreign Missionary Con- 

 ference, held at Darlington in September, was at- 

 tended by nearly 400 delegates from all parts of 

 the L'nited Kingdom and Ireland. Papers were 

 read upon the history of Friends' mission work, 

 methods of conducting the work, and other kindred 

 subjects. One of the papers, contrasting the state 

 of the society now and sixty years ago, maintained 

 that more harmony prevailed now. and less dispo- 

 position to be contentious about nonessentials. 



G 



GAME-PRESERVING IN THE UNITED 



STATES. It is only within very recent years that 

 attention has been given in any notable degree to 

 the preservation of the larger game animals. It is 

 true that most of the States have enacted game 

 laws to the extent of making a close season. These 

 have in the main been carelessly enforced till very 

 lately, and the action of the States has been neg- 

 ative rather than positive except in the work of 

 their fish commissions. Attempts have been made 

 from time to time to interest the legislatures of 

 different States in the establishment of game pres- 

 ervation with a view to the breeding of the large 

 wild animals as well as of game birds: but they 

 have not been effective except in New York, and 



there only in a limited degree. The United States. 

 too. has 'made some praiseworthy experiments in 

 the same direction. The four national parks in 

 Colorado, the magnificent Yellowstone Park in 

 Wyoming, and the Yosemite Park in California 

 are illustrations of far-sighted public spirit. It is 

 only in the latter two, however, that any careful at- 

 tempt has been made to propagate and preserve 

 the noble game animals which had been so rapidly 

 disappearing from the limits of the United States. 

 The importance of human effort given to the salva- 

 tion and not to the destruction of the most inter- 

 esting forms of the fera' naturie has for a good 

 while been seen to be indispensable to such ani- 

 mals as the buffalo, the moose, and the elk, once 



