LUTIIKKANS. 



425 



by a vote of 48 to 86, and the majority report was 

 adopted. 



The constitutional amendments were defeated. 



In New Orleans the regular Democratic ticket 

 wa< opposed by the Chi/ens' League, an independ- 

 ent organization, aiming at the reform of alleged 

 j abuses in the city government. It included 

 members from all parties. The interest in the re- 

 sult was intense, and the success of the League 

 ticket by a large majority was the signal for a dis- 

 play of great enthusiasm. 



The Democratic State Convention, June 15, de- 

 clared for free coinage, and instructed the delegates 

 to Chicago to vote for it and to vote as a unit on all 

 important matters. 



The regular Republicans and the National Re- 

 publicans (Planters) each named a set of electors. 

 The latter body dropped the word "National"' from 

 their party name. 



The Populists, at Alexandria. Aug. 4, named a 

 full set of presidential electors, having refused all 

 propositions to combine with the Democrats. But 

 on Sept. 25 an agreement was reached by which four 

 electors from the Populist ticket and four from the 

 Democratic were placed on a fusion ticket. All 

 were pledged to vote for Bryan, and each was left 

 to vote for Sewall or Watson, as he pleased. 



The National Democrats, at their convention in 

 New Orleans, Aug. 28. denounced the action of the 

 Chicago convention, declared for the gold standard 

 and the retirement of the Government "from the 

 banking business," elected delegates to the Indian- 

 apolis convention, and provided for the organiza- 

 tion of a State central committee, which should 

 have power to name electors. 



The State gave Bryan 77.1 To votes. McKinley 

 22.037, of which 3,717 were polled by the Planters' 

 party, and Palmer 1,834. All the members of Con- 

 gress elected are Democrats. 



LUTHERANS. The statistics of the Church in 

 the United States and Canada, based on the reports 

 of 1896, and published in the " Church Almanac," 

 present the following totals : Four general bodies 

 and 14 independent synods, embracing 60 synodical 

 organizations. All accept the Augsburg Confession 

 as the standard of faith, and nearly all synods and 

 general bodies accept all the parts of the symbolical 

 books of the Lutheran Church as they are contained 

 in the Book of Concord of 1580. The 60 synods 

 number 5,958 ministers. 9.734 congregations, and 

 1,441.486 communicant members, with a total popu- 

 lation of more than 6.000.000. They maintain 4.125 

 parochial schools, and they employ 2.043 teachers, 

 who have under their care 203.340 pupils, mostly of 

 German and Scandinavian families. The parochial- 

 school system is maintained chiefly among the con- 

 gregations and synods composed of those who have 

 emigrated from countries where the system is uni- 

 versally maintained by the state, and they try to 

 perpetuate it in this country, but with the angli- 

 cising of their descendants less stress is laid on the 

 maintenance of the parochial school. The Sunday- 

 schools number 5.842. with 51.969 officers and 

 teachers and 508,010 pupils. These are found to 

 exist chiefly in congregations composed of Ameri- 

 can-born Lutherans, though in many of the German 

 and Scandinavian congregations flourishing Sunday 

 schools are also maintained. The benevolent con- 

 tributions for the year, reported through the regu- 

 lar synodical boards, amounted to $l,000,467.<>n ; 

 but this does not include contributions by individu- 

 als and congregations for the educational work of 

 the Church in this country, nor the contributions 

 from similar sources toward benevolent operations 

 not under synodical control, nor the large amount 

 of money sent directly to missionary and other be- 

 nevolent societies in other countries. 



The educational institutions of the Church in 

 this country, or under denominational control, 

 number 122. of which 26 are theological seminaries, 

 4'J colleges. 41 academies, and 1:5 ladie>' seminaries, 

 airgregating property valued at 14,620,889, and en- 

 dowment amounting to 1.47S.541. employing 747 

 professors and instructors, and having 11 '..'350 stu- 

 dents, of whom 2,738 are in course of preparation 

 for the office of the mini>try. There are 92 benevo- 

 lent institutions, which report property valued at 

 $2.667.525, endowment amounting to $200,562, and 

 '!4. X 75 inmates. There are 156 periodicals published 

 in English, German, Norwegian. Swedish, Danish, 

 Icelandic, Finnish, French, and Slavonian. The 

 Gospel is preached to Lutherans in this country in 

 14 languages. 



Since the census of 1890 the Church in this coun- 

 try has gained very largely in numerical strength. 

 The census presented the following statistics: 4.591 

 ministers, 8,595 congregations, and 1.231,075 com- 

 municant members. The net increase since that 

 time is 1.367 ministers, 1.141 congregations, and 

 210,411 communicant members. But the Church 

 has gained also in other respects, especially in the 

 matter of having its history, principles of fa'ith. and 

 worship brought to the attention of the American 

 people by means of numerous publications in Eng- 

 lish. Dr. Jacobs's history in the "American Church 

 History Series " and " The Lutheran Commentary.'' 

 not to mention others, have largely been instru- 

 mental in making known the nature and position 

 of this Church, whose literature has hitherto been 

 confined almost entirely to languages other than 

 the English. 



The following tabular statement shows the nu- 

 merical strength of the four general bodies and the 

 independent synods : 



Of the four general bodies, only the Synodical 

 Conference held a convention during the year. 



Synodical Conference. The sixteenth biennial 

 convention of this body, composed almost entirely 

 of German synods and congregations, was held at 

 Evansville, fnd., Aug. 12-17, 1896. The opening 

 sermon was delivered by the Rev. Carl Gausewitz, 

 of the Minnesota Synod. The convention was for- 

 mally organized by the election of the following 

 officers : The Rev. John Bading. Milwaukee, Wis., 

 president; the Rev. P. Brand. Pittsburg, Pa., vice- 

 president ; Prof. John Schaller, New Ulm. Minn., 

 secretary; and Mr. II. A. Christiansen, Detroit, 

 Mich., treasurer. Prof. Lauritz Larsen, Decorah, 

 Iowa, was received as delegate of the Norwegian 

 Synod and advisory member of the convention. 

 This general body is composed of the large synod 

 of Missouri, Ohio," and other States, with its 13 dis- 

 trict synods, embracing nearly all the States and 

 Territories of the United States, and portions of 

 Canada; the general synod of Wisconsin. Minne- 

 sota, and Michigan : and the English synod of Mis- 

 souri and other States, representing more than 2,000 

 congregations and nearly 500.000 communicant 

 members. The district synods in connection with 

 this general body maintain 1.747 parochial schools, 

 with 854 teachers and 97.310 pupils. The benevo- 

 lent contributions of the congregations during 1896 

 amounted to $281,020.85. Within the bounds of 

 this general body and under its control are 3 theo- 



