130 



CONGKEGATIONALISTS. 



any year except under the special effort of 1866. 

 The most prominent churches in the South 

 which have received aid have heen in Balti- 

 more, New Orleans, Memphis, Atlanta, and thir- 

 feen churches in Missouri. The seven Western 

 States of Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Iowa, 

 Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan, contain eight 

 hundred and sixteen Congregational churches. 

 During these ten years this Union has aided in 

 paying for the building of more than one-fourth 

 of all these churches. The treasurer's report 

 stated : 



Keceipts of the year, total 



Balance over last year 67,119.18 



Total funds for the year $99,649.40 



The total amount of appropriations paid 

 feeble churches, $83,796.44. Amount voted, 

 but yet unpaid, waiting for the erection of build- 

 ings, $23,200. Amount loaned feeble churches, 

 $2,700. 



Some of the Congregational churches have 

 taken action against those members who join 

 secret societies; in particular the Free-Masons. 

 Thus at the conference of Western Congrega- 

 tionalists at Ottawa, Illinois, a series of strong 

 resolutions were adopted against Free-Masonry 

 and other secret institutions, for these, among 

 other reasons: because, while claiming a relig- 

 ious character, they, in their rituals, deliberately 

 withhold all recognition of Christ as their only 

 Saviour, and Christianity as the only true relig- 

 ion ; because, while they are, in fact, nothing 

 but restricted partnerships or companies for 

 mutual insurance and protection, they ostenta- 

 tiously parade this characterless engagement as 

 a substitute for brotherly love and true benevo- 

 lence ; because they bring good men into confi- 

 dential relations with bad men ; and because, 

 while in theory they supplant the church of 

 Christ, they do also, in fact, largely tend to 

 withdraw the sympathy and active zeal of pro- 

 fessing Christians from their respective churches. 

 The General Association of Illinois also adopted 

 a strong report against secret societies,' chiefly 

 directed against Masonry. 



The "American Board of Commissioners for 

 Foreign Missions " is chiefly, though not wholly, 

 a Congregational society. The income of this 

 society for the past year was reported to be as 

 follows: From donations, $350,172.08; from 



legacies, $74,428.44 ; from other sources, $12,- 

 783.25 making a total of $437,884.77. There 

 was a balance in favor of the treasury Septem- 

 ber 1, 1866, of $6,201.07. The number of 

 foreign missions established, including stations 

 and out-stations, is 604; the whole number of 

 laborers employed, including natives, physi- 

 cians, and ordained missionaries, 1,264. The 

 secretary reports as the number of foreign 

 churches under the board's control, 205 ; the 

 number of church members, as far as reported, 

 25,502; added during the year, 1,447. The 

 prudential committee, in their report, ask for 

 eighteen new missionaries, three missionary 

 physicians to reenforce the stations already oc- 

 cupied, and for forty new missionaries to be 

 forwarded to a new field, making sixty-one, 

 which they request to be sent without delay. 

 The appropriations for the coming year have 

 been fixed at $525,000. The prudential com- 

 mittee in their report lay especial stress upon 

 the importance of the Chinese mission. 



From the English Congregational Yearbook 

 for 1868, it appears that in the metropolis the 

 number of independent churches has increased 

 since 1858 from 171 to 227. The number of 

 pastors in 1858 was 226, against 291 at the 

 present time, being an increase of ministerial 

 power numbering 65. There are also at the 

 present time 100 students in the metropolitan 

 college associated with Congregationalism. The 

 proportion of increase is in about the same ratio 

 throughout the country, so that at the present 

 time there are in Great Britain and her depen- 

 dencies 3,330 independent churches, with 1,613 

 out- stations and mission-rooms, under the su- 

 perintendence of 2,876 independent ministers, 

 whose labors are supplemented by 2,326 evange- 

 lists and lay preachers. The denomination has 

 76 associations and unions, 27 colleges and in- 

 stitutes, with 386 students under training for 

 ministerial and missionary work. The number 

 of ministers who have died during the year has 

 been 58. 



The London Missionary Society is principally 

 sustained by the Independents, or Congregation- 

 alists. The receipts of the society for the year 

 were 105,090 10s. 4tf. The total income of 

 the society, since 1695, has been 3,255,193. 



In the table below will be found a summary 

 of statistics from the Congregational Quarterly. 



* From a number of States no reports were received. 



