686 



PRESBYTERIANS. 



Union were instructed to endeavor to secure, 

 in addition to these articles, an expression 

 recognizing the Headship of Christ over His 

 Church. A clause, providing for the adjust- 

 ment of the relations of the literary and theo- 

 logical seminaries in harmony with the plan 

 of union, yet so that they shall preserve their 

 separate existence, government, and functions, 

 was adopted. Another clause in the basis, as 

 presented to the General Assembly, in refer- 

 ence to the endowment of the institutions, 

 was omitted. A declaration was added by the 

 General Assembly expressing opposition to 

 state grants for denominational colleges in the 

 Provinces. The Committee on Home Missions 

 reported that their receipts had been $14,992.- 

 46, and their expenditures, $15,202.12. One 

 hundred and twenty mission-fields had been 

 supplied, or twenty-six more than had been 

 supplied during the previous year. The mis- 

 sion-stations were growing. The ministers' 

 and orphans' fund amounted to more than 

 $69,000. The number of annuitants was 

 twenty-one. Knox College reported forty- 

 five students in theology, and twenty-seven in 

 the literacy course. Montreal College reported 

 forty-five students. 



The Synod of the Church of Scotland in the 

 Maritime Provinces of British America met at 

 Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, June 

 25th. The subject of union with the Presby- 

 terian Churches of British America was dis- 

 cussed with much interest, upon the presenta- 

 tion of the report of the representatives of the 

 synod in the joint committee which had met 

 at Montreal the previous autumn. The desire 

 for union, on equal terms, was expressed by 

 every one who participated in the debate. 

 The committee were reappointed, with instruc- 

 tions to continue the negotiations. The report 

 of the Board of Home Missions showed con- 

 tinued progress. The income for the year was 

 larger than it had been in any previous one. 

 About $1,600 had been drawn, in the whole 

 synod, from the Colonial Committee. The sum 

 of $3,000 had been raised within the synod for 

 foreign missions. A fund for the benefit of 

 the widows and orphans of ministers was 

 established, for which $8,000 are to be raised. 

 The roll of the synod showed a list of forty 

 ministers, and more than forty elders. 



The Synod of the Presbyterian Church in 

 the Lower Provinces of British America repre- 

 sents the Presbyterian Church in New Bruns- 

 wick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. 

 Its meeting for 1872 was held at Halifax, N. S., 

 during the last week in June. The Committee 

 on Union reported progress in the negotiations. 

 Tli<> answers of the several presbyteries and 

 sessions, to the propositions in relation to 

 union which had been submitted to them, were 

 generally favorable to the scheme. The foreign 

 missions of the synod were represented as in a 

 flourishing state. Four ordained missionaries 

 are stationed on the New Hebrides Islands, and 

 two on the island of Trinidad. A fifth mis- 



sionary is to be sent to the New Hebrides. 

 The Board of Home Missions presented a full 

 and satisfactory report. The supplement fund 

 was reported as $2,000 in debt, with but 

 $300 in the treasury. A scheme for insuring 

 churches, in sums of not more than $4,000 

 each, was prepared and approved. The re- 

 ports of this synod show that there are under 

 its jurisdiction 113 ministers who are pastors, 

 130 churches, 116 preaching - stations, and 

 about 18,000 communicants. 



The United Presbyterians have thirteen con- 

 gregations in Ontario, and the Covenanters 

 have two small presbyteries in the Lower 

 Provinces of British America. 



X. THE CHUECH OF SCOTLAND. The Assem- 

 bly of the Established Church of Scotland met 

 at Edinburgh, in the latter part of May. A 

 motion was offered to confer with the other 

 Presbyterian Churches on the subject of union. 

 This gave way to a substitute expressing the 

 willingness of the Assembly to use all means, 

 in Christian association with other Churches, 

 to promote the religious welfare of the nation, 

 together with peace and harmony among the 

 Evangelical churches. The substitute was 

 adopted. The resolutions on the subject of 

 education expressed, as the views of the As- 

 sembly, in substance, that the parochial schools 

 should be retained in the hands of the Estab- 

 lished Church, with the teaching of the Bible 

 and shorter catechism, and that the teaching 

 in the other public schools should be denomi- 

 national. The Assembly resolved also to peti- 

 tion Parliament against the educational bill 

 which was presented by the Lord Advocate. 

 The Committee to promote the Repeal of the 

 Patronage Act of Queen Anne was continued. 

 The funds of the mission in India were re- 

 ported to amount to 11,081, or 4,658 more 

 than the amount reported for the previous 

 year. The sum of 55,038 had been sub- 

 scribed toward the general fund for the en- 

 dowment of one hundred churches within the 

 next ten years. The ordinary receipts of the 

 coloaial fund were 4,697 3s. 6d. ; receipts 

 from legacies, 385 6*. lid. The income of 

 the Committee on the Conversion of the Jews 

 was 4,928 11. 9. lid. Only a small number 

 of conversions had taken place. 



XL Tim FREE CHUECH OF SCOTLAND.-^ The 

 General Assembly of the Free Church of Scot- 

 land met at Edinburgh, toward the end of May. 

 The question of union with other Presbyterian 

 Churches excited a lively debate. A number 

 of memorials were presented asking that the 

 negotiations be dropped. A resolution was 

 finally passed which declared that ministers 

 of the several denominations, which are parties 

 to the negotiations for union, shall be eligible 

 to Free-Church pulpits, upon signing the ordi- 

 nation formula, provided the eligibility is made 

 mutual. A resolution was passed to petition 

 Parliament in favor of the school bill proposed 

 by the Lord Advocate, on condition th;it no 

 limitation is put upon the kind or amount of 



