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CHUBCH OF GOD. 



COLLINS, NAPOLEON. 



CHUBCH OF GOD. The triennial meeting 

 of the General Eldership of the Church of 

 God in North America, was held at West 

 Salem, Wayne County, Ohio, beginning May 

 26th. Elder B. M. Balton was elected speaker. 

 The Conference consisted of nearly an equal 

 number of teaching elders and ruling elders 

 from each eldership. The elderships from East 

 Pennsylvania, West Pennsylvania, Maryland 

 and Virginia, East Ohio, West Ohio, Indiana, 

 Southern Indiana and Illinois, Michigan, Illi- 

 nois, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri, and the 

 German eldership, had chosen eighty delegates, 

 many of whom, however, failed to attend. A 

 memorial was received from the missionaries 

 and members of the Church in Nebraska, ask- 

 ing permission to organize themselves into an 

 eldership. The eldership of Texas was re- 

 ceived as a member of the General Eldership, 

 and the names of its delegates were entered 

 upon the journal The general book agent re- 

 ported that his receipts had been $7,527.88, 

 and his expenses $3,089.72, and that the estab- 

 lishment had on hand money, books, and plates, 

 to the value of $7,321.44. The Book Deposi- 

 tory had been established at Harrisburg, Pa. 

 The collecting agent of the Board of Missions 

 reported that he had spent one year in travel- 

 ing among the churches, and had obtained 

 $4,399.31 cash, and pledges of $761.53, at an 

 expense, including his salary, of $886.80. The 

 General Eldership of 1872 had taken action tow- 

 ard raising an endowment fund of $10,000 for 

 a professorship in Hillsdale College of the Free- 

 Will Baptists, Michigan, to be filled by a pro- 

 fessor designated by the eldership. A professor 

 had been elected for the proposed chair, who 

 subsequently resigned. Only $200 of the con- 

 templated endowment fund had been obtained. 

 The Board of Education, therefore, reported 

 that they had not been able to complete the 

 arrangement entered into by the eldership with 

 the authorities of Hillsdale College, and asked 

 to be relieved from the charge. The same 

 board recommended the formation of a char- 

 tered or incorporated society to take charge of 

 the educational interests of the Church, and of 

 similar societies in all of the annual elderships. 

 These recommendations were approved by the 

 General Eldership, and action was taken for 

 giving them effect. It was declared inexpe- 

 dient to license any minister " who will openly 

 preach and defend the dogma of the uncon- 

 scious state of the dead," but it was declared 

 the duty of the Church "to try to restore to 

 fellowship and usefulness any who may have 

 fallen into this error." A Board of Incorpora- 

 tion was established, which should constitute 

 the Board of Trustees of the General Elder- 

 ship, to hold all of its property and receive 

 whatever may come into its possession " by way 

 of purchase, bequest, donation, or otherwise." 

 Persons desiring to contribute toward the es- 

 tablishment of a permanent fund for missions 

 were advised to make their gifts through this 

 board. The publication of a "Hymnal " with 



hymns and music, was ordered. The condi- 

 tion of the German eldership received atten- 

 tion. This body was organized in 1854, and 

 flourished for several years afterward. It had 

 established a German paper, the Christlicher 

 Kundschafter, and had received a bequest of 

 $15,000. Lately, a number of the churches 

 had left it, and had attached themselves to 

 the East Pennsylvania eldership, to its det- 

 riment. The General Eldership expressed 

 a desire for the strengthening and continu- 

 ance of this body, and passed a resolution 

 declaring sympathy with the efforts of the 

 brethren and ministers " to advance the inter- 

 ests of the Church of God among the German 

 people of this country." In view of the pro- 

 spective occurrence in 1876 of the Centennial 

 celebration of the Independence of the United 

 States, it was decided that a general convoca- 

 tion of the Church be held in Philadelphia, 

 beginning on the first Wednesday of June, to 

 continue over Sunday. A committee was ap- 

 pointed to consider the subject of further par- 

 ticipation in the exercises of the celebration. 

 This committee met and was organized on the 

 10th of July. It decided to publish a pamphlet 

 containing a brief history of the rise, progress, 

 faith, practice, and statistics of the Church 

 of God, for gratuitous distribution during the 

 Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia. EJdej*s 

 James Mackey and D. A. L. Laverty were ap- 

 pointed to prepare for the pamphlet the article 

 on the "Bise and Progress of the Church," 

 Elder A. Swartz a paper on its "Faith and 

 Practice," and Elders C. H. Forney and B. H. 

 Balton a paper on its "Statistics." 



COLLINS, Bear-Admiral NAPOLEON, died 

 at Callao, Peru, August 9, 1875, while in com- 

 mand of the South Pacific fleet. He was born 

 in Pennsylvania, May 4, 1814, and entered the 

 navy in 1843. He commanded the steamer Ana- 

 costa in the Potomac squadron in 1861, and 

 took part in the engagement at Acquia Creek 

 on the 31st of May in that year. He afterward 

 received command of the gunboat Unadilla, 

 and was about a year with the fleet stationed 

 off the coast of South Carolina, Georgia, and 

 Florida. During this period he took part in 

 the battle of Port Boyal, and in several naval 

 enterprises. In July, 1862, he was made com- 

 mander, and had charge of the steamer Octo- 

 rara in the West Indian squadron. In 1863 he 

 was transferred to the steam-sloop Wachusett 

 and sent in pursuit of Confederate privateers. 

 While thus engaged Commander Collins arrived, 

 October 6, 1874, off the Brazilian port of Bahia, 

 which the corsair Florida had just entered, 

 anchoring amid the Brazilian fleet and directly 

 under the guns of the principal fort. Finding 

 that he could not provoke the Florida to fight 

 him outside the harbor, Commander Collins 

 bore down upon her early on the morning of 

 the 7th, intending to crush in her side and sink 

 her, but he only succeeded in damaging her. 

 A few small-arm shots were fired on either side, 

 but at random and without effect. Commander 



