670 



OLD CATHOLICS. 



marriage, from subdeacon upward, stall be no 

 longer binding on the Old Catholic Church. 

 Nineteen priests and fifty-six lay deputies voted 

 for the abolition, and the Bishop and five 

 priests, with sixteen laymen, against it. In con- 

 sequence of this decision several of the found- 

 ers and prominent men of the Church resigned 

 as members of the Synodical Council and with- 

 drew from the Synod, though none of them 

 left the Old Catholic communion. The Arch- 

 bishop of Utrecht, in the name of the Old Cath- 

 olic Church of Holland, had sent a letter warn- 

 ing the German Church against taking this 

 step ; but a suspension of the friendly relations 

 between the two Churches, which had been 

 expected on many sides, did not take place. 

 The statistical report presented by the Synodi- 

 cal Council showed a total of Old Catholics in 

 Germany of 51,864 persons, a slight falling off 

 since 1877, when it was reported 53,640. The 

 number of enrolled members had, however, 

 increased by about 250, a proof that the Church 

 had made progress among the young unmarried 

 men. The largest falling off was in Bavaria, 

 the greatest progress in Prussia. The Bava- 

 rian Old Catholics held a convention soon after 

 the close of the Synod, and passed a resolution 

 that the decision of the Synod in the celibacy 

 question was regarded as not binding for the 

 Old Catholics df Bavaria, 



The Synod of the Christian Catholics of 

 Switzerland held its fourth annual session at 

 Aarau, the capital of the canton of Aargau, on 

 May 25th, and disposed of its business within a 

 few hours. The most important question before 

 the Synod was that of the reception of the 

 Lord's Supper in both kinds. The priests and 

 congregations of French Switzerland are gen- 

 erally in favor of, and those of German Switz- 

 erland opposed to, changing the practice of the 

 Roman Catholic Church. The Synod agreed 

 upon a compromise, worded as follows: 1. 

 Communion of both kinds is likewise Catholic 

 and permissible. 2. The right of introducing 

 the same is reserved to the cantonal and dis- 

 trict synods, and to the congregational boards 

 of the Church, particularly in those cantons in 

 which no superior authority exists. With re- 

 gard to holy days, the Synod determined that 

 only Christmas, New Year's, Ascension, and All 

 Saints' days should be regarded as high festivals 

 when they fall on week days, and that all other 

 holy days should be either discontinued or else 

 transferred to the next Sunday ; but, on the oth- 

 er hand, that Good Friday should be " kept holy 

 in a way corresponding to its high importance." 

 The Synod consisted of 120 delegated members. 

 Bishop Herzog transmitted a statistical report, 

 from which it appears that the Church had 61 

 organized parishes and 71 priests. Although 

 no less than eleven priests had left the Church, 

 there was an increase of five in the number of 

 priests. The population connected with the 

 Church was estimated by the Bishop at 80,000 

 to 95,000. Nine students of the Theological 

 1? acuity of Berne had been ordained priests 



OREGON. 



and eleven were still preparing for the min- 

 istry. 



Although the Old Catholics of Austria had 

 been recognized in October, 1877, as an inde- 

 pendent religious body, under the designation 

 of Old Catholic Church, their congregations 

 were not regarded by the Austrian law as fully 

 organized until they should have pastors against 

 whom the Austrian Government raised no ob- 

 jection. Thus the congregation of Vienna was 

 not fully recognized until September 29, 1878, 

 when a pastor whose election had been ap- 

 proved by the Government was solemnly in- 

 ducted into his office. 



In Italy the Old Catholic Church is still with- 

 out a formal organization, and its Bishop elect, 

 Prota-Giurleo, had up to the end of 1878 not 

 received the episcopal consecration. The organ 

 of the Church, the u Emancipatore Cattolico," 

 of Naples, asserted that the number of adhe- 

 rents had notably increased during the year 

 1877, especially among the high dignitaries of 

 the Church and the laity of the provinces of 

 Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, and Salerno. The 

 u Emancipatore" repeatedly announced that 

 the consecration of the Bishop elect and the 

 complete organization of the Church were near 

 at hand. 



In France the Old Catholics are likewise 

 without organization. Father Hyacinthe, at a 

 meeting of the Anglo-Continental Society of 

 England, which was attended by about 30 An- 

 glican bishops, announced his determination 

 to resume at Paris his labors for a reforma- 

 tion of the Catholic Church of France on an 

 Old Catholic basis. He received from the 

 meeting the promise of an active support. 



OREGON. The people of Oregon appear to 

 have enjoyed uninterrupted prosperity, not- 

 withstanding the financial embarrassment that 

 has prevailed in other parts of the country. The 

 many disturbances and depressions in trade 

 and commerce in other States have produced 

 there no material injury. On the contrary, 

 although several counties in the eastern part of 

 the State have been exposed to the ravages of 

 a desolating Indian war, the development of 

 the commerce, though slow, has been sure and 

 steady, and the varied industries have generally 

 manifested a healthy activity, and have met 

 with reasonable returns. 



At the close of the financial year ending on 

 September 1, 1876, the balance in the State 

 Treasury was $63,894.54. The receipts for 

 the two ensuing years were $828,561.91. The 

 expenditures were $779,560.81, leaving a bal- 

 ance in the Treasury on September 1, 1878, of 

 $112,895.64. 



The liabilities of the State are as fol- 

 lows: 



Bonds bearing 7 per cent, interest : 



Soldiers 1 bounty bonds $26,400 00 



Soldiers 1 relief bonds 761 00 



Lock bonds payable out of internal improvement 



land fund 160.000 00 



Modoc war bonds, payable out of general fund. . 132,858 76 



$820,019 76 



