812 



UNIYERSALISTS. 



Wing acted both as interpreter and partici- 

 pant in the conversation. 



The following is a translation of the letter 

 referred to, accrediting the envoys : 



The Emperor of China to the President oftlie United 

 States of America, greeting: Since the interchange 

 of treaties between your Government and China, re- 

 lations of amity and good will having been uniform- 

 ly and sincerely maintained, it is now our pleasure 

 to especially appoint Chen Lan Pin, decorated with 

 the peacock-feather, wearing the button of the sec- 

 ond rank, President of the Board of Sacrifice, to re- 

 side at your capital as Envoy Extraordinary, and 

 Yung Wing, wearing the button of the second rank, 

 Intendant of Circuit, as Assistant Envoy ; and it is 

 also our pleasure that they be at liberty to go and 

 come as occasion may require. 



We are fully assured that Chen Lan Pin and his 

 Assistant are just and honorable men, and we trust 

 that in the discharge of their diplomatic duties they 

 will give mutual satisfaction. 



Having, by the will of Heaven, succeeded to our 

 great patrimony, we regard without discrimination 

 China and all foreign nations as members of one fami- 

 ly, and we desire that henceforth our relations with 

 your Government may be further strengthened, and 

 that both may enjoy lasting peace, which is our sin- 

 cere hope. 



Kwang SMi, 4fh year, 1st month, 25th day 



(February 26, 1878). 



WIVERSALISTS. The following is a sum- 

 mary of the statistics of the Universalists in 

 the United States, as they are given in the 

 " TJniversalist Register" for 1879: 



* " e 



The general summary of the whole is : One 

 General Convention; 23 State Conventions; 

 863 parishes, with which are connected (by 

 estimation for parishes not reported) 42,500 

 families; 737 church organizations, having 

 37,965 members; 704 Sunday schools, having 

 59,845 teachers and pupils; 780 church edi- 

 fices, with a total of parish property, above 

 indebtedness, of $7,057,170; 711 ministers and 

 11 licensed lay preachers. The educational es- 

 tablishments include two divinity and theologi- 

 cal schools, four colleges and universities, and 

 six seminaries and academies, with 83 profes- 

 sors and instructors, 787 students, and $2,189,- 

 000 of property. 



The Universalist General Convention of the 

 United States met at Providence, R. I., Octo- 

 ber 24th. J. D. W. Joy, Esq., of Massachu- 

 setts, was chosen President. A review of the 

 condition of the denomination and of the prog- 

 ress of its interests during the year was given 

 in the report of the Board of Trustees. The 

 amounts of the permanent funds of the Con- 

 vention were as follows: The Murray fund, 

 $120,742.54; the Gunn fund, $8,000; the 

 scholarship fund, $3,227.32 ; total, $131,969.86. 

 The condition of the investments of the funds 

 had been improving, and the process of invest- 

 ment was continued as fast as the loans matured 

 and could be secured without impairing the 

 principal. The receipts from the missionary 

 boxes had been $1,273.64, and the total receipts 

 to the credit of the Convention had been $16,- 

 356.95, showing an increase of $1,417.69 over 

 the receipts of the previous year. The ex- 

 penses had been $12,886.28 ($1,763 less than 

 in 1877), of which $3,100 were on account of 

 missions, and $4,600 on account of scholarships. 

 The work undertaken by the committee ap- 

 pointed by the previous General Convention, 

 to raise a sufficient amount of money during 

 the year to cancel the indebtedness of the Con- 

 vention, had not been entirely successful. More 

 than $10,000 had been pledged toward the ob- 

 ject, conditional upon the raising of the whole 

 amount during the year. The present indebt- 

 edness of the Convention was $23,033.55, 

 against $25,846.19 in October, 1877, showing 

 a reduction during the year of $2,812. But 

 little had been done on tlie account of the Gen- 

 eral Convention in the field of missionary work 

 and church extension, but a " great revival of 

 interest" in that department was reported in 

 the State Conventions. Thirty-three scholar- 

 ships had been in force, and seven beneficiaries 

 had been graduated at the Tufts Theological 

 School and at Canton. About $3,227 had been 

 returned in the repayment of scholarship loans, 

 all of which had been invested as a scholarship 

 fund. An increased interest appeared to be 

 manifested in Sunday schools ; and the report 

 spoke with gratification of the rapid growth 

 of the educational facilities offered by the 

 Church, and the increased interest taken by 

 the people in the subject of education, leading 

 to a " marked advance " in the general intel- 



