BAPTISTS. 



with whom the term opened having been re- 

 duced by its close to 23. The theological sem- 

 inary at Raraapatam, Telugu mission, had 152 

 pupils. A board of councilors for a theologi- 

 cal institute for the Baptists of France was 

 organized in connection with the meeting of 

 the Union, and the subject of the appointment 

 of a professor was referred to the Executive 

 Committee of the Society. The following is 

 A sun unary of the reports of the missions : 



The Women's Baptist Foreign Mission Society 

 reported that its receipts had been $41,472 dur- 

 ing the year, and that it had connected with it 

 840 circles and 212 mission hands, with 19,500 

 subscribers to its periodical, the "Helping 

 Hand." It had employed among the Burmans, 

 Telugus, Chinese, Japanese, Shans, and Garas, 

 83 missionaries and 39 Bible women, under 

 whom 38 schools were conducted. 



The twenty-fourth session of the Southern 

 Baptist Convention was held at Atlanta, 

 Georgia, beginning May 8th. All the States 

 within the territory of the Convention were 

 represented by about 350 delegates. The Rev. 

 J. P. Boyce, D. D., of Kentucky, was chosen 

 President. The receipts of the Foreign Mis- 

 sion Board for the year had been $54,551, ot 

 which $27,479, or more than half, were con- 

 tributed for the chapel in Rome. The Afri- 

 can mission, being near the Zooloo country, had 

 been embarrassed by the war to which that 

 region had been subjected. Three men and 

 six women were employed in connection with 

 the mission in China, with twenty-six native 

 laborers. Regular missions were established 

 in Shanghai, Canton, and Tung-Chow, with 

 outlying stations in several villages. In Italy 

 stations were established at Rome, Venice, Na- 

 ples, Milan, Modena, Ban, Barietta, Carpi, Cag- 

 Hari, and Torri Pellice, with more than twenty 

 out-stations. The Board had been invited to 

 open missions in Greece and in the island of 

 Cuba. The " first Baptist Church of Brazil, 

 near Santa Barbara, in the province of San 

 Paolo," a body of forty members in comfort- 

 able circumstances, had made several applica- 

 tions to the Board to be received as a self- 

 sustaining mission, and desired to conduct a 

 religious work under its sanction in the sur- 



rounding country. The receipts of the Home 

 Mission Board had been $16,200. Thirty-five 

 missionaries had been employed during the 

 year, who reported 400 baptisms. The scheme 

 for holding ministers' institutes for colored 

 preachers, sanctioned by the last meeting of the 

 Convention, had gone into operation nnder an 

 agreement for cooperation with the American 

 Baptist Home Mission Society. The Rev. 8. W. 

 Marston, D. D., had been appointed a superin- 

 tendent of missions among the colored people, 

 and charged with the organization and con- 

 duct of the institutes. The Board had been 

 obliged to withdraw the white missionary ap- 

 pointed to labor among the wild Indian tribes, 

 on account of the prejudices of the Indians 

 against white men, and to appoint in his stead 

 native preachers from the civilized tribes. A 

 missionary had been appointed to labor among 

 the Chinese in California. Provision was 

 made for the preparation of a catechism for 

 children and servants. A committee of five 

 persons was appointed to bear to the Baptists 

 of the Northern States at their approaching 

 anniversaries expressions of the fraternal re- 

 gard of the Convention, and its assurances 

 that, " while still holding to the wisdom and 

 policy of preserving our separate organizations, 

 we are ready to cooperate cordially with them 

 in promoting the cause of Christ in our own 

 and foreign lands." The resolutions under 

 which this action was taken contained a rec- 

 ommendation for holding a meeting of rep- 

 resentative men from all sections to devise 

 and propose plans of cooperation, but this was 

 struck out. 



The Eastern German Baptist Conference met 

 at Berlin, Ontario, August 27th. Reports from 

 about fifty churches showed that 364 additions 

 had been made by baptism and 30 by letter, 

 with a net gain of 330 members, making the 

 whole present number of members 4,601. 

 The Conference in part supported 20 mission- 

 aries during the year. The churches repre- 

 sented in this Conference are situated in the 

 Province of Ontario and in the States of New 

 York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, 

 and Maryland. 



The Western German Baptist Conference met 

 at Racine, Wisconsin, September 17th. L. H. 

 Donner was elected Moderator. The churches 

 and missions represented by this Conference 

 are situated in a territory which is described 

 as extending from Ohio to Oregon and from 

 Texas to Minnesota. The reports from the 

 churches gave the number of baptisms during 

 the year as 234, and the whole number of 

 members as 3,878. Estimating for the churches 

 whose reports had failed to arrive, the whole 

 number of members was thought to be about 

 4,000. A new constitution was adopted, in 

 which the name " Conference of German Bap- 

 tist Churches of the West " was substituted for 

 the old name of "Conference of Ministers, 

 Fellow Laborers, and Delegates of the German 

 Baptist Churches." Steps were taken to in- 



