PRESBYTERIANS. 



707 



byterian churches, was referred to a special 

 committee, to consider and report upon it at 

 the next session of the Assembly. 



A Scottish National Church Defense Society 

 has been organized, to resist the movement for 

 disestablishment. Its object is declared to be 

 " to supply information respecting national re- 

 ligion and the true position of the Church of 

 Scotland, to intensify a sense of corporate 

 unity among all having common views on this 

 subject, and especially to organize all members 

 of the Church, and all favorable to national 

 religion, in defense of the national position of 

 the Church." 



IX. FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. The total 

 revenue of the Free Church of Scotland, as re- 

 turned for the year at the meeting of the Gen- 

 eral Assembly in May, was 607,500, or 17,- 

 000 more than the revenue for the preceding 

 year. The Committee of the Sustentation 

 Fund reported an increase of 915 in the con- 

 tributions. The Committee of Jewish Mis- 

 sions had received 6,680, and reported the 

 conversion of seven Jews. The income of the 

 Foreign Missions Committee had been 82,- 

 726, and exceeded the income of any previous 

 year. The operations of the missions were 

 now carried on in thirteen fields, specified as 

 those of Calcutta and Lower Bengal, the San- 

 thals, Bombay, Poona, Deccan, Central India, 

 Madras, South Caffraria, North Caffraria, Zulu- 

 land. Livingstonia, the New Hebrides, and 

 Syria. Among the publications of the year 

 were a grammar and a dictionary of the Anei- 

 tyum language of the New Hebrides. 



The General Assembly of the Free Church 

 of Scotland met at Edinburgh, May 18th. The 

 Rev. Dr. Robert Macdonald, of North Leith, 

 was chosen Moderator. The session was occu- 

 pied chiefly with the questions of disestablish- 

 ment, the doctrinal position and relation to 

 the Church of two of its members who had 

 gained prominence as teachers and authors, 

 and instrumental music, each of which was 

 the subject of an active discussion. On the 

 question of disestablishment, resolutions were 

 adopted reaffirming the previous expressions 

 of the Assembly in favor of disestablishment, 

 and declaring that the Free Church " does not 

 regard the maintenance of an established 

 Church in Scotland as in present circum- 

 stances a legitimate or useful way of express- 

 ing national homage to Christ; while the con- 

 tinued maintenance of the existing establish- 

 ment by the State is unjust and oppressive." 



Petitions were presented from two Presby- 

 teries asking for inquiry into a new book of 

 Professor Bruce on "The Chief End of Reve- 

 lation," which was regarded as divergent from 

 orthodoxy on several points, and Dr. W. Rob- 

 ertson Smith's work on the " Old Testament 

 in the Jewish Church," in which a line ot 

 thought was followed parallel with that of 

 other works of the same author which had 

 engaged the attention of previous assemblies. 

 Principal Rainy moved, with reference to both 



cases, that, in all the circumstances, the Assem- 

 bly deem it neither necessary nor expedient to 

 take action in the matter ; and his motion was 

 adopted. 



The question of the use of instrumental music 

 in the services of the Church was remitted to a 

 committee, to report to the next Assembly. 

 Twelve overtures desiring a change in the 

 formula of subscription by deacons were taken 

 up, and referred to a committee to consider 

 the whole matter and report to the next As- 

 sembly. The Rev. George C. Cameron, of St. 

 John's church, Glasgow, was appointed Pro- 

 fessor of Hebrew in the college at Aberdeen, 

 in place of Dr. W. Robertson Smith. 



X. UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF SCOT- 

 LAND. The total number of members of this 

 Church was reported to the synod in May to be 

 174,557, or 575 more than were reported in the 

 previous year. The total income of the Church 

 was 383,370, 725 more than the income of 

 the previous year, and representing a higher 

 amount than had ever before been returned. 



The Synod of the United Presbyterian Church 

 of Scotland met in Edinburgh, May 8th. The 

 Rev. Daniel Young, of Glasgow, was chosen 

 Moderator. A decrease in the number of 

 members of the Church had been reported at 

 the last two previous meetings of the Assem- 

 bly, but the statistical committee were able 

 this year to report a net increase for the year 

 of 575 members, although the number was 

 still about 500 less than in 1878. The follow- 

 ing declarations on the status of the foreign 

 missions were adopted : 



That the Synod and Presbyteries of Jamaica, and 

 the Presbyteries of Biafra, Caffraria, and Raipootana 

 shall be regarded as standing in a federal relation to 

 the Synod,"and as being no longer constituent parts 

 thereof; that any missionary presbyteries which may 

 hereafter be formed shall b'e regarded as occupying 

 the same position; that no formula shall "be used 

 within the bounds of a missionary presbytery until it 

 has received the sanction of the synod ; that no decis- 

 ion of a missionary presbytery or synod affecting- the 

 status of any agent of the Mission Board, appointed 

 by the home Church, shall take final effect, unless all 

 the parties and the Mission Board acquiesce therein, 

 or, otherwise, till it has been confirmed by the synod; 

 that, in regard to all matters of administration affect- 

 ing the property of the synod, or the agents appointed 

 by the Mission Board, no decision of a missionary pres- 

 bytery shall have any effect unless it is acquiesced in by 

 the board; that,inthe event of congregations 'belonging 

 to any of our missions joining with those of any other 

 Church or Churches to form a United Missionary Pres- 

 bytery, the rights of the home Church and its agents 

 shall be reserved : and that members of missionary 

 presbyteries, whether ministers or elders, and of other 

 ordained missionaries of the Church, who- are in this 

 country during the synod meeting, shall, under con- 

 ditions named, be entitled to sit in the courb and take 

 part in its deliberations, but without the right of 

 voting. 



The synod declined to recognize the coun- 

 cil of the Presbyterian Alliance in India as a 

 final court of appeal in matters concerning 

 native members. A proposed statement of 

 doctrine and formula for native elders, licenti- 

 ates, and ministers was submitted, with, an ex- 



