BAPTISTS. 



75 



Congo, in Africa 44 stations, 857 out-stations, 

 231 missionaries, 791 native preachers, and 572 

 Bible-women and other native helpers, in all 

 1,594 missionary laborers ; 588 churches, of 

 which 325 were self-supporting; 55,941 mem- 

 bers, with 3,738 baptized during the year ; 144 

 Sunday-schools, with 5,743 pupils; 785 schools, 

 of which 263 were self-supporting, with 854 

 native teachers and 17,045 pupils. The num- 

 ber of church buildings and chapels was 405, 

 the value of which was estimated at $402,489 ; 

 and the total amount of contributions from the 

 mission stations, so far as was reported, was 

 $39,212. From the European missions in 

 Sweden, Germany, France, Spain, and Greece 

 were returned 929 preachers, 572 churches, 

 and 61,550 members, with 6,776 baptized dur- 

 ing the year; making the grand totals, for all 

 the missions, of 1,720 preachers, 1,160 church- 

 es, and 117,491 members, with 10,514 baptized 

 during the year. 



Autumnal Conference. The fourth Autumnal 

 Baptist Conference was held in New York 

 city, beginning Nov. 10. Papers in the 

 previously arranged programme of subjects 

 were read, as follow : " The Indian Question," 

 by H. L. Wayland, D. D. ; "The Mormon 

 Question," by the Rev. T. A. K. Gessler; 

 "Socialism, False and True," by President D. 

 J. Hill, LL. D. ; " Church Finances " (a) " Ten- 

 ure of Property," by the Rev. Alfred Taylor ; 

 (6) " Current Expenses and Benevolence," by 

 H. H. Lamport ; " Christian Art in Relation 

 to Baptism," by E. Dodge, D. D, LL. D.; 

 " Liturgy in Baptist Churches," by the Rev. 

 Edward Braislin ; " The Revised Version of 

 the Scriptures ; its Practical Use," by H. F. 

 Colby, D. D. ; "Tests of Admission to the 

 Church," by Prof. T. Harward Pattison, D. D. ; 

 " The Spiritual Life as affected' ' (a) " by In- 

 tellectual Problems," President A. A. Ken- 

 drick, D. D. ; (&) " by Social Conditions," the 

 Rev. Richard Montague. - The readings of the 

 papers were followed by general voluntary 

 discussions of the subjects to which they ap- 

 pertained. 



Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern 

 Baptist Convention met at Augusta, Ga., May 

 6. The Rev. P. H. Mell, D. D., was chosen 

 president. A question arose on the organiza- 

 tion of the body concerning the admission of 

 two woman delegates who had been commis- 

 sioned by the State Convention of Arkansas. 

 The majority report of the committee to which 

 the subject was referred, favored the admission 

 of the women, while the minority report op- 

 posed it as not contemplated in the constitu- 

 tion of the convention. A motion was adopted 

 to substitute the minority report for the ma- 

 jority report, whereupon the women with- 

 drew their application. The Board of Foreign 

 Missions reported that its total available funds 

 for the year had been $81,289, and that it had 

 a balance in the treasury of $1,144. Fifteen 

 new missionaries had been sent out. Special 

 mention was made in the report of the mis- 



sions in Mexico, Brazil, West Africa, China, 

 and Italy. 



The receipts of the Home Mission Board had 

 been $69,430 ; and the accounts showed a bal- 

 ance against the board of about $300. One 

 hundred and eighty-five missionaries had been 

 employed, who had supplied 4,260 churches 

 and baptized 2,931 persons. Fifty-three new 

 churches had been organized, and 14 meeting- 

 houses had been built. Two ministers had 

 been employed as theological instructors of 

 the colored ministry. The woman's mission- 

 ary organizations of the churches represented 

 in the convention were invited by resolution 

 to appoint annually a brother of their own 

 State for each one hundred dollars they may 

 have paid to either of the boards, to repVesent 

 them on the floor of the convention. At the 

 meeting of the Home Mission Board, connected 

 with the convention, it was decided to take 

 measures to make the Indian missions self-sus- 

 taining, and to renew the appointment of a 

 competent man to hold theological institutes 

 among the Indians. 



II. Seventh-Day Baptists. The Seventh-Day 

 Baptist General Conference met at Alfred 

 Centre, N. Y., Sept. 23. The Hon. William L. 

 Clark, of Rhode Island, presided. Statistical 

 reports were received from 65 of the 94 

 churches of the denomination, which returned 

 7,676 members, and a gain of 159 from the 

 previous year. Sixty- eight Sabbath - schools, 

 being two thirds of the whole number, re- 

 ported 480 teachers, 369 officers, and 4,907 

 pupils. The Woman's Board made its first 

 annual report, from which it appeared that 

 $2,500 had been raised by the women of the 

 denomination for denominational work. The 

 treasurer of the Memorial Fund reported that 

 he had $82,000 in his hands, the greater part 

 of which had been devoted to denominational 

 objects. Several bequests and gifts of property 

 had also heen made for the fund, the value of 

 which was not yet estimated. The receipts of 

 the Missionary Society had been $9,886, be- 

 sides a gift of real estate which was worth not 

 less than $500. Of this sum, $7,464 had been 

 contributed for general and special purposes, 

 and $2,422 for the Permanent Fund. The ex- . 

 penditures had been $9,524 : $3,733 for China 

 and Holland ; $4,536 for domestic work ; and 

 $1,254 for administration, etc. The society 

 was in debt to the amount of $1,392. In 

 the mission at Shanghai, China, were report- 

 ed one missionary, one Sabbath-school, day- 

 schools, and 18 church - members. Twenty- 

 one agents of the society laboring in the home 

 field returned 92 additions, 53 of which were 

 by baptism. The Education Society submitted 

 the statistical reports of Milton College, Wis- 

 consin, and Alfred University, New York. 

 Eighteen thousand copies of tracts had been 

 published by the Tract Society. The first vol- 

 ume of a book on the Sabbath by the Rev. Dr. 

 A. H. Lewis had been published, and the second 

 volume, in press, was nearly ready. Six regular 



