186 



METHODISTS. 



African Conference the conference replied ad- 

 versely to recognition m relation to oharcb mem- 

 bership of any diversity of administration as be- 

 tween persons of different races or color. 



A ooniinittrf appointed by the conference of 

 18M to consider the steps that chnuld le taken 

 in order to main larger numbers of youths in 

 .11 n h recommended a scheme for the for- 

 mali.T rt was 



rafarred to the district synods. The Privileges 



! \vith- 



.(nnthe Prims Umister and the lead- 

 in the pi 



1'arliammt uh representations of the 

 Teniences nonconformists were tttfaiiag ih 

 respect to burials, marriages, ami other n 

 another deputation was appointed to continue 

 and |rvv the rvprvs. : \ n p.-rt ..n con- 



he M. thodi>t churches of 

 Great Britain affirmed its desirability, and rec- 

 ommended f--r submission to the several con- 



That united committee be annualh 



.tiiirut "t" representative- Mr tin- 



j.ur|M.M-)* >f mutual defense in the 



following proporti Wesleyan Method: 



Primitive Methodist*. 8: United M.th<><li~ 

 Churchea, ; Methodist New Conmvtion. 4: Hihlc 

 :tna,4; Wcslcvan Reform Union, 1 : In<l<j>cii.l- 

 ent McthodUtj*, 1. That it is desirable that a Metho- 

 dist yearbook be regularly published, and it 

 ferred to the united committee to consider if this he 

 practicable; that wherever practicable a united meet- 

 r* and an equal number of the n-i- 

 reaentative members of the various Methodist ehurches 

 be held once a year for devotion, fellowship, and 

 counael ; that wherever practicable a united Metho- 

 dist love feast be held annually on a Sunday after- 

 noon; and that Whitsunday, when other arran^c- 

 meoto will allow, be choaen for the purpose a 

 memorative of the Pentecostal descent of the Holy 

 Ghost. The committee express the belief and hop* 

 that the better understanding which now prevails be- 

 tween the different Meth-.'iiM ohurrhcH will issue in 

 the avoidance of the unnecessary multiplication of 

 chapeln, enpeciallv in small places, and rccoiiuncn.ls 

 the several conferences to direct their n- 

 chapel committees to correspond with one another to 

 promote this result in the case of local difficulty and 

 disagreement that may arise. 



A resolution was adopted favoring union of 

 all parties and denomination to promote new, 

 unpolitical legislation relative to the drink 

 traffic. 



Ml. Colonial Wesleyan MethodM 

 ( nnrrhe*. The statistical reports of the South 

 African Conference give it 200 traveling preach- 

 ers. 94 local preachers, 58,897 members. 428 

 Sunday schools, with 2.169 teachers and 28,500 

 pupils, 602 churches, and 1,611 other preaching 







The West Indian Conference returns 111 trav- 

 eling preachers and 51.125 members. 



The Australasian Wesleyan MHl.ndM Omn-h 

 rplurns 630 traveling preachers and 04,407 m.-m- 



MH. Primitive Methodist Chnrch.-The 

 statistical reports of this Church, present*. 1 to 

 the conference in June, showed that the j 

 number of members was 196324, an increase for 

 the year of 593 : of class leader- flood 



preacher*. 16,728: of connectional chapel? 

 of adherents, 604,100; value ,f , -..nm-ctional 



r, 8,708.143, IIL-MMIM which st>. 

 btednessoi i'i.77.vj. 

 The Sunday schools numt- \\iii 



62,066 teachers and 462,856 pupils, or r,.:,-:, , . .,, 

 than in 1M94. 



Thr annual IIUM-JIHL* -f lli* 1 I'riini' 

 .li-t V; A as licld in 1. 



: Hull. IM-. 

 Thr t le f-r ini-simmry \\.-rlv liad UTD 



,! ordiiuin 

 - '. : 1 In- i-i 



fund. ' <1 I'.v tin- 



sions and approprial.-d locally, l'H).'.5- 

 money raiscMi by tin- African iui--i 



lated locally, 1,710. Nim- h-.m- mission 

 stations ha<l become indrpmdnii 

 p. .rtii -mbers. The s 



ii London.:!! in tin- |ro\ inc.-. I in 

 J in Scotland, and :'. in In-land. with an s\-jw- 



gate membership of 5,625, showing an n 

 during the year of 2*J1. The African n 

 included ' principal stati-. 



s l-iuropcan iniui-t. !-.:' native niiiiiM.M -. i; na- 

 tive assistants, 40 native local ] 



leaders, and 1.04(1 church nn-inlH-rs. all 

 total abstainer-. An increase f,,r i ho yearotB 

 members was shown. 



The conference met in Edinburgh, .In i 

 The Rev. John Wat-on \\ a - 

 The .loint Committee on Union of t 

 Methodists and the Bible Christians iv)>orta^H 

 the conclusion arrived at in the two nicedBlj 

 that had ln-.-n held dnrint: t he year, that ^B 

 were so many features in which the t wo <'huroBl| 

 were alike that in the event of union neither 

 would be recjuired to make any 

 change, while in other respects sliirht differe^B 

 existed which could easily be adj 

 serious diflferences were very fe nniii- 



of the Church, in ca<e union was carried ^fc 

 the committee sugget i\terian MetlH 



dist Church" or "Methodist Union Charaw 

 Resolutions were adopted approving 

 union as an ulterior object to l>c sought a^H 

 all the "minor" Methodist 1 rrv 9t\ 



ments were made for enlarging Mai 



l\. United Mothodisl Free Chnrcl 

 The summary. of the statistical ietu 

 body, as presented to the annual assemhnM 

 July, is as follows: Number of itinerant ms 

 J:J5: of local preachers, :J.::71 : <>f loa^H 

 3,378; of jneinl>ers, 80.149; of per*' 

 for membership, H.M4 : of cliapels. 1 

 preafhinir r.-oms, 246; of 

 with 25,800 teachers and 206,783 pupi. 

 increase for the year of 1.236 was shown infl 

 numlKjr of members. During the year Sf\ 

 persons had been admitted to membership. 



Reports were made in the assoml. 

 in p the operations of the book i 



f and Loan funds, A^hville < 

 the Theological Institute 

 had been obtained toward 20,000 to build ami 

 endow a theological coll 



The n-port of the deaconesses' worl 

 that it had grown in the con fid- 

 nection.and was well and universally supf^^H 

 The expenditures had been !' 



The thirty-eighth annual meeting in behalf 

 of the home and foreign missions was held i 



