'38 



PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES. 



PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN 

 THE UNITED STATES. A summary of the 

 statistics of Church progress in the year shows 

 the following: The number of dioceses in the 

 United States is 59; missionary jurisdictions in 

 the United States, 17; missionary jurisdictions in 

 foreign lands, 4; clergy (bishops, 84; priests and 

 deacons, 4,734), 4,878; parishes and missions, 

 6,519; candidates for holy orders, 503: ordina- 

 tions deacons, 166; priests, 167; baptisms, 59,- 

 998; confirmations, 43,059; communicants, 699,- 

 582; marriages, 18,400; burials. 34,184; Sunday- 

 school teachers, 47,151; Sunday-school pupils, 

 441,777; total of contributions, $13.816,669.84. 



The gross receipts for missions for the fiscal 

 year that ended Aug. 31, including those for 

 "specials," were $886,858.59. The contributions 

 for the work for which the board made itself re- 

 sponsible were $388,092.35, and the amount re- 

 ceived from legacies designated by the testators 

 either for domestic or foreign missions or for the 

 use of the society was $114,598.95, making the 

 amount that the board was free to use in the 

 payment of its appropriations $502,691.30. Lega- 

 cies amounting to $15,580 were permanently in- 

 vested. The number of parishes contributing 

 24 more than the year before and more than in 

 any previous year was 3,746, and the amount 

 of church offerings was larger than in any year 

 except last year. The Lenten offering from Sun- 

 day schools, amounting to $87,382.23, was the 

 largest yet made, and was an increase over last 

 year's offering of $5,600. The number of schools 

 contributing was 3,118, a gain of 87 compared 

 with the previous year. 



The receipts for domestic missions (including a 

 balance from 1898 of $31,409.40) were $447,861.97. 

 The payments on account of white, Indian, and 

 colored mission work amounted to $254,985.31 ; 

 specials were $51,302.90; portion of Woman's 

 Auxiliary united offering of 1898 applied to appro- 

 priations for domestic missions, $3,834.90; legacy 

 expenses (one half), $46.30; one half amount paid 

 to annuitants, $1,074.36; one half cost of admin- 

 istration and collection, $12,802.56; half cost of 

 printing reports of the board, Spirit of Missions 

 for the clergy, pamphlets and leaflets for gratui- 

 tous distribution, $9,430.09; legacies for invest- 

 ment paid to trust funds, $10,580; returned to 

 Standing Committee on Trust Funds, $22,500; 

 making the total payments for domestic missions, 

 $366,555.52, and leaving for domestic missions 

 and specials at the close of the fiscal year a bal- 

 ance of $81,306.45. The salaries of the bishops 

 and the stipends of the missionaries in 17 mission- 

 ary jurisdictions were paid, and in addition as- 

 sistance was given to 42 dioceses. The whole 

 number of missionaries, clerical and lay, male and 

 female, receiving salaries or stipends was 1,149, 

 and the amount appropriated to the whole work 

 (including the sums not directly chargeable to 

 the dioceses) was $294,093.95. The number of 

 parishes and missions contributing for domestic 

 missions was 26 more than ever before. 



The receipts for foreign missions (including a 

 balance for foreign missions and specials from 

 1898) were $405,416.45. The payments on ac- 

 count of mission work amounted to $228,525.69; 

 specials were $44,371.77; portion of Woman's 

 Auxiliary united offering of 1898 applied to ap- 

 propriations for foreign missions, $4,875; legacy 

 expenses (half), $46.30; half of amount paid to 

 annuitants, $1,074.35; half of cost of administra- 

 tion and collection, $12,802.56; half of cost of 

 printing reports of the board, Spirit of Missions 

 for the clergy, pamphlets and leaflets for gratui- 

 tous distribution, $9,430.09; legacies for invest- 



ment paid to trust funds, $5,000; legacy for 

 church building in Mexico, $500; returned to 

 Standing Committee on Trust Funds, $34,089.48; 

 making the total payments on account of foreign 

 missions, $341,315.14, and leaving for foreign mis- 

 sions and specials at the close of the fiscal year 

 a balance of $64,101.21. 



The reports of the missionary bishops are en- 

 couraging, and all express the need of means to 

 extend their work. 



The character of the mission work among the 

 colored people is both educational and evangelis- 

 tic, and in every Southern diocese the work is 

 steadily growing in strength and self-de|>enden< r, 

 and evidence is given of slowly but surely in- 

 creasing interest and activity in this part of the 

 domestic mission field. The number of communi- 

 cants given at the beginning of the year was 

 7,985. 



Early in the year the Rev. George B. Puitt. 

 who already had instituted church services in San 

 Juan, was appointed a missionary of the board 

 to Porto Rico, and provision has been made for 

 the salary of another clergyman in the same is- 

 land. In October the Missionary Council adopted 

 a resolution that " recommends to the Hoard of 

 Managers of the Board of Missions that a bishop 

 be sent at the earliest practicable day to inaugu- 

 rate the work of the Church in each of our new 

 possessions and other new fields of respond 

 bility." 



The work of foreign missions has been sus- 

 tained with remarkable vigor and persistm. < . 

 More missionaries were appointed than in ;my 

 previous year, the number, including the \\i\cs 

 of 3 of the missionaries, being 27; and, while 

 there has been no great conspicuous awakening 

 in the spiritual ingathering, there has been a 

 most gratifying and encouraging broadening and 

 strengthening of the work, which betokens a 

 healthful growth and development. 



In Liberia the number of baptisms has ex- 

 ceeded that of any previous year, being 374, near- 

 ly half of whom were adults; confirmations \\rre 

 188, only 1 less than the highest number ever 

 reached ; the number of communicants amounted 

 to 1,502, more than half of whom are from hea- 

 thenism; and the sum contributed ($2,054.93) was 

 never before so large. Two priests and 3 de;i>n- 

 were ordained. Political disturbances caused the 

 destruction of 2 of the missionary stations. 



Church property in China was much improved 

 during the year, and the missionary staff was 

 strengthened by the appointment of 10 mission 

 aries. Reports show gain at all points except 

 in the number of those confirmed; but this last, 

 though a seeming loss, is in reality due to the 

 longer preparation and more careful 'training now 

 required. The baptisms of natives were 415; con- 

 firmations, 109; communicants, 994; day pupils, 

 863; boarding pupils, 373; contributions, $1,- 

 991.65 (Mexican dollars). All boarding and day 

 schools have Sunday lessons equivalent to Sun 

 day-school work in the United States; bin 

 the Chinese have no Sabbath, not nuich of this 

 work is done among the heathen at large. The 

 Pentateuch has been translated into the 

 classical style, the Church service into the SMMII.L'- 

 hai colloquial, and a syllabary of the Hankow 

 dialect has been compiled. 



The evangelistic work of the Japan mission is 

 full of encouragement, but the educational work 

 is hampered by the action of the Government 

 Department of Education, which in August issued 

 a letter prohibiting religious teaching in all 

 schools of certain grades, whether sustained by 

 the Government or not. In other respects, the 



