CHRISTIANITY, GROWTH OF. 



CIVIL RIGHTS. 



129 



were only 50,000 Christians in heathen lands; 

 now there are more than 2,000,000. In 1830 

 the Bible was read in 50 languages and dia- 

 lects ; now in 250, and 150,000,000 Bibles are 

 in circulation. In 1813 Judson arrived in Bur- 

 mah, and in 1819 he baptized the first convert. 

 Jn that province to-day there are 25,000 commu- 

 nicants, and about 76,000 adherents to the faith. 

 In 1850 there were in India about 14,000 com- 

 municants, and 91,000 nominal Christians. 

 To-day there are 114,000 communicants and 

 about 420,000 nominal Christians. In the prov- 

 ince of Madras, ten years ago, the number of 

 Christian adherents was 161,000; to-day the 

 number is 300,000. And throughout India, 

 China, Africa, and other lands, the gospel is 

 spreading at a rate never equaled since the 

 days of the apostles. According to Gibbon, 

 imperial Rome, at the time of her greatest ex- 

 tent, ruled about 120,000,000 people ; but to- 

 day Christian nations govern 650,000,000. 



"While the progress of Christianity has been 

 very marked throughout the whole world, in 

 the United States, where it has had an open 

 field and perfect freedom, its gain has been 

 greater than in any other land. During the 

 past eighty-three years and particularly dur- 

 ing the past three decades the growth has 

 been more rapid than in any former period. 

 Eighty years ago students in Yale and Harvard 

 Colleges were accustomed to call themselves by 

 the names of French and German infidels. In 

 Yale College, infidel students used to combat 

 President Dwight with their views in the 

 class-room. Only a very small portion of the 

 students in the colleges of the country at that 

 time were church-members. In 1745 there 

 were only four church-members among the 

 students of Yale. But a wonderful change has 

 taken place in that college since. 



From 1870 to 1880 Harvard graduated over 

 1,400 young men, and only two of the number 

 registered themselves as "skeptics." In 1830 

 26 per cent, of the students of New England 

 colleges were church-members. In 1880, out 

 of 12,063 students in sixty-five colleges in the 

 United States, 50 per cent, were professors of 

 religion. En 1800, the population of the United 

 States was about 5,000,0^0, and the number of 

 communicants in the various churches was 

 364,000, averaging one to fifteen of the popu- 

 lation. In 1880, with a population of 50,000,- 

 000, the number, of communicants was over 

 10,000,000, averaging one to five of the popu- 

 lation. These numbers include the communi- 

 cants in Protestant churches alone. In 1800 

 there was about one clergyman to every 2,000 

 of the population. In 1880 there were 69,870 

 ordained ministers in the Evangelical churches 

 of the United States, averaging one to every 

 720 of the population. 



From 1850 to 1880 the increase of the Ro- 

 man Catholic population (not enrolled commu- 

 nicants) was 4,753,000. During the same pe- 

 riod the increase in the number of communi- 

 cants in the Protestant churches was 6,500,000. 



VOL. XXIII. 9 A 



In 1850, in Boston, Mass., and vicinity, within 

 a radius of ten miles, there were 19,838 com- 

 municants in the Baptist, Congregational, and 

 Methodist churches combined. In 1880 the 

 membership of those churches had increased 

 to 45,752, being a gain of 230 per cent. 



From the year-books of the principal de- 

 nominations in the United States we gather 

 the following general summary for 1883 : 



* Estimated. 



t Roman Catholic population. 



CIVIL RIGHTS. In 1 875 Congress passed an 

 act to secure civil rights to colored citizens. It 

 became a law March 1st of that year. On 

 October 15, 1883, certain of its sections were 

 declared unconstitutional by the United States 

 Supreme Court. 



The law was entitled " An act to protect all 

 citizens in their civil and legal rights." Its 

 preamble recited that " it is essential to just 



