CONGREGATIONALISTS. 



131 



$50,000 which rested upon the house, after 

 paying which it was believed the income of 

 the Association would meet the interest on the 

 remaining mortgage and other expenses. The 

 library had received valuable accessions during 

 the year, and, it was claimed, contained by 

 far the best collection of strictly Congregation- 

 al literature in the United States. 



The receipts of the American College and 

 Education Society for 1876 were $57.000.50, 

 of which a little more than $34,000 was des- 

 ignated for college purposes, leaving a smaller 

 sum than usual to be applied to young men 

 preparing for the ministry, so that the Society 

 had not been able to make its usual appropri- 

 ations to them. Its roll of beneficiaries con- 

 tained the names of 412 men, of whom 112 

 were new men. President Morrison, of Drury 

 College, Missouri, one of the speakers at the 

 anniversary meeting, referred to the fact that 

 of the 317 ministers who attended to the Na- 

 tional Council of the Congregational Churches 

 in 1865 as delegates, about two-thirds had been 

 conducted into their work by the aid of this 

 Society. 



The third triennial meeting of the National 

 Council of tlie Congregational Churches of the 

 United States was held at Detroit, Mich., be- 

 ginning October 17th. The Hon. William B. 

 Washburn, ex-Governor of Massachusetts, was 

 chosen President. The Secretary of the Coun- 

 cil, the Rev. A. H. Quint, D. D., made a report 

 that the present number of Congregational 

 churches in the United States was 3,509, show- 

 ing an increase of 184 since 1874 ; and the num- 

 ber of members was 350,658, showing an in- 

 crease of 26,078 since 1874. At his suggestion, 

 a committee was appointed to consider the 

 subject of uniform statistics of the churches. 

 Statements were made in behalf of the various 

 missionary and benevolent societies in which 

 the Council is interested. The American Con- 

 gregational fTnionvfas suffering from a decrease 

 in its receipts. Steps had been taken to reduce 

 its expenses, and a committee had been ap- 

 pointed to examine its affairs and manage- 

 ment, and ascertain how they could be im- 

 proved. Consolidation with the Home Mis- 

 sionary Society had been proposed, but was 

 objected to. The Council appointed a com- 

 mittee to cooperate with the committee of the 

 Union in investigating its affairs. Of the Amer- 

 ican College and Education Society, it was 

 stated that the amount raised for the colleges 

 was secured principally by the colleges them- 

 selves, with the approval of the society. The 

 funds came chiefly from New England, but the 

 larger part of the beneficiaries of the society 

 were from elsewhere. Hereafter grants of aid 

 would be limited to students taking a full col- 

 lege course. This policy was approved by the 

 Council, and the society was commended to 

 the churches. The Congregational Publishing 

 Society required a working capital of $100,000, 

 and needed a better support; the transference 

 of the Sunday-school work of this society to 



the American Home Missionary Society, in ac- 

 cordance with the recommendation of the 

 previous Council, had resulted, temporarily at 

 least, in a falling off of contributions for the 

 Sunday-school work. The work of the Amer- 

 ican Missionary Association was now directed 

 to the instruction and elevation of the colored 

 people, and to missionary and educational 

 work among the Indians and Chinese of the 

 United States. It was hoped that eventually 

 the continent of Africa would be Christianized, 

 as one of the direct results of the efforts now 

 making among the negroes of the South. The 

 report adopted by the Council in reference to 

 this society placed especial emphasis on the 

 importance of giving attention to the Chinese 

 immigrants. The American Home Missionary 

 Society had enjoyed great prosperity during 

 the last three years, its receipts within that 

 period having been more than $900,000, or 

 $60,000 more than the receipts for the preced- 

 ing three years. The number of missionaries 

 was now about 40 per cent, of the number of 

 Congregational pastors in the country who were 

 over other than home missionary churches, and 

 26 per cent, of all the additions to church-mem- 

 bership in the denomination during the past 

 three years had been to home mission churches. 

 Attention was called to the fact that the abil- 

 ity of the New England churches to assist the 

 society was declining, as, in consequence of the 

 changes of population, they had more and more 

 work to do at home, while the Middle and 

 Western States were constantly calling for more 

 help. It appeared that the churches were not 

 self-supporting in any of the Western States 

 except Ohio ; the Council advised that those 

 churches do more for themselves and the 

 cause. The American Board of Commissioners 

 for Foreign Missions had 256 churches under 

 its care, which reported an increase of 1,882 

 members during the year. The contributions 

 of the churches for its support represented an 

 average of one dollar for each member. Re- 

 ports were presented from the Theological 

 Seminaries at Andover, Mass., Hartford, Conn., 

 Oberlin, 0., and Chicago, 111. A committee 

 appointed by the previous Council to consider 

 and report upon the question of the "Parish 

 System," presented a report reviewing the his- 

 tory and principles of the system, and suggest- 

 ing reforms to make its workings mere satis- 

 factory. It declared that in all cases the rela- 

 tions of the society and the Church should be 

 so adjusted that the Church should be su- 

 preme ; held out the idea of a loyal cooperation 

 so arranged as not to impair this supremacy as 

 desirable ; referred to the legal changes which 

 would be needed in some of the States to make 

 such an adjustment secure ; and presented the 

 form of a constitution for a society to be or- 

 ganized in conformity to the suggestions it 

 offered. The subject was again referred to a 

 committee, with instructions to report to the 

 next Council. A special committee was ap- 

 pointed to inquire into the facts and the van- 



