646 



PRESBYTERIANS. 



Lakes, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas), 9 ; of congrega- 

 tions, 106; of ministers, 100; of elders, 497; 

 of deacons, 289; of communicants, 10,101; of 

 Sunday-schoolteachers, 865; of Sunday-school 

 scholars, 7,594; amount of contributions for 

 foreign missions, $7,966; for home missions, 

 $3,247; for freedmen's mission, $2,040; for 

 " national reform," $4,428 ; for the theological 

 seminary, $3,189 ; for the educational fund, 

 $1,240 ; for church erection, $11,698 ; for pas- 

 tors 1 salaries, $79,667; miscellaneous contribu- 

 tions, $49,821; total contributions, $161,296. 

 The Syrian Mission reported 9 missionaries, 85 

 communicants, 8 day-schools, with 225 scholars; 

 1 boarding-school, with 53 scholars ; 5 Sunday- 

 schools, with 148 scholars ; 25 native helpers, 

 1 station, 8 out-stations, and 9 mission build- 

 ings. 



The Synod met at Allegheny City, Pa., May 

 22d. The Rev. J. R. Thompson, of Newburg, 

 N. Y., was chosen moderator. About 85 min- 

 isters and 60 elders were in attendance as dele- 

 gates. The enterprises of the Church had suf- 

 fered from the pecuniary depression, particu- 

 larly the educational institutions Geneva Col- 

 lege, Ohio, and the Theological Seminary at 

 Allegheny, Pa. The missionary enterprises of 

 the Church, however, had been well sustained. 

 A report on temperance was adopted, express- 

 ing the hope that the liquor traffic would be 

 declared illegal, and urging the duty of total 

 abstinence on all Christians, and the necessity 

 for more stringent legislation. Another report 

 commended the work which the National Re- 

 form Association had done in behalf of the Sun- 

 day laws and the use of the Bible in the schools, 

 and recognizing the steady progress of the ef- 

 fort to secure a religious amendment to the 

 Constitution. A collection was appointed to be 

 taken up for the association, and the churches 

 were recommended to contribute at least $4,000 

 for its work. One of the most interesting dis- 

 cussions in the Synod was on the question of 

 inviting ministers of other denominations to 

 preach in the pulpits of the Reformed Presby- 

 terian Church. A report was adopted declar- 

 ing that, while desiring to cultivate and cherish 

 the most friendly and fraternal relations with 

 brethren of other Evangelical denominations, 

 it had never been the custom of the Church to 

 invite them to minister to the people in the 

 preaching of the Word, and that there seemed 

 to be " no good reason, in the present condition 

 of the visible Church of Christ, for departing 

 from existing usage." 



(c.) Reformed Presbyterian Church: Gen- 

 eral Synod. This body consists of 6 presby- 

 teries, the Northern, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, 

 Ohio, Western, and Eastern (in Nova Scotia 

 and New Brunswick) Presbyteries, with 50 

 churches, 48 ministers and supplies, and 4 li- 

 centiates. The General Synod met at Cincin- 

 nati, Ohio, May 16th. The Rev. S. M. Ramsey, 

 of Duanesburg, New York, was chosen mod- 

 erator. The Synod recommended to the mem- 

 bers of the Church to contribute to the Foreign 



Mission of the Reformed Presbyterian Synod 

 (O. S.), " still aiming, however, to keep before 

 them the idea that efforts should be put forth 

 to locate a mission field, at as early a day as 

 possible, which would be under the immediate 

 direction of the General Synod itself." The 

 Committee on Conference with the Synod of 

 the Reformed Presbyterian Church (O. S.) re- 

 ported that they had held two conferences with 

 the other committee, but had found the differ- 

 ence which was in the way of union to be such 

 that, for the present at least, it could not be 

 surmounted. The difference relates mainly to 

 the attitude of the two bodies in reference to 

 political affairs, the Synod believing that all 

 participation in political action which involves 

 an oath of allegiance to the Constitution and 

 Government of the United States is wrong, 

 while the General Synod believes that such 

 action is not wrong unless it involves some 

 actual immorality. It was agreed, however, 

 that cooperation between the two churches in 

 regard to matters of public interest, as in the 

 cases of " Foreign Missions "and the " National 

 Reform Movement," was becoming and desira- 

 ble. The committee was continued. 



IV. CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 

 The following is a summary of the statistics of 

 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, as they 

 were reported to the General Assembly in 

 1877: 



Synods 26 



Presbyteries 110 



Ministers 1,288 



Licentiates 857 



Candidates 201 



Number of congregations 2,251 



Elders 7,408 



Deacons 2,251 



Members added by profession 6,450 



Members added by letter 2,086 



Total members added during the year 8,486 



Adults baptized 4.105 



Infants baptized 1.820 



Whole number of communicants 100.812 



Total in 8abbath-schools 62,706 



Volumes in Sabbath-school libraries 16,548 



Amount contributed by Sabbath-schools $6,753 



CONTRIBUTIONS. 



For Home Missions $14.820 



" Foreign Missions. 1,839 



" Educational purposes 4.679 



" Publication 5,4S8 



" Church building and repairing 96,440 



" Pastoral salaries 147,421 



" Presbvterial purposes 6,401 



" Miscellaneous 14,912 



" Charity 8,286 



Amount contributed by Sabbath-schools 6,753 



Total contributions $301.5^9 



Total value of church property 1,688,780 



The General Assembly of the Cumberland 

 Presbyterian Church met at Lincoln, 111., May 

 17th. The Rev. Dr. A. B. Miller was chosen 

 moderator. The question which excited the 

 most discussion related to the attitude which 

 the Church should maintain toward indepen- 

 dent papers published professedly in its inter- 

 est. The Assembly had, a few years ago, for 

 the purpose of securing to the Church a bettor 

 and more efficient general newspaper than it 

 had, procured the consolidation of all the jour- 

 nals representing the Church into one, The 



