52 KUEAL LIFE IN CANADA 



we confine ourselves to the falling off in students for the 

 ministry. This is forcibly presented for one branch of 

 the church by Professor Kilpatrick in his Introduction 

 to Mr. Mott's volume, " The Future Leadership of the 

 Church." " The Blue-book for 1908 presents facts 

 worthy of careful consideration. In 1875 the church 

 possessed 139 students; in 1907 this number had risen 

 to 194, a gain of 55. In 1875 the church possessed 706 

 charges; in 1907 this number had risen to 1,984, a gain 

 of 1,278. If it required 139 students to supply the 

 needs of a church of 706 congregations, surely 194 are 

 far too few to supply the needs of a church of 1,984 con- 

 gregations. Again, compare 1907 with 1902. In 1902 

 the church possessed 230 students and 997 congrega- 

 tions. In 1907 the number of congregations had in- 

 creased by 987, while the number of students had de- 

 creased by 36." The cause of this decline is found in 

 the rural situation. Over 90 per cent, of our students 

 have been drawn from the country. The increasing dis- 

 content and unrest, the lessening of optimism and altru- 

 ism, have affected adversely the country's richest pro- 

 duct, the heralds of the Cross. 



Of more importance is the church's relation to the 

 problem. The church is a means, not an end. The 

 question is not one of maintaining her numbers and 

 recruiting her ranks. It is one of the efficacy of her 

 service to the country in its need. There was a time 

 when the chancelleries of Europe were hard pressed to 

 provide revenue for their governments. Then the 

 science of political economy had its birth. The chan- 

 celleries found that the best way to secure revenue was 

 by making their people prosperous. There was a period 

 when for ages the Christian Church thought the end of 



