Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1868-11-29


of the year. The society is a small one
numbering only thirty.seyeu members
while congregation of about three humid
red persons fill their present house Of
worship. None of these families are
wealthy, but the amount pledged at the
first service was SO large that, with what is
yet to come from the absent members, a
sum grea'er than was asked for will be
collected. By an important provision in
the arrangement. only the Treasurer Of the
Society is to know what each person contri-
buies. In this way idle gossip and all at
tempts at ou.shining one another are
avoided, while the poorest members of the
congregation ,an have the privilege of
giving according to their means
The Rev. u. H. s Pendleton, the founder
of the Waldensian colony near Montevi-
dec, in South America, has published, un-
der the tide of "Waldensians in the West, !"
an interesting Narrative of Facts" with
reference to the establishment and expe.
rienee of this Protestant Italian colony.
Tbs community, carrying with i. to the
| Plata the religious and historical traditions
Of the Waldenses, was first planted in 1853,
and has been q subject of much anxiety TO
l Atc tOGuNCIf tUeu Cuhplhiu db 0IOu~
tevideo. After some trials of mature GER
tain to confront colony in its infancy, the
Italian settlers have been enabled 10 secure
good footing Ia the land Of their adop-
ton, and to make considerable progress in
material prosperity. But their social, re-
ligious and moral interests are not less i'm
portant than their material requirements,
and they are quite alive to this fact. Hence
it is that the desire of their heart is to have
a church OF their own, and TO erect a par
sonage for the accommodation of pastor
to reside among them, and schools for the
education of the rising generation. The
means of the colony, however are still very
limited, and for some time must be quite
inadequate to the accomplishment of this
cherished object, whereas the need is at
once urgent and immediate. Under these
circumstances Mr.. Pendieton is justified in
appealing 10 the Protestant sympathy of
America, and in asking the substantial as
sistance of those who would be glad to see
a Protestant population strike deep and en-
during roots in the soil Of the river Plato.
The statistics of the increase of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, copied by us
last week from the New York Christian
Advocate, were incorrect, though that paper
is an official organ of the church. In its
last issue it corrects its figures. The total
membership in all the Conferences in 1868,
is l,255,074, against 1,l46,0S1 in 1867,
being an increase of 108,993. The present
membership of the Cincinnati Conference
is 30,025, decrease of 9S3; of the Ohio,
80, 8l4, an increase of J, 1865 of the Central
Ohio, 1904; decrease of 973; of the
North Ohio, 1928, an increase of 1852
of the Southeastern Indiana, %, 839, an in
crease of 5, l26; of the Indians, 2S,276, a
decrease of 464; of the Northwestern In
diana, 20, 063, an increase of 2,074; of the
West Virginia, 1889, an increase of
1,l76. These figures are exclusive of the
number of the Bishops and travelling
preachers, and OF the lay membership of
our mission work in Scandinavia, China
and South America. Taking the number
Of Bishops and preachers as reported this
year, and the lay members of the mission
work as reported last year, We have the
following additional figures;
Number of Bishops
Number of travelling preachers............-. S,4Sl
Lay members in Sc2ndinayia...............-. !69
China ......-..,... 4o4
South America..........~. III
Total ............................ 1884
Add total abOVe.......s...... -........l,E D5,Ui4
Grand total of members 264 95S
Total last year INCLUDING as above .l55,4is
Total net increase this year............- l09,479