The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-08-10
coRREsPoNDENcE.
Letter from Canada.
A Short Letter-The Harvest-The Gen
eral Assembly-A Good Year-The
-Missions-Th Information
al Sunday School Convention.
CLAUDE, ONT, July 25th, 1873

MeSSTS. CpttOTS.- 90 not Tor long
letter" do your readers cay? Well, I
am content, let it be short one. At
any rate, the town is too intent on holi-
day, and the country on harvesting, Just
now, to read whole columns. The har-
vest in Ontario, with which the farmers
are now wrestling, is above the average,
especially as to the full grains. In some
sections the fruit was almost wholly de-
stroyed by June frosts 1t will be short,
but of excellent quality. If the Lord S
treasury gets its proportionate share of
the years ingathering, the work of the
churches will be not only sustained, but
enlarged. The outlook in connection
with our own Church is full of promise.
At the recent General Assembly all the
great funds, with the exception of one,
Tor which special effort had been made
the previous year, were in better state
tAan when reported twelve months be-
FORE
1t was source of unusual qualification
that Montreal College, the youngest, but
not least enterprising and useful theolog-
ical college of the Church, had, during
the year, received not only the gift Of
buildings valued at 100000, of which
have already written you, but also an
endowment, from prominent merchant
OF the city, of $4,000 for a chair, and
the partial endowment of another chair
$4,000 from wealthy Christian lady,
widow of one of the founders Of the insti-
tuition. This college has also taken a new
departure for Canada, in offering for COM
petition, at the close of next session, a
travelling scholarship of $500 to be used
by the winner in further prosecuting his
studies in the old world. The full en-
dowment of all its colleges is matter
earnestly engaging the attention of the
Church. Progress is being made toward
1T; but not SO rapidly as it might be
made, were some OF our wealthier people
to realize the Importance of allowing the
great stream of the liberality of the con-
gregations to flow unbroken into the mis-
slons treasury. God is giving us the
men; our anxiety is now for their edu-
cation and their maintenance in the mis-
sion field. The colleges report in the
neighborhood of 100in Theology, and 13O
more, as preparing for the study of di-
vlnlty, and this in Church of 685 set
tied ministers and 767 pastoral charges.
An encouraging fact in regard to our
financial outlook is that year by year in
creaslng effort Is made to interest our
Sabbath Schools and Bible classes in mis-
slons, and that the result of this is seen
IN steady advance in the contributions
from these sources. This year thew
amount to about $4,000.
The presence of Rev. DIR. Mckay. the
pioneer missionary to North Formosa.
China, at the Assembly, where he was
hailed with enthusiasm, brings the statis-
tics OF that mission into prominence. Ten
years ago it was virgin soil. In 1871
DIR. Mckay landed at Tawsui, stranger
and Ignorant of the language. To-day,
through his exertions chiefly, but aided
by Rev. DR.. Fraser, who labored from
1874 till 1877, when severe domestic af-
1lction caused his return home, and Rev.
N. +. J., who went out in 1878, there
are 70 chspels, each with q well trained
native helper in charge, 300 members in
lull communion, 1000 waiting regularly
on the means of grace, and two we'll sus-
tslned mission hospitals. What hath
Iod wrought Our foreign missions, in
addition to those in the New Hebrides
ana Trinidad, referred to in previous
letter, include work among the Indians
Tour laborers-and at In9ore and
M1ow, Central India, with staff of FIVE.
Ihe General Assembly Of 1881 was
acknowledged on all hands to have been
q most delightful one. A special source
u Bratlhcation was that the dividing
ilnes I'VE were four distinct bodies prior
W loI0) seem To he almost ob1itara4o1