Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-11-10
WEST VIRGINIA BAPTISTS.
A Proposition for Uniting North ana South In
Mission Work.

A Proposition for Uniting North ana south In
Mission Work.
The West Virginia Baptist General
Association closed its twenty-frst an
nual meeting last Sunday at Grafton,
w. Va. There were two hundred dele
gates present from the four hundred and
fifty Baptist churches of the State Of
West Virginia, with $1,000 commune
cants.
Rev. W. P. Walker, of Huntington,
offered series of resolutions 4" humbly
begging" the Southern Baptist Con-
vention to appoint commissioners to
meet like commissioners from the Bap-
lists of the North to confer as to
uniting the missionary organizations of
the whole country. This led to very
breezy discussion, after which the mo-
ton was tabled. DR.. j. w. Carter, of
Parkersburg, thought the time had not
come for such action. DR.. o. @. Pope,
Of Texas, agreed with DR.. Carter, and
urged that to wait and work on under
existing organizations would prove, for
the present at least, the wisest course.
Rev. Thomas Allen, agent of the
Missionary Union, Boston, Mass,
brought forward the statistics showing
how much the northern Baptists are
doing and how little the southern Bap-
lists are doing in foreign missions.
DR.. Dickinson, of Richmond, Va,
said: 81 ask for nothing more than
strict justice for the Southern Board Of
Foreign Missions or for the southern
people in any department of Christian
work. The fact that the employees Of
the Boston Board have baptized seventy
times as many persons as the mission
aries of the Richmond Board does not
prove that much disproportion in the
good accomplished by the two organi-
cations. You all know that in this
country it is not always the man who
is reporting the largest number Of adj
ditioDs who is doing the most good.
Often more good is done by turning
people out of the Church than by bring
ing them in. The missions Of the Rich
mond Board, with the exception Of
those in China, are new missions. We
are just laying the foundations in Mex
leo, Brazil, shd Italy, and of course we
cannot point to such ingatherings as are
to be seen in missions half q century
old. AS to the North giving so much
more than the South, let it be said in
reply that the Baptists Of the North are
worth from ten to twenty times as
much as the Baptists of the South. We
give far more than they in proportion to
financial ability. AS to abandoning
the boards Of the Southern Baptist Con-
vention, it is a mere waste Of breath to
talk about it. The South is becoming
more solid every day, and the Christian
people Of all denominations in the South
are becoming more solid for main
tanning their own southern agencies
for doing the Lords work. You
may think we are fools for being thus
set in our ways, but that judgment
may spring from your own lack OF wis
dom. Your own State Of West Vir-
ginia furnishes an illustration bearing
on this point. How did you become
State? 1t was simply war measure.
The war has been over for twenty
years, and yet you do not propose to
abandon your separate existence as
State and come back to the old mother,
and so the Southern Baptist Convention
will continue its separate and independ-
ent existence without any reference to
the circumstances which led to its for
nation, and certainly from no lack of
appreciation of the noble brethren who
compose the northern societies."
Rev. F. p. Robertson and Rev. Ii. j.
Chandler were appointed a committee
to attend the meeting of the General
Association in Richmond and present
the greetings Of the West Virginia Bap-
fist General Association.