The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-11-18

and Others.
The debt of the First Free Baptist
Society has been paid to the last cent
and there was present a. large audience
at the church last evening to celebrate
the happy event. A pleasant programme
had been arranged, to be followed by a
Jubilee sociable in the vestry.
Rev. G. E. Cate, who has been pastor
for about year, presided; and
Rev. J. M. Lowden, now Of Boston, but
for about seven years the beloved pas
tor of the church, was present to assist.
The report of Deacon Rufus Deering,
the venerable treasurer of the society,
was one of the interesting features of the
exercises. This report was in the ma
ture of financial history Of the society.
1t was in November, 1912, that the So
ciety was legally Incorporated. That
year the Casco street church was pur-
chased for them by the Free Will Baptist
Home Missionary Society for $1,000. JOS
eph Symonds, of Portland. and Caleb
Hodgdon, of Gorham, were the trustees.
The first pastor was Rev. A. K. Walton.
Deacon Deering referred to the fact that
although Mr.. Walton was very able
man, his salary was for some time only
$500 year.
In 1858 debt of $4,000 was contracted
for work on the vestry. The debt hung
over the society until 1882, often bearing
interest as high as "a per cent. En-
couraged by paying this old debt the SO
ciety bought a lot at the corner of High
and Cumbell land streets, with the pur
pose of building; but in 1884 the Ply
mouth Congregationalists offered their
church for $4,000, and it was bought
July 1st of that year. The society sold
the Casco street church for about $4,000
and lost $1,000 in selling the High street
lot. The jubilee last evening was over
the last payment just made on the $40,
600 debt.
Deacon Deering said that but two per
sons outside the society had contributed
anything. The voluntary contributions
in eleven years had amounted to $19,654
gifts ranging from three cents to several
hundred dollars. The Ladies' Aid So.
ciety have given over $4,000, and the
Sunday school, 1872.
Deacon Deering called attention to the
fact that the church was composed large
ly of laboring people, and he considered
| this financial achievement remarkable.
| Besides paying Oh the debt the society
have paid their running expenses and
given from $500 to $500 yearly for the
work of the denomination.
The superintendent of the Sunday
school, Mr.. A. NJ. Spofford, spoke briefly
| in behalf of that organization; and theI
Mrs. DR.. Marshall made report of the
work done by the Ladies' Aid. This
was organized in 1886 with 106 members
This society in that time has raised 81,
16S, of which S4,526.3 S have been paie
to the liquidation Of the church debt.
Rev. j. NJ. Lowden was next received
| cordially, and spoke of the significance
! of the occasion.
| Judge Joseph w. Symonds
was introduced as the son of one of the
| GdIIlGSu bEO IlOSG dCClvC alO1AOClo IL ClAS
church. Judge Symonds congratulated
the church upon their freedom from
debt. It was the society to which his
father and mother had belonged; ano
with which his boyhood associations
were connected. Following the ex
ample of his elder brother, he had be
come Unitarian. Judge Symonds sale
he thought the original tendencies of thu
| Unitarian and Free VIII Baptist de
nominations in New England were no
! far different. The Unitarian
was perhaps the more specula
tive and cultured, confined
| to the cities; while the Free Baptist wa
more practical and better adapted to the
| country. But there We're the Same prin
ciples of freedom of the churches, ant
of individual conscience. Judge Sy
| pretend to be theologian. Speaking o
the tendency towards liberalism in mod
ern Protestant churches in New Eng
land, Judge Symonds said he though
| the greatest strides had been made il
recent years, not by the Free Will Bap
fists, the Unitarians or the Universalis
churches; but by the orthodox Congre
| gational church. Judge Symonds con
cluded with an eloquent tribute to thu
influence of the faith of youth and tn
power of old association.
Lindley M. Webb, Esq, spoke Of the
work of the church in paying its debts
and of the good fortune which the socie
ty had enjoyed. He spoke of the faith
full work done by Rev. J. NJ. Lowden
and of the financial assistance rendered
by Deacon Rufus Deering, to whom wa
| due not a little of the final success.
Hon. Hiram Knowlton and the pastor
| Rev. Gle. Cate, were the last speakers
Discovered His Naturalization Papers.
A Rockland sea captain votedN las
week after having been disfranchise'
for the past two years. The captain is a