The Portland daily press., 1894-05-17
INDIVIDUAL COMMUNION CUPS.
The Microscope Indicates that the Sacra
ment Was sanitarily Administered.


For the first time in the history of Roch-
ester churches the individual communion
cup was used yesterday. The novel service
took place in North Avenue Baptist.Church,
of which the Rev. G. f. Love is pastor. 1t
was the usual communion service, but owing
the novelty of the process of administration
there was an extraordinary attendance.
DR.. Forbes, who designed the sanitary COM
munion cups and trays, was at the service
to-see that everything was done in order,
and to examine microscopically the dregs
after communion. DR.. Forbes stated to a
reporter that the service ran smoothly, and
was conducted with despatch. There was no
irreverence and idle curiosity noticeable
while the sacred service was in progress.
The pastor prefaced the exercises by
few appropriate remarks. He spoke of the
change of administering the wine in indi-
vidual cups as one calculated to reduce 1.-The
chance of conveying disease from person to
person. He thought that no less dignity
and solemnity would be observed by indi-
yidual cups than when the single chalice
was passed from mouth to mouth.
After this explanation the communion
service was then proceeded with according
to the prescribed rules of the Baptist
Church. The people sat in their seats, and
then the elders were called to the front and
were given small silver travs, each one
holding twelve miniature chalices The ell
ders handed to each communicate one of
the little cups, and after the contents had
been tasted the cups were placed in racks
specially made for holding them. There
were $50 commandments, all were served in
short space of half an hour.
DR.. Forbes, whose microscopic researches
into the sanitary problem involved in the
individual cup have attracted attention,
was allowed to gather up lndiscriminately
at least dozen cups for the purpose of
obtaining the dregs and placing them under
microscopic examination. The Doctor,
after thoroughly investigating the contents,
said:
From sanitary standpoint l am now
satisfied that the individual cup is an adj
vance in the right direction. The dregs
that 1 examined by my microscope after
the communion service concluded convinces
me that it IS a wise move. 1t is a singular
fact, but it is nevertheless true, that the
dregs contained hardly any secretion from
the mouth, and the unused wine was re-
markedly clean. There were no epiUhelium
scales Observable through the lens, SO that
concluded that if any dropped they must
have chung to the ridge of the cup. The
bowl of the chalice is SO small that it prac-
tically prevents the scales from entering
the wine, and oven if they should, there
could be no evil consequences resulting
from them, because the cup once used un-
dergoes cleaning before it is used again.
l am satisfied that we have got perfectly
sanitary cup. The cup is a check to disease,
and l think it should be used in all chur-
ches.
II examined the wine prior to it's being
used and l found it to be pure; there was
not the least evidence of bacteria or other
matter in the wine. 1t has been question
whether my previous investigations were
based scientific principles, because
merely examined the dregs and not the
wine previously. My opinion then was that
the conclusions reached would have been
the same even if had subjected the un-
touched wine to microscopical examina-
ton. This think is clearly proved by yes
terday's Investigation
Next Sunday morning at the Central
Church the 1,700 communicates of the
church will be served in similar manner
to those in North Avenue Baptist Church
Twenty-four gentlemen will be chosen to
distribute the elements among the congre
cation. The pastor of the church, the Rev.
DR.. Fl. H. Stebbins, must. according to the
mode of Presbyterian worship, pour into
the small walls the wine to be consumed by