Evening star., 1895-04-16
THE A. M. E. CHURCH.
Annual Meeting of Board Of Finance
to Be Held Here.
UNIQUE AND IMPORTANT BODY
Great Growth of the Church Here
and Abroad.
BISHOP WAYMAN TO PRESIDE

The twenty-third annual meeting of the
board of finance of the African Methodist
Episcopal Church, which has under it's su-
peryision the direction of most CT the finan-
cial operations of every A NJ E. conferen :e
In the world, will begin at the office OF the
department of finance 1885 14th street
northwest, tomorrow and continue until a
large amount of business of great import
ance is disposed Of
This department of finance is the only
Institution of the kind in church work in
the world.
For the purpose of the better conduct of
the work of the department and of the de-
nomination, the fifty-two conferences in
this and foreign countries have been
grouped into districts. and these, with
those who will represent them at the ap-
preaching conference. are as follows:
First Episcopal district, which comprises
the Philadelphia, New York. New Jersey
and New England conferences Rev. c. T.
Shaffer, DID,, of Philadelphia; second Epis-
copal district, Baltimore. Virginia, North
Carolina and West North Carolina confer
ences, Rev. j. H. Collett, DID,, Baltimore;
third Episcopal district, Ohio, Northern Ohio
and Pittsburg conferences. Prof. ]. P.
Shorter, Wilberforce, Ohio; fourth Episcopal
district, Indiana, Illinois and Iowa confer
C.; fifth Episcopal district. Missouri, North
Missouri, Kansas and Colorado conferences,
Rev. c. W. Preston, st. Louis, Mo-; sixth
Episcopal district, Georgia, North Georgia,
Macon, Alabama, North Alabama and Cen
trail Alabama conferences, Rev. S. II. Rob-
inson, Atlanta, Ga: seventh Episcopal dis
trict. South Carolina, Columbia and North
east South Carolina conferences. Rev.L R.
Nichols. Charleston. S. c.: eighth Episcopal
district Florida, East Florida and South
Florida conferences Rev. NJ. NJ. Moore, Or
lando. Fla: ninth Episcopal district Mis-
sissippi North Mississippi Middle Missis-
sppi. Arkansas, South Arkansas, West
Arkansas conferences and Indian mission
Rev. I. w. Shriver, Vicksburg, Miss :
tenth Episcopal district. Louisiana, North
Louisiana, Texas, West Texas, Central
Texas, Northeast Texas, Puget Sound and
Colorado conferences. Prof. H. NJ Cox. Cot
ton Gin, Ga; eleventh Episcopal district
Kentucky, West Kentucky. Tennessee and
West Tennessee conferences, Rev. ]. NJ.
Turner. Frankfort. Ky; twelfth Episcopal
district, Michigan. Ontario Nova Scotia,
Bermuda, Liberia, Sierra Leone and De-
merara; South America. conferences, Rev.
j. o. OBannon Hamilton, Ontario
The venerable Bishop a. W. Wayman. d.
D., of Baltimore.th oldest surviving bishop
In the church. is president of the depart
ment' and viii preside at most of the meet
1ngs, but will be assisted by two of his
younger colleagues and members of the
house of bishops; Rt. Revs. b. W. Arnett,
y. D., of Wilberforce, Ohio. and A. Grant,
n. II.
of Washington, who is the financial secre-
tary, and under whose immediate super
vision the large sums which come into
the treasury of the board are disbursed,
retary.
Connected with the department of finance
and having the general direction of its af-
fairs Is an executive board selected from
among those above named, and which, at
present, comprises RevS. c. w. Preston
who is likewise vice president of the de-
partment; ]. H. Collett and Prof. ]. F.
Shorter.
The Dollar Fund.
The operations of the department of
finance are kept moving through receipts
from the dollar fund, that sum being re-
quested yearly from each member in good
standing in the conference. The receipts
for the last conference year from this
source were ss5.379.15. ffty-four per cent
of which was used by the board in its va
rious lines of work, six per cent sent to the
Church Extension Society and forty per
cent expended for mission and other work
under the direction of the conferences
within whose bounds the funds were raised
over one-third of the large sum named
was contributed by the churches in the con-
ferences over which Bishop Grant presides
and whose constituency comprises 100
preachers. 1,50O churches and 150,OOO men,
hers There are also under his supervision
three institutions of learning-the Morris
students and eight teachers: the Edward
Waters College in Jacksonville, Fla, with
12i pupils and five teachers, and pay
school in Selma. Ala, with 132 pupils and
five teachers. For these there were con-
trbuted by the same people, in addition to
the sums already named. about 5000. 1t is
worthy of note that notwi thStanding the
extremely hard times the contributions for
all purposes during the conference year
were greater than ever before. while the
gain in membership was over $1,000.
Other boards.
Closely connected with the department
of finance, and greatly interested in its
success, are the hoard of publicati ton, head
quarters, Philadelphia, Pa, Bishop B. T.
Tanner, president, and Rev. ]. C. Embrey
business manager; missionary board, head
quarters, Washington, d. c., Bishop A w.
Wayman, president; Rev. Dr. d. w. Der
rick, general missionary secretary; educa-
tional board headquarters, Athens, Ca,
Bishop b. w. Arnett, president: Rev. w.
ID. Johnson, secretary; board of publica ton
for southern department, headquarters,
New Orleans, La, Bishop B. F. Lee, presi-
dent Rev A. M. Green, editor; board of
church extension, headquarters, Athens,
Ga, which during the past three years has
disbursed over s22,0D0 and assisted more
than 300 churches, Bishop a. Grant, presi-
dent; Rev. c. T. Shaffer, secretary; Sun
day School Union, headquarters. Nashville
Tenn, Bishop A. w. Wayman, president
Rev. {. s. Smith, secretary. The opera
tions of this department are on a most ex-
tensive scale, the circulation of the various
papers alone being upward of 10000 weekly
The Bishops.
The bishops of the A. NJ E. Church, most
of whom with the exception of Bishop
Turner, who has started for Liberia to pre-
side over the Sierra Leone conference, are
expected to be in Washington while the
r6 c
Wayman, d D., senior bishop, Baltimore
Nd. Revs. Drs. H. NJ. Turner and w. j.
Gaines. Georgia; Rev. b. W. Arnett, D. D.,
Wilberforce, Ohio; Rev. B. 7. Tanner, D.
d. Philadelphia Pa; Revs. Drs A. Grant
and b. F. Lee Texas; Rev. NJ. B. Salter,
ID. D., South Carolina, and Rev. j. A.
Handy d. D., Kansas City, Mo.
Marriage Licenses.
Marriage licenses have been granted the