The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1896-06-05

Nentlon began at $50 last evening Cen
ter church was completely filled With
large and representative Congregation
al audience, The evening was occu-
pied in addresses and papers on differ
ent phases of home mission work. The
first paper was that of Rev. DR. Will
liam Kincaid, secretary of the executive
committee. The paper was entitled IA
Look Forward" DR.. Kincaid spoke of
the great progress already made in
every state in the union by the society
and then enumerated the work to be
done yet, speaking especially of the
work to be done among the illiterate
Roman Catholics. In conclusion he
said:
h Not only, then, must vast home
missionary work be done and done at
once If the second great crisis in our
national life is met, but it is work par
ticularly fitted to the genius of our de-
nomination. The need is precisely that
which Congrega tionalism is adapted to
supply. Hitherto we have followed our
own people to the west and have es-
tablished them with churches, schools,
and colleges in every state. Those
churches are still to be multiplied and
strengthened, and the institution of
learning sustained. But more and
more our money and our efforts are to
be expended on people less fortunate
than ourselves. Congregational wealth,
Congregational culture, has not been
bestowed for naught The second era
in home missionary work will be more
distinctively missionary than the first.
The work that now presses is the il
literate south, the illiterate southwest,
and the illiterate immigrant as he takes
possession of our great cities and diff
fuses his semi barbaric influence into
every portion of our land. Upon this
new work we must enter unfettered by
traditional prejudices, theories, and
methods. A facile adaptability to ex
listing conditions is the quality that we
need, How can the illiterate masses at
the south be effectively reached? How
can the densely crowded foreign quar-
tiers of our great cities be penetrated
dispersed and emigrant colonies and
settlements of the land be elevated and
saved? How can the f1agellantes and
fetch worshippers of New Mexico and
the priest-ridden thousands of Utah be
rescued from their superstitions, and
taught a purer and happier faith?
These, and such as these, are the prob
lens that appeal as we take a serious
look forward" Ito the new and preg-
nant home missionary era which we
new begin.
Rev. D. N. Beach of Indianapo
Mimi, then spoke. He said that it is
the general impression that states like
Minnesota with large cities are able to
take care of themselves, but the precise
opposite is true. Outside of the two
large cities of Minnesota there are very
few towns like the multitudes to be
found in the New England states In
conclusion he told of the great need
for mission work in that section, and
said that it would never do to leave
alone our frontiers, and in our remote
sections uneyangelized, unchristian
| masses Of people, which is what will
be the case unless we rise to the great
opportunity.
Rev. F. S. Fitch, d, D., of Buffalo,
n Y. then spoke and said that the
| Empire was only second to Massachu-
| sets and Connecticut in Congregation
alism. Professor George B. Stevens of
the Yale divinity school was the first
pastor of the first Congregational
church in Buffalo, and the only fault
found with him was that he left DR..
| Fitch described the origin of Congrega-
| tionalism in Buffalo and said that there
are at present 1000 communicates of
| the church in Buffalo and 1,500 Sunday
school scholars in five churches and
| six Sunday schools. What is true of
| Buffalo is aGso true of Syracuse, Roch-
ester, LockDort, Utica and the other
cities throughout the state. He then
advised against trying to organize a
cathedral congregational church in a
city, as our American cities are grow
| ing SO that the people are continually
| following the growth to the suburbs
| and desire to organize churches near
| their residences Families should be
| allowed to pass freely from one parish
to another. DIR. Fitch said that much
of the growth of Congregationalism in
| Buffalo was due to the work of Yale
men, as four of the men who have been
prominently connected with the work
there have been graduates of the Yale
divinity school. Congregationalsm
can get along in new places if it gets
| u
only regulars will suffice.
| At the conclusion of DR.. Fiteh's talk
| Professor Currier of Oberlin was called
| upon to say something. Although he
was not down on the program. He
| spoke OF the department of Oberlin, in
| which men were especially trained for
work among Slavic people. In ten
years, he said, that thirty-two men
had been instructed there. He told
| of the value of the services rendered
| by these men, specially trained, and
said that the school was the only one
| of the kind in the United States. But
he said that unless funds for perma-
nent endowment could be secured it
must be abandoned soon.
| The last speaker of the evening was
Rev. w. G. Puddefoot of Massachusetts,
| who kept his audience in a roar of
| laughter by his witty illustrations and
at the same time impressed upon his
| hearers his line Of thought. He spoke
| in subtance as follows:
REV. MR.. PUDDEFORT'S ADDRESS.
| Rev. William G.. Puddefoot of South
! birmingham said that our fathers in
| the eighteenth century did not appear
! to be troubled over a condition of
| things far worse than we have We
| read OF men dying like sheep with the
/ rot, living in cellars without drainage;
cities like Liverpool and Manchester
| without sewers: starving multitudes,
| whose d1,nh eI1ffariusr rnada 20 rl,-Ia q