The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-27
PROCEEDINGS IN DETAIL.
Resolution Regarding Candidates for
the Minfstry-Foreign Missions.


Ewing, of india. Hon. John Wanamaker
| occupied the moderator's chair. a report
was presented by DR.. John A. Lggett,
chairman on reception and Hcensure of can
| didates for the gospel ministry After re-
| viewing the facts in the case the committee
| recommended the adopting of the follow
| ing resolutions:
Resolved, That the General Assembly
| expresses confidence in the suticiency OF
| the constitution as it now is and does not
| deem 1t wise at this time TO propose any
| changes therein or additions thereto.
Resolved, That in view of the extreme
Importance of safeguarding the policy and
doctrine Of our church, this General Assem-
bly, aftlrms as applicable to all theological
students, the deliVerance made by the Cen
eral Assembly of 1896 concerning students
who received aid from the presbyteries,
namely: That the presbyteries inspect their
education during the course of their theo-
| logical studies, choosing for them such
schools, seminaries and teachers as they
may judge more proper and advantageous
to eventually bring them into the ministry
we'll furnished for their work"
Gen. Ralph L. Prime reported on the
council of the Presbyterlan Alliance at
Glasgow, Scotland, last June. The next
meeting of the alliance is to be held in
Washington in September, 1899, in New
York-avenue Church.
The regular order of the morning was the
report on foreign missions. The report
showed that efforts had been made to cur
tail expenses as far as possible, in view
of the reduced receipts, but in spite of such
efforts an increased deficit was reported
la arg6 6o part e OF If II was que 10 was Iae cd
that the extra effort to extinguish the
debt Of the board ,onn had an tho efe
cause of foreign missions. Special
praise was given to the work of the
women's boards and to the young peoples
| societies. Mention was made of necessary
retrenchment but the basis of it was not
specified. Six foreign missionaries died and
eighty-three were sent out during the year,
Ia nf w
turned to former fields of labor.
The receipts were as follows: From
Sabbath schools and young peoples socie-
ties $54O49 d. legacies $S9 1S6; miscemane0ns to
and the sale of properties on the field in
creased the assets by $50, The total eX-
penditures were $936,06 of which $57,62l
was for administration and oJo printlnig The
reduced by receipts from the anniver-
sary reunion fund to a net debt of $97' 454
work as follows: China. $174697; India,
$167,973; Japan, $7S,145; South America, $50
Persia, SIS 1888; Africa, Sal, SS5. The board
has securities to the amount OF S25l ,5SS,
the interest of which is available
for the current sys wqFs ,cs nndn also S6S 9TnS
it has not yet realized and special funds
aggregating 1885, S66. Of IS which $lS5'450 be-
The Presbyterian building in New York
stood the board in 1929 SS5, of which $54, l4O
| 203 represented the taxes; Loans on the
building aggregated 100000 and $l7,Oo4 had
been received from rentals. me slItS -
made toward the building amounted TO
| 1910 1893. The selection of Charles w. Hand,
of Brooklyn, as treasurer of the board was
| announced.
The report of the standing committee. on
| foreign work was presented by ). wilbur
| Chapman, of Philadelphia The committee
recommended the adoption of resolutions
directing that two collections for foreign
missions be taken each year, one to be IN
| i, t;t,rr Gyiff
| soliciting in America. Pastors We're urged
| to consult secretaries before allowing such
! collections in their churches. ElnpnaslS
was also laid upon the propriety OF allow
| ing all gifts for missions to go through the
board and not through agencies over which
| the church has no control.
| After the reading OF the report the as
sembly was addressed by DIR. Frank +. El-
| lenwOod senior secretary of the board.
| Ewing and Alexander, of India; Boomer
| of Chile; Corbett and Fitch of China; Es-
| selstyn, of Persia; Taylor, of Laos, and
| Moore. of Corea. Mr.. Esselstyn was par
ticularly emphatic in denunciation OF unau-
| thorized solicitors for foreign mission en-
terprises unconnected with the church, say
ing that many do not go back to their ma
| tive countries and most OF those VINO 40
are failures. A recommendation that
whole day be devoted to the cause OF for-
eign missions was defeated on the state
ment of Clerk Roberts that 1t would inter-
| fere with the regular business or the as
| sembly Much confusion was caused py
| recommendation that two collections Tor
foreign missions be taken up IN the
churches each year. and the number was
| finally reduced to one against the protest
of the secretary of the board Dr. Ellen
wood. The other recommendatonS9 eI IONS, were ere
cess pending a resolution providing lor IIle
publication of names of such collectors
The afternoon session was devoted 10 tne
work of the board OF publication ana Sab
bath school work. The board OF pubhcatlon
reported that the work of the board had
| been diminished on account or the nard
times less than had been anticipated. Ihe
receipts of the Sunday school department
were 1851, decrease OF $o3ol from Iast
year. SeVenty-siX missionaries had been IN
| commission The expenditures amounted
| to $13 800 less than last year the total being
| Sill S33 Operations had been carried on IN
| twenty-five States and Territories, ana
| schools organized or reorganized TO the
number of 1921 a net decrease OF 70 from
1856 The number of teachers ana
scholars were 5O.503. The publication or
business" branch of the board turned over
S17 57S to the missionary branch, which had
a present balance in hand of $22,346. The
business department reported net prohts OF
| $26, ,367, two-thirds Of which were turned
over to the missionary department as above
stated. This amount was decrease OF
| $4779 from last year. During the year
twenty-three new publications had been IS
sued and sixty-four volumes and l03 tracts
reissued. The board had also published
eleven Lesson Helps and four Illustrated
papers Free libraries numbering l63, con-
tanning ,057 volumes had been distributed
The Witherspoon building, in Philadel-
phia, would be completed during the year
next assembly would meet in it. This struc--
ture is a building for the accommodation or
the boards located in Philadelphia.
The work of the Sunday school branch
was directed to the founding and improve
ment of such schools. 1t also distributed
tracts and periodicals last year TO the eX-
| tent of 543. .662 pages. Nearly $4,000 volumes
had also been given away, the agents OF the
board travelled in all 641,941 miles The busf-
ness department reported sales of books
tracts and periodicals had amounted to
| 1912 $50. Nearly 5O,OoO copies OF the hymnai
| had been sold The board S present capital
| is S341 622 The amount received from the
| denominational periodical was Sl3,l39. The
| amount charged to the cost of the Wither-
! spoon building was $2S9,126.
The standing committee on this subject
| reDorted through Chairman Elder James
! Yereance of New York. reviewing the work
| Of the wear Recommendations were made
calling for contributions of $2O0,0OO during
! the next wear for the use of the Sunday
| school branch of the board. and urging
| churches to adopt the new hymnal which IS
| now in use in over four hundred churches
| The board was directed TO prepare Sunday
| school exercise Sabbath observance TO be
| used on rallying day, the last sunday OF
! September in each year. Pendlng the adop-
| ton of the recommendations the assembly
! was addressed by DR.. Elijah r. Craven,
! secretary Of the board, and by a colored
| commissioner, Rev. Charles ,. Mebane, or
Arkansas.
| The remainder of the afternoon was de-
| voted TO the report of the special committee
/ on temporalities of the church. which was
| report recommended that the control of
| zt-.,,.h ,,r,per4x- no commit ed the boards