The age-herald., 1899-05-25
PRESBYTERIANS
 ARE AT RICHMOND
An Immense Volume of Business
 is Being Transacted.
ABOUT RUNAWAY COUPLES
Ministers Should Exert Their Influence, Within Bounds of Propriety, to Pre- vent Such hMarriages-Repor of
 Foreign Missions Committee

Richmond, Va, May 24.-The morning session of the Presbyterian general assem- bly, witnessed the transaction of a great amount of business. A notable incident was the according of rights of associate membership of Rev. T. w. Williams, the delegate from the independent colored synod who comes to speak on the question of colored evangelization.
 After the assembly had voted to accord these privileges the moderator extended the welcome of the assembly in a few well chosen words, the commissions all standing, Rev. Williams responded briefly.
 A communication was received from the association of ministers of Richmond and Manchester endorsing the proposition to remove the headquarters of the foreign mission committee to this city. It was docketed.
 The report of the committee on foreign missions was called up and adopted. The report says, among other things:
 ''The net receipts for the year were $144,- 990.1o. We regret to record the fact that this is $1,053.31 less than the net receipts for the previous year. The year, however, closed April l. 1S99, without debt and with a balance of $5l.10 in the treasury. Touch- ing this matter and in reference to over lures from the presbyte-ies of Enoree and Arkansas, asking the general assembly to take proper steps to signalize the opening of the twentieth century by a special effort to raise not less than S290,000 for the cause of foreign missions in the year ending March 31 1900, we recommend that the overtures be answered in the affirmative, and that our president be urged to make the minimum of their contributions to $1 each"
 The report on home missions was pre- scented by the chairman of the standing committee, and was adopted, as was the report on theological seminaries.
 In answer to the overture about ministers marrying runaway couples the assembly made the following deliverance:
 ''The assembly is of the opinion that 1t would be both unwise and ineXpedient to attempt to lay down any inflex'ble rule for the guidance of it's ministry in relation to the performance of this ceremony, the great bond of society. It believes that an enl'ght- ened conscience and the laws of the land are, as rule, the safest and only guides to be followed in such cases. But the as- sembly can not forbear to express the opin- ion that the cases described in the over ture the greatest prudence and caution should be exercised by the min 'ster: that he should exert his influence as far as he can properly and prudently do so, to pre- vent such marriages and only consent to perform the ceremony in those cases where he Is satifed from all the circumstances that the best interest of all the parties Qn- cluding the parent or parents) will be sub served by his doing"
 The report of the Sabbath schools and young peoples societies was received and adopted. The paper gives the following in teresting statistics:
 "The report of 2O5O Sunday schools are summarized, with an enrolment of 10,03S officers and teachers and 13S557 scholars, showing an increase of eight schools, IS officers and teachers, and 4,241 scholars. The contributions amounted to $4,3 1927, showing a decrease of $4.15S.
 For other objects $24,949 was contribut- ed, $7,590 less than last year.
 Reports have been summarized from 2S Presbyteries, showing 931 young peoples societies, with a membership of S,S92, con- tributing $9,S7S.9s. Special mention is made of the organization of the covenanter's CO., cieties.'
 The assembly then took a recess.