Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-17
SOUTHERN BAP.TISTS
Fifty-Filth Annual Meeting Of Their
Church Convention.
THE MEMORIAL YEAR OBSERVANCE
Reports to Be Made From Home
and Foreign Missions.
" o RII IN TIL E so L I II

Southern Baptist Convention with which
all the churches of that denomination in
the District Of Columbia. except one, are
connected. will be held this year at. Hol
Springs Ark. beginning the Friday before
tho second Sunday in MAY next. and con-
tinung until the business Of the body is
| omoleted.
| The Southern Baptist convention is said
to be the largest representative church or
ganization in the world. Besides the twelve
delegates from the District of Columbia
there are from Virginia. 121; Maryland, 81;
Alabama. 81: Arkansas, IL; Florida, IS:
Georgia. III Indian Territory. 4; Kentucky,
136; Louisiana. II: Mississippi, TO; Missouri,
Il; North Carolina. 81; Oklahoma ,; South
Carolina. 81; Tennessee, -; Texas, 1856: a
| total of lbs.
| Probably the most Interesting matter to
come before the convention will be the in
| auguration of a movement intended TO OBJ
| serve the present as a memorial year. A
| committee appointed to consider the sub
ject has recomme nded: THAT the year 1900
| be observed memorial year by our Bap-
| tist churches, in which special effort shall
| be made to more fully inform them of the
| gracious fullness of the divine blessing re-
| ceived during the past century, and to bet
| ter organize and equip them for the mighty
| work which lies before them in the century
| to come.
| That every state convention or associa-
ton and every district association within
the bounds of the Southern Baptist conven-
| ton be requested to hold at least one SEES
| sion. and that every church within the
| bounds of the Southern Baptist convention
| be requested to hold at LEAFS one meeting
each quarter. the object of which meetings
| shall be as follows:
Giving of Thanks.
| THE giving of thanks to God for His
great mercies and blessings upon our de-
nomination and lis work during the past
| century. shown specially in the giving
| to us of faithful and able ministry of the
| gospel: in our large numerical increase; in
the great enlargement. wealth and intclli-
sencc among our people; in enlarged liber-
a atty: in the position attained by them in
| the world; il the influence Nouchsafed them
| as 4 denomination upon the social. civil
and religious life of our nation and of the
| world; in their increased educational ad-
| vantases: in the spread of Baptis:
| doctrine: in the development of the doctrine
| and the spirit Of missions. and in our en-
| larged facilities for the eVangeization of
| the void.
| The better organization and cquipping of
| our people for the work which lies before
| them in the century to come
| Since the organization of :he Souther
| Baptist convention, in 1915. it has had but
| eight presiding officers, and only two were
| preachers. In the Baptist Church laymen
| have the same privileges ministers and as
| a consequence the president has nearly al
| ways been taken from the ranks of the lay
men, The first president was VIM. b. John
| son of South Carolina. who served three
| years; the second. r. B. c. Howell of Vir-
| gfnia, whose term of office lasted four
years: from 1859 to 1861 the lamented Rich
ard Fuller of Maryland served as the chief
| executive officer. He succeeded by F.
| ii. Nell of Georgia, who, after being re-
elected for seven consecutive terms, gave
| way To James 2. Boyce of South Carolina.
Mr.. Boyce, after being president for eight
years. was succeeded by Rev DIR. Nell of
~ .ftrk,f
| years, was again succeeded by James P
| Boyce, who meanwhile had removed to
| Kentucky. In 1889 Judge Jonathan Haral-
son of Alabama became president and he
| served until the meeting of the convention
at Louisville, KY. last year, when former
Governor Northen of Georgia was elected
| to the presidency. Mr. Northen will pre-
SIDE at the opening of the convention. and
| ii is generally conceded he can be reelected
| if he will again accept the office. Rev DIR.
o. F. Gregory of Maryland has been the
| principal secretary of the convention for
| the past nineteen years, and he will doubt
| less be reelected
| Under Associations Care.
| Among the objects under the especial care
! Of the convention are foreign missions
| Comprised in these are fifteen stations in
| Italy, at Rome, Florence, Milan. Venice,
| Genoa. Carpi. Cannes, Portia, Bari Naples,
| Tore Pelliee, MiglionicO, Cagliari, Cuglieri
! and lglesias, respectively Brazil nine mis-
| sions. at Rio de Janeiro. Juiz de Fora, Ba-
| hia, Nalenea, Campos, San Fidelis. Per-
| 7ambuco Para and Bello Horizonte: Mex
| ico, ten missions-Saltillo, TOrreon. Monde
| IA. MusquiZ. Allende, San Fiipe. Zacatecas
| Doctor Arroyo, Morelia and Toluea: Africa
| four missions-LagoO, Abbeokuta. Awyaw
| and Oglomoshaw; China. three missions
| Canton. Shin Hing and WI Chow: North
| China, three missions-Tung Chow Hwang
| Ken and kiaochow Tsintan; Central China,
| four missions-Shanghai, Soochow Chin
kianG and Yankhow: Japan three missions
/ -FukuOka NagaSaki and kOkura.
| The home mission board conducts work
| mainly among the colored people of the
south ana white people in the mountains.
| In reference - the former the next report
| will in substance, it is understood set forth
| that the colOred people of the south need
and should have the assistance of their
| and work. In the words of a prominent
| member of the conventions:
| The majority of the colored people who
| are Christians are Bapt'sts. but there are
| strong influences at work among than to
| draw them away from our faith. The most
| intelligent of these leaders realize the
| dangers to which the masses are exposed
| and while seeking to guide them back to
| the old paths they are looking TO us for
| substantial encouragement. In some parts
| of the south the modern holiness craze has
| absorbed their attention and divided the
| churches
THE peculiar condition of things In the
| mountain region, growing largely out of
| the lack of ready communication with Their
| portions of the country, as well as the lack
| Of proper development of the vast material
resources Of this section. call for special
| and continual effort. Hundreds Of Mormon
missionaries are already at work in this
| mountain region
Reports of Foreign Missionaries.
Some of the reports received from the
| foreign missions are very interesting Rev
| W. w. Lawton of Chinkiang, China tells
of Workman's Refuge, which, while not
belonging to the Southern Baptist conven-
| ton, is supervised by their missionaries At
| a cost of $2o5 CMexican). given by friends
in China. an upper story has been put into
| the building. The idea is to sleep poor
homeless fellows. who cannot afford to
stop at the cheap inns. Previous to last
year nothing was charged for lodging Now
small nightly fee is asked. No applicant
however, is turned away because he has
not the wherewith to pay.
In reference to frontier work, the latest
| report of the home mission board saws:
| The frontier of our mission field begin
ming at the Kansas line. runs southwark to
the Rio Grande, and thence along that riy-
| er to the sea 1t may be roughly estimated
as 1000 miles long by 500 miles wide 1t is