received. Doubtless, the impression that the Association is in possession of a large income from the trust fund of Daniel Hand has told disastrously upon our contributions. Perhaps it will be right for us once again to bring forward the fact that the interest of this great fund is committed absolutely to a special use and cannot be otherwise applied. The trust devolves upon the Association watch and care, and it does not go to fill its treasury. It were a pity should a common misapprehension as to the nature of this trust reduce the work already established.

Another difficulty with our treasury for the past three years grows out of the fact that our Congregational churches in the freedom of their wills, and unfrequently ordain that their children shall go hungry while they contribute to others, who are individual and undenominational, the bread that their own children need. Congregationalism is so free, and so splendidly broad in Christian sympathy, that it sometimes forgets the text about the one who does not provide for his own house, etc. Very much of Congregational money goes to educational work in the South, which, however excellent it may be, is neither superior in grade, quality, economy, or results, to that which belongs to the Congregational churches. The work which is under Congregational watch, one would naturally say, should have Congregational care. There are schools which are worthy of highest commendation in other communions than our own, but we are responsible for our own. There are undenominational schools which are doing a good work, but we are responsible for our own. We often find that our great system of schools and churches among five races share in equal parts the sympathy of Christian benevolences with some one school over which our churches have no supervision and about whose economy they cannot know, and for whose teachers they have no responsibility; and that often in our churches some one institution outside of Congregational fellowship divides the benevolences of the year with the Association which has more than its hundred schools, besides its churches. There is much indiscriminate giving also to institutions which are not Congregational and which are not missionary in their relationships. This certainly is within the charter of Congregational churches if it seems good to them, and they so elect it, but it remains that if the Congregational churches could and would lovingly stand by and for the work which they themselves ordain and direct, one of their societies at least would have

more money for our Congregational work, less debt and less heartache.

We commend, then, brethren, to you, your own work which we carry on in your name.

From Southern California to Northern Alaska, on the reservations, in the mountains, among our own color and kin, and from Virginia to Texas, where are eight millions of souls to be saved, we plead the motives of the gospel that we may continue to take the power of God unto salvation. Rich harvests are ready after patient sowing of good seed. May we not hopefully invoke your continued and enlarged sympathy?

REPORT OF THE CONGREGATIONAL SUNDAY
SCHOOL AND PUBLISHING SOCIETY.

REV. GEO. M. BOYNTON, SECRETARY.
MISSIONARY DEPARTMENT.

A GLANCE BACKWARDS.

This Society was organized as the Massachusetts Sabbath School Society, in 1832. Within a few years the remaining New England and other States had adopted it as their agent. It gave aid to both Presbyterian and Congregational Sunday-schools until the "Plan of Union" was given up in 1852. After twenty years it appointed a few missionary agents in the Western States of New York, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa. Its principal work was in publishing and distributing question and library books for Sunday-schools. In 1862 it absorbed the Doctrinal Tract and Book Society, accepting the work properly suggested by that name.

In 1876, in accordance with the advice of the National Council, the Sunday-school missionary work was transferred to the American Home Missionary Society. In 1882, the fiftieth year of this Society, the same body advised that this work should be restored to it. From that period dates its new life, the beginning of its second fifty years.

ITS WORK FOR THE PAST THREE YEARS.

It is now twelve years since the Society set forth upon this new period of missionary activity. It began by emphasizing the idea of a distinctively Sunday-school missionary force working.in

the needier parts of the land to plant, and in all parts of the land to strengthen and sustain, the Sunday-school work of the denomination.

It is glad of the opportunity to answer to this national and representative body the question, "What progress have you made"?

During the three years covered by this report, 1,463 new Sunday-schools have been organized by our superintendents and missionaries. The majority of these have been, as usual, in places destitute of other religious work or influence; some of them where we hope for, or have realized, permanent results in the growth of churches of our order. One hundred and ninety-one Congregational churches have thus within this period grown out of the schools planted by our agents directly, or as the result of their work and advice; i. e., one church for every eight schools planted. Many other of these schools have been where we could only hope to meet the immediate need, with no prospect of growth or gain to our denomination, but where the good Shepherd would surely have us go, to look after his lost sheep. A smaller number have been held and aided by us, until some other denomination was able to organize a church where we could not, and they have built on our foundation. We have willingly left them the stones to build on, mortar and all.

It should not be thought for a moment that the whole work of our missionaries is in organizing new schools. There is an immense amount of pastoral work which they must do, for the reason that there is no one else to do it. We doubt whether there is an equal number of pastors in the land who make as many calls from house to house as do these men; calling, not upon the people of their parishes, but upon those whom they desire to reach. Incidentally they visit the sick, restore the fallen, and bury the dead. They have constant opportunities for evangelistic work, of which they gladly avail themselves and in which some of them have been wonderfully blessed in leading souls to the Saviour. They preach often in the smaller pastorless churches, and thus help our home missionary superintendents to hold the ground already taken. They carry on frequent correspondence with the superintendents of the schools which they have started, and keep them heartened for their work, as well as supplied for it with literature. They do what they can to secure some returns to our treasury from these

places, as well as from the older churches and schools of their respective districts.

The experience and testimony of our missionaries has been, uniformly, that there is no Sunday-school work to be done which they are prevented from doing because they represent a denominational society, rather than a Union organization. On the other hand, they constantly say, "The best Union work is the denominational work." We do not urge that the schools we plant be always called Congregational, but simply Sunday-schools, or Bible schools, which we gladly aid, and which, being planted and nourished by us, naturally drop their fruitage into our baskets. The well-born child is usually born into a family, and if it ever arrives at the self-conscious age is not compelled to decide what family it will adopt.

Of the general effect upon the Sunday-school work of the denomination, a comparison of its condition in 1883 and in 1894 is convincing. Then one sixth of all our churches made no report of such a department. At least 500 churches out of 4,000 were without Sunday-schools under their care. Now, except perhaps among the new recruits in the South, the Year Book shows very few churches, which make any report at all, which do not report a Sunday-school. Very few report that their children are sent out to board in Union schools, and in addition to this, the last Year Book shows 1,470 schools with 76,000 members, not reported in connection with any church, but under the care of our denomination. During these years, while the church membership increased 182,000, the Sunday-school membership increased 276,000. The army of those now organized for Bible study under our banner is over 750,000.

ITS SUPPORT BY THE CHURCHES.

The best indication of the interest of the churches is what they have done in supplying the means to prosecute the work.

The

The bequests, which were very small in all the previous history of the Society, have amounted, in the last three years, to nearly

$43,000, while the appropriation from the Business Department has been $13,000. (In the last seven years $25,000 has thus been transferred from business profits to missionary work).

Our receipts from contributions reached their highest point in 1893, being $56,694, and have fallen off a little over $2,000 each of the succeeding years, -$54,547,-$52,288. As long ago as 1886 the National Council asked the churches to raise at least $100,000 a year for this department of their work. This is the nearest point they have reached toward that mark. We have not thought it

wise to ask that the mark be raised; we would rather that the money be raised up to this point. Then it is easy enough to raise the mark.

We are not in debt either to those employed by us or to those outside. This fact seems to be an agreeable one to our constituency. It is a fact, however, not at all because our wants are all supplied, or because we supply all wants, but only because we have denied all claims beyond those which we could meet with pence and not merely with promises.

We have clear proof that this, our solvent condition, works against us with some well wishers and even friends. . But you are not in debt," they say, 66 we must help those who are in debt."

Doubtless, the special efforts made in behalf of the societies which are in debt have lessened our receipts, as well as those of the other societies which are not. We have heard of several churches which diverted to these objects contributions which they had planned and voted to give to the Sunday-school missionary work in June last. Doubtless, also, the very special efforts to supply simultaneously from six to ten new colleges with endowments from this same constituency has diverted much water from the six rivers of God which flow out into all the land. There are two ways in which the immediate effect of this process may be felt; the water may be pumped in from some neighboring reservoir, or the volume of the stream may be lessened; i. e., you may run in debt to the future in money unpaid, or you may run in debt to the present in work undone.

This is our limitation. There is need for several men where we can send only one. There are many openings for us into which we cannot go. Glance for a moment at some of these.