vance, the annual liabilities of the Board, with the present number of missionaries, have been augmented nearly $24,000. NEED OF FUNDS. Although the available balance on hand at the close of the fiscal year is considerable, and somewhat larger than that of the year preceding, yet it is no more than is needed. It ought to be distinctly understood by all, that the amount on hand at the period of the year when our balance is reported is always larger than at any other time. From the month of March the receipts begin to fall off, and during the latter part of the spring, the entire summer, and the early part of the fall, the receipts are comparatively small; so that unless our available balance at the commencement of the fiscal year is comparatively large, it would be impracticable to carry on the operations of the Board during the year. For example, at the beginning of the fiscal year, April 1, 1855, we reported an available balance of not more than $15,000; and yet, by the 1st of November ensuing, we had only about $2000 in hand!-not enough to meet the usual payments for a single fortnight!-and but for the prompt and generous responses to our appeals for aid by many of the friends of the cause, our operations must have been seriously embarrassed. The receipts from the churches, from April 1, 1855, to April 1, 1856, fell short of the payments, during the same period, upwards of eighteen thousand dollars, and but for the balance on hand at the commencement of the fiscal year, and the unusually large amount received from individuals, donations, and legacies, we would have been in debt to our missionaries at the close of the year! With an increased number of missionaries, and a higher scale of appropriations, the expenditures of the Board have been very largely augmented; so that during the year upon which we have entered we shall need much larger receipts from the churches. Moreover, it is very important that the Board should not be hampered or embarrassed in undertaking the establishment of new missions. As there will, probably, be no collecting agents in the field assigned to the Executive Committee in Philadelphia, and probably none in the larger portion of the field assigned to the Western Executive Committee, the Board must rely mainly upon the pastors and sessions to see that collections are taken up for Domestic Missions during the year. CONCLUSION. The report concludes with an earnest appeal to Christians to be more liberal in their contributions, and more fervent in their prayers for the Divine blessing upon the missionary cause. A member wished to know the estimated expense of the Board for the coming year. The reply of the Secretary was, that they had not the means of answering that question. Will $50,000 more be needed? The Secretary thought not. Is it necessary to add one-tenth to our previous contributions? The Presbytery to which the speaker belonged had determined to do so much. The Moderator thought it would be well for all our Presbyteries to add one-tenth to their past contributions. He had no doubt it would be all well applied. Rev. Dr. Rogers, in behalf of the Rev. Dr. Phillips, Chairman of the Committee on the Report of the Board of Missions, read the Report of said Committee, in which the following resolutions were presented, viz.: The Committee, to whom was referred the Annual Report of the Board of Domestic Missions, beg leave to report, That, in the discharge of the duty assigned them, they have examined the Report and the accompanying documents, and recommend to the Assembly the adoption of the following resolutions: Resolved, That the Assembly recognizes with devout and humble gratitude the goodness of Almighty God in the successful prosecution of the great work of the Evangelization of our country during the past year. This expression of gratitude is demanded by the fact, that during the year the number of missionaries employed, the amount of receipts from the churches and from individuals, and the amounts appropriated to the support of missionaries, have been considerably increased. Resolved, That the Assembly approves the diligence and fidelity of the Board and its officers, in carrying out the important trusts committed to them; and would again call upon the pastors and ruling elders of our churches to come up to their aid, by regular and enlarged contributions to this cause, which, in its present and prospective relations and objects, is second to no other in magnitude and importance. Resolved, That this Assembly approve the action of the Board, in increasing the number of itinerant missionaries, and believing that much may be accomplished in the more destitute parts of the field by such an agency, they would urge upon the Presbyteries in laying out and arranging their missionary fields, to pay more attention to this subject, and endeavour to enable the Board to carry out the policy which they have wisely and successfully adopted. Resolved, That while the Assembly are gratified to learn that an addition of one hundred has been made to the number of contributing churches during the past year, they would call the attention of the Presbyteries to the mournful fact that there are still about seventeen hundred churches, within our bounds, which contribute nothing to the treasury of the Board of Domestic Missions, and express their earnest hope that such a fact may never hereafter disfigure their Reports. The Committee also recommended nominations of members of the Board, to serve for four years, and that the election be made the second order of the day for Tuesday morning. Dr. Rice moved that the Report of the Committee be adopted. Dr. Hewit wished to speak a word of encouragement and hope. Forty years ago he was a member of Assembly. He is now enabled to cry out: What hath God wrought? Then we had 10 Synods, now 30; then 43 Presbyteries, now 148; then 511 ministers, now 2261; then 881 churches, now 3079; then 37,208 members, now 231,404. If, according to Scriptures, the branch bringing forth fruit shall be purged be verified, it has been verified in the history of the Church. We are two bands. Had we gone on together, we should this day number 54 Synods, 256 Presbyteries, 3778 ministers, 4738 churches, and 374,433 members. He hoped many here would live to see forty years hence, and if so, with what emotion they would repeat the words used to day, "What hath God wrought?" THEN, with the same ratio of increase, they would see 270 Synods, 1280 Presbyteries, 18,890 ministers, 23,690 churches, and 1,872,165 members. Hear then the trumpet-Onward, onward,-God is with you-fear not! The question was taken, and the Report was adopted. BOARD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. The Executive Committee feel grateful to the Lord of the harvest, that they are permitted to report encouraging progress in the missionary work under their direction. This will be shown by the narration of what has been done during the last year. In this Report, the same order of topics will be followed as in the former reports of the Committee. FINANCES. The receipts from all sources, as stated in the Treasurer's Re- To which add the balance from last year, The expenses, as shown in the same Report, have been, . $193,564 54 87 07 8,282 00 $201,933 61 $201,908 75 $24 86 Besides the moneys acknowledged above, the Treasurer has received from sundry donors the sum of $6740, to form a Fund, of which the interest only is to be appropriated, in aid of the support and education of the children of missionaries; and the further sum of $1500, for the same object, but not subject to the condition of expending only the interest. The Treasurer received in preceding years the sum of $12,613 98, for the endowment of professorships in the Theological Seminary among the Waldenses; and for the same object during the last year the sum of $487 37, making the whole amount now $13,101 35. It will be remembered, that according to the recommendation of the General Assembly in 1853, this Fund should be increased to $20,000; and the interest thereof is to be paid annually in aid of its important object. It is earnestly to be desired that this Fund should be speedily completed. The moneys received on account of these two funds, are not included in the general acknowledgment of $193,564 54 above. Donations of clothing for the mission schools among the Indians, and in Africa, have been received from the ladies of some of the churches. These have been of much value, and a still larger supply could be usefully appropriated in this way. PUBLICATIONS. The same number of pages as in former years has been occupied by the Board in the Home and Foreign Record, of which the Board of Publication will report the number of copies issued and the receipts and expenses. Of the Foreign Missionary, 18,500 copies were published in newspaper and 3250 in pamphlet form. Of the pamphlet edition, about 2500 copies are sent free to ministers and to donors of $10 and upwards. Of the last Annual Report, 3500 copies were published in pamphlet form, and 16,500 copies in newspaper form as an extra number of the Record. From the Presbyterian Board of Publication, the American Bible Society, and the American Tract Society, donations of their respective publications have been received for the use of some of the missions and schools. MISSIONARIES AND ASSISTANT MISSIONARIES SENT OUT. To North India, seven; to Siam, four; to China, one; to Western Africa, nine; to New Granada, one; to the Chippewa Mission, one; to the Kickapoos, four; to the Ottoes, one; to the Seminoles, three; to the Chickasaws, six; to the Choc taws, eight. The names of these missionaries and assistant missionaries will appear in connection with their respective missions. AGENCIES. The Secretary and Treasurer of the Board have attended the meetings of several ecclesiastical bodies, for the purpose of making statements concerning the missionary work. The missionaries in this country have preached among the churches to a greater or less extent, presenting the claims of their respective fields of labour. For the collection of funds the main reliance of the Committee has been on the ministers of the congregations. It is with sincere thankfulness that they are able to report an increase of about $5000 in the donations of the churches. These must always form the great source of the supply of funds for carrying forward this work. The Report of the Missions contains much that is adapted to encourage the people of God. The Missionary work is certainly going forward. In some fields of labour its progress is more evident than in others, but in all it enjoys manifest proofs of the Divine blessing. In each of the general divisions of the missionary field, some fruit has been gathered during the year-some souls have been hopefully converted unto God, and the converts admitted to the communion of the mission churches are more numerous than in any former year. The devout thanksgivings of the friends and supporters of these missions should go up unto God, for these proofs of his favour towards the work of his servants. Some of the Missions have enjoyed fewer marks of the gracious presence of the Holy Spirit than have been granted to others; and in all, the manifestations of his power have been far less signal than should be expected by the faith of Christ's servants, in answer to their prayers. This should lead the churches and the missionaries to renewed searchings of heart, lest, peradventure, the reason of this want of greater success be attributable to something wrong or defective on their part; it should also lead to the exercise of more faith and prayer for the outpouring of the Spirit from on high, as on the day of Pentecost. The churches should be admonished, moreover, by the record of these missions, showing such open doors for giving the Gospel to vast multitudes who are yet unacquainted with the name of Jesus, to awake and put forth more earnest efforts to occupy these fields, which are white unto the harvest. It is sad and lamentable to have to acknowledge that, after the Church has been for so many years engaged in giving the Gospel to the unevangelized, and after all the great things which God has done for her and by her in this work, there should still be tens of thousands of her members, and hundreds of her congregations, who, in the years 1855-6, gave nothing whatever to send the bread of life to the perishing! Surely, this ought not so to be! Humble confession of sin in this respect, however, and a full purpose of increased fidelity hereafter, may well comport with the devout thanksgiving which the favour of God towards these missions should call forth from the hearts of his people. The manifold details of this Report will show, that the Church is doing a great work; and that it is a work continually growing, and becoming more blest in its influences, and more triumphant in its success. In view of it, the voice of her Lord may be heard, saying to her: 66 Arise, shine: for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord has arisen upon And the gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the bright thee. Rev. Dr. Gibson, from the Committee on the Board of Foreign Missions, reported, recommending that the Report of the Board be approved, and ordered for publication. They also offered the following resolutions, which were adopted: 1. Resolved, That this Assembly finds occasion for the devoutest gratitude to God, for the success which has attended its missionary operations during the past year, as appears in the extension of missionary labours, operations, and the blessing of God upon the labours of our missionaries, unexampled by any former year-no part of the missionary field remaining without some special token of the Divine favour, and the admissions to the communion of the missionary churches being more numerous than in any former year. 2. Resolved, That this Assembly desires to express its cordial approval of the manner in which the Church's Foreign Missionary operations have been conducted during the past year by the Executive Committee and officers of the Board, and would render adoring praise to God for the success which He has been pleased to Vouchsafe. 3. Resolved, That this Assembly express special satisfaction in the increased liberality of the churches towards the Foreign Missionary Board, showing the unabated interest of God's people in this great cause so immediately connected in its final success with the glory of the Church's Head. 4. Resolved, That this Assembly render special gratitude to God, in that our Board of Foreign Missions has been enabled so much to enlarge its operations during the past year, and the increased number of missionaries sent into the foreign field, with sufficient means contributed by the Church for their support; and especially for the unusual indications of the presence of the Holy Spirit in almost all our missionary stations and churches. 5. Resolved, That it is the indispensable duty of every member of the Church to contribute, according to his or her ability, to the various schemes of benevolence conducted by the Church; and this Assembly express their regret that so many of our churches have failed to contribute anything to Foreign Missions during the past year; and would hereby urge upon the pastors and sessions of those delinquent churches to see to it that the cause be remembered in their prayers and contributions in the time to come. 6. Resolved, That the General Assembly feel greatly encouraged to go forward in the missionary enterprise, from the fact that from a comparative recent origin, our Board now takes its place alongside of sister associations which have done so nobly in this cause, and would urge upon the churches increased and still more vigorous efforts to occupy the fields which are being opened by the providence of God for the introduction of the glorious Gospel of our ever blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 7. Resolved, That the Assembly approve of the course pursued by the Board in regard to the setting apart a special fund for the education of children of foreign missionaries, and because it is due to these men of God that their children be educated in Christian lands, the Committee recommend increased contributions on the part of the wealthy members of the Church to the above fund. Also, in connection with the above resolutions, the Committee would direct the attention of the Assembly to the fact, that notwithstanding the recommendation of the last General Assembly, the fund of $20,000, devoted to the endowments of Professorships in the Theological Seminary of the Waldensian Church, is still incomplete by about $7000, very little having been contributed for that object during the past year. Rev. J. Leighton Wilson, one of the Secretaries of the Board of Foreign Missions, then addressed the Assembly. Mr. Wilson said, these are times of scrutiny and agitation in reference to our Boards, and he would say that if in the Annual Report presented to the Assembly, there is not as much minuteness as may be desired by some, he knew not in what the deficiency was to be found. Would that there might be as much care in reading it, as there had been labour in preparing it. There had been no period in the history of our missionary work where it has worn so encouraging an aspect; and this whether as regards the steadiness with which the missionaries have been able to prosecute their work, the influence of the truth among the heathen, and the readiness of labourers to engage in the noble cause. Much of the work hitherto has been preparatory; now we are beginning to reap rich fruits. Few of the stations have been without special tokens of God's presence. Additions have been made to one church of 30; to another 26; to another 14; to another 12; and to two others 10 each. In all, something like one hundred and fifty precious souls have been gathered in. There never have been so many doors |