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 BX 8952 .R5"1888 
 Rice, Willard M. 1817-1904. 
 History of the Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication and 
 
HISTORY 
 
 Presbyterian Board of Publication 
 
 AND 
 
 Sabbatli-Scliool Work. 
 
 PKEPARED AT THE SUGGESTION OF THE GENE- 
 RAL ASSEMBLY OF 1888, UNDER THE DIREC- 
 TION OF THE SECRETARY, 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. WILLARD M. RICE, D.D. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK, 
 
 1334 CHESTNUT STREET. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 BY REV. E. R. CRAVEN, D. D., 
 
 Secretary of the Board. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1886, when making ar- 
 rangements for the meeting of the one hundredth As- 
 sembly, passed the following resolution: 
 
 Resolved^ That each of the Boards of our Church be 
 urged to provide for the preparation and publication of 
 the history and outlook of its work, and arrange for the 
 presentation of a brief synopsis of the same at its even- 
 ing meeting during the sessions of the General Assembly 
 of 1888. 
 
 In compliance with the first part of this resolution, 
 the Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work 
 requested its Recording Clerk, the Rev. Willard M. 
 Rice, D. D., to prepare a history of the institution. 
 This work could not have been committed to more 
 competent hands. Dr. Rice has been associated with 
 the institution for thirty years, having been appointed 
 a member of the Old School Board in 1860. He was 
 appointed Recording Clerk of that body in 1862, and 
 in that office he was continued until the Reunion, and 
 since that event to the present time. 
 
 The work as prepared by Dr. Rice is eminently sat- 
 isfactory. It is accurate, exhaustive and well written. 
 
4 INTKODUCTION. 
 
 It presents a living picture of the operations of one 
 of the most important agencies of the Church. 
 
 The history naturally is divided into four parts : 
 
 Part I. treats of the actions of Assemblies and 
 Synods in reference to the publication of religious lit- 
 erature previous to 1838, in which year the Board was 
 first established by the O. S. Assembly as " The Board 
 of Publication of Tracts and Sabbath-school Books." 
 It notes the change of title and the enlargement of the 
 sphere of the newly-formed Board in the following 
 year, and then traces its operations and its gradual 
 development until the Reunion in 1870. 
 
 Part II. sets forth the history of the Presbyterian 
 Publication Committee from its establishment in 1852 
 by the N. S. General Assembly until the Reunion. 
 
 Part III. carries on the history from the Reunion of 
 the churches in 1870 until the reorganization of the 
 Board in 1887. 
 
 Part IV. describes the institution as reorganized by 
 the Assembly of 1887 under the title of " The Pres- 
 byterian Board of Publication and Sabbath-School 
 Work." It contains the report of the Special Com- 
 mittee appointed by the Assembly of 1886, in accord- 
 ance with whose recommendation the reorganization 
 was effected, and also a complete statement of the work 
 of the different departments since the reorganization. 
 
 The work is enriched with a valuable Appendix, 
 which contains the " Charter of the Board ;" tabulated 
 statements of receipts and missionary work ; and a list 
 of all the members since the beginning, with the dates 
 of their appointment and death or resignation. 
 
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION, 
 
 1838—1870. 
 
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 The Presbyterian Church has always set a high 
 estimate upon the power of the press. Its contri- 
 butions to every department of literature have been 
 varied and valuable. In our own country from the 
 days of Makemie until now its ministers have made 
 free use of the printed page for the dissemination of 
 religious truth. In 1735 the Synod of Philadelphia, 
 then the supreme judicatory of the Church, appointed 
 a committee for the supervision of whatever its mem- 
 bers should see cause to prepare for the press upon 
 any controversy in religious matters. From time to 
 time through the eighteenth century the Synod, and 
 afterward the General Assembly, directed the purchase 
 and distribution of Bibles and religious books among 
 the poor and on the frontiers, and the publication of 
 the Standards of the Church, etc. In the early part 
 of the present century this course was continued, and 
 appropriations were repeatedly made for the distri- 
 bution of books among the needy and the colored 
 population. In 1809 the Assembly recommended 
 the formation of synod ical tract societies to secure 
 the distribution of tracts within their bounds. Pres- 
 byterians were prominent among the founders of the 
 American Bible Society in 1817, the American Sun- 
 
 7 
 
8 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 day-School Union in 1824, and the American Tract 
 Society in 1825. No denomination of Christians con- 
 tributed more liberally or labored more energetically 
 for the establishment and support of these union 
 agencies for the dissemination of evangelical truth. 
 Some of our most prominent ministers and members 
 were among their active officers and managers, and 
 made valuable contributions to their publications. 
 
 TRACT AND SABBATH-SCHOOL BOOK SOCIETY. 
 
 In 1833, during the sessions of the General Assembly 
 in the city of Philadelphia, the idea of publishing 
 works treating of the distinctive doctrines and polity 
 of the Presbyterian Church was suggested in a conver- 
 sation among a few friends. Subsequent conferences 
 led to the arrangement of a plan for the issue of tracts, 
 the publication of volumes being regarded as too 
 expensive and hazardous. In October, 1833, the sub- 
 ject was brought before the Presbytery of Philadelphia, 
 and the following overture was adopted, and ordered to 
 be laid before the Synod of Philadelphia at its next 
 ensuing meeting: 
 
 Whereas, It is at all times important, and peculiarly 
 so at the present and in the existing circumstances of our 
 Church, that effectual care be taken that our Catechisms 
 and other doctrinal Standards, and also tracts and other 
 /.publications in which correct views of Calvinistic truth 
 are stated and defended, should be circulated abundantly 
 among the people of our denomination ; therefore. 
 
 Resolved, That it be, and it hereby is, overtured by this 
 Presbytery to the Synod of Philadelphia to take order for 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 9 
 
 the establishment of a Presbyterian tract society within 
 the bounds of the Synod, in order that the people of all 
 our congregations may be furnished readily and at a mod- 
 erate price with the standard and other authors of an or- 
 thodox Oalvinistic character. 
 
 This overture, and a similar one from the Presbytery 
 of Huntingdon, were presented to the Synod of Phila- 
 delphia in November, 1833, and the Synod resolved to 
 " constitute a board of managers to prepare, publish 
 and circulate Presbyterian tracts and books inculcating 
 the distinctive doctrines of our Standards, which board 
 shall be known as 'The Board of Managers of the 
 Presbyterian Tract and Sabbath-School Book Society,' 
 under the care and direction of the Synod of Phila- 
 delphia." 
 
 A board of managers was appointed by the Synod, 
 consisting of thirty clergymen and eight laymen, who 
 were " empowered to draft such by-laws as may be cal- 
 culated to carry into effect the objects of this society, 
 and to do whatever else they may in their discretion 
 judge to be necessary or useful to promote its design." 
 This board held its first meeting November 2, 1833, 
 and appointed Kev. Ashbel Green, D. D., Rev. John 
 McDowell, D. D., Rev. William M. Engles, Rev. 
 Samuel G. Winchester, and Messrs. Solomon Allen, 
 Matthew L. Bevan, A. W. Mitchell, M. D., and Alex- 
 ander Symington, as the executive committee. Dr. 
 Green was the chairman and Rev. S. G. Winchester 
 secretary of this first committee. Dr. A. W. Mitchell 
 was appointed treasurer, and the Rev. William M. 
 Engles editor of the publications. A publishing com- 
 
10 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 mittee was also appointed, and suitable by-laws were 
 adopted. 
 
 The first act of the executive committee in further- 
 ance of the views of their appointment was the prepara- 
 tion and publication of a circular to present the ^bject 
 to the churches and solicit co-operation. Without 
 funds, without suitable tracts, and with but little 
 general interest enlisted in their behalf, the board of 
 managers accomplished but little during the first twelve 
 months of their appointment. They were not, however, 
 idle, but engaged in correspondence to procure original 
 tracts, as well as to obtain the requisite funds. 
 
 In the year 1835, they began the work of publica- 
 tion, and Tracts Nos. 1-4, as now on the catalogue of 
 the Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work, 
 were issued and favorably received. An edition of the 
 Shorter Catechism, with Scripture proofs, was also 
 issued as " Tract No. 5." 
 
 The society was thus far without funds, except the 
 contributions furnished by those engaged in the enter- 
 prise and a few other friends. In the year 1835 a 
 contribution of four hundred and six dollars was 
 received from the First Presbyterian Church of New 
 York, being, as it is believed, the first donation made 
 to the object by any church. 
 
 During the next three years Tracts No. 6-18, inclu- 
 sive, were issued. In the report to the Synod of 1838 
 it is stated that " the publications were steadily gaining 
 ground in our churches, the demand for them fully 
 meeting our expectations." The amount of publica- 
 tions from the origin of the society to the time of the 
 
BOAKD OF PUBLICATION. 11 
 
 report was 104,000 copies, or 4,324,000 pages. The 
 total of receipts amounted to $2439.74^. The stock 
 or property of the society was as follows : 
 
 Stereotype plates, at cost $ 720.00 
 
 Outstanding debts 1,300.00 
 
 Stock of tracts on hand 600.00 
 
 $2,620.00 
 
 THE assembly's TRACT AND SABBATH-SCHOOL BOARD. 
 
 In the year 1838 the subject of enlarging the sphere 
 of. usefulness of the society by placing it under the 
 care of the General Assembly was submitted to that 
 body, and favorably received. Forty ministers and 
 forty elders were chosen to constitute a board, to be 
 styled " The Board of Publication of Tracts and Sab- 
 bath-School Books of the General Assembly of the 
 Presbyterian Church in the United States of America," 
 to which should be entrusted, with such directions and 
 instructions as might from time to time be given by the 
 General Assembly, the superintendence of all the ope- 
 rations of the Presbyterian Church in relation to the 
 subject of tracts and Sabbath-school books. The city 
 of Philadelphia was made the seat of operations of the 
 Board, and it was empowered and authorized to receive 
 a transfer of the Presbyterian Tract and Sabbath- 
 School Book Society, then under the care of the 
 Synod of Philadelphia, with all the tracts, books, and 
 funds belonging to said society. 
 
 The following-named persons were elected members 
 of this Board : 
 
12 
 
 BOAED OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 MINISTERS. 
 
 John H. Church, D. D. 
 
 John N. Campbell, D. D. 
 
 Wm. Blain. 
 
 Wm. W. Phillips, D. D. 
 
 George Potts. 
 
 John M. Krebs. 
 
 Nicholas Murray. 
 
 Samuel Miller, D. D. 
 
 A. Alexander, D. D. 
 
 John Gray. 
 
 A. Green,*D.D. 
 
 Wm. M. Engles. 
 
 H. A. Boardman. 
 
 C. C. Cuyler, D. D. 
 Joseph H. Jones. 
 E. J. Breckinridge. 
 Joshua Moore. 
 
 G. W. Musgrave. 
 Charles C. Beatty. 
 
 D. Elliott, D, D. 
 James Culbertson. 
 James Hoge, D. D. 
 Joshua L. Wilson, D. D. 
 John L. Belville. 
 
 Wm. C. Matthews. 
 James W. McKennan. 
 Benjamin F. Spilman. 
 William K. Stewart. 
 W. L. Breckinridge. 
 Andrew Todd. 
 
 LAYMEN. 
 
 Ananias Piatt. 
 H. Auchincloss. 
 Henry Rankin. 
 Robert Jaffray. 
 James Lenox. 
 Thomas McKeen. 
 Wm. Wilson. 
 John T. WoodhuU. 
 A. W.Mitchell, M.D. 
 Alex. Symington. 
 Solomon Allen. 
 Joseph B. Mitchell. 
 
 James Russell. 
 
 John Stille. 
 Matthew Newkirk. 
 
 George Morris. 
 
 H. Denny. 
 
 H. H. Leavitt. 
 Nathaniel Ewing. 
 
 John C. Stockton. 
 
 James Johnson. 
 
 John MoUyneaux. 
 
 Victor King. 
 
 James M. Ray. 
 
 W. A. G. Posey. 
 
 Ebenezer Flinn. 
 
 Abijah Bayless. 
 
 James Weir. 
 
 P. C. Venable, M. D. 
 
 J. B. Martin. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION, 13 
 
 MINISTERS. LAYMEN. 
 
 William S. Plumer. J. ^Y. Pain. 
 
 S. B. Wilson, D. D. Robert H. Burton. 
 
 James Morrison. Robert H. McEwen. 
 
 Wm. McPheeters, D. D. Joseph Biggar. 
 
 John T. Edgar, D. D. D. C. Campbell. 
 
 John Witherspoon, D. D. John R. Witherspoon. 
 
 John Le Roy Davies. Thomas Henderson. 
 
 Thomas S. Witherspoon. Robert H. McNair. 
 
 Samuel G. Winchester. Thomas Franklin. 
 
 A. B. Lawrence. P. A. Walker. 
 
 The Board thus elected held its first meeting, by- 
 direction of the Assembly, Wednesday, May 30, 1838, 
 in the Seventh Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, and 
 elected the following officers : 
 
 PresideMt — Rev. Ashbel Green, D. D. 
 Vice-President. — James Lenox. 
 Treasurer.— A. W. Mitchell, M. D. 
 Secretary. — Rev. Joseph H. Jones. 
 Editor.— Rev. Wm. M. Engles, D. D. 
 
 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 
 
 Rev. Henry A. Boardman (Chairman). 
 C C. Cuyler, D. D. A. Symington. 
 
 Wm. M. Engles, D. D. Solomon Allen. 
 Rev. J. H. Jones, ex-off. A. W. Mitchell, M.D., e;c-o/. 
 Joseph B. Mitchell. James Russell (Secretary). 
 
 At the subsequent meeting of the Synod of Phila- 
 delphia, in October, 1838, it was — 
 
14 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Resolved, That the Presbyterian Tract and Sabbath- 
 School Book Society, now under the care of this Synod, 
 shall be dissolved at and after the meeting of the next 
 Assembly, and its funds, books, tracts, stereotype plates 
 and claims be transferred to the Board of the Assembly. 
 
 As a response to this action of the Synod, at a meet- 
 ing of the Board in Philadelphia, November 17, 1838, 
 it was — 
 
 Resolved, That the Board of Publication of Tracts and 
 Sabbath-School Books will now go on to perform, in de- 
 pendence on the great Head of the Church, the important 
 work for which it was created, 
 
 The Board made its first annual report to the As- 
 sembly of 1839. It had attempted but little, for the 
 obvious reason that it had not been furnished with the 
 means. Its affairs were only in an incipient state. 
 The receipts for the sales of the year were only $982.74. 
 The only Sabbath-school book published during the 
 year, the first on the Board's catalogue, was The Way 
 of Salvation Familiarly Explained, by the Rev. Archi- 
 bald Alexander, D. D., of which three thousand copies 
 were issued. From this unpretending origin and these 
 days of comparatively small things has sprung an in- 
 stitution whose works are known and valued, and whose 
 influence is felt for good, through the Church and the 
 land. 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1839 committed the reso- 
 lutions of the preceding Assembly, establishing the 
 Board, and the report of the Board to a special com- 
 
BOARD OF PUBI.ICATION. 15 
 
 mittee, " with instructions to report such a change in 
 the name, and such a modification of the plan of the 
 Board, as shall more adequately meet the demands (Jf 
 the Church and the world." 
 
 Upon the recommendation of this committee, the 
 name of the Board was changed to " The Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication," and important alterations and 
 amendments were made in its Constitution. 
 
 CONSTITUTION 
 
 PKESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION, 
 
 As adopted by the Assetnbly of 1838, and amended by the 
 Assembly of 1839. 
 
 Article I. The General Assembly will superintend 
 and conduct, by its own proper authority, the work of fur- 
 nishing the churches under its care with suitable tract, 
 Sabbath-school and other publications by a Board ap- 
 pointed for that purpose, and directly amenable to said 
 Assembly. 
 
 Art. II, The General Assembly shall, at its present 
 meeting, choose forty ministers and forty laymen as mem- 
 bers of the Presbyterian Board of Publication, one-fourth 
 part of whom shall go out annually, in alphabetical order; 
 and thereafter ten ministers and ten laymen shall be 
 annually elected as members of the Board, whose term of 
 office shall be four years ; and these forty ministers and 
 forty laymen so appointed shall constitute a Board, to be 
 styled "The Presbyterian Board of Publication," to which 
 for the time being shall be entrusted, with such directions 
 and instructions as may from time to time be given by the 
 
16 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 General Assembly, the superintendence of all the opera- 
 tions of the Presbyterian Church in relation to the pub- 
 lication of tracts, Sabbath-school books, the authorized 
 version of the Psalms and Hymns and Confession of Faith, 
 approved works in support of the great principles of the 
 Eeformation, as exhibited in the doctrines and order of 
 the Presbyterian Church, and such works, permanent and 
 periodical, as are adapted to promote sound learning and 
 true religion. The Board shall make annually to the 
 General Assembly a report of their proceedings, and sub- 
 mit for its approval such plans and measures as shall be 
 deemed useful -and necessary. 
 
 Art. III. The Board of Managers shall hold their first 
 meeting at such time and place as may be directed by the 
 General Assembly, and shall hold a meeting annually at 
 some convenient time, during the sessions of the General 
 Assembly, at which time it shall appoint a President, Vice- 
 President, a Corresponding Secretary, a Treasurer and an 
 Executive Committee, to serve for the ensuing year. It 
 shall belong to the Board of Managers to review and de- 
 cide upon all the doings of the Executive Committee, to 
 receive and dispose of their annual report, and to present 
 any statement of their proceedings which they may judge 
 proper and necessary to the General Assembly. It shall 
 be their duty, also, to meet for the transaction of business 
 as often as may be expedient, due notice of every special 
 meeting being seasonably given to every member of the 
 Board. Eleven members shall constitute a quorum for 
 the transaction of business. 
 
 Art. IV. To the Executive Committee, consisting of 
 nine members, besides the Corresponding Secretary and 
 Treasurer, shall belong the duty of selecting and prepar- 
 ing suitable tracts and books for publication ; of superin- 
 tending and directing their distribution ; of receiving the 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 17 
 
 reports of the Corresponding Secretary, and giving hiiQ 
 needful directions in reference to matters of lousiness and 
 correspondence entrusted to him ; of authorizing all appro- 
 priations of money; and of taking particular direction 
 and management of the whole subject of publication, 
 subject to the control and direction of the Board of Man- 
 agers. The Executive Committee shall meet at least once 
 a month, and oftener if necessary ; five members meeting 
 at the time and place of adjournment on special call shall 
 constitute a quorum, except that the approval of a majority 
 of the whole committee shall be necessary to direct the 
 publication of any tract or book. The committee shall 
 have power to fill their own vacancies should any occur 
 during the recess of the Board. 
 
 Art. V. All property, houses, lands, tenements and 
 permanent funds belonging to the said " Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication" shall be taken in the name of the 
 Trustees of the General Assembly, and held in trust by 
 them for the use and benefit of " The Presbyterian Board 
 of Publication " for the time being. 
 
 Art. VI. The seat of operation of the Board of Man- 
 agers shall be the city of Philadelphia. 
 
 SEMI-CENTENARY FUND. 
 
 The Semi-Centenary of the General Assembly af- 
 forded a favorable occasion for the creation of a fund 
 for the use of the Board. The General Assembly of 
 1839 recommended the proper celebration of this event 
 by the appointment of a day — the second Sabbath of 
 December — " to be observed with religious solemnity 
 by all our people in celebrating the praises of God, 
 and in rendering thanks to his great name for all his 
 mercies." It was also recommended that, " as a timely 
 2 
 
18 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 and open expression of the Church's gratitude, either 
 by public collections, or in some other way approved 
 and in use among the people, every member of the 
 Presbyterian Church in the United States be called to 
 ' offer gifts ' for the glory of God and the good of man." 
 The Board of Publication was designated as the prin- 
 cipal object for these benefactions. Many large sums 
 were collected in various places, and devoted to special 
 local enterprises. The Board, however, in the two fol- 
 lowing years received from these centennial benefactions 
 an amount which, with the assets of the Synodical Tract 
 Society transferred to it at its organization, gave it a 
 working capital of $40,000. This capital was subse- 
 quently increased to $50,000 by further collections of 
 centennial subscriptions, and by special gifts of indi- 
 vidual friends for the stereotyping of certain valuable 
 and costly works. By special enactment of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly this capital was to be preserved entire 
 and undiminished, and to be so used as to require no 
 contributions for its increase. It was a business capi- 
 tal to be used for the glory of God, the upbuilding of 
 the Redeemer's kingdom and the good of men by pub- 
 lishing and circulating books and tracts of a doctrinal 
 character, Calvinistic in their views of truth and suited 
 to perpetuate the system of doctrine and practice of 
 the Presbyterian Church, and thus, by God's blessing, 
 making the men, women, and children of the Church 
 not only intelligent Christians, but also intelligent, 
 thoroughly indoctrinated Presbyterians. 
 
 With this amount of capital, the name of a Church 
 institution and the fostering care of the Assembly 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 19 
 
 secured, the original friends of the enterprise were led 
 to indulge hopes of a wider extent of usefulness than 
 had at the outset been thought of, and laid their plans 
 accordingly. From that time forth the Board con- 
 tinued gradually to extend its operations, attracting 
 the favorable attention of the churches and receiving 
 gratifying tokens of its increasing usefulness. 
 
 In February, 1847, an act of incorporation was pro- 
 cured from the Legislature of Pennsylvania, which was 
 approved by the General Assembly of that year. Only 
 one of the trustees named in the Act of Corporation 
 survives — viz., Archibald Mclntyre, Esq., who is still 
 an efficient and valued member of the Board. 
 
 END OF FIRST DECADE. 
 
 At the end of the Board's first decade, in 1848, the 
 gross receipts had increased from $723.77, in 1838, to 
 $34,371.37. Two hundred and forty works had been 
 published, giving a total of 639,800 volumes printed. 
 Besides these, the number of tracts had reached 58, of 
 which 150,500 copies had been printed, besides 180,000 
 Catechisms and 43,000 almanacs — a total of 1,013,300 
 publications. The capital of the Board had been 
 gradually increased, chiefly by donations ; so that it 
 then amounted to about $70,000. 
 
 The Board had also been made the almoners of pri- 
 vate donations placed at its disposal by a few generous 
 persons, to be distributed according to its judgment, 
 by means of which nearly $5000 had been expended 
 and about 10,000 volumes given to furnish libraries to 
 Presbyterian clergymen of limited pecuniary means, 
 
20 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 to feeble churches, Sabbath-schools, benevolent and 
 charitable institutions and ships-of-war. 
 
 PUBLICATION HOUSE. 
 
 Thus far the place of business occupied by the Board 
 had been a rented store and committee-rooms on the 
 corner of Seventh and George (Sansom) Street. In 
 1848 the institution seemed sufficiently matured and 
 extended to warrant the purchase of a house for its 
 permanent occupancy. A property on Chestnut Street 
 above Eighth was purchased on very favorable terms, 
 and all the exterior arrangements for permanency and 
 Avidespread usefulness were apparently completed. But 
 the Board had occupied its new quarters only a few 
 months when, January 6, 1849, the house was destroyed 
 by fire. The loss was partly covered by insurance, and 
 for the rest was ^principally made up by the generous 
 contributions of the churches and of liberal men in 
 various parts of the country. Thus a larger and more 
 commodious building was erected, which continued to 
 be the home of the Board until the Reunion in 1870. 
 A small debt was contracted, which Avas speedily liqui- 
 dated. 
 
 COLPOKTAGE. 
 
 Thus far the Board of Publication had been simply 
 an organization for printing and publishing books and 
 tracts, without any arrangement for their circulation. 
 The capital furnished by the churches was to be used 
 for publishing exclusively ; no means were provided 
 for the support of a class of men for scattering abroad 
 the publications. The income from sales was expected 
 
PcBLiCATioN House, 821 Chestnut Street. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 21 
 
 to furnish the necessary funds for manufacturing and 
 keeping on hand at all times a full supply of books, 
 and in this way the Board was to sustain itself It 
 was simply a commercial institution designed to pro- 
 mote a religious object. 
 
 Very early in its history there came upon the small 
 capital then in its possession, from feeble churches un- 
 able to pay, applications for grants of its publications 
 by far too numerous to be met by its profits, and after 
 personal and private statements had been made to 
 friends of the Board funds were furnished, and were 
 credited on its books to a Distribution Fund. This 
 was the beginning of the missionary work of the Board. 
 Later in its history there came a demand for a wider 
 circulation of its issues among the destitute. The 
 books were not reaching the Church to the extent 
 which was desirable, and the more needy portions were 
 scarcely touched at all. In these circumstances, it was 
 judged expedient to resort to a system of colportage 
 for the circulation of the books, and, as the prices 
 could not be placed high enough to defray the expense 
 of this system, it was resolved to call upon the churches 
 to furnish by annual collections the means of employ- 
 ing a corps of colporteurs, and also a fund for donations. 
 In this way the character of the Board was changed 
 from that of a mere commercial establishment to that 
 of a benevolent institution. In all these plans the 
 Board either carried out the instructions of the Assem- 
 bly or received its cordial approval. The Assembly 
 in 1847 recorded its estimate of this work of the Board 
 in the following terras : 
 
22 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Besolved, That the Assembly is highly gratified that the 
 Board has entered upon a system of colportage as an agency 
 for the circulation of its books ; and while repeating the 
 recommendation of former Assemblies, that funds be raised 
 by Synods and Presbyteries for the establishment of de- 
 positories owned and managed by themselves, the Assembly 
 would further recommend that they employ, in connection 
 with these depositories, the colporteurs appointed by the 
 Board. 
 
 CORRESPONDING SECRETARY. 
 
 In order to carry out these changes, as well as in 
 various ways to bring the Board more fully and con- 
 stantly into communication with the churches, the 
 office of Corresponding Secretary and General Agent, 
 already provided for in the Constitution, was filled in 
 the autumn of 1848. To this important and responsi- 
 ble office the Rev. John Leyburn, D. D., was unani- 
 mously elected, and he entered upon his work in Novem- 
 ber. The Board had already employed a few persons 
 as traveling agents for the sale of books, but at that 
 time there were only four of these, and their labors 
 were confined exclusively to the States of Pennsylva- 
 nia, New Jersey and New York. 
 
 It was immediately after arrangements were made 
 for carrying into effect the extended plans that the 
 newly-purchased house of the Board was destroyed by 
 fire, and the urgent necessity of rebuilding was laid 
 upon the Board and the churches. This diversion of 
 effort and funds greatly interfered with the progress of 
 the incipient colporteur enterprise. Still, a beginning 
 was made, and within two years from its inception the 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 23 
 
 Board reported forty colporteurs employed. The As- 
 sembly of 1849 expressed its approval as follows : 
 
 Resolved, That the system of colportage adopted by the 
 Board is not only a valuable auxiliary, but in the present 
 condition of our country, with its advancing population 
 sweeping rapidly beyond the reach of a settled ministry 
 and all the ordinary means of grace, must be considered a 
 necessary means of the widest diiFusion and most effective 
 influence of our publications; and the Assembly have 
 heard with peculiar pleasure that many of our candidates 
 for the ministry are engaged during the interval of study 
 in the prosecution of this important work, so full of bene- 
 fit to others, and of still more valuable practical instruction 
 to themselves. We would, therefore, urge the Board to 
 pursue, with redoubled activity, this department of their 
 labors, and throw themselves upon the liberality of the 
 churches for any additional expense which might be neces- 
 sarily incurred. 
 
 The Board endeavored faithfully to carry out these 
 instructions of the Assembly, and encouraging success 
 accompanied their efforts. The sales of books were at 
 once increased, until, from $29,000 in 1849, they rose to 
 nearly $80,000 in 1854. Colporteurs in numbers vary- 
 ing from year to year were thenceforward kept in the 
 field. They were instructed to regard themselves not 
 merely as venders of books, but as missionaries to carry 
 the truths of the gospel wherever they labored. An 
 unspeakable amount of good was accomplished by these 
 faithful workers going from house to house, holding 
 religious conversation and prayer, and distributing, 
 both by sale and gift, the books and tracts issued by 
 the Board. Multitudes in every part of the land, but 
 
24 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 chiefly in the West, of the poor, the needy and those 
 destitute of religious privileges, were thus reached and 
 benefited. 
 
 In 1854 this department of the Board's work was 
 placed under the special charge of Mr. Winthrop 
 Sargent, as Superintendent of Colportage — an office in 
 which he continued for eighteen years to give faithful 
 and devoted service to the Board and the Church. 
 
 In 1858, at the end of the Board's second decade, it 
 reported that the number of colporteurs in commission 
 during the year had been 263 ; that twenty-nine States 
 and Territories had been traversed and had received 
 larger or smaller supplies of the publications of the 
 Board, besides the British provinces of Nova Scotia, 
 New Brunswick, Canada East and Canada West. 
 Hundreds of thousands had thus received messages 
 of eternal life, and the voice of exhortation and prayer 
 had been lifted up through this instrumentality in 
 very many places where such a voice was never heard 
 before. 
 
 The Kev. Dr. Leyburn, after three years of faithful 
 service, resigned the office of Corresponding Secretary 
 and General Agent in 1852, and the Rev. George W. 
 Musgrave, D. D., was elected his successor. Dr. Mus- 
 grave.held the position for a year, and was succeeded 
 by the Rev. B. M. Smith, now of the Union Theologi- 
 cal Seminary of Virginia. Dr. Smith vacated the 
 office Novergber 1, 1854, and was succeeded by the 
 Rev. William E. Schenck, D. D., who continued to 
 serve the Church and the Board until failing health 
 compelled him to resign his office, in 1886. A more 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 25 
 
 extended notice of his valuable labors will be given in 
 subsequent pages. 
 
 DEATH OF THE REV. ARCHIBALD ALEXANDER, D. D. 
 
 The fourteenth annual report of the Board, presented 
 to the General Assembly of 1852, made mournful men- 
 tion of the death of the Kev. Archibald Alexander, 
 D. D., senior professor in the Princeton Theological 
 Seminary, which occurred October 22, 1851. Dr. 
 Alexander had been the president of the Board from 
 May, 1839, and had always manifested a deep in- 
 terest in its welfare. He selected it as the channel 
 through which he published nearly all of his works 
 which appeared after its organization. At the time of 
 his death the Board had issued 16,020,500 pages of his 
 writings. Many of these works are of great perma- 
 nent value, and still have an extended sale. To few 
 persons was the Board more indebted than to him for 
 the degree of prosperity and usefulness to which it at- 
 tained during the first fourteen years of its existence. 
 
 The Kev. William W. Phillips, D. D., pastor of the 
 First Presbyterian Church in the city of New York, 
 succeeded Dr. Alexander as president of the Board, 
 and held that office until his death, March 20, 1865. 
 
 MR. JOSEPH p. ENGLES. 
 
 Mr. Joseph P. Engles became a member of the Board 
 in 1839, and its Publishing Agent in 184^ He filled 
 this ofiice until his death, April 14, 1861. By his ex- 
 cellent personal qualities he greatly endeared himself to 
 all the members, and by his extensive and accurate 
 
26 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 learning, his untiring industry and hearty devotion to 
 its interests, he did very much to promote the efficiency 
 and usefulness of the institution. Many of the publica- 
 tions of the Board during his long term of office were 
 selected by him, and all passed under his critical in- 
 spection. The Catechism for Young Children — of which 
 hundreds of thousands have been circulated by the 
 Board — was prepared by him. He was also the editor 
 of a pocket edition of the Greek Testament of un- 
 rivaled accuracy. 
 
 At a meeting of the Board held two days after his 
 death the following minute was unanimously adopted : 
 
 1. The Board, having been apprised of the recent and 
 very sudden death of Mr. Joseph P. Engles, desire rever- 
 ently to acknowledge the hand of God in this dispensation, 
 and to bow submissively to his will. 
 
 2. They record their grateful sense of the eminent piety 
 and usefulness of this devoted servant of God ; of his dili- 
 gence, integrity and fidelity as the Publishing Agent of 
 this Board ; of the generous efficiency with which he 
 employed the resources of his large experience and ripe 
 scholarship in promoting its interests ; and of the signal 
 affability and kindness which marked all his intercourse 
 with its members, and won their personal confidence and 
 affection. 
 
 The General Assembly in May adopted the following 
 resolution : 
 
 Resolved, That the Assembly unites with the Board in 
 hereby recording its sense of the loss sustained by the 
 Church in the death of the late Joseph P. Engles, the 
 Publishing Agent of the Board, and in expressing its 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 27 
 
 sense of the diligence, integrity and fidelity with which 
 he had so long served the Church in that office. 
 
 " SABBATH-SCHOOL VISITOR." 
 
 The Board from its early inception felt called upon 
 to give special attention to books for the young, and 
 from year to year a goodly number of publications 
 of this description were added to its catalogue. With 
 the beginning of the year 1851, in accordance with 
 the action of the General Assembly of the preceding 
 year recommending the establishment of a paper for 
 Sabbath-schools, the publication of The Presbyterian 
 Sabbath-School Visitor was commenced. Its immediate 
 success proved how much such a paper was demanded. 
 At the expiration of the first three months of its ex- 
 istence it had secured a subscription list of 20,000 ; 
 at the end of the first year the number of subscribers 
 amounted to 28,000 ; at the end of the second year it 
 had increased to 40,000 ; in 1858 the Board reported 
 a circulation of 54,000. 
 
 Seldom has the General Assembly adopted a more 
 important resolution than that which gave existence to 
 this paper for the children and youth of our Church. 
 It is well described by its name — "Sabbath-School 
 Visitor." Its pictorial illustrations are of a highly 
 creditable character. Its matter, both selected and 
 contributed, is strictly religious. Without sacrificing 
 solidity to a simplicity which makes no demands of in- 
 tellect, it presents the most useful and important truths 
 in a style well adapted to engage the attention and 
 arrest the affections of the young. Adults read it with 
 
28 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 pleasure and profit, and many have accorded to it an 
 estimate of the highest grade as a paper adapted to all. 
 
 "home and foreign record." 
 
 The General Assembly of 1849 appointed a com- 
 mittee to make arrangements for a periodical as the 
 joint-organ of all the Boards. The committee having 
 matured its plans, the publication of the Home and 
 Foreign Becord was begun in January, 1850. The 
 Visitor and the Record were the only periodicals issued 
 by the Board until after the Reunion in 1870. 
 
 THE LITERATURE OF THE BOARD. 
 
 During the successive years of its existence the 
 Board kept steadily in view the great object for which 
 it was created by the General Assembly — the publica- 
 tion and dissemination far and wide of the pure and 
 complete truths of God's word just as those truths are 
 held and exhibited in the Standards of our Church. 
 Its desire and aim was to furnish to all within its reach 
 not only a sound and scriptural literature, but one 
 adajDted to the necessities and varied tastes of every 
 class — to proffer to the minister of the gospel, to the 
 head of the family, to the Sabbath-school teacher and 
 scholar, to the youth and the adult, to the babe in Christ 
 and the mature Christian, to the prosperous and the 
 afflicted, to the irreligious and the skeptical, words of 
 wisdom and of love suited to fit each and all for the 
 duties of this life and for the glories of another. Lov- 
 ing heartily the noble Standards which have been trans- 
 mitted to our Church from her fathers and founders, 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 29 
 
 and fully persuaded that they are built upon the solid 
 rock of God's revealed truth, the Board has always 
 openly avowed its desire that all men might be brought 
 to concur heartily therewith, and has embraced every 
 proper opportunity, by its publications, to correct every 
 misrepresentation or mistake concerning those doctrines, 
 and to exhibit and illustrate the truths of those Stan- 
 dards ; so that they may win the hearts of all men to 
 themselves, and to that free and precious salvation 
 embodied and exhibited therein. 
 
 END OF SECOND DECADE. 
 
 At the end of the second decade it is interesting and 
 inspiring to notice the growth of the Board. From a 
 little germ it had become a great tree. Its total capi- 
 tal amounted to $211,809. From its receipts of $723 in 
 1838, when it came under the supervision of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly, its income from all sources had become 
 $109,413.71. Its losses through bad debts had been 
 but about $1300, or less than $70 per annum. Its 
 Catalogue contained the names of more than 800 
 publications, including books and tracts, of which 
 6,819,938 copies had been issued. Of the Confession 
 of Faith it had published 60,000 copies ; of the Shorter 
 Catechism in various forms, 654,000 copies, and nearly 
 as many more bound with the Hymn-Book, making 
 altogether considerably over 1,000,000 copies of that 
 admirable Standard of our Church. Of the Catechism 
 for Young Children it had also published 346,000 
 copies ; of the Assembly's Hymn-Booh, 503,500 copies. 
 Of other works we may name the following numbers 
 
30 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 published : Boston's Fourfold State, 14,000 copies ; 
 Doddridge's Else and Progress, 23,500 ; Pilgrim's Prog- 
 ress, 24,000; Fisher's Catechism, 14,000; The Great 
 Supper, 24,000 ; Dr. J. W. Alexander's Thoughts on 
 Family Worship, 25,000; Bible Dictionary, 16,000; 
 Pictorial First Book, 34,000. A number of important 
 works of a denominational character had also been 
 issued at very considerable outlay, most of them by 
 direction of the General Assembly, from which, not- 
 withstanding their great value, but little return had 
 been received. Among these may be mentioned 
 Records of the Presbyterian Church, Minutes of the Gen- 
 eral Asseynbly 1789-1820, Minutes of the General As- 
 sembly 1821-1835. 
 
 The number of colporteurs in the service of the 
 Board had increased from 20 in 1849 to 263 in 1858. 
 
 This increase in the number of colporteurs commis- 
 sioned by the Board, and the vast extent of their field 
 of operations, led to the appointment of district super- 
 intendents of colportage to exercise a general supervis- 
 ion of the work in their respective territories. The 
 General Assembly of 1860 gave its oflScial approval of 
 these appointments by the unanimous adoption of the 
 following resolution : 
 
 Resolved, That the Assembly approves of the employ- 
 ment of a supervisory class of colporteurs, or district 
 superintendents, as likely to give still further activity and 
 extension to this important work of colportage. 
 
 The Board reported, to the Assembly of 1861, five 
 district superintendents — one for the States of Illinois, 
 Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri ; another for 
 
BOARl> OF PUBLICATION. 31 
 
 the States of Kentucky and Tennessee ; a third for 
 Georgia and Alabama ; a fourth for Ohio, Indiana and 
 Michigan ; and a fifth for the Pacific coast. The lat- 
 ter — the most expensive of these agencies — was begun, 
 at the Assembly's express direction and with a full 
 knowledge of its costliness, because of the great im- 
 portance of the field and its claims upon the Church. 
 
 WORK FOR SOLDIERS AND SAILORS. 
 
 During the civil war of 1861-65 the Board took 
 an active part in the work of supplying the soldiers 
 and sailors on both sides of the great conflict with 
 suitable books and tracts. At the opening of the war 
 many thousand dollars' worth of such books and 
 tracts were in the South ; the Board authorized these 
 to be distributed to the Confederate soldiers and sailors. 
 Large quantities of books and tracts were distributed to 
 the Union soldiers and sailors through the agency of 
 the Christian Commission. Over 300,000 copies of The 
 Soldier's Pocket-Booh, prepared by the Rev. William 
 M. Engles, D. D,, editor of the Board's publications, 
 were thus gratuitously distributed. In 1865 the Board 
 reported to the General Assembly as follows : 
 
 Large and constant demands continue to be made upon 
 the Board for suitable little volumes and tracts for the use 
 of the soldiers. The Board has been most anxious to keep 
 pace with these demands, and has spared no exertions in 
 this direction. This has seemed to be a more imperative 
 duty because of the large amount of utterly trashy read- 
 ing forwarded to our armies, and because of the large 
 quantities professing to be religious reading, but filled with 
 false doctrines and perversions of Scripture adapted more 
 
32 BOAKD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 or less to lead our brave defenders away from Christ as a 
 divine and all-sufficient Saviour. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 The same report shows the active work of the Board 
 in regard to Sabbath-school books : 
 
 In obedience to the frequently-expressed will of the 
 General Assembly, as well as in accordance with what the 
 Board believes to be a pressing want of the Church at 
 large, it has continued to add to its Sabbath-school library 
 as fast as it could judiciously do so. During the year 33 
 new volumes have been added to the Board's Sabbath- 
 school library, making the whole number of volumes 
 now contained ther^'n 380. These have been selected with 
 the utmost caio .. m the materials available, while a large 
 number of manuscripts proffered for this use have been 
 rejected. 
 
 May we not venture to put forth just here a word 
 of entreaty to pastors, and to all others interested in 
 the spiritual welfare of the children, that they will see 
 to it that the Sabbath-school libraries in their respec- 
 tive churches are made up of proper and profitable 
 books, and of no others ? It is truly lamentable to 
 see with how much carelessness new purchases for such 
 libraries are frequently made. We have often seen 
 upon the book-shelves in Sabbath-schools connected 
 with our largest and most intelligent churches books 
 in which were conveyed the views of other denomina- 
 tions — views directly opposed to those of the Standards 
 of our Church. In vain will the Presbyterian Church 
 by its Board provide safe and profitable Sabbath-read- 
 ing for her own children unless pastors and others having 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 33 
 
 the matter in charge take pains to have this reading 
 placed within the reach of those for whom it was pre- 
 pared. 
 
 ASSEMBLY SUPERVISION. 
 
 The work of the Board passed under the careful 
 supervision of the General Assembly from year to 
 year. The action of this body uniformly showed a 
 deep sense of the importance of the work and a hearty 
 appreciation of the diligence and wisdom with which it 
 was prosecuted. The Assembly of 1862 renewed this 
 approval by the adoption of the following resolution : 
 
 Resolved, That this General Assembly continue to regard 
 the Board of Publication as a most L" ' " '■■^-■f' and efficient 
 agency of the Church in dissemr '^'^^g and defending 
 divine truth, and approves of the wisdom, prudence and 
 energy with which the affairs of the Board have been con- 
 ducted during the year. 
 
 Various complaints and criticisms had, however, 
 been made in different parts of the Church and found 
 expression in the Assembly with regard to the policy 
 and work of the Board. The Corresponding Secretary, 
 therefore, earnestly requested the Assembly to appoint 
 a special committee of inquiry in regard to the affairs 
 and operations of the Board. The following resolu- 
 tions were thereupon adopted : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That, in view of criticisms made in this and 
 former General Assemblies, a committee of nine ministers 
 and ruling elders, of which the moderator of this General 
 Assembly shall be chairman, be appointed to make a 
 thorough examination of the affairs of the Board of Pub- 
 lication, and report to the next General Assembly. 
 3 
 
34 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Resolved, 2. That said committee shall meet in the city 
 of Philadelphia, at the call of its chairman; and the 
 Board is hereby directed to give free and full opportunity 
 to the committee in carrying out the objects of its appoint- 
 ment and any information the committee may desire to 
 procure. And all persons, from any part of the Church, 
 shall have full opportunity, and are requested, either in 
 person or by writing, to present to the committee any ob- 
 jections or doubts they may entertain in regard to the 
 plans and operations of the Board. 
 
 Resolved, 3. That the Board of Publication be directed 
 to pay the traveling and other necessary expenses of the 
 members of the committee from its treasury. 
 
 This committee met September 19, 1862, and was in 
 session for six days, spending seven hours of each day, 
 except the last, in careful, united consultations and in- 
 vestigations. They used, also, various means of secur- 
 ing information outside of the committee-room, and 
 endeavored to obtain a full understanding of the mat- 
 ters assigned by the General Assembly for their inves- 
 tigation. 
 
 The Board extended a cordial welcome to the com- 
 mittee, and gave them every facility in the prosecution 
 of their inquiries. Full hearing was given to those who 
 complained of the Board, and also to its officers, mem- 
 bers and friends in explanation and support of its 
 operations and policy. The result of their investiga- 
 tions was presented to the General Assembly of 1864 
 in a unanimous report which, when published, filled 
 twenty-four closely-printed pages. The report discussed 
 at length the several matters of complaint : 1. The 
 character of the publications put forth by the Board ; 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 35 
 
 2. The financial affairs of the Board, including (1) 
 the capital and its increase, (2) the salaries of the 
 officers and the working expenses of the Board, (3) the 
 cost of production and the prices and agencies of the 
 Board, and (4) the general efficiency of its manage- 
 ment ; 3. The colportage work ; 4. The periodicals. 
 The committee closed their report with the expression 
 of their earnest hope that the past history of the Board 
 might prove but its time of preparation for enlarged 
 usefulness, that renewed confidence might be placed in 
 it by the churches, that greater efficiency and influence 
 might belong to all its operations, and that the labors 
 of the committee might tend to secure these results. 
 
 The Assembly, after considerable discussion, ap- 
 proved of the principles expressed by the committee 
 touching the character of the Board's publications, 
 and commended the efforts of the Board to furnish 
 reading more and more attractive, acceptable and use- 
 ful to the Church. It also approved of the theory of 
 colportage as expressed in the report of the special 
 committee, directed the Board to consider carefully 
 the matter of superintendents of colportage, the sugges- 
 tions of the committee respecting the employment of 
 colporteurs, and renewedly commended this whole mat- 
 ter to the confidence, liberality and prayers of God's 
 people. 
 
 The Assembly also directed certain changes in the 
 way of retrenchment ; 1. That the separate office of 
 Editor be discontinued, and its duties be assigned to the 
 Corresponding Secretary ; 2. That the office of Treas- 
 urer, as a distinct one, be dispensed with, and the duties 
 
36 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 thereof be added to those of the Superintendent of Col' 
 portage ; 3. That the duties of Publishing Agent be 
 assigned to the Superintendent of Depository, without 
 any increase of salary ; 4. That the office and salary 
 of Solicitor be discontinued ; 5. That the periodical 
 department be placed under the charge of one indi- 
 vidual, chosen by the Board, who should be responsible 
 for its conduct, receiving for his compensation thirteen 
 hundred dollars per annum, he being required to fur- 
 nish clerks and assistants at his own expense ; 6. That 
 payments for matter for the Sabbath-School Visitor be 
 discontinued until they can be made from the income 
 of the paper. A series of resolutions intended and 
 adapted to give full efficacy to the action of the As- 
 sembly was immediately adopted by the Board. 
 
 Whatever opinions may have been entertained in 
 various quarters respecting the action of the Assembly, 
 the Board unhesitatingly obeyed these directions, and 
 diligently endeavored to carry them into effect, with 
 the earnest hope that its future progress might be 
 marked with an immunity from further external and 
 agitating discussions, and by the bestowal upon it from 
 all sides of that generous confidence so necessary to its 
 enlarged usefulness. 
 
 That this hope was not without foundation will ap- 
 pear from the action of the Assembly of 1865 : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That each successive year affords additional 
 evidence that the Board of Publication is a most efficient 
 agency in disseminating and defending divine truth, and 
 that, whilst the General Assembly rejoices in the increas- 
 ing usefulness of the Board, it approves of the fidelity, 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 37 
 
 discretion and vigor with which its affairs are con- 
 ducted. 
 
 Resolved, 2. That it is especially gratifying to the As- 
 sembly that the Board, in obedience to the calls both of 
 piety and of patriotism, has continued to make liberal 
 contributions of its publications to the army and navy, to 
 the sick and wounded soldiers and sailors in our hospitals, 
 to military prisoners, and to many among those whom God 
 in his righteous providence has delivered from bondage, 
 and affectionately urges upon the churches the importance 
 of a still more liberal co-operation in a work which in 
 itself is so excellent, and which has been so signally 
 favored by God. 
 
 Resolved, 3. That the endeavors of the Board to furnish 
 the children and youth of our Church and country with a 
 literature not only adapted to interest them and beget a 
 love of reading, but to cultivate their taste, to improve 
 their understandings, and, by the grace of God, to purify 
 their hearts, meet with the heartiest approval of the As- 
 sembly; and it is recommended with special emphasis to 
 all who love our beloved Zion and desire the improvement 
 and salvation of our dear youth by every means to aid the 
 Board in this most important department of labor. . . . 
 
 Resolved, 6. That the General Assembly directs the at- 
 tention of the Board to the importance of a more exten- 
 sive distribution of the books, tracts and papers of the 
 Board throughout all the churches of our connection, and 
 urges every pastor and church Session to see that the pure 
 literature of our Church — subjected as it is, in advance of 
 issue, to careful examination — be circulated in preference 
 to any other. To this end, prominent laymen and the 
 superintendents and tSachers of Sabbath-schools should 
 be furnished with the well-arranged Descriptive Catalogue 
 of the Board ; and in many instances care should be taken 
 
38 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 to secure the occasional visits of a colporteur. While not 
 depreciating the merits of other religious publishing so- 
 cieties, we are sure that the Presbyterian Board of Publi- 
 cation, judged by its works, has no superior, and it is due 
 to the interests of religion and the Church that preference 
 should be accorded to them. 
 
 During the remaining years of its third decade, with 
 the emphatic and annually-repeated approval of the 
 Assembly and increased favor of the Church, the Board 
 made encouraging advance in every department of its 
 work. Many and valuable additions were made to the 
 catalogue of its publications. Its plans of distribution 
 were enlarged and systematized. The distribution 
 fund was united with the colportage fund, and thence- 
 forward defrayed the expenses of the colportage work, 
 and also bore the cost of the grants of books and tracts 
 made by the executive committee. In all these plans 
 of production, distribution and sustentation the Board 
 received the hearty support of the Church. The As- 
 sembly of 1868 unanimously adopted the report of its 
 standing committee on publication, which bore testi- 
 mony to the good work of the Board as follows : 
 
 Your committee have been deeply impressed with the 
 peculiar importance of the work committed to this Board, 
 and the urgent necessity there is that it should be done 
 vigorously and efficiently. A good wholesome literature 
 is not only indispensable in securing the perpetuity of a 
 Church constituted like ours, but it is also, as experience 
 has shown, one of the best means for carrying on the work 
 of evangelization. It ought, then, to be a subject of no 
 ordinary concern to the Assembly to know what efforts 
 the Board is making to supply the wants of the Church 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 39 
 
 through the channel of the press, and what success has 
 attended its attempts to preach the gospel by means of the 
 printed page. 
 
 The thirtieth annual report presented by this Board is 
 so complete and satisfactory, that your committee has had 
 no difficulty in reaching a unanimous opinion concern- 
 ing it. 
 
 After giving a brief outline of the work of the 
 Board during the year under review, the committee 
 presented a series of resolutions which were also unan- 
 imously adopted by the Assembly. We quote a part of 
 them: 
 
 Besolved, 1. That the Assembly has heard with pleasure 
 and gratitude to God of the increased measure of success 
 that has attended the labors of the Board of Publication 
 during the past year in the face of more than ordinary 
 difficulties. While it commends the fidelity of the Board 
 to its sacred and important trust, it would also call the 
 attention of all under the Assembly's care to the import- 
 ance of sustaining it, that it may be rendered still more 
 efficient. 
 
 Resolved. 2. That it gives special pleasure to the As- 
 sembly to learn that the Sabbath-school books issued by 
 the Board are so generally and cordially approved by those 
 engaged in the Sabbath-school work. In order to make 
 this department still more effective, it is recommended to 
 the Board to make diligent effort to print and circulate a 
 larger number of books adapted to that class of the young 
 who are more advanced in years and culture. 
 
 Resolved, 5. That the Assembly directs the Board to 
 make special effort during the coming year to enlarge and 
 extend the work of colportage. 
 
 The Board endeavored faithfully to carry out the 
 
40 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 suggestions and directions of the Assembly thus ex- 
 pressed. The Assembly of 1869 commended the opera- 
 tions of the Board during the preceding year as 
 "conducted with wisdom, efficiency and encouraging 
 success," exhorted our church Sessions and Sabbath- 
 school superintendents to promote the increasing cir- 
 culation of its periodicals, directed the Board to 
 enlarge its work of colportage in the openings for it 
 that were multiplying on every hand, and to this end 
 exhorted all our churches to contribute to the fund 
 for this purpose. It also recommended that the Board 
 should be furnished with the means for supplying 
 needy ministers with its publications for their own use, 
 and for distribution among those unable to purchase 
 them, and, in view of the great good arising from the 
 gratuitous circulation of the tracts of the Board, it 
 earnestly commended to the attention of churches and 
 individuals the importance of special donations for this 
 purpose. 
 
 REV. WILLIAM M. ENGLES, D. D. 
 
 The report of 1868 noted the death of five members 
 of the Board during the preceding year, all faithftil 
 sons of the Presbyterian Church who had rendered 
 important services to the Board. Of one of them we 
 feel constrained to speak at greater length because of 
 his intimate and long-continued relations to the Board. 
 
 The Eev. William M. Engles, D. D., died November 
 27, 1867, at his residence, in Philadelphia, after an 
 illness of a few days, and in the seventy-first year of 
 his age. The Board was probably more indebted to 
 him than to any other one man for its existence and 
 
BOAKD OF PUBLICATION. 41 
 
 usefulness, especially during the first twenty years of 
 its history. In all the incipient measures which led to 
 its organization, and afterward to its adoption and 
 reorganization by the General Assembly, he took a 
 prominent part. He was a member of its executive 
 committee, and continued to serve uninterruptedly in 
 that capacity until June, 1863. He was likewise, from 
 the first, editor of the Board's publications, and every 
 one of them passed under his eye and hand until that 
 date. In 1865 he was elected president of the Board 
 — an office which he continued to fill with dignity and 
 Christian courtesy and warm devotion to the Board's 
 interests until his removal by death. His usefulness 
 in connection with this Board the Church can never 
 fully appreciate. His sound judgment rarely allowed 
 him to fall into a mistake. His extensive reading and 
 his thorough and discriminating orthodoxy placed upon 
 the Board's catalogue a large variety of the most ap- 
 proved Calvinistic books, both of our own country and 
 of Great Britain, yet kept its list to a remarkable 
 degree free from all admixture of error. A large 
 number of old and valuable works which had become 
 nearly extinct because of their cumbrous style were 
 revised and abridged by him, and have had an exten- 
 sive circulation and great usefulness in every part of 
 the land. In all this editorial work he had a most val- 
 ued colaborer and assistant in his brother, of whose 
 services as the Publishing Agent of the Board we 
 have already spoken. 
 
 Dr. Engles was also himself the author of a large 
 number of valuable books and tracts, nearly all of 
 
42 BOARD OF PUBLICATION". 
 
 which were published anonymously. Among these, 
 his Sick-room Devotmis has carried life and comfort to 
 thousands of chambers of sickness. His little work 
 The Soldier's Pocket Book — of which about three hun- 
 dred thousand in English and German were circulated 
 among our soldiers during the war — achieved an untold 
 and unspeakable amount of good. 
 
 In 1870, at the Eeunion, the Board reported the net 
 value of its issues during the year ^114,763.84, and 
 the total number of copies of books and tracts issued 
 by the Board since its organization 15,132,738. Its 
 catalogue contained the names of 1720 publications, 
 and its capital amounted to $294,737.68. 
 
 The last page of that final report of the old Board 
 will form a fitting close to this sketch of its history : 
 
 It seems proper for the Board, in view of the recent 
 action of the Joint Committee on Publication appointed by 
 the two General Assemljlies at Pittsburgh, and of the prob- 
 able action of the approaching Assembly thereon, to make 
 a brief allusion to the past and to the future. The work 
 of publication was taken up by the General Assembly, and 
 this Board organized by it in the year 1838. Nearly all 
 the members originally appointed by the Assembly have 
 passed away from earth and earthly labors, and the present 
 members have from time to time been chosen to fill their 
 places. They have become ardently attached to the Board 
 and its work, believing them to be wisely adapted to bless 
 mankind, to strengthen our beloved Church and to glorify 
 God. They have taken pleasure in helping forward that 
 work, and have found the associations into which it has 
 drawn them with each other, and with many now in 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 43 
 
 heaven, exceedingly agreeable and profitable. The provi- 
 dence of God and the voice of his Church now call this 
 Board to enter upon a new phase of its history, and to pass 
 either wholly or in part into the hands of other managers. 
 It seems proper, therefore, for the present members to ex- 
 press, in closing this report, their heartfelt prayer that God 
 may greatly enlarge the work and usefulness of this be- 
 loved Board, that he may make it a perpetual and growing 
 power for the difi"usion of his blessed truth, and that he 
 may richly impart, by his Holy Spirit, wisdom, zeal, 
 energy, favor with all his people, and abundant success to 
 all who may hereafter participate in controlling and guid- 
 ing its operations. 
 
n. 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 1862—1870. 
 
PRESBYTERIAN PUBLICATION COMMITTEE, 
 
 PRELIMINARY ACTION. 
 
 The New School branch of the Church began the 
 work of publication about fifteen years after the dis- 
 ruption. Certain preliminary action had, however, 
 been taken in several General Assemblies preceding 
 that of 1852, by which this plan was adopted. 
 
 In 1846 an overture on the subject of doctrinal 
 tracts was reported, and referred to a committee of 
 two from each Synod. This overture had its origin in 
 the Presbyterian and Congregational Convention that 
 met at Detroit, Michigan, the year previous, by which 
 the following resolution was unanimously adopted : 
 
 Resolved, That, in view of the peculiar wants of the 
 churches which harmonize with this Convention in doctrine 
 and benevolent action for the conversion of the world, it 
 is expedient and proper that measures should be adopted 
 to furnish a full supply of doctrinal and other religious 
 books and tracts. 
 
 To insure the success of the measure proposed, it was 
 resolved — 
 
 1. That a committee be appointed to correspond with 
 such Congregational bodies at the East as they may select, 
 and confer with the next Constitutional General Assem- 
 bly, and co-operate with them to mature a plan, and as 
 
 47 
 
48 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 far as practicable and expedient carry the same into 
 effect, and report their doings to the Convention of 1847. 
 2. That in carrying out the objects of the Convention in 
 supplying the churches with such doctrinal and other 
 religious books and tracts as are especially needed, we 
 recommend that a Board of Publication should be ap- 
 pointed which will fairly represent the different sections 
 of territory and the two denominations composing this 
 Convention. 
 
 This plan for co-operative action was subsequently 
 abandoned, and the two denominations, unable to work 
 together in reference to this object, determined to prose- 
 cute it separately. In the General Assembly for a 
 time the commencement of the enterprise was a matter 
 of no little difficulty. Committees were appointed, 
 made their reports and were discharged ; smaller com- 
 mittees were substituted for larger ones ; reports were 
 read, discussed and recommitted; but no plan was 
 developed which was sufficiently feasible to warrant 
 its adoption. Such was the history of the cause in the 
 General Assembly from 1846 to 1850. 
 
 THE COMMITTEE APPOINTED. — ITS POWERS AND 
 DUTIES. 
 
 In 1852 the subject came up in connection with the 
 general matter of Church Extension. The Assembly 
 adopted a carefully-prepared report, which led to the 
 formation of the permanent Committee on Education 
 for the Ministry, the Committee on Church Erection 
 and the Publication Committee. The third section of 
 this report, which related to the publication of doc- 
 trinal tracts, was as follows : 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 49 
 
 To promote the diffusion of those truths which distin- 
 guish us as a Church, the General Assembly adopts the 
 following arrangement ; 
 
 1. There is hereby established at Philadelphia a Stand- 
 ing Committee of nine persons, whose duty it shall be to 
 superintend the publication of a series of tracts explan- 
 atory of the doctrines, government and missionary policy 
 of the Presbyterian Church as the General Assembly shall 
 from time to time direct. One-third of this Committee 
 shall serve for one year, one-third for two years and the 
 remaining third for three years, the election to fill the 
 places of those whose term expires to be held at each 
 meeting of the General Assembly. 
 
 2. This Committee shall elect a secretary and treasurer, 
 the former of whom shall receive such a salary per annum 
 as shall be agreed upon by the Committee, and shall be the 
 editor of the tracts published ; and also, as far as may be 
 necessary, the soliciting agent for such an amount of funds 
 as may be required to carry out the objects for which this 
 Committee is appointed. 
 
 3. It shall be the duty of this Committee to meet at 
 Philadelphia, and after due organization to take measures 
 to procure the preparation and publication in cheap, neat 
 and substantial form of a series of tracts for the purposes 
 above stated, no tract to be published which does not 
 receive the unanimous approbation of the Committee. 
 
 4. This Committee shall, if consistent with the interests 
 of the Assembly, enter into a contract with some publisher 
 or publishers to assume for a time the publication of such 
 tracts as may be furnished them, at certain rates, which 
 shall be agreed upon in writing. And if no such arrange- 
 ment can be profitably and satisfactorily made, then the 
 said Committee shall, by solicitation from the churches, 
 
 4 
 
60 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 proceed to provide a sufficient fund for their publication 
 in behalf of the Assembly. 
 
 5. This Committee shall make a full report of its proceed- 
 ings to the General Assembly at each annual meeting. 
 
 The following persons were appointed the Committee 
 to superintend the preparation and publication of 
 doctrinal tracts — viz. Kev. Thomas Brainerd, D. D., 
 Rev. Albert Barnes and Mr. T. S. Bodine, for one 
 year ; Rev. E. W. Gilbert, D. D., Rev. Thomas H. 
 Skinner, D. D., and Rev. George Duffield, Jr., for two 
 years ; Rev. Asa D. Smith, D. D., Rev. Jonathan F. 
 Stearns, D. D., and Hon.. William Darling, for three 
 years. 
 
 The Committee at its first meeting elected the Rev. 
 Albert Barnes its chairman — an office which he con- 
 tinued to hold until April 18, 1870. 
 
 The Committee presented its first annual report to 
 the Assembly of 1853, and the following resolutions 
 were adopted : 
 
 That the rule requiring the unanimous consent of the 
 Committee for the publication of any book or tract be 
 so modified that a majority of three-fourths only shall be 
 required. 
 
 That the Committee be authorized to take such measures 
 as they may deem advisable to secure the necessary funds 
 for the erection of a house of publication. 
 
 That it be earnestly recommended to all our churches to 
 take up collections, annually or otherwise, in aid of the 
 publishing fund under the control of this Committee. 
 
 That we suggest to the Publication Committee the desir- 
 ableness of issuing, as soon as practicable, a few tracts 
 which shall clearly and distinctly exhibit our peculiar 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 51 
 
 views of doctrine, government and missionary policy, with 
 a view to answer the calumnies against us and show our 
 true position in the Church and in the world. 
 
 THE COMMITTEE ENLARGED. 
 
 The Assembly of 1854, without giving further in- 
 structions to the Committee on this point, expressed its 
 sense of " the great importance of this work and the 
 desirableness of a religious literature suitable to the 
 wants of the denomination." 
 
 It also enacted " that the Publication Committee be 
 enlarged to the number of fifteen, nine of whom shall 
 reside in the city of Philadelphia or vicinity ; that of 
 this number five shall constitute a quorum for ordinary 
 business, whose sittings shall be in the city of Phila- 
 delphia ; but nothing shall be authorized for publica- 
 tion, issued or endorsed by said Committee except by a 
 majority of its members, all publications to issue simul- 
 taneously in the two cities of New York and Phila- 
 delphia with the imprimatur of the Committee." 
 
 CHANGE OF NAME. 
 
 The Assembly of 1855 changed the name of the 
 Committee to " The Presbyterian Publication Commit- 
 tee." In this action we discern the first official intima- 
 tion of an enlargement of the view of the work to be 
 done by this agency beyond the idea of a mere " Doc- 
 trinal Tract Committee." This action enlarging the 
 scope of the Committee's work, was followed in 1857 
 by the laying down of a broad platform upon which 
 
52 PrJBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 to build up a full denominational and Christian litera* 
 ture. The Assembly — 
 
 Resolved, That the power of the press in promoting true 
 piety and a widespread intelligence among our population 
 is an instrumentality appointed of God, and now put into 
 our hands to be employed for the advancement of the 
 general interests of religion and for the prosperity of our 
 own denomination. 
 
 Resolved, That the Publication Committee be encouraged 
 to publish not only such works as may present the peculi- 
 arities of our branch of the Christian Church in doctrine 
 and practice, but from time to time such works of an 
 evangelical character as may be profitable to the Church 
 at large. 
 
 In this action the Committee, from 1857 onward, 
 found its general orders from the denomination as to 
 the objects which it should seek to effect. The aim of 
 the Committee was made by these instructions broad 
 and full, comprehending both a distinctly denomina- 
 tional literature — a literature explaining our doctrines 
 and polity — and an evangelical literature ; not merely 
 a literature controversial and peculiar, but also Chris- 
 tian and practical, and adapted to usefulness to the 
 Church at large ; in short, a full expression through 
 the press of the truth of God as held by us in all its 
 bearings and applications both to doctrine and to life. 
 
 The instructions thus given were steadily kept in 
 view and carried out by the Committee so far as means 
 were put at their disposal. The strong attachment of 
 the body to co-operative Christian effort led some at 
 the outset to regard, if not with hostility, at least with 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 53 
 
 suspicion, anything that had the appearance of a de- 
 nominational movement. From year to year, however, 
 this feeling diminished, and the Committee, in the en- 
 larged scope of its Avork, grew in the favor and support 
 of the Church. 
 
 PUBLICATION HOUSE. 
 
 As early, as September 20, 1852, a sub-committee ap- 
 pointed to ascertain what arrangements could be made 
 for the publication and sale of tracts at various book- 
 stores were led, as a result of their unsuccessful en- 
 deavor to find a publisher and their subsequent inves- 
 tigations as to this matter, to report as follows : 
 
 Whereas, The history of other denominations leaves 
 us no doubt whatever as to the course which it is best for 
 our denomination to pursue in order to establish the pub- 
 lication cause upon a permanent basis ; therefore, 
 
 Resolved, That immediate measures be taken for the 
 creation of a fund which, when large enough for the pur- 
 pose, shall be invested in a suitable lot and building. 
 
 The Assembly of 1853 authorized the Committee to 
 take such measures as they deemed advisable to secure 
 the necessary funds for this purpose. A beginning 
 was made which greatly added to their courage in the 
 enterprise and to their hope of its ultimate success. But 
 several sources of embarrassment presented themselves 
 which could be obviated only by a steady patience and 
 the lapse of time. One of these — and probably the 
 most influential of all — was the consideration that the 
 voice of the Church had never definitely decided the 
 particular place for the House of Publication. 
 
54 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 To obviate this objection and hold out to the Gen- 
 eral Assembly of 1854 a substantial inducement to 
 choose the city of Philadelphia for this purpose, several 
 wealthy laymen, by the advice and request of the Com- 
 mittee, took the matter into consideration. The more 
 they looked at the enterprise, the more it grew in favor 
 with them. Just at this point the property No. 1334 
 Chestnut Street was offered to them. The offer required 
 prompt, and indeed immediate, acceptance ; but the in- 
 dications of Providence were too clear to be resisted. 
 The property was purchased and alterations were made 
 in the building then standing upon it at a cost of 
 forty-five thousand dollars. These alterations having 
 been satisfactorily completed, the house was opened, 
 with appropriate religious ceremonies, November 20, 
 1854. The proposal of the Philadelphia gentlemen 
 was that twenty thousand dollars should remain on 
 mortgage, to be paid by a sinking fund from rents ; 
 that of the remaining twenty-five thousand dollars, 
 twelve thousand five hundred should be given by the 
 churches in Philadelphia, and twelve thousand five 
 hundred by the churches of other Synods. This pro- 
 posal was accepted by the Assembly, and " Trustees 
 of the Presbyterian House " were appointed. An act 
 of incorporation was obtained under the laws of the 
 State of Pennsylvania, and approved by the Governor, 
 April 21, 1855. The corporation created by this act 
 was styled " The Trustees of the Presbyterian House." 
 The original corporators were John A. Brown, Samuel 
 H. Perkins, Charles S. Wurts, Matthew W. Baldwin 
 and John C. Farr, all of whom have passed away. 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 55 
 
 These trustees held their first meeting June 22, 1855, 
 and organized by electing John A. Brown president 
 and Benjamin J. Wallace secretary of the corporation. 
 
 A permanent centre of operations was thus secured 
 for the Publication Committee, and such other religious 
 enterprises in connection with our denomination as 
 should have a representation in Philadelphia. A book- 
 store was opened July 1, 1855, for the sale of the Com- 
 mittee's publications, and of other books consistent 
 with its designs. 
 
 In 1855, and again in 1856, it was found that the 
 sums to be raised in the Synods out of Pennsylvania 
 had not been secured. The Assembly of 1856, there- 
 fore, recommended the taking up of a simultaneous 
 collection in all the churches in December of that 
 year, with the view of raising thirty thousand dollars 
 — one half for the completion of the purchase of the 
 house, and one half for the use of the Publication Com- 
 mittee. The whole amount thus raised was only about 
 six thousand dollars — a sum alike unworthy of the 
 Assembly's recommendation and of the cause. The 
 collection may have been a " simultaneous " one so far 
 as it went, but it certainly was not a general one. 
 
 The President of the Board of Trustees, Mr. John 
 A. Brown, who had from the beginning taken a deep in- 
 terest in the enterprise, so soon as it was fully understood 
 that the amount needed to pay for the house so far 
 that but twenty thousand dollars would be left on 
 ground-rent, would not be realized from the simul- 
 taneous collection, at once proposed to pay ten thousand 
 dollars, the necessary sum, himself, on condition that a 
 
56 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 similar sum be raised in the city of Philadelphia, to 
 relieve the Publication Committee from the embarrass- 
 ment in which the failure of the simultaneous con- 
 tribution had involved it. This offer was promptly 
 and generously met, and the Presbyterian House, 
 then valued at fifty thousand dollars, was secured to 
 the denomination. The whole amount raised in Phil- 
 adelphia for the Presbyterian House and the Pub- 
 lication Committee then exceeded forty thousand 
 dollars. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1857, in order to secure 
 to the Publication Committee the full advantage of 
 the charter of the Presbyterian House, adopted the 
 following resolution: 
 
 Resolved by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian 
 Church in the United States of America, That the Trustees 
 of the Presbyterian House be, and they hereby are, au- 
 thorized and directed to act in their corporate capacity as 
 Trustees of the Permanent Committee of this Assembly, 
 called " The Presbyterian Publication Committee," as 
 fully, and in the same manner, as if the Presbyterian 
 Publication Committee were themselves constituted a cor- 
 poration by the same authority which incorporated the 
 Trustees of the Presbyterian House. 
 
 SECRETARY AND EDITOR. 
 
 In 1857, when the enlargement of the scope of the 
 Committee's issues was ordered by the Assembly, the 
 Rev. John W. Dulles entered the service of the Com- 
 mittee as Secretary and Editor, and began for the 
 Church what proved thenceforward his life-work. At 
 that time " the treasury of the Committee contained 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 57 
 
 three thousand dollars of debt and some uncollected 
 subscriptions ; its catalogue, four tracts, three books 
 and an almanac." The Assembly of 1858 recommended 
 that " the sum of sixteen thousand dollars be raised 
 for the use of the Publication Committee for the ensu- 
 ing year." Only a little more than one-half of this 
 amount was received, and early in 1859 it was clearly 
 seen that nothing but a prompt and liberal measure of 
 relief would free the enterprise from most serious 
 embarrassment. In this emergency the fri^ids of our 
 Church in Philadelphia were called upon once more 
 to lend their assistance for an enterprise for which they 
 had already done so much. The response to this ap- 
 peal was a subscription of ten thousand dollars, one- 
 half of which was liberally contributed by Mr. John 
 A. Brown. 
 
 In the midst of difficulties and discouragements from 
 the inadequacy of its capital to the work to be done, 
 the Committee went forward, steadily adding to its 
 moderate list of publications, and making grants of 
 books and tracts to the destitute, as far as its limited 
 resources would permit, and appealed to the Assembly 
 of 1862 for a fresh consideration of the claims of the 
 cause. This appeal was met by a discussion which 
 ended in the appointment of a special committee of 
 seven " to take up and consider the whole subject, and 
 settle clearly and definitely its course of action for the 
 future, and give to the churches the reasons for that 
 course." 
 
 With the report presented by the Publication Com- 
 mittee in 1863, and then heartily adopted by the Gen- 
 
68 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 eral Assembly, came the dawn of a new era in the pub- 
 lication work. The Assembly — 
 
 Resolved, 1. That the publication cause should now be 
 considered one of the established institutions of our 
 Church. 
 
 Resolved, 2. That true loyalty to our home interests and 
 policy demands of all our ministers and all our church- 
 members devoted attachment to this cause and its cordial 
 support. 
 
 Resolved, 6, That we enter at once upon energetic meas- 
 ures for raising the sum of fifty thousand dollars, to be 
 apportioned, according to some judicious plan, among our 
 churches, and that this fund be employed by the Publica- 
 tion Committee as may seem to them best for the further- 
 ance of the great interest they are prosecuting under God 
 and the General Assembly. 
 
 The following resolutions were also adopted in re- 
 sponse to an overture from the Publication Committee : 
 
 Resolved, First. That the General Assembly of the Pres- 
 byterian Church in the United States of America do hereby 
 declare that the property 1334 and 1336 Chestnut Street, 
 Philadelphia, is, and shall be, held by the Trustees of the 
 Presbyterian House, to, for, and upon the following uses, 
 intents and purposes — that is to say, in trust to permit 
 and suffer the Presbyterian Publication Committee, sub- 
 ject to the said General Assembly and their successors, to 
 let and demise, use, occupy and enjoy, the said property, 
 and every part thereof, they paying all taxes and ground- 
 rent thereon, and all proper and necessary repairs, and 
 other expenses and charges thereon ; and that the said 
 Trustees shall have power, at the request of the said Pub- 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 59 
 
 lication Committee, to mortgage and improve the said 
 property, or any part thereof. 
 
 Resolved, Second. That the Trustees of the Presbyterian 
 House be, and they hereby are, directed to execute, under 
 their corporate seal, and deliver to the said Publication 
 Committee, such deed or deeds of declaration of trust for 
 the purposes aforesaid, with all such powers, authorities, 
 limitations and provisions, as shall be settled and advised 
 by a committee of three legal gentlemen, to be appointed 
 by the Assembly, to be requisite and necessary for the 
 fully carrying into effect these resolutions. 
 
 The declaration of trust was made, and the manage- 
 ment of the Presbyterian House was transferred to the 
 Publication Committee, April 1, 1864. 
 
 The deliverances of the Assembly of 1864 imparted 
 new life and energy to the publication work. Doubts 
 and distrusts gave place to warm interest on the part 
 of many, to cheerful co-operation on the part of others, 
 and to acquiescence on the part of all. The measures 
 resolved upon were carried into effect, and the Com- 
 mittee had the satisfaction of reporting to the Assem- 
 bly of 1866 that the full sum of fifty thousand dollars 
 had been secured for a working capital. With the 
 finances of the Committee thus happily improved, the 
 list of its publications was enlarged and its benevolent 
 and missionary work exteuded. 
 
 BUSINESS SUPERINTENDENT. 
 
 The enlarging work of the Committee, with the con- 
 sequent increase of labor, created a demand for a 
 Business Superintendent competent not only to manage 
 
60 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 the present amount of business, but also to secure its 
 increase. The Rev. S. W. Crittenden was chosen to 
 fill this post, and entered the service of the Committee 
 November 1, 1865. Mr. Crittenden had peculiar 
 qualifications for this office, which he continued to 
 hold until the Reunion. The growing business of the 
 Committee and the increase of its stock called, also, for 
 an increase of accommodations, and an extension of 
 the Publication House was erected in 1866-67. Still 
 further enlargement was reported to the General As- 
 sembly of 1868. 
 
 The publication of The Presbyterian Monthly, a 
 magazine representing the Committees charged by the 
 General Assembly with its works of benevolence, was 
 commenced with January, 1866. 
 
 THE secretary's DECENNIAL REPORT. 
 
 The Secretary, at the end of his first ten years' 
 service, reported to the General Assembly of 1867 
 that the publications of the Committee numbered 364. 
 Of these, 127 were leaflets, 71 were tracts and 166 
 were books. These publications combined the denom- 
 inational with the evangelical, the general with the 
 special. Provision was made for the young in a series 
 of catechisms and lessons for the little ones ; for the 
 Sabbath-school there was a goodly and growing array 
 of library-volumes ; for the impenitent and inquiring 
 were works to awaken and to counsel ; for the Chris- 
 tian, books devotional, historical and controversial ; 
 and for the service of song, provision for the Sabbath- 
 school, the social circle, the choir and the Church. 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 61 
 
 Though but a beginning had been made, that begin- 
 ning was sound, symmetrical and promising, full of 
 hope for the future, as of gratitude for the past. 
 
 The increase of publications was accompanied by a 
 corresponding increase in the ability to give them cir- 
 culation. " The Presbyterian Publication Commit- 
 tee " became known to the trade. Its sales rose from 
 $3,715.05,forthe year ending May 1,1858, to $45,190.73, 
 for the year ending May 1, 1867. A good foundation 
 was laid upon which to build ; a preparation made for 
 widespread usefulness ; an outlet provided for zeal for 
 the spread of the truth through our country for the 
 sake of the world. 
 
 COLPORTAGE WORK. 
 
 The Committee had the matter of entrance upon 
 colportage work under favorable consideration for 
 several years preceding the Reunion, and something 
 was done in that direction. In the report to the Gen- 
 eral Assembly of 1866 we find the following expression 
 of opinion upon this subject : 
 
 Our Lord, when giving to his disciples his last charge, 
 did not command them to wait and give the truth to those 
 who came for it, but rather to go and proclaim salvation 
 to those who asked not for it. And so it must ever be. 
 The truth, Avhether it be the spoken or the printed truth, 
 must be carried to men. They Avill not come for it, precious 
 though it be. Hence, if we would rightly use the power 
 entrusted in the press, effort must be made to bear to the 
 hands and homes of men these printed messengers and 
 teachers. It will not do simply to publish valuable truth 
 in books and tracts and look for men to seek them : the 
 
62 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 more they need the less do they desire them. We shall 
 not be true to the responsibilities laid upon us by God's 
 providence unless we improve this power put into our 
 hands by carrying the printed messages to the homes of 
 the people. Colportage, in some form, must be adopted. 
 
 The Committee have not been in haste to enter upon a 
 costly system of colportage centring in the Presbyterian 
 House. They would rather encourage a system for which 
 Presbyterianism is most happily adapted, by which the 
 responsibility and control shall be in the hands of the 
 Presbyteries and Synods, the Publication Committee fur- 
 nishing the material for carrying out the Presbyterial or 
 Synodical plan. We think that by a Presbyterial or Syn- 
 odical colportage the awakening and instructive literature 
 now issued by the Committee may be economically carried 
 to the regions of which our churches and missionaries are 
 the spiritual centres. Thus, with no intrusion upon them 
 of an outside influence, the churches themselves, acting 
 in Presbytery or Synod, will inaugurate and control an 
 agency for the diff"usion of a religious literature within 
 their bounds. As their own it will have the countenance 
 not only, but tlie active support, of every pastor, and full 
 access to every family. 
 
 The standing committee of the General Assembly to 
 which this report was referred reported that, in their 
 judgment, " some system of colportage should be in- 
 augurated, under the supervision of the Synods or 
 Presbyteries, securing a more extended circulation to 
 the publications of the Committee. The plan suggested 
 is this : Let each Synod or Presbytery employ a col- 
 porteur, whose work shall be twofold — the disposal or 
 sale of books, receiving his salary largely from com- 
 missions allowed, and co-operation with pastors in 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 63 
 
 attending upon social meetings and aiming to extend 
 a deep religious interest throughout the bounds of the 
 Presbytery or Synod. This would help many a de- 
 serving young man in his preparatory course, give a 
 wide circulation to our literature, and encourage and 
 facilitate the pastors in their work." 
 
 The Assembly approved the report, and unani- 
 mously adopted the following resolutions : 
 
 That the Synods or Presbyteries be recommended to 
 appoint students, unemployed ministers or earnest Chris- 
 tian laymen as colporteurs to circulate the books of the 
 Publication Committee, and to co-operate with pastors in 
 every good word and work. 
 
 That a place of sale be designated in every town, where 
 it shall be known that the Committee's publications may 
 be obtained, and at the lowest retail price. 
 
 These recommendations were carried into only par- 
 tial effect in some of the Synods and Presbyteries, yet 
 with excellent results both in the circulation of the 
 Committee's books and tracts and in the spiritual work 
 accomplished. The Assembly of 1868 took further 
 action upon the subject of colportage, and unani- 
 mously adopted the following : 
 
 It is a question of serious consideration whether a sys- 
 tem of colportage might not be advantageously inaugurated 
 by the Publication Committee especially with a view to the 
 distribution of our publications in the congregations of 
 our Church, and in new communities where there are Pres- 
 byterian families that have no churches of our order within 
 their reach. Whatever d6p6ts may be provided in differ- 
 ent sections of the country for the publications of the 
 
64 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 Committee, these publications will not be generally sought 
 after and sent for through mere notices of the places 
 where they may be found. In these days, when all kinds 
 of literature are carried to the doors of the people, our 
 publications must be actually offered to the churches and 
 individuals for whose benefit they are designed if they are 
 to be widely distributed ; and especially will this be found 
 true in our newer States and Territories. We are aware 
 that any system of colportage would involve expense, and 
 would encounter the difficulty of finding suitable men to 
 carry it forward. But would not the returns from the 
 practical influence of such a system, in the form of in- 
 creased contributions from the churches to be supplied 
 with the publications, very soon compensate for all the 
 expense of this branch of the work ? And could not 
 efficient laymen be found to engage in this effort who 
 would give to it their time and energies on very moderate 
 salaries ? 
 
 Confiding in the practical wisdom of the Permanent 
 Committee, we venture to recommend that they be in- 
 structed to institute a system of colportage with especial 
 reference to the distribution of the publications of the 
 Committee throughout all the congregations in our con- 
 nection, as far as may in their judgment be found prac- 
 ticable and expedient. 
 
 The Publication Committee gave to these sugges- 
 tions and recommendations the careful consideration 
 which the authority of the General Assembly and the 
 importance of the subject demanded. But, in view of 
 the reunion movement, then advancing with such en- 
 couragement, entrance upon the colportage work was 
 postponed, so as to avoid embarrassment in consoli- 
 dating the two publication agencies. 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 65 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 The Committee from year to year attached a grow- 
 ing importance to its work for the Sabbath-school. In 
 the issuing of new publications, books for youth held a 
 very prominent place. Grants of its publications were 
 made to needy schools as liberally as the funds at its 
 disposal allowed. The employment of Synodical mis- 
 sionaries or of missionaries at large for Sabbath-school 
 and colportage work was frequently considered. With 
 the means at its disposal, the Committee did not feel 
 justified in entering largely into this department of 
 labor, involving, as it did, a considerable investment 
 of capital and larger contributions from the churches. 
 In May, 1869, the Committee reported to the General 
 Assembly as follows : 
 
 The time has come, in the judgment of the Publication 
 Committee, when the relations of the Sabbath-school work 
 to the general work of the Publication Committee justify 
 and demand the organization of a distinct departmental 
 agency ; and a sub-committee on Sabbath-schools, there- 
 fore, has been appointed, and an organization effected. 
 
 It is not implied by this action that nothing hitherto 
 has been done by the Publication Committee in this con- 
 nection. The work of Sabbath-school extension, the aid 
 of Sabbath-school mission work by the timely appropria- 
 tion of libraries and the selection and diffusion of Sab- 
 bath-school literature have been prominently before them, 
 and have formed an important part of their work for 
 several years. But the growth of the publication interest, 
 a better understanding of it on the part of the churches, 
 the closer identification of this interest with our Sabbath- 
 schools, the increased number of applications for libraries 
 5 
 
66 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 and other Sabbath-scliool requisites and the Committee's 
 increased facilities for meeting these applications have 
 seemed to make it desirable that this department of the 
 work should be assigned to a separate sub-committee. 
 
 It is designed that the work of this committee shall 
 have regard — 
 
 1. To the general supervision of the Sabbath-school de- 
 partment of our work, involving the regulation and diffu- 
 sion of a Sabbath-school literature that shall have respon- 
 sible endorsement. 
 
 2. To the bringing this literature before the churches, 
 so that our Sabbath-schools may be provided with books" 
 that shall be wholly unexceptionable. 
 
 3. To the awakening a deeper interest in the Sabbath- 
 school cause throughout our bounds, and especially to pro- 
 moting the work of Sabbath-school extension in our wide, 
 destitute and mission fields, by correspondence, by personal 
 agency and by grants of libraries. 
 
 4. Incidentally, and through an agent who may be em- 
 ployed for the general field, it is expected that improve- 
 ment in the methods and spirit of teaching, in the conduct 
 of schools and in the aims and appliances of teachers, etc. 
 will be secured by the holding of local conventions and 
 institutes. 
 
 To this end it is proposed that a general agent be at once 
 employed who shall visit the churches and Sabbath schools, 
 put them in connection with the Committee's work, ac- 
 quaint himself with the needs of particular localities, and 
 secure in every way possible the work of Sabbath-school 
 extension and the promotion of Sabbath-school efficiency. 
 
 The Publication Committee are aware that this is the 
 very work in part contemplated by the Assembly's per- 
 manent Sabbath -school Committee. But it is also a work 
 that has already to a considerable extent, and for years, 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 67 
 
 been prosecuted by the Publication Committee. The issue 
 of reliable Sabbath-school books is one of the principal 
 features of the business department of publication, the 
 missionary work of the Publication Committee is very 
 largely in this direction, and it is submitted whether, with 
 more complete organization, the work cannot be done 
 more efficiently and economically inside the Publication 
 Committee than by an independent agency. 
 
 It needs no. argument to prove that it is unwise to create 
 new machinery for work that can be done by an existing 
 agency ; that it is undesirable that the same duties should 
 be assigned to two separate committees, as this would in- 
 evitably lead to a conflict of action ; that two treasuries 
 should be created, two sets of officials supported and two 
 standing appeals to the churches made to sustain one class 
 of operations. 
 
 Moreover, the Committee are fully persuaded that the 
 already gratifying efficiency and growing power of the 
 publication cause of our Church will be greatly augmented, 
 and facilities for a much wider sphere of operations will 
 be furnished, if their action shall be endorsed by the 
 General Assembly. 
 
 The General Assembly approved these plans and 
 authorized the Publication Committee, " at their dis- 
 cretion, to employ a General Agent to visit the churches 
 and Sabbath-schools and bring them into connection 
 with the Committee's work, and to devote himself to 
 the cause of Sabbath-school extension, and to the pro- 
 motion of higher efficiency in our Sabbath-schools 
 generally." 
 
 This action was welcomed by the Committee, and a 
 sub-committee on Sabbath-school work was appointed 
 to attend to this most important department of church 
 
68 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 work. After careful consideration, a minister deemed 
 well qualified was recommended for the i)Osition of 
 General Agent by the sub-committee and appointed 
 by the General Committee. He, however, declined the 
 office, and the Committee renewed its efforts to secure 
 a man suitable for the post. Inquiry was made and 
 correspondence had, but Avithout a positive decision 
 until the year was so far advanced, and the reunion of 
 the two great branches of the Presbyterian Church so 
 assured a fact, that it was deemed wise and delicate to 
 postpone entering upon this new and important sphere 
 of labor — with the hope, however, that in the new 
 Board to be appointed by the General Assembly this 
 department would be both wisely and efficiently inau- 
 gurated. How this hope was realized we shall see in 
 subsequent pages of this history. 
 
 RESIGNATION OF THE REV. ALBERT BARNES. 
 
 The Committee, at its meeting April 18, 1870, 
 received the resignation of its Chairman, the Rev. 
 Albert Barnes. Identified as Mr. Barnes had been 
 with the institution from its inception, and endeared 
 as he was to its members, they could not accept his 
 resignation without regret. Yet so positive were the 
 terms of his resignation that they had no alternative 
 but to receive it and release their honored and beloved 
 colaborer. The Committee followed the earnestly- 
 expressed desire of Mr. Barnes, and " merely recorded 
 on its minutes the fact of his resignation and its 
 acceptance, with no comment." In a letter addressed 
 to him they gave expression to the feelings which hia 
 
PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 69 
 
 retirement occasioned. And on the 24th of December, 
 1870, only eight months after resigning his position as 
 Chairman of the Publication Committee, Mr. Barnes 
 was translated. He had gone to the home of a former 
 parishioner to condole with him after a recent bereave- 
 ment, and while sitting in the parlor, and suddenly, 
 without any preintimation, he was summoned home, 
 and in a moinent was gone to be with his Lord. 
 
 During the last years preceding the Reunion there 
 was a steady, healthful growth alike in the business 
 and the benevolence of the Committee. The total sales 
 for the year ending March 31, 1870, were $48,876.85. 
 In the purely benevolent department of its work the 
 Committee expended $8,880.28. Its catalogue of pub- 
 lications then contained the names of 503 works — 127 
 leaflets, 100 tracts, and 276 books. Its capital amounted 
 to $122,544.50. 
 
 Its final report to the Assembly of the reunited 
 Church gave the following resume of its history and 
 work : 
 
 For the last time, as the agency of a branch of the Pres- 
 byterian Church, does the Presbyterian Publication Com- 
 mittee present to the General Assembly its annual report. 
 Eighteen years since, "The Doctrinal Tract Committee" 
 was organized by the General Assembly, in 1852. In 1853 
 the Assembly suggested to it " the desirableness of issuing 
 a few tracts " which should clearly exhibit the views of 
 the body. In 1855 the title of the Committee was changed 
 to that of " The Presbyterian Publication Committee," 
 and in 1857 its sphere of operations was enlarged so as to 
 cover the field of denominational and religious literature. 
 
 At this time the whole list of the Committee consisted 
 
70 PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 of four tracts, the Confession of Faith, Barnes's Apostolic 
 Church and an almanac. The " Doctrinal-Tract " idea had 
 totally failed to awaken the interest of the churches. Nor 
 did the wider basis of a denominational literature rapidly 
 kindle their enthusiasm. It was by slow steps, and earnest 
 effort on the part of its friends, that the Committee secured 
 a footing for the discharge of its duties, and in 1865 a 
 capital of $50,000 as a foundation for its publication work. 
 
 With the ability to do something tangible and useful, 
 the cause advanced in the interest and affection of the 
 churches. Since 1865 its growth has been steady, cheer- 
 ing and satisfactory. The Committee's list of publications 
 has had a healthful increase, and of late years its books 
 and tracts have been issued rapidly, and have met with 
 great and increasing approbation from those within the 
 bounds of the denomination, as well as with commenda- 
 tion from Christians of other branches of the Church. At 
 the same time, through the gifts of the churches, the Com- 
 mittee, by the gratuitous distribution of its publications, 
 has done noble service to the cause of Christ. Home 
 missionaries and their fields of labor, Sabbath-schools, the 
 freedmen and earnest Christians have thus been helped, 
 and the preaching of the printed page has been added to 
 the preaching of the Christian voice and life. 
 
 In laying down its trust the Presbyterian Publication 
 Committee would devoutly render thanks to God for his 
 blessings upon labors sincerely, though often imperfectly, 
 performed. 
 
III. 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 1870—1887. 
 
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 REUNION AND CONSOLIDATION. 
 
 The reunion of the two Branches, Old and New 
 School, into which the Church was divided in 1838, was 
 happily effected in November, 1869. The two General 
 Assemblies, meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by 
 which the Basis of Reunion was declared to be of bind- 
 ing force, appointed each a special Committee of Five 
 to take into consideration the affairs of the " Presby- 
 terian Board of Publication " and the " Presbyterian 
 Publication Committee," and to recommend to the 
 Assembly of 1870 what changes were required for the 
 union of the two organizations in one. These two 
 Committees formed the Joint Committee of Ten on 
 Publication, and consisted of the following gentlemen : 
 
 Rev. Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., 
 
 Rev. William E. Schenck, D. D„ 
 
 Rev. J. Glentworth Butler, D. D., 
 
 Rev. William P. Breed, D. D., 
 
 Rev. John W. Dulles, 
 
 Rev. Elijah R, Craven, D. D,, 
 
 Mr. James M. Browner, 
 
 John T. Nixon, Esq., 
 
 John S. Knight, Esq., 
 
 George Junkin, Esq. 
 
 73 
 
74 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 The report of this Joint Committee was presented 
 to the General Assembly of 1870 by Dr. Humphrey, 
 and after amendment was adopted, as follows: 
 
 The special Committee of Five from each of the recent 
 Branches of the Church appointed to take into considera- 
 tion the afiairs of the Publication Board and Committee 
 of said Branches, and " to recommend to the Assembly of 
 the United Church what changes are required in said 
 Board and Committee," respectfully report, 
 
 That they have endeavored to give the matter referred to 
 them that earnest and prayerful consideration which its 
 importance demands. 
 
 They regard the work of the Church to be prosecuted 
 through this agency as scarcely second to that of any of 
 our Boards. It is not only closely related to our mission- 
 ary enterprises, but is itself, in many of its aspects, a mis- 
 sionary work. Its aim is the dissemination of vital truth, 
 both among congregations already established and among 
 the people who are never reached by the heralds of salva- 
 tion. It is at once auxiliary to the ministry and of itself 
 a ministry. Every tract is, or should be, a message from 
 God. Every Sunday-school book should be a preacher of 
 righteousness. 
 
 To effect this work involves a liberal use of money, of 
 mind, and of every resource committed by God to human 
 hands. 
 
 The first necessity is a Central House of Publication, 
 which should be endowed with every appliance needed for 
 the preparation and the diffusion of religious literature. 
 Economy, of course, should be studied. It is not, in our 
 view, essential that large sums be invested in the ma- 
 chinery of publication, such as presses and binderies. The 
 use of this machinery can be commanded without pur- 
 chase. But it is essential that a proper house be provided 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 75 
 
 for the transaction of the business of this agency, and for 
 the issue and circulation of its literature. The buildings 
 erected for this purpose, and now under the control of the 
 Assembly, are wholly inadequate. Both are small and ill- 
 arranged. Neither has been found sufficient for the wants 
 of the Church as divided ; the work for the Church as 
 united will be vastly greater than has ever yet been at- 
 tempted. It is believed, also, that so far as possible all 
 the operations of the United Church conducted from 
 Philadelphia should be concentrated under one roof. The 
 House of Publication should be virtually a Presbyterian 
 House — a centre and a home for the denomination, a rally- 
 ing-point for all the interests of the Church which the 
 Assembly in its wisdom may localize in this city. The 
 advantages of such a concentration in facilitating the 
 transaction of the business of the Church, in promoting 
 the general convenience, and in fostering a proper denomi- 
 national life and spirit, are too obvious to require remark. 
 But to effect this a new and extensive building must be 
 erected, and it is believed that the recognition of this 
 necessity by the Assembly will so enlist the sympathy of 
 the Church as to secure the ready accomplishment of the 
 plan submitted in the subjoined resolutions. 
 
 The second necessity is an efficient Board and proper 
 officers. The Board should be constituted, we believe, of 
 a comparatively small number of thoroughly practical, 
 wise and energetic men, all of whom can be relied upon to 
 attend the meetings of the Board, and to devote their per- 
 sonal attention to its operations. This number should be 
 somewhat larger than may be required by the other Boards 
 of the Church, inasmuch as its work will necessitate 
 several sub-committees. It should be also somewhat 
 larger than required by the constitution of these sub- 
 committees, in order that vacancies in the committees 
 
76 BOARD OF PUBLICATrON. 
 
 themselves may be readily filled by men of experience, 
 and in order that perplexing questions may be submitted 
 to the wisdom of a full council ; yet the number should 
 not be so large as to weaken a sense of individual respon- 
 sibility. 
 
 Experience has proved that a few men, each of whom 
 can be easily reached, all of whom have a vital interest in 
 the trust confided to them, will perform any given labor 
 more efficiently than a large Board whose members are so 
 difiused as to be seldom collected, or as to forget the claims 
 of a duty whose immediate field is far away. 
 
 The officers of this Board should be men adapted to 
 their sphere, carefully selected, in number sufficient to 
 conduct the business placed in their hands, and so remu- 
 nerated that they can devote their entire time and energies 
 to the work. The Board should also be empowered to 
 employ such other assistants as in their judgment may be 
 required. 
 
 The third necessity is the maintenance of a force of 
 colporteurs sufficiently large to reach the outlying popula- 
 tion of the land by the gospel, and to prepare the way for 
 the establishment of churches wherever they may be made 
 permanent and effectual. Provision should also be made 
 for the supply of Sunday-school libraries, and of the gen- 
 eral literature of the Board on the liberal terms of an 
 enlarged Christian benevolence. 
 
 The fulfillment of these conditions will be found to re- 
 quire some changes, notwithstanding the admirable man- 
 ner in which this work has been conducted hitherto. Our 
 beloved Church has already accomplished so much in the 
 direction indicated that we can refer to its past operations 
 with just thanksgiving, but, while we think no great and 
 radical changes in this department of our Christian work 
 are desirable, the day has now come for an enlargement 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 77 
 
 of all our plans — a fresh and more vigorous movement in 
 the development of a spirit of enterprise for Christ. 
 
 God's promises were always full. His providence now 
 calls us to new faith in the promises, and to a new conse- 
 cration to that work with which the fulfillment of the 
 same glorious prophecy is associated. 
 
 We therefore respectfully recommend the adoption by 
 this General Assembly of the following resolutions as 
 comprehending the changes, in our judgment, required in 
 order to the union and reorganization of the Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication and the Presbyterian Publication 
 Committee — viz. : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That the said Board and Committee are 
 hereby united under the name and title of the "Presby- 
 terian Board of Publication." 
 
 2. That said Board shall henceforth be composed of 
 forty-eight members, one-half of whom shall be ministers 
 and one-half laymen. These members shall be divided 
 into three classes, one class containing eight ministers and 
 eight laymen, after the present year to be elected annu- 
 ally by the General Assembly for a term of three years. 
 
 3. In order to an immediate and thorough reorganiza- 
 tion of the Board, all persons now members of the Board 
 and the Committee are discontinued and their member- 
 ship ceases, and the following persons, taken in equal 
 number from each of the late Branches, are recommended 
 to fill the three classes. 
 
 For the class whose term shall expire in May, 1871 : 
 
 MINISTERS. LAYMEN. 
 
 Rev. Alexander Reed, D. D., Henry E. Thomas, 
 Rev. J. Grier Ralston, D. D., John Sibley, 
 Rev. Robert M. Patterson, James T. Young, 
 Rev. Thomas Murphy, H. Lenox Hodge, M. D., 
 
78 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 MINISTERS. LAYMEN. 
 
 Rev. Peter Stryker, D.D., Edwd. R. Hutchins, M. D., 
 Rev. Stephen W. Dana, William L. Hildeburn, 
 
 Rev. Richard H. Allen, D. D., William E. Camp, 
 Rev. William T. Eva, Horatio B. Lincoln. 
 
 For the class whose term shall expire in May, 1872 : 
 Rev. Geo. F. Wiswell, D. D., George W. Simons, 
 Rev. John W. Dulles, Joseph Allison, 
 
 Rev. Daniel March, D. D., Henry N. Paul, 
 Rev. H. Augustus Smith, Edward Miller, 
 Rev. Willard M. Rice, D. D., James Ross Snowden, 
 Rev. F. R. Harbaugh, John D. McCord, 
 
 Rev. M. B. Grier, D. D., Gilbert Combs, 
 
 Rev. Matthew Newkirk, Gustavus S. Benson. 
 
 For the class whose term shall expire in May, 1873 : 
 Rev.Wm. P. Breed, D. D., Morris Patterson, 
 Rev. Wm. E. Schenck, D. D., Winthrop Sargent, 
 Rev. D. A Cunningham, Archibald Mclntyre, 
 Rev. Benjamin L. Agnew, George Junkin, 
 Rev. Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., Samuel C. Perkins, 
 Rev. William E. Moore, William E. Tenbrook, 
 
 Rev.Thos. J. Shepherd, D. D., Robert N. Willson, 
 Rev. Herrick Johnson, D. D., Alexander Whilldin. 
 
 4. Said Board shall hold at least four regular meetings 
 in the course of each year, in the months of June, October, 
 January and April. Its first meeting shall be held at 821 
 Chestnut Street, at 4 o'clock p. M., on the second Tuesday 
 of June of the present year. 
 
 5. The Executive Officers of the Board shall be a Secre- 
 tary or Secretaries, whose title and duties shall be defined 
 by the Board, and a Treasurer. 
 
 6. All other internal arrangements necessary for carry- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 79 
 
 ing out the purposes of its organization shall be made by 
 the Board of Publication after its reorganization. 
 
 7. Each Presbytery is directed to appoint one or more 
 of its members a Presbyterial Publication Committee, 
 which Committee shall in that Presbytery supervise the 
 work of securing an annual collection for this Board from 
 each of its churches; shall search out and recommend to 
 the Board suitable persons to act as colporteurs ; shall cor- 
 respond with the Board in reference to its work in that 
 Presbytery ; and shall do whatever else may tend to pro- 
 mote the work and interests of the Board, and to secure 
 thorough distribution of the Board's publications within 
 and throughout the bounds of the Presbytery. 
 
 8. All the property, of whatever kind, now owned by 
 the " Presbyterian Board of Publication " and by the 
 "Presbyterian Publication Committee," or held by any 
 Board of Trustees for the use and benefit of either of 
 them, is hereby directed to be united, and placed in pos- 
 session of " The Trustees of the Presbyterian Board of 
 Publication," incorporated by the Legislature of the State 
 of Pennsylvania, and whose charter was approved by the 
 Governor of the State on the 13th day of February, A. d. 
 1847. And, in order that the late two branches of the 
 Presbyterian Churches, now happily reunited, may have, 
 as nearly as possible, an equal representation in said Board 
 of Trustees of the Presbyterian Board of Publication 
 (there now being enough vacancies by death and resigna- 
 tion to effect the changes proposed), the Board of Publica- 
 tion is directed at its next meeting, in the month of June, 
 to elect the following persons to be members of this Board 
 of Trustees : 
 
 For One Year. — Alexander Whilldin, Samuel C. Per- 
 kins, Archibald Mclntyre. 
 
 For Two Fears.— Morris Patterson, William E. Ten- 
 brook. 
 
80 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 For Three Years. — George Junkin, James Ross Snowden 
 and Robert N. Willson. 
 
 9. The "Trustees of the Presbyterian House" are here- 
 by directed to convey, by a good and sufficient legal title, 
 to " The Trustees of the Presbyterian Board of Publica- 
 tion," the house and lot Nos. 1334 and 1336 Chestnut 
 Street, now occupied by the Presbyterian Publication 
 Committee in part as a book-store, and any other property 
 now in their possession, or which may hereafter come into 
 their possession, for the use of the Presbyterian Publica- 
 tion Committee ; and should any legal difficulties be found 
 in the way of making such a conveyance or transfer, then 
 " The Trustees of the Presbyterian House" and "The Trus- 
 tees of the Presbyterian Board of Publication " are hereby 
 directed to procure, as speedily as possible, such special 
 enactments from the Legislature of this State, or decrees 
 of any courts of competent jurisdiction, as shall remove 
 those difficulties. 
 
 10. The General Assembly recommends the Board of 
 Publication, as soon as practicable after its reorganization, 
 to sell its house and lot No. 821 Chestnut Street, and to 
 provide a larger house, adequate to its now extended oper- 
 ations and to the prospective growth of its business, on 
 the premises Nos. 1334 and 1336 Chestnut Street, or in 
 that vicinity. 
 
 11. In order that the above recommendation may be 
 carried out, so as to provide ample accommodations for 
 the Board's future business, and for all our other Presby- 
 terian interests in this city, it is recommended that the 
 sum of one hundred thousand dollars be raised among our 
 churches and people for the erection and equipment of 
 said Presbyterian House, and all contributions made 
 thereto shall be recognized as a part of the offering of five 
 millions of dollars which it was at Pittsburgh resolved to 
 raise. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 81 
 
 12. All the Committees and officers of the Board of 
 Publication, and of the Publication Committee, are re- 
 quested to continue to perform their respective duties as at 
 present, until otherwise directed by the newly-organized 
 Board of Publication. 
 
 13. That the Board of Publication and the Publication 
 Committee be directed to submit to the next General 
 Assembly a full statement of the property of said Boards, 
 consisting of. real estate, copyrights, books, paper, plates, 
 and any other assets, with an estimate of the value thereof. 
 
 The Report of the Presbyterian Publication Com- 
 mittee, together with that of the Presbyterian Board 
 of Publication, was presented to the General Assembly 
 of 1870, and by it referred to a Committee, of which 
 the Rev. James McCosh, D. D., was Chairman. The 
 report of that Committee was brought in by Dr. 
 McCosh, and, after amendment, was adopted as follows : 
 
 Your Committee are satisfied that during the past year 
 the " Board of Publication " and the " Presbyterian Publi- 
 cation Committee" have done the work committed to 
 them faithfully and efficiently. 
 
 Your Committee appointed sub-committees to examine 
 the Minutes of the Board of Publication for the past year, 
 the Minutes of the Executive Committee of that Board, 
 and the Eeport of the Presbyterian Publication Com- 
 mittee, and they report that they have found all these in a 
 satisfactory state ; and we recommend that the Minutes of 
 the Board of Publication, and of its Executive Committee, 
 be signed, as approved, by the Moderator of the General 
 Assembly. 
 
 From the Report of the Board of Publication we learn 
 that they have issued fifty new books, besides many tracts 
 in the English, German, Portuguese and Spanish lan- 
 6 
 
82 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 guages — in all, 128,500 copies of new publications ; that 
 of former publications they have issued 589,400 copies, 
 and that since its organization the Board has published 
 15,182,788 copies of books and tracts. We are happy to 
 find that the Sabbath-School Visitor has increased in circu- 
 lation, and that now 156,000 copies are issued monthly. 
 We have to express our regret that the circulation of the 
 Record has decreased during the past year from 16,000 to 
 12,000 copies. The net value of the whole issues of the 
 Board has been $114,763, and the balance in the treasury 
 at the end of the year, $14,627. 
 
 The Presbyterian Publication Committee have published 
 sixty-nine new publications, of which fifty-four are bound 
 volumes. Since the year 1865 the work of publishing and 
 circulating has been progressing steadily, and the results 
 have been cheering and encouraging. 
 
 Special attention has been paid both by the Board and 
 Committee to the preparing and issuing of a wholesome 
 and lively Sabbath-school literature, fitted to interest the 
 young, and yet free from the sensational features distin- 
 guishing so many of the works written for the use of the 
 young in our day. 
 
 While your Committee believe that the Board of Publi- 
 cation and the Publication Committee have done all in 
 their power to fulfill the trust committed to them, they are 
 convinced at the same time that they have not been able 
 to accomplish all that is required of them by the pressing 
 wants of the country. We do trust that the newly-organ- 
 ized Board of the reunited Churches will be so sustained 
 by ministers. Sabbath-school teachers and congregations 
 that it will be able to do vastly more than the separated 
 agencies could accomplish. 
 
 We find that the last General Assembly authorized the 
 Presbyterian Publication Committee at its discretion to 
 employ a general agent to visit the churches and Sabbath- 
 
BOA ED OF PUBLICATION. 83 
 
 schools, and to bring them into connection with the Com- 
 mittee's work, and devote himself to the cause of Sabbath- 
 school extension, and to the promotion of higher efficiency 
 in our Sabbath-schools generally. In consequence of the 
 prospective reunion of the two great Branches of the 
 Presbyterian Church, the Committee did not take positive 
 action on this proposal, but it is clear that they are 
 deeply impressed with its great importance. 
 
 In view of. the considerations thus brought before them, 
 your Committee invite the attention of the newly-organ- 
 ized Board to the following points : 
 
 1. We recommend the Board to give special and promi- 
 nent attention to Sabbath-school literature, and to its 
 introduction into Sabbath-schools. 
 
 2. We recommend that the Board, at as early a date as 
 possible, consider the propriety of establishing a depart- 
 ment of Sabbath-schools, whose office it shall be to pro- 
 mote the number and efficiency of Sabbath-schools 
 throughout the congregations of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 3. We recommend that the excellent Sabbath- School 
 Visitor should be circulated much more widely than it has 
 hitherto been, and that the pastors and churches should 
 exert themselves to secure this end. 
 
 4. We recommend that the two publications, the Record 
 and the Presbyterian Monthly, be merged in one, and that 
 measures be devised and adopted to have that one peri- 
 odical competently edited and full of information likely 
 to interest the families of our people. 
 
 5. Your Committee are deeply impressed with the 
 importance of the colportage work conducted by the 
 Board, and would strongly urge its extension as being the 
 means best fitted to make known the truths of salvation 
 to multitudes in our country, as to Roman Catholics and 
 persons separated from the ordinary means of grace. 
 
84 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 6. We recommend that the Board consider what may be 
 the best means of effecting some understanding as to the 
 issue of Books of Psalmody, and report on the subject to 
 the next General Assembly. 
 
 7. Your Committee are happy to find that books and 
 tracts have been furnished so generally to ministers, to 
 domestic and foreign missionaries, and to Sabbath-schools, 
 and they recommend that these gifts be continued and 
 increased. 
 
 ORGANIZATION. 
 
 The new Board met June 14, 1870, and organized 
 in accordance with the directions of the Assembly. 
 The following officers were elected : 
 
 President. — Rev. Alexander Reed, D. D. 
 
 Vice-Presidents. — Hon. Joseph Allison, LL.D., 
 Morris Patterson, Rev. Matthew B. Grier, D. D. 
 
 Corresponding Secretary. — Rev. William E. Schenck, 
 D.D. 
 
 Editorial Secretary. — Rev. John W. Dulles. 
 
 Recording Clerk. — Rev. Willard M. Rice, D. D. 
 
 Treasurer and Superintendent of Colportage. — Win- 
 throp Sargent. 
 
 At a subsequent meeting of the Board, held Septem- 
 ber 27, 1870, Mr. John A. Black was elected Business 
 Superintendent — an office for which his thirty years' 
 experience in the service of the Board had given him 
 peculiar qualifications. 
 
 A system of By-laws was adopted and the methods 
 of administration ^vere outlined. The entire work was 
 divided into five branches, and entrusted to as many 
 Permanent Committees, each caring for its own depart- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 85 
 
 ment and reporting its actions for approval at the 
 monthly meetings of the Board. These Committees 
 were (1) The Publishing Committee, to which was given 
 the examination of all manuscripts for books and 
 tracts ; (2) The Periodical Committee, having the over- 
 sight of the periodicals of the Board ; (3) The Mission- 
 ary Committee, with the charge of the colporteur work, 
 gratuitous distribution and Sabbath-school work ; (4) 
 The Business Committee, with oversight and charge of 
 the business and property of the Board ; and (5) The 
 Auditing Committee, whose duty it was to examine all 
 bills and accounts due by the Board, and if correct 
 approve them for payment ; to oversee and direct the 
 manner of keeping the accounts of the Board, and to 
 audit the Treasurer's annual account. 
 
 TRUSTEES OF THE BOARD. 
 
 The gentlemen named by the Assembly were also 
 elected as Trustees of the Board. They entered at 
 once upon their work, and carried out faithfully the 
 instructions given them. The property of the former 
 Board and that of the Publication Committee were 
 consolidated, the title being vested in the Trustees of 
 the Board of Publication. The net capital of the 
 reorganized Board, as appears from a Consolidated 
 Balance Sheet dated October 15, 1870, amounted to 
 $417,282.18, of which the old Board of Publication 
 furnished $294,737.68 and the Publication Committee 
 $122,544.50. 
 
 NEW PUBLICATION HOUSE. 
 
 The building previously occupied by the Board was 
 
Ob BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 at once offered for sale, and the reorganized Board 
 occupied the premises No. 1334 Chestnut Street. An 
 able and experienced Building Committee was ap- 
 pointed to carry out the recommendation of the As- 
 sembly "to provide a larger house adequate to its 
 extended operations, and to the prospective growth of 
 its business, on the premises Nos. 1334 and 1336 Chest- 
 nut Street." The following-named gentlemen consti- 
 tuted this Committee : 
 
 William E. Tenbrook, Chairman, 
 
 Morris Patterson, 
 
 Edward Miller, 
 
 Gustavus S. Benson, 
 
 Hon. Joseph Allison, 
 
 John D. McCord, 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 
 
 George Junkin, 
 
 Alexander Whilldin. 
 The Committee prosecuted its work with commend- 
 able despatch. The new Publication House was 
 completed and opened to the public November 20, 
 1872. The cost of the building and its furniture was 
 $149,356. Of this amount, $50,000 were derived 
 from the sale of the Publication House of the Old 
 School branch. About $57,451 were received from 
 subscriptions and other sources (including a donation 
 of $25,000 from the late John A. Brown), and $43,000 
 remained as an incumbrance upon the property. This, 
 with the $25,000 mortgage upon the property at the 
 Reunion, made a mortgage debt of $68,000, of which 
 $28,000 were paid in 1876 and $40,000 in 1877, thus 
 
Publication House, 1334 Chestnut Street. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 87 
 
 removing all incumbrance within less than five years 
 from the completion of the edifice. 
 
 The Publication House presents a handsome granite 
 front of forty-four feet in width and four stories in 
 height on Chestnut Street. It is two hundred and 
 thirty feet deep, running through to Sansom Street, in 
 the rear. The basement is fireproof throughout, and 
 is used mainly for the storage of stereotype plates. 
 The entire first floor is occupied by the book-store, 
 with its retail and wholesale departments. The second 
 story contains a large Assembly-Room, which is used 
 for meetings not only of the Board, but also of the 
 Presbytery of Philadelphia, of the Ministers' Associ- 
 ation, of the Trustees of the General Assembly, and a 
 variety of other interests and institutions of the Pres- 
 byterian Church centring naturally in Philadelphia. 
 On the same floor are also the ofiices of the Board of 
 Publication, of the Assembly's Board of Education, 
 and of its Board of Ministerial Relief. The last two 
 named, which are the only benevolent schemes of the 
 General Assembly located in Philadelphia besides the 
 Board of Publication, immediately on the opening of 
 the new House, took possession of the apartments 
 which the Board of Publication had invited them to 
 occupy without charge for rent, light or fuel, thus 
 saving these two institutions of the Church from an 
 annual expenditure of several thousands of dollars. 
 The Woman's Foreign Missionary Board has apart- 
 ments on the same terms in the third story, which, 
 with this exception, is chiefly used for the storage of 
 merchandise connected with the book-store. 
 
88 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 The Board of Publication, in the erection of thia 
 edifice, did far more than merely provide the accom- 
 modations necessary for its own varied operations. 
 It conferred a benefaction on the whole Presbyterian 
 Church, and especially on all its interests and insti- 
 tutions centring in Philadelphia. It supplied to them 
 all, without charge, convenient headquarters and a 
 place for their meetings — a denominational home where 
 our ministers, our ruling elders, our Sabbath-school 
 superintendents and teachers and all the members of 
 our churches may come together as members of the 
 same Christian family and have their zeal and courage 
 stimulated to undertake new enterprises for Christ and 
 his Church. It has proved a great blessing to our 
 Church ; from it are continually going forth new and 
 mighty impulses for the cause of truth. 
 
 CONSOLIDATION OF CATALOGUES. 
 
 An important and laborious duty of the united 
 Board in entering upon its work was the revision and 
 consolidation in one Catalogue of the lists of the late 
 Board and Committee of Publication. In uniting 
 these lists it was decided, as a general rule, to throw 
 out only such works as contained " invidious references 
 to past controversies." To prevent embarrassment in 
 the revision, a number of works discussing topics con- 
 nected with the disruption had been during the pre- 
 ceding year withdrawn from both catalogues, in every 
 case on the expressed request or with the hearty con- 
 currence of surviving authors. Other works which 
 incidentally alluded to past differences were subjected 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 89 
 
 to a careful revision, and, when it was deemed expe- 
 dient, alteration. 
 
 Thus the chief difficulties arising from the existing 
 publications of the two houses were removed, and all 
 that was not objectionable was retained for the use of 
 the united Church. The Descriptive Catalogue which 
 was issued as soon as this work of revision was com- 
 pleted formed a duodecimo volume of four hundred 
 and fifty pages, and contained the titles of two thou- 
 sand two hundred and eighty separate publications. 
 It presented to the Presbyterian body a noble list 
 embracing a mass of Presbyterian, Calvinistic and 
 evangelical literature of the highest value. 
 
 BOOK-STORE. 
 
 The Board of Publication, previous to the Reunion, 
 kept on sale only its own publications, filling orders, 
 however, for the books of other publishers. The 
 Publication Committee, on the other hand, kept a 
 well-selected assortment of theological, religious and 
 Sabbath-school books issued by other houses. One of 
 the first questions to engage the attention of the reor- 
 ganized Board was which of these two policies it 
 should adopt — whether other publications than its own 
 should be sold in its book-store, or whether its sales 
 should be strictly confined to its own issues. The 
 result was an almost unanimous decision to keep, to 
 a limited extent and under certain restrictions, the 
 publications of other houses. In accordance with this 
 decision, a large and commodious book-store was fitted 
 up for its retail trade. Here the books found on its 
 
90 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 own catalogue were presented in an attractive light to 
 customers. The variety and value of the Board's pub- 
 lications were thus made more apparent to the public 
 eye. In addition to these, a carefully-selected assort- 
 ment of the issues of other houses was placed on its 
 shelves. Bibles and Testaments, prose and poetic 
 versions of the Psalms, commentaries on the Holy 
 Scriptures, Sabbath-school books and requisites suit- 
 able for use by our schools, and other books of interest 
 to the constituency of the Board, either devotional, 
 practical, literary or theological, were kept in stock. 
 The aim has been from the first to make the book-store 
 a centre of attraction and of trade for our people, to 
 furnish a full supply of religious literature and Sab- 
 bath-school requisites to our churches and schools, to 
 keep on hand whatever is within the legitimate sphere 
 of such a business, and to provide for the Presbyterian 
 Church and community on the Board's own premises 
 whatever may be needed in this direction. 
 
 DEPOSITORIES AND BRANCH HOUSES. 
 
 The Board soon after the Reunion, through its 
 Business Committee, examined into various plans for 
 increasing the sales to booksellers in different parts of 
 the country, and especially for having a full assort- 
 ment of the Board's publications in the hands of one 
 bookseller in each of the principal cities within the 
 bounds of our denomination. The Business Superin- 
 tendent visited many of these business centres, con- 
 ferred with prominent dealers, as well as with influen- 
 tial men of the Church, with a view to bringing all 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 91 
 
 our publications within easy reach both of the trade 
 and of private purchasers in every portion of the 
 Church. Such arrangements were early made in sev- 
 eral of our larger cities. Subsequently, from time to 
 time, the Board increased the number of these agencies 
 and branch houses, and extended the same facilities to 
 most of the business centres throughout our country 
 and Canada. This policy was approved by the Gen- 
 eral Assembly. There are twenty-three of these 
 branch houses or agencies now established. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1882 directed the Board 
 " to establish a Depository at Chicago and one at St. 
 Louis, each to be liberally supplied with all the publi- 
 cations of the Board and such religious literature as 
 may be needed to meet the demands of a first-class 
 book-store for these great centres." In 1884, in view 
 of the peculiar necessities of the churches on the 
 Pacific slope, the Board was recommended to establish 
 a new Depository in the city of San Francisco. 
 
 In 1885 the Assembly recommended conferences 
 between the Board and the Presbytery of New York 
 for the purpose of establishing a first-class Depository 
 in the city of New York. 
 
 In 1886 the Assembly took action with regard to 
 the establishment of branch houses or representatives, 
 as follows : 
 
 We believe that this is a question which addresses 
 itself to the business sense of the Board, and we leave it 
 there with the belief that such policy will be adopted as 
 experience will show to be for the best interests of the 
 Church. 
 
92 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 The General Assembly calls the attention of the Board 
 to the necessity of great care in the establish tn en t of 
 " branch houses " or " representatives," not multiplying 
 these except when the necessity is apparent ana the prob- 
 abilities of advancing religious ends are such as to warrant 
 the extension of the same, without militating against the 
 interest of other important agencies organized under the 
 dire-ction of the General Assembly ; and we recommend 
 that, so far as consistent with a proper circulation of our 
 literature, the business be so conducted that the profits 
 thereof shall accrue to the benefit of the Board, rather 
 than to the benefit of private individuals. 
 
 "the PRESBYTERIAN MONTHLY RECORD." 
 
 In accordance with the instructions of the General 
 Assembly, The Home and Foreign Record and The 
 Presbyterian Monthly were united under the title of 
 The Presbyterian Monthly Record. This union was 
 effected in the number for August, 1870. The con- 
 solidated magazine continued to be published as the 
 official organ of the Assembly's Boards and Commit- 
 tees until 1887,when it was superseded by The Church 
 at Home and Abroad. The control of its pages rested 
 entirely with the several organizations represented. 
 Though filled with important, and by no means unin- 
 teresting, matter pertaining to the policy and work of 
 the Boards, it had but a limited circulation, and was 
 never self-sustaining. It was sent gratuitously to all 
 the ministers of the Church. The loss incurred by its 
 publication was shared by the Boards in the ratio ot 
 the space occupied by each. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 93 
 
 " PRESBYTERIAN HYMNAL." 
 
 The first reunited Assembly in 1870 recommended 
 that the Board of Publication " consider what may be 
 the best means of effecting some understanding as to 
 the issue of Books of Psalmody, and report on the 
 subject to the next Assembly." 
 
 The report of the Board to the next Assembly rec- 
 ommended the appointment of a committee of seven, 
 who should proceed to the preparation of a Book of 
 Praise. The Committee were duly appointed. They 
 were instructed to invite suggestions from all parts of 
 the Church as to the general character and structure 
 of the book, committing the same to some person 
 whom they should select, and who would prepare the 
 book in the light of these general views, subject to the 
 final approval of the Committee before being reported 
 to the Assembly. 
 
 The Committee proceeded to carry out these instruc- 
 tions as expeditiously as the nature of the work would 
 allow. They reported to the Assembly of 1873, sub- 
 mitting a plan of the book and general table of con- 
 tents, together with a list of the first lines of the 
 psalms and hymns, and, in view of the exigences of 
 the case, asked for authority to proceed with the com- 
 pilation, and through the Board of Publication to 
 have the Book of Praise stereotyped, published and 
 furnished to the churches without further submission 
 to the Assembly. The Committee were thus instructed, 
 and under these instructions the Hymnal was compiled 
 by the Rev. Joseph T. Duryea, D. D., under the super- 
 vision and with the approval of the Committee, and 
 
94 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 was published. The Committee presented to the As- 
 sembly of 1875 their final report, which was accepted, 
 their work approved, and the Committee discharged 
 with thanks for the efficient manner in which they had 
 performed their duty. 
 
 The book was received with very great favor, and 
 was introduced into many of our churches. Numerous 
 editions have been issued in a variety of forms, amount- 
 ing altogether to four hundred and twelve thousand five 
 
 hundred copies. 
 
 NEW "digest." 
 
 The want of a Digest of the acts of the supreme 
 judicatory of the Church was early felt. In 1818 the 
 Assembly appointed a Committee to prepare such a 
 work. The Committee reported to the next Assembly, 
 and were authorized to complete the work on the plan 
 reported, and to publish it at the expense of the Trus- 
 tees of the Assembly. The Digest thus authorized 
 was published in 1820. In 1850 the Board of Publi- 
 cation issued a Digest prepared by the Rev. Richard 
 Webster. In 1856 the Board issued the Digest pre- 
 pared by the Rev. Samuel J. Baird. A new and 
 revised edition was issued in 1859. 
 
 In 1854 the Assembly (N. S.) took order, appointing 
 a Committee to prepare and publish a new Digest, " if 
 it can be done without expense to the Assembly." The 
 Digest thus directed was prepared by Rev. William E. 
 Moore, and, after delay, for want of funds, issued by 
 the Presbyterian Publication Committee in 1861. It 
 was accepted with commendation by the Assembly. 
 
 The necessity of a more complete work which should 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 95 
 
 combine the precedents of the Church in all its 
 branches and bring them down to the latest date was 
 felt at once upon the Reunion. The Board of Publi- 
 cation accordingly took action looking to this end. 
 The plan of a new Digest was submitted to the Assem- 
 bly of 1871, and approved by it. The Rev. William 
 E. Moore was appointed to prepare the work, and a 
 special Committee was appointed to examine and 
 approve it before its publication. The Committee re- 
 ported to the Assembly of 1873 the completion of 
 the work by the compiler and its approval by the 
 Committee, and it was issued early in 1874. 
 
 The adoption of the Revised Book, of Discipline in 
 1884, with its amendments in 1885, and the lapse 
 of twelve years since the publication of the Digest, 
 made necessary a new edition, which was issued in 
 1886. This edition contains a complete presentation 
 of the acts and deliverances of the Assembly on all 
 questions down to the time of its publication. 
 
 CHANGE OF TREASURER. 
 
 In June, 1873, the venerable Winthrop Sargent, 
 who had served the Board faithfully and eiRciently 
 for nearly twenty-two years as Superintendent of Col- 
 portage, and for ten years as Treasurer also, having 
 reached the advanced age of eighty-two years, felt 
 constrained to relinquish those offices, and retired with 
 the esteem and affection of all who knew him. Mr. 
 Sargent lived only a little more than a year after his 
 retirement. The Board at its meeting September 22, 
 1874, made record of his death as follows : 
 
96 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 This Board has heard with great sorrow and regret of 
 the death of Winthrop Sargent, Esq., our late Treasurer, 
 His long association with the Board, unswerving integrity, 
 Christian character and faithful service for so long a 
 period make his memory fragrant, and we desire to record 
 our deep sense of the loss this Board has sustained by his 
 decease. 
 
 Mr. Sargent was succeeded in the office of Treasurer 
 and Superintendent of Colportage by Mr. Samuel D. 
 Powel. Mr. Powel had filled the office of Treasurer 
 of the Board of Home Missions, and before that for 
 many years of the Board of Domestic Missions. He 
 therefore brought to his new position an extended and 
 valuable experience and a wide acquaintance with the 
 men and affairs of the Presbyterian Church. Faith- 
 ful in every trust confided to him, he remained in the 
 service of the Board until his death, August 24, 1887. 
 
 MISSIONARY DEPARTMENT. 
 
 The Fund for the support of this part of the Board's 
 work is derived mainly from the contributions of our 
 churches and Sabbath-schools and the gifts and legacies 
 of the benevolent among our people. Appropriations 
 have also been made to it from time to time by the 
 Business Department as the net profits of its sales 
 allowed. Money given to this Fund is sacredly de- 
 voted to the benevolent work of the Board, and is 
 used in paying the expenses of the Sabbath-school 
 Department, the salaries and expenses of colporteurs 
 and the cost of the books and tracts gratuitously dis- 
 tributed by them or granted by the Board's Missionary 
 Committee. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 97 
 
 In 1877 the residuary legatees of the late John C. 
 Green of New York gave to the Trustees of the Board 
 of Publication the sum of fifty thousand dollars, the 
 principal to be kept intact and safely invested in 
 productive securities, such as are authorized by the 
 laws of Pennsylvania as proper and legal for the in- 
 vestment of trust funds, and the income therefrom to 
 be applied to the distinctively benevolent and mission- 
 ary work of the Board — provided, nevertheless, that 
 the Board may appropriate and apply not exceeding 
 one-third of the net income in any one year for the 
 purpose of enabling it to publish and issue such works 
 as it may determine upon and select, at lower prices or 
 in a better and more attractive form than they could 
 otherwise be issued; it being the intention that the 
 sums so appropriated and applied shall actually reduce 
 the selling prices of the works upon which they are 
 expended from what they would otherwise be fixed at 
 upon the ordinary basis for fixing prices in use from 
 time to time by the Board. The conditions of the 
 trust have, in every respect, been faithfully carried out, 
 both in the investment of the principal and in the 
 application of its income. 
 
 The Trustees of the Board also hold other trust 
 funds to the amount of twelve thousand five hundred 
 dollars, whose income is applied to the support of 
 its benevolent and missionary work. In addition to 
 these, various trust funds to the amount of about 
 $30,000 are held by the Trustees of the General As- 
 sembly, whose income, in whole or in part, is appro- 
 priated in the same manner. 
 7 
 
98 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 COLPORTAGE WORK. 
 
 At the Reunion great importance was 'attached by 
 the entire Church to the colportage work of the Board. 
 The General Assembly of 1870 unanimously adopted 
 the following recommendation of its Standing Com- 
 mittee on Publication : 
 
 Your Committee are deeply impressed with the colport- 
 age work conducted by the Board, and would strongly 
 urge its extension as being the means best fitted to make 
 known the truths of salvation to nmltitudes in our country, 
 as to Koman Catholics and persons separated from the 
 ordinary means of grace. 
 
 The Assembly also adopted the following minute ; 
 
 Each Presbytery is directed to appoint one or more of 
 its members a Presbyterial Publication Committee ; which 
 Committee shall in that Presbytery supervise the work of 
 securing an annual collection for this Board from each of 
 its churches ; shall search out and recommend to the 
 Board suitable persons to act as colporteurs; shall cor- 
 respond with the Board in reference to its work in that 
 Presbytery ; and shall do whatever else may tend to pro- 
 mote the work and interests of the Board, and to secure a 
 thorough distribution of the Board's publications within 
 and throughout the bounds of the Presbytery. 
 
 Most of the Presbyteries obeyed this direction and 
 appointed each a Presbyterial Publication Committee. 
 To every Committee so appointed the Corresponding 
 Secretary sent a communication explaining the col- 
 portage work and plans of the Board. In a consider- 
 able number of Presbyteries presbyterial colporteurs 
 were employed according to these arrangements, which 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 99 
 
 in their newly modified form were received with uni- 
 versal favor. The aim of the Board was to have at 
 least one well-qualified and active colporteur at work 
 in each Presbytery, such coljDorteur to be selected and 
 recommended to the Board by the Presbytery itself, 
 or by its Publication Committee. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1871 gave emphatic ap- 
 proval of these plans by adopting the following recom- 
 mendations of its Standing Committee on Publication: 
 
 Your Committee are convinced, from all the light which 
 they have been able to obtain, that the colporteur system 
 of distribution is essential to the efficiency of this Board, 
 and that, instead of being diminished, it ought to be 
 largely increased. It is unfair to judge of the business 
 operations of a Board whose sales are confined to religious 
 publications by the common laws of the book-trade. 
 Other publishing-houses publish or keep on their shelves 
 miscellaneous books of all kinds. They find buyers from 
 all classes of people, whilst the religious house sells chiefly 
 to religious people. The range of its operations is neces- 
 sarily restricted ; and if it be, as in the case of our Board, 
 a denominational enterprise, its operations must be con- 
 fined chiefly to its own denomination. This limits the 
 range of its operation and the number of its customers, 
 and it would be unreasonable, therefore, to expect it to 
 compete upon mere commercial principles with houses 
 who publish books on all sorts of subjects, both religious 
 and secular. Nor is it reasonable to expect it to compete 
 with those undenominational publishing societies which 
 claim and receive the patronage of all §vangelical Chris- 
 tians. 
 
 The press is a power in the earth. The Church cannot 
 dispense with its mighty agency; and if the doctrine and 
 
100 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 order of the Presbyterian Church are, as we believe them 
 to be, the most primitive, apostolical and scriptural, they 
 ought to be maintained and disseminated ; and if they are 
 to be promoted, the press is an indispensable agent in the 
 work, and our Church cannot afford to dispense with it, 
 nor to abate the measure of its efficiency. It is, in the 
 judgment of your Committee, preposterously unwise to 
 reduce our own Board to the condition of a mere commer- 
 cial house with a limited capital, whilst the publishing 
 societies which are restrained from publishing the dis- 
 tinctive doctrines of our system, and who get the patronage 
 of all evangelical denominations, are sustained by large 
 benefactions of the churches. It is to be remembered, 
 also, that, whilst secular publishing-houses can go into 
 trade-sales and dispose of much of their stock by ex- 
 changes for the publications of other houses, our Board 
 cannot thus exchange, for it is not her mission to dissemi- 
 nate secular literature. 
 
 Your Committee is profoundly convinced that an effort 
 ought to be made to enlarge the resources of this Board, 
 and the colporteur and Sabbath-school work and its gratu- 
 itous distributions ought to be rapidly increased. Your 
 Committee, therefore, submits the following additional 
 resolutions for the consideration of the Assembly — viz. : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That the Board of Publication be recom- 
 mended to prosecute with increased energy the work of 
 distribution by an efficient and economical system of col- 
 portage under the direction of the several Presbyteries. 
 
 2. That the Board be authorized to supply libraries for 
 each of our missions in the foreign field as fast as funds 
 are available for that purpose. 
 
 3. That the Board be exhorted to employ in the work 
 entrusted to their hands all the honorable and proper 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 101 
 
 business tact and energy which are used by other publish- 
 ing-houses. 
 
 4. That the people of our churches be urged to increased 
 liberality toward the Missionary Department of this 
 Board, and to take up an annual collection for it, as 
 directed by the past Assembly, so that the means of inau- 
 gurating the Sunday-school work and increasing col- 
 portage and donations to destitute pastors and feeble 
 churches may be supplied. 
 
 Similar and equally emphatic approval of this 
 branch of the Board's work was given by each succes- 
 sive Assembly during the first decade ot the reunited 
 Church. The Board endeavored, so far as the neces- 
 sary means was given it, to carry out these oft-repeated 
 instructions in the expansion of its colportage and 
 missionary work. 
 
 It was made the duty of the Corresponding Secre- 
 tary to conduct all correspondence having reference to 
 the appointment of colporteurs, and nominate to the 
 Missionary Committee those who furnished satisfactory 
 testimonials as to their qualifications for the work. 
 The Missionary Committee received and acted upon 
 all applications to appoint colporteurs made through 
 the Corresponding Secretary, and when appointed 
 determined their field of labor and fixed their com- 
 pensation. The Superintendent of Colportage con- 
 ducted the correspondence with colporteurs, after their 
 appointment, received and engrossed their reports in a 
 book prepared for the purpose, kept accounts of their 
 pecuniary relations to the Board, executed all orders 
 from colporteurs and collected all sums due from them, 
 
102 BOARD OF PUBLICATIOX. 
 
 and reported the state of the work to the Missionary- 
 Committee at each meeting. District Superintendents 
 were also appointed to take supervision of the work in 
 their several fields, and to push it forward with vigor 
 and economy. One of these District Superintendents 
 was located at Chicago, another at St. Louis, another 
 at Cleveland, Ohio, another at Cincinnati, and another 
 at Syracuse, New York. Still later in the Board's 
 history a District Superintendent, by express direction 
 of the General Assembly, was placed in charge of the 
 colportage and missionary work on the Pacific coast. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1881 appointed a Special 
 Committee of seven — four ministers and three elders — 
 "to consider and report to the next Assembly what 
 changes and measures, if any, are needed in order to 
 increase the work and the efficiency of the Missionary 
 Department of the Board of Publication." The As- 
 sembly of 1882, on the recommendation of this Special 
 Committee, adopted the following action : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That the General Assembly instruct the 
 Board of Publication to maintain a separation as complete 
 as practicable between the Publishing and the Colportage 
 Departments in their business aifairs, so that the relation 
 between the two in this respect shall be the same as be- 
 tween the Publishing Department and any other purchaser, 
 the terms of sale to the Colportage Department to be as 
 favorable as those offered to any other purchaser. 
 
 2. The Publishing Department is to employ all legiti- 
 mate agencies which shall promote the sale of its publica- 
 tions, and not be required to assume, in whole or in part, 
 the support of any office or agency which it does not feel 
 justified in assuming because of its commercial value. It 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 103 
 
 is to keep in view the important object of furnishing its 
 publications at the lowest possible cost, and all advantages 
 which it may possess by virtue of the capital placed at its 
 disposal are to bear fruit chiefly in the lower price, and 
 consequent wider diffusion, of its publications. 
 
 3. The Board shall present to the General Assembly a 
 yearly statement of the expenses of the Publishing De- 
 partment, and also a statement of its profits, in such a 
 manner that it shall be made to appear (1) whether any 
 reduction in the price of its publications is practicable, 
 and (2) what sum this department may yield year by year 
 for Sabbath-school work and colportage or other missionary 
 purposes. 
 
 4. That the work of colportage, including the selection 
 and appointment of colporteurs, shall be under the exclu- 
 sive supervision of the Corresponding Secretary and the 
 appropriate Committee of the Board, who shall be allowed 
 adequate clerical aid. No colporteur, however, shall be 
 sent to labor within the bounds of any Presbytery unless 
 first recommended by the Presbytery or its appropriate 
 Committee. 
 
 5. In pursuance of this policy of giving greater unity 
 of management to the work of colportage, the office of 
 Superintendent of Missionary Work shall be abolished 
 and its duties transferred to the Corresponding Secretary. 
 District Superintendents also are not to be maintained by 
 the Board, except where it judges that they are called for 
 on business grounds, in which cases they are to be sus- 
 tained by the Publishing Department 
 
 6. The funds necessary for the maintenance of colport- 
 age are to be sought, as now, directly from the churches, 
 as a benevolent gift. From these funds the Board shall 
 provide for the entire salary of the Secretary of Sabbath- 
 School Work, and so much of the salary of the Corre- 
 
104 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 spending Secretary as is not provided for by an express 
 arrangement of the Publication Department, with their 
 expenses; also for the salaries of the colporteurs, the 
 grants of books, etc., which it shall allow, and the other 
 expenses of the Missionary Department. 
 
 7. That in the instructions of the Missionary Depart- 
 ment to the colporteurs the main emphasis is to be laid 
 upon the work of religious visitation and the Sabbath- 
 school work expected from among the spiritually destitute, 
 and that the selling of books, while still continued so far 
 as it can be usefully done, is to be in all cases subordinated 
 to these more directly benevolent and religious labors. 
 
 8. That the Board be directed to invite correspondence 
 through its Missionary Department with our pastors, and 
 especially with our missionaries, to secure voluntary help 
 in the wider diffusion of our literature, and that in pursu- 
 ance of this policy it be directed to make grants of books 
 and other publications with all possible liberality when- 
 ever satisfied that those making application for such grants 
 will employ them wisely for the benefit of the religiously 
 destitute, and will report to the Board the manner in 
 which they are used. 
 
 The important changes here directed were all 
 promptly made. In fact, most of them had been de- 
 termined upon by the Board before the action of 
 the Assembly, especially those directed in the fourth, 
 fifth, seventh and eighth resolutions, excepting the 
 part of the fifth resolution relating to the office of 
 District Superintendent. The question as to whether 
 or not it was expedient to continue that office had 
 been considered, but it was decided that the Board 
 " should not definitely act to determine a line of gen- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 105 
 
 eral policy, but await action on the part of the General 
 Assembly." As soon as the Assembly had acted upon 
 the question, the Board abolished the office of District 
 Superintendent, and the men who had held the office 
 retired from the work of the Board with its thanks 
 for the faithful and efficient services they had rendered 
 during the years they had held to it that relation. 
 The entire work of colportage, including the selection 
 and appointment of colporteurs, was thus placed under 
 the exclusive supervision of the Corresponding Secre- 
 tary and the Missionary Committee of the Board. 
 
 During the seventeen years from the Reunion in 
 1870 to the reorganization of the Board in 1887 the 
 average number of colporteurs in the field was 94, 
 varying from year to year, the highest number em- 
 ployed being 158, in 1873, and the lowest 49, in 1883. 
 The number of Synods and Presbyteries in which they 
 labored also varied from year to year, the average 
 number being, of Synods, 32, and of Presbyteries 85. 
 The majority of them were employed in the West and 
 North-west. Quietly and almost unnoticed by the busy 
 world they passed from house to house and from vil- 
 lage to village, most of them among the mountain- 
 ranges, on the wide prairies or through the forests of 
 our Western States, scattering everywhere the good 
 seed of divine truth — a handful here, a handful there. 
 In this laborious and self-denying work they distrib- 
 uted by sale 973,396 volumes, and by gift 868,563 
 volumes — a total of 1,841,959 volumes. They also 
 gave away 81,376,698 pages of tracts and periodicals. 
 Besides the distribution of so large an amount of our 
 
106 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 religious and denominational literature, the records 
 and reports of the Board abound with evidences of 
 great spiritual good effected through their instrumen- 
 tality in the conversion of souls and the edification and 
 comfort of God's people. How much they accomplished 
 in the organization of mission Sabbath-schools and by 
 visitation and encouragement of schools already estab- 
 lished in their respective fields of labor will be shown 
 in future pages. 
 
 GRANTS BY THE MISSIONARY COMMITTEE. 
 In addition to the books, tracts and periodicals dis- 
 tributed far and wide by the colporteurs on their re- 
 spective fields, large numbers were from year to year 
 granted by votes of the Missionary Committee. Nu- 
 merous and earnest applications for such grants flowed 
 in from all parts of our country and Canada, and 
 also from various mission stations in Mexico, South 
 Africa and Asia. To these applications the Committee 
 responded as freely as the resources at its command 
 allowed. Tracts and other publications in French, 
 Spanish, Italian and German were furnished for the 
 use of missionaries laboring among those speaking 
 these languages. The wants of the freed men and of 
 the Indians were also remembered. Many a mission 
 Sabbath-school and many a weak mission church thus 
 received material aid and encouragement in their 
 work among the poor and the destitute. The reports 
 and records of the Board show that the net value of 
 these grants amounted to nearly one hundred thousand 
 dollars. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 107 
 
 It was painfully felt, however, tliat the work actually 
 accomplished annually bore no proportion to the de- 
 mands of the country and the duty of the Church. 
 The number of colporteurs had fallen from year to 
 year from one hundred and fifty-eight in 1873 to forty- 
 nine in 1883. "The means for carrying on the work 
 were meagre and wholly disproportioned to its magni- 
 tude and vital importance. At the same time, there 
 were urgent and increasing demands for missionary 
 work and gratuitous grants of the Board's publica- 
 tions. A legacy of ten thousand dollars left to the 
 Missionary Fund by the late Hon. William E. Dodge, 
 and other legacies to the amount of four thousand 
 dollars, came into the treasury in 1884, when the Fund 
 was entirely exhausted. This providential relief led 
 to an expansion of the colportage work and a corre- 
 sponding increase of the missionary grants in response 
 to urgent appeals, and in the confident expectation 
 that the incoming contributions would be sufiicient to 
 meet the increased demands upon the Fund. The 
 report made to the Assembly of 1885 rejoiced in its 
 mention of " a year of extraordinary and unequaled 
 usefulness," of calls from the Presbyteries for the ap- 
 pointment of colporteurs gladly met by the Board, 
 and of enlarged grants to Sabbath-schools, home mis- 
 sionaries, foreign missionaries and pastors. 
 
 The report was received by the Assembly with warm 
 congratulation, and with the most unmistakable ex- 
 hortations that the Board go forward in this good 
 work, and that the churches heartily sustain it in its 
 aggressive movements. It was resolved — 
 
108 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 That the Assembly has learned with great pleasure of 
 the enlargement made during the past year in the work of 
 the Missionary Department of this Board through the 
 increased number of colporteurs it has maintained upon 
 the field, and especially in the more remote and destitute 
 States and Territories between the Mississippi and the 
 Pacific Ocean; also through the enlarged number and 
 value of the grants it has made to the needy Sabbath- 
 schools, home missionaries, teachers and others in every 
 part of the Church, as well as in foreign lands. 
 
 That the Board is hereby encouraged and exhorted to 
 continue the prosecution of its colportage work, and of 
 making grants to the needy to the utmost extent it can 
 feel to be wise and proper in view of the resources at its 
 disposal. And, in order that these resources may be en- 
 larged during the coming year, all our churches and 
 Sabbath-schools are hereby recommended and urged to 
 make at least one annual contribution to the Missionary 
 Fund of the Board. 
 
 It also recommended that the sum of at least seventy- 
 five thousand dollars should be contributed by the 
 churches during the year for the prosecution of this 
 important w^ork. 
 
 Thus encouraged, the Board entered hopefully on 
 the new year, prosecuting with vigor this much-needed 
 enterprise for reaching the people with the truth. But 
 as the year advanced, and the income of the Missionary 
 Fund failed to equal its expenditures, caution became 
 necessary ; then new appointments of colporteurs were 
 refused, and grants were limited to the more urgent 
 cases, and finally the last measure was reluctantly and 
 sadly reached of dismissing men already in the service. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 109 
 
 The necessity was a most painful one, but it was one 
 not to be avoided in the circumstances. The Board 
 was compelled to continue this contraction of its 
 missionary work, and finally to report to the Assembly 
 of 1887 that the number of colporteurs had been re- 
 duced to seventeen, and that the balance against the 
 Missionary Fund was $24,935.49. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL DEPARTMENT. 
 
 One of the earliest acts of the reorganized Board 
 was to take up the recommendation of the Assembly 
 of 1870 with regard to the establishment of a depart- 
 ment of Sabbath -schools. The whole subject was 
 referred to its Missionary Committee for careful con- 
 sideration. The result was the following Report from 
 that Committee, drawn up by the Rev. Thomas Murphy, 
 D. D., its Chairman, which was adopted with entire 
 unanimity by the Board, and unanimously adopted by 
 the Assembly of 1871 : 
 
 REPORT. 
 
 The General Assembly having recommended at its last 
 meeting " that the Board of Publication, at as early a 
 date as possible, consider the propriety of establishing a 
 Department of Sabbath-schools, whose office it shall be to 
 promote the number and efficiency of Sabbath-schools 
 throughout the congregations of the Presbyterian Church," 
 the Board would report that they have given the whole 
 matter careful and earnest attention. 
 
 Within a few years the institution of the Sabbath-school 
 has assumed such a form and grown to such a magnitude 
 that probably but very few even of the most thoughtful 
 Christians duly appreciate its unspeakable importance. 
 
110 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Being in the very midst of its developments, we do not so 
 see its vast proportions that they leave upon our minds an 
 adequate impression. If they were fairly grasped by our 
 Church at this deeply momentous epoch of her history, 
 there is probably no other subject that would call forth 
 from her more earnest and thoughtful consideration. 
 When it is considered that the religious training of the 
 young lies at the very foundation of every other institu- 
 tion of the Church, and of all that is hopeful in her future 
 prospects, how can we overestimate the importance of this 
 subject? The fact to which we dare not close our eyes — 
 that so much of that training at the present time is passing 
 over to the Sabbath-school and the Church — imposes such 
 a tremendous weight of responsibility that no amount of 
 thought or work or money is too great to be bestowed on 
 this subject. Then its proportions rise up into additional 
 grandeur when we reflect that the Sabbath-school is the 
 best-known agency for reaching the millions upon millions 
 of children who have no religious training from parents 
 or any others and saving them from godless lives with all 
 their disastrous consequences. Then, too, the Sabbath- 
 school is pre-eminent, as furnishing a plain and profitable 
 field of Christian toil for every warm heart and willing 
 band. 
 
 Will it do for our Church in her organized form to 
 neglect this agency which is springing up to such immense 
 proportions within her and around her ? Should she be 
 satisfied until it is brought under her own control and all 
 its influences secured in her vast enterprise of building up 
 Christ's kingdom? Can our Church afford to do nothing 
 in this matter, while others are moving forward in it, and 
 that most successfully ? Is it not now a time for us to 
 begin, when by our blessed Reunion a broader field is 
 opening before us, and a new strength is given us that if 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. Ill 
 
 rightly guided and sanctified could achieve almost any- 
 thing? Is there not now a most exciting call for our 
 Presbyterian Church to take her noble traditional stand in 
 the forefront with respect to the religious training of the 
 young ? 
 
 The work which the Church evidently should undertake 
 in this matter through its responsible organs presents 
 itself in three branches. 
 
 The first branch should include everything pertaining to 
 the books and all other literature that might be needed to 
 give success to the work of Sabbath-schools. A great evil 
 that is creeping into our schools, and a great danger that 
 is threatening them, arises from the vast number of books 
 unsuitable for Sabbath reading and objectionable in their 
 character which are filling their libraries. This evil needs 
 to be efiiciently guarded against. Even if the Board of 
 Publication were able with its own books fully to supply 
 the wants of all of our schools, the schools would not be 
 restricted in their selections to these publications. Many 
 most excellent books are published by other societies and 
 by private publishing-houses. From these our schools 
 will still continue to select, as well as from our own publi- 
 cations. There ought, therefore, to be an agency for care- 
 fully reading Sabbath -school books collected from every 
 source, and keeping a list (or the books themselves) of 
 all that could be safely recommended to the schools. 
 Under this branch of, the subject should also come the 
 providing of suitable helps for the whole Sabbath-school 
 work. There should be Bible dictionaries from which 
 everything that is distinctive in our grand system of doc- 
 trine and order would not be excluded. There should be 
 suitable commentaries that could be recommended. There 
 should be maps and guide-books and diagrams and roll- 
 books, and everything else requisite in the Sabbath-school 
 
112 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 work. Under this branch, also, should fall the preparation 
 of periodicals, not only for children, but also for teachers. 
 It should include, also, the furnishing of books of hymns 
 and music which would be suitable to the worship of 
 God and the sanctity of the Sabbath. And here, too, 
 should be placed the responsibility of providing lessons 
 and questions that could be used throughout the schools 
 of the Church. 
 
 A second branch of this general subject should con- 
 template improvement in the standard of teaching, the 
 purifying our schools of everything unworthy of the 
 dignity of the cause and the thorough development of 
 the great Sabbath-school idea. " What can be done to 
 increase the piety, the zeal, the scriptural intelligence and 
 the aptness to impart knowledge on the part of our teach- 
 ers ?" is the great question on which the true efficiency of 
 our Sabbath-schools depends. The aim here should be to 
 enlist the piety and talent of the Church in this cause, to 
 develop practically the idea that the Sabbath-school is an 
 integral part of the Church, to secure every real improve- 
 ment in this work, to guard against mere novelties which 
 may be injurious or inconsistent with the sacredness of 
 Sabbath exercises, and to make constant progress in the 
 art of enriching the minds of the young with the knowl- 
 edge of God contained in the Bible and Catechism, and 
 of drawing them to Christ. This all-important end could 
 be approximated by the Sessions of our churches becom- 
 ing officially and thoroughly identified with their Sabbath- 
 schools, by establishing classes in which teachers, and 
 those who might become such, could be more thoroughly 
 trained in the Scriptures, and by each Presbytery, either 
 through a colporteur or through one or more of its own 
 members, appointed as a Permanent Committee for the 
 purpose, holding frequent Sabbath-school meetings within 
 its bounds. By this a deeper interest in the Sabbath- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 113 
 
 school work could be excited and greater efficiency in 
 teaching promoted. 
 
 For the highest efficiency and success, it will become 
 advisable to have a General Superintendent of Sabbath- 
 School Work to devote his whole energies to the promotion 
 of its interests. He could be a medium of communica- 
 tion concerning all that would promote the welfare of the 
 cause. Himself thoroughly abreast of the times in all 
 the healthful improvements in the work of Sabbath- 
 schools, he could circulate the knowledge of them through 
 all our churches, and by visiting Synods, Presbyteries and 
 congregations, and assisting at Sabbath-school meetings in 
 connection with these bodies, he could impart information, 
 stimulate interest and excite liberality that would be felt 
 throughout all our bounds. 
 
 A third branch of this work of the Church should be 
 the planting of new Sabbath-schools in destitute locali- 
 ties. It is surely high time for the Presbyterian Church 
 to move in this matter, as her sister-churches are already 
 moving. We are now, as a body, strong enough to con- 
 duct this distinct and most important enterprise. It is 
 believed that our ministers and people are ready and 
 anxious to enter upon it with all vigor. Certainly, other 
 denominations are looking for us to be amongst the fore- 
 most in this enterprise, which must be productive of vast 
 results for good. We might expect every Sabbath-school 
 organized through our instrumentality to become a centre 
 of salutary influences, and many to lead to the organization 
 of churches. 
 
 To effect this end, very little addition to our present 
 operations would be needed. In appointing colporteurs 
 we have but to request the Presbyteries to nominate men 
 who would be capable of acting as Sabbath-school mis- 
 sionaries, and to authorize them to seek out proper locali- 
 8 
 
114 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 ties and there plant Sabbath-scliools. This, with larger 
 contributions from the churches, to meet the increased 
 expense of such agencies, is all that would be needed. 
 
 Such, then, is an outline of the Sabbath -school work to 
 which, as a Church, we seem to be imperatively called. 
 This is the Church's work emphatically, if there is any 
 work for her to do. The Sabbath-school is not a thing 
 distinct from the Church — it is productive of evil to regard 
 it as such — but it is the Church working in the instruction 
 of its own children, its largest and most hopeful element, 
 and in the evangelization of tlie children of those not 
 connected with the Church. Whatever the Church does 
 here should be done in her organized capacity. She is 
 responsible : she is a divinely-appointed teacher. 
 
 In carrying forward this work there should be no assum- 
 ing of the work of individual churches or Presbyteries, no 
 taking away from them of the responsibility resting upon 
 them. That would be paralyzing and destructive of the 
 best interests of the cause. All that is done should be 
 done through Sessions and Presbyteries, which must ever 
 be the immediate and responsible agents of the Church's 
 work. 
 
 It is not believed that any new Board or Department 
 for this object would be acceptable to the Church, or that 
 any is necessary to accomplish the end aimed at. The 
 feeling in the Church is manifestly adverse to the increase 
 of distinct agencies. Besides, no new Department could 
 have the facilities for carrying on this work which are 
 already possessed by the Board of Publication and in 
 actual operation. A very large amount of the work of a 
 Sabbath-school Department must be carried on through 
 publications of various kinds ; and this is the prominent 
 work of the Board. The Board of Publication can fur- 
 nish libraries of its own publications, and also of approved 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 115 
 
 books from other publishers ; it can prepare helps of every 
 kind for the study of the Bible ; it can issue periodicals 
 for scholars and teachers ; it can circulate intelligence 
 concerning the interests of Sabbath- schools ; and it can 
 so enlarge the duties of its colporteurs that they may also 
 act as Sabbath-school missionaries with but little departure 
 from its present arrangements. 
 
 After a careful and thorough investigation of the whole 
 subject, we would therefore recommend the following for 
 the adoption of the General Assembly, with the explana- 
 tions already given in this report — viz. : 
 
 1st. That the Board of Publication be instructed so to 
 enlarge its arrangements as to make the Sabbath-school 
 work a prominent and organic part of its operations.* 
 
 2d. That the Board, so enlarged in the sphere of its 
 operations, keep before it these three branches of Sabbath- 
 school work : 
 
 A. To furnish a complete literature for Sabbath-schools, 
 consisting of its own and other well-selected books for 
 libraries, helps of all kinds for the study of the Scriptures 
 and Catechism, periodicals for teachers and scholars, and 
 all other apparatus fitted to give efficiency to the work of 
 teaching. 
 
 B. To establish such agencies as it may deem suitable 
 for elevating the standard of teaching and more thoroughly 
 developing the great idea of Sabbath-schools — that of 
 imparting the knowledge of God to the young and drawing 
 them to the salvation of Christ. 
 
 C. In appointing colporteurs, as far as possible, to select 
 such persons as may also be suitable for Sabbath-school 
 
 ♦Amended by the General Assembly so as to read as follows: "1st. 
 That the Board of Publication be instructed so to enlarge its arrange- 
 ments as to make the Sabbath-school work a prominent and organic part 
 of its operations and that it is exceedingly desirable that the entire con- 
 gregations in onr churches old and young, be perm:inently connecied 
 with the Sabbath-school, either as scholars or teachers." 
 
116 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 missionaries, and instruct them to establish Sabbath- 
 schools in destitute localities, under the supervision of the 
 Presbyteries. 
 
 3d. That the churches be urged to contribute more 
 largely to the Missionary Fund of this Board to meet the 
 increased expense which the working of this branch of 
 its operations will demand. 
 
 GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT OF SABBATH-SCHOOL 
 WORK. 
 
 These recommendatious of the Board with regard to 
 the organization of a Sabbath-school Depailment 
 having been approved by the Assembly, the Board at 
 its annual meeting, June 13, 1871 — 
 
 Resolved, That the Missionary Committee be instructed 
 to carry into effect the Plan thus adopted, excepting those 
 portions of the work naturally belonging to the Publishing 
 Committee, and that it be authorized to secure the services 
 of a suitable man for the post of General Superintendent 
 or Sabbath-school Work, at a proper salary, subject to 
 confirmation by the Board. 
 
 After a prolonged and earnest search for a person 
 well qualified for the service required, the Board elected 
 Mr. J. Bennet Tyler to the oflace of General Superin- 
 tendent of Sabbath-School Work. Mr. Tyler had been 
 for some time the District Secretary of the American 
 Sunday-School Union for the city and State of New 
 York, where his labors had been attended with marked 
 acceptance and success. He accepted the position 
 offered to him, and entered upon the performance of 
 his new duties January 1, 1872. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 117 
 
 Mr. Tyler was instructed by the Missionary Com- 
 mittee, under whose direction the Board had placed 
 his work, "to visit as generally as possible our Synods, 
 Presbyteries and congregations, and assist at Sabbath- 
 school meetings in connection with these bodies, con- 
 sidering this the most prominent and vital part of his 
 work." He was also directed to send to the Missionary 
 Committee, "through the Corresponding Secretary, at 
 each monthly meeting, a brief written report of his 
 work and progress during the preceding month." 
 
 It will be observed that the duties required of Mr. 
 Tyler were to a very great extent field duties. During 
 the five years which he gave to the Board's Sabbath - 
 school work he labored with great energy and dili- 
 gence, and with encouraging success. In carrying 
 out the instructions of the Board he traveled exten- 
 sively through every part of our Church territory, 
 conducted institutes and normal classes for teachers, 
 attended meetings and conventions, addressed Presby- 
 teries and Synods, and endeavored to enlist attention 
 and interest touching the objects and work to be ac- 
 complished. It was deemed important to secure for 
 this department of the Board's work a more pro- 
 nounced ecclesiastical recognition ; to promote, as far 
 as practicable, a higher and truer conception of the 
 possibilities of good inherent in the proper religious 
 training of the children; to enlist Presbyteries and 
 Synods more fully in the discussion of topics pertaining 
 to the Sabbath-school ; to hold institutes and Sabbath- 
 school meetings within our own lines ; in a word, to 
 develop the great wealth of talent and culture within 
 
118 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 our bounds, and as widely as possible. For this pur- 
 pose the Superintendent corresponded by circulars and 
 personal letters with committees of Presbyteries and 
 Synods, attended and conducted Synodical and Pres- 
 byterial Institutes and meetings, as extensively as his 
 time and strength would allow. The great aim in 
 these labors was to secure, as far as practicable, unity 
 of action over the whole field of Sabbath-school inter- 
 ests ; to bring our schools into closer and more intimate 
 relations to the Church and the pastor; to promote 
 more thorough and systematic Bible and Catechetical 
 study and instruction, and to secure denominational 
 unity and co-operation. 
 
 At the outset little was known with regard to the 
 number and work of our schools. It seemed important 
 to reach these widely-scattered schools. Blanks were 
 accordingly sent early in 1872 to all our pastors 
 throughout the country asking for detailed statistics 
 of our schools. Efforts were thus made to obtain the 
 names of superintendents, with the number of schools, 
 of teachers and of scholars, and the facts in full. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1872 gave its hearty 
 approval of these plans and labors, and voted unani- 
 mously — 
 
 That the General Superintendent of Sabbath-school 
 Work should receive the cordial co-operation of the 
 Synods, Presbyteries, pastors, superintendents and all 
 workers and friends of the Sabbath-school in executing 
 the plans of the Board. 
 
 That every Presbytery take measures at its Spring 
 meeting to gather and transmit to the General Superin- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 119 
 
 tendent of Sabbath-school Work the detailed statistics 
 for the year of the schools within its bounds. 
 
 This attempt to obtain full and reliable statistics, we 
 are compelled to say, was for the time only partially 
 successful, notwithstanding the approval and recom- 
 mendation of the Assembly and the earnest efforts of 
 the Superintendent. It remained for later and more 
 persistent effort to secure the end sought. Still, this 
 preliminary work was not in vain. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL LITERATURE. 
 
 The first of the three branches of Sabbath-school 
 work which the Board on its own recommendation was 
 directed to keep before it was — 
 
 A. To furnish a complete literature for Sabbath- 
 schools, consisting of its own and other well-selected books 
 for libraries, helps of all kinds for the study of the Script- 
 ures and Catechism, periodicals for teachers and scholars, 
 and all other apparatus fitted to give efficiency to the 
 work of teaching. 
 
 Very much had been done in the direction here 
 indicated by the separate publication-houses before the 
 Reunion. The Catalogue of the consolidated Board 
 contained the names of about six hundred works ad- 
 mirably adapted for use in the Sabbath-school library. 
 From year to year many volumes of a similar charac- 
 ter were added to the list. Able and experienced 
 writers were called into the service of the Board, and 
 gave to the Church a great variety of interesting 
 works. Year after year the Assembly has carefully 
 noted the Board's publications for use in Sabbath- 
 
120 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 schools, and commended them, and year after year it 
 has encouraged the Board to go forward and make 
 further additions to its Sabbath-school library of the 
 same kind. Presbyteries and Synods, following the 
 example of the General Assembly, have urged the 
 churches within their bounds to furnish their Sabbath- 
 school libraries with the books of the Board in prefer- 
 ence to all others and before going elsewhere for a 
 supply. Successive Assemblies have repeated and 
 emphasized the utterance of the Assembly of 1877 : 
 
 A Church whose just claim it has always been that she 
 has a learned and godly ministry, an intelligent and 
 knowledge-loving membership equal to any in the world, 
 and an eldership worthy to represent such a people and 
 share the labors of the ministry, cannot afford to ignore 
 or disparage a literature like this, produced by her own 
 eminent authors. 
 
 The time has come when our whole Church, like other 
 great denominations in the land, should give to our litera- 
 ture that loyal attachment and preference which it merits, 
 and which hitherto has been given only in part. 
 
 In addition to its own issues, to which, of course, the 
 first place and the chief prominence is given, a care- 
 fully-selected assortment of the publications of other 
 houses is constantly kept in stock. Everything may 
 here be procured that our Sabbath-school workers 
 need in the prosecution of their work. Libraries, 
 maps, blackboards, officers' minute- and record-books, 
 class-books, and all other facilities for the management 
 of the school may be had in great variety. 
 
BOARD OF rUBLICATlON. ]21 
 
 WESTMINSTER LESSON HELPS. 
 
 It is a strange fact that until the Reunion our Sab- 
 bath-schools were compelled to seek Lesson Helps, as 
 well as other requisites, from outside agencies. As a 
 consequence, these very important educational appli- 
 ances were obtained from the most diverse sources — 
 from voluntary societies, private publishing-houses, 
 and not a few from denominational houses other than 
 our own. Whilst many of these were excellent of 
 their kind, they failed to meet the wants of our Church 
 in the important work of educating her young people 
 for her own communion. This state of things was 
 anomalous and every way undesirable. The evils were 
 manifold. The effect on the schools was the opposite 
 of unity and denominational co-operation. The tend- 
 ency was directly toward disintegration — to the pro- 
 motion of party and sectional feeling. The Sabbath- 
 school Department from the beginning sought steadily 
 and earnestly to bring our schools into communion 
 and sympathy with one another and with the plans 
 and purposes of the Church — to create a common bond 
 of union among the thousands of teachers who com- 
 prise so largely the active and efficient workers in our 
 churches, and the half million of scholars who are 
 so soon, for better or worse, to take their place. A 
 community of literature, the use of the same helps 
 and the singing of the same songs were believed to 
 have a powerful influence in this direction. 
 
 In carrying out the instructions of the Assembly, 
 and in accord with a wish widely felt, and often uttered, 
 the Board in 1871 entered upon the issue of a series 
 
122 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 of Lesson Helps for Sabbath-school use. The work of 
 preparing these Helps was entrusted to the Rev. Henry 
 C. McCook, D. D., whose large experience and enlight- 
 ened enthusiasm in the cause gave peculiar fitness for 
 the work. To him belongs the honor of giving to 
 these Helps the appropriate name of }Vestvii7i8ter — a 
 name now familiar to all the Sabbath-school workers 
 of our Church. The plan marked out by Dr. McCook 
 and adopted by the Board embraced a full curriculum 
 of Bible study extending through eight years, and 
 giving lessons on both the Old and the New Testaments. 
 Four series, each covering a period of six months, 
 were issued. Series No. 1 and No. 2 were on " The 
 Last Year of our Lord's Ministry ;" Series No. 3 and 
 No. 4 were on " The Last Week of Christ's Ministry." 
 
 " The Westminster Sabbath-School Lessons " met 
 with immediate favor. The " Teachers' Paper* " con- 
 tained critical expository notes, together with ques- 
 tions, practical thoughts and suggestive hints of great 
 value to teachers in preparation for their class-work. 
 The " Scholars' Papers " were in like manner adjusted 
 to the wants of the scholars in our Presbyterian Sab- 
 bath-schools. The " Teachers' Papers " of 1871 and 
 1 872 were also published in two bound volumes, with 
 the title The Teacher^s Commentary. These volumes 
 form a practical commentary of great value upon that 
 portion of the life and teachings of Christ commonly 
 assigned to the last year of our Lord's ministry. 
 
 A series of " Lessons on the Early Ministry of Jesus " 
 had been prepared and stereotyped in part. This, had 
 it been issued, would have made, with the four series 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 123 
 
 previously published, a complete study of the life of 
 Christ. But after full deliberation it was resolved lo 
 set aside the plan of study adopted by the Board, and 
 to take up in its place the course known as the Inter- 
 national Series, which was begun with January, 1873. 
 This was in accordance with the earnest convictions 
 and urgent request of Dr. McCook himself. The 
 Board at first was unwilling to make the change, but 
 finally entered upon the International Series; and 
 thenceforward we have had the pleasure of walking in 
 harmonious unity with other branches of the Church 
 catholic, whilst giving to our youth teachings in ac- 
 cordance with our own Standards. 
 
 The plans of the Board contemplated the prepara- 
 tion and issue of suitable and suflicient helps for both 
 teachers and scholars. In the execution of these 
 plans it called to its aid a number of the most promi- 
 nent and learned men in the Church, among whom we 
 may name the Rev. Drs. Jacobus, Niccolls, Duryea, 
 Herrick Johnson and A. A. Hodge. The Westminster 
 Lesson Leaf was begun in 1873. The first Westmins- 
 ter Question-Book was issued for the year 1875, and 
 the Westminster Quarterly, a help for older and more 
 advanced scholars, in 1880. The Westminster Primary 
 Leaf and Quarterly and a German Leaf complete the 
 list. The extended circulation of most of these Helps 
 for Teachers and Scholars, now far exceeding the 
 most sanguine expectations of the Board, clearly 
 show that they have met a felt want, and that they 
 commend themselves to the active Sabbath-school 
 workers of our Church. 
 
124 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 THE SHORTER CATECHISM. 
 
 The Shorter Catechism also holds a prominent place 
 in the Sabbath-school Helps of the Board. In the 
 eighteen years that have elapsed since the Reunion the 
 Board has issued, in its separate form alone, no less 
 than 2,484,000 copies, not including those in six other 
 languages than the English. In addition to this, it 
 has been sent forth in many other forms and connec- 
 tions. The Westminster Question-Book, Quarterly 
 and Lesson Leaf, with their immense circulation, carry 
 at least one question and answer in consecutive order 
 with every Sabbath's lesson, illustrating it, and illus- 
 trated by it. Beyond question, the teachings of the 
 Catechism are thus brought home to a larger number 
 of the children and youth of our Church than at any 
 previous time in its history. It is still a living power, 
 and it will continue to be increasingly so, so long as 
 the Lesson Helps furnished by the Board are loyally 
 used and faithfully taught in our families and schools. 
 Of the Catechism for Young Children, an Introduction 
 to the Shorter Catechism, the Board has issued, since 
 1871, 2,720,000 copies. 
 
 Carefully-collected statistics show that these Helps 
 are now used in nearly eighty per cent, of our Sabbath- 
 schools. AYhy should they not find a place in all ? 
 
 PERIODICALS. 
 
 To furnish periodicals for teachers and scholars was 
 also made by the Assembly of 1871 a part of the 
 Board's Sabbath-school work. From year to year in- 
 creased attention has been given to such publications. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 125 
 
 The " periodical " is, at this day, an enormous power 
 for good or for evil. If less heavy in its impact than 
 the book, it outdoes it in the multiplicity of its blows. 
 Where books can be circulated by the hundred or 
 thousand, periodicals can be sent forth by tens and 
 hundreds of thousands. And this relative superiority 
 in the influence of the periodical is rapidly increasing. 
 The Board has not been unmindful of the times. 
 It has constantly aimed at the enlargement of its 
 ability to reach and to educate our children and 
 youth through this agency. In this aim it has been 
 greatly assisted by the growing efficiency of its 
 Sabbath-school work. 
 
 "the sabbath-school visitor." 
 This was the only illustrated Sabbath-school paper 
 published by the Board before the Keunion. It is 
 still fresh and full of the sprightly life of youth — a 
 welcome visitor in many thousands of homes. For 
 some years it was issued monthly, then twice a month ; 
 and in 1877 it was made a weekly paper. A change 
 was again made in 1883 to meet the demand of many 
 churches of small means for a paper with all the excel- 
 lences of the Visitor, but at a smaller cost than even 
 its low price. Since that date the Visitor has been 
 published on the first and third weeks of each month, 
 and another paper, 
 
 " THE MORNING STAR," 
 
 has taken the place of the Visitor for the second and 
 fourth weeks of each month. This paper is in every 
 
126 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 respect equal to the Visitor, but of one-half its size, 
 yet with more than one-half the amount of reading. 
 It is published at an extremely low price, so as to put 
 it within the reach of all. 
 
 "the PRESBYTERIAN AT WORK." 
 
 With January, 1873, the Board began the pub- 
 lication of a new periodical, The Presbyterian at 
 Work, The rapidly-growing interest in the Board's 
 Sabbath-school Department, the entrance upon more 
 specific efforts for Sabbath-school improvement, eleva- 
 tion and extension, the labors of a Superintendent of 
 this branch of church work, the systematic shape 
 taken by Sabbath-school Bible study, — all combined 
 to demand a channel through which this current of 
 interest, study, labor and thought might flow out to 
 the people of the Presbyterian Church. Whilst meeting 
 this demand, it was deemed wise to give our people a 
 paper containing also hints, suggestions and instruc- 
 tions upon other forms of lay activity. 
 
 The warm reception of this paper proved that in its 
 publication the Board did not misunderstand the needs 
 or the wishes of its constituents. At the end of six 
 months, with July, 1873, its size was enlarged by the 
 addition to it of the Westminster Teachers' Papers 
 (which had previously been published in pamphlet 
 form), without any increase in price. This change 
 brought with it an immediate influx of new sub- 
 scribers. To our Sabbath-school teachers and workers 
 it supplied just the assistance they needed in preparing 
 for their labors in the Sabbath-school, and the stim- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 127 
 
 ulus SO important to all ^vho are engaged in good 
 deeds for their fellow-men. With January, 1876, its 
 form was changed to a quarto of sixteen pages, in 
 compliance with the request of many of its friends. 
 From the beginning its largest constituency was found 
 among the teachers of our Sabbath-schools. 
 
 "the WESTMINSTER TEACHER." 
 
 With the beginning of 1879, Tlie Presbyterian at 
 Work was changed in form, contents and title, and 
 became The Westminster Teacher. It took the octavo 
 form, as more convenient for use and preservation. 
 Leaving more general topics to the weekly religious 
 press, it became specifically a helper to the officers, 
 teachers and advanced pupils of our Sabbath-schools. 
 This change of form and plan met with unqualified 
 approval, and led to considerable additions to its sub- 
 scription-list. It is now published in octavo form, 
 forty pages monthly. It contains from month to 
 month full and varied expositions of the International 
 Bible Lessons, with other valuable editorial and con- 
 tributed articles. Commendatory notices of it have 
 been received from all parts of the world, many of 
 them from pastors and workers of other denomina- 
 tions. Its value as a Sabbath-school help cannot be 
 overestimated. To Sabbath-school teachers and scholars 
 of our own denomination it gives aid not elsewhere 
 attainable, and to them it is indispensable. 
 
 "the sunbeam." 
 With January, 1875, the Board entered upon the 
 
128 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 publication of a paper for the very little people, espe- 
 cially those in the Infant Schools and Primary Classes. 
 With lively illustrations, tinted paper, large type and 
 easy reading, the Sunbeam offered itself to the young 
 folks. It immediately met so hearty a welcome as to 
 prove that it had a mission to fulfill. In the first 
 month of its publication it was an assured success. 
 For the first year four numbers were furnished monthly. 
 With the second year it was made a weekly paper. It 
 also serves as a primary lesson leaf on the Inter- 
 national Series. From year to year it has continued 
 to shine on an increasing army of young admirers. 
 
 " FORWARD." 
 
 With January, 1882, the Board began the pub- 
 lication of Forward, an illustrated monthly paper, 
 sixteen pages quarto, to meet the wants of that class 
 of our young people who have outgrown the " chil- 
 dren's papers," and who demand something more 
 mature. Since 1885 it has been published twice each 
 month. It is made attractive by pictorial illustrations, 
 whilst its aim is to furnish articles of an instructive 
 and elevating character, and yet to avoid being dull 
 and heavy. The name of the paper is suggestive and 
 fitly embodies its aims — ^to lead its readers on to better 
 things, to inspire and help them upward and forward. 
 It has steadily but not rapidly grown in popular favor, 
 and we trust will soon attain the extended circulation 
 to which its real merits entitle it. 
 
 The value of the w^ork of the Board in the publica- 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 129 
 
 tion of these periodicals can never be estimated. So 
 many bright, clear, inspiring pages bearing holy, help- 
 ful thoughts, sent out every week by thousands into so 
 many homes, cannot fail to perform a ministry of in- 
 calculable worth. The influence of all these printed 
 pages in the training of the children and youth of the 
 land cannot but be of the most beneficent and lasting 
 character. Their constantly-increasing circulation 
 shows that the Church has a proper appreciation of 
 their excellence. 
 
 EDITORIAL ASSISTANCE. 
 
 The great expansion of the Board's work during the 
 first decade after the Reunion, especially in the increase 
 of the number of illustrated Sabbath-school papers 
 and lesson helps, laid a largely-increased amount of 
 labor and responsibility upon the Editorial Secretary. 
 The General Assembly of 1880, after speaking with 
 approval of the labors of the Board and of the fidelity 
 of its members, said : 
 
 These facts sufficiently attest the fidelity of the brethren 
 who compose the Board, and the conclusion which their 
 actions compel is confirmed by the " Attendance Roll " 
 that has been placed in the hands of your Committee. 
 Most of them, as ascertained from this, have been present 
 at nearly every meeting held during during the past twelve 
 months. In the review of their counsels and plans we find 
 much to commend and nothing to condemn. It is obvious, 
 however, that the increase which calls forth our gratitude 
 to God has brought with it large increase of labor for the 
 Editor of our periodicals, and, as this labor is becoming 
 heavy for him to bear alone, your Committee recommend 
 9 
 
130 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 that the Board be instructed to provide a suitable assistant 
 to share with him the duties he has so well discharged 
 and the responsibilities he has faithfully met. 
 
 In accordance with these instructions, the Board, after 
 diligent inquiry, made choice of the Rev. J. R. Miller, 
 then pastor of the Broadway Presbyterian Church 
 of Rock Island, 111., and appointed him Assistant to 
 the Editorial Secretary. This position was accepted 
 by Mr. Miller, and he entered upon its duties in July, 
 1880. The Board and the Church were united in the 
 judgment that Mr. Miller possessed uncommon adap- 
 tation to the work, and his untiring labors not only 
 relieved the overburdened Editorial Secretary, but 
 also added largely to the value and usefulness of the 
 publications of the Board. 
 
 NORMAL-CLASS INSTRUCTION. 
 
 A second branch of Sabbath-school work which the 
 Board at the Reunion was directed to make a prominent 
 and organic part of its operations was — 
 
 B. To establish such agencies as it may deem suitable 
 for elevating the standard of teaching, and more thoroughly 
 developing the great idea of Sabbath-schools — that of im- 
 parting the knowledge of God to the young and drawing 
 them to the salvation of Christ. 
 
 The appointment of a General Superintendent of 
 Sabbath-school Work had specific reference to this 
 branch of labor. In the discharge of the duties of 
 this office Mr. Tyler labored with faithfulness and in- 
 dustry. During each of the five years that he was in 
 the service of the Board he traveled from ten to 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 131 
 
 twelve thousand miles, visited Presbyteries and Synods, 
 conducted Synodical and Presbyterial Institutes, and 
 sought to secure a closer unity of the schools with the 
 Church and with one another. Time and labor were 
 also given to the education and training of teachers and 
 the attainment of a higher and better grade of teaching 
 by the formation of Normal Classes in towns and 
 cities, and of Training Classes in individual churches. 
 Besides these laborious field-duties, a part of his 
 time was devoted to office work in the preparation of 
 the Westminster Lesson Leaf, of contributions to the 
 Presbyterian at Work, and, in connection with other 
 contributors, in the preparation of the Normal-Class 
 Book Preparing to Teach, a work of great value, which 
 ought to be in the hands of every Sabbath-school 
 teacher. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL MISSION WORK. 
 
 A third branch of Sabbath-school Work embraced 
 in the plan of the Board adopted by the Assembly of 
 1871 was— 
 
 C. In appointing colporteurs, as far as possible to select 
 such persons as may also be suitable for Sabbath -school 
 missionaries, and instruct them to establish Sabbath- 
 schools in destitute localities, under the supervision of 
 the Presbyteries. 
 
 The Board was not unmindful of this direction of 
 the Assembly. In carrying it out it sought to obtain 
 the co-operation of all the Presbyteries. It urged 
 upon them the appointment of Publication Committees, 
 according to the direction of the Assembly of 1870, 
 
132 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 and the enlargement of their functions so as to com- 
 prehend all duties having reference to Sabbath-school 
 Work within their respective bounds. It especially 
 requested them, in recommending persons for appoint- 
 ment as colporteurs, to have due reference to their 
 qualifications for Sabbath-school mission work. It 
 incorporated the following among the " Instructions " 
 given to all its colporteurs : 
 
 Endeavor earnestly to visit every Presbyterian Sabbath- 
 school within your fields of labor, and acquaint yourself, 
 so far as you can, with the Superintendent, teachers and 
 other active friends of the school. 
 
 Be continually on the lookout for destitute localities 
 where Sabbath-schools may be established ; and when they 
 are found, you are to spare no pains, under the supervision 
 of the Presbytery or its Publication Committee, to effect 
 an organization and start the school with the best possible 
 arrangements for permanent success and usefulness. 
 
 Eeport quarterly to the Superintendent of Colportage 
 the number of Sabbath-schools you visit and the number 
 you have established in destitute localities. 
 
 This beginning of Sabbath-school Mission Work 
 was made in 1872, and it was hoped that from year to 
 year it would become an increasingly important and 
 useful part of the colporteur's work, fraught with bless- 
 ings to the youth of our land and the Church of God. 
 The new items with regard to Sabbath-schools were 
 first reported to the Assembly of 1874. The Reports 
 of the thirteen years ending with the reorganization 
 of the Board in 1887 give the following results : 
 
 Visits to Sabbath schools 19,775 
 
 New Sabbath-schools organized 1,561 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 133 
 
 The Sabbath-schools thus visited and organized were 
 very many of them aided by grants of books, lesson 
 helps and other requisites, according to their needs, 
 and as liberally as the missionary resources of the 
 Board would allow. 
 
 The Assembly of 1875 bore commendatory testimony 
 to the value of this branch of the Board's work : 
 
 The Sabbath-school Work of the Board has been con- 
 ducted with great energy and prosperity, has greatly 
 enlarged the sphere of usefulness of the Board, and has 
 established itself as one of the wisest and most efficient of 
 the late missionary and benevolent agencies of the Church. 
 
 Similar testimony was given by the General Assem- 
 bly of 1876. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK REMODELED. 
 
 But, whilst the Assembly thus repeatedly expressed 
 its hearty approval of the work already done, there 
 was at the same time a growing conviction that this 
 agency had not attained the efficiency that the im- 
 portance and urgency of the work demanded. The 
 Assembly of 1876, therefore, besides taking the action 
 just referred to, instructed the Board " to inquire into 
 the management of the Sabbath-school Department, 
 with a view to its greater efficiency, and to make such 
 changes as may in their judgment best secure this 
 most desirable object." 
 
 Failing health compelled Mr. Tyler in September, 
 1876, to ask a release from the service of the Board, 
 and his resignation was accordingly accepted, to take 
 effect March 31, 1877. In his position as Superin- 
 
134 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 tendent of Sabbath-school Work Mr. Tyler rendered 
 important service, not only to the Presbyterian Church, 
 but to the cause of Bible study and Sabbath-school 
 efficiency at large. The Board, in accepting his resig- 
 nation, unanimously expressed " its sense of the zeal, 
 industry, energy and fidelity with which he discharged 
 the difficult duties attached to his office." 
 
 The Board referred the instructions of the Assembly 
 to its Missionary Committee, which had the supervision 
 of the Sabbath-school Department, excepting those 
 portions of the work naturally belonging to the Pub- 
 lication Committee. The Committee gave careful and 
 protracted consideration to the whole subject, exam- 
 ined the working of similar departments in other 
 denominations, and patiently studied the peculiarities 
 of our own Church as they might furnish facilities 
 for the development of Sabbath-school Work or demand 
 its earnest prosecution. And in view of the light thus 
 obtained the Board remodeled and defined the whole 
 department, and especially the duties of the Superin- 
 tendent of Sabbath-school Work, so as to make their 
 influence more widely felt throughout the Church. 
 This action of the Board was reported to the General 
 Assembly of 1877, and received its approval. 
 
 Under the plan thus remodeled and defined Sabbath- 
 school Work remained, as it had hitherto been, an 
 integral part of the Missionary Department of the 
 Board, under the direction of the Missionary Com- 
 mittee, excepting those portions of the work naturally 
 belonging to the Publishing Committee. The instruc- 
 tions to colporteurs with regard to this portion of their 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 135 
 
 duties were repeated and emphasized. They were 
 directed, as they went from one neighborhood to 
 another, to visit, encourage and aid Sabbath-schools, 
 especially those that were poor or feeble or imperfectly 
 organized, and to supply them with the library-books, 
 Sabbath-school lessons and periodicals published by 
 the Board. They were also instructed to gather, 
 organize and help new Sabbath-schools in destitute 
 and needy localities where the children and youth 
 were growing up without any suitable provision for 
 their religious instruction. They were required to 
 report as to their diligence in the discharge of these 
 duties and the results of their labors to the Superin- 
 tendent of Colportage, or Missionary Work, who, under 
 the Missionary Committee and the Corresponding 
 Secretary, had oversight of all their work. 
 
 A series of rules was formulated for the direction of 
 the General Superintendent in his work. His duties 
 were defined as follows : 
 
 1. He shall report to the Missionary Committee at its 
 monthly stated meetings, as far as may be practicable, and 
 shall consult with it in reference to his various plans for 
 developing the work; he shall also from time to time 
 report to the Board. 
 
 2. It shall be his duty thoroughly to acquaint himself 
 with the whole subject, and to devise improved methods 
 of Sabbath-school work for the use of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 3. With the approval and by the co-operation of Synods 
 and Presbyteries he shall work out so much organization 
 of the Sabbath-schools of our Church as may be needed to 
 establish local, Presbyterial and Synodical conventions of 
 
136 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 teachers, to be held at stated intervals, and as may enable 
 him to prepare annually a statistical exhibit of our Sab- 
 bath-schools. 
 
 4. As far as practicable, he shall attend the General 
 Assembly, Synods and Presbyteries, and present the in- 
 terests of the Sabbath-school cause. He shall also furnish 
 information in regard to the organization of Sabbath- 
 School Conventions, and, when time will allow, either 
 conduct them or assist in them, as may be desired. 
 
 5. He shall visit churches and Sabbath-schools, and, 
 when the way is open, occupy pulpits, presenting the in- 
 terests and wants of the cause. 
 
 6. In each of our Theological Seminaries, when the 
 professors shall approve and furnish the opportunity, he 
 shall from time to time deliver lectures on the importance 
 of the Sabbath-school, its sphere of work in our Church, 
 its proper objects, the wisest modes of conducting it, the 
 pastor's personal work in it, and the subject of preaching 
 to children. 
 
 7. He shall prepare yearly an annual of Sabbath-school 
 work, containing matured counsels on the subject, intelli- 
 gence concerning the progress of the work, and whatever 
 else may tend to increase interest in it among our churches ; 
 also, as far as practicable, a statistical table of all our 
 schools, with the number of officers, teachers and scholars 
 in each. 
 
 8. It shall be his duty, in all his addresses, discourses 
 and public and private conferences, to keep it before him 
 as a distinct aim to stimulate liberality, especially that of 
 Sabbath -schools toward the Board's Missionary Fund, to 
 have collections of the churches and Sabbath-schools 
 turned into its treasury, and to describe the Board's pub* 
 lications and urge their use in preference to others. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 137 
 
 SUPERINTENDENT OF SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 Great care was taken in filling the vacant ofiEice of 
 General Superintendent. After extensive correspond- 
 ence and consultation, the Board in January, 1878, 
 unanimously elected the Rev. James A. Worden, then 
 pastor of the Second Presbyterian Church of Steuben- 
 ville, Ohio. Mr. Worden accepted the office, and 
 entered upon its duties April 1, 1878. He brought to 
 the work much experience in Sabbath-school affairs, 
 and his election gave great satisfaction to the Church, 
 especially to those who had taken an active part in 
 Sabbath-school work. The field and plan of work, as 
 remodeled and defined by the Board, received his 
 cordial approval as being in his opinion eminently 
 wise and practicable. 
 
 In carrying out the clearly-defined plan of the 
 Board in relation to his office, the Superintendent 
 from the beginning labored with zeal and industry. 
 During the first year he attended the International 
 Sabbath-School Convention at Atlanta, Georgia, and 
 addressed it on The True Basis of Sabbath-School Work; 
 attended the General Assembly at Pittsburgh, Pa., and 
 took part in a large and interesting Sabbath-school 
 meeting held by its appointment; represented the 
 Church and the Board on the International Lesson 
 Committee, at which the general plan of lessons of 
 the International Series for the next seven years was 
 decided; visited and held Sabbath-school meetings, 
 chiefly on the Sabbath, in more than sixty cities and 
 villages in ten different States; took part in large 
 Sabbath-school Assemblies at Round Lake and Chau- 
 
138 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 tauqua; presided over the Sabbath-school Assembly 
 of the North-west at Clear Lake, Iowa ; attended the 
 meetings of eight of our Synods and addressed them 
 upon the Sabbath-school Work of the Board ; and 
 organized and instructed Normal Classes in several 
 places for the preparation of teachers. 
 
 We have given this outline of the labors of the 
 Superintendent during the first year of his official 
 connection with the Board somewhat in detail, inas- 
 much as it is a fair exhibit of the diligence and energy 
 with which he prosecuted his work during each suc- 
 ceeding year until the reorganization of the Board in 
 1887. The Assembly of 1880 bore decided testimony 
 to his diligence, which later Assemblies in substance 
 repeated. 
 
 SECRETARY OF SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 By the action of the General Assembly of 1880, the 
 General Superintendent was appointed Secretary of 
 Sabbaih-School Work. This alteration in the title and 
 standing of the executive officer necessitated certain 
 modifications of the work, which were accordingly 
 made. The General Assembly of 1881 directed the 
 appointment of a permanent committee of the Board 
 to consult with the Secretary and aid him in the per- 
 formance of his duties. These duties were precisely 
 the same as had been performed by the General Super- 
 intendent, and the same methods were pursued in 
 elevating, systematizing and improving the work 
 throughout the churches. To these methods and 
 labors the Assembly gave its hearty approval. 
 
BOARD OP PUBLICATION. 139 
 
 In the Report to the General Assembly of 1881 
 the principles and plans of the Board were given at 
 length. These, as there set forth, were — 
 
 1. More closely to identify the Sabbath-school with the 
 Church. 
 
 2. Practically to elevate the standard of Bible teaching. 
 
 3. To secure thorough reports from all our Sabbath- 
 schools. 
 
 4. To prevent the Sabbath-school from becoming a sub- 
 stitute for parental training. 
 
 5. To prevent the Sabbath-school from becoming a sub- 
 stitute for the preaching service of the Church. 
 
 6. To bring all our Sabbath-schools to the position that 
 Presbyterian mission work is best performed by Presbyte- 
 rian agencies, and that such agencies, in preference to 
 others, should receive the benevolent contributions of 
 Presbyterian Sabbath-schools. 
 
 7. To subordinate all machinery, methods and expedi- 
 ents to the spiritual life and work of our Sabbath-schools. 
 
 A review of the work from that time onward until 
 the reorganization of the Board in 1887 will show how 
 steadily these plans and principles were kept in view 
 and what advance was made in practically carrying 
 them out. 
 
 IDENTITY OF SCHOOL AND CHURCH. 
 
 From year to year there has been a steady progress 
 throughout the Church in the recognition of the prin- 
 ciple that the Sabbath-school is in fact a Church 
 service, and that it should be one with the Church 
 in the persons composing it. There has been decided 
 advance in the recognition of the true principle of the 
 
140 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 government of the Sabbath-school. The instances are 
 becoming rare where the mistaken endeavor is made to 
 conduct the Sabbath-school independently o^ Church 
 control. Nearly all our schools gladly submit to the 
 authoritative supervision of their Sessions. 
 
 There has also been advance in Presbyterial Sabbath- 
 School Work. Most of the Presbyteries have Standing 
 Committees on this work. Many of them have organ- 
 ized their officers and teachers into Presbyterial Sab- 
 bath-School Associations. These Associations and Com- 
 mittees generally hold conventions and institutes for 
 the instruction of their Bible teachers. These faithful 
 officers and teachers are made to feel the sympathy 
 and help of the Presbyteries. The work in the Synods 
 has also grown in the same proportion as in the Pres- 
 byteries. This advance in the recognition of the 
 identity of the Sabbath -school and the Church, and in 
 the co-operation and sympathy of the Church judica- 
 tories with our Sabbath-school workers, has been in 
 large measure the result of the labors of this Depart- 
 ment, which has kept this principle steadily in view. 
 
 STATISTICS. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1878, repeating the action 
 of several former Assemblies, recommended a thorough 
 collection of Sabbath-school statistics. An earnest 
 endeavor was made to carry out this recommendation. 
 Statistical blanks were sent out, and attention was 
 called to them through the denominational papers. 
 Keports were thus obtained during the year from thir- 
 teen hundred schools. From year to year special 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 141 
 
 attention was given to this important subject. As the 
 result of these persistent efforts the Department now 
 has as complete and accurate a system of Sabbath- 
 school statistics as can be found in any Church. They 
 are annually published in the Appendix to the Minutes 
 of the General Assembly. 
 
 NORMAL-CLASS WOEK. 
 
 From the outset the Board pressed upon the Church 
 the necessity and importance of the more thorough 
 preparation of Sabbath-school teachers. Under the 
 auspices of the Presbyteries of Philadelphia and Phil- 
 adelphia Central the Superintendent began a Normal 
 Class in January, 1879. The meetings were held in 
 the Assembly-Room of the Board of Publication. The 
 class was largely attended, and gave an impulse tow^ard 
 a higher standard of Bible teaching. During the next 
 winter it excited still greater interest. The successful 
 operation of this class in this centre of influence led 
 to the organization of similar classes for the training 
 of Sabbath-school teachers in many parts of the 
 Church. Two volumes, entitled Westminster Normal- 
 Class Outlines, Junior and Middle Courses, were pre- 
 pared and published, to be used in preparation classes 
 for teachers. From year to year conventions and in- 
 stitutes were held in connection with many of our 
 Synods and Presbyteries. Such institutes elevate the 
 standard of Bible teaching; they stimulate thought 
 upon the subjects included in their labor ; they create 
 fresh enthusiasm for earnest study and for better work 
 in these lines. 
 
142 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES. 
 
 In nearly all our Theological Seminaries the Secre- 
 tary furnished from time to time series of lectures 
 concerning the Sabbath-school Work, the Training of 
 Teachers, Preaching to Children, the Pastor's Position 
 and Work in the Sabbath-School, and other kindred 
 subjects. 
 
 THE SCHOOL, THE CHURCH AND THE HOME. 
 
 The Board also endeavored to prevent the Sabbath- 
 school from becoming a substitute for the preaching 
 service of the Church. Efforts were organized to 
 bring into the worship of the sanctuary every scholar 
 of our schools. 
 
 The statistical blanks sent out by the department to 
 all our schools require a report of the number of 
 scholars habitually attending the preaching service. 
 Year by year effort has also been made to prevent the 
 Sabbath-school from becoming a substitute for parental 
 training. We have many assurances that the Sabbath- 
 school is now proving an auxiliary to home-training, 
 providing it with an admirable system of lessons to be 
 taught by fathers and mothers, and that in thousands 
 of cases the Sabbath-school lesson exercise is a recita- 
 tion to the teacher, and a review by him of what the 
 scholar has learned of the Bible and Catechism under 
 parental supervision and instruction at home. 
 
 children's day. 
 The General Assembly of 1883 designated the second 
 Sabbath in June as " Children's Day," on which special 
 services for the children should be held, and the vital 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 143 
 
 topics of the Christian nurture and the conversion of 
 the young should be pressed upon the thought of the 
 entire congregation. The observance of this day has 
 become very general throughout our Church, and has 
 been attended with most excellent practical and spirit- 
 ual results. 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL COLLECTIONS. 
 
 The Assembly of 1883 also emphatically declared 
 that in its judgment Sabbath-schools " should always 
 and especially remember the Sabbath-School Mission- 
 ary Work of the Board " in their contributions. The 
 Secretary was directed, in all his addresses and public 
 and private conferences, to make it a distinct aim to 
 stimulate liberality, especially that of Sabbath-schools, 
 toward the Board's Missionary Fund, and to have col- 
 lections of the churches and Sabbath-schools turned 
 into its treasury. It was recommended, with the 
 approval of the Assembly, that special collections 
 should be made for this object on Children's Day. 
 By these efforts the contributions of our schools have 
 been largely increased. 
 
 Thus the review of the plans and operations of this 
 Department from the Eeunion in 1870 to the reorgan- 
 ization of the Board in 1887 shows as the result a 
 larger and more intelligent apprehension of the Sab- 
 bath-school Work, a deepening interest in it, and more 
 of wise oversight and effort to improve its methods and 
 appliances. 
 
 EXAMINATION OF ASSETS AND ACCOUNTS. 
 
 The General Assembly of 1884 appointed a Special 
 
144 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Committee, which was charged with the duty of making 
 a thorough examination of the assets and accounts of 
 the Board, with instructions to employ an expert ac- 
 countant, to be paid by the Board. 
 
 This Committee in the prosecution of the work as- 
 signed it engaged the services of a gentleman of 
 unquestioned ability in his profession. The work of 
 the accountant was thorough, exhaustive and conscien- 
 tious. Many months were spent in the investigation, 
 at an ex^pense of several thousand dollars. The final 
 report of the Committee was presented to the Assembly 
 of 1886. This report contained the following state- 
 ment: 
 
 Under the rigid examination of our expert of the result 
 of two years of work, whilst some slight inaccuracies were 
 brought to light in the counting-room, resulting from want 
 of care, and perhaps too great a pressure of other duties 
 besides legitimate book-keeping on the part of the Ac- 
 countant, there is not the slightest evidence of intentional 
 wrong as far as the pecuniary affairs of the Board are 
 concerned. 
 
 The assets of the Board are all in good condition, and 
 the securities and trust funds, amounting to $92,271.86, 
 safely deposited in proper hands. In two instances the 
 proceeds of the trust funds have not been applied in the 
 direction indicated by the donors. 
 
 It was found in the course of this investigation, as 
 here reported, that the interest accruing from certain 
 funds for Bible purposes had been credited to the 
 Missionary Fund and used for general missionary 
 work, instead of being applied in accordance with the 
 stipulations of the donors. This error was corrected 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATIOX. 145 
 
 by the Board as soon as it was discovered, and the 
 proper appropriation made of these bequests. 
 
 RESIGNATION OF DR. SCHENCK. 
 
 The Eev. Wm. E. Schenck, D. D., completed his 
 thirtieth year of continuous service as Corresponding 
 Secretary of the Board, November 1, 1884. The Board 
 made record of this fact by the adoption of a minute 
 expressive of its high appreciation of tlie vakie of the 
 services rendered by Dr. Schenck during this long 
 series of years, and " in order that he might be thor- 
 oughly restored to that health which had been tempo- 
 rarily impaired in its service, and that he might be 
 built up for still longer service to the Board, recom- 
 mended him, at such time as 'might be most agreeable 
 to himself, to take a vacation of several months." 
 
 Dr. Schenck continued in the active discharge of 
 the duties of his office during the winter and spring of 
 1885. For most of the summer of that year he was 
 prostrated by serious illness. He recovered, however, 
 sufficiently to enable him to resume his duties in Sep- 
 tember, and he continued to discharge them, though 
 laboring under serious indisposition, until near the end 
 of the year, when he availed himself of the leave of 
 absence so cordially extended to him and urged upon 
 him the preceding year. After spending some weeks 
 in California his physical condition constrained him 
 to send to the Board the following letter, resigning the 
 office which he had so long held ; which letter was pre- 
 sented to the Board at its Stated Meeting, March 23, 
 1886 : 
 
 10 
 
146 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 Santa Barbara, California, 
 February 24, 1886. 
 To the Presbyterian Board of Publicatiati : 
 
 It will be remembered that at your last annual meeting 
 in June, 1885, I stated that I had been seriously consider- 
 ing the question of declining a re-election at that time on 
 the ground of ill-health, but that, at the request of many 
 of your members, I did consent to re-election for another 
 year. I came to the Pacific Coast in the middle of Decem- 
 ber, hoping for a restoration, in this warm and lovely 
 climate, to my accustomed health. I am still hopeful that 
 this may be accomplished, but medical advisers tell me 
 that it will be a work of time, and that if I return to the 
 North too soon I may lose all that I have gained, and even 
 more. To await here recovery of health would be likely 
 to detain me longer than I ought to be absent from the 
 duties of my office, or than your kind leave of absence 
 would warrant. 
 
 On a review of the whole matter I have decided that 
 my increasing years and precarious health require me to 
 retire from the w^ork I dearly love, and in the prosecution 
 of which I have spent nearly thirty-two years of my life. 
 I therefore hereby tender to the Board my resignation of 
 the office of Corresponding Secretary, this resignation to 
 take effect on the first day of May next. I send this paper 
 at the earliest practicable moment, so as to give time for 
 consideration as to what you may desire to do in reference 
 to the appointment of a successor. 
 
 I need hardly say that it has cost me many and severe 
 struggles to reach the above decision. I have dearly loved 
 the work in which I have been engaged, and have never 
 been so profoundly impressed with its importance, neces- 
 sity and value as now, since I have been seeing the 
 unspeakable need of it in New Mexico, Arizona and 
 California. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 147 
 
 When I became Corresponding Secretary of the Board, 
 in 1854, it was comparatively an acorn. It has since 
 become a mighty oak. In property, in the number of its 
 publications, in widespread, potent and beneficent influ- 
 ences, it has many times doubled its resources. That our 
 divine Lord and Master may watch over it and bless it 
 more and more, and use it through coming centuries for 
 the advancement of his own kingdom and glory, is and 
 shall lifelong be my earnest prayer. 
 
 Most truly and fraternally yours, 
 
 W. E. SCHENCK. 
 
 A series of resolutions expressive of the feelings of 
 the Board in view of the resignation of Dr. Schenck, 
 and also proposing important changes in the organiza- 
 tion of the Board, was presented, and after considera- 
 tion referred to a Committee of seven, with instructions 
 " to consider whether any, and if any what, changes 
 should be made in the oflficering of the Board and its 
 By-laws, in view of Dr. Schenck's resignation, and to 
 recommend such changes as it might deem desirable.'' 
 
 This Committee presented its report at the next 
 monthly meeting of the Board, April 27, 1886, as 
 follows : 
 
 Your Committee, appointed at the last meeting of the 
 Board to consider the matters involved in the resolutions 
 which were then offered, in view of the resignation of his 
 office tendered by Eev. William E. Schenck, D. D., the 
 Corresponding Secretary, have given careful attention to 
 the subject entrusted to them, and now report as follows: 
 
 1. That they are of opinion that proper regard for the 
 health of Dr. Schenck makes it desirable to accept his 
 resignation without unnecessary delay, in order that he 
 
148 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 may be relieved of the care and anxiety which necessarily 
 wear upon him so long as he is, in any manner, responsible 
 for the discharge of official duties. 
 
 2. In the event of the resignation of the Corresponding 
 Secretary being accepted, your Committee are of the 
 opinion that a very serious question arises with reference 
 to the future interests and prosperity of the Board. 
 
 It is not necessary to go into any details for the purpose 
 of demonstrating that there have been in the past certain 
 frictions and diversities of interest in different departments 
 of our work which have interfered with the most efficient 
 and successful administration of this branch of the organ- 
 ized effort of our Church. 
 
 Instead of there being one scheme, harmoniously and 
 smoothly developed along several lines, there have too 
 often been divergent and discordant enterprises, advocated 
 and urged, one against the other, as warmly and earnestly 
 as if the different branches of the work of the Board be- 
 longed to distinct and rival organizations, instead of being, 
 as they are and ought to be more completely, but separate 
 arms and forces of one organism. We fear that too much 
 has been lost already, in respect of unity, symmetry and 
 efficiency, in this line of benevolence and activity. We 
 believe that no change would contribute more to the pros- 
 perity of the Board, and to the growth of an intelligent 
 and permanent confidence on the part of the Church in 
 its management, than such a reorganization among its 
 executive officers as would give to one earnest, judicious 
 man the supremacy in all matters of administration and 
 in all departments, subject, of course, to the direction of 
 the Board. 
 
 In case of a vacancy in the office of Corresponding 
 Secretary, an opportunity is presented for making such a 
 change. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 149 
 
 The Committee are of the opinion that there should be 
 but one Secretary of the Board, and that he should be 
 ultimate authority among the executive officers or agents 
 of the Board, in all its departments or branches of work — 
 editorial, missionary, Sabbath-school and business. His 
 duties should be supervisory — to such an extent, at the least, 
 as would enable him to bring all these branches of effort 
 into harmonious relations with each other, and to keep 
 them so. 
 
 The name of this officer should be indicative of his 
 position — as, for example. General or Managing Secretary. 
 
 The editorial, Sabbath-school and business departments 
 should each have its superintendent, who should attend to 
 the details of the respective departments, under the gen- 
 eral direction of the Secretary, who should also take such 
 a share in the active labor of the missionary and editorial 
 branches as he may be able to do. Some of the details of 
 the missionary work might, we think, be united with that 
 of the officer in charge of the Sabbath-school Work. 
 
 It may be suggested that a practical difficulty in such a 
 scheme of reorganization presents itself in the fact that 
 there is now a Secretary of Sabbath-school Work. 
 
 The Committee would not, however, consider this diffi- 
 culty insurmountable. The name could be allowed to 
 remain as it is for the time being. As it was imposed by 
 the action of the General Assembly, it would not be com- 
 petent for this Board, in any event, to do more than 
 recommend a return to the old name. We would not, 
 however, desire to do anything which might seem dis- 
 courteous to the Secretary of that department, and there- 
 fore we would simply recommend such changes in the 
 nature of his duties, or of his relation to them, as would 
 bring his department into subordination to, and harmony 
 with, the general system which we have in mind. 
 
150 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 These statements, we think, will be sufficient to inform 
 the Board of the line of thought and purpose which 
 influences the Committee in recommending the adoption 
 of the resolutions which will hereafter appear. 
 
 3. Whether such a reorganization as we have previously- 
 referred to should be made, or the Board continue its work 
 substantially according to its present methods, your Com- 
 mittee recognize the importance of a wise selection of the 
 successor to Rev. Dr. Schenck. 
 
 One of the resolutions which were referred to this Com- 
 mittee presents the name of the present Editorial Secretary, 
 Eev. Dr. Dulles, in this connection, and it became neces- 
 sary, therefore, for us to take the subject into considera- 
 tion. 
 
 We have endeavored to look at it entirely apart from 
 any personal feelings of kindness for the person named, 
 as well as from any impression that he has any sort of 
 right of succession. 
 
 To some of us the suggestion embodied in the resolution, 
 equally with the introduction of the principal subject- 
 matter of the resolutions, was a surprise. 
 
 On reflection, however, we are fully satisfied that, taking 
 every interest of the Board into consideration, it would be 
 a wise action to elect Dr. Dulles as Secretary, to take the 
 duties of the Corresponding Secretary under such a distri- 
 bution of labor as the Board may direct. 
 
 We think he has superior qualifications for present 
 needs. His intimate knowledge of the history and work 
 of the Board, his tact and afiability in dealing with men, 
 his industry and power of organization, together with his 
 long experience, fit him, in our judgment, eminently for 
 the position. His modesty and indisposition to push his 
 own interests are not elements of weakness. 
 
 If in any essential respect he is lacking, it is in a point 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 151 
 
 where physical, and not mental or moral, infirmity is the 
 cause. In this respect, we think, the demands in the 
 interest of the Board are by no means so important as in 
 others as to which we regard Dr. Dulles peculiarly strong. 
 
 We know of no man who could be entrusted with the 
 charge of affairs at this time who would more thoroughly 
 have the confidence of the Board and the Church than he. 
 We would, therefore, cordially recommend his election. 
 
 Your Committee are not now prepared to report the 
 changes which ought to be made in the By-Laws of the 
 Board, in case the general scheme now recommended 
 should be adopted. These ought to be prepared with 
 deliberation and care, and it is obvious that the form 
 which they should take will depend upon the manner in 
 which it shall be determined that the work of the Board 
 shall hereafter be conducted. The Committee therefore 
 withholds any report upon that subject. 
 
 For the purpose of carrying out the views which have 
 been hereinbefore stated the Committee recommend the 
 adoption of the first and second of the resolutions offered 
 by Rev. Dr. Mutchmore at the last meeting of the Board, 
 and, in view of the report now made, that the third and 
 fourth of those resolutions be not adopted. 
 
 They also recommend the adoption of the following 
 resolutions — viz. : 
 
 1. That in the judgment of this Board, in view of the 
 resignation of Rev. Dr. Schenck as Corresponding Secre- 
 tary, it is desirable, in the interest of the work committed 
 to the care of the Board, to elect a General Secretary who 
 shall have supervision and direction, subject to the control 
 of the Board, over all departments of its work, and to 
 whom all the other administrative officers shall be sub- 
 ordinate. 
 
 2. That the work of the Board shall be so reorganized 
 
152 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 as to do away with the offices of Corresponding and 
 Editorial Secretaries, and to distribute the duties which 
 have belonged heretofore to these two offices aniong the 
 officers who shall remain after such reorganization. 
 
 3. That in the opinion of the Board it will be for the 
 best interests of this Board to elect Rev. Dr. Dulles, the 
 present Editorial Secretary, as General Secretary. 
 
 4. That this Committee be continued, for the purpose 
 of considering and recommending such changes in the 
 By-Laws and in the organization and distribution of the 
 work of the Board, and in any matters cognate thereto, as 
 may be desirable in view of the action of the Board upon 
 the preceding resolutions. 
 
 This report was approved, and its recommendations 
 were adopted. The resolutions with regard to the resig- 
 nation of Dr. Schenck were as follows : 
 
 Resolved, 1. That, deeply regretting the occasion and 
 necessity of this resignation, which will deprive the Board 
 of the service of a most faithful and devoted officer, yet, 
 regarding the positive and unqualified wish of Dr. Schenck, 
 and in the hope that release from all care will restore his 
 health, we feel compelled to meet his desires and accept 
 his resignation, with the understanding that his salary 
 shall be continued to June 1, 1886. 
 
 Resolved, 2. That a committee be appointed to draft and 
 present to the Board a suitable testimony of the respect 
 and regret of the Board. 
 
 The Committee of seven, by direction of the Board, 
 presented the Minute provided for in the second resolu- 
 tion, which was adopted by a rising vote, May 6, 1886, 
 as follows : 
 
 Resolved, That, in accepting the resignation of Dr. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 153 
 
 Schenck as Corresponding Secretary of the Board, we 
 desire to record our high appreciation of his zeal, fidelity 
 and service during the many years he has occupied this 
 office. First, as the Executive Officer of the Board be- 
 longing to one of the branches of the United Church, and 
 since the Reunion the Executive Officer of the Consoli- 
 dated Board, covering in all the term of thirty-two years, 
 Dr. Schenck has labored with commendable zeal to pro- 
 mote the interests of this Board, and through its publica- 
 tions and Missionary Work to promote the cause of Christ 
 as it is entrusted to the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 By constant devotion, and with a desire to do whatever 
 was right, and whatever promoted efficiency and success 
 for the work committed to his trust. Dr. Schenck gave his 
 best efforts and the strength of his best years to this 
 Board. And. although it is our regret and the regret of 
 the Church that incessant anxiety has undermined his 
 health, and has compelled him to lay down his work, yet 
 we rejoice in the fruits of his service and congratulate 
 him on retiring that he has done a work that honors him, 
 and he will be held in the abiding esteem of his associates, 
 and of the Church that he so long and so devotedly served. 
 
 The Kev. Dr. Dulles was appointed to discbarge the 
 duties of the Corresponding Secretary until the reor- 
 ganization of the work of the Board should be effected 
 under the resolutions adopted. 
 
 The Committee of seven reported to the Board at 
 its meeting in September, 1886, such changes in the 
 By-laws as it judged necessary for the reorganization 
 of the Board and the distribution of its w^ork accord- 
 ing to the plan adopted at the April meeting. Afler 
 prolonged discussion the Eeport of the Committee was 
 finally adopted, January 18, 1887. Under the amended 
 
154 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 By-laws the Rev. John W. Dulles, D. D., was elected 
 General Secretary, and the Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D., 
 Editor. 
 
 DEATH OF DR. DULLES. 
 
 Dr. Dulles, however, never entered upon the new 
 responsibilities laid upon him. At the time of his 
 election he was seriously ill. He died April 13, 1887. 
 
 The Board met the next day. Mr. Samuel C. 
 Perkins, Rev. Charles A. Dickey, D. D. and Rev. 
 William Brenton Greene, Jr., were appointed a Com- 
 mittee to prepare resolutions in regard to the death of 
 Dr. Dulles. The Committee reported the following, 
 which were unanimously adopted : 
 
 Resolved, That this Board has heard with deep grief and 
 unfeigned sorrow of the death of the Rev. John W. 
 Dulles, D. D,, its General Secretary, who had been identi- 
 fied with the Publication Work of the Presbyterian Church 
 for so many years, and had won the esteem, respect and 
 affection of all who had been associated with him. 
 
 Resolved, That the book-store of the Board be closed on 
 the afternoon of the funeral, after two o'clock, and that 
 the members of the Board, its officers and employes 
 attend the funeral services in a body. 
 
 Resolved, That the Business Committee be authorized to 
 make all necessary arrangements. 
 
 Resolved, That this Committee be continued, with in- 
 structions to prepare a suitable Minute to be entered on 
 the records expressive of the feelings of the Board in view 
 of the great loss which it has sustained. 
 
 The Committee reported the following Minute to 
 the Board at its Stated Meeting, April 26, 1887, and it 
 was unanimously adopted : 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. * 155 
 
 The Committee to whom was referred the preparation 
 of a Minute to be entered on the Records of the Board in 
 memory of the late General Secretary, Rev. John W. 
 Dulles, D. D., respectfully submit the following : 
 
 John Welsh Dulles, born in Philadelphia November 4, 
 1823, was the son of Joseph H. and Margaret (Welsh) 
 Dulles. His father graduated at Yale in 1814, and was 
 for many years a leading merchant in Philadelphia, a 
 member of the Fifth Presbyterian Church, and for twenty- 
 two years, from 1831 till 1853, when he left to take part in 
 the formation of Calvary Church, a member of the First 
 Church under the pastorate of Rev. Albert Barnes. 
 
 Dr. Dulles was prepared for college at the academy of 
 Rev. Samuel W. Crawford, in Philadelphia, and entered 
 Yale in the spring of 1841 about the middle of Freshman 
 year. He graduated with high honor in 1844 in a class of 
 104, a number unusually large for that period. June 4, 
 1843, he united with the College Church upon profession 
 of his faith, and was dismissed April 6, 1845, to Clinton 
 Street Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia. As a student 
 he was " beloved, trusted and respected by his fellows ;" 
 marked for his "gentleness of disposition and uniform 
 gentlemanly and frank deportment." The sincerity and 
 earnestness of his Christian character impressed his fellow- 
 students, and, being of an even and kindly temperament, 
 the influence of his example and conversation was always 
 good. 
 
 After graduation he entered upon and completed the 
 theological course at Union Theological Seminary, New 
 York, and during his vacation was engaged in colportage 
 under the American Tract Society. He had in 1845 studied 
 medicine for a short time with a view of being the more 
 completely furnished for the foreign missionary work 
 which he had in view from a very early period after he 
 made an open profession of religion. 
 
156 • BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 After graduating at the Theological Seminary, and being 
 licensed and ordained, he sailed in the fall of 1848 for 
 Southern India as a missionary of the American Board of 
 Commissioners for Foreign Missions, but was obliged, 
 owing to the failure of his health, to give up his cherished 
 hopes of labor for the Master in this direction, and re- 
 turned to this country in 1852. 
 
 He entered the service of the American Sunday-School 
 Union (of which his father was one of the founders) 
 November 1, 1853, as Secretary of Missions, and resigned 
 November 1, 1856, to accept the office of " Secretary and 
 Editor of the Committee's Publications " of the Presbyte- 
 rian Publication Committee, and from that time to the day 
 of his death his labors were devoted to the cause of pub- 
 lication in the Presbyterian Church ; for after the Reunion 
 of the two branches he was elected, June 14, 1870, Editor- 
 ial Secretary of the Board of Publication of the reunited 
 Church. After the resignation of the Rev. Dr. Schenck 
 as Corresponding Secretary in 1885, Dr. Dulles attended 
 to the duties of both secretaryships, until in January last 
 he was elected to the newly- established office of General 
 Secretary. 
 
 In 1854 he wrote Life in India, a small work for Sabbath- 
 schools, which was published by the American Sunday- 
 School Union, and which has had a sale of 11,000 copies. 
 
 In 1880, after returning from a trip to Palestine and the 
 East during a vacation which had been granted him by 
 this Board in view of his long and earnest labors in the 
 cause, he wrote The Ride Through Palestine, the copyright 
 of which he presented to the Board, and which was pub- 
 lished by it, and of which 3400 copies have been sold. 
 
 His constant and varied contributions to the religious 
 periodicals of the organizations with which he had been 
 connected, as well as to others, would, if collected, amount 
 to many volumes. He took a deep interest and an active 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 157 
 
 part in the management of the Bible Society and Coloni- 
 zation Society of Pennsylvania. 
 
 While he preached occasionally and with acceptance 
 when called upon, his voice was not equal to the strain of 
 continuous effort; but as superintendent for twenty-nine 
 years of the Sabbath-school of the Walnut Street Presby- 
 terian Church, Philadelphia, and as a faithful attendant 
 upon the church services and active in their maintenance 
 and support, he filled a sphere of usefulness which, in 
 connection with the discharge of the duties of his official 
 stations, may well be considered as rounding out the full 
 measure of what might have been his work in an active 
 ministry. 
 
 It is fitting that upon the records of this Board, in whose 
 service (including the years in the employ of one of its 
 immediate predecessors) Dr. Dulles has been so prominent 
 during thirty-one consecutive years, should be entered a 
 brief notice of the events of his life. 
 
 But more than this should appear, though words must 
 ever fail fully to express even the appreciation of his 
 associates, much less the true worth of a man of such 
 a character as we all recognized in Dr. Dulles. The testi- 
 mony of his classmates and associates in college life, 
 borne after the lapse of forty years and upward, shows the 
 kindling and steady, clear, and bright illumination in his 
 soul of the power of the gospel. And his subsequent life, 
 as all who have known him can bear abundant witness, 
 has but intensified that illuminative influence with a 
 clearer, steadier, whiter and purer glow, shining "more 
 and more unto the perfect day," into which his soul 
 entered when it took its flight in peaceful hope from the 
 pale and worn and suffering and wearied body in the early 
 morning of the Wednesday barely two weeks since, April 
 13, 1887. 
 
 Can we not all from our very hearts assent without 
 
158 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 qualification to tlie application to Dr. Dulles of the worda 
 of the apostle in describing the " wisdom that is from 
 above," and sincerely say of him who not only professed, 
 but strove to show forth in all his life, that "wisdom," 
 that he was "first pure, then peaceable, gentle and easy to 
 be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without par- 
 tiality and without hypocrisy " ? 
 
 Among the strongest and weightiest evidences to the 
 worth and loveliness and gentleness of our late Secretary 
 are the manifestations of sorrow at his loss and respect to 
 his memory on the part of the employes of this Board. 
 To every one he was personally known ; and as he went in 
 and out before them from day to day in his comings and 
 goings through these long years, there is not one that does 
 not recall, with a lighting up of countenance at the recol- 
 lection, his cheery, warm, sincere greeting, always accom- 
 panied with a serene, unruffled expression and a gentle 
 smile. His fellow-secretaries, the business superintendent, 
 the treasurer, the porter, the engineer, the ladies in the 
 store, the packers, the clerks, the boys — every one with 
 whom he came in contact, no matter how huihble the 
 position — knew the transparency, the sincerity, the gentle- 
 ness, the benignity, of his character. And their feeling 
 was openly manifest in the attendance of all, without ex- 
 ception, upon the funeral services. 
 
 The members of this Board individually and as a body 
 can no less, however, express their sorrow at the loss of 
 one whose work for these many years has been subject to 
 their ultimate control and direction, and yet who has so 
 often by his judicious counsels led them to the adoption 
 of wise measures for the advancement of its interests. 
 The same amiable qualities which have been already re- 
 ferred to characterized all his intercourse, bearing, conduct 
 and demeanor whenever he appeared in the Board itself 
 or in any of its committees, or when he had occasion to 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 159 
 
 confer with individual members upon matters which by 
 either seemed to be of importance to its interests. 
 
 It would, however, be unjust to Dr. Dulles if this record 
 were to be left to transfer to those who may hereafter read 
 it the impression that his character was forceless or marked 
 only by a gentle amiability. He had the force and cour- 
 age of his convictions ; not obstinacy, not perverseness, 
 but an innate integrity of purpose founded upon truth as 
 apprehended with all gentleness toward those who held 
 contrary views. For the truth as he held it after careful 
 and conscientious and intelligent thought he stood firm, 
 and would have stood firm under the fiercest trials of 
 martyrdom. In this Board he most beautifully and con- 
 sistently showed forth the harmonies — and may it not be 
 said the Christ-like consistencies? — of gentleness and lov- 
 ableness of feeling toward the individual, with the sternest 
 and most inflexible adherence to righteousness of thought 
 and principle and conduct. 
 
 Some of us had known Dr. Dulles personally for nearly 
 half a century, and, as connected with the Publication 
 Cause of the Presbyterian Church, for nearly the whole 
 of the thirty-one consecutive years during which he had 
 held office in its Committee and Board. No expression or 
 even a shadow of intimation of bitterness from Dr. Dulles, 
 it can confidently be asserted, does or can memory bring up 
 toward those who diifered from him, even when the points 
 of difference involved important questions of policy, some 
 of which might affect his own personal relations to the 
 Board. Ever calm, gentle, unselfish, with an eye single to 
 what he believed to be right in view of his responsibility 
 to the constraining love of Christ, he was earnest, firm, 
 clear and decided in his views, and, unaffected by the pre- 
 vailing result, pursued the even tenor of his way in the 
 path of his allotted sphere with the same conscientious, 
 industrious and faithful attention to its duties as if not 
 
160 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 even a zephyr's breath had appeared to ruflfie the calm 
 repose of his faith and trust in the divine oversight and 
 guidance in all human affairs, whether of Nations and 
 Peoples, Organizations Secular or Ecclesiastical, or of 
 Individuals. 
 
 This Board mourns sincerely his loss, which occurred 
 when he was just on the verge of what it hoped would be 
 the commencement of a new era of prosperity and advance- 
 ment in the line of its special department of the work of 
 the Church. We record this as our unfeigned and hearty 
 testimony to the worth of Rev. John W. Dulles, D. D., 
 the late General Secretary of the Board, as a man, a 
 Christian, and a faithful servant in all the fields wherein 
 he was called to labor. 
 
 The Board is respectfully asked to have this Minute 
 entered upon its records, printed with the Annual Eeport 
 to the General Assembly, and a copy sent to the family of 
 Dr. Dulles. 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 
 Charles A. Dickey, 
 Wm. Brenton Greene, Jr., 
 
 April 26, 1887. Committee. 
 
 ELECTION OF REV. E. R. CRAVEN, D. D. 
 
 The Board at its meeting May 10, 1887, unani- 
 mously elected the Kev. Elijah K. Craven, D. D., 
 General Secretary, to fill the vacancy caused by the 
 death of Dr. Dulles. Dr. Craven's acceptance of the 
 oflice was presented to the Board June 21, 1887. 
 
 ACTION OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF 1886. 
 
 The Standing Committee of the General Assembly 
 of 1886 on the Board of Publication presented an 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 161 
 
 elaborate Report, which was adopted with great unan- 
 imity by that body. After a full and commendatory 
 notice of the Missionary, Sabbath-school and Business 
 Work of the Board during the year under review, it 
 reported for the consideration of the Assembly the 
 subject of the reorganization of the Board, together 
 with the causes which seemed to make such a reorgan- 
 ization advisable : 
 
 We cannot close this Report without adverting to the 
 difficulties which have heretofore existed between the two 
 departments of the Board, and which appear to be in- 
 herent. 
 
 The Business Department naturally desires to make as 
 good a showing of its work as possible, and the Missionary 
 Department to exhibit a thorough systematic distribution 
 of our literature through their colporteurs. The methods 
 of one of these are those of business, and the other those 
 of benevolence. 
 
 The General Assembly in its deliverances has repeatedly 
 insisted upon as wide a separation as possible between 
 these two departments of the Board, and this feeling has 
 been expressed by this Assembly in its action on the report 
 of the Special Committee appointed in 1884. The officers 
 and some of the members of the Board have informed the 
 Committee that the separation between the two is as 
 distinct as can be made. 
 
 Your Committee have considered that perhaps to 
 separate the two departments absolutely, and to put the 
 Sunday-school and colportage work under the immediate 
 supervision of one head, and to organize the Publication 
 Department as a business enterprise under another, 
 dividing and reorganizing the Board as the case might 
 11 
 
162 BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 require, would be desirable. The separation of benevo- 
 lence from business would give each an ample sphere for 
 the most active endeavor without encroaching upon the 
 sphere of the other. It would remove the seeming objec- 
 tion of the Church at large to contributing to a business 
 enterprise, as the Business Department is now, and would 
 be, self-sustaining, and the contributions would thus be 
 solicited for a purely benevolent Board. The change 
 would not increase the objects of benevolence on the con- 
 tribution-roll of the Church, as the contributions which 
 go to the Missionary Department of the Board of Publi- 
 cation would be made direct to the Board of Sunday-School 
 and Colportage Work. 
 
 It is impossible for the Committee in the short time 
 allotted to it to investigate intelligently and report on all 
 these questions. We need more light on the subject, but 
 we recognize that some change in the management of this 
 work is necessary. The great respect for and confidence 
 in the Board which we have suggests that the difficulty is 
 organic or it would have been removed before this. It is 
 possible that such a separation cannot, and ought not, to 
 be made, but your Committee think it would be a wise 
 action for the Assembly to appoint a Special Committee 
 of its most experienced and wisest ministers and elders to 
 investigate this question thoroughly and report at the 
 next Assembly. 
 
 In concluding this report, your Committee recommend 
 the following resolutions and suggestions for action of 
 this General Assembly : 
 
 1. That the Board of Publication deserves the thanks 
 and commendation of the General Assembly for its fidelity 
 to the trust committed to it. 
 
 2. We express our heartfelt appreciation of the long- 
 continued and faithful services of the Kev. Dr. Schenck, 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 163 
 
 Corresponding Secretary of this Board, and regret exceed- 
 ingly that his declining years and physical infirmities 
 should have compelled him, from a sense of duty, to resign 
 the trust which he has so long and so efficiently held. We 
 assure him of our sincere sympathy in his afflictions, and 
 earnestly pray that his health may be speedily restored. 
 
 11. The Moderator is hereby authorized to appoint a 
 Special Committee, consisting of four ministers and four 
 elders, who shall take into consideration the expediency, 
 feasibility and legality of reorganizing this work by sep- 
 arating absolutely the Sabbath-school work and colportage 
 work, or Missionary Department, from the editorial and 
 publishing work, or Business Department, of the Board, 
 and, if such is found to be expedient, feasible and legal, 
 to report a plan of such separation, and, if not so found, 
 to ascertain what steps are necessary to put the work of 
 this Board on a permanent and harmonious basis, and to 
 report their recommendations, together with the reasons 
 therefor, to the next General Assembly. 
 
 The following-named gentlemen were appointed as 
 the Special Committee: Ruling Elder, George H. 
 Shields, Chairman ; Ministers, John Hall, D. D., George 
 P. Hays, D.D., E. R. Oaven, D. D., Edward C. 
 Ray ; Ruling Elders, Frank L. Sheppard, William M. 
 Tenney, Hon. John Trunkey. 
 
IV. 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PDBLICATION 
 AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 1887—1889. 
 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION AND SABBATH- 
 SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 The Special Committee appointed by the General 
 Assembly of 1886 gave diligent and prolonged exami- 
 nation to the matters submitted for its consideration, 
 availing itself of every possible means of information. 
 The Report was presented to the Assembly of 1887, 
 and unanimously adopted May 21, 1887. Seldom has 
 the Assembly taken so important action with such 
 entire unanimity. The Report has great historic 
 value, and, notwithstanding its length, we give it 
 in full: 
 
 REPORT OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE. 
 
 AUTHORITY OF COMMITTEE. 
 
 Your Special Committee, consisting of four ministers 
 and four elders, which was appointed by the Moderator of 
 the last General Assembly to consider matters connected 
 with the Board of Publication under the following resolu- 
 tion — to wit : " The Moderator is hereby authorized to 
 appoint a Special Committee, consisting of four ministers 
 and four elders, who shall take into consideration the 
 expediency, feasibility and legality of reorganizing this 
 work by separating absolutely the Sabbatli-school work 
 and colportage work, or Missionary Department, from the 
 
 167 
 
168 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 editorial and publishing work, or Business Department, of 
 the Board, and, if such is found to be expedient, feasible 
 and legal, to report a plan of such separation, and, if not 
 so found, to ascertain what steps are necessary to put the 
 work of this Board on a permanent and harmonious basis, 
 and to report their recommendations, together with the 
 reasons therefor, to the next General Assembly " — begs 
 leave to submit the following report : 
 
 MEETINGS OF COMMITTEE. 
 
 The Committee (except Dr. Hall and Judge Trunkey, 
 who were absent from pressure of business) met pursuant 
 to call on the 9th day of February, 1887, and also April 1, 
 1887, at the Board of Publication rooms. No, 1334 Chest- 
 nut Street, Philadelphia, Pa., and called before them the 
 President of the Board of Publication, the Chairman or a 
 representative of each Standing Committee (except the 
 Auditing Committee) of the Board, and the executive 
 officers thereof, and examined them thoroughly as to the 
 character of the organization, the methods of business 
 and the probable causes of friction between the different 
 departments of the Board, and as to the general policy of 
 the Board under its new By-laws, and as to the feasibility 
 and expediency of such a separation as is contemplated in 
 the General Assembly's resolution. 
 
 The Committee regrets exceedingly that it was deprived 
 of the services of Dr. Dulles, the General Secretary of 
 the Board, owing to his sickness. We feel that his long 
 experience and great familiarity with the subject would 
 have thrown much light on the questions involved. After 
 the first adjournment of the Committee, Dr. Dulles so far 
 recovered as to be able to present very succinctly his views 
 on the subject in a letter to the Chairman of the Commit- 
 tee, which was considered by the Committee at its second 
 meeting and materially aided it in coming to a conclusion. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WOKK. 1G9 
 
 The illness of Dr. Dulles culminated in his death on the 
 13th day of April, 1887. The Committee cannot refrain 
 from expressing its great grief that the Board and the 
 Church should have been deprived of the services of so 
 able and experienced an officer at this time. He died 
 literally in the harness, endeavoring to the last to aid the 
 cause he so loved and to perfect the work of the Board. 
 It will be long ere another, however skillful, will be able 
 to fill the position which he so long held with honor to 
 himself and benefit to the whole Church. 
 
 We found the members of the Board thoroughly in 
 sympathy with the great work which is committed to it, 
 earnestly alive to its interests and practically informed as 
 to the needs of the Board. There was no want of harmony 
 in regard to the importance of the interests committed to 
 this Board among its members, but we found radical 
 differences of opinion as to the methods of attaining the 
 greatest efficiency in its work, and as to the results under 
 its present organization. We found a seeming want of 
 confidence on the part of some of the members of the 
 Board in the value of certain methods heretofore adopted 
 by some of the officers of the Board, rather than opposition 
 to the objects sought to be attained. 
 
 SEPARATION NOT FEASIBLE OR EXPEDIENT. 
 
 We found that it was almost the unanimous opinion of 
 the members of the Board and the officers thereof who 
 were examined that an absolute separation of the Business 
 and Editorial Departments from the Sunday-school and 
 Colportage or Missionary Department was neither expe- 
 dient nor feasible. The Committee examined very care- 
 fully all the members and officers of the Board who wished 
 to be heard, and did hear a representative from all its 
 Committees and departments, as to their reasons why such 
 separation should not be made. After hearing the evidence 
 
170 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 and carefully considering and discussing the subject among 
 ourselves, we were unanimously of the opinion that it 
 would not be expedient or feasible to effect such separation, 
 for the following reasons : 
 
 First. Observation and experience show that benevolent 
 work is inevitably undertaken by any institution engaging 
 in religious publication. The call for benevolent work 
 lies in the very nature of religious publication and in the 
 objects at which it aims. 
 
 Second. The separation of the Missionary or Benevolent 
 Department from the Business Department might be the 
 death-knell of the Board, because, if the benevolent idea 
 were eliminated from the Board, it would receive little or 
 no support from the Church at large. 
 
 Third. An organic separation of the Business from the 
 Missionary Department of the work would more than 
 likely increase the friction between the managers of these 
 two departments, because the persons buying and the 
 persons requiring assistance through the benevolent work 
 of the Board are to a large extent the same persons. 
 Letters calling for books constantly ask for grants, and the 
 two are inextricably mingled. The disseverance of these 
 two departments would lead to early and constant confusion 
 and conflict, which could not easily be harmonized by two 
 independent Boards. 
 
 Fourth. The withdrawal of the missionary from the 
 business work would tend to secularize the business of the 
 Board in an undesirable manner. The character of the 
 publications now issued is largely influenced by the fact 
 that the Board is a missionary institution. 
 
 Fifth. The business which is derived from the Sunday- 
 School Work of the Church lies at the bottom of the 
 business prosperity of the Board, the business derived 
 from the Sunday-schools being about seventy-five per cent 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 171 
 
 of the whole business of the Board, and increasing in that 
 direction. This is so also as to the selling of books, the 
 books now in demand being mainly Sunday-school books. 
 
 Sixth. The periodical business, which has grown very 
 rapidly, has become the main branch of the Business 
 Department, and this is exclusively Sunday-school work. 
 
 Seventh. A separation would necessarily entail an in- 
 creased expense in conducting the work now under the 
 supervision of this Board, in office-room, clerk-hire and 
 salaries. Each separate department would require a full 
 outfit to carry on its work. 
 
 Eighth. The separation would also involve the estab- 
 lishment of another Board; and, while at present the 
 Business Department derives no support from the contri- 
 butions of the Church at large, such contributions being 
 devoted entirely to the Missionary Department, yet the 
 separation might result in such a diminution of the income 
 of the Publishing Department as to require aid from the 
 churches by way of contributions to publish books and 
 periodicals. This will be more apparent if the Assembly 
 takes into consideration that large numbers of the books 
 published by the Board of Publication are non-paying 
 books, and are published by order of the Assembly from 
 time to time for the uses of the Church. 
 
 Ninth. We found that liberal-minded and large-hearted 
 Presbyterians had contributed large sums of money for 
 the purpose of establishing the Central Publishing House 
 in Philadelphia for the benefit of the Board of Publication, 
 as well as the general advantage of our other denomi- 
 national interests. While technically, perhaps, under the 
 law, these trusts might be divided, yet the moral obliga- 
 tion of preserving them intact, not only for the Business 
 Department, but also for the Missionary Department, 
 seems to negative the idea of such separation. 
 
172 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 For these and other reasons the Committee, although 
 when it first met perhaps unanimously thinking separation 
 the wisest policy, came to the conclusion that the business 
 of the Board was so complicated, and its diverse interests 
 were so interlaced and dependent one upon the other, that 
 a separation into independent Boards might result in great 
 detriment to this important arm of the Church-work. 
 Being of this opinion, it was not deemed necessary to go 
 into an examination of the complex and delicate legal 
 questions which might arise as to the property of the 
 Board and as to bequests heretofore made to its funds. 
 
 WHAT IS NECESSARY TO HARMONIZE THE BOARD. 
 
 The Committee next attempted to ascertain what steps 
 were necessary to put the work of this Board on a per- 
 manent and harmonious basis, in accordance with the 
 instructions of the latter part of the resolution under 
 which it was appointed. 
 
 A short history of the Board itself from its organization 
 to the present time will greatly aid in understanding the 
 reasons which impel the Committee to make the recom- 
 mendations hereinafter made. We trace its history through 
 both branches of the Church prior to the Reunion in 
 1870. 
 
 HISTORY. — OLD SCHOOL. 
 
 In 1838 the Old School Assembly organized a Board of 
 Publication, reciting, " Whereas, Sabbath-school and tract 
 publications cannot fail to exert a very great influence 
 upon the growth of our Church and country ; and whereas, 
 It is the duty of the highest judicatory of the Church to 
 exercise such a supervision over this subject as will secure 
 the diffusion of sound and scriptural principles, ' for the 
 promotion of charity, truth and holiness,' through all the 
 churche.s under our care; therefore. Resolved, 1. That the 
 General Assembly will superintend and conduct by its own 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 173 
 
 proper authority the work of furnishing the churches 
 under its care with suitable tract and Sabbath- school pub- 
 lications by a Board appointed for that purpose and 
 directly amenable to that Assembly." And for that pur- 
 pose a Board was constituted, of forty ministers and forty 
 laymen, to be styled the " Board of Publication of Tracts 
 and Sabbath-School Books of the General Assembly in 
 the United States of America." (See Presbyterian Digest, 
 p. 433.) 
 
 In 1839 the Assembly changed the name to the " Pres- 
 byterian Board of Publication," and so altered its 
 constitution as to require said Board " to publish not only 
 tracts and Sabbath-school books, but also approved works 
 in support of the great principles of the Reformation, as 
 exhibited in the doctrines and order of the Presbyterian 
 Church, and whatever else the Assembly may direct." 
 In 1848 the General Assembly recommended the Synods 
 and Presbyteries to establish depositories, and by an 
 efficient system of colportage under their direction to aid 
 the Board in securing a wide circulation for their books ; 
 which recommendation was repeated in 1850. In 1852 the 
 Assembly recommended the Board to consider the orga- 
 nization of co-ordinate agencies and depositories at the 
 West, South and South-west as speedily as may be deemed 
 consisteiit with the safety and permanency of the orga- 
 nization already established at Philadelphia, and recom- 
 mended to all pastors and churches to render aid to the 
 Board by contribution of funds, so as to enable the Board 
 greatly to enlarge the work of colportage. In 1856 the 
 Assembly called the attention of the churches to the fact 
 that there were two departments under the management 
 of the Board — one a purely business, the other a charitable 
 and missionary, enterprise, and expressed pleasure in the 
 determination of the Board to keep the accounts of the 
 two departments separate. It also recommended to the 
 
174 BOAKD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 Board to increase its Sabbath-school libraries as rapidly aa 
 possible. In nearly every Assembly down to 1870 the 
 Sabbath-school and colportage work of the Board was 
 highly commended, and the churches and Presbyteries 
 were urged to aid in increasing its efficiency. 
 
 It will be seen, on examining the Minutes of the General 
 Assembly, that from the original organization of the Board 
 down to the year ] 870, while the work " of publishing in 
 cheap and substantial form well-selected books, sound in 
 theology and rich in practical and devotional matter," 
 was not underrated, yet the General Assembly consistently 
 and emphatically commended as of the highest importance 
 the Sabbath-school and colportage work of the Board. 
 
 HISTORY. — NEW SCHOOL. 
 
 The New School Church in 1852 established at Phila- 
 delphia a Standing Committee of nine persons, called the 
 " Doctrinal Tract Committee,"' to superintend the publica- 
 tion of a series of tracts explanatory of the doctrines, 
 government and missionary policy of the Presbyterian 
 Church, as the General Assembly shall from time to time 
 direct. In 1853 this Committee was authorized to take 
 such measures as they shall deem advisable to secure funds 
 for the erection of a house of publication, and collections 
 in the churches were enjoined in aid of this publishing 
 fund, under the control of the Committee. In 1854 the 
 number of the Committee was increased to fifteen. In 
 1855 the name was changed to the " Presbyterian Publi- 
 cation Committee." In 1857 authority was given the 
 Committee to publish not only such works as may present 
 the peculiarities of our branch of the Christian Church in 
 doctrine and practice, but from time to time such works of 
 an evangelical character as may be profitable to the Church 
 at large. This Assembly also enjoined an annual collec- 
 tion from the churches for the publication cause, and that 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 175 
 
 a sermon be preached before each General Assembly on 
 the subject of publication. 
 
 In 1859 the General Assembly permitted all churches 
 making an annual collection to order for their own use 
 any publications of the Committee to the amount of one- 
 half of their respective collections. In 1860 the Assembly 
 recommended that the Publication Committee be endowed 
 with a working capital of not less than twenty-five thou- 
 sand dollars, requesting a special contribution in the 
 churches for this object, and empowered the Committee to 
 employ an agent for the furthering of this scheme, and 
 also recommended presbyterial depositories for its books. 
 This Assembly, in 1866 — reciting, " We believe that the 
 Sabbath-school is a nursery of the Christian Church, one 
 bulwark of Christian doctrine, a promoter of Christian 
 union, and an organizer of Christian labor ; in other words, 
 it saves the young, it secures the faith, it settles differences 
 and it develops power," etc. — ordered the appointment of 
 a Permanent Committee on Sabbath-schools to supervise 
 the Sabbath -school literature of the Church in co-operation 
 ■with the Permanent Committee on Publication; to issue 
 circulars which may help the cause, and use other appro- 
 priate methods of the Presbyteries to collect data, etc. ; to 
 promote the establishment of Sabbath-schools in needy 
 localities in co-operation with the Presbyterian Committee 
 of Home Missions ; to promote the Sabbath-school cause 
 in heathen lands in co-operation wdth the American 
 Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions ; to promote 
 the establishment of Sabbath-schools in Mexico, etc., in 
 co-operation with the American and Foreign Christian 
 Union ; to promote the increase of the ministry through 
 the influences brought to bear on the Sabbath-school, and 
 thus prove an auxiliary to the Education Committee. 
 Presbyteries were instructed to appoint Presbyterial Com- 
 mittees on Sabbath-schools, and the Publication Committee 
 
176 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 was authorized to send publications of the Church to 
 Sabbath-school Committees in response to their directions. 
 This Permanent Committee on Sabbath-schools lingered 
 along without accomplishing very much until 1869, when 
 it was dissolved at its own request. 
 
 The New School Assembly prior to this had repeatedly 
 commended the Sunday-school cause to its churches and 
 ministers, and had also endorsed the American Sunday- 
 School Union as an efficient means of fostering and ex- 
 tending Sunday-schools. 
 
 It can be said of this branch of the Church, as of the 
 Old School, that the benevolent work of its Publication 
 Committee and the Sabbath-school Work were prominent 
 features of its policy. 
 
 HISTORY SINCE REUNION. 
 
 At the Reunion in 1870 the Publication Board and 
 Committee were consolidated. The Board was to be com.- 
 posed of forty-eight members, one-half ministers and 
 one-half laymen, divided into three classes, and elected 
 for three years respectively. The Board was to hold at least 
 four meetings each year. The executive officers were to 
 be a Secretary or Secretaries, whose titles and duties were 
 to be defined by the Board, and a Treasurer, all other in- 
 ternal arrangements necessary for the purpose of its 
 organization to be made by the Board of Publication after 
 its reorganization. Each Presbytery was directed to 
 appoint a Presbyterial Publication Committee to supervise 
 the work of securing an annual collection for the Board, 
 to recommend suitable persons to act as colporteurs, to 
 correspond with the Board in reference to its work in the 
 Presbytery, and to do whatever else may tend to promote 
 the work and interests of the Board and to secure a 
 thorough distribution of the Board's publications within 
 and throughout the bounds of the Presbytery, etc. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 177 
 
 111 1870 the General Assembly recommended to the 
 Board to consider the propriety of establishing a Depart- 
 ment of Sabbath-Schools, whose oflice it shall be to pro- 
 mote the number and efficiency of the Sabbath-schools 
 throughout the churches, and strongly recommended the 
 extension of the colportage work. This was repeated in 
 1871 by the General Assembly, and the Board was directed, 
 *' in appointing colporteurs, as far as possible to select such 
 persons as .may also be suitable for Sabbath-school mis- 
 sionaries, and instruct them to establish Sabbath-schools 
 in destitute localities, under the supervision of the Pres- 
 byteries." 
 
 In 1871 the Board reported to the Assembly that its 
 entire work had been divided into five branches, each 
 branch being consigned to a Committee, all of the five 
 Committees to report to the monthly meetings of the 
 Board. These Committees are as follows : the Publishing 
 Committee, to examine manuscripts and tracts ; the 
 Periodical Committee, to supervise the periodicals ; the 
 Missionary Committee, on colportage, gratuitous distribu- 
 tion and Sabbath-School Work ; the Business Committee, 
 to have charge of the property and business of the Board; 
 the Auditing Committee, by which bills and accounts of 
 all the departments are examined, approved or disallowed. 
 
 In 1872 a department of the Board of Publication 
 having the Sabbath-schools in charge was separately con- 
 stituted, and required to keep a distinct account with the 
 Board. Its duty was to disseminate the publications of 
 the Board by donations and by sale, by its appointees, who 
 shall be called " Missionaries of the Board of Publication," 
 and who shall be appointed subject to the approval and 
 shall be under the control of the Presbyteries, " to super- 
 vise the whole Sabbath-school Work of the Church in 
 connection with the Presbyteries, and aim to lift this 
 important agency of Christian evangelization into the 
 12 
 
178 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 prominence and efficiency which it deserves, and which 
 the great needs of our country have so largely call for at 
 the present time." 
 
 In 1872 the Board appointed Mr. J. Bennett Tyler 
 General Superintendent of the Sabbath-School Depart- 
 ment. 
 
 In 1878 the churches were urged to contribute more 
 liberally to its missionary and colportage funds, and the 
 Sabbath-school Work was commended. The appointment 
 of Rev. James A. Worden as Superintendent of Sabbath- 
 School Worii was approved, and it was recommended that 
 each Presbytery appoint a Committee to oversee and en- 
 courage the Sabbath-schools in the bounds of each 
 Presbytery. This latter recommendation was repeated in 
 1879. 
 
 In 1880, Rev. James A. Worden was appointed by the 
 General Assembly " Secretary of the Sabbath -School 
 Work of the Board, his salary to be derived from the 
 same sources as that of the other secretaries.*' 
 
 In 1881 the Board was directed to appoint from its 
 own number a Standing Committee of seven to advise and 
 consult with the Secretary of Sabbath-School Work. 
 
 In 1881, 1882, 1883, 1884, 1885, the Sabbath-school and 
 colportage work were prominently commended, and in 
 1885 the General Assembly adopted this resolution : " We 
 would remind the Board that it is sustained with special 
 reference to benevolent and missionary work, to which the 
 commercial feature should be auxiliary, whilst the Business 
 Department furnishes and aids the dissemination of the 
 religious literature of our Church." 
 
 DEPOSITORIES AND BRANCH HOUSES. 
 
 The General Assembly in 1882 authorized the establish- 
 ment of depositories at Chicago and St. Louis, and in 1884 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 179 
 
 of one ill San Francisco, and in 1885 recommended confer- 
 ences between the Board and the Presbytery of New 
 York for the purpose of establishing a first-class depository 
 in New York City. The Board also, from time to time, 
 established in different cities in the country agencies and 
 branch houses for the sale of books, which policy was 
 approved by the General Assembly. In some cases the 
 books are sold by the Board to the bookseller at the 
 ordinary wholesale discount from its catalogue prices ; in 
 others they are placed on sale, a commission being allowed 
 in the shape of ordinary discounts from the catalogue 
 prices, the books remaining, however, the property of the 
 Board. There are some twenty of these " branch houses " 
 or " representatives " now established. In 1885 the Gen- 
 eral Assembly passed the following resolution : " The 
 General Assembly would call the attention of the Board 
 to the necessity of great care in the establishment of what 
 are termed ' branch houses ' or ' representatives,' not mul- 
 tiplying these except when the necessity is apparent, and 
 the probabilities of advancing religious ends without 
 militating against the interests of other important agencies 
 are such as to warrant the extension of the same ; also, 
 
 "The Missionary Department of the Board is instructed 
 to advance its colportage work, as far as possible, in har- 
 mony with the interests of these representative houses, 
 instructing the colporteurs to call attention to these as 
 sources of supply which may remain when they shall have 
 gone to other fields of labor." 
 
 In 1886 the policy announced in the first of the above 
 resolutions was again enjoined on the Board by the Gen- 
 eral Assembly, with the added requirement that "the 
 business be so conducted that the profits thereof shall 
 accrue to the benefit of the Board rather than to the 
 benefit of private individuals." 
 
180 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 CAUSES OF FRICTION. 
 
 Discord between the Missionary and Business Depart- 
 ments arose from the real or supposed encroachment of 
 the colporteurs, in making sales, on the business of these 
 agencies or branch houses, and from the manner in which 
 sums of money sent to buy books, accompanied with 
 requests for donations of books, were treated by the 
 Missionary Department. The custom of the Missionary 
 Department has been to consider all money received as 
 contributions to the missionary fund, and the books and 
 periodicals indiscriminately as grants from the Missionary 
 Department. As this subject was fully discussed in the 
 report of Dr. Eaton's Special Committee last year to the 
 Assembly, it is needless to pursue it farther in detail. 
 
 Dissatisfaction between these two departments also arose 
 from the fact that each was zealously pushing its own 
 work in order to make as favorable a showing thereof as 
 possible. But it is not necessary to go farther into the 
 details of these differences, or to decide who was right or 
 who was wrong in such disagreements. The only thing 
 the Committee cares to record is the fact of such disagree- 
 ments. 
 
 Prior to the resignation of Dr. Schenck there was no 
 recognized head to the Board ; the Business Committee, 
 the Publishing Committee, the Committee on Periodicals, 
 the Missionary Committee and the Sabbath-school Com- 
 mittee, in connection with the respective executive officers 
 of these departments, had complete control of their re- 
 spective branches, subject, of course, to the approval of 
 the Board at its meetings. Each Committee kept a record 
 of its proceedings, which was submitted to the Board 
 monthly for approval. The result of this plan of organi- 
 zation naturally made each Committee zealous for the 
 promotion of its own special work. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 181 
 
 The Board is composed of clergymen and laymen who 
 have other duties to perform which largely require their 
 time, and they naturally give the time which they devote 
 to the Board's interests to a thorough understanding of the 
 workings of that branch over which they have oversight. 
 This results in practically creating a Board of forty- eight 
 members, consisting of five smaller independent Boards, 
 each with distinct objects to subserve and with independent 
 and often diverse plans of procedure, although the main 
 differences seem to have arisen between the Business and 
 Missionary Departments. It was natural, when the Board 
 met as a whole, and such differences were to be considered, 
 that the Chairman of each Committee, backed by the 
 members of his Committee, would seek to convince the 
 Board of the importance of that Committee's work ; and 
 it is not surprising that there should be radical differences 
 of opinion as to the proper policies to be adopted by the 
 Board in its general work. In fact, it is surprising that 
 they should have been able to get along as harmoniously 
 as their history shows. When you add to this the inde- 
 pendence of each Secretary and Superintendent, naturally 
 backed with the sympathy of the Committee with which 
 he was associated, coupled with the laudable desire to 
 make as favorable showing as possible of his work, the 
 conflict of opinion and friction between the departments 
 resulted in the very nature of things. This is perhaps an 
 incurable difficulty, but we hope the plan hereinafter 
 suggested will to a great extent remedy it. 
 
 An added cause of discontent is found in the fact that 
 the Corresponding Secretary, the Editorial Secretary and 
 the Sabbath-School Secretary were each members of the 
 Board and had the right to vote on all questions, whereas 
 the Assistant Editor and the Business Superintendent 
 were not members of the Board. Of course the presence 
 of these gentlemen at the meetings of the Board, and the 
 
182 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 respect which was naturally felt for all its members, must 
 have interfered to some extent with a free interchange of 
 opinion as to the action of such Secretaries, and possibly 
 might give color to the opinion that the departments were 
 not equally represented in the Board's deliberations. 
 
 Another difficulty in the composition of the Board is in 
 the number of its members. As already stated, it consists 
 of forty-eight members. Most of them reside reasonably 
 near Philadelphia; some of them, however, are thousands 
 of miles from the Board's general office. Many of the 
 most important questions coming before the Board never 
 receive the consideration of more than one-half its mem- 
 bers. The practical result of this was presented to the 
 Committee in the attempt recently made by the Board 
 to change its By-laws. The rules required that a change 
 could be made only by a majority of its members, but the 
 Board was not able to effect the change after repeated efforts 
 for more than six months, because they could not obtain 
 the presence of a majority of the Board favoring the 
 change. There was some dissatisfaction resulting from 
 the method in which it was finally effected; but this 
 Committee is of the opinion that it has nothing to do with 
 that question. 
 
 We found that in more than one instance the pastor and 
 more than one elder from the same church are members 
 of the Board, and that several members are also members 
 of one or more of the other benevolent Boards of the 
 Church. 
 
 BUSINESS DEPARTMENT. 
 
 We found the Business Department of the Board well 
 managed and self-supporting, and we take pleasure in 
 correcting an erroneous opinion in the Church growing 
 out of a misapprehension as to tlie use of the large capital 
 employed in this department. In the first place, many of 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 183 
 
 our books do not pay the expense of their publication, 
 not being generally salable. Of these we may mention 
 those of a strictly denominational character and those 
 published by order of the Assembly. Second, the aim of 
 this department is to cheapen its books and periodicals 
 rather than reap profits from sales. Third, a large amount 
 of books are gratuitously distributed every year, not only 
 to the destitute by colporteurs, but to charitable institu- 
 tions, liter^ary and theological institutions, on which no 
 profit is made. Fourth, a large part of the Board's build- 
 ings — which are a part of its capital, and which might be 
 rented — are used by other Boards of the Church for offices, 
 rent free. A fair valuation of the rental of these offices 
 was shown to be at least five thousand dollars per annum. 
 This use is consistent with the wishes and intention of the 
 donors of the fund for constructing the building, and no 
 fault is attributed to the Board for such use. In addition, 
 the expense of lighting, heating and repairing the building 
 for this gratuitous use falls on the Business Department. 
 The small per cent, of profits on the seemingly large 
 capital is thus explained. We state these facts in order 
 that the Assembly may be fully informed on the subject. 
 
 EDITORIAL AND PUBLISHING DEPARTMENT. 
 
 The Committee found the Editorial and Publishing 
 Department well organized, both books and periodicals 
 evidencing excellent work and great care on the part of 
 the editorial staS*. Up to the resignation of Dr. Schenck 
 this has been peculiarly within the province of Dr. Dulles 
 and his efficient assistant. Dr. Miller, and the Periodical 
 and Publishing Committees. Since that resignation the 
 work has devolved largely on Dr. Miller, and we think 
 this branch of the work will compare favorably with any 
 of like character in the United States. 
 
18-4 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL DEPARTMENT. 
 
 The Sabbath-school Work, under the supervision of Dr. 
 Worden, has, by reason of the character of the Board's 
 organization, been confined to the holding of Sabbath- 
 school institutes, platform work in bringing the subject 
 before the Assembly and arousing renewed interest in 
 localities, and in the organization of a course of normal 
 instruction known as "Bible Correspondence School." 
 At present the Secretary has no connection in any way 
 with the colporteurs in their Sabbath-school Work, nor 
 has he any connection, save as a contributor, with the 
 Sabbath-school helps. The colporteurs, being under the 
 supervision of the Missionary Department, neither make 
 reports to nor receive any instructions from the Secretary 
 of Sabbath -School Work. Dr. Worden has done very 
 efficient work within the sphere to which he is limited, 
 and deserves the commendation of the Church for his 
 untiring labors. 
 
 MISSIONARY DEPARTMENT. 
 
 This Avork has always been under the supervision of the 
 Corresponding Secretary till the time of his resignation, 
 since then under the care of Dr. Dulles, the oversight of 
 this work being committed to the General Secretary by 
 the Board in its recently altered By-laws. The manage- 
 ment of colporteurs, of grants to the destitute by gratuitous 
 distribution to needy Sabbath-schools and other institu- 
 tions able to pay in part only for what they need, the 
 handling of the benevolent contributions of the Church 
 and of individuals, the occupation of new fields, etc., all 
 come under this department as missionary work. 
 
 CONCLUSIONS OF COMMITTEE. 
 
 After careful and prayerful consideration of every phase 
 of the subject and long discussions of the matter among 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 185 
 
 ourselves, the Committee unanimously reached the follow- 
 ing conclusions, believing that the suggested changes will 
 put the " work of the Board on a permanent and harmo- 
 nious basis," make it far more efficient and commend it to 
 renewed support from the Church at large. 
 
 Following the oft-expressed deliverances of the General 
 Assembly which have heretofore been quoted, we believe 
 that now the Sabbath-school Work is by far the most 
 important feature of the Board's work. Second only to 
 this is its colportage work or missionary work. Auxiliary 
 to both in furnishing Christian literature in books and 
 periodicals stands the Business Department. 
 
 We would emphasize the deliverances of the General 
 Assembly in declaring that the Sabbath-school and col- 
 portage work should be done by the same missionaries. 
 The field for both is the same — " the destitute regions ;" 
 not necessarily outlying sparsely-settled regions, but places 
 destitute of God's word and of religious teaching even in 
 our largest cities. The nature of the work is the same, as 
 organizing, fostering and strengthening Sabbath-schools 
 naturally falls in with gratuitous distribution of books, 
 religious visitation to families and sales of the Board's 
 literature. If Presbyteries generally would heed the 
 admonition of the Assembly and nominate as missionaries 
 for this work men who have qualifications as Sabbath- 
 school workers, much good would be accomplished. The 
 natural development of these schools is into churches, and 
 our records will show that some of our most flourishing 
 churches owe their being to the successful planting of a 
 Sabbath-school. The Sabbath -school is demanding the 
 attention of all religious denominations now as never 
 before. In the language of the General Assembly in 
 1874, " if the Presbyterian Church means to keep abreast 
 of other churches, she must keep her Sunday-school 
 interest in the foreground." The time has come when 
 
186 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 this work must be pushed. The Church which enlists the 
 children under Christ's banner, under the blessing of God 
 will be the growing Church, the aggressive Church, the 
 Church of the future. We have all the paraphernalia, all 
 the resources needed, all the artillery and ammunition, 
 but we need organization and leadership. This work 
 belongs to the Board of Publication naturally. As already 
 stated, seventv-fiv.e per cent, of its publications are directly 
 in the line of Sabbath-schools. No other Board could 
 successfully carry on this work. At present the Secretary 
 of Sabbath-School Work has no connection, directly or 
 indirectly, with the field organizers, the colporteurs. He 
 is a general without an army, and the colporteurs, so far 
 as they are Sabbath-school missionaries, are an army 
 without a general. We think the true solution of the 
 diflficulties in the Board of Publication is to Sabbath- 
 schoolize it in theory, as its business shows it to be 
 Sabbath-schoolized in fact, but we would make it more 
 efficient. While we do not underrate the importance of 
 platform and institute work or normal-school organization 
 for Sabbath-school purposes, back of this lies the organi- 
 zation and strengthening of Sabbath-schools themselves, 
 and we think more systematic labor in this direction 
 would show great results. The importance of presenting 
 this great cause to the churches properly for their support 
 cannot be overestimated. If the Church at large can be 
 made to know that its contributions go directly to the 
 establishment of Sabbath-schools, religious visitation, 
 gratuitous distribution of Christian literature among the 
 spiritually destitute, and, to use the language of the 
 General Assembly in 1882, "that the selling of books, 
 while still continued so far as it can be usefully done, is to 
 be in all cases subordinated to these more directly benev- 
 olent and religious labors," we believe this Board will 
 receive its heartiest support. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 187 
 
 CONSOLIDATION THE TRUE REMEDY. 
 
 We believe these results can best be accomplished by 
 the consolidation of the Sabbath-school and missionary or 
 colportage work into one department and under the 
 supervision of a " Superintendent of Sabbath-School and 
 Missionary Work," and that he should have the control 
 and direction of the colporteurs, and that they should 
 report to him direct, subject, of course, to the limitations 
 now regulating their appointment and work in their 
 respective Presbyteries, and subject to the general super- 
 vision of the General Secretary and the Board. 
 
 The editorial and publishing work, including books and 
 periodicals, should be placed in another department and 
 be under the supervision and care of a " Superintendent 
 of Editorial Work." The business interests of the Board 
 should remain, as at present, in a separate dej)artment, 
 and be under the control and supervisory care of a 
 " Business Superintendent." 
 
 The Board should be composed of a sufficient number, 
 from which three general Supervisory Committees could 
 be appointed, to which these respective departments 
 should be committed. In other words, the Committees of 
 the Board should be a Sabbath-School and Missionary 
 Committee, to which should be committed Sabbath-school 
 and colportage work ; an Editorial and Publishing Com- 
 mittee, to which should be committed the editorial and 
 publishing work of both books and periodicals ; a Business 
 Committee, to which should be committed the business 
 interests of the Board; and an Auditing' Committee, to 
 audit the bills and accounts of the respective departments. 
 
 GENERAL SECRETARY. 
 
 After the resignation of Dr. Schenck as Corresponding 
 Secretary, the Board sought to render the Board more 
 
188 BOARD OF PUBLICATrON 
 
 efficient by unification as far as possible, and the establish- 
 ment of one Secretary as the controlling executive officer 
 of the Board, subject, of course, to the direction of the 
 Board itself. It effected the change, and elected as General 
 Secretary of the Board Rev. John W. Dulles, D. D., so 
 long connected with it as Editorial Secretary, who con- 
 ducted its operations since the resignation of Dr. Schenck, 
 except when he was unable to do so from sickness, up to 
 the time of his death. This Committee is of the opinion 
 that this is a move in the right direction, and deem it 
 highly important that, while the General Secretary should 
 be the chief executive officer of the Board and supervise 
 and control the management of all its departments, and 
 the respective Superintendents should recognize his au- 
 thority to the fullest extent, each Superintendent ought 
 to have the right to an appeal to the Board from the 
 General Secretary's decision in matters of importance 
 where opinions may conflict; and until such appeal is 
 decided the authority of the General Secretary shall be 
 paramount. 
 
 MEMBERS NOT TO BE MEMBERS OF OTHER BOARDS. 
 
 As the interests committed to this Board are of great 
 importance and demand careful attention, and as, of neces- 
 sity, the time given to the business by its members must 
 be limited to the time they can spare to it from their 
 other duties and business, in consonance with the expressed 
 opinion of the last General Assembly on the general sub- 
 ject, this Committee is of the opinion that members of 
 this Board should be selected with a view to their special 
 fitness for the work, and not be members of any other 
 benevolent Board of the Church. Such a rule would be 
 wise in regard to all the Boards of the Church, for the 
 reason that it would enlist a greater number of earnest 
 and efficient workers in the grand work for which these 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 189 
 
 Boards were constituted, and it would allow more time for 
 the work to each member and afford an opportunity for a 
 more thorough understanding and complete mastery of 
 the work in its details by the respective members of each 
 Board. Each member of any Board must, of necessity, 
 become interested in its success, but where the allegiance 
 is divided prominence will be given to the work of that 
 one which preference would naturally indicate, and the 
 work of other Boards will possibly be neglected. We think 
 the Presbyterian Church amply large enough to furnish 
 men to fill positions on all its Boards without calling on 
 the same individuals to serve on more than one. 
 
 THE BOARD TOO LARGE. 
 
 We are of the opinion that the Board is too cumbersome 
 and unwieldy, and that its membership should be reduced 
 fully one-half; and, in order to prevent any question of 
 favor to or undue influence of any individual church, 
 there should not be elected to the Board more than two 
 members — the pastor and one elder — from the same 
 church. 
 
 EXECUTIVE OFFICERS NOT TO BE MEMBERS. 
 
 We are also of the opinion that, while the heads of the 
 respective departments should have the right to present 
 their views and their work personally to the Board, and to 
 be subject to its call for any information at any time, it is 
 an unwise policy to permit the executive officers or 
 employes of the Board to be members thereof with power 
 to vote. 
 
 COMMITTEES OF PRESBYTERIES, ETC., CONSOLIDATED. 
 
 We also recommend that the Synodical and Presbyte- 
 rial Committees on Publication and Sabbath-Schools be 
 consolidated under the name of " Publication and Sabbath- 
 
190 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 School Committee," so that the whole work may receive 
 the undivided attention of efficient Committees in all. 
 Presbyteries, Synods and the General Assembly. 
 
 BOARD GIVEN EVE:NING AT ASSEMBLIES. 
 
 We also recommend that the evening of the second day 
 of the meeting of the Assembly be devoted to the whole 
 work of this Board rather than restricted to Sabbath- 
 schools. By so doing the Board will be given a place of 
 equality with the other Boards of the Church, and the 
 advocates of its work be given an opportunity which they 
 do not now enjoy of addressing popular meetings at the 
 General Assembly. The subjects are so closely related 
 that they can be considered jointly with profit. We think 
 that a reorganization of this Board on the foregoing prin- 
 ciples, and a strict obedience on the part of the Board to 
 the General Assembly's requirements and directions as 
 found in its deliverances, will result in pushing the Board 
 to the front rank which it deserves by reason of the 
 importance of its work, and, instead of being an object of 
 criticism in the General Assembly, it will be one of the 
 most favored organs in the grand work for the Master 
 in which our beloved Church is engaged. In making these 
 suggestions we have not considered men, but measures, 
 believing that the interests of the cause are of far more 
 importance than those of individuals. 
 
 BESOLUTIONS. 
 
 We therefore recommend the General Assembly to 
 adopt the following resolutions: 
 
 1. The Presbyterian Board of Publication shall be here- 
 after designated and known as the " Presbyterian Board 
 of Publication and Sabbath-School Work," and shall con- 
 sist of twenty-four members, of whom twelve shall be 
 ministers and twelve ruling elders. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 191 
 
 2. No one shall serve as a member of the said Board 
 who is an executive otficer or employ^ of said Board or a 
 member of any other benevolent Board of the Church ; 
 and no more than one ruling elder from the same congre- 
 gation shall serve on said Board at the same time. 
 
 3. This General Assembly shall elect as members of the 
 Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work four 
 ministers and four ruling elders who shall serve for one 
 year, four ministers and four ruling elders who shall serve 
 for two years, four ministers and four ruling elders who 
 shall serve for three years, from the third Tuesday of June, 
 1887 ; and each succeeding General Assembly shall elect 
 four ministers and four ruling elders to serve for three 
 years thereafter. In case this recommendation is adopted 
 by the General Assembly, we recommend that the Standing 
 Committee on Publication be directed to nominate mem- 
 bers of the Board herein provided for. Members of the 
 Board thus elected shall meet for organization at the 
 Publication House at Philadelphia on the third Tuesday 
 of June, 1887; and when such organization shall have 
 been effected, the membership of the Board as at present 
 constituted shall terminate. For the purpose of effecting 
 such organization, a majority of the members-elect shall 
 constitute a quorum. 
 
 4. The annual collection heretofore taken up in the 
 churches for the benefit of this Board shall hereafter be 
 known as the collection for Sabbath-school Work, and be so 
 designated in the Minutes of the Assembly. 
 
 6. The Sabbath-school and colportage work shall be 
 consolidated in one department, subject to the supervision 
 and control of an officer who shall be designated the 
 ''Superintendent of Sabbath-School and Missionary 
 Work." The editorial work of the Board shall be orga- 
 nized in another department, under the supervisory con- 
 trol and care of an officer who shall be designated as the 
 
192 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 ** Editorial Superintendent." The general business inter- 
 ests shall be organized into a Business Department, which 
 shall be under the supervisory control of an officer who 
 shall be designated the " Business Superintendent." All 
 these officers shall be appointed by and their duties defined 
 by the Board, as may be directed in the By-laws. 
 
 6. Standing Committees shall be appointed or elected 
 by the Board, to be known as the " Sabbath-School and 
 Missionary Committee," the " Editorial Committee" and 
 the ''Business Committee," which shall have charge of 
 their respective departments under such rules and regula- 
 tions as the Board may by By-laws establish ; provided 
 that the Board shall have power to appoint any other 
 Committee which shall be deemed necessary for the proper 
 conduct of its business. 
 
 7. The present executive officers shall be continued 
 
 in the following positions — to wit : ^ as Secretary ; 
 
 Rev. James A. Worden, D. D., as Superintendent of Sab- 
 bath-School and Missionary Work ; Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D., 
 as Editorial Superintendent; and John A. Black, Esq., as 
 Business Superintendent — until their successors are ap- 
 pointed by the Board, each in charge of his own depart- 
 ment, subject to such rules and regulations, with such 
 powers, as the Board may from time to time prescribe 
 through By-laws, in harmony with the general principles 
 herein laid down. 
 
 8. The Board shall elect a Secretary of the Board, who 
 shall be its chief executive officer, and shall have general 
 supervisory control of all the officers herein named, subject 
 to an appeal to the Board itself. 
 
 9. All By-laws of the Board now in force not in conflict 
 with the principles herein laid down are hereby continued 
 in force until altered, amended or repealed by the Board* 
 
 * Note.— In the report adopted by the Committee this blank was filled 
 by the name of the Kev. John W. Dulles, D. D., now deceased. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 193 
 
 All such as conflict with the principles herein stated are 
 repealed. 
 
 10. The Board is directed to organize its work in accord- 
 ance with the plans herein set forth on the third Tuesday 
 of June, 1887, or as soon thereafter as possible, and to 
 report its action to the next General Assembly. 
 
 11. This General Assembly directs the consolidation of 
 the Presbyterial and Synodical Committees of Publication 
 and Sabbath-School Work, to the end that this work, 
 which has heretofore been under the supervision of two 
 Committees, shall be committed to the care of one, and 
 earnestly enjoins that in the appointment of such Com- 
 mittees care be taken to secure members who will actively 
 enter into and push this great work. 
 
 12. That the standing orders of the General Assembly 
 be so amended as to provide that the public meeting held 
 on the second day of the Assembly's meeting shall be in 
 the interests of the " Presbyterian Board of Publication 
 and Sabbath-School Work." 
 
 All of which is respectfully submitted. 
 
 George H. Shields, 
 George P. Hays, 
 Elijah R. Craven, 
 E. C. Ray, 
 
 Franklin L. Sheppard, 
 William M. Tenney, 
 
 Committee. 
 
 The General Assembly subsequently, by a unanimous 
 vote, adopted the Report of its Standing Committee on 
 Publication, of which the following recommendations 
 formed a part : 
 
 1. That the Assembly is gratified by the success which 
 has attended the Board's work during the past year amid 
 13 
 
19-4 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 circumstances of difficulty and discouragement, and asks 
 in behalf of this important arm of our Church a generous 
 confidence and support. 
 
 2. That in the judicious extension of its business the 
 Board be recommended to pursue the policy of occupying 
 the commercial centres of the country, so far as it can 
 be done without interfering with the business relations 
 already established. 
 
 3. That the Board be encouraged to render its business 
 profitable so far as a wise conservation of its work may 
 permit, and that it be directed to place two-thirds of its 
 net profits annually to the credit of the Sabbath-School 
 and Missionary Department. 
 
 4. That in the work of the Sabbath -School and 
 Missionary Department, as previously declared by the 
 Assembly, the main emphasis is to be laid upon Sabbath- 
 school Work and religious visitation among the spiritually 
 destitute ; and the selling of books, while still continued 
 so far as it can be usefully done, is to be in all cases 
 strictly subsidiary to these more directly benevolent and 
 religious labors. 
 
 5. That as an expression of this policy the field-agents 
 of this Board shall hereafter be designated " Sabbath- 
 School Missionaries of the Board of Publication." 
 
 6. That, inasmuch as the extension of the Board's work 
 herein contemplated requires the appointment of mission- 
 aries of high character and ability, their qualifications for 
 the work should be judiciously weighed and their selection 
 and appointment carefully made by the Board. No mis- 
 sionary of the Board shall labor within the bounds of a 
 Presbytery except with the approval and under the super- 
 vision of the Presbytery or its appropriate committee. 
 
 7. That the Board be recommended to revise its statis- 
 tical blanks in such a way as will more satisfactorily show 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 195 
 
 the nature and results of the work of its Sabbath-school 
 missionaries. 
 
 8. That the Board be directed to arrange for the attend- 
 ance of the Business Superintendent and the Superintend- 
 ent of Sabbath-School and Missionary Work at sessions 
 of the General Assembly, in order that they may furnish 
 to the Assembly or to its Standing Committee such in- 
 formation as may be desirable concerning the interests 
 committed to their charge. 
 
 9. That, in view of the enlarged scope and importance 
 which the work of this Board is about to assume, not less 
 than one hundred thousand dollars should be contributed 
 to its use during the coming year, and that pastors and 
 elders be requested to inform themselves more fully as to 
 the needs and work of the Board, in order that special 
 eflforts be made by church Sessions to secure liberal gifts 
 for this purpose. 
 
 10. That the plans of the Board for the observance of 
 " Children's Day " be approved, and that Sabbath-schools 
 be urged to adopt them so far as practicable, and to take 
 up a collection on that day for the benefit of the Board. 
 
 In pursuance of the direction of the General Assembly 
 to nominate members of the "Presbyterian Board of 
 Publication and Sabbath-School Work," the Standing 
 Committee recommends the election of the following 
 persons : 
 
 To Serve for One Year from the Third Tuesday of 
 June, 1887. 
 
 MINISTERS. ELDERS. 
 
 Rev. Wm. Brenton Greene, Jr., Edward P. Borden, 
 Rev. Loyal Young Graham, D.D., Archibald Mclntyre, 
 Rev. Wm. Dayton Roberts, D. D., William Wood, 
 Rev. Robert H. Fulton, D. D., William L. Du Bois. 
 
196 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 To Serve for Two Years from that Date. 
 
 MINISTERS. ELDERS. 
 
 Eev. Charles A. Dickey, D. D., Eobert H. Hinckley, 
 
 Rev. Robert M. Patterson, D. D., William L. Mactier, 
 
 Rev. John S. Sands, D. D., William Brockie, 
 
 Rev. Charles Wood, Charles H. Biles. 
 
 To Serve for Three Years from that Bate. 
 
 Rev. William P. Breed, D. D., Samuel C. Perkins, 
 Rev. Henry C. McCook, D. D , George S. Graham, 
 Rev. Benjamin L. Agnew, D. D., John Scott, 
 Rev. Thomas A. Hoyt, D. D., Robert N. Willson. 
 
 The General Assembly also adopted the following 
 resolutions : 
 
 Resolved, That this General Assembly heartily approves 
 of the action of the Board of Publication in electing the 
 Rev. Elijah R. Craven, D. D., as Secretary of the Board, 
 and expresses the hope that he may accept the appoint- 
 ment. 
 
 Besolved, That the Board of Publication be requested to 
 take such legal steps as may be necessary to have the cor- 
 porate name of the Trustees changed to correspond with 
 the name of the Board as adopted by this Assembly. 
 
 THE NEW BOARD. 
 
 The members of the Board thus elected met for 
 organization at the Publication House, June 21, 1887. 
 The following officers were unanimously elected : 
 
 President. — Rev. William P. Breed, D. D. 
 
 Vice-President. — Hon. Robert N. Willson. 
 
 Secretary. — Rev. Elijah R. Craven, D. D. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 197 
 
 Sabbath-School and Missionary Superintendent. — Rev. 
 James A. Worden, D. D. 
 
 Editorial Superintendent. — Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D. 
 
 Business Superintendent. — John A. Black. 
 
 Recording Clerk. — Rev. Willard M. Rice, D. D. 
 
 Treasurer. — Samuel D. Powel. 
 
 Each of these officers, with the exception of the 
 Secretary, had been long in the service of the Board. 
 Dr. Craven, as already noticed, was elected General 
 Secretary to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death 
 of the Rev. John W. Dulles, D, D., and the General 
 Assembly of 1887 unanimously approved the choice. 
 A member of the Joint Committee of Ten upon whose 
 report the Board was organized at the Reunion in 
 1870, and of the Committee of Seven whose plan of 
 reorganization was adopted by the Assembly of 1887, 
 he was thoroughly acquainted with the history of the 
 Board and in hearty sympathy with its work. For 
 thirty-three years pastor of the Third Presbyterian 
 Church of Newark, New Jersey, repeatedly a member 
 of the General Assembly and its Modei-ator in 1885, 
 and also chairman of the Committee on the Revision 
 of the Book of Discipline, he was well known through- 
 out the Church, and his election gave universal satis- 
 faction. 
 
 Mr. Powel departed this life August 24, 1887, and 
 October 6 the Rev. Charles T. McMullin was elected 
 as his successor. 
 
 The work of the Board was at once arranged in the 
 three departments directed by the General Assembly 
 — namely, the Sabbath-School and Missionary, the 
 
198 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 Editorial and the Business — and Committees on all 
 these departments were appointed. A code of By-lav/s 
 was as speedily as possible prepared and adopted, in 
 accordance with the plans set forth in the Report of 
 the Special Committee to the General Assembly. 
 
 I. THE SABBATH-SCHOOL AND MISSIONARY DEPART- 
 MENT. 
 
 In this department are consolidated two departments 
 that existed previous to the reorganization of the 
 Board by the General Assembly of 1887 — namely, 
 the Sabbath-School and the Missionary (or Colportage) 
 departments. Its functions are four : 
 
 1. The appointment and superintendence of the 
 Sabbath-school missionaries. This, in view of the 
 special work assigned to these missionaries and the 
 superior qualifications demanded of them by the re- 
 organizing act, is a most delicate and important task. 
 
 The Assembly declared that the effective prosecution 
 of the work contemplated required the appointment 
 of missionaries of high character and ability. In 
 carrying out this instruction the Board notified all 
 the colporteurs in its employ that their services would 
 be dispensed with on the expiration of their existing 
 commission, reserving to itself, however, the right of 
 recommissioning any whom it might select. In view 
 of the great debt resting upon the Missionary Fund at 
 the beginning of the fiscal year, the Board proceeded 
 slowly in the appointment of missionaries. Where 
 important interests are involved, it is far better to lay 
 deep and solid foundations than to strive after imme- 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 199 
 
 diate results. Encouraged by the large increase in con- 
 tributions, the Board gradually increased the number 
 of missionaries, until now (1889) there .are thirty-four 
 in various parts of the field, all doing active and 
 efficient service in the cause. Fifty-six students of 
 the junior classes of our Theological Seminaries were 
 commissioned as missionaries during the long summer 
 vacation of 1888. It was found that blessed results, 
 both to the young men themselves and to the mission- 
 ary w^ork of the Church, followed these appointments. 
 The Board was so well satisfied with the success of 
 these student-missionaries that it commissioned and 
 sent out more than seventy junior students for the 
 summer of 1889. 
 
 2. A second function of this department is the dis- 
 tribviion of the Board's literature by grants and mission- 
 ary sales. Great care is exercised in making grants to 
 churches and schools lest they should be injured by 
 receiving aid before having done all in their power to 
 purchase their own supplies. None are refused when 
 there is reason to believe they have taxed them- 
 selves to the extent of their ability or that they are 
 totally unable to purchase. The Sabbath-school mis- 
 sionaries are instructed to sell, not for any business 
 considerations, but to make their sales subsidiary to 
 their more distinctively religious and Sabbath-school 
 work. 
 
 3. Another function of this department is the elevation 
 and improvement of the Sabbath-school Work of our 
 Church. The effort is made to accomplish this result 
 by various modes, the principal of which are : 
 
200 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 (1) Visits by the Superintendent to particular 
 schools and to Presbyterial and Synodical institutes 
 and conventions. Though the chief portion of the 
 time of the Superintendent is engrossed by office- work, 
 he has also devoted no little labor to these field-duties, 
 delivering addresses and lectures, presenting practical 
 methods of Sabbath-school work, and inciting to more 
 diligent study of standard works of the Scriptures. 
 
 (2) Missionary letters to contributing schools. Each 
 Sabbath-school that sends to the Board a contribution 
 is assigned as a part-support to some missionary, from 
 whom it receives a quarterly letter. Nearly one-half 
 of our Sabbath-schools are now (1889) in the receipt 
 of such letters. This arrangement has been productive 
 of most excellent results in increasing the knowledge 
 of our scholars concerning missionary work, and in 
 exciting an active interest therein. 
 
 (3) Prize Bibles for reciting the Shorter Catechism. 
 During the latter part of 1887 the Board offered such 
 a prize to every one of the youth of our churches and 
 Sabbath-schools who should be certified as having 
 committed to memory and recited correctly the Cate- 
 chism during the year ending December 1, 1887. 
 Subsequently the offer was renewed, and it is still in 
 force. The responses have been so prompt and numer- 
 ous as to manifest that there has been a revival of 
 the study of the Catechism throughout the Church. 
 On the thirty-first day of March, 1889, three thousand 
 one hundred and five responses had been received, and 
 the same number of Bibles awarded. These have 
 been given not only in English, but also in German, 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 201 
 
 French, Spanish and Chinese, and in one of the 
 dialects of India. 
 
 (4) The fourth function of this department is the 
 collection and presentation of Sabbath-school statistics 
 to the General Assembly. The department has prose- 
 cuted this work with great earnestness and with very 
 gratifying results. For several years past a summary 
 of these statistics has been published in the Appendix 
 to the Assembly's Minutes. 
 
 All matters pertaining to Sabbath-school literature 
 — the preparation and issue of books for the Library, 
 of lesson helps and periodicals — continue, as before 
 the reorganization, under the charge and supervision 
 of the Editorial Department. 
 
 children's day. 
 This yearly festival of our Sabbath-schools has 
 become an established institution of our Church. It 
 was celebrated on the second Sabbath of June, 1887, 
 1888 and 1889 as never before. Copies of the Chil- 
 dren's Day exercises were sent free, in sufficient 
 numbers for use, to all Presbyterian Sabbath-schools 
 applying for them, together with envelopes for the 
 contributions of scholars. The contributions to the 
 Missionary Fund in 1887 were on a liberal scale, and 
 helped not only to extinguish the large indebtedness 
 with which it was then burdened, but also to send out 
 an increased number of Sabbath-school missionaries. 
 Nor was there any falling off in the liberality of the 
 schools in 1888 and 1889, but rather an increase. 
 
202 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 FRUITS OF THE WORK. 
 
 At the end of the Board's fiscal year, March 31, 
 1889, the number of permanent missionaries in com- 
 mission was 34. At the same date the number of 
 Sabbath-schools established since the reorganization 
 of the Board was 1021 ; number of scholars gathered 
 into these schools, 32,427 ; number of volumes distrib- 
 uted, 76,104 ; pages of tracts and periodicals distrib- 
 uted, 10,944,478 ; number of Bibles given for reciting 
 the Shorter Catechism, 3105. 
 
 Sabbath-school mission-work is one of the most 
 economical and effective means of evangelizing the 
 unreached millions in the land. The quickest and 
 cheapest way to build up churches in new or god- 
 less districts is to establish mission Sabbath-schools. 
 Already several churches have grown out of the 
 schools reported above, and there is a fair prospect 
 that many more will at no distant day be organized. 
 There are hundreds of our churches — and among them 
 some of the strongest — that trace back their origin to 
 such schools. The Church that now gathers the chil- 
 dren will be the Church of the future. The blessing 
 of Christ will rest upon those who care for the little 
 ones. The Board is fully impressed with the import- 
 ance of this department of its work, and will in the 
 future, as in the past, prosecute it to the extent of the 
 ability given it by the Church. 
 
 II. THE EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT. 
 
 This department has charge of all the publications 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL. WORK. 203 
 
 of the Board, so far as their subject-matter is con- 
 cerned. It has three functions : 
 
 1. It selects from the mass of manuscripts that are 
 offered for books, tracts and leaflets those that, in its 
 judgment, it will be proper to publish. 
 
 2. It prepares by the pens of its editorial staff* and 
 by selection from offered articles the various lesson 
 helps and periodicals that are sent forth for the assist- 
 ance of the Sabbath -school teachers and the instruction 
 of the scholars of the Church. 
 
 3. It prepares for the press and looks after the 
 typographical correctness of all that it determines to 
 publish. There are few manuscripts that are offered 
 for publication, however excellent may be their matter, 
 that do not need amendment, trimming and pruning, 
 and sometimes amplification. This work must be 
 carefully performed by the Editorial Superintendent 
 personally or by experts under his direction and super- 
 vision. But the work is not yet completed. Even 
 after the manuscripts have been most carefully pre- 
 pared and the type has been set by the most skillful 
 compositors (the Board does not, and will not from any 
 ideas of false economy, employ any but skillful work- 
 men), errors will be found in the print which require 
 for their correction most careful proofreading. 
 
 Since the reorganization of the Board the work of 
 this department has been increasingly arduous. A 
 very large number of manuscripts have been examined, 
 the great majority of which have been declined. Not 
 a little editorial labor has been expended upon those 
 that have been approved and published. During the 
 
204 BOAKD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 two years ending March 31, 1889, there were added to 
 the Catalogue the titles of sixty-five publications, of 
 which forty-five were bound volumes. Meanwhile, ten 
 lesson helps and illustrated periodicals have been 
 edited and regularly issued, to which the Editorial 
 Superintendent has contributed a large amount of 
 valuable original matter. No change has been made in 
 the form of any of the periodicals, nor have any new 
 ones been added to the number. The effort has been 
 to elevate their tone and character, and-thus to give 
 them a higher moral and intellectual value. Their 
 constantly-increasing circulation would indicate that 
 these efforts have not been unsuccessful. It is believed 
 that not one of these periodical issues could be dropped 
 from the list without serious loss to our Sabbath-schools 
 and to the Church. 
 
 It is impossible to calculate the value of the work 
 done on these various books, tracts, lesson helps and 
 periodicals, or their influence as they go out with their 
 pure, bright and helpful pages, bearing holy, helpful 
 thoughts and teachings. It cannot but be that vast 
 good is accomplished by their ministry, the results of 
 which can never be known in this life. 
 
 III. BUSINESS DEPARTMENT. 
 
 No change was made in this department at the re- 
 organization of the Board. It has three functions : 
 
 1. It has charge of all the property of the Board. 
 It cares for the Publication House — its repair, its 
 lighting and heating, and the renting of such of its 
 rooms as are not required for the use of the Board. 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 205 
 
 2. It has charge of the mechanical part of publica- 
 tion. The Board does not manufacture its own paper, 
 nor does it execute its own printing, stereotyping or 
 binding. Very early in the history of the publication 
 work of both branches of the divided Church the 
 question of such manufacture was carefully considered 
 by able and experienced men then in charge of these 
 interests, and the present policy was unanimously 
 decided upon. At the Reunion the question again 
 came up, and the same decision was again reached. 
 The Joint Committee of Ten, in its Report to the 
 General Assembly of the reunited Church in 1870, 
 gave expression to its opinion thus : " It is not, in our 
 view, essential that large sums be invested in the 
 machinery of publication, such as presses and bind- 
 eries. The use of this machinery can be commanded 
 without purchase." The question has been repeatedly 
 mooted since, but the Board has adhered to its long- 
 established policy. The Business Department purchases 
 all the paper used in the manufacture of books and 
 periodicals, and it makes contracts for printing, stereo- 
 typing and binding. 
 
 In addition to printing the publications of the 
 Board, this Department also prints The Church at 
 Home and Abroad, for the preparation of the matter 
 of which the Board is not responsible. 
 
 3. It places the publications upon the market. This 
 is done by advertising in the leading papers of our 
 own and sister denominations, and through the agency 
 of the home depository in Philadelphia and of twenty- 
 three branch houses and depositories, nineteen of which 
 
i^06 BOAKD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 are in this country and four in Great Britain and 
 Canada. This plan was adopted by the Board after 
 careful consideration. It has again and again been 
 reported to the General Assembly, and has always 
 met with the unqualified approbation of that body. 
 In relation to both books and periodicals, the Sab- 
 bath-school missionaries exercise an important influence 
 in bringing them to the notice of those who dwell in 
 the sparsely-settled sections of the land. 
 
 REDUCTION OF PRICE. 
 
 Since the reorganization the price of all the octavo 
 publications of the Board, with the exception of the 
 Digest, has been reduced to one dollar and twenty- 
 five cents per volume net, and postage. Among the 
 volumes thus reduced in price are some of the most 
 valuable publications of the Board. It is probable 
 that no set of books of like value is now offered to the 
 reading community at so fair a price ; and we may 
 here say that careful examination and comparison, re- 
 peatedly and extensively made, shows that the publi- 
 cations of the Board, as a whole, compare favorably, 
 both in quality of manufacture and in price, with those 
 of any of our publishing houses. 
 
 NEW PUBLICATIONS. 
 
 We have already noted that the Descriptive Cata- 
 logue issued by the Board soon after the Reunion 
 contained the titles of two thousand two hundred and 
 eighty separate publications. From year to year valu- 
 able additions of books and tracts were made to it, 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 207 
 
 especially in the department of Sabbath-school litera- 
 ture, increasing the sum total of publications to two 
 thousand nine hundred and fifteen. Continued caution 
 and vigilance was exercised, lest at any time its press 
 should send forth publications casting the slightest 
 doubts upon the divine authority and plenary inspi- 
 ration of the Bible, or upon the divinity and atoning 
 death of our Lord Jesus Christ, or upon the fact of 
 man's utter ruin by sin and his absolute need of re- 
 demption through the blood shed upon the cross, or 
 in any particular at variance with the Standards of 
 our Church. We believe that the publications of the 
 Board will bear the closest scrutiny in these respects. 
 In literary style, in their adaptation to the wants of 
 the times, and in their treatment of living topics of the 
 day, they are, to say the least, fully equal to the issues 
 of any of the publication houses, whether religious or 
 secular, in our country. 
 
 CAPITAL STOCK. 
 
 This at the Reunion in 1870 amounted to $417,282.18 ; 
 it is, as reported March 31, 1889, $504,250.36. 
 
 To some it may seem that in proportion to so large 
 an amount of capital the business annually transacted 
 has been contracted and the net profits small. 
 
 In reference to the amount of capital, it may be 
 said that much of what is so reported is unproductive. 
 It consists of books in the library ; of stereotype plates 
 of books for which there is very little demand ; of 
 printed sheets of books and tracts that cannot in any 
 considerable degree be placed at once upon the market ; 
 
208 BOARD OF PUBLICATION 
 
 of investments in periodicals that have not yet reached 
 a paying basis ; and also of real estate. The reported 
 value of the Publication House is upward of one 
 hundred and fifty-two thousand dollars. From portions 
 of this house not used by the Board a large rent would 
 naturally be expected by those not acquainted with the 
 facts. In compliance, however, with the well-known 
 wish and intent of the donors, offices free of charge are 
 granted to the different Boards of the Church located 
 in Philadelphia. The rent value of these rooms, to- 
 gether with their heating and care, cannot be less 
 than eight thousand dollars per annnm. In reference 
 to such rooms — the value of which is included in its 
 capital — the Board acts as a trustee in the interests of 
 the benevolent operations of the Church at large. 
 
 As to the matter of profits, it should be remembered 
 that the object for which the Board was established 
 was not the making of money, but the production of 
 religious literature and its distribution at the lowest 
 remunerative rates. It may also be said that the 
 Board, by the very nature of its work, is precluded 
 from the publication of those classes of books which 
 are most generally salable and on which the largest 
 profits are made, and, still further, that many of its 
 publications which are of exceeding value to the 
 Church, and especially to the ministry, yield little or 
 no profit, and some of them are published at a loss. 
 
 Probably the active capital of the Board does not 
 exceed two hundred thousand dollars, and even this 
 amount, in view of the necessary line of the Board's 
 operations, cannot be used for the accretion of profits 
 
AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 209 
 
 with aught approaching the power with which it might 
 be employed by an ordinary business publisher. 
 
 DEATH OF THE REV. W. P. BREED, D. D., PRESI- 
 DENT OF THE BOARD. 
 
 Just as the preceding pages were ready for the 
 press the Board met with a severe loss in the death of 
 its President, the Rev. William P. Breed, D. D., Pastor 
 Emeritus of the West Spruce Street Church, Philadel- 
 phia, which occurred February 14, 1889. 
 
 Dr. Breed was elected a member of the Board by 
 the General Assembly of 1855. In 1874 he became 
 one of its Vice-Presidents, and in 1875 he was elected 
 President — an office which he continued to hold until 
 his death. 
 
 Dr. Breed was during these thirty-four years one of 
 the most active and efficient members of the Board, 
 seldom absent from its meetings, always and every- 
 where its warm-hearted and able advocate. At a 
 special meeting, held February 16, the Board unani- 
 mously adopted the following resolutions : 
 
 Resolved, That a Committee of Three be appointed to 
 prepare a Minute expressive of the views of the Board in 
 reference to the death of its President, the Rev. W. P. 
 Breed, D. D., to report at the next meeting of the Board. 
 
 Resolved, That as a testimonial of respect for his memory 
 the store be closed during the funeral services on Monday 
 from ten to one o'clock, and that the members, officers 
 and employes of the Board attend the funeral services. 
 
 Resolved, That in further respect to his memory the 
 office of President be kept vacant until the coming annual 
 U 
 
210 PUBLICATION AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 meeting of the Board, the Vice-President in the mean time 
 acting as President joro tern. 
 
 At the Stated Meeting of the Board, February 26, 
 the Committee presented the following Minute, which 
 was unanimously adopted : 
 
 This Board deeply laments the removal by death of its 
 late President, Eev. William P. Breed, D. D. His long 
 experience in the cause of publication and missionary 
 distribution of religious literature, both before and after 
 the Eeunion of our Church, well fitted him for the leader- 
 ship of the body to which that cause was entrusted. For 
 many years he has stood at our head, a warm, earnest and 
 intelligent champion of the work of this Board. None 
 of us could excel him in devotion to its interests ; few, if 
 any, gave so much of thought and prayer for its pros- 
 perity. His voice was often raised in its behalf, and his 
 pen put into language many a vigorous appeal for its 
 support. 
 
 As an example to follow, and as a stimulus to incite, we 
 shall greatly miss his life among us. 
 
 His presence and companionship were a benediction. 
 Strong and vigorous, with manly qualities, moved by pro- 
 found convictions, earnest and bold in his adherence to 
 what he believed to be truth and duty, he was, also, a 
 tender, gentle, courteous, considerate Christian man whom 
 none knew but to love and revere. 
 
 We have no memories of him which are not fragrant 
 with pleasant thoughts and helpful suggestions toward a 
 better life. 
 
 We lay him away from sight, therefore, not to pass out 
 of memory, but ever to be remembered as one of the best 
 of friends and the wisest of counselors, as well as a 
 beautiful type of a Christian man and minister. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 CHARTER OF THE BOARD. 
 
 An Act to Incorporate " The Trustees of the Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication" 
 
 Whereas, The General Assembly of the Presbyterian 
 Church in the United States of America have a Board of 
 Publication, composed of ministers and laymen of the 
 Presbyterian Church, the design of which is " the publi- 
 cation of such works, permanent or periodical, as are 
 adapted to promote sound learning and true religion ;" 
 
 And Whereas, The aforesaid Board of Publication labors 
 under serious disadvantages as to receiving donations and 
 bequests, and as to the management of funds intrusted to 
 them for the purpose designated in their Constitution, and 
 in accordance with the benevolent intentions of those 
 from whom such bequests and donations are received; 
 Therefore, 
 
 Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of 
 Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 
 in General Assembly met, and it is hereby enacted by the 
 authority of the same. That Matthew Newkirk, James N. 
 Dickson, William S. Martien, James B. Ross, Archibald 
 Mclntyre, Joseph B. Mitchell, Alexander W. Mitchell, 
 
 211 
 
212 APPENDIX. 
 
 M. D., Robert Soutter, Jr., and James Dunlap, citizens of 
 the United States, and of this Commonwealth, and their 
 successors, are hereby constituted and declared to be a 
 body politic and corporate, which shall henceforth be 
 known by the name of " The Trustees of the Presbyterian 
 Board of Publication,"* and as such shall have perpetual 
 succession, and be able to sue and be sued in all courts of 
 record, and elsewhere ; and to purchase and receive, take 
 and hold, to them and their successors, for ever, lands, 
 tenements, hereditaments, goods, money, and chattels, and 
 all kinds of estate which may be devised, or bequeathed, 
 or given to them ; and the same to sell, alien, demise, and 
 convey; also to make a common seal, and the same to 
 alter and renew at their pleasure ; and also to make such 
 rules, by-laws, and ordinances, as may be needful for the 
 government of the said corporation, and not inconsistent 
 with the Constitution and laws of the United States, and 
 of this State : Provided, always, That the clear yearly 
 income of the real estate held by the said corporation 
 shall not at any time exceed the sum of five thousand 
 dollars. 
 
 Sec. 2. The Trustees above named shall hold their 
 ojQ&ces for one year from the date of this incorporation, 
 and until their successors are duly qualified to take their 
 places ; who shall be chosen by the aforesaid Board of 
 Publication, at such times and in such manner as shall be 
 provided by the said General Assembly of the Presbyterian 
 Church in the United States of America, provided not 
 more than one-third of the Trustees shall be removed in 
 any one year. 
 
 Sec. 3. The Trustees hereby incorporated, and their 
 successors, shall (subject to the direction of the said Board 
 
 ♦Title amended by decree of Court of Common Pleas (No. 1) of Phil- 
 adelphia, November 19, 1887, to "The Trustees of the Presbyterian Board 
 of Publication and Sabbath-School Work." 
 
APPENDIX. 213 
 
 of Publication) have full power to manage the funds and 
 property committed to their care, in such manner as shall 
 be deemed most advantageous, and not contrary to law. 
 
 James Cooper, 
 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
 
 Ch. Gibbons, 
 Speaker of the Senate, 
 
 Approved the thirteenth day of February, one thousand 
 eight hundred and forty-seven. 
 
 FK. E. SHUNK. 
 
214 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 PKESBYTEKIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 CASH RECEIPTS. 
 
 Year. 
 
 Sales. 
 
 Colporteur 
 Fund. 
 
 Distribution 
 Fund. 
 
 1839 
 1840 
 1841 
 1842 
 1843 
 1844 
 1845 
 1846 
 1847 
 1848 
 1849 
 1850 
 1851 
 1852 
 1853 
 1854 
 1855, 
 1856, 
 1857 
 1858 
 1859 
 1860, 
 1861, 
 1862, 
 1863, 
 1864, 
 1865, 
 1866, 
 1867, 
 1868. 
 1869. 
 1870. 
 
 $982 74 
 11,350 89 
 15,335 91 
 12,050 34 
 27,540 07 
 33,711 97 
 28,205 85 
 29,283 58 
 34,371 37 
 28,527 99 
 38,454 29 
 58,644 21 
 62,551 31 
 75,005 55 
 83,759 44 
 70,654 63 
 70,502 28 
 92,867 22 
 85,573 45 
 81,881 45 
 93,581 72 
 93,054 65 
 40,371 96 
 50,887 82 
 63,081 49 
 83,889 30 
 97,605 11 
 113,907 84 
 116,272 02 
 113,371 50 
 108,341 71 
 
 $1,915,619 66 
 
 $1,021 00 
 1,314 07 
 1,380 05 
 6,212 94 
 9,658 69 
 15,291 87 
 12,188 01 
 15,866 27 
 14,015 54 
 14,497 28 
 24,823 62 
 21,369 76 
 24,817 00 
 27,758 39 
 28,433 07 
 23,171 81 
 25,078 35 
 28,508 29 
 33,815 93 
 26,735 72 
 28,760 19 
 29,005 95 
 32,088 88 
 36,557 01 
 
 $482,369 69 
 46,988 30 
 
 $1,815 14 
 
 1,071 43 
 
 1,031 58 
 
 817 36 
 
 1,147 13 
 
 1,250 00 
 
 725 00 
 
 632 50 
 
 1,879 69 
 
 1,723 00 
 
 1,413 75 
 
 603 08 
 
 1,762 89 
 
 414 11 
 
 164 46 
 
 1,144 92 
 
 1,609 77 
 
 2,406 46 
 
 2,624 05 
 
 4,104 13 
 
 5,017 28 
 
 6,620 40 
 
 3,167 27 
 
 1,685 17 
 
 2,157 73 
 
 $46,988 30 
 
 $529,357 99 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 215 
 
 PEESBYTERIAN PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 
 Year. 
 
 Cash for Sales. 
 
 Grants of Books 
 and Tracts. 
 
 1855 
 
 $740 50 
 
 2,258 80 
 
 4,302 14 
 
 3,705 80 
 
 10,873 99 
 
 10,942 95 
 
 11,384 30 
 
 9,296 08 
 
 12,221 83 
 
 17,946 83 
 
 30,005 91 
 
 27,578 03 
 
 37,165 10 
 
 43,666 82 
 
 38,010 18 
 
 43,693 21 
 
 $263 74 
 287 91 
 1,159 50 
 936 64 
 1,221 83 
 1,660 23 
 2,260 16 
 4,299 27 
 5,500 95 
 5,638 86 
 6,851 59 
 8,880 28 
 
 1856 . ..; 
 
 1857 
 
 1858 
 
 1859 
 
 I860 
 
 1861 
 
 1862 : 
 
 1863 
 
 1864 
 
 1865 
 
 1866 
 
 1867 
 
 1868 
 
 1869 
 
 1870 
 
 
 $303,792 47 
 
 $38,960 96 
 
216 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 PEESBYTEEIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 CASH EECEIPTS. 
 
 Year. 
 
 Sales. 
 
 Colportage Fund. 
 
 1871 
 
 $139,539 40 
 164,431 82 
 157,577 78 
 172,524 30 
 241,065 44 
 229,690 81 
 195,028 35 
 154,753 06 
 145,825 89 
 151,577 27 
 161,324 53 
 180,502 62 
 195.420 02 
 199,950 58 
 217,368 19 
 215,142 89 
 206,636 87 
 
 $37,919 39 
 49,851 82 
 55,892 16 
 47,798 48 
 45,026 83 
 52,176 06 
 42,638 34 
 
 43.816 30 
 44,867 37 
 39,232 73 
 47,282 30 
 55,558 93 
 49,983 04 
 59,152 07 
 
 68.817 76 
 50,894 64 
 49,751 29 
 
 1872 
 
 1873 
 
 1874 
 
 1875 
 
 1876 
 
 1877 
 
 1878 
 
 1879 
 
 1880 
 
 1881 
 
 1882... 
 
 1883.. 
 
 1884 
 
 1885 
 
 1886 
 
 1887 
 
 
 $3,128,359 82 
 
 $840,659 51 
 
 BOARD OF PUBLICATION AND SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 Year. 
 
 Sales. 
 
 Sabbath-School 
 Work. 
 
 1888 
 
 $217,588 13 
 230,236 68 
 
 $73,381 68 
 100,024 98 
 
 1889 
 
 
 $447,824 81 
 
 $173,406 66 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 217 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 COLPORTEUR WORK. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Pages of 
 
 Year. 
 
 No. of 
 Colporteurs. 
 
 Vols. Sold. 
 
 Vols. Given. 
 
 Tracts 
 Distributed. 
 
 1849 
 
 20 
 
 
 
 
 1850 
 
 63 
 
 
 
 
 1851 
 
 125 
 
 58,492 
 
 5,525 
 
 528,154 
 
 1852 
 
 141 
 
 71,150 
 
 5,506 
 
 581,956 
 
 1853 
 
 145 
 
 87,938 
 
 9,386 
 
 925,172 
 
 1854 
 
 151 
 
 91,885 
 
 9,581 
 
 871,547 
 
 1855 
 
 173 
 
 97,853 
 
 10,780 
 
 1,046,964 
 
 1856 
 
 210 
 
 105,319 
 
 13,544 
 
 1,039,056 
 
 1857 
 
 254 
 
 124,579 
 
 14,802 
 
 2,140,379 
 
 1858 
 
 263 
 
 123,924 
 
 17,905 
 
 1,555,469 
 
 1859 
 
 143 
 
 92,068 
 
 11,184 
 
 1,217,573 
 
 I860 
 
 202 
 
 124,638 
 
 14,920 
 
 2,162,594 
 
 1861 
 
 242 
 
 154,522 
 
 23,733 
 
 2,372,016 
 
 1862 
 
 150 
 
 73,318 
 
 44,311 
 
 3,275,825 
 
 1863 
 
 102 
 
 43,947 
 
 72,299 
 
 2,399,030 
 
 1864 
 
 90 
 
 52,411 
 
 33,857 
 
 1,623,063 
 
 1865 
 
 126 
 
 53,106 
 
 84,989 
 
 2,669,713 
 
 1866 
 
 129 
 
 59,246 
 
 72,505 
 
 1,892,102 
 
 1867 
 
 145 
 
 70,905 
 
 45,995 
 
 1,043,180 
 
 1868 
 
 146 
 
 66,177 
 
 36,721 
 
 996,653 
 
 1869 
 
 155 
 
 62,206 
 
 46,978 
 
 1,931,491 
 
 1870 
 
 156 
 
 49,632 
 
 63,698 
 
 2,733,193 
 
 1,663,316 
 
 638,219 
 
 33,005,130 
 
 GRANTS BY THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 
 
 Years. 
 
 Volumes Given. 
 
 Pages of Tracts 
 and Periodicals. 
 
 1839-1847 
 
 10,000 
 5,786 
 4,524 
 5,092 
 4,890 
 6,517 
 6,365 
 3,269 
 
 414,741 
 250,000 
 175,190 
 246,337 
 381,032 
 342,662 
 111,873 
 
 1848-1850 
 
 1851 
 
 1852 
 
 1853 
 
 1854 
 
 1855 
 
 1856 
 
 Carried forward.. 
 
 46,443 
 
 1,921,835 
 
218 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 PEESBYTEKIAN BOAED OF PUBLICATION. 
 
 GRANTS BY THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE {Continued). 
 
 Year. 
 
 Volumes Given. 
 
 Pages of Tracts 
 and Periodicals. 
 
 Brought forward. 
 
 1857 
 
 1858 
 
 1859 
 
 1860 
 
 1861 
 
 1862 
 
 1863 
 
 1864 
 
 1865 
 
 1866 
 
 1867 
 
 1868 
 
 1869 \ 
 
 1870/ 
 
 46,443 
 
 3,951 
 
 3.724 
 
 5,345 
 
 6,101 
 
 5,683 
 19,329 
 26,950 
 49,423 
 24,688 
 21,476 
 14,697 
 16,255 
 Included in Col- 
 porteur Eeport. 
 
 1,921,835 
 162,582 
 246,395 
 347,138 
 413,222 
 263,068 
 462,326 
 683,968 
 566,782 
 382,653 
 225,831 
 169,054 
 213,195 
 Included in Col- 
 porteur Eeport. 
 
 244,065 
 
 6,058,049 
 
 COLPORTAGE WORK. 
 
 
 No. of 
 
 
 
 Pages of Tracts 
 and Periodicals 
 
 Sabbath- 
 
 Year, 
 
 Colport- 
 
 Vols. 
 
 Vols. 
 
 Schools 
 
 
 eurs. 
 
 Sold. 
 
 Given. 
 
 Given. 
 
 Organized. 
 
 1871.... 
 
 129 
 
 38,179 
 
 50,595 
 
 3,166,232 
 
 
 1872.... 
 
 156 
 
 60,029 
 
 71,864 
 
 3,598,331 
 
 
 1873.... 
 
 158 
 
 69,483 
 
 54,093 
 
 3,371,106 
 
 
 1874.... 
 
 136 
 
 71,196 
 
 73,971 
 
 3,132,433 
 
 76 
 
 1875.... 
 
 126 
 
 72,737 
 
 68,271 
 
 4,282,899 
 
 126 
 
 1876.... 
 
 109 
 
 72,904 
 
 46,724 
 
 4,136,412 
 
 96 
 
 1877.... 
 
 98 
 
 67,441 
 
 39,033 
 
 4,274,813 
 
 101 
 
 1878.... 
 
 66 
 
 61,700 
 
 29,445 
 
 4,460,991 
 
 76 
 
 1879.... 
 
 70 
 
 68,160 
 
 27,535 
 
 4,637,626 
 
 90 
 
 1880.... 
 
 65 
 
 73,979 
 
 29,332 
 
 6,242,713 
 
 111 
 
 1881.... 
 
 53 
 
 71,396 
 
 25,057 
 
 4,652,774 
 
 88 
 
 1882.... 
 
 54 
 
 44,948 
 
 21,876 
 
 4,008,838 
 
 78 
 
 1883. .. 
 
 49 
 
 32,139 
 
 33,326 
 
 3,822,800 
 
 72 
 
 1884.... 
 
 84 
 
 34,932 
 
 73,767 
 
 6,692,882 
 
 151 
 
 1885.... 
 
 107 
 
 58,888 
 
 112,453 
 
 9,768,369 
 
 270 
 
 1886.... 
 
 89 
 
 52,344 
 
 78,055 
 
 7,143,060 
 
 167 
 
 1887.... 
 
 51 
 
 22,941 
 
 33,166 
 
 3,984,419 
 
 59 
 
 
 973,396 
 
 868,563 
 
 81,376,698 
 
 1,561 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 219 
 
 BOAKD OF PUBLICATION AND S. S. WOKK. 
 
 MISSIONARY WORK. 
 
 Year 
 
 Volumes 
 Sold. 
 
 Volumes 
 Given. 
 
 Bibles and 
 
 Testaments 
 
 Given. 
 
 Periodicals 
 
 and Tracts 
 
 Given. 
 
 Sabbath- 
 Schools 
 Organized. 
 
 1888.. 
 1889.. 
 
 10,074 
 5,500 
 
 13,033 
 47,125 
 
 606 
 
 2,707 
 
 1,051,126 
 8,004,325 
 
 73 
 
 948 
 
 
 15,574 
 
 60,158 
 
 3,313 
 
 9,055,451 
 
 1,021 
 
 GENERAL SUMMARY. 
 
 
 Sales. 
 
 Colportage and 
 Missionary Fund. 
 
 Board of Publication, 
 1839-1870 
 
 $1,915,619 66 
 
 303,792 47 
 
 3,128,359 82 
 
 447,824 81 
 
 $529,357 99 
 
 38,960 96 
 
 840,659 51 
 
 173,406 66 
 
 Publication Committee, 
 1855-1870 
 
 Board of Publication, 
 1870-1887 
 
 Board of Publication and 
 
 S.S. Work, 1888, 1889 
 
 15,795,596 76 
 
 $1,582,385 12 
 
 COIiPORTAGE AND MISSIONARY WORK. 
 
 
 Vols. 
 Sold. 
 
 Vols. 
 Given. 
 
 Pages of 
 
 Tracts and 
 
 Periodicals 
 
 Given. 
 
 Sabbath - 
 
 Schools 
 
 Organized 
 
 Board of Pub- 
 lication, 1849- 
 1870 
 
 1,663,316 
 
 973,396 
 
 15,574 
 
 638,219 
 
 246,065 
 868,563 
 
 63,471 
 
 33,005,130 
 
 6,058,049 
 81,376,698 
 
 9,055,451 
 
 1561 
 1,021 
 
 Grants by Ex. 
 Committee, 
 
 1839-1868 
 
 Board of Pub., 
 
 1871-1887 
 
 Board of Pub. 
 andS.S.Work, 
 1888, 1889 
 
 2,652,286 
 
 1,814,318 
 
 129,495,328 
 
 2,582 
 
OFFICERS AND MEMBERS 
 
 I. BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
 1838—1870. 
 
 OFFICEKS. 
 
 Presidents. 
 
 Ashbel Green, D. D., 1838-1839 
 
 Archibald Alexander, D. D., 1839-1851 
 
 William W. Phillips, D. D., 1852-1865 
 
 William M. Engles, D. D., 1865-1867 
 
 Alexander T. McGill, D. D., 1867-1870 
 
 Vice-Presidents. 
 
 James Lenox, 1838-1839 
 
 Alexander Symington, 1839-1852 
 
 Alexander W. Mitchell, M. D., 1852-1862 
 
 Joseph B. Mitchell, 1862-1863 
 
 Hon. George Sharswood, LL.D., 1862-1863 
 
 James Russell, 1862-1870 
 
 Rev. William M. Engles, 1863-1865 
 
 James Dunlap, 1863-1865 
 
 Daniel L. Collier, ] 865-1869 
 
 Rev. George Junkin, D. D., 1865-1868 
 
 Rev. Matthew B. Grier, D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 Morris Patterson, 1869-1870 
 
 Treasurers. 
 
 A. W. Mitchell, M. D., 1838-1856 
 
 James Dunlap, 1856-1863 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1863-1870 
 
 221 
 
222 APPENDIX. 
 
 Editors. 
 Eev. William M. Engles, D. D., 1838-1863 
 Bev. William E. Schenck, D. D., 1863-1870 
 
 Corresponding Secretaries, 
 Rev. Joseph H. Jones, D. D., 1838-1848 
 
 Eev. John Leyburn, D. D., 1848-1852 
 
 Eev. George W. Musgrave, D. D., 1852-1853 
 Eev. B. M. Smith, D. D., 1853-1854 
 
 Eev. William E. Schenck, D. D., 1854-1870 
 
 Recording Secretary. 
 Eev. Joseph H. Jones, D. D., 1838-1862 
 
 Recording Clerk. 
 Eev. WiUard M. Eice, D. D., 1862-1870 
 
 Publishing Agents. 
 
 William S. Martien, 1838-1840 
 
 James Eussell, 1840-1842 
 
 Paul T. Jones, 1842-1844 
 
 Joseph P. Engles, 1845-1861 
 
 Superintendent of Colportage. 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1854-1870 
 
 Superintendent of Colportage and Business Correspondent. 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1861-1870 
 
 Superintendent of Depository. 
 John A. Black,* 1855-1870 
 
 Publisher of Periodicals. 
 Peter Walker, 1863-1870 
 
 *Mr. Black entered the service of the Board in its Depository, 
 June, 1840. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 223 
 
 MEMBEKS. 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 Archibald Alexander, D. D., 1838-1851 
 
 James W. Alexander, D. D., 1847-1857 
 
 William Alexander, D. D., 1869-1870 
 
 S. P. J. Anderson, D. D., 1851-1866 
 
 John C. Backus, D. D., 1840-1870 
 
 William Bannard, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 Charles C. Beatty, D. D., 1838-1855 
 
 John L. Belville, 1838-1839 
 
 K T. Berry, 1847-1863 
 
 Andrew M. Beveridge, 1864-1870 
 
 William M. Blackburn, D. D., 1864-1870 
 
 William Blackwood, D. D., 1851-1867 
 
 William Blair, 1838-1839 
 
 John Breckenridge, D. D., 1840-1841 
 
 Robert J. Breckenridge, D. D., 1838-1870 
 William L. Breckenridge, D. D., 1838-1870 
 
 Henry A. Boardman, D. D. 1838-1864 
 
 William P. Breed, D. D., 1855-1870 
 
 N. C. Burt, 1838-1839 
 
 David R. Campbell, 1864-1870 
 
 John N. Campbell, D. D., 1838-1864 
 
 William C. Cattell, D. D., 1863-1870 
 John Chester, D. D., 1869-1870 
 
 William Chester, D. D., 1847-1860 
 John H. Church, D. D., 1838-1841 
 
 Henry Steele Clark, D. D., 1853-1859 
 
 Nathaniel W. Conkling, D. D., 1863-1870 
 James M. Crowell, D. I)., 1857-1870 
 
 James Culbertson, 1838-1847 
 
 Cornelius C. Cuyler, D. D., 1838-1851 
 
 Theodore L. Cuyler, D. D., 1851-1857 
 
 David A. Cunningham, D. D., 1867-1870 
 
224 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Members. 
 
 J. Leroy Davies, 1838-1844 
 
 K. W. Dickinson, D. D., 1866-1870 
 
 Cyrus Dickson, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 James L. Dinwiddie, 1840-1841 
 
 John T. Edgar, D. D., 1838-1860 
 
 David Elliott, D. D., 1838-1870 
 
 William M. Engles, D. D., 1838-1867 
 
 Daniel Gaston, 1862-1865 
 
 Abraham Gosman, D. D., 1866-1870 
 
 John Gray, D. D., 1838-1868 
 
 Ashbel Green, D. D., 1838-1847 
 
 William Henry Green, D. D., 1864-1870 
 
 J. A. Gretter, 1849-1853 
 
 P. D. Gurley, D. D., 1866-1869 
 
 George Hale, D. D., 1858-1870 
 
 John Hall, D. D., Trenton, N. J., 1 1842-1857 
 
 ' 1 1863-1864 
 
 John Hall, D. D., New York, 1868-1870 
 
 William T. Hamilton, D. D., 1840-1854 
 
 F. R. Harbaugh, 1862-1870 
 
 N. H. Harding, D. D., 1842-1849 
 
 George C. Heckman, D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 E. W. Henry, D. D., 1862-1870 
 
 James Hoge, D. D,, 1838-1864 
 
 W. J. Hoge, D. D., 1860-1864 
 
 William H. Hornblower, D. D., 1860-1870 
 
 James W. Hoyt, 1860-1863 
 
 E. P. Humphrey, D. D., 1851-1870 
 
 Charles K. Imbrie, D. D. 1861-1870 
 
 J. J. Janeway, D. D., 1840-1858 
 
 Thomas L. Janeway, D. D., 1841-1851 
 
 Charles C. Jones, D. D., 1839-1851 
 
 Joseph H. Jones, D. D., 1838-1869 
 
 George Junkin, D. D., 1862-1869 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 225 
 
 Members. 
 
 Alfred H. Kellogg, D. D., 1865-1870 
 
 James H. M. Knox, D. D., 1860-1870 
 
 John M. Krebs, D. D., 1838-1868 
 
 James Laurie, D. D., 1839-1847 
 
 A. B. Lawrence, 1838-1840 
 
 John Leyburn, D. D., 1850-1861 
 
 Willis Lord, D. D., 1841-1851 
 
 William Loughridge, 1842-1847 
 
 John M. Lowrie, D. D., 1863-1866 
 
 Alexander Maclin, D. D., 1840-1860 
 
 John McDowell, D. D., 1840-1863 
 
 Alexander T. McGill, D. D., 1849-1870 
 
 J. L. McKee, D. D., 1867-1870 
 
 James W. McKennan, 1838-1861 
 
 William E. McLaren. 1867-1870 
 
 G. W. McPhail, D. D., 1860-1866 
 William M. McPheeters, D. D., 1838-1842 
 
 William C. Matthews, D. D., 1838-1870 
 
 John Miller, 1850-1857 
 
 Samuel Miller, D. D., 1838-1850 
 
 Joshua Moore, 1838-1855 
 
 James Morrison, 1838-1865 
 
 Eobert M. Morrison, D. D., 1844-1864 
 
 Philip H. Mowry, D. D., 1863-1867 
 
 Nicholas Murray, D. D., 1838-1857 
 
 George W. Musgrave, D. D., 1838-1857 
 
 Alfred Nevin, D. D., 1858-1866 
 
 J. Howard Nixon, D. D., 1864-1870 
 
 S. M. Osmond, D. D., 1869-1870 
 
 Roger Owen, D. D., 1869-1870 
 
 William M. Paxton, D. D., 1866-1870 
 
 William W. Phillips, D. D., 1838-1865 
 
 William S. Plumer, D. D., 1838-1863 
 
 George Potts, D. D., 1838-1861 
 15 
 
226 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Members. 
 
 N. S. Prime, 1839-1843 
 
 G. Wendell Prime, D. D., 1864-1867 
 
 J. Grier Ralston, D. D., 1863-1870 
 
 Alexander Reed, D. D., 1865-1870 
 
 Nathan L. Rice, D. D., 1860-1870 
 
 Willard M. Rice, D. D., 1860-1870 
 
 R. W. Richardson, D. D. 1867-1870 
 
 William C. Roberts, D. D., 1862-1870 
 
 Stuart Robinson, D. D. 1851-1866 
 
 J. E. Rockwell, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 Robert F. Sample, D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 William E. Schenck, D. D., 1852-1870 
 
 William A. Scott, D. D., 1846-1861 
 Thomas H. Skinner, Jr., D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 Benjamin M. Smith, D. D., 1852-1863 
 
 Reuben Smith, 1840-1860 
 
 Thomas Smyth, D. D. 1839-1863 
 William D. Snodgrass, D. D., 1840-1870 
 
 Benjamin Spillman, 1838-1858 
 
 William B. Sprague, D. D., 1840-1870 
 
 Gardner Spring, D. D., 1840-1860 
 
 J. O. Stedman, D. D., 1858-1861 
 
 William K. Stewart, 1838-1854 
 
 Charles Stillman, 1858-1861 
 
 Morris C. Sutphen, D. D., 1863-1870 
 
 Andrew Todd, 1838-1851 
 
 Archibald Tudehope, 1840-1852 
 
 Henry J. Van Dyke, D. D. 1857-1863 
 
 C. Van Rensselaer, D. D., 1848-1852 
 
 James C. Watson, D. D., 1859-1870 
 
 Ansley D. White, 1869-1870 
 
 William S. White, D. D., 1852-1864 
 
 H. R. Wilson, D. D., 1841-1849 
 
 Joshua L. Wilson, D. D., 1838-1847 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 227 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 S. B. Wilson, D. D., 1838-1862 
 
 S. R. Wilson, D. D., 1847-1866 
 
 S. G. Winchester, 1838-1841 
 
 John Witherspoon, D. D., ] 838-1850 
 
 Thomas S. Witherspoon, 1838-1840 
 
 Edward W. Wright, D. D., 1864-1867 
 
 John W. Yeomans, D. D., 1840-1864 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 Solomon Allen, 1838-1846 
 
 Stephen Alexander, LL.D., 1859-1870 
 
 Hugh Auchincloss, 1838-1856 
 
 Micah Baldwin, 1844-1845 
 
 Richard Barnett, 1858-1862 
 
 Abijah Bayless, 1838-1847 
 
 Aaron B. Belknap, 1862-1870 
 
 Gustavus S. Benson, 1867-1870 
 
 Joseph Biggar, 1838-1840 
 
 Henry C. Blair, 1845-1863 
 
 Peter Boyd, 1842-1857 
 
 William S. Boyd, 1869-1870 
 
 Corbin Braxton, 1851-1852 
 
 Robert H. Burton, 1838-1840 
 
 Henry L. Butler, 1867-1870 
 
 W. W. Caldwell, 1867-1869 
 
 D. C. Campbell, 1838-1863 
 
 Hovey K. Clark, 1867-1870 
 
 Charles Collins, 1840-1850 
 
 Daniel L. Collier, 1862-1869 
 
 Gilbert Combs, 1864-1870 
 
 David Comfort, 1862-1864 
 
 A. B. Conger, 1863-1869 
 
 Robert Cornelius, 1868-1870 
 
 T. Craig, 1842-1850 
 
228 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 Harmer Denny, 1838-1852 
 
 James N. Dickson, 1840-1867 
 
 George Douglass, 1841-1857 
 
 Charles D. Drake, 1869-1870 
 
 William E. DuBois, 1848-1858 
 
 William Dulty, 1840-1853 
 
 Charles B. Dungan, ' 1850-1862 
 
 James Duulap, 1841-1866 
 
 Thomas B. Dwight, 1863-1866 
 
 William Elmer, 1869-1870 
 
 Joseph P. Engles, 1839-1861 
 
 F. A. Ewing, 1842-1858 
 
 Hon. Nathaniel Ewing, 1888-1859 
 
 B. A. Fahnestock, 1850-1862 
 
 George W. Fahnestock, 1863-1869 
 
 George W. Farrington, 1858-1869 
 
 Ebenezer FJinn, 1838-1840 
 
 Thomas Foote, 1847-1870 
 
 S. Franklin, 1839-1851 
 
 Thomas Franklin, 1838-1840 
 
 E. B. Fuller, 1861-1870 
 
 Samuel Galloway, 1866-1 870 
 
 John E. Gould, 1860-1863 
 
 David Hadden, 1853-1865 
 
 J. Hall, 1839-1842 
 
 William R. Hanson, 1840-1858 
 
 John M. Harper, 1867-1868 
 
 Fulton W. Hastings, 1866-1870 
 
 John Hemphill, 1840-1842 
 
 Thomas Henderson, 1838-1864 
 
 Alexander Henry, 1840-1848 
 
 Joseph Henry, LL.D., 1858-1870 
 
 T. Charlton Henry, 1866-1870 
 
 Silas Holmes, 1852-1860 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 229 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 H. Lenox Hodge, M. D., 1869-1870 
 
 James Imbrie, 1853-1866 
 
 William A. Ingham, 1861-1867 
 
 Edwin S. Jaffray, 1860-1870 
 
 Robert Jaffray, 1838-1846 
 
 Barton H. Jenks, 1866-1870 
 
 William Jamison, 1864-1867 
 
 John Taylor Johnson, 1869-1870 
 
 James Johnson, 1838-1852 
 
 Joel Jones, LL.D., 1840-1860 
 
 X. , r^ T f 1840-1841 
 
 Paul T. Jones, 1 1850-1853 
 
 George Junkin, Jr., 1858-1870 
 
 Victor King, 1838-1864 
 
 Strickland Kneass, 1861-1870 
 
 Hon. H. H. Leavitt, 1838-1870 
 
 Samuel A. Lewis, 1857-1858 
 
 William T. Lewis, 1866-1870 
 
 Theodore Little, 1863-1870 
 
 James Lenox, 1838-1870 
 
 Charles Macalester, 1853-1860 
 
 Archibald McClure, 1858-1870 
 
 John D. McCord, 1869-1870 
 
 Robert H. McEwen, 1838-1853 
 
 Archibald Mclntyre, 1840-1870 
 
 Henry McKeen, 1840-1870 
 
 Thomas McKeen, 1838-1859 
 
 Hon. Robert McKnight, 1868-1870 
 
 R. H. McNair, 1841-1850 
 
 J. B. Martin, 1838-1857 
 
 Alfred Martien, 1865-1870 
 
 William S. Martien, 1840-1861 
 
 Joseph B. Mitchell, 1838-1864 
 Alexander W. Mitchell, M. D., 1838-1862 
 
230 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 John MoUyneaux, 
 George Morris, 
 Joseph Moorhead, 
 Mahlon Mulford, 
 George C. Naphys, 
 Matthew Newkirk, 
 David Olyphant, 
 James Otterson, Jr., 
 J. W. Pain, 
 Eobert M. Patton, 
 Morris Patterson, 
 Ananias Piatt, 
 Ebenezer Piatt, 
 J. W. Piatt, 
 
 Hon. William A. Porter, 
 W. A. G. Posey, 
 Stacy G. Potts, 
 Henry Rankin, 
 
 James M. Ray, 
 
 William S. Reed, 
 Archibald Robinson, 
 James B. Ross, 
 James Russell, 
 Martin Ryerson, 
 George G. Sampson, 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 
 
 David A. Sayer, 
 
 James Schoonmaker, 
 
 Hon. George Sharswood, LL.D., 
 
 G. G. Sherrard, 
 
 J. M. Sherwood, 
 
 John Sibley, 
 
 1838-1853 
 
 1838-1847 
 1859-1863 
 1867-1870 
 1861-1869 
 1838-1868 
 1866-1870 
 1862-1866 
 1838-1839 
 1858-1862 
 1857-1870 
 1838-1842 
 1846-1865 
 1838-1845 
 1858-1866 
 1838-1845 
 1850-1861 
 1838-1841 
 1 1840-1858 
 1 1866-1870 
 1869-1870 
 1840-1859 
 1846-1867 
 1838-1870 
 1864-1870 
 1857-1867 
 f 1842-1844 
 t 1853-1S70 
 1850-1870 
 1852-1859 
 1852-1870 
 1859-1860 
 1860-1870 
 1856-1870 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 231 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 Robert Soutter, 1844-1866 
 
 James Ross Snowden, 1857-1870 
 
 W. B. Spence, 1853-1857 
 
 Samuel S. Spencer, 1858-1870 
 
 John Still6, 1838-1842 
 
 John C. Stockton, 1838-1858 
 
 Robert L. Stuart, 1850-1870 
 
 Alexander Symington, 1838-1852 
 
 Enoch Taylor, 1861-1867 
 
 Alfred Thomas, 1862-1866 
 
 Henry E. Thomas, 1863-1870 
 
 William R. Thompson, 1860-1861 
 
 Charles N. Todd, 1864-1870 
 
 E. Vail, 1842-1863 
 
 Adrian Van Sinderen, 1840-1844 
 
 P. C. Venable, M. D., 1838-1858 
 
 P. A. Walker, 1838-1858 
 
 William Walker, 1847-1868 
 
 Henry Webb, 1852-1859 
 
 James Weir, 1838-1850 
 
 Silas E. Weir, 1857-1869 
 
 Jesse L. Williams, 1866-1870 
 
 William Wilson, 1838-1850 
 
 John R, Witherspoon, 1838-1858 
 
 John F. Woodhall, 1838-1842 
 
 James T. Young, 1860-1870 
 
232 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 II. PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 
 1852-1870. 
 
 1852-1870 
 
 1852-1854 
 1855-1857 
 
 1857-1870 
 
 OFFICERS. 
 Chairman. 
 Eev. Albert Barnes, 
 
 Secretaries. 
 Eev. John McKnight, 
 Rev. Wm. H. Spencer, 
 
 Secretary and Editor. 
 Rev. John W. Dulles, 
 
 Business Superintendent. 
 Rev. Samuel W. Crittenden, 1865-1870 
 
 Treasurers. 
 
 Rev. John McKnight, 1852-1854 
 
 William Purves, 1854-1860 
 
 William L. Hildeburn, 1860-1870 
 
 MEMBERS. 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 E. E. Adams, D. D., 1862-1868 
 
 Albert Barnes, 1852-1870 
 
 N. S. S. Beman, D. D., 1854-1870 
 
 A. H. H. Boyd, D. D., 1854-1857 
 
 Thomas Brainerd, D. D., 1852-1861 
 
 J. Glentworth Butler, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 George Chandler, 1853-1854 
 
 Henry Darling, D. D., 1854-1868 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 233 
 
 Ministers, 
 
 George Duffield, Jr., 1852-1862 
 
 William Eagleton, D. D., 1854-1857 
 
 E. W. Gilbert, D. D., 1852-1853 
 
 Samuel H. Gridley, D. D., 1854-1862 
 
 Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 John Jenkins, D. D., 1854-1863 
 
 Herrick Johnson, D. D., 1868-1870 
 
 Daniel March, D. D., 1863-1870 
 
 William E. Moore, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 Thomas J. Shepherd, D. D., 1862-1870 
 
 Thomas H. Skinner, D. D., 1852-1853 
 
 Asa Smith, D. D., 1852-1864 
 
 Samuel T. Spear, D. D., 1854-1862 
 
 Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D., 1852-1854 
 
 Benjamin J. Wallace, 1854-1857 
 
 George F. Wiswell, D. D., 1857-1870 
 
 Laymen. 
 
 Frank L. Bodine, 1861-1870 
 
 T. S. Bodine, 1852-1857 
 
 Hon. AVm. Darling, 1852-1854 
 
 John C. Farr, 1858-1859 
 
 William F. Judson, 1865-1868 
 
 Samuel H. Perkins, 1853-1857 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 1858-1870 
 
 Hon. William Strong, 1858-1868 
 
 William E. Tenbrook, 1863-1870 
 
 Benjamin T. Tredick, 1857-1858 
 
 Alexander Whilldin, 1864-1870 
 
 Hon. Kobert N. Willson, 1869-1870 
 
 Charles S. Wurts, 1854-1859 
 
 Charles S. Wurts, M. D., 1859-1865 
 
234 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 III. BOAKD OF PUBLICATION. 
 1870—1887. 
 
 OFFICEKS. 
 
 Presidents. 
 
 Rev. Alexander Reed, D. D., 1870-1874 
 
 Rev. Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., 1874-1875 
 
 Rev. Wm. P. Breed, D. D., 1875-1887 
 
 Vice-Presidents. 
 
 Hon. Joseph Allison, 1870-1887 
 
 Morris Patterson, 1870-1875 
 
 Rev. Matthew B. Grier, D. D., 1870-1871 
 
 Rev. George W. Musgrave, D. D., 1871-1873 
 
 Rev. Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., 1873-1874 
 
 Rev. Wm. P. Breed, D. D., 1874-1875 
 
 Rev. Joseph M. Crowell, D. D., 1875-1883 
 
 Rev. Thomas J. Shepherd, D. D., 1875-1887 
 
 Rev. J. A. Henry, D. D., 1883-1886 
 
 Hon. Robert N. Willson, 1885-1887 
 
 Rev. William T. Eva, D. D., 1886-1887 
 
 Corresponding Secretary. 
 Rev. William E. Schenck, D. D., 1870-1886 
 
 Editorial Secretary. 
 Rev. John W. Dulles, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 Secretary of Sabbath-School Work. 
 
 Rev. James A. Worden, D. D.,* 1880-1887 
 
 * Appointed by the General Assembly. 
 
APPENDIX. 235 
 
 General Secretaries, 
 
 Eev. John W. Dulles, D. D. * 1887 
 
 Eev. E. R. Craven, D. D.,t 1887 
 
 Superintendents of Colportage. 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1870-1873 
 
 Samuel D. Powel, 1873-1887 
 
 Superintendent of Sabbath-School Work. 
 
 J. Bennet Tyler, 1872-1876 
 
 Rev. James A. Worden, 1878-1880 
 
 Business Superintendent. 
 
 John A. Black, 1870-1887 
 
 Treasurers. 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1870-1873 
 
 Samuel D. Powel, 1873-1887 
 
 Recording Clerh. 
 
 Rev. Willard M. Rice, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 Editor. 
 
 Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D.,t 1887 
 
 MEMBERS. 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 Benjamin L. Agnew, D. D., 1870-1873 
 
 George Alexander, D. D., 1886-1887 
 
 Richard H. Allen, D. D., 1870-1880 
 
 R. R. Booth, D. D., 1874-1875 
 
 William P. Breed, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 James M. Crowell, D. D., 1871-1883 
 
 * Elected .January 18, 1887; died April 13, 1887. 
 
 t Elected May 10, 1887. 
 
 % Elected January 18, 1887. 
 
236 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 David A. Cunningham, D. D., 1870-1877 
 
 Stephen W. Dana, D. D., 1870-1883 
 
 Charles A. Dickey, D. D., 1875-1887 
 
 John W. Dulles, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 William T. Eva, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 Loyal Young Graham, D. D., 1877-1887 
 
 William Greenough, 1877-1886 
 
 Rufus S. Green, 1881-1882 
 
 William Brenton Greene, Jr., 1886-1887 
 
 Matthew B. Grier, D. D., 1870-1872 
 
 F. E. Harbaugh, 1870-1872 
 
 J. Addison Henry, D. D., 1872-1886 
 
 Z. M. Humphrey, D. D., 1870-1875 
 
 TT . 1 T 1, T» T^ i 1870-1874 
 
 Herrick Johnson, D. D, | ^^^^_^^^j 
 
 William E. Jones, D. D., 1878-1886 
 
 John S. Macintosh, D. D., 1883-1887 
 
 Daniel March, D. D., 1870-1878 
 
 William E. Moore, D. D., 1870-1873 
 
 Thomas Murphy, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 George W. Musgrave, D. D., 1872-1883 
 
 Samuel A. Mutchmore, D. D., 1874-1887 
 
 Matthew Newkirk, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 Samuel J. Niccolls, D. D., 1884-1887 
 
 Roger Owen, D. D., 1875-1887 
 
 Robert M. Patterson, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 J. Grier Ralston, D. D., 1870-1881 
 
 Alexander Reed, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 Willard M. Rice, D. D., 1870-1887 
 William Dayton Roberts, D. D., 1883-1887 
 
 William H. Roberts, D. D., 1886-1887 
 
 John S. Sands, D. D., 1883-1887 
 
 William E. Schenck, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 J. Henry Sharpe, D. D., 1873-1887 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 237 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 Thomas J. Shepherd, D. D., 1870-1887 
 
 H. Augustus Smith, D. D., 1870-1883 
 
 Peter Stryker, D. D., 1870-1871 
 
 Marvin R. Vincent, D. D., 1875-1876 
 
 John L. Withrow, D. D., 1873-1874 
 
 James A. Worden, D. D., 1880-1887 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 William Adamson, 1878-1880 
 
 Hon. Joseph Allison, LL.D., 1870-1887 
 
 Theodore W. Baker, 1871-1886 
 
 Gustavus S. Benson, 1870-1883 
 
 Charles S. Biles, 1875-1887 
 
 Henry C. Blair, 1882-1887 
 
 Edward P. Borden, 1883-1887 
 
 William Brockie, 1876-1887 
 
 Stanton Cady, 1877-1880 
 
 William E. Camp, 1870-1877 
 
 Joseph M. Collingwood, 1883-1887 
 
 Gilbert Combs, 1870-1872 
 
 Samuel A. Coyle, 1879-1883 
 
 William L. DuBois, 1880-1887 
 
 Hon. John K. Findlay, 1876-1882 
 
 John B. Gest, 1875-1876 
 
 Hon. George S. Graham, 1884-1887 
 
 T. Charlton Henry, 1878-1879 
 
 William L. Hildeburn, 1870-1872 
 
 John Hill, 1881-1882 
 
 Robert H. Hinckley, 1880-1887 
 Frank K. Hippie, . 1886-1887 
 
 H. Lenox Hodge, M. D., 1870-1878 
 
 James Hogg, 1875-1876 
 
 Edward R. Hutchins, M. D., 1870-1872 
 
 George Junkin, 1870-1876 
 
238 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Laymen and Elders. 
 
 Ezra M. Kingsley, 
 
 Strickland Kneass, 
 
 Horatio B. Lincoln, 
 
 John A. Linn, 
 
 William L. Mactier, 
 
 John D. McCord, 
 
 William J. McElroy, 
 
 Archibald Mclntyre, 
 
 George W. Mears, 
 
 Edward Miller, 
 
 William Montelius, 
 
 William G. Moorhead, 
 
 George C. Napheys. 
 
 Robert C. Ogden, 
 
 Edwin Packard, 
 
 Morris Patterson, 
 
 Henry N. Paul, 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 
 
 William F. Eaynolds, 
 
 Hon. E. A. Rollins, 
 Winthrop Sargent, 
 Hon. John Scott, 
 John Sibley, 
 George W. Simons, 
 William T. Snodgrass, 
 James Ross Snowden, 
 William E. Tenbrook, 
 Henry E. Thomas, 
 John H. Watt, 
 Alexander Whilldin, 
 George F. Wiggan, 
 Hon. Robert N. Willson, 
 William Wood, 
 James T. Young, 
 
 1874-1875 
 
 1872-1874 
 
 1870-1877 
 
 1875-1882 
 
 1878-1887 
 
 1870-1887 
 
 1873-1878 
 
 1870-1887 
 
 1872-1887 
 
 1870-1872 
 
 1872-1883 
 
 1872-1876 
 
 1877-1880 
 
 1882-1887 
 
 1886-1887 
 
 1870-1875 
 
 1870-1887 
 
 1870-1887 
 
 1882-1886 
 
 1876-1886 
 
 1870-1874 
 
 1883-1887 
 
 1870-1883 
 
 1870-1874 
 
 1872-1873 
 
 1870-1878 
 
 1870-1881 
 
 1870-1871 
 
 1876-1887 
 
 1870-1872 
 
 1882-1887 
 
 1870-1887 
 
 1880-1887 
 
 1870-1882 
 
APPENDIX. 239 
 
 IV. BOARD OF PUBLICATION AND 
 SABBATH-SCHOOL WORK. 
 
 OFFICERS. 
 
 Presidents. 
 Rev. William P. Breed, D. D., 1887-1889 
 Hon. Robert N. Willson, 1889- 
 
 Vice- Presidents, 
 Hon. Robert N. Willson, 1887-1889 
 
 Rev. Benjamin L. Agnew, D. D., 1889- 
 
 Secretary. 
 Rev. E. R. Craven, D. D., 1887- 
 
 Sabhath-School and Missionary Superintendent, 
 Rev. James A. Worden, D. D., 1887- 
 
 Editorial Superintendent. 
 Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D., 1887- 
 
 Business Superintendent. 
 John A. Black, 1887- 
 
 Recording Clerk. 
 Rev. Willard M. Rice, D. D., 1887- 
 
 Treasurers. 
 Samuel D. Powel,* 1887 
 
 Rev. Charles T. McMullin, 1887- 
 
 *Died August 24, 1887. 
 
240 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 
 MEMBERS. 
 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 
 Benjamin L. Agnew, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 William P. Breed, D. D., 
 
 1887-1889 
 
 Charles A. Dickey, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 Robert H. Fulton, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 Loyal Y. Graham, D. D., 
 
 1877- 
 
 Wm. Brenton Greene, Jr., 
 
 1887- 
 
 John Hemphill, D. D., 
 
 1889- 
 
 Thomas A. Hoyt, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 Henry C. McCook, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 C. P. H. Nason, 
 
 1889- 
 
 Robert M. Patterson, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 Wm. Dayton Roberts, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 John S. Sands, D. D., 
 
 1887-1889 
 
 Charles Wood, D. D., 
 
 1887- 
 
 Elders. 
 
 
 William W. Allen, 
 
 1888- 
 
 Charles H. Biles, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Edward P. Borden,* 
 
 1887 
 
 William Brockie, 
 
 1887- 
 
 William L. DuBois, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Hon. George S. Graham, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Robert H. Hinckley, 
 
 1887- 
 
 William L. Mactier,* 
 
 1887 
 
 John D. McCord,* 
 
 1887 
 
 Archibald Mclntyre, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Francis B. Reeves, 
 
 1888- 
 
 Hon. John Scott, 
 
 1887- 
 
 John H. Watt, 
 
 1887- 
 
 Hon. Robert N. Willson, 
 
 1887- 
 
 William Wood,* 
 
 1887 
 
 * Declined. 
 
 
APPENDIX. 241 
 
 TRUSTEES OF THE BOARD. 
 
 (Incorporated in 1847.) 
 
 James N. Dickson, 1847-1850 
 
 James Dunlap, 1847-1865 
 
 William S. Martien, 1847-1861 
 
 Archibald Mclntyre, 1847- 
 
 A. W. Mitchell, M. D., 1847-1861 
 Joseph B. Mitchell, 1847-1863 
 James B. Ross, 1847-1859 
 Robert Soutter, Jr., 1847-1850 
 Matthew Newkirk, 1847-1868 
 
 B. A. Fahnestock, 1850-1859 
 
 C. B. Dungan, 1850-1854 
 
 George Sharswood, 1854-1870 
 
 Charles Macalester, 1856-1860 
 
 William A. Porter, 1859-1867 
 
 James Russell, 1860-1870 
 
 William A. Ingham, 1861-1867 
 
 w .1, « . (] 861-1870 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 1 1871-1874 
 
 Daniel L. Collier, 1863-1869 
 
 George Junkin, Jr., 1865-1876 
 
 Morris Patterson, 1867-1875 
 
 W. W. Caldwell, 1867-1869 
 
 J. Ross Snowden, 1868-1877 
 
 John D. McCord, 1869- 
 
 Alexander Whilldin, 1870-1872 
 
 Samuel C. Perkins, 1870- 
 
 William E. Tenbrook, 1870-1881 
 
 Robert N. Willson, 1870- 
 
 Gustavus S. Benson, 1875-1 883 
 
 John B. Gest, 1875-1876 
 
 James T. Young, 1876-1882 
 
 John K. Findlay, 1876-1882 
 
 Hon. E. A. Rollins, 1877-1885 
 16 
 
242 APPENDIX. 
 
 Trustees of the Board. 
 (Incorporated in 1&47). 
 
 William L. Mactier, 1881-1887 
 
 William L. DuBois, 1882- 
 
 Henry N. Paul, 1882- 
 
 W. F. Eaynolds, 1883-1885 
 
 Frank K. Hippie, 1886- 
 
 George W. Mears, 1886-1887 
 
 David C. Golden, 1888- 
 
 Asahel A. Shumway, 1888- 
 
INDEX. 
 
 ALEXANDER) Rev. Archibiild, D. D., 13. 
 American Bible Society, 7. 
 American Sunday-School Union, 8. 
 American Tract Society, 8. 
 Appendix : 
 
 Charter, 211-213. 
 
 Cash Receipts, 214-216. 
 
 Colporteur Work, 217, 218, 219. 
 
 Grants by Executive Committee, 217, 218. 
 
 General Summary, 219. 
 
 Succession of Oflacers and Members, 221-240. 
 Assembly Review and Supervision, 33-39 ; 52, 56, 58, 91, 98, 129, 
 
 193, 195. 
 Auditing Committee, 85. 
 
 Babnes, Albert, 50, 68. 
 
 Board of Publication of Tracts and Sabbath-School Books : 
 
 Organized by General Assembly, 11. 
 
 Original Officers and Members, 12, 13. 
 
 First Annual Report, 14. 
 
 Name changed, 15. 
 
 of the Reunited Church organized, 84. 
 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 221-231. 
 Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work, 167-210. 
 
 Sabbath-School and Missionary Department, 198-202. 
 
 Editorial Department, 202-204. 
 
 Business Department, 204-209. 
 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 225. 
 Bookstore, 20, 55, 89. 
 Breed, Rev. AVm. P., D. D., 209, 210. 
 
 243 
 
244 INDEX. 
 
 Building Committee, 86. 
 Business Committee, 85. 
 Business Superintendent : 
 
 Eev. S. W. Crittenden, 60. 
 
 John A. Black, 84, 197. 
 
 Capital of Board, 45, 85, 207. 
 
 of Publication Committee, 59, 69. 
 Catalogue, Descriptive, 37, 88, 207. 
 Catechism for Young Children, 26, 29. 
 
 Shorter, 24, 29, 124. 
 Changes in Organization, 153. 
 Charter of Board, 211-213. 
 Children's Day, 201. 
 Church at Home and Abroad, 205. 
 Colportage, 20, 30, 61, 63, 98. 
 
 Assembly, approval, 22, 23, 30, 63, 98-101, 101-109. 
 Superintendent of : 
 
 Winthrop Sargent, 24. 
 Samuel D. Powel, 96. 
 Office abolished, 103. 
 District Superintendents of, 30, 101. 
 Office abolished, 105. 
 Committee on Changes in Sunday-School Department, Assembly 
 1876, 133. 
 on Changes in Missionary Department, Assembly 1881, 102. 
 of Investigation, Assembly's, 1862, 53. 
 of Investigation, Assembly's, 1884, 144. 
 of Board, on changes in organization of Board, 147. 
 Assembly's, 1886, 163. 
 Keport of, 167-193. 
 Confession of Faith, 29. 
 Constitution of the Board, 15-17. 
 Corresponding Secretaries : 
 
 Rev. Joseph H. Jones, D. D., 13. 
 
 Rev. John Leyburn, D. D., 22, 24. 
 
 Rev. George Musgrave, D. D., 24. 
 
 Rev. B. M. Smith, D. D., 24. 
 
 Rev. Wm. E. Schenck, D. D., 24, 84, 146, 182. 
 
INDEX. 246 
 
 Declaration of Trust, 58. 
 
 Depositories and Branch Houses, 90, 178, 206. 
 
 Digest, 94. 
 
 Distribution Fund, 21, 38, 214. 
 
 Dodge, Hon. Wm. E., legacy of, 107. 
 
 Dulles, Rev. John W., D. D. : 
 
 Secretary and Editor, 56. 
 
 Editorial Secretary, 84. 
 
 General Secretary, 154. 
 
 Death of, 154-160. 
 
 Editorial Assistant, Rev. J. R. Miller, 129. 
 
 Editor, Rev. J. R. Miller, D, D., 154. 
 
 Editorial Superintendent, Rev. J. R. Miller, D. D., 197. 
 
 End of First Decade, 19. 
 
 Second Decade, 29. 
 
 Third Decade, 38. 
 Engles, Joseph P., 25-27. 
 Engles, Rev. Wm. M., D. D., 40. 
 
 Forward, 128. 
 
 General Secretary : 
 
 Rev. John W. Dulles, D. D., 154. 
 
 Rev. E. R. Craven, D. D., 160. 
 Grants by Missionary Committee, 107, 199. 
 Green, John C, Fund, 97. 
 
 Home and Foreign Record, 28, 92. 
 
 Literature of the Board, 28, 32, 60, 70, 206, 207, 
 
 Missionary Committee, 85, 101. 
 
 Department, 97. 
 
 Assembly's Special Committee on, 102-104. 
 
 Important changes, 104, 105. 
 Morning Star, 125. 
 
 New Board organized 1870, 84. 
 
246 INDEX. 
 
 New Board organized 1887, 196, 197. 
 New Publication House, 85-88. 
 Normal Class Instruction, 130. 
 
 Periodicaij Committee, 85. 
 Periodicals, 124-129. 
 Phillips, Rev. W. W., D. D., 25. 
 Powel, Samuel D., 96, 197. 
 Presbyterian at Work, 126. 
 Presbyterian Hymnal, 93. 
 Presbyterian Monthly, 60. 
 Presbyterian Monthly Record, 92. 
 
 Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1838-1870, 7-43; 1870-1887, 73- 
 163. 
 Constitution of, 15-17. 
 Incorporation, 19. 
 
 Original Members and Officers, 12-13. 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 221-231. 
 Presbyterian Publication Committee, 47-70. 
 Preliminary Action, 47. 
 Appointment, 49, 50. 
 Enlarged, 51. 
 Name changed, 51. 
 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 232, 233. 
 Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work, 167- 
 210. 
 Organization, Members and Officers, 196, 197. 
 Business Department, 204-209. 
 Editorial Department, 202-204. 
 
 Sabbath-School and Missionary Department, 198-202. 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 239, 240. 
 Presbytery of Philadelphia on Tract Distribution, 8. 
 Price of publications reduced, 206. 
 Prize Bibles for recitation of Shorter Catechism, 200. 
 Publication House, 20, 53, 74, 85-88. 
 Publishing Committee, 85. 
 Publisher of Periodicals, 36. 
 
 Report, final, of 0. S. Board, 42, 43. 
 
INDEX. 247 
 
 Report of N. S. Committee, 70. 
 
 joint Committee of Ten, 74-81. 
 
 Assembly's Committee of 1886, 167. 
 
 Standing Committee of Assembly of 1870, 81-84. 
 
 Standing Committee of Assembly of 1887, 193-196. 
 Reunion and Consolidation, 73. 
 
 Sabbath-School Department, Report of Committee, 109, 
 
 Literature, 32, 119. 
 
 Visitor,. 27, 125. 
 
 Work, 32, 65, 131, 132, 138, 202. 
 Sabbath-schools, identity of School and Church, 139. 
 
 Statistics, 118, 140, 201. 
 Sargent, Winthrop, 24, 96. 
 Schenck, Rev. Wm. E., D. D. : 
 
 Appointment as Corresponding Secretary, 24, 84. 
 
 Resignation, 145. 
 
 Action of Board on, 147, 152. 
 Secretary, Rev. E. R. Craven, D. D., 196. 
 Secretary and Editor, Rev. John W. Dulles, 56. 
 
 Decennial Report, 60. 
 Secretary of Sabbath-School Work, Rev. James A. Warden, D. D., 138. 
 Semi-Centenary Fund, 17. 
 Shorter Catechism, 24, 124. 
 Soldiers and Sailors, 31. 
 Soldiers' Pocket-Book, 31. 
 Succession of Officers and Members, 221-240. 
 Succession of Trustees, 241, 242. 
 Sunbeam, 127. 
 
 Superintendent of Depository, 36. 
 Superintendent of Sabbath-School Work : 
 
 J. Rennet Tyler, 116, 133. 
 
 Rev. James A. Worden, D. D., 137. 
 
 Duties defined, 135. 
 Superintendent of Sabbath- School and Missionary Work, Rev. James 
 A. Worden, D. D., 197. 
 
 Tract and Sabbath-School Book Society : 
 Organized by Synod of Philadelphia, 8. 
 
248 INDEX. 
 
 Tract and Sabbath-School Book Society : 
 
 Original Members, 9. 
 
 Transferred to General Assembly, 11. 
 Treasurer, 96, 197. 
 Trust Funds, 97, 144. 
 
 Trustees of the Board, 19, 79, 85, 241, 242. 
 Trustees of the Presbyterian House, 54-56. 
 
 Westminster Lesson Helps, 121-124. 
 Westminster Teacher, 127. 
 
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