raise a large fund of five million dollars which will supply this most worthy need.

It is made the duty of the clergy to be diligent in instructing the children in the catechism, and from time to time to examine them in the same publicly before the congregation. They are also expected, by stated catechetical lectures and instructions, to inform the youth and others in the doctrines, polity, history and liturgy of the Church. They must also instruct all persons in their parishes concerning the missionary work of the Church at home and abroad, and give suitable opportunities for offerings to maintain that work. It is made incumbent upon the clergy to prepare young persons for confirmation and, on notice being received from the bishop of his intention to visit any church, the minister shall announce the fact to the congregation on the first Sunday after the receipt of such notice; he shall be ready to present such persons as he shall judge to be qualified for the laying on of hands, and shall deliver to the bishop a list of the names of those to be confirmed.

At every visitation it is provided that the minister shall exhibit to the bishop the parish register and give information to him of the state of the congregation, spiritual and temporal, under such heads as shall have been previously signified to him in writing by the bishop.

V.

Our missionary work at home and abroad is based on the theory that the entire Church is one great missionary society and every diocese is an integral part of the one body. We have one Board of Missions to represent the entire Church; it is composed of fifteen bishops, fifteen priests, and fifteen laymen, besides the presiding bishop, who is, ex officio, the president of the Board. The Board thus constituted exercises all the corporate powers of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, to which every member of the Church belongs. The members of the Board are triennially chosen and appointed by the General Convention of the Church they remain in office until their successors are

chosen, and have power to fill any vacancies that may occur in their number between the sessions of the General Convention. All the bishops of the Church; other than those chosen for active membership, are honorary members of the Board, with all the rights and privileges of the elected members, except the right to vote. For ordinary purposes ten active members constitute a quorum, but for the election or removal of officers and committees, for the making of the annual appropriations, or for changing the by-laws, a majority of the active members must be present at a meeting.

Each General Convention elects a general secretary and treasurer of the Board to hold office until their places are filled by the next General Convention. Each of these officers may be removed by a two-thirds vote at any meeting of the Board of Missions. The general secretary, so elected, nominates for election by the Board of Missions certain associate secretaries, their number to be determined by the said Board. The treasurer nominates an assistant treasurer, to be elected by the Board of Missions and to hold office during its pleasure or until his successor is appointed. Both treasurer and assistant treasurer give bonds in such amounts as the Board may deem necessary.

The Board of Missions thus constituted, in exercising the administrative functions of the society, has a monthly meeting at the Church Missions House in the city of New York on the second Tuesday of every month. It makes all appropriations for the carrying on of the domestic and foreign missions of the Church, and is expected to make a full annual report of its work to the Church by publication. The Board is required also to make a triennial report to each General Convention, which report shall be the order of the day on the third day of the session. For the reception and discussion of this report, the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies sit in joint session ; but all action upon the report is taken by the concurrent vote of the two Houses meeting separately.

When the Board ascertains the gross amount required for carrying on the missionary work of the Church at home and

abroad, it proceeds to apportion this gross sum among the various dioceses in proportion to their wealth and supposed ability to raise the amount assigned to them respectively. At present appropriations are made to carry on the various departments of our missionary work to the amount of over one million dollars annually (200,000l.). To each diocese such part of this required sum of one million dollars and more is apportioned as it may be willing to assume. When the individual diocese undertakes to raise its annual apportionment a diocesan committee, appointed for the purpose, again proceeds to apportion this sum among the various parishes of the diocese on some equitable ratio of receipts and expenditures. When the parish receives information as to the amount it is expected to raise it is at liberty to adopt its own method of procedure. The plan which has thus far proven most efficacious is that of assigning to each contributor in the parish his supposed share of the whole amount. While the system is a purely voluntary one, each parish has a certain pride in meeting honourably and gladly its apportionment and bearing its full share in the great work of extending the kingdom of God among men. This method of raising money for missions is known among us as the 'apportionment plan,' and was adopted nearly eight years ago at the General Convention in California. While it has not been entirely successful it marks a vast improvement upon the unsystematic and desultory efforts of previous years. It has resulted in a large increase of the annual amount given for missions in the American Church, and inspires the hope that when universally acted upon the result will be far more satisfactory even than now. It has the decided advantage, when intelligently and sympathetically presented, of bringing home to the conscience, first of the diocese, then of the parish, and, above all, to the individual Christian man and woman, a sense of personal responsibility for the one great object for which the Church exists, namely the making known the Gospel of salvation to God's children throughout the world. It is a method which has for its object the enlisting of every member of the Church, rich and poor, in this sacred cause, and

dignifying the gift of the individual, whether it be large or small, if only it be according to one's ability. Moreover, it is a plan which must result, if faithfully and patiently prosecuted, in a most desirable campaign of education of Christian people in the duty of supporting the missions of the Church.

As every American diocese has within its territory much ground unoccupied by the Church, that department of our activity known as diocesan missions demands much of our attention. As a Church we are compelled to raise far more money, year by year, for Church extension within our dioceses, so large in area, than for the work beyond our borders. The stronger we become at home, the larger share we shall be able to take in conquering the world for Christ. The highest motive for the development of home missionary work is that it will equip us the better for the larger task of evangelizing the world.

Notwithstanding the great demand made upon our resources in taking care of the many new missionary districts on American soil and providing for the rapid growth through immigration, we have undertaken to meet our responsibilities in the foreign field to the extent of our ability. The American Church is now supporting two missionary bishops with their staff of clergy, schools, hospitals, and equipment in China, and the same number in Japan. We also have a missionary bishop in the Philippine Islands, in our newly acquired Hawaii and Porto Rico islands, in the island of Cuba, and in Liberia. In addition to these foreign missionary bishops we have sent a bishop to Mexico to minister to the American and English settlers in that country and to such of the natives as may desire our services. The amount of money appropriated annually for the support of our foreign missionary work is in round numbers about the same as that given to the home field. As our home Church develops more and more we shall hope to take a larger share in the great privilege of carrying the Gospel to those beyond our borders.

VI.

In this account of the organization and work of an American diocese, while much ground has been covered, many things must remain unnoticed if this article is to be kept within reasonable limits. But no description of our Church life would be at all adequate without some mention being made of the place of the Sunday school in our diocesan work. Many of the dioceses have a Sunday school commission composed of active workers among the clergy and laity, whose function is to increase the efficiency and thoroughness of Sunday school work throughout the diocese. So important a place does the Sunday school occupy among us that a large commission, consisting of seven bishops, seven priests and seven laymen, was appointed by the General Convention to take under consideration the question as to how our Sunday schools could be made more efficient, and Christian education among the young best promoted. The work of this central commission has encouraged the formation of many diocesan commissions with the same general object in view. Thus far the results are already manifest in a great awakening of Sunday school interest, evincing itself in an effort to secure better teachers and methods of teacher training, and more approved equipment in the way of Sunday school materials of all kinds. Nor are the children forgotten in the work of education in missionary enterprise. It has for many years been the custom for the Sunday schools in every diocese in the American Church to give their Lenten offerings for general missions. Last year the children of the Sunday schools contributed the sum of $138,000.00 towards the conversion of the world.

The Woman's Auxiliary to the Board of Missions, of which every diocese has a branch, has grown until it has become a great power for good among us. Last year they raised in various ways nearly one half million dollars for the cause of missions. As a part of the Woman's Auxiliary should be mentioned the junior auxiliary, which has for its object the enlisting of a great army of boys and girls in the missionary work of the Church.