MELANESIAN MISSION.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18412, 19 June 1925, Page 7

MELANESIAN MISSION.

ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the Melane9ian Mission was held yesterday, tho Ven. Archdeacon Haggilt presiding. Tho balance-sheet showed receipts £1716 16s 6d, and expenditure £lO7 13s 6d. The sum of £1609 13s 2d hr.d been remitted to Auckland. There was an increaso of £323 0s 8d in the total receipts, which was accounted for by an advance in the ofierloriua of £207 4s 4d. Subscriptions amounted to : £46 18s 9d more than the previous yeer and ! the appeal for a, house tor the xtcverrnd and Mrs A. Mason produced £74 da lid. 'lie chief event of the year had been tho mit of Bishop Steward. The St. Barnabas' Association had continued to meet at lhe depot, and as its membership had beea-avg-mentcd iiy now associates, it had beer, cided to' combine the two organisations under the name of the St. Barnabas Associates of Melanesia., Tuck boxes had been dispatched as usual. in March and August. Canon Mutter moved the adoption >A the jeport, saying he was glad to find there had been a revival of interest in the mission. Charity began at home, and New Zealanders should remember that Melanesia, was the nearest mission ground. The report was'adopted. The Hev. F. B. Redgrave, general secretary of the New Zealand Board of Missions, gave an address. He staled that the Association had causo for thankfulness in the restored health of the Bishop of Melanesia, who was now fit for many years work. Encouraging signs in the work were the proi>oßed appointment of a new assistant bishop and the ordination of eight native deacons and five native priests. All those men were of a particularly fine stanip, and; they had had ten years* school training, arid two years at the Theological College. Melaneaians were proving, as a whole, to be.first-class missionaries. One of the ideas of the mission was' to give the children echooling, and at present there were 200 boys in the-schools. These scholars were invited to become teachers, and about 60 per cent, of tbem did so, although larger wages wore paid for work on the plantations. Increased interest in tho work had been shown in New Zealand, and in the past year the sum of £9036 had been contributed in cash. Six years ago, under £SOOO had been contributed, and out of that sum the mission-had had to pay .all administration expenses. The mission was going to adopt the budget system, so that o. Finance Board would make a. statement of the amount of money it required each year. Mr Kedgrtive commented on the increase in the expense of running the mission steamer Southern Cross Bince the war. It was proposed to install electric light in the ship and he had a scheme by which the children of the Dominion might contribute the £SOO required. It was proposed that the Southern Cross should visit twelve New Zealand ports, including Lyttelton *nd Timaru, in January next to stimulate interest in tie mis81A vote of thanks was accorded the speaker. The committee was Te-elected as follows: Dean Carrington. Archdeacon Haggitt Archdeacon Taylor, Canon Mutter Bev.H. Williams and Mesdames T. Hamilton, Dunnage, Blytb, Misses Gresson, Farr, Hockley and Sister Kate.