PRESBYTERIAN CITY MISSION. ANNUAL REPORTS.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 334, 16 January 1889, Page 3

PRESBYTERIAN CITY MISSION. ANNUAL REPORTS.

The annual meeting of the Presbyterian City Mission is to be held on Monday evening next, at St. David's Church, Symonds. etree'fc, when the record of work done during the past year will be submitted. Copies of these have been supplied us for publication, with a view to awakening interest in the mission work and in the approaching inseting. Report of the Committee, — Your Committee are happy to say that the Presbyterian City Mission has been carried on during the past year with unabated energy. Your devoted missionary has laboured with his accustomed zeal in all the departments of his work, and with such a measure of success as is satisfactory to your Committee. Mr McPherson's labours have, indeed, been so manifold and arduous that unless he possessed great faith and uncommon physical strength he could not haveundergone the toil necessary to accomplish them. Your missionary has done much during the past year to arouse the careless, to reclaim the wandering and erring, and to relieve the destitute and distressed. Your Committee have endeavoured to minister to the physical as well as the spiritual wants of the destitute, and with this Wew granted, a small sum during the three winter months to be distributed at the discretion of your missionary, who was enabled to have this considerably augmented by private contributions of clothing and provisions. The principal part of your missionary's work has been to reclaim the lapsed Presbyterians among us by restoring them to the services of the sanctuary, and their children to the teaching of the Sabbath school. You will learn from his report that he has met with encouraging success in this department ot his work. But there are many other departments of that work, and of those Mr McPherson will speak for himself. In conclusion, the funds of the mission tire so prosperous that your Committee have been enabled to vote a supplement of £10 sterling to your missionary's salary. — A. Carrick, President. Treasurer's Account. — Dr. : St. James's Church, £52 19s 6d ; Sc. Luke's, £20 10s 6d ; St. David's, £10 12s 8d : St. Peter's (for 1S87), £9 2s ; St. Stephen's, £6 10s ; subscriptions collected by Captain D. H. Mackenzie and Rev. Peter Mason, £38 0s 6d (of this sum St. Andrew's contributed , £36 10s) ; contributions from St>. Andrew's by means of envelopes, £1 12s Id : Mi's Stewart, £1 ; Mr Murdoch McLeod. sen., £1 : Dr. Kenderdinc, £2 ; Mrs, Ganilt, 10s ; Onehunga Sabbath School, £1 12s 8d : total, £145 9s lid. Cr. : To balance due January Ist, 1889, £6 4s 4d ; moneys paid during year, £136 os 9d ; balance in hand, £2 19s lOd : total, £145 9s lid. Missionary's Report. — From this interesting report we extract the followingparticulars :— It was the intention of the Mission Committee that the city should be thoroughly visited by the missionary going from door to door. This has been done. The city, from Newmarket Station to Cox's Creek, and from the harbour to Valley Road, Mount Rpskill, has been gone over from door to door wibli the following results :—ln: — In St. David's district I have visited 205 Presbyterian families ; in St. James's, 195 ; St Andrew's, 185 : St. Stephen's, 175 j St. Pete'-'s, 127 ; St. Luke's, 82^ or 969 Presbyterian families. Ot this numberabout. 400 tamilie? are good members, 300 who attend very indifferently, and nearly 300 who very seldom cross the church door. I might mention here that about twoy ear*. at>-o there was a movement) on loot irom the Sunday-sohool Union to iind how many children were not attending the Sundayschool, and urge them to attend. This fell through, but) your agent has done the work, and the lists have been ottered to any minister or Sunday-school to use it. Several ministers have availed themselves of the lists. Concerning the Children of Presbyterian parents we think there are under 2,000 in this city, 500 of whom aie too young to attend and we have in our Sundayschools about 1,200, leaving only 300 not under religious instruction. In my visitations I have succeeded in getting a number of children to go to Sabbath-school. Regarding the results of the house-to-house canvass, one of the results aimed at was to stir up in the hearts of all a feeling ot responsibility ; a?, a great many in the city are living in a state of indifference as to whether they have a soul oi not, or whether their children are saved. Their thoughts are centred on providing clothing for their bodies and secular education for their minds. The indifierence cf many with regard to the spiritual training of their children is simply appalling. A great many in Auckland provide spiritual instruction for their children, but the great bulk of the people commit the spiritual training of their children to others. As I went from door to door I pointed out the responsibility of parents ou that point, and referred particularly to the force of example. In this country some of the mosfc regular members of the Church have a difficulty in getting all their children to attend church and Sundayschool ; how much more those who do not attend themselves ? Several of the congregations have visiting committees who visit these people and encourage them to attend chuich. They give many"excuses, and iv is very difficult to induce those who have left off going ro church to join again. But as we are responsible tor these people hearing the Gospel, we take the Gospel to their firesides, so that although a great number of people have neglected the Church, the Church has not neglected them, but to the best of her ability obeyed the Saviour's command — " Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." The next part to which I will refer is the visiting of the ships on their arrival and on Sunday mornings. When I know a ship has come in I go down and meet the pa&sengers, offer my services in any way they may wish, and give any information. There has been very little of this work lately, as there have been so very few passenger ships coming into the country the last twelve months. On the Sunday morning after a ship has arrived, I go down and invite the officers and sailors to the different churches in the city. I take periodicals and tracts, and leave them for the, men to read. I generally have a talk with the men about spiritual things. They are generally glad to see me and have a talk. I see them afterwards at the ' Sailors' Home. I will now speak of the missions held every night in different parts of the city for the purpose of creating a desire for the regular services of the sanctuary and feeding the different churches. The one on Monday night is at Kiug&lanri, where there are quite a number of Presbyterian families living. As ifc is too far to attend either Sfc. David's Church or Avondale, the people have long wished for a service, and about 6 months ago wecommenced one, and' it has been a decided success. About 3 months ago the cottage was burned down, but we engaged another and ax*e preparing to build a church that will accommodate 100 people. The friends in the neighbourhood have opened a Sunday school in connection with the missicp, and the service is held every Monday night.

while on the Ist Sunday afternoon of every month it- is conducted by Rev. R. Scott West, and is attended by an average of 4O. v The one in the interest of Sfc. Luke's is held on Tuesday night in three different places, Green Lane, Ellerslie, one Tuesday night, Brighton next Tuesday night, and Newmarket the following Tuesday nighb. These meetings ace held in tho homes of the people, and are attended bj r those living in the neighbourhood. Tiie Rev. Mr Monro occasionally takes' the service, 1 and the rooms are generally full. Wednesday night belongs to St. James's Church, but we have not any mission as yet in connection with this congregation, and as I have been helping the Sailors' Home tor some years, I still attend on every other Wednesday night, where I meet the sailors that I visit on the ships. The sailors do go there, but unless they have friends in town they very seldom attend the other churches. On the other Wednesday night if 1 have no engagement I attend St. James's prayer meeting. "The meeting on Thursday night in connection with St. Peter's is held in the public school, Arch Hill. We have had a good deal of trouble in connection with this mission ; but as there is a dense population in the neighbourhood the Rev. Mr Sommerville and my sol f are most anxious to provide spiiibual instruction for the Presbyterians in tho neighbourhood. One of the friends from St. James's has opened a singing class in connection with this mission, and we hope, under God's blessing, it will be the means of doing much' good. The one on Friday night is in connection with St. Andrew's, and is held in the Presbyterian &chool-room, Parncll. The attendance ha& \aried, but at present it is weil attended by the Presbyterians and others in tho neighbourhood. I shall now rettsr to the work at the Hospital. I visit there regularly every Saturday afternoon, and go up to the bedside ot the Presbyterian patient or any other patient who wishos me, and sit clown and have a few minutes' conversation, then read a few veises, and, where possible, ofler prayer. A gentlemau gave me tome books, which 1 take and change every Saturday. There are about ten Presbyterians at present in the tlospital. 1 also attend the Refuges every other Wednesday afternoon, and receive every encouragement. Theie are about thirteen Presbyterians in the Refuge. I am also the properly appointed chaplain to the prison, but in bhe early part of la.-t year I was unable to conduct services theie, and Mr A. Jowitt kindly took my place and has continued his services ever since. As 1 visit the prison occasionally, 1 learn that his services, are very acceptable. This service does not end with speaking to the prisoners, for he has helped them after they came oat. Igo about four times a \ ear to the Asylum to address the patients. When it it; my turn to visit, 1 take a choir of ladies with me, who ?ing pieces to the patients, who appreciate it very much. I might mention that I work in harmony with the different denominations in the city, and wherever there is an opportunity to speak a word for Jesus I cheerfully go, no matter who asks me, bo that I have addressed meetings all over the city and suburbs. Another part of the work has been to visir. the sick amongst the non-church-going. I visit as often si* F sec a necessity, and do what I can to help during the hicknes*. and when the patient, wishes it I jro for the minister wanted. I officiate ac tlio Uuu.u vi one friendless ones who die in the Hospital and Refuges. When there are persons, going with 'the body igo oufe to Waikomiti; when there are no mourners I simply read the •service in the mortuary. Another part of my work is to help the pou, and to enable mo to do this, the Committee grunted me an allowance for the three win cor months at, the rate cl about 10s per w eek; there was considerable distress on account of t-o many men beinp out of work. A number of these men had left toi the country and the neighbouring colonies to look foY work, while their wives and families were left to struggle on until they heard fiom them. lam glad to c ay the distress i-; not so great now as it was during the winter. — Auckland Star, Jim. Jl, ISW).