INTRODUCTION.

The Report of the General Missionary Conference held at Allahabad in 1872-73, being the first that embraced all India, contains an introduction from the pen of Dr. Murdoch which gives a full and satisfactory account, not only of the great Conference then held and henceforth to be known as the First Decennial General Missionary Conference, but also of the four preceding Provincial Conferences held in Calcutta, Benares, Ootacamund and Lahore.

Since the meeting of the First Decennial Conference, a second General Provincial Conference for Southern India, twenty years. after the first, was held in Bangalore.

The following table will show the relative importance of these several Conferences as measured by the number of delegates present and of Societies represented:

Place or Name. Year. Members. Societies. Days. Papers.

Report.

[ny.

All destroyed at Muti27+30 387 pp., out of print. 407 pp.

2 vols. 500 pp. each.

548 pp.

492

Of the 475 members of Conference, 181 were ladies, and 46 were Natives. Of the European Missionaries, as far as has been ascertained, 138 have arrived within the decade, 49 have been ten years at work, 28 twenty years, 7 thirty years, 3 forty years, and one (Rev. C. Bennett of Rangoon) over fifty years. It may be interesting to notice that 37 members of the Conference had also been present at the Allahabad Conference. So far as can be ascer

tained, out of those present at Allahabad 17 have died within the decade, 23 have retired to Europe or America, and 81 are still alive and at work in India.

To the Indian Conferences we have added the two great English Conferences, which were so largely Indian, but it must be borne in mind that they included Missionaries and Missionary Societies which were not Indian. In the published Report of the Liverpool Conference there is a paper by the Rev. Dr. Mullens, late Secretary of the London Missionary Society, giving an account of previous Conferences on Missions, beginning with the New York Union Missionary Conference of 1854, held in connection with the visit of the Rev. Dr. Duff to America. It may be regarded as the first of such General United Missionary Conferences.

In addition to these there have been held from time to time a number of denominational Conferences or Congresses, both in India and at home, in connection with almost all the several sections of the Church universal represented on the Mission field. The first of these was held in India by the Missionaries of the American Board in 1854, to meet the Deputation sent from home. Some branches of the Church have these annually.

Then, besides these, there are United Local Missionary Conferences, most of them meeting as often as once a month. They consist of all the Evangelical Missionaries labouring in one city and neighbourhood. Calcutta, Madras, Bombay, Benares, Bangalore and Rangoon, have each of them such a Conference. When reference is made below to the Calcutta Missionary Conference, the Madras Missionary Conference, &c., unless the context shows otherwise, it must be understood that the reference is to these local United Missionary Conferences, and not to the Decennial or the Provincial Conferences.

The proposal to hold the First General Conference for all India originated with the American Presbyterian Synod of North India, but the Rev. J. Barton, C. M. S., Madras, independently laid the matter before the Madras Missionary Conference. It unanimously adopted the suggestion, and so also, subsequently, did the Calcutta Conference on the motion of Dr. Murray Mitchell. The Bombay Conference took no decided action, but eventually sent a larger proportion of its Missionaries to the Allahabad Conference than either Bengal or South India.

In regard to the late Conference-the Second Decennial-steps were taken in much the same manner as at the First. The desirability of holding such a Conference was advocated first in the columns of the Lucknow (now the Indian) Witness and the Indian Evangelical Review, as early as September or October 1881. Soon after the Calcutta Missionaries took up the subject, and correspond

ed with the Madras and Bombay Missionary Conferences and with friends in the North West Provinces. The Missionaries throughout the North West, Oudh and the Punjab were understood to be heartily in favour of a General Conference. The Rev. J. M. Budden, who had been present not only at the First Decennial Conference at Allahabad in 1872, but also at the Liverpool Conference of 1860, wrote warmly in support of it.

The Madras Missionaries, who had had their own Provincial Conference only two and a half years before, though cordially in favour of a Conference being held, were about equally divided as to whether it should be local for all Northern India, or general for all India. They left the matter in the hands of the Calcutta brethren and promised them all the help they could.

As on the previous occasion Bombay was not prepared to take any decided step in favour of any Conference. The members of the Bombay Conference were " for the most part opposed to the holding of a general Conference anywhere." Of the Missionaries scattered throughout the Western Presidency a large number (16) were in favour of a general Conference, nine for a local Conference, and four against having any Conference at all.

With this information before them, the Calcutta Missionaries met in Conference on the 13th of February, and feeling that the indifference on the part of some was not so strong, but that as soon as the initiation should be taken, all would heartily fall in with the idea, they resolved that the Second Decennial General Conference should be held in Calcutta, at the same time of the year as that at which the Allahabad Conference had been held ten years before. To give effect to this resolution, a Committee was appointed, representative of the different Societies labouring in Calcutta, consisting of the Rev. W. R. Blackett of the Church Missionary Society, the Rev. G. H. Rouse of the Baptist Mission, Mr. J. G. Shome, Secretary of the Bengali Christian Conference, the Rev. Dr. Thoburn of the American Methodist Episcopal Church, the Rev. T. H. Whitamore of the Wesleyan Mission, Professor James Wilson of the Church of Scotland Mission, the Rev. J. P. Ashton of the London Mission, Convener of the Committee, and the Rev. K. S. Macdonald of the Free Church of Scotland, Secretary.

The Committee set to work without delay, and issued invitations to all ordained Missionaries in India, Burmah, and Ceylon, as far as their names were then known to the Calcutta Conference's Committee on the Decennial Statistics,* asking at the same time

The Conference's Statistical Tables of Protestant Missions do not give the names of lay Missionaries, educational or medical, nor of lady Missionaries; and Mr. Badley's Directory is incomplete in regard to the ladies. In future tables it may be found desirable for various reasons to give all these names,

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each Missionary to state whether he was likely to come, what subjects he would propose for discussion, and what other suggestions he would offer with the view of making the Conference as profitable as possible. While waiting for replies to these enquiries the Committee arranged that the Conference be in session from December 28 to January 3, inclusive, thus allowing many in Bengal and other parts of Northern and Central India, who wished to be present, to be with their several congregations on Christmas day.

They also arranged that the hours of meeting be from ten to one o'clock, and from two to half-past four daily; that morning prayer meetings be held daily from 7-30 to 8-30; that each meeting of Conference be opened with prayer, praise and the reading of Scripture; that, should it appear desirable at any time in the course of the discussion to the Chairman, a hymn might be sung or a short prayer be offered; that the reading of each of the 24 papers to be written occupy not more than 20 minutes, each appointed speaker a maximum of 15 minutes, and all others ten minutes each or less, according to the Chairman's discretion; and that a bell be rung both in the way of warning and at the close of the appointed time in each case.

Early in May a large number of replies to the invitation letter had been received-many promises of being present and encouragements to proceed. These were all tabulated, numbered, alphabetically arranged, and very carefully considered. It was then resolved to extend the invitation to all bona fide lady Missionaries; but as no hard and fast rule could be drawn, and no complete list of ladies could be obtained, no attempt was made to send a formal letter of invitation to each lady. The plan of the Calcutta Missionary Conference was followed. A letter was sent to each Mission, and the Mission or the lady in principal charge was allowed to exercise her own judgment as to who should be considered invited. The Committee is not aware of any practical difficulty having arisen from following out this plan; except it be as regards Missionaries' wives. In some Missions these are all considered Missionaries; in others, it is quite the exception. In these circumstances, the Committee did not feel that they could promise indiscriminately accommodation for all Missionaries' wives. Accommodation was, however, found for all who came.

It was also resolved to welcome Chaplains and Ministers of English congregations as members of Conference, while for various reasons the Committee did not feel that they should issue formal invitations to all such outside Calcutta. engaged in educational or medical mission work were all formally But lay Missionaries invited.

Out of the mass of subjects recommended or suggested for dis

cussion, the Committee early selected a carefully considered list for consideration at subsequent meetings of the Committee. In addition to the ordinary daily forenoon and afternoon meetings of Conference, the Committee resolved that there be at least two evening meetings of a more popular and public character than the ordinary sessions of the Conference; that one of these be a purely Missionary meeting, at which the Rev. J. E. Payne of the London Mission should exhibit a Missionary Map of India, and read a paper on the results of the Decennial Missionary Statistics; and that another evening meeting be devoted to Temperance.

Fearing that some difficulties might arise if the Conference took upon itself the responsibility of a United Communion, it was agreed that the Calcutta Missionary Conference be requested to arrange as they had been accustomed to do for the Annual United Communion Service, to be held if they approved on Sunday the 31st December instead of, as it usually is, on New Year's day.

It was agreed that there should be a short address from the Chairman at the opening of the Conference on the first day, and that an hour be given to brief closing addresses on the last day. Subsequently the question was discussed as to the appointment of a Chairman. As so much of the success of a meeting depends upon having a Chairman possessed of the requisite tact and firmness, it was thought desirable, instead of having a separate Chairman for each day, as in previous Conferences, to appoint one gentleman as Chairman for the whole Conference; and that other gentlemen be also appointed Vice-Chairmen, to assist as might be found necessary both at the ordinary sessions of Conference and at the prayer meetings. It was also unanimously agreed that General the Hon'ble Sir Henry Ramsay, K.C.S.I., C.B., Commissioner of Kumaon, be asked to be Chairman.

In the meantime arrangements were being completed in regard to the fixing of subjects, writers, and speakers. When any difficulty arose, advice was asked and received from other parts of India; as it was thought desirable that not only should as many Societies as possible be represented on the programme, but that the work be also divided among the various provinces. The allocation of work was to a large extent governed by the list the Committee then possessed of Missionaries who had promised or expressed the hope to be present. As a matter of fact many came at the last moment, of whose coming the Committee had no timely knowledge. It was thought desirable that the native members should be well represented on the programme; but some on whom the Committee depended were unable to attend.

In the selecting of the six Vice-Chairmen and the six Secretaries, the Committee had regard to province and Church connection