BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY.

Auckland Star, Volume XLII, Issue 217, 12 September 1911, Page 7

BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY.

ANNUAL MEETING OF AUCKLAND AUXLIAET. The 69th annual meeting of the Auckland auxiliary of the British and Foreign Bible Society was held last evening in the Y.M.CA. Archdeacon Calder presided, and read an apology for absenco from Bishop Crossley, Wiho was leaving that night by express lor the South. Hestated, however, that the bishop had accepted the office of president. The Rev. Arthur Taylor, M.A., foreign secretary of the Society in London, was present at the meeting, which commenced with the reading of scripture by Judge Button, and prayer by the Rev. W. Trotter.

The committee's annual report, which was read by Mr. H. J. Edmiston, regretted the illness and subsequent departure of the president, Bishop Neligan, and the removal by death of three

members of the committee, the Revs. G. Maunsell and F. Larkin and Mr. Richard Hobbs. it stated, among other things, that since the Society's inception in 180-t. it had issued over 200 million copies of the Scriptures, of which 72 milioln had been in the English language. In lOOfl., the Bible Societies in Britain and America and on the Continent had issued over 13 million copies, the British Society contributing 6,020,000. The year's issue, just announced, only just fell short of seven million b00k5—003,827 Bibles, 1,119330 New Testaments, and 4,872,720 smaller portions, an increase of 00,000 Bibles and 1000 New Testaments, as cor pained with the previous year. The great 'bulk of these were sold far below cost. Tie local auxiliary's sales for the year 1910-11, were: English Bibles 1464, Testaments 529, portions 179, Maori Bibles 95, Testaments 138, Foreign Bibles 13, Testaments 4, total 2-442, a decrease from the previous year when 3,152 copies had been sold. The stock in hand on June. 30 was 4,665 volumes, valued at £377. Free grants of 454 Bibles and Testaments bad been made to 24 suburban Sunday schools.

The treasurer's report showed that £147 7/ had been receiver! from the sale of Scriptures, and £I 54 6/ from suras collected, making a total of £3Ol 13/. Expenses had totalled £-1-8 2/, leaving £'253 to be-, sent Home to the Society. THE SOCIETY'S METHODS. The .Rev. A. Taylor gave a most interesting address xupoa the various aspects of the society's work. He said that its first aim was to supply the whole world with the Word of God, and it felt qufto unable to withhold the Bible, 'however barbarous, when an opportunity of sending it occurred. The Bible bad to be first translated, then sent out (sometimes at great cost), and then sold at a price which would: bring it within the reach of all. The society always had cau.se for joy in that as it had almost entire control of the supply of Bibles in the mission field, there v/as no possibility of rival, or denominational translations coming into use. It stood pre-eminently for one Bible. Its first translation, made nearly a century ago, twos in the language of the IMohawk Indians, and was printed with the English on one page and the native language opposite, so that the Indians might hiwe an opportunity of learning the language of the white man. These "diglot" editions 'were still printed, ant! were oT immense value in the United States and Canada, where a strong tide iof immigration bad set In. Often the society was asked to make a translations when there was a possibility of only a few dozen copies being sold, and several times they had found that same translation of great value later on, notably on one occasion when Lord Cromer invited the CJM.S. to enter a rerrion in the Soudan wbio.h bad been previously closed to them. They already bad the Scriptures in the. language of the inhabitants, and ■were thus much assisted in the work of evangelisation.

'Speaking of the translators' difficulties, Mr. Taylor said that when he left London they had vevsrfons In 432 languages ami dialects, and new ones were 'being added every year. What they required in every case -was a version dignified and simple, but this was often hard to attain, as many languages were without such necessary words as "truth" and "love." In others the literary language was totally different ifrorn the spoken, aDd in such causes they had to prepare a series of graduated translations, hoping to educate their readers to 'the level of the literary idiom. Many translations were made 'by European missionaries, who always 'laboured under a disadvantage, and the society was always having its versions revised •bv natives, so that it had still much work to do. For example, the proper ■Chinese translation of "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand" was "The Kingdom of Heaven is under your armpit," a rendering wfhidh could not possibly occur to a European. "Snothar difficulty was characters. The "lower oase" of a 'Chinese compositor held' some 5000 different letters, and some of the South Indian languages had 400. Many versions had to be written and reproduced photographically, for it was impossible to print them 'with type. The Eskimo New Testament was printed in a curious alphabet, and cost over 30/ a copy to produce, being sold, of course, at only a fraction of this. Translation for the blind received much attention, and they now were able to supply "Braille versions in 30 languages. The cost of transport on -many translations amounted to over 80 per cent of their value, especially in the ease of those for Central 'African tribes. The Rev. T. Jollv moved that the report and balance-sheet be adopted, that the officers and committee 'be thanked for their services, and that the following be the officers for the ensuing year: President, the Right Rev. the Bishop of Auckland (Dr. Crossley); hon. secretaries, Messrs. W. Rrakenrig and H. J. IBdmistj'on; hon. treasurer, Mr. F. L. Prime; agent, Auckland Sunday School Union; depositary, Mr. H. J. Fdmiston: executive, Vcn. Archdeacon Calder, Canon MaeMurrav, Revs. W. Day, A. North, ■R. Ta Walker, H. Steele Craik T. .lollv, W. F. Gillam, W. Gittos. G. Bond, and If. Knrwles Kemp ton, Dr. A. Knight, Messrs F. Bodle, F. €. Cheal, ,T. Edson, W. H. Lyon, P. H. Matthews, T. Peacock, C. E. Button, B. Hayward-, R B. Shalders, H. M. Smeeton, and W. F. Harrop, The secretary, in answer to a question by the Rev. W. Trotter, said that a large proportion of the present committee were unable to take an active part in the work. Mr. Trotter then proposed that the motion be that the committee be elected, with power to add to their number, it being an instruction to them to commence, the reorganisation of the Society'? work in Auckland. Mr. Jollv agreed to the alteration, and the motion was then carried.