PRESBYTERIAN GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVI, Issue 280, 24 November 1915, Page 9

PRESBYTERIAN GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

■ ' I, EVENING SITTINGS. BENEFICIARY FUNDS. The Assembly resumed at 7 p.m., in St. (Andrew's Hall, the Moderator (Rev. W. Scorgie) in the chair. The Key. J. Cumming (Wellington) gave in the report on the Beneficiary Tunas. These were now attaining a position of stability, but still a number of ministers had not joined the funds. The. credit balance oi the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund twelve months ago was £10,SSf) (3/. T'.o income was: Interest £2,051 10/, entry money £17S 10/, premiums £033 6/, assessments |£1.027 17/6, royalties and donations !£47 17/7; total £3,969 1/1. The expenditure has been: Annuities £1,783 4/8. refunds £47 0/5, Assembly expenses £IS9 10/6. other expenses £9 0/2: total i"2,02S 5/9, leaving £1.940 5/4 to be added to the capital, which now stands at £42,829 11/4. On September 30, 1015, the contributors numbered 209, and the annui- ' tants 24. The capital of the fund has grown from £28,001 13/7 to £42,915 11/3 in 1915. The credit balance of the W. and 0. Fund last year was £39,968 5/11. Income had'been: Interest £2.061 9/7, entry money £118, and premiums £1,183 1/5; total £3,302 10/. The expenditure was: Annuities . £1.419 3/3, Assembly expenses £162 _/6, other expenses "£5 9/5; total i£1,594 7/2. leaving £1,778 3/S to be added to the capital, which stands at |£41,74fi 9/7. This fund has grown from '£25,570 8/. in-IOOS. to £41.746 9/7 in 1915. The report was adopted. Key. Comrie, in speaking of the value of the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, said there was no other investment that would return so much for £10 per annum. ' He urged that ministers should join the fund when they were young, and ■the Assembly should only grant exemption in very special cases where there were strong reasons for the concession being given. In New South Wales, be said, ministers had to appear before the Assembly and state why they had not joined the funds. AMALGAMATION OF FUNDS. The Special Committee reported on the Beneficiary Fund with regard to the amalgamation of the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund and the Widows and Orphans' Fund, that 16 Presbyteries had voted in favour, and one disapproved of the proposal. The Rev. Comrie moved, •Mr. Finlay seconded, and it was agreed: "That Presbyteries having been consulted, and having by a large majority approved of the proposed amalgamation bf the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund and the Widows and Orphans' Fund, and .; the rights of all parties being conserved, the Assembly, in accordance with the provisions of 'The Presbyterian Church Property Act, 1885, Amendment Act, 1914,' hereby directs that the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund and the Widows and Orphans' Fund be amalgamated, and Uiat the regulations agreed to by the "assembly in 1914 be the regulations of Jhe amalgamated Fund." rNCJtEASE. OF, ANNUITIES. The Special Committee reported that, is order to increase the annuities to ministers, an appeal be made to increase tigs capital of the fund by £15,000. It also was suggested that ministers' payments should be increased from £9 to .£lO per annum, and that congregations be asked to increase their annual contributions. Key. Comrie pointed out that the (Methodist Church paid, aged ministers! about 50 per cent more tjian did "the Presbyterian Church. He said what /was asked from the churches was a minimum of £5 per annum, but in all cases 2$ per cent upon the stipend paid to the ministers. Bey. J. H. Mackenzie frankly expressed his doubt as to whether the £15,000 could be raised to put the fund on a satisfactory basis. He pointed out that about £70,000 per annum was paid to ministers. The 2_ per cent from j congregations would return £1,750, an increase ' of £845 upon the amount i received last year. Each minister on! the fund was to pay an extra £1 per year, a total of £209, making a total in-' crease of £1,045. To give the 24 i ministers who were now getting £1 extra for each year of service, £2 per week, would cost £1,783. That increase, he thought, should be given without waiting to raise the £15.000. Bey. Mackenzie suggested that the maximum of any allowance should be £104 per annum. Mr. Gow, of Dunedin, said Rev. Mackenzie's scheme could not be worked on the present fund. Ultimately the report of the Special Committee was adopted. CHURCH AND THE YOUNG. The New Zealand Presbyterian Assembly again met in the Concert Chamber of the Town Hall on Monday evening, when matters relating to Sunday schools and kindred activities of the Church were reported upon. There was a large attendance, both of ministers and of the general public. The proceedings were largely devotional, and were interspersed "by brief addresses and the presentation of reports. . Prizes in connection with the Sunday schools' examinations, held on July 7 and 14, for which there were 1,829 entrants, were presented as follows:—Gold medal, senior 11., Connal Robb, St. David's, Auckland, 96 for Scripture, 100 for catechism, and 96 for essay; silver medal, senior L, George Douglas Robb, St David's, 96, 06, 95 rci spectively; middle, Donald Dixon McKenzie, .St. Paul's Wanganui, 05, 100, 94; junior, Muriel Burns, St. Paul's, Christchiirch, 90 Scripture, 100 catechism; Ruby Orr, Greymout-h, 00, 100; primary, James Seymour Francis, Opotiki, 98,100; . beginners, James Drummond, St. James, Auckland. A rejfirt on Sunday-school activities showed that there weTe 722 schools in the Dominion, with 36,924 pupils, the average attendance being 26,725. Auckland headed the table with 88 schools, 5.385 pupils, and 552 teachers. The Sunday-school extension agent (Mr. R. Blair) reported that 27 new schools had been opened in the backblocks during the year.