GENERAL BOOTH'S NEW SCHEMES

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 104, 25 January 1908, Page 11

GENERAL BOOTH'S NEW SCHEMES

General Booth was "at home" oil his return from Germany to a, number of Prsss

representatives, to• whom; ho. gave a striking/ account of his tour- m: America. He rolerred 1 first of-all to his illness, a dysenteric attack , which ? followed a trying week. 111 : Chicago.-: .''l felt- I must go 0111 travelling; and I found eight, ten, and twelve hours 111-a jerky tram: was very trying.". After .1 day or two in bed : he was- allowed- to proceed;. ."because, the doctors saw i.tlioy could 110 loEger .prevent me.'! travelling,'!.: In Canada and tho United States •ho supposed: lie : had'dealt with,) something .• like 100,000 people athis;meetings. had) had on one platform as'many as nine judges, a , Roman ; Catholic: Bishop,*' leaders ,>of : Protestant ') denominations): Jewish liabbi, and representatives of leading breweries and: distilleries, r lio 'had • dotcrmiUDd - to, try-a . now. scheme of: emigration.:■ •, Peoplo were ■> going from the East to tho West of Canada, • leaving.-their farmsteads, and: lie was-gomg-to,embark.oll an experiment of sending.fifty farmers to occupy those derelict farms. :They • would bo supplied^with cattle, sheep, horses, ,capital, /and: all'that .was,necessary for. them toi tlio, hrsfc couple of years."" The. 1 . Army's success 111. dealing with tho criminal class was, said the General, being recognised 111 a.re-markable-v, av.--He had accepted the offer of avCanadihn . Cabinet Minister to . take entire charge* of :a ; now - prison. A town 111 America with »70,000\population -had agreed that the ■/lalvation Arinv. shouklv dispense the united charities of the city. ) 1 . V ; v' I#>v;'xvM JOTTINGS 'The annual meeting-of. thovNew Zealand. Congregational linion will 1 bo held in tho Wellington' Terrace Congregational Churtfh, commencing on February G; \ •> \ An.important step has just been "taken by the Liverpool. Free; Church; Council which, is ..likely'-to'vhavo. farrro'achingi results; "not:! oiilyV in'" thatcity,- but ,iii' : manyi Mothers. * They,havo determined..-to•mako.a complete survey, of; the .city from a Free- Church standpoint. • Tlio idea is - to find ' out.jhow far. tho; Freo Churchesjare!niecting' the : nioderni religious; needs of .the- people: ; iTho originator of the > schemo is Mr. Arthur Black, a member of tho ..Liverpool Gitr Council .and,.' president of tho local J'reo Church Council. Already •• -au.ouMino plan has been agreed upon by tho jspccial, coinirLittec : which', mil-' carry;,. mi';the.V work; ~ -An- enquiry- of this .kind must' 'of necessity occupy several months, and > a .special, prgaiiiser. has 'been; appointed; for-.the -' purpose 1 Tho "Catholic Press" savs, that Cardinal : Moran received a strong appeal to go to--London to attend; the Euchanstic Congress, to bo-held towards tho-eiid of this. year. Ho would like .very, niuch .to: bo; present;; but lie is afraid that, owing .to the -Catholic:.Congross, which will probably take placo in Sydliev 111 October next, 110 will not bo a bio to. a,yail;,hinjiielf,'of:' tho,, iiivitation;'- Cardinal; ■ Loguo anu tho Tnerarchy of Irelaua, tho Hierarchy of . England,- . Cardinal'\ Fisher.. {Archbishop t of, Cologne);:ono : pf ,tho,Spanish! Cardinals, ' oho- of tho - Roman ' ,'Cardinals,. Gibbons (Archbishop of Baltimore," | ■U;S.A:.),;aiid.<some ; bf''tho.American, Bishop's,-; will take part..: It. will be oho of tho greatest .. Catholic' gatheriiigs ever held m England.. The Pail-Anglican Congress is :to; be held earlier . in the\ycar, in v'which caso some special significance would' appear,;.to' attach/ itself to -tlio E.C. gathering The.Rev.i J. H. Jowett. a leading.English « •Congregational minister,-, lold: his congre- ' gatipn; recently that 'tho peoplo who had tho most' to say; against John Calvin were those -who-knew-,least, aljout him, and : lie>was.. "a groat target for.small skirmishers."-VI uso Calvin every \ieeki of mv life," said Mr. _ 'Jowett, '-Vand I-.know of no book in ;iny library : richer in inspiration. | >Ho can be / hard—hard as granite—but : he can be.-'as"> soft: as" the' Water' that over granite. : There' are beautiful . spots , 111 .apparently desolato regions, just as , I, have seen exquisite. wild flowers on cinder heaps .in tile Black Country.:'. ' The "consecration" l of a-billiard'fable at the Wesleyail Xing s ' Hail, v Bolton;' is what " .flugli .Price, .Hughes , would- have called a 'piece of- "sanctified audacity.-' Tho BovV'J. Hobinson, the Wcslevan Chairman of the District, presided, and aftorjlboi prayer> and address played in a match. ■.AVithin-a.short; v.-hilo eight; Roman Catholic prelates 'froiii tlio Commonwealth aiid'' New Zcjiland will bo 011 their way to dfolllo to pay their-visit--ad liniina, and v ono of them, IJr. Delany, who succeeds Archbishop Murphy to the Seo of Ilobart, goes to receive, tile Pallium from tho hands of tho. Pope. Tlio other prelates who intend voyaging to Homo aro Archuisbop Carr, of Melbourne; Archbishop Kelly, of Sydney; Bishops Diiliig- (Rockliampton), Higgina (Ballarat), Verdon (DunedinJ, Doyle (Liamore), .and Lcnehan (Auckland). As a result of tho recent visit of tho lle7. A. JV. Johnson and Mr. E. Smith, J.P.,, de-, putatiou from tlio . London .Missionary Society, it is hoped to raiso the annual Australasian,,.contribution 1 to ,-that body's work from £0000 to £10,000.

Tho number' of clergymen .now at work in connection: with tlio Episcopal Church in Americans u32fl, ail increase or 180 inthreo years, and the number, of communicants: S72,(KJO, ail increase for the same period of 33.300. . There is also a decided increase in the candidates .for ordination and in' tho number of baptisms- and confirmations. It is said that the influence of the Episcopal Church in America is becoming greater each .vear, and that it undoubtedly has received .1 considerable impetus through the visit, of the Archbishop oi Canterbury and his brother bishops. . ' : ' ■ The ■ process, of Beatification of Pope Pius IX has. begun, before the Sacred Congregation at Home. ' ■ The Rome correspondent ,of the "Tablet," .writing under date December 8, says:— "This morning in tho Hall of the Consistory in the Vatican in the presence of—tho Holy Father and all tho .Cardinals and Consultors of the Congregation of Rites, ' and of Mgr. Virili. ofliciajlv known as tho Promoter of tho Faith and sometimes' familiarly called the Devil's Advocate, two decrees were read: the first approving of tho miracles wrought through tho intercession of the Venerable Mother Barat, foundress', of the Ladies of the. Sacred Heart, and the second (known as •the Tuto) declaring that there is ,110 further obstacle to the solemn Beatification of tho Venerable Mother Pastel, foundress of . the Institute of .the Ghrisvinu Ladies of tho Mission. The Beatification will take place during tho Jubilee year of,his Holiness . It is not yet known, but it is not altogether improbable that the Beatification .of the Venerable Joan of Arc may ;l l so be celebrated during tho year."

Tho Congregational Church in New Zealand is in the awkward position, of losing three of' its ministers almost at the same time. Tho Rev. S. Baker, of I'almerston North, has gone to Tasmania. ti;o Rev. J. M. Stoops, of Onchunga, is 011 his wav to England, and the Rev. .)'. AVilkins, of the Beresford Street Church, Auckland* has resigned that charge to 'return to England. The Rev. W. Day, of Mount, Eden, Auckland, will fill Mr. Baker's oid pulpit to-morrow and on the following Sunday, but it will bo impossible..to fill.three vacancies, permanently, irom tho ranks of New Zealand Congregationalism, aiid several ministers will probably bo brought from England.

No fewer than seven .places in Essex' are contending -for tho honour of becoming the seat of tho now Bishopric—Barking, Chelmsford, Colchester, Thaxted, Waltham Abbev.i West Ham, and Woodford. On a recent dato a deputation from each of these claimants was to plead. its caso beforo' the exccutivo committeo.- '• The/committee, consisting of tho Bishop of St: Albans, Canon tho Hon. Kenneth Gibbs, and the Hon. llichard Strutt, will, draw up an iniportial statement on the subject, to bo submitted to all tho parishes in tho county. Tho first anniversary Ims lately boon celebrated of tho organisation of the Laymen's Missionary Movement, in connection with which ;ui American deputation visited Engjarnl a few months ago. The most interesting recont features are. the extension of tho propaganda to Germany, tho return of several of the committees sent abroad for tho inspection of mission stations, and an encouraging decision on the part of a Council of the churches of Toronto. Tho Toronto meeting, at which the churches of various denominations ill tho city were represented in proportion to their membership, definitely undertook to increase tho local missionary olfnnngs from £25.000 to £100,000 The example of this city is being followed m • other of Ontairo,.