DIOCESAN STANDING COMMITTEE.

Evening Post, Volume XVI, Issue 96, 5 April 1878, Page 3

DIOCESAN STANDING COMMITTEE.

The regular monthly meeting of the Standing Committee of the Wellington Diocese was held last ovouing at the Diocesan Rooms, Mul-grave-street. Present— The Bishop (President), Archdeacon Stock (secretary), Mr. Quick (registrar), Mr. Powles (treasurer), Rev. B. W. Harvey, Rev. R. Coffey, Rev. T. Fancourt, Hon. C. J. Pharazyn, Messrs. Clarke, Rous Marten, Hunter, and Lowe. The Bishov said ho had much pleasure in announcing that Mr. J. C. Crawford had presented a valuable church site in the new suburban township of Kilbirnie. The site was more than an acre in extent, and was valued by a qualified land, agent at over £400. Mr. Crawford not only'offered the choice of three different sites, but' when he (the President), on going over the laud, suggested another as more suitable, Mr. Crawford most liberally assented, and had caused the land to be duly conveyed to the church. It would be necessary that the laud should be fenced at once. Arrangements were made for this work to be done, and Mr. Crawford's generous gift was duly acknowledged. The Churchwardens of St. Mark's parochial district applied that the four special offertories required by the regulations to do held annually (in aid of Diocesan and Pension Funds and of the Melanesian and Maori Missions) might be remitted in the case of that parish, which at present was unable to meet its current liabilities, even with the assistance of £60 a year received from the St. Peter's Parish, and auticipated a deficiency of £G3 at the end of the current financial year. It was held that the committee had no power to remit the offertories, which were fixed by the Synod, but arrangements were made tor giving some temporary assistance to the district. The Bishop said that there continued to be au extreme difficulty in obtaining clergy. The present scarcity was very serious. Bishop Abraham, who had been requested to select and send out some additional clergy, had written to siy that he could obtain only one, a student at Lam peter College, who was very highly spokeu of, but would not be «ble to come out for nearly a year. The same difficulty was found iv other dioceses, in Nelson alone there were nine vacant cures, and the necessity of establishing a Theological College became daily more apparent. There were many young men in the colouy who would make excellent clergymen, if oniy they could obtain the necessary training. He threw out this suggestion for future consideration. The Rev. Mr. Harvey drew attention to the unsatisfactory position of tho Church Chronicle, which was very inadequately supItorted. About 220 copies were taken in his parish, and less thaii half that number elsewhere, besides which the Mibsmptions came in Aory irregularly, and there was every appearance of a houvy deficit at the cud of the current year. It was resolved that the Chronicle committee report fully to the next meeting, on the position and prospects of the publication, financial, and otherwise. A large amount of other diocesan business was transacted, and the Committee then adjourned.