PRESBYTERIAN CITY MISSION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9261, 15 January 1889, Page 6

PRESBYTERIAN CITY MISSION.

ANNUAL MEETING.

The annual meeting of the Auckland Presbyterian City Mission was held yesterday evening at St. David's Church, when there was a good attendance. Tea and light refreshments were provided in the schoolroom before the meeting. The meeting itself was held in the church, and the Rev. A. Carrick presiding, opened proceedings with a short address, in which he pointed out the value of the work being done by tho mission. The Church, he said, must necessarily have a mission, one part working in the foreign, and the other in the home field. With regard to foreign missions the' obligation of the Church was manifest. "Go ye," said the Saviour, "into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature." At first the church, being very sincere and devoted, was very successful in this. But a very long period of depression and inactivity followed through the Church becoming corrupt and selfish, and it was not until the close of - the 18th century, when the great father of modern missions, William Carey consecrated himself to his great life-work, that the Church woke to its duty. He remembered hearing Judge Richmond saying that he regarded Wellington as boing in miniature the reproduction of all the vices and peculiarities of the greatest cities. The saying applied with equal force to Auckland. Under these circumstances the Church had a very pressing duty upon her. He complained that not sufficient effort was put forth by members of the Church in this direction. At the same time he could not but feel that if tho work of the city mission was to bo done successfully, it involved such great labour and anxiety and toil that very few private Christians indeed were equal to the task. Even the ministers were not equal to the task, and it was here they felt the great value of the Mission they were associated with. Mr. Carrick then paid a very high tribute of praise to their noble city missionary Mr. McPherson, whose exemplary diligence had accomplished so much. He was glad that in the matter of funds they stood on a higher platform than last year, and he hoped that next year they might be in a still better position, and "that the work might go forward with increased energy. A solo, "He Wipes the Tear from Every Eye," was then very pleasingly given by Miss Reid, after which the various reports I were read. j

The Rev. P. Mason read the report of the committee as follows : —" Your committee are happy to say that the Presbyterian City Mission has been carried on during the past year with unabated energy. Your devoted missionary has laboured with his accustomed zeal in all the departments of his work, and with such a measure of success as is satisfactory to your committee. Mr. McPherson's labours have, indeed, been so manifold and arduous that, unless he possessed great faith and uncommon physical strength, he could not have undergone the toil necessary to accomplish them. Your missionary has done much during the past year to arouse the careless, to reclaim the wandering and erring, and to relieve the destitute and distressed. Your committee have endeavoured to minister to the physical _as well as the spiritual wants of the destitute, and with this view granted a small sum during the three winter months to be distributed at the discretion of your missionary, who was enabled to have this considerably augmented by private contributions of clothing and provisions. The priucipal part of your missionary's work has been to reclaim the lapsed Presbyterians among us by restoring them to the services of the sanctuary, and their children to the teaching of the Sabbath school. You will learn from his report that he has met with encouraging success in this department of his work. In conclusion, the funds of the mission are so prosperous that your committee have been enabled to vote a supplement of £10 sterling to your missionary's salary.—A. Carrick, president." The treasurer's report was read as follows by Captain D. H. Mackenzie: —Dr. : St. James's Church, £52 19s 6d ; St. Luke's, £20 10s 6d ; St. David's, £20 12s Sd ; St. Peters (for 1887), £9 2s; St. Stephen's, £6 10s ; subscriptions collected by Captain D. H. Mackenzie and Rev. Peter Mason, £38 Os 6d (of this sum St. Andrew's contributed £36 10s); contributions from St. Andrew's by means of envelopes, £1 12s Id ; Mrs. Stewart, £1; Mr. Murdoch McLeod, sen., £1 ; Dr. Kenderdine, £2 ; Mrs. Ganilt, 10s ; Onehunga Sabbath School, £1 12s 8d ; total, £145 9s lid. Cr. : To balance due January Ist, 1889, £6 4s 6d ; moneys paid during year, £136 5s 9d ; balance in hand, £2 19s lOd : total, £145 9s lid. Mr. McPhkrson read the missionary's report, which showed that the whole city, from Newmarket station to Cox's Creek, had been visited by him from door to door, with the following results : — "In St. David's district I have visited 205 Presbyterian families; in St. James', 195; St. Andrew's, 185; St. Stephen's, 175; St. Peter's, 127 ; St. Luke's, 82, or 909 Presbyterian families. Of this number about 400 i families are good members, 300 who attend very indifferently, and nearly 300 who very seldom cross the church door. Concerning the children of Presbyterian parents we think there are under 2000 in this city, 500 of whom are too young to attend, and we have in our Sunday-schools about 1200, leaving only about 300 nob under religious instruction A great many in the city are living in a state of indifference as to whether they have a soul or not, or whether their children are saved. Their thoughts are centred on providing clothing for their bodies and secular education for their minds. The indifference of many with regard to the spiritual training ot their children is simply appalling." Every effort was made to get the people to attend the churches, and although a great number of people have neglected the Church, the Church has not neglected them. He also referred to his work in visiting the ships coming to Auckland, and to the' missions held every night in different parts of the city to help to win people into church membership. Of this latter work he gave a detailed account. He was also in the habit of visiting the Hospital and Refuges. Although he was chaplain of the gaol he had not been able to visit it often, and Mr. A. Jowitt had kindly taken his place there. This service did not end in the gaol, as the prisoners were helped after they came out. The report continued : —"I go about four times a year to the Asylum to address the patients. When it is my turn to visit I take a choir of ladies with me, who sing pieces to the patients, who appreciate it very much. I might mention that I work in harmony with the different denominations in the city, and wherever there is an opportunity to speak a word for Jesus I cheerfully go, no matter who asks me, so that I nave addressed meetings all over the city and suburbs Another part of my work is to help the poor, and to enable me to do this, the Committee granted me an allowance for the three winter months, at the rate of about 10s per week ; there was considerable distress, on account of so many men being cut of work. A number of these men had left for the country and the neighbouring colonies to look for work, while their wives and families were left to struggle on until they heard from them. I am glad to say the distress is not so great now as ib was during the winter." Mr. John Lamb moved the adoption of the reports. He hoped that next year their funds would, have increased so as to enable them to employ another missionary. The adoption of the report was seconded and carried.

It was agreed, on the motion of Mr. Jo witt, seconded by Mr. McGregor, that the following should be the office-bearers for the ensuing year : Chairman, Mr. J. Reid ; secretary, Rev. P. Mason ; treasurer, Captain D. H. Mackenzie ; and the following committee : Revs. A. Carrick, Macnicol, Somerville, G. B. Monro, R. S. West, and Adams, and Messrs. M. Clark, A. J. Entrican, J. R. Hanna, J. Macky, T. Peacock, M.H.R., J. Garriock, J. Buchanan, J. M. Lennox, W. Dinnison, A. Wilson, and J. Angus. Mr. McGregor then sang "Gates of the West," and the meeting concluded with the Benediction. Mr. A. Wilson was the organist.