BIBLE SOCIETY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20947, 10 August 1931, Page 10

BIBLE SOCIETY.

GREAT ACTIVITIES MAINTAINED

RECORD OF YEAR'S WORK.

The circulation of the Scriptures in 1930 by the British and Foreign Bible Socipty has surpassed all its previous records, excepting only that of 1929. Only once in the history of the society, now in its 128 th year, was the number of new translations greater. The" total available incomo was £405,527; the total expenditure £406,365, and tho deficiency on tho year's working £B3B.

Fourteen new versions were added during the year to tho total of 644 languages now on the society's list. Ten of these 14 were African languages, and one, a translation of tho Gospel of Mark into the Nuba language, was tho work of a New Zealander, Dr. Phoebe MacDiarmid, of tho Sudan United Mission. A considerable decrease occurred in the issue of English versions, of which 83,200 fewer copies were sold at home, and 58,300 fewer were sent abroad. But tho volumes in English numbered 1,659,000, which is double the number of 10 years ago. Even that large figure was eclipsed by tho sale of versions in China, which totalled 4,694,000. In Europe tho circulation increased by over 100,000 to 1,747,000. In Russia, however, the door still remains barred to tho Bible. By order of tho Government Biblical instruction .is now to bo given in tho schools of Italy. Tho staff of the society's colporteurs numbers over 900. The total Bibles, Testaments and portions of Scripture issued during tho year was 11,888,226.