documents, and travelled 11,277 miles in the discharge of my official duties.

Books sent to North Carolina, 9,387; of these, 564 were grants. Books sent to South Carolina, 5,079; of these, 265 were grants.

NORTH DAKOTA.-(See Minnesota.)

OHIO.-The following brief report, from Rev. E. S. Gillette, of Cleveland, shows the encouraging and discouraging features of the work during the past year:

Through a kind Providence I am able to present my report, which in the department of personal labors shows improvement in every item. In auxiliary work there is also improvement. In the item of total contributions an increase of over $500 is shown over the previous year, and more than $1,000 over the year next preceding. Encouragement is found in this, though the advance is far less than was looked for. Special stress was laid upon this feature.

In some of the auxiliaries plans were formed for securing collections from the churches and Sunday schools in their fields. The results have been disappointing. Other auxiliaries have worked on the old lines so well and some of the churches have responded so liberally that we are encouraged to work for advance along a greater length of the line.

The benevolent contributions of all the churches are so arranged that each denomination should have the American Bible Society permanently on its list, in order than an equitable proportion of their benevolent contributions be devoted to Bible distribution in the home and foreign field.

A work

Canvassing by the auxiliaries has held on an even course deserving special mention is in progress in Henry County by our experienced worker, Mr. C. P. Goss. The auxiliary had no credit at the Bible House upon which to draw books, nor any stock on hand. Several societies in the State assisted it by donations of books, and by this help a most excellent work is being accomplished.

More hard work and a wider diffusion of facts are called for.

Books sent to Ohio, 38,676; of these, only 106 were grants.

OKLAHOMA. To this Territory there have been sent during the year 85 copies of the Scriptures. A colporteur has been appointed to canvass Oklahoma and the Indian Territory. He will enter upon the work the first of June.

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OREGON, WASHINGTON, IDAHO, MONTANA, AND UTAH.— Rev. P. C. Hetzler, of Salem, Oregon, reports encouragingly from this remote and extensive field, as follows:

In summing up the labors of the year, I am glad to find evidence of progress in the general work throughout the district. A much larger distribution of the Scriptures has been made than was reported for the previous year. Special attention has been given to the matter of sup'plying destitute families, individuals, and children with suitable copies of the Bible. This part of the work has been attended with encouraging results.

The receipts on collections and donations are not large, but in these we have shared a like fate with other benevolent institutions. There are certainly better times for the Bible cause in the near future in this field. The work of the American Bible Society is favorably regarded by the people and its publications are deservedly popular. The action of ecclesiastical bodies has been very favorable and but few pastors show other than a disposition to encourage and help forward the Bible work.

This important auxiliary society held its thirty-fifth annual meeting at the First Methodist Episcopal Church in Portland, on Wednesday evening, March 29th. The reports of the officers show that the year has been one of activity and success in Bible work. Two colporteurs, Rev. G. F. West and Mr. L. N. Price, were employed a part of the year. Mr. West spent most of his time in Portland, visiting families and individuals. Mr. Price labored in Lane County, Oregon.

The sales of Bibles and Testaments made during the year by the branch societies, Bible committees, volunteer and auxiliary agents, and at the central depository in Portland, amount in value to $2,117 20. Books have been donated to mission churches, needy Sunday schools,

the Hyarah Mission in Alaska, to sailors, prisoners, the orphans' home at Spokane, Wash., and to destitute families, individuals, and children, valued at $344 43.

A fair degree of success has attended the Bible work in Western Washington during the year. The sales of Bibles and Testaments exceed in number and value those of the previous year The Western Washington Bible Society, early in the year, undertook to canvass its field, and employed Rev. T. B. Goodpasture to do the work. He labored only two months, and during that time visited 1,949 families and business places, and found 149 families destitute of the Scriptures, eighty of whom he supplied. He also supplied thirty destitute children with suitable Bibles. He sold books valued at $146 40, and donated books to the value of $20 70. He collected for the Bible cause $171 70.

The Southwestern Washington Bible Society reports large sales of books, but is deficient in collections. There is promise of improvement in this direction. From the Walla Walla County Bible Society we have no report.

The aggregate value of Bibles and Testaments sold during the year by the auxiliary and branch societies, auxiliary and volunteer agents, is $878 87. The same agencies have donated Bibles and Testaments valued at $150 99.

IDAHO BIBLE SOCIETY.

But little has been accomplished in the distribution of the Scriptures in Idaho during the year, beyond the sales and grants made by the auxiliary and branch societies, which amount in value to $105 25.

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The Bible work in Montana remains much the same as reported a year ago. The auxiliary and branch societies have, all but one, been visited by the District Superintendent during the year. A new branch society was formed at White Sulphur Springs, Meagher County. The sales of Bibles and Testaments for the year by the auxiliary and branch societies amount in value to $424 60. The gratuitous distribution amounts to $27 95. With improved financial conditions Montana will be a fruitful field for collections and donations to the Bible work.

UTAH.

Of this very important mission field I am glad to write encouragingly. The influence of the schools and missions of the orthodox

churches is felt throughout the Territory. A more heroic and faithful class of teachers and ministers cannot be found than are those in Utah. There is increased demand for the Scriptures, especially among the young people. The most careful attention has been given to this part of the district, and we have labored to encourage and help the auxiliary and branch societies in their work. The sales of Bibles and Testaments for the year amount in value to $266 30, while the donations of books amount in value to $50 09.

With gratitude to God for the mercies of the year, with thankfulness to all who have in any way assisted the cause, and with due appreciation of the encouragement given to the work by pastors and ecclesiastical bodies, I conclude this report.

Books sent to Oregon, 3,698. Books sent to Idaho, 407; of these, 183 were grants. Books sent to Montana, 1,125, all on purchase account. Books sent to Utah, 440; of these, 54 were grants. Books sent to Washington, 2,316; of these, 321 were grants.

PENNSYLVANIA.-The following statements concerning the work of the Pennsylvania Bible Society have been received:

The total receipts of the Pennsylvania Bible Society for the year ending April 30th were $36,905 02, and disbursements $36,351 10, of which $29,357 31 was paid for Bibles.

The circulation was as follows: Bibles, 41,637; Testaments, 47,806; Testaments and Psalms, 5,145; Portions of the Bible, 12,240—total, 106,828 volumes. Of these, 10,000 volumes were given to immigrants arriving at this port and comprised the following languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Polish, Welsh, Russian, Bohemian, Slavic, Arabic, Finnish, Chinese, Greek, Hebrew, Dutch, Irish, Portuguese, Hungarian, Flemish, Bulgarian, Roumanian, Norwegian, Slavonic, Catalonian, Choctaw, Cherokee, and in raised letters for the Blind. The Scriptures in the Moon system of embossed type continue to be read by blind persons who could not learn other systems.

We have endeavored to reach, as far as possible, the large number of foreigners working in the coal and coke sections of our State. The work among them is expensive, because the expenses of the colporteur and the cost of books are with scarcely any returns in the way of donations and sales, and, excepting the Germans, Welsh, and Swedes, they are found entirely destitute of any portion of the Scriptures. We sent the colporteur to the oil regions of Pennsylvania that were devastated by the floods last summer, to supply those who had lost all their possessions.

Our year having just closed, we have not yet collected statistics of our colportage work in the State, much of which was done by the branches, with our assistance. The reports of five of these show 5,639 families visited, of which 556 were destitute of the Scriptures. In Philadelphia 17,085 families were visited, of which 970 were found destitute.

We consider it important that the public and reformatory institutions, hospitals, homes for children, etc., of our State and city should be properly supplied with the Scriptures, and we have given particular attention to this part of our work. We have found many of these sadly deficient in this respect, and not a few of them derive their support from churches.

The number of volumes sent into Pennsylvania during the year was 156,295; of these, 21,550 volumes were donated by this Society, chiefly to the American Sunday School Union.

RHODE ISLAND.-A letter has been received from Mr. Joseph T. A. Eddy, the secretary of the Rhode Island Bible Society, in which he writes:

Our work is progressing in a satisfactory manner, and Mr. Wing, the agent, is an earnest worker, and is constantly finding fields that are destitute of the word of God. The treasurer's report, presented on the 6th of October, showed a balance on hand at the close of the year of $607 58.

The number of copies of the Scriptures sent into Rhode Island was 2,207; of this number, 83 were donated by this Society.

SOUTH CAROLINA. (See North Carolina.)

SOUTH DAKOTA.-(See Minnesota.)

TENNESSEE. (See Kentucky.)

TEXAS.-Rev. William B. Rankin, of Austin, thus reports respecting the advancement of the work in his field: In submitting my sixteenth annual report from Texas I am glad to record a fair degree of success. During the year the sales of the Scriptures have been much larger, there were more contributing churches, the action of ecclesiastical bodies was more favorable, more pastors