work of this Society in the State of Missouri for the past three years, tendered his resignation, on account of declining health, which was accepted with reluctance. He will be succeeded by the Rev. H. P. Bond.

The following list gives the fields, year of appointment, and post-office addresses of the District Superintendents now under commission:

1,588

739

76

419

2,865

27,253

344,912

Auxiliary societies, branches, etc., visited
Anniversaries attended .

New auxiliaries, branches, and committees formed
Ecclesiastical bodies visited.

Sermons and addresses delivered for the Bible cause
Official letters sent

Miles travelled on official duty

Reported to them as contributions from churches and individuals to the Bible cause

$85,901 97

Reported to them as receipts of auxiliaries from sales 77,678 20 66 expenses of aux's in their fields 30,158 59

GENERAL VIEW OF THE WORK IN THE UNITED STATES.

ALABAMA AND FLORIDA.-Rev. Z. A. Parker, D.D., of Birmingham, Ala., reports from these two States as follows:

Another year has closed, and with it we complete six years of hard but pleasant work for the American Bible Society, as District Superintendent for Alabama and Florida. The year just closed was full of work for the Society, and considering the almost unprecedented financial depression, we believe the work for the year has been comparatively successful. We have travelled in the Society's work over 16,000 miles. We have sent out nearly 4,000 official letters, and distributed over 15,000 documents. We have delivered in the interest of the Society 153 sermons and addresses.

Much of this work is seed-sowing from which we trust the Society will reap in the future a good harvest.

Some of our co-operating denominations have resolved to raise the amounts asked from each charge for the American Bible Society by the District Superintendent. Others have pledged a collection for the Society; if these pledges are kept, the treasury of the Society will soon rejoice in increased funds for carrying on its great work from

this district. We enter upon the work of our seventh year with a firm trust in that Providence which has thus far led us; and with the hope that this may be the best year for the work that we have had.

Books sent to Alabama, 9,530; of these, 2,116 were consignments to colporteurs and grants. Books sent to Florida, 1,769; of these, 215 were grants or consignments to colporteurs.

ARIZONA.-In the benevolent work of the year, this remote Territory has not been overlooked. The applications of missionaries and others for grants of books have been answered, and a wise distribution has been made of the same.

Books sent to Arizona, 699; all of these were grants except twelve copies.

ARKANSAS.-Rev. E. M. Pipkin, of Little Rock, sends the following, which is his first report:

The year has been a busy and a pleasant one to me. As your representative, I have everywhere been met with all kindness and courtesy. Pastors and people of all the different communions have warmly welcomed me to their several fields of labor. There is a deep and growing sympathy with the purpose of the American Bible Society. I have gone into a number of places in the interior, off the ordinary lines of travel, and presented the work to many who never before heard a representative of the Society. Much good has thus been done.

I have been astonished at the ignorance of many of the preachers and people in regard to the work of the Society. I have had a number of preachers tell me that they are beginning to see this work in a new light, and that they feel ashamed of past indifference to the interests of this great department of the work of the Church. I think I have reported collections from a number of churches, which have never heretofore contributed to the work, and hope to increase the number of co-operating churches.

Our collections have not been as large as they ought to have been. There are many reasons for this: chief among them is the financial pressure under which our people have labored for several years. This is an agricultural State, and its business prosperity depends very largely upon one staple, cotton. The continued low price of cotton has depressed everything, and with many of our people it has been a hard fight to keep the wolf from the door. In the large majority of cases where I have received meagre collections, it would not be true to the facts, to attribute this to indifference, or to a want of interest

in the work on the part of the people. They will do better in the future.

AUXILIARY BIBLE SOCIETIES.

We have few, if any, real live societies. There is a want of proper understanding of the work of an auxiliary Bible society. It is very difficult to find men in the several communities who will give that attention to this work, that is imperatively demanded for their successful operation. Nevertheless, there is a number of auxiliaries doing good work. I am satisfied much is done by them of which we never get any report. From a number of the societies, reported in the Annual Report of the Parent Society, I have never received any report of any kind whatever. Sometimes I have gone to a place where an auxiliary Bible society is reported, to find nothing-no depository, no officers-the whole thing defunct.

SUNDAY SCHOOL SUPPLY.

I have not been able to do much in reaching the Sunday schools on the special proposition of the Society. A number of Sunday schools have been supplied through the auxiliary Bible societies, but I have not been able to get the facts so as to report them. The Bible is used in very few of the schools in my State. I have urged the importance, the necessity, of the Bible in the Sunday school. This work commends itself at once to the people. I hope to see this department of the work make substantial progress this year. Altogether I look for a more prosperous year for the Bible work than last year. There is room, large room, for improvement, and I hope to see it.

Books sent to Arkansas, 7,619, of these 222 were grants. This is an increase of 1,028 copies over the previous year.

CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.-Rev. John Thompson, D.D., of Oakland, Cal., who has so long labored in this extensive field, reports as follows:

Another year's work is accomplished. The moral and spiritual results eternity only will make known. Figures give totals of the various departments of labor performed; but no figures can give the number of souls saved to whom the word of God has been given in this vast field. The Author has declared, "It shall not return unto me void."

The financial results are not what was desired, yet, when we consider the mixed population of this field, made up of many nationalities, a large proportion of which is under Roman Catholic influence and domination, together with a large Jewish element, it compares favorably with other districts. If congregations of co-operating churches would contribute annually to the Bible Society, as is done for other

"Church Benevolences," there would be ample means for the prosecution of the work of the American Bible Society and its auxiliaries.

During the year I have visited a large number of religious bodies, all of which manifested great interest in the cause, and great confidence in the management of the American Bible Society. The District Superintendent has been cordially received at all Conferences, Synods, Associations, and Conventions, and was granted time to address the saine in behalf of the Society. Resolutions were passed by all approving the methods adopted, and pledging co-operation with the Society.

The past year has been a very busy one with your District Superintendent. All departments of the work have been studiously and earnestly supervised, and no feature of the work on this important field has been neglected. I have visited many parts of my field, from Redding in the north to San Diego in the south, and the courtesy shown by officers of auxiliary and branch societies, and by ministers and laymen, is very gratifying.

The work among Sabbath schools has not been what I desired and labored for. I sent out hundreds of documents calling for a "Children's Bible Day," when collections should be taken, and while there have been some generous responses, at the head of which stands Grace Methodist Episcopal Sabbath School, San Francisco, hundreds have made no response, either because their schools have supplies, or for other reasons not given. I have brought the matter before a large number of Sabbath schools in California in brief addresses, and while all approve, yet there is an unaccountable want of interest in this most important feature of the work. The auxiliaries in my field have undertaken to supply Sunday school children.

The California Bible Society continues to employ Mr. Felix Dumet in the colportage work in San Francisco County and City. The work in San Francisco is very important, as it embraces work among the ships for supplying sailors, immigrants on their arrival in San Francisco, and the general canvass among families and shops; and to this the exploration and supply of Chinese in "Chinatown," have been added-thus far with very gratifying results. As this work was but recently inaugurated, a Chinese interpreter, from the Presbyterian or Methodist Mission, has thus far accompanied the colporteur gratuitously.

Mr. R. H. Riddle is employed by the trustees of the California Bible Society in the country. He has just completed a thorough exploration and supply of Humboldt County, where he found and supplied over 300 destitute families.

The trustees, at the instance of the District Superintendent, made an experimental effort, through the Rev. N. A. Fisher, recently of the Sandwich Islands, for raising funds among business men of San Francisco; but the cry of stringency in money matters, and inability