Report of the Fourth Annual Meeting of the California State Tract and Missionary Society.
THE fourth annual meeting of the California State Tract and Missionary Society was held in connection with the camp meeting at Yountville, from October 1st to 12th, 1874. Meeting called to order by the President, J. N. Loughborough, October 5th at 9 A. M. Prayer by Eld. G. I. Butler. Report of last year's meeting read and accepted. Remarks of deep interest were made by Bro. Butler, pertaining to the missionary cause, and what has been accomplished in the Eastern Conferences through this agency, and showing what a mighty lever the missionary work might be on this coast, if properly organized and its objects carried out. Voted, that the Chair appoint a committee of three on nominations, to nominate a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and that they also consider the matter of districting the State, and nominating a Board of Directors, consisting of one Director for each district. The Chair appointed as a Committee on Nominations, N. Grayson, J. G. Walker, and Ruel Stickney. October 19th, at 10 A. M. Prayer by the President. The report of the Committee on Nominations was called and accepted as follows: For President, J. N. Loughborough, St. Helena; Vice President, J. W. Bond, Healdsburg; Secretary, Lucy Bush, Woodland; Treasurer, G. D. Hager, Santa Rosa. The officers thus far, by vote of the meeting, were declared elected. It was then stated by the President, that in order to choose a Board of Directors it would be needful to change our Constitution, and he recommended the adoption of the Constitution used by our Missionary Societies in other States, thus bringing us in harmony with other societies, over which the General Missionary Society of Seventh-day Adventists has the supervision. By request, the President read the old Constitution and also the new one recommended. After the reading of the two Constitutions, it was unanimously voted to rescind the old Constitution and adopt the new, which reads as follows: Constitution of the Tract and Missionary Societies of Seventh-day Adventists. ARTICLE I. This society shall be called the TRACT AND MISSIONARY SOCIETY of the Seventh-day Adventists of the Conference of California. ARTICLE II. The officers of this society shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and a Board of Directors of ten, of which the President shall be one, and they shall be elected annually. ARTICLE III. The objects of this society shall be: 1. The proper distribution of our tracts, pamphlets, and books. 2. To obtain subscribers for our periodicals; to collect dues and renew subscriptions; and to pay subscriptions for the worthy poor; and, for this purpose, agents shall be appointed, who shall report quarterly to the Directors of their districts. 3. To visit and labor (by correspondence or otherwise), for the encouragement and help of the scattered ones of like precious faith; for those who are falling back because of discouragements; and to interest all within the reach of our interest in the great truths connected with the last message of mercy to the world. 4. To find homes for those who may be destitute and needy for the truth's sake. 5. To bring about, as far as possible, equality among our people, in the payment of Systematic Benevolence in accordance with the plan adopted, in taking stock in the Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association and Health Reform Institute, and in donating to other benevolent enterprises which, from time to time, may arise for the purpose of forwarding the work. ARTICLE IV. Any person may become a member of this society who is in good standing in one of our churches, or who may be recommended by a church of our Seventh-day Adventists, by the payment of one dollar. ARTICLE V. Section 1. It shall be the duty of the President (1) To see that there is a uniformity of action throughout the entire Conference; (2) To see that each Director carries out the duties of his office in his district; (3) He shall preside over all the meetings in the Conference, whether it be a district quarterly meeting, or general quarterly meeting, whenever he may be present; (4) He shall have on hand a sufficient supply of books and blank reports for the entire Conference, and see that a proper distribution is made with each Director for his district. Section 2. It shall be the duty of the Secretary (1) To keep a record of the number of pages of tracts and pamphlets purchased for60the Society, and the value of the same; and the number of bound books, and the value of the same; also, the names and number of the libraries furnished; (2) To keep an account of the money received from each district, and the number of pages of tracts and pamphlets, and the number of books furnished to the same, and the value of the whole; (3) He shall notify the Director of any district that may have drawn the amount of books to which it is entitled, so that he may raise more money from that district; (4) To furnish the Director or Secretary of each district a supply of blanks for reports quarterly for each member of the Society in that district; (5) to keep a summary of all reports received from the several districts, and the amount of money received in response to calls, crediting it to the respective districts, whether it be for membership, donations, or any enterprise connected with the cause of present truth; (6) To keep a record of the number of the members of the society of each district by itself; (7) He shall keep a debt and credit account with each district; (8) To keep a record of all the doings of the society in such a manner that whenever the President or Directors wish to know whether any district is failing to do its part in the several branches of the work, the exact standing of each district, and of the entire State, can be told in every interest connected with the Tract Society; (9) It shall be the duty of the Secretary to furnish the Director of each district with a list of the names of subscribers of our periodicals, and of those who have been dropped, excepting those who are scattered, not accessible by the church agent or director, and with such he shall correspond and report to the general quarterly meeting; also, he shall keep a list of all the worthy poor, who are entitled to the periodicals free; (10) Finally, it shall be his duty to attend each State quarterly meeting, and to furnish to it a report of what has been done in each district, and the Conference, during that quarter, and also to read the record of the doings of the previous quarterly meeting. Section 3. It shall be the duty of each Director, (1) To see that a librarian is appointed in each church; and he shall commit to such librarian a suitable quantity of publications for that church; (2) To appoint an agent (who may, or may not, be the librarian) in each church, to collect dues on periodicals which may have been stopped, and to take moneys by renewing subscriptions or by new subscribers. And such agent shall keep a record of the worthy poor, and report in full what he has done, and the standing of his church, to the Director near the close of the quarter, for the District Secretary to report at the district quarterly meeting. And the Director shall furnish him with a list of subscribers for that church and vicinity only; (3) He shall make himself acquainted with the entire business of the society, and shall, from time to time, visit each church in his district to see that each comes up on Systematic Benevolence, and on every enterprise connected with present truth; (4) He shall see that the librarian of each church is furnished with sufficient blanks for a report from each member at each quarterly meeting; (5) He shall appoint a Secretary, acting himself as a collector and treasurer for his district; (6) He shall hold a district quarterly meeting at least two weeks before each general quarterly meeting, unless it be in the district where the general quarterly meeting may be held; in that case, it may be held in connection with the general quarterly meeting; (7) He shall preside over all the district quarterly meetings in absence of the President; (8) He shall see that there is forwarded to the General Treasurer, quarterly, whatever funds may have been received in his district, and report the same to the Secretary; (9) He shall order all his books through the President of the Tract Society. Section 4. The duty of the District Secretary shall be (1) To keep a debt and credit account with each church in the district, and a record of all business done with that church that relates to the tract and missionary work. His duties with each church will be very similar to those of the Secretary of the Society with each district; (2) It is also his duty to send a report of each district quarterly meeting to the State Secretary in season for the general quarterly meeting; (3) To keep an account of the standing of his district with the Tract Society of the Conference; (4) To keep a record of the members in each church in a class by themselves, and the name of each donor, and an account of all moneys received, whether it be on memberships or donations, or donations to any other enterprise connected with the cause of present truth; (5) He shall attend every district quarterly meeting in his district. Section 5. It shall be the duty of the librarian to see that each member of his church has a small memorandum book in which he shall keep a record of his labor, to report for each quarterly meeting. It shall also be his duty to furnish each member with suitable tracts for distribution, and to keep an account of the same. He shall also furnish to each member a blank report to be filled, and see that it is returned to him in season for him to send it to the District Secretary before each district quarterly meeting. He shall also receive money for memberships, sales of publications, and donations, and forward the same to the Director of said district. He shall keep an account of the number of pages of tracts and pamphlets given out by him to each member, that he may report the same to the Director or District Secretary before each quarterly meeting. Section 6. General quarterly meetings shall be held under the direction of the Board of Directors, at which time they shall decide upon the cases of those who may be thought to have claims upon the widows and orphans' fund, or may be worthy of receiving the periodicals free; and all other business of importance that relates to the Tract and Missionary Society. ARTICLE VI. The funds to be employed by this society shall consist of the money paid for memberships, and free-will offerings. ARTICLE VII. The Board of Directors shall have the general management and oversight of the work of this society, both in disbursing funds and in counseling in regard to labor; and shall act as agents in collecting funds for this society. ARTICLE VIII. This Constitution may be amended at any annual meeting, by a vote of two-thirds of the members present. After the adoption of the new Constitution the proposed plan of districting the State, with the names of proposed Directors for each district, was read, and was by unanimous vote adopted, and the said directors declared elected, as follows: District No. 1, consisting of the southern portion of Sonoma county and Marin, including the churches of Petaluma, Bloomfield and Green Valley. (John Judson, Director, Bloomfield.) District No. 2, consisting of the northern part of Sonoma county and Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity, Klamath and Del Norte counties, and including the churches of Santa Rosa and Healdsburg. (Wm. Harmon, Director, Healdsburg.) District No. 3. Napa and Lake counties, including the churches of Napa and St. Helena. (John Mavity, Director, St. Helena.) District No. 4. Solano county, including Vallejo church. (J. S. Howard, Director, Vallejo.) District No. 5, consisting of Yolo, Colusa, Sacramento, Sutter, Yuba, Placer, Nevada, El Dorado and Amador counties, including Woodland church. (H. C. Yerby, Director, Woodland.) District No. 6, consisting of Tehama, Shasta, Bute, Sierra, Plumas, Lassen and Siskiyou counties, and including the church of Red Bluff. (J. H. Disher, Director, Red Bluff.) District No. 7, consisting of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Calaveras, Alpine, Stanislaus, Tuolumne, Mono and Mariposa counties, including the Oakland church. (D. B. Rickey, Director, Oakland.) District No. 8, consisting of Santa Clara, San Benito, Merced, Fresno, Tulare and Inyo counties, and including the churches of San Jose and Santa Clara. (Wm. Swinterton, Director, San Jose.) District No. 9, consisting of San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Kern, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego counties, including San Francisco church. (Charles Chittenden, Director, No. 733 Bryant street, San Francisco.) Convened at 4:30 P. M. of October 9th. Opened with prayer by the President. The Treasurer's report was called for and accepted, showing: Cash on hand September 18th, '73.....$ 25 20
Received During the year........... 787 62
Total...........................$812 82
Paid out as per book......$257 93
Balance on hand Oct. 9th, 1874:...$554 89
G. D. HAGER, Treasurer. Remarks were made by Bro. Butler showing the importance of the reporting system, as an incentive and encouragement to labor in the missionary work. The President also made remarks urging to promptness in labor and reporting. Although, we, in California, are remiss in the matter of missionary labor, and even in reporting what has been done, yet we have done a little. Report of the labor of the past year was called for and accepted, as follows:
Number of families visited........... 27
Number of letters written............ 250
Money received for membership....$78 00
" " by donations to Mission Society............. 11 00
Money received from book sales..... 29 00
Total money received.............$118 29
Number new subscribers for Review.. 222
" " " " Instructor. 70
" " " " Reformer. 54
Reviews distributed.................. 73
Instructors " ........................ 332
Reformers " .......................... 27
Tracts and pamphlets loaned (pages)... 21776
" " " given away (p). 99837
Total. pages........................121613
Books furnished to libraries......... 20
J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH, President.
J. W. BOND, Secretary.