p. 277 | Report of Meetings by John Norton Loughborough

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Sep 19, 1878

Report of Meetings.

By John Norton Loughborough

Since my last report I have held one meeting in Sacramento and attended the two California camp-meetings. I had an interesting time in Sacramento with the little company there. A vote was passed by the church, requesting Brother Butler, as soon as consistent after his arrival in California, to spend a little time there and organize the church.

Our northern camp-meeting has already been spoken of by others. It was the largest and best camp-meeting we have had in California.

The southern meeting which closed yesterday morning was of the same character as the northern. We had excessive hot weather most of the time during the meeting, which with lack of shade made our situation physically uncomfortable, yet the grace of God carried us above all this, and we had the best meeting yet held in that southern field. There were forty tents upon the ground and two hundred and fifteen campers. Last year there were twenty-two tents and one hundred and thirteen campers. Twenty-five were baptized and six others signed the covenant, a large portion of these decided upon the ground. The preaching of Brethren Healey, Wood and the writer was practical and close, and the Spirit of God set it home to hearts.

The brethren and sisters took hold to lift in the various enterprises connected with the cause. They pledged $1,530 of new stock to the Oakland publishing fund and $571 to the British mission, besides donating four ounces of jewelry to the British mission. The children contributed $6.35 of their little savings for the mission. The meeting has been another powerful lever to exert its influence in extending the truth in that part of the State.

The work was started in Fresno and Tulare counties a little over two years ago. Now there are eight places where regular Sabbath meetings are held, one hundred and forty-five names are now on the covenant, of those still firm in the truth. The pledges to systematic benevolence fund amounts to $914.40 per year. Most are paying the missionary one-third. The district has quite a stock of books and tracts on hand, and over $16 to its credit in the State tract and missionary treasury.

If they go forward in the name of the Lord, their numbers will doubtless more than double in the next two years. God bless and advance the work. J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH. Oakland, Cal., September 17, 1878.