Circular Letter
To the Missionaries under the patronage of
the American Baptist Home Mission Society.
New York, January 1838.Beloved Brethren,
In your annual reports, which will soon be done, you are respectfully requested to notice the following questions in their order:
1. How many months will you have laboured for the Society on the 1st of April, during the then preceding twelve months?
2. How many churches, congregations, or preacher's stands have you supplied?
3. How many churches, assisted in organizing? What their names?
4. How many ministers, assisted to ordain? their names?
5. How many have been added to your churches by baptism? by letter?
6. Are there others hopefully converted who have not yet made an open profession? How many?
7. To what benevolent institutions do your people contribute? What the aggregate amount?
8. How many tracts have you distributed? What do you think of their wefalnemen [?] among your people!
9. What is the state of your Sabbath schools and Bible classes - how many scholars - of temperance and other moral and religious societies?
10. What is your impression as to the general progress of the cause of Christ in your region, and of the usefulness of the Home Mission Society so far as you have observed?
In addition to the above, please narrate any striking cases of conversions or interesting incidents - the number of sermons you have preached - miles travelled, meeting houses built, or such other matters as your journals may supply.
Allow us to hope, dear brethren, that no apology will be needed for imperfect returns this year. We want your reports by the first day of April, and therefore earnestly request you to mail them by the middle of March or earlier.
Yours in the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.
By order of the Executive Committee of the A. B. H. M. Society.
LUTHER CRAWFORD, Corresponding Sec'ry,
Mission Rooms, Clinton Hall.[From R. B. C. Howell, editor, The Baptist, 1838, Volume 4, pp. 58-59. Scanned and formatted by Jim Duvall.]
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