Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 19.djvu/385

 CORRESPONDENCE 367 for the same object. Elder Robert D. Gray 348 was employed to enter that field immediately. In this field is one small, languishing church, and there are now materials for one or two churches which we trust our missionary will organize the present season. 349 Br. Gray will be kept in the field till winter, perhaps the entire year. In addition to the above named funds, we have $7.00 in the treasury designated to the preaching of the Word in this valley. The churches in Yam- hill and Polk counties have agreed to sustain Br. Riley 350 the coming year to travel in those counties, supply monthly the three churches in that field and spend the remainder of the time in supplying destitute settlements a part of the time. Dur- ing the sessions of the association reports were made on the subjects of establishing a religious press in Oregon and on ways and means for supplying our churches and destitute towns and settlements with preaching. Resolutions were passed favoring the general objects of the denomination, such as the Home Mission cause, Publication Society, the Sunday school effort and the circulation of religious periodicals. Dur- ing the time, the friends of education held a meeting in which an informal report of the trustees of the Oregon City College was made. The school was found to be in a prosperous con- dition under the tuition of Rev. J. D. Post. Since Professor Post entered upon his labors, it was found that the average number of scholars in attendance was 40. By the treasurer's report it was found that $4611.13 had been collected and expended on the building for the school since the commence- ment of the work, and that the building was about $150 in debt. A resolution was passed recommending the trustees to com- plete the building as soon as practicable. On Thursday, before the meeting of the association, an interesting ministers' meeting was held, a constitution and rules of decorum for a perma- nent organization adopted and the ministers' meeting regularly 348 Rev. R. D. Gray (1850-1871) was born in Tennessee and came to Oregon from Arkansas in 1853. Mattoon, Bap. An. of Ore., 1: 105. 349 The existing church was the Willamette Forks Church, which had been organized in 1852. Two others, the Palestine and the Mount Zion churches were organized later in 1854. Mattoon, Bap. An. of Ore., I:i6. 350 This was Rev. Cleveland C. Riley. He was born in Tennessee and cam* to Oregon from Missouri in 1853, settling near the LaCreole Church. Mattoon, Bap. An. of Ore., I:ioo.