Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 17.djvu/323



CORRESPONDENCE 315

(25) sermons, delivered one annual address before the Oregon Tract Society, 20 ? auxiliary to the A. T. Soc., twelve lectures to the Sabbath school and Bible class, attended three prayer meetings and one three-days' meeting in connection with the communion season of the church in this place on the first Sab. in May. Visited religiously twenty-three families and individuals, visited no common schools, addressed my own on moral and religious subjects twenty-seven times. Bap- tized none, obtained no signatures to the temperance pledge, organized no church, aided in no ordination, traveled to and from my appointments one hundred and fifty miles, received none by letter or experience, no conversions known, none pre- paring for the ministry, except one anti-missionary brother who is studying and reciting to me. No monthly concert of prayer (I trust this thing will not long be so).

The people where I labor have done nothing for any of the missionary societies. Connected with the places where I preach are three Sabbath schools in which the Baptists partic- ipate, but only one under Baptist direction. The one at Ore- gon City has four teachers, 20 scholars, and 200 volumes in the library. I have a Bible class of six scholars.

Respectfully submitted,

EZRA FISHER,

Missionary at Oregon City and vicinity.

Our association has just closed an interesting session. 308 All was harmony ; all the delegates were deeply impressed with a sense of the importance of ministerial support and passed some spirited resolutions on the subject. One small church sent up a pledge that they would pay one hundred dollars for one fourth of the time for a year, if they could be supplied with monthly preaching. Other churches will do as well and we now have the hope that before the rainy season sets in al- most every church of nominally missionary Baptists in the

207 This was organized in the autumn of 1848 and did some colporteurage work. George H. Himes.

208 The Association met with the La Creole Church, June 28-30. Minute* of Willamette Baptist Assn. of Ore. ,