HISTORY.

The acceptance of Calvinistic theology by the Baptist churches of New England about the middle of the eighteenth century was not by any means unanimous. There was a strong Arminian sentiment which declined to approve the preaching that characterized The Great Awakening. There was also much dissatis

faction with the practical dominance of the Congregational churches, generally spoken of as "the standing order"; with the character of not a few ministers who, while well educated, were not regarded as fully converted; and especially with the laxity of discipline manifest in the "half-way covenant," by which nonchurch members were allowed to present their children for baptism and exercise many of the privileges of communicants.

The return of Whitefield to New England in 1769, with his cyclonic preaching, stirred the communities anew, and aroused again the feeling which had resulted in the "New Light" party. Among those who listened to him in Portsmouth, N. H., in 1770, was a young man, Benjamin Randall, who seems, however, to have been more impressed by the news of the sudden death of the evangelist two days later than he had been by his preaching. He was converted and joined the Congregational church in Newcastle, N. H. The general conditions of church life which he found, especially the laxity of church discipline, troubled him, and, as he was powerless to effect a reform, he found a more congenial church home in a Baptist church in Berwick, Me. He soon became noted as a leader of religious meetings, and, later, as a preacher. It was discovered, however, that he did not preach the sterner Calvinistic doctrines, and when questioned upon this point declared his disbelief in them. The result was that in 1779 he was tried, adjudged unsound in doctrine, and disfellowshiped. A considerable number, however, especially of those who had become dissatisfied with the condition of church life, as indicated above, sympathized with him, and the next year he organized in New Durham, N. H., a Baptist church, being formally set apart by his associates to the work of the gospel ministry.

The number of adherents spread in New Hampshire, and more rapidly in Maine. Most of their leaders were itinerant preachers who organized churches, all of which were connected at first with the mother.church in what was called a "quarterly meeting." As they moved westward into other New England states and into New York state, the necessity of a larger organization brought into existence a "yearly meeting," and at length, in 1826, a general conference was called, to which all yearly meetings sent delegates. This general conference at first held annual sessions, then biennial, triennial, and, beginning in 1917, quadrennial sessions, that being the thirty-sixth general conference.

For several years they had no thought of starting a new denomination, but as their numbers increased they found themselves disfellowshiped and ostracized by the more rigid Calvinists, so that some distinctive name became necessary. For twenty years after the organization of the New Durham church they had been called "General Provisioners," "New Lights," "Comefinally, though with much protest on the part of many, Outers," "Randallites," "Freewillers," etc., and, they accepted the most prevalent of these names and called themselves Free Will Baptists, although to nearly descriptive and to be preferred, since they bemany of them the term "Free Baptist" seemed more

lieved not only in the doctrine of free will, but also in free grace and in free communion.

Following the death of Mr. Randall in 1808, the number of Free Baptists increased considerably, and a strong, though unsuccessful, effort was made to bring about a union between them and the community recently organized as "Christians," under the lead of Abner Jones and Elias Smith.

In 1892 the general conference became incorporated under the laws of Maine as the General Conference of Free Baptists; into it were merged the missionary societies of the denomination, and it became, in effect, an organization of the denomination, composed of delegates from yearly meetings and associations.

The Free Baptists claim to be the first religious body to declare themselves against slavery, the General Conference in 1835 taking a pronounced position on this question. They also took a strong stand on the temperance question at an early date. During the earlier years of their history, in their protest against an unregenerate ministry and church membership, and their emphasis on the necessity of the new birth and a vital spiritual experience, they made the mistake of undervaluing mental training, a result partly due to the fact that the educational institutions of the time were entirely in the hands of Calvinists or of a liberal and practically Unitarian element. In addition, in their reaction against the support of the clergy by taxation, which at that time made the Congregational churches virtually an established church in some of the New England states, they went to the extreme of paying their ministers no fixed salaries. These two factors resulted in an uneducated and poorly paid ministry, and greatly retarded the growth of the denomination. Although they eventually realized the disadvantages entailed by their position and changed their attitude, particularly in reference to education, their growth continued slow and their number fluctuated more or less.

Since 1904 there has been a continuous movement for the restoration of the fellowship between Baptists and Free Baptists. Committees from either side have been in conference, and in 1908 a statement of agree

ments was put forth which has been called a "Basis of Union," which attempted no doctrinal or theological harmonizing, but which recognized "as a fact that the original occasion and cause of separation of the two bodies have practically disappeared, and that in all essentials of Christian doctrine as well as church administration and polity, we are substantially one,' and claimed that "differences, if still existing, may be left, where the New Testament leaves them, to the teaching of the Scriptures under the guidance of the Holy Spirit." After three years of discussion and of preparatory action, in October, 1911, decisive steps were taken toward combining as one denomination. The General Conference of Free Baptists, on October 5, 1911, turned over to the Baptist societies-the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society, and the American Baptist Home Mission Society-the funds, functions, properties, and powers, then in condition for transfer, previously belonging to the General Conference of Free Baptists, and these societies became the agents of Free Baptists for the prosecution of the home and foreign mission work. Since 1911 the action then begun has continued. Properties and funds have been further turned over as fast and as far as legal and ecclesiastical considerations permitted. In the different states the movement toward union and consolidation has been taken up and carried on, bringing state organizations and the funds and functions of the two peoples within the states into one common organization. In Maine and New Hampshire "United Baptist" conventions have been organized. In other states the Free Baptists, being much fewer in number, have for the most part become directly connected with the Baptist state conventions. The movement is slower in some states than in others, and in one or two states meets with determined opposition; but for the most part the members of these churches, whose differences, if ever great, are now inconsiderable, are coming to work and worship together as one great family.

These changes in organization make a fair census enumeration of Free Baptists practically impossible. Whereas before the reunion they numbered from 80,000 to 100,000 members, the present enumeration shows only 12,570. It does not follow from this that they have "died out." Indeed, they claim that from their point of view of history, doctrines, and sympathy, they are more numerous than ever. Some cling to the use of the old name "Free Baptists," or "Free Will Baptists," but the great majority rejoice in the old name "Baptist," as indicating a better service and a larger life.

DOCTRINE.

In doctrine the Free Baptists have always held that, though man in his fallen state can not become the child of God by natural goodness and works of his own, redemption and regeneration are freely provided for |

him; the call of the gospel is coextensive with the atonement, to all men, so that salvation is equally possible to all; the truly regenerate are through infirmity and manifold temptations in danger of falling, and ought therefore to watch and pray lest they make shipwreck of faith.

They hold, with Baptists in general, that baptism, of which immersion is regarded as the only proper form, should be administered only to those who for themselves repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Participation in the Lord's Supper is the "privilege and duty of all who have spiritual union with Christ." The invitation to the Lord's Supper is given to all, participation in it being left with the individual. The human will is declared to be "free and self-determined, having power to yield to gracious influences and live, or resist them and perish;" and the doctrine of election is defined not as an "unconditional decree" fixing the future state of man, but simply as God's determination "from the beginning to save all who should comply with the conditions of salvation."

POLITY.

In polity the Free Baptists are congregational, each local church being independent and self-governed, electing its own officers, judging as to the qualifications of its members, and forming the final court of authority in matters of Christian life.

WORK.

In October, 1911, the Foreign and Home Mission work of the Free Baptists was transferred to the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society and the American Baptist Home Mission Society, and has been blended with the work of the Baptist denomination in the general organization of the Northern Baptist Convention. As early as 1835 Free Baptists began foreign mission work in India, in the district southwest of Calcutta, now known as the BengalOrissa Field of the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society. At one time they had a small mission enterprise among the Bassas inland from Liberia, Africa. They have also a missionary and associates in the Barbados, supported still in part by Free Baptists of the West and Southwest. Their home mission work has centered largely in Storer College, an institution for the education of the Negroes at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. Among the educational institutions founded by them are Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Mich.; Bates College, Lewiston, Me.; Rio Grande College, Rio Grande, Ohio; Keuka College, Keuka Park, N. Y.; New Hampton Literary Institution, New Hampton, N. H.; and Maine Central Institute, Pittsfield, Me. The "Morning Star," the organ of the denomination, founded in 1826, was merged with the 'Watchman," a Baptist paper published in Boston, in October, 1911.

Certain items not included in the above summary are church expenditures and number of members under 13 years of age, reported for the first time in 1916, and the languages used in church services.

Church expenditures as reported cover running expenses, outlay for repairs and improvements, bechurch treasury. The sum reported, $123,363, an nevolences, and other items that passed through the cation of the strength of the churches. average for the churches reporting of $806, is an indi

The number of members under 13 years of age, as reported by 138 organizations in 1916, was 245, constituting 2.2 per cent of the 11,224 members reported by these organizations. Assuming that the same proportion would apply to the 1,346 members reported by the organizations from which no answer to this inquiry was received, the total number of members under 13 years of age for the entire denomination would be 274.1

English is the only language reported in the conduct of church services in this denomination.

The total number of Free Baptist ministers reported as not connected with the Northern Baptist Convention, or other Baptist body, was 178. Schedules were received from 176, and the main facts in regard to these are given, by states, in the table below:

1 A minus sign (—) denotes decrease.

No separate report; see Northern Baptist Convention, p. 53.

Each item, where comparison with 1906 was possible, shows a large decrease, varying from 76.5 per cent in the value of parsonages, to 87.3 per cent in the number of organizations. Instead of 1,346 organizations as reported in 1906 there were only 171 on the list in 1916, and the value of church property reported was $670,720 in 1916 as against $2,974,130 in 1906. During the same period, the membership fell from 81,359 to 12,570, a decline of 84.5 per cent. As a result of these changes, the figures presented in the table can scarcely be considered as representing in any accurate way the strength of this denomination. The probability is that before another census is taken the Free Baptist churches as a distinct body will have so thoroughly united with other bodies that separate statistical presentation will no longer be necessary.

It may be noted that the uniformity in the percentages of decrease indicates that the general status of the denomination remains essentially the same in strength of membership as related to number of organizations, number of church edifices, value of property, and number and size of Sunday schools. The contributions for domestic and foreign work, as stated above, have been consolidated with those of the Northern Baptist Convention, so that a separate report for 1916 is impracticable.