History of Knox Church Dunedin/Chapter 6
CHAPTER VI.
THE Deacons' Court, at its second meeting, resolved to organise a scheme for the collection of the Sustentation Fund, and the minutes show that on numerous occasions since then this scheme has received most anxious and careful attention from the Court. The amount contributed to the fund by the congregation for the first complete year (1861) was £315 Is 6d. From that year onwards there was on the whole a somewhat steady annual increase until 1875 inclusive, when the amount reached £610 10s Id. There has been a falling-off since that year, the amount raised for the year ending September 30, 1890, being only £413 1s 3d. It is to be hoped that the recent energetic efforts of the treasurer, Mr J. T. Mackerras, to secure an increase in the number of contributors among members and adherents, will meet with much success. It may be noted that the highest amount reached was that for the year (1875) before the new church was opened. It is a question whether the subsequent decline may not be attributed in some degree to the efforts made by the congregation to reduce and ultimately to extinguish the debt upon the church building, and whether the prevailing depression in business has not seriously diminished the spending power of not a few members of the congregation.[1]
The minister in July 1861 suggested to the Deacons' Court the advisability of making arrangements for aiding the poor of the congregation as occasion might require, and it was resolved that a fund for this purpose should be provided by special church-door collections from time to time, and that it should be administered by a small committee of the office-bearers, under the treasurership of Mr A. Rennie, who took a warm interest in the scheme. By judicious management this fund, though not large, was the means of affording seasonable aid in many deserving cases. For a number of years the demands on the fund by members of the church were comparatively few and moderate—a fact which may be attributed to prosperous times, and in no small degree to the forethought and independence which practical Christianity tends to foster.
In course of time the office-bearers found it advisable to seek the aid of the ladies of the congregation in the administration of the poor-relief fund, and especially in rendering assistance in the cases of widows, orphans, and others needing counsel and a helping hand. The result was the formation, in April 1879, of the Knox Church Ladies' Association, which has ever since continued in active and useful operation, and has accomplished a large amount of good work. The first office-bearers of the Association were:—Mrs Glasgow, president; Mrs E. B. Cargill, secretary; and Mrs Kennedy, treasurer. Not only have the poor of the congregation been helped in various ways, but aid has also been extended to needful cases outside the membership of the church. Assistance is rendered in many instances by supplying useful articles of clothing purchased or made by the ladies of the Association, and in other cases money or food is given. Kindly visits are made, and valuable counsel given to the aged, infirm, and others in trouble.
From 1885 to 1888 the Ladies' Association was enabled, through the liberality of the Deacons' Court, to employ Mrs Welsh as Bible-woman and visitor. Her duties consisted mainly in advising the committee as to the proper distribution of their gifts, and in visiting the poor and the aged sick. Her visits were devoted mainly to Scripture reading, prayer, nursing, and the imparting of judicious counsel and the sympathy that tends to awaken hope and courage. Since Mrs Welsh's departure for South Africa in June 1888, the duties so efficiently discharged by her have been undertaken by the committee themselves, whose benevolent and abundant labours in the service of the poor and the afflicted are deserving of the warmest recognition. A summary of the work done by the Ladies' Association and an abstract of its yearly accounts are usually appended to the Annual Reports of the Session and Deacons' Court.
It may be mentioned here that the congregation made an annual collection in aid of the funds of the Otago Benevolent Institution until the Hospitals and Charitable Aid Act of 1885 came into operation. The proceeds of these collections during the twenty years in which they were made averaged about £50 8s a year. The collection for 1877 was £111 0s 10d, and that for 1878 reached the exceptionally large sum of £155 0s 8d. No collection seems to have been made, however, for the year 1876. These contributions were of course exclusive of annual subscriptions paid directly to the treasurer of the Institution by office-bearers and members of the congregation. The Patients' and Prisoners' Aid Society seems to have taken the place of the Benevolent Institution as regards the annual collection. During the last few years a sum averaging fully £30 annually has been collected for the Society. Special collections for various objects are made as appointed by the Synod. A summary of these is given in a statement appended to this History.[2]
- ↑ Sustentation Fund.—This important fund, we are glad to report, shows an improvement on the previous year, and taking into account the labour disturbances, which had the effect of throwing out of employment a number of contributors, may, on the whole, be considered satisfactory. Still, an examination of the contributions reveals that while the congregation as a whole responds fairly well to the claims of this fund, a not inconsiderable number do not show that appreciation of its merits that the office-bearers would like to see. Practically this fund is the means of maintaining the ordinances of our holy religion in the thinly-settled districts of the interior, and therefore should commend itself to the liberality of those able to maintain it. As a congregation we enjoy in rich measure the blessing of Christian ordinances; let our hearts open to do more for our people and their families who are doing the good work of settlement, and so insure under God's blessing a population fearing God and loving righteousness. The contributions for the year amount to £427 2s 1d.—Knox Church Quarterly Statement, Sept. 1891.
- ↑ See Appendix.