ELEVEN A M.
Organ Prelude.
Choir, Introit, "O Be joyful in the Lord."- Mosenthal.
Invocation.
Responsive reading, Psalm xix.
Doxology.
Scripture Lesson, John xvii.
Choir, "Te Deum Laudamus."-Buck in D Major.
Prayer.
Hymn, No.  1277, "My days are gliding swiftly by."
Announcements.
Offertory, "Saviour of sinners."-Cherubini.
Anniversary Sermon, by Rev.  GEO. C. ADAMS, D.D., Pastor.
Prayer.
Anthem, "The God of Israel."-Rossini.
"A Young Man Of '49." Remarks by Mr. DAVID N. HAWLEY.
Hymn, written by Rev.  A.  L.  STONE, D.  D., for the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary.
Tune, "Duke Street."

We call our home "The Golden State," Let Shasta, in his robe of snow, And count its treasures o'er with pride, And Sacramento's lordly stream, Its mines of wealth, its "Golden Gate," And hill and valley, high and low, Key to the vast Pacific tide.  In lustrous, living beauty gleam.  We yield to Thee "The Golden State," The beauty of the loving heart, Be Thou its sovereign Ruler blest; The beauty of the subject will, The whole to Thee we consecrate, A glory never to depart, The
Christian Empire of the West.  But down the ages shining still!
Benediction.
Organ Postlude.

The "Golden Offering" taken at this service was the largest cash collection for home expenses in the memory of the present officers.

The choir - Miss LULU C.  SNIDER, Mrs.  A.  E.  STORY, Mr.  J.  F.  FLEMING, and Mr.  SAMUEL D.  MAYER, organist and director - rendered the music at all of the services in their usual tasteful manner.

Sermon.

Deuteronomy xxxii, 9-12  "For the Lord's portion is His people; Jacob is the lot of His inheritance.  He found him in a desert land, and in the waste, howling wilderness; He led him about he instructed him, He kept him as the apple of His eye.  As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings, so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him."

This text has been selected for two reasons, partly because it is appropriate to this occasion, but largely because it is the text used fifty years ago yesterday, when this church was organized.  It at once suggests great contrasts, and reminds us how little we can imagine what are to be the consequences of our actions.  On that day ten men had joined in an appeal to the chaplain of the town, who was also a Congregational minister, to organize them into a Congregational church.  The register of members of the church then formed shows that six of these, with the wife of the chaplain, who then became the acting pastor of the new organization, were on the same afternoon constituted the First Congregational Church of San Francisco.  At this distance, with all the adjuncts of civilization which we possess, it is difficult to realize how brave an act this was.  These people were literally in the wilderness; there was no fellowship at all for them until one got way back in New England.  The two or three churches then existing in Oregon were practically as far away as those in New England.  The important First Congregational churches in Chicago, St.  Louis, Kansas City, St.  Paul, Minneapolis, Denver, and many other cities, had not yet been thought of.  It was at a time when there was still great reluctance on the part of Congregationalists in New England in admitting that their members who came West could be anything but Presbyterian.  The celebrated " Plan of Union" with the Presbyterians had been formed in 1801, to try to do away with the evils of several small churches in a new community, with the result that nearly all the churches in the Western Reserve became Presbyterian.  It was still in operation; members of churches in New England were then, and for many years after, advised by their pastors on coming West to connect themselves with Presbyterian churches.  The organization of this church was three years before the Albany Convention, where the " Plan of Union " was finally abolished, and where President STURTEVANT of Illinois went to plead with all his power that Congregationalists in New England should recognize their own children in the West, and do them justice.  So it was a time of awakening in Congregationalism, when the denomination was about to come to a consciousness of its high privilege, and launch out into the deep; but the awakening had not yet really come.  Those who dared to claim the right to have a church of their own order here, thousands of miles from any of their brethren, are to be remembered with affection and admiration for the spirit they showed and for their excellent judgment as to what was for the best interests of the Master's kingdom on this Coast.  They did it after due deliberation -- three or four other denominations had organized first-and, though they might have started at any time, they used no unseemly haste, even running the risk of losing much of the strength that legitimately belonged to them, because of the delay.  But they loved the democratic polity of the church of the Pilgrims; they believed it was fitted to the Golden Gate as surely as it was to Plymouth Rock, and they dared to brave all the inevitable struggle and hardship that they might have their own belief and government.

The church was organized in the school-house on the Plaza, near our present Chinese Mission House on Brenham Place.  It was at three o'clock in the afternoon.  For their pastor and teacher they were indebted to the interest in Foreign Missions, which was deep and strong in our people in New England.  If ever this church forgets this cause, or shows any other than the warmest spirit of co-operation towards it, it will deserve to suffer for its ingratitude.  A man had devoted his life to the work of Foreign Missions, had spent four years in the Hawaiian Islands under the American Board, had then seen the great need of doing something for the white people who were coming in great numbers, had sought and obtained permission to preach for them, and on the discovery of gold in California had followed a large part of his congregation here.  There is nowhere in history a better illustration of the fact that they who give for the whole world are giving for themselves.  The man who went around the world to plant churches among degraded heathen was the first Protestant minister as such to preach and work on this important part of our land, and his presence made it possible to organize this First Congregational Church.  Half a century has passed since then; most of those who gathered in the little school-house on the Plaza have passed away; there are probably only two here to-day who were present at any of theservices of that day; they were young men then, one of them but a boy; they are what we are in the habit of calling elderly men now; we shall never call them old.  The little school-house has long ago disappeared; three church buildings in succession have sheltered the church that was an infant then.  The lawless elements that made vigorous measures necessary have many years ago lost their power to govern or intimidate, and here stands one of the best governed cities on the continent, with its immediate suburbs sheltering half a million of people, with great buildings, fine schools, beautiful churches, and in all that has made the city and the State what they are this First Congregational Church has had a large and honorable part.  Much of what would be most interesting about the growth and work of the half century can never be told.  It has been fifty years of rapid change; multitudes have been coming and going; many who have united with the church when they supposed their life would be spent here, have been compelled shortly after to remove elsewhere, so that the wonder is that so large and so faithful a membership can be found to-day as really exists.  The important fact is that which is told in the text: it is GOD'S church; His care is over it; He has guarded and guided it.  All that we have been saying yesterday, and all we shall say to-day, is the rehearsing of the one story, that which was in the mind of Rev.  T.  DWIGHT HUNT when he selected this text for the young church, "GOD'S care for His church."

Some things must be told in figures, but they are cold; we want the facts, and we willhave them, but they are entirely inadequate.  There have been frequent stirrings up of the nest, and yet this has been a church of pastorates far more than the average in length; the average Congregational pastorate now is not much over two and a half years, but the six pastorates of the First Church have averaged seven years and four months each, and the longest of them was not twice the average.  Nothing inspires confidence in a church more than the fact that it has the habit of keeping its pastors as long as possible ; such is the record of this church.  The same is true of its deacons ; few churches in the West have such a record of long diaconates; thirty-one different men have filled this important office, and the average of service has been nine years, four months and four days.  When it is remembered that the term is three years, and such an average means re-election term after term, this showing is remarkable.  At least four deacons have died in office. The longest terms have been as follows, L. B. BENCHLEY, 42 1/3 years-the last three the office has been made honorary because of his long and helpful service, and his absence now from the city; C. S. EATON, 26 « years; SAMUEL A. CHAPIN, 26 « years; IRA P. RANKIN, 20 « years; J. W. CLARK, 16 years; L. H. MORSE, 15 « years; GEORGE HARRIS, 13 2/3 years; ANDREW BLAIKIE, 13 1/3 years; and J. J. VASCONCELLOS, 12 2/3 years.  A church that keeps good men in office like this is sure of faithful service by men of experience.  These facts are all the more remarkable when we consider the shifting character of the population and consequently of the membership.  The same tendency has been shown in the officers of the Society, the same names appearing from year to year, until it had become second nature to their owners to give and stimulate others to give, and to put the best of their business experience into the work of a great church.  Our chorister who prepared the music for the twenty-fifth anniversary of this church has prepared that for this occasion, and has entered upon thetwenty-eighth year of continuous service in his present position.  So far as health and faithfulness are concerned, and ability to lead in the service of song, we have reason to hope that he may drill the choir for the seventy-fifth anniversary.  Others have remained in the choir a decade and more.  So the church has tried to get the best people for service in every department, and keep them there for life or good behavior.

As to the membership: it is a goodly list; it takes a great deal of writing to copy it; we have now a complete list of members from the first in one volume; it has heretofore been necessary to go over at least two to find them all.  The total number received during the fifty years has been 2,154, an average of 43 each year, or 7 at each communion season.  If those are left out who united in such numbers as to suggest that there had been special revival effort preceding, the average at each communion has still been 6.  This record of additions when carefully studied gives strong evidence that whatever may be said of the value of special effort with the aid of evangelists, the most lasting work is that done faithfully by pastor and people together, looking for conversions and additions at all times of the year.  Of these 2,154, those who joined on confession number 1,140, and those by letter from other churches, 1,140.  Of these latter 699 brought their letters from other Congregational churches, the remainder being divided among thirteen different denominations, of which we find five kinds of Presbyterians, two kinds of Methodists, two kinds of Baptists, and Reformed Dutch, Protestant Episcopal, Christian, and Evangelical Lutheran.  Like most modern churches this has become a veritable evangelical alliance.  And as has been the experience of many churches it would be difficult to tell who had been trained as Congregationalists and who in other denominations.  Another fact that stands out clearly in these lists is that it is perfectly safe and wise to receive to membership children from Christian families, but when children are received who have no help at home in living the Christian life the chances are very strong that after a little while their interest will wane and the church will lose its hold upon them.  There are startling illustrations of this in the figures which represent the membership.

The losses have been great; the figures express only the smallest part; 313 have died while in the membership of this church; letters have been granted to 861 to unite with other churches; the names of 213 have been removed from the roll, most of them because they had become lost, strayed or stolen; for the same reasons 109 names have been placed upon a retired list, to be permanently removed by the clerk if not heard from within three years.  This makes the total loss in numbers 1,496.  The present membership is 658, of whom 202 are males, and 456 are females.  In this connection it may be interesting to inquire where these 861 who have taken letters have gone.  It is an unusually heavy loss in this way.  One reason the old First Church is not stronger in numbers to-day is in the fact that she has been building up many churches about the Bay, and giving to them of her choicest material; money is the smallest thing one can give; the SAVIOR asks the whole being; some churches give a great deal of money but little else; the First has been reproducing herself in every new church that has been started.  We rejoice in the grand success of our sister church across the Bay, the First of Oakland; but among her best workers, on her official boards, will be found names that were once on our roll.  A hundred letters have been issued to members to join that church alone; 35 have gone to other Oakland churches, 21 to Berkeley churches, 23 to Alameda churches, and 224 have taken letters to other churches in San Francisco.  About 450 of the members of this church have been dismissed from time to time to help organize and build up the many churches in and about San Francisco, and we still have a few left, and are ready to announce to every Congregational church in this neighborhood that we purpose to continue the same generous policy and grant letters to those who ask for them.  We do not expect to force members out in order to build up other churches, but you can have all you can collect; at the same time we purpose to try to keep so warm a fire on our own hearth that our people will want to stay.  The list of infant baptisms is a long one, and in the early days the names of infants and adults were entered in the same list, so that it is now difficult to separate them; but there have been in all about 400 infant baptisms during the half century.  It is hard to learn how many of these have later united with this or some other church; between 75 and 100 have joined here.

In the turmoil and changes of the last few years it may be hard for some to learn who are the oldest members in the time of uniting; we will give the first eleven, and urge all to study the Directory that is issued annually, and give full credit to those who have been able and willing to remain in this membership all these years.  The oldest member is Mrs. MARY REEVE, whose home has been for a long time at Happy Camp, Siskiyou County.  She joined in July, 1852.  Next come Mr. and Mrs. L. B. BENCHLEY, who united two months later, in September, 1852.  Their home is in Fullerton, twenty-four miles from Los Angeles; they are now in Minneapolis, but have sent a letter of warm greeting for this occasion.  Next is Mrs. Harriet F. STREET, March, 1853; Mrs. SAMUEL ADAMS, January, 1854, who longs to be present in the services in the church, but is prevented by age and injuries that confine her to the house; Mrs. MARY HOWE, July, 1854, whose home is in Alameda, but whose earnest face in her pew every Sunday morning is an inspiration to her pastor, and may well be an example to younger and stronger people who find easy excuses for staying at home; Mrs. A. L. TUBBS and Mr. GEORGE W. CHAPIN united at the same communion; Mrs. MARY A. UPTON, JOHN UPTON, and Deacon GEORGE CHILDS united in September, 1854.  We might with profit come further down the list, and learn how many of the most faithful workers in all departments have been members through storm and sunshine these many years.  All honor to the veterans; they have stood by and showed their faith in the church when the young have been discouraged or offended and have grown cold toward the church they promised to help.  Of those who united during the first twenty-five years, 105 are still on our roll, and 83 of them resident in the city or its immediate suburbs.  In years our oldest member is Mrs. MARY A. MCQUESTEN, whose home is in Alameda, and who is in her 92ndyear.  The youngest is GEORGE S. TYLER, aged 11.  His name is given as an example to a large number of other young people who ought to be in the membership.  He is a boy, and is a Christian in a boy's way, but he and his brother are a good illustration of the fact that boys can be just as consistent as older people.  We have eight members between 80 and 90 years of age, and three of them are able to be in regular attendance on the church services; the other five are as anxious to be here, but cannot.  It would not be right to pass this part of our subject without mentioning Mrs. A. L. STONE, the widow of the former loved pastor of this church, who was in her pew the Sunday before she was stricken with the disease that has made her dumb, but not entirely unconscious of what is passing.  On that Easter Sunday she came forward to thank her pastor for the service and tell him she had thoroughly enjoyed it.  No one dreamed that it would be her last service of worship in this room.  When the present pastor came here she threw all her influence, and it was great, into the effort to harmonize and build up again the church for which she had left her home in the East, and to which she had given many years of helpful work.  She still lives, cared for lovingly, waiting her Father's call.

When we look out from the membership the fact is apparent that this church has always had some good friends.  It took great courage in 1849 for a young man to stand up in this community and say he was a Christian; perhaps this is one reason why in all the churches organized at that early day are to be found some rugged men, strong physically and spiritually, who have survived so far the ravages of time, and are here to help celebrate this anniversary year.  But alongside of them are a goodly number of strong business men, who have found success in this new land, and have loyally stood by the church and helped to make it powerful.  Without such help this beautiful building could never have been erected, and the annual expenses could not have been met.  On the Board of Trustees, in the pews, in all the social work of the church, and often in its spiritual work, these men and women have been true and generous and helpful.  The pioneers are growing fewer in number every year.  The young people will not complain if we make the most of them while they last, and if we cannot forget that "there were giants in those days" when this organization was formed, and in all the years since they have been firm friends to the church.  To the picture gallerv of deacons and other officers in the rooms below there ought to be added many of men and women, both in and out of the church, who have helped to make this Golden jubilee possible.  "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

The financial work of this half century has been such as to give great faith as to what can be done in the future.  A little band of new-comers, gathered in a school-house out of which they must soon move, did not give great promise of financial strength, but the record is surprising.  It is incomplete, because a great deal of the giving has never been recorded.  The annual expenses of the church for fifty years have consumed, as nearly as we can estimate, about $418,000.  Three houses of worship have been built and paid for; the first cost with the ground $7,000; the second, $77,000; the third and present one, $148,000.  The sale of the first two could not have brought more than enough to cover the interest paid on the debts.  So the total home expenses have been not less than $650,000.  The contributions for benevolent purposes that have been recorded have been only those that have passed through the hands of the Church Treasurer, and they have been the smallest part of what has been given.  The most intelligent estimate possible at this time would place the money given for such purposes at not less than $225,000.  And this is far from representing all the giving of the people of this church and congregation during these years.  But these different amounts aggregate $875,000 in cash, which has been given as the result of the courage and faith of that little band in the school-house on the Plaza in '49.  Into this have gone the gifts of rich and poor-some large checks, and many amounts so small that the donors would not have them known; but no one can estimate their comparative value.  All have helped to swell the total to this large sum, and all who have given what they could have equal right to rejoice in what has been accomplished.  We are fortunate in having with us and in the membership one of the charter members of the church, who left it shortly after its organization to help organize another church in a needy neighborhood; last year he brought his letter back to the First Church, and we shall hear from him a little later.  We are also blest in the presence in this service and in the membership of this church of two of the veterans of Home Missionary service, Dr. S. H. WILLEY and Dr. J. H. WARREN, who are giving the church the results of many years of experience, and whose presence with us is a constant help.

So the nest has been constantly stirred.  Hundreds have been coming and going, there have been happy salutations as many were received to the membership, joyous communion seasons that seemed to mean there should never again be weakness or lack of numbers, and tearful partings, granting of letters, and sad recollections of workers gone to the church above.  The workers have gone and others have come, but the church has gone forward.  GOD has been teaching us that His work does not depend on any one individual.  Those we thought we could not spare have had to go, and still the church lives and prospers.  The wilderness blossoms as the rose, the waste places are built up, and the church is kept as the apple of His eye; it is instructed, and out of large and varied experience it is led to see in Him its guide and shield, and to recognize that its mission is not worldly greatness nor what the people call success, but to do the will of GOD, to lead souls to Him through CHRIST, and to hold forth in ever new terms the same old way of life.

Our face must be toward the future.  The times have changed, and we have no strength to waste in mourning because things are not as they once were.  The old days when men were making money so fast that a poor man to-day might have a fortune to-morrow cannot return to us in this locality; on the contrary, many who made the fortune have stayed to see it disappear as suddenly as it came, but the old spirit of generosity, the prompt sympathy that those days engendered, have remained.  No church on the continent has a people of more noble spirit, more sympathetic and kind and just.  These qualities have remained and will remain, but the conditions under which the church was built up to its great strength may never be seen again.  Many families that were indispensable in the early history have disappeared entirely, and none have come in that exactly take their place.  The old conditions under which the church furnished the social life of the people are gone ; now society is one thing and the church another.  Then all the social life of most families might be found in the church itself; now we have the conditions that have existed in many Eastern cities all this time.  Theorists tell us it ought not to be, but up to this date these theorists have not contributed one really helpful idea as to how their theories can be made useful.  People outside the church are convinced that the church ought to find means to solve all the great social problems that arise, and the church would be glad to meet the demand if it could, but most of these claims come from those who are doing nothing to help.  Our text furnishes the only solution known to be efficacious, loyalty to GOD, suffering Him to lead, allowing no strange god to come in between.  And the beauty of such service is that it furnishes constant stimulus to that which is new and aggressive.  The sons and daughters of those who found their home by Plymouth Rock have headed for the Golden Gate.  We hear much about Plymouth Rock, as if it were still a talisman by which to stay; but we do not wish to stay by it.  It has been raised up from its sandy bed, a pavilion built over it, iron gates placed about, and a concrete walk laid around.  There is not a thought connected with the Plymouth Rock of to-day that stimulates any one to a stronger and nobler life; it savors rather of indolence and show; it suggests enervation, and is not the kind of symbol we need.  But the Golden Gate is a water way over which no pavilion can ever be built; it opens to the broad ocean, and the nations of the East lie beyond.  It means life and aggressiveness; its changing tides bring health, and its strong winds and fogs put color in the cheeks and vigor in the step.  We have moved on from Plymouth Rock, which was made famous because a girl jumped ashore upon it, and because it happened to be about the only rock of its size the Pilgrims had found all the way around from Cape Cod.  But nobody lands on the Golden Gate; when you have started you must go on through; your eyes may grow dim watching for the coming of the boy who went through it a year ago, and whose return you wait; but he went for a purpose as good and as far-reaching as that of the Pilgrims, and others will go through that Gate-many millions in the Vears to come-and we thrill as we think of the ships that are to pass through laden with the civilization and the helpfulness of America, that GOD Will compel us to give to the rest of the earth.  This church stands by the Golden Gate, with all its half century of Christian sacrifice, with its cloud of witnesses about, in the light of whose record we are bound to do our best to keep the service of GOD pure and warm and stimulating.  In the center of a population of half a million our duty is to so shape the policy of this church as to make it a giver of light, a constant inspiration to all who see its tall spire, to lead them to the SAVIOR, and help them to develop the best Christian life.

When this text was used fifty years ago it was a call to battle, a look out into an unknown future; it is somewhat so to-day.  There are some facts that many would say ought not to be told, but there is danger of misunderstanding if they are suppressed; the real condition of the First Church is not known to many, and it will not be known unless some one tells' it.  Let us then take a few minutes to inventory, and then we may be able to see our duty more clearly as to the future.  We said a few moments ago that we have 658 names on the church roll, but we have a far smaller number of active members, who attend the services and show a disposition to help make the church what it ought to be.  For nearly three years we have been laboring for a truthful church roll; it has not been easy, but it is honest, and GOD will bless it.  When the number of members on the roll is mentioned it should mean that so many are regular worshipers, found in the different branches of helpful activity which the church fosters, except those who are kept at home by sickness, or are absent and find no church to which they can transfer their membership.  After three years of constant effort to bring this to pass we have this as the result: of our 658 members only 488 reside in San Francisco, and 61 of these, so far as we can learn, never attend the services of this church, although able to do so.  On the east side of the Bay we have 40 members, of whom 13 attend this church whenever it is possible.  This makes our real resident membership, of people whose names are not only on the roll but who evidently intend to be faithful, 454.  Of the 130 who are scattered all over the world, 60 try to keep in communication with us, and should be added to the total already given, making the number that should be reported as the real membership, 514.  That is, we have upon the list the names Of 144 persons that seem to stand for nothing in particular, and of 514 who believe that membership stands for something definite and who try so far as they are able to show that they are Christians in this fold.  This includes a large number of aged, infirm, sick and those whose duty is to stay at home and care for those who cannot care for themselves.  It also includes a great many of tender consciences, who mourn because they cannot do more.  Let no one suppose for a moment that this is a bad showing ; there are hundreds of Congregational churches in this country that cannot show so good a proportion as this; we are only trying to get at the facts.  Of the members resident in this city about one-half are past' middle life.  The same may be said of the members of the congregation who are not members of the church.  There are only 23 young married couples in the membership living in San Francisco, and 20 of them have either united with the church or been married since this pastorate begun.  There is a great gap in the line of workers between the ages of twenty-five and fifty.  There is perfect harmony in the church, but years of discord have left their mark, and the church is weakest at the point where it most needs to be strong.  The lack of young, active business men makes it harder to get others to come in and cast in their lot with us.  Each class of members draws its own kind, and the lack of the most important class is difficult to supply.  We have a small but noble and efficient set of young people, and their influence is felt all over the city and beyond.  We all believe that the hope of the church is in the children, but we have a church that is almost without children.  In the families in this membership, residing in San Francisco, there are only 67 children of proper age to be pupils in either the intermediate or primary departments of the Sunday School; 37 of these are enrolled and in regular attendance in our own school.  If you chance to drop into the school some Sunday to see how it is getting along you will not wonder under these circumstances that it seems small.  Of the 30 children in these families and not in our school some live so far away that attendance here is out of the question, and some got in the habit of attending other schools while there were uncertainties here, and are illustrating the fact that the attachments of children are strong.  But if every child in every family in our church were here each Sunday our school would still be remarkably small for such a church.  It will then be readily seen that if the hope of the church is in the children there is not much here on which to base hope.  Again, our financial income is very largely from people well along in years, who are the only representatives from their families attending here.  When the major part of the income is from people over 65 or 70 years of age, and there is no one to continue it when they are gone, a business man would say that the outlook for future strength was not very flattering.  This church has been carried through the last few years by the faithfulness of a few who believed it could yet be made strong and helpful for building the Kingdom.  We want to express to them our gratitude, and let them know that their loyalty, their kindness in making up deficiencies, their constant solicitude for the life and prosperity of the church have borne their fruit, and the church is to-day in a situation where it can look calmly over its field and decide what is its duty for the future.  In the circumstances to which we have been calling attention there is no need for discouragement; if any man dares to put a statement in the newspapers that we feel blue or discouraged, we will make it very hot for him if we can find him.  Many of the older members have not felt so encouraged for the church in many years as they do to-day.  We are at a turning point in our history.  The fiftieth year marks the place at which we must carefully consider our situation, and decide how the church may be kept in as good condition as it is to-day, and may be the means of helping others.  Within the next few months we shall be called upon to look these questions squarely in the face and decide where our duty lies.

One of two courses is open to us, and one of them must be adopted before the church hasbeen so weakened by losses that it finds itself shut up to only one.  The first thought that suggests itself is to move the church into a residence neighborhood and begin again; for this much can be said, at times your pastor has thought this was the only thing possible.  But a careful study of the churches that have moved is not reassuring; notwithstanding our location, we may say without boasting that in actual numbers our audiences seem to be considerably in excess of those in the churches that have gone out " where the people live." And we hear of no church whose financial situation has been so improved by moving as to tempt us to follow their example.  On the other hand, the financial balance at present seems to be in our favor.  The other alternative is to raise sufficient money to pay the mortgage, for we have one, and make a few changes and improvements in the building, to fit it for reaching the great number of people who ought to go to church and who live near us.  There are sixty hotels and boarding-houses within three blocks of this corner; there are over two hundred within six blocks.  Our neighbor church on the other corner of the block bought their lot two years ago and expect to move as soon as they sell.  We have to look at the question whether it is exactly the Christian thing to go and leave no church in this locality; we have also to consider whether it is the wise thing from a business standpoint; but if it should appear that we ought to remain here, there must be a complete change in our manner of work, to fit the changed conditions in the neighborhood.  The methods of twenty-five years ago will not draw the people who live in a boarding-house and move whenever they get a tough piece of steak for breakfast; but among them are as valuable souls as can be found anywhere, and they will be as helpful in church work when they are once enlisted.  I am not trying to decide this question; that must be done by the church and society after careful and prayerful deliberation, and whatever their decision is their pastor shall be found ready to co-operate to the best of his ability.  The object now is only to state the problem; when the time arrives for its decision we must give the world an example of  Christian fairness in looking at all sides of the question, and settling it in true Congregational style, by majority vote.

The next half century lies before us; it will be what we make it.  We will need to be very tolerant of the opinions of others; it is an age of great freedom in thought, and every individual has a right to his own.  We must see to it that no strange god is with the JACOB of the future.  New truth will appear, and if it is truth it must be followed, but careful judgment is needed to distinguish between true and false, and some of the false doctrine preached now is very attractive.  We need to learn that perfect freedom for others to promulgate their views does not mean that we are bound to adopt them.  We need the spirit of the Master, Who dealt with all classes of belief, but Whose character was such that it was the strongest sign of the authority with which He spoke.  Above all, we need a passion for souls; we are here to preach CHRIST and to gather into His church all those who will humbly but faithfully try to follow Him.  The LORD'S portion is still His people; JACOB is yet the lot of His inheritance.  The desert land is fast disappearing; the waste, howling wilderness is rapidly becoming as the garden of the LORD.  The future, like the past, will bring stirrings up of the nest and teachings that must be learned with tears; but the LORD alone will lead us, and He will permit no strange god to remain with those who profess to be His loving children.

Of those now living who have done the longest service and borne their full share in lifting and bearing burdens are H. L. DODGE, who was elected in 1861; a close second is JOHN TAYLOR, and next in order W. F. WHITTIER, who was elected in 1871, all of whom in 1896 could not be prevailed upon to accept re-election.  It is well known that from the day of assuming office these men were model Trustees; they were an honor to the Board which delighted to honor them as leaders.  As was Mr. WHITTIER, so were his old-time and younger associates.  Time, money, and faithful work counted freely and largely with him in the administration of his stewardship, and often far in advance of his friends; he never asked his colleagues to do what he was not willing himself to do twofold or more if necessary.

Following is the roll in alphabetical order of the men who have sat in the Cabinet as Trustees of the First Congregational Society of San Francisco.  Those marked with an asterisk (*) are no more:

*SAMUEL ADAMS,
*L. L. BAKER,
L. B. BENCHLEY,
C. A. BELDEN
GEORGE C. BOARDMAN,
* J. W. CLARK,
*W. H. COIT,
* --CALIFF,
L. CURRAN CLARK,
EDWARD COLEMAN,
*WILLIAM A. DANA,
*W. H. DAVENPORT,
* THOMAS DOUGLASS,
W. G. DOANE,
HENRY L. DODGE,
Wm. J. DUTTON,
*J. O. ELDRIDGE,
EDWARD P. FLINT,
*F. A. FRANK,
G. F. GRAY,
*WALTER N. HAWLEY,
* PHINEAS HUDSON,
*J. D. HUNT,
CHARLES HOLBROOK,
*O. B. JENNINGS,
*WILLARD LEONARD,
JOHN F. MERRILL,
I. H. MORSE,
*A. C. NICHOLS,
STEPHEN PARSONS,
*R. H. PERKINS,
*IRA P. RANKIN,
* S. M. RUNYON,
*GEORGE C. SHREVE,
J. B. STETSON
*ANSON G. STILES,
* LAFAYETTE STORY,
* JAMES M. SWIFT,
*A. L. TUBBS,
*JACOB S. TABER,
JOHN TAYLOR,
* Lucius THOMPSON,
*JOHN H. TITCOMB,
W.F. WHITTIER.

The reading of such a roll is a lesson in history.  Many, if not all, of these names bring up memorable events in the progress of the State and stirring times in the early days of San Francisco.  It tabulates men who have been and still are prominent in extensive commercial, industrial, and manufacturing enterprises that have built up San Francisco as a vast financial center and given the State a name for enterprise and improvement.  As a body they are not easily matched and cannot be excelled by a like number of contemporaries, whether in character for integrity and strength, in business for forceful grasp of circumstance and opportunity, or that quality of judgment and action that commands success.

The present Board of Trustees consists Of WILLIAM J. DUTTON, Moderator; GEORGE C. BOARDMAN, L. CURRAN CLARK, EDWARD COLEMAN, WILBUR G. DOANE, GEORGE F. GRAY, and CHARLES HOLBROOK.  Thirty of the entire number were church members, while the other fourteen, although not in the church were of it, and in no respect have they ever failed to give quick and generous support to matters great or little that affected the best welfare of the church.  Twenty-six of the thirty-five now rest, no more to answer the call for "Quorum"; nevertheless, their works live and follow with them.  All but eight--ADAMS, JENNINGS, DANA, COIT, CALIFF, DOUGLASS, HUDSON and HUNT-- have died in the California they loved and honored, and did so much to make it "GOD'S country " forever.  One who for many years had served as a Trustee and had been appointed to take part in the jubilee exercises but was not able to be present was asked by a friend, "Mr. STETSON, what would you have said, for substance last Sunday night, about the 'Trustees' if you had filled your appointment?" He replied: "In part, I would have asked and answered a few certain plain and straightforward questions.  Take those men-those strong, grand, leading business men of San Francisco-that have given their time, their energy, their money, as servants of the Church and Society, what did they do it for? To make money out of the church or the community? No, Sir! To advertise themselves for position and gain advantage socially, financially or anything of the kind? No, sir! They were well enough known without it.  Was it because they expected to please everybody, and that everybody would be pleased with them and give them gold medals, and all that? Was it because they had easy work, good times and fine dinners that brought them together out of their counting rooms and offices to get rid for the hour of business affairs that pressed hard for time, and demanded their best attention to master problems and emergencies that were ready to drive them to the wall, perhaps, to-day or to-morrow ? No, they served as Trustees, and by doing extra work, carrying additional burdens, sacrificing their comfort, their time, their convenience in more ways than men know, all and solely for the sake of benefitting the community, and that the church might all the better and easier help humanity."

For the work they have wrought, the success they have achieved, so permanent and splendid, and the good they have done for aye, the " Roll " should be written in letters of gold and wreathed in the glowing praise of "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Rev. Dr. WARREN, who for twenty-seven years was superintendent of the American Home Missionary Society, and whose work called him to Utah, Nevada, Arizona, as well as to all parts of California, stated that from his personal knowledge the First Church had helped ninety-six congregations to build church homes of their own.  These were situated in thirty-one different counties of California, one in the State of Nevada, and another in Utah.  Twenty-four of these have exchanged the first house for larger and in some cases stately and imposing edifices; notably the church in Salt Lake City, the First in Los Angeles, Riverside, Oakland, Berkeley, and others.  Dr. WARREN'S list does not include the churches that received aid from the First Church, through the personal solicitation of Rev. Mr. HUNT, when he served a year or more as Agent of the Home Missionary Society; of Rev. Mr. LACY and Dr. STONE, who in those earlier years ever prompted the brethren to give a lifting hand; or later, through Rev. Mr. WIARD and Rev. Mr. HARRISON, Home Missionary Superintendents since 1891.  The estimate, conservatively put, counts about 105 churches that have in this way shared the motherly ministry of the old church, so often affectionately mentioned as the "Mother of Churches."

The amount of money given in this way is not known nor can be.  Some twenty subscription books in Dr. WARREN'S possession show varying amounts which go into the thousands, the subscription papers lost or destroyed, sums given that never went on paper, and amounts lavished by some who owed their early Christian life and training to this the beloved church of their fathers and mothers and their own in the erection of memorial chapels or Gothic structures, which, all told, would easily make an annual average showing of at least one thousand dollars for the full fifty years just ended.

Much remains to be told, but enough has been said to show wherefore the tie of an almost hallowed endearment binds the mother church in California with the generations of the past and present together.

Under the large and central picture is seen the Plymouth Rock canopy and the everlasting granite figure of Faith, which, though she stands facing the rising sun, the majestic statue seems aglow with visions of the glory that flames brighter and brighter from the Golden Gate, and points the world to Heaven.  The relation of Plymouth Rock, and the faith of the forefathers, to the First Congregational Church is one easily seen and understood.