Charter provides; and the absence without excuse of any manager from six consecutive meetings of the Board shall be equivalent to a resignation. The Board shall also have authority to make By-laws not inconsistent with this Constitution or the Charter; to print books for Indian and Foreign Missions, and Missions in which a foreign language is used; to elect a President, Vice-Presidents, and a Recording Secretary; to fill vacancies that may occur among the officers elective by its own body; and shall present a statement of its transactions and funds to the Church in its Annual Report, and also shall lay before the General Conference a report of its transactions for the four preceding years, and the state of its funds.

ARTICLE IV.

CORRESPONDING SECRETARIES.

There shall be three Corresponding Secretaries appointed by the General Conference.

They shall be subject to the direction and control of the Board of Managers, by whom their salaries shall be fixed, and their salaries shall be paid out of the treasury. They shall be exclusively employed in conducting the correspondence of the Society, in furnishing the Church with missionary intelligence, and, under the direction of the Board, in supervising the missionary work of the Church, and by correspondence, traveling, and otherwise, in promoting the general interests of the Society.

Should the office of either of the Secretaries become vacant by death, resignation, or otherwise, the Board shall have power to provide for the duties of the office until the Bishops, or a majority of them, shall fill the vacancy.

ARTICLE V.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS.

At the regular meeting of the Board next succeeding the final adjournment of the General Conference, the officers to be elected by the Board shall be chosen and hold their office for the term of one year, or until their successors shall be elected; or, if a vacancy occur during the year by death, resignation, or otherwise, it may be filled at any regular meeting of the Board.

ARTICLE VI.

PRESIDING OFFICER.

At all meetings of the Board, the President, or, in his absence, one of the Vice-Presidents, and in the absence of the President and of all the Vice-Presidents, a member appointed by the meeting for that purpose, shall preside.

ARTICLE VII.

QUORUM.

Thirteen Managers at any meeting of the Board shall be a quorum.

ARTICLE VIII.

MINUTES.

The minutes of each meeting shall be signed by the Chairman of the meeting at which the same are read and approved.

ARTICLE IX.

AUXILIARY SOCIETIES.

It is recommended that within the bounds of each Annual Conference there be established a Conference Missionary Society, auxiliary to this institution, under such regulations as the Conferences shall respectively prescribe.

ARTICLE X.

SPECIAL DONATIONS.

Auxiliary societies or donors may designate the Mission or Missions, under the care of this Society, to which they desire any part or the whole of their contributions to be appropriated; which special designation shall be publicly acknowledged by the Board. But in the event that more funds are raised for any particular Mission than are necessary for its support the surplus shall be at the disposal of the Board for the general purposes of the Society.

ARTICLE XI.

GENERAL MISSIONARY COMMITTEE.

The General Conference shall divide the Annual Conferences into fourteen Mission Districts, from each of which there shall be one representative, to be appointed for the term of four years by the General Conference at each of its sessions, on the nomination of the delegates of the Annual Conferences within the Mission Districts respectively, and fourteen representatives, to be appointed annually by the Board of Managers from its own members, who, with the Corresponding and Recording Secretaries and the Treasurers of the Society and the Board of Bishops, shall constitute a committee, to be called the General Missionary Committee; provided that the Bishops shall fill any vacancy that may occur among the members appointed by the General Conference, so that each Mission District may be fully represented at each annual meeting.

The General Missionary Committee shall meet annually at such place in the United States as the Committee may, from year to year, determine, and at such time in the month of November as shall be determined by the Secretaries and Treasurers, of which due notice shall be given to each member; and the Bishops shall preside over the deliberations of the Committee; but the Annual Meeting of said Committee, which for the year 1888 shall be held in the city of New York, shall not be held in the same city more frequently than once in four years.

Said General Missionary Committee shall determine what fields shall

be occupied as Foreign Missions, the number of persons to be employed on said Missions, and the amount necessary for the support of each Mission; and it shall also determine the amount for which each Bishop may draw for the Domestic Missions of the Conferences over which he shall preside, and the Bishop shall not draw on the Treasurers for more than said amount. Nevertheless, in the intervals between the meetings of the General Missionary Committee, the Board of Managers may provide for any unforeseen emergency that may arise in any of our Missions, and to meet such demands may expend any additional amount not exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars.

The General Missionary Committee shall be amenable to the General Conference, to which it shall make a full report of its doings.

Any expenses incurred in the discharge of its duties shall be paid from the treasury of the Society.

ARTICLE XII.

SUPPORT OF SUPERANNUATED AND OTHER MISSIONARIES.

The Board may provide for the support of superannuated missionaries, widows and orphans of missionaries, who may not be provided for by their Annual Conferences respectively, it being understood that they shall not receive more than is usually allowed to other superannuated ministers, their widows and orphans.

The amount allowed for the support of a missionary shall not exceed the usual allowance of other itinerant preachers; and in the case of Domestic Missions the Bishop or president of the Conference shall draw for the same in quarterly installments, and shall always promptly notify the Treasurer of all drafts made by him. The administration of appropriations to Foreign Missions shall be under the direction of the Board of Managers.

No one shall be acknowledged as a missionary, or receive support as such from the funds of the Society, who has not some definite field assigned to him in the service of the Society, or who could not be an effective laborer on a circuit, except as above provided.

ARTICLE XIII.

AMENDMENTS.

This Constitution shall be subject to alteration or amendment only by the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

The

The duties of these officers are defined in the Constitution. President, or one of the Vice-Presidents, shall preside at all meetings of the Society and of the Board, as prescribed by Article VI of the Constitution; and shall hold their respective offices during the year for which they may be elected, unless the Board of Managers otherwise determine. If the President and all the Vice-Presidents be absent then the Board may elect a President pro tem.

CORRESPONDING SECRETARIES.

The Corresponding Secretaries shall, under the direction of the Board of Managers, conduct the correspondence of the Society with its Missions, and be exclusively employed in promoting its general interests. They shall advocate the missionary cause at such Annual Conferences and Churches as their judgment may dictate and the Board approve. They shall keep a vigilant eye upon all the affairs of the Society, and especially upon all its Missions, and promptly convey to the Bishops having charge of the Missions respectively, to the Board, or the standing committees, all such communications from, and all information concerning, our Missions, as the circumstances of the case may require. They shall also in all cases give to such missionaries as may be sent out the Manual of Instructions authorized by the Board, with such other instructions and explanations as circumstances may call for, and shall explicitly inform all our missionaries that they are in no case to depart from such instructions. They shall also audit the accounts of outgoing, returned, or discharged foreign missionaries before the final settlement of the same, and all bills for office and

incidental expenses before they are presented to the Treasurer for payment. They shall also superintend all property interests of the Society, exclusive of its current receipts, permanent or special funds, and fixed property, subject to instructions from the Board of Managers.

TREASURER.

The Treasurer shall keep proper books of accounts, showing all the receipts and disbursements, and all other financial affairs connected with the treasury of the Society, except such as are committed to the care of the Corresponding Secretaries. He shall, under advice of the Finance Committee, keep all uninvested moneys of the Society on deposit in some safe bank, or banks, in the name of the Society, subject to the order of its Treasurer. He shall honor all orders of the Board on the treasury, and, within the several appropriations made by the General Committee and Board, shall pay all drafts of the Bishops, and furnish the Secretaries respectively with Letters of Credit or Bills of Exchange for the support of Foreign Missions; and he shall, on the warrant of the Corresponding Secretaries, pay the outfit of missionaries and the expenses of those authorized to return, and shall pay all bills for office and incidental expenses when properly audited. He shall be subject to the direction of the Finance Committee, and of the Board, in respect to all investments, loans, and other financial affairs of the Society. He shall report the state of the funds, and whenever required exhibit his books, vouchers, and securities at each regular meeting of the Finance Committee and of the Auditing Committee; and shall report monthly to the Board the state of the treasury. He shall keep an account of all receipts by Conferences, and of all expenditures by Missions and particular appropriations.

He shall keep the seal of the Society and affix the same to such documents, contracts, and conveyances as may be ordered by the Board of Managers; shall execute for the Society conveyances of real estate whenever ordered by the Board.

ASSISTANT TREASURER.

The Assistant Treasurer shall reside at Cincinnati, Ohio, and shall be subject to the directions of the Board of Managers and of the Treasurer. He shall forward to the Treasurer, monthly, a statement of his accounts to the first of each month, in order that the same may be presented to the Board at its regular meetings. He shall exhibit his books and accounts, vouchers, and securities, to such auditors as may be appointed by the Board.

RECORDING SECRETARY.

The Recording Secretary shall notify all meetings of the Board and of the Society, and shall record the minutes of their proceedings. He shall also certify to the Treasurer, or to the Auditing Committee, as the case may require, all moneys granted, or expenditures authorized in pursuance of the action of the Board.