The career of the B. and F. B. Society has not been without vigorous opposition. The first attack came from the High-Church clergy of the Establishment, "specially Ur. Wordsworth, Bishop Randolph, and aft- erward Bishop Marsh. These assaults had no other effect than to diminish the interest of the Established Church in the society ; in spite of which, it has always had the support of the most zealous evangelical clergy and laity in that body. In India, after the return of Lord ^'ellesley (1806), the governors general for a series of years opposed the society ; but all they could do was to impede, not to prevent its work of translat- ing and circulating the Scriptures. About 1811 a dis- pute arose at home concerning the publication of the Apocrypha, which was circulated on the Continent with the Billies issued by the society. This dispute agitated the society until 1826, when, by a final decision, the printing and circulation of the Apocrypha was stopped. This decision caused above 50 of the societies on the Continent to separate from the B. and F. B. Society ; but agencies were substituted for auxiliaries, and the work went on. At the semi-centennial jubilee in 1853, the devoted Dr. Steinkopff alone remained of all the men who were so active in its foundation. Others, however, had succeeded to their places, and the enter- prise was --till most ably sustained.
IV. Statistics. — (a.) Finance —
Receipts.
First year $10,648 03
Tenth year 4-J1.7'-'"> 44
Twentieth year 47-J.1. . 12
Thirtieth year 406,061 49
Fortieth year 47T,067 ! 8
Fiftieth year 528,334 40
Sixty-second year 700,907 o4
Total from beginning ij-23,355,704 40
'1 his exhibit does not, however, show the real ratio of growth, as the receipts of the society for some of the years were much greater than for other subsequent yean here mentionod, but it shows the relative periodic Btatus. It also shows that its receipts always exceed- ed it- expenditures.
(6.) Versions.— The B. and F. B. S., from its organ- ization until 1866, caused the translation, publication, or circulation of the Holy Sriptures, entire or in parts, in languages and dialects as follows, viz. :
. „. , I -'"- »' I LnnC. Rnd Dial.
in Western Europe 13 In North and Cent. India. . -'4
'" Northern " Mi, South India 10
in Central " Kt In Ceylon :s
In Southern " p: i„ |i,,[,,-j :hinese countries. '.)
'"
In Caucasian and border
countries
Expenditure. $3,31 1 38 409,015 68 433,143 12 340,750 36 400,! Is 96 577,203 SS S0;>,SG5 ss
In Semitic Languages.
In Persia
In India (general) ...
15 In < hinese Empire.
iln Hither Polynesia 7
7 in Farther " 10
Bin Africa 20
B In America io
2' Total na
Of these 173 languages and dialects, the B. and F. B. S. has aid^rthe translation, printing, or distribution of the Scriptures directly in 129, indirectly 44 — total 157. " The number of versions (omitting those in different characters only) is "213, and of these 161 were prepared since 1804."
V. Present Condition. — The number of Bible Socie- ties connected with the B. and F. B. S. was in 1866 —
IN GREAT BRITAIN.
Auxiliaries, GTi; branches, 417; associations, 2S37— total, 3C51.
IN THE COLONIES ANt> ELSEWHERE.
Auxiliaries 127 ; branches, S33; associations, 200— total, 1 1of>. Grand total, 5111. The society had also, in Europe and America, thirteen foreign agencies, which have the superintendence of depots of the Scriptures. There are also numerous other depots in Asia and the Levant. During the year ending March 31, 1866, the society issued Bibles and parts of the Bible as follows, viz. :
From London, 1,471.044; on the Continent, 8:5,0S6— total, Grand total from heginning— [2,596,130.
FromLondon,35,4S(j,419; on Continent.,14,79 \2 -0=50, 2S5, 703.
The grants of the society of Bibles, Testaments, ver- sions, materials, and money to various institutions, as- sociations, and individuals, in nearly all countries on the globe, for the year ending March 31, 18G6, alone amounted to upward of £52,314 (see Report for 186G). This noble institution has recently closed the most prosperous and effective 3-ear of its splendid history. Its object is the purest Christian charity to all mankind, and Heaven is crowning its efforts with a success com- mensurate with its design. — Timpson, Bible Triumphs (Lond. 12mo, 1853) ; Reports of Brit, and For. Bible Society; Owen, Hist, cf Brit, and For. Bible Society (3 vols. 8vo).
Other Bible Societies of Great Britain are, (1.) the Trinitarian Bible Society, which separated from the B. and F. B. S. in 1831, when the resolution to make the belief in the triune God a term of membership was rejected. It is now mostly supported by the Irving-* ites. Its income for the year I860 amounted to £1703. (2.) The Bible Translation Society, a Baptist Societ}', which has for its object "to aid in printing and circu- lating those translations of the Holy Scriptures from which the British and Foreign Bible Society has with- drawn its assistance on the ground that the words re- lating to the ordinance of baptism have been trans- lated by terms signifying immersion; and farther, to aid in producing and circulating other versions of the Word of God similarly faithful and complete." Its income in I860 amounted to £1815. (3.) The Hiber- nian Bible Society.- the income for the year closing April, 1860, was £5063— an increase of £938 over the preceding year. The issues of the last year were 107,G94 copies; the total issue 2,8-13,115 copies. (4.) In Scotland, where the Bible Society has hitherto c b- tained less support than in other parts of Great Britain, a "National Bible Society for Scotland" was organ- ized in May, 1860. The General Board of Direction is to be divided into two parts, one of which is to be located in Edinburgh, and the other in Glasgow. See Evan- gelical Christendom, .lime 1, 1860.