Similar evidence for this widespread superstition is found in the New World. Thus an old writer tells us that the Caribs inclosed their plots of land "onely with a little cotton line and they account it a matter of sacriledge if any passe over the corde and treade on the possession of his neighbour, and holde it for certayne that whoso violateth this sacred thing shall shortly perish."38

From this rapid survey of a very little of the evidence it appears that in primitive society the aid of religion or magic is often called in to buttress a system, previously existing, of individual ownership. To the operation of such widespread practices we may confidently assign some influence in developing a sense of the sacredness of private property. Superstition, as well as reasoned custom and organic law, has helped to sustain the unstable foundations of property-rights among mankind. It has done this, to quote the eloquent words of Professor Frazer, "by furnishing the ignorant, the weak, and the foolish with a motive, bad though it be, for good conduct. It is a reed, a broken reed, which has yet supported the steps of many a poor erring brother, who but for it might have stumbled and fallen.”

38

Hakluyt, Historie of the West Indies, Decade VIII, chap. vi; cited by Jevons, Introduction to the History of Religion3, p. 72.

NOTES ON THE RECENT CENSUS OF RELIGIOUS

BODIES

GEORGE A. COE

Union Theological Seminary

Census Bulletin 103 is a summary of the statistics of religious bodies for "continental United States" at the end of 1906. Changes are therefore indicated, not for the usual ten-year period, but for the 16 years from 1890. Out of many items of general sociological interest that are either stated in or deducible from this Bulletin, I select a few for brief description.

1. Of the twelve denominations that have ceased to exist during the 16 years, one-half were communistic. Only 22 local communistic religious groups survive out of 32 reported in 1890. Of these 22 groups, 15 belong to the denomination of Shakers, and 7 to that of the Amana Society. The total membership of communistic religious organizations has declined from 4,049 to 2,272. The Shakers have decreased from 1,728 to 516, but the Amana Society has slightly increased, namely, from 1,600 to 1,756.

2. Group-forming has been somewhat active. As against 12 denominations that have become extinct, and four that have disappeared through consolidation with other denominations, division of denominations has added 13 to the total, immigration has added 11, and 29 new denominations have been formed. There has been a rapid increase of independent congregations. From 155 in 1890, the number has advanced to 1,079, an increase of 596 per cent. as against a general increase in the number of local organizations of only 28.5 per cent.

3. The membership of religious bodies has increased considerably faster than the population. The increase of population is, in round numbers, 34 per cent.; that of members of religious organizations, 60 per cent., and that of the property of local re

ligious organizations, 85 per cent. The increase of members of the Catholic church, which has been influenced largely by immigration, is 93.5 per cent., that of the Protestant bodies, 45 per cent. In 1890, 32.7 per cent. of the entire population was included in religious organizations; in 1906, the proportion had reached 39.1 per cent. That is, the proportion of members to population increased 6.4 per cent. The Catholic share in this increase is 4.4 per cent.; the Protestant share is 1.8 per cent.

These facts hardly bear out the assumption that is often made that the churches are losing their hold on the people. Immigration accounts for a part of the absolute increase, and births for another part, but neither of these accounts for the relative increase as compared with the population. This is particularly clear of the Protestant increase. Immigration has considerably reinforced the German and Scandinavian Protestants, but after making liberal deduction on this account, one finds the Protestants still increasing considerably faster than the population. In view of the relatively low birth-rate among large sections of them, this increase must be interpreted as indicating something more significant than mere accretion by birth or by immigration.

That this growth is of a vital sort is rendered probable, likewise, by the remarkable distribution of it. The percentage of members as compared with the population has increased in each of the five geographical divisions, and in every state and territory except North Carolina, Florida, Utah, and New Mexico. In 13 states the proportion of members to population has increased 10 per cent. or more, and these states are widely distributed. They are: Nevada, New Hampshire, Louisiana, Washington, Nebraska, California, Colorado, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Michigan, South Dakota, Pennsylvania, Vermont. In some cases this increase can be accounted for in part by foreign immigration, or by the movement of laborers to new fields, but after due recognition is given to this factor, the figures indicate no mere redistribution of population, but also a general indigenous growth.

4. The Bulletin makes possible some important deductions concerning the organization and working of the social unit of each

denomination, namely, the local society. Considerable complaint has recently been made of a supposed shortage of Protestant ministers. Yet the returns show that, whereas in 1890 there was one Protestant minister to every 141 Protestant members, in 1906 the proportion of ministers had increased to one for every 139 members. In the seven largest Protestant denominations the number of members per minister for 1890 and 1906 is as follows:

Since the Bulletin does not discriminate between active and retired ministers, or between pastors and others who have been ministerially ordained (as editors, secretaries, teachers, etc.), we must suppose that the number of members to each available pastor is considerably larger than 139. But any reasonable estimate will still leave us with an apparent abundance of Protestant ministers. If from the total number of the population we subtract Catholics, Jews, Mormons, adherents of the eastern orthodox churches, and the miscellaneous bodies that cannot be reckoned as Protestants, and then consider the remainder of the population as the sphere of Protestant operation, we find that there is one Protestant minister for every 473 persons who, even by any stretch of zeal, might be included in Protestant parishes.

We discover where the pinch comes, however, when we compare the number of ministers with the number of churches or local groups of members. In 1890, for every 100 Protestant ministers there were 154 churches; in 1906, for every 100 such ministers there were 134 churches. There is thus an actual increase in the proportional supply of Protestant ministers. Yet it is obvious that the supply is not sufficient to provide each church with a minister. There are 49,167 more Protestant churches than ministers, and the excess of churches over available pastors must be much greater. On the other hand, the average number of mem

bers of these churches is only 104. In 1890 it was even smaller, namely, 92. If the average membership is only 104, how great must be the multitude of very small churches. These figures raise the question whether the trouble complained of is a shortage of Protestant ministers or an undue surplus of Protestant churches. It is not clear that the strain could be relieved by increasing the number of ministers. Statistics of ministers' salaries are not included in the present Bulletin; we must wait for the complete report. But we shall run no risk of error if we assume that a large proportion of the Protestant churches must be far below the line of effective self-support, and of effective group-activity. It is evident that denominational zeal has produced a vast amount of unworkable social machinery, and that the only possible relief from the present embarrassment lies in the direction of an actual reduction in the number of local churches.

This conclusion is strengthened by a consideration of the meager material equipment of these organizations. To house the 146,000 Protestant ministers there are only 48,000 parsonages, one-third as many parsonages as ministers. After making any reasonable deduction for ministers who are not available as pastors, the disproportion will remain very great. The average value of Protestant churches, exclusive of parsonages, is $4,785. For the Methodists, the largest denomination, the average is $3,884, for the Baptists, the next largest, $2,834. The average permanent investment in both church and parsonage (after deduction of debts) is less than $49 a member. When we reflect upon the number of churches that must be below the average membership of 104 and below the average investment of less than $49 per member, we shall not escape the conviction that, through excessive division of groups and of financial resources, the Protestant denominations are indulging in enormous economic waste and corresponding loss of possible social efficiency.

SHRIDHAR V. KETKAR, CORNELL UNIVERSITY

I enjoyed all the papers submitted to us this evening but I felt special interest in two of them, namely, Professor Shotwell's paper on "The Rôle of Magic," and the one following, that of Professor Webster, which ex