REPORT OF THE PUBLICATION COMMITTEE J. P. FORBES, M. ST. C. WRIGHT, W. W. FENN, JAMES EELLS, ALICE R. KEYES, Committee. Perhaps not all of you are familiar with the methods which the Association employs to spread the gospel of Unitarianism in the printed word, not alone among those of our own household of faith, but among all seekers after a simple, reasonable form of religion. This part of the Association's work is in charge of a committee called the Publication Committee. The members of the Committee this year have been: Rev. John P. Forbes, Rev. Merle St. C. Wright, Rev. William W. Fenn, Rev. James Eells, and Mrs. Prescott Keyes. The Committee is aided in its work, as the other Committees are, by the advice and suggestions of the President, Secretary, and Assistant Secretary. The most important part of the work of this Committee is the selection of tracts to be printed for free distribution. All manuscripts submitted for publication in tract form are sent by the Secretary to each member of the Committee in advance of the committee meeting, at which, after full consideration, they are by vote accepted or rejected. This year twelve have been accepted and published as tracts. A much larger number have been rejected. It must, however, be understood that the rejection of a manuscript does not imply that, in the opinion of the Committee, it is not good. Sometimes we decline a manuscript because it is upon a topic which has been well treated in other tracts, and sometimes because the manuscript seems to us more distinctively a sermon than a tract. We desire to repeat here the standing invitation to all friends to submit manuscripts for possible acceptance as tracts. In the present catalogue there are now 260 different tracts. Of these 279,000 copies have been distributed this last year. The large circulation of the year, and the consequent heavy expense upon our budget, caused à deficit in the account of this Committee. The Presi dent made an appeal in the Christian Register for the making up of this deficit; and in response to this appeal the sum of $1,663.40 has been received, which has enabled the Committee to close the year without serious loss. It is worthy of note that tracts dealing with general Unitarian principles or special topics of Unitarian belief are in much greater demand than those of a less distinctively denominational character. About one-fifth of the tracts have a very small circulation, and might perhaps be withdrawn without serious loss. On the suggestion of the President it is probable that there will be in the near future a revision of the Tract Catalogue. This proposed revision and regrouping of the tracts under subjects, instead of in chronologically numbered series, as at present, is now under consideration by the Post-office Mission Committee of the Women's Alliance and by representatives of different Post-office Missions. A revised edition of the "Descriptive List of Tracts," prepared by the Publication Agent, has been printed; also revised editions of the "Descriptive Catalogue of Books," bearing the imprint of the Association, and of the "List of Religious Books by Unitarian Authors." "A Descriptive Circular of Hymn and Service Books," published by the Association for use in our churches, has been issued as a separate catalogue. The Year Book for the last two years has been edited by the Secretary of the Association, the Publication Committee being consulted in regard to all changes. 493 copies of Channing's Works have been given, after the long-established custom of the Association, to settled Orthodox ministers and theological students. Collections of our books have been sent to about fifteen libraries. For reasons of economy the Committee did not find it possible to continue this year the publication of the monthly bulletin, Word and Work, in the Christian Register; but the courtesy of the editor of the Register has continued to permit the President and Secretary of the Association to contribute a weekly column to the paper. The thanks of the Association are due to the Register for this help, as well as for the many other ways in which the paper co-operates with the Association. The publication of new books, while part of the publishing work of the Association, is in charge of the Publication Agent, under the supervision of the President and Secretary of the Association, and does not form part of the work in charge of the Publication Committee. The Report of the Publication Agent is appended to this report. Wisely those who have gone before us undertook what they called "the leavening process"; that is, they sent the printed page where the human voice could win no hearing. They desired to create new churches, but they desired still more to make the convictions of men on great spiritual themes humane and rational. The field for this kind of work is as wide now as it ever was. |