Church should have permanently any provision for theological education except at Edinburgh, they did not suggest any change upon existing arrangements, except some provision for the pastoral superintendence of students, and their instruction in Hebrew before they enter the Hall.

The Committee, in accordance with the instructions of last Assembly, revised and completed the draft of a proposed constitution for the New College, and transmitted it to Presbyteries, who, it is believed, have generally sent up their opinions and suggestions upon it to the Assembly.

As the Committee have executed the instructions of last Assembly, in regard to these two subjects, of the extension of theological education, and the constitution of the New College, and as these subjects and the views of the Committee regarding them, have been for some time in the hands of the Church, the Committee do not consider themselves called upon to offer any further observations with respect to them.

With regard to the Curriculum, the Presbyteries were instructed to send in their opinions and suggestions to the Committee before the 31st March, that the Committee might have the benefit of them in reporting to the Assembly; and the Committee would take the liberty of directing the attention of the Assembly somewhat fully to this important subject, but would first complete the brief statement of their ordinary proceedings during the past year.

The number of students who matriculated at the New College during the last session was 300, but this does not indicate the whole number of students attending the classes, as it has not been thought expedient to enforce matriculation upon the students attending the classes of Logic, Moral Philosophy, and Natural Science. The number of enrolled students of Divinity was 160, a number smaller by 16 than last year, while the number of students that entered the Hall for the first time, rather exceeded that of the preceding session.

A larger proportion of fourth year's students than on any former occasion gave regular attendance upon the classes, and this may be fairly regarded as indicating a growing interest in the prosecution of theological study.

The arrangements of theological education at Aberdeen

under Professor Maclagan and Mr Sachs as Hebrew tutor, have gone on as in the preceding session. The number of theological students receiving instruction there was thirty-one, being a considerable increase above last year; and of these thirty-one, ten were first-year students, while four were partial, and three were Gaelic, students. The Committee's engagement with Mr Sachs expires at this time, and it will remain for the Assembly to decide what is now to be done in this matter. The Committee do not presume to anticipate what will be the decision of the Assembly in regard to the extension of theological education at Aberdeen; but they think it right to suggest, that if no change be made at present, it will be necessary to lay down some regulation as to the curriculum there, and the relation in which it should stand to the attendance that may still be required to be given at Edinburgh. The only regulation at present subsisting upon the subject is one made by the Assembly at Inverness in August 1845, at the time when it was resolved to appoint a Professor of Theology at Aberdeen; and it is this, that “till a full Theological Faculty be provided at Aberdeen, attendance of at least one session at the Divinity Hall in Edinburgh shall be required of all candidates for licence." If the students are to be allowed to study for three years at Aberdeen, it will be necessary, in order to follow out the fundamental principle of our proposed curriculum, that the Professor should have three classes daily, with suitable instructions for the students according to the stage of their progress. But as it would be altogether unreasonable to impose such an amount of labour upon the Professor, it seems indispensable that, if another Professor of Theology be not at present appointed at Aberdeen, the Professor should have two classes, one for first, and the other for second year's students, with instructions corresponding to the first two years of the curriculum, and that students should be required to attend at Edinburgh during the third and fourth years of their theological course.

The Committee would farther suggest the propriety of fees being exacted from Theological Students at Aberdeen as well as at Edinburgh.

The Committee have received returns from the Clerk of the

Presbytery of Glasgow, from which it appears, that during last session thirteen young men have been prosecuting their studies in Theology under their superintendence, four members of Presbytery having been appointed to instruct them in the different branches of study, and the Presbytery having asked and being satisfied with the reasons why they did not attend the Divinity Hall in Edinburgh. The Presbytery have acted in this matter in accordance with an understanding which has generally prevailed in the Church, but which does not seem to be explicitly sanctioned by any law or regulation of the Assembly. The Committee would recommend that the Assembly should give their sanction to what has hitherto been done in this matter by the Presbytery of Glasgow, and issue some directions for the future regulation of this subject.

The whole number of young men engaged in the prosecution of theological study with a view to the holy ministry thus amounts to 204.

The arrangements contemplated and provided for by the Assembly of 1846, in regard to St Andrews, have been this year carried into effect, the Rev. Mr Ainslie having been settled, about the beginning of last session, as colleague to Dr Hetherington, who, in consequence, was enabled to devote a considerable portion of his time to the literary and religious superintendence of thirty-three Free Church students attending that University.

The Committee have not considered it necessary, in present circumstances, and with their existing accommodation, to frame any very complete or extended regulations in regard to the Library or the Museum, but they are happy to state that valuable additions to both these collections continue to be received from kind and liberal friends of the Church, which have been advertised in the Missionary Record.

In the month of August last, a communication was received from the Education Committee, suggesting the importance of establishing an Academy at Oban, for the purpose chiefly of affording the benefit of a classical and mathematical education to young men in the Highlands, who might give indications of being possessed of suitable qualifications and capacities for becoming ultimately ministers and teachers, and proposing

that the expense of this institution should be borne by the two Committees jointly. The Committee entertained this proposal favourably, and they have received a minute of the Free Synod of Argyle, warmly approving of the general object, and promising assistance and co-operation. The Committee understood that the object was to be prosecuted by the Education Committee, but they are not aware that any further steps have been taken in the matter. The Committee still consider it a most desirable and important object, to afford opportunities of enjoying a classical and mathematical education to young men from the Highlands, who might ultimately study theology, and regard this object as one entitled to a very early and prominent place in any efforts which the Church may find herself in a condition to make, for the purpose of improving and extending the training of candidates for the ministry.

For obvious reasons, it is indispensable that the financial circumstances of the College should be brought more fully under the consideration of the Church, than seems to have been hitherto thought necessary; and the Committee accordingly will enter somewhat into detail upon this subject, that the Assembly may distinctly understand the present state of the College funds, and the prospective annual expenditure for collegiate objects which the Church has already undertaken. The Assembly of 1844 named two separate Committees for the College and Education, which, during the preceding year, had been entrusted to one; they appointed Dr Welsh Convener of the College Committee, and authorised a general collection on its behalf. The collection, including a small sum arising from individual and miscellaneous donations, amounted to £3488, which, with the fees of the students, was considerably more than sufficient to defray the then annual expenditure for College purposes, and left the Committee at the end of the year with a balance in their favour of above £1400. In consequence of this state of things, the Assembly of 1845 did not authorise a collection in behalf of the College, and the consequence of this was, that at the end of that year they were considerably above £1300 in debt. The Assembly of 1846 authorised a collection for the College; and Dr Chalmers, who had been appointed Convener of the Committee in the

room of Dr Welsh, made a strong appeal to the liberality of the Church, in the hope of the collection affording the means not only of defraying the annual expenditure, now very considerably increased by additional appointments, but also liquidating the debt of £1300 incurred by the want of a collection in the preceding year. The collection authorised by the Assembly of 1846, amounted, including a few donations, to £3422; but this, together with the fees of the students, was not more than adequate to defray the annual expenditure of the year, without liquidating any of the debt. The abstract of accounts, indeed, presented by the Treasurer to the Assembly of 1847, exhibits a balance against the Committee of only £120. From this, it seemed as if the collection of the preceding year had not only defrayed the annual expenditure, but also liquidated nearly the whole of the £1300 of debt; and the Committee were in the belief that this was the true state of the case, when last summer they issued the usual notice for the College collection, authorised by the Assembly of 1847. In that notice, they told the Church that the debt had not been completely liquidated by the collection of the preceding year, but as they at that time believed the deficiency to be only £120, they did not make any urgent appeal to the Church for extraordinary liberality. The Committee, however, have recently ascertained, that the collection for the year 1846-47 only defrayed the annual expenditure, and did not afford the means of liquidating any of the debt, and that the smallness of the balance (£120) against the Committee, exhibited in the abstract given in to the Assembly of 1847, and published along with the report for that year, arose from a sum of £1200 being put down under the head of the receipts for that year, which belonged to a different head unconnected with the annual income or expenditure. And this sum, together with the balance exhibited of £120, is just about equal to the whole of the original debt of above £1300, which is still, therefore, at this time, a debt due by the Committee.

The collection and contributions for last year amounted to £2901, or above £500 less than the two preceding collections; the fees paid by students at Edinburgh amounted to £1210; so that the whole receipts for the year, including in