A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

ency donated $2,500 toward this project! See Harms, op. cit., p. 204. 48. Yearbook (General Conference, 19691, pp. 144-145. Total membership of these congregations in 1969 was somewhat over 300. 49. According to J. H. Lohrenz, Oregon was represented at the General Conference as early as 1892. Op. cit., p. 80. 50. At present comprised by the congregations in the states of Arizona, California, Oregon and Washington. 51. This number includes six mission stations — the result of church extension work. 52. See 50th Jubilee, 1905-1955 (Reedley M.B. Church), p. 5. According to Unruh, (op. cit., p. 474) one hundred and thirty members withdrew. He also mentions an "extreme holiness" teaching as a contributing factor in the schism. 53. This is a decline of more than 100 from 1954 when membership reached 595. Here we notice the same trend as in the congregations of towns in the prairie states: young people gravitate toward the larger metropolitan centers to find professional employment. The membership in the Reedley church also declined from 1436 in 1957 to 1335 in 1971. 54. See 50th Jubilee, 1905-1955, p. 57. The founding and development of educational institutions will receive further treatment in chapter sixteen. 55. P.F. Wall, in ME, III, 396. 56. Gary B. Nachtigall's unpublished M.A. thesis entitled: "A Study of the Migration and Settlements of the Mennonites in Fresno and Tulare Counties of California," (Fresno State College, 1971), pp. 30-39, contains this epic story. 57. Harms, op. cit., p. 170. 58. Ibid., p. 172. CHAPTER XI 1. In German the names "Canada" and "Canaan" have a similar ring. The writer recalls how older members among the immigrants would often refer to their new homeland by the latter term. FOOTNOTES 451 2. Up to 1867, Canada was a crown colony of Great Britain, with limited powers of self-government. 3. See J. A. Toews, Alternative Service in Canada During World War II (Winnipeg: Christian Press, 1959), pp. 14-19 for an account of government policy and legislative provisions for conscientious objectors. 4. These names are used to identify the two original Mennonite settlements in southern Manitoba. The East Reserve was identical with the land grant of seven townships offered to the deputies of 1873, and coextensive with the present municipality of Hanover. The boundaries of the West Reserve corresponded roughly with those of the present municipality of Rhineland and portions of adjoining municipalities, particularly Stanley. 5. "Minutes of Meeting of M.B. Church of North America" (1879-1882), p. 16. 6. See Frank Brown in his account of the 75th anniversary of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Winkler, Manitoba (1888-1963), p. 3. Brown mentions representatives of Swedenborg, Holdemann and of the Mormons. 7. Konferenzberichte {,1883-1919) (Hillsboro, Kansas: M.B. Publishing House, 1920), p. 25. 8. As reported by Frank Brown, op. cit., p. 4. 9. Ibid., p. 8. 10. Ib