The Life and Times of the Rev. John Wesley, Vol. I - Enter His Rest

Bishops ........................................ 10
Travelling preachers ............................8,830
Local preachers .............................. .10,340
Total ministerial force ........................ 19, 179
Lay members in full connection ............... 1,114,712
Lay members on probation .....................184,226
Total lay membership ....................... 1,298,938
Number of church edifices ......................12,048
Number of parsonages ..........................3,963
Value of church edifices ................... $47,253,067
Value of parsonages ....................... $6,862,230
Total value of churches and parsonages ...... ..$54,115,297
Number of Sunday-schools .....................16,393
Number of officers and teachers .................184,596
Number of scholars......................... 1,179,984
In connection with its schools, there are libraries containing more than
two millions and a half of books. Its Book Concern has about thirty
cylinder power-presses in constant operation; and about 2000 different
books on its catalogue, besides tracts, etc., and 14 periodicals, with an
aggregate circulation of more than twelve millions every year. It also has
a great Missionary Society, with prosperous missions in China, India,
Africa, Bulgaria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and
other places.
The returns for the Methodist Episcopal Church South, in 1869, are
2581 ministers, 3951 lay preachers, and 535,040 church members.
The Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada has 216 ministers, 224 lay
preachers, and 20,000 members.
Besides the above, there are other Transatlantic Methodists, as:—1.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, which, in 1867, had 14 annual
Conferences, 673 chapels, 509 travelling preachers, 727 local preachers,
130,950 members, 33,134 Sunday-school scholars, and 40,716 volumes
in Sunday-school libraries. 2. The Methodist Protestant Church, with