The elastic scattering by hydrogen of negative pions with mean energy 98 MeV has been measured at 13 angles between 30° and 150° (lab.). The pion beam was monitored with a calibrated ionization chamber and its muon and electron contamination determined by means of a Cerenkov counter. This counter was also used in the scattering telescope to separate out the electrons produced by charge exchange γ-radiation. The results were corrected for Coulomb effects and a 3-parameter curve fitted to the nuclear parts. The curve is dσ/dΩ = (1 ± 0.027) [0.385 ± 0.008 + (0.276 ± 0.015) cos θ + (0.282 ± 0.031) cos² θ].Thus the forward scattering intensity is 0.942 ± 0.043 mbn sterad^-1. In a separate transmission experiment the total nuclear cross section for scattering of 98 MeV negative pions by hydrogen was found to be 21.9 ± 0.7 mbn. These two figures yield a value for the real part of the forward scattering amplitude D_ = 0.195 ± 0.006 in units h/m_πc. The corresponding value of f² from the dispersion relation is 0.073.