New Orleans daily crescent., 1866-04-07

!
report the proceedings of the conference, and the
taking of two copies of the daily issue of the
organ of the church. in which they should be
published by each member of the conference.
The charge to be two dollars per copy for the
session. The resolution was referred to the Com.
mittee on Books and Publications.
Il The report of the book agent and publishing
house of the church was read. 1t showed that in
1858 the assets were s45s,732, and the liabilities
4 slO0,s46 leaving balance in favor of sa5sss6
but that one item of $4,000 had been overlooked.
Entering into particulars from that time onwards,
it shows how the liabilities had been reduced,
until in 1861 the agent left Nashville and did not
return till after the surrender Of the Confederate
States armies. After the agent left Nashville the
building was taken possession OF by the military
and was libeled for confscaton but it was subse-
7 quently ordered by the President to be released
on payment of costs. Yet it was transferred to
, the. freedmen's bureau, before the agent could
regain possession Of it. Everything on the pre-
misses was more or less injured.
This report was referred to the Committee on
Books and Publications.
Two explanatory or supplementary reports
upon the subject, by the agent who took charge Of
the building and property during the absence of
the agent who furnished the report above noticed
were then laid before the conference the time of
the session being, on motion, prolonged for the
| purpose
/ These reports covered the period durinr which
the agent who furnished the previous one was alb.
sent from Nashville. Most of the debts due the
Publishing House were scattered in small amounts
many of them disputed, and some of the debtors
insolyent, so that, the whole fully half of the
debts charged were worthless. The publication
| OF new bible on genealogical plan cost
| Sl4,0D0. During the time Nashville was under
United States military rule, the agent was arrested
several times; while he was not quite confident
that he could legally claim to be the agent of the
church, and was the more embarrassed at seeing
! a resolution passed by the bishops at the time
that the Office of publishing agent ought to be dis
continued On consulting his lawyer, however,
he was advised that he was the legal agent of the
church, and he determined to act accordingly in the
effort to save the property of the church. In order
to secure the release Of the building from military
| occupation, he gave bonds In $4,000, conformity
with another, to meet any liabilities to which it
might be adjudged. He thus became govern
ment officer, in charge of government property,
which gave him great advantage. regiment
Of soldiers marched into Nashville one day, and
took possession of the building. On the command
ing general being appealed to, and the circum-
| stances explained to him, he countermanded the
order under which the troops had taken possession
of it, and they reluctantly left it. The amount of
damage they did during the day they were in it
will never be known. The building would have
been seized by the military again-and again, had it
not fortunately been protected in the manner ndi.
Gated. Requisitions were frequently made for
presses, type, etc., in the building for army pur-
poses, and they were of necessity complied with.
Receipts were generally given for them but not
always. Some of the things were returned Others
were never heard OF. Appearances showed that
at one time or another it was the intention of
every commanding officer Nashville had to seize
the property, and that all that prevented this was
the fact of the question of its disposition having
been thrown into the civil courts. In January, |
1864, it was ordered to be seized for confscation
subsequently, the agent obtained permission to
store books and other property in the third story
In the meantime, the agent had removed MANY
valuables to the country The authorities retained
possession till December, 1866. Early in 1853
Northern creditors sued the agency, and within
six months executions were issued. To meet these
peremptory demands the agent assumed the respon-
sibility of selling house belonging to the church,
and of making sales of other property at verv
low figures, by which means he paid S23 475. This
left unpaid about $1,000. In two cases the agency
had been sued for violating copyright they
were only STAYED off, and are still pending.
During October 1865, President Johnson ordered
he libel for confscaton to be withdrawn, on the
payment of costs. These amounted to s5l4.
With two or three hundred dollars expended in
arious ways in the course of the trouble and
200 for the fees of the lawyer, who was con-
idered to have charged very moderately for the Il
ervlees rendered. The financial report was not
ct ready for presentation.
The two reports above sketched were, with
ecompanying documents, referred to the Com
nittee on Books and Publications.
Tha Committee on Books and Publications
eported in favor of the resolution in reference q
0 the employment of stenographic reporter
nd the publication of the proceedings of the
difference; and it was accordingly adopted
report from the Committee on Public Wor-
hip, appointing times and places for members
t the conference to preach on Sunday next, a
4 this city, Jefferson, Algiers, Gretna etc., was
cad and adopted.
The report Of the Secretary of Missions adopted
n Thursday, was ordered to be printed.
Then the conference adjourned 1t meets al
gain at nine o'clock this morning.
FAIR FOR THE RELIEF OF DISABLED SOLDIERS. of
'othing could afford us more pleasure than to
cknowledge the compliment of an invitation to
ne fair now Kept open by the ladies' of the (Ires