The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-05-13
THE WESTERN BOOK CONCERN
RING.
From the Baltimore Gazette.

1 A4N0.
From the Baltimore Gazette.
| In these days of rings in church and
State, one OF the most gigantic in the
country is that of the Western Methodist
Book Concern. It is the ring which
rules the Methodist Episcopal Church.
While the New York Book Concern has
kept to its legitimate business of pub
fishing house, and has grown strong and
realized large profits for the Church, sup
plying the funds from which the bishops
salaries are paid and the expenses of the
General Con ference defrs, ed, ss we'll as
advancing large sums t. the Western
Book Concern itself 10 meet its cur
rent expenses, the Western Concern
has been using its great wealth and fa-
elites to concentrate the power o. the
Church in the ring at Cincinnati. The
public has often wondered at the power
of that institution, and queried why it
should exert so much more influence over
the Church than the more wealthy Book
Concern at New York, or than any other
body whatever. We now have an OK
PLANTATION IN the revelation of the fact
the Western Concern has been conducted
at financial loss By using its facilities
to get power it has spent all its available
funds without satisfactorily sup
plying the wants Of the
Church in the way Of religious litera-
ture, certainly without realizing any re-
tarns that can be appropriated to the
beneficiary objects of the institution. The
agents and representatives of the. con-
Germ instead ofspending their money and
time to aggrandize the concern, have, 1t
would seem, been travelling around from
conference to con erence, bot to represent
the Book Concern, but 80 control these
conferences for their various personal
ends, and get the votes of their delega.
tons for themselves at the General Con-
ference. Here is where the money has
likely gone, and here is where the
power of that great concern
has been expended. The result
of all of which has been that the men
connected with the Western Book Con-
Germ, who, in the main, have constituted
the ring at Cincinnati, have been elected
to the chief places and exerted the chief
influence in the government of tho
Methodist Episcopal Church. Let us
look at the facts: When, twelve years
ago, three bishops were elected, they
were all taken out of that ring to-wit.
DR.. Clark, editor of the Ladies' Reposi-
tory; DR.. Kingsley, editor of the Western
Christian Advocate-the two most
responsible incumbents of that con
cern-and DR.. Thomson, of the Ohio
Wesleyan University, near by. When,
four years ago, eight more bishops were
elected, three of them were, in like man
ner, taken out OF this ring, namely: DIR.
Wiley, editor of the Ladies Repository;
DIR Merrill, editor of the Western Chris
tam Adpocate, (the incumbents OF the
same positions in the concern from which
two of the bishopss were taken at the
previous election) and DIR. Harris,
the missionary secretary al Cincln.
natl. Nor have these been the
only candidates for the office OF !
bishop from that concern. DR.. Walden,
assistant agent for the concern at the
last General Conference received no
less than one hundred an eighty votes
for bishop, and las always since his
Identification with that ring been con-
sidered formidable candidate for that
Office. DR.. Mast, editor OF the Christlachz
Apo!ogete, another publication of that
concern, was presented as candidate
eighI years ago ut Chicago on the plea
that he church needed German bishop.
BIT not only have the bishops been
thus largely taken from the Western
Boo; Concern, but also the other best
officers of the church. Twelve years ago
two new missionary secretaryships were
crea,ed, the highest office next to that OF
bishop, and both of them were filed by
members OF the Western Book Concern
ring. to wit: DR.. Harris and DR. Trim
bic, and when eight years agoit was pro-
posed to remove DR.. Reid from the
Western Christian ADVOCATE, owing to the
pressure from outside of the ring,
he was provided for by plac-
inp him on the Northwestern
CHRISTIAN Advocate, at Chicago, and
from that place, four years ago, he was
trar sferred by the same Influence to be
missionary secretary, along with Dr.
Ed6y, another member of the same ring.
At The same time this same ring made an
effort TO capture the New York Book
Concern itself, and succeeded in tolstlng
one of its favorltes on that institution.
Mr.. Phillips, who had long been the
booakeeper and cashier of the Western
Book Concern, was, by the influence OF
that concern, elected as assistant
book agent at New York, through
whose fundamentally that concern
wa largely conducted in the interest
of the Cincinnati concern, and doubtless
made its cash advances to rLn the West
ern Concern in its career OF power. any
body that one, get position IN the
Western Book Concern may consider
himself provided for by the Church, he
having u hold that no power can shake
of. The agents and incumbents OF that
institution have for years been able to
peroetuate themselves in position, or adj
vance to higher positions, as much AS II
they did not depend on the
General Conference for their
plaees. The three last assistant agents
have each succeeded to the place OF prin.
clp.l agent, after the incumbent OF the
6rsl place has died or become too old to
occupy the place longer. Thus the firm,
which was formerly that OF Swarmsteot
Il Zoe, became that OF Poe & Hitchcock,
and subsequently that Of Hitchcock q
Walden. The present incumoents OF
the various positions connected with
thai concern are now, as eve-, In tair
way to the highest positions in the
Church, according as there shall be made
room for them. Drs. Wentworth and
Hoyt. of the Ladies Repository and
Western Christian Adpocate, respectively
the traditional stepping-stones to the
office of bishop, and Dr.. Weldon and
even DIR. Hitchcock being available men
for any position that the Church may
have to give.
We do not intimate that any corrupt
or unfair measures have been taken by
any one the ring we have mentioned to
control the Methodist Episcopal Church,
ana TO put themselves in power. esc"Pt