Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1884-05-10

PHILADELPHIA, May 8.
To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
There was regular storm in the General
conference on Monday. and the disturber OF
the elements was DIR. r. III. Hatfield, of Chi.
cago. This gentleman is well known
throughout the church as one who is thor
oughly independent in his views and very
much given to speaking out in meeting. He
has been delegate to several General con-
ferences, and more than once prior to the
present instance has distinguished himself by
stirring up matters. In one of these august
gatherings he startled the church, and caused
| many of his brethren to raise their hands in
pious horror, by alleging too close intimacy
between the bishops and those whom he
called 'tne money bags of the conference
On Monday he entered the lists against
those who have brought into the body the
arts of the politician, who, as he charged
are pulling wires to get certain men elected
| to Office and promiscuouslY button-holing the
| brethren in the interests of their favorite
| candidate. It appears that this kind of work
specially charaoterizss the csnsass for new
bishops, and hence the doctors proposition,
| in which he was seconded by Chaplain Nc
Cabe was TO put an end to the disgraceful
proceedings, as he termed them, by bringing
/ the canvass to an abrupt close and electing
these functionaries without delay. In deliv-
eripg his sensational speech Dr. Hatfield met
with many Interruptions. and at its close sew
eral eloquent and indignant replies were
made. In fact, to speak in common par
lance, the doughty doctor was completely
sat down upon. Nevertheless, an outside
H. IL aS,,1S A.
grounds for his allegations IT, by leg xoil-
ing and wire pulling. DR.. Hatfield means that
certain men are talking up" certain other
men and talking down" leading opposition
candidates, then, certainly, he is not far of
the track, for there is any amount of this
kind of work going on in quiet way. The
brethren, however, as they explained In the
debate. call this ''conveI sation." But
spade is a spade fog all that, and this is the
name the Chicago divine always gives to it.
On Wednesday We had little sensation of
another kind. It took the form of face
tious rap at the administration of tho bish
ops in the case of the Peoples church at
Boston. The pastor of this church, Rev. ].
w. Hamilton, has, by episcopal appointment,
presided over bis Aock for eight nine
years in succession. This in face of the dis
ciplinary stipulation that no minister shall
serve the same church for a longer period
than three years. It is provided, however,
that this rule may be relaxed in mission sta
tions. and, to meet the emergency, the Peo-
pies church is placed in this category. 1t
recelves no appropriation from the Misslona-
ry society, and its location is under the
shadow of a number of imposing churches,
yet it is technically considered q missionary
enterprise tsfor the benefit of q neglected
population" These points were most happily
| and forcibly brought out by number of
| delegates who favor the extension of the
time limit, and the hope was humorously ex-
| pressed that the bishops would meet other
| emergencies in the large cities of the country
| in the same way. incidentally the general
| subject of whether the conference should not
| change the church Law as to provide for
| cases of this kind in a straightforward and
| uniform manner came up in the debate-a
| subject on which large number of memo
| rials have been presented, and which has
| even been recommended to the considera-
| ton of the body by the bishops themselves
1 To predict what will finally be done in this
l matter would be exceedingly risky. think
/ it safe to say, however, that there will be
| no radical departure from present methods,
| aud that the three-year limit will stand for
| the next quadrennium about as it is, with,
| possibly, some slight modification, which,
| whatever its exact nature, will certainly not
| be universal in extent, nor in any way de-
/ trimental in its working to the muoh-Vaunt-
ed itinerant system of the church
Following the excitement this subject
i came a skirmish, which must lead by and
| by to big fight on the color question.
| Color is always prominent in representative
Methodist gatherings. At the great Ecu>
menical conference in London it occupied
| the chair one day, and on another occasion
l a representative of the African race, Rev.
Mr. Price electrified the semblage with an
eloquent speech. So at the General confer
| snce of the M E. church, four years ago.
| The great speech at that gathering was plea
by colored man for the election of COLI
| ored bishop, This time African eloquence
l has not asserted Itself but the alleged rights
of the colored people have come before the
i body in various ways, and will doubtless
| prove a live subject to the close. The pro-
| position on Wednesday was to have the con
| ference declare the churches and institutions
\ of learning under its control equally accessi-
| BILE to blacks and whites. Hitherto they have
| not BEEN and the church. moreover, while
| showing great regard for the black man in
| many respects, has allowed the color line to
| divide number of its annual conferences,
| the result being that in the South it has sevs-
! raj conferences called by different names in
| the same territory. The question was re-
| ferred, as all similar propositions are to be-
| to the committee on the state of the church.
and the conference for the present is relieved
from the necessity of voting upon it. The
truce ID only temporary, however, for the
battle must come sooner or later, and the de-
cis1on will have to be recorded. In this mat
ter the conference Is between two fires. as it
we're, for if it vote aye upon this ques-
ton it will be sure to ALLEVIATE large section
of its southern white members, while mega
tive vote would bs an equal cause of disaffec-
ton to its large co1ored membership in that
region.
Duripe the address from the board of bish-
OBS, the conference was gratifisd once more
by the presence of its Senior Episcopate,
Bishop Simpson. The bishop was greeted,
as before, with loud applause, but he looked
very weak and ill, and occupied the chair
without utteTinR word
The address was read by Bishop Harris.
It consisted in a review of the wolk of the
church during the quadrennium. and made
special reference to what the bishops them
selves had done. The fact sas stated that
three new conferences had been formed,
making a total of SO Annual conferences and
IA mission stations. The net increase in
members for the four years vas reported at
SO 342 and there were declared to be now
18, TAI churches and 8, 9,Sl5 parsonage, of an
aggregate value of ST.. .238. .085. The teach~
ers and scholars in the Sunday schools of the
church we're said to number 1882, 926
Among the large gifts to beneyolences which
had marked the quadren ennium special refer
ence was made to the 5000, 600 given by
George I. Seney to Wesleyan University |
Connecticut, and to the donation of an equal |
sum by the same gentleman for the founding |
of the Methodist Hospital in New York city. |
The Gift of several hundred thousand dollars |
to Greencastle Uni sersity, Indiana, by w. |
G. De Pand, of that State. was also alluded to
in complimentary terms. After reviewing |
the work of the different church societies |
the document made reference to the evil of |
intemperance, expressing the conviction that |
Methodists would not relax their efforts un-
til legal sanction of this evil Is removed from |
the statute books of all the States. Other |
matters of Importance were presented, and
the address finally made formal request for
the election Of q number of new bishops.