Omaha daily bee., 1884-06-17
RTCHOp SIMPSON,

Bishop Mathew simpson, VINO III lynn
at the point Of death at his home in
Philadelphia, ia one OF the oldest, most
prominent and influential bishops of The
Methodist Episcopal church. His death
will be generally regretted, and his loss
will be sincerely felt and mourned BY
the Methodist denomination.
Bishop Simpson was a native of Ohio,
having been born at CadiE, June 10
1911. At the age of eighteen years,
while attending Manson college, subse-
~quently merged into Allegheny college.
he was elected a Sutor in that institution,
He graduated from this college in 1882
and studying medicine he was admitted
to practice in 1888. During this year,
however, he determined to enter the min
istry and was licensed to preach in tn,
Pittsburg conference. In 1887 he wal
elected vice-president and professor Of
natural science in Allegheny college,
Two years later he was elected president
of Asbury University in Indiana, which
position he filled for nine years.
In 1S48 he became editor of the
Western Christian advocate, and in
1862 he was elected to the high Office Of
bishop. In the discharge of his duties as
bishop he visited and held conferences
in ell the states and most of the terri
tories. Bishop Simpson was sent by the
general conference as a delegate to the
Irish and British conference in 1857,
and was also a delegate to the Evangeli-
cal alliance in Berlin the same year,
from whence he extended his travel,
through Turkey, the Holy Land, Egypt
and Greece, returning in 1868. In 1859
he changed his residence from Pittsburg
to Evanston, where he accepted the
position as president of the Garrett Bib
lical institute, to which, however, he
devoted but little active work. During
the civil war he delivered q number of
addresses In behalf Of the union, and was
urged by the secretary of war to under
take the organization of the freedmen at
the establishment of the bureau, and was
afterward invited by President Grant to
60 as a commissioner to San Domingo.
Both of these offers he respectfully de-
clined. In 1870, at the death of Bishop
Kingsley, he visited Europe to complete
the work which had been assigned to
him on the continent, and also as o dele
gate to the English conference. In 1874
he visited Mexico, and in 1875 again Wis
tied Europe to hold the conference of
Germany and Switzerland, and also to
meet the missionaries in different parts of
the continent. He has written "a Hun.
dred Years of Methodism," and is editor
of the ~Cyclopmdia of Romanism.
Bishop Simpson has certainly had a re-
markably busy career, and was truly a
great man. His influence was felt
throughout tho country, both i and out
the church. He was an orator of won
derful %eloquence, and always commanded
the deepest attention from his audi.
ence.
He possessed superior business talents,
and to this is attributed his success in
the business affairs of the church, He
was an ardent patriot, and during the
civil war. he rendered invaluable assist
ance to the administration with whom he
was on terms of intimacy. Salmon P.
Chase has received credit for originating
the greenback currency, but now
that Bishop Simpson is passing awsV the
fact is recalled that Bishop Simpson had
had much TO do with that measure and in
suggesting many other financial measures
of almost equal Importance. He took a
prominent part also in organizing the
sanitary commission, and otherwise aided
in every way in his power the cause of
the union.