Morning journal and courier., 1888-05-05

1 mining who could be sent to the general con- 1 ference as lay delegates, or, more particular l ly, whether ordained local preachers could be | 80 sent Now, women being members of the | church, and not being members of the annu- al conferences, it was held by some that they I came properly under the definition above given Of what constitutes layman, and that, | therefore, they were eligible to serve as lay delegates in the general conference. Inevita- bly,, however, this construction of the law was objected to, the contention of the obiec- tors being that when the rule in question was made, women were not considered, and that as laymen were allowed representation in the body only when all the members of the entire church had been given chance to vote on the question, the form would have to be observed ere lay women could have seats in the body. This was the issue, and these, briefly state9, were the two sides it present. ed. Of course, the personality of the women elected could not be entirely lost sight of, for no one could deny that in point of abili- ty some of them were the peers of any of the men in the body. Naturally, too, several of the speakers brought large amount of sen timentality to the discussion of the ques- tion.
 It was evident, moreover, by the applause bestowed, that those who favored woman's admission had the sympathy of a large por- ton of the audience. Still, the battle has been fought mainly on legal grounds, and on these grounds, as nearly as such qries- tion can be, it will finally be settled though at this time the debate still proceeds, one ! of the greatest and most memorable, it will doubtless be considered, in the history of this great church.
 Great interest is always awakened by the assignment of the delegates 10 seats. The body being large, the sessions lasting a whole month, and the brethren generally, ! like the good Methodists they are, having decided penchant for speaking in meeting, there is naturally desire on the part of all to get as near as possible to the front, where the "speaker's eye'' is most likely to cast it's favoring giances, and where those not 80 quick of ear as they used to be can more easily keep track of the business. The seat ing is done by sort ot lottery. The names hat, and, ''being well shaken before taken" are drawn out one by one, the delegations then choosing and announcing their locations as luck or Providence may favor them This time Providence must have been on
 the weaker side, for the heavy weights in
 debate, who for at least two preceding con- ferences have been to the fore, relegated to an honorable position in the rear, while
 new and comparatively unknown talent airs it's aspirations and raises it's feet in the front
 rows. Fortunately, however, the gentlemen who have been treated to back seats are not WaublnS III e1Gner the RlIG or perseverance or the power to make themselves heard, and
 hence they will still take part in the proceeds ings, and as some well deserve to do, from their great gifts and long experience, will still have powerful influence in shaping
 legislation.
 An amusing incident of the drawing was that Dr. Leonard of Ohio, who took out the
 slips, failed to 'fcatch on" to the name of his
 own delegation until all the good seats had been taken. This was considered bad luck, but afterward, when it was discovered that the hat containing the slips was the head gear of Bishop Merrill, the doctor remarked that his poor fortune was fully accounted for, remark which all who know the pleasant antagonism existing between these two wor- thies in regard to political prohibition will appreciate quite as readily as did the confer ence and the brethren specially interested. An important part of the opening of con- ference is the quadrennial address of the
 bishops. It is the only opportunity these
 dignitaries have of expressing their views
 openly on pending legislation. The address,
 prepared and read by Bishop Merrill was the ablest document of the kind ever pres scented. Many points called out loud applause. This masterly production suggested. among other things, that it might be expedient to divide the work now being done by the Freedmen's Aid society so as to have white and colored bureau; that the Missionary so- ciety needed three general secretaries, instead of two, now; that the proposition to divide the church into parts, making the, churches. in foreign countries separate parts of com l mon whole, should not be encouraged, that it is inexpedient to deprive the bishops of their occasional visits to the mission field abroad; that William Taylor's work in Africa is departure from the usual methods and missionary work, and should, with it's chief director, be carefully examined; that women should not be admitted to the al ol,r a1oI1
 have passed upon their eligibility; that lay men should be given mere power in general conference proceedings, and that the pastoral
 limit might be advantagsously extended to four or five years so as to naeet special cases
 Such, as expressed in their address, are the
 views of the bishops on matters which have
 been subjects of disputation in the church for some time, and some of which the present conference will be called to legislate upon. Within week or so the election will be in full tide. About six bishops will be elected,
 and the chances of candidates remain thus far about as they were given week ago. To
 that list, however, must be added, as possi-
 billties, if nothing more, Chancellor c. N.
 Sims, of Syracuse university; Drs. Jas. k. Day
 and J. o. Peck, of-New York, and Dr. J. M.
 Fitzgerald, of New Jersey. Of course, if it
 shall be decided to have resident bishops
 abroad, new combinations will arise. In that
 case, Dr. Leroy M. Vernon would have good
 prospects for Europe, Dr J. NJ. Thoburn for
 China and Japan. Should colored bishop
 be elected the Washington conference, and
 Dr. Daniel James, of the Lexington conference
 will be presented. For Africa, no one will
 be thought of but Wm. Taylor. It is prob
 able, if not certain, that.he will return to the
 dark continent as fully a bishop as any of
 the rest of the occupants of the Episcopal
 bench.
 This man by the way, with his long, gaunt
 form, his patriarchal beard, and the air of
 apostolic seriousness which marks his ap-
 pearance, is an object of constant interest,
 and his name never fails to call forth applause.
 Other interesting personages are the China
 man, Sia Sek ,Ong and the distinguished lad
 ies whose cases have awakened 50 much inter
 est, though description of these must be de-
 ferred to my next, which will treat of the per
 sonnel of this great gathering almost exclus-