Morning journal and courier., 1888-05-05

WlGnoub interfering With the summer travel, They say, however, that they shall recom- mend that the railroads make the change as soon as possible, and they urge the Iegisla- ture to enact that after October 1, 1889. no heaters will be tolerated in or under passen- ger cars.
 METHODIST CONFERENCE. Hts Organizatiom-InS Strange Surround
 Ings-Changes-The DeIesates--The Woman QueStion-GettIng Seats-The
 Quadrennial- Address-Bishops.
 NEW YORK C1rY, May 8. To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
 The organization of general conference of the Methodist Episcopal church is al ways a matter of great moment in the re- ligious world, owing to the vast constitua ency and the sacred and far-reaching in. terests involved. But the opening scenes of the conference HOW in session were anticipated with unusual concern for three reasons-frst, because it was to meet in an opera house; secondly, because it was to be held in this city; and, thirdly, because it was known everywhere that, for the first time in the history of the Methodist Episco- pal church. women would apply for admis- sion as delegates. As to the building in which the body convenes, no church has been more determined than this in it's oppo- sition to theater-going, and naturally some were surprised to find the leading men of the church. with their wives, cousins, aunts and sweethearts, consenting to go to such place en masse. Nor was this surprise lessened by the fact that it was the second, if not a third, offense, for that only showed that the course was pursued with deliberation, and with full knowledge of all that it implied. And what aggravated the situation was that, coincident with the assembling of the general conference in place of this kind, there should come demand from some of the leading pastors of the church to have the rule annulled which interdicts. certain popular amase- ments.
 To what extent this matter may have weigh ed upon the minds of the bishops, it is impos- sible to tell.
 From the fact, however, that they did not deem the body ready for business until two prayers had been offered, and that the opening invocation of one of the ministers should have been supplemented by fervent petition from one of their own number, there is at least room for suspicion that these dignitaries thought it well to be on the safe side.
 That the delegates were little perplexed by their strange surroundings was shown at once. Dr. Neely, of Pennsylvania, wanted to know the technical name of the part of the house occupied by the dele gates. Dr. Buckley referred him to General Fisk, ''who evidently" he remarked, ''was the only one present who knew all about the aters."
 This, of course, provoked 8 great litter, but General Fisk is not the man to rest easy under a joke of that kind, and his prompt reply was that Dr. Buckley, in his work on the theater, had called the part in question the parquette. This, in allusion to book written by the doctor in opposition to the theater, and while the conference roared with laughter, as religious bodies al ways do when they get good chance, Dr. Buckley cloSed the incident and again brought down the house by thanking the general 'tfor his gratuitous advertisement of 8 most excel lent book"
 Really, though, testing aside, and casuistry ruled out, this magnificent opera house is an admirable place. for such @ gathering, and the committee who secured it deserve all praise.
 The special significance arising from the fact of the conference assembling in New York has been alluded to repeatedly in the speeches. The last meeting here was in 1S44, the ever-memorable occasion when the church divided on the question whether bishop should be allowed to own slaves The vote on that point being in the mega tive, the southern delegates withdrew, the result being the formation of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, which has now nearly a million members besides the two million in the Methodist Episcopal church The contrast between then and now was stated in striking manner in the address of welcome by Dr. Hare, of New York. The two churches. he said, which then separated, were now almost ready to come to- geIher again, while, in the body before him, were men of dark skin, who had been born in slavery. the position of the church being, in this day, not merely that bishop may not own slaves, but that no man can own his fel- low-man.
 New York, when the conference last as- sembled here, had about 40, 900 in popula- tiou against its present 1 ,600, 900; the nation but 10000, 900; the Methodist Episcopal church, 1,000,000; whereas now the two branches number over 3 3,00e, ,000; the general conference at that time but 1S0 delegates, only one of that number being in the present body, the venerable Dr. J. M Trim ble of Ohio, who has been 8 delegate to every conference since. The point was also made that the general conference of 1S44 was clean shayen throughout, and the ge- nial Bishop Bowman observed pleasantly that his memory carried him back to the time when the brethren before him, who
 
 archal heads, would not have been admit ted to any church in the denomination-at which some old veteran near the platform showed such an attachment for the former over the latter times as to ejaculate with true Methodistic unction, "Thank the Lord.n
 Speaking of boards leads one naturally to think of barbers, which reminds me that the tonsorial profession has at least one reps resentative in the present conference, 8 fact which is not at all surprising when it is re- membered that there are colored dele gates to the number of 39, and that some of these are not in the ministry. The full list of delegates shows 281 ministers and 175 laymep, who represent Ill annual confer ences 129 of the ministers are presiding elders, 102 pastors in active service, Il edi- tors of organs of the church, 19 presidents, deans, officers, and agents of educational institutions, 5 missionaries, persons con- nected with the publishing interests of the church, and 13 officers of church societies. Among the 1aymen there are 27 lawyers, 34 merchants, 12 bankers, 13 teachers, 10 manufacturers, 9 dealers in real estate, insurance men, 6 farmers, judges, 3 presidents of universities, railroad president, physicians, 3 capitalists. i governor Governor Lounsbury of Connecti- cut, national bank examiner, publisher author" county auditor, 1 congress- man, civil engineer, State dairy and food commissioner, 1 contractor, lecturer" (the Hon. Will Cumback, ex-Lieutenant- Cover nor of Indiana), meat packer, mill super intendent, stock broker John D. Slayback). representing New York, clerk of the signal service, upholsterer, keeper of the Na- tional cemetery, undertaken, mason, 1 dentist, photographer, retired sea captain, 1 notary public, professor of music, shoe- maker, and barber.
 Thus, not only is the church represented in the body, but the world has a fair repre- sentation in it as well. Certainly, too, the flesh has good show, for a body of men more generally inclined to embonpoint is seldom seen. But having said that the world and the flesh are here, we draw the line, religiously refusing to admit the pres ence of the other fellow, unless perchance he may Turk behind the scenes for time, after the play is over, just to see how the old place looks when put to its new uses. That, however, which gave paramount in- terest to the opening of the conference was the certainty that there would be "a woman in the case, !" and that, enthusiastically speak