Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-08

peu IN the luuplS oulluinS o. GAtu
and Pine streets. In 1859 this property
was sold for SIPS. 900, and the proceeds
| invested in the present building, at Six
teenth and Pine streets, which was erect
| ed the same year, at cost of $3.50 900.
| 1t is the largest and most costly church
/ in the Southern connection, and is rec
| ognized throughout the country as the
cathedral church of Southern Method
| ism. The conference meeting will be
| held in the main auditorium, and the
lecture and class rooms have been as
| signed to the bishops and secretaries for
! reception and other sem;-private pur-
poses During the conference the build
| ing will be supplied with telephone, tele-
! graph and postal service, and every con-
Venienee, both for dispatch and comfort
Of delegates, will be provided.
! STANDING COMMITTEES.
There will be ten or twelve standing
committees which will have in review
respectively missionary, publication,
educational, church extension, Sunday
school and other departments in the
work of the church. Rooms have been
rented In the exposition building for the
sessions of these committees.
Mr.. Scruggs has also closed negotia-
tions with the hotels, has secured homes
| for all VITO VIII be present, and Is now
| engaged sending out to each delegate no.
tice OF rates and routes of travel, the
| location of their homes during the ses-
sion and the manner of reaching them
| on their arrival in the city. While many
| of the prominent delegates will be the
guests of personal friends during their
stay in St. Louis, most OF them Will be
quartered at the Laelede, Southern,
Lindell, Richeiieu and Montesano hotels.
THE OPENING SESSION
| of the conference will be held Wednes-
day morning, May Z, at O'Clock.
Bishop J. g. Keener OF New Orleans,
senior bishop of the church, will preside
and start the meeting work. The num-
Der of delegates will be 200, composed in
equal numbers of clergymeu and laymen.
They represent forty conferences in Mex-
leo, Brazil and China, together with the
representatives of the church In other
foreign lands where the missions have
| not vet organized into conferences. The
representation is based on two delegates,
| one lay and one clerical, for every thirty
| six members of each annual conference.
| This general conference is the legislative
j body aud the supreme power in the
| church II has unlimited authority,
| except as restricted by certain rules
which guard the integrity of its doc
trlne and perpetuates its itine-
rant system of ministers and rights of
the members. In addition to looking
after all the interest of the church,
there will come up for adjudication be-
fore this body all matters failing to be
amicably settled in the annual con-
ferenoes. One subject of considerable
Importance to be attended TO at this
meeting will be to provide for az ac-
ceptable disposition of the surplus
moneys on hand secured in profits from
the church's publication institutions.
At present this money Is used in creating
q fund for the maintenance of WORKOUT
preachers, their widows and orphans.
1 1t is intended to appropriate part of
this money in the future toward the
spreading of biblical literature and
cheapening the cost thereof.
BISHOPS TO BE CHOSEN.
This assembly also chooses the bishops
for the church, and 1t may be that two
will be elected at this meeting. How
long it will take to complete the work of
the convention is not known, but the
session will continue for three weeks
anyway, and it is not probable that the
final adjournment will occur before
June l.
NORTH AND SOUTH.
Ex-Governor Patterson CT Penusylvs-
mia ia one of the delegated representa-
tiyes from the Northern connection, and
this fact, taken along with the general
speculation that has been INDUCED
in on the subject for the past
few years, gives plsusibility to the
rumor that one of the very important
matters to come up for consideration will
be the de7ising of plans and methods to
effect union of the Northern and
Southern churches. However, if such
action is seriously contemplated, no indt-
cation of that fact has yet reached the
public, and for that reason but little
confidence is placed in the report. On
the other hand, 1t is argued thal the
unfortunate agitation which caused the
disseutiou has long since been deter
mined forever, and there is now nothing
standing in the way of lasting and
heppy reuniting of the two vast powers
whose aims and objects are one and the
same.
FINE PREACHING.
, One feature of the convention especial
; " gratifying to the local congregations
will be the opportunity thus afforded OF
hearing sermons by every prominent
minister in the church. There will be
public worship and preaching every
! night during the conference at Centen-
, ary, and services also at two or three Of
the other more prominent churches In
! the city. This arrangement will all be
! in charge of the committee on public
worship, appointed by the conference,
and which usually consists of the presid-
, ing elder and pastors of local churches
ct the place of assembling.
: BISHOPS OF THE CHURCH.
The bishops of the church are eight in
number, and they are all expected to be
present on this occasion. Their names
and addresses are: Bishops John c..
} Keener, New Orleans; A. w. Wilson,
Baltimore; j. G. Cranberry, st. Louis;
r. ]. Hargrovs, Nashville: G. B. Gallo
way, jackson, Miss; E. R. Hendrix,
; Kansas City; W. w. Duncan, Spartan
burg, S. c.. and Joseph Key, Fort
) Worth, Tex. In addition to these celeb
rites of the church many of the most dis
, tinguished men in the political and COM
Ia