The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-04-26

delegates sends also two lay delegates.
These are not elected by the ministers,
but by laymen, who meet In confer
enco By themselves for that express
purpose. Some OF tho annual confer
ciccs arc so large that they send rs
many as six ministerial delegates; but
the laymen arc allowed not moro tn an
two, md where but n single minister Is
scnt,only one. This gives to the lai,y
n representation In the lnw.making
body Of only about ono.third. In tho
last general conference tho figures were :
ministers, 2Sl; layincn, l75. Tho cleo.
tions 10 the coming assembly are not
yet complete. Tho full returns, how.
ever, will show u sinilnrtdisproportion,
though there will DO q slight increase In
tho totals. rirl
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS.
Naturally the laymen are dissatisfied
with this state OF things. Paying the
bills of the church, they feel that they
ought 10 have moro influence in making
tho laws and filling the offices. But tho
ministers think differently. Required
to vote not long ago Snpon the pfopos.
ition, whether laymcn,, should DO al.
lowed equal representation In thSScn.
eral conference with, themselves, tilcy
met the issue by an emphatic negative.
The vote in favor OF, equality WIS 2,S92;
against 5,476. To. effect suclr a change
MS this, not only must the ministers 80
favorable, but they must. assentst to 1t by
a thrcc.fourths majority. instead 81
this, however, they put themselves on
record during the present.
by q majority OF almost three.fourths OH
tho opposite side. /.
Another proposition which the min
listers in their annual conference have
failed 10 indorse ID that which looked
toward the admission OF women into
this governing body. 1t was virtually
decided by the lust general conference
that tho question Of woman's eligibility
was q constitutional one and that tho
movement toadmit her must gothrouyh
the regular constitutional course This
required, rs in the other case cited, n
three-fourths majority OF the ministers
voting in the annual conferences, and q
two-thirds majority OF the delegates to
the general conference. How the body
last named will vote, remains to be seen,
but the proposition is already defeated
for the present. 1t has secured 4 ma.
jority, but not a sufficiently large ma
joritv to make it Il law, the vote being
$500 in favor Of admission and biol
against it. The vote OF the latty ON this
subjrct-which counts, however, only
as M expression oil opinion-was. For,
235,G6S; against, lG3,Sl3.
SOLUTIONS PROPOSED.
Both OF these questions will engage
the attention OF tho brethren ut the con.
ference about to convene. So faraas leg
%islation is concerned, they will be the
most interesting topics that body will
consider. 1t is not possible that the
laymen will be any better satisfied with
q minority representation than they
were four years ago; norris it couceiv-
able that woman, lovely woman1 will
rest content under her ban OF exclusion.
.Atthe~ lastgeneral conference the woman
question was under debate for about
six days. 1t was q hard mt to crack,
and the orators on both sides brought
all their strength to bear in the effort
to extract q satisfactory kernel. After
ali, however, the question is still UNI
settled, and it is not in the least unlike.
ly that We shall hear wei again in the
coming conference the same arguments
pro and con which were threshed out in
the last, and shall witness, also, in the
effort to have women seated on an equal
footing with men the same scenes OF
ever-memorable excitement.
Asto the admission in larger numbers
Of the laymen, this is opposed strenu-
ously by many OF the ministers, not so
much because they object to the princi-
pie involved, as from the fact-to state
the case broadly-that they are human,
and do not, therefore, like the idea OF
taking tho bread out Of their
mouths. To send lay delegates to gen
eral conference in equal proportion With
the clergy, would mean that finally a
smaller number oil the clergy could en-.
JOY this honor; for to make the confer
ence two.thirda larger than it is, oreven
onc.third larger, with the two order
sitting together, and with the sessions
continuing through 4 whole month, is a
prospect not to be thought Of for q mo
ment.
Possibly q solution may be reached
By providing that the; Iaity and Clergy
shall deliberate separately in different
buildings. Meanwhile it is proposed to
relieve the situation Mt the gathering
about to convene by s%eatin. the Two or
ders on opposite sides OF the house.
Heretofore, the laity and ministry have
been mixed up, and tho point has we'll
been made that such an arrangement
tends to keep the laymen in the back.
ground; that they not only cannot Ii
ter rs many votes rs the clergy, butthat,
az the case stands, they have less chance
than their more numerous and moro
valuable brethren to secure the priyi-
lege, OF the floor. What will be done
in this matter we shall know shortly.
But it goes without the saying that hay
ing to adjust so many matters Of deli.
cacy; with the woman question still on
its hands and the struggle for equal
rights between clergy and laitv clalnor-
ing Tor setllcment-to say nothing OF
tho many high officials it will have to
elect. and the many changes Of disclp-
line it will be asked to make-this CON
ference willliave plenty to do, and will
attract to itself q large share Of public
attention. II. r.
Guitonu's Lawyer Dead.
BALTIMORE, Mp, April o5.-Charles B.