The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1892-02-26
The APPROACH session of Troy
Conference ut PIa sburgh

The Troy conference of the Methodist
Episcopal church covers territory
which may be roughly described as eX-
tending from Rouses Point to Stuyves-
ant and from Fort plain to Washington,
Mass, including also about half of the
state of Vermont west of the mountains.
Within this territory there are about a,
600 communicates, distributed into 23S
PASTORAL charges. Nearly half of these
charges are circuits having from two to
five preaching places, so that Methodist
services are maintained at about 375 diff
erent points. The conference itself num-
bers 275 ministers on roll and forty-siX
regular supplies"
This year the men of the extreme
north have their day, for the conference
sits at Pittsburgh, opening April ID.
This beautiful and stirring village has
one of the finest church edifices in the
conference. 1t has been but recently
erected, and is furnished with all the lat
est improvements in church architect
ure.
There is unusual interest in the com
ing session, from Its relation to the gen
eral conference, which sits in Omaha,
Neb., May l, to which six ministerial
and two lay delegates are to be elected.
For the purpose of choosing the lay del
egates the Lay Electoral conference,
composed of one delegate from each pas
torial charge, will convene on the ird
day of the session and at the same place
as the ministerial conference. The po-
sitiOn of delegate is regarded as a very
choice prize, and not little warmth
often enters into the contest.
AS the time draws near much concern
is felt by both the pastors and the
churches as to the appointments. Four
years have now passed since the change
of the time limit" from three to five
years, and it is found that previous to
session of the conference much more I'M
certainty as to the probable appoint
ments prevails now than formerly. Ne
gotiatiOn between pastors and churches
has almost received its death blow
Why this is 50 may be seen by compar-
ing the present year with 1888, the last
year previous to the change. In the lat
ter year there were forty
two men who must necessarily move by
limitation; this year there were five
who have complete full term. Thus,
while there VII undoubtedly be many
changes this spring, there are only a few
places necessarily open. The five pas
SOAo "hO blO PANpoAAhF NilSil
sermons are Rev. Il. A. Griffin of Coble-
skill, Rev. D. w. Dayton of Fort Plain,
Rev. 4. II. Brown of Greenbush, Rev. Z.
ComstOck of PittstOwn and Rev. Z. g.
Farwell of Saranac. That the change of
the time-lImit has generally heightened
the term of pastoral service is evident
from the fact that while in 1888 there
were forty-twO who had preached for
three years on one charge, there are now
sixty-eight who have completed three
years or more.
The president of the approaching ses-
sion will be Bishop Il. 5. Foster, ID. d.,
LII. D., whose oiticial residence is in
Boston. 1t is tifty-five years since
Bishop Foster entered the ministry ana
twenty since he was elected to the epis-
copal Office. Though past his three
score years and ten he still vigorously
maintains his standing in the very fore
front of the Methodist ministry as
scholar and author.