Morning journal and courier., 1892-05-26
THE GENERAL CONFERENCE.

Election Week-S0me Complication How the Elections are Conducted The Conference No Picnic-No Progress Toward Union.
 OMAHA, Neb., May 21. To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER.
 This has been election week, and, as a matter of course, it has registered the high water mark of interest. One of the delegates inquired significantly when the conference first opened, "What are We
 here fora" and it would seem, from sur face indications, as though this question had now been answered. Not that the conference is convened solely for the pur- pose of filling the offices. It has many other functions. The elections, however, occupy at least one-fourth of it's time, and
 if one may judge from what is seen and heard constantly in the Hobbies. they mo- nopolize 80 much of the thought of many of the delegates as to preclude the possi-
 bility of any other matters receiving seri ous attention until the great battle of the | ballots has been fought out.
 This is the first conference since 1876 at | which no bishops have been elected. At | first thought it would seem as though the exclusion from this contest of such prize | as the Episcopacy would detract consider
 ably from the excitement attending it. As
 it turned out, however, the decision on
 the bishop question, by the fact that it | left on the field an increased number of | candidates for the subordinate offices, gave | a new element of interest to this battle. | The expectation had been that amongst the possible elections to the Episcopacy | two or three would be drafted into service who had previously filled other influential positions. Hence there had been for & couple of weeks 8 msssing of forces to-
 ward these positions in behalf of new men. At last, therefore, the question arose-"What is to be done with these new csndidstesi" And as it Is always ea-
 sier to get man started after 8 good thing
 than to get him off the trail when game
 has been scented, the situation became
 somewhat complicated. Entries were in
 great abundance for some of the offices,
 and the results, in few cases, were not
 quite what the present incumbents either
 expected or relished.
 What these results were your readers
 will have learned by this time. The meth
 ods pursued in general conference cleo
 tions are marked by great care and by 6
 formality which is rather tedious. The
 same time consuming routine is observed
 from first to last. The election is always
 by ballot. There may be only one csndi-
 date, and still the election must proceed in
 the same form. Nor is there anything
 loose or promiscuous in the way the bal
 lots are cast In every case the roll of the
 delegations is called, these delegations. ss
 the secretary announces their name, being
 required to rise and answer Here. Il
 Then their ballots are received, and the teller who receives them completes the 60.
 ton by shouting, "Voted." This calling
 of the roll consumes in each case some
 thing like half sn hour. The tellers are
 selected by the bishops. There are two
 sets, consisting of one from each of the fourteen districts and one at large. While
 one set Is out the other set is called into
 service, and when both are out, the con ference bstakes itself with manifest reluc
 tance and pre-occupation of mind to any
 other business it may have to do. Then when the returns arc brought in, every thing immediately gives way, and while the crowded galleries, the anxious delega , tions, the still more anxious candidates and even the distinguished occupants o the platform, hold their breath and strail their ears to listen, the presiding office a | announces the vote.
 For the oface of bishop the voting pro ceeds without formal nominations. Fo 2 the other offices the naming of candidate . is allowed, but nothing beyong that. Tn
 merits of the brethren are supposed to b sufficiently well known by the time tn . ballot comes on, and formal speeches il . their favor arc not in order. This is on . instance In which the conference marks 1t sense of the economy of time, and tn F only one we recall at this moment. Bu there are plenty of nominating speeohe . made in the Hobbies, If none arc sllowet
 on the floor. In . few cases the friends o candidates do not scruple to openly cleo 7 tioneer on the floor of the conference n This was done on Tuesday last by the cil 's culation In behalf of two men of printe 'r ballots. This body, however, holds sue . msthods In holy feprobstion, and, e j, HsttsF ef spurss, sasss ssrasD far fF0R ss