The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-11-29

| widows home / want to hear ii re-
| joice in the Christian school; ! want
| to hear it shout in the mission work OF
| Japan and of the isles of the sea and
| echo back to me from the hills and val
| leys of all the continents of the earth.
| YESTERDAYS SESSION.
TIE Western North Carolina Confer
| ence convened in it's second days ses-
| sion at a. IN. to-day. The opening
worship was conducted by Rev. NJ. V.
| Sheriff..
The preachers wore the face of happy
| men this morning. The bright skies,
| the invigorating atmosphere, the cor
| diality and comfort of the Reidsyille
| homes, the richly laden tables make
| these hard-working and hard fighting
soldiers of Christ feel comfortable and
| in love with all mankind. Many of
them have fought upon hard fields this
year They have left all to follow
| Christ They count not their own lives
| dear, that they may win Christ and be
| found in Him at last. And the Lord has
given them a victorious gospel. They
wear the faces of men who come from
| fields where valor was demanded and
where vaor was abundantly furnished
rifice for Christ is, and the churches
have learned to love them and to re
pose confidence in them.
Under their labors the church has
greatly prospered. 1t has been a year
of surprising revival interest. These
men, and all like them, are pioneers of
our Christian civilization and the con
servatorS of all the best interests of the
world. The members of this confer
ence have well earned this short sea-
son of rest and Of close fellowship one
with another. Their reports have in
them an echo of conflicts seen aud of
trials passed, and also the suppressed
shout of triumphant achievement
The morning session was taken up
with the passage of character of a
large number of the preachers. In pass
ing the character of a young preacher
his presiding elder remarked that the
only objection he had heard to him
was that his sermons were too short
The bishop replied, ''Never mind that
Tell his people that he will grow in
grace in that respect"
At 1870 a. IN. the conference went
into Thanksgiving services. A great
congregation filled the spacious house
of God. Hymn No. 726 was sung
Prayer was offered by Rev. DR.. Barbee
and hymn God Bless Our Native
Land was sung. Bishop Duncan read
Psalm 104 and commented. The bishop
took for his text the Tooth Psalm. 4th
and 5th verses. when / hear people in
our republic lamenting the condition of
affairs among us, said the bishop. 81
feel like SAYING to them that there are
multiplied millions of people on the
earth who know nothing of the com
forts that the poorest of us in America
enjoy. Gods gifts to us have been eX-
ceeding large and instead of complain
ing we should be praying to God. Some
of us, in travelling, complain if we
can't have vestibule train to put us
through the country at the rate OF
sixty miles an hour. All this spirit of
complaint is an abomination to God.
Gratitude to God is the greatest sauce
on the earth. 1t makes an old pone of
corn-bread as good as a plum pud
ding"
The bishop told ofthe old sister who
asked Bishop Early to dinner with her
and set before him some fat meat and
gravy and corn-bread and said to him:
Brother Early, this is the best ! have.
If you are Christian it is good enough
for you; if you are not, tbs too good
for you" He ate with gratitude.
~ great deal of the dissatisfaction
in the public mind is not because the
mercies of God are not plentiful, but it
is because one party is in and wants to
stay III, and the other party is out, but
does not want to stay out.
II think this country is greater than
any party in it and it will stand. /
wish that people would pray to the
Lord for sense instead of praying for
money. Give me understanding, Lord
is what you should pray. | never
doubted that my mother loved me and
yet some times she would wake me up
at II O'Clock at night 10 whip me. So
it makes no difference what God does
to me, / know He is good and that He
loves me. Brethren, thank God that
after serving hard fields, if you have
no money to leave your children, you
can leave them Gods truth"
"When a man gets so low down as
70 insult me, | get so high up that he
cannot do it,"
'Instead of going around as an old
Democrat, or an old Republican, or old
Populist and abusing Grover Cleve-
lana, go INTO your closet ana pray for
him and thank God that you have such
a glorious country"
The Bishops sermon was pronounc-
ed by the foremost men assembled
here, great sermon. 1t was full of
thankfnlness to God, full of hopeful
ness for the future. AS he preached
you felt that warm sun was shining
upon the earth and that God was reign
ing over all the Offices of this world.
A collection was taken at the close
for the Oxford Orphans home amount
ing to about 500.
At 1880 a large and enthusiastic
meeting in the interest of the Epworth
League was held.
1st. How to conduct "A league de-
yotional meeting. Rev. F.F. Mann open
ed with good talk.
2nd. How to make the reading course
a success. Mr.. =. b. Crawford, a
bright young layman and the son of
Rev. l.. W. Crawford made the open
ing speech under this head, very fine
ten-minutes talk.
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