The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-04-25
WILL THE WOMEN WIN?
The Rustic Of Skirts May Be Heard
in the Methodist Conference.
OUADRENNIAL GATHERING OF
CHRISTIAN WORKERS.

Cleveland Will Witness Some Stirring
scenes-The Old Rule of Itinerancy
VIII Get a Shaking Up-Notab1e Fig
ures in the Assemblage.
Cleveland, Ohio, April s2-There will
convene in this city on May l, body of
ohurchmen representing denomination
that has grown in hundred years ono
this continent from Sc, 900 communicates
to a great host exceeding $500, 600; that
has in the field of spiritual instruction
an army of ordained teachers Of more
taan 1900; that owns 26500 churches
valued at Sos, 900, 600; that has created
and lstained a sufficient number of edu-
cstional institutions to form CITY and
has educated students enough to supply
its population.
This will be, In part, what the twanty-
second delegated General Conference of
the Methodist Episcopal Church in
America will stand for when the dele
gates meet in quadrennial session to dis
USE anu pass upOA SOl1lO VA VhO JAAoou AL
pnrtant questions of Church policy and
discipline that have been considered since
the meeting of the sixteenth conference
in 1872. 1t promises to be a notable gath
ering of active, vigorous workers. in an
active and vigorous organization This
Is the first general conference that has
ever been held in Cleveland. Of the
twenty-one General Conferences held be-
tween the years 1884 and 1892, ten have
been in the city of Baltimore. The re-.
mainder have been in Boston, Buffalo,
Pittsburg, Indianapolis, Philadelphia,
Chicago. New York and Omaha. There
were present at Omaha four years ago 315
ministerial and 189 lay delegates total
OF 504. The exact number that will be
admitted to the convention in Cleveland
will approximate coo, and it is possible
that measures will be taken to keep with
in that limit at all General Conferences
thereafter.
Tae principal interest in this great con-
vention win centre i'll the question of
women delegates-whether they are to
be or not to be. 1t is not new, by any
means, but 1t has never been fought to a
conclusion as it promises to be fought
how. The contest will probably be even
more spirited than the great battle in
1879, when lay delegates were for the first
time admitted and this Woman's Foreign
Missionary Society was recognized. The
New York conference showed how it felt
by voting SO for anti SO against admission
of women as lay delegates. This ladies
who are proposed for places in the GEN
eral Conference are Mrs. Jane Eashford,
wife of j. w. Bashford, president OF the
Ohio University Mrs. Parker, a mission
arg, whose field has been in India, and
Mrs Lydia A. Iri1nbls, who has been a
faithful and successful worker in China.
A nomentous practical question to be
decided at this meeting is whether or moi
the time limit of the itinerancy shall be
changed or modified. At present no min.
lister can remain in charge OF one congre-
cation or circuit longer than five years.
City pastors and congregations are il
many cases opposed TO the maintenance
OF this as an imperative rule, contendine
that it is prejudicial to the interests Of
Methodism in the centres Of population.
Previous to the year 1888, the limit was
three years. but the victory of the city
interest eight years ago will not be fol.
lowed, it is expected, By any radical
change this year.
The delegates will come from every
Methodist conference on earth, the ooun.
tries represented being the United States,
including all its States and Territories
Mexico, South America, China, Japan,
India, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Italy
and A trica. There may be representa-
tives from Austria, France. Spain and
several other countries, but they are not
regularly constituted delegates because
no conferences exist in their lands. Fra
ternal delegates will also come from other
Methodist churches outside the Methodist
Episcopal These will include the Metho-
dist of England, Canadian Methodist,
Methodist Church South, Methodist Pro
testant and African Methodist Episcopal
Representatives will be here from various
church societies, as the Church Extension
Society, the Women's Home and Foreign
Missionary societies, Freednan's Aid So
ciety, Bible and Tract societies, the regu-
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