Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1896-03-26
NOT NIsREPREsRyTpn

an
article on the Primitive Ms,t-,.
Church with special reference ).
position and prospects in the ~.
This we did because the stren,,h
the Western Conference Is n -,
region more than half OF II b4,,o :
the southern part Of Iowa county e
much of the rest being contipuop,
IT. All churches have their bpsir.
aspect as well as their religions Nj
and II seems better that facts q,
have an important bearing on hon
should be stated in such a form 49,
they can be weighed and pondered !,
stead of being embodied in rnma.
that become distorted and mislea5,.
True, it seems to some sneb sat-
ments give those. who are IN a..
sense competitors in the sama wo,l
the chance TO claim an ADVANTAGE Y
saying THEY do not have such hin.
in their churches. But this o,lr
shows, either they do not know mno.
about the history Of their own insti,r
lions, and how the quiet they epio,
has been reached by intense olsen.
sion; or they are willing thar otbA,,
should think and act for them.
We endeayored to state facts AZ 10
knew them, and while in one Or Two
respects our differences or comment,
might seem severe, they were such !,
seemed warranted by the facts stated
It was said by some who felt
pinched by what was said that a renlv
was to be made. Patient waiting fol.
lowed, and the period of incubation
having expired. we feared the result
WAS nothing, and that what had been
spoken of as misleading would mass
uncorrected. We have always been
just as willing to learn from our critics
as from anybody else. But il seems
a months sitting was not in vain. and
the brood has come to life and its
members are named " Misrepresenta.
tons, and the article that intro.
duces them is styled Primitive Meth.
odism Misrepresented."
We read with care, and our conclu.
sion was that the writer, where he
touched the points in the article he
assailed, singularly proved even better
than the writer of it, the statements he
assailed and pronounced misrepre-
sensations. These we would like to
notice as briefly as possible. We have
no time for much that has been said
that is irrelevant an immaterial, and
much that seems also FoRCrBLE-
FEEBLE as sparing the compositor He
does not ask TO be spared when be can
get good copy to set. We did not say
anything about the Curriculum or
course of study fixed in the confer
ence. We know that it is not a man
going through this course, or it going
through him, but the result it leaves is
the main thing.
He justties the secret caucus Of
preachers just before the last confer,
ence, by the rumors that were abroad
and the fact that pastor had been
chosen by the most prominent church
in way that from Discipline stand.
point, was illegal and unconstitutional.
OF the rumors none knew better their
truth and value than many who cireu-
lated them. Illegal and unconstltu-
tional! Because they maintained that
one of themselves must be chosen OF
forced upon people who did not desire
their services. 1t was as a protest
against this that Primitive Methodism
was established. Primitive Methodsm
does not guarantee any of its ministers
a place where they are not desired nor
force any preacher into position he
is unwilling to take. Because it y
optional for preacher to take a place
or church to take preacher the roll
of both is called in every conference
to find out what preachers want work
and what churches WANT preacher
All that the Mineral Point church
needed to do was to say on this roll
call that she had concluded to be leit
to be supplied, as she has done before
and may do again. But the chuFeh
and its present pastor wished to worh
in harmony with the conference out
this was not conceded, but was deost-
ed, voted down, reconsidered, and the
whole matter was then withdrawn
from the Jurisdiction of the conference
~ 49, aon 49, Afiuaral B0inL