Smyrna times., 1896-03-18
WILMINGTON CONFERENCE.
Annual Session Meets To-Day il Dover
Changes That VIII Likely Take Place.

Annual Session Meets To-Day il Dover
Changes That VIII Likely Take Place.
The most of the members of the Will
Inington Conference left for Dover
yesterday, for the opening session,
this morning. For the past several
Conferences (since the transfer of Rev.
!. A. B. Wilson,, there has been un-
usual peace in the sessions, but this
year though the principal is away, the
impression has gotten out that the
Conference would be dominated by
the old Wilsonian spirit through
Bishop Warren. 1t is said to have had
its incipiency in a wish to provide for
Rev. c. S. Baker, a Wilson ''heeler,"
so to speak, who had finished his term
at Asbury Church, Crisfeld, and had
not been invited elsewhere. 1t was
thought this could be done by re-
arrangement of the Elderships so he
could be put in charge of the Sails
bury District.
The ground for this apprehension
was the fact that Bishop H. w. Warren
has been assigned as the presiding
officer of this Conference Bishop
Warren last presided at the session of
1887, held in Crisfeld, Md, which
session was marked by more wire-pull-
ing and intrigue than the average pO-
litical convention. Those were the
days when Rev. J. A. B. Wilson was
at the zenith of his power, and made
that power felt in shifting those who
opposed him and rewarding those who
followed under his banner.
Besides changing his name from his
assignment with Rev. W. l.. S. Muir
ray to the hotel, where he could have
free intercourse with the Wilsonians,
a feeling of suspicion and unrest was
started by a communication printed in
a recent issue of the Baltimore NcthO-
dist, signed by Bishop Warren, and
addressed to the three annual confer
ences - Baltimore, Washington and
WilmingtOn-over which he has been
assigned to preside this year, the
Salisbury district being held up as
model. In this communication the
Bishop sought to show that the cOllec-
tiOns i'll the several districts of the
conferences had fallen below the
amounts of several previous years.
Those who are looking for fight in
sisted that the hand of DIR. Wilson was
in this paper, and that it was designed
to show that the work in the districts
of this Conference had not been con-
Quoted with the effectiveness that
marked it while he was one of the rul-
ing spirits.
The Peninsula NcthOdist, published
in Wilmington, took issue last week
with the Bishops paper, and held that
his figures did not ''enlighten any one
as to the self-denying and holy devo-
tiOn of the givers, and the equally
worthy zeal and unpaid labors of the
faithful pastors who have made these
collections. " The Peninsula .ncthO-
dist also contended that the Bishops
comparisons were very suspicious,
coming as they did on the eve of cleo
ton of delegates to the General Con-
ference
The terms of Presiding Elders Smith
and Adams do not expire this year,
but it is said that slate has been pre-
pared which has Rev. DIR. w F. Cork
ran for presiding elder of the Easton
District, Rev. DIR. G. A. Grace for the
Dover District, Rev. c. S. Baker for
the Salisbury District and Rev. J. D.
c. Hanna for Wilmington,
Whatever may have been the plans
of this faction (and ministers do not
question that some such scheme was
intended), it lis now doubted, because of
the publicity that has appeared in the
Wilmington and Philadelphia papers.
that it can be carried out. 1t is a lit
tie strange that none of the new
Bishops - elected eight years ago
have never been sent to preside over
the Wilmington Conference-menu un-
trammeled by the domineering, mis-
chievOus spirit above referred to.
There are four ministerial and two
lay delegates to be elected to the
Generel Conference. The papers give
the following as the names likely to be
chosen from: Presiding Elders Barrett,
Corkran, Smith and Adams, DIR, Mer-
ritt Hulburd, of Grace Church, Will
mington, and Revs. Adam Stengle,
Walter Avery, B. F. Price, John D. G.
Hanna and Vaughn S. Collins. Two
lay delegates are also to be elected,
and the candidates mentioned include
eH-Judge 1. N. Hearn, of Whitesville:
G. G. Cox of Fairmount; Captain
Thomas j. Truxton, of Lewes; Hon.
John II. Hoffecker, of Smyrna; Walter
H. Thompson, of Easton; Professor
w. L. Gooding, of the Conference
Academy, and Henry F. Pickles, of
Wilmington.