The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1897-01-02
METHODIST PREACHERS.
Sam Jones Gives Us u Glimpse Of
Their Lives.


The annual gathering of the Nortl
Georgia conference has just closed IT
session at Dalton, and when | got OF
board the train yesterday in my tow
for Atlanta l found n train load o
Methodist preachers-a jolly, hearty
noble company of men homewart
bound from the session of their confer
cnce, to move 10 new fields of lnbo
and some to go back to their old fields
M Methodist preachers appointment
to any pastorate lasts longer than 1.
months. Their term of Office expires
every IL months-eyery year-and they
are either removed or reapponted tt
the same work. This fact keeps up the
in tercst in these annual gatherings.
Every Methodist preacher attends his
conference If he has to borrow the
money to pay his fare or walk. They
look forward to their annual conference
when they shall all be united socially
and relgiously again. Methodist
preachers are very fond of each others
company. A fellow feeling makes them
wondrous kind. After the roll call at
the beginning of their annual session
the regular routine of business begins
Each Methodist preachers character is
passed, one after another, if there is
nothing against him. There is no
| church that guards the character of
| her preachers more than the Methodist
church. The fact that he is a Methodist
preacher is pretty good proof that he
| is all right. If there is any report
against him his case is referred to a
committee, and If there be any grounds
for the report, specific charges are pre-
ferred against him. Now and then a
Methodist preacher is arraigned for
heresy, or for INSTRUMENTATION, and oc-
casionally one for immortality. No
preachers character is passed at the
annual conference until he first gives an
account of his work, which embraces
the success of his ministry in spiritual
things and which discloses his fidelity
in raising the various collections
ordered by the church.
Then they have applications for adj
mission into the conference, whose
cases are all voted upon after pretty
thorough representation of the special
cases. These sessions or annual confer
ences last generally from five to seven
days. In the meantime the bishop and
his cabinet hold their sessions between
the sessions of the conference, and gen
orally at night. The bishop and the
cabinet at the conferences is composed
~ 1,n 1NiCh1,N hn
elders on the districts of the confer
ence. The presiding elders are simply
an advisory board to the bishop. They
discuss the fitness and unftness of GER
tain preachers for certain appointments
The bishop who seeks the glory of God
and the good of men only has an ardu-
Gus task at an annual conference be-
cause he acts for both parties, the
preacher and the church he is to
serve.
One of our bishops said: eve have
three classes Of preachers in our CON
ference. The first class are the best
preachers whom everybody wants at
every church The second class is com
posed of the preachers that nobody
wants. The third is composed of the
preachers who are taken by any church
without murmuring." The first two
classes give the bishop good deal of
trouble. 1t is hard to determine where
to send q preacher when 200 places
want him. 1t is hard to know what to
do with preacher when not one out of
the 200 places wants him. 1t is an easy
task to place large ma iority of preach
ers who will go anywhere and whom
any place will take without murmur-
ing.
Each conference has what is called
its "gum-logs." They are generally
men who are inefficient and don't know
it, They are men that no charge wants,
and yet they fatter themselves that
they are generally sought for by all the
churches. Two of orr Georgia preach
ers once upon a time when they were
young and effective being mutual
friends agreed with each other to keep
tab and that so soon as one found that
the other was growing ineffective and
getting TO he a gum-log he would so
notify him. Time wore on. BY and by
they were both old preachers. Finally
one screwed his courage up to the
sticking point, took his friend out to
one side and said: 81 have painful
duty to perform. We pledged each
other in our younger days that if either
of us grew ineffective we would notify
the other. In compliance with that
promise ! come to you to say that you
are no longer sought after by any,of the
churches. None of the churches want
you. You are a gum-log the conference
can't float" Whereupon the gum-log |
replied to his friend: "There is not a
word of truth, sir, in what you say.
am more sought after to-day than |
ever in my ministry. But | am candid |
when say to you that you are the most
inefficient man in our conference. You |
are the worst gum-log of ALL preach
er is the last fellow in the world to find I
out that he is a gum-log.
From all these annual gatherings I
many preachers oaway disgruntleda and
with their appointments.
Some of them talk outright. Others put
On an air of injured innocence and sub
lued greatness, and feel that great in
Justice has been done them. If all the
preachers were effective pastors
md all of the places were
rood appointments every annual
conference would be religious
picnic. But there are many gum-logs to
BE disposed of by the bishop and his
'abinet and there are scores of places
hat no preacher wants.
The salaries of these preachers range /
rom 900 (the highest) down TO 500
( he loWestl There are NOT many