The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-10-06

III danger. Ioy ~ uUAGEy u AuluDcE VA tLC
churches in Washington county, saved a
small church which has since become the
most influential in the locality. Let the
churches of the convention face the situa-
ton brayeIy and wisely ana next year
there may be better outlook.
Rev. DR.. Wilson of the Free street
church, Portland, spoke of the need OF the
mem bers feeling that this was a question
for each of them. They should take the
matter up theinsel and not shoulder it
off on the executive committee. Ii we
wait for the executive committee to
formulate plan, we shall pick flaws in
it, for we shall ali find fault until our
wings. are grown and we are full ffedged
angels, just as our fathers did before US
and our children will after us Go home
to your churches and take this matter up.
How? / don't know as that matters
much. Let each study it for himself:
Take the convention Offering hrst ana
then take care of the convention denc1t
Why that debt will get up and hump it
self if the church gets up and humps it.
self.
REV. MR.. MASON
of Dexter then made his proposition. He
assembled the platform and spoke earnestly
of his fifteen years connection with the
church in Maine and his interest in its
work. He proposed that the services OF
ufl6 corresponding ecCfSte3Fy 10 dlSf'Cbncu
with for one and perhaps two years,
member of the executive committee, say
Mr.. Whittemore, doing the work and re-
ceiving suitable compen sation. MIR.
Mason said that it was not pleasant for
him to make this statement. He knew it
would not commend itself to many. he
had not been asked to make it, and he
did so on his own responsibility, actuated
by desire to do what was right.
Several r1embarg rrOTnptlV EXPRESSED
dissent from this plan. Rev. DIR. BurraRe
smoke earnestly against the proposition.
He said he did not believe that half
DOZEN members in the house would be
found to be in favor of it. II the conyen.
ton did not want the services of Brother
Dunn, let somebody else be secured, but
let not the work be abandoned. There is
another side in this matter. Go back six
years and you will find that before that
for period of many years, the Bapt1sts
of Maine had been losing. They had lost
about 2000 mem bers, but in the past six
years they have gained about that num-
Der. Twenty years ago the Baptisus OF
Maine gave sig. 000 year to convention
purposes. Last year they gave S27, 900 the
largest amount in their history. What
matters it if after these years of financial
strinpency, there was q decrease in the
past year. it is right to look on both
sides of the is question. We have looked
on one as is right. Let US not forget the
othsr-that the Baptists of Maine, about
the same in numbers as they were twenty
years ago, have in that time doubled
their contributions.
Rev. DIR. Chase spoke earnestly in favor
of renewed effort. He was glad that this
question had been raised although he did
not favor the proposition. He wanted no
backward step. He did not want the ex-
penses reduced or the services of the secre-
%o,-x - How pafh ha yOy1Id in
struct him to go out and use greater
efforts to arouse the churches.
Rev. DIR Spencer said that when Mr..
Mason made his suggestion he could not
help thinking, Does he really mean 1t?
1t must be a sober jest,a deep laid plan to
stir us up and arouse interest. DR.. Spen-
Ger spoke earnestly against the PROPOSE
tion. He concluded By saying that lie
might not have great logic. but he did
have deep feeling on this subject.
Rev. DR.. Lakewood Of Boston said
that, like DR.. Spencer when he heard MIR.
Mason's remarks. he thought they must
have been designed to stir the brethren
up. Maine was undergoing what other
states had undergone in the past few
years. states which had already been in
the dumps The action proposed by Mr..
Mason would be a surprise in other states.
for no man was more appreciated in the
work than Secretary Dunn. (Applause.)
DON'TDO ANYTHING FOOLISH
because you are discouraged.
Rev. Mr.. Wbittemore. who was men
toned by Mr.. Mason as a man who might
do the work. said that his name had been
used without his consent. don't believe,
said he that the good Lord would put
this burden on me, and If he did l would
not take it. Then Mr.. Whittemore made
some pointed remarks on ways and means
No ha1 "a y,rQU rnpAtinO in chI1rph
before we came up here about this matter,
he said. In the 1nidst of the eloquepce, I
looked al one Of my deacOnS who is
large giver, and be looked at me, for the
man was speaking then hadn't given a
red cent for five years, and don't believe
he will for the next five. Brother Mason
meant we'll when he made that suggestion
He had the work at heart Don't kill him
because of 1t. Kill me, if you want to,
don't care.
Rev. Mr.. Newcomb said that whatever
m light be wise, he thought it was some
thing of an insult to say that Mr.. Mason's
suggestion should be regarded in Pick.
wickian sense. He did not take it as a
joke, but after thought and prayer. and
after writing to the secretary about 1t.
There had been too much of this talk
about joke. It was not a retreat to cut
your garment in accordance with your
cloth. Mr.. Newcomb believed the sug-
gestion good one.
Rev DR.. Spencer exclaimed: Mr..
Chairman, there is no doubt this would
be regarded as retreat. 1t would be SO
regarded in every church.
A voice-No.
DR.. Spencer--We have had a secretary
for thirty years and more. We have good
ono now and we want to keep him. To
dispense with his services would be re-
treat.
Rev. Mr.. Flanders wanted to take issue
with the statement that the comments on
MIR. Mason's suggestion were in the
NATURE OF AN INSULT.
Nothing of the kind was intended. He
loved Mr.. Mason as much as he ever did.
Mr. Flanders said he was q new man in
Maine, but he knew of the value of Sec
rotary from his knowledge of the work in
other states. Ths action proposed would
be mistake. He thought a resolution
should be adopted directing the executive
committee to raise more money. sa .-s-ssetssgsA
Rev. My. Ford Of PASSPORT told Of the
encouragement small churches derived
from visits of tho secre tary.
The discussion came to an end when
DIR. Dunn came to the front of the plat.
e.. 10 -