Omaha daily bee., 1899-09-17

OF remaining there a lifetime, II the peopr.
want him. In discussing this proposition 9
prominent Methodist said yesterday: The
case Of DR.. John McQuoid illustrates most
forcibly that this time limit is an unjust
one. Had he lived | believe his people
would never have consented for him to leave
them, but under the present laws OF the
church he could have remained only for five
years. At the end of that time DR.. McQuoid
would have been dearer to them than ever,
and 1t would have been an injustice to
remove him. Similar cases arise every year
and have done much to create the desire
among the laity that this time clause be
eliminated"
Among the Candidates.
The all-absorbing question with Nebraska
Methodists at this time is, who shall carry
away the coveted honors entailed in the
election to the general conference? There
are four conferences in the state and In one
Of them 1t has already been settled. The
Northwest Nebraska conference last week
elected Rev. Allen r. Julian of Chadron, for
many years a presiding elder in that part
of the state and a member OF the last gen.
eral conference at Cleveland, as the clerical
delegate, and George H. Horribly, a wealthy
and influential merchant at Valentine, as the
representative Of the laity. The North Me-
braska conference comes next on the list,
since 1t is the second conference in the state
to hold it's annual session. This conference
extends south to the Platte river, north to
the Dakota line, and is bounded on the
west by Grand Island and O'Neill, with the
Missouri river as the eastern boundary.
There are four districts in the conference
Grand Island, Rev. d. X. Tyndall, D.. D.,
Drnlidinu e1dor. Norfn1G Da, h1frad IJnd-
gets, d. D., presiding elder; Neigh, Rev.
William Gorst, d. D., presiding elder, and
Omaha, Rev. ]. B. Maxfeld, d. D., presid-
Ing elder. In these four districts there are
about 125 charges, each OF which will be
represented at the conference to be held in
Omaha this month by its minister and a
layman, who will be entitled to a voice in
the electoral college, which convenes for the
purpose of e~lecting the lay delegates.
Besides the honor of being a delegate to
the ~lawmaking body of the Methodist
church there are certain emoluments which
also make it desirable. The delegates are
provided with transportation and sleeping
car privileges and entertainment for the en-
tire months session of the conference at the
leading hotel in the city where the confer
ence convenes. The expense Is provided for
by the church. In regard to the probable
delegates who will be selected a
local clergyman made an apt response to a
reportorial inquiry when he said: ooh,
every minister in the conference is a candi-
date, either avowedly or else entertaining
the quiet hope that the conference will fail
to agree on anyone else and have to take
him as a dark horse" And this is about
true. Among the clergymen prominently
in the lead is Rev. DR.. ]. w. Shenk, editor
of the omaha Christian Advocate. In the
conferences where church papers are pub
lished which have attained the influence of
the Omaha organ, it is a rule established
by precedent to select the editor because
of his supposedly superior and generally
conceded knowledge of church affairs. DR..
Shenk has heretofore served in the general
conference and the experience gained by
such service makes him especially we'll
fitted for one OF the ministerial delegates,
and it is quite likely that he will be chosen.
. presiding elder is generally looked upon
as standing an especially good chance for
this position. If he is polite, as most pre-
elders are, he has his eye on an cleo
to the general conference from quad |
rennium to quadrennium, and generally en-
gineers the political situation so that the
preachers from his district are lined up for
him solidly. This being the case. it is
natural to believe that each one of the pre-
elders, with the exception of DR..
who is not in the field, will be an
active candidate, SO that the ministers who
in the lead for the election are Drs.
Shenk, Hodgetts, Tyndall and Gorst.
Goss md Schneider in Favor.
Among the laymen the situation is almost
rs interesting as a senatorial or congress
sional election and maneuvers have been
made by the Methodist brethren which would
10 credit to some of the successful politi-
of the state. Three Omaha men have
been prominently mentioned in connection
with the lay elections. They are Charles
Ioss and Ralph w. Breckenridge, both well
attorneys and equally prominent in
he affairs of the First Methodist church,
and John Dale, the insurance man, who is
IN active worker in the Hanscom Park
,hurch. Outside of Omaha there is consider
able reason for believing that R. B.
Schneider, the Fremont grain merchant, and
w. Balson, a merchant at Cedar Rapids,
will be brought forward by their friends. 1t
s certain that Omaha will be given one of
he delegates, since at the last conference
he delegates chosen were T. L. Mathews Of
'avorite combination seems to be Goss and
Schneider, although there is a question as to
his going through, for the reason that both
ire members of the Omaha district, while
zach of the other three districts will prob
IDLY come forward with a full quota of can
lidates, demanding that at least one be Sc
ected, according one to the Omaha district.