Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-05-29
NJ. E. GENERAL CONFERENCE.
Pen Picture by H. e. Rurrell, of the
Warrington Press


Pen Picture by II. e. Rurrell, of the
Washington Press.
The many readers of the Courier
who are particularly interested in
Methodism will appreciate the follow
ing excellent article from the pen of
Bro. !Burrell, in his Washington Press:
| On Thursday met DIR. Coke on the
ground floor of the Auditorium, and
asked where to go to see the Sanhe-
drim. "The galleries are open to ALL
| he said, 'sbut not the main floor" and
a third of the way. down he put me in
his own seat on the main aisle, and
said, Stay as long as you wish. No,
Editor Buckley is not on the stage this
morning. That is Bishop Andrews
reading the report on 100 years of
Methodism," and he. went away.
| Getting into the city the day before
in fierce rain driving into the sum
mer open car, / ran onto DR.. Stafford,
1.-THE first thing, in vestibule in The
Fair. Everybody, almost, knows
enough to come in out of the rain. AT
jleast did, and the genteel doctor also.
There he was, on the stage, acting as
secretary of SOME committee, and DR..
Coke is secretary of the church ex-
| tension committee.
! All around were lay and clerical del
egates. For the first thing done was
a sweeping democratic act, making lay
men equal TO clerics in representation
in that body. For long years, the
cloth was 1t, was the Whole Thing,
but the pew has caught up with the
pulpit, and the floor preached democ-
racy with eloquent tongue. *
/ The only touch of possible oil
garchy and aristocracy was the bench
of bishops on the platform. l spotted
jolly, white-hairsd McGabe, Fowler,
Ninde, Hartzell, Andrews. A number
of them had the most luxuriant and
splendidly groomed, tho frosted,
whiskers, as ifsproud of their names.
It's all right. Even bishops have a
right to be beautiful.
Three or four of the bishops are to
be retired, because of old age, and
Andrews is named as one. 1 heard
him read, in strong voice, a full hour,
and he seemed not at all fatigued. He
need not retire on half pay, is it? Ian
AfcClaren asks. "Shall we shoot the
old minister? No, Ian; shoot his hat,
perhaps, but not him; and this hearty
church pensions its WORKOUT clerics;
turns 'em out to grass on half pay, we
believe; turns 'em into lush pastures,
not onto bare commons.
Gov. Shaw hit the nail on the head
the first day in demanding equal lay
representation, and he got the chair
manship of the Book Concern. m
Andrews quadrennial address main
tanned the church's position on the
liquor question; locks more tightly the
doors of marriage and divorces. as to
atilusements, the attempt to enforce
absolute abstinence reacts toward un-
restrained indulgence. A discrimina-
ton between the admissible and the
inadmissable is imperative. So great
is the, danger of spiritual life, it would
be profitable to place among the spe-
cial advices of the discipline brief
but cogent statement of the perils
which attach to many amusements, of
the evils inseparahle from others and
of the principles by which the Chris
tan should regulate his choice among
and his use of, them., nj
! AS to the pastoral time limit, either
the abolition of the limit on pastorates
or a return to the old tbree-year limit
rule was urged. He said the average
duration of the pastoral term has
i been but slightly, if at all, increased
by the change. That only a small
proportion of pastors remain in the
same charge for five years. That the
/ extension of the limit has manifestly
caused many pastors and churches a
n restless desire for changes at the end
4 of one or two. years in appointments
which might easily have continued for
three years if that length of time had
been the limit. That of the pastors
who continue for five years., some
4 would not have continued so long but
4 for the limit, while others of them
might protitably have continued for a
4 longer period. The proposal; to go
back evoked long continued elapping,
twice repeated. ,'lt
i He Dragged that Aethodists had
4 grown from 61,000 to 100000 since
\ 1900, the population of the country in
creasing ten-fold while the denomina-
v ton waXed 97-fold. Yet he immedi-
ately saw it was vulgar to state spir-
i Qualities in terms of the census or
4 market, that is, by ''the head" and
made the proper qualifications. En-
i Wilson, of Iowa, offered resolu-
4 ton to forbid bishops receiving extra
pay for attending dedications and com
movements, that made a stir, and
sassy Editor Buckley said the taking
4 of such fees was a prostitution of q
great Office.
Il Bishop Hartzen,s of Africa, dandy
in looks, made stiff anti-Roer speeches
one night, dwelling on the conditions
4 of the blacks under British and Boer
rule. Under the British he was given
right on par with those accorded
4. the white man. He had no rights in
church or state; he was not allowed
Ito walk on the sidewalks of Pretoria;
he could neither own land nor become
a trader. Nothing was done for the
education of the black man, tho he
paid 3 per cent of the school tax col
| lected. Kruger was man who read
Joshua instead of the sermon on the
mount.
I But the Beers in these regards will
bear easy comparison with us Ameri.
cans. We do not use our blacks very
well, and our black breed is much SUI