The Savannah morning news., 1902-12-05
METHODISTS AT WORK
BISHOP GAMBLER KEEPING THINGS
ON THE MOVE.
SOME SPICY INCIDENTS.
CHARGES AGAINST PREACHERS UN.
DER INVESTIGATION.

sion Bishop Wants All Facts
to Be CIeared-Bishop and Cabinet
Keeping Very Quiet About Their
Deliberations - Bishop Calls the
Preachers Down.
Thomasville, Ga, Dec. 4.-Conference
assembled at a. M. Bishop Gambler
presiding. Devotional exercises were
conducted by the Bishop. The strong,
pithy, humorous, remarks of the chair
caused the brethren to gather more
promptly to-day than ever, anxious to
catch every word spoken. Some. how
ever, were belated. and came in for
a gentle rebuIze from the Bishop. He
said: 81 have noticed some things.
Some of you brethren don't come to
PRAYERS. This ought not so to be.
don't want to be disturbed during
worship. During this service 1 noticed
enc worthy man writing on the wall
while Brother Simmons was reading
the Scripture. Another one was talk
ing. Do not allow this to happen
again.
A
Rev. A. NJ Wynn, who is in the Rob-
inson Sanitarium, Atlanta. Ga, under
treatment. The spirit of the letter was
touching and tender.
By vote of the conference. the Sec
rotary was instructed to send a tele-
gram to Rev. Wynn bearing the love
and esteem of the conference.
The call of charges was resumed
Rev. G.. W. Mathews in reporting his
work at Dublin. Ga. stated that his
church was supporting a missionary
above the collection for missionary
purposes-and that he believed that the
time was not far distant when his
board of stewards would support
missionary.
THAT is a good report" broke In the
Bishop, 'but 1 believe that when we
get up to the Bible standard one man
will support a missionary. The spirit
that makes a man pay $1,000 for his
own house. and 81 for the church,
makes trouble for his neighbors and
trouble for himself"
Charges without Foundation.
The committee appointed by the pre-
siding elder of the Dublin district, to
Investigate rumors affecting the char
acter, and the efficiency and accepta-
bleness of w. J. Flanders were w.
c. Tompkins. w. w. Anthony and Ar
thur S. Bussey.
When the name of Rev. e. F. Nor
gan was called, his presiding elder,
Rev. j. NJ. Lovett, stated that the
charges of falsehood. against Rev.
Morgan, preferred by DR.. w. j. Elan
ders, a local preacher, of Wrightsville,
Ca, had been investigated by a COM
mittee, and that they had declared no
trial necessary, as there was no foun-
dation for the charges.
DR.. Flanders under preferred charges
by the pastor and members of the
Wrightsville church for speaking evil
of ministers, charging that Rev. NJ. A.
Morgan, brother of Rev. e. f. Nor
gan, used his influence as a presiding
elder in the cabinet to have his broth
or sent to Wrightsville to harass him
that Rev. ]. NJ. Lovett, presiding elder
of the Dublin district, was an old fool
He was also specifically charged with
the use of impure, vulgar language at
divers and sundried times. Under
these charges he was tried by COM
mittee in Wrightsvills, found guilty and
expelled from the church. At this time
his brother, Rev. ]. G. Flanders, a
member of the conference, filed a no.
tice of an appeal from this decision to
the annual conference, after the char
acter of Rev. E. f. Morgan was passed.
Rev. j. c. Flanders read the grounds
of appeal from the decision of the COM
mittee in his brothers case. In reply
Col. Arthur S. Bussey of Wrightsville
acting prosecutor for the church and
committee, read the charges and Speci-
fcations under which the committee
acted. Before the reply was read Col
Bussey moved that the conference
room be cleared of all the ladies' and
those who were not members of the
conference. On motion this was done.
Didn't Want Certain Language In.
At this point Rev. Walker Lewis. d.
D., asked that all language in reply
that could not be heard by ladies' be
stricken; that gentlemen could hardly
afford to hear language that ladies
could not hear. In reply the Bishop
stated that it would be necessary to
bring out all the facts in the case.
After reading the charges and speci-
f1cations the conference, by vote de-
cided to entertain the appeal.
The Bishop appointed the following
committee to try the appeal: w. w.
Pinsow, Homer Bush, o. B. Chester,
NJ. B. Terrell, ]. M. Quilted, ]. C. Par
ker, w. w. Seals, T. D. Stanford, ana
E. NJ. Whiting.
While listening to the reports of the
young preachers, the chair took oc-
casion to urge the young brethren to
study and prepare themselves for their
life's work Warning them of theolog-
ical errors, etc. And now" said the
Bishop, you old brethren ought to get
you a course of study. Don't continue
to carry around ghosts. l have heard
some sermons that were very dry and
musty.''
DIR. j. o. Branch interrupted the
Bishop by remarking that there was
but few of that kind in South Geor-
gia. well, there is a few anyhow"
replied the Bishop.
When the name of Rev. J. L. Nor
rill was presented for the recognition
of elders orders from the Protestant
Methodist Church, some discussion was
precipitated at this point, owing to the
fact that Rev. Morrill,. who was for
merly local preacher in the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church South. His or
ders We're recognized. Being an evan
gelist, some of the preachers seemed In
clined TO question his loyalty 10 the
church, and his methods in conducting
meetings.
Not Right Sort of Evangelism.
IT want It understood" said Bishop
Gambler that what ! am about TO say
has no reference 10 this evangelist.
wish that this kind Of evangelism
would stop Has II done any goodT
have not said IL has not But ! see
great evil I'm this kind OF work. A
man Of this kind going from town %
Town with no support under him, MS
income is usually measured by the size
OF the meetings which he conducts. The
temptation Is 20 have big meetings,