The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-12-05
NORTH CAROLINA CONFERENCE.
Methodist Ministers Coming ON
Every Train-Conferencc ConvcneS
This Morning mt $3.50 O'C1ock-Ffac
Historical Address by Presiding
Elder John Last Night.

The North Carolina Conference ofI
the Methodist Episcopal Church. SOUTH
will at Grace 81. e church,
this morning at $50 o'clock Preachers
and delegates came in on every trdinI
yesterday and still others are expected
today. There Will oe a large atten-l
dance. The public is invited 10 attend
the sessions of conference.
Yesterday the four examining conf
mittees Of the conference met IT thel
church, and examined the candidates.
for the ministry. Thare are o ~classesi
Of candidates. the custom being TO SiveI
them examinations Tor one. TWO three
and fou years.
Last night at 5 o'clock there was a
meeting OF the Conference HistoT1c3l|
Society at Grace church. The weather.
was exceedingly Indictment. as il was
way TO the church. Despite the show
erS. however. there was a good at.
tendance.
The Rev. y. H. Wilson. Of Maxtor,
president OF the society presided. The.
exercises We're OPENED with devotional.
service. the Rev. l.. r. Bumpass. OF
New Bern. leading in prayer. Mrs
Matte Chasten. the organist. played.
the instrument and the choir lead in the.
singing. There was 4 beautiful solo oyI
Miss Mary Cole. assisted by the chorus
President Wilson then introduced thei
Rev. K. Il. John. presiding elder OF thei
Wilmington District, who delivered an
intensely interesting and ably prepared
address on Early MethodiSm in the,
Lower Cape Fear section II was al
gem az a literary production. and from
: historical point Of view 1t was vail
liable and most admirable. II shove.
painstakinG rearCh ara was p~rcpar"g-
IN clhn7a Nv - N-'L T'n.A address, ~
listened 10 with marked attention an
Mr. John deeply interested his au
dienCe.
Mr.. Jonn said that To write 4 salts
factor history Of anything connecj".
with the people OF North Carolina IN
her early days is difficult. if not well!
nigh impossible. because material forI
such a history is scarce and scattered
This. he declared. was true i would
write the civil history Of our people
Material FOR ecclesiastical history
still more difficult TO obtain, becauS
the church deals chiefly with splritua
things which are not easily ~recordc"
and no material interests render = rec.
ord of them necessary.
Notwithstanding his arduou task
Mr.. John made the most of his subject
and his audience was deeply appTecIa-I
tive. He stated that the ape Fear
river was the great dividing line, first
Z ~ CtIl AAAI gONNI N@ Nm
GINA conferences. then between thel
South Carolina and North Cardinal
conferences. Always ii has been in theI
extreme corner of conferences. Will
mington. the town of chief lmportaE"HI
from earliest times. has been in tire.
conference.-the Virginia, the South,
Carolina, and the North Carolina con-
~terences.
The speaker then addressed himself
TO the conditions in the early days q
Methodism. and stated that the en
trance Of Methodism into North Caro-
lima was almost exactly cOntempoT-
aneous with the beginning of America
struggle for independence. The Neck,
enburg declaration of independence
was made the goth of May. 1II3- IN
May OF the following year and lW"t
months before the philadelphia de-
claration of July 4. 1916, twenty-fouFI
Methodist preachers received appoint
ments from their conferences.
Mr.. John spoke of the pioneer preaC!-
ers and their work. He menti0ncii
Beverly Allen as the pioneer preache-I
in Wilmington. He had been admitt"di
to the travelling connection in 1872 and
in 1884 was sent to Wilmington. 1L"I
latter part Of Aliens life was sad and
tragic. and TO him belongs the une"-t
viable distinction Of being the hr#jI
apOstate Methodist preacher in Anne
lea. He mentions Asbury's first Eis''i
to Wilmington in 1ts5, ana men Si'pl
of the growth of Methodism in VII
mington, speaking of the Varl0usl
churches and coming down 10 todayI
when the hethOdists out number aHyI
other denomination In Wilmington.
We have merely limited at the lutrc-l
duction Of Nr. Johns address, but I
would lie impossible 10 go on III thISI
way to give an idea of his address. as
It would not do the production justic"
After giving an interesting history 81
the growth of Methodism in WilmI
ton and elsewhere he closed his al,
dress. much TO the regret Oi his del
li-htfully entertained audience.
At the close of MI. Johns address
the Rev. NJ. T. P!yler, Of L~ouisburS.i
presented the society with a copy of
the Franklin Times containing i hiss
tory Of Louisburg college by h. pr@s.-l
dent. Professor N. $ Davis. II was
taken in charge by the president.
The exercises concluded with t-ri