Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-09-23
What Promises to Be Notable
Session of Upper Iowa Con-
ference Begun Today
BISHOP FOWLER IN THE CHAIR
Much Interest Taken in the Selection
of Conference Secretary and Sue
cessor to Presiding Elder A|brook-
The Thompson Case to Be Reviewed
Iowa News.
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Cedar Rapids, Sept. 23.-The forty
eighth annual session of the Upper To-
wa Conference convened in this city
at the st. Pauls NJ. E. church this
morning with Bishop Charles IL. Fowler
of Buffalo, n. Y. in the chair. After
the sacramento service the conference
at once proceeded to the election of Of
ticers. DR.. S. L. Head. of Usage, who
has been the secretary for the past
twenty-five years, died fa'N weeks
ago, and there is much speculation
among the preachers as to who his
successor will be- The secretaryship
is only an honorary position, Yet much
coveted, notwithstandng the fact that
there is much hard work connected
with it. The men mostly talked of for
the place are l.. c. Clarke. CT Belle
Plaine DR. Shirgerland. of Des Moines,
G. B. Shoemaker, of Maquol;eta, and
n. Pye, of Grundy Center, any Of whom
will be abundantly able to handle the
work.
One of the very important questions
to come before this conference is the
selection of a presiding elder for the
Marshalltown district. to succeed DR..
j. b. Albrook, whose term OF service
is at an end. A number of gentlemen
are eligible to the position and are not
averse to trying their hand a. the big
circuit charge DR.. Coleman, of Mar
shalltown. has been mentioned DIR.
Miller. of Toledo, might possibly be APP
pointed. Nathaniel Pye, of Grundy
Center, is a fine preacher and could
fill the position well. and DR.. Troy. OF
Hampton. the most popular man in
the Upper Iowa Conference, who is
looked upon favorably by all the
preachers of the iMarshalltowll district,
stands an excellent show.
The selection of lay and ministerial
delegates will turn somewhat upon
how the men who propose to go stand
upon the boundary question. The cleo
tons occur Friday.
An excellent program has been ar
ranged for the entire session. The lee
ture on Friday evening, of Governor
LaFollette. of Wisconsin, on Repre-
sentative Government promises to be
a great treat.
1t is said on good authority. that the
j. H. Thompson case. which has ex-
cited so much attention of late, Will be
revived and Strengthened out. The
case is briefly this: Mrs. Thompson.
sometime last spring, appeared in the
Tama county court asking legal sep
Grafton from her husband. the Rev. j..
III. Thompson. The divorce was grant
ed. Mr. Thompson did not appear
against his spouse and o. course the
public are left to think the case one
sided. Mrs Thompson, 1t would now
appear, desires further to persecute
her former husband. What are the
merits of the case. who is the casus
belli we are unable to say. Mrs.
Thompson maintains one thing and Mr..
Thompson, that it's untrue. Both are
confident of victory before unprecedented
minds.
Among the lists of lay delegates to
this conference, we notice quite a num-
Der of lady delegates, and this is right.
If women can be the backbone of the
church as they are in so manv places,
let them have a share in the honors
when they are to be distributed.