Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-04-21

Marshall of Methodism, because of the
striking judicial character of his treat
ment of all questions.
The number of bishops elected will
depend also upon the number of mis-
sionary bishops. The election of three
new missionary bishops for southern
Asia, one Of these to be for the Philip
pine Islands, has been recomm ended.
Important Issue.
In addition to the recommendation
that three new bishops be
elected for southern Asia, Bish-
OPP D. H. Moore, who has
been in charge of the missions in
eastern Asia for the past four years,
advises that three missionary bishops
be elected for that territory, one for
China, one for Japan and one for
Corea. If this suggestion is adopted it
will mark the beginning of new poll
cy, and in the minds Of many prepare
the way for the time when missions in
Asia will become independent church
es., If bishops are elected for China,
Corea and Japan, missionary bishops
will in all probability be elected for
Europe and South America. The ques-
ton of missionary bishops therefore
promises to be one of the important
issues of the general conference.
While whatever action that may be
taken with reference to missionary
bishops will have some effect upon the
number of bishops, there is no doubt
that at least three new bishops will be
oil
mentioned for the offices.
To Consolidate Benevolences.
While there will be more than usual
interest in the election of bishops,
there will in addition come before the
conference a number of questions of
far reaching importance. Among these
are the proposed unifcation of the pub
fishing houses and consolidation of the
benevolences.
Discussion of these proposed
changes has been in the air for several
years but no action was taken until
the general conference of 1900 when
commission was appointed to take the
matter of the consolidation of the be-
nevolent societies under consideration
and present plan for consolidation.
The commission met at Ocean Grove,
N. j., in July, 1902, and after carefully
considering the varied interests of the
several societies recommended that
they be consolidated into three under
/ the following corporate names:
! 81. The board of foreign missions
Of the Methodist Episcopal church..
II 20. The board of home missions
and church extension of the Methodist
Episcopal church.
"3. The board of education of the
Methodist Episcopal church, or, the
board of education, Freedmen's aid and
Sunday schools of the Methodist Epis-
copal church.
Divide Mission Work.
"The board of foreign missions shall
have charge of all the missionary work
in foreign lands.
THE board of home missions and
church extension will have supervision
of all the mission work in the United
States and the lands under its jurisdic-
ton and the present work OF the board
of church extension.
"To the board of education shall be
committed all the work now under
the care of the present board of edu-
cation, the Freedmen's Aid and South
ern Education society, and the Sunday
School Union and Tract society
These proposed consultations in
tolve tremendous revolution, the out
come of which gives the church seri-
Gus anxiety. Many believe them SUI
premely wise and others fear the re-
verse. Establishments of some kind
are considered necessary and inevita-
BILE. Many churches are consolidating
| the collections by taking them all at
one time and dividing the amount re-
ceived among the various benevo-
j lences, and thus the societies will be
+! forced to consolidate to reduce the
number OF collections.
One Publishing Corporation.
! The proposed nnification of the pub
fishing houses will be presented at Los
Angeles. The book committee will
recommend the consolidation of the
Methodist Book Concern of New York
and the Western Methodist Book Con-
Germ of Chicago Cincinnati and Kan
sas City. The committee proposes that
there be one publishing house. three
branch houses and five repositories
/ 1t is estimated that the annual saving
will be $50, 900 year. The Methodist
Book concern is the oldest publishing
house in the world
Attack Amusement Ordinance.
Among the other important matters
| that will in all probability come be-
fore the general conference is the
adoption of some plan by which better
provision can be made for aged minis
tiers and the widows and orphans of
deceased ministers, and a change in
what is known as paragraph 24S, relat'