The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-12-04

4
conference that has been held in
many years. The attendance of lay
men is larger than usual and the
preachers are all on hand dressed
in their best Sunday clothes" 1t is
a fine looking body of men and they
Iare in good spirits. In most places the
preachers have been paid up more
been increase in most of the col,eo-
lions for the missionary and general
Operations of the church, and the ac-
DECISIONS to membership have been
lgratifyingly large in most quarters.
Therefore the preachers have come
here in good spirits and they irradi-
ate good feeling and cheerfulness.
Your Methodist preacher is a gen
luine optimist and there is many q
Mark Tapley among them. They look
for the best and live in sure conf
dence that ''all things work together
for good" They are not rich in this
worlds goods. One preacher said
yesterday that he knew of only three
preachers who owned their homes.
and spoke sorrowfully of those
! three whose progress was hindered by
| impedimenta. The salaries paid these
| faithful men are small--often pitia-
| bly, small when the present era of
high prices causes chickens to roost
too high for the purse of the average
town preacher. 1t is a wonder to
good financiers how many preachers
| live on the salaries they receive. edu
cate their children, and always have
something to give to those in need.
The reason is that preachers and their
wives have learned finance in school
that made them understand that there
are one hundred cents in every silver
| cart-wheel. They are, most of them,
good managers, and they have no eX-
travagant tastes to crafty.
I This has been a year. too. of good
feeling and freedom from friction.
| There have been no clashes, no bick-
erings, no radical differences. no party
spirit in the church. The preachers
and laymen are of one mind in wish
| ing peace and progress, unimpeded
| by controversy and disnutation There
are differences, but the clash of differ
ences works out we'll when personal
ambitions and rivalries are absent.
! Bishop Gambler has been strong
force in leading in right directions.
He illuminates every subject he touch
es, though one preacher did say "he
| clucks too much on the nest" He
talks out frankly. brightly, wittily,
wisely, and he generally 'hits the
bulls eye' in his crisp sentences and
ihomely anecdotes. His story about the
Irishman who for the first time heard
1 a fashionable choir sing "the mutton
song" was a centre shot and pillored
the present tendency by choirs to
chowd out all the old time tunes for
operate airs. If his sarcasm seems to
sting sometimes, it only seems to do so
for there is no sting in the heart Of
the man who uses it to make a point
and not to wound.
One year ago, when Bishop Cand-
lers appointments were announced.
the character of the changes took
Iaway the breath" of some of the
preachers Therefore there is more
seriousness than usual about appoint
| ments because the preachers do not
know where lightning may strike this
year. There will be a large number
| OF changes-thats the general Opin
| ion. But it is as hard to foretell the
| appointments of a Methodist confer
| ence as to predict the verdict of
| jury.
| | had a notion-long time ago
that if / could make the appoint
ments the result would be better, and
| writing from conference at Salisbury
to the News and Observer L proposed
| that there be a general shake-up, that
| all the well paid presiding elders and
preachers in large places be sent or
poorly-paid missions and the men
preaching on missions be given the
best districts and largest churches.
Going into the matter at length, / sug-
gested with a lack of proper venera>
| ton for the appointing power that
! Rev. DR.. Yates then presiding eide on
the Raleigh district be sent to the
| Roaring River mission and the preach
er on Roaring River mission be made
presiding elder of the Raleigh district,
| land gave long list of appointments
of like character. l thought the suG-
gested appointments looked better
than those usually made by the bishop
until a preacher "squelched' me utter-
| ly. He said he thought the plan out
lined in my letter was not at oil bad
but that it ought to be applied to edi
| tors as well as preachers, and he sug
gested that the editor of the News and
Observer be sent as editor of the Ell
kin Times, and the editor of the Ell<in
Times made editor of the News ana
Observer. That did not suit me at ALL
not because Elkin is not a desirable
place in which to live and the Elk;n
lTlmeS splendid album of song but
because Elkin is too far from Ria n
katie. Long ago l made up my mind
never to live in any county that did not
produce scuppernong grapes and the
kind of sweet potatoes that exude SUI
lgar when baked. Elkin is out of SOUP
tnr,' holt