Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-12
GENERAL CONFERENCE
Seventh Day Adventists
Again in Session.
BRIEF SPEECHES MADE
REPORT OF PRESIDENT DANIELS
SUBMITTED YESTERDAY.
Donations to the Several Funds-Work
in Foreign Fields-List
of Delegates.

The third meeting Of the. general confer
ence of the Seventh Day Adventists COM
vened this morning at 9:3D o'clock with
| large attendance. Elder G. a. Irwin of
Australia presided at.,the meeting, during
which time short speeches were made by
| the delegates and members of the con-
ference present. who brought with them
| from their bone countries money for the
! upbuilding of the interest in this city and
| for the completion of the various buildings
at TalSoma Park.
During the morning Session between
| 5000 and $4,000 was presented and reports
| submitted of other donations coming.
| portion of the funds will also be devoted
| to the mission treasury.
| The first session of the ministerial in
| stitute followed the opening address be-
| ing delivered by Elder E. w. Farnsworth.
The address of Elder A G. Daniels.
| president of the general conference, was the
| feature of the opening day of the thirty
| sixth annual session of the general confer
! ence of the Seventh Day Adventists. at
| Takoma Park, which took place yesterday
| morning under most suspicious circum-
stances.
At the conclusion of the address of Mrs.
! E. G. White, upon the earnest and practical
work of the members of the organization.
| the roll call was read by Secretary w A.
| Spicer. The additional delegates were then
/ seated by appointment of the committee In
charge and by the vote of the congress,
| there being in all about twenty delegates.
The presiding officers were chosen by the
| congress before adjournment of the morn
| ing session, resulting as follows: Elders, G.
| A. Irwin, L. R. Conrad, A G. Daniels, W.
| w Prescott and H. w. Cottrel. Presiding
| Officer Daniels will select the above officers
| to preside at the different sessions ana
! meetings at his pleasure.
| At 2:3O o'clock the afternoon session was
| called to order by President Daniels, on
| which occasion he delivered his annual ad
| dress in the presence of several hundred
delegates from nearly every country in the
| world and nearly every state in the union.
| His address was a long one. and included
| every important matter in the history of
| the AdventStS from the date of its organ
| ization down to the present day, and
| proved a most interesting discourse for the
vast asSembage
| Origin of General Conference.
In speaking of the organization of the
general conference Mr.. Daniels said:
The general conference was organized at
! Battle Creek, Mich, May 1923, 1868. There
| were twenty delegates present, representing
| five local or state conferences, ana one
state not having been organized
Only four of the twenty delegates who
organized the general conference are still
| living and identified with the cause. They
are J. n Loughborough, Isaac Sanborn. c.
| o. Taylor and Washington Morse. While
not an elected delegate. Mrs. White was
| very closely identified with the work. Two
| of these pioneers. Mr.. Loughborough and
! Mrs White. are present at the thirty-sixth
session of the general conference. which
| they helped to organize 1orly-tWo years
''The first general conference committee"
| said President Daniels, had three mem
| bers: the present committee has twenty
| nine The members of the first committee
were all located in the state of Michigan.
! The members of the present committee are
| located in all quarters OF the giope
| mo statistics of the denomination were
| given when the conference was organized
| but as nearly as can be ascertained rom
various reports and fragmentary state
| ences about 3, 800 Sabbath keepers. thirty
ministers, annual receipts approaching W.
COO a small publishing plant, one weekly
| paper, one monthly and small assortment
| of pamphlets and tracts
Extract From Records.
| 1.-THE records show that the membership.
! laborers and funds have more than doubled
| every ten years since the organization Oh
| the general conference in 1853 The $500
| Sa EDath keepers nave Deeu lHSiedoCu W
81. 721 The staff of ministers has been in
| creased from 30 to 800. The annual 1.-THE
| has swelled from $1,000 to S691. S19.33 and
| the annual offerings to $144. 71220. Although
| there was no great noise nor blowing OF
| trumpets. this cause gained as much IN
| membership. laborers and funds from 1888
| to 1903 as it had gained during the preced-
| ing fifty years of it's history. The six con-
| ferences have increased to Ii union confer
| euces rs local conferences, union missions
| rpiS The small print
| ing and publishing house has been increaS-
ed to IL publishing houses and 40 printing
offices; the papers to 81. and BOOKS. tracts
and papers being published in forty or
| more different languages. The book sales
| reported average at least 100000 annual
ly."
Comparative Statement.
! In comparing the home land with foreign
| fields, President Daniels said:
I'm no part of the great harvest field
have such large results been produced from
the expenditure of labor and means in
the new, unworked mission fields In the
| home land with a membership of over Co.
600 with more than 700 ministers, with
1.-THE of over $5OO,0O0, with organized con-
ferences equipped with printing houses,
schools. sanitariums and church bulidlngs.
our net gain In membership for 1904 was
S45 This is gain of 154 per cent with
an expenditure of S574.53 for every member
added.
In all the nei0S OUTSIDE VI the Noflii
American union conferences, having a
membership of less than 1900. with only
$40 ministers, with local 1.-THE of about
$155, 900 and contributions and appropria-
| lions amounting to $4,000 with few
schools, few church buildings and but few
other facilities of any kind, there was a
| net gain in membership during 1904 of
| 1874. This is gain of 1851 per cent and
| represents an expenditure of $165.14 for
| each member added
The speaker advised that the missions be
| materially strengthened in Nyassaland.
| Rhodesia China, Korea, Ceylon. Turkey