The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-05-04
Bishop Wilson Calls Conference to Order. HIGH PRAISE FOR THE ADDRESS Delegates Declare It StatesmanIike
 and Instructive.
 - Two Bishops to Be Elected in Success sion to Keener and Harsrove and some others May Be su-
 perannuated.
HIGH PRAISE FOR THE ADDRESS
By Will T. sheehan.


 Birmingham. May 3.-(Special Core spondence. )-The leaders of the Meth- odst Episcopal Church South are meet ing here in their fifteenth quadrennial session of tho general conference to plan and revise for the great church which they represent.
 There will be much planning and little revising.
 The venerable Bishop Wilson. tall and bulky. but white headed and stopping, presided today over one of the most intellectual gatherings that ever assembled in Birmingham or in Alabama. As he sat in the tall ma hogany chair ranged on either side of him were the devoted and brilliant men who are the bishops of the Meth odist Episcopal Church South, Bishops J. c. Cranberry. W. w. Duncan, Charles B. Galloway. E. R. Hendrix. Joseph S. Key, W. A. Candler, H . c. Morrison. E. E. Moss anl A. Coke Smith.
 Before them on pulpit platform raised above the convention was Dr :. J. J. Tigert, bulky and vigorous, big of head and big of body. He Is the secretary of the General Conference. There Is material for another bishop in the strong and active secretary and at least two bishops are to be elected at this conference. It Is talk here that the first of the vacancies will go to Dr. TigeTt.
 The auditorium of the First Metho- dist church of Birmingham, where the conference Is being held is the largest church auditorium in the state. yet the convection filled the body of it from window to window when Bishop Wilson called It to order. The men before him were ministers and lay- mem one minister for each Iayman and one layman for each minister. Such is the democracy of the Methodist church and in this may be found one of the reasons for the chGrchs strong hold upon the lives and affections Of mod ern people The churchs government ilarmonIzes somehow and IS In accord isav1ttfs sthe ideals of frntofnitx of at least the English speaking people.
 The men who form the conference, whether they be laymen or preachers are forces and leaders in thier commit mites and in their state Their pres ence here is sufficient proof of that such is the character of the General Conference of the Methodist Church. They are men who stand out above their followers, whose lives touch ana effect the activity and the anairs or their people. f..4.. .
 The Alabama Conference sends as clerical delegates Rev. A. J. Lamar, whose headquarters are now in Nash vile: Rev. J. $. Frazer of Mobile, Rev. A. l.. Andrews, of Selma and Rev. J. M. Mason of Eufaula. Representing the Alabama Conference as lay delegates are W. H. Sanford. of Troy; A. Ses- sions of Bonifay, Fla; R. O. Simpson, of Furman, and J. A. Wilkinson, or Autauga.
 Representing the North Alabama Conference are: Clerical Delegates H c. Howard, Huntsville; Samuel L. Dobbs. Birmingham; James H. Mccoy, Etrmingham: John D. Simpson. An niston, Frank P. Culver, Birmingham
 Lay Delegates: J. B. Wadsworth, Birmingham; T. c. Banks, Attalla; N. M Rowe Madison Station; M: K. Clements. E. J. Ganison, Ashland.
 In inc Conference 291 delegates are entitled to seats and participation and practically every one was In his place when tho conference stood ID for the first prayer this morning. Hun dreds of visitors were present to watch the deliberations of the leaders of the Methodist Church. The interests or the people of tho South In this gath erinR, it's meaning and significance to hundreds of thousands of people Is shown by the. presence of half dozen newspaper writers, sent here by their papers to make special reports Of the conference. Some of them came from as far west as Houston, and Dallas Texas.
 Every Southern State is represented and not only are tho Southern States represented but Western States and foreign missions as we'll There, for instance, are the China Mission, repre- sented by the well-known pr. Young J. Allen and the converted Chinaman, Li-Pak-lieu; Central Mexico Confer
 hU ClndaTdnnk and S. c. Figueroa Japan Mission Con- ference, by S. H. Wainwright and M. Matsumoto; Mexican Border Mission Conference, by Santiago Tafolla and F. c. Campbell, and Brazil Mission Con ference by J. l.. Kennedy and Henrique Linderburg.
 Representation varies, according to the size of the conference. The small est conference has at least two dele gates one lay and one clerical. The Northwest Texas Conference, with fourteen delegates, has easily the larg est representation.
 The splendid system of the whole affair challenges instant admiration from the work of the various commit tees on arrangements to the comple- tion of the organization of the confer ence. Whatever had to be done was done well. without any fuss and feath- CTS. The church pays the expenses of the delegates
 The church manages the whole con ference leaning heavily, however, upon the local committees in the matter of making arrangements. A special fund. however. is set aside for the expenses and entertainment of the delegates They are sent to the best hotels in the city, unless. however. some delegates would prefer to forgo his right to hotel accommodations to stay with friend
 nf AFFanmRmaent.
 And every delegate when he left home knew exactly where he was going when he got to Birmingham, He had a card that told him all about 1t. The hotel man was expecting him and his room was ready and waiting. It was a model system and neither delegates or local committees had to spend any worry or lose any sleep
 No less admirable was the way In which the conference got down to busi- ness These men are accustomed to running conferences and conventions