The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-03-06
ARRANGING FOR
 BIG CONFERENCE Methodist Committees Planning Entertainment of Delegates CONFERENCE BEGINS MAY 3 About Four Hundred Delegates and Fifteen Hundred Visitors Will Att
 tend-GeneraI Committee
 VIII Meet Today.
CONFERENCE BEGINS MAY 3

The general committee which has charge of the arrangements for the en- tertainment of the general conference of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, which will assemble in Birmingham May g. will meet today at the Birmingham Trust and Savings bank. The general conference will be in session about four weeks.
 At this committee meeting the various subeommittees will report the progress they have made recently. Several of the committees will make reports that are considered highly encouraging.
 F. B. Yielding, chairman of the com- mittee to raise the money for enter taining the general conference, will report that subscriptions are generous. It is estimated that 5000 will be needed and al- ready between $45OO and $5OOO has been promised. Of this amount about s12OO has been collected and Is in the hands of the committee. MT. Yielding states that the committee can call for the money subscribed and get 1t at any time. He said that no trouble had been encountered in securing subscriptions, and that he did not anticipate any difficulty in secur- ing the full amount needed.
 The subcommittee on railroads of which Fred NJ. Jackson is chairman, will report that request has been made of the rail- roads for reduced rate. There Is every reason to believe that the rate will be granted and it is thought that it will be one fare plus 25 cents for the round trip.
 R. s. Munger chairman of the sub committee on entertainment Is arranging a number of trips to points of interest in the county.
 Among other things the committee is arranging a number of trolley rides to Ensley, Bessemer and other places of interest It is also probable that trip around the horn will be made. If pos sble MT. Munger will arrange some car rage drives and auto rides around the city.
 Already rooms have been secured for every delegate to the conference. The committee on hotels and boarding houses, of which M. A. Myatt is chairman, has arranged to entertain over 400 delegates. The committee is not under obligations to entertain the visitors, but 1t is securing lodging for many of them. It is estimated that there will be about 15oo visitors be- sides the delegates, and that on special days the number of visitors will reach 5000.
 c. H. Bissell, chairman of the com mittee on general information, and the Rev. S. l.. Dobbs, chairman of the com mittee on welcome addresses, will report this afternoon that their respective com mittees are completing details assigned to them as rapidly as possible.
 Among the visitors of note who are expected will be Vice President Fairbanks, who is a fraternal delegate. If he attends 1t is probable that he will be on the programme for an address.
 The Rev. Dr. Young J. Allen of Shang- hal. who has been studying the Chin csc situation during his residence in that country of forty years, will also be pres ent He is perhaps the best informed foreigner on Chinese affairs at this time and he will deliver lecture on the boy colt in China at some time during the conference.
 The general conferences is composed Of forty-sIx conferences and each of these has from two to ten conferences. There will not be less than $50 delegates and the number will probably be about 400. Besides the delegates it's is estimated that something like 15OO visitors will attend the conference.