The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1910-03-10
THE Apvc.


cross, am now standing wherS |
So, ana right now. You have lett
mic and crossed the Ruoicon". chas-
Ing ~ pAant0n, am sill with the
Church, T.Ras in no ring then. !
anu in none now. If the Church is
n rine, &thersyou may say I am IN
fa7fihesss ..ttashesgise not.
- stand for the Church us whole,
YOU, stand according to your own
words, for t. 'portion." "an element"
-'fnSincible forces 10 whose lead
ership YOU shaYe dedicated yourself
You stand FORA man. | stand for the
MEN. You, stand for one at the en-
pense of the others, l stand for the
equal rights of all You stand for
your fllcndS, T stand for my breth-
ren. YOU stand for reforming, re-
making. reconstructing the Church,
L stand tqr improving, maintaining
and rerpet&atiug its l!eavrn-borM
principles.
have been asked j thousand
times who was my choice for bishop,
but can and do positively say that
III no case have ! named and nomi-
mated a single man. I do not deny
having some preferences like any
other lnon, but l have not presumed
70 say. YOU must vote for my man
flrst' and lead a half score Of others
to believe that each one was my
second Choice' in order to keep them
in sympathy with my plans. Many
of tho men from all over the Church
have wlitten me for encouragement
and sympathy in securing different
positions, many of Them my own per-
scMal friends; but each and all know
and will say. nay answers were not
very encouraging. just could not
deceive them. If did not see things
i'll as bright 4 light as they seemed
TO see. would in every case say so.
| have always. advised that the bretL-
rem nust take, the responsibility of
selecting the hest and safest men ard
then stand by their selections. My
sincere counsel to them here and nov
is to stay within the Church in Sc
Letting their men; TO have no ''por-
lions aud elements, and not to
"tross the !3ubicon." hut to find
their lnen in the Church and in thu
ad niniStrat:on.
l an not standing sponsor for
any one. man, demanding all others
to stand aeid,y or come second" for
do not think that is. equal rights"
or "Church freedom We have
men in mcst all our conferences that
will make as. g0ed bishops as any we
have row. We have three or four
in Texas, one: Or two III Louisiana,
two or three n Arkansas, two or
three in good szd a alabama; three OF
more, in mississippi, ana the. same
number in West Tennessee and
Georgia. We have one or more in
Nortl, Carolina, two or three in
South aro1ina. two Or more in each
Kentucky, Oklahoma and Kansas.
and at irast ene in your own home
conference, and two or more in the
Washington all Philadelphia.
Why should all these be discrimi
mated against and required to stand
second"
am aware. dear Bishop, that all
these Can TO- he elected, and 50 are
they. Yet ] know, and you know,
they arc as deserving as any in the
Church. met fifteen Of the breth-
rem j.: Atlanta, who sought my coun-
sell told them there and then
that they. not l, must decide for
themselves whomthey would endorse
for prefefn;ent. But cautioned
them there as | do now, not to
cross The Rubicon' to make their
selections, but stay safely within the
lines of the Church.
And Low. dear Bishop, as YOU have
agreed with II" that there is IL di-
ei-!cr il, The: CEu1 Gu, since YOU drew
80 largely OIL your vocabulary to DC
50 aud thereby 40 Ed what yo'l
set out TO DISPROVE, I must in clos
ing, say l also agree with yon. IL
that the majority must rule. am
Wiling to trust the cause Of Gods
Church -to-the- majority. NO GDr
in all Colored Methodism will yield
more cheerfully TO it's mandates t.dn
i. do not crave for power, bat ~
YOU say for peace yet, sweet peac,
sure, steadfast, abiding.
Let the brethren. all come ID
Augusta in May, leaving then "Dor-
tons" their Sides" and their ever
ready and 'invihcible forces behind
them and unite in the work Of the
Church for the betterment Of man
kind and the glory Of the Lord of
hosts. r. s. WILLIAMS,
Augusta, Georgia.
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