The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1910-11-28
Nartel. Fla, Nov. &c, 1910.
Rev. E. T. Rape, Chairman Board o
Trustees Preachers Relief Fund
Rochelle, Florida:

Rev. E. T. Rape, Chairman Board of
Trustees Preachers Relief Fund.
Rochelle, Florida:
Dear Sir-I am in receipt Of your
caustic and unauthorized letter of the
21st inst. asking me to send in my
resignation a member of the board
lof trustees of the Preachers Relief
Fund of the Florida Annual Confer
ence. NJ. r.. church. South. which was
substantially done to take effect at the
ensuing annual conference held at
Lakeland. 1909. Your unfounded charg-
es verify the intolerance Of a church
when it as an organized body goes into
pelitics and attempts TO direct and con-
troll the votes of its members. \ few
more strides in that direction will
place the Methodist church in the posi-
ton of the church of the dark ages
when the blood OF martyrs flowed and
others were fed to the flames because
they refused to obey its action.
Instead of "aligning myself with the
barroOm people. worthless negroes and
criminals Of Florida" / aligned my
self with thousands of the best peo-
pie of the state. such aS its governor.
judges Of its supreme and circuit
courts and others. for the continuance
VI local 10 WHICH the saloon
men. negroes and criminals were only
incidental. My Information is that
there is only about four hundred Ii
censed saloons in Florida. and that
with the negro vote eliminated. the
statewide prohibition amendment
would not have been adopted. AS to
terminals" / am not aware of any
that participated. AS to illegal votes
that crept in, I take it that they We're
| about equally divided between the con-
tending factions.
AS to your charges of my "being in
line with Judas IScariOt and Benedict
| Arnold. by betraying my Lord" they
are gratuitous. and cannot be sustained
by facts. I went into the local option
contest without the hope of fee or re-
ward. but did SO purely as a matter of
| principle. and all the circumstances
and facts that placed me chairman
| of the state local option committee
| pointed it as being providential. / was
not an aspirant: l was not selected by
| the caucus. and it was at the last
moment of time, after two other gem
| tlemen had been placed in nomination.
that my name was sprung. the others
withdrew and / was nominated and
unanimously elected. 1 submit as re-
ligious proposition that the church's
sphere under the teachings of the Saw
| iOr is spiritual. and that whenever 1t
| drifts into politics it departs from its
mission. and. as the history of the
| world shows. drifts into Journalism, and
becomes a dead church. That my church
has no authority to dictate to me how
| l shall vote politically or religiously.
and that I am responsible to il only
60 hat iv, ho
late campaign both the amendment
and local option" carried with them
the same moral reform. there being an
honest difference of opinion to
which would be most effective. The
whisky men coming to and largely
voting with the local optionists" cuts
no ice in the issues involved. They
came to the local optionists" and not
the local optiOnists" to them. The
| state widers' got all the whisky votes
they could. and hundreds of men who
drink to drunkenness voted for the
amendment.
| The last letter I had from you. you
voluntarily wrote me that at the next
meeting of the board of trustees OF
the preachers RELIEF Fund, you would
move that l be made a life member
Were l not acquainted with your i'm
pulsive temperament l would be sur
prised at your caustic letter. I have
received bushels of letters filled. many
Of them, with billingsgate, vitupera-
tion and abuse. / have not replied &c
any by an unkind word. At our fourth
quarterly conference the positions
have held in the church for forty-nine
years We're in the regular order filled
by others. which ! did not object to
/ l pray for my enemies and the pros.
perity of the church. Please read this
letter to the board of trustees wher
they meet. / am the last of the Ole
guard that is left. Its objects lie near
my heart. / have for over twenty
years labored for its advancement.
pray Gods blessings upon the future
of its management. and that his indi-
vidual blessings rest upon and abide
with each member Of the board.
i Respectfully yours, Fl. W. Long.