Swansea and Glamorgan Herald, and South Wales Free Press. — 1889-08-07 (Swansea, West Glamorgan, Wales)

THE WEBLEYAN CONFERENCE.  The Wesleyan Conference was occupied on Wednesday morning with the question of the liquor traffic in Ireland. The Rev. Charles Garrett moved: That this conference has learned with great satisfaction that her Majesty's Government have arranged for the consideration in the present session of Parliament of a bill which will provide for the entire closing of public houses in Ireland on Sundays, for the extension of the bona Me travellers distance to six miles, and for earlier closing on Saturday nights. That this conference respectfully urge members of Parliament to give the bill their hearty support. The Rev. W. Arthur seconded, and Dr. Rigg proposed and the Rev. H. Price Hughes seconded an amendment in favour of deferring the decision until the assembling of the Lay Conference on Monday. After some discussion the vote was taken that the resolution was carried by a large majority. 111 The Conference was engaged for some hours in reading the stations of ministers, and around some of the appointments there has been considerable discussion. The Rev. George Charter was invited, and has accepted the Sydenham circuit. but Mr. Carver (Sheffield) pressed for him. It was urged, as the Conference is sitting in that circuit, that it had a prior claim. By a small majority the victory lay sith Sydenham.  ',The Wesleyan Conference did not sit on Thursday morning, but in place of the usual morning sitting, there was an ordination of sixteen candidates for the Ministry. This took place in Brunswick Chapel, which was crowded. The President conducted the earlier portion of the service, and the ?aying-on of hands was taken part in by the President, ex-president, and several other leading ministers. The charge to the newly ordained ministers was delivered by the ex-president.  The third draft of the stations was published on Friday morning, and at the opening of the Wesleyan Conference. Some time was spent in discussing some arrangements of the stationing , cominittee. The business of the conference is very much in arrear, and the secretary told the delegates that never since he occupied his official position had the work been so much behind hand. The adjourned discussion on church membership will probably be resumed. The resumed consideration of the report on church membership gave rise to a long and interesting discussion at the Wesleyan Conference in the course of which it was generally admitted that Methodism was not making the progress it should, and that the growth of membership was not commensurate with the increase in the churches and chapels. The question that was most debated was whether the attendance at the class meeting should be regarded as the only test of membership, or whether attendance at the sacrament should be regarded as sufficient. This gave use to considerable difference of opinion, but eventually the report of the committee was carried by a large majority, the committee, amongst other things, recommending adherence to class meetings as only a test of membership. Several suggestions were made in the report for the improvement of the class meeting. One hundred and fifty students were allotted to various colleges. .  111The-Civir Court of the Seine has just passed judgment in the affair of the succession of Marie Regnault, the woman living in the Rue de Montaigne who, with her servant, Anne Gremeret, and the latter'schild, was murderedby Pranzini more than two years ago. A very knotty point of law has had to be settled, as Marie neguaulthad bequeathed all that she possessed to little Gremeret, and the child's relatives laid claim to the succession. Among the questions to which special attention was given was that as to the order in which the three victims of Pranzini expiried—whether, for instance, the child died betore or after Marie Roputult or Anne Gremeret. The Court, however, based its verdict chiefly on the fact that little Gremeret was illegitimate, and was not recognised by her own mother, so what property Maxie Rdgnaultleft behind her late go to the State.  frOLLOWAY SPILLS AND OLIALAN f.—IL is 1131