Year: 1876

The annual Conference Of the NJ. T.
Church Of West Virginia, consisting oil a
large body Of clerical and lay delegates,
will assemble in the Fourth street
Church, in this city, To-day. AS this is
the wear for the assembling OF the Ma
,iopal Conference which is to be held in
Philadelphia, We presume more than
ordinary interest will attach TO the pres.
ant session Of the West Virginia Confer.
encc In addition to its usual duties
there will be the duty Of selecting dele.
yates to the National Conference. We un-
derstand that one Of the questions that
will come before the National body this
year will be as to the time during which
= preacher shall remain in charge Of a
congregation-an old question, by the
way, and one that comes up every now
and then for consideration. Some years
ago the time was extended TO three
years instead OF two M formerly.
The old fashioned membership generally
hold to short terms, believing that the
church as whole owes large measure
Of its prosperity to the original plan Of
frequent changes ofpastorS. The young
er and more modern membership, how
ever, are inclined TO extend the time, on
the ground that u church should have u
pastor between whom and the members
there exists strong bond OF congcnial
Identification, such as only grows out Of
long years Of pastoral relation.


The Methodist Church is perhaps the
most democratic Of all the Protestant
bodies. This is true Of it in practice,
Notwithstanding the theory OF the book
called the Tron Wheel" which a man by
the name of Graves, editor OF the Ten.
nss,ce Baplist, wrote about the denomina-
ton many years ago, in which he made
out an ecclesiastical autocracy Of very
despotic character. He pictured the Pre-
siding Elder and the Bishop as the two
powers OF the Church. They made out
the schedule Of appointments ard exer.
else important if not complete control
over the temporal fortunes OF the lesser
ministry, II we recollect right the VEN
cradle DR.. Drummond, formerly Of this
city, had discussion some years ago
in the papers with some minister on the
subject matter OF Graves book, and while
admitting that theoretically it was true
that appointments were thus made by the
Bishop aud the Presiding Elders, yet, as
matter OF actual practice, these appoint
ments were to greater or less extent
simple rati6cations OF understandings
matnred before hand between preachers
and certain congregations. How can u
Bishop know how and where to dispose
Of preachers who are strangers to him
to the best advantage? The Presiding
Elders OF the Conference are his cabinet
officers for the time being. Having frat
consulted with preachers and laityin their
respective districts they mature a Sched-
ule Of appointments for the Bishops for
NAL ratification, which schedule generally
proves acceptable to all concerned. oc-
cn'ionally, however, some of these "p'
pointments stir up lively breeze among
the laity, as was the case in one OF the
churches of this city last spring, over an
assignment to the church that was unex-
pected and which the membership re.
sented with considerable show OF congre-
gatiOnal Estates rights" zeal. Another
case, wherein the lay brethren asserted
their own good pleasure still more ef-
fectualIy and triumphantly, occurred in
the Wesley Chapel imbroglio, the upShot
Of which was that the laity held the field
and got rid OF their preacher. These two
incidents in our midst are referred to rs
showing the truth Of the remark that
however autocratic the theoretical or
ganization Of the Methodist Episcopal
hierarchy may be, yet, MS matter of
fact, the popular element is not subserv-
lent and powerless.


The Presiding Eldcrships Of the Meth
odist body constitute curious feature Of
its organization. There Is nothing cor
responding to them in the hierarchy of
any other Protestant body. There is
however an analogy between them and
body in the Catholic Church known as
"Redemptorist Fathers"-that is, a body
Of clergy selected for revival work, who,
at stated intervals, visit the Cathedral
towns and cities Of the Church all over
the country and hold revivals, such, for
instance, as took place in this city this last
winter. Asis well known, Presiding Elders
are not assigned to the charge Of anyp
ticular church, but have oversight ofsev-
eral churches within certain district,
and it is their duty to oversee the. e.work
Of each preacher within this district,
and to sit with each one OF them upon the
clerical bench pretty much as a Circnit
Judge OF the United States sits with
District Judge. These Presiding Elders
however are not, like the RedemptOrist
Fathers, a lifelong order, but disap.
pear from view every two or three years,
and resume their places in the ranks


among the regular ministry.


West Virginia is field that has been


largely occupied for years past by the


ministry OF the Methodist Church North.


To this fact we have always attributed,
toavery decided extent, the success Of


the Union cause in this State during the


war; Perhaps some OF the brethren will


Fecollect an article in this paper on


that subject as far back as 1861.


The Methodist Church North being an


essentially anti.slavery body, and deeply