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Saturday, August 7, 1926. v |L The Presiding Elde REV. ALBERT 1 The presiding eldership?is?being fought in Methodism today as never ? before..?The conflict is nut confined to any one branch of the methodist family, but the conflict over the office is present in all sections and in all of the branches of methodism in /_ seen active rebellion .against the office in many places. * ItTs well to note that the conditions which gave origin to the office have undergone a change. The time was , when only two or three men on a P. VE. district were Elders. The others were unordained men and men who rM had been ordained to the office of \peacon. -Deacons in. those.days often' went "miles to find an Elder to consecrate the Lord's Supper for them. Anyone whp has read the life of Peter Carwright, the( great Methodist Presiding .Elder of 'other days, can easily get a glimpse t>f-the-wonderful work that many men have done in the office in question. Cartwright and the men of his day, often had ten districts that covered scores of miles. They, travelled night and day, ito.ldi.ng revivals and organizing preaching places. Some times they reported fifty and sixty new church organizations to each annual conference. Some time new ^converts were taken out' of a meeting and sent to hold the fort at places to which there were no other preachers -t? be sent.- This jsame principle wasr.operative whenthe A. M. E. Church adopted' the' Presiding Eldership as a part of its ministerial activity. Bishop Quinn was the Peter Cartwright of the A. M, Presiding Elder in the West is a part of our history that can never be foTgotten. So Methodism came to view the presiding eldership as a great vangelistie force. ~Jt regarded.it as an engine for expansion. - Lt watted upon its activities as a means of ex< lending its borders and directing its extension. However, it is well for those whorfind fault with-it tu refresh their,minds with the current history of our tidies. The times have chan. ged. Some things that men did then can be done now, but not ^?st in he way that men did them'at that time. For instance, in those days, ?young men were "sent'out with nothi ' ? ^ J > ,ing, and they were told to bring something in with them. I have known?them to go to places where they had five?members and report-to the -' next annual -conference, over one hundied. Reviuatsvwere the order of the ~dair. Then revivals \ver<j^iiot planned . for money, but-for souls/ Now, 'in | -rfiosfT of many instances,-they^are only r - financial efforts. Now they are often r carried on ten and fifteen days, and Nif the financial, effort is good, no sleep is lust abuut the uiicuineieted. And thus the urispiritual condition of the church in so many places. Then. too, the rating of ministerial success . . npotf ldollars and cents rather .than upon some-other things that need not be mentioned, as given rise to a number-pf things that have been the father , of the handicaps that afflict us no\tf. _ Well,- it should be notted .that a , presiding elder ^cannot do now what the presiding elders did then. The conditions have changed. The hundreds of well-trained men in the districts with them have helped to change ?these condition. Circunfs.tances over which one can have- no control, limits ~~ the presiding elder today as never before. - S?ome time he is appointed to a district field in \\hich several other denominations server ' The elder is so thoroughly-cuUivatbd that he can n6t function with the law of expansion. ' In some cases he can scarcely keep that that has been given to him.. In other cases if he needs a point at which he might' organize^ a^rtrurch, he/has not ?one.,cent at his command to push the effort located. If he sends a man there and if he has nothing to give that man to live on, when he hears from that point again, the pastor he appointed there has gone. The presiding eldership functions *1 1 wwvtvi til inunc tnumica LUUtty II1UI have a large fund for extension work rather than in those churches that have not such a fund. However wise it was in other days to send out men with nothing, to bring in something that policy will not work today. Peo-pie, even of_one's own religious pur suasion, who are nicely housW^Tn a church of anothter faith are not apt to leave it to follow the fortunes of a religious pauper who has nothing ta offer them except gab and gibber. , ' Bossism is dead in all religious effortB r' today. Then man or men who have _ , nothing uptheir sleeves except that, had just as well jump over boaAl. Religious liberty, both trr thought and action, are?the order of t.ha^ day. _ Wo hav^frad a typo-of presiding older who has trie4 to be a Simon Legree. - . -- . j, inirMur"'- - t * 1 . ... ' ? ~ y __ rship In Our Group | H. LONGED. D. fc * I xxkkkx~XXKX~X^XX~x~X~X~X? - But such a man has novel' gotten any I results "in the. past, and it is certain ! - that lie Can not get any resultsdn the future. The spirit of times is against1 " i It is true that over-bearing and un- I brotherly men have, at different times j " 111 the past, been made presiding, el-' ders. The foolish acions of these have; done much to contribute to the present fight rtgainst the office. Then, too, we haVe had some men who have taken' the advantage of other men. ' Some.j have even organized rings in their j v.ovuvia aguuisi some men who were, in their districts. The political pre- j siding elder whose pockets areMilled with cunning tracks is a menage to the office. * In the more than thirty years of my ministry, I have served with some funny presiding elders. I once had a presfding^elder who spoke to the peo-! pie I was serving, thus: "Now you' must understand, that I am your presiding elder. Your pastor is alright, but he is under me, ahd I am above -him. Both he. and you must do as I advise you to "do. No man can .serve i in my district with me, who thinks that he isms big. a man as I am. I do not want any man in my district1! who thinks that he knows more than I~do. I have no place for such a man -In my district." I have never collected that presiding! alder's money yet. The people" to I ^ hom he thus spoke refused to pay-j him. They informed him- that that which the pastor feels that he must take, we are not bound to take. You 'are' only a man like we, and we as J men can da as we. please with old-' own. At the end of the year, the | Bishop was forced to change him. I wish to say here that I have always honored the office, and I have always put forth every effort possible to pay the presiding elders I have served with, and yet it is an office that I have never sought and dhe that I DO NOT WANT. I have seen control-; force ,some men to treat otKer men in many ways in which I could j not be induc&d to treat-any group of j men. However, apart from all of > I this, there are hundreds of worthy ] men tilling this hard f>lace with credit! to the cause and to themselves. They j have the work'of tTlo"church at heart, and they pull with the.pastors in their-' - f.evoral districts <g^auceess. Thcytj do no bossing.? They-tell no lies to i any Bishop on any one. Thev even I allow themselves to be ill-treated I by lying and deceptive preachers and! still do aiJ that.can be'done to help the : same men who ill-use thigffi: Sotivcrtinrdr they have a ty pc of preacher on their j l.district who will induce the people to j fight their support. Such a. preacher, will ni-^nniyf hie nfTWrg tlin I presiding elder. r Tft' such, a condition,"i the presiding elder's position is indeed ! | a hard one. Scores of such men have I been forced'.to suffer. I have seen j some splendid men., in-this position' i whose families were without food. 1 j The office is a dangerous tMace for a ' lazy man who over expects to servo i in the'active ranks as a pastor again.: It3 is well to note that the office i of presiding elder has not lost its! usefulness. It is still a'vital force in j rmethodism. We have not reached the I place when it can bo dispensed win-i 1 The several gradations in oui\ minis-; t try and the peculiar conditions which; j confront- us, .still leave a vital place in which the presiding elder -may function if he is efficient, The present j outlook is fhat there vare white me-! thodist bodies that wjll ahblish the . office in the not distant future. The degree' of?efficiency?to?which?therr^" church work has been brought, along J with the splendidly trained ministry j they Vave, -may enable them to do this,1 buff- the A. M. E. Churcli has noti reached the place when it can dis-? j pense with it, and we do not know when it shall r^ach that time. Howv ever, lite time will come in the A. | M. E. Church when they will be elec-I ted by their respective annual con.ferences. ?I Our ^present district method of e- j piscopal assignment?is doomed. It i has about served its purpose. Favor-! uism ana rings nave doomed it. The future will find our- Bishops rotating. : Under such conditions, no more district administration men will be needed, and thus our presiding elders can be elected by our anntfhl conferences.) According to .the Iimita{,iQnjrLxim;[ work in some places, we have too' many presiding elders. This -obser- [ vation leads to the fact that we have' too many annual conferences. Whe- | ther or not political or^other reasons , gave birth to them, the fact is that1 we have entirely Too many. The A\ M.! E. Church .does not need six annual; conferences in South- Carolina. The unwise multiplying of annual conferancert hae^alse-orertted new pre- siding elder districts that have added Ati ff*' i " >- * ;| ' . t" ; THE.ysnag -?7 :?; : nothing to the strengthour ?ause For instance, only three presiding el der 'districts are needed in the Pied mont annual conference. If it i; said that we have enough territory fo four, it can be truthfully said tha we have not enough work for foui If it is said that the fourth one wa created so that our work mikht b "Tmlarjrort;" it can-be said that there i not the slighest possibiliy of ou; doing anything of the kind. The mi gration and other causes have doome< that to a failure, j. . Take thpAbhovilic stance.. That district is t'oo smal to give any presiding elder a decen living. The hundreds of peoph who have left there for other point make it well nigh impossible for sucl a district to give a man a decent liv ing. This-serves as only an illustra tioff of similar conditions in othe districts'! -The people are rebeHTngli gainst these conditions. The worl in' Y.r... "Vi" AT V CU,.. ... WLV u? vuv ATX. JJ, VIIUI vu s annua cotifcrcoccs in this "State will maki three of ours, and in some cases, th< work in one of the P. E. districts ii their conferences will make two ?in< three of ours. We must either u.nd< some foolish things that we have doni or sull'er some serious setbacks in ou work. . . i No, the presiding-eldership systen as we are now. situated is alright What we~ need-is a re-adjustment o our work so that it will not Work i hardship on'cither the P. E.'s.-, th< preachers nor the.people, and all wil be well. If we fail to do this, condi tions will force us to pay a price tha we are not able to pay., ? m ? ?i . ? Eastover Locals Those attending the Courts of Ca -hinthein Sumter, "ivere: Mrs. Gertrude Woodward. Prof, and. Mrs. L N. Scott, Miss Rhudine Parker, Mrs Lizzie Robinson, Mrs. J. S. Collins and others. Eastovians are all . smiles having two of its members to be reelected as Grand Ofilcers, namely: Mrs. L. N Scon and Mrs. Gertrude C. Woodward A good number of people are plam ning to leave Monday for Camden tc attend the State Grand Lodge No 12, Independent Order of Good Sama i ittills ami Daughters of Sangria. -Mttt. Woodward- beifig -a Grand Oflicer also of that Order. The crops are looking good and th( weevils are not doing muclr harm s< far. Dr. A. J. Collins has a splendjd croj and his days in the country he is kep quite busy with his stylish Saddh horse and the Bi?r sun hat.? We had quite a success at the Babj ' m III ?a???? 5 Office Phone 602ft ? f . N. J. PR i K ^ \! Attorney-at-Law ji_. ?? ;* -f?Practice in all Coui .? 1119 Washington Street, X owo^:ooo^.o:ox>.o;o:oo^:oo^?^oxc< f MONTGOMERY G1 XT T< 8 i^uw nacK 1 1108 Ham p We are now back in busi ? with a complete line of Sta] g shall be glad to have the bus p as that of new ones. oopcmoc?ox>oaci8^oo8?80?8??; J? THE 1 SATISF. | , " IN < 1- WORKMANSt 5 . _*N 2 > SEE SPRINGS ALL WOOI a. _WONDERFUL VA OWEN 1 1 W-WASHINi CALL 6963 FC u_u.OD DC'OOP C^O:OC^OOO OWCO^K8D REESE'S D MRS. P. R. ] A Full Line of Pat< Cigarettes and Toba< s Madam C. J. Walkei g Times. "Tee Cream a; r - PHOy 2 1422 "Assembly street, TTO LEADER i. Contest-which was held the 4th Sua- CARD O - day in July at S$. Phillips A. M. E. - - Church. We raised $50.0<h_ .Vfe were \Ve wjHh to thai 3 pleased to ha've with us Miss Eliza-' for their kindness r both Bragdon who spoke to the mis- rjng the illness t sionary women. Mrs. Harrison and jc.ar child and sis \ Mrs. Durant also worshipped wilh us4who departed this s^ and the presiding eider, .Rev. J?M_j e Harrison, gave us one of those good an*J--I ^ otcf time soul-stirring sermons. I q jja r Our Sunday School is alive and ? f. Hc?| - doing much good with our efficient " Lina IIa;j J Sup^.f Mr. ^yles. . I v..?? ? * J XKK~X~X^X~X~xkk~X~X~XKK~X*X"X~X":.X"X":.' : SPECIAL-For iv .. * .; July anc C T ' ' ft V. ' J - ' 1 We are offering for the months of July and Auj ? visiting cards* as follows: 100 Cards for fti.00 of * Vellum, Plate or Linen Finish Cards, i -? -, J 3 i * 11 e . ~ * r - T * , >: . ? ; r. z?* : 1 . - ' ' " .' ' ' I MR. CLAUD GROVER ~ * i ". ' ' ? a r-.-v : . ' . . - 1 -1 .... ' * ' - ... J ' *;f t, ; . c, . : t 2345 OAKLEY STREET ''f~? SUMMElRS^S. C. ' 1 STYLE NO. 1 ' J : ~M\&b ffiulwlU' iffloorg * 2332 (Dxforh &trrrt r?~ - firlauiarr. S. (?. STYLE NO. 3 . . L_ These styles are the exact size of cards. Til ' offering this reduced price to our readers for twc - When~oixlerintf add-l^e-for-postage and-wj-^pj : THErf'AI .Ml! ;.it3 I 0 Assembly Street; :r=r^? ?? ?- ? __Residence Phone 6798 !i! ; tt: EDERICK ??-??: I 2g~ * n . <; l - ' . and Notary Public. !!) ?. ? -ts?State and Federal.?7 ;; | ^ Columbia, S. C. :: PA I IV! LE/ IUCKKV! COMPANY?^' "" in Business I Egg ipton Street | ness at 1108 Hampton Street g pie and Fancy Groceries. We g ? iness of our old friends-as! well s RE IS r?i? , B ACTION m IIP & SERVICE' [SUMMER ! I _ SAMPLES Si LUES AT $30 & $35 I . . flj & PAUL Ti GTON STREET 1 THE UNIT! )R'SALESMAN S . ? is an organizati ^c^^gqcflce^a^oeac^CKKflce^oHg ,nfirrn pPr,piA n1 mamm^aaaaaasxioaaam^aaamB ''""v jJcC^ae''6 RUG STORE ' 7 ' 1 ?!!*? J?i 'ft* RFtfCtt P.. ' Y,yB - " "Uy KLLSL, Prop. g from |25.00 to jnt Medicines. Cigars, i household good? ;cos. A Full Line of { ! "ess and up to $ IB78M -- ! REV. J.J. Hy ?Columbia, 8. C. | yy^y^y^yyyYyW^yyyYWWWWWWVWWt C AT* I 'f ? v ? # A \ . . 1. ? - "T"r- - i_ F THANKS SPECIAL NOTICE!! ik our many friends 1 he of Sidney Park C. M. E. i and sympathy du- (hurch under the direction of Miss and death of our Mar* a ret E. .Wallace are staging a tor, Leonia llagood, Ilazzling J'ashion Revue. Keatures of life,July 2.'id, JJT,; an<1 Nvi11 he depicted in 1 liio.-^, a tlrs. S. Hagoo.(|, j Plenty of gnod wholesome refreshgood . merits will be sold. Tickets tCtV CChts ?ood, ' 0,1 W ednesday night, August 11. Kvfood, : id'.v one of every age is -cordially inlagood Cahvy. > vited. . ? Ttie Months of ? ?, . 1 August ju-t, to.'niir readers, A Special Reduction Price on either style listed below, printed on Patrician ?- 7 ?IZrs. ati TE v>attsi? ?35c S*n?xysiJc Strict tanifbcll, S. <T. " STYLK NO. 1 . 'r? . . ^ - -w ? : I - .'-> 1 ? t ? //' j/t'f +b** i/t f f r ? ? //, v<7~ l fftttftu ftrt t/ '6. STYLE SO. 4 teso cards sell t'oi* SI.50 per hundred; but wg are ? month.-- only during the vacation period. :to leader " ".' y v-Columbia. S. C. " ' "< ' *T r ' p Abreast Best by Test - ,, ; x; -*W-A V E - G" i 1 imes? -\z ? _ s An Ideal Hair Trainer for Men and " Women, Keeps the Hair in.its place _ - ana trains tlair to lie straight?, Fnr . M" Sale at ? * ' 1ETTO ! Nelson's Barber Shop y.DER '531 MAIN St.. COLUMBIA, S. C. r ~ r * - */ J . : 1 ? . ' V ' "* " mm : . . .& W> k 3 m-- ^ ?A ? I CV. J. J. HARRISON, *Jata Maatar ED SONS OF ABRAHAM & D. of J. on which is doing a great work for the ,poor and f South Carolina It. ha.n at its head~&av. J. J. blaster, Prof. j7_7yC*l!?Hj?. Stater Seeretarv nr! State Treasurer. A pay.Ofca. its members while ' _ i to the beneficiary something' after death. It to one hundred dollars for hospital benefits and $100^00 in c^ise af t<fod lo9Q by fire of house and ?. It pay* from $1.50 ?o $3.00 per week for sick^10.00 on Doctor's bill. " _ ? 4_ahd.?or any information write ; ~ VRRISON, S. M.,2310 Richland St., Columbia. S. C. of. J. A. KIRK, S. Sec., Bennettaville, S. C..