Spirit Of Jefferson

WINCHESTER DISTRICT CONFERENCE.

This body, composed of the ministers and lay delegates of the Winchester District, M. E. Church, South, convened in Shepherdstown, on Thursday, the 4th instant. The session of the body, which lasted some four days, was most harmonious and agreeable; and left a good impression upon the community.

In the absence of any other information as to its action, we copy the following from the Register of the 13th:

"An assemblage peculiar to the M. E. Church, South, met in this place on Thursday of last week. It was called a District Meeting. Such a meeting we understand is composed of all the ministers, traveling and local, within a given Presiding Elder's charge, together with two lay representatives from each Circuit and Station in the same bounds. The body thus met has no legislative functions, nor is its supervision of the Church even among its own constituents, authoritative; it is purely advisory and the force of its advice is alone in the reasonableness and propriety of its deliverance to its members and those they represent having perfect right, without any suspicion of disaffection towards the Church, to receive or reject the recommendations of the meeting.

The particular meeting in question was composed of about 25 travelling and 10 local preachers and some 30 laymen-of these in the aggregate, some 45 or 50 were present. It was a matter of regret that the Bishop, whose presence had been expected, did not reach here-his place was filled by the Presiding Elder, Rev. Wm. S. Baird, who gave general satisfaction in his presidency of the meeting. Rev. W. G. Coe was elected Secretary, and L. S. Howard of Berkeley, Assistant Secretary.

The services began on Thursday the 4th instant, at 7 P. M., in the new church, when a sermon was preached by Rev. Norval Wilson of Winchester-the oldest member of the body, as he is also oldest minister in the entire Baltimore Conference-having joined this latter in March 1821. Enfeebled as he is by the labors of nearly half a century in the peculiar duties of a Methodist Itinerant, his mind remains vigorous and his zeal unabated. He was constant and active in attention to and participation in the business proceedings of the meeting. There were 7 business sessions held, consisting of 2 on Friday, 3 on Saturday and 2 on Monday-on which last named day at 5 o'clock, P. M. the meeting adjourned to hold its next annual session in Martinsburg.

It is surprising what a vast amount of business was attended to in the compass of this short time. Some twelve committees were appointed, each on some important church interest, and the reports of these committees were all ready in due time. Some of these were quite voluminous papers-but all were read, and as necessity required, examined-a portion of them indeed elicited considerable debate, in which ministry and laity participated with equal right and freedom. The meeting found time not only to pass upon all these reports, but to hear a specific statement from each member as to the condition of the work in the charge represented by him. Various resolutions were also passed, and among these one in the interest of the Sharon Female Seminary at Brucetown, and one heartily approving the great paper organ of the Baltimore Conference, the Episcopal Methodist, edited by Rev. Dr. John P. Isaacs. Lay Delegates to the approaching Annual Conference to meet in Baltimore city in March next, were elected as follows: E. W. Massey of Winchester Circuit, David H. Knee of Wardensville, Joel H. Hieronimus of Berryville, and Geo. W. Anderson of Winchester Station. The Alternates for these are Joseph Beeler of Iagers-town Circuit, Wm. S. Davis of Front Royal, Wm. S. Noland of Berryville and Samuel Whisner of Morgan."