Manuscripts and Memories of Minneapolis

FROM DISTANT CLIMES

Thirty Widely Separated Conferences Represented
at the Opening Sessions
Today.
(From Yesterday’s Later Editions.)

The Adventist began work bright and early this morning. At 7:15 a special committee met to consider measures and means to be taken in consequence of the introduction into congress of the Blair bill to make an amendment to the constitution providing for Sunday observance. The Adventists, holding as they do, to the old Biblical idea of a seventh day Sabbath, do not, of course, relish this sort of legislation. This morning it was decided to send out 400,000 copies of the American Sentinel, which is published, as Rev. E. H. Gales [sic] said, to show up the sophistry of the National Reform party which is trying to bring about the religious legislation to which they are opposed. At 7:45 the regular devotional exercises took place led by Elder R. M. Kilgore of Chicago.

At 9:30 the conference was called to order in the little church. Among the 96 delegates present 30 state conferences. the European mission and an Australian conference were represented. But this by no means represents the number present, some of whom came from points as far distant as South Africa, New Zealand, Central and South America and the Pacific Islands. After the business of organization had been completed the Arkansas conference was by vote made a member of the general conference and upon petition the Australian conference was also admitted. This concluded the work of the conference during the morning. MMM 524.1

At 10:30 the conference took up the prophecy of Daniel, contained in the story of the “Beast With the Ten Horns.” It is generally conceded that the prophecy refers to the breaking up of the Roman empire into the 10 kingdoms after the descent of the barbarians on Rome. The question that troubled the conference was as to the location of one of these kingdoms. Elder Geo P. Stahr [sic] wanted the conference to take a vote on the question. MMM 525.1

“I’d like,” he said, “to put an everlasting settler on this question so it would not come up for argument again.” MMM 525.2

Cries of “amen,” “amen.” MMM 525.3

Elder Waggoner did not want the question settled until it had been investigated, and he moved an amendment that the council resolve to investigate the question until each member for himself had arrived at an intelligent answer to the question. This proposition created considerable stir. A good many members of the conference wanted to know what they were to preach in the meantime. MMM 525.4

W. C. White said he should feel compelled to preach what he believed, whatever way the conference decided the question, but he added: “If I should disagree with my brethren who have studied the question more than me, I’d touch just as light as I could on my view and try to bridge it clean over to theirs.” MMM 525.5

“Amen! Amen!” came the solemn tones of approval from all over the house. MMM 526.1

Mr. White urged the passage of a motion that certain questions be made topics for consideration by congregations and not settled and decided for them beforehand by the general conference. Matters of this sort occupied the conference most of the day. MMM 526.2

n.a., “Truth Travels in Ships” Minneapolis Journal, (10/19/1888), p. 2.