fathers. And in retracing that path, our best guide is the example set
by men of the quality and caliber of the early circuit riders of
Methodism. These were, as I have said, plain men, but in their minds
were the wisdom of the ages and in their souls, the virtues of civilized
men. They believed in truth, and pursued it with resolution and zeal,
often at a personal sacrifice they were happy to make. They devoted
their lives to spiritual ideals, turning their eyes away from all that was
vain, cheap and artificial in life. They were pious men, with an abiding
reverence in their hearts for their families, their church and their
country. They loved their neighbor in the manner they were taught
by the Savior whose doctrines they proclaimed and whose teachings
they followed. And finally, they did what the Scriptures say the Lord
requires of men: "To do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with
thy God. "

I hope that no one here has concluded that I have a reactionary
mind that resents the present and has no faith in the future. I know
that we have made great strides of progress, in thought and learning as
well as in material advancement, in the years which have intervened
since the early Methodists were laying the foundation of our church.

Incidentally, the Christmas conference at which sixty preachers met
in the meeting house in Lovely Lane, Baltimore, to create a separate
Methodist Church in America, occurred just three years before our
statesmen forefathers—Washington, Hamilton, Madison, Franklin, Mor-
ris, Randolph, Mason and the others—gathered in Philadelphia to
frame the Constitution of the United States of America. In breadth of
vision and boldness of purpose, there was a similarity between the men
in attendance at the two conventions.

But back to the point—and as I was about to say—in progress there
is always the danger of losing sight of fundamentals. This I am afraid
we have done. And this is the reason I say that we can best dispel the
cares of the present and the anxieties of the future if we turn to the
precept and example of men like the early Methodist circuit riders.

18!