he question of the laity, settling the
very foundation principle itself, with what consistency can we disallow
them a place in this General Conference, when by their votes they opened
the way for the laymen coming into this General Conference? Do you not
remember that we had a vote previously, and the men only voted, and that
the lay delegation scheme was defeated, and the _Methodist_, that was
published in this city, being the organ of the lay delegationists, said
that "votes ought to be weighed, not counted"? And then the question was
sent back to be voted upon by both the men and the women? And let the
laymen of this General Conference remember that they are in this body
to-day by reason of the votes of the women of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. In 1880 we went still further. We went into the work of
construing pronouns. There had been women in the Quarterly Conferences
previously to that date; but there was a mist in the air with regard
to their legality there. The General Conference by its action did not
propose to admit women to the Quarterly Conferences. It simply proposed
to clear away the mist and recognize their legal right to sit in the
Quarterly Conference. Being in the Quarterly Conference, and in the
District Conference, they have the right to vote on every question that
comes before such bodies. They vote to license ministers, to recommend
ministers to Annual Conferences, to recommend local preachers for
deacons' and elders' orders. They vote on sending delegates to our Lay
Electoral Conferences, and they vote in elections for delegates to Lay
Electoral Conferences, and they vote in elections for delegates from Lay
Electoral Conferences to this General Conference. And there are men
on this floor to-day that would not be in this at all if they had
not received the support of women in Lay Electoral Conferences. Now,
brethren, let it be remembered that the votes of the women to send
delegates to the Lay Electoral Conferences were never challenged until
they came here asking for seats. They were good enough to elect laymen
to this body, but not good enough to take seats with laymen in this
body. With what consistency can laymen accept seats by the votes of the
women and then deprive women of their seats? I am surprised at some of
the "subtle insinuations" of the Episcopacy concerning constitutional
law. Allow me to say at this point that, having introduced into the
Quarterly Conference these women, and having