234
Methodism in Kentucky
Hampshire, declared in favor of "complete separation from the South and slavery, if necessary, in order to prevent the destruction of the Methodist Episcopal Church in New England." Of course such things stirred the South, and actions and speeches equally inconsiderate were frequently indulged. The Church in the South, while regarding slavery as an evil, did not consider it a sin in itself, and contended that it was a matter for the States to regulate and adjust. An open conflict between the two points of view was inevitable. At the General Conference of 1840 another flood of petitions and memorials was let loose-nearly all of them from New E,nglahd, not one from the South. But the ,conservatives were still in the majority, and abolition received no more favor than at the previous session. The abolitionists were discouraged, and for a time the agitation almost ceased. Some predicted that it would no more trouble the Church. A considerable number, however, losing hope of securing their ends through the M. K Church, left it and organized the Wesleyan Methodist Church. This movement first started in Michigan, but soon the East, by virtue of superior numbers and influence, assumed the leadership. Orange Scott and other strong men joined the new organization, and within three years the Wesleyan Methodists numbered something like 20,000 members. Wholesale secessions threatmed to decimate the M. E. Church in New York and New England. Political issues of the day also served to increase the agitation and to intensify the anti-slavery feeling. By 1840 it was becoming evident that the Church would soon be forced to take a more positive stand in opposition to this acknowledged evil, or else suffer loss of both mem-