A Short History Of The Methodists... - Media Sabda Org

2. "If they do not amend, let the assistant exclude them in the society, informing it, that they are
laid aside for a breach of our rules of discipline, and not for immoral conduct."
At this conference there was a regular plan laid for raising money to support, or help our preachers
and their families. It was called the "Preachers' Fund." For the money was to be collected from the
traveling preachers, and applied to the support of the preachers.
Q. 72. "How can we provide for superannuated preachers, and the widows and orphans of
preachers!"
A. 1. "Let every traveling preacher contribute two dollars yearly at the conference.
2. "Let every one, when first admitted as a traveling preacher, pay two dollars and sixty-seven
cents.
3. "Let this money be lodged in the hands of the treasurers.
4. "Let there be three treasurers; three clerks, each of whom shall keep a separate account; and
three inspectors, who shall annually lay before the conference an exact state of the fund.
5. "Let these nine form a committee for the management of the fund. Three of whom shall be
competent to proceed on any business, provided one be a treasurer, another an inspector, and a third
a clerk.
6. "Out of this fund let provision be made, first for the worn out preachers, and then for the
widows and children of those that are dead.
7. "Every worn out preacher shall receive, if he wants it, $64 a year.
8. "Every widow of a preacher shall receive yearly, if she wants it, $53 and 33 cts.
9. "Every child of a preacher shall receive once for all, if he wants it, $53 and 33 cts.
10. "But none shall be entitled to any thing from this fund, till he has paid $6 67 cts.
11. "Nor any who neglects paying his subscription for three years together, unless he be sent by
the conference out of these United States, &c."
This fund afforded relief to a good many of our preachers in the time of distress; and most part
of the preachers were subscribers to it. The regulations were changed afterwards in some particulars,
but the fund continued in operation until we established the chartered fund in 1796. Then all the
stock of the preachers' fund was thrown into the chartered fund, which was incorporated in 1797 in
Philadelphia. After that time there was some alteration made in the application of the money even
annually by the preachers.