In South Carolina. 473 



chased would work out the price of his purchase. And the person 

 so purchasing shall, immediately after such determination, execute 

 a legal instrument for the manumission of such slave, at the expira- 

 tion of the term determined by the quarterly-meeting. And in 

 default of his executing such instrument of manumission, or on his 

 refusal to submit his case to the judgment of the quarterly-meeting, 

 such member shall be excluded the society. Provided, also, that in 

 the case of a female slave, it shall be inserted in the aforesaid in- 

 strument of manumission that all her children who shall be born 

 during the years of her servitude shall be free at the following 

 times, namely: Every female child at the age of twenty-one. and 

 every male child at the age of twenty-five. Nevertheless, if the 

 member of our society, executing the said instrument of manumis- 

 sion, judge it proper, he may fix the times of manumission of the 

 children of the female slaves before mentioned at an earlier age 

 than that which is prescribed above. 



4. The preachers and other members of our society are requested 

 to consider the subject of negro slavery with deep attention till the 

 ensuing General Conference, and that they impart to the General 

 ^Conference, through the medium of the yearly Conferences, or oth- 

 erwise, any important thoughts upon the subject, that the Conference 

 may have full light in order to take further steps toward the eradi- 

 cating this enormous evil from that part of the Church of God to 

 which they are united. [It may be worthy of remark that this is 

 almost the only section upon which the bishops make no notes.] 



1800. The following new paragraphs were inserted: 



2. When any traveling preacher becomes an owner of a slave or 

 slaves, by any means, he shall forfeit his ministerial character in our 

 Church, unless he execute, if it be practicable, a legal emancipation 

 of such slaves, conformably to the law r s of the State in which he 

 lives. 



6. The Annual Conferences are directed to draw up addresses for 

 the gradual emancipation of the slaves to the Legislatures of those 

 States in which no general laws have been passed for that purpose. 

 These addresses shall urge, in the most respectful but pointed man- 

 ner, the necessity of a law for the gradual emancipation of the 

 slaves; proper committees shall be appointed by the Annual Con- 

 ferences, out of the most respectable of our friends, for the con- 

 ducting of the business; and the presiding elders, elders, deacons, 

 and traveling preachers, shall procure as many proper signatures as 

 possible to the addresses, and »ive all the assistance in their power 



