Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1857-09-26
AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY.

hmGhlOhN D1DLE DOO1E1 L.
GFrom the New York Courier x Enquircr
All of our readers may not know that sharp
controversy has commenced upon very imp0r-
tant subject between members of one ot the most
influential and honorable associations in the coun.
try. The cocie,y is aonc other than the Amer
ican Bible Society, aud the matter in dispute is
the proprety OF certain very numerous though
not very great changes which acommitiee of the
Sociey propose TO introduce into the text OF the
English Bible. The facts tha; this association
Is composed Of members of all denominations,
that it now issues three-quarters of million OF
Bibles annually, and that its impressions have,
and hav" hitherto merlted, high credit for their
accuracy, make this dispute matter Of great
public concern.
The occasion of the issue now made arose
from what was at fist the appointment of a Com
mlttee to correct certain purely typographical
errors which had in the lapse of wears ctept into
the text both of the Bibles published by this As
soclatlon and thos published by the British and
Foreign Bible Society. 70 this duty was
afterwards added that of regulating the
biography and punctuation of the version as it
has hitherto been printed and, as we under
stand 1t, the Committee OF its own motion as
sumed also the task of correcting, or rather
. tuiuHHH, Tue tlltS ul lnt tilplcTs anu lUt run
nlng heads Of the pages, so that they might con.
form more strictly, IN the opinion of the Com
mlt,ee, to the plain meaning of the text itself
1t Will be seen that these changes az slight
could be made were any change at all desirable.
They would seem to be hardly open TO objection
upon, so to speak, religious grounds, by the mem
bers OF any den animation Of Christians. That
all errors Of the press should he eliminated from
a standard impression of the Bible by the efforts
OF careful and competent proof readers, no one
will, OF course, think of denying; and that GER
tain changes of orthography such as have been
before made, should be made again in conformi-
/ ~ with the practice u! the day, can hardly be
objected to ON the ground OF solicitude for puri-
| ~ in the faith \ new punctuation is open to
more objection in this regard from the fact that
TO change the pointing of a sentence is often to
materially modify, If not radically to change It's
Specification Yet it cannot reasonably be fear
ed that committee of seven eminent biblical
scholars chosen from the Episcopaan, Presby-
terian Old School and New School, Congrega-
tionals,, Dutch Reformed, Friends and Metho-
dist denominations would agree upon such 4
punctuation as would change the meaning of
any passage OF Holy Scripture, except in so far
as such change might he strictly regarded as a
restoration of the reading gwen, or Intended 10
be given, by the original tTanslators. The mod
iticaton of chapter headings and the headlines
ot naces is in i,s.lf , matter oc small mnpent :.
because these parts of the impression are in no
sense anv na't of The Wo,d of God, and are
frequently omitted altogether; and because they
have no authority, even where they are more
than a cata.o .ogue Of contents, and become in n
measure nlerpreialye,--except as mere oppo-
nentS Of the sense IN which those passages were
who ,,v. us rb;s nr,coIess ,rans,us;on of The U..
brew and Greek into the noblcst Enolsh ever
wr;,tnn
In sntc. however of the annarentlv unm.
nor,an, and actual trivial nature If the chanyes
nronos.d thcv bave he.n mot with n d.,orm,ned
and dennnc;storv onnos;,;on and in sn;te of our
ann,rra,on Of ihe chanoes inst oivrn above.
wa cannot hut bono to see This o,nos;,;on main.
,,;,ed nnA;ncb,npIv and. ,rumnb,nty II ;s
uryed and with reason thar tho COMMITTEES ex
cnednI ;ts mowers. thar ho;nn nnnoin,ed merely
tn collatc and correct, i, has nndrr,al,en to mod.
;fv often and som.t,wss IN cLan,,, .--tha, (os its
members admit \ il has assumed the r;oht m con.
dense and sinnIfy. IN reject cer,ain expressions
as ant,ouated rur,hrons and amtaguons. and that
tbe res,,lt Of ;ts L,bors Is IN - n,sasnre 70 give
VS. .Lo pu,Io =. ,ha Cnn,,,;,,',n - ,d,,rstaod :, -
W. 10 49, ~ n,, ,I,o ,,nr,;.,,, 81 ,ha oh;ao
,ons n,ado - ,ho lahors of ths Con,n;,,oo ~.
into thn exam;nation nf tho Comm;,teo,s n,Sn
renort in snnnor, of the chances which thev
nrpnose ] " cScept i in 50 far far as to remark that NO
ono vii, ,b;nL Of travers;nT ,he;r nlca in favor
y" ,a ohonn,." which ,hor 7,vo ,,,fs N nr,hon.
ranbv INV T5at thew have snelled .niaster' ,y,thon,
.n and aras.houner Win ,~o - is not amona
ha;r "''n I;ns. and ,b.;r ,nt,odno,;or of rn;,ors
or,horranby % Of nroner names is at ,eas, q yon;aI
ofance IN, sn far shond thcv have oone and
: mn f,r,hor ,Tbe;r f,nc,ion yss 70 corrsct Tho
nrxt in these and like resnrcts and tboir severe
and able censor in the princeton Rerie,o is en-