Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-09-19
Ii WmGTEMAN, Pres.



As a Conference, we have SO often asserted
our opposition to Slavery that your Committee
do not deem it necessary to make lengthy re
port OF our views on the subject further than to
reiterate all that we have before affirmed, that
slavery is in itself sinful and should not be
tolerated either directly or indirectly By the
Christian Church.
In taking this position as a Conference we
set forth the doctrines of our fathers who in
| 1884 declared that "slavery is contrary to the
golden law of God and the inalienable rights
of mankind
That while we rejoice to know that all the
proposed amendments of the general rHlo
| brace The law OF prohibition and contemplate
| the "eXtirpatOn'' of slave holding from the
church; we give our preference to tie Erie
Conference Rule believing that greater harmo
ny OF action can thus be secured, aud that the
rule is right in itself, but in this we desire no
opposition to any section of the church We
labor for decided action and harmony Of oppo.
sition to the great evil of slavery.
Believing that the time has come for harmO.
NOUS action in "CXtrpating" the remains of
slavery from our beloved church and believing
the law of the church without any ambiguity
should set forth the anti-slayery doctrines Of
the church.
Your Committee would offer for adoption
the following resolutions:
let. That the North Ohio Annual Conference
in conference assembled, concur with the Erie
Annual Conference in rec lmmending the an.
nual and general conference to 80 amend the
general rule on slavery that it shall read as fol.
lows:
"The buying, selling, holding or transferring
Of any human being to be used in slavery"
I'd. That we recommend the suspension of
the fourth restriction rule for the purpose spec,
fled in the foregoing resolution.
Sd. That we recommend such change in
the chapter on slavery as shall conform it to
the above change of the general rule
W. b. DIsBRo, Chairman.
Il, s. JOHNSON, Sec'y.
This brought up some discussion. The mo.
ton was made to adopt the report, the vote up
on the adoption of the Erie rule to be taken
by count Mr. Wheeler offered substitute for
part of the resolutions to exclude any from the
Conference who tolerated the buying sell NJ or
holding of slaves for any purpose ,ohaterer. lie
thought that those who had real firm backbone
would thus have an opportunity to show it
against this great evil.
Some members thought that member would
be justifed in buying a slave for the purpose
of, manumitting him as soon as possible. The
report excluded slIwho bought, sol , held or
transferred human being 10 be used IN siaoeiV
tiOn could be urged against This
DI. Kingsley, Editor Of the Western Advo-
cate, and the framer Of tho Erie rule, being
present. was invited to speak upon this question
He remarked that it was the intention of the
trainers Of the rule to set forth the true Chistian
doctrine upon the buying and selling or holding
of slaves, as well as the rightlu position of the
Church.
II a person buys a slave to fee him. Il clearly
is not for the purposes of slavery. If he buys
a slave, that be may work out his own liberty,
it is not for any purposes OF slavery, aud if, in
buying him, bill of sale is made out il does
not follow that he buys him to make slave of
hiaI If man holds a slave, ready to cmanci
pate him at the earliest practicable moment
which cannot be done at the precise time he
Is bought, then he does not hold him for the
purposes of slavery. II was not the intention
of the trainers Of that resolution 10 say that no
person should purchase a slave, for all such aets
as specified abUye, do not show any intention of
enslaying the one bought
The question was asked what Dr. KinpsIev
would say, suppose man received slave as
an inheritance, aud some one wished TO buy the
slave for the purpose of emancipation. would
the owner of the slave be justified in takigo ibe
price of the slave in such a case
Mr. Wheeler remarked that the rule was
ambiguous, the phraseology was capable of
msinteTpretation-so let us throw il away and
express the opinion Of the Conference in plain
words lie did not understand the Erie rule as
the trainers did, and he would venture the asger.
tiOn that not Bishop upon the Episeopal
Bench understood it as the trainers intended
Now they could throw away this Old rule.
whose spirit was good, but whose phraseology
was bad, and adopt new rule which should
plainly express ia open terms just the sp,rit Of
the Church What is the logical Interpretation
Of the rule under consideration IL probibits
the buying, selling holding or Transferring of
any human being A" for the purpose of slavefy.''
Now what ia slavery II has been established
by civil law 10 be the holding of one human
being by another, and if one person bolds
another, as property, for any time or anv nn,.
pose, then he necessarily holds him a. a slpvc
A member Of the Conlorenoe said that III
was no provision in all OF the MethoGist I;aai
pline which prohibited any member of ~
Church from holding slaves Il did nrovido
that no preacher, elder OF exhorter eopld b"iI
slaves, but no rule prevented private member
from doing so,
Dr. Kingsley remarked that to emanoipato a