The weekly Anglo-African., 1860-01-21
A STRANGER INSULTED IN A CHRIS
TIAN CHURCH IN NEW YORK.

On Sunday morning, the Sth inst,
noble and distinguished stranger, and a re-
preventative of an European Court, at
tempted to worship God in the Church of
the Puritans, of which the beloved DIR.
Cheever is the pastor. His party consist
ed of his lady, four female servants, and a
colored footman, in bright livery of blue
and buff. AS soon as the party had been
seated, one young man, said to be beard
less, and we might add, heartless and brain
less youth, hastened to the sexton, and or
dered him to remove the colored man from
the broad aisle to the gallery The SEX
ton told him he would do no such thing;
if he wanted it done he must do it himself.
The oficious young man then went to an
older member of the church, and requested
him to cause the sexton to do his bidding
The elderly gentleman told the sexton to
do his duty; but he would not move in the
matter, whereupon the venerable person.
age took the law into his own hands, and
"faced the music" by telling the colored
man he must get up and go to the gallery.
The noble stranger, indignant at the treat
ment of his servant in the house of God,
arose, and asked to be Shor0n tie door
through which the cOlored people could go
out, and suiting the action to the words, he
lead his company to the street, assembled
his carriage, and returned to his apartments
at the Metropolitan Hotel, and with feel
ings deeply wounded, said that "conSisten-
cy was a jewel not so easily found in New
York as he anticipated" In the evening
the nobleman and his suit attended service
at Shiloh Presbyterian Church, of which
Rev. Henry Highland Garnet is pastor 1t
is gratifying to know that in colored con-
gregations saints and sinners, black and
white, plebian and upper-tendom, are all
treated alike.
1t is unnecessary to say that the whole
affair is disapproved Of, and opposed by,
DR.. Cheever and the great majority of his
church. The thing was done solely at the
instigation of a fast young man and foss-
ilized old one On last Sunday evening,
the 18th inst, DIR. Cheever spoke as fol-
lows in reference to the occurrence:
'Itis very properto note this occurrence,
and to rebuke, on such an occasion, the
cruel prejudice against the colored race
everywhere, and in the churches, and their
exclusion, as a caste, on account of their
color, even from the prayer-meetingS and
the sanctuaries of God. In the Fulton
street prayer-meeting, l am informed, the
colored and controverted subject is exclu-
ded by law, and we have had accounts of
the removal of the black man from the
midst of the congregation to a quiet upper
room nearer Heaven. If colored men are
excluded from the cars and omnibuses on
account of their color, the same community
that maintains such an exclusion will also
eject them from their lecture-rooms and
churches. l have preached, and labored,
and prayed, and written against this wick
edness in every possible way. The pre-
judice against the colored race is one of
bitter fruits of slavery; it is maintained
and increased by slavery. In proportion
as the slaves at the South have multiplied,
and the system of slavery has been
strengthened, till at length it has been en-
throned in the Supreme Tribunal of our
National Government, in that degree the
prejudice against the colored race has
spread and deepened at the North till the
rescript of our National Justice that black
men have no rights that white men are
bound to respect, is defended as an article
of political and social piety.
Now, it is well known that we, as a
church. have set ourselves against this in
iquity. We oppose both the slavery and
the prejudice against color that grows out
of it. But in doing this, it is also we'll
known that we have had enemies and ex-
asperated opponents both within and with
out. We have had battle to fight, with
the great disadvantage of opposition among
our own selves. Even yet all do not see
eye to eye. The occurrence that took
place last Sabbath was without the know
ledge, consent or appreciation of the church
| IL took place uelofe lnc SeIFlCeo Hdu CoHi-
menced, and the pastor knew nothing at all
of it. In the name Of Christ and Of the
Church, we disavow and condemn such
respect to persons, and affirm the duty of
the churches and the ministry of every de-
nomination to set themselves against the
cruel prejudices that is crushing the color
ed race among us, and against the slavery
that is the foundation of such cruelty. We
affirm the duty of ministers to preach
against If, and of the church to apply
against it the exterminating and excom-
municating power given to her from God