Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-10-20
LARGEST CITY CIRCULATION.
Rich and Raey-Rsv Or. stuart Robinson
on Judee BIand Ballard's Decision.

Rich and Racy-Rsv. DR.. stuart Robinson
on Judge Bland Ballard's Decision.
From the Free Christian Commonwealth
We have made il a point during thu
church-property controversy in Ken
lucky to have nothing TO say In the way
Of review aud criticism upon the pro
ceedings and decisions Of the civil courts
The appeal having been made to Cesar
80 far as concerns any aspect OF the case
as before C@ sar, we have felt i our duty
TO leave any nonsense and wickedness oil
Caesar in the matter to be set right by an
appeal from Phillip drunk 10 Phillip
sober, or to better Phillip, and conhne
ourselves strictly to such aspects OF the
case as involve ecclesiastical men and
measures. We have met with nothing IN
the whole controversies OF seven years
past, which in our view IS more revoiu'
tionary, Jacobinical, and defant OF the
Apostolic precept Of respect for the
mowers that be-" than DR.. Humphrey 3
miserable diairibe against the Court OF
Appeals of Kentucky, Endorsed first oth-
ciaily BY his so-called Presbytery OF
Louisville, and struggled by him into q
General Assembly which was ticketed
into an Endorsement Of what nine-tsntbs
of the body knew no more about than OF
the last dispute among the Caifres or
Hottentots. We have made up our minds,
as ecclesiastical men, to stand whatever
ca sar may be permitted in Gods provi-
dence to do, without abusing him, as the
Apostle stood Nero; even though our
Nero be not the one man with natural
human feeling and conscience of some
sort, but that polyheaded despot, the
majority" setting all constitutions and
covenants at defiance.
But we are not precluded, by our views
of the proprieties of the case, from
speaking freely 10 general of the COM
bined effect OF the decisions OF Cesar
and of the ecclesiastical courts upon our
system of Presbyterianism in general,
and the relation of PresbyteriaHism to
the people of Kentucky in particular.
Our chiefinterest in the Walnut street
church case ceased so soon as the matter
was finally adjudicated by the Supreme
Court of Kentucky. We considered the
cause of truth and justice triumphant so
soon as the court OF last resort IN the
State of Kentucky had decided in our
favor the property questions at issue be-
tween the true Presbyterians OF the Com
monwealth, and the inscriptions FAC
ton which represented not the Presbyte-
rianism of Kentucky, but an aspostacy
from Presbyterianism, whose acts this
faction itself, in common with ninety
nine hundredths of the Kentucky Pres
byteriaps. had denounced as repugnant
TO the word of God and our standard. 1t
was a question which practically no
other courts than the courts OF the State
could have any business with; for 1t was
a question between contending parties
in Kentucky. We regard the appeal
from the highest judicial tribunal of
Kentucky to the Federal Court under
the circumstances, as confession on the
part of our adverssries, on the one hand,
of their humiliating failure to justify
their preposterous pretenses in the eyes
of the Kentucky public; and on the
other hand, as the expression of their
determination to seize upon the church
property of the Presbyterians, even
though il can be done only by the tricks
of the pettifogger and judicial violence.
The moral triumph was complete; aud
the testimony of Kentucky Presbyterians
for Christian liberty and against ecclesl-
asticsl usurpation was sustained. This
gained, the question whether our prop
erty should be wrested from US by the
law of the strongest was matter, In our
view, OF minor consequence.
The world will understand, and history
will make coming generations under
stand, that in the present attitude both
of civil and ecclesiastical affairs, the de-
cisions of Radical courts, either ecclesi-
astical or civil, touching questions of
constitutional right, are worth about as
much as the decisions of learned Divines
and Judges three hundred years ago, in
questions involving the theory of witch
craft. In very strong and literal sense,
rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft
was three hundred years ago. That my
biological parsonage of Kentucky stump
orators, the fits doctor" is but too true
a type of the radical doctors Of both
theology and law. The FITS doctor" as
the stu mp orators have it, being death
on fts," treated his patients, no matter
what the disease, with view to turn
every ailment into fits;" and that point
once gained, the cure was very sure and
easy. Just so now with our Radical doc
tors of theology and law, who are death
on rebels.1 Every matter of ecclesias-
teal or civil controversy with them is
first turned into question of rebellion,
and once gotten into that phase, the set
Element is very easy. Not more remark.
able was the "witchcraft epidemic in
England three hundred years ago, than
the "rebel" epidemic with almost all the
learned ecclasiastics and jurisis in the
United States, ia our time. Rebel on
the brain " is a malady almost universal
with them. The uniform preliminary to
every species Of rascality toward a neigh
Dor is to charge him either with being a
rebel or 10 sympathy with rebels.
And the first principle ofthe school seems
to be that all protective laws of God and
man are suspended in the case of one
who is q rebel or in sympathy with
rebels. OF course, as a mans sympa'
thy is a rather indeterminste quality, the
charge can be made applicable to almost
any case that the interest or convenience
of the prosecutor may require. OF the
tens of thousands who risked all the ter
rors of the battlefield, in the late strug
gle to put down the rebels, no doubt NOR,
than ene-half at this time are reckonec
by our radical theologians and jurists al
rebels or in sympathy " with rebels
and are therefore assumed to be outlaws
entitled to no protection either under &c
clesiastical or civil constitutions.
Upon this theory the handful Of eccle
sisstical Radicals 10 the Presbyterian
Church of Kentucky seem 30 have takel
one successful step toward the outlswrl
of the great body Of the Presbyterians O.
the State. Having appealed to the civi
courts Of the State 10 sustain them II
their project Of general church plunder
and failed in the court Of last resort
shav run oT IN the Federal courfs muci