The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1869-08-04

while we are convinced that the dsper-
sers of our unblemished honor can DC
boagkt, zoe Rerer can. We will strictly
watch the hypocrites hereafter.
/ The Lisn Trial.
| Rev. S. P. LINN, minister Of the Old
School Presbyterian Church, on trial
before his Presbytery in Pittsburgh, for
unministerial conduct and gross i'm
morality, has been acquitted, The cir.
cumstances of the case are about as fol.
lows Mr., LINN, for some time pastor
of church in Cleveland, has recently
been reviewing his theological studies
at Allegheny Seminary. Last Spring
he wrote and published in the CONNER.
cial severe criticism upon the manage.
ment of this Seminary. The authori.
ties of the institution, who seem to
consider their concern the Autoerat Of
all Calvinism in this region, determined
to punish Mr.. L. for his temerity. To
this end they instigated the prosecution
Just ended. 10, ia.
The charges did not include the oriti-
cism aforesaid, for the reason that the
Seminary magnates did not wish to
appear active in the revengeful busi-
ness. 1t was claimed that Mr.. LINN
was guilty of undue familiarity with
ladies, that he once preached stolen
sermon, that he wasn't addicted to tell
ing the truth, that he had taste for
lewd literature and women, and that he
was rather fond of the ardent.
The animus of the prosecution cropped
out in the organization of the Court
ecclesiastical. An ancient enemy of
LINN's was chosen Moderator, and q
very unfair and unfriendly officer he
made. Then the counsel chosen by the
respondent was not permitted to sp-
pear, on the contemplate pretext that
he didn's belong to the Presbytery. A
gentleman unacquainted with the case
and very unwilling to conduct the de-
defense was forced upon LINN as couu.
sci. The prosecutor, the judge and
many of the witnesses were chosen
from the jury, or the Presbytery. In
short the tribunal was q sort of theo-
logical court martial, organized to con-
vict.
The evidence admitted would have
disgraced Star Chamber, Men were
allowed to tell not only what they had
seen but what they had heard from
rumor, and as one fervent brother in.
sisted, "what they could remember of
their Dreams" Mr.. JONES was permit
ted to testify that Mr.. SMITHS aunt had
heard Mrs. BRowN's brother.in-law in
innate that Miss ABIGAIL THOMPsoN's
bachelor nephew had been assured
by his chum Tom WILLIAMS that
his landlady's serveant girl had
gathered from old Mr.. JACKsoN's
carriage driver that some of Mr.. Us
visitors thought Mr.. LINN would not or
could not or should not be permitted to
visit Miss Polly PERIwINKLE any of
tener than he called upon the more ma
tured and less comely single ladies of
his congregation. Then there was
lot of stuff about his having been seen
by a peaked nosed, vinegar-faced old
JEzEBEL in Cleveland, "kiss a certain
young lady," (horribile dicta.D with
whom it afterward appeared he was bad.
ly struck, as being single man he had
an inalienable right to be. Thenit was
shown that he had claimed to have Doc
tor JACoBUS's endorse ment of certain
book he was publishing, which Doctor
j., one of the Seminary Professors, on
oath, denied. Subsequently LINN was i'm
prudent enough to mention that he could
produce the Doctors signature, which
statement coming to the Doctors ears,
he came back to the Presbytery and
asked and obtained leave to contradict
his former evidence and place his con-
tradiction on record as his original es-
tlmony, thus removing from the papers
the proof of his own reckless swearing.
And then it was set up that LINN had
lnsulted lady of Pittsburgh and been
Whaled by her husband, mo names be-
Ing named" The lady herself came
into Court, testified to having
asked LINN q civil question and OBJ
tanned civil answer, aud to the fact
that her husband, who was exceedingly
drunk and crazy, had assaulted Mr.. L.
without any provocation. And thus we
might 60 through the whole case, show
ing at each step the trivial character of
the charges and the contemplate malice
OF the prosecution. The entire affair
was deliberate and iniquitous attempt
on the part of a number of reverend
mallgnaHts to break down a WORTHY
young minister whose only fault, when
counted at its utmost, was imprudence.
We know Mr.. LINN we'll. We know
some of his prosecutors and are
familiar with some of the possible
reasons for their course, which were
not brought out on the prose-
cution. Those reasons are far more dis.
credltable to them than is his occasional
iudlscretion of manner and speech to
Mr. LINN. He is in all respects a bril-.
liant young man, and but for his inn
pulslveness and his unwillippness 70
see that the folks who flatter him to.d,v
may hound him tomorrow, would rap
idly rise to the first rank in his profes.
sion. For his acquittal he has no need
to thank the justice of his judges. The
verdict was forced by public opinion.
The people and press of Pittsburgh were