The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1874-07-01
The Scotch Assemblies.
EDINBURGH, June l, 1874

GOlNoOnOhJ OuhS ~ IL
The business of the two Assemblies is
nearly over, The General Assembly of the
Established Church rises tonight, that of the
Free Church to morrow evening. In both,
the proceedings have been decidedly inter-
estng. The Established Church has been
troubled with several cases of discipline
which have occupied much time and caused
not little excitement, but | need not spread
the scandal of them by referring to their Sc
crets here. More important is the fact that
the Assembly of that Church has accepted, in
all its integrity, the Patronage Bill of the
Government, and is prepared to lend all its
influence to getit carried through the House
of Commons. That bill, as you are aware,
proposes to.transfer the appointment to min
isterial charges, now in the hands of lay pa
irons, to the male communicates in each
parish, and thus, in a democratic age to con-
cede the privilege of popular election to the
Church, as well as to the State.
The same subject has of course come up in
the Free Church Assembly also; and there
its reception has not been quite so cordial.
1t is hardly to be expected that a bill shall
be specially acceptable to the Nonconform-
lists of Scotland, the protested object of which
is TO strengthen the Establishment. They
cannot quito appreciate either, the justice
which recognizes the fact that great wrong
was committed in 1843, and which at the
same time seeks to make amends for that
wrong to the infictors of it rather than to the
sufferers from it. And above all, they object
to measure which proposes to provide a
remedy for the religious difficulties of this
country without attempting to secure to the
Church its rightful and inherent independ
ence. That these were the sentiments of the
Free Church, were shown by the vote which
condemned the bill-433 to IS. The mi
uority consisted of DR.. Begg and his followers,
the aDti.union remnant whose sympathies
are all with the Establishment, and who
would give immense relief to their brethren,
if they would only make up their minds to
90 whittier their hearts incline 1t was re-
ally lamentable to hear Mr.. Nixon, one of
those gentlemen, grow positively wild in his
deuunciation of those who propose to teach,
that the bill is inconsistent with the Free
Church principles and position, and threaten
to stump the country again in the interests
of the Established Church. | fear he is
mistaken, however, in thinking that he would
make much of such raid. The more the
measure is looked at the less it is liked =
The three Free Church Peers, Lord Dalhou-
sic, Lord Kintore, and Lord Moncrieff, were
all present durfng7the debate. Two of them,
the first and last named, are, believe, to
make their appearance tomorrow in the
House of Lords, when the second reading of
the Bill is to come on. Lord Kintore, who
was unable to be present, made a short
speech in the Assembly in support of the
motion carried by the majority.
On the same evening the question of Dis
establishment came up. Three motions were
made-one by Mr.. Cullen, an Anti Unionist,
that the Church should aim at the reform of
the establishments, and not at their destruc.
ton second by Sir Henry Moncrieff, to
the effect that the Church declines to say
whether Disestablishment is the only remedy
for the present distress; and third by DR..
Adams, going all lengths, and proclaiming
that under disestablishment
alone was there any prospect of solution of
our ecclesiastical difficulties. The first mo.
ton was withdrawn, its mover discovering
that its chances of victory were nowhere,
and in the division between the other two,
293 voted with DR.. Adams, and SO with Sir
Henry. 1t is pretty plain here, also, how
things are tending, and the drift will seem
to YOU all the more decided when l mention
that the vote last year was 243 to 1874. The
Tories in Parliament have an overpowering
majority at their back, and they can carry
any thing that they set their hearts upon at
present. But in spite of everything, the
conviction grows that there must be a sepa-
ration between Church and State, and what
ever is done with the Patronage Bill, the
cause of Disestablishment will certainly ad
vance.
The income of the Established Church this |