Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1875-08-12

AUGUST 10, 1S
Episcopalian members voted against the act,
and the Rev. Marston was called "the pest Of
the country" because he declared, in several
sermons, that the Assembly had usurped to
themselves unrighteous powers. The Rev.
Marston was the successor of Samuel Mar
shall as pastor of the Episcopal Church in
Charles Town. The passage Of the act filled
his soul with righteous indignation, and for
his opposition to the course Of the usurpers he
was made to answer His salary was with
held, and he was otherwise made to suffer.
The acts passed are too long to quote. To
give the reader an idea of their general char
acter, we will transcribe some portions Of them
Section II of the act ratified May 6, 1904, is
as follows:
| Whereas, some persons scruple the receiving
the sacrament of the Lords Supper, tor reasons
they fear they are not rightly fitted and prepared
to partake of that ordinance, who DO nevertheless
out of real choice, conform to the Church OF Eng
land, as established by law, and do sincerely pro-
fcss the same and do not abstain from the sacra-
ment of the Lords Supper out of any dislike to
| the manner and forme of the administration
thereof, as used by the Church of England, and
prescribed in the communion office IN the oook
of common prayer of the said Church; be it there.
fore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That
every person that after the ratification of this act
shall be chosen member of the Commons House
of Assembly in this province, in case ne hath
not received the sacrament of the Lords Supper,
according to the rights and usages OF the Church
! of 10 hnf0
then every such person, before he votes in the
said Commons House Of Assembly, or sits there
during any debate in the said house after the
Speaker is chosen. shall, upon his oath, taken on
the Holy Evangelist, declare that he is of the pro-
| fession of the Church of England, as established
by law, and that he doth conform to the same,
and usually frequents the said church for the pub
lie worship of God
The first section of this act made it incum-
bent upon each member to have taken the
sacrament of the Lords Supper, as prescribed
by the Church of England, within the last
twelve months previous to his taking his seat
Section II is kind of proviso to meet the
case of those Episcopalians who had consci-
entious scruples about their fitness to partake
of this holy ordinance. Section " Of the
same enactment absolutely forbids any one,
except an Episcopalian, to take his seat as
member of the Assembly, although duly
elected by the votes 9. his fellow, citizens.
The penalty for such presumption on the part
of a Dissenter, was, for the first ofense, two
hundred and fifty dollars, and fifty dollars
day for each repetition Of the offense. This
was tyranny in its worst form. There was
something mean in it, also. Half the fines
were to be paid over to Granville, the Pala.
tine, and the remaining proprietors; and the
other half to be disposed Of by an ordinance
of the General Assembly. 1t seems as if the
proprietors were determined, in some way or
other, to make money out of their poor, dis
senting tenants.
To farther show that the acts having for
their avowed object the establishment of the
Church of England in South Carolina was
not an ecclesiastical movement, bench of
high commissioners was created, who had
granted them all the powers of the Bishop OF
London, under whose control the American
churches were. These commissioners were
granted power to cite any minister before
them and proceed at once to try him and, if
they saw it, to silence him from preaching.
This was assuming unheard-of authority. The
names of the commissioners we're Nathaniel
johnson, Thomas Broughton, James Moore,
Nicholas Trott, Robert Gbbes, Job Howes,
Raph lizard, James Risbee, George Logan,
William Rhett, William Smith, John Stroud,
Thomas Hubbard, Richard Beresford, Robert
seabrook, Hugh Hicks, John Ashley, John
Godfrey, James Serurier, alias Smith, and
Thomas Barton.
The character of most of these individuals
is known. The names of some of them are
covered with disgrace. The pastor Of the
church of Charles Town testified that most of
them were irreligous men; and we know,
from the previous acts of some of them, that
they had not the fear of God before their eyes.
Moved by ignorance and prejudices, they de-
termined to reduce to state of vassalage the
greater number of the inhabitants of the col
ony. The spirit of persecution is manifest in
all their acts. This bench of lay commission
ers met, and the Rev. Marston, Rector of st.
Phillips, was forbidden to exercise the func-
tons of his Office any longer.
During this period, the dominant party
were jubilant Every thing was working as
they desired. A scheme far reaching and
malicious, although clothed in the language
of religion, had been devised and inserted in
body of laws, which would effsctually stop
the mouths of the people and vacate the pull
pits of the province. A law had been ratified
on the 9th of May, 1903, excellent in words,
but goat in sleeps clothing. 1t was trap
set to catch Dissenters. 1t professed to be an
act to suppress blasphemy, but was proposed
with the mistaken notion, firmly fixed in the
minds of the dominant party, that the Dis
senters denied all the fundamental principles
of religion, and were only set of vile bias
phemers. The acts passed, establishing the
Church of England as the church of the COL
ony, drove all Dissenters from the Assembly,
and shut the doors upon them so long as this
law should continue. The law for suppress
ing blasphemy deprived every one who should,
in haste, or from grevous provocation, speak
hasty word against this self:constituted oil
garchy, from exercising the most ordinary
rights of citizen. He was made incapable
of receiving any legacy or gift; in one word,
he was made mere cipher. The trap was
set, and the prospects, for while, were fa'
vorable. But the vile schemes of few, for