Litchfield enquirer., 1880-06-17


 ragansett burned to the waters edge and now lies in thirty feet of water about three miles from the Connecticut shore.
 There were most fearful scenes in the des perate crowd trying to escape from the burn ing steamer. One lady lost all her three chil dren another, two; children were saved and parents lost; in short all the horrors that in. evitably attend such a disaster. There were instances of wonderful courage and of won derful cowardice: of brutal selfshness, oi admirable self sacrifice and something now and then of the grimly comic cast which lends ad- dtional harshness to a scene of horrors.
 There is much dispute regarding the con duct of the officers, who are loudly blamed by some and defended by others. A thorough investigation will no doubt be made which will perhaps settle that important question or leave it Tn greater doubt.
 The Litchfeld South Consociation.
 Mr. Editor.-Your Washington correspon. dent seems to desire of us some information as to the whereabouts of this ancient organi- zation. If he would go to the senior Deacon of the Washington Congregational church he might learn many things but to save the Dea- con trouble we will help little.
 And to all whom it may concern we say this consociation is not what it once was, Oncethe Council was composed of the Pastors of consociated churches and delegates, one from each church. And Pastors then meant those installed by the council of consolation. But many of the churches preferred to call other councils or 'to hire" ministers. The calling of other councils was not sufficient to make men members of consociation, for it was declared that men thus installed should not come into council, and ''stated supplies passed only for honorary members. But by and by stated supplies largely outnumbered the pastors. So it was voted that stated sup |. plies who had served the churches for one year or more might be members of the coun- cl. This rule is now in force. So that while the conservative wing would not allow | select council to install a man and thus make him member of consociation, it now allows a society's committee to install man; and that l too without question as to his moral charac- ter, intellectual ftness creed or credentials. And yet consociation is the conservater of orthodoxy!
 AS to its own creed something has happen ed, too. Some years since, at our annual meet ing, it was voted that the churches at their option might use the confession of Faith or not, in admitting members. Seven only voted to continue the use of the confession. Some of the others voted to use only the covenant Some made new creeds. All under the vote might have made new creeds and the new | creeds might have been sufficiently dissimilar in doctrine And no question has been raised as to the soundness of these new creeds. The consolation as such knows nothing of their import They may be Swedenborgian, Uni tarian, Trinitarian, or Darwnian. But con- socation is the conservator of orthodoxy :! | The simple fact is that if an immoral and be- terodox man wanted to get the position of pastor of a Congregational church there is | probably not place on the face of the earth where he could get it SO easily as among us. And if a church wanted to go off into heresy these churches now have the greatest facility 1 And at the last meeting of the body, the rule | requiring consociated churches to call the council of consolation to install pastors was thought out of place and the way opened for | its repeal
 | As toa ''notice" ot the annual meeting just past, ''S' ought to know that annual and ad- journed'' meetings are not convened by let ters, missive, or notices. The churches and | their pastors and deacons are assumed to know the time and place. Still the Register this year did, as work of supererogation, | send notices which were printed in the New Milford, Litchfeld and Waterbury papers. Don't IS" take the papers?
 A word as to the meeting on the 1st, inst, | at Northfield. It was unique. Bro. Hillard was there as the champion of consociation | having discovered that "a part of his salary depends upon It." He was chosen modera- tor, and ran the thing with vigor. It was amusing to see him rule the usages of years out of order and to the surprise of many he ruled that honorary members could not hold office and that those not members could not serve as committees. But he never does things by halves, only when, as in this case, in blessed inconsistency, he went counter to his own rulings. The machine business was disposed of in the morning, and reports from the churches were made in part. The great business in the afternoon was Bro. Hillard's speech on Bro. Moores salary. It is a famous speech It has been heard in New Milford and Water bury. He don't like to have Ere. M get so much of his salary from the Treasury of the Home Missionary Society. In the warmth of his delivery at Northfeld he said it was "a misrepresentation of funds for the directors to give him so much, and that the Treasurer a while ago was sent to jail for misappropriat- ing funds," and the inference was almost in evitable that he thought the Directors ought to won't. As body we have considered them very fine men. As we left before the meet. ing closed, we can't give you the names of oul delegates to the National Council. U.
 Col Hayward, railroad commissioner, has resigned his dictatorship of the Air Line rail. read
 The Episcopal Diocesan Convention met at Hartford, last week.
 The estate of the historian Motley was only $135, 900, including copyrights.
 A new statue of Beethoven las recently been unveiled at Vienna. t. 5o
 Miss Marion Wright Boston girl of eight cen, has pictures this spring in both the Lon- don academy and the Paris salon.
 A quarry at Marmora, Canada now produ- ces stone as useful for -lithographlc purposes as any that are brought from Germany