The daily gazette., 1881-05-19
The neIaMara h nanfia,.. pllI,.. Z.

| AAO VoA1W1F0 UhDHN.UMs 4
To the Editor of the Gazette. a "
On Thursday of last week L saw ii
article In your paper from the pen of El
der e. Rittenhouse, In which he call
me to account for aonle things contain
ed in, as well as left out of N,
book entitled NThe Early and Late
Delaware Baptists.n y sa Absence from tn
city and consequent anusual pressure O
cuties have before this prevented my re.
ply, which now venture TO malxe.i
regret that elder Rs 30 far lost con
troll Of himself as 10 use snch words q
''perjury," "false witness" aud "grosses
Representations" in reference To- mt
aud my work. Wnlle i never denied tt
him and his people even the "full meas
ure Of the fruits the spirit he claims
yet must say that his letter is hardly q
sample of such fruit for no good spini
could have suggested the use of snct
harsh words. have no desirs to mjurt
the fair name OF anyone, aud this, with
a proper regard for my own reputation
led me to aim to be faithful In recording
events, accurate In stateme ent and guard.
ed in conclusions. / am guilty of no in
tentlonal MISREPRESENTATION, aud am W il
ling to correct anything written by me
upon the proof being presented thai
it is an error. Abuse is net proof Per.
nit me to call attention to some mis-
statements made by my revie wer, and al
the same time 10 defend myself from the
grave charge he brings against me OF
writing as HISTORY what is false.
1 want, first Of all, however, TO abjure
all intentions to charge, him with aper-
jury" absolute falsehood land Hgrossest
misrepresentation" because. he with
holds some Important facts-+-"tells not
only but small part of the truth, but
Avoiding the main points," Lquote his
letter, for be accuses me Of so doing and
thus makes up his case OF tsperiuryS and
"falseboodn against me-. - :
The Elder says sfIf Mr.. Cook lad
confined himself TO writing q history 81
his own denomination and fthe churcbes
with which he was In fellowship l
should have taken little Interest In the
matter. But as he has embraced what
10 claimed to be, q history Of tha Della.
ware Baptist Association which has no
fellowship or correspondence With shim
and efthe several churches coD1posipo
the same,I feel that 1t is incumb benz
upon me TO make some connec ed stafe-
ments In justice 70 myself and TO the
churches that server 20 &c tLiI4lH
The truth rs that when the DeIaw ara
Baptist Association was formed IN f79E
its churches were then regular Baptist
churches and in accord andn cOrresnon-
dence with the Philadelphia Association
until 1880, which association the Della
ware Baptists helped to form and with
which The present missionary Baptist
CHURCHES OF this State are still connected.
Daring this period aud mp to 1880 the
Delaware Baptist Associa ion favored
home and foreign missions ana mission
ary socttles. (All these facts are to- be-
found In the published minutes of the
Delaware Baptist Association In, I1ossas-
sion of the Baptist Historical Societv. ot
ri,niiadelPhia, and also IN. The hands Of
Elder alttenhouse himself gnimA
In 1881 for the first time we see by the
published minutes sigma Of the change
which led nrst 70 opposition 70 ,missiohs
ana missionary societies then TO separa-
lion from the Philadelphia and other
Baptist associations and finally to the
formation in 1885 OF the Second Church.
Wilmington, ofthe regular Baptist order
from which the churches and Association
Of Delaware had depafted. How do he
Elders statements as above d Qaoted stand
In view Of these faets2, Are they In ac-
cordance with the facts Of the caseP arc
they the whole trdtlif Have written a
history of denomination, clinrcbes and
association not my own? Shall saw of
him as he does Of me: he smakes bis
statement In such o. shape slto make nm
a testimony which 10 absolute falseboodpD
ls not this an example of what Elder r.
could tIuthfully call .niscolored and
garbled statements?n (See his letterl. , i.
:. Again, Elder Il. complains that L have
spoken specially Of Churches thst ,hsye
died out, and omitted to make promfn.
ant the fact that there are two or three.
which 4 are at :. present,
and which have been PTad,s
ually increasing for years, so he thinks
that on this account my astatements are
false when affirm as he Says Of them "a
q denomlnatlon: aOne general remarkfis
true of them all, they proeress back.
ward, "there has been regular decline
for years even greater than is exhibited
by their retnrnsp DC. After quoting this
The Elder comments thus: g"After hu ~.
ing up a curse from the Old Jewish
Prophet pronounced upon NATIONAL israel |
he goes on TO pronounce the same upon
us". = .3 = ~ 1ial5la s7a7f
Nov the truth is That did no hunting
at all. The prophecy used Ia a part 81 |
the above quotation beginning with:
"O.Ie general remarkn &c. 1t was ali
written by Rev. 4 MorganpJ. Rhees and |
published first by Benedict In his history |
Of the Baptists about ,lS4S, : II ia IN NV |
book, page 10 and the whole marked Is |
g. citation and The name Of the author |
anl the place where sfonnd plainly given.
ls this ease Of misrepresentation 5ntbe
part of Elder r., OF was he ignorant Of !
he contents ofmy book sio9 a1Ta |
Whether. what Mr.. Rhees said Of
the decline Of ssOld school,, Baptists
Vas true then, and il now, or no, 4
,ffer some STATISTICS, to show. : As far
ls the Old School Baptists are con- !