The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1882-09-06


broomstick above the moon. have been
for years dealing with him precisely as
our Saviour directs in Matt xviii, but
he has always refused any on1ende. AT
last he sends word that he is ready to
join me in a general, square, retrarit
and reconciliation. After have honest
ly shaken hands on this, he says, by way
of " explanation without modification, >
Now mind, my retrartt is to be under
stood as extending only to that tale about
the broomstick." Well, this practically
ruins it all for the charge left against
me was the damaging and the only dam
aging one unfortunately it has not been
found impossible for parson to embezzle
trust funds, and the charge that 1 had
done so is not intrinsically incredible,
apart from my known reputation. But
the charge of riding on a broomstick
nobody had ever credited; it had always
gone for nothing and been understood
as meaning nothing more than that my
neighbor was blind-mad" when he
said it. In Just such state this Spring
field action leaves us: the charges Of
heresy and blasphemy never were nor
could be credited The men who made
the charges were all. along concurring
with the rest of the Presbyterian world
to which they made them, in saying
that Southern Presbyterians are well
known to be the most conservative doc
trinally, and most exemplary and strict
of the Presbyterian family of churches" "
But it was their representation of us as
rebellious, insubordinate factions which
had power of damaging our good name
1t is these which are, expressly, not
aOithdraaUn. Fomtb-The saddest part
of the story is the obvious maotiUe which
caused the Springfield Assembly to at
tach the fatal pendant to their an1ende
1t was very clear that the motive was
secular and political the fear to offend
the political sentiments of their constit-
uents at home by even seeming to sur
render or modify the tyrranical and Pop
ish principle of the Spring resolutions,
And now the New York Observer tells
the plain truth, though by the use of
those euphemisms which the Observer so
well understands In plain English, that
Assembly passed the Herrick Johnson
resolution" because it believed that the
home people of their Church still holds
that deadly usurpation so passionately,
as to be indignant with even seeming
relaxation of it, even to gain the coveted
reconciliation And that Assembly passed
it auaa11inaou8lyl This tells the sad story
that politics still rule in that Church !;
that really the breach of principle is not
healed at all that the very central error
which disrupted the Church at first, is
still unanimously held in that Assembly
hot h.
tanning our conscientious testimony, and
our ecclesiastical independence. Well,
it is sorrowful but it is not our fault.
The last way in the world to remedy this
state Of things, is for us to waver in our
right position, and thus sophisticate and
mix the truth with the error.
Mr.. Calhoun once said to a brother
Senator, when the Senate was proposing
to act on statement made known only
by dispatch Never act on a mere
telegram it gives only the central fact
without any background by which to
construe it." Well would it have been
for our Assembly if it had observed this
wise caution The unhealthy o7ain1uS
which prevailed in the Assembly is be-
trayed by the fact that it did so, unhesi-
tatingly, take this critical action on
short telegram
Much has been said of the marvellous
unanimity of the Assembly. If we may
believe the statements we hear, the real
amount of this unanimity was, that the
members aOere, indeed, nearly unanimous
in the conviction that they were hopeless
ly entangled in their own indiscretions,
and so, saw no way to help themselves.
But very few seem to be really satisfied
mill the result.
The Peouniary Question.
We are told that much was also said about
the necessity of our conciliating the help of
Northern Presbyterans, to overtake the work of
meeting the incoming immigration into the
South with our Presbyterian Gospel. Glowing
references were made to the influx into Texas
the mushroom growth of mining and manufac-
turing towns in the South, and to the prospect
of larger influx in the near future. Then, it
was exclaimed, that here YVES huge work for
our weak poor Southern Church to do. That
it was utterly utopjdn hopeless, impossible, for
her to do it unaided; that she must gain the
help Of Northern Presbyterianism, in men and
money, or make disastrous failure in the task
And that, in order to get these, we must estab-
lish these intimate relations. One writer ex.
claims We have but one seminary open, with
IS students, and II or II licentiates for the
year. 1t is simply out Of the question for us to
do it unaided."
Let us look intelligently at this If Presby
teransm is to be built up in our fields with
Northern resources, the first question to be