Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-08-04
TROUBLE IN DE CHURCH,
THE RESULT OF a oAmPMEErING

THE RESULT OF "A OAmPMEEriNa.
Two Churches Get into Diniculty and
Their Members into An Alder
mans ONCE.
Last evening at z O'Clock tho offics of
Alderman Barr, on South Duke street,
was crowded with mixed assembly, the
majority present being colo-ed people and
the remainder hucksters, lawyers, report
ers and others. The colored folks who
gathered there were representatives of all
classes, from the hod carrier to the minister,
and the Office looked like the stage of q
large theatre just before the curtain is
rolled up for the play OF Uncle Toms
Cabin"
The cause of this large gathering was
the hearing before the alderman in a case
which grew out of the recent "colored
campmeeting at Quarryville. Itappears
that there is a colored congregation in this
city, which has a church on Strawberry
street, and is known as the A. NJ. E.
church. 1t is also claimed that there is
another church in Faegleysville, known as
the A. N. E. Zion church. The mix
ing up of these two churches caused the
trouble, each one claiming to be the orig.
inal church, The defendants in the case,
which was one of false pretence, were
Hiram Hambright and Joseph Baer, two
we'll known hucksters of this city, and
VIM. Kiehls, Matthew Diggs and Samuel
Houston, colored. These oolored people
belong TO lions church and it is alleged
that on Sunday, July 90, they, with the
other defendants, held a campmeeting at
Quarryville, and in advertising it they used
the name of the A. NJ. E. church, leaving
the public to believe that it was the Straw
berry street church. Considerable money
was collected at this camp which the
prosecutors, who are trustees of the Straw
berry street church, allcge was obtained
by false pretense.
The first bit Of evidence was huge
poster, which was read by the district at.
torney. Itannounced that a campmeeting
would be held under the auspices of the
ga. NJ. E. church of Lancaster )" after
stating the different rules and regulations
of the campmeeting, the bill winds up
with these words. "By Order of the
Trustees" and this was the offensive line.
Another small bill had the word "Zion"
on it. A number of witnesses were called
and testified that they saw Houston,
Diggs and Kiehls collecting money at the
camp some thought they were giving it
to the A. NJ. E. church and others did not
know nor care where it went. Rev. VIM.
Norris, pastor of the Strawberry church,
testified that the defendants had received
no authority to hold oampmseting under
the name of his church, which received
none of the proceeds he thought that his
church was injured.
J. H. II. Butler, George Smith, Charles
Motion, Robert Orr, Jonathan Harris and
David Rnhincpn oil tr,c Of f9,o Ckro
berry church, testified that the defendants
had no authority to hold campmeeting
under their name.
One witness was heard for the defense
and that was a colored man named Grace,
who is presiding elder of the "A. NJ. E.
Zion church." sent out by tho Baltimore
and Philadelphia conference. The church
he represents he claims to be the true one
and the oldest one in this county, the first
congregation having been in this city in
1876 : it was named out of respect to
this first church, and the Strawberry street
church is only a branch Witnesses was
asked about holding this campmeeting, and
he telegraphed Houston ''to 60 ahead"
He understood there was mistake in the
printing of the large posters. There is
congregation known as the "a. M. E.Zion
church, in this city. and il has regular
officers under their auspices the camp
was held. This witness was what tho
coiored folks would call powerful
man." and he spoke with great earnest.
ness. The alderman heard an argument
in tho matter, and thea dismissed the case
against Hambright and Barr, as it was
shown that they had taken up no collec
tions. The cases against tho others were
held under advisement.
If this campmeeting was really got up
by the Zion church, the trouble was that
the management reelected to pnt that
word on the large bills, although it ap-
peared on the smaller bills and in the
naYsnanprS