Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1890-05-06
THE EVANGELICAL ROW.
The Factions Still Warring
With Each other.
BISHOP BOWMAN STATES THE CASE.
A Theological Controversy That
Has Not Cooled With the
Process of Time.

ness was transacted yesterday 10y
the opposing factions Of the divide,
Evangelical conference.
Bishop Bowman delivered an ad
dress during the afternoon, recitinl
the history of the difficulties in tn,
church and explaining the position
of himself and his followers. He
accused Bishop DGbs of gross i'm
moral conduct and Justification
Bishop Bowman said that lie had
not been legally suspended and that
his position would be sustained by
the general conference, and that the
meeting of the rival conference in
this city was without any legal
standing.
Each faction insist the others are
the boilers. The anti-Bowman parry
adopted the following resolutions:
WHEREAS, Thomas Bowman de
livered an address in the Evangeli-
cal church Of Albany, in which he
presented statement of our church
troubles as viewed by himself; there
fore,
Resolved, That the Evangelical
people and the public Of Albany be
herewith informed that said address
will be answered by j. BOwersoX
and others in the NJ. +. church
South, Tuesday evening, May 6,
1890, at 7:3O p. M.
Monday afternoon at , o'clock
Bishop Bowman gave an address at
the Evangelical church setting
forth, in detail, the difficulties in
that church, leading up to the
present unpleasantness, an account
of which is given in the Albany
Democrat.
BowMAN's SPEECH.
The difficulties in the Evangeli cal
church commenced to some extent
2S years ago, when the present ven
cradle senior bishop, J. j. Esher, was
elected bishop. His opposing candi-
date was Rev. S. Neitz, a very able
aud eloquent divine. The relative
strength of the two was so evenly
that Esher was elected
only by very small margin. There
was considerable feeling engendered,
and hence some opposition shown
towards the elected bishop. Things
however ran on without much fric
tiOn until in 1875, when Rudolph
Dubs and Thomas Bowman were
elected bishops by the general cou-
ference in Philadelphia, Dubs being
the candid teof those who
Were more or less opposed to Bishop
Esher, and, as he has, himself, since
conf 'ssed to three different parties
that he was under the i'm
preston that he was elected to
put down Bishop Esher,, he siezed
upon every opportunity public and
private, TO accomplish that end.
Evidence could be furnished in
Only two years after
his election he publicly attacked his
senior in Office and years during an
annual conference session, and led
the conference to pass resolutions
censuring Bishop Esher in his
absence. Later on the general con-
ference which has final jurisdiction
eXpunged this action from the min
utes OF the conference. Finally ut
the session of the general conference
held in Allentown, Pa, in 1888.
these matters were brought before
that body, and, after full statements
had been made, Bishop Dubs was
compelled 10 publicly acknowledge
that he had wronged his senior in
office in four or five instances, and
upon this confession and implied
prom ises on his part, matters were
amicably adjusted, Bishop Esher
going so far for the sake Of peace
and harmony as to allow q matter
to stand as a misunderstanding,
where the proof of a wilfull falsehood
on the part of Bishop Dubs was in
his possession, black on white, and
other misrepresentation were easy
of proof. However, instead Of Dubs
mending his ways he continued in
bis course, especially in difficulties
connected with the Management OF
missionary operations in Japan tc
injure his senior wherever possible,
besides laying himself open 10 very
serious charges concerning his yerac'
ity and chastity. Dubs had become
so obnoxious to the majority Of the
church that at the last general con,
ference held III Buffalo, y. Y, in
1887, he was only reelected by ma
jority of one vote, and that, aftei
his friends had engaged in An active
personal campaign Tor his reelection
and even he personally in three in
stances which can be proven begged
delegates t. vote for hi- reelection
pleading his former services aud hi
family. since then his conduct be-
came still more unendurable
He publicly charged a minis;,
and a layman with falsifying c,hl'
dispatch aud presenting it in evi
dence la the trialofJohn II. Hartz'er
while It was proven at hi- tdai b.
about thirty witnesses that no dis
patch Of any kind had been present
ed al all. In addition he mad
sta ments 10 the conferences il
Germany and Switzerland aud IL
the official paprrs, which were prov
en- by some thirty odd witnesses, 1