New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-05-19

shall not argue | shall simply illustrate ! ~, 10
not believe that the fountain rise higher tan ~,
course do not believe that the adopting act Dlnos
TINS Assembly any assembly hand ana ioo., d and
sympathy with the object aimed at and TO be az.
tanned by this overture: ana yet cahhoo WV avs
the overture. Applause.) ..,....,oos
Sir back of adopting acts, back of constitutions
back OF barrier acts, there Is principe Wiion INV T.,
lies popular government that was brought 70 US
that the will Of the majority must be sc Jaw "a lou
handed down 10 us from the Fathers, and as Dr. fa,
terson has shown, makes IL possbie~'gv n n mile
it, and can change our form OF government anu W"
Now let me illustrate Here is the PresbyteTy DO OF
New-Yorl with fourteen representatives seven Pres
byeries with two commissioners would put tIe NV
York Presbytery where 1t would have lus ,o ol,e
TO the Presbyteres with Two that
Do you see now, with this slnpS i
OF the power OF the Newiork. PlesD ,;nrcne
And if you take away the sg 0oS II this s subject to
consider it and to ii. you take away IT MS
of the majority and you put d e.e mott ossstns for
today We are not lcgislatng for cenrr w. nd
legislating for the life of the Church we d in the
ing our Presbyteries in foreign lahds, anu III t ,
southern country, and we cannot extend tneh y" %
rapidly. and We cannot give them 700 r mud ad hedge
voice i'm the Church. provided we restrain anu her,h
about that voice Keeping in the hands OF me ,,ih
jorlty the right control the poIcy anu 'he Nw if
Wuld be possible in time to that small foreign
Presbyteries and small Southern Presbytslcs uiIe
toeeiner vouu t ruo nocv and faith of the Church
Now. you do not intend to do tha'' "i'' o"e"' ~
This overture should he recommitted to THIS COM
mittee. Let them engraft upon IL anu ioiu aosted
T them Give to the General Assembly the right 10
leglsate and to vote upon the oveiuoo @ LII nrs
rom t tS rcbi Of the majorty rule. Otherwise
Won surrender IL, and you surrehucr LII oS 49, ~
nGpnIa r' government as well; and if understand
ANYTHING about the Presbyterian Church ~ j. W i
cnuntry more than any other body of men, that
principle for which we live ana mat prlnJ ii b III
1e and that lis Win shall be heard and must be
needed. (Applause)
DIR. T. A. Hoyt. of Philadelphia spoke against
the report and Judge Alfred Hand, oil ocran'oh'
in favor of it. Judge Hand said that 1he AS
sembly is the supreme judicatory OF the rIesoS
terrain Church and that it is the prlNllege VI
Supreme Court to interpret its own CONSTITUTION
Dr. Patton had said that in 800 the Assembly
had made blunder. Supreme Courts nave rlght
to make their plumbers law. The highest leeal
courts everywhere admit that the decisions OF 'he
highest tribunal of any ecclesiastical Douy are
final and beyond appeal in questions OF uocuilne
and discipline In 1905, g and Z, TINS Assembly
as a Supreme Church Court decided that changes
in the Confession must be formulated Dy inc rs,
sembly and passed down 10 the Presbyterles' ana
the Assembly declares the proposed amendment
to be law.
The last speaker was Henry Day, OF New
York who said that he rose TO speak on Doth
sides of the question. lie spoke as follows:
Mr. Moderator Fathers and Brethren: ] would not
be surprised you were very impatient ID regaru
this question, but nope the brethren VIII IeneineI
we are lerisating in matters that are OF vital I'M
portance 10 the Church. ana protest dSaa' We
impatient and pushing this thhs through 81 Una" W.
W. Now, am out and out revsionist ! want TO 70
state that before start and although THIS Is not CON
nected with revision, think it VIII have very IN
pOrtant influence upon IT, THINK Ihe rcfiSo mt
are at issue here and though they may not fali ID
with some of the views Of our friends on te o thsf
they have which are right Let us be right, and theh
we can afford TO yield; 80, o,.aor+,on +o this
report that is TO say the fundamental ideas tat run
through IT. believe that the General , Assembly NaIHe
To- legislate enact, control, superntend and decide
upon ali great questions Of doctrine II you attempt d
will diminish its force and destroy the great body OF
the G he S5d1 Of
ali the churches here united. Now, we must re-
essd a d Hs Af 6Gt Sy that
ton is thing, and that the Form Oh GGvefneIC
s iSied ho here OF in p the first sreie It reads
chapter be added to the Form Of Government, making
Confession Of FAITH" Right there Shall move that
the following Shall be inserted The Form OF
Government, Book of Discipline and Directory ior
do not care 10 have it decided by this e.. General
Assembly that there is distinction between the Con
itntjon and The Confession of Faith which is used in
the Adopting act. don't want that to get INTO this
bpanter % Of Amendments shall read Article First
Amendments or alterations of The Form OF Govern
ment Book of Discipline and Directory ior worship
NAV he enacted by tho General Assembly
say that when we going 10 make change
that it should be orderly and it ought to assert the
nonSer Of the General Assembly Now, our Form OF
$oTernment is very much like the form Of Govern
roordinate and ought to be. with the vote OF tho
General Assembyust like Congress and the nv HaT rf
rom the General Assembly 70 formulate to pass upon
and then to send dow % 5he prepye to make a
Then let the General Assembly enact TINS, so read a.
Re enacted by the General Assembly, but the same
shall not be obligatory on the Church until nc same I
shall be transmitted TO- al u s6ap 81 anu NoW
as far as has been possible 70 preserve ne Language
Of the has ana III 9 Seen e pS T in hee and it is
Of great Importance in legal document tnat you h w
All know the meaning. That is very sensible metl1a
of procedure--that the General Assembly wlehctter
there is 10 be an enactment which Will change inc
The numbers and the vote Oi the Church on one sue
not nosSibe for Presbyteres that may be small and
where twothirds may represent much less tnah %
Won have always got the General Assembly representing
the power and the numbers OF the CDlrch anu o. ci
anticipated danger III that respect VIII Do WY "
lesSened. 49,. q ,,o.rd
Now let us to the second section - A am 1n
ments or alterations OF the Confession OF Falth anu e
Longer and shorter Cateclisms may be proposed "
the Presbyeres by the General Assembly, but shaii
moi be obligatory the Church unless apprONe1 IA
writing by two thirds Of all the Presbytel1cs. II
were WriSig II ] would say tlreeifths, ana l "ouiu
say il for this reason. - email
As Dr.. Patterson has proved sometimes sinai n
Presbytery has stronger vote and more power tn',
a very large synod. That Is not right, thal is Is d
wrong principle, and think If we put in threeils
we would not then do justice 10 ourselves Just ~
hpVyf hos
control very large ones. The PresbyteIy OF Blshalch
has seven ministers In IT, and il controls 165 munster i
IF the city OF New York. You how In cIOse
question that woud be very wrong. And We must
remember that we cannot stop majoritles. bIo'n Ter
IIovt NAV talk about revolution as much as NC
neaSes but ! tell you that revolutions sometimes
are Gods messengers 10 the world, and they nave Dec1
the salvation of this country 1t means that Ile eSa
hodv of the people arise and say that this OF Ilat
must be done. They found II out in 110O ana rneS