Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1890-07-17
Bishops Esher and Bowman.
Smiths Decision.


Mr.. EDIToR:-In your paper of July
Bird, an article appeared under the
above heading, written by J. Fl. Yaggy,
which is misleading throughout. With
your permission want to call the at
tention of the readers of the REPUBLI-
CAN to the facts in the case. Bishops
Esher and Bowman were suspended,
the former by trial Conference COM
posed of seventeen ministers and the
latter by such conference of fifteen
ministers according to the directions
of our discipline. The only court of
appeal for them is the General Confer
| ence which convenes on the first Thurs
day in October, 1891. The Discipline
says, (which shall then determine the
whole matter; none of our ministers
thus excluded can in any wise perform
official functions among us" Rev.
Yaggy says, said proceedings, (Of the
trial COnferences) have been declared
by the highest official authority of the
church to have been illegal and void"
The only authority that has declared
the proceedings illegal and void is this.
When Bowman was suspended, Esher
issued q proclamation in the Church
organs declaring the suspension of
Bowman null and void. When Esher
was suspended Bowman returns the
compliment and sends out decree
that the suspension of Esher is null
and void. | suppose this is the highest
official authority to which Rev. Iaggy
refers. He further says the matter
i'll dispute has been acted upon by the
annual Conferences, and a very large
majority, about three fourths, have de-
clared in favor of the Bishops ETC. 1t
is true that a number of Conferences
have expressed themselves by resOlu-
tons but that does not change the mat
ter of the legality or illegality of the
suspension of Esher and Bowman.
The annual Conferences are not courts
of appeal for the Bishops, where the
verdict of the trial Conference can be
reversed. In regard to the large ma
jority of which Rev. Iaggy writes, the
facts are these or approximate. The
average membership of the Conferences
supporting ESher and Bowman is 4726:
the average of the Conferences which
do not support them is S349; the aver
age membership of all the Conferences
(25) is 1855. Taking this as basis we
find there are IL = Conferences who do
not support Esher and Bowman and
1917 who support these suspended
Bishops. The former have a member
ship of 66l93 and the latter SO3i3. In
the Illinois Conference more than two
thirds of the ministers refused to per-
NIT ESher to preside for the reason that
he was suspended. Less than one third
of the ministers withdrew and went
with ESher to another church, organic.
ed Conference, elected Presiding FL
derS and other officers, stationed min
listers etc, and claimed to be the legal
! Illinois Conference. The ministers
who remained in the place selected to
hold the Illinois Conference, elected ID.
b. Byers chairman, and proceeded with
the business of the Conference. A
number of fields were supplied by both
| Conferences, Rev. Frey was assigned to
| Naperville by the Illinois Conference.
The first Sabbath after Conference he
had possession of the church and Oc-
cupied the pulpit; the following Sab
| bath he was not permitted to have the
use of the church but Rev. Schmus the
minister sent by the ESher Conference
had possession. Rev. Frey and his ad-
herentS asked for an junction against
Rev. Schmus and got it. Rev. Schmus
and friends then applied to Judge c. b.
Smith for dissolution of the induction
and he decided the injunction should
stand provided the other party give
bond of $1,000 which bond was given.
Now in refusing to dissolve the in
| juction Judge Smith decided that fol
lowing points, J. J. ESher was legally
suspended. This being the case he had
no right to preside at the Illinois Con-
ference and therefore the Conference
which he organized with the ministers
which seeded from the Illinois Con-
ference was also illegal and the appoint
mentS of ministers and all other bust
ness transacted by that Conference was
illegal, and consequently the Confer
ence over which ID. b. Byers presided
was the legal Conference and Rev.
Frey the legal pastor of the Naperville
church. The Esher and Bowman or
gans have been trying to make it APP
pear that there was nothing in the de-
cision of Judge Smith, and those who
| depend principally on those organs for
their information are OF the same opin-
ion. 1t is claimed Judge Smith does
not understand the case. | think he
knew what he was doing. He is 50
years old, has been Judge some Is years
and has been a member of the NJ. +.
church for many years.
AARON BUSSARD,
Anita, Iowa,