Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-06-11
GOES OVER TILL NOVEMBER.
No Plan for the Briggs Heresy Trial Yet
Formulated.

took place yesterday afternoon at the
lecture room of the Scotch Church,
West Fourteenth street. II had oeen
expected that the committee appointea
TO conclude on some method OF proceed
ure in the case of Prof. Briggs would
make its report so that the trial for her
esy could begin at the October session
of the Presbytery, which is the next
one.
But there is evidently, now, a dispo-
sitiOn to move very slowly and careful
" on the part of those who intend TO
bring DR.. Briggs theology TO a test
The Committee on Procedure, OF when
the Rev. DR.. G.. w. +. Birch Is CHAIR
man. only reported progress at yester-
DAVIS meeting. IL pleaded as It's excuse
for not completing its work that four OF
its members had been in attendance al
the General Assembly. 1t would prob
ABLY be ready TO report at the OCTOBER
meeting. The Briggs trial itself, there
fore. appears 10 be sure Of poStponement
until November.
Immediately after Moderator DR.. Geo
l.. Shearer had called the PreS0ytery TO
order. and the minutes OF the previous
meeting had been approved, the follow
ING letter from Dr. Briggs was read;
12O WEST NISETY-THIRD
STREET, May p, 1881.
To the Res. DR.. 5. ID. Alexander, stated tte'h
of the Nelc York PreSbyteTy:
Ny DEAR SIR: / beg you TO MAKE the
following statement TO the Presbytery OF
New York;
IN / made written protest against tue
aDnointment of the committee TO lnveStl-
gate nv inaugural address. This protest
j adhere to. l desire il 10 stand ana 10 go
up TO Synod in the regular way
(2) 1 gave notice 10 a complaint against
the action of the PreSbytery based on the
report of the committee of investigation,
took this action out of deep sense oil the
irregularity of the proceedings and unjust
treatment of myself, but on reflection |
have decided TO waive complaint 10 SYNOD
as regards the report of the committee and
action of the Presbytery based thereon. IN
order that / NAV not directly or indirectly
ne the occasion OF any delay In the advance
toward judicial proceedings. AS L stated
TO the Presbytery, | desire, above all
things, that my opponents should aileSe
charges and Specifications ana tnat may
have an opportunity of meeting them IN
the court of the PreSoytery IN IUuiClal
case as soon as possible.
f8 The state of my health demands my
absence from the country until the autumn
But trust that may be aole TO meet Win
the Presbytery at their session In October
CHARLES A. BRIGGS.
The PreSbytery magnanimOuSly voted
at once to allow DR.. Briggs to waive
his complaint as he had requested, but
nothing further in his case was accom-
plished beyond the receiving OF the re-
port of progress of the committee, al
ready mentioned, and short debate
over the expediency of placing on the
minutes a reply TO the protest OF Or.
Briggs, which he still presses.
1t was moved by DR.. Booth, and voted
that a committee should be appointed
for the purpose of formulating reply
to that protest. Other business inter
vened before the moderator came to the
appointment of the committee, and
when at once he did announce the
names OF the committee, several preSoy-
tiers apparently just then awOke TO the
real nature of the action. DR.. Robin
son was one OF these, and he urgently
asked for a reconsideration Of the vote
TO make such a reply.
He said that he did not know that any
such vote had been passed, and if it had
he was quite certain that nobody knew
what he had been doing. To go any
further into the discussion Of the Briggs
matter before the judicial proceedings
was, he thought, TO be deprecated most
earnestly. The members Of the com
mittee, as announced, who wished TO
escape the task of preparing reply to
DR.. Briggs protest, sided with DR.. Rob
inSOn, and DR.. Elliot was especially firm
in his conviction that there was no
necessity of making any reply. He,
however. apparently succeeded in con-
vincing himself the other way, for,
after arguing against making any reply,
he voted in favor of doing so, the motion
TO reconsider having been passed.
1t was finally decided that it would
perhaps be better for a reply to be put
before the Synod in some shape, and
committee, composed of DR.. A. w.
Sproull, Dr. Ely, and Elder Walter
Edwards, was appointed for that pur-
pose.
Much Of the time of the PreSbytory'S
session was taken up with the consider
alton of the somewhat delicate QueS-
ton raised in connection with the re-
quest of DR.. w. w. Page to dissolve the
pastoral relation between himself and
the New York Presbyterian church.
DR.. Page announced the fact that he
had concluded to withdraw from the
paStorate of the church after his
twenty-five years Of service, because he
felt that another minister would receive
more united support in meeting the
financial condition in which the church
now is.
This opinion Of DIR. Pages was COM
batted by a number of representatives
from his church. They came in behalf
of the majority of the session to declare
that they did not wish DR.. Page to go
aud did not think his leaving would do
ANYTHING but harm to the church. Two
other Commissioners from the church,
however, representing minority Of
eight in the church session, thoroughly
agreed with DIR. Page and thought that
a change of pastors would be beneficial.
Many PreSbyterianS, they said, had left
them and were attending other churches.
The seating capacity OF the church was
600. and but 100 was the average at
tendance. The iRcOme OF the church
was not sufficient 20 meet expenses, and
so long as Dr. Page was their pastor
they thought it would be impossible to