Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-05-28
NO REVISION or Farm.


Discussion of the Confession of Faitl
Goes Back to the PresbyterIes-- DR.
Briggs Orthodoxy Before the Assembly
DETROIT, May 22.-The first crisis in TIN
General Assembly has passed, and tn,
commissioners are anXiously awaiting TIN
second. The report of the committee APP
1 pointed last year to revise the Confession
OF Faith has been accepted with few
verbal changes made yesterday by til,
committee II was adopted with scarcely
any discussion, the only speech Of import
ance being that made by President Pattor
I of Princeton, one of the committee, anC
| he did not discuss the merits Of the dties
ton, but simply made personal state
i ment.
He repeated his assertion made at sara
toga last year that until the voice Of The
| presbyteries had been heard he was OBJ
| posed to any change in the confession, but
| that now he was committed to revision
The only question in his mind was, how
| FAR should this revision go2 Dr. Patton
said he could bear most cheerful and will.
| ing testimony to the harmony that pre-
| vailed during the sessions of the commit
tee-"the harmony of gentlemen who,
| whatever their differences were deter.
| mined to do their best To carry out the in
] structions of the assembly and to act in
i the spirit Of the assembly that appointed
| them"
The recommendation Of the committee
that the report be sent down to the preby-
teries for criticism was adopted, and the
discussion of the revision of the Confession
of Faith will not be resumed until the
| presbyteries meet in the fall.
| The Briggs case has not been mentioned
except incidentally In discussing the re-
vised confession, Elder Graham of Ne
braska, an octogcuarian, said that he
would not cross a - nor dot an Ai' in
/ thn old pnT1 fps Tint
tiers and not the elders who caused the
| split in 1887, and that i was the ministers
who were making all the trouble now.
There are, he said, amid great deal of
applause, a great many Professor Briggs
throughout the country at present. Dir.
Patton is chairman of the standing com
| mittee on Theological semiuaries, 10 which
the report containing DIR. Briggs appoint
ment is to come first. The committee are
said to be largely against the New York
professor.
DIR. Francis of Cincinnati presented a
paper to-day which may have d bearing
on the Briggs case. 1t was to the effect
that the appointments of professors in
Summaries should be reported on the first
Tuesday afternoon of each assembly. 1t
was expected that this would be acted
upon in time to affect the discussion this
year, but 1t was referred to the standing
committee on theological seminaries and
II may.not be reached i'll time to affect the
present case.
The old quarrel over the board Of pub
LEGATION came up this morning with re-
port by Judge Hand of Scranton, the
chairman of the committee appointed last
year to consider the reports Of the special
committee OF the assembly and the bust
ness committee of the board Judge
Hands conclusions were of a remarkably
conclliatOry nature, and not at all in sym
pathy with the finding Of the special COM
mlttee But this report has not been
adopted, and Elder Simmons OF New
Jersey, who denies that he is properly
called the fighting elder said this even
ing that he would have few words to say
when the report came up for discussion
next Tuesday He had this to say, by way
of preface, that the report of Judge Hand
was practically a whitewashing report, and
this was not the purpose for which the
committee was appointed.
DIR. llerric Johnson, of Chicago, read a
report on the increase Of supply Of minis
tiers a modification of the plan proposed
last year, which embodied many of the
changes suggested during the winter by
the lresbyleries. This report is to be dis
cussed tomorrow
Church Unity caused lively tilt in
the afternoon between Dr. Smith, Of Balti-
more. DR.. Bartlett of Washington. DIR.
/
general feeling was that the olive branch
has been extended long enough to the
Protestant Episcopal Church.
DErRoIT, May 25--ln the morning SEES
sion of the Presbyterian General Assembly
the discussion of the seal was resumed,
and Pr Baker and Elder lnnkin of Phila-
delphia, defended the seal. Judge Ship
man of New Jersey clasSmatc of the
moderator, said Elder Junkin's we'll
known beneyolence is shown in standing
up for the snake which it is proposed to
put on the cross in the seal. In case it is
left, they ought TO inscribe under it, IN
b. Thisis not the Devil Resides the
head ought not to be hanging down, 1t
looks rs if he was just going to bite.
Dr. w. A. Bartlett of Washington, D.
q, said; II hope the snake will 20 iii.
Christ said Be wise as scrpents.f Our
prejudice against the beautiful creatures
OF ttod-as truly His as we are-are un-
worthy of Christian men"
Pr McGook Of the committee said
"Ehe serrent On the seal is not an animal
Our seotch,lrish ancestors understood tie
meaning 0t emhiems, and put The SERPENT
in their seal lie defended the Iatinitv
Of the motto, "Chrstus Exaltatus sal
yat0r
men reported. through Dr. ltrskine, of
Carlisle that two churches have become
SET sustaining. The report says the
Freedmen are here to stay and must be
educated in the south. There has been
much increase in their wealth. hut not
much, II any, improvement III their moral
conditlon. RELIGIOUS labor among them
is fruitful as almost nowhere else
The Rev, llr Allen, secretary Of the
board said that his interest III The work
had been growing ever since he Was n Inv
on hls father plantation, aud especially
during the II Years Of his seCfatarysbip
fhe present generation of negroes viii
largely decide the character Of all the
swarming generations who will come after
them, and VINO for good or i'll will sd
t:Favely inliuene" the future Of the com
try. The only solution is Christian eflli.
cation fnrhim. No man can tell how much
4 negro can learn He has Just started, hut
- Years have proved a good capacity You
VIII see tonight several Young coored fell
lows that look as Welland can preach as we'll
n many Of Iaa Then they arc coming
% the trout ~ ltlnlls lines Of business
pile OF thein Arkansas OWNS Il street
railway md + buying another. They
pay taxes on 1910 of property.
~ = thotlE by good observers that
ne tlde OF 9t IN changing III favor Of
EEtolh5 III; Y appointment Or trans
ler 70 the l{ol3 2 Professorship Of Bib
liGal Theology iIaut touching the dups.
ton Of his her AS that would preitfcre
the case before the New York Presbytery7
and very possibly without assigning
gounds.
The Michigan house of representatives
yesterday received from the governor a
veto of the &. A. r. bill, which provides
for an appropriation Of S3O,000 for the
entertain ment 81 The Grand Army Of the
Republic at Detroit next August.