Evening journal., 1892-03-19

Two named ABOVE, that nolnc uhutbiuR
particulars Of these charges have a s.
been published, and the parties to be
thus accused have been not fled of the
impending accusations.
''The conference In its opening session
on Wednesday morning requested all
persons having charges to be presented,
TO place them at once Ia the hands of the
president, that he might examine them
ia reference to the law questions that
might arise thereon.
n accordance with this request six
bills Of charges and specifications were at
once placed with the president, additional
to those which have now been invt sti
gated, and aided by Bishop Foss he en-
tered at once on the examination of them.
"On Wednesday afternoon in the
presence of the conference he returned
all the papers &C accompanying the return
with a statement concerning actionable
offenses, and concerning the proper and
legal form Of the bills Of charges and
specifications.
"OnThuIsday morning a call was made
and repeated in open conference for the
formal presentation Of charges against
me bers Of the conference. None Of the
six" bills of charges and specifications
named above : IT any notifications Of
them Iwere or have been presented
to the conference, and thus II has come
to pass that members of the conference
who have been notified that charges
would be presented against them, aud
who have, with others, seen in the pub
lie journals statements more or less full
and correct Of the intended charges have
had any opportunity to disprove them; nor
have the allegations been publisly with
drawn
1.-The president Of the conference there
fore deems it Just and brotherly to make
the following statements concerning the
charges and specifications which were
plssed in his hands:
STAR CHAMBER PROCEEDINGS.
Two Of the bills Of charges and
specifications were without signature.
No one appeared to be responsible for the
accusations which they contained. This
may or may not have occurred through
inadvertance. But in either case these
charges and specifications had no
legal standing, and were of the same
value only as anonymous writings of the
same import.
Most Of the specifications alleged.
in various forms, the use of unwarranta-
BILE words, chasing them under various
heads, as Mischief Making 'Defama
tion, etc
upon examination the following facts
appeared: None Of the specifications of
defamation were signed by the person
alleged to have been defamed-but one
| signed by persons presumably not psr-
sonallY acquainted with the facts In the
case.
: "Some of the unwarrantable
words alleged to have been used were
, | ali - a..
acts as members of the Wilmington Con
ference we're at liberty TO make If they
deemed them just and expedient
Many of the specifications related
to conversations held many months anc
years ago. and often between the &C
3 cused and one other party only and foi
y these reasons, as well as for inde6nitnesl
{ of the language said to have been read
r they were not likely to be sustained
] against denial by the accused person
r even as like forms of specification have
Z failed to be sustained in the trials Just
! now closed
! Aud in no case Of allegation oi
+ improper temper, word or action was
there any further allegation that the &C
cused person had been duly reproved
z therefore. and had continued to indulge
! in the practice for which he had been re
proved.
z There were some charges Of lyinJ
and deception-in some cases these re
lated TO communications said to have oc
I CURED years ago; and in most, II not al
, the alleged specifications of falsehooC
there seemed to be no recognition of the
? fact that misstatement NAV b,
, an honest one, and have in Il
} no purpose of deception, whic.
r is the essential quality of falsehood
J So far as the president, now Saturday
morning) remembers. there was not on,
] of the allegations Of fslsehoOd containe,
r in the six bills of charges which did not
on the face Of it, show a possibility ol
every explanation compatible with the
truthfullness Of the accused person.
STERN REBUKE.
There were a few specifications o.
worse and grosser sins; but in each of thl
, specific ations there was such entire abb
sence of the defniteness and particularly
that not only could there be no prepara
tion for or possibility Of refutation, but
there was laid solid ground for the suspi
cion that the accusing parties knew
nothing whatever about the matters o
which they thus ventured TO speak, anC
, foe the further suspicion Of inexcusabl
recklessness in this assault on the repu
tation of Christian ministers.
For such reasons as these the six bills
Of charges were almost in every item in.
admissible as basis of judicial lproced
ure in the conference And the facts that
they had been prepared. had been noti.
fed to the accused and to the public, and
had been handed to the president Of the
conference for examination, ought not tC
leave any, even the last stain, on the re-
putation of the brethren they accused.
A motion was made to have the paper
= spread on the minutes and given to the
press.
Vaughn s. Collins-"Am / to be cut
of from all chance to prove or disprovs
mo attftuda9D