The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-05-14
DR.. BRIGGS NEXT TRIAL
Before the Presbyterian General As
Sembly at Washington.

bred commissioners beneath a His
toric Roof Will Settle Points of Doc
trine-Twelve Days for Debate.
Copyright, 1879
New York. May 13.-The Presbyterian
world will not be alone in observing the
proceedings of the general assembly of
the Presbyterian church in the United
states Of America, which convenes in
Washington, D. c., on Thursday, May Is.
The 800 delegates, or commissioners.
chosen TO represent their respective pres
bvtcries. who will gather at the nations
capital in the New York Avenue Presby-
terrain church, are to pass upon the ap-
neal in the famous Briggs case and to deal
with twenty-eight Overtures for revision
of the confession of faith, besides trans
acting business connected with foreign
missions and church polity To say the
delegates are mostly known as Briggs
or anti Briggs and that the question
of revision is arOuSing infinite discussion
will sum up the situation.
THAT the President of the United States
and his entire cabinet with one excep-
tiOD. the majority of the members of the
supreme court, most of the state govern
ors and Il heavy percentage of congress
and the legislatures are Presbyterian;
would suffice to make the gathering
notable even were there no wealthy and
intellectually and numerically powerful
lairy throughout the country supporting
two hundred odd presbyteries with their
arrays of churches, seminaries, pastors
and professors When to these elements
OF interest the excitement of doctrinaire
partisanship is added, the presence and
interest of outsiders and reporters in
large numbers will be readily understood.
That the assembly will be overwhelm-
ingly anti-BriggS all concede But
whether the Briggs case will be sent back
to the synod or whether the assembly will
itself take it up for adjudication, is left
to conjecture. The usual procedure in ap-
peals, from the presbytery to synod and
from synod to assembly, having been de-
parted from in this important controversy,
the question to be determined is: "Shall
precedent be returned to-" as one western
delegate puts it.
AS for DR.. Briggs himself, while he will
appear before the assembly, his authority
is nil, Many who voted for his acquittal
repUdiate his theories. As DR.. George L.
Spinney pastor of Phillips church in New
York, said: We vote to acquit Prof
Briggs, not because we consider him in
the right, but to show our respect for
freedom of opinion"
DR.. Briggs, professor in the Union
Theological Seminary, refused, it will be
remembered to admit the divine authen-
ITCHY of certain portions of the scriptures.
The charges to this effect were first
pressed before the New York presbytery.
That body dismissed them, but the last
general assembly referred the matter
back with instructions to try the case.
DR.. Briggs acquittal followed The case
has already been up twice for discussion
before the superior body. 1t will come
before the Washington gathering as an
appeal from the prosecuting committee
against the action of the presbytery of
New York in acquitting the professor of
theology.
The conspicuous figure at the opening
ceremonies will be the retiring moderator,
Rev. William c.. Young, DID, of Ken
lucky. AS the president of Center Col
lege at Danville, KY, and through his at
titude toward the Briggs alleged heresies,
and toward revision, he has attracted
much attention. The opening sermon
having been preached by DR.. Young, the
question will arise as to his successor in
the workmanship.
Who will be the man?
That he shall be unto Briggs goes with
out saying. Rev. DR.. Charles A.iDickey,
until a week or two since pastor of the
Calvery church in Philadelphia, Rev DR.
George Baker, pastor of the First Pres
byterian church also in Philadelphia,
Rev. William Henry Roberts. D. D., now
the assomblys stated clerk, as well as
professor in Lane Theological Seminary,
and men of equal eminence have their re
spectlve adherents. In spite Of the work
accomplished by those who favor any one
OF these theologians, the honor may be
conferred upon a polemical 'Lochinvar
out of the west"
Revision will take precedence of Briggs
In the aSSembly'S labors as d matter of
course. The overtureS have been, as a
rule, either acted on already by the pres
0yterleS or referred back by them to the
higher body. AS the colonistic and his
torlcal character of the confession is
strictly preserved by the committee on
revision, in accordance with the instruc-
ions given it, this whole subject is mainly
important as q matter of ecclesiastical
doctrine. Those radicals who took to the
Briggs agitation to cover their attempts
al drastic revision will meet a check
should DR.. Willis G. Craig of Mccormick
l theological Seminary, at Chicago, or the
Philadelphia presbytery be needed, as it
appears they viii be
The delegates, it may be remarked
parenthetically, are fresh from their con-
sutuencies. More than one-half were
chosen on the very eve of the assembly's
meeting New York S preSbytery. includ-
ing some slKty-fiye churches, will be rep
resented by seven ministers and seven
elders. The leader of the free thought
phalanX. Rev. George L. Spinney, is
among them. Philadelphia, powerful as
New York and perhaps more 50, sends
Two candidates for moderator. St. Louis
VIII return DR.. j. II. BrOokes, famed as
an advocate of conservative revision. An
oiher celebrated Westerner. DIR. Arthur j.
Brown, pastor of the First Presbyterian
church Of Portland, Ore, is not yet
81, and enjoys the distinction of having
eledl lndnence with the assembly al
though not elected TO il. He went to the
Idclilt slope four years ago from Chicago
ana his clerical love was imbibed at Lane
seminar" in Henry Preserved Smiths
u,A. d.. Brown is not an extremist in
everything.
Conspicuous among the lay dolega ties
WA be Thomas Kane Of Chicago, whose
WORK and benefccnce IN osbyterianism
nave made him a national figure. Now
past 30, NJ. Kane IS MOI so active with
ms great boat building plant as formerly,
rms glits 70 the church are many. not in
,lainE the $1,000 he annually spends in
!ae publication and distribution OF tracts
treating OF Christian benevolence. As
{ hFchman, Mr. Kane is not partisan and
u@ieNes in conservatism, free crcdencc
and sell 'ari-y.
lr. Herr, Johnson, who will also rep
RS nJ Chicago, is Likewise non-committal
Regarding Briggs. A prOfe ssOr in MCCOr-