Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-06-25
vESTRIB AT LAW
St. Marks Church Quarrel Brought
Into5Gourt.
De JURE VESTRF. ASK AN INJUNCTION
III
Troubles of the Parish Rehearsed
in the Complaint.
CHURCH DOORS BoLTED

The dissensions in St. Marks P. e.
parish have now been brought into court.
Today the so-called de jure vestry through
Messrs. H. E. Davis and William A. Meloy
as solicitors, filed a bill in equity, ask
ing for an injunction against the de facto
vestry and for other relief from the evils
which they claim to have suffered because
Of the alleged Illegal election and action
Of the de facto vestry. The bill filed today
is long document, and appended to 1t are
number Of exhibits bearing upon the
election last Easter Monday. at which it
was claimed the vestry now in possession
Of the church and declared by the rector
to be the only legal vestry was illegally
elected by means of votes of persons con-
nected with a mission of st. Marks, and
who. it is claimed, were not worshipers in
the parish church, and had no right to
participate in a parish election.
Recently the Torbert or de jure vestry
prepare 30 take the troubles of the church
into coart by means of a friendly suit, but
this proposition was declined by the vestry
in possession of the church. There has
been considera lie talk among the parish
toner's lately over an allegation that new
belts have been placed on the outer doors
and the doors have been bolted against
the de jure vestry. On one occasion, be-
fore the bolts were put on, it is alleged,
the doors were barrlcaded by piling benches
against them from the inside. The treas
rrer Of the parish, Mr.. NARROW, has con-
tinued to refuse to pay the rector's salary
and other expenses of the church. because
of the action of the de facto vestry in not
turning over to him the moneys collected
at the church. The expenses have, how
ever, it Is understood, been paid by the
de facto vestrymen.
The suit filed today is brought in the
name of John P Torbert, William T. Kent,
n ri
liam r. Hillyer, Henry ]. Wylie, John r.
Keech. Frederick r. Wallace, Robert ].
Walker and Ira H. Johannes, claiming to
be the wardens and the vestrymen of the
parish. against Joseph b. Bennett. Samuel
B. Roane Charles B. Fonda, Edwin X.
Lundy, Adam Gaddis, Richard ]. Earn
shaw and William S. Nicholson. whose
election as vestrymen is disputed by the
complainants. The bill recites at consid-
cradle length SO much Of the history of the
parish as is necessary to establish the legal
into details concerning the more recent
history which has led up to the litigation.
One point on which the claim of the de
jure vestry is based Is that the church is
a pew church rather than a free church.
Under the laws of the diocese. it is claim
ed, pew holders only are entitled to vote in
a church not free church.
The bill AYERS that on or about April 10,
1882 by formal resolution the vestry adopt
ed Il plan by which heads of families or
contributors were permitted to select their
seats on pleiglng stated annual sum, AMI
subsequently. September II, 1894. pews
lately added to the chnrch We're assigned
to persons who agreed TO pay not less than
% cents each Sunday per sitting.
The bill also goes in.o considerable detail
as to the books Of the parish to maintain
that the proper books in which the names
of legal voters were to be found were those
kept under the direction of the vestry by
the registrar. o. -
The Beginning of the Trouble.
1t then gees on to say:
previous to the Easter Monday of 1891
the annual cleo tions of wardens'and vestry-
men in said parish have been uniformly
without contest or evidence of personal
feeling and with an attendance of only
about eight a dozen persons, but. as a
wholly unlocked for result of the action
which the vestry had taken in the year
| 1888, under sense of their duty by virtue
| of the canon law of the church, in regard
| to certain Irregularities of service in the
| parish, which arose upon the death Of
| their rector, the Rev. Mr. Steele, and the
| continuance Of services in mission sta
| ton. which they had permitted in the north
| part of the parish, by an unauthorized lay
| reader, calling in clergymen to preach with
| in the parish without consultation with
| them, the said vestry, contrary to the law
and canon in such case made and provided,
| they found assembled at the said parish
| church at the parish meeting of Easter
| the right to vote thereat, several of said
voters being even unknown to the then
| vestry, but, taken by surprise and not I'M
| Outstanding the situation, all were allowed
| to vote, and by majority of three out of
| all the votes cast two persons never before
| identified with the vestry nor connected
| with said parish for the six months next
preceding were declared elected thereto.
| This declaration of result was acquiesced
in and contest forborne for the sake of
peace and quiet in the parish. but it was
| generally understood that at the election
of 1895 all qualified voters in the congrega-
ton who sympathiZed with and Endorsed
| the course pursued by the vestry of 1898
| in regard to the mission station aforesaid
would be on hand to vote
| A statement is made then regarding yhe
| circumstances attending the resistra ton
preceding the recent Easter election. The
| registers list, comprising a total of ninety
| seven persons, was posted in the church as
required. The bill then goes on to say:
The Rector's List.
| Shortly thereafter the rector Of the par
| ish posted or caused to be posted another
and different list, containing one hundred
and fifty-four names, with. caption as fol-
| lows over his signature, to wit:
| The following is a true list of names re-
| corded by me in book kept for the parish
prior to and including the 14th of March,
| 1885,
And below such list was added the
| further statement following. to wit:
The position held by the rector is that
| the persons whose names are recorded
| above are sufficiently registered according
to canon law; also that the names of all
males twenty-one years of age and over
| appearing in the pew book kept for the
parish by Mr.. H. J. Wylie are sufficiently
| registered, provided the names were en-
tered thirty days prior to April A. 1S93;
also that all other males twenty-one years
! or over whose names do not appear either
on this list or that posted by the registrar
are sufficiently registered if they can show
that their names appear in any Of the par
ish books as members Of the parish
And on Information and belief, your
complainants aforesaid aver and charge the
| fact to be that said list of one hundred and
ffty-four names contained not less than
| fifty-seven names entered in his canonical
register aforesaid by said rector without
the knowledge Of said registrar at some
time subsequent ito the 18th day Of March
| 1885 an
THAT it contained the names of many
persons-how many your complainants are
unable to ascertain without discovery
never baptized by said rector, never bap'
tized in said parish, and of whose baptism
| he had no knowledge except from hearsay
nfA1 hN