The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1895-04-27

certificate, and when the Presbyt erians
refused to let him supply the pulpit
longer, having obtained written eyid ence
of his character, he became defiant and
threatened to take the congregationswith
him into the COngregati 0naI denomina-
ton. This he attempted and was IN
successful. While in Lincoln he wrote
to the dean OF the college in Dublin,
asking for information with which he
might stop the mouth of a vile hereto
who was going through this country
speaking against the church, signing
himself Father Riordan.' The dean
whether there was any such person as
| Father Riordan.' These letters BECAME
public. MA
"Ruthven's next move was to join the
Baptist Church and he was Immersed,
but proceeded no further before evidence
of his previous falsehOod and mfsrepre-
sentation was learned. He again be-
gan to lecture on the Roman Catholic
| Church, having headquarters in Phila-
! iielphia and travelling through the coun-
| try with a woman. He was next heard
Of as an inmate Of the Kelley Liquor
Cure Institute at Dwight, ILL.,, and, after
remaining there for some time, was dis
charged as cured. He went to Detroit,
| leaving there without having paid his
hotel bill and crossing over to Canada.
| Here he was confronted with evidence Of
his past misdeeds and fed to the states.
He reached Buffalo, where temporary
! stop was put to his career. He began by
holding public meetings and soliciting
funds with which to construct q steam
vessel for use in mission work among the
South Sea Islands. Whenever he leo
a-1s~ - +
the picture of the craft he proposed to
build. He intended to cover the ship in
side and out with sheet copper and every
one who contributed 10 cents was to have
his name engraved on this copper COW
ering. The copper was to protect the ship
from the white ants, he said. +
Tn 1893 while he was engaged In this
noble and philanthropic work, DR.. Patton
came to America on a. soliciting tour and
denounced Ruthven as soon as he heard
Of him. Ruthven had applied for adj
mission to the Presbyterian presbytery
Of Buffalo, but was refused until he could
produce credentials. He was also re-
fused as a student Of theology on the
ground that he furnished no evidence
of belonging to any church. EARLY in
February 1898, Ruthven was arrested in
Buffalo and indictments were returned
against him by the grand jury on the
charge Of obtaining money under false
pretense for charitable purposes. On
April Is his case was called for trial and
he was found guilty. Rev. DR.. Patton
and the ministers of Buffalo were the
chief witnesses against him. Judge
Hatch, of the supreme court, admins
tered a: severe lecture to Ruthven and
sentenced him to serve one year in the
Erie county penitentfary, telling him
that he deserved a longer sentence. This
term Rutfven served, making no appeal
from the decision The jurors on this
James C. Templeton, a, United freshY-s
terrain lawyer, who was employed to de-
fend RuthVen,, after investigating the
charges, refused to do SO, believing that;
he was guilty.
"tAll the above information can be sus-
tanned by the ministers and laymen who
have written to Rev. DR.. Miller. Some
of them are Rev. T. D. Logan, Spring
field, III; Rev. Vosburg, Beaver Dam,
Wis; John A. Luty, Lincoln, ILL.,; Rev. W.
H. Carson, and.the proprietor. of the Rus
sell House, Detroit, Mich; Rev, John r.
Battisby, Chatham, Ontario, Can; Rev.
S. M. Bailey, of the First United Presby-
terrain Church; Rev. DR.. Hubbell, of the
North Presbyterian Church; Rev. DR..
Mitchell of the of the First Presbyterian
Church, and Rev. DR.. Wright, of Fafay-
cite Presbyterian Church, all of Buffalo,
N. Y; Rev. R.C. Dodds, Dayton, Ohio; AT
.torney 10 Templeton, Buffalo, N. Y;
Attorney James r. Pollock, washington,
Pa. 1
"Ruthven claimed while in Buffalo to
be an assistant missionary to DR.. Patton.
DR.. Patton, who CHANGED to be in Pitts
burg at the time and went from
there to Buffalo to testify against
Ruthven, declared and proved that he.
was the only accredited agent OF the
Australian Church to raise funds: in
America, and that Ruthven had no; au-s
thority to represent him. Dr. Patton,
the leading churches, telling Of the work
accom- plished in that far off field where
he had spent most of his life. DIR. Patton
has returned to the South Sea Islands,.
and according to reports in Presbyterian
publications was most cordially well
coined back by his ministerial brethren,
to whom he reported that he had sue
ceeded in raising for their mission
work about $125,O0O. This was gotten
in SEngland and America. Ruthyen.
claims that his years imprisonment at
Erie, was great act of injustice; that IT.
was the result Of conspiracy formed
against him because of his being a con
yerted Roman Catholic. VS..
This conspiracy, he alleges. existed
between the prosecuting attorney, who,
he says, was Catholic; the attorney who
defended him, whom Ruthven declares
was also a Catholic, and five Of the jury
men, whom he says were Catholics. He