The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-11-15


executive committee and other officials
OF the general convention and which arc
collected from the churches. The RAN
fist educational institutions are also mn.
der the charge of the general convention.
Rev. Rufus c. Burleson of Waco. the
of the Baylor university is one of Tho
supporters of the church party hut
was seated as a member of the State con-
vention now in session at Dallas simply n q
fright. ''s' y.
Those opposed to the church party are
Termed the board party. They hold that
the convention Is composed of delegates
and not OF churches and that the conven-
ton has control OF Its own membership:
that II a Baptist keeps UP a row that is
distasteful to the convention majority
OF The members thereof may deny TO such
person, though regularly elected dele
gate, seat in the convention that while
the convention is not body having power
10 compel sovereign church to do or to
omit doing anything. 1t is, on the other
hand, independent of the churces in the
control OF funds educational institutions
ETC.. which are managed by boards created
by the convention.
Rev. Hayden and Rev. Cranfll are the
editors of rival UNCONVENTIONAL papers
and have taken leading part in the con-
troversy. The personalities INDUCED have
resulted in several actions for libel. both
civil and criminal each being plaintiff
in some and defendant in others.
! Dallas is Rev. Hayden's home and when
the convention decided to meet there the
church party resolved on the hardest fight
yet made. as evidenced by an interview
given out by Rev. Hayden.
| The convention assembled last Friday
and the fight was started on preliminary
organization. Rev. Hayden and the
other leaders of the church party were
refused seats in the convention by the
committee on credentials. as they had been
before; Rev. Hayden made a statement
IN which he was not sparing of vitriol
when referring to the leaders OF
the other faction and-this added fuel
to the flames. Members of the Hayden
faction who had secured seats at once
attacked the right to seats of President
Buckner Rev. Cranfill and other Lead
ing opponents and We're promptly voted
down. Then they made a fight to have
DR.. Rufus Burleson given his seat; they
knew it was strong move and they
played 1t as such. The board party real !
lied that their cause would lose adher-
ents If DR.. Burleson were cast out and
promptly save him his seat as courtesy
but not as right, and refused to listen
to any further argument on the point
After Coating the church party on.
the majority faction decided that 1t would
keep them out, so the following amend
ment to the constitution of the general
convention was adopted:
Article TX, Whenever any church
or association or society shall, by
majority vote of convention, be de-
ciared 10 be in an attitude of general
or continual hostility or unfriendli-
ness TO the work or purposes OF the
convention, and to be an impeachment
to the work of convention; or when
any person is declared to be in such
attitude, then such church or associa-
tion or society shall, by SUCH major
ity vote. be denied the privilege of
sending messengers to the convention;
and such person shall, by such vote,
be denied seat as a messenger from
any church. association or society;
and when any church or association
or society shall be denied messengers
or such person denied seat as a mes-
senger. then the privilege so denied
shall not thereafter be exercised by
the church. association, society or
person until granted by majority
organization.
The church party made hard and
bitter fight against this and it was only
adopted after six hours OF contention in
which many things were said that will
not appear in the official minutes. But
it was adopted and the church party had
not a plank left on which to stand.
Then the church was split and the
church party held its first conventions IL
was not a bolt; the delegates in attend
ance had been frozen out"
Rev. II. B. Pender OF Campbell was
elected chairman, and said in taking the
chair that he would rather be the defeated
candidate for chairman of that meeting
than be the successful candidate for the
Craftsmanship of the other twenty times
over.
The meeting went into general discus
sion of what course to pursue in the mat
ter and they decided on an appeal to the
churches.
Prominent among those present were
the venerable Dr.. Rufus c. Burlesop O.
Waco, Rev. John overall of Ennis, w
b. Baldwin of Itasca. s. II. Slaughter o.
Van Alstyne, j. X. p. Williams of Sher-
man, S. ]. Anderson of Greenville, j. H.
Cason of Timpson, S. A. Hayden OF Dallas
and many others.
After discussion, the following resolu-
tons were adopted:
Whereas, The board party faction
of the Baptist State convention at
Dallas. by utter disregard of Baptist
principles and parliamentary practices,
seized the convention as il we're by
force. and deprived the messengers
differing with them, whether by ma
jority or minority. OF every vital pre-
rogative and right; therefore, be 1t
Resolved That we, the wrongea
and outraged messengers OF the
churches, appoint committee TO
draft resolutions stating the situation
asking the churches to give an ex-
preston of their will and desire In the
premises with reference 20 continuing
the existence of the convention under
the constitution as 1t was before ils
recent unrighteous mutilation and mis-
representation
The resolution was adopted without
dissenting vote. The following, introduced
by DR.. Baldwin, was also adopted:
Resolved, That the amendments 10
the constitution of the Baptist genera
conference OF Texas, as read IN thal
body on November IL by Rev. j. NJ
Pohertson are in omen defiance 10 the