The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-12-30
Bishop Talbot Said Harsh Things
Of Dr. Irvine
SIGNERS MAY REPUDIATE
Huntingdon Men Say They Signed the
Presentment Against the Bishop
Under a Misrepresentation
and Want to Withdraw.

Philadelphia, December z9.-(Special.)-
The most important document in the
controversy between Bishop Talbot of the
Protestant Episcopal church and the
Rev. Ingram N. ". Irvine is the letter
| alleged to have been written by Bishop
Talbot to DR.. Upjohn:
Bishop Talbot dates it st Paul's day"
which is January %, one of the most i'm
| portant saint days in he Episcopal
church. The sentiment IF this day is
charity, that 'thinketh evi1' and
that "rejoiceth in the truth" 1t Is ad-
dressed TO the Rev DR.. Upjohn, one of
| the prominent churchmen of Pennsylvania
and president of the Philadelphia branch
| of the Catholic club. 1t reads
| Diocese of Central Pennsylvania.
| Bishops House, South Bethlehem, Pa
! dated Washington, ID. c., st. Paufs Day,
| 19021-My Dear Dr. upjohn. In passing
through Philadelphia l happened to meet
the Rev Mr.. Shuttle, and he mentioned
the fact thatssome discussion of the Irvine
case,has cpme up in the Catholic club. |
! feel YOU will pardon me If | venture to
presume upon my high esteem for you
and my confidence in you, to write you
about II. | do 1t, first because | cannot
afford to go into the ,yellow touanals with
Irvine and defend myself, Rlt he Is
lssueh a plausible romancer that | am not
greatly surprised to learn that because
of the utter absence of any protest from
me some Of the brethren may think l am
to blame
May /. therefore, say to you that this
man was deposed nearly two years ago
for gross ii morality and for lewd and
laseivious conduct with women.
That not one of the questions which he
tries to make capital OF ever was men
toned or referred to in his trial. but
both the conCnttee OF inquiry and the
court found such a horrible condition at
1apff . Nspa
entirely to the evidence there abundantly
given.
That Irvine has been thirty years In
the ministry, and twenty of those years
has been under the ban of ecclesiastical
discipline.
That he has been suspended once. ad-
monished once in your diocese, and In
hibited and made to leave repeatedly.
Two offenses in Quincy.
That eight bishops have grave charges
against him.
THAT the venerable bishop of Quincy
wrote me on his deathbed that Irvine
had outraged two girls of his city.
That there is no foundation whatever
for his allegation that bishops who know
him we'll had any dream of casting any
reflection on our diocese or myself, or
had any reference whatever to him In
their earnest advocacy of court of APP
peals His case Is out of fifteen
or twenty all alike, that emphasize the
need of such a court
That all his talk about a divorced
woman being communicated and then
restored by me is baseless, the woman
having brought from Philadelphia est,
Clements) letter commendatory OF
Huntington. as the priest there $50 Irvine
told mel said she was divorced under the
provi.'lons of our canon.
Bishop Not Worried.
One would suppose man with such q
record would hide his face with shame. or
course, it is not altogether pleasant Tor
me silently to endure such villhcauon as
ne heaps upon me, but l confess 1t mas
not greatly disturbed me, nor have |
lost any sleep. | have acted as kindly and
r,ghteously as possible. If the world knew
why he was deposed and what he really
is he would get no sympathy lhat may
be your power to reassure them tmeaning
the doubling brethrenD
Bishops Whitaker. Whitehead, Seymour,
Scarborough, Potter. Doane, Adams and
Taylor the Rev. DR.. Leffingwell and a
host of others will bear out all l nave sala
as to his character.
With every assurance OF personal es-
TEEN / am, dear doctor taithfuliy yours
ETHELBERT TALBOT.
Suners Get Cold Feet.
DISPATCHES from Huntingdon. Pa, to-
|
signers to the presentment have repu-
dated the presentment, and say that 1t
was never their intention to sign "A paper
of the character that has appeared In the
press II this be true, the proceeding
must be dropped as a presentment OF the
character made against the bishop must
contain the names of three persons from
the diocese in which the accused bishop
lives It is said that the paper was
signed by the Huntingdon men under a
misapprehension, they believing that they
were assisting in closing a long eontrover-
sy. and not ones in which their bishop
was to be brought to trial
When j. F. K Jenknson was tod Of
the information received from Hunting
den. he said that the names Of the Hunt
ingdon men were signed at the end or the
original presentmen. The names OF the
Philadelphia signers, he said, were on
the same sheet upon when the names
OF the Huntington presenters sppeai pp'"s Gu. ile
added that he has a personal ietter from
| one of the signers. in which he says ne
was nleased to attach his name to the
dispatch from Huntington tonight
quotes John Langdon' one OF the sign
ers as follows;
nv name was connected with the charges.
II is an outrage, for I did not know any
thing about the matter except what
heard have never read the present
ment and could not tell one OF the
charges or specifications
"The matter was entirely misrepresented
IN me It is true that ] signed a paper,
but that was a communication to Bishop
Tuttle signed by all the vestrymen ask
ing that the controversy between Bishop
Talbot and DR.. Irvine be stilled for all
time. The communication contained about
twenty words"
Or. Irvlne's Statement.
Referring to the let,- which Bishop
Talbot IA said to have written DIR. Up
John, in which the former termed DR..
Irvine a plausible romancer," and
charged that he was deposed for gross
immortality and that for twenty out of
the thirty years of his service in the
ministry he was under ecclesiastical dis
cipline," DR.. Irvine said that Bishop Tai
bot has placed himself in most awk-
ward position.
THAT letter to DR.. Upjohn was un-