The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1908-01-03
DR.. Shaffer Guilty Of Con-
duct Unbscoming a
Minister, Say "Triers."
BEFORE CONFERENCE NEXT
Philadelphia Preacher Barred
From Church Privileges Until
the Decision of That Body.
Widows Letter Regarded
as Damaging Evidence.

PHILADELPHIA, Pa, Jan. S.--The
nine '"Triers' appointed to hear charges
preferred against the Rev. William H.
Shaffer, presiding elder of the West
District of the Philadelphia Methodist
Episcopal conference, last night re-
While no specifications have been made
officially as to the nature Of the
charges, 1t lie known tina DIR. Shaffer Is
charged with conduct unbecoming a
minister in his Relations with Mrs.
Martha Deichley, postmistress in Nor
gantown. Pa. The clergymen who
heard the case, simply decided that the
charges had been sustained and DR..
Shaffer stands suspended from all
ministerial services and all church n w.
ileges, pending the meeting of the Thil-
adelphia Conference, March Is, before
which he will be formally tried.
The charges against DR.. Shaffer are
based principally upon the finding of
an unsigned letter which it is alleged
he received from Mrs. Deichley, while
he occupied rooms at the home of Mrs.
L.. M. Shaw, in this city. The nature
of the letter was such that an inquiry
was necessary. DIR. Shaffer and his
friends commended that the letter was
not written by Mrs. Deichley, as al
legged.
DR.. Shaffer refused to comment On
the verdict of the ~triers, though he adj
mitted the result was a surprise. The
case has been the sensation of the rear
in church circles. Only the slightest
inkIin1 hao hear Eaa41roH hxy fhn a1hIio
as to the contents of the letter found
in DR.. Skaters room.
The decision is in the nature of a
true BILL" to the effect that a prima
facie ease against the presiding elder
has been made out by the prosecution.
1t was reported after the committee
disbanded that the finding was not
unanimous, and that at least three
members of the committee were in
favor of a complete exoneration of the
accused presiding elder. But as a ma
jority of the committee felt that the
evidence was sufficiently serious to
warrant a formal trial, under the rules
of the church, it was imperative to
send the case to the conference.
Only n vote was taken by the COM
mittee, and that was decisive against
DIR. Shaffer.
The official finding of the committee
was as follows:
1.-The method prescribed by the law of
the Methodist Episcopal Church was close
w followed in the case of the Rev. w.
II. Shaffer. Every step was taken de-
1iberately, carefully and as the law pre-
scribed, The members called to act in the
case responded under q sense of duty to
the accused and to the church, and all
The meetings of the committee were con-
111rtp1 I'm a cnirit af Christian pOIIrtaSV
without acrimony or bitterness. After a
patient and careful hearing of witnesses
and counsel for six days the committee de-
cided that the charge was sustained and
DR.. Shaffer was suspended from all minis
teYial services and church privileges
until the ensuing annual conference on
The Rev. William Powick opened the.
argument for the prosecution yester-
day. summarizing the evidence against
DR.. Shaffer. He was followed by the
Rev. Amos A. Arthur, for the defense,
who made a strong plea for the ac-
cused presiding elder. He dwelt p o
weak points in the prosecutions chain
of evidence. pointing out that it was
entirely circumstantial, that there was
no proof that DIR. Shaffer had even
seen the mysterious letter on which
The prosecution based all it's case, and
DOli Ilo ClididClCE dlId biiot VI 4
Deichley negatived the possibility that
they would enter into a correspondence
of the type this letter indicated.
DR.. Kynett, closing for the defense,
denounced the charges against his
client as "wanton and purely the re-
suit of malicious imaginations." 1t was
little short of an outrage, he said, h
to subject the fair name of a leading
~ - . lew. Af 49, RTAthA1fet pbrrnh
to the ignominy Of public suspicion.
He then reviewed the evidence, show
ing the cumulative force of the char
acter testimony for Mrs. Deichley and
DIR. Shaffer, and the entire failure of
the prosecution to corroborate Mrs.
Shaw in a single point of external evil
dence. He contended that the letter
in the case had been manufactured
with the deliberate purpose of affect
ing DR.. Skaters ecclesiastical position.
DIR. Kynett paid an eloquent tribute
to his clients long and devoted work
for the church, his ministry in this
city and in Chester. and the nearly
thirty years that he had spent in a
service which now his enemies were
trying TO drive MIN out of.
The Ina speech was made by the
Rev. George II. Buckley, counsel-in-
chief for the prosecution. He began
with a careful review of the evidence,
and laid much stress O IN the testimony
of the handwriting expert in showing
similarities between the penmanship in
the anonymous letter and the admitted
specimens obtained from Mrs. Deichley.
He also claimed that the defense had
to show any motive for the fabri-
of such a letter or in any way
to weaken Mrs. Shaw's testimony. In
his conclusion he declared that he had
no desire to prosecute h presiding
elder, all the prosecution desired being
to fairly and carefully present the Evil
dence, but that a sufficient case had
been made out to warrant its review
before the annual conference.