Evening star., 1919-03-27
CHRISTIAN SCIENTISTS
TAKE CLASH TO COURT
Injunction Issued in Dispute Over
Right to Control Church Pub
fishing Society.
Ry the Associated Press.

BOSTON, March 27.--Litigation has
preme court in an effort to determine
which of two sets of trustees ap-
pointed by the late Mrs. Mary Baker
G. Eddy has authority overfthe Chris
tian Science Publishing Society. On
petition of the trustees of the society
the court has issued a temporary in
junction restraining the directors of
the First Church of Christ. Scientist.
from taking any action intended to
discharge of their duties and from
attempting to compel any of the trus-
tees to resign.
Trustees and Directors.
The trustees of the society. appoint
ed by Mrs. Eddy in 1898. are Herbert
W. Eustace of Boston. David B. Og-
den of Brookline and Lamont Row
lands of Picayune, Miss. The direc-
tors of the church, who also are
trustees under deeds executed by Mrs
Eddy in 1892 and 1903, are Adam H.
Dickey, James A. Neal and Edward A.
Merritt all of Brookline. and William
A. Rathvon of Boston. Joined with
more and Annie NJ. Knott, both of
Boston. each ella Inning to hold office as
trustee and director with the other
defendants
The plaintiffs in their bill of COM
plant say that the first four named
defendants have recently removed
Dittemore and appointed Mrs Knott
as his successor and that they do not
know which is now the legal occu-
pant of the position.
The plaintiffs point out that the
defendants are directors only of the
first church, known as the mother
church. and have no official control of
the more than 1,S00 other Christian
Science churches and societies.
Within the last few months. the
plaintiffs say. the directors have re-
peatedly insisted that the board of
trustees (of the publishing society
should make open. specific and public
acknowledgment that the directors
We're the supreme and final authority
with reference to all of the affairs of
the publishing society and the man.
agement of the trust created by the
trust deed of 1895
Opinion by Counsel.
The bill of complaint recites an
opinion submitted TO counsel for the
directors, John l.. Bates. Clifford =.
Smith. Leon NJ. Abbott and Edwin A.
krauthoff: by counsel for the trus-
tees of the society. Charles E. Hughes.
Silas H. Strawn and Sherman l..
Whipple. to the effect that the direc-
tors have no authority to order the
resignation of the trustees
The bill says tthat the directors at
tempted to remove MIR. Eowlands as
trustee. and are making IAN arbi-
trary and capricious attempt to create
an absolute oligarchy."
Statement by Directors.
The board of directors of the First
Church have issued the following
statement:
THE suit filed by Messrs. Eustace,
RoWiands and Ogden is part of an eff
fort to hold their positions as pub
fishers of the Christian Science pc
without responsibility to the
church. of which the periodicals are
the organ. These periodicals. have
their existence and value as organs
of the First Church of Christ. Scientist.
in Boston. and they get their substan-
tial support from or through the
members of the mother church. The
board of directors of this church has
only insisted that these trustee-pub-
fishers fulfill the rightful obligations
of their positions or relinquish them.
"All that this board has done has
been done in perfect accord with the
deed of trust by which said trustee
ship was constituted and everything
done or contemplated by this board is
called for by the bylaws of this
church. In this exigency we must
steadfastly heed what Mrs. Bddy, the
discoverer and founder of Christian.
Science, said in a somewhat similar
situation: 4 approve the bylaws of
the mother church and require the
Christian Science board of directors
to maintain them and sustain them"