Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-11-05

other, they both turned upon our
Church, finding themselves at n
against the common enemy. The
Quakers called upon all who observ-
ed any formal worship to forsake
outworn superstition and to follow
their new and modern and enlight-
ened way. They were the progress
sives and leaders of ley thought at
that time. The Methodists, Sons of
Thunder" as they were called, con-
demned all who would not with
them return to the old evangelical
faith of an earlier and sincerer time.
Our Church, as at the present time,
found itself between the lines and
profited by this position, as deserters
came to her from the ranks of both
contestants. A side-line on this con-
dition and the strange prejudices
that prevailed are given by the Rev
erend Mr.. Brooke, rector of this par
ish in about 1905. The c%ongrega-
ton of S. Peters outgrew the small
quarters in the old house on the
point under his leadership; and as
there was no minister in the meeting
house of those who were now called
the 'Dissenters" and no services
were held there. request was made
that it might be used by the Rector
and congregation of st. Peters. But
prejudice against our Church was so
strong, that permission was granted
reluctantly on condition that no
prayers should be read out of a book
at any time. Mr.. Brooke, says: II
complied upon the condition that 1
might read the Psalms, Lessons,
Epistles and Gospels appointed for
the day. These they could not OBJ
ject to. being part of the Bible. This
L did. and said all the rest of the
services by heart-the doing of
which brought a great many to hear
me who otherwise would eve have
heard the service of the Church" By
means of this harmless subterluge-
it might be better to call it tact
~prejudices were removed and the
position of the Church in the Com
munity vastly strengthened. About
the year 1713. after many years of
waiting and much sacrifice and
labor, a Church was built to house
st. Peters congregation. 1t is des-
cribed as "a very goodly, regular,
uniform, decent and well compacted
structure in stone and brick" This
was the first st. Peters Church, for
inc DulluiHS uStu up ~ liIdL IlIllS
was an abandoned court house.
Soon after this came evidence of
still greater prosperity; for in the
year 1922, when the Reverend Will
liam Skinner became rector, a glebe
and rectory was given to the parish
and Mr.. Skinner occupied the first
rectory. And now dawned a period
of greater prosperity and prominence
- {hA lTa4a-,r- 81 50 DaFa-s, L., 4 y
the Reverend DR.. Robert Mexican
was called TO the rectorship-a phys
ician as well as a priest. He was q
man of unusual gifts and varied
activity. He taught school, practised
medicine, and was also rector of an
important parish in a large COM
munity. Generally beloved and
known everywhere. the parish grew
in Importance under his leadership.
He was a native American, and be-
longed to a distinguished family. His
brother was chief justice of Penn
sylvania and held many other i'm
portant offices. He was also a signer
of the Declaration of independence.
There was at this time in Perth AM
boy a society of refinement and Gull
ture. The governors house was
ltCl u anu the 1ONe IllOI w lllldIll
Franklin and Lady Franklin lived
here in the season during the time
of the session of the legislature. Of
fetal society clustered about them.
There were barracks newly built in
the town for the Kings troops and
the brilliant uniforms of the officers
of the British Army gave color and
interest to social gatherings. st.
OafAr.fa rrrnr af m . .r fLA II ~ -
the establishment, and no doubt was
attended by official society as well
as by the people socially prominent.
Perth Amboy was at this period,
as it continued to be until COMPARE
lively recent times, a stopping place
on the main road of travel between
New York and Philadelphia; and
this favorable position continued to
d to its importance and prosperity.
The rector was a man of consider
able importance in the Province and
we find his name affixed to impor-
tant documents and letters of the
period in conjunction with those of
the rector of Trinity Parish and the
man who was to be the first Bishop
of the American Church, Samuel
Seabury.
OaA CiAoA1Al at ~ tllllC was pt-
ginning to feel it's Importance. There
were a number of large and impor-
tant parishes along the Atlantic sea-
board; and yet the church labored
continually under disadvantages as
compared with the Methodists and
Quakers and the Congregationalists
They were autonomous and indepen-
dent of foreign direction: while our
church was dependent upon both the
Society for the Propagation of the
Gospel by which a great many of our
clergy were supported, and the
Bishop of London for a great many
important matters. 1t is hard for us
to understand conditions at that
time; one can hardly realize that a
vast majority OF the members of our
church could w hope to be con-
firmed, as it was necessary to take
a trip to England to receive the
sacrament of Confirmation. No cam
didates of Holy Orders could be or
dained without taking a long and ex-
pensive trip to England and back.
This condition of affairs made the
growth of our church full of diff
culties. The ~colonists were continu-
ally appealing to England to send
them a Bishop who might live here
and be in immediate control of af-
fairs: and DIR. Mexican, the rector
of st. Peters, was n of the lead
ers in the movement to ucge the APP
pointment of a Bishop for the Amer
lean colonies. But all these plans