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 BX 8947 .V8 P38 1887 
 Patton, Jacob Harris, 1812- 
 
 1903. 
 The triumph of the 
 
 Presbytery of Hanover 
 
t&- ^h 
 
 •^-^^^-Z^^-^ 
 
THE 
 
 TRIUMPH OF THE PRESBYTERY 
 OF HANOVER; 
 
 OR, 
 
 SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE IN VIRGINIA. 
 
 WITH A 
 
 CONCISE HISTORY OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 
 IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1705 TO 1888. 
 
 7 
 
 JACOB HARRIS PATTON, M.A., Ph.D., 
 
 AUTHOR OF ''a concise HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE," "NATURAL 
 RESOURCES OP THE UNITED STATES," ETC. 
 
 <^^^ ^mcc^ 
 
 * DEC 14 1911 
 
 A, r 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 ANSON D. F. RANDOLPH & COMPANY, 
 
 38 WEST TWENTY-THIRD STREET. 
 
copyright, 1887, by 
 Anson D. F. Randolph & Company. 
 
 Edward O. Jenkins' Sons, 
 
 Printers and Stereotypers ^ 
 
 20 North William St., New York, 
 
PREFACE 
 
 In 1773, two years before the commencement 
 
 of the Revolution, the Ministers and Elders of 
 the Presbytery of Hanover inaugurated a move- 
 ment for the ^' Separation of Church and State 
 in Virginia," and during the tivelve succeeding 
 years, never relaxed their efforts until every law 
 on the statute-book of that State which inter- 
 fered with the religious rights of the people was 
 swept away. Owing to the exciting incidents 
 of that period — the Revolutionary contest — this 
 remarkable episode in the progress of religious 
 freedom was partially overlooked, and has since 
 been only very briefly noticed by writers on the 
 general history of the country. 
 
 In order that the American people, and es- 
 pecially Presbyterians, might learn of the inner 
 workings of this severe struggle ; of the numer- 
 ous obstacles the Presbytery had to overcome, 
 principally because of the bad faith of the ma- 
 jority in the Virginia House of Assembly, the 
 
 (iii) 
 
iv Preface. 
 
 latter being aided and abetted by the authorities 
 of the Church of England, then established in 
 the Colony — the author wrote a history of that 
 contest, which was published in the Presbyterian 
 Review for January, 1883. 
 
 In accordance with the views of those whose 
 opinions are worthy of respect, the author has 
 republished that article, and to which he has 
 also added a concise history of the Presbyterian 
 Church in the United States from the organiza- 
 tion of its first Presbytery, at Freehold, N. J., 
 in 1705, to 1888. This booklet contains a sum- 
 mary of the incidents and characteristic princi- 
 ples whose influence moulded the inner life of 
 this Church and promoted its progress ; while it 
 omits the numerous details in respect to the 
 separate organizations of Presbyteries and 
 Synods and of individual churches, it goes into 
 detail sufificient to afford the general reader a 
 clear, and, it is hoped, a satisfactory idea of the 
 subject. It is highly proper to give \}i\^ younger 
 Presbyterians of to-day an opportunity to learn 
 of the remarkably consistent career of their own 
 Church ; of its steady and uniform progress 
 from that early day to the present — covering a 
 period of one hundred and eighty-three years. 
 
Preface. v 
 
 This publication is in view of the prospective 
 reunion of the Northern and Southern branches 
 of the Presbyterian Church in 1888; which re- 
 union, if consummated, will be under condi- 
 tions that will render its influence far-reaching 
 and beneficial, not merely to the Church itself, 
 but likewise to the Nation. The reasons for this 
 hope and opinion are given in the booklet itself. 
 
 Among many other authorities, the following 
 have been consulted : 
 
 Dr. Robert Baird — Religion in Anierica. 
 
 Hon. H. S. Randall— Z^/V of Thomas Jefferson. 
 
 Dr. Francis Q. Hawks — Episcopal Church in Vir- 
 ginia. 
 
 Bishop Meade — Old Churches in Virginia. 
 
 Dr. W. H. Foote — Sketches of Virginia. 
 
 Dr. Abel Stevens— //z>/^ry of Methodis?n. 
 
 Dr. E. H. Gillett — History of the Presbyterian 
 Church ift the United States. 
 
 Dr. Charles Hodge — Constitutional History of the 
 same. 
 
 The latter two histories — together comprising 
 three volumes — are specially valuable, and sup- 
 plement one another, and in order to obtain a 
 minute and exhaustive view of the subject, both 
 
 should be studied. 
 
 J. H. P. 
 
 New York, Dec, 10, 1887. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 SECTION I 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Separation of Church and State in 
 
 Virginia, 3 
 
 The Half-way Covenant, 4; Why the harsh 
 Intolerance in Virginia, 7 ; The " Vagrants " in 
 Connecticut and New York, 8 ; Illiberal Laws 
 in Virginia, 10; Freedom from Ecclesiastical 
 Clannishness, 12; Grades of Ministerial Edu- 
 cation, 13; Severe Conflicts — The Act of Tol- 
 eration, 16; Efforts to reform Clerical Mor- 
 als, 18; Preachers appointed by the Crown, 
 22 ; The English Church Established— When ? 
 23; Influence of an educated Ministry, 24; 
 Conflicts in respect to Salaries, 25 ; A Great 
 Principle Established, 26; The Struggle be- 
 gins — The Memorial, 27; Committee on Re- 
 ligion and Morality, 30; The Petitions — The 
 Demand as a Right, 31 ; Upon whom fell 
 the Burden of the Conflict, 32 ; The Legisla- 
 ture met on its own Grounds, 34 ; Objection- 
 able Laws partially repealed, 35; Prejudices 
 roused — Tories — Whigs — Quakers, 37; The 
 General Assessment— Another Memorial, 38; 
 Defects in the Act of Repeal, 40 ; Security of 
 Religious Rights demanded, 41 ; Protest 
 against incorporating the Episcopal Church, 
 
 (vii) 
 
viii Contents, 
 
 43 ; The General Assessment again, 43 ; Dif- 
 ferent Effects of Petitions and Arguments, 46 ; 
 Contest in respect to Glebes, 46 ; A half cen- 
 tury of Intolerance remembered, 48; An 
 Apology urged, 50; Who began the Move- 
 ment and secured the Result, 51 ; Religious 
 Freedom and Patriotism, 54 ; Opposition to 
 Slavery, 55; Influence of the Measure in New 
 England, 56 ; Personal Responsibility Recog- 
 nized and Strengthened, 56 ; Self-denial and 
 Benevolence, 57 ; Influence of the Voluntary 
 Principle, 58. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 The National and Church Governments, . 63 
 The Two Movements, 63 ; Kinds of Church 
 Governments, 64; Presbyterians and the Pil- 
 grims, 66 ; The First Presbytery, 68 ; Frater- 
 nal Intercourse — The Synod, 69. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 The Two Vital Principles 72 
 
 Cumberland Presb5n;erians, 73 ; Value of an 
 educated Ministry, 74 ; Guarding the Faith — 
 The Adopting Act, Tj. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 Division and Reunion 79 
 
 The Great Revival, 79; The Old Side— The 
 New Side, 80; The Division of the Synod, 81 ; 
 Zeal for Religion, 82 ; The Reunion, 83. 
 
Contents. ix 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Troublous Times, 85 
 
 Patriotism — The Pastoral Letter, 85 ; A com- 
 prehensive Church Government, 86 ; Discord- 
 ant and Rival States, ZZ. 
 
 SECTION VI. 
 
 Origin of the General Assembly, . . .90 
 Increase of the Church, 91 ; Four Synods or- 
 ganized, 91 ; The General Assembly constitu- 
 ted, 94 ; The Address to President Washing- 
 ton, 95. 
 
 SECTION VII. 
 
 The Progress of the Church, . . . 98 
 
 Doctrinal Truth guarded, 99 ; The Reunion of 
 1871, 100; A Prospective Reunion, loi ; A 
 Christianized Patriotism, 102 ; A Church Gov- 
 ernment Republican in Form, 103 ; Ex officio 
 Members, 105; Voting by Orders, 106; The 
 Ecclesiastical Despotism, 107. 
 
 SECTION VIII. 
 
 The Parity of the Clergy, . . . .109 
 Ministerial Responsibility, no; The Pastor- 
 ates may be long, 112; Advantages gained, 
 113; Biblical training, 115. 
 
 SECTION IX. 
 
 Two Forces made available, . . . .117 
 Blending the Elements, Clerical and Lay, 118; 
 Fraternal Intercourse promoted, 120; Ignor- 
 ing State Lines, 120; National Church Judica- 
 tures, 123. 
 
X Contents. 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 National and Mutual Good-will Promoted, 125 
 The Assembly's Annual Meetings a National 
 Benefit, 126; Progress and Expense, 127; Na- 
 tional Unity desired, 129; Consecrated Influ- 
 ence, 131 ; Two Classes of Progress, 131 ; Pa- 
 triotic Duties of Church Members, 133; De- 
 nominational responsibility, 135. 
 
L 
 
 THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND 
 STATE IN VIRGINIA. 
 
THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND 
 STATE IN VIRGINIA. 
 
 In a relation so intimate as that of the union 
 of Church and State, it is not strange that in 
 former times civil magistrates should have had 
 a sense of responsibility not only pertaining to 
 the people's temporal affairs, but also in respect 
 to the salvation of their souls. In regard to the 
 latter phase of their duties, though unable to de- 
 fine it clearly, it is evident that in the perform- 
 ance of their official acts in matters relating to 
 the people and the Church, they were more or 
 less influenced by a sense of this responsibility. 
 Here is the germ from which has sprung, and 
 often honestly, much of the interference of 
 temporal rulers with Church affairs. On the 
 other hand, those who willingly or otherwise 
 contributed aid in the form of taxes to the sup- 
 port of the Church, wished to have a share in 
 the advantages of its ordinances; and, though 
 they might not be Christians in a Scriptural 
 sense, and could not fully comprehend their re- 
 lationship to a Church spiritual^ they deemed 
 
 (3) 
 
4 The Separation of 
 
 themselves entitled to the privilege of partici- 
 pating in its rites, including that of the Lord's 
 supper. Thus, even in the present day, where 
 there is a union of Church and State, in such 
 relation that the former receives pecuniary aid 
 from the latter, we see a great laxity in the 
 admission of persons to that sacred ordinance. 
 Much more in former times, if there were any 
 advantages to be gained in coming to the com- 
 munion-table, this class wished to secure them, 
 since they paid their share of the expense. This 
 was a natural, though a groveling view of the 
 question, and the more intelligent of the uncon- 
 verted had evidently misgivings on the subject, 
 and, not being satisfied with their own moral 
 condition, partook of the communion with a 
 confused sense, that it might in some way bene- 
 fit them spiritually. 
 
 The Half-way Covenant. — The influences 
 that in process of time brought about the sepa- 
 ration of Church and State in this country, may 
 be traced to the preaching of Jonathan Edwards, 
 and to the principles developed in his contro- 
 versy in respect to what was termed the " Half- 
 way Covenant," by which persons making no 
 pretension to being Christians in a spiritual 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 5 
 
 sense were admitted, among other Church priv- 
 ileges, to the communion. This custom grew 
 out of the union of Church and State more than 
 from any other cause. The objections of Ed- 
 wards were based on moral and spiritual grounds 
 alone ; arguing that none but the regenerate or 
 converted had a right to come to the Lord's 
 table. In time this truth permeated the minds 
 of religious people, but more effectually, it would 
 seem, the Presbyterians than the Congregation- 
 alists ; having its share of influence on the sep- 
 aration of Church and State in Virginia, nearly 
 forty years before a similar effect was produced 
 in New England. This phase of the subject for 
 obvious reasons was scarcely noticed in the de- 
 bates in the Legislature during the struggle in 
 Virginia, though in that controversy the under- 
 current of this sentiment, influenced the minds 
 of the religious people outside the State or 
 Episcopal Church, and strengthened their oppo- 
 sition to such laxity in the admission of persons 
 to Church privileges, which custom they be- 
 lieved to be injurious to pure spiritual religion. 
 In his early ministry Jonathan Edwards was 
 the pastor of a Presbyterian church in New 
 York, and he seems to have been partial to the 
 
6 TJie Separatio7i of 
 
 form of Church government practiced in that 
 denomination ; and, also, he agreed with their 
 views on the non-interference of the civil magis- 
 trate with spiritual affairs. He afterward ex- 
 pressed his opinion of the form of Church rule 
 then prevalent in New England, saying: " I have 
 long been out of conceit of our unsettled, in- 
 dependent, confused way of Church government 
 in this land " {Dr. E. H. Gillette vol. ?., /. 3). 
 On assuming the Presidency of Princeton College 
 he connected himself with the Presbyterians. 
 
 Up to the time of Edwards there seems to 
 have been little doubt as to the advantage to 
 both parties of the union of Church and State ; 
 the prevailing sentiment being, that the former 
 could not be supported without the aid of the 
 latter. The idea of sustaining the Church by 
 th'e voluntary contributions of its own friends 
 had found lodgment only in the minds of the 
 advanced few. We see prominent among the 
 arguments used in behalf of this alliance, that 
 the Church ought to be supported by the sec- 
 ular power, on the ground of the general well- 
 being of society, as its influence would promote 
 in the community honesty, industry, and mate- 
 rial interests as well as good morals. 
 
Church a7id State in Virginia. 7 
 
 Why the harsh Intolerance in Virginia.— It 
 
 is proper to notice why the contest in Virginia 
 partook so much of bitterness, and why the 
 *' Dissenters " were treated so harshly in that 
 colony. We can thereby divine why these out- 
 rages, continuing for nearly a century, produced 
 their legitimate results in the final retribution 
 which came upon the Established Church, when 
 it retained only its church buildings, while its 
 rectories and glebes were sold under the sheriff's 
 hammer for the benefit of that public from 
 whom originally nearly all the funds to purchase 
 them had been extorted in the form of taxes. 
 The Church of England was established by law 
 in the colonies of New York, Virginia, and the 
 Carolinas. In the first the royal governors were 
 the most intolerant toward " Dissenters," while 
 the churchmen, or its adherents, were more in- 
 different on the subject. Perhaps they were 
 somewhat influenced by their surroundings — 
 the tolerant spirit of the Dutch residents — and, 
 moreover, the Episcopal element in that colony 
 did not comprise, it is said, more than one-sev- 
 enth of the population. In the latter three, on 
 the contrary, intolerance was instigated for the 
 greater part by the clergy and lay churchmen, 
 
8 The Separation of 
 
 the governors being disposed to connive at the 
 exercise of religious freedom ; that is, they were 
 not very energetic in enforcing the illiberal laws 
 on that subject. Why the churchmen of Vir- 
 ginia were so in contrast with those of New 
 York may be accounted for, since great num- 
 bers of royalists — cavaliers — in the times of the 
 troubles preceding and during the Common- 
 wealth fled to Virginia, where they were cordi- 
 ally welcomed. They afterward gave tone to 
 Virginian society by diffusing their sentiments 
 of loyalty to the King and to the Church, which 
 so ardently espoused his cause ; they looked 
 upon the '' Dissenters " as enemies to both. 
 
 The " Vagrants " in Connecticut and New 
 York. — In those days the spirit of intolerance 
 was not found in the Established Church nor in 
 royal governors alone, as it was the natural out- 
 growth of the union of Church and State and 
 the misdirected zeal of secular rulers. In 1742 
 the Connecticut Legislature passed a law for- 
 bidding a minister preaching in any parish ex- 
 cept the one over which he had special charge, 
 unless by invitation of the settled minister or a 
 majority of the congregation. Ministers not 
 residents of the colony thus preaching were to 
 
Church and State in Virginia, 9 
 
 be arrested as common vagrants. Under the 
 latter law Samuel Finley, afterward President 
 of Princeton College, and others were driven 
 from the colony, being characterized as '' stroll- 
 ing preachers that were most disorderly." These 
 vagra7its were Presbyterian clergymen, and no 
 doubt such high-handed measures roused in 
 them an antagonism to the union of Church and 
 State. In consequence of these proceedings and 
 the experience of Presbyterians in the colony of 
 New York, this antagonism spread among that 
 class of Christians in the middle colonies and 
 further South. 
 
 The Presbyterians had been specially annoyed 
 in their earlier days when struggling for exist- 
 ence as a religious denomination, both in New 
 York and Virginia, by the intolerance of the 
 Church of England. They associated the State 
 as the immediate power behind the persecution ; 
 though the latter, as it was well known, was 
 frequently urged to this course of action by 
 the clergy of the Establishment. " For many 
 years," says a chronicler of the times, " in New 
 York, Maryland, Virginia, and South Carolina, 
 the growth of the Presbyterian Church was 
 checked by persecution and intolerance." 
 
lO The Separation of 
 
 Illiberal Laws in Virginia. — The laws were 
 grievous and illiberal in Virginia — more severe 
 than in any other colony. The Established 
 churches were built at the public expense in 
 each county town, or where there was a court- 
 house, thus occupying the positions of influence, 
 and the "sects," or "Dissenters," as they were 
 contemptuously called by self - complacent 
 churchmen, were compelled to locate their 
 church buildings elsewhere. For three-fourths 
 of a century rigid laws had been enforced 
 against those who did not conform. It is said 
 that until the commencement of the Revolution 
 there was not a Presbyterian or Baptist church 
 building in a village in Virginia, yet the minis- 
 ters of the former denomination were by far the 
 most learned of any class of preachers in the 
 colony. The rule of the presbyteries of that 
 Church was then, as it is to-day, to license only 
 those to preach who have been classically and 
 theologically educated, unless under extraordi- 
 nary circumstances. 
 
 Though " Dissenters " were permitted to have 
 church buildings only outside the towns, and 
 even to have these, unless under annoying re- 
 strictions, they were sometimes denied, they 
 
CJuirch and State 171 Virginia. 1 1 
 
 were, however, graciously warned by the civil 
 authorities to " take the oaths enjoined and to 
 register the places of their meetings, and be- 
 have themselves peaceably toward the Govern- 
 ment." This discourteous language was used 
 in respect to those Presbyterians who, among 
 other reasons, in order to avoid the annoyances 
 to which they would be subjected in the eastern 
 portion of Virginia, migrated from Pennsylvania 
 to the back part of that colony and settled in 
 the fertile valleys of the Shenandoah and other 
 streams west of the Blue Ridge. As long as 
 these settlers served as a protection against 
 hostile Indians they were unmolested, and were 
 permitted to have meeting-houses where they 
 pleased. In time Germans and Quakers, also 
 from Pennsylvania, and for the same reasons, 
 perhaps, migrated thither; thus increasing the 
 number of the inhabitants as well as the thrift of 
 the several communities. When these settle- 
 ments had grown in population and prospered, 
 the Establishment wished to occupy the ground, 
 and accordingly the colonial authorities com- 
 pelled these '' backwoods dissenters " to pay 
 taxes in order to build edifices for the Estab- 
 lished Church, and to support incumbents when 
 
12 The Separation of 
 
 there were very few of that denomination in the 
 region. The first settlers here possessed re- 
 markable worldly as well as church-militant 
 qualities ; they being for the most part Scotch 
 and Scotch-Irish. These characteristics devel- 
 oped themselves when the attempt was made to 
 carr>" this law into effect. 
 
 Freedom from Ecclesiastical Clannishness. 
 — The Presbyterians did not come as a body to 
 this country to form isolated settlements, as did 
 the Puritans in New England, the Dutch in New 
 York, the Quakers in Pennsylvania, and the Ro- 
 man Catholics in Maryland. When persecuted 
 in England, they preferred, rather than emigrate 
 in a body, '■'■ to struggle for liberty at home ; a 
 struggle which eventually was crowned with 
 success " {Dr. Charles Hodge ^ pages 19, 20). 
 This may account for the fact that they were 
 so free from a clannish ecclesiasticism ; though 
 strong in their opinions, they fell in with the 
 religious people of the colonies and promoted 
 the cause without arrogating to themselves any 
 special pre-eminence. They held that Jesus 
 Christ had established a form of government 
 for the Church '' distinct from the civil author- 
 ity." When Parliament, in accordance with 
 
Chtcrch and State in Virginia. 13 
 
 " the English idea that the church of any de- 
 nomination was the creation of the State," 
 abolished Episcopacy and established Presby- 
 terianism, the latter Church, as such, had noth- 
 ing to do with that action ; and, on the same 
 principle, they were opposed to any interference 
 whatever in spiritual matters by the civil magis- 
 trate. " When the arbitrary measures of Charles 
 I. drove the English nation into rebellion, the 
 partisans of the Court were Episcopalians ; the 
 opposite party was, or became in the main, 
 Presbyterian " {Dr. Hodge, page 23). Thesq 
 were their traditions, and, true to their influ- 
 ence, the Presbyterians harmonized with the 
 other denominations in the colonies in the 
 effort of spreading the Gospel, irrespective of 
 the patronage or opposition of the civil author- 
 ity. 
 
 Grades of Ministerial Education.— In the 
 earlier days of Virginia, the College of William 
 and Mary was established ostensibly '' to edu- 
 cate a domestic succession of Church of Eng- 
 land ministers," as well as to teach the children 
 of the Indians. But for nearly a half century 
 preceding the time of which we write, the edu- 
 cation of native clergymen was rather discour- 
 
14 The Separation of 
 
 aged than otherwise. There was, in truth, no 
 special inducement for pious young men to 
 quaHfy themselves for the sacred office, as so 
 many of the ministers in the Established Church 
 in the colony were from England. The latter 
 were appointed by the Home Government at 
 the suggestion of the Bishop of London, to 
 whose diocese the colonies were assigned, and 
 who ordained them, as there was no bishop in 
 America till after the Revolution. 
 
 Meanwhile, the '' Dissenters," and notably the 
 Presbyterians, were making strenuous efforts to 
 educate young men for the sacred office. Early 
 in the eighteenth century the latter established 
 schools to educate young men for the ministry, 
 and persistently refused to license any to preach 
 who had not a classical and theological training, 
 knowing that the influence of an educated min- 
 istry must ever be beneficial. In 1748 it was 
 proposed in the Synod of New York and Phila- 
 delphia — then the highest judicature in the 
 Church — to relax the demands for the classical, 
 literary, and theological qualifications of candi- 
 dates for the ministry. This proposition was 
 voted down by a large majority. Instead of 
 diminishing the time assigned for such prepara- 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 15 
 
 tion, the Synod, as if to be emphatic, added an- 
 other year to the prescribed course of study for 
 their theological students. This same spirit as 
 much influences the Presbyterians of to-day as 
 it did those of nearly one hundred and fifty 
 years ago. They now excel all others in the 
 number of their Theological Seminaries and in 
 the richness of their endowments. This strict- 
 ness in demanding a thoroughly educated min- 
 istry has had a marked effect in raising the 
 plane of general intelligence among the private 
 members of their denomination. 
 
 Says Benedict, in his History of the Baptists 
 of that day in Virginia : " Their preachers were 
 without learning, without patronage, generally 
 very poor, plain in their dress, unrefined in their 
 manners, and awkward in their address." Dr. 
 Foote, when writing of the same period in his 
 sketches of Virginia (p. 375), says : though gen- 
 erally without education, '' the zealous Baptist 
 ministers, with all the energy of excited spirits 
 inflamed by their contemplation of Divine truth 
 and visions of the spiritual world," preached 
 and labored, and by their fervid exhortations, 
 multitudes were brought to believe and be 
 saved. Dr. Robert Baird, in his " Religion in 
 
1 6 The Separation of 
 
 America," makes a similar statement, both as to 
 their education and their zeal. The ministers 
 of this denomination, especially in the earlier 
 portion of the eighteenth century, suffered more 
 from harsh treatment than the other preachers. 
 Their comparative lack of education may have 
 been the occasion of their being treated so con- 
 temptuously by the Establishment and the civil 
 authorities. Oftentimes, when imprisoned for 
 proclaiming the Gospel in 'their way, they 
 preached to the sympathizing people from the 
 grated windows of the jails in which they were 
 confined. Let their unflinching Christian zeal 
 and self-denial be honored and emulated ! 
 
 Severe Conflicts— The Act of Toleration. — 
 Previous to the time of which we write occurred 
 many struggles between the '' Dissenters " and 
 the civil authorities, because of the intolerance 
 of the latter. These controversies continued 
 for more than a third of a century, and, by elic- 
 iting discussion, prepared the minds of intelli- 
 gent people for the grand result — the separation 
 of Church and State. In Hanover County — 
 " the birthplace of Presbyterianism in Eastern 
 Virginia" — were several churches of that de- 
 nomination, and here labored and preached the 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 1 7 
 
 celebrated Samuel Efavies. His ministrations 
 were interfered with by the Governor and Coun- 
 cil ; they being urged on by the clergy of the 
 Establishment. On one occasion the matter 
 came before the General Court ; when Davies 
 argued with great force and eloquence in oppo- 
 sition to Peyton Randolph, the King's Attorney. 
 Davies contended that the English "Act of Tol- 
 eration " applied to the relief of "Dissenters" 
 in Virginia, as well as to the same class in Eng- 
 land. He won, by his eloquence and learned 
 arguments in favor of religious freedom, the ad- 
 miration of the better portion of his opponents, 
 who complimented him by saying he " was a 
 good lawyer spoiled." The Presbyterians de- 
 termined to test the question further, and when 
 Davies afterward went to England to solicit 
 funds for Princeton College, they authorized 
 him to bring the case before the King in Coun- 
 cil. He did so, and obtained the decision that 
 the "Act of Toleration " did apply to the colony 
 of Virginia (1748). In consequence of this de- 
 cision, the General Court of the colony permit- 
 ted the Presbyterians to establish three new 
 places for preaching. These church buildings 
 were twelve or fifteen miles apart. Under the 
 
1 8 The Separation of 
 
 circumstances, this concession was an immense 
 gain, and it was obtained by the perseverance 
 and learning of the ministers belonging to the 
 Hanover Presbytery. The other denominations 
 — Baptists and Quakers — were deeply interested 
 and did all they could to promote the cause of 
 religious toleration by petitions, but the Pres- 
 byterians had the boldness to demand religious 
 freedom as a natural rights and to argue the 
 question before the civil courts, or with the 
 Legislature, and, after a long struggle, secured 
 the ultimate result in the separation of Church 
 and State. This was the legitimate effect of 
 their being able to enforce their own arguments 
 and refute those of their opponents. 
 
 Efforts to reform Clerical Morals. — In no 
 country where the union of Church and State 
 existed, did the civil authorities ever appear to 
 have clear conceptions of that religious liberty 
 which arises from the spiritual condition of man. 
 The magistrates, from their official acts, seem 
 to have had only a dim perception of that all- 
 important qualification of a preacher of the 
 Gospel — a change of heart, or to be a Christian. 
 It is not unreasonable to suppose the main 
 cause of this has been that they, themselves, 
 
Church and State hi Virginia. 19 
 
 for the most part, were, individually, strangers 
 to spiritual religion. No matter how pure in 
 their private life, and evangelical in doctrine 
 preachers were, these essential qualifications 
 were oftentimes unrecognized by the secular 
 rulers in appointing them to parishes. -The 
 prevalence of these deficiencies was one of the 
 objections alleged against the clergy of the Es- 
 tablished Church in Virginia at a much earlier 
 period than that of which we write. Sir Will- 
 iam Berkeley — that staunch churchman— com- 
 plained, nearly a century before the final strug- 
 gle began, when writing of the clergy, that " as 
 of all commodities so of this — the worst are 
 sent us — and we have few that we can boast 
 of." The Legislature of Virginia found it nec- 
 essary to prescribe by law certain negative 
 qualifications of a minister of the Established 
 Church. " He was not to give himself to ex- 
 cess in drinking or riot, and spending his time 
 idly by day or night ; but to hear or read the 
 Holy Scriptures, catechise the children, and 
 visit the sick." A writer states that " many 
 clergymen of profligate lives had found a home 
 in these unfortunate colonies, and found im- 
 punity in crime from the want of a power able 
 
20 The Separation of 
 
 to correct them." These evils were so glaring, 
 that it was assumed that those sent to the colo- 
 nies as clergymen were not exemplary Chris- 
 tians, and the evil was not limited to Virginia, 
 as it was enjoined that " on the arrival of any 
 ship in the waters of Maryland, the nearest cler- 
 gyman (of the church) was to make inquiry 
 whether any minister was on board, and, if so, 
 what his demeanor had been upon the voyage." 
 The clergy themselves complain (1755) that "so 
 few from the two Universities (Oxford and 
 Cambridge) came to the colony," and that " so 
 many who are a disgrace to the ministry find 
 opportunities to fill parishes " (Dr. Hawks, vol. 
 /., /. 117, and vol. ii., pp. 80-101). At a still 
 later day it was charged that " these gentlemen 
 clergy spent much of their time fox-hunting and 
 aping the sports of the aristocracy at home, and 
 in company with the more dissolute of their 
 parishioners." Says Bishop Meade {vol. i,, p. 
 10) : " It is a well-established fact, that some 
 who were discarded from the English Church 
 yet obtained livings in Virginia." As these 
 ministers were appointed by the civil govern- 
 ment, their theological education and their moral 
 worth were not scrutinized as they should have 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 21 
 
 been. These deficiencies had much influence 
 in forming a sentiment by no. means favorable 
 to the clergy of the Establishment in the minds 
 of the truly religious, not only among " Dis- 
 senters," but among the same class of church- 
 men themselves ; and a tacit protest existed 
 against a system that permitted men of such 
 character to enter upon the sacred ofifice. It 
 must not be inferred from these statements 
 that there were no excellent Christian men in 
 the Establishment, who labored faithfully in 
 their parochial duties ; especially could this be 
 said of the native-born. 
 
 It has been charged that on the part of the 
 " Dissenters " there was an unwarranted hostility 
 toward the Establishment. The Presbyterians 
 found no fault with the doctrines of the Church 
 of England as set forth in her Articles, nor did 
 they with her mode of worship or government, 
 as her own members preferred. They demanded 
 for themselves the same religious privileges that 
 they were willing to concede to other denomina- 
 tions, but they denied most emphatically the 
 right of a Legislature to interfere, in any man- 
 ner whatever, with '' the spiritual concerns of 
 religion." Said the Rev. Samuel Davies: ''Had 
 
2 2 The Separation of 
 
 the doctrines of the Gospel been solemnly and 
 faithfully preached in the Established Church, I 
 am persuaded there would have been few ' Dis- 
 •senters ' in these parts of Virginia, for their first 
 (main) objections were not against her peculiar 
 rites and ceremonies, and much less against her 
 excellent Articles." 
 
 Preachers appointed by the Crown. — It was 
 a grievance of which intelligent Christian church- 
 men themselves complained, that their preach- 
 ers were appointed by the Crown without refer- 
 ence to the wishes of the people of the parish. 
 In Virginia and Maryland the vestries might 
 present or recommend a preacher who had not 
 been thus appointed, but even then the Gov- 
 ernor had the absolute right of inducting or put- 
 ting him in actual possession. Under the more 
 liberal system of the union of Church and State 
 in Massachusetts and Connecticut, the churches 
 were built where needed and the money raised 
 from the whole people of the town or district, 
 who voted the amount and taxed themselves to 
 pay it. The minister was chosen by the mem- 
 bers of the church, and in consequence he was 
 acceptable to the majority, and if not, he could 
 be changed for another; but, as a general rule. 
 
Church and State in Virginia, 23 
 
 he remained for life or during a long pastorate. 
 This was quite in contrast with the arbitrary 
 system that obtained in Virginia and Maryland. 
 The English Church Established— When ? 
 — The Church of England was established in Ma- 
 ryland by the act of King William in 1691, and 
 in North Carolina fifteen years later ; the popu- 
 lation being composed of '' Presbyterians, Inde- 
 pendents, Quakers, and other evil-disposed per- 
 sons." This, it was said, was accomplished by a 
 Legislature illegally chosen. The taxes imposed 
 in consequence roused a bitter feeling in the 
 minds of the '' Dissenters," who by the same 
 Legislature were deprived of many of their civil 
 rights ; the latter were not recovered until the 
 close of the Revolution. The same Church was 
 established in South Carolina in 1704 by a ma- 
 jority of one vote in the Legislature, while two- 
 thirds of the population were " Dissenters." 
 Meanwhile it had been established in the colony 
 of New York (1693), and was supported by taxes 
 from all the people in proportion to their wealth, 
 though seven-tenths of them were not in^sympa^ 
 thy with the favored denomination. In New 
 Jersey special favor was asked for the Church 
 of England, but was never fully granted, and in 
 
24 The Separation of 
 
 this anomalous condition it remained till the 
 Revolution. There was never any union of 
 Church and State in Pennsylvania. This free- 
 dom from annoyance may account somewhat 
 for the rapid progress made in the growth of 
 Presbyterian ism in these two colonies. 
 
 Influence of an Educated Ministry. — The 
 comparatively superior education of the Presby- 
 terian ministers gave them a commanding influ- 
 ence in New Jersey and Pennsylvania as well as 
 in Virginia and in the Carolinas. Their zeal and 
 name were identified with the movements lead- 
 ing to more religious freedom, particularly dur- 
 ing the period from the close of the French war 
 (1763) till the commencement of the Revolution. 
 For years they had been ardently inculcating 
 these principles in the back counties of Virginia 
 and North Carolina, and, in the end, prepared 
 the minds of their hearers to issue the famed 
 Mecklenburg Declaration (May 11, 1775). In 
 the convention which issued it were several 
 Presbyterian ministers and elders. This influ- 
 ence had already been recognized in England, 
 and the threat was often made by the '' Church 
 party " that " Bishops should be settled in 
 America in spite of all the Presbyterian oppo- 
 
CJiMrch and State i7i Virginia. 25 
 
 sition." The objections of the latter, as often 
 explained, were not against bishops in their 
 spiritual character, but in the temporal power 
 inherent in an Established Church, as then ex- 
 isting in England and Virginia and the Caro- 
 linas. They believed that civil and religious 
 liberty should go hand in hand, but saw the 
 reverse of this in '' Lords spiritual," being 
 supported to a great extent by the hard earn- 
 ings of those who did not sympathize with 
 the ritual and doctrines of the Established 
 Church. 
 
 Conflicts in respect to Salaries. — During 
 this period there were frequent contentions be- 
 tween the Virginia Assembly and the clergy of 
 the Establishment in respect to the latter's 
 salaries and their payment. This unseemly con- 
 test alienated more or less the public sympathy 
 from the latter. A law of Maryland demanded 
 a poll-tax of '' forty pounds of tobacco " for the 
 benefit of the clergy, but did not specify the 
 quality of the article in which it was to be paid. 
 Many of the planters manifested their view of 
 the justice of the law by furnishing the full 
 weight, but of a villainous quality of tobacco. 
 One of these contests in Virginia was the famous 
 
26 The Separation of 
 
 "Parson's case," 1763, in which Patrick Henry- 
 performed a part so important. 
 
 A Great Principle Established. — In the 
 earlier colonial days the " Dissenters " contented 
 themselves with protesting against the infringe- 
 ment of their rights as citizens and the burdens 
 imposed upon them in the form of tithes or 
 taxes by the colonial authorities, oftentimes, as 
 they believed, at the instigation of the clergy 
 of the Established Church. The Presbyterians, 
 Baptists, and Quakers all chafed under this 
 tyranny, that compelled them to aid in support- 
 ing a Church whose system they did not ap- 
 prove. These annoyances — many oT them by 
 no means petty — led finally to one of the most 
 interesting episodes in our history ; the struggle 
 to separate Church and State in Virginia. This 
 contest really lasted about twelve years, from 
 1773 to 1786, covering more than the entire 
 period of the war of the Revolution, and within 
 one year of the adoption of the Constitution of 
 the United States. Owing to the stirring times 
 of which it was contemporary, this remarkable 
 movement has been overshadowed and has not 
 received the attention which its importance de- 
 serves. To establish the principle of supporting 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 27 
 
 the Gospel hy the voluntary contributions of its 
 own friends, was as unique in sustaining the 
 Church as two years afterward, was the anomaly 
 in history of founding a Republic co^nposed of 
 States ifidependent in the adnmiistration of their 
 own affairs, and yet under a united National 
 Government. In each case it was the application 
 ^f great principles, and both have been equally 
 successful. 
 
 The Struggle begins — The Memorial. — 
 This contest assumed tangible form in October, 
 1776, though three years before the Presbytery 
 of Hanovuer began the agitation in respect to 
 church privileges or religious rights by appoint- 
 mg commissioners to lay the matter before the 
 Virginia Assembly, but "nothing was done in 
 the Assembly that year to remedy the disabili- 
 ties of '■ Dissenters.' " The commissioners took 
 action on the subject during the two following 
 years, but with a similar result. The Presby- 
 terians were thus the first in taking measures to 
 secure the separation of Church and State, nor 
 did they desist till the end was accomplished 
 twelve years afterward. 
 
 When the Declaration of Independence was 
 made, the ground was changed, and, at the first 
 
2S The Separation of 
 
 meeting of the Presbytery of Hanover after July 
 4, 1776, that body memorialized the Legislature 
 or House of Assembly to dissolve the union of 
 Church and State, and thus leave the support of 
 the Gospel to its own friends. This memorial 
 discussed the principles on which they demanded 
 the separation. Their arguments were not suc- 
 cessfully controverted, and their cogency in the 
 end compelled the Assembly to comply with 
 the demand. The Memorial showed that such 
 union conflicted with the Declaration of Rights, 
 on which, as the Magna Charta of the Common- 
 wealth, all the privileges and rights of the peo- 
 ple, both civil and religious, depend ; that in the 
 frontier counties in the valley of the Shenan- 
 doah, in which region were very few Episcopa- 
 lians to aid in bearing the expense, those not in 
 communion with the Establishment were com- 
 pelled by law to bear heavy burdens in building 
 church edifices and rectories, purchasing glebes, 
 and in supporting the Established clergy. As 
 all \\\& colonists were now engaged in a contest 
 with the mother country on account of infringe- 
 ments of their rights, it was inconsistent that all 
 the people should not be protected in the free- 
 dom of conscience. They expected their repre- 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 29 
 
 sentatives in the House of Assembly to remove 
 every species of religious and civil bondage. 
 They argued that this oppression retarded im- 
 migration to Virginia, and also the progress of 
 the arts and sciences of the State and of its 
 manufactures. In proof of this statement they 
 instanced the rapid growth and improvement of 
 the Northern colonies compared with Virginia, 
 and at the same time directing the attention of 
 the Assembly to the many advantages of soil 
 and climate of the latter, yet men refused to 
 migrate to a colony where they could not enjoy 
 the rights of conscience. 
 
 They argued that the Gospel asked the sup- 
 port of only its own adherents, and did not in 
 that respect need the secular aid ; that Christi- 
 anity would prevail and flourish by its own mer- 
 its under an all-prevailing Providence. They 
 did not ask ecclesiastical establishments for 
 themselves, nor did they think them desirable 
 for others, as such must of necessity be partial, 
 and in the main injurious to the people at large. 
 They demanded that every law that counten- 
 anced religious domination should be immedi- 
 ately repealed ; that every religious sect should 
 be protected in the full exercise of its mode of 
 
30 The Separation of 
 
 worship ; that all invidious distinctions in re- 
 spect to religious denominations should be 
 abolished, and every person be free to support 
 any one he chose by his voluntary gifts. Such 
 were the sentiments the Presbytery of Hanover 
 advanced on the subject of religious freedom ; 
 their arguments cover the whole ground, enunci- 
 ating the principles held and practiced to-day as 
 truisms throughout the Union. 
 
 Committee on Religion and Morality. — With 
 other petitions on the subject, this memorial was 
 referred to a committee on religion and morality ; 
 of this committee Thomas Jefferson was chair- 
 man. As evidence of the difficulties with which 
 the memorialists had to contend, and how little 
 the members of that Assembly appreciated their 
 true relation to the preachers of the Gospel, may 
 be cited the following resolution passed Novem- 
 ber 19, 1776, "That provision should be made 
 for the continuing the succession of the clergy 
 [of the Establishment] and for superintending 
 their conduct " {RandalVs " Life of Jeffersoit,'' 
 vol. i., p. 205). This resolution, designed to fore- 
 stall or control action on the subject, was passed 
 after the petitions and memorial had been re- 
 ceived and referred by the Assembly to the com- 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 31 
 
 mittee, and on which the latter had not yet re- 
 ported. 
 
 The Petitions — The Demand as a Right. — 
 The year before (1775) the Baptists petitioned 
 the Assembly, " That they might be allowed to 
 worship God in their own way without inter- 
 ruption ; to maintain their own ministers sepa- 
 rate from others, and to be married and buried 
 without paying the clergy of other denomina- 
 tions," — meaning of the Establishment — {Dr. 
 Baird, p. 219). The Quakers also petitioned to 
 the same effect. The Presbyterians took higher 
 ground ; that it was their right to do this. They 
 did not ask for a similar permission, but, on the 
 contrary, demanded that mt end be put to the as- 
 sumption of any stich authority in the Legislature 
 by dissolving the union of Church and State. The 
 struggle did not soon end. The Episcopalians 
 presented counter-memorials and so did the 
 Methodists, who in that day deemed themselves 
 in a measure allied to the Church of England, 
 and were known as the Wesleyan Connection. 
 When the Revolutionary contest began great 
 numbers of the Church of England clergymen, 
 who had come from England, went back to that 
 country and left their parishes vacant. These 
 
32 The Separation of 
 
 parishes in large numbers were filled by Meth- 
 odist ministers ; the latter falling heir in a meas- 
 ure to the emoluments of the parishes. The 
 Methodists maintained that the State violated 
 its pledges given in the early days of the colony 
 to the Established Church, and that its' claims 
 were in the form of a vested right. In truth 
 they never were " Dissenters "; on the contrary, 
 their sympathies and Church interests were with 
 the Establishment ; while their ministers in Vir- 
 ginia, during this struggle, were for the most 
 part Englishmen. These were sent first (about 
 1770) by the London Conference, America being 
 constituted on that occasion as th^ fiftieth cir- 
 cuit. {Dr. Stevens ^^Hist. of MetJiodism!' vol. i.^ 
 p. 442). 
 
 Upon whom fell the Burden of the Conflict, 
 — The brunt of this conflict fell upon the min- 
 isters and laymen of the Presbyterian Church. 
 As preachers and exhorters the Baptists were 
 very successful, but it required better-educated 
 men to cope with the lawyers and statesmen in 
 the Virginia Assembly, and to repel the argu- 
 ments for the continuance of the union of 
 Church and State. ''The Baptists," says Dr. 
 Hawks, "though not to be outdone in zeal, 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 33 
 
 were far surpassed in ability by the Presbyteri- 
 ans. The latter's ablest memorials came from 
 the Presbytery of Hanover " {vol. /., /. 140). To 
 sustain their views the Church advocates pointed 
 to the history of such union as existing from 
 Constantine onward, while the prospective good 
 effects of a separation were at best only a con- 
 jecture, as the experiment had never been tried, 
 while the arguments in respect to the injurious 
 moral influence of appointing improper men 
 rectors of parishes, had but little influence with 
 the Legislature. 
 
 The attempt to support the ordinances of the 
 Gospel by voluntary- contributions of its own 
 well-wishers, appeared to the members of the 
 Assembly visionary in the extreme, especially 
 as the '^ Dissenters" in comparison were poor 
 indeed. The wealthy land and slave holders 
 belonged almost entirely to the Established 
 Church, and from this class a large majority of 
 the members of the Legislature were chosen. 
 "The Establishment," says Jefferson, "was 
 truly of the religion of the rich, the dissenting 
 sects being entirely composed of the less 
 wealthy people." And again, " Although two- 
 thirds of our citizens were ' Dissenters,* a ma- 
 
34 The Sepm^ation of 
 
 jority of the Legislature were churchmen." 
 "Among these, however, were some reasonable 
 and liberal men, who enabled us on some points 
 to obtain feeble majorities." " A majority of 
 the inhabitants were obliged by law to pay con- 
 tributions to support the pastors of the minor- 
 ity. This unrighteous compulsion was grievous- 
 ly felt during the royal government when there* 
 was no hope of relief." 
 
 The Legislature met on its own Ground. — 
 The advocates of the system in the Assembly 
 were met on their own ground by Presbyterian 
 clergymen, who, by their superior knowledge of 
 the subject in all its bearings, won their cause, 
 and the influence of that example banished the 
 system of the union of Church and State from 
 the land. One of the positions honestly taken 
 by good men, was that injury would be done 
 the cause of religion ; they assumed that unless 
 aided by the State the Church would languish 
 and fail because of insufilcient support. On the 
 contrary, the opponents of the system argued 
 that the true friends of a pure Gospel would, as 
 a matter of duty, support the Church ; and 
 moreover, there would not be so much in- 
 ducement for those who were not governed by 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 35 
 
 the genuine principles of religion to connect 
 themselves with the Church — this would be a 
 great gain. The arguments for the continuance 
 of the system had greater weight then than they 
 would have to-day, since the results of voluntary 
 contributions for the support of the Gospel and 
 its ordinances have proved their fallacy ; as well 
 as the remarkable development of the principle 
 of personal responsibility in its influence upon 
 individual Christians in making them more be- 
 nevolent and more zealous in aiding the cause 
 of religion. This principle now pervades the 
 minds of American Christians to an extent im- 
 possible under a system of the union of Church 
 and State, where the responsibility of support- 
 ing the Gospel is shared between its friends and 
 the world at large, or State. 
 
 Objectionable Laws partially repealed. — On 
 the 5th of December, 1776, an act was passed by 
 the Assembly which repealed the laws making 
 it an offence to hold any particular religious 
 opinions, and also removing the penalties in- 
 flicted upon those who did not attend the ser- 
 vice of the Established Church or worshiped else- 
 where. This act, though imperfect, virtually 
 dissolved the union between Church and State, 
 
36 The Sepai^ation of 
 
 by repealing all former laws relating to that 
 union; it also exempted '^ Dissenters " from 
 contributing to the support of that Church, but 
 left the latter in possession of all the wealth it 
 had acquired by taxation in the past — this 
 wealth consisted mostly in glebes, parsonages, 
 and church edifices. 
 
 The following is the text of the bill : " We the 
 General Assembly do enact : That no man shall 
 be compelled to frequent or support any re- 
 ligious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, 
 nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or 
 burthened in his body or goods, nor shall other- 
 wise suffer on account of his religious opinions 
 or belief; but that all men shall be free to pro- 
 fess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions 
 in matters of religion, and that the same shall 
 in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil 
 capacities." 
 
 In relation to minor points the contest con- 
 tinued, and the bill for the separation did not 
 go fully into effect till ten years afterward (1786) ; 
 Jefferson was a member of the Assembly in 
 1776, and chairman of the committee when this 
 partial repeal was made. During the two years 
 following many memorials or petitions were pre- 
 
Church and State in Virginia, 2)1 
 
 sented by both parties to the Assembly ; some 
 of these asked for a general assessment or tax 
 for the benefit of all denominations, and some 
 in opposition ; while other petitioners stepped 
 back a century and asked that the " sectaries " 
 be prohibited from holding meetings, and none 
 but " licensed preachers " (meaning of the Estab- 
 lishment) be permitted to conduct public wor- 
 ship. 
 
 Prejudices roused — Tories — Whigs — Quak- 
 ers. — After the commencement of the war of the 
 Revolution a strong prejudice was roused against 
 the Established clergy, as the great majority of 
 them were ardent Loyalists, or '' Tories "; the 
 Presbyterians and Baptists were even more 
 ardently "Whigs" — their ministers preached 
 with great zeal the doctrine of resistance to 
 tyrants. The Quakers were, for the greater 
 part, from principle opposed to war in any 
 form, and thus they were often misjudged as to 
 their motives. Under the circumstances, which 
 we of to-day cannot fully appreciate, it was not 
 strange that so many of the clergy were Tories; 
 the traditions of that Church were in favor of 
 royalty, and, moreover, a large majority were 
 Englishmen by birth. Unfortunately they in- 
 
38 The Separatio7i of 
 
 fluenced their parishioners almost as much in 
 favor of royalty as the dissenting pastors did 
 their flocks in favor of liberty. 
 
 The General Assessment — Another Memo- 
 rial. — The advocates for the union of Church 
 and State did not relax their efforts to retain 
 the secular advantages which the Establishment 
 had already, but earnestly contended to secure 
 emoluments, however small. First the attempt 
 was made to have a general assessment of taxes 
 to support all the denominations alike. The 
 Baptists and Quakers as well as the Presbyteri- 
 ans opposed this system ; the latter especially, 
 on the ground that aid for the Gospel in that 
 form was injurious to spiritual religion. Ac- 
 cordingly the Presbytery of Hanover came for- 
 ward with another of their well-reasoned memo- 
 rials (1778); and after courteously thanking the 
 Assembly for what they had done in repealing 
 some of the offensive and illiberal laws, they 
 proceeded to oppose the '' plan of a general as- 
 sessment." They argued that the only proper 
 object of civil government was to promote the 
 happiness of the people by protecting them as 
 citizens in their rights ; to restrain the vicious 
 by wholesome laws and encourage the virtuous 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 39 
 
 by the same means ; that the obligations which 
 men owe their Creator are not a proper subject 
 of human legislation, and the worship of God 
 according to the dictates of conscience was an 
 inalienable right. " Neither does the Church of 
 Christ stand in need of a general assessment for 
 its support ; and most certain we are persuaded 
 that it would be no advantage, but an injury to 
 the society to which we belong ; and we believe 
 that Christ has ordained a complete system of 
 laws for the government of His kingdom, so we 
 are persuaded that by His providence, He will 
 support its final consummation." This memo- 
 rial was also seconded by the urgent protests of 
 the Baptists ; the result was that the following 
 year the proposed plan of general assessment 
 was abandoned for the time being. We, to-day, 
 take for granted the principles here enunciated, 
 they having been so thoroughly discussed, while 
 experience has as clearly proved their soundness 
 and utility. These Christian men were fully 
 convinced that the effect of the union of Church 
 and State was, for many reasons, injurious to 
 spiritual religion. Many of these legislators, 
 though they talked so learnedly, were unable 
 to appreciate the question in its spiritual bear- 
 
40 The Separatio7i of 
 
 ings, and for this reason alone, the authors of 
 these memorials never urged to much extent 
 the arguments derived from this phase of the 
 subject, but judiciously waived them, although 
 they were so convincing to themselves, and to 
 the Church members whom they represented. 
 
 Defects in the Act of Repeal. — It was only 
 in general terms that the law of December, 1776, 
 dissolved the union of Church and State, and 
 the clergy of the former " still retained the 
 glebes — the lands belonging to the parishes — 
 and also claimed the right of performing mar- 
 riage ceremonies with the accustomed fees.'* 
 Therefore the Assembly found it necessary (1780) 
 to enact : '' That it shall and may be lawful for 
 any minister of any society or congregation of 
 Christians to celebrate the rites of matrimony, 
 and such marriage, as well as those hereafter 
 celebrated by dissenting ministers, shall be and 
 are hereby declared good and valid in law." 
 Yet under this law the Episcopal clergy were, 
 ex officio, authorized to celebrate marriages 
 throughout the State, while the ministers of 
 other denominations had to obtain a license^ 
 and in addition, were limited to certain districts 
 or counties. In answer to this insulting legisla- 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 41 
 
 tion, the Presbytery of Hanover came forward 
 with a carefully prepared argument covering the 
 whole ground of controversy, in which the 
 wrong of the law in relation to performing the 
 rites of matrimony was thoroughly discussed 
 and shown. In due time the law was so modi- 
 fied as to be virtually repealed. 
 
 Security of Religious Rights demanded. — 
 The Presbytery also complained that "the 
 security of religious rights was left to the pre- 
 carious fate of common law, instead of being 
 made a fundamental part of our Constitution as 
 it ought to beT They likewise complained that 
 the Episcopal Church was the only one incor- 
 porated and could hold property, while all other 
 denominations " were obliged to trust to the pre- 
 carious fidelity of trustees chosen for the pur- 
 pose," and they, asking nothing for themselves, 
 demanded that these inequalities in the treat- 
 ment of Christian denominations should be 
 removed. The Assembly continued from year 
 to year to suspend Church levies ; this policy 
 necessitated continual watchfulness on the part 
 of the *' Dissenters," till in the latter part of 1779 
 these levies were abolished ; but this action was 
 not acquiesced in sincerely, for after the return 
 
42 The Separation of 
 
 of peace the Virginia Assembly again attempted 
 legislation (1784) on the subject; the intention 
 now being to incorporate '' all Societies of the 
 Christian religion, which may apply for the 
 same." The reason for this apparent liberality 
 cropped out when to the bill was added an 
 amendment authorizing a general assessment " to 
 establish a provision for the teachers of the 
 Christian religion." The Hanover Presbytery 
 took measures to oppose this renewal of that 
 project ; but meanwhile, though secretly, its 
 friends had been so active that it was appre- 
 hended it would pass in spite of all their efforts 
 in opposition. The question was now in a new 
 form, and in it was a temptation. As all would 
 receive aid from the public funds, and the ex- 
 periment of voluntary support might possibly 
 result in failure, it was not strange that a few 
 Presbyterian ministers for a time wavered, but 
 in the end they came back with still greater 
 force to their former convictions of the truth, 
 that the ordinances of the Gospel ought to be 
 supported as a matter of Christian duty by its 
 own adherents, who should in this action be free 
 and untrammeled by any secular or legislative 
 influence whatever. 
 
Church and State in Virginia, 43 
 
 Protest against Incorporating the Episco- 
 pal Church. — Consistent with the original move- 
 ment was another. A bill was brought forward 
 in the Assembly to incorporate the " Protestant 
 Episcopal Church " — the name assumed after 
 the close of the Revolution. This measure was 
 designed to secure to that Church the absolute 
 ownership of all the glebe-lands and the build- 
 ings thereon erected — all obtained at the public 
 expense by taxation. The persistent Presbytery 
 of Hanover appeared again before the Legisla- 
 ture in opposition to this revived measure with 
 its still more objectionable features. The cele- 
 brated Dr. John Blair Smith, who at one time 
 was inclined to favor the " general assessment," 
 was heard at the bar of the House in an ex- 
 haustive argument in opposition to the enact- 
 ment of the bill. He continued his address for 
 three days ; in which the whole subject was so 
 thoroughly discussed, and the evil effects of the 
 proposed law were so clearly pointed out, that 
 the scheme was abandoned forever. 
 
 The General Assessment again. — The Pres- 
 bytery took high ground, saying : '' We hope 
 that no attempt will be made to point out arti- 
 cles of faith, or to settle modes of worship, or to 
 
44 1^^^^ Separation of 
 
 interfere in the internal government of religious 
 communities, or to render the ministers of relig- 
 ion in-dependent of the will of the people whom they 
 server Again, that body protested (August, 
 1785) against "the incorporation of the Protest- 
 ant Episcopal Church," so far as to secure to that 
 Church '' properties procured at the expense of 
 the whole community." The truth is, that in 
 this controversy, lasting for nine years, the As- 
 sembly having a majority of its members church- 
 men, did not keep faith with their opponents 
 outside that denomination. From their point 
 of view they thought the ordinances of the Gos- 
 pel would be unsupported and Christianity crip- 
 pled in its influence. They had never fully real- 
 ized as individuals their personal responsibility 
 in the duty of supporting the Gospel, as the 
 " Dissenters " had done during the many years 
 in which the latter, as a matter of conscience, 
 sustained their own ministers and the ordinances 
 of the Gospel, while at the same time, paying, in 
 the form of arbitrary taxes, their share in sup- 
 porting a church Establishment, whose ritual 
 and form of government they deemed " unscrip- 
 tural." It is strange that the self-respect and 
 Christian manhood of the churchmen of that 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 45 
 
 day did not induce them to decline receiving 
 money thus wrung from their neighbors, whom 
 they were pleased to characterize as ''Dissent- 
 ers." Some of the best minds among the Vir- 
 ginia statesmen were in favor of the '' general 
 assessment," such as Patrick Henry, who thought 
 an assessment " should be made for some form 
 of worship or other "; Edmund Pendleton — " an 
 honest man, but zealous churchman," whom 
 Jefferson characterized as, ''taken all in all," 
 the ablest man in debate he had ever met," and 
 Richard Henry Lee, who wrote that " avarice is 
 accomplishing the destruction of religion for want 
 of a legal obligation to contribute something to 
 its support," and even George Washington wrote 
 to George Mason (1785), " that he was not much 
 alarmed at the thought of making people pay 
 toward the support of that which they profess." 
 On the other hand, the assessment was opposed by 
 James Madison and George Mason (the intimate 
 friend of Washington), and others — Jefferson 
 being abroad at that time as Minister to France. 
 In 1799 all laws made for the benefit of religious 
 societies were repealed, and, in 1801, " the 'gtebesj' 
 as soon as vacated by existing incumbents, were 
 ordered to be sold by the overseers of the poor." 
 
46 The Separation of 
 
 The different Effects of Petitions and Ar^- 
 ments. — We would not detract one iota from 
 the merit of the Baptists and the Quakers in this 
 struggle, but from the nature of the case — as 
 they presented only petitions and protests — 
 their efforts were not as influential as the Pres- 
 byterians, who, from their position on a higher 
 plane of education, both ministers and laity were 
 able to meet their opponents in open debate or 
 by written arguments well put ; thus they be- 
 came the controlling force in bringing about the 
 reform. The latter never wavered in their de- 
 termination to secure the desired end, but, amid 
 discouragements and false faith, they calmly 
 persevered in refuting the arguments of their 
 opponents, and, in the end, winning to their 
 sentiments the more enlightened and liberal- 
 minded churchmen, not only in the Assembly, 
 but in the State. 
 
 Contest in respect to the Glebes. — The 
 question of the glebes, which grew out of the 
 repealing act, was also strongly contested, and 
 deserves a passing notice. It was argued that 
 the glebes should be retained by the Episcopal 
 Church, as some of the funds applied in their 
 purchase had been donations. On the other 
 
Church and State in Virgmia, 47 
 
 hand, it was contended that the glebes and 
 parsonages were public property, bought almost 
 entirely by funds raised by unjust taxation — 
 the donations being a very small portion of 
 the whole amount. Moreover, the Established 
 Church had had, up to that time, the exclusive 
 use of the funds thus raised, the advantages of 
 which use far overbalanced the loss of these 
 limited donations, even if they could be sepa- 
 rated from the common fund ; and in addition 
 it retained its church buildings, though erected 
 by means of moneys derived from taxes imposed 
 upon the whole comm.unity. It was suggested 
 that the churchmen were mostly wealthy land 
 and slave holders, and it was much easier for 
 them, by voluntary contributions, to sustain 
 their own Church than for the other denomina- 
 tions of Christians to support theirs. 
 
 On the subject of selling the glebes for the 
 benefit of the whole people, the Baptists were 
 more strenuous than any of the other ** Dissent- 
 ers." Says Dr. Hawks : " There was a bitterness 
 of hatred in this denomination (Baptist) toward 
 the Establishment, which far surpassed that of 
 all other religious communities in the colony; 
 and it was always prompt to avail itself of every 
 
48 The Sepa7-ation of 
 
 prejudice which rehgious or political zeal could 
 excite against the Church " {z'ol. i.,p. 121). One 
 reason of this hostile feeling may have been that 
 the Baptists had been persecuted more than the 
 other denominations, and in more degrading 
 forms. The remembrance of these outrages 
 came down from generation to generation, and 
 roused a feeling that was closely allied to righte- 
 ous indignation. The Presbyterians appear to 
 have viewed the dissolving of the union of 
 Church and State as the all-important question 
 at issue, and when that was accomplished they 
 looked upon that of church property as second- 
 ary. In accordance with this general sentiment 
 of rejecting secular aid in any form, the Presby- 
 tery of Hanover refused incorporation for their 
 denomination, as had been granted the Episco- 
 pal Church, on the ground that it was contrary 
 to their views of propriety, and, from principle, 
 they declined any advantage to be thus obtained. 
 The Assembly reconsidered its action, and finally 
 (1787) repealed the law incorporating the Epis- 
 copal Church. 
 
 A half century of Intolerance remembered. 
 — The Presbyterians also remembered that their 
 church members and ministers had labored for 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 49 
 
 more than a half century under disabilities 
 caused by the intolerance more or less insti- 
 gated by the Church of England ; that in the 
 colony of New York ministers of their denomi- 
 nation had been imprisoned and otherwise mal- 
 treated. Notably was this the case of Rev. 
 Francis Makemie, who, when on a visit to that 
 colony from Maryland, was sent to jail by the 
 Governor — Lord Cornbury — because he dared 
 preach in a private house when every hall or 
 church building had been denied him by the same 
 authority ; that at the instigation of the " Rector 
 and Church Wardens of Trinity Church," they 
 were not permitted to have a '' charter of incor- 
 poration " for their then only church building, 
 but were compelled to resort to the General 
 Assembly of the Church of Scotland (1730), in 
 whose name as legal trustees the building and 
 land belonging to " the First Presbyterian 
 Church " was held till the Revolution changed 
 the order of things. They had met the same 
 hostile feeling in Virginia, and in a still more 
 repugnant form. Yet in the famous Memorial 
 presented by the Presbytery of Hanover to the 
 Virginia Assembly (October, 1776), and in the 
 many which followed, no bitterness was ex- 
 
50 The Separation of 
 
 pressed, but, on the contrary, reasoning on the 
 injurious effects of the union of Church and 
 State, on rehgious freedom, on the spread of 
 the Gospel and its pure and holy influence on 
 the minds of the people. 
 
 An Apology urged. — It is often urged by way 
 of apology that these intolerant proceedings 
 were characteristic of the times ; but why were 
 not churchmen as liberal as the " Dissenters " ? 
 The latter did not interfere with the Church of 
 England in its ordinances ; they never were the 
 aggressors ; but, as best they could, only de- 
 fended themselves from the assaults of the 
 former. The truth is, this self-complacent age, 
 though thus apologizing, is scarcely justifiable 
 in assuming to be perfect examples of tolerance 
 in religious matters, when we take into con- 
 sideration the higher plane on which all de- 
 nominations of Christians are presumed to 
 stand at the present time in respect to religious 
 freedom. Is not the spirit which to-day mani- 
 fests itself, sometimes even in evangelical de- 
 nominations, of virtually tincJnircJiing those who 
 do not use the same mode as themselves in their 
 rites, or in ordaining preachers of the Word, as 
 intolerant in proportion to the light they are pre- 
 
Chtirch and State in Virginia. 51 
 
 sumed to have on the subject of" religious liber- 
 ty, as those who figured so ignobly more than 
 one hundred years ago ? 
 
 Who began the Movement and secured the 
 Result ? — Justice and the truth of history de- 
 mand that the services of those who accom- 
 plished this important result — the separation of 
 Church and State in Virginia — should be recog- 
 nized. If the statements of certain authors are 
 implicitly received, the inference would be, that 
 Thomas Jefferson originated the measure and 
 carried it to a successful issue. In proof of this 
 theory, they cite the bill he drew up to secure 
 religious freedom, which, as chairman of the 
 committee, he introduced into the Legislature. 
 This measure was not brought before the As- 
 sembly until some weeks after the first memori- 
 al of the Presbytery of Hanover was presented 
 to that body, and referred to a special commit- 
 tee (October 11, 1776), ''to take into consider- 
 ation all matters and things relating to religion 
 and morals." Of this committee Jefferson was 
 appointed chairman, and in that capacity he 
 drew up the bill and presented it to the House. 
 There is no historical evidence that he would of 
 his own motion have introduced a bill of that 
 
52 The Separation of 
 
 purport, had not petitions and the memorial 
 furnished him an occasion. This memorial was 
 the first to intimate the necessity for the sepa- 
 ration of Church and State. The arguments 
 which it contained covered the whole ground of 
 religious freedom ; discussing the questions in a 
 manner lucid and terse, leaving nothing more to 
 be added. There is not an idea in Jefferson's 
 preamble and bill that is not expressed or clear- 
 ly implied in the memorial ; the latter is concise 
 and to the point ; the former is clothed in easy- 
 flowing terms of generalities ; a sort of theoreti- 
 cal style — if the term is admissible ; a character- 
 istic of the author's manner in treating similar 
 subjects. The. preamble consists of one sentence, 
 containing fifty-two lines of small print, on an oc- 
 tavo page. 
 
 The Presbyterians leading, the '' Dissenters " 
 were the first in that colony or State to move in 
 this reform ; Jefferson joined them, not they 
 him. It is well known, however, that he held 
 liberal, and now deemed correct, views on the 
 general subject of free thought and its free ex- 
 pression, and that the presentation of the me- 
 morial gave him an opportunity of which he 
 availed himself to express his sentiments. There 
 
Church and State in Virginia, 53 
 
 is no evidence that he debated the question in 
 the Assembly ; his influence was exerted private- 
 ly and by writing. In 1784 he went to France 
 on public business, and the bill which bears his 
 name, when modified by amxcndments, was passed 
 in 1786 — after the lapse of ten years; thus go- 
 ing into full effect through the exertions of 
 George Mason and James Madison, especially 
 the latter, who was an accomplished debater and 
 writer. 
 
 During the ten years mentioned the advocates 
 of the union of Church and State in the Assem- 
 bly, changed their tactics almost every session, 
 and under different forms sought to gain ad- 
 vantage, however small. These various phases 
 of the contest were counteracted by the persist- 
 ent efforts of the Presbytery of Hanover. Jef- 
 ferson, in his " Notes on Virginia," as quoted by 
 Randall {vol. i., p. 204), charged the Presbyteri- 
 ans with intolerance toward other denomina- 
 tions in the Northern colonies. He made the 
 inexcusable mistake for a man of his position of 
 confounding the Puritans and Congregationalists 
 with the Presbyterians. He cites no authority 
 for the charge, but he ought to have known that 
 the latter were, and had been, consistent advo- 
 
54 '^he Separation of 
 
 cates for all to enjoy the same religious freedom 
 which they demanded for themselves ; and this 
 right, they argued, was derived from a higher 
 authority than that of the civil magistrate. This 
 vital idea was in the first memorial they pre- 
 sented to the Assembly, and, moreover, he 
 ought to have borne in mind, that even if the 
 Presbyterians wished, they had no opportunity 
 to practice intolerance, as they stood aloof — 
 never desired and never had any control in the 
 civil government of the colonies. Jefferson, after- 
 ward, expressed his gratification that: "All be- 
 liefs, whether Christian or Infidel, Jew or Mo- 
 hammedan, were put on an equality." It does 
 not follow from this statement, as has been 
 charged, that Jefferson held that one system of 
 belief was as worthy of respect as another, but 
 rather that he had in his mind the abstract theo- 
 ry of the freedom of thought and its free ex- 
 pression. 
 
 Religious Freedom and Patriotism. — The 
 Presbyterian Church has ever been on the side 
 of religious freedom and against intolerance. 
 Throughout her entire history, and in all her 
 records, " there is not an act on this great sub- 
 ject that received her sanction, for which she 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 55 
 
 need offer an apology" (Gillett, vol. i.^ pp. 169- 
 170). They were equally as explicit in regard 
 to their patriotism. The Synod, their highest 
 court at that time, when in session in Philadel- 
 phia, in May, 1775, as patriots declared: "That 
 they did not wish to conceal their sentiments, 
 either as ministers or citizens." Looking for- 
 ward to a conflict of arms, they say : " That 
 man will fight most bravely who never fights 
 till it is necessary, and who ceases to fight as 
 soon as the necessity is over." This was the 
 position taken and maintained by them through- 
 out the Revolutionary struggle. 
 
 Opposition to Slavery. — Their liberal princi- 
 ples were not limited to religious freedom alone. 
 In 1787 the United Synod of New York and 
 Philadelphia expressed the views of that Church, 
 by resolving that they were in favor of " pro- 
 moting the abolition of slavery " — a sentiment 
 they had expressed again and again — and closed 
 by " recommending the people under their care 
 to use prudent measures consistent with the 
 interest and state of civil society in the parts 
 where they live, to procure eventually the final 
 abolition of slavery in America.'' This was the 
 same year in which the Constitution of the 
 
56 The Separation of 
 
 United States was formed. The convention 
 which framed it, met on the 14th of May, in 
 Philadelphia, ajid continued in session four 
 months. The Synod met also in the same city, 
 and at the same time, and its published utter- 
 ance on the subject was not without influence. 
 Six years later (1793), when the Presbyterian 
 Church had been organized on a National basis, 
 the General Assembly — then as now its highest 
 judicature — reaffirmed the same utterance in 
 respect to the system of slavery. 
 
 Influence of the Measure in New England. — 
 It is interesting to note that the separation of 
 Church and State in Virginia was not without 
 influence, as within a few years afterward, sim- 
 ilar results were produced in New York, Mary- 
 land, and the Carolinas, wherein the Church of 
 England had been established in colonial times. 
 The Legislatures of these States dissolved the 
 connection expressly by law, but in New Eng- 
 land, where the system was not so arbitrary and 
 unjust, it lingered for nearly forty years longer. 
 
 Personal Responsibility Recognized and 
 Strengthened. — An important element of influ- 
 ence — that of personal responsibility in relation 
 to religious duties— was strengthened by this 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 57 
 
 separation, as the Church was thus thrown for 
 its support entirely upon its individual mem- 
 bers. From the time of Jonathan Edwards for- 
 ward the true position of the individual in re- 
 gard to personal religion became more fully- 
 understood, and the responsibility for the souls 
 of those whom they governed, which we have 
 seen assumed by the civil magistrate, was grad- 
 ually shifted frofn the latter to the individual. 
 Consistent with this view, evangelical denomi- 
 nations have demanded only one qualification, 
 entitling a person to the privilege of the com- 
 munion — that of being converted or a Christian. 
 In addition, this sense of responsibility was still 
 further strengthened and made practical when 
 individual members, irrespective of the State, 
 learned to sustain the ordinances of the Church 
 of Christ, and labored to extend the blessings 
 of the Gospel ; to this principle may be traced 
 that remarkable spirit of benevolence, which, in 
 various forms, has made our times, when com- 
 pared with the past, the golden age of the 
 world. 
 
 Self-denial and Benevolence.— The '' Dis- 
 senters" in colonial times in their hard disci- 
 pline acquired the grace of being benevolent. 
 
58 The Separation of 
 
 In their zeal for what they believed the truth, 
 they made immense sacrifices ; they paid their 
 share not only in supporting a religious estab- 
 lishment with which they had no sympathy, 
 but, in addition, sustained their own Church 
 ordinances — thus manifesting a self-denial which, 
 because of their exertions, American Christians, 
 since that time, have had no occasion to prac- 
 tice. The churchmen of that day were stran- 
 gers to such self-denial. They had never been 
 in a school where it was taught ; nor had they 
 learned the truth of each one's responsibility in 
 proportion to his means, to aid in supporting 
 the Gospel. In the broadness of liberal senti- 
 ments they were far behind the '' Dissenters," 
 and it became a great blessing to the spiritual- 
 ity of that Church when its entire support was 
 thrown upon its own members. 
 
 Influence of the Voluntary Principle. — The 
 voluntary principle, based as it is on individual 
 responsibility, has since pervaded the churches 
 of the whole Union, the beneficent effects of 
 which are seen not only in the support of the 
 Gospel in all its special relations, and in aiding 
 institutions of learning, but in originating and 
 sustaining the benevolent operations of the day 
 
Church and State in Virginia. 59 
 
 — greater in proportion than ever before — while 
 the whole missionary enterprise in the land. 
 Foreign and Domestic, may be attributed to 
 the same principle. These '' Dissenters " were 
 far advanced for the times in the great princi- 
 ples of religious freedom and Christian charities. 
 To them the purity and the free preaching of 
 the Gospel was paramount to all other consider- 
 ations. They held the doctrine, which obtains 
 to-day among the Protestants of the Union, 
 that the Church should not dominate the State, 
 nor the State the Church, but that they should 
 mutually sustain each other — the one by incul- 
 cating good morals and obedience to law, and 
 the other by protecting the free preaching of 
 the Gospel, and the practicing of its principles. 
 
IL 
 
 A CONCISE HISTORY OF THE PRES- 
 BYTERIAN CHURCH IN THE 
 UNITED STATES, FROM 
 1705 TO i: 
 
II. 
 
 THE NATIONAL AND CHURCH GOV- 
 ERNMENTS. 
 
 The Two Movements. — During the latter part 
 of this hand-to-hand contest between the Vir- 
 ginia Assembly and the Presbytery of Hanover, 
 another important movement was also in prog- 
 ress throughout the entire Presbyterian Church, 
 the discussions in respect to which became more 
 earnest after the close of the Revolution and 
 the signing of the treaty of peace. The ques- 
 tion thus agitated was in relation to a plan of 
 church polity that could be adapted to the new 
 order of affairs, which had grown out of the 
 separation from the mother country. These 
 Presbyterian ministers and intelligent laymen 
 took comprehensive views of the situation of 
 their Church, which was now free and untram- 
 meled to extend its influence over a continent. 
 It had already crossed the Alleghanies, and in 
 two divisions — one in Kentucky, the other in 
 Western Pennsylvania — had taken position and 
 
 (63) 
 
64 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 founded churches as outposts on the eastern 
 edge of the valley of the Mississippi. 
 
 Meanwhile another movement was in progress 
 in respect to the civil or political relations of 
 the States, in which the leading statesmen and 
 intelligent, thinking minds took an absorbing 
 interest. The political question was in what 
 manner the thirteen States could be consoli- 
 dated into one government, for they were now 
 partially disintegrated, since the resistance to 
 the common enemy, which had held them so 
 long in union, had disappeared, when peace was 
 concluded with England. The lengthy discus- 
 sions of these questions of government, both 
 in Church and State, no doubt elicited a sym- 
 pathy that was reciprocal between the leading 
 minds thus engaged ; especially can this be said 
 of those statesmen who were members of the 
 churches of the several denominations, while in 
 respect to civil affairs all were deeply interested. 
 
 Kinds of Church Governments. — The lead- 
 ing principles of the government of the Presby- 
 terian Church in the United States — though 
 modeled somewhat after that of the same 
 Church in Scotland — were from the first repub- 
 lican in form ; that is, having the delegates to 
 
in the United States. 65 
 
 its judicatures chosen by the people or church 
 members, in order that the former might be 
 truly their representatives. This mode of gov- 
 ernment was so constituted that it could be 
 adapted to a large or a small number of church- 
 es, and also to a large or small number of the 
 members of each church. As a matter of his- 
 tory, it may be noted that the Presbyterian 
 Church established this republican form of gov- 
 ernment (1705) long before the Declaration of 
 Independence was made, and it has continued 
 virtually unchanged in its application to the 
 present hour. It is clearly seen that this church 
 government is consistent in its principles with 
 our republican institutions — both National and 
 State — that were afterward established. 
 
 In contradistinction, the mode of church gov- 
 ernment adopted by the Congregationalists and 
 Baptists was democratic in the extreme, and 
 limited to each church, while the churches 
 themselves were virtually independent of one 
 another in respect to any authorized mode of 
 discipline, or of a uniform confession of faith or 
 doctrine. In accordance with this theory of 
 government, there could be no measures intro- 
 duced which, in connection with church judica- 
 
66 The Presbyte7'iaii Church 
 
 tures, could aid practically in bringing the mem- 
 bers of their own churches throughout the entire 
 country into doctrinal and religious sympathy 
 with one another ; instead, each church was so 
 much isolated that its influence in consequence 
 was greatly limited. Before the Revolution the 
 Church of England in America was governed 
 by that of the mother country, and almost with- 
 out reference to the wishes of its church mem- 
 bers. Its rectors being appointed by the Bishop 
 of London, under whose jurisdiction the church- 
 es of the Establishment in the American col- 
 onies were placed, and, in addition to this 
 arrangement, the colonial governors had the 
 absolute authority of inducting or not as they 
 pleased these rectors into their sacred office. 
 
 Presbyterians and the Pilgrims. — Among 
 the early colonists of New England were great 
 numbers of Presbyterians. The Pilgrims were, 
 it would seem, for the greater part of that 
 Church ; Robinson, their pastor at Leyden, was 
 a Presbyterian, and William Brewster an elder, 
 and in that capacity the latter came with them 
 to Plymouth, it being thought expedient for 
 Robinson to remain at Leyden a while longer. 
 Though in these early days there were many 
 
in the United States. 67 
 
 Presbyterians in connection with the New Eng- 
 land churches, yet in that part of the country 
 they never, till more recent times, organized 
 themselves as a separate body of Christians. 
 
 The first Congregational church in America 
 was formed in Charlestown on the 30th of July, 
 1630. Soon afterward, *' crossing the Charles 
 River, it became known as the First Church of 
 Boston," and it also became '' the seminal cen- 
 tre of the ecclesiastical system of Massachu- 
 setts." It embodied as one of the principles of 
 Congregationalism : " The equality of the sev- 
 eral churches, free from the jurisdiction of ec- 
 clesiastical court or bishop ; free from the juris- 
 diction of one church over another, and free 
 from the collective authority of them all " {Ban- 
 croft^ vol. i., p. 238, last revision). 
 
 The members of the Independent or Con- 
 gregational churches in New England were 
 largely in the majority, and prospered greatly, 
 but in the course of time they unfortunately 
 became somewhat intolerant in respect to other 
 denominations of Christians (^^^ this Booklet, pp. 
 8 a?id 9). 
 
 The genius for systematic government seems, 
 from the very first, to have imbued the minds 
 
68 The Presbytei^ian Church 
 
 of the ministers of the Presbyterian Church, as 
 well as those of its intelligent laymen ; the lat- 
 ter always being associated with the former in 
 the exercise of such government. This method 
 assures the individual members of the church, 
 that they themselves by means of their repre- 
 sentatives — the elders — have a voice in the man- 
 agement of its affairs ; such knowledge also en- 
 hances their own individual responsibility to aid 
 in promoting the extension of the Gospel through 
 the medium of their own church, by means of 
 their personal Christian character and their con- 
 tributions. 
 
 The First Presbytery. — We intend — for the 
 sake of the connection — to give a summary of the 
 historical facts that pertain to the government 
 of the Presbyterian Church, and to its divisions 
 and reunions, previous to the formation of the 
 General Assembly in 1788, as well as a concise 
 account of its subsequent history. 
 
 The first Presbytery constituted in America 
 was at Freehold, in the colony of New Jersey, 
 in 1705 or 1706 ; from the minutes of a meeting 
 in the latter year, we learn that it consisted of 
 seven members. Though there had been Pres- 
 byterian ministers in the middle colonies for 
 
in the United States. 69 
 
 about a quarter of a century ; and who labored 
 in the capacity of evangelists or traveling preach- 
 ers, and also as settled pastors. As the number 
 of churches increased more and more in these 
 colonies, a Synod (17 17) was formed in order to 
 promote intercourse, and also uniformity of 
 doctrine and practice among the several Presby- 
 teries, and from this time onward, as exigencies 
 demanded, new Presbyteries were organized; 
 then Synods as required, and finally (1788) 
 the General Assembly, to include the Church 
 throughout the land. 
 
 Fraternal Intercourse — The Synod. — The 
 traditions of the Presbyterian Church are, and 
 always have been, in favor of much and genuine 
 fraternal intercourse among its members. One 
 of the means which it has used in accomplishing 
 this grand result, is in having frequent meetings 
 of its church judicatures ; more than usual in 
 number, when compared with those of other 
 denominations. The meeting together so often 
 has had, among other desirable effects, that of 
 eliciting sympathy between the members of the 
 different churches in the various sections of the 
 country, and thus promoting a Christianized 
 sentiment of brotherly love. Accordingly, as 
 
70 The Presbyte7'ian Church 
 
 the number of the churches increased and were 
 scattered in the land, new Presbyteries were 
 organized, and as the members desired still more 
 intercourse with one another, since they met 
 only with the brethren of their respective Pres- 
 byteries, they formed a Synod which should 
 bear a similar relationship to the Presbyteries 
 as that of the latter to the churches. The Synod 
 was constituted in the same ratio as the Presby- 
 tery — each minister was accompanied by an 
 elder from the church or churches of which he 
 was pastor ; in this manner were the rights of 
 the members of the church recognized and re- 
 spected. All the ministers belonging to the 
 Synod were required to meet in session once in 
 each year. This mode of government prevailed 
 for about seventy years ; that is, from 171 7 to 
 1788, when the General Assembly was organ- 
 ized, — the latter being a representative body, 
 but drawing its delegates not from the Synods 
 but directly from the Presbyteries, they being 
 nearer the people or church members. 
 
 For a number of years after the formation of 
 the first Synod, the increase of the churches was 
 great, and they were much extended along the 
 Atlantic slope, south of Connecticut, while the 
 
in the United States. ji 
 
 number of the Presbyteries also increased in 
 proportion. It was found that owing to the 
 distances and difficulties of travel a great many 
 ministers and elders were unable to attend regu- 
 larly all the meetings of the Synod. To obviate 
 this inconvenience it was decided (1724) to make 
 the Synod a sort of representative body — that 
 was done by the Presbyteries sending half their 
 number of members in alternate years. It w^as 
 also arranged that every third year there should 
 be a full attendance of all the members. 
 
III. 
 
 THE TWO VITAL PRINCIPLES. 
 
 Two leading and practical ideas have per- 
 vaded the Presbyterian Church in this coun- 
 try for more than one hundred and fifty years, 
 and to such an extent as to have become a vital 
 element in its inner life. One of these is, the 
 strict adherence to the rule of having a ministry 
 as thoroughly educated as possible ; the other, to 
 preserve an unwavering adherence to the Bible 
 itself, as the only infallible rule of faith. From 
 the first rule the judicatures of the Church have 
 never deviated, though often urged by well- 
 meaning members, to license uneducated men 
 to preach as regularly ordained ministers on the 
 plea of expediency under certain circumstances. 
 The first struggle on this question was in 1748 
 (see p. 14), but after a full discussion the rule was 
 sustained triumphantly, and instead, even an 
 additional year of study was required of candi- 
 dates for the ministry. As there have been 
 
 made only two persistent attempts in the Church 
 
 (72) 
 
The Presbyterian Church. "j^ 
 
 to lower the standard of the education of its 
 ministry for the sake of the connection — though 
 not strictly in the order of time — we now notice 
 the incident. More than sixty years after the 
 first struggle a second one occurred, but only 
 within the bounds of the Synod of Kentucky ; 
 and which, after lasting several years, was ended 
 in 1 8 14 (Gillett, vol. i., pp. 453-456). 
 
 Cumberland Presbyterians. — There had been 
 extensive revivals within the bounds of the 
 Synod of that State, and great numbers professed 
 themselves Christians. In connection with these 
 revivals were many irregular practices, and of 
 the converts, a number of uneducated but zeal- 
 ous men essayed to preach, and an effort was 
 made on the part of some ministers belonging 
 to the Cumberland Presbytery to have these 
 men licensed as such. The Synod refused to 
 give their sanction, and in the course of several 
 years many attempts were made to reconcile the 
 parties at variance, and also appeals were made 
 to the General Assembly. The sum of the 
 latter's final action was to sustain the course 
 of the Synod " as firm and temperate," in not 
 licensing uneducated men to preach, but gave 
 permission for the Presbytery to '' sanction 
 
74 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 catechists and exhorters." A number of these 
 men were of exceptional ability, but over whom 
 " the Presbytery was to keep careful watch and 
 supervision." This decision failed to satisfy 
 some members of the Presbytery, and they with- 
 drew and formed the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church. If we may judge from the efforts made 
 to-day by the latter branch to supply its churches 
 with a thoroughly educated ministry, we would 
 infer that the present members think that these 
 good men on the point then at issue, may possi- 
 bly have made a mistake. The rule was again 
 sustained, as the secession of a portion of the 
 Presbytery did not infringe the principle in- 
 volved. The scholarship of the Presbyterian 
 ministry has always kept pace with every branch 
 of advanced secular and theological education, 
 and to-day the former study science much more 
 than scientists study theology. 
 
 Value of an educated Ministry. — The influ- 
 ence of the Presbyterian Church has been great- 
 ly enhanced by its persistent policy for more 
 than one hundred and fifty years, of having 
 none other than an educated ministry. There 
 is clearer evidence to-day (1887) than ever, of 
 her unrelaxed zeal in the education of her 
 
in the Ufiited States. 75 
 
 clergymen — witness her Theological Semina- 
 ries, taken as a whole, the finest endowed in- 
 stitutions of that class in the land, and each one 
 manned by a carefully selected corps of Profes- 
 sors. To these seminaries, as a rule, no student 
 is admitted, unless he can bring a diploma from 
 some college or give evidence of an equivalent 
 preparation ; while the curriculum of study is 
 extended from time to time to keep pace with 
 the advance of the biblical scholarship of the age. 
 The researches in the lands of the Bible itself, 
 and in those intimately connected with the his- 
 tory of the people of God, are utilized to the full 
 extent in the instruction given on the interpre- 
 tation of the Holy Scriptures. In this connec- 
 tion — though we would not detract from what 
 others have done — it is not out of place to note 
 the large number of eminent biblical scholars that 
 have been and are in the Presbyterian Church, 
 and who in addition to their instructions given 
 students, have sent forth to the world in the 
 form of books, the ripe fruits of their scholar- 
 ship. In these volumes different authors be- 
 longing to the Church have treated extensively 
 of the original languages in which the Scriptures 
 were written ; theology in its several phases ; col- 
 
76 The Pi^esbyterian Church 
 
 lateral studies pertaining to the mental powers, 
 and the relations of all to morals, — in truth, in 
 every form in which the grand subject can be 
 elucidated. In this field of instruction and 
 learning the Congregationalist Church has, also, 
 sustained a noble part. It is unfortunate that 
 the great influence of the theological learning 
 and ardent zeal of this body of Christians in 
 education, and in promoting the cause of Chris- 
 tian brotherhood within the Nation, is some- 
 what diminished in consequence of their form 
 of government ; as the latter does not admit, by 
 means of regularly constituted church judica- 
 tures, an extensive intercourse between the 
 brethren — clerical and lay — who, coming from 
 distant portions of the land, would, in the na- 
 ture of the conditions, induce a more vivid feel- 
 ing of Christian brotherhood and sympathy, that 
 might extend and become more national. It is 
 noticeable that this great advance in biblical 
 learning has been confined in the United States 
 almost entirely to the two denominations men- 
 tioned, wherein prevails \.\\^ parity of the clergy; 
 can it be that in consequence of that fact, each 
 minister recognizes his duty and responsibility 
 to become properly fitted for his work in secur- 
 
in the United States. 77 
 
 ing for himself the quahfications of a thoroughly 
 educated theologian ? 
 
 The General Assembly is the final authority 
 in the appointment of the Professors in the 
 Seminaries. Is it strange, in view of all this 
 care, that the Presbyterian Church members 
 should place so high a value upon an educated 
 ministry, through whose efforts they themselves 
 have been raised to an unusually high plane of 
 biblical intelligence ? 
 
 Guarding the Faith. — The Church was much 
 agitated during a portion of the existence of the 
 first Synod (1717-1729). The occasion of this 
 excitement did not originate within the Synod 
 itself, but abroad, where a laxity in respect to 
 evangelical doctrines had prevailed to a large 
 extent among the ministers of the Presbyterian 
 churches in Scotland and Ireland. Some of 
 these held ^* Arminian and Pelagian errors," and 
 it was known that a number of ministers hold- 
 ing these views had already migrated to the 
 colonies, and others were about to follow ; the lat- 
 ter in all probability would wish to unite in this 
 country with the same Church. It therefore be- 
 came a question as to the most efficient mode of 
 guarding against the intrusion into the churches 
 
78 The Presbyterian Church, 
 
 of ministers holding these objectionable views. 
 After the subject had been under discussion in 
 various forms for some years — because at first 
 the members were far from being unanimous as 
 to the best means of warding off the impending 
 evil — the Synod finally united upon a plan, 
 which was as follows : " We do, therefore, agree 
 that all the ministers of this Synod, or that shall 
 hereafter be admitted into this Synod, shall de- 
 clare their agreement in, and approbation of, the 
 Confession of Faith, with the Larger and Shorter 
 Catechisms of the Assembly of Divines at West- 
 minster, .... and do also adopt the said Con- 
 fession and Catechisms as the Confession of our 
 Faith" (Gillett, vol. l, p. 55). This was the 
 " Adopting Act " of 1729. The Presbyteries 
 were, also, enjoined to require their licentiates 
 to subscribe the same Confession, etc. 
 
IV. 
 
 DIVISION AND REUNION. 
 
 The Great Revival. — The Synod continued 
 to prosper; during twelve years (1729-1741), 
 more than forty ministers were added to its 
 number ; of these, a few had been trained in the 
 American Church, but nearly one-half were from 
 Scotland and North Ireland. Near the close of 
 this period a new element of discord intervened. 
 Differences of opinion were prevalent and had 
 their respective influence. Some of these per- 
 tained to the establishment of schools for the 
 instruction in theology of candidates for the 
 ministry, and also in respect to the manner of 
 preaching the Gospel ; one phase of the latter 
 grew out of the great revival that commenced 
 in 1735 under Jonathan Edwards, at North- 
 ampton, Massachusetts, and whose influence ex- 
 tended to the middle colonies {Pat ton s Ameri- 
 can People, pp. 266-268). Among the leading 
 preachers in the latter, were the Tennants — the 
 father and four sons — of whom the more promi- 
 
 (79) 
 
8o The Presbyterian Church 
 
 nent were William and Gilbert, but they all 
 preached with power and their labors were 
 greatly blest. They were aided also by the cele- 
 brated George Whitefield, then on his preaching 
 tours through the colonies. Many members of 
 the Synod did not approve the manner of the 
 revivalists, nor certain measures which they in- 
 troduced, neither did they seem to be in full 
 sympathy with the revival itself ; there were, 
 perhaps, as many others who looked upon the 
 work as having the blessing of the Head of the 
 Church. 
 
 The Old Side— The New Side.— Unfortu- 
 nately difficulties obtruded themselves, and a 
 few good men were indiscreet, while others were 
 harsh in their judgments. The opponents of 
 the work were characterized as holding "a dead 
 orthodoxy," while it was admitted that the re- 
 vivalists were equally orthodox, though they 
 were spiritually alive and vividly imbued with 
 zeal for the salvation of men — the latter's style of 
 preaching being exceedingly impressive. The 
 steady conservatives, who were opposed to any 
 innovations in the usual manner of preaching, 
 were known as the " Old Side," and the fervid 
 revivalists as the '' New Side." Thus the agi- 
 
in the United States. 8i 
 
 tation continued for several years ; meanwhile 
 much bitterness was evolved, and also an im 
 mense amount of good in spite of the disturb- 
 ing elements by which many good men were 
 carried beyond their usual Christian demeanor. 
 
 The Division of the Synod. — These differ- 
 ences of opinion and practice finally resulted in 
 the division of the Synod, inasmuch as the 
 " New Side " or New Brunswick party and their 
 sympathizers withdrew, thus causing the divis- 
 ion. The moderate and conservative in both 
 *' Sides" mourned this result. 
 
 *' The New Brunswick party were zealous for 
 what they regarded as vital evangelical truth, 
 and, in the over-earnestness of their purpose, 
 
 forgot charity and discretion The others, 
 
 indignant under a sense of wrong, were forced to 
 appeal to the authority of the common standards 
 and the rules of the Synod, which their brethren 
 had too much disregarded. Thus one party ap- 
 pealed to the Word of God, the other to the 
 Confession of Faith. One, zealous for the truth, 
 fell the victim of its theories; the other, resolute 
 for order, could see only the letter of the consti- 
 tution." The two Synods were therefore con- 
 stituted (1741),— the '' Old Side," known as the 
 
82 The Presbyterian CJmrch 
 
 Philadelphia, and the *' New Side," as that of 
 New York ; though the latter did not take form 
 till four years later, when it was duly organized 
 by union with the New Brunswick Presbytery 
 {Drs, Gillett and Hodge). 
 
 Zeal for Religion. — The period of the divis- 
 ion — seventeen years (i 741- 175 8) — was charac- 
 terized by an increase of religious influence, 
 especially on the part of the New Side, who 
 continued their fervent mode of preaching, and 
 which was followed by great increase of commu^ 
 nicants in the Church, and also in the number 
 of young men who became students and event- 
 ually devoted themselves to the ministry. In the 
 course of these years such accessions were nearly 
 eightfold when compared with that of the Old 
 Side. The New York Synod exhibited great 
 zeal in supplying destitute fields within its 
 bounds, and in consequence the friends of the 
 revival sympathized with them deeply. The 
 Old Side, meanwhile, labored under almost in- 
 surmountable difficulties. Their lack of inter- 
 est in the revivals, if not their direct opposition, 
 deprived them of the sympathy of great num- 
 bers of ardent Christians within their own ranks, 
 who, perhaps, were there from location rather 
 
in the United States. Z^) 
 
 than choice. Both parties established schools 
 for training candidates for the sacred office ; out 
 of one of these grew Princeton College, and, 
 subsequently, the Theological Seminary. 
 
 The Reunion, — During these seventeen years 
 continued efforts were made by many in both 
 parties to bring about a reunion, as the cause of 
 religion and brotherly love was deeply injured 
 by the contention, which on the part of some 
 did not partake to a large extent of the spirit of 
 the Sermon on the Mount nor of the golden 
 rule. But these asperities were gradually worn 
 away by the attrition of Christian love and for- 
 bearance practiced by the prudent in both par- 
 ties, till the way was prepared for a more stable 
 union of the Synods than had ever existed before. 
 At length the leading minds of the majority in 
 both parties were fully prepared to unite the 
 Synods, and thus heal the breach in the Church. 
 During the seventeen years of the separation 
 there had been no virtual deviation on either side 
 from the doctrinal principles on which the Adopt- 
 ing Act was based thirty years before, and they 
 could now unite consistently. The first article 
 of the basis of the union reads : " Both Synods 
 having always approved and received the West- 
 
84 TJie Presbyterian Church. 
 
 minster Confession of Faith and Larger and 
 Shorter Catechisms as an orthodox and ex- 
 cellent system of Christian doctrine, founded on 
 the Word of God, we do still receive the same as 
 the Confession of our Faith." After a number 
 of minor details in relation to some of the Pres- 
 byteries were arranged, the union was complet- 
 ed (i;58). 
 
V. 
 
 THE TROUBLOUS TIMES. 
 
 The prosperity of the Church was great during 
 this period of union (1758-1788), but troublous 
 times with the mother country were impending, 
 and when the Synod seventeen years later met 
 in Philadelphia on May 17, 1775, blood had al- 
 ready been shed, for just one month before, to 
 a day, the conflicts at Concord and Lexington 
 had taken place. The news had spread through- 
 out the country, producing great excitement and 
 anxiety in the popular mind. 
 
 Patriotism — The Pastoral Letter. — The 
 Synod, in addition to its ordinary cares and 
 duties which it owed to the churches as such, 
 also realized the dangers that the approaching 
 contest would bring upon their country, and 
 they made known their patriotic sentiments, 
 and in no uncertain tone. They, it seems 
 for the first time, addressed a pastoral letter 
 to the members of the Presbyterian Church 
 
 tliroughout the colonies. The spirit of this 
 
 (85) 
 
86 The Presbyterian CJutrch 
 
 pastoral was such as to inculcate union among 
 the colonies, and mutual charity and good- 
 will among the different religious denomina- 
 tions, and the promotion of good morals and 
 good government ; reformation of manners, per- 
 sonal honesty and humanity on the part of those 
 who might soon be called to the field, as a con- 
 flict of arms between the colonies and the 
 mother country seemed inevitable. The Synod 
 ordered 500 copies of this pastoral letter to be 
 printed at its own expense, and circulated 
 throughout the churches, from whose pulpits it 
 was read to many thousands. " The Presbyte- 
 rian Church, by the act of its highest judicatory, 
 thus took its stand at Philadelphia by the side 
 of the American (Continental) Congress then in 
 session (in the same city) and its influence was 
 felt in a most decisive manner throughout the 
 bounds of the Church." 
 
 A comprehensive Church Government. — 
 After the close of the Revolution and when the 
 States were in their respective governments 
 independent of one another, it would seem 
 the Continental Congress, nominally a legislat- 
 ive body over all, had little influence, as the 
 laws it enacted rose only to the dignity of rec- 
 
in the United States. %^ 
 
 ommendations. The far-sighted ministers and 
 laymen of the Presbyterian Church saw the ne- 
 cessity for a more comprehensive appHcation of 
 their system of government in order to promote 
 unity of the Church throughout the land ; at 
 the same time the leading statesmen of the now 
 disintegrated States were devising for them a 
 more compact union, and the formation of a 
 general government in which all should be com- 
 prehended. The former foreshadowed the Gen- 
 eral Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, and 
 the latter the . National government of the 
 United States. Both were representative bodies; 
 the delegates to the one were duly authorized to 
 represent the people or church members ; to 
 take cognizance of the fundamental doctrines, 
 and a uniform discipline, and all affairs that re- 
 lated to the well-being and prosperity of the 
 whole Church, while matters of a local nature 
 were left to the supervision of the minor judica- 
 tures ; the other to legislate on all affairs foreign 
 and domestic that pertained to the whole Na- 
 tion, while local matters were intrusted to the 
 care of the individual States. 
 
 The Church was the first to move in inaugu- 
 rating this comprehensive system, and as if these 
 
SS The Presbyleriau Church 
 
 men had a prevision of the vastness of the ter- 
 ritory occupied to-day by the Presbyterian 
 Church, the plan was so devised that it could 
 be adjusted to all probable exigencies that 
 might occur, and in respect to such adaptation 
 it has been found adequate. Meanwhile the 
 secular or political world was moving on paral- 
 lel lines in the effort to form a more united 
 government under a constitution. 
 
 Discordant and Rival States. — The several 
 States, though neighboring, were virtually in- 
 dependent of each other, and history records 
 that they were more or less governed by selfish 
 interests, which caused anxiety in intelligent 
 minds, as to whereunto these evils would grow. 
 This spirit of gain was specially manifest in the 
 States that had suitable harbors, and they yield- 
 ed to the temptation of imposing duties on im- 
 ported merchandise in such manner as to ad- 
 vance each one's own interests irrespective of 
 the general effect upon their neighbors. This 
 condition of affairs induced the influential men 
 in the several States to take measures for reme- 
 dying these evils by bringing about a union, 
 thus consolidating them into one government 
 that they might become in fact, as well as in the 
 
in the United States. 89 
 
 eyes of the world, a Nation. George Washing- 
 ton said, " We must have a government under 
 one Constitution ; we must treat with other 
 nations as a whole, for we cannot separately." 
 This political agitation continued from the dis- 
 bandment of the Continental army to the form- 
 ation of the United States Constitution and its 
 adoption by the people, (Nov. 3, 1783-1788). 
 During this period of four or five years, one or 
 two local conventions were held by delegates 
 from neighboring districts, but never before 
 from all the States did delegates assemble, until 
 in the great convention held in Philadelphia in 
 1787 (see pp. 54, 55), and which framed the pres- 
 ent Constitution of the United States, and under 
 which, after it had been adopted by the people, 
 George Washington was inaugurated President 
 (1789), and we began our National life. 
 
VI. 
 
 ORIGIN OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. 
 
 The movement in the Presbyterian Church 
 began practically in 1785, when, as prehminary 
 to constituting a representative judicature of 
 last resort for the Church throughout the whole 
 land, a motion was made to divide the Synod 
 of New York and Philadelphia into three Syn- 
 ods. The following year the motion was amend- 
 ed so as to read three or more Synods ; the latter 
 provision covered the whole ground, as it left 
 the number of Synods to be extended according 
 to circumstances, while over all it was in con- 
 templation to constitute a General Assembly, — 
 the delegates to which, were to come as repre- 
 sentatives from the Presbyteries, not from the 
 Synods — the former being in more direct re- 
 lations with the people or church members. 
 There is not a self-perpetuating judicature in 
 the Church, since all its members derive their 
 authority as such, ultimately from the church 
 members themselves, with whom is lodged the 
 (90) 
 
The Presbyterian Church. 91 
 
 power of choosing their representatives, as it is 
 in our civil government. 
 
 Increase of the Church. — A brief notice of 
 the American Presbyterian Church at this period 
 may interest the reader. The Synod of New 
 York and Philadelphia had been in existence 
 thirty years, and it was now to be divided into 
 four Synods. It had received 230 ministers as new 
 members, and had grown from eight Presbyteries 
 to sixteen, under whose care were 420 churches ; 
 of these, 380 were south of New York State, 
 while in the latter were forty. The great body 
 of the ministers were native born and educated 
 in the bosom of the Church. The others came 
 for the most part from the Presbyterian church- 
 es in Scotland and North Ireland. The Synod 
 had (1786) under its control churches on the 
 Atlantic slope extending from the State of Con- 
 necticut to the State of Georgia, and also be- 
 yond the Alleghanies in Western Pennsylvania 
 and in Middle Kentucky. 
 
 Four Synods organized. — The Synod of 
 New York and Philadelphia, according to its 
 own resolution, was divided and arranged into 
 four Synods, having the following names : New 
 York and New Jersey, Philadelphia, Virginia, 
 
92 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 and the Carolinas. The first Synod included 
 the Presbyteries of Suffolk, Dutchess, New York, 
 and New Brunswick ; the second, those of Phil- 
 adelphia, Lewes, New Castle, Baltimore, and 
 Carlisle ; the third, those of Hanover, Lexing- 
 ton, Redstone, and Transylvania ; the fourth, 
 those of Abingdon, Orange, and South Carolina. 
 The third or Virginia Synod covered by far the 
 greatest extent of territory, as it alone extended 
 beyond the mountains, including the Redstone 
 Presbytery in Pennsylvania and the Transylva- 
 nia in Kentucky. 
 
 It is easily seen that the ministers or pastors 
 of these churches, scattered over so extensive a 
 territory, found it exceedingly difficult to attend 
 the annual meetings of the Synod, as required 
 by the rule, and that in consequence the im- 
 portant and beneficial influence of such frequent 
 and fraternal intercourse was much diminished, 
 but by having four Synods such advantage 
 could be in a measure retained, as the ministers 
 would be more able to attend the meetings. 
 
 Alterations in the Constitution being required 
 in order to apply to the new condition of church 
 affairs, a committee was appointed to prepare 
 such Constitution. The committee was in- 
 
in the United States. 93 
 
 structed " to examine the book of discipline and 
 government, and digest such a system as they 
 should think adapted to the state of the Pres- 
 byterian Church in America." It was also ar- 
 ranged that this draft or plan of the committee 
 should be printed and sent down to the Presby- 
 teries, " who were required to report iit writing 
 their observations upon it at the next meeting 
 of Synod." The committee performed this 
 duty and sent the plan to the Presbyteries, and 
 the latter presented their observations to the 
 Synod at its meeting in 1787. After thorough 
 discussion and adoption of amendments, the 
 plan of government and discipline agreed upon 
 by the Synod was then ordered to be printed 
 and again sent to the Presbyteries " for their 
 consideration, and also for the consideration of 
 the churches under their care," thus recognizing 
 the propriety of consulting the church mem- 
 bers. This plan of government was also to be 
 reported and acted upon at the meeting of Syn- 
 od the following year, 1788. The plan having 
 been discussed and approved by the Presbyte- 
 ries and churches was returned to the Synod, 
 which, in due form, ratified the former's action, 
 and resolved : " That the true intent and mean- 
 
94 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 ing of the above ratification by the Synod is 
 that the Form of Government and Discipline 
 and -the Confession of Faith, as now ratified, are 
 to continue to be our Constitution and Confes- 
 sion of Faith and practice unalterably, unless 
 two-thirds of the Presbyteries shall propose 
 amendments, and these shall be agreed to and 
 enacted by the General Assembly " {Dr. Hodge, 
 p. 414). 
 
 The General Assembly constituted. — On 
 the adoption of the plan, the Synod ordered 
 that the General Assembly about to be called 
 into existence should consist of delegates from 
 the several Presbyteries in the ratio of one min- 
 ister and one elder for every six members or 
 ministers belonging to the Presbytery. The 
 Synod divided itself into four, in accordance 
 with the Act of 1786, as already noted. Then 
 it was ordered : *' That the first meeting of the 
 General Assembly to be constituted out of the 
 above Synods be held at 1 1 A.M. on the third 
 Thursday of May, 1789, in the Second Presby- 
 terian Church in the city of Philadelphia." Dr. 
 Witherspoon was appointed " to open the As- 
 sembly with a sermon, and to preside till a mod- 
 erator was chosen." Its organization being com- 
 
in the United States. 95 
 
 pleted, the Presbyteries were enjoined, in ac- 
 cordance with the rules laid down, to elect and 
 send delegates to the Assembly which was to 
 meet in 1789. 
 
 The Address to President Washington. — 
 George Washington had been inaugurated Pres- 
 ident of the United States in New York City 
 only a few weeks previous to this first meeting 
 of the General Assembly in Philadelphia in 
 May, 1789. In this connection we notice two 
 coincidences. The leading men of the Presby- 
 terian Church and the leading men of the States 
 had been moving on parallel lines in the effort 
 to secure a more comprehensive government 
 both for the Church and the Nation. Both 
 went into operation within a few weeks of each 
 other, and both having remained virtually un- 
 changed for a century, give evidence of the ex- 
 cellences of the respective systems, which, as 
 such, have been recognized by the people of 
 the Nation and by the members of the Church. 
 
 It was under these circumstances that the 
 Assembly appointed a committee to prepare an 
 address to the President of the United States. 
 Its chairman was the celebrated Rev. Dr. With- 
 erspoon, who was one of the signers of the 
 
96 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 Declaration of Independence, and had been a 
 member of the Continental Congress during the 
 troublous times of the Revolution, and was 
 now President of Princeton College. The com- 
 mittee's report was quite lengthy, but being 
 appropriate in terms and in tone, it was re- 
 ceived and approved by the Assembly, who 
 directed the presentation to be made. After 
 referring to Washington's past career as a sol- 
 dier, a patriot, and a statesman ; to his volun- 
 tary retirement from public affairs to the longed- 
 for rest and quiet of private life, and especially 
 to his self-denial in the acceptance of the ofifice 
 of President, at the unanimous call of the peo- 
 ple, they say : "A man more ambitious of fame, 
 or less devoted to his country, would have re- 
 fused an office in which his honors could not be 
 
 augmented We are happy that God has 
 
 inclined your heart to give yourself once more 
 to the public. But we derive a presage even 
 more flattering from the piety of your character. 
 Public virtue is the most certain means of pub- 
 lic felicity, and religion is the surest basis of 
 virtue. We therefore esteem it a peculiar hap- 
 piness to behold in our Chief Magistrate a 
 steady, uniform, avowed friend of the Christian 
 
in the United States. 97 
 
 religion, and who on the most pubHc and sol- 
 emn occasions devoutly acknowledges the gov- 
 ernment of Divine Providence." They define 
 also their own position, saying : '' We shall con- 
 sider ourselves as doing an acceptable service to 
 God in our profession when we contribute to 
 render men sober, honest, and industrious citi- 
 zens, and the obedient subjects of a lawful gov- 
 ernment." They close with the prayer that 
 God would prolong his valuable life and con- 
 tinue him a blessing to his country. To this 
 address Washington replied in appropriate terms, 
 acknowledging his gratification at their good- 
 will, and coinciding with them in declaring his 
 " dependence upon Heaven as the source of all 
 public and private blessings," and that " piety, 
 philanthropy, honesty, industry, and economy 
 seem, in the ordinary course of human affairs, 
 particularly necessary for advancing and con- 
 firming the happiness of the country." He 
 closes by thanking the Assembly for their ef- 
 forts *' to render men sober, honest, and good 
 citizens, and the obedient subjects of a lawful 
 government," and for their prayers for the coun- 
 try and for himself. 
 
VII. 
 
 THE PROGRESS OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 It is not within the scope of this booklet to 
 trace fully the growth and influence of the 
 Presbyterian Church since the time when its first 
 General Assembly was constituted. It has ad- 
 vanced in a remarkable and substantial manner ; 
 kept in the front rank with the progress of the 
 country ; has, with untiring zeal, promoted the 
 education of all classes, and raised higher and 
 higher the standard of theological learning ; has 
 enlisted the sympathies of the private members 
 of the Church and imbued them with the spirit 
 of benevolence ; witness their endowments of 
 institutions of learning, and their ordinary liberal 
 contributions, with which they have nobly sus- 
 tained the ministry in their efforts to bring their 
 whole land under the influence of a Christian- 
 ized civilization. Since that time it has formed 
 within its own Church limits a number of asso- 
 ciations, such as Home and Foreign Missionary 
 Societies, organized for evangelical purposes, 
 (98) 
 
The Presbyter^ian Church. 99 
 
 and to combine and more effectively utilize the 
 benevolences of the Church members ; mean* 
 while, it has also availed itself of the privilege 
 of aiding the cause of the Saviour, through the 
 medium of societies more general in their char- 
 acter, such as the Bible, Tract, etc. These be- 
 nevolences have not been confined to our own 
 country alone, but have passed beyond to for- 
 eign and heathen lands. 
 
 Doctrinal Truth guarded. — Doctrinal truth, 
 as embodied in its standards, has been carefully 
 guarded in the Presbyterian Church ever since 
 1729, when the Adopting Act (page 'j'j') was 
 agreed upon as a rule, by which examinations, 
 thenceforth, were required as to doctrine of the 
 ministers desiring admission to the Church, as 
 well as of their own licentiates. This rule has 
 been virtually in force and carried out for one 
 hundred and sixty years. Afterward, in 1788, 
 when the Synod of New York and Philadelphia, 
 as we have just seen, took measures to organize 
 a General Assembly for the entire Church, they 
 also, as a summary of Christian doctrine for the 
 same, '' ratified and adopted the Larger Cate- 
 chism "; this summary has been in force in the 
 Church down to the present time. These two 
 
lOO The Presbyterian CJmrch 
 
 historical facts may account for one peculiarity 
 that has always been present in the several 
 divisions and reunions that have occurred in 
 times past within the Presbyterian Church — not 
 07ie of them has been on distinctively doctrinal 
 grounds ; other causes have intervened. It is 
 true there have been within the last half century 
 one or two instances in the Church, in which 
 individual ministers have been charged in regu- 
 lar form before their Presbyteries with holding 
 doctrines inconsistent with the Confession of 
 Faith. But these exceptions did not impugn 
 the doctrinal faith of the Church itself. The 
 charges appear to have grown out of misappre- 
 hensions of the real views of these good and 
 eminent men. 
 
 The Reunion of 1871. — During these several 
 separations both parties adhered loyally to the 
 Bible, to the Westminster Catechism, and to the 
 Confession of Faith, claiming the summary of 
 Bible doctrine therein contained as equally their 
 own. Thus when the reunions took place, there 
 was no necessity for interposing questions in re- 
 spect to the orthodoxy of either party. In the 
 division that occurred in 1837, the outgrowth in 
 the main of the Plan of Union (1801) {Gillette 
 
in the United States, loi 
 
 vol. i., pp. 393-396), both Assemblies, after the 
 separation, adhered to the same doctrinal stand- 
 ards ; occupied the same territorial ground, side 
 by side, and each Assembly claimed the same 
 name, and this continued till they were again 
 united (1871) on the old basis. 
 
 The salutary effect of this care in preserving 
 in their purity the doctrinal standards of that 
 Church, is manifested in the uniformity with 
 which the essential truths of the Gospel are, and 
 ever have been, preached by its ministers in 
 good and regular standing. Though, as we have 
 seen in relation to its own doctrines and polity, 
 the Presbyterian Church is exceedingly strict, yet 
 it is liberal toward other evangelical denomina- 
 tions, and deems as valid their rite of baptism 
 in whatever form administered, and also recog- 
 nizes the validity of their ordaining men to the 
 sacred office, whether of one order or of three. 
 
 A prospective Reunion. — We have, in this 
 booklet, ver>^ briefly noticed the divisions and 
 reunions of Synods and General Assemblies 
 that have already occurred in the Presbyterian 
 Church, and the remarkable fact that these 
 divisions grew out of causes extraneous to its 
 doctrinal standards. The Church has in pros- 
 
I02 The P7'esbyteiia7i Chicrch 
 
 pect, in 1888, another reunion — that with the 
 Southern branch. This reunion, for numerous 
 reasons, will far transcend in importance any- 
 other in its history, as the conditions under 
 which it will be consummated are, in many re- 
 spects, far different from those under which the 
 previous ones were made. We intend to leave 
 to the ministry and leaders and writers in the 
 Church to treat of the spiritual blessings that 
 under the providence of God may accrue to the 
 whole Church when thus united, but rather con- 
 fine ourselves to a somewhat different but col- 
 lateral phase of the subject. 
 
 A Christianized Patriotism. — We will, there- 
 fore, speak only of those advantages that in the 
 future may be the outgrowth of the free and 
 untrammeled extension of the Presbyterian 
 Church throughout the length and breadth of 
 the Union, wherein, with the Divine blessing, it 
 will have facilities for applying its principles in 
 developing a Christianized patriotism. A pa- 
 triotism that will have an eye not only to the 
 material progress of the country, but to the 
 promotion of a practical union of national feel- 
 ing and sympathy between the people of every 
 section ; if they all practice the precepts of the 
 
hi the United States. lOj 
 
 golden rule. This type of patriotism includes 
 an element unknown to the patriots of Greece 
 and Rome. The latter looked no further than 
 to promote the public safety and welfare, but 
 only in a material point of view — for when did 
 their leading men make an effort to elevate the 
 people morally ? Christianity adds the brother- 
 hood of man, a principle that through the me- 
 dium of the churches of every denomination can 
 be applied specially to our own household — the 
 American people. There never has been a pe- 
 riod so auspicious for the reunion of the Presby- 
 terian Church, in spirit and in fact, as at the 
 present time. Slavery has passed away, for 
 which blessing millions who once thought other- 
 wise, are thankful, while in the section where it 
 once existed, and where, under its influence, 
 labor was deemed degrading to a certain class, 
 there, to-day, labor by every one is becoming 
 more and more respectable. This sentiment 
 ere long will be all-pervading in that portion of 
 our country, and it will tell immensely on its 
 future material progress, and indirectly upon 
 the prosperity of the entire Union. 
 
 A Church Government, Republican in Form 
 — The government of the Presbyterian Church 
 
I04 TJie Presbytei'iaii Church 
 
 is arranged so as to give the people — the church 
 members — an equal share in its administration, 
 and which right is carefully guarded. In ac- 
 cordance with the rule, a minister is the moder- 
 ator in the sessions of all the judicatures, and 
 who has no vote except in the case of a tie ; and, 
 also, the rule that each pastor or minister in all 
 the judicatures, except the church session, is 
 accompanied by an elder, and, likewise, if a 
 church is without a pastor it can send an elder 
 as its representative to the Presbytery or the 
 Synod. In the application of these rules the 
 rights of the elders and of their constituents — 
 church members — are specially recognized and 
 guarded. The government of the Church is 
 strictly republican in its form ; the people or 
 church members having the right to choose 
 their own representatives, be they pastors or 
 elders, as in our secular governments — State and 
 National — the people elect their own represent- 
 atives to the Legislatures or to Congress ; thus 
 in this respect the government of the Presbyte- 
 rian Church is remarkably consistent with those 
 of the separate States and of the Nation. It 
 may be noted in passing, that this represent- 
 ative mode of government was introduced and 
 
in the United States. 105 
 
 practiced in that Church in colonial times, com- 
 mencing in 1705. 
 
 Ex officio Members. — In the meetings of 
 the judicatures of the Presbyterian Church, 
 there are, strictly, no ex officio members. The 
 only one that approaches that position is the 
 moderator of a previous Assembly, who, by the 
 rule, '' if present," preaches an opening sermon 
 and presides till a new moderator is chosen. In 
 truth, his presence depends on a contingency, 
 because his Presbytery may not send him as 
 their delegate. History demonstrates that ex 
 officio or hereditary members of church judica- 
 tures or of parliaments — being less in direct 
 sympathy with the church members or with the 
 people at large — are the persistent opponents of 
 changes and measures that are designed to re- 
 sult in reforms, and to which they seldom give 
 their sanction unless compelled by popular 
 pressure ; much less do they lead in such move- 
 ments. The ex officio members of a church con- 
 vention recently refused to sanction the ordi- 
 nary courtesy of exchanging fraternal messages 
 with the representatives of an evangelical sister 
 denomination, and which were assembled in the 
 same city, after the lower house had passed, 
 
io6 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 almost unanimously, resolutions to send such 
 Christian greetings. 
 
 Voting by Orders. — The system of voting by 
 orders in church judicatures seems to be unfair, 
 unless on the supposition that the members of 
 the higher order have in the aggregate as much 
 brains and intelligence as the aggregate of the 
 same qualifications belonging to the members 
 of the lower. The higher house or order has in 
 number fewer members, but they are ex officio ; 
 the lower has a greater number, but who are 
 presumed to be equally educated. The result 
 of such rule is, that a vote in the higher order 
 is worth from two to three times as much as 
 one in the lower — its value being in proportion 
 to the number of members respectively present 
 in each order. Nor is the unfairness of voting 
 by orders obviated, when it depends upon the 
 contingency of a limited minority of either or 
 der, demanding that the vote should be by or- 
 ders. Such rule is very liable to be abused. It 
 may be known, or supposed, that one order is in 
 favor of a certain measure, while the other is not ; 
 the latter, by using the prerogative of a limited 
 minority, can frustrate a full expression of opin- 
 ion of both orders by preventing a joint vote. 
 
in the United States. 
 
 107 
 
 The mode of constituting the Assembly leaves 
 the way open from year to year for a change in 
 its membership, as it does not adjourn to meet 
 the following year, but dissolves^ while the 
 choice and election of individual delegates to 
 the next Assembly depend upon the will of the 
 Presbyteries. The delegates, therefore, come 
 fresh from the people or church members — a 
 principle recognized in constituting the Lower 
 House of Congress and the House of Commons 
 in England, hence the propriety of the rule 
 that financial measures, in which the people are 
 specially interested, must originate respectively 
 in these two Houses. 
 
 The Ecclesiastical Despotism. — All the 
 Protestant denominations act in accordance 
 with the spirit of the civil institutions of the 
 land when they recognize the right of the laity 
 to have a share in the management of their own 
 church affairs. In this respect the government 
 of the Roman Catholic Church is in marked con- 
 trast, inasmuch as the rule is entirely in the 
 hands of the priests, the laity being rigorously 
 excluded. By this system the intelligent and 
 representative lay members of that communion 
 have no opportunity, through being members of 
 
io8 The Presbyteria7i Church, 
 
 church judicatures, for cultivating fraternal and 
 Christian intercourse with their fellow-members 
 throughout the Union. On the contrary, the 
 government of that Church is an ecclesiastical 
 despotism ; it ignores the rights of its own lay 
 members, and is antagonistic to the spirit of 
 our political institutions — State and National. 
 
VIII. 
 
 THE PARITY OF THE CLERGY. 
 
 There is a well-defined opinion abroad that 
 the parity of the clergy has an unusual and far- 
 reaching influence upon the ministry of the 
 Presbyterian Church, inasmuch as that relation 
 to their brethren impresses the fact on each one, 
 that upon him rests an equal share of responsi- 
 bility in respect to what is done for the well- 
 being of the religious progress of the country, 
 and also of his own church specially. In accord- 
 ance with the form of government every minis- 
 ter has a share in directing the affairs of the 
 Church, he being by right a legislator and over- 
 seer, a member of the Presbytery, and also of 
 the Synod, and may be sent as a delegate to the 
 General Assembly, where meet ministers and 
 elders, representatives from the entire Church 
 in the United States. The latter come together 
 on an equality, to confer on questions pertain- 
 ing to the progress of religion in the Church 
 
 and of its extension in the land ; they mingle in 
 
 (109) 
 
no The Presbyterian Church 
 
 sympathy with each other as brethren, and with- 
 out a shade of a clerical caste feeling. No mem- 
 ber can divest himself of the responsibiHty as a 
 minister of the Church. He is conscious of this 
 much more than if he was under an ecclesiastical 
 superior, whom he was bound to obey, or to 
 whose wishes he must tacitly consent. On the 
 other hand, thus acting for himself, and on an 
 equality, ecclesiastically, with his fellows, gives 
 him self-reliance, broadens his views and strength- 
 ens his character. 
 
 Ministerial Responsibility. — The parity of 
 the ministry, therefore, leads each of its mem- 
 bers to recognize the responsibility of his indi- 
 vidual position, that it is incumbent upon him 
 to study the current questions of his time, which 
 pertain to the domain of pure religion and mor- 
 als, as well as those which partake of both an 
 economical and moral character, such as to-day 
 that of temperance, and the complex relations 
 of capital and labor. In the four grades of judi- 
 catures of the Presbyterian Church, each one in 
 its sphere has legislative authority, while in the 
 three lower the privilege is accorded of appeal- 
 ing, in case of grievance, to the next higher. It 
 is not strange, under the circumstances, that the 
 
in the United States. 1 1 1 
 
 ministry of a church whose mode of government 
 is so just to all its members, and which without 
 impairing its efificiency can be so extended as 
 to grasp a continent, should be stimulated to 
 study the questions of the day and thus acquire 
 comprehensive views of their responsibility in 
 the premises. The Presbyterian form of church 
 government in its construction is so comprehen- 
 sive and elastic that its clergymen and leading 
 minds are under no necessity of resorting to 
 abnormal " Church Congresses " or '' Conven- 
 tions," in order to discuss questions that agitate 
 the public mind, and which combine the ele- 
 ments of ethics, education, temperance, and 
 other topics that may have a moral bearing. 
 Cognizance of such questions, if deemed expedi- 
 ent, can be normally taken in the meetings of 
 the Church judicatures, where they can be dis- 
 cussed, and in relation to them, resolutions 
 adopted — such action is, of course, not legisla- 
 tive, but advisory in character. The ministers 
 deem it a duty to be prepared when called upon 
 to discuss thoroughly and vote intelligently 
 upon the best measures to extend the blessings 
 of the Gospel throughout the land, thus elevat- 
 ing the whole people to a still higher plane of 
 
112 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 Christian purity and love of country — a patriot- 
 ism based upon the benign principles of Christi- 
 anity. 
 
 Pastorates may be long. — There is also pres- 
 ent another element that stimulates the edu- 
 cated and conscientious pastor to continuous 
 exertion, and which, to him, is full of encourage- 
 ment — it is that the pastorate may be long ; its 
 length not being dependent upon another's will 
 or an arbitrary church rule. The pastorate is 
 continued at the combined pleasure of the pastor 
 and the church members and congregation whom 
 he serves. The dissolution of the relation or its 
 assumption, does not depend upon the decision 
 of an ecclesiastical superior, who may make the 
 appointment or limit its continuance, but, on the 
 contrary, it is upon an invitation given by the 
 congregation and members of an individual 
 church to a clergyman to become their pastor, 
 and his acceptance of the same, and the pre- 
 sumption is that it is to continue during the 
 pleasure of both parties to the contract. It is 
 consistent with this feature of the rule, that a 
 minister may be called from one congregation or 
 church to another; but whether he accepts or 
 not, remains entirely with himself. Should it 
 
in the United States. 113 
 
 be evident that the call is to a field of greater 
 usefulness, then, all things being equal, it be- 
 comes clearly his duty to accept, as he can thus 
 promote more extensively the interests of the 
 Church at large. When the path of duty is not 
 sufficiently clear to him or his congregation or 
 to both, the matter is often mutually referred to 
 the Presbytery for advice. 
 
 Advantages gained. — Lengthy pastorates 
 enable the minister to become familiarly ac- 
 quainted with the members of his church and 
 their families. This advantage could not be at- 
 tained if he were liable to be transferred to 
 another field, there to commence an acquaint- 
 ance with a congregation composed of strangers. 
 Meanwhile the influence he had acquired over 
 the youth and people of the former congrega- 
 tion is broken off or frittered away, inasmuch as 
 from the first neither party could have a deep 
 and enduring interest in each other because of 
 the influence exerted by the fact that the con- 
 nection between them as pastor and people 
 must ere long be broken by an arbitrary rule. 
 It is, therefore, a source of great encouragement 
 to an educated pastor that he is not subject to 
 such rule, but, on the contrary, without inter- 
 
114 The Fi'esbyteriaii Church 
 
 ruption he can continue his labors with the hope 
 of success, especially in training the youth of 
 his congregation. He, himself, by ample study, 
 will improve in every accomplishment that per- 
 tains properly to his office. He knows his 
 people ; he learns their wants, and in conse- 
 quence he is the better able to judge what mode 
 of instruction will produce the best results. 
 People thus schooled appreciate the teaching. 
 The more thoroughly educated is the minister, 
 the more equipped is he for a long pastorate. 
 His mind being trained, he can preach sermons 
 well prepared, and imbued with freshness of 
 thought ; he keeps up with the times, and notes 
 the discoveries that throw light upon the study 
 of the Bible ; nor does he ignore the progress of 
 the age in science, and its misapplication when 
 it is made to antagonize the Christian system ; 
 nor the industrial advances of various kinds ; 
 neither does he fail to recognize the influence of 
 Christian ideas in his own country nor in other 
 lands. Thus favored by his opportunities he 
 gradually elevates his people to a higher plane 
 of general intelligence ; the latter is not limited 
 to Christian knowledge alone, but takes in the 
 history of the past and the current events of the 
 
in the United States. 1 1 5 
 
 present. The careful education of clergymen 
 trains their minds to think, and thus they are 
 able to give instruction to their congregations 
 from year to year, as they study earnestly to 
 supply the ever increasing wants — spiritual or 
 otherwise — of an intelligent people. 
 
 Biblical Training. — The effect of an educated 
 ministry in pastorates whose lengths are depend- 
 ent upon the combined will of the church mem- 
 bers and the pastor himself, is seen in the re- 
 markable intelligence in respect to practical bib- 
 lical knowledge, of the private members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. Under the systematic 
 training of children and families that obtains in 
 that denomination, its members are continually 
 rising to a higher plane of general religious in- 
 telligence ; an influence that extends to the 
 generation following. This feature of progress 
 in the knowledge of biblical truths thus acquired 
 by the church members themselves, makes it 
 essential for the pastor in the preparation for 
 his pulpit, not to relax his efforts to occupy an 
 advanced position, in order to instruct a con- 
 gregation whose members are intelligent and 
 accustomed to study the Bible as a whole ; not 
 being tempted to learn its truths only from cer- 
 
Ii6 The Presbyterian Church, 
 
 tain prescribed lessons. The study of the whole 
 Bible is also promoted by the mode in which it 
 is read in the worshiping assembly, as the por- 
 tions or chapters selected can be so chosen as to 
 have a bearing on the special religious, wants or 
 affairs of the time ; not being restricted to the 
 lesson for the day, be it appropriate or not un- 
 der the circumstances. The fact that it is in- 
 cumbent upon the pastor to select appropriate 
 portions of the Holy Scriptures to be read in 
 the Sabbath services, also stimulates him to a 
 more diligent study of the inspired Word. 
 
IX. 
 
 TWO FORCES MADE AVAILABLE. 
 
 Among the manifold good influences this re- 
 union of 1888 can exert in a rehgious point of 
 view, will be the utilization of all the moral and 
 material forces in the united Church, which, ow- 
 ing to the separation, have hitherto not been 
 fully available. The Northern portion of the 
 Church has at present more means arising from 
 their greater success in manufacturing industries 
 and in commercial pursuits, and in such propor- 
 tion would they aid the churches of their South- 
 ern brethren. Says an intelligent Southern 
 Christian gentleman : " The grand reason in fa- 
 vor of organic union, is that the field for mission- 
 ary work in the South is so vast, and its need so 
 great, that the energies and means of the whole 
 Church ought to be employed to meet the calls 
 of the hour." What intelligent American has 
 not learned of the bitterness of feeling that 
 formerly existed in relation to the mixed ques- 
 tion of slavery? — and ever since that curse has 
 
 (117) 
 
Ii8 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 been removed, there have been other vexed 
 questions of a political character — the debris of 
 slavery — that have had a baneful influence upon 
 the spirituality of the Church. These impedi- 
 ments being removed, will not the reunion in- 
 duce a higher tone of Christian and national 
 feeling ? It is hoped that in the reunited Pres- 
 byterian Church, these former prejudices will 
 soon be heard no more forever, as a new and 
 almost matured generation are entering upon 
 their active duties as Christians and citizens, 
 and who — in the North as well as in the South 
 — have only hearsay prejudice to overcome, while 
 the impetus of the onward movements in Chris- 
 tian and industrial progress will sweep such 
 prejudices to oblivion by a strong current of 
 patriotic public opinion. Unless Christians 
 fail in their duty, there is in prospect an ad- 
 vance in the religious progress of the united 
 Church, which will promote, as it always does, 
 a material prosperity, that from the nature of 
 the case could never before have occurred to 
 such an extent. 
 
 Blending the elements, Clerical and Lay. — 
 The parity of the Presbyterian clergy has also 
 in it an element which of itself produces among 
 
in the United States. 
 
 119 
 
 them an unusually strong feeling of Christian 
 brotherhood, as they meet on all occasions on 
 an equality and with equal responsibility, while 
 in performing the duties of their ministerial of- 
 fice, they alike participate in managing the af- 
 fairs of the entire Church. In another respect 
 is manifested the expediency and justice of 
 blending the lay element equally with the cleri- 
 cal in Church government. It is proper and 
 consistent that in the judicatures, and in the 
 management of the institutions of the Church, 
 that the laity who furnish the funds for all its 
 benevolences, should have a voice in their dis- 
 bursement. The ministry avails itself of the 
 contributions of the laity and often calls to its 
 aid in financial affairs the assistance of lay mem- 
 bers who have experience in business transac- 
 tions. When appropriations of money are voted 
 from time to time by the General Assembly to 
 defray the expenses of carrying on the enter- 
 prises of the Church, such as missions at home 
 and abroad, the lay members participate equally 
 in the decision, both as to the amount to be 
 raised, and in the special appropriations in 
 which the money is to be disbursed. Does not 
 the practical influence of this combination of 
 
120 The Pi'esbyteri.in Church 
 
 the ministers and laity — the church members — 
 induce the unusual interest that the latter take 
 in the benevolent operations of the Church ? 
 
 Fraternal Intercourse promoted. — The sys- 
 tem of church government which requires fre- 
 quent meetings of its judicatures, secures an unu- 
 sually large range of acquaintance and fraternal 
 intercourse, both between the ministers them- 
 selves and the laity — the church members — 
 whose direct representatives, the elders, meet 
 with the former on an equality, while the influ- 
 ence of such fraternal intercourse extends 
 throughout the land. We venture the asser- 
 tion that the members of no other denomina- 
 tion of Christians in the Union have so much 
 heartfelt sympathy with each other as those of 
 the Presbyterian. This is not without a cause. 
 Could this kind'y feeling and acquaintance exist 
 to such an extent if the Presbyteries and Synods 
 met less often, and if the General Assembly was 
 differently constituted and met only once in 
 three or four years ? 
 
 Ignoring State Lines. — Is there not, how- 
 ever, danger in confining Presbyteries and Syn- 
 ods within State lines of introducing a provin- 
 cial system that would somewhat limit effort 
 
in the United States. 121 
 
 and influence only to within such specified 
 boundaries ? In a nation constituted as we are, 
 it would seem better for the furtherance of 
 Christian brotherhood, and of enkindHng kindly 
 and patriotic sympathy among the people of 
 different sections, for church judicatures to ig- 
 nore State lines. Should not the limits of 
 Presbyteries and Synods be arranged for con- 
 venience of attendance and for mutual benefit 
 rather than be cramped in a sort of iron frame- 
 work by State lines ? Would it not have a 
 harmonizing influence upon the church mem- 
 bers and their pastors if the boundaries of the 
 Presbyteries and Synods that border on the old 
 line, known as " Mason and Dixon," should 
 henceforth overlap that line ? If the Church 
 limits the boundaries of Presbyteries and Syn- 
 ods by State lines only, will there not follow, as 
 has been proposed, '* Provincial Assemblies " ? 
 Who can tell where this disintegration would 
 end ? Would it be when there were three or 
 four, as has been suggested, or perhaps a dozen ? 
 Such divisions would surely diminish the pres- 
 ent fraternal interest that Presbyterian church 
 members entertain for their brethren throughout 
 the whole land. Some of these "Assemblies" 
 
122 The Pr-esbyterian Church 
 
 would occupy territory that was rich in wealth, 
 in population, and in all the appliances of edu- 
 cation ; others would be poor in this world's 
 goods, poor in the facilities of education, and, 
 comparatively, their people few in number. 
 For instance, it has been suggested to have "A 
 General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church 
 west of the Mississippi." Suppose that sugges- 
 tion was carried out. That ''Assembly" would 
 cover a large territory with, in the main, a com- 
 paratively scattered population ; it would be 
 greatly limited in the means to carry on evan- 
 gelical work within its own boundaries, and 
 equally straitened in its means of education. 
 Could we expect the churches east of the Great 
 River to have as much interest in their brethren 
 on the west side as if they were in connection 
 with a General Assembly that was national in its 
 character ? It is impossible that there could be as 
 strong bonds of sympathy between the members 
 of the Presbyterian Church, thus broken up, as 
 there would be if united under only one General 
 Assembly. The American people, for obvious 
 reasons, have resolved to be one Nation — pure 
 and simple — and it is essential that the sympa- 
 thies of its citizens should be with their fellows 
 
in the United States. 123 
 
 in all sections of the vast territory of the nation, 
 and the church members in the various denom- 
 inations can do much in promoting this blended 
 feeling of love for their brethren with that for 
 their country. Previous to the civil war the 
 divisions in the churches, occasioned by slavery, 
 disturbed greatly the fraternal relations of the 
 church members of the three denominations 
 whose supreme judicatures are composed of 
 delegates from the entire Union. A lower tone 
 of Christian feeling thus induced had its share 
 in bringing on that conflict. 
 
 National Church Judicatures. — Of ecclesias- 
 tical bodies in the United States, the Episcopal, 
 the Methodist, and the Presbyterian are the 
 only ones that have judicatures to which come 
 delegates from all portions of the Union. The 
 Episcopal General Convention meets once in 
 three years ; the Methodist General Conference 
 once in four, and the Presbyterian General As- 
 sembly every year. In consequence of this fea- 
 ture of their respective systems of government, 
 these three denominations have greater facilities 
 than others for bringing about a unity of Chris- 
 tian love among the members of their own 
 churches throughout the land, and also of indi- 
 
124 The P^^esbyterian Church. 
 
 rectly promoting outside their own ranks a fel- 
 lowship similar in its character, but in the form 
 of a Christianized patriotism, among the people 
 of the whole Nation, thus neutralizing the evil 
 influence of misguided men who may endeavor 
 to prejudice one section of the country against 
 another. 
 
X. 
 
 NATIONAL AND MUTUAL GOOD-WILL 
 PROMOTED. 
 
 The interests of the church people of the 
 various denominations should be blended with 
 those of the whole Nation and the sentiment of 
 patriotism so absorbing as to promote mutual 
 good-will among the people throughout the 
 land. There must be something wrong when 
 the spirituality of an individual congregation or 
 church is not increased by the frequent inter- 
 course between its members. Similar means 
 produce similar results, and why may not the 
 frequent coming together from all parts of the 
 Union of the representative men of any Chris- 
 tian denomination enhance their brotherly love 
 and indirectly increase their patriotism ? It is 
 unfortunate that many of our public men seem 
 to place the harmony of the Union upon a mere 
 material basis, apparently without reference to 
 moral power, when the true foundation ought to 
 rest upon the combination of the two forces — 
 
 (125) 
 
126 The Presbyterian C liter ch 
 
 material and moral. Herein the Presbyterian 
 Church, because of the adaptability of its form 
 of government and the frequent meetings of its 
 judicatures, can exert a vast influence for good 
 by hiducing a genuine type of Christian and 
 national brotherhood. The prayer is that its 
 members may harmoniously labor to apply all 
 its means to accomplish the grand result ! 
 
 The Assembly's Annual Meetings a na- 
 tional benefit. — In accordance with this view 
 the comparatively frequent meetings of the 
 General Assembly have an important and bene- 
 ficial influence. It has been objected, however, 
 that the necessarily large membership of the 
 Assembly makes its annual meetings burden- 
 some to the Church, because of the expense and 
 of the inconveniences connected therewith. To 
 this it is answered that the Assemblies meet in 
 cities, where accommodations for the members 
 in hotels and otherwise can be obtained. More- 
 over, it is suggested that members of the church- 
 es in these cities in great numbers deem it a 
 privilege to entertain delegates to the Assembly 
 at their own homes in accordance with their 
 ability ; but still, under the circumstances, there 
 will, perhaps, always be a large number of dele- 
 
in the United States. 127 
 
 gates to be otherwise provided for. This latter 
 expense the Church in general incurs, as well 
 as that of the fares in traveling. In this con- 
 nection it is a pleasure to note that railways 
 have always been liberal in making reductions 
 in their fares for the members of the Assembly. 
 Progress and Expense. — When we recog- 
 nize the future progress of the Church, which 
 will be greatly advanced by this form of fre- 
 quent intercourse between its representative 
 men, it would seem that the money used to de- 
 fray the expenses was well invested, not only" for 
 advancing the spiritual interests of the Church 
 itself, but that such frequent meetings confer a 
 blessing upon the nation at large, by promoting 
 a true spirit of brotherly feeling among the peo- 
 ple of the different portions of the country. 
 Could there be an investment more influential 
 in promoting a genuine Christianized patriot- 
 ism than that of a fund, the income from which 
 should be expended in defraying a portion at 
 least of these expenses? The deficiency should 
 be collected pro rata, as at present, from the 
 churches, for it is better that the individual 
 members themselves share the responsibility 
 and the privilege of thus providing the necessary 
 
128 The Pi^esbyierian Clmrch 
 
 funds. In view of the prospective good results, 
 will not some generous Presbyterian patriot in 
 making donations for benevolent purposes con- 
 nected with his own church, establish a fund, the 
 income from which would defray a portion of the 
 expenses incurred by holding the annual meet- 
 ings of the General Assembly? Such meetings 
 quicken the spiritual life of the members ; ex- 
 pand their views of the grandeur of harmonious- 
 ly and zealously aiding throughout the land 
 Christian movements, which, humanly speaking, 
 will be more effective than those of the past, 
 since there will be no impediments in the way — 
 political or otherwise — to interfere with the con- 
 tinuous development of a higher Christian na- 
 tional life. This onward progress on the part of 
 the Presbyterian Church will be of untold ad- 
 vantage, even to the material interests of the 
 Nation at large. 
 
 There never has been a period in the history 
 of the Presbyterian Church wherein, with the 
 Divine blessing, there loomed a future so glori- 
 ous for doing good, as there will be when it is 
 again reunited, and prepared to bound forth in 
 vigorous strength in the line of Christian and 
 patriotic duty. What are the favorable circum- 
 
in the Uiiited States. 129 
 
 stances ? One is that of a Church organization 
 extending throughout the Union ; strong in its 
 numbers of learned men, and a membership on 
 a high plane of general intelligence — these com- 
 mand respect ; still more is it reverenced, when 
 it promotes pure morality among all the people, 
 while binding closer and closer its own mem- 
 bers with ties of Christian sympathy, and thus 
 far sustaining the unity of the Nation itself. 
 
 National Unity desired. — The desire for a 
 genuine heartfelt national unity is to-day in- 
 creasing among the intelligent and patriotic peo- 
 ple of the United States. The circumstances 
 suggest that this unity would be greatly pro- 
 moted by frequent intercourse between the rep- 
 resentative men in the various denominations of 
 Christians coming often together in their church 
 judicatures, and from all sections of the Union. 
 The influence of such Christian intercourse 
 would extend beyond the limits of the church 
 proper, while in their church relations strength- 
 ening a closer acquaintance among the members 
 themselves. How can this most desirable ob- 
 ject be best attained? Unquestionably, the 
 various denominations of Christians in the land 
 can secure that wished-for blessing by practically 
 
130 The Presbytei^ian Church 
 
 carrying out the genuine spirit of brotherhood 
 and charity, as shown in the amenities of the 
 Gospel. If the members of all denominations 
 take a kindly interest in the spiritual and secu- 
 lar welfare of their own brethren throughout 
 the Union, the effect, though indirectly, would 
 be salutary upon those who are not members of 
 the Church at all. It is worthy of note, that the 
 great majority of the American people, especial- 
 ly the native born, by association with friends 
 and relatives, are in a large sense in sympathy 
 with Christian morality, while the influence that 
 would banish Christianity and its spirit from the 
 land, is but the smallest ripple upon the great 
 current of the religious sentiment. On the con- 
 trary, the influence of the Church upon those 
 who are not its actual members is much more 
 than we often imagine. Owing to the marked 
 interest which Americans take in religious mat- 
 ters, nearly every village of ordinary size has at 
 least one congregation representing each de- 
 nomination. The members of these congrega- 
 tions constitute a large majority of the residents 
 of the village, and each family has a circle of ac- 
 quaintance, which often includes many that are 
 not professing Christians, so that perhaps nine- 
 
in the United States. 131 
 
 tenths of the latter class are brought directly in 
 contact with church members, and indirectly 
 with church relations. 
 
 Consecrated Influence. — It should be borne 
 in mind that the dearest rights of all are recog- 
 nized under our unique constitutional govern- 
 ment, and this sentiment practically carried out 
 individualizes the interest that intelligent and 
 upright persons have in the material and moral 
 progress of the Nation. Our government is 
 based on the principle that " the people consti- 
 tute the State," and it is designed to protect the 
 rights of all citizens, and to advance their indi- 
 vidual interests, when they do not infringe upon 
 those of their fellows — in so doing it promotes 
 the welfare of the whole Nation. A responsi- 
 bility in proportion to his intelligence rests upon 
 each voter, and the recognition of this fact adds 
 to the latter's interest, and dignifies the privi- 
 lege of suffrage. All denominations of Chris- 
 tians should consecrate their influence to in- 
 crease that class of intelligent voters, on the 
 ground that education in connection with good 
 principles is the only moral antiseptic to polit- 
 ical or social evils. 
 
 Two Classes of Progress. — Taking as a 
 
132 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 basis the general progress of the United States 
 in the various forms of industry that conduce 
 to material wealth, during the century that has 
 elapsed since the organization of the first Gen- 
 eral Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in 
 1788, we may safely infer that the ratio of a 
 similar progress will be as great from the pres- 
 ent time to 1988. There are, however, unmis- 
 takable indications that such advance will be in- 
 creased in a much greater ratio than it was in 
 the century just closing, inasmuch as the latter's 
 progress was so much less rapid in its first half 
 than in its second. The impetus thus attained 
 will, unquestionably, pass over into the coming 
 century, and in the nature of the case will in- 
 crease in force almost indefinitely. 
 
 Many are inclined to take a partial view of 
 the subject by marking only the progress in the 
 acquisition of material wealth ; for instance, 
 what has been done in developing and utilizing 
 our natural resources ; the increase in manufac- 
 turing industries and general prosperity ; the 
 subjugation of the land, and causing it to pro- 
 duce abundant crops for the sustenance of man 
 and beast. On the other hand, the student 
 of history will recognize that there has been 
 
in the United States. 133 
 
 equally as much progress, during the last cen- 
 tury, in the general education and diffusion of 
 useful knowledge among the people ; and that 
 the humanizing influence of Christianity has 
 raised them to a higher plane of morals, culture, 
 and refinement. It was that influence which 
 struck off the shackles of slavery : a system that 
 much impeded the moral and material progress 
 of the Nation. Thus the way is now clear for 
 a continuous and well-balanced advance in the 
 moral improvement and prosperity of the peo- 
 ple, and which, judging from present indica- 
 tions, will far transcend that of the last century. 
 Patriotic Duties of Church Members. — Na- 
 tional sympathy among us Americans is greatly 
 increased by the facilities for intercourse be- 
 tween the different portions of our large do- 
 main ; and patriotism urges that every judicious 
 means be used to promote such interchange be- 
 tween our own people as shall enlarge their ac- 
 quaintance with one another. Can there be a 
 stronger bond of sympathy uniting the people 
 of the different sections of our land than this 
 almost instinctive feeling, combined with the 
 Christian sentiment of brotherhood ? The ap- 
 peal is to all American Christians of whatever 
 
134 ^/^^ Presbyteriaji Church 
 
 name, to aid in inaugurating a patriotism that 
 shall have in addition to love of country for its 
 material welfare, another element which par- 
 takes of a national family feeling that is based 
 on the golden rule and the recognition of a 
 Christian brotherhood. 
 
 There never has been a period in our history 
 so favorable as the present for leading minds in 
 the churches of all denominations to inculcate 
 among their members an exalted idea of love of 
 their own country, as a force to promote its 
 prosperity both materially and morally. Intel- 
 ligent church members understand why it is es- 
 sential in our Nation, governed as it is by the 
 popular will, that the people themselves be 
 kindly disposed toward their brethren in every 
 section of the land. To secure this grand result 
 there is no influence equal to that of prudent 
 zeal combined with a Christianized patriotism^ 
 that imbues with its spirit the thinking and in- 
 fluential minds found in the various denomina- 
 tions. Thus, as citizens of a vast territory, all 
 can be united in sympathy with one another, 
 and as one compact whole constitute a harmo- 
 nious nation, linked together by mutual inter- 
 ests. An important element of success in this 
 
in the United States. 135 
 
 respect is involved in the people of the different 
 sections knowing more of one another and of 
 their own country, its varied climate, its pro- 
 ductions and resources. A government found- 
 ed as that of the American Union, on the 
 principles of civil and religious liberty, and sus- 
 tained by the hearty good-will of the people 
 toward one another, cannot be otherwise than 
 imbued with the spirit of justice and charity, 
 and in consequence, be known only by its bless- 
 ings. 
 
 Denominational Responsibility. — Owing to 
 their forms of church government, some denom- 
 inations have greater facilities than others for 
 exerting a well-defined influence upon the whole 
 Nation. This privilege is obtained by means of 
 the meetings of their supreme judicatures which 
 are constituted by delegates from the whole 
 land ; while the others, because also of their form 
 of government, are limited, as to their influence, 
 too much to the localities of individual churches. 
 Of the three denominations — the Episcopal, the 
 Methodist, and the Presbyterian — that have rep- 
 resentative men as delegates to their supreme 
 judicatures from all portions of the Union, only 
 the last has annual meetings, while the other 
 
136 The Presbyterian Church 
 
 two meet respectively every third and fourth 
 year. 
 
 The comprehensive system of the Presbyte- 
 rian Church government imposes upon her a 
 greater responsibility than upon her sisters, be- 
 cause of her superior facilities in obtaining au- 
 thentic knowledge from every portion of the 
 Union of the spiritual condition and wants of 
 the people. She learns this more especially by 
 means of the equal representation of her church 
 members in her several judicatures, and also in 
 consequence of the latter's frequent meetings. 
 Thus she is able more intelligently to prosecute 
 evangelical work in the places destitute of Gos- 
 pel privileges, and where there is a reasonable 
 hope of success in founding permanent churches. 
 The machinery of her church government is so 
 systematic that it works throughout the land 
 without friction — from the session of a single 
 church in an obscure neighborhood to the Gen- 
 eral Assembly, with its hundreds of delegates 
 from the whole Union. The frequent meetings 
 in judicatures of her representative church mem- 
 bers — clerical and lay — in which meetings there 
 is no ecclesiastical caste feeling, but all are on an 
 equality and imbued with a sense of individual 
 
ill the United States. 137 
 
 responsibility, — these conditions afford the Pres- 
 byterian Church superior faciUties for exerting 
 influence throughout the Nation. 
 
 This influence will be greatly enhanced when 
 a perfect reunion — in fact and in spirit — is con- 
 summated, and the whole Presbyterian Church, 
 thus untrammeled, enters upon her glorious fu- 
 ture in acting harmoniously with other denom- 
 inations in the grand work of making this Na- 
 tion one that shall be pre-eminently righteous. 
 
A Concise History of the American People. 
 
 By JACOB HARRIS PATTON. M.A., Ph.D. 
 
 Illustrated with Portraits of Ninety-eight Representative Men, 
 
 Charts, Maps, etc., Full Indexes, both Analytical 
 
 and Topical. 
 
 Ncto aacbiscH Htrition. 
 
 A history "of the people for the people," at once compre- 
 hensive and compact. 
 
 " Prof. Patton approaches much nearer to the ideal historian than 
 any writer of similar books. His work must be given the highest 
 
 Slace among short histories of the United States." — Christian L'nicn^ 
 few York. 
 
 The result of Prof. Patton's plan, arrangement of ma- 
 terial, and style of execution, in this work is to give a com- 
 plete civil and military History of the United States, from 
 the discovery of the Continent to Arthur's Administration, 
 divided into Presidential terms, showing the characteristic 
 bearings and accomplishments of each And, pervading all, 
 the general effect is that of an animated narrative of the Life 
 of the American People — an admirably complete view, 
 attractive in color and clear of comprehension. 
 
 " Prof. Patton . . . has thorough command of his material. 
 
 . . . We regard the book as, on the whole, the most valuable pop- 
 ular manual of American i^istory now in the market. It is a book to 
 be placed in the hands of young people. . . . Students and readers 
 of all kinds will find it an invaluable hand-book for reference."— /"//^ 
 Presbyter ia n Kevit'-M. 
 
 Special facilities for reference are found in the contin- 
 uous Marginal Dates, Cross references from one part of the 
 work to another, interesting Statistical Tables, and full In- 
 dexes. The Analytical Index is very complete, giving alpha- 
 betically more than 2000 References. The Topical Index 
 is of great value in the study or search after special subjects. 
 
 " ... We have in it a panoramic view of the nation, from its 
 origin, through its wonderful progress, to its present standing among 
 tlie nations of the world. . . . The publishers have brought out 
 the work in very handsome style. The numerous engravings of emi- 
 nent men give it also the attractiveness of a National Portrait Gal- 
 lery." — Xeiv York Observer. 
 
 " It is without doubt the best short history of the United States that 
 has ever been published. No progressive teacher can ailord to do 
 without it." — Teacher's Jnstitiite. N. Y. 
 
 2 Vols., Extra Cloth, j^ilt top, So.OO | 2 Tols., Half Morocco, SO-00 
 1 Vol., Half Kussia S7.00 
 
 New York: FORDS, HOWARD, & HULBERT, 
 and A. D. F. RANDOLPH & CO. 
 
Complete from the discovery of the Continent to Arthur^s Administra' 
 
 tion, embracing the Colonial, the Co?tstitutio7ial, the Rebel- 
 
 lioji and the Reconstruction periods . 
 
 Patton's Concise History of the American People. 
 
 " Mr. Patton is a scholar; his history is one of the very best ever pub- 
 lished."— C/^r/i-^'/^^ World, London. 
 
 " The style is clear and simple, and the author does not fail to be 
 comprehensive and thorough in the attempt to be succinct. It is an ex- 
 cellent history by which to form the minds of youth to an intelligent 
 appreciation of liberty and an enlightened patriotism."— A^. Y. In- 
 depe7ident. 
 
 This book is a marvel of conciseness. From preface to index, 
 everything in the volume speaks of systematic and laborious concen- 
 tration. The faces of American History have been subjected, seem- 
 ingly, to some rare power of condensation, and, as here presented, are 
 truly a sort of double extract of history. It is brevity itself. All that 
 is needed is to be found in it and nothing superfluous has been ad- 
 mitted. That which meets the reader's eye is the siiin of the whole 
 matter." — Boston Post. 
 
 " The religious and Christian elements are emphasized. The pro- 
 portion of the parts, too, is well maintained. It seems to us to be a 
 valuable work, and one which fills a place hitherto left vacant."— 
 American Theological Revieiv. 
 
 " The man's heart is in his work, and he has put his Christianity in 
 it as well, and these merits, combined with its accuracy and succmct- 
 ness will render these volumes acceptable to every student worthy of 
 the name." — Toronto Globe. 
 
 " Mr. Patton's style is deserving of unqualified praise. It is pure, 
 simple, strong, free from mannerism, and singularly easy and graceful. 
 We anticipate for the work a cordial reception and extensive popularity 
 among those who know how to prize the best books. ' ' — North A meri- 
 can Review. 
 
 " As a convenient family history, portable and easy of reference, Mr. 
 Patton's work cannot fail to fall into very general use "— M V. Herald. 
 
 " Prof. Patton's ' Concise History of the American People,' having 
 been in such frequent demand, has been kept (not on the shelves, but) 
 among other books of ready reference in the library." — F. Saundeks, 
 Z.ibrarian, itt The Astor Library, New York. 
 
 II * * * Tjjg -writer has done his work well. The style is easy, and 
 the book is written in the form of a continuous narrative. The author 
 has consulted original authorities, but he makes no parade of this fact 
 in cumbrous foot-notes. And, what is particularly gratifying, he does 
 ample justice to the religious elements that enter into the making of 
 the American people. Any one can satisfy himself on this point by 
 reading what he has to say concerning the effect of the Reformation on 
 American history, the Huguenots, John Eliot, the Pilgrim Fathers, 
 and Jonathan Edwards. The contrast in this respect between the 
 present volume and another recent publication on the same subject is 
 very great We hope that Mr. P.atton's work will have a place in 
 many Christian homes."— Francis L. P.A.TroN, D.D., Professor of Ec- 
 clesiastical History, Princeton Theological Seminary. 
 
 One hundred copies are in use at Cornell University in the class of 
 U. S. History, conducted by Prof. MOSES COIT TYLER, Author 
 of ^'' History of Afnerican Literature,'''' etc. It is also kept for refer- 
 ence in the libraries of many private and public schools. 
 
Princeton Theological Seminary Libraries 
 
 seminary 
 
 iiiiiii 
 
 1 1012 01217 6089 
 
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