4initirait Attest THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1869 REV. JOKY W. 111 EARS, D. D., Editor. No. 1334 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, THE EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Rev. Z. M. Humphrey, D.D., Pastor of Calvary Church. Rev. Herrick Johnson, D.D., Pastor of the First Church. Rev. Danl. March. D.D., Pastor of Clin. ton St. Church. Rev. Peter Stryker, D.D., Pastor of IV. Broad St. Church. Rev. George F. Wiswell, D.D., Pastor of Green Mill Church. Bev. E. E. Adonis, D. D., Prof. in Lin coln 'University. Rev. Samuel W. Duffield, Special Correspondent. Mr. Robert E. Thompson will con tinue to act as Editor of the News Department. Correspondents in every Presbytery and Synod will promptly furnish us with fresh items of news from their respective fields. The General Assembly. [Continued from Page 170.] erator (having no pastor, and no minis ter near by), inquired of the Presbytery of the District of Columbia whether the elders were at liberty, in such an extreme case, to organize the session without a moderator. The Presbytery answered,. No; subsequently the Synod of Penn sylvania reversed this decision; and now the Presbytery, (believing that the rul ing of the. Synod .establishes a prece dent possibly injurious to, Presbyterian polity, and that it is contrary to law, and that it is seldom impracticable to obtain a minister's presence, and that elders may be able. to judge what " ordinary business" is,, and that ministers might equally consider it hppossible to convene their elders.) ask the ruling of the Gen eral Assembly. The Committee reply that the " Form of Government," ix. 3, provides that another minister of the same Presbytery may be invited to pre side in a session in absence of the pastor, but not any minister of another Presby tery, much less any minister of the Word; and the same authority, ix. 4, declares it expedient at every meeting of session, more especially when constituted for ju dicial business, that there be a presiding minister, but allows in just such a case as this that the session may proceed with out the regular Moderator. The report was placed upon the docket for further consideration, after a brief debate. The Stated Clerk, the Rev. Dr. Hat field, offered the following resolution which was adopted : • Resolved, That the Presbyteries be in. structed to institute inquiries among the several Churches under their care, as to the number of their communicants, so that it may be,ascertained that the utmost care has been taken to clear their church regis ters of all deceased, dismissed, and lost members, and that it may thus be known what is the actual membership of each of their churches. Adjourned at 5i o'clock: There were no services in the evening. WEDNESDAY, WAY 26. There was a joint prayer-meeting in the church of the Covenant, many breth ren of the other branch took part, and an excellent spirit prevailed. A brother from Indianapolis spoke of the wonder ful revival there in progress, and gave some incidents of the work among the children, which were very impressive. Dr. Musgrave announced, that the labors of the Committee of Conferety,ce, were making such progress, that a unanimous conclusion was expected to be reached to-day, of such a character as would doubtless command the nearly unani r mous vote of the churches. Invitations to various places and occa sions of interest continue to pour in upon the Assembly. The King's county branch of the Grand Army of the Republic (including Brooklyn) sent word, that they had changed the day for the decor ation of the soldiers' graves,from Sun day to Monday next, and iey particu larly invite the General Assembly to unite in the services. This invitation was referred' to a Committee. The first report, from the Standing Committees, was that of the. Ministerial Relief Fund, by the Rev. S. B. Canfield of Syracuse, Chairman. The report ex presses gratification at the increased rate of contributions (28k per cent.), and the efforts of Mr. I-I. M. Schieffelin to per suade twenty-four others to unite with him in raising $2,000,000. It urges the Fund as a valuible preventive of a practical deprecation of the work of the ministry by prosperous laymen. Adopted. The Mileage Committee was ordered to pay the expenses of the Committee on Reunion, and The Three Causes of Home Mission, including Freedmen, Church Erection, and Education were now taken up in succession. Dr. Hum phrey made the Report on the first cause —Home Missions , and dwelt on these points : Enterprise for Christ—the world must"not outshine the Church , itnnri fration—it is now Protestant; yet this does not prove that we shall be a Pro testant church. Rome waits for the re action from our intense materialism. The Presbyterian 'Church is able to reach high and low. The Chinese here are conforming to our usages and beginning to be ashamed of their idolatry. The West. Others beside the young men are required to go. The East, the feebler churches must be content with the older THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1869. ministers. City Evangelization includes the wealthier classes—hence great churches are needed. Old churches must not be depleted in this work. Each new church should be a strong one. Mission schools must contemplate inde pendent churches. A Presbyterian league exists. The Work of the Year was re viewed. Less than one dollar per mem ber given. The Committee recommend, (1) That Home Missions have a place in the Monthly Concert. (2) More money be given. (3) Salaries kept at the highest point practicable. (4) Pres -113 teries should form committees to bring vacant churches and ministers together. (5) Mission schools should be encourag ed if they are formed into churches. (6) Chinese Home Missions not at pre sent to be undertaken. (7) Freedmen another Committee. (8) The Associate Secretary's office in Philadelphia abolish ed, and a District Secretary for Pennsyl vania appointed. (9) That the following persons be re-elected to the Permanent Committee : The Rev. J. F. Stearns, D.D., the Rev. Edward W. French, the Rev. John De Witt, and Mr. George W. Lockwood ; with a new member, Mr. Walter Edwards, because of the resigna tion of Dr. Alfred C. Post. The'report con eludes with a very cheerful allusion to the fully-expected reunion of the iwo branches, as likely to promote the cause of domestic missions. The Rev. Arthur Mitchell, of Chicapv reported on Freedmen. The iepcirt al'-' ludes first to the Of undertaking this work in a 'distinctively denomina tional manner, and expresses the opinion that: the magnitude of this work has not been realized by the churebes. The report particularly advocates for the Freedmen competent pastors and teach ers of their own race, and the free ad mission of colored young men into all our colle g es to this end. Also the occu pation of someof the pages of The Presby terian Monthly for the Freedmen inter est, and the appointment not of a mere Assistant Secretary, but an Officer to be known as the 'Secretary for the Freed men. Scarcely more than one-tenth of these people have yet been reached, and more than 2,000,000 of them are unable to read, and they are eager for our' in str tictioris. The report on Church Erection was made by the Rev. Herrick Johnson, D.D , Chairman. It may be summed up in these recommendations, proposed at its close First; That the Presbyteries are enjoin ed to take special oversight of their re spective fields in connection with the in terest of church erection securing as far as possible an annual collection from all the churches, and urging upon them the great importance of this cause in its near and vital relations to the work of God in our land. Second: That the Board be allowed an enlargement, of discretionary ,power with regard to the amount of grants, and the disposition of exceptional cases. • Third: That all contributions to this cause, whether, general or special,:should be made as far as possible through the Board of . Trustees of ,the Phurch grgatiou Fund. Fourth : That all' special work, as well as the general appropriations of the Board should be secured by lien, not only for the sake of security, but of denominational cohesion and stability. The following named gentlemen are recommended to the Assembly to fill the vacancies reported by the Board : The Rev. J. Few Smith, D.D , the Rev. Sam uel Burchard, D.D., and r. F. G. Burn ham, for the full term of three years; and the Rev. Norman. Seaver,.D.D., for two years ; in place of the Rev. Arthur Mitchell, re: hued. The report on Education was read by the Rev. Prof. Ezra A. Huntington, D.D., of Auburn Seminary, Chairman. The report first pays a high tribute to the late Revs Sohn J. Owen, LL.D., who was a member of this Permanent Com mittee. It them alludes to the lack of funds during the past year, which has obliged the 'Permanent Committee, through none of its &tilt, to disappoint its beneficiary students of promised aid, and recommends that the Secretary be enabled to:present the cause perionally to Synods, Presbyteries, and Churches, .and use the press for'the, same purpose, and that the Committee borrow rather than fail to pay the sIIMS'tt has contracted to pay its students. Rev. Henry Kendall, D.D., of the Home Missions Permanent Committee said that sixty-one men were wanted this day to fill good and open fields in the great West ; and if seventy-five minis ters could be had here now, every one of them should be located within thirty days. They had not had men enough for the spread of the Gospel in this great country, and they, had not hesitated to seize upon every man whom they, could find anywhere--Presbyterian or Lutheran, Reformed or Congregational—and had sent them out; but they still wanted more men, and the speaker urged, the need upon his brethren, that they might help find them. The Rev. E. F. Hatfield, D.D., spoke for the Freedmen's branch of the Home Missions Cdminittec. Drs. Hatfield and Ellinwood spoke for the Freedmen and for Church Erec tion. . At 2i o'clock . . P. M., Rev. .DaVid N. agle read the Narrative. Rev. Dr. Ormistcin, delegate from the Canada Presbyterian Church, made his salutatory address, and was suitably, an swered by.. the Moderator. , Benevolent Church Enterprises The discussion on the benevolent, en terprises of the Church was then resumed from the morning, and oectipied aIL the remaining time of the session. The Rev. A. M. Stewart of Nevada was the first speaker. He spoke rather sadly of the fact that upon all all the length of the new Pacific Railway there was not yet one church of our denomination, but saw in this advance facilities and opportuni ties for a new zeal and success. The world was open before us • the Mormons had gone away off to Utah in hopes of escaping from among men, but now the rail-car is among them, and they have nowhere else to go. We must have mis sionaries among the Saints. Speeches were also made by Elder W. P. Mont gomery of Lawrence City, Kansas, Elder G. W. Shields of Osceola, Mo., the Rev. James. Lewis of Humboldt, Kan sas, Elder C. E. Barber of Chicago, the Rev. William T. Wylie of Newcastle, Penn., and the Rev. Victor M. King of Kansas. THURSDAY MORNING, MAY 27. The morning Union Prayer-Meeting of the two Assemblies was largely at tended. Prayers were offered by the Rev. Drs. R. W. Patterson and Herrick John-, son, and the Hon. William Strong, New School, and Moderator Jacobus and the Rev. W. A. P. Martin of China. The first business in order was the reception of the repert ; of the Commit tee on the recommendations from the delegate (the Rev. Dr. Fowler; ,now• Moderator), to the Irish and &etch. Free Presbyterian Assemblies last year —presented by the chairman, the Rev. R. R. Booth D: D., of this city. ' The report recommends the opening-of formal correspondence with the Presbyterian Chureli of England, the United Presby tetian Church of Scotland; and the Es ' eablished Church of Scotland (the Kirk "); the annual appointment of one or more delegates; without expense to the Assembly; the suggestion' to such delegates of the propriety of carrying on correspondence on occasion with any Other of the branches of the Presbyterian Church in Great Britain, and of 'report ing 'to-the Assemblies to which they go our position on any questions that might interest or profit those Churches, and particularly of calling the attention of those Assemblies to our views on- -the Temperance question; and finally, in this part of the report it is recommended that the permanent officers of this As sembly be a committee to appoint the deleinites. Concerning the linggested introduction into the American Presby terian Church of certain useful .iiistitu- Mons and customs of these sister Churches, the Committee recommend the following pointi to' the attention of the Presbyte ries : 1. Special forms for marriage and burial services, or even a more;extended liturgy like those in use. in these sister Churches. 2. Efforts for more effective participation of the , membership in our churches in practical work. 3 An ef fort of the whole denomination' to regu late the support of its ministers, and pro vide for a sustentation fund. A. Con trol of the church properties by the churches themselves rather than by trus tees. The report then takes up the ques tion of the (f deacons'? court" proposed, commending it at some length., It is now Onstomary 'in out. denchnitiation to vest the control of church property in a board of trustees chosen from the con gregation (by the membership), and of ten non-communicants ; and hence diffi- CUltiesoftexcarise. Th'e music question comes in here—the trustees often caus ing such Music to be employed as the church finds detrimental to spirituality. These difficulties, as the case now is, have to go to civil courts for settlement. The report being accepted, opposition was at once manifested to the suggestion about liturgical forms, and a division of the question proposed; but the Re-union' report being ready, the matter was 'post poned:' , The order of the day for 10i o i elock wit, - Reunion The Report of the CommitteU of Con ference of the General Assemblies of the Presbyterian Church, meeting in New York CitY, - ivis read as follOwsi The Committee of Conference appointed bytthe two General Assemblies .have at tended- to the duty assigned to them; and after a very free interchange of views, with prayer to Almighty God for his guidance, are unanimous in recommending to the As semblies for their consideration and, if they see fit, their adoption, the accompanying three papers, to wit: 1. Plan of Reunion of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America; 2. Concurrent Declarations of the General Assemblies of 1869 ; and '3. Recommendation of . a Day.of Prayer. [The Committee here append their names, in testimony , of their assent to the report] : G.. W. Musgrave, J. F. Stearns, A. G. Hall, R. W. Patterson, Lyman IL Atwater, S. W. Fisher, Willis Lord, James B. Shaw, 11. R. Wilson, W. Strong, Robert Carter, Daniel Haines, C. D. Drake, William E. Dodge, Wm. M.Francis J. S. Farrand, John C. Grier,John L. Knight. AMAX ADAMS, Chairman. HENRY DAY, SeCretary. Ran of Reunion of the Presbyterian Church, iti Me United States of America. Believing that the interests of the Re ~ deemer's kingdom would be promoted by the ,healing of our.divisions, and that the two bodies•bearing the saine•name, having the same Constitution, and each, recogniz ing the other as a sound and orthodox body according to the principles of the Confes sion common to both, cannot be justified by any but the most imperative reasons in maintaining separate and, in some respects, rival organizations ; we are now clearly of the opinion that the reunion of those bodies ought, 'as soon as the necessary steps can be taken, to be accomplished, upon the Basis hereinafter set, forth :.; _ . 1. The Presbyterian, Churches in the f United States of America; rta eiy, that whose General Assembly cony ed in. the Brick Church in the city of N i York, on the 20th day of May, 1869, and that whose General Assembly met in the Church of the Covenant in the said city on the same day, shall be reunited as one Church, under the name. and style of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, possessing all the legal and corporate rights and powers pertaining to the Church previous to the division in 1838, and all the legal and corporate rights and powers which the separate Churches now possess. 2. The reunion shall be effected on the doctrinal and ecclesiastical basis of our common Standards; the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments shall be acknow ledged to be the inspired Word of God, and the only infallible rule of faith and prac tice; the Confession of Faith shall continue to be sincerely received and adopted as con taining the system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures; and the Government and Discipline of the Presbyterian Church in the United States shall be approved as con taining the principles and rules of our polity. 3. Each of the said Assemblies shall sub mit the foregoing Basis to its Presbyteries, which shall be required to meet on or be fore the 15th day of-October, 1869, ,to ex- Tress their approval or disapproval of , the same, by a categorical answer to the fol ,lowing, question: • - "Do you approve of the reunion of the two bodies now claiming the name and rights of the Presbyterian 'Church in the United States of America, on the following basis, namely : The reunion shall be ef fected on the doctrinal and ecclesiastical basis of our common Standards; the Scrip , tures of the Old and New Testaments shall be acknoWledged to be the inspired word of God, and the only infallible rule of faith and practice• ' the Confession of Faith shall con ' tinue to be sincerely received and adopted as containing the ;system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures;' and' the Govern ' went and Discipline of the PresbYterian Church in the United States shall be ap proved as containing the principles and rules of our polity"'? . Each Presbytery shall, before the lst day of November, 1869, forward to the Stated Clerk of the General Assernbly with which it is connected, a statement of its vote on the said Basis of Reunion. ' - 4. The said General Assemblies now sit ting shall, after finishing, their business, adjourn, to meet in the City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on the second Wednesday of November, 1869, at eleven o'clock, A. M. If the two General Assemblies shall then find and declare that the above named Basis of ReuniOn has been approved by two-thirds of the Presbyteries connected with each branch of the Church, then the same shall be of hinding force, and the two Assemblies shall take action accordingly. 5. The said General Assertiblies shall then and there make provision for the meet ing of the General •Assembly of the united Churdi on the third Thursday of May, 1870. The Moderators of the two present Assemblies • shall jointly preside at the said Assembly of 1870 until another Moderator is chosen.. The Moderator of the Assembly now sitting at the Brick Church aforesaid, 'shall, if present, put all vcites.'and decide, questions of order ; and the Moderator of the other Assembly shall, if 'present, preach the opening Sermon.; and the Stated Clerks of the present Assemblies shall act as Stated Clerks of the Assembly of the united Church until a Stated Clerk or Clerks shall have been chosen thereby; and no Com missioner shall have a right to vote or de liberate in said' Assembly until his name shall have been enrolled by the said Clerke, and his commission examined and filed among the papers of the Assembly. 6. Each • Presbytery, of the separate Churches shall be entitled to the same re kesentation in the Assembly of the united Church in 1870 as it is entitled to in the Assembly with which it is now connected. Concurrent Declarations of the General As semblies of 1869. As there are matters pertaining to the Interests of the Church when it shall have become re•united, which will manifestly require adjustment on the coming together 'of two bodies which have so long acted separately, and concerning some of which matters it is highly desirable that there should be a previous good understanding. the two Assemblies agree to adopt the fol lowing declarations, not as articles of com pact or covenant, but as in their judgment proper and equitable arrangements, to wit: • 1. All the ministers and churches em braced in the two .bodies should be ,ad mitted to the same standing in the united body, which they may have, held in their respective connections, up to the consum mation of the union. 2. Imperfeetly organized churches are counselled and expected to become thor-, oughly Presbyterian, as early within the period of five years as may be ,permitted by the highest interests to be consulted; and no other .such churches shall be heretkfter received. '3. The boundaries of the several Presby teries and Synods should be adjusted by the General Assembly of the united ,Pbureh. • 4. The official records of the two branches of the Church for period of separation should be preserved and held as making up the one history of the Church; and no rule or precedent which does not stand ap proved by' both the bodies, should be of any authority until re-established in the united body, except in so far as such rule or precedent may affect the rights of pro perty,founded thereon. 5. The corporate rights now held by the two General Assemblies and by their Boards and Committees, should, as far as practicable, be consolidated, and applied for their several objects as defined by law. 6. There should be one set of Commit tees or Boards for Home and Foreign Mis sions and the other religious enterprises of the Church i which the churches should he encouraged to sustain, though tree to cast their contributions into other channels if they desire to do so. 7. As soon as practicable after the union shall have been effected, the General As sembly, should reconstruct and consolidate the several Permanent Committees and Boards which now belong to the two As semblies, so as to represent, as far as poi- Bible with impartiality, the views and wishes of the two bodies constituting the united Church. 8. The publications of the Board ofPub• lication and of the. Publication Committee should continue to be issued as at present, leaving it.to the Board of Publication of the united Church to revise these issues and 'perfect a catalogue for' the united Church so as to exclude invidious referen ces to. past controversies. 9. In order to a uniform system of eccle siastical supervision, those Theological Seminaries that are now under Assembly control may, if their Boards of Direction so elect, be transferred to the watch and care of one or more of the adjacent Synods ; and the other Seminaries are advised to in troduce, as far as may be, into their Con stitutions, the principle of Synodical or As sembly supervision; in which case they shall be entitled to an official recognition and approbation on the part of the General Assembly. 10. It should be regarded as the duty of all our judicatories, ministers, and people in the united Church, to study the things which make for peace, and to guard against all needless and offensive references to the causes that have divided us; and in order to avoid the revival of past issues by the continuance of any usage in either branch of the Church, that has grown out of for mer conflicts, it is earnestly recommended to the lower judicatories of the Church that they conform their practice in relation to all such usages, as far as is consistent with their convictions of duty, to the general custom of the Church' Prior to the contro versies that resulted in the separation. Recommendation of a Day of Prayer, That the counsels of Infinite Wisdom may guide our decisions, and the blessing of the Great Head of the Church rest upon the result of our efforts for reunion, it is earnestly recommended to the churches throughout both branches of the Presbyte riati Church, that they observe the second Sabbath in Septeniber, 1869, as, a day of fervent and united prayer to Almighty God, that he would grant unto us all "the spirit of 'counsel and might, the spirit of know ledge and of the fear of the Lord," and in the new relations now contemplated, enable us to "keep the unity of-the Spirit in the' bonds of peace." • The Rev. Dr. Howard Crosby moved that it be made the order for 3 o'clock' to - take up the report. : He said he thought some time for, consideration should be given although impulse would lead him to, discuss it at once. The Rei. Dr. Robert R. Booth moved to amend so as to bring up the question at once. Dr. Fisher remarked that it would be perfectly courteous to postpone until af ternoon the consideration of the report. Dr. Adams said the object of putting these printed . copies into the hands of the Commissioners was to enable them to make a prOper examination of the plan, so that no one can ever say this has been sprung upon them. • Dr. Taylor said we are accustomed to have texts with notes (as Dr. Crosby had also just?said), and we want thus the comments of the Committee on the new Basis. "The postponement was lost by an over whelming majority, amid great applause. Dr. Adams explained that the plan overtures nothing to the Presbyteries but the Basis; other things are put by them selves as concurrent declarations of the Assemblies. Herein is a distinction be tween the present and the former report. It will be also observed that the very best legal talent is found in the Committee. The two A.seoroblios-aro to be simplyad journed to November, there and then, if it may be, to consummate the union. The Rev. Dr. Crosby obtained the floor, but waited to allow the members of the Committee, to be heard. The Hon. William Strong, also of the (N. S.) Committee, spoke of his earnest desirefor this re-union, and 'said that he had feared there was yet too much dis trust still remaining in the Churches to make it possible. Thus he had gone into the Committee, and if he had had the sole drawing up of this report, some points would have been different. But he was heartily and wholly satisfied with the report as it is [great applause], and had been surprised to find that there was an earnest desire, a yearning for Re-union on the part; of the.other branch [A.p plause]. If the Old School shall—as we are assured they will—adopt this report by acclUmation, they will thereby vin dicate (if vindication is necessary) our orthodoxy, for they declare their perfect confidence in us. In the declarations, our Old Schbol brethren meet us on com mon ground; they are not binding as laws, leaving us at liberty to make other arrangements, yet saying that other ar rangements. had better not be made. Judge Strong did not expect, when the Re-union should be accomplished, that there would' be no friction ; we should be more than human if it should not occur; but we are pledged herein to a full ,fra ternal sympathy, forbearanne and faitli. In regard to the legal questions, there is, indeed, much property in both Churches that is dependent upon our and their pre servinc,° our and their legitimate succes sion. For this purpose the provisions have been made that the two Moderators shall jointly preside, and the two Stated Clerks also serve jointly—believing, un doubtedly, that by this, mode a legiti mate succession will be secured to each Assembly. We look for a greater and a different success of the Church united ; than has ever been known hitherto. Rev. Dr. S. W. Fisher, of Utioa, (son of Dr. Samuel Fisher, who led the. New School men out of the exscinding As sembly of 1838 . in Philadelphia, and himself Moderator of the New School Assembly 19 years later in Cleireland, when the , Southern Presbyterians se ceded) explained that the reason for se lecting Pittsburgh for the place of the adjourned meeting, was that 'the char ters of the General Assemblies' come from the State of Pennsylvania, and it was, therefore,,desirable, on legal grounds, that this meeting . of the Assemblies for settlement of the union should be in Pennsylvania. Re hoped that the con summation itself might take place in Philadelphia, and that, too, in the old First (Albert Barnes') church, to which the exspinded Presbyteries went (from the Seventh church) in 1838, [Great applause.] Dr. F. spoke of the absence of reasons against the re-union, and of the composition of the Committee. There was a Professor in Princeton Seminary-, a Professor in Chicago Seminary and Father Musgrave, thus representing all ihe kinds of opinion (and some of the most extreme) in the Old School, and so, too, although we have been less divid ed, our various classes were also repre sented. Judge Strong explained that the ad. journment of these Assemblies, and not the constituting of a new joint Assembly was recommended, because it would be impossible for the Presbyteries to ap point commissioners to any such body. Dr. J. F. Stearns, also of the Com mittee, took the floor. Many of the old provisions of the former Basis, not un important, have been left out of this, as having done their work. There are some new provisions. Nothing is said now of uniting on equal terms; that has long been understood ; ; but some of the Old,School m ember's deemed it desirable to insert 'the recognition of mutual orthodoxy in the'preamble. [Applause]. I thought and, said if we did believe each 'other wholly orthodox, we had better say so, and if not, not go any further. [Applause]. It was replied that this was perfectly understood; but I remarked that sometimes it was neces sary to state confidence, and that some of our people would be helped by this to favor the plan. This, therefore, passed. Agam, there has never been any proposal of anything bat the " Stand ards, pure ard' simple," as' an examina tion .of the old Basis will show. The Declarations—that happy title came from Dr. Pattirion—are not binding in law, but obligations of good` faith which no Christians or gentlemen will ever think of disregarding. Dr. Stearns proceeded to remark the utter.separation of the Basis from all trammels of optional plans, by the distinct question to the Presby teries, as to whether they want reunion or not. Last year there was great con fusion through this difficulty, and three fourths of the Presbyteries of the Old School had voted for a 'simple, untram meled Bisis. The provisions in the first articles and the tenth article are omitted and that on' imperfectly organized churches is separated front that on mu tual reception of ministers of both branches. Dr. Stearns finally referred to. his . experience of the general inter mixture of New and Old School 'views and men. Dr. R. W. Patterson of Chicago, of the Committee, was loudly called for, but declined to make any remarks at this time as a member of the Committee. Dr. J. B. Shaw of Rochester, also of the Committee, said he had an advan tage over most of his brethren present, in having been a member of the As sembly of 1837; and had the honor to be turned out of it (laughter); but he did not wish to delay the Assembly now with further remarks on this desirable consummation of the reunion. The Hon. W. E. Dodge, of the Com mittee, remarked that, whatever diver sity of opinion had been manifested in the discussions of the sub-Commitee of the Joint Committee, the final decisions had altogether been not only unanimous but wholy satisfactory. He and his brethren had felt that this reunion was the gift of God to the Presbyterian Church. [Great applause]. Dr. Howard Crosby wanted the fact particularly remarked that there is a distinction between the terms of reunion and two other parts, called the Declara tions and the Recommendation of a day of prayer. The great majority of the ministers of both schools were boys when the disruption took place. We don't care anything about it except as an archaeological curiosity, and are glad we were not there. [Laughter]. We can't make the distinction some make; we feel ourselves spiritually one, and believe this will enforce external unity, a as the spirit of tree will enforce unity in all parts of the bark. Ido trust we will not make minor matters, incidentals, matters of question ; that we will swal low the difficulties and keep back amend ments. [Applause.] We can't without a great deal of time patch up the ,old body. And I hope, if there be any, who feel it necessary to put themselves right before their constituents, they will be.very brief. I hope when the conser vators of liberty come together (as Dr. Adams has said) there will be an ortho dox liberty and,a free orthodoxy such as the world has never seen. [Great Ap plause.] Elder W. Aughinbaugh, [a commis sioner from Pittsburgh, where the com mittee proposed that the adjourned meet ing be held in November next,] desired to cordially and heartily invite the As sembly to come: There is a great Pres byterian- element there, and our people will welcome you. [Applause.] (It was in Pittsburgh that - Geor,ge H. Stuart was excluded by the Reformed Presby terian General Synod last year.) THURSDAY, HAY 27th, 2 1-2 P• The consideration of the Reunion re port being resumed, the Grosvenor W. Heacock,, D.D., pastor of the La fayette Bt. church in Buffalo, long known as rather opposed to the Reunion than otherwise ' though not active in opposi tion, took the floor. After alluding. to the great importance of ,discussing this question now, Dr. Heacock proceeded to define the past and present'views of him self and many others who have been slow in coming to a full position in "favor of the proposed. Reunion. He was now heartily in favor of it, but, .he said, we confess to thoughtful and sincere anxie-
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