USA > Rhode Island > Newport County > Newport > Annals of Trinity church, Newport, Rhode Island, 1821-1892 > Part 15
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The question of parish limits was now called up, and the Bishop read the Canon bearing on the subject.
Dr. Charles Cotton asked Dr. Mercer if he had received a copy of the protest of Zion Church previous to the meeting; to which Dr. Mercer replied that he had not, and that he knew nothing of its points until called upon to answer them.
At which Dr. Cotton and Mr. Samuel Engs asked Mr. Brown to give his reason for not serving Dr. Mercer with a copy of the protest: who replied that Dr. Mercer knew all about it (which Dr. Mercer denied) and that that was sufficient; that he had not been requested by the Bishop, as has been stated, to furnish Dr. Mercer with a copy, but that the Bishop had made a suggestion to that effect, which he did not feel called upon to carry out.
The attention of the meeting being again called to the ques- tion, it was ruled by the Bishop that "the Chapel as it now stands is in the Ward of Zion and Trinity Churches, according to the strict letter of the Canon."
The other allegations, that there was already sufficient Church accommodation in the city, and that the opening of another Church would tend to the injury of the existing churches, were now brought up.
To meet these allegations Dr. Mercer read a letter from Rev. D. R. Brewer, a former Rector of Trinity Church, and subse- quently Rector of Emmanuel Church, who founded both Em- manuel Church and the Chapel, and was the parent of the free-church movement in Newport.
"I was sorry to learn," said Mr. Brewer, "that the Chapel had again been made a cause of difficulty and controversy. It was so when first proposed and erected. Some of my own
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parishioners in Trinity Church were decidedly hostile to it, fear- ing it might do serious injury to the old Church. The Rector and congregation of Zion Church were still more alarmed, for they looked upon the little free Chapel as a box-trap, designed to catch all the rich visitors, who could not be taken in by speculators in pews at Trinity. The Rector of Zion urged the Bishop to use his authority, if he had it, to prevent the Chapel being opened for service. The Bishop did not do this; the Chapel was opened on the day announced, and kept open, both on Sundays and week days, through the whole summer. It was well filled with people, and was a favorite place of worship with the visiting clergy. The anticipated evil did not come. Trinity Church was unharmed. The Rector of Zion officiated himself in the Chapel more than once. It thus became a recognized and established Chapel, with none to molest or make afraid. And the free-seat plan worked so well that it became the pioneer or seed of the Free Parish Church in the south part of the town."
Mr. Brown asked if the Chapel, when first opened, was not recognized as a part of Trinity Church, and if it had not at that time the approval and sanction of the Vestry of that Church.
Mr. Engs and Dr. Cotton declared that the Vestry and con- gregation were alike opposed to it-not officially, or by any direct action, but decidedly opposed to it, and the same feeling prevailed when it was proposed to attach it to the Church, at a subsequent day.
Mr. Brown then called attention to the position of Emmanuel Church, which he said was dependent on the summer visitors, who would not be likely to go there, if an attractive Chapel was opened for them in their immediate neighborhood.
Mr. Finch said that coercive measures would never fill a Church; that if the people were not attracted by the pastor or the services of the Church, they could not be forced into it; that they had a right to make their own selection, and if not
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allowed (through the strict administration of arbitrary law) to do so, they would either shut themselves up at home on the Sabbath, or wander off to other denominations, where they would be warmly welcomed. But the Chapel could be moved over the line into the adjoining ward, where it would be beyond the jurisdiction of the parties who were so desirous of shutting it up.
Mr. Brown met this by saying that if the Chapel were moved, Dr. Mercer would be in a worse fix than before, for in that case he would have to get the consent of the two resident clergymen before it could be opened, and read Canon IX, Sec- tion 4, to sustain what he had said.
The Bishop ruled that the Canon cited did not touch the point in question, as this was a Chapel and not a parish Church; and he added, he did not wish to weigh the merits of any plan for a new parish, but rather keep to the question before the meeting.
Mr. Brown stated there was ample Church accommodation in the city, and this ought to weigh heavily.
Dr. Cotton declared there was not accommodation enough, and had not been in Trinity Church for a number of years.
Mr. Brown called upon the Rector of Emmanuel Church to state the condition of his Church, so far as related to attendance, and asked if he could not have seated a hundred more persons than the average attendance last summer. Mr. Wingate said he could have seated about fifty more in summer, and about two hundred and fifty more in winter.
Mr. George Cozzens, Treasurer of Zion Church, when called upon, stated that the income had grown so small that the Cor- poration had been forced to increased taxation and subscriptions to meet their liabilities. When asked if he knew of any falling off in attendance growing out of the Chapel, replied that he could call to mind two or three instances-the Roser, Mr. Ray and the Ashhurst families. Dr. Mercer rose to state that Mr.
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Ashhurst was his particular friend, and would have followed him, it mattered not where he officiated.
Mr. Cozzens, when asked by Mr. Engs to state the amount of pecuniary loss the Church had sustained, said the Sunday. collections last summer did not amount to more than $25, and that the whole loss to the Church during the summer was prob- ably $225; which loss he believed was the result of opening the Chapel.
Mr. Brown urged that not only Zion and Emmanuel Churches were opposed to the opening of the Chapel, but a large and influential majority of the Corporation of Trinity Church deci- dedly objected to it; and was asked by Mr. Engs how he knew what were the views of the Corporation of the latter Church, and what were the views of the communicants on this subject.
The Bishop said he had a paper connected with another mat- ter, but its concluding words would show what were the feelings of a large number of the communicants of Trinity Church, on this question, and read as follows:
To the Right Rev. Thomas M. Clark, Bishop of the Diocese of Rhode Island;
Rt. Rev. and Dear Sir:
We, the undersigned, Church members and mem- bers of the congregation of Trinity Church, Newport, R. I., do solemnly make and sign the following statement, which is drawn from us by the deep disgrace that has befallen our venerable Church-not with the hope of effacing the deep wrong done to our beloved Rector, for that were impossible; but justice to ourselves demands that the whole truth be brought to your knowledge at an early day. And, to be as brief as possible, and not to enter upon the previous difficulties-a painful sub- ject, and one not necessary now to touch, we have here only to do with the recent effort to force him from the Church.
We therefore solemnly declare that one year of great forbear- ance on .the part of the Rector and his friends went by, and then,
-
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to remove all difficulties, and to restore harmony in his Church, our Rector did, in a high and Christian spirit, and at great personal sacrifice, make a proposition to his people (a copy of which is herewith forwarded) which, it was thought, would com- mend itself to every unbiased member of the congregation.
This proposition was accepted by a very large majority (44 to 17) and, indeed, on its first presentation it seemed to force the assent of the opposition. The corporators from New York and elsewhere, judging it by its own merits, almost unanimously approved of it; in several instances stating that its only fault was that it did injustice to the Rector himself. As to his people - the permanent Church; those most dependent on him for the sacred offices of his ministry; those whose sorrows he has borne, whose hearts he has aimed to improve, and raise in gratitude for unnumbered blessings-his own people-had spoken out their wishes clearly and unmistakenly.
But a small minority, from motives we do not inquire into, and by such representations and influences as they chose to offer, succeeded in silencing some and changing others, of the votes of distant corporators, who, it must be remembered have but a limited part in the real interests of the Church, and are necessarily ignorant of its most vital concerns.
With such aid from abroad, an unsuccessful attempt was made at the Easter meeting to repeal the previous vote. The vote on this occasion may be analyzed as follows: whole num- ber 76, 58 of the number being permanent corporators in the Church. Of these 58, 42 supported the Rector, and of the 16 who opposed him, 6, at least, rarely enter the Church edifice. Again : of the 76 votes cast, 48 were those of communicants, and of this number 38 supported the Rector, and 10 opposed him.
It should be here stated, that at the Easter meeting, a com- munication, signed by 75 communicants, was offered as an ex- pression of their approval of the Rector's proposition. These signers are, with one or two exceptions, not corporators, but permanent communicants of the Church. A copy of this com- munication is annexed.
A committee was appointed by the Corporation to confer with
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the Rector for the purpose of arranging the details of his plan, and to report at an adjourned meeting: but the Rector, in sub- mitting his plan to the Corporation, had stated it was offered solely for the sake of producing harmony, unaffected and cor- dial: and as, through the agency of a few persons, the object was now defeated, he therefore did, at the adjourned Easter meeting, withdraw the plan. A copy of the withdrawal is here- with forwarded.
The reading of this withdrawal was opposed: the opposition declaring it to be their determination that their protest should take precedence on the records. In the course of the debate the correctness of the minutes of the previous meeting, as recorded, was called in question in a manner that forced the Secretary, in justice to himself, to resign his office, and after several ineffectual attempts to elect a Secretary pro tem., the opposition abruptly left the meeting, and all business was at a stand for the time being.
At the renewal of the meeting at a subsequent day, although the first business was to receive the report of the committee appointed as above, the opposition persisted in urging that their protest should take precedence, and the supporters of the plan, for the sake of peace, and to remove every obstacle to the res- toration of harmony, gave way. The protest was accordingly read, and placed on record. The communication from the Rec- tor then followed, and was also received.
This done, the gentleman who presented the letter of with- drawal, and who represented the Rector's views, stated in a slow and solemn manner, and carefully repeated and reiterated the statement under various forms, "that there was nothing a Christian minister could do, that the Rector was not ready for; and that whatever plan the Corporation could offer, which prom- ised harmony to the Church, the Rector would gladly and warmly enter into." Thus in every way inviting all methods of concilia- tion from all persons: an offer that was met by a resolution requesting the Rector to resign the rectorship of the parish; which motion was lost, though supported by a large minority.
These facts, Right Reverend and Dear Sir, we present for your consideration, and in view of the protest emanating from
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the Rector of Zion Church, we earnestly hope that you will thoroughly investigate the whole matter, and extend to our be- loved Pastor the right to hold services in the Chapel, where we may worship in peace, and in peace offer up the prayer- "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."
All of which is most respectfully offered by Your Humble and Obedient Servants.
[The writer has only a copy of the above letter, without the . subscribing signatures. ]
The above paper was signed by one hundred and forty-seven persons, of whom it was claimed one hundred and twenty were communicants.
Following the reading of the paper, Mr. Finch rose to reply to the remark of Mr. Brown, that the Chapel had been a serious injury to Zion Church, and stated that in the early history of the Chapel Zion Church was very prosperous, that the falling of in its receipts, and the embarrassment complained of, was traceable to the fact that the late Rector was unpopular and not calculated to keep the Church together; but that under the administration of Mr. Brown their finances had assumed a better shape, and that the present Rector was instrumental in increas- ing the influence and prosperity of the Church. He then referred to the growth of Emmanuel Church, so long fostered and sus- tained by Trinity, and to the significant fact, that at the very time that the Chapel was regularly opened for services, the Rector of Emmanuel Church, Rev. D. R. Brewer, wrote to the Vestry of Trinity Church, thanking them for past aid, and de- clining to receive further assistance; stating his firm belief that the Church was now quite able to go alone: which letter is recorded in the Church records.
Dr. Mercer called upon Rev. Mr. Wingate, of Emmanuel, to know if he had not recently stated before witnesses, that his
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Church had never been more prosperous than during last season, although the Chapel was then regularly opened: which question Mr. Wingate declined to answer.
It being apparent that no further light could be thrown on the question, the prolonged debate was brought to a close by the Bishop, who stated that he was prepared to give his decision, and said, in subtance, that he was utterly and heartily opposed to the existing Canon, restricting the spreading of churches by arbitrary laws; that he had but one course open to him-to follow the strict letter of the law, under which Mr. Brown's protest held good: he therefore declared that the Chapel could not be opened, so long as it remained in the Ward of Zion and Trinity Church, without the approval of the Rectors of those parishes.
The Bishop was asked what would be the bearing of the Canon on a new parish Church in an unoccupied Ward: who replied, that as he understood the Canon, there was no reason why a parish might not be so established, and added, but that question he did not now wish to consider.
The Bishop then addressed Rev. Mr. Brown, not as Bishop of the Diocese, but as a friend and brother, urging him to with- draw his protest, and pointed him to the evil growing out of the estrangement and this state of things, and the moral effect on on the public mind by the closing of the Chapel.
[The above account of the meeting at the Aquidneck House is wholly from the writer's own notes, taken at the meeting, and not from the Church records.]
The same evening, April 27, 1860, there was a meeting of the Vestry of the Trinity Church; Charles Hunter, Junior Ward- en, and Edward King, James Birckhead, Henry Bull, William E. Dennis, R. R. Hazard, Jr., and John D. Ogden being present.
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Voted: that the following communication should be forwarded to the Bishop of the Diocese:
To the Rt. Rev. Thomas M. Clark, Bishop of Rhode Island, Rt. Rev. and Dear Sir:
Understanding that at the conference of this morning it was asserted that the Wardens, Vestrymen and Corporation of Trinity Church, would not oppose the opening of the Rev. Dr. Mercer's Chapel, we beg to inform you, that at a regular meeting of the Corporation of Trinity Church, held on the 19th day of April, 1860, a protest was read, received and recorded, of which the following is a section: "Section 6. Because the institution of a new Church will diminish the strength and im- pair the prosperity of the three existing churches, which now furnish Episcopal accommodation amply sufficient for this com- munity": we also desire to state, that we, the Vestry, fully approve of the foregoing section of the said protest, and firmly believe that a majority of the Corporation of Trinity Church entertain the same opinion.
In case the question of opening any chapel, or church, in this city, beyond the three existing churches, shall be entertained by you, we respectfully request that due notice may be given us, that we may appear before you by counsel, or by written argument.
In behalf of the Vestry of Trinity Church, CHAS. HUNTER, Chairman. J. D. OGDEN, Secretary.
At this time the friends of the Chapel made a flank move- ment, that for the time being disconcerted their opponents.
At the regular monthly meeting of the City Council, May Ist, the following petition was granted :
To His Honor the Mayor, the Aldermen and Common Council of the City of Newport:
The undersigned respectfully petition your honorable body to change the present line of the Fourth Ward, so that it
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will include in the limits of said Fourth Ward, the lot of land on which "All Saints' Chapel" now stands, on the south-east corner of Beach and Cottage streets. The necessity for this alteration arises from the fact that said Chapel cannot be used for Episcopal worship in the Third Ward, under the Canons of the Episcopal Church. A question has recently been raised relative to this matter, and the Bishop of the Diocese, as in duty bound, has decided, in conformity to the Canons, that the said Chapel cannot be opened for religious worship so long as it remains in the Third Ward; at the same time expressing himself very strongly in favor of the freedom of the people in choosing their place of worship, and regretting that the Canon of the Church compelled him to make the aforesaid decision. By granting the request of your petitioners, you will not, either now or hereafter, change the place of voting of any elector, and will confer a great benefit on those who desire to worship in the Chapel, inasmuch as this building cannot be opened as a Chapel for religious worship where it now stands, and cannot be removed without great expense and trouble, if, indeed, it can be removed at all. As it is a Divine command that the Gospel shall be freely preached all over the world, and as it has always been a principle with the people of Rhode Island, to grant full toleration and perfect freedom in all religious mat- ters, they pray your Honors to grant their petition.
BENJ. FINCH, GEO. C. MASON, CHARLES COTTON,
JOHN H. COZZENS,
WM. G. SEABURY, J. PRESCOTT HALL,
JOB T. LANGLEY, SAMUEL ENGS.
Newport, May Ist, 1860.
A meeting of the Vestry of Trinity Church was called at once, and met on the evening of May 3d, when it was
Resolved: that the Senior Warden be requested to wait on
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the Bishop of the Diocese, and apprize him of the change of the boundaries of the Third Ward, under a recent act of the authorities of this city; also that he submit to the Bishop a copy of the petition praying for such change; also to lay before him that part of the City Charter which relates to the division of wards.
It was also ordered that a committee of three be appointed to make arrangements for supplying the pulpit until a Rector shall be chosen, and that the two Wardens [Marshall C. Slocum and Charles Hunter] and the Secretary [John D. Ogden] con- stitute that committee.
Immediately after the change in the ward boundaries, the following petition was sent to the Bishop and Standing Com- mittee :
To the Rt. Rev. the Bishop, and the Standing Committee of the Diocese of R. I.
Rt. Rev. Sir, Rev. Sirs, and Gentlemen :
We the undersigned, members and communicants of the Episcopal Church, respectfully make known to you our desire to form a new Parish within the City of Newport.
The grounds of this desire and intention are these-First : We have been driven to leave Trinity Church by a series of unparalleled outrages, such as no Christian men can submit to, both for their own sakes, and for the sake of the Christian re- ligion.
Second: There is here a church edifice known as All Saints Chapel, which has been used during the past ten years as an occasional church. Into this building we desire to go as a Par- ish Church, and find that peace and growth in Christianity which we solemnly asseverate we cannot find elsewhere.
We therefore respectfully petition that you take our prayer favorably and speedily into consideration-humbly representing that for the three past Sundays we have been without a place of worship; and that any delay in entering our church is most distressing and injurious to ourselves and families.
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ANNALS OF TRINITY CHURCH,
In accordance with Art. VII we herewith formed the organ- ization of our Parish, and remain, respectfully
Your obedient humble servants.
[The writer cannot give correctly the names of the signers.]
At a meeting of the Vestry of Trinity Church, May 16, 1860, the following communication was received from the Bishop, and was ordered to be placed on file:
To the Wardens and Vestry of Trinity Church, Newport; Gentlemen :
I enclose a resolution passed today by the Bishop and Standing Committee of the Diocese of Rhode Island, acting in council. May I most earnestly and affectionately beg that you will accede to the request that it contains. It seems to me the only available mode of averting serious and permanent evils in the future. I presume you would not desire the formation of a fourth Episcopal Church in Newport at the present time. I presume also that you would not wish to see a respectable num- ber of your fellow Churchmen, debarred by authority from the privilege of worshipping God in their own communion, when they please, and under such ministration as they may choose: especially, when it is possible that under a temporary excitement they may be led to cut themselves off entirely from connection with the Church.
I regret that I have no time today to enlarge upon the sub- ject, but I must write a number of letters before the mail closes, and therefore leave the whole matter here, in great con- fidence in your wisdom and discretion.
Very truly yours, THOMAS M. CLARK.
Providence, R. I., May 12, 1860.
The following was the decision of the Standing Committee :
At a meeting of the Bishop and Standing Committee of the
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Diocese of Rhode Island, held May 12th, 1860, it was resolved unanimously :
That the gentlemen petitioning for the organization of a new Parish in the City of Newport, are respectfully desired to with- draw their request for the present, in order to allow the Rector of Zion Church, and the Wardens and Vestry of Trinity Church, who have petitioned against the opening of the Chapel, known as "All Saints Chapel," also to withdraw their protests for the present, which they are earnestly and affectionately requested to do.
Attest, EDWARD WALCOTT, Secretary.
Whereupon the following answer (drafted at the request of the Vestry, by Messrs. D. King and H. Bull) was directed to be signed by the Secretary and sent to the Bishop:
Newport, R. I., May 16th, 1860.
Rt. Rev. and Dear Sir:
The Wardens and Vestry of Trinity Church have received your letter of the 12th inst., enclosing the Resolution of the Standing Committee, requesting the Vestry to withdraw their protest to the opening of the Chapel, or to the formation of a new parish.
It would give them pleasure to be able to comply with the request of the Bishop and Standing Committee; but on the present occasion they feel compelled by a sense of duty to con- tinue their protest.
They beg leave to assure the Bishop and Standing Committee that their protest was made after due deliberation, and a just consideration of all the circumstances affecting the prosperity of the Episcopal churches in Newport.
Very truly and sincerely yours, HENRY BULL, Sec'y pro tem. of the Vestry of Trinity Church, Newport.
Rt. Rev. Thomas M. Clark, D. D.,
Bishop of the Diocese of Rhode Island.
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[As is often the case, the decision of the Standing Committee was met by a spirit of opposition by all the parties engaged in the contest. The Chapelites-for so they were now called- had organized as "Christ Church," as shown in the decision of that body on the receipt of the Bishop's letter (of the tenor of the one to Trinity Church Vestry) and the Resolution of the Standing Committee.
"At a meeting of 'Christ Church,' held at the house of Samuel Engs, Monday evening, May 14, 1860, the letter of Bishop Clark, and the Resolution of the Standing Committee were submitted by Benjamin Finch, for consideration. Where- upon it was voted that we approve of the spirit of the resolu- tion, but must say that it does not meet our wants, and we believe will not do away with the necessity of a new parish, under existing circumstances. In deference to the wishes of the Bishop and Standing Committee, we will for the present ac- quiesce to have our petition deferred until Thursday next, to give, in the mean time, to the protestants an opportunity to withdraw their unqualified opposition to the holding of Episcopal services in 'All Saints Chapel.' At the expiration of the afore- said time, if said opposition has not been withdrawn, then our application to remain in full force."
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