The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer

THE HERESY TRIAL
Of Rev. Dr. Henry Preserved Smith Grows Interesting.

PARTISANSHIP RUNS RAMPANT
In the Committee—The Clerk Caught Doctoring the Minutes to Suit Himself—Professor Smith Makes His Defense—His Strong Points—He Responds to the Second Charge, That of Doubting Divine Inspiration of a Part of the Scriptures

Cincinnati, O., Nov. 15.—The trial of the Rev. Henry Preserved Smith by the Cincinnati Presbytery for erroneous teachings, or, in other words, for heresy, while it has not yet crowded the church with listeners, is assuming more and more interesting proportions.

When the time for opening came this morning there were but a half-dozen persons present, but in a few minutes the entire committee had assembled except four, who by their absence from roll call will lose their votes.

This absentee rule, it is already hinted at, is furnishing a loophole of escape for members who may be convinced that Prof. Smith is right and do not want to put on record a vote to that effect.

At the opening of the session the reading of the minutes of yesterday's session by Temporary Clerk Frances raised a storm of objections. To the sharp eye of the worldly observer, always quick to discover anything in the business demeanor of a religious body, it was apparent that the ways of a political convention were to some extent copied. The partisanship of the prosecution and of the defense was apparent in almost every motion made. The clerk had recorded that on the question of the eligibility of himself and two other ministers the vote to sustain their eligibility was almost unanimous.

Quick objection was made to this by members who declared that at least one-third of the Presbytery voted in the negative. It was voted to amend the minutes in that particular. Then it appeared by further reading that the clerk had incorporated in the minutes his own speech made on the motion just referred to and had not included those of other persons who had spoken. It was ordered that speeches be put in as exhibits. Prof. Smith then began the reading of his defense to the second charge which contained the charges against him, namely that he taught that the inspired author of Chronicles had been guilty of asserting errors of historical fact and of suppressing sundry historic truths. He had not completed his defense when Dr. Roberts raised the point of order that it was not proper for Prof. Smith to incorporate in his argument citations from his pamphlet made by the committee on prosecution in its report.

For more than three hours did the members of the presbytery sit listening to the reading by Prof. Smith of a logical and keenly incisive argument in his defense. Not only that, but by way of proving his position to be the proper one, he was compelled to show that for the position assumed by the prosecuting committee they could not cite a single text of Scripture in support.

Prof. Smith read rapidly, with very little attempt at oratory, but with a manner that kept his argument easily before his hearers.

The second charge, to which he devoted the entire day, is as follows:

"The Presbyterian church in the United States of America charges the Rev. Henry Preserved Smith, D. D., being a minister in said church, and a member of the presbytery of Cincinnati, with teaching in a pamphlet entitled 'Biblical Scholarship and Inspiration' contrary to the fundamental doctrine of the Word of God and Confession of Faith, that the Holy Spirit did not so control the inspired writers in their composition of the Holy Scriptures as to make their utterances absolutely truthful, i. e., free from error, when interpreted in their natural and intended sense."

In the course of his argument he said: "Now I ask why the 'natural and intended sense' is not the natural sense, the intended sense, or is the intended sense something different from the natural sense? I cannot help seeing in this phrase an obscurity that seriously mars the force of the proposition. The intended sense—intended by whom? If by the Divine Author we shall agree. If by the human author I doubt whether any will affirm it in the face of Peter's assertion that the prophets sought and searched diligently who prophesied of the grace which should come unto you, searching what time or what manner the spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto.' Or if any assert that the intention of the Divine Author is necessarily the intention of the human author, this proposition also is at least debatable. For in the first chapter of Genesis, for example, it can hardly be doubted that the intention of the human author was to describe a natural week of six natural days. Probably the majority of those who hear me hold that the intention of the Holy Spirit was to describe a geologic week of six 'creative days.' So the question whose intention the committee means in their phrase is not superfluous. And in that view alone the language is ambiguous and should be amended. For if ministerial standing is to depend on a juggle with a word, the sooner we know it the better."

He then went on to object to the charge that it was insufficient in legal effect in that while it affirms a certain doctrine to be fundamental, it brings no evidence that it is fundamental.

The prosecution will begin its reply to-morrow.