more and Philadelphia, and 601 of the decrease in the other twenty-seven conferences. Truly, the disruption of the Methodist Church has been disastrous to the cause of African evangelization, so far as the Methodist ministry are concerned, not only in the border slave States, but throughout the free States. generally. The language employed, in reference to the churches among the freedmen of Jamaica, applies with equal force to the conferences in the Northern States, so far as relates to their colored converts: "The members in society do not increase!"

The Methodist Church was not alone in having lost her influence with the free colored people of the North, as a consequence of the abolition controversy. Very few of the churches of the whites had any considerable number of colored people in their communion; and where they had, they were rarely able long to retain them. The abolition controversy was so conducted as to awaken the most bitter prejudices in the minds of the colored professors against the whites. They were taught to believe that no slaveholder could be a Christian, and that the churches, whose jurisdiction extended into the slave States, were not Christian churches. We must not be understood, here, as attributing these ultra views as coming, in this form, from any ecclesiastical body of respectable standing, but mainly from the abolitionists and their lecturers, who traversed the country to propagate abolition doctrines. They were further taught, that the Almighty pos

Gerritt Smith, on August 5, 1857, in addressing the editor of the New York Tribune, used the following language, from which it will be seen that he urged the colored people to abjure all churches which spared slavery - all, of course, who did not occupy abolition ground:

"Our colored people complain of your treatment of them. I think myself that it is sometimes too rigorous, though, in the main, I candidly approve it. You are their friend in demanding that they shall, by their own good conduct, redeem themselves from their deep debasement. You deal but justly with them, when you declare that their own bad influence goes further than the arts of the worst slaveholders to uphold slavery.

"So far from making their wrongs and outrages an excuse for their continued degradation, the free colored people should, in view of these wrongs and outrages, arouse themselves to the irresistible determination to equal and surpass their persecutors in all that honors manhood. They should swear that they will be Pariahs and lepers no longer. To this end, they should quit the towns, in which they are wont to congregate, and where they are but servants,

sessed no attribute which could tolerate or sanction the principle of slavery, or the holding of "property in man." This doctrine, advocated by the Christian Intelligencer, was copied into the abolition papers, and proclaimed throughout the North.

And what was the consequence of this teaching? Among the educated young colored men were some who had a little knowledge of logic. More than once the author has heard them discuss this point, of "the right of property in man," and dispose of it thus: "The Almighty can neither sanction nor tolerate the holding of property in man: the Bible sanctions the holding of property in man: therefore the Bible is not the word of God." They relied upon Exodus xxi: 20, 21, to sustain them in their position: "And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand, he shall be surely punished. Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his money." They insisted that the last clause of this quotation clearly taught, that the slave is the property of his master-"for he is his money." These young infidels are men now advanced in life, but they have never embraced the Bible as the word of God. Who is responsible for misleading them?

Fortunately, the entire mass of the colored professors of religion were influenced more by their piety than they were by the logic employed against the Bible. And, though their alienation of affection for the white churches became complete, they still adhered to their profession of religion, and went into the organization of African churches. This task was the more easily performed, because churches of this class had been established in the country at an early day. A brief notice of these organizations will be necessary to a proper understanding of the position of the colored professors of religion in the North.

AFRICAN METHODIST CHURCH.-This body had its origin in

and should scatter themselves over the country in the capacity of farmers and mechanics. They should cease from the habit of wasting their earnings in periodical balls. They should never wet their lips with intoxicating drinks nor defile them with tobacco. They should never so war upon their selfrespect as to join a Church which spares slavery, or join a political party which knows law for slavery."

the city of Philadelphia, in 1787, owing to difficulties growing out of the colored people and the whites meeting together for public worship. Bishop White of the Episcopal Church, sympathizing with the colored people, ordained one of their own number as pastor. In 1793, their numbers had so increased that a meeting-house was erected for them, and dedicated by Bishop Asbury, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, under the name of Bethel - the members giving a preference for the Methodist Church. Various difficulties beset them, in their relations with the Methodist Church, when, in 1816, a convention was called in Philadelphia, for the purpose of organizing on a broader basis, so as to include the colored professors in Baltimore and elsewhere. An organization was formed under the name of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. The first annual conference was held at Baltimore, April, 1818; "since when, the Church has been making quiet but steady progress. It has a Book Concern and a Missionary Society."*

ZION AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH. The rise of this society was also due to disagreements between the whites and colored people. It had its origin in New York city, and its first church was built in 1800. In 1820, the society erected itself into a distinct and independent body. It received into connection with it several other Churches, and, in 1821, held an annual conference in New York city. Twenty-two ministers were in attendance, and the number of church members reported was 1,426. At the annual conference, in 1838, the society elected its first superintendent.

The estimated membership of the Bethel and the Zion Methodist Episcopal Churches is 26,746; the traveling preachers 193; the local 444. †

We have before us the Report of the Twelfth General Conference of this AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1860. The conference was presided over by Bishops Quinn, Nazrey, and Payne, all colored men. Seven conferences were represented, besides that of Canada, from which a delegate was present.

* American Christian Record, 1860, pages 141, 142.

† Ibid., p. 143.

In the course of the proceedings relating to Canada, it was decided to be expedient that the conference in that province should be separated from the General Conference of the United States; and the following very sensible reason was assigned in its favor:

"Because all societies, in their organization, in order to receive protection from civil law, must be subject to the government, and recognize the authority that exists. In the present state of things this can not be done by the Canadian Conference, while they use our form of Discipline.

The conference also passed resolutions in recognition of the Liberia Methodist Episcopal Church. This is a movement in the right direction, and shows that the bitter hostility once existing against Liberia is yielding under the progress of intelligence in this body.

But the most important portion of the proceedings is the argument of Bishop Payne, defending himself against the decision of a committee who had disapproved his action in a case where he had rejected an applicant for deacon's orders, on the ground that he was not a member of the annual conference, and to ordain him, therefore, would be a violation of Discipline. The Bishop took an appeal from the decision of the committee, and was sustained by the conference.

We refer to this case, to make a short quotation from the argument of the Bishop. It is a fair example of the advantages of a little common sense, in dealing with questions which, in its absence, have led men's minds into inextricable confusion. The applicability of the Bishop's argument to the abolition interpretations of the Constitution of the United States will be at once apparent. Had his strong common sense, as applied to a question respecting constitutional church polity, been exercised in relation to the National Constitution, we should never have had the troubles that are now upon us. But let us hear the Bishop, at the same time keeping in mind that what he says is designed to be applied by us to the subjects discussed in the chapter on Political Abolitionism:

"In every well-organized government, which has continued for any

length of time, say a single generation, there will be found three dif

ferent kinds of laws:

"1. Constitutional law.

"2. Statute law.

"3. Common, or unwritten law.

"The Constitutional is that which enters into the structure of the government, whether it be civil or ecclesiastical, and is sometimes called the organic law. It is, therefore, fundamental and supreme. Being supreme, it controls both the statute and common law.

"Statute laws are legislative enactments, made for the purpose of accomplishing some end expressed or implied in the constitutional, and, therefore, must always be subordinate to the constitutional; never subversive of it.

"Whenever a statute law is subversive of the constitutional, it becomes null and void a mere dead letter.

"The common, or unwritten, law derives its authority from custom or usage. In the State it is always called the common law; in the Church it is always called usage. The common law, or usage, like the statute, must always be subordinate to the constitutional. If subversive of the constitutional, it must be set aside, and trampled under foot.

"Now, the verdict of the committee is based upon a statute law of the American Methodist Episcopal Church, to which they refer in Discipline of 1856.

"But the venerable committee seem to have forgotten that there is a higher law than the one to which they refer, for they make no allusion to it; I mean, the constitutional. . . .

"It is also maintained that it is the usage of our Church to ordain local preachers who are not members of the annual conference. But what is usage, in the presence of constitutional law? Why nothing more than chaff before the wind. That man who suffers statutes or usages to subvert the constitutional law, is not a good governor, but a bad one. To do this is to be guilty of misrule. .

"Men! brethren! fathers! I call upon you to sustain the government!

"Remember that the privilege is not to be given till the obedience is yielded; nor the right secured and enjoyed till the duty is performed.

"Brother Michum requests a privilege before he yields the required obedience he demands a right before the duty is performed. Will you do this? Nay! You will not; - you can not.