Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 19.djvu/723

Rh UNITED STATES.] PRESBYTERIANISM 699 in 1755, large funds being received from England, Ire land, and Scotland in its aid. Thus the Presbyterians of Great Britain showed their sympathy with the broad and tolerant Presbyterians of the synod of New York ; and the college at Princeton was based upon the pledges of Davies and Tennent as to liberal subscription in terms of the original Adopting Act. The Old Side adopted the academy at New London, which had been organized by Francis Alison in 1741, as their own. Thus each side gained an important institution of learning. The division continued until 1758. During this period the synod of Philadelphia decreased from twenty-six ministers to twenty-two, whereas the synod of New York increased from twenty to seventy- two. The New Side reaped all the fruits of the wonderful revival that spread over the colonies under the influence of Whitefield and his successors. The barriers to union were the different views as to subscription and discipline, and the arbitrary act of excision ; but they were after a while happily removed, and the Adopting Act was re established in its original breadth as the foundation of the reunited church. The reunion was signalized by the formation of the presbytery of Hanover in Virginia. The synod increased with great rapidity, by the reception of new ministers, new churches, and also entire presby teries, until the outbreak of the Revolution and the close of the colonial period, when the synod numbered 1 1 pres byteries and 132 ministers. The synod of New York and Philadelphia embraced only a portion of the Presbyterian ministers of the middle colo nies. In the Carolinas Presbyterianism had an independent development. There was a considerable Scottish emigra tion between 1684 and 1687. William Dunlop ministered to them until 1688, when he returned to become principal of the university of Glasgow. A mixed congregation of English Puritans and Scottish Presbyterians was organized at Charleston in 1690. In 1710 there were five churches, which combined to form the presbytery of James Island in 1722-23. This presbytery went through the same struggle with reference to subscription as the synod of Philadelphia, and the parties separated in 1731 into subscribers and non-subscribers. In 1718 Irish Presbyterianism from Ulster established itself at Londonderry in New England. The church at Londonderry grew into a presbytery in 1726-29, including the Huguenot church of Boston. A second presbytery was organized at Salem in 1745. The original presbytery became extinct owing to internal strife in 1765; but the presbytery of Salem grew into the synod of New England, 31st May 1775, composed of three presbyteries and sixteen ministers. Besides this synod the presbytery of the East ward was organized at Boothbay, Maine, in 1771 and re mained independent. A presbytery of the Puritan type was organized at Grafton, New Hampshire, and continued from 1776 to 1796 independent of other presbyteries. The Scottish Presbyterians from the established church combined with the American Presbyterian Church, but the separating churches of Scotland organized independent bodies. The Reformed Presbyterian Church (&quot; Cove nanters&quot;) sent Cuthbertson in 1751 (or 1752); he was joined by Lind and Dobbin from the Reformed presbytery of Ireland in 1774, and they organized an American Re formed presbytery. The Anti-Burgher synod sent Alex ander Gellatly and Andrew Arnot in 1752, and they or ganized the Associate presbytery of Pennsylvania in 1754 ; they were joined by the Scotch Church in New York city in 1657, a split from the American Presbyterian Church ; they had grown to two presbyteries and thirteen ministers in 1776. The Burgher synod sent Telfair and Clark in 1764 ; the latter settled at Salem, New York ; they united with the Associate presbytery of Pennsylvania. Dutch Presbyterianism in 1747 formed a coetus which grew into a classis in 1755 independent of the classis of Amsterdam. A minority adhered to the mother classis and organized under its supervision a conference which grew into an assembly in 1764. In 1770 Queen s (now Rutgers) College was organized at New Brunswick, New Jersey. A union of the two parties was accomplished through the efforts of Dr J. H. Livingston in 1772, and a synod of five classes was organized, of 100 churches and 34 ministers. At the outbreak of the Revolution they numbered 44 ministers and 105 churches. German Presbyterians began to emigrate into Pennsyl vania in 1684, but not in large numbers until 1709, when a tide of emigration set in from the Palatinate and Switzerland. These attached themselves to the Dutch churches, but, where such did not exist, they organized churches of their own. In accordance with the advice of the German mother churches, in 1730 they put themselves under the care of the classis of Amsterdam, Holland. In 1747 the German churches organized a ccetus under the influence of Schlatter, who had found forty-six churches scattered over a wide region in Pennsylvania, but only four ordained ministers. He acted as general superintendent and was very efficient. He sought aid from all quarters, but this excited internal jealousies and controversies. At tho outbreak of the Revolution it is estimated that the German churches numbered twenty-five ministers and sixty churches. The classis of Amsterdam had a magnificent opportunity at the opening of the 18th century. The Dutch, German, and French churches in America were under its care. If it had organized them into classes and a synod at an early date the Reformed Church of America would have been the strongest Presbyterian body in the country, but by keeping them in pupilage it separated the various nation alities and prevented closer union with British Presby terians. The strength of Presbyterianism in the colonies which became the United States of America may be esti mated at the close of the period as 3 synods, 20 presby teries, 5 classes, 1 ccetus, and 260 ministers. The synod of New York and Philadelphia was a trifle stronger than all the others combined. 2. From the Revolution to the Civil War. During the From the war of the Revolution the Presbyterian churches suffered Revolu- severely. The ministers and people, with scarcely an ex- ception, entered upon the struggle for constitutional liberty War&amp;gt; with all their souls. The Presbyterian Church was the church of constitutional government and orderly liberty. The Presbyterians exerted great influence in the con struction of the constitution of the United States, and the government of the church was assimilated in no slight degree to the civil government of the country. At the close of the war the Presbyterian bodies began at once to reconstruct themselves on more solid bases. In 1782 the presbyteries of the Associate and Reformed Churches united and formed the Associate Reformed synod of North America. But there were a few dissenters in both bodies, so that the older Associate and Reformed presbyteries were still continued. The Associate presby tery of two members, Marshall and Clarkson, continued to exist until 1801, when it was subdivided and became the Associate synod of North America. In 1798 the Re formed presbytery of North America was reconstituted by M Kenney and Gibson from Ireland ; it grew into a synod of three presbyteries in 1809, and in 1823 into a general synod. In 1781 the Dutch Reformed organized them selves into a synod and classes. In 1784 they founded a theological seminary, which was settled at New Brunswick, and in 1792 adopted a constitution with general synod, particular synods, and classes. In 1792 the German Re formed declared themselves independent of the classis of