the Presbytery, as to the residue of the proceedings in his case. The Presbytery, it seems, did believe him, and licensed him. No sooner was this fact known, than the wrath of the Board was kindled against the Presbytery and their licentiate; against him, for contumacy in refusing to remain at New Brunswick, "until his mind should be made correct;" and against the Presbytery, for doing that which they had resolved. should not be done by any but themselves; and not by themselves, until he should have been stretched to the dimensions of their bed. Accordingly, members of the Board assumed haughty airs with the young licentiate; charged him to his face, with having acted uncourteously towards the Board, in not submitting to the sentence of imprisonment pronounced against him. The ordinary civility manifested by the ministers of the Dutch Church to Presbyterian candidates, to ask them to preach in their pulpits, must be denied to him, not only by members of the Board, but by others under their influence. And such as dared to show him this civility, were charged with despising the authority of the Dutch Church. It is in small matters, such as these, as well as in deeds of greater note and import, that the genius of intolerant pride and persecution manifests itself. Thus,

"Man, proud man,

Drest in a little brief authority

Most ignorant of what he's most assured,

His glassy essence-like an angry ape,

Plays such fantastic tricks before high Heaven
As makes the angels weep; who with our spleen
Would all themselves laugh mortal."

And why was such treatment given to Mr. Van Dyck? Was it the expression of anger, for the insulted dignity of the Board? Was it to humble the pride of the young man? Or was it to make him feel to the quick his persecuted condition, and thus induce him to find relief by coming cap in hand, acknowledge guilt, manifest shame for misconduct, and beg it as a boon to be received into the favour of the Board and the Church? How many minds, ye sons of pride and intolerance, you have by such measures broken down, and thus kept on a level with

your own, God only knows. It was a mercy to you, that you at length have met a mind capable of resisting your utmost efforts to coerce it into submission to your dogmas, or your assumed authority: or else the same omniscient Being only knows to what extent you would not have been hurried on in your efforts to break down the spirit of free inquiry, and that noble independence which knows no subjection but to legiti« mate authority.

As we have already seen, the student was licensed in August. No measures were taken by the Board, as a body, until it was ascertained what effect the uncivil and ridiculous treatment just mentioned had on his mind. Finding him unmoved, and not discovering by their agents any symptoms of recovery from his independence, the Board resolve to assemble in November; and we find them there no longer contriving any schemes of coercion, but organizing open, undisguised persecution. The young man had obtained a license, contrary to their will, and they determine to punish him. But although the hostility of the Board, and their persecuting spirit, was no longer cloaked, the warfare must still be carried on in disguise. They knew that a candidate of the Presbyterian church was entirely beyond the jurisdiction of the Dutch Church, and emphatically beyond the cognizance of this new made Board of Superintendants; and that of course, a vote of censure proceeding from them, would be as harmless as would be a bull of his Holiness against Professor Milledoler. The object was to injure the licentiate in the Presbyterian Church, where he was licensed. Their aim was to seal up his mouth as a minister of the gospel. They knew he could not unite with Episcopalians. nor Baptists, nor with any other denomination than the Dutch, or Presbyterian, or Congregational Churches. They knew well, that he could not, after the treatment he had received, consent to beg admission into the Dutch Church; unless they had reason to believe, that his constitution was as congenial to live and exercise the ministry of the gospel in the fire of persecution, as that of the salamander is said to be, to live in material fire. But still, they affect to believe that he had obtained his license with purpose

to enter the Dutch Church, and that he persisted in that purpose. Had Mr. Van Dyck given any reason for this supposition? Had he preached, or had he offered to preach in any of the vacant congregations of the Dutch Church? Or did they measure his mind by their own; and thus suppose that he could choose to live in contention all his life, while professing to teach the maxims of the meek and peaceful Saviour? True, as a candidate of the Presbyterian Church, he might have claimed the right of preaching in the pulpits of the Dutch Church;—and the same privilege might be claimed by a licenciate of the Dutch Church, to preach as a candidate in the Presbyterian Church. If then the classis of New-York should, in the exercise of their constitutional powers, license a man to preach the gospel, would that authorize the theological professors or trustees at Princeton, or Auburn, to denounce the licentiate as a heretic, under the pretence that he might presume to claim the right of preaching in that Church? And say that he had been refused at Auburn, on the ground as a disbelief of unlimited atonement, and the classis of New-York had then licensed him, not considering his creed or his disqualification, in what light would such interference at Auburn be viewed in our church? The Board could hardly have been ignorant that their proceedings were wholly irregular and unauthorized. Much allowance must be made, I admit, for prejudice and party rage, so apt to blind men in the perception of the principles of right and wrong; but it will not do to be too liberal in this respect, lest you may confound altogether unintentional error with wilful mischief. The Board then post the licentiate as an unchristian, disorderly, dangerous character. They denounce him ostensibly to the Dutch Churches-virtually to the Presbyterian Church; because in the former he had nothing to do, and in the latter the denunciation would have all the effect which the character of the denouncing party could give it. They demand of the Presbytery of Columbia instantly to revoke their license, and threaten to bring the matter before the General Assembly, in case of refusal. By these measures the circular of the Board became as public in the Presbyterian, as in the Dutch Church; and the Board

well knew it would be so, and intended to have it so. When the Synod afterwards met in April, not a single member, even of the Board, could be found to defend the circular. All knew it to be unauthorized; but the work had been done. One of the members of the Board, with much self devotion to the cause of intolerance and persecution, professed his entire willingness to turn his back to the Synod, to be smitten in the form of an empty vote of censure on the Board for the issuing of the circular; thus evincing the complacency felt in the deed, and the impossibility of having the effects of the circular recalled by the Synod: and doubtless at the conclusion of the proceedings in November, every devoted son of intolerence was prepared in his heart to exclaim with Mark Antony, after his inflammatory speech on the death of Cæsar had began to influence the minds of his hearers,

"Now let it work.-Mischief thou art on foot ;

Take what course thou wilt."

After reading the history of this second meeting of the Board, (see Appendix) it cannot be matter of surprise to learn, that all their proceedings were had, and the circular issued, in the absence of the person who was so deeply affected by them, both in his interests and feelings. One would have presumed that a body of men, professing to act in the fear of God, and in love to men, before they proceeded to adjudicate upon the guilt of an individual, and especially a preacher of the gospel, and to pass sentence upon him, would have given him notice of the time, place, and object of their meeting, and requested his attendance. Had he been cited to appear, he might have satisfied them, that he did not suppose a dismissal from the seminary was at all needful, before he could regularly present himself to the Presbytery. He might have satisfied them, that he did not intend to offer himself to the Dutch Churches at all. He might have interposed some difficulties as to the right of the Board to meddle with his license, or with the Presbytery. For these very reasons, it perhaps did not com port with the views of the leaders in the Board, to have the

object of their vengeance before them. He might, perchance, have staggered some of the brethren, who were not proof against the claims of justice and reason; and this might have defeated the whole object of the meeting. I repeat, therefore, it is no wonder at all, that these men went on in the absence of Mr. Van Dyck, and without giving him any notice, and condemned him, in palpable violation of the universally received maxim, that no man is to be condemned unheard. It was perfectly in character for them to deny to a christian brother, a fellow-preacher of the gospel of righteousness, and of character as fair as they could ever boast, the privilege allowed in every court, ecclesiastical or civil, to every criminal, whether he be a drunkard, adulterer, counterfeiter, robber, murderer, traitor, or the meanest felon.

The minds of the Board had been prepared for these outrageous proceedings by an article in the Magazine of the Reformed Dutch Church, for October, 1827-the professed object of which was to show, that a denial of the doctrine of eternal generation had been condemned as heresy by the Dutch and British churches; that it deserved deposition and excommunication; and that any Presbytery licensing a man who denied the doctrine, violated their duty to God and man. Although the case of Mr. Van Dyck is not mentioned in that article, it needs no eagle eye to perceive that its object was to prepare the Board for energetic measures at the meeting, which was to take place on the first day of November. In this age of coincidences, it may be worthy of notice, that the same Dr. Brownlee, who conducts the aforesaid magazine, was appointed the chairman of the committee which reported the violent resolutions adopted at that meeting.

It was under this load of injurious and persecuting treatment, that Mr. Van Dyck deemed it his duty to lay before the public, in the form of a pamphlet, a short history of the case, with remarks on his own motives and views, and on the acts of the Board;-and, although written with the mildness and modesty becoming his youth and his situation, scarcely had it issued from the press, before we hear of the call of an extra meeting of the General Synod, to be held on the 23d of