To introduce the following report to the reader, we lay befoie him the correspondence of the parties, which immediately preceded the debate.
Bishop Purcell—Respected Sir:
At two o'clock this morning, after a tedious and perilous journey of ten days, I safely arrived in this city. The river having become innavigable in consequence of the ice, I was compelled to leave it and take to the woods, about two hundred miles above. By a zigzag course which carried me to Chillicothe and Columbus, sometimes on foot, sometimes on a sleigh, and finally by the mail stage, I accomplished a land tour of two hundred and forty miles, equal to the whole distance from Wheeling to Cincinnati.
After this my travel's history, I proceed to state, that it was with pleasure I received either from you or some of my friends, a copy of the Daily Gazette, on the 22d ult. intimating your fixed purpose of meeting me in a public discussion of my propositions, or of the points at issue between Roman Catholics and Protestants. This, together with your former declarations in favor of full and free discussion, is not only in good keeping with the spirit of the age, and the genius of our institutions, but fully indicative of a becoming confidence and sincerity in your own cause. Thjs frank and manly course, permit me to add, greatly heightens my esteem for you.
Now, sir, that I am on the premises, I take the earliest opportunity of informing you of my arrival, and of requesting you to name the time and place in which it may be most convenient for you to meet me for the purpose of arranging the preliminaries. It has occurred to me, that it would be useful and commendable to have an authentic copy of our discussion, signed by our own hands, and published with our consent and that, is might have all the authority and credit which we could give it, it would be expedient to sell to some of the publishers in this city, the copyright, and let them employ a stenographer or stenographers to report faithfully the whole matter.
It will also secure for such a work a more extensive reading, and consequently a wider range of usefulness, and I have no doubt, be most acceptable to our feelings, and every way reputable, to devote the profits, or the proceedss of the copyright, to some benevolent institution, on which we may both agree ; or in case of a difference on a fitting institution, that we select each an object to which we can most conscientiously assign all the profits of such publication.
In order to these ends, it will be necessary, that we timously arrange all the preliminaries, and as many persons are now in waiting, I trust it may be every way practicable, during the day, to come to a full understanding on the whole premises.
Very respectfully,
Your ob't. serv't.
A. CAMPBELL.
Mr. Alexander Campbell—My Dear Sir :
I sincerely sympathise with you on the tediousness and perils of your journey, from Bethany to Cincinnati. This is truly a dreadful time to embark on our river, or to traverse our state. The sun's bright face I have not seen for several days ; I hope when the forth-coming discussion is once finished, our minds, like his orb, will be less dimmed by the clouds, and radiate the light and vital warmth without which this world would be a desert waste.
If it meet your convenience, I shall be happy to meet you, at any time in the morning, or in the afternoon, at the Athen.Tum.
Your proposition respecting the sale of an authentic copy of the discussion to a publisher, and the proceeds, all expenses deducted, applied to the benefit of some charitable institution, or institutions, meets my hearty concurrence. And I propose that one half the avails of sale be given to the " Cincinnati Orphan Asylum," and the other half to the " St. Peter's female Orphan Asylum," corner of Third and Plum streets, Cincinnati.
With best wishes for your eternal welfare, and that of all those who sinceiely seek for the truth as it is in Christ Jesus, I remain
Very respectfully yours,
+ JOHN B. PURCELL,
Bishop of Cincinnati.
1. We agree that the copy-right of the discussion shall be sold to some bookseller, who shall have it taken down by a stenographer, and that all the avails of the copy-right shall be equally divided between two such public charities as Bishop Purcell and Mr. Campbell shall respectively designate,
2. That the discussion shall take place in the Sycamore-street meeting house ; and it shall continue seven days, exclusive of Sunday, commencing to-day, (Friday, 13th) from half past 9 o'clock, A. M. to half past 12, and from 3 to 5 P. M., each day.
3. Mr. Campbell shall open the discussion each session, and Bishop Purcell respond. During the morning session the first speech of each shall not exceed an hour, nor the second half an hour. In the afternoon each speaker shall occupy only half an hour.
4. This discussion shall be under the direction of a board of fire moderators; of whom each party shall choose two, and these a fifth: any three of whom shall constitute a quorum.
5. The duties of the moderators shall be to preserve order in the assembly, and to keep the parties to the question.
+ JOHN B. PURCELL,
A. CAMPBELL.
1. The Roman Catholic Institution, sometimes called the 'Holy, Apostolic, Catholic, Church,' is not now, nor was she ever, catholic, apostolic, or holy ; but is a sect in the fair import of that word, older than any other sect now existing, not the ' Mother and Mistress of all Churches,' but an apostacy from the only true, holy, apostolic, and catholic church of Christ.''
2. Her notion of apostolic succession is without any foundation in the Bible, in reason, or in fact ; an imposition of the most injurious consequence*, built upon unscriptural and anti-scriptural traditions, resting wholly upon the opinions of interested and fallible men.
3. She is not uniform in her faith, or united in her members ; but muta ble and fallible, OF any other sect of philosophy or religion Jewish, Turkyiii ish, or Christian a confederation of sects with a politico-ecclesiastic head.
4. She is the "Babylon" of John, the "Man of sin of Paul, and the Empire ofithe "Youngest Horn" of Daniel's Sea Monster.
5. Her notions of purgatory, indulgences, auricular confession, remission of sins, transubstantiation, supererogation, &c., essential elements of her system, are immoral in their tendency, and injurious to the well-being of society, religious and political.
6. Notwithstanding her pretensions to have given us the Bible, and faith in it, we are perfectly independent of her for our knowledge of that book, and its evidences of a divine original.
7. The Roman Catholic religion, if infallible and unsusceptible of reformation, as alleged, is essentially anti-American, being opposed to the genius of all free institutions, and positively subversive of them, opposing the general reading of the scriptures, and the diffusion of useful knowledge among the whole community, so essential to liberty and the permanency of gocJ government.
A. CAMPBELL
CINCINNATI, 12th January, 1887,
