undisputed field; and by the time of the
revolution, a majority of the inhabitants had become dissenters from
the established church, but were still obliged to pay contributions to
support the pastors of the minority. This unrighteous compulsion, to
maintain teachers of what they deemed religious errors, was grievously
felt during the regal government, and without a hope of relief. But
the first republican legislature, which met in '76, was crowded with
petitions to abolish, this spiritual tyranny. These brought on the
severest contests in which I have ever been engaged. Our great opponents
were Mr. Pendleton and Robert Carter Nicholas; honest men, but zealous
churchmen. The petitions were referred to the committee of the whole
House on the state of the country; and, after desperate contests in
that committee, almost daily, from the 11th of October to the 5th
of December, we prevailed so far only, as to repeal the laws, which
rendered criminal the maintenance of any religious opinions, the
forbearance of repairing to church, or the exercise of any mode of
worship: and further, to exempt dissenters from contributions to the
support of the established church; and to suspend, only until the next
session, levies on the members of the church for the salaries of
their own incumbents. For although the majority of our citizens were
dissenters, as has been observed, a majority of the legislature were
churchmen. Among these, however, were some reasonable and liberal men,
who enabled us, on some points, to obtain feeble majorities. But our
opponents carried, in the general resolutions of the committee of
November 19, a declaration, that religious assemblies ought to be
regulated, and that provision ought to be made for continuing the
succession of the clergy, and superintending their conduct. And in the
bill now passed, was inserted an express reservation of the question,
Whether a general assessment should not be established by law, on every
one, to the support of the pastor of his choice; or whether all should
be left to voluntary contributions: and on this question, debated at
every session from '76 to '79 (some of our dissenting allies, having
now secured their particular object, going over to the advocates of a
general assessment), we could only obtain a suspension from session to
session until '79, when the question against a general assessment was
finally carried, and the establishment of the Anglican church entirely
put dow