at Mr. Beecher's rapidly growing
popularity, and who made a point of finding fault with everything he
did. These declared that Henry Ward Beecher had desecrated the House of
God by taking flowers into the pulpit during religious worship! This,
however, affected neither Mr. Beecher nor the church. Flowers on the
pulpit had come to stay, and stay they did, and now are recognised as a
legitimate part of church service all over the world.

_PLYMOUTH MEMBERS_

Plymouth Church was born in days of strife. It was natural that the
militant element should be dominant. The very way in which the church
was organised was illustrative of their methods. The prompt improvement
of the opportunity to buy the property, the meeting one week, the
opening of services the next week, the organisation of the church, the
calling of the council, the invitation to Mr. Beecher to be their
pastor, all in quick succession, were characteristic.

Mr. Howard was one who naturally foresaw the possibilities for the
future, and thus came into leadership in the origin of the enterprise.
Once started, however, the initiative and the dominating influence
belonged to a group of men, of considerable note at the time as being
closely identified with the anti-slavery agitation, and who were out of
patience with what they considered the time-serving policy of too many
of the churches, and particularly of the various benevolent and
missionary societies: Henry C. Bowen, Richard Hale, Arthur and Lewis
Tappan. These were in business, chiefly dry goods, and had large
connections with the South. As the strife grew more severe, complaints
grew, and finally the Southern merchants drew up a list of Northern
merchants with whom they would have no dealings. All four of these men
were on that list. Mr. Bowen's partner, Mr. McNamee, was one with him,
but it was Mr. Bowen in particular who sent the famous retort, when
urged to cater to his Southern constituency:

"Our goods are for sale, but not our principles."

He, as others, suffered for this, but the only effect it had was to
strengthen them in the position they had taken. The American nation owes
a debt of gratitude to the patriotic New York merchants who stood for
liberty and their country in these perilous times. Among the first were
A. T. Stewart, Simeon B. Chittenden and H. B. Claflin.

It was natural under the circumstances that the early history of the
church should have been very much controlled by the