Transcription:
2 muddy ink muddy thoughts will settle to the seriousness or anger that naturally belongs to the subject I do not like the
doctrine of close communion as held by hard shells, because the whole clumsy structure of the thing rests upon a foundation
of coarse- grained dogmatism - Imperious, bollapright exclusiveness upon any subject is hateful, but it becomes absolutely
hideous empions in matters of religion, where all men are equally interested - I have no patience at all for the man who complacently
wipes his pious lips waves me away from a simple rite which commemorates the love sacrifice of Christ - telling me Go out
from us for you are not of us , all this not for want of Christian 3 love on my part, or the practice of self denying
virtues in seeking to elevate myself; but simply because in his infallable judgement I am mistaken in the number of quarts
of that common liquid we call water which should be made use of in baptism - - - - - - - I think infant baptism by sprinkling
or any other mode is a beautiful impressive ordinance, however the scrip- ture of the thing is interpreted no parent can be
doing an unseemly or unchristian act in dedicating a child to God taking upon him vows to lead his child in the path that
all good people believe in. The baptism of an old sinner is apt to do but little good but the baptism of an infant