JAN 10 2000 
 
 BX9161 .M67 1846 
 
 
 Morgan, George, 1802- 
 
 -1880. 
 
 Remarks on the state 
 
 of the 
 
 Scottish Church Cape 
 
 Town, 
 
 in reply to a 
 
 
A^ 
 
KBMAEKS 
 
 THE STATE 
 
 : OF mHCETo^ 
 m IS 2000 
 
 THE SCOTTISH CHURCH 
 
 CAPE TOWN, 
 
 IN* EEPLY TO A LETTER WHICH APPEARED IN THE " CALCUTTA FREE 
 CHURCHJIAX" OF DECEMBER 15, 1845. 
 
 THE PiEV. GEORGE MORGAl^, 
 
 -V.IXISTEU OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH CAPE TOWN. 
 
 " A:vncrs socrates, amicus plato, stD iMjicis amica Veritas." 
 
 CAPE TOWN: 
 
 A. S. ROBERTSOX, No. 21, HEFREGRACHT. 
 
 1840. 
 
E E M A R K S 
 
 THE STATE 
 
 THE SCOTTISH CHURCH 
 
 CAPE TOWN, 
 
 I.Y REPLY TO A LETTER WHICH APPEARED IN THE " CALCUTTA FREE 
 CHURCHMAN" OF DECEMBER 15, 1845. 
 
 BY 
 
 THE EEV. GEOEGE MOEGAJS^^ 
 
 MINISTBR OF THE SCOTTISH CHURCH CAPE TOWN. 
 
 '' A>JICL'S SOCR.n LS, AMICUS PLATO, SED MjlGIS AMICA VERITAS." 
 
 CAPE TOWN: 
 
 A. 8. ROBERTSON, No. 21, HEEREGRACHT. 
 
 1846. 
 
PriiiJpd by 
 
 Saul Solomon & Co , 
 
 50, St. George's-strcet, Cope Town. 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 It was the original intention of the writer of the following pages 
 to forward his remarks in manuscript to the Editor of the Free 
 Churchman, for insertion in that periodical. It was soon found, 
 Iiowever, 'that tliey Avere likely to become so lengtliy that it 
 would be doubtful whether the Editor could conveniently publish 
 them in their entire form ; and besides, there were other consider- 
 ations which seemed to render it desirable to have them printed at 
 Cape Town. With this view the C*)mnmnication in the Free Church' 
 man, to which they are intended as a reply, has been reprinted, and 
 botli are now presented to the reader.^* A correspondence having 
 tidcen place between the parties, on the same subject, in the month 
 of October 1845 (a few weeks after tlie date of tlie letter in the 
 Free Churchman) it has been thought proper to give it along 
 witli the rest ; more especialh" as the gentleman who opened the 
 eorj'espondence appears to have contemplated its publication (see 
 Appendix H.) A copy of the pamphlet will be transmitted to 
 the Editor of the Free Churcliman; and one will also be handed 
 to his friend (who is still in Capo Town) as soon as it can be 
 issued from the press. 
 
 Cape Toon, 
 
 23/yZ September 1846. 
 
REMARKS, &c. 
 
 Cape Town^ 24th July 1846. 
 To the Editor of the Calcutta "Free Churchmaji.'" 
 
 Sir, — In the Free Churchman for December last, there is 
 an article headed " State of the Free Church at the Cape of Good 
 Hope," containing a " letter from Cape Town, dated August and 
 September 1845." 
 
 The writer of this letter, whose name is not given, commences 
 with explaining the object which he had in view in writing to you, 
 and which, if I understand him aright, was twofold, — -Jirst to sa- 
 tisfy you that he coukl not, as an elder of the Free Church, con- 
 sistently join the Scottish Church here, because he considered that 
 its ecclesiastical status was that of a Church in connection with the 
 Established Church of Scotland, and secondly, to show that two 
 letters which had appeared in the Scottish Guardian, one from 
 Dr, Abercrombie and the other from myself, were " calculated to 
 give an erroneous impression of things in connection with the Free 
 Church in this Colony." 
 
 That your correspondent should feel deeply interested in such 
 matters, is no more than might be expected from one holding a 
 responsible office in the Christian Church ; and, that he should be 
 desirous of explaining to his friends the grounds on which he 
 (Jeemed it necessary to adopt a particular line of conduct, is natural 
 and becoming. For tliis, none can be less disposed to blame him than 
 I am. At the same time it seems but reasonable to expect that 
 one who professes to correct statements which appear to him cal- 
 culated to give erroneous impressions, should himself be careful 
 to obtain full and accurate information, and to convey it distinctly 
 to the minds of others. It is because I think your correspon- 
 dent has failed in this respect, that I am induced to trouble 
 you with the following remarks. 
 
 The reason why I have not noticed his communication sooner is 
 simply this. It was only eight days ago that I obtained a sight of 
 
 A 
 
the Free Churchman for December last. It is two months, indeed, 
 since I heard that it had then been in Cape Town for a consider- 
 able time, but though other number^; of tlie Free Churclwian of 
 a later date have been in free or at least unimpeded circulation, 
 this number has, either intentionally or unintentionally, been with- 
 held from myself and others till now. It may therefore be my 
 misfortune, but it cannot be my fault, that my reply makes its 
 appearance so late. 
 
 In treating the several points brought forward by your corres- 
 pondent it appears to me that the most satisfactory method will be 
 to reverse the order which he has observed, and to consider first 
 the ecclesiastical status of the Scottish Church at Cape Town, and 
 then the statements contained in the tv/o letters to which he refers. 
 
 If the )-eader will turn to the '^ Free Churchman" for 
 December, he Avill find that your correspondent, in the com- 
 mencement of his letter, rests his objection to the status of this 
 Church entirely on the ground that it is " that of a Chinch in 
 connection with the Established Church of Scotland." I should 
 have exjDccted that he would bring forward direct evidence to prove 
 this j)oint ; but instead of doing so, he mixes up the Civil Govern- 
 ment with the Church of Scotland, as ifthey were nearly identical, 
 until he comes to sum up his case, v^^hen he appears to give up the 
 idea of a connection with the Established Church, or at least to 
 mahe it subordinate to a connection with the Government. But 
 before dealing with his conclusions, it is necessary to examine 
 his premises; and as he seems to lay as much stress on the civil 
 as the ecclesiastical relationship of this Church, I shall treat 
 the subject with reference to both. 
 
 With a view to clear the way for argument, I must premise 
 some general observations relative to each of these points. 
 
 1st. With respect to a relationsldp between a Church and a Civil 
 Government, I think it must be admitted that no Government 
 can justly claim any authority over, or right of interference witli, 
 the affairs of a Christian Congregation or Community, except 
 what is vested in it by the law of the land, "or by virtue of a 
 special compact or agreement according to law. In some countries 
 all ecclesiastical matters are under the control of Government. In 
 other countries one particular Church may, by an act of the 
 legislature, be placed, wholly or partially, under such control, 
 Avhile other Churches are left perfectly free and unfettered in the 
 management of their own affairs. But in any country, where 
 there is no law to prevent it, the Government may, either of its 
 own free will, and with a view to promote the interests of religion, 
 
bestow certain temporal beiiefitig on a Church gratuitously , or it 
 may agree to confer these benefits in consideration of its being 
 allowed the right of ijatronagc, or any other rights that may be 
 conceded to it by the otlier party. In the one case the grant ig 
 voluntary and unconditional ; in the other it is of the nature of a 
 private contract, and, like any other contract, comes under the 
 operation of the law of the land. 
 
 Now, without referring at present to the law of this Colony as it 
 formerly stood, I shall quote a portion of an OrcUnance passed 
 by the Legislative Council, and promulgated on the 8th November 
 1843, to show what is the existing law relative to ecclesiastical affairs 
 generally within the Colony. It is entitled " An Ordinance for 
 repealing the Church Regulations of the 25th July 1804j and 
 enacting others in their stead," and runs thus : — 
 
 1. Whereas the church regulations made and published by the Commis=ionep 
 General of the then Batavian Government of the Cape of Good Hope, J. A. da 
 Mist, L.L.D., bearing date the 25th July 1804, have, iu many respects, ceased 
 to be suitable either to the Dutch Reformed Church or to the ecclesiastical con- 
 dition of this colony in general. And, whereas it is expedient, in order that other 
 and more suitable provisions should be substituted for such portions of the 
 regulations aforesaid as have become obsolete or inapplicable, that the said 
 regulations should be wholly repealed, and the substance of such of them as it is 
 desirable to preserve expressly re-enacted : Be it therefore enacted, by the 
 Governor of the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope, with the advice and consent 
 of the legislative council thereof, that the said church regulations of the 25th cf 
 July 1804, and all other laws or customs heretofore in force in this colony, so 
 far as the same are repugnant to, or inconsistent with, any of the provisions of 
 this Ordinance, shall be and the same are hereby repealed- 
 
 2. And be it enacted and declared, that no religious community, or deuomin- 
 ation within this colony, is or shall be entitled to claim, as matter of right, from 
 or out of Her Majesty's revenue in this colony, any pecuniary contribution or 
 allowance, for or towards the support of the ministry of any such community or 
 denomination, or any other object whatsoever ; and that all such sums as shall, 
 from time to time, be granted from and out of the said revenue, to or in behalf 
 of any such community or denomination, shall be deemed to be merely voluntary 
 and gratuitous, and, as such, to be, at all times and exclusively, under the 
 absolute disposition and control of government, and revocable at Iler Majesty's 
 will and pleasure. 
 
 The rest of the Ordinance refers exclusively to the Dutch 
 Reformed Church. The following sections are important, as 
 shewing that this Church occupies a position different from that 
 of any of the other Churches in the Colony. 
 
 3. And whereas it is expedient, that the religious comnjunity or denomination commonly 
 called the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa should be invested with the power of 
 regulating its own internal affairs : And whereas the general assembly or synod of the said 
 cliurch is the natural and proper ecclesiastical authority by which rules and regulations for 
 the government of the said church in its own internal affairs may rightfully be made : And 
 
whereas the lust general assembly or synod of the said church, which was Iteld In Capa 
 Town in the month of November 1842, did agree upon, and desire to have duly authorised 
 and established, a number of rules and regulations, having for their object the proper 
 direction and management of the said church in its own internal affairs : And whereas it 
 is exi)cdient, in order to prevent delay and inconvenience, that the said lastnxentioned rules 
 and regulations should, with some exceptions, be forthwith established, and declared to 
 form and be the rules and regulations, for the time being, of the said church : Be it enacted, 
 that all former rules and regulations for the government of the said church, whensoever 
 and by whomsoever made, shall be, and the same are hereby declared to be, repealed, and 
 that the several rules and regulations in the schedule to this Ordinance contained, shall be, 
 and the same are hereby declared to be, the rules and regulations, for the time being, of 
 the said church, and shall be duly observed as such. 
 
 4. A'nd be it enacted, that it shall be lawful for the general assembly or synod of the said 
 church, from time to time, duly assembled, and proceeding in conformity with the rules 
 or regulations for the time being in regard to the manner and form of altering, enlarging, 
 or improving church laws and ordinances, to add to, annul, alter, enlarge, or improve the 
 rules and regulations contained in the said schedule, and any further or other rules and 
 regulations which may, from time to time, be successively established : Provided always, 
 that any rule or regulation of the said general assembly or synod repugnant to, or incon- 
 sistent with, any of the provisions of this ordinance, shall be null and void. 
 
 5. And be it enacted, that in every case in which a vacancy shall occur in the office of 
 minister in any congregation belonging to tlie said church, of whicli congregation the 
 minister, for the time being, receives a salary from the colonial government, the governor 
 of this colony for the time being shall have and possess, and sliall exercise in whatever 
 manner he shall deem the best for the vacant congregation, the sole and unrestricted right 
 of filling up such vacancy, by the appointment of whatever individual he may Select from 
 amongst the number of such ministers as shall by the rules and regulations of the said 
 Dutch reformed church for the time being, be competent to be appointed to supply vacancies 
 in the ministry thereof. 
 
 6. And be it enacted, that the said Dutch reformed church shall be and remain a church, 
 exercising its discipline and government by consistories, presbyteries, and a general 
 assembly or synod, and acknowledging, receiving, and professing, in regard to the doctrine 
 thereof, the doctrines contained in the confession of the synod of Dort and in the Heidelberg 
 catechism ; and if any questions or divisons respecting church government, discipline, or 
 doctrine should hereafter arise between any members or reputed members of the said church, 
 or of any congregation, consistory, presbytery, or general assembly of the same, then those 
 persons adhering to, and professing, respectively, the said discipline and government, and 
 the doctrines of the said confession and catechism, shall be deemed and taken as against all 
 persons who shall adhere to and profess any difTerent discipline, government or doctrines, 
 to be the true congregation, consistory, presbytery, or general assembly, as the case may 
 be, of the said church, and as such, of right entitled to the possession, and enjoyment of 
 any funds, endowments, oi other property or rights by law belonging to the said church, 
 or to the congregation, consistory, presbytery, or general assembly, in which any such 
 questions or divisions shall have arisen. 
 
 Now, it is clear from the above, that by law there is no siicli thing 
 as a permanent Church Endowment in this Colon}-, and that all 
 pecuniary grants from Government are entirely gratuitous and 
 revocable at pleasure. Even the Dutch Reformed Church, Avhich 
 is legally established, that is, has its doctrines, form of govern- 
 ment, and discipline fixed and defined by the Legislature, has no 
 legal endowment. And though, in respect of this Church, the 
 Gov^crnraent, where it pays the salary, claims by law the right of 
 
patronage*, yet it declares the pecuniary aid afforded to be gratui- 
 tous, and provided solely by the annual vote of the Legislative 
 Council. 
 
 And it is equally clear, from the above extracts, that no other 
 Church in this Colony is placed under any legal restraint, as to 
 its form and povrers of government, or in respect to its doctrines 
 and discipline. The Governor, it is true ; is the OnUnarij of the 
 Episcopalian Churches; but whatever may be the powers or 
 duties belonging to this office, it is, I presume, conferred directly 
 by the Crown as the temporal and ecclesiastical head of tlie Clnirch 
 of England, in consequence of there being no Episcopalian Bishop 
 here. With respect to Church Patronage I will venture to assert, 
 that it cannot be legally exercised by Government in any case, except 
 in regard to the Dutch Reformed Church, merely on the ground of 
 its granting pecuniary aid. The right must be conceded to it, 
 either by a positive legal enactment, or by the party receivino- 
 such aid at its hands. 
 
 2nd. With respect to a connection with the Estahlishcd Church 
 of Scotland, and the manner in which such connection can he 
 formed, f 
 
 On this point I must enter somewhat more into detail. 
 
 It is obvious that any number of Christians, say Scottish Pres- 
 byterians, residing in any part of the world, may form themselves 
 into a Church or Congregation, and adopt the confession of faith, 
 and forms of worship, government, and discipline recognised by 
 the Established Church of Scotland, so far as the law of the land 
 and local circumstances permit. They may do so with the desire 
 and expectation of being incoi-porated with that Church, so as not 
 only to maintain a friendly correspondence with it, but also to 
 be represented in its courts, and placed under its jurisdiction. 
 They may make proposals to this effect to the Church of Scot- 
 land, and use every means in their power to attain their object. 
 All this, however, is merely an initial step. It is nothing more 
 
 * A regard to local circumstances has probably induced the Government, with 
 the consent of the Legislative Council, to retain the patronage in its own hands for 
 the present ; but it is hoped that the time is not distant when this right will be 
 legally transferred to the Dutch Reformed Church itself. 
 
 t I follow the example set me in the Free Churchman by leaving the exact 
 meaning of the word connection undetermined, merely remarking that it is often used, 
 —not only in common conversation, but in public documents, — in a very vague, 
 indefinite manner ; being at one time applied to Churches incorporated with the 
 Church of Scotland, and at other times to Churches merely holding the same 
 leading principles of faith and polity, and even formally united with a religious 
 community bearing a different name. 
 
8 
 
 than a proposal, or rather a petition, from one party to another 
 and more powerful party, having a will and a law of its own. 
 No connection of any kind Avhatever can take place without the 
 full consent of the other party, — viz. the Church of Scotland ; 
 and that party cannot give its consent, so as to render the union 
 valid, except in a constitutional way. 
 
 Now, what is the law and practice of the Established Church 
 of Scotland in regard to the formation of a union with other 
 Churches and [Congregations at home and abroad ? Within the 
 territorial limits of Scotland, where the Church has a legal 
 establishment, its powers are more extensive and better defined 
 than in reference to any other countiy. But even in Scotland it 
 has been found tliat the Cliurch has no inherent power to erect 
 a new Congregation from among its own members, or to receive 
 a Conf£res:ation into communion with itself from anv of the 
 Secession bodies around it, so as in either case to give that Con- 
 gregation the full status and privileges belonging to a component 
 part of the Established Church. All that it can do in such cases 
 is to form the Congregation into a Chapel of Ease, * as it is called, 
 and to ordain a minister for it, to preach and administer the 
 sacraments ; but that minister has no Kirk Session, he has no 
 share in the government of the Church, and no right to sit in any 
 Church Court. Both the Minister and his Congregation are 
 subject to the jurisdiction of the Church Courts, without being 
 represented in them. The position of these Chapels of Ease was 
 Considered to be so anomalous, so degrading, and attended with so 
 many practical disadvantages, that petitions and overtures were 
 presented to the General Assembly from year to year, praying 
 to have them placed on a more favorable footing; These appli- 
 catioiis, howevei', Avere unsuccessful till the year 1834, when after 
 much discussion respecting both the legality and expediency of 
 the proposed measure, the Assembly passed a declaratory law 
 admitting Chapels of Ease to the status of parish Churches 
 quoad sacra. This law was carried into effect by the Presbyteries ; 
 districts were allocated for the new Churches ; Kirk Sessions wer§ 
 assigned them ; and they were duly represented in the Church 
 Courts, their commissioners being allowed to deliberate and vote 
 in all spiritual ^natters. This, indeed, was no new thing ; for 
 Chapels of Ease had previously been erected into parish Churches 
 by the authority of the ecclesiastical courts, after observing certain 
 
 * There are in Scotland many otlier Chapels belonging to the Established 
 Church, called Parliamentary and Extension Churches, but their ecclesiastical 
 status is uearly the same as that of the Chapels of Ease. 
 
9. 
 
 forms of procedure. But it had recently been discovered by 
 some, who were formerly of a different opinion, that the CImrch 
 had exceeded its powers ; and, on the question being brought 
 before the Civil Courts, it was decided that it was ultra vires of 
 the General Assembly to pass such a law, without the sanction 
 of Parliament, and therefore that all proceedings founded upon 
 it were null and void.* Whether tliis decision was just or not, 
 it is not for me to determine. But I am warranted in drawing 
 the inference that it was not, at th.at time at least, so easy a 
 matter for the Established Church of Scotland to form new con- 
 nections as some appear to suppose.f 
 
 If we cro;s the borders of Scotland, we find the difficulty equally 
 great. In England, there were in the year 1835, fifty-one Scottish 
 Presbyterian Congregations, composing five Presbyteries, besides 
 eleven Congregations of the same kind unconnected with any 
 
 * The following is the view given of the above matter by the Commission of' 
 the General Assembly in their '' Petilion to Parliament," dated January 31, 1843. 
 After complaining of various encroachments on the part of the Court of Session, 
 they proceed : " And in the Stewarton case, they suspended and interdicted the 
 establishment of an additional pastoral charge in a parish, prohibited the reception 
 of the minister of it into the Presbytery, the institution of a new Kirk-Session, the 
 allocation of a special district for the purposes of pastoral superintendence and 
 spiritual discipline, or the making any alteration in the state of the parish as 
 regards these matters. 
 
 That the establishment of additional charges, and the admission of the ministers 
 into Church Courts, had been invariably and in numerous instances, extending 
 from the passing of the Act 1592 down to the present time, effected by anthority 
 of the Church Courts alone, without challenge or question, and the validity of 
 her acts as to this matter had, in accordance with a train of high legal authority, 
 been recognised by an unanimous decision of the Court of Session so lately as 
 1836 ; while the power of the Church to erect districts or parishes quoad spiri- 
 tualia was expressly acknowledged by an act of his late Majesty King William 
 ("4 and 5, William IV., c. 41); and that the practical effect of the decision 
 above-mentioned, if submitted to by the Church, would be to extinguish about 
 two hundred pastoral charges, of eminent utility to the country, and maintained 
 without expense to the State, — to annihilate as many Kirk-Sessions, now in active 
 and useful operation, to throw back the whole population of overgrown parishes 
 (extending in one case to 110,000 souls) on the exclusive pastoral superintendence 
 and spiritual discipline of a single minister and Kirk-Session, — and to subject all 
 increase of the means of such superintendence and discipline, though at the sole 
 expense of the inhabitants themselves, to the absolute will and pleasure of any 
 proprietors of a parish holding one-fourth of the land within it." 
 
 t I understand that since the disruption in the Church of Scotland took place, 
 an Act of Parliament has been passed with a view to facilitate the erection of new 
 Churches in the Establishment, but whether it has been deemed satisfactory or 
 not I have not ascertained. The latest accounts which I have seen, state that the 
 Church has not, at all events, availed itself of it. 
 
10 
 
 PresbylC'i-y.* The Ministers of these Churches wore all, or nearly 
 all, licentiates of the Established Church of Scotland, and both the 
 Ministers and Members adhered to the Westminster Standards 
 and Confession of Faith. Previous to the disruption in 1843, 
 repeated applications Avere made by them to the General Assembly, 
 praying for a union, but without success. On the 24th May 
 1833, a Memorial Avas presented to the Assembly from the 
 Ministers and Elders of the Scotch Presbytery of London " setting 
 forth the number of evils arising from the vague informal relation 
 in which they stood to the Church of Scotland, and suggesting 
 that if they were placed in the same situation in this respect as the 
 Church in India, it might tend to remove these evils."t The 
 result was the appointment of a Committee to take the Memorial 
 into consideration, and to report thereon to next Assembly. The 
 next Assembly came, a Report was given in, much sympathy 
 was expressed, but the result was the same as before. The Com- 
 mittee was reappointed with instructions to reconsider the matter, 
 and report to the following Assembly. In 1835 an important step 
 was o-ained. The Assembly recommended the Scottish Presby- 
 teries in England to form themselves into one or more Synods, 
 engaging that if they did so " in a way and manner agreeable to 
 the constitution and laws of the Church of Scotland, they would 
 allow them to enter into such communications with them, as 
 should distinctly mark their recognition of them as a branch of the 
 Church of Scotland." This condition having been fulfilled by the 
 formation of a Synod, a motion was made and carried in the 
 Assembly of 1836 to the effect, " that the Presbyterian Synod in 
 England be recognized as a branch of the Church of Scotland, 
 and be received into her ministerial Communion, that the 
 Assembly will gladly receive from the said Synod, and make to 
 them as occasion may offer, communications regarding the well- 
 being of their Churches, and the progress of the Gospel among 
 them, and will further aid them with their counsel in matters 
 wherein their advice may be required." 
 
 No further advances seem to have been made till May 1839, 
 when in consequence of a jjetition from the Presbyterian Church 
 in England, supported by overtures from several Synods and 
 Presbyteries in Scotland, urging a closer connection with the 
 General Assembly, it was moved that the Synod in England, 
 
 * Edinburgh Almanack 1 835. 
 
 f This aud the subsequent extracts from the proceedings of the General As- 
 sembly, ore most^taken from the Scottish Guardian and Presbytei-ian Beview, 
 
II 
 
 " ill addition to the privileL;cs granted in 18311, be allowed to be 
 represented in the Assembly of tlic Church of Scotland, by two 
 Ministers, and two Eiders, with power to deliberate and vote as 
 Coi'responding Members." 
 
 This motion was rejected by a large majority; — but another 
 motion made by Mr. Dunlop was carried, to the effect that the two 
 Churches should carry on a friendly communication by means of 
 Deputations to and from their respective supreme judicatories &c. 
 
 The following were the terms of the General Assembly's deci- 
 sion, as given by the Rev. Professor Lorimer, of the English 
 Presbyterian College ; and it is important as shov.'ing the max- 
 imum bonum which the General Assembly could grant to her 
 sister Church in England : — 
 
 "That the General Assembly having heard the dcputaliou from the General 
 Synod of the Presbyterian Church in England, and having considered the Over- 
 tures anent their relation to this Church, desire to renew the expression of their 
 heartfelt satisfaction at the formation of a Synod, as a superior judicatory, by the 
 Presbyteries in England adhering to the Westminster Standards and Confession of 
 Faith, and earnestly desirous of strengthening the hands of the said Synod, so far 
 as is in their power, and of establishing the most friendly and intimate relation- 
 ship between the said Presbyterian Church in England and this Church, the 
 General Assembly resolve, that with concurrence of the said Synod, the two 
 Churches shall mutually interchange friendly communications, by means of 
 deputations to and from their respective supreme judicatories. And the General 
 Assembly agree to nominate and appoint a deputation to attend the Meet- 
 ing of the said Synod, to communicate to the Synod this Act, and 'to assure them 
 of the warm and brotherly affection wherewith this Church regards the allied 
 Church of which they are the Supreme Court, and the earnest desire ente:- 
 tained by this Church to co-operate to the utmost of their power in promo- 
 ting the interests of the Presbyterian Church in England, to which they are hound 
 alike by present ties and by the grateful recollections of former days."* 
 
 It is but fair to add that some who vrcre oppo^sed to a union 
 Avith the Presbyterian Church in England, on the ground that 
 
 • Professor Lorimer, speaking of this decision of the General Assembly five 
 years afterwards, expresses his own opinion as follows : — 
 
 " This was a decision of the greatest importance to the interests of our Church ; 
 and reluctant as we were then to acknowledge the wisdom of those eminent men in 
 the Church of Scotland, who proposed and carried it as a final settlement of our 
 relations to that Church, I am sure we are all prepared noio to confess that 
 it was the wisest and best decision that could have been given for our own 
 prosperity and success as a Christian body. It threw us upon our own 
 resources of self-government. It forced upon us a separate ecclesiastical 
 status at a time when the most of us would have thought it agreater boon 
 to be allowed to merge ourselves in the Scottish Establishment; and ic 
 rapidly produced an expansion of viev/s, which led us atlengthto claim as our right 
 that independence which we had long been unwilling to acknowledge to be even 
 desirable." — Intivdnciiyni Lecture at the opennig of the En^lifh Pieshvtcvian Coliega, 
 Ncvember 1341. 
 
 E 
 
12 
 
 E]iiscopacy was already established there; expressed themselves 
 more favorable to a connection Avith the Colonial Churches. 
 
 Let us now turn to Ireland, where there are many true Pres- 
 byterians, who in respect of talent, piety, and zeal, would be an 
 ornament to any Church. Presbyterianism was introduced into 
 the province of Ulster by Scottish colonists more than two cen- 
 turies ago, and has subsisted there amidst many vicissitudes of 
 fortune, civil and religious, to the present day. The first emigrants 
 were followed in the year 1609 by several Presbyterian ministers 
 from Scotland, and some nonconformist ministei-s from England, 
 and these again were followed by others ; but though the laboui"s 
 of these godly men were greatly blessed, they were unable, in 
 those troublous times, to organize a Presbyterian Church, or 
 establish any regular form of Church government. Previous to 
 the breaking out of the rebellion in 1641, most of the Scotch 
 ministers and gentry had been- compelled to quit Ireland, and the 
 Protestant religion there was in a most depressed condition. 
 
 Presbyterianism, however, and along with it, true religion 
 was greatly revived by the arrival of some Scottish regiments, . 
 accompanied by military Chaplains. These, having first formed 
 Kirk-sessions in the different regiments, held the first regularly 
 constituted Presbytery in Ireland in Carrickfergus, 10th June 
 1642.* Applications were soon made by tlie people to have the 
 preaching of the Gospel from these ministers, which was granted 
 so far as circumstances allowed. " At this time, and for several 
 subsequent years," says Dr. Hetherington, "the Genei-al As- 
 sembly of the Church of Scotland manifested its sympathy for 
 the distressed state of the Presbyterian Churcli in Ireland, by 
 addressing encouraging letters to them, and sending ministers to 
 administer the ordinances of relio;ion to destitute conffreoations." 
 
 Not long afterwards the synod of Ulster seems to have been 
 formed, and at the Revolution Settlement, a Reglum Domim 
 of £, 1200 annually was granted for the maintenance of the 
 ministers, and this grant has since been gradually increased, till 
 it now amounts to upwards of <£14,000.t -Owing to various 
 causes, and particularly to the introduction and growth of Arianism 
 
 * It is said that by an Act of Assembly passed tliis year, " Colonels were 
 obliged to find caution for maintaining a minister, and keeping a session in their 
 regiments." 
 
 + " The synod of Ulster hold an endowment from the state, and are therefore 
 as thorough Church Establishment in principle, as the Churcli of Scotland ; while 
 yet, no return for this in the shape of government patronage is asked, or would be 
 endured for a moment." Erf. Scottish GtianUan, Mai/ 26, 1836. 
 
 '' So peaceful and orderly is Ulster found to be under the lni^istration^ of the 
 
13 
 
 in the Presbyterian Churches in Ireland, the friendly intercourse 
 that formerly subsisted between the synod of Ulster and the 
 General Assembly was entirely broken off, by an Act of the 
 Assembly in 1799,* and no attempt appears to have been made, 
 to renew it, till about the year 1814 when a correspondence 
 took place which proved unsatisfactory to both parties. In 1817 
 a Theological Professorship, in connection with the synod, was 
 instituted at Belfast. Prior to this, the Irish Theological students 
 wei'c educated chiefly at the Scottish Universities, but received 
 licence and ordination from the Ulster synod. Some, I believe, 
 were licentiates of the Church of Scotland, Avho had gone over 
 to Ireland, and received calls to Churches there. The Ulster 
 synod having in 1826 in a great measure purged itself from 
 Arianism, and other doctrinal errors, by requiring a subscription 
 to the Westminster Confession of Faith from all its office bearers 
 and licentiates, the way was prepared for a renewal of friendly 
 interconimunion with the Church of Scotland. f An application 
 was made to this effect to the General Assembly in 1835 ; the 
 matter -was refei-red to a committee, and the following year the 
 Assembly having satisfied itself that the ministers and licentiates 
 of the synod of Ulster were required to subscribe the Westminster 
 Standards and Confession of Faith, unanimously agreed to admit 
 them into ministerial communion, and to place the synod on the 
 same footing in other respects with the Presbyterian Church in 
 England. The Ulster synod consisted at that time of about 24 
 Presbyteries and 260 Congregations.]: 
 
 I mention these things to show that the Established Church 
 of Scotland always made a proper distinction between a union 
 or incorporation with other Churches, *and an interchange of 
 friendly communication with them ; and that Mdiile she refused to 
 admit her own immediate offspring in England to the former, she 
 
 branch of tlie Scottish Church located there, that no sooner is a new place of 
 worship erected by voluntary contribution than the Regium Donum is extended to 
 it as a matter of course." — London Times, May 1837. 
 
 • By this Act the pulpits of the Established Church were closed against all but 
 its own Ministers and licentiates. It was repealed shortly before the Disruption, 
 and re-enacted immediately thereafter. 
 
 t In consequence of this salutary measure a number of congregations holding 
 Arian doctrines seceded from the synod, and formed themselves into a separate body. 
 
 i On the llth July 1840, the Ulster and Secession synods were united into one 
 body under the designation of " The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church 
 in Ireland," comprising 35 Presbyteries and 433 Congregations. There is still 
 another body of Presbyferians called the " Reformed Presbyterian Synod of' 
 Ireland." 
 
14 
 
 did not liesltate to a-jknowledge iicr more distant I'elalions in 
 Ireland as entitled to tlic latter. It may be -vvortli while to 
 remember this Avhcn v>e come to speak of the Scottish Chinch at 
 the Cape of Good Hope. It may also be deserving of notice 
 that the connection thus formed between tlie Established Church 
 of Scotland and the Presbyterian Churches in England and 
 Ireland implied no "permanent obligation on either side, and was 
 destined to last only so long as the state of mutual feeling and 
 other circumstances rendered it desirable and expedient, * 
 
 But leaving Great Britain and Ireland, let us turn our attention 
 to Scottish Presbyterian Churches in foreign parts. And first of 
 all "we are "attracted to Holland, because it was there that the 
 first Scottish Congregation, beyond the limits of Scotland, was 
 united with the Mother Church. I refer to the Scotch Church at 
 Cavipvere, in the island of Walcheren. About three centuries 
 ago a factory of respectable Scottish Merchants was established 
 in this ancient town, under the direction of the Commissioners 
 fi'om the royal boroughs in Scotland. In the year 1587 it 
 was resolved in a convention of the boroughs, that " there be 
 ^e minister elected for preaching at Campheir," and at a 
 subsequent meeting it was agreed to make provision for tlie 
 erection of a Kirk and the maintenance of a Pastor. No regular 
 Clergyman, however, appears to have been appointed, till the 
 year 1613, when an ordained Minister of the Church of Scotland, 
 having a parochial charge in the Coimty of Fife, was nominated 
 by the Commissioners, and approved by the King and the 
 Archbishop of St. Andrews.f It is not stated, in any of the 
 works which I have consulted, that he went out with a regular 
 commission to constitute a Scotch Kirk, either from the King;, 
 or the Archbishop, or the Commissioners, or the General 
 Assembly. It is more probable that he was sent out without 
 any commission at all, and that he was left to constitute. a 
 Kirk session, with the helj) of the '^ Lord Conservator," or chief 
 Civil Magistrate of the town, in the best manner he could. At all 
 events it is on record that a Kirk Session was formed, and that the 
 Lord Conservator was one of the Elders. Until the year 1641, the 
 Kirk at Campvere remained an ^'isolated Church f but it was 
 
 * See Beid's Ulster Church ; Feterhin's Becords of the Kirk of Scotland ; Pres- 
 byterian Beview ; and M'Comb's rreshijterian Almanack for 1841. 
 
 + Two years before this the Arclibisliops of St. Andrews tind Glasgow, liad re- 
 ceived a Commission under the great seal to hold two Courts of High Commission, 
 —which gave them almost unlimited power in all ecclesiastical matters. 
 
IS 
 
 then by an Act of the Gen;-ral Assembly taken into connection 
 with the Church of Scotland, and empowered to send tv/o Conj- 
 inissioners to sit and vote in the Annual Meetini{:> of tJiat venerable 
 Court. The following is a copy of the Act of Assembly, as 
 <;-iven in Peterkin's Records of the Kirk of Scotland : — 
 
 '' Tlie which day (August 9, 1641) a moiion was mnde in the Assembly, tiiat 
 it seemed expedient for correspondence that might be had from forraigne parts, 
 for the weal of this Kirk, that the Scotch Kirk at Campheir were joyned to the 
 Kirk of Scotland, as a Member thereof: which being seriously thought upon, 
 and considered by the Assembly, they approved the motion, and ordained 
 Mr. Robert Baillie, Minister at Cilwinning, to write to Mt. William Spany, 
 Minister at Campheir, and Kirk Session thereof, vvijling them to send their 
 Minister, and a ruling Elder, instructed with a Commission to the next General 
 Assembly to beholden at St. Andrews, the last Wednesday of July 1642, at which 
 time they should be inrollcd in tlie Books of the Generall Assembly, as Com- 
 missioners of the Generall Assembly of Scotland, from the Scots Kirk at Cam- 
 pheir"."* 
 
 In the year 1704, the Assembly adopted the foIlov»in',^ Propo- 
 sitions concerning the Kirk of Canipvere, viz : — ■ 
 
 1st. Their observing of that order in the outward worship of God, and excrcisa 
 of discipline, as is received in Scotland by law, and practice. 
 
 2nd. Their sending Commissioners to the Assembly every third year. 
 
 3rd. Their receiving council and advice, in difterent cases, from the I'resby-' 
 tery of Edinburgh, or Commissions of Assembly. And 
 
 4th. The bearing: of their moderator's expenses coming hither at the Assembly's 
 command ; again enacted and authorised, and appointed to be recorded in the 
 books of the assembly : and the Commissioners of that and subsequent assemblies 
 of this Church, impowered and authorized to act, cognosce, advise, and determine 
 in all affairs belonging to the said Kirk and consistory of Campvere, that shall be 
 proposed to, or pursued before them, as their superior judicatory ; but recommended 
 to them, to pay the charges of their own Commissioners out of their own stock, 
 until the Church be in a better capacify to assist them."t 
 
 The connection thus formed between the Church of Scotland 
 and the foreign Kirk at Campvere continued till the end of the 
 last century, when the factory was broken up, and the privileges 
 granted to the British Residents were revoked. "Although the 
 Scottish Factory," says Stevens in his interesting History of the 
 Scottish Church in Rotterdam, " has been politically extinct 
 upwards of thirty years, no motion has been formally made in 
 the General Assembly to sever this first foreign appendage of our 
 national establishment from the Mother Church. On the contrary,. 
 
 • Peterkin's Records Vol. I, p. 297. This author says, in a note at p. 284, 
 in reference to this measure: " By an Act of Assembly 1641, the Scotch Church 
 at Campvere was brought into connection with the Church of ''lotland, and the 
 Kirk Session authorised &c." 
 
 t Gillan's Abridgment of the Acts of Afsemblks, 2nd Fd. ju 40. 
 
Caihpveie Congregation, ^\llich has not been represented since 
 171)7 in the Assembly, still remains on tlie roll of the house, and 
 is called over, like other places entitled to send deputies." 
 
 From an early period other Scotch Congregations have been 
 formed in difterent parts of the Netherlands, but though some 
 remained in an " isolated position," most of them were more or 
 less connected with the Dutch Reformed Church, till the year 
 1816 when they were all, together with the English-Presbyterian, 
 and Walloon Churches, incorporated with it ; retaining however, 
 " the separate and peculiar regulations and rights which par- 
 ticularly and privately belong to them." Their ministers are 
 paid by Government and " the patronage of all the Presbyterian 
 Churches now in Holland, is vested solely in the Kirk-session, 
 subject, however, to his Majestv's approval, which is never 
 withheld." * 
 
 The next instance on record of any thing resembling the incor- 
 poration of a foreign Church with the Established Chui-ch of 
 Scotland is the case of Darien. In the year 1699, when the 
 whole energies of Scotland were put forth in planting the ill fated 
 Colony of Caledonia, in the Isthmus of Darien, foui- Ministers 
 were sent out to settle Churches, and to constitute a Presbytery in 
 that remote land. A cojiy of their Commission, taken from the 
 Edinburgh Christian Instructor for September 1821, is given 
 below.f 
 
 • See Steven's History of the Church of Rotterdam ; Glasius' Geschiedenis der 
 Christelyke Kerk ; and Reddingius' Handboek voor Predikanten. 
 
 t Copy of the Commission to the Presbytery of Caledonia. July, 21, 1699. 
 — ^Ve, the Commission of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, 
 taking to consideration, That whereas the honourable court of Directors of the 
 African and Indian Company did in name and behalf, and at the earnest 
 request of the council and government of Caledonia in America, apply to the last 
 General Assembly of this church, beseeching that ministers might be sent -to the 
 said colony, for settling a gospel ministry, and dispensing of gospel ordinances, 
 and that they might instruct and edify our countrymen and others who should 
 from time to time, adjoin themselves to the said colony ; and who also might, 
 through the blessing of God, be useful in propagating the glorious light of the 
 gospel among the pagan natives, and contribute to their conversion. And the 
 said General Assembly having fully impowered and authorized this commission to 
 take all effectual methods for accomplishing so good a design. And the said 
 honourable court of directors having particularly invited you, Mr. Alexander 
 Shields, minister of the gospel at St. Andrew's, and you !Mr. Francis Borland, 
 minister of the gospel at Glasford, and called you, Mr. Alexander Dalgliesh, and 
 iVIr. Archibald Stobo, ministers of the gospel, to be sent to Caledonia, to labour in 
 that pious, necessary, and glorious work. In order to your more clear, warran- 
 table, and comfortable proceeding in carrying on the same ; we the said commis- 
 sion do authorize, impower, and require you to repair to the said colony of 
 
17 
 
 Tlie real import of this document ha-s been disputetl. Pardovan 
 says : " The Presbytery of Caledonia in Darien is authorised to 
 send yearly two Representatives to the Creneral Assembly ; they 
 bein^ a part of this National Church, and subject to her As- 
 semblies, as appears from the instructions given them by the 
 
 Caledonia; and upon your arrival, that you present our letters to the couiv'il and 
 government, acquainting them with our tender concern and care for them, which 
 shall be confinued ; and that upon applications made in their behalf to us. you 
 are sent as their ministers, during your abode among them, to tsk? "charge of their 
 so'ils, to which you are hereby authorized and impowered by us ; recommending 
 to you faithfulness and diligence in preaching the gospel, and administering other 
 gospel ordinances. And upon your first arrival, with the advice and concurrence 
 of the government, set apart a day for solemn public thanksgiving to God, fur 
 preservation of tlie colony, of the present supplies and of yourselves, and for im- 
 ploring his blessing and conduct in your ensuing work. Afterward you shall 
 constitute yourselves a Presbytery, by electing a moderator and clerk, and begin- 
 ning your register with this commission now delivered unto you by us, and thence- 
 forth orderly recording all your proceedings. Yoa shall thereafter, with all con- 
 venient speed, with the concurrence of the government, and the consent' of the 
 people, so far as the same can be obtained, associate unto yourselves, by setting 
 apart, according to the known methods of the Church of Scotland, some of the 
 fittest and most quali6ed persons, for piety, prudence, judiciousness, and respect 
 among the people, to be ruling elders, overseers of the manners of the people, 
 and assistants to you in the exercise of discipline and government; by whose 
 a^istance, with consent of the council, so soon as may be, divide the whole 
 inhabitants of the colony, according to their local residence, and the best con- 
 veniencv their present circumstances can admit, into so many districts or parishes, 
 that each minister may have a particular charge, under his more immediate and 
 peculiar inspection ; and then increase the number of the elders, and appoint 
 deacons of fit persons, yet so as that you may all consider yourselves as in a 
 collegiate relation to the whole colony, and labour therein, as shall be agreed 
 among yourselves in presbytery. And we seriously recommend to you, bein-y 
 thus constitute, that so soon as yoa find the colony in case for it : you do, with 
 the concurrence of the conned, assemble the whole Christian inhabitants, and 
 keep a day together in solemn prayer and fasting, bewailing former sins, renewinw 
 baptismal engagements, and with the greatest solemnity and seriousness, aioiick- 
 ing the Lord lobe your God, and dedicating yourselves and the land unto the Lord. 
 And the people being divided into several districts, you shall thenceforth hold 
 parochial sessions, and your diets of presbytery, as often as the esercke of disci- 
 pline and order, and the other exigencies of the church may require ; and with 
 Christian prudence, holy zeal, ministerial authority, faithfulness and diligence, in 
 dependance on your Great Master, you vigorously prosecute all the ends of vour 
 mission ; particularly, that you labour among the natives for their instruction 
 and conversion, as you have access. We further recommend to you, to be as 
 useful and edifying as possible, unto the several companies of the ships, unto 
 which you shall be disposed during tbb voyage, looking upon them as your par- 
 ticular charge for the time, whom you are to watch over in the Lord, as you shall 
 have access. And we require, that after your arrival, you be careful by letters, 
 directed either to the moderator of the commission at Edinburgh, or to the principal 
 of the college of Glasgow, or to the moderator of the presbyteries of Edinburgh 
 
1» 
 
 <.'oiniijis.sion oi' the General Assembly 1699."* Otheia have hold 
 different opinion. They have concluded from the wording of the 
 Commission and other circumstances that the Presbytery of Cale- 
 donia was not designed to form an integral part ot the Church of 
 Scotland, — that the Miui.«tGrs sent thither were merely authorized 
 to constitute a Presbytery as a Supreme Ecclesiastical Court^ and 
 that it was only in the cvc!;t of any of them comintj horns without 
 returnhifj, that is for the purpose of remaining at home, that they 
 were to be allowed to sit as members of the General Assembly 
 for that year. AVithout entering into a discussion of this question, 
 I may just remark that as the well \ir\o^vn Barrier Act f wc^ 
 
 or Gliisgow : Frequently and fully to acquaint the church of Scotland with 
 the whole state of your affairs, and what you may need from them, frona time to 
 to time : AVhereiii you are not 'o doubt of their cheerful forwardness to assist you, 
 ixnd that the General Assembly will lay down cflectual rules and methods for your 
 future supj)ly. And whereas, some of you stand in a pastoral relation to churches 
 i:i Scotland, and others not, yet all have a liberty of returning, as likewise a 
 liberty to remain and labour in the Lord's work, as fixed ministers in the colony, 
 if your health, inclination, and other circumstances concur. We therefore recom- 
 mend, if possible, before any of you come away, you endeavour to settle the 
 church, and that the concerns of the gospel be brought to some hopeful pass. 
 And wo require that so soon as any of you determine to settle ; your presbytery 
 jend advertisement, that their charges if they have any, be provided with another 
 minister ; and so soon as any of you resolve to come home wiihout returning, 
 that timely notice be given to this church, to the end that others be provided to 
 go in their room ; and that whoever comes from you, may bring either an allow- 
 ance or commission from your presbytery, as the occasion of his coming shall be. 
 Nor are you to doubt, but sucli, as come from you, will be received as members of the 
 General Assembly of this church, and of their commission for that year in which they 
 come. And finally, we recommend to you that whatever discouragements yuu 
 meet with, (though v.e trust you shall be encouraged and strengthened in the 
 Lord,) that you give no way to the dissolving of your presbytery, but that so many 
 of you stay as to keep up the face of a presbytery, until new supplies be sent unto 
 you. And thus we commit you, and our Lord'i great and glorious work in your 
 hands, unto his own powerful, wise, and gracious conduct and blessing. At 
 Glasgow, July 21, 1699, signed in the name, and by the appointment of the 
 eornmissioa of the General Assembly, and in their presence, by 
 
 George ILiwiLxoN, Madcrator. 
 
 Jens Ban.n^tvne, . C/<?r. Syd. Kat. §• Com. 
 
 * Pardovan'i Collections, Title XV. § 18. 
 
 T This Act was passed by the General Assembly in 1697, and provides, " Tliat 
 before a General Assembly of this Church pass any acts which arc to be binding 
 rules and constitutions to the Church, the same acts be first proposed as overtures 
 to the assembly ; and being by them passed as such, be remitted to the conside- 
 ration of the several presbyteries of this Church, and their opinions and consent 
 reported by their commissioners to the next assembly following, who may then 
 pass the same into Acts, if the more general opinion of the Church, thus had, 
 agree thereto.— Act. 9, Ass. 1697. " See CiUnn's Abridgvicnt of Acts of Aaembhij 
 und Hill's Practice iu the Church Couyts, 
 
19 
 
 passed two years before, it is not likely that either the Asseml^ly 
 or its Commis-sion would have ventured to innovate on the 
 constitution of the Church, by extending it beyond the realm of 
 Scotland, without the consent of a majority of the Presbyteries ; 
 and, so far as appears, such consent was never sought or obtained. 
 It is therefore probable that little more was intended than that the 
 new Church at Caledonia should be regularly organized, and con- 
 stituted a distinct and separate body, in accordance with the fun- 
 damental principles of the Church of Scotland, so that it might 
 be qualified to receive counsel and aid from that Church, as cir- 
 eumstanees should render it necessary or expedient. It is to be 
 remembered that the case of Campvere occurred long before the 
 passing of the Barrier Act, and it has been regarded by some as 
 " one of those very cases against which that important statute was 
 intended to provide."* At all events the measure adopted with 
 respect to Darien never became a question of importance, except 
 as a precedent for future innovations. The whole scheme failed. 
 The Scottish adventurers had scarcely time to consider where they 
 should commence digging their golden mines, when they were 
 compelled to retire. The deputation of Ministers returned to 
 Scotland ; those of them who had leave of absence from their 
 parishes, having reached home in due time, resumed their pas- 
 toral duties, and if they had the privilege of appearing as members 
 of the next General Assembly, it was not as Representatives of 
 the Scotch Church of Caledonia, but as Commissioners from the 
 Presbyteries of Hamilton and St. Andrews, to which they respec- 
 tively belonged. I cannot quit this part of the subject without 
 noticing the tender concern which the Church of Scotland mani- 
 fested, in those early times, for the spiritual welfare of her self- 
 expatriated families. 
 
 Let us now turn our attention to Bi'itish India, and consider the 
 position of the Scotch Churches planted there. Previous to the 
 year 1813, no provision was made for supplying the Scottish 
 Residents in India with religious ordinances according to the forms 
 of the Church of Scotland. In the General Assembly of 1812, 
 a Committee was appointed to attend to the progress of any pro- 
 ceedings in Parliament for renewing the Charter of the East India 
 Company, and to use their endeavours to secure the appointment 
 of Presbyterian Chaplains. Accordingly, Avhen the Charter came 
 to be renewed the following year, the matter was not lost sight of. 
 
 "On the clause respecting the appointment of a Bishop and 
 
 * See " Reasons of Dissent" against a decision of the General Assembly of 22nd 
 May 1821, as reported in the " Edinburgh Christian Instructor." 
 
 C 
 
20 
 
 three Archdeacons, Mr. Dundas stated, that a majority of British 
 Residents in India were of the Scotch Church, and therefore 
 would have no provision for their public worship. He therefore 
 proposed a clause for the appointment of three Scotch Clergymen, 
 one at each : Presidency, with a salary of £1000 each. This 
 clause was discussed, and no other argument was brought against 
 it than that its principle would require that wherever there was an 
 establishment for the Episcopal Church, there should also be one 
 for the Presbyterian. On a division, the clause was rejected by 
 20 against 18. At a subsequent discussion it was made known, 
 that the Company had given an assurance for the maintenance of 
 Ministers of the Scotch Church at its own expense."* Other 
 accounts give a somewhat different version of the affair: but 
 one thing is certain, that tlie clause in favor of Presby- 
 terianism was omitted in the Charter, while provision was made 
 for the appointment of a Bishop of the Church of England, with 
 a salary of £5000 a year, and of three Archdeacons at £2000 
 each. The Court of Directors, however, having given a pledge, 
 redeemed it honorably. They agreed to appoint a minister of the 
 Established Church of Scotland for each of the three Presidencies, 
 to be maintained at the Company's expense. In 1814 the matter 
 was reported to the General Assembly, and an Act Avas imme- 
 diately passed, recognising the Churches in India as an integral 
 part of the Established Church of Scotland, placing them under 
 the jurisdiction of the Presbytery of Edinbui-gh, and empowering 
 them to send annually, by rotation, one Minister and one Elder 
 as their representatives to the General Assembly.f Thus, with- 
 out the sanction of the legislature, and without regard to their 
 own Barrier Act, the Assembly formed a union, which after- 
 wards gave them some little trouble, but which, having since 
 been confirmed, remains undissolved to the present day. In the 
 course of the following year, two, at least, of the Scotch Chap- 
 lains were at their posts ; and at Calcutta (which I shall take as an 
 example,) measures were speedily adopted for erecting a Presby- 
 terian Kirk. The foundation stone was laid with great pomp and 
 pageantry, under the auspices of Lady Lo^on, on the 15th 
 November 1815, — the intended edifice to be called St. Andrew's, 
 and, according to the plan produced on the occasion, to be deco- 
 rated with a spire. The ambitious appearance of this architectural 
 
 * Annual Register, 1813. 
 
 t These are the only Cliurclies beyond the realm of Scotland that are thus con- 
 nected with the Established Church of Scotland. — See Hill's Pmciice in the Church 
 CouriSj Section 5. 
 
21 
 
 drawing was not quite agreeable to some who belonged to a differ- 
 ent section of the Christian Church. Being great lawyers, of 
 course they soon discovered that the Established Church of Scot- 
 land w^as not an Established Church in India, and therefore the 
 founders of St, Andrev.'s Kirk had no right to meddle with 
 spires.* Spires, said they, are the acknowledged symbols of u 
 legal establishment, and, according to our charter, Presbyter- 
 ianism is not established by law. How this objection came to be 
 overruled I shall not stop to inquire. Suffice it to say, that if 
 St. Andrews's Kirk at Calcutta was at first merely a dissenting 
 chapel, the subsequent Charter made it an Established Church, 
 and that if Presbyterian spires were illegal then, they are per- 
 fectly legal now. But however little connected the Kirk might 
 be with the State, it was evidently connected with the East India 
 Company and the Church of Scotland. Dr. Bryce, its minister, 
 was soon made aware of this. His opponents, having being foiled 
 in the matter of the spires, endeavoured to keep down Presbyter- 
 ianism in another way. They first sent home a petition, praying 
 that the Scotch Chaplains might be prohibited from administering 
 the ordinances of baptism to the members of their congregations ; 
 but on being told that as Dissenting Ministei's in England were 
 permitted to perform this rite, a Dissenting Minister in India 
 might be allowed the same privilege, they gave up this point, and 
 attacked the Minister of St. AndrcAv's on a different ground. It 
 appears that Dr. Bryce, after some hesitation, had ventured, with 
 the concurrence of the Governor-General, to solemnise a marriage 
 according to the forms of the Church of Scotland. The legality 
 of this act was immediately called in question, and active measures 
 were resorted to in order to prevent a repetition of it. " The 
 first thing done," %n,js i\\e Edinburgh Christian Instructor, "was 
 to make an assault in the newspapers. There the Marriage Act 
 was triumphantly quoted, and nothing we suppose was expected 
 but a total and unconditional surrender on the part of our Chap- 
 lain. This expectation, however, was not realised ; for it was dis- 
 covered that the quotation was a partial and dishonest one ; and 
 all that those who adduced it could say for themselves was, that 
 Dr. Burn, in his Ecclesiastical Law, whom they followed, had 
 committed the same blunder ! This apology, indeed, was not 
 satisfactory from those who could have gone to the law itself. 
 But no matter ; the law itself was produced, and thei-e it Avas 
 found that the Marriage Act did not apply ' to any marriages 
 
 * The Scottish Church at Cape Town lias sometimes been called St. Andrew's, 
 but it has no ?pire. 
 
22 
 
 solemnised beyond the seas.' "* The opposition, liowever, did not 
 stop here. An application was made on the subject to the Court 
 of Directors, and by them it was transmitted to the Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh. The Presbytery, of course, took up the case, and 
 at a meeting held on the 27th March 181G, resolved to send out 
 an order to India, " interdicting tlie Scotch Chaplains, in the 
 existing circumstances of the case, from celebrating marriages." 
 Dr. Bryce having received such an injunction from his Presby- 
 tery, had no help but to obey it, till he could apply for its 
 removal to a higher judicatory. He did so in the form of a peti- 
 tion to the General Assembly, and the result was, that on the 31st 
 May 1817, the Assembly removed the injunction, and resolv6d 
 " to appoint a Committee to draw up a respectful memorial to the 
 Honorable the Court of Directors of the East India Company, 
 and to correspond with that Honorable Court on this important 
 subject."! The result was, that an Act of Parliament was 
 passed removing all doubts on the subject, and legalising all 
 marriages performed by Presbyterian Ministers in India. This 
 was reported to the General Assembly in 1819.| The following 
 year (May 1820) we find Dr. Bryce and one of his Elders 
 occupying seats in the Assembly, as Representatives of the Pres- 
 byterian Church in India. It so happened, that by means of their 
 votes, a motion, which displeased the Christian Instructor, was 
 carried by a majority of one. This led to an inquiry into the 
 validity of their commission, or, in other words, their right to sit 
 as members of the General Assembly. The Editor of the Chris- 
 tian Instructor (the late Dr. Andrew Thomson) first mooted the 
 question in the columns of that periodical, asserting '' that Dr. 
 Bryce and his Elder had not a constitutional right to vote as 
 members of the court." The argument in suj^port of this posi- 
 tion, was stated in the following terms : — 
 
 " The General Assembly consists of the regularly elected representatives of 
 those bodies, who, by the constitution of the Church, are entitled to choose, hnd 
 to send commissioners. But none are entitled to choose and send commissioners, 
 except those whose title is settled, and recognized by the law of the Church. 
 And the General Assembly has no right to assume among its members any but 
 those who present commissions from legally authorised constituents. Kow, from 
 what body of constituents did Dr. Bryce and his Elder come ? — From the Presby- 
 terian Church in India. And who gave the Presbyterian Church in India a power 
 to send Representatives to the General Assembly ? Why, it was the General 
 Assembly itself ! And the General Assembly had no more authority to do so than 
 the Bishop, or Archdeacon of Calcutta. Supposing the General Assembly were 
 
 * Christian InstritctoKy August, 1817. 
 t Christian Instructor, Jxine, 1817. 
 t Ibid, December 1819. 
 
23 
 
 to decide lliut nil the Presbyterian INliuistcff in England should ^h among them, 
 and vote and determine in all cases bruuglit before them, could these gentlemen be 
 held as constituent memb.^rs of the C'ouri I No man in his senses will say so ; 
 and yet every man says what is just as absurd, who affirms that the Assemby are 
 competent to add to their number, by conferring on the Presbyterian Church of 
 India, the privilege of sending representatives to the supreme ecclesiastical judica- 
 tory of Scotland. For this purpose it was necessary to have' — not a deed of the 
 General Assembly — but a deed of the Church. It was requisite, not merely in 
 point of form, but in point of substantial, essential principle, tliat an overture 
 should have been transmitted to the several presbyteries of the church, and approv- 
 ed of by a majority of these presbyteries, before the Assembly could enact a law, 
 altering its own constitution, and incorporating within the establishment our breth- 
 ren in the East, and subjecting its whole interests to a control and management which 
 may be as pernicious as it is unauthorised. If the Assembly can do this, then they 
 can assume representatives from London, and from America, and from every other 
 quarter ; and they can admit ten members from the Presbytery of Edinburgh 
 instead of one ; and in a word, change the whole system of our representation 
 according to their good pleasure. Who has not heard of the Barrier Act, which 
 was passed for the express purpose of preventing the General Assembly from arro- 
 gating such a power as that which they have arrogated in the case before us ! "* 
 These remarks seem to have placed the ecclesiastical status of 
 ilie Church in India in a new light, as will be seen from the fol- 
 lowing repoi't of Avhat took place in the next General Assembly, 
 Tuesdcaj, May 22, 1821 : - 
 
 " This day a long and animated discussion took place with respect to the Com- 
 mission of the Church in India. James Gibson, Esq., made a motion for rejecting 
 it, Dr. Nicol moved that it should be sustained, Walter Cook, Esq., moved as an 
 amendment on Mr. Gibson's motion, that in respect of the constitution granted by 
 the General Assembly to the Church in India, in 1814, of the subsequent practice, 
 and of all the circumstances of the case, that the commission be sustained ; but as 
 objections have been stated to the validity of the arrangement then made by the 
 General Assembly, and with a view of completely and by every legal form, incor- 
 porating the IMiriisters of the said Churches in India with the Church of Scotland, 
 as by law established, appoint an Overture, relative to the establishment of the 
 Churches in India, to be immediately drawn up and transmitted to the Presbyteries 
 for their approbation, and that that Overture, when approved of, be converted into 
 an Interim Act ! Mr. Gibson assented to this amendment being substituted for 
 his motion. After a long debate, in which the motion of Dr. Nicol was suppor- 
 ted by Lord Meadowbank, and others ; and the amendment of Mr. Cook, by Lord 
 Moncrieff, Drs. Cook, McGill, and Chalmers, the house divided, when the com- 
 mission was sustained by a considerable majority. Against this judgment Mr. 
 Gibson and other members dissented- "t 
 
 The reasons of dissent given in against this division were simi- 
 lar to those which had been stated in the Christian Instructor. — 
 The following passage deserves notice. 
 
 "The power of General Assemblies to erect and disjoin, and in these respects, 
 regulate the state of presbyteries and synods, " within the realm of Scotland," is a 
 
 * Christian Instructor, Jubj, 1820. 
 
 t Christian Instructor, September, 1821. 
 
24 
 
 comlitutional power wliicli lia.s always been exercised by l^'t; General Assembly and 
 which, properly speaking, implies no innovation. The realm of Scotland is the 
 territory which ecclesiastically belongs to the Church of Scotland. The whole of 
 it is constitutionally and necessarily understood to be divided into synods, presby- 
 teries, and parishes. 'J'he right of making and regulating that division according 
 to circumstances, has been invariably lodged with the General Assembly. And 
 that this might not be done so as to affect, beyond a certain measure, the represen- 
 tative system of the Church, that system is determined by Acts 5, Ass. 1694, and 
 Act 6, Ass. 1712, by which a proportion is fixed between the number of ^Ministers 
 in a presbytery, and the number of Commissioners which it is entitled to appoint. 
 But the resolution of Assembly 1814, goes beyond the realm of Scotland ; and 
 incorporates the churches of India into our National Church, adds to us a territory 
 thousands of miles distant from us, and grants a voice in the deliberations and 
 decisions of our supreme judicatory, both to clergy and laity, whom the constitu- 
 tion never contemplated as having any claim to such a privilege," "The 
 
 right of churches in India must therefore continue in a state of doubt and uncer- 
 tainty. And in these circumstances they cannot experience that respect in which we 
 earnestly wish them to be held, nor will it be an easy matter to procure any addition 
 to them, though such addition may be imperiously required for the accommodation 
 and welfare of our countrymen in that part of the British dominions."* 
 
 I may here observe, that though Dr. Nicol and his adherents 
 coukl not be convinced by suclx arguments as the above that the 
 Church of Scotland had no right to extend itself to India, a peti- 
 tion presented to the General Assembly the following day from 
 the Churches in Canada, j^raying for a union with the Church of 
 Scotland, after being unfavourably reported on by a Committee, 
 "was reserved for consideration till next Assembly, and ultin:iateiy 
 refused. But more of this presently. To return to India : — A 
 Memorial from the Scottish Community at Calcutta having in the 
 year 1822 been addressed to the Court of Directors, representing 
 the inadequacy of one Chaplain to perform tlie clerical duties of 
 St. Andrew's Church, that Honorable Court, Avith their wonted 
 liberality, not only granted the prayer of the Petitioners, but re- 
 solved to appoint an additional Minister of the Church of Scotland 
 to each of the three Presidencies. In conformity with this reso- 
 lution the Revd. James Brown was appointed Junior Minister at 
 Calcutta. It would appear that the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 under whose jurisdiction the Indian Churches were jilaced, had 
 not been consulted in this matter, or even received any official 
 notice of it for several yearsf ; — and that on Mr. Brown's arrival 
 at Calcutta the kirk session took upon themselves to fix his 
 status either as colleague, or assistant and successor, to Dr. Bryce. 
 At all events some irregularities were committed, and these having 
 at length been brought to the notice of the Presbytery of Edin- 
 
 * Cliristian Instructor, Sept. 1821. 
 
 t See Rev. Dr. Laurie's Observation:- on tlie Scottish Churcl! in India, p. 3. 
 
burgh, the case was referred by that Court to the General As- 
 sembly. The following brief notices of the Assembly's proceed- 
 ings, taken from the J^diiihicrgh Clu'iHian lastnictor, are 
 important as showing the real position of a foreign Church 
 officially connected with the Established Church of Scotland. The 
 reader can after^vards compare or rather contrast them with 
 v/hat took place relative to the induction of the second Minister 
 of the Scottish Congregation at Cape Town. 
 
 Proceedings nf the General Assembly 1^27 .—Saturday May 20ih.~" On the 
 motion of Principal McFarlan, it was agreed tliuc the reference from the Presby- 
 tery of Edinburgh relative to the second IMinister of Calcutta, be likewise sent to a 
 Committee," 
 
 Monday, May 28. — " Dr. Meiklejohn gave in the following report of the Com- 
 mittee on the reference from the Presbytery of Edinburgh, regarding the junior 
 IMinister of St. Andrew's Church, Calcutta." 
 
 " 1st. That the appeal, complaint, and petition of Mr. Brown ought to be dis- 
 missed as incompetent." 
 
 " 2nd. That the kirk session of St. Andrew's Church, Calcutta, had no power 
 to fix the status of Mr. Brown, either as a colleague or assistant and successor 
 to Dr. Bryce. 
 
 " 3rd. (A recapitulation of the Act of 1814, by which the Church in India is 
 regulated.) 
 
 " 4th. That in addition to the al)ove provision, all Ministers of the Church of 
 Scotland, going as Chaplains or Ministers to Scots Churches in India, by apjjoint- 
 ment of the East India Company, should lay before the Presbytery of Edinburgh 
 all the documents relative to their appointment, and obtain their sanction." 
 
 " 5. That the assembly should authorise the Presbytery of Edinburgh to use all 
 possible means for having every Churcli in India in connection with the Church 
 of Scotland, where there are two ministers, made a Collegiate Charge, in the sense 
 in which that expression is commonly understood," 
 
 This report gave rise to a long discussion, of which however no details are 
 given. — The result was that a Committee was appointed " to enqire into the pres- 
 ent state of the Ministers in India — to take into consideration the wants and 
 exigencies of the same — to enquire on what footing the Indian Company are 
 willing to receive Presbyterian Ministers &c, and to report at the first diet of next 
 assembly." * 
 
 The following is an account of what took place at the next 
 assembly : — 
 
 Monday, 2nd June 1828 — " The report of the Committee on the petition of tlie 
 Rev. James Brown Calcutta being called for, was given in by Dr. Grant, the Con- 
 vener, and read. The General Assembly approve of the report, allow the parties to 
 withdraw the case, and reappoint the Committee, with full power to bring the mat- 
 ter to a final termination. Judgment having been intimated, iNIr. Peterkin, agent 
 for Dr. Bryce, and Mr. Ritchie, agent for Dr. Brown, t asked and took instruments 
 in the Clerk's hands, and craved extracts, which were allowed." + 
 
 * Edinburgh Christiaii Instructor, July, 1827. 
 
 t IMr. Brown had then received the degree of D. D. 
 
 t TLdinhurgh Christian Instructor, July, 1828. 
 
■26 
 
 I have no information respecting any luithcr proceedings rela- 
 tive to the Churches in India till the yeai' lb32, when the follow- 
 ing took place in the General Assembly. 
 
 May 24. 1832.— Dr. Grant having read the report of the Committee on the 
 Churches in India, vvliich announced the erection of an additional Chapel, — " The 
 General Assemhly declared that ihs fir.st and second Rlinisters of the Church of 
 Scotland at the several residences in India arc to be regirded as Collegiate 
 JVIinisters and to be co-ordinate in their stations and functions as members of their 
 raspective sessions." * 
 
 Though the Indian Churches had from the first been incorporated 
 by act of the General Assembly with the Church of Scotland, 
 they were never recognized by the state as a portion of the eccle- 
 siastical establishment of India, The inconvenience arising from 
 this had often been felt, and more sei'ious consequences were 
 apprehended sehould such a state of things be allowed to continue. 
 
 As the East India Company's Charter was to be renewed in 
 1833, exertions were used (I'atlier it woidd appear by private indi- 
 viduals than by the Church of Scotland)! to secure the insertion 
 of a clause in favour of the Presbyterian Churches, similar to 
 that which had been rejected in 1813. These exertions were 
 successful. From the following extract from the Charter of 
 1833, it will be seen that the Scotch Churches in India are esta- 
 blished by law, and that if any reasonable doubts formei'ly existed 
 as to the legality of their xmion with the Established Church of 
 Scotland, these doubts are now completely removed. 
 
 [E.tfrflff.] 
 
 3d and 4th Gulielmi IV. Cap. 85- [A. D. 1833.] 
 
 Sec. cii, [Two Chaplains of the Church of Scotland to be on the Establishment 
 of each Presidency.] 
 
 " And be it enacted, that of the Establishment of Chaplains maintained by the 
 said Company at each I 'residency of the said Territories, two Chaplains shall 
 always be INIinisters of the Church of Scotland, and shall have and enjoy from the 
 said Company such salary as shall be allotted from time to time to the jMilitary 
 Chaplains at the several Presidencies : — Provided always, that the Ministers of the 
 Church of Scotland to be appointed Chaplains at the said Presidencies as afrfre- 
 sald, shall be ordained and inducted by the Presbytery of Edinburgh, according 
 to the forms and solemnities used in the Church of Scotland, and shall be 
 subject to the spiritual and ecclesiastical jurisdiction in all things of the Presbytery 
 of Edinburgh, whose judgments shall be subject to dissent, protest and appeal 
 to the Provincial Synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, and to the General Assembly 
 of the Church of Scotland : — Provided always, that nothing herein contained 
 shall be so construed as to prevent the Governor General in Council from granting, 
 from time to time, with the sanction of the Court of Directors and of the Com- 
 missioners for^ the affairs of India, to any Sect, Persuasion, or Community of 
 
 * Presbyterian Review, July, 1832. 
 
 t See Dr, Laurie's Observations on the Scottish Church in India p. 2, 
 
27 
 
 Christians, not being of tlie United Church of England and Ireland, or of the 
 Church of Scothmd, such sums of money as may be expedient for the purpose of 
 Instruction, or for the maintenance of Places of Worship." 
 
 Havino- thus endeavoured to trace the several steps by which 
 the Scottish Churches in India were raised to the status of an 
 Ecclesiastical Establishment incorporated with the National Church 
 of Scotland, and having also shown the practical working of the 
 system in the case of one of these Churches,* I need not pursue 
 my enquiries any further. The intelligent and reflecting reader 
 can form his own opinion as to the advantages and disadvantages 
 resulting from tlie incorporation of a foreign Church with the 
 Church of Scotland. My present purpose is merely to show how 
 such a connection is formed, and what is really implied in it. 
 
 On a review of the whole, I feel warranted in drawing the fol- 
 lowing conclusions. 
 
 1st. That nothing less than a deed of the General Assembly is 
 sufficient to constitute a union between a foreign Church and the 
 Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 2d. It is by no means certain that the General Assembly itself 
 is competent to consolidate such a union, Avithout the consent of a 
 majority of the Presbyteries ; nor is it certain that an enactment 
 of this kind passed by the Church would be held legal by the 
 civil courts, without the authority of an Act of Parliament. 
 
 * I suspect that St. Andrew's Kirk at Calcutta enjoyed a monopoly of the 
 Church of Scotland's superintendence during the period of which I have spoken ; 
 for so late as the year 1840, we find the Senior Scotch Chaplain at Bombay address- 
 ing the Convener of the General Assembly's Committee on Indian Churches in 
 the following terms : — " From the year 1815, when the first minister of the Bom- 
 bay Church reached India, down to the period, a few months ago, when your 
 Committee addressed a letter of inquiry to our Session, one, and one alone, com- 
 munication, — a letter from the late Dr. Grant, convenerof a Committee of Assem- 
 bly on the Churches in India, — stands upon our record, as all that has been receiv- 
 ed, in any shape, and from any of the judicatories of the Church, in these full 
 three and twenty years. If farther investigation into the state of our Church has 
 been instituted — if farther acknowledgment of its union to the venerable National 
 Establishment which called it into being has been rendered, it is unknown at Bom. 
 bay. In the lengthened period which embraced its origin and first difficulties, and 
 the opposition it had to withstand in its more recent history — less, I admit, than 
 that of almost any Church in the earlier stages of existence — the one document 
 above referred to, is the amount of intercourse betwixt the Parent Church and the 
 Bombay branch. It has existed, blessed be God ! but uncounselled, unassisted, 
 unasked after, and without recognition by any one in the land of our fathers. 
 Thus authorizing the painful conclusion that, prior to the existence and inquiry of 
 your Committee, it has officially been little known in Scotland, if the Church of 
 India has lived or died — if it has prospered or declined, and whether its ministers 
 have faithfully preached the gospel of our Lord Jesus, or have preached Hindoo- 
 ism, or have preached at all." — Dr, Laurie's Observations, p. 17. 
 
 D 
 
28 
 
 3d. When a foreign Church has been duly incorporated with 
 the Established Churcli of Scotland, it becomes subject to its 
 ecclesiastical jurisdiction and control, and must necessarily remain 
 in this state, until the union be legally and constitutionally dis- 
 solved. 
 
 4th. A foreign Church not so united to the Church of Scotland 
 is not subject to its jurisdiction and control, but is at liberty, so 
 far as the Church of Scotland is concerned, to manage its own 
 affairs in its own way ; and any communications held between 
 them may be discontinued by either party at pleasure. 
 
 Some of these things appear so obvious, that had I not observed 
 that they are sometimes overlooked by persons who talk and even 
 write upon the subject, I should scarcely have thought of mention- 
 ing them. 
 
 But it is time to look to the other Colonial Churches, and to 
 enquire in what relation they stand to the Established Church of 
 Scotland. It would be tedious, and it is unnecessary, to narrate 
 the circumstances connected with the migrations of Scottish Pi*es- 
 byterians to the British Colonies, their destitution of religious 
 ordinances there, and the applications made by them, from time to 
 time, to the Church of Scotland, to obtain its countenance and aid. 
 Suffice it to say that for a long period the spiritual wants of 
 Scottish Emigrants were almost entirely neglected by the Church 
 of Scotland, and that they Avere supplied with Presbyterian Pas- 
 tors, belonging to the Established or Secession Chui'ches, through 
 the agency of influential friends, of individual presbyteries, or of 
 societies formed for the purpose of sending the gospel to foreign 
 lands. The directors of these societies might, or might not, be 
 members of the Established Church of Scotland; the societies 
 themselves were wholly unconnected with the Church Courts. 
 
 All that the Church, in its corporate capacity, did, was to allow 
 Presbyteries, on satisfactory representations being made to them, 
 to srant ordination to such of its licentiates as might be called to 
 labour in the service of Missionary Societies among the Heathen, 
 or to take charge of fixed congregations in foreign parts. 
 
 It is true, the General Assembly usually appointed a Committee 
 to report on any communications made to them respecting the state 
 of religion in the colonies, but besides receiving the Committee's 
 report, and passing a few desultory observations upon it, little or 
 nothing further was done.* It is not improbable that the difficul- 
 
 * Take tlie following as au example. — " Proceedings of General Assemhli/, 1821, 
 May2\. — A Petition from the Presbyterian Churches in RJontrcal and Quebec, 
 praying for a more intimate connection with the parent chnrch, was presented and 
 
29 
 
 ties which had been expei-ienced in regard to the Indian Churches 
 induced them to be Avary in extending their foreign relations. In 
 this way things proceeded — the Assembly showing diligence in 
 appointing Committees, and the Presbyteries in selecting or ordain- 
 ing Ministers for the colonies, when special applications were made 
 to them, — till the year 1827, when one or two circumstances oc" 
 curred, which, if they did not lead to any material change in the 
 prevailing system, drev/ attention, at least, to its operation and 
 effects. As it was in the early part of this year (28th February) 
 that the first minister Avas ordained for the Scottish Church at 
 Cape Tovv-n, the following brief notices of the Assembly's proceed- 
 ings may be fitly introduced : — 
 
 " Tuesday May 22. — Agreeably to the order of last Assembly the record of the 
 Presbytery of Dingv.all was laid on the table, and the minutes relative to the 
 Ordination of JNIr. John Ross to the office of the ministry were read. After a 
 few remarks from Mr. Garment, on the irregularity of the proceedings, and from 
 Mr. Charles J. Bayne in explanation of the conduct of the Presbytery, the Assem- 
 bly ordered said minutes to be expunged, — the Presbytery having ordained Mr. 
 Boss, after long absence from their bounds, without examination into his character 
 and deportment, during that absence, and u-ithout the usual trials ; and the Assembly 
 direct this their sentence to be engrossed in the record of the Presbytery." * 
 
 considered. It was, after some observations from Dr. Mearns and Dr. Cook, 
 referred to a committee. — Edinburgh Christian Imtructor, August, 1821. 
 
 Seven years after this, in a letter dated Montreal, 21st December 1823, the 
 writer, after describing the religious destitution of the Scottish Presbyterians in 
 Upper Canada, (" which bye the bj^e," he says, " the General Assembly frequently 
 mistakes for lower Canada,") — concludes by saying : " We now look to the Gene- 
 ral Assembly, and we would fervently hope, that the mere receiving a report and 
 reappointing a Committee will not be the perpetual fashion of its proceedings to 
 usward." — Christian Instructor, May, 1829. 
 
 * This was a melancholy case. Mr. PlOss, a native of Rosshire, v/as a young man 
 of first rate talents and accquirements, but of a reckless disposition, and rather jovial 
 habits. After having obtained a licence to preach the Gospel (I believe from the 
 Presbytery of Dingwall) he committed some irregularities for which he was pretty 
 sharply handled by the Church Courts. He first took his revenge by publishing a 
 satirical pamphlet, in which he lashed his opponents, and particularly some mem- 
 bers of the Presbytery of Dingwall, without mercy ; and then proceeded to Lon- 
 don where he was employed for several years as a Reporter for the Times, Havino' 
 failed in an attempt to establish a Newspaper of his own, he entered into an engage- 
 ment to proceed to North America in connexion with a party of Scottish Emigrants. 
 Thinking it would be for his advantage to go out with the status of an ordained minis- 
 ter of the Church of Scotland, and knowing that some Presbyteries were not very 
 scrupulous in conferring ordination, he revisited the North of Scotland, assumed 
 an air of great penitence and piety, was admitted into the pulpits of the Establish- 
 ment, and delighted his hearers by his eloquent and evangelical appeals. Among 
 others the Rev. Dr. JMcDonald of Urquhart (a name well known to some readers 
 of the Free Churchman, and venerated wherever it is known) took him by the 
 
30 
 
 Monday, May, 28. — The report of the Committee on the Canada petition was 
 made by Dr. Lee, the convener, in the course of which he alluded in terms of 
 approbation to a society in connexion with the Established Church recently formed 
 in Glasgow, for the purpose of sending out ordained IMinisters, Schoolmasters, and 
 Catechists, to those districts in Canada, principally inhabited by emigrants from this 
 country. With reference to the overture respecting ministers going abroad, the 
 Committee recomn, ended that Presbyteries should proceed with great caution in 
 granting ordination, and not to do so until they had a reasonable prospect of a 
 proper permanent provision being made for them. The Assembly approved of the 
 report, and enjoined in terms thereof. * 
 
 AVhen it is considered that the Canada petition was soliciting a 
 more intimate connexion with the Church of Scotland, the decision 
 of the Assembly will not be regarded as very encouraging. The 
 fact appears to be that the Assembly wished well to Scottish Emi- 
 grants, but did not know how they could constitutionally interfere 
 in their behalf. It was soon found, however, that unless the 
 Church did something, the efforts of societies and individual 
 Presbyteries would be in a great measure unavailing. One diffi- 
 culty was experienced which the Chui'ch Courts alone could re- 
 move. There was no objection made to licentiates and ordained 
 ministers going abroad, but it had never been authoritatively 
 declared what would be their status and privileges, in the event of 
 their returning to their native land. The case of Mr. Ross had 
 shown that it would be necessary for them to produce satisfactory 
 testimonials as to their character and deportment during their 
 absence, before any Presbytery in Scotland could sustain a presen- 
 tation to a church in their favour, or before its members could 
 hold ministerial communion with them. From whom were they 
 to receive such testimonials ? Would the Church Courts with which 
 they might happen to be associated abroad, be recognized by the 
 Chui'ch of Scotland as properly constituted courts, and as such 
 qualified to grant the necessary certificates of character ? These 
 and similar questions could only be satisfactorily solved -by the 
 General Assembly, and, until they were solved, many candidates 
 
 h^and ; and his old presbytery of Dingwall being satifled as to the sincerity of hi3 
 professions, and more than satisfied with his abilities, laid hands suddenly upon 
 him, in the manner described in the above sentence of the Assembly. No sooner 
 had he attained h^s object than he began to throw off his disguise, and gave his 
 friends reason to fear that they had been sadly deceived. His subsequent history is 
 briefly told. He embarked for America before his conduct could be enquired 
 into by the Church Courts. The vessel foundered at sea, and he was summoned 
 before that tribunal from which there is no appeal ; a solemn warning to all not to 
 act deceitfully in handling the things of God. 
 
 * Edinhtrgh ChrUtian Insfructor, July 1827,— -See Hill's Practice 4th Edit. 
 page 71. 
 
31 
 
 for the ministry were reluctant to leave their native shores. With 
 a view to remove this obstacle, a measure was proposed to the 
 Assembly in 1831, but having been referred as usual to a Com- 
 mittee, it was laid on the slielf for two years. It Avas again brought 
 forward in 1833, and after some discussion, in the course of which 
 it was explained that the Assembly sought no jurisdiction over 
 Colonial Chnrches, but only extended to them a brotherly or 
 fatherly care, the following act was unanimously passed : — 
 
 " The General Assembly of tlie Church of Scotland did, and hereby do, enact 
 and declare, that it is proper and expedient for ordained Ministers of the Church 
 of Scotland connected with fixed congregations in any of the British Colonies, 
 to form themselves, where circumstances permit, into Presbyteries and Synods, 
 adhering to the standards of this Church, and maintaining her form of worship 
 and government.'' 
 
 " 1 hat no Minister should be received as a memoer of any such Presbytery or 
 Synod, when first formed, who has not been ordained by a Presbytery of this 
 Church ; that no Rlinister of this Church should be afterwards received as a mem- 
 ber, who does not come specially recommended from the Presbytery by which he 
 was ordained, or in which he has last resided ; and that no probationer of this 
 Church should receive oi'dination from any such Presbytery, except on his produ- 
 cing extract of licence, with a testimonial of his good character from the presbytery, 
 or presbyteries within whose bounds he has resided, down to the time of his leaving 
 Scotland." 
 
 " That it is not expedient for such presbyteries, ia the present state of education 
 in the colonies, to exercise the power of licensing probationers , but that licentiates 
 of the Church of Scotland, who shall be ordained by any such presbytery to 
 particular charges in the manner above described, shall remain in full communion 
 with the Church of Scotland, and retain all the rights and privileges which belong 
 to licentiates or Ministers of this Church ; and that members of congregations, 
 under the charge of Ministers so ordained, shall on coming to Scotland, be admit- 
 ted to church privileges, on the production of satisfactory certificates of their 
 religious and moral character, from the Minister and Session of the congregation 
 to which they have severally belonged." 
 
 " And the Assembly earnestly recommend to all ministers and probationers of 
 this Church, who remove to those colonies in which such prt'ibyt^ii;;s ^re constitu- 
 ted, to put themselves under the inspection of the bounds within which they may 
 reside ; and in the event of their returning to this country, to produce testimonials 
 from such presbytery or presbyteries of their character and conduct during their 
 absence. 
 
 " The General Assembly further named a standing committee to correspond 
 with such Churches in the colonies, for the purpose of giving advice on any 
 question with regard to which they may choose to consult the Church of Scot- 
 land, and affording them such aid as it may be in the power of the Committee to 
 give in all matters afl?ecting their rights and interests."* 
 
 This was the first, and, so far as I know, it is the last legislative 
 act of the Established Church of Scotland in reference to Colonial 
 Churches generally ; and it shows distinctly that while she asserted 
 
 * Presbyterian Review, September, 1833. 
 
her indisputable right tj fix the terms on whicli she Avould be pre- 
 pared to liold intercourse ^vith them, and afford them counsel and 
 aid, she claimed no authority or jurisdiction over them, and allov/ed 
 them no i-iglit of representation in her courts. Every one must 
 see that these Colonial Churches were to be regarded on a very 
 different footing from the Churches in India. To the latter the 
 General Assembly said : — You ai'c now part and j^arcel of our 
 National Church, entitled to share our pi-ivilsges, and bound to 
 submit to our jurisdiction and control. To the former the Assem- 
 bly said, Ave are ready to extend to you the right hand of fellow- 
 ship, and to afford you every assistance in our pov.er, so long as 
 you demean yourselves to our satisfaction ; otherwise you are to 
 shift for yourselves.* 
 
 In consequence of tliis enactment, the Scottish Presbyterian 
 Churches in Canada and other parts, having formed themselves into 
 Synods and Presbyteries, were admitted into communion with the 
 Church of Scotland, and received through the Assembly's Colonial 
 Committee (which tlicn began to be most active and useful) sup- 
 plies of IMiuistei's for vacant congregations, and in many cases 
 friendly counsel and pecuniary aid.f But in no one instance, even 
 where the obligation to the Church of Scotland was the greatest, 
 did either the Committee or the Ecclesiastical Courts claim a 
 right to exercise authority or control. 
 
 This is clearly shovv'n by one or two extracts from official docu- 
 ments, with which I sliali conclude this part of the subject, 
 
 * Since the above was iu type the following report of a case before tlio last 
 General Assembly of the Established Church (May 29, IQ4.6) has been pointed 
 out to me : — " Dr. Clark read a special report from the Colonial Committee, 
 regarding the intercourse which the Committee had had with the Synod of British 
 Guiana, arising out of the circumstance of the Presbytery of Berbice having 
 licensed and inducted into the vacant charge of St. Saviour's in that colony ^^ a jMr. 
 M'Lellan, who had not gone through any regular course of education for the 
 ministry, without consulting with the Colonial Committee, who had sent out a 
 regularly-ordained clergyman for the vacancy. The Colonial Committee had, in 
 consequence, suspended all correspondence with the Presbytery of Berbice. 
 
 "A long discussion followed, which was terminated by Mr. Cook of St. 
 Andrews, moving that the Assembly pronounce a deliverance to the effect that if 
 the presbytery of Berbice could not abide by the rules of the Church of Scotland, 
 they could not hold intercourse with them. These views seemed to be generally 
 concurred in, and a Committee was appointed to prepare a form of dellvcranca 
 upon the subject." — Aberdeen Journal. 
 
 + In the year 1839 the Glasgow Society, already mentioned, was merged in 
 this committee by mutual consent ; — a sub-committee being formed in Glasgow to 
 aid in carrying out the views of the Assembly in reference not only to North 
 America, but to other parts of the world. 
 
33 
 
 Tlie first is troiu the Report of the Colonial Committee, sub- 
 mitted to, and aj^proved by, the General Assembly on the 23d 
 May 1840. After describing the exertions which the Committee 
 had made to heal some unhappy divisions which had taken place 
 in the Scottish Presbytery in Nev/ South Wales, it refers to an 
 unfounded opinion entertained by a few members of that Pres- 
 bytery, "that the Colonial Chiu'ch ought to be subject to the 
 appellate and. legislative jurisdiction of the Church at home."' The 
 report then proceeds : — 
 
 "Over these" (hei* colonial brtiuclics) "the Church of Scotland has never 
 desired to retain or exercise jurisdiction. On the contrary, her aim has ever been 
 to encourage them, at the earliest possible period, to assume to themselves tho 
 duties, and exercise the powers, of self-government, 
 
 '' While, however, the Church of Scotland disclaims all jurisdiction over the 
 Presbyterian Churches in the colonies, she asserts for herself certain privileges, at 
 she is responsible for certain duties in regard to them. 
 
 " 1. She considers herself entitled to determine what judicatories shall be recog- 
 nised by her as Church Courts, and as such, admitted to connection and commu- 
 nion with her ; and for that purpose to judge whether they have been constituted 
 in accordance with that polity a-d those fundamental principles of government 
 which she professes and maintains. 
 
 "2. In regard to those judicatories recognised by her as the duly constituted 
 Church Courts of the colonial branches of the Church of Scotland, she considers 
 herself entitled and bound to teuder counsel, admonition, exhortation, and, it may 
 be, reproof, so long as from their relative extent and position, and their state of 
 mutual feeling, these may be appropriate and useful ; and it is matter of satisfac- 
 tion, that no Colonial Church Court, in connection with the Church of Scotland, 
 has ever expressed any feeling but that of gratification at this species of authority. 
 On the contrary, strong desires have repeatedlly be'en expressed that the Church 
 of Scotland would consent to exercise authoritative jurisdiction over, and receive 
 appeals from, the Church Courts of the Colonies. This, however, she has uniformly 
 declined to do, as not desirable for the Colonial Churches, and as likely to create 
 an amount of business which her own courts could not be expected to undertake- 
 
 " 3. With reference to ministers settled in the Colonies, who have been ordained 
 by, or received licence from, the Church of Scotland, she cannot, and does not, 
 abandon her jurisdiction over them individually. The exercise of such jurisdiction 
 will be suspended while they continue members of, and subject to, a Church 
 judicatory in the Colonies, recognised by the Church of Scotland ; but as such 
 persons still retain the status of ministers or licentiates of the Church of Scotland, 
 whose commission they hold, and in virtue of whose commission they exercise 
 their functions, they can never be absolutely freed from the jurisdiction of her 
 courts ; and accordingly, whenever circumstances arise which call for its exercise, — 
 as, for instance, when such ministers throw off subjection to the Church Court to 
 whose oversight their own Church had been willing to entrust them,— the powers, 
 suspended in exercise, but not abandoned, may again be called into operation, not 
 merely to cut off from connection with the parent Church, but, if necessary, to 
 depose, and so deprive of that character and office which the Church of Scotland 
 has bestowed, and which she must ever retain the power to take away." * 
 
 • Printed Report of the General Assembly's Colonial Committeefor 1840, p. 14, 
 
34 
 
 The Colonial Churches referred to iu tliis Report, are those of Upper and Lower 
 Canada, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, Prince Edward's Island, New Brunswick, 
 West Indies, Ceylon, Australia, and New Zealand. There is no allusion made 
 to the Cape of Good Hope. 
 
 The last paragrapli in the above extract refers to ordained min- 
 isters and licentiates individually, and has no bearing on the 
 status of the Churches with which they may happen to be con- 
 nected. This is a distinction which every one at all acquainted 
 with the subject, will readily comprehend. The rest of the extract 
 is to the same effect as the deliverance of the Assembly of 1833, 
 already quoted. 
 
 The only other extract which I shall give, is taken from a 
 " Letter' of Sijmj) at! ly," addressed by the Acting Colonial Com- 
 mittee of the General Assembly of the Establishment in 1844, to 
 those members of the Presbyterian Cluirch in Canada who had 
 resolved to remain in communion with the Established Church of 
 Scotland. It is important, inasmuch as it contains the declared 
 views of the Committee after the disruption had taken place. 
 It is as follows : " The Church of Scotland has never claimed any 
 authority, nor exercised any control, over your Synod ; neither 
 has she ever possessed, nor desired to possess, the rir/ht of any such 
 interference. Mer ambition and her efforts have been limited to 
 the cultivation of brotherly affection, and the rendering of pecuni- 
 ary aid to those mho had many claims on her regard." * These 
 extracts need no comment. 
 
 My remarks on this general head, viz : " The connection of a 
 foreign Church ivith the Church of Scotland, and the manner in 
 which such connection can be formed," have extended to a far 
 greater length than I originally intended, but I trust they will not 
 be without their use, in enabling some v/hose attention has not 
 been specially directed to such matters, to form a correct judgment 
 respecting the ecclesiastical status of the Scottish Church at Cape 
 Town. To this point I must now address myself; keeping also in 
 view what is stated by the correspondent of the " Free Church- 
 man" concerning the relation of this church to the civil govern- 
 ment. 
 
 [Owbig to an unavoidable delay in procu7'ing the necessary ex-' 
 tracts from official documents, I had not proceeded further when 
 I 7'eceived a note from J. Hamhins, Esq., of the Hon. East 
 India Company's service (to which reference will be afterwards 
 made) in which he intimates that he is the author of the letter in 
 the " Free Churchman" for December last. I shall therefore 
 
 * See ** Home and Foreign Missionary Record," Sept, 1844, 
 
35 
 
 take the liber ty of dropping the term Correspondent, and usin/j the 
 name of llr. If. in its stead.] 
 
 The first document to which Mr. Hawkuis refers, in proof of 
 his position, is a " Circular " published in Cape Tov.n without 
 date or signatui-e, but, as he says, '* probably towards the close of 
 1824, or the early part of 1825." After giving some extracts 
 from this document Mr. Hawkins says : " The original object con- 
 templated by the Circular was clearly the establishment of a 
 Church in connection with the Established Chui'ch of Scotland.'' 
 Now, I have no wish to be captious, or to object to any legitimate 
 evidence that may be brought forward. But I must take leave 
 to state the grounds on which I think that Mr. H. ought not, con- 
 sidering the means of information which he evidenthj possessed, to 
 have produced this document as evidenca at all. la the first j^lace, 
 he could easily have ascertained that, though tlie Circular bears no 
 date, it must have been written and published prior to the first 
 public meeting of the Scottish and Presbyterian Conmiunity 
 referred to in his second extract 3 and he could also have ascertained 
 with equal ease that this meeting was held on the 25th November 
 1824. When he intimates, therefore, that the Circular might 
 probably have been published in the early part of 1825, he does 
 not in my opinion display that regard to accuracy with respect to 
 dates, which the nature of the case required. This is the more 
 remarkable as he afterwards suggests the correction of a date in 
 another document^ from which he takes an extract. 
 
 In the second place, the language of the Circular itself affords, 
 to say the least, strong p)rima facie evidence that it was not 
 written and published by authority of the Scottish and Presbyterian 
 community here, and therefore does not deserve the prominence 
 which Mr. H. has given to it. It is printed in a clear good-sized 
 type, and runs thus : — 
 
 (CIRCULAR.) 
 
 "■ Preparing for Republication, an Address delivered to the Pres- 
 byterian Community of New South Wales, by the Rev. John 
 Laing, A. m., together with Notes and Appendix by the Editors, 
 explanatory of the Principles and Constitution of the Church 
 of Scotland. 
 
 ''The following Extract from the introduction to this Work, will 
 point out the object which the Editors have in view : 
 
 "Tlie object of the present publicatioa is, to call the attention of Scotchmen, and 
 Presbyterians in particular, to a consideration of the propriety and expediency of 
 establishing in Cape Town a Scotch Church, where they may meet together, to 
 worship God as their fathers worshipped in the days of old ; to prepare, for 
 
36 
 
 the erection of a Church iu this capital, in which the ordinances of Religion shall 
 be dispensed according to the institutions of the Church of Scotland. — This is an 
 object in which all nius( feel interested, as Christians, as Scotchmen, and Presby- 
 terians. 
 
 " Until lately, Scotchmen seldom enjoyed within the colonies, the privilege of 
 worshipping God in the Public Ordinances of Religion, conformably to the Pres- 
 byterian system of Public Worship. This arose from various causes, to which 
 we shall advert in the sequel. But the Presbyterian Church has now received a 
 legal establishment in India, in Nova Scotia §-c." (Conpare I\Ir, li's Extract.) 
 
 So the Circular goes on to the end, giving nothing but extracts 
 from the introduction to this projected publication. Now I submit 
 whether such language as the above ought not to have suggested 
 the inquiry, who were the editors of this publication, and what 
 claim had they to be considered at that time as representing the 
 Scottish and Presbyterian community at Cape To^\^lT Had 
 Mr. H. made this enquiry, he might have discovered, in the 
 third place, that the Circular was written and published by an 
 individual who had "merely a passing interest in Cape affairs," 
 and who never became, nor expected to become, a member of the 
 Scottish Church at this place.* This individual was Lieut. P. W. 
 Grant, of the Honorable East India Company's Service, who was 
 here on a visit from Calcutta for the benefit of his health. The 
 Circular was drawn up by him, and pi-inted at his expence, before 
 any measures were seriously thought of by the Scottish and Presby- 
 terian community for building a Church or forming themselves 
 into a distinct congregation, and (as the above extract shows) with 
 the professed design of calling their attention to that important ob- 
 ject, f I do not pretend to be deeply versed in the law of evi- 
 dence, but I submit, for the consideration of the intelligent reader, 
 whetlier, if such a document were to be adduced as evidence in 
 any civil or ecclesiastical court sitting to try the question of the 
 status of the Scottish Church at Cape Town, it would not raise a 
 smile on the countenance of the gravest judge that Great. Britain 
 or her Colonies can produce. In the mean time I give it as my 
 individual opinion, that, whatever may have been the olyect con- 
 templated by the founders of this church, the aforesaid '* Circular" 
 merely sliows Avhat was the object contemplated by the person 
 
 * In the course of the year 1825 he was actively engaged in the Burmese war. 
 
 t See Fragment of Church History at the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Town 1827. 
 
 'I"he author of this brochure was the late JNlr. J. Jardine, Librarian at Cape 
 Town, who was intimately acquainted with all such matters. He himself be- 
 longed professedly to one of the secession Presbyterian Bodies iu Scotland, but was 
 appointed a Member of the General Committee of the Scotch Community, and at 
 that time took an active part in promoting the formation of the Scottish Church 
 
37 
 
 wlio wrote it, or, as Mr. H. very properly expresses it, the object 
 contemplated by the Circular itself.* 
 
 So imich for his first extpet. Before coining to the next (to 
 ■which, I admit, the same objection does not apply) I shall give 
 what I consider to be the most unexceptionable evidence in regard 
 to the points at issue. I refer to the resolutions passed at the 
 first public meeting of the Scottish and Presbyterian community 
 at Cape Town. This meeting was held by permission of the 
 Governor, and pursuant to public notice, on the 2-">th November 
 1824 After addresses had been delivered by the Chairman, by 
 Mr. Grant,t and others, in which each explained his own views 
 
 * Mr. Grant, the author of this Circular, was a warm controversialist, while he 
 sojourned at the Cape, Besides writing a good deal on the subject of the Cape 
 Currency — at that time a very exciting topic -he published, or at least gave 
 notice of his uifCHfiou to publish, a work on the relation of the Dutch Reformed 
 Church to the National Church of Scotland. 1 have now before me a printed 
 " Notice" issued after the fashion of his " Cmcur-An," without date or signature, 
 and containing an ^'extract from the intended Pnhlication, which icill point out 
 the object whicli the author has in view." It seems that the Clergy of the Dutch 
 Reformed Church had for some years presumed to entertain the " ridiculous 
 notion" of independency or self-government, and on the 2nd November 1824, 
 they had actually formed themselves into a Synod and Presbyteries, under the 
 very eye of a British Governor, and without acknowledging their dependence on 
 either of the " British Churches." Some of them even wished to go a step 
 further, and proposed to institute a " 'J'heological Academy or University for the 
 purpose of educating young men, natives of the colony, to fill up vacancies in 
 the District Churches." This, thinks our Indian friend, is going too far ; and 
 so he deems it proper to lecture the Dutch Clergy on their position and their 
 duty. The following is a specimen of his style of thought and expression : the 
 ■italics are his own : " The Colonial Church was formerly subject to the control, 
 in its Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, of the Presbytery and Synod of Amsterdam, and 
 since the capture of the Colony (in 1806) being a period of 18 years, this con- 
 nection has of course ceased. There has therefore been a sort of hidependencii 
 (a terrible word in those days) or rather oligarchy, maintained by the Dutch 
 Clergy. A system, in short, as incompatible with its constitution as it is incon- 
 sistent with sound principles of Colonial policy, and with that dependence on the 
 Mother Country which is the chief corner-stone of Anglo Colonial policy. 'Ihe 
 Notion of an J^Wco-Presbyterian Church independent of the British Churches, is 
 certainly as ridiculous as it is inadmissible." — Had Rlr. H. got hold of tbis pre- 
 cious document, who knows what a fine argument he would have drawn out of it. 
 After all, he may have met with it, for I have found several copies of the '' Notice ' 
 and " Circular" stitched together. As for Mr. Grant, he appears at tira^s to have 
 displayed more zeal than discretion ; and consequently the Dutch Clergy, who at 
 least knew something of Presbyterian Government, were not very much frightened 
 by him. They knew a little of Latin too, and his " ridiculous notion'' may have 
 suggested to them the idea of " ridiculus inits." 
 
 + A manuscript copy of IMr. Grant's address, corrected apparently by his 
 own hand, has been preserved. It is a rare specimen of high churchism, un- 
 bounded veneration for National EstablisLments of religion, and decided hoftilitif 
 
38 
 
 and Avishes, the following resolutions, " whicli Iiad been prepared 
 by a few gentlemen interested in tlie subject," were proposed and 
 carried : — « 
 
 " Resolved unanimously, 1. That as the Scottish and Presbyterian Coirsmuuity 
 residing in this metropolis and the neiglibourhood, forms a considerable propor- 
 tion of the Anglo-Colonial jiopulation, it is highly desirable, as regards both the 
 moral and religious interests of that body, that a Presbyterian Church should be 
 erected in Cape Town, and placed in connection with the Established Church of 
 Scotland, and under the immediate protection of Ilis Majesty's Colonial Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 (2.) "That, for the purpose of carrying into efFect this object, in concen with 
 and under the sanction of the Colonial Government, a General Committee be 
 formed, and that the following gentlemen be appointed members thereof: — 
 Mr. Macdonald, Chairman, Mr. Johxstonv. Jardinf, 
 
 Mr. NisBET, Mr. Smiih, 
 
 Mr. DiCKsox, Mr. Paton, 
 
 Mr. Pii.LANs, Mr. Loucon, 
 
 Mr, MoxTEATH, Rev. Mr. Fauiii;, 
 
 Mr. AnEncROMEif, Rev. Mr. Murray, 
 
 . Mr. FiNDLAY, Rev. Dr. Thom, 
 
 Mr. Mackenzie, Rev. Mr. Smith, 
 
 Mr. Saunders, Rev. Mr. Sutiier-land, 
 
 Mr. Rankin, Rev. Mr. Berrange, 
 
 (Mr. Granj's name was afterwards added.) 
 (3.^ " That the Scottish and Presbyterian Community desirous, at all times, 
 of manifesting their loyalty and attachment to His Majesty's Person and Govern- 
 ment, and to His Majesty's Representative in this Colony, and reposing the 
 utmost confidence in the disposition of His Excellency Lord Charles Henry 
 Somerset to afford every facility tov/ards the attainment of the object above 
 stated, do instruct the Committee to consult the wishes and conform to the views 
 of His Excellency the Governor, as far as may he practicable, consistent with the 
 principles of the National Presbyterian Church. 
 
 (4.) ''That on the plan being drawn up by the Committee, and submitted to 
 His Excellency the Governor, the same shall be made known at another General 
 Meeting, or in any other manner the Committee may judge expedient; and no 
 time thereafter lost in requesting His Excellency to forward and favorably recom- 
 mend it to Earl Bathurst, with a view to obtain the sanction of His'lNIajesty's 
 
 to popular election in matters of church and state. Take the following as an 
 example. " For my own part, I am decidedly hostile to the principle of leaving 
 the patronage in the hands of the people or congregation'; it leads lo many evils, to 
 schisms, to personal animosity, to anarchy, and tyranny ; and is in reality incom- 
 patible with the existence of a well ordered Government in church or state." 
 I have good authority for saying that, thankful as the Presbyterian Com- 
 munity were to Mr, Grant for his active and in some respects useful services, they 
 did not approve of such sentiments as these. I do not believe that there is one of 
 them that would avow such sentiments now. Five years ago they were all ready 
 enough to claim and to exercise their right to choose their own Pastor; and bow- 
 ever unworthy may have been the object of their choice, I have no reason to 
 think that they wonld forego their claim to exercise the same right, were a 
 vacancy to occur to-morrow. 
 
39 
 
 Govei'iniient, to the early nomination of a Prcsbyteriuu i'astor, cont'onnalily to 
 the tenor of His Lordship's letter to the Presbytery of Glasgow, dated the 13th of 
 May, 1824. 
 
 (5.) " Ihat a Subscription be opened in this metropolis and throughout tlie 
 Colony, for defraying the expense of building the Church, and that the assistance 
 of llis Majesty's Government be solicited in aid of the funds realized by volun- 
 tary Contributions for this purpose ; and for paying part of such stipend as may be 
 deemed adequate for the respectable maintenance of a Pastor of acknowledged 
 character, talent, judgment, and experience. 
 
 (6.) " That the Committee be instructed to communicate their proceedings to the 
 Presbyteries of Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Aberdeen, and the Moderator to the 
 General Assembly, and to solicit their aid in promoting the objects contemplated 
 by the ]\Ieeting." 
 
 The rest of the proceedings arc unimportant, consisting chiefly 
 of votes of thanks to those who had patronized the objects of the 
 meeting. 
 
 Now, as the above Resolutions form the basis or groundwork 
 of all future pi-oceedings on the part of tlie Committee of the 
 Scottish Comraunit}^, let us look at them steadily, and consider how 
 far they go to determine the civil and ecclesiastical status of this 
 churcli. It -would be folh'- to deny that, according to the first 
 resolution, it Avas considered desirable that a Presbyterian Church 
 fihouldbe erected in Cape Town, and that it should' be iilaced in 
 connection with the Established Chiirch of Scotland, and under 
 the iinviediate protection of Sis 3Iajesty's Colonial Government. 
 It is also clear that a committee was duly appointed, with such 
 authority as the meeting could delegate, to carry this object into 
 effect. 
 
 Though it is not stated what sort of connection with the Churcli 
 of Scotland was m.eant, I am Avilling to admit that it was as close 
 a connection as possible, — a connection which implied the right of 
 jurisdiction and control on the part of the Church of Scotland, 
 and consequently the right of representation on the part of the 
 Presbyterian Church at Cape Town. Such a connection was at 
 that time desired by the Presbyterian Churches in England, Ire- 
 land, and the North American colonies ; — it had actually been 
 formed in the case of India ; — and I have no reason to suppose that 
 any thing less than this was sought by the Scottish Presbyterians 
 at the Cape. On the contrary, the Committee, as we shall see 
 presently, understood the expression in this sense, and it must be 
 presumed tliat they acted in accordance with the views of their 
 constituents, unless the contrary can be shown. But, admittino- 
 all this, are we to suj^pose that the Presbyterian community at 
 the Cape were so ignorant of the constitution of the Established 
 Church of Scotland, as to imagine that thov could force a connection 
 
40 
 
 upon tlitit clmvch, without its consent, or contrary to its will .' 
 Or is there any thing in their proceedings that can lead us to con- 
 clude, that unless they succeeded in establishing a Presbyterian 
 Chm'ch subject to the jurisdiction of the Established Church of Scot- 
 land, they could have no Scottish Presbyterian Church at all? 
 That Mr. Grant, of Calcutta, and another gentleman, who took 
 a })rominent part in the proceedings, may have taken this view of 
 the matter, I am not unwilling to admit; for there is evidence suffi- 
 cient to show that they cherished the sublime notion that a Church 
 could not be thoroughly and purely Presbyterian, unless it were 
 a recognized branch of the National Church of Scotland. But I 
 believe there were others present who entertained sounder a;nd 
 more liberal views, and who, I may here observe, could sign a 
 letter in 1825, soliciting a connexion with the Established Church 
 of Scotland, and yet without forgetting that they had done so, and 
 without the least self-contradiction, could 20 years afterwards give 
 it as their opinion that the Scottish Church at Cape Town is still 
 to all intents and purposes an ''isolated Church." With regard 
 to the desire expressed in the resolutions, to have the Church 
 placed under the immediate in-otection of Government, Sj-c, this 
 will be best understood by those who are acquainted with the polit- 
 ical and ecclesiastical condition of the colony at that period. 
 Suffice it to say that all legislative, judicial, and executive powers 
 were then virtually in the hands of the Governor, and that they 
 were wielded by Lord Charles Somerset with remarkable effect.* 
 Freedom of speech and action was a thing unknown. All men 
 were sighing for liberty, and some bold spirits were beginning to 
 struggle for it, — but in vain. An attempt to establish an indepen- 
 dent press had been authoritatively put down. An application 
 from some of the most respectable inhabitants of Cape Town, 
 (including the Chief Justice and other public functionaries) re- 
 questing His Excellency's permission to establish a '' Literary and 
 Scientific Society," from which politics Avere to be rigidly 'ex- 
 cluded, met with a flat refusal ; some private meetings which had 
 been held for the purpose of framing rules for the government of 
 this Society were declared to be ^' iller/al," because they had 
 not received the Governor's sanction ; and an old musty procla- 
 mation anent the suppression of Jacobin Clubs was produced 
 as the law applicable to the case.f 
 
 * See" State of the Cape of Good Hope in 1822, by a Civil Servant of the 
 Colony;" and " Report of the Commissioners of Inquiry upon the Administration oj 
 the Government of the Cape of Good Hope, 6th September 1826." 
 
 t For an account of this curious affair sec Pringle's " Narrative," and " Papers 
 of the South African Literary Society, 1824." 
 
4i 
 
 This happenod only a few weeks before the public meeting of tlid 
 Scottish and Presbyterian commnnity was held ; and as some of 
 the leading members of it had been concerned in projecting the 
 " Literary Society," it is no wonder that they deemed it necessary 
 to solicit the Governor's sanction to the erection of a CJturch. In 
 fact, the existing law rendered it imperative on ' them to do so. 
 According to the Church, Regulations of De Blist, which had not 
 then become obsolete, and were not likely to be overlooked, no 
 new church or chapel might be erected by any religious denomina- 
 tion whatever, nor might any meetings for public worship be held, 
 except by those religious communities that had already been recog- 
 nized, without the express sanction of Mis J^xcellency the Gover- 
 nor. No existing religious community might increase the number 
 of its ministers v.'ithout the Governor's permission, who alone had 
 a right to judge of the necessity for such a measure, and decide 
 accordingly. No ministers of the gospel might officiate in public, 
 unless they had attended the universities, and been regularly or- 
 dained in the manner observed by the churches to which they res- 
 pectively belonged. Besides these there were other stringent 
 regulations, circumscribing the operations of Missionaries, and in- 
 terdicting all teachers of religion from intermeddling with politics, 
 or disseminating any doctrines which, in the judgment of the 
 Governor, had a tendency to excite a spirit of disaffection to Gov- 
 ei'nment, &c.* 
 
 If the reader will keep these things in view, he will be at no loss 
 to comprehend why the Scottish community deemed it necessary 
 to consult the wishes, and solicit the sanctioji, of the Governor in 
 regard to the erection of a Church, and the appointment of an o?'- 
 dained minister of the Church of Scotland. 
 
 The history of that period also shows that thei'e existed, on 
 the part of Government, a strong antipathy to certain ecclesiasti- 
 cal persons, whose influence was too great for even a govei-noi' 
 
 * Au Association formed at Uitenliage on the 12tli July 1824, by the Revd. 
 Mr. Smith, the excellent Clergyman of the District, and other most respectable 
 inhabitants, for the purpose of employing Teachers or Cathechists to instruct the 
 young and ignorant at the expense of the Association, received a distinct veto 
 from the Colonial Office per missive dated 23d September 1824. The Associ- 
 ation was of course broken up. Mr. Smith was in Cape Town in the month of 
 November following, and took a leading part in the proceedings of the Public 
 IMeeting of the Scottish and Presbyterian Community. His name is on the list of 
 the Committee. It is due to the successors of Lord Charles Somerset to state 
 that they adopted a more liberal policy, and that it is owing, in no small degree, 
 to this cause that the obnoxious Church Regulations of De Mht gradually fell 
 into disuse, and were at length formally repealed. 
 
42 
 
 like Lord Charles Somerset Avho'.ly to neutralize, but which it 
 was his policy to counteract to the utmost of his power. Hence 
 some peculiar forms of speech in dispatches and other official 
 documents relative to the Scottish Church. 
 
 With respect to the desire expressed in the 4th Resolution to 
 " obtain the sanction of His Majesty's Government to the early 
 nomination of a Presbyterian Pastor,—" this is evidently to bo 
 explained by the succeeding clause, as referring, not to the exercise 
 of Church Patronage, but to the procurement of pecuniary aid 
 towards the support of a Pastor, according to the promise held 
 out in Lord Bathurst's letter to the Presbytery of Glasgov/, 13th 
 May, 1824. 
 
 Before I proceed to consider m what manner, and with what suc- 
 cess these Resolutions were carried into effect by the Committee 
 appointed for tliat purpose, I must beg the reader once more to 
 remember that there are just two points which I have to discuss, 
 viz, 1st, — The relation in v/hfch the Scottish Churcli stands to the 
 Civil Government^ more particularly with respect to the right of 
 Cinirch Patronage, and 2ndly, — ^/i6' connection bet n-^een this Church 
 and the Estahlislicd Church of Scotland. These are the points 
 Vr'hich Mr. H. has endeavoured to elucidate, and to them alone 
 my argument is intended to apply. 
 
 With regard to the first, as I am not aware of any legislative 
 enactment by which the right of patronage or control, either as it 
 respects the Colonial Churches generally, or the Scottish Church 
 in particular, is vested ia the Government, * the only question to 
 be determined is, whether tlie Scottish Community have at any 
 time conceded this right to Government in the way of a special 
 contract or agreement (see page 4.) The view which the Govern- 
 ment itself takes of this question, though not to beheld as decisive, 
 (because it is quite possible for a Civil Government to claim either 
 more or less than its lawful rights) will be admitted to have a pre- 
 ponderating weight. For this reason I thought it best to apply to 
 the Honorable the Secretary to Government, requesting informa- 
 tion on the subject, and stating the purpose forwhic|i it was requir- 
 ed (See Appendix A.) To this application, I have received a 
 reply, embodying a number of extracts from Dispatches and other 
 official documents, all of them bearing more or less directly on 
 the point at issue. They are no^v presented to the reader in their 
 
 * 'J"he Church Ileguliitions of Do Mist, bad as they were, allowed every reli- 
 gious eommuuity, except the Dutch Reformed Church, the right to appoint its 
 own Minister, provided the Governor judged it necessary and proper for them to 
 have one. See ihap, T. Sec, 9 and 10. 
 
43 
 
 original foi'in, that he may be enabled to jud^e for liiiiiseit'(Appen' 
 dix B.) I shall refer to them separately, as I proceed, connecting 
 them with statements of facts drawn from other sources. 
 
 With regard to the second point, unless all that I have said respect* 
 ing the constitution, and practice of the Established Church of 
 Scotland be founded in error, it must be allowed tliat that Church 
 alone is competent to decide (at least in the first instance) on any 
 proposal made to itrcr^pectinga connection with thcScottish Churcli 
 at Cape Town ; and therefore the question to be determined here is 
 what steps have been actually taken by the Church of Scotland 
 in reference to any such proposal. We have seen the various 
 deliverances of the General Assembly on similar applications from 
 the Presbyterian Churches in England, Ireland, and the Colonies 
 genei-ally ; what special deliverance has been given on the appli- 
 cation from the Cape of Good Hope, or has there been any deli- 
 verance at all ? This, it appears to me, is a fair statement of the 
 question ; for though all other parties should speak, and write, and 
 act, as if a connection with the Church of Scotland had been already 
 established, the proceedings of the General Assembly of the 
 Church of Scotland must, after all, determine the fact. 
 
 Now to proceed. The Committee having first ascertained, by 
 means of a Deputation from their number, that the Governor 
 was M-illing to forward their views, and having also made several 
 unsuccessful attempts to procure an eligible site for a Church and 
 Manse,* addressed a Memorial to His Excellency the Governor, 
 accompanied by a copy of the Resolutions passed at the public 
 meeting, praying that His Excellency would transmit these Docu- 
 ments to Earl Bathurst with his recommendation The substance 
 of the Memorial, and an extract from the Governor's Despatch 
 to Earl Bathurst, will be found in the Appendix (B. No. 
 1.) The object is stated to be the j)rocurement of pecuniary 
 assistance, &c., but neither in the memorial nor the Despatch, is 
 there any thing said about the Scottish Community ceding their 
 right to elect their own pastor. This, as we shall see presently, 
 was to be afterwards considered. 
 
 The next important step taken by the Committee was to address 
 a detailed letter to the JModerator of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 and to forward copies to the Presbyteries of GlasgoAv, and Aber- 
 deen, explaining their views and wishes, and soliciting counsel and 
 aid. From this document, which, as Mr. Ha^vkins informs us, 
 
 * A site was afterwards procured from the Burgher Senate at an expence of 
 about 1500 Rixdollars. 
 
 F 
 
44 
 
 was dated lOtli February 18*25,* he has given pretty liberal extracts ; 
 and yet I v,isli that he had given one or two more, even though 
 he had thrown out Mr. Grant's " Circular," to make room for 
 them It will be seen that in this important document, the Com- 
 mittee discuss the whole subject under three distinct heads j and 
 that tlie last refers to " the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts 
 of Scotland, in what manner it may he practicable to maintain 
 their autliority in this colony, and the relation in which the Pastor 
 may stand to the local dovernment." 
 
 Now I must confess that it strikes me as somewhat curious that, 
 though Mr. H. was professedly treating of these very matters, 
 and showing the views which the Committee entertained respect- 
 ing them, he does not quote this part of the letter, nor even make 
 the slightest allusion to it. The remarks of the Committee are 
 comprised within ten lines, and he might have given the whole. 
 They are important, inasmuch as they show distinctly that the 
 Committee entertained doubts as to the practicability of the 
 Church of Scotland exercising jurisdiction over the Scottish 
 Church at Cape Town, &c., and farther that the Committee made 
 an intelligent distinction between tlie right of the Church Courts 
 in Scotland to exercise authority over their own ordained Ministers 
 individualli/, and their right to exercise autliority over the 
 Churches or Congregations over which these Ministers may be 
 placed. Had Mr. H. xmderstood this distinction himself he 
 would probably have spared the ungenerous remark : " The letter 
 from 'which they (the extracts) are taken icas signed, among others, 
 by Dr. Abercrombie ; and it is a pity he did not refer to it, ere 
 speaking of St. Andieivs as an isolated Church.^' Having made 
 these remarks, I am bound in justice to Mr. H., to give the 
 whole of the Committee's Letter, in order that the impartial reader 
 may be able to form his own opinion, and give judgment as he 
 may see cause. Those portions of it which Mr. H. has omitted 
 will be distinguished by Jjcing printed in Italics. The letter is as 
 follows : — 
 
 To the Moderator 
 
 To the Presbytery of Edinburgh. 
 With the view of soliciting the opinion of the Presbytery of Edinburgh and its 
 kind offices, in bringing the subject of the present communication under the con- 
 sideration of the General Assembly, we beg leave to transmit to you printed 
 copies of resolutions passed at a public meeting of the Scottish and Presbyterian 
 
 * The only copy which I have seen of this letter hears no date. It is endorsed 
 January 1825, in the handwriting of Mr. Paton, the gentleman who then 
 acted as Secretary to the Committee. 
 
45 
 
 community, held under the sanction of His Excellency the Governor, for the pur- 
 pose of taking into consideration the expediency of erecting in this metropolis a 
 Presbyterian Church, to be placed in communication and connection with the 
 National Church of Scotland, either by being attached to the Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh, or placed immediately under the auspices and jurisdiction of the General 
 Assembly, as may appear most accordant with the principles of that church. 
 
 In addition to the resolutions passed at the general meeting, w-e beg to enclose a 
 copy of an address to His Excellency the Governor, drawn up by the Committee 
 appointed to carry these resolutions into effect, and which we (the Committee) 
 had the honor of presenting to His Excellency, who was pleased to receive it most 
 graciously, and in reply to assure us that the measure had his most cordial sanc- 
 tion and concurrence, and that he should make an early communication oa the 
 subject to the Earl Bathurst, His Majesty's Colonial Secretary, and recommend it 
 to his Lordship's favorable consideration, 
 
 Having premised these observations, it remains now to state in as brief a manner as 
 possible our sentiments on some subordinate but important questions on which we would 
 desire to conform to the spirit and principles of the Scottish Church, and to he guided 
 by the judgment of the Presbytery and the General Assembly. Our sentiments will ba 
 710W clearly exhibited by discussing the subject under the J'ollowing heads ; 
 
 First, 171 regard to the building of the church and the funds requisite for that 
 purpose. 
 
 Secondly, in regard to the nomination of a pastor, being a lawfully ordained minister' 
 of the Church of Scotland ; by ivhom the stipend sh.all be paid, and in lehat authorities 
 the patronage shall be vested. 
 
 Thirdly, as regards the jurisdiction of the Ecclesiastical Courts cf Scotland, in 
 what manner it may be practicable to maintain their authority in this colony, and the 
 relation in which the pastor may stand to the local Government. 
 
 On the first head, ive have to observe tltat about £1200 may be raised in this colony, 
 and an equal amount in India, in aid of the funds j'or building a church. We entertain 
 sanguine hopes of obtaining considerable funds in London and the neighbourhood ; and 
 we do not doubt that our brethren in Scotland will cordially assist in contributing to the 
 same object. We shall leave it to your judgment to determine in ichat manner this object 
 may be best accomplished in Scotland. It is not to be expected, however, that private 
 contributions ivill be sufficient to cover all the expenses attending the building of a 
 church and manse ; but ice have no doubt whatever, that His Excellency's Govern- 
 ment at home, anxious as it has always been to promote the moral and religious interests 
 of the people, and to afford every countenance to His Majesty's Presbyterian subjects 
 abroad, will readily give its support and assistance. We think that j£lO,000 would ba 
 fuUxj adequate to every purpose, and it only remains now to request you will do us the 
 favor of ope ing a communication on the subject with Earl Bathurst, in such a way 
 as to your judgment may appear most proper. 
 
 Seconc//]/, in regard to the nomination of a pastor, and in whom the patronage 
 shall be vested. This is a subject of some delicacy, and on which it is not an 
 easy matter to reconcile individual opinions. If the v/hole stipend of the minister 
 is to be paid by the Government, it will naturally be expected that the nomination 
 should rest v/ith the colonial department at home. 
 
 In the principle of [such an arrangement there is nothing objectionable, provided 
 that this patronage should not be cou.ded with the power of removal at pleasure ; 
 ajid that this power should rest with the proper ecclesiastical courts only, on the 
 same principle as in Scotland. It is, indeed, of the utmost importance that this 
 principle should be maintained and never lost sight of, as without that coiitrol 
 
46 
 
 and subordination, which it is necessary that the ecclesiastical courts should exer- 
 cise over a minister, (and which could be of no effect unless the power of removal 
 lay with the Scottish ecclesiastical courts, subject to such modifications as the 
 peculiar circumstances of the case might render desirable for both parties,) it 
 would be a Scottish church in name only, and the minister might thus become 
 alike independent of the congrega-.ion and of the proper cliurch authorities. On the 
 other hand, if only part of the stipend wtre paid by Government, part must be 
 paid out of the scat rents and by the voluntary contributions of the cong'egation, 
 and for various reasons, which will readily occur to the Presbytery, this is, per- 
 haps, the most eligible arrangement that could be adopted. In this case, however, 
 it does not follow that the patronage should rest entirely and solely with His JNIa- 
 jesty's Government, And, indeed, under all circumstances it might nppear most 
 just and reasonable that the patronage should rest jointly with the Presbytery and 
 the Government at home, which we think might be done by mutual arrangement. 
 The Preshijtery might have the privilege of presenting candidates in thejirst instance, 
 and it might rest with His Mujestii's Government to select one of these for the church 
 in this Metropolis. We do not uish, however, to lay down any particular plan, but 
 rather to acquaint the Presbytery with our sentiments generally, leaving it to their 
 judgment, and that of the other authorities, to decide as to the arrangement, uhich on 
 refection shall appear most judicious and least likely to be attended with misunder- 
 standings and inconveniences hereafter* We would, however, wish it to be under- 
 stood as our unanimous opinion, that whatever be the conditions annexed to the 
 office and appointment of a minister here, these should be such as to render him 
 accountable for his conduct and amenable only to the supreme ecclesiastical autho- 
 rities at home, so that he may not be It-d by local interest, local prejudices, and 
 local influence, to swerve from the path of his duty as a christian minister, and 
 may thus bs prevented from occupying his time in matters which may not fall 
 within his province, . and which may be incompatible with the efficient and satis- 
 factory discharge of his ministerial duties. This will prove the surest means of pre- 
 serving to a minister and a church thus constituted that dignity of character which is 
 essential to the proper discharge of his duty, both to the Government and to the people 
 committed to his charge. On this subject we think it unnecessary to expatiate 
 any further, as we are confident that you, in conjunction with the other ecclesias- 
 tical authorities, will make it your object to take such measures as are likely to 
 promote our wishes, and lay the foundation in this colony of a church which we 
 hope may prove an ornament to the parent establishment. Respecting the stipend 
 uhich might be expected by a minister properly educated, and qualified in every other 
 respect for taking charge of an infant church, we think that £500 per annum would 
 constitute a respectable maintenatice. But much would doubtless depend oh the 
 
 * This sentence is not unimportant. In a "Memorandum" drawn up by the 
 Kirk-session for my information before I became INlinister of the Scottish Church, 
 a particular stress is laid upon it. After quoting part of the preceding passage the 
 Kirk-session observe : " It is evident, however, tluft these are merely suggestions made 
 for further consideration and arrangement, as well from the object as already 
 explained as from the whole tenor of the letter ; for instance the words tvhich follow 
 the above quotation are, ' We do not wish, however, to lay down any particular 
 plan, &C-" Mr. H. must, I think, have seen this Memorandum in the course of 
 his enquiries ; for he refers to it in one part of his letter. It was scut to me, as 
 will afterwards be seen, in reply to certain questions which I had proposd relative 
 to the constitution of the Scottish Church, 
 
47 
 
 character and zeal of the pastor himself . However, it does not appear that anijthiri<r 
 definitive on this head can he determined till the sentiments of His Majesty's Govern- 
 ment he hnotvn ; and having communicated our sentiments generalli/ on this head to you, 
 we trust you will be enabled to take such steps as may be calculated to further the 
 measures now in contemplation. 
 
 Thirdly, as regards the nature of the connection which it may he practicable to 
 maintain with our National Church, tJte extent and legality of her jurisdiction and 
 how far consistent uith the recognised principles and independence of the Scottish 
 Church, the authority of the home and local Government may be allowed to operate in 
 respect to the appointment or removal, or interference in any way with the conduct and 
 person of the pastor, or with the ajj'airs of the church, — these are momentous questions 
 on which we feel assured the Presbytery and the General Assembly, in concert with 
 His Majesty's Govern?nent, will decide in such manner as shall afford satisfaction to 
 all parties. By their counsel and advice we shall be regulated, and in their zeal, 
 judgment, and discretion, we repose the most entire confidence. 
 
 Having thus stated in a brief and general manner the views which we entertain in 
 regard to the establishment of a Presbyterian Church, and principles on which it should 
 be founded, — we are decidedly of opinion that if His Majesty's Government should ex- 
 press a readiness to accede to the tcishes of His Majesty's Scottish and Presbyterian 
 subjects in this colony by a pecuniary grant in aid of the funds for building a church 
 and to fix the maximum of stipend which His Majesty's Government may be pleased to 
 authorize, it would be extremely desirable, and would tend greatly toj'acilitate the ac- 
 complishment of our object, that a pastor of acknowledged character and abilities 
 should be appointed to this colony with as little delay as possible. Indeed, it must occur 
 to you, that this is a measure which for very obvious reasons ought not to be delayed 
 and ice trust that every exertion will be used to accomplish it. It is almost unnecessary 
 for %ts to say, that in an inj'ant church, such as is now proposed to be established it is 
 of the utmost consequence that the choice should fall on an individual possessino- some- 
 thing more tban the ordinary qualifications {even high as these are) for the ministry. 
 It is to be observed that the Dutch Presbyterian community form about 4-5ths of the 
 christian population of this colony, and that there is but one regularly established 
 Dutch Calvinistic church in Cape Town, in which the English Colonial Chaplain is 
 permitted to perform divine service once o)i every sabbath ; besides which there are other 
 churches, the property of different communions, in all of which divine service is per- 
 formed according to the respective modes if worship of the Lutherans, Roman 
 Catholics, Independents, Wesleyans, Moravians ; and even the Blahomedans have their 
 mosque. But there is no Scottish church, neither is there any place of worship where 
 divine service is performed according tp the forms of our National Church. Should a 
 clergyman be immediately appointed, the conciliating indulgence of our Presbyterian 
 ■" brethren of the Dutch church would certainly be extended to him in allowing his con- 
 gregation to assemble in their place of tvorship at least once every Sunday, until such 
 time as the Scottish church should be ready to receive its communicants. 
 
 We trust that no time will be lost in ascertaining the sentiynents entertained on the 
 subject by His Majesty's Government, and the approaching session of the General 
 Assembly will, we hope, afford a J'avourable opportunity for recommending it to the 
 earnest attention of that venerable court. 
 
 (The signatures are wanting in my copy.) 
 From this letter it is evident that the committee M'ere desirous 
 of obtaining from Government a suitable provision for tlie main- 
 tenance of a pastor, &c., that in the event of tliis being granted 
 they were anxious to procure a pastor, being an ordained minister 
 
48 
 
 of the Church of Scotland, icithout delay ; and further that they 
 desired to have both him and his congregation placed in connec- 
 tion with the Established Church of Scotland, so as to be subject 
 to her jurisdiction, and consequently entitled to her protection and 
 support. It is also evident that the committee relied with confi- 
 dence on the wisdom aud zeal of the Presbytery and the. General 
 Assembly, and declared their readiness to be guided by their 
 counsel and advice. But it is by no means clear that the com- 
 mittee made an absolute and unconditional surrender of their own 
 right, or that of their constituents, to accept or refuse the terms that 
 might be offared. They merely open a negotiation. They state 
 their views and wishes generally, and they also state their difficul- 
 ties. In re(jard to the nomination of a pastor, and in whom the 
 patronage should he vested, they pay plainly, ''this is a subject of 
 some delicacy, on which it is not easy to reconcile individual 
 opinions '," and though they add that if Government were to pay 
 the ovhole salary, it might naturally be erjpected that the nomina- 
 tion should rest (not, be it observed, Avith the Governor of the 
 colony but) with the colonial department at liome, they do not 
 admit that this would be unobjectionable, unless it were, coupled 
 with other arrangements calculated to prevent the interference of 
 the local Government, to check the aberrations of the pastor, and 
 to give satisfaction to all parties. They appear, in fact, to have 
 entertained an apprehension, — which at that time was very natural, 
 but which turned out to be perfectly groundless, — that Government 
 might wish to exercise an authority over them inconsistent with 
 the pi'inciples of a Presbyterian church, and therefore they desired 
 to be under the maternal care and protection of the Church of 
 Scotland. 
 
 In regard to \Xxq j)ractical)llity of maintaining a connection Kith 
 the Established Church of Scotland, Sfc, they write like men v/ho 
 knew more of the constitution of that church, and the extent of 
 her authority, than one would be apt to infer from IMr. H's -ex- 
 tracts. Mr. Grant, who I find Avas very intimate with Dr. Bryce 
 of Calcutta, could doubtless tell them about the proceedings of the 
 General Assembly in reference to the Indian churches. At all 
 events they appear to have knov.-n perfectly vvcll that nothing 
 short of an Act of Assembly could constitute a connection bet^vecu 
 a Colonial Church and the Established Church of Scotland, and 
 that unless the General Assembly should be pleased to legislate on 
 their behalf, they must be content to take up the position of an 
 *' isolated church." In short, the object of the whole letter, as they 
 state at the outset, is to solicit the opinion of the Presbytery, and 
 
4^ 
 
 its kind offices to bring tlie subject under tlic consideration of the 
 General Assembly. This is the view which I take of it ; but the 
 reader has the Avholc letter before liim, — and he may draw his 
 own conclusions. 
 
 Tlie Committee transmitted their letter, along with other docu- 
 ments, to their agents Pviessrs. Borradaile, Sons, and Ravenhill, 
 London, to be forwarded by them to the Pres])ytery of Edinburgh ; 
 but before the papers reached Britain, and before Earl Bathurst 
 received any other communication on the subject than the Govei'- 
 nor's Despatch already mentioned, His Lordship had instructed 
 the Governor to assign towards the erection of the Scottish 
 Church a sum equal to one-third of the estimated expense, and 
 also " to assign to the officiating minister the sum of j£100 per 
 annum, in addition to VY'hat miglit be given by the congregation" 
 (see Appendix B. No. 2.) Here again there is not a v.'ord respect- 
 ing the right of patronage, or any thing else, except the amount of 
 joecuniarij aid to be allovred. Nor is this surprising. His Majes- 
 ty's Government was desirous of encouraging emigration to the 
 British Colonies, and with that view had already, in a letter addres- 
 sed to the Presbytery of Glasgow, "expressed a readiness to 
 extend to His Majesty^s Presbyterian subjects abroad the means 
 of enjoying the religious ordinances of their country." This boon 
 was not limited to members of the Established Church, but was 
 granted to other Presbyterians, and indeed to Dissenters of every 
 name, who emigrated in sufficient numbers to justify a claim for 
 support. A Wcsleyan Minister attached to a party of English 
 Settlers located in the District of Albany, was at that very time 
 in the I'eceipt of £16 a year from Government^ and this grant 
 has been continued to the present day. 
 
 On the 7th May 1825, Messrs. Borradaile & Co. forwarded 
 the documents entrusted to their care to the Rev. Dr. Brunton, 
 Edinburgh, and received from him a prompt reply promising to 
 have the subject brought before the ensuing meeting of the General 
 Assembly, and requesting them in the mean time to ascertain 
 whether H. M. Government meant to patronize the object. 
 IMessrs. B. & Co. having with this view addressed a letter to Earl 
 Bathurst, were informed, in reply, that the application on behalf 
 of the Scottish Community at the Cape had already 'been acceded 
 to. This was communicated to Dr. Brunton who, after faithfully 
 fulfilling his promise to have the matter laid before the Assembly, 
 wrote to Messrs. Borradaile & Co. on 1st June 1825, to the effect that 
 the General Assembly had remitted the case of the Scotch Chui'ch 
 at Cape Town to the Pres))ytery of Edinburgh, under wliose juris- 
 
50 
 
 tlictiun it would ultiiiiately fall,* and tliat the Presbytery in concert 
 with a Committee of the Assembly were to settle the details. A 
 copy of this correspondence will be found in the Appendix (Appen- 
 dix C.) So far things appeared fo be in a fair way for adjust- 
 ment. The Government had granted peciiniaryj aid witiiout ask- 
 ing for an eijuivalent in the shape of patronage, or control of any 
 kind; and the General Asoembly had shown a disposition to meet 
 the wishes of the Seottisli Community by referring their case to 
 a Committee and a Presbytery. 
 
 On the 13th July 1825, the purport of Earl Bathurst's Des- 
 patch Avas communicated to the Committee at Cape Town. On the 
 23d August, Ml-. Pillans one of the members of the Committee, 
 who was then in London, wrote to Dv. Brunton, requesting to be 
 informed whether any further steps had been taken by the Presby- 
 tery of Edinburgh. Dr. Erunton's reply, dated 2Gth August 
 1825, was as follows : — 
 
 In reply to your Jelter of 2311, I am happy to inform you, that the Committee of 
 the presbytery of Edinburgh, of which I had the honour of being Convener, made 
 the Report yesterday, which was unanimously adopted by the presbytery. "The 
 report recommended that the request of the Settlers at Cape Town- should be 
 granted ; and that as soon as tliey announce their rjfiadiness to receive a Minister, 
 and have arranged th& question of the patronage with His JMajesty's Govcrumeut, 
 the presbytery should ordain the Minister selected for Cape Town, as in connec- 
 tion with and dependent upon the Established Church of Scotland. But, as there 
 seems a probability that similar Colonial Establishments may ere long become 
 so numerous as to induce the Assembly to make some General Regulations for 
 their management, the arrangements at present entered into should le made 
 subject to the provision of any general measure, which may be adopted on the 
 subject by the Church." 
 
 The above is the official Communication which I am authorised, on the part of 
 the presbytery, to make to your Committee. I may add, in the way of explana- 
 tion, that the Regulations which we expect from the Assembly will have for their 
 object, our ecclesiastical jurisdiction and supcrintendance over Ministers so 
 :;ituate. Our " Form of process" would require to be modified in order to meet 
 the case of persons not residing in Scotland. And such modification can be •;nade 
 only by the Supreme Ecclesiastical Court. 1 can promise with confidence every 
 facility which the presbytery can give to the accomplishment of your object, and 
 in particular that, if the situation of your intended Minister shall ultimately be 
 left in their hands, they will discharge that most zealously and conscientiously. 
 
 I have introduced this communication here because it contains 
 the official report of a Committee of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 and may be thought b}^ some to merit particular notice. 
 
 Looking at the first part of the Report, I should almost be dis- 
 posed to say that the Committee recommended the Presbytery to 
 do more than they had a constitutional right to do ; and that Dr. 
 
 * Dr. Brunton docs not stale his autho:ity for this, but it is of no consequence. 
 
A. Thomson, who was a nienil)er of the Committee, must have 
 forgotten all that he had said and written, a few years before, on 
 the subject of the Indian Churches. But the precaution sug{:i;ested 
 in the latter part of the report, and especially the explanation given 
 by Dr. Brunton, makes the matter clear enough. The Presbytery 
 of Edinburgh were willing to grant the request of the Settlers, so 
 far as it lay in their power, and they expected that some legislative 
 measure would be adopted by the General Assembly, wliich would 
 enable them to go tlae length which the Settlers desired ; but with- 
 out the authority of the Supreme Ecclesiastical Court they could 
 do no more than select and ordain a Minister for them, exercising 
 such jurisdiction over him incllvklitally as the laws of the Church, 
 and the " Form of process," * rendered it competent and pi-actic- 
 iable for a Presbytery to exercise over its Licentiates or Ministers 
 beyond tlie i-ealm of Scotland. The subject of jurisdiction over 
 Colonial Churches was afterwards brought repeatedly before the 
 General Assembly; with wliat result has been already shown. 
 As Mr. H. invites attention to this question towards the conclu- 
 sion of his letter, I may perhaps offer a few more remarks upon 
 it at the proper time. 
 
 No further correspondence appears to have taken place until 
 the Presbytery of Edinburgh received a second letter from the Cape 
 Town Committee, dated 27th Febriiary 182G, containing extracts 
 from minutes of meetings of the Committee held on 31st December 
 1825, and 6th February 1826. The letter contains nothing of much 
 importance (Sec Appendix D). The extracts have been already 
 given by Mr. Hawkins ; but, as he has omitted a portion of one of 
 them, I shall give them both entire : — ■ 
 
 " December 31, 1825." "5th. Resolved that a letter be addressed to the Presby- 
 tery of Edinburgh, requesting that a Clergyman for the intended Scottish Church 
 here be appointed with the least possible delay, intimating that a stipend of Four 
 Hundred Pounds Sterling per annum will be allowed to him, inclusive of lodging money, 
 with an understanding that, if the liberality of the British Government or the fundi 
 
 * Tite " Form of Process in the Judicatories of the Church of Scotland with rela- 
 tion to scandals and censures," will be found in Hill, Pardovan, or any collection 
 of the laws of the Church. It was ratified by Act of the General Assembly 1707, 
 (the provisions of the Barrier Act having been duly observed) and has never been 
 altered or modified. Any one who will look into it, must see how difficult, and 
 in many cases utterly impracticable, it would be for the Church Courts in Scotland, 
 to exercise proper jurisdiction over a IMinister or Licentiate in a foreign Country. 
 In such cases as those which the Committee supposed, a Presbyterial visitation 
 would have to take place ; that is to say, the Presbytery of Edinburgh would 
 have to come over to the Cape. In cases of a more serious nature half of the 
 Scottish Community might be summoned to give evidence before the Presbytery 
 in Edinburgh. W hat does !Mr. Hawkins say to tliis ? 
 
 G 
 
56 
 
 of said Cluuch subiequ^ntlq admit, One llundird Pounds Sterling per Annum u- ill 
 be fl(We(/,— referring to the Committee's letter to the Presbytery of Edinburgli 
 dated January 18'25, particularly in as far as relates to patronage, and expressing 
 the wish of the Committee that, if agreeable to the Dritiili Government, that 
 patronage shall belong to said Presbytery." 
 
 "February 6, 1826." "3d. Resolved that the Chairman and Secretary prepare 
 tvith their earliest convenience a letter to the Presbytery of Edinburgh agreeably to 
 the 5th Resolution of last meeting, and that copies thereof, and of the IMinutes 
 of this and of our last meeting be transmitted to our agents in Britain and to IMr. 
 Macdonald, to enable them to hold such communication wi;h the British Govern- 
 ment, with the Presbytery of Edinburgh, and with each other, as they may deem 
 beneficial." 
 
 "4th. Resolved that, on the appointment of a Clergyman of the Scottish Church 
 the above-mentioned gentleman be requested to use every exertion to obtain for 
 him from the British Government, a tree passage to this colony, and an additional 
 hundred pounds towards the payment of his stipend." 
 
 The above documents having been forwarded to Dr. Briinton, 
 and copies to the Committee's Agents in London, and to Mr. 
 McDonald, another correspondence ensued on the subject of 
 the nomination of a Pastor, betvreen the different parties, (see 
 Appendix E.) Mr. H. merely gives the result of this correspon- . 
 dence in a short extract from a letter addressed to the Rev. Dr. 
 Adamson by the Rev. D]-. Brunton, and requests the reader 
 to bear in mind the chain of communication of which it forms 
 the terminating link. If the reader could be presumed to know- 
 as much of the previous correspondence as Dr. Adamson may be 
 supposed to have known when he received this letter from Dr, 
 Brunton, it would be all very well ; but of what use is it, i?i a case of 
 this nature, to tell us that there was a complete chain of communi- 
 cation between one party and a second party, between a second and 
 a third, and soon, unless we know something ofthe connecting links ? 
 I would therefore draw particular attention to this correspondence, 
 that the reader may not infer from Mv. H's short extract, that, 
 though Government made no objection in this instance to the- nomi- 
 nation by the Presbytery, there maj^ have been an understanding 
 that the Patronage had been conceded to Government, and that 
 Government could claim a right to exercise it on a future occasion. 
 
 Now it ajipears to me that two things are very evident Irora this 
 correspondence. The first is, that neither the Govermncnt nor the 
 Presbyter}' cared about the Patronage. The Presbytery were will- 
 ing- to comply witli the request of the Colonists in regard to the 
 nomination of a pastor, but they did not wish to interfere so long- 
 as there was the slightest chance that Government mi^-ht wish it 
 to be vested in the Crown. And when this is intimated to Earl 
 Bathurst, coupled with a request for further pecuniary aid. His 
 Lordship Maves the question of patronage, and merely states 
 
57 
 
 that on the niinic of any minister of the Scottish Church being- 
 intimated to him wlio shall, with the a])probation of the Presby- 
 tery of Edinbm'gh, have been selected, he will do what? — confirm 
 the nomination? — No; but provide the gentleman selected with a. 
 free passage to the Colony. He could not, however, promise to 
 increase the stipend, and this aj^pears to have been a consideration 
 of far more importance with the Government than the Patronage. 
 It is to be borne in mind that the Committee of the Scottish Com- 
 munity never suggested that the patronage might be conceded to 
 the Government, except on condition of its paying the whole 
 salary, and it is not surprising that when they found that Govei-n- 
 ment was to pay only in the proportion of ons-Jifth, they should 
 prefer employing the Presbytery of Edinburgh to select a Minis- 
 ter for them. 
 
 Another thing which strikes my mind as very remarkable is, 
 that in this correspondence not a word is said about the jurisdiction, 
 to be exercised by the Presbytery of Edinburgh over the Minister 
 of the Scottish Church at Cape Town, or the relation in which, 
 that Church itself was to stand to the Established Church of 
 Scotland. A meeting of the General Assembly had been held 
 since Dr. Brunton last wrote on the subject, and yet he does not 
 make the most distant allusion to it. What conclusion is to bo 
 drawn from this, but that nothing whatever had been done ? The 
 truth is, the question respecting Colonial Churches was surround- 
 ed with difficulties; these were becoming more apparent every 
 year ; and if, as we have seen, the Church of Scotland, after long 
 and serious deliberation, could only consent to admit other Presby- 
 terian Cliurches, that were far more favourably situated, to liold 
 friendly communication and ministerial communion with her, we 
 cannot think it stranere that she hesitated to take the Scottish 
 Church at Cape Town under her immediate charge. The Presby- 
 tery of Edinburgh, however, v/as not prevented from selecting 
 and ordaining a minister for Cape Town, in compliance with the 
 request of the Settlers ; and this the Presbytery readily consented 
 to do. 
 
 In a letter dated 14th February 1827, Dr. Brunton communi- 
 cated the following information to Messrs. Borradaile, Sons & 
 Ravenhill : — " I have now the satisfaction of informing you that I 
 was autliorised this day to report Mr. James Adamson as the 
 object of the Committee's unanimous recommendation, and that 
 the Presbytery of Edinburgh have accordingly unanimously appoin- 
 ted him as the future IMinister of the Scotch Cliurch at Cape 
 "^ " "^^'^ '-^cf of tliis letter relates solely to another gentle- 
 
58 
 
 man wlio was expected to l)e Dr. Atlamson's fellow pagsenger to 
 the Cape. 
 
 In this way the question respecting the nomination of a pastor, 
 which the Committee at first appi-ehenclcd would be a difficult one 
 to settle, was disposed of w ith the greatest ease, and to the satisfac- 
 tion of all parties.* That the Government could not, on the 
 ground of such a negotiation, claim the right of patronage on any 
 future occasion is, in my opinion, sufficiently plain. That the right 
 of nomination was vested in the Presbytery of Edinburgh only 
 in the first instance, and this by a special authority fi-om the 
 Scottish Community, is equally clear, as I shall afterwards show. 
 To whom then does the patronage belong but to the people ? 
 
 Before proceeding farther, I beg to direct attention to the corres- 
 pondence that took place, about this period, relative to the appoint- 
 ment of a Minister for the Scotch Settlers at Glen Lynden. As 
 this was the only other Scottish Church in the Colony (previous 
 to its incorporation with the Dutch Reformed Church) and as the 
 Churches at Cape Town and Glen Lynden are spoken of in Govern- 
 ment Despatches as being on the same footing, the course pursued 
 with regard to the one serves to illustrate the position of the 
 other. 
 
 It will be seen that in March 1826, the inhabitants of Glen 
 Lynden applied to Government for pecuniary aid to enable them 
 to build a Church and maintain a pastor. Tlie Secretary of State 
 immediately granted their request ; informing the Lieut.-Governor 
 ''that the Clergyman whom the memorialists may induce to join 
 them from Scotland, to take charge of their spiritual instruction, 
 Avill be allowed a stipend of ,£100 per annjira, in addition to any 
 sum which they themselves may raise for his maintenance, &c." 
 This intelligence having been communicated to the parties, Mr. 
 Thomas Pringle, wdio was the head of the Scotch Settlers at Glen 
 Lynden, and v/ho had just returned to England, was authorised 
 by them to select a Minister. He made choice of the Rev. J. 
 Pears, then Pastor of a Presbyterian Church in England, and on 
 this being reported to the Secretary of State, His Lordship issued 
 an authority to pay Mr. Pears' passage to the Cape, leaving it 
 to the Lieut.-Governor to act on the instructions Avhich had been 
 already given with regard to further pecuniary aid. Before the 
 
 * I need not except Mr. Grant, as lie was then far out of tlie way ; perhaps 
 this was one reason wliy the Committee in their second communication fo the 
 Presbytery of Edinburgh expressed themselves as unfavourable to the patronage 
 being left in the hands of Government, while they said nothing on the subject of 
 ecclesiastical jurisdiction. 
 
59 
 
 Rl'V. Mr. Poiii'd resigned liis charge at Gleu Lyudi'ii, tliat Cliurcii 
 was reguliirly incorporated with the Dutch Rcformsd C'lnrch, 
 but the Parishioners still continued to contribute towards the pay- 
 ment of the minister's salary. Whether the Secretary of State 
 was not aware of the former circumstance, or whether he consider- 
 ed that as the parishioners paid part of the salary they had a legal 
 right to choose their own minister, I do not know. But at all 
 events it is plain from the extract from his Despatch to the 
 Colonial Government, and his communication to Mr. T. Pi'ingle, 
 dated 28th Nov. 1831, that his Lordship still recognised their 
 right to exercise this privilege* (see Appendix B. Nos. 15 — 18.) 
 
 To return to the Scottish Church at Cape Town. In confor- 
 mity with the appointment of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, the 
 Rev. Dr. Adamson was ordained on the 28th February 1827. 
 The Deed of Ordination is in the usual form, and concludes thus : 
 *' Thereupon the inoderator leaving the chair did, by solemn prayer 
 and imposition of hands of himself and of the brethren present, 
 ordait Mr. Adamson as a Minister of the Gospsl and as Pastor 
 of the Scottish Church at Caps Town, Cape of Good Hope. 
 After which &c.t" 
 
 Dr. Adamson arrived at Cape Town on the 11th November 
 1827, and on the 18th of that month, without any regular indiic- 
 tion, entered on his public duties, the Lutheran Church having 
 been kindly granted for that purpose % No official notice seems 
 
 * The usual method adopted in selecting IMinisters from Scothnd to fill up 
 vacancies in the Dutch Reformed Church was this :— A Coramittee was appoiuted 
 hy the 'S'ccrstac!/ of State to select suitable persons; these were recommended to 
 His Lordship, who sanctioned the nomination, and either appointed them to par- 
 ticular Charges himself, or authorised the Governor to appoint them on their 
 arrival at the Cape. 
 
 t About the same time, the Rev. J. Edgar, who had been appointed by Goveru- 
 ment to supply one of the vacancies in the Dulch Reformed Church, was ordained 
 by the Presbytery of Glasgow. His deed of Ordination is in exactly the same: 
 terms, mutatis mutandis, as that of Dr. Adamson, the only difference being, that 
 as i\Ir. Eilgar had not yet been appointed to a particular Charge, he was ordained 
 " to officiate as Minister in one of the Colonial Churches at the Cape of Good Hope," 
 Any argument therefore, that might be drawn from the simple fact of ordination, 
 in support of a connection having been formed between the Scottish Church and 
 the Established Church of Scotland, would prove rather too much. 
 
 i The " Scottish Church" (for that was the name given to it) was then in 
 progress of erection, the foundation stone having been laid about a month before 
 (October 20, 1827.) It is scarcely worth while to revert to the subject of Church 
 spires ; but the following passage from a work already quoted, shows what sort of 
 patronage Lord Charles Somerset, if he had been still in the Colony, would have 
 extended to the Scottish Church had it aspired (which it did not) to the 
 rank of an Established Church. " The Dissenters or Lutherans have lately 
 
GO 
 
 to have been given to Government of liis appointment or of lii;* 
 arrival (as wa>j invariably clone in cases where Government had 
 the patronnge) till the 28th December follo-tving, when it became 
 time to make arrangements for drawing the salary. With this 
 view the Secretary to the Committee addressed a letter to Govern- 
 ment, enclosing such documents as were necessary to show that 
 the Rev. Dr. Adarason was regularly ordained, and that he was 
 the person who had been selected to be the jMinister of the Scottish 
 Church at Cape Town, — " iiv^ Committee being desirous to ascer- 
 tain at what specified periods, quarterly or otherwise, that portion 
 of Mr. Adamson's stipend to be defrayed by the Colonial Govern- 
 ment, v.ill be issued." To this an answer was returned, that- the 
 necessary instructions for the payment of the salary had been issued 
 to the Auditor General (see Appendix B. Nos. 3 & 4.) Being on 
 the subject of salary, I may observe that the allowance from 
 Government was limited to ,£100 per annum till the year 1831, 
 when in consequence of an application from the Kirk Session on 
 the subject, the Secretary of State authorised the Governor, provid- 
 ed the Revenue of the Colony could bear it, " to issue to the t/vo 
 Presbyterian Clergijvien who are now in the Colony, an additional 
 stipend of j£100 each"* (see Appendix B. 5, & 6.) The concluding 
 paut of this Despatch is important, as showing that tlie Secretary 
 of State fully recognised the right of the '• Session and Deacons 
 to introduce an additional number of Clergymen into the Colony 
 for the service of the Congregation in Cape Town, or of any other 
 settlement In the Colo.ny ;" tlie only consideration Avitli Govern- 
 ment being, as before, the amount of pecuniary aid to be expect- 
 ed at its hands. 
 
 On the 28th March 1828 (full four months after he assumed 
 
 erected a very hanclsoine Church at tlie top of Strand-street, on tlie rise of the 
 Lion's-hill. The swan of Lutlier adorns the front. The tower and spire are 
 ornamental to Cape Town. This Church was finished in 1820, at a very heavy 
 expense, by the subscriptions and donations of the Lutheran inhabitants, who are 
 numerous. It is said that remonstrance was made against a tower and steeple, as 
 being a style of architecture to be applied only to the .Established Church. Per- 
 suasion and menace were in their turn held out to induce ihe abandonment of that 
 part of the plan. The Lutherans strongly maintained their right, and in this 
 instance, taste, protected by law, pievailed over presumption, and the Lutheran 
 tower and steeple stand a leading attraction in Cape Town." — State nf' the Cupe 
 rf Good Hope in 1822. 
 
 * The state of the treasury it ajipears did not justify the extension of the 
 increased allowance to more than one. The other, though now connected 
 •officially with the Established Dutch Eeformed Church, still receives no more 
 than £100. 
 
the pastoral cliarge of the Congregation) the llev. JJr. Adarasdil 
 associated Avith himself the Rev. J. Edgar, Minister of the Dutcli 
 Reformed Cliiirch, and a gentleman who had been a Rnling 
 Elder in tlio Church of Scotland, for the purpose of constituting 
 a Kirk Session. Had either the General Assembly or the Presby- 
 tery of Edinburgh intended to take the Scottish Church in Cape 
 Town under their superintendence, surely they would have furnished 
 Dr. Adam son with a regular commission to form a Kirk Session, 
 or at least have given him a constitution for the Church (for even 
 in Scotland this is always done in the case of new congregations ;) 
 and if Dr. Adamson had received any authority of this kind, he 
 Avould no doubt have produced it on such an occasion. But is any 
 thing of the kind produced ? No ; but on the joint authority of 
 their several ordinations, the Minister of the Scottish Church, the 
 Minister of the Dutch Reformed Church (having a separate charge 
 of his own) and a gentleman who had formerly held the office of 
 a Ruling Elder in the Established Church of Scotland " constitute 
 themsdvcs a kirk session," to bear rule in the Congjreo-ation of the 
 Scottish Church at Cape Town. Do I j)resume to question the 
 propriety of this ? By no means ; under all the circumstances, it 
 might perhaps be the best plan that could be devised. But I 
 argue from it that tlia Kirk Session was not, and could not be, 
 constituted as in connsction n-ith the Established Church of Scot- 
 land, — except in so far as a declared adherence to the confession 
 of faith, and forms of worship, government, and discipline recog- 
 nized by the Church of Scotland may be regarded as the mean- 
 ing of that term. Immediately thereafter new Elders were ordain- 
 ed, and added to the roll; and in the course of the following yeai' 
 the original Committee, having seen their task completed in tlie 
 erection of a Chui-ch, resigned their trust, and were succeeded by 
 a regular staff of Deacons elected by the congregation, and solemnly 
 set apart to that office. From that pei-iod down to 31st -Mavcli 
 183G, regular meetings of the Kirk Session were held; but for 
 reasons which no doubt were deemed satisfactory at the time, this 
 practice was entirely discontinued till 11th December 1839, being 
 a period of nearly four years. A congregation in this state wat> 
 surely, to say the least, an "isolated Church." 
 
 I might now pass on at once to the consideration of the circum- 
 stances connected with the resignation of the Rev. Dr. Adamson, 
 and the election of his successor in office ; but as Mr. Hawkins has 
 noticed one or two circumstances that occurred during the interven- 
 ing period I shall do the same. 
 
 Mr. H. states that in 1836, the Kirk Session applied to tlic 
 
62 
 
 Comniiltee of the General Assembly in regard to the cstiiblisli- 
 ment of a mission at the Cape, — that the Committee authorised it, 
 and gave their sanction to the detention of Mr. Nesbit, one of their 
 missionaries at Bombay, &c.* And from these facts, he draws 
 the inference tliat " the Jrirk session must surely havs considered 
 the Chtirch as in connectio?iivifh the Established Church, when the>/ 
 made to it an application of this nature." I do not think that 
 there is much in tliis arguiaent ; but I shall not object to it, if Mr. 
 H. will admit the justness of a similar conclusion dravrn from 
 similar facts, of which he can scarcely be supposed to have been 
 ignorant. In 1838 the kirk session, finding that the comiiiittee of 
 the General Assembly hod no prospect of appointing one of their 
 Missionaries to labour at the Ca})e, made an application to one of 
 the Ministers of the Lutheran Churcli in Cape Tov/n to act as their 
 Missionary ; the Minister of tlie Lutheran Churcli consented, — an 
 arrano:ement was entered into, and he actimlly discharged the duties 
 of Missionar}^ in connection with the Scottish Church, in addition 
 to those of his own church, for several years, not only teaching 
 and preaching, but administering the ordinances of baptism and 
 the Lord's supper. These are the facts. The' conclusion' is irresis- 
 tible. Surely the kirk session f mmt have considered the Church 
 as in connection rcith the Lutheran Church when they made an 
 arrangement of this nature. 
 
 On the oth December 1839, the Rev. Dr. Adamson, intending 
 to proceed to Scotland, addressed a memorial to Government, 
 respecting the mode of draviing his salary during his absence from 
 the Cape. The reply to this memorial shows distinctly, that while 
 the Government took certain precautions, as it had a right to do, 
 respecting the money, it assumed no right to control Dr. Adamson's 
 movements, or the affairs of the Scottish Church, — ])ut on the 
 contrary recognised the right of the parties to make their own 
 arrangements, so long as each did not lay claim to the salary (see 
 Appendix B. Nos. 8—10.) 
 
 * This was in March 1836. It was only a few moulhs before, that Mr. 
 Nesbit and tlie other Missionaries in the service of the Scottish Missionari/ 
 Societif, at Bombay, had been transferred to the Committee of the General 
 Assembly. The Scottish Missionary Society was not connected with the Church 
 of Scotland. Its Directors belonged to diflerent denominations, and so did its 
 Missionaries. 
 
 t It is net quite correct to say the Kirk-session, for at that time no regular 
 Meetings of Session were held. But this does not affect the argument. The 
 arrangement was made by authority of the i\Iinistcr, the Elder, and the Deacons, 
 at what was called a Deacon's iMeetine. 
 
63 
 
 Oil the 19th Februaiy 1840, the Minister of tlie Scottish Church 
 being in readiness to proceed to Scothmd, a regular coramissiou was 
 given by him, with the concurrence of the kirk session,* to the same 
 Minister of the Lutheran Church, empowering him to hokl public 
 worship in the Church on the Lord's day, and to perform such 
 other offices as the kirk session might grant him authority to exe- 
 cute, during Dr. A's. absence. At the same time, a similar Com- 
 mission was given to three Clergymen of the Dutch Reformed 
 Church, two of them holding ordination from the Church of Scot- 
 land, and the third from the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, with 
 reference to the administration of the Lord's supper, &c. On 13th 
 J uly 1840, " Mr. Gorrie reported to the kirk session, that on 
 Sunday 28th June, 23 adults belonging to the Mission, had been 
 admitted by baptism (at the hands of the Rev. Mr. Stegmann) 
 to the Communion of the Church, and on the Thursday following 
 19 children, also connected with the Mission ; on both of which 
 occasions Mr. Gorrie, as Elder, was present and gave his full 
 sanction to the proceedings." All this was very well for an 
 *' isolated Church ;" — but otherwise it was in direct violation of an 
 Act of Assembly passed in 1799 (see p. 13,) and still in operation 
 in the Established Church of Scotland, f 
 
 While in Scotland the Rev. Dr. Adamson laid before the Com- 
 mittee of the General Assembly for Foreign Missions, among other 
 documents, a statement respecting the missionary operations con- 
 ducted in the Scottish Church at the Cape, the arrangements that 
 had been made with the Minister of the Lutheran Church, his 
 acknowledgment of the doctrinal standards of the Church of Scot- 
 land, and his qualifications for the work of a misssionary, &c., — 
 offering at the same time to place the mission under the care of 
 
 * It must be admitted tliUt the concurrence was not cordial on the part of some. 
 
 t Among the " Reasons of Separation" assigned by the adherents of the Free 
 Church at Calcutta, we find the following : " The Ministers of St. Andrew's 
 Kirk DARE NOT (even if they would) invite any of the five ordained Missionaries 
 of the Free Church of Scotland now in Calcutta to preach in their pulpit, or take 
 part in any one public act, that involved an acknowledgment of their Ministry 
 before the Congregation, without a breach of Church law, and exposure to Church 
 discipline." — (Free Churchman, Sept. 1843.) This is not applicable to the Scot- 
 tish Cliurch at the Cape ; and if any of the five excellent Missionaries at Calcutta 
 should ever re-visit Cape Town, and be disposed to occupy the pulpit of the 
 Scottish Church, I am confident they will find both the Minister and the Congre- 
 gation as ready to hear the blessed truths of the Gospel from their lips, as in 
 former days. Thank God, we are more free, and I trust more forbearing also^ 
 one towards another, and towards all other christian denominations, than some 
 would have us to be. 
 
 II 
 
^4 
 
 die Committee. The following reply was given by the Rev. Dr. 
 Brunton, in a letter dated 2oth June 1840: — 
 
 " Our Sub-committee have had two meetings this week at each of which your 
 letter, with its enclosure, has been to them the subject of anxious consideration. 
 They feel the importance and the promising aspect of Cape Town as a station, and 
 would luive made a strong effort to get quit of the minor difficulties in the case. 
 But the circumstances which I mentioned to you before, their being pledged 
 already in India to the full extent of their present probable income, and the 
 urgent need of increasing the strengtli of some of their establishments there, as 
 soon as (heir funds will at all allow, brought them reluctantly but unanimously 
 to decide that they could not, in justice to yourself and your cause, avail themselves 
 of your permission to take under their care the very interesting Mission at the 
 Cape. If circumstances should alter, I am sure that it would afford to the sub- 
 committee the greatest gratification to recommend the adoption of your plan." 
 
 The "anxious consideration,^^ the "minor difficulties" and the 
 " liermission" of Dr. Adamson, here referred to, coupled with the 
 absence of all remark on the constitutional natureof the arrange- 
 ments made with the Minister of the Lutheran Church, * suggest 
 the ideas of separateness and freedom, rather than of close con- 
 nection and subordination. 
 
 A proposal similar to the above was then made to the Glasgow 
 Missionary Society, which was not officially connected with the 
 Church of Scotland, but it could not be acceded to, owing to the 
 want of funds. 
 
 About the same time several memoranda were submitted by 
 Dr. Adamson to the Colonial Committee, relative to the South 
 African CollegCy the Dutch Reformed Church, and the position of 
 " Churches in the Colonies in Avhich there is no judicature superior 
 to that of the kirk session )' and in regard to the last of these 
 topics a variety of questions were proposed, to none of which the 
 Committee could give a definite answer. 
 
 I shall now proceed to consider the circumstances connected 
 with my own induction to the j^astoral charge of the Scottish 
 Church at Cape Town. I shall endeavor to be as brief as i>ossi- 
 ble ; but here, as well as on former occasions, I must notice some 
 things which Mr. H. has overlooked. 
 
 On the 4th June 1841 a letter Avas addressed to me by authority 
 of the kirk session, and signed by the Modei-ator, one of the Elders 
 and the Session Clerk, enclosing the following extract from the 
 minutes of a meeting of the session hold on the 2d of that month : — 
 
 " Upon resuming the consideration of the Minutes of last meeting Dr. Adamson 
 stated that his view was that a resignation now offered to the Kirk-session could 
 
 * There is nothing remarkable in this, except on the supposition that the 
 Scottish Church was subject to the authority, and bound to observe the laws, of 
 t he Church of Scotland. 
 
65 
 
 not constitutionally be acted upon by it, and that he conceived tlie preferable 
 arrangement to be that some one be called and inducted as colleague, leaving it 
 to be decided by the communicants whether this arrangement shall be permanent 
 or shall continue merely until steps be taken to carry a resignation into effect 
 constitutionally : the whole temporalities of the office being consiilered as belonging 
 to the colleague so appointed, and all matters relating to the pastoral office being 
 determined by the Kirk-session. Whereupon the Kirk-session ' resolve to com- 
 municate with Mr. JMorgan, with a view of knowing whether he would be willing 
 to accept the office of colleague or pastor ou the terms stated by Dr, Adamson, 
 and that a meeting of the Kirk-session be held immediately after hearing from 
 Mr. Morgan." 
 
 I confess that the terms stated in this extract strnclc nie as pecu- 
 liar. I had not then read the proceedings of the General Assembly 
 in 1827 relative to the Rev. Mr. Brown of Calcutta (p. 25) ; but 
 the views which I entertained respecting the constitution and prac- 
 tice of the Church of Scotland led me to think that, if the kirk 
 session could not carry the resignation of Dr. Adamson into effect 
 constitutionally, they could not give constitutional effect to the induc- 
 tion of his colleague, or successor, nor determine all matters relat- 
 ing to the pastoral ofEce, — and consequently that it would be folly 
 in me (even if I were otherwise prepared to do so) to resign my 
 charge, and accept an apj^ointment which might be afterwards set 
 aside. In my reply, therefore, after stating my views and feelings 
 generally, I expressed my desire to obtain further information in 
 these terms : — 
 
 " Having received ordination in the Church of Scotland, and having ever since 
 filled the o'fice of pastor in a sister Church holding the same doctrines, and main- 
 taining the same leading principles of church government and discipline, I can 
 have no objection, on abstract grounds^ to consent to a translation from the one 
 to the other. Nor from what I know of the Scotch Church and Congregation in 
 Cape Town (which, however, is not much) have I the least reason to suppose 
 that the situation of pastor there is in itself undesirable. As there is no Scotch 
 Presbytery, however, in this Colony, and as your Church is not, I believe^ 
 formally or officially united with the National Church of Scotland, I conceive it 
 possible that, in some points, there may be something local, or peculiar in its 
 constitution and form of government, with which it is desirable that I should 
 become acquainted before coming to a decision. This idea is strengthened by what 
 is stated in the resolution proposed by Dr. Adamson with respect to the incom- 
 petency of the Kirk-session to carry his resignation of the pastoral office into effect 
 constitutionally. This has suggested to my mind the supposition that your Church 
 may stand in some kind of demi-official relation to some Presbytery in Scotland, 
 and that in other matters, as well as in regard to the resignation of a pastor, a 
 reference may lie from your session to such higher Court. Ou this point therefore 
 I should much desire information." 
 
 I had no further communication with the kirk session till the end 
 of July, when a call was transmitted to me, as stated by Mr. H., 
 accompanied by a letter from the Rev. Dr. Adamson, and a 
 Mcmoramhim containing the information which I required. After 
 
66 
 
 giviuo; a brief but correct statement of the circumstances which 
 led to the nomination of Dr. Adamson by the Presbytery of Edin 
 burgh, chiefly in the form of extracts from the first letter of the 
 Committee to the Presliytery of Edin])urg]), and the correspon- 
 dence given in the Appendix, the Memorandum proceeds thus : — 
 " These are tlie circumstances under which Dr. Adamson was 
 ordained, and took npon himself the office of Minister of this 
 Church ; and since that time no measures have been adopted by 
 the Church of Scotland, or Presbytery of Edinburgh, relative to 
 the patronage of this Church, or the jurisdiction to be exercised in 
 regard to it, except in so far as the latter subject may be compre^ 
 bended under the general princij)les which the Committee for 
 Colonial Churches have laid down as to the appellate and legisla- 
 tive jurisdiction over the Colonial Churches generally (see copy 
 annexed J*) neither has the Church or the Presbyterij exercised 
 any superintendence over this branch of the JjJstahlished Church, 
 nor maintained amj correspondence as to its state or condition.'" 
 This is all the explanation contained in the 3Iemorandum, relative 
 to the jDoint on which I desired information ; but it was sufficient 
 to convince me, tliat any connection between tlie Scottish Church 
 and the Established Church of Scotland must be merely nominal, 
 except as it regarded an adherence to the same fundamental princi- 
 ples of doctrine, worship, and discipline. This conviction was 
 strengthened by Dr. Adamson's letter in which he stated that he 
 had forwarded his resignation, not to the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 but to the Committee for Colonial Churches (see Appendix E) 
 and also by the fact that the call was sent me along with the Memo- 
 randum, which I could scarcely think would have been done had 
 the kirk session been of oj}inion that the sanction of the Church 
 Courts in Scotland was necessary to give it eftect. Having there- 
 fore satisfied myself on this point, and having reluctantly come 
 to the conclusion that it was my duty to leave a beloved congrega- 
 tion, among whom I had expected to spend and be spent till death^f 
 I informed the kirk session in reply, that. I had "come to the 
 
 * This was a printed extract from tiie Report of the Colonial Committee of the 
 General Assembly 1840, quoted at page 33, staticg that the Church of Scotland 
 never assumed a right to exercise an appellate and legislative jurisdiction over 
 Colonial Churches, &c. 
 
 t Though it is not relevant to the present question, I may just state that one 
 of the strongest inducements held out to me to accept the call, and one which 
 ■weighed very strongly in my mind, was the fact that there was an interesting 
 mission connected with the Scottish Church at Cape Town, which rendered it 
 .desirable that the pastor to be selected should know something of the Dutch 
 language. To me it is a very interesting mission still. 
 
67 
 
 determination to accept tlie call as soon as I received intimation 
 that the sanction of His Excellency the Governor had been obtain- 
 ed to the proposed arrangement, and to the transfer to me of the 
 salary at present allowed by Government to the Minister of St. 
 Andrew's Church." Those who are at all acquainted with the 
 technical forms necessary to be observed in the payment of public 
 monies, will not be surprised that, considering the peculiar nature 
 of the terms proi^osed to me, I wished it to be cleai'ly understood 
 that the salary Avould be paid direct to myself, and not through 
 another. It is to be observed that up to this period no reference 
 whatever had been made to Government; and it was in consequence 
 of viy letter to the hirlt session, that a memorial was addressed by 
 them to Government on 1st September, stating the arrangements 
 which had been proposed, and praying His Excellency to grant 
 the sanction which I required (Appendix B. No. 11.) In this 
 memorial it was plainly intimated that a call from the congrega- 
 tion had been already given (an unusual mode of procedure if the 
 right of presentation were vested in the Government) ; and yet the 
 Secretary to Government, in his reply dated 2d September,* takes 
 no notice whatever of any infringement on its rights, but simply 
 intimates that the Governor was pleased to sanction the arrange- 
 ment so as to render the salary payable to me as colleague to Dr. 
 Adamson, instead of to Dr. Adamson himself (Appendix B. 
 No. 12.) This information having been communicated to me by 
 the kirk session, I signified to them my acceptance of the call in 
 a letter dated 21st Sejitember 1841, and ti'ansmitted to Govern- 
 ment, by the same post, my resignation of the office of Minister at 
 Somerset.f My letter of acceptance was laid before the kirk ses- 
 sion by Dr. Adamson on the Gth October, and, every thing being 
 finally Arranged, no resolution was passed on the subject. On the 
 
 * I\Ir. Hawkins takes no notice of this communication, though it was, properly 
 speaking, " the reply of the Secretary to Government," but gives as part of the 
 rej)ly an extract from a subsequent letter from Government dated 7th October 
 following, relative to a n e"e " technical objection " which had arisen in regard to 
 the designation of " colleague'' in the salary abstract. 
 
 + It is not irrelevant to this question of Patronage to state, that while Govern- 
 ment put in no claim to exercise the right of presentation to the ministry of the 
 Scottish Church at Cape Town, it distinctly asserted and exercised its right to 
 nominate my successor iu the Dutch Reformed Church at Somerset. How is this 
 to be accounted for except on the supposition that Government had the right of 
 presentation in the one case, but not in the other? Having had a correspondence 
 with Government relative to the appointment of my successor, after I received the 
 first communication from the Kirk-session, and before I accepted the call, I can 
 speak positively as to this point. 
 
68 
 
 following day (7th October) a letter was addressed by the Secre- 
 tary to Government to the Rev. Dr. Adamson, and another of 
 the same import to the Kirk session, referring to a resolution 
 passed by the kirk session, on 2l5t July preceding * {an 
 extract of which had been placed personally in hishandshy tfie Rev. 
 Dr. Adamxon) and stating the reason why His Excellency could 
 not admit the designation of " Colleague" in the Salary Abstract, 
 &c.,— leaving it however, "of course" to Dr. Adamson, and the 
 kirk session, to designate the Rev. George Morgan as Colleague, 
 /r otherwise, as they thought proper (see Appendix B. No. 14.) 
 This is explained by the Governor in his Despatch to the Secre- 
 tary of State, dated 18th October 1841 (Appendix B. No. 15.) 
 To this extract I would invite the reader's particular attention, as 
 it sliows not only that the objection to my being designated as 
 Colleague in the Salary Abstract was merely a technical one, and 
 that if the salary was to be made payable to me it must be under 
 the designation of Minister, — but also that His Excellency clearly 
 recognised the right of the Congregation to choose their own Minis- 
 ter. His Excellency states that a question had been mooted, but 
 not officially brought before him, as to the right of patronage. And 
 what does he say on the subject ? Does he write as if he had the slight- 
 est idea that the patronage belonged to Government ? No ; the only 
 question which had been mooted was (as I happen to know, and as 
 may be gathered from the Despatch itself) Avhether the Church 
 Courts in Scotland might not claim the right of patronage. This 
 was absurd enough ; but His Excellency was better informed, f 
 The latter portion of the extract is conclusive: " His Excellency is 
 of opinion that no power whatever was delegated by the Congrega- 
 tion of (Jape Town to the Committee of the General Assembly, except 
 a special one to select a 3Iinister for them, which commission 
 having been executed by the appointment of Dr. Adamson, their 
 power to interfere in the matter was actually ended." If this is 
 not a distinct recognition of the original right of the Congregation 
 to delegate authority to another party to select a minister for them, 
 and consequently of their right to choose another minister for them- 
 selves, -when it might be necessary, I am greatly mistaken. 
 
 As to the notification of my appointment in the "Govern- 
 ment Gazette" on the r2th November following, it may, for auglit 
 
 • The substance of this resolution had been embodied in the memorial of the 
 kirk-session of date 1st September, already referred to. 
 
 t The Gentleman who was then Secretary to Government had been brought up 
 in the Church of Scotland, and was intimately acquainted with its constitution and 
 laws. 
 
G9 
 
 I know, have been necessary as it regarded the direct payment to 
 me of the stipend guaranteed by the British Government to the 
 " Officiating Minister" of the Scottish Church ; but I am confident 
 it was not necessary in order to confirm the coU from the congre- 
 gation, or to constitute me their lawful Pastor. The only difficul- 
 ty, from first to last, arose from the nature of the an-angernents pro- 
 posed by the Rev. Dr. Adamson, who, of course, had a right to 
 dictate the terms on .which he would surrender the office which 
 he held. Had he seen it to be his duty simply to resign his charge, 
 the election of his successor " by the votes of the congregation" 
 would have decided the whole matter ; and on intimation being 
 given to Government, the salary would have been transferred to 
 me as a matter of course. 
 
 On the 14th November 1841, I was inducted by the Rev. Dr. 
 Adamson as Pastor of the Scottish Church. As he had made it 
 a condition that his resignation should be accepted by the Pres- 
 bytery of Edinburjrh, or the Committee for Colonial Churches, 
 it was thought proper by the kirk session, soUhj on this account, 
 to write to the Colonial Committee on the subject. Accordingly, 
 in the month of December 1841, a letter was addressed to that 
 Committee (a copy of which was transmitted to the Presbytery 
 of Edinburgh) in which, after briefly stating the several steps 
 which had been taken previous to my induction, the kirk session 
 observe : — 
 
 " As Dr. Adamsou conceives it to be necessary in order to give effect consti- 
 tutionally to his resignation of the pa=toral office of this Church, that it is requisite 
 that you or the Presbytery of Edinburgh should accept the same, and as the 
 duties of Pastor of the same have been discharged by Mr. Morgan alone, ever 
 since his induction by Dr. Adamson, the kirk-session respectfully request you 
 will be pleased to signify to them that his resignation has been accepted, so that 
 Dr. Adamson may be folly relieved from his charge, should such acceptance be 
 deemed necessary." 
 
 The letter then concludes with the passage which Mr. IT. hs=? 
 extracted from the " Home and Foreign Mmionary Record"' 
 for AuMnst 1842. It will be observed, that neither in the above 
 extract nor in the passage quoted by Mr. H., is there the slightest 
 acknowledcrment of the right of jurisdiction on the part of the 
 Church of Scotland, nor any request made relative to my induc- 
 tion. The request was simply to acceptt Dr. Adamson's resigna- 
 tion, " should such acceptance he deemed necessary, in order tfuit 
 he might he fully relieved, from his charge.'^ 
 
 Surely this was a fit occasion for the Presbytery of Edinburgh 
 to assert its rights, and to exercise jurisdiction, if it had any ; 
 but what is the course pursued ? Mr. H. refers us to reports 
 
10 
 
 of Committees, and extracts froiu the " Home and Foreign 
 Missionary Record," from Avhich it appears that certain things 
 were recommended, and certain views and feelings expressed. 
 But what is all this to the purpose? Can he point to a single 
 act from which it can be concluded that the Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh, or the Colonial Committee, either possessed, or 
 imagined that they possessed, a right to interfere in the affairs of 
 the Scottisli Church at Cape Town? Tliey approve of Dr. 
 Adamson's motives ; they express their readiness to afford every 
 facility in their pov/cr to forward certain measures which had been 
 proposed; but where is there a shadow of evidence that they claimed 
 authority to do a single thing beyond what they had been reques- 
 ted to do, or that they deemed it necessary for them to do any 
 thing at all? On the contrary, when they are informed that the 
 Rev. George Morgan had been inducted into the pastoral charge 
 of the Scottish Church without their leave having been asked or 
 obtained, they express no dissatisfaction, but simply record the fact 
 in the pages of the " Home and Foreign Missionary Record." On 
 finding from the concluding part of their letter that the kirk 
 session are sincerely attached to the Established Church of Scot- 
 land, — desire to be favoured with her countenance, counsel, and 
 aid, — and entreat the committee, among otlier friendly acts, to 
 devise measures fitted to draw more closely the bonds of — what ? 
 of ecclesiastical authority on the one side, and subjection on the 
 other? — no; but of "love and sympathy between yourselves and 
 them;" — on finding this, the committee beg to call the attention of 
 the Assemhly to this ■paragraph. In the mean time the Scottish 
 Church at Cape Town pursues her solitary course. The Kirk ses- 
 sion write, again and again, desiring to be favoured with some 
 mark of friendly recognition from the Church of Scotland, but 
 they receive no reply. There they stand for a couple pf years, 
 just as they had been standing for 12 years before, looking wistfully 
 towards the Church of Scotland, across an ocean of several thous- 
 ands of miles, until at length they feel disposed to say, with the 
 disconsolate countryman who continued waiting and Availing on 
 one side of the river till he should be able to come in contact 
 with the opposite bank, — lahitur et lahetur in omne voluhilis 
 cevuni. * Such was the state of things up to the disruption in 
 
 • I ought perhaps to have mentioned tliat in 1841 the Rev. Dr. Adamson 
 reported to the kirk-session his having received a donation of £100 from the 
 General Assembly's Committee for Fureign Missions, and also a grant of 600 
 Dutch Testaments from the British and Foreign Bible Society ; both which grants 
 feeing for the benefit of the Mission attached to the Scottish Church at the Cape 
 
71 
 
 1843; how mucli longer it would have continued had not that 
 event occurred, it would now be useless to enquire. 
 
 Let it not be inferred, from any thing I have said, that I mean 
 to impute blame to the Church of Scotland ; still less to any par- 
 ticular "party in it. I am merely stating facts, with a view to rebut 
 erroneous assertions ; and as the secession had not taken place at 
 the time to which I have been referring, my remarks do not apply 
 to one party more than to another. 
 
 Since that memorable event occurred, up to the present date, no 
 communication has been sent from the kirk session to the Estab- 
 lished Church of Scotland. But in consequence of a private 
 letter (referred toby Mr. H.) having been laid on the table of 
 the General Assembly's Acting Colonial Committee in the month 
 of March 1844, a sub-committee was appointed to consider and 
 report on that letter, and also on the communications that had 
 been received from Dr. Adamson, and the kirk session, previous 
 to the disruption. On the 4th June following, the sub-committee 
 gave in their report ; the acting committee approved of that report, 
 and ordered copies of it to be communicated to the kirk session 
 and to Dr. Adamson, which was done accordingly. The commu- 
 nication to the kirk session was dated 12th June 1845^ and reached 
 Cape Town on 11th September. It is, I presume, to this commu- 
 nication that Mr. Havrkins refers, when he says, as it were in pass- 
 ing : — " I have indeed heard that in coro'espondence more recent 
 than any I havj seen* the Established Presbytery of Edinburr/h 
 has denied its rljlit of ecclesiastical j urisdiction over the Church 
 in Caps Town." This, I believe, is correct ; as much, at least, may 
 be gathered from the following passage in the report of the Gene- 
 ral Assembly's Sub-committee. Referring to an obvious inconsis- 
 tency in the Presbytery of Edinburgh becoming parties to a disso- 
 lution of the pastoral relation between Dr. Adamson and the Con- 
 gregation at Cape Town, after another had, without any Presbyte- 
 rial authority, been inducted as colleague and successor into the pasto- 
 ral charge, the Sub-committee observe :— " The condition ofthe Con- 
 gregation, as destitute of Pi-esbyterial superintendence, is indeed 
 anomalous ; but the Presbytery of Edinburgh have had no resig- 
 nation tendered directly to them, and therefore have never been in 
 
 of Good Hope. These, I admit, were substantial acts of kindness, and as sucli 
 were gratefully acknowledged by the kirk-session. But they prove nothing more 
 than this, that the Church at the Cape was as much connected with the British 
 and Foreign Bible Society as with the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 * 1 do not know why he might not have seen this communication, as well as 
 some other documents from which he has taken extracts, had he desired to see if. 
 
 I 
 
72 
 
 a condition to accept Dr, Adamson's demission. Besides, the Sub- 
 committee have serious doubts of the Presbytei-y's jurisdiction. 
 All the Presbytery conferred on Dr. Adamson was ordination 
 as a minister, which he does not propose to demit. Induction to 
 the charge at Cape Town they did not, and coukl not properly 
 give, &c." * This extract is sufficient to show the opinion of the 
 Sub-committee, and also of the Committee itself, relative to the 
 question of jurisdiction, or the right of interference, on the part of 
 the Established Church of Scotland, Avith the affairs of the Scot- 
 tish Church at Cai^e Town ; and more than enough I think has 
 been said, to show that their opinion is founded in truth. It is 
 but fair to add that the report of the Sub-committee concludes 
 with a suggestion that " the Committee should express generally 
 to the Kirk session their approbation of their conduct and exertions 
 in the cause of tlie gospel in connection with the Church of Scot- 
 land, their desire to have intercourse Avith them from time to time, 
 and their hope that they Avill continue to adhere stedfastly to that 
 Church." My views of christian duty do not prompt me to depre- 
 ciate any sincere offers of- kindness, from whatever quarter they 
 may come; and had not my conscientious opinions and those of 
 others, with respect to the position of the Established Church of 
 Scotland, been different from what the Sub-committee appear at 
 that time to have supposed, we should no doubt have most thank- 
 fully accepted them. A few years before, such a communication 
 would have been to all of us like good news from a far country. 
 I have thus endeavoured, as well as I could, to show, by an 
 appeal both to the law and to facts, what is the ecclesiastical status 
 of the Scottish Church, and in what relation it stands to the Civil 
 Government. I think it has been clearly proved that the right 
 of choosing their OAvn Pastor belonged originally to the Congre- 
 gation, and that they have never given it up. The original 
 Committee seemed almost inclined at first, probably under 
 the pressure of peculiar difficulties, to concede this precious 
 right to the " colonial department at home" f on condition 
 that the ixliole stipend of the minister Avere to. be paid by 
 Government; but the Government, before alloAving them time to 
 state their conditions, promised to contribute £100 per annum toAA-- 
 ards the support of their minister, leaving it to them to contribute 
 
 * I have omitted the rest of this sentence merely because it is somewhat 
 fersonal; — the substance has been already given, as those who have read the 
 document will perceive. 
 
 t It was never suggested that the right of nomination might rest with the local 
 Govemmeat. 
 
73 
 
 the rest of the salary, and to choose a minister for themselves. 
 Since that time Government has neither exercised nor, so far as I 
 can perceive, put in the least claim to exercise, the right of patron- 
 age. On the contrary, it has granted a i2e^m??i i>o?H«?t, and left 
 the Church free. Those who are not opposed to the principle of 
 the State supporting ecclesiastical institutions, will admit that this 
 is both a just and a wise plan. 
 
 If, after all that has been said, any will still maintain that there 
 is a connection between the Scottish Church and the Church of 
 Scotland, I shall not quarrel about the use of the term, provided 
 we can agree as to the sense in which it is to be applied. It would 
 be of no use to consult dictionaries, — the appeal must be to facts. 
 My view is that the " Scottish ChurcK' is a true Presbyterian 
 Church, holding the same fundamental principles in regard to 
 doctrine, Avorship, government and discipline as the Church of Scot- 
 land, but " standing as an isolated Church," and free to manage 
 its own ecclesiastical affairs.* When the original proposal of the 
 Scottish and Presbyterian Community was made to the Established 
 Church of Scotland, it vfould have been competent for that Church, 
 at least with the hel23 of the British Parliament, to take the neces- 
 sary measures for grafting this Congregation into the Establish- 
 ment, framing a constitution for it, subjecting it to the jurisdiction 
 of the Church Courts, and of course giving it a right of represen- 
 tation in them. But nothing of this kind was done, or, so far as 
 appears, seriously contemplated by the General Assembly, and it 
 is not likely to be attempted now. With respect to the Presbytery 
 of Edinburgh, it is well known that no Presbytery in Scotland 
 can legislate in even the smallest matter, far less in regard to the for- 
 mation of a union with a Foreign Church; and it has been shown, 
 that the Presbytery of Edinburgh, with the exception of selectino- 
 and ordaining a fit person to take the pastoral charge of the Scot- 
 tish Congregation at Cape Town, by virtue of a special authority 
 emanating from that Congregation itself, has had no communi- 
 cation whatever with it. As it regards the Committees of the 
 General Assembly, it need scarcely be said that they possess no 
 constitutional powers, that they act solely on the authority, and 
 subject to the approval, of the Assembly, and can therefore ex- 
 ercise no direct control over a Christian Church either within 
 or beyond the realm ofScotland. To what ecclesiastical body, 
 
 * It may be mentioned that a considerable proportion of the Congregation of 
 the Scottish Church never belonged to the Established Church of Scocland ; some 
 belonged to the Presbyterian Churches in England and Ireland, and «onie to 
 Secession Churches in Scotland, &c. 
 
74 
 
 then, is the Scottish Churcli at Cape Town subject ? The answer 
 is, — none. 
 
 I might here close my case ; but there are still one or two points 
 of circumstantial evidence brought forward by jNIr. Hawkins, 
 which, out of deference to him, I must not wholly overlook. 
 
 The first, relating to an application made by the session in regaid 
 to the establishment of a mission at the Cape, has already been noticed. 
 
 The second is made up of assertions partly true and partly un- 
 true, — or, at least, not proven. Mr. H. mentions three Protestant 
 Churches in Cape Town, exclusive of " St. Andrew's," the minis- 
 ters of which receive stipends from the Government. This, with 
 the exception which he admits in regard to the Lutheran Church, 
 is quite correct, — but it proves nothing. He adds, however, " the 
 Government looks upon all these as Established Churches." This, 
 I think, must be a mistake ; at all events, as he produces no evi- 
 dence to show that this is the view of Government, I shall state 
 one or two circumstances which lead mxC to think that he has not 
 been duly authorised by Government to make the assertion. 
 
 In the first place, the wTiter of a book published in 1822, who styles 
 himself a " Civil Servant of the Colony," and who is generally 
 allowed to have been pretty well informed, s^^eaks of the Lutherans 
 as Disse7iters, and intimates plainly enough that they were looked 
 upon as such by Government (see note page 59.) In the second place, 
 we find Lord Charles Somerset, in his Despatch to Earl Bathurst, 
 speaking of the projected Scottish Church as a C/uipsl; and I am 
 doubtful whether His Lordship would have used this term if he 
 had thought it was to be an Established Church. And in the last 
 place, I think that if the Government really entertained the views 
 which Mr. H. ascribes to it, something more explicit would have 
 been said about some of these Churches in an Ordinance passed 
 by the Legislative Council, and promulgated by Government on 
 the 8th November 1843 (see page 5.) But Mr. H. says further, 
 " not a single minister of any Protestant dissenting body receives 
 a stipend for the preaching of the gospel." Tliis may yoKhapa be 
 true as it regards Cape Town*, — but no farther. There are at least 
 two Wesleyan Ministers in the Colony who receive stipends from 
 Government for the preaching of the gospel, — and, both in Cape 
 Town and out of it, pecuniary aid is liberally afforded by Govern- 
 ment to Mission Schools taught by ordained Missionaries and 
 other qualified persons belonging to various dissenting bodies. This 
 I think is sufficient to overturn the 2rri7ici2)Ie which Mr. H, 
 would establish, — and more is not required, 
 
 * I am liere supposing thai all the four Churches which he names are EsUi- 
 blished C'liOT/ies,— which they are not. 
 
His third and last point of circumniantial evidence relates to 
 the fact that Government at one time prescribed certain conditions 
 relative to a grant of money to a '* Christian Instruction Society" 
 in Cape Town, for the support of one of its Teachers. This Soci- 
 ety was formed lo years ag-o, with the sanction of Govei-nment, 
 a regular licence from the Governor having been previously obtain- 
 ed dated 25th July 1831. It was not till the year 1837, that pecu- 
 niary aid could be procured from Government ou any condition at 
 all, though applications to that effect had been made at least three 
 years before. Why other denominations than those specified by 
 Mr. 11. were excluded I do not know. The Government assigned 
 no reasons ; and as the grant was voluntary, and renewed from 
 year to year on the Governor's own re.oponsibiliti/, he had a right 
 to make his own conditions. Suffice it to state that the Churches 
 in whose favour the Governor was pleased to make a distinction 
 Avere not all Established Churches, — that there were at that time 
 some local circumstances of a peculiar nature sufficient to account 
 for his making the distinction, — that the person employed as 
 Teacher by the Society was not likely to have remained much 
 longer in its service after he received ordination, even though the 
 grant had been continued — that the very same individual, being an 
 " Independent Minister" himself, has ever since been rcceivino- 
 from Government the sum of £75 a yeai-, as Teacher of a Mission 
 School in connection with the London Missionaiy Society, — tliat 
 on 21st April 1841 (four years before the date of Mr. H's. letter) 
 an offer was spontaneously made to the same Christian Instruction 
 Society, on the part of Government, to allow them £75 a year for 
 the support of a Teacher in Cape Town without any restrictions 
 whatever, — and that in consequence of this offer a Teacher " belong- 
 ing to the Independents," and recommended by the Rev. Dr. 
 Philip, was actually employed by the Society, and received the 
 salary from Government until the Society was broken up. 
 
 Having thus briefly disposed of Mr. H's stro?ig points, I must now 
 notice one or two weak ones, intended probably to serve the double 
 purpose of argument and admonition. 
 
 After saying something about the Government paying a stipend 
 under misconception as to the status of " St. Andrew's," he puts 
 this solemn question,—" Can it be right for a Church to call itself 
 by one name for any purpose whatever, and at the same time to 
 receive a Government stipend by another?" Now, it strikes me 
 that if this question means any thing at all, it implies something 
 that, is not very creditable to the office-bearers of a Christian 
 Church ; and therefore I think that Mr. H. was bound as a Christian 
 
76 
 
 to Iiave j^J'oposed the qu.siion in the first instance directly to 
 the parties for whose benefit it was intended, in order to ascertain 
 what explanation they might be able to give, before proposing it to 
 the readers or the editor of a respectable Magazine. Besides, he 
 could scarcely be ignoi-ant that one of his own particular friends, 
 whom he had recommended to the Free Church of Scotland as a fit 
 person to be ordained to the ministry, had, along with myself and 
 others, formally recorded his o;)inion, and never withdrawn it, that 
 St. Andrew's is "an isolated Church," not subject to the jurisdic- 
 tion of the Established Church of Scotland ; and that this friend, 
 at the time when Mr. H. was writing, continued to hold two respon- 
 sible offices in connection with St. Andrew's, and made no objec- 
 tion to its receiving pecuniary aid from Government. I conceive 
 that I am entitled, on these grounds, to ask Mr. H. this question 
 in return, — Can it be right to recommend any person for ordina- 
 tion to the sacred ministry, to whom, at least as much as to others, 
 it is deemed necessary to throw out such an intelligible hint ? This 
 argumentum ad hominem, — for of course I mean it as nothing 
 else, — Mr. H. Avill be able to understand. My own opinion is that 
 he had no occasion to put the question at all ; and that the office- 
 bearers of the Scottish Church — or, if it must be so, of " St. An- 
 drew's" — though like all others liable to err, are at least honest men. 
 The next question is a harmless one ; but, like many other ques- 
 tions, it is more easily asked than answered. It is this : — " Even 
 were it (St. Andrew's) an isolated Church, ought it not for pur- 
 poses of Church Government to put itself in connection with some 
 Presbyterian body ? &c." If he alludes to any Presbyterian body 
 in Scotland, he would, perhaps, confer a greater obligation on us 
 than any that he has yet rendered, if he would distinctly point out 
 the method by which we could put ourselves in connection with it 
 in th6 sense which he intends. Or, if he cannot do this, the next 
 best thing will be to show how a Presbyterian body in Scotland, 
 say either the Free or the Established Church, can exercise proper 
 jurisdiction over a congregation in a distant land, without subject- 
 ing one or both parties to extreme inconvenience and delay ; or, 
 what Avould be still worse, adopting a summary mode of trial inconsis- 
 tent with the recognised principles of law and equity, both in Church 
 and State. If Mr. H. will only suppose a case coming, in the 
 first instance, before the Kirk session of St. Andi-ew's, and thence 
 by reference or appeal to the Church Courts in Scotland, he Avill, 
 perhaps, find it not so easy to answer his own question as he sup- 
 posed. I trust he will understand, ere now, that it is only in a 
 case of this nature that jurisdiction over a Church is properly 
 
exercised. With regard to jurisdiction over 3Iinisters or Licen- 
 ciates individually, Avliicli he seems to have mistaken for something 
 else,* he will find, on looking at the report of the Colonial Com- 
 mittee quoted at page 33, that it is just as competent for the 
 Church Courts in Scotland to exercise authority over them, as it 
 would be if the Churches over which they are placed Avere also 
 subject to the jurisdiction of these Courts. The only difficulty is, 
 how to exercise jurisdiction with effect. He supposes a case to 
 happen in St. Andrew's Church, and, for the purpose of illustration, 
 I admit that he could not have been more happy in his selection. 
 He says, "had the congregation at this momenta Minister preach- 
 ing the doctrines of Irving or Pusey, they have no authority to 
 which to appeal but the Government, &c." Now, it is generally 
 known that the doctrines of Irving were preached about 15 years 
 ago by Irving himself in the National Scotch Church London, 
 which, notwithstanding its name, was no more subject to the 
 Church of Scotland than the Scottish Church at the Cape of 
 Good Hope. These doctrines were not only preached, but printed 
 and published in a book bearing Edward Irving's name. Edward 
 Irving was subject to the jurisdiction of the Presbytery of London, 
 and that Presbytery exercised jurisdiction over him, and deprived 
 him of his office. This, however, did not satisfy the Church of 
 Scotland. She had given him licence and ordination, and she 
 asserted her right to withdraw both, should she find just cause. 
 The case was brought before the General Assembly, of the Church 
 of Scotland, and on the 26th May 1832 the Assembly having satis- 
 fied itself that it was a case calling for the interference of the 
 Church Courts, gave instructions to the Presbytery of Annan, 
 from which Irving had received ordination, how to proceed against 
 him. The Presbytery of Annan obeyed the mandate of the Su- 
 preme Court, and the result was that Irving Avas deposed from the 
 ministry. This shows the competency of the Ecclesiastical Courts 
 in Scotland to exercise jurisdiction over Ministers wherever they 
 may be. The j^raciicabilitij of such a thing, especially in a case 
 like that supposed by Mr. li., is a different question. Irving was 
 
 * This is very evident from his having omitted to quote the only passage in 
 the letter of the original Committee, in which reference is made to the exercise of 
 jurisdiction over a Church, and his now appealing to another passage in that letter 
 which refers to jurisdiction over Ministers only. Was Mr. H. aware that according 
 to the " Form of Process " which the Church Courts in Scotland are bound to 
 observe, such cases of clerical obliquity as those supposed by the Committet could 
 not be investigated without a Presbyterial visitation ? The Presbytery of Edinburgh 
 visiting the Cape would at least be a new thing. 
 
78 
 
 im honest maji, avIio would not disguise his scMtimoiits, and besides 
 lie had published a book, the authorship of which he could not 
 well deny. In his case, therefore, the process was' comparatively 
 simi)le and easy. But supposing he had been Minister of the 
 Scottish Church at the Cape of Good Hope, and had merely pro- 
 mulgated his erroneous doctrines from the pulpit, — how tedious 
 and difficult might the process have been ? Whoever will look 
 at the instructions given by the Assembly to the Presbyter}'- of 
 Annan, describing tho various steps to be adopted with respect to 
 Mr. Irving, according as he should admit or deny that he was the 
 author of the book bearing his name, will be able to form a pretty 
 correct idea on the subject.* In short, the question of jurisdiction 
 over foreign Churches, is one which tasked the ingenuity of the 
 whole Church of Scotland for many years without any satisfactory 
 result ; and until Mr. H. has fully matured a plan, and drawn 
 up a " Form of Process," which can be adopted with some reason- 
 able prospect of success, I think he is not likely to do much good 
 by merely asking questions. Before leaving this part of the sub- 
 ject, I would beg to state Avhat appears to me to be the best mode 
 of surmounting the difficulties incident to our insulated position in 
 a foreign land. " Rome was not built in a day ;" and if house 
 had not been joined to house, it would never have been built at 
 all. So it is witli regard to a Presbyterian Church ; there must 
 be a beginning, and if all who profess Presbyterian principles 
 would unite hand in hand, bearing each other's burdens, and striv- 
 ing in the exercise of faith, liope, and charity to build up the walls 
 of Jerusalem, our little Church would rest and be edified, and, 
 walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy 
 G\\ost,he vmltiplieiL New congregations would soon be formed 
 in different parts of the colony, and God would give them pastors 
 accordinsf to his own heart. These micijht form themselves into a 
 Presbytery; and then w^e should not only be relieved from the 
 inconveniences arising out of our present anomalous position, but 
 we should be better qualified to propose terms of communion with 
 a Presbyterian body in Scotland, if we had still a mind to do so. 
 In the mean time let a sense of our weakness and our solitariness 
 lead us to cleave unto the Lord with full purpose of heart; leaning 
 on his almighty arm, and looking earnestly to Him for the gift 
 of his Holy Spirit, who alone can impart to us vitality and 
 strength, and make us wdiat a Christian Church ought to be. 
 
 But it is time to proceed to the consideration of Mr. H's remarks 
 relative to the two letters which appeared in the Scottish Guardian. 
 
 * See Report of Proceedings of the General Assembly, in the Prefhyterian Review 
 JuUi 1832. 
 
79 
 
 With regard to Dr, Abercrombie's letter, I have little more to 
 sa3^ He represented the Scottish Church at Cape Town as an 
 " isolated Church," and I think it has been clearly shown that he 
 was justified in using that term. 
 
 He stated that the principles of non-intrusion had been distinctly 
 recognised in tlie appointment of a Minister, and it appears to me 
 that nothing- could be more true. In order to have disproved the 
 statement Mr. H. ought, in my opinion, to have shown clearly 
 that the riglit of presentation to the Ministry of the Scottish 
 Church is vested in the Government ; and that the Government 
 might have exercised this right, without regard to the wishes of 
 the people. The payment of salary and the right of Church 
 patronage are surely tv/o distinct questions, having no necessary 
 connection one with another. TIad I been translated from one 
 congre2:ation belonging to the Dutch Reformed Church to another 
 congregation belonging to the same Church, in consequence of my 
 having received a call from the latter, his argument would have 
 been sound, — not, however, because Government paid the salary,, 
 and because it was to Government a matter of indifference whether 
 it was paid at the one place or the other (for these things are quite 
 irrelevant to the point at issue) but because the Government 
 having a legal right to present any qualified person to the vacant 
 office, chose to forego the exercise of this right in compliance 
 with the Avishes of the people. To the remaining portion of Dr. 
 Abercrombie's letter Mr. H. has made no objection. He makes 
 use of it afterwards for another purpose. 
 
 With regard to the letter from the Revd. Mr. Morgan, which 
 appeared in the " Scottish Guardian" of the 11th February 1845, 
 I cannot help thinking that Mr. Hawkins has attached more im- 
 portance to it than it deserved. - I certainly never expected that 
 any one, writing from Cape Town, would refer to it, and to it 
 alone, as an exponent of my views and sentiments relative either to 
 the Free and Established Churches of Scotland, or to "the state 
 of things in connection with the Free Church in this colony.'"* 
 If the remarks made upon it in the " Free Churchman " do not 
 represent it in this light, I am unable to see for what purpose it 
 was quoted at all. Of course, I do not refer to the intention w^ith 
 which Mr. H's observations were written, but to the impression 
 "which they are calculated to convey to the mind of the reader. 
 He introduces the subject by saying, " I must enter into some 
 details respecting the letter of the Revd. Mr. Morgan ;" and then 
 proceeds to give, what appear to me to be, details respecting an- 
 
80 
 
 other letter rather than mine. Tiie details which I should have given 
 invself respecting my own letter, had I heen Avriting for the in- 
 formation of persons who might not have the ''Scottish Guardian" 
 of 11th Fehruary 1845 at hand to refer to, would have been such 
 as these. The letter v/as written in my own name, on my own 
 responsibility, on a particular occasion, and for a special purpose. 
 It was addressed to Win. Young, K^;q. W. S., Secretary of the 
 Colonial Committee of the EstahU:<hed Church of Scotland, on 
 the 14th September 1844, acknowledging the receipt of an official 
 letter which I had just received from him, giving cover to an ex- 
 tract from the Minutes of a Meeting of the General Assembly's 
 Colonial Committee, held on the 4th June 1844. This extract, 
 as stated by Mr. Young, consisted of a " Report recently given in 
 and approved by the Colonial Committee, on the various docu- 
 ments transmitted by the kirk session and by Dr. Adam son." * 
 On reading this extract I found that a private letter, addressed by 
 a gentleman in Cape Town to a friend in Scotland, on 10th Oc- 
 tober 1843, giving some account of the state of affairs in this con- 
 gregation, had been laid on the table of the Committee, handed 
 over along Avith tlie Documents above referred to, to a Sub-Com- 
 mittee for report, and tlien reported on by that Sub-Committee, 
 just as if it had been an official communication. This struck me as 
 an unusual mode of treating private communications ; and I 
 thought it not the less strange, because I had seen the private 
 letter, thus reported upon, a short time before in the " Home and 
 Foreign Missionary Record " of the Establishment, accompanied 
 by some remarks by the editor, evidently written under miscon- 
 ception as to my sentiments, and those of some others here, relative 
 to the secession from the Established Church of Scotland. In 
 these circumstances I thought proper to address a letter to Mr. 
 Young immediately, in my own name. After acknowledging. the 
 receipt of his letter, and stating that it should be laid before the 
 kirk session at our first meeting, I expressed my opinion frankly 
 respecting the use which liad been made of a private letter, written 
 to a friend not officially connected with the Committee, " with a 
 vievv^, if por-sible, to prevent a repetition of the same course with 
 regard to any future communications of the same kind." I con- 
 fined my remarks to this one point. I abstained, avowedly, from 
 entering into the merits of the private communication which had 
 been converted into an official one by the Committee. I admitted 
 
 * This is the communication referred to at page 71 . 
 
81 
 
 the riglit of every iiidividiuil to comiimnicate Jiis seiilinicnts freelj 
 and fully to a friend ; and I made no objection to the Committee 
 making use of any such communication merely as a "private 
 jnemorcmdum indicating tlie matters v/liich the Committee had so 
 long omitted to take up;" but 1 thought they went too fai-, wlien 
 they introduced a private letter into their Minutes, in the manner 
 they had done, and then made me the official medium of com- 
 municating an extract from these Minutes to my kirk session, &g. 
 , Such was the tenor of my -whole letter, till I came to the conclu- 
 sion, when I added the two following paragraphs : — 
 
 " While I repeat tliat I do not object to any individaal coninumlcating to liis 
 friend his own views and sentiments in a proper manner, and tor a legitimate 
 purpose, I feel bound to add, with a^view to obviate misconception, that I 
 cannot conscientiously concur in many of the sentiments expressed in the said 
 letter, and particularly in those referring to the late secession from the Established 
 Church of Scotland ; and I have good reason to believe that, had the letter been 
 submitted to the Kirk-session, it would have been seriously objected to on 
 various grounds. It woukl be foreign lo viy ■present purpose, hoiceverj to euier par- 
 ticularly into these matters. 
 
 " Being desirous of acting openly and candidly, I shall communicate the purport 
 of this letter to my Kirk-session ; and as the communication to which it princi- 
 pally refers appeared in the " Home and Foreign Missionary Record," I trust 
 there will be no objection to give this the same publicity as soon as possible." 
 
 " I am &c. 
 
 The second short sentence in the first of these jjaragraphs, now- 
 printed in italics, shows clearly enough that I had been addressing 
 Mr. Young all along on a subject quite foreign to that referred to 
 in the pi'eeeding sentence ; and it accounts for my not saying more, 
 on such an occasion, than I deemed necessary to obviate miscon- 
 ception. The first sentence is the only portion which Mr. 11. has 
 extracted from my letter,— -this being, as he says, " all that concerns 
 my ivesent 'purpose.'' 
 
 When I transmitted my letter to Mr. Young I sent a copy of it 
 to a fi'iend in Edinburgh, requestuig him, in the event of its not 
 appeai-ing soon in the pages of the" Home and Foreirjn Illission- 
 oru Record'" of the Established Church, to have it published 
 through some other channel. It was not published in the Mission- 
 arij Record, and consequently^ was forwarded to the Editor of 
 the " Scottisli Guardian," who not only gave it a jjlace in his 
 columns, but wrote a pretty long article, giving some details res- 
 pecting my letter, as well as Mr. Robertson's private one ; at the 
 same time remarking in strong terms on the imjjroper use which 
 had been made of the latter communication by the Colonial Com- 
 
inittee of the Establishment. Tlie following is a fair specimen of the 
 train of remark puvsuetl by tlie Guardian, mn{ it will serve to con- 
 firm the accuracy of the defails which I have givea respecting my 
 letter to Mr. Young. After stating briefly the occasion on which 
 my letter was written, he goes on to say : — 
 
 " This private letter of Mr, Robertson seems to have found its way to the table 
 of the Establishment Colonial Couimittee,— who, Dot only make its statements 
 the ground of a communication to JNIr. IMorgan, the Minister of the Congregation 
 at Cape Town, but think proper to publish INIr. Robertson's letter in their " Home 
 and Foreign Missionary Record," — where it appears in the Number for April last, 
 accompanied with some interesting comments from the Committee. In these 
 circumstances, Mr. Mtfrgau complains, very justly, of the impropriety of the 
 Committee making an unauthorized letter of a deacon at Cape Town* the ground of 
 an official communication to him, as IMinister of the Congregation, and iModerator 
 of the Kirk-session of the Church there ; and he more especially con.plains that 
 the Committee should have given publicity to statements contained in such a 
 letter, — '• in many of which (he says) I cannot conscientiously concur, — particu- 
 larly ill those referring to the late secession from the Established Chn^'ch of Scotland." 
 Mr. Morgan communicates the purport of this letter to his Kirk-session before 
 dispatching it ; and as Mr, Robertson's letter, to which it principally refers, had 
 appeared in the Missionari/ Record of the Establishment, — he calls upon Mr. 
 Young and the Committee to give " the same publicity" to his letter "as soon as 
 possible." Having, however, had an apprehension (which turns out to have been 
 too well-founded^ that " someihiiig might prevent his letter appearing in an early 
 nnmber of the Missionary liecord," he has taken the precaution to secure that 
 " it be published through some other Channel ;" and it is in consequence of his 
 request to that effect that we now give it a place in our columns. 
 
 " Upon looking back to the Missionary Record for April last we find that Mr. 
 Robertson's letter &c." 
 
 Then follow the details respecting Mr. Robertson's letter, whicli 
 are given nearly in the same words in the Free Churchman, along 
 with some remarks by the Editor also given in the Free Churchmarii 
 Then after a few observations on the impropriety of publishing a 
 private letter in the Missionary Record, and also on the comments 
 made upon it in that publication, the editor of the Scottish Guard-^ 
 ian concludes his remarks Avith the passage from which Mr. -H. 
 has taken his last extract.f Being desirous to do justice to the 
 
 * It was the Committee who introduced the writer of the letter into their 
 minutes as deacon, and this was one of the things of which I complained. I have 
 the best authority for saying that the letter was a private one ; and who has not a 
 tight to express his own sentiments fully and freely to an intimate friend ? 
 
 t Mr. H. introduces his last extract thus : " Now I cannot but think that 
 this letter of Mr. Morgan is calculated to give the impression that the kirk of St. 
 Andrew's at Cape Town is a church at all events as much in connection with (or 
 use any other term you please) the Free, as with the Established Church of 
 Scotland. Such indeed appears to have been the conclusion drawn by the 
 Guardian of the 11th February 1845, in the following remarks — " 
 
$3 
 
 Gruardian, to Mr. Hawkins, to the printei'of Mr. Hawkins' letter, 
 and to myself, I shall give the jvhole paasaje exactly as it stands 
 in the Guardian, placing injiixta-i)03ition with it Mr. H's extract, 
 just as it stands in the Free Churchman. 
 
 Scottish Guardian,Feh. 11, 1845. 
 
 ''By giving publicity to that 
 letter, however, — bearing, as it 
 does, to speak the sentiments of 
 the Congregation at Cape Town, 
 and of its minister and kirk 
 session, — the Committee have 
 grosshj misrepresented these res- 
 pectable parties, and done to 
 them positive injustice. Hav- 
 ing obtained dii'cct evidence of 
 this fact, under the hand of Mr. 
 Morgan himself, — we conceive 
 the Committee were hound to 
 give the only redress in their 
 power, by the immediate publi- 
 cation of Mr. Morgan's letter, 
 in terms of his request ;— and 
 7ve coll upon them still to do this 
 act of oh vious justice. We have 
 now done all that we can in the 
 matter, by giving publicity to 
 Mr. Morgan's letter; — but the 
 unjust misrepresentations Avere 
 published in the Missionary 
 Record of the Establishment, 
 and it is there alone that the 
 proper redress can be given. 
 The readers of that publication 
 may not be very numerous, — 
 but some of them (it is to be 
 feared) never look into our pages, 
 and there is no reason why a 
 single individual should be mis- 
 led by the failure to perform an 
 act of the simplest justice." 
 
 As Mr, H. has sfiven me war 
 
 Free Chu7-chman,Dec. 1.5,184-3i 
 
 " By giving publicity to Mr. 
 Robertson's letter, bearing, as it 
 does, to speak the sentiments of 
 the Congregation at Cape Town, 
 and of its Minister and Kirk 
 Session, the Committee have 
 grossly misrepresented these res- 
 pectable parties, and done to 
 them positive injustice. Hav- 
 ing obtained direct evidence of 
 this fact, under the hand of Mr. 
 Moi'gan himself, we conceive 
 the Committee are bound to 
 give the only redress in their 
 power. The letter of Mr. Mor- 
 gan is certainly not such an one 
 as might have been expected 
 from an avowed adhei-eut of the 
 Establishment ; but neither as- 
 suredly is it the production of 
 one zealous in behalf of the 
 Free Church. The language is 
 at best but doubtful." 
 
 ning not to spoil the text of the 
 
84 
 
 kbovc passage, as it stands in the Free Churchman, by notes and 
 comments, I shall make none;* reserving, however, to myself 
 the right to say a few words in my own defence, respecting two 
 notes (! !) made by me on a former occasion (see Aj^pendix G). 
 But I am bound to give his own explanation, Avhich I do most 
 cheerfully, viz. that the two concluding sentences which appear in 
 the Free Chu7'chman, as a quotation from the Guardiati, are his 
 own remarks, — "the placing of the quotation commas in the 
 wrong place is an error of the press." 
 
 I have to apologize to the reader for having said so much about 
 a letter which I never expected would be considered as deserving 
 of any notice by Mr. Hawkins, or any other person writing from 
 Cape Town in August and September 184-5. If that letter mis- 
 represented the state of things here in connection Avith the Free 
 Cliurch, let him show distinctly in what respect it did so. Though 
 I am no lawyer, I engage to cross-examine his witnesses, when 
 they are brought forward, as well as I can. For the present, I 
 dismiss the subject, by requesting the reader, that whatever blame 
 may be discovered any where, he will, in justice to Mr. H., allow 
 the printer of the Free Churchman to have his proper share. 
 
 I take this opportunity of expressing mj sense of obligation to 
 the Editor of the Scottish Guardian, for giving my letter, such as 
 it was, a place in his columns, and for tlie notice which he v/as 
 pleased to take of it. While ho did me, and others whose senti- 
 ments correspond with ray own, no more than justice, he did so in 
 a kind and considerate manner ; and if iiis remarks had been 
 given fairly in the Free Churchman, Mr. II's two sentences would 
 not have given me all this trouble. It is no disparagement to 
 Mr. H. to say, that I do not consider his opinion in such matters 
 of equal value v/ith that of the ScottisJi Guardian. 
 
 Before drawing to a conclusion I have to notice a paragraph in 
 Mr. Hawkins' letter respecting certain proceedings relative to the 
 ordination of Mr. W. Gori'ie. He says : — 
 
 " Here let me pause for a moment in my narrative to explain that the 
 proceedings above alluded to as having been held in tlie Free Church Assembly, 
 had reference to the ordination of IMr. W. Gorrie as a missionary minister of the 
 Free Church, provided that the conductors of the jMission, and especially Mi- 
 Gorrie himself, approved of the principles of the Free Church. An application 
 
 * I can assure JMr. II. that I should not have made many, at any rate ; for 
 I have seldom met with a passage in any book which has puzzled me so much, 
 even with the help of his own explanation, as that very passage of his in the Free 
 Charchman, commencing with the words, — ''Now 1 cannot but think that this 
 i'tter of Mr, Morgan, ^c. ^x. 
 
85 
 
 liad been sent home by the Kirk-sossion, ere the disruption, in order to procure 
 his ordination, and a copy of tlie application was also sent to the Revd. Mr_ 
 MacFarlan of Renfrew, who brought it forward in the first General Assembly of 
 the Free Church. Hence the comUliomd authority to ordain. U'he ordination was to 
 he mode by certain Ministers named in the Commission. On tlie question being 
 mooted in the session, in the form of a vote of sympathy with the Free Church, the 
 motion, as stated in the extract from Dr. Abercrombie's letter, was lost ; showing, 
 as far as any thing can show, that the majority of the then conductors of the Mis- 
 sion, viz. the Kirk Session and the Deacons, did not approve of the principles of 
 the Free Church ; and I\Ir. Gorrie, though desirous of it, remains without ordina- 
 tion to this hour.' ' 
 
 On this passage I have to remark in tlio first place, that what is 
 said about the ordination of Mr. Gorrie is incorrect. No appli- 
 cation had ever been sent home by the kirk session to procure the 
 ordination of Mr. Gorrie, and the communication from the Free 
 Church Assembly in reply had no referencewhatever to his ordina- 
 tion. The circumstances were briefly these : — Mr. Gorrie had been 
 employed for several years as an agent or assistant in the Mission 
 belonging to the Scottish Church at Cape Tov/n, and as such had 
 been accustomed to expound the Scriptures to the colored Congre- 
 gation in the Diitch Language at such times as the Minister was 
 prevented from doing so by other duties, Mr. Gorrie himself 
 being an Elder of the Church, To this no objection, so far as I 
 know, was ever made ; but it was thought by some that it would 
 be more constitutional, as Avell as desirable in other respects, that 
 he should be regularly licensed ; hence the application not for 
 ordination (which was never even mentioned in my hearing) nor 
 for a licence generally to preach the gospel, but simply for a 
 licence to do the thing which he was actually doing; or rather, to 
 quote the language of the official communication sent home at 
 the time, the application was for "such a licence (if consistent 
 with the laws and constitution of the Church of Scotland) as will 
 authorise him to preach the gospel to the Mission Congregation 
 in connection vitJi. the said Scottish Church in Cape Town, under 
 the superintendence of tlie kirk session." A copy of this applica- 
 tion was sent home by me to the Rev. Mr, McFarlan, as stated 
 by Mr. Hawkins, and it was Avith this request, and no other, 
 that the Free Genei-al Assembly I'esolved to comply. Now, how 
 comes it that Mr. Hawkins speaks of ordination ? Did he not 
 know the difference between ordination and licence in the Presby- 
 terian Church of Scotland ? — Or, while professing to have gathered 
 so much information concerning the affairs of the Scottish Church 
 here, was he still ignorant of the fact that the Kirk session had made 
 application for licence, but not for ordination, and that they could 
 
not propeily liave applied for ordination withont making- arrang'o- 
 ments for having Mr. Gorrie appointed as coUeagne to the Minis- 
 ter of the Chnrch, or providing for liim a separate Congregation 
 of his own ? Or, if Mr. H. knew these tilings, is he so careless a 
 writer as unv.ittingly to enij)loy, and that no less than five times in 
 as many sentences, one technical term of well-known ecclesiastical 
 import, for another term of far less comprehensive signification ? 
 I cannnot conceive of any other alternative except one ; and as it 
 implies a degree of guilt which ought not to be imputed to any 
 writer without necessity, and which I certainly do not impute to 
 Mr. Hawkins, I forbear to mention it. I have dwelt the longer on 
 this mistake, because, — though it may not appear to be very mate- 
 rial in vefcrenco to the subject of which Mr. H. was professedly 
 treating, — it is of considerable importance in reference to measures 
 •which have subsequently been adopted, and which I find were in 
 quiet but rapid progress at the time he was writing, to procure 
 both licence and ordination foi' Mr. Yv". Gorrie. The pregnant 
 remark with which Mr. H. concludes, viz. that " Mr. Gorrie, 
 though desirous of it, remains without ordination to this hour," 
 cannot be misunderstood. 
 
 On thfe above passage I have furthcj" to remark, that while Mr. 
 H. notices one thing which took place in the kirk session, he 
 omits to state (both here and elsewhere) some other things Avhich 
 took place at the same meeting of the Kirk session, and in immedi- 
 ate connection with the same question. For instance, he omits to 
 mention, that while the motion that was made relative to the ordi- 
 nation (as he calls it) of Mr. Gorrie in the form of a vote of 
 sympathy with the Free Church, was lost by a majority of one, 
 in consequence of the Deacons having been allowed to vote, — a 
 previous motion was carried by a large majoi'ity (7-9ths) of the 
 Eiders and Deacons, to the effect that this Chnrch is in fact in an 
 isolated position, and has been left perfectly fi-ce to manage its own 
 affairs, to choose its own Pastor and office-bearers, &c. ; or in other 
 words to assume to itself the duties, and exercise the powers of 
 self-government. This Avould at least have shown that Dr. Aber- 
 crombie did not stand alone in holding the opinion that this is "an 
 isolated Church, uncontrolled in any way by Government, and 
 liaving had very recently the principle of non-intrusion distinctly 
 recognised in the appointment of our present Minister." 
 
 Another circumstance Avhich Mr. H. has not mentioned is, that, 
 on the occasion referi-ed to, I formally objected to the claim of the 
 Deacons to vote, and that when this claim was allowed, on grounds 
 
8l[ 
 
 which tippcarad to me " illegitiniati; and uuconstitutional", I 
 entered my dissent, and gave in my reasons in due form. I must 
 take leave to add that the course pursued by Mr. Gorrie was 
 diftorent. When the question was first brought forward he object- 
 ed to the Deacons being allowed to vote ; then, after an adjourn- 
 ment of a week for the purpose of considering this point, he with- 
 dre/v his objection ; and finally, v/hen the question was decided 
 contrary to his expectation, he entered his dissent on the sole ground 
 that the Deacons had no rigid to vote. This may suggest one of 
 the reasons why ''Mr. Gorrie, thougli desirous of it, remained with- 
 out ordination" at the time when Mr. H. wrote. The observa- 
 tions of Mr. Hawkins have, in a manner, obliged me to state this 
 circumstance, which I should not otherwise have done.* 
 
 A third circumstance which Mr. H's remarks induce me to 
 notice is, that the '^vote of sympathy with the Free Church," 
 to which he alludes, was moved and seconded by the two indi- 
 viduals to Avhom he has given so unenviable a distinction in 
 the pages of the Free Cliurchman, viz. Dr. Abercrombie and 
 Mr. Moi'gan ; and that, when the motion was lost, both these indi- 
 viduals recorded, for the second time, in the presence of the Kirk 
 session, their cordial attachment to the principles of the Free 
 Church, and their sympathy with those who had seceded from the 
 Establishment ; — which Mr. Gorrie did not. Any method which 
 he may subsequently have employed to manifest his attachment to 
 the Free Church, is unknown to me. 
 
 I have thus endeavoured to state my views respecting the several 
 matters brought forward by Mr. H., and have adduced such 
 evidence in support of them as I think entitled to consideration. 
 In doing so I have had to discharge a painful duty ; certaudy not 
 the less painful, that it has prevented me for a short time from 
 giving my undivided attention to other duties far more congenial 
 to the feelings of my heart. That I shall succeed in giving satis- 
 faction to all parties, or in bringing conviction to the minds of 
 those who conscientiously differ from me in opinion in regard to the 
 position of the Scottish Church at Cape Town, is perhaps more 
 than I can i-easonably expect, I am content that others hold and 
 avow their sentiments ; but I must claim the same privilege for 
 
 * 1 have heard that JMr. Gorrie has lately beeu ordained in Scotland as a 
 Missionary of the Free Church- The Committee for Foreign Missions were put in 
 possession of my sentiments in reference to this measure as soon as I heard that 
 it was in Contemplation ; but as I have had no communication in return, I shall 
 say nothing more for the present. 
 
 L 
 
88 
 
 mV'^elf. If 1 have oomnritfetl crrorS; I have no objection to tlieir 
 })einf pointed out. Tf tliis is clone kindiv and candidly, so mucli 
 tlie better ; but in whatever manner, and for whatever purpose, it is 
 done, errors are errors still, and ought to be acknowledged. I do 
 not engage, hovrever, to take notice of any anonymous letters, 
 either in the Free Cliurchman or any where else. 
 
 T now take the liberty of addressing a few parting words to 
 Mr. Hawkins; and for the sake of convenience, as well as to avoid, 
 if possible, the use of douUful language, — I shall employ the 
 second person instead of the third. 
 
 Dear Sir : — For, after all, I entertain sentiments of real friend- 
 ship towards you ; and though I am decidedly of opinion that you 
 have erred in judgment, I give you credit for being actuated by 
 zeal in promoting what you consider to be a good cause. I respect 
 you not only on account of the office which you hold as an Elder 
 of the Free Church, but on account of the estimable personal 
 qualities which I am told you possess. I believe you to be a 
 devout man, and really desirous of doing good wherever you come. 
 I believe vou to be a generous man, ready at all times to obey the 
 call of charity, and to promote such religious institutions as your 
 conscience can appiove. Neither do I question the purity of your 
 motives in endeavouring to procure the establishment of a Free 
 Church and Mission in this Colony. But while I give you credit 
 for these things, I beg leave to point out one or tv.o errors into 
 which I think you have fallen. 
 
 In the first place, I think you have failed in pei-forming a 
 duty which you owed to myself. Allow me briefly to remind you 
 of the line which you have pursued You introduced yourself to 
 me for the fii'st time on a solemn occasion. You arrived in this 
 Colony just before the usual time for celebrating the Lord's Supper 
 in the Scottish Church, in March 1845. I was distributing tokens 
 of admission to the Lord's Table to the members of my congrega- 
 tion, according to the practice observed in the Church of Scotland, 
 when you introduced yourself to me as an Elder of the Free 
 Church at Calcutta, and desired a token for yourself, and another 
 for one of your fellow passengers, also a member of that Church. 
 I had no hesitation in complying with your request. The follow- 
 ing Lord's Day you sat down Avith us at the same table ', we par- 
 took of the same bread, and drank of the same ciip, declaring 
 that we were one in Christ Jesus. Having heard your character 
 highly spoken of, I fondly anticipated the pleasure of your 
 acquaintance, and the advantage of your counsel and aid. We 
 
89 
 
 had scarcely liucl tlnw, however, to cxchunge the umvA courtesies of 
 life, till I had reason to fear that you had altered your mind, and 
 were not disposed to hold any farther christian communion with 
 myself or my congregation, I did not blame you for this; but I 
 expected that you would at least esteem it a christian duty to 
 point out to me the grounds of any dissatisfaction you felt, in 
 regard either to myself personally, or to my position as Minister 
 of the Scotthh Church. Had you done this, I should have been 
 most ready to disclose to you fiankly n)y views and sentiments, 
 and receive from you any advice, or even admonition and reproof, 
 v.'hich you might think I deserved. Tliough I might not have 
 been able to give you satisfaction, or to bi'ing you over to adopt 
 my views, I should have respected you.r candour, and admitted 
 that you had discharged your duty as a Christian and as an Elder 
 of the Free Church, according to the measure of light which vou 
 possessed. Instead of this, however, you never afforded mc an 
 opportunity of benefiting by your counsel. You proceeded to 
 adopt measures for procuring ordination for an Elder and Mission- 
 ary connected with my Congregation, without holding any commu- 
 nication with myself, or ray kirk session; and vpith this view trans- 
 mitted statements to England and India, Avhicli certainly were not 
 calculated to give a favourable impression of my character and 
 conduct, and of which I humbly think you did not take sufficient 
 pains to ascertain the truth. On these grounds, I beg you to con- 
 ijider whether }'ou did not fail in performing a material part of 
 3'our duty. 
 
 The line Avliich you have pursued appears to me farther to bo 
 unwise as it regards the interests of the Free Church. To the 
 principles of that Ciuirch I have been attached from my youth. 
 They are firmly imbedded in my heart as the result of long and 
 prayerful study of the Word of God ; and I tru«t that by divine 
 grace I sliall never act in a manner unworthy of them. If they 
 do not produce in mc the excitement of novelty, they have ac- 
 quired the stability of mature age. I desire, therefore, to see the Free 
 Church prosper as a branch of t' e Church of Christ, and her 
 principles maintain'jd in their integrity by all her adherents and 
 friends. You have, I believe, only very lately left the communion 
 of the Church of England, and become an office-bearer in the Free 
 Church at Calcutta. Of course you were fully persuaded that 
 you could not conscientiously remain a member of the Episcopal 
 Church before you adopted this important step. You now com- 
 plain of the Erastian bondage which is here self-laid upon the 
 
90 
 
 Cliuic'i of Clirist, a'ld dt-clare it us your ophiiou that a testimony 
 to the ccclesiaf5tical headsliip of Christ is much wanted. This 
 may or may not be true. But avowing as youtlo sucli sentiments, 
 it ajipears to me difficult to exi)Uiin liow you could resume com- 
 munion with the Church of En;i;land, durin^; the greater portion 
 of your residence at the Capo, without compromising, in some 
 dofjree, the principles which you maintain, and witliholding that 
 testimony which you think was so imperiously required. I have 
 no doubt that you can reconcile this apparent inconsistency, to the 
 satisfaction of your own mind ; but believe me that it has heen 
 remarked upon, both by friends and opponents of the Free Churcli 
 of Scotland, and requires an explanation at your hands.* 
 
 There appears to me also to have boon some degree of inconsis- 
 tency displayed in the line adopted by you with regard to the 
 Scottish Church at Cape Town. You object to the position of the 
 Minister of that Church, and to the status of tlie Church itself, as 
 bein"- in connection with the Established Church of Scotland. But 
 
 o 
 
 * I trust th;it none of my esteemed friendo of the Church of England will 
 imagine for a moment that I design to cast any reflection on the genuine memhers 
 of that Church. I refer merely to the duty of one's bearing a consistent and uniform 
 testimony to what one holds to be a vital religious truth. The following extract 
 from a Tract published at Calcutta not many years ago, indicates at least a deep 
 feeling of sincerity in the mind of the writer, and a determination to act out his 
 princij)les : " Well then, I cannot continue a member of this Church. I have been 
 her zealous son ; I have done what I could for her ; but now I must choose 
 between remaining in her, a party to evils which I cannot hope to see amended, and 
 — separating myself altogether 1 I must leave her communion. I must not deceive 
 myself, and wait to move with a large body ; God looks to each man for personal 
 faithfulness and sincerity. If I wait on man I may be deceived after all : and I 
 may be misled by pride, and by a wish to bo a party to an effective movement, 
 instead of simply discharging the obligation of my own conscience. But then, if 
 I separate, old friends will look cold ; misrepresentations or misapprehensions 
 respecting motives will be circulated ; and the Cross must be taken up and borne. 
 Yes ! but the Lord is the same, llim I must follow, whithersoever He goeth ; His 
 will I must faithfully obey. Wy course, therefore, and my duty are made clear ; 
 I desire to live in peace with those from whom I separate ; I desire to pray for 
 their Missions ; to love all wlio love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity , and to 
 trust to the Lord, tJiat hereafter, if it be his will, he will remove from the minds 
 of those who may speak evil of me, any errors and harsh judgment which they may 
 entertain ; and if not, yet I hope to wait patiently on the Lord, and at last to find 
 that God, to whom all hearts are ojjen, will make it known, that I did not leave 
 the Church with unchristian feelings, or under any other influence than the con- 
 straining motive of conscientious conviction. I\Iay all be done to the glory of 
 the Redeemer ! May faithfulness be given to Ilis people, with love and unity ; and 
 may the day soon come when we shall all be one, and when divisions and 
 Tinkindncsses shall be known no more ! " 
 
\ 91 
 
 does not the same objection apply to every o9ice-he.irer and every 
 member belonging to the Scottish Church] If the position of the 
 Minister be wrong, I cannot see how that of the Elder can be right. 
 And yet, without insisting on his abandoning his position, and in 
 tlie full knowledge, as I presume, that he never gave any intima- 
 tion to his Kirk session that he intended to abandon it, you took 
 one of my Elders by the hand, and without the cognizance of those 
 with whom he was officially connected, you recommended him as 
 a fit person to receive ordination from the Free Church of Scot- 
 land. Such a course of proceeding has appeared to othei's, as 
 well as to myself, very ditheult to explain, and has tended in my 
 opinion, as much as any thing else, to impede the progress of Free 
 Church principles in this colony. I submit these things for your 
 solemn and deliberate, consideration; and now that you are on the 
 eve of leaving these shores, I sincerely wish you all spii'itual and 
 temporal prosperity; and should we ever meet again on earth, may 
 our intercourse be more [)leasaijt, and more edifying, than it has 
 heretofore been. 
 
 In conclusion^ I would earnestly and affectionately entreat the 
 reader of these pages, whoever he may be, to look well to the state 
 of his own soul. Religion is a personal thing. It is not an adher- 
 ence to a visible society of christians, however pure may be their 
 doctrines, and forms of worship and discipline, — however holy and 
 consistent may be their lives, — and however high they may stand in 
 favor both with God and men. It is a cordial adherence to Christ, 
 the great head of the Church, and the only Saviour of lost and 
 perishing sinners ; an adherence to Him in all his offices and i-ela- 
 tions, maintained by an habitual exercise of that living faith which 
 is of the opei'ation of his Holy Spirit, and exhibited by an unswerv- 
 ing obedience to him in every department of duty, and in the 
 diversified circumstances and situations of life. " If any man 
 have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his." " Except a 
 man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." 
 " Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." " They that 
 are Christ's have crucified the flesh, with the affections and lusts." 
 I love the Free Church of Scotland ; I hold by her pi'incij)les ; I 
 esteem highly the devoted men who have borne so noble and self- 
 denying a testimony to the truth ; and though some of them 
 should be induced to look cold upon me, and even, through inad- 
 vertence or misinformation, perform certain acts which I cannot 
 conscientiously approve, — I cannot cease to honour them so long 
 as their general course of contluct and procedure fippears calculated 
 
92 
 
 to bring glory to Cliri!?t, and advance his kiugdoiii in tlie world. 
 On the other hand, I do, from my inmost soul, compassionate the 
 case of those who, while professing zeal for the cause of the Free 
 Church of Scotland, or any other denomination of professing 
 christians, fail to exliibit the substantial fruits of holy and enlight- 
 ened zeal for the glory of the Redeemer in their daily walk and 
 conversation. To all such I would say, beware of touching the 
 ark of God. A holy cause cannot but suffer in your hands ; and 
 through you the way of truth will be evil spoken of. Go and 
 learn which be the first principles of the oracles of God. Repent 
 and do the first works. Seek reconciliation and acceptance with 
 God through the blood of the Cross ; pray earnestly and incessant- 
 ly for the gift of the Holy Spirit ; make a personal consecration 
 of yoursdvcs to him 5 and then you will be prepared both to under- 
 stand and practise every christian duty, and God will bless you in 
 your work. I counsel you not to be indifterent concerning out- 
 ward forms of worship, far less concerning those vital principles on 
 which Christ has willed and commanded that the affairs of his 
 Church shall be administered on earth. In regard to these it is 
 required that you be fully persuaded in }'our OMn mind, and that 
 you act boldly, and consistently, according to your convictions 
 of duty, and v.ithout regard to consequences. But oh ! I beseech 
 you, do not mock God, and deceive your ownselves, by a mere 
 profession of religion. Give all diligence to make your calling 
 and election sure. For what if, after all, you should see others, 
 with whom it has been your pride or your profit to be, associated 
 on earth, admitted into the kingdom of heaven, and you your- 
 selves thrust out. I commend to your most serious consideration 
 the aM-ful vrords of Christ : ''Not every one that saith unto me, 
 Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven,— but he that 
 doeth the will of my Father which is iii heaven. Many-Avill say 
 to me in that day. Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in, thy 
 name? and in thy name have cast out devils ? and in t'ay name 
 done many wonderful works ? And tiien vv'ill I profess unta them, 
 I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." 
 
 To those who conscientiously differ from me in opinion in regard 
 to forms of worship and church government, but v.ho give evidence 
 by their lives that they are the sincere disciples of our blessed Lord 
 and Saviour, — I would tender, unworthy as it is of their acceptance, 
 my hundjle tribute of hcart-fe!t attachment and love. We cannot, 
 see eye to eye in regard to these things ; but we can love one 
 another, and thus fulfil the law of Chri?t. If he is graciously 
 
93 
 
 pleased to hear with lis, surely we may v/ell bear with each other. 
 Let us, therefore, follow after tlic things that make for peace, and 
 things wherewith one may edify another, till Ave all come in the 
 unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a 
 perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of 
 Christ. 
 
 To you, tlie Editor of the Frse Churchma'i, I have but one 
 word to say. You arc unknown to me, and thei'efore I can only 
 address you as the responsible Editor of a respectable Christian 
 Magazine. You have published the statement of your friend res- 
 ])ecting myself, respecting an esteemed Elder of my Church, and 
 respecting various matters intimately connected wiih the reputation 
 and interests of the Congregation entrusted to our care. I present 
 you with my counter-statement in this form. I can scarcely 
 request you to transfer it entire into your pages ; but I expect 
 you will take such notice of it, as a regard to truth, justice, and 
 christian charity demands. 
 
 I am, Sir, 
 Your Obedient Servant, 
 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
[APPENDIX.] 
 
 APPENDIX A. (Seepacje 42 J 
 
 Cape Town, 12tli August 184G. 
 
 SiR,^ — A letter having appeared in tiie " Calcutta Free Churchman," 
 which, among other matters referring to the Scottisli Church in Cape 
 Town, places in my opinion its relation to the Government in a very erro- 
 neous point of view, I feel it my duty to take notice of this publication, 
 and to endeavour, as far as lies in my power, to rebut its statements, where 
 they are inconsistent with the truth. 
 
 I, therefore, take leave respectfully to request that His Excellency the 
 Governor will be pleased to authorise my being officially furnished with 
 such extracts from Despatches and other documents in yo\ir office, as will 
 enable me to show to the public the views entertained both by tlie Su- 
 preme Government and that of the Colony, in regard to the relation in 
 which they stand to the Scottish Chui'ch, in consequence of tlie pecuniary 
 aid which they have afforded that congregation towaMs the support of 
 its minister. 
 
 And as the Scottish Church in Glen Lynden, previous to its beino- united 
 with the Dutch Reformed Church, was the only other Scottish Church in 
 this colony receiving support from the public revenue, and as it is reason- 
 able to infer that its relation to the Government was the same with that of 
 the Scottish Church at Cape Town, I take leave to request tliat I may also 
 be furnished with any extracts from Despatches and otlier documents'relat- 
 ing to the Church at Glen Lynden, wliich may afibrd additional li"-ht in 
 regard to the character of that relation. 
 
 I have the honor to be. 
 Sir, 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 
 The Honorable John Mont.\gu, Esq., 
 
 Secretary to Government. 
 
 APPENDIX B. (Seepage 43.) 
 
 Colonial Office, Cape Town, 1st September 1846. 
 Reverend Sir, — In your letter of the 12th ultimo, you refer to a 
 publication in the " Calcutta Free Churchman," wliich in your opinion 
 places in an erroneous point of view the relation in which 'tlie Scottish 
 Church in Cape Town stands to the Government of this Colony, and 
 you request that Ris Excellency the Governor will be pleased to autlio- 
 rise your being furnished witli such extracts from Despatches and other 
 Official Documents in this Office, as will enable you to show to the public 
 the views entertained both by the Supreme and Colonial Government, 
 ir. regard to the relation in ivhich they stand to the Scottish Church, in 
 
IV 
 
 consequence of tlie pecuniary aid wliich is afforded that Congregation 
 towards the sup])ort of its Minister. 
 
 In reply, I am instructed by His Excellency the Governor to inform j'ou, 
 that he lias l)ecn pleased to accede to your request, and has directed me 
 to furnish you with the following extracts. 
 
 No. 1. ( See page AZ.) 
 
 1st. Extract from a Despatch addressed by the Governor to the Secre- 
 tary of State, on the 21st December 1824, enclosing a Memorial from 
 the Scottish Presbyterian Community, in Cape Town, in Avhich they solicit 
 the sanction of the Government to ei-ect a Church to be placed in connex- 
 ion with the Established Church of Scotland, pray for pecuniary aid in 
 the erection of the building and the support of a Pi-esbyterian Pastor. 
 
 " These persons are of the legitimate Scottish Church. They have 
 formed themselves into a body for the purpose of erecting a Chapel for 
 the performance of Divine Service according to the rites of the Estab- 
 lished Church of Scotland. Their object is the procurement of pecuniary 
 assistance from His Majesty's Goa crnment in aid of the Funds realised 
 for building a Church, and the appointment of a Scottish Presbyterian 
 Pastor at the public expense." 
 
 No. 2. (See page 49.) 
 
 2nd. Extract of a Despatch from the Secretary of State, dated 30tb 
 April 1825, in replj'^ to that from the Governor, of the 21st December 
 1824. 
 
 " The Secretary of State intimates His Majesty's pleasure that His 
 Excellency the Governor be prepared to assign towards the erection of a 
 Scottish Church in Cape Town, a sum equal to one-third of what upon 
 an Estimate of a plan approved of by him, may appear to be requisite to 
 accomplish the views of the Scottish Community, — it being, however, 
 understood that in the event of the expense exceeding the estimate, the 
 individuals who may undertakethe building, and not the public, are to be 
 responsible for its completion. 
 
 " The Secretary of State also directs His Excellency to signify that 
 His Majesty has been pleased to assign to the officiating Minister the sum 
 of One Hundred Pounds per annum in addition to what may be given by 
 the Congregation." 
 
 No. 3. (See page 6Q.) 
 
 3d.' Extract of a letter addressed to the Acting Secretary to Govern- 
 ment, on the 28th December 1827, by the Secretary to the Committee of 
 the Scottish Presbyterian Community. 
 
 " The Secretary to the Committee encloses for the information of the 
 Lieutenant Governor sundry documents relative to the appointment, 
 stipend and passage of a clergyman for the Scottish Church now erecting- 
 in this nietropolis, and solicits His Honor's more particular attention to 
 the Deed of Ordination of the Rev. James Adamson", dated 28th February 
 1827, the Committee being desirous to ascertain at what' specific periods, 
 quarterly or otherwise, that portion of Mr. Adamson's stipend to be 
 defrayed by the Colonial Government, will be issued." 
 
 No. 4. (Seepage GO.J 
 
 4th. Extract of ;i letter from the Acting Secretary to Government, dated 
 7th January 1828, in reply to that of the Secretary to the Committee of 
 the Scottish Presbyterian Community of the 28th December 1827. 
 
 " The Secretary to the Committee of the Scottish Presbyterian Com- 
 munity is informed that the necessary instructions liave been issued to the 
 Auditor General for placing the Revd, Mr. Adamson, clergyman of the 
 Scottish Church, on the Abstract of the Government Establishment depos- 
 
ited in the Audit Office, from the date of his arrival in this colony (1 1th 
 November 1827) at tlie rate of salary authorised by His Majesty's 
 Secretary of State for the Colonies, viz : £100 per annum." 
 
 No. 5. (Seepage 60.J 
 
 5th. Extract of a Despatch addressed to the Secretary of State on 
 November 13th, 1830, by His Excellency^ the Governor, relative to a 
 Memorial thei-ewith transmitted from the session and deacons of tlie 
 Scottish Church in Cape Tovmi. 
 
 " The memorialists pray^ that such an addition may be made to the 
 allowance now granted to tliem by the Government as may place them on 
 a level with the Clergy of the Dutch Reformed Church. 
 
 " That there is little or no diflerence between the two churches in their 
 religious opinions and forms of worship, appears from the circumstance 
 that the duties of the greatest proportion of the district churches in the 
 colony are performed by members of the Scottish, Church. 
 
 " Considering them, therefore, as one and the same church,* His Excel- 
 lency recommends the prayer of the Memorial to the favorable consider- 
 ation of the Secretary of State, and that the Scottish Church may at least 
 be placed in point of income on the same footing as the Reformed Churches 
 in the Countiy Districts, by increasnig the present allowance of £100 a 
 year to double that amoimt." 
 
 No. 6. (See page eO.) 
 
 6th. Extract of a Despatch from the Secretary of State, dated 2d March 
 1831, in reply to that from His Excellency the Governor of the 13th 
 November 1830. 
 
 " The Secretary of State has no hesitation in stating liis opinion that the 
 Scottish Presbyterian Clergy ought in principle to be placed, in respect 
 to income, on a footing with the Clergy of the Dutch Reformed Cliurch : — 
 and if upon revision of tlie establishments of the colony , he should find it 
 practicable to impose new burdens upon its Treasury without exceeding 
 the revenue, he will be happy to authorise His Excellency the Governor 
 to issue to the two Presbyterian Clei'gymen who are noAv in the colony 
 an additional stipend of £100 each.f 
 
 "If, however, it should be the intention of the session and deacons to 
 introduce any additional number of Clergymen, into the colony for the 
 service of the' congregation in Cape Toami, or of any other settlement in the 
 colony, the Secretary of State is not disposed to think that it will be in 
 the power of His Majesty's Government to do more than assist these con- 
 gregations which may require the services of such Clergymen, to the 
 extent of providing the same amount of stipend which may be furnished 
 by the congregations themselves." 
 
 No. 7. (SeejmgeGO.) 
 
 7th. Extractof a Despatch from the Under Secretary of State to His 
 Excellency the Governor, dated 30th December 1832. 
 
 " His ExceHency the Governor will be justified in issuing to the Pres- 
 byterian Slinister at Cape Town a salary at the rate of £200 per annum, 
 as specified in the Schedule which accompanif^d the Despatch of the Secre- 
 tary of State of the 27th May 1831." 
 
 No. 8. (See page 62.) 
 8th. Extractof a Memorial addressed to His ExcellencyMhe Governor 
 by the Revd. Dr. Adamson, Minister of the Scottish Church, Cape Town, 
 dated 5th December 1839. 
 
 * \Yhy? Because "there is little or no difference between the two (.'hurclies in 
 their religions opinions and forms of icorship." 
 
 t The additional stipend was granted to one only. 
 
VI 
 
 " For the purpo::e of forwarding certain public iiiteresti Memorialist it 
 under the iieces.sity of proccedin";- to Europe shortly, and proposes to sail 
 from this place during the current or the ensuing month." 
 
 "Memorialist, tlierefore, respectfully requests that the salary of £200, 
 paid to him by the Colonial Government, may be paid to the firm of 
 Borradailcs, Thompson & Pillans, Cape Town, during his absence, for a 
 period of not more than twelve months, commencing with the first day of 
 the current month of December." 
 
 No. 9. ( Sec page C2.) 
 
 9th. Extract of reply to the Memorial above referred to, dated 5th 
 December 1839. 
 
 " Memorialist is informed that His Excellency the Governor will sanc- 
 tion the payment of his salary to the firm of Borradailes, Thompson and 
 Pilians, on condition that in case the Lords of Her Majestv's Treasury 
 .shall cee fit to refuse their sanction to such payments or any portion thereof, 
 JSIemorialist's future salary shall be withheld until the surcharge conse- 
 quent on such refusal shall be made good : — and further, that the kirk 
 session shall express its own consent and that of the congregation to 
 Memorialist's absence, and shall not be entitled to expect Government 
 to make any provision for the performance of his duties during that 
 absence." 
 
 No. 10. ( See jnuje 62. ) 
 
 10th. Extract of a letter addressed to the Secretary to Government by 
 the Revd. Dr. Adamson, dated 22d February 1840. 
 
 "Dr. Adamson encloses herewith, according to the stipulations laid down 
 by His Excellency the Governor in regard to his (Dr. A's.) proposed visit 
 to Great Britain, an extract from the Minute Book of the Kirk Session of 
 St. Andrew's Church, expressing their concurrence in the measures 
 adopted for supplying his place and office during his absence." 
 
 No. n. ( See jJttffe 67 . J 
 
 11th. Extract of a Memorial addressed to His Excellencj^ the GoAcrnor 
 by the Kirk Session of St. Andrew's Church, Cape Town, dated 1st Sep- 
 tember 1841. 
 
 " The Memorial humbly showeth, — That a call has been given by the 
 Kirk Session, Deacons and Communicants of the said church to the Revd. 
 George Morgan to be colleague with the Revd. Dr. Adamson, as Pastor 
 of the said church, and upon the resignation of the said Dr. Adamson being 
 .sanctioned by the General Assembly's Committee for Colonial Churches, 
 or by the Presbytery of Edinburgh, sole Pastor of the said charge. 
 
 " That the said George Morgan has stated that he has come to the deter- 
 mination to accept the said cell so soon as he sliall have received intinja- 
 iion that the sanction of your Excellency has been obtained to the proposed 
 arrangement, and to the transfer to him of the salary at present allo^^ ed 
 by Government to the Minister of the said clmrch. . 
 
 " That the Revd. Dr. Adamson has granted an aulhority in favor of the 
 Treasurer of the Church for the time being, to receive the said salary and 
 to pay the same to the said George Morgan, from and after the time when 
 he shall be introduced as colleague as aforesaid, the said Dr. Adamson 
 from henceforth renouncing all claim to the said salary in favor of the said 
 George Morgan. 
 
 " AVhercfore your Memorialists humbly pray that your Excellency will 
 be pleased to sanction the said arrangement." 
 
 No. 12. (See page 67.) 
 
 12tii. Exiract of a Letter addressed by the Secretary to Government on 
 the 2d September 1841, to the Revd. Dr. Adamson and the other Members 
 of St. Andrew's Church, Cape Town. 
 
"■ In reply to their Menutriiil inCoriuing His Excellency the Goveriiui' 
 that a call has been ojiven by the Kirk Session, Deacons and Communi- 
 cants of St. Andrew's Cliurch to the Revd. Geor<^e Moro;ni to be colleaijue 
 witli the Revd. Dr. Adamson, and upon his resignation being- sanctioned 
 by tlie General Assembly's Committee for Colonial Churches, or by the 
 Presbytery of Edinburgh, to be sole Pastor of St. Andrew's Church, — 
 stating- further that the Revd. Mr. Morgan Avill accept the call so soon 
 as he receives intimation that the sanction of His Excellency has been 
 obtained to the iirojiosed arrangement, and to the transfer of tiie salary at 
 present allowed b\^ Government to the Minister of the said church :— The 
 Secretary to Government informs the Kirk. Session that His Excellency 
 has been pleased to sanction the arrangement above set forth, and tliat lie 
 will be ready to grant autliority to the Treasurer of tlie said ciinrcii, for 
 the time being, to receive the said salary, in order that it be paid over to 
 the said George Morgan from and after the time lie sliall be introduced as 
 colleague aforesaid, Dr. Adamson from tlienceforth renouncing all claim 
 to the salary in favor of the said George Moi-gan. 
 
 " The Kirk Session M'ill therefore be so good as to notify to the Secre- 
 tary to Government the date at which Mr. Morgan is inducted into the 
 cure of the said church." 
 
 No. 13. 
 
 13th. Extract of a letter addressed by the Secretary to Government on 
 ihe 7th October 1841, to the Revd. Dr. Adamson. 
 
 " With reference to the Extract Minute of the resolutions of the Kirk 
 Session of the Scottish Church in this town, held on the 21st July last, 
 which you personally placed in my hands, I am directed by the Governor 
 to acquaint you that as it is not in His Excellency's poAver to admit the 
 designation of "Colleague" on the Salary Abstract, the Schedule of the 
 Fixed Establishment of the Colony providing only for a "Minister" for 
 your Church, he has found himself obliged to make the appointment of the 
 Revd. George Morgan as Minister, under which name alone he can be 
 permitted to draw the stipend, leaving it, of course, to you and the Kirk 
 Session to designate him as colleague, or otlierwise, as may^ be considered 
 most expedient." 
 
 No. 14. 
 
 14th. Extract of a Despatch addressed to the Secretary of State by Hi» 
 Excellency tlie Governor, dated 18th Octoher 1841. 
 
 " Dr. Adamson being of opinion that before he could be relieved froru 
 the service of this (St. Andrew's) Church, it was necessary to forward his 
 resignation for the approval of the Committee of the General Assembly 
 for Colonial Churches, His Excellency was induced to agree to tlie 
 prayer of the Memorial of the Kirk Session ; but for the reasons given in 
 the letter to the Revd. Dr. Adamson on the 7th October last, it was found 
 tliat a technical objection existed to Mr. Morgan being designated as his 
 colleague, and, therefore, arises the apparent inconsistency between these 
 two communications. * 
 
 " A question was mooted, but not specially brought under His Excel- 
 lency's consideration, as to the right of pati-onage in the appointment of a 
 Clergyman to the Presbyterian Church. His Excellency is not aware 
 that any attempt will be made bj^ the General Assembly to exercise the 
 right of filling up the vacancj' occasioned by Dr. Adamson's resignation, 
 because His Excellency knows that Mr. Morgan has been selected by the 
 votes of the congregation, because he is already an ordained Minister of 
 that church, and because His Excellency is of opinion that no power 
 
 * The letter to the Kirk Session of 2d September and the letter to Dr. Adam- 
 son of 7th October, are the communications here meant (see Nos. 12 and 13.) 
 
Vlll 
 
 whatever was delegated by tlie congregation of Cape Town to tlie Com- 
 mittee of tlie General Assembly, except a special one to select a Minister 
 for them, whicli Commission having been executed by the appointment of 
 Dr. Adamson, their power to interfere in the matter was actually ended." 
 
 With respect to the Scottisli Church erected at Glen Lynden in 1827, 
 to wliich you refer in the concluding paragraph of your letter, I am to 
 inform you tliat tlie following are the only extracts that c .n in any way 
 tend to show the relation in which it stood to the Government previous to 
 its incorporation into (he Dutch Reformed Churcli of this colony. 
 
 No. 15. ( See paffe 59.) 
 
 1st. Extract of a Despatch from the Lt. Governor to the Secretary of 
 State, enclosing a Memorial from the inhabitants of the Field-cornetcy of 
 the Baviaan's River (Glen Lynden,) dated 24th March 1825. 
 
 "The inhabitants of this Field-cornetcy, which has been newly settled, 
 pray that a Minister of the Church of Scotland, to act as Clergyman and 
 Schoolmaster, may be sent oat to them, and offer to raise an annual sum of 
 Rds. 500 towards the stipend, if His Majesty's Government v/ill defray the 
 expense of his passage out. Memorialists further eng;age to pay half the 
 expense necessary for the ei'ection of a plain Dwelling House and School 
 Room, the la.tter being made of sufficient dimensions to serve also as a 
 place of worship, if the Colonial Government will defray the other half of 
 the expense." 
 
 No. 16. (See page 3d.) 
 
 2d. Extract of a Despatch from the Secretary of State of the 27th June 
 1826, in reply to that from the Lt. Governor, dated 24th March 1826. 
 
 *' The Lieutenant Governor will acquaint the inhabitants of the Field- 
 cornetcy of Baviaan's River, in answer to their Memorial, that the Secre- 
 tary of State is well disposed to recommend to His Majesty to grant their 
 request. The Lieutenant Governor will, therefore, take measures for 
 having an estimate prepared of the expense of erecting a plain Dwelling 
 House for the residence of a Clergyman, and of a building wliich may 
 serve both as a Place of Worship and a School Room. And so soon as 
 Memorialists shall have contributed one half of such estimated expense, 
 the Lieutenant Governor Avill direct that the other moietj^ be advanced 
 from the Colonial Treasury for the execution of the work ; taking care 
 that the Colonial Government be not considered responsible for any excess 
 of expense on account of this service beyond the sum estimated. 
 
 "The Lieutenant Governor is further informed that the Clergyman 
 whom the Memorialists may induce to join them from Scotland to take 
 charge of their spiritual instruction will be allowed a stipend of £100 per 
 annum in addition to any sum which they themselves may raise for his 
 "maintenance ; and so soon as he may be reported ready to sail from Scot- 
 land for the Cape, the Colonial Agent will be directed to issue to him an 
 adequate allowance for his passage." 
 
 No. 17. (See page b9.) 
 
 3d. Extract of a Despatch from the Secretary of State in reply to a 
 Memorial from the inhabitants of Glen Lynden, praying that a Minister 
 may be appointed in the room of the Revd. Mr. Pears. 
 
 " The Secretary of State proposes to intimate to Mr. Pringle, the rela- 
 tive of the principal Scotch settlers at Baviaan's River, that if he should 
 find it practicable to engage a Minister of the Scottish Church to proceed 
 to the colony for the purpose of undertaking the charge of Glen Lynden, 
 and of the adjoining district of Riet River, tlie Governor will be authorised 
 
IX 
 
 to issue to such Clorgynian an annual stipend of £100 in addition to any 
 pecuniary remuneration winch the parishioners may think proper to allo^v 
 him." 
 
 No. 18. (Seeparie^d.) 
 4th. Extract of a letter addressed by the Under Secretary of State, to 
 Mr. Thos. Pringle, London, dated 28th November 1831. 
 
 "The Under Secretary of State has been directed to acquaint Mr. 
 Prini^le that in conseqiience of arcpicsentation, which has recently been 
 received from the Church Wardens and Deacons of the Parisli of Glen 
 Lynden at the Cape of Good Hope, the Secretary of State is disposed to 
 instruct the Governor of that colony to assign an annual stipend of £100 
 to any competent Minister of tlie Clmrch of Scotland who should be 
 willing to undertake tlie pastoral charge of that parish and of the adjacent 
 district of Riet River. 
 
 "The Under Secretary of State, therefore, requests tliat Mr. Pringle 
 will have the goodness to acquaint liim, for the information of the Secretary 
 of State, whether he is empowered by tlie parishioners of Glen Lynden, 
 or otherwise disposed to select a Clergyman of the Scottish Clmrch for the 
 service in question." 
 
 I have the honor to be, Reverend Sir, 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 JOHN MONTAGU, 
 
 Secretary to Government. 
 The Revd. Mr. Morgan, Scottisli Church, 
 Cape Town. 
 
 APPENDIX C. (See page 60.; 
 
 London, 7th May 1825. 
 Reverend Sir, — We have the honour to inclose you a letter from the 
 Scottish and Presbyterian Community of the Cape of Good Hope, trans- 
 mitted to us through our liouse in tliat colony (one of the partners of 
 wliich, Mr. Pillans, has recently arrived in London) together with some 
 printed resolutions and other documents, which speak for themselves. 
 We, therefore, do not occupy your valuable time further tlian by referring 
 to them, and most respectfully offering our best exertions in favour of the 
 sacred cause to which tliey refer ; and waiting your reply. 
 
 We beg to subscribe ourselves, with great respect. 
 Reverend Sir, 
 
 Your obedient humble servants, 
 Wm. BORRADAILE, SONS, & RAVENHILL. 
 The Revd. Alexr. Brunton, d.d.. 
 
 Moderator of the General Assembly of 
 the Church of Scotland, Edinburgh. 
 
 Edinburgh College, lOth May 1825. 
 Gentlemen, — I am honored by your letter of the 7th, which, with its 
 enclosures, reached me last night. 
 
 I am not myself a member of the approaching Assembly, but shall 
 take care that your papers be laid before them through a proper channel. 
 Allow me to suggest that the business would be greatly facilitated by 
 your procuring, if possible, before the rising of the Assembly (which meets 
 on the 19th) some declaration from Lord Bathurst that Her Majesty's 
 Government mean to patronize the object. 
 
 I have the honour to be. 
 Gentlemen, 
 Your obedient liumble servant, 
 
 ALEXR. BRUNTON. 
 Messrs. Borradatle, Sons & Ravenhux. 
 
 B 
 
34, Feuchurcli-street, May 13tl), 1825. 
 My Lord, — Having been requested by the Scottisli and P^esb^-te^iaIl 
 Community of the Cape of Good Hope to forward to tlic General Assem- 
 bly of theKirk of Scotland a INIemorial upon tlie subject of buikling a 
 Scottish National Church in that colony, we had tlic pleasure of comply- 
 ing Avith their recpiest, and received from the Moderator a reply stating that 
 the object would be materially facilitated by our procuring your Lord- 
 ship's sanction previous to the rising of the General Assembly wliich meets 
 on the 19th instant. As we know the object has been sanctioned by His 
 Excellency the Governor of the Cape of Good Hope, and as we have 
 reason to belkve your Lordship has already been addressed through that 
 medium upon the subject, we shall feel happy if your Lordship would 
 intimate the gracious intentions of His Majesty's Government in the proper 
 quarter, or sanction our giving a favourable reply to the Reverend the 
 Moderator of the General Assembly. 
 
 We have the honor to be, 
 My Lord, 
 Your Lordship's obedient humble servants, 
 Wm. BORRADAILE, sons, & RAVENHILL. 
 Right Hon'ble Earl Bathurst, &.c. &c. &c. 
 
 DowTiing-street, 21st May 1825. 
 Gentlemen, — I have received Earl Bathurst's directions to acknoAv- 
 ledge the receipt of your communication of the 13th instant, and to acquaint 
 you in reply that tlie wishes of the Scottish community' at the Cape, with 
 respect to the building of a Presbyterian Church, having some time since 
 been brought under the consideration of his Lordship, the Governor of the 
 colony M as instructed to assign a sum equal to one third of what, upon an 
 estimate of a plan to be first approved by him, might appear to be requisite 
 to accomplish the views of the Scottish community, it being, however, to 
 be understood that in the event of the actual expense exceeding the esti- 
 mate, the individuals who undertake the building, and not the public, are 
 to be responsible for its completion, and I am further to acquaint you 
 that the Governor has been directed to assign One Hundred Pounds per 
 annum to the Minister who may be appointed to officiate in the churchy 
 exclusively of what may be subscribed by the congregation. 
 I have the honour to be, 
 Gentlemen, 
 Your most obedient humble servant, 
 
 R. W. HORTON. 
 Messrs. Borradaile, Sons. & Ravenhill. 
 
 London, 23d May 1825. 
 Reverend Sir, — ^We delayed replying to your valued favour of 10th 
 instant, till we could receive from Lord Bathurst the sanction which you 
 suggested that it would be desirable for xis to procure ; and we have now 
 the honour to inclose you a letter received on Saturday night after post, 
 from the Colonial Office, which we trust will be satisfactory to the General 
 Assembly. As you mention not being yourself a member of the Assembly 
 during the present session, may we beg the favour of your informing us to 
 whom it will be proper for us to address ourselves if we have occasion for 
 further correspondence in this affair. With our best thanks for the trouble 
 you have taken in this matter, 
 
 We are. Reverend Sir, 
 
 Your most obedient servants, 
 Wm. borradaile, SONS, & RAVENHILL. 
 The Rev. Alex. Brunton, D.D. 
 
XI 
 
 . Bilstanebrae near Edinburgli, 27th May 1825. 
 Gentlemen, — I was honoured yesterday with your letter and its impor- 
 tant enclosure, wliich I have sent this mornin"^ to a friend on whom I can 
 rely for laying it to-day on the Assembly's table. I have no doubt that 
 Lord Bathurst's announcement of the generous intentions of His Majesty's 
 Government towards the Scottish Cliurch at the Cape will produce a most 
 favourable impression. As the Assembly dissolves on Monday next, I 
 am not aware that any thing- farther can be done by you at present, or, 
 indeed, that any thing- farther is needed. 
 
 The judgment which I anticipate is, that the Assembly will approve and 
 comply with the petition of your constituents, and will name a Committee 
 to whom the details of the measure will be left. The Chairman of tliat Com- 
 mittee will, of course, address himself officially to you. But, at all events, 
 I shall take care that you have ready and authentic information of the 
 judgment of the court. Tlie business ■will probably not be taken up till 
 Monday. 
 
 I have the honour to be. 
 Gentlemen, 
 Your most obedient and faithful servant, 
 
 ^ ALEXR. BRUNTON. 
 
 Messrs. Borradaile, Sons, & Raveniiill. 
 
 Bilstanebrae, 1st June 1825. 
 Gentlemen, — The General Assembly have remitted the case of the 
 Scotch Church at the Cape to the Presbytery of Edinburgh, under whose 
 jurisdiction it will ultimately fall. The Presbytery, in concert with a 
 Committee of the Assembly, are to settle the details. The next meeting of 
 Presbytery will be on the last Wednesday of June, and you may be 
 assured that no time will be lost on their part in executing the trust com- 
 mitted to them. 
 
 Should you find any further communication with them necessary, it 
 may be addressed either to me or to the Moderator of the Pi'esbytery of 
 Edinburgh. 
 
 I have the honour to be. 
 
 Your most obedient servant, 
 
 ALEXR. BRUNTON. 
 Messrs. Borradaile, Sons, & Ravenhill. 
 
 APPENDIX D. (Seeimrjebb.) 
 
 Cape Town, Cape of Good Hope, 
 
 27th February 1826. 
 Reverend Sir, — We, the Chairman and Secretary of the Committee 
 appointed by the Scottish Presbyterian Community in tliis colony, for the 
 pui-pose of collecting funds and performing other duties appertaining to 
 the erection of a Scottish Churcli in this metropolis, have now the honor 
 of transmitting to you herewith extracts from the Committee's proceedinos 
 on the 31st December last, and the 6th instant, and Ave trust that they are 
 sufficiently explicit to obviate the necessity of trespassing on your valuable 
 time Avith many additional remarks. Our kind agents, Messrs. Wm. Bor- 
 radaile, Sons, and Ravenhill of London, and the Chairman of our previous 
 meetings, Mr. Mc Donald, (who is now in Britain, and who has no doubt 
 communicated to you his address) are qualified to give you information on 
 any point to which Ave may have omitted to attend, but Avhich may require 
 elucidation, and Ave beg leaA^e to refer to them accordingly. 
 
We have been gi\ en to undeiotaiid tliat tlie retspectable consistory of the 
 Lutheran Church here, are willing to accommodate a regularly ordained 
 Clergyman of the Established Cliurch of Scotland, with the use of their 
 Church for Divine Service once at least every Sunday, until our intended 
 Church is built. 
 
 We regret to add that our pecuniary means are at present too limited to 
 admit of tlie payment of even so high a stipend as Four Hundred Pounds 
 per annum, ^^ithout the aid of voluntary subscriptions (which sum, how- 
 ever, we guarantee) and that our collection in this colony for tlie erection 
 of the intended Church is far short of our expectation. But the arrival 
 here of a gifted Clergyman cannot fail to give a great stimulus to our 
 sacred undertaking, and we anticipate with equal confidence liberal pecu- 
 niary assistance from our brethren and others in Britain, India, &c. We 
 feel duly sensible of, and grateful for the kind interest which the Pres- . 
 bvterv of Edinburgh collectively and individually have evinced in our 
 behalf. 
 
 We are, &.c., 
 
 A. Mcdonald, chairman. 
 G. PATON, Secretary. 
 
 To the Moderator of the Presbytery of Edinburgh. 
 
 APPENDIX E. (Seepa(/e56.J 
 
 Copy of Correspondence between Wm. Borkadaile, Sons, & Ravenhill, 
 
 and Revd. Dr. Brunton, respecting Scotch Kirk at Cape of Good 
 
 Hope. 
 
 Edinburgh College, 3d November 1826. 
 
 Gentlemen, — I have to regret that the consideration of the letter of your 
 respected constituents at Cape Town to the Presbytery of Edinburgh' was 
 accidentally delayed till their last meeting. It was then refeiTed to a 
 Committee in whose name I have now tlie honour of addressing you. 
 The Presbytery are most willing to comply with the request of the colo- 
 nists ; but th'ey themselves seem to wish that we should, before naming a 
 Minister for them, receive some communication from jou or from Mr. 
 Mac Donald, as to the intercourse which you have held with His Majes- 
 ty's Government on the subject ; nor would we wish to exercise the right 
 of appointment, while there is the slightest chance that Government mio-ht 
 wish it to be vested in the Crown. As soon as you enable me to report 
 satisfactorily on these preliminary points to the Presbytery, you may rest 
 assured that we will faithfully and zealously fulfil any trust which may be 
 committed to us in the matter. The next meeting of Presbytery .is on 
 Wednesday, 29th current. 
 
 I have the honour to be. 
 
 Your most obedient servant, 
 
 ALEXR. BRUNTON. 
 
 Messrs. Wm. Borradaile, Sons, &. Ravenhill. 
 
 No. 34, Fenchurch-street, 7th December 1826. 
 Sir, — We beg respectfully to refer you to the enclosed copy of a letter, 
 dated 21st May 1825, from R. W. Horton, Esq. (under whose charge as 
 Under Secretary for the Colonial Department, the colony of the Cape of 
 Good Hope was placed at that period) showing the liberal manner in 
 which His Majesty's Government met the wishes of the Scottish Com- 
 munity at the Cape. Upon the subject on which I had the honour of com- 
 municating with you on the 5th instant, it appears that a want of adequate 
 funds has hitherto prevented the building of the Church, but that in the 
 
meantime the colonisis are very desirous of obtaining the ministry oi' a 
 Clerg\-man of tlie Established Clmrcli of Scotland, " not doiibtin<r that 
 before lono-" they will be able to erect a suitable place of worship, and 
 having in tlie meantime been'promised tlie use of another church for the 
 performance of divine service. A letter addressed to the Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh, of which we annex a copy, conveys their wishes on this head, 
 and the letter of the Kevd. Dr. Brunton, by authority of tliat Reverend 
 Body shews that it is merely a doubt as to tlieir riyht of jyresentation 
 which prevents their complying with the request ; may we beg, tlierefore, 
 to be favored with a written communication on this subject, whicli we may 
 forward to Edinburgh, to obviate any misunderstanding. We beg res- 
 pectfully at the same time to submit to His Majestj^'s Government the 
 propriety of granting a free passage to the colony for himself and family 
 to the Clergyman so appointed ; and though very loath to trespass on the 
 liberality of Government, we feel it our duty likewise to urge the request 
 made by the Committee (as per minutes enclosed) to have the salary 
 allowed by Government increased to £209 per annum, as the narrow 
 means of tlie Scottish community at the Cape, together with what volun- 
 tary subscriptions are likely to be made amongst their countiymen in 
 Europe and India, will scarcely be sufficient to carry into effect their wishes 
 without the additional grant. 
 
 We are &c., 
 Wm. BORRADAILE, sons, & RAVENHILL. 
 R. W. Hay, Esq., &c. &c. &c. 
 
 Downing-street, 9th December 1826. 
 Gentlemen, — Having laid before Earl Bathurst your letter of the 7th 
 instant, I have received his Lordship's directions to acquaint you in reply 
 that upon your siibmitling to him the name of any Minister of the Scottish 
 Church, who shall, with the approbation of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 have been selected to proceed to the Cape of Good Hope, for the purpose 
 of officiating as Minister of the Church to be built there by the Scottish 
 community, arrangement will be made for providing that gentleman with 
 a passage to the colonj^ ; but I am desired to add that it is not in his Lord- 
 ship's power to encourage any expectation that a further allowance out of 
 the funds of the colony will be added to the Minister's stipend. 
 
 I am, gentlemen, 
 
 Your most obedient servant, 
 
 R. W. HAY. 
 
 Messrs. Borradaile, Sons, & Ravenhill. 
 
 London, 11th December 1826, 
 Reverend Sir, — We have the honor of inclosing you copy of a letter 
 addressed by us to the Under Secretary of the Colonies, after having had 
 vei'bal communications with that department, in consequence of your 
 valued favors of 3d and 27th ultimo, which we regret not having been 
 able to attend to with the required promptitude. We requested, as you 
 will observe, a free passage for the Re^ erend Minister and hisfamilif ; the 
 reply is confined to granting it to himself, but we do not despair, in case he 
 be a married man, of procuring a passage for his wife, though not, per- 
 liaps, for any other branches of his family, as we have a precedent on 
 which to ground our request. 
 
 We are very respectfully, 
 
 Reverend Sir, 
 Your obedient, humble servants, 
 Wm. BORRADAILE, SONS, &c RAVENHILL. 
 Rev. A. Brunton, d.d. 
 
lidiiibiir^li (UAUt^c, 14tL Dcccinbcr lb26. 
 (Ji'NTI.KMKN, - I am lioiiond witli your l«-tf«r of tlif llfli and itM r-riclo- 
 »iin;i^, wliicli i hliall lay Ijr-fon; tlif l*rcH\>ytiTy of l^dinhiir^h at tlifir 
 uicr-liii^? on llic 27lli ciirnnl. 'I'lurr- an; twf) |)r)ints on wliicli I hliould \)<: 
 j^lad to liavc il in my |iow«tr to ((iv«! (Ill; J*r(;hljy»r;ry a littlf /nrflir-r itifor- 
 II ation, with wliicli you, pcilidjiH, can furnisli uk;. I undrr.sfami from 
 Mr. Ilav'w letter that (iov( rnmeiit (jeciinr- '^i\ iti'^ ui\y pi rl/itfr aid towards 
 tlic Minihlcr'h hlipend. Mut Onr: llundrr-d Pounds per annum are still, 
 J preMume, to he paid hy tlietn, and tliissum included in tin; i,'40() which 
 y<iur constidient.s ofler ; or is it in addition in tlie hum conlrihuted hy indi- 
 vidualu ? The other |)oinf reiiifcH to the kind olsccurity \\hi(h you think 
 we may oiler to rjui' nominee, lor the re^^ular j)aynunt of his allowance, 
 Vour coUHtitnentH ntate, tliat it is mor<! than tin; amount of the huhscriptions 
 alnady promised. To whom then is the Minister to look foithe h;ilancc ? I 
 liave no tloiiht that, all this is foreseen and provided, hut a little explanation 
 before any actual a|(pointinent may ,sav«! trouhh; to all parlies afterwards. 
 J have tin; hr>riruir to he, 
 
 Your very ohedient, huml)lf! Kcrvant, 
 
 ALl'XI?. HKUNTON. 
 Mc«»rB. lJo/(KAi)Aii.i'., Sons, ISi. Kavi-miii.i. 
 
 liondon, 18th Decemher 182<J, 
 I{i;vi',lti.M) Sill, — W(! are favored with yours of J4th instant; — and in 
 n'()Iy tf) the first (juestion you put to us, we can only observe that we pre- 
 Hunu! that ,i!l(M) per annum is already ;;uarantrcd by His VFajesly'sUovern- 
 nient to thf; Keverend Ministcir, and £.'{()() by the con[(re^ation at ('aj)e 
 'J'own, and that it was lhoujj;ht desirable to raise tin; stipend trj tTjOO if it 
 could be done by an additional ^rant from (jlovernment. 
 
 With respect to the s* curity for the paynu-nt of llijit part of the stijiend 
 which is to cojue from the con^re;;ation, we. are not ;iwai'e that we can 
 ofler atiy beyond tlit- jrcneral respectability (W the Scottish inhabitants rjf 
 tli(^ (!ape, and the opinion thai no one iii' Ihr^m w<;uld induce a Minister of 
 their Ivstahlishcd (lliurch, to couimence his labours amon^- tlu-m without 
 seeing tlii;ir way clear to the promised maintenances. Should this (Guarantee; 
 iiota|)pear to you sufficiently <listinct, it would, perhaps, be as well for you 
 to Htat<! this objection to tliif (committee abroad ; for thou;;h it is probable 
 they liavr' not ov( riooked if, yet w(; have no means of giving any distinct 
 pledge upon the subject. 
 
 We are with grr'at respect, 
 
 Kcverend Sir, 
 \'our most ribedient servant, 
 
 Wm. uokkadaiij;, sons, a. J{AVi:njiill. 
 
 Ifcvd. Dr. Hkunton. 
 
 Kdinbnrgh College, IHlh .laiiuary 1827. 
 (ii.NTl.l.Mi.N, - Th(! Pr(!sbytery of Kdinburgh, at their me(;ting of 27t)i 
 December, appointed a, small (Jommittee to H(;l(!ct a Minister for (Jape 
 Tfiwn. W(! ai'c in progress accordingly, but we consider tlu! station as 
 Hit important that wi- must use much caution in fully ascertaining the (pial- 
 ificatioiis of the claimants. W(- have si;veral already on the list, from 
 whom I have the fullest confidence that we may chuse with safely ; and 1 
 hope that in two or three weeks I may be able to announce to you the 
 decision, 
 
 I liavc tin; honor to be. 
 
 Your most obedient servant, 
 
 AIJ;XK. HIM'NTON, 
 
 (Convener of the Committee, . 
 Messrs. Wm. liouKAUAii.i., Sons, J< J{a\i;nuiu.. 
 
XY 
 
 ■ Ai*PENi>J\ ]•'. rs<,[„i,j>m.j 
 
 St. AnclrffW'V Clmrrli, fJapr; Town, 28tli July J84I. 
 Ri,vi,rtKND Sin, — lam aiiUiori/.fd hy >!•'; Kirk Sr;hMion oT Si, ArirlnfWH 
 Church to transmit to yon a rail inviiint^ yon to h«; (Jollrajfn*; with tlic 
 Revf;rf;iid Dr. Aflamcon a« Pa,«tor thrrrrof, and npon hin rr^xi'^nation hc.Uv^ 
 panctionf;d hy thf? Ai-iypmhlyV ('ornmittrrr; for Colonial ChurchcH, or hy ihr; 
 Presbytery of Kdinljnrt^h, Koh; Pastor of thi« Church, 
 
 I am aiwi aiithorizf'd to transmit to yon a Mfrmorandum containin'^ in- 
 formation n-lativf; to the circumstances under vvhir-h \)r, Adamnon wan 
 appointed Minister of the (Church, which may serve fo show thr; position 
 of this f;hurch with rej^ard to our compfrtency to ;five you th<: aforesaid call. 
 Allhout^h no ofticial cominunication has heen made hy the ('hiirch \i» 
 Government on the suhj'-frt, yet circumstances have transiiired from which 
 we have reason confidently to expect, that they will, upon aj>(»li<ration 
 \}<:\n'^ made, readily sanrrtion tliese arranj;^ements, hy transferrin}? the 
 payment (>i'\h<; salary to yon npon i)r. Adams/;n nij^nifyinj? his resignation 
 of this allowance i>i'£2iH> per annum. 
 
 iJr, A damson in order, without deJay, to carry into efl'eet, the ohjerrt of 
 the res'^Iution of the Kirk-wrssion formerly trarwmitted U> yon, ami the 
 decision of the rximmunicants relative thenrfo, has forwarded a hrtfer 
 to the General Assembly's (^/ommittee for Odonial Chiirf;he« (Utntniii'niir 
 hifl resij^nation of the office of Minist/.-r of thi« ('Jinrcit. 
 
 I arn, Reverend Sir, 
 
 Your'*' faithfullv, 
 IJy order of the Kirk-ScKsion, 
 
 JAMJ:S a DAMSON'. 
 To the Revd. fwoi^oi, Moi:',,-'-. 
 
 APPEMMX G. ^See-fwfjr^Hi.j 
 
 CCorresprmdeTire hetv;een J. Hawkix», /i>y,, aw'^ <//<? /^fi?, G»i/>. MoroaS'.; 
 
 Wynherj(, Aujfust J'J, J*fi/>. 
 
 ReverRXOSib. — A copy o(i}UiC'aleutta h'rii: ('hurrhnnv iur Ih-.'-irruht-.r 
 laKt, rx»ntainin^ your nmrnrkn on a lelt/;r of mine, umtnt-A in that 
 Xumber, * lia* been put iritr> my \inutin. 
 
 I now write to you t/> draw your attention t^> '/ne of thos<; remark*. It 
 IK that which n-Jcrn U> the <jMf/Uition from the f/uMrf/mn of the llth 
 Pebniarj' 1H4,0. You of**fene in re^jard to the two tumcUuVm'^ wmttrnr;**, 
 
 • On the e^erjin;.; of tJ**; IGth Jaly 184^5, a C/py <>f the /■>«« CkurtJirn/M (or 
 Decemb^ lH4^j wa* put into r/iV hnuilt, affrr it haa b'*n ir< pr<;ttv cV/*'; r;'>f(fine- 
 ment for fotr><: rrioritrj«. I r<iad 'h*: I'.'"' '" " '^,''<!pc 'lov/n wiih d<i« niMntion, 
 and tbon^ it was '.h'rri nf.ufiT <M, I • •'; were »orr<« «trar»»^; tU\u/jt in 
 
 it thai might a* well hx: arji(v/';r(;'J. '>'■ w I »«rnt it t\iT<tay^n a v-^MtxA 
 
 edititm, getting su rr.afiV c/iyiifA ynu'/A -v. j~, -A^yhnrtA to rr»« to itfv^it-. VttAsttf. 
 retamin* it I vy/k th«; JiUrny. •*;{>, t},/- 'jt^tfi'vt/kvm of tlj« friend wlw Wl kindly 
 fer." ^'gifi, to MiTve ai a fort of Urnfuimry 
 
 uTi' •; ^r«re Chj.rchrruin nbi^ht happ'm to 
 
 CO*.. ^... - 'r!ire»l aa a rjiJotat«//n froBj t}»<; ocfHluh 
 
 Cuardinn, imi ytur ,tfj t}>/e: Cwxrdwn, I <y/«iW not fiod 
 
 th^re, I v,T',V; •-.- . ){awkic« bi«*e draw* njy iU/trtttu/n ; 
 
 adding % ;,i«t of th* pre'^Jing f^u^ux m thti 
 
 Gwirdi/j - I did n/>t mak^ an* rt^uArV on f>th«r 
 
XVI 
 
 wliiclj a])peur in tlie text as parts of tlie quotation : — " These two sentences 
 are not in tlie Guardian at all ! !"* 
 
 I bee; to state that tliese sentences are my owi\ remarks. The pla- 
 cing of the quotation commas in the wrong place is an error of the Press.f 
 
 I am, dear Sir, 
 
 Yonr's Obediently 
 Rev. G. Morgan. J. HAWKINS. 
 
 Cape Town, 18th August 1846. 
 
 Dkar Sir, — I have just received your Note in which you state, in 
 reference to a remark written by me, a month ago, on tlie margin of the 
 Free Clmrchman for December last, that two sentences, wliicli there 
 appear as part of a ([notation from the Scottish Guardian, are your own 
 remarks, and tliat tlie placing of tlie quotation commas in the wrong 
 place is an error of tlie press. I readily accept your explanation, as far 
 as it goes,]: and will avail myself of it in my reply to your ])rinted letter. 
 Along with the remark alluded to, there was another made by me, to the 
 effect that part of the preceding sentence quoted from the Guardian Avas 
 omitted ; an omission not unimp'ortant, especially when taken in connec- 
 tion with the rest of your letter. § 
 
 The Free Churclinuin for December last was, I understand, in your 
 hands about four months ago. You do not state whether you took any 
 steps immediately to have the typographical error corrected in a subse- 
 quent number of that Periodical, or whether there is reason to suppose 
 that it has been corrected there up to this day. 1 liave seen the numbers 
 for January and February of the present year, but so far as I could ])er- 
 ceive, no notice had then been taken of the error, sufficiently mai'ked as 
 it was, by any one concerned in tlie publication of your letter. 
 
 A few days after tlie copy of tlie Free Churchman, in which I made 
 my remarks, came into my hands (16th ult.) and after the quotation from 
 the 6^i/rt?-(/<«n had become a subject of conversation, I lieard that a?wther 
 ropy of the same number had just appeared in Cape Town, in which the 
 typographical error in question was corrected with the pen. The copy 
 vvhich I saw, and which I believe came originally through your hands, 
 had been previously read, without any correction having been made, by 
 members of my Congregation, who like myself hold the Scottish Guardian 
 in high estimation. 
 
 As you intimate that you are the author of the letter in the Free 
 Churchman, I have thought it riglit to state these things for your consider- 
 ation. 
 
 I am. Dear Sir, 
 
 Your obedient Servant, 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 
 J. Hawkins, Esq., Sec. &lc. 
 
 * It will be seen from Mr. Hawkins' Note of 20th August tliat it is not to the 
 remark itself, but to the ! !, that he objects. 
 
 t I thought, in my simplicity, that tliis was meant as an explanation, and 
 admired the sangfroid wiih which it was given. 
 
 i I accepted the explanation all the more readily because I was already pre- 
 pared, on the ground of christian charity, to make an admission to the same effect. 
 I thought, liowever, that Mr. H. might have explained the reason why the whole 
 of the preceding sentence in the GiiafcUan had not been given, &c. 
 
 § I thought the omission not unimportant, because the omitted clause would 
 have shown that the redress which vias sought from the Committee of the 
 Establishment, was not of a kind that implied an acknowledgment of its juris- 
 diction or control over the Scottish Churcli of Cape Town, but simply the 
 publication of my letter in the Missionary Becord, A\ hoever will read J\lr. H's 
 letter in the Free Churchman, must see tliat it was of some importance that this 
 should be clearly understood. 
 
X V 1 1 
 
 Wynberg, August 2(). 
 
 Revd. Sir, — -I beg to acknowledge your^; of tlie 18th insfant, and at 
 once reply to it. 
 
 I observed j^our otlier remark, but did not consider it necessary to 
 refer to it in writing to j'on. The omission you point out appeared and 
 still appears to me unimportant. My reply to tliis and to your other 
 remarks I may furnish on another occasion*. In regai'd to the typogra- 
 pliical error, I thought it proper to set you right as soon as I had your 
 remarks in my possession. 
 
 The typographical error I have not corrected in any subsequent 
 Number of the Free Churchman, for it appeared to me and to otliers self- 
 evident.t My observations are opposed to tliose of the Guurdian, and 
 both could not have come fi-om tlie same pen.t \ ou will observe that 
 I referred expressly to the date of tliat paper in making my quotation. § 
 Under these circumstances it never entered my mind that any one could 
 liave hinted at any wilful misquotation on my part, or have supposed 
 that the error originated from any otlier tlian the true cause. || 
 
 The cause of tlie error being noticed in one and not in the other copy of 
 the December Free Churchman, is easily explained. I I'eceive two copies of 
 eacli numl)er. One copy I send to Dr. Brown as soon as received. In 
 reading the copy I kept, I corrected all the typographical errors. I w^as 
 asked for the loan of a copy by Mr. Robertson. I lent it to him accor- 
 dingly, and it of course had the corrections. I did not say anything to 
 Dr. B. about correcting the errors in the other copy, for after reading 
 the letter I never gave them another thought, till it was mentioned to me 
 that you had taken advantage from them to charge me apparently with 
 wilful misquotation. II 
 
 I am, Rev. Sir, 
 
 Your obediently, 
 
 J. HAWKINS. 
 
 Revd. G. Morgan. 
 
 * Perhaps I may see them seven months after date. As I am not pecuHarly 
 sensitive, be need spare no arrows. But for other reasons he will no doubt 
 endeavor to treat me f;iir]y. 
 
 t The typographical error must therefore have been a subject of conversation 
 at an early period after Mr, H. noticed it. But if it be self-evident, what harm 
 could my notes of admiration ( ! I ) possibly do ? Do they not, on this sup- 
 position, admit of a more natural construction than tliat which ftlr. II, has put 
 upon them ? 
 
 X This I have made very clear at page 83. 
 
 ^ I observed this ; and if I could have supposed that the readers of the Free 
 C/i'dr/njiau either carried the Scottish Guardian of 11th February 1845 in their 
 pockets, or had its contents treasured up in their memories, I should have made 
 no remark on the quotation at all. 
 
 II Had I ever affirmed that iMr. H. was the printer of the letter, or even the 
 writer of it ? I suspected that he was the one, but certainly not the other. 
 
 % Who can have suggested such a dangerous interpretation ? Surely not one 
 of those who had agreed with Mr. H. that the typographical error was self-evident. 
 A prudent counsellor would, in my opinion, have advised Mr. 11. to put a 
 different construction on the meaning of my exclamation points. Adopting his 
 own style he might have said : ' Do'ut meddle with these hieroglyphics (! !) ; for 
 I cannot but think that they are calculated to give tlie impression that the mis- 
 quotation is at all events as much (or use any other term you please) the fault of 
 the printer as of the author ol the letter. I'he language is at best but doubtful." 
 This would have been good sense ; and besides it would liave been strictly true. 
 For I must tell JMr. H. distinctly that I neither charged, nor intended to charge, 
 him, with wilful misquotation. I do think, however, that he has been too ready 
 to believe what people have told him about Mr. I\Iorgan ; and perhaps this may 
 account for various things that have occurred during his residence at the Cape, 
 
 C 
 
XVllI 
 
 CiipeTowii, 21st August 1846'. 
 Dear Sir, — Your note of yesterday has come to hand. My object in 
 writhig now is simply to ack novdedgc its receipt.*' 
 
 I am, Dear Sir, 
 
 Your's obediently, 
 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 J. Hawkins, Esq., B.C.S., Wynberg. 
 
 APPENDIX H. 
 
 Tlie Annexed Correspondence was occasioned by the appearance of the 
 following letter in the " South African Commercial Adcerliser' of 1st 
 October 1845. 
 
 Cape Town, 29th Sept. 1845. 
 
 " To the Editor, Sir, — In the remarks with Avhicli the Report of the 
 Missionary Meeting in Union Cliapel is introduced, in your paper of 
 Saturday last, I am mentioned as being of the '^ C/ntrch of Scotland." 
 This is a circumstance of little importance in itself, and of no interest to 
 the Public in general ; but as the term, as tliere used, may be considered 
 by some as implying more than the Avriter can have intended, f it may be 
 as well to state that the " Scottish Church" in Cape Town, of which f am 
 the Minister, was never, so far as I know, taken into connexion with the 
 Established Church of Scotland ; and that, as it regards mjself perso- 
 nally, I liave, ever since the well known disruption took place, invari- 
 ably and in the most explicit terms (in official documents, as well as 
 otherwise) expressed my cordial attachment to the principles of the 
 Free Church. 
 
 " By giving this a place in your next Number you will oblige, 
 
 Sir &c. 
 GEORGE MORGAN." 
 
 Wynberg, October 4^ 1845. 
 
 Reverend and dear Sir, — It is only this day that I have seen your 
 letter of the 29th ultimo, which appeared in the Commetxial Advertiser 
 of the 1st instant. 
 
 I take the liberty of addressing you on the subject to which it alludes^ 
 because I believe that statements such as you therein make are calculated 
 to do inj ury to the Free Church of Scotland, of whicli I am an Elder. 
 
 * After all that had happened I did not think Mr. H. en'itled to put me in the 
 position of an aggressor ; and as he appeared indisposed to offer any explanations 
 that would be ot advantage, either to me or to himself, I resolved to enter into no 
 C(.'ntroversy with him. His letter had been published in the Free Churchman, 
 and it was there tha'; the error should have been rectified. 
 
 It must afford gratification to Mv. H. however, to find that his lecture has 
 done me some good ; for though I have written a pretty long letter, and made 
 some plain com.ment^ on his remarks and extracts in the Free Churchman, I have 
 scarcely used a single note of admiration, even where I met with things worthy 
 to be admired. 
 
 i It is due to the writer of the remarks referred to, to express my conviction 
 that he had not the slightest intention of making an invidious distinction ; he was 
 at that time almost a stranger at the Cape, and his sole object in designating the 
 several speakers at the iNIissionary Meeting was to show the spirit of liberality 
 which prevailed among the various denominations of Christians at Cape Town. 
 In ordinary circumstances I should have allowed the matter to pass unnoticed. 
 The letter which I received from Mr. Hawkins a few days afterwards, and other 
 occurrence?, were sufficient to convince me that some notice of it was required^ 
 
XIX 
 
 \ou stale iliat tlie " Scottii^h Churcli" in Cape Town, of which you are 
 tlie Minister, was never, so far as you are aware, taken into connexion 
 witli the Establislied Cliurcli of Scotland. 
 
 Allow me to draw your attention to the followino- facts:— 
 
 A circular was issued in Cape Town toward the close of 1824, or the 
 early part of 1825, the object of which was to invite Scottish Presbyterians 
 to take measures for the establishment of a Church in Cape Town, in con- 
 nection with the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 A meeting was held, and a Committee appointed to carry into eflect the 
 object noticed in the circular. The Committee, on tiie 10th February 
 
 1825, addressed a letter to the Reverend tlie Moderator of the Presbytery 
 of Edinburgh, expressing the desire of the Presbyterian Community in 
 Cape Town to establish a Church in connection with the National CImrch 
 of Scotland. In this letter the Committee strongly urged, that to what- 
 ever extent the patronage in the appointment of the Minister might be 
 vested in the Government, consequent upon a stipend being allowed to 
 him, the Minister should, for all purposes of ecclesiastical discipline and 
 control, be subject to the Courts of the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 Extracts from this letter, showing that the object contemplated, was the 
 establishment of a Church in connection ivith the National Church of 
 Scotland, were forwarded to the Local Government of the Colony, with 
 a request that the Governor would support the measure, and recommend 
 to the Home Government the grant of a stipend to the Minister.* 
 
 The Home Government on the receipt of such recommendation from 
 the Colonial Government, addressed the Presbytery of Edinburgh, of 
 the Established Church of Scotland, on the subject,t and by that Pres- 
 bytery, in consequence of the communication from Government, was the 
 first Minister of St. Andrew's Church, Cape Town, appointed. 
 
 The Minutes of Meetings of the Committee of the Scottish Presbyterian 
 Community held in Cape Town on the 31st December 1825 and 6th Feb. 
 
 1826, sliov,- that their object was to procure a Minister in connection loith 
 the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 The letter addressed to yourself transmitting to you the Call of the 
 Congregation is dated in July 1841. With this letter there was also trans- 
 mitted to you a memorandum, containing information relative to the 
 circumstances under which the first Minister was appointed, as serving to 
 show the position of the Church with regard to its competency to give 
 the Call.t 
 
 In November 1841 you were gazetted iu the Colonial Gazette as 
 Minister of the Scottish Church, Cape Town. 
 
 In the Supplement to the Home and Foreign Missionary Record of the 
 Established Church of Scotland, for August 1842, which is an official 
 organ, your nomination to St. Andrew's is recorded; it being expressly 
 mentioned that you were ordained by the Presbytery of Lochcarron, ot 
 the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 From the time that tlie stipend to the Minister of St. Andrew's was 
 first allowed by the Government to the present hour, no communication 
 has been made by the Kirk session, or by any party in connection with 
 St. Andrew's, apprising the Government of any change in the original 
 constitution of the Church in regard to its ecclesiastical status.^ The 
 stipend therefore received by you, is paid by the Government, on the 
 understanding, as far as records can show it, that it is paid to, and 
 received by, a Minister of the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 * This is iucorrect. Thft letter was not iiritten wlien the Governor forwarded 
 his Despatch on the subject to Kurl Bathurst. 
 
 t This is incorrect. 
 
 i And something- more. 
 
 § When a change has actually taken place, it will be time enough to give an 
 ailiination. It has always been an "isolated churcji." 
 
XX 
 
 For proof of the above statements I refer you to the proceedings of the 
 Kirk-session of ^^hich you are Moderator, and to Dr. Abercrorabie und 
 Mr. Pilhms, tuo of tlie Elder:-, of St. Andrew's, both of whom signed the 
 letter to the l-Jeverend tlie Tvloderator of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 dated tlie 10th February 1825. 
 
 Allow me, to allude to one or t^vo circumstances in corroboration of 
 the position that tlie Chinch of St. Andrew's is, as to its orisfinal consti- 
 tution, a Church in connection with the Established Church of Scotland. 
 
 First, — its name. Is it probable that twenty years at^o, before the 
 Free Church was thought of, Scottish Presbyterians, Members of the 
 Established Church of Scotland, established a Church in Cape Tov/n, 
 called it the Scottish Church of St. Andrew's, and yet never contem- 
 plated a connection w ith the Church of which they Mere members. The 
 supposition is not only irrational, but is contradicted by the papers to 
 Avhich I have called your attention. 
 
 Secondly, — The fovni of Cliurch Government. Under the form of 
 Presbyterial Church Government, " it is lawful and agi-eeable to the \^^ord 
 of God, that the Church b*e go\erned by .several sorts of assemblies, 
 Avhich are congregational, classical, and synodical." Is it probable that 
 a Presbyterian Community contemplated the establishment of a Church 
 in direct violation of their own acknowledged principles, limiting the 
 government of the Church to a Congregational Court, and dispensing w ith 
 the higher Church Courts. The supposition is flatly contradicted by the 
 Committee's letter of the 10th February 1825. 
 
 Thirdly. — The fact, that not a single fraction is paid by the Government, 
 for the preaching of the gospel, to any Minister in Cape Town, in connec- 
 tion with any body or section dissenting from the Established Churches of 
 England, Ireland or Scotland. 
 
 It is probable that your letter to the Commercial Advertiser was WTitten 
 without reference to tlie foregoing circumstances. If so, may I request 
 the favor of your correcting the statement you have put forth ! I venture 
 to ask this favor as your expression of cordial attachment to the principles 
 of the Free Churcli, while in the receipt of a stipend from the Government 
 which has rejected the claims and repudiated the principles of tliat Church 
 is calculated to lead to erroneous impressions.* 
 
 You will observe that in the foregoing detail, I allude not to your indivi- 
 dual views and sentiments ; but to the actual ecclesiastical status and legal 
 position of St. Andrew's Church ; and consequently of yourself as its 
 Minister, as evidenced by fact. 
 
 May I request the favor of an early acknowledgment of this cora- 
 i^unication. 
 
 I am, Rev. and Dear Sir, 
 
 Your Obedient Servant, 
 
 J. HAWKINS. 
 To the Rev. Geouge Morgan, 
 
 Minister of St. Andrew's Church, 
 Cape Town. 
 
 Cape Tom n, 6th October 1845. 
 Dear Sir, — I Mas favoured with yours of the 4th Instant, this forenoon ; 
 and beg to thank you for tlie trouble you have taken in addressing me, 
 
 * " If it is sinful for a Church to receive au endovvmcut from a sinning state , 
 it must be equally sinful for an individual Christian. If it is sinful for the Church 
 to perform her functions in alliance with a peccant Government, it must at least 
 be equally sinful for any of her JMembcrs to perform any service which supports 
 an erring Government and RIngistracy. And are our friends jirepared to act out 
 and out upon such principles ? We hope not. Eut if not in one department, why 
 should they in another?" — English Picshijicria)i Messenger, September 1845, 
 
\X1 
 
 at such length, on the subject of my letter to the Cuiiir.ici'ciul Adicriaer, 
 I honor your zeal on behalf of the Free Cliurch ; but really I cannot com- 
 prehend how the staten^ent which I luue put fortli in the ncAvspapers 
 can do it the smallest injin-t/ ; and though tliis is the sole reason you assign 
 for writing- to me, i search in vain in your letter for any thiny at all calcu- 
 lated to make it plain to my understanding- tliat such a calamity can be t!ie 
 result. This, however, may be ])artly owing to a strong impression which 
 I liave, that the statemeni, of which you complain, is perfectly correct in 
 all its parts ; and that I am better accquainted v, ith the affairs of the Scot- 
 tish Churcli in Cape Town than, judging from your letter, you appear to 
 be. But, be this as it may, my letter is now beJbre the public ; and if the 
 statements contained in it be inaccurate, they will in all probability be 
 corrected in a manner more satisfactory to all parties than they could 
 possibly be by either of us ; and therefore I do not intend to trouble the 
 public any farther with my individual views and opinions at the present 
 time. I may, however, just suggest to you, that as it respects a refutation 
 of my statement, your proof signally fails an^ comes short, at the very 
 point where I tliink it ought properly to have begun. When you look at 
 what I have actually said, and compare it Avith what you have been labour- 
 ing to prove, I tliink you cannot fail to perceive this. 
 
 I might remark on tlie accuracy of one or two of your statements, but 
 as I do not consider them relevant to the point at issue, and as I wish to 
 avoid unpleasant discussions, I forbear to do so. 
 
 Will you allow me, in conclusion, to offer one or two suggestions,— and . 
 I would do so with all the more earnestness, because I believe you to be 
 not only a zealous supporter of the Free Church, but also a sincere fol- 
 lower of Jesus Christ. 1 trust you will not be greatly offended, even 
 though you may not consider the suggestions so pertinent as they appear 
 to me. 
 
 The first is : Before you proceed to act in any matter which has an im- 
 portant bearing on the interests of the Free Church, seek to have recourse 
 to the best sources of information \vithin your reach. I do not here refer 
 particularly to your present communication. 
 
 The second is : When jow address those who profess a cordial attach- 
 ment to Free Cliurch principles, but Avho happen to differ from you in 
 opinion as to a matter of fact, — and especially when you address such 
 persons /wr the first time, might you not discharge j our duty as faithfully, 
 and Avith as great a pi"ospect of success, by adopting language somoAvhat 
 more conciliatory and persuasive tlian that Avhich you have used in your 
 first communication to myself? I do not mean to complain of it, because 
 I love candour and frankness of expression ; — but merely throAV out the 
 hint for your consideration, because some friends, to Avhom I have shoAvn 
 your letter, haAe remarked that, considering all the circumstances of the 
 case, it does not appear to breathe that kindliness of disposition AA^hich 
 they AA'ould have expected from you. 
 
 I am, Dear Sir, 
 
 Your's faithfully, 
 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 
 J. Hawkins, Esq. B. C. S. Wjmberg. 
 
 Wynberg, Octobers, 1845. 
 
 Reverend and dear Sir, — I beg to acknoAvledge the receipt of your 
 communication of the 6th Instant, and Avill reply to it as briefly as cir- 
 cumstances Avill admit. 
 
 And first, as to the injury to the Free Church of Avhich statements such 
 as you have put forth are likely to be productive. It is not difficult to 
 understand how professions of attachment to the principles of the Free 
 Church by one in your position may ha^e impeded the union and co-ope- 
 
rutiou ol' piot'csriing Free Cliurclimeii in cstablLsliinj^- a Church in Cupe 
 To%vii, ill connection with tlie Free Church of Scotland. 
 
 I liave again read your letter to tlie Commercial Advertiser, andafterthe 
 most attentive consideration I can ,^ive to it, I cannot consent to retract 
 the suljstance of any portion of my h'tter of tiie 4tli Instant. I liave referred 
 to evidence and testimony of an niiimpeachable cliaracter, to ^vl^ic]l in your 
 reply you make nodistinctallusion. Pardon me if I say that mere assertions 
 of the correctness of your own statements, of the utter incorrectness of mine, 
 of the signal failure of my proofs, and of the irrelevancy of my arguments, 
 can carry witli them but little weight, unless supported by evidence of a 
 nature to repel that \\ hich has been adduced on the op])osite side. 
 
 You state that you are better acquainted with the aifairs of tlie Scottish 
 Church than I appear to be. You certainly have, prima facie, the ad- 
 vantage of position ; but I must remind you that I rely on official records, 
 and on the testimony of those who, from their position, are just as capable 
 of judging in the matter as yourself. If, howe\er, you have means of 
 information not accessible to others, I trust that you will yet be induced 
 to fa^ or the adherents of The Free Church with a statement Avhich will 
 enable them to lay aside all objections to connecting themselves with your 
 Church. You ])ossibly allude to the circumstance (which I have heard 
 mentioned) of the Establishment Presbytery of Edinburgh having, at no 
 distant period, stated that it does not claim to hold jurisdiction over the 
 Scottish Church in Cape Tov.n. Be it so : — Even admitting this to the 
 fullest and most unqualified extent, the question a\ ill still arise : — Has 
 the Government which granted a stipend to the Minister of the Scottisli 
 Church in Cape Town, on the understanding that it Avas a Church under 
 the jurisdiction of the Courts of the Established Church of Scotland, been 
 apprised of the withdrawal of such jurisdiction?* 
 
 I thank you for your suggestions, and trust I can receive them in as 
 fi-iendly a spirit as that in which you have offered them. I will replj^ to 
 them separately. 
 
 As to my sources of information, they ha^e been official records, and 
 personal communication with the members and office-bearers of the 
 Church of which you are Minister. I cannot imagine the existence of 
 anymore imexceptionable ; but should any such be pointed out to me I 
 will thankfully avail myself of them.f Your allusion at the conclusion of 
 yonr first suggestion I do not understand, and therefore cannot reply to it. 
 
 As to your second suggestion, I can truly say that it was far from my 
 intention to express myself in any way calculated to give oifence. I 
 could not, in a case of this nature, express myself in any doubtful terms ; 
 but if I have adopted language evincing a want of kindliness of disposition 
 I tender to you the most ample apology for the same, and cheerfully re- 
 tract every such expression, though I must adhere to the substance of 
 my letter until I see much stronger ground for departing fi-ora it than 
 any which your reply presents. 
 
 I am. Reverend and Dear Sir, 
 
 Your's very faithfully, 
 
 .1. HAWKINS. 
 
 The Reverend G. Morgan. 
 
 Cape Town, 10th October 1845. 
 
 Dear Slli. — I beg to acknowledge the receipt of yours of the Sth Instant. 
 
 I am not surprised to find that what I stated in my former letter has failed 
 
 to convince you that my statement in the Commercial Aflrcrtiscr is correct, 
 
 because it was not written with that v iew at all. I abstained from entering 
 
 * No such understanding, so far as I can see, could ever have existed. 
 t He had before tliis written to I^ngland aud India. 
 
XXUl 
 
 on a (lisoussiun of tlic vai'ious i)oinfs which you broughi forwiird, (or 
 a particular reason which I mentioned. For the same reason, as well as 
 others, which I liope to be able to explain to the satisfaction of all con- 
 cerned, at no very distant period, I must still adliere to my resolution to 
 avoid every tliim^- in the shape of controversy for the present. Let 
 me assure you therefore tliat if I do not, in present circumstances, feel at 
 liberty to discuss with you tl^e nature of my position as. Minister of the 
 Scottish Cluirch so fully and un)'eservedly as I should have been disposed 
 to do at an earlier period, this is not owing to any want of confidence in 
 my own views, far less to any want of respect for you personally. 
 
 The adherents of the Free Church are now at least, if they were not 
 before, in possession of the views and sentiments which I have always 
 held and avowed ; and if they are satisfied with them it will afford me 
 pleasure. But if I understand rightly what you say towards the close of 
 your first commnuication, my opinion differs so widely from yours on one 
 material point, that it may be as well to afford you a little explanation. 
 Iniav be wrong, but it strikes me that your view is that it is inconsistent 
 in a Minister of the Gospel professing attaclmient to the principles of the 
 Free Church, to receive a salary from the British Government. Now 
 I do not hold this opinion at all ; nor is it, I believe, a principle recognised 
 bv the Free Church. I have no objection whatever to recei\ e a Reyiiuii 
 Donitm, or stipend, or glebe, or any other temporal gift which the Go\ern- 
 ment may be pleased to liestow, so long as I am not interfered « ith in spiri- 
 tual matters — and if the Government should increase my salary to-morrow, 
 as I understand they have lately done in the case of a Wesleyan Minister 
 in the Colony (who is I presume held to be a dissenter from the Church 
 of England) I should merely say that they were kinder to me than I ex- 
 pected. Nor should I venture to object if they Avere to increase the 
 stipend allowed to the Senior Minister of the Lutlieran Church in Cape 
 Town, for I think he gets but a sorry pittance. As to the salary- 
 enjoyed by the " Roman Catholic Bishop" I shall say nothing. I men- 
 tion these things not in the way of ai'gument, but merely to give you a 
 somewhat fuller explanation of my views than what is contained in my 
 letter to the Commercial Advertiser. 
 
 I am dear Sir, 
 
 Yours Faithfully, 
 
 GEORGE MORGAN. 
 
 J. Hawkins, Esq., B. C. S., Wynberg. 
 
 Wynberg, October 13th, 1845. 
 
 Reverend and Deak Sir,— I reply to your letter of the 10th, in order 
 to correct an error into A\hich you have fallen. I fully agree with you 
 in the principle of a state payment or endowment, so long as there is na 
 interference, direct or indirect, with the spiritual functions of the Church, 
 From your early correction of the designation given to you by the Com- 
 mercial Advertiser, you appear to have yourself felt that such a designa- 
 tion as that of Minister of the Church of Scotland could not well accord 
 with professions of cordial attachment to the Free Church. I feel the 
 same ; but differing with you as to the ecclesiastical position of St. Andrew's 
 Church Cape Town, I adduced the stipend as evidence in support of the 
 fact, that this Church is in connection with the Established Church of 
 Scotland. The discussion of the principle of a state payment I carefully 
 avoided. 
 
 As I had limited my enquiries chiefly to Cape Town, where there are 
 many dissenting Ministers, I was not aware before the receipt of your 
 last note, that a Wesleyan Minister in the Colony had received an allow- 
 ance from Government for the last 25 years. The boon, however, has 
 
XXIV 
 
 hot been cxteiicioil (o uny oilier dissenting Minisler during the wlioie of 
 that period.* 
 
 I was acquainted with ihc fact that Ministers of the English, Dutcli. 
 Reformed, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic Chnrch'M (besides the Minis- 
 ter of St. Andrew'.s) receive stipends from the Government for the minis- 
 try of the gospel. But this does not militate against any thing stated i:i 
 my Icliers toyou. In order, however, not to draw off attention from tho 
 main point, t am willing to forego the whole of ta^ corroborative testi- 
 mony to which 1 have referred, and rest the question of the ecclesiastical 
 status of St. Andrew's Church entirely upon the positive evidence which 
 I })avc adduced. 
 
 I think it right to add that T propose to print the correspondence which 
 lias passed between iis, to circiilate it as far as T may think advisable in 
 the Colony, and forv.ard copies to Scotland and India, in continuation of 
 statements which I have already transmitted. Allov/ mc to assure you, 
 in conclusion, that it v.ill give me sincere pleasure to confess my error on 
 your convincing the Free Church that your present position is altogether 
 consistent with your pi-ofcssions of cordial attachment to the principles of 
 that Church. 
 
 I am. Dear Sir, 
 
 Your's faithfully. 
 
 The Rev. G. Mougan. J. HAWKINS. 
 
 Cape Town, loth October, 1845. 
 
 Dear Sjr, — As you propose printing and circulating the correspon- 
 dence which has passed betv.een us, I should wish the parties itito whose 
 hands it may come to be made a\\are of tlie circumstance, that before 
 I received your first letter I luid some reason to believe (^vliat now 
 appears to be th.e fact) that you had been transmitting statements to 
 England and India respecting myself, or the Church of Avhich I am the 
 Minister; and that as you iiad never sought to communicate v.ith me, 
 directly or indirectly, on the subject, I thouglit it advisable not to enter 
 into a controversy v/ith yon until tim^e should throw light on certain pro- 
 ceedings vihich appear calculated deeply to affect tlie interests of m.y 
 Congregation, and in which I imderstand you have taken an active part. 
 T allude particularly to the measures which I hear have been adopted with 
 a view to the ordination of Mr. William Gorrie, an Elder of m.y Church, 
 and a Missionary in connection with it. I am still greatly in the dark 
 respecting this matter, but am in a fair way of obtaining infoi-mation from 
 the best source. 
 
 In stating the above I Avish it to be understood, that I do not in the 
 slightest degree question the purity of tlie motives by which you have 
 been actuated. I have been led to form too high an estimate of your 
 christian character for this. What I have said is intended merely to 
 explain to those unacciuainted with local circumstances, one of the prin- 
 cipal reasons which have induced me to avoid all -controversy with you 
 at the present time. Another reason was stated in my first communi- 
 cation. 
 
 In closing this correspondence permit me to asssure you, that had you 
 applied to me for inlormation at an earlier period, instead of relying 
 solely on that which you could obtain elsewhere, I should have been most 
 happy to explain every thing to you as far as it lay in my power; 
 and as it respects my statement in the Commercial Advertiser, I should 
 have referred you to important facts and documents to which you have 
 made no allusion, and of Avhich therefore I conclude you are entirely 
 
 * Was not aiiothtr ^Vesleyan Minister receiving salary h^m Government for 
 prcai'hiiig tlio CJo^pel a' one of the Convict St;Uio:i3 ! 
 
ignorant. Tru^tin^' ihai \cu will l.avo no objtctiou to print this lelier 
 along with the rest, 
 
 I am, Dear Sir, 
 
 Your's liiilhruil\ , 
 
 GEOlUiE MOKGAN. 
 J. Hawkins, Esq., i;. cs. 
 
 Wyuberg, October 18th, 184-3. 
 "Rev. and Dkar Sik, — I received your letter oi" the IStli, late yesterda\ 
 afternoon. 
 
 You will bear in mind tluit our correspondence has reference to the 
 qnestion of the ecclesiastical position of St. Andrev/'s Church Cape ToAvn. 
 My object in printing it was to induce tlie Free Cliurch and its Members 
 to ask for information on that point ere treating- it as a Church not in 
 connection witli the Established Church of Scotlan'd. To introduce into it 
 now the subject of Mr. Gorrie's ordination, or any other subject not in con- 
 nection with the main point, would be to draw off attention from that which 
 it has been my object throughout to keep most prominently in view. On 
 this ground I miglit decline to print your last letter, — but there is another. 
 
 You have certainly taken full advantage of my candour in telling you 
 that I purposed to print the correspondence, and I can scarcely lielp 
 smiling at the dilemma in which you have placed me. You will readily 
 perceive that I could not print your remarks upon the part I have taken in 
 regard to the measures pursued for the ordination of Mr. Gorrie, without 
 at the same time publishing my own statement of that subject ; and you 
 will admit that I would fail in my duty to the Church were I to publish 
 discussions respecting matters yet in its hands. This I cannot do ; but, 
 on the other hand, I am unwilling to afford tlie semblance of any cause 
 for the charge of acting unfairly towards you by resorting to the press, 
 and yet withholding any portion of the correspondence. 
 
 Under these circumstances, I shall not print the correspondence at all. 
 at least for the present ; but forward your original letters with copies of 
 my own to the Church at home. Should the Free Courch be satisfied v/ith 
 your position, I shall at once submit to the decision, and withdraw all 
 I have said. Should she come to a contrary conclusion, I may then, if 
 advisable, publish the result as an answer to your letter in the Com- 
 mercial Advertiser. In the meanv/hile the statements of that letter may 
 take their course. I have no hesitation in informing you that the statements 
 which I have transmitted to Scotland and India are the same in substance 
 (only in greater detail) as those which I h.ave made in my correspondence 
 with you. In regard to Mr. Gorrie (for the licensing of whom as a Mis- 
 sionary of the Free Church a Commission was sent out shortly after the 
 disruption) I recommended to the Free Church to take measures for his 
 ordination, suggesting that it might be undertaken by some of its own 
 Missionary Ministers, could it be made convenient for them to pass the 
 Cape on their way to India. At the same time, I expressed my opinion 
 freely, as I do now, that those who profess attachment to the Free Church 
 ought not to remain in connection with St. Andrew's Church. I have no 
 reserve hi the matter. It w as your position as a Minister of the Established 
 Church of Scotland, receiving a stipend from the Government, whicii 
 prevented my taking counsel with you in relation to aflairs connected with 
 the Free Church. If I have mistaken your position I shall be ready, 
 I trust, on that point being made clear, to retract every thing that I have 
 said on the subject. 
 
 I am, 
 Reverend and dear Sir, 
 
 Your's faithfully, 
 
 J. HAWKINS. 
 The Rev. G. Morgan. 
 
SECOND APPEiNDIX. 
 
(From the Calcutta "Frek Churchman" December 15, 1845 J 
 
 V. STATE OF THE FREE CHURCH AT THE CAPE 
 OF GOOD HOPE. 
 
 The Presbyterian Church at Cape Town has, since the dis- 
 ruption, remained in an anomalous position, having joined itself 
 formally, or at least declared its adherence, to neither party, the 
 old Establishment or the Free Church. This state of things 
 cannot continue long in a truly Presbyterian congregation : for 
 such a Chui'ch can neither exert its principles, enjoy its privileges, 
 nor exercise its functions, without adhering to somo superior body. 
 This is now felt at the Cape, as will be seen from our corres- 
 pondent's communication, Avhich we subjoin. Our esteemed 
 friend (whom some of our readers will not fail to recognize) has 
 been exerting himself to have this state of things rectified, and we 
 trust not without some measure of success. Some of the professed 
 friends of the Free Church of Scotland in the Cape Town con- 
 gregation have taken the ground, that their church has never been 
 and now is not, in any such relationship, civil or ecclesiastical, 
 as to require of them any decided step of one kind or another ; 
 that they are (after a sort) a spiritually independent body, and 
 therefore are virtually and really Free already. To this point our 
 correspondent has addressed himself, bringing out clearly the law 
 and justice of the case : so that it seems to us strange how any 
 Scottish Presbyterian congregation, with any such ecclesiastical or 
 civil tenures, can call itself Free. 
 
 The allusions to persons, not being of a private, but of a public 
 sort, we retain, as they are in our correspondent's letter. The 
 names are known to some of our readers, and Avill to them render 
 the communication all the more interesting. 
 
 Letter from Cape Town, dated August and September, 1845. 
 
 When I last wrote to you I stated that I had not joined the 
 Scotch Church at this place, imder the impression that, as far as 
 I could then discover, its ecclesiastical status was that of a Church 
 in connection with the Established Church of Scotland. Since 
 then I have pursued my enquiries concerning it, and have obtained 
 a sight of some papers which satisfy me that the view then taken 
 by me was not an incorrect one. I am desirous of explaining this 
 to you, in order that you may not thiidc I have taken up any 
 unwarrantable position, or acted upon insufficient grounds. This 
 
 A 
 
Decomcs lie more necessaiy willi reference to the fact tliat the 
 Scottish Guardian is seen by friends in Calcntta, avIio may liave 
 observed in it two letters, one from Di". Abercrombie of Cape 
 Town, the otlier fi-om the Itev. INIr. Morgan, both of which 
 appear to me calculated to give an erroneous im])rcssion of things 
 in connection with the Free Chui'ch in this colony. 
 
 The following is an extract fi-om Dr. Abercroml»e's letter of the 
 24lh Juno, 1844, which appeared in the Guardian of the 29th 
 Nov. 1844 : 
 
 "The Church here has not formally seceded— standing as an 
 isolated Church, uncontrolled in any way by Government, and 
 having had very recently the principles of non-intrusion distinctly 
 recognized in the appointment of our present minister, the Rev. 
 George Morgan. It was, however, the desire of tlie minister and 
 a majority of the session to have come forward and boldly ap- 
 proved the principles of the Free Church, and tendered her minis- 
 ters their sincere sympathy under their present severe trials. On 
 the occasion, the deacons claimed a riglit to vote, as having been 
 alluded to in the communication from the Church as conductors of 
 the mission jointly with the members of session, and, I regret 
 to say, they were opposed. The Church, however, was put in 
 possession of all particulars, and more than sufficient proof afforded 
 her for the kindly feelings of the Church here in her behalf; and, 
 I am happy to say, that at a meeting of the Presbyterians and 
 friends of the Free Church held subsequently, resolutions to the 
 same effect as those submitted by our session were carried unani- 
 mously, and a subscription commenced in aid of the sustentation 
 fund, and I have myself had the honor of transmitting the same 
 together with the small amount raised, to Dr. Chalmers." 
 
 At present I will merely say in reference to the appointment of 
 the Rev. Mr. Morgan, that it could scarcely be considered as any 
 very distinct recognition by the Government of the non-intrusion 
 principle. Mr. Morgan was minister of the Dutch Reformed 
 Church* at Somerset, already receiving a salary from Government. 
 His appointment to the Scotch Church was a mere translation from 
 one church to another, the ministers of both of which were in the 
 pay of the Government. The congregation certainly called l)im, 
 but the question of intrusion or non-intrusion was never raised, it 
 being a matter of perfect indifference to the Government whether 
 Mr. Morgan drew his salary as minister of Somerset, or minister 
 of St. Andrew's. This negative kind of non-intrusion has no 
 doubt, been repeatedly exemplified in the present Scottish esta- 
 l)Iishment. 
 
 I must enter into some details respecting the letter of the Rev. 
 Mr, Morgan. It appears that Mr. Robertson, one of the Deacons 
 of the Scotch Church, Cape Town, had written to the Rev. Mr. 
 Thompson of Ednam a letter in Avhich (I take this from the 
 Guardian of the 11th Februaiy 1845) he had stated among other 
 
 * Many of the congregations of tlie Dutch Reformed Church in tliis colony 
 arc served by ministers ordained by presbyteries of the ICstablished Church of 
 Scotland. 
 
Ill 
 
 things, that J)r. Adamson, the former minister, haJ joined the 
 Free Church, but our present minister, Mr. Morgan had given 
 great satisfaction. Through the blessing of the Lord on his 
 labours, our church, once so cmjity, is now filling up, and many 
 who never used to enter a place of worship are now found regular 
 in their attendance ; moreover the Mission mny now be said to 
 embrace about 450 or 500 people, old and young, and " we have 
 also a day-school for children, the attendance at which averages 
 120." The whole of this (I still quote from the Guardian) was 
 represented as being in immediate connection with the Colonial 
 scheme of the Estahlishment; and some proceedings in reference 
 to this congregation having been held in the Free Church Assem- 
 bly in consequence of papers sent home from this countiy, Mr. 
 Robertson stated that this was " much to our annoyance," and 
 " we cannot recognize their (the Free Church's) interference in the 
 matter." It is in reference (adds the Guardian) to private and 
 imauthorised statements such as these that Mr. Morgan writes 
 officially, in the name of himself and his Kirk-session, informing 
 Mr. Young and the Committee, that he cannot conscientiously 
 toncur in them, especially in those referring to the late secession 
 fi'om the Established Church." 
 
 Here let me pause for a moment in my narrative to explain that 
 the proceedings above alluded to as having been held in the Free 
 Church Assembly had reference to the ordination of Mr. W. 
 Gorrie as a missionary minister of the Free Church, provided that 
 the conductors of the Mission, and especially Mr. Gorrie himself, 
 approved of the principles of the Free Church. An application 
 had been sent home by the Kirk-session, ere the disruption, in 
 order to procure his ordination, and a copy of the application was 
 also sent to the Rev. Mr. Macfarlan of Renfrew, who brought it 
 forward in the first General Assembly of the Free Church. Hence 
 the conditional authority to ordain. The ordination was to be 
 made by certain ministers named in the Commission. On the 
 question being mooted in the session in the form of a vote of 
 sympathy with the Free Church, the motion, as stated in the 
 extract from Dr. Abercrombie's letter, was lost ; showing, as far 
 as anything can show, that the majority of the then conductors of 
 the Mission, viz. the Kirk-session and the Deacons, did not 
 approve of the principles of the Fi*ee Church ; and Mr. Gorrie, 
 though desirous of it, remains without ordination to this hour. 
 
 The chief portion of Mr. Morgan's letter is occupied with a 
 remonstrance against the improper and unauthorised use made by 
 the Colonial committee of the Established Church, of a private 
 communication. The following extract is all that concerns my 
 present purpose : 
 
 " While I repeat that I do not object to any individual com- 
 municating to his friend his own views and sentiments, in a proper 
 manner, and for a legitimate purpose, I feel bound to add, Avith a 
 view to obviate misconception, that I cannot conscientiously 
 concur in many of the sentiments expressed in the said letter, and 
 particulai'ly in those referi'ing to the late secession from the 
 
IV 
 
 Established Cliurcli of Scotland, and I have pood reason to 
 believe tiiat, had the letter been submitted to the Kirk-session, it 
 would have been seriously objected to on various grounds." 
 
 Now I cannot but think that this letter of Mr. Morgan is cal- 
 culated to give the impression that the kirk of St. Andrew's at 
 Cape Town is a church at all events as much in connection with 
 (oi- use any other term you please) the Free, as with the Esta- 
 blished Church of Scotland. Such indeed appears to have been 
 the conclusion drawn by the Guardian of the Ilth February 1845 
 in the following remarks — " By giving publicity to Mr. Robert- 
 son's letter, bearing, as it does, to speak the sentiments of the 
 congregation at Cape Town, and of its minister and Kii'k-scssion, 
 the committee have grossly misrepresented these respecta})le 
 parties, and done to them positive injustice. Having obtained 
 direct evidence of this fact, under the hand of Mr. Morgan 
 himself, we conceive the committee are bound to give the only 
 redress in their power. The letter of Mr. Morgan is certainly not 
 such an one as might have been expected from an avowed adherent 
 of the Establishment ; but neither assuredly is it the production of 
 one zealous in behalf of the Free Church. The language is at 
 best but doubtful." 
 
 But it is time to look to the Ecclesiastical status of St. Andrew's, 
 Cape Town. 
 
 The first extract I have to give you is from a circular published 
 in Cape Town, without date, but probably towai'ds the close of 
 1824, or the early part of 1825. 
 
 ''The Presbyterian Church has received a legal establishment 
 in India, in Nova Scotia, great part of Canada, and of New 
 South Wales : and it is about to be placed on an eqiial footing 
 with the sister establishments in the West Indian Colonies." 
 
 " In a letter addressed by Earl Bathurst to the moderator of the 
 Presbytery of Glasgow, dated I3th May 1824, His Lordshi}) 
 intimated the desire of His Majesty's Government to extend to 
 His Majesty's Pi-esbyterian subjects abroad, the means of enjoying 
 the religious ordinances of their country ; and of affording such 
 pecuniary aid as may be necessary in addition to the funds realized 
 from other sources to construct churches, and maintain a pastor 
 in each church." 
 
 " The Scotch community in the Cape amounts to nearly a 
 moiety of the Anglo-Colonial population ; and the administration 
 at home having exju-essed a desire to afford to the Presbyterian 
 communities out of Britain, the means of enjoying the ordinances 
 of religion according to the institutions of the Scotch Church, it 
 only remains for us, in the meantime, to suggest, that an early 
 meeting of the Presbyterian community take place, with a view 
 that the necessary measures should be adopted for this purpose ; 
 and that the wishes of so respectable a body should be laid before 
 His Excellency the Governor, whose uniform attention to the 
 religious interests of all classes, and His Excellency's well-known 
 disposition to promote such objects, leave no room to doubt that 
 he will not oidv become the channel of communicating; to His 
 
Majesty's Government tlie wishes of the Prcsbyt; ■ ian coninuuiily, 
 but also facilitate any practicaljlc ari'an<j^enient in the meantime 
 which may appear conducive to the attainment of this object." 
 
 " It will be the duty of a Presbyterian pastor, to recall within 
 the bosom of the National Church those members, who have 
 Iiitherto been left to wander whithersoever they would ; not to 
 make proselytes from other communions, but niore especially to 
 dispense the ordinances of religion to Scotchmen and Presbyterians." 
 
 The oi'itiinal object contemplated by the Circular was clearly 
 the establishment of a Church in connection with the Established 
 Church of Scotland. 
 
 The followinc^ are extracts from a letter addressed by a com- 
 mittee appointed for the purpose, to the Rev. the Moderator of 
 the Presl)ytery of Edinburgh, on the 10th Febi'uary 182o. 
 
 " With the view of soliciting the opinion of the Pi'esbytery of 
 Edinburgh and its kind ofiiccs, in bringing the subject of the 
 present communication under the consideration of the General 
 Assembly : — We beg leave to transmit to you printed copies of 
 I'esolutions passed at a public meeting of the Scottish and Pres- 
 byterian community, held under the sanction of his excellency the 
 Governor, for the purpose of taking into consideration the expe- 
 diency of erecting in this metropolis a Presbyterian Church, to be 
 placed in communication and connection with the National Church 
 of Scotland, either by being attached to the Presbytery of Edin- 
 burgh, or placed immediately iinder the auspices and jurisdiction 
 of the General Assembly, as may appear most accordant with the 
 principles of that church." " In addition to the resolutions passed 
 at the general meeting we beg to enclose a copy of an address to 
 his excellency the Governor drawn up by the committee api)ointed 
 to carry these resolutions into effect, and which we (the com- 
 mittee) had the honor of presenting to his excellency, who was 
 pleased to receive it most graciously, and in reply assure us, that 
 the measure had his most cordial sanction and concui-rence, and 
 that he should make an early communication on the subject to 
 Earl Bathurst, His Majesty's Colonial Secretary, and recom- 
 mend it to His Lordship's favorable consideration." 
 
 '' In regard to the nomination of a pastor, and in whom the 
 patronage shall be vested; — This is a subject of some delicacy, and 
 on Avhicli it is not easy to reconcile individual opinions. If the 
 whole stipend is to be paid by the Government, it would natu- 
 rally be expected that the nomination should rest with the Colonial 
 Department at home." 
 
 '* In the principle of such an ari'angement there is nothing ob- 
 jectionable, provided that this patronage should not be coupled 
 with the power of removal at pleasure : and that this power should 
 rest with the proper Ecclesiastical Courts only, on the same prin- 
 ciple as in Scotland. It is indeed of the utmost importance that 
 this principle should be maintained and nevei- lost sight of. As 
 without that control and subordination, which it is necessary that 
 the Ecclesiastical Courts should exercise over a minister (aiul 
 which would be of no effect unless the power of removal lay with 
 
the Scottish Ecclesiastical Courts, subject to such modifications as 
 the peculiar circumstances of the case might render desireable for 
 Ijotli parties) it would be a Scottish Church in name only, and the 
 minister might thus become alike independent of the congregation 
 and of the proper Church authoi'ities.* On the other hand — if 
 only parts of the stipend were paid by Government, jjart must be 
 paid out of the seat rents, and by the voluntary contributions of 
 the congregation : and for vai'ious reasons which will readily 
 occur to the Presbytery, this is perhaps the most eligible arrange- 
 ment that could be adopted. In this case however it does not 
 follow that the patronage should rest entirely and solely, with His 
 Majesty's Government, and indeed, under all circumstances, it 
 might appear most just and reasonable that the patronage should 
 rest jointly with the Presbytery and the Government at home, 
 which Avo think might be done by mutual ai'rangement." 
 
 "We would wish it to be understood as our unanimous opinion, 
 that whatever be the conditions annexed to the office, and ap- 
 pointment of a minister here, these should be such as to render 
 him accountable for his conduct, and amenable only to the 
 supreme ecclesiastical authorities at home , so that he may not be 
 led by local interests, local prejudices, and local influence, to 
 swerve from the path of his duty as a Christian minister, and 
 may thus be prevented from occupying his time, in matters which 
 may not fall within his presence, and which may be incompatible 
 Avith the efficient and satisfactory dischai-ge of his ministerial duties." 
 
 *' On this subject we consider it unnecessary to expatiate any 
 further, as we are confident that you, in conjunction with the 
 other ecclesiastical authorities, will make it your object to take 
 such measures as are likely to promote our Avishes, and lay the 
 foundation in this colony of a church, Avhich we hope may prove 
 an ornament to the parent establishment." 
 
 These extracts speak to the same effect as the circular above 
 quoted. The letter from Avhich they are taken was signed, among 
 others, by Dr. Abercrombie ; and it is a pity he did not refer to it 
 ere speaking of St. Andrew's as " an isolated church." 
 
 My next extracts are from minutes of meetings of the com- 
 mittee of the Scottish Presbyterian community held in Cape 
 Town, on the 31st Dec. 1825, 'and 6th February 1826 : 
 
 "Dec. 31st 1825." "Resolved (inter alia) that a letter be 
 addressed to the Presbytery of Edinburgh, requesting that a 
 clergyman for the intended Scottish Church here, be appointed 
 
 with the least possible delay i-eferring to the committee's 
 
 letter to the Pi'esbyteiy of Edinburgh dated January (query 
 February ?) 1825, particularly in as far as relates to patronage, 
 and expressing the wish of the committee, that, if agreeable to the 
 British Government, the patronage shall belong to the said 
 Presbytery." 
 
 " February 6th 1826." Resolved that the chairman and secre- 
 tary prepare with their earliest convenience, a letter to the Pres- 
 
 * 'J liis is exactly what it lias become, if the cliurcli be " an isolated cliurch." 
 Hut how does all this accord with Dr. Abercrombie's statement. 
 
VII 
 
 byto'v of E(liiiljuri;li, ao'rccaLly to tlio resolution of lasl. Diecting, — 
 and that copies thereof, and of the mimites of this and of our 
 last niectinoj be transmitted to our advents in Bi-itain and to Mr. 
 Macdonald," to enable them to hold first communication with the 
 JBritish Government, with the Presbytery of Edinburu;h, and with 
 each other, as they may deem beneficial, " Resolved, that on the 
 appointment of a clcrirynian for the Scottish Church, the above- 
 mentioned gentleman be requested to use every exertion to obtain 
 for him, from the British Government, a free passage to this colony, 
 and an additional hundred pounds towards his stipend." 
 
 From the foregoing papers you ^ti\\ observe that the original 
 plan was the establishment of a Presbyterian church in communi- 
 cation and connection with the National Church of Scotland. 
 Application was made to the local Government accordingly, which 
 again corresponded with the Government at home. The result is 
 briefly stated in the following exti'act from a letter addressed to the 
 ]{ev. Dr. Adamson by the Rev. Dr. Brunton, under date the 23rd 
 December 18"2(). In reading this document bear in mind the chain 
 of communication between tlie committee and the local Govern- 
 ment, between the local and the Home Governments, between the 
 Home Government and the Established Church of Scotland, and 
 finally between the Established Chui'ch and the minister appointed 
 by it. The chain is as complete as it well can be. 
 
 " I have heard at last from the London agents of the settlers at 
 Cape Town, and shall report accordingly to the Presbytery iipon 
 Wednesday next. Government decline giving any further allow- 
 ance than .£100 to the clergyman, but make no objection to the 
 nomination by the Presbytery, and will give him a free passage to 
 the Cape." 
 
 Di-. Adamson was nominated by the Presbytery of Edinburgh, 
 and entered upon his duties, in virtue of such nomination, as pastor 
 of St. Andrew's, Cape Town. 
 
 In the month of July 1841, a communication Avas addressed by 
 the Kirk-session of St. Andrew's to the Rev. Mr. Morgan, minister 
 of the Dutch Reformed Church at Somerset in this colony, trans- 
 mitting to him a call inviting him to be colleague with the Rev. 
 Dr. Adamson as pastor thereof; and upon Dr. Adamson's resig- 
 nation being sanctioned by the Assembly's Committee for Colonial 
 Churches, or by the Presbyteiy of Edinburgh, sole pastor of the 
 church. With this letter there was also transmitted to Mr. Morgan 
 a memorandum containing information relative to the circum- 
 stances under which Dr. Adamson was appointed minister of the 
 church, as serving to shew the position of the church with regard 
 to its competency to give the call. 
 
 On the 17th of July 1841, Dr. Adamson addressed a letter to 
 the Rev. convener of the committee of the General Assembly for 
 Colonial Churches stating his intention of resigning the pastoral 
 charge of St. Andrew's, from which the following is an extract : 
 
 * Mr. Maedonald was chairman of the committee while at the Cnpe. 
 t The Government stipend is now £-200 per annum. 
 
VllI 
 
 ''I luivo felt considerable difficulfy in deciding^ on the mode in 
 Avliich this, and tlic subsequent process of ])rocuring a successor 
 can be constitutionally neconiplished, so as to secure to him the 
 rights and privileges held by me. Having been appointed by the 
 Piesbytery of Edinburgh, and it appearing to be stipulated in the 
 correspondence which then took place, that the nomination of a 
 minister should i-est with the Presbytery, it appears that a reference 
 should be made to it in this instance ; but as I understand that 
 business of this kind is now considered as devolving on the Com- 
 mittee for Foreign Churches, it seems to me most advisable to give 
 this intimation to the committee. I beg, however, that if it be 
 thought necessary intimation be oftered to the Presbytery of Edin- 
 burgh." 
 
 Tne letter of Dr. Adamson was referred to the Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh, who minuted thereon, on the 24th Nov. 1841, to the 
 following effect : 
 
 " The committee on the communication from the colonial com- 
 mittee having, considered the purport of Dr. Adamson's letter 
 respecting his intention to resign his charge as minister of the 
 Scotch Church, Cape Town, Cape of Good Hope, in consequence 
 of feeling it to be his duty to devote his exertions exclusively to the 
 superintendence of the College there, report to the Presbytei-y their 
 great approbation of the motives which have induced Dr. Adamson 
 to adopt that resolution, and beg to recommend that the colonial 
 committee be informed, that the Presbytery, on receiving a formal 
 resignation of the above charge from Dr. Adamson will be readily 
 disposed to take the requisite steps for declaring his connection 
 with said church to have ceased. With reference to the appoint- 
 ment of a successor to Dr. Adamson, the committee recommended 
 that the colonial committee be furtlier apprised, that the Presbytery 
 will be ready to give every facility and the countenance to said 
 committee in regard to such an ap]iointment, whenever it is in- 
 timated to them that matters are suitably arranged for having it 
 carried into efteet." 
 
 " The Presbytery approve of this Report and order an extract 
 to be sent to Dr. Welsh, convener of the colonial committee." 
 
 On the 1st September 1841, it was proposed by the Kii-k-session 
 to the local govei-nment, that Mr. Morgan should be appointed 
 colleague with Dr. Adamson. I quote })art of the reply of the 
 secretary to government of the 7th October following, in order to 
 shew that the kirk of St. Andrew's was considered by the govern- 
 ment as the Scottish Church \\\ Cape Town, and that before the 
 existence of any Free Church. 
 
 " With reference to the resolution passed at your meeting held 
 on the 21st July last, an extract of which was placed in my hands 
 by the Rev. Dr. Adamson, I am directed by the governor to 
 acquaint you that it is not in his excellency's power to admit the 
 designation of "colleague" on the salary Abstract; the schedule 
 of the fixed establishment of the colony providing only for a 
 *' minister " for the Scottish Church, he has found himself obliged 
 to make the appointment of the Rev. George Morgan as minister, 
 
IX 
 
 under which name alone he can be permitted to draw the stipend ; 
 leaving it, of course, to you and Dr. Adamson to designate him as 
 " colleague " or otherwise, as may be considered most expedient." 
 
 On the 12th November 1841, the following appointment appear- 
 ed in the Colonial Government Gazette. 
 
 " The Rev. Geoi-ge IMorrcan to be minister of theScottish Church 
 in Cape Town, vice Dr. Adamson." 
 
 I conclude my quotations with the following extract from the 
 supplement to the Home and Foreign Missionary Record of the 
 Established Church for August 1842. 
 
 " The Rev. Dr. Adamson having intimated to the committee his 
 resignation of the pastoral charge of the Scottish congregation at 
 Cape Town (St. Andrew's Church) in oraer that he might give 
 himself more entirely to the duties of the College; and having, at 
 the same time, given information that measures were in contem- 
 plation for having, for the vacant congregation, the ministrations 
 of an ordained clergyman of the Church of Scotland, then officiat- 
 ing as a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church in the colony, 
 the committee remitted the papers connected with the subject to the 
 Presbytery of Edinburgh, who gave them instructions as to tli.e 
 arrangements proposed by Dr. Adamson. This was communicated 
 in December last to Dr. Adamson along with the expression, on 
 the part of the committee, of their anxiety to give him every coun- 
 tenance and assistance in his new situation upon his putting them 
 in possession of such information as might enable them to judge in 
 what manner their services might be rendered most available. 
 
 " More recently, information has been conveyed by the Kirk- 
 session of St. Andrew's Church, that a call was harmoniously 
 given to the Rev. George Morgan, minister of the Dutch 
 Reformed Church, district of Somerset, who was ordained by the 
 Presbytery of Lochcarron in the year 1824, and that having 
 accepted the same, he liad been inducted into his new charge with 
 the sanction of the Government of the colony on the 14th Novem- 
 ber last. The letter from the Kirk-session of St. Andrew's con- 
 cludes with the following paragraph, to which the committee beg 
 to call the attention of the Assembly." 
 
 " The Kirk-session beg to avail themselves of this opportunity 
 of expressing their sincere attachment to the Established Church 
 of Scotland, their desire to be favored with her countenance, 
 counsel and aid ; they therefore entreat a place in your prayers, 
 and that you will be pleased to afford them encouragement and 
 strength, by communicating from time to time with them, and 
 finally, that you will devise such measures as may be deemed best 
 fitted to draw more closely the bonds of love and sympathy 
 between yourselves and them." 
 
 Is not all this proof sufficient to show that up to the period of the 
 disruption, the Church of St. Andrew's considered itself as in com- 
 munication and connection with the Established Church of Scot- 
 land? 
 
 There are one or two points of strong circumstantial evidence to 
 the same effect. 
 
In iHiiO t,l)0 KOSHion of St. Androvv's ;i))|)lif;(I to tho cornrnittco of 
 tho Gcncnil AsHornbly for tlio l*ro[)!i^!ition of the CioHpol in Foreim 
 I^artH, in rf;j^ai-d to tlio OHfiibliKlirncnt of a Mission at tlio Cape. The 
 eoininittee authorized it, and f^ave their wanetion to the detention of 
 Mr. Nishet, one of their missionaries at Bombay, then at tlie Cape 
 for the reeovery of his heahh, ])rovided that M)'. Nishet consented 
 to tlie measure. 'I'hf; Kirk-se-ssion must surely have considered the 
 church as in connection with the J'^stahlislied Cliurch, when they 
 made to it an appheation of tliis nature. 
 
 A^ain, on lookirii^ ove-r the hst of churches in Gape Town, the 
 i;iiiiist(;rs of \vliir;Ii receive stipends from the Govr^rnment of the 
 coh)nv, I fnxl thr; foliowin*^ exchisive of St. Andrew's, viz : th<! 
 Enj^lish J'^piseopal, thf; Dutch Itr.fijrmed, and the Lutheran*, 
 churches. The Gov(;rnment h)oks u))on all these as Established 
 Churches. Thf; Jtoman Cathc)lie jd-irsthood also receives stipend. 
 Not a single ministr;i- of any Protestant dissenting f;ody n;ceives a 
 sti[)end for tlu; preachinf.^ of the (jospel. JJoes not this fact strength- 
 en the view tliat I have taken, on tlie (ground of the positive evidence 
 aljove given, that the Gov(;rnment considers St. Andrew's, as a 
 church in connection with the J:^stal)lished Churcli of Scotland? 
 
 Once more — a few years ago there wafj a (^iristiun Instruction 
 Society in Cape Town, the ol)jeet of which was to carry the gospel 
 to the coloied population. TIk- committee applied to the Govern- 
 ment to assist them with a sum in jjayment of the salary of a 
 teacher employed by them. The government eonsent(;d to allow 
 .^1^} a year towards the payment of his salary provided the teacher 
 belonged either to the ICiiglish, Sf;otch, Dutch Iteformcd, or 
 fiiitli(;ran (jhui'elies. ''i'he individual emjdoyed behm^ed to the 
 Dutch J{,r;formed church and drew his allowance accordingly for 
 some time. Jie subscfjuently received ordination at the liands of 
 the Indepcndeut ministers of Union Chapel. The committee, as 
 they were hound to do, informed the Government, and the 
 allowance was immediately stopped. Is there any thing to lead 
 one to su))pose that (;iovernment would not hut act j)reci9ely in 
 the same way with respect to St. Andrew's, were it informed that 
 it was not in connection with the national Church of Scotland? 
 and surely it ought to be informed, if a stipend is paid and re- 
 ceived under any miseonce[)tion. 
 
 I b(;lieve I have made it eleai-, that Dr. Abereiombic's desig- 
 nation of St. Andi'cw's as an "isolated church" cannot well be 
 maintained. I have indeed heai'd that in eoiTcspondence more 
 n.'cent than any I have seen, the J-^stablished l?resbytcry of Edin- 
 burgh has denied its right ol' ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the 
 church in Cape Town. IJut will that alter the position of the 
 church rcitk ragard iv the Gorernmcnt'l Whatever correspor.- 
 flence may have passed between the Kirk-session lierc and the 
 Presbytery in I'klinburgh, the relation of the church to the Go- 
 vernment is pr(;eisely tjic same as at its first establishment. Can 
 
 • One only of the Lutheran ministers receives asmull allowance of £13-14-6 jer 
 annum from the (Jovernment. 
 
Zl 
 
 it he right for a church to call itself by one name for any purpose 
 whatever, and at the same time to receive a Government stipend 
 by another? 
 
 But even were it an isolated church, ought it not for purpofics 
 of church Government to put itself in connection with some Pres- 
 byterian body? What is a Presbyterian church with no other 
 Court than a Kirk-session ? Were a question to arise Tas it ha« 
 actually arisen in St. Andrew's^ requiring the int/;rference of a 
 Presbytery, the session, because of its profession of Presbyterian 
 principles, cannot act as a congregational church, and thus viola- 
 tions of its ov/n acknowledged principle-; rnay be tolerated to any 
 extent. Had the congregation at this moment a minister preaching 
 the doctrines of Irving or Pusey, they have no authority to which 
 to appeal but the Government, who probably would reply, that 
 it was not for a Government to interfere in mere matters of 
 doctrine. But the point has been well put by the committee 
 themselves in their letter of the 10th February 182o, from which 
 I have largely quoted. 
 
 I have entered into this detail in order to explain the line adopted 
 with respect to St. Andrew's Church. I believe that sornu of our 
 Calcutta friends are not correctly informed as to the true position 
 of this church, and may probably be of opinion that J might, 
 even as an elder of the Free Church, have joined it without any 
 compromise of principle. I would gladly unite differences where 
 f5ach is practicable ; but I cannot consent to do this «i </t«r ^f/»/^ 
 that a gieat Sciipture truth is at stake, and when the cour=e of 
 conduct adopted involves, on the one hand, a direct abandonment 
 of such truth, or on the other an adherence to it. 
 
 Some of the members of St. Andrew's I believe to be sincerely 
 attached to the Free Church. They think themselves, however, 
 at liberty to remain in their present position, and that in so doing 
 they do not incur any sacrifice of principle. I cannot agree with 
 them. But I do not wish to see them come out, unless they can 
 do it upon their convictions, and in the faith of the testimony of 
 the Lord's truth. 
 
 At the same time I am anxious to see a Free -Church and 
 Mission established in the colony, as a testimony to the ecclesias- 
 tical headship of the Lord Jesus is much wanted; and as there is 
 much land to be possessed in the interior of the country-. Here 
 there is much Lrastian bondage self-laid upon the church of 
 Christ, and men's minds need tx» be directed to this subject. At 
 present, however, I am in utter darkness as to the prospects of the 
 Free Church in this place; and with a few others, wait upon the 
 Ix)rd for his giaidance. 
 
 Prioted by S/.CL SoLOMost, fit Co., " Gazette*' Office, Cape Towd. 
 
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