The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-05-16 00:00:00

CORRESPONDENCE.

THE FREE CHURCII OF SCOTLAND AND

THE DUKE OF BUCCLEUGH.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

SIR,—If you can, in these times of superabundant ex-
citing political news, spare room in your valuable journal
for the insertion of the following -rather lengthy, observa-
tions, you will oblige "An Old Subscriber,'

I observe that the Duke of Buccleugh has again been
the object of the vituperative abuse of the ministers of the
Free Church, at their meeting in this town on the 4th
inst. As there has been a great deal of gross misrepre-
sentation respecting his refusal of a site for a church in
Canobie, allow me, in justice to a most worthy nobleman,
to lay a true statement of the circumstances before the
public. At the time the disruption took place in the
Church, scarcely any district in the kingdom took less in-
terest in the movement than Canobie, and the adjoining
parishes. The people are blessed with faithful and zea-
lous pastors, enjoying and reciprocating their esteem.
The Rev. Mr. Donaldson, parish minister of Canobie,
holds opinions, however, at variance with the Free
Church, and on the schism taking place, agitators were
sent into the parish, without any invitation ; meetings
were called, at which the most inflammatory language
was used ; tracts were distributed, and every means taken
to stir up the people against the Established Church, its
ministers, and supporters. A few restless spirits were
drawn together, and much family dissension and ill feeling
was produced as the certain result of teaching which
maintains that the Established Church forms no part of
the visible Church of Christ.* An attempt was made to
form a congregation ; and without leave asked or obtained,
a tent was erected near to the Parish Church. on landle-
longing to the Duke of Buccleugh. Owing, however, to
the violent conduct of those inciting the movement, the
agent of the Duke obtained an injunction against this free
and easy mode of location. The tent was then pitched
upon the road side, upon land belonging to the road
trustees ; but here the sacred services were subject to
many unseemly interruptions, and his Grace of Buccleugh

Nay 16,1848.

gave permission to them to erect it in the well
field where it has since stood. In reference to the law
Mr. Innes, who became the pastor of this congregation!'
whose death is openly charged upon the Duke
a meeting held in Edinburgh, the Rev. Dr. Beg etate
that "he recollected the Rev. Mr. Innes as one 0
their most robust vigorous ministers," be it obser!
the Rev. Doctor had frequent opportunities of witnessing.
the state of Mr. Innes' health, as they were for some time
members of the same presbytry. Now, as to "robust,
ce
vigorous health," it was well known to every acquaintance
of the Rev. Mr. Tunes that for some time previous to, and
ever after he became a licentiate of the Free Church, n. 7
health was very delicate, and that he frequently incum:,
the censure of his friends for his imprudent exertions vibe'
at Portnockie, (the charge he held before he came to Cane-
bie,) and which he was understood to have resigned on at;
count of its exposed situation being injurious to his health'
sheltereu,_
When he came to Canobie it was evident to the most casn!,
observer that he was in a declining state of health, and bad
not the slightest appearance of ever having been robust.. _
The Rev. Dr. Candlish stated his conviction "that the
life of their departed brother had fallen a sacrifice to the
persecution which the congregation had been made to bear:
but urged upon his hearers to return good for evil, b
striving to keep an evangelical minister in the parish t°
endeavour to save the nobility from the fruit of their 01
persecutioninstead o f o
one
allowedaim i aiming at to
sink giving
in themto th e
fa:
ism." The Rev. Doctor, by implication, asserts that the
Rev. Mr. Donaldson, parish minister, is not evangelical,
and that he utterly neglects his sacred trust. The con'
duct of his parishioners towards him powerfully attests
their dissent to such a charge.f The statement also
plies that the people were previous to the labours of t
Free Church ministers steeped in the dregs of heathenisleg
and would, on his withdrawal, return to that state. Su
an imputation is, however, far from being warranted. Tie
people were, till disturbed by these very men now trade
ing them, a contented, industrious, religious communt
living in harmony with each other, and entertaining t(al
warmest feeling of attachment to their old and faith'te
pastor, and to their kind-hearted amiable landlord, ta
ad r good
go
so dorpohpeualtaht
Duke of Buccleugh, and with few exceptions they continue
to bear that character and to entertain those feelings, not
withstanding the efforts made to alienate them.
That very concentration of all the Christian virtues, the
' Rev. Mr. Tweedie, " declared that he knew of no Paraue•
to the persecution which they had just heard related,
cept in Tahiti or Madagascar." Fortunately, the paralle'
for which he requires to travel so far exists only in thi.°
relation, not the fact. In the evidence taken before 0°
sites committee of the House of Commons, the late lte°'
Mr. Innes stated that nearly all the adherents of the Free
Church in Canobie were tenants of the Duke of Buccleugh
and many of them in his employment as colliers, &c., bu
that he did not know of a single instance of any party 1";
ing dismissed such service or in any way persecuted I.°
belonging to that church. Who better able or more
ling to have exposed the fact than this witness, had there
been cause of complaint ? This evidence must have been
known to Mr. Tweedie.
There is in reality no necessity for a Free Church in Civ
nobie, the distances to Langholm and Half Morton, vrlier°
ith
they alraady have weak and languishing congregations, sv 5
a superr bundance of church accommodation, is not such
to cause the people any inconvenience. If they are deter-
mined, however, to have a church of their own, can the/
site,
explain why, on the Duke of Buccleugh refusing a'
the did not apply to G. Maxwell, Esq., of Broornholtnci
whose estate lies within a short distance of their tent, and
who is favourable to their views ?
The preceding is an unvarnished statement of the case,
which I dare them to bring one proof to contradict. What;
then, becomes of the oft repeated charge of persecutioni;
Perhaps they imagine that this perversion of truth, t,
bearing of false witness, is justified by the end sought h
t„g
be obtained, viz., an act to compel the granting of 'l'4l-
for free churches. A spirit of persecution is utterly forei.
to the nature of the Duke of Buccleugh, not one act
e
his life justifying such a charge. He is, of course, awa"a
of the whole circumstances of this case, and must feel, an
with justice, that it is not for the advantage of his nume-
rousa
tenantry to encourage the location amongst thein,o
vnen so utterly devoid of the graces that most adorn tti,
Christian character—truth and charity. There is no &line;
that there are many devoted, pious ministers in the Free
Church who must deeply deplore the conduct of their in
temperate brethren.

to
* One of the Free Church Ministers wished to refuse the
admit ministers of the Established Church of Scotland to to
Evangelical Alliance meeting held in this town, on the It) 0t
that he could not recognise them as forming any Par
the visible Church of Christ.
t A short while before the split in the church a valuable Piecoef
of plate was presented to him by his parishioners, as a marl.
their their esteem,to which scarcely a family in the parish, boy
the means, neglected to contribute.

TO ALL WHO ATTEND THE MAY MEETINGS'

, • all
At a time when the generous sympathies and kindly
feelings of the religious world are exercised and indulge:
in various efforts to assist the needy, instruct the ignorant,
and free the benighted heathen from the degrading tram-
mels of superstition and idolatry, it may not be amiss „
call attention to the thousands in our own town who el
the mammon-worshipping spirit of the age are sacrifice':
body, soul, and spirit upon the altar of our commeretior
system by the injurious and unnecessary protraction 0
the hours of business which, absorbing all the time noo
absolutely required for eating and sleeping, leave no
opportunity for participating in those services and under-
takings takings which are calculated to keep alive that zeaL
a,d
God and love to man which so eminently belongtebeing
adorn the Christian character, and mark a hutee-,, than
as destined for some higher and holier purpose
av be
merely to work that he may eat and eat that he m`"
able to work.
public A n d
hsurely r
theit
icsonanditii
in business is favourable or unfavourable to their eter'si„
interests, and what can be done to place them in a P°
tion suitable to rational and responsible beings. of
And when we find that by the present evil habit 0
nognuoirithweayrtohuyngafpetolipalcCehnrgisatgi:3
" late shopping" the masters are induced to keep OPe
their shops, and that the assistants are of necessity co
pelled to attend, and that thus both are deprived of
opportunity of mental or moral culture, excluded from,.',`,l;
the weekly services of religion, and subjected to the tro
successful temptation to devote the Sabbath-day to to
recreation which cannot be got at any other time, we
are
readily perceive what a train of evil consequences tr;
inflicted upon society by a thoughtless habit, without t
slightest real necessity : for could the public be persuaa`;
to make all their purchases before six o'clock all busine7;
might be terminated at such an hour as would alloy
tradespeople opportunities for healthful recreation, sod
to
enjoyment, and intellectual improvement, and give 311
hundreds the privilege they sigh for of labouring 9;1,,
their brethren in the benevolent undertakings of the nil
and who would give new life and vigour to our Sabuathe
Schools and' other institutions by bringing to then A
fervent zeal of youthful piety which is now repressel
deadened, and quenched under the withering influence °
long hours of business.
Let not this be considered an over-heated fancy
exaggerated idea; for although the Tradesmens' Assof
tants have been virtually excluded from the lie' e„;01;
Christianity and treated as beasts of burden, 1,9,7,5 t
neither souls nor sensibility, there are to be found aree"a'ai
those who have shared in the partial improvement alrea
_t
effected some whose pursuits and capacities give sufficios'ii
earnest of what might be expected to throw a he,s,eo
responsibility upon all who neglect to make thems°o,
acquainted with this question, while there are also Out
tinual examples of hopeful and promising youths broOtglig
by the demand of business from the homestead of anxio°lo'
prayerful parents, and cast solitary and alone upon ,eir
large towns, who find their energies so taxed and 00
time so completely absorbed in business that one by °A,
their early habits are abandonedand dissoluteones adoett,4",
till they gradually fall into snare after snare to their 0,`4
eternal ruin, the disappointment of the parent's fon„%o
hopes, and the condemnation of all who have either 97)0
what they ought not to have done, or left undone sv
they
Should ought to have done in this matter. the
this meet the eye of any of the speakers a- of
forthcoming meetings who will take the opportue,itYeoll
urging upon their audiences the Christian duty °I oist
looking upon the things of others they may greatly 94-
a good movement, and will abundantly repay the
gestions of AN ASSISTANT TRADE9IIO'
Liverpool, May 12, 1848.
eolf
DREADFUL MURDERS NEAR SWANSEA.—At 9005
hour on Tuesday morning, the inhabitants of Pf[lioo•-
were alarmed by a report that a murder of a most Aces'
lical character, and under most aggravated circuMs"A
had been perpetrated on the persons of two uno9elboo
men, who resided with their families in the neighboures to
of the Marquis's Arms, on the road from 5iva11.5....09
Loughor. The facts of the case are briefly theseil
Monday night, a person named William Davies eroa''
" cwrw bath" in a small cottage adjoining
esthe, tll°
and within a few yards of the public-house ,:a.ekoki9
Marquis's Arms, kept by David Evan, the son 01
Evan, one of the murdered men. A company,
of about twenty persons, remained at the cottage 1" park
until about one o'clock. About half-past twelve, 9 awe
of Irish " navvies" entered the house. They rem they
there for about half an hour, during which tigieversa-
drank several pints of beer. They entered into eee, other
c
sation with the deceased John Williams, and sonw_„, o,
parties, saying that they had been discharged by_url;l,
the contractors at Loughor, and were then in set work'
work. It is said that Williams bad promised the4e
and asked them to visit next morning the part 0, 'a OP
where his contract lay. Soon afterwards it ael'ef.eolonsf
some words, arising probably from the feeling_retiph, e9:4.
and antipathy existing between the Irish and vv e name
sued between one of the " navvies" and a mai' closve.
Edward Morgan, who was eventually knoclF, Souor_:
One or two other men, who interfered on behaujues, ezd
gan, received blows about the head from
However, the injuries they sustained were not ',Jude"'
character. The scuffle then appears to have coon'', out'
and they left the house ; some say they were turn
others that they went voluntarily. A consider.,_elieo ;
ber of those who were in the house, including Juive time;
Hams, deceased, seem to have gone out at the soa jo!!_
but the majority immediately returned to the 11 1.701
Williams and one or two other persons—it watodlY aew
clear how many—being out. A little noise!
lm On
serving the name of a scuffle, was then made, 'T 00 in
after which a loud cry " Murder",
people rushing from the house, John 'Williams °Lilo one °
0,,
0,
Evan were found lying on the road lifeless, vow..
the " navvies" was observed to strike Evan 's e_ug;:vons7tio
spade. The murderers then made off towards
ts to Pe
r._,o
one or two of the other men made faint effor
°nu d tbew
them, but with no effect. The suddenness
nivse the
was heard'
0. 1011' 0-
The policemen were making every exertio,
,rick
result of the transaction appeared to have Paur'to' traeefi,
murderers, who are severally named "'Norris, Le
ahy
Michael Leary, Thomas Martin, William
John Norris.

".,

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Whai
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corr
Spar
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Etteraturr.

NOTICES.

50ri the Cure of Cataract, with a Practical Summary of
the best Modes of Operating (Continental and British)
by Hugh Neill, Surgeon to the Liverpool Eye and
Ray Infirmary. Liverpool : Deighton and Laughton.
London : Churchill. Imperial Octavo with Tables.
This work on the cure of cataract should be in the
ilands of every student and operating surgeon. To the
tormer it is strongly recommended by its brevity (a great
dcsideratum), and its being a compendium of the opinions
of the best writers on the subject—evincing much re-
search and labour—while to the latter, the very practical
nature of the remarks contained in Mr. Neill's sonata-
ton
. 5 must prove eminently useful. And to all this work
N15,7,a”1a.ab19 from the clear and simple style adopted. by Mr.
vio tu his writing ; a quality which so distinguishes the
Works of Pott, Hay, Cooper, and all our best surgeons.
Students have invariably felt the want of works which
Would
present within a small compass the opinions of the
various authorities on the several branches of surgery,
as
they have but little time for wading through the many
monographs with which our libraries abound. Here they
!'e_presentect to them in a concise and pleasing form, and
Liar discrepancies and errors carefully examined.
(ande Practitioner here finds as concisely laid before him
suit
yet sufficiently ample) Mr. Neill's opinions, the re-
_tut of an experience in the institution of which he is the
~'Perating surgeon, extending over a period of more than
loOorteen years, and'embracing between 700 and 800 cases
of Aeration for the cure of cataract.
tr 5 synoptic tables of the accidents in keratomia are
9 valuable.
acti
_.111,1r. Neill strongly advises the adoption of the operation
°!. reclination" in preference to " extraction," and con-
idering how very few of our English surgeons have given
d
tPiext ernselves to that particular operation (requiring so much
oerity and prce) he is right. Mr. Neill's mode of
dPuivting, and his lucid description of it cannot fail to be
In
appreciated by all practical men.
treating the very grave question of " when should
'l,cs'Peroation be performed ?" Mr. Neill observes—
indicnati.er" t a
as cataract is immature, the operation
operate
contra-
long as a‘ Some contend that it is imprudent tope t__u_
diated- b e Patient can see well with one eye—a preceptreP
affected others. There are those who operate upon the
twoo, be Ye when the other perfectly fulfils its functions. They
ev..e.luse quoth these, One sees better, you know, with
in one,;eira only one and because the presence of cataract
delusion: SPeeudly followed by cataract in the other. It is a
which
al, nowever, to suppose that operatin upon the eye
of the -ready has cataract stops the consecutive development
a_ . UlSease in the other. Besides it happens over and over
years, that individuals carry a cotaract in one eye for many
f,,',418, and even to the day of their death, without the fellow
becoming affected."
at the same gme he admits that it is no delusion to say
that " the operation on one eye will sometimes save the
other.''

Speaking of the "effects" of the operation, he says
What cannot be too forcibly impressed upon all young
operators :
'An injudicious operation sometimes sets up inflammation,
and destruction of the eye so tampered with, thereby bringing
Surgery into discredit and producing a deformity which did not
previously exist. Every surgeon, competent by observation to
bear faithful witness, will avouch the declaration that inflam-
Puitory action, after an incompetent or mal-adroit operation,
is not always confined to the eye operated on ; the sounder
organ may share the mischief and be equally destroyed. A
patient who could see ' something,' before his eye has been
licked by experimentalists, may find himself quite blind after-
wards."
IThe" few typographical errors, such as " Procidentia
ritis, Procidentia Iridis,"L'Appereil" for
l'APpareil" are unimportant, and the reader can easily
correct them. The printer's devil should be more
.B.llarply looked after in provincial publications especially.
e must confess that we do not know who the " Tele-
graphic poet of antiquity" was who wrote "Tempora
utantur et nos mutamur in illis."
At the end of the work, which contains, be it observed,
has excellencies of style and arrangement, the author
gone into details about Chloroform, its early history,
and its agency in other surgical cases than eye-surgery;
~_aP'd though we do not censure such, yet it seems to our
new-of
te the object of the work as presenting an illustration
I what is called in forensic logic " travelling out of
cord 2,
hii"We take leave of our townsman in the best of good
wornur. however ; and, whilst venturing to criticise, we
'beet wit\re nture a hope that so creditable a production may
o
h ,a„a.mple encouragement and success.
Publisher up of the book is very respectable, and the
fallsto 1.3 deserve encouragement beyond what usually
the lot of provincial enterprise.
Whit i•
A IngB from the West. By Abel Log. London :
i_ckermann and Co. 96, Strand; Liverpool: Joshua
licat air,Y, Co.,
Parts 1., 11., and 111.
iicive too long neglected to notice this lively pub-
town°o, which we learn is from the pen of a tellow-
of a"snion• Mr. Log is evidently and eminently possessed
es,, rich vein of quiet humour, which rather appears to
vi'aPe from him unwittingly than to be paraded with a
dee_w to excite admiration. is equally at home in the
I,7lcriptive ; and has viewed the splendid scenery, through
sornieb• he wiles along, with the feelings of a man who has
too—c. Poetry in his composition. There is a quaintness,
,lo his style—in the readiness and suddenness with
8144 he jumps from grave to gay, from pictures of the
IN 'Pe to their ridiculous accompaniments—which is
tileststibly pleasing. We had some hearty laughs over
fro description, in the first number, of the voyage out
tool the Mersey to the St. Lawrence; and the descrip-
di,ll gothe second of the arrival at Quebec, and of Cana-
-I,;°,iety, is not only pleasingly given but contains
r,o which has escaped the observation of mere book-
Ittilirri; tourists. The third number is occupied with the
t. 43 ;1' s adventures, in company with too moose 'hunters,
11,1,e`ew the majestic falls up the St. Maurice, or Black
I), fat—a portion of the country which has been explored
eol„,'N° Europeans, and of which little is known in the
t%';l3' itself except to the wild hunters and voyagers who
lave had to pass through it on their way to the
t4lll4'S Bay Compan' station, about eight hundred
distant from it. We shall be happy to welcome Mr.
; and fully expect to see him become an estab-
14vouriteCar with the public.
gni in London. Part 11. London : David Bogue,

_ .
86, Fleet-street.
L3:ll:berigravings, three in number, in the present num-
4les)s-`e very good; and the papers illustrating them, by
3Patkt• Oxenford, Albert Smith and Charles Kenny, are
Ing and happy efforts.
qoe 411
t Distinction, or Hearts and Homes. By Mrs.
bpiis, Author of " Women of England, &c. Illustrated
kli.
st Wareerre par I London : J. and F. Talus, 100, St.
t -t..
Prod Is new work of an authoress upon whose previous
IN. lotions we have had to bestow an ungrudged ineed of
Bpac e,
~eommences admirably, and even in the limited
'Orr or a first number, a deep interest is excited in the
to 113111 es of the various characters introduced. It promises
e less didactic than some of the previous works in
hide ; and to enforce, by means of the more lively ve-
lesso,, °f dramatic action and dialogue, equally valuable
as It is pt up by the publisher in the first style,
regards both typography and paper ; and the frontis-
f,piece
gnette with which it is ornamented, are per-
genis of the engraver's art.