The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1874-03-23
The Perfect Horse and the puluit.

Good Mr.. Murray OF Park Street Church,
Boston, mildly sug 1ested to his people that
he thought he would take little vacation of
six months. He also notified them that he
believed he must trouble them for salary OF
seven thousand dollars a year, instead OF the
sum hitherto pal /. Then some OF The dea-
cons and other seditious people, at a meet
ing of the society, said that they doubted
whether he had fairly earned the pittance
hitherto doled out to him. He had dsdained
to officiate at the ''obsequies" of his parish
toner's; for weddings he had no stomach; he
had also eschewed prayer meetings as If they
had been disreputable gatherings. Besides
he had written and delivered some dreadful
lectures, the recollection of which was pain
full to the malcontents. Finally, the church
had suffered, these ecclesiastical incendiaries
asirmed, both in membership and denomina-
uonal sanding from the inattention of Mr..
Murray 10 M pastoral duties and the general
turnness, II we hia,~@ay SO. with which he
had performed bis sacred ~, .4;o,,s 76
There are various opinions abor...,. ~
rays character and conduct, but there~oa,
hardly be any dispute about the fact that he
is the representative of class of preachers
who are bent upon making decided change
in the pastoral lite of the American Prostes-
tant clergy. Travellers tell how, in eastern
Siberia among the Tartars, the ignorant
peasants play cards and drink all Saturday
night with the priest and how, in the morn
ing, they stand in supcrstiiious awe before his
reverence, who, few hours ago, cheated them
out of their money, but who is now perform
ing his sacerdotal rites, duly arrayed in cas-
sock and other priestly vestments. The SEN
sational preacher of to-day is inclined to AFRO
gate to himself the free and easy life of lay
men without relinqnishing his claim to any
part Of the peculiar respect hitherto accorded
to 1.-THE CLOTH" In the first place, he does
not shrink from driving the sharpest and
hardest bargain he can with the people of the
world. He sells his services as he would 50
much real estate. There has always, perhaps,
been something of this kind latent in the
clerical nature, as well as in human nature in
general, but the popularity of the present
tendency is that all delicacy, and even the af-
fectation of dsinterested motives is abandon
ed, and Mr.. Murray calls upon his congrega-
ton to stand and deliver with as much cool
ness as if he were selling them dry goods in
stead Of distributing to them the bread of
lfe aas 4d 1868
In addition to this unreserve in putting a
pecuniary estimate on his services, the secu-
larized clergyman claims that he may right
fully and piously indulge such tastes as have
commonly been regarded wholly foreign to
his calling. Mr., Murray's trotter, the ssStar
ofthe South" a trotter that is regarded as
sure to save the Park st. ecclesiastic from
taking anybody's dust-is striking material
illustration of this conjunction of the pulpit
and the turf. Horse trotting and betting be.
ing in all parts of the country closely associa-
ted, the latter gets a qualified clerical en-
dorsement as well as the former.
1t is undoubtedly well for the clergy as well
as for everybody else to cultivate a taste for
invigorating out of door diversion, and their
theology will be all the more wholesome, hui
man, natural and effective from such health
and strength giving sports; but If their social
and out-of-door life is to be eonformed, not
only to that of the world, but to that of the
least reputable and DISTINGUISHED part of it,
their influence will be likely to suffer consid-
cradle dimnution. "