The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1879-01-17
A Remarkable Preacher.

Octavius B. rockingham is styled Uni
tartan, but he is actually nationalist, the
most radical Of all the men named preach
ers in the metropolis. He has 40 church
and refuses to have any, having spoken for
six or seven years in n public hall. Recent
ly he has delivered his discourses in the
main hall of the Masonic building, Sixth
avenue and Twenty third street, his regu-
lar hearers being an organization called
the Free Religious Society. and paying
for their sittings. His salary is So, 900.
In many respects he is the most intellectual
and remarkable of New York preachers,
and pre-eminently man of ideas. Demo-
cratic as he tries co be, his antecedents are
in the opposite direction, as his training
and associations have been. He is Of
stlictly Brahmin stock, having been born
in Boston and graduated at Harvard, where
he stndied theology and was ordained IN
his 25th year. His father was DR.. Nathan
iel L. rockingham, also Unitarian dl-
vine of distinction and his mother
daughter of Peter C. Brooks, one of the
merchant princes of the Hub. He is in
very easy circumstances, would be consid-
cred rich out of New York, and has but
one child living, daughter grown up and
married. Very quiet and retiring, well
nigh clustered in his nature, he spends
much of his time in study, having no fond
ness for general society, and has very few
associates. Extremely kind hearted and
fnll of sympathy, it is said that he gives
away a great deal of money in various
kinds of charity, though he never let's his
left hand know what his right hand doeth.
rockingham has been termed Theodore
Parker's successor. though they have little
in common beyond rationalism, and a
spirit of philosophic inquiry. Their minds
differ materially, and the scientific research
es of the last 1S years-Pa Parker died in 1860.
have fashioned much of Frothingham's
thought. Parker was greatly Influenced
by the writings of Bauer, Eichborn and
DeWelle. rockingham has gone far
beyond them, dealing with the writings OF
Darwin, Tyndal and Huxley rather than
with German theologians. When he first
left New England he preached for some
time in Jersey City, but in two or three
years he gravitated to his natural place
the commercial capital of the ceuntry-and
there he has stayed. His sermons, or,
more properly, lectures, are delivered with
out manuscript or even notes, and yet the
arrangement is complete; every sentence,
pregnant with meaning and force, is as
clearly cut and finished as if it had been
worked over in the closet. His gift in this
particular is extraordinary. Ii seems i'm
possible that he can SO arrange and clothe
his thoughts mentally as to furnish and i'm
ish brilliant discourse. No other man 10
America, 80 far as am informed, has such
gift; it is really wonderful-indeed,
unique. His society is composed Of some
Of the best minds in the city, and intellect
nal strangers are often fouad sitting under
his ministration. His manner is calm,
graceful elegant and scholarly. He is % !;
tall, slender, glay-eysd, aquiline nosed ];
curly haired, with threads Of SILVER, and he
has the bearing and expression Of genuine
gentleman.