New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-05-29
ROBERTSON SMITH THE "HERETlC.o
From The London World.

Passing along Union-st.. Aberdeen, in westward
direction. about . o'clock of an afternoon, when
the colleges of the Granite City are IN session, the
chances are that you viii meteor might have met
before he was suspended-a slimly-bnllt young
man of small stature. Accompanied probably by
student-a budding dlvlne-to whom hc X chatting
checrfully and carrying beneath his few
books, there Is very little about his general appear
ance TO attract the attention OF stranger IL you
happen To stand aside for a moment, however, you
will perceive that one of two persons proceeding In
the same direction a. yourself, nudgcs hls compan:
ion they pass the little man, and both turn and
look after him. mere boy he looks and yet there
~ something unusually striking about the round,
cheerful bcardless face and dark brilliant eyes,
shaded by soft wideawake hat-somethng which
tells of hard study aud deep thought In a few
minutes he leaves the student. and, hurryng along
Crown-st., enters the door of his house. You then
discover that the person You have been watching il
none other than Mr.. William Robertson smith a
Free Church professor, the accomplished scholar,
ing the past few years fairly ontwIttcd tho
Fathers and Brethren in General Assembly, and
who has shaken ecclesiastical Scotland to III very
centre.
very plain house ontsidc is that inhabited by
Mr. Robertson Smith. and. as becomes the residence
of scholar, II Is a. PLAN inside. Beyond an ex-
ccllcnt library furnished with all the latest leading
works in theology philosophy and plnlology, there
is very little for visitor To notice. The only resi-
dents in the house are the Professor and his house
keeper. He seldom entcrtalns company, except
when of his friends from the s0nlI-i'rofessor
Candlish or mayhap Professor l-indsly-pay MN
visit and then few OF the local clergy ot hIs
Church, one of his colleagues III the College. ana
several others are invited 10 meet them The Pro-
fcssor's NOlubllity IL great and lac keeps mp run
ming fire of talk the whole evening. The next move
on the part of his friends at Presbyt'ry, synod or
Assembly ~ discussed and many of what his OppO-
ncnts consider fconiOus little schemes are Matched
then and there The charges which nave bren
brought against Professor Smith by section OF his
Church have Lcen ~ varied a. they have been nii-
merous. Approaching Holy Writ a. Hebrew
scholar, unsurpassed at the present day, he has
played sad havoc with some OF the old traditional
notions which, in Scotland particularly, have gath
red n.
writing any other laws than the Ten Command
mrntS; looks upon the story of Ruth. not ~ a lat,
cral picture of what occurred, but ~ a graceful
prosr idyl much of what is generally ascrbcd TO
SOLOMON he thinks was not written Ey hm n at Az
Mr. Smith was born AT keg Tough; beautiful
spot near the Vale of Afford; Ab'Id',@nsllire ID
Smith. ID. Free Church minister there. lie Lad
may br said to have occupied an educational hotbed
for the first dozen years of his life. II" .onld read
Hebrew at six years of age. lie was t,ducated az
Aberdeen University where he had most distn'
gnished career, a,lnatlng with honorS III logic,
philosophy and mathematics After leaving Ab'r.
deem he spent several years at the universities 81
Berlin Bonn and Gottingrn, his attention while
their being more particularly directed !" tnr s,ay
of the semitic languages. Soon aitrr returning ~
Scotland. and when only twenty-tour rars oi age
hr was appointed Professor OF Oriental Language.
and Old Testament ,EXcgrSls an the Free church
College Aberlcenn His distinguished talents and
scholarly research soon brought him INTO notice,
and he was chosen member OF the Bible keVision
of the stan of contributors 10 the new edition OF the
Encyclopedia Britannica y; and II ~ III connection
with his VT tings Biblical subjects To tins publ
cation that the proceedings for hcrcSy were first
taken. l. is now over four years since Professor
smiths article on the Bible appeared "a the Ency-
clOprdIa Several of the views set tofth regarding
some of the books of supplementary the Writings
of Moscs-wcr considerably IN advance of those
generally entertained m the Church 10 which flo
belongs. These views might however, have passed
unno:i,cd had Professor Smiths abilities not eX-
cited the Jeaousy of Established Church pro-
fcssor in Edinburgh University, who. with the EVIL
dent intention of at once damaging Professor
Smiths reputation. and doing an injury "a the
Church over the way. called attention Ia them.
When Professor Smith occupies any ot the pui-
pits IN Glasgow Edinburgh ar other OF III" large
towns IN Scotland. the churches are crowded. and
on "A recent occasion hundreds failed 10 gam admls-
sion. But he cannot bc sad To bc successful
hall aud not IN the church. During the yrar~ of ms
Suspension Professor Smith visited Eulopc and
Arabia for linguistic purposes lie traht lied mu'h
IN these cOunt rirs and his IcscaTC hes VIII r oi great
value 10 the learned world He brought home
cupic many ancient inscrptonsto h" found on Tie
monumental stones and building, There, ana several
which have hitherto haied the learned. he has II IN
believed been able Ia drriphcr. lie has been again
and again asked Ia leave his char for occupations
mor, distinguished and rcmuncratlyr; hut hr con
tlnurs To stick to II and l. determined 10 show that
freedom of inquiry il not Incompatible with tho
standards of the Free Church. The youth aud
Talent of scotland is on hi~ side: and whether he
win hi, last fight or lose II he viii have the salts
faction of having done much 10 a'lNanc" the real
and permanent interests of truth. II the FREQ
huloh parts with Professor Smith II Will not only
lost, it, most distinguished scholar and ablcst de-
batter bnt of the most sincere Biblical ciitlc5
which the century has produced.