The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1885-03-11

dU Iedu IuSlE SeTuOnS. lu6 TOleSSOT
expressed his thanks to the worthy man,
and the two separated. The advice was
anything but bad one. A lcentiate's
chances In a vacancy In an Irish Presby-
terrain church, if he read his sermons,
would be slight in the extreme. Eng
lishmen will listen to neatly arranged,
well read sermons Scotchmen will even
tolerate you, provided the matter of your
sermon is good-provided it is scholarly,
containing something more than mere
sprinkling of metaphysics. But Irish
men, as rule sit with Impotence under
read sermons, no matter what their class
or their character may be. Licentiates
here, accordingly, rarely read when on
trial. Some of them afterwards do &C
quire the habit, but the ministers of our
Church, speaking generally, do not usual
ly read their discourses. The matter
just stands thus Some would greatly
like to be permitted to read, but our peo-
pie Just as greatly desire that we do not
read them And so it is only ordinary
prudence to try and please our focks. l
have always considered it an awkward
method of accomplishing good results
running studiously, determinedly, and
rashly against mems prejudices. Better
to try and aim at being all things to all
men. But am forgetting myself am
beginning to preach to your readers.
Ulstermen.
The above observations apply more es-
pecially to Ulster The people of Ulster
are distinguished by habits of thought,
character, and utterance from the pure
Celts which inhabit the rest of the island
They resemble the Scotch in many par
ticulars. Unlike them, however, they
overflow in wit and humor. This humor
is both dry, caustic, and suggestive. Let
me give you an example of what | mean.
An old sexton "a caretaker of church
and churchyard) in county Armagh, was
asked of his dying wife" Andy dear,
have Just one request to make before l
die" What is it, Kitty p" az wish
you to carry me over to my own country
in county Tyrone and bury me with my
father and mother" The journey was
sixty miles. "Well, Kitty" was the an
swer, I'll try you here first in our own
meeting house green, and if ye give ony
trouble, I'll take you and bury you in
Tyrone" Here is another illustration of
Ulster character. In county Down, a
countryman whose old horse had sudden
ly died, took the skin to tarner. The
tanner said in the Scotch dialect pecu-
liar to the district: &c Gamma gle you
full price for this skin, its over sma. "
Here was the countryman's reply
That's quare. The aul horse wore it
twenty years and moir, and niver made
ony complaints about it being over sma. "
The Ulster man in courtesy of manner is
much inferior to the Celt Unlike the
Celt, however, they are the most adapta-
BILE and practical of men. They believe
in being able to stand alone. AS a peo-
pie, wherever they have gone, their plod-
ding industry and indefatigable perse-
verance has been usually crowned with
success.
A Crack Drained Hereto
The Edinburgh Presbytery has its
hands full of work at present DR.. Muir,
a Presbyterian minister in Leith, is caus-
ing It much trouble. This reverend di-
vine began his present notorious career
by invoking the Virgin Mary in his pull
pit prayers. Last Sabbath's utterances
seemingly cap any of his previous ones.
Speaking on the subject of the attempted
tloooloSlhoOlOu vi ~ DOuONdu 1GO-st, ne Is
reported to have said" A deed had
lately been committed of which he high |
ly approved. He hoped there would
arise a woman of equal courage to that
of Mrs. Dudley to put enough bullets
into him to defy the skill of all the ply |
sicians." the conduct of this reverend |
gentleman proves nothing against any
Church with which he may happen for
the time to be connected. Clearly DR.. |
Muir does not need Presbyterial disci-
pine so much as kindly, friendly re-
straint at the hands of his relatives The |
man is cracked, and strait jacket ought |
to be forthwith placed upon him
Evangelistic Work.
This is species of Christian work
greatly on the increase in Ireland. In
its present connection would define it |
as work engaged in outside the Church |.
properly so called. The services are
usually conducted by elders and Sabbath
School teachers. They are held in barns, |.
school houses, and in private dwellings |
all over the country. It's thought that
in this way the masses will be reached. /
To Judge by the attendance at these /.
meetings we would infer that they are
highly appreciated The audiences out
In remote country districts are sometimes |
numbered by hundreds. Clearly these |.
cottage meetings, as they are called, have |
reached a class of the community not
hitherto brOugbt i'm contact with the or /