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MH. MACUUNNKLL IX TIIK Fl'LFIT. 
 
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 M.\( r '\\Ni'.j.i 
 
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*' Faith ful unto (tmth." 
 
 LIFE AND WORK 
 
 D. J. MACDONNELL 
 
 Minister ok St. Andrew's Church, Toroni 
 
 TO 
 
 WITH 
 
 A SELECTION OF SERMONS AND PRAYERS 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 PROF. J. F. McCURDY. Ph.D., LL.D. 
 
 M'H\^ |)ortrait8 anb Jllluslrationa 
 
 TORONTO: 
 
 WILLIAM BRIGGS 
 1897 
 
)2y '"A ^^^ 
 
 Kiitered occordin); to Act of the Parliament of Canada, in the year one 
 tliousand eight hundred and ninety-seven, by William BRioflH, at 
 the Department of Agriculture. 
 
'* Oh, Hlrong soul, hy what nhnrt^ 
 furriest thou now? For /hat force 
 Sure/i/ has not been left rain ! 
 Somewhere, surely, afar, 
 In the soundiny hibour-honse vast 
 Of being, is prnctised that strenyth, 
 Zealons, benejicent, firm ! " 
 
 " Was Du geironnen hast und was ye-<j)endet 
 Was deiner Liebe Fiille bot 
 Was Du beyonnen hast und was voUendet 
 Entwindet uimmer una der I'od." 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The principal object of the present work is to present a 
 life-like portraiture of a man of uni(|ue moral and intellec- 
 tual character, and one of the best beloved men of his 
 time — one who was also a strong and enduring force in the 
 religious life of his city, his denomination, and indeed of 
 the whole Dominion. All the available material that 
 could fairly illustrate his mental and spiritual develop- 
 ment, as well as his life-work, has been freely utilized. 
 
 A particular account is also given of the growth and 
 activity of St. Andrew's Church, Toronto, and of the 
 religious and moral work accomplished through it during 
 his pastorate. The enterprises of the Presbyterian Church 
 in which he took a prominent part, are also duly noticed, 
 as well as the public movements to which he lent his aid. 
 
 A place is also given to Mr. Macdonnell's friends and 
 co-workers, particularly !,hose who, like him, have fulfilled 
 their earthly labours. 
 
 The chapters that deal with Mr. Macdonnell's career up 
 to the time of his settlement in Toronto have been wi-itten 
 by his sister, Mrs. Robert Campbell, of IMontreal, whose 
 hand also appears frequently throughout the volume. 
 Dr. Campbell las dealt with "The Ecclesiastical Trial." 
 For nearly all of the remainder of the book the general 
 editor is directly responsible, but many loving friends have 
 
i\ 
 
 VI 
 
 I'HEFACE. 
 
 I 
 
 6 
 
 I 
 
 iiuulo iinportiiiit contributions, Anionj; these, special 
 mention is due here to Mr. Archihahi MiicMurdiy, wlio 
 \uiH ^iven valuable information with regard to the earliest 
 years of Mr. Maedonnell's Toronto ministry, and to Rev, 
 J. A. Macdonald, who, besides making a written contribu- 
 tion, has luid charge of the Ulustrations. 
 
 A word shouh! be said as to the selection of Sermons 
 and Prayers appended to the volutne. As a rule, Mr. 
 Macdonnell wrote out his discourses in full only in the 
 earlier years of his ministry. Durinj; the last ei<,'hteen 
 or twenty years he nearly always spoke from an abstract. 
 In a very few cases these are wi-itten continuously, so 
 that they may be printed without change. Such, for 
 e.\amp'e, is No. X. in the present selection. Tn the great 
 majority of instances, anything that represents his later 
 and mature thoughts remains in an abridged form un- 
 available for publication. It will l)e readily understood, 
 therefore, that at best we can give but a meagre and 
 inade({uate representation of his pulpit ettbrts. Only two 
 of the discourses Nos. VIT, and V^IIf. have had his 
 own revision. We can merely hope that the small col- 
 lection presents at least some of his dominating thoughts 
 and sentiments. 
 
 His written Prayers proceed mainly from the first ten 
 years of his ministry. It will be observed that the 
 language is coloured by the phraseology of the liturgies 
 which he delighted to rejid and study, especially the 
 £iicholotjion. 
 
 J. F. M. 
 
 Toronto, June 2n(l, 1897 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTKR I. lAOB 
 
 ChildliixMl and Si;Iiool-(layH • 
 
 CHAPTKR II. 
 
 A Liul lit (Jolleyy 1<^ 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 The Youtliful Teacher •>< 
 
 CHAPTKR IV. 
 
 In Scotlaiiil and (iermany -- 
 
 CHAPTKR V. 
 
 Mental Struggles and Ordination •i<> 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Ministry in Peterboro' - 43 
 
 CHAPTKR VII. 
 Marriage •^•* 
 
 CHAPTKR VIII. 
 The Call to Toronto 60 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 yt. Andrew's of the Old Time and the New . . . 05 
 
!! 
 
 if 
 
 !iil 
 
 Vlll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER X. PAOB 
 
 A Home Mission Church and Minister 74 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 Church Building and Church Union ..... 81 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Ecclesia-stical Trial 88 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 Sunshine in the Storm 136 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 " Gold Tried in the Fire " 146 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Building up St. Andrew's . . . . . . .155 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 The Alma Mater 162 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 Life's Tasks Made Clearer 169 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Losing and Helping . . . . . . . .178 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 The Hymnal— His Mother's Death 186 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 Tempting Offers and Sore Bereavements . . . .191 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 Augmentation ......... IW 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIf. 
 
 Strengthened and Strengtliening 
 
 • • 
 
 IX 
 
 I'AUR 
 
 210 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Work and Worship in St. Andrew's 
 
 • ■ 
 
 227 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Minister and Church in their Prime 
 
 235 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 The Temperance Question 
 
 242 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 A Kindred Spirit .^47 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Question of the Confession 
 
 254 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 The Equal Rights Movement 
 
 259 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 St. Mark's Church and Other Cares 
 
 275 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Visit to the Pacific Coast 
 
 281 
 
 St. Andrew's Institute 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 287 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 Travelling for Health 310 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Declining Strength and Added l)uti<>s . 
 
 .S20 
 
X CONTENTS. 
 
 chaptp:r XXXIV. 
 
 Deatli of Mrs. Macilonnell : Her Character and InHueiice 
 
 I'AOK 
 
 . 343 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 The Heroic Struggle 
 
 355 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 Sicknesa and Death 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 The Man and His Power . . . . 
 
 377 
 
 392 
 
 
 hi: 
 
 i 
 
 409 
 423 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 I. Creation Waiting for Deliverance 
 II. Faith 
 
 III. Hunger and Thirst After Righteousness . . . 430 
 
 IV. Surtering Love 438 
 
 V. The Knowledge of the Truth 442 
 
 VI. The Place and the Way 451 
 
 VII. Who May Be Coniniunicants in the Presbyterian 
 
 Church? 457 
 
 VIII. Death Abolished 474 
 
 IX. Citizenship in Heaven ...... 490 
 
 X. The True Consolation ...... 496 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 I. For the Forty -eighth Highlanders .... 499 
 
 II. A Morning Prayer for the Children .... 5<J0 
 
 III. Intercessory Prayer After Sermon on Rom. xii. 13 . 501 
 
 IV. Prayer After Sermon (m Ps. cxix. 18 . . . . 502 
 V. Prayer Before Communion ...... 503 
 
 VI. Prayer Aft Communion 505 
 
 r 
 
PORTRAITS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell in the Pulpit . 
 
 Bathurst Church and Manse .... 
 
 St. Andrew's Manse, Fergus—" Kirkhall," Fergus 
 
 St. Andrew's Church, Toronto (18.30-1877) 
 
 St. Andrew's Church, Toronto 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell in 1881 . . 
 
 St. Andrew's Institute ..... 
 
 The Chaplain of the 48th Highlanders . 
 
 Froiifhtpiece 
 
 rAOR 
 
 4 
 
 . 54 
 
 . 66 
 
 . 84 
 
 . 222 
 
 . .302 
 
 . 330 
 
 Mrs. Macdonnell 34H 
 
ERRATA. 
 
 Page 21 Lino 10, for " 1861 " read " 1800." 
 
 38 
 40 
 79 
 144 
 181 
 192 
 233 
 335 
 388 
 
 22, for " take " read " have." 
 
 26, for " Presbyterians" read " I'reshyteries." 
 
 21, for "McNabb" read "McNab." 
 
 9, for "they" read "James." 
 24, for "(Jeorge" read "(iregg." 
 11, after " Presbyterian" insert "church." 
 
 6, after "listener" insert " the." 
 26, for "29 "read "28." 
 
 1, for "veil" read "belt." 
 
CHAPTKR I. 
 
 CUILDIIOOn AX/) SCHOOL DAYS. 
 
 Fifty years a<ro the little town of Bathurst, New 
 liniiiswick, was a more tlii-iviii^r aiid imjjortant place 
 than iiii<,Mit seem probahle to the modern tourist. Its 
 little laiul-locked harbour was visited by numerous 
 ships employed in the extensive lumber tra.le of that 
 day, which, with fishino- and other industries, suj)- 
 ported a :aixed i)opnlation of native Aeadians and 
 enterprisin<r British settlers. To minister to the 
 spiritual needs of the Scottish section of this com- 
 munity, the Colonial Committee of the Church of 
 Scotland, in the year 1840, appointed the l^ev. (Jcor<rc 
 Macdonnell, who had just then completed his course 
 of study at Edinbur<rh University, and offered him- 
 self for forei^ni or colonial mission work. 
 
 Mr. Macdoimell's father had come, some twenty 
 years previously, from Kirkcaldy in Fifeshire, to 
 Halifax, Nova Scotia, with a younu- family. (Jcoro-o, 
 his eldest son, had been educated at the well-known' 
 classical school of ])r. Twinin^r j,, Halifax, and then, 
 ill compliance with his father's wish, entered the 
 merchant ofHce of the late Leander Starr. But a 
 desire cherished from childhood to serve Cod in the 
 
I I 
 
 2 LIFE OF n. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
 office of the ministry, led him, even in opposition to 
 tlie paternal arrangement to resi^rn the tempting 
 prospects of a mercantile career and spend ten years 
 in his native land in preparation for his chosen 
 life-work. 
 
 While otTering himself freely to the Colonial Com- 
 mittee for service in any land, it had been with the 
 hope that he might be sent to the North American 
 colonies, where so much of his life had alrea<ly been 
 spent, and to which he was bound by so many ties of 
 home and friendship : so that it was with a joyful 
 heart that he sailed from Liverpool for Bathurst in 
 August, 1840. 
 
 Shortly after his induction as minister of St. Luke's 
 Church, Bathurst, jMr. Macdonnell was married to 
 Eleanor, youngest daughter of Mr. James Milnes, of 
 Stubbinedge, Ashover, Derbyshire, who with her 
 widowed mother had spent most of her life in 
 Halifax. There, first as pupils, and subsecpiently as 
 teachers in the same Sabbath School, an attachment 
 had been formed, resultinji' in the lon<j entraiifement 
 of more than ten years, now so happily l)rought to 
 a close. The congregation at Bathurst warudy 
 welcomed their young minister and his wife, and 
 among this people were spent eleven years of 
 earnest work, such as the needs of the new country 
 and the missionary ardour of the worker called 
 forth. During these years, children, one after 
 another, were given to them, awakenhig in the 
 father and mother new views of life and duty. On 
 the 15th of January, 18413, their eldest son was born. 
 
 m 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCHOOL-DAYS. 
 
 3 
 
 and shortly after baptizt'd Danic! JaiiR's, in rt'ineni- 
 1 (ranee ol" his two ^randfatliers, thouj^ii the second 
 name was the only one ever used. 
 
 Anion^^ the inHuences that helped to mould the 
 character which in later life attained to such streni;th 
 and beauty, we must <;ive the first place to the atmos- 
 phere of the home — a home in which both parents were 
 profoandly impressed with the possibilities bound up 
 in the life of a child, and had constantly before 
 their minds the highest ideals of life and character 
 in the trainin«if of their children. " Plain living and 
 hi(,di thinking" is a phrase which is perhaps most 
 expressive of the underlying motives and inspirations 
 of their home management. The daily life of their 
 children was simple and healthful. No expensive 
 toys and few children's bocjks ever reache<l their 
 hands: but the simplest things gave them intense 
 pleasure, and contentment was one of the earliest 
 lessons they learned. 
 
 Early companionships and associations, too, had 
 their share in the formative process. There was 
 "good society" in Bathurst, using these words not 
 merelv in their conventional sense, but as meaninif 
 Christian people of culture and refinement, who took 
 time from the pursuit of mere wealth to fostei" the 
 wider and deeper life of heart and mind; whose 
 children had much the same sim])le upbringing as the 
 children of the manse. Hotels " wert' not " in those 
 days, and Mr. Macdonnell, with the Highland instinct 
 for hos])itality strongly dexeloped, counted it a privi- 
 lege to entertain wayfarers of high or low degree, by 
 
f 
 
 '1 
 1 
 
 i 
 
 ■i 
 
 1 1 
 
 4 LIFE OF 1). J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 wliieh means many an interesting strant^or spent a 
 niglit l»eneatli his roof, and many were tlu^ "fore- 
 gatherings " of ministers from up the Restigouclie and 
 from beyond tlie Miramiclii on their toilsonie journeys 
 to Presbytery or Synod : and many were tlie stirring 
 tales of adventure by forest roads or in ])ilot-])oats to 
 wliieh the children eagerly listened, and which were 
 treasured carefully for future use as the groundwork 
 of tragic dramas in the i^layroom. 
 
 An innate love of teaching and the desire to see 
 growing up in their minds something of his own 
 enthusiasm for study led Mr. Macdonnell to begin at 
 the earliest possible age the education of his children, 
 with the result that they were conjugating French • 
 verbs and declining Latin nouns at an age wdien 
 modern children are still in the kindergarten. If 
 this was a mistake, no perceptible harm was done in 
 this instance. The lessons were easily and cheerfully 
 learned, and left no sense of oppression on the child 
 mind, nor lessened in any degree the enjoyment of 
 play hours. 
 
 A pleasant picture frames itself before the ' 'ontal 
 vision of the writer, of the little white ciiurch and 
 manse on the sloping hillside overlooking the village, 
 and a (juaint grouji of pinafored, sun-bonneted, short- 
 jacketed little folk, who played " house " in the 
 manse garret, or in the pine grove beside the doctor's 
 house over the way, or paddled among the logs by 
 the water's edge, making long voyages, often disas- 
 trous, from which they arrived dripping and bedrag- 
 gled at the kitchen door, to be soundly lectured and 
 
 -^r- 
 
spent a 
 ^ "fore- 
 icho and 
 journeys 
 
 .stirring 
 boat.s to 
 ell were 
 ndwork 
 
 3 to see 
 lis own 
 )e<^in at 
 liildren, 
 French 
 e when 
 ien. If 
 done in 
 serfully 
 le child 
 iient of 
 
 ' 'ental 
 ch and 
 village, 
 , short- 
 in the 
 lector's 
 logs by 
 
 )edrag- 
 3d and 
 
 G 
 y. 
 
 -A 
 CO 
 
 K 
 
 > '^-^C^^^ 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCHOOL-DAYS. 
 
 5 
 
 carefully reclothod by the kind-hearted " Mar<;aivt," 
 who rcitrnod over those remoiis tor the time. 
 
 To leave these delif^hts und obey the call to lessons 
 must have been often a hardship for the fun-lovitij; 
 boy. But it was obeyed uneoinplainin*,dy, docility 
 and the desire to give satisfaction to parents and 
 friends having been his most marked characteristics at 
 that period, along with a conscientiousnes.s which was 
 the most pn^phetic of his qualities. But there was 
 more than this ; for it cannot be doubted that from 
 the earliest childhood his heart was given to Christ, 
 and his nature was always open to the gracious 
 influences of Heaven. The children of this family 
 were early taught to believe that they were of the 
 " household of faith," " heirs of the promises," and 
 to look forward to a growth in grace in the simplest 
 and most natural manner. If as a result of this 
 teaching no great crisis in the soul's history was 
 ever experienced, the end was reached as effectively 
 in this case, the Holy Spirit following with blessing 
 the faithful ministrations of the parents. 
 
 As soon as the older children could read fluently, a 
 series of Sunday afternoon readings was inaugurated, 
 and continued for many years, beginning punctually 
 at five o'clock, and terminated by the welcome sound 
 of the tea-bell. The books chosen were at first such 
 as " The Dairyman's Daughter," " The Shepherd of 
 Salisbury Plain," or some of Janeway's writings for 
 children, the character of the books growing more 
 formidable as years passed. These were followed by 
 Doddridge's " Rise and Progress of Religion m the 
 
6 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONXELL. 
 
 It 
 
 !l 
 
 I 
 
 Soul," Boston's "Crook in the Lot," Baxter's "Saints' 
 Itest," or " The Marrow of Modern Divinity," sonie- 
 tinies varied by biographies of the j^r<!at and j^ood 
 who had passed to tlieir reward. In tliis way a large 
 amount of reading was aeconiplislu'd whieh, while 
 undeniably fatiguing and often uncongenial to young 
 minds at the time, yet left its mark, and must be held 
 to hav(» been one of the restraining safeguards in times 
 of doubt and ditticulty in later years. 
 
 For the sake of companionship with other boys, 
 James was very early entered at the Grammar School 
 of the little town, and continued to attend it wliile 
 the family remained in Bathurst. Here the trials of 
 life began. Inheriting from his mother that shy and 
 sensitive temperament which i-entlers its possessor so 
 keenly alive both to pain and pleasure, many were 
 the tribulations " of this little scholar, scarcely seven 
 years old," understood only by the sympathetic 
 mother, tlien and always his close confidante. The 
 home training, however, was that which really made 
 an impression. Every event was turned to account 
 as the foundation of an object lesson. God's works 
 and ways in nature and jjrovidencc were constantly 
 kept before the young mind. School books were 
 little used ; reading lessons were oftenest from the 
 columns of such papers as the Times and Scotsman ; 
 geography was learned by a constant use of the 
 atlas to look up the places mentioned in the news- 
 paper articles. These things could not have been 
 uninteresting even to very young children, at a time 
 when the controversy, which culminated in the 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCHOOL-DAYS. 7 
 
 Crimean War, was aj;itatinf]f the minds of all Enr()|»«', 
 and political geoj^raphy was becoming such an cx- 
 citin*'" study. All tlie.se affairs were talk»'d of and 
 e.\i>laini'd to the children, who, while interested only 
 in " a tale that is told," neverthele.ss retained both 
 impressions and int'orniation. 
 
 And so a most uneventful childhood slipped (piietly 
 away, ^ivinjjj no hint or promise of the ener<jfy and 
 caj)aeity that distin<^Miislu'd the comiiif; years. It was 
 in the heart and mind of the father that hopes ^nd 
 visions of a worthy future «^rew and were cherished ; 
 and it is most touching to find recorded in the letters 
 and diaries of that date, how early this father's per- 
 sonal aims and ambitions became merged in plans 
 and provisions for the future of his children. Partly 
 influenced, no doubt, by the then prevalent idea 
 that the best of education could not be obtained 
 anywhere so well as in Britain, and by the superior 
 advantages there to be had at small cost, Mr, Mae- 
 donnell resigned his charge in Bathurst, and removed 
 with his family to Scotland early in 1M51. Ten 
 years, however, had so altered the aspect of things at 
 home, that only disappointment awaited his plans for 
 a settlement there, and he soon became more firmly 
 convinced than before that the work for which he was 
 suited lay in the colonies. In little more than a year, 
 a pressing request having come from the Kirk in 
 Upper Canada for recruits to man her ranks, Mr. 
 Macdonnell again turned his face westwards, landed 
 in New York late in the summer of 1852, and was 
 shortly afterwards settled as minister of Nelson and 
 
8 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 It 
 
 >v> 
 
 i 
 
 Waterdown, a congregation in the Presbytery of 
 Hamilton. 
 
 The year in Scotland had been rich in lessons of 
 many kinds to " the children from America," who 
 were such a source of wonder and curiosity, not 
 always kindly, to their Scottish school-mates. In 
 after days, this time was always looked back to as a 
 sort of visit to fairy land, of which many of the inci- 
 dents faded from memory, while others remained 
 clearly impressed. Princes Street Gardens, the 
 Queen's Park, iind Her Majesty's visit to Edinburgh 
 in 1851 ; Loch Lomond and the Clyde ; the Scottish 
 manses of Corstorphine, Dirleton and Riccarton, were 
 scenes that were never forgotten. The unpleasant- 
 nesses of school life at the Edinburgh Academy and 
 Kilmarnock High School were compensated for by 
 Saturday excursions to those delightful spots and 
 by the kindness of their father's friends in country 
 manses. 
 
 . New scenes and a totally new social atmosphere 
 were those to which the family found themselves 
 transplanted in their Upper Canadian home. A rich 
 farming land of orchards and meadows, a land liter- 
 ally " flowing with milk and honey," had fostered a 
 people whose very prosperity perhaps unfitted them 
 to sympathize with the view of life and duty so 
 uncompromisingly proclaimed to them Sabbath by 
 Sabbath ; and a short ministry of scarcely three 
 years ended somewhat abruptly in Mr. Macdonnell's 
 removal to St. Andrew's Church, Fergus in May, 1855. 
 But wherever the home, or whatever the circum- 
 
CHILDHOOD AND SCHOOL-DAYS. 
 
 stances, one of the first consitlorations of the parents 
 WiW that of schools and scliool-nmstors for tlieir cliil- 
 dren. In 1852 the hite Dr. Tassie, so well known 
 afterwards as head-master of the Gait Collegiate 
 Institute, was in charj^e of the Grannnar School at 
 Hamilton, and for the brief period preceding Mr. 
 Maedonnell's settlement in Nelson, his son was placed 
 under Mr. Tassie's care. The district school in Nelson 
 had about the same time selected as a teacher the late 
 Dr. Robert Douglas, then a student of Queen's College, 
 and und.u* his wise and kind-hearted direction James 
 made rapid progress, especially in classics, while the 
 home training went on as it had always done. Mean- 
 while Mr. Tassie had been ap])ointed head-master of 
 the Gait Grammar School, and in ]}S;54' James was 
 once more placed in his hands to be fitted for matric- 
 ulation at the University. The life at school was in 
 many ways uncongenial to the home-bred boy, but 
 the classical training was an invaluable foundation 
 for later studies. Dr. Tassie was perhajis the best 
 drill and disciplinarian to be found in the Province in 
 those days, entirely devoted to his work, an<l appre- 
 ciating a boy chiefly for his receptive faculty. He 
 did not fail to recognize the capacities of this pupil, 
 and so well prepared was James when he appeared 
 before the authorities of Queen's for matriculation in 
 October, 1855, that he stood first in his examinations 
 for entrance there, and carried off a scholarship of 
 $40. The result of the three sessions in Arts satisfied 
 even the high expectations of his father, and he 
 graduated B.A. with honors in the spring of 1858. 
 
i . 1 
 
 10 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I 
 
 II 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 A LAD AT COLLEdE. 
 
 Of the student life at Queen's, James' friend, 
 Miss jMaehar, the " Fidehs " of Canadian Hterature, 
 writes : " To leave the sheltering influence of home, 
 and enter upon the comparative freedom of college 
 life at twelve, is for most boys a hazardous experi- 
 ment. In the case, however, of the earnest and 
 conscientious boy whose character has already been 
 indicated, there was little risk. Even then his ani- 
 mating impulse and guiding star seemed to be what 
 they remained throughout life — the desire to follow 
 Christ and to do His duty. 
 
 " ' Like as a star 
 That niaketh not haste, 
 
 That taketh not rest, 
 Be always fullilling 
 
 Thy God-given 'hest.' 
 
 " That his warm and impulsive temperament, his 
 readiness to please others, laid him open to many 
 temptations, thei'c can be little doubt ; but these 
 seemed to be always so controlled liy the divine 
 inspiration of love to Christ, that faithfulness in 
 
 B' > 
 
A LAD AT COLLEGE. 
 
 11 
 
 study Jiiid l)lanK'les.siR'ss in recreation appeared ta 
 cost little effort. His natural] v straiirhtforward and 
 open nature lielped liini to maintain a record without 
 reproach. ' His eyes looked strai<jjht before him.' 
 
 " Prepared as he had been by careful home traininf]f, 
 as well as by a most ca])a])le school -master, he did not 
 find liis college work burdensome. The curriculum of 
 the university was like that of other Canadian col- 
 leges, considerably less a<lvanced than it has since 
 become, otherwise a boy of twelve could hardly be 
 expected to cope with it. Still, the work was of a 
 more advanced character than that which is usually 
 expected of school-boys of that age in the (Jrammar 
 School. But ' little Jemmy Macdonnell,' as he was 
 affectionately styled by friends, and even professors, 
 held his own manfully with fellow-students nnich his 
 senior, and at the close of the session carried oft' high 
 honors. 
 
 "Nor did the application to study re(|uired for this 
 success in the least impair the natural buoyancy of a 
 healthy nature. He was always ready to join his 
 comrades in the then favorite game of cricket, and 
 with his always characteristic love of music he was 
 somewhat famous for the charming and unaffected 
 way in which he sang simple songs, such as 'Amiie 
 Laurie," then at the height of its popularity; while 
 in church his sweet bovish voice could alwavs be 
 heard, clear and spirited, as it continued to be to the 
 close of his life. 
 
 " His winniujif charm of nature seemed to attract to 
 him fellow-students of the most dissimilar types. 
 
lriiirtBg?g -*!g g MJ ' - ' M ' ? » s" i ^'-''-^l-' ' '- ■* ' « ' ■''' 
 
 12 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNEM-. 
 
 One ol' his oiirliest collofj^o comrades — liis rooni-iuate 
 during' the first session — then an inipidsive youn^ 
 Celt, afterwards a distingnislied pupil of the famous 
 Dr. Syme, is now well known throughout the Western 
 States as ])r. Donald Maclean, one of tlie most 
 eminent surgeons in America. A friend much older 
 than himself, vet drawn to him hv close atteetion, is 
 now ])r. James J)ou<;-las, at that time destined for 
 the ministry, but afterwards led by circumstances to 
 enter into scientific and niininj^ pursuits. 
 
 "Amonfir his ])rofessors were two o*" the most able 
 and esteemed teachers who ever adorned (Queen's 
 University, the latti Dr. .James (George, and the vener- 
 able Di'. James Williamson, who preceded his pupil 
 into the 'alley of tlie shadow by only a few months. 
 Both of these professors were much appreciated by 
 Mr. Macdonnell, and in the case of J)r. Williamson 
 the fi"ien<lsliip then bei;un lastecl till the venerable 
 professor's lon<;- and useful life closed. 
 
 "Circumstances led to Mr. Macdonnell's spending 
 his second session at college, and also one of the later 
 sessions in his theoioii'lcal course in St. Andrew's 
 manse, Kingston, under the fatherly care of the late 
 Rev. Dr. Machar, for many years the well-known 
 minister of St. Andrew's Church, Kingston, and also 
 for some ten years Principal of Queen's University. 
 Dr. Machar's only son, John Mjuile ]\hichar, Q.C., was 
 ^.le of his classmates that year — though a year before 
 him in college standing: — and the bovs pursued their 
 studies together, with benefit to both. With all the 
 members of the manse family the intimacy then 
 
A LAI) AT COLL KG E. 
 
 13 
 
 lK'<nm t'ontiiuied coivlial and unl^rokt'ii tlirouijfh life. 
 ])r. Machar was an object of Jiuich veneration to the 
 voun;^ divinity student, and in his own pastoral life 
 he afterwards made hini, in some respects, his model. 
 Toward his motherly friend, Mrs. Maehar, his atl'ee- 
 tion was thront;"hout his after life almost that of a 
 son, and lier rare o-ifts of mind and heart and true 
 nohility of character helped to mould his own at the 
 most ])lastic time of a boy's life. Her unusual 
 breadth of mind as well as her practical Christian 
 wisdom had also a ^reat intiuence on his own mind 
 and spirit, and were amont^ the numerous hidden 
 s])rini;s which fed his spiritual being and enriched 
 the fund of thought and experience from which he 
 was enabled to preach for so many years with so 
 nnich benefit to many hearts and souls. Thi'oughout 
 after life, as long as Mrs. Maehar lived, he never lost 
 his high regard for her Christian judgment, which on 
 an important occasion he thus expi'essed: ' There is 
 liardly a living man, or woman either, whose counsel 
 I value so nuich as I do vours.' One of his lea<liniif 
 characteristics, perhaps next to his docility, was, that 
 he seeme(l impelled by the law of his being to throw 
 his whole heart and interest into all that he under- 
 took. A game of cro([uet woul<i engross his whole 
 attention while he played: and he always obeyed the 
 scriptural injunctiim to 'do with his might whatso- 
 ever his hand found to do.' " 
 
 The sunnner holidavs tlui'ing those veai's, spent at 
 Fergus, were seasons of intense enjoyment, llelea.sed 
 from the strain of college routine, James was at once 
 
i 
 
 14 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ' ■ 
 
 II 
 
 J 
 
 the li<;ht-li carted, fuii-hjving boy a;;jiin, witlK^ut a 
 care, ready tor any frolic. Of tlie otlier nieinljers of 
 tlie family, an eider sister and one youn<fer brother 
 were so nearly of liis own age, that they had always 
 shared tlie same tastes and pursuits, while the remain- 
 ing brother, some years younger, was regarded as 
 belonging to a different era, a little pei'soii to be 
 patronized rather than made a companion of. He, 
 however, bore this philoso])hieally, and the relations 
 of the various members of the home circle to each 
 other were affectionate and happy, though the Scottish 
 reserve in their natures did not admit of ver}^ much 
 demonstrativeness. In a busv household like their 
 mother's there was occupation for all. There was 
 the horse to be cared for, the store of winter firewood 
 to be prepared ami piled away, and their mother's 
 garden to be weeded and raked. By way of more 
 undeniable " recreation " there were cricket with the 
 village boys on the " common," swimming above the 
 mill-dam, or long tramps to favourite trout streams 
 and triumphant return with the shining spoil. 
 
 As a lad of eighteen, he preached his first sermon 
 while on one of these excursions. The boys set out 
 early in the week on a trip to the Saugeen and the 
 Maitland, famous trout streams in those da^'s — send- 
 ing on tlieir baggage by stage and fishing all the 
 streams they' crossed on the way to Allan Park, in 
 the County of Grey, where they were to spend Sun- 
 day. Kere a very interesting Glasgow family of 
 three old bachelors, with a maiden sister, had " spread 
 their table in the wilderness," and dispensed Scottish 
 
A LAD AT COLLEGE. 
 
 15 
 
 lioKpitality to such wayfarers. The father of the 
 fishermen, who liad an episcopal oversight of all the 
 district between Fergus and Lake Huron, must needs 
 iin])rove the occasion to have preachini^ on Sunday — 
 ministers and churches bein<; almost unknown in that 
 district at the time — and had sent forward the an- 
 nouncement that James would pn-ach, which was 
 duly intimated to the settlers, and a sermon was put 
 into the " carpet-ba<]^." 
 
 The fishermen arrived on Friday at Allan Park, 
 much in need of the changes of raiment that w^re 
 expected to be awaiting them there, but to their con- 
 sternation no Vtaggage had arrived. The Saturday 
 stajie came, but brouirht nothin<:;. Here was a situ- 
 ation ! No clothes; no sermon! What was to be 
 done? To preach in the garments in which he had 
 been wadin<:: the trout streams, crawlinf; throu<;h the 
 underbrush, and mired in the swamp, would not be 
 for edification. And then the sermon ! However, 
 there was nothing for it but to go ahead. Saturday 
 night and Sunday morning were spent by the divinity 
 student in hard work, and a sermon was got ready. 
 Then the neighbourhood was placed under contribu- 
 tion to furnish forth the preacher in suitable habili- 
 ments ; and so it was that when church time came he 
 ap[)eared in a reverend suit of solenni black, though 
 no doubt the clerical tailor would have shuddered 
 could he have beheld the cut and fit of the garments. 
 There was in the middle of that sermon what might 
 have seemed like a painful pause, not easily accounted 
 for; but it came to an end, and the sermon to its 
 
i 
 
 U 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNKLL. 
 
 conclusion, and the good settlors wont home (|uite 
 unconscious of the difficulties under which tiieir 
 spiritual wants had been ministered to. 
 
 Lon<ij delightful hours were spent during these 
 sunnnor days in reading aloud, while mother and 
 sister stitched away at " band and gusset and seam " 
 of the household sewing (for the sewing-machine 
 agent had not then penetrated so far into the inte- 
 rior), and all could listen undisturbed to the lines of 
 Macaulay, Kinglake, Proscott or C-arlyle, Sc(jtt, 
 J)ickons, or the later English poets. James' taste for 
 ])oetry was first awakened by a " Lalla Kookh," which 
 had been one of his earliest prizes. It was a finely 
 illustrated copy, and the gorgeous descriptions and 
 flowinir metre cauirht his ear and kindled his imagi- 
 nation. The poetry of Scott and Tenn^'son aroused 
 his dormant interest in nature. Season after season 
 came and went, leaving their mark on the fast matur- 
 ing mind and body, the spii'itual part of his nature 
 opening out like a flower before the morning sun. 
 Ho was learning from many teachers outside the 
 walls of home or college, but he seemed possessed of 
 some mental alembic by means of which he absorbed 
 only the good and rejected the evil. 
 
 Yet it was not always " sunshine in the soul " even 
 of this happy young Christian. There were times 
 when a sense of personal unworthiness and self- 
 diatrust weighed heavily on his heart, when his 
 almost morbid conscientiousness, together with the 
 sensitive poetic temperament, derived from his Celtic 
 ancestry, plunged him into depths of despondency. 
 
A LAD AT COIJ.Er.K. 
 
 ir 
 
 omc (luitc 
 hich their 
 
 rinir tliose 
 iiothor and 
 and seam " 
 [ig-niachine 
 
 the inte- 
 ,he lines of 
 lyle, Sc(3tt, 
 es' taste for 
 okh," which 
 k'as a finely 
 •iptions and 
 
 1 his iniagi- 
 son aroused 
 ifter season 
 
 Fast niatnr- 
 ' his nature 
 orning sun. 
 outside the 
 possessed of 
 lie absorbed 
 
 soul" even 
 were times 
 Is and self- 
 when his 
 with the 
 his Celtic 
 [espondency. 
 
 One of tlu'se seasons is |)articular]y remembered, as 
 foliovvinii' close) V after Ids Hrst eonniuuilon, whicli had 
 been a season of ]»i<;"h spiritual enjoyment — a fact 
 which needs no explanation to the experienced Chris- 
 tian. The wise counsels of his father helped him out 
 of this '■ sIou<;"h of despond " to firmer footi!i<;- on the 
 Rock of A^rrs, j)ointin^" iiim jiway from self and too 
 much self-dissection, and urji-iiiir more absolute de- 
 pendence on the only Mediator and atonini^ Sacrifice. 
 A friend who came to know him better in after 
 days, looking- back to that time says: "What I 
 remeud)er particidarly about James Ahicdonnell is the 
 joyous, happy way in which he used to come runninir 
 into the ofKce, wluni he came home foi- his holidays, 
 and his hearty, friendly way of holdini;' out his hand 
 with such a, cheery ' How do you do :* How are 
 you all r — at the same time gi\ino- one a handsliake 
 worthy the name. Of course, as vc^u belonued to 
 the Old Kirk, and we to the Free, our ac((uaintance, 
 stran^'e as it may seem nowadays, was very slight 
 But when the son of the Old Kirk manse married the 
 beautiful, nuich-loved daun'hter of the Free manse, 
 Melville con((reo-ation adopted James .Alacdonnell and 
 took him to their hearts." 
 
1 
 
 18 
 
 LIFE OK D. .). MACDONNELL. 
 
 I 
 
 11 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 TJIK YOUTHFUL TEACH 1:11. 
 
 It had been kept in miiul all throuo^li lii.s college 
 course that as soon as circnniHtaiices permitted, James 
 was to seek employment as a teacher : not only that 
 he might thereby help to eke out the slender home 
 finances, but because his father had very early 
 impressed upon his mind his own estimate of the 
 office of a teacher of youth, as next in im]>ortanee to 
 that of the Christian ministry itself, and atibrding 
 the most valuable assistance to a young man with 
 that ministry in view, in the way of developing and 
 strengthening self-reliance, and the best methods of 
 inlluencing other minds. His first effort in this new 
 hue was made when little more than fifteen years of 
 age, just after receiving his degree of B.A. at Queen's 
 University, and the scene of his initiation was the 
 village of Vankleek Hill. One can easily suppose 
 that the trustees nuist have stood somewhat anfliast 
 when this very 3'-outhful school-master presented 
 himself as the successful candidate for the position 
 of head-master of their Grammar School. But they 
 had no occasion to regret the choice they had made 
 on the strength of testimonials from the authorities 
 of Queen's and personal friends. 
 
THE YOUTHFUL TKACHEK. 
 
 19 
 
 On his cancer as a teacher he somctiinos looked 
 itack witli atnusement, and olten expressed his wonder 
 
 I his collcf^e 
 itted, James 
 )t only that 
 lender home 
 very early 
 mate of the 
 nportance to 
 lid art'ordin*!; 
 (V nian with 
 /elopin*]; and 
 methods of 
 in this new 
 leen years ofc 
 at Queen's 
 ,ion was the 
 .sily suppose 
 what agliast 
 |er presented 
 the position 
 ,1. But they 
 ,y had made 
 e authorities 
 
 d 
 
 at its coiiip.iratiV(» success, cojisiderinn; his youth an( 
 lack of speeiile trainintj^. lUit he went into it as into 
 all tliin^^s, with a conscientiousness and a sense of 
 responsiliility toward his pupils which made him 
 spent! himself in hours of private preparation, and 
 hrin;^^ ijito usi' all liis various ac(piirements for their 
 benefit without stint. 
 
 Thus early the life that he lived was a sweetenin*^ 
 and uplifting,' influence, shed ahi'oad unconsciously ; 
 the outLrrowth of the inward desire to consecrate his 
 whoh; being to the service of CJod in the spirit of the 
 conmiand, " Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are 
 true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things 
 are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever 
 things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good 
 report: think on these things." These words may 
 be said to have formed the keynote of his harmonious^ 
 life-ionjj: Christian character. 
 
 In October, 1859, he was otl'ered the assistant mas- 
 tership of the Queen's College Preparatory School, an 
 upward step he was strongly advi.sed to take. The 
 institution of this school was contemporaneous with 
 that of the college itself. Early in the forties the 
 few Grannnar schools in the country were widely 
 scattered. Young men from rural districts, who then, 
 as now, constituted the majority of the candidates 
 for the ministry, had therefore to go from home in 
 any case in order to prepare for the matriculation 
 examination at Queen's, and the authorities of the 
 college wisely concluded that they mifjht as well 
 
20 
 
 LIFE OF D. J, MACDONNELL. 
 
 come to Kingston at once, and receive their prepara- 
 tory training under tlie eye of the prot'csHcn-s. For 
 u[)wards of twenty years this ])reparatory depart- 
 ment was maintainetl, under a succession of efficient 
 teaciiers. The scliool was largely taken advantage 
 of also by the citizens of Kingston, whose sons were 
 destined for the University, and who discerned its 
 superiority to the ordinary (Jrammar School. Here 
 Mr. Macdonnell was brought into contact, first, with 
 a number of young men having the nnnistry in 
 view, and, secondly, with about threescore of the 
 youth of Kingston, many of whom afterwards dis- 
 tinguislied themselves at the University, and have 
 since been heard of in the larger university of the 
 world. The position was, therefore, not without its 
 attractions, although the work was hard and the 
 remuneration small. 
 
 The appointment of his assistants lay with the head- 
 master, who at this time chanced to be Mr. Robert 
 Campbell, M.A., now minister of St. Gabriel Church, 
 Montreal, and joint-clerk of the General Assembly. 
 Mr. Campbell had taken note of the brilliant univer- 
 sity course of his young friend, and had formed a 
 high estimate of his abilities and character, and, with 
 the view of adding to the popularity of the school, 
 he oftered him the position, and it was accepted. 
 
 The new assistant threw himself into his work 
 with fidelity and zeal, and there are not a few 
 ministers, lawyers, judges, and other citizei s of Can- 
 ada to-day, who ascribe much of their success in life 
 to the enthusiasm for lea,rning kindled in them by 
 
THK YOUTHFUL TEACHEll. 
 
 21 
 
 • prcpava- 
 ors. For 
 y (lopart- 
 f erticiout 
 ndvantaj^e 
 sons wore 
 ,ctn'ne<l its 
 3ol. Hero 
 
 first, with 
 unistry in 
 )ro of the 
 wards <lis- 
 
 und have 
 Hity ot' the 
 witliout its 
 xl and the 
 
 h the head- 
 Ur. llobert 
 iel Church, 
 Assembly, 
 iuit luiivor- 
 d formed a 
 r, and, with 
 the school, 
 eptod. 
 
 o his work 
 not a few 
 0) s of Can- 
 ccoss in life 
 iu them by 
 
 Mr. Macflotmell, wlien ho was one of tlie inasterH of 
 (Quern's ('()ll('<,^e School. His associntioii with Mr. 
 Campbell in this work laid tin; foundation of that 
 intimacy which (h-velopod into a friendshi[», confi- 
 dence and sympatliy, remainin;^' not only unbroken 
 for thirty-seven years, but increasint^ in dcptli and 
 forvonr till tlie last. 
 
 The en<ra<i:ement at Kin^-ston came to an end, owiufj 
 to some chan;iics in the mana<;omont, in the autunni 
 of 1>S()1. and of liis next adventure as head-master 
 at Wardsville, his dear and valued friend. Professor 
 Hai't, of .\binitol)a Colle(r(', writes: "I was the first 
 teaclier, and when I returned to (^hieen's to bc^dn 
 my course in tlieolooy, on my reconnnendation Mr. 
 i\bicdonnt'll was appointed my successor, and entered 
 on his (hities in .binuary, bSG2. Voun«; thou^di lie 
 was, younger than many of liis pupils, his success 
 amonii* tliem was verv iiTeat. I have met with a 
 number of his old pupils in Manitoba, who all speak 
 in the warmest terms of the <,^ood they n^ceived from 
 him, and their allection for him." 
 
 Here he remained till the midsununer of 18G:^. In 
 October of that vear he sailed for Claso-ow, there to 
 continue the theoloi^ical studies which lu> had been 
 carrying' on along with his work as a teacher in the 
 school at Kingston. This .stop had been part of his 
 father's plan for him for years, the one regret he 
 had in coiinection with it being that it involved liis 
 absence on the occasion of his only si.ster's marriage, 
 in December, 18G3, to the Rev. Robert Campbell, of 
 Calt, formerly head-master of the Queen's College 
 ISchool. 
 
Jjl 
 
 I 
 
 22 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 § 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 IX SCOTLAND AND GEIiMANY. 
 
 I . 
 
 
 As a divinity student at Queen's, James had re- 
 ceived from Principal Leitch thorough drill in " Hill's 
 Divinity " and " Butler's Analogy," in addition to 
 which he prepared with great care for examination 
 before the Presbytery of Guelph, the reading pre- 
 scribed by it, " Pearson on the Creed," and " Magee 
 on the Atonement," giving especial attention to the 
 valuable notes appended to those works. Thus his 
 mind was thoroughly indoctrinated in the generally 
 accepted views of the foundations on which the 
 Christian faith rests, having come in contact both 
 at home and in college onl}^ with those positive views 
 of truth crystallized in the Thirty-nine Articles of the 
 Church of England, and the Westminster standards 
 of the Church of Scotland. His residence abroad 
 for three years, and the course of study which he 
 pursued in Scotland and Germany during that period, 
 cannot be said to have seriously affected his views 
 on any of the great verities. It did give him a 
 wider outlook, a new mental posture. Not that he 
 became a disciple of any one school of thought, 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMANY. 
 
 cs had re- 
 [ in " Hill's 
 iddition to 
 samination 
 adiiig pre- 
 id " Mageo 
 tion to the 
 Thus his 
 generally 
 which the 
 intact both 
 itive views 
 ides of the 
 standards 
 [nee abroad 
 which he 
 that period, 
 his views 
 rive him a 
 ot that he 
 i' thought, 
 
 hut tiiat liis ardent receptive nature, with faculties 
 ripened and wits sharpened by the activities of life 
 in ( 'aiiada, was just in the condition to reap the 
 t'ldlest advantage from the privileges, educational 
 and social, which he enjoyed during his stay in 
 Kdinbur<di and on the Continent. He liad been too 
 young, when a ])upil in the famous academy in 1851, 
 to be much influenced by the atmosphere of the insti- 
 tution, but on ])is return in 18(J4, hv entered fully 
 into the life of tlie grand old city and drank deeply 
 of its spirit of general culture. Just emerged from 
 his bright and buoyant youth, he was growing into a 
 man whose most cherislied desire was to find and 
 follow the truth on all subjects. The world broad- 
 ened out before him as he looked into the future ; he 
 saw and learned, fed and was strengthened. To such 
 inlluences, more than to the classes of the University, 
 he looked back as important factors in his spiritual 
 and intellectual m-owth. 
 
 The session of 18G3-C4 he spent at Glasgow Uni- 
 versity, where ])r. John Caird then occupied the chair 
 of divinity. It was in his class that James was first 
 brought in contact with the new spirit that about 
 this time had come into the air in Great Britain — the 
 spirit of in(piiry, which declined to assume that a 
 finality had been reached in the search after truth, 
 even revealed truth. He could not accept the teach- 
 ing; of Caird as altoo'ether satisfactorv because of its 
 indefinlLuuess : but there can be no doubt that the in- 
 terrogations with which these lectures were permeated 
 contributed largely to the establishment of his final 
 
I II 
 
 i 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 1 i 
 
 
 ;, 
 
 1 f 
 
 1 
 
 ■1' 
 
 1 
 
 d 
 
 
 hUL. 
 
 24- 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 mental attitude. Writing' to his brother George, from 
 Berlin, in 18(>o, he thus refers to Dr. Caird's teaching : 
 " Alacdougall and I used to talk over difficulties to- 
 gether when we were set thinking by Dr. Caird's 
 lectuies — and I have never heard lectures like them 
 for making you think — and our conclusions were far 
 from clear or satisfactory. He says that he is still 
 theologically gro])ing in the darkness, or rather slowly 
 feeling his way back to orthodoxy and becoming 'in- 
 tensely conservative.' I dare say that is what it comes 
 to in the end, or, as you put it, ' after all we fall into 
 the old routine.' In any case, we must not, in rebel- 
 liousness against chains and fetters, ignore what is 
 great and good and true in the past." Among the 
 preachers whom he heard in (dasgow he preferred 
 Dr. Norman Abicleod, of the Barony Church, whose 
 simple diction, tine connnon-sense, and generous 
 sympathies had a fascination for young men, not 
 unlike that which he himself came to exercise in later 
 years. 
 
 The excellent training in Hebiew which, as a stu- 
 dent at Queen's, had been received from Professor 
 Mowat, now enable<l him, without special effort, to 
 carry off the Hebrew prize of tln' year in Professor 
 Weir's class, and althouiih he did not afterwards 
 prosecute that line of study, the insiglit he then 
 obtained into Oriental languages qualified him for 
 appreciating the literature bi-aring upon the Old 
 Testament Scriptures, with which his professional 
 work in after years brought him in contact. 
 
 The winter of KSG4-(j') was passed in Edinburgh. 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMANY. 
 
 25 
 
 Drgc,from 
 teaching : 
 julties to- 
 ►r. Caird's 
 like them 
 s were far 
 he is still 
 her slowly 
 oining 'in- 
 at it comes 
 'e fall into 
 t, in rebel - 
 -e what is 
 Vmong the 
 ■ preferred 
 rch, whose 
 ffenerous 
 men, not 
 lise in later 
 
 \\, as a stu- 
 
 Professor 
 
 effort, to 
 
 Professor 
 
 tifterwards 
 
 t he then 
 
 I him for 
 
 the Old 
 
 ofessional 
 
 act. 
 
 Edinburgh. 
 
 Dr. Crawford, who was then Professor of Divinity 
 in Edinburgh, "walked in the old paths," but there 
 was much vigour and freshness in his teaching, and 
 his personality^ was so lova1)le that he strongly at- 
 tracted this eager and earnest young student, l^ut 
 the man above all others among Edinburgh professors 
 wlio most influenced his future mental attitude was 
 Dr. Robert Lee, who tilled the chair of Biblical criti- 
 cism, and this notwithstanding that his intellectual 
 coldness and critical spirit rather repelled James. 
 Yet Dr. Lee did in the line of Scripture criticism 
 what Dr. Cair<l had done in that of theological 
 si)eculation — compelled the candid young thinker to 
 review many of the positions which he had been 
 ti'ained to consider fixed ; and here, too, he was made 
 to feel that a finality had not been reached in the 
 search after truth. 
 
 The process by which he gradually reached that 
 attitude of mind characteristic of his public teaching 
 — one of entire candour, a desire above all things to 
 know and teach the truth — was completed by a resi- 
 dence in Germany from the sunnner of LSG5 till the 
 spring of 18()G. Li that country he found that tradi- 
 tion and authority went for little; everything was 
 tested bv the touchstone of historical evidence and 
 intellectual criticism ; an<l althoui^h he did not become 
 as enthusia.stic over German scholarship as did some 
 other students of the time, yet he could not but be 
 influenced by the temper of things he found in that 
 country. Dr. Dorner, of Berlin, was the teacher by 
 wh(.)m he was most attracted. Of him James thus 
 
^ 
 
 1 
 
 ' 
 
 
 tl 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 1 
 
 26 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 writes in the letter already quoted : " Dorner, among 
 the theological professors, pleases me best, though he 
 is sometimes very cloudy. He is candid and fair in 
 discussing a subject; moreover, he is on the whole 
 orthodox. Vatke is at the opposite pole. He belongs 
 to the school of Hegel, and interprets Scripture in the 
 light of that system of philosophy. The sweeping 
 assertions he makes and the arbitrary interpretations 
 he puts on passages of Scripture that don't hang 
 together with this theory are highly entertaining. 
 Hengstenberg is as orthodox and as dogmatic as the 
 day is long. I think if anything would be likely to 
 drive an honest inquirer into scepticism it would be 
 Hengstenberg's mode of defending the truth. Dorner 
 is the general favourite, and I believe him to be an 
 excellent Christian man. German professors are cer- 
 tainly not afraid to say what they think (winch is 
 often absurd enough). Scotch professors to a great 
 extent are, owing I suppose to their tongues being 
 tied by the Confession of Faith." 
 
 In reference to the influence of these teachers upon 
 his intellectual life, Professor McCurdy thus writes : 
 " It may appear remarkable that his Scottish and 
 German studies under such men as these did not 
 result in a more pronounced permanent tendency to 
 theological and philosophical speculation ; but in 
 truth, the influence of such teachers upon a mind like 
 his could not but be indirect and general, however 
 strong and lasting. His intellect was of a so essen- 
 tially positive cast that no tendency to theorize was 
 ever allowed to lure him away beyond the bounds of 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMANY. 
 
 27 
 
 the practical life of the soul and spirit. The same 
 temper of mind which led hiin to crave with such 
 intense earnestness indubitable authority for all the 
 do<niiatic statements of our faith, forced him also to 
 drop any theme or idea of speculative theolo^^y which 
 had not to do with the vital spiritual interests of 
 men. But the mental discipline gained from these 
 and kindred studies was a great and inalienable 
 possession," 
 
 That he did not acqinre a more perfect knowledge 
 of (Jerman literature during his short stay on the 
 Continent was to him a source of disappointment ; 
 nor did he, when once he became immersed in the 
 activities of the pastorate, iind it easy to keep up 
 steadily his study of the language, the lack of time 
 for which he often regretted. If, however, not nuich 
 was gained in the way of technical schohirship 
 during the year abroad, he turned his time, according 
 to his wont, to the best possible advantage from 
 other points of view. (Jermany itself, the home-life 
 of the people, German music and song, German 
 scenery and character — all these and nnich more he 
 delighted in, and gleaned from it all a " store of 
 golden grain." 
 
 The suunner vacation of 18(!4 was largely spent in 
 excursions on foot, or by any chance conveyance, 
 through the Bernese Oberland and on to Paris, some- 
 times in company with young English or American 
 tourists out like himself for a h(>liday tramp : at one 
 point, with a " German tailor and his wife, ([uite 
 interesting people:" sometimes alone and longing for 
 
,frr- 
 
 ' 
 
 I ' 
 
 I 
 
 I 1 
 
 m 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 some congenial friend with whom to share liis enjoy- 
 ment. " It was very amusing," he writes, " while 
 crossing the Wengern Alps, to encounter three or 
 four young fellows lustily singing ' Dixie.' It was as 
 good as a letter of introduction, and paved the way 
 f"r a ji ;ndly greeting." 
 
 Of a similar excursion in August of the next year, 
 IcSGo, he always retained the most delightful recollec- 
 tions. One of the party who made that trip togeHier, 
 now ^^.'^' Professor Gordon, D.D., of Halifax, thus 
 writes o* ]* "I liad been studying in Berlin that 
 fiummei , auu inet him by appointment at Heidelberg, 
 »vliere nr of Ir li^dinburgh fellow-students, John 
 Watt, (luw 1" V- '■.'i\ Watt, of Anderston Church, 
 CJlasgow, was expucti ^^ ''.iui. While Watt and I were 
 waiting for James, two other friends joined us, John 
 Black and William Macdonald. Black was at that 
 time one of Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools for 
 Scotland, and later Professor of Latin in the Uni- 
 versity of Aberdeen. Macdonald, then a student, 
 became prominent and much esteemed as a Conven- 
 tionist in New Zealand. Both died some years ago, 
 so that Dr. Watt and I are the only surviving mem- 
 bers of our little party. We live, in the fulness of 
 life, left Heidelberg together. We visited Baden- 
 Baden, Strasbourg, Basle and the Falls of the Rhine. 
 Then we had a delightful walking tour in Switzer- 
 land, taking in Schatt'hausen, Zurich, Zug, Arth, the 
 Rigi and Lucerne. It was a brief trip but full of 
 enjoyment, our companions being splendid fellows^ 
 and anyone who knew James can understand how 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMANY. 
 
 29 
 
 ; enjoy- 
 " while 
 liree or 
 , was as 
 ;he way 
 
 xt year, 
 recollee- 
 oge^ier, 
 ax, thus 
 •lin that 
 idelberg, 
 ts, John 
 Chiircli, 
 id I were 
 us, John 
 at that 
 hools for 
 the XJni- 
 student, 
 Conven- 
 ears ago, 
 ing mem- 
 ulness of 
 I Baden- 
 10 Rhine. 
 Switzer- 
 Arth, the 
 ut full of 
 I fellows^ 
 tand how 
 
 ■■# 
 
 ■m 
 
 ■is 
 
 heartily he threw himself into everything of that 
 kind. However tired we niiglit be with our day's 
 tramp or sightseeing, we were sure to sit late into 
 the night talking as only students can talk. Througli 
 the heavier cares of later years he would recall witli 
 great pleasure incidents of that trip, enjoying over 
 a«-ain some humorous .scene or well-remembered joke, 
 or stirred by those memories of mountain and lake 
 that are the unfailing treasure of one who visits 
 Switzerland with such a responsive and appreciative 
 soul. Our little party divided at Lucerne, as Mac- 
 donald and I were to cross the Alps into Italy, while 
 Black was returning home by way of Paris, and 
 James and Watt were to go to Germany. I did not 
 see him airain until the sunnner of 186<S, when we 
 were both at the meetin*; of Synod. Meanwhile, he 
 iiad been settled in St. Antlrews Church, Petcrboro', 
 and I in St. Andrew's Churcli, Ottawa. I did not 
 see him often during his ministry in Peterboro', 
 but year by year our intimacy was deepening, and 
 the friend whom I liad known from boyhood was 
 revealing to me more and more fully his rare and 
 remarkable excellence." 
 
 In reference to the same general period, Professor 
 Henry Cowan, D.D., of Aberdeen, writes to Mrs. 
 Campbell : " I was not one of the walking party to 
 which you refer, but I was none the less intimate 
 with your brother during the part of his course 
 which he took in Edinburgh. There was no more 
 distinguished student in the Divinity Hall at that 
 time than your brother, and no one more deeply 
 
!l 
 
 I 1] 
 
 if 
 
 1 I 
 
 30 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNEI.L. 
 
 respected and universally beloved. His open coun- 
 tenance, winning smile, and friendly manner at- 
 tracted us all at once to him when he came among us ; 
 and larji^er acquaintance enabled us to realize his clear 
 intellectual and moral insight, his high spiritual tone, 
 without a trace of affectation, and his thorough unsel- 
 tishness of character. Amid all his acatlemic distinc- 
 tion, his unaffected modesty rendered all petty jealousy 
 of a comparative stranger's laurels impossible ; and I 
 remember how universal was the regret (somewhat 
 narrow, I admit) that his colonial patriotism pre- 
 vented him from entering the ministry of the Church 
 of Scotland. The high position to which he speedily 
 attained in Toronto was no surprise to any of us 
 here. We knew that a man of his high intellectual 
 gifts, broad and generous sympathies and genuine 
 self-consecration must become a manifest power for 
 good. I saw a little of your brother on the occasion 
 of two of his visits to Scotland. The first occasion 
 was when he was in Aberdeen soon after the 
 conclusion of his ' case,' and I remember well the 
 utter absence of bitterness with which he spoke of 
 all that had been done, and how nmch less anxious 
 he was to vindicate his own position than to place 
 the action of those who had been ecclesiastically 
 opposed to him in a more favourable light than that 
 in which his friends hero had regarded it. On the 
 occasion of his later visit, he preached for me in New 
 Greyfrairs on a communion Sunday evening, and I 
 recall the deep impression made by him on my people, 
 particularly tlie more thoughtful members of the 
 
 ii 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMANY. 
 
 31 
 
 m coiin- 
 mer at- 
 iiong us ; 
 his clear 
 iial tone, 
 y\\ unsel- 
 ; distinc- 
 jeakmsy 
 e ; and I 
 OHiewhat 
 ism pre- 
 Q Church 
 1 speedily 
 :iy of us 
 tellectual 
 crenuine 
 )0\ver for 
 ) occasion 
 , occasion 
 ifter the 
 well the 
 spoke of 
 anxious 
 to place 
 iastically 
 than that 
 On the 
 e in New 
 liX, and I 
 ly people, 
 ■s of the 
 
 conr]jrp<xation, V)oth throufj^h his sermon and the devo- 
 tional })arts of tlie service. 
 
 " I reniend)er the surprise of many wlien I told 
 them that he had at one time incurred the suspicion 
 of heresy ; for W(^ all felt that we were listening; to 
 a man who had {jjrasped the vital truths of our 
 reliLjion with his whole heart and soul and stren«]fth 
 and mind, and that he spoke both when preachin<^ 
 and when praying out of the fulness of a rich 
 spiritual nature as well as intellectual experience." 
 
 On the same theme Rev. 0. M. Grant, of Dundee, 
 thus expresses himself : " My memories of my dear 
 friend go back thirty-three years to smoky (Glasgow 
 and the University session of 18G3-G4. There and 
 then a * colony of colonials ' was gathered, whose 
 affection and loyalty to one another and to the com- 
 mon colonial home bound them into a brotherhood 
 which made a certain mark upon the college life. 
 They were mostly British North Americans — the 
 term ' Canadians,' in its present meaning, was then 
 uidvuown — and that wonderful ecclesiastical and 
 Presbyterian county, Pictou, provided the largest 
 contingent. Gordon, now a learned professor of 
 theology ; Eraser, now a pastor beloved in his native 
 county; McDonald, now a parish minister in Scot- 
 land's premier county, Perthshire : Cameron, who 
 died minister of Burntisland; dear 'Bill' Fraser and 
 Donald McGillivray, medicals both, and both dead ! 
 myself and others — never were men more brotherly, 
 and never men stuck more closely together. He who 
 would fight with one had to reckon with all. 
 
I 
 
 il 
 
 j' 
 
 32 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " To us tliUH came Macdonnell, and wa.s soon ' one 
 of us,' and not tin; least beloved. Very quiet, very 
 unassuming, we did not at first measure or weigh him 
 aright. It therefore came upon us as somewhat more 
 than a surprise to Hnd that he could face and control 
 an audience 1 tetter than the best of us. I remember 
 as well as if it were only last year, tlie first time we 
 realized what maimer of man this gentle, modest and 
 boyish-looking youth was. It was a great ' field day ' 
 in our College Missionary Society. There had been a 
 good deal of excited speaking — for the personal 
 element had come largely in — and the crowded class- 
 room was disinclined for more. Sudderdy a clear, 
 resonant voice was heard from one of the back 
 benches. Macdonnell, for the first time in Scotland, 
 was on his feet as a speaker. In two minutes he 
 had fast liold of his hearers. Three things marked 
 his speaking from the first and they marked it to 
 the end. Every word got its due emphasis ; every 
 sentence was cut like a cameo ; every thought stood 
 out bold and clear, so that there could be no doubt as 
 to what it was. From that hour he took a new place 
 in our regard : our liking because of personal amia- 
 bility took a new colour when we saw in him con- 
 trolling powers An unsuspected gift had been 
 revealed. The forces that move men were there 
 without a doubt. 
 
 "The next session he and I both went to Edin- 
 burgh and ' chummed ' together in lodgings. Of 
 course our relations became more intimate, and I 
 began to know what he was in his depths, and, there- 
 
 li 
 
 ;iiP 
 
 A 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND GERMAN V. 
 
 33 
 
 Hoon ' one 
 uiet, very 
 
 A'hat more 
 nd control 
 remember 
 it time we 
 iiodest and 
 ' field day ' 
 luul been a 
 i personal 
 ,vded clasH- 
 ly a clear, 
 the back 
 1 Scotland, 
 minutes he 
 ofs marked 
 rked it to 
 isis; every 
 u<j;ht stood 
 lo doubt as 
 new place 
 onal amia- 
 i him con- 
 had been 
 kvere there 
 
 t to Edin- 
 
 gmgs. 
 
 Of 
 
 ate, and I 
 and, tliere- 
 
 forti, in his true self. Transparent, without a flaw; 
 strai^^dit, without a twist: true to the core, incapable 
 eviMi of conceivin*^ a duplicity. Of course, he was 
 not then the man he afterwards beeanu) ; the Spirit 
 of God, dwt'liino; in him as in His temple, enero;ized 
 as well as decpeiKMl him. liut he was then the 
 be fl II lUinjf^ of what he afterwards became. In the 
 <;reat es.sentials of character — in motives and aims, 
 incentives and aspirations — he was then what he was 
 alwavs. I think it is u'enerallv so with those who 
 are truly good and do great things. They begin as 
 they go on : they .sow as they mean to reap. He who 
 l>rin<rs fullest stren<>th to the service of CJod and man, 
 is like Wordsworth's ' Happy Warrior ' — 
 
 " ' wlio, when brousrht, 
 Amony; the tasks of real life, hath wrought 
 Upon the plan that pleased his ehildish thought.' 
 
 "So it was with him. He worked along the same 
 lines from the beginning. He ottered no powers 
 soaked in sin to (Jod. The plans and purposes, the 
 aims and enterprises with which he was tilled when I 
 last saw him were still those ' that pleased his chihli.sh 
 thought.' The future develoj)ed the past; it never 
 needed to falsify it. The(^logieally he was yet quite 
 unformed, but I am unable to trace any very marked 
 influence of his stay in Oerman\' — thou<ih, I believe, 
 some think thev can. .The only ditierence I can see 
 between the student with whom I lived in 18G5 
 and the minister whom I visited in 1892, and who 
 visited me in 1895, is just what might be expected to 
 
I ' 
 
 I ! 
 
 [■■ 1 
 
 I 
 
 il I 
 
 ■■' 1 
 
 34 
 
 LIFE OF 1). J. MAr[)()NNEI,L. 
 
 be soon Ix'twoen the youtli Ix'j^innin;^ to tliiiik for 
 himself arm tlie inaii wlio lia.s tliou;;l»t out his proh- 
 leiiiH and readied his eoueliision.s ; between him wlio 
 is only fei'lin*,^ his feet and him Avho stands ' fonr- 
 s(|uare to every wind that l)lows.' IK* always had an 
 abhorrence of dogmatism ; a profound feelin<:j that 
 'the love of Cod was broader than the measure of 
 man's niind ' ; a repu;,niance, consecjuently, to every 
 attempt to tie or trammel that love, or to confine it 
 to moulds of human castinf^. (Jermany had its inllu- 
 ence upon him, no doubt. He was too sensitive and 
 too receptive not to receive e<lucational impulse from 
 every force around him, a certain inspiration from all 
 his environment : but I never could see any si^ni of 
 any theoloii;ical revolution which it had eH'ected. 
 Sucli emancipation from traditionalism as lie needed 
 for his own enlargement he had worked out — or 
 rather, was in the way of working- out — for himself, 
 before he went there ; and though doubtless the pro- 
 cess was hastened by contact with the scholarship and 
 thought — and even more, the scholars and thinkers — 
 of Heidelberg and Berlin, it could in no sense be said 
 to be caused by it. His lines were his own, and along 
 them he most naturally and most rationally developed. 
 Perhaps his theology may have been to some extent 
 influential in building up his character : possibly it is 
 so with all of us, somewhat ; but I am sure that with 
 him his character was a hundredfold more powerful 
 in determining his tlieology. And just because he 
 himself was so Christ-like I always felt that, no 
 matter how much some folk might be frightened, he 
 
 i^i; ( 
 
 in a 
 
IN SCOTLAND AND (JKUMANY. 
 
 3.') 
 
 tliink for 
 his prob- 
 hiin who 
 ids ' I'oiir- 
 lys luul an 
 i'hn<r tliat 
 lortsiiri' of 
 , to every 
 ) confine it 
 lI its inlhi- 
 isitive and 
 pulse from 
 Dn from all 
 my H\gn of 
 L(l eH'ected. 
 , he needed 
 bd out — or 
 or himself, 
 ss the pro- 
 iirship and 
 hinkers — 
 ■use be said 
 , and along 
 developed. 
 ;ome extent 
 assibly it is 
 e that with 
 •e powerful 
 because he 
 t that, no 
 frhtened, he 
 
 could vof be 'unsound.' He <lid the will and he 
 eoiild not but know of the doctrine. Oh, my dear 
 friend, (Jod ne\er j;ave to me a better interpretation 
 of tilt' ( 'lii'ist than He <;ave in you ! " 
 
 Anion"' the letters from home awaitinj; James on 
 his return to Kdinl)ur<j(h, in April, ISiJO, was the sad 
 announcement of the death of his sister's little child, 
 of whom he had been hearinj^ two weeks earlier, 
 that, " The wee boy was the li;;ht of the luai.se, the 
 b'iiditest and best of baby boys. ' Writinj; home at 
 once James said : " It is a strange thought to me that 
 I have never .s(>en, and shall never on this I'arth si-e, 
 the little darling of whom I have heard so nuich that 
 is endearing. I have always included him when I 
 have been drawing fancy pictures of the future, and 
 have wondered what .sort of reception Tncle James' 
 would get from his little nephew. N<'\v all that is 
 over; but though 'baby' can only li\e to me in 
 imagination, not in memory, yet his life and death 
 have done me, as they have done you all, great 
 good. . . . And then there is the hope of a glori- 
 ous lesurrection, and here Christianity shines consj)ic- 
 uouslv above all the other reliirions of the world, and 
 the sorrow of Christians, when they keep this grand 
 fact ill view, must be difierent from the sorrow of the 
 world." 
 
1 1 
 
 36 
 
 LIFE OF P. J. MAODONNELL. 
 
 ! 
 
 i il 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 MENTAL SmUaOLES AND OliDl NATION. 
 
 "The thirst that from the soul doth rise 
 Doth fisk a drink divine." 
 
 On his return to Ediiiburgli, in April, 186G, James 
 was offered the position of assistant to Rev. Dr. 
 Glover, in Greensido Parish — an ofi'er tempting to 
 him owing to the lact that his father had done the 
 work of a city missionary in the same parish, under 
 Dr. Glover, thirty years before. But liaving for so 
 lonjif looked forward to a ministry in his native 
 country, James unhesitatingly declined the proposal, 
 and this the more readily because of certain difficul- 
 ties which had arisen in his mind with regard to 
 accepting as a whole tlie doctrine set forth in the 
 Confession of Faith. It will be best to state what 
 these were as far as possible in his own words. In 
 the letter from Berlin, already referred to, he says, 
 " One of these difficulties I have several times men- 
 tioned in writing home, and I have thought far more 
 than I have written. It may seem an easy thing to 
 some people to make up one's mind on points on 
 
MENTAL STRUGGLES AND ORDINATION. 
 
 37 
 
 )N. 
 
 C, James 
 Rev. Dr. 
 pting to 
 done the 
 ih, under 
 lo- for so 
 native 
 proposal, 
 difficul- 
 d to 
 in the 
 ite wliat 
 ords. In 
 he says, 
 mes men- 
 far more 
 thing to 
 points on 
 
 •e£C^r( 
 
 ,li 
 
 wliich Christians are divided, and have always been 
 (Hvided, but I have not found it so. I suppose most 
 people admit that there must' be a little latitude 
 allowed in signing the Confession of Faith, and that 
 one is hardly e.Kpeeted to assent to every clause abso- 
 lutely: but the ([uestion comes to })e, how far this 
 latitude is to be allowed to extend. I should like to 
 know what you think. I am inclined to think that 
 confessions, as we are required to subscribe to them, 
 do more harm than good, — that they torment con- 
 scientious men, while they do not keep out of the 
 church careless men, who do not care much what 
 they sign. Of course there liave Iteen, and may be, 
 many who have signed with the most thorough 
 honesty. If any means could be devised of securing 
 piefj/ in intending ministers, it would be nuich more 
 to the purpose, and orthodoxy on many points might 
 be left to take care of itself. Without the piety, the 
 orthodoxy is worse than useless." 
 
 Again, a few weeks hiter, to the same correspondent 
 ho writes: "I cannot tell you how much I have 
 thought and felt on that matter of the Confession of 
 Faith. There have V)een times when I have almost 
 vowed not to enter the church, not to come under 
 ol)ligations which I could not honestly take, not to 
 put myself in a position in which I might be accused 
 of dishonesty if I dared to say what I really thought. 
 I have actually at times put the question, What am I 
 to make of m^'self :* What new course am I to strike 
 out in which I can be of use to the world ? . . . 
 Tlu'ii came the thought ol' parents und friends disap- 
 
 
 m 
 
 'V I 
 
 vl i 
 
 J! 
 
 HI. 
 
 > 9 
 
mrr 
 
 SSSBI 
 
 38 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 pointed and fyrioved, the givinf^ up of my own life- 
 long pl.ans and hopes, and a multitude of other con- 
 siderations which seemed to make it impossible for 
 me to abandon the ministry. . . , Further, how far 
 is a man's personal piety dependent on his knowledge 
 or beHef of certain truths j' From the way in which 
 opinions which some men regard as false are spoken 
 of as soul-destroying errors, and the people who hold 
 them as Satan-bound souls, one would imagine that 
 the connection is very close. And yet the very men 
 who are thus anatliematized, seem, so far as we can 
 apply any tests, to be doing as ir-uch good in the world 
 as their accusers. 1 should not hesitate to say that 
 Norman Macleod is a better man and has done more 
 good by his writing and speaking and working on 
 behalf of missions, etc., than, for example, that 
 
 notoriously orthodox Professor of the 
 
 College, Cilasgow. The fact is that a man's thoughts 
 cannot be bound by any creed, although his utter- 
 ances may. He will and must think independently 
 of the dictation of any body of men. And why not 
 let men speak freely and take confidence in the 
 power of truth, believing that we can do nothing 
 against the truth, but for the truth ? " 
 
 Other themes were discussed in these letters — 
 rather unusual letters to be addressed by a young 
 man of twenty-three U) one still younger, such as 
 this, in February, ISUO, still from Berlin: "On the 
 Sabbath (juestion you and I would agi-ee pretty well. 
 . . . Possibly you are right as to the comparative 
 good of going to a certain church, or of reading a 
 
 1 
 
 i 
 
MENTAL STRUGGLES AND ORDINATION. 
 
 39 
 
 vn life- 
 ler con- 
 \ihle for 
 how far 
 owleilge 
 n whicli 
 J spoken 
 A\o hold 
 ine that 
 ery men 
 s we can 
 he world 
 say that 
 )ne more 
 rking on 
 iple, that 
 
 he 
 
 thoughts 
 lis utter- 
 )endently 
 why not 
 e in the 
 nothing 
 
 letters — 
 a young 
 , such as 
 " On the 
 ■etty well, 
 iiparative 
 •eading a 
 
 profitable book. l)ut I have a strong conviction of the 
 desirableness and benefit of going somciuhere to join 
 with Christian people in imJtl'ic worship. This is 
 certainly one of the great ends of the Lord's Day, 
 whatever view we hold as to the ground on which it 
 is to be observed. . . . On this subject as on others, 
 if there is one thing more tlian another that would 
 make me anxious to be orthodox it would be the 
 desire of pleasing Father. I always feel that he is 
 more in earnest in his love of truth and in liis anxious 
 desire to tlo g(jod to every one over whom he has any 
 influence than most men or ministers whom I have 
 known. 'J'liis, of course, does not prevent liis having 
 wrong views, thougli, indeed, we ouglit rather to 
 suspect that ice are wrong ; but it always makes me 
 cautious about saying whatever comes first, lest I 
 should needlessly wound him. I feel personally that 
 I am more indebted to the counsels I have received 
 in letters from home than to anything else I know of 
 on earth for keeping me from a great deal of evil." 
 During the weeks spent in Edinburgh, awaiting a 
 meeting of that })i'esbytery, at which he was to 
 appear For license and onlination, the oM difficulties 
 rea})peare(l. Writing again to his In'other George, he 
 savs : " To <j:o back once more to the Confession of 
 Faith, the comparing it to the ih'itish constitution is 
 a g(Wtl idea if it were only true, as a matter of fact, 
 that it is treated like the Ih'itish constitution. But 
 is it i No member of Parliament feels that he lays 
 himself open to the charge of disloyalty by trying to 
 amend the constitution by bringing in, as is being 
 
 if 
 
 n 
 
 !» 
 
 ^:| 
 
 
 t 
 
 ft 
 
"f?*" 
 
 40 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 done just now, a Reform Bill. It is acknowledged on 
 all hands that the British constitution is a tiling; of 
 growth and development, a very different thing now 
 from what it was two centuries ago. But, does it 
 stand so with the Confession ? It is hard for a man 
 to escape the stigma of heresy, who proposes even a 
 slight modification of it, and, as a matter of fact, it 
 remains word for word as it ^^•as drawn up more 
 than two hundred years ago. Indeed it is a connnon 
 assertion that it cannot to any appreciable extent be 
 improved; that religious truth is fixed and unalter- 
 able, and that the Westminster divines were divinely 
 taught as truly as any of their successors can be. 
 Certaiidy, in essentials religious truth must be un- 
 cliangeable : but then, wliat are essentials ? Brofessor 
 Gibson thinks, apparently, that it is the Confession, 
 the whole Confession, and nothing but the Confession 
 that is essential, and on that ground lie consistently 
 opposes the singing of h^nmis, because the Confession 
 says we are nut to worship God in any way not 
 appointed in His Word. ])r. Lee, on the otlier hand, 
 I suppose, would reduce all tliat is essential to two 
 or three sentences. In the U. P. Presbytery of 
 Edinburgh lately, with beautiful inconsistency, while 
 they carried by an innnense majorit}^ an overture 
 enjoining Presbyterians to b(^ stricter than ever in 
 enforcing adherence to the Confession, there was 
 hardly a man who had not some fault to find with 
 that same document. It was 'too lonsr,' or 'too vau'ue.' 
 One wanted to cut away a chapter and a half (about 
 the civil magistrate), another would have periodical 
 
MENTAL STRUGGLES AND ORDINATION. 
 
 41 
 
 ilg'cd on 
 ihini; of 
 ii<r now 
 does it 
 L" a man 
 even a 
 fact, it 
 ip more 
 common 
 ctent be 
 unaltcr- 
 (livinely 
 can 1)0. 
 ; be un- 
 ^rofessor 
 iifossion, 
 tnt'ession 
 sistently 
 iiil'ession 
 ,vay not 
 I!!- hand, 
 1 to two 
 ^tery of 
 y, while 
 Dverture 
 ever in 
 ere was 
 nd with 
 ) va<j;'ue.' 
 f (about 
 uriodieal 
 
 revisions, and so forth. The idea of periodical 
 revisions is capital, but somewhat inconsistent with 
 the terms of the overture which the speaker was 
 support! nnr." 
 
 All his difficulties were frankly discussed with his 
 father, who was watchin;jj with wistful eyes the 
 footsteps of the son fast cmtsti-ippin*^' him in many 
 of the fields of thou<,dit and culture. In reply to 
 sonic of these self-accusations and appeals for advice, 
 his father wrote: "I am sorry that such ([uestions 
 cause you uneasiness. I do not think tiiey should. 
 I believe, as I have said befoi'e, that the mind need 
 not be trannnelled, thou<^h one should sid)scribe to 
 the Confession. I am quite clear that every C-hris- 
 tian, and every minister of Christ, should be free to 
 take in the whole truth of (Jod as contained in the 
 Seri|)tures. T feel, I may say, no trouble in my own 
 case with the Confession. In my own mind it can 
 always be harmonized with the Sci"iptui'es, and I 
 trust I sincerely seek to know what they teach and 
 to follow that. I am satisfied that many of those 
 who have si<i^ned the Confession have done it honestly, 
 as the best thino; thev^ could do in the circumstances, 
 with a view to the ^'lory of the Master and Redeemer 
 whom they love and serve. . . . But this j)rin- 
 ciple of comprehensiveness must have limits. We 
 nuist neither be Romanized nor (Jermaiiized. Let me 
 remind you that the best safe<jfuard a;j,ainst doctrinal 
 error is to l)e found not in controversial zeal, l)ut in 
 the maintenance of our own spiritual lilV', and thus of 
 a real, a close and a deepening;- ex[)erience of the 
 
 1 
 
r! 
 
 i 
 
 !i 
 
 I .f. 
 
 42 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 kingdom within us." It will be clear enough to some 
 minds what the nature of some of his difficulties was. 
 How many like him have striven earnestly to recon- 
 cile the character of the Law-giver and Judge as set 
 forth in the Confession, with the " Father of all " 
 they find in Holy Wi-it ? 
 
 Finally, however, the counsels of his father and the 
 advice of other interested friends succeeded in allay- 
 ing for a time this " torment " of soul, and with the 
 acknowledgment of his mental reservations, wisely 
 unheeded by the Presbytery, he received ordination 
 on the 14th of June, IJSOG, and set out immediately 
 for Canada. 
 
 '^ 
 
MINISTRY IN PETERBORO 
 
 43 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 MIXISTHY IX PKTElUiORO'. 
 
 His return from Euroi)e wus ca^^erly looked for l)y 
 parents, friends and former teachers, wlio liad watclied 
 his course with sympatlietic interest. Several vacant 
 con(^re<^ations were waiting to liear the young divine, 
 of wliose liberal views on some points rumours had 
 reached them. His own inclinations led him to hesi- 
 tate somewhat between the ofi'er of an assistantship 
 to the beloved and venerable Dr. Urcjuhart, of Corn- 
 wall, and the pastorate of St. Andrew's Church, 
 Peterboro'. The decision, after nuich heart-searching, 
 was made in favour of Peterboro'. 
 
 Into the pastoral charge of this congregation he 
 was inducted by the Presbytery of Toronto on the 
 20th of November, LSGG. An account of the induc- 
 tion written at the time, states that " the father of 
 the minister-elect, the Rev. (leorge Macdonnell, of 
 Fergus, being present, was invited to take part in the 
 services, . . . and delivered to his son an admir- 
 able address, full of affectionate, wise and earnest 
 counsel as to the duties and responsibilities of the 
 sacred office. It nnist have been ])eculiarlv frratifvina 
 
 ! « 
 
1 
 
 
 It 
 
 ^sm 
 
 44 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 to one who is himself in the midst of an active and 
 laborious ministry to take part, luider the circum- 
 stances, in the induction of a pastor to an important 
 and extensive field of labour." Fervent, indeed, were 
 the thanksgivings of the father's heart, who was 
 privileged thus to see the "joy of hopes fulfilled." 
 
 The outlook in Peterboro' was very attractive to 
 one so ready to fight the battle of the weak and dis- 
 couraged. Since 1(S44, when the minister and the 
 large majority of the congregation had joined the 
 Free Church movement, the history of the minority 
 had been one of struggle and disappointment. It was 
 not till 1(S58 that they had been in a position to call 
 a minister (the Rev. James Douglas), and since his 
 resignation there had been a vacancy of two years, 
 which had been very injurious. The numbers had 
 been so reduced that there were present at the first 
 connnunion but seventy-three church members. The 
 other Presbyterian congregation was overwhelmingly 
 large and flourishing, so that it was against tremen- 
 dous odds he led this " forlorn hope." The future 
 before him was full of toil, care, perplexity, responsi- 
 bility : but he faced it gladly. He was three and 
 and twenty, with a happy life behind, some acquaint- 
 ance with the world and with human nature, ready 
 to receive impressions, with generous impulses and 
 noblest longings, and the needs of tho situation called 
 for the best he had to give. Realizinir his divine 
 connnission, he set out to follow as closely as might 
 be in the footsteps of Christ and His apostles, willing 
 to be poor, willing to work humbly and trustfully at 
 
MINISTRY IN PETERBOUO'. 
 
 45 
 
 the most commonplcace of duties, if by any mctans he 
 iiiitrht briiihten and better the lives around liini, and 
 lead them in the " more exceHent wav." 
 
 Writinir to his brotlier (Jeor^'e slioi'tlv after liis 
 settlement, he says : " I have felt better since I have 
 had to work harder than I had <lone (mentally and 
 spiritually) for a lont^ time. It hns done u\v t^ood in 
 every way. It is a ^reat thin^' to have dehnite, prac- 
 tical work to do — it prev^ents too much speculation, 
 which is for me, at least, not a desirable thino-. I 
 think there nuist be nuich in a minister's woi'k, when 
 earnestly ^one about, that tends to correct the evils 
 of a coiH'sc of th(!olo<j^ical study, which nw. certaiidy 
 not a few." ' 
 
 Hoth pastor and people worked with a will. " They 
 helped every one his neighbour, and every (jne said to 
 his neitjhbour, Be of «^ood courasije," for the hopefulness 
 of their young minister was infectious. The letters 
 from home cheered him on. In ]\Iarch, 1807, his 
 father wrote: "I met Mr. M., of the Ontario Bank, 
 when in T(_)ro'.ito yesterday. He tells me you are 
 ' building up a fine congregation.' I think the words 
 are at once encouragino; and suii-jxestive. It has to be 
 built up, and this implies laying stone upon stone, 
 daily, steadily, skilfully." 
 
 Looking back over the thirtv vears that have 
 passed since that time, one who was a prominent 
 member of the conm-efjation writes : " . . . 
 Although very few in nundier and comparatively 
 weak financially, so enthusiastic were the congregation 
 in their desire to make him comfortable and to retain 
 
 P ' 
 
 m 
 
 :.i 
 
 I 
 
 1 i 
 
 It 
 
 i 
 
 ]\im 
 
 
 
 ii 
 
 il 
 
 i 
 
 V 
 
 1 
 
 *f 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
T 
 
 46 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I 
 
 ! :;l 
 
 11 . ■;* 
 
 him as tluiir pastor, that, few as they were, they 
 undertook, and had completed before the call to 
 Toronto came, a manse costin<^ some $3,000, which I 
 have often lieard praised as second to none in Ontario. 
 During his residence in Peterboro', too, he was not 
 only eminently successful in his own congregation, 
 but in securing the good-will of the comnumity at 
 large, and in promoting a kindly feeling between all 
 the denominations into which the comnmnity was 
 divided, and in (most difficult of all) promoting good 
 feeling between those who had been so unnecessarily 
 antagonized by the disruption of 1844." 
 
 A lady wrote to the Toronto Mail in March, 1896, 
 some recollections of this early pastorate, thus : " My 
 first knowledge of him was in Peterboro', before he 
 had become so famous, and there the same qualities 
 showed themselves which all recognized in Toronto 
 — fearlessness, frankness, humility, spirituality — and 
 yet he was intensely practical. . . . The reproach 
 of love of money that so many bring against minis- 
 ters, had in his case no foundation. While in Peter- 
 boro' — a small congregation — every effort was made 
 by the dignitaries of the Church to induce him to 
 accept Ottawa with a much larger salary and other 
 advantages ; but nothing availed. He thought it his 
 duty to stay for some years more with this his first 
 
 charge. 
 
 Two or three incidents lingfer in 
 
 my memory of his Peterboro' life. On visiting an 
 old woman in winter he found her quite destitute of 
 firewood, and immediately went out and ordered a 
 cord of wood. Returning next day, he found, instead 
 
 , i 
 
MINISTRY IN PETEIIBORO 
 
 47 
 
 they 
 all to 
 liich I 
 ntario. 
 as not 
 [ration, 
 lity at 
 een all 
 ,y was 
 g good 
 ssarily 
 
 I, 1896, 
 : "My 
 fore he 
 ualities 
 ^oronto 
 y — and 
 proach 
 minis- 
 Peter- 
 |s made 
 hiin to 
 I other 
 b it his 
 first 
 
 lis 
 
 Bger 
 
 in 
 
 jng an 
 itute of 
 ered a 
 instead 
 
 of tlie cheerful fire he expected, the widow still sitting 
 in tlie cold, and on iiKiuiring, found there was no one 
 to cut the wood, upon which he took off' his coat and 
 sawed and split enough to last for some time. A fine 
 exaniplc of muscular Christianity ! ... As a 
 preacher ]\Ir. Ahicdonnell was most attractive. His 
 strong plain face was lit up with a soul within, 'a 
 li<'-lit that never was on sea or land.' His diction was 
 choice, ready, nervous; he was elo(iuent, thoughtful, 
 scholarly. But perhaps the devotional part of the 
 service was even more remarkable than the sermon, 
 being reverent, earnest, sympathetic, comprehensive. 
 He asked for what men and women who were enjoy- 
 ing, working, suffering in this pi-escnt day would be 
 most likely to need. He once said at a prayer- 
 meeting, ' I think it is the most solemn thing any 
 one can do to present the petitions of a people to the 
 God of heaven and earth, and it certainly requires 
 preparation far more thorough than the sermon.' " 
 
 Thus, amid lights and shadows, rejoicing often in 
 a sense of his Master's presence and help, sometimes 
 yielding to fits of despondency and self-accusation, 
 questioning his own motives and longing for more 
 direct divine leading, four busy years passed away. 
 Sometimes, no doubt, the depression was due to mere 
 physical causes, as he himself suggests in a letter 
 written on a Monday in November, 1SG7 : " I read a 
 chapter of Robertson's life to see if it w^ould rouse 
 me, but it did not produce much effect ; perhaps all 
 this is mere physical reaction after the comparative 
 excitement of yesterday. I have just read over again 
 
 ji 1 
 
 m 
 
 ^i\ 
 
 'I' 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
" 
 
 48 
 
 LIFE OF I). .1. MACIJOXNELL. 
 
 
 3 ii 
 
 i 
 
 your (l«}li<,^htriil lettor ol' last week, and tliat is a 
 b(!ttor source of inspiration than Kobtjrtson. . . , 
 I reineni])er very few dates eitlier in my own life 
 Ol- in oi'iicral history, Init I hare kept in mind 
 tlie '20th of this montli as the anniversar}'^ of 
 my induction. In many respects the retrospect is 
 a pleasant one. So far as outward prosperity is 
 concerned, as manifested in the hearty {,^ood-will 
 of my people, and their readiness to do all that 
 couhl be desired, 1 have every reason to be gratified. 
 I sometimes ask myself, however, ' What does all this 
 amount to ? ' Lar^ije audicMices — approbation often 
 unwisely expressed — is there any spiritual »^ood 
 necessarily resulting from all this :* I hope there is. 
 I suppose many a hard toiler in the ministry has been 
 cast down at not witnessing the results of his work ; 
 but am 1 really doing my work in the right way, 
 sowing ' good seed,' or am I trying to lead the blind, 
 while blind myself ? J could not help being strangely 
 struck by a passage in one of Robertson's letters 
 which I came across the other day ; it expresses so 
 exactlv what I have often felt. After talkiu"; about 
 his (lirticulties he says: ' As to the ministry I am in 
 intinite perplexity. To give it up seems throwing 
 away the only opportunity of doing good in this 
 short life now available to me ; yet, to go on teaching 
 and preaching when my own heart is dark and lack^ 
 the light I endeavour to impart, is very wretched.' 
 don't know that it is altoixether wise for me to reau 
 just now the life of such a man as Frederick llobertson, 
 but I do certainly find in it much that reflects my 
 own state of mind." 
 
 t 
 
MINISTKV IX PKTKUROUO 
 
 4d 
 
 ,t IS a 
 
 :r\ life 
 iiiind 
 ary ol' 
 pect is 
 lity is 
 ()(l-\vill 
 ill that 
 L-atiticd. 
 all this 
 1 often 
 il o-ood 
 there is. 
 las been 
 ^ work ; 
 it way, 
 hliiid, 
 rangely 
 letters 
 esses so 
 cr about 
 I am in 
 lirowiiig 
 in this 
 :eachin<,^ 
 lid lack" 
 khed.' 
 to reaei 
 Ibertsou, 
 ects my 
 
 SpeakiiiLJ of a Wednesday evening service which 
 lif lijid aijoiit this time iiitro luced, he says: " I told 
 iMV ])e()|)le that tlie iiieetiii*,^ would vary in its charac- 
 ter aeconlino; to circumstances — Ikmu^* sometimes a 
 simple prayi'r-meeting, sometimes a lecture, sometimes 
 il missionary meeting;'. Last Wednesday evenin<:j I 
 ;;;ivf a lecture on ' Hynnis.' I have some idea of 
 i;i\ iii;4' a sUeteh of Robertson's life next Wednesday. 
 I shall not preach a sermon. Perhaps people nowa- 
 days net more' than enough of that sort of (^ood thinf]f. 
 If a laryc [)()rtion of the sermons preached could in 
 any way be made to tell on the masses who never 
 hear anv, instead of beinii" nearh' all lavished on 
 peojjle who have heard the same thin^; a thousand 
 times, it would be an improvement. Still, no doubt, 
 wandering sheep are often reached where you might 
 least expect to Hnd them." 
 
 To the same friend, on Fel)ruary 3rd, 18G8, he 
 writes : " I appreciate all your good wishes for my 
 biithday. I did remeiidjcr it this year, and did make 
 it the starting-point of many good jilans and resolu- 
 tions. It is a very sei'ious thing to be twenty-five 
 vears old, for I believe it to be true that what a 
 man is at live and twenty he is likely to remain 
 HiiMiv 1| life. I hope and believe that your prayers 
 u .e and for us both will be answered, and that 
 ■ming year will l)e rich in blessing. ... In 
 ret lice to that matter of 'assurance,' your want is 
 'n, and the remed 
 
 my 
 
 'ly 
 
 some- 
 
 thing like this: do not look in so much as ///>. While 
 self-exaiiiina' n of some sort and at some seasons is 
 
 w. 
 
 i : 
 
 ■ • 
 
 :\\: 
 
 w 
 
 -n ■ 
 
 
50 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 a duty, it cannot be a good thing to be always worry- 
 ing ourselves with doubts as to personal religion. Let 
 us trust all that to God and irorh for Him. . . 
 We are His children, though we may not always feel 
 the comfort that we ought in a sense of that relation- 
 ship." ... In writing to this friend, from whom 
 he had no reservations, about his doctrinal puzzles, he 
 says: " The truth is that what the Church wants, and 
 what ministers want, and what everybody wants, is 
 more of the knowledge that comes by love. Whatever 
 may be the case with secular knowledge, certain it is 
 that in divine things we know hy love. ' He that 
 loveth not knoweth not God, for God is Love.' Would 
 to God that all Christians, and we ministers especially, 
 had more of that sort of knowledge that is acquired 
 not by the intellect, but by the loving heart." 
 
 "You, of all people in the world, have a right to know 
 exactly how my religious, or rather, I should say, my 
 theological views stand, for religion and theology are 
 entirely distinct things. I had intended to preach 
 yesterday from the text, ' He hath made him to be 
 sin for us,' etc. (2 Cor. v. 21), but I changed my mind, 
 and resolved, first, to read carefully and prayerfully 
 Dr. Cunningham's work on 'Historical Theology,' in 
 which he discusses various views that have been held, 
 and maintains the correctness of the view held in both 
 our churches. I preached instead a sermon on tem- 
 perance, or rather on the duty of abstaining for the 
 sake of othei's, from Rom. xiv. 1.3. In the morning 1 
 preached on the Lord's Supper; there are several 
 fathers of families who are not conununicants." 
 
MINISTRY IN PETERBORO. 
 
 61 
 
 orry- 
 . Let 
 
 's feel 
 ation- 
 whom 
 les, he 
 ts, and 
 mts, is 
 latevcr 
 An it is 
 le that 
 Wonld 
 )ccially, 
 c(\uircd 
 
 ,(3 know 
 say, my 
 poo-y are 
 preach 
 u to he 
 |\y mind, 
 yert'uUy 
 |lo^^y; in 
 en held, 
 |l in hoth 
 on teni- 
 for the 
 lovning 1 
 several 
 
 On more than one occasion wlien lie had (^iv^en way 
 to a serious tit of despondency over some theological 
 perplexity, reproof and rehuke, as well as counsel and 
 comfort, had not failed to come in the letters from 
 home. " Call upon the Lord to lighten your darkness 
 and deliver you from every spiritual eneni}'," his 
 father wrote, "and endeavour to give up seeking to 
 understand what the Lord has not revealed. . . . 
 Tlie Lord deHvers His faithful servants from hai'ass- 
 ing doubt, as well as from every other foe, when 
 they cry to Him." Tliis firm and faithful dealing 
 lielped liim, and he took courage and " hold on his 
 way. 
 
 Tlu! impression made by Mr. Macdonnell about the 
 nuddle of his Peterboro' ministry upon one soon 
 thereafter to be very closely associated with him is 
 worth giving here, especially as it recalls the gather- 
 ings of the Old Kirk Synod which have even already 
 ])assed into the realm of "ancient history." Mr. 
 MacMurchy, of Toronto, writes retrospectively : 
 
 " Li June, 18(18, the Synod of the Presbyterian 
 Church of Canada in connection with the Church of 
 Scotland met in Kingston. It was there that for the 
 first time I liad the pleasure of meeting Rev. D. J. 
 Macdoiniell. Both Mr. Macdonnell and 1 were on the 
 Committee of the Synoil, charged with the duty of 
 preparing an address to His Excellency the (Jovernor- 
 (leneral of Canada. The preparation of this address 
 was assigned to him and myself. His father was 
 also at this meeting of the Synod with many 
 anotlier worthy of the Church of Scotiand, such as : 
 
 m^'i 
 
 '■ :%i 
 
 1:11 
 
i I! 'I 
 
 52 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I 
 
 Tlie venerable Dr. Matliieson, of Montreal ; the elo- 
 quent ])r. Cook, oi' Quebec ; the helpful Dr. Jenkins, of 
 Montreal ; the retirin*;' Moderator, Rev. K, McLennan ; 
 the Moderator, Rev. Mr. Dobie, of Lindsay : the 
 accomplished Dr. Barclay, of Toronto ; Rev. Robert 
 Campbell, Montreal ; Rev. Principal Snod^rass ; and 
 besides these a fair representation of the clert^y and 
 laity of our branch of the Church. Many of these 
 have since then been called to the activities of the 
 Church above. What impressed me most at this first 
 meeting with my friend, besid(!S his vivacity, cheery 
 manner of address, and courtesy, was the very special 
 gift, which he had in an eminent degree, of ([uickly 
 entering into the spirit of his surroundings. This rich 
 endowment of sympathy was a very precious power 
 in the performance of his ministerial work. If he 
 was brought into a joyous company, he had the 
 blessed faculty of showing the joyful spirit ; if he 
 came to the sorrowing circle, he shared the grief 
 with genuine feeling. No one, in my experience, so 
 fully and so completely embodied the spirit of the 
 words, ' Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep 
 with them that weep.' " 
 
 I f) 
 
MARRIAGE. 
 
 53 
 
 1 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 MARlilAilE. 
 
 ■| 
 
 An influence new and powerful w.as bccoininf^ 
 apparent in the young minister's life before he liad 
 been long in Peterboi'o', helping to drive away the 
 mists of theological discussion and brio-hten the 
 horizon of the future. 
 
 A friendship dating back to the early childish 
 years in Fergus liad })een revived on his return from 
 Scotland, and grown into the attachment which so 
 enriched and emiobled his whole future life. On the 
 2nd of July, LSG8, he was married to Elizabeth Logic, 
 eldest daughter of Rev. CJeorge Smellie, of Ft-rgus. 
 Seldom do we find a married pair so equally yoked 
 togetlicr, so entirely suited to each other in every 
 respect, each the possessor so remarkably of qualitic^s 
 lacking in the other which, happily blended, made 
 them so truly one. 
 
 Mrs. Macdomiell was the descendant of generations 
 of Scottish ministers — the inheritress of many of 
 their conspicuously good ([ualities. Her father was 
 born in isll in St. Andrew's, Scotland, and studied 
 in Edinburgh University from 1827 to iSiJo. Here 
 
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 V 
 
 P 
 
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 if 
 
' 
 
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 IP 
 
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 if 1 
 
 1 h: 
 
 [J ' ■ 
 
 54 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 he had as teachers such men as Dr. Chalmers and 
 Prof. Wilson, and among his classmates was James 
 McCosh, afterwards distinguished as a writer on 
 philosophy and president of Princeton College. 
 During his university course, he had earnestly hoped 
 to go " abroad " as a missionary of the Cross. 
 
 When the disruption of the Church " at home " was 
 found to be inevitable, he resigned his appointment 
 as assistant and successor to the Rev. Walter Traill, 
 of Lady Parish, Sanday, Orkney, and resolved to obey 
 the urgent demand which every mail was bringing 
 from Canada for labourers to occupy the vacant places 
 there. Mrs. Smellie was a daughter of Rev. Dr. 
 Logic, of Kirkwall, Orkney. She accompanied her 
 husband to Canada immediately after their marriage 
 in 1H4-S. Mr. Smellie put himself under the direction 
 of the Presl)ytery of Hamilton, which in those days 
 ministered to the whole north-western peninsula of 
 what is now Ontario. Within a few weeks he was 
 called to St. Andrew's Church, Fergus. Here he spent 
 forty-four years of laborious and successful ministry. 
 After the separation of 1844, Melville Church was 
 formed out of the rj^fit maioritv of his cono-reixation 
 and in 1847, the present church building of that name 
 was erected. The corner-ston(i was laid by the hand 
 of a child of the manse, who died before the structure 
 was completed. 
 
 It is scarcely possible for the new generation to 
 appreciate all that was involved for their fathers in 
 the " Disruption Movement," r '■he issues at stake, 
 which led ministers and people oi. both sides to glory 
 
•<♦ 
 
 
 ^m' y ^^^BL-L'?. * . ' . 
 
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 ys 
 
 
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 _^^^^^^B^Bi^^^^^H 
 
 feii^^ 
 
 
 ST. ANDKKW S AIANSK, Fi:i!(;iS. 
 
 of 
 
 and 
 jure 
 
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 ! ^'l^^pjl p' 
 
 
 KIKKUALI,, FKI{<;US. 
 
I I 
 
MARRIAGE. 
 
 m 
 
 in their tribulations, for the sake of wliat conscience 
 held to be the truth of God and the honour of His 
 kingdom ; but it was an event Ijoth picturesque in its 
 incidents and far-reaching in its influences, and these 
 not least in tlio homes of the ministers. In the new 
 stone " Fi-ee Church Manse," built almost on the edge 
 of the primeval forest (a spot .scarcely recognizable 
 now in " Kirkhall " with its wcill-ordered jrarden and 
 modern appointments), a numerous family grew up, 
 trained in that wisdom whose ways are " ways of 
 pleasantness," and all whose " paths are peace ; " 
 trained also in those economies so characteristic of 
 the Scottish manse, where a good appearance and the 
 sacred duty of hospitality are kept up on almo.st 
 infinitesimal means, on the management of which 
 seems to have descended the blessino; bestowed of old 
 on the barrel of meal and cruse of oil of the widow of 
 Zarepta. 
 
 The following extracts fi'om a record prepared by 
 Mrs. Smellie for her grandchildren will be of deep 
 interest to the manv who knew and loved Mrs. 
 Macdonnell : 
 
 "Our Elizabeth was born on the 18th December, 
 1845, and for ten months the happy little circle was 
 complete. She was just begiiniing to know and take 
 pleasure in her little brother, eighteen months her 
 senior, wlien, after three weeks' trying illness, he was 
 removed from us by death. . . . When between 
 four and five years of age she accompanied her 
 father and me to Toronto, spenfling .some time at 
 ' Woodhill,' the residence of the Hon. Adam Feriru.son, 
 
 
 I 
 
K'i 
 
 56 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 i1 
 
 Waterdown, on our way home. ' Woodhill ' was for 
 the time her ideal of luxury and refinement, while, 
 on the otlier hand, Mrs. Fer<,mson was much taken 
 with her de})ortnient and disposition, and wondered 
 how a child of four, unattended, could ^ive so little 
 trouble in the house, and l)e such a little lady at 
 table, and annise herself so ([uietly beside us for 
 hours. 
 
 "In 1<S.")4 she very unexpectedly had the opportunity 
 of ^oing with her mother to Scotland and Orkney, 
 where Mrs. Smellie was pei'suadcd to leave her with 
 her o-randparents at ' Daisybank,' Kirkwall, where 
 two hapj)y j^ears were spent among scen(;s and com- 
 panionships which left their imprint on all her after 
 life — yeai's wliich were not less precious to the lovin<i^ 
 (jjroup of relatives among whom she was such a 
 cherished favourite." 
 
 INfrs. Smellie's record contiiuies : "She delighted as 
 a child in all that her father or I could tell her of 
 our homes, and she knew the names of people and 
 places in St. Andrew's, her father's birthplace, as well 
 as about Kirkwall, and my father's first parish in 
 Sanday, where I was born. When, in 1(S.'j4, our 
 homeward voj'age was nearly com])leted, and uncle 
 Robert Scarth, of Binscarth, came on board the 
 steamer and took charge of the ' Young Canadian,' 
 as she was thenceforward called, he came to me 
 saying, ' This child knows every place I name to 
 her, and can tell me who lives there!' Durino- her 
 mother's illness, soon after her return to Canada, 
 this little girl of eleven, owing to the misconduct of 
 
MARRIAGE. 
 
 57 
 
 a domestic, was loft sole iiiana<]fcr of the house and 
 children, and when her aunt came to take char<^e 
 some ten days later all was found in wonderful order, 
 and some useful lessons had been learned which were 
 made good use of in after days." 
 
 We learn from these notes how the educational 
 difficulties were solved under her mother's superin- 
 tendence — how, amidst the manifold labours of the 
 house-mother, time was found to teach a little class 
 of two or three alon<»- with her own dau<;hter; of 
 rejoicing when a governess, in every way admirable, 
 was found to shai-e in these labours : of the rare 
 deliii'ht taken bv Kli/abeth in her studies under the 
 direction of Miss ])eas ; and wo can picture to our- 
 selves this bright beautiful child eagerly drinking in 
 knowledge from all possible sources. ... A few 
 years later there came "the fifteen months at Mrs. 
 Henning's school in Toronto, and the delightful home 
 life, with a grown-up daughter as our companion after 
 her return from school ; " " but," her mother adds, 
 " indeed she had been all the comfort of a companion 
 to me, and in great measure to her father also, ever 
 since she was three years old." 
 
 Referring again to Elizabeth's retu)-n from Orkney 
 in 185(), Mrs. Smellie writes: ''The settlement of the 
 Rev. George Macdonnell in St. Andi-ew's Church, 
 Fergus, and of Mr. Middlcmiss, in Elora, had taken 
 place during her absence, and both were events 
 which had a marked influence on her future." Mr. 
 and Mrs. Middlemiss took a deop interest in Elizabeth, 
 Mr. Middlemiss himself teaching her the theory of 
 
 i 
 
 '■:■ . -- 
 "'fill 
 
 iU 
 
 ii! 
 
 !.. 
 
 1 i! 
 
58 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 music, thorough-bass, etc. "About that time," says 
 Mrs, Smellie, "l)egan also Jier acquaintance in ISt. 
 Andrew's manse ; her visits there were amongst her 
 most valued recreations, and this intercourse was con- 
 tinued through tlie years, till out of it sprang the 
 attachment culminating in the happy union which 
 blessed the remainder of her life, and was, we 
 thankfully believe, made a blessing to many." In 
 the interval between her school-days and marriage. 
 Miss Smellie had put her talents and acquirements 
 to excellent use as a teacher for several hours daily 
 in the family of George Ferguson, Esq., of the Bank 
 of Montreal. Fergus (son of the late Hon, Adam 
 Ferguson, of Woodhill), her younger sister being 
 also one of her pupils. 
 
 From the time of her home-coming to Peterboro', 
 and the kindly reception there of the minister's wife, 
 young and beautiful, as attractive in character as in 
 person, till that dark hour when God separated them 
 by death, her aim in life had been to be a perfect wife 
 — a " helpmeet " for time and for eternity. There are 
 many who can yet recall the impression on the minds 
 of all who met them in those early days, as told by 
 the same kindly and appreciative writer whose 
 " recollections " have already been quoted, 
 
 " I left Peterboro' a week before his marriage. 
 When I bade him good-bye he said, wdth a twinkle in 
 his eye, ' By the bye, I shall be passing through your 
 town,' (The purpose of his trip was an open secret.) 
 According to promise I went to the wharf and met 
 the bridal pair, and beheld for the first time that 
 
 
 ! 1 
 
MARRIAGE. 
 
 59 
 
 gracious presence with the wild-rose bloom in her 
 cheek." 
 
 Never had woman a hjcrher ideal of w'ifely duty. 
 This it was that inspired her con.stant watchfulness 
 to shield her husband from unnecessary anxiety and 
 interruption, and her ever virrjlant helpfulness when 
 there was a possibility of sparing his time and 
 strength. She thoroughly understood his quick, 
 nervous, sensitive temperament, and he found rest 
 and support in her clear-eyed, firm, yet sympathetic 
 decision and steadfastness. All her resources were in 
 demand when, some two years after their marriage 
 the question of leaving Peterboro' had once more to 
 be settled. 
 
GO 
 
 LIFE OF I). J. MACDONNELL, 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE CALL TO TOliONTO, 
 
 1 
 
 ! 
 
 '1 !' 
 
 Deep as waw Mr. JMacdonnell's attaclimont to liis 
 first people, he felt compelled to yield to the reiter- 
 ated calls that caine to liiin throu<,di no seeking of his, 
 to entei' a larger and more important sphere. Four 
 years of <j;ood work had told on the condition of 
 things in St. Andrew's, Peterboro', and he could leave 
 it, assured that an enert^etic successor woukl have 
 fewer ditf^iculties, and find a good fountlation on 
 whicli to build. 
 
 About the same time as the first overtures came 
 from Torontd, he had declined to preach in St. An- 
 drew's, Montreal, with a view to beinij considered 
 open to a call, though strong efforts were made by 
 friends to induce him to reconsider that decision. 
 His own inclination was toward Toronto, and again 
 the position of aflfairs in that congregation appealed 
 to liis instinct to go to the help of the struggling and 
 necessitous, rather than to seek greater ease and a 
 more eligi))k' position in Montreal. Througli all this 
 the strain upon liis conscientious nature was intense. 
 
THE CALL TO TORONTO. 
 
 61 
 
 I 
 
 H«' imiat do the ru/hf, lie must follow the Uiviiio 
 iciulin^'; l>iit oh, tor clt'uror indicatioiifs of (Jcxl's will ! 
 
 A di'seriptioii of the situfition in St. Andrew's and 
 the circunistiinces of the call is <^iven by one of those 
 wlio were most active in endeavourin^r to indnce .Mi*. 
 Macdonnell to accept a call to Toronto: 
 
 "In 1S70 the Rev. John Barclay, !).])., owin<r to 
 ill health, resifjiu'd the pastoral chai"<;e of St. Andrew's 
 Chnrch, Toronto, of which con<^i'e<:^ation he had heeii 
 minister since 1(S42. Many changes had taken [)lace 
 in the city <lurin;^ thest; twenty-seven years, and mnch 
 controversy and unkind feelin<r had been cansi'd by 
 the unfortunate discussions which a''ose in Canada, 
 in connection with the disruption in Scotland. For 
 various reasons, the results, in Toronto, were not 
 favourable to those that ailhered to the principles of 
 the Scottish establishment. It is (juite true that the 
 number of those who were loyal adherents of that 
 Church in the city were much more numerous than 
 appeared to the ca.sual ob,server, and like the wai-riors 
 of Roderick Dhu, only wait'.'d for the sound of one 
 voic(^ callinii" them to arise to action. In 1870 St. 
 Andrew's conorej^ation was the only one representing 
 that Chui'ch in Toronto. Towards the end of that 
 year the con<;re(ration empowered three of its mem- 
 bers, Messrs, James Michie, William Mitchell, and 
 Archibald MacMurchy, to proceed to Peterboro', and 
 confer with the Rev. 1). J. Macdonnell, to try to induce 
 him, upon consideration of all the circumstances, to 
 come to Toronto to St. Andrew's coni;'re<^ation. The 
 report to the congregation was that Mr. Macdonnell 
 had accepted the call to St. Andrew's," 
 
 11' 
 
 J! ■ 
 
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 .1 
 
 •> 
 
 li 
 
i; 
 
 T 
 
 62 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ' 1 
 
 
 ,1 ', 
 
 i i 
 
 i 
 
 A Hpeciul jjjround of liesitation about accepting the 
 call was his por^)l(^\ity in the matter of sul)Scnption 
 to tho Wostininstcr Standards. To use tlie words of 
 one wlio watched him anxioiisly at the time: "The 
 call from St. Andrew's, 'i'oronto, brought to the 
 surface a<;ain the ditUculties reiiJii'dino; the Confes- 
 sion. if he should <;•() to Toronto, the ordeal of takinj^ 
 the oath nnist once more lu' undergone, and the desire 
 was stronger than ever for freedom of thought and 
 liberty to preach the ti'uth as he saw and felt it. He 
 became restless and uneasv, broodini; over the matter 
 until it became intolei'able. 
 
 "The tirst ste|)s had been taken in the church pro- 
 ceedings i' okinjj^ toward his transfei-ence to Toronto, 
 when on a certain day, knowincr that the Presbytery 
 of Toi'onto was in session, h(^ went to Toronto to 
 ])res(!rit himself before the rexerend court, and lay 
 his burden on them. There was a sensational scene, 
 which the newspapers of the day duly recorded. It 
 was on the whole a uni(pie sj)ectacle — this youn^ 
 man of pr(>mis(» apparently blasting all the liopes of 
 his friends and the Church, which were centred in 
 him, for what to him was conscience' sake. The 
 fathers and l)rethi-en took in the situation [)erfectly, 
 after recoveriiiii' from their first shock of astonish- 
 nient, and they dealt wisely with the lad. They i;;ave 
 him fatherly and brotherly counsel, and sent him 
 home to think further of the matter. 
 
 "The conference did him ^'ood. What had been 
 tormentinjj^ his own soul was now sym[)athetically 
 shared with him by friends all ovei' the country, who 
 
THE CAI.L TO TORONTO. 
 
 63 
 
 I' 
 
 ! 
 
 by counst'l uinl discussion helped him to reacli 
 ifroiind wIhtcoii lie could stand. The result was that 
 when at a later day the Presbytery met to deal with 
 the case and thi' obligation was tendered him for 
 acce])tance, his answei- was in etf'ect that ho recojj- 
 ni/ed th(! claims of the Confession in so far as it 
 claimed itself to be bindinj;'. The <vood })resbyters 
 debated earnestly for hours ovei* the answer, and 
 linally by a majority vote a<;reed to acc(4)t it. So 
 thi' crisis passed. Pei-liaps it was the ttwninLj-point 
 in his career. His friends well know that he con- 
 templated tiie aban<lonin^ of his ])i-ofession as a 
 possible issue of the matter, and that ]\v had his eye 
 on a vacant lliufh School mastership as an alternative 
 if the decision of the Presbytery should bi; adverse." 
 
 Mr. ^hicMurchv u'lves the followiiii!; sketch of the 
 closin<jj scene: "The meeting of Presbytery was held 
 on the Stli I)ecend)er, ls7(), in the church on tlu; 
 corner of Church and Adelaide streets. Many will 
 recall the lonn; rectangular buildint^^ dindy c./ough 
 lighted in the dark nights of winter. There was a 
 fair attendance of mend)ers of Presbytery, Rev. Dr. 
 .Jenkins, of .Ah)ntreal, was present and was asked to 
 sit and dcdilvrate with tlu' Court. I'i'ominent anionj^ 
 the membe)"s was tlu Rev. James llini -' Father 
 Bain,' as we were in tlu' habit of calling him, on 
 a(!C(anit of his iige and xcnerable a))))earance - a man 
 of u'reat natui'al abilitv, irood connnon-sense, a not(!<l 
 wit and ."-iomewli.it free and easv in niamiei'. The 
 point at issue was: could the Pi-esbytei-y, ex-en if it 
 were! r(>ady to do so. accei)t <|ualilie(| answers to the 
 usual (piestions :' The Ijrethien of thr IVesbytery 
 
 
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i i 
 
 f'l 
 
 1^ 
 
 si I 
 li ' 
 
 64 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 were in a qnandriry. Fnther I^ain walked up and 
 down tlie dimly lighted cliurcli aisle, witli his liands 
 in liis poekets, and interjeeted now and aoain the 
 remark, 'Are ye no ready to j^o on yet?' To the 
 memljers of St. Andrew's Churcli wlio were present 
 and anxiously looking' on, wonderino- why there 
 sliould have Ijeen any stop at all to the proeeedint^s, 
 the hiteh appeai'ed mysterious. "^Fhe wi'iter ol" this 
 asked aji esteemed memljcr of the Presbyteiy what 
 the dirticulty was. He replied that it seemed to him 
 that ]\Ir. Maedonnell wanted to say 'yes ' to the ques- 
 tion twice, whereas other ministers were content to say 
 ' yes ' only once. I r(;[)lied, ' What hai-m to allow ' yes ' 
 twice?" My friend replied, 'That is just the point 
 between us.' After ex[)lanations had been made by 
 Mr. jVIacdoiniell and furtliei' consideraticju by the 
 Presbytery, ari'anoenients were made for the induc- 
 ,ion. 
 
 This was to him a " crisis ' indeed — such a one 
 as Carlyle speaks of when he says, '" Ti'uiptations of 
 the wilderness, choices of Hercules and the like, in 
 succinct or loose forms, are appointtid for every man 
 that will assert a soul in hims.df and be a man." 
 Throuiih it all the " unfei<»;ned faith that was in him " 
 had been to him as a rudder that is firmly lashed in 
 time of storm. Knowing* that however he might 
 difier from his fellowmeii about the inlcr/nrtation of 
 Scripture, he liau no controversy with lieselation 
 itself: and sur<'r than i'\er of his hjyalty to Christ 
 and desire to ex.dt Him only, he made preparati*«i 
 for his removal t<> Toronto in compHi'ative- ijuietness 
 of aoul. 
 
ST. ANDREW'S OF THE OLD TIME AND THE NEW. 65 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ST. ANDRFAVS OF THE OLD TIME AND THE NFW. 
 
 The induction took place a fortnight lator. The 
 event is (le.scril)O(l in t]u'. Pre/^hijfrrvtn For February, 
 1871, wlioso account we liere transcribe with ulio-ht 
 abridgement : 
 
 " The Presbytery of Toronto met in St. Andrew's 
 (Jhurch on tlie 22nd December, 1870, for the induc- 
 tion of iVIr. Macdoinu'll as tlie successor of J)i-. IJar- 
 chiy, resio-ued. . . . The members of the cono-re- 
 gation were ])resent in hii'o-o numbers. After tlie 
 usual pr(Jclamation divine service was performed by 
 the Rev. Mi-. ( armichael, of Kin<r, wIk) had been 
 apponited to preach on the occasion. The sermon, 
 from the words, ' For now we live, if we stand fast 
 in the Lord,' (1 Thess. iii. 8), was in every way worthy 
 of so important an occasion, beinnj- characteri/ed bv^ 
 the solid thouo-ht, terse lanjL,niao-e, and true elo(|uence 
 for whicli Ml-. Carmichael is distino-uish-d. I'he 
 address to tlm ministei- was delivered by refpiest 
 by Mr. Maclonnell's father, the Rev. (leorgc Mac- 
 donnell, of Milton. ... As was to liave been 
 expected, this part of the service was marked by an 
 
 1 
 
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 i 
 
 M^ 
 
 ii 
 
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 66 
 
 MFF OF I). .1. MACDONNKLL. 
 
 .•ifrcc.tioHfitc t('n<l(;riH'ss niid cliask! siiii])licity. . 
 The s<n-\i('(s were lirou^lit to ;i close by n lew ,sji,;;'a- 
 cioiis couiisi'ls a(liliTss('(| (() tilt' (•on<ri"e"atioii by tlu; 
 iniiiislci- of Scai'boi'o, IJrw .Inmcs liaiii. . . . I'ul)- 
 lic worslii]) bcin;;' ciidcd, a very coi'dial wclcoiiic was 
 i^i\('M to Ml". MafdoiiiU'll by tlit; iiicinbcis of liis 
 coii^i-ci'ution." 
 
 Till' day of Ibc iiiduciion was to Mr. Macdonuell ii 
 sacred aiiiii\<Msaiy, iind oii<^ to wlilch lie oTtcii i-ci'cn-cd 
 IVoiM the |)ulj)it, St. AiKh'cw's, liowcNcr, was iirvci" 
 a clmrcb lauicd lor public amii\ crsarics, and it was 
 tlic iimci' simiilicaiicc ol" the cNciit I'atlici' tliaii its 
 outwai'd cclcbi'atioii, that iiia<l(' it a day to be lon^' 
 rciiiciiibcrcd. 
 
 'riiroiiiili the ji'ciiiiis and labours of Mi-. Macdoiuicll, 
 St. Andrew's Churcii, Toronto, has beconu^ as widely 
 known as any Protestant church in ('anada. But at 
 the time ol" his in<luction it was already a con^^reea- 
 tion of lono- standini-'. Tlu! rollowiniJ' ex^i'act from 
 th(^ Church IJejtort ol' bSSO, thi' year of the con;i,-i'ey-u- 
 tioual jubilee, nives a succinct re\iew ol' its history. 
 It is specially inter('stin<4' to note the nanies of histoi'ic 
 fame which ai"c associated with its foundation: 
 
 "in l(S;i() ' 3Iud(ly Little, Yoi'k ' had a population 
 of about live thousand, and one Presbyterian cono-i-e- 
 <jjation, that of Hew James Harris, wdio luid ori;ani/ed 
 a conii'i-eii-ation in 1S2I in connection with tlu! 
 ' United S\nod." Accordiui:' to a statement in Mi-. 
 Croil's 'Historical and Statistical l\e[)oi't,' the 
 authority for which is Mr. Iiintoul, the <lesi^"n of 
 formin«>' a coni''re<'ation in connection with the 
 
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 11 
 
ST. Andrew's of the old time and the new. 07 
 
 Cliurcli of Scotland was iirst entertained l)y some 
 members of tlie Leo^islative Assem})ly when in York 
 during" tlu' session of 18.S0. One of tliese, tlie late 
 Hon. \Vm. Morris, of Pertli, has h'ft on record an 
 interesting- incident. The names of Chief Justice 
 Maclean and the Hon. Peter Me(Jill are also asso- 
 ciated with this incident. ^Iv. Morris was walkino- 
 on a Snndav mornin<r hv the I'uins of the formei' 
 Parliament House befoi'e (^'oinjjf to the l'>j)isc()pal 
 Church, thinkinn- of the possibility <>f securin<i^ the 
 ruined buildini;' and converting' it into a place of 
 worship in connection with the Church of Scotland. 
 As he entered the Episcopal Church late, the Clerk 
 was iriviiiiT out the lines of the LSl^nd Psalm : 
 
 *' ' I svill ii(»t go iutt) my Iiousl', imr tn my l)t.'(l iisci-ml ; 
 
 No soft I'epose shall close my eyes, iior sleep my eyelids heiid ; 
 Till for the Lord's design'd abode I murk thedestiu d ground ; 
 Till I a decent place of rest for .Jaccil)'s (Jod have foinid.' 
 
 " The words came home to liim like an oracle. The 
 next day a meeting was held, at which the Hon, 
 Francis Hincks presided, and Mr. William l^yon 
 Mackenzie acted as Secretary. Mr. Thomas Carfrae 
 was the first Treasurer, and tlu; original subscription 
 list bears the names of many of the most prominent 
 men of the time. The men of the 71st and 7l)th 
 Highland Regiments, then stationed at York, were 
 liber.d contributors to tlie building of the church. 
 The first ])aymei.t entered in the Treasu)'er's book 
 was made on the 10th of June, 18.S0. Wheii the 
 corner-stone of the old buildino; -was removed, there 
 
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 OH 
 
 LIKK Ol-' I). .1. MA<'I)<)NNKI,L. 
 
 Wi'Vc IVu<;liM'ii(s of (avo weekly piijx^l'H round \viu|»))e<l 
 round the bottle, tlie FrrcriKDi, and tlie (mizcUc, (jI* 
 did;e 'riiui'.sduy, 24tli ol" .June, l<S:{(), I'l-om wliicli it 
 may he inlei-i-ed tiuit tin; stone was laid witliin ;i week 
 IVoiii tliat day. 
 
 " The eliurcli was dedicatee! on the lf)tli of .luiu^ 
 1<S.'{|. 'IMie lii'st minister was the Ivev. Wiilinni 
 liintoul. The sac.i'ament of the Lord's Su|)j)ei' was 
 first dis|)ensed in the church on the '{Oth of ( )ctohci", 
 l(S,'{|,t.o 112 connnunicants. Mr. liintoul resigned in 
 IS.'U, iind was su])se(|uently minister ol" Streets\ille, 
 and of St. (Jahriid (Miurch, Monti'eal, till his death in 
 l(Sr)2. The second minister was the Iie\-. William ''J\ 
 Leach, From 'Inly, 1<S;J5, to 1<S4!2, when he removed to 
 V'oi'k Mills. I le was succucd(!<l hy Kev. .John l!arc.lM,y, 
 D.I)., wlio was inducted on the (!th of Xo\-emli(!i-, 
 1.S4.2. . . . 
 
 "In IS44 those in sympathy with th(> Fret; 
 (Jhurch in Scotland withdrew from St. Andrcsw's 
 !ind uin"te(l with Mi-. Ilai'ris' con<>i'<'iiati()n, t'oi'ininuf 
 Kno.x (yhurch. Suhsecjueiitly tlu; Irish elemitnt of 
 the conjxreoation hived ofi* I'rom Kno.x and I'ormed 
 Cooke's ('hurch." . . . 
 
 " It may he oF interest to state that St. Andrew's 
 connrj-coation was the first in the Preshytoi'ian (Jiiurch 
 in Canada to introduce instrumental music into tlie 
 ordinary pulilic services oF tlu; cliurch. As Far hack 
 as l(S52 a hai'monium was used to assist the choir. 
 A better instrument was introduccid in 18()0, and a 
 few years later the j)re.sent organ." 
 
 During Dr. Barclay's long ministry, St. Andrew's 
 
 1 
 
ST. ANDIIKW'S OF TIIK OF,!) TIME AM) THE \E\V. (]'.) 
 
 \ 
 
 luul Itarclv held its own ninoii"' ( Ik; city <'liiircli<'s. lie 
 wjis iiii ,'ic(!()iii|)lislic(| ;iii(i Hcliolurly iiiaii ot" sound 
 iu<|inn('iit jind of iniicli \V(!i<;Iit in tlif ('(iiiiis ol" tliu 
 ( 'liurcli. Tlic Mi<'ml»ci'.slii|) nt, flic d.-iic ol" Mr. Mac- 
 donncir.s Jicccssion aiiioinittMl to l-Sl. 
 
 On (li(^ iM()i'iiin<; of (lie Sundji\' rollowiiiij; tlic indiic- 
 tion the s('i'vi(;(' was led hy \U\ . Ilohci't ( 'iuiiphcll, ol" 
 Montreal, Mr. Macdonm'H'H l)fo(li('r-in-I;i\v, who uftcr- 
 wai'ds ;4i'a('('(| the j»ul|»it on many iniportant o(H*iisions. 
 Ill the ('\ciiiiii4' til' new minister |)reaclied with ;in 
 eiiere-y, unction and t;ict which ca])t.ivated all the; 
 hearei-s ller<' was ;i new icliiiious I'oi-cc in Toronto, a 
 distinctly uni(|Uc jicfsoniility who ma<le relieion hoth 
 I'cnl and urecnt, whose cleac-cut stsnttMices sj)cd tlcir 
 way to heaj't and mind at once, anil made the appre- 
 hension of the truth easicf, liecansc it hecaine a 
 ])i"ocess ol' feelin;;' as well as thinkiii;;' all alone; the 
 line. And so he contiruied to ])i'eacli in a way all his 
 own. What Ik; wa s in the; j)ulj)it lie was in |>eo|)lo's 
 homes an<l on the; sti'cet : so tiaie and IVank and lov- 
 ahle that to many his daily \]\'c ])e(;ame one ol' tin; 
 (3vidonees of rclit^ion, an ai'eumcnt for the tiaith and 
 reality of what he prea(died. 
 
 'Die due restdts ol' the new ministry soon l)(!c;ain«i 
 evident. The net eain in the memhershi]) dui'ine; 
 I(S7I was firty-nine. The con^re<^^ation hecann^ a mis- 
 sionary ae('n(ty from the start. The temper ol' th<; 
 luovement was sol)ei' and steadfast I'athei' than 
 impetuous and sudden. 'Idiere was nothini;" ol tin; 
 re\iva,list in .Mr. Maciloiinell s pi-eachine- — jiossihly 
 a. little more e.xhortation or ap|teal mii^ht have heen 
 
 ;11 
 
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 :iH 
 
70 
 
 I.IFK OK I). .1. MAT'DONNKLr-. 
 
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 if; 
 
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 an advHiitfi;^!^ — l)ut tlutn; vvus pcrhups jill tlu; iiKjrc 
 poteniiul iiilluciicc in it. 
 
 A j)ictui'o ot" the pjistoi'fi! iiictliofl is ;^n\('ii \)y Mr. 
 MaeMurcliy, who Iius siipjilicd so iiiiich lliat rchitcH 
 to tlic iiistory ol' tliiisc cjii'li*!!' ycai's : " M^'inhcrs iiii<l 
 adlionuits of St AikIj-cw's were to lie round in 1871 in 
 evory ))art ol* tlic city. My disti-ict us an cldci- lay to 
 lli(,' <'ast of (i(M)rn(; sti'(H;t, and cxtcndt'd outside tlio 
 city limits aii'l ovci" the Don, and it IVll t<j inv lot to 
 introduce Mi'. Macdonnell to the people of tli(; Cliurch 
 scattered ovei- that wide rei'ion, where there an; now 
 eiji^iit I^rusi)yterian churches -six of thoni new, two 
 of them [)ot(;ntially owin;i( their ori^^in to St. Andrew's. 
 This iuN'olved many lone- walks to;^eth(!r, durine- wliich 
 our (;<jnv(!rsation naturally t'ell much upon matters oi" 
 church work and ])ractice and heiiet", includine- such 
 matters as the hurnin;;- i|Uestion of subscription to 
 confessions. His tolerance, and the; resp(!ct li<' sjiowed 
 for convictions not held hy himself, made int(^rcourse 
 with him (h-liehtful, and (;()-o[)eration with him in 
 (Jliristian work not a task hut a ])leasu)(i. Memory 
 recalls witli delie-ht tlie fisatures of tin; n(!W minist(!i"'H 
 charact(!i", Ids transparent hon"sty of purpose, his 
 fraidv (iai'nestness, liis fondness for literatui'c;, and 
 especially of the liynuis of the Cvhui'ch, which came 
 so riNidily to his lips. Plans foi- churcdi work in the 
 city wen; considei-(;d. Tlie main outline was to start 
 a nussion in th<; west end of the cit\', and another 
 in tlie noilh-east, St. Atidi'(!w's Church to he tins l>ase 
 of o|)erations. We then had a mission scIkjoI at the 
 corner of Simco(! and \\.\i\<j: streets, henun in j(S()!). 
 It is satisfactoi'y to i-ememher that practically thi.s 
 
 m^ 
 
 i« s 
 
ST. ANDHKW's Ol" TUK OlA) TIMK AM) TIIK XF.W. 71 
 
 I'oiTCjist liJis hcrii |-cfili/,('(| : St. Mark's is ('stal)lisli('(l 
 in the west; ()lilSt. AikIitw'h (we had nol an inkling 
 of its (M)niin;^^ in IS70j, in tin- iiortli-cast; and still 
 I'ai'tlit'r l'> tlic cast, St. I'^nocli's, an oH'slioot IVctni 
 01(1 St. Andrew's, tln' nai-cnt church still iKtldinii' the 
 lower middle ])art ol" the (iity." 
 
 It was hut a lew months al'tiT Mi*. .Mac'lonncH's 
 cominii' to Toronto that his hcloxcd hither was taken 
 away I'ldui earOi. He died A|)ril 25th, ISTl, in the 
 sixtieth year ol" his aec;. lie had heen a,n active and 
 vii-'orous mail until not \r\-\- Ion'-' hei'ore his <leatli. 
 Anxieties coiniect<'d with his ])astoral chai';4'e at 
 Foreus seem to li;t\e hi-oUL-'lit on a mental strain 
 which undermined his health. Shortly al'tei- the 
 d(!cline heean he accepted a smallei' and li;;hter 
 charge at .Milton, where 1I\('<| a innnl)er of old and 
 vahhid I'l'iends. lie was permit t,e<l to lahour iiere, 
 liow(!ver, only a yeai'. heath came to him sur- 
 romided hy lo\<'d and lo\in<^ ones. He was hui'ierl 
 at Milton, his Friend and co-preshytei', lve\'. .lames 
 Herald, ol' Hundas, pi'esidin;;- at the ol)se(|uies. Thus 
 he had hidden his son ( Jod-speed in the i^reat work of 
 his lil'e just hefore his own lil'e-work came lo its 
 peaceful and ha])j)y en<line'. He had watcdied his 
 S(ju's (l(!VeIo[)ment wdtli |)ride, not unmixed with soli- 
 citude at his darinj'' lliii'hts and his hii-h career: hut 
 he had sent him out into the world secuin^ that he 
 would nevoi- shame his nurture or <liscai-d thos(! les- 
 sons ol" lidelity, honour, and re\t.;rcnc(! which he had 
 leai-JKid in an (Jld Kii'k manse. 
 
 A cii'cumstance connected wit!i the death of the 
 father may he mentioned as hel[)ine' t(j illustrat(j tlu; 
 
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 IMAGE EVALUATION 
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 WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 
 
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 72 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 character of the son. Among those who showed 
 much kindness to Mr. George Macdonnell in his 
 closing days was Rev. T. W. Jeffrey, then ministering 
 to the Methodist Churcli in Milton. Eighteen years 
 afterwards Mr. Jeffrey, in conse(|uence of some mis- 
 understandings, was subjected to an ecclesiastical 
 trial, and accjuitted of the charges brought against 
 him. On the first opportunity that offered Mr. Mac- 
 donnell came forwar<l upon the public platform and 
 made a chivalrous and enthusiastic defence of the 
 man who had been kind to his father. 
 
 In the obituary record of the Synod of 1871 of the 
 Church of Scotland in Canada stand the following 
 words : 
 
 " Mr. Macdonnell was one of our most devoted 
 ministers; sincere in his piety, gentle in his disposi- 
 tion, ([uiet in his demeanour, genial in all his inter- 
 cour 3 with the brethren; and taking, as he did, a 
 deep interest in the religious education of the young, 
 o,nd in home as well as foreign missionary efforts, he 
 was universally esteemed and has gone from amongst 
 us regretted by all." 
 
 Signs of life were abundantly ukanifest in St. An- 
 drew's during this initial year. The revenue as well 
 as the membership increased steadily. The minister 
 had been called at a salary of $1,()00 — nuich more, by 
 the way, than he thought he should be paid. But 
 financial progress seemed so assured that this sum was 
 made up to S2,000 by the end of the year, and the 
 stipend then fixed at that annmnt, (Jlebe land at East 
 Gwillind)ury was nuide productive by being sold, and 
 the proceeds made a fund for the building of a manse. 
 
ST. Andrew's of the old time and the new. 73 
 
 31* 
 
 
 In outward prosperity the year 1872 was a fair 
 copy of 1871. Additions were also made to the 
 eldership. When Mr. Mac<loiinoll l)e<]fan his lahours in 
 Toronto the Session consisted of l)ut three members 
 — Messrs. Geo. H. Wilson ; Wni. Mitchell, who had also 
 been a member of the Board of Manaj^ers since IHOO, 
 and its secretary during the greater [)art of the inter- 
 venin<,^ period: and Archibald MacMurchy. All of 
 these had been elected to the eldership in ISO.*}. To 
 these were now added Mr. Thos. A. McLean, M.A., 
 and Mr. James Bethune. Of these Mv. McLean 
 remained till the time of the union in 1.S75: he 
 removed later to the North-West, where he died in 
 18!)G. Mr. Bethune died at the end of \HHll The 
 three senior elders still abide in the Hesh. Mr. 
 Mitchell was for twenty years superintencU'iit of the 
 St. Andrew's Sunday school, and Mr. AhicMurchy, 
 until his withdrawal in 187G, held the samt; place 
 in the mission school, the foundation of the later St. 
 Mark's mission and congrejjjation. 
 
 Already in 1872 the (juestion of erecting a new 
 church building was discussed. As to the site of the 
 edifice alternative plans were proposed and long 
 debated. In July, 187.S, this (|uestion was brought 
 before a special meeting of the congregation, and it 
 was resolved to authorize the })urchase of additional 
 land on King and Simcoe streets for the ehurch 
 and manse, and the fate of St. Andrew's was decided. 
 The minority, though not content, remaiiRMl loyally 
 with the congregation till the new church was entered 
 in 1870. 
 
\ ! 
 
 74 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A HOME MISSlOX CHURCH AND AflXISTER. 
 
 St. Andrew's Church, Toronto, was now known 
 as an important centre in the Cluircli of Scotland in 
 Canada. It was heconiin<^ very respectable in point 
 of numbers, for by tlie end of I87.*i the membership 
 had nearly doubled. As one looks back and tries to 
 repro<luce in ima«:fination the St. Andrew's of that date, 
 one is apt to form a somewhat erroneous picture. 
 There was nothing phenomenal in the rate of increase 
 either in numbei-s or in wealth. The progress was 
 gradual and unbroken, acconling to the law of 
 healthy growth and develoi)ment. Nor was the 
 congregation as a whole distinctively what is popu- 
 larly called a "working" Church. On the contrary, 
 there was rather a lack of helpers in aggressive reli- 
 gious work. St. Andrew's under i\lr. Macdonnell was 
 never distinguished for the great number of its 
 " workers." The attendance at the service was 
 always large, fron» the very beginning of his 
 ministry in Toronto. Hut the proportion of tluxse 
 who have confined their church interest to listening 
 iu the pew and contributing more or less to the 
 
 1 
 
 1 ! 
 
A HOME MISSION CUUUCH AND MINISTER. 
 
 75 
 
 church funds has boen lar^jcr than in many other 
 conf^regations. IMr. MacdoniR'H's preachin^^ tended 
 to develop a deep and rellective rather than an 
 exuberant or demonstrative type of relij^iuus Hf«;. 
 Moreover, the number of those wlio were captivated 
 mainly by his manliness and intellectual power has 
 always been considerable. What really makes his 
 ministry memorable is, on the t)n(; hand, the 
 strentjth, depth and fervour of his own character 
 impressed upon tliose who cau<;ht his spiiit and fell 
 into line and step with him in his walk with the 
 Christ : and on the other hand, the awakenini? of 
 practical s^'mpathy for the neediest, and therefore 
 the most deservinj^of men or causes. 
 
 It was the latter of these two modfs of inlluence 
 that naturally reveah'il itself at first most conspicu- 
 ously. And to him the neeiliest of objects were the 
 i<^norant and the outcast at his own door, and in the 
 destitute districts of his own country. I fence St. 
 Andrew's was em[)hatically ami above everythin*^ 
 else a Home Mission Church, ami its minister, 
 althou<;h occuj)yin;; no ret;ular out-field station, was 
 one of the j^reatest of C^madian home missionaries. 
 
 Now let us svii how this tendency and spirit showed 
 themselves in the St. Andrew s of the eai'ly seventies. 
 The Old Kirk was not a lai-;r<' body numericailv, but 
 it had lar<fe aims. Aujon'^ its "schemes'" were a 
 ministers' an«l orphans' fuml, a sustentation '.'und 
 aimin<( to ^ive S2()0 to eveiy minister not aided from 
 the Temporalities Fund, a .scholarshij) and bursary 
 fun<l for (^)ueen"s .-nid !\b»rrin eolle^'es , a French 
 
 R 
 
 if " 
 
r^ 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 76 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Mission in Quebec; a Manitoba Mission; and a pres- 
 bytery Home Mission. It shows the bent of the man 
 that Mr. Macdonnell should soon be put at the front 
 of tlie Manitoba Mission. In this year, 1873, he went 
 out to the North- West to see tilings for himself. Of 
 his work in this enterprise his friend already alluded 
 to, Prof. Thonias Hart, of Winnipeg, speaks in a 
 remini.scent vein. He writes thus to Mrs. Campbell : 
 
 " I can truly say that your dear brother was the 
 best man I ever knew. He won my affection from 
 the beginning of my acquaintance with him in 1857, 
 my first year at college, and the better I knew him the 
 more I loved him. . . . He was the Convener of 
 our synod's Manitoba Mission Committee, and the 
 very life and soul of it. It was through him that I 
 accepted the position of first missionary of our 
 Church to this country, and in al! the difficulties 
 connected with the early liistory oi the mission I 
 freely consulted him and found him to be a wise 
 counsellor and guide. 
 
 " The period was very critical. It was at the height 
 of the union negotiations. Feeling ran high, and 
 great care and wisdom, good sense and right feeling 
 were required to prevent a rupture between the two 
 sections of our Church in Winnipeg. I kept him fully 
 informed of the position of afi'airs here, and the results 
 justified the wisdom of his advice. . . . 
 
 " Since I came to Manitoba I saw but little of your 
 brother except on my visits to the East, or his to the 
 West. He visited us five times in all. His first visit 
 was made in the sunimer of 1873, in company with 
 
 
A HOME MISSION CHURCH AND MINISTKU. 
 
 77 
 
 
 our 
 
 the 
 
 'isit 
 
 ith 
 
 our mutual friend, Rev. J. Carinichciel, of Kiu^, for the 
 purpose of (gaining personal knowleiljre of the missions 
 under his care. " 
 
 The venerahle Dr. Carniichael, of Kincr, a well- 
 beloved friend, writes thus of the visit Just alluded 
 to, and adds a kindred reminiscence : 
 
 " It is some twentv-three vears ai:o since Mr. Afac- 
 
 d 
 
 >11 and I had that 
 
 >K 
 
 it trii) to Manitoh 
 
 '"•It' 
 
 We went from Port Arthur hv what was then known 
 as tile Dawson route. We were sul»j('Cted to a ;jjoud 
 many (liscomforts aiid provokinj^ delays, hut 1 <l<j not 
 reinemher to have ever seen him ' put out.' At I'ort 
 Arthur the aj^ent <(ave him a letter askin;^- him to 
 show it at the various stations, urj^in^ tlu-m to send 
 us forward as (piickly as possihle, hut he never showe<l 
 it, preferrin(( to share all the dittieulties and delays 
 the other passenjjers had to put n\) with. He wms 
 always in the best of humour, and saw somethin«^ to 
 interest or amuse in every incident. Kven when the 
 canoe upset at the mouth of the X«'pit^on River, and 
 he was plun«,'ed into the cold waters of the bay, he 
 was, indeed, annoye<l, not because of his cold bath, 
 but because the canoe was made by one of his own 
 old Peterboro' couixreiration. He never obtrudrd 
 relijijion offensively on others, but he tried to have a 
 religious service whenever it was convenient. One 
 Sabbath morning we had worship on the shore of 
 Lake Kaogassikok, and felt how strange it was ' to 
 sing a Jehovah Psalm on ground that's ayont His 
 keeping.' Again it would be around a ' snnidge,' 
 kindled to drive away the treacherous mosipiitos that 
 
 r, 
 
 ii 
 
T 
 
 78 
 
 LIFE OF I). J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 a small jjfroup would gathor, wliilt' Mr. Maccloniiell led 
 in tho f>;ran<l old hynins, ' Rock of A<rea ' or ' Jerusa- 
 lem the (Joldeii.' To him God was as manifestly near 
 in these lonely spots as in the crowded cathedral, or in 
 his own church in Toronto — ' Karth was cramme<l 
 with heaven, and everv connnon bush aflame with 
 God.' On the loni^ sta<,^e journey from Winnipeg to 
 Moorehead he showed the same iKunidless delight in 
 the glorious prairies stretching on and on with a sense 
 of infinity. He clearly foresaw the grand possibilities 
 of the future, and understood the need that our Church 
 should take an eavjy and strong hold of the country. 
 
 " In the early part of the winter of 187<S Mr. Mac- 
 •loiniell and I were together attending a series of mis- 
 sionary meetings in Muskoka. On such occasions he 
 always showed wonderful tact ami connnon-sense. 
 He thoroughly enjoyed that kind of work — was at 
 home in it becaiise his heart was in it. No matter 
 how small the gathering, or how humble the log school- 
 house wnere we met, he saw in it an opportunity to 
 speak a kindly word for the Saviour he so truly loved, 
 as well as a cheerful word to encourage those whose 
 lives were so hard and lonely." 
 
 The trip to Manitoba in 1873 was undertaken — so 
 he wrote semi-jocosely from the Synod meeting at 
 Montreal to his wife at Fergus — as a contribution 
 to the Home Mission Fund. He returned from 
 Winnipeg ly way of Duluth without his companion. 
 This part of the trip was made in a lumber-waggon. 
 He writes from Duluth to his wife on August 23rd : 
 " We were told that the stage-coach, which is a 
 
 ilii 
 
 h 
 
A HOME MISSION CHUItCH AND MISISTEK. 
 
 70 
 
 fjoo«l covered one, lunl broken down on the roa<l. 
 This turned out to be a lie. The truth was tluit 
 the roads hjul been pretty heavy owin<^ to rain at 
 M(X)reliead, and as theri> were oidy two passen<;ers 
 <roinir, the driver thou'dit it would be easier for his 
 horses to liave the open wagt^on. Fortunately, we 
 had thret' dry fine <lays, and we did not really sutler: 
 and thou«;h the wa^'^on had no sprin<;s, the seat on 
 which we sat had, and so we were comparatively 
 well ofl! We had the advanta;;*' of seein<; all the 
 jolts before they came, and so enjoyed the double 
 pleasure of anticipation and realization. ( )f course, 
 we saw the country well also, though there was not 
 much to see." 
 
 There was plenty "to see" in another trip taken a 
 few weeks later in coujpany with Mrs. Macdoiniell. 
 
 In October, iJST-i, the Evan<^elical Alliance lield a 
 notable meeting in New York City, and Mr. Mac- 
 donnell attended its sessions as one ot the Canadian 
 delegates. They were the guests of Rev. Dr. David 
 Inglis, of Brooklyn, formerly minister of the McNabb 
 Street Church, Hamilton, and professor in Kno.K Col- 
 lege, Toronto. This was a visit of rare enjoyment. 
 The trip by steamboat down the Hudson River, the 
 stimulating addres.ses at the meetings of the Alliance, 
 the delightful fellowship among the members and 
 their friends, are all spoken of enthusia.stically in the 
 home letters. The gathering was concluded by a 
 " free trip " to Philadel[)hia, Baltimore, and Washing- 
 ton, taking in Princeton by the way. Here spt-ech- 
 
 making was ^eld in one of the churches, where, amonir 
 
if* 
 
 80 
 
 LIFE OK I). .1. MAcnONNEI.L. 
 
 other j^ood things that were said, a Icjarned German 
 professor told the students to "persecute" tlieir 
 studies in the ri<,dit spirit, an«l Henry Wanl Beeclier 
 described tlie Princeton theoloj^y as " medicinal, but 
 wholesome." 
 
 The closini; weeks of this somewhat eventful vear 
 were very anxious ones for the minister and his wife. 
 On November :2ist she was taken down with an 
 attack of small-pox mysteriously acquired, but attrib- 
 uted to iMr. Macdoiniell, who was supposed to have 
 carried it from the sick-bed of a patient whom he had 
 visited without knowing the character of the disease. 
 Mrs. Macdonnell was nursed through the sickness by 
 her husband, both of them being at the same time 
 greatly concerned a])out the condition of tiieir little 
 boy, born in August, 1872, their eldest and at 
 that time their onlv child. He was dangerously ill 
 with croup, and was now removed to Fergus to 
 escape the infection. They both recoveretl com- 
 pletely; but it was not till Decendjer 22n»l that the 
 mother and son met again at Fergus, where they 
 remained till the new manse in Toronto was ready for 
 occupation, more than two months later. 
 
 
CHCRCH BlTlLDIXfi ANI> (HrUCH UNION. 
 
 81 
 
 CIIAITKR XI. 
 
 cue lie 1 1 liiiLhiSd AS I) c II u nail uxiox. 
 
 In LST-f till' (HU'.stioii ol' church removal wa.s rapidly 
 a{)|)rt)acliiii<( practical solution. The j)urclias«' of tlie 
 additional irround at the corner of Kin;; an<l Sinicoo 
 striiuts had been niadi* hel'ore the end of IsT'i at a 
 cost of Si 4,000. The new manse at the southern end 
 oi' the lot was completed and occupied in Kehruary of 
 1H74. The younj; couple hail heen living up to that 
 time in their " own hinsd house " at 72 l>ay Street, 
 near the corner of Wellin<(ton. The memory of its 
 hospitalities still remains in the minds of many oM 
 friends to bri^^hten the retrospect of those earliest 
 years of a nuMiiorable Toronto histoiy. Now all the 
 enerjjfies of the majority of the congregation were 
 bent to the task of be(j;innin<; wisely and well with 
 the erection of the new edifice. In clearini; the 
 ijjround it was necessary not only to jtrepare for the 
 cominjj church buildin^-, but to <ru!>rd also the interests 
 of the nnssion which lia«l its centre in the schoc^l- 
 house already standin^^ ui)on the same lot of land. 
 It was decided to remove the latter structure and 
 transfer it to a site far to tlie west, so as to carry 
 
pp 
 
 li 
 
 i I 
 
 i t 
 
 
 82 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 out the (lesijfn entertained from the ])e<rinninir of 
 havin<^ a western mission for St. An<h'«'\v's. This 
 was accordinj^ly done, and it will he one of our tasks 
 later to descrihe the development of St. Shirk's in its 
 new environment. A huildint;- committee was ap- 
 pointed. The names of its memhers may be here 
 given, as the most of them are prominently associated 
 with the later history of the settlement, and the whole 
 list may serve as a memento of this important epoch. 
 The names are : James Michie, chairman and treas- 
 urer, William Mitchell, secretary, R. W. Suthei'land, 
 assistant treasurer, Alex. T. Fulton, I. C. Clilmor, 
 Robert Hay, John Jac(pies, R. tirant, VV. M. Jameson, 
 Charles Perry, T. M.Pringle, W. Hi<r^rinbotliam, Z. A. 
 Lash, W. Arthurs, James Hethmie, (1. H. Wilson, 
 Russell In^lis, William Milligan and J. j\I. Rogerson. 
 Moreover, as the business of providin<( ways and 
 means without prejudicing the resources of the con- 
 gregation required most careful management, a 
 finance committee was appointed, consisting of James 
 Michie (chairman and treasurer), Robert Hay, Alex. 
 T. Fulton, William Mitchell and William Arthurs. 
 The magnitude of the undertaking may be inferred 
 from the fact that the ordinary annual congregation 
 revenue had risen to but a little over .S4,000, and that 
 the first cost of the new building alone was expected 
 to be over SO 1,000. By the end of 187*4 the founda- 
 tion had been laid and covered in. It may be imag- 
 ined that these were days of anxiety for the minister, 
 but it was shared by a sturdy band of willing helpers, 
 and the future seemed secure. 
 
CHURCH nUILDINO AND CHIUCH UNION. 
 
 Hii 
 
 ition 
 I that 
 tctod 
 Inda- 
 Img- 
 ]ster, 
 )ers, 
 
 Steady proj^rcss was made witli tlif l)uildinj^ 
 throuf^hoiit the workin^^ time of IH7.'). Some <h'Iay 
 was occasioned hy thi' greater elahoratioii of (U'tails. 
 Many improv«'ments were adopted tending to enrich 
 the aspect of both exterior and interior, and to give 
 greater beauty and eti'ect to tlie (U'sign of the arclii- 
 tect. Tiiese were not included in the original contract, 
 so that the total cost ran up to over .Ssd.OOO, besides 
 the 814,000 re(|uired to pay for the addition to the 
 land. The result was that there was a debt on the 
 cluuTh and manse M over SSO.OOO when the work 
 was comj)leted. To bring this debt within manage- 
 able compass was one of the chief aims of th«' minister 
 and one of the main tasks of his co-workers during 
 the next few vears. Airainst this debt stood the 
 valuable land and building and the j)ersonal bond 
 of several of the church ]»eople. 
 
 The growing congregation had now a ])eautiful 
 and convenient home, and the city of 'I'oronto pos- 
 sessed a new and splendid architectural momnnent. 
 The design was furnislu'd by Mr. \V. (I. Storm, one 
 of the architects of Tniversitv College, Torotito, as 
 well as, many years later, the architect of Victoria 
 Universit}', in the (Queen's Park. The church was 
 built in the Norman-Scottish stvle of architecture, of 
 (Jeorgetown stone, with Ohio and (^)ueenston stone 
 dressings. Tiie form and the interior arrangements 
 are not such as to secure economy of space, and these 
 have not been copied in other churclies erected since. 
 liut it is one of the ti-iuujphs of the aivlntect that 
 good acoustic properties have been secured without 
 
 I 
 
 It 
 
 it ; 
 
 !*1 
 
84 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNELL,. 
 
 ■ f. 
 
 ' 1 1 
 
 Ml ' 
 
 H 
 
 ' 
 
 
 r 
 
 i 
 
 Vi t 
 
 
 V ' 
 
 . . 
 
 m : 
 
 ■ 
 
 ' ll 
 
 1 
 
 i 
 
 
 ! 
 
 1 
 
 L 
 
 any special device witli that end in view, in spite 
 of the \oiv^ rectjin<^uljir shape of tlie auditorium and 
 its lofty roof. 
 
 An extract from the Session Report of 1(S76 may 
 complete this brief sketch of the building enterprise : 
 " On the l.Sth of February the new church was dedi- 
 cated to the worshij) of God. The dedicatory services 
 were conducted in the forenotm by the lli'V. Robert 
 Campbell, M.A., of St. (labriel Church, Montreal; in 
 the afternoon by the Rev. I'rofessor McLaren : and 
 in the evening by the Rev. 1). M. (lordon, 111)., of St. 
 Andrew's Church, Ottawa. At each of the services 
 there was a very large attendance, and our hearts 
 were made glad by tlu* goodness of (lod in permitting 
 us to witness the successful conjpletion of a work 
 which had been to man}' of us during its pi-ogress a 
 source of anxious thought and abundant labour, and 
 to all an object of interest and hope. ' 
 
 Meanwhili' the minority of the congregation who 
 could not take ])ait in the erection of tlu; new 
 building upon the clujsen site, were looking out for 
 their own future. The same Session Report tells of 
 the issue of this fiiendly <livsent, which was before 
 long t(/ lead to a new settlement rivallinu' the original 
 conn-rejxatio)! in maofnitudi' and influence: "On the 
 9th February, lN7(i, at the close of ft prayei'-meeting 
 in the church on Church Street, a new congregation, 
 which bea)'s the name of ' Old St. Andivw's,' was 
 organized by Professor McLaren of Ivnox College, 
 and the minister of this church, the repi'esentative 
 of the Pi'esbvterv of Toronto. Sixty-two mendjers 
 
and 
 
 ho 
 
 IR'W 
 
 t lor 
 lis of 
 >fore 
 final 
 the 
 •ting 
 ition, 
 was 
 
 r r) 
 
 itive 
 
 l)evs 
 
 
 > 
 
 
 ^'•\'■ 
 
 Hi! 
 
 i 
 
CHURCH BUILDING AND CHUUCH UNION. 
 
 85 
 
 were thus (lisji^ined from St. Andrew's Churcli. The 
 session are j;hi<l to know that tlie eon<i^re<^ation tiien 
 formed is making steady pro<^'ress under tlie pastoral 
 care of Rev. G. M. Milligan." 
 
 As a proof of the <jjood feeUng that ruled the two 
 parties in the undivided St. An«'.rew's, it niay he 
 a<lded that as early as May, LS74, a proposition 
 looking to the divi.sion of the church pi'operty was 
 unanimously agreed to in the session, at the itistance 
 of both sections, and adopted unanimously hy the 
 congregation. According to this agreenu'nt, which 
 was ratified when referred to the presbytery in 1875, 
 the minority retained possession of the old building 
 on Church street. As we shall see, however, they 
 soon chose a more convenient site on Jarvis Street, 
 where they and their following flourish unto this chiy. 
 
 As is well known, the Church of Scotland in 
 Canada was the last of the Presbyterian bodies to 
 give its consent to a general Presbyterian union. 
 That great event was accomplished in June, 1875, 
 in the city of Montreal. But if this staunch old 
 comnuniity hesitated longest it was not for lack 
 of a stronir union sentiment witliin its ranks. As 
 early as I8(i(), the eminent theologian and churchman. 
 Rev, ])r. John ('ook, the teacher and in.spirer of so 
 many of the present generation now in its maturity, 
 brought up a union motion in the ()M Kirk Syno<l, 
 and the subject was discussed from time to time 
 thereafter. Opposecl t(j Dr. Cook, as the leader of 
 the anti-union party, was Rev. Dr. ^hithieson, of 
 Montreal. The Queen's College men generally 
 
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 86 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 favourer] union, Dr. Cook beinp^ Principal of Queen's 
 at tlio time when the Hues liegan to be <lrawn. 
 
 Among tlie younger men of the time, Rev. Robert 
 Campbell, now of St. Gabriel Church, Montreal, 
 who became minister of Gait in 1862, after demitting 
 the charge of the preparatory school in Kingston, 
 soon became prominent in the church courts and 
 influential as an advocate of the union. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell was in favour of union from the first, partly 
 "because it was his nature to," and partly, as we may 
 suppose, under the inlluence of Dr. Cook, of whom 
 he was ever a lover and admirer. Prof. Mackerras, 
 though very detVirential to Dr. Cook, and closely 
 akin to Campbell and Macdonnell in temper and 
 nicxle of thought, was at tii'st on the side of Dr. 
 Mathieson against union. Ha[)pily he was brought 
 over, and became one of the leaders of the united 
 church. 
 
 St. Andrew's Church, when Mr. Macdonnell came 
 to it, was not unanimous for union, and it was a 
 task of no small delicacy as well as importance, to 
 prevent a division on this (juestion as well as on that 
 of the new church building. The mendjers were 
 familiar with the subject ab-eady from its frecjuent 
 public discussion. In bSOO a motion in favour of 
 union was brought up in the Synod at Toronto, but 
 its prolonged consideration was postponed on account 
 of the absence of members, caused by the Fenian raid. 
 In 1871, shortly after the induction, the Synod again 
 met in Toronto, and the divided sentiment of the 
 congre<;ation was j.retty clearly shown. The leaven 
 
CHIKCH BUILDING AM) CHURCH UNION. 
 
 87 
 
 of his spirit, liowever, kopt workiiif]^ among them, 
 and as the movement was essentially a prof^ressive 
 one, they were nearly all won over sooner or later. 
 Very few of the congre^j^ation .seceded in conse(|uence 
 of the accomplished fact. Yet there were many who 
 simply went with Mr. Macdonnell, just as in later 
 times very many followed him on the Sunday street 
 car and other (piestions. The .same people would 
 have stayed out if he had done so. In fact, when 
 the great crisis aro.se, which is now to be described, 
 the congreiiation would have voted itself out of the 
 union had he given encouragement. 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 I : 
 
 
 i 
 
 THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 We now come to the great crisis of liis public life, 
 a crisis precipitated by the inconsiderate action of two 
 budding journalists, who have since achieved distinc- 
 tion in their chosen profession. I'hey had gone to 
 St. Andrew's Church on Sabbath, 2()th September, 
 187''), with a view to exercising their prentice hands, 
 as stenographic reporters, on its minister, who had 
 the reputation of being a hard man to keep pace with 
 by even expert shorthand writers, so vehement and 
 spasmodic were his utterances, when he warmed up 
 to his work. Young gentlemen of the press do not 
 necessarily take much stock in the subject-matter 
 of what it may be their duty to report; but on 
 this occasion these two aspirants to editorial dis- 
 tinction were personally much impressed with the 
 sermon as it proceided, and })ricked up their ears 
 with unconnnon liveliness as they endeavoured 
 to keep up to the eager preacher in his impassioned 
 discourse. The text chosen was from Romans v., 
 12-21, the topic being the more abounding grace in 
 Christ Jesus, in contrast with the sin which abounded 
 
THE KCCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 89 
 
 in Adam. These younj:^ stenojijraphers had an in- 
 stinctive perception that tliey had that morning 
 stumbled upon a ji^ood thin<^ from the newspaper 
 point of view, tliat tliey had po.sst'ssetl themselves of 
 copy whicli their jonrnalistic superiors would he glad 
 to receive at their hands, and whicli, when it reacheil 
 the public, was boun<l to make a stir in religious 
 circles. But they failed to comnnuiicate their own 
 enthusiasm in the matter to the management of the 
 irreat dailv with which one of them at least was 
 connected, being informed by the autocrat who 
 wieMed the editorial sceptre, that the paper could 
 not afford to give space to reports of sermons. The 
 utujost us(! they found tliey could make of their 
 notes was to frame a paragraph, summing up their 
 estimate of the (h-ift of the discourse, to be sent to 
 the ]\Iontreal Wifnettti, of which one of them was the 
 Toronto correspondent. 
 
 This paragraph appeared in the Witness on Monday 
 eveninir, and of course, it soon found its way back to 
 Toronto. It chanced that on tlu; Wednesday evening 
 of the following w^eek Mr. Macdonnell was present at 
 the opening exercises of Knox College for the first 
 time as a member of the Senate, to which he had been 
 appointed after the Union, and made a few remarks 
 which were innocent enough in themselves, and wen; 
 mainly truisms as to the relations in which Presbyte- 
 rian ministers stand to the subordinate standards of 
 their Church. But so excited had ecclesiastical 
 circles ]>ecome in the city by the rumours which 
 were in circulation as to the character of the views 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 proclaimed in the sermon of the 2()th September, that 
 two of his brethren in the Presbytery felt called upon 
 to take exception to his remarks regarding; the Con- 
 fession of Faith as of an unsettlin<; tendency. Then 
 friends in Montreal, who considered that injustice 
 nuist have been done to the preacher in the sunnuary 
 of the sermon telegraphed to the Wdvens, as well as 
 in the subseciuent repoi't of tiie proceedinj^s at Knox 
 Collet^a', really contributed unwittin<,dy to brin«if on the 
 crisis, in their desire to vindicate Mr. Macdonnell 
 from the aspersion which they thou«:fht the news- 
 paper in (piestion had matle itself the medium of 
 castings upon his good name. Thus challenged, l)oth 
 the Witness and its Toronto correspijndent were put 
 upon their mettle, and so the text of the sermon 
 compiled from the combine<l notes of the two rejjor- 
 ters, was given to the public in the Witness on the 
 afternoon of October 12th, 1875, urn 
 " Universal Salvatioi 
 an utterly unjustifiable heading for the sermon, as in 
 all the discussions which followed from its publica- 
 tion, Mr. Macdonnell repudiated the conclusion which 
 this title implies ; but it helped to fasten the atten- 
 tion of the public upon the discourse which tlie news- 
 papers far and near hastened to copy ; and the young 
 reporters, who found that they had done a fine stroke 
 of professional business, had their revenge when the 
 sermon appeared in the Toronto journal whose editor 
 had in the first instance refused their notes. 
 
 The publication of the discourse produced great 
 excitement among all classes of the people. Three 
 
 of 
 ge capitals. This was 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 91 
 
 'oung 
 
 iTKintlis had barely passed since the ^reat event of 
 Presbyterian L^nion in the Dominion liad l)een consum- 
 mated, and no one liad taken a warmer interest in 
 or was in a ])Osition to do more toward helping it on 
 than tlie minister who occupied tlie most prominent 
 position in tlio Clnirch ol* Scotland in western On- 
 tario. Everyone I'elt that the utterances of this ser- 
 mon were ^oing to .subject the recently formed bond 
 of Tnion to a .severe strain, if indeed they <lid not 
 imperil its continuance. The negotiations had taken 
 years to mature, and not a few ob.stacles had to be 
 overcome to pave the way to the issue which culmin- 
 ated in success on June Kith, LS7'). Not the least of 
 these was the position taken by extreme men on both 
 sides. One of the telling arguments •'m})loyed by some 
 of the leading op{)onents of Union in the Chur ch of 
 "Scotland, m addressing the people whose support they 
 sought in their opposition, was that the views and sym- 
 pathies of many of those in the Church with which 
 Union was pro))Osed, were too narrow to give promise 
 of nuich comfort to liberal-minded people who should 
 be in the same Church with them : while the siis|)icion 
 that views too broad to be consistent with the truth 
 were tolerated amonir ministers and members (jf 
 the Church of Scotlan«l, had occupied the minds of 
 someffood men in tlu' Canada I'resbvterian Church to 
 an extent that had been foun<l ditlicult to remove. 
 Now an unfortunate (juestion was forced upon the 
 attention of the united Church which threatened to 
 revive, if it did not Justify, tho.se a})prehensions. 
 Not that Mr. Macdonnell had sympathizers with 
 
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 92 
 
 LIKE OK D. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
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 his doubts ami ditHcultios on the (lurstion of the 
 eternity of future punislinient auion^r any section of 
 hi.s clerical brethren in the united Church. The 
 correspondence that poured in upon him from all 
 (|Uarters at this crisis bears ample testimony to this 
 fact, as all the subse(|Uent discussions in Presbytery, 
 Syno<l and (Jeneral Asseml)ly also did. Indeed, some 
 of those who lovt'd him njost an<l afterwards were 
 warmest in his defence, felt called upon to do what 
 they could to t|uiet the agitation which had sud<lenly 
 spruno- u]) in ecclesiastical circles, and especially to 
 j)urge the section of the Church to which Mr. Mac- 
 d(uuiell had belonged, and the collefi^e in which he 
 had been trained, of all suspicion of doubt on the 
 ])oint in issue; hasteninj^ to nive the public their 
 views in su])port of the <,aMierally received doctrine of 
 Christendom on the (piestion. The only one of his 
 ministei'ial brethren who ever ottered anything like 
 an apology for Mi". !Mac<lonneirs doubts and diHi- 
 culties was the venerable Dr. Cook, of Quebec, in the 
 Assembly of LS7t). Personally he had no doubt as to 
 the drift of the teaching of Scripture on the question, 
 as he prefaced his remarks in the A;;seinbly by say- 
 ing, and as his private letters to Mr. Macdonnell show. 
 But while not harassed with doubts himself, he 
 succeeded in putting himself intellectually in the 
 place of those wdiose minds compelled them to look at 
 the (piestion from a different point of view, and 
 evinced a freshness of thought and mental candour 
 not generally to be looked for in old men, urging that 
 when the theological mysteries that are involved in 
 
 ii 
 
THK KCCI.ESIASTICAF, TRIAL 
 
 on 
 
 liercilitary (Icpnivity aiwl tlu' rlcctin;^ <;nice ot" (uxl, 
 alon;; with the a|)|)allin;L; si<;iiiti('anc«' ol* an eternity 
 of suti'erin;; when one tries to ;^ras|) it. are taken into 
 account, (louhtH and dithcnlties on the snhjert inav 
 almost he reasonahly paidoned. The Asseinhly was 
 startled hv the l)oldness ol' the utterance; hut cNcrx- 
 one felt that splendid tho>i;,di the intellectual etllut 
 was, it harmed rather than helped tlie cause which 
 it sou<;ht to promote, at least in its immediat*' efl'ect, 
 hecause it created unnecessary alarm hy j»ostn)atine^ 
 i'ar more than ^Ir. Macdonnell s case demanded. 
 
 And wliile a lar<.je numher of friends wrote, ree;n't- 
 tin;^ that the sermon had heen preached, and otl'ei-in;;" 
 
 counse 
 
 an< 
 
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 p,.ri 
 
 rolexities. Ml'. Macdonm 
 
 also found himself deluj^eil with pamphlets and letters 
 from ail manner of reli<jious "cranks" and unhelievers, 
 
 an< 
 
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 lus was made j)ainlully aware oi the imnsci* 
 
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 tion of which he had heen guilty in Ncnturin^' to ^ive 
 utterance to his douhts. Far from feelin<;- satisfaction 
 in the notoriety with which he fouml himself suddenly 
 invested, as lie would have done ha<l his aim heen to 
 hrintr liiniself prominently hefore th(! pidilic. as some 
 iiisinuate<l, he accept»'d the complinu'iits and lauda- 
 tions that were showere<l u])oii him l)y the .sceptical 
 press, as part of his punishment for the imprudence 
 of thinkin*^ aloud and doing in the [)resence of his 
 congregation what ought to have heen done pre- 
 viously in liis study — weiijhint^ Scripture aeainst 
 Scri})ture, and striking a halance hefore communicat- 
 ing what was in his mind. 
 
 But though his friends without exception regretted 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J, MACDONNELL. 
 
 11 
 
 rriniisi 
 
 wliaf h(! luul (loiio, iionf^ of tlic iniiiiHt».'rial l)r«'tlu*en 
 witli whom lu; luul hven formerly associated in church 
 Fellowshii) lost faith in him, or wislu'd to have him 
 too .seriously dealt with, for only ^ivinj^ oxpressicjn 
 to doubts, HO long as those doubts did not amount to 
 a rejection of the doctrine in (|U(!sti<jn. They kn<'W 
 that there was nothing of the Philistine in his nature, 
 that far from delighting in turmoil and opposition, as 
 born fighters do, his symj)athetic nature rather led 
 him to yearn to be in accord with his brethren, and 
 if he (littered from them, it was only because his 
 conscience compelled him. He had commended him- 
 self .so univer.sally to the mendjers of the Synod of 
 the Church of Scotland before the T^nion as a devoted 
 servant of God, and one who was specially loyal to 
 Revelation, that his old friends had no fear of his 
 drifting far afield from the ])uths of ortho<loxy. 
 Anchored to Christ, whom he held to with a fondness 
 that was touching, they knew that his tli\st wish was 
 to know the mind of the Master. Once he was per- 
 suaded of it, no influence could induce him to swerve 
 from it. Nor had the hii»her criticism in the .slightest 
 degree les.sened the reverence for the Word of (Jod, in 
 the full belief of which his nnn<l and heart had been 
 trained. The Spirit of God operating within him 
 bore witness to the truth which he found scattered 
 everywhere over the page of Revelation. He put an 
 exalted estimate upon the Bible, as God's mes.sage to 
 man ; but just in i)roportion as he elevated it, he 
 would keep all merely human productions in com- 
 parison on a lower plane. His lofty conception of the 
 
THE ECCr.ESFASTICAI, TIUAL. 
 
 05 
 
 Holy St'Hptnn's led also to an oa^j^or dcsin' to know 
 rx.'U'tly wliat tlu'y ta»i;^'ht. Tliis dt'siie was the Hourct' 
 ol' tliat scrupulousness, that " fastidious cousciciu'r," 
 which Principal Cavfii was the first so to characterize, 
 an<l which so often stood in the way of the settlement 
 of his case before the Asseinhlv, when brethren 
 believed it was in Hi<^dit. All this was fully known 
 to his old fi'iends and associates, as on more than one 
 ()Ccasion he had refused to allow his conscience to bi! 
 bound bv human sunniiaries of truth, even when siich 
 sunnnaries were so venerable as the propositions of 
 the Westminster Confession. It is necessary to state 
 this to i'Xplain what otherwise mi;j;ht seem invincible 
 partisanship on the part of his former brethren, when 
 the ease was voted on at the Assembly in ISJO. With 
 a single exception, they all voted for the motion 
 which imjjlied leniency in dealing with the offence ; 
 and they did so. not because they W(!r«' resolved to 
 stand to<jjether, but because they wei'e persuaded that 
 Mr. Macdonnell, from what they knew of him, mi<^ht 
 be trusted to be loyal to the truth, and to take the 
 necessary steps without pressure froni without to let 
 it V)e known, if his further study of Scripture, on the 
 subject of the futui'e state, led him finally to reject 
 the traditional view of the Church. On the other 
 hand, the brethren to whom he was a com])ai'ative 
 stranger, were perhaps not to be blamed for icfusinj^^ 
 to take more' account of a man, however ^ood and 
 u.seful he might appear to others, than of a dcx'trine, 
 a hearty belief in which they <leemed of prime 
 importance. But is it saying too much that the 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MAODONNELL. 
 
 .subso(|uent course of events justified the attitude 
 taken on that occasion by those wlio knew liirn best ? 
 Did not ail tlie brethren of tlie united Church come 
 to share in tlie estimate wliich liis old friends in the 
 Church of Scotland had formed of him, as one whose 
 nature was sinjjfularly sensitive to the truth, and who; 
 while tolerant of other people's opinions, did his own 
 thinkino-, uiid would hold to his convictions at any 
 c< )St ( 
 
 The Pi'esb}'teiy of Toronto first took cognizance of 
 the sermon on November 5th, l(S75. On that day 
 attention was called to the subject, and a committee 
 was appointed to have a private conference with Mr. 
 Macdonnell. The connnittee met witii him. Had he 
 been disposed to take adrantajj^e of t(^chnical objec- 
 tions to shield himself — as is done every day in the 
 civil courts, and as has often been done also in eccle- 
 siastical courts, when ministers have been taken to 
 task for their utterances — he mioht truthfully enough 
 have claimed that the jjublished report of his sermon 
 was not a full and accurate account of what he had 
 actually said. But it was not in him to have recourse 
 to such a means of avoidino" trouble. He admitted the 
 general correctness of the report, although he stated 
 that there were some omissions and some alterations, 
 the general effect of which was to lead to the supposi- 
 tion that he held views which he did not hold. He 
 had simply stated the difficulty he had in arriving at 
 any conclusion. He further stated that he felt that 
 he had been unwise to speak in a way not in harmony 
 with the Confession of Faith on this particular sub- 
 
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THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 97 
 
 ,titude 
 
 best ? 
 
 come 
 in the 
 whose 
 1(1 who- 
 lis own 
 at any 
 
 ance of 
 lat (hiy 
 nniittee 
 nth Mr. 
 Had he 
 J objec- 
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 n ecele- 
 aken to 
 enough 
 sermon 
 lie had 
 •ecourse 
 Itted the 
 i stated 
 •rations, 
 ^upposi- 
 lld. He 
 IV in*;" at 
 felt that 
 annony 
 lar sub- 
 
 ject, when liis own mind was in a state of perplexity, 
 and expressed his rej^ret for so (loin<ij. He further 
 undertook not to contravene the teachinfif of the 
 Church while seekin*,^ li<ijht on the (juestion, and 
 expressed his willinijness to state his views on the 
 matter to the Presbytery when called upon to do so- 
 The attitude of the Presbytery then and throughout 
 the entire dealings with Mr. Macdonnell was one of 
 great kindness, while his bearing toward the Presby- 
 t(!ry was in return one of respectful candour. 
 
 On April 4th. 187G, Mr. Macdonnell handed in a 
 written statement of his views, as follows : " In regard 
 to the eternity of future punishment, I iiave arrived 
 at no conclusion at variance with the doctrine of the 
 Church. I do not conceal that I have difficulties and 
 perplexities on the subject ; but 1 adhere to the 
 teaching of the Confession of Faith in regard to it, 
 (expressed as it is almost entirely in the languagi' of 
 Scripture." 
 
 The Presbytery asked him to withdraw the last 
 clause, as qualifying what went before : but he ad- 
 hered to that clause tenaciously throughout all the 
 negotiations that followed, as conveying his attitu<le 
 of supreme regard for the Holy Scriptures, and his ac- 
 (|uiescenco in whatever they taught. In conse(|uence, 
 the Presbytery declined to accept the statement. 
 
 Matters had reached this stam\ when, bv the inter- 
 mediary offices of fri(mds outside the Presbytery, Mr. 
 Macdonnell was induced to offier a new statement, 
 which the Presbytery by a majority declared to be 
 satisfactory. It was as follows : " Notwithstanding 
 
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 98 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 difficulties which I liave regarding the eternity of 
 future punislunent, I continue my adliesion to that 
 doctrine, as implied in my assent to the Confession of 
 Faith formerly given." The Presbytery resolved to 
 transmit this statement to the General Assembly, 
 with an expression of the hope that the Assembly 
 might find it " a satisfactory basis for the settlement 
 of the case," and the whole matter was referred to the 
 General Assembl3^ with the request that that vener- 
 able court would finally issue it. 
 
 It fell to Principal Caven and Rev. J. M. King (now 
 Principal King, of Manitoba College) to state the 
 reference from the Presbytery to the Assembly, which 
 they did with great clearness and force. They both 
 put forth their best eiibrts to persuade the Assembly 
 to accept Mr. Macdonnell's statement as satisfactory, 
 for they sincerely desired to see the matter settled at 
 once. They analyzed the statement and presented it 
 in so favourable a light, with the view of justifying 
 the Presbytery in accepting it, and of showing that 
 the Assembly would be quite safe in also accepting it, 
 that Mr. Macdonnell felt uncomfortable when he 
 heard his brethren endeavouring to explain away his 
 difficulties, as if they really amounted to almost 
 nothing. And so, when the debate was in progress 
 over a motion to accept the statement, and he was 
 challenged to say whether the representatives of the 
 Presbytery had in their addresses fully set forth the 
 state of his mind on the question, he advj^nced to the 
 platform and relieved his conscience by saying that 
 he was afraid that they had placed his real situation 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 09 
 
 i\ity of 
 to that 
 ssion of 
 Ived to 
 senibly, 
 ^seinbly 
 tlement 
 sd to the 
 t vener- 
 
 nvr (now 
 tate the 
 y, which 
 hey both 
 Assembly 
 isfactory, 
 settled at 
 scnted it 
 iistifying 
 iiiLT that 
 spting it, 
 ivhen he 
 iiway his 
 ) ahnost 
 projjjress 
 he was 
 3S of the 
 forth the 
 3d to the 
 liner that 
 Isituation 
 
 
 in too favourable a li^lit before the Assembly, and 
 added a few words by way of showing where he 
 actually stood in relation to the fjuestion. This 
 candid avowal was very disappointing to man}- in 
 the Assend)ly, and destroyed at once any chatice of 
 the Assembly's accepting the statement before it. 
 But while Mr. Macdonnell's action dashed the hopes 
 of an immediate settlement, and proved most embar- 
 rassing to the friends who had laboured in the case to 
 bring it to an early and favourable issue, the moral 
 effect of it was un(juestionably greatly in his favour. 
 The " fastidious conscience " that would not allow 
 him t«) accept relief from the distresses in which he 
 was at the mon^ent placed, by pleadings that he felt 
 to be too fav'ourable to him, was deeply impressive ; 
 and so, one of those who afterwards ottered a motion 
 in amendment declining to accept the statement, and 
 pro})osing another course, prefaced his remarks by 
 characterizing Mr. Macdonnell as a "man of intense 
 candour, marvellous uprightness of heart and spirit, 
 on that and every other point of doctrine contained 
 in the Presbyterian Creed." I\Ir. Mac<lonnell was very 
 anxious that his true attitude to the doctrine in ((ues- 
 tion should be known ; and so, while he would not 
 accept a favoura1)le verdict on grounds that repre- 
 sented him as more fidly in accor<l with the com- 
 monly received view of the doctrine than he ivally 
 was, on the other hand, all through the discussions of 
 the assemblies of 187() and 1H77, he most strenuously 
 corrected statements and arguments that exat^rn'rated 
 tlie amount of his disairreenient with his brethren. 
 
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 100 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ift- 
 
 The representatives of the Presbytery no longer 
 requesting the Assembly, in view of Mr. Maedonnell's 
 address, to accept the statement which they had 
 referred to the court, the debate went on, and amend- 
 ment after amendment to the motion for acceptance 
 was submitted, until there were no fewer than nine 
 of them. 
 
 The course of the debate was twice interrupted for 
 the purpose of conference with Mr. Macdonnell by 
 committees of the Assembly. But they failed to 
 secure any statement which would at once satisfy 
 the majority of the Assembly and not infringe on 
 Mr. Maedonnell's conscience. 
 
 One of the memorable Incidents of the debate was 
 when Professor Mowat, a man of rare reticence, 
 mounted the platform, which he was never known 
 to do before or since, and gave expression to his 
 views with much warmth of feeling. He had known 
 Mr. Macdonnell from his boyhood up, and he could 
 not bear to hear the slightest imputation cast upon one 
 whose truth-loving mind, pure character, and sincere 
 heart he fully appreciated and loved. " Mr. Mac- 
 donnell," he said, "had already been severely punished. 
 It was surprising that he was now living, having 
 been badgered by some, ridiculed by others, and, 
 worse than all, mourned over by those who love 
 him." He challenged any man in the Assembly to 
 tell of an instance in which a minister of the Presbv- 
 terian Church had been deposed for entertaining 
 doubts ; and concluded with these sharp words : 
 " Let it not go forth to the world that while they 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL; 
 
 101 
 
 were stiff and stern in their dealings with one of 
 their trood men, because of a doubt entertained by 
 liini, they were doing nothing in regard to those men 
 wlio were stupid and dull, and whose preaching was 
 useless." A venerable member of the court, and an 
 old fellow-student and friend of Professor Mowat, 
 took occasion to say that he had been amazed at the 
 utterances of Mr. Mowat, and had come to the con- 
 clusion that there must be different standpoints from 
 which this matter might be conscientiously and 
 honestly viewed. As soon as every other member 
 of the Assembly who desired to speak' on the subject 
 had been heard, Mr. Macdonnell rose, before the 
 taking of the vote, and gave a full statement of his 
 views, which has happily been preserved. It was 
 spoken extemporaneously, but the Toronto Mail 
 succeeded in obtaining a verbatim report of it, 
 which Mr. Macdonnell afterwards acknowledged to 
 1)6 correct, and which he handed in to a connnittee 
 of the Assembly as setting forth his true position on 
 the whole matter under <liscussion. It detailed the 
 process by which he was led to think on the subject, 
 and preach the sermon which gave rise to the agita- 
 tion in the Church. This statement is here embodied, 
 as it is only fair to his memory that he shoul<l be 
 allowed to speak for himself. 
 
 " Mr. Macdonnell came forward amid applause, and 
 remarked that his whole object was, as it had lieen 
 all along, to present his views to the Assembly in such 
 a way that they would be clearly understood. He 
 would say very little about personal considerations. 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 H(3 admitted that he was in a certain sense in a pain- 
 ful position — that it was painful to him to be the 
 object of so much remark, the object of so much flat- 
 tering remark especially. (Hear, hear.) And it had 
 been painful to liim during the last three tlays to 
 have the consciousness that he had been the occasion, 
 or that his sermon had ])een the occasion, of so nnich 
 of the valuable time of the Assembly being taken up. 
 However, he could say ([uite honestly that he did 
 not believe that that time had been wasted. He 
 hoped he would be believed when he said he was not 
 indifferent to Ood's truth. It had been said and 
 reiterated frequently in the course of the discussion 
 that the most important consideration in this case 
 was loyalty to that truth. That was just his posi- 
 tion, and he was sure they would believe him ; he 
 was sure his strongest opponents would believe him. 
 when he said that the (juestion with him was not 
 about submitting to the truth of God ; but that the 
 question with him had been and still was, ' What is 
 precisely the truth of God in this matter?' He 
 accepted implicitly and unreservedly the words of 
 Christ and His apostles as the highest source of 
 truth. He fully believed and unhesitatingly accepted 
 Christ's words. Was it necessary that he should say 
 that i It was necessary ; for a worthy elder whose 
 speech he (Mr. Macdonnell) had honestly admired had 
 stood up there and had put him (Mr. Macdonnell) in 
 this position ; he had said that when he (Mr. Mac- 
 donnell) read the words in the 25th of Matthew, 
 ' and these shall go away into everlasting punish- 
 
tMe ecclesiastical trial. 
 
 103 
 
 irient, but the ri<j^liteous into life eternal,' lie believed 
 the last part of the verse but not the tirst. Now 
 they knew that was not his position — he hoped they 
 did at least. He said now, that this was the position 
 he occ\ipied, that the words of Christ and of Fiis 
 apostles in these matters were the truth, the living 
 truth. With regard to the eonse(|ueneesof preaching 
 that .sermon, did any man present think that he 
 underestimated them ? Did any man there think 
 that he rejoiced in any of those consecpiences ? Did 
 anyone there think that he had been pleased at any 
 of the unjust charges that had been made against the 
 Presbytery of Toronto, placed as it was in a more 
 difficult position than he was ^ He did not need to 
 say to the Presbytery of Toronto that he ha<l not ; 
 but he did need to say it t(j the ministers and elders 
 who did not know the relations that existeil between 
 the Presbytery and himself so well as they knew it 
 among themselves. Had he rejoiced to be claimed as 
 an ally by men of all sorts of (pieer views ^ to have 
 his table littered with all sorts of queer letters from 
 persons with whom he had not had the slightest 
 connnunication ^ It had been well said by some om; 
 that that was a part of his ])unishment, and he 
 accepted it as such. (Laughter.) Had it been 
 a source of pleasure to him to })e claimed in this 
 connnunity, in this land, and he did not know how 
 far from it — for he knew, of course, that his sermon 
 had been circulated far and wide, not for good ends 
 but for bad — had it been a pleasure to him to be 
 claimed by the godless, the careless, the unbelieving. 
 
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 104 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 the worldly, and the vicious, as their sympathizer ? 
 Did any one there think that he as a minister of 
 Christ did not grieve over that ? He hoped not. It 
 was not the evil consetjuences to himself he was 
 grieving over except so far as letters were concerned. 
 There were great numbers of these wliich had not 
 been answered yet, and would not be. He was not 
 speaking now of any discomforts he had personally 
 suffered — he knew he deserved them all and a 
 great deal more, and had always been ready 
 to admit that — but of the evil consequences 
 that brethren had referred to, the harm done 
 to the Church and to the cause of Christ. Bui 
 foolish as his words had been, wrong if they liked, 
 it has been necessary to pervert them in order to 
 make them afford comfort to godless, vicious, careless 
 and worldly men ; for in that sermon he had told 
 such men, and he now told them again, that if they 
 kept on sinning God would punish them hereafter, 
 and if they kept on sinning eternally He would 
 punish them eternally. He was not prepared to say 
 that there had been no good consec|uences from the 
 preaching of that sermon. He would not be honest 
 if he said that — but he did sincerely grieve over the 
 evil consequences; he might even refer to the evil 
 consequences in congregations in this city. He did 
 not think he had blamed anybody else too much in 
 connection with this case ; he thought he had been 
 ready to accept his full share of the blame. The 
 question which was going to decide their vote that 
 night was this: What was his actual position in regard 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 105 
 
 to tlie doctrine of the eternity of punishment ? He 
 had li.stened without discomfort to the happy hits 
 which had been made against him as to his not being 
 able to say in plain words all he meant. His explana- 
 tion in reply to that charge was, that in liardly a 
 single case had he expressed his meaning in words 
 which were choser by himself. In order to meet the 
 views of brethren he liad taken words which were 
 suggested. He could not tell how many came to him 
 the other night with, ' Couldn't you say this,' while 
 others wrote out something and said, 'Couldn't you 
 put your name to that?' To the latter he had replied, 
 'Yes; but it would do no good; if he did submit those 
 words some one would put a difierent construction on 
 them from what he did — so much were different men 
 likely to interpret the same words differently.' It had 
 been a great comfort to him to find that the clear 
 statements of Principal Caven and Mr. King had 
 been misunderstood — (a laugh) — for it had shown 
 that even when men spoke with the lucidity which 
 characterized the address of Principal Caven, it was 
 possible for others to get a wrong impression of 
 tliem. That had been the fate of every statement 
 he (Mr. Macdonnell) had made, the result as he had 
 said of a readiness to adopt (unwisely as he now said) 
 the words of others to express that which he might 
 have expressed better in his own. There had been a 
 reference to a remark which was made at a meeting 
 of the Presbytery of Toronto, in these words, * There 
 is another dread alternative,' meaning annihilation. 
 The explanation with regard to that remark was this: 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 Some speaker had said in the Presbytery tliat tliore 
 were only two possible thint^s which a man could 
 believe in re<(ar<l to these things, either the ordinary 
 doctrine of the Church or the doctrine of restoration, 
 and he (Mr. iMacdonnell) remarked that there was 
 anothcu" alternative, annihilation. He said that, not 
 as a thing which he hel«l, but merely as a sugj^estion ; 
 for he had said in the Committee that that mi<.^ht be 
 passe<l over, as it was a doctrine he did not hold. 
 He said it simply to show that there was another 
 alternative for a man fishin<r about for views on the 
 subject. His mind had never run in the direction of 
 annihilation. He (Mr. Macdonnell) thout^ht he had 
 stated distinctly that he did not hold such views : 
 but if it were necessary to say it again he said now 
 that he repudiated restorationism and annihilationism. 
 (Applause.) He had been represented that morning 
 as assenting to the Confession of Faith only with a 
 limited interpretation of the word ' everlasting ' as 
 used with regard to its doctrine of future punish- 
 ment ; but that was not his position — it never was 
 before the Presbytery or before the Connnittee. 
 What he had said was that there was a possibility 
 of a limited interpretation being put on the word 
 aionios in the 25th chapter of Matthew. He had 
 never asserted that the word ' everlasting ' in the 
 25th chapter of Matthew, as applied to punishment, 
 was to be taken in a limited sense, and he did not 
 make that a.ssertion now. (Applause.) The point 
 was just this, that there was no doubt that the word 
 a'loalos in the Bible had many times a lindted signi- 
 
THE ECCI.ESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 107 
 
 tication — that was known to all of tht'Ui : an«l in hi.s 
 perplexity to reconcile tliin<;s which were held hy 
 the Coiinnittee to he l();^i('iilly inconsistent, he had 
 •'<u;^<^uste(l that the word diiniios nii^ht possihly hav«^ 
 such i\ signification in the ])assanes nndei' considera- 
 tion. Of course, he knew, antl the Committee knew, 
 and they all knew, that the whole (piestion did not 
 turn on the meaning of tlu; word aionios — very far 
 from it; it turned (piite as nuich, for example, on the 
 words used with re<^ard to Judas, ' It were hetter for 
 that man if he had not heen born,' with which the 
 word aionios had nothinj^ to do. That passage 
 appeared to him (Mr. Macdonnell) as awfully severe, 
 and, if logic could be conclusive at all, irresistibly 
 conclusive on this subject. (Applause.) fie never 
 did make this whole (piestion turn on the meaning 
 of a solitary Greek word. The eternity of future 
 })unishnient was an innnensely important (piesticjn. 
 He did not know how it was that his teaching: had 
 been perverted as it had. He heard of a man who 
 told a member of the Assembly that he (Mr. Mac- 
 donnell) did not believe that there was such a thing 
 as future retribution. They were just to think of 
 that. He would like to see that man, if he were 
 present, get up and declare that he (Mr. Macdonnell) 
 said anything of the kind. There was no wonder at 
 his being misunderstood and misrepresented when 
 things of that kind were said. With regard to the 
 remarks of Principal Caven as to the relation o\' the 
 Confession of Faith to the Scriptures, which were 
 to the effect that he (Mr. Macdonnell) claimed, when 
 
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 LIFE OF D. .). MACDONNELL. 
 
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 he was in doubt about the meaning of the words 
 of the ConfeHsion of Fuith, a ri<(ht to fall back 
 uj)on Scrii>ture, that was not his (Mr. Macdonnell's) 
 statement. His statement was the converse of that, 
 viz., That when he was in doubt as to the meaning 
 of Sci'ipture, he did not find anything more ex- 
 plicit there than in Scripture. For example — 
 taking the histoiy of the working of his own 
 mind on the matter under consideration, there was 
 a time when he held as unhesitatingly as any 
 man present, as the most orthodox man in the 
 Assembly, that the punishment of the wicked would 
 be endless. The last thing he did before leaving 
 his charge at Peterboro' was to preach a series of 
 sermons against Universalism. He had fallen back 
 upon two passages which struck him as being ex])ress- 
 ed in .strong and severe language ; one was in the 
 words of Jesus, the other was in the words of 
 Paul. ' These shall go away into everlasting punish- 
 ment ' — so said the Lord. ' The wicked who know 
 not (iod, and ol)ey not the gospel of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, shall be punished with everlasting destruction 
 from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of 
 his power.' These were the words of St. Paul, who 
 was taught by the Spirit of truth to write them to 
 the Thessalonians and to us. When he compared 
 these with certain other passages, to which he had no 
 occasion to refer, there was a difficulty in his mind 
 in reconciling them with others, as to the character of 
 God as revealed in Scripture, and he asked, how are 
 these difi'erences reconciled ? In that state of mind 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 100 
 
 lie preached that sonnoti, ami said very foolisli \vor<la 
 about tlic Confession ot" Faith — very silly words, 
 indeed. (Hear, liear.) He did not think h«' was fairly 
 charj^^'able with wantin*,' to throw away the C'onfes- 
 sion, for when he looke(l at it he found it used (|uota" 
 tions from Scripture — the very words of Jesus — 
 ' eternal torments,' ' everlasting- punishuK'ut.' Hr was 
 not relieved, an<l hence his justification i\)V the dis- 
 puted clause, ' expressed as it is almost in the lan^^ia^^c 
 of Scripture.' If he had sent in his resignation, 
 persons would liave said, 'Do you mean to reject the 
 Confession of Faith ? You are not merely rejecting 
 a human formida. You are rejectin<^ tlu? Word of 
 (jlod.' That was his position. He found the Confes- 
 sion of Faith did not define tiie meaning of the texts 
 which puzzled him. He wanted to make that clear, 
 because he had said very little or nothinj^at the meet- 
 'u\if of the Presbytery at which that clause was eon- 
 denuied. He was not responsible for the interpreta- 
 tion of Rev. Mr. Mitchell or of Mr. Wm. Mitchell, who 
 had tried .so hard to <(et his position sustained. He 
 was not responsible for the interpretation put on that 
 clause by anybody, for everybody put what interpre- 
 tation he liked on it. The Presbytery always re- 
 fused to take his explanation of the process, although 
 Professor McVicar seemed to thiidv that he (Mr. Mac- 
 donnell) should have undertaken to say that they 
 were all wrong. He was expected to give his results, 
 but he was now giving the [)rocess. In trying to see 
 what lio-ht the words of the Confession threw on the 
 words of Scripture he found they threw no light. 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 He knew that to the minds of some oretliren they 
 threw light, but to his mind the words, ' the wicked 
 wlio know not God and obey not tlie gospel of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ shall be punished with everlasting 
 destruction from the presence of the Lord and from 
 the glory of his power,' in the Confession, left the 
 testimony of Scripture exactly where it was in the 
 words of Scripture. This was simply because the 
 framers of tliat Confession found it more reverent 
 to use the language of Scripture than to define what 
 was undefinable in human language. (Hear, hear.) 
 He (Mr. Macdonnell) was content with the language 
 of the Confession for the reason that it was scriptural, 
 and he would like to get a better reason. He knew 
 there were many who said he was v^ery foolish to tell 
 all this ; but he thought it wus by far thn better way 
 to tell them exactly what he had told them and what 
 he had told Principal Caven and other members of 
 the Presbytery in private on the subject. If a man 
 could not stand up before an assembly of the elders 
 and ministers of the Ci)urch of God, and lay bare his 
 heart on a matter of that kind, he would like to know 
 where there was a body of men before whom he could 
 stand. He was not responsible for the saying, 
 ' Throw away the Confession,' he was not responsible 
 for advice to shorten it, although he was sure it would 
 be shortened, but not this year. (Laughter.) He did 
 not want to have its language modified at all, for it 
 was scriptural and they could not get much better 
 language than that. All he had ever said was, ' Keep 
 the Confession subject to Scripture.' Why, the first 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 Ill 
 
 (|uestion asked in the ordination vows was whether 
 tliey held the Word of God as supreme. That was a. 
 nuicli stronj^er (question than the second, ' Do you 
 believe the Confession of Faith to be founded on and 
 a<nveable to the Word of God ? ' To both of these 
 ((uestions he answered ' yes,' with all his heart. Hut 
 with regard to the modified subscription of which so 
 nuich had been said, respected fathers had told him 
 in the old Presbytery, ' We all understand that we are 
 not bound to every jot and tittle in the Confession,' 
 and he had replied that he only wanted to say so him- 
 self, that was all. And they allowed him to say so ; 
 and if they had not allowed him to say so he would 
 not have been among them that day. He thought 
 they did the wisest thing. His first ordination 
 vow was to be true to the Word of the living God, 
 and he had tried to be true however mistaken he 
 miirht have been. His other vow was that he believed 
 the Confession of Faith to be subordinate and agree- 
 able to the Word of God, and that he would l)e true 
 to it. He held in a perfectly honest way that he had 
 been true to both the Word of God and the Conft.'ssion 
 of Faith. With regard to his treatment by the Pres- 
 bytery of Toronto he held that the members had acted 
 with faithfulness to the Church, and with kindness to 
 him; but he thought it w(5uld have been better if 
 they had not asked him to express in any particular 
 form of words his adhesion to the Confession of 
 Faith on the point in question. They should have 
 asci'^'tained, as nearly as they could, his precise 
 relation to the doctrine, so that they might have 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 said how far he deviated from tliem in it, (Hear, 
 hear, and ' Vote !') He supposed that all ought to 
 understand the words eternal and everlasting in the 
 Scripture — except in reference to the Levitical priest- 
 hood — to mean unconditionally and absolutely endless. 
 They understood it to be so ; they thought they were 
 right, and he did not think they were wrong. If the 
 (question were, Do you believe that the punishment 
 of the wicked is absolutely, unconditionally endless ? 
 there would be three possible answers. The Presby- 
 tery of Toronto made four, and it was quite as easy 
 to make forty-four. If they were going to define the 
 exact shades of difference they could go round the 
 points of the compass and find any number of atti- 
 tudes. In his opinion there were three attitudes — 
 First, ' I believe ;' second, ' I deny ;' third, ' I doubt.* 
 The third position was his. He had some doubts 
 about the interpretation which the Church puts upon 
 the teaching of Scripture as to the absolute, uncon- 
 ditional, hopeless endlessness of future punishment. 
 The position of the Presbytery, he thought, had been 
 that he might have difficulties, but they could not 
 allow him to have doubts — he might have difficulties 
 or perplexities concerning this awful doctrine, but 
 those difficulties and perplexities were not to interfere 
 with his absolute assent to the truth of the doctrine. 
 That is the wav he understood them, and he could not 
 sinipliciter adhere in that sense. He might have 
 been wrong ; and, if so, it was not his fastidious con- 
 science but his judgment which was held. If he were 
 asked how much doubt he had he could not answer. 
 
 I 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 113 
 
 If asked if his doubts amounted to exact suspense he 
 was not prepared to answer, because a man's mind 
 was not a (juestion of taking and weighing every 
 truth against truth. On one side there was presented 
 to him tlie sentence of the Lord Jesus Christ ; on the 
 other was tlie declaration of the righteousness of the 
 hving God, and how could he weigh the one against 
 tlie other ? His mind was therefore in suspense, 
 l)ecause one doctrine was in opposition to the other ; 
 hut he did not come any way near the rejection of 
 tlie ordinary doctrine of the Church. He pointed out 
 that he was not a man starting out without any faith 
 on the subject, and fishing about for a view, but his 
 position simply was that, having some doubt as to the 
 force of the words already quoted, he had not come to 
 any conclusion in which he was prepared to say that 
 he ought to withdraw his adhesion from the Confes- 
 si(m of Faith. If asked how much his doubts were 
 worth, he could answer that there had been times 
 when he could have put his name to the strongest 
 assertions in favour of the eternity of future punish- 
 ment. There were two things with which, as he had 
 said before, he was chargeable: first, holding doubts^ 
 and secondly, preaching them. He did not stand 
 there to justify for a moment the preaching of those 
 doubts. He had given expression to his regi'<'t for .so 
 doing, and he did not now feel inclined to withdraw 
 it. He did not think it was in all cases wronjj for a 
 ])('r.son to preach his doubts : but he thought that in 
 that sermon, considering the circumstances, it was 
 
 wrong to state them. The difibrence between him 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDOxXNELL. 
 
 and others wlio liad liad doubts, was tluit he had 
 given public utterance to his, and others liad not. He 
 took full blame for the public utterance of them, and 
 had always been ready to bear any punishment for so 
 doing which the Presbytery or the Asseinbly might 
 think fit to impose. J^iut simply because he had 
 doubts, was he to ha put on so different a footing 
 from men who had had the same kind of doubts 
 but had never expressed them, that he ought to 
 cease his ministry while they ouglit not ? He did 
 want with all his heart to preach the (Jospel of Christ. 
 (Applause.) He had been trained from childhood for 
 that work and dedicated to it by his father. He said 
 this not because he wanted them to deal witli him differ- 
 ently from other men, but because there were some 
 who thought that lie was indifferent as to the result. 
 He was not indifferent to it. He was indifferent to 
 the emoluments which newspaper men sometimes 
 talked of. He would not refer further to that insinu- 
 ation which was a nasty one to make with regard to 
 any minister of the Churcli. (Hear, hear.) He did 
 want to preach the truth, the full truth, and that in 
 connection with tlie Presbyterian Church in Canada. 
 (Applause.) He did not want to think as he pleased, 
 apart from the truth of God as revealed. He did not 
 want to exalt reason at the expense of Scripture, but 
 he had to interpret the Scripture, with the assistance 
 of God's Holy Spirit, by means of reason." 
 
 Tliis address, delivered in deliberate, earnest, thrill- 
 ing tones, told unmistakably upon the Assembly ; 
 {|,nd had it been spoken earlier in the debate, it is safe 
 
 ^U. 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 115 
 
 111 
 
 to say a good many motions submitted on tlie subject 
 would never have been otl'ered, and all of them would 
 probably have been in difierent terms. It re-estab- 
 lished the confidence of some of his old-time friends, 
 who had thought his aberration from the Church's 
 standards wider than was actually the case ; and it 
 won over so many of the ablest and strongest men in 
 the Assembly wdio had hitherto been comparative 
 strangers to him, to the position that it would be 
 much more sei'ious to drive such a man from the 
 ranks of the ministry in the Presbyterian Church, on 
 account of the difference between his attitude and 
 that of the brethren generally tow^ard the standards 
 on tlie particnlai' point in (juestion, than to tolerate 
 that difference, that it became clear that a settlenient 
 of the (piestion must be arrived at which would save 
 him to the Church. 
 
 However, the vote had to be taken on the motion 
 and the several amendments as they stood ; and the 
 Moderator proceeded accordingly, at eleven o'clock 
 on the night of June Ifith, to take the sense of 
 the House, putting amendment against amendment 
 amidst the suppressed excitement of the members 
 and the still more eajxer excitement of the crowds 
 of interested spectators in the galleries. The 
 vote resulted in Principal McVicar's amendment 
 prevailing over all the other eight amendments 
 an<l the original niotion ; the other amendment that 
 received the largest support in opposition to it being 
 one by Rev. Thomas Sedgwick, which was support(;<l 
 by l.")3, as against 219 for Dr. McVicar's. The final 
 
 
 
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 116 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 vote stood 263 yeas to 101 nays. The resolution 
 carried was as follows: " That this Assembly sustain 
 the reference for judfrment, and find that in the state- 
 ' nt made before this Assembly, Mr. Macdonnell has 
 declared that he does not hold the doctrine of ever- 
 lasting punishment in the sense held by the Church 
 and formulated in the Confession of Faith ; never- 
 tholc^j.', that he has adopted no doctrinal views con- 
 i;iarv },■■'• the Confession of Faith : therefore Resolved, 
 — V'iis' luat the above twofold statement is not satis- 
 factory i:, t'ns Assembly; Second, that a committee 
 be ttpj vntt' . ?nnfer with Mr. Macdonnell, in the 
 hope tnat l!i y . ^, be able to bring in a report as to 
 Mr. Macdonnell's views which may be satisfactory to 
 this Assembly." 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell, as soon as the result was an- 
 nounced, arose and said : " I bow to the decision of 
 the Assembly. I do not know whether I have the 
 right to make this request ; but if I have, I do now 
 respectfully request the Assembly to remit this 
 matter to the Presbytery of Toronto, to proceed 
 regularly by libel." It is important to note this 
 fact, in view of the discussions as to procedure in the 
 case, which took place at the following Assembly. 
 
 The Moderator ruled that the Assembly must pro- 
 ceed to carry out its own finding. 
 
 At this point, Principal Snodgrass, whose warm 
 personal attachment to Mr. Macdonnell had engaged 
 his deep interest in the case, and whose judicial 
 calmness and large experience of men and things, and 
 especially his profound knowledge of ecclesio^sticfvl 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 117 
 
 procedure, as having been long the Clerk of the 
 Synod of the Church of Scotland in Canada, marked 
 hiiM out as the fittest man to lead in the championship 
 of Mr. Macdonnell's cause, arose and dissented. The 
 names of ninety-five other brethren were added as 
 joining in the dissent, although not necessarily in the 
 reasons assigned ; and among those names not a few 
 were those of men of weight in the Assembly, and 
 from other sections of the Church than that in which 
 ^Ir. Mac<lonnell was best known personally. 
 
 A committee was subsequently appointed, in terms 
 of the Assembly's deliverance. As originally drafted 
 by the Moderator, it embraced the names of several 
 of those members who had dissented, but of course 
 the}' could not consistently act upon it, and so de- 
 clined to be parties to the action. The Committee had 
 a conference with Mr. Macdonnell, but he signified 
 that he had at that time no further statement to 
 make by which his position toward the doctrine in 
 question might be modified. The Committee reported 
 accordingly to the Assembly, but added a recom- 
 mendation that further time be given to Mr. Mac- 
 donnell to consider the matter, and that he be 
 recjuired to report through his Presbytery to the 
 next General Assembly whether he accepted the 
 teaching of the Church on the subject. 
 
 This report, when submitted, led to another long 
 discussion, not, however, on the merits of the ({ues- 
 tion, but as to the regularity of the procedure of the 
 Conunittee. However, the Committee's report was 
 at length adopted by a vote of 127 for to 04 against. 
 
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118 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell then arose and renewed the recjuest 
 lie liad made at a previous stage of the proceedings, 
 "That tlie Assembly instruct the Presbytery of Toronto 
 to proceed regularly by libel, to let him know what 
 the charge was which was made against him, and 
 enable him to know how he was to defend himself 
 against it," 
 
 Principal Snodgrass also again dissented in his owm 
 name and in the name of all those that chose to 
 adhere to his dissent, on the ground that the Commit- 
 tee did not attach due weight to the full statement of 
 his views given by Mr. Macdonnell at the close of the 
 main discussion, and that their report gave an exag- 
 gerated representation of Mr. Macdonnell's attitude 
 toward the doctrine in question. Fifty-two other 
 members joined in the dissent, and thus the Assembly 
 temporarily disposed of the case. But it hung like a 
 dark cloud for twelve months over the Church, in a 
 measure paralyzing the wcn'king forces which the 
 recent union had created. Serious forebodings were 
 entertained by many as to the final issue of the ques- 
 tion ; and in truth, the confidence of some of the 
 supporters on both sides of the Union the year before, 
 as to the wisdom of that step, was a little shaken. 
 But there were others of stouter heart, who never 
 faltered in their faith, that God's hand had guided 
 the Union movement, and who now believed that 
 He would preserve the consolidated Church through 
 the season of trial which had overtaken it so soon. 
 They had confidence in the solid sense of the Presby- 
 terian conmiunity when it had time to make itself 
 
 \I I 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 119 
 
 felt, iind in the ability of its oxporiencod loadei-s to 
 find a way out of the difficulty, without compromisiuo- 
 the Church's testimony or endanoeriiirr its unity. A 
 year of sore anxiety awaited the Church, but nmlti- 
 tudes were devoutly prayin*^ that lij^ht and Icadint^ 
 from the Lord mi<^dit be vouchsafed to those who 
 should have the final disposal of the case committed 
 to their hands. 
 
 Not that the discussion so far had assumeil a 
 threateniuf^ aspect. The debate just held was in 
 every sense a ^reat one, and worthy of the Church 
 under whose banner it had taken place. The ablest 
 men from the four sections of the united Church had 
 now for the first time an occasion of measurinf; arms 
 with one another in a connnon arena. The di.scussion 
 was carried on with ^race and di<i,nity. The parties 
 to it showed every consideration for one another. 
 Tliere was no assio'uin^ of unworthy motives, nor 
 was any personality indulged in. An<l on the whole 
 the debate w'as characterized by great fairness. 
 Rhetoric, set speeches for the display of skill, the 
 Assenil)ly showed itself impatient of, whenever such 
 attempts were made. To do what was best in the 
 premises, to get at the real difficulty and remove it, 
 if possible, was the task to which the Assembly 
 honestly addressed itself. The high moral tone of 
 the discussion went hand in hand with the intel- 
 lectual power wdiich it evinced. It is doing dispar- 
 agement to none of the other addresses if special 
 mention is made of that delivered by Professor 
 McKnight, afterwards Principal of the Presbyterian 
 
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 120 
 
 LIFE OF D. 
 
 MACDONNELL. 
 
 College, Halifax, whose recent decease the Church 
 has had occasion to deplore, which can be described 
 as nothin<j^ short of genius. His insight into the 
 state of Mr. Macdonnell's mind was so subtle, and 
 his analysis of the documents before the Assembly 
 was so complete, that when he was done the Court 
 was more thoroughly seized of the true merits of 
 the question than it had been before. No one was 
 more astonished at the clearness of Professor Mc- 
 Knight's insight, or at the comprehensiveness of his 
 grasp of the case, than Mr. Macdonnell himself. He 
 was delighted with the presentation of the points 
 involved, made by a gentleman who was an entire 
 stranger to him, and got up and acknowledged in the 
 court that the Professor had placed his position in 
 relation to the question at issue in a clearer light 
 than he had been able to define it to his own mind. 
 And he accepted the view of it thus presented as 
 entirely satisfactory. 
 
 The discussion of " the Macdonnell case " in the 
 Assembly of 1877 will not recjuire to be dwelt on 
 at length. The subject was so thoroughly threshed 
 out in the previous year that there was not much 
 room for a protracted debate. The question con- 
 sumed, indeed, a good deal of time, but it was spent 
 mostly on side issues which sprung out of the case. 
 
 That happened which Mr. Macdonnell's friends had 
 predicted in 187G as inevitable: his mind not having 
 free play, the time limit operated against any real 
 progress in the way of obtaining relief from his 
 doubts. Those twelve months were anxious ones to 
 
 ■I 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 121 
 
 liiin and to all conccrntMl. He hone.stly endeavoured 
 to meet tlie Assembly's demand. There was no senti- 
 ment in him stronger than the wish to save other 
 people trouble. But to his own self he nuist prove 
 true ; he had his own mind and conscience to consult 
 — the thinking out and determining of (piestions could 
 not be done for him. He found counsellors in plenty. 
 Books, pamphlets, newspaper-cuttings and letters in- 
 numerable came pouring in upon him from every 
 (|uarter. This was, perhaps, the most atHicting ele- 
 ment in his experience ; all kinds of extravagant 
 ])eople hastened to congratulate him on his stand 
 and offer him their sympathy. What could a man 
 do in such circumstances ? To read everything that 
 came in his way bearing on the subject and weigh 
 the matter calmly in the midst of excitement, dis- 
 charging the work of a laborious pastorate at the 
 same time, and with the thought pressing on him 
 that a conclusion must be reached before June, 1877 
 — the task was beyond him. Feeling that the perusal 
 of the numerous books and pamphlets sent to him 
 was not going to solve his difficulty, he gathered them 
 into a bundle and put them away out of sight, and 
 there they remained till the day of his death. What 
 he needed was mental repose, not incitements to agita- 
 tion. The result of the year's experience was that 
 when the Assembly met at Halifax on June 13th, 
 1877, Mr. Macdonnell was found exactly in the same 
 situation as that in which the Assembly of 1870 had 
 left him. 
 
 The Presbytery of Toronto transmitted a report 
 
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 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNEF.L. 
 
 
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 from Mr. Macdonncll, ns ill^stnlcte(l l>y last AHseiii])ly, 
 aw follows : "The (ionoral Assi'iiiMy of 1<S7() liavin^r 
 re<|uiriMl nie to report thi'ou*;h the Pri'sbytery o! 
 Toronto to this Assemldy wlicthcr I accept the 
 teaching of the Church on the eternity of the 
 future punishment of the wicked, I be;j; respectfully 
 to state that I hold no opinion at variance with that 
 teach in<^." 
 
 Rev. Dr. P. G. McGregor, of Halifax, a<ifent and 
 treasui'er of the schemes in the Eastern section of the 
 Church, moved that proceedings re<,^ardin^' the jnatter 
 terminate. Dr. McGrejjor liad been Moderator of the 
 Synod of the Presbyterian Church of the Lower Pro- 
 vinces at the time of the Union, and was recogniz 
 among his brethren in the East not only as a lead, 
 but also as an eminently safe man, and it was signifi- 
 cant that he took the responsibility of moving in this 
 direction. The discussion and vote which followed 
 showed that in this action he fairly reflected the mind 
 of the majority of the representatives from the section 
 of the (Church in w'hich he dwelt. 
 
 Rev. Dr. Topp, of Toronto, ex-Moderator of the 
 Assembly, moved in amendment to the effect that 
 Mr. Macdonnell's statement be not deemed sufficient, 
 but that he be reijuired to give in writing, by a fixed 
 day, " a categorical answer " to the (juestion whether 
 he accepted the teaching of the Church on the subject 
 under consideration. 
 
 Then a debate followed which generated more heat 
 than had been exhibited in the discussions of the 
 previous year. It took a wide range, but was mainly 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 12.S 
 
 \\\<r in this 
 111 t'oUo^vt!«l 
 1 the \nn\d 
 the section 
 
 (K'votcil to Hubonlinnte ])oints wliieli, tltou^li im- 
 portant ccelesinsticully ('oiisidci'cd, w»'r(! not ol' iiiucli 
 interest to the <^eni'ral puhlie.and so a ylance at them 
 must suffice here. 
 
 A little bree/e arose over thr drclaration that the 
 members of tlie Assembly "were chosen with a view 
 to the settlement of this case " — a declaration which 
 was employed as an ar<;ument in favom- of a particu- 
 lar course of action. It was an unfortunate plea, and 
 speakers on the other side were not slow to protest 
 a<rain.st it, contendino; that it was contrai'v to the 
 spirit of the Church's constitution, w'lich assunied 
 that those char<^ed with conducting" the business of 
 the Assembly came to it with unbiassed minds, free 
 to deal with all questions arisinj^ in it according" to 
 the lif^dit God was pleased to •.(ivi to its deliberations. 
 
 Then, objection was taken to Dr. McGre^(3r's motion, 
 that in proposiuf^ toleration of Mr. Ahicdonnell's state 
 of mind he was virtually laying down a new term of 
 ministerial communion. This as.sertion brouiiht forth 
 the retort that the Assembly's resolution of LSTO, in 
 prescribing that the doctrine in (piestion is one "which 
 every minister of this Church nnist hold and teach, " 
 trenched upon the right of ministers to select the 
 topics on which they are to preach in an unheard-of 
 manner. 
 
 But the point which consumed most time was one 
 raised by Professor Mackerras, then Joint-Clerk of the 
 Assembly, and one of Mr. Macdonnell's warmest per- 
 sonal friends, namely, that the Assembly, in dealing 
 with the matter, could not iro beyond the staire which 
 
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 124 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 the case liad readied in the Presbytery of Toronto 
 when it was referred to the Assembly ; whereas Dr. 
 Topp's motion involved proceeding a step further. 
 He and others contended that the point before this 
 Assembly was the giving advice to the Presbytery of 
 Toronto whether there was ground for further dealing 
 with Mr. Macdonnell in the statements which he had 
 submitted to that court, as the majority of the Presby- 
 tery held there was, or whether the situation justified 
 the Presbytery in dropping the case, as the minority 
 felt. The advice being given, according to Professor 
 Mackerras' view the matter went back to be dealt 
 with by the Presbytery. In opposition to this, it was 
 argued that the Assembly had full powers to go on 
 with the case until it was finally issued. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell was aware that the practice of the Church of 
 Scotland, at least, was as Professor Mackerras had 
 defined it, and hence the persistency with which lie 
 demanded that the Assembly send the case back to 
 the Presbyter}', with instructions to serve him with 
 a libel, if there was to be dealing with him at all. 
 He made this demand afresh, when Dr. Topp's motion 
 was carried over Dr. McGregor's by a majority of 174 
 to 82. 
 
 P^xcept in putting forth this claim, Mr. Macdonnell 
 had remained silent throughout the sittings of this 
 Assembly, but he has left a brief diary, which shows 
 that he was a keen observer of all that took place. 
 
 It was on a Saturday that Dr. Topp's motion was 
 carried, and as it re([uired Mr. Macdonnell to give in 
 a written answer on Monday morning, it was an 
 
 I 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 125 
 
 anxious Sabbath which intervened for many besides 
 Mr. Macdonnell. But his course was clear to his own 
 mind. He Jiad intimate<l by wortl of mouth, inime- 
 diatt'lv the vote was taken on Satunhiv, tliat he 
 would answer in writing on Monday, and lie adhered 
 to his statement, to the efi'ect that he had " already 
 given an answer to the ([uestion as categorical as a 
 minister within the Church, who has declared his 
 adherence to the Confession of Faith, and who still 
 adheres to it, can fairly or constitutionally ])e re- 
 ([uired to give, on a point on which he is confessedly 
 in ditliculty." 
 
 A motion was made and carried, that this reply be 
 printed and taken into consideration next morning, 
 the mover giving notice that lie would then be pre- 
 pared to offer a resolution that Mr. Macdonnell's wish 
 in the matter of a libel be complied with. Principal 
 Caven, however, who all through the discussions of 
 both assemblies had set himself resolutelv !i<rainst 
 extreme measures, and ha<l time and again declared 
 that he for one would never vote to sus})end a man 
 because he felt doubts, unless those doubts amounted 
 to a denial of the truth, deprecated the committing 
 of the Assembly in any measui-e at this stage to a 
 final course of action, as he hoped by (lod's Idessing 
 that the House would be al)le N'et to roach a satisfac- 
 toiy conclusi(3n in another way. 
 
 When the hour for resuming consideration of the 
 (piestion arrived next day, the member did move, 
 iKjtwithstanding, in the direction indicated, in sub- 
 stance that the Presbytery of Toionto be instructed 
 
 
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 126 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 to servo a libel upon Mr. Macdonnell, but before 
 finally isKuinj^ the ease to report their findinj^ to next 
 Assembly. There was, however, a clau.se in the reso- 
 lution (leclarinjjj that though this step was taken, it 
 was not because it was not open to the Assembly 
 itself to proceed to deal with the case. 
 
 Foreseeing that by affirming this principle there 
 was danger of the Assembly's striking a snag, Pro- 
 fessor McKnight moved that the resolution be 
 amended by deleting this clause, which was unneces- 
 sary, as well as of a contentious character. 
 
 As Professor Mackerras had previously pointed out, 
 the Church of Scotland has always held that the 
 General Assembly, as a commissioned body, so far as 
 discipline is concerned, is not a court of first re.sort, 
 but only a court of appeal, the Barrier Act having 
 been passed specially with a view to guarding the 
 rights of presbyteries. A warm debate had already 
 set in bearing on this point, when Rev. Dr. Cochrane, 
 of Brantford, who had throughout stood courageously 
 by Mr. Macdonnell, and who, in spite of the failure of 
 the attempts hitherto made to adjust the difficulty, 
 did not altogether despair of the possilnlity of yet 
 securing a satisfactoiy settlement by the Assembly, 
 moved an amendment to the amendment, that " a 
 connnittee be appointed to meet and deliberate, with 
 the view of presenting a basis for a satisfactory ad- 
 justment of the case, and that tlie debate be in the 
 meantime suspended." 
 
 Cries came at once from all parts of the house that 
 it would only be a waste of time to send the matter 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 127 
 
 imcces- 
 
 to a committee again. However, those who had 
 labounMl on former committees were far froin think- 
 ing tliat the time spent in tliem was altogctlier lost. 
 They liad already helped to a better understanding of 
 tlie case. Then, every o\m foresaw how dithcult it 
 would be to frame a libel against a man who did not 
 deny any of the doctrines of the Confession. And so 
 aeutelv serious was the stage which the business had 
 reached, that the majority of the Assend)ly concluded 
 (hat it would be well to make one effort more before 
 a tinal course of procedure was resolved on. Among 
 those supporting the motion for a connnittee was 
 Rev. Dr. Jenkins, of St. Paul's Church, Montreal, who 
 tlu'U for the first time appeared on the scene, not 
 having been present at Toronto in 187G, through 
 absence from the country. 
 
 The motion was carried, a committee on which all 
 the views prevailing in the Assembly were represented 
 was appointed, and Dr. Jenkins, whose diplomatic 
 skill and address admirably (pialified him for the 
 position, was named its chairman. 
 
 When the Committee met, the chairman suggested 
 tliat in the first place a formula should be drawn up 
 sneh as in the judgment of the Connnittee would 
 satisfy the Assembly, and then this might V)e sub- 
 mitted to Mr. Macdonnell for his consideration. Three 
 drafts of resolutions were finally made, any of which 
 that Mr. Macdonnell might prefer would be probably 
 acceptable to the Assembly. 
 
 Then a sub-committee waited on I\Ir. Macdonnell 
 and asked him if he could sign any of the resolutions 
 
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 B I I 
 
 128 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 drafted by the Committee. He immediately replied, 
 " I can without the slightest hesitation sign all three." 
 When the sub-committee reported tliis answer to the 
 full committee, there were shouts of approval and 
 clapping of hands. Then the Connnittee selected 
 the statement tliey preferred, and Mr, Macdonnell 
 signed it. 
 
 This being done, the Committee re-entered the 
 Assembly in a body, with the convener leading the 
 way, amid silence which was thrilling and anxiety 
 which was profound. When Dr. Jenkins read the 
 report there followed such a scene of excitement as 
 has been seldom witnessed in a church court. The 
 cheers were overwhelming, and none were heartier 
 than those which came from the representatives of 
 the Presbytery of Toronto. 
 
 After ]3r. Topp, Dr. McGregor and Dr. Cook had 
 expressed briefly their joy at the happy termination 
 uf the tribulation tlirough which the Church had 
 been passing, the motion to adopt the report was put 
 and carried unanimously by a standing vote. It was 
 as follows : 
 
 " That Mr. Macdonnell, in intimating in his last 
 statement to the General Assembly his adherence to 
 the Confession of Faith, intends to be understood as 
 saying,— 
 
 " ' I consider myself as under subscription to the 
 Confession of Faith in accordance with my ordination 
 vows, and I therefore adliere to the teaching of the 
 Church as contained therein on the doctrine of the 
 eternity or endless duration of the future punishment 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 129 
 
 epUed, 
 three." 
 to the 
 al aiifl 
 (elected 
 donnell 
 
 red the 
 ling the 
 
 anxiety 
 read tVie 
 'inent as 
 irt. The 
 
 lieartier 
 tativcs oi 
 
 look had 
 
 mination 
 
 urch had 
 
 t was put 
 
 It was 
 
 n his last 
 
 herence to 
 
 Hcrstood as 
 
 1 
 
 # 
 
 of the wicked, notwithstanding doubts or difficulties 
 wliich perplex my mind.' 
 
 "Tlie Committee, therefore, unanimously recommend 
 that this statement be accepted as satisfactory, and 
 tliat furtlier proceedings be dropped." 
 
 Tlie Moderator, Rev. Dr. McLeod, of Cape Breton, 
 asked tlie Assembly to sing three stanzas of the 122nd 
 Psj^lm : 
 
 " Pray that Jerusalem may have 
 Peace and felicity ; 
 Let them that love thee and thy peace 
 Have still prosperity. 
 
 " Therefore I wish that peace may still 
 Within thy walls remain, 
 And ever may thy palaces 
 Prosperity retain. 
 
 " Now, for my friends' and brethren's sakca 
 Peace be in thee, I'll say ; 
 And for the house of God our Lord, 
 I'll seek thy good alway." 
 
 These words were sung with a feeling and energy not 
 
 common even in Presbyterijin assemblies. Then Rev. 
 
 Robert Sedgwick, of Mus(i[UO(loboit, was requested to 
 
 lead in prayer. Many of tlie members were already 
 
 weeping tears of joy, and while the " old man elo- 
 
 ([uent" offered up thanks to God for His great mercy 
 
 in extricating the Church from the great difficulties 
 
 by wliich it had been surrounded, and implored a 
 
 continuance of the divine favour on the work of the 
 
 Assembly, there was scarcely a dry eye in the audi- 
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LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ence. The entire scene — the applause which greeted 
 the Committee's report, tlie outburst of praise in the 
 Psahn, the manifest emotion svvayintr the Assembly 
 during the prayer, and tlie beaming countenances and 
 vigorous handshaking at the close of the diet, all told 
 how deep was the feeling and how great was the joy 
 at the happy conclusion reached. 
 
 But while there was this general jubilation, Mr. 
 Macdonnell's diary and letters show that his old 
 " fastidiousness of conscience " was causing him a 
 slight uneasiness as he revolved the ({uestion whether 
 the Assembly had not read into the resolution more 
 than he intended by it. The resolution passed ex- 
 pressed truthfully his attitude in the premises, but 
 he feared lest any one should think that his views 
 had undergone a change when they had not. This 
 was sufficient at least to prevent his sharing in the 
 exuberance of feeling manifest on all hands. At the 
 same time he was very grateful that his brethren 
 were prepared to trust him, and he kept faith with 
 them in this matter scrupulously. Whatever diffi- 
 culties he had on the subject, they were never 
 allowed to give colour to an utterance in his public 
 ministry. 
 
 The Church was wisely led, and escaped with credit 
 from a perilous situation. The carrying of Dr. Topp's 
 motion made it easier for the Assembly at last to 
 find terms on which it would be satisfied to tolerate 
 Mr. Macdonnell's state of mind. Considerable alarm 
 had been excited in portions of the Church, threaten- 
 ing serious consequences. It was important that the 
 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 131 
 
 '■m 
 
 on, Mr. 
 
 his old 
 him a 
 whether 
 on more 
 
 Lssed ex- 
 iiiseH, but 
 his views 
 
 ). 
 
 ath credit 
 |Dr. Topp's 
 1 at last to 
 I to tolerate 
 Lble alarm 
 \ threaten- 
 tt tUat the 
 
 f('elinf( of apprehension as to the general soundness 
 ill tlie faitli of the united Clnu'ch should be allayetl. 
 The conferences, debates, and votes taken togetlier 
 satisfied every one that there was no spirit of heresy 
 ill tlie air. The orthodoxy of the Church having 
 been vindicated, the Assembly could now att'ord to 
 put a generous construction on Mr. Macdonnell's 
 words ; and tin; weighty influence which the conti- 
 dcnee of the Church enabled I^rinci})al Caven to 
 wield, was manifestly felt in the conclusion arrived 
 at, as his moderation of view and keen ap})reciation 
 of the highly toned spirit of his co-prosbyter had 
 been apparent throughout the discussions. 
 
 'i'hus were avoided the necessity of the Assembly's 
 coming to a finding on the constitutional point in- 
 volved in the motion and amendment before it, and 
 the possibility of the Presbyterian Church in Canada 
 having to face some ugly (luestions looming over the 
 horizon, which had troubled churches in Scotland, 
 arising from the strain put upon their constitutions. 
 
 The case subjected the recent union of the churches 
 to a severe test, but it stood the ordeal well. For- 
 tunately the speaking and voting, as the case pro- 
 gressed, were less and less determined by old lines 
 of cleavage ; and the conflict of opinion, occurring 
 thus early, dangerous though it at one time seemed, 
 proved in the long run for the welfare of the Church. 
 Hretliren, hitherto comparative strangers, came to 
 know each other well, in the candour of speech and 
 closeness ami freedom of intercourse which the 
 handling of the case occasioned ; and henceforth they 
 
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132 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 did not need to speak in each other's presence with 
 bated breath. Like a newly married couple after 
 their first quarrel, they had found out the worst to 
 be known about each other, and the result has been 
 the wholesome freedom of discussion which has char- 
 acterized the deliberations of the Assembly ever since 
 to the manifest advantage of the Church and country. 
 There is a principle in the mental domain not unlike 
 that of the safety-valve in physics. Compression of 
 thought is apt to find vent for itself in revolt ; but 
 when the mind is free to work there is less tendency 
 to license. The fair treatment accorded to Mr. Mac- 
 donnell in the terms of settlement, far from leading 
 to a proneness to heterodoxy, has rather made for the 
 health and peace of the Church, which, for the twenty 
 years since has been singularly free from dis(][uieting 
 agitations. Out of the trial the Presbyterian Church 
 in Canada emerged stronger. There was born of the 
 tribulation a larger view. The pleas for a wider out- 
 look, even if they were combated and outvoted, were 
 not urged in vain. They have told upon the general 
 spirit of the Church ever since. 
 
 And the throes of the two years' trial begot a new 
 ministry in St. Andrew's Church. A tender pathos 
 was lent to it by the lowly suffering passed through. 
 Even in the days of his Peterboro' ministry, he 
 had sought relief from mental uneasiness by an 
 increased pastoral activity, embodying the Lord's 
 principle, " If any man will do his will, he shall 
 know the doctrine " — a favourite maxim with him. 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 133 
 
 From 1877 onwards, it is safe to say that there was 
 no personality in the circle of the Presbyterian min- 
 istry more interesting to the Church at large. He was 
 looked upon as the spiritual son of the whole Church, 
 for had it not travailed laboriously to give him 
 birth into that life of comparative spiritual quietude 
 wliich he was to enjoy, in spite of any doubt or ditfi- 
 eulty that might still lurk in some corner of his mind ? 
 His uprightness of conscience and truth-loving spirit 
 liad drawn every heart to him ; and so established 
 was he in the loving regard of all his brethren, that 
 he afterwards occupied a high vantage ground for 
 that noble service which it was given him to render to 
 tlie Church, thus recompensing it for the confidence 
 it had reposed in him. 
 
 Newspaper men have claimed that it was tlie her- 
 etical sermon that made Mr. Macdonnell known as a 
 preacher. But that is an utter mistake. It would, per- 
 haps, be nearer the truth to .say that it was because he 
 was already a well-known preacher that so much atten- 
 tion was paid to that sermon by the newspapers. Be 
 that as it may, there can be no doubt that during the 
 progress of the case, and for some time afterwards, 
 many were attracted to St. Andrew's Church on 
 account of his supposed liberal views, and this 
 wrought to the spiritual profit of multitudes of unbe- 
 lievers. Doubters of all kinds and degrees flocked to 
 hear him, perhaps expecting to be made self-compla- 
 cent in their scepticism : but they were so won upon 
 by the thrilling tones of the ministry of reconciliation 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 to which they had to listen, that they often went away 
 from tlie church men of a different spirit from what 
 they had been when they entered it — went away to 
 come back again as often as tliey could. So far was 
 that from coming to pass which was foretoM as sure 
 to happen, if Mr. Macdonnell witli his <loul)ts was 
 siiffered to continue in the ministry of the Presby- 
 terian Church, namely, the growtli of a sceptical spirit 
 within the scope of his ministry, tliat he became the 
 spiritual father of innumerable doubters. The anguish 
 of soul which he had known during his years of trial 
 qualified him in an eminent degree for a ministry of 
 helpfulness to troubled minds. Young men especially, 
 who were in any way perplexed, instinctively sought 
 his counsel ; and he patiently and sympathetically 
 laboured and prayed with them, leading them away 
 from their difficulties to the lovinof heart of Jesus, 
 about which there could be no doubt. 
 
 Whatever of difficulty remained in his own case he 
 relegated to the region of mj^stery, content to wait 
 until the clouds rolled by. Nothing showed more con- 
 clusively the comprehensiveness and wholesomeness 
 of his mind than that he did not allow himself to be 
 seduced into giving prominence to the particular set 
 of views by which he was differentiated from his 
 brethren, as has been the case with many. The con- 
 fidence of the Church helped to save him from the 
 temptation which would have surrounded him had he 
 been driven out of it, to emphasize his doubts and so 
 justify his position. His ministry was therefore a 
 full-orbed one. He rightly divided the Word of 
 
 ■I i'!! 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL TRIAL. 
 
 135 
 
 trutli. Ill-doers, the vicious and unrii^hteous, made a 
 threat mistake if they sought encouragement in their 
 wrong courses from his ministry ; they were driven 
 rather hy its earnest pleadings to flee from the wrath 
 to come. 
 
 Here ends the most stirring passage in the life of 
 this servant of (iod, and one of the most important 
 chapters in the history of the Presbyterian Church in 
 Canada. 
 
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 LIFE OP D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 St/XSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 ^ 
 
 The year and a half from the end of 1875 till the 
 summer of 1877 was a period of intense occupation 
 to Mr. Macdonnell. The constant correspondence and 
 discussion upon the burning question of the time, 
 along with his unrelaxing devotion to his people, then 
 in a transition state in more than one sense, made for 
 him a busy life. To (juote from Dr. Campbell in the 
 last chapter, " What he needed was mental repose." 
 Happily there was a season of calm and sunshine in 
 the very midst of the storm. Mrs. Campbell thus 
 writes : 
 
 "Through all the stress and buffeting of the 
 tempestuous debate in the Assembly, the wear and 
 tear of heart and brain in committee, the plaudits of 
 those who defended his position, and the harshness of 
 those who condemned it, the earnest sympathy (.f 1^ 
 wife had been to him a perpetual solace, 
 she thought as he did about the subject un r dis- 
 cussion. About this, and some other things, they 
 thought very differently, but no matter of opinion 
 ever made a moment's discord in that happy house- 
 
 
SUNSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 137 
 
 )f the 
 IV and 
 lits of 
 Uess o^' 
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 dis- 
 Lhe-v 
 Ipinioii 
 house- 
 
 hold. The union between them was founded on a 
 Hrmer basis than any mere uniformity of opinion. 
 
 " No sooner was the case suspended for another 
 year by the Assembly of June, LSTG, than they sought 
 refu<^e together in a voyage to the fatherland. We 
 can imagine the delight with which they wandijred 
 about Edinburgh and the Highlands, reviving mem- 
 ories of past visits and renewing acquaintances with 
 friends of long ago. 
 
 " The chief point of attraction, however, was 
 ( )rkney, the old home of the Logic family. Thither 
 they went by boat from Leith by way of Aberdeen 
 to Kirkwall. 
 
 " ' I remember when we sailed 
 From out that dreary Forth, 
 And in the dull of morning hailed 
 Tlie headlands of the north. 
 
 Until we steered by Shapinsay 
 
 And moored our bark in Kirkwall Bay. ' 
 
 " Pencil notes of the trip contain hurried jottings 
 from day to day of both the travellers. From these 
 we learn of a rough night voyage, and of an enthusi- 
 astic reception by a host of aunts and cousins when 
 they arrive at daybreak on a dull morning early in 
 July; of their delight in 'dear old Daisy bank' and 
 its inmates; of their visits to places famous in the 
 family history. Both are impressed by the peculiar 
 bennty of Orcadian scenery and 'the wonderful charm 
 of ; weird fcwilio-ht of this northern summer.' 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " From letters written at the time we gather some 
 idea of what this visit was to their friends in Orkney 
 as well as to James and his wife, by whom it was 
 pronounced ' three weeks of intense enjoyment.' A 
 letter to Mrs. Smellie from one of her sisters, in 
 August, 1870, thus describes a Sabbath in Kirkwall : 
 ' James preached in the afternoon from John xiii. 
 (Jesus washing the disciples' feet) — a lecture on the 
 whole passage. . . . The church, which had been 
 very full in the afternoon, was now (in the evening) 
 crowded, and benches filled all the passages. The 
 U. P. congregation have had the use of our church in 
 the evenings while their own was under repair, and 
 many of all congregations had crowded to hear 
 James. His text was, " God forbid that I should 
 glory," etc. E. says you know this earnest and beau 
 tiful sermon. . . . They are all sermons I shall 
 remember as long as I live. He brings the truth so 
 home to one, and his prayers are equally beautiful. 
 And to think it was the last ! The whole community 
 has been delighted with his preaching.' 
 
 " Happily it was not ' the last ' ; he was spared to 
 preach frequently after this in the cathedral of St. 
 Magnus, Kirkwall. Of this venerable building Mrs, 
 Macdonnell wrote at the same time : ' It suited the 
 romantic part of me exactly to think that we were 
 worshipping in a building which must have been the 
 wonder and pride of the simple natives six hundred 
 years ago, and to wonder what kind of religion or 
 superstition it was that induced people to spend such 
 toil and trouble in erecting a monument of the kind 
 in these remcte islands.' 
 
SUNSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 139 
 
 "Another of the aunts writing in 1870 says: 'I 
 think no man ever came and carried every heart 
 alonfj with him as James Macdonnell lias done . . . 
 His preachintr lias, I believe, been most blessed in 
 Kirkwall: the youno- seem especially roused by it. 
 . . . His prayers, both in church and in family 
 worship, seemed to bring us very near tin' gates of 
 heaven. ... It is very delightful to feel that 
 their visit has brought us all closer to our Saviour.' 
 
 " In one of the letters there is a vivid picture of an 
 evening gathering at the house of ])i". Logic (' Uncle 
 James'). After describing particularly the groups of 
 relatives, it goes on: 'James and Elizabeth sang 
 several songs together, Elizabeth others alone — among 
 thei!i, ■' Wha's at the Window ? " " Jock o' Hazeldeaii," 
 etc., etc. E. seems much more like a younger sister 
 who has been long away than like a niece, and, 
 strange to say, James has taken (piite the same 
 younger-brother position with us.' 
 
 " One can read in these faded pencillings that he 
 was iKjt less drawn towards these Scottish gentlemen 
 of a type now fast passing away. Further on the 
 same letter says : ' I feel I can never tell you how 
 mucli I love these your children. E. is just our own 
 dear child, and, dear as the child was, in every pos- 
 sible way improved. Her vivid and tender' memories 
 of the old days, and every person and incident con- 
 m.'cted with them, bring her near to us all in a 
 way that none of the other nieces, dear as they are, 
 can a])proach to, for none of them knew papa and 
 iiiainma, and our then unbroken home. ... I 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 thought they both looked like all the trial they had 
 been passing through when first they came, and 
 E.'s mind seemed constantly recurring to it; but I 
 do think the change of scene and people did them 
 good. James seemed to grow quite happy, and 
 apparently light-hearted, and E. lost that patient, 
 suffering look she had the first day or two.' 
 
 " The same beloved aunt, writing retrospectively 
 twenty years afterward (September, 1 890), speaks of 
 the deep hold that James took on the affections of 
 his wife's relatives, old and young, on every visit ; he 
 so thci'oughly made himself one with all the inter- 
 ests, joys, sorrows, cares or amusements of all. I 
 remember when we heard first of their coming in 
 187G, the feeling some of us had was, that it was 
 unfortunate that E. should bring her husband here 
 for a first visit, when under some difficulty with his 
 Church, or Presbytery, we did not fully know what ; 
 but he had not been three days among us when 
 one and all felt, ' If that man's views are questioned 
 we would all wish to be like him.' As you know, it 
 was when heavy bereavement had darkened two of 
 our households, and his sympathy was heartfelt and 
 sweet with us, wliile the lieartiness with which he 
 entered into all the amusements of his young cousins 
 endeared him to them all. I well remember the 
 delight with which his second visit, in 1881, was 
 hailed. While the aunts looked forward with joy to 
 seeing dear E. again, all the young cousins longed to 
 see James and hear him preach, and all were sad for 
 him when it was known that he had just passed 
 
 I M 
 
SUNSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 141 
 
 through a heavy trial in the deatli of liis mother. It 
 was then that his unselfishness came out so wonder- 
 fully, in the way he could put aside his own sorrow 
 to enter into the holiday plays of the young people. 
 When in 1882 he came to Edinburgh in bad health, 
 again there was a gathering around him of cousins, 
 who had removed to Edinburgh, and who just claimed 
 liim as their own. ... 
 
 " I have now before me James' last letter to me 
 (19th August, 1898), from Cap-ti-L'Aigle, when with 
 Mrs. Campbell, on a delightful holiday. After telling 
 of a charming French settlement he had visited the 
 last words are: 'If I live till 189G, and have money 
 enough, we may go again to revel in your Orcadian 
 ])aradise. But one comes to niake all plans with 
 greater heed to the I).V., and to accept the U})setting 
 of them with the assurance that our heavenly Father 
 knows best.' How characteristic of the man is this 
 spirit of serene compliance with the Divine will in 
 all things ! 
 
 " Returning to the pencilled notes, we trace the 
 return journey by Aberdeen, where, at the West 
 Church on a Sabbath morning, ' at the second sing- 
 ing came the beadle : 'Are you a minister ? " ' Yes." 
 " Tliere is a congregation in the John Knox Chapel 
 and no minister to preach to them." There was no 
 lu.'lp for it — walked a mile — drove the people, who 
 were dispersing, back into church, and preached to 
 tliem. Heard Cowan (now Professor Cowan, of 
 Aberdeen) in the evening at Queen's Cross. Went 
 huiiie with him after service.' 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " From Aberdeen they go to Crathie with Canadian 
 friends, tlie Mathiesons of Hamilton, in company with 
 whom, and witli Professor Black, James' companion 
 in Switzerland ten years before, they see all the 
 beauties of Deeside. From the hills behind Crathie 
 Cottage where the Blacks were staying, 'a superb 
 view of the whole Crathie valley, the Dee wandering 
 about among the birch-clad banks, Balmoral Castle 
 immediately below us, range behind range of hills 
 capped by Lochnagar with streaks of snow in its 
 hollows, though to-day we have almost Canadian 
 heat.' Thence they went by Inverness and the Cale- 
 donian Canal to Oban — the whole route most sugges- 
 tive to minds stored with Scottish romance and 
 history. A day is spent in visiting StafFa and 
 lona, with keenest eyes for the pictures! pie and 
 historical. Then they journey to Glasgow by the 
 Crinan Canal, ' much surprised to find Mr. Michie 
 and the Georges at Tigh-na-bruach, who accompanied 
 us to Rothesay.' . . . Next they are in London, 
 seeing and learning, and several pages are full of 
 Westminster alone, which they feel ' one could only 
 enjoy by sitting down in one spot for hours and 
 thinking and reading.' 
 
 " Part of their plan had been to go to Switzerland, 
 with their dear frie: d, James Michie, but this proved 
 impracticable as we find from this entry: 'August 
 28rd, gave up Switzerland for want of time, and 
 decided on the Lake Country instead.' Here their 
 delight in nature found amplest gratification, the 
 only regret being the brief time they could spare to 
 spend in this loveliest corner of England. 
 
SUNSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 143 
 
 " How rich in memories of Britain's gifted sons was 
 this iiome of Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Cliristopher 
 North ! How full of suggestion is the mere list of 
 niiines in the old note-book, Windermere and Ulls- 
 wnter, Ambleside, and Derwentwater, Grassmere and 
 Hydal Mount ! What pilgrim to this classic region 
 does not share their enjoyment of the coach ride to 
 Keswick, their enthusiasm over the 'exquisite view 
 over tlie valley of Grassmere, from the hill up which 
 tlu! gentlemen were asked to walk.' They have an 
 early tea at the ' Royal Oak,' and ' climb afterwards 
 to a peak above the town called Castle Hill, and are 
 alnmdantly rewarded by the view of the whole lake 
 witli its islands, Skiddaw keeping guard at one end, 
 and a whole s(iuad of sentinels looking over each 
 other's shoulders at the other.' 
 
 " But time passes and they must away ; so, leaving 
 I'eliictantlv the ' infinite enchantment ' of mountain 
 and fell and wood-fringed lake, they hasten, vm 
 Carlisle, to Melrose and the valley of the Tweed, 
 'i'liey 'explore the exquisite ruins with great delight,' 
 cliiult one of the Eildon Hills, gather a belated sprig 
 of the ' bi'ooni o' the Cowdenknowes,' and with 
 regretful thoughts of all that nmst be left unvisited, 
 pass on to Edinburgh. Here friends await them, and 
 a party is formed with whom they spend the day in 
 seeing the Trossachs and Loch Katrine, ' taking the 
 "Lady of the Lake" as guide-book for almost every 
 step of the way.' They were fortunate in having 
 sunshine to light up the Trossachs' ' rugged jaws ' and 
 ' deep defile,' and gleam on ' Katrine's Loch and Lsle,' 
 
 
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 144 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 though Ben Lomond kept his head wrapped in a 
 cloud, and they reached Edinburgh late in the 
 evening feeling that one day was far too short for 
 all that had been crowded into it. A few hurried 
 jottings refer to a few days among friends in 
 Glasgow, thus : ' Dined at Grant's (Rev. Charles M. 
 Grant, then of Partick) with Caie (Rev. George J. 
 Caie, now of Forfar, a former fellow-student), and 
 Galloway, Grant's assistant.' Next day, they went 
 ' With Grant and Caie to Paisley. Lunclied with 
 Finlay McDonald, McKenzie of the Gaelic Church, 
 and R. Cameron there, and all had a game of golf in 
 the afternoon' — all fellow-students of a few years 
 before, and nearly all colonials whose capacity ''or 
 enjoying was ' touched with no ascetic gloom.' A 
 * red letter ' day this must indeed have been ! 
 
 " With liearts full of thankfulness for all the kind- 
 ness they had received and the pleasures they had 
 shared, they rejoined their friend Mr. Michie and his 
 party on the return voyage." 
 
 We may well believe that these visits to Britain 
 were not only occasions of great enjoyment to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Macdonnell, but that they were also not 
 without a certain permanent influence on the tone 
 and tempei*- of tlieir lives. Our readers must there- 
 fore regard them as having a special biographical 
 value. The foregoing detailed description will serve 
 as an accompaniment to the accounts of the later 
 visits. But this journey of 1876 has besides for Mr. 
 Macdonnell a significance all its own. The notes of 
 sermons, and the written-out prayers of the ensuing 
 
SUNSHINE IN THE STORM. 
 
 145 
 
 f 11 
 
 antunin and winter, reveal a zeal for loving service, 
 and at the same time a joy in his work which are 
 both amazing and delightful. And when one reflects 
 on tlie bearing of the man during the remaining 
 months of the " trial," one may almost fancy that 
 some of the sweetness and brightness of those sum- 
 mer days in the Orkneys had been transfused with 
 his spirit. 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 "GOLD TRIED IX THE FIREr 
 
 The interest in the " trial " phase of Mr. Macdon- 
 nell's life is twofold. On the one hand, the " case " 
 is of interest from the ecclesiastical and theological 
 side, on the other, we are interested in the man, how 
 he bore the inward trial, what was its effect upon his 
 temper and life purpose, how the mental struggle 
 comported with his moral and spiritual make-up, 
 and how it bore upon his intellectual and religious 
 development. On the first-named point, as supple- 
 menting what Dr. Campbell has already said. Rev. 
 Prof. Gordon, of Halifax, speaks with intimate know- 
 ledge and sympathy in a letter written on January 
 27th, 1897 : 
 
 " You ask me for any details I can give you about 
 the effect wrought upon our dear friend Macdonnell, 
 by his experience of 1875-77. Nothing in all my 
 knowledge of him — except his bearing after the death 
 of his wife — more clearly revealed to me his growing 
 likeness to Christ. 
 
 " During the earlier discussions of his case — for 
 instance, at the Assembly of '70 — I felt Qonfident 
 
"GOLD TRIED IN THE FIRE." 
 
 147 
 
 acdon- 
 ' case " 
 [logical 
 n, how 
 3on his 
 trugglti 
 ike-up, 
 igious 
 upple- 
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 know- 
 anuary 
 
 about 
 lonnell, 
 jail luy 
 
 death 
 
 L-owing 
 
 he — for 
 lifident 
 
 that many of those opposed to him very seriously mis- 
 understood him. He was so intensely candid, so 
 unwilling to conceal any opinion in which he might 
 (liti'cr from the accepted views of the Church, or any 
 doubts he might have regarding those views, that, in 
 stating his own position, he really tended to exagger- 
 ate his divergence from his brethr.en. Any of us who 
 knew him intimately and had talked over such 
 matters with him in the confidence of his own study, 
 recognized this when he appeared before the Assembly 
 upon that occasion. Of course, we admired and loved 
 liiui all the more for his splendid and fearless candour, 
 but yet we felt persuaded that those who did not 
 know him might seriously misjudge him even by his 
 own statements, because he failed to balance them l)y 
 other statements which might have been truthfully 
 presented. It only recjuired that the man should be 
 In'tter known in order to his acquittal of any heresy, 
 and that fuller knowledije of him came in time to 
 secure a wise decision from the Church. 
 
 " To his keenly sensitive spirit it was a time of sore 
 trial and strain. Most men of impulsive temperament 
 might make some sharp criticism under such circum- 
 stances ; but I never knew him, even in the utmost 
 frankness of private conversation, to utter a single 
 word of bitterness ajjainst a brother minister. He 
 knew that he was loyal to his own vision of the truth, 
 and in this, as in all else in which I knew him, it 
 seemed as if his one controllinef desire was to be true 
 and close to Christ. 
 
 " As regards the effect of that trying experience 
 
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 148 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 upon hiin, I think it led him to recognize more clearly 
 than ever that, as Christ's messenger, he had a message 
 to proclaim to his fellow-men. Preaching was no official 
 task to him, l»ut the work of one in whom the Word 
 of the Lord burne<l as a fire in his hones. I suppose 
 this would have been increasingly characteristic of 
 him in any case; but I have thought that the unsought 
 prominence given to him increased this conviction, 
 deepening his sense of responsibility as a minister of 
 Christ. At any rate it became more plainly manifest 
 to his friends that the later years of his ministry were 
 marked by a growing fervour and a more passionate 
 service as if his intense nature was more steadily at a 
 white heat. 
 
 " At the same time the love of Christ was not only 
 thus constraining him to the furthest effort, it was 
 also ripening his love and fellowship toward all who 
 are united by the bond of life in Christ. Perhaps 
 this, too, may have been intensified by his experience 
 during that anxious time when his name had such 
 unwelcome publicity. He knew more than many 
 how hard it is to get an unclouded vision of the truth, 
 and therefore he could bear a larger sympathy than 
 most of us with those who differ from him. He had 
 been trying to see what was truly essential, so that he 
 might, at all costs, proclaim it, and therefore his heart 
 went out ill fellowship toward all who love the Lord 
 Jesus Christ in sincerity. His loyal effort to walk 
 always in the light of Christ quickened alike his sor- 
 row and his helpfulness toward those that knew not 
 Christ and his gladness of welcon^e to all that named 
 
"GOLD TRIED IN THE FIRE." 
 
 149 
 
 His name. And so, in growing measure, the spirit of 
 Ills later years was tliat of the loving and beloved 
 disciple, 'If we walk in the light, as He is in the liglit^ 
 we liave fellowsliip one with another, and the blood 
 of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.' " 
 
 Happily there has also been preserved a record in 
 his own words of the attitude which he assumed 
 toward the case at the very moment when it was 
 made known to him that a process was to be entered 
 on account of his obnoxious sermon. It occurs in a 
 letter to his wife of Sunday, October 24th, 1875, she 
 being then in Fergus : " . . . sorry not to get a note 
 posted for you yesterday at three o'clock, but I 
 suppose you would not have got it a great deal 
 sooner than you will get this. Anyway it could 
 not have given you the news which I got last even- 
 ing when I came in to tea, namely, that a meeting 
 of Presbytery is to be held on the 4th November 
 (Thursday). . . . The circular calling the meet- 
 ing has not yet been issued. Dr. Topp has received 
 a ' requisition ' to call the meeting." He then tells 
 how some leading members of the congregation were 
 proposing to vote St. Andrew's out of the Union, in 
 tlie event of any trouble being made, adding: " Even 
 if the worst comes to the worst, I feel for the present 
 inclined to stand or fall as a minister of the Presby- 
 terian Church in Canada. 
 
 " You may believe that I am in perplexity and 
 trouble. Of course, I do not question the Presbytery's 
 right to deal with me, and, I suppose, I must admit 
 that I have given them abundant cause. I know you 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 will pray for me that I may V)e enabled to do exactly 
 what is right, and may not be allowed to stiek to a 
 wrong position, if it is wrong, simply out of regard 
 for consistency, or out of pride ; and on the other 
 hand, may not be frightened into any tampering with 
 my own conscientious convictions simply by the fear 
 of consequences. I have not time to write more. I 
 do love the Master, and I do love the truth ; but I 
 know that the love needs much quickening and 
 purifying. , . . 
 
 " I have been a good deal driven, and now I must 
 prepare for the evening. It is five p.m. I had a 
 large Bible class this afternoon. There was a fuller 
 church than usual this morning — curiosity, I suppose. 
 Well, they heard nothing bearing on the matter under 
 discussion. I expounded Rom. vii. 7-25. 
 
 " Kiss my dear wee boy and tell him how much I 
 love you both." 
 
 Another letter to her, written the next day (Octo- 
 ber 25th), may also in large part be given. It may 
 reveal to those who knew Macdonnell but slightly or 
 not at all, the main secret of his greatness of soul — 
 how his sublime unselfishness and love of men made 
 him rise above the smaller issues of his own sore 
 impending trial, and brought him into the inspiring 
 and strength-giving atmosphere of the divine fellow- 
 ship: 
 
 " I wish I could be with you to-night to share the 
 burden of your anxiety. Thank you, . . . for 
 the sweet letter written yesterday. It is midnight, 
 and I cannot write much. I have been busy enough 
 
"GOLD TRIED IN THE FIRE." 
 
 151 
 
 all (lay. A <?reat part of the afternoon was taken up 
 
 in talkin<( to . He is ^'oinj; to Gnelph and 
 
 F< r<^UH to canvass for books for Lyon. Poor IV^llow ! 
 He is in a stran»jje, hopeless state of mind, and I don't 
 know how far he is given to drink. I lent him some 
 money — for his brotlu-r's sake. He was at your 
 f.itlicr's hous(!. and saw ^'our mother; I forget when. 
 He may turn up again. H" any of you can take a 
 kindly interest in him, he will be grateful, I hope. Of 
 course, I don't know but he may spend all tliat money 
 in drink. Should he make any application for money 
 to vour father or to William, on the strength of his 
 acquaintance with me, I think he ought to be refused. 
 . . . He was in church yesterday morning and 
 says that he was much impressed with the exposition 
 of the 7th of Romans. At the same time he declares 
 that there is no use in his trying to do right, that 
 salvation is not for him. I (luoted, ' Him that cometh 
 unto me,' etc. He objected that the context showed 
 that he could not come; ' No man can come to me except 
 the Father draw . . . him.' I replied, ' The Father 
 is drawing you by His providence, by His Word, by 
 your mother's counsels, etc., and you are resisting,' 
 and so on. The last remark seemed to strike him. It 
 is a sad case. I tried to compel him to admit that 
 he alone was responsible, and neither God nor circum- 
 stances, for his wrong-doing. 
 
 " I have told you all this in case there should be 
 any opportunity of influencing him. 
 
 " Good-night ! Oh ! it is very precious to have 
 your thorough confidence. My earnest wish is to 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 have the single eye that will seek God's glory and 
 the good of the Church, but it is not easy to weigh 
 things calinly with a trial in prospect." 
 
 Such was the temper and spirit of the man at the 
 beginning of his trial, and such it remained till the 
 close. When all was over, in the summer of 1877, he 
 returned to his work in St. Andrew's with zeal unabated 
 and with a singleness of purpose less hampered by per- 
 sonal distractions. His outlook for the future was now 
 more clear and bright, as the clouds were dispersed 
 which had for many long and anxious months been 
 hanging over the horizon. Not that he had ever been 
 daunted or dismayed. The mists that obscured his 
 vision were only outward and earth-born, and in 
 every cloud that rose before him there was a rift 
 through whicii streamed an unfailing light from the 
 divine source of truth, while the pure soul within 
 kept the eye of faith steady and unabashed. Nor 
 was there anything in the trying experiences of the 
 time to dampen the ardour of his nature or to detract 
 from his moral energy. To a man of faith and lofty 
 purpose speculation may be both an athletic discipline 
 and a spiritual tonic. The doubts of Mr. Macdonnell 
 were not the outcome of a nerveless mind, of a mental 
 strabismus, or of a lurking, self-deceptive sympathy 
 with moral compromise or with abatement of the 
 claims of truth. They sprang from the very passion 
 for truth which was the most conspicuous attribute 
 of his mind, from that love of justice which so signal- 
 ized his practical interest in the life of the world 
 above and below, and from his sympathy with the 
 
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"GOLD TRIKD IN THE FIIIE." 
 
 153 
 
 I' Til 
 
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 Ission 
 
 ibute 
 
 jnal- 
 
 'orld 
 
 the 
 
 needs and claims of men whicli was the crown of liis 
 moral nature. Hence they were in the highest degree 
 wholesome and invigorating, and not to be exchanged 
 for an unreasoning (|uiescent acceptance of every jot 
 and tittle of the traditional forms of belief. 
 
 Nor must we fancy that the trial through wdiich 
 Mr. Macdonnell had just come was, as an inward ex- 
 perience, a break in the tenor and current of his life. 
 On the contrar}^ it may in this aspect be well regnrd.od 
 as an incident It is strange that the " heresy trial " 
 iius been so much dwelt upon as to have loomed more 
 largely in many minds than all the rest of his great 
 life put together. But, in fact, although this famous 
 case formed externally a fixed term in his career, and 
 so constituted an " epi.sode," it did not really mark an 
 epoch in his inward life. Always independent and 
 ])enetrating in thought, he could not adjust his think- 
 ing to the manner or standard of any man or hody 
 of men, and so no violent wrenching of his mental 
 development was caused at any stage (jf the process. 
 His utterances, which had roused opposition in the 
 C'hurch, were in a certain sense casual and obiter 
 di.vta. They were " nothinir sudden, nothiui; sinnfle." 
 In substance and in ti eir causation, if not in form 
 and expression, they were the resultant of that pon- 
 dering upon the mysteries of the divine government 
 and of human destiny, whieh was to him a life-lonof 
 exercise as inevitable and natural as is the eao-le's 
 darting glance over eartli and sea and sky, and its 
 steady gaze into the face of the sun. The readers of 
 this memorial sketch will therefore not be unpre- 
 
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 154 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 paj'cd to find tliis .scarcliinfj after trutli, this pjraiid 
 and lihoral discontent, to have been a leadin<^ motive 
 in his life. 
 
 To tliis C(jnstant but ever unsatisfied yearning for 
 deeper and truer Ivnovvledge about (Jod and man, 
 active work for the good of liis fellows was a needed 
 check and counterpoise, a force that never ceased to 
 operate and never failed to steady and control. 
 Active work was, moreover, his highest delight, as 
 the last letter (pioted above so touchingly betrays. 
 
rl, 
 
 BUILDING UP ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 155 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 f 
 
 nuiLDixa ur ST axdricws. 
 
 Thk coiim'Ciration of St. Andrew's was at this time 
 just einer<fin(^ from the transition staj^e already do- 
 scrihed. It was vii'tually a new community as com- 
 pared with tlie St. Andrew's of old, its chief liid<s of 
 coimection with tluf venerable past bein^ the ju'esence 
 and influence of some of the mendjers of the ori<^inal 
 settlement. It is interesting^ in reading over the 
 con^'r(!gational reports to notice a^ain and a^^ain the 
 names of those who, whether in the old church or in 
 the new, gave of their faithful service to St. Andrew's 
 and its work. Mi*. Macdorinell always felt l)ound by 
 titiM peculiarly str(jn«( to his helpers in conj^refj^atioiial 
 work. With him fidlowship was a word of dee|) and 
 tender sij^nificance, oft(Mi on his lips, and standin;^ for 
 much tluit was most precious to him in life. 1 will 
 therefore be rendering a pious debt to his: memory as 
 well as helpint^ to illustrate the histoiy of the congre- 
 gation if I name some of those; who were identifi«!d 
 with the St. Andrew's of that period. Mr. Archibald 
 MacMurchy, already so prominent in our narrative, 
 wa.s one of those who reluctantly witlulrew. An elder 
 
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 156 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 in the undivided eon<rro<ijation, he still remains an 
 elder in Old St. Andrew's. Mr. A. F. McLean, of the 
 old Church street congi'ej^ation, was soon elected to 
 the eldership in Old St. Andrew's; but after a few- 
 years he found it possible to sit a<^ain under Mr. 
 Macdonnell's ministry, which, as elder, session-clerk, 
 and trusted counsellor, lie did his part to sustain and 
 cheer. Of those who were active in the enterprise 
 which led to the new St. Andrew's, two names mir^ht 
 be singled out for special mention, those of Mr. James 
 Michie and Mr. William Mitchell. Of Mr. Mitchell's 
 untiring labours in behalf of St. Andi-ew's Church it 
 is impossible to speak too highly. As session- clerk 
 during the greater portion of Mr. Macdonnell's min- 
 istry, and as secretary of the Board of Managers for 
 about thirty years, as Superintendent of the Sunday 
 school and as leader of the choii', he gave of time and 
 service to the interests of his beloved church and 
 minister without stint or restr.oint, and it was no 
 common bond of attachment that was severed when 
 in Ls9l he was obliged, on account of his re7noval to 
 Cobourg, to cease from active participation in the 
 work which was one of the main avocations of hi'^ 
 life. 
 
 Mr. Michie also is deserving of much more than a 
 passing mention in any account of the history of St- 
 Andrew's. He was a man of singular large-hearted- 
 ness and full of good works, and no man in Canada 
 has left behind him a more fragrant memory. Born 
 in Aberdeenshire in 1828, he moved to Canada in the 
 spring of 1840. In 18G1 he was apponited one of 
 
BUILDING UP ST. ANDREW'S. 
 
 157 
 
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 and 
 
 'as no 
 
 when 
 
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 than a 
 of St- 
 artcd- 
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 Born 
 in the 
 )ne of 
 
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 tlie nianaijers of St. An(h"ew'.s, a position lie filled 
 until his death. He was tlu' Iradiiif^ spirit in tlie 
 mox^'iiient which led to the erection of the new 
 church edifice at the corner of Kin;^ an<l Simcoe 
 streets. As chairman of the Finance Coniniittee 
 and treasurer of the lUiildintjj Fund, he ((ave himself 
 so wholly to the task of manat^^ement and supervision 
 that it was said of him <lurine- the time of the 
 huildinu' that "he lived at the corner of Kini>- and 
 Simcoe sti'eets." As a ])rincely ^is-er alone he would 
 deserve the lifrateful remend)rance of all friends of 
 
 St. Andi 
 
 But th 
 
 )f 
 
 )t th 
 
 money was 
 
 ^riTtest of his services. Nothin<; that concerned the 
 contrreixation was v.ithont intei-est to him. But above 
 all, the personal (jualities of the man, his rare sim- 
 plicity and geniality, his disinterested bene\olence, his 
 helpfulness toward every <,^ood cause, and !;is kindly 
 interest in the poor and the strug,<^lin<^ and the 
 stranger made his comparatively hi'ief life a blessing 
 to the Church and the city. 
 
 Surrounded by such friends and helpers, and sup- 
 ported l)y the enthusiastic attachment of his congre- 
 gation, the young minister returned to his work more 
 earnest and devoted than ever. 
 
 Th(' rapid growtli of the congregation at tliis 
 |icri()d was of itself an inspii'ation. On the com- 
 nnniion of May LSth, LS77. the last l)efore the close of 
 the case before the Assend)ly, ninety-ti\e were added 
 to the list of members — forty-eight of them by pi'o- 
 fession of faith. 'J'lu; largeness of the accession " l)y 
 (•'■rtiticate "' w.is an additional esido, ice oi" his jiopu- 
 
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158 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNKLL. 
 
 larity. Doubtless the synipatliy fcdt for him as the 
 sul)ject of a notal>le ecclesiastical trial had something 
 to do with the expansion of St. Andrew's. The writer 
 renieni})ers liearing in a distant part of the Domin- 
 ion of the crowded services of a congregation then 
 b(!Coming famous far and wide. The conunents were 
 usually to the effect that heresy was always popular, 
 and that the interest in Mr. Macdonnell's ])reaching 
 would soon subside. 'J1ie secjuel disproved this fore- 
 cast, apparently so sagacious and in harmony with 
 notorious pi'ecedent. The reason why the accession 
 was solid and lastinL*: is ".^self suijfo'estive of one of the 
 most striking and memoiable features of Ins character. 
 'J'houghtful, earnest uum came to him and stayed with 
 liirn because they had marked his ])eai'ing during his 
 trial, his cliivalrous fairness, his generosity, his nobl(^ 
 disdain of petty defences. They also noted that 
 during that season of stern probation his own cause 
 did not pre-occupy him, that it did not modify his 
 thinking or colour his language, that still and always 
 1 heart was " at leisure from itself to soothe and 
 sympathize"; that his preaching, too, was constantly 
 bent to reach the deepest needs of men's souls, apart 
 from any speculations of his own. 
 
 This year (1877) was one of the busiest, as it w^as 
 one of the most important, of his life. In addition to 
 his pulpit duties, the pastoral visitation and his large 
 correspondence woulil alone have; demanded nearly 
 all his time. In one busy day, for example, he notes 
 that he made ten calls and wrote eight letters. His 
 (Uuies as visitor and trusted counsellor for the House 
 
 N 
 
BUILDING UP ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 150 
 
 It was 
 
 lion to 
 
 lar^.!;e 
 
 learly 
 
 notes 
 
 His 
 
 Louse 
 
 of Industry wore kept up zealously till near the close 
 ol' liis life. Doubtless his preachint^ derived much of 
 its practical and sympathetic character from this and 
 kindred eni])loyments, l)ut they made a heavy demand 
 upon the time of a man with whom the eager assump- 
 tion of new ohligations seemed to be an additional 
 motive ior tlu^ faithful performance of the old, too 
 exacting as those often already were. During these 
 years he was constantly called upon for missionary 
 addresses in and out of the city. He also lectured 
 very frecjuently at various places, large and small. In 
 l)eeend)er, 1<S77, lu; notes twenty-five invitfitions for 
 lecturing. Almost to the close of his life lie often 
 ])reached three times on Sunday. Of the second ser- 
 vice his own congregation and outside friends usually 
 knew nothing. He was, indeed, living at fever heat; 
 and at this date he had not learned the necessity of 
 an unbroken sunnner vacation. 
 
 Ak)ng with these pressing puljlic avocations much 
 w as going on that drew out the tender and sympa- 
 thetic side of our friend's nature. The confidence and 
 attachment of liis people during his time of trial 
 touched him deeply, and these were years of especially 
 warm intercourse between pastor and congi-egation. 
 Sornnv of a personal sort also entere'd his home. Mrs. 
 Macdonnell s brother, James SmoUie, after a lingering 
 ilhiess, died on November .22nd, 1877, and the grief 
 of the household at Fergus, to which he was <i son 
 and brother, vtuuv very near his heart. Tlie funei'al 
 sermon, on Noventber 2-")th, on the theme of " Death 
 abolished," was lon«r remembered by the stricken 
 family for the comfort which it brought. 
 
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 160 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Tlie following year (1878) witnessed a steady de- 
 vclo))inent of St. Andrew's Church. The growth of 
 Presl)ytL'ri}Uiisni in Toronto was at this date (juite 
 remarkable. Mr. Maedonnell's heart was also cheered 
 by the prosperity of Old St. Andrew's in its new 
 church building at the corner of Jar vis and Carlton 
 streets, of which the corner-stone had been laid on 
 July 23rd, 1877. Between its minister. Rev. G. M. 
 Milligan, an old Queen's man, and himself, the closest 
 relations always existed. They had been friends to- 
 gether at Queen's, and by providential ordering the 
 one came to divide with the other the task of dealing 
 with a congregational settlement that ..as too full of 
 possibilities for any one man to direct alone. They 
 were in the full sense of the phrase, " brother minis- 
 ters." So heartily did each rejoice in the success 
 and progress of the other that rivalry in an* form 
 was wholly wanting in their relations. 
 
 As to St. Andrew's itself, the expansion of the time 
 was a welcome response to the exertions of the min- 
 ister. A letter to his mother of October 7th may give 
 a suggestion of his activity at this period. He speaks 
 of his teachers' class at the close of the Wednesday 
 prayer-meeting, " partly a Bible class and partly a 
 normal class for teaching teachers to teach," and adds 
 later : " 1 have not yet (piite lost the good impression 
 made by the holidays. I have been six Sundays in 
 my own pulpit, and out of the twelve sermons, ten 
 have been brand-new ! ! Hurrah ! I am going to 
 stop this extravagance soon, however. On Friday 
 of this week I am to be at Flamboro', assisting at 
 
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 V 
 
 BUILDING UP ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 IGl 
 
 the communion services. Next Monday T fjo to 
 Peterboro' to lielp Grant. Tlie.se visits will inter- 
 fere with sermon-makinff. I am goin<^ to put my 
 strength as much as possil)le into the teachers' class 
 for a few months, even if the sermons sutler. I find 
 that it (the class) will involve a good deal of pre- 
 paration." 
 
 As it turned out, the sermons did not suffer, and if 
 it was not always a new sermon that was preached, 
 at any time during the next sixteen years, it was an 
 old one revised and improved, which to the "sermon- 
 tasters" of St. Andrew's was, if possible, something 
 better than the original. 
 
 The accessions to the eldership in 1877 and 1878 
 were Mr. James Maclennan, Q.C., now Justice of the 
 Court of Appeal, ecjually valuable as a helper in the 
 congi'eg;) tion and in the cause of Queen's College ; and 
 Mr. John Kay, one of the noblest of St. Andrew's men 
 as a giver and a worker. Noteworthy was the w^ork 
 of the ])orset Sunday and evening schools, at that 
 time under the superintendence of Mr. Hamilton 
 Cas.sels, now chairman of the Assembly's Foreign 
 Mission Committee, whose long and worthy record 
 of service to St. Andrew's had just begim. The 
 "Dorset" mu.st, however, come in for special com- 
 memoration at a later stage. 
 
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162 
 
 LIFK OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE ALMA MATKIi. 
 
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 No rnontioii has as yet been made of Mr. Mac- 
 donnell's activity in connection with educational 
 institutions and the lar<;er work of tlie Cliurcli. As 
 a student and ^raihiate of Queen's Colle<(e, Kingston, 
 his strongest sym))atlnes were naturally drawn out 
 toward that nui'sling of the Church of his youth 
 and early manhood. But this dominating attachment 
 did not alienate him from the other coUeires or uni- 
 versities. He was for many years a member of the 
 Senate of the University of Toronto as well as of the 
 Senate and Board of Management of Knox College. 
 His services to Queen's form a chapter of his life. 
 At the close of 1877 a new era was entered upon in 
 the history of Queen's. On October 2nd, Rev. G. M. 
 Grant, of St. Andrew's Church, Halifax, was elected 
 Principal. On December 5th the installation took 
 place. In the historic proceedings of that day there 
 was no more enthusiastic participant than Mr. 
 Macdonnell. These two men, in some respects the 
 most striking figures and the most powerful person- 
 alities in the Presbyterian Church of Canada of their 
 
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THE ALMA MATER. 
 
 103 
 
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 tiino, had first learned to know one another well in 
 coiinectioji with the nef£otiationH for the union of the 
 churches. This personal attachnwnt had been accel- 
 erated hy the part taken l)y (irant in the case before 
 the Assembly, when Macdonnell's lar;^e and earnest 
 outlook found no more sympathetic and able apologist 
 than the ori^jjinal thinker and bi'illiant debater who 
 was then woj'kin*; forward on those lines of thou<rht 
 and [)ro^ress in which he was soon to become a leader 
 and teacher of his jjjeneration. With the appointment 
 of (Irant to the principalship, Macdonnell's anxieties 
 as to t\\o futun^ of Queen's were at an end. Hut his 
 ettbrts for the endowment and development of the 
 collej^e were only the more increased. A sunnnary 
 of his services to his beloved Alrtid Mater may help 
 further to show what he was as a collejije num, and 
 recall to the men of Queen's what a spirit of power 
 and service has ^one from them with the passing 
 away of their co-worker and connvide. We may let 
 the Principal tell tlie story in his own words : 
 
 "On January 7th, 1809,1). J. Macdonnell ,sat for 
 the first time with the Governin<jj Board of his Alma 
 Mafer. On that occasion he took his seat, not as a 
 trustee, but as a mem))er of a small general or execu- 
 tive committee, which the Synod of the Church of 
 Scotland in Canada had appointed to carry out the 
 project of raising a minimum sum of SI 00,000, to 
 take the place of the annual grant which the Legis- 
 lature had given, but which was al)Out to be with- 
 drawn. It was the crisis in the history of Queen's. 
 The trustees had met, and had come to the conclu- 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 sion that it would be impossible to keep the college 
 longer in existence, for not only was the provincial 
 grant to be withdrawn, but they had lost the greater 
 part of their little endowment by a bank failure, and, 
 besides, internal troubles had alienated many friends. 
 Before formally passing any resolution, however, one 
 member pressed on them the duty of first consulting 
 the Synod, and a special meeting of Synod was 
 therefore called. But no one had any hope. Even 
 Professor Mackcrras wrote to Macdonnell that there 
 was nothing for it but to come and help bury their 
 dear old mother decently. The members of Synod 
 came to Kingston to preside at the obsequies. 
 To understand this hopelessness we must remember 
 that previous to that time no great effort had ever 
 been made in Canada for higher education. One 
 man alone, Principal Snodgrasa, did not despair. He 
 possessed the British (juality of not knowing when 
 he was beaten ; and his calm determination not to be 
 moved drew others to his side. Mackerras, once con- 
 vinced that success was possible, made a wonderful 
 speech to the Synod, and the Synod resolved to 
 appeal to the Church The appointment of Mac- 
 donnell on the executive committee of seven showed 
 the confidence that was already reposed in the young 
 minister of Peterboro', and he soon vindicated the 
 confidence. He subscribed S500 on the spot, and 
 went back to his little congregation and preached 
 what Mackerras called ' a two thousand dollar 
 sermon.' One of the members wrote Mackerras the 
 next day that it had made him double the sum he 
 
THE ALMA MATER. 
 
 165 
 
 had intended to give, that is, increase it from $500 
 to SI ,000. On the 29th of April of the same year 
 he was appointed a trustee, and he held the position 
 to the day of his death, giving always that loyal, 
 liberal, ungrudging service which every cause with 
 which he identified himself received. He had 
 thought out the (juestion of university and theo- 
 logical education, and had come to the conclusion 
 that Canada would be the better of having Univer- 
 sities and Divinity Halls of different types, and that 
 Queen's at any rate must not be abandoned. Having 
 come to that conclusion, he willingly consented to 
 extraordinary sacrifices to the day of his death ; for 
 with him faith was always an essential part of his 
 life. 
 
 " When the union of the four Presbyterian churches 
 of Canada into one body was proposed, the chief dis- 
 cussion was on the college (juestion. It delayed the 
 union for years ; and it was settled at last on the 
 principle that every institution should bear to the 
 whole Church the same relation that it had pre- 
 viously borne to any of the negotiating bodies. 
 Macdonnell took little part in the discussion. With 
 intuitive sagacity, he felt that no arrangements 
 previous to union would affect the fate of any 
 c'olleiie, but that each would reouire to commend 
 itself by its inherent vitality and desert to the larger 
 constituency of the future. His views are expressed 
 in the following letter, addressed to a friend in 
 Kingston, on 24th October, 1871. After sketching 
 the various views, with the hopes and fears, held by 
 different sections of the Church, he proceeded : 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 " ' After all, nearly everything will depend on the 
 men who till the chairs in Queen's. If either the 
 Arts Faculty alone, or the Arts an<l Theological 
 departments together, are thoroughly e(|uipped, so 
 as to present attractions to students, students will 
 come. But Queen's must be strong enough to hold 
 its own in the estimation of the general public, apart 
 from the support given by the Presbyterians. The 
 Western section of the Church — supposing union 
 accomplished — wouhl send students to Toronto as a 
 matter of course, uidess a decided advantage could 
 be shown to be gained by .sending them to Kingston. 
 Montreal in the same way would draw the Eastern 
 men. Pei*sonally, I would not object to Queen's 
 College being adopted by the Govennnent, provided 
 it were put on a par with University College in the 
 matter of emlowment. But I have no idea what 
 chance there is of any such propo.sal being enter- 
 tained by Government.' 
 
 " He knew what it meant to get the best men as 
 professors; and from 1877, when he came to my 
 inauguration as Principal, no man did such yeoman 
 service as he, by direct giving and personal effort of 
 every kind. The circumstances of his congregation 
 were such that almost any other man would have 
 pleaded that he could think of nothing else. Its debt 
 was over $80,000! Yet, when in 1878 I went to 
 Toronto to make an appeal for help in raising $150,- 
 000, it was in the lecture-room of St. Andrew's 
 Church tlmt the public meeting was held, and he 
 broui'ht to it Sir John A. Macdonald and the Premier 
 
 .1; 
 
THE ALMA MATEft. 
 
 U1 
 
 It 
 
 of the Province, aiul all the wealthy men that he 
 coul'l influence. He subscribed on that occasion 
 Si, 000. Again, in 1882, he gave S^oOO more to what 
 was known as the Ave years' scheme; and in 1887 he 
 subscribed 3^2,000 more to tlie Jubilee Fund. When 
 it is remembered how liberally he gave to every good 
 cause at home and abroad, and that, with a large 
 family to support, he had no means but his amuial 
 stipend, it nuist seem almost incredible that he couM 
 give such large sums. They were always given so 
 Joyously that one would have imagined that he had a 
 bank at his back." 
 
 The phrase " to help Grant " in his letter last 
 (juoted is suggestive of nnich of Mr. Macdonnell's 
 activitv at this era. A letter, also to his mother, of 
 November 7th, 1878, gives a humorous account of 
 some of his experience's in canvassing trips : 
 
 " Tuesday I went with jMr. Smellie to Hamilton — 
 he to his brother's on the way to Fergus, I to speak 
 at the Queen's College meeting. The meeting was 
 good. Laidlaw (of St. Paul's) did yeoman service. 
 . . . We got $3,000, with the hope of another 
 SI, 000. 
 
 " Wednesday evening I wont out with Laidlaw 
 
 (Grant was tired out) to . The rain poured in 
 
 torrents all evening. There were nine men, si.K 
 women, and several boys present. Laidlaw an<l I 
 aired our ehKjuence for an hour and a half, and then 
 
 produceil the subscription list. put down 820, 
 
 payable in two years : , worth from 830,000 to 
 
 8oO,000, put down the same sum, payable in Jive 
 years ! ! 
 
 
 
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168 
 
 LIFE OP D. J. MACDONNELL 
 
 "On ThurHclay morning I tried and one or 
 
 two others, with no result. I was an;(ry. I showed 
 it, I suppose, to one or two. May the good Lord 
 deliver nie from ever having so much money that I 
 
 shall love it like some rich men ! and are 
 
 both well off, yet they talk as if the poor-house were 
 the only refuge left for them. . . . 
 
 " Saturday I went to to assist Mr. L. at his 
 
 communion, and to lecture on Monday evening. I 
 enjoyed preaching at the comnmnion service. Mr. L. 
 was a Free Churchman ' at home,' but (as Mr. Dobie 
 would say) is a fine man. I enjoyed some talks with 
 him very nmch. 
 
 " Having Monday clear I devoted it to extracting a 
 few dollars for Queen's out of some hard cases. . . . 
 L. thought I might get four or five ten-dollar sub- 
 scriptions, but I got in all $265. That vas not bad 
 for a congregation that had not hearu of Queen's 
 College before, and where there was no chance to 
 hold a meeting. ... / 
 
 " We have invested in a new furnace, to cost about 
 $145. In spite of the College endowment we must 
 keep warm. Good-night. 
 
 " Youra lovingly, 
 
 "James." 
 
 ' 
 
life's tasks made clearer. 
 
 169 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 » 
 
 LIFET.'i TASKS MADE CLEARER. 
 
 The record for 1879 may not inappropriately begin 
 with a message of comfort to his mother, extracted 
 from a letter of January 18th, written after the death 
 of her only sister, Mra. Hockin, of Pictou, N.S. After 
 referring to the tidings of her sudden taking away, 
 he writes : " Thus the strongest link that bound you 
 to the elder generation has been snapped asunder, 
 and you are left more alone than before. Each of 
 the relationships in which we stand seems to have 
 something peculiar to itself, and the tie that binds 
 one to an onl}'^ sister has its own peculiar sweetness- 
 May the God of all comfort hallow to you, dear 
 mother, the breaking of this tie.'* And on the same 
 theme he writes, January 30th : "It must have been a 
 ;,'reat satisfaction to you to get such a minute account 
 of the last days and hours of dear aunt. Everything 
 seonis to have been well ordered, and there is much 
 comfort in thinking of such a death. A useful life 
 and a peaceful death, and the sure hope of a blessed 
 resurrection — surely we can give thanks for all these 
 things ! I like to fall back on the life and death of 
 
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 170 
 
 LirE OP D. J. MAODONNELL. 
 
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 ii 
 
 Hoine Christian man or woman, when I am in a 
 cloubtin<]f mood alx)ut many things. The real help 
 which the Saviour gives to those who trust Him, both 
 in life and in the prospect of death, is an argument 
 for the truth of Christianity stronger perhaps than 
 any other." 
 
 Another extract from the same letter will touch the 
 hearts of many of his frien<ls for a twofold reason : 
 " I was very glad that Mr. Herdman rea«l the burial 
 service for dear aunt. If the dead — ' those other 
 living whom we call the dead ' — know what is going 
 on after their departure, we may be sure she would 
 be please*!. And may they not know ? Is there a 
 ' cloud of witnesses ' watching us as we run our race ?" 
 
 Etjually characteristic is the following sample of 
 good, wholesome, speculative thinking in another 
 direction. It is contained in a letter written to Miss 
 Machar a few days later than the above, February 
 6th, 1879: 
 
 " I think you put the thing very justly when you 
 say that R.'s argument involves the assumption that 
 force and matter are self-existent and eternal as well 
 as competent of themselves to form a harmonious 
 universe, which is very nearly the same thing as say- 
 ing that force and matter are God, for it is ascribing 
 to them some of the leading attributes of the living 
 God. 
 
 " If we must rest in mere hypothesis and give up 
 the hope of certain knowledge, surely the hypothesis 
 of a self-existent, eternal, wise and good Being is 
 more reasonable than that of self-existent, eternal 
 
 I. 
 
life's tasks made clearer. 
 
 171 
 
 Force, which is deatl and yet which works in a way 
 that we cannot but call wise and ^ood. I wont yes- 
 terday to see a man who is near death, and whose 
 position is a good deal like that of R. He ' doesn't 
 know whether there is a (iod or not, or if tliere be 
 one whether He is good or bad. Anyhow, he doe.sn't 
 believe in the monstrously unjust God that Christians 
 iMilieve in,' etc., etc. He mixes up theological notions 
 with New Te.stament teaching, and I tin«l it hard to 
 know how to meet him. He is certainly not happy, 
 though he professes not to fear death. 1 confess, how- 
 ever, that I wonder less at men growing sceptical and 
 unbelieving when I reflect how many things are per- 
 plexing' to myself." 
 
 We have had a glimpse of Mr. Macdonnell's eflbrts 
 on behalf of Queen's. The " endowment " was not by 
 any means the only financial problem that kept him 
 bu.sy in mind and speech. X claim of the tirst order 
 of urgency was the reduction of the debt upon St. 
 Andrew's. That, under the circumstances of his own 
 congregation, he should have so zealously pleaded with 
 his people for great liberality toward the college is 
 an illustration of his moral insight and practical wis- 
 dom. His policy was to develop liberality by the 
 habit of giving. And there never was a time in the 
 liistory of his pastorate that he <lid not insist on the 
 prime duty of a hearty support of missionary and 
 benevolent objects. The result was the record of St. 
 Andrew's as a helper and strengthener of the Church's 
 great work, and a stay an<l support to her weak and 
 struggling members. 
 
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 172 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNBLL. 
 
 In the letter to his mother last (juoted lie says : 
 " Last eveninfj the aiiinial nie»!tin<^ went off' very well. 
 We have paid (>rt*$G,000 of deht, which is s^itisfactory. 
 But the amount remaining i.s still a terrible tlrag, 
 about .^64,000 still on the c'.urch, an<l alK)ut So.OOO 
 more on the manse, . . . makin;( a t<3tal of 
 S69,000. Oh : that I had a hundre<l thoiisand <lollars 
 under my control," And to Miss Maehar: " We had 
 an annual meeting a week ago ; .S(),000 was paid 
 during last year on account of our debt, so that the 
 mountain is a little smaller, and the minister's heart 
 a little lighter," 
 
 For a few yeains, therefore, we must reckon this as 
 one of the burdens upon his soul, and yet a burden 
 wliich was continually becoming lighter, and at all 
 times clieerfully borne, because shared by a loyal and 
 willing people, 
 
 A third extract from the letter to his mother of 
 January 30th, suggests another source of anxiety 
 which was never removed : " I am going to try to 
 visit my flock now. I have ha<l very little time since 
 September for any routine visiting : in fact, the con- 
 gregation is too large to be effectively supervised." 
 
 W^e now have before us the main conditions of Mr, 
 Macdonnell's public career. Other weighty duties 
 were added later ; but the situation remained essen- 
 tially unchanged till the end. Hen; we see a minister, 
 strong intellectually and spiritually, well equipped 
 by culture ar.d training, and passionately devoted to 
 his work, confronted at the age of thirty-six with the 
 conviction that his task is too heavy for him. It is 
 
LIPES TASKS MADE CLEARER. 
 
 173 
 
 easy to Hay that this was his own fault, that he inifjlit 
 have added no more to his outside responsibilities, 
 dropix'd the whole Queen's inisiness, and the habit of 
 ^'oinj,' about the country pleadinj; for this cause and 
 that, and given himself wholly to the work of the 
 c«>nj;re;^ation. It will perhaps be easier to pronounce 
 an opinion upoi\ this point when th(^ whole life and 
 work of the man are before us. One thinj;, however, 
 may be sai<l with confidence, that this was just the 
 rifjht time U) provide him with an assistant. He was 
 inseparable ♦^'rom the conj^re<;ation. His people would 
 not have parted with him for any earthly consitler- 
 ation. He gave them of his best from first to last. 
 His task, as he honestly saw it, was too great for him. 
 He should have ha<l a helper. We see it all clearly 
 now as we look back upon the ])ast. In Mr. Macdon- 
 nell's history there were a good man}' '■ might have 
 beens," which wouM have afiected the issues of his 
 life. In this matter, he him.self was perhaps no wiser 
 than his congregation. But all the san»e, a mistake - 
 was made, which was never fully .set right again. We 
 Presbyterians are somewhat slow and stupid. We go 
 by rules and formuhe when measures and new pre- 
 cedents are needed. We cultivate hindsight rather 
 than insight or foresight. We believe .st) little in the 
 prophets that when they come into our world we do 
 not know what to do with them, till thev leave us. 
 Significantly enough, he .soon writes to his mother 
 again (March 8rd): "This has not been a right 
 sort of Monday exactly, and now it is eleven p.m., and 
 1 urn rather fagged. ... I am p<igging away at 
 
 
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 174 
 
 LIKE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 routine visiting of my congregation just now on 
 every available clay." 
 
 Next we have a flash and a gleam of the Home 
 Mission spirit in a letter to his mother of April 7th : 
 " You have doubtless heanl from Mr. Smith about the 
 n>eeting of the Home Mission Committee the week 
 before last. It cost me fifty dollars ; that is, I paid 
 that amount toward the S*i,.')00 which we hope to 
 get from the ministers of Ontario and Quebec. We 
 rtiusf make up, besides, from local sources, the 25 per 
 cent, which, in the meantime, has been deducted from 
 the grants made for the .support of our nn.ssionaries. 
 I told my people about the matter yesterday, and I 
 hope their liberality will rise to a higher level." 
 
 The same letter mentions a matter of first-class 
 importance to St. Andrew's congregation : " We liave 
 got a new organist — a nmn this time — and a half- 
 new choir, of which Elizabeth and Robert Smellie 
 and his wife are members, and we have better con- 
 gregational singing than we have ever had in my 
 experience. I think our new man will be a success. 
 He has splendid testimonials, and, as far as our ex- 
 perience has gone, he deserves them." 
 
 It was Mr. Edward Fi.sher, who had just been 
 appointed organist. He was a native of Vermont, 
 and had received his musical education in the Boston 
 Conservatory of Music and in Germany. How amply 
 he justified Mr. Macdonnell's expectations thus ex- 
 pressed could best have been told by the minister 
 liimself. The congregational singing, for which St. 
 Andrew's is noted, the good taste of the instrumental 
 
life's tasks made clearer. 
 
 175 
 
 oxecution, and alK)Vo all, the beautiful harmony 
 hetween " the two ends of the church," the spoken 
 and the musical services — these are features which 
 make memorable the part playe<l so lonp^ and faith- 
 fully by Mr. Fisher in the public woi*ship of St. 
 Andrew's. To the minister the help rendered by 
 the organist was inestimable. In Mr. Macdonnell's 
 conception of a proper service, the element of praise 
 n!ceive<l its full significance : it must fit in with the 
 dominant theme of the occasion ; it nmst express 
 emotionally both the leadinj^ thought of the preacher 
 and the responsive feelings of the audience. To an 
 organist such an opportunity was rarely given, an<l 
 nobly did Mr. P^isher respoiid to the demand. 
 
 In July a trip was made by Mr. and Mrs. Mac<lon- 
 nell to Thunder Bay, nearly three weeks being spent 
 with young Dr. Thos. Smellie and his wife at Port 
 Arthur (then Prince Arthur's Lrfinding). A trip to 
 Winnipeg was made by him in company with Mi.ss 
 Smellie in Septend)er, the principal object of which 
 was to visit his brother John, then practising law, and 
 keeping "bachelor's hall" in that city. These were 
 still the days before the Canadian Pacific through 
 line was built, and accordingly the route l)y way of 
 Chicago and St. Paul was taken. A pleasant feature 
 of the trip was the hearing of sermons in Chicago 
 from the famous Dr. Swing and from J. Munro 
 (Jibson (afterwards of London). Mr. Macdonnell him- 
 s<'lf did his share of preaching on both journeys, 
 Tlie visit to Winnipeg had many pleasing incidents, 
 among them the meeting with old Ontario friends, 
 
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 176 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 and especially of former St. Andrew's people, for 
 whom he had to hold a levee after the evening ser- 
 vice on September 21st. This was the second of his 
 five visits to the North- West. He spoke at Mr. (now 
 Dr.) Robertson's prayer-meeting on September 24th, 
 at which between six and seven hundred persons 
 were present to hear him. His letters written during 
 his absence give graphic accounts of old Winnipeg 
 In describing Dr. Swing's preaching on September 
 28th, in a Chicago theatre, he remarks that there 
 was more positivenesa in his sermon than one would 
 expect — an observation that has also been made of 
 another good man that was once tried for heresy ! 
 
 On the last day of 1879 he writes to his mother, 
 among other things suggested by the season : " Eliza- 
 beth is pretty tired, and I do not know that we shall 
 sit up to see the New Year in. We have been singing 
 one or two songs together — one named ' Faith and 
 Hope,' supposed to be sung by a husband to his wife, 
 one couplet of which is, 
 
 " ' Taking tn /ear together, my dear, 
 There isn't more night than day.' 
 
 The words are true, I think, in a figurative sense of 
 most of our lives. I often feel that I, at least, have 
 had much niore of the day than of the night." 
 
 On January 2nd, 1880, he writes : " Yesterday we 
 had the lecture-room packed at the prayer-meeting, 
 and a very large attendance of men, young and old^ 
 as well as women, of course, in response to my invi- 
 tation." This was the first of those New Year's 
 
LIFES TASKS MADE CLEARER. 
 
 177 
 
 morning services which those who attended them 
 can never forget. It was on these occasions that 
 the minister seemed to get personally nearest to his 
 people. The meetings were alwaj'^s largely attended 
 and were (|uite informal, and he had the art of sum- 
 ming up in a few apt expressions the lessons that 
 were suggested by the most important events of the 
 preceding year. A reception — if so formal a phrase 
 can be employed — was usually given immediately 
 afterwards by Mrs. Macdonnell, when the people of 
 St. Andrew's met in a social way, as they could not 
 meet at any other time during the year. When it is 
 considered how heterogeneous and scattered the con- 
 gregation was, and continued to be, it is easy to 
 realize the wholesome effects of the New Year's 
 gatherings ; how they helped its members to realize 
 that they were held together by something more than 
 a mere formal bond of union. 
 
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 178 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 LOSING AND HELPIXO. 
 
 The first month of the Now Year (1S80) was clouded 
 by the death of Prof. John H. Mackerras, of Kingston, 
 one of Mr. Macdonnell's dearest friends. Prof. Mac- 
 kerras was equally distinguished by charming per- 
 sonal qualities, by intellectual accomplishments, by 
 his services to the Church at large, and to Queen's 
 College. As a student and teacher he was enthusi- 
 astic, broad-minded and sympathetic. Though greatly 
 hampered by lack of the best guides, he struck out a 
 new path for himself which few classical professors 
 in Canada had ventured upon, by studying Sanskrit 
 for me purpose of getting a clearer idea of the struc- 
 ture of Greek and Latin. 
 
 The correspondent who describes the interview with 
 the Toronto Presbytery also tells us that, " At Peter- 
 boro' began the friendship with Prof. Mackerras, 
 which was terminated only by death. In the hos- 
 pitable home of the late Judge Dennistoun, the father 
 of Mrs. Mackerras, where the Professor's holidays 
 were frequently spent, these kindred spirits often 
 met. Both were .iien full of the enthusiasm of 
 
LOSING AND HELPING. 
 
 179 
 
 humanity, overflowing with the kindliest humour, 
 having their deepest life interests bound up in the 
 one Church and tlie one college. They were both 
 men of singular purity of mind, who had touched life 
 at many points and yet were unspotted from the 
 world. Some one had happily dubbed Mackerras 
 ' the white-headed boy of the Church,' and it well 
 expresses the place he held in the hearts of Ids 
 friends, and his friends were all with whom he came 
 into contact. ' A man greatly beloved,' saith the 
 legend on his monument, and in this case the legend 
 speaks truth. 
 
 " When the ' heresy case ' was being tried there was 
 something beautiful and pathetic in the Professor's 
 defence of his friend. Mackerras was recognized as 
 an ecclesiastical lawyer whose opinion carried great 
 weight, and his speech in the debate at Halifax was 
 most able and effective ; but its greatest impression 
 was made on those who knew that underneath it 
 was his strong personal affection for the man whose 
 theology he could not endorse, but whom he knew 
 and felt to be a preacher of righteousness that the 
 Church could not atford to let go." 
 
 Principal Grant also writes : 
 
 " Mackerras was one of those rare combinations of 
 sweetness and strength, of Scottish fervour and Eng- 
 lish sanity, which are found perhaps more fretjuently 
 in Canada than in Britain. Personally, he was "a 
 man greatly beloved"; and he was a wise counsellor 
 and trusted leader as well. He saved the University 
 fit the cost of health and life, and the sacrifices were 
 
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180 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 all the more beautiful because of his perfect uncon- 
 sciousness. Hnxl he been told that his early death 
 was owing to the three years of daily and nightly toil 
 which he underwent uncomplainingly for his Alma 
 Mater, he would probably have answered smilingly 
 that it was well worth paying so small a price for so 
 great a result. Beyond all others, he was " the white- 
 headed boy " of the General Assembly. Every one 
 felt that he could trust to his knowledge of law, to 
 his truthfulness and to his loyalty to the Church. A 
 popular body instinctively feels its need of leaders, and 
 when it finds — combined with the necessary qualifica- 
 tions — the chivalry of a Highlander, a modesty and 
 self-suppression almo.st fetninine, and the manners of 
 a gentleman, there are almost no bounds to its proud 
 confidence in them. Most fortunate was it that the 
 Church had such a man as one of the clerks of the 
 Assembly in the trying days that followed the Union. 
 The Maritime Province men of both Synods took 
 Mackerras to their hearts at once : while the headiest 
 of those opposed to him listened to his arguments 
 and acknowledged that unless they were answered 
 nothing could be done. His presence beside the 
 Moderator seemed a pledge of the permanence of the 
 Union ; and it may be .said that without the cohesive 
 element supplied by him, the new Church would have 
 been in danger of disruption." 
 
 It is a singular and pathetic coincidence that the 
 two friends, so alike in temper and in purpose, in spirit 
 of consecration and service, should be alike also in 
 the manner of the shortening of their days — in both 
 cases " the sword cut through the scabbard." 
 
 I 
 
pi 
 
 LOSING AND HELPING. 
 
 181 
 
 In April, 1880, Mr. Macdonnell made a trip to 
 Ithaca, N.Y., wliere he preached before Cornell Uni- 
 ven.ity on the mornintr and afternoon of the 1 1th 
 He highly prized the opportunity, during his three 
 days' visit, of observing the methods of a live Ameri- 
 can university and hearing lectuies from some of its 
 professors. 
 
 The great congregational event of 1880 was the 
 Jubilee held on Sunday and Monday, June 27th and 
 28th. On the former day, Rev. Donald Macrae, D.D., 
 of St. John, Moderator of the General Assembly, 
 preached in the morning from the text, " They shall 
 see his face" (Rev. xxii. 4), In the evening Principal 
 Grant conducted the service, choosing as his theme. 
 "The Jubilee Year." (Lev, xxv. 10.) In the after- 
 noon a communion service was held, in which the 
 elders were assisted by the session of Old St. 
 Andrew's, and all were invited who had at any time 
 been communicants in the congregation. Next even- 
 ing a prai.se meeting was held at which addresses 
 were delivered by the preachers of the preceding 
 day and many of the other friends of St. Andrew's, 
 among whom were Hon. Alex. Morris, Hon. J. 
 McMurrich, Mr. A. MacMurchy, Rev. Professor George, 
 Rev. Drs. Castle and Potts, and Mr. Milligan, of Old 
 St. Andrew's. 
 
 The vacation of 1880 was brief and interrupted. 
 A visit to Kingston was varied by a trip to Alexandria 
 Bay on July 23rd, in company with several friends. 
 Frequent visits to Fergus followed these incidents, 
 on account of the illness of William Smellie, who had 
 
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182 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 'i * 
 
 been delicate from his youth. He passed away on 
 August 24th from a loving home thus doubly 
 stricken within so brief a time. Mr. M. preached the 
 funeral sermon on the following Sabl>ath at Fergus, 
 on " Thoughts of peace and not of evil." There was 
 something beautiful and touching in the services 
 rendered to one another by the old and the young 
 minister in Fergus and Toronto. When the hearts of 
 the Smellie household and the circle of loving friends 
 in Fergus were smitten with grief for one departed, 
 it was Mr. Macdonnell's privilege to minister to them 
 with his comforting words and his strong hopeful 
 presence. And when, one after the other, a baby 
 boy or girl was brought over from St. Andrew's 
 manse to the church to be received into its mem- 
 bership, the venerable Dr. Smellie was always present 
 to administer the solemn rite. How sweet and 
 blessed the associations of which such scenes as these 
 give us a passing glimpse ! 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell was a delegate to the Pan-Presby- 
 terian Council, of Philadelphia, in September, 1880. 
 There the present writer first saw him and heard 
 him speak. The occasion was the (question as to the 
 admission of the Cumberland Presbyterians to mem- 
 bership in the Council. This had been refused them 
 from the beginning, nor did they succeed in obtaining 
 at the Philadelphia meeting the privilege which 
 could not much longer be withheld. Their creed was 
 not so strictly Calvinistic as those of the other 
 branches of the Church, and this was held sufficient 
 to justify the refusal. Mr. Macdonnell's speech upon 
 
 ia:j 
 
LOSING AND HELPING. 
 
 183 
 
 the subject was brief. He did not argue the case of 
 these supposed aliens from the commonwealth of 
 Presbyterianism, but rather protested a<(ainst the 
 movement for exclusion, half indignant and half 
 wondering at its apparently inhospitable spirit. 
 
 A Philadelphia newspaper of Septend}er 27th, 18H0, 
 gives this account of his spc^ech during a discussion 
 which followed a paper by Professor Flint, of Edin- 
 burgh, on Agnosticism: "Then a zealous, fiery young 
 divine, the Rev. Mr. Macdonnell, of Toronto, mounted 
 the platform. He plunged boldly into his subject, 
 and spoke with the rapidity that comes from over- 
 flowing thought. He asked whether it was expedient 
 for the Church always to exercise its unquestioned 
 right of disciplining ? The question to-day is, what 
 is the faith ? A young man full of the <lesire to 
 preach salvation, and believing that he is prepared 
 for it, is brought up all standing by the Creed. He 
 can't make it all out in the way the Church interprets 
 it. What are you going to do with him ? Shall he 
 be forbidden to preach ( He asks you whether you 
 have any right to impose on \\\\\\ conditions tliat 
 Christ did not impose ? Well, you tell him there are 
 other churches — fifty other churches, that he can go 
 and preach in, but you don't find anything in the 
 New Testament about fifty churches. One only is 
 spoken of there. Suppose you send such a man over 
 to the Methodists or the Congregationalists. The 
 first thing you do is to exchange pulpits with him. 
 and call him ' beloved brother.' Thus you admit that 
 you restrict as Christ did not restrict. Now, I 
 
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 184 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 suj^gest that you reduce to a few, well-defined articles 
 that are absolutely e.ssential, your creed, and require 
 your minister to stand by them, and hold his own 
 views about non-essentials." There was renewed 
 applause when this daring young divine had finished. 
 
 • •••••• 
 
 Thj stalwart speeches made by Principal Grant 
 and Rev. Mr. Macdonnell are spoken of on all hands. 
 
 During the discussion of the temperance question 
 on the same occasion he thus expressed his views : 
 " I think we should consider whether positive in- 
 stitutions for the promotion of temperance are not 
 better than mere prohibition. By positive institutions 
 I mean such places as coffee-houses where you give 
 men good things to eat and drink. I maintain that 
 in the lung run more good will be done by these 
 positive counteracting agents than merely by prohibi- 
 tion. In other words I believe with St. Paul that we 
 are to overcome evil with good — not simply with 
 denouncing the evil." 
 
 In the closing moments of 1880 he wrote his last 
 New Year's greetings to his mother : " The old year 
 will be gone in less than five minutes. May the new 
 year which is just about to dawn be a very good and 
 happy one to you, one of growth in all grace and of 
 deeper and fuller enjoyment of the presence of God, 
 than you have ever experienced in past years." The 
 letter, continued on January 3rd, 1881, tells of the 
 New Year's prayer-meeting, and of his having thanked 
 the people for some valuable gifts — two suites of 
 
LOSING AND HELPING. 
 
 185 
 
 furniture, a dessert set and a breakfast set : "There 
 is a new book-case for the back room, to replace the 
 old one (which would have been aslianied to appear 
 in such distinguished company), and a davenport 
 which is a special delight to Elizabeth." These presents 
 were made in commemoration of the eleventh anni- 
 versary of Mr. Macdonnell's settlement in St. 
 Andrew's. 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 TIIK IIYMXAL- HIS MOTHER'S DEATH. 
 
 Work oh the Pre8])ytoriaii Hymnal, now called the 
 " Old Hymnal," had been going on Tor three years- 
 Mr. Macdonnell had taken an aetiv«> })art in this 
 enterprise from the beginning. It was to him })re- 
 eminently a labour of love. A Psalm or any other 
 hymn was much more to him than a ])0('tical com- 
 position, more than the expression of the emotions or 
 aspirations of the devout believer. It was also a 
 means of harmonizing and inspiring a body of 
 worshippers. To the study both of the words and of 
 the music of our books of prai.se, he brought a practical 
 conception of effective psalmody as realized in his 
 own church serN'ices. An impressive estimate of 
 what Mr. Macdonnell did in this committee, and how 
 he did it, has been prepared by his close and sympa- 
 thetic friend. Rev. Robert Murray, editor of the 
 Presbyterian Witness, Halifax, N.S. : 
 
 "Three years after the Union of 1875 — one year 
 after the happy conclusion of the Assembly's pro- 
 ceedings in the Macdonnell case — the General Assem- 
 bly', in the face of some opposition, resolved to prepare 
 
THE HYMNAL — BIS MOTHEK 8 DEATH. 
 
 187 
 
 a Hymnal, an<l appointed a conunittee to proceed 
 with the work of preparation. Of the ten nieinherH 
 of comniittee Mr. Macdonnell wa.s one, an<l he con- 
 tinued a member of that conunittee as lonj; a.s he 
 lived. The committee held most of its meetin;;H at 
 Montreal while preparing the Hrst draft, and at all or 
 nt'arly all these meetin^^s Mr. Mac<lonnell was present. 
 It was at once to be .seen that he understood the 
 work to which he was appointed, an<l that he was 
 ready to j^o into it with his whole heart. As directed 
 by the (ieneral As.sembly, the conunittee Hr.st selected 
 the hynuis common to the three hynui-books (jf the 
 Scottish churches. It was when this mechanical task 
 was completed that the .selective taste of the membei's 
 was tested. Mr. Macdonnell couhl not only choose a 
 hymn; he could analyze it, and <;ive his rea.sons clearly 
 and convincingly for adoption or rejection. The dis- 
 cussions were always most frank, cordial, profoundly 
 interesting^, and to me most in.structive. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell's readin<; of a hynui was in etiect an interpreta- 
 tion, an elucidation of it. The unreal, artificial, enjpty, 
 shallow, but fiflitterinf; hynuis that have a temporar}'^ 
 popularity, he had no patience with, and his reading 
 of them usually meant their unanimous rejection. 
 Hymns were often sung in committee as a test of 
 their availability ; and Mr. Macdonnell's knowledge 
 of music was always helpful. He was a convener of 
 the Sub-Committee on Music, a-nd a share of the care 
 and responsibility of publication fell to his lot. 
 Whatever he could do he cheerfully did, with all his 
 energy, to secure the end in view." 
 
 ' I 
 
 *!• 
 
 1 i 
 
188 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 i !• 
 
 In the Huminer of 1881 the Hyiniuil was so far 
 a(lvanc<'<l that final arran^onionts for the harnioni/ing 
 of the tunes couKl be made. Mr. Macdonnell was 
 <leputed to ^ro to Britain to consult Mr. K. J. Hopkins, 
 orf^anist of the Temple Church, London. 
 
 The time was favourable for a real vacation, not 
 only for himself but for Mrs. Macdonnell, who now 
 for the second time accompanied him across the 
 ocean. Upon their arrival at Liverpool, ISIrs. Macdon- 
 nell went directly north to Orkney, to revisit the 
 scenes with which we have already been made 
 familiar by the sketch of Mrs. Campbell. 
 
 While in London, Mr. Macdonnell spent much of 
 his time trying to get light ui)on the coffee-house 
 (|uestion. His speech in Philadelphia shows how his 
 mind had been occupied with it, and, indeed, it was 
 a matter of practical discussion in Toronto at this 
 time, on the part of himself and others who formed 
 a sub-committee of the combined City Charities 
 to deal with this subject. 
 
 At Dover, where he spent August 4th to 6th, in the 
 company of Mr. Hopkins, a very enjoyable visit was 
 made. The work of going over the tune-book was 
 varied by dips in the sea, walks around and through 
 the chalk-cliffs, views of the partially restored old 
 Priory, a trip to Canterbury with Mr. Hopkins, and 
 an inspection of the cathedral. 
 
 Thence followed excursions in the English and 
 Scottish borderland, drives and walking trips with 
 cousins of Mrs. Macdonnell and other friends. 
 
 It was at Dunbar that the tidings reached him of 
 
 -Ml 
 
THE HYMNAL — HIS MOTHERS HEATH. 
 
 189 
 
 liis motlier's death. Sho had been ill for some little 
 time before his departure from ('anada. All the 
 children were then to^^cther at Kin;,rston, ineludinj; 
 the distant son at Winnipe;^. Even while then* they 
 were apprehensive of her speedy departure; hut she 
 rallied so inueh that in fulHInicnt of her earnest 
 desire he and Mrs. iMaedoiuiell felt free to earrv out 
 their plan of eiossin^ the Atlantic. 
 
 Mrs. Campbell writes thus of the event : " After a 
 few weeks' illness his n)other suddenly passetl away. 
 Though he strove, with his usual consideration for 
 others, to bear patiently and silently his load of j^rief, 
 and to 'keep up a brave front,' it was plain to all 
 his friends that lie suffered keenly, and that he re- 
 proached himself for havinjL^ been away. It was well 
 for him then that he had by his side a wife who so 
 well understood and sym})athized with him, and was 
 skilful to tind balm for the wounded spirit. With 
 her he spent a few (juiet weeks in Oi'kney, learninfj 
 the lessons that only sanctified sorrow can teach, and 
 accepting gratefully the messages of comfort that 
 God sent him by the lips or hands of friends. He 
 had always recognized that he owed to his mother 
 nmch of what he was ; that her influence had moulded 
 his character in earliest years ; but he owed her more 
 than he knew of disposition, feeling, opinion, and 
 modes of thought. The value of this mother (who 
 beyond her own circle was unknown) is best summed 
 up in the words of the text he himself chose to be 
 inscribed on her monument — ' Her children rise up 
 and call her blessed,' " 
 
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190 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 [■ i 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell immediately rejoined his wife at 
 Orkney, where three weeks were spent in the fashion 
 ah'eady described in the reminiscences that have been 
 sent from thence by loving hands. 
 
 On September 18th they were back in Montreal, 
 where Mr. Macdonnell preached on that day for Dr. 
 Robert Campbell. The publication of the Hymnal 
 was one of the matters which occupied his attention 
 after his return. 
 
 i:; 
 
TEMPTING OFFERS AND SORE BEREAVEMENTS. 191 
 
 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 TEMPTING OFFERS AND SORE BE RE A VEMENTS. 
 
 In December, 1881, tlie committee appointed to 
 select a minister to fill the vacancy Ciiused by the 
 resignation of Dr. Jenkins, of St. Paul's Church, 
 Montreal, asked Mr. Macdonnell to accept the pastor- 
 ate of that congregation. Such an offer must appear 
 to have been not only flattering but highly advanta- 
 geous. The Montreal congregation was and is, finan- 
 cially, the strongest Church in Canada. St. Andrew's, 
 on the other hand, was burdened with a heavy debt, 
 and Mr. Macdonnell, having now a family of four 
 children, had refused to accept an addition to his 
 salary of $2,500 so as to make easier for his people 
 the task of lightening the deficit. An extract from 
 his reply will show the spirit of the man, and illus- 
 trate his attitude toward his own loved congregation- 
 
 The letter, dated December 18th, is addressed to 
 "Andrew Allan, Esq., Chairman of Committee": 
 " After giving the matter full consideration I have to 
 say that while thanking the Committee for the cor- 
 dial terms in which they have conveyed the expression 
 of their wish, and tlioroughly appreciating the fact 
 
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 192 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 that they have been unanimous in their choice, I never- 
 theless cannot accept their invitation to become the 
 minister of St Paul's. My work seems, for the pres- 
 ent, to be in Toronto, and I have a conviction that 
 the pastoral tie should not be broken except for very 
 strong reasons. Please convey to the Committee the 
 assurance of my earnest hope that an able and faithful 
 minister may be found for St Paul's and that the 
 blessing of the Lord may rest upon the congregation." 
 
 Close upon this invitation to Montreal came a simi- 
 lar one from the Second Presbyterian of Chicago, at 
 present ministered to by Rev. Dr. S. J. Macpherson. 
 On March 14th, 1882, Mr. Macdonnell went to Ottawa 
 in connection with the tedious contest between the 
 dissenting remnant of the Old Kirk and the United 
 Church as to the disposal of the Temporalities Fund, 
 the matter being then before the Private Bills Com- 
 mittee of the Federal Parliament. A deputation 
 from the Chicago Church came to Toronto, found 
 that he had gone to Ottawa, followed him thither 
 and thence to Kingston, where he preached the Uni- 
 versity sermon on the morning of the 19th and in 
 Chalmers Church in the evening. They had a confer- 
 ence with him on Monday morning, at which he 
 declined their invitation. They renewed their appli- 
 cation on March 2Gth after their return home. Among 
 his papers has been found the draft of his reply 
 undated. In it he reiterates his refusal and hopes 
 that no further steps will be taken. 
 
 Thus within three months the offer was made to 
 him of the wealthiest Presbyterian Church in Canada 
 
TEMPTING OFFERS AND SORE BEREAVEMENTS. 193 
 
 1 <T i 
 
 and of one of the leudinr^ churclies in tlie United 
 States. How little lie was affected by such personal 
 tributes and compliments may be inferre<l from the 
 fact that these invitations were known to but a small 
 circle, and that the Chicafjo offer onlv came to the 
 knowled^^e of some of his nearest relatives accident- 
 ally after his death. 
 
 The niana<]fers of St. Andrew's now insisted upon 
 Mr. Macdonnell's acceptinti^ an increase of salary, and 
 as over Sn,000 more had been taken off the debt 
 durinc^ the year, the offer was agreed to : yet the 
 amount giv^en in 1S82,S3,500, was still less than half 
 the salary received by the next minister of St. Paul's. 
 
 The conf^re<^ation continued to show marked pros- 
 perity. By the end of 1S81 the membership had 
 reached G40, while the larg-e church edifice was still 
 thronged to its utmost capacity. Three new elders 
 were appointed during the year — Mr. David 3Ic(Jee, 
 Mr. Joseph Robinson and Mr. Hainilton Cassels. The 
 former two were, after a few years' service, obliged to 
 retire, in consefjucnce of removal to a distant part of 
 the city, while Mr. Cassels remained a faithful and 
 trusted counsellor until and after the minister's re- 
 moval by death. ^\v. Cassels nnist be reckoned one 
 of the main forces in the progress of St. Andrew's. 
 Though young at the time of his appointment, he had 
 already done much good service as the superintendent 
 of the Dorset evening school, and later of the Dorset 
 Sunday s(diool. His thoughtful care for all the 
 interests of the Church, as well as for the minister 
 and his family personally, with his genial and happy 
 14 
 
 
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194 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 spirit, have made him invaluable to St. Andrew's 
 during the last twenty years. During 1881 Mr. 
 Mitchell was obliged Ijy pressure of business to retire 
 from the direction of the Sunday School, his place 
 being taken by the newly-elected elder, Mr. McGee. 
 
 In Mr. Macdonnell's personal life, the most notable 
 event of the 3'ear 1882 was an illness, which befell 
 him in the sunmier, and which made it necessary 
 for liim to make another trip to Britain. Here he 
 was treated in Edinburgh by Dr. Joseph Bell. He 
 was at this time a guest in the house of Rev. Archi- 
 bald Smellie, pastor of the Free Greyfriars' Church, 
 the brother of the minister of Fergus. The treatment 
 was completely successful, and Mr. Macdonnell left 
 Scotland in perfect health in Xovendier, arriving in 
 Toronto on the 22nd of that month. 
 
 The opening month of 188.'J was clouded ])y a great 
 sorrow, which fell uptm both the congregation and 
 the minister of St. Andrew's. Mr. James Michie, 
 who had been looked upon as one of the chiefest 
 mainstays of the Church, was cut oft' after a brief 
 illness, on January 18th, in the fifty-fifth year of his 
 age. The grief felt at his dc.'ath was not confined to 
 his Church, but was widespread through the city. A 
 sentence of the resolution passed on the occasion by 
 the City Council may represent the sentiments of the 
 numerous public and business organizations with 
 which he was connected : " A representative citizen, 
 in every sense of that wide-meaning term ; a noble ex- 
 ample of the high-minded and honourable merchant, 
 and the open-hearted, modest, Christian gentleman." 
 
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 TEMPTING OFFERS AND SORE BEREAVEMENTS. 195 
 
 Something of what he attempted to do and to he for 
 St. Andrew's Churcli has been indicated on an earHer 
 page. To the minister the loss was especially 
 severe, and even in this brief memoir space must be 
 given to a portion at least of the loving tribute, 
 which took the place of the regular sermon on the 
 Sundav morning following the sad event : " Our 
 hearts are filled with grief this morning. James 
 Michie is dead. . . . We know what he was to 
 the Church and to the community, what he was as a 
 friend, business man, kin<lly counsellor, loving and 
 genial companion, and earnest worker in many good 
 things, and we mourn his untimely death as a public 
 calamity. ... I cannot speak of him to-day 
 as I should like to speak. He was my own warm 
 loving friend, whom I knew and honoured before I 
 became his minister, and whose unfailing, thoughtful, 
 delicate kindness and sympathy, shown in many ways 
 to me and mine, during these twelve years, have 
 strengthened the bond between us from year to year 
 . . . He was the helper of many a good cause. 
 Many a country church, as well as every city charity, 
 counted him among its benefactors. Many a strug- 
 gling man, many a poor family had reason to bless 
 him. I never went to him in vain — and I went often 
 — to ask for help toward any good object. Large- 
 hearted and liberal, he stood out as a noble example 
 to rich men of the use of money. . . . He was 
 unselfish, ever considerate of others. He lived not to 
 himself; he died not to himself. Even in his wander- 
 ings within the last two or three days, this church, 
 
 
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196 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I 
 
 and the men associated with him in the work con- 
 nected with it, were much in his mind. It is doubtful 
 if he thought himself dying ; nor does it matter. 
 Others will fill his place in the church, in business, 
 in the societies with which he was connected : but it 
 is the man himself we will all miss. The good are 
 not so readily forgotten as is sometimes alleged. 
 There are names that are tenderly, lovingly, thank- 
 fully spoken of long after those who bore them are 
 buried in the dust ; and we will not forget our loved 
 friend readily. ... I thank God for such a man ; 
 I thank (Jod for the large heart, the noble mind and 
 the willing and ready hand." 
 
 Many letters of sympathy came to Mr. Macdonnell 
 on tlie occasion of his and the church's loss. To one 
 of these, from Dr. Robert Campbell, of Montreal, he 
 replied in part as follows: " It was indeed an unex- 
 pected blow that fell upon his home, and on the 
 Church, and on the city. We miss him constantly 
 in many ways, and it will be a long time before the 
 great blank will be filled. Miss Michie appreciated 
 your letter ver}' much." The reference here is to the 
 sorrowing sister of Mr. Michie, who was his com- 
 panion during his Toronto life, and whose own 
 kindly and gracious spirit still recalls the memory 
 of the great philanthropist and beloved citizen who 
 was taken so suddenly from their lovely " West- 
 holme " fourteen years ago. Space must also be 
 given to an extract from a letter written to Mr. 
 Macdonnell by Rev. Dr. Jenkins, of Montreal, on 
 January ICith, 1883 : " I know how terrible, even 
 
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 TEMPTING OFFERS AND SORE BEREAVEMENTS. 197 
 
 heart-rending, the blow has been to you. If you 
 have left to you in all this world one frientl ecjual to 
 James Michie, you are amongst the most favoured of 
 men. How he loved you, few know better than I. 
 What you have lost will daily unfold itself — in your 
 own house, at ' Westholme,' in his office, in your 
 business meetings in the Church, and on your right 
 hand in the house of God." 
 
 The minister's words about the abiding recollections 
 of Mr. Michie were prophetic, and that in more senses 
 than one. The congregation at once a])pointed a 
 " Memorial Committee," the result of whose counsels 
 may be seen in the three stained glass windows in the 
 south arch in the rear of the auditorium, the central 
 one illustrating the parable of the Good Samaritan, 
 under which runs the legend, " Go thou and do like- 
 wise." This attractive work of art fittingly crowns 
 the uni<[ue and modest beauty of the interior of St. 
 Andrew's, and perpetually reminds even the casual 
 visitor of a life and of deeds that nien do not 
 willingly let die. 
 
 The closing as well as the opening month of this 
 year (1883) was clouded by personal affliction. Mr. 
 Macdonnell's youngest brother, John, died in Winni- 
 peg on December 6th, after a short illness, the specific 
 complaint being an affection of the heart. Mr. John 
 M. Macdonnell had been a member of the Manitoba 
 bar from its beginning, and had there enjoyed a suc- 
 cessful practice. The distance of his home — a nmch 
 more serious obstacle in those days than now — had 
 prevented very frequent intercourse with the other 
 
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 198 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 members of his family. But ho had joined tliom all 
 at the <^atlienng in Kingston shortly before his 
 mother's death. He had taken an interest in the 
 welfare oi the new western city, and was especially 
 active in the establishment of the General Hospital, 
 the members of whose managing board called a 
 special meeting on the occasion of his lamented 
 and sudden death. The remains were brought from 
 Winnipeg to Toronto and thence to Kingston, where 
 the interment took place on December 10th, the 
 services being conducted by Principal Grant. 
 
 \ii 
 
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 I 
 
 AUGMENTATION. 
 
 199 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 A UO .VEXTA TIOX. 
 
 Among the Ciiu.se.s wliicli cnlijstod tlie Hymp.'itliies 
 of pastor and people, a foremost place wns henceforth 
 taken by the new Assembly scheme of "Augmen- 
 tation." 'J'his was fundamentally a branch of Home 
 Mission work to which he had already (^iven mucli 
 thought and care. The enterprise of bringing the 
 salaries of ministers of weak and strugirliiiij charijes 
 up to a reasonable minimum appealed to one of 
 the strongest and most susceptible elements of Mr, 
 Macdonnell's nature. His sense of the oneness of 
 the Church, and the essential brotherhood of the 
 ministry, was so strong and practical that the strug- 
 gles and difficulties of any of his brethren were 
 made at once his own. ]\Ioreover, his own position 
 of pecuniary ease and worldly advatitage was reck- 
 oned by him not as a distinction but as a privilege, 
 to be used for the well-being of his beloved Church 
 and his no less well-beloved fellow-workers. How 
 often have we heard him protest in thunder tones 
 that the real heroes of the ministry were those who 
 accepted hardship and privation for the sake of 
 
 
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 200 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 buildiii;^ up the wasto pljices of tlie Cluirch ! Indeed, 
 his i<I('al lioroe.s were inisHioiiarics: and tlu' pn'scnt 
 writer lias never heard him use sucli terms of 
 a<hnii'ation and praise as tiiose wiiieli, oii separate 
 occasions, lie ])ul)licly bestowed upon two oi" our own 
 missionaries, tluj one in tlie home and the (jther in 
 the foreign Held. The whole CMiureh, the whole 
 cause of Chi'ist, was t<j him, in fact, one great entir- 
 prise ; and when the personal element came into view 
 his only standard of merit was the spirit of self- 
 denying service and of self-surrender for the saving 
 of men, evinced by the Christian minister in any 
 part of the great campaign. Thus it was impos- 
 sible for him to for<::et the claims of those who were 
 cheerfully bearing the burden and heat of the day 
 in the outposts of the Held, in lonely mission stations, 
 remote not merely from the inspirations of society, 
 but even from the helps and comforts of civilized 
 life. Hence his outbursts of enthusiastic admira- 
 tion. Hence his burning words of remonstrance and 
 appeal addressed to the indirterent or the sceptical. 
 Hence, we may add, the revelation to many unin- 
 structed souls of a true vision of Christ's kingdom 
 such as he himself beheld all the day lonir. Hence 
 the effect of his utterances in helping to energize and 
 invigorate the most aggressive agencies of the Church, 
 It has been said that Mr. Macdonnell was more 
 interested in Home than in Foreign Missions. This 
 was true in the sense that he gave more time and 
 thought to the former than to the latter. But this 
 was in a measure accidental. He felt that while the 
 
AUGMENTATION. 
 
 201 
 
 claims oi' cither were infinitely {^rcat, tlic public did 
 not show that prompt recognition of the ncetls of the 
 h(jme work, which greeted the selt'-cousecration and the 
 career of the foreii^n missionary. But no one could 
 speak more fondly or elo(|Uently than he on hehalf 
 of the foreign work of the Church. It was not that 
 he loved his country more than the world. It was 
 rather that he saw in the redemption of his country 
 the nearest duty of the servant of Christ, the most 
 obvious and direct of the divinely appointed means 
 whereby the world should be redeemed. 
 
 The following- appreciative estimate of Mr. Mac- 
 donnell's spirit and acliievements in this cause of 
 Augmentation comes from Rev. Dr. R. Campl)ell, of 
 Renfrew, wiio himself has borne a worthy share in 
 the work which he so enthusiastically conimemorates : 
 
 "Mr. Macdonnell, alon^; with Dr. Kin*^, Dr. Warden 
 and others who were like-minded, became deeply 
 interested in the case of the weak char(,^es under the 
 care of the Home Mission Connnittee. Many of these 
 were beinj^ depleted by the rush of innninjration to 
 the North-West. All of them suffered throu<;h the 
 long depression. Of the latter 705 ministers and 
 congregations became discouraged, and fre((uent and 
 long-continued vacancies were very connnon. With 
 the Committee's help a stipend of .SOOO per annum 
 was supposed to be provided, but the Connnittee had 
 its deficits, the congregations were often in arrears, and 
 deplorable <;{ises of straightened circumstances, on the 
 part of ministers, were everywhere cropping up. This 
 state of matters set hearts on fire, and Mr. Macdorniell 
 
 
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 i 
 
 
 
 202 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNEI.L. 
 
 cMpociJilly was jjrcatly moved, and Iiis lieait and mind 
 ex(!rci.s('<l over tlie considei-ation of tlii' remtMly, wliieli, 
 as lie .said, luitsf be provided. His sympathy lor hi.s 
 brethren was manifested in many and notable ways.c//., 
 he became a tla<,rant transirressor of rules and llouted 
 at them in those days. He would state the facts of 
 some peculiarly needy case that had come under his 
 notice, an<l then with a burst of ^rief and in(li<.,niation 
 declare that rules nnist be set aside and justice done. 
 (Jenerally he carried his point, but even when hr di<l 
 not, Ik; had other resources in reserve, an<l it bi'came 
 a comnion remark of the Convener, ' Well, bi'ethren, 
 there is no doubt that this is an urgent case, but we 
 must leave it with Mr. Macdoiuiell or Dr. Kinij^ to <;et 
 some help from private sources.' In this way nnich 
 was accomplished by both these true-hearted workers, 
 but such temporary expedients could not really meet 
 the need. 
 
 "Gradually the remedy t(3ok shape, and schemes were 
 commended to the consideration of the Church by the 
 Assembly. Dr. Km<r, as the old parliamentary hand, 
 had char<^e of the matter then, and Mr. Macdonnell, 
 with ready and concise words, al)ly supported him in 
 his work. Delavs occurred, however : rival schemes 
 had to be harmonized. It even seemed that a dead- 
 lock had been reached. At Icn^rth the present scheme 
 of Auf^'mentation was evolved and placed by the 
 Assembly under the charge of a sub-committee of the 
 Home Mission Committee, with Mr. Macdonnell as 
 Convener. This was in the year of 1883, and from 
 that date to the close of his career he spared himself 
 
AUOMKNTATION. 
 
 203 
 
 neitluT in thou^^lit nor wonl nor docd in lurtlifrint; 
 tlio work that luul lu'cn onti"nst«Mi to his ;;ni»ianc«'. 
 With lii^li liojM's (in<l ^rc.it cnthnsiiisni lie rntcri'd on 
 his mission. It sc^nu'd all so oood to him and ho 
 so l)cIiovLMl in tiio wnci-ositv of thf ('Imri'h that lie 
 hiid l)road phms and carornlly [»<'rr('L'tt'd tlu'ir dtitaiis, 
 in anticipation ol" tlie tirst meeting of the Connnittci", 
 and the aft«.'r-a])i)«'al to the (^hurcii at hir;^*'. Mem- 
 Inn's dropping into his Iiome, hct'oi'o tlie sessions ol" 
 tliat nieetini;-, went .iway impressed with the rar«' 
 spirit of (h'votion and of reliance on the divine hel}) 
 in wliicli ho ai)proaclu!d liis work. The meetin*; came 
 and ho was as one inspired. His prayei's drew those 
 who were pn'sent to tlie side of tlie Master, and hiid 
 upon tliem this servicii as one in which He was inter- 
 ested and wliicii He would hiess. Then he unfolded 
 his plans, talked rapi<lly and earnestly of all that 
 should be done, soui^ht advice and suj^^'estions, and 
 gladly accepted every helpful hint. This was to l)o 
 the way of it: There shouhl be a reserve fund of 
 S20,000 or i52:),()()0 ; the Church would certainly see 
 the wi.sdom of that and would ])rovide it. There 
 should be deputies sent to Presbyteries and cordial 
 relations established between them and the Com- 
 mittee, thouijfh no one could doubt that they would b(^ 
 cordial. He himself would go, and other mend)ers 
 would assist him by going to large and influential 
 congregations to bespeak their helj». Wealthy men 
 also who loved their Church must be seen and might 
 be expected to respond. The tire was burning in his 
 own heart, and other hearts should be set on fire. 
 
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204 
 
 LIFK OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 What inspirution tliere was in his words ! In liis 
 presence no (jne could doubt tliat alt that lie had 
 spoken of would be accomplished. 
 
 " Thus the scheme was launched. Then he began the 
 work, went everywhere arousing interest, was ably 
 seconded in his et^fbrts by ])r, A. B. MacKay, Dr. 
 Warden, and others, and a certain degree of success 
 was reached. The reserve fund was raised to Si 7,000, 
 but nmch of that caine throu<ih lei^acies which had 
 fallen in. The response from Presbyteries and con- 
 gregations \vas not so cordial in some cases as he had 
 expected, but yet there is no note of discouragement 
 in his first report to the Assembly. ' ]\Iucli had been 
 done. Next year it might be expected that nmch 
 moi'e would be accomplished.' But as one turns to 
 the after-reports, they become ever more and more 
 pathetic. ' It Avill take time,' ' Next year we may 
 surely hope for bettei* things.' ' Only saved "rom a 
 deficit by large drawing on the reserve fund.' ' The 
 reserve fund will only last another year unless we 
 bestir ourselves.' ' The reserve fund is exhausted, 
 but perha])s it is better so. for now the Church will 
 be on its mettle and provide for the carrying on of 
 the work.' "^riius he spoke, and all through those 
 trying years wrought l)ravely, seeking to stem the 
 tide running so strongly against him. But it was too 
 strong for him. The dreadful deficits came at last. 
 ' She had to deduct a percentage from the grants 
 promised, and the workers sutiered. The Church will 
 realize what this means and will not permit it to 
 happen again.' His a})peals re-echoed throughout the 
 
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 AUGMENTATION. 
 
 205 
 
 of 
 
 ill 
 
 Church, a spasmodic ctlbrt was made, and af^aiii ho 
 became hopeful. But .soon he had the same story to 
 tell: 'Again we have to mak(> a reduction from the 
 j.jrants promised, and the want of interest shown 
 is much to be deplored.' These were not tlie results 
 he had looked for. Still he nnist not give up the work 
 for he was sure that it was a source of great stren<:th 
 to the Church, and encouragement came to him as ne 
 saw^ the speedy advance of congregations from a place 
 on the augmented list to a .self-sustaining position. 
 Every year from ten to twenty congregations thus 
 moved forward, and he could not doubt that a work 
 that was so blessed of (}od for the practical upbuilding 
 of His cause should l)e carried on even amidst dith- 
 culties and discoura<rements. So with the faith that 
 failed not, he pres.scd on. Through the dark days 
 when few believed with him, through the davs when 
 his home was left desolate, through the days of over- 
 work and failing strength when he was makiui^ lar<ve 
 drafts upon the future, down to the very end he gave 
 himself to the work. 
 
 " A little more than a year before the end, he sug- 
 crested chanfres in the mode of.workinix and the.se 
 were approved by the Assend)Iy. A separate com- 
 mittee was ap]iointed and charged with the care of 
 tlie augniented congregations. New plans were 
 formed, Presbyteries were again a})pealed to, and the 
 result of the first yeai-'s work was faxourablc He 
 was greatly encouraged, lie became ho])eful again. 
 'Let there be only another year without a deficit 
 and we shall do well." But it was his last messaiie. 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDOXNELL. 
 
 Before tlie year closed he had entered into his rest. 
 It cheered his heart in the end to know that there 
 would be another year without a deficit. For the 
 rest he left it in the hands of God, and handed back to 
 the Church the work which had been connnitted to 
 hiin, earnestly commending it to the Church's care. 
 
 " The time is not yet when we can even begin to 
 estimate the full results of those services which Mr. 
 Macdonnell rendered to the home work of his Church, 
 and to the advancement of the Redeemer's kingdom 
 throughout the Dominion. We only know that such 
 true devotion to the Master's service, and unselfish 
 and unsparing activity in the doing of His will, must 
 have results which only the years to come, and indeed 
 the eternal ages themselves, can unfold. We see a 
 little that he has done in laying the foundations. 
 
 " We are tempted perhaps to think of the 2.')0 con- 
 gregations added to tlu^ self-sustaining roll as his 
 fitting memorial, and to say, look around and see what 
 by God's grace he had a hand in doing. Rather we 
 sec but a stone cast upon the cairn, and shall have to 
 wait till hereafter to discover the completed monu- 
 ment — the seal which CJod himself has set to His 
 servant's work." 
 
 The first year of the new Augmentation enterprise 
 was signalized in St. Andrews Cliurch by the gift of 
 S2,S62 toward that object. The sum was raised 
 partly by special collection — a custom kept up regu- 
 larly ever since — and partly by an appropriation from 
 the ordinary revenue of the Church. The enthusiasm 
 for this cause thus so splendidly manifested was 
 
AUGMENTATION. 
 
 207 
 
 rise 
 
 of 
 
 Ised 
 
 rom 
 ism 
 ivas 
 
 always maintained in tlie con<^rej(ation. The minis- 
 ter himself V)ecame the threat apostle of Auf^mentation. 
 The advocacy of this scheme probaVjly occasioned more 
 frequent absences from the city than did any other 
 single cause. Sunday and week-day meetings alilce, 
 in town and country, were enlivened by his moving 
 discourses, and probably no other single line of activity 
 brought him so near to the hearts of his brethren or 
 contributed so much to the boundless affection cher- 
 ished for him throughout the connnunion. 
 
 We have now arrived at a time when Mr. Mac- 
 donnell's energies were being put forth along lines 
 of activity which were permanent and final. With 
 regard to the routine labour which occupied so much 
 of his life, we have learned to regard him not simply 
 as .„ preacher and pastor, but also as an active woi"ker 
 in wider spheres. Apart from city charities and the 
 miscellaneous avocations of a practical philanthropist, 
 he comes into view most largely as an indefatigable 
 committee man and propagan<list in the work of the 
 Church. We must think of him as spending solid 
 days of each month in the service of the Home 
 Mission, the Augmentation, or the Hynmal coumiit- 
 tees of the Church. Such a rare committee man as 
 he was -so patient, thoughtful, deferential and full 
 of resource — was naturally utilized, and utilized him- 
 self to the full ; and what was suggested or only 
 imperfectly dealt with in these stated gatherings 
 was made up between times by correspondence. 
 Very few private gentlemen in Toroiito had a larger 
 daily mail than he, and it was a nobly freiglited 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 biKl^et that wont forth in reply, for heart and tliouglit 
 and conscience went to tlie making of his letters. To 
 this we must add his public advocacy of these and 
 other good causes. 
 
 While the cause of Augmentation was yet new, we 
 find him, in company with Dr. Warden, going to 
 Halifax in October, 1884, speaking in the Synod 
 meeting and in Sunday services in behalf of the 
 weaker charges of the Church. Early in 1885 we 
 learn of energetic work nearer home. The following 
 is a sample of winter work for Augmentation : On 
 Saturday, February 7th, he went to Wiarton and gave 
 an address there to a small audience, $3.30 being 
 realized. The next day he preached there twice and 
 gave an address in the afternoon. It took him the 
 whole of Mondays to i>:et to Toronto on account of 
 snow blocking the trains between Wiarton and Pal- 
 merston ; he reached home at 11.45 p.m. Next day he 
 un<iertook some suburban work. Here is a summary 
 of his adventures : He started out in the afternoon 
 to hold a service at the old York Tow^n Line church. 
 After tea at the home of his good friend, Rev. Mr. 
 Frizzell, on Broadview Avenue, near the old toll-gate, 
 they set out to drive to th*^ church. After going about 
 half a mile they found themselves in snowdrifts six 
 feet deep with the road unbroken. The horse stuck 
 fast. After digging him out, they went the rest of the 
 distance on foot. Arriving at the church, they found 
 it involved in darkness. On the w^ay back the sleigh- 
 drive was resumed and accomplished in triumph, the 
 only serious obstacle being a fourdiorse van laden 
 
Fr11llltftri-iirtl«iJ 
 
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 AUGMENTATION. 
 
 200 
 
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 ix 
 
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 with a party of people bound for a temperance meet- 
 ing at Wexford. These fellow-entliusiasts had got 
 their double-tree broken, and delayed not only them- 
 .selves but our disappointed friends, as the two parties 
 spent half an hour in vain attempts to make way for 
 one another. Mr. Macdonnell reached home just before 
 11 p.m. A somewhat similar experience is noted a 
 month later. * 
 
 Being elected Moderator of the Synod of Toronto 
 and Kingston at Cobourg, on May 5th, 1885, he util- 
 ized his opportunities for pressing the cause of Aug- 
 mentation. The summer vacation being spent down 
 by the sea, wo find him on Thursday, August 20th, at 
 the small settlement of Belledune, twenty miles north 
 of Bathurst, where a few families have long main- 
 tained a tri- weekly Presbyterian service. The follow- 
 ing note from his diary speaks for it.self : " Preached 
 at Belledune, and held a meeting for Aui^mentation 
 of stipends with Professor Harris, of Kingston. 
 Took tea at house of Mr. Chalmers, who was the first 
 man married by my father after his settlement in 
 December, 1840." 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDOXNELL. 
 
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 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 STRENd Til EX ED A XD STREXG THEXIXd. 
 
 Sevehai, vacations, beginning witli tliat of 1884, 
 were j'i-,.:i, iu Yoiighal, (Jloucester County, X.B., 
 near the ii"j ■ ■[ Mr. Macdonnell's childhood. This 
 charming retread I'.'s Pour miles from Bathurst at the 
 western s.d.. of tli^ • ::^anse of water at the mouth of 
 the Nepisigull, k'i >!•' ( i-^ Pptliurst Harbour. Between 
 Youghal proper and the Ijaie des Chaleurs to tlie 
 north, a long bar stretches almost to the eastern shore 
 of the harbour, leaving for the river l)ut a very 
 narrow estuary. It ^vas near the end of the beauti- 
 ful drive from Bathurst tliat Mr. Macdonnell and his 
 family made their head([uarters. Here he and Mrs. 
 Macdonnell cnjoj'ed, perhaps, more absolute habitual 
 rest than anywhere else on earth. 
 
 Being veiy fond of water travel, the whole family 
 used to go from Toronto to Quebec by steamboat, and 
 even make the return trip by the same slow convey- 
 ance. The Toronto party at Youghal soon came to 
 be augmented annually by their old friends, Mr. and 
 Mrs. IMacMurchy, and members of their family, whose 
 recollections of the weeks thus spent together are 
 among the most cherished memories of their lives. 
 
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 STRENGTHENED AND STHENGTHENING. 
 
 211 
 
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 A letter written by Mrs. Macdonnell, on July 7th, 
 1884, to Mr. Russel Inglis, the faithful treasurer of 
 St. Andrew's, gives a vivid picture of the mode of 
 spending the holidays at Youghal : " Ever since we 
 arrived here I have thought of writing to you to say 
 ' thank you ' again for the candies, which have been 
 enjoyed all along and are not tinislied yet ; and to let 
 you know that we are enjoying ourselves hraivhj by 
 the sea. You could not imagine a more complete 
 contrast to Toronto life than this is — no noise, no 
 dust, no door-bell, no beggars, no work ! — ^just walk, 
 bathe, rest, read, eat, sleep, in succession. We have a 
 splendid beach ; we can sit on the sand for hours 
 without wearying. The bathing is good, the water 
 being of a pleasant temperature, and the weather has 
 been just right. 
 
 " We are very comfortable in every way. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell is having perfect rest. We write some letters, 
 etc., every morning after breakfast: then we go to 
 the beach, about a (|uarter of a mile distant, and 
 bathe and play about till dinner-time. Then we rest 
 and read, and have a walk or drive : or Mr. Macdonnell 
 and the boys play a game of cricket. After tea we 
 go to the shore again and watch the tide, while some- 
 times the boys fish or make houses in the sand. 
 Another hour's reading lets us to bed soon after 
 nine. So you see we ought to grow strong and be 
 refreshed, as I have no doubt we all shall be." 
 
 It was always suspecterl by Mr. Macdonnell — and I 
 may add by Mrs. Macdonnell also, in an even greater 
 degree — that many people were in the lial)it of 
 iittending St. Andrew's without getting positive 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 benefit from the services, and that the cliurch was 
 a resort of many whose chief attraction was merely 
 tlie popular gifts of the pastor. However mucli tlie 
 apprehension may have been justified — and the tone 
 of his sermons occasionally showed how deeply the 
 thou<,dit had entered into his mind — there is no doubt 
 that he was humbly thankful for the many proofs 
 of real blessint; to heart and soul that came throuirh 
 his ministrations. It may not be improper to (piote 
 two letters written about this time, illustrative of the 
 personal influence which he was privile<,a'd to exert. 
 The first is dated May 2Gth, 1.S84 : 
 
 " Deak Mh. Mac don NELL, — I feel I must write to 
 thank you for the service and sermon of last evening. 
 You, who bear your congregation upon your heart 
 before God, must be glad to know that your message 
 saved a soul from despair. I m ent longing for some 
 hope that I might be forgiven, and oh ! far more, 
 that I might be cleansed ! The whole service was for 
 me a message : ' The Son of Man came to seek and 
 to save that which ivas lust.' These words sing in 
 my heart yet. One gets to hate sin so deeply, and 
 the horrid discoveries one makes in one's own heart 
 tempt one to despair. The Lord reward you for 
 giving me a bit of hope ; for showing me that God 
 vjanted me back. I went back, for you said, ' iVoio is 
 the time.' I pray that your earnest words may bless 
 many as they have blessed me in the hour of my 
 great need. ' How great is his mercy to me.' 
 
 " Yours, with earnest gratitude, 
 
 " One of youii People" 
 
STRENGTHENED AND STKENOTHENING. 
 
 213 
 
 Tlie second is witliout date or si<;niitiirc : 
 "My DEAu Mu. Macdonxell, — I have just received 
 your letter and thank you most heartily for its kindly 
 sympathy. You will scarcely wonder that since 
 posting my letter to you I have sometimes wished I 
 had it back. It seemed scarcely fair to burden you 
 with, and expect you to throw light upon, such a 
 bundle of confessions and contradictions, as my 
 mental and spiritual history has been. Then again 
 one does not like to acknowledi^e such failures and 
 disorders and sins, and with many w(ndd be afraid of 
 being misunderstood, or of having his troubles made 
 light of and put down to mental infirmity merely. I 
 never doubted, however, and with your kind note 
 before me, doubt less than ever, that from you I can 
 look for real help and synipathy. Already you have 
 helped me much, for it was your preaching that 
 brought me, at first occasionally, and then regularly 
 to St. Andrew's Church, after long years in wliich I 
 rarely saw the inside of a church at all, and got little 
 or no help or comfort when I did happen to be there. 
 And I am sure that you will be more glad to know 
 that I have come sometimes to feel durini; these last 
 months, both in St. Andrew's Church and out of it, 
 that there was One seeking me, and who called me to 
 seek Him, that He might bless me and reveal himself 
 to me — more glad, I say, to know that this has been 
 the outcome of my attendance at public worship, and 
 the preaching of God's Word by you, than to know 
 how deeply I sympathize with your views of Christian 
 doctrine, so far as I understand them, and the whole 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 method and spirit of your preHcntation of that 
 doctrine. How mncli I think you have done, and are 
 doing for many wlio for various reasons cannot find 
 the needs of their heart and intellect met and satisfied 
 by the ordinary ways of presenting the doctrines of 
 Christ I . . . I shall mo.st gladly avail myself of 
 your invitation to meet you in your study on 
 Thursday evening. Sincerely yours, ." 
 
 It is also of the strong and helpful Macdonnell of 
 this period that the editor of the Westminster writes 
 in the following powerful sketch : 
 
 " Back in the seventies, one of the Toronto news- 
 papers published in its weekly edition the portrait of 
 the minister of St. Andrew's Church. At that time 
 newspaper illustration was in its infancy, and the por- 
 trait of the preacher was probably (piite inferior as a 
 work of art. There nmst have been something of truth 
 in the likeness, however, for at least one critic was 
 attracted to it, and prized it as a valuable possession. 
 When that issue of the paper reached an old farm- 
 house far back in the country, the face on the front page 
 was eagerly scanned, and when such vandalism was 
 deemed safe, the paper was cut and the picture pasted 
 up on the wall in a little room in the attic. There it 
 remained to catch the eye of the youth for whom it 
 had from the first a strange fascination. In the 
 mornings, or on wet days, or at odd times of reverie, 
 he would lie on the bed and wonder what the man 
 was like whose face looked down from the wall with 
 such intense eagerness, and whose eyes had such a 
 strange piercing light. 
 
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 h= I' 
 
 STUENGTHENED AND STRENGTHENINO. 
 
 215 
 
 I 
 
 "A yt'iir or two at'tcrwanls tluit youth left liis 
 home to ^fo to that iiiystcriouH placo, ' tlio colle^^c' 
 It was Satui'(lay ui^ht wlicn lie landed in Toronto, 
 and tiie wliitc Novcndu'r moon added a weird touch 
 to the unfamiliar scone. He made liis way U|) Simcoe 
 street, and when at the corner of K'uxj; Htre«'t lie 
 looked Up at that magnificent pile which he was 
 told was ' Macdonnell's chui'ch,' and the house in the 
 dark shadows amon<; the ti'ees ' the manse,' the face 
 on the wall in the attic came hack, and ])artly from 
 liomesickness, ]iartly from reverence, he felt the 
 i^round whereon he stood to l)e holv i;round. 
 
 "The following njornin<;- nothin*if wouM do hut he 
 must <^o to the er^at church on King street. Other 
 ministers were mentioned, but their names were 
 strange, they had not attained to the honourable 
 place in the attic galleiy. To be sure, he had heard 
 many warnings against heresy, and the Union itself 
 was denounced as unholy because a heretic was har- 
 boured. But there is in youth a generosity, and a 
 vehement sympathy with the persecuted, that do 
 not always distinguish maturer years, and on that 
 grey Sabbath morning tlie lad, who had never seen 
 the interior of any church but the one in which he 
 w^as baptized, or listened to any preacher other than 
 staunch anti-Union Free-Churchmen, presented him- 
 self before St. Andrew's splendid doorways, one of 
 the multitude g(jing up to worship. 
 
 " There w^ere not many in the great church wdien 
 this youth, bewildered by the attention shown and 
 the solemn magnificence of the place, was given a 
 
 
 
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 11 
 
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216 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 i ' 
 
 seat well up toward tlie front, to tlie right of the 
 pulpit. Tlic ohl brick church at home with its Gothic 
 wimlowH aiul walnut pulpit, the wonder of the coun- 
 tryside, liad seemed to hiui second only to Solomon's 
 tem[)le, and Toronto cimrchcs would have to be some- 
 thing unusual to come up to it. But he was silent 
 about the comparison. Tlie great s[)ace, the lofty 
 ceiling, the polished woodwork, the upholstery and 
 car2)et, the rich window lights and the pulpit (piite 
 overcame him. This must indeed be the temple of 
 Maunnon. The people could not serve God in this 
 place. It was wicked in him to come. What if he 
 were to be struck dead and the news go back to his 
 home that it was in Macdonnell's church, and on 
 Sunday ! The first note oi' the organ rather added 
 to his discomfiture, for lie had always heard the 
 organ spoken of as the devil's special invention for 
 the damnation of souls. 
 
 " By this time the church was crowded, and some 
 were standing in the aisles in the west gallery. Then 
 a door to the right of the pulpit opened, and a spare 
 figure arrayed in a black gown and white bands 
 entered, and passed (juickly along the short aisle and 
 up the steps into the pulpit. It w^as the man of the 
 newspaper picture. Who could mistake that face, so 
 clean-cut, so winsome, so spirituel ! 
 
 " Presently the organ ceased playing, and the min- 
 ister rose and, bowing his head over his clasped 
 hands, said in low, distinct, earnest tones, ' Let us 
 pray.' In the church at home the service was 
 opened with the singing of a psalm, and at prayer 
 
i! 
 
 STRENGTHENED AND STRENGTHENING. 
 
 217 
 
 all tlio people Htood. Here the people bowed their 
 heads, and for an instant all was still as life can be. 
 Tlien, in t<jnes too deep and impressive for the balK'l 
 of the intervening years to drown, the minister said, 
 ' Holy, holy, holy, Lord (lod Almi;^hty, heaven and 
 earth are full of the majesty of Thy ^l«)ry.' What 
 more was said, or what else was done, whether or not 
 they san<; hymns an<l anthems, what the text was or 
 the sermon, how long the service lasted or how it was 
 closed, it would be impossible for the boy from the 
 country to tell. All he knew and felt was that this 
 was the house of a holy God, into whose awful pres- 
 ence the people were led, and before whom it became 
 men to be silent, and to be sorry for their sins. He 
 felt that, and he felt, too, that the man in the puli)it, 
 whose face in the attic gallery had fascinated his eye, 
 had won unalterably his heart. 
 
 " Years passed before the student was to the preacher 
 anything more than hundreds of otlx i- young men who 
 passed in and out of the great churcli, but never ven- 
 tured nearer than the back seats in the gallery. But 
 to them the preacher was everything, his ministry 
 made for their redemption, and by him all other 
 preachers were measured and adjudged. 
 
 " In those days, as now, the college stuilents were 
 divided into cliques and coteries, according to their 
 church connection. Gould street, afterwards St. 
 James' Square, always took the largest number. 
 Macdonnell's following among the theologues never 
 was large, nor were his men the readiest in sounding 
 the praises of their favourite preacher. They felt 
 
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218 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 themselves in the minority, nnd, besides, tliey knew 
 that their minister had been spoken against. On 
 Sunday, after dinner, when the students were 
 grouped in the hall discussing the morning ser- 
 mons, or when they loitered in the dining-room at 
 the close of family worship after evening service, 
 the reiTular Macdonnell men were often silent. Some- 
 times some bulwark of orthodoxy, who had yielded 
 to temptation and gone to St. Andrew's, reported 
 his experiences, and solaced his conscience by de- 
 nouncing the preacher, his theology, liomiletics and 
 elocution, and all who were of his way. It may 
 be that no protest would be entered, for there was 
 a feeling on the part of the St. Andrew's men 
 that it was not given to all to understand or appre- 
 ciate Macdonnell. It was not on such occasions 
 that they showed their devotion. But if you happened 
 into St. Andrew's for a service, and watched them as 
 they looked down from the gallery, conscious only of 
 the man in the pulpit, and of the words of warning 
 and appeal with which he assailed their souls ; or if 
 you drew near as they made tlieir way homeward 
 after service, two and two, up Simcoe and John streets, 
 and around by The Grange and Beverley, silent for 
 the most part, or talking in low tones and at intervals ; 
 if you watched them unawares then, or at other times 
 when they told each other the deepest secrets of their 
 lives, as student friends sometimes do ; or if years 
 after two of them met in the chance crossings of 
 life's pathways and dropped into reminiscences of 
 student days, you would have seen in their eyes at 
 
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STRENGTHENED AND STRENGTHENING. 
 
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 the mention of Macdonnell's name a lit^lit which 
 would have sliowed what real reverence and devotion 
 meant. 
 
 " It was not tlioological students niei'ely that were 
 won and held by the minister of St. Andrew's : uni- 
 versity men in all departments, of all creeds, Protes- 
 tant and Catholic, and of no creed, were drawn to 
 him as to no other. They found in him and in his 
 ministry something helpful, lu'althful, steadying. 
 
 " What was it gave this man such an influence 
 over men, some of whom were hejxinninfi: to wander 
 in uncertain ways, and to whom the words of other 
 preachers were powerless to recover and bless :* It 
 was not his unusual abilities, although he was 
 admitted to be scholarly, vigorous in his thinking, 
 and forceful in his speech. It certainly was not that 
 he compromised truth to meet the views of any clas 
 or school ; for whatever may have been thought by 
 soKie who knew him through second-hand I'eport or 
 at a distance, those who sat under his ministry know 
 that he never made sin other than damning in its 
 consequences, that the love of (Jod was preached as 
 consuming in its light and heat, and that he healed 
 no man's soul-hurt slightly, saying ' Peace, peace, 
 when there could be no peace.' ]t was not the 
 peculiarity of his doctrine that drew men to him, 
 nor his method, nor even the way he had with him, 
 but it was the unconmion genuineness of the man. 
 
 " Looking back, one can see the tragedy of student 
 life. There is never a session in university or colh'ge 
 but some life is cut from its moorinos and sent adrift 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 on the wild bewilderment of doubt. Men are now 
 in the ministry who will carry to their graves, if not 
 beyond, the scars of woundings received in that first 
 unsettlement of faith. Others, who set out for the 
 pulpit, were staggered by ' the new knowledge,' and 
 drifted away into medicine, law, and the tr.ades. 
 Those are perilous hours in a student's life when he 
 is fitting himself in among his fellows in the college 
 class-room. He has come up, it may be, like the 
 majority of his companions, from the stern simplic- 
 ities of country life, where things in the Bible, and 
 nature, and human life are taken to be what they 
 seem. He finds himself in a new world, as new and 
 strange as if it had been on another planet. There is 
 a freedom of thought, a frankness of expression, a 
 spirit of investigation ; the things he once thought 
 fixed by a changeless decree are discussed as open 
 questions, and d bt is cast upon the very creed by 
 which he live*^- may be in the science laboratory, 
 
 or in the phi. >hy class-room, or in the debating 
 society, or in the quiet with two or three kindred 
 spirits. It may be the teaching he receives or the 
 life he lives. Whatever the cause, it happens every 
 session that the fabric of some student's faith is either 
 emptied of its riches or crumbled to the dust like a 
 thing of vanity and lies. And some of these fellows 
 don't want to be doubters. They feel keenly its 
 smart, and they know that no life can be masterful 
 and worthy that is not well grounde<l. They know 
 that doubt, even the ' honest doubt ' the poet praises, 
 can never make glad the heart, or give strength to 
 
STRENGTHENED AND STRENGTH KNING. 
 
 221 
 
 m 
 
 the mind. And, what is worse than the surrender of 
 this or that dogma, tlie danger is that sober views of 
 life will be yielded and life itself become sliallow, 
 barren, purposeless. 
 
 " Such men come and go every year. They say 
 little, most of them, about those inner experiences. 
 Silently the change comes. At the break of faith 
 there may be no sign. But it is not without sadness 
 they see the eclipse come on. And saddening, too, is 
 their experience with tlie ordained and accredited 
 teachers of religious truth. Tiiey do not understand 
 each other, the average teacher and these students. 
 He thinks them irreverent, and they regard him as 
 a fossil or an obscurantist. And it was to St. 
 Andrew's Church such men, both in and out of the 
 university and colleges, constantly turned, and Mac- 
 donnell, more than any other man, became their guide 
 and friend. 
 
 " And why Macdonnell rather tlian others ? There 
 were as great orators in the Toronto pulpit, and per- 
 haps men of as large scholarship and as profound 
 thought. It may be that his own p 'rsonal experience 
 and the keenness of the stru<>ifle wliich came to him 
 before he found ' a stronger faith his own,' gave to 
 this man an insight and a sympathy. But that alone 
 would not do it. Most men have had times of dark- 
 ness more or less trying. It was his symj)atlietic 
 insiglit, and his uncommon genuineness in thought, 
 and speech, arid life, that made Macdonnell loved, and 
 trusted, and followed. 
 
 *' I have said his ' uneomuK 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 it was uncommon. TJiore is an enormous amount of 
 insincerity and unreality in life, in the pulpit as well 
 as the pew. Not conscious, evident, acknowledged 
 insincerity. That would too plainly mark out the 
 preacher as an hireling. But that ungenuineness in 
 tone, and speech, and behaviour which makes so much 
 preaching empty as the sounding brass. You may 
 detect it in the inconsistency between the awful words 
 of prayer and the listless or pretentious tone in which 
 the words are uttered, or in the hackneyed hollowness 
 of the language alike of prayer and sermon, or in the 
 lightness and smartness of behaviour, as though the 
 pulpit were an actor's stage. No worshipper in St. 
 Andrew's ever mistook the place, or the time, or the 
 purpose. With all his brightness and cheeriness, 
 when he stood in his pulpit the minister felt himself 
 the messenger of Jehovah, and the burden of his 
 message at times weighed heavily. No beauty or 
 richness, or dignity of a liturgy could take the place 
 in his service of the preaching of the Word. To him 
 the sermon was God's messajje to men. and the 
 preacher of to-day, as truly as Isaiah, a prophet of 
 Jehovah. 
 
 " When first you heard him preach you may have 
 been surprised or disappointed. There was but sel- 
 dom that sweep, and surge, and billowy rush of elo- 
 (juence, which you associated with preaching of the 
 highest rank. Indeed, while it was strong, alert, and 
 intense to an unusual degree, his preaching lacked 
 vividness of imagination and unvarying fluency. 
 There was little of the creative in his genius, and 
 
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 STUENGTHENED AND STRENGTHENING. 
 
 223 
 
 his words sometimes came hesitatingly. But wlien 
 they came they were the right words, and forceful. 
 And then, too, he was fearless for truth, and purity, 
 and right. Not that narrow, cowardly fearlessness 
 that says in the pulpit what dares not be said in the 
 street. They knew when they sat in St. Andrew's — 
 the men upon whose secret lives he flashed the white 
 light of truth — they knew the preacher understood 
 their case, and was brave with the bravery of a man. 
 When he leaned over the pulpit, his arms resting upon 
 tlie open Bible, the right hand slightly raised, the 
 index linger extended, every muscle tense and trem- 
 bling, his voice (luivering with emotion, the words of 
 denunciation, and warning, and entreaty fell upon 
 the soul like the echo of the thunder of the last 
 judgment. 
 
 " Of course, such preaching, earnest, searching, in- 
 tensely personal! told upon the nervous force of the 
 preacher. Real preaching always docs. Virtue must 
 go out of the preacher if life and healing are to come 
 to the languishing souls of the hearers. There is no 
 harder work, none more exhausting to nerve, and 
 brain, and heart, unless, indeed, it be praying. And 
 his praying was such as told. He never invited 
 his people to address the Almighty in words of mock- 
 ing irreverence or with ragged impromptu drivel. In 
 early life he absorbed what was best in tlie various 
 liturgies and service manuals of the Christian Church. 
 Eitchologion was his handbook up to the last. Who 
 that worshipped in St. Andrew's does not remember 
 how often the congregation was brought into the 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 atmospliere of awe and adoration with the opening 
 prayer, uttered in tones of deepest reverence, and with 
 that measured distinctness which made tlie words 
 forever memorable : 
 
 " • O God, Light of the hearts that see Thee, and Life of the 
 souls that love Thee, and Strength of the thoughts that seek 
 Thee ; froili whom to be turned away is to fall, to whom to be 
 turned is to rise, and in whom to abide is to stand fast forever: 
 Grant us now Thy grace and blessing, as we are here assembled 
 to offer up our comnum supplications ; and though we are 
 unworthy to approach Thee, or to ask anything of Thee at 
 all, vouchsafe to hear and to answer us ; for the sake of our 
 great High Priest and Advocate, Jesus Christ. Amen.' 
 
 *' And then in the confession, supplication, and inter- 
 cession, with what tenderness, thoughtfulness and 
 largeness of love and faith the desires and petitions 
 of the people, each for all and all for each, were 
 gathered into one touching, genuine prayer to God ! 
 At times so vividly did the scenes of the week come 
 back — the disappointment, the failure, the shame, the 
 bitterness, the sin — and so dark was the shadow 
 which the sorrow of others cast over his own heart, 
 that utterance was choked and the prayer remained 
 unfinished, save in His ear to whom ' the wish to 
 pray is prayer,' 
 
 " Such preaching told, and in such praying not a few 
 whose faith had suffered shock became again as little 
 children at the heavenly Father's feet. You might 
 have seen there in the pews professors from the 
 university, ministers of the crown, leaders of thought 
 and men of action. Some of them had been called 
 
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 STRENGTHENED AND STRENGTHENING. 
 
 225 
 
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 unbelievers, but there tliej' bowed tlieir heads, and 
 sometimes, all nnconseions of the scrutiny of man, 
 their lips moved in silent prayer to Him in whom 
 their hearts believed in spite of their unbelieving; 
 creeds. 
 
 " While 1 write these words my mind jjjoes back to 
 on(! afternoon when Mae<lonnell addressed the stu- 
 dents at a mectino- held under the auspices of the 
 Y.M.C.A. of Toronto University. The hall— I think 
 it was old Moss Hall — was crowded to the doors. 
 Men who sneered at the Y.M.C.A., and who did th(.'ir 
 best to earn the reputation of beinf^ ' fast,' were 
 there; for whatever they blatantly said about relig- 
 ion, they dared not speak against Macdonnell. I 
 wonder if any who read these lines were at that 
 meeting ? Some, I know, will never forget it. They 
 had reached the turning in the road. It was not 
 Young's philosophy, nor Ramsay Wright's science 
 that caused them to stund)le. They had gone from 
 their homes and home churclies unpledged to Christ, 
 and some of them were unable to stand against the 
 untoward tendencies of university life. Siren voices 
 were calling to them. Sin was getting the mastery 
 over their better judgment and self -respect. They 
 went to that meeting because Macdonnell was to 
 speak, and they ' had such reverence for his blame.' 
 With an insight and power that were simply marvel- 
 lous he spoke home to their hearts and consciences. 
 He did not take a text, but his address was based on 
 Paul's words, ' Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not 
 fulfil the lusts of the flesh.' ' The lusts of the Hesh : ' 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 That was the tiling against which some of us were 
 offering but feeble resistance. We called it doubt, 
 intellectual difficulty, and the like It really was ' the 
 flesh.' But what to do ? Oh, how many a poor 
 fellow asks that in accents of despair ! He is be- 
 ginning to feel the awful power and to lose his grip. 
 Macdonnell understood, and more than one student 
 heard with hope of the positive power of faith in 
 Christ to recover and make strong. He had heard the 
 truth many times before, but it always had seemed 
 to him an idle tale. That afternoon it was the same, 
 and yet not the same ; back of the truth was the per- 
 sonality of the preacher, and the truth was sent home 
 to the heart. 
 
 " We have not yet got over asking, Why was he 
 taken ? He seemed to be the one we needed most of 
 all. So many of us might have dropped out, and the 
 ranks would have closed up again ; but the place 
 where he stood tliere is none to till. We might have 
 died almost unmissed, for we are scarcely known to 
 be alive ; his life was so strong, and he poured it with 
 such lavishness into so many channels that his with- 
 drawal is as the shuttinir out of the sun. There must 
 be, behind the veil, some larger opportunity and 
 nobler ministry for souls so richly dowered." 
 
WORK AND WORSHIP IN ST. ANDREW'S. 
 
 227 
 
 CHAPTER XXIIL 
 
 WORK AND WORSHIP IX ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 ,11 
 
 The strenuous efforts made to reduce the debt had, 
 by the year 1883, resulted in cutting it down to one- 
 half of the original $80,000. It was now decided to 
 accept an offer of $21,000 for the valuable farm 
 property on the Humber River, which had been part 
 of the glebe lands of the church. 
 
 Thus the debt was placed at about $20,000, a point 
 below which it never fell. St. Andrew's was now a 
 strong church, and it was felt that the various clainis 
 on the liberality of the people were so many and 
 strong that the wiping out of this indebtedness was a 
 less important end than the helping on of these 
 enterprises. The wisdom of this course of action on 
 the part of pastor and people, may be open to ()ues- 
 tion. But what is not open to question is the magni- 
 ficent record of contributions to religious and benevo- 
 lent objects, which for the next ten years formed the 
 most conspicuous feature of the records of St. 
 Andrew's. 
 
 A number of notable events in the history of the 
 congregation mark the year 1884. The beautiful 
 
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228 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACnONNELL. 
 
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 ortjan wliich of itself, in a certain Renso, jT^ives cliarac- 
 ter to tlio churcli odific(!, was built in this year by 
 Messrs. S. R. Warren & Son, of Toronto. Sij^nificant 
 of the extension of the con^repition was tlie appoint- 
 ment of a permanent missicmnry to labour in the 
 parish in connection with St. Mark's (.'hurch. As this 
 offshoot of St. Andi'ew's has now been for some years 
 a separate congre^^ation, its history is properly a 
 subject by itself. But a few words as to its early 
 development may help to <^ive an ade(|uate idc^a of 
 the activity and growth of the parent church. 
 
 The foundation of St. Mark's was laid in the 
 building already mentioned, at the corner of King and 
 Simcoe streets, which was used until the erection of 
 the new churcli for the holding of a local Sunday 
 school, under the charge of Mr. Archiljald MacMurchy, 
 and which, with gradually increasing attendance, 
 came to be a permanent mission of the Church. The 
 building, after being moved to the corner of Ade- 
 laide and Tecumseh streets, was still known as St. 
 Mark's Church. The use of the building was granted 
 temporarily to the Reforined Episcopal Church for 
 public worship, and the Sunday school of that de- 
 nomination was combined with the original element 
 under the direction of Mr. G. C. Robb, now an elder 
 in the Bloor Street Presbyterian Church, who had 
 assumed charge of St. Mark's school at the time of 
 the migration. In 1877 this amalgamation ^^Jis 
 dissolved, and St. Mark's proper came at the s 
 time under the superintendency of Mr. John J'..i8, 
 who was next year elected an elder in St. Andrew's 
 
it 
 
 
 WOKK AND WORSHIP IN ST. ANDREW'S. 229 
 
 and whose cliiof work for many years was performed 
 in connection with St. Mark'.s. 
 
 After the removal to tlie west, relij^ious .services 
 were be<^ani in St. Mark's, conducted by students and 
 others, but these were forbidden by the Presbytery 
 in June, 1870. After a time it became evident tiuit 
 there was a hir^e Presbyterian popuhition in the 
 neighbourhood without reli^iouH privilej^es, and oc- 
 casional meetinj.js were lield, which finally led to the 
 establishment of permanent church services. After a 
 canvass of the district by the Women's Association, it 
 was a<^reed to ask permission for tlie appointment of 
 a stated missionary. The first to labour in this 
 capacity was Rev. J. F. Somerville, B.A., now minister 
 of Norwood, Out., who was apj)ointed in May, 18.S4., 
 after wdiich date the ultimate formation of .a separate 
 con^^regation was only a (piestion of time. 
 
 The rapid development of St. INfark's was, congre- 
 gationally, the most notable event of 1885. The 
 appointment of a stateil missionary had proved a 
 great success. The mission building was removed 
 during the year from the corner of Adelaide and 
 Tecumseh to the corner of King and Tecumseh streets, 
 wliere the St. Mark's Church now stands, and at the 
 same time was materially enlarged. The number of 
 pupils in the Sunday Scliool soon increased nearly 
 threefold. At the regular Sunday gatherings the 
 building was filled. After a year's service as mis- 
 sionary, Mr. Somerville was succeeded by ^Ir. Alfred 
 Gandier, now pastor of Fort Massie Church, Halifax, 
 N S, Under his able and devoted ministry, which 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 continued till 1888, St. Mark's grew into a flourishing 
 congregation. 
 
 A severe loss was sustained by St. Andrew's in 
 1884, in the death of Mr. James Bethune, Q C, at 
 a comparatively early age, on December 18th. Mr. 
 Bethune was one of the three elders who came over 
 from tlie Church Street to the new congregation. He 
 was the first elder whom Mr. Macdonnell was called 
 upon to part with by death. He was a distinguished 
 lawyer, and his trained judgment was often of great 
 service to the session, while he was prized as justly 
 for his personal qualities of open-heartedness and 
 courtesy. 
 
 In the record of 1885 we have to note the resigna- 
 tion of Mr. Isaac Gilmor from the Board of Mana- 
 gers. Mr. Gilmor had been a member of the Board 
 for nearly forty years, and chairman for sixteen. 
 He had thus presided over the teMiporal affairs of 
 the Church during the wliole period of Mr. Mac- 
 doimell's ministry, and his direction as well as busi- 
 ness ability liad largely contributed to tlie progress of 
 the congregation. Mr. Gilmor continued to attend 
 the services for several years, but age and distance 
 have prevented him of late from worsliipping in the 
 church to whose interests he devoted liis best powers 
 during most of a long life. In the chairmanship he 
 was succeeded by Mr. John Kay, who, besides having 
 been elder since 1878, had also been a manager since 
 1876. 
 
 During the next year, 188(), three new elders were 
 added — Mr. James Massie, wlio had been a member of 
 the Church since his removal from Guelpli in 1881 to 
 
'T^ 
 
 WORK AND WORSHIP IN ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 231 
 
 assume the office of Warden of the Central Prison, 
 Mr. Alex. Gemniell, and Mr. Robt. S. Smellie. After 
 several years of valued service Mr. Gemniell and Mr. 
 Smellie were obliged to sever themselves from the 
 congregation by reason of change of residence. Mr. 
 Massie, whose work among the poor and the neglected 
 is widely known without as well as witiiin the con- 
 gregation, still occupies a leading place in the councils 
 of the Church. The increase in the eldership may be 
 taken as a gauge of the actual extension of the parish. 
 Not that the membership was increasing in the same 
 relative proporti<jn. The numerical t'xpansion was 
 indeed gratifying, 748 members being upon the com- 
 munion roll at the end of 188(). But it was rather 
 the local scattering of the congregation which called 
 for a larger foice of spiritual overseers. 
 
 "A Word from the Minister" at the close of 1886 
 uses this language : " It is a source of great satisfac- 
 tion that attendance on the part of the great majority 
 is so regular. ... I should be glad if some of 
 you who are young men would come more regularly 
 in the forenoon as well as in thr evening. You are 
 not ail so overwrought on Saturday (though some of 
 you are) that you are too wearied to rise early enough 
 on Sunday to attend morning .service. It is in the 
 forenoon that 1 have' generally gi\'en systematic 
 expositions of some book of Scriptui'e which, 1 judge, 
 is the most proHtal)le sort of preaeliiiig. 
 
 " I do not make this remark because the attendance 
 at morninn; service is small. As a rule it is lar^-er in 
 the forenoon than in tlu' e\'ening. 1 do not urge 
 attendance at both ser\ices upon all. Parents who 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 have young children to care for may find it necessary 
 or very desirable that one or both of them should be 
 at home in tho evenin<^ ; and teachers who have spent 
 forenoon or afternoon in public worship and teaching 
 may find it profitable to have the evening for private 
 rea<ling and rest. I beg of 3'ou, however, not to 
 allow Sunday evening to be consumed in the chit- 
 chat of small talk or gossip either at home or among 
 friends. Let the hours of the Lord's Day be turned 
 to the best account for the spiritual imj^rovement of 
 yourselves and your children." 
 
 After speaking of personal work in the church 
 associations he adds : " Much good work may be done 
 apart from these organizations. For examj)le, many 
 a young man who does not think himself competent 
 to teach a class in Sunday School ma}'^ prove a real 
 missionary by inviting his fellow-clerk, or fellow- 
 boarder, or acquaintance, who is going to no church, 
 to come with him to service. Some of you may do 
 untold good by inviting him or her to your home. 
 Scores of people are going astray for lack of kindly 
 Christian home influences. Need I say that many a 
 weary mother, darning and mending after she has 
 put her little ones to bed, and sighing because she can- 
 not get out to ' meetings,' may do a blessed work at 
 home for the Lord. 
 
 "In a word, BE a follower of Jesus Christ, and 
 while methods of work may vary, you will be a 'lamp' 
 shedding light to guide somebody's steps, you will be 
 ' salt' seasonino- the life of those about vou, vmi will 
 be ' leaven ' working sileiitly upon the characters of 
 your fellows." 
 

 n 
 
 WORK AND WOKSHIP IN ST. ANDREWS. 
 
 283 
 
 
 The abov'c is a fair specimen of the wholesome, 
 stimulating kind of talk the people of St. Andrew's 
 were accustomed to receive from their alert and 
 faithful minister. His allusion to the morning e.xpo- 
 sitic^ns of Scripture will, I am sure, recall to many 
 a former listener the broad, sympathetic and vivid 
 fashion in which the great pulpit e.xegete treated 
 many of the books of the Bible in the w^ay of 
 systematic exposition. At this time he w'as dealing 
 with the book of Job. With none of the Old Testa- 
 ment writings <lid he find himself intellectually so 
 much at home. The unconventionality and ]>road 
 humanity of the book were congenial to him. The 
 mysteries of life and of divine providence came to 
 him much as they did to the old Hebrew poet. With 
 him, too, they wx-re not to be e.xplained to the indi- 
 vidual sufierer by traditional formula; or current 
 ma.\.inis. They could only be solved by the direct 
 consciousness of the presence and power of the li\ing 
 God, which came as an illumination as well as a solace 
 to the tempted and atliicted patriarch. Moreover, the 
 fuller solution atibrded by the New Testament reve- 
 lation f(3und in him a specially ordained interpreter. 
 With his profound views of the sacrifice and atone- 
 ment of Him who " became perfect through suffering 
 tliat he miii'ht brin<>- manv sons into u'loi'V,"' he was 
 richly (pialifitMl to ])lace the shadowy outlines of the 
 Old Testament ima^-es under the lii>-ht that streams 
 from Calvary, and flash a picture clear aii<l full upon 
 the receptive consciousness of the listener. It was a 
 liberal educati«jn in Biblical theology to listen to these 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 rare expositions. It was no wonder tliat Prof. Young, 
 tlie pliilosopher, tlie pride and glory of Toronto Uni- 
 versity, expressed himself as, above all, pleased with 
 the " fairness " of these discourses. Tliey were not 
 written out in full, the more's the pity ! 
 
 A notable step forward in the parish work was 
 taken in 1886, by the appointment of a Bible reader 
 under the auspices of the " Willing Helpers " of St. 
 Andrew's. Miss Margaret Gardiner, the first to fill 
 the position, served the district and indeed the whole 
 community during the seven years of her ministry. 
 This appointment was one of the most important of 
 the movements resulting in that system of mission 
 and benevolent work which, since 1890, has had its 
 centre in " St. Andrew's Institute." The work of such 
 a Bible reader is not simply reading and explaining 
 the Word of God to tlie inmates of those homes 
 where its teachings were unknown or disregarded ; 
 it includes also nursinii- and caring for the sick. It 
 goes so far as rendering practical assistance to the 
 many untrained young housekeepers, in showing them 
 how to cook a meal, clean a room, or mend a garment. 
 The first re])ort presented by Miss Gardiner tells 
 of these things, and also of the "mothers' meetings" 
 which were established in the autunni of 188(1 -. 
 " We spend the hour from two to three o'clock 
 cutting out and sewing ; from three till a (piarter 
 to four we have a very infornial Ciospel service ; 
 refreshments are then sei > 'd, and the garments 
 which have been made up by the ' Willing Helpers' 
 Society are I'xamined and purchased by the mothers 
 and sisters." 
 
MINISTER AND CHURCH IN THEIR PRIME. 235 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 MIXISTKli AND CHURCH IN THEIR PRIME. 
 
 . *1 
 
 Earlv in 1(SS6, Dr. SmoUie, boin^^ tlicii seventy-fivo 
 year.s of ago, met with a painful accident at liiw lionio 
 in Fei'tjiis. A severe scald left him for a time but 
 little hope of life, and after he had begun to conva- 
 lesce, his j)rogress was very slow toward recovery. 
 Foui" months after the occurrence he was able to 
 go about again, and then a long projected visit was 
 made by him and Mrs. Smellie, with their daughter 
 Isabel. 
 
 He was still too lame to travel without attendance, 
 and the party was under tlu; aliM't and tender care 
 of Mr. Macdonnell. They left Toronto on June 8th. 
 Dr. Provost Body, of Trinity t^)llege, was a fellow- 
 passenger, and divided with Mi'. Macdonnell the 
 sermon-giving of the tri]). While Dr. an<l M)\s. 
 Smellie were visitiuii" Ediid)ur<'h, Mr. Macdonnell 
 made a trip to London. The fellow-travellcis met 
 at Inverness on July lotli, and on the ITtli all 
 were tou'ether in Mrs. Smellie's old home at Kirkwall, 
 the first occasion on which she and hei- husband 
 were there at the same time since thev left it forty- 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 three years before. Tliere were many hearts to share 
 their gla(hiess and thankfulness. 
 
 On July 2(Jth the fellow-travellers sailed from 
 Liverpool, reaching Toronto on August 9tli. Dr. 
 Sinellie had completely recovered his health. Thus 
 the decline of old age came at length to him unaccel- 
 erated by any outward shock, and ten years more of 
 life were granted to him. 
 
 To make up for a little trip to New York made in 
 April, the sunnner vacation of 1887, spent at the 
 Sand Banks, near Belleville, was shortened by a 
 return to Toronto for part of August, for the purpose 
 of supplying the pulpit and doing some visiting among 
 the congregation. In fact he preached every Sunday 
 during July and August at home or elsewhere. 
 
 The year 1887 was a very prosperous one in the 
 church work of St. Andrew's. The membership rose 
 to 704; the contributions for all purposes to $25,541. 
 Repairs were made on the church building, besides 
 striking improvements in the internal decorations, at 
 a cost of SO, 7 05. It was resolved to support a foreign 
 missionary for five years, and i? 1,4 14 was contributed 
 for this object. Besides these home offerings, the 
 conirreii-ation subscribed for the Juliilee Fund of 
 Queens University, $24,205, out of a total of $40,305 
 subscrib(xl in Toronto. 
 
 One of the oldest memljers of the Board of Manage- 
 ment, Mr. Russel Inglis, resigned his position during 
 1887 on account of the growing infirmities of age, 
 having been a devoted custodian of the Church's 
 interests as manager and treasurer for eighteen years, 
 
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 ■■ • ■!■> 
 
 MINISTER AND CHURCH IN THEIR PRIME. 
 
 2.'}7 
 
 He remained a member of the eonirreijation till re- 
 moved by deatli in 1893. The death, on September 
 27th, 18S7, of another still more prominent in the 
 history of St. Andrew's, brou(,dit to many of the old- 
 time membei's recollections of the former days. The 
 ill health which led ])r. Barclay, in bSTO, to demit 
 the con(^re(jfation, continued with him to the end. For 
 several years he had led perforce a st'clud(Ml life, and 
 his death, at the a^jje of seventy-five, was felt by all ' 
 to be a happy release from a world that had become 
 sadly darkened for him by mental eclipse. His work 
 had been done for the generation that was passing;' 
 away. 
 
 The most signal mark of the year's pi-ogress was 
 the development of St. Mark's Mission. Rev. Alfred 
 Gaudier, who had served with good acceptance there 
 during the sunnner of 1885 and 188G, was now ma<le 
 assistant minister, with special charge of St. Mark's, 
 and with the duty of giving occasional service to 
 St. Andrew's. The church bnildiiii:' was becomin<j: 
 too small for either the regular Sunday services or 
 for the Sunday school. The most numerous addi- 
 tions to the membership of St. Andrew's now came 
 from St. Mark's, and it was made evident that an 
 independent congregation would soon have to be 
 formed. 
 
 The assistant minister preached occasionally in St. 
 Andrew's, where his presence in the pulpit was always 
 welcome. But he was necessarily engrossed with the 
 exacting affairs of the mission, and an assistant in the 
 proper sense was still wanting to the overwrought 
 minister of the parent church. 
 
 
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 238 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 In the .spring of 1887 a small party of lads, sent 
 out to Canada from Perthshire by the directors of an 
 industrial school, found their way to Toronto. They 
 had been destined for Winnipeg, but bj'^ some mistake 
 of the railway authorities they were stopped on their 
 journey. Mr. Macdonnell's kindness to them, referred 
 to in the following letter, is worthy of record, if onl}' 
 for the sake of the obvious suggestion, " Go thou and 
 do likewise." It is gratifying to know that the young 
 men corresponded with their benefactor for some time 
 after their settlement in Manitoba, and retained the 
 liveliest recollections of his generous attention. 
 
 " Fechney Industrial School, 
 
 " Perth, June 24th, 1887. 
 
 " Mev. Mr. MacJonnell, Toronto : 
 
 " Dear Sir, — At their monthly meeting to-day the 
 Directors considered two letters received from the 
 little party of emigrants lately sent out from tlie 
 School to Canada, in which grateful mention was 
 made of the very kind assistance they received from 
 you when, through an error on the part of a railway 
 official, they were in great straits, and should not have 
 known what to do had you not so generously come to 
 their help. In their own language, * Had we been his 
 sons, he could not have done more for us.' 
 
 " However unpleasant this mistake must have been 
 for the lads, one can scarcely regret it, as an oppor- 
 tunity was thereby given for a display of Christian 
 charity, which has so deeply impres.sed them that 
 they will in all probability imitate it when occasions 
 arise. 
 
11 
 
 m 
 
 MINISTER AND CHUllOH IN THEIR PRIME. 2.S9 
 
 '5 1 
 
 "Your own review of the benefit you were privi- 
 leged to confer must be eminently satisfactor3\ The 
 lads were committed to the care of their Saviour 
 before leaving, and it is no small honour to be chosen 
 as His instrument for their relief. 
 
 " The Directors feel that they would neglect a duty 
 if they failed to ofi'er you their heartfelt thanks for 
 the kindly and opportune aid you extended to their 
 former pupils, for whom they still consider themselves 
 responsible. 
 
 " Heartily wishing you all prosperity in your noble 
 life-work, they remain, your obliged servants. 
 
 " In the name of the meeting, 
 
 "Peter Campbell, 
 
 " Chairman." 
 
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 In 1888 the tide of St. Andrew's prosperity reached 
 high-water mark. Its contributions for all purposes 
 amounted to $29,016, of which much less than one- 
 half was given for congregational objects. It had 
 long been the earnest desire of the minister that his 
 people should devote a largei' sum to the iiii.ssionary 
 and educational enterprises of the Church, and to 
 philanthropic work at their dooi's, than to their own 
 congregational funds, and this year a total of $16,405 
 contributed to outside objects, made his aspirations a 
 reality. The membership rose to 839. Rev. J. 
 Buchanan, M.D., a late graduate of Kingston, was 
 sent to our mission-field at Indore at the charge of 
 the congregation, who guaranteed his salary for five 
 
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 240 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 years. To meot the need created by the expansion of 
 the con^i-e^^ation, as well as to make up for the loss 
 occasioned hy the retirement of former elders, no less 
 than ten new members were a<lded to the session 
 during the year. In 18.S7 Dr. W. B. Geikie had 
 resi»^ned, after nine years' service, and in ISiSO, Messrs. 
 Robinson and McGee withdrew on account of removal 
 to a distance from the church. Early in 18S7 the 
 present writer had been elected, and now there were 
 placed upon the roll the ad<litional names of Messrs. 
 Robert F. Dale, George Keith, E. A, Maclaurin, W. A. 
 Shepard, Robert .1. Wylie, C. S. McDonald, A. F. 
 McLean, John Muldrew and Alex. Stewart. Of 
 these, Mr. Dale was especially identified with St. 
 Mark's ('hurch, to which JMr. Joss had already so long 
 ministered. Mr. Keith had .served for a short time 
 as a manager in the old undivided church. 
 
 A brief spring recess was taken this year with Mrs. 
 Macdonnell at Buffalo. The General Asseniljlv met 
 at Halifax in June, and a short visit was made to 
 Youghal on the homeward wav. A brief stav was 
 next made at Cap-a-l'Aigle, where Mrs. Campbell and 
 her family habitually spent th*' vacation. With the 
 exception of a trip to Muskoka in August, the rest 
 of the summer was spent in the routine of regu- 
 lar work. On October 1st Mr. Gaudier severed his 
 connection with St. Mark's, and at the same time 
 his engagement as quasi assistant. He had done a 
 memorable and lasting work, leaving behind him all 
 branches of the flourishing mission in high efficiency, 
 and an enthusiastic people eager to become an inde- 
 
MINISTER ANt) CHURCH I\ THEIR PRIME. 241 
 
 pemlent Churcli. Tlio iiwinanrerH of St. And row's 
 uiulortook tlie erection of .-i new hniMint; on the rear 
 portion of tlie property on Kin»j^ and Ti-cnniscli streets, 
 witli a seating capacity of six hnndred, and tliis was 
 nearly completed at the end of 18(S7. The nieetin<^^ of 
 farewell t<j Mr. Gandier on Octoher 1st was one of 
 rare interest, and Mr. Macdonnell was moved beyond 
 his wont in speakin<,^ of the work an<l worth of his 
 young fellow-helper. 
 
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 242 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 THE TEMPERANCE (QUESTION. 
 
 -f ■' 
 
 Considerable attention was directed to a motion 
 made by Mr. Macdonnell in tlie Assembly of 188cS, at 
 Halifax, opposincj the statement made in the temper- 
 ance resolutions that " the lic^uor traffic is contrary to 
 the Word of God." A motion or an argument to the 
 same end was a customary tiling with him in church 
 courts, and he gained much notoriety thereby, some- 
 times even becoming the subject of good-natured 
 caricature in the public prints. 
 
 JMr. Macdonnell's attitude toward temperance and 
 prohibition was for a long time widely misunderstood. 
 Statements of the most erroneous and extravagant 
 kind with regard both to Mr. Macdonnell's opinion 
 and his practice were often heard. The better he 
 became known the narrower became the circle within 
 which these surmises and assertions were current. 
 Yet, as there are still a few who regard his temperance 
 views as a blot upon an otherwise untarnished record, 
 it will be well to state with some fulness what his 
 opinions were and how he came to hold them. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell's views on this subject were deter- 
 
THE TEMPERANCE QUESTION. 
 
 243 
 
 mined partly by reason, partly by temperament, anrl 
 partly by deference to the teaching of the l^ible. In 
 practice he was an abstainer from intoxicating 
 beveraj^es. This was not j^enerally known outside 
 the circle of his friends. In fact many people have 
 taken for j^ranted that his public advocacy of liberty 
 in these matters was due to his own habit of 
 " moderate drinking." He preached frecjuently on 
 these topics, which lay very near his heart and con- 
 science. Some of his sermons, not at all inconsistent 
 with those to which most publicity has been given, 
 were virtually a powerful plea for total abstinence 
 as the most desirable habit of life in this sphere of 
 duty. Such, indeed, was the tendency of all his 
 practical discussions. But he could never bring 
 himself to say that from any point of view such a 
 habit was an imperative duty. The defence of this 
 somewhat negative practical position he gave in 
 widely-known sermons, and in addresses in the courts 
 of the Church. Much of his speaking was of the 
 nature of a vigorous polemic against the illegitimate 
 use of the Bible, either as a whole or in particular 
 passages, in order to make total abstinence binding as 
 a Christian duty or to enforce the legal prohibition of 
 the liquor traffic. With him such treatment of Scrip- 
 ture was virtually making an end of all true exegesis 
 and a license to official interpreters of the Bible to 
 find in it whatever they might be looking for. 
 
 On this special point of scriptural authority there 
 was for a long while an acute difference of opinion 
 in the General Assembly and other courts of the 
 
 
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244 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ■y^. 
 
 Cluirch. Mr. Macdonnell always took an uncoin- 
 promisin*^ stand upon the (juustion, to the <ijreat grief 
 of many of liis warmest friends and admirers. 'J'he 
 temperance resolutions of the Assembly were for 
 many years cast in a form which rendered them 
 impossible of acceptance by tlujse holding such views 
 as his, and a debate upoii the (juestion, in which he 
 was a leading participant, became an annual feature of 
 the meeting. In sharp, clear-cut sentences, and in a 
 closely reasoned chain of argument, he sought to con- 
 vince the brethren of the wrong which they were 
 doing to Scripture in maintaining that " the licjuor 
 traffic- was contrary to the Word of God." His con- 
 tentions were, in the earlier years, listened to by many 
 with impatience or resentment, ijut as time went on 
 their cogency and reasonableness prevailed more and 
 more. Earnest support from prominent men was 
 given to motions of dissent ; and though these never 
 commanded an actual majority, their increasing 
 weight and dignity gained for them a sort of moral 
 triumph, and Mr. Macdonnell lived to see the time 
 when the temjiei-ance resolutions were put in a form 
 which did not call for dissent. It is noteworthy also 
 that tlie Presbytery of Toronto during the later years 
 of his life put itself on record upon the side of con- 
 sistency and sound scriptural exegesis upon this 
 question. 
 
 Upon another matter of moment in the same general 
 subject Mr. Macdonnell's position did not meet with 
 quite so strong an rndorsement. I refer to his 
 opinion, just as strenuously maintained, that our 
 
 
 I m 
 
THE TEMPERANCE QUESTION. 
 
 245 
 
 n 
 
 church conrtH were exceeding tlieir h'^itirnate spliore 
 when tliey insisted upon reconnnendin*; such special 
 h'mslation as tlie enactment hv the State of a 
 proliihitory law. 
 
 It is still a disputed (pK'stion whether Mr. Macdon- 
 nell's outspoken opinions upon these subjects di<l not 
 do more harir than good. The remark most com- 
 monly heard auKjiiu' interested circles was that 
 while whnl he said might he true enough, the 
 saying of it was likel}' to do harm. What was most 
 earnestly di'sii'ed Ity many temperance workers was 
 that he should become an out and out advocate of 
 total abstinence on grounds of C'hristian expediency. 
 It was iiicomprehensible to them that he shouhl not 
 have taken such a course. Their fear that his nega- 
 tive attitude would result in evil, led them some- 
 times to svipposc that evil did actually result. 
 Such suspicions were of course |)erfectly well known 
 to him, and gave occasion to serious thought. The 
 fact that li(]Uor-dealers found aid and co nfort in 
 his discourses touched him but little, since h(> knew 
 that l)oth their motive for engaging in the trattic 
 and their manner of conducting it were, as a rule, 
 really unaflected by rhe sentiments of public moral 
 teachers. Far more moving were the pleas that what 
 ho said from the pulpit gaxc encouragement in specific 
 cases to those who were already under the control of 
 an appetite for strong drink. He knew that this was 
 not easy to prove as an actual matter of fact; but the 
 very thought of possible injury to any man through 
 his words or acts was appalling to one whost; life was 
 
 A' 
 
246 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ''\'''- 
 
 1' ^ 
 
 passed in the service of men. Yet even these con- 
 siderations could not move him from what was to 
 him a manifest duty. The key to his j^eneral position 
 may be found in liis conviction tliat the essential sin 
 of intemperance, in the strict sense of the word, is 
 one of disposition, that the remedy for it is to be 
 found in a renewal of the whole nature through the 
 grace and after the example of Christ himself, and 
 not in external and incidental inducements of any sort, 
 which touched but one point of the character. It 
 was, in fact, characteristic of all his preaching against 
 specific sins that he traced them to the un-Christ-like 
 heart and spirit. 
 
▼1 
 
 A KINDUEI) SPIUIT. 
 
 247 
 
 ' -SI 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 A K I N I) /.' M I) S r 1 R I T. 
 
 The two followiii<,^ years, l.SSf) and 1890, taken all 
 in all, afforded Mr. Macdonnell tlie most arduous work 
 of his life. Early in the year a ^reat trial came 
 upon him and Mrs. Macdonnell in the death of their 
 dear and honoured friend. Professor ( iieor;^a! P. Young, 
 of T(jronto University. Dr. Young, whose fame 
 belongs eijually to the history of education and the 
 history of metaphysical and mathematical science in 
 Canada, was born in Scotland in 1819, and educated 
 at Glasgow University, where he was a elassniate of 
 Dr. Gregg, now the venerable and honoured professor- 
 emeritus of Knox College, By another coincidence 
 he had for one of his pupils at the Academy of Dollar, 
 where he taught for some time after his graduation, 
 William Mitchell, for so long an eliler in St. Andrew's. 
 Coming to Canada in 1847, he was successively pastor 
 of Knox Church, Hamilton, professor in Knox C'ollege, 
 School Inspector and Chairman of the Central Ex- 
 amining Committee of Cntario, and finally, from 
 1871 onwards. Professor of Logic and Metaphysics in 
 the University of Toronto. It was in this last field 
 
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 11 
 
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 H:i'; 
 
 248 
 
 LIKE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 tliut his (^Toatest influence was won. He was a rare 
 teacher, making everytliini;' interesting-, and (lealini^^ 
 liabitually with the most stimn]Mtin<;" and elevating 
 aspects of the trutlis lie presente<l to his pupils. He 
 was also one oi' the great mathematical reasoners 
 and discoverers of the age. He was a ^ne Hebrew 
 scholar, jnid a wise and })rofonnd interj)reter of the 
 Bible. There was nmch about him to suggest a' com- 
 parison with the great prophets of ancient Jsrael — his 
 mien betokening habitual converse with the highest 
 themes, his enth;;siasn< for truth and justice, his range 
 of mental and moi-al vision. Yet in beautiful and 
 ca])tivating harmony with these (pialities there wvvo, 
 traits, just as conspicuous, of the New 'i'estament 
 tyj)e — gentleness, humility, patience, tolerance, "sweet 
 reasonablen(^ss." He was a great liberalizer of men's 
 thoughts and opinions. It was learned from his 
 teachings in and out of the class-room, that truth is a 
 very large and precious thing, that none can grasp it 
 all, that all do not grasp the same portion of it, that 
 a search foi* truth and not a blind a<loption of 
 fornnilas to represent it, is an essential condition of 
 its ac(juisition, and that this method uses the heart 
 and conscience as well as the intellect. 
 
 Some lives, many-sided and richly stored with 
 moral and spiritual forces, are wonderfully helpful to 
 receptive souls, and Professor Young's was one of 
 these. In spite of the disparity in their years there 
 was a tine and lofty kinshin between him and Mr. 
 Macdonnell. In two (pialities these two uu'U were 
 especially akin. In the [)ure love of truth, combined 
 with reverence they stood out high among their peers. 
 
A KINDRED SI'lUIT. 
 
 249 
 
 The (jusility of reverence, so often niissin<j from 
 scliolars .'iiul tliinkers of a lower rank, was in tlieni 
 botli a natural corollary to growin<^ knowliMloc. It 
 was, moreover, the key to much that was most lovable 
 in tlicni — simplicitv of nature, tenderness and ma<^- 
 nanimity — since their reverence was felt for all that 
 was no])le and pure, and honest and lovely. In this 
 connection an old member of St. Andrew's cannot but 
 think of ])i'. Voun<;''s habits in connection with })ublic 
 worshi]) Durinf^ the n-reater part of the later years 
 of his life he was nevei* absent (hirin<; the mornini^ 
 service, alwavs walkin<:; to and fro the distance of 
 over two miles fi'om liis resi(k'nce. It was an actual 
 help to devotion to see the fjjrand old head bowed 
 with the reverence of simple and child-lik(> faith 
 before the God and Father of all. Of him, as of 
 his friend and minister, it may be said with em- 
 phasis, that he did not ^hid his reli^-iousness in the 
 Cliurch, nor did he leave it there. Hia devoutness 
 was with him everywhere r.'>d under all conditions. 
 He had the as|)ect of one who vras always worship- 
 pin*;", and so he helj)ed others to worship what he 
 himself loved and reverenced. This was the highest 
 and finest outcome of his life, the choicest result of 
 tl>e years that brin^- the philosophic mind. The 
 sense of the beinti; and presence of (}od was in him 
 united with the sense of the i-eality and Vii-o-enc\' of 
 truth and j^oodne.ss. This was the eroundwork and 
 the issue of his scholarship an<l his ])hilosophy, and 
 we that ai"o left are I'eminded by his laru" and steadv 
 faith that in this way, too, 'the })Ui'e in heart shall 
 see God." 
 
 1 r 
 
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 II 
 
 III 
 
 \4 
 
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 ■IV 
 
 '^ IM 
 
 250 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I huve dwelt at some lonj^tli upon the cliaracter of 
 Professor Young because of his innate kinship and 
 intimate association with the subject of tliis memoir. 
 But they were also, in a certain sense, companions in 
 fortune. A "sceptic," or an incjuirer in the true 
 vsense, lie too held fast to the eternal verities. But he 
 could not brint^ all tl.o details of the traditional 
 theology within the scope of his philosophic think- 
 ing, and some of the practically less important of the 
 ccmfessional statements he held with a 1' lit mental 
 grasp. An indication of his general attitude may be 
 gathered from a remark made not long before his 
 death at the close of an inter-collegiate debate at 
 which he presided, to the effect that where Calvinists 
 and Arminians agreed they were both right, and 
 where they dift'ered they were both wrong. Yet such 
 was the weight of his character, and his reputation 
 for soundness of judgment and moral earnestness, that 
 no distrust of his university teachings was felt by 
 the leaders of the churches, and no student was ever 
 known 10 have been made a free-thinker or a scoffer 
 by his i.illuence. Some of his deanst and most inti- 
 mate friends to the end of his days were Presbyterian- 
 theological professors and clergymen. 
 
 If we compare ti.e Canadian Presbyterian Church 
 with the same denomination in other lands, notably 
 with the great Presbyterian Chuich of the United 
 States, we cannot but be struck with the generous 
 yet discriminating toleration of opinion which has 
 prevailed here during the last decade or more. If 
 the cause is asked, various answers might be given ; 
 
' vm 
 
 A KINDRED SPIRIT. 
 
 251 
 
 1 
 
 but among other notable influences tlie personality of 
 these two men must be udmitted to hold a |)i"ominent 
 place. There were none in the Church of finer insioht 
 or of keener discernment than they; nor were there 
 any of loftier, purer purpose or nujre consecrated 
 endeavour. If it be true that " h(^ who wills to do 
 His \v\\\ shall know of the teaching," then such men 
 cannot ])e entirely ignorccl in matters of faith any 
 more than in the pro})lems and issues of life. Such, 
 at least, was the conclusion practically, even if uncon- 
 sciously, drawn by many who came within the wide 
 circle of their influence. Their power was all the 
 greater because they did not seek to make men 
 doubters, but rather to confirm their faith in what 
 was vital and essentially Christian. The course they 
 took was none the less straight bi'cause they followed 
 only the W'oll-proved guiding stars that were never 
 bec'ouded, and that never sank beneath the horizon 
 because they circled close to the pole of truth. 
 
 Instinctively Professor Young sought out Mr. 
 Macdonnell as his minister. The sermon, " Death 
 Abolished," appended to this volume, tells something 
 of the circumstances attending his association with 
 St. Andrew's Church. But the record needs to be 
 completed. The action of the church courts toward 
 Mr. Macdonnell dui'ing the " heresy trial " met with 
 Dr. Young's disapproval, and, indeed, accelerated his 
 'lemission of the ministerial ottice. His connection 
 with the congregation of the incrimiiiated churchman 
 was not long delayed, for it was in May, \s7H, that 
 he became a communicant of St. Andrew's. 
 
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 2r)2 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
 TIk' solonin sorvices in Convocation Hall on March 
 1st were directed by Mr. Macdonnoll, whoso pru^'cr 
 that friends and students mi^lit be impressed by the 
 example of such a life, stirred and npUfted th(^ hearts 
 of all the m(Hn-nin<ji; nniltitude. The occasion was 
 historic. Others who took part wci'e Rev. (L M. 
 Milli^an, whose .services ])r. Youn^ had been attend- 
 ing durinn- the last few months of his life ; Rev. Dr. 
 Caven ; Rev. Dr. William Reid, (Jeneral A^(.'nt of the 
 Presbyterian Church, and Sir Daniel Wilson, President 
 of University College. The pall-bearers were: Sir 
 Daniel Wilson, Vice-Chancellor Mulock, Rev. Dr. 
 (Jregg, Mr. (iordon Brown, Mr. Justice Maclennan 
 and Rev. Principal Caven. 
 
 The following words were uttered in the Library 
 of the University of Toronto on January 18th, 1894, 
 by Mr. ]\hicdonnell in the course of his address at the 
 unveiling of the bust of Dr. Young. How aptly they 
 came from him, and how well they express his own 
 attitude to truth and the knowledge of great unseen 
 realities ! 
 
 " It is fitting that this University should honour 
 I'rofessor Young's memory as that of a distinguished 
 scholar and teacher. He was more, however, than 
 scholar or teacher : he was a great and good man, 
 a man of rare simplicity, candour, reverence, faith 
 and hope. He had become a little child in humility 
 and receptivity, and so he liad entered into the king- 
 dom of God. The windows of his soul were always 
 open that the light of truth might enter. His life 
 was one of continuous growth in knowledge of things 
 
 -\' 
 
 II: 
 
m 
 
 A KINDRED SI'IUIT. 
 
 253 
 
 i:l 
 
 divine and in beauty of spiritual c-h.u-aetcr. Me re- 
 cognized tliat progress involves not only the ac'ce})t- 
 ance of new truth, but also the recoiisidei'ati(jn an<l 
 readjustment o\' the old. He did not hesitate to 
 modify views of truth which hr had himself set 
 foi'th, when he saw that they nee(led correction. He 
 realized that man 
 
 " 'could not, wluit he knows ikjw, know !it liist ; 
 What he considers that he ktiows to-dny, 
 Come but to-morrow, lie will find misknown ; 
 (ietting incii .su of knowledge, since he learna 
 Because he lives, which is to be a man, 
 Set to instruct himself l)y his i)ast self.' 
 
 " He had learned better than most men to set the 
 vari< ..s elements of truth in theii' I'clation to one 
 another. He had come t(j und^.-rstand that the simple 
 things are really the great things; that many of the 
 tliini^s ai)Out which good men have striven art? not 
 vital, and that the simpU,' things on which they often 
 failed to lay stress are the eternal Nci'ities to winch 
 the soul mu.st cling. . . . 
 
 "And now the great soul has enti.'re(l into rest in 
 the presence of the Master who is himself the Truth. 
 New realms of thought and knowledge are o[)ening to 
 his view, and the w(;rds spoken by the same Master 
 to another earnest diseii)le, and which may often have 
 been an inspiration to our beloved friend, are rc'ceiving 
 their fulfilment, ' TIkju knowest not now, but thou 
 shalt understand hereafter.' " 
 
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 254 
 
 LIKE OF D. J. MACDONVELL. 
 
 CJIAITh]R XXVII. 
 
 QUI'JST/ON OF rn/'J CONF/'JSSIOX. 
 
 DoUMTLEss th(! rccolloctioiis of that ricli libcnil 
 spirit, and that hcautiliil life with which ho had 
 \)i'xm so closidy associated — the sjtirit and Iif'(! of one, 
 too, wlio luid i'cit ohli^cd to cut hiinsclt" loose iVoin 
 the hrotheihood oi' the Pi-es})yterian iidiiistry— liad 
 nnich to <lo witli a motion whicii Mr. Macdonn<;ll 
 bronnlit I'orwai'd on A[)i'il lird ot" this same y(!ar 
 (I8S()) in the Pn's))ytei-y ol" 'i\)ronto. 
 
 TIm! resolution was sli^litly a,ni(^nded from tlie form 
 in wliich it !ij)peai"ed when notice of it was j^iven on 
 March ")th. No copy lias b(ien ))res(!rved of the 
 aniendi^d motion, l)ut it doc^s not difFei- matei'ially 
 from the following transcript of what was first 
 pi'esenti'd to the Presl)yt(!ry : 
 
 " Wluireas, th(; (church of (Jhrist should he careful 
 not to exclude fi'om the ministry any man wliom the 
 Lord of the Chui'ch W'ould receive; and 
 
 " Whei'eas, tlu! desii'ed union of tlu; s(!V(,'ral l)ranches 
 of the ('hurch would neci^ssarily involve the adoption 
 of a common standard f(jr admission to the ministry ; 
 and 
 
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i 
 
 QUESTION OF TFIE CONFESSION. 
 
 2:)5 
 
 " WlioivNiH, tli(! pn'Hcnt torina of Hub.scriptioii in tho 
 Pr(!,sl)yt('fififi Cliur(;li in Caiwula huvc; the cfl'cct of 
 excluding IVoui i\\v niiiiistry men wlio un; iickuow- 
 led^cd to !)(' triw iiiinistcr.s of tin; GoHpcd in otluir 
 })r}in(!lieH of the ('liurcli ; 
 
 " It \h liunihly ovcrturcd to tlio v«MJonil>I(! tlio 
 (jtcncral A.s,s(!nd)ly to take .such hU'\)H as it may 
 dconi l)OHt in the ])r«'nii.s('H, in tlu; way of alterinj^ 
 tli(! reflation of ininist<'i"s to tlic Confcs.sion of Faith, 
 or of subHtitutinj^ for said ConfcsHion soinr hriufur 
 statrinient of the truths which art; considci'tMl vital." 
 
 Two Hpcjeclics wei'e made by him in support of the 
 motion. 'Vha first was virtually an expansion of the; 
 preamhlc Me ])l('ad(!d for th(j omission in our chmmI 
 of tlie sharp and particularized statement of points 
 tliat wer(! in dispute Itetween Protestant <l(^nomina- 
 tions, and whos(! cUsar definition necessarily involved 
 the use of abstract terms. His second address was 
 mad(! in r(;ply to a <|uesti(^n put })y one of the 
 memhers, as to "what would })e hd't " if the ])oints 
 inst}inc(!d ])y Mi'. Macdonnell were to be di'oppi^d from 
 our creed. This rej(;inder was made; in tones and 
 with a mannei- of ^reat f(!rvour and s(jlemnity, as it 
 consiste<l cliielly of th(^ citation of br()a<l, fundamental 
 Scri])tui'e utttu'ances that were [)rofessed in all cn^eds : 
 " M(jderator, I thouf^dit then; would be left, '(Jod so 
 loved the world, . . .' I thought there would be 
 left, ' Th(!r<; is no other name . . .' " 
 
 Perhaps the most Jiotabic thin<4' about the whole 
 di'])ate w^as the smallness of the vot(i cast, 'llw reso- 
 lution was lost by four to ei^ht voices. Many declined 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACnoNNELL. 
 
 to vote. Some expreHse<l theiuselves as willin<r to 
 vote for the efi'ective pc^rtioii of the motion, but they 
 obj(!cte(l to the preamble. Amonj^ these was Dr. 
 Kello<;;j, tht; eminent lin»^uist and theoloj^ian, then 
 pastor of St. .lamrs' Clnneh, \vh«) sent a note to the 
 M<iU a (lay or two later, explaining' his position, 
 which had been misund«'rstood l)y the reporter. 
 
 A letter written on April ISth by Mrs. Campbell, 
 then visitino; at the manse, to her husband, may be 
 «|Uoted to indicate his feelinj^s at this time upon the 
 «:^eneral subject of speculative beliefs in religion. 
 A fuller extract than is necessary for this purpose 
 may be permitted, especially as it refers to the work 
 of an attache(l friend of Mr, Macdonnell, and one 
 j^reatly beloved by his l)rethren in the ministry, now, 
 alas ! also a memory instead of a living' presence. 
 She writes of driving on the Sunday previous three 
 miles with her brother, who " was to preach at 
 the opening of a new church in the western suburbs. 
 The church is at the corner of Dovercourt Road and 
 Dundas Street, the new Chalmers Church. The 
 late incundjent, Mr. Mutch, as a Knox stu<lent, had 
 connnenced a mission there in connection with the 
 Parkdale congregation, exactly six years ago, by 
 preaching to a company compt)sed of two men, a 
 woman, and a little girl. On Sunday the church 
 was opened, a handsome, perfectly-appointe<l brick 
 church, seating eleven hundred, and every inch of it 
 was packed. ... In the evening St. Andrew's was 
 very full. The music was very tine. James delivered 
 one of the most exciting sermons he had preached 
 
QUESTION OF THE CONFESSION. 
 
 257 
 
 for a loiifT time on 'Prove ull thiiif^s,' inducoil partly 
 by his recent reading of ' Robert Elsniere,' and partly 
 by the treatment liis overture liad met witli l)efore the 
 Toronto Presbytery (on tlie Confession of Faith). 1 
 never before saw himjji;et so ' wroui,^ht up.' Klizabeth, 
 however, seemed (piite aceustonuMl to it, and was only 
 anxious to previ'iit him from being spokt'n to after- 
 wanls, or being exposeil to a chill after the fearful 
 state of heat into which he hail worked himself." 
 
 The sermon referred to was a notable deliverance, 
 not on account of anything startling which it con- 
 tained, but by reason of the earnestness with whicli 
 he insisted on the necessity of intelligent conviction 
 of the truths which make up the objective basis of 
 the spiritual life. I find the following notice of the 
 sermon in my journal : " Greatly changed fn^m his 
 former sermon upon the same text. 1 have never 
 seen Mr. Macdonnell so much moved as he was in 
 describing the situation of those who are painfully 
 working their way out from the traditional faith of 
 childhood, as it is necessarily taught them by their 
 parents, to the free, independent, subjectively certain 
 faith of manhood." There was much of unconscious 
 spiritual autobiography in such discourses ; but there 
 was far more in them than the resultant of Ids lonir 
 religious struggles. From this source came the 
 subject-matter and the form of presentation, liut 
 the spirit and tone and colour were dominated by the 
 sense of the needs of others, the strong intercessory 
 yearning to be helpful to those who were still walk- 
 ing in darkness and seeing no light. 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 The fate of the overture was not finally settleil. At 
 a meeting of the Presbytery on May 7th, Mr. Frizzell, 
 of the Leslie ville Church, presented a motion for 
 revision, citinj( several points in which improvement 
 was thought necessary. The im{)rovenients suggested 
 were not at all radical : but the dominant feeling, 
 voiced by Dr. Caven, who was by no means averse to 
 criticism of tht; creed, was to the effect tliat it was 
 not necessary or expedient to make alterations. The 
 motion was lost by seventeen votes to nine, and Mr. 
 Macdonnell at once 'jumped to his feet to bring 
 forward his previous niotion without the preamble. 
 Dissent was expressed on a point of order. The 
 point was decide<ljn favour of his motion, but after 
 this objection he declined to press it, giving notice, 
 however, at a later stage, that he would bring it up 
 again at the next meeting. This he did not do, nor 
 did he at any time afterwards renew the discussion 
 before Presbytery. 
 
 On April 4th, he delivered a notable address at 
 the closing of Knox College, in the College Street 
 Presbyterian Church, based on Paul's personal coun- 
 sels and charges to Timothy and Titus. The dis- 
 course was practical, broad-minded and elo(juent. Its 
 burden was the ideal life of the minister of Christ, 
 the best kind of preaching and the best kind of 
 practice. On April l!Sth, he read a paper before 
 the Ministerial Association on " The Letter and the 
 Spirit," which showed how his mind was working 
 over the problem of the right doctrinal use of the 
 Scriptures. 
 
THE EQUAL RIGHTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 259 
 
 CHAPTER XXVITI. 
 
 TIIK K(JUAL JiK.'I/rs MOV EM EXT. 
 
 It was in the same year (1889) that the famous 
 "Equal Rit^hts" agitation came to its heifjht, and 
 Mr. Macflonnell was one of the foremost cliam]iions 
 of the movement. While in<licating the part wliich 
 he felt called upon to take, it will be necessary to 
 outline the course of a controversv which has had 
 an important influence on Canadian ])oIitical thou^^ht, 
 and therefore, indirectly at least, on political action, 
 The agitation arose from the " Jesuits Estates Act," 
 a measure which passed the Legislature of Quebec 
 in August, 1888, giving permission to the Govern- 
 ment of the Province to sell certain property, at one 
 time owned by the Society of Jesus, out of the 
 proceeds of which S?400,000 were to be applied to 
 whatever purposes the Pope of Rome; might see 
 fit to devote them. The Pope eventually decided 
 that $1(10,000 of this amount should go to the Jesuit 
 Order. 
 
 At first the matter attracted no very wide public 
 notice, but as the real scope and object of the measure 
 became known, attention was called to the bill 
 
 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 throuf^h the press and in public nioetings, especially 
 in the Province of Ontario. Discussion became 
 frecjuent and earnest, and about the beginning of 
 March it took a practical shape, looking toward the 
 disallowance of the Act by the Dominion Legislature. 
 Legally, if not disallowed within one year after its 
 passage, it would be confirmed beyond possibility of 
 revision. The objections that were made to the Act 
 may be reduced to two heads, legal and moral. 
 
 F'rom the legal point of view it was maintained 
 that the action of the Quebec Legislature was invalid 
 on various grounds. Being an illegal body in Great 
 Britain, it was decide<l there, in 11(]'), after the con- 
 quest, that the Jesuits could hold no property in 
 Canada, and that their possessions there had escheated 
 to the King of England. In 1774, the year after the 
 suppression of the Order by Popt Clement XIV., 
 royal instructions were sent to the (Jovernor of 
 Canada that the Society of Jesus be suppressed and 
 dissolved, and that all its ancient rights, privileges 
 and property should be invested in the Crown, though 
 the members of the society then living in Quebec 
 should be allowed sutticient stipends during their 
 natural lives. In 1800 the last of the Jesuits died, 
 and the sheriti' of Quebec was instructed to take into 
 the possession of the Crown all the movable and 
 immovable property of the Jesuits, who had thus 
 become doubly dead in the eye of the civil law. In 
 1814 the Jesuit Order was revived by Pius VII. with 
 all its former privileges. Up to 1831 various attempts 
 were made to have their estates set aside for the pur- 
 
THE E(^UAL Rir.HTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 201 
 
 posos of ('(hication. At tluit ilatc alxmt oiu'-fourth 
 of the ri'Vi'MUc of the t'stut^'S had been applied to 
 educational objects, various sums havinj,^ j^one even 
 to tlie (Jrauiniar schools of Quebec, Montreal, and 
 Kin<;ston. In 1831 the Leufislature forniallv decre«'d, 
 upon orders from Kni^land, that the i-evenues from 
 the estates should thereaft<!r he -ipplied exclusively 
 to education. In 184() a petition was presentecl to 
 the Lej^i.slature by the Archbishop of Qu»'bec and the 
 bishops of the provinces, prayin*^ that this revenue 
 should <ro to the Roman Catholic Church. In 1<S.S7 
 the Jesuit society was incorporated in Quebec, and in 
 the following- year $400,000 were voted by the Lej^is- 
 lature, aloni; with the Laprairie Common, to tin; \\)\)(i 
 of Rome as an equivalent for the release of his claims 
 to the revenue of the property. The transaction was 
 thus virtually an agreement between the .b'suits, who 
 wished money endowment and official recognition, 
 and the Romish hierarchy in general, with the Pope 
 at their head, as to the dis[)osal of property which, 
 according to civil law, belonge<l to neither party. 
 This agreement was, however, nominally made by 
 the Legislature, which, for its part, had no authority 
 to dispose of the property in any way except for 
 educational purposes. 
 
 The main legal obi«'ctions were accor<linglv these: 
 (I) That the Jesuits, having become civilly dead in 
 Canada, had no claim to the estates: (2) that, there- 
 fore, they had no right to compen.sation <jut of the 
 public funds; (3) that, moreover, they had no legal 
 standint^, in spite of their incorporati<jn, because they 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 were an illoj^al Ixxly in Eiifjland ; (4') that tlie Legis- 
 lature excecMlecl its povvers in disposin*; of the estates 
 in a way not provi«le(l for in the speeitic instructions 
 from the Crown : (5) that the Legishiture was <lis- 
 loyal to tlie Queen of Ent^hmd, inasmuch as it invoked 
 a foreii^n potentate to decicU; upon the disposition of 
 projK'rty wliieh had esclieated to th«' Crown of Eng- 
 hmd, and was achninistere*! at the behest of tlie 
 (v'rown ; (G) that the Legislature was recreant to its 
 duty as the trustee of public property and the 
 guardian of public rights by thus enthroning the 
 ecclesiastical above the civil power. 
 
 Of the moral objections, the principal were as 
 follows: (1) That the measure struck at the very 
 root of our civil liberties by calling in (piestion the 
 authority of the Crown; (2) that the <lomination of 
 the ecclesiastical power in Quebec was a moral and 
 political danger to the people immediately affected ; 
 
 (3) that the whole oi the l)ominion of Canada was 
 in a manner likewise imperilled. Given a legislature 
 equally subservient to the will of the Church, and a 
 similar wrong may be enacted in any other province ; 
 
 (4) that the lM)dy in whose interests mainly the Act 
 was devised and carried is precisely the foe to be 
 most ilreaded by our people, because its cardinal 
 principle is the superiority of the ecclesiastical to the 
 civil power : (5) that the favours granted to the 
 Jesuits imj)Ly an approval and encouragement of 
 tlieir practices, which have brought disaster and 
 humiliation to nations, families, and individuals 
 throughout their history : (0) that the patronage 
 
THE EQUAL Rlr.HTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 2G:^ 
 
 of the Jesuits is virtually an endorsement of their 
 maxims and doctrines. 
 
 Their cardinal principle being that ever}' member 
 of the Order must in all matters blitidlv and unhesi- 
 tatintjlv obev his''sui)<'rior, the innocence of the mem- 
 hers could only' be guaranteed if the superior were as 
 wise and as holy as CJod himself : so that, as human 
 nature is constitut«'d, innnorality lies at the very 
 foundation of^the society. Mr. CJladstone has summed 
 up the various features of the system as folhnvs* : 
 Its hostilitv to mental freedom in'm-neral ; its incom- 
 patibility with the thought and movement of modern 
 civilization; its pretensions against the State; its 
 pretensions'against parental and conjugal rights: its 
 jealousy of tluj free circulation and use of the Scrip- 
 tures; the actual alienation from it of the educated 
 minds of th<' counti y in which it most strongly pre- 
 vails; its tendency to sap veracity in the individual 
 mind. 
 
 Possibly the unpopularity and evil nscord of the 
 Jesuits contributed more to poi)ular ahirm and re- 
 sentment than the apprehension of danger to our 
 political institutions. JJut in the view of serious- 
 min<led publicists, and of the profoundest observei's 
 among the clergy as well as the laity, the menace to 
 civil liberty was the main source of a])prehension. 
 Ecclesiasticism, enthroned by legislation in a province 
 already morally and politically dominated by the 
 Church, seemed an evil of unspeakable magnitude. 
 
 * Contemporary Rtcitw, June, ISTO. 
 
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 LIFE OF D. J. MACDOXNKLL. 
 
 It was not likely that tlie peculiar practices of tlio 
 Jt'Huita could l)o carried out upon a lar<rc scale in 
 modern and western social life. What was to he 
 dreaded was the inlluence of the Onler wlien enlisted 
 in hehalf of the Church as a hody, since it was sup- 
 posoil, on the i^'round of all historical precedent, that 
 the chief end and aim of its policy was to secure the 
 supn;macy of the Church within th.e Canadian state. 
 
 All these considerations combined to create in On- 
 tario, and especially in Toronto, an agitation whose 
 intensity outsiders at least foun<l it <lifHcult to under- 
 stand. Chief amouj; its ai^encies was the Toronto 
 iMa'U. This newspaper, which had for some time 
 been independent of party atHliations, an<l had for 
 niany months dt^vott^d its attention U) the ([uestion oi 
 ecclesiastical influence in civil atlairs, had as its chief 
 eilitorial writer at this time one of the ablest jour- 
 nalists of the day, whose articles materially helped to 
 sustain the po[)ular interest to the end of the campaign. 
 Seldom has any public cpiestion V)een dealt with in a 
 daily new.spaper with such learning, logic and wit, and 
 with such ease and breadth of style. Not a phase of 
 the controversy was left untouched or unillumined. 
 The greatest and smallest events of ecclesiastical 
 hi.story were at the ready command of this versatile 
 and dexterous writer. 
 
 On March 9th the (piestion was brought up in the 
 Ministerial Association in Toronto. Mr. Macdonnell, 
 Principal Caven of Knox College, Rev. E. A. Stafford, 
 and Rev. A. C. Courtice took leading parts, Mr. 
 Macdonnell having charge t)f the resolutions. On 
 
THE EQCAL RIGHTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 20.-1 
 
 March 12tli a iiie«itin<r of the Kvanff'lical Alliance 
 was iicld, for the purj)o.si' of condi'inniii;,^ tlu' Act. 
 On March 21st a conference of citizens was called, 
 with the result that on the 25th a nuiss-nicetin^ was 
 held in the Pavilion to protest a;^ainst the olmoxious 
 lej^'islation. The late Mr. W. H. Ilowland, who had 
 just completed his third term as Mayor, an<l was then 
 at the height of his influence as a philanthropist 
 and Christian worker, occupied the chair. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell had been chosen to move the tirst resolution, 
 which condemned the Jesuits Estates Act, and ])ro- 
 tested aj^ainst the recent incorporation of the Jesuits 
 as unconstitutional in any British dependency. His 
 earnest and elocjuent speech struck the key-note of 
 the campaign. A lar<;o ])art of tlu? adilress was 
 devoted to the history and character of the Jesuit 
 Order, but a few sentences from the more practical 
 portions will <^ive a notion of the position which he 
 maintained throuijhout the strujji^le : " We have 
 reached the point at which it is for us and our 
 fellow-citizens to determine whether we shall retain 
 or lose for some indefinite time the ri^^-hts of British 
 men. . . . We are here in the capacity of citizens 
 who love our country, and who wish to preserve 
 what is best for ourselves and our children. . . . 
 The thin erd of the wedixe has been driven far into 
 the timber of "^'on federation, and what we have to 
 do is to loosen tlie wed^^e so that the timber may be 
 kept firm and solid. . . . We are not contendint^ 
 against our Roman Catholic citizens, but against a 
 band of ecclesiastics of no country, of no home : a 
 
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2f)G 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACnONNELI.. 
 
 lijunl of im'u who have no fliii: for wliicli tlu-v euro, 
 no altar for wliich to ti;;iit ; liostilt' to frt'('<loni, Itotli 
 civil and rt'li^jious, wherever they find it. . 
 Wr l>av»' no (juarnl, I repeat, with the lionian 
 Catholics. If tile time shall ever come wlieii 
 
 there shall he any ciirtailine^ of their perfect fr«'e<lom 
 in proclaiming what th«>y helieve, I hope I shall he 
 found shoid<ler to shoulder witli tliose thus interfere*! 
 with. But when men in the name of freedom crush 
 out freedom, and a.sk for tolerance that they may 
 exalt the most arrogant intolerance, then it i.s an 
 entirely litlerent affair." 
 
 Other resolutions wei'e moved by .Mr. J. J. Mac- 
 laren, (^).(1., |{ev. Dr. Alexander Sutherland, and Hev. 
 I*rinci|)al (^iven, in practical suppoit of the move- 
 ment for disallowance. The meetinu' ended in the 
 ajtpointment of a committee, with Mr. Ilowland as 
 chairman, to take such action as miLfht he n«Te.s.sarv 
 for the; maintaining^ and enforcin*^ of the principles 
 embodied in these resolutions. 
 
 The nH.'etin;4" had been sunnnoned with special 
 reference to the imi)endini;' di.scus.sion in l*arliament 
 upon a resolution of Colonel O'lh'ien, the member for 
 Muskoka, reconnnendinii- that the ( lovernor-General 
 Ik! pray«'(l to disallow the Act. The motion was 
 brought up by Mr. O'Brien on ^bll•ch !i(!th. and a vote 
 was not reached till the 2l)th. Ki;j;hteen s[)«'eches 
 were made upon the (juestion, some of them of signal 
 ability I need only mention tho.se of Mr. Dalton 
 McCarthy and Mr John Charlton in favour of the 
 resolution, and tho.se of Sir John Th<jmpson, Hon. 
 
THE EQUAL KIOIITS MOVEMENT. 
 
 207 
 
 David Mills, and Sir Hiclmid ( 'artw rij^dit iiM)]tj)ositi»ni. 
 TIh' sperclu's, which hav»' Ih-cii jirintfd vrrhiitim in a 
 
 St 
 
 ■pan 
 
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 onii, 
 
 an- now woi'thx' ol' stu(l\' as ait 
 
 «'Xci'lU'nt specimen of the «l«'l»atinnr jjower of some ol' 
 the foremost pailiameiitarians of Canada of the 
 present •^enerati«)n, and as an illustration of the ex- 
 traordinarv ditKcultv of some of the constitutional 
 <jUestions whicii arise from time to time to vex the 
 minds of the statesmen and jurists of the Dominion. 
 The decisive vote stood l.*i in favour of the motion 
 for disallowance an<l hSH aijainst it. 
 
 The t-xcitenu'iit in Ontaiio over the debate and its 
 result wa.'". Mideso-ihahle. The atlirmatix e Notei-s, while 
 
 hv th 
 
 d< 
 
 hv Mu' one snle called "the Devils Thirteen." in 
 whimsical allusion to the con\entional!y ' «ndu(d<y 
 inimher," were \>y the oj>ponents of the Act styled 
 "the Nohle Thirteen." The faithful hand were 
 invit«'d to Toronto, where a ma^iiiticent recepticai of 
 citi/ens was tendered them in the(lranite iiiid< on 
 the eveiiin<,^ of April 22nd. The mo.st notahle 
 siuM'ch was that of Mr. Dalton Mc('arth\'. of iieailv 
 two hours in l(;n<,^th. It is with the dehate upon the 
 Kstates Act that Mr. McCarthv s career as the oreat 
 parliamentary op|)onent of ecclesiastical eiicroaidi- 
 ment fairly hej^an. A jj^old medal, stiiick in honour 
 of the Thirti'en and inscrihed with their names, was 
 at this meetinj^r pi-esented to Mr. Henry ( riJijcn, of 
 Toronto, in hehalf of his absent brothel-. 
 
 Practical poj)ular acti(jn in reply to the Notea^rainst 
 
 * By Senocul et Fits, Montreal. 
 
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268 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 ■'i 
 
 <lisiilIo\vanc(' was not lon;^^ delayed. On April 20th, 
 the ( 'itizcns' Coniiiiittt'c issued "an address to tlio 
 people of ()iitaiio. " This address was drafted l>y Mr. 
 Maedonnell and is an excellont specimen of his written 
 style. A l)i-ief oxtrat't may he ^iven : 
 
 " This Aet is not an isolated uecurrene*'. Ft is a 
 somewhat start liiii;' deNclopment of the policy hy 
 which ritianiontanisnj has soui-ht to control le<;isla- 
 tion and to secure ecclesiastical ascendancv in the 
 government of this country. 
 
 "The (juestioii at issue is not simply one of consti- 
 tutional law. Kveii if it could he shown that the 
 Legislatui'e of (^uehec acted within its powers in 
 passin;;- this Act, it would not alter our conviction 
 that such le*^isIation is perilous to the peace and 
 welfare of the Dominion, and that on i^rounds of 
 puhlic policy it ounht to be strenuously opposi'd. At 
 the same time we are convinced that the arguments 
 advanced to show that the Act is unconstitutional, 
 hive not been successfully ct)nihated. It is to us a 
 matter of deep regret and concern that the Dominion 
 Ciovernment lias ainiounced its intention not to dis- 
 allow the Act, and the gravity of the situation is 
 greatly increased by the fact that the House of 
 Connnons has not intervened in any way for the 
 protection of the interests that are threatened. . . . 
 
 "The matter dealt with in the Act, so far from 
 being ' one of provincial concern only,' is one in which 
 the whole Dominion is deeply interested. If one 
 member of the body-politic sutlers, all the members 
 suffer with it. The rights of the Protestant minority 
 
II 
 
 THE EQUAL UIGHTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 209 
 
 in QiU'bec are our riji^lits. If we aro correct in assert- 
 ing that this Act is deroi^^atory to tlie supremacy of 
 the Queen, and a menace to tlie liberties of the |)eo|»U\ 
 then it ccmccrns tlie honour of tlie wliole Dominion 
 to liave it set aside. . . . We do not aim either 
 at anta^oniziii*^ or assisting any political party, hut 
 we ur<(e men of all shades of political opinion to 
 reco<;ni/«' the supreme importance of maintainini^ 
 unimpaired our herita*,^eof civil and reli<^ious freedom, 
 and to unite in takin;; the wisest and most ener«;etic 
 steps to undo the mischief that has i)een wroui^ht." 
 
 The reconnuendations of the Coniniittee foreshad )W 
 the most important practical stej)s of the movement. 
 The principal suggestions were that })etitions he pn - 
 sentod to the ( lovernor-Cieneral aslvin<r him to disallow 
 the Act on the around that the vote in the House of 
 Conunons did not truly reflect public ojMnion ; that 
 an oi'^anization l>e formed to ensure united jiolitical 
 action that should secure perfect religious e(juality 
 throu<^hout thi' Dominion, and prevent ecclesiastical 
 dictation in public life; and that for this end aconven- 
 tion be called from all parts of the Province to meet 
 in Toronto. The address concluded as follows : 
 
 " Every im[)ortant interest of the peoplt; commenrls 
 and sanctions this appeal. The sense of ri^ht, the 
 love of peace, the hope of progress in all that makes 
 a country truly <j;reat, the determination to maintain 
 the liberties handed down to us from our fathers — 
 all coml)ine to urj'e us to sustaine(l an<l strenuous 
 resistance to the malign influences that threaten the 
 well-being of our country. Our prayer is that the 
 
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270 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDOXNELL. 
 
 
 Go«l of nations may j^uide us to tlic choice of measures 
 ■vvhicli slinll l)e for the histin^ welfare of the land" 
 
 The convention assemhied in the (Jrand Opera 
 House in Toronto on the 11th and 12th of June. 
 l)ele«;ates to the nund)er of nearly ei^ht hundred 
 were present from every part of the Province, alon^ 
 with several from Quebec. Principal Caven, who had 
 heeji selected as temporary chairman, delivered an 
 ope nin^^ address of <^rave and wei<,dity eloquence, point- 
 in*^ out, amon^ other thin<^s, the dant^ei" to the State 
 from ritramontanism, of which the .Jesuit Order was 
 the professional exp()un«ler and champion. He was 
 also elected to preside over the permanent orj^aniza- 
 ti(»n. Mr. Macdonnell a<jfain took a prominent part 
 in the Committee i)U Resolutions. The meetings 
 were stirrecl up ])y powei'ful addresses from such 
 men as Colonel O'Brien, Mr. Charlton. Dr. Davidson, 
 Q.C.,of Montreal, and the venerable Rev. J)r. ])out^las, 
 of the same city. The convention had been heralded 
 as an *' anti-Jesuit " assembly. It adjourned as an 
 " Efjual Ri»jjhts A.ssociation " with a Provincial Coun- 
 cil and Kxecutive Conunittee of which Dr. Caven was 
 chairman, i\Ir. J. K. Macdonald, of Toronto, vice- 
 chairman : Mr. E. Douglas Armour, secretar3% Of 
 this committee Mr. ]\rac(U)nnell was one of the most 
 active members, takin*^ a share in all its important 
 actions. An association on similar lines was soon also 
 founded in Quebec. 
 
 An outline history of this movement has been given 
 here, because it indicates a part, and that a somewhat 
 important part, of the " work " of the subject of these 
 
THE EQUAL RIGHTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 271 
 
 memoirs. 
 
 It will not 1)0 lU'ccssarv to follow tl 
 
 10 
 
 further pro;;ress of the A.s.sociation in dotail, as inci- 
 dental references will sutiicieiitly illustrate our suh- 
 ject. But some general statement of what it tried to 
 reali/(! and what it actually accomplished will he 
 nece.s.sary, if «)nly to show that the oH'ortsof our friend 
 and his co-workers were not altowthor vain or their 
 hoiH's illusorv. Such an unfavourjihle iudiMnent was 
 e.xpros.sed ])y many disinterested as well as hy many 
 unfriendly people durinnr tjio existence of the A.s.soci- 
 ation, and some such opinion is perhaps pretty widely 
 ])rev'alont still. It is not difiicult to disproNc this 
 notion, wliich in reality has its orimn in the habit of 
 lookini; always to palpai)le and immediate political 
 results as the only ovidoiico of the workin<; of moral 
 causes in })ublic life. In the very nature of the case 
 the movement was essentially a process of education, 
 whose results must bo seen rather in the broader 
 vision and loftier patriotism of our citizens than in 
 the sudden overthrow of existing political conditions. 
 In the strictest .sense it was a work of evolution and 
 not of revolution. 
 
 It was inevitable that th<' Association should s(K)n 
 find it necessary to enter the })olitical arena on its 
 own account. Already at the convention attrition 
 had becHi called to the "••rowiii<f us<' of the French 
 lanii'uafife as the medium of instruction in some of the* 
 ■schools of Ontario, 'i'he next step was to discuss the 
 question of Separate Schools in the .same province. 
 In December, lcS8f), at a nu'etini; of the (.\)uncil of the 
 Association, a resolution was carried with a view of 
 
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272 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MA( 'DON NELL. 
 
 propariiif^ tlie way for a possible unifying' of the 
 scliool system. It was to tlie effect, tliat in tlie 
 opinion of the Council, tiie full measure of responsil)le 
 government should be granted to the people of the 
 Province by the abolitic^n of all restrictions upon the 
 powr'r to make laws respecting education. On the 
 approach of the next provincial elections, a nianifesto 
 was issued by a special connnittee of Council, reciting 
 tlu' progress made by the Association, <letailing the 
 points on which legislation was thought to be neces- 
 sary, and urfjiui; the memlx-rs of the Association 
 everywhere to vote only for candidates who were in 
 accordance with its principles. This address was 
 issued on May 5th, 1890, and was signed by Dr. 
 Caven, Mr. J. K. Macdonald, Mr. McCarthy, Mr. 
 Macdonnell, and the other members of the Com- 
 mittee except Mr. Charlton, who withheld his signa- 
 ture mainly on the ground that lie could not agree 
 with the proposal to interfere with the Separate 
 School system of Ontario until it was clear how the 
 Protestant minority in Quebec might be ati'ected by 
 sul)versive legislation. 
 
 In the ensuing local elections several Equal Rights 
 candidates were elected. It will be remembered that 
 this campaign, if it may be so called, was carried on 
 after all hope of reversing the Jesuits Estates Act had 
 been given up forever. Lord Stanley, in the previous 
 August, in reply to a deputation of E(|ual Righters 
 from Ontario and Quebec, had refused in the plainest 
 terms to <lisallow the measure. 
 
 But it became evident before very long that the 
 
THE EQUAL KKJHTS MOVEMENT. 
 
 27n 
 
 political role of E((ii}il Ri;^'hts couM not be indefinitely 
 sustained. The movement <li<l not play a prominent 
 part in the Dominion elections of March, ls91. Trm^, 
 all of the " Noble Thirteen" except one were I'e-elected, 
 and this was, at least, a proof that they hail not 
 nn'srepresente<l their constitnencies. But in the very 
 nature of things, the princi|)le couM oidy hohi a 
 secondary place among the great body of the elector- 
 ate. The a-^i^ressiveness of the foes to be encount- 
 ere<l was not so obvious to the community at lari^e as 
 to furnish the occasion of a standing <juan'el. More- 
 over, the (piestions involved were felt to be mainly of 
 provincial an<l not of federal concern. The issue of 
 most permanent and engrossing interest was that of 
 education, and this was mMierallv felt to have been 
 rightly remitted to the jurisdiction of the separate 
 provinces. Indeed, it was the sense of respect for the 
 technical rights of a province that gave strongest 
 moral support to the attitude of tho.se who opposed 
 disallowance in the Dominion Lei^islature. 
 
 Wliat benefit then has accrued to Canadians from 
 this famous, ^'f not very long-livtid agitation ? Much 
 every way. It wouM be ea.sy to dilate upon the 
 indirect and consecjuential atlvantages which have 
 come to the people at lai-ge from a discussion so 
 educative and imrifying to sincere and ardeut 
 patriots. But it will sutKce to point to our more 
 obvious gains. It was something more than a coinci- 
 dence that just at the height of the controversy in 
 Ontario and Quebec, the legislatures of Manitoba and 
 the Xorth-West enacted laws looking to the institu- 
 
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 274 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDON'XKLL 
 
 tion of national non-soctarian schools. An issue 
 which could not bo successfully made in Ontario was 
 transferred, largely hy reason of this Ecjual Rights 
 agitation, to the newer and more plastic ])rovince of 
 Manitoba, with what results all the world has come 
 to know. And it nuist not be forj^otten that the 
 principle of pi'ovincial rights, which was appealed to 
 with such success in the Jesuits Estates discussion, 
 became Manito})a's mond and legal safeguard during 
 the long and trying struggle which has ended in the 
 perpetual guarantee of priceless privileges. After all, 
 the ])rimary and cardinal issue was, and is, the pre- 
 dominance of ecclesiastical influence in afiairsof state. 
 How this has been rebuked in Manitoba and Quebec 
 is now being demonstrated under our very eyes. 
 
ST. MARKS CHURCH AND OTHER CARES. 
 
 275 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Sr. MARK'S CHuiiCII AND 0711 EH CARES. 
 
 On the evening of Juno 12tli, 1880, scarcely iiioro 
 tluiii an hour after Principal Cavcn lia<l clismisHcd 
 tlie E(jual llif^lits Convention in the (Jrand Opera 
 House, the Presbyterian (Jeneral Assembly convened 
 in 8t. Andrew's Church. Principal Cirant was elected 
 Moderator. Mr. Macdonnell served actively as a 
 joint convener, with j)r. McVicar, of Montreal, of a 
 Connnittee on the Defence of Civil and Reli<rious 
 Rights. He also made a strong speech on the 
 Augmentation scheme and his customary amendment 
 to the temperance resolution, which declared the 
 liquor traffic contrary to the Word of God. The 
 former was a stirring appeal for universal interest in 
 Augmentation and greater liberality on the part of 
 many well-to-do churches, which contributed little or 
 nothing to the maintenance of weak or struggling 
 charges. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell was in a sense the host of this 
 Assembly, and his domestic hospitality was enjoyed 
 by very many of the Tnembers. The guests of the 
 time will not have forgotten his hearty welcome, ancl 
 
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276 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 the sweet and gracious dignity of the mistress of the 
 manse. 
 
 But what lay nearest just now to the heart of the 
 minist«?r of St. Andrew's, was not thi; business of the 
 A setnhly, nor the state of the Augmentation Fund, 
 nor the cause of " Kciual Rights," nor the revision of 
 the Creed ; it was rather tlie condition of St. Mark •. 
 This mission, wliose Iiistory lias already beeii luUy 
 sketched, was just now coming into the full status of 
 an independent congregation. After Mr. Gaudier had 
 hidden farewell to St. Mark's, in October, 1888, Rev. 
 Marcus Seott, newlv arrived from the Free Church of 
 Scotland, took his place as the stated missionary', and 
 kept up the good work. Already during Mr. Candler's 
 term of service the attendance at the services had 
 become so large that the managers of St. Andrew's 
 were authorized to erect a larger building. On ^Nlarch 
 10th a large school-room was opened close to the 
 former church at the corner of King and Tecumseh 
 streets. The new building had a seating capacity of 
 six hundred, and cost about !?11,000. On May liOth 
 the mission was organized as a congregation b^^ the 
 Presbytery of Toronto, Rev. Robert Wallace, the 
 venerable pastor of the West Presbyterian Church, 
 preaching the sermon, and Mr. Macdonnell addressing 
 the people in attectionate terms. 
 
 By this act 15G names were withdrawn from the 
 conununion roll of the parent church, which at the 
 end of the year was reduced to G97 members. It was 
 not expected that the new organization could be self- 
 sustaining, and help has since been freely given by 
 
ST. mahk's church and other carfs. 
 
 277 
 
 ;essiiig 
 
 |3in the 
 at the 
 It was 
 
 ije self- 
 en by 
 
 St. Andrew'.s for the maintenance of the services and 
 the protection of the property. 
 
 Tlie occasion was an eventful one in tlie historv of 
 a ^reat ecclesiastical devi'lopnient, and also in the 
 ministry of Mr. Macdonnell. He had lon«^ looked 
 forward to it with hi;jjh expectations, and it brought 
 to him in part the realization of his hojie.s. ])urin^' 
 the renuiinin^ years of his life ho watched over its 
 pro«j^ress with solicitude, and a peculiar reciprocal 
 sympathy between him and the people of St. Mark's 
 kept up the remendirance of the closer relationship 
 of the earlier time. 
 
 The record of the new organization may be brielly 
 sunnnarizcd. At its formation it was not ready to 
 call a pastor. Mr. Scott's term of efficient and faith- 
 ful service came to an en<l in October, ISH!), and he 
 was soon thereafter inducted into the charge of the 
 congregation of Campbellford, (Jnt., whence he has 
 since been transferred to the Central Church, Detroit, 
 Mich. It is .seldom that a young mission church is 
 blessed with two consecutive ministries of such power 
 as those of Gaudier and Scott. A call was soon there- 
 after extended to Rev. James G. Stuart, of Balder- 
 son, Out., a son of Rev. James Stuart, who had but 
 a few months before }jassed to his rest. Mr. Stuart 
 had himself been brought up in St. Andrew's, and, 
 during his incumbency of St. Mark'.s, strove faith- 
 fully to repay the debt which he owed to the Church 
 of his youth. In April, 1895, he was translated to 
 the charge of Knox Church, of London, Ont. His 
 successor is the present pastor, Rev. Peter E. Nichol, 
 
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 278 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 who was in<lucte(l in Septeinhor, 189.5. During the 
 ministry of Ixjth of these gentlemen, St. Mark's has 
 liad to strugf^le with the results of the general busi- 
 ness depression. It has, liowever, made a record for 
 fidelity and Christian activity worthy of its begin- 
 nings, and looks forward to the future with brighten- 
 ing hopes. 
 
 After tlie organization of the congregation on 
 May .SOth, it still remained under the care of Mr. 
 Macdonnell and an interim .session, of which he was 
 Moderator, until the settlement in January, 1890, so 
 that he had during the whole of this time the virtual 
 charge of two congregations. 
 
 The vacation from July (Ith to August 80th was 
 spent at Youghal. While there the hearts of all the 
 visitors were saddened by the death, without warn- 
 ing, of Mrs. MacMurchy, a greatly attached and 
 highly-prized friend of the Macdonnells, and ever 
 since greatly missed in Toronto. She was a highly- 
 cultured lady, full of zeal and power in Christian 
 and philanthropic work. During the pastor's absence 
 the pulpit was mainly supplied by Rev. J. A. Mac- 
 donald, editor of the Knox College MontJilu, later the 
 minister of St. Thomas, and now still more widely 
 known as editor of The Westminster. His thoughtful 
 and fervid discourses, given then and occasionally 
 thereafter, have made a deep impression on the St. 
 Andrew's people. 
 
 As w^as natural, Mr. Macdonnell was called to devote 
 a portion of his vacation to the cause of Equal Rights 
 in the Maritime Provinces. He addressed several 
 
 u 
 
ST. MARK S CHURCH AND OTHER CARES. 
 
 279 
 
 ^ratlu'rinf^H in Xovn Scotia and Now lirunswick, in 
 sonic of tlicni liavin*,^ the HU{)i)ort of Rev. Dr. K. F- 
 J^urns, of Ffalifax, N.S., tlu' Moderator of tlu; A.sscm)- 
 l»ly in 1887-SS. Of tlirsc nu'('tin*,^s two are special!}' 
 notewortliy, that in Halifax, and that in Chatham, 
 N.I). On the former occasion a spirite<l impi'omptu 
 debate was held between Mr. Macdonnell an<l Hon. 
 A. (i. Jones, of Halifax, who de[)reeated the a;^itation. 
 Probably Mr. Macdonnell never <rave in anv i)nblic 
 appearance greater evidence of readiness, lo;;ieal 
 power, eloquent expression, and masteiy over the 
 feelini^s (jf men, than he attbrded on this occasion jis 
 the champion of K(|ual Ri^^hts. At the Ohathani 
 meetint; he was confronted with an audience lar<;ely 
 composed of Roman Catholics, in a town wluu'e they 
 compri.se one-half of the ])Opulation. It was thought 
 doubtful at first whether a hearinif would be accorded 
 the visitors: but at the close of the meetini^ a 
 prominent Catholic declared that he would be ^lad to 
 join in a vote of thanks to Mr. Macdonnell, e\en 
 thou<rh he had to condenni his denunciation of the 
 Jesuit Society. 
 
 This propai^anda of the Ecpial Rif^hts doctrine was 
 simply the continuance of a course of public addresses 
 l)eoiin in Ontario early in the history of the a|;-itation. 
 In the busiest season of the sprin;^-time, whose (occu- 
 pations we have Just been revicwini^', he aihlressed on 
 the same behalf audiences in Hfimilton, Peterboro' 
 and other towns in Ontario. After his return from 
 the vacation, the same public activity was I:ept up, 
 while his work in the Council as a member of the 
 
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 FJFK OF I). .1. MACDONNKI,!,. 
 
 Citizens' imd Kxt'cutivc Coimnittecs was us «'xactin<r 
 as i'M'W III a<i<liti<Mi to these varie«i ciiiployineuts, lio 
 IouikI tiiiir <luiiii;^' the autuiiiii of IHSJ) and thi'ou^'li- 
 out l.S!K), to tai\(' an active part in a theolo^iica! ehil), 
 whose Work mainly consisted in a <h'taile<l study of 
 the |>n»j)h<'t Isaiali. The chil) met foil nightly, an<l 
 inchided Kcv. Messrs. F.<yle an<i IJoviik', of Hamilton, 
 alon;; with several ^^entlemeii from Toronto. 
 
 'i'he twent\'-two elders of 18(S(S were reduced during' 
 this year (lcS81)) to ninett'en. Mr. .h»ss and Mr. Dale, 
 the special ;^uardians of the spiritual interests of St. 
 Mark s, went oNcr to the new church as memhers 
 of its s»!ssioii, and bore their share, and more than 
 their .sliare, of the no li;;ht anxieties and hurdens 
 that caiiK^ with the transition period. Hew .lames 
 Stuart, at the time of his death the oldest Presby- 
 terian minister in Canada, died on February 19th, at 
 the a;.;;e of eighty-three. For several years he had not 
 been able to take a n ery active part in the work of 
 the tonirre<;ation on account of the feebleness of aj:ro. 
 But he had had a lonjjj career of usefulness in the 
 ministry before he was elected in 1<S7<) to tlio elder- 
 ship in St. Andrew's. He w^as a native of Ireland, 
 and had come to Canada in 1M47, labouring at first in 
 Frampton, in the Province of Quebec, and later at 
 Markham and Woodstock, in Ontario. 
 
 The noble record of liberality made in the previous 
 year was well maintained by St. Andrew's in 18S9. 
 Of the S27,7'J7 contributed to all purposes, the otier- 
 in^a for missionary and other outside causes were 
 !?G,250 in excess of those for con<^re^ational objects. 
 
VISIT TO THE PA(MKI(? COAST. 
 
 2S1 
 
 CHAITKR XXX. 
 
 I7.S77' TO T/fK rACIFIC COAST. 
 
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 the 
 (lur- 
 aiul, 
 
 i-st in 
 T at 
 
 At tlio close oi" 1889 jiiul tlie l)(><riiiniii<r of ISDO, Mr. 
 Macdt)nm'll made a trip to the I'aeitic coa.st, an enter- 
 prise vvliicli luul for liini most serious results eiitin-ly 
 unforeseen. The immediate ohject of the trip was 
 to take part in tiie opening of a ehureli in Victoria, 
 B.C. It was at the earnest and repeated re(|uest of 
 Rev. P. McF, McLeod, the pastor of the church, 
 tiiat he consented to <,'o. The time of the yi'ar was 
 unfavourable for comfortal)le travel. It was at the 
 season when the home con*jfre^^ation most needed the 
 presence of the minister. The importance of the 
 main object of the visit .seemed (juite ilisproportionate 
 to the etibrt necessary to accomi)lish it. lUit he 
 yielded to urf.jent solicitation Ix'cause he was the 
 most romantically <^enerous of men. l)esides, would 
 not an opportunity be thus att'orded him of observin*^ 
 the growth of the Church in the far West of Canada, 
 the proi^ress of missions, and the buildinjjf of churcln'S 
 and manses ? Having conducted the morning service 
 on Christmas Day, 1889, and having held a meeting 
 in the managers' room at its close, to which we shall 
 
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 282 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 refer later on, he started upon the fateful journey on 
 the evening of the same day. He had the genial 
 company of Mr. Angus MacMurehy, son of his old 
 friend, the Rector of the Jarvis Street Collegiate 
 Institute. 
 
 The interest of the trip was divided between 
 seeing old friends and in(|uinng into the needs of 
 mission churches and of the many districts destitute 
 of religious privileges. Port Arthur and Winnipeg 
 were already familiar to him from earlier visits. 
 Binscarth, where the two youngest brothers of IVIrs. 
 Macdonnell were then living, was new to him, while 
 beyond lay the great West with its unknown possi- 
 bilities. Just before it was reached, in the first hour 
 of the new year, the vicissitudes of winter travel 
 began to be felt with the freezing up of the engine. 
 A special adventure was a drive, on January 3rd, of 
 fifty miles, from Binscarth to xMoosomin, under a tem- 
 perature of 3') below zero and not a breath of wind 
 stirring. This trip was made in order to save two or 
 three days of the journey, as otherwise the travellers 
 would have to return to Portage la Prairie, to take the 
 main line. Mr. Macdonnell thus describes his outfit 
 in a letter to one of the children : "You would have 
 been amused if you had seen me dressed for our 
 drive. First, a pair of long thick socks over my own ; 
 then a pair of moccasins ; next a pair of felt boots 
 coming up over my trousers nearly to my knees ; 
 then a pair of corduroy leggings covering the whole 
 leg; a loose vest of chamois skin over my own vest; 
 then my overcoat, and fur coat, and scarf, and fur 
 
VISIT TO THE PACIFIC COAST. 
 
 28:3 
 
 mitts and cap! I am sure if I liad been photographed 
 the people of St. Andrew's would not liave i-ecognized 
 their minister." 
 
 The drive was lengthened to ten hours by several 
 deflections from the trail. The rest of the main line 
 of travel was traversed by rail. Stops of a day or 
 two were made at Calgary and Banff', each place 
 being made the centre of observations about Home 
 Missions, as well as the occasion of .sermon or week- 
 day talks. The notes which have Insen left of the 
 trip abound in entries about the mission stations near 
 the stopping places along the line. Here and there, 
 also, ministers, known or unknown before, would 
 come on board the train, and the subject that was 
 nearest his heart would be opened up for fresh illus- 
 tration. Apart from these and other bringers of 
 information, there was no lack of objects of interest 
 along the way. 
 
 At Westminster Junction he met Rev. E. 1). INFc- 
 Laren, of Vancouver, formerly of Brampton, one of his 
 oldest and dearest friends, who accompanied him to 
 Victoria. The special services at Mr. ^IcLeod's chui'ch 
 were held on January 12th and BHh. A conference 
 of clergymen to discuss Home Mission prospects was 
 among the events of special intei-est during the stay 
 at Victoi'ia. A drive to Es<juimalt Harbour and 
 many sights of the newly awakened Pacific settlement 
 went to make up an enjoyable visit. 
 
 Returning with Mr. McLaren to Vancouver, where 
 he rejoined Mr. MacMurchy, they set out on January 
 14th upon the return trip. An incident of the 
 
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 14 
 
 1 1 
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284 
 
 UFK OF I). J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 & 
 
 homeward journey is related in the tliird person by 
 Mr. MacMiircliy. It may help to explain to those 
 who did not know Mr. Macdonnell personally why 
 he was one of the best beloved men of his time: 
 
 " Returniiii; to the main line he took the afternoon 
 train the same day at Vancouver, thoroughly worn 
 out, as he had slept little on the steamer comin<^ 
 across from Victoria the previous night, and the 
 city ministers in Vancouver were anxious to see 
 something of him before he departed. 
 
 " As soon as the train started Mr. ^Facdonnell 
 endeavoured to compose himself in a sleeping car 
 compartment f(jr a short nap. In the same car 
 there were travelling east a mother with her children. 
 The youngest, who was just able to walk, was very 
 restless and fretful, and immediately connnenced to 
 explore the car and its occupants. A friend travel- 
 ling with Mr. Macdonnell, seeing this, managed to 
 block up with some l)aggage the entrance to the 
 compartment in which Mr. Macdonnell was dozing. 
 He soon awoke, however, and seeing the little fellow, 
 at once welcomed him and spoke kindly to his 
 mother. She was a sea captain's wife from Nova 
 Scotia, and had come with her husband on a long 
 journey around Cape Horn. She, too, was tired and 
 weary, and Mr. Macdonnell seeing this, forgetting 
 his own fatigue, took the little child in his arms, 
 and so walked up and down the passage-way while 
 the grateful mother enjoyed the respite for a' hour 
 or so. Every evening during the long journey to 
 Winnipeg this scene was repeated. The incident 
 
VISIT TO THE PACIFIC COAST. 
 
 285 
 
 made a deep impression on one otlier, at least, besides 
 the j^ratet'ul mother." 
 
 Stops were made at Virdeii and Winnipef]^ on 
 tlie eastward way. Anion*; otlier employnieiits at 
 Winnipeg, an address was given to the students at 
 Manitoba Colleoe. Toronto was reached on January 
 24th. Next day the service preparatory to the 
 winter communion was held, and the work in St. 
 Andrew's went on as before. 
 
 But all was not the same as before. His absence 
 for four Sabbaths had begun to tell upon the attend- 
 ance at the down-town church. Mr. Macdonnell's 
 presence was necessary at all times to Ueej) up a 
 wide-spread interest, but especially so in the season 
 of mid-winter. Never ai^ain in his life-time was 
 the church habitually thronged at the evening ser- 
 vice. This points apparently to one of the mistakes 
 made in taking the western trip. JUit the whole 
 explanation does not lie so obviously on the surface. 
 Far more important as an occasion of permanent 
 chaniTC was the fact that after this excursion he 
 never exhibited the same physical vigour that had 
 lent so much power to his preaching. He was 
 scarcely aware of it himself, but he had barely 
 passed his forty-tifth year when his constitution 
 began to be slowly untlermiued. We naturally think 
 't might have been difi'erent had he not put his whole 
 nervous and often much of his muscular bjrce* into 
 
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 * During liis i'onimiinioii addresses the wliole plat form ii^ed to 
 vibrate with the ehara(;teristie ih)\vii\Viird inoNciintit of the aim, 
 suddenly arrested at thi' liorizontal position. 
 
 ,■ . r 
 
286 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 what lie said or did. A close observer could trace 
 the gradual relaxing and ebbing of physical power 
 for years preceding his death, and not V>e at a loss 
 to associate it with specific occasions in the assump- 
 tion of new and difticult tasks, in the restless, 
 rushing energy which he lent to every thought, 
 word and deed. But we are measuring forces too 
 fine and impalpable in such an estimate. We may 
 sum up all by saying that he was worn down by 
 his consuming zeal for the house and the things of 
 God. And who knows but that the larger dominating 
 impulse riecei^sarihj determined the use and applica- 
 tion of his whole mental and spiritual endowment, as 
 the onward sweep of the mighty river draws with it 
 the tributary waters of every fountain, rill and 
 torrent of its watershed ? We may point confidently 
 and perhaps aright to this action or to that habit 
 as occasioning the decline and exhaustion of that 
 noble life. But while we account for one symptom 
 or another, we feel that for the working out of the 
 life of the spirit there is a law and a providence 
 lying beyond our ken, that may yet explain and 
 vindicate the whole. 
 
ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 287 
 
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 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 
 ,S"/'. AXJJRI-JirS IXSTITUTIC. 
 
 The gatlieririL!^ of St. Andrew's men luistily made 
 at noon on Chri.stnias day befcjre Mr. Macdonnell's 
 departure for tlie Pacific coast, marked an epocli in 
 tlie development of tlie Cluirch, Tt lielped to ojive 
 practical form to a movement tliat was to evoke some 
 of the finest spirit and workin<jj talent of the com- 
 nnmity, within and outsi<le of the congre(^^atit)n. As 
 St. Mark's was beconiin*:^ a .separate establishment, the 
 problem of how to do the best possible for the close 
 neighbourhood of the church came up for earnest dis- 
 cussion. All alonjj^ through its history St. Andrew's 
 had kept a watch over the people of its environment. 
 In the old days the Simcoe Street Mission School, under 
 the charge of Mr. MacMurchy, played its u.seful part 
 until the erection of the main church building. But 
 alongside of it and continuing long after it, a woi-k went 
 on quietly but vigorously — the work of grappling at 
 close c[uarters with vice and ignorance, whose out- 
 come now stands before the world as the St. Andrew's 
 Institute. The story of its progress sounds like a 
 romance. Indeed, the full telling of the tale might 
 
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 i ! 
 
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288 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
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 make ca first,-r.'ite book for the readinf^ of young 
 people, with the title, " The Dorset School : a true 
 Romance of Faith and Works." I shall endeavour to 
 give an outline of the story, inasnuich as Mr. Mac- 
 donnell and his co-workers have left no worthier 
 monument than St. Andrew's Institute. 
 
 It was in 1870, a few months before Mr. Macdon- 
 nell's induction, that Miss Isabella Ale.Kander took for 
 a time a class of boys in Mr. MacMurchy's mission 
 school. She was attracted toward one of them, a 
 poor little " arab " named "Eddie," whom she traced 
 to a haunt of poverty, tilth and vice in a large tene- 
 ment house in ])orset Street, a by-way that runs from 
 Kinij to Wellincton between Simcoe and John streets. 
 The house was at first a barracks, then a sort of 
 tavern called " The London House," but now was 
 occupied by twenty-five families, many of them com- 
 posed of thieves and abandoned men and women. 
 She found it hazardous to go there unattended, and 
 though greatly drawn to tlu' jilace she felt herself for 
 a year obliged to relinquish the idea of any permanent 
 work within its precincts. Kdilie, however, continued 
 to attend the school until, with his father, a drunken 
 shoemaker, he removed from the city. She was 
 touched by his " staying behind " at the clo«3 of school 
 to say good-bye to her, After a long inward debate 
 she resolved at all hazards to trv what could be done 
 for the reclamation of the London House and its 
 neighbourhood. In her own words* : " I could not get 
 
 * The account of the earlier youis of tlio nii.ssion I have largely 
 compiled from a reconl drawn up by Miss Ale.xandor herself. 
 
' I'd 
 
 ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 289 
 
 f for 
 anent 
 miied 
 unkcn 
 
 was 
 school 
 debate 
 
 (lone 
 ■ind its 
 not get 
 
 largely 
 
 >lf. 
 
 the place out of my mind. Often in winter nijjjhts I 
 have pictured those miserable children shivering under 
 their scanty bed-clothes, and I longed to carry just 
 a little sunshine to their poor sad little hearts." In 
 company with a lady belonging to the Alexander 
 Street Baptist Church, she ventured to survey the field 
 once more. They found that some of the more dan- 
 ijferous characters had been cleared out, but the 
 remainder were for the most part suidv low in 
 poverty, wretchedness and sin. Eddie's old (piarters 
 were found to be available for the purposes of a school- 
 room. They were now tenanted by si.K children 
 between the ages of four and fourteen, whose mother 
 was in prison, and whose father would often, when in 
 drink, turn them out in the night-time to sleep in the 
 cold passage-ways. A " Sunday school " was held on 
 Saturdays, with an average attendance of about 
 twenty. Unwonted Christian sympathy and kindness 
 attracted the half-famished, half-clothed children. 
 An answer given by a little girl of eight, the daughter 
 of an abandoned woman, told the secret of most of 
 tlie sorrow and shame of the London House. The 
 class was asked why they thought Adam and Eve 
 were so happy in the garden of Eden. She replied for 
 the rest, "There was no whiskty there." They 
 were greatly impressed by the singing, and the bigger 
 ones would sometimes gather the little ones in the 
 evening on the staircase, and wouM sing over together 
 the hymns they had learnt at the school. 
 
 During the second winter a " mothers' meetinc' " 
 was held, with the result that during the season 
 20 
 
 :|iai 
 
 •ia 
 
 f^- 
 

 mmm 
 
 m; 
 
 I u 
 
 290 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " about fifty dollars wore saved from drink an<l waste 
 to be spent in clotbin;,^" whicli the mothers were 
 helped b}' the teachers to make. A ni<fht-school was 
 also attempted : but boys from outsidt> eame in, over- 
 powered tlui AVouM-be pupils, and threw the seats 
 out of the windows. Hence the effort was temporarily 
 aban<loned. 
 
 The "Sunday school" also Miss Alexander was 
 obliged to demit for a time, upon the retirement of 
 her .associate. Slu' had in fact not had a chance to do 
 the most effective work, since she had on Sundays 
 been teachin<^ a real Sunday school in a distant part 
 of the city. Hut soon she found an op])ortunity to 
 devote the Sundays to the London House, and now 
 returned to hei- task with greater confidence than 
 before. It was still uphill work. A lady who had 
 been trying to teach tlie children, was one Sunday 
 pelted with nnid, and her dress was destroyed with 
 chalk. Tliev told Miss Alexander that the teacher 
 was cross, and they had to do it. A decisive step was 
 gained when the meeting-room was ])apered and 
 adorned witli pictures. The children began to look 
 upon it as their own. The boys then thought the 
 roof very dirty, plastered it themselves and white- 
 washed it three times : they also bricked up and 
 plastered the fire-place to keep out the cold, and one 
 Sunday Miss Alexander found a s(piare of carpet on 
 the floor for her to stand on, and an ornamental 
 hanging on the old mantel-piece. 
 
 The work was now (in 187(5) placed on a much 
 more promising basis. The one class increased so 
 
 f% 
 
 (• 1: 
 
 i: 'i 
 
much 
 
 bed so 
 
 ST. Andrew's institute. 
 
 291 
 
 !:i 
 
 j]jreatly that more friends were called in to assist in 
 forming and toaching new classes. St. Andrew's 
 Church having just heen estahlishe<l in the near 
 neighbourhood, Miss Alexander asked Mr. Macdonnell 
 to take up the mission. He heartily agreed ; and the 
 enterprise entered, early in 1877, on the stage of sys- 
 tematic organizati'in with a strong society at its back. 
 Further s[)ace was found necessary for the acconuno- 
 dation of the children. Other rooms in the London 
 House were hired and fitted up with benches and 
 desks. The time liad now come for the establish- 
 ment of an evening school wddch might be expected 
 to "stay." Miss Alexander still continued to teach in 
 both schools, but separate superintendents were ap- 
 pointed both for the Sunday and the evening school. 
 B(!fore the close of 1877 an important step was 
 taken in the founding of a Penny Savings Bank. 
 These three functions formed the loundation of the 
 " Dorset Mission," and have remained its central 
 features through all changes of name and place dur- 
 ing its history. At the end of that year there were 
 in the Sunday school nine teachers and seventy-nine 
 ])upils on the roll, gathered not only from the L(mdon 
 House, ])ut from several of the neighbouring streets. 
 Kev. R. H. Hoskin, an elder of the church from 187(1 
 to 1879, was the first superintendent, but he was 
 soon obliged to retire on account of ill health, and 
 his place was taken by Mr. John T. Small, who in his 
 turn was succeeded in the spring of 1878 by Mr. 
 Hamilton Cassels. The same unwearied worker was 
 in charge of the evening school from the first. It 
 
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 292 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 met twice a week. Soon the number of pupils had 
 to 1)6 limited to forty on account of the lack of 
 accommodation. Mr. Cassels naively informs us in 
 his first report that this number was still further 
 limited, through the wholesome provision soon found 
 to be necessary whereby each pupil was asked to 
 contribute five cents to make them feel more inde- 
 pendent. This principle also has survived to the 
 present time. Very suggestive is the statement that 
 the teach(^rs are not all adherents of St. Andrew's 
 church — another condition which has always been 
 maintained, to the benefit of both teachers and taught 
 and the cause of Christian union in Toronto. 
 
 The Penny Savings Bank had been started under 
 the auspices of the " Young Men's Association " of St. 
 Andrew's. Besides the direct object of its foundation 
 it served the extremely useful purpose of giving the 
 young men some more practical interest than reading 
 or listening to recitations, essays, debates and lectures 
 which formed their main occupation as a society, in 
 connection with the " Ladies' Association." At the 
 close of 1877 the number of depositors had amounted 
 to forty-one, the average amount deposited being 
 S2.40 for each bank night. 
 
 It may readily be imagined that these auspicious 
 beginnings of a noble work for the poor and the out- 
 cast, following so closely upon the establishment of 
 the church close beside the mission district, were a 
 great inspiration to the young pastor of St. Andrew's. 
 The very nature of its origin and its early struggles 
 formed a basis of trust, and gave a stimulus to per- 
 
ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 293 
 
 dins 
 ctures 
 
 y, in 
 
 j the 
 glinted 
 being 
 
 sistent eflbrt, which never failed of thoir ri^ditfiil 
 intlucnce upon tlie mind and heart of minister and 
 people. From year to year the mission developed, 
 steadily forming new points of wholesome contact 
 with the societies of the Chnrch, an<l utilizing the 
 worthiest ^ifts and energies of 3'oun^ and old alike. 
 Not that there were no set-backs or disconra^^ements. 
 The " romance " of such a work is not found in the 
 process but in the results, in the iniity of purpose 
 which pervades the whole, in the ovei'C()min<jf of 
 ditKculties, in the fultilling of high expectations, in 
 the castintj; out of evil and the brinjxinir in of ijood. 
 In such a work the obstacles are the irreatest known 
 to any moral enterprise, and checks and rebuti's ai'c 
 often the order of the day. 13ut the workers were 
 intelligent, faithful and hopeful, and their work 
 became in many of its features an illustrious success. 
 The minister, who kept close watch uj)on everything, 
 was him.self a constant inspiration as well as the 
 wisest of guides and counsellors, full of tact and 
 sympathy, and infinitely patient. Among the helpers 
 in one form or another, at one time and another, 
 were found nearly all the St. Andrew's people who 
 were worth more to the Church than the dollars and 
 cents they contributed or the pewdioldings they 
 occupied at the Sunday services. Certain names 
 have to be mentioned on account of special prom- 
 inence, but this is in a manner accidental ; and in 
 many instances the least known and most unob- 
 trusive work was the most effective. 
 
 For a time it was the Penny Savings Bank that 
 
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 HI 
 
 294 
 
 LIFE OF I). J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 proj^roHHcd most nipidly, Aft«'r a few montliH it waa 
 tiansfV'i'red from tlio Loudon House to au ofKcc; iu 
 160 Simcoe Stroct, wliere tlic uuuil)or of tli(< dt'|)osits 
 soou rail up into the liuudrods. 'I'lie " Dorset Schools," 
 as thoy l<>u^ ccjutinued to lie called, wore not allowed 
 to remain iu their orij^iual home after .lanuary, 
 1879. For over a year they wei'e liard put to it for 
 suitable accommodation. 
 
 The following extract from a coj)y of the Glohe, 
 printed near the end of 1879, will show some of their 
 aims and needs : 
 
 " One of the sad<lest conditions of cit}' life is that 
 the thou<jjlitful must needs witness boys and younj^ 
 men driftiu<( into evil ways without an effort being 
 made to save them. Neither as to the numbt-r nor 
 the <;racelessnesH of the rovsteriui; vouni»" hoodlums 
 that throng the streets is Toronto behind other cities 
 of the same size: and their nuudter and gracelessness 
 seem to increase in about e(iual proportion. So far 
 very little has been done in the way of giving the 
 better-disposed of these unfortunate youngsters a 
 chance to get (|uit of their evil associations. Night- 
 schools have done wonders for a few isolated individ- 
 uals, but the numbers who have Deen benefited by 
 night-schools are so small in comparison with the 
 seethinijf mass of doirenerating fellow-creatures as 
 well-nigh to strike dismay to the hearts of those 
 disposed to grapple with the subject. But there are 
 some courageous Christians among us who will not 
 cry craven at any difficulty when there is good, how- 
 ever little, to be done. It lias long been felt that the 
 

 that 
 
 ST. ANDREWS INSTITriE. 
 
 •io.-) 
 
 UHL'fullicss of Hm! nii;lit-s('li(M)ls ininlit Ih' iimiimst'Iv 
 int'ivusfd ii' soinctlunt^ ronld lie done to keep tlit; 
 att<'M<lfiiits IVoiii iM'uti'jili/iiii:: on the otlin- ni«{l»ts of 
 tlic w«'('k the tiood tlu'N' derive on tlie iiitdits \vl»e!i 
 tlie schools are oj>en. A detenniiied efloi't is now 
 heiii^ made to provide a pla<*e to which (he; lioys may 
 resort any evenine-, and where they will find some 
 .sort of instruciion or entertaiinncnt. awaitin;:' them. 
 Nearly all the hoys are now (h'iven to saloons, ciieaj) 
 dancing lialls, and various ([Uestionalde places of 
 amusement, lor tlie simph^ reason that the choice lies 
 hetween tlio.se places and the street corners. The 
 ix'r.sons havine- the matter in cliaree find a ditlicult\' 
 in ohtainiii^ tlu' I'oom or rooms which it is necressary 
 for them to hire for the purpose. They are not 
 unwillino^ to pay a niodtn'ate sum for accommodation, 
 Itut there ou^dit to he suthcient liherality amon^- onr 
 house owners to prom{)t the otierin^' of rooms for 
 the winter free. If there he any ])er.son willine- to 
 give or let for a mo<lerate price rooms fitted for tlie 
 accommodation of tift\' or sixt\' hovs, he will ])ei'liai)s 
 communicate with Mr. Hamilton ( 'assels. As the hoys 
 for whom this ))articular set of rooms is wanted ai'e 
 those who attend the ni<>-lit -school now held at New 
 St. Andrew's Church, the immmus shoidd he somewhere 
 near Queen and Simcoe streets. The project is not a 
 <leiiominational one in any sense, the per.sons ennraired 
 in it heiiiir thenisehes of \arious forms of reliiricjii. 
 No douht when the project is once started steps will 
 he taken to establish similar places in other parts 
 of the city." 
 
 f 
 
 J ; 
 
296 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ■'IfV 
 
 ' \i 
 
 ! 11' 
 
 l'^ 
 
 i Si! 
 
 The Sunday Scliool was lioiised for a time in one 
 of the rooms of tluj Toronto, (irey and Bruce Railway 
 free of chartre, then in tlie cliurch Sunday school 
 room, whore the evening school was also temporarily 
 accommodated. Early in 1880, however, the Session 
 decided that a special huildini,^ should be rented, and 
 a grant was voted by them for that purpose. This 
 was in a large measure provided for by the Young 
 Men's Association, which thus added a responsibility 
 for the maintenance of the schools to its manage- 
 ment of the bank. Tlie schools were then transferred 
 to the premises at 1()8 Adelaide Street West. Here 
 the bank was also lodged, and the building became 
 the centre of the local mission interest till 1885. 
 
 Here is a poster of this era which speaks for itself : 
 DORSET SCHOOLS FREE ! 
 
 NKJIIT-SCHOOL 
 
 Open every Tucsdiiy and Thursdiiy from 7.45 to 9.30 j).ni., for 
 boys who are unable to go to .school during the day. 
 
 CJ.ASSKH 
 
 Every Tuesday and Thursday from 3.30 t(j ;"> o'clock p.m., for 
 girls. Plain sewing and mending tauglit. 
 
 FRKE CONCERT 
 
 Every Saturday evening from 8 o'clock to 9.30. 
 
 PENNY SAVINCS BANK, 
 
 Under the management of the St. Andrew's Y.M.A., carried 
 on in the same Iniikling, and ojien every Saturday from 
 
 7 to 9 p.m. 
 
 SUNDAY SCHiJOL 
 
 Ojjen every Sabbatli from 3 to 4. .30 ]). m. Tliere is a library in 
 connection with the School for the use of tlie children. 
 
 No. 1()8 Adelaide Street West. 
 All Welcome who desire to improve themselves. 
 
m 
 
 ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 297 
 
 M 
 
 for 
 
 for 
 
 Tlins the second stage, still more or less tentative, 
 \V!is passed. Tiie mission had become consolidati'd 
 and centralized ; and for its increased efficiency and 
 brighter prospects, the workers thanked God and 
 took eouram'. 
 
 The Dorset Sunday school still found its (quarters 
 too strait for it, but struggled along till a more com- 
 modious house was foun<l in 2.S0', Adelaide Street, 
 whither the whi^le of the mission work was trans- 
 ferred in lS8o. In 1881 Mr. Cassels demitted the 
 charge of the night-school, and was succeeded by Mr. 
 dames Strachan, who has ever since been doing a 
 noble work for the education and reformation of the 
 ignorant and the vicious throughout the bounds of 
 the mission. In October, 1882, Mr. Cassels having 
 assumed the charge of the main church school, the 
 Dorset Sunday school also came under the charge of 
 IMr. Strachan, who has continued at the head of 
 it and has seen it grow into a connnunity of two 
 hundred souls. In November, 1881, a "Dorset sewing 
 class " for girls was formed. 
 
 Durinij 1884 and 1885 the ni<dit-school was 
 deprived of the services of Mr. Strachan, his place as 
 superintendent being taken by Mr. Samuel Moore. 
 Upon his resignation in 188G Mr. Cassels and Mr. 
 Strachan assumed the joint direction. At the end of 
 that year the Savings Bank had a balance on hand of 
 ^'.'Vi.S? after a total number of transactions of 5,170. 
 
 From 1887 to 1890 the night-school was conducted 
 on alternate nights by Mr. Strachan and Mr. John 
 Muldrew, one of the most earnest promoters of the 
 
 
298 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 mission work until his severance from the congrega- 
 tion in l!S9.'i. By ISSf) tlie number of pupils on the 
 roll of the Sunday School was 150, and the classes 
 could not be properly divided on account of the im- 
 perfect acconnnodation. A Bible class or "Young 
 Men's Club" was conducted by Miss Emma (Jeorge 
 (now Mrs. Strathy), who had been a most devoted and 
 successful teacher from the beginning of the organized 
 mission. This class luts remained one of the strongest 
 and most encouraging functions of the school. As an 
 outgrowth of the night-school the famous " Harmony 
 Club" was formed early in 18<S7. It was made up of 
 a number of the senior boys of the school, who 
 purchased their own music, and performed at first 
 under the direction of Miss Spence, and later under 
 that of the Misses Walker, Their concerts aroused 
 much enthusiasm and helped to raise the ideals of 
 taste and culture among the Ixjys of the institution. 
 
 Thus it was felt toward the close of 1889 that, 
 with better opportunities and facilities than any 
 previously afforded, the Dorset Mission would have 
 indefinite scope of development. The mind of the 
 minister, in that busiest of his years, agitated as it 
 was with the cares and perplexities that unexpectedly 
 attendetl the establishment of the new congregation 
 of St. Mark's, was also drawn out strongl}^ toward 
 the other section of the district included in the old 
 parish of St. Andrew's. Significant from this point 
 of view is a letter written on Septend)er 18th, 1889, 
 to Miss Machar, in which he says : 
 
 "After a jrood deal of hesitation I have resolved to 
 
ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 299 
 
 begin a weekly service for tlio special ])enetit of the 
 poor and neglected in the pai"ish which has been 
 assigned to St. Andrew's Church, and which includes 
 some pretty bad streets. TIk.' uieinbers ol' my Young 
 People's As.sociation have agreed to canvass these 
 streets and invite the peo})le to come. We are to 
 make a begiiniing on Thursday evening next. I did 
 not announce the meetiuii" on Sundav, because I then 
 might have had the room filled with people coming 
 to see how^ the attempt had succeeded. Indeed 1 am 
 askinj; mend)ers of the conofretration to stav away 
 unless they bring 'neglected folk' with them. 1 
 intend to try to preach very simply: and I trust the 
 Master will bless this ettbit to reach some of the 
 wanderers." 
 
 When Mr. ^bicdonnell attempted of set purpost; to 
 "preach very simply' tlu' efi'ort was apt not to be 
 very successful. His preaching was always simple 
 in a certain sense; but the forms ol" expression were 
 those of a logically correct thinker a!i<l a trained 
 rhetorician. To C(msciously break through his wonted 
 modes of conceiving and uttering truth, was to 
 cripple and hamper him, and prevent that perfect 
 spontaneity of speech which is essential to the high- 
 est power. Before hall'-cultured ])eople he was ;it 
 his best when out ol" the pulpit and in the more 
 sympathetic atmosphere of tht" school or the' elub- 
 room. The scheme hinte<l at was not })ersisted in ; 
 but the interest thus betrayed was thrown into the 
 channel of effort indicated by the newest develop- 
 ment of the Dorset Mission. 
 
 lil 
 
300 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 It will liave been observed liow the Men's Associa- 
 tion* had gradually assumed the responsibility for 
 the management of the educational and financial work 
 of the Dorset Mission. Its active members were all 
 earnestly intereste<l in one department or another of 
 its increasingly diversified work. At the meetings of 
 the Executive Connnittee, large and daring designs 
 were now l>ein<x niooted. 
 
 The matter w'as brou<>ht to a head at a i^atheriui; 
 of Association men and Mission workers held at the 
 manse on December 20th. The project of a new 
 building was discussed ; a lot on Nelson Street, 
 deemed to be eligible, was to be looked after ; and 
 !?l,G25 were subscribed on the spot. 
 
 Five (hiys thereafter the eventful Christmas day 
 meeting was convoked. It was a notable gathering — 
 elders, managers, business and ])r()fessional men, 
 crowded the managers' room. Mr. Macdonnell stood 
 at the end of the table ; a glow of enthusiasm, un- 
 wontedly bright even for him, w^as upon his face. 
 He told of the enlarging scope of the mission work, 
 and the hopes and aims of the new movement. He 
 spoke hurriedly, for his time was short. The response 
 was prompt and decisive. The subscription was 
 continued. Prominent in the lengthy list were these 
 itenjs: "John Kay, 81,500: John Kay, Son & Co., 
 SI ,000." 
 
 *The iiiiine was abl»reviated in 188.'?, in imitation of tho 
 " Women's Association." The latter more democratic and appro- 
 piiate title was chosen after a combination of the "Ladies' Asso- 
 ciation '" and the " Vonny Ladies' Association '' luid been etl'ected. 
 
"Hi! 
 
 ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 .'301 
 
 .■' y 
 
 of 
 
 tood 
 un- 
 face. 
 work, 
 He 
 ponse 
 was 
 these 
 I Co., 
 
 of the 
 
 appro- 
 
 i' Asso- 
 
 UVecteil. 
 
 At the ensuing annual mooting of the congregation 
 held on January 29th, 1890, after the ministers 
 return from the Pacific coast, the new project was 
 endorsed, and the Men's Association was authorized 
 to appoint a connnittee to receive further subscrip- 
 tions and proceed with the erection of the proposed 
 building, under the direction of the Board of Man- 
 agers. The subscription list ran up to nearly i?l»S,0()() 
 before May 1st, when work upon the building was 
 begun. 
 
 On Dominion Day, 1890, at 10 a.m , the corner- 
 stone was lai<l. Mr. John Kay, the venerable Chair- 
 man of the Board of Managers, and the chief financial 
 promoter of the enterprise, laid the stone. Among 
 those present was JMiss Alexander, like Jeanne d'Arc at 
 the coronation at Rheims, modestly rejoicinir at the 
 crowning of the work begun in faith and hope twenty 
 years before. Addresses were delivered by Mr. 
 Cassels and other representative men. In November 
 the buildinfj was ready for use. On the 22nd of that 
 month the formal opening took [)lace. Mr. John Kay 
 presided. After a short dedicatory service by the 
 minister, speeches were made by Sir Daniel Wilson, 
 President of Toronto University, Prof. (Joklwin Smith, 
 and Rev'. Drs. Parsons and McTavish. On Sunday the 
 2.Srd the large school-room was occupied for the first 
 time, the pupils of the main church school being also 
 present, when the minister delivered an impressive 
 and touching address. On Monday evening a meet- 
 ing was held for women and girls, Mrs. ^Macdonnell 
 presiding. Addresses were given by Mrs. John 
 
 M 
 
 H 
 
 % 
 
 \ i 
 
302 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 HI 
 
 Harvie, the eminent pliilanthropist, and the Bible 
 Readei', Miss (lardiner. On Tnesday eveninfjf a nieet- 
 iiio; '■ u' hoys was pi'esided over ])y Mr. Jolin I. 
 iJavK. on, and ad(h-essed hv Rev. Win. Patterson, of 
 Cooke's Clmrch. Dr. Daniel Clark, and Mr. Massie 
 representing^ the St. Andrew's Session. 
 
 Thus the "St. Andn'w's Institute " came into heinji^. 
 In '\y .\''>"'V- of the minister, this "is the ijfoodlv tree 
 wliieh iiov .-••. )\vn from the little saplin^j planted amid 
 sueh uid'avo^r;'ble conditions in Dorset Street. May 
 many a\ <"-iry - ,'d. rers find rest and refreshment 
 undei' its ^i/z-tadi;/- }>r{^nches! We have planted and 
 watered : may (Jod ^ivo the increase I" 
 
 The total cost of the structure and land was 
 Sl7,lo2. The buildino- is apportioned as follows: 
 In the basement ai'e a gymnasium, swinnnino; bath and 
 kitchen. On the first lloor, l>(\sides the large school 
 and assenibly-room, there are the library, the savings 
 bank, and an infant class room. On the second Hoor 
 are club and reading rooms, and small class rooms for 
 young and old of both sexes. On the third floor are 
 the living rooms of the caretaker's family and of the 
 Bible Reader. 
 
 As has been said, the Sunday school has had Mr. 
 Strachan as its superintendent since 1882. In 1891 
 he again assumed the undivided direction of the 
 night-school as well. In 1892 this responsibility was 
 shared with him by Mr. E. H. Walsh, one of the most 
 self-sacrificing friends of the institute, whose services, 
 helpful in many ways, have been most conspicuous in 
 connection with the gynniasium. In 1893 the impor- 
 

 Bible 
 ineet- 
 )lin I. 
 son, of 
 Massic 
 
 • bein^. 
 ,lv tree 
 (1 ainid 
 . May 
 ishinent 
 ted and 
 
 nd was 
 follows : 
 bath and 
 e school 
 ' savin<i;s 
 Dnd floor 
 oonis for 
 floor are 
 d of the 
 
 had Mr. 
 
 In 1891 
 of the 
 ility was 
 the most 
 
 services, 
 
 licuous in 
 
 le inipor- 
 
 sr. ANOKEWS INSIITUTK. 
 
 : 1 r I iS 
 
 
 i i I 
 
 '' ^ it 
 
ST. ANDREW'S INSTITUTE. 
 
 303 
 
 til lit duty devolved upon Mr. Walsh alone. In 1S94 
 Mr. Dui^ald Maeoillivrav, wlio had been a teacher in 
 ])oth scliools since his arrival in Toronto in 1S89, was 
 entrusted with the position. When he reuK^ve*! IVoiii 
 the city in 1895, he was succeeded by Mr, (ieo. A. 
 Keith, also a teacher From earliest manhood, who still 
 remains the honoured and trusted head ol' this vitally 
 important department of the work of the Institute. 
 
 Finally, attention may a<jfain be called to the great, 
 the really indispensable services of the Bible Reader, 
 who is a deaconess as well. It is she wlio most of all 
 brinjj^s the home-life of the needy, the sufferin*^, en' 
 the depraved of the district into contact with the 
 beneficent forces of the Institute. Miss Gardiner was 
 obliged, for family reasons, to remove from the city 
 in 1(SJ)2, since which time her priceless services have 
 been a<linirably continue(l by Miss Cecilia Strauchon, 
 for many years one of the most devoted of the select 
 and noble band of female work«'rs of St. Andrew's. 
 
 Both the Sunday school and the night-school have 
 steadily increased in numbers from the day of the 
 opening. The average attendance at the former is 
 now over two hundred, and at the latter close upon 
 one hundred. Each of these is a nucleus of a varied 
 religious and educative activity. It is perhaps the 
 civilizing influence of the Institute that is most ob- 
 servable with the rapid flight of time. Visitors who 
 look upon some of the rudest and roughest boys of 
 the district are surpri.sed to fliul them made over into 
 true " young gentlemen " when they next visit the 
 Institute. Girls are fitted to make new lioines liap- 
 
 i 
 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 \ r 
 
 
 ( 
 
li? 
 
 804 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ih' 
 
 h I 
 
 pier and more comfortable than those from whicli 
 they came. Of first-class value as a disciplinary 
 influence is the gymnasium, to which none are ad- 
 mitted but those who attend the night-school regu- 
 larly. A similar test of good conduct is a condition 
 of participation in the annual midsunnner excursion, 
 which is one of the great events of the year to all the 
 " good boys " of the school. An annual dinner is now 
 given to the lads in the winter season, to which 
 the senior boys contribute some of the oratory. 
 A committee of nine boys now assists in the 
 management of the school, the selection of this 
 committee being made hy the boys themselves. 
 Lastly, the boys edit and publish a monthly journal, 
 The Institute Reporter. 
 
 The Penny Savings Bank has risen to a balance of 
 about $6,000, standing to the credit of nearly six 
 hundred depositors. One family accumulated the 
 sum of $2,200, and was at length advised to invest 
 elsewhere. 
 
 Of other branches of the work carried on in the 
 institute — the Young Men's Club, the Macdonnell 
 Club, the Girls' Own Club, the Sewing Classes, the 
 Mothers' Meetings — there is no space left here to say 
 anything exce}>t to pronounce them very good, and 
 to wish them God-speed. Of all the agencies of the 
 Institute it may be affirmed emphatically that they 
 furnish unlimited scope for the exercise of even more 
 energy and talent than have as yet been devoted to 
 them. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell's attitude toward this great work, 
 
'1 
 
 ST. ANDREW S INSTITUTE. 
 
 305 
 
 n the 
 pnnell 
 s, tlie 
 o say 
 and 
 )i' the 
 they 
 more 
 ed to 
 
 work, 
 
 and his interest in it, may perhaps be sliown here 
 best by _i,nvin<,' tlie words of two of tlie most earnest 
 and sncccssful of the Institute workers, wlio bave 
 ah'uady been mentione<l in tbis hnrried sketeh. Mrs. 
 (Kmma Geori^e) Stratliy writes to Mrs. Campbell : 
 
 " In eonnecti(m with Mr. Macdoiniell and the work 
 at the Institute, I think what strikes me most is the 
 unl'ailing synipathy with w'liich lit; always listened 
 to our plans. In the early years especially, many 
 of them were ci'ude and impossible, but he never 
 chilled our enthusiasm, and he always eneonrat,^ed 
 us. His powder of raising his audience to his own 
 level always struck me when listening to him ad- 
 dressing the boys. In the days of the old ' ])or.set ' 
 his audience was often a very turbulent one when he 
 began to speak, yet he invariably secured their 
 respect and attention. The same thing was very 
 noticeable one winter when, through the kindness of 
 one of the members of 8t. Andrew's ('liurch, we 
 gave a free .supper every Sunday evening for some 
 months to the men in the cheap lodging-houses in the 
 neighbourhood. The men who thronged the room 
 on those occasions represented proba])ly the lowest 
 element to be found in any Canadian eity. Mr. Mac- 
 donnell came several times to the little service held 
 alter the tea, and his addresses have alwavs remained 
 in my mind as models of what such addresses should 
 be — full of the Gospel and of the s[)irit of brotherli- 
 ness, and without a trace of that condescension that 
 spoils such addresses so often. One man was heard 
 to describe the room to another as ' the place where 
 '21 
 
 It 
 
 ■^ \ ! 
 
I 
 
 306 
 
 LIFE OF D. .J. MACnONNKLL. 
 
 I '■ ; 
 
 its i 
 
 tliey jL,nve you n }j;()ocl cup of tea, and treat you like 
 a ^n'utleuian ' ; and I liave often thought tliat tlie 
 words Mr. Macdonnell spoke, and tlie sjiirit in wliicli 
 he met those men, must have iidluenced them if any 
 man or any words could. 
 
 "I liave <,^one to Mr. Macdonnell at all times and 
 on many errands. I never knew him when he was 
 not ahle to ^ive thought and care to each individunl 
 case, as tliou<,di it W(!ri' the one responsibility he had 
 to carry. For two winters he spoke once a month 
 to the mendjers of the Sunday Aftei'noon Club at 
 the Institute, and his w(n'ds are still remeudiered 
 and <|Uoted by men wlio, beloni^dnt^ to different 
 churches or no church at all, yet spoke and thou<^ht 
 of lum as ' our minister.' 
 
 "The day of liis funeral, T overtook one of the 
 ni^ht-school boys painfully clind^ini^ the steps to the 
 churcli gallery, disabled by a lame foot. Witliout 
 tliinkino;, I said, ' Uh, you shouldn't have come up all 
 these steps :' and I felt ashamed when the boy said, 
 ' I wanted to come ; he did lots for us.' Each of us 
 remendjers different thin<:^s — the word of cheer when 
 we were down-hearted, the word of warnin<^ when 
 we were mistaken, the ceaseless stream of work and 
 thouojht and prayer we were privileged to catch 
 glimpses of, and that formed for us an endless in- 
 spiration." 
 
 Mr. Dugald Macgillivray expresses his estimate in 
 these terms : 
 
 "Innnediate, or more remote, his influence was 
 undoubtedly the motor which supplied the current of 
 
 » 
 
vn 
 
 ST. ANDREWS INSTITUTE. 
 
 307 
 
 was 
 
 nit of 
 
 tho various Cliri.stinn activities, first niirturcfl in tho 
 old J)orsot Mission, and now carri('(i on to sucli a 
 dt't^rco of conipletcnoss in tlie Institute. I have not 
 jjeard that anyone; was ever told of liis own precise 
 ideas as to how the work should Ix; done, or wliat 
 scope it should take. With regard to both, I have no 
 doubt at all tliat he had vcny clear and positive views ; 
 and if wc were to seek a reason why he always nmin- 
 tained a certain reserve it would be, that that which 
 was bein^ done was, under all the circumstances, the 
 l)est means to the end lie had set for it. He showed 
 a clear preference that the work sliouM be primarily 
 amonj^ the youn^, who wouM, with the best results, 
 be influenced hy the workers who, in tlu; main, were 
 themselves but younuf people. He believed that the 
 pressure upward, in the hom< of families wlio, 
 throujijh social or economic conditions, had lapsed or 
 ^a'own careless was more effective than a pressure 
 dowmvard ; and so, by teachiii(( and traininj^ the 
 boys and j^irls, tlie fathers and uiothers mij^ht be 
 taught, too. 
 
 " As a minister and pastor lie knew only too well 
 the painful indifference, often linked to low living and 
 low thinking, which was but too common in the neigh- 
 bourhood. The ordinary macliinery of the cluirch was 
 not enough to arrest the attention of such to lier 
 services. Tlie minister was convinced, the church 
 being there, that they should come to it, and any 
 proposal to hold preaching or devotional services in 
 the Institute for them — in effect, to make it a mission 
 church— always met with his firm objection. 
 
 it 
 
 il-^ 
 
II 
 
 I 
 
 iJ 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 308 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " I do not know that he had much sympathy in later 
 years with mission churches of that kind at all ; and 
 I suppose the grand thing about the * Augmentation 
 Scheme ' to him was that by the help of the whole 
 Church the weak cause got its own autonomy and 
 independence. 
 
 " Toward those who carried on the various work in 
 the institute he was unobtrusive, while always ready 
 to participate in any matter wherein his advice or 
 assistance was reijuired. There, as in other things, 
 he did not spare himself, nor think that gifts, so 
 singularly noble, were unworthily bestowed upon 
 even the smallest details of the several departments. 
 
 " He lived the life of the love of Christ ; he had 
 convictions deeper than the creeds ; he had an exqui- 
 site moral balance, and his right thinking made right 
 speaking and right living. We saw the richness of 
 his life, and felt the power of his goodness. 
 
 " For the l)oys and girls he had a strong sympathy 
 and affection. He felt himself that he did not always 
 make them realize this, for, although simple and direct 
 in his own speech, he had not learned that peculiar 
 quality in theirs. His manner with them was usually 
 grave, and his instruction was oftener stated direct 
 than by means of illustration or story. For the 
 present, he believed in discipline and restraint, that 
 there might be true freedom and self-control in 
 maturer years. His interest in them gave him a 
 wider interest in those of the whole city. He publicly 
 advocated the opening of free playgrounds, and char- 
 acterized it as outrageous that lads had not where to 
 
ST. Andrew's institute. 
 
 309 
 
 . U 
 
 engage in a race or a game of ball without fear of 
 arrest. I have heard him in private approve of the 
 prmeiple of the Curfew, and deplore the evils to city 
 youth of late hours on the corners of our badly-lio-hted 
 back streets. He believed it would be better in this 
 way to arrest the vicious tendency before it assumed 
 the shape of crime; and that it would be found n.ore 
 effectual in the suppression of offences, and more 
 economical than the best organized system of 
 punishment." 
 
 ! I I 
 
 ill 
 
■1^ 
 
 i 
 
 €T .,.• 
 
 i t 
 
 310 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell's work in 1890, though not so 
 distractingly varied as that of 1889, was not decreased 
 in vohime. Campaigning and council work for the 
 Equal Rights Association still demanded nmch of his 
 energy. He preached three times a Sunday more 
 frequently than was good for him. Indeed, on one 
 midsummer day (June 29th) he preached four times 
 — a feat not often attempted in these degenerate 
 days. The exhausting midwinter trip to the Pacific 
 coast being constructively a holiday, lie did not deem 
 it well to absent himself from Toronto for a long 
 vacation, but contented himself with a ten days' trip 
 to Lake Joseph, taking his two boys, James and 
 Logic, with him. 
 
 The Assembly of 1890 met in Ottawa. Among its 
 proceedings it took cognizance, as in the preceding 
 year, of the clerical usurpations against which the 
 Equal Rights agitation was directed ; and here Mr. 
 Macdonnell was again active. He also carried through 
 an overture from the Presbytery of Toronto, the prin- 
 ciple of which had originated among the young men of 
 

 TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 311 
 
 St. Andrew's, looking to the formation of young men's 
 Home Mission societies in tlie several cont-'reirations 
 of tlie Chureli. He preached in St. Andrew's Cluu-ch^ 
 Ottawa, on June loth, on "Ye are the salt of the 
 earth," A venerable minister of the ]\[aritime Pro- 
 vinces said to the writer about niiionth thereafter: 
 " I do not approve of Mr. Macdonnell's sentiments on 
 temperance, and I am a lame man: but I would walk 
 Hve miles at any time to hear that sermon over 
 
 airani. 
 
 For a month from August 27tli, }>\r. Macdonnell 
 was absent from Toronto aoain, visiting the North- 
 West, but upon a different mission. He had been 
 <leputed by the Assend)ly to visit Prince Albert 
 in company with Kev. ])i-. Warden, of Montreal, 
 to inquire into the att'airs of tlie Xisbet Academy 
 at that place, and other matters concerning the 
 work of the ('hurch in that district. Two more 
 earnest and experienced Home Mission men it would 
 be hard to find : and this congenial companionship 
 made the trip of great value as well as interest to 
 both of the travellers. Mr. Macdonnell's note-book 
 is full of details of this work and its needs in the 
 various localities visited by theni, as well as observa- 
 tions on the condition of the country during that 
 most favourable season of the vear. Thev had the 
 distinction of arrivint; in Prince Albert with the first 
 train on the road that made its way as far as the 
 station. 
 
 It was in 1890 that, the flood-tide of St. Andrew's 
 outward prosperity began to turn. The most serious 
 
 
 s :^ Ml 
 
 Hi'i 
 
.312 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 f ': 
 
 symptom was the loss of mombors by their removal 
 to residences remote from the church bnildinfj. This 
 was the time just after the heipfht of the " boom " in 
 Toronto, and houses-building was f^oin<:; on rapidly 
 within the newer portions of the city. For the first 
 time in the history of Mr. Maedonnell's ministry the 
 connnunion roll marked a decrease as due to ordinary 
 causes, 'i'hat the clrTijh was prosperinjjj spiritually 
 was shown by the addition of iifty-nine new members 
 duriiifr the year. But the removals were more 
 numerous still. At the close of 181K), the twentieth 
 anniversary of the minister's induction, he gave an 
 historical review of the life and work of the Church. 
 He notices this decline in the membership, but 
 rejoices that the balance is still on the side of pro- 
 gress, in view of the fruitful activity manifested on 
 every side. 
 
 Early in 1891 there were abundant signs that Mr. 
 Maedonnell's health was being seriously affected. The 
 lack of vigour which showed itself after the western 
 trip of a year before was becoming more marked. 
 This, however, would have been disregarded by him- 
 self, as far as public activity was concerned, if it 
 were not for the appearance of a special symptom 
 which could not be so easily ignored. It had for 
 nearly two years been observed that his voice had 
 not its habitual strength. After long and frequent 
 speaking it more than once became alarmingly husky. 
 Now, toward the end of January of this year the 
 symptoms threatened to become chronic. Brief rest- 
 ing and medical treatment were of no avail, and on 
 
TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 313 
 
 liul for 
 ice had 
 •equent 
 husky, 
 ear the 
 if rest- 
 and on 
 
 February 2Sth the Session appointed a committee to 
 arrange for a " furlougli." As soon as tlie matter 
 began to bo discussed a few gentliMiien in the con- 
 gregation, wliose kindness the minister constantly 
 remembered ever after, insisted on defniying the 
 expenses of a lengthened trip abroad. It happened 
 that one of the new Canadian Pacific steamers, the 
 Empress of Japan, was soon to sail from Li\erpool by 
 the Mediterranean and Suez route to China and Japan, 
 where she would bemn her trans-Pacific vovages. 
 Mr. John Kay, well known to the readers of this 
 memoir, with his second son, Frank, and Mr. David 
 ^^cGee (already mentioned as a former elder of St. 
 Andrews) were to make the tour of the world, using 
 this steamer as the chief means of travel. Here was 
 just the chance for Mr. Macdonnell, if he would join 
 the party. His chief hesitation was due to the desire 
 that Mrs. Mac(h)rmell, whose health also was in need 
 of recuperation, should not be left out of the pro- 
 gramme. It was not possiljle for her to accompany 
 him so far. For this and other reasons it was 
 decided that he should not make the whole of the 
 round trip, but should return from one of the 
 Asiatic points of call to Scotland, whither she should 
 repair later. There they could have a restful visit 
 among the old friends and pleasant scenes of the 
 north. 
 
 At a crowded prayer-meeting on ^^arch lUh he 
 gave an affectionate and hopeful farewell talk. The 
 next day he left Toronto in company with the Kays, 
 many friends being at the station to say good-bye. 
 
 u 
 
 wx 
 
 m' 
 
 ||[:1 
 
 ■I ^ 
 
irr 
 
 314 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 it 
 
 i-i i 
 
 M^ 
 
 ]H 
 
 The fellow-passengers sailed by the Servia from 
 New York on March 14th. The trip was greatly 
 enjoyed by Mr. Maedonnell, and the effect of the 
 change upon him may be judged by this sentence, 
 from a letter written to his wife near the close of 
 the passage (March 20th) : '■ After supper Frank 
 Kay and [ paced the hurricane deck till 11 p.m., 
 enjoying the strong head-wind, against which we 
 could almost lean without falling, and the spray 
 dashing over the bow as the great ship plunged 
 trembling into the trough of the sea. It is glorious ; 
 and oh, how well I am ! I have forgotten that I 
 have a throat, and as for the rest I am kept in 
 prime condition by abundant exercise in the best air 
 of the universe. Thanks be to the Giver of all good, 
 to our heavenly Father, for all His loving-kindness." 
 He had so far forgotten that he had a throat that on 
 the same evening he read at the " concert " the 
 " Chariot Race," from " Ben Hur." On the next 
 day (March 21st) he writes : " My heart is full of 
 thankfulness for the pleasure and comfort of this 
 prosperous voyage. ... I have realized how near 
 we can be in spirit to the beloved ones who are thou- 
 sands of miles away. Then I am sure there is no 
 time at which we are nearer than when we pray for 
 one another. I always have a (juiet half-hour in my 
 stateroom after breakfast before going at my German 
 book, and I do not think I have ever before so much 
 enjoyed the remembering of you all, and of the sick 
 and afflicted in the congregation, in praj^'er." The 
 " German book " to which he alludes was a volume 
 
TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 315 
 
 by the late Prof. Delitzsch, of Leipsic, " Ein Tao; in 
 Capernaum." He was always very nnich interested 
 in the Sunday services on his ocean trips, and never 
 failed to mention them in his letters or his notes of 
 travel. On March 22nd, as no official service was 
 arranf^ed for, he preached in the music room just 
 before the passengers were ready to land. 
 
 An incident, connnonplace enou<;h in itself, which 
 took place in Liverpool on Marcii 2.*ird, is too charac- 
 teristic to be omitted. It is his own naive description : 
 " As I returned to the hotel I met a crowd of decent- 
 looking emirrrants, with bags, boxes and bundles of 
 every conceivable shape and style in tlieir hands. In 
 the rear was a very tired-looking woman, with a baby 
 on her right arm and a very heavy basket in her left 
 hand, while a three-year-old child was hanging to her 
 skirts. Acting on the impulse of the moment I turned 
 after her, and asked her to allow me to carry the 
 l»asket. 8he demurred, probably thinking that I might 
 run away with her worldly goods : and therefore all 
 I could do was to carry the big basket along with 
 her. I found she was a German, and I aired mv 
 imperfect German during our walk at the tail of the 
 procession. We brought up at a place where a meal 
 was to be served to the crowd — at least so I sup})Ose 
 — and I quite enjoyed the hearty IcJi daiike schr of 
 the poor woman, who was now (piite free of any 
 suspicion. Indeed, I think she would have trusted 
 me with the baby if we had had farther to go." 
 There was only one person in the world to whom 
 he could speak of acts like this, or indeed of any 
 })ersonal achievement of his own. 
 
'"" ■! 
 
 ii 
 
 TT 
 
 h 
 
 i ii 
 
 I 1 
 
 I 
 
 r 1 1 
 
 316 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Of the railway journey to London, on March 24th, 
 the i'ollowinii: rcFreshinij observation is made : " How 
 niucli better to be lookinj:^ on the pleasant country 
 between Liverpool and London than to be getting 
 a headache in the lecture-room of St. Andrew's 
 Church!" The allusion apparently is to the weary- 
 ing Home Mission Committee meetings, which were 
 regularly held in the place of varied memories thus 
 alluded to. 
 
 Arriving in London, on March 24th, one of his first 
 duties was to consult with Dr. Lennox Browne. 
 When this gentleman — a man of few words — turned 
 on his reflector and made his inspection, he ex- 
 claimed, " Oh, what a condition of the throat ! " On 
 further examination it was found that there was an 
 obstruction in the right nostril, which would have to 
 be removed by a special operation. Until this could 
 be done the patient was free to " knock about the 
 city," to use his own phrase. This he did by looking 
 up old friends, visiting the Dore Gallery, and hearing 
 the " Messiah," in Albert Hall, on Good Friday. A 
 programme for the intervening (Easter) Sunday is 
 given as follows : " To-morrow I hope to hear the 
 music in the Abbey at 10, Boyd-Carpenter preach at 
 11, Dean of St. Paul's at 3.15, see a children's proces- 
 sion in some High Church at 4, and Spurgeon at 
 C.30. If I can get in one or two more ' events ' 
 without breaking the Sabbath beyond possibility of 
 repair, I will let you know ! " He did not. 
 
 On March 31st the expected operation was per- 
 formed successfully without anaesthetics, by the 
 
TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 317 
 
 sa\vin<; out of a bony protuberance in the ri^ht 
 nostril. After a few days' nursing in a private 
 hospital, and a slinjht operatii^n on the uvula and 
 pharynx on April Gth, the results of the treatment 
 were pronounced very satisfactory. It was also 
 found, as a matter of course, that the throat had not 
 had fair play inspeakin^^: and Mr. Mae<lonnelI was 
 sent by Dr. Browne to Dr. Emil Behnke, a joint- 
 author with him of a valuable little book, " Voice, 
 Song and Speech." With the latter he had, in the 
 meanwhile, two lessons in " voice ju'oduetion," that is, 
 took breathing exercises, a process which, following 
 up the operations, were of essential benefit for the 
 remainder of his life. 
 
 He returned to Liverpool on April lOth. There he 
 met the Kavs, who had been in Scotland in the 
 interval, as well as Mr. McCiee, who had come over 
 by a later steamer. The Eriiprcsi^ of Japdti sailed 
 the next day (11th). The voyage was greatly en- 
 joyed, the stops and visits on shore most of all. They 
 landed at Gibraltar on April IGth, and spent the 
 whole day there. Another stop was made at Naples 
 during the lOtli and 20th, Here visits were made to 
 V'^esuvius and Pompeii, and letters were received from 
 home. 
 
 Port Said was reached on the morning of April 
 24th. Thence an excursion was made to the Pyra- 
 luids, under the auspices of Messrs. Cook and Son. 
 The first stage was a four-hour trip to Ismailia, in 
 a small steamer. At 5 p.m. the train started thence 
 for Cairo, passing through the land of Goshen and 
 
 1 
 
 \ ' US 
 
 J; 
 
 ^i|l 
 
 :iPfi 
 
 I 
 
 : 
 
318 
 
 LIFE OF I). J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I • ^ ! !. 
 
 i ■ 
 
 h -f 
 
 near Pithom, the rooontly discovorofl "treasure-city " 
 ol' Pliunioli, .'111(1 tlie Itiittle-tield of Tel-ol-Kobir. 
 Cairo was readied at 9.30. 1'lie next iiiorninjij a 
 ])aity ot" ei^dit was made up. Two nios(jues were 
 visited. " Tlience," he writes, '' we drove liy the 
 boulevard Mehemet Ali to the citadel.' Who are 
 these sentries pacin*^ up and down at the fijate-way ;* 
 No E<.(yptians these, but unmistakable British red- 
 coats. There sounds the bugle, and somehow a thrill 
 ji^oes through one's veins." After lunch the party 
 divided, and took carriages to tlie Pyramids. On 
 their way the Museum was visited, and among other 
 anti(]uities the face of Raineses II., the Pharaoh that 
 "knew not Joseph," was seen and admired ; for it is a 
 strong face, that of one of the greatest coiujuerors 
 and builders of the ancient world. After an hour in 
 the Museum they (b'ove upon a well-inade road under 
 tine trees, which afforded grateful shade, driving in 
 the hottest part of the day to the pyramids of CJizeh. 
 Here the wonders of the largest, if not the oldest, 
 tombs in the world were duly explored. The first 
 {ind hugest, that of King Cheops, also the most 
 ancient, claimed chief attention, the Sphinx, not far 
 from the second pyramid, receiving also its due share 
 of wondering admiration. A ride on camel-back was 
 taken from the Sphinx to the Great Pyramid. The 
 account of the visit reads thus : " We were besierred 
 by Arabs who wished to take us to the top of the 
 pyramid. None of our party made the ascent. For 
 my own part, prudence prevailed over enthu, iasm, 
 and considering the })robability of finding the steps 
 
 ( . 
 
ity" 
 ol)ir. 
 njr a 
 wore 
 
 the 
 ) arc 
 svay '. 
 , red- 
 thrill 
 party 
 . On 
 
 other 
 h that 
 
 it is a 
 juerors 
 lour in 
 
 under 
 
 iucf in 
 
 Clizeh. 
 
 oldest, 
 [\(i tirst 
 L most 
 liiot far 
 
 [e share 
 
 .ck was 
 The 
 
 ►esiefijed 
 oi the 
 
 it. For 
 
 111. iasm, 
 
 lie steps 
 
 TRAVELLINf; FOR HEALTH. 
 
 .Slf> 
 
 of tlio pyramid a siuhiforium, from whicli I sliould 
 descend to face tlie risks of a drive of eis^lit or nine 
 miles in tlie cooler evening air, I jierpetrated an act 
 of heroic self-denial, for win'ch I trust I sliall <jjet due 
 credit from those most interestcMl in my welfare." 
 
 Durinijr most of the trip down tlu; Ked Sea. other- 
 wise enjoyable, the heat was very <;ivat and eiier- 
 vatinjr. The (Julf of Aden was entereil, and the 
 imnu'nse cliHs of Cape (iuai'dafui passed on the 
 mornint; of May 2nd, tlie lied Sea voya.r(«i thus 
 lastin;r five davs. Colombo was reached in the 
 morning of the 8th. Here and at Kandy the novid- 
 ties of the tropical island, and tlie half- Asiatic, iialf- 
 Kuropean civilization afforded nuicli entertainment. 
 A n^ood friend was found in Rev. Mr. Watt, (jf the 
 " Scots Kirk." On the Otii the J'Jmpves.s left for the 
 farther East, beai'ing with her the Kays an<l Mr. 
 Mc(ilee. In s[)ite of the curious and instriictive siohts 
 Mr. Macdonnell be_i:;an to be very homesick. It was 
 not until the aftei'uoon of May 14th that the Penin- 
 sular and Oriental Company's steamer Ptiramaitd 
 took him on board for the return vova^e. A landin<^ 
 was made at Aden on the 2 1st. Thus far he had con- 
 trived to secure a state-room for himself, thenceforth 
 he was to be one of three room-mates. The heat 
 was not so intense throurrh the Red Sea as h(\ had 
 feared, but havinLf had "prickly he.'it" for a fort- 
 nio'lit before entering it, sleep was hard to get. Port 
 Said was reached on the 27th. The rest of the 
 trip to England by way of Bi-indisi, Malta, and 
 Cil)raltar, where stops were successively made, was 
 
 •■m\ 
 
 
 ' "i 
 1 
 
 \m 
 
 ! I 
 
 '.} 
 
320 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 in 
 
 wi 
 
 not very eventful. At Brindisi a cable doapatch was 
 sent to Mrs. Macdonnell, " Hoineward, J*<ii'ani<ttlii" — 
 a curious instance of the associations of the word 
 " home," as blcndinf^ tlie old home-land and the new 
 indistin;,mishal)ly. Months afterwards, in the course 
 a sermon in his own church in Toronto, speaking 
 of the otlusr Fatlu.'rland, the home of the soul, lie 
 dwelt on the lonj^nng that many weary sufKcrers have 
 to enter upon its rest, and he used his own exi)erience 
 on this v(jyage as an illustration. He related how, 
 when he came on board the l\innniUla at Colond)o, 
 he ran at once to the farthest end of the ship, and 
 stretchinj^ out over the bows, cried out, " Home 
 home I " Ho had a singular incapacity of enjoying 
 himself when away fi'om home, without the com- 
 pani'^iishif) of some intinuite friend, and, though 
 pleasant ac(juaintances were made on this return 
 voyage, he probably never sutiered so greatly in his 
 life from this special form of loneliness. 
 
 He reached London on June 9th by way of 
 Gravesend. On that day he notes, " Delicious, fresh 
 green gra.ss and leaves." He now received some 
 supplementary treatment of the throat by Dr. 
 I3rowne, and several additional " voice-production " 
 lessons from Dr. Behnke. Of these he writes on 
 June I7th to Mrs. Macdonnell, " Passenij^er on boar' 
 SS. Sdvdlnian, Londonderry, Ireland ": "I cnin> i \ 
 yesterday from my visit to Lennox Brow _,, 
 of heart, for he told me I should not reij if an\ 
 further treatment. ... I have had this moinijg 
 my last lesson from Mr. Behnke. He also says that J 
 
I PI 
 
 , i 
 
 I was 
 
 la — 
 wor«l 
 3 new 
 >()urHO 
 
 ml, lie 
 s bavc 
 jricnce 
 d how, 
 )loinl)0, 
 lip, aiul 
 ' Home, 
 
 njoyins 
 ic coin- 
 thoii^li 
 return 
 
 in hia 
 
 Wiiv of 
 |ns, fresh 
 d some 
 hy Dr. 
 iluetion" 
 rites on 
 m boar'^ 
 
 II' any 
 
 mornii'i:; 
 
 s that 1 
 
 TUAVKLLINfJ FOIl IIKALTH. 
 
 :t2l 
 
 do not need any further instruction — oidv to practise 
 whut I liave learned. I tiiink I have i;()t hold of his 
 {)rinciple." \hi also wi'ites f)f the inrjiression produced 
 in En^danil hy the death of Sir John .Macdonald, 
 and of havinjij attended the .Mriiioi'ial service in 
 Westminster Ahltey on 12th inst., addiut,^ " Tlu; 
 death of Sir .John makes a ^reat chant^e on the frtC(!of 
 Canadian })olitics. \n spite of all his faults, he has 
 made a <le(![) mark on the history of Canada, and has 
 serve<l his country devotedly." 
 
 i\Irs. ^hicdonnell had left Toronto on June Mth hy 
 steamboat for Montreal, takin*^ thence the Sdrdiiiidu 
 for Liverpool on the Oth. It was at one time 
 feared that the plan so well arran<;ed mi^lit not be 
 carried out on account of a serious accident which 
 had befallen Mrs. Smellie, then in her seventy-sixth 
 year. She had been thrown out of a carriat^e, so that 
 her head struck a^^^ainst a curb-stone. Her raj)id 
 progress toward complete recovery, so fjratifying and 
 surprisinj^ to her friends, allowed Mrs. Macdonnell to 
 leave for the old land with an easy mind. The five 
 vounjjer children — there were now seven in all, 
 George, James, Logic, Eleanor, Norman, ^Margaret, 
 Kenneth — were left at Fergus. She arrived at Tji\er- 
 pool on the 20th, and was there met by Mr. Mac- 
 donnell who had left London to meet her on the 
 same day. 
 
 Of her last day on board the Surdinidn she writes 
 that she went on deck very early in the morning, 
 when the steamer landed at Moville (Londonderry), 
 ill hopes of finding the letter. After waiting in vain 
 
 1 1 
 
 m 
 
 1 1 
 
 oo 
 
thUm 
 
 322 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 , '.t 
 
 M 
 
 she returned to her state-room, and had fallen asleep 
 when she was awakened by the stewardess with the 
 telegraphic message, " Will meet you at Liverpool." 
 " Then," she says, " I realized how much a burden of 
 care for myself had suddenly dropped from me." In 
 a note from Mr. Macdonnell written at the same time 
 to Mrs. Smellie, he says : " I don't tliink I was in- 
 tended to live alone or to travel about without hav- 
 ing some one to take care of. It does seem as if 
 every wish of my heart had been granted ; and if 
 any husljand and father in the land has reason to be 
 thankful for abounding mercies, I am the man, and I 
 am very thankful and content." 
 
 For a reswnie oi the remainder of the English and 
 Scottish visit I may give an extract from a letter 
 from Mr. Macdoimell to myself, dated Daisybank, 
 Kirkwall, 20th July, 1891 : 
 
 "... My wife and I have had our time 
 pretty fully occupied during these four weeks — 
 first spending ten days in London, then a few days 
 (including a Sunday) in Edinburgh, and then coming 
 north by the Highland Railway, t'ia Perth and Inver- 
 ness to Thurso, from which we crossed the Pentland 
 Frith to this place." 
 
 Then f(>llows a description of the surroundings, 
 which may supplement what was noted in an earlier 
 chapter : 
 
 " Daisybank is the residence of Miss Logic, an 
 aunt of Mrs. Macdonnell, and is an ideal place in 
 which to spend a holiday. . , . There are fine 
 views, and often striking ones, over the (puiint, (juiet 
 
m 
 
 leep 
 I the 
 
 )OOl." 
 
 en of 
 ' In 
 
 time 
 LS in- 
 :, liav- 
 
 as if 
 ind if 
 , to be 
 , and I 
 
 isU and 
 I letter 
 i^ybank, 
 
 ir tune 
 eeks — 
 w days 
 coming 
 1 Inver- 
 entland 
 
 Imidings, 
 In earlier 
 
 Jogie, an 
 place in 
 are iine 
 
 lint, (luiet 
 
 TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 323 
 
 town at the foot of the hill on which the house 
 stands, with the slopes of Wideford Hill in the west, 
 Kirkwall Bay to the north, and Scape Flow {i.e., bay) 
 to the south on the other side of the neck of land 
 which connects the eastern and the western portions 
 of the mainland. The changinfij hues of sky and sea 
 on many an evening for an hour or two after sunset 
 during the long twilight are a constant source of 
 enjoyment. In the town itself the most conspicuous 
 object is the cathedral of St. Magnus, which domin- 
 ates all else and is the presiding genius of the place. 
 It is wonderful what solid work those old fellows 
 did in the twelfth century ! The choir of the cathe- 
 dral is fitted up for worship, and is the parish church. 
 There is a chime of bells in the tower of which the 
 mode of ringing is unicjue — first, a slow tolling for 
 five minutes, then a more rapid tolling for the second 
 five minutes, and lastly a jangle of sounds which is 
 eminently calculated to make dilatory worshippers 
 quicken their pace before the three slow, solemn 
 notes are struck, which indicate that the minister is 
 going into the pulpit and that they are too late. 
 Shice I was last in Orkney a Iiarnionitun has been 
 introduced into the cathedral, the spirit of innovation 
 liaving penetrated even as far as Uli'imn Thide. 
 
 "I an; feeling very well now. I am going to try my 
 voice in St. Magnus next Sunday. 1 am concerned 
 about the changes involved in Mr. Mitchell's going to 
 Cobourg, and in Miss Gardiner's resignation." 
 
 A second letter dateti fi-om Kirkwall on August 
 8th says : 
 
 i 
 
 n. 
 
 
 niffl 
 
 
 
 liH 
 
 I 
 
 
 Pii 
 
 i 
 
 
 W'A \m 
 
 \ 
 
 
 ■'A''.\ 5.'' 9 
 
 
 
 Ki' ' 1 1 
 
 ■ \ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 • -■ : 
 
 ; 
 
 
 -tr':.i 
 
smmtmmmmam 
 
 324 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 I t 
 
 " , . . The climate of Orkney has agreed with 
 me splendidly, and I am thankful to say that I am 
 strong and well. My wife, too, is very much the 
 better of the few weeks we have spent here. . . . 
 We intend leaving the day after to-morrow for 
 Thurso and Inverness, going by Loch Tay to the 
 neighbourhood of Oban to visit friends, and thence to 
 Edinburgh. After spending a few day.-;' there we 
 hope to sail for Canada by the Labrador on the 
 20th inst." 
 
 Of this stay at Kirkwall a letter says, continuing 
 the reminiscences of Chapter XIII. : 
 
 " Of all his visits that of '91 was, I think, the 
 brightest — we little thought the last ! The joy of 
 returning health and strength after his long sea 
 voyage, and the happy meeting with his wife after 
 months of separation, gave to their visit a peculiar 
 zest. They were full of happiness, and, we often 
 remarked, were like a young couple away on their 
 first holiday. . . . He preached twice, I think, 
 during this visit, in St. Magnus, to congregations as 
 larire as were ever in it : and I can remember how 
 pleased he was when an old porter preferred a recjuest 
 through a servant in the house where he was staying, 
 that he might get a reading of his sermon (it was on 
 prayer). James had not written it out. but from 
 memory he wrote a good deal of what he had said 
 and sent it to the poor man." 
 
 Many things united to give intense interest to this 
 last summer stay at the Orkneys. Not the least of these 
 was the opportunity of a personal visitation of many 
 
■m 
 
 TRAVELLING FOR HEALTH. 
 
 32i 
 
 with 
 
 I 
 
 am 
 
 
 the 
 
 / 
 
 for 
 
 o 
 
 the 
 
 ice to 
 
 •e 
 
 we 
 
 (11 
 
 the 
 
 inumg 
 ik, the 
 
 joy of 
 
 njT sea 
 fe after 
 )ecuUar 
 B often 
 HI their 
 think, 
 ions as 
 t)er how 
 recjuest 
 staying, 
 was on 
 »ut from 
 lad said 
 
 ^t to this 
 of these 
 of many 
 
 scenes associated with the family history of Mrs. Mac- 
 donnell. She herself has graphically described one of 
 them in a letter to her mother of August lOth, from 
 which the following extract may be given. She and 
 Mr. Macdonnell had given up a projected pleasure 
 trip to the isle of Hoy, so as to made a special 
 excursion to " Lady Kirk," on the isle of Sanday, 
 where Mr. Smellie had spent his first pastorate. 
 After a boat trip to Sanday a circuitous gig drive 
 brought them to the manse. " The key was got, but 
 at first no power could open the door of old Kirkha'. 
 All we could do was to peep in through the open 
 windows. Then we went to the church, but had to 
 go a mile and a half to another house for the key of 
 it. At last we got in ; stood in the pulpit, read the 
 inscription in the Bible, etc. Then a man came, as 
 we thought, to find fault ; but it was to see if it 
 was true that there was some one here ' ciaiTriing to 
 belong to Mr. Smellie.' I had some difficulty in 
 making him believe that I was the daughter of ' old 
 Mr. Smellie who was once minister of Lady Kirk.' 
 . . . By this time there came a message that the 
 door of the manse was gotten open, and so we went 
 back. I went into every room, now used by pigeons 
 and worse, but mantels and cupboard-shelves still 
 showed what once had been. I thought many 
 thoughts, looking all around, taking views out of 
 each window, trying to imagine you a child, Grandma 
 a young woman and Grandpa a brisk young man." 
 
 ; } 
 . i 
 
r 
 
 M«QiMPnH«ipn«i 
 
 imimiii*iimSmSSSSSSSSS 
 
 326 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 U 
 
 I i' 
 
 i ^ 
 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 DECLINING STRENaTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 
 
 Toronto was reached on August 31st. On Friday, 
 September 4th, a special meeting of welcome was 
 held in the church, preceded by a service of praise. 
 Then Mr. Macdonnell gave an outline of his journey, 
 and told of his joy at his return to his people, 
 and of his deepened sense of responsibility as their 
 minister. At a social meeting thereafter in the 
 lecture-room, one of the pleasantest features was the 
 presentation by the congregation of an arm-chair to 
 Rev. Thos. Goldsmith, who had occupied the pulpit 
 with great acceptance, and performed all the pastoral 
 duties, in the absence of the minister. 
 
 It soon became evident that Mr. Macdonnell had 
 not fully recovered his former strength. An immense 
 congregation had gathered to hear him at both ser- 
 vices on the first Sunday after his return, but he spoke 
 with little animatic: apparently choosing themes 
 ("Grace and Peace" and "Walking in the Light') 
 which should not rouse him to the pitch of excite- 
 ment which had been his wont. For several weeks 
 the same quietness of manner was observable. 
 
ii 
 
 m 
 
 'Hi 
 
 DECLlNtNd STRENfGTH A\L) ADDED DUTIES. 327 
 
 Before very long, liowever, he was preachin<^ again 
 with all his former energy, though with sonietiiing 
 less than his former vigour. 
 
 Changes were taking place in the congregation. 
 The session was reduced by the loss of three mem- 
 bers. IVfr. Gemmell, who had been an elder since 
 LSiSG, and Mr. C. S. McDonald, were obliged to leave 
 the church on account of a chano;e of residence. On 
 J)eceml)er l()th Mr. John Kay i|uietly pas.se<l away, 
 after a brief illness, in his seviMity-fifth year. The 
 blank left in the eldershij) and in the Board of 
 ^hmagers, of which he was chairman, it was impos- 
 sible to till. He was most self-flenvinix and devested 
 in his services to the Church. The claims of his 
 large and growing business never interfered with the 
 performance of his duties, and of these he had a high 
 and generous conception. His giving was princely: 
 and besides his noble contributions to the revenue 
 and the various agencies of the congregation, his 
 private beneficence, though unc^btrusive, was unceas- 
 ing. No one could better fulfil the rule, " He that 
 giveth, let him do it with simplicity." He was a 
 beautiful and lovable character: modest, reasonable, 
 affable, and humble-mind(Ml. To minister and to 
 people alike his loss was simply irreparable. There 
 was a certain melancholv fitness in the time of 
 his departure, for he had just had the .satisfaction 
 of seeing the Institute, of which he was the 
 chief promoter, established with great power and 
 promise. The connnunity at large joineil in <jur 
 mourning, for he was a model citizen and business 
 
 ■: ' !• 
 
 l\' 
 
ii-i 
 
 1'» 
 
 . tf-i li 
 
 i 1:1 
 
 328 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACt)ONNELL. 
 
 man, and an example, all too rare, of unworldliness, 
 of simplicity unspoiled and of open-handed generosity 
 unabated by the perils to head and heart tiiat come 
 with worldly prosperity. 
 
 Mr. Kay's chairmanship of the Board of Managers 
 was filled by Col. John I. Davidson, whose services in 
 that capacity are fresh in the minds of St. Andrew's 
 people. The removal of Mr. Mitchell to Cobourg was 
 felt as a severe loss. Tliough he was i-etained in the 
 eldership, his place as Clerk of the session had to be 
 taken by another. His successor, Mr. A. F. McLean, 
 has walked worthily in his footsteps. It is impossible 
 to say how greatly the minister was helped by both of 
 these true fellow-workers, t nd how much his comfort 
 was enhanced by their thoughtful care and never - 
 failing attention to the needs of the congregation as 
 well as to his own. 
 
 Early in the year, on the eve of Mr. Macdonnell's 
 long holiday, a branch Sunday School was established 
 near the corner of Spadina Avenue and College 
 Street, for the children of members and adherents of 
 St. Andrew's Cliurcli. Of this school Mr. Maclauriii 
 was appointed superintendent, and Mr. S. R. Hart, 
 secretary. This new departure was made necessary 
 by the distance from the church of the homes of 
 very many of the children. 
 
 In spite of the long absence of the minister, and 
 the continued decrease in the number of members 
 and adherents, the oflerings of the Church were kept 
 in 1891 at a high level, $18,417 out of a total of 
 $27,348 being contributed to other than strictly con- 
 gregational purposes. 
 
aunii 
 
 Hart, 
 
 3ssary 
 
 nes of 
 
 and 
 
 iuibers 
 
 kept 
 
 )tal of 
 
 lly con- 
 
 DECLINING STRENGTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 329 
 
 It was during 1891 that the regiment of the 48th 
 Highlanders was organized, and Mr. Macdonnell was 
 cliosen to be its cliaphiin. He was just the riglit man 
 to be chaplain of British troops, loyal to the core, a 
 great lover and promoter of peace, and sympathizing 
 with the ardour and physical energy and enterprise of 
 youth. Capt. JMacgillivray writes again on this theme 
 from the fulness of his knowledge: 
 
 " Some of us knew that the idea of patriotism, as 
 exhiljited in tlie army, recommended itself to him, and 
 that he was an admirer of the British soldiery, always, 
 at least, when they showed the endurance, bravery, 
 discipline and humanity which have in the past shed 
 lustre on British arms. 
 
 " As he was a true man so was he a true Canadian ; 
 and while it was not his way to make excursions into 
 other fields than liis own chosen life-work, it was not 
 because he had not the qualifications. He had a keen 
 historical and political instinct, and knew with 
 unusual exactness of information the development of 
 Canadian institutions. He believed in the main 
 features of our militia system, in so far as they con- 
 tributed to a true patriotic spirit in our young men 
 and afforded a guarantee for the enforcement of law 
 and order within our own territorial bounds. Gen- 
 erous himself, he praised th(^ spirit of our militiamen 
 ill giving their time ungrudgingly for purposes of 
 drill and general militar}' etticienoy, and he naturally 
 seemed the one man who should be asked to become 
 the chaplain of the 48th Highlanders, when permis- 
 sion was obtained from the Government to enlist 
 
 T 
 
 i 
 
 Pn 
 
 r 
 i. 
 
 
 lili 
 
 
 
 I'll 
 
 
 
 If u '* 
 
 i 
 
 
 .L i ■• 
 
 iti 
 
r': ff 
 
 Vt: 
 
 •i '■' 
 
 330 
 
 LIFE OP D. .T. MACDONNELL. 
 
 il ]' 
 
 tliat battalion in 1891. That the coniniandint^ 
 officer of the new c()rj)S and several oF the Hrst officers 
 and non-connnissioned officers and men were members 
 oi' liis own conn^ret^ation did not, I tliink, influence bis 
 decision to accept the office. It appeared to liim to 
 be witliin tlie scope oi" liis <bities, and as lie himself 
 was heard to say, 'of his hi^li privilege as well.' 
 
 " At no previous time had he o))portunity to know 
 anvthino- of regimental duties or routine ; but with 
 characteristic enerijv and thorouu'bness he soon 
 ac(iuired a o-ood knowledfje of all th<' ix-arini^s of 
 I'e^'imental economy. He cheerfully entered into the 
 deliberations of the officers when his advice was 
 sought, and althou<;h not ( ften on ])arade witli the 
 V)attalion, I am (|uite sure that the influence and char- 
 acter of the chaplain were among all ranks a powerful 
 thou<di unseen force. 
 
 " On the three occasions at which he addi-essed 
 the men, or a number of them, on parade, the theme 
 was some aspect of dufu as applicable to Christian 
 citizen-soldiers ; and when he preached to us in his 
 own church at our first parade, he said, ' I speak to 
 vou as one of yourselves, and in servin<j: our countrv 
 we do the will of God.' Afterwards, when preachin*;' 
 to the Toronto (Jarrison on ' The Fear of (Jod,' he 
 said, 'The meaninu* of such a sei-vice is a recoo-ni- 
 tion of the need of God's assistance, if your duty, as 
 soldiers, to your God and your country is to be done.' 
 
 " Because of his own manly and sympathetic quali- 
 ties he was held in high esteem by the volunteers of 
 Toronto. We who knew him as pastor, as well as 
 
m 
 
 
 •': \i 
 
 fficerH 
 n\l)ers 
 ice his 
 him to 
 limself 
 
 i; 
 
 3 know 
 lit \viti» 
 c s')on 
 •iuLijs of 
 into the 
 ice was 
 with the 
 Liid cl^ar- 
 poNvert'ul 
 
 uldvesscil 
 le tliciue 
 Christian 
 us in ins 
 spealv to 
 conntry 
 .reaching- 
 
 C5o(l,' i^^' 
 I vecogni- 
 r (Intv, as 
 
 be done; 
 etic quali- 
 lunteers of 
 as weli as 
 
 
 
 THK CHAPLAIN OF THK ISTii HKi JILANDKHS. 
 

 IF 
 
 y 
 
^*r 
 
 DECLINING STHENOTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 881 
 
 cliaplain, received, at the laist, word of liis <]eatli with 
 profound sorrow. Tin; officer conunandiii^^ issued an 
 order expressive of this and of the yreat loss sus- 
 tained by tlie whole corps." 
 
 A somewhat severe attaciv of influenza interfered 
 with IVfr. Macdonnell's activitv in the earl\- i)art of 
 1.S02. He had not l»een liahle to this ailment, like 
 most other mortals, and now when it did come he 
 took comfort in the reflection that his throat, sup- 
 posed to be the weak j>oint in his system, was not 
 artected. '^Phis seemed to him to sh>)W that his con- 
 stitution was still via'orous. Possiblv the rest from 
 public speakin^^ taken not lont^^ before, and the im- 
 proved method of vocal utterance learned in London, 
 relieved his throat from all strain. He- was, of course, 
 absent from his pulpit for several Sundays at this 
 period. His convalescent days were spent in i^^'i't^us. 
 
 One of the matters of more than merely local inter- 
 est, o-reatly discussed in Toronto toward the end of 
 1891 and the beginning of 18!)2, was the (piestiou of 
 runnint^ the street cars on Sundays. Mr. Macdonnell 
 took a very prominent part in this long controversy, 
 in the pulpit, on the platform, and occasionally in the 
 pres.s. The first vote on the (juestion was taken on 
 January oth, 1892, when the Street Car Company's 
 ])roposition was voted down by a large majorit\'. 
 Tile ground taken from the first bv Mr. Macdonnell 
 was not so much the inherent sanctitv of Sundav' as 
 a substitute for the Jewish Sabbath, but rather the 
 necessity and right of all workingmen to have this 
 one day in the seven for rest and worship. What 
 
 
*l 
 
 "HI i.iii.jmjiiiiB^i1 
 
 332 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNEU.. 
 
 il 
 
 added wM-if^ht to liis viperous apjM'uls atid ar^uiiicnts 
 was his well-known fcoicration of otiiers' opinions, and 
 also the fact tliat he wonld ])i-ol)al)ly <^^ain more in 
 the way oi' increased church attendance from the nso 
 of Sunday cars than almost any other nnnister of 
 Toronto, St. Andrew's beino- so far from the resi- 
 dential centres. 
 
 As a matter of fact, St. Andrew's congret^ation 
 was, precisely' at this time, seriously considering the 
 |)ropriety of moving northward, so as to come within 
 reasonable tlistance of the majority of its members. 
 It had been felt for some years that the drift oi 
 })opulation away from the neighbourhooil (^f the 
 church was telling seriously against its prosperity. 
 Mr. i\Iac<lonnell in the j)astoi-al letter last (juoted had 
 remarked : " Nearly e\'ery interest of the congrega- 
 tion is att'ectt'd prejudicially by the distance at which 
 a largi! pi-oportion (^f memlx'i's and adherents reside. 
 The Sunday school, even with the branch organized 
 last year, does not include one-half of the children of 
 the Church ; the attendance on the evening service on 
 Sundays is not more than one-half or two thirds of 
 what it was six or eight years ago; the attendance 
 on Wednesday evening has similarly fallen oti"; the 
 meetings of every as.sociation connected with the 
 Church sufi'er from the same cause." It was found 
 about this time that o\er one hundred families, in the 
 north of the city alone, were living at a distance of 
 a mile or more from the church building. 
 
 The agitati(Hiin favour of moving northward lasted 
 throughout the year 1892. Committees of inquiry 
 
DECLININ(; STHENriTH AND ADDKD Dl'TIES. IVA'A 
 
 were fornie<l and the whole suKjcct was n»j»«'atc'(lly 
 tliivslietl out. Mr. MactloiincU whs ,it first (lisincliiicd 
 toward the proposod cliaii<xo, his priiicijial oli'it'ction 
 bcin^ the piissiblc ne<;lt'('t ol' the district in wliich 
 the churcli was situatt'(l. 'I'liis sci-iipic liaviii^^ l)»tii 
 overcome, his ()[)positioii ^ra<hially ceased, and lie 
 became (juite williiii,^ to I'lirtiier the iiioveineiit, il' it 
 should be deemed expedient in \ iew of all tlie cir- 
 cumstances of the case. At a conifre<rati*)nal meetinjx 
 licld on June 2!)tii, a resolution t'avoin'iiii;' removal in 
 f^oneral terms was carried by a considerable majority. 
 About lialf a tlozen oj)})osed by xote the ]>i'oject in 
 any form. A considerable minority concurre(l in the 
 desirability of removal, but cou[)le(l tlieir declaration 
 with a motion looking; to the raisin;^ of !r'2.'),000, for 
 the payment of the debt. Subseijuently the spirit 
 of l)oth the motions was acted upon, and subscriptions 
 were made in a short time approachiui;- in amount 
 the sum in (|ue.stion, with the understanding^ that the 
 removal be proceeded with. There was e\-ei'y })ros- 
 pect of the entire amount bein^ rai.sed with a little 
 etibrt, but after viewing the whole situation care- 
 fidly, Mr. Macdonnell recoi;'nized tlie fact that there 
 was in some quarters a lack of j)raetical heartiness 
 in favour of the chan^^', especially amoiiijj some of the 
 men of strongest tinancial standinn-, and on that 
 ground advised that the enterprise be abandoned. 
 Accordingly St. Andrew's still continues to adorn the 
 time-honoured site. 
 
 After the minister's recovery from the illness above 
 referred to, earnest conferences were held as to the 
 
•^^i-mmtis^' 
 
 ^rm—fmrnmr' 
 
 834 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Mt." 
 
 m i 
 
 * i 
 
 propriety of providing him witli some substantial 
 assistance. At a joint meeting of session and man- 
 agers lield on April 18tli, it was decided that pulpit 
 su])[)ly be granted during the summer months and 
 part of tlie winter. In pursuance of this arrange- 
 ment the St. Andrew's people had the privilege of 
 the pul])it and pastoral ministrations of Rev. Daniel 
 R. Drunnnond, M.A., during the sunnner of 1892. and 
 for several periods tliereafter of longer or shorter 
 duration. A close l)ond of affectionate confidence 
 united the assistant to the })astor and to the people 
 fit large as well. He had just finished his regular 
 i^lieological course at Queen's, but was looking for- 
 ward to post-graduate work at home and abroad. 
 The spirit in which the minister met his young friend 
 was graphicall}' set forth by j\Ir. Dnnnmond himself 
 in the course of a sermon preached in St. Andrew's 
 on the first tSunday after tlie funeral of the chief 
 actor in the scene : 
 
 " It was a rare privilege God has given t hose of us 
 who have been closely associated with him. I shall 
 never forget his words to me the first morning on 
 which I entered U})on work in the congregation. 
 
 "Coming along King .Street until opposite tliis 
 church, as we parted I asked him if he iiad any 
 particular method which lie would like me to follow. 
 Laying his hand on my shoulder in the most friendly 
 fashion, and calling nui familiarly by my surname as 
 if we had been old college chums, he said: ' Drum- 
 mond, tlie one thing for which the Church stands, and 
 for which we as ministers of Christ should live, is to 
 
DECLINING STRENGTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 835 
 
 
 antial 
 
 man- 
 pulpit 
 s and 
 range- 
 ege of 
 Daniel 
 )2, and 
 shorter 
 fidence 
 
 people 
 regular 
 iig for- 
 abroad. 
 tf t'rien<l 
 
 himselt' 
 ndrew's 
 le chief 
 
 se of us 
 
 I shall 
 
 ning on 
 
 l)ring men to Christ: if 3'on can do it by a hearty 
 laugh, do it: if by dropping into tlio office or place of 
 business a few luiiuites, do it : if bv a hand-shak*^ on 
 tlie street, do it : if b}' rea<ling the Word and prayer 
 in the home, do it. Tliat is our work, and I leave it 
 to your own good sense, liow you will attain the end.' 
 And in that splendid trustfulness by which he drew 
 men to himself and mad*' them willin<xlv do their 
 best, from tiiat (hiy till his earnest 'God bless you 
 in your work !' as we parted in Fergus a few weeks 
 ago, never to look in each otiier's faces again in life, 
 no word of tlii'ection ever came from him, except that 
 word which the deafest ear could not but hear — the 
 word spoken by a matchless life, the influence (jf a 
 dee'ply consecrated spirit." 
 
 The sunnner vacation was passed by Mi". Macdonnell 
 at Cap-ri-l'Aigle with two of his boys, Mrs. Mncdonnell 
 ami the younger children spending the holidays at 
 I'^ergus. During this period he was called '^pon to 
 share in the grief of his si.ster, Mrs. Canipl)ell, and her 
 husl)and, raid to minister to their comf(jrt. On August 
 ord, Miss Eleanor Campbell, theii- secon<l living child, 
 died, at Cap-ji-l'Aigle, after a brief illness. She jiad 
 licen imrsing her older brother Robert, who lunl been 
 toi some time an in-valid. It was not long before he 
 followed her: for on August 29th he, too, gently 
 ]>assed away at his home in Montreal. 
 
 The Toronto meetiui; of the Alliance of the Re- 
 formed Churches, usuallv known as the " Pan-l'res])V- 
 terian Council," was hehl from SeptendKr 21st to 
 S<'ptember 30th, 1892. Mr .Macdonnell Unjk an 
 
 U'i 
 
\m 
 
 nr'''^ 
 
 336 
 
 LIFE OF D. .1. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 fii 
 
 (LM 
 
 I*' > 
 
 cactive, tlioufrh not a very conspicuous, part in tlie 
 proceedings. He was, as usual, busily employed on 
 committee work, and he was almost constantly occu- 
 pied in looking after the comfort of visitors in and 
 outside of the crowded meetings. He spoke but once 
 at length, but he presided at the communion service, 
 which was lield on th(; 2oth in his own church. At 
 this solemn service addresses were delivered by the 
 venerable President of the Council, Dr, W. G. Blaikie, 
 and Rev. ])r. John Hall. His action in connection 
 with a connnon Presbyterian hynnial is noticed else- 
 where by Mr. Murray. 
 
 For a declining church St. Andrews continued to 
 mak(^ a good sh.owing. Seventy-three new members 
 were added iluring 1892, but the drift of the congre- 
 gation is shown by the loss of niniity-eight, mainly by 
 removal lieyond its bounds. How unwillingly these 
 old friends parted from their minister he had abun- 
 dant reason to know. Many formed connections with 
 other congregations in their new neigh l)Ourhoods, 
 with the hope that they might soon be reunited to 
 their beloved Church — that if they could not go to 
 St. Andrew's, St. Andrew's might come to them. 
 Letters such as the followiui; came to the minister as 
 a certain *'/>mpensation for the personal loss : "I feel 
 that I cannot leave Hi. Andrew's even (as Wf hope it 
 may be) for a short time, without trying to thank 
 you for your ministrations which have been such a 
 blessing to me and mine. It Is not [K)SHibl«- to tell 
 you what you have been to me and 'lone for me as 
 my minister, but I have never cea.sed to rejov*;*^ that 
 
DECLINING STRENGTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 337 
 
 u the 
 ed on 
 ' occu- 
 in and 
 it once 
 service, 
 ;h. At 
 l)y the 
 Blaikie, 
 Liiection 
 ied else- 
 
 iniied to 
 iienibers 
 J con<i;i"e- 
 ,ainly by 
 rly these 
 ul abun- 
 ions with 
 )urhoods, 
 inited to 
 ot go to 
 to them, 
 iuister as 
 : " I feel 
 r hope it 
 to thank 
 Ml sucli a 
 ,],■ to tell 
 for me as 
 hoHic that 
 
 Providence made me a member of your fiock. . . 
 The meetings conducted by ]\lrs. Macdonnell on 
 Fridays have also been such a help and comfort; and 
 I liope, though belonging to another Church, to still 
 keep up my connection with the ' Women's Associa- 
 tion ' of 8t. Andrew's. The years spent in the shelter 
 of St. Andrew's will be aiiKjng my dearest memories." 
 The death of Mr. Alex. T. Fulton on .'ulv 23rd, 
 1892, was a serious loss to the congregation. He had 
 been a manager for many years, and having been a 
 partner in business with James ^lichie, he became, in 
 certain ways, a successor to him in serving the church. 
 He was always one of the most gi^nerous sup})orters 
 of every branch of the work of the church, and his 
 legacy to St. Andrew's of S<S,000 had been preceded 
 by many thousands contributed during his life. 
 
 The annual meeting of the congregation on January 
 17th, 1893, was marked by an exceptional incidtMit. 
 When the minister's salary had been raised in 1888 
 from i?-i,('0() to S^-.oOO, he had objected to the increase 
 in very strong terms, ami only accepted it after it was 
 virtually thrust upon him. The etl'ect was shown in 
 the increase of his already very large contributions to 
 all the church objects. When the C(mgregation began 
 to show an unmistakable decline in mend)ers, he and 
 Mrs. ]\Iacdonnell arranged to ha\"e a sur[)lus of S')0() to 
 lie sent to the managers at the close of the year. At 
 the meeting the discussion on the subject was very 
 animated. '^Phe minister, who habitually presided at 
 these meetings, lej't the chair and insisted not onl\' on 
 tliL' return of the .*5")U(), but on the reduction of his 
 
 
 t.h 
 
 .;( 
 
m ■ 
 
 ImiU 
 
 lil-ri; 
 
 U.l 
 
 r r. .; : ■ ' I 
 
 li 
 
 338 
 
 LIFE OF I). J. iMAf'DONNELL. 
 
 salary to the former figure. It was iinpossihlc to 
 secure tlie assent of tlie ineetin;^. Mrs. Mae<l<jnnell 
 was especially (]isa})pointe(l at the result. The Church 
 ^ot the money back, ho\V(!\-ei', though not all in the 
 form of revenue. 
 
 Early in LSIJ.'i Mr. ]\Iac<lonnell a^ain ^^aA'e si^^ns, 
 particularly in the pulpit, of a 1ji])S(^ of ])hysical 
 str(!i)^th. ( )n .January 31st he went with Mi's. Mae- 
 (lonnell to the Spring's at Warsaw, N.\'., for recu])era- 
 tion, Mr. Drunnnond takin;^ his ])la('(; as |)i'eii,cher and 
 pastor dui'in^" his ahsenct;. 
 
 At the (j!(!n(!i-al Assembly which came together on 
 .fune 14th, at IJi'antford, Ont., the j)roor('ss I'eported 
 by tlui Hynnial Committee, lookin<^ toward tlu; in- 
 corporation of selections from the i'salms, besides its 
 enlari:;ement and revision, was especially <^i'atifying 
 to Mr. Macdonnell. Mis attendance at the Assembly 
 was interrupted by an event of dee)) and peculiai* 
 interest, the (golden wed<lin<;- of !)r. and Mrs. Smellie, 
 on June IDtli. Asa. memento of this glad and memor- 
 able event, in which Mr. Macdonn(;ll was one (jf the 
 most enthusiastic and ha])py ])articipants, the follow- 
 ing account is re])rinted from tJie Fergus jVciv-i-Jiecord 
 of June 22ml, 1«92: 
 
 " At ' Kirkhall,' on Monday oi this week, was cele- 
 brated the fiftieth annivei'sary of the marriage of Dr. 
 and Mi's. Smellie, now for nearly fifty years residents 
 of Ft )-gus. Dr. Snw.'llie haxing been for about i'oi'ty- 
 five years minister of Mel\ ille (*ongreg,ttion. 
 
 " Colden we(ldings are rai'e occurrences, and still 
 more rare are gatherings on such occasions of all the 
 
DECLINING STRENGTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 330 
 
 mi 
 
 i.' to 
 nnell 
 \urch 
 
 II the 
 
 lysiciil 
 . Mac- 
 
 ,her on 
 ('ported 
 i\w in- 
 Vulcs its 
 
 atii'yin^ 
 ^ssLMubly 
 icculiar 
 Snit'lUc, 
 moinoi'- 
 > of tliC 
 follow - 
 i^-Record 
 
 was celc- 
 
 ir(> of 1)1*- 
 residents 
 
 )nt foi-ty- 
 
 an.l still 
 of all tlu 
 
 Tnenil)ers of a lar^e and scattered family. Dr. and 
 Mrs. Sniellie had the joy of having with tliem in 
 churcli on Sabbath, and of s('ein<; around tlu'ir table 
 for a day or two all their surviving children, with 
 tiieir res])ective ])artners in life, and one represen- 
 tative from eacli family of grandchildren, also Dr. 
 Smellie's only surviving brother and his wilV\ Mr. 
 and Mrs. Macdotniell, of 'I'oronto : Di'. and Mv.s. 'W S. 
 T. Smellie of Fort William: Mr. an.l Mrs. R. S. 
 Suicllie, of Toronto ; Mr. G. L. Smellie, of Wiiniipeg ; 
 Mr. and Mrs. A. (1. P. Smellie, of Binscarth, with 
 Miss Smellie, still happily a resid(!nt of Fergus, had 
 the op])Oi'tunity of congratulating each (jtlicr on this 
 peculiarly solemn and joyful occasion, that their 
 parents had been S(, long spared to the.ii in com- 
 ])arative health and strength, as well ,;,.-i that the 
 youi^gest bi'other had bi'ought his bride to help to 
 celebrate the jubilee'. 
 
 " Nor were there wanting tokens of sympathy and 
 love from tliose aniong whom ])r. and Mrs. Smellie 
 have so long lived. From an early hour on Monday 
 morning excpiisite bou<piets and baskets of flowers, 
 with tender words of greeting, came in show(;rs, as 
 well as several sultstantial gifts, including a time- 
 |)iece from the Women's Foreign Missionary Society to 
 Mrs. Smellie, and a pocket-book lined with gold to 
 Dr. Smellie 'from a few old friends in the (;on<n'(> 
 gition.' Kindly greetings were also received by mail 
 and by wire from many at a distance fi'om relations, 
 from friends in tlu- ministry, and, yciy especially 
 \alued, from formei' friends of tin.' congregation, who 
 have not forirotten their old church home. 
 
I. J-i.ltJ»!ia.lliliLLl!i|llJ! 
 
 340 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Ji.J ! 
 
 " The community has joined in offerinf;^ Dr. and 
 Mrs. Smellie congratulation, and in wishing continued 
 blessing on them and theirs." 
 
 A sickness of a week's duration fell upon Mr. Mac- 
 doimell in tlie nnddle of July. On the 24th he left for 
 Cap-a-l'Aigle, where he I'emained till August 22nd. 
 Returning to Toronto he was joined by Mrs. Macdon- 
 nell and the children, who had been visiting Fergus. 
 Two trips were made by him in the autumn to the 
 World's Fair at Chicago. On the earlier trip he was 
 accompanied by Mrs. IVhicdonnell and their son George, 
 and by Miss Smellie and Miss Machar, of Kingston. 
 The seccmd trip was begun on October 18th, with his 
 children, James, Logic an<l fc^leanor, and a party of 
 friends. These visits to the great Exposition he 
 intensely enjoyed. His enthusiasm for the Fair, 
 based maiidy on his sympathy with the progress of 
 linmanity, knew no )»ounds. The Parliament of 
 ivt ligions was the promotion of an idea which he had 
 for many years cherished as his own, and this perhaps 
 gave him the keenest [)leasure. 
 
 This year he again contributed, by voice and pen, 
 to the defeat of tlie Sunday Car movement in Toronto, 
 which was voted down on August 2()th bv a decisive, 
 thoujjfh reduced, maioritv. On November 2.5th he 
 preached in Ottawa at the opening of the Stewarton 
 Church. Here he was the guest of Lord and Ladv 
 Aberdeen, who had regularly attended the St. 
 Andrew's Church servi'^e during their Toronto visits. 
 
 During this period Mr. Macdomiell was at his best as 
 a preacher. In spite of a certain marked decline of 
 
DECLINING STRENGTH AND ADDED DUTIES. 341 
 
 and 
 lined 
 
 Mac- 
 
 f t for 
 
 22nd. 
 
 .cdon- 
 
 ergns. 
 
 to the 
 
 \e was 
 
 ieorge, 
 
 [igston. 
 
 :ith his 
 
 arty of 
 
 bion he 
 
 ic Fair, 
 
 irress of 
 
 lent of 
 he iiad 
 >erhaps 
 
 md pen, 
 'roronto, 
 U'cisive, 
 25th he 
 
 Avarton 
 nd Lady 
 
 the St. 
 ito visits, 
 ns best as 
 
 h'clini' ot 
 
 te 
 
 physical vi<;our, his voice was ck'arer and fuller than 
 it had ever been, on accoinit of the London treatment 
 and his aciiuired skill in its proper and cti'ective use. 
 His audiences in the evenings were not so large as in 
 former years, but they were better repaid for their 
 walks to the church. There was now less vehemence 
 than in the days of overmastering passion, but the 
 steady stream of forceful thought was none the less 
 grateful to those who had lonfi: since found his words 
 a well-spring of wisdom and love. And there was a 
 growing mellowness and richness in the matter of his 
 discourses, which were satisfying alike to the mind 
 and heart of his hearers. Lonj; and intimate converse 
 with the Bible, in the original and in the Revised 
 Version, had now given him an absolute command of 
 its language for illustrative application, as well as for 
 the due expression of the life of the spirit. He was 
 soon to enter upon another, the final stage or phase 
 of his work as a preacher, not less noble and not le.ss 
 worthy. The tierce meridian glow had passed, and soon 
 the subdued and gentle radiance of sunset was to fall 
 upon us. But now it was still afternoon, with the 
 fulness and the power of the day throbbing in the 
 g(jlden hours, but, alas, wdth the lengthening shadows 
 that foretokened the hastening night 1 
 
 Durinix 1898 the Session lost three of its members 
 b\ removal, Mr. Muldrew, Mr. Smellie and Mr. Wylie, 
 the last of whom, however, returned to the Church 
 and the office in 1895. Their place was taken by 
 Kev. Thos. Goldsmith, who had so greatly befriended 
 the congregation during the absences of Mr. Macdon- 
 
.342 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL, 
 
 nell, and Mr. W. E. Middloton, who had ah'cady 
 served as secretary of the Board of Man.a^^ers, in 
 succession to Mr. Mitchell. 
 
 The death of Mr. Russel Inc^lis on February 7th, 
 at an advanced age, removed another link which 
 bound minister and people to the old days of St. 
 Andrew's. 
 
 Mi' 
 
 '';i.i| 
 
 liiuilii 
 
 iilf 
 
 'iff' 
 
 
 mu 
 

 DEATH OF MRS. MACDONNELL. 
 
 :u:] 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 m 
 
 DEATH OF Mix's. MACDONXELL: II Eli CHARACTER' 
 
 I .V/>' I NFL UENCE. 
 
 It was on Good Friday of I(Sy4that tlio liolit went 
 out of Mr. IMacdonnell's home. To tlie eartldv' course 
 of that -.weet and beautiful Hfe, wliicli seemed ahnost 
 one with liis own, tlie end came suddenly and swiftly. 
 Mrs. Macdonnell's health had not, to all appearance, 
 heen eitl'er better or woi'se than usual until a few 
 days before her death. Never very r()l)ust, she had 
 yet sustained, witiiout a break-down, a constant 
 strain of undue exertion. Her resolute will and 
 absolute devotion to all forms of duty often led her 
 to exert her.self beyond the limits of her streno-th. 
 Besides the cares of her family and the duties inci- 
 dent to a lar^'e household, she had the special ol)liga- 
 tions of the wife ol* a minister who was nnicli soui^ht 
 after by all sorts ol" peo[)le. Moi'eover, she had her 
 own exacting sphere of obligation. Her active 
 benevolent and reliii'ious work was not so extensive 
 as she desired, and yet it mad(* a steady and ui'<jfent 
 demand upon her sympathy and attention. To this 
 nmst be added that she made it a first care to truard 
 
 li^ 
 
17="^ 
 
 ,' I 
 
 344 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACnONXELL. 
 
 
 m-Ui: 
 
 'iliWr^i^' 
 
 i-*;i 
 
 her liusband's lioalth and lii.s liours of labour. Slio 
 was far more anxious about his liealth than about 
 lier own. Wliih; he; hadapjjreliensions about licr, tlioy 
 were of a difi'ci-cnt kind from liors about liim. He 
 was afraid tliat she Hii(dit l)ecome an invalid. She 
 dreaded for him a premature death. On one occasion 
 he remarked that he hope<l that when he reached the 
 a^e of her father he mii^ht be as bright and happy. 
 "Oh!" said she, with her characteristic quick and 
 daring humour, " you will be nuich better off, for 
 then you will be in heaven I " 
 
 Like many another goo<l woman Mrs. Maedonnell 
 was worn down by want of rrsf. She told a friend 
 within a year of her death that she was often so tired 
 at the evt nin^ service that she found it impossible to 
 listen. What was to be dreaded was that if she were 
 to be attacked by any acute malady she might suc- 
 cumb for lack of resisting or recuperative power. This 
 is what actually took place. On Monday, JMarch 12th, 
 she went to Fer<*;us for a brief visit. Returnini; on 
 Wednesday afternoon she went to prayer-meeting as 
 u.sual, but was alarmed to find later in the evening 
 that her son James had been suffering from a slight 
 hiemorrhage of the lungs during the whole day. At 4 
 a.m. a doctor was summoned for " Jim," who had 
 developed alarming symptoms. The.se did not become 
 any worse, but his mother watched over him carefully, 
 particularly at night. At G a.m., of Friday the l()th, 
 while still with him, she was seized with an alarming 
 pain in the side, which increased in severity during 
 the morning. At first the pain was thought to be 
 
• I' I] 
 
 fl 
 
 DEATH OF MRS. MACDONNEM.. 
 
 845 
 
 Sho 
 ibovit 
 
 they 
 He 
 Sho 
 ;!JVsion 
 3(1 the 
 vappy. 
 k and 
 )ti; for 
 
 lonnell 
 I, I'ricnd 
 HO th-etl 
 ^HiWe to 
 he were 
 
 n;ht SUC- 
 
 r. This 
 chl2th, 
 \\\i\\f on 
 eting as 
 evening 
 a slight 
 
 y 
 
 At 4 
 
 :ho had 
 t become 
 
 lare fully, 
 the l()tH, 
 alarming 
 during 
 L-ht to be 
 
 only " muscular," hut on Saturday congestion was 
 discovered in the left luiii''. On Sunda\' a consul- 
 tation of d(jctors was held and the; gra\'('st fears were 
 (expressed. On that day the temperature' rose to 
 104'. On Monday the fever was slightly less, and she 
 was repoi'ted to he " holding hei- own." Xext day 
 with still lower temperature, she began to think her- 
 self really improving, but no actual progress was 
 made. On the evenin<M)f Wednesdav, Mr. Macdonnell 
 sent word to the prayer-meeting that she was " still 
 in a critical condition." On the same night Mrs. 
 Sinellie came from Fergus, but with truest mother 
 love did not enter the sick-room, lest her daughter 
 should be excited by her presence, and returneil home 
 on Thursday without having seen hei-. On this day 
 hopes were entertaini'd that the crisis was past, and 
 Mr. Macdonnell, wdio from the befjinnin<x had been 
 ilreading the worst, was greatly encouraged. Late at 
 night he lay down for sorely needed rest. Soon after 
 iiii<lnight lie was awakened with the message that nn 
 unfavcui'able change had taken place. Though she 
 had kept very quiet to avoid excitement and to con- 
 serve her strength, her mind had been clear till this 
 point was reached : but now it began to wander and 
 so continued till near the end. When her little 
 strength appeared to be rapidly ebbing, and it was 
 evident that death was very near, her husband knelt: 
 and without a tremor in his voice, and like one speak- 
 ing to a near and trusted friend, he ])i"ayed that there 
 iiiifditbe full and ijlad resiijnation to the Father's will 
 on her part and on the part of those whom she was 
 
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 Photographic 
 
 Sciences 
 Corporation 
 
 33 WEST MAIN STREET 
 
 WEBSTER, N.Y. 14980 
 
 (716) 872-4S03 
 
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346 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 leaving behind. One who was present at the bedside 
 has said, " Never have I heard such a prayer. It 
 seemed to bring one so close to the presence of the 
 Unseen." Then bending over her he said, *' Prayer is 
 good, my darling ! " A gentle smile of acquiescence 
 irradiated her face, and so she passed away. Mr. 
 Macdonnell's entry in his diary reads : " Soon after 
 8.80 Lily ' fell asleep.' " 
 
 For several years it had been the custom in St. 
 Andrew's to oljserve the communion on Easter Sunday 
 with the preparatory service on the morning of Good 
 Friday. Less than two hours after Mr. Macdonnell 
 had bidden farewell to his wife he met two of the 
 elders at the door of the manse with his accustomed 
 smile, and after narrating the story of those morning 
 hours, expressed his intention of going in to the 
 church to welcome the intending connimnicants. 
 V/hen it was represented to him that Mr. Hossack, of 
 Parkdale, who was to preach the sermon, could 
 take his place for this duty, he replied : " Why should 
 I not go in ? I want to be with my people." Before 
 the conclusion of the sermon he entered tlie church 
 and took his seat in the manse pew, where she was not, 
 nor ever would be any more. In due course he took 
 charge of the service. His prayer began, " O thou 
 Saviour of men, who on this day wast crucified for 
 us." After a brief address to the new members, he 
 spoke to the congregation, and thanked them for all 
 their kindness and sympathy during the time of trial. 
 
 On Sunday morning he conducted the communion 
 service, the address to the communicants being given 
 
DEATH OF MRS. MACDONNELL. 
 
 347 
 
 isifle 
 
 It 
 
 the 
 er is 
 jence 
 
 Mr. 
 after 
 
 in St. 
 iinday 
 Good 
 onnell 
 of the 
 ^tonied 
 lornin*: 
 
 by Principal Grant. His manner then, as on Friday, 
 was but little different from wiuit was habitual. 
 
 The funeral .services were held on the afternoon of 
 Easter Monday, March 2Uth. Dr. Milli^an presided; 
 Drs. Caven and Lyle led in heartfelt prayer; and 
 Principal Grant gave a noble address, dwellinj^ mainly 
 on " the transmutation of death into <^ain which the 
 resurrection of our Lord effects." The church wjis 
 crowded with sorrowin«ij frien<ls from far and near, 
 and though the weather was bleak and chill, it was a 
 numerous throng that gathere<l in Mount Pleasant to 
 witness the last sad rites. It was such a funeral as 
 is usually accorded only to those that have served 
 the community in a large and distinguished way. 
 
 Mrs. Macdonnell was a rare woman. She was 
 admired by all who saw her, admired and esteemed 
 by all who associated with her, admired, esteemed 
 and loved by all who knew her. Her stately bearing 
 and beauty of face gave her di.stinction everywhere ; 
 l»ut there was a certain repose of manner antl uncon- 
 scious dignity that veiled tliose qualities of mind and 
 heart which were intrinsically the worthiest and 
 strongest. What was evident to all was her <lelicacy 
 of feeling, openness of di.sposition, and clear intelli- 
 gence. The.se were the bloom of the flower: its 
 fragrance made itself known on a nearer ajiproach. 
 Her character was perhaps most strongly marked by 
 the strength, constancy, and consistency that dis- 
 tinguished all her nioral attributes. Most prominent 
 among these traits of character, and held together in 
 complete equipoise and harmony, were her sense of 
 
I 
 
 !|: 
 
 348 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL, 
 
 duty in matters great and small, her large-minded 
 consideratenesH, her helpfulness, her (juiek perception 
 and large resource when action was needed, her 
 sense and love of right and justice, her fidelity to all 
 the interests and claims of her manifold life, her 
 steadfast repression of self, her serenity of temper, 
 her beautiful and touching meekness and humility, 
 her ideality in union with practical wisdom, her 
 upward gaze steadied by earthward care ; and, suftiis- 
 ing and illumining all, the devotion and consecration 
 of spirit and purpose that seemed to give a touch of 
 saintliness to her whole aspect and to all her life. 
 
 In her active life-work Mrs. Macdonnell was 
 especially distinguished by practical sagacity and 
 clear-sightedness. This was particularly noteworthy 
 in her work for the poor and he^/Iess, whom she had 
 much in her mind. She was indeed an authority on 
 the best methods of relief and effective assistance, and 
 her opinions on such topics were frequently sought 
 by representatives of the press. One instance of her 
 practical tact and discrimination may be mentioned. 
 A poor woman had applied to her for work in the 
 cold weather of late autumn, and was engaged to 
 wash the outer windows of the manse. Learning 
 that her hu.sband had nothing to do, and so had 
 been left at home in charge of the children, she 
 promptly asked the woman to send him to the manse 
 in her place, and perform this cold piece of work, 
 which was obviously better suited for him than for 
 her. The parish workers relate incidents by the 
 score illustrative of her quickness and sureness of 
 
 :l 
 
t )" 
 
 ninded 
 
 ception 
 
 ;d, her 
 
 y to all 
 
 ife, her 
 
 temper, 
 
 ainility, 
 
 )m, her 
 
 I, auffuH- 
 
 ecrat Ion 
 
 touch of 
 
 life. 
 
 lell was 
 
 ^ity and 
 
 teworthy 
 
 I she had 
 
 lority on 
 
 ance, and 
 y sought 
 
 ce of her 
 
 lentioned. 
 
 rk in the 
 Imaged to 
 Learning 
 id so had 
 drcn, she 
 ,he manse 
 of work, 
 than for 
 >s by the 
 ireness of 
 
 MKS. M.\( UONXKLL. 
 
 it 
 
 
 i 
 
 J 
 
f 
 
 DEATH OF MUS. MACDONNELL. 
 
 340 
 
 decision prompted by wise and ready sympathy. 
 Miss Strauchon, the Bible Reader, writes : " We all 
 mourn our ^reat loss in the f^oing home of jMrs. 
 Macilonnell. Her life so beautiful, so helpful, is still 
 an inspiration to us. The mothers who knew her 
 all admin;<l her. Sonu; worshipped her, and cannot 
 yet speak of her without tears. (Jf my own loss I 
 cannot speak : she w>is my friend, my counsellor, 
 knew my people personally, and so coul<l advise and 
 sympathize as no one else can." 
 
 Outside the sphere of the home it was perhaps in 
 tile meetings of the Women's Association of St. 
 Andrew's Church that Mrs. Macdonnell's deepest 
 (jualities of mind and spirit were most conspicuous. 
 One and another of tlie con«(re^ation have said, " I 
 lu'ver knew Mrs. Macdonnell till 1 attended tiie meet- 
 ings of the Association." It was here that her care 
 and thouj;ht for the work and the workers of our 
 Church in its missions at home and abroad, found 
 their fullest expression. She was also for many 
 years an invaluabh; member of the Board and vice- 
 president of the Women's Foreign Missionary Society. 
 Some of the words of sympathy placed in the minutes 
 of the Board will best show her work and induence 
 here: "... As one of the founders of this 
 society, and for more than twelve years an active 
 member and officer of the Board, Mrs. Maedoiujell 
 rendered most valuable service to the cause of Foreign 
 Missions, both by her pen and by hei' clear judgment 
 ind wi.se counsel in conducting the business of the 
 society. When the pressure of other duties compelled 
 
 
 } :; 
 
 • ■■ 
 
 - «i i 
 
 ■ t ( 
 
 ■A 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
 \ 
 

 350 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 her to retire, her resignation was accepted by the 
 Board with unfeigned regret. . . . We are thank- 
 ful for the good work whicli our friend was permitted 
 to do for the Master, wlioin she loved and served so 
 faithfully <luring her earthly life, and take comfort 
 in the assurance that she is even now rejoicing in 
 His immediate presence." 
 
 Of the operations of the Women's Association of 
 St. Andrew's our readers have already had a glimpse, 
 and they will have learned something of its power 
 for good, as one of the most active and beneficent 
 agencies of the church. Its strictly congregational 
 work was performed in disbursing the funds appro- 
 priated by the Session for the relief of the poor ; in 
 aiding and co-operating with the Bible Reader in her 
 district work ; in visiting families in the parish or 
 congregation to whom special attention was due ; and 
 in a house-to-houfjj distribution of the Presbyterian 
 Record. In the missionary work of the society an 
 important change was made in the beginning of 1890, 
 when Mrs. Macdonnell was able to carry out a long- 
 cherished scheme for extending the working power 
 of the Association, so that the claims of Home and 
 Foreign missions should receive equal attention and 
 support through systematic effort. The two auxiliary 
 societies thus established under the fostering care of 
 the Women's Association are in their organized form 
 probably unique in the Presbyterian Church in 
 Canada. 
 
 Of Mrs. Macdonnell's more personal relations with 
 the Association, one of the membt^rs writes : " It wa^' 
 
DEATH OF MRS. MACDONNELL. 
 
 80 1 
 
 the 
 ank- 
 itted 
 ed so 
 mfort 
 ng in 
 
 on of 
 
 impse, 
 
 power 
 
 liticent 
 
 itional 
 
 appro- 
 
 )or; in 
 in her 
 
 rish or 
 
 le ; and 
 
 ijterian 
 
 iety an 
 
 Df 1H90. 
 a long- 
 r power 
 )ine and 
 ion and 
 uxiliary 
 care of 
 ed form 
 urch in 
 
 ons with 
 ♦ It wa^ 
 
 in the work of conducting Bible readings and in 
 leading the devotions of the meetings that Mrs. 
 Macdonnell revealed lierself most truly though uncon- 
 sciously. There was always evident in her an 
 intense desire to grasp an<l use profitably tlio 
 teaching of the Word, and a longing of the soul, 
 breathed out in every prayer, for fuller, higher, more 
 earnest spiritual life. These things impres.sed those 
 who atten«led the meetings so that they can never be 
 forgotten. Such dutii^s were not easy for her. Care- 
 fully prepare<l for and faithfully discharged as they 
 jihvays were, the undertaking of them yet remaine(l 
 a serious strain, an effort more exhausting than any 
 of her friends realized at the time. 
 
 " In presiding at the business of the As.sociation 
 proper Mrs. Macdonnell wjis remarkable for her busi- 
 ness method and grasp of details. The same gift of 
 minute and e.xact ktiowledge of persons and things 
 which made her to her husband such a manual of 
 ready reference in the pastoral work, was e.'pially con- 
 spicuous here. In «lealing with the mission work of 
 both auxiliaries one was con.stantly surprised at the ex- 
 tent and accuracy of her information. She kept the 
 jitFairs and the workers of both the home and foreiirn 
 tit'ld securely in mind. While this was admirable 
 und surprising to an ob.server, it was most touch- 
 ing and endearing to note the prom|>t and cai'nest 
 t'X|)res.sion of interest and sympathy, when .some 
 word of distress came to us, of .sore hearts in far-off 
 homes in heathen lands, or of trouble and bereave- 
 iiKiit at our own doors. The light of ardent feeling 
 
 ttl 
 
 % 
 
Tf 
 
 i 
 
 I! 
 
 352 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 that swept over and lit up her beautiful face, the 
 quickly gathering tears that would not be kc^pt back 
 as she felt the pain of another's heart pressing upon 
 her own, the fervent words in wiiich she spoke to us 
 for a moment of each case as it came up, and then 
 lifted our hearts in united prayer — all form a picture 
 on which memory lingers most fondly." 
 
 It is in connection with the personality and influ- 
 ence of Mrs. Macdonnell that we most naturally think 
 of the home life of which she was the centre. It 
 would be easy to write and indeed to (juote a great 
 deal upon the subject. But a few sentences from 
 some who were privileged fo sit much under the roof- 
 tree of the manse must suffice. Mrs. Campbell writes 
 as follows : " It is not too much to claim that theirs 
 was a model household. Order there was and 
 the most minute oversight of details, but so much 
 love at the root of it all that the daily round could 
 not be described as 'clock-work.' They had, as a 
 rule, admirable servants who counted the house a 
 home, and its master and mistress their truest friends, 
 knowing that amid the manifold cares of the mistress 
 she always took thought for their comfort, while the 
 chivalrous nature of the master came out nowhere 
 more strongly than in his manner to those in his 
 service. What a home for children to be born into ! 
 How carefully were their natures studied ! How 
 conscientiously was every woi'd and action guarded 
 in their presence ! No woman understood the art of 
 home- making better than Mrs. Macdonnell. In tho 
 uudst of nmch delicate health, and the increasing 
 
DEATH OF MRS. MAC HON NELL. 
 
 353 
 
 , the 
 back 
 upon 
 to us 
 then 
 cture 
 
 influ- 
 think 
 :e. It 
 L great 
 J from 
 e roof- 
 writes 
 , theirs 
 IS and 
 much 
 1 couUl 
 
 dcmandH of liousehold and clmrcli work, she never 
 lost si«^ht for a moment of the hitjlier chiims of 
 liuslmnd and cliihh'en. It was truly said of her by one 
 who had known her lonfjj. ' As the mistress of the 
 manso she dispensed hospitality with a sweet and 
 winsome <^i'ace, which will be recalled with ten<ler 
 sadness by scores of friends in all parts of the 
 Dominion and by not a few in the lands beyond the 
 sea.' . . . One of the most unbendinixruk'sof the 
 house was that Mr. Maedonnell must not be dis- 
 turbed durin<r the morniui; hours in the studv. When 
 the rule was set aside it was not likely to lie done 
 in behalf of the j^ood or the j^reat, but rather for the 
 sake of some 'forlorn and shipwrecked brother' to 
 whom the hearty hand-fjrasp was worth more than 
 silver or gold, and who found life better worth living 
 after he had looked into the eyes of this })rother-man." 
 It was Mrs. Maedonnell who guarde<l those hours of 
 scelusion, and it was hor judgment that wisely deter- 
 mined when the rule should be relaxed. 
 
 Mrs. Macdonnell's life was a very happy one. It 
 was so because she gave so much happiness, because 
 of her thoughtfulness about others, and her constant 
 •lesire to contribute to their comfort or pleasure. 
 She was happy, too, because she saw a great 
 work growing about her in which she felt that 
 s\w had a share ; ^ icause she and hers had en- 
 joyed very many outward blessings; because she 
 loved much and was much beloved. Her heart was 
 lull of a sense of the goodness that had followed 
 
 iu'i- and her husband. In one of her letters written 
 24 
 
 i 
 
 ^\ 
 
 ill 
 
 I ij 
 
 
 

 !! 
 
 n 
 
 354 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 home from Scotland, slie said : " All of these our 
 people and you all are so fjood to me that it humhlcH 
 me. It Hoems as if I luul heen petted and indulged 
 all my life; and as I have often said to you hefore, 
 no one ever had the lines east in so pleasant places." 
 But there was often also in her mind the other 
 thought, that they had no ri^ht to expect continued 
 unbroken ontwai'd happiness. One of tlie suj^j^cstions 
 of this kind is ^iven in a letter written front Liver- 
 pool, after meeting; her hushan<l, on .June 20tii, 1801 : 
 " I nnist say there is a .shade of di.sapj)()intment in 
 that there is not in James the (ihsolu.lc liealth I had 
 hoped for; and a thou<^ht conies, ' Well, it may not he 
 Jlifi will that thinj^sare ever to he quite as they have 
 been.' Ihit we have had moi'e than our share of 
 unalloyed happiness, and our thankfulness does not 
 mean much if we caimot say, 'Good is the will of the 
 Lord ' in any casi'." A<(ain, a letter written to an 
 absent brother on Au<jfust 1st, bSDJi, soon after the 
 j(ol<len weddiufj, reveals a kindred thou«]^ht with a 
 wider and less personal outlook : " I l)e;^in to realize 
 more than I used to do the comfort as well as the 
 duty of laying all our cares before our Father. For 
 in the happiest life there are times of great anxiety 
 and solicitude, for others if not for ourselves. It 
 would sometimes be insupportable — this burden that 
 is laid upon us— if it had to be borne by human 
 strength alone." 
 
^n 
 
 THE HEKOIC STKUGfJLE. 
 
 355 
 
 our 
 
 CHAITEH XXXV. 
 
 T//K uiJh'orr sT/trf.dLK. 
 
 Mil Ma('I)(»NNEI.l's Ix'ai'ini; (lurint; his wifr's illness 
 and aftor Iut death was such a suhlime instance of 
 Christian fortitude, such a signal triuin[)h of heroic 
 I'aitli, that it was to many of us a new revelation of 
 the ])ossihilities of consecrated Inunan natur«'. A 
 little has been already said ol' his uninti'rrupted fulHl- 
 nient of the puhlic duties of the pastorate. These 
 were continued without a hreak. except that in the 
 eveniniT of the two Sundays t'ollowini; the event, his 
 closely attached friend, K«'V. K. 1). McLaren, of Van- 
 couver, B.C., occupied the pulpit. On the inornin<^ of 
 the second Sunday lie was wonderfully atiectin*,^ in 
 his exposition of Psalm cxx.xi., during which he said 
 that he must contide somethin*^ of his feelinjrs to his 
 people who had jjjiven him so much of their sympathy 
 in his trouble. He then made an a|)plication of the 
 psalm to ins own soul in its hours of trial. In his 
 sennon upon Kom. xiv. 7, he a<,Min made a personal 
 aj)plication to himself. Speaking, as he sai<l, to his 
 own people only, ho concluded : " Her life, whatever 
 else it may have been, was one of Christ-like endeav- 
 
 ; 
 
 ! 
 
 
 
 j 
 
 
 ' 
 
 t 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 
 i *i 
 
 ifii 
 
 i 
 
I' :• 
 
 f 'II 
 
 ii i : i 
 
 W 
 
 356 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 our. May it prove an inspiration as far as the spirit 
 of Christ was manifest in it." 
 
 Ahnost immediately after the funeral the Home 
 Mission Connnittee met in St. Andrew's lecture-room, 
 and he took his usual part in its business during the 
 days on which it sat. All this time a multitude of 
 letters of sympathy were pouring in upon him which 
 demanded his attention, along with the details of 
 business of all sorts that had accumulated during the 
 preceding days. 
 
 What was most impressive was his undiminished 
 interest in and sympathy for others. This was mar- 
 vellously shown during his wife's illness, when, for 
 example, in his most anxious hours, he incjuired 
 minutely about any little troubles or ailments of his 
 friends or among the congregation. On Easter 
 Sunday he paid a visit to a sick member of his 
 church. Indeed, he seemed the more anxious to 
 attend to the needs of others the more his own heart 
 was stricken and bleeding. People who did not know 
 him, and even some who did, could hardly approve of 
 hfs engaging at once in public work, especially his 
 going into the pulpit on the Friday and Sunday while 
 his wife lay dead in the manse. Indeed, it was com- 
 mented on thronn^hout the Dominion, and sometimes 
 misinterpreted mo ;t grossly. But the explanation of 
 any phenomenon o^^^ any life is easy when we have the 
 key to that life's history. It was impossible for him 
 to be disconcerted or startled out of himself by any 
 personal event whatever, because his life moved in a 
 fixed orbit around the central Sun, and because in all 
 
THE HEROIC STUUGOLE. 
 
 357 
 
 \e 
 
 spirit 
 
 e Home 
 re-room, 
 ring the 
 bitude of 
 im which 
 letcails of 
 uring the 
 
 iminished 
 
 was mar- 
 when, for 
 . UKiuired 
 ents of his 
 )n Easter 
 her of his 
 mxious to 
 
 own heart 
 I not kncnv 
 
 approve of 
 
 lecially his 
 [nday while 
 
 |t was com- 
 sometimos 
 
 Sanation of 
 e have the 
 
 Ible for him 
 ielf by any 
 moved in a 
 
 [cause in all 
 
 its motions it was adjusted to eternal issues. It could 
 be said of him, as truly as of any saint in or out of 
 Bible history, that it was " Christ for him to live," 
 and as the divine life knows no surprises, so the life 
 that is hid with Christ in (Jod fultils its functions 
 amidst the crash of worlds as easily as in the calm 
 and sunshine of a sunnner's dav. And what was the 
 ruling law of his life and being :* It was the two- 
 fold yet undivided law of love and of faitii that 
 works by love. To such a faith how reid is each 
 object of love ! and how imperative every duty that 
 love dictates ! This then is the explanation. His life's 
 companion was still so real and so near to him that sh(> 
 was not away from him in spirit nor lur from her. 
 His love for her while living had never lessene'd, but 
 only deepened and ([uiekened his love for others and 
 his devotion to their service. Hence he could turn 
 with tearless eye and even with cheerful mien from 
 the coffin where she lay, and mingle with a full and 
 ready heart in the joys or sorrows or even the com- 
 inoni)lace experiences of a friend or actpiaintance, or 
 follow with no mental abstraction the details of a case 
 of distress or of any ordinary business of life. Hence 
 we heard him talk and laugh as befoi'e. And if he 
 • lid not work just as before, it was because he worked 
 with straining nerves and with enfeebled physical 
 powers. Something, too, of his emotional energy 
 was perforce deflected from the objects of earth. 
 All invisible force was still attractinj; him to her who 
 was seen no more by his side. Together they had 
 moved like the twin orbs of a double star, and now 
 
 I 
 
 HI 
 
 \m 
 
358 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 he was still drawn toward the vanished light of his 
 life, as Sirius sways toward his dark, unseen com- 
 panion in the southern sky. 
 
 During all this time he was almost without sleep, 
 and so continued for many weeks ! What would have 
 driven almost any one into a condition of sheer moral 
 exhaustion, seemed to give him a keener interest 
 than ever in the things of life. One reward and 
 solace, at least, he could not fail to get. The love that 
 he had lavished on others now came back in some 
 measure, at least, to the giver. And this was to him 
 an unspeakable comfort and support. In a letter 
 written to Dr. and Mrs. and Miss Smellie, on March 
 29th, just after their return to Feigus, he says: "I 
 was sorry that our parting yesterday was somewhat 
 hurried. And yet, perhaps, it was as well so. I 
 cannot tell you how dear you all are to me, dearer 
 than ever, and you know I have truly loved you. I 
 felt yesterday that I nnist cling to you, and was 
 unwilling to let you go. I am concerned about 
 Mannna's illness. I do trust we shall have good news 
 of your safe arrival at home. I saw dear old Mrs. 
 
 yesterday before tea (amongst others). She 
 
 was very affectionate and sympathetic. Everi/hodi/ 
 is so. God be thanked for the love He has ])ut into 
 human hearts 1 . . . 
 
 " I have been at the Home Mission Connnittee most 
 of the forenoon, and must now return. Every day 
 will bring its imperative demands on mind and 
 strength, and this is doubtless well, 
 
 " I look up as I write, and there is my beloved one, 
 
Tff 
 
 THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 359 
 
 my sweet Libj, looking at nie from the wedding-dress 
 picture on tlie mantel-})ieco, remindincr nie of what 
 
 we sang last night in eliurch : 
 
 " ' Ami they, wlui with their Lender, 
 Have e<»nqiieretl in the tight. 
 Forever Jiiid forever 
 
 Are clad in ruhes of white.' 
 
 H 
 
 ill 
 
 /'■ 'il 
 
 " I cannot write, I must see you soon again. 
 " Good-bye, my dear ones. 
 
 " Your lovin<r son and brother." 
 
 1: \% 
 
 An alhision made al)Ove is to tlie prayer-meeting 
 service at which Dr. Robert Campbi'll gave tlie 
 address. On the Monday following, A])ril 2nd, he 
 wrote to Mrs. Smellie : " I got through yestei'day 
 with considerable comfort, preaching in the forenoon 
 on Rom. xiv. 7-0, emphasizing especially what Moule 
 calls attention to, that Christ is Ao/v/ of the dead, 
 and therefore, that the blessed dead are still His 
 sermnts, doing Him service, while waiting for the 
 completion of their blessedness in the resurrection 
 life. There is so much that one longs to know as to 
 the present condition of those who have passed out 
 
 of our sight. 
 
 " In the afternoon I took charge of Elizabeth's 
 class of girls, for which we have not yet got a 
 t(!acher. I felt impelled to go and say a few words 
 to them about her concern for their spiritual welfare, 
 and I talked to them for a little also on the Sunday 
 school lesson. Mr, McLaren preached well in the 
 evening. 
 
3G0 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 r ■ 
 
 ^ 
 
 " I came in a little aao from the meetinjij of the 
 Men's AHSociation. I am tryinjif to take up the bits 
 of work as they come. I hope to see you all to- 
 morrow evening." 
 
 Of the seven motherless children three were still 
 of very tender age, Norman being scarcely eight 
 years old, Margaret five, and Kenneth three. The 
 care of the children and of the household was now 
 i:)laced in the hands of Miss Smellie. With her the 
 aged father and mother moved to Toronto f(jr a 
 season that they also might have her care and com- 
 panionship. Of those days in the manse she writes, 
 begiiniing with a (juotation from his own words: 
 
 '"I feel as if we were about to begin a new chapter, 
 of which the first paragraph is the coming of Father 
 and Mother to-morrow. May our gracious Lord lead 
 us every step of the way. Yes, He will. My heart is 
 heavy, but I am content with the will of tlu; Lord.' 
 
 "So he wrote on the 19th of April, 1894, a few 
 weeks after his bereavement, and the sentences are 
 characteristic of the spirit in which the months fol- 
 lowin<r were lived — the light gone out of life, but 
 the servant staying himself upon his God, and going 
 forward to untried paths, sure that there was no 
 mistake, and ' simply trusting every day,' and glad 
 and thankful when through the clouds one ray of 
 light shone on the next step to be taken. ' We must 
 take short views ; ' ' Don't be trying to cross bridges 
 till you come to them ; ' ' Let us live one da}' at a 
 time,' were words by which he helped us all to ' be 
 careful for nothing, but in everything l»y prayer and 
 
THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 361 
 
 II 
 
 of the 
 ho bits 
 all to- 
 re still 
 ' eij;;l»t 
 . Tho 
 as now 
 lier the 
 • for a 
 [id com- 
 > writes, 
 
 .Is: 
 
 chapter, 
 
 C Father 
 
 ,oril lead 
 
 heart is 
 
 Lord.' 
 
 a few 
 noes are 
 iths fol- 
 life, but 
 iid goiii*; 
 , was no 
 Ind glad 
 ray of 
 tvVe must 
 bridges 
 lay at a 
 ll to ' be 
 k,yer and 
 
 supplication with thanksgiviuff to make our re<|uests 
 known to God.' His prayers at family worship 
 breathed this spirit, simple, lunnble, trustful and 
 alxMinding in expressions of gratitu<le, especially ' for 
 our love to one another,' ' for our memories of the 
 past,' ' for the links that biml us to the unseen world.' 
 Wonderfully was the fulness of his heart thus poured 
 out on the Sabbath evenings when it had for years 
 been the custom of the mother and childi-en, after an 
 early tea, to spend an hour in singing hymns, each, 
 beginning with the youngest, having a choice. Sonie- 
 times the father's voice blended with the others, 
 sometimes his work in the study prevented that, 
 l»ut there was never any fear of disturbing him. 
 Music always seemed to sootlu; and inspire him to 
 any mental effort. On that first Sabbath evening, 
 after mother had gone, and the lovely form lay still 
 and white in the other room, w^e sang as usual, the 
 liist hymn chosen being, ' How bright these glorious 
 spirits shine,' and then he motioned to us to kneel, 
 iuid with an arm encircling his babies, one on either 
 side, he brought us very near to ' the Father, of 
 whom the whole family in heaven and earth is 
 named.' From that tiuje, when at home, the Sabbath 
 evening prayer was never omitted, and seemed ever 
 to bring us into the ' holy of holies.' And when he was 
 absent, it was the hour when our hearts were most 
 drawn out to him, while another voice was now giving 
 tlianks for him, and commending him to the Heavenly 
 (hace. Hallowed seasons these were, of which the 
 memory will surely abide as long as life lasts. 
 
 
 r I 
 
 II 
 
rfT 
 
 I ^ 
 
 , 
 
 362 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " Work was as faithfully and promptly attended to 
 as ever, perhaps ratiier with the feverish desire to 
 still pain than with the glad eaj^erness of old ; but 
 there was no reckless disregard of the laws of health, 
 or suicidal rush to get through and be done with it. 
 Recreation was planned for and taken when possible. 
 
 " ' . . . For well r know the voice of duty, 
 And therefore life find health would crave. 
 Though she who gave the world its heauty 
 Is in her grave.' 
 
 " The importance of keeping well led him often, 
 when he felt mental depression or heavy-heartedness 
 overpowering him, to join his boys on the ice, or to 
 propose a long walk, in which he always liked some 
 one to accompany him. No time was allowed for 
 brooding or morbid reflection, although reminiscences 
 of other days came so spontaneously to his lips, that 
 he seemed to be living in the past. The case of the 
 sick and the sorrowing and the distressed appealed 
 to him constantly, and day by day he carried the 
 burdens of others with- unfailing sympathy, which 
 showed itself in loving, ready, unselfish interest in 
 the affairs of his own household, and in deeds oi* 
 thoughtful kindness without. 
 
 " The burden of his own grief and loneliness grew 
 no lighter as time went on, and during the summer 
 holiday of 1894 seemed to press upon him with 
 increasing weight after the excitement of the General 
 Assembly at St. John." 
 
 This Assembly of June 13th to 21st, 1894, was 
 
f 
 
 THE IIEROK' STKUOGLE. 
 
 363 
 
 sometimes spoken of as " MacdoiiiieH's Assembly, " 
 from the prominent part wliicli he took in the \)vn- 
 eeedin^s anil the number of measures pro})oseil or 
 supported by him which met with the approval of 
 the members. Of these four were of special imjH)r- 
 tance. One of them was the appointment of a 
 connnittce to reconmu'nd some betti'r means of having 
 vacant char<^t!S more speedily and suitably filled. 
 Upon this subject his mind had been lonjjf exei'cised. 
 Five weeks after his wife's death, returning; from 
 Owen Sound where he had been preachinjL;' for Mr. 
 Somerville, after a ni^ht in which he had had but 
 half an hour's sleep, he spent his time on the train in 
 draftiuir this and another ovei-ture for submission to 
 the Presbytery of Toronto. A second aimed at estab- 
 lishinir a Churdi and Manse Buildiuir Fund for the 
 whole of the Western section of tlu' Church IviniT 
 cast of Manitoba. The third related to his darliui; 
 scheme of Aui::mentation. It secured that Aujiinenta- 
 tion in the Western section of the Church, instead of 
 beint(, as heretofore, a branch of (he Home Mission 
 woi'k, should be put in chart^e of a special committee 
 co-ordinate with the other <^reat schemes of the 
 Church. Of tlu^ new independent committee formed 
 thereupon he was made convener. The fourth 
 iiuiasure was that which was perhaps the subject of 
 keenest debate, that, namelv,bv which it was decided 
 to have selections from the Psalms ami i*aiaj)hras('s 
 made an integral part of the new " Pook of Prai.se" 
 Prof. Gordon, of Halifax, writes upon this general 
 theme : 
 
 I I 
 
 ; t 
 
 t . .. -• 
 
 :■' ) 
 
 Hil 
 
 ■;l 
 
 m. 
 
 •'f, ui 
 
3G4 
 
 LIFE OF 0. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 "His work in the (Jt'iiLTal A sscnibly was marked 
 ])y tlie Harne foaturoH that characterized liim in all 
 other I'elations of life — the same loyalty to his vision 
 of truth, the same readiness to spend his stren^^th in 
 the servicer to which he had been consecrated. He 
 was a willin<; woi'ker and a wise counsellor, possessinf^f 
 such alertness of mind that he could (piickly seize the 
 subject under discussion, while his well-known sin<;le- 
 ness of purjiose, his clearness of artjument and his 
 force of utterance always secured for him the respect- 
 ful attention of his brethren. Few men could care 
 less than ho for anything in the form of personal 
 triumj)h (jr defeat in debate, and none could mon.' 
 cheerfully accept the decision of the Assembly. 
 Henc(! he came to wield an increasinix inHuence in the 
 supreme court of the Church. This was particularly 
 manir 'st in the last Assembly in which he took his 
 accustomed part — that which met at St. John in 
 liS94: for, althou^^h he was present at the Assembly 
 of ISO"), he had by that time already entered upon his 
 last sickness. At 8t. John it seemed as if he were 
 gifted with more than his ordinary power of insight 
 and of persuasiveness, and, although he spoke fre- 
 (juently, none of tho.se present can forget with what 
 apparent ease he carried the Assembly with him on 
 almost every occasion. But the fire was burning too 
 fiercely to last long : the growing fervour was con- 
 suming the strength which it illumined. After his 
 great bereavement it seemed as if his chief solace was 
 to be found in work, but work under such conditions 
 nuist soon wear out the workman." 
 
1? 
 
 THE IIKROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 3G5 
 
 The Motlerator of the General Asseiulily of ISSO, 
 Principal Macrae, of Morrin College, <^uel)ec, at that 
 time minister of St. Stephen's Chnrch, St. Jolni, an 
 intimate frien<l and kindred spirit, expresses himself 
 as follows : 
 
 "In the proceeding's of every General Assembly at 
 wliich Mr. Macdonnell was a commissioner, he in- 
 variably manifested the <lee})est interest. Not nn 
 frecjuently, he was the unHinchin<; advocat*' of some 
 unpopular course. But, whatever view he adopted, 
 he commanded not simply the attention hut the 
 liveliest admiration alike of those opposing; as of thos<' 
 approvin*,' his judf^ment of the (picstion in debate 
 
 "The Assembly which met at St. John in 1804, he 
 may be truly said to have controlled. His almost 
 preternatural energy was the subject of remark 
 throughout. On well-nigh every theme that came 
 up from beginning to close, he seemed comjtelled 
 to speak. To him was due the framing of nearly 
 every important resolution adopted. He spoke, too, 
 as if .actuated by an irresistible; impulse. ])eep 
 feeling that, suppressed, might have resulted — more 
 than one so whispered — in unsettling that noble 
 mind, recently so sorely wounded b}'^ the <leath of his 
 beloved wife, demanded action to serve as its vent. 
 Never were his words more persuasive, never was his 
 logical faculty more alert, never was his personality 
 more commanding. The blending of intellectual 
 power with emotional intensity simply overpowered 
 and swept opposition out of his path. On more than 
 ne issue, more especially that of the Hynuial, he 
 
 
 III 
 
 f ' 
 
 () 
 
3G6 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CfirrieJ his opinion by positive acclamation, winning 
 tiio siiHVa^'os of niany anionjj the most resolute of 
 a<lherents to the <(oo<l old paths. There are not a few 
 of his survivinjij brethren, to whom it is as if, with 
 his departure, a j^lory has fa<le(l away from the 
 hi^diest court of our Church." 
 
 Knlar<^in^. Dr. Macrae adds: "Never have I met 
 with any one before whose persuasiveness in present- 
 in*^ his view of any matter, it was e(|ually inevitable 
 for me to bow. Did he read a hymn, it was 
 instantly invested with a new and previously un- 
 dreamt of fervour of devotional patlu)s, or with a 
 thrill of spiritual aspiration. Did he set forth some 
 opinion on any subject, for the time bein<:^ no other 
 opinion seemed worthy of considerjition. 
 
 " He preached in St. Stephen's (my) Church, in 1804, 
 from St. John xiv. 2 : ' In my Father's house,' etc. 
 I can recall only the j^enei'al impression. Sometimes 
 it sujji'^ests a sad joy that that was the last theme 
 handled by him in my hearing. The chief charac- 
 teristic was the yearning tenderness, the wistful love, 
 the hope, scintillating all through, that surely, some- 
 how, for all of God's children of humanity, there 
 nnist needs be, somewhere, sometime, a home." 
 
 Of the other principal events of this sunnner Prof. 
 Hart thus speaks : 
 
 " In the summer of that year I was more with him 
 than I ever had been before. After the Assembly at 
 St. John, he. Dr. Gordon and I travelled together to 
 Halifax through the land of ' Evangeline.' The next 
 ten days we spent together enjoying the warm- 
 
F) 
 
 THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 367 
 
 hearted hospitality of Dr. and Mrs. Oordon in 
 Halifax, then we went on to Picton, Cape Breton and 
 Prince Edward Island, and travelled together on our 
 way home as far as Montreal. On the first of Auj^u.st 
 I joined him a«^ain at Toronto, and we journeyed 
 toj^ether to Manitoba. The next three weeks he 
 spent under my roof in WinMipej:^, where he j^ave a 
 much appreciated cour.se of lectures in ^lanitoha 
 Collej^e, on 'The Minister and his Work.' This visit 
 was thorou<^hly enjoyed hy every mendter of my 
 family, and it has left with us very precious memories. 
 Often do I dwell on the thouj^ht of that summer. It 
 was the sunmier after dear Mrs. Macdonnell's death. 
 Of this crushinpf sorrow — a sorrow that lay too deep 
 for tears — he seldom .spoke except to old friends who 
 knew and love<l her well ; but his whole life seenied 
 to be transformed. Ho lived upon a hi<;her plane, he 
 bi'eathecl a purer air, and more than ever he in- 
 spired others with longings and aspirations after the 
 holiest and best in which he him.self lived and moved. 
 What a privilege and joy it was to me that summer 
 to see so nmch of my dearly loved friend — to enjoy 
 our quiet walks on the sen-shore, our long talks on 
 train and steamer and in my own home ! Little did 
 we think these were to be our last ! Ever in my 
 (|uiet moments 'The idea of his life doth sweetly 
 creep into my study of imagination.' And this 
 idea comes as an inspiration to follow him as he 
 followed Christ. His life was a sacrifice for the good 
 of others. All too lavishly did he expend his wealth 
 
 ; 
 
 
 y 
 
 
 :l: 
 
 is 
 
 * 1^ 
 
 uf mind and heart. The strain was too severe ezA it 
 
308 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 i ■ 
 
 sli()rtone<l his days. His mm went down wlion it was 
 yet noon. Hut, it* ' we live in dee<ls not years' — if 
 we should ' count time by heart-throbs ' he lived more 
 than man's allotted span, and in the fulness of time 
 passed away into the rest that remaineth." 
 
 It is possible that the visit to the Assembly in St. 
 John prolonged his life. For the three months just 
 precedinj^ he could j^ain only mere snatches of sleep. 
 " I am very weary," he said to the writer on the 
 Sunday evening following the funeral, while on his 
 way to visit a sick woman away up on Chestnut 
 Street. How was he sustaine«l so strong in purpose 
 and so clear in thought ? We could only look on and 
 wonder. But we may note that the long slet'i)less 
 hours of night were spent in prayer, and that not for 
 himself alone. When he came to St. John the sea air 
 — his native air — acted as a nerve tonic, and he was 
 able to sleep at least a few hours nightly. 
 
 He would not give up the engagement to lecture at 
 Winnipeg. He made careful preparation for his 
 lectures to the students, as his copious notes bear 
 witness. His theme of " The Minister and his Work " 
 embraced the following topics : 1 , The need of a 
 special order of men for the ministry ; 2, The work 
 of the minister : {<i) what to preach, {b) how to preach : 
 3, Conduct of public worship, and right use of the 
 Bible ; 4, Relations of the minister to different classes 
 in his congregation : the young, the poor, the sick, etc., 
 and to his session and managers; 5, Relations of the 
 minister to social problems, philanthropic movements 
 and politics ; 6, Relations of the minister to prayer- 
 
 L 
 
11 
 
 THE HEKOIC STUl'OfJI.E. 
 
 •SOO 
 
 it was 
 •s'— if 
 il more 
 f time 
 
 ' in St. 
 
 ,\\H jUHt 
 
 F sleep, 
 on the 
 on hiH 
 hestnut 
 purpose 
 : on and 
 sleeplesH 
 i not for 
 e aoa air 
 [ he was 
 
 cture at 
 for his 
 es bear 
 
 Work " 
 ed of a 
 he work 
 ) preach : 
 io of the 
 it classes 
 iick, etc., 
 IS of the 
 
 vements 
 prayer- 
 
 meetiu}^, Sunday scliool, Vouii;^ People's and other 
 church societies; 7, What sort of man tlie minister 
 must Immii conduct and spirit; -S. Tlie liest |>repara- 
 tion for the work of the minister. 
 
 The strain was liard to hear. To ipiote Miss 
 Smellie aj^ain : " He wrote in Au;^ust from Wiiniipe;^^ 
 'It seems im[)Ossihle to throw otK this tK'pression, and 
 I sometimes feel as if I would ^lailly fall out of line 
 alto;^etiier.' He felt sadly dissatisfied with the work 
 he accomplished, and reproached himself for not 
 heiniJC able to take more 'interest in thiiurs. '" He 
 arrived at home on Au<xust 'Ust. He had. of (•()urse, 
 preached a j;r«!at <leal durini; both his eastern and 
 western visits. Ami this was Ids " holiday I " 
 
 Thus he took up the toil of life a;^^ain, or i-ather 
 continued it. The Au^nu'ntation work, with its 
 increased responsibility, and the Hynnial furnished 
 the chief business of his hours not devoted to his 
 people till the be((inninfj of 1 <S!).'). 
 
 On Septend)er 28th the ranks of the eldership were 
 ut,'ain broken by death. On that <lay Mr. W. A. 
 Sliepard died after several internnttent attacks of 
 sickness. He was a loving and lovable man, full of 
 <i<)od works for the church and the jioor, overtlowin<,' 
 with kindness and prompt to help antl relieve, a jj^reat 
 friend and j^ood counsellor of St. Andrew's Institute 
 a pattern of fidelity and single-hearted devotion to 
 duty. 
 
 Financially the congregation showed some loss of 
 strength during 1894. But spiiitually it was a profit- 
 able year. Eighty-seven ad<litions wi're made to the 
 2q 
 
' '"■ 
 
 370 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 memberHhip, thougli an equal number were lost to 
 the church. The death of the minister's wife, and 
 the bearing of tlie minister under the heart-break, 
 were not without their effect upon the people. His 
 preaching touched many hearts and lives. It was 
 now in its latest phase, rich to overflowing with grace 
 and truth ; the rush and the roar of the torrent were 
 all gone now ; but the calm and steatly flow of the 
 stream betrayed its depth and the potency of the 
 forces that surged beneath the surface. 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell was persuaded to take a little 
 " holiday " in February, 1895, lasting from the Gth to 
 the 21st. Of this and the secjuel Miss Smellie writes : 
 
 " But he could not escape work. Augmentation 
 occupied the spare hours in Montreal, and addresses 
 to the students of Queen's were given during the 
 time of the Conference in Kingston, while the copious 
 notes he took testify to the pleasure and earnestness 
 with which he drank in the teaching of others. 
 Hardly had he taken up his home work again, wdth 
 its multiplicity of nameless details, when his enthusi- 
 astic interest in the successful completion of negoti- 
 ations for a ' common Hymnal ' led him, at great 
 personal inconvenience, to undertake a journey to 
 Britain, to meet with the joint-committee of the 
 Scottish churches." 
 
 It will be well to let Mr. Murray resume at this 
 point his account of Mr. Macdonnell's relations to the 
 Hynmal : 
 
 " In course of time it was felt that the Church wouM 
 welcome a larger collection of hynms embodying' 
 
IT 
 
 ! 
 
 THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 371 
 
 lost to 
 ife, and 
 it-break, 
 )le. His 
 
 It was 
 itli grace 
 :ent were 
 w of the 
 ly of the 
 
 e a little 
 the C)th to 
 lie writes: 
 rmentation 
 
 > 
 
 addresses 
 luring the 
 he copious 
 arnestness 
 of others, 
 gain, with 
 is enthusi- 
 1 of negoti- 
 11, at great 
 journey to 
 tee of the 
 
 jme at tlils 
 Itions to the 
 
 Uu-ch woul<l 
 embodying' 
 
 the best of the ' Paraphrases.' The Committee also 
 desired to publish with the hymns a selection of the 
 Psalms usually sung. The metrical Psalms had been 
 falling into disuse. The Committee hoped that by 
 a judicious selection, with the removal of certain 
 blemishes in the old v^ersion, the use of the Psalter 
 would be greatly promoted. Mr. Macdonnell made a 
 suggestion to this effect to the Committee in 1879 ; 
 but it was felt at that time that the Church was not 
 prepared for such a step. In poi;it of fact there has 
 been very earnest opposition to the ' selections ' until 
 recently. At one Assembly a resolution was passed 
 which w^as supposed to forbid the Connnittee's action. 
 A subsequent Assembly largely influenced by Mr. 
 Macdonnell's earnest and clear presentation of the 
 case, sanctioned by a very large majority the plan of 
 the Committee, and more recent Assemblies have 
 followed the same course. 
 
 " The Committee w^as enlarged with a view to the 
 new w^ork undertaken, but the new members never 
 failed to fall into line with the plans of the 
 Committee. 
 
 "In 1892, when the Presbyterian Council met in 
 Toronto, at the suggestion of Mr. IMacdonnell the 
 Hymnal Connnittee conferred with brethren from 
 Scotland with a view to a joint hymnal for the Pres- 
 byterian churches in the British Empire. The 
 Scottish brethren warudy welcomed the suggestion, 
 (■onimittees were appointed and united work was 
 most harmoniously cari-ied forward. So deeply was 
 -Mr. Macdonnell interested in the project that when 
 
 M 
 
 ' Ml 
 
 4 
 
 U 18 
 
 lik 
 
! ii 
 
 1 i I 
 
 ? 
 
 t- 
 
 372 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 it was considered necessary to send a delegate to 
 confer with the joint committee in Scothmd, lie at 
 once consented to cross the Atlantic (at his own 
 expense) for the purpose. That he made a most 
 favourable impression on the joint connnittee in Scot- 
 land is proved by the affecting letter of sjanpathy 
 sent to the Canadian Committee with reference to 
 Mr. Macclonnell's death. That the project of a joint 
 hymnal failed, so far as our Church is concerned, was, 
 happily, no fault of Mr. Macdonnell, or of the Com- 
 mittee of which he was so valued a member. One of 
 the Scottish churches — the most powerfid of the 
 three — withdrew, and the Canadian Committee felt 
 that their suggestion (the ideal of Mr. Macdonnell) 
 had ceased to be practicable. 
 
 "The first meeting of the Committee after Mr. 
 Macdonnell's death was profoundly sensible of the 
 loss it had sustained. Those who, from time to time, 
 for eighteen years held counsel with him felt pro- 
 foundly their bereavement. The loss was irreparable. 
 He had often said that in no part of the Church's 
 work had he so much comfort .and delight. I see 
 him sitting near the Convener, with his arm full of 
 books for reference, making notes as was needful ; 
 alert, patient, or if sometimes for a moment impatient, 
 (piickly relenting; each one has a chance of speaking : 
 if there is a lack of harmony he or some one else 
 reads the hynm ; all are attentive and the probability 
 is that all are of one mind. But sometimes there is 
 a difference of opinion. Mr. Macdonnell''^ luminous 
 eye kindles; he gives his reasons in a few clear 
 
"n 
 
 I, it 
 
 THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 373 
 
 Hr 
 
 ;ate to 
 he at 
 is own 
 a most 
 111 Scot- 
 mpathy 
 •ence to 
 a joint 
 icd, was, 
 he Coiu- 
 One of 
 of the 
 ittee felt 
 ,cdonnell) 
 
 sentences ; his face is aglow with entliusiasm ; and 
 the table is apt to see as he sees." 
 
 In the preface to the new "Book of Praise" with 
 music will be found the following words : " The Music 
 Committee would place on record their profound sense 
 of the loss sustained in the removal by death of their 
 beloved convener, the Rev. D. J. Macdonnell, B.I). 
 They remember with gratitude to God those qualities 
 which rendered him so valuable a member, notably a 
 sensitive perception of the qualities of tunes, together 
 with an unfailing devotion to a work in which he 
 ever felt a peculiar interest." 
 
 A few words from the venerable Dr. \Vm. Gregg, 
 so long pastor of Cooke's Church, and professor in 
 Knox College, Toronto, may fitly close this general 
 reference.* As is well known. Dr. Gregg was 
 the convener of the general Hymnal Conmiittee : 
 " With respect to my much-loved friend, the late 
 Rev. D. J. Macdonnell, my fellow-labourer in pre- 
 paring both the first and the new edition of our 
 Church Hymnal, I desire to bear testimony to his 
 invaluable services in this work. Very much of any 
 excellence in the selection of hymns and tunes is due 
 to his refined taste, wise discrimination and indefati- 
 gable labours as a member of the Hynuial Committee, 
 and especially as chairman of the sub-committee on 
 tunes. During the closing months of his life, when 
 
 ■■i\ 
 
 • Prof. Gregg was not only an attached friend of Mr. Macdon- 
 nell, but Mrs. Macdonnell also cheriHhod for him throughout her life 
 a warm and sincere friendship, he having been her minister during 
 iior school-days in Toronto. 
 
374 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 : 
 
 T 
 
 no longer able to attend the meetings of the Hymnal 
 Committee, he wrote expressing regret that he could 
 not be with them, and at tlie same time, stating that 
 in all tlie business in which he had been engaged 
 there was none in which he took a deeper interest or 
 felt greater delight than in helping to prepare a 
 Hymnal for the Church." 
 
 He left Toronto for Scotland very hurriedly, on 
 March 22nd, 1895, accompanied by Rev. Alexander 
 McMillan, now of St. Enoch's Church, Toronto (then 
 of Mimico). He sailed from New York by the 
 Lucania next day, the only anniversary of Mrs. 
 Macdonnell's death which he was permitted to see. 
 The change of scene and the hope of the enterprise gave 
 him a renewal of interest in the sights and events of 
 his journey. His note-book is full of descriptions of 
 attractive objects seen in New York and of experi- 
 ences of the voyage. He and Mr. McMillan found 
 diflSculties about the religious services, especially 
 because they could no^ get the attendance of the 
 steerage passengers. Here his old humour breaks out, 
 " The captain was not present at morning service, and 
 yet he is a Caithness man ! — must see Milligan." 
 
 The sea air again brought him better sleep, and 
 the delusive promise of fully restored vigour. He 
 wrote home from the Lucania : " I was a different 
 man, McMillan says, after I had been two days at 
 sea, and I believe he is right. In New York I had 
 been so played out, that I fell asleep two or three 
 times in the street-car, but the voyage has been 
 glorious, and I am well, well, well ! " ' 
 
TTmH 
 
 THE HEROIC STRUGGLE. 
 
 375 
 
 [vmnal 
 e could 
 Ttr that 
 ■njraged 
 ,crest or 
 epare a 
 
 idly, on 
 lexaiidor 
 ito (tlien 
 by the 
 of Mrs. 
 d to see. 
 n-ise gave 
 events of 
 iptions of 
 )t' experi- 
 an found 
 L'spccially 
 ;e of the 
 ireaks out, 
 Tvice, and 
 ran. 
 
 [sleep, and 
 V)ur. He 
 different 
 lo days at 
 |ork I had 
 or three 
 has been 
 
 Mr. McMillan writes retrospectively : " On board 
 Mr. Macdonnell was just liiniself, in our stateroom so 
 devout and meditative, so happy in his frecpient study 
 of the Bible, while on deck he was so frank and 
 warm-hearted, and at table the life of the circle of 
 passengers about us. Altliough he coughed a good 
 deal, he thought the trouble to be purely bronchial, 
 and appeared to gain in physical energy, as rest and 
 the air of the sea restored him." 
 
 On the 25th he notes : " I am becomitii; more and 
 more epicurean daily. No trace of sea-sickness ; 
 magniticent appetite." Yet they had a very rough 
 sea for several days. On the 2(Sth : " Many passengers 
 succumbed ; concert proposed was given up ; one big 
 lurch sent me aijainst the bulwarks." 
 
 Edinburgh was reached in one week, to the hour, 
 after leaving New York. The leisurely habits of the 
 Scottish churchmen now ijfave the two delejxates 
 abundant opportunities of seeing fi'iends, and other- 
 wise entertaining themselves betv\'een the weekly 
 meetings of the Hymnal connnittees. 
 
 Among other visits, Mr. Macdomudl went on April 
 11th to see "Charlie" Oiant at Dundee. He spent 
 also a good part of the time at Paisley with Rev. Dr. 
 Henderson, of the United Presbyterian Church, for 
 whom he preached at the communion service on 
 Ajn-il 7th. On the Fri«lay following, he left Edin- 
 burgh for Liverpool. The Hnal result of the negotia- 
 tions with the Scottish chui'ches has already been 
 stated by Mr. ]\[urray. But this was not reached till 
 long after the return of the Canadians from Britain, 
 
 ; »i 
 
376 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 i I 
 
 and they were, during the meetings at Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow, encouraged to hope that the project of 
 the common Hymnal might be realized. 
 
 Yet their labour was not thrown away. Mr. 
 McMillan writes : " Our visit has enabled us so to 
 improve our own hynmal, and so to bring it into 
 conformity with the joint Hymnal as drafted in our 
 meetings, that of the 022 hymns in the "Book of 
 Praise," 420 are to be found in the new " Scottish 
 Church Hymnal." If we cannot at this time have 
 a common Hymnal, we have to a very large extent a 
 conniion hymnology." 
 
 Mr.Macdonnell sailed from Liverpool by the Etruria 
 on the 13th, and reached New York on the morning 
 of Saturday, the 20th. There he stayed till Monday, 
 the 22nd, reaching home on the morning of the 23rd. 
 The next evening, at prayer- meeting, he gave a 
 pleasant account of the meetings in Scotland, seemed 
 hopeful and cheery, and stoutly affirmed that he was 
 well, though his looks did not bear out his words. 
 
nburgh 
 aject of 
 
 y. Mr. 
 IS so to 
 it into 
 1 in our 
 Book of 
 Scottish 
 me have 
 extent a 
 
 ) Etruruh 
 , morning 
 Monday, 
 the 23rd. 
 I gave a 
 seemed 
 he was 
 ords. 
 
 SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 377 
 
 CHAPTER XXX\ I. 
 
 SICKXESS AND DEATH. 
 
 It is difficult to decide at what point a chapter 
 with such a heading should properly begin. Wlien 
 the fatal sickness fell upon Mr. Macdonnell is not 
 easily determined. It will be convenient, however, to 
 take up the story of the latest days of our friend at 
 the time when those symptoms were unmistakably 
 manifested which developed into the fatal disease. 
 But close and eager observers had felt for months 
 and even years before this point of time, that 
 the vital forces could not much longer endure, and 
 there was scarcely a week within that time during 
 which he was not earnestly advised to work less 
 and sleep more, and take regular physical exercise. 
 Neither specific disease, however, nor a sudden break- 
 down was apprehended for him, but rather a gradual 
 wearing out. He had a magnificent nervous system, 
 which, when backed up by fair general health, 
 enabled him to work continuously very nuich longer 
 than the average sedentary man. It was this capac- 
 ity, along with facility and versatility, that enabled 
 liiiri during the days of his strength to combine 
 
 i 
 
 4 
 
h \ 
 
 1 
 
 If ' 
 
 
 il i 
 
 378 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 Hucli an extraordinary amount of routine work with 
 r(!adincj, reflection and writinjr- His hours for troinf 
 to bed for a time in 1881 were from 2 to 4 a.m., 
 and this pretty fairly represents the liabit of a lar<re 
 part of his active life. Then the " seven o'clock 
 rule " for rising in the morning was inexorably and 
 invariably followed. It seemed impossible for him, 
 with his generous zeal for helpful work, to change his 
 habits, in spite of the warnings that came to him, 
 from depression and fatigue, in the early spring-time 
 during the last seven or eight years of his life. What 
 further served to encourage him in extravagant work 
 was his wonderful capacity of nijrvous recuperation. 
 
 A slight occasional cough without an accompanying 
 cold, excited apprehension before he left for his last 
 visit to Britain. Indeed, a medical examination had 
 been begun, but not completed, at the time of his 
 departure. In spite of his improvement in health 
 during the outward voyage, the same symptom I'eas- 
 serted itself, and he had prolonged and exhausting 
 fits of coughing in Scotland. The return voyage did 
 not benefit him as much as he had expected. He was, 
 in fact, never well at any time during 1895. 
 
 To understand fully Mr. Macdonnells illness, sym- 
 pathy with and intimate knowledge of his mental, 
 moral and spiritual nature are essential. A medical 
 gentleman who observed him sympathetically and 
 intelligently puts the case thus : " I think his system 
 was undergoing a steady course of depletion for 
 several years. In 1894, Mrs. Macdonnells death, and 
 the loss of her help and companionship, hastened the 
 
SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 371) 
 
 lapse of the vital forco.s. In his heroic Htru<^^l(' to 
 keep up, and relax nothin*^ of his vim !in«l «'iirnest- 
 ness, he hrouf^ht on a tlecline, which settled on the 
 weakest spot in his system at that time, fur in the 
 sprinrj of 1895 he was in a physical condition to 
 invite any wastinrj or fatal disease." 
 
 Of the perio<l between the Scottish visit and tliti 
 appearance of the fatal dis«'ase MissSmellie writes: 
 
 " He embarked for home, ho[)efnl that his mission 
 had been successful, and on the 2:^i"d of April he was 
 j^reeted by his family, and entered at once on the 
 attempt to 'catch up' with his work. Keen eyes, 
 however, soon detected that theiv was somethiii;^ 
 wrong, and through the next six weeks of incessant 
 toil watched him with ever increasing anxiety. Ivest 
 was seldom sought till far on in the night, and 
 then was distur})ed and broken, and though loving, 
 kind and gentle as ever, it was too evident that 
 his interest and cheerfulness wei-e forcecl, and that 
 the strain was proving too much for his exhausted 
 frame. When spoken to about it he still maintained 
 that he was (juite well, but confessed that he felt he 
 could not give his mind to anything, that work was 
 a burden, and that he could not get a ' grip ' of things. 
 Especially did he feel this in })reparation for the 
 pulpit, and sadly remarked, ' I have really never 
 ])reached a 8ermo7i since I came home,' though one and 
 another have since testified to the help and strength 
 derived from even these last weeks of his ministry. 
 For the crisis was near. On the morning of the 12th 
 of June he left home, after only two or three hours' 
 
 ■U 
 
 I 
 
 n i 
 
 1 
 
irrr 
 
 I 
 
 ' 1^ 
 
 . 
 
 380 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 rest, for tlie (lOiierul Assembly in London, and not 
 many days later camo the admission, ' I am taking 
 very little active part for I have not felt (juite up to 
 the mark.' Inunediately on his return he was per- 
 suaded to see the doctor, with the result that on the 
 25th he was informed of the existence of disease in 
 the lunj^^s." 
 
 And yet he preached a^ain on the evening of 
 June 3()th, five days after he was informed of the 
 disease. He had preached on the morning of the 
 Sunday before with something of his old power. He 
 had even preached during the labour^ of the Assembly 
 in London, in fulfilment of a promise. But he was 
 haggard and worn during all these weeks. On the 
 morning of the 30th Mv. Gandier, of Halifax, con- 
 ducted the service. Mr. Macdonnell's appearance and 
 manner in the pulpit, in the evening, were so alarming 
 that the members of the session met w^lth him after 
 the service and insisted on his giving up preaching 
 entirely for a time ; the family physician being also 
 urged to order the minister to keep out of the pulpit I 
 
 Of his spirit and temper during the succeeding 
 months Miss Smcllie writes : 
 
 " From the lirst he realized the seriousness of the 
 verdict, and took his outlook of the future from a 
 new standpoint, but it was only when obliged to do so 
 that he relin(|uished his post and set himself to get 
 well. If ever the thought that rest would be sweet, 
 or that life was no longer worth living, had lodged in 
 his mind, it never for one hour led him weakly to 
 succumb, and the next eight inontlis were one long 
 
TT^ 
 
 jukI not 
 I taking; 
 ite up to 
 vvus per- 
 il on the 
 [isease in 
 
 Bning of 
 id of the 
 (T of the 
 wer. He 
 Assembly 
 it he was 
 , On the 
 ifax, con- 
 irance and 
 i) alarminjT 
 him after 
 preachinf,^ 
 jeing also 
 \e pulpit '. 
 succeeding 
 
 less of the 
 re from a 
 id to do so 
 self to get 
 be sweet, 
 lodged in 
 |weakly to 
 one long 
 
 SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 :isi 
 
 fight with disease, no inch of ground yie](hMl without 
 a struggle, no posHildi; means of cure left untried ; and 
 tlie liope never l»'ft him, tliat ' with the Messing of 
 the Lord I sliall Hve and l)e well again.' Uut witli 
 the e.xpression of tliat hop«' complete suhmission was 
 i»eautifully hiended, ' ( Jod knows he.st,' or ' My times 
 are in Ids hand,' being the })illow on which to rest. 
 In tlu! last hours of life he could still sa\', 'If it were 
 
 « 
 
 His will I wouhl be glad and thankful to live to serve 
 Him better that I have done, but He knows best.' " 
 
 ]\Irs. Canj])bell thus desciibes the first movements 
 taken after the physician had n^cogrn/ed the disease : 
 
 "First, he sought that ' haven of rest' — as he had 
 often called it — the home of his wife's father, at i*\'rgus, 
 where everything that loving hands could do was done 
 for his cond'ort, and there he awaited the decision of 
 his physicians as to his best course for the summer. 
 With their permi.ssion he went in the midfUe of July 
 to Cap-Ji- I'Aigle, where the sea air is so tempered by 
 that of pine-clad hills, tliat it was thought safe even for 
 weak lungs. Here he spent much of the time in a ham- 
 mock among the pines, or on the gallery of the cottage 
 overlooking the broad St. Lawrence, always serene 
 and hopeful, greeting the passersd)y with a gay word, 
 gathering up his best French to answer the sympa- 
 thetic incjuiriesof ' Monsieur,' who shook his head and 
 mutely invoked his favourite saint on behalf of the 
 ' Monsieur Anglais ' who was the friend of all." 
 
 But no improvement resulted from the weeks spent 
 on the St. Lawrence, and late in Aumist he returned 
 westward to meet his doctors in consultation. By 
 
 . f 
 
 I 
 
 ,^s\ 
 
 f-rjy 
 
ul'T 
 
 382 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 1 
 
 thoiM he WHS i-ornan(lo<l t() Fer^^u.s, The air of Ferfju.s 
 liud alvvfiyH a^Tocd witli him, and licro ho set hiniHoll' 
 seriously to the task of "^(ettiiij; well." Mi'h. Campbell 
 continues : 
 
 " And now camo one of those delusive periods of 
 aj)|)ari'nt improvement peculiar to tliis trouble, 
 when he himself and those around liim had hope 
 rekindle<l, and be^'an to l>uild on the possibilities of 
 help in a chan^jje of climate. Letters and pamphlets 
 recommendin*^ this and that mode of treatment 
 poured in upon him from kind and an.xious friends. 
 While this wave was at its height, he wrote me on 
 the 12th of Septendjer : 
 
 " ' I have been gaining in appetite and in general 
 condition. ... I walk and drive and have some 
 practice with dundj-bells. . . . Now, I have told 
 you as well as I can liow things are, and you must not 
 be over-anxi<nis. I am of ijood clieer — not certain of 
 anything in the future — but holding fast to the assur- 
 ance that " all things work together for good " to God's 
 children, even the unworthiest. I cannot tell you 
 how I am moved by many of the kind letters written 
 to me and about me.' " 
 
 On September 2.')th he came down to Toronto for 
 a further consultation, which was to decide whether 
 he should remain at Fergus all winter or be allowed to 
 try a more favourable climate. The result was to 
 determine that he was not in a condition to travel to 
 any more suitable region. Indeed, he was not in ii 
 condition to travel to and from Fergus, whither he 
 returned weary and disappointed. 
 
SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 383 
 
 npbell 
 
 ill 
 
 tiriods of 
 trouble, 
 ad Hope 
 jilities of 
 ampUlets 
 treatment 
 s friends. 
 )te me on 
 
 in general 
 
 have some 
 have told 
 
 u must not 
 certain of 
 the assur- 
 " to God's 
 
 .t tell you 
 rs written 
 
 'oronto for 
 lie whether 
 
 allowed to 
 
 Lit was to 
 
 lo travel to 
 
 lis not in '' 
 
 vhither !»»> 
 
 Not lon<^ thereafter, it was arranfjed tliat Mrs. 
 Cainpliell, alon<.j with his second son. James, sljould 
 j^ive him their conipanionsliip in Kcri^'us, while the 
 youiif^er cliildren should remain in Toronto under the 
 care of Miss Smeilie and the grandparents as \n Uw 
 previous winter. On October 5tli, just boforti this 
 cliange was eft'cctiMl, the writer had the privilege of 
 spending a day at " Kirkliall," of enjoying tlie refined 
 hospitality of that ideal liotne, of witnessing the 
 nobh' courage and touching trustfuln(!ss of the lieroic 
 invalid, and receiving his loving messages for the St. 
 Andrew's people in Toronto. Many of the miMubers 
 of the session and others in the congregation made a 
 similar i)ilgrimage to the shi'ine of this saint of (»od 
 during the autunni and early winter. But before long 
 it was understood that, however eager he was to see 
 his friends, it would be a kindness to him not to tax 
 his little strength by a personal visit. 
 
 Mrs. Campbell writes, resuTuing the period begin- 
 ning with the last consultation : 
 
 "And now began that daily and hourly traged}', so 
 sad and yet so beautiful — so sad to those who loved 
 him, looking on at the combat so bravely and patiently 
 waged with the fell disease that, inch ijy inch and 
 hour by hour, snapped asunder the threads of life ; so 
 lieautiful l)ecause of the calm resignation, the inward 
 s'\mt endurance, the loyal obedience to medical 
 orders, the willingness to try anything that love or 
 skill could suggest, that held a glimpse of hope, how- 
 ever distasteful to himself. All his medical advisers 
 had strenuously insist(;d on life in the open air, so 
 
384 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 i 1! 
 
 tliere was erected for him a ' Hlieltcr ' on tlie southern 
 side of tlie house, where, wrapped in furs and rugs, he 
 spent many a lonely hour, trying enough to one who 
 so loved companionship and tlie attractions of the 
 fireside. What were his thoughts as he sat alone, 
 reading hut little, though he had always a few 
 favourite books at hand, often losing himself in long 
 reveries, but bringing himself back with a briglit 
 smile or reassuring nod, if one went out to see how 
 he fared ? Evidently his thoughts were chiefly with 
 his people and of his work, sometimes regretful as he 
 mused of the unattained ideals, the l)afHed purpose, 
 all that he had planned to do, all that they had 
 planned to do together. And then he would ring his 
 bell and ask to have a letter written, when some 
 sudden thought had roused him to remember some 
 pastoral work which ought to be attended to." 
 
 A special letter was sent io his peopl" — his last 
 message to them — in view of the twenty-fifth anni- 
 versary of his pastorate, December 22nd, 1895, and 
 the communion service which fell this year on the 
 same day : 
 
 " Beloved Brethren : ' Grace to you and peace 
 from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.' 
 
 " ' I thank my God upon all my remembrance of 
 you, always in every supplication of mine on behalf 
 of you all making my supplication with joy, for your 
 fellowship in furtherance of the gospel from the first 
 day until now : being confident of this very thing, 
 tluit he which began a good work in you will perfect 
 it until the day of Jesus Christ; even as it is right 
 
'1^ 
 
 SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 385 
 
 uthern 
 airs, he 
 ne who 
 
 of the 
 i alone, 
 
 a few 
 
 in long 
 , bright 
 see how 
 ifly with 
 ful as he 
 
 purpose, 
 ■hey had 
 I ring his 
 len some 
 ber some 
 
 o. 
 
 —his last 
 fth anni- 
 1895, and 
 ,ir on the 
 
 ind peace 
 lirist.' 
 Ibrance of 
 
 on behalf 
 1 for your 
 la the hrst 
 
 ?ry thing, 
 |ill perfect 
 
 it is right 
 
 for me to be thus minded on behalf of you all, because 
 I have you in my heart. And this I pray, that your 
 love may abound yet more and more in knowledge 
 and all discernment ; so that ye may approve the 
 things that are excellent : that ye may be sincere 
 and void of offence unto the day of Christ ; being 
 filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are 
 through Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of 
 God.' 
 
 " In what more fitting words can I greet you on 
 this Twenty-fifth Anniversary of my settlement as 
 your mi) lister than these words of Paul to his 
 beloved friends at Philippi ? 
 
 " I have been made very glad in these days of 
 enforced inactivity by the spirit of unity and earnest- 
 ness that has characterized office-bearers and members 
 in the prosecution of the various departments of work 
 connected with the congregation. I have been kept 
 constantly informed of the doings of the various 
 associations and of all the work of the Institute ; and 
 I cannot but bless God for indications of increased 
 spiritual life. I pray that you may grow in grace, 
 and that your love may become ever more clear- 
 sighted to discern how God may be best served and 
 men most effectively helped. 
 
 " May this communion season be one of the richest 
 profit ! I know of no way of celebrating this anni- 
 versary more becomingly than sitting down together 
 at the table of the Lord to remember His dying love 
 — the few of you who ' remain to this present,' of 
 those w^ho welcomed your young minister twenty-five 
 26 
 
 II' 
 ■li 
 
 i ^! 
 
 :M 
 
i\ 
 
 II 
 
 1 ■ 
 
 1 i 
 
 J! 
 
 iil 
 
 
 H 
 
 386 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 years ago, and the many who have since been added 
 to our ranks. May the Master of tlie feast make His 
 presence felt by you and me, for I shall be with you 
 in spirit ! 
 
 " I cannot tell you how deeply I have been moved 
 by the loving sympathy expressed by you, my 
 beloved friends, in so many ways to myself. The 
 Lord reward you for all your kindness to me and 
 mine ! 
 
 " Need I say how much we owe in present circum- 
 stances to our tried friend Principal (irant, and to 
 Mr. Drummond, and to his congregation, which has 
 acted with rare self-forgetfulness in agreeing to allow 
 its minister to come to us for some months ? There 
 are scores of brethren, moreover, who have offered to 
 serve us in any way in their power. More and moic 
 do I bless Gotl for the precious human sympathy 
 whose streams are fed from the fountain of His own 
 love. 
 
 " What the coming years will bring, which of us 
 can tell ? The future is in the hands of Him wlio 
 sees the end from the beginning, and whose name is 
 Love. ' The Lord hath been mindful of us ; he will 
 bless us ! ' 
 
 " ' The Lord bless you, and keep you : the Loid 
 make his face to shine upon you, and be gracitnis 
 unto you : the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, 
 and give you peace ! ' 
 
 " Yours faithfully, 
 
 "D. J. Macdonnell. 
 
 " Fergus, December, 1895." 
 
SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 387 
 
 Pll 
 
 m 
 
 a added 
 ake His 
 atli you 
 
 n moved 
 ^ou, my 
 3lf. The 
 , me aivl 
 
 it circuni- 
 nt, and to 
 vhicb has 
 ^ to allow 
 s ? There 
 offered to 
 I and more 
 sympathy 
 f His own 
 
 ^hich of US 
 Him who 
 |se name is 
 IS ; he will 
 
 the Lord 
 be fri'f^cious 
 |e upon you, 
 
 Idonnell 
 
 The reference in this message to Mr. Drunimond 
 alludes to his having preached several Sundays 
 in St. Andrew's durint^ Octoher and November. He 
 was followed for two months by Rev. J, H. McVicar, 
 the well-known missionary to China, whose ministra- 
 tions were also most hi^^lily prized, and who, by a 
 fine coincidence, was soon afterwards inducted into 
 Melville Church, FVrgus. Mr. Drumuiond returned, 
 by permission of his conf^re<(ation at Russeltown, 
 Quebec, to take charge of St. Andrew's from .January 
 2()th, 1896, until a few weeks after Mr. Macdonnell's 
 death, thus showing his affection for his revered and 
 beloved friend, and renderin<^ an unspeakable service 
 to St. Andrew's in the time of its (jjreatest need. 
 
 Of Mr. Macdonnell's latest days on earth little 
 remains to be said. We listen reverently while Mrs. 
 Campbell describes the closint^ scenes : 
 
 " He grew more ami more reconcile<l to the idea of 
 remaining in Fergus, and often spoke of the comfort 
 and freedom he had there compared with what he 
 could have had at any invalid resort, or in travelling 
 about. It pleased him, too, that he was among the 
 familiar haunts of his youth, the scenes that wei-o 
 associated with his greatest joy and his greatest 
 sorrow. . . 
 
 "Once, on a dull afternoon, when the first December 
 snows were gathering in a dome of leaden cloud, 
 wliich seemed to press down over the earth, and he 
 was suflfering from a sense of the coming storm in the 
 atmosphere, he was being slowly driven <lown the 
 liill from the Guelph road, when suddenly there grew 
 
 'ft i 
 
 If 
 
 %m 
 
 
388 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 H 
 
 in the west a sweet and tender veil of faintest pink 
 and blue — the trail of the sunset. ' It is like my life 
 just now,' he said, * dark overhead and all around, but 
 there is li^ht beyond.' 
 
 " The change that his friends had been warned to 
 expect came suddenly early on Sunday morning, the 
 16th of February. A slight haemorrhage occurred, 
 and in the course of the forenoon it became evident 
 that the long martyrdom was nearly over. He had 
 thought so himself in the early morning, but when 
 after an hour or two he seemed to regain strength 
 and breathe more freely, he began to hope he might 
 be spared to go home to Toronto. This was the only 
 wish he expressed, the only regret he had at last, 
 that he had not gone home sooner. 
 
 " A few extracts from a letter written at the time 
 are perhaps the best account that can be given 
 now of those parting hours. On the morning of 
 Tuesday, February 11th, a circle of friends had, by 
 special arrangement, observed an hour of prayer on 
 his behalf, and it is to this that reference is made 
 in the letter. 
 
 " ' We cannot but ^eel that those Tuesday morning 
 supplications were answered in the peace of mintl 
 and strength of trust in God that were his through 
 all. I can see now that the sudden change had been 
 hanging over him all Saturday, but I saw nothing 
 then. He himself was always so hopeful that his 
 spirit was quite infectious, and I had never felt that 
 I could give up. His voice had come back quite 
 remarkably during the last two weeks, and was 
 
SICKNESS AND DEATH. 
 
 380 
 
 at pink 
 my life 
 md, but 
 
 irned to 
 ing, the 
 (ccurred, 
 1 evident 
 He had 
 )ut when 
 strength 
 he might 
 1 the only 
 (1 at last, 
 
 b tlic time 
 be given 
 orning of 
 is had, by 
 Iprayer on 
 le is 
 
 madt 
 
 never better than that evening at family worsliip. 
 That was a wonderful prayer, even among many 
 wonderful expressions of that sort during those last 
 days. I shall never lose from memory the sound of 
 those pathetic intercessions for " all those who suffer 
 and arc weary, wlio long for the morning light," and 
 for " Thy slaughtered saints in Armenia," who were 
 so much in his thoujrhts. 
 
 " ' I read to him all the evening from a book which 
 had been sent us, on " Gospel Healing." He agreed 
 with some of the things in it, but came back always 
 to his own child-like faith, " I am in my Father's 
 liand. He will do for me what is best." 
 
 • •■■••• 
 
 " ' All Sunday and Monday he remained very (|uiet 
 and serene, without much difficulty of breathing, or 
 pain, but, alas ! without sleep. . . . On Tuesday 
 he sank very rapidly, lying with his eyes closed, and 
 rousing himself at intervals to say a word or two to 
 Aunt B — or to me. All his words were in the 
 same strain, speaking of the many mercies bestowed 
 upon him, and of his implicit trust in his Saviour. 
 Aunt B — was greatly comforted by what he said 
 to her about his children, and his satisfaction that 
 tliey were to be her especial care. 
 
 " ' The unselfishness that had been the habit of his 
 life remained conspicuous to the last. It was mid- 
 night on Tuesday when one of his boys arrived, 
 having driven up from Guelph on a night of bitter 
 (Mjld. The father roused himself and looked up, say- 
 ing, "Were you cold. Logic, driving up ^ " and then 
 relapsed into unconsciousness.' 
 
i 
 
 ! : 
 
 ) 3 
 
 I 
 
 
 Il 
 
 
 390 
 
 LIFE OF P. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " The letter already quoted continues : * The doctor 
 was most anxious that he should not talk, but we 
 could not forbid it ; any words he might speak now 
 were so precious. All through that night while he 
 was awake, or half awake, there was a constant whis- 
 pt^i ^ of prayer, as if to some one close by, whom he 
 saw and spoke to confidentially ; sometimes a word 
 was audible — " cleanse," " purify," " make tit for Thy 
 pTesence." 
 
 " ' ^ ''^:.Hit half-past nine on the morning of Wednes- 
 day, \]h' 'Oih, we saw that the end was at hand. His 
 four eldcV children, his brother-in-law Mr. Robert 
 8me.Uie, MiSi^ liellie, and I were in the room. We 
 held a ', -n n.. .vhispered conference, and then I 
 said, as clearly ;'s ^ could, " We have not had worship 
 yet this morning, dear ; we are to have it now here 
 with you." He made a movement of assent. We 
 sang, yes, we sang, the 23rd Psalm. I think he lost 
 consciousness during that singing. Then Mr. Smellie 
 prayed. There were a few long, deep breaths, then 
 peace, and the rest for which he had so longed.' 
 
 " ' A premature death,' we said, but could it be so i 
 Could many more years have added to his power over 
 men's hearts, to the weight of his personality { He 
 is gone, but his work remains, imperishable ; the 
 spirit of his life will continue to bless the coming 
 generations." 
 
 On the Monday following we laid him to rest. 
 That day was a day of mourning, not merely to tlu' 
 circle of relatives and intimate friends, but to the 
 
doctor 
 but we 
 tk now 
 ^hile ho 
 it wViis- 
 /hom he 
 
 a word 
 for Thy 
 
 Wediies- 
 nd. His 
 *. Robert 
 om. We 
 d then I 
 i worship 
 now here 
 sent. We 
 ik he lost 
 r. SinelUe 
 aths, then 
 
 ed; 
 
 [l it be so ( 
 >ovver over 
 [lity i He 
 table; the 
 be coming 
 
 SICKNESS AND J)EATH. 
 
 391 
 
 whole city of Toronto, which had been blessed and 
 uplifted by his teaching and his life. After a private 
 service at tlie manse, conducted by Dr. Robert Camp- 
 bell, the coffin was placed in the church Thither for 
 two hours and a half came an unbroken stream of the 
 jieople of the city to view once more the face of the 
 man whom they loved as few men in any city liave 
 been loved. At half-past two the doors were closed, 
 but a great multitude remained outside reverently 
 waiting. In the .services Rev. Dr. Robertson, Mod- 
 erator of tlie Assembly, Rev. D. R. Drunnnond, Rev. 
 Principal Grant, and Rev. John Neil, Moderator of 
 tlie Toronto Presbytery, took part. The address was 
 delivered by Principal Grant. To the church and the 
 funeral procession all classes of society, from the 
 Viceroy of Canada to the boys of the St. Andrew's 
 Institute, sent their share of mourners ; all religious 
 denominations ; many cities of our land, near or 
 remote : many as.sociations, religi(ms and charitable ; 
 besides the St. Andrew's people, his peculiar posses- 
 sion. Such homage as this love alone could compel 
 and love alone could render. 
 
 
 i!*i 
 
 I <^i 
 
 M 
 
 I ' 
 
 |m to rest. 
 
 rely to the 
 
 Ibut to the 
 
It' 
 
 
 in 
 
 
 !i 
 
 
 392 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 
 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 In person, Mr. Macdonnell was somewhat above the 
 inkldle height, of spare but athletic frame, alert and 
 quick in his movements, of abstemious habits, of a 
 nervous temperament. He was naturally excitable 
 but did not easily lose mental poise or self-control ; 
 impulsive, but seldom doing anything which turned 
 out finally to have b en a mistake ; of an impetuous 
 temper held in rigorous subjection by conscience and 
 regard for others. He was of a sanguine disposition, 
 but was liable, especially in younger manhood, to 
 occasional despondency. He had an intense love of 
 fun and humour. His energy was exhaustless. He was 
 an excellent business man, of fine practical judgment 
 and rapid and exact methods of working. In con- 
 ference, however, he had so much deference to the 
 opinions of his colleagues or helpers that he would lose 
 much valuable time in drawing out their views before 
 giving a decision. He was throughout life somewhat 
 diffident in general social intercourse, especially with 
 strangers ; but l)efore a large assembly with a mes- 
 sage to deliver, his enthusiasm for humanity stirred 
 
bove the 
 ilert and 
 )its, of a 
 excitable 
 '-control ; 
 ;h turned 
 inpetuous 
 icnce and 
 position, 
 hood, to 
 i love of 
 He was 
 udgment 
 In con- 
 ce to the 
 vrould lose 
 vvs before 
 oniewhat 
 lally with 
 ,h a mes- 
 y stirred 
 
 ^e 
 
 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 393 
 
 him to intrepid boldness His whole personality 
 was nohlo and enj^aging — as a friend has put it, 
 " irresistible." 
 
 Mr. Macdonnell's intensity of nature and outspoken 
 zeal for the right have led very many to think of 
 him as an extreme man in matters of public interest, 
 and especially in his political views. This was an 
 error. He was never a partisan. Belonging to a 
 conservative family his sympathies were naturally 
 with that party ; but no man could more strenuously 
 dissent from its measures upon good cause than lie did. 
 Indeed, during his latest years it could scarcely be 
 said of him that he was an adherent of either party. 
 He was democratic in his active sympathies and 
 habits, but with an innate deference to established 
 authority in Church and State as well as in matters of 
 opinion. He was sturdy and demonstrative in his 
 loyalty, with a strong desire for the consolidation of 
 the whole Empire that owns the sway of Queen 
 Victoria. 
 
 A brother minister said, " In the pulpit Mr. Macdon- 
 nell was in his throne." In addition to what has 
 been said in the memoir, the following sketch of his 
 pulpit qualities and appearance may be given. It 
 was made by a newspaper writer in 1887: "The 
 power of pulpit logic is possessed in a wonderful 
 degree by Mr. Macdonnell. But he has also the lire 
 that flashes into the soul and the vivid lightning 
 which at one stroke makes a man care whether there 
 really is a God or not : whether he has a soul to save 
 or if it is worth while savinir it. 
 
 I 
 
 ■ 'm 
 
< T 
 
 394 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 " In proacliing, as in prayer, Mr, Macdonnell is 
 impressive, fervent and natural. His strong face, 
 overshadowed by a broad and noble brow, liglits up as 
 he speaks, and liis voice throbs with every emotion he 
 feels. In gesture he is excitable, but always natural 
 and pleasing. As he leans over his ))ulpit and quietly 
 talks to his audience, as when he is declamatory and 
 thrilling, there is a reserve of power and passion 
 which is always surging eagerly into his voice and 
 gestures, but which never overcomes his self-posses- 
 sion. This re.serve of power and passion is strangely 
 moving, and adds mightily to the words which come 
 forth, as if there were yet more burning words behind. 
 
 " But it is useless to try to describe a man who is a 
 species, not a specimen. His power for good is so 
 great, and his views so broad and catholic, and his 
 liberality so far separated from the arts which 
 weak and unscrupulous men use to obtain popularity, 
 that I am at a loss how to convey an idea of his 
 power. Humanity, culture, conscience and a fervid 
 piety make him broad ; eloquence gives him expres- 
 sion, eager warmth makes the hearer receptive, and 
 no ostentatious heterodoxy or professional tricks to 
 secure applause ever crop up to shock the seeker 
 for truth." 
 
 It would be easy to fill a volume as large as tlie 
 present with the fitting tributes which have been 
 paid to Mr. Macdonnell since his death. The senti- 
 ments of some of his friends have already found 
 expression in their contributions to the biography, 
 and in this closing chapter, which is necessarily brief, 
 
THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 iWi 
 
 it will be best to content ourselves with ;(iviii<^ the 
 spirit of public and private estimates of his character 
 and of personal impressions created after keen and 
 intimate observation. 
 
 On the intellectual side Mr. Macdonnell mav or 
 may not be considered " oreat," according;' to one's 
 point of view. Some of his mental (|ualities were 
 certtiinly of the very first order. While the hi^lu'st 
 range of the creative or inventive faculty must be 
 denied him, and therewith the widest and de('[H'st 
 imaginative power, he had critical insight and dis- 
 crimination in a rare deiiree, so that oidy what was 
 worthy and genuine lodged in his mind. Along with 
 this he could sympathetically appropriate all bi'ight 
 and beautiful thouiihts and sentiments, so that the 
 chambers of his imaijfination were decked all about 
 with pictures which gained their wai-mth and dt'pth 
 of colour from the temper of the soul within. Upon 
 the whole he was an interpreter i-ather than a tinder 
 of truth, and this was his foremost (pialitication for 
 the office of prophet in the Presbyterian Church in 
 Canada. In his great life-work as a pulpit expounder 
 of the teaching of the Bible, it is doubtful whether 
 he had a superior among his C()ntemj)oraries for dis- 
 cernment, discretion and clearness, combined with 
 reverence and caution. Having remarkable powers 
 of acquisition, he had as a youth gained exceptional 
 familiarity with the (original languages of Scri])ture, 
 and could always use them as an insti'unient foi' 
 (jpening up the secret depths of their divine-hunian 
 meaning; while his philosophic training and lialjit of 
 
 s 
 
 i 
 
 1 ■ . 
 
 I 
 
 •I j.^ 
 
 IL 
 
 fl^ 
 
396 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 mind, and his .scrupulous exactness, made it impera- 
 tive upon liim to say only what the hij^hest critical 
 authority would approve, to leave unsaid what was 
 dubious or obscure, and, above all, to refrain from 
 triflin*^ with the sacred text by playinj,^ upon ambi<^u- 
 ous words, or drawint;' from its casual or out-of-the- 
 way allusions, gaudy and seductive pictures which 
 neither inform the mind nor edify the soul. 
 
 It was this same reverence an<l love of accuracy that 
 made liim so singularly familiar with the llevise<l 
 Version, which he used habitually both in and out of 
 the pulpit, and quoted so often with telling effect. 
 A touching instance of this may well be given even 
 in this concise sunnnary. It occurred in connection 
 with one of those memorable Sunday morning refer- 
 ences to members of the congregation who had died 
 during the preceding week. An old woman, slightly 
 weakened in intellect, and in very reduced circum- 
 stances, liad long attended the St. Andrew's services 
 with great regularity. She was always conspicuous 
 by her peculiar dress and bowed figure. She died 
 at her lodgings with no one beside her. In speaking 
 of her death, her minister referred with deep feeling 
 to the hardness of her isolated lot, and the simplicity 
 and confidence of her trust in her Saviour, who, he 
 added, " shall fashion anew the body of our Jtumilia- 
 tion, that it may be conforme<l to the body of his 
 glory." It was in his expository sermons that these 
 qualities came out at their best, as he dealt with his 
 theme as a whole, and in all its parts with largeness 
 and conqjrehensiveness of survey, and yet with a sure 
 
nnpera- 
 critical 
 hat was 
 tin from 
 ainbij^u- 
 t-of-the- 
 38 which 
 
 racy that 
 llevised 
 lul out of 
 njr eti'ect. 
 ivon even 
 oniiection 
 injr ret'er- 
 had died 
 1, slightly 
 d circum- 
 
 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 397 
 
 and <l('Hcnte touch; like the f»T('at organist to whom 
 the use or misuse of the stops, or the finer adjust- 
 ments of the harmony, are as mueh a matter of 
 conscience, care and sensihilitv as the underlvin;; 
 motive of the pit^ce, or the: geneial efi'eet of the 
 performance. 
 
 Such ((ualities as these go to the making of a 
 scholar in the highest sense of the word, and if 
 Mr. Mac<l(mnell was onlv a good instead of heinir a 
 great scholar, it was simply for lack of the time for 
 close and continuous study. Again, though neither a 
 scientist nor an historian, he had a wonderful a})pre- 
 hension of the scientific and historical spirit, and 
 employed only its methods. Hence hf was, on the 
 one hand, in his view of nature, an evolutionist in the 
 wide, theistic, providential sense, and on the other, a 
 "higher critic" in his view of tlie develupment of 
 Revelation. 
 
 As for the constructive side of mental endowment he 
 was an artist, and here he was absolutely true and just. 
 One reason for this was that in almost all thiniis his 
 taste was perfect. We naturally think most, however, 
 of his style of composition as a preacher. He was 
 extremely fastidious in his choice of language, so that 
 even when he spoke from wry brief notes, as he 
 usually did, or with no external aids whatever, it was 
 not easy for the listener to realize the fact, so ready, 
 adequate and precise was the spontaneous expres- 
 sion of his thoughts. But wliether fiilly written or 
 largely improvised, his discourses were always com- 
 plete, and, as literary productions, satisfying to the 
 
 P. 
 
 , I 
 
•« ' ' 
 
 i 
 
 fl 
 
 398 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 most exacting taste. They were, in short, perfect 
 works of art. Yet there was little of the ornamental 
 ill them. He had really two much respect for his 
 work, regarded it as too sacred a thing to decorate it 
 with a wealth of rhetorical embellishment. Perhaps 
 there is no stronger evidence of the real greatness of 
 the man and his art than the fact that he strenuously 
 resiste<l all temptations to intellectual display, gifted 
 thouifh he was so far beyond the measure of common 
 uicn. The glittering iceb(;rg had no charm for him 
 except upon the barren sea. He knew that light 
 without warmth could bring no plant to flower and 
 fruit in the garden of the Lord. Just as in his own 
 personality the qualities of mind and heart were 
 ex(iuisitely adjusted and harmonized, so his dis- 
 courses exhibited in due and perfect proportion the 
 intellectual and the spiritual, logic and morality, 
 reason and love. 
 
 In these partial attempts at intellectual analysis 
 we have already touclied upon the sphere of the 
 moral and the emotional. This was inevitable, be- 
 cause it was in these features of his character that 
 Mr. Macdonnell was supremely great. Doubtless it 
 was the harmonious adjustment of all his (jualities 
 that gave him his power and made so strong the total 
 impression of his character. As Principal Grant said 
 on the day of the funeral : " How full was the life 
 that our brother lived ! What a combination he was 
 of the thinker and speaker : of the artist and the man 
 of aft'airs ; of the prophet and the priest ; of strength 
 and refinement; of purity and power; of sanity and 
 
THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 390 
 
 passion ; of insight and loyal submission to drudgery ! 
 Wliether looked at from tlie point of view of the indi- 
 vidual, the family, the congregation, the city, the 
 Church, the university, the nation, the empire, and 
 the race, he seemed to me so perfect that I could find 
 no fault in him." 
 
 But "one star difFereth from another star in glory" 
 by reason of the predominance of this or that ele- 
 ment of the light that it gives ; and in the radiance 
 that streamed from the life of our friend it was the 
 rays of holiness, purity and love that made the light 
 a serene and changeless white. We naturally think 
 of him mostly in the pulpit, and we remember how 
 he made the service such a symmetrical and pleasing 
 unity. Then we are apt to say that it was his good 
 taste and discernment that enabled him to achieve 
 such a uni([ue success. But what was really at the 
 heart of it, that gave the glow to the words and the 
 face of the minister and cast the spell over the worship- 
 per was his reverence. Strong and true as was his 
 preaching, that was not the centre of the service : it 
 was his jjrayers. The reader of this biography will 
 have learned, if he did not know it before, what a 
 man of prayer he was ; how he lived in fellowship 
 with the living God, the Father of spirits. And with 
 this reverence for God, there was by necessity a 
 reverence for man, and a reverence for the truth 
 about God and man. And so, he made (iod seem 
 near to us. Nay, he actually brought Him near to 
 us. We know his fondness for the lituriries of the 
 Church, and his deference to form and order. But as 
 
 
400 
 
 LIB'E OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 . i 
 
 t 
 
 !l 
 
 he was himself wont to say, " Ritual is merely the 
 body of which true worship is the soul." Such a 
 man must " pray without ceasing." It was his rever- 
 ence, thus nurtured by ceaseless prayer, that made 
 his life beautiful and sublime. Waiting for God he 
 was on the mountain-top with every sunrise, and so 
 bore about him the whole day long the shining of a 
 vision of God. 
 
 But the sisterhood of Christian graces go about 
 their ministry linked hand in hand. Reverence in 
 him was no passive or impractical attribute, for it 
 was joined to a living faith. The great simple truths 
 that he held were perhaps to him all the more real 
 and stable, because he saw tliem like the everlasting 
 hills towering far above the lower mist-covered lieights. 
 The higher and clearer they rose the more firndy were 
 they set upon the rock-built foundation of truth. 
 Here we judge of him again by what we have seen. 
 In his supreme trial, some said, " He must be a man of 
 prayer ;" others said, " He must be a man of faith." In 
 our. ears still vibrate the tones in which he spoke 
 of " the living God " as the only true refuge and 
 support of the human soul. How much such faith 
 was to him ! And how he loved the old Hebrew 
 Psalms that voiced the sure yet simple faith of God's 
 children unversed in the metaphysical theology of 
 our modern creeds ! Like them his very " heart and 
 flesh cried out for the living God." To go further 
 we may use the words of Dr. Hunter, uttered the day 
 before his funeral : " He knew Christ and that was 
 his motive power. . . . His faith did not rest in 
 
THK MAN' AND HtS POWER. 
 
 401 
 
 s * S 
 
 ely the 
 Such a 
 3 rever- 
 ,t made 
 God ho 
 , and so 
 ing of a 
 
 po about 
 srence in 
 be, for it 
 ,le truths 
 nore real 
 ^erlastinfi; 
 d heights, 
 ndy were 
 of truth, 
 lave seen. 
 a man of 
 lith." In 
 le spoke 
 (fuge and 
 ucli faith 
 Hebrew 
 of God's 
 cology of 
 heart and 
 jp further 
 sd the day 
 that was 
 lot rest in 
 
 the documents which he studied, revered and vahied 
 beyond all others, but in his personal acquaintance with 
 the Lord Jesus Christ who spoke through the Scrip- 
 tures, and so he never felt that he needed to put forth 
 trembling hands to steady the Ark of the Covenant." 
 But reverence and faith of a certain kind may be 
 strongly manifested by a recluse or a hermit. He, how- 
 ever, was a man among men, with eyes often indeed 
 raised heavenw^ard, but with feet upon the eartli, and 
 hands forever stretched out to help and bless. More 
 than all else he was a lover and helper of men. Such a 
 love came through his power of sijinpafhjj, directed and 
 intensified by his love of Christ. True love of man 
 is human sympathy divinely energized. Nature had 
 nuich to do with such a rare endowment in him, in 
 giving him a quick, responsive sensibility, a large 
 humanity, a spontaneous feeling of kins] dp with his 
 kind. But something more than natural impulse was 
 needed to change the sentiment of fellowship into the 
 habit of loving. Sympathy is not merely a feeling 
 for others, but feeling directed by knowledge. 
 Carlyle says, " The king among men is the man who 
 knows." This man w^ent far to prove that the king 
 of men is the man who knows and feels. In his 
 special sphere of life and thought the knowledge 
 rccjuired was of the practical kind, an ac([uaintance 
 with the actual needs and weaknesses of men. With- 
 out this his life might still have been beautiful, but it 
 it would have been unsubstantial— a dew-laden cob- 
 web of sentiment, glistening in the sunlight of 
 enthusiasm. But just as his reverence assunuMl the 
 27 
 
 W 
 
 ' w 
 
n 
 
 
 \' 
 
 
 r 
 
 ii^i 
 
 402 
 
 LIFE OF 6. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 practical form of devotion, so his altruism took the 
 form of service. Behind and beneath all there was a 
 steady unbroken reflectiveness, a careful study of the 
 mixed and intricate conditions of life and society, and 
 a constant habit of thinking himself, so to say, into 
 the lives and experiences of other men, especially of 
 those in mental or moral perplexity or in sore trial or 
 disappointment. 
 
 In how many forms was expression given to this 
 sympathy, intellectual, moral and spiritual ? In 
 preaching and in discussion, public or private, his 
 desire not to misrepresent 'mother's point of view was 
 manifest. But still more significant and helpful was 
 his purpose to keep your point of view always in 
 mind to take account of it, and make it part of his 
 own case. In nothing, perhaps, was he greater than 
 in this attribute, because in nothing was he more 
 Christ-like. Thus is to be explained his singular 
 tolerance alongside of his eagerness to get others to 
 think and to do the right thing. How difficult such 
 an achievement is may perhaps be best judged of by 
 the fact that his tolerance was supposed by some to 
 be the result of indifference to opinion or belief. In 
 this, let us trust, he was a type of the coming age and 
 the crowning race of men. 
 
 Equally noticeable was Mr. Macdonnell's attitude of 
 soul and mind toward the common ills of life among 
 ordinary men and women. His demeanour toward 
 any who approached him was so respectful, with a 
 riglit chivalrous regard for men as men — the twofold 
 outcome of his reverence and his sympathy. To him 
 
)ok the 
 e was a 
 J of the 
 2ty, and 
 ay, into 
 cially of 
 ) trial or 
 
 1 to this 
 Lial ? In 
 ,vate, his 
 view was 
 Ipt'ul was 
 ilways in 
 art of his 
 jater than 
 1 he more 
 sintjular 
 others to 
 ficult such 
 ged of by 
 »y some to 
 belief. In 
 icT asre and 
 
 attitude of 
 life amon.sj 
 ur toward 
 tul, with a 
 twofold 
 
 To him 
 
 to 
 
 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 403 
 
 every man was sacred as a brother, and still more 
 sacred as a brother for whom Christ had died. Hence 
 his patience in listening to a tale of trouble from a 
 tramp or any friendless man. He wanted to know the 
 history of every case before he would act or judge. 
 And no history of human want or woe was irrelevant 
 to any of his moods or to his great life purpose. All 
 had a pei'sonal interest for him. In his classification 
 of society there was no place for the familiar category 
 of " uninteresting people." Shall we say that in 
 listening to troublesome cases, and in the many 
 kindred employments of his busy life, he was wasting 
 his time or dissipating his energies ? We know what 
 he would have said, or at least what he must have 
 felt. 
 
 His own congregation knew and tested his sym- 
 pathy best in times of trouble and bereavement. The 
 sick and sorrowing in his flock were very near to his 
 heart. Nothing could interfere to prevent his seeing 
 them and trying to comfort them. And what a 
 well-spring of comfort there was in his visits and in 
 his words ! Even when no word was spoken, the 
 comfort would be imparted just the same. One saw 
 hi his eyes that he had taken the burden upon his 
 soul, that he had pondered over the grief and 
 measured the loss — those wondrous eyes with their 
 strong, steady gaze which told of a concentrated 
 purpose, and a surrender of the soul to Christ and to 
 tlio serving of men. Surely this sympathy was a 
 reminder of Him who had enkindled it ! How can 
 we learn best of the love of Christ and of His sacri- 
 
404 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 !; 
 
 ■ i 1 
 
 fice ? All sermons and exhortations are dull and 
 lifeless as compared with such a living reproduction 
 of the spirit and work of Christ. 
 
 One and another have said, " He is the most Christ- 
 like man I ever knew." Rev. E. D, McLaren, in his 
 sermon in St. Andrew's, of March 29th, 189G, voiced 
 a general sentiment when he said : " No one I have 
 ever met seemed to stand so close to Christ's side, or 
 to be drinkint; so deeply of Christ's spirit. Others 
 may have excelled him in some particular quality, but 
 none seem to have attained to the same rounded ful- 
 ness of Christian character, the same beautiful sym- 
 metry of spiritual development." 
 
 Striking and touching was his regard for his 
 brethren in the ministry. Rev. John Pringle, of St. 
 Paul, says, " I never knew him to criticize a brother 
 minister or to damn any one with faint praise." Dr. 
 Milligan said in his commemorative sermon, " He was 
 to a great extent the cause of the brotherly love 
 among us ministers, which has made Toronto so 
 delightful a place." " Where the weak were and the 
 need was greatest, there was found this man," said 
 Rev. Mr. Gilray on a similar occasion. 
 
 It was, after all, this quality of sympathy that 
 contributed most to his power among his brother 
 ministers, old and young, and in the community 
 at large ; that made literally tens of thousands 
 in our land mourn his loss ; and brought such a 
 multitude to take a last look at his face. A guest at 
 his house once said, " He seems to be bearing the 
 whole world upon his heart." One might almost 
 

 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 405 
 
 nil and 
 (duction 
 
 ; Christ- 
 in, in his 
 G, voiced 
 le I bave 
 s side, or 
 Others 
 ality, but 
 mded ful- 
 Aful sym- 
 
 l for his 
 ofle, of St. 
 a brother 
 
 aise." Di'- 
 
 He was 
 
 herly love 
 
 oronto so 
 
 re and the 
 
 man," said 
 
 )athy that 
 lis brother 
 iomnmnity 
 
 thousands 
 rht such a 
 
 A guest at 
 t)earing the 
 Uit almost 
 
 suppose that this was the general opinion with regard 
 to him when one considers how many of all classes 
 of people habitually resorted to him for counsel or 
 for comfort. 
 
 That Mr. Macdonnell had the faculty of expressing 
 these (jualities and of making his character generally 
 a force in the life and thought of our time, was 
 largely due to what we may summarily call his 
 intensity. This also was known of all men. But 
 enthusiasm is the dangerous quality in men of both 
 thought and action. Only wise men «an be safely 
 enthusiastic. But he was wise with the wisdom born 
 of insight and sympathy. He held firm and true the 
 balance between the mental and the emotional. 
 Many things that are much in vogue his judgment 
 put aside as either untrue, exaggerated, or matters of 
 inditference. Other things that were near his heart 
 he could and would restrain. But the few great 
 things that were the motives of his moral and relig- 
 ious life he proclaimed and acted out practically 
 with almost superhuman energy. Hence, when in 
 matters of ecclesiastical or public life these principles 
 demanded application, for the redress of some wrong, 
 or the righting of some grievance, or the relief of 
 some oppressed or endangered class of the community, 
 then he was the man to come to the front, and always 
 on well-reasoned and reasonable grounds, but with 
 words of intense conviction, he would plead for the 
 right and denounce the wrong. 
 
 Thought, speech and action with him came from a 
 heart burnincr with the enthusiasm of love. It was 
 
406 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 ! 
 
 11 
 
 I n 
 
 thus that he let his light shine before men. The 
 more intensely a flame burns the brighter its light 
 and the purer its radiance. Such was the light of 
 his life. If we are sometimes inclined to murmur at 
 the cutting off of such a career, let us remember that 
 intense lives seldom can be lengthy lives. The flame, 
 if it burns strong and fast, cannot burn long. Let us 
 rejoice in its brightness and pureness. He at whose 
 altar fires the flame was kindled and perpetually fed, 
 may safely be trusted for the results of the sacrifice. 
 
 We must also emphasize Mr. Macdonnell's readi- 
 ness. In view of the chances and changes of life he 
 bore himself alwaj's so that wo could observe that he 
 was ready. As he was constantly ready for duty, for 
 burden-bearing, for any helpful work, whether of his 
 own seeking or of other's asking, so, .also, he was 
 ready for the larger calls and messages of Providence. 
 Just as he crossed the Atlantic of his own motion, in 
 what seemed to him a critical moment for one of the 
 enterprises of the Church, so he habitually accjuiesced 
 in events not of his own choosing, whether it was 
 casual disappointment or the severest stroke he evei- 
 had to endure. And, after all, what is the life of a 
 good and true man ? Is it not waiting for God's 
 will ? Yes, and something more, preparing for God's 
 will. Readiness comes from service, from the temper 
 and habit of the " living sacrifice." 
 
 Hence it is so inspiring to think of Mr. Macdonnell 
 in the latest years of his life ; for then he revealed the 
 highest possibilities of a life of faith and hope. In 
 that triumph of Christian manhood, the process and 
 
n. The 
 its light 
 light of 
 irmur at 
 iber that 
 he flame, 
 Let us 
 at whose 
 aally fed, 
 ! sacrifice. 
 I's reacli- 
 of life he 
 ^e that he 
 • duty, for 
 her of his 
 o, he was 
 rovidence. 
 motion, in 
 one of the 
 ac<iuiesced 
 lier it was 
 ke he ever 
 le life of a 
 for God's 
 for God's 
 the temper 
 
 Llacdonnell 
 [vealed the 
 hope. 1 >» 
 )rocess and 
 
 THE MAN AND HIS POWER. 
 
 407 
 
 outcome of his whole life were revealed. We could 
 see that he was already wearing tlie victor's crown. 
 And when the closing weeks and days brouglit him 
 face to face with the final issue, he simply waited and 
 prepared as befoi'c. He liad never expected to live a 
 long life. Yet he desired to live, if it might be so, for 
 the sake of others, and for continued influence upon 
 his fellows. And so he lioped ever still for life. But 
 when on the day before he died, it was told to him 
 tliat he would very soon be going to join her who 
 had gone on before him, he simply said, with a look 
 of bright surprise, " Oh ! I didn't know. How long 
 will it be ? " 
 
 The ending of his life closed a chapter in many 
 lives. To many souls that light was a guide and in- 
 spiration. To many his departure would seem to be 
 the withdrawal of a strong, steady impulse toward 
 righteousness. To many he was n leader in the war 
 against evil, going forth as a knight of Christ with 
 the charge laid upon him that was given to the young 
 king in ancient Israel, "Ride forth prosperously in 
 behalf of meekness, truth, and righteousness." His 
 practical power came largely from the fact that he 
 taught us to find our strength and confidence, not in 
 our force of brain or will, but in the consciousness 
 that we are doing our duty and serving Christ. And 
 so he became a monumental example and reminder. 
 He moved men to say when in doubt as to a critical 
 moral choice, " Would 1). J. Macdonnell do this, or 
 this, or this, if he were now in my place ? " 
 
 Moreover, there was little or nothing about him to 
 
 
 \i 
 
 «1 
 
 1! 
 
408 
 
 LIFE OF D. J. MACDONNELL. 
 
 
 ! i 
 
 ;ii : 
 
 (liiiiinish the force of this spiritual attraction. God be 
 tlianked, this one of our ideals we have not been com- 
 pelled to discard, siiattered though it would have been 
 by a single act of unkindness, or selfishness, or dis- 
 honour. There were in him none of those obtruding 
 angles of self-assertion which so often repel admiration 
 or dampen enthusiasm. His character seemed to be 
 as near the perfect sphere of consistency and beauty 
 as is possible to be moulded out of weak and sinful 
 humanity. 
 
 Then we remember ajrain that his influence was 
 not only wide, but minute and specific, that his work 
 was helpful because it was so personal ; because he 
 so ministered to individual needs. His life was like 
 some great river which blesses a whole nation in its 
 course, and yet here and there comes close to the 
 dusty highway, that it may (|uench the thirst and 
 rest the eye of the weary traveller. 
 
 And now we are apt to say, " This is all gone ; and 
 his life-work is a thing of the past." But thus it 
 cannot be. It is the kind of influence exerted by a * 
 man that determines its degree of vitality and finally 
 its claims to inmiortality. And the influence of our 
 friend and brother was of a kind that was self-devel- 
 oping and self-perpetuating. There is nothing that 
 lasts or rules like love, for " love never faileth " ; and 
 love was the very essence of his life. And so by the 
 law of love he shall still rule us from his tomb. 
 
God be 
 sn com- 
 ve been 
 or (lis- 
 truding 
 ni ration 
 d to be 
 I beauty 
 d sinful 
 
 iiice was 
 liis work 
 icause he 
 was like 
 ion in its 
 ■^e to the 
 liirst and 
 
 •one ; and 
 .t thus it 
 jrlcd by a ' 
 id finally 
 tce of our 
 ielf-devel- 
 hing that 
 Ith " ; and 
 Iso by the 
 nb. 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 I 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 (5th December, 1S75.* ) 
 
 "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are 
 nothin'j trorth in comparison with the glory which shall he I'cvcaled 
 in (or, in ref/ard to) us. For the earnest expectation of the rredtion 
 in }rnitin(f for the reviaJimj of the sons of (iod (for the creation was 
 made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who 
 suhjcctcd it), in hope that the creation itself also shall be delivered 
 from the bondage of corruption into the freedom of (he yfori/ of the 
 children of (}od. For we know that the whole creation is tjroanimj 
 toijether and travailimj m pain together until now. And not only 
 so, but even we oui'selres, thomjh ire have the first-fruits of the 
 Spirit, even we ourselves are groaning within ourselves, waiting 
 for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved 
 in hope : but liope that is seen is not hope ; for what a man secth, 
 why doth he still liope for ? But if we hope for that we see not, 
 with patience we wait for it." — RoM. viii. IS-'Jf). 
 
 The same Greek word which is translated "crea- 
 tion " in V. 22, is rendered " creature " in the tliree 
 
 *The reader will notice that this was written before the appear- 
 ance of the Revised Version, with which it will be instructive to 
 compare the preacher's renderings. The exact date is also a 
 matter of interest. We may observe that this was a continuation 
 
 
 1 
 
 |;|: 
 
 < 
 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
tfl 
 
 S' 
 
 I 
 
 ■ 
 
 i 
 
 ii 
 
 410 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 precedinj^ verses. Better render "creation" in all. 
 Verse 20, except the last two words, should he read 
 as a parenthesis, and the words * in hope " joined to 
 V. 21, which expresses the suhstance of the hope. 
 The 19th and 2 1st verses will then be strikin^dy 
 parallel to each other, thus : 
 
 (a) For the earnest expectation of the creation 
 (b) — is waiting for the revelation of the sons of God. 
 (c) — In hope that the creation itself also shall be 
 delivered from the bondage of corruption (</) — into 
 the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 
 
 (a) and (c) contain hope that animates creation : 
 (b) and (d) the consummation to which that hope 
 points. 
 
 The words " in hope," instead of being connected 
 with the verb " subjected," are connected with " wait- 
 ing" in V. 19 — "The earnest expectation of the 
 creation is waiting in hope." This gives a somewhat 
 better sense, though the meaning is not essentially 
 different. The one rendering expresses God's design 
 in subjecting the creation to vanity, viz., to awaken 
 hope of deliverance ; the other states the fact that 
 the hope of deliverance is cherished. 
 
 In V. 19 "revelation" is a better rendering (of 
 a/roHa\vi/:i>) than "manifestation": the noun is 
 cognate with the verb translated " revealed " in v. LS 
 
 In v. 24 we should read "were saved," i.e.. ui V 
 time when v/e became Christians. 
 
 of the series of sermons in the course of w iich the fanioii " herct 
 ical " utterance was made. Of more importance is it to.>notice t! ■ 
 revelation of the spirit of the man in his time of trial. 
 
TTP 
 
 f 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 411 
 
 in all. 
 be read 
 )inc(l to 
 \o hope, 
 rikinj^iy 
 
 creation 
 i of God. 
 
 shall be 
 (,/)— into 
 
 Jod. 
 
 creation : 
 hat hope 
 
 connected 
 i\\ " wait- 
 n of the 
 somewhat 
 ssentially 
 d's design 
 ,o awaken 
 fact that 
 
 lering (of 
 noun is 
 "in V. IS 
 
 .e., At V 
 
 iiou "heret 
 Lo'noti<e tl 
 
 The connecting link between tln'se verses aii<l those 
 expounded lust Sunday is tlu^ last clause of v. 17 — 
 "If 80 be that we suffer with Him (Christ), that we 
 may be also glorified with Him." Bv tiie wav of the 
 Cross we must pass to the Crown, even as He did. 
 Through death to life; throu^di sufieriuir to i;lorv — 
 that is the law alike for the Master a!id the disciple. 
 
 This thought is enlai'ged upon in the passage for 
 to-day. "Well may we suffer,' says Paul, "seeing 
 that we are sustained by such lioju" of glory, ' For — 
 
 I. The glory will hiv outive'u/h the sufferings (v. liS). 
 
 If. The sufferings are themselves proplucii's of 
 liberation from evil (vs. 19-28). 
 
 III. Our salvation is one of hope, not of sight. 
 But if such hope is ours, we may surely endure 
 " willingly " and steadfastly the present, whih; wait- 
 ing for the completion of our glory in the future 
 (vs. 24, 25). 
 
 I. The glory ivill far oiUweHfh the safferi n</s. " Kor 
 I reckon that the sufferings of the present time are 
 nothing worth, in comparison with the glory which 
 shall be revealed in us." As the same Apostle writes 
 to the Corinthians (2 Cor. iv. 17), "Our light afflic- 
 tion, which is for the moment, worketh for us more 
 and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory." 
 The sufferings are very liard to bear ; it seems some- 
 times as if it would be impossible to carry the burden 
 any longer. It is when we put the future glory into 
 the opposite scale that the insignilicance of the 
 sufferings is made to appear. 
 
 T^'ore is no question about the reality of the suffer- 
 
412 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 I <i 
 
 ing. Creation is groaninj^. Man, tlic head of creation, 
 is groaning under the burden. Man consciously 
 expresses what the rest of creation is inarticulately 
 uttering. He gives voice to the woes of earth. 
 Human history is full of groans and sighs. A wail 
 of sorrow runs through the Bible from the record of 
 the murder of Abel and the curse of Cain, down to 
 the revelation of the judgment that is to fall on the 
 " great city Babylon " in which " was found the blood 
 of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain 
 upon the earth." Not the worst men, either, are 
 they who cry out bitterly under their load of grief. 
 Listen to Job (chap. iii. 3), " Let the day perish 
 wherein I was born, and the night in which it was 
 said. There is a man child conceived;" and chnp. x. 
 Listen to Jeremiah (chap. xx. 14), "Cursed be the 
 day wherein I was born : . . . Cursed be the 
 man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A 
 man child is born unto thee. . . . And let that 
 man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew and 
 repented not." 
 
 And the core of the Bible is the record of a life of 
 sorrow ; and right in the centre of human history 
 stands One who is pre-eminently " A Man of sorrows 
 and acquainted with grief." 
 
 What we find in history and in the Bible we find 
 in poetry. If poetry is the highest form of human 
 thought, the deepest tones of the poet are those which 
 have been awakened by sorrow. It has been well 
 said, " When we seek pleasure in poetry, we are not 
 satisfied unless we find tears in it." " The cry of the 
 
t 
 
 iff 
 H 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 413 
 
 rti 
 
 jreation, 
 sciously 
 culatcly 
 f earth. 
 
 A wail 
 ecord of 
 down to 
 II on the 
 the blood 
 7eve slain 
 ther, are 
 of grief, 
 ly perish 
 sh it was 
 d ehnp. x. 
 ed be the 
 id be the 
 saying, A 
 let that 
 
 irew and 
 
 a life of 
 m history 
 )f sorrows 
 
 e we find 
 of hunuiu 
 lose which 
 been well 
 we are not 
 cry of the 
 
 human " is too often a wail of sorrow. As Mrs. 
 Browning writes — 
 
 " 'There is no God,' the foolish saith ; 
 But none, 'There is no sorrow.' " 
 
 For, explain it as men may, (ill experience it. Not 
 only the old, who have seen friend after friend depart, 
 but little children have their eyes blinded with tears 
 — tears of bitter sorrow. Is it not one of the saddest 
 testimonies to the power of evil — to the effects of sin 
 — that little children are involved in such a hei'itage 
 of suffering ? " Visiting the ini([uity of the fathers 
 upon the children " — of drunken, and profligate, 
 idle and dishonest parents upon their little ones 
 who have not yet been actual partakers in their 
 crimes or vices. It is God's law. Do we blame (Jod 
 for it ? Does not society do the same ? With this 
 difference, that God has a purpose of mercy running 
 like a golden thread through the dark web of suffer- 
 ing, while society too often crushes without any 
 thought of ultimately lifting up. 
 
 Now, Paul speaks here of deliverance from this 
 awful burden of suffering — deliverance for man, 
 deliverance for the whole creation. What does Paul 
 mean by "the whole creation" :* Does the ex])ressi()n 
 include man i I take it that it does, and that Paul 
 means the -^diole creation, rational and in-atioiiid, not 
 yet redeemed, but standing in neetl of and capable of 
 redemption. 
 
 Obviously, there is an antithesis betwren "us who 
 
 I 
 
 ' i 
 
414 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 have the first-fruits of the Spirit " and the rest of the 
 creation. Then, why exclude man ? Does he not 
 give voice to creation's groaning ? If we may say, in 
 a figure of rhetoric, that the desert is " waiting " to 
 be turned into a paradise again, that the brute 
 creatures, all whose cries are in the minor key, are 
 " waiting " for the new earth in which there shall be 
 gladness ; is there not a far deeper sense in which 
 men are " waiting " for the revealing of the sons of 
 God? 
 
 There ought to be strong reasons assigned for 
 excluding man from " the whole creation." What 
 are they ? Chiefly these : 
 
 1. It cannot be said of men in general that they arc 
 waiting with earnest desire for the revealing of the 
 sons of God. 
 
 2. It cannot be said that they were subjected to 
 corruption not of their own accord, but by God. 
 
 3. It is not a fact that they shall obtain deliver- 
 ance. 
 
 1. To the first objection it may be answered, 
 surely "waiting" and "hoping," as well as "groan- 
 ing," may be afiirmed with more truth of men than 
 of brutes or of the inanimate creation. It is quite 
 true that the Scriptures often speak of the material 
 world as a sentient being, trembling, rejoicing, etc , 
 e.g., " Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be 
 glad," "Let the fields be .joyful," "Then shall all 
 the trees of the wood rejoice " (Ps. xcvi.), " The moun- 
 tains and the hills shall break forth before you into 
 singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their 
 
1 tr 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 415 
 
 t of the 
 he not 
 7 say, in 
 ing" to 
 e brute 
 key, are 
 shall be 
 n which 
 sons of 
 
 rned for 
 ' What 
 
 b they arc 
 ng of the 
 
 ejected to 
 
 ^od. 
 
 ieliver 
 
 lanswered, 
 js •• groan - 
 men than 
 |t is quite 
 material 
 icing, etc , 
 earth he 
 shall all 
 'he moun- 
 b you into 
 clap their 
 
 hands" (Is. Iv. 12). This personification of nature is 
 perfectl}^ intelligible, and there is every reason for 
 including the inanimate creation in the present pas- 
 sage ; but does it follow that man must be excluded ? 
 Does he not give voice to creation's groans ? And 
 does he not, too, give voice to creation's hope of 
 deliverance ? 
 
 What is the burden that causes the groaning ? 
 " Vanity," " corruption." Not sin — that is not the 
 question raised here — tliough sin is tlie root of the 
 misery that presses .so heavily on the world. We do 
 not need to ask whether men everywhere — heathens, 
 Jews and Christians — feel the burden of sin, and 
 long for deliverance ; but whether men everywhere 
 groan under " vanity " and "corruption," the perisli- 
 ableness of all earthly things, pain, loss, decay, death, 
 as the climax of all earthly ills. Now, if it may be 
 said, in a figure of speech, that the earth is longing 
 lor deliverance from the thorns and briers, the 
 storms and earth(|uakes which disfigure it, and 
 which are indications of the disorder springing 
 from man's sin : if, in a still higher sense, the 
 lower animals may be said to be groaning under 
 the load of suffering — suffering very often inflicted 
 by man so that a " Humane Society ' is necessary to 
 protect dumb beings — surely in the strictest sense it 
 is man that groans audibly and articulately because 
 he is subject to vanity. How aptly do the words 
 from the Epistle to the Hebrews come in here, " Who 
 through fear of death were all their lifetime subject 
 to bondage!' Of wliom but of men could that 
 
 i ! i 
 
 m 
 
416 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 bondage be affirmed ? It is when you stand beside 
 the bed of a strong man writhing in agony, and yet 
 dreading the death wliich will release him from 
 suffering, that "the bondage of corruption " assumes 
 one of its most striking forms. 
 
 Still, admitting that men in general groan beneath 
 the load of " vanity," it is alleged that they are not 
 " luaitiug for the manifestation of the sons of God," 
 or hoping for deliverance " from the bondage of 
 corruption." Surely, however, in whatever sense the 
 inanimate or irrational creatures may be said to be 
 waiting and hoping for deliverance, the same may be 
 affirmed in a higher sense of man. Are men quite 
 satisfied with decay, and disease, and death ? Do 
 they acquiesce in the evils that encompass them ? Is 
 not life a long struggle ofttimes against death ? Is 
 there not a " fond desire and longing after immor- 
 tality " characteristic of men, even when sunk and 
 degraded ? Has there not been in all nations a more 
 or less conscious longinjj for a Deliverer — a Christ — 
 an Anointed One — who would restore the lost Para- 
 dise, and break the bonds of evil, and roll away the 
 stone from the door of the sepulchre ? I might (juote 
 whole pages of Archbishop Trench's work, entitled 
 '' Christ, the Desire of All Nations," illustrative of 
 these longings after deliverance among the heathen. 
 I shall just quote a f-'^ntence or two : 
 
 "However, in tlie ne elect people, as the bearers 
 of the divine promises, as the central heart of the 
 spiritual world, as the appointed interpreters to the 
 rest of their blind desires, this longing after a 
 
beside 
 md yet 
 n from 
 assumes 
 
 beneath 
 
 ^ are not 
 
 of God," 
 
 adage of 
 
 sense the 
 
 aid to be 
 
 ie may be 
 
 uen quite 
 
 ath ? l^o 
 
 them ? Is 
 
 leath? Is 
 
 ,er immor- 
 sunk and 
 ,ns a more 
 
 |a Christ- 
 lost Para- 
 ll away the 
 .ight (luote 
 [k, entitled 
 istrative of 
 e heathen. 
 
 [\\e bearers 
 [art of the 
 Iters to the 
 ur after a 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 417 
 
 Redeemer came out in greater clearness and in 
 greater strength, and with no troubling, disturbing 
 elements, . . . yet were those longings them- 
 selves not exclusively theirs. They indeed yearned 
 and knew what they yearned for : tlie nations 
 yearned and knew not for what. But still tlicy 
 yearned : for as the earth in its long polar night 
 seeks to supply the absence of the day by the genera- 
 tion of the Nortliern Lights, so does each people in 
 tlie long night of its heathen darkness bring fortli in 
 its yearning after the life of Christ a faint and glim- 
 mering substitute for the same. From these dreamy 
 longings after tlie break of day have proceeded 
 oracles, priests, sacrifices, law-givers, and the like. 
 Men have nowhere given up hoping, nor accjuiesced 
 in the world's evil as the world's law. Everywhere 
 they have had a tradition of a time when they were 
 nearer to God than now, a confident hope of a time 
 when they should be brought nearer again." 
 
 2. The second objection to including man in ' the 
 creation " is that he cannot be said to have been made 
 subject to vanity umu/Ulngli/, whereas this may be 
 said of the rest of created things. " Cursed is the 
 ground for thy sake " was the sentence pronounced 
 on the earth for man's sin. And there is a most 
 striking connection between the outward disorder of 
 nature and the inner discord of humanity. When 
 man sinned " all nature felt the wound." But, surely, 
 man felt it most keenly. And, although man sinned 
 " willingly," yet it may with perfect truth be said 
 that he was "not willingly " subjected to "vanity'' — 
 28 
 
 t' 
 
 \ ''■ 
 
 ^1 
 
 in 
 
 
 
 ■ t 
 
 f- wk 
 
 ■■ . 
 
 k U 
 
 
 m 
 
 1 \ 
 
 
418 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 that without his consent decay and corruption were 
 stamped on his body, and he was doomed to death. 
 It is significant that the first victim of death 
 was named Abel — "vanity." " All men are vanity." 
 " Verily every man at his best state is altogether 
 vanity." 
 
 3. The tJiird objection is, tliat it is not a fact that 
 men in general shall obtain deliverance. If man 
 is included in " the creation," then it seems to follow 
 that all men shall be brought into the freedom of the 
 glory of the children of God, that all are hoping for 
 deliverance from the bondage of corruption, and that 
 all shall have their hope realized. In reply to this 
 objection, it is sufficient to say that the universality 
 of the declaration concei'ning deliverance creates no 
 greater diflficulty than similar universal expressions, 
 such as, " I, if I be lifted up from the earth, 
 will draw all men unto Me ; " " Who will have 
 all men to be saved, and to come to the knowl- 
 edge of the truth." If there be those who ex- 
 clude themselves from the drawinj; of Christ and 
 from the salvation ofiered to all, so there may be 
 those who will exclude themelves from the very 
 deliverance for which they more or less consciously 
 long. For we must remember that it is one thing to 
 renew the face of the earth, and (juite another to 
 renew the nature of man. The fiat of Omnipotence 
 will turn the desert into a garden. The saving of u 
 soul is not a question of mere power — not even of 
 omnipotence — it is a question of love and righteous- 
 ness ; of moral force, not physical. And, in God s 
 
r m 
 
 delivered from .sin iZZ. \ ,"'"•'" ">« '""n i« 
 
 ;-ci«e of that free wil 'Lr wZg ',"""■ '" "- 
 Inrn, may resi.st, a. he docs lal p^*' '■"«™''o«-od 
 appeals add,.os.sed to l.ismor.! ^ °^'"" '■'■''*'■•*'■ ''» "'« 
 not continue to re.si "?' """"■" ''^'•''' >',ay ho 
 
 hardened by resisting ^,.^1,^"! T? """" ■"°- 
 rosist, then l,e mustfhut h^ ,/ "'' '^ '"' ^''°"''' «o 
 
 «- fry of the child:: orjid ""' '"■" '"' •^'>- - 
 
 i have dwelt at leno-th on th;. • . , 
 pas-sage seems to be mbh«I f '"""'' '^'^""^e «'e 
 
 eance if we exclude ^,".t^f^ °^ ^ '"""'' ''' '^^ «ignifi. 
 i« the drift of ptr „'"'"'" """"'^'"d- What 
 
 Christians a. ca^td oSn-Hh Ch "t "'"^ " ^'- 
 «-ell suffer, seein.. that 1, ™'- ^ou ,„ay 
 
 ;;opeof„ory Do^not tn'd ^Uh™-''^"-' "^^ "'« 
 the common lot. You ar7„ »»ffenng.s. It is 
 
 creation is groanine and ^! .f «eption. The whole 
 '"'e very earth yof tread ;;?;""« '" .P«'" *°=-'her. 
 '"•"'■nJ you. all are combin,; T' ""'""''■''■ "'^ ■»«" 
 
 r-^,^'otonly the:: te^it ^ "" " '""'' "^ 
 h"ve the first-fruits of the^n . ™ ^°" "*» 
 
 'I" not know to win 1 '^ «•'' .'''•"*''™''""'S- ^'hcy 
 Vou are looking fb ward to tT"'"*-' '""'' ' >-«" ''« 
 f."'.ry in the redemZn of he h ' , ~"'P'^''°" "^ >-""■• 
 .™« .sutfer willinclf hi?! " ! ''°''^- "'ell. then, may 
 
 Vou know that t IZtZr'^T' "'""'""«'>' 
 
 "-g'orywilUaroutweigh fellri^"" ^'°^^'' "'^' 
 
 fit 
 
 III 
 
420 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 II. TJie sufferings are themselves, in a sense, pro- 
 phecies of liberation from evil. Very significant i.s 
 the figure used in the 22nd verse, " The whole crea- 
 tion is . . . travailing in pain together until 
 now." All these confused cries, articulate and inar- 
 ticulate, that are ascending up to heaven, many oi" 
 them cries against God instead of to God, are birth- 
 pangs. The struggles of all animated beings against 
 pain and death are unconscious prophecies of deliver- 
 ance yet to come. The whole creation is compared to a 
 woman in travail, bearing a new world in her womb. 
 The anguish of every natural birth points forward to 
 the great birth-time of the world, when the promise 
 shall be fulfilled, " Behold, I make all things new." 
 The mystery of death is cleared up when we think of 
 it as but the entrance into a fuller life. 
 
 If this be true of the creation not yet redeemed, it is 
 true in the fullest sense of the children of God, "Even 
 we ourselves, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, 
 even we ourselves groan within ourselves waiting for 
 the adoption, the redemption of our body." Wo 
 groan, it is true, but our groaning is no mere vaguo 
 longing for an undefined good, but a confident expec- 
 tation of a glorious issue to all our suffering. We 
 have the first-fruits of the Spirit now; we are waitiii<^' 
 for the complete harvest. Our spirits are renewed 
 already by the indwelling of the spirit of Christ — 
 though " the body is doomed to death because of sin, 
 the spirit is life because of righteousness." We look 
 for the renewal of our bodies, for the time when " ho 
 that raised up Christ from the dead shall also 
 
' "im 
 
 CREATION WAITING FOR DELIVERANCE. 
 
 421 
 
 I.SC, pro- 
 ticant is 
 )le crt-'ii- 
 ler until 
 ,u(l inar- 
 inany of 
 a-e birtb- 
 'n against 
 i dcliver- 
 parcd to a 
 tier wonib. 
 torvvard to 
 ^e promise 
 ings new." 
 vetbniV: of 
 
 eenied, it i^ 
 iod. "Even 
 E tbe Spii-it, 
 waiting foi' 
 
 ,ody." ^'^'^ 
 mere vaguo 
 dent expoc- 
 
 ering. ^^ ^' 
 are waiting' 
 re renewed 
 of Cbrist- 
 cause of «iii' 
 " We look 
 e when " l^^, 
 shall als(J 
 
 quicken our mortal bodies by His spirft that dwelleth 
 in us." And so we can sing, 
 
 "Then welcome, harmless grave I 
 By thee to heaven I'll go ;" 
 
 for we know that death is to us but the strait fixate 
 through which we nnist pass to enter into life — that 
 the sufferings of this present time are pangs of labonr 
 whicli will end in a glorious new birth. 
 
 III. Our salvation is on^ of hope, not of sight. But 
 if such hope is ours we may surely endure willingly 
 and steadfastly the present, while waiting for the 
 completion of our glory in the future. 
 
 " We were saved in hope." In one aspect our 
 salvation is complete, in another it is not yet attained. 
 When we first trusted Christ we were saved. And 
 yet we are exhorted to put on " for an helnuit the 
 hope of salvation." We "received the spirit of adop- 
 tion," and yet we are " waiting for the adoption." 
 What is the meaning of these different expressions ? 
 They mean that we have now in principle what we 
 shall hereafter possess in its full development. Our 
 salvation 7ioiv is but the little seed-corn: by and by 
 it will be a tall stalk with the ripe ear gracefully 
 waving. Now we are saved, as the sick man is cured 
 when he has begun to take the medicine which l)reaks 
 the force of the disease, though he is still confined 
 to his bed ; tlten we shall be saved, as the sick man is 
 cured when all traces of disease are gone and he 
 walks once more with bounding step. Xoiu we are 
 saved as the wrecked man is saved when he makes 
 
 - 
 
422 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 the jump from the sinkinjij ship into the life-boat ; 
 then we shall be saved as he is saved when he stands 
 once more safe and sound beside his loved ones on the 
 shore after the waves and billows have been securely 
 passed through. 
 
 Have we Christ in us tlie hope of glory ? Have 
 we been sealed with that holy spirit of promise which 
 is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption 
 of the purchased possession i 
 
nm 
 
 FAITH. 
 
 423 
 
 e-boat ". 
 ; stands 
 1 on the 
 lecurely 
 
 I Have 
 ^e which 
 lemption 
 
 II 
 
 FAITH. 
 
 (l.'Jth September, 1S7S.) 
 
 " Now faith is the assurance (or confidence) of things hoped for, 
 the conviction (or evidence) of things not seen." — Hku. xi. I. 
 
 The theme of this stirring chapter is Faith. Tlie 
 closing verses of tlie 10th cliapter contain a warning 
 and an encouragement. " Now, the just shall live hy 
 faith : but if he draw back my soul hath no pleasure 
 in him. But we are not of harkdidinrf unto perdi- 
 tion, but of faith to the saving of the soul " — i.e., the 
 preservation of the true life of the man. 
 
 In closest connection of thought the 11th chapter 
 opens, " Now faith is " — and then folhnv tlu^ defini- 
 tion and illustration of faith, and the celel)ration of 
 its triumphs. Faith — i.e., confidence regarding the 
 future, and conviction of the reality of the unseen — 
 has been the secret spring of every great and godly 
 life, the condition of success in the large and true 
 sense, the key to all noble deeds and heroic sufferings. 
 In glowing words the writer tells of the victories 
 which the great cloud of witnesses have gained by 
 their faith, and points, last and chiefly, to Jesus " the 
 
424 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 loader and perfecter of faitli," l)iddinf]j tho Hebrew 
 ChriHtians look to Him, aii<l so run with patience the 
 race set l)erore them'. 
 
 We consider to-(lay, TItc DeJinUion of FnUh. — 
 " Assurance of things hoped for, the conviction or 
 (evidence) of things not seen " — assurance of the 
 certdlrity of things hoped for, and of the renllty of 
 things not seen. Faith, then, has relation to two 
 classes of oljjects — (1) those that are future, and 
 (2) those that are unseen. 
 
 1. Faith in relation to the Future. — It is assurance 
 of the certainty of the glorious future. When a man 
 is confident that, in spite of appearances, the good 
 things promised or hoped for shall be attained, and 
 when the present is dwarfed hy the more glorious 
 future, that man exercises faith. In faith, e.g., the 
 farmer sows. If the few bushels of grain were sent 
 to the mill and ground, tlun-e would be immediate 
 benefit in the shape of so much Hour. But faith 
 looks to the harvest time, when twenty or thirty fold 
 shall be reaped, and so the little brown seedlings are 
 committed to the ground. 
 
 Boys, you know what faith is, when you give up 
 some portion of your pleasure and play, that by 
 harder work you may win the prize at the end of 
 the term. The sun is bright, and the play-ground 
 charming, and the merry shouts of the cricketers 
 make you almost shut the book and run, for you 
 are a true boy and love cricket ; but you resolutely 
 deny yourself the present enjoyment, that you may 
 make sure of the future good, which you count better 
 worth having. 
 
jn 
 
 FAITH. 
 
 425 
 
 lobrcNV 
 lice the 
 
 ^(tith. — 
 
 ;tion oi' 
 
 of the 
 
 idllty of 
 
 to two 
 ire, and 
 
 Lssurance 
 en a man 
 the good 
 ined, and 
 5 glorioiiH 
 I, e.g., the 
 were sent 
 inniediate 
 But faith 
 hirty t'ol<l 
 dlings are 
 
 \)\x give up 
 that by 
 ihe end of 
 lay-ground 
 cricketers 
 In, for you 
 resolutely 
 you may 
 )unt better 
 
 Little children, you know what faith is. Some of 
 you have said, when you tooiv the seeds out of a ripe 
 apple, " Mother, can I plant this seed in my gardcui i* 
 And will it grow to be an aj)ple tree ;• And will it 
 have apples on it ^ " And mother said," Yes, but you 
 will have to wait a long time for it to grow." And 
 then you put it under the earth, and if you hatl little 
 faith, you went after a week or two and dug it up to 
 sec if it was growing; and if you had more faith, you 
 waited till the snow came and covere<l up the earth 
 to keep it warm, and then the sun shone and the 
 rains fell, and by and by you saw a little green thing, 
 just like a weed, coming up, and you would have 
 pulled it up, but mother told you that that was the 
 little apple tree. You thought it didn't look a bit like 
 an apple tree — no branches, no bark, and no apples 
 on it — but still you waited, and year after year you 
 watched it. and at last it grew into a real tree. Well, 
 that planting and waiting, expecting a tree to grow 
 out of that little seed, was just faith working — you 
 had the " assurance of things hoped for." 
 
 Men, some of you know what faith is. When you 
 have come to see that certain political principles, let 
 us suppose, are true, and, therefore, best for the 
 country, and when you liave resolved that, come 
 what may, you will maintain and defend those prin- 
 ciples, whether men call you Tory or Radical, whether 
 the maintenance of those principles leads to power or 
 not, you exercise faith. Appearances may be against 
 you ; short-cuts to success, and very tempting ones, 
 may be open to you ; the temptation to sacrifice con- 
 
 14 m 
 
426 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 ;f 11 
 
 viction to policy may be very great; but if you set 
 your faces like a flint, resolved to follow whither 
 Truth, as you see it, may lead, and to take the con- 
 sequences, you are men of faith. You may possibly 
 never enter the promised land ; you may not live to 
 see the triumph of your principles ; if so, you will 
 nevertheless die in faith, not having received the 
 promise, but still cherishing the " assurance " that the 
 things " hoped for " shall certainly be realized. 
 
 Is religious faith different from this faith in the 
 child, the boy, the man i' Not at all : it only occupies 
 itself with different objects and takes a wider range. 
 Instead of looking for an earthly prize, it looks for 
 " a crown of rightecjusness, which the Lord, the 
 righteous Judge, shall give unto all them that love 
 His appearing." Instead of being exercised about 
 an apple tree, it is exercised about " the tree of life," 
 which is in the midst of the street of the New Jeru- 
 salem, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. 
 Instead of being occupied with principles which tend 
 to secure the political and social and commercial well- 
 being of the nation, it is occupied with principles 
 which will secure the holiness and blessedness of 
 redeemed humanity here and hereafter. The believer 
 looks not for the fulfilment of his own theories, but 
 for the fulfilment of God's promises ; he waits not 
 for the triumph of the political party to which he 
 belongs, but for the coming of Christ ; his view is 
 not bounded by the earthly horizon, even though 
 within that horizon he may see political purity and 
 social regenerotion, prosperous commerce, rigiiteous 
 
 m 
 
FAITH. 
 
 427 
 
 you set 
 whither 
 the con- 
 possibly 
 >t live to 
 you will 
 iived the 
 ' that the 
 
 3d. 
 
 th in the 
 y occupies 
 ler range, 
 looks for 
 Lord, the 
 that love 
 ised about 
 ee of lit'^N" 
 |>^ew Jeru- 
 le nations. 
 A'hich tend 
 rcial well- 
 principles 
 ;sedness of 
 10 believer 
 leories, but 
 waits not 
 which he 
 lis view is 
 though 
 
 en 
 
 purity 
 
 aiKi 
 
 riL 
 
 •hteous 
 
 laws and international amity; but it takes in tlie 
 eternal atjes durini»; which tliere sliall \w ceaseless 
 progress in the knowledge of God and fellowship 
 with Him, when the good of all lands and of all the 
 generations, their bodies fashioned like unto the body 
 of the glory of Christ, and having the spirit of Him 
 that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelling in them, 
 shall be glorihed with Christ for ever and ever. 
 
 2. Faith in relation to the Unseen. — It is " the 
 conviction of things not seen " — the conviction of the 
 reality of things not seen. Faith is not necessarily 
 occupied with the future. You never saw an iceberg. 
 You never saw the rich foliage of tlie tropics. You 
 believe in both. Your eyes tell you that water in 
 the glass is pure. A friend tells you it is I'nll of 
 living things, which he has seen through a micro- 
 scope. You believe liim. Your eves tell vou that 
 the stars are little specks in a soli<l blue hemisphere; 
 the telescope tells you that they are suns and planets, 
 rolling along with inconceivable rapidity. Y< never 
 saw yellow fever, it may be. You never saw one of 
 the sufferers; yet if the plague breaks out you 
 willingly send tens or hundreds of dollars to relieve. 
 You never saw the k 'e in your wife's heai-t, you 
 never will see it: it is one of the thinw that eye 
 cannot see ; and yet you are surer of it than you are 
 that Queen Victoria reigns. You have the "conviction 
 of things not seen." Vou caiuiot see the [)ati(nice and 
 toil and self-denial of th»^ doctors ami mu'ses when 
 some terrible epidemic is raging, and yet your heart 
 throbs as you read of their Christ-like <levotion, even 
 
428 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 n 
 
 unto death, as it never throbs when you read that 
 stocks have gone ip, or tliat your candidate has been 
 elected by trickery. You have faith, " the conviction 
 of the reality of the things not seen." 
 
 Again I ask, Is religious faith a different thing ? 
 No: but it takes higher flights. It concerns itself not 
 simply about " the sweet, sweet love of daugliter, of 
 son and of wife," but about the love sweeter far and 
 more unfathomable, of (Jod in Christ. It rejoices to 
 believe in heroic doing, and more heroic suffering on 
 part of men and women ; but it rejoices still more to 
 trace these to their fountain-head in the one great 
 sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave His life a 
 ransom for all. It delights in the power of even poor 
 human love to lift up the fallen, to soothe the sad, 
 and to succour the dying; but it rises to that "love 
 divine, all loves excelling," which stooped to the 
 lowest degradation that it might raise the lost to the 
 dignity and glory of sons of God. It is " the convic- 
 tion of the solid reality of things not seen." It never 
 saw God : but it knows Him and cliiigs to Him. It 
 knows Him in Christ; the power of the risen Saviour 
 is a more real factor in its spiritual life than the 
 power of an earthly monarch ; the love of Christ is a 
 more constrainiuii" motive than the love of dearest 
 friend. The "unsjen" is not the unknown. Faith 
 is not credulity. It rests on real knowledcre. We 
 know (U)d tiMJuo-h we see Him not. We know His 
 power and wisdom by His works : we know His love 
 and grace by His Christ. We know what God is 
 from the testimony of the manv who have truste<l 
 
FAITH. 
 
 429 
 
 Him : we may know from our own experience. \V(; 
 are not asked to trust an unknown (Jod. liut we are 
 asked to follow whither He points the way, thou^di 
 we see not the path. The two senses of faith melt into 
 one in Clirist. The faith that looks into the future 
 and the faith that realizes (lod in the present arc 
 the same thin<^^ Christ is the revealer of the future 
 glory. Christ is the manifestation of the unseen 
 (irod. It makes God and heaven real. When we 
 are in darkness as to God's existence or His love, when 
 we (piestion the reality of a future life, w«' fall baek 
 on Christ as our i^rand artjument for both, lie lived 
 tlie life of heaven on earth. He "came down from 
 heaven," and yet spoke of himst-lf as 'the Son of 
 Man which is in heaven." His hlesscchu'ss consisted 
 in His oneness with th<i Father — not <loin^- His own 
 will, but the will of His Father. 
 
 Are we livinf>: that bles.sed life ? Are we walkiuLT 
 with God ? Are we livin<^ in the lit^ht of eternity ( 
 under the powers of a world to come :' (Jr are we 
 concentrating our power and thouglit on the outward 
 and the visible i 
 
 
 ^'\\ 
 
430 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 : ; 1 
 
 III. 
 
 HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER 
 RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 {J4th September, 1870.) 
 
 \fi n 
 
 ■i: i 
 
 " Blessed ar>.' they whicli do hunger and thirst after righteous- 
 ness ; for they shall be tilled." — Matt. v. 6. 
 
 I. What is the ()])ject of desire ? What is this 
 good tiling for which it is blessed to long ? Right- 
 eousness. Being and doing riojit. Walkino- in the 
 straight path of duty, turning neither to the right 
 nor to the left. Conformity to God's law, the doing 
 of God's will in every circumstance and every relation 
 of life. 
 
 To be righteous is more than to be just, as we use 
 the word "just," and as we see the ([uality of justice 
 displayed among men. We cannot help contrasting 
 justice with kindness or generousness. A man should 
 be jtist, we say, before he is genei'ous. The man who 
 is simply just gives exactly what is due, whether of 
 wages to his servant, or of dutifulness to his wife, or 
 of hojioiu' to his sovereign. He does not make allow- 
 ance for faults or shortcomings; he does not overflow 
 with love or loyalty. L^verything is weighed and 
 
 ^\. : 
 
HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS. 431 
 
 righteous- 
 
 IS 
 
 this 
 
 Right- 
 g in the 
 
 le right 
 ,ic doing 
 
 rehition 
 
 s we use 
 justice 
 itvasting 
 1 should 
 ■nan who 
 Hiether of 
 wife, or 
 e allow- 
 )verflow 
 Ihed and 
 
 measured. Such a man secures our esteem and 
 approval : he does not win our love or devotion. 
 Paul eontrfists the barely just man with the nobly 
 generous when he writes : " Scarcely for a righteous 
 man will oiw die ; yet peradventure for a good man 
 ..ome would even dare to die." 
 
 Righteousness, as Jesus uses the term here, includes 
 both justice and gO(3dness. It is a great thhig, when 
 there is so nnich of twisting and double dealin*; in 
 social and connnercial life, to find a man of thorough 
 integrity, who will adhere unswervingly lo the 
 strai'dit line of trutli and honour. It is a jjreater 
 thing to find a man who combines with this integrity 
 the gentleness that wins, the meekness that endures 
 wrong, the courage that, seeks to right the oppressed, 
 the mercifulness that forgives until seventy times 
 seven, the pity that is burdened with human misery, 
 the love that is strong as death. " Righteousness " 
 covers all this ground. The righteous man does not 
 simply p.:y his debts: but regards fairly all claims 
 on his time,, l;ls knowledge, his strength, his sym- 
 pathy ; the claims of his children, of his servants, of 
 his friends, of the State, of the Church ; and not 
 these alone, but the claims of the poor, the sick, the 
 tempted, the unfortunate, the fallen, the wretched, 
 the criminal. 
 
 We see, then, lu)W hum> a field is covered bv tliis 
 wor<l rijjhteousness. It is nothina- less than holiness ; 
 nothing short of perfection. It is the keeping of 
 God's commandments in their length and breadfh, in 
 the spirit, not in the letter, doing the will of ( iod from 
 the heart. 
 
432 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 
 m 
 
 .1 
 
 'h 11 
 
 " RifijliteousncsH " is sometimes used in a narrower 
 sense in tlie Bible, as in the passage already (juotcd 
 from St. Paul ; but in general it has the rich mean- 
 ing indicated. Thus Moses writes : " It shall be our 
 righteousness, if we observe to do all these conniuind- 
 ments before the Lord our (Jod, as he hath com- 
 man<ledus." (])eut. vi. 25.) When we look back to tl it ^ 
 context we find the one great connnandment, "Thou 
 shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, with 
 all thy soul, with all thy might," and we infer that 
 the righteousness of the Old Testament saints was 
 no mere external conformity to rules or to ritual, 
 but was summed up in love of (Jod and neighl)()ur. 
 We turn to Paul and read: " Ood, sending liis 
 own Son in the likeness of sinful fiesh that f/w 
 rifj/iteousncss of the law might be fulfilled in us," 
 etc. It is not a new sort of righteousness that 
 Christ brings in; it is just the old "righteousness 
 of the law," that which law could set before men, 
 but could not secure. But there is a new poivcr of 
 fLdfilmenf, as well as a detirer ^presentation in the 
 life and death of Christ of what God's righteousness 
 is than there could possibly be in words engraven on 
 stones or written in a book. Non', to be righteous is 
 to be Christ-like. 
 
 Under every dispensation, at every stage of the 
 world's history, righteousness sprang from the root 
 of faith, and faith wrought by love, and love was 
 shown in keeping God's commandments. Abraham 
 believed God and it was counted to him foi- right- 
 eousness. The prophet Habakkuk wrote, " The 
 
HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS. 433 
 
 rrowor 
 (juotcd 
 mean- 
 be our 
 nmaiul- 
 ,h com- 
 ;k to the 
 , "Thou 
 irt, with 
 fer that 
 ints was 
 o ritual 
 ;i(i-hh()ur. 
 i,i(r His 
 that //"■ 
 lI in us,' 
 iiess tliat 
 Iteousnews 
 'ore men, 
 poiucr of 
 \n in tlie 
 Iteousness 
 raven on 
 hteous is 
 
 [e of the 
 the root 
 
 kn'e was 
 ibrahaui 
 
 (> 
 
 r v\i' 
 
 ht- 
 
 Tl 
 
 le 
 
 rij^liteous shall live by faith ;" and the apostle takes 
 up his text and makes it the theme of his ^rand 
 (;[)istle to the Jlomans. " With the heart man 
 believeth unto rijxhteousness." What is that rij-ht- 
 eousness ? Let Paul answer: "Circumcision is noth- 
 ing, and mu'ireumcision is nothin*:^, but the kee})in(^ 
 of the commandments of God."' (I Cor. vii. I!).; Paul 
 and Moses a<jfree to a nicety. But there is in Paul 
 (a) a clearer ])resei)tation of God's ri<^hteousne.ss ; (6) 
 a new power of fulfilment— Christ the source. 
 
 This, then, is the righteousness after which it is so 
 blessed to hunwr and thirst. 
 
 II. Think of the blessedness of the desire for ri;;ht- 
 eousness. ;' Hun<:^er and thir.st," a strikin^L,^ ex])ressi()n 
 to indicate intensity of desire. It is characteristic of 
 the human race to hun<:er and thirst, '['he keen 
 lonj^ino- of tlu! huiif^ry bcjy who stands starin<^ at the 
 ituns in the window of the baker's shop is an endjlem 
 of stronu" desire that clin£js to men throuo;h life. 
 ( )ne hun<j^ers for popularity — cannot be content unless 
 his praises are sounded in nien's ears. Another thirsts 
 I'oi" gold — and what a tormenting thirst it is in some 
 men! A third liungers and thirsts for love — the 
 love of man or woman — a noble longinj--, but one that 
 is often full of pain. In one form or another men 
 ar(! longing for something better and liappiei' than 
 the preseub. The soul of man never says, " It is 
 enough." The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the 
 car tilled with hearing. Men are dissatisfied with 
 their circumstances, and they hurry to and fro, seek- 
 ing for lwi[)piness in change of scene and occn])ation, 
 29 
 
434 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 I*;i'r, 
 
 ■Ui 
 
 fillirifr their houses witli the good things that money 
 can l)uy, gathering treasurers of art and Hterature 
 wliicli may gratify taste and eidarge the mind. And 
 tliis is so far good. Tliis dissatisfaction with his 
 circumstances is one condition of material progress. 
 Had men not been dissatisfied with hmd)ering stage 
 coaches, we should not have had improved metliods 
 of stream ti-avel. Had men been content with tallow- 
 candles, we should not have learned to utilize gas and 
 electricity for purposes of lighting. 
 
 But men are dissatisfied with fhemsetves, and no 
 change of circumstances will remove that dissatis- 
 faction. Just as dissatisfaction with his circumstances 
 is a condition of material progress, so dissatisfaction 
 with liimself is a condition of spiritual growth. This 
 noble discontent marks the heii^ht of man's nature, 
 se})arating him by an impassable gulf from the 
 unaspiring brute. It is the root of desire for man's 
 true food ; for that which will nourish the God-like 
 in him; for that which will abide wdien houses and 
 lands and earthly possessions shall have passed away 
 — in short, for righteousness. 
 
 The longing for righteousness may be said to 
 characterize all men to some extent. Who is there 
 that feels thoroughl}^ satisfied ? Who does not admit 
 that his life is not wdiat it ought to be ? It has been 
 beautifully said " ' I thirst ' is the voice of the whole 
 world." There is a void in man's heart that God alone 
 can till. 
 
 In many cases, however, the desire is very feeble 
 and partial — desire to break the bonds of some one Iwul 
 
money 
 n-ature 
 , Au'l 
 itU Uis 
 rogrt'ss. 
 ig stage 
 methods 
 h tallow 
 ijas autl 
 
 , and no 
 dissatis- 
 Tustances 
 tisfaction 
 th. This 
 ,'s nature, 
 ^roni the 
 for man's 
 God-iiko 
 uses and 
 sed away 
 
 |e said to 
 
 is there 
 
 Inot admit 
 
 has been 
 
 Ithe whole 
 
 1 God alone 
 
 lery feeble 
 lie one hi^d 
 
 HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS. 435 
 
 liabit, whose consequences are unpleasant ; desire that 
 may be (juenched by a stronger desire of gratifying 
 appetite, or of gaining the good opinion of the world. 
 Even tliat measure of desire is a good tiling, for Christ 
 delights to fan the feeble spark into tlame, and it may 
 be the point of contact for the operation of His Spirit. 
 But the desire of which Jesus speaks in the Beatitude 
 is not feeble or fitful — it is hunger and thirst — consum- 
 ing desire ; it is not partial, not to escape the bonds of 
 this or that evil habit, but to attain to righteousness, 
 to be perfect even as the Father in heaven is perfect. 
 
 This is a bless( longing. It is blessed because it is 
 constantly meeting with partial satisfaction. It is a 
 pleasant thing for the child to be hungry when he is 
 iXoini; home from school to have a irood dinner in his 
 father's ' ause : it would be a terrible thing to feel the 
 pangs of hunger if there were no food in the house 
 and no prospect of getting any. So with the trin? 
 Bread of the soul. It would be indeed an awful thing 
 if men, awakened to a sense of their need of God, bur- 
 dened with the consciousness of guilt, earnestly crying 
 " Deliver us from evil," were condenmed to be perpet- 
 ually unsatisfied, either not knowing that there is 
 " Bread in the Father's house " or being unable to 
 obtain any share of it. But there is " bread enough 
 and to spare," and "water of life " freely flowing, yea, 
 " wine and milk" " without money and without price." 
 And the invitation is, " Ho ! every one that thirsteth." 
 " If any man thirst, hit him come unto Me and drink." 
 
 Men have come, and are coming, to have their 
 liungeraud thirst satisfied, and not in vain. Still thg 
 
 I , 
 
4;J6 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 «>n 
 
 'UiM 
 
 satisfaction is partial. The more wo ^etof rifjhtcovis- 
 ne.ss, the more merciful, pure in heart and (gentle, we 
 become, the more we want. Tlie more we j^row 
 spiritually, the more we hunger for that which pro- 
 motes our j^rowth. And still there is the pain of 
 disappointment. Still we have to cry many a time : 
 " The ^ood that I would I do not." Still hi<^h purposes 
 are unfultilled, <rood resolutions broken, and it nuiy 
 seem as if our strivin<^ were in vain. 
 
 But here comes in the word of the Lord, " Blessed 
 . . . for they shall be filled ! " Filled with what ! 
 Righteousness, mercifulness, purity, peace, love and 
 joy. " Filled " to the utmost measure of capacity I 
 What the law could not do, love does — the righteous- 
 ness of law falfilled in us ! There is a heart of hope 
 in our efforts. Not always shall we come short, we 
 shall "attain" and "be perfect " ! Not always shall we 
 be wounded and broken in the fight — victory is sure I 
 He who was in the flesh fought all our spiritual foes. 
 He who knows their strength, tells us so. He is our 
 Helper, our Friend, our Brother. " Greater is He that 
 is in us than he that is in the world." Abidingj in the 
 Life, we live, we grow strong and pure, we gain the 
 victory. So we look forward and sing : 
 
 " O Christ is the fountain, the deep sweet well of love, 
 
 Tlie streams on earth I've tasted, more deep I'll drink above ; 
 There to an ocean's fulness His mercy doth expand. 
 And glory, glory dwelleth in Immanuers land." 
 
 No other hunger shall be thus satisfied. Hunger 
 for gold, or praise, or even love, shall not be "filled " 
 ^o tliat the heq,rt shaU be fully and finally satisfied. 
 
HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIOHTEOUSNESS. 437 
 
 rhtcOUH- 
 
 ntU\ w*i 
 re y;n>vv 
 lich \)i'o- 
 
 piiin of 
 
 a tiiiH^ : 
 pui-poHeH 
 lI it may 
 
 " Blessed 
 th what i 
 love and 
 capacity '. 
 riirhtcous- 
 rt of hope 
 short, we 
 ^a shall we 
 i-y is sure '. 
 itual foes. 
 He is our 
 is He that 
 WnU. in the 
 e gain the 
 
 L"l 
 
 You luinger for j^old, and you «^et it, and too often the 
 nion^ you accumulate the less 3'()u seom to have, and 
 the less gocxl you get of it. You hunger for praise, 
 and you get it, hut not seldom there is a sting in it, 
 for you know tliat it has not been fairly (earned, or 
 you suspect that it is not genuine. Von hunger for 
 love, and you get it, and you say, it may be, " We are 
 all in all to each other." And If you say so, you are 
 doomed to disappointment. No two human beings can 
 be all in all, for human love has limits. Only one 
 can forever satisfy the soul longing for love. Our 
 love to one another must be rooted in Jiis love, and 
 then indeed there is in it an indefinite expansiveness. 
 
 Ilk above ; 
 
 Hunger 
 )e " tilled ' 
 satistied. 
 
 / , 
 
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438 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 IV. 
 
 SUFFERING LOVE. 
 
 (mh Decetnhcr, 1882.) 
 " Love suffereth long, and is kind." — 1 Cor. xiii. 4. 
 
 Love is the standard by which the worth of gifts is 
 to be measured — their worth is in proportion to tlieir 
 usefulness to others. It is tlie rule of use of all 
 gifts, great or small, natural or supernatural — we 
 are to use them not for our own glorification, but in 
 the service of men. All talents, all powers, all privi- 
 leges, are to be used unselfishly. 
 
 It is possible, says Paul, to possess great gifts with 
 little or no love ; to speak with tongues and yet be 
 only sounding brass ; to be prophets, as Balaam was, 
 speaking God's truth with our lips, but far from God 
 in heart ; to make great sacrifices, yea, give our bodies 
 to be burned, yet only to do so from some selfish motive. 
 And in that case, however men may praise us, wo 
 are " nothing," for in the spiritual sphere men are 
 counted worthy not in proportion to genius, or gifts- 
 or outward acts, but in proportion to love. Then 
 follows the wonderful delineation of love, which ha.s 
 been rightly accounted one of the gems of Scripture. 
 
SUFFERING LOVE. 
 
 439 
 
 Take, first, the characteristics. " Love suffereth long 
 and is kind." Tlie one is the passive, the other the 
 active side, of love. Love is long-suffering — bears 
 much and long. Bears patiently evils inflicted by 
 others. Bears ingratitu<le, treacli'-ry, misrepresenta- 
 tion, in a gentle spirit. Bears with the weakness, 
 the fretfulness, the indifference, the thank lessness of 
 those whom it seeks to bless. It is comparatively 
 easy to be kind to the grateful, but one is apt to be 
 wearied by ingratitude. It is easy to minister to a sick 
 friend who is patient : not so easy to one who is fret- 
 ful. It is satisfactory to relieve the worthy who are 
 in need ; not ho easy to relieve the unworthy, those 
 who have thrown away opportunities. Do wo not 
 sometimes expect too much from the tempted and the 
 fallen ? 
 
 " Kind." This is positive. Love does all the good 
 it can to others — to friends and kindred of course ; to 
 the poor, to enemies, to outcasts : by words and deeds. 
 It spends time and money, thought and sympathy. 
 It does not say, " Am I my brother's keeper ? " It <loes 
 not say, " I am vot bound to do this or that." There 
 are no assi<;nable limits to love. It is ever reachiuir 
 out in wider circles to all who need help. 
 
 Foremost in the list of characteristics of love is 
 "long-suffering." Love has burdens to bear — the 
 wants and sorrows and sins of others. It " weeps 
 with those that weep." It has crosses to carry of 
 which selfishness knows nothing. The man who loves 
 most will be the greatest sufferer. It was by no 
 accident, it was by no arbitrary arrangement, it was 
 
 I 
 
 ■•A 
 
 t 
 
 J-: 
 
440 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 in accordance with the very nature of things, that 
 Jesus, who was Love incarnate, was emphatically the 
 " Man of Sorrows." The path of love led Hiin to the 
 Cross. The more nearly we approach Him in our 
 love to others, the more we shall know of suffering. 
 The more we try to bear the burdens of sin and 
 shame under which men arc groaning, the more w(i 
 shall know what is meant by "the fellowship of 
 Christ's sufferings " and " being made conformable 
 unto His death." 
 
 If you would avoid suffering, therefore, turn aside 
 from the path of love. Shut your ears to the cry of 
 the needy, the unfortunate, the sad, the fallen, the 
 ignorant, the wretched. Live in a respectable neigh- 
 bourhood and forget, as far as you can, that there are 
 sin and shame and soitow >vithin easy reach of 
 your residence that are not respectable. Drop the 
 accpiaintance of men who arc beginning to go astray 
 and who may possibly bring reproach on your name, 
 or may give you trouble by asking for counsel or aid. 
 Join a respectable church if you choose ; but do not 
 allow yourself to be carried away by the fanaticism 
 of people who think that the main business of the 
 Church is to save lost men and women. Shut yourself 
 out from the fellowship of those who might make any 
 unpleasant demands on your time, or your money, or 
 your sympathy ; who might interfere with your com- 
 fort, or your gain, or your self-indulgence. Do all 
 this, and you will avoid a good deal of suffering and 
 at the same time be thoroughly respectable. 
 
 But if you would be like Christ, you must, like 
 
SUFFERING LOVE. 
 
 4 a 
 
 irrs, that 
 
 cally the 
 jii to the 
 1 in our 
 sufforinj]j. 
 sin and 
 more w6 
 wship of 
 iformable 
 
 turn aside 
 the cry of 
 fallen, the 
 ihle neij;h- 
 t there are 
 ' reach ot 
 Drop the 
 go astray 
 y'our name, 
 isel or aid. 
 ,ut do not 
 fanaticism 
 ess of the 
 t yourself 
 make any 
 money, or 
 your com- 
 le. l-)o all 
 fering and 
 
 Him, be " acquainted with grief." You must open 
 your hearts to an ever-widening circle of your fellows 
 who stand in need of your help. You must le< the 
 tendrils of your love cling to every one with whom 
 God brings you into contact — not only to the good 
 and gentle and refined, with whom it is a pleasure to 
 have intercourse, but also to the unlovely, the dis- 
 agreeable, the disgusting. You must make their wants, 
 sorrows, trials, your own. And you sliall suffer, but it 
 will be blessed suttering, for it will bring you nearer 
 to God. It will be suffering with a kernel of joy at 
 the heart of it. You shall enter into the "joy of 
 your Lord " — joy over the lost found, over the ban- 
 ished brought home, over men set free from the 
 bondage of sin and brought into the glori<iUs liberty 
 of the sons of God. Who that knows Christ would 
 not willingly share in the suffering that he might 
 enter into the joy ? 
 
 '^. 
 
 Uust, like 
 
442 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 V. 
 
 THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH. 
 
 (2nd September, 1SS3.) 
 
 " If any man n'illeth to do liis will, he sliall know of the tenrhintj, 
 whether it be of God, or whether I apeak from myself." — John 
 vii. 17. 
 
 " When he, the Spirit of trutli, is come, he siiall {f>iirli> you 
 into all the truth," — John xvi. 13. 
 
 Men were perplexed by the words of this new 
 Teaelior. Some said, " He is a good man ; " others, 
 " Nay, but He deceiveth the people." How were 
 they to know whether His teaching was divine or 
 not ? What test were they to apply ? Jesus gives 
 this answer : " If any man ivUletk to do," etc. At 
 first sight the statement is strange. The converse 
 might be thought more reasonable : " If any man will 
 take pains to knoiv what God's will is, he shall be 
 enabled to do it." 
 
 Willingness to do God's will, i.e., the spirit of 
 loving obedience, is the condition of knowing trutli. 
 The principle is specially applicable in the realm of 
 moral and spiritual truth, though it applies in measure 
 to lower spheres of knowledge. Knowing comes by 
 doing. By doing God's will in the sphere of the 
 

 THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH. 
 
 443 
 
 TH. 
 
 le fffirhinil, 
 ,^f "—John 
 
 this new 
 i;" others, 
 o\v were 
 klivine or 
 Uus t^ives 
 I' etc. At 
 converse 
 
 man will 
 shall i)e 
 
 material or intellectual, i.e., by acting; in obedience to 
 the laws which God has established, we come to know 
 that will as we could never have known it apart from 
 experience. A boy may be tauji^ht that on certain 
 conditions his body will tloat in the water, but his 
 knowledge is different after he lias trusted himself to 
 the water and learned to swim. A pupil may l)e able 
 to state the result of an arithmetical or alirebraic 
 problem with perfect correctness, but he does not 
 know it as another does who with painful eHbrt, and 
 after many failures, has found it out, and who under- 
 stands the principle on which the result has been 
 obtained. 
 
 Ob-serve, however, it is not so much (hniy/ (iod's 
 will that is said to be condition of knowledge, as 
 being willing to do it. " If any man iv'dleth" etc. 
 In short, moral sincerity is the thing desired — what 
 our Lord, in Luke's account of the parable of the 
 Sower, calls " an honest and good heart. " 
 
 Now, this moral qualification is in large measure 
 needed for successful gaining of knowle<lge in a lower 
 sphere. Truth in science, art, political economy — if 
 a man would know such truth, he must liave the H])irit 
 of the truth seeker ; must have a mind open to the 
 light ; must be ready to recognize laws which (fod has 
 stamped on the material universe and on human life. 
 If he seeks his own glory instead of God's ; if he tries 
 to establish his own " views " instead of finding out 
 God's will, he must fail. It is the humble spirit 
 patiently seeking to understand God's ways in nature 
 and providence, that is as a rule rewarded with success 
 in the search for truth. 
 
444 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 :ll 
 
 Iti 
 
 Clearly this principle will apply with {greatest force 
 to truth ahout our moral and spiritual relations. This 
 is the truth which is indispensahle to the peace of the 
 human spirit because directly affectinjj duty and life 
 at important .points. What is my relation to the 
 B«Mnf( who j^ave me life ? What are my duties to my 
 fellows ? What is my destiny ? Sin is a terrible 
 fact — how shall 1 f^et rid of it { Misery is a fact — 
 what is the explanation of it :* Is it incurable i 
 J)eath is an awful fact — is there any way of meeting 
 it calndy, of triumphing over it i Who can tell me 
 triU}/ about these things ? Is it possiV)le to find out 
 the truth i* " What is truth ? " is a (juostion put by 
 many besides Pilate — sometimes in contempt, some- 
 times in despair — a8ke<l as despairingly in Christen- 
 dom as ever in heathendom. Still, amid the blaze of 
 light from the Bible and the Cross, " we grope and 
 gather dust and chart" ! 
 
 The human spirit cannot rest without knowing the 
 truth that artects the welfare of the spirit. We may 
 do without a knowledge of astronomy, etc. We long 
 to be assured on some infallible authority that we are 
 right in our beliefs about God, life and innnortality. 
 We cannot be satisfied with a '* perhaps." Herein 
 lies the strength of the Church of Rome. She comes 
 to perplexed spirits and says, " I will guide you in- 
 fallibly." The dogma of the infallibility of the Pope 
 is meant expressly to meet this want. It was long 
 doubtful where the infallibility rested, whether in 
 Councils, or Pope, or both together. Now men are 
 pointed to an old man at Rome, and told, " There is 
 
THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH. 
 
 44: 
 
 3st force 
 IS. Thi8 
 ;e of the 
 and life 
 \ to the 
 ea to my 
 terrihle 
 
 a fact — 
 icurable i 
 ■ meeting 
 n tell me 
 I find out 
 »n put by 
 npt, some- 
 
 Christen- 
 le blaze of 
 
 grope 
 
 and 
 
 lOWing the 
 We may 
 We long 
 lat we are 
 mortality. 
 " Herein 
 iShe comes 
 le you in- 
 the Pope 
 was long 
 Ihether in 
 men aro 
 " There is 
 
 the infallible guide." To those who can accept it, 
 what a strain it takes off mind and heart I There is 
 no more per|)l«'xity, no more groping in* the dark, 
 but .simple, restful, ab.solute submissio!i— rand henr'o 
 peace. 
 
 " False peace," we Protestants .say, and rightly. We 
 repudiate the infallibility of Church and Pope, and 
 we refer men to the Bible. That, we .say, is " the in- 
 fallible rule of faith and ))ractice." " Hut it needs an 
 interpreter." That is true, for interpretations are 
 endlessly various. Here Home steps in and says, 
 " The Church is the infallible interpreter, an<l the 
 Book is not a safe guide except as interpreted by the 
 Church." We .say, God is the ]nt«'rpreter, and each 
 human spirit has direct access to the Source of all 
 illumination. "The Spirit of truth will guide you 
 into all the truth." A great ])romise ! This does not 
 mean that every man is at liberty to think what he 
 likes about the Book, irrespective of Divine teaching; 
 but that no man, no priest, no church, has the 
 right to insist that men .shall drink the living water 
 from their cups or their canals, when the Fountain 
 itself is always open to them. 
 
 Nor does it mean that the voice of the Church, 
 the result of the earnest thought and prayerful study 
 of good men, is to be disregarded. The Spirit of 
 truth was accessible to them, as well as to us, promised 
 to them as to us; it is at our peril if we shut our 
 minds against the light which they have to imj)art. 
 Hence the absurdity of the conceit of men who say : 
 " Fling away conuiientaries and go directly to the 
 
446 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 Bible as 1 do," which is f^enorally found to iDCan 
 '•Take nw as your coinineiitator, and you will bo 
 safe I " Hrncu the unwisdom of tryinjjj to cut loose 
 cvon in this a;;*' of shifting; opinion from the creeds 
 which ^ive in condensed form the result of Christian 
 thouj^lit on many important points. It seems to be 
 dirticult to avoid one of the two extremes — that of 
 makin;^; the creed an idol, a })ositive hindrance to the 
 free entranc*' of the li^^ht of truth into men's minds, 
 which practically takes the place in Protestant 
 Churches of trddition, or the Pope in the Church of 
 Rome : or that of casting; it away as utterly worth- 
 less because it now only partially represents the mind 
 of the Ciiurch. 
 
 Nay more, it is p()ssil)le to use tlie Bible itself 
 in such a way as to sliut out (Jod and His trutli. 
 There is a wav of usinj; Bible sentences which is 
 sinjply superstitious, a way of picking and piecinj; 
 texts which is unprincipled. There is a possibility 
 of being in bonda«ife to the letter of it so as 
 to lose its spirit, of applying its utterances to 
 persons and circumstances with which they have 
 nothing to do. The Bible is not a code of rules 
 ready-made to be applied to all the events of 
 life. (lod has not given it to us to save us the 
 trouble of thinking. That is what Rome professes 
 to do. His Word is a "light" to our path, but 
 still we have to think and judge about the patii, and 
 most assuretUy we are not freed from perplexity 
 about the mystei'ies of life and of eternity. One 
 sometimes thinks that the burden of life is heavier, 
 
THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH. 
 
 447 
 
 to mean 
 I will be 
 cut kx)se 
 ho creeds 
 Christian 
 'ins to be 
 i— that of 
 ice to the 
 ii's miiuls, 
 Protestant 
 Church of 
 rly worth- 
 ,s the niin«l 
 
 ami the problems of existenct more difficult of 
 solution than thev^ wen* in the days of Job or 
 .lereniiah. 
 
 \V«' sometimes think it wouhl have been so easy 
 to makr tlu' Bible dearer — to prevent the miscon- 
 ceptions and mistakes that have arisen. Mi*;ht not 
 the whole of the Transubstantiation controversy 
 
 ft. 
 
 have l)een jU'evented by a few words of comment on 
 the sentence, "This is my body ' ;• Mi^dit not the 
 relation of children to the Church have been so 
 clearly detined as to have .saved all the ar^uin^ about 
 infant baptism i* Would it not have prevented much 
 perplexity if there had been some indication of what 
 we are to approve and what to condemn in the j^reat 
 characters of Scripture ? Mi^lit not tlu; Trinity and 
 the Atonement have been set in clearer li^dit, .so that 
 men would not havr* stumbled ,so much as they do at 
 them ? Mi<(ht there not have been, as a (|uaint 
 character in a well-known story su^^^jests, "a book of 
 Leviticus in the New Testament" to j^ive direction 
 about conduct ? 
 
 But Cod has left the Bible as it is, with its ap- 
 parent contradictions and anomalies, with its strange 
 silence on many points, with its liability to mi.scon- 
 struction. (iod's " tronl " is in it, but it does not 
 always lie on t .c surface, nor does it discover itself 
 to the heedless or indolent seeker. It lies hid in 
 histories and parables and allegories and love stories; 
 in p.salms and proverbs and letters to individuals or 
 to churches ; and we must search for it as for hi(l 
 treasure. 
 
 s !;ti 
 
 m 
 
 III 
 
 ! ' m: 1 
 
'#1 
 
 \t 
 
 448 
 
 SEUMONS. 
 
 TIk^ Bible throws lif^ht on the enif^mas of life. 
 Yet the Bible itself is in sonm reH|)eets an eni;;iua. 
 The wonls of J(\suh are the kernel of the Bible, ami 
 yet even over them how men have wranj^h'd I Some 
 of His .sayinj^H are amon<; the hardest of interpreta- 
 tion in the whole Book — hard even to the humble 
 an<l lovin«r spirit, harder still to men; intellect seek- 
 ing with granmiar and lexicon to sound their depths. 
 
 We nnist join the words with the Life,an<l interpret 
 them in the light of that Life. There are no words 
 that will less bear to be separated from the spirit and 
 character of the Person who uttered them. "The 
 Life is the Light of men." The life of .le.sus is the 
 utterance of CJod's thought. Here was One perse- 
 cuted, yet l)lessed — losing His life, to find it again in 
 untold myriads of souls save<l b}' His death — a Man 
 of sorrows, yet with an inward peace such as the 
 most prosperous never enjoyed, a joy such as the 
 world knows not, peace an<l joy which He can bestow 
 as from a never-failing spring on all who will receive — 
 sufi'ering a shameful death and thereby highly ex- 
 alted, attaining a name that is above every name — 
 an unknown, poor, friendless Man, yet in the hour of 
 greatest danger speaking prophetic words as to the 
 extension of His Kingdom, which the lapse of 
 centuries has proved signally true. 
 
 How shall we understand that Life — that Death ^ 
 Not by logic, but by love. Not clearness of head, 
 but purity of heart is needed. Logic will in vain 
 try to reconcile the discrepancies, either of the Life 
 or of the words. Love alone can .solve the enigma: 
 " He that loveth not, knowetU not." 
 
» 
 
 THK KNOWLEDOE OF THE TRUTH. 
 
 44!) 
 
 of life. 
 
 iiM*', ami 
 i : Some 
 iti'i-pn'tJi- 
 [} humble 
 lect Hcek- 
 ir depths, 
 intcrprt't 
 no words 
 spirit and , 
 m. " Tlic 
 osviH is the 
 Jno perse- 
 it aj^ain in 
 th — a Man 
 iich as the 
 ich as the 
 ;}in bestow 
 1 receive — 
 lijrhly ex- 
 [ry name — 
 ihe hour of 
 as to the 
 hipse of 
 
 lat Death '. 
 is of head, 
 
 II in vain 
 If the Lif»' 
 
 e enigma : 
 
 The central fijjure in the Hible is Jesus Christ. All 
 previous teaching culn)inat<'s in His — He tills u|) tla^ 
 law and the prophets. All sul>sr(|uent t«'aching 
 grows out of His, is a development of what He had 
 said in germ. The IJfr and Death explain the 
 words. Th»' Spirit unfolds the meaning of the Life 
 and Death. We have an infallible rule of conduct — 
 the Life of Chiist. We are to leai'n it. We have an 
 iid'allible interpret«'r — the Sj)irit of the truth, who 
 /Hirifif's our /h'( n't ft, Hi) that we understand and welcome 
 the truth. Does it follow that we shall have no j<er- 
 plexiti(?s? A.ssuredly not; for we have not on 'n\f(iU\hlf> 
 (tjyprehc.iision of the teaching of tlu' S|>iiit. It do(!s 
 follow, however, that we hav«' contidence that even 
 throuifh error and darkness an<l doubt we shall be 
 idtimately brought int») tlu; light of <Jod, that we 
 shdll know, if we " follow on to know the Fiord." 
 
 Eternity will show that not in identity of belief, 
 but in uvih/ of uplrit does the true unity of the 
 Church consist. Tho.se of us who hope y^'t to .see 
 one Protestant Clunrh in this land might well despair 
 if unifonnity of Ijelief were essential. There will be 
 strange meetings in heaven, and none stranger, per- 
 haps, than those of keen theological disputants, who 
 iu«l<red one: another traitors to the ti'uth of (lod. 
 The devout Romanist, seeing in the words of his 
 Lord the warrant for the .sacrifice of the Ma.ss will 
 be surprised to meet the earnest Protestant who con- 
 demned him as an idolater. The Trinitarian will 
 Hud before the throne many a T^nitarian wdio denied 
 in words the deity of Chri.st, but who paid Him the 
 30 
 
 li 
 
 
450 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 full homage of a reverential and confidinj; love as 
 the express image of the Father, and who lived not 
 to himself but to Christ, Many souls that all through 
 life went sad and heavy-laden because they could 
 only dindy discern the features of the Saviour 
 behind the veil of superstition, will rejoice along 
 with many who were kept altogether outside the 
 pale of the Christian Church by the narrowness of 
 good men, when together they behold the Saviour 
 " as He is," — when they see His face and serve Him. 
 
 " Now we see through a glass, but then face to face ; 
 
 " Now we know in part, then shall we know as we 
 are known. 
 
 " Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, 
 let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same 
 thing." 
 
 I ^ 
 
 1 
 u 
 
THE PLACE AND THE WAY. 
 
 451 
 
 lovo as 
 lived not 
 
 through 
 cy could 
 
 Saviour 
 ce along 
 tside the 
 nvness of 
 > Saviour 
 erve Him. 
 ce to face ; 
 [lovv as we 
 
 ^ attained, 
 the same 
 
 VI. 
 
 THE PLACE AND THE WAY. 
 
 {J!nh Aiii/u.st, IS.Sf!.) 
 
 " And whither I go, ye know the way. Tluimas saith unto him, 
 Lonl, we know not whither thou goest ; hf)w know we the way ? 
 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and tlie truth, and the life ; 
 no one cometh unto the Father, l>ut by me." — .John xiv. 4-6. 
 
 We cast our eyes back over a few verses and read 
 (xiii. 'i.S) " Little children, yet a little while I am 
 with you. . . . Whither I go, ye cannot come." 
 These words, tender and yet troubling, were still 
 sounding in the ears of the faithful eleven. Separa- 
 tion from their loved Master is imminent, an<l He 
 seeks to prepare them for the hour of darkness that 
 is coming. He speaks words of cheer, which have 
 lightened the burdens of many thousands of trouble<l 
 hearts. 
 
 " Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God ; 
 believe also in Me." Let faith cure your fears. 
 Remember there is One who governs all things in 
 wisdom and love — '* the Father," of whom I have 
 so often told you. Trust Him to bring light out of 
 darkness. Trust Me, too; do not doubt Me too 
 
 ro. 
 
H'' 
 
 I 
 
 452 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 hastily. Forget not the many tokens of love and 
 power I have shown you. Trust Me now when I tell 
 you that all shall be well, that My going away is 
 necessary in order that all may be well. Trust Me as 
 the llevealer of the Father, who came from God and 
 go to God. 
 
 " In my Father's house are many mansions, if it 
 were not so, I would have told 3^ou : for I go to pre- 
 pare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place 
 for you, I come again, and will receive you unto my- 
 self, that where I am there ye may be also. And 
 whither I go, ye know the way." 
 
 We have here, then, the place tuhich Christ is pre- 
 paring, and the ivay to it. 
 
 I. The Place. — " I go to prejiare a place for you," 
 among the many "dwelling places" in " My Father's 
 house." The " Father's house " is God's home. If we 
 ask tvhere that is, we are reminded of Isaiah's " I 
 dwell in the high and holy place " ; of the Psalm- 
 ist's, '* () though that dwellest in the heavens " ; 
 of the Lord's Prayer, " Our Father which art in 
 heaven " ; of Paul's " dwelling in light unapproach- 
 able" (1 Timothy vi. Ki). God fills all things: 
 He dwells " with him that is of a contrite and 
 humble spirit " as well as " in the higli and holy 
 place " ; we may understand the Father's house to be 
 the universe which He fills with His presence, or 
 some central region of light in which the glory of His 
 love is especially manifested. 
 
 " In My Father's house are many dwelling-places." 
 " Mansion," which now means a large, stately edifice, 
 
THE PLACE AND THE WAY. 
 
 453 
 
 ove and 
 
 leii I tell 
 
 away ia 
 
 ist Me as 
 
 God and 
 
 ons, if it 
 ro to pre- 
 ro a place 
 unto niy- 
 Iso. And 
 
 ist is pre- 
 
 for you," 
 y Father's 
 lie. If we 
 saiah's " I 
 he Psahn- 
 heavens " ; 
 Ich art in 
 approach - 
 II thin*,^s; 
 itrite and 
 and holy 
 ouse to be 
 esence, or 
 ry of His 
 
 g-places. 
 ly edifice, 
 
 used to mean simply " dwelling house, " and that is its 
 meaning here. The word conveys the idea of rest 
 and permanence. Dwelling houses, not tents, we 
 shall have in heaven — " a house not made with hands, 
 eternal in the heavens." The Son abideth ever, 
 and we, being joint heirs with Christ, shall be for 
 ever at home, " At home with the Lord." We shall 
 live there with our risen and glorified Saviour. For 
 we are to have glorious bodies as well as glorified 
 spirits, and the dwelling-places will be adapted to the 
 needs of the inhabitants. 
 
 If we could get firm hold of the truth conveyed by 
 these wcjrds of the Lord Jesus, would it not alter the 
 feelings wdiich many of us still cherish when we think 
 of the next world !" Do we not often think of Death 
 as severing the ties that bin<l us to this warm, home- 
 like world and landing us outsi<le in the cold and 
 darkness, where everything is strange / Thank (Jod, 
 to most of us this world is liappy and home-like ; but 
 yet it is not, and is not meant to be, such a home 
 as heaven — it is not our true houm — it is rather the 
 vestibule. 
 
 Heaven is a roomy place. There are " many " 
 dwelling-places, because there are " many sons" to be 
 brought to glory. Who can tell how many :* Our 
 widest thouixlits come far short of God's thou<xhts. 
 The "breadth" as well as the length and depth an<l 
 height of the love of God in Christ " passeth kiiow- 
 ledii'e." "For the love of (Jod is broader than the 
 measure of man's mind," etc. We cannot tell what a 
 vast nmltitude of men and nations are embraced in 
 
 ' I? 
 

 a. * 
 
 454 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 that love, " Many " shall come from the east and 
 west and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac 
 and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven." " A jijreat mul- 
 titude," which no man can num})er, shall stand before 
 the throne of God and before the Lamb. T)ie Saviour 
 of mankind "shall see of the travail of His soul and 
 shall be satisfied " as he surveys the crowds of 
 redeemed ones that " throng up the steeps of light," as 
 He listens to the " ten thousand times ton thousand 
 and thousands of thousands saying with a great voice, 
 Worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain to receive 
 the power and riches and wisdom and might and 
 honour and glory and blessing." 
 
 Among these dwelling-places He is preparing <i 
 place for each of His disciples. In what the pi-epar- 
 ation consists we cannot tell ; but we may supposi' 
 that it is connected with the taking of Christ's own 
 holy humanity into heaven. Our " great High Priest, 
 Jesus, the Son of God, is passed into the heavens," and 
 now we sing " When Thou hadst overcome the sharp- 
 ness of death, Thou didst open the kingdom of heaven 
 to all believers." 
 
 A place "for you." The words have an individual- 
 izing tenderness about them. Though the Father's 
 house is large and glorious, no child, however little, 
 shall feel lost or lonely in it. Just as, in some of our 
 houses, there is the library or office for the father, the 
 work-room for the mother, the nursery or play -room 
 for the children, each of these fitted up for the person 
 that is to use it, so shall it be in heaven. Whatever 
 the capacity of each child for blessedness, he shall be 
 
THE PLACE AND THK WAY. 
 
 45.' 
 
 fille<l. We shall not all berjin at the same stajre of 
 knowledge or of holiness : we shall not all have our 
 spiritual life developed after precisely the same 
 fashion. God loves variety, and there will not be 
 dead uniformity in heaven. In tlie preparation of the 
 several places in which His saints are to live, Christ 
 will consult their respective needs, spiritual antl intel- 
 lectual. There will be places for the little children 
 and places for the mother souls that have borne the 
 burdens for others ; places for the wise and learned, 
 where they may eternally increase under most favour- 
 able circumstances their stores of wisdom and know- 
 ledge, and places for the simple and untiiught where 
 they njay use their scanty powers to the best advantage 
 in tiie service of the King. The presence ofChritit will 
 be an essential element of blessedness. 
 
 II. The Way. — " Whither I go, ye know the way. 
 Thomas saith," etc. " I am the Way," etc. This is 
 not a harsh or narrow declaration, but a statement of 
 fact. There is no real recognition of the Fatherliness 
 of God apart from Christianity. In tlie answer of 
 Jesus " the Way " is the leading thought. The 
 " truth " and " life " are subordinate. The closinof 
 words of verse six show this : " I am the Way because 
 I am the Truth and the Life, etc. I am tlie perfect 
 manifestation of (iod and the motive imiver to bring 
 man to God." 
 
 1. Christ is the Way, because He reveals God. He 
 can say not simply " I teach you aVtout the Father," 
 but " He that hath seen Me," etc. " What I am, God 
 is." Philip wished to see God, as you and I have 
 
■T 
 
 45G 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 
 longed that there might be some unmistakable mani- 
 festation of what God is and what He wills. Jesus 
 says, look at Me. I show you God's very heart ; 
 learn of Me and you shall know (Jod. " Have I been 
 so long . . and dost thou not know Me, Philip ? " 
 So He speaks to us. Above all, in His sacrifice. He 
 makes clear God's heart of love to sinners — God's 
 grace to the undeserving. God comes to us in Christ 
 saying, " See in My Son how I feel about your sin ; see 
 in His life My unsullied purity ; see in His sorrow and 
 surt'ering My hatred of sin, ]\Iy love of sinners ; hear 
 in His word of forgiveness My forgiveness." 
 
 2. Christ is the Way, because He is the motive 
 poii'cr to bring men to God. He is the life : He 
 (juickens by imparting life as the vine-stock does to 
 the branch ; He renews the will so that the prodigal 
 is able to arise and return to the Father. It is 
 more important to know the Way than the goal. The 
 soul asks, " Where is tlie great ocean i " and the stream 
 answers, " Trust yourself to me and I will bear you 
 to the ocean." It is of infinitely more consequence to 
 know Christ than to descant on the glories of heaven. 
 " I will not gaze on glory but on my King of grace." 
 
 No road from earth to heaven stretches far enough 
 except Clirist the Way. 
 
m 
 
 WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 457 
 
 le mani- 
 , Jesus 
 { heart ; 
 e I been 
 ?»hilip ? " 
 :itice, He 
 s — God's 
 in Christ 
 r sin ; see 
 rrow and 
 ers ; hear 
 
 le 7notlve 
 life: He 
 ;k does to 
 e prodigal 
 ler. It is 
 oal. The 
 Ihe stream 
 boar you 
 juence to 
 1' heaven, 
 f grace." 
 r enough 
 
 VII. 
 
 WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS IN THE 
 PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH ? 
 
 {£3nl October, 1SS7. ) 
 
 " Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt he saved, thou and 
 thy house." — Acts xvi. 31. 
 
 " He that hath my coinniandnients and keepeth them, lie it is 
 that loveth Me." — John xiv. 21. 
 
 What are the conditions of admission to full com- 
 munion in the Presbyterian Church ? Who may, and 
 who may not, be communicants ? These are ([uestions 
 which, in effect, I am often asked. Let me try to 
 answer them plainly. 
 
 In the ttrst place, let it be distinctly understood 
 that the terms of admission to the Presbyterian 
 Church ought not to be in any respect different 
 from the terms of admission to any other branch of 
 the Church of Jesus Christ. Every member of the 
 Presbyterian Church is professedly a member of the 
 Church of Christ; conversely, any member of the 
 Church of Christ may be a member of the Presby- 
 terian Church. The (juestion, therefore, with which 
 I am dealing is, in reality, this : What are the terms 
 of achiiisslon to the Church of Jenus Christ? 
 
 . i 
 
 %M 
 
458 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 Let me give the answer under two liearls : 
 I. In respect to Creed. 
 
 II. In respect to Life. 
 
 I. What are the terms of a<hnission to the Church 
 in respect to Creed ^ What nnist a man, or a child, 
 believe in order to be a Church member in full com- 
 munion ?* Must ho accept the Westminster Confes- 
 sion of Faith ^ or the Shorter Catechism ? or the 
 Apostles' Creed ? 
 
 It may sur[)rise some persons to be told that the 
 candidate for membership in the Presbyterian Church 
 is not required by any law of the Church to jrive his 
 assent to any one of these statements of Divine truth. 
 Assent to the Confession of Faith is required of 
 office-bearers in the Church, but not of private 
 members. The children of the Presbyterian Church 
 are taught the Shorter Catechism, ami must have 
 their thinking largely moulded by that marvellous 
 compendium of theology ; but they are not recjuired, 
 when coming to the Lord's Table, to declare their 
 acceptance of the teachings of the Catechism. Nor 
 are they required to accept the Apostles' Creed. In- 
 dividual ministers or sessions may ask assent to one 
 or other of these documents, or to some other state- 
 ment of truth ; but no such assent is j)rescrihed by 
 the law of the Church. In the " Rules and Forms of 
 Procedure " I find the following statement under the 
 head " The Congregation " : " The members of a 
 
 * Every baptized child is, of course, a member of the Church, 
 though not " in full communion." 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 459 
 
 he Church 
 or a child, 
 n full coul- 
 ter Cont'es- 
 \m ? or the 
 
 [d that the 
 
 L-ian Church 
 to give his 
 
 livine truth. 
 
 required oi 
 of private 
 
 riau Church 
 iiiUHt have 
 marvellous 
 
 lot re(iuired. 
 eclare their 
 ihism. Nor 
 Creed. In- 
 isent to one 
 •ther stato- 
 'escrihed hy 
 id Forms of 
 It under the 
 jnbers of fi 
 
 If the Church, 
 
 conj^refjation entitled to all Churcli privilof]res are 
 those, who upon profession of faitli in C'lirist and 
 ol)edience to Him have been received l)y tlie Session 
 into full communion." (Sec. 1 {>!).) Tlie duty of the 
 session in regard to ap})licants for admission to full 
 connnunion is thus dealt with in the same hook (Sec. 
 13): " The application " [/.^., to he received into full 
 connnunion] " is then reported to the session, jind, 
 when satisfied of the aj)plicant's knowledge of Divine 
 truth and of his Christian character and deportment, 
 the session receives him in such a manner as may be 
 deemed for edificati(m." 
 
 Usage, I presume, varies very nnich. What is 
 practically aimed at is assent to the " fundametitals " 
 of the Christian faith. But what are the " funda- 
 mentals " ? What is included un<ler " faith in Christ 
 and obedience to Him " f For example, is it im{)era- 
 tive that a candidate for admission to full communion 
 in the Church should believe in the doctrine of the 
 Trinity as traditionally set forth in the Nicene or the 
 Athanasian Creed, or in the Westminster Confession i 
 or that he should biilieve in the theory of the Atone- 
 ment that prevails in the Church ? or in the opinions 
 handed down from the fathei'S concerninir future 
 punishment ^ To each of these <|Uestions I advisedly 
 answer, No. I cite such (juestions as these boldly, 
 rather than (juestions about the six <lays of creation, 
 or about predestination, or final perseverance, l)ecause 
 the former are the (questions about which thoughtful 
 men are troubled nowadays. 
 
 Is it of no consequence, then, what a man believes 
 
460 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 1 1 Hi 
 
 1^ 
 
 about tlu' ))ointH rcfcrrod to ? May hv tliiiik what lie 
 pleascH :' Far IVoiu it. It is of ^rcat inoiiK'iit tliat lie 
 hIiouM think truly, uiKler the ^uidaiico of the Spirit 
 of truth Himself, conci'rniiij^ such matters. Moreover, 
 he will he a foolish man if he throw away as worthless 
 the results of the thouj^ht of past i;«'nerations. And, 
 yet, it remains true that he is not hound hy any 
 traditional inti'rpretations of, or deductions from, the 
 Word of Cod, hut is at liberty to ^o afre.sh to the 
 fountain and drink for himself. 
 
 It mav be ijranted, for instance, to be esscjitial that 
 a Chri.stian man should believe in God, the Father, 
 the Son and the Hcjly Spirit: but it <loes not follow 
 that he accepts all the statements of the Xicene Creed, 
 or of the Athanasian, re^ardin;^^ these distinctions in 
 the divine nature. 
 
 So, a<i;ain, it may be held to be essential that he 
 should believe in The Aioiiemftif of .le.sus Christ, 
 who "died for (jur sins according to the Sci'iptures," 
 " who ^ave Himself for us,' "who His own self bare 
 our sins in His own body upon the tree"; but not 
 that he should accept the theory of An.selm, or of 
 Calvin, or of Wesley, concerning the nature of the 
 sutf'erinns of Christ and the way in which reconciliji- 
 tion to Hod is thereby secured. If, when he finds it 
 stated in the Shoi'ter Catechism that Christ ottered 
 up Him.self " a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice," he 
 should wish to add that the offerinir was intended to 
 satisfy divine love not less than divine justice, he will 
 not be cast out as a heretic. 
 
 So, again, it may be regarded as essential that he 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 4G1 
 
 h1i()u1<1 Ix'Hcvr in tlic tcacliint; of Christ as to " th«^ 
 ctenml tire, pn']»an'<l for tlu' devil ami iiis aiij^'cls." 
 into which the\vickt'(l .shall " depart "; hut it (iocs not 
 folh.w that he accepts ine(lia>val helief.s ahout the 
 tortures of the danined, or that he does not helieve 
 that there is lio^ht yet to he «^ot from (Jod's Word on 
 this tremendous theme. 
 
 Faith in C'hri.st and ohedience to Him." Tl 
 
 lese 
 
 d^ 
 
 wonls evidently ;jo down to the fundamentals. 'I'hey 
 echo the woi'ds of our two te.xts. What, then, i,s 
 " faith in Christ "' ? What is meant hv the lenlv of 
 Paul and Silas to the jailer : "Believe on the Lord 
 .lesus " t 
 
 Those words clearly im])ly some helief uJunif .h'sus. 
 We must helieve some thini^s dhoat liim hefore we 
 can ])elieve on Him. Nay, we nuist believe ^i-eat 
 thinj^^s about him before we can l)eli(!ve on Him in 
 the sense of the New Testament writei's — before, that 
 is, we can yield Him the absolute trust and the 
 uncompromising obedience which H(^ demands. 
 
 On tin; other hand, faith in Christ is consistent 
 with much misbelief or imperfection of belief dhouf 
 Him, The little child of a vear old believes in his 
 mother and holds out his arms to her trustfully as In; 
 would not to a stranger; but his belief about !)< r 
 must be very endjryonic. Many a man is a loyal 
 subject of Britain who knows little of her history, 
 and wdio could not pass an examination on the British 
 Constitution. There are men ready to die lor their 
 country who could not explain the difierence between 
 the system of Government in Britain and that in the 
 
462 
 
 SEHMONS. 
 
 . 5 
 li i 
 
 f 
 
 Unitt'*! States. So with loyalty to Clirist. Men may 
 be rcjuly to obey His last eoiiiiiiaii<l — willing to follow 
 Him whitluTsoi'Vt'r Ho leads — and yet may he sorely 
 puz/Jed ahout the mystery of His Person. 
 
 What is t(j he done in the case of such persona ? 
 Arc they to ))e excluded from Church fellowship 
 until they can pronounce the Shihholeth of the 
 creeds { The Church is tolerant of much imperfec- 
 tion in the conduct of her mendxirs, provided only 
 "the root of the matter " is in them. Is not the 
 author of " Kcce Flomo" rij^ht whenhe maintains that 
 " we ou^ht to be just as tolerant of an imperfi^ct creed 
 as we are of an imperfect practice ? Everythin*^ 
 which can be ur<j;ed in excuse for the latter may also 
 be pleaded for the former. If the way to Christian 
 action is ))eset by corrupt habits and misleading' 
 passions, the path to Christian truth is overgrown 
 with prejudices and strewn with fallen theories and 
 rotting systems which hide it from our view. It is 
 (juite as hard to think rightly as it is to act rightly, 
 or even to feel rightly. And, as all allow that an 
 error is a less culpable thing than a crime or a vicious 
 passion, it is monstrous that it should be more 
 severely punished ; it is monstrous that Christ, who 
 was called the friend of pul)licans and sinners, should 
 be represented as the pitiless enemy of bewildered 
 seekers of truth. How could men have been guilty 
 of such an inconsistency ? By speaking of what they 
 do not understand. ... To the world at large it 
 seems quite easy to find truth, and inexcusable to miss 
 it. And no wonder ! For by finding truth they 
 
WHO MAY HE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 463 
 
 moan only learning l»y rote tlu; maxiniH cunviit 
 
 aiouiK 
 
 1th 
 
 (>ni. 
 
 "Thus Christian heliof is fully as hard a thint; as 
 Christian ))ractici>. It is intrinsically as hard, and 
 those who do not perceive the <litficiilty of it under- 
 stand it Just so much less than thos»^ who <lo. Christ's 
 first followers, as we have seen, were far from pos- 
 sessing the full CMiristian belief. Not till lon<,' after 
 His <leparture did they arrive at those conclusions 
 which are now repirded as constituting^ (Christian 
 theolofjv. 
 
 " But when it is once acknowledi;ed that to attain 
 a full an<l firm belief in Christ s theolo<;y is hard, 
 then it follows at once that a man may be a Christian 
 without it. . . •. Do we find Him" (i.e., Christ) 
 " frequently examining; his followers in their cree<l, 
 and rejecting one as a sceptic and another as an 
 infidel ? Sceptics they were all, so long as He was 
 among them, a society of doubters, attaining to faith 
 only at intervals, and then falling back again into 
 uncertainty. And from their Master they received 
 reproofs for this, but reproofs tenderly expressed ; not 
 dry threats nor cold dismission. As.suredly those who 
 represent Christ as presenting to men an abstruse 
 theology, and saying to them peremptorily, ' Believe 
 or be damned,' have the coar.sest conception of the 
 Saviour of the world. He will reject, He tells us, 
 those who refuse to clothe the naked or tend the sick, 
 those whose lamps have gone out, those who have 
 
4 I 
 
 464 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 buried their talents, not those whose minds are 
 poorly furnished with theological knowledge." 
 
 These are true words. It is not a matter of little 
 moment what a man believes about the person of 
 Christ ; it is his duty to seek to know the truth 
 concerning this great subject, and it is the duty of 
 the teachers in the Church to " expound unto him the 
 way of God more carefully " on this theme ; but it is 
 possible for him to entertain mistaken notions regard- 
 ing it and yet to have true faith in Jesus Christ. 
 There are men who deny in terms the deity of Christ, 
 who yet bow before Him with more absolute rever- 
 ence and submission than some of tliose who in terms 
 acknowledge His deity. Here is a man who says 
 "Jesus Christ is God, and 1 worship Him "; and yet 
 he strives for riches as keenly, and regards his 
 brother's rights as little, as if Jesus liad never said, 
 " Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth," 
 and as if His apostle had never written, " Not looking 
 each of you to his own things, but each of you also to 
 the things of others." Yonder is a man who says, " I 
 accept Jesus as my Saviour and my Lord ; but 1 
 cannot tell whether he is equal to the Father or not " : 
 but the man's whole life is a following of the pre- 
 cepts of Jesus as to purity, unworldliness, gentleness, 
 self-forgetfulness, love to God and man. Which of 
 the.se two men would Jesus welcome as His disciple ? 
 Can it be doubted that He would say of the latter as 
 He said of the man whom the disciples forbade to cast 
 out devils because he " followed not " them : " Forbid 
 him not ; for there is no man which shall do " these 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 465 
 
 nds are 
 
 of little 
 erson of 
 be truth 
 duty of 
 ) him the 
 but it is 
 IS regard - 
 IS Christ, 
 of Christ, 
 ate rever- 
 ^ in terms 
 who says 
 ; and yet 
 irards his 
 ever said, 
 ,he earth, 
 it looking 
 ou also to 
 says, " I 
 •d; but 1 
 or not " ■. 
 the pre- 
 entleness, 
 [which of 
 disciple ? 
 latter as 
 Ide to cast 
 " Forbid 
 o " these 
 
 tilings " in My name, and be able quickly to speak 
 evil of Me " ? 
 
 True faith in Jesus Clirist is consistent with 
 much misbelief about His person. We have read in 
 the Sunday school les.son for to-day of a woman 
 touching the liem of Christ's robe, under the im- 
 pression that she would get some good from this 
 contact. " Superstition ! " we say ; and so it was ; 
 yet there was true faith in that woman's jjeart. She 
 knew her sore need of heabno', and she believed in the 
 power of Jesus to heal ; and His love met her faith 
 with a ready response. So, doubtless, there is many 
 a poor soul repeating Pater Not^tevs and counting 
 beads in a way that provokes a pitying smile, who 
 yet has some germ of true faith in the unseen Lord 
 whose image is before her ; ami these uninstructed, 
 yet genuine, believers w^ill go into the kingdom of 
 heaven before some self-complacent and sell-indulgent 
 Protestants who confound knowledge of theology 
 with faith in Jesus Christ. 
 
 " Faith in Christ and obedience to Him." The only 
 faith in Jesus that is worth anything is faith that 
 oheyf< — " faith working through love." " He that liath 
 My commandments and keepeth them, he it is that 
 loveth Me." The loyal subject is the one who spi-ings 
 to arms at his country's bidding — not waiting to 
 settle all disputed tjuestions of jiolitical science. The 
 true Christian is the man who obeys Christ without 
 waiting to solve all the pi-oblenis ol' theology. He 
 has warrant for hoping that, in the very path of 
 obedience, there will come fuller light as to "who" 
 31 
 
466 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 ! 'i 
 
 
 ^i-Ul 
 
 the " Son of Man " is. " If a,ny man willeth to do 
 His will, he shall know of the teaching." To the 
 warm-hearted, sceptical Thomas, the Resurrection of 
 Jesu8 seemed too great a fact to be accepted on any 
 testimony without the evidence of his own senses ; 
 but he had been ready to " die with " his beloved 
 Friend, and when the gracious ]\[aster oifered him 
 the proof he souglit, his obedient soul cried out, " My 
 Lord and my God." There are not a few in our day 
 to whom the deity of Christ seems too great a truth 
 to be believed, whose hearts would nevertheless 
 bound with a joy unintelligible t(j those who have 
 never wrestled with doubts^ if it could only be made 
 clear to them that that doctrine is not a mere specu- 
 lation of theologians, but the statement of a blessed 
 reality. 
 
 " Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be 
 saved." What, then, is His relation to me ? In what 
 respect am I to believe on Him ? The word "saved " 
 indicates that I am to believe in Him as a Saviour. 
 I believe in my physician as a healer : I may not 
 understand his method of treatment, but I do his 
 bidding in the matter of medicine. I believe in my 
 friend as a friend — one whom I can trust. I may 
 not understand his theological or scientific opinions, 
 but I am quite sure that he will stand by me in the 
 time of trial — that he will prove himself a friend in 
 need. Jesus is Saviour : " He shall save His people 
 from their sins " — I am to believe in Him as Saviour. 
 When He says to me, " This is my blood of the cove- 
 nant, which is shed for many unto remi' ion of sins' ; 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 46'; 
 
 " Be of f(Ood cheer, thy sins are forgiven," I am to 
 take Him at His word, just as I do my pliysician 
 when he says, " Use this medicine, and you will bo 
 well to-morrow." When He says, " Come unto Me, 
 all ye that lalnjurand are heavy laden, and I will give 
 you rest," " Take My yoke upon you, and learn of 
 Me," I am to come and take His yoke — the yoke of 
 submission to the Father's will, which he asks me to 
 bear side by side with Himself, and learn tlie blessed 
 lesson of obedience. When He says, " I am the Bread 
 of Life," "The bread that I will give is My flesh for 
 the life of the world," " He that eateth Me, he also 
 shall live because of Me," I am to ap})ropriate Him 
 and feed on Him, liy thought and love and trust and 
 obedience, for the nourishment of my spirit's life, jiist 
 as I feed on the daily bread which the Father gives 
 for my bodily life. 
 
 I may ask, " What has Jesus done for me that I 
 should believe in Him as my Saviour? " Let us look 
 at some of the answers given in the New Testament 
 to this question. 
 
 Hear Paul answer it : " Who, being in the form of 
 God, counted it not a prize to be on an equality with 
 God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a 
 servant, being made in the likeness of men : and, being 
 found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, be- 
 coming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of 
 the cross. Wherefore also God highlv^ exalted Him, 
 and gave unto Him the name which is above every 
 name : that in the name of Jesus every knee should 
 bow, of things in heaven and things on earth, and 
 
 ,!.| 
 

 468 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 things under the earth, and that every tongue should 
 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God 
 the Father." (Phil. ii. 6-11.) 
 
 Or listen to the glowing sentence into which he 
 condenses the whole redeeming work of Christ : 
 " Who loved me, and gave Himself up for me." 
 (CJal. ii. 20.) 
 
 Hear Peter answer the question : " Who His own 
 self bare our sins in His own body upon the tree, that 
 we, having died unto sins, might live unto righteous- 
 ness. (1 Peter ii. 24.) 
 
 Hear John answer it : " Herein was the love of 
 God manifested in us" (i.t'., in our case) "that God 
 hath sent His only begotten Son into the world that 
 we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that 
 we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son 
 to be the propitiation for our sins." 
 
 Paul, Peter and John agree entirely as to the 
 ground on which the claims of Jesus rest. He is the 
 "only begotten Son," who was "in the form of God," 
 who " emptied Himself, talking the form of a servant," 
 who "gave Himself up for me," who " bare our sins,' 
 who is " the propitiation for our sins." Here is a 
 personality that is unique : here is One who occupies 
 a unique relation to God and man and sin. He is 
 " the Way " ; shall we not " come " by Him unto the 
 Father ? He is " the Truth "; shall we not " learn " of 
 Him, and be "taught in Him, as truth is in Jesus " — 
 all truth embodied in Him, all principles of true 
 living contained in Him? He is "the Life"; shaU 
 we not " arise from the dead " and come to Him that 
 
 ■.i».a'MifJ.'a 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 469 
 
 Lie should 
 -y of God 
 
 which he 
 
 [ Christ: 
 
 for me." 
 
 His own 
 ' tree, that 
 righteous- 
 he love of 
 'that God 
 svorhl that 
 •e, not that 
 nt His Son 
 
 as to the 
 He is the 
 ni of God," 
 a servant," 
 our sins," 
 Here is a 
 ^o occupies 
 tin. He is 
 
 un 
 
 to tl 
 
 le 
 
 learn " of 
 
 Jesus — 
 
 s of true 
 
 "; shall 
 
 Him tl 
 
 lat 
 
 we " may have life"? Shall we not realize in our 
 experience His great word, " I came that they may 
 have life, and may have it abundantly " ? He is '' the 
 true Vine"; shall we not cling to Him as the branch 
 to the vine-stock, that, .sharing His life, as the branch 
 shares the sap that flows through the stem, we may 
 grow and bear fruit ^ He is " the Resurrection " ; 
 shall we not believe in Him, that we may "never 
 die " f' He is " the First, and tlu' Last, and the Living 
 One," "alive for evermore " ; shall we not with un- 
 troubled hearts yield ourselves to His keeping, who 
 has the keys of Hades and of death, who will open 
 the way for us to pass through into the very presence 
 of God ? 
 
 II. — In respect to Life. What are the conditions, 
 as regards conduct, of becoming a connnunicant in 
 the Church ? 
 
 There is an idea generally prevalent that a man 
 should not "join the Church" without giving up a 
 good many things wdiich are regarded as inconsistent 
 with a profession of religion. It is held that the 
 profes.sing Christian must not only give up whatever 
 is sinful, but also refrain from many things that are 
 lawful for other people. He nmst "come out and l>e 
 separate " from the world, and especially from what 
 are called "worldly" amusements and indulgences. 
 The lists of such anmsements and indulgences vary 
 in length according to the views, prejudices and up- 
 bringing of those who make them. Dancing, card- 
 playing, theatre-going, billiards, the use of tobacco, 
 
 the drinking of wine and spirits, are often found 
 among the proscribed pleasures. 
 
 
470 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 Now, there is no manner of doubt that Christ calls 
 on His followers to " give up " much. " If thy right 
 hand causeth thee to stumble, cut it off and cast it 
 from thee : for it is profitable for thee tliat one of 
 thy members should perish and not thy whole body 
 go into hell." Whatever hinders the spiritual life — 
 whatever threatens the destruction of faith and love 
 and purity and hope and joy in tlie Lord — must 
 be given up at any cost. The real trouble is that, 
 as a rule, the idea of " giving up " does not go nearly 
 far enough. " If any man will come after Me, let 
 him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow 
 Me," That is the far-reaching demand of Jesus 
 Christ. It is not the giving up of thingfi, but the 
 giving up of self, tnat lie nMjuircs. A man may 
 give up the use of tobacco or wine, and yet may be 
 far enough from being a true Christian — may retain 
 " self " in the form of a love of money, for example, 
 that eats his soul like a canker. A man may give up 
 the card-table or the theatre merely because he has 
 grown tired of these forms of recreation, and may 
 retain " self " in the form of a temper that makes his 
 home a bear-garden, and his tongue " full of deadly 
 poison." The attempt to draw a clear line between 
 amusements that are lawful for Church members and 
 amusements that are not lawful is generally useless, 
 and is often mischievous. The eft'ect is, on the one 
 hand, to alienate not a few true disciples of Jesus 
 who are indulging, with the clear approval of their 
 own consciences, in some form of forbidden recrea- 
 tion ; and, on the other hand, to lull to sleep, in 
 
WHO MAY BE COMMUNICANTS. 
 
 471 
 
 fancied security, many persons vvlio do not reflect 
 that tlie chief dan^^er arises from excessive indulirence 
 in wliat is in itself lawful and rl(,dit. 
 
 The real question is, have you given yourself up to 
 the Lord ? Then you will eat, or drink, or dance, or 
 play, or smoke, " to the glory of God " ; or, if you 
 cannot do so, you will give these things up. If you 
 find that any one of them cannot be fitted into its 
 place in the service of Christ, in the strengthening 
 of your body, or the refreshing of your mind, or the 
 gladdening of your heart, so that you may be the 
 better fitted for His service, you must let it go. 
 Moreover, you will do well to take the counsel of 
 wise Christian friends as to your choice of annise- 
 ments, and listen to what thoy ma}' have to sa}^ from 
 their own experience as to the injurious tendencies 
 of certain forms of recreation, rather than follow 
 heedlessly the lead of the gi<ldy and worldly. 
 
 The Presbyterian Church wisely makes no laws 
 on these matters, though it sometimes gives advice. 
 What it seeks — what Christ seeks — is to have men 
 " renewed in the spirit of " their " mind," and then 
 trained to clearer Christian discernment and more 
 fervent Christian love. The life of a Christian is not 
 to be one of mere negations, but a gloriously positive, 
 rich, full, blessed life. The New Testament is full of 
 striking antitheses, in which the positive side of life is 
 set over against the negative. The negative side is 
 thus expressed, " Denying ungodliness and worldly 
 lusts ; " it is immediately followed by the positive. 
 " We should live soberly and righteously and godly 
 
1 
 
 
 472 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 in this present world." The prohibition, " Make not 
 provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof," is 
 closely connected with the injunction," But put ye on 
 the Lord Jesus Christ." " Ye shall not fulfil the lust 
 of the flesh," writes St. Paul. If you ask, how is this 
 to be accomplished ? he gives the answer in the same 
 verse, " Walk by the Spirit." He warns again.st 
 drunkenness : " Be not drunken with wine, wherein is 
 riot"; and then, knowing the u.sele.ssness of mere 
 prohibitions for the conquering of a vicious habit, he 
 adds, " but bo filled with the Spirit." If he forbids 
 " foolish talking or jesting, which are not befitting," 
 he tells how the tongue is to be actively employed, 
 " but rather giving of thanks." He finds the antidote 
 to the exces.ses of liberty in the law of love : " Only 
 use not your freedom for an occasion of the flesh, 
 but through love be servants one to another." He 
 gives an ugly catalogue of " the works of the flesh" : 
 " Fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousnes.s, idolatry, 
 sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, 
 divisions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness, revellings, 
 and such like"; but he exhibits by way of contrast 
 a beautiful bunch of heavenly grapes which are "the 
 fruit of the Spirit" : " Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, 
 kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, temper- 
 ance." He states in one terse sentence the general 
 principle of which he gives so many illustrations: 
 " Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with 
 good." 
 
 Such is Christian life — a gloriously positive, strong^ 
 full life, calling into play all our powers in the service 
 
' Make not 
 bliereof," is 
 b put ye on 
 HI tlie lust 
 low is this 
 i the same 
 IS against 
 wherein is 
 i of mere 
 
 habit, he 
 be forbids 
 befittinir," 
 employed, 
 e antidote 
 e: "Only 
 the flesh, 
 lier." He 
 le flesh": 
 
 idolatry, 
 
 factions, 
 evellincs, 
 
 contrast 
 are "the 
 suffering, 
 
 temper- 
 > general 
 itrations : 
 ivil with 
 
 "■HO MAV BE COMMUNICANTS. 473 
 
 Of Hi,„ who make,, us "free in,Iee<f •■ Tf , 
 tl.ese thing,. u.s,cd are ye if v ' 1*' ^'". 
 
 soever ye ,|o in wnrrl ,... • . ^ """"■ " ^Imt- 
 of the Lord jesul" '" '''''''■ ''° "" '" ">e nan.e 
 
 f-::in\r;.hX'rn'" ,fT - "'» «-.-o„r 
 
 -J the Church T," "Chri " ^r' "' '"■'• -^P'"'' 
 '."" into its ran;, as :Zj^,r'''' ^ -'-- 
 
 e, stronc: 
 e service 
 
474 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 
 VIII. 
 DEATH ABOLISHED.* 
 
 Preached in St. Andrew's Church, Toronto, on Sunday, ^rd March, 
 1889, in connection with the death of 
 
 GEORGE PAXTOX YOUNG, LL.D. 
 
 Professor of Logic, Metaphynic* and Ethicm in Univemity College, Toronto, 
 
 " Our Saviour Christ Jesus, who abolished death, and brought 
 life and incorruption to light through the (iospel." — '2 Tim. i. 10. 
 
 Two things are here declared to have been aeconi- 
 plislied by Christ: first, the abolition of death, and, 
 secondly, the bringing of life and incorruption to 
 litjht. 
 
 I. What do these great words mean : " Christ Jesus 
 abolished death?" Clearly, they do not mean that 
 Christ has delivered men, or any portion of the race, 
 from physical death, or from the pain of dying. 
 Death comes impartially to all, sparing neither youth 
 nor usefulness, leaving sad and stricken hearts in his 
 path. Still, as of old, plague and pestilence, storm 
 and hurricane, war and the legion of sicknesses, by 
 which our bodies are wasted, are the instruments of 
 
 * See also p. 159 of this volume. 
 
DEATH AnOLTSHED. 
 
 47^ 
 
 liege, Toronto. 
 
 Death. The life of tlio most (lovott'd saint is no nioic 
 secure airainst tlie attacks of tliis <;rt'at cncniv tlian 
 that of tlie vilest r('|)rol)ate. Tln' hest of men must 
 die, sometimes in great agony. The Christian man 
 will bear suflering in a trustful an<l patient spirit ; 
 but he can purchase no innnunity from pain or death. 
 In the full consciousness that all this was goinjx on, 
 and would contiiuie, I'aul wrote these words: ''Our 
 Saviour Christ Jesus abollsltiil (lent It." What do 
 these words mean ? 
 
 1. Christ has taken away "(he stincj of ifatfh." 
 " The stinff of death is sin." Death comes as a scor- 
 pion, and the sting with which it slays men is sin. 
 Chri.st Jesus takes sin away, and, th<High death may 
 still wear an ugly look, it is powerless to do any real 
 hurt, because its sting is gone. It is the burden of guilt 
 on the conscience that makes a man afraid to die. 
 Looking back on the sinful past, lu? is afraid to meet 
 God in judgment. His own heart condemns him. 
 Christ removes the burden of guilt from the con- 
 science. He reveals God, forgiving sin at the cost of 
 the life of His own Son. The past is blotted out. 
 The man \h '' reconciled to God tlirowfJt tlie deaili of 
 His Son.'' Being set right with God, all things are 
 new to him. Not only is life full of new meaning, but 
 death comes now to summon him into the presence, 
 not of an angry Judge, but of a loving and righteous 
 Father. The sting of death is gone ; it has no real 
 power to hurt. 
 
 2. Christ delivers fi-om the "fear of death." " Since 
 then the children are sharers in jicsh and blood, lie 
 
476 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 (dso Hunxd/ in like manner pdrtook of the same ; 
 th(U tlinnujli death, ha uiljfht hrhuj to voiujht hint that 
 had the pofc/'r of daUh, that is, the devil ; and rnKjht 
 dclirer (dl theiu who throu(/h fear of diidh were all 
 their lifelinie stdtject to bo}id((ffe." (Jf course, wlu'ii 
 tlio Htin^r of (loath is taken away, the fear of it is also 
 to a largo extent removed. Yet, apart from sin, tliere 
 is a terrible aspect about death. Death is nej^ation 
 sepjlration, darkness. It is the cutting ofi'of the man 
 from the world in which he has lived, and from the 
 friends to whom his heart is bound. No more will his 
 eye look on the beauty of earth and sky, or on the faces 
 of loved ones; no longer will his ear be open to the 
 sound of welcome voices ; connnunion with the earth 
 and its inhabitants is at an end. I do not know that 
 any man can fairly realize all this without some dread. 
 There is the natural fear of the unknown. Even the 
 Christian cannot help shrinking from death, as the 
 jmtient shrinks from the surgeon's knife, or as the 
 emiorant dreads the unknown danijers of a new land. 
 In large measure, however, Christ robs death of its 
 gloomy and terrible aspect. He does so, for one 
 thing, by bringing the blessedness of tlie future home 
 of the soul so prominently into view that the soul is 
 content to leave its earthly tabernacle. Though " the 
 valley of the shadow of death " is dark, the very 
 imagery used intimates that there is light beyond ; 
 for, if death casts a shadow, must there not be a 
 brightness which it intercepts ? The emigrant is 
 content to leave the home of his childhood, and to 
 bravo the perils of the deep, when he is assured by a 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 477 
 
 son or a brother in tlm now land that hr will ('xelmn<;o 
 poverty an<l hardshij) for oaso and comrort. Tliou^d) 
 ho nmv slu'd hittor tears as ho takos tho last look at 
 tho land that ;favo him birth, hopo will lu' stron;^' 
 within him as ho thinks ol' all that has boon told him 
 about his new homo, an<l Fonns plans oF lil'o and work 
 in tho luturo. And so tho Christian, koon as mav bo 
 
 th 
 
 ai 
 
 liT w'len ho is eallod to h-axc this hr)mo-liko 
 
 world, with all in it that has mad«! life bri;^dit and 
 ^ood, will 1)0 sustained by tho hope of a mori^ blossod 
 and i^lorious abodo — tho true homo of tho soul — "a, 
 bb'sse<l i'oiiiitrij, th<tf is, a hcdmili/" — and will bo 
 ready to pass throu<;h tho swollin^rs of .loi-tlan, 
 assured that tho ''Father's Inmsc/' is on the other 
 side, and that the Elder Brother is waiting to receive 
 him. 
 
 3. Christ imparfs a privcijdr of I'tfv to tho believer, 
 which is an earnest of tho "life and incon-uption " 
 that shall bo his in ovorllowinix measure hereafter. 
 Tho words spoken to Martha wore spoken for us : 
 " Wliosoever livftJi (tnd helirveUi on Me shall never 
 die." The insurrection life is bo<^un already in the 
 believer. A moral and spiritual resurrection has 
 taken place — a risin<ij out of the death of sin into the 
 life of rii^'hteousness — which is the pledt^^e of tho 
 bodily resurrection. " If thf Spirit of Jihii that raised 
 up Jesus from the. dead, divelletli, in i/on, Ih' that 
 raised up Clirist Jesns from the ile'ul shall (/iilcke)i 
 <dso your mortal bodies thi'oagh His Spirit that 
 d'welleth, in you." In this case, thoroforo, death is 
 " ahulished." The physical death must come in tlu; 
 
 I 
 
W -i 
 
 ' 'I 
 
 It 
 
 1<(1' 
 
 478 
 
 ■'^; 
 
 SF.RMONS. 
 
 or<lor (3f nature ; but it is a l)e«;inninfif rather than an 
 endinj^S a })roceHs oF life rather tluin of death. It is 
 tlie I'oMiniij up of tlu- .shifting' tent tluit we may take 
 up our abode in the <;'ndurin<j^ iiuinKion. It is the 
 dotfing of the be^^^ar'a ra<rs that we may don the 
 princely robes. It is the shufflinj^ off of the mortal 
 coil t)f flesh that the life within may have room to 
 expand and may receive from (Jod a "spiritual body" 
 which may be a fit or<ran for the renewed spirit. 
 
 In these senses, then, amongst others, Christ Jesus 
 " ahollxhf'd death." He has taken away its sting, 
 which is sin. He has delivered from the fear of it, 
 by revealing the glory that is to be. He has counter- 
 acted it, and vii'tually conquered it, by implanting 
 the germ of eternal life in the believer's heart. 
 
 II. The thouixht contained in the first clause is 
 expanded and stated in a more positive form when 
 tlie apostle goes on to say " and brought Life and 
 incorrupt ion to light through the Gospel." Notice 
 the expression, " brought to light." It is not said that 
 Christ Jesus was the first to jiropound the doctrine 
 of the innnortality of man, the first to teach that 
 there is a life beyond the grave, but thai; He was the 
 first to bring these truths into clear light. Men had 
 had faint glimmerings of the truth before He came, 
 but they had groped, comparatively speaking, in the 
 dark. We have only to read the speculations of 
 Plato, or the books of the Old Testament, to under- 
 stand the force of the expression " brought to light," 
 as applied to Christ's declarations concerning a future 
 state as contrasted with the guesses of the wisest 
 lieathen, or the faint hopes of Old Testament saints. 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 479 
 
 Let us ask more particularly 
 
 1. Wh(U it was that Christ brouj^ht to li^ht. 
 
 2. How He hroufirht it to li^ht 
 
 1. What (lid Christ hrincr to li^dit ? "Life and 
 incorrupt ion," Not hare iininortality. Not mere 
 endless existence, which ini<(ht he a curse rather than 
 a blessinf(, and mii^ht he described as endless death 
 rather tlian eternal life. What was the hope that 
 heathen philosophers held out ? That tlie human 
 spirit, bein<( of aditi'erent nature from tlie body, being 
 uncompounded and therefore not capable of beini^ 
 sej)arated into parts like the material body, might 
 continue to exist forever as pure spirit. Was there 
 anything cheering in this hope ? A spirit without a 
 body, an inhabitant without a home, a being without 
 organs through which he might come into contact 
 with God's universe : can any of us tell whether that 
 would be a blessed life or not ? Might it not be a 
 dreary and unblessed existence dragged on through 
 endless ages ? Do not Paul's words express the 
 natural feeling of human hearts : " Not for that we 
 luould he unclothed, hut that we would he clothed upon, 
 that ivhat is mortal may he swallowed up of life ?" 
 
 Not bare immortality, then, has Christ brought to 
 light, but "life and incorruption." Life of the 
 highest sort, intellectual and spiritual ; a life an- 
 alogous to that which we now live, but with a re- 
 newed spirit in place of a sinful one, and a glorious, 
 incorruptible, spiritual body instead of the body of 
 ilc:;h and blood; a life of ever expanding knowledge 
 of God's works and ways and increasing delight in 
 
 n- 
 
480 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 h i '*'■■> 
 
 iM. is'* 
 
 Hi 
 
 adding to its stores ; a life of close and warm fellow- 
 ship with kindred spirits bound by ties which no 
 death shall dissolve ; above all, a life of growing near- 
 ness to God and likeness to Christ, of endless activity 
 in God's service and boundless joy in His presence : — 
 such is the life which Christ has brought to light 
 through the Gospel. Who does not see the contrast ( 
 Who will not say that compared with the brightness 
 of this revelation, the speculations of human reason 
 have been only darkness ? 
 
 2. How did Christ bring life and incorruption to 
 light ? 
 
 (I) By His teachivg. By His own words, which 
 are spirit and life, and by the words of those who 
 spoke and wrote as they were guided by His Spirit. 
 Listen : " Let not your heart he troubled : ye believe 
 in God, believe also in Me. In My Fathers house 
 are many tnansions ; if it ivere not so, I would have 
 told you ; for I go to prepare a place for you. And 
 if I go and jirepare a place for you, I come again, 
 and will receive you unto Myself; that where I am, 
 there ye riiay be also." " Because I live, ye shall live 
 also." " I am the Resurrection, and the Life : he 
 that believeth on Me though, he die, yet shall he live: 
 and tvhosoever liveth and believeth on Me shall never 
 die" Spake ever man like this Man ? There are 
 those who believe that these words were not spoken 
 by Jesus, or written by John, but were concocted by 
 some clever forger in the second century, who palmed 
 ott' his own hallucinations upon simple-minded Chris- 
 tian people. Believe it who Qan • To us they are the 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 481 
 
 n fellow- 
 vhich no 
 ing near- 
 s activity 
 esence : — 
 ; to light 
 contrast ? 
 brightness 
 an reason 
 
 ruption to 
 
 rds, which 
 those who 
 His Spirit. 
 : ye believe 
 hers house 
 mild have 
 OIL And 
 me again, 
 'here I am, 
 \e shall live 
 Life : he 
 fill he live ; 
 hall never 
 There are 
 lot spoken 
 icocted by 
 ho paUned 
 [ded Chris- 
 ley are the 
 
 words of Him "in ivhoni are all the treasures of 
 luisdoni and knoivledge hidden." 
 
 (2) By His death. " We behold . . . Jesus 
 because of the suffering of death crowned with glory 
 and honour, that by the grace of God He should taste 
 death for every man." " That through death He 
 niigJtt bring to nought him that had the power of 
 death, that is, the devil." " Through death." It was 
 the only way. H' Christ was to redeem from the 
 eur.se of the law, Ho must " become a curse for us." 
 If He would break tlie power of death, He nnist die. 
 He did so. He tasted deatli for every man. In the 
 act of dying He gained the victory over death, and 
 now he says to every timid, but trustful soul, " Fear 
 not ; I am the first and the last, and the Living One; 
 and I luas dead, and behold, I am alive for evermore, 
 and I have the keys of death and of Hades." 
 
 {']) By His raising of the dead. Once and again 
 He gave proof that He held the " keys of death " 
 by unlocking its portals and sunmioning back to 
 human fellowship those who had passed bey(md the 
 reach of the voices of kindred. When he touched the 
 bier at the gate of Nain and said, " Young man, I say 
 unto thee. Arise" and the dead man "sat up and 
 })egan to speak" ; or when to the man that had been 
 dead four days He " cried with a load voice, Lazarus, 
 come forth," and "he tliat ivas dead came forth," 
 Jesus demonstrated that " those other living, whom 
 we call the dead," have not really ceased to live. 
 Little is told of them, or by them. The absence of 
 
 32 
 
 !i 
 
482 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 sfl 
 
 infoniiation concerning the raised Lazarus is one of 
 tlie most strikinjif instances of the silence of Scripture. 
 
 " ' VVliere wert thuu, brother, those four days? ' 
 There lives no record of reply, 
 Which telling what it is to die 
 Had surely added praise to praise. 
 
 Behold a man raised up by Christ ! 
 
 The rest remaineth unreveal'd ; 
 
 He told it not ; or something seal'd 
 The lips of that Evangelist." 
 
 (4) By His Resurrection. This fact is, after all, 
 the corner-stone of our Christian faith and hope. 
 " If Christ hath not been raised, then is our preaching 
 vain ; your faith also is vain." But noiv hath 
 Christ been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of 
 them that are asleep.'' That is to say, Christ was the 
 first that rose from the dead to die no more. This 
 was a new fact in the history of man. Lazarus and 
 others had been restored, but only to see corruption 
 ajrain. Christ's Resurrection demonstrates the con- 
 tinuity of life in the unseen world. " / am . . . 
 the Living One ; and I was dead, and behold, I am 
 alive for evermore." "Christ being raised from the 
 dead dieth no more ; death no more hath dominion 
 over Him." 
 
 This fact is laden with blessing for the race. The 
 Resurrection of Jesus does not stand apart as an 
 isolated and altogether inexplicable phenomenon 
 having no relation to the experience of ordinary men. 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 4S3 
 
 Paul refuses to tolerate the views of those who accept 
 tlu' Resurrection of Christ, but deny tlie possibility of 
 their own risin<r from the dead. " We ivitncss^d 
 of God t/iAit lie raised up ('hriat: whom lie niised 
 not up, if 80 he that the dead are not rawed. For if 
 the dead are not raised, neither hath Christ been 
 raised." " BiU now hath Christ been raised from the 
 dead, the firxt-fniits of them that are asleep. For 
 since by rnan came death, hy man came also the 
 resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, 
 so also in Christ shall all be made alive." Not for 
 himself only, but as the representative and first- 
 fruits of redeemed humanity, Christ is risen from the 
 dead. And so, when we connnit to the tondj our 
 dead who have fallen asleep in Jesus ; and when our 
 doubtin<jj souls, thinkinj]^ of the many who have j»one 
 without returnin<i^ or sendincj any friendly voice across 
 the chasm that divides us to assure us that they still 
 live and love us, are ready to ask with Job, " //' a 
 man die, shall he live again ? " — we will listen to the 
 voice of the Redeemer of mankind as He comforts 
 Martha with words that lighten the (j^loom of the 
 sepulchre by the assurance that the dead continue to 
 live : " / am the Resurrection and the Life : He that 
 believeth on Me, though he die, yet shall he live ; and 
 luhosoever liveth and believeth on Me shall never die." 
 
 You know that in dealing with this theme I have 
 had in mind an event which has occupied the 
 thoughts of many throughout this land during the 
 past few days — the deatli of Pi'ofessor Young. 
 
 A great man — a great scholar, a great tliinkor, a 
 
f,\ 
 
 1 (• 
 
 i 
 
 L 1 J 
 ft 
 !< 
 
 4 
 I 
 
 |e 
 
 
 484 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 great teacher — has pasHed from our sight. There is 
 no exaggeration in saying that Professor Young 
 might have filled the Chair of Matliematics, or that 
 of Classics, or that of Oriental Languages, as ably 
 as he filled the (Jhair of Philosophy. Papers from 
 is pen which were published in the Amierican 
 Journal of Mathematics proved liim to be one of the 
 ablest mathematicians of the a":e. While the ranjje 
 of his scholarship was remarkably wide, his mind 
 V, ") .>t simply a store-house of much learning, but 
 h V, '^n original and profound thinker. Above all 
 he wat; x t<^acher — a prince among teachers — with a 
 wonJerfui ;.r<'er, in the first place, of inspiring 
 inter;':... 1. 1 v\ , • \ •^t- subject he taught and kindling 
 enthusiasm on the part of his pupils, and, in the 
 second phice, of making his thoughts stantl out 
 in the sunlight, clear and luminous, so that the 
 dullest might apprehend. 
 
 Many of Professor Young's contemporaries did not 
 know how great he was, because he was so modest. 
 He did not sound a trumpet before him, saying, 
 " These are my opinions, listen and bow down." His 
 modesty was almost excessive. Many a time have I 
 been made uncomfortable by his deference to my 
 judgment on some matter regarding which I knew 
 that he was a master while I was only a pupil. 
 
 One outstanding characteristic was his intellectual 
 honest)/. He was incapable of any sharp practice 
 with forms of speech to bring them into apparent 
 harmony with his thoughts. He would have no 
 credit for views which he did not hold. It was his 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 485 
 
 inability to ^iva to tlie Wostininstor Confession the 
 sort of assent wliich was expected by tlie ('liurch 
 that led to his resignation of his position in Knox 
 College, and, subsequently, to his withdrawal from 
 the ministry of the Presbyterian Church. On the 
 same ground lie declined to teach a i>ible class in 
 this church, or to act as an elder when elected sonu; 
 years ago l>y a very large vote. When I urged him 
 to teach, his answer was, "I couM not teach from the 
 point of view which you and the Church would wish 
 me to take." 
 
 Though thus self-excluded from office in the Church 
 he loved — and no one that knew him would have 
 dreamed of excluding him — was he not a genuine 
 believer ? Who amon<j us doubts it ? I would to 
 God that all whose names are on our connnunion 
 roll had the like faith in the living (lod, the same 
 desire to be conformed to the image of Christ I 
 
 It was in May, 1878, that Professor Young became 
 a comnmnicant in St. Andrew's. He did not bring a 
 certificate of church membership, as he might have 
 done; but he wrote in substance as follows : " If you 
 and your Session will allow me to come to the Lord's 
 Table, putting my own construction on the act, I 
 shall be glad to profoHs in this way my purpose to 
 live soberly, righteously and godly." Without (pies- 
 tion he was heartily welcomed to the fellowship of 
 the Church, and he remained a consistent member of 
 St. Andrew's, a most regular and devout worshipper, 
 an almost painfully attentive listener, a generous sup- 
 porter of the missionary and philanthropic ettbrts of 
 
 i 
 
486 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 the Cliurch, until a few months aixo when domestic 
 considerations made it necessary lor liim to m) to a 
 nearer place of worsliip. He left us very reluctantly, 
 and we as reluctantly parted with him, and he con- 
 nected himself with the youn<ifer branch of this con- 
 l^regation on Jarvis street. 
 
 Is it not the ease that as men ^vow riper, they 
 allow many thinjjfs to drop into the second place for 
 which they once contended as vital i Professor 
 Young had learned better than most of us to set the 
 various elements of truth in their tru3 relation to one 
 another. Experience had taught him that " it is the 
 simple things that are the great things." He kept 
 always uppermost the great and weighty matters of 
 faith in the living Ciod, love to God and his neigh- 
 })our, trust in the Saviour whose death for sin he 
 thankfully commemorated. We speak sometimes of 
 the old man coming back to the simple faith of his 
 childhood. Yet the faith of the aged believer, while 
 simple as a child's, has a strength and vigour which 
 the child's faith cannot have. So was it with our 
 beloved friend : he was no longer like the sapling, 
 freshly planted in the garden of the Lord, but 
 "rooted and (/rounded in love .... drong to ajyprti- 
 hend wltJi (tU the saints ivhat is the breadth and 
 length and height and depth, and to know the love of 
 Christ ivhlch pasi^eth knowledge." 
 
 Whittier's Poem, '' The Eternal Goodness," had a 
 great charm for him and reflected largely his own 
 feeling. He read it to a company of delighted 
 listeners not long ago, reading; as he was wont to do, 
 with much expression. 
 
domestic 
 io ^o to a 
 'luctantly, 
 (1 lie coii- 
 
 tlii.s con- 
 
 per, tliey 
 place for 
 Professor 
 to set the 
 on to one 
 " it is the 
 He kept 
 latters of 
 lis nei^h- 
 )r sin he 
 etinjes of 
 th of his 
 er, while 
 ir which 
 kvitli our 
 saplincr, 
 ord, but 
 ajypre- 
 Uh and 
 e love of 
 
 had a 
 his own 
 e lighted 
 it to do, 
 
 DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 "0 friends! with whom my feet have trod 
 
 The (juiet Hislea of prayer, 
 (ilad witness t<. your zeal for (iod 
 And luve of man I bear. 
 
 I trace,your lines of argument ; 
 
 Vour logic linked and strong 
 I weigh as one who dreads dissent 
 
 And fears a doubt as wron<T 
 
 But still my human hands are weak 
 
 To hold your iron creeds : 
 Against the words ye bid me speak 
 
 My heart within me pleads. 
 
 Who fathoms the Eternal Thought '. 
 
 Who talks of scheme and plaii^ 
 The Lord is God ! He needeth not 
 
 The {>oor device of man. 
 
 I walk with bare, hushed feet the ground 
 Ye tread with boldness shod ; 
 
 I dare not tix with mete and bound 
 The love and power of (Jod. 
 
 Not mine to look where cherubim 
 And seraphs may not see ; 
 
 But nothing can be good in Him 
 Which evil is in me. 
 
 The wrong that pains my soul below 
 I dare not throne above : 
 
 I know not of His hate,— J know 
 His goodness and His love. 
 
 487 
 
 In 
 
 III, 
 
 .11 
 
 1: 
 
 
 i! 
 
 IE 
 
 i 
 
488 SERMONS. 
 
 I dimly guess from blessinga knuwn 
 Of greater out of sight, 
 
 And, with the chiistened Psuhuist, own 
 His judgments too are right 
 
 1' i-'l'l 
 
 ,1. > I 
 
 I know not what the future hath 
 Of nuirvel or surprise, 
 
 Assured alone that life and death 
 Hia mercy underlies. 
 
 And so beside the Silent 8oa 
 
 I wait the murtied oar ; 
 No harm from Him can come to me ^ 
 
 On ocean or on shore. 
 
 I know not where His islands lift 
 
 Tlieir fronded palms in air ; 
 I only know I cannot drift 
 
 Beyond His love and care." 
 
 It has occasioned no surprise to hear on all hands 
 of Professor Young's wonderful influence over his 
 students, and, especially, to learn that not in one or 
 two instances, l)ut in many, young men who had been 
 tempted to agnosticism or infidelity had been brought 
 back or kept from going astray by the influence of 
 their great teacher's simple faith and beautiful life. 
 
 An old and dear friend came to see Professor Young 
 after his stroke of paralysis. Standing a few feet 
 from where he lay, she uttered simply the words " In 
 the everlasting arms," and, though the power of speech 
 was gone, the beautiful face was lighted up with a 
 
DEATH ABOLISHED. 
 
 489 
 
 glow wliicli bore witno.s.s to the iH'sj)oiiHe of the soul. 
 Wlieii the grand, gentle .spirit passed away, one who 
 had been watcliing by liini said that it really seemed 
 as if there were a " cloud of witne.sses " hovering about 
 in the room. " Inmgination ! " you say. Yes ; but 
 there is a blessed reality at the heart of it. 
 
 The scene in Convocation Hall was very impres- 
 sive. The tone of the whole service was triumphant. 
 Floral offerings were on this occasion at least appro- 
 priate. I could not help feeling, as I looked on the 
 body robed in the academic gown which had been 
 worn in the class-room, and saw the cap laid on tin; 
 coffin-lid, as if some great military hero were being 
 laid to rest. And ha<l he not been a true soldier, 
 inspiring men and leading them on in the battle of 
 truth against falsehood, of reality against all shams 
 and hypocrisies, of Clod and Innnortality against all 
 that would degrade and belittle humanity ( 
 
 Our friend is fallen asleep, but only to wake to 
 fuller and more glorious life. The scholar, the thinker, 
 the teacher, the lover of truth, the child of (Jod, has 
 not ceased to live. " This corrnptihle mud imt o)i. 
 incorr\iptio7i, and this mortal must put on im- 
 Tnortality. But irhen this corruptible shall have pat 
 on incorruption, and the mortal shall hare put on 
 iniiinortality, then shall come to pass the saylvf/ that 
 is luritten, DEATH is swallowed ui» in victory 1 " 
 
 ii; 
 
 I 
 
490 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 IX. 
 
 CITIZENSHIP IN HEAVEN. 
 
 (imh Septtmher, JS!>3. ) 
 
 •' Who niiml eartlily thinga 
 lieaveii." — Pjul. iii, 19,20. 
 
 our citizuiiship is in 
 
 In tlu'se words Paul contrasts two classes of per- 
 sons and two ways ot" living. " Imitate me," he sa^ 
 " and those who live as I live." He does not w? 
 thus in a spirit of egotism, or presumption, or self- 
 righteousness ; but in downright, intense earnestness. 
 Paul has himself become the possessor of a new life, 
 and he would have other men share the inspiration 
 of that life. Every preacher of the Gospel ought to 
 be able to make this appeal ; and any minister whose 
 life is in manifest contradiction to his preaching is 
 fore-doomed to failure, however brilliant or scholarly 
 he may be. 
 
 With great intensity — with tears — Paul warns his 
 Philippian friends against the influence of the sensual, 
 self-indulgent, earthly-minded men who professed to 
 be Christians, but " were enemies of the Cross of 
 Christ." The Cross meant the taking away of sin ; 
 they clung to sin. The Cross meant self-sacrifice : 
 
CITIZENSHIP IN HEAVEN. 
 
 4f»l 
 
 their lives were Helt'-iu(liil<rent in tlic <;r()s.se.st loniis — 
 t'oniiH wliicli L'Von decent pii^jaiis would Imve con- 
 demned. Tlu' Cross njeant unworldlinesM ; they 
 " nunded earthly thiiit^s." 
 
 Paul draws a contrast between the |)rinei})le that 
 aniniat(Ml the livesof tliese sensual worldlini,^s and the 
 principle that animated his own lil'e and the lives ol' 
 
 '1% 
 
 d 
 
 •thly til 
 
 his fellow-Christians. 
 
 " Our citizenship is in neaven. mey nave tlien* view 
 bounded by the earthly horizon ; they believe in and 
 live for what they can see and touch and taste — lor 
 what St. John so si<^nificantly describes as " all that is 
 in the world, the lust of the liesh and the lust of the 
 eye and the vain-glory of life." The controlling;" in- 
 fluences which mould our lives are heavenly. The 
 country of our allegiance is above. We draw our 
 inspiration from the recollect m oi it. 
 
 Wherein, then, lies the radical ditierenco between 
 the one way of living and the other { What is 
 exactly meant by "minding earthly things:'" it 
 does not mean being interested in our daily work and 
 doing it diligently and successfully. "In diligence 
 [be] not slothful," wrote the same apostle, and he 
 illustrated the meaning of his prece[)t by pursuing 
 the laborious occupation of making tents. It is 
 simply a .stupid idea that a man pioves himself to l)e 
 holy by neglecting liis work on the plea of his interest 
 in some religious meeting, or by doing it with a 
 grudge as if his soul were stained by contact with 
 this w^ork-a-day world. 
 
 Nor is there here any condemnation of human 
 
492 
 
 SEItMONS. 
 
 l,U- 
 
 govcrninent, wliicli is "ordained of God," nor any 
 jiistitication of the absurd talk one soinetinie.s liears 
 as to Christian men having notliing to do with 
 politics because they are bound to keep clear of " the 
 world." Undoubtedly we are bound to overcome the 
 world, whether in politics, or in ('hurch work, or in 
 family or social life. Indeed, there is no warning so 
 much needed in our day and in our land as the warn- 
 ing against the worldliness which in Protean fonns 
 threatens to eat as a canker the life of the Church. 
 
 What Paul does condenni is the doing of our work 
 without any reference to ( )od — separating our human 
 interests and occupations from (Jod — making things 
 an end in themselves apart from CJod — putting money, 
 or pleasure, or success, or power in the place of (iod. 
 I'he problem to be wrought out by Christian men of 
 business is to combine spiritual attainments with 
 diligence and success in business — to be in the world, 
 yet not of it —to " use " the world and its affairs and 
 interests in such a way as really to lift up the spirit 
 into the heavenlies. 
 
 When this problem is presented, some men give up 
 at once the attempt to solve it. 'Ihey say : " There 
 is no use in being Quixotic. We do not live in Utopia. 
 You nuist adapt yourself to your surroundings. 
 There is no use in setting up an impossible standard. 
 You cannot get on unless you do as others do." Now, 
 such a view of life an<l conduct a Christian man has 
 no alternative but to reject. If success be attainable 
 only on condition of tampering with conscience, or 
 setting aside the words of Jesus, the follower of 
 Jesus nuist make up his mind to fail. 
 
CITIZENSHIP IN HEAVEN. 
 
 493 
 
 Other men cut tlie knot, they go aa nearly as 
 possible " out of the world." In the old days they 
 went into monasteries. Now, they givo up business 
 and politics and study for the ministry, or seek to be 
 connected with the Bible Society, or the Y.M.C.A., or 
 the Salvation Army. 
 
 Now, a chanjjje of occupation is not necessarily the 
 thing needed in order that a man may be spiritually 
 minded, provided always that his occupation is use- 
 ful and honorable. Selling Bibles is not intrinsically 
 nmre holy than selling shirt-collars. You may be as 
 worldly in a theological hall or in the otHct' of the 
 Y.M.C.A. as if you remain a lawyer's clerk, or a 
 dealer in real estate, or a plumber's assistant. 1'he 
 ordinary rule is that given by St. Paul to tlu^ Corin- 
 thians : " Let each man abide in that calling wherein 
 he was called," let him "therein abide with (Jod." 
 What a man nmst do is to find out for what woi-k he 
 is fitted, and then do it with his might as ))art of 
 God's plan for the good of the conmiunity and the 
 race. It mav be but a little niche he has to till — 
 digging drains, or copying deeds, or grooming horses, 
 or attending to a furnace — he will be more honourable 
 in doinjx his humble task faithfully so that it mav bt^ 
 fit for God's eye to see than in grasping at a higher 
 positicm which he is unable to fill. 
 
 Even lower sorts of woi'k may be idealized. " Who 
 sweeps a room as for God's law makes that and the 
 action tine," sinufs old (jleorge Herbert. How much 
 more easily may the higher tasks of nurse, teacher, 
 merchant, lawyer, physician, statesman, minister of 
 
 i. 
 
 iii 
 
494 
 
 SEKMONS. 
 
 
 U'l 
 
 the Gospel, be lifted up ! The nurse, for example, has 
 often more distasteful work to do than the shoe- 
 black or the drain-digger ; she may do it merely for 
 the sake of the wages she receives and then it will be 
 irksome enough, but when done for the love of Christ 
 and of suffering men it is worthy of the most culti- 
 vated and refined women. The lawyer may think 
 only of his fee and of the quickest and sharpest way 
 of earning it, and then his occupation is mean enough; 
 but if he realizes that his work is to assist in un- 
 ravelling the tangled skein of human affairs in order 
 to secure the rights of men, he becomes a co-worker 
 with the Lord who loves righteousness. The statesman 
 may manipulate men and organizations ver}'^ cleverly 
 so as to keep himself in power, an<l he will win the 
 gloiy that belongs to a shrewd gamblei' ; or he may 
 with singleness of purpose devote his powers with 
 utter self-forgetfulness to the promotion of the lasting 
 welfare of his country', and then the men who love 
 their country will call him V)lessed. The minister of 
 the Gospel may seek his office mainly for the "piece 
 of l)read " attached to it, and then he is one of the 
 most degraded of men; but when he gives himself 
 humbly and whole-heartedly to the task of saving 
 men and building them up in holy character, there is 
 no work on earth in which God takes greater delight- 
 So, then, whether our work is of the lower or of 
 the higher sort, let us do it as in the light of eternity, 
 the light of God. Not tliat we are to be every 
 moment consciously occupied in thinking about God 
 and eternity, any more than we are to gaze from 
 
CITIZENSHIP IN HEAVEN. 
 
 495 
 
 1/ ' 
 
 I' 
 
 morning till night at the sun while we are doino- our 
 daily work : but that we are to let eternity flood the 
 soul with light on all human relations and interests 
 Jesus Christ made the ideal real. He transfigured 
 the work of the carpenter, of the healer, of the 
 teacher. It is possible for us to approximate to this 
 i«Jeal-|'Ican <lo all things in Him, who strengthen- 
 eth me Let Christian men-men with large endow- 
 ments for commercial life or professional work-not 
 weakly drift with the current of worl.lly usac^e nor 
 yet think It necessary to pull aside into some quiet 
 eddy where they will escape the force of the current 
 Vic ory over the world is better than escape from it' 
 And victory is possible to the man who banishes 
 the spirit of fear" and works in "the spirit of 
 power and of love and of a sound mind," confident 
 that he IS a co-worker with God. " This is the victory 
 that overcometh the world, even oar faith " Who is 
 he that overcometh the world, but he that beli(>veth 
 that Jesus is the Son of God ? 
 
 n 
 
496 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 ij/ 
 
 vm 
 
 X. 
 
 THE TRUE CONSOLATION. 
 
 (30th May, .ISO4.)* 
 
 " And we know that all things work together for good to them 
 that love (Jod, to them who are the called according to his pur- 
 pose."— KoM. viii. 28. 
 
 Janet Roy, Maggie Henderson, Jolni Boll, Robert 
 Rowley, James Stewart, Jessie Haldane, such is the 
 death-roll of this congregation for the past five weeks. 
 In various forms, at different stages of the journey 
 of life, the messenger has come — to one the appointed 
 span of seventy years was lengthened out, to another 
 but three summers were given. To one, after long and 
 patient waiting, release came at last from the burden 
 of the flesh. Another was stricken down suddenly, 
 without any warning, save that which is given by the 
 constantly increasing infirmities of years. One went 
 amid comfort, another amid poverty and anxiety con- 
 cerning wife and children. Two were taken in those 
 bright early days when life seemed so full of hope and 
 promise. Their bright faces had made sunshine in 
 two happy homes, the affections of loving hearts had 
 
 * A few weeks after the death of Mrs. Macdonnell. 
 
THE TI:L'E CONSOLATION. 
 
 497 
 
 been twin.njj aroun.I tl,en> witl> „vci- incroasinir 
 tenderness and hope. And now there is dnXIf 
 vl>p the sunshine was; the fon,! hopes ha v b'n 
 ashed to the «roan,l. Under any cirenn.stanees " 
 hard to rob doath of sadness-it is the cliniav of 
 '.u.nan .lis; ,,„t it has peenliar elenu.„tr, "L: 
 
 ttr n '"'^ "' ''°'' ''"-^ '^'■■^■» l>»--"'y upon 
 
 hen,. There are widows and fathorLss fronf wl om 
 
 U.e„. stronj, ,n,ide and protector has been taken .:; 
 
 rhere ,rre .nothers weepin. for their children. The^' 
 «i-e children upon whon, the sorrows of lite lave 
 begun too early to press. There are friends '! icvW 
 c»^er departed ones, whose love filled their li^es wU^ 
 
 Here is a word of con,solation. " We know that 
 a, thn k together for good to then.Z lo^! 
 
 hall. t ""'"""'='•' '" °" '' '-"^'^ I'l-'t your 
 haltmj, feet, ye sorrowing ones. He w-ho went 
 
 Lrough poverty, suffering, shan.e an,l death for 
 has hrown by His life an.l death a new li.ht upon 
 our hie and death. Ifis life ha.l little of wh, t e 
 oun happ,ness-little of what the world calls ,y 
 jet It was a most l,les.sed life. //„ .said. " Ble.ssed a.v 
 they that n,ourn, for they shall be con.forted " 2 
 
 but he' f' ; T"'''' ■" "'"'" ''"™ t'-ihulation ; 
 l^.t be ot goo,l cheer: 1 l,,.,v,. overcome the world ' 
 
 He had a deep peace which the world ,li,l „ot eoni- 
 
 prehend. and of that He said, " Peace I leave w , 
 
 you ; A^ peace I give unto you." .Such wo:ds He 
 
 I 
 
498 
 
 SERMONS. 
 
 spoko with human Hps on earth. And wliat says He 
 now from heaven ? Even the same that He said with 
 a voice " as the sound of many waters " to John, 
 " your brotlier and companion in tribulation " when 
 He was in the isle of Patmos : " Fear not ; I am the 
 first and the last : I am He that livetli, and was dead ; 
 and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen ; and have 
 the keys of Hades and of death." 
 
 Through all the changes of the seasons — through 
 all the changes of life — through suffering, sorrow and 
 death, let us cling to Him who has the right to speak 
 such words of power as these. 
 
PRAYERS. 
 
 I. 
 
 For the Fouty- Eighth Highlandeks. 
 
 God of our fathers, in Thee do we put our trust 
 Our own arm cannot save us ; but Thy ri<rht hand 
 and Thine arm and the light of Thy countenance. 
 
 O Lord of Hosts, who hast in times past o-one 
 forth with our armies, be Thou witli us and with'our 
 fellow-soldiers, whithersoever we go. In the assur- 
 ance of Thy guidance, may we be strong and' of a 
 good courage. 
 
 In the name of our God wi.i we set up our banners. 
 May these colours never be displayed on the side of 
 mjustice or tyranny or wrong; but only and always 
 m the cause of freedom and righteousness and our 
 country's weal. 
 
 Give peace in our time, O Lord. Should these Thy 
 servants ever be called to fight the battles of their 
 country, may they be enabled to do so as beconieth 
 good soldiers of Jesus Christ, seeking to maintain 
 consciences void of offence towards Thee and towards 
 men. Hasten the time when the Prince of Peace shall 
 reign over all nations, so that men shall realize their 
 
500 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 
 nli^'M 
 
 
 m 
 
 brotherhood in Christ, and wars shall cease unto the 
 ends of tlie earth. 
 
 God save tlie Queen. We bless Thee for her long 
 and pi'osperous reign. May Thy blessing rest upon 
 her dui'ing her remaining years. May Thy Spirit 
 strengthen her heart ; may Thy providence prosper 
 her government. May she receive at last the crown 
 of glory. 
 
 II. 
 
 A Morning Prayer for the Children. 
 
 Heavenly Father, I thank Thee for this new day. 
 Help me to spend it so as to please Thee. Help me to 
 think, speak and act as a chikl of God. May I learn 
 of Jesus to be loving and gentle, meek and lowdy, 
 forbearing and forgiving. Help me to be obedient 
 to my parents and dutiful to teachers and friends. 
 Keep me from false or angry words, from selfish or 
 unkind acts. Forgive all my sins, and may Jesus 
 dwell in my heart so that I may be strong to resist 
 temptation and to do what is right. May all my 
 days be made glad with Thy presence, and may I 
 dwell in the Father's house for ever, through Jesus 
 Clirist, my Lord ! 
 
ie unto the 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 III. 
 
 501 
 
 IXTERCESSOUY PraVER AfTEI{ SeRMUN. 
 
 {-?f>fh October, ISm-Sn-inon on Roi„n„M j-H, /,?.) 
 
 O Go.1, who hast made tlio li^rl.t of Thy -lorious 
 Oospel to sliino on us, bless Th^- word which w. l.ave 
 heard this day. May it he receive<l into our hearts 
 with taitli and love, and by it may we be strengthened 
 tor every ^ood word and work. 
 
 Eternal Father, of whom every family i„ heaven 
 and earth is named, who hast called us into the 
 fellowship of Thy Son Jesus Christ, we desire to 
 remember at Tliy tlirone of ^.race all with whom we^ 
 imve part in the communion of saints. We bes.rch 
 Thee to drive out of our hearts the spirit of selfish- 
 ness and implant the spirit of love, that we may be 
 ready to bear the burdens of others and to have 
 fellowship in their necessities. For the sake of Him 
 who though He was rich, yet for our sakes became 
 poor, who had not where to lay his hea.l on earth 
 may we remember the poor and be willin^r to minister 
 tood to the huno-ry and clothin^r to the naked For 
 the sake of Him who was deserted by friends in the 
 hour of His great need, may we not be for.rotful to 
 entertain strangers, but be given to hospitalitN' May 
 we remember the words of the Master, " Inasmuch as 
 ye have done it unto one of the least of these My 
 brethren, ye have done it unto Me." 
 
 Thou who hast made of one blood all nations 
 ot men, remember, we beseech Thee, every creature 
 
502 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 *l' 
 
 of Tliinc for ft'ood, and visit tlio wliole world with 
 Thy mercy. Let the light of Thy blessed Gospel 
 shine, and let the darkness be scattered. May we 
 not be forgetful of our duty to extend, by word and 
 life and gifts, the knowledge of Christ. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Pkayeu After Sermon. 
 
 (/'■salm (\vl.v. IS.) 
 
 Lord, open Thou our eyes that we may behold 
 wondrous things out of Thy law. Whatever veils of 
 indirterence, or prejudice, or sinful indulgence have 
 hindered the entrance of the light into our souls, let 
 them be taken away. May our delight be in Thy 
 law. May Thy words be a joy to us and the rejoic- 
 ing of our hearts. May Thy statutes be our songs in 
 the house of our pilgrimage. May the law of Thy 
 mouth be better to us than thousands of gold and 
 silver. 
 
 May Thy word be a lamp unto our feet and light 
 unto our path. Give us understanding and we shall 
 keep Thy law. Make us to go in the path of Thy 
 commandments. Incline our hearts unto Thy testi- 
 monies and not to covetousness. 
 
 As thou hast spoken to us by Thy Son — the Word 
 that was made flesh and tabernacled among us — let 
 our hearts be open to receive Him who is the Way 
 the Truth and the Life. May we feed on Him the 
 Living Bread. May we know Him and in this know- 
 ledge have eternal life. 
 
 , -^ ."s4-'i' 
 
 ;iv*«»'iA: 
 
Rm 
 
 mssBsm 
 
 IMIAYERS. 
 
 :)03 
 
 PuAYEii Before Communiox. 
 
 (Fridaij, l.ith Orfohtr, /,S7>!.) 
 
 Alniirrlity and most luorcirul ({od, Thou art (glorious 
 in lioline.ss. Tliou art of purer oyvH than to behold 
 inicjuity. The way of the wicked is an abomination 
 unto Thee. Evil .shall not dwell with Thee. 
 
 Father! we have sinned ai^ainst heaven and in 'i'hy 
 sight, and we are not worthy to be called Thy chil- 
 dren. We know that in us dwells no »rood thin<r, 
 for when we would do good, evil is present with us, 
 and we see a law in our niendters wari-ing against the 
 law of our minds. Lord, deliver us from this body 
 of death, from this tyranny of sin. 
 
 Our burden. Lord, is heavy— the burden of duties 
 unfulfilled; of opportunities lost: of talents hidden ; 
 of days wasted forever; of words unspoken, or 
 spoken untruly,' idly, unlovingly : of evil thoughts, 
 again and again reappearing, e\en as they were fiist 
 admitted into the heart. O let the piti fulness of Thy 
 great mercy loose us from the bonds of those sins 
 which we have committed. Forgive tlie daily sins of 
 our present life and remendier not the offences of our 
 youth. cleanse Thou us from secret faults ; keep 
 us back from presumptuous sins. Lord, pity and 
 cleanse, save and forgive, for Thy mercy's sake. 
 Behold, Lord, we come at Thy call ; we come, weary 
 
604 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 and lieavy laden with the burden of our sin.s : be it 
 unto UH jiccordin(( to Thy ^lucious woi'd. Lord, in 
 no wise cast us from Thee. May we find rest in I'iiee. 
 Say unto each weary soul, " Ivj of good cheer. Thy 
 sins are forgiven thee." Say inito each weak and 
 helpless one, " Thou art loosed from thine infirmity." 
 Say unto each tried and tempted one, " My grace is 
 sufficient for thee." 
 
 In the prospect of sitting down at Thy holy table, 
 may we be enabled to look upon Him whom our 
 transgressions have pierced and to mourn, (^onscious 
 of our own great unworthiness, mav we be comforted 
 by His uiifnthomabic love. May the memorial of 
 His suti'ering and death deepen in us the sense of the 
 evil of that accui'sed tiling which cost the Son of (Jod 
 so nuich. May the remendn-ance of His dying love 
 quicken our love to Him, and may we, in all time to 
 come, walk before Thee in holiness and righteousness 
 of life, to the glory of Thy holy name. 
 
riUYEMS. 
 
 5o; 
 
 VI. 
 
 PiiAYEu After Sermon— Comminion Sunday. 
 
 (ir.th Ortohn; 187H) 
 
 Our Father in licMven, wo ble.ss TJico tluit Tlioii 
 didst send Tliy Son to .seek und .save us tlw lost : 
 that Ho came not to })o ministered unto, but to min- 
 ister, and to crivo His life a ransom for many. 
 
 We bless Thee tliat He who was the Ancient of 
 Days became for us a little child: that He who had 
 been in Thy bosom from eternity was for our sakes 
 born of a woman and cradled in a man<,^or : that Ho 
 who knew no sin was tempted of Satan in the wilder- 
 ness that He mi^dit succour us when we ai-«! tempted ; 
 that He by whom Thou didst make the worlds endured 
 for us liuncror and thirst and weariness and had not 
 where to lay His head on earth. 
 
 We bless Thee that Thy Son was so patient and 
 tender to men and women on earth, that we nn"«rht 
 learn to trust Him ; that He washed His discii)?es, 
 feet, that we might learn to render humble services of 
 love to one another; that He wept and <rroaned at 
 the grave of Lazarus, that we might know His sym- 
 pathy with all our sorrows. 
 
 We bless Thee that He endured for us the agony 
 in the Garden : that for us He was left to watch and 
 pra\- alone : that for us He was betrayed and boimd, 
 spat upon and buffeted : that for us His liands and 
 
506 
 
 PRAYERS. 
 
 if' 
 
 feot were pierced with nails ; that for us He was 
 numbered with transgressors and did hang in shame 
 and torture on the Cross ; that for us He suffered the 
 hiding of Thine own countenance ; tliat for us He 
 tasted death and w^as hxid in the grave. 
 
 Blessed Jesus, Thou Man of Sorrows, Thou greatest 
 and lowliest One, Thou Lamb of God that takest aw^ay 
 the sin of i.he world, Thou who lifted up on the Cross 
 drawest all men unto Thee, write the story of Thy 
 life and death on our hearts, we beseech Thee, that 
 the remembrance of Thy shame and sorrow may 
 move us to love and gratitude. 
 
 Now, Lord, give us of Thine own wherewith to 
 serve Thee. Clothe us w^ith the w^edding garnvMit of 
 Th}?^ righteousness that we might be lit to sit at Thy 
 table. Feed us with thine jwn tlesh and blood, that 
 we may be truly nourished. Let Thy banner over us 
 be love. May the language of our hearts be, " What 
 shall we render unto the Lord for all His benefits 
 towards us ? We will take the cup of salvation and 
 call upon the name of the Lord." 
 
 Unto Thee who hast washed us from our sbis in 
 Thine own blood and made us kings and priests unto 
 God and Thy Father, be glory forever. Amen. 
 
He was 
 in shame 
 fered the 
 r us He 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 greatest 
 !st away 
 lie Cross 
 of Thy 
 lee, that 
 w may 
 
 with to 
 m'mt of 
 at Tliy 
 xl, that 
 over us 
 " What 
 3onefits 
 on and 
 
 s'ns in 
 is unto 
 
 Aberdeen, Scotland, 137, 141. 
 Aberdeen, Earl of, 340, 391. 
 Alexander, Miss Isabella, '288.//", 301. 
 Alexandria Bay, 181, 
 Allan Park, 14./: 
 Armour, E. Douglas, 270. 
 Arthurs, VVilliaiii, 82. 
 Augmentation, 199 y/; 208/', 275, 
 308, 303. 
 
 Bain, Rev. James, 03/, GO. 
 
 Baltimore, 79. 
 
 Banff, N. W.T., 283. 
 
 Barclay, Rev. Dr. John, ')•>, (>l /l 08, 
 
 237. 
 Bathurst, N. B., 1, 3. 
 Bcecher, Menrv Ward, 80. 
 Behnke, Dr. Emil, 317, 320. 
 Bell, Joseph, M.D., 194. 
 Belledune, N.B., 209. 
 Berlin University, 2") //! 
 Bethune. James^^ 73, 82, 230. 
 Bible Readei-, 234, 302 /; 323. 
 Binscarth, Man., 282. " 
 Black, I'rof. Jolin, 28, 142. 
 Blaikie, Rev. Dr. VV. (}., 330. 
 Boville, Rev. R. (;., 280. 
 Branch Sunday Sciiocjl, 328. 
 Brindisi, 319/. 
 Brown, Gordon, 252. 
 Browne, Dr. Lennox, 310 /', 320. 
 Buchanan, Rev. J., M.D.j 239. 
 Buffalo, N.Y., 240. 
 Building Committee of St. Andrew's 
 
 Church, 82. 
 Burns, Rev. Dr. R. E., 279. 
 
 Calgary, N.VV.T., 283. 
 Campbell, Miss Eleanor, 335. 
 
 Campbell, Rev. Robert, I). D., 20 /*, 
 52. 09, 84, 80, 88//; 190, 190, 
 359. 3!M. 
 
 Campbell. Mrs., i.//;21,35, 1.30//; 
 240. 250./; ;i5L'. 3SI //; 
 
 Campbell, Rev. Robt., Sc. D., 201 //! 
 
 Campbell, Mr. Robert, .3.3."). 
 
 Canterl)urv, England, 188. 
 
 Cai)-a-rAigle, 141, 240, .3.35, 340, 381. 
 
 Carfiae, Tlionias, (»7. 
 
 Carmicliael, Rev. Dr. James, 05. 77 /. 
 
 Cartwright, Sir RicliunI, •_'07. 
 
 ("assets, Hamilton, KH, 193/, 291 /" 
 295, 300, .340. 
 
 Castle, Rev. Dr., 181. 
 
 Caven, Rev. Dr. William, 95, 98, 
 105, 107, 1 10, 125, 131, 2.-)2, 2.58, 
 204, 200, 270, 272. 275, 347. 
 
 Ceylon visited, 319. 
 
 Chalmers, Rev. Dr. Tiionias, 51. 
 
 Chalmers Clniicli, Kiiigstun, 1!I2. 
 
 Chalmers, Mr., 209. 
 
 Chaplain of the 48Lh Hi.rlihuiders, 
 329.//: 
 
 Charactei- of Mr. Ma.'doimcll, .3, 5 //; 
 
 13, 10./; 19/; 22//; 29//; .30'//; 
 
 44,//; 52, ()2, 04, 09/; 72, 75, 
 95, 14(5,//; 158, 219//; 243, 248, 
 251, 284, 315, .322, .3.-.0 //; .378, 
 380/, .392-408. 
 
 Charltnti, John, 2(i0, 270, 272. 
 
 Chatham. N. B., 279. 
 
 Chicago Exj»ositi()ii. .340. 
 
 Children (.f Mr. .MaiMlonni'll, .321, 
 340, 344, .31)0, 383. .3i»0. 
 
 Cimri'li Building, 82.//; 
 
 Church of Scotland in Cariala, 75 /; 
 91/ 
 
 Clark, Dr. Daniel, .302. 
 
508 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Col)ourg, Onl., 201>. 
 
 ('oc'hraiu', Kcv. Dr. NVilliani, 1'2(). 
 
 CoH'ee-luiuses, 184, I8S. 
 
 Confession of Faitli, .S(> //", (\2 {f, 00, 
 
 im//; '2-Ajr. 
 
 Cook, Kov. Dr. Jolin, '>2, 86, tfi/, 
 128. 
 
 Cooke's ("luii'cli, Toronto, 68. 
 
 Cornell LJniversitv, 181, 
 
 Cornwall, Ont., 4;{. 
 
 Correspondence, 'JOT./*. 
 
 Courtice, Kev. A. C.,' 26-J. 
 
 Cowiui, Prof. Henry, "Jit, Ul. 
 
 " Clanks,'" Kelii,'ious, U,3. 
 
 Crathie, Scotland, 142. 
 
 Ci'awford, i*rofessor, 2."). 
 
 Cumberland Presbyterians, 182. 
 
 Cunningham's " Historical The- 
 ology," 50. 
 
 "Daisvhaidi," l.'iT. 
 
 Dale, iiohert F., 240, 280. 
 
 Davids(m, Dr. C. P., Q.C., 270. 
 
 Davidson, Col. .lohn I., 302, .S28. 
 
 Deas, Miss, oT. 
 
 Deiniistoun, .Judge, 178. 
 
 Dol)ie, Hev. Mr., r)2, 108. 
 
 Doiner, Professor, 2") f'. 
 
 " Dorset" School, lOl', 288/ 
 
 Douglas. Rev. James, 44, 
 
 Douglas, Dr. James. 12. 
 
 Douglas, Dr. Robert, 9. 
 
 Douglas, Kev. Dr. (icorge, 270. 
 
 Dover, Kngland, 188. 
 
 Drummond, Kev. D. R., ;m /', XiS, 
 
 Dulutli, Minn., 78. 
 Dunbar, Scotland, 188. 
 Dundee, Scotland, 1175. 
 
 Faster Sunday service, 346. 
 Kcdesiasticism in the State, 262.//; 
 Ediidnirgh visited, 8, 144, ;{24, \r,~K 
 Fdinburgh Academy, 8. 
 Fdinburgh University. 2'}. 
 Fgy])t visited, .'{17./". 
 Eldershij) of St. Andrew's Church, 
 
 7.S, 161, 2.S0, 240, 230, 201, 
 
 :ui/, 369. 
 
 K<jual Rights movement. 259 //. 
 E»jual Rights speeches and addresses, 
 
 2()5 //; 278 /'. 
 Es(|uimalt, li.C, 283, 
 J'Jitr/io/(>i/io)i , 223 /. 
 Evangelical Alliance, 79, 265. 
 
 Ferguson, Hon. Adam, 55. 
 
 Ferguson, ( Icorge, 58. 
 
 Kisher, Edward, 174 /*. 
 
 Flint, Prof. Robert, 18.3. 
 
 Foreign missions, 200/. 
 
 Frci'tiiini, \'ork, (iS. 
 
 Frizzell, Rev. W., 208, 2.")8, 
 
 Fulton, Alex. T., 82, 3.37. 
 
 Funerals, 347, .'ilMiy. 
 
 Future Punishment, 90.//, 102.//; 45!). 
 
 (Salt (iiammar School, 9. 
 
 (;andier, Kev. Alfred. 229, 2.37, 240, 
 
 27(i, 380. 
 (Jardinei', Miss Margaret, 234, .302/, 
 
 32.3. 
 <;a:.,t/c, York, 68. 
 Ceikic. Dr. \V. H., 240. 
 (iemmell, Alexander, 231, .327. 
 General Assemblv, 98//; 115/", 120/", 
 
 240, 242, 275, 3Ri/, 338, .363/, 
 
 .380. 
 George, Dr. .Tames, 12. 
 (leinian liteiatuie, 27, 314. 
 (ieiinar.v. Residence in, 25 ff'. 
 (Gibraltar, 317, 319. 
 (iibson. Rev. \)v. J. Monro, 175. 
 (iib.son, Profes.sor, 40. 
 (iilmor, 1. C, 82, 2.30. 
 (Jiliav, Rev. Alexander, 404. 
 (Gladstone, \V. E., 263. 
 Glasgow, Scotland, 142, 144, 376, 
 (ilasgow University, 2.3. 
 Glebe lands of St. An<lrew"s Church, 
 
 72, 227. 
 a/oh,', Toronto, 294. 
 Glover, Rev. Dr., 36. 
 (ioldsmith, Rev. Thomas, 32(;, .341. 
 (iooil Kridav service, .346. 
 ({ordon. Prof. D. M., 28, 84, 146/, 
 
 .363,/; .366. 
 Graduation at Queen's College, 9. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 509 
 
 nt. 259/ 
 andaddiesscs, 
 
 {7. 
 
 U, 102//; 45*). 
 -^!>, 2.37, 240, 
 
 , -^•u, .so-_>/, 
 
 l,.-J27. 
 !'■)/, 120/; 
 .'{38, HO.-J j/; 
 
 14. 
 
 'o, 17;"). 
 
 404. 
 44, .S76. 
 
 s Cluireh. 
 
 .S2(;, 341. 
 84, 146/; 
 
 Orant, C. M., 31.//; .37"). 
 
 <iniiit, IViiicipal (J. M., 1(>2 //; 179 
 
 1S4, 198,27"), 347, 3S(;,3!H,;J!»S. 
 <inint, K., 182. 
 
 <iio^'K. l-{fv. Dr. William, IS], 247. 
 2o2, 373. 
 
 Halifa.v, N.S., ], 121, 240, 279, 
 
 .3()7. 
 Hall, Rev. Dr. .Jdhri, 3.3(). 
 Hamilton Giammar Scliool, 9. 
 Harri.s, Kov. JaiUL-.s, 00, OS. 
 Hairis, I'rof. R. Carr, 209. 
 Hart, S. R., .S28. 
 
 Hart, Prof. Thomas, 21, 7(5, 300//! 
 Harvie, .Mrs. .John, .302. 
 Hay, Rol)crt. 82. 
 
 Healtii of Mr. iMacdoimcli, 283 /' 
 312.//; .326, 331, .340, .3.->4, 36S>; 
 37;)-384. 
 Heidolherf,', 28. 
 Heiidi'rsoii. Rev. Dr., 375. 
 Hengsteril)oi'g, Professor, 26. 
 Henniiig, Mrs., 57. 
 Herdman, Rev. .Mr., 170. 
 Herald, Rev. .lames, 71. 
 Higginhotliam, W., 82. 
 Highland Regiments, (i7. 329. 
 Hineks, Hon. Ki'inicis, 07. 
 Hockiii, Mrs., 109./: 
 Home life. .352./; .3i)l. 
 Home missions, 75//; 174, 1 !)<»//; 
 
 282./; 3 Hi, .3.-)0." 
 Homesii.'kness, 320. 
 Hopkins, K. J., Mus. Doe.. 188. 
 Hoskin, Rev. R. 11., 2!»1. 
 Hos.saek, Rev. !). (' , 346. 
 Howland, W. H., 205 /; 
 Hndson River, 79. 
 Hunter, Rev. Dr. \V. A., 400. 
 Hymns, 70, 78, I8(i //; l!)i», .3.38, .363, 
 
 370,//: 
 
 Inimigrant lads assisted, 238 /: 
 Inductions, 43./; <i5 /: 
 Inglis, Rev. Dr. David, 79. 
 Inglis, Rus.sel, 82, 211, 2.3(), .342. 
 Instiumental church unisic, 08. 
 Jona, 8eotland, 142. I 
 
 .Tac(|nes, .lohn, 82. 
 
 .lanusoM. W. .M., 82. 
 
 .lellrey. Ilev. 'J". W'.. 72. 
 
 Jenkins, \U'\. Dr., 52, 127 /" 191 
 
 I!(0,/: 
 .Jesuits' Kstates in (^>uel)ec, 2,')9 //: 
 .lol), Jionk of, 233./: 
 .JoiK.'s, Hon. A. (;.", 279. 
 •los.s. .John, 2-J8, 240, 280. 
 Jubilee (.f St. Andrew's Church, 
 
 Toronto, 181. 
 
 Kaogassikok Lake, 77. 
 
 Kay, Frank. 313,/: 
 
 Kay, -lohn. Mil, 2.30, 3i)0, 313, ,327 f. 
 
 Keith, (Jeorge, 240. 
 
 Keith, (Jeorge A., .303. 
 
 Kellogg, Rev. I),-. S. M., 25ti. 
 
 King, l!ev. Principal .lolui M., 98 
 
 105,201./: 
 Knox Churcli, Toronto, (iS. 
 Knox ("ollego, Toronto, 89, I(i2 
 
 258. 
 
 Lady Parish, 54, 325. 
 
 Laiiilaw, Rev. Dr. I!. .1.. 107. 
 
 Lake Counti'v, Kngland, 142/: 
 
 " Lalla Rook'li." 10. 
 
 Lash, Z. A., 82. 
 
 Last days, .387.//: 
 
 Last message to his people, .384 /: 
 
 Leaeh, Rev. W'm. T., 08. 
 
 Lectures to students. 308 /: 
 
 Lee, Piof. l-tolicit, 25, 40. 
 
 Leitch, Prof., 22. 
 
 Leith, Scotland, 1.3. 
 
 Licensure, 39, 42. 
 
 Locli Katrine. 143. 
 
 Logic, Rev. Dr.. 54. 
 
 London, Kngland, 142, 2.35, 310. 
 
 " London House," 28S //: 
 
 Lyie, Rev. Dr. Samuer,' 280, .347. 
 
 McCarthy. Dalton, 200 /', 272. 
 McCo.sh, Rev. )),•. .lames, 54. 
 Mci>otiald, C. S., 24(». 327, 
 .Macdonald, Re\ . .J.nncs A., 214 //' 
 
 278. 
 .Macdonald, Sii.Iolin ,\., 100, 321. 
 
:^.v_.'»"*tf%*.. 
 
 510 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 B-Ki\ 
 
 MiKjrlonald, J. K., 270, 272. 
 
 MiUMloiiaM, VVni., 28. 
 
 Mac.lonnell, Mrs. D. J., 47 ff\ 5.3 f, 
 
 80, 136, 138, 149//; 177, \S8ff, 
 
 247, 257, 313, 320/, 32.1, 337, 
 
 .343/, 3.-)8/. 
 Macdonnell, Rev. George, 1 ff', 41, 
 
 43, 4.->, .17, 71/, 114. 
 Mac'dorinell, Mrs. (Jeorge, 2, 6, 107, 
 
 188/ 
 MacdDunell, (Jeoi'ge M., 14, 24, 38, 
 
 45. 
 Macloiinell, John M., 14, 175, 189, 
 
 197 /". 
 McCJee, David, 193/ 240, 313, 317. 
 MdJill, Hon. Peter, ()7. 
 Macgillivrav, Captain Dugald, 303, 
 
 3(M), 32«). 
 Mdiiegor. Rev. P. (!., 122, 124, 128. 
 Maeliar, Rev. Dr. John, 12. 
 Maehar, Mrs. John, 13. 
 Machar, Miss, 10, 170, 172, 298, 340. 
 Marhar, John M., 12. 
 Ma(kay, Rev. Dr. A. B., 204. 
 Mackenzie, William Lvon, 07. 
 Mackerras, Prof. J. H., 80, 123/ 
 
 104, 178.//; 
 McKniglit, Rev. Principal, 119/", 
 
 12(i. 
 McLaren, Rev. E. D., 283, 355,359, 
 
 404. 
 McLaren, Prof. Win., 84. 
 Maclaren, J. J., 200. 
 Maclaurin, K. A., 240, 328. 
 Maclean, Dr. Donahl, 12. 
 McLean, A. Faniuhar, 156, 240, 
 
 328. 
 McLean, Thos. A., 73. 
 Maelennan, Mr. Justice James, 1(51, 
 
 252. 
 McLennan, Rev. K., 52. 
 McLeod, Rev. Dr., 129. 
 Macleod, Norman, 24, ,38. 
 McLeod, Rev. P. .McF., 281. 
 McMillan, Rev. Alex., 374/. 
 McMurrich, Hon. J., 181. 
 MacMurciiy, Angus, 282, 284. 
 MacMurcIiv, Archihahl, 51 /', 01, 
 
 70/, 73, 155/ 181, 210, 287. 
 
 MacMurcby, Mrs., 210, 278. 
 Macrae, Rev. Dr. Donald, 101, 365/. 
 McTavish, Rev. Dr., 301. 
 McVicar, Rev. Principal D. H., 109, 
 
 115, 275. 
 McVicar, Rev. J. H., 387. 
 Mai/, The Toronto, 40, 101 //', 264. 
 Malta, 319. 
 Manitoha, Visits to, 70 /T, 175/, 282, 
 
 311, 307. 
 Manitoha Schools, 273/. 
 Manse, St. Andrew's, Toronto, 80/ 
 Massie, James, 230/ 302. 
 Mathieson, Rev. Dr. Alex., 52, 86. 
 Melrose, Scotland, 143. 
 Melville Cliureh, Fergus, 17, 54. 
 Men's Association of St. Andrew's, 
 
 292, 290, 300. 
 Michie, James, 01, 82, 150/ 194/ 
 Michie, Miss, 190. 
 Middlemiss, Rev. Dr. James, 57. 
 Middleton, W. E., .342. 
 Milligan, Rev. Dr. G. M., 100, 181, 
 
 252, 347, 374, 404. 
 Milligan. Wm., 82. 
 Mills, Hon. David, 267. 
 Milnes, James, 2. 
 Ministerial Association, Toronto, 
 
 258, 2()4. 
 Milton, Ont., 71. 
 Mission School, 70, 73, 81. 
 Mitchell, William, 01, 73, 82, 109, 
 
 1.50, 19J, 247, 323. .328. 
 Mitchell, Rev. William, 109. 
 Moore, Samuel, 297. 
 Moosomin, Man., 282. 
 Morris, Hon. Alex., 181. 
 .Morris, Hon. Wm., 67. 
 " Mothers' Meetings," 2.34. 
 Mowat, Prof. J. B., 24, 100 /". 
 Muldrew, John, 240, 297, 341. 
 Mulock, Vice-Chancellor Wm. 252. 
 Murrav, Rev. Robert, 180/ 370//'. 
 Muskoka, 240. 
 Mutch, Rev. John, 250. 
 
 Naples, 317. 
 
 Neil, Rev. John. 391. 
 
 Nelson and Waterdown, 9. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 511 
 
 », 278. 
 
 W, 101, .S65/. 
 01. 
 
 il I>. H., 109, 
 
 J87. 
 101 J, 264. 
 
 f, 175/, 282, 
 
 'oroiito, 80 f. 
 
 )2. 
 
 lex., 52, 86. 
 
 1, 17, 54. 
 t. Andrew's, 
 
 '^«/, 194.//: 
 
 lines, 57. 
 
 ., 160, 181, 
 
 Toronto. 
 
 3, 82, 109, 
 
 '8. 
 
 109. 
 
 1. 
 
 )o/; 
 
 341. 
 Wm. 252. 
 
 ''ff, 370.//: 
 
 Nepigon River, 77. 
 New Year's, 176/, 184/. 
 Xew York Cit.y, 79, 374. 
 Nicihol, Kev. P. E., 277. 
 
 Oban, Scotland, 142. 
 O'Brien, Henry, 267. 
 O'Brien, Col. W. E., 266, 270. 
 Offers of churches, 43, 46, 60, 191, 
 
 192. 
 Old St. Andrew's, Toronto, 71,84/ 
 
 160, 181. 
 Or.lination, 39, 42. 
 Organ of St. Andrew's Church, 
 
 227 /: 
 Orkney, 46, 66, 137 /T. 188 //", 235, 
 
 322.//: 
 
 Pacific coast visited, 281 ft'. 
 Pai.sley, Scotland, 144, 375. 
 Pan-Presl)vtcrian Council, 182 /, 
 
 335 ./."^ 
 Parsons, Rev. Dr., 301. 
 Perrv, Capt. Chas., 82. 
 Peter boro', 43 ft\ 58 /, 132. 
 Philadelpliia, 79, 182/ 
 Port Artluir, 77, 175. 
 Potts, Rev. Dr. John, 181, 
 Prayers, 139, 21(5 / 223/, 389, 390, 
 
 499-506. 
 Preaching. 47, 75, 88, 108, 138/ 
 
 182, 222 .//; 231 , 256/ 311, .340 /; 
 
 355, 365, 409-498. 
 Presbytery of Edinburgh, 39, 42. 
 Presbytery of E(linl)urgli, U. P., 40. 
 Presbytery of (iuelph, 22. 
 Presbytery of Toronto (Church of 
 
 Scotland), 62 /f, 244. 
 Presbytery of Toronto, 96, 111, 254, 
 
 2.58, 310. 
 Prince Albert, N.W.T., 311. 
 Princeton, 79 ./'. 
 Pringle, Rev. John, 404. 
 Pringle, T. M., 82. 
 
 Queen's College and University, 9 jf, 
 18, 162.//; 236, 370. 
 
 Jleid, Rev. Dr. Wni., 252. 
 
 Removal of St. Andrew's, 73, 81. 
 Rintoul, Rev. Wm., 66, ()8. 
 Robb, G. C, 228. 
 Robertson, Rev. Fretl. \V., 47.//: 
 Robertson, Rev. Dr. James, 17(5, 
 
 391, 
 Robinson, Joseph, 193, 240. 
 Rogerson, J. M., 82. 
 
 St. Andrew's Church, Fergus, 8, 
 
 54, 71. 
 St. Andrew's Cliurch, Montreal, 60. 
 St. Andrew's Church, Peterl)()ro'. 
 
 43.//; 60. 
 St. Andiew's Church, Toronto, «)0 t\ 
 
 65.//; -,2.//; 81 .//; 1.33.//; 171 /r, 
 
 181, 193 //; 206 /; 227 //; 2.36, 
 280, 285, 311 / .327/ "332 //; 
 369. 
 
 St. Andiew's Institute, 287.//: 
 
 St. Enocli's Churcli, Toronto, 71. 
 
 St. James' S(|uare Ciuircli, Toronto, 
 217. 
 
 St. John, N.B., .362.//: 
 
 St. Luke's Cliurcli, Bathurst, 2. 
 
 St. Magnus Cathetlral, Kirkw.Jl, 
 138, .323. 
 
 St. Mark's Church, Toronto, 228 //, 
 237, 24(1./; 276 //: 
 
 St. Paul's Church, Montreal, 191. 
 
 Salary of Mr. Macdonnell, 72, 191, 
 193, .337. 
 
 Sand Banks, The, 236. 
 
 Scarth, Robert, 56. 
 
 Schools, Separate and Public, 271 //: 
 
 Scotland visiteil, 7, 22//; 137//; 188 
 .//■, 194, ;]74.//: 
 
 Scott, Rev. .Marcus, 276 /: 
 
 Second Presbyterian Church, Chi- 
 cago, I9'2.' 
 
 Sedgwick, ({ev. Robert, 129. 
 
 Sedgwick, Rev. Thos., 115. 
 
 Sermon, I'he lirst. 14 t'. 
 
 Shepard, \V. A., 24(»,'.3()9. 
 
 Small, .lohn T., 291. 
 
 Smellie, Rev. Ardiibald, 194. 
 
 omellu 
 
 Hi 
 
 A. C. !'., .3.39. 
 
 Smellie. Rev. Dr (ieorge, ,53 l\ 
 182, 235 /', 338 /; 383. 
 
I 
 
 512 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 • i 
 
 n 
 
 M5 
 
 Rmellie, Mrs. George, 55 ff, 235, 
 
 338 f, 345, 383. 
 Sinellie, (i. L., 339. 
 Sinellie, Miss I. L., 175, 235, 340, 
 
 370, 379/, 383, 39J. 
 Hmellie, Janics, 159. 
 Smellie, Robert S., 174, 231, 341, 
 
 390. 
 Smellie, Dr. T. S. T., 175. 
 Smellie, Wm.,181/. 
 Smith, (loMwin, 301. 
 Somerville, Rev. J. F., 229. 
 Spence, Miss, 298. 
 Staffa, Seotland, 142. 
 Stafford, Rev. E. A. 204. 
 Stanley, Lonl, 272. 
 Starr, Leamler, 1. 
 Stewart, Alex., 240. 
 Stewarton Church, Ottawa, 340. 
 Storm, VV. (',.. 8.3. 
 Strachan, James, 297, 302. 
 Strathy, Mrs. (Emma George), 298, 
 
 305/ 
 Strauchon, Miss Cecilia, 303, 
 Stuart, Rev. James, 280. 
 Stuart, Rev. J. G., 277. 
 Sunday car question, 331/, 340. 
 Sunday ol)servance. 38/, 232. 
 Sutherland, Rev. Dr. Alex., 266. 
 Swing, Rev. Dr., 175,/". 
 Switzerland visited, 27/ 
 
 Tassie, Dr., 9. 
 
 Temj)erance (question, 184, 242/ 
 
 Tenii)oralities Fund, 192. 
 
 Theological Clul>, 280. 
 
 Toleration, 250/ 
 
 Topp, Rev. Dr., 122, 124, 128, 149. 
 
 Toronto University, 102, 225, 252. 
 
 Toronto, Grey and Bruce Railway. 
 
 296. 
 Traill, Rev. Walter, 54. 
 Trial before the Church courts, 96/ 
 
 140, 146/ 251. 
 Trosachs, The, 143. 
 
 Tweed Valley, Scotland, 143. 
 Twining, Dr., 1. 
 
 Union of Canadian Presbyterians, 
 
 83/ 91, 165. 
 Universalism, 108. 
 Urquhart, Rev. Dr., 43. 
 
 Vancfmver, B.C., 283. 
 Vankleek Hill, 18. 
 Vatke, Prof., 20. 
 Victoria, B.C., 283. 
 Virden, Man., 285. 
 
 Walker, The Misses, 298. 
 
 Wallace, Rev. Robert, 276. 
 
 Walsh, E. H., 302. 
 
 Warden, Rev. Dr. R. H., 201, 204, 
 208, 311. 
 
 Wardsville, 21. 
 
 Warsaw Springs, N.^\, 338. 
 
 Washington, D.C., 79. 
 
 Watt, Dr. John, 28. 
 
 Watt, Rev. Mr., 319. 
 
 Weir, Rev. Prof., 24. 
 
 Wi'xtmiuMfr, The, 214. 
 
 Wiarton, 208. 
 
 Williamson, Rev. Dr. James, 12. 
 
 " Willing Helpers," 234. 
 
 Wil.son, Sir Daniel, 252, 301. 
 
 Wilson, Geo. H., 73. 
 
 Wilson, Prof. John, 54, 143. 
 
 Winnipeg, 76, 78, 175, 198, 285. 
 
 Witncsi^, Montreal, 89/ 
 
 Women's Association of St. An- 
 I drcw's, 292, 300, 337, 349/ 
 
 Women's Foreign Missionary So- 
 ciety, 339, 349. 
 
 Wright," Prof. R. Ramsav, 225. 
 , Wylie, Robert J., 240, 341. 
 
 York Town Line Church, 206. 
 Youghal, N.B., 210/ 278. 
 Young, Prof. George P. 225, 234, 
 247/ 
 
 f 
 
lotlanrl, 143. 
 
 ian Presljyterians, 
 
 Dr., 43. 
 
 , 283. 
 
 8. 
 
 83. 
 35. 
 
 sses, 298. 
 
 obert, 276. 
 
 32. 
 
 )r. R. H., 201, 204, 
 
 , N.V., 338. 
 3., 79. 
 28. 
 , 319. 
 ., 24. 
 e, 214. 
 
 r. Dr. James, 12. 
 r.s," 234. 
 iel, 252, 301. 
 
 73. 
 )'hn, 54, 143. 
 8, 175, 198, 285. 
 al, 89/. 
 nation of St. An- 
 
 300,337, 349/ 
 gn Missionary So- 
 549. 
 
 ». Ramsav, 225. 
 L, 240, 341. 
 
 e Church, 206. 
 
 210/, 278. 
 
 Jeorge P. 225, 234, 
 
 M