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YALE
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

ANNALS

OP

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.

John Moir, Printer,
Edinburgh, 1818.

ANNALS
OB'
SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY,
FROM THE YEAR 1788 TO THE YEAR 1816,
INCLUSIVR;
BEINO THB PERIOD DURING WHICH THE I.ATX
RIGHT REV. JOHN SKINNER, OF ABERDEEN,
HELD THE 0^gU||^''
^tniov iStdj^op ant( primus t
OF WHOM
A BIOGRAPHICAL irtJ^IOIR
IS PREFIXED.

REV. JOHN SKINNER, A. M.
FORFAR.

Sit Rector operatione prsecipuus, ut -ritse viam subditis YiTendo
denuntiet, et grex, qui pastoris vocem moresque sequitur, per
xxsMFLDSi melius quam per terba gradiatnr. Geeg. Mag.

NgDINBURGH :
PRINTED FOR A. BROWN AND COMPANY, ABERDEEN;
LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN;
AND J. HATCHARD, LONDON.
1818.

THE Very :ft,EyERMlj and Rfif eSIind
THE DEAN AND CLERGY
OF TBS
SSiocese of 9iljettieen»

MY CLERICAt BRETHREN, AND MUCH VALUED FRIENDS,
As you were pleased to honour, with your
warm and unanimous approbation, an attempt,
on my part, to embalm the meittory of your late
revered Diocesan ; and as, from your long and
intimate knowledge of Bishop Skinner, his sen
timents and administration, you can better appre
ciate the fidelity of the present performance, or
detect its errors, than any other body of Clergy,
or individual Clergyman of the Scottish Episco
pal Communion ; to you do I most respectfully
inscribe the Annals of your departed Ordinary's
eventful Episcopacy. And, be the fate of the

iv DEDICATION.
Work, in other respects, what it may, I shall
have myrewardj if, on perusal of its pages, they
shall have the eflfect of imprinting more and more
indelibly, on your and on your people's minds^^
the soiind Charch principles, and unceasing pro
fessional exertions of one, to whose thoughts
both you and yourp were ever present, and who,
" laTjouring,"' as he did, " ^mong you, and being
over you in the Lord, and admdnisWng ^ou, was
ever, by you, esteemed very highly in love, for
his work's sake."
In this hope, I do persuade myself, I shall
nbt be disappointed ; aiid therefore, with fervent
prayers for your happiness, both temporal and
eternal,, I have the honour to subscribe myself*
Reverend and Dear Sirsj
Your affectionate Brother in Christ,
And obliged humble Servant^
THE AUTHOR;
inchgarth, AprU 1. 1818.

PREFACE.

Before- the Reader proceed to pass judgment on the follow
ing pages, the Author respectfully claims permission to obviate
such objections as either have already been started, or such as,
by presentiment, he is aware will be started, to his humble
Essay. It has been truly said, that no Son is competent to the task
of giving to the Public, a fair, just, and acceptable account of
a Father's life, character, and ofiicial conduct. And so con
vinced of the truth of this objection was the Writer of the fol
lowing Biographical Memoir, and Compiler of the Annals of
the late Bishop Skinner's official administration, that although
the undeEtaking was not without a precedent in tbe family to
,which he belongs, he only complied with the solicitations of
some of the most respectable and respected friends of Scottish
Episcopacy, when assured by them that his incompetency, on
.the score of consanguinity, would be atoned for, by his steadily
confining himself to such written documents as Jiis venerable
Father's repositories were known to afibrd, and by his aiming,
¦*> in the character of Biographer as well as of Historian, at no
higher distinction than that which rightfully belongs to a faith
ful Compiler and Annalist.
S2

VI PREFACE.
Yet, in this humble walk of literature to which the Author
has strictly confined himself, he cannot but admit, that, to a
satisfactory arrangement of materials, or interesting compila
tion, talents and powers of discrimination are necessary, far be
yond those which have fallen to his lot. Hence, being ready
to confess that he has come short of giving satisfaction to him
self, it will naturally be asked, — How he can expect to give sa
tisfaction to others, whether friends to-Bishop Skinner or friends
to the Church, in which, for upwards of half a century, the
Bishop faithfully served? Above all, how can he give satisfac
tion to a fastidious Public ? The answer is ready : — In no other
way, assuredly, but by an undeviating regard to truth, and by
never admitting an expression, or even a thought of his own,
when he could find a written document pi'epared to his hand.
While, therefore, it may be the opinion of one class of Read
ers, that Bisliop Skinner's Son ought to have devolved the
whole, or the greater part of the Work now before the Public,
on some more experiehced and more competent writer than he
has proved himself to be; — while it is the opinion of another class,
that, waving the validity of this objection, the method and arrange
ment ofthe Work are unskilful, and display a want of taste equd
to its Conductor's want of talent; — and, while it is the opinion
of a third class, that much irrelevant matter is introduced, by
which means the Annals are not merely devoid of neatness, but
df interest : — the Biographer and Annalist has this supreme
personal consolation, that having considered himself in duty
bound to undertake and conduct the work in the very form id
which it now appears, the form of a text-bopk to the future
Ecclesiastical Historian of Scotland, — no man, let his other
objections be what they will, shall have it in his power to say,
that Mr Skinner has used an expression which truth did not

PREFACE. VU
Warrant him ta tise,— that he has introduced a document which
had not,, for its ultimate object, the elucidating of some plan oi^
his beloved Father's part, for the future prosperity and respec*
tability ofthe Episcopal Church in Scotland, or asserted a fact
which he has not established by ample evidence.
The truth is, that in no Society professing itself Christian,
does there, or can there exist less desire, less temptation to in
novate, than in a regularly constituted Episcopal Church, such
as confessedly is the Episcopal Church in Scotland.^ Like the
Great High Priest of the Christian profession, the Shepherd
and Bishop of souls himself, true religion is " the same yester
day, to-day, and for ever." Hence, although a sectarian spi
rit be daily at work " in telling," or in hearing " some new
thing ;" in " wresting the Scriptures to the destruction'' of
thousands, and in putting glosses and interpretations on the
word of God, which render it literally " of none effect ;" the
« quod semper, quod ubique, quod ab omnibus," in other
words, the faith and practice which have " antiqu'ty, univer
sality, and consent" to support them ; these form the pole-star
ofthe sober-minded Episcopalian, by which, in peace, in confi
dence, and in joy, he steers his course through the quick
sands of modern " confusion, and every evil work," " to the
haven where he would be," the land of everlasting rest. Sa
that " when they shall say," (as is the cry of modern fanati
cism, ) " seek unto them that have familiar spirits,'' (in other
words, " experiences, assurances," and what not), " and unto
wizards that peep and that mutter, should not a people seek
unto their God ?" — " To the Law and to the Testimony," isi
the meek reply of the Churchman. " If they'speak not ac
cording to this word," i. e. if" binding up the testimony," (ad-
heruig to sound i^ctrine only, ) they neglect to seal tjie l^w a-

vui pree;ace.
Hiong 'God's disciples," (to have any respect for the 'positive
institutions of Christianity,) " there is no light in them ;" and
" if the light that is in them be darkness, how great is that dark
ness!" Steadily adhering, therefore, to the test laid down by an in
spired prophet, and " asking for the old paths," the Scottish
Episcopalian " brings every thought into captivity to the obe
dience of Christ " He " boasts not of things without his mea
sure ;'" but believes, and lives, and acts, and hopes, " accord
ing to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed."
And the Kutm. the rule, he holds to be this, " ye are the bo
dy of Christ, and members in particular, and God hath set some
in the Church, first, Apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly,
teachers," &c. In direct opposition to which rule, the " Will-
worshippers'' of the present day do " set," nay, do " heap unto
themselves teachers, having itching ears," being for the most
part " all Apostles, all prophets, all teachers," &c. the " eye
saying to the hand, I have no need of thee; the head to the
feet, I have no need of you !"
But " what concprd hath Christ with Belial ?" " Is Christ
divided ?" — These striking interrogatories of the great Apostle
of the Gentiles, flash such conviction on the mind of the man
who knows and believes that, in baptism, he was made " a
member of Christ, a child of God, and an inheritor of the king
dom of heaven," that he holds on «' the noiseless tenor of his
way," though the cry of " Lo, here is Christ, or lo there," be
continually assailing him ; and " though false prophets be hour
ly employed in deceiving, if it were possible, the very elect."
" In patience does he possess his soul ;" notwithstanding every
where around him is that " strong delusion" which leadeth
the unwary " to believe a lie," '' herein always exercising hira-

preface; IX
self to have a conscience void of offence towards God and to-
wards man."
If the Annalist of Scottish Episcopacy has been fortunate
(enough to establish this fact, in the Work now before a discern
ing Public, as far as regards the Bishops and Clergy of that
Communion, he has obtained his aim ; and the arbiter of taste
in composition, the self-complacent rounder of periods, the fas
tidious critic, and the bewildered fanatic, may sneer at his un
dertaking, but for hira they will sneer in vain.
When the Prince, whose " immortal memory'' is daily toast
ed with " the Majesty of the People," thus addressed the only
Scottish Bishop whom he ever saw, the amiable Bishop Rose of
Edinburgh : " My Lord, are you going to Scotland ?" — " Yes,
Sir, if you have any commands for me." — " I hope," rejoined
^the Prince, ", you will be kind to me, and follow the example
of England." — " Sir," returned the venerable Prelate, " I will
serve you, so far as Law, Reason, and Conscience, will allow
me." Then was the period, the Reader will allow, when law,
reason, and conscience were put to the test : When the Scot
tish Episcopalian " was tried, as it were, by fire ;" there being,
on the one hand, presented to him the continuation of affluence,
worldly honours, and legal establishment; on the other,, nought
but poverty, persecution, and legal oppression ! Which of the
two to choose he hesitated not. In his opinion, " law, reason,' and
conscience," decided in favour of the latter. And how, under
God, the ejected, Church has, without the sacrifice of principle,
been once more restored to freedom, to legal toleration, and to
a state of Comparative independence, the Author hopes that the
, following pages will satisfactorily explain.
In the mean time, the interview which took place at White
hall, December 1688, between the Prince of Orange and the

X PjaEFACE,
- Lord Bishop of Edinburgh, a$ commissioned agent of the Scot
tish Church, having been introduced to the Reader's notice,
justice to both parties demands that the matter should be stat
ed in 9n authenticated sliap^. And as t|)is interyi^ ^ clearly
decided the fate of Scottish Episcopacy, no place for the inser
tion pf si}ch authentic dociiment, in these Annals, seems so
proper as the Preface to them ; gince thus the Reader is, witl^-
•eut the trouble of reference, at once apprised of the circun^-
stances which, leading to the overthrow of that eatablishmen);,
. render this wop^ worthy of every Scottish Episcopalian's and
serious Churchman's regard.
" I have," says th^ venerable Bishop Keith * " ^n original
holograph letter of this Bishop," (the Bishop of Edinburgh,)
" a copy whureof, as containing sundry particulars relating (a
the Ilevolntion in 1688, may not, J reckon, be unacceptable ta
several persons. It was wrjtjian, or bears date, at Edinburgbj
October 22, 1713," a^nd i^ as follows : —
** Because yoij desire a short history of my own proceedings
und conduct when in London, at the late Revolution, I shall,
for your satisfaction, and that of others, set down a short and
plaih sum of it, which is as follows : —
" When, in October 1688,' the Scots Bishops came to know
the intended invasion by the Prince of Orange, a good many of
them being then in Edinburgh, and meeting together, concerted
and sent up a loyal address to the King, f Afterwards, in No
vember, finding that the Prince was landed, and foreseeing the
dreadful convulsions that were like to ensue, and not knowing
what damages might •arise thence both to Church and State,
* See Catalogue of Scottish Bishops, p. 11. — a work become very scarce.
j £qr tiiis Addf ees see Skiopr s £ccles. fii^t. of Scpttand, Vol. IL p. 51^.

preface, XI
they resolved to send up two of their number to the King,
with a renewed tender of their duty; instructing them also to
wait on the Bishops of England for their advice and assistance,
in case that any unlucky thing might possibly happen to occur
with respect to our Church. This resolution being taken, it
was represented by the two Archbishops to his Majesty's Privy
Council, in which the Lord Perth sat as Chancellor, and was
agreed to and approved by them. Whereupon, at the next
meeting of the Bishops, it was not thought fit, even by the
Archbishops themselves, that any of them, (though they were
men of the greatest ability and experience,) should go up, as
being less acceptable to the English Bishops,' from their having
consented to the taking off the sanguinary laws against the Pa
pists ; and so that undertaking was devolved over upon Dr
Bruce, Bishop of Orkney, and me,— he having suffered for not
agreeing to that project,' and I not concerned, as not being a
Bishop at that time ; and accordingly a Commission was drawn
up and signed for us two, December 3. 1688. The Bishop of
Orkney, promising to come back from that country in eight or
ten days time, that we might journey together, occasioned my
stay. But when that time was elapsed, I had a letter from him,
signifying that he had fallen very ill, and desiring me to go up
by post as soon as I could, promising to follow as soon as health
would serve. Whereupon I took post, and in a few days, com
ing to Northallerton, where, hearing of the King's having left
Rochester, I stood doubtful with myself whether to go forward
or return ; but, considering the various and contradictory ac
counts I had got all along upon the road, and that in case of
the King's retirement, matters would be so much the more
dark and perplexed, I resolved to go on^ that I jnight be able
to give a just account of things to my brethren here, from time

kii preface.
to time, and have the advice of the English Bishops, whom I
ne\^er doubted to find'unalterably fii"m to their Master's inter-~
est. And as this was the occasion of ray coming to London, sd,
by reason ofthe continuance ofthe Bishop of Orkney's illness,
that difficult task fell to my share alone.
" The next day after my arrival at London I waited on the
Archbishop of Canterbury, (to whom I had the honour to be
known some three years before ;) and, after roy presenting, and
his Grace's reading my commission, his Grace said, ' That raat-
• ters were very dark, and the cloud so thick and gross that
' they could not see through it ; they knew not well what to do
' for themselves, and far less what advice to give me ; that there
• was to be a meeting of Bishops with him that day, and desir-
• ed me to see him a week thereafter.' I next waited on the then,
Bishop of St Asaph, (being niy acquaintance also,) who treated
me ih such a manner that I could not but see through his in
clinations, wherefore I resolved to visit him no more, nor to ad
dress myself to any others of that order, till I should have occa
sion to learn something farther about them. Wherefore, the
week thereafter, I repaired again to Lambeth, and told his
Grace all that passed between St Asaph and me ; who, smiling
ly, replied, ' That St ASaph was a good man, but an angry
' Hian ;' and withal told me, ' that matters still continued dark,
' and that it behoved me to wait the issue of their Convention,
' which, he suspected, was only tliat which could give light and
' open the scene ;' but withal desired me to come to him from
time to time, and if any thing occurred he would signify it to
rae. In that wearisome season, (wearisome to me, because, ac
quainted with few, save those of our own countrymen, and of
these I knew not whom to trust, ) I waited on the Bishop of
Iiondon, and entreated hjm to speak to the Prince to put £i.stcip

PREFACE. xiii
to the persecutions of our Clergy, — but to no purpose. I was
also \^ith the then Dr Burnet upon the same design, but with
no success, who told me 'he did not meddle in Scottish affairs.'
i was also earnestly desired by the Bishop of London and the
then Viscount of Tarbat, and some other Scottish Peers, to
wait upon the Prince, and to present him with an address upon
that head I asked, ' whether I or my address would meet with
' acceptance or success, if it did not compliment the Prince
' upon his descent to deliver us from popery and slavery. '
They said ' that was absolutely necessary.' I told them, ' I
' was neither instructed by my constituents so to do, neither
' had I myself clearness to do it; and that, in these terms, I
' neither could nor would, either visit or address his Highness.'
" In that season also I had the honour to be acquainted with,
and several times visited, the worthy Dr Turner, Bishop of Ely,
¦whose conversation was very nseful to me, and every way agree
able. And, besides these Bishops already mentioned, I had not
the honour to be acquainted with any other ; and thus the whole
time ofthe Convention was passed off, excepting what was spent
in necessary duties, and in visiting our countrymen, even until
the day that the dark scene was opened by the surprising vote
of abdication ; on which I went over to Lambeth. What passed
there betwixt his Grace and me, (being all private,) 'tis both
needless, and would be very tedious, and perchance not so
very proper to write, it. In the close, I told his Grace, that I
would make ready to go home, and only wait on his Grace once
more before I took my journey.
" While I was making my visits of leave to my countrymen,
I was surprisingly told that some 'two or three of them, attempt
ing to go home without passes, were, the first stage, stopt up-
pn the road, and that none were to expect passes -without v.-ait-?

XIV PREFACE.
ing on the Prince I Whereupon I repaired ^gain to Lambeth, to
have his Grace's advice ; who, considering the necessity of that
compliment, agreed, to my making it. Upon my applying to the
Bishop of London to introduce me, his Lordship asked me^
' Whether I had any thing to say to the King?' (so was thet
stile in England then.) I replied, ' I had nothing to say, savft
' that I was going for Scotland, being a member of the Conven-
"- tion ; for I understood, that, without waiting on the Prince,'
(that being the most common Scottish stile,) ' I could not have
• a pass ; and that without that I must needs be stopt upon the
' road, as several of my countrymen had been.' His Lordship
aisked me again, saying, ' Seeing the Clergy have been and are
' so routed and barbarously treated by the Presbyterians, will
' you not speak to the King to put a stop to that and in favour
• of your own Clergy ?' My reply was, ' that the Prince had
• been often applied to in that matter by several of the nobility,
' and addressed also by the sufferers themselves, and yet all (q
•• no purpose, wherefore I could have no hopes that my inter-
• cessions would be of any avail ; but if his Lordship thought
< otherwise I would not decline to make them.' His Lordsh^
asked me farther, • Whether any of our countrymen would go
• along with rae,' and spoke partly of Sir George Mackenzie.
I replied, ' I doubted nothing of that.' Whereupon his Lord
ship bade me find him out ; that both he and I should be at
court that day against three in the afternoon, and that he would
surely be there to introduce us. AU which I, having found Sir
George, imparted to him, who liked it very welj, and said, ' it
' was a good occasion, and wished that several of our nobility
• might be advertised by us to be there also.' To which I re
plied, ' that I doubted much, whether, coming in a body, lie
* (the Prince) would give US access ; ^nd tl^at our nobility would

PREFACE. XV
• be much offended at us, if, coming to court upon oui^ invita-
« tion, access should be denied them ; and therefore I thought
* it best that we alone should meet the Bishop at the time ap-
* pointed, and advise with him what was fit to be done,' — which
was agreed to. Upon our meeting with the Bishop, Sir Georgfe
made that overture to his Lordship, which he closing with,
very warmly said, ' he would" go in to the King, and see if he
' would appoint a time for the Scottish Episcopal nobility and
•• gentry to wait upon hira in favour of the Clergy of Scotland
' so sadly persecuted. Whereupon the Bishop, leaving us in a
' room of Whitehall, near adjoining to the place ,where the
• Prince was, staid above a full half hour from us, and, upon
• his return, told us, that the King's answer was,' ' he would
' not allow us to come to him in a body, lest that might give
* jealousy and umbrage to the Presbyterians ; neither would he
' permit them, for the same reason, to come to him in numbers,
• and that he would not allow above two of either party, at a
' time, to speak to him on Church matters.' Then the Bishop,
directing his discourse to me, said, ' My Lord, you see that the
' King, having thrown himself upon the water, must keep him-
' self a-swimming with one hand. The Presbyterians have join-
• ed him closely, and offer to support him ; and therefore he can-
' not cast them off", unless he could see how otherwise he can
' be served.' And the King bids me tell you, ' that he now
' knows the state of Scotland much better than he did when he
• was in Holland ; for while tliere he was made believe that Scot
land, generally all over, was Presbyterian, but now he sees that
• the great body of the nobility and gentry are for Episcopacy,
' and it is the trading and inferior sort that are for Presbyte-
« ry;' wherefore he bids rae tell you, 'that if you will undertake
' to serve him to the purpose that he is served here in England,

XVI preface;
' he will take you by the hand, support the Church and order,
* and throw off the Presbyterians.' My answer to this was,
' My Lord, I cannot but thank the Prince for his frankness and
' offer ; but vi^ithal I must tell your Lordship, that when I came
• from Scotland, neither my brethren nor I apprehended any
' such revolution as I have seen now in England ; and therefore
' I neither was ndr could be instructed by them what answer to
* make to thie Prince's offer ; and thetefore what I say is not in
' their name; but only my private opinion, which is, that I tru-
' ly think they will not serve the PrinCe a^ he is served here in
' England, that is; as I take it, to make him their King, nor
' give their suffrage for his being King ; and though, as to this
' matter, I can say nothing in their name, and as from them,
' yet I for myself must say, that, rather than do so, I will aban-
' don all the interest that eithei- 1 have or may expect to have
? in Britain.' Upon this the Bishop commended my openness
and ingenuity, and said; ' he believed it waS so ; for,' says he,
' all the time you have been here, neither have you waited on
' the King, nor have any of your Brethren, the Scots Bishops,
' made any addreSs to him ; so the King must be excused for
' standing by the Presbyterians.'
" Immediately upon this, the Prince, going somewhere a-
broad, comes through our room, and Sir George Mackenzie
takes leave of him ih very few words. I applied td the Bishop,
and said, ' My Lord, there is now no farther place for apply-
' ing in our Church-matters, and this opportunity of taking
« leave of the Prince is lost ; wherefore, I beg, that your Lord-
• ship would introduce me for that eff'eet, if you can, next day,
« about ten or eleven o'clock in the forenoon.' This his Lord
ship promised and performed. And, upon my being admitted
Into the Prince's presence, he came three or four steps fof-

PREFACE. xvii
ward frona his company, and prevented me, by saying, ' My
' Lord, ai"e you going for Scotland ?' My reply was, ' Yes, Sir,
' if you have any commands for me.' Then he said, ' I hope
< you will be kind to me, and follow the example of England.'
Wherefore, being somewhat difficulted how to make a manner
ly and discreet answer, without entangling myself, I readily
replied, ' Sir, I will serve you, so far as law, reason, and con-
' science, will allow me.' How this answer pleased I cannot
well tell ; but it seems the limitations and conditions of it were
not acceptable ; for instantly the Prince, without saying any
more, turned away froin, me, and went back to his company.
" Considering what had- passed the day before, I was much
surprised to find the Prince accost me in these terms ; but I
presume that either the Bishop (not having time) had not ac
quainted him with what had passed, or that the Prince propos
ed to try what might be made of me, by the honour he did me
of that immediate demand ; and as that was the first, so it was
the last time I had the honour to speak with his Highness.
*' The things I Write were not only upon the matter, but in
the self-same individual words that I have set them"down,— whe
ther what the Bishop of London delivered as from the Prince
was so or not I cannot certainly say ; but I think his Lordship's
¦word was good enough for that ; or whether the Prince would
have stood by his promise of casting off the Presbyterians and
protecting us, in case we had come into his interest, I will not
determine, though this seems the most probable to me, and that
for these reasons : He had the Presbyterians sure on his side,
both from interfest and inclination ; many of them having come
over with him, and the rest having appeared so warmly fdr him,
that, with no good grace imaginable, could they return to King
James's interest. Next, by gaining, as he might presume to
gain, the Episcopal nobility afld gentry, which he saw was a

sviii I PREFACE.
great party, and consequently that King James would be de
prived of his principal support. Then he saw what a hardship
it would be upon the Church of England, and of what bad con
sequence to see Episcopacy ruined in Scotland, who, no doubt,
would have vigorously interposed for us, if we, by our carriage,
could have been brought to justify their measures. And I ara
the more confirmed in this ; for, after my coming down here,
my Lord St Andrews and I, taking occasion to wait on Duke
Harailton, his Grace told us, a day or two before the sitting
down of the Convention, that he had it in special charge from
King William, that nothing should be done to the prejudice of
Episcopacy in Scotland, in case the Bishops could by any means
be brought to befriend his interest ; and played us most pa
thetically, for our own sake, to follow the example ofthe Church
of England. To which my Lord St Andrews replied, that ' both
* by natural allegiance, the laws, and the most solemn oaths,
' we were engaged in the King's interest ; and that we were,
• by God's grace, to stand by it in the face of all dangers and
' to the greatest losses ;' subjoining, that his Grace's quality
and infiuence put it into his hands to do his Majesty the great
est service and himself the greatest honour ; and that if he act
ed otherwise, it might readily lie as a heavy lash and curse
both upon himself and family. I can say no more for want of
paper, save that I am, as before,
« Alex. Edinb."
To the letter, Bishop Keith adds the following N. B.
" This letter was written to the Hon. Archibald Campbell,
Bishop.

MEMOIR

OF

BISHOP SKINNER.

MEMOIR, %c.

The late Senior Bishop and Primu? of the Scotch
Episcopal Church, was the second son of the
Rev. John Skinner, Episcopal clergyman, for 64
years and upwards,' in the parish of Longside, in
the district of Buchan and county of Aberdeen.
His mother was the eldest daughter of the Rev.
Mr Hunter^ the only Episcopal clergyman in the
remote islands of Shetland, and the last of the
Episcopal persuasion whose services were sought
for, in that detached part of the British empire.
That Bishop Skinner was eminently blessed in
both his parents, he himself has not failed to make
known, having, in the year 1809, published an
. A 2

4< MEMOIR OF
interesting bipgraphical memoir of his father, pre
fixed to the learned theological works of that
distinguished divine ; in which memoir, he gives
the following amiable character of his beloved
mother : — that " t© her husband she was the first
of all earthly blessings, a sweetly, soothing, af
fectionate wife, his dear companion, who minis
tered tenderly to all his wants for the uncommon
space of 58 years."
The subject ofthe preserit Memoir was born on
the 17th of May 1744, and educated, with an el
der brother, at the parochial sdhool of Longside.
When in his ninth year, it happened that his fa
ther was very unexpectedly apprehended, and,
by a warrant of the Sheriff-substitute of Abei'*-
deenshire, committed to the common jail ofthe
county, being charged with a breach of the act
of Parliament, which deprived the Episcopal cler
gy in Scotland of the right of officiating to more
than four persons, besides their own families.
Mr Skinner " unwilling," says his biographer,
" to give the court any trouble in calling evidence
to prove his having been guilty of this offence,
emitted before the Sheriff a voluntary corifessiori,
acknowledging that, in the discharge of his pro
fessional duty, he had been in the practice of offi
ciating to more than the statuted number ; in

BISHOP SKINNER.

consequence of which confession he was senten
ced to six months imprisonment, which, commen
cing on the 26th of May 1753, ended on the same
day in November following."
It may naturally be supposed that a clergyman
so respected through life as Mr Skinner was, be
ing carried to prison like a common felon, would
excite, in no small degree, the indignation of his
hearers, and of the whole surrounding country.
The boys at school regarded the event with unu
sual emotions of consternation and alarm ; and,
deeming imprisonment a prelude to execution,
they so wrought on the tender and affectionate
hearts of Mr Skinner's sons, that they actually
believed they never should be permitted to see
their beloved father again.
From that moment, John became the most
•miserable little creature alive. He loathed his
food, his sleep forsook him, and he would have
pined to death, had not his father been permitted
to receive him as his companion and bed-fellow
in prison, where, it was remarked, the boy had
not been a week immured, when he became as
well and as lively as ever.
Previous to his going to College, John, to
gether with his elder brother, James Skinner,
(who died upwards of twenty years ago in North

6 memoir of
America,) was committed to the charge of his
grandfather, parochial schoolmaster of Epht, in
the county of Abetdeen ; a man, " whose dili-
gec'jj'jB was such in the line of his profession, that
he fitted out more young men for the university
than most country schoolmasters of his day*."
And when the reader is informed, that Mr Skin
ner of Longside had himself no other instructor
in the Latin language, yet was pronounced " to
have written the best Latin of any Scotchman
since Buchanan," the above eulogium, from the
pen of his pupil and grandson, cannot be deemed
merely complimental.
Although competently skilled in the learned
languages, whether it was that the son found-
himself no match for his father in classical at
tainments, or that, though a fond admirer of
Latin verse, his genius took a different bent.
Bishop Skinner never attempted Latin composi
tion in any form. Nor does he seehti, as was his
father's case, to have attracted notice, while a
student at Marischal College in the University of
Aberdeen, beyond that which a youth, whose
talents are respectable and morals correct, does
at all times attract.
* See Vol. I. of Theological Works of Mr Skinner of Long-
side, p. 4'.

BISHOP SKINNER. 7
Having, in the year 1761, finished his mathe
matical and philosophical studies, Mr John Skin
ner, as is common with candidates for holy orders
in Scotland, was employed as a private tutor j in
which capacity he lived for two years, in the
family of Sir Hugh Paterson of Bannockburn,
near Stirling. That, at this period, the father
and son occasionally corresponded in Latin is
not improbalale, since, in December I76I, the
former addressed to the latter an Ode in Latin
Sapphic verse, M^hich the Bishop has published
in the memoir of his father's life ; and which, as
the following letter wiU shew, has been admired
for the charming domestic picture which it ex
hibits. LETTER I.
LORB WOODHOUSELEE TO BISHOP SKINNER.
Edinburgh, November 28. 1809.
" I had the pleasure of receiving a few days
ago, from Mr Moir the printer, the two copies
of your father's posthumous works ; one of them
very elegantly bound, as I understand, according
to your directions. This favour was not necessary,
in addition to the honour you did me in dedi-

8 MEMOIR OF
eating the volume of poetry to me, in terms (I
fear) of unmerited encomium ; an honour, howr
ever, of which I am justly proud, as not only
affording me a valued testimony of your regard,
but as associating my name with a character so
highly respectable, both fpr his virtues and liter
ary talents, as your venerable father.
" With his exemplary worth and abilities, as
it was not my good fortune to bp acquainted
from personal knowledge, farther than the inter
change of a letter or two in the very end of his
days, I have now obtained a very competent ac
quaintance from the ample and excellent memoir
which you have drawn up of his life,' This bio
graphical account, I think, you have executed
with great judgment, blending the detail of facts
with the progressive history of the writings and
literary correspondence, so as to form, on the
whole, a very interesting and instructive nar
rative. The concluding part I particularly ad
mire, and indeed could not read it without emo-
tjon. '• It was well judged to make the volume pf
poetry a separate publication. But I trust that
when a new edition of this volume is called for,
you will render it complete, by the insertion of all
those poetical pieces which are printed in the

BISHOP SKINNER. y
.other volumes. Of these there are some which
possess very high merit,^ — as the beautiful verses
on the death of your mother, — the address tp
yourself prefixed to the Ecclesiastical History, —
and the Sapphic ode, * Ad filium suum apud
* Bannockburn,' — ^which contains a charming
domestic picture.
" I cannot help regretting that these make no
, part of the poetical volume, as they would have
shone conspicuously among the productions of
the author's muse. If this hint should be adopt
ed in any subsequent edition of the poems, I
would recommend likewise the recovery, if pos
sible, ^of all the little pieces which are mentioned
as a-missing ; — ^lost indeed they cannot be, for
their merit must have imprinted them on the me
mory of many yet alive, although no written co
pies may be found. Dr Doig's excellent verses,
entitled ' Fortuna Mediocris,' which were meant
to be descriptive of your father's life, and which
he justly therefore says, ' Mihi fortunasque mese
' totam vendico,' should certainly find a place ir^
the poetical volume. Perhaps I ought to ask your
pardon for the liberty I take in thus offering my
advice ; but the interest you have given me in
that volume will, I trust, be sufficient apology.
Qf your father's theological writings, and of his

10 MEMOIR OF
opinions on sacred subjects, it would be great
presumption in rae to offer any judgment. A large'
portion of the former is connected with a branch
of learning of which I have no knowledge. Of
the latter I can only say, that, so far as I am fit
to judge of them, they are congenial to my own.
Nor can I form a better wish on those matters of
most serious import than, —
' Sit anima nostra cum sua.' "
In the year 1763, such was the want of labour
ers in the humble vineyard of the Scotch Epis-
cdpal Church, that, although but recently entered
into his 20th year, Mr John Skinner was, by his
ever zealous father, thus urgently required, in a
letter addressed to him at Bannockburn, to quit
his comfortable situation in that family, and re
pair to Aberdeen for admission into holy orders.
LETTER IL
MR SKINNER, LONGSIDE, TO HIS SON AT BANNOCK
BURN.
Linshart, June 5. 1763.
" I hope this will be the last letter I shall need
to write to you, till we meet. Your time is out

BISHOP SKINNER. 11
the end of June, and there is great need of your
making all the dispatch you can, I had your last
the other day, and was doubly glad to find you
in good health, and so busy in preparing for your
new state of life. You will soon begin to see
what a laborious employment ours is, and how
much they must be disappointed who foolishly
enter into it for ease. I know this is not your
case, but I make the observation to assist you to
contemn all who either act or think after that piti
ful way ! I have seen none pf the Ellon folks, the
Dudwick family excepted, since I wrote last, but
have frequent occasions of hearing concerning
them, and how keen they continue for your set
tlement among them. A great many of the
worldly wise are, indeed, surprised at your incli
nation and my consent ; but ' the wisdom of this
world,' — you know what it is, — ' coram Deo stul-
titia j' — and if there should be what these folks
would call loss by it, you serve a good Master,
who can make you up, and upon him, I trust, it
is that you depend. I had intimated to the Bi
shop your consent to his plans, immediately on
receipt of yours' to that purpose ; but it seems my
letter had, somehow or other, miscarried; so that,
after waiting some little time, I wrote him again,
which found the honest man so much distressed

12 MEMOIR OF
with the gout that he could not handle the pen,
but earnestly begged that I would make a stretch
to see him, and converse with him on the subject.
I went accordingly, and found him intent on
your ordination, as, in this pressing exigency, he
thought himself at liberty to dispense with the
canonical years, and paid you the compliment to
9ay, ' he neither feared your capacity nor your
•behaviour.' On my return I was a night at
Dudwick, where the family were all pleased with
the Bishop's determination, and fond of having
you among them. The living, they fear, will not
be great, but, from what they tell me, it will be
no way inferior to my own ; and you know that
you do not labour under the disadvantages I did,
on my entering into the world. While I flatter
myself the prospect of doing God and religion
service, and that, too, so near to me, will induce
you to put up with little, and there is no fear of
starving ! Were I to chalk out a route for you, I
would have you come north by Brechin, to Mr
Lunan's at Northwater-bridge, where you may
attend prayers on a Sunday, and be at Banchory
to tea on Monday afternoon, at which place I
shall meet you. This is my scheme for the begin
ning of a week, because I don't choose to be from
home of a Sunday ; and, if you can order your

BISHOP SKINNER. 13
matters accordingly, let this be the first Monday
of July, — July 4th. I do not, however, propose
to fix you, as I do not know your mind on the
subject. You will therefore fully resolve before
you write, and let me know, that I may concert
according to your motions. In any shape choose
the way most convenient for yourself, as I can
defer visiting my father till afterwards ; only let
your journey take place as soon as possible, as
the people and Bishop are much importuning me
on that score. With respect to your apparent
change, we can talk more properly of that at meet
ing j whicli I wish God may make and continue
happy to us both. Only, I repeat, you are not
to expect ease or affluence ; but with an inten
tion to do God and religion service, you are to do
your best, and leave events to him."
Having acquiesced in this summons, Mr John
Skinner was ordained by Bishop Gerard of Aber
deen, on his arrival there, and settled in the
charge of two congregations, at that time widely
separated, but which, under his own auspices,
as their Bishop, he lived to see so far happily
united, that a chapel in the village of Ellon, six
teen miles northward of Aberdeen, ^was actually
to have been opened for their joint accommod^-

14 MEMOIR Of
tion, by himself, on the 25th July, St James' Day,
1816, for which occasion a sermon was found
in his writing-desk ready for delivery. The Bi
shop, alas! was buried on the 19th day of that
month ; but the clergyman now 'serving the
Cure, having had this posthumous discourse of
his diocesan consigned to him, did, after an ap
propriate prefatory address, deliver it from -the.
pulpit the day on which the chapel was opened,
when the impression made by it on the good
people was such as will not speedily be] obliter
ated. In this extended charge young Mr Skinner
laboured most assiduously and usefully for the
space of eleven years ; having, for the first two or
three years of his incumbency, to officiate dur
ing the summer season twice every Sunday, and
to travel no less a distance than 15 or 16 miles
to and from the different chapels where his peo--
pie assembled : — the emoluments of the charge,
from written documents under his own hand,
varying from L,25 to L.30 per annum.
In the year 1764, when Mr Skinner had httle
more than completed his 20th year, he was most
respectably and happily married to a parishioner
of his beloved father's, and the only daughter of
a deceased brother- clergyman, the late Rev. Wil
liam Robertson of Dundee.

BISHOP SKINNER. ' 15
This gentleman being the younger son of Tho
mas Robertson, Esq. of Downiehills in Aberdeen
shire, and having married Jane, daughter of Sir
John Guthrie, formerly of King-Edward, at that
time of Ludquharn, Baronet, was originally pas
tor of the Episcopal congregation in Longside,
where the estate of Ludquharn is situated,-^and
therefore Mr Skinner senior's immediate prede
cessor in that numerous and respectable charge.
On the melancholy event of Mr Robertson's
death, which happened when his daughter was
in her 9th year, his widow and family returned
to their relatives in the north country. Hence
it happened, that from their childhood Mr Skin
ner and Miss Robertson were intimately ac
quainted,-— which acquaintance ripened into mu
tual attachment and regard, — so that no sooner
was Mr Skinner settled in a little farm belonging
to Mr Fullarton of Dudwick, whose son was the
husband of Miss Robertson's aunt, than they
were happily united on the 27th day of August
1764, and continued to live together in the full
enjoyment of conjugal and domestic bliss for the
space of 43 years. To add to Mr Skinner's
comfort and respectability in. his married state,
no sooner was Mrs Robertson freed from her at
tendance on an aged mother, than she became

16

MEMOIR OF

an inmate of his family ; where she continued to
live " a Christian in deed and in truth," until she
had completed her 90th year !
In the year 1775, when Mr Skinner had be
come the happy parent of three daughters and
two sons, (the youngest of whom died in in
fancy,) a wider field of usefulness Opened upon
him. By the death of the Rev. William Smith,
one of the Episcopal clergy in the city of Aber
deen, a vacancy took place, which the subject of
this Memoir was well quahfied to fill ; and to fill
it he was, by the Bishop and people, unanimously
invited. Mutually, however, attached to each
other, as he and his flock in the country were,
it was with no small reluctance that Mr Skinner
acceded to the proposal. Nor would he have
acceded, had it not been that the education of a
rising family rendered the proposed change of
situation almost a matter of necessity. At the
period when he entered on his new charge, it
did not consist of 300 people ; yet such was Mr
Skinner's zeal in his holy calling, that he had not
served the cure above twelve months when ad
ditional accommodation was required. But, in
1776, even the idea of erecting an ostensible
churchUke place of worship dared not be che
rished by Scotch Episcopalians, Hence was Mr

BISHOP SKINNER. 17
Skinner obliged to look out for some retired si
tuation, down a close or little alley, and there,
at his own individual expence, to erect a large
dwelling house j the two upper floors of which,
being fitted up as a chapel, were devoted to the
accommodation of his daily increasing flock, and
the two under floors to the residence of his fa
mily. In this house, which contained between 500
and 600 people, Mr Skinner continued for the
space of nineteen years to discharge his ministe
rial oflSce ; when the penal laws being at last
happily repealed, and not a single seat to be pro
cured, he and his flock were induced to set sub
scription papers on foot, for building a proper
and commodious edifice as a chapel, capable of
accommodating from 700 to 800 people. This
desirable measure was accomplished in the year
1795 J while such continued to be the success of
this worthy man's labours, that, having possess
ed this house for twenty years, it also became
crowded to such excess, that the public spirit
ed members of his flock urged him, not many
months before his death, to set about erecting,
in the spacious street which forms the north en
try to the city of Aberdeen, a truly magnificent
structure, capable of containing no fewer than

18 MEMOIR OF
1100 people, and fitted up in a manner more ap
propriate and i churchlike than any edifice ofthe
kind northward of the Forth. This, to him ever
grateful work, their beloved pastor set about
with all the ardour of youth ; and, although he
lived not to assemble his people within its walls,
yet he lived to see the plan matured, and the
walls of the building raised some feet above the
level . of the ground. To his immortal honour,
and in evidence of their indelible attachment to
him, and gratitude for his pious labours among
them, the congregation of St Andrew's Chapel, .
Aberdeen, aided byother zealous friends of Scotch
Episcopacy, have placed in the chapel a full
length statue of its founder, by Flaxman of Lon
don, one of the first artists of this or any other
country, thus verifying the declaration of the
Psalmist,-— " The righteous shall be had in everlasting remembrance."
To the whole body of Scotch Episcopalians,
as well as to their immediate spiritual governors,
it must have been clearly visible, that such a
- man as Mr Skinner of Aberdeen was, on every
account, a fit person to be invested with tbe
highest ecclesiastical dignity in the church in
which he served. For, as the glory of God and the

BISHOP SKINNER. 19
good of souls actuated his conduct at all times,
and in all seasons, his talents and acquirements,
joined to characteristic zeal and firmness, pru
dence, and self-command, were peculiarly adapt
ed to the arduous task of elevating a society so
depressed and cast down as was the Scotch Epis
copal Church about the middle of the last centu
ry, when Mr Skinner took part of her ministry*
The Right Rev. Robert Kilgour, of Peter
head, a man of uncommon benignity of mien
and manner, and of the greatest private worth,
had succeeded, in autumn I76O, to the charge
of the diocese of Aberdeen, then become vacant
by the death of Bishop Gerard. But the duties of
the oflfice, as he advanced in life, proving too great
for his naturally delicate frame. Bishop Kilgour,
with the unanimous consent of his clergy, appli
ed to the Episcopal College for a Bishop co- ad
jutor to him in his extensive diocese. His col
leagues chearfully acquiescing in this measure, Mr
Skinner of Aberdeen was duly elected jto the of
fice of a Bishop by the clergy ofthe district, and
consecrated at Luthermuir, in the diocese of
Brechin, on the 25th day of September 1782, by
the Bishops — Kilgour of Aberdeen, Ross of Dun
blane, and Petrie of Ross and Moray. A^^d such,
in the space of four years, was the confidence
b2

20 MEMOIR OP
with which Bishop Skinner, then only in his 4i2d
year, inspired the venerable members ofthe Epis
copal College in Scotland, that Bishop Kilgour,
having been nominated Primus Sootias Episco
pus, on tbe death of Bishop Falconer of Edin
burgh, in 1784, did, with the appfobatioa and
consent of the College, divest himself entirely
©f all Episcopal relation to the diocese of Aber
deen, retaining the of&ce of Primus only, and
was succeeded by his co-adjutor. Bishop Skinner,
in terms ofthe ninth Synodical Canon of 1743*.
From that period, the Bishop of Aberdeen is
known to have devoted every thought of his heart
and every faculty of hi? mind towards rendering
the sadly depressed church in which he served,
alike respectable and " worthy of all accepta
tion" in the eyes of men, as he trusted, by rea
son of her resemblance in doctrine and discip-
line to the primitive church of Christ, she would
be found acceptable in the sight of God, and
conformable to his holy word and will.
But although a Memoir of the life of Bishop
. Skinner must also jwove an interesting narrative
of the history of the Scotch Episcopal Church,
* See Skinner's Secies. History of Scotland, Vol. JL p.
683.

BISHOP SKINNER. 21
from the date at which his revered father con-
eludes his Letters on the Ecclesiastical History
of Scotland, yet the author of these pages, aware
that he possesses neither the talents nor the ac-
quifiettients which befit an historian, has been in
duced to frame his narrative in the more humble
form of " Annals qf Scotch Episcopacy.''
Before, however, entering on " his work and
labour of love," for which Bishop Skinner's pa*
pers afford him the most ample and authentic
materials, justice to the Bishop's memory re
quires his biographer to state, that, though ac
cused by some of his countrymen and contem
poraries of being ambitious, and more eager for
tbe immediate success of his measures than for
their permanent utility, — at no period of his life
did selfish or sinister motives for one moment
influence his thoughts, much less his words or
his actions. When his small pecuniary means,
and the expences of maintaining and educat
ing his family are taken into account, Bishop
Skinner's liberality to the clergy of his diocese,
and his hospitality towards all and sundry re
commended to his notice, were truly wonderful.
Under God, however, such good management
may be said to have been the peculiar work
of Mrs Skinner, who, as a wife, a mother, and a

22 MEMOIR OF
house-keeper, never in any sphere of life had a
superior. This, alas! when his amiable partner
came to be numbered with the dead, the good
Bishop lived to feel, beyond what in his lifetime
even he had any idea of. To the sick, the aged
and the infurm, he himself was not more regular^
in dischargipg the necessary pastoral duties, than
was the wife of bis bosom in tendering them her
personal aid ; more frequently discharging the
duties of nurse and sick-bed attendant, than ex
hibiting the formal and unavailing sympathies of
friendship, " falsely so called !" It was in con
sequence of carrying the offices of charity and
mercy beyond what attention to her own growing
infirmities required, that Mrs Skinner was so
suddenly arrested in ber Christian course ! AU
though very unwell, no personal considerations
would restrain her from passing a most tempes*
tuous day, in the end of February 1807, with a
widowed lady, then on her death-bed, who, be
ing a stranger in Aberdeen, was without a female
friend to minister to her wants or soothe her
sorrows. From that lady's house, Mrs Skinne?
walked home at night ; but went tp bed, alas ! to
rise from it no more. An obstruction had taken
place, which resisted the most powerful prescrigr
tions oY medical skill ', and, in the mo|'iiipg ofthe

BISHOP SKINNER. S3
4th of March, in the arms of her devoted husband,.
she resigned her pious spirit into the hands of
bim who gave it. In announcing the sad event
to his aged fether, thus feelingly does the sur
viving sufferer depict the loss which he and his
family had sustained,
" Great is the loss which we have all sustained
on this most melancholy occasion. But her own
family, O ! what have they nof lost, — one of the
most tender and affectionate mothers, — so anxious-
for their welfare,— so kind and attentive to them.
in every situation ! If it were not that I have
already been obliged io write so much upon this-
most affecting subject, I should wonder at my
being still able to dwell upon it, and give vent
to those feelings which, in my mind, are inse
parable from it. There is a luxury in indulging*
this kind of sober, serious grief, while it tends tc
cherish the resignation of the heart, and keeps-
at a distance every repining thought. -May no-
such thought ever find a place in my breast, for
tified, as I trust it will always be, by the aid of
an Almighty comforter, and a grateful sense of
the many blessings I still enjoy j the sympathy
of numerous friends, and the affectionate atten
tion of those of my own family, all striving to do'
what they can for my comfort and support. Who

S't . MEMOIR OF
could have the heart to murmur under the im
pression of so many instances of the divine mer
cy and compassion ! Who but would say, in such
a case as what I have now experienced, severe
and trying as it is, — * It is the Lord, let him do
what seemeth him good.' To him it belongs to
act the part of a wise and tender father ; to such a
father we have only to say, * Thy will be done*.' "
Yet, to his family and intimate acquaintances, it
was sufficiently obvious that Bishop Skinner never
recovered frbm the shock, which the removal of
such an helpmate gave to his debilitated frame.
For forty years and upwards^ through her undei-
viating attention to his personal comfort, he had
been a complete stranger to his own bodily wamts^
and in some respects insensibje to his bodily in
firmities. And now that she was gone, such was
his feeling of independence, that he would, on
no account permit his sons and daughters, or any
of them, to become to bim the kind assistant and
comforter that their mother had been. At theidea
of giving trouble to any one, Bishop Skinner uni
formly shrunk ; and such was his abhorrence of
personal ease, that he never failed to characterise
it as criminal. Hence he was induced to persevere
* Works of Mr Skinner, Vel I. p. 212.

BISHOP SKINNER. 25
with undiminished, if not With increased zeal and
activity, not only in his Episcopal, but in his pas
toral duties, to the visible injury of his constitu
tion, which, though naturally hale and sound, was
never robust. The church, his family, and flock,
were indeed blessed with his continuance among
them for the space of nine years after he had been
deprived of her who, under the Great Shepherd
and Bishop of Souls, was his stay and support ;
yet this was a space of comparatively little enjoy
ment to the good Bishop himself. For, though
ahve to the calls of duty beyond what was re
quired of him, having for fourteen years enjoy--
ed the oflficial aid of his youngest son, yet, from
the hour of his beloved partner's demise, Bishop
Skinner became in a manner regardless of do
mestic endearments. The " feast of reason and
the fiow of soul " had no longer any charms foi:
him. In the end of the year 1814, he was seized
with an alarming illness. For weeks he conti
nued in great bodily pain, but happily was never
confined to his bed or to his bedchamber. As
spring 1815 advanced, he recovered so far as to
be released from confinement to the house, and,
though much debilitated, entered with characte
ristic keenness on his professional labours, preach-

26 MEMOIR OF
ing regularly every Sunday, 'discharging more
than his share of the pastoral labours of hig con
gregation, and taking his turn of 4uty as a ma
nager of several charitable institutions in the,
city of Aberdeen, viz.— the Infirmary, the Luna»
tic Hospital, and the Poors'-House. And so
short was the period of his confinement at lastr
that the very forenoon on which he died, Satur-.
day, July 13, 1816, he was in his dining-roomi
and on Friday, the day preceding, at prayers in
the chapel.
To all who were interested in Bishop Skinner's
life, (and, besides his sorrowing family and flockj,
they were not a few,) it was a source of unavaili«
ing regret that their worthy father, bishop, pas
tor, and friend had concealed Trom his physici
ans the fatal disorder, viz. Strangulated Hernial
which at last so speedily terminated his mortal ex
istence. Had this disorder been discovered, and
the neqessary operation undergone at fits com
mencement, his valuable life might for a time
have probably been preserved. But though,
when the case became desperate, the operation
of reducing the Hernia was most dexterously and
successfully performed, morbid symptoms had,
ere then, taken place in the frame at large, and
the Bishop sunk into the sleep ^of death with-

BISHOP SKINKER. 27
out being conscious, to all human appearance^
of any such change befalling him.
Were it not that the writer of this Memoir is
afraid he has already subjected himself to the
charge of unnecessary prolixity in his details,
he would endeavour to do justice to the " sor
rowing not without hope,'' with which Bishop
Skinner's brethren in the Scotch Episcopate,
his clergy, and the Episcopal clergy of Scotland at
large, his flock, his friends, and his fellow-citizens
of all ranks and degrees, received the accounts
of his sudden and unlooked for dissolution!
Hundreds besides the large company who were
specially invited, followed his body to the grave.
And, though apparently ajude rabble had seat
ed themselves on the wails of the Mausoleum, a
burying-place in the 'Spital Church-yard of Old
Aberdeen, near to which his mortal remains are
deposited, yet when the oflSciating clergyman
commenced the funeral service, not a breath was
heard, — not a head but was instantly uncover
ed J — and, while tears were seen to flow apace,
not a trace of disrespect marked the conduct of
the most ragged spectator of the impressive
scene !
On the succeeding Sunday, the 21st of July,
tbe prOximus resident Bishop, the Right Rev,

28 MEMOIR OF
Patrick Torry, of Peterhead, did ample justice to
his late colleague's private and professional cha-
raeter, in an excellent discourse, from the pulpit
of St Andrew's Chapel, Aberdeen j and, in con
cluding this little Memoir, the author takes leave
to express himself in the words of the Sermon,
delivered by a clergyman ofthe diocese of Aber
deen, on the afternoon of the same mournful day,
throughout which the eyes of every auditor were
moistened with tears ; and the gait, the garbj th0
gesture of " high and low, rich and poor, one
with another," — marked the undissembled, the
heartfelt grief, with which they were all deeply
affected. *' That * in the midst of life we are in death/
not a moment passeth without some striking evi* -
dence. — We know not what an hour, much lesl
* what a day may bring forth 1' Little did you, my
Christian friends, imagine, when last assembled
here, that, ere the next Lord's day came round,
you ;were to be deprived of your venerable Bi-.
shop and Pastor ; or, that the lips, which then en^
joined you tp ' buy the truth and sell it not^*'
should so suddenly be sealed by death, never to
address you more !
* It was from these wbrds of Solomon, in Prov. xxiii. v. 25,
thati for the last time, Bishop Skinner spoke from the pulpit.

BISHOP SKINNER. 29
V
*' His Right Rev. colleague and friend has al
ready done such justice to his character in the
church,— to his talents, his zeal, and his unwearied
assiduity in all things pertaining to Christian edi
fication, that I shrink from the thought of adding
my mite of well-earned tribute to his immortal
memory. Convinced, however, that it is a theme
on which all who hear me delight to dwell, I can
not refrain from a feeble attempt to gratify both
you and myself, by something like the truth you
have already heard, — by something like a por
trait of our deceased father, friend, and guardian.
" Nursed in the bosom ofthe church, and train
ed to the oflfice of the holy ministry, by a parent
so eminently qualified, so highly endowed as the
Rev. Mr Skinner of Longside was, it would have
been matter both of surprise and disappointment,
if our late Bishop had not given early promise of
superior usefulness and distinction in the cause
of * true and undefiled religion.' Barely had he
reached his 20th year, when he had two distant
iceuntry congregations consigned to his pastoral
care, tbe duties of which were discliarged by him,
at that juvenile period of his life, in a manner so
highly satisfactory to the people, that, when he
received a call to exercise his sacred oflfice in this
populous city, his flock in the country could hard-

so MEMOIR OF ;
ly be brought to acquiesce in his removal, while
nought but the interests of his young and rising
family would have ; brought him to leave those
who, for the space of eleven years, had honoured
him with sucb-distinguished regard. ,,ir.
" In this numerous and respectable congrega-
tion, however, few are they who recollect the Bi
shop's removal to Aberdeen, while fewer still sur
vive who were instrumental in promoting that
removal. Forty-one years elapse not without
bringing in their train many, many changes;
iiid, such are the changes which the good Bishop,.
himself was accessary to producing, in, the num
ber, circumstances, and accommodation of his
(originally) ' little flock,' that I may truly say,
the ' place thereof knows it no more.' And, if
changes so great, sp encouraging, were effected ,
here, by the blessing of God, through his pastoral
labours, — still are they as nought to the changes,.
which, during the 34 years of his Episcopate, Bi
shop Skinner was instrumental in producing on
the Scotch Episcopal Church at large j — whieJi
church, from a state of obscurity and depression
unknown in the annals of any other regular.
branch of the church of Christ, has risen, under
his fostering hand, to a state of respectability ;

bishop skinner. 51
'and distinction, such as no other merely tolerated
church on earth enjoys.
" My respected clerical brethren here present,
know that our late Primus and spiritual father
found our ' little Zion' sunk under a dark cloud
of political jealousy and suspicion ; — ^he has lefl;
our little Zion a * praise on the earth.' He found
this portion of the * vineyard of the Lord of
' Hosts' chilled, and rendered unfruitful, by the
mists of popular prejudice and worldly wisdom ;
he has lefl it in full bearing, — no longer perse
cuted and forsaken, but counted worthy of ho
nour by all • who, by patient continuance in.
' well-doing, seek for glory, and honour, and im-
• mortality.' * A besieged city' no more ; the
Episcopal church in Scotland has her gates no
more • made desolate ;' every bar and restraint
have happily been removed, so that the-righteous
of all ranks * resort unto her company,' and
* enter into her courts with praise.'
" Should it be enquired how a single individ
ual could have been so instrumental, as Bishop
Skinner is known to have been, in effecting thig
auspicious change on the face of Scottish Epis
copacy ? Without arrogating a tittle of merit to
himself, it was thus that this huihble-minded ser-

S2 ..MEMOIR OF
vant ofthe humble Jesus accounted for his * good
* success :' —
" ' The consecration of JBishop Seabury for
' the state.of Connecticut in North America, first
• introduced me to the knowledge and acquain-
• tance of some eminent divines ofthe Church of
' England. They were the men who thenceforth
•interested themselves so much in the repeal of
' the penal statutes, and in the grievously depres-
' sed situation of our church, that, for my own
* part, I had only to inform them and some invalu-
' able and equally zealous lay friends, what my
,' venerable colleagues and I wished to be done,
* and they did it !'
" Would the man ambitious of worldly fame
have thus meekly relinquished his prize ? Would
the lover of personal distinction more than ,' a
lover of God,' have thus voluntarily denuded
himself of all distinction, and, self-divested as
he was, have chosen lo attribute to others that
good work which his excellent co-operators he
sitate not to acknowledge was, under God, ef
fected by his own unwearied labours, his own
sleepless nights and thoughtful days, — labours
which at last completely undermined a consti
tution which, though never vigorous, was origi
nally so hale and sound that, on his entering in-

BISHOP SKINNER. S3
to the Episcopate, Bishop Skinner had the pros
pect of numbering as many years as his vener
able progenitors. * Many a time did his family,
many a time did his clergy and friends urge him
to be less anxious, less thoughtful on the state of
the church at large, and less occupied (now that
he enjoyed the pastoral assistance of a beloved
son) with the duties of his immediate charge.
In the words of an eminent English divine, Bishop
Cumberland, his uniform answer was, * better
wear out than rust out :' — ^better for me ' to spend
* and be spent,' in my blessed Master's service,
than to waste my life, as some do, in doing no
thing.' " O ! that his bright example may be indelibly
recorded in the Episcopal church in Scotland, as
a pattern to all who engage in her ministry and
service ! And O ! that you, my beloved brethren
in Christ, with the worthy people who now hear
me, and their childrens' children, may maintain
inviolate those principles, and * continue in those
• things' which we and they ' have learned of
* him and been assured of, knowing (as we all do
* His grandfather lived till after 80. His father died at the
age of 86, and his mother at the age of 82. He had recently
completed his 72d year. C

S4< ' Memoir of
' know) of whom he learned them,'— even ofthe
apostles and prophets,— Jesus Christ himself be
ing, ever with him the *. chief corneri-stone.' "
In secular leatmngi, Bishop Skinner was no
adept, his, studies being solely directed to 'the
• knowledge of Jesus Christ and him 'crucified.'
In the arts of ornate composition and methodical
address, he was, as his works bear witness, but
little skilled. His aim was uniformly to edify,
nbt to entertain, an over- anxiety for which ren
dered his style diffuse and tautological^ though it
' was always impressive. His spies and unceasing
desire was to ' shew himself approved unto God,
' — 'a workman that needeth not to be ashamed^
* rightly dividing the word of truth/ In evidence
of which, manuscript sermons in his hand-writing
exist, to the amount of nearly two thousand, and
embrace • the whole counsel of God' revealed- in
holy Scripture. Still, though listened to with
more than ordinary attention, and even pleasurei
Bishop Skinner was. not, in the common accepta
tion of the terms; * a popular preacher;' his at
tractions la,y in' the art of 'comparing spiritual
' things with spiritual,' and of thus illustrating
Scripture by Scripture itself. The lambs of his
flock, as was pi-ophesied of his divine Examplar,

BISHOP SKINNER. 35
he ' gathered with his arm, and carried them in
• his bosom,' imparting to them, in a Sunday
school, which he regularly superintended, and,
throughout the whole season of Lent, in Chapel,
when public worship was over, * precept upon
' precept, line upon line, here a little and there
' a httle,' as their tender minds would bear, until
being ' no more children,' they ' grew up unto
' Him in all things, which is the Head, even
• Christ,' having been duly taught to ' mark'them
• which cause' or encourage • divisions, and to a«
* void them.' The youth of his congregation,
thus * brought up in the nurture and admoni-
' tion of the Lord,' thus ' trained up in the way
* that they should go,' seldom or never * depart-
• ed,' in things essential, from that way ; and
hence was Bishop Skinner's ministry so success
ful as has been already stated.
From the year I786 to the year 1792, he an
nually held two diocesan meetings of his clergy,
and delivered a charge to them at each meeting.
But from 1792 to the year in which he died, his
diocesan meetings were annual only, and took
place at Aberdeen, regularly on the Wednesday
after the third Sunday in August. Hence, his
charges to his clergy amount to no fewer than
thirty- six, and are directed against all the pro-
r o

36 MEMOIR OF
minent errors, schisms, and divisions of modern
times *. •
Of eight children, born to Bishop Skinner,
four have survived him, two sons and two
daughters'. His two sons being educated for the Church,
John, the elder, was ordained, on St Matthias'
day, 1790, by the late Bishop Strachan of Dun
dee ; and, for the last twenty years of his clerical
life, has been settled in the Episcopal charge of
Forfar, in the diocese of Dunkeld. William, the
Bishop's second son, and youngest child, was or-
dained deacon in March 1802, by the late Dr
Samuel Horsley, Bishop of Rochester, and priest
. in the year following by the same distinguished
Prelate, then Bishop of St Asaph ; and, having
assisted his father from that date, was duly con
secrated Bish,op of Aberdeen in his father's stead,
* To present the public with a printed volume or two of
such admirable matter as Bishop Skinner's manuscript char-
ges^nd discourses afford, would, to his executor and biogra
pher, be a most grateful task indeed ! But for him to do so
now, when works of this description are so little esteemed,
without such pecuniary hazard, (not to say loss,) as, in his
situation and circumstances of life, amounts to a virtual pro
hibition, is impossible ! May more propitious times speedily
dawn upon our country.

BISHOP SKINNER. 37
on the 27th October 1816, having been regularly
and canonically elected to that sacred oflfice by
the clergy of the diocese on the 11th day of
September of the same year.
Jane, the elder daughter, is unmarried j the
younger, Mary, is the wife of Alexander Dal-
garno, Esq. merchant in Aberdeen. Grace ex
cepted, who lived till she reached her eighth
year. Bishop Skinner's other children, all boys,
were cut off in infancy.

END OF THE MEMOIR.

ANNALS

OF

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.

41

ANNALS

ov

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.

The Ecclesiastical History of Scotland, by Bir
shop Skinner's father, reaching down from the
first appearance of Christianity in this kingdom
to the first of May 1788, the present humble
Annalist of Scottish Episcopacy is to be under
stood as commencing his labours from that date.
Yetj as the work is meant to be conducted so as
to iUustrate the character, the views, and the ex
ertions of the late senior Bishop and Primus, it
is necessary for the author to trace back his steps
to the year 1784i j when, as was observed in
the excerpt from the sermon above quoted, the
event of Bishop Seabury's consecration, for the
State of Connecticut in North America, first
" introducing Bishop Skinner to the knowledge

42 annals of
and acquaintance of some eniinent divines of the
Church of England," ultimately led to the strik
ing change wrought on the face of the Episcopal ,
Church in Scotland, during the thirty-four years
of the Bishop's Episcopate.
At the time when the Rev. Dr Samuel Sea
bury was in England, (whence he obtained his
letters of orders,) exerting himself for the estab
lishment of a regular 'Episcopacy in the state of
Connecticut in North America, a gentleman of
equal worth and equal eminence in his sjtation,
the Rev. Dr T. B. Chandler, formerly Rector of
Elizabeth-town in the state of New Jersey, was
resident also in th& British Metropolis, entrusted
with a similar commission by the Episcopal clergy
of Nova Scotia, in aid of the church in that set
tlement. On the first day of April 1785, Bishop Skinner
wrote to this gentleman as foUows : —

LETTER I.
' Btai-IOP SKINNER TO DR CHANDLER.,
" I hope you will excuse this trouble from ppe
who wishes to be. known to you as the friend of
Dr Seabury, anxious for the welfare of tb^t
worthy man, and for the success pf his designs.
In a letter, :which I had from him lately, darted at
Gravesend, when I suppose he was waiting his

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 43
embalkation, he mentions you as a person with
whom I may freely correspond, about sending
some copies of a sermon, preached here at his
consecration, for sale in London. In itself this
is a matter of no moment, but I cannot help look
ing upon it as a fortunate circumstance, in so far
as it affords me an opportunity of introducing my
self by letter to your acquaintance, as one who
sincerely wishes a happy issue tp the good cause
in which you are engaged. AUow me, thereforei,r
good Sir, to entreat the favour ofa few lines from
you, when any thing occurs Which you think in
teresting to that cause, I mean to the establish
ment of a pure and primitive Episcopacy in the
Western World.
" Our \vorthy friend, who is now, I hope,
crossing the Atlantic for that blessed purpose,
wUl have many diflficulties to struggle with and
much opposition to encounter ; but his cause is
God's, his heart is good, his resolution firm and
steady,/and I trust in the mercy of his heavenly
master, that these will ensure success to his pious
services. He has promised to write to me on his
arrival in America, and, I doubt not, he will be as
good as his word. But as you will perhaps have
occasion to hear niore frequently from him, I
shaU think myself highly obliged to you for any
intelligence respecting him or his affairs which
you may be pleased to communicate. For, be
sides my being very much interested in his mat
ters, from a simUarity of oflfice and character, the

44 ANNALS OF
short time I had the pleasure of seeing and con
versing with him here, has given me such a high
opinion of his personal worth, as must ever en
title him to my warmest esteem and most affec
tionate remembrance. This honest declaration,
therefore, of my attachment to Bishop Seabury,
will, I hope, plead my excuse with his worthy
friend Dr Chandler, for thus intruding upon him
without a more formal introduction. I have
taken the opportunity ofa private bearer to con
vey this to your hand j but, if honoured with a
reply, let me beg that it be sent by post, as the
surest and speediest mode of conveyance. Ac
cept of my best respects, 3?c,

' LETTER IL
Di^ CHANDLER TO BISHOP SKIMNER.
London, April 23, 1785.
" About three days ago, I was honoured with
your v^ry friendly and obliging letter ofthe firs,t
instant. I feel myself greatly indebted to my
exceUent friend. Bishop Seabury, for having men
tioned me in such a manner as to occasion the
offer of so reputable a correspondence as is pre
sented in your letter ; and were I to remain in a
situation that favoured it, I should embrace it
with all thankfulness. .But I am soon to embark
for America, and for a part of it where, durii^

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 45
my continuance there, I shall be unable to answer
your expectations.
'* You may perhaps have heard, that after havi-
ing been separated eight years from my family,
which I left in New Jersey, I have been detained
here two years longer, with the prospect of being
appointed to the superintendency of the church
in our new country. This business, though the
call for it is most urgent, is still postponed ; and
it appears to be in no greater forwardness now
than it did a year ago. In. the meanwhUe, I am
labouring under a scorbutic, corrosive disorder,
which renders a sea voyage and change of cli
mate immediately necessary. I therefore thought
proper to wait upon the Archbishop a day or two
ago, to resign my pretensions to the Nova Scotia
Episcopate, that I might be at liberty to cross
the Atlantic and visit my family, consisting now
of a most excellent wife and three amiable daugh
ters. His Grace would not hear of my giving
up my claim to the above mentioned appointment,
but readily consented to my visiting my family,
on condition that I would hold myself in readi
ness to undertake the important charge when
ever I might be called for, which I promised, in
case my health should admit of it. Accordingly,
I have engaged a passage in a ship bound to
New York, which is obliged to sail by this day
fortnight. By this migration you can be no
loser, if you will be pleased in my stead to adopt,
for your correspondent, the Rev. Mr Boucher of

46 ANNALS OF
Paddington, a loyal clergyman from Maryland^
thie worthiest of the worthy, and one of the most
confidential friends of Bishop Seabury. I have
taken the liberty of shewing him your letter,
and making him the proposal. He will think
himself happy in answering your inquiries from
time to time, and will, as a correspondent, be able
to give you more satisfaction than I could.
" I have often expressed my wish that your
truly valuable Consecration Sermon might be ad*-
vertised for sale in this. city. If this had been done
while the occasion was fresh, I am persuaded that
a large edition would have sold, and much good
would have arisen from it. I am of opinion that,
late as it now is, many copies would still be caU
ed for were they known to be at hand. I shouljJ
think Mr Robinson of Paternoster-Row might^be
properly employed in that way, who has mostly
published for Mr Jones, and sometimes for Dr
Home. By the bye, it gives me pleasure to see
my two learned friends here mentioned, honour
ed with your notice. In this sermon you have
ably, clearly, and unanswerably explained the ori
gin and nature of ecclesiastical authority, and ' he
' that hath ears to hear let him hear.'
" This is a subject which I have repeatedly
had occasion to consider, in the course of my pub
lications in defence of our claim to an Episco
pate, and I am ashamed to find that it is so little
understood by the English clergy in general.
" Dr Seabury, of whom you cannot have so

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 47
high an opinion as I have, because you are not so
well acquainted with him, left the Downs on the
15th of last month ; on the 19th he was 65 leagues
west of the Lizard, with a fair prospect of a good
passage, at which time he wrote to me. It ap
pears from the late letters from America that there
was great impatience for his arrival, and no appre
hension of his meeting with ill-treatment from any
quarter. In my opinion, he has more trouble to
expect from a certain crooked-grained false bro
ther, (of whose character you must have some
knowledge,) than from any other person. I mean
Dr S — th, late of PhUadelphia College, now of
Maryland. He is a man of abilities and applica
tion, but intriguing and pragmatical. His prin
ciples, with regard both to church and state, if
he has any, are most commodiously fiexible,
yielding not only to every blast, but to the gen
tlest breeze that whispers ! With professions of
great personal esteem for Dr Seabury, made oc
casionaUy, he has always counteracted and oppos
ed him as far as he dared, and I doubt not but he
will continue to oppose him in his Episcopal cha
racter. He will be able to do this more effectu
ally if he succeeds in his project of obtaining
consecration himself, with a view to which he is
said to be about embarking for Britain. His cha
racter is so well known by the Bishops here, that
I trust they would have the grace to reject him,
even were he to carry his point with the ministry ;
and I am sure there is no danger of his imposing

48 ANNALS OF
upon your venerable synod. Before I was aware
I have got to the end of my paper, and must now
take my leave, but I hope only for a little while; for
wherever or however Providence may dispose of
me, I shall be happy in any opportunities of prov:
ing myself your very respectful and obedient ser
vant." Previously to receipt of this letter, it is doubt
ful whether Bishop Skinner had ever heard of Mr
Boucher, more than by name. Eager, however,
to learn tidings of the first Bishop ofthe Western
Hemisphere, he introduced himself to Mr B. by
letter, thus — LETTER IIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO THE REV. JONATHAN BOUCHER.
Aberdeen, 2Sth June 1785.
. " Sometime ago I wrote to your acquaintance,
. Dr Chandler, begging, as a singular favour, that
be would be kind enough to communicate to me
any interesting intelligence he might receive of
our worthy friend. Bishop Seabury, of whose wel
fare and success, you may believe, I wUl ever be
anxious to hear. The good Doctor lost no time in
making a most obhging return to my letter ; btit
informed me, to my great regret, that his state
of health was such as -to render a sea voyage ab
solutely necessary for the recovery of it, and that

SCOTTISH EPISGOPACy, 49
he was to sail in a short time for New York, being
obliged to leave the great object of his coming to
Britain unaccomplished. Pity were it that a de
sign so laudable, and so essential to the interests
of rehgion in the new province, should thus be
set aside by reasons Of state, without any other
formidable impediment in the ^ay of it.
" With uncommon attention to my anxiety,
after informing me of his intended departure from
England, and the afflicting cau,se of it, Dr Chandr
ler adds, ' that by his migration I can be no loser,
* if in his stead I will adopt for my correspondent
* the Rev. Mr Boucher of Paddington,* of whom
he gives a most amiable character, and, what en
dears you Still more to rae, describes you as one of
the most confidential friends of Bishop Seabury.
As such, I now gladly embrape the opportunity
of introducing myself to you, in hopes that, by
the time this reaches your hand, there wUl be
some account ofthe good Bishop's arrival in Ame
rica, if it has pleased God to grant him a speedy
and prosperous voyage, for which I doubt nbt the
prayers of many have been devoutly addressed t^
heaven. ** The Bishop promised to write me from Ha
lifax, if he found any vessel there for Scotland,
But as you will probably hear of "him, if not from
him, sooner than I can expect, and oftener than
he will have occasion to write to me, it wiU be do-
^ng me a very great favour, if you will be so good
^S to inform me, from time to time, what account^

50 I ANNALS OF
you may receive either from him or of him, such
as you think will be acceptable to one who loves
and esteems him, and wishes his success and hap-
piriess, as I do. This is a task which I would not
have presumed to impose on you, had not Dr
Chandler so kindly paved the way for it.
" Our amiable friend, the Bishop oflConnecti-
qut, will have many diflficulties to struggle with
in the blessed work he has undertaken; and
particularly from certain occurrences in some of
the southern states, which ;wiU, I fear, create
no small opposition to the conscientious discharge
of his duty. The busy, bustling President of
Waslfington College, Maryland, seems to be lay
ing a foundation for much confusion •throughout
the churches of North America, and it will require
all Bishop Seabury's prudence and good manage
ment to counteract his preposterous measures. I
saw a letter from this man lately to a Clergyman
in this ppuntry, wherein he proposes to be in
London as last month, and wishes to know what
the Bishops in Scotland would do, on an applica
tion to them from any foreign country, such as
America is now declared to be, for a succession
in their ministry, by the consecration of one or •
more Bishops for them ! By this time, I suppose,
he knows botl»-what we would do and what we
have done ; and perhaps is not ignorant, that, as
our terms would not please him, so his measurjes
would be equally displeasing to us.
" I have seen, in the Gentleman's Magazine^

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 51
various strictures on the subject of Dr Seabury's
consecration ; and the sermon preached on the
occasion has been criticised, and some passages in
it found fault with, as disrespectful to the English
Bishops, and even to the authority of the British
Parliament. As the author intended not his dis
course for the meridian of London, he was at no
pains to adapt it to the notions that are cherished
under the warm sunshine of civil establishment ;
it is suflficient for him, if it meets with the appro
bation of the truly wise and worthy, wherever
they be, that look more to the things of Christ
than to the things of this world."
Mr Boucher being on a continental tour when
this letter reached him, delayed answering it un
tU his return to England. The foUowing grateful
communication, of date the 6th of December
1785, was then despatched from Epsom.

LETTER IV.
REV. JONATHAN BOUCHER TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" When your very obliging and acceptable fa
vour of the 25th June reached Paddington, I had
just left it, to go on a long tour into Germany
and France, from which I returned late in Octo
ber. Your letter was delivered to a most valu- ^
able and confidential friend, WUliam Stevens,
D 2

52 ANNALS OF
Esq., who is also the friend of all your friends.
Mr Steveris teUs me he acquainted you with my
absence, which, I hope, would apologise for my
not having sooner thanked you for what I really
ponsider as a very great favour.
" No doubt you have long ago heard of good
Bishop Seabury's arrival, and most affectionate
reception artiong the poor scattered sheep of yon
der wilderness.' He carries himself with such a
steady prudence, as to have commanded the re
spect of even the most spiteful ill-wiUers of his
-order ; and, with all the countless diflficulties he
has to encounter, yet, by the blessing of God on
his firm mind, there is, I trust, little^doubt that
the ehurcb will grow under his pastoral care. I
have as yet heard only of his having ordained five
presbyters, one or more of whom are from the
Southern States, which I mention, as considering
it as an acknowledgment of his powers, even be
yond the limits of his professed district.
*• A general convention ofthe Episcopal Cler
gy of all North America, made up of an equal
proportion of lay members, was to meet in Phi
ladelphia about Michaelmas, to form some gene
ral plan for the whole Episcopal Church. Dr Sea
bury, I have understood, though not from him
self, was invited and pressed to attend this meet
ing, but he very prudently declined it, as, from
its motley composition, he could not be sure of
things being conducted as they ought.- He will
be there, however, or has been there, (and Dr

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 53
Chandler also,) with his advice and infiuence ;
and this is the only reason I have to form any
hopes of any good coming from the meeting.
" I bear of some very alarming symptoms at
tending the poor church in the Southern States.
The few Episcopal Clergymen left there are not,
as you may imagine, men the most distinguished -
for abilities or "worth. The enemies ofthe Church
see this, and avaU themselves of it. I have sun
dry late letters from thence, which all speak, far
too confidently, of some wild purpose of forming
a coalition, (too like some other coalitions) be
tween the Episcopalians and Presbyterians. I
have, by every means in my power, put those, over
whom I have any influence, in my old neighbour
hood of Virginia and Maryland, on their guard
against a measure which I cannot but deem insi
dious, and therefore likely to be fatal. And I
have also called in the aid of those stout cham
pions, Drs Chandler and Seabury. God grant
that our united efforts may all avail ! It adds not
a little to my apprehensions, that all these things
are carrying on within the vertex of Dr S — th's
immediate influence, who is bent on being a Bi
shop, ' per fas aut nefas' and who, if he cannot
otherwise compass his end, will assuredly linite
with the P  ns ; and so Herod and Pontius
Pilate shall again be made friends !
" You may not perhaps have heard, as I have,
that he affected to be much pleased with Dr Sea-

54 ANNALS OF
bury's having returned to America, invested with
the Episcopal character, all which will be abuni.
dantly explained to you wben I farther inform
you of his having found out that one Bishop alone
may, in certain cases, consecrate another. The
English of this is plain, and may account for your
not having seen him in Scotland ! The case is a
ticklish one, and will require poor Seabury's ut
most skill to manage. He knows S — th well, and,
of course, thinks of him as we all do. Yet, if
S — th is thus properly consecrated, such is his in
fluence, it may be the means of preventing that
sad state of things in Virginia and Maryland
which I hinted at above. Yet it is dreadful to
think of having such a man in such a station !
I daily expect further and fuller accounts, and,
on your signifying that it will not, be disagreeable
to you, I shall have, much pleasure in commu
nicating them."
The reader will not doubt of Bishop Skinner's
eagerness to cultivate a correspondence, in aU re-
speets so desirable as was the correspondence of
this zealous friend of Church and State. Early
in the ensuing year, therefore, the Bishop reph
ed to the above interesting letter.

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 55

LETTER V.
BISHOP SKINNER TO MR BOUCHER.
" Aberdeen, Jan. 4, 1786.
" I acknowledge, with much satisfaction, the
favour of your obliging letter of 6th December,
which I received with the greater pleasure, as
the intimation given by your friend Mr Stevens
of your absence had unluckUy not come to my
hand. The accounts of good Bishop Seabury's
favourable reception in America/you may believe
were highly agreeable to me, and my brethren of
the Episcopal Church in this country ; and though
as yet we have not had these accounts confirmed
under his own hand, we have no doubt but that
a little time will bring us these refreshing tidings,
and open up a happy correspondence between
the pastors of the truly • little flock' here, and
those of the ' many scattered sheep of yonder
wilderness.' I observed in the newspapers the
other day a paragraph, as quoted from the Ma
ryland Journal, which gives no more, I hope,
than a true account of our worthy friend's pro
ceedings, and the honourable reception he has
met with. The description you give ofthe alarm
ing symptoms appearing in the Southern States,
is indeed very affecting, and shews such a mise
rable deficiency in point of knowledge, as well as
zeal, among the Episcopal Clergy in those parts,
as could hardly have been suspected among any

SB ^AMAts df
i?ho4ad received regular Episcopal ordihatioii*
It gives me some comfort to hear that such able
advocates for primitive truth and order as Dr
Chafridler and yourself, are stepping forth in op
position to the wild undigested schemes bf mo*
dern sectaries. God, pf his mercy, grant success
to your endeavours in so good a caiisfei knd raise
up many such to strengthen the hands of his faith
ful servant, the Bishop Pf Connecticut, whUe he
stands single in the great work he has undertak*
en. But is there no prospect of his getting some
felloW-Workers of his own order, to assist him^in
Stemming that torrent Of irregularity which seems
to be pouring down upon him from the Southern
States? What you mention of my cPuntrymanj Df
S*r-th, is too much of a piece with his formei*
Conduct, and plainly shews what some people wUl
do to compass the end they have In view.
" As to what the Doctor has found out in fa-*
Vour of a singular tonsecrationj I know nothings
that can justify such a measure but absolute ne-
eessityi which in his case cannot be pleaded, be.«
Causcj in whatever way the Scottish Bishops
might treat an application in his behalfj there is
no reason to doubt of their readily concurring in
any proper plan for increasing the number of
Bishops in AmeriPa. And as Dr Seabury must be
sUflficiently sensible of their good inclinations that
way, I hope he will be the better able to resist
the introduPtion of any disorderly measure which
might be made a precedent for futute irreguk*'^

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 57
rities, and be attended with the worst of conse*
quences to the cause of Episcopacy. If S — th
must be promoted to the Episcopate at all ha
zards, let him at least wait until there be a ca
nonical number of Bishops in America for that
purpose. That thus, whatever objections may
be made to the man, there may be none to the
manner of his promotion.
" You will oblige me much by communicating,
from time to time, what accounts you receive of
these matters, as I shaU always be anxious to hear
of our worthy friend in Connecticut, and how
things fare with him and the cause which he has
undertaken to support. And although I shall
have little to say in return worthy of your notice,
I shall not fail to acknowledge the continuance
of your correspondence as a very singular favour.
" We have been lately flattered with the pros
pect of some friendly notice from the church of
England, and are told that, at a convenient sea
son, it is intended to do us some service with the
people in power. An anonymous letter to this
purpose, signed ' A Dignified Clergyman of the
• Church of England,* was last summer transmit
ted to our Primus, Bishop Kilgour, at Peterhead.
I ^vrote to Dr B* ******, at Canterbury, wishing
to know if he could inform us who the author
might be ; or what ground there appeared to him
for the assurances which the letter contains, but as
yet I have received no satisfactory reply. Thus
kept in the dark, it is no wonder if sometimes we

58 ANNALS OF
mistake friends for enemies, and behave to them
as such, not knowing whom to trust, or where to
look for that reh'ef which the distressed condition
of our church has so long called for in vain. God
pity and protect us, and support his church in all
places where the hand of the oppressor lies hea
vy on it !
" Wishing to hear from you as often as conve
nient, I am, with great regard," &c.
It stands confessed, that the sentimentJs of the
very best and wisest of men are liable to be sway
ed by situation and circumstances. Had the Bri
tish Government not dreaded the political expe
diency of giving a valid Episcopacy to the Wes
tern World, at the time when Dr Seabury so
licited that gift from his mother church of Eng
land, he had never been constrained to apply*\
elsewhere for consecration. But political expe
diency was the last thing which riien situated as
at that period the Scottish Bishops were situated,*
would think of consulting. On the contrary,;
they must and did feel what the Bishop-elect of
the State of Connecticut felt, and what Bishop
Skinner, not aware that he was doing any thing
improper, expressed in his consecration sermon,
viz. that " as long as there are nations to be in
structed in the principles of the gospel, or a
church to be formed in any part of the inhabited
world, the successors of the Apostles are obliged, ,
by the commission which they hold, to contri-

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 59
bute, as far as they can, or may be required of
them, to the propagation of those principles, and
to the formation of every church, upon the most
pure and primitive model. No fear of worldly cen
sure ought to keep them back from so good a
work ; no connection with any state, nor depen
dence on 'any government whatever, should tie
up their hands from communicating the blessings
of that ' kingdom which is not of this world,' and
diflftising the means of salvation by a valid and
regular ministry, wherever they may be wanted."
Similarly situated and circumstanced, the No
va Scotia candidate for the Episcopate, the learn
ed Dr Chandler, so far from disapproving of this,
or any other sentiment or expression in Bishop
Skinner's discourse, tells him, (as the reader wiU
have remarked,) " in this sermon you have ably,
clearly, and unanswerably explained the origin
and nature of ecclesiastical authority ; and, * he
that hath ears to hear, let him hear !' " Differ
ently situated, however, from both or either of
these parties, the writer of the anonymous letter
to Bishop Kilgour, supposed to be the great and
good Bishop Lowth, who died two years after,
expresses himself in terms as little expected on
Bishop Kilgour's part, as was the offence on his
colleague Bishop Skinner's part an intentional
offence. The letter is verbatim as follows :

60 Annals of

" Right Rev. Sir, London, June 9. l78Si
" The Consecration of Doctor Seabury, by
the Scotch Bishops, was an event which gave
much pleasure to many of the most dignified and
respectable amongst the English Clergy, and to
none more than to him who now has the honour
to address you. A man who believes Episcopacy,-
as I do, to be a divine institution, could not but
rejoice to see it derived through so pure a chan
nel to the Western World.
" Full of the greatness of this measure, I im
mediately sent for the sermon preached at the
consecration, on observing it advertised. And I
am sorry to say, that I perused it with a mixture
of satisfaction and deep concern. Much of it met
my entire assent. It exhibits principles which
I have always entertained, and which every friend
to Episcopacy must approve* There are some
passages in it, however, which I sincerely wish it
had not contained, and which I cannot help
thinking it was injudicious to publish, as I am
afraid they are calculated to hurt your Church,
and dangerous to the interests of Episcopacy in
North Britain.
" Nor is this my own opinion merely, but of
several of my brethren, well affected to the Epis
copal Church of Scotland who have read the dis
course. Many think they perceive in it the
EngUsh Bishops treated with contempt, for not

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. ~ 61
consecrating Dr Seabury at every risk ; and the
manner in which the Acts of the British Parlia
ment are mentioned in a note, gives general of
fence. For passages of this nature there is the
less indulgence, because it is conceived, that, on
such an occasion they were perfectly unnecessary,
and cannot, in any view, possibly do good *. I
* Assuredly had this been the case,..— had the contents of
the note been "perfectly unnecessary," the writer of this ad
mirable letter, whoever he was, had good right to be^bffended ;
but was it " unnecessary" for men, in the situation and circum
stances of the Scottish Bishops at that period, to shew, by the
authority of Divines of the Church of England, that, in the
good work which they had on hand, they were fulfilling, in
some measure, the purpose of their rriinistry ? The offensive
note is shortly this : — " The late Dr Sherlock, Dean of St.
Pauls, in his Sunimary ofthe Cpntroversies, p. 119, says ex
pressly : ' If Bishops will not exercise -that power which
' Christ has given them, they are accountable to the Lord for
* it. But they cannot give it away, neither from themselves
' nor from their successors ; for it is theirs only to use, not to
• part with it.' Another divine of the Church of England,
Mr Reeves, in his sermon on Heb. xiii. 17. speaking of the
independency of the Church, says : ' It has been largely and
* warmly argued bn both sides, but the merits- of the cause
' seem to lie in little room. The question to be resolved in
'short is, Whether Christ has committed the government
' of the. Church to the Apostles and their successors, or to the
' laity and civil magistrate ? Now this can be decided only by
' Scripture, from Christ's commission, and from the practice
' of the Apostles and their successors consequent thereupon,
' and therefore all arguments for the Regale, (that is, for the
• King being head of the Church, ) taken from year-books,
' «eports, and even Acts of Parliament, are of no'weight in the
' question before us. For be they nevet so full and positive

62 ^ ANNALS OF
" Who the author of this performance is, I
have not been informed ; but I address myself to
you, Sir, having been told that you are one of
the Scottish Bishops. My purpose is not to criti
cise the sermon ; if such "were my views, I might
justly be reckoned an impertinent meddler. I
am actuated, I hope, by better motives, and such
as you will approve.
, " The Church of England, Sir, I am well au
thorised to say, hath, of late years, looked on her
sister in Scotland with a pitying eye. Many of
our clergy have regarded her as hardly dealt
with, and wished for a repeal of those laws un
der which she now suffers. I have good reason
to believe that there is an intention formed of ,
endeavouring to do her some service at a con
venient season ; and I sincerely hope, no cir
cumstance will intervene to frustrate that inten
tion. It pains me to say, however, that this
sermon is not likely to promote it. I cannot
suppose that the Prelate who preached it, meant
by its publication either to alienate the English
Clergy from the society to which he belongs, or

' against the inherent power of the Clergy, yet certain it is,
' and may be spoken I hope without oflFence, that there is no ,
' omnipotency in Parliaments, and that the gospel is not
' repealable by the civil powers.' Bishop Skinner merely
adds: ' Many thanks to Mr Reeves for this strong and
* sensible vindication ofthe Clergy ofthe Episcopal Church in
' Scotland, who have ventured for a long time to shew more
< regard to the Acts of the Apostles than to the Acts of the
' British Parliament.'

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 63
to insult the British Government ; for I will not
suppose that a Bishop would write purposely to
prevent the good of that Church which, above
aU others, it is his duty to cherish. But surely
there are passages in this sermon not well fitted
to induce either the Clergy of England to apply
for a mitigation of those rigours of which the
preacher complains, or the State to grant that
mitigation were the application made. It is in
this view, Sir, that many of us regret the publi
cation of the sermon, and think it imprudent.
We wish our sister church to prosper, and would
be happy could we contribute to her prosperity.
But with what face could we apply for relief
to her, while her governors openly avow such
sentiments ? We flatter ourselves that they are
not the sentiments of many ofthe Bishops and
Clergy of Scotland; and we would hope, nay
even beg and entreat, (had we any right to do sp,)
that they would not themselves put it out of our
power to make use of those exertions which we
are much disposed to employ in their favour, and
which we doubt not might prove successful.
*' After what I have said. Sir, I hope I have
no occasion to apologize for this lettef . I can
aflfirm with truth, that it is dictated by the warm
est attachment to the interests of Protestant Epis
copacy, and has no other end in view but the
good of that Church over which yoil. preside.
Who the writer of it is you may possibly hereafter
learn ; at present he can only assure you that he is,

64< ANNALS OB
with every sentiment of respect for your sacred
character, A DIGNIFIED CLERGYMAN
OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND.
, " P. S. — May I claim your indulgence for
franking this letter only to Edinburgh. It is
owing to my not being able to learn the name of
the place where you reside.''
That this " Dignified Clergyman" was a Bishop
ofthe Church of England, the postscript leaves
little room to doubt, from his possessing the Par
liamentary privilege of " franking ;" and the con
jecture of his being the Bishop of London for
the time being, seems not ill-founded, from the
non-fulfilment of the implied pledge " hereafter"
to discover himself. Bishop Lowth having died the
Sd November I787. Had he given the author of
the sermon an opportunity of explaining himself,
or pointed out any channel of communicating with
one who, though evidently a warm friend, was
desirous of .present concealment, the writer of
the above excellent letter would haVe received
Bishop Skinner's thanks, uqt only for his proffered
services, but also for pointing out to him wherein •
he had so unwittingly deviated from the strict line
of duty.. To any one not circumstanced as 'the
" Dignified Clergyman" shews himself to have
been, it wUl appear evident that the Bishop only
meant to indulge in a little harmless pleasantry.

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.

65,

when, in the ' note which gave such general of-
• fencBj' he contrasts ' the Acts of the Apostles'
with ' the Acts of the British Parliament,' and
says, (what was very evident to every body,)
• that the Clergy of the Episcopal Church in
* Scotland had ventured, for a long time, to shew
' more regard to the one than to the other.' It
is to be hoped, that the Bishop, by his reply to
the following application, will be acknowledg
ed to have made the amende honorable for the
offence of which, in such friendly terms, he had
been pronounced guilty by a Dignified inconu.

LETTER VI.
BISHOP SEABURY TO BISHOP SKINNERi
WaUingford, Connecticut, March 2, 1787.
" I write a short and hasty letter from this
place, where I have been attending a meeting of
my Clergy. They are much alarmed at the steps
taken by the Clergy and Laity to the south of
us, and are very apprehensive that, should it
please God to take me out of the world, the
same spirit of innovation in the Government and
Liturgy of the Church would be apt to rise in
this. State, which has done so much mischief in
our neighbourhood. The people, you know, es
pecially in this country, are fond of exercising
power, when they have an opportunity ; and

66 ANNALS OF
should this See become vacant, the Clergy may
find themselves under the fatal necessity of fal
ling under the Southern establishment, which
they consider as a departure from ApostoUcal
institution. " To prevent all danger of this, they are anxi
ous to have a Bishop- coadjutor to me, and wiU
send a gentleman to Scotland for consecration as
soon as they know that the measure meets with
the full approbation of my good and highly re
spected brethren in Scotland. Ithas not only
my approbation, but my most anxious wishes
are, that it may be soon carried into execution.
You will, I know, consult the Right Rev. Bishops
Kilgour and Petrie, and will give me the necessary
information as soon as possible. In the mean
time, we shall be making the proper arrange
ments here, that the person fixed on may avail
himself of the first opportunity of embarking af
ter receipt of your letter.
" I can, at this time, say no more, than to re
quest you to remember me most re^ectfuUy and
affectionately to our good Primus and Bishop
Petrie, to Mrs Skinner and family, and to all who
think so much of me as sometimes to enquire
about me."

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 67

LETTER VIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO BISHOP SEABURY.
Aberdeen, June 20, 1787.
•* Anxious, as 1 ever am, to hear of your wel
fare, I was much refreshed some weeks ago, even
by a short letter from you, dated the 2d March,
at WaUingford, where it would seem you had
been attending a meeting of your Clergy. I lost
no time in communicating to our worthy Primus
this agreeable intelligence ; but it came too late
for good Bisliop Petrie, who, to the great regret
of this poor and desolate church, was taken from
us by death on the 9th of April last, after a long
and painful struggle with a complication of bodi
ly infirmities.
"Happily for us,, and througb the good Provi
dence of God, he was enabled to assist at the con
secration of a Coac^utor, about six weeks before
his death. Your good friend,, Mr Macfarlane at
Inverness, was the person made choice of for this
oflfice, who accordingly was promoted to the Epis
copate, in the Primus' chapel at Peterhead, on
the 7th day of March last. He has now succeed
ed to the districts that were under the charge of
Bishop Petrie ; and, I make no doubt, wUl prove
2 '

6s ANNALS OF
a zealous and faithful member of our small Epis
copal CoUege. *
" Last year Bishop Kilgour, deeming himself
too weak for the burden of this diocese, resigned
the whole charge of it into my hands, but still
continues to act as Primus, and I 'hope: wiU yet
be spared for some time with us. I sent your
letter to him, and a copy of it to Bishop Macfar
lane, and having received answers from both,
shall now lay before you our joint sentiments on
the subject of your proposal.
" It has given us great concern to hear of the
ecclesiastical proceedings in some ofyour South
ern States. We fondly hoped that Episcopal Cler-'
gymen would have gladly embraced the opportu*-
nity of settling their Church on a pure and primi
tive footing, and of regulating their whole ecclesi
astical polity, aswell as their doctrine andworship, '.
according to Apostolical institution. In this hope,'.
however, we have been sadly disappointed, by
the accounts we have received of the nature and
design of their several conventions; and some ex
tracts, which were published from their new Li
turgy, increased our dread of a total apostacy,.
*' In the course of the year 1787, other two members were ¦
added to the Scottish Episcopate. Bishops Abernethy Drum
mond and Strachan were consecrated at Peterhead, on the
26th September, by Bishops Kilgour, Skinner, and Macfar
lane ; Bishop Abernethy Drummond being, in due time, ap
pointed to the See of Edinburgh, and Bishop Strachan to that
of Brechin, in which his pastoral Cure (Dundee) was situated.

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 69
giving us ground to apprehend a total departure,
not only from ancient discipline, but even from
* the faith once delivered to the saints.'
" Hearing of their intended application to the
English hierarchy, we were full of anxiety for the
event of it. The character of the present Arch
bishop of Canterbury gave us- reason to think,
that he would not ' lay his hands suddenly,' on
any one ;->-and farther information confirmed
our good opinion of his Grace's orthodoxy, which,
we are informed, would bend to no solicitation in
favour of Socinian principles, or the tenets of
those who ' deny the Lord that bought them.'
Nay, we have farther learned, and we are led to
think from good authority, that Drs White and
Prevost, the two new American Prelates, * before
they left Lambeth, became bound, in the most
solemn manner, not to lay hands, on Dr S — th,
or on any other man' who calls in question the
doctrine of the Trinity, or of our Saviour's atone
ment. And we are even made to understand, that
• See Note to Eccles. Hist, of Scotland by the Rev. J.
Skinner, Vol. II. p. 687, where it is stated, that, on being in
formed that the alleged obstacles in Bishop Seabury's case had
been purposely and legally removed, a body o'f Episcopal
Clergy in the Southern States of America made application
to the English Bishops for consecration to^their Bishops elect,
in consequence of which, on the 4th February 1787, Drs.
White and Prevost, the former elected for Philadelphia, the
latter for New York, were both consecrated at Lambeth by the
Archbishop of Canterbury, assisted by the Archbishop of York,
the Bishop of Bath and Wells, and the Bishop of Peterborough.

79 ANNALS OF
it was recommended to the two Prelate? to bold
communion with the Bishop of Connrecticut, to
which recommendation a considerable degree of
credit seems to attach, from the circumstance of
no more than two being invested with t!he Epis
copal oflfice.
" It is moreover said, that a second edition of
their Book of Common Prayer has appeared, and
on a plan much more unexceptionable than the
first, there being no alteration to tbe worse, and
some even to the better. It is presumable, Aat
the English Consecraters have both seen andare
satisfied with the Liturgy which the new Bishopd
are to use ; and, provided the analogy of faith
and the purity of worship be preserved, it were
a pity, we should think, to interrupt Episcopal
union, and communion in any part of the Ca
tholic Church. We do not read that the litur
gical variations, which are known to have prevail
ed in the primitive times, occasioned any breach
pf communion among Bishops, While no essetftitfl
jCorruptipns were introduced, or impure addi-
tions imposed as terms of communion. Where
fore, all these things duly considered, we are
humbly of opinion, that the obgects which our
good brother of Connecticut apd bis Clergy have
in view may be- now obtained, without putting
any of them to the trouble and expence of com*
jng to Scotland.
" We can hardly imagine that tbe Bishops pf
PhUadelphia and New York wiU refuse their brq.

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 71
tberly assistance in the measure which you pro
pose to us,''or yet take upon them to impose their
own Liturgy as the sole condition of compUance.
Should this be the case, and these new Bishops
either refuse to hold communion with you, or
grant it only on terms with which you cannot in
conscience comply, there would then be no room
for us to hesitate. But fain would we hope bet
ter things of these your American brethren, and
that there Will be no occasion for two separate
communions among tbe Episcopalians of the U--
nited States.
" We are well persuaded that neither you nor
your Clergy would wish to give any unnePessary
cause of disgust on either side the Atlantic ; and
prudence, you must be aware, bids us turn our
eyes to our own situation, which, though it af
fords no excuse for shrinking from duty, wiU, at
tbe same time, justify our not stepping beyond
our line, any farther than duty requires.
" Before this reaches your hand, the English
Consecrate will not only have arrived in Ame
rica, but will also have probably taken such mea
sures as will enable you to judge ofthe propriety
of an application to them for the end you have
in view. We shall therefore expect to hear from
you at full length on this interesting subject, and
doubt npt but you will believe us ever ready to
contribute, as far as is necessary pr incumbent
on us, to the support of primitive ttuth and order
in the Church of Christ.

72 ANNALS OF
*' I wrote you in June last year, to the care of
a friend at New York, who informs me that he
forwarded my letter to you, together with a small
publication of mine which accompanied it. I
shaU send this by the packet, and will be glad-to
hear from you how soon it comes to hand ; if you
have leisure for a long letter, it will be doubly
welcome. All whom you met here remember
you most kindly, particularly your friends in this
family, to whom you will be ever dear ; apcept
of their and my warmest wishes for your health
and happiness, and believe me ever," &c. &c.
In the' reply made by Bishop Seabury to this
trulyCatholic epistle,he fears that what his friends
in Scotland recommend to him, " cannpt immedi
ately take place, unless we adopt their (thp Ame
rican Convention's) book of Common Prayer and
lay delegates. The people here dislike their book,
and the Clergy wUl have nothing to do with lay
men in Church government? This made me an
xious to have another Bishop in this state, th^
we might stand on even terms ^itb thprp,
f The public papers have announced that the
Episcopal Clergy in Scotland now (Nov. 7, 1788)
pray for the King by name. I hope it is true, and
flatter myself it will free them, ere long, from
many embarrassments. I shall still pursiie mea
sures for uniting with the Southern churches, and
?haU acquiesce in any teems, ppnsistent with sound

1788. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 73
ecclesiastical principles. But I cannot give up
what r deem essential to Episcopal Government,
by admitting laymen into any share of it, farther
than the external or temporal state of things
may require. To subject a Bishop to the censure
of a consistory of presbyters and laymen, even
with a Bishop at their head, I cannot consent.
From that thraldom the Church in Connecticut
must, if it please God, be preserved."
And, as far as is known to the Annalist of Scot
tish Episcopacy, that Church, the first to boast of
Episcopal regimen among the Churches of the
West, bas been so preserved, — esto perpetua. The
union which his Episcopal brethren in Scotland
were also so eager to see effected by Bishop Sea
bury, took place. This excellent Prelate joined
with the Bishops of New York and Philadelphia in
the coiiiiecration of Bishops for the states of Vir
ginia and Maryland, and died in full communion
with the whole Western Church in the year 1796,
to the unfeigned grief of all who knew him, or
who felt interested in the cause of sound and so
ber Christianity.
1 788.] The event of the Protestant Bishops .
-and Clergy in Scotland putting up public pray
ers for the King and Royal Family of Great Bri
tain by name, having slipped into the reader's
notice in the course of developing another sub
ject, it is high time for the Annalist to announce

7* ANNALS OF 1788.
the matter in its proper form, and to enter on
the discussion of the consequences which ki-
mediately followed ; — " Consequences," Writes
the Ecclesiastical Historian of Scotland, whose
heart was fuU of them» " which will be found of
considerable importance in the history of ike
Scottish Episcopal Church." Hence, being the
last event which the Rev. Mr Skinner of Long-
side records, there seems to be a propriety in the
writer, whose work aims at no higher rank than
that of a text-book to the future historian, laying
the matter before his readers, in his learned re
lative's own words.
« On the 24th of AprU 1788, the Protestant
Bishops in Scotland having met at Aberdeen to
take into their consideration the state pf the
Church under their inspection, did, upon mature
deliberation with their Clergy, unanimously agree
to comply with, and submit to the present Go
vernment of this kingdom, as invested in the per
son of his Majesty George the. Third. They also
resolved to testify this compliance by uniformly
praying for him by name, in their public wor
ship, in hopes of removing all suspicion of disaf
fection, and of obtaining relief from those penal
laws under which this church has so long suffer
ed. This resolution was duly intimated to the
Clergy and laity of their communion, as proceed
ing from principles purely Ecclesiastical, and
to which the Bishops are moved by the most just

1788. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. ^5
and satisfactory reasons, in discharge of that
h%h trust devolved upon them in their Epis
copal character, and to promote, as far as
they can, the peace and prosperity of that por
tion of the Christian Church committed to their
charge*," But " why," the reader will natwrially a&k,
*' was this particular year and period of time fix
ed on for such compliance and submission ?" -Mr
Skinner, in his History, assigns no other reason
but the fiat of his EcclesiasticsLl superiors, and
the accordance of the Clergy. About the mid
dle of February 1788, accounts reached Scotland,
that on the 31st day of January of that year the
Count of Albaaiy, the eldest grandson of King
James VII. of Scotland and II. of England
and Ireland, and undoubted heir-male ofthe roy
al house of Stuart, departed this life in the city
pf Rome. This event had been long looked for
ward to as a matter of very great importance to
the Scottish Episcopal Church, whose sufferings for
the now generally received principle of le^timate
gpvernment had been so great. In fact, the event
was regarded as the means of placing that Church
in a more critical situation than any in which she
had stood, since the era of the Revolution in
1§88. Immediately,, therefore, did the Bishops,
as the -guardians of the faith and practice pf their
several districts, communicate to each other their
* Skinner's Eccles. Hist, of Scptland, Vol. II. p,688.

76 ANNALS OF 1788.

•

respective opinions with regard to the steps that
were proper to be taken by the Church at large.
Bishop Abernethy Drummond was the firstwho
laid the matter formally before his Clergy of the
diocese of Edinburgh ; and, in a letter addres
sed to them on the Sth of March 1788, gave
them a very fuU account of his own sentimentSi
accompanied with a request, that they would
lose no time in meeting together for the purpose
of deliberating on that important business which
he had submitted to their consideration.
The Edinburgh . Clergy met accordingly, on
the 13th of March, and addressed a letter to
their Bishop, in which, after expressing very free
ly their sentiments on the subject of civil govern
ment, and their readiness now to offer their alle
giance to the house of Brunswick, they earnestly
hope that their Ecclesiastical superiors will lendv
a favourable ear to the reasonings of their Clergy,
and take the important case, on which they had;
been deliberating, into their most serious consi-
deratioti. On the 9th of April I788, the usual
synodical -meeting of the Clergy of Aberdeen-,
shire was holden at Longside ; when, after cal
ling their attention to the present depressed state
ofthe Church in this kingdom, their Bishop in
formed them, that, in his view of matters, it was
now not only expedient, but necessary fopthem,
to consider whether, and to what effect, compUr
ance with the existing Government might afford
the means of wished-for relief

1788, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 77
" After arguing atlength on the subject *, the
Clergy were unanimously of opinion, that as mat
ters now stood, they were at full liberty to pray,
by name, for the reigning Prince and the Royal
Family ; but considering how necessary it would
be to sanction a measure of this description, by
the highest Ecclesiastical authority, they humb
ly submitted to the Episcopal College, whether
it would not be proper that it should issue a
mandate to tbe Clergy, explanatory of the rea
sons on which it was founded, that they might
read the same to their respective flocks, prior to
the introduction of such a change into the pub
lic prayers of the Church."
Meetings to the same effect were held in all
the other dioceses of Scotland, and similar re
solutions adopted. Mr Brown of Montrose, in
the diocese of Brechin, being the only presbyter
who opposed the sentiments of his brethren of
tbe second order, and Bishop Rose of Dunblane
being the only member of the Episcopate who
did not enter cordiaUy into the measure ; the
worthy man being at that period, from mental
imbecUity, incapable of attending to business of
any sort. Matters being in this train, the Bish
ops were desirous that an affair of such impor
tance should be forthwith discussed in an Epis
copal Synod, and this Synod having been, by
special appointment of the Primus, holden at
* The Annalist writes from a docmaent in Bishop Skin
ner's hand-writing.

78 ANNAI^ OP X788a
Aberdeen, on the 24th of AprU, (the Deans of
the several districts also attending, as represent
ing their diocesan brethren,) it was unanimously
resolved to give an open andpubiicpraof of their
submission to the present Government, h^ pray
ing in the express words of the Englisb Liturgy,
for his Majesty King George, and the royal
family ; and the Bishops appointed the same to
take place, in. all the Chapeb under their spirit
ual jurisdiction, on Sunday the 25fch of May of
the current year ; thus affording time to aU and
sundry to state their objections, i£ they had
any, lo their respective Bishops and Pastors, who
were instructed to do every thing in their power
for their removal. This appointment the Synod
also duly notified in the Edinburgh and Aber*
deen newspapers of the day, and caused printed
intimations, signed by the Bishops, ta be circu* .
lated throughout the Churchy in order that'
neither Clergyman nor layman might plead igw
norance pf the appointment. The consequence
of which preliminary steps was, that, (the Rev.
James Brown of Montrose excepted,) every Cler
gyman doing duty on the 25th of May 1788,.
did freely, and ex animo, pray by name for his
most gracious Majesty King George, the Queen,
the Prince of Wales, and Royal family. Thus,
" was an end put to those unhappy divisions,
which so long distracted the kingdom of Scot
land; thousands of her sons who had hitherto
been suspected of disaffection to the present

1788.. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 79
Government, becoming not only loyal abd obe
dient subjects'' as the Historian of the day pre
dicted, but " staunch men and tniei" as their
conduct for 30 perilous years has proved.
The important business of the Synod was no
sooner harmoniously concluded, than the Bishops
conceiving it their duty to inform Government
of their proceedings, drew up a letter, which
tbey severaUy signed and addressed to Lord
Sydney, at that time one of his Majesty's prin
cipal Secretaries of State, acquainting his Lord
ship with what they had done, and requesting
that he would have the goodness to lay their sub
mission at the foot of the Throne.

l

LETTER VIIL
HE PROTESTANT BISHOPS IN SCOTLAND TO LORD
SYDNEY.

Aberdeen, April 26, 178S.
" Perhaps it is not unknown to your Lordship,
that a remnant of the old Episcopal Church of
Scotland still subsists, under the inspection of
Bishops deriving their authority by a regular
succession from the Prelates ejected at the Re
volution. '* Those Bishops are the persons who now
have the honour of addressing your Lordship.
Certain statutes enacted at different periods did

80 ANNALS OF 1788.-
indeed greatly weaken that Church, and, per
haps in time might have destroyed her, had not
the gracious' lenity of his Majesty afforded her a
degree of peace and security, of which we and
the other Clergy, with the laity of our persua
sion, will ever entertain a most grateful sense.
Anxious to remove every doubt of our attach
ment t© his Majesty's Government, we have re
solved to pray in time of divine service for the
King's most excellent Majesty, his heirs and
successors by name, and for all the Royal Family,
as the law directs. We have also recommended'
to the other Clergy of our persuasion to follow
our example, and we are happy to find that they
are heartily disposed so to do.
" If this step shall be acceptable to his Majes
ty, we trust that it Will be considered as an une
quivocal proof of our loyalty, and of our steady;
resolution to support his Majesty's Government '
at all times, and by every means in our power.
We hope your Lordship will not consider it as
too presumptuous, when we request you to lay
this testimony of our attachment and submission
at the foot ofthe Throne. — And we have the
honour to be, my Lord, your Lordship's," &c. &c.
As a piece of respect due to their eminent sta
tions in the Church of England, from which, as
may be seen in the Appendix,* the present Epis-
* Appendix, No. J.

1788. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 81
copal succession in Scotland is derived, arid na
turaUy expecting to receive some aid from these
venerable Prelates, in endeavouring to obtain a
repeal of the penal laws, the Scottish Bishops,
at the same time addressed, by letter, the Arch
bishops of the provinces of Canterbury and York,
in which they express their humble confidence,
that, upon " their Graces recommending to the
Bishops of their respective provinces the mea
sure of repeal of those penal statutes under which
the Episcopal Church in Scotland has so long
groaned, they cannot doubt but that, by such
powerful assistance, they shall obtain the desira
ble end they have in view,"
The business on which the Synod met, and
which the members of it had now concluded in
so harmonious and becoming a manner, was not
the effect of any rash or hasty resolution. It had
been long and deliberately weighed with all its
probable consequences. And every circumstance
relating to it having been seriously pondered and
ponsidered, the Scottish Bishops and their Cler
gy now felt a peculiar satisfaction in reflecting,
that what they had done proceeded from no self
ish or interested motives, but from a pure regard
to that important trust devolved upon them in
their sacred character ; from a strong sense of
duty, a sincere desire to be more extensively use
ful in their several stations, and a pious wish to
unite the real good of their country with the in
terests of that " kingdom which is not of this

82 ANNALS OF 1788.
world." These were the motives which induced
the Bishops and Clergy in Scotlandto pursue thei
path marked out, as they thought, by the wisdom'
of Providence, for the peace and preservation of
their Churchi They had good ground, certainly,
to expect the concurrence and support of all
who adhered to their humble ministry ; and in
this expectation they were not disappointed to
any great extent. Some, they were aware, would
be disposed to look upon the step which they had
taken as nothing short of an abandonment of
their former principles, there being no society
withoutindividuals of such factious andpragmatic
humours, as are not easUy satisfied with any mea
sures which do not originate^ with themselves j
nor was it long before a party of this descrip
tion was formed in the city of Edinburgh, and
letters, signed by some of its leading members,
were addressed to all the Bishops, complaining
of undue haste on the Bishops part, and threat-;
ening that, unless time was given to satisfy their
tender consciences, many of them, " finding
themselves placed in an obnoxious situation,
would prefer joining the English Chapels."
These few malcontents were much encouraged
in their schismatical proceedings, by the Rev.
James Brown of Montrose, formerly mentioned
as the only non- conformist of the second order
of the Scottish priesthood, who not only took
upon himself the pastoral charge of them, but
also made a most daring attempt to perpetuate

1788, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 83
the schism, by invading the right of the Episco
pate itself,— haying the bardihood to repair to
the village of Downe in Perthshire, where Bi
shop Rose resided, in the extreme of dotage,
and causing him to perform the ofiice of conse
cration !
When questioned soon after, whether the case
were so, the venerable Prelate, in all the simpli
city of chUdhood, made answer, — " My sister
may have done it, but not I." Being a bache
lor, an aged sister was Bishop Rose's housekeeper
and guardian. A few years, however, were 'suf-
ficent to remove, by death, the whole indivi
duals concerned in this petty cabal; — so that,
among tbe Episcopalians of Scotland, a seed of
political disaffectipn exists no longer.
On the 1st of July, Bishop Abernethy Drum-
ijiond b^d the: honour of receiving a reply to the
communication made by. the Bishops to Lord
Sydney.
LETTER IX.
LORD SYDNEY TO BISHOP ABERNETHY DRUMMOND.
" Whitehall, June 28, 1788.
«' I have bad tbe honour of receiving your let
ter of the 26th of last month, as weU as that
Wbich you transmitted to me, notifying the reso
lution of your body to prajr, by name, fox the
King and Royal /amUy.

84 ANNALS OF 1788.
" I did not faU to lay those letters before the
King, and I have received his Royal commands
.to acquaint you, that his Majesty receivedj with
great satisfaction, this proof of your attachment
to his person and family.
" I am happy to find the resolution has been
Carried into execution, and that it has faUen to
my lot to communicate lo you bis Majesty's plea
sure upon a subject which muslj, in every point
of view, tend to unite the affections of his faith
ful and loyal subjects of every profession."
Encouraged by the gracious manner in which
his Majesty was thus pleased to receive the al
legiance of Scottish Episcopalians, the Bishops
were now occupied in devising the most proper
mode of laying their case before ParUament, and ¦
of humbly soliciting from the British Legislature,
relief from those severe restraints and penalties?
which, during the period of disputed succession-
to the Crown, that Legislature had in its wisdom
seen fit to impose. Living in the immediate
vicinity of the late Lord Viscount Mjplville, then
treasurer ofthe British navy, Bishop Abernethy ,
Drummond had frequent conversations with that
distinguished statesman on the subject, as well as
with his Lordship's highly respected kinsman the
Lord Advocate for Scotland, now Lord Chief
Baron ofthe Court of Exchequer, both of whom
joined in coramentfation of the step which the
Scottish Episcopal Clergy had taken, and gener-

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 85
ously promised to befriend their cause. But,
before any direct application could be made to the
other members of administration, ^ the King's
alarming indisposition put a stop to every kind of
Parliamentary business, except thatof providing
for the necessities ofthe State by the appoint
ment of a Regency.
During this gloomy period of national anxiety,
the Episcopalians of Scotland did not fail to tes
tify their loyalty by the most fervent public
prayers for the King's happy recovery ; and
when that longed-for event took .place, they were
not unmindful of the duty of solemn and general
thanksgiving. The Bishops having also on this
joyful occasion drawn up an humble address to
their beloved Sovereign, and having signed the
same, in their own names, and in the names of
the Clergy of their respective districts, it was
forwarded (1789) by Mr Henry Dundas, then a
Commoner, to Lord Sydney ; and being the first
ofthe kind, it is here inserted.
1789.] " To the King's Most ExceUent Majesty,
the humble Address of the Protestant
Bishops in Scotland, and of the Clergy of
their Communion.
" Most Gracious Sovereign,
" We your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal
subjects, the Protestant Bishops in Scotland and
Clergy of their communion, most humbly request

86 ANNALS OF 1789.
your Royal permission to mingle our hearty con
gratulations with those that are daily flowing
from aU parts ofyour Majesty's dominions on the
present joyful occasion.
*' Deeply sensible of the mildness, equity, and
wisdom of your Majesty's Government, while we
joined with our fellow subjects in sincerely-la
menting the calamitous situation of the 'British
empire, suffering in.the distress ofyour Royal per
son, we did not fail most earnestly to implore
that much desired relief, which could eome only
from tbe father of mercies and God of all' com
fort. We are now happy to find' that the pray
ers ofa united people; have met with a gracious
acceptance, and have obtained from Heaven that
complete restoration of your Majesty's health,
for which, with most grateful hearts, we humbly
adore the goodness^ of the Almighty.
"We cannot omit this opportunity of acknow
ledging, with all becoming thankfulness, those
endearing proofs of your Majesty's distinguished
clemency and condescension, which have en-
couraged this humble address. And when we
consider how much it is the anxious wish and
desire of your Majesty's heart to contribute to
the ease and happiness of your people, we rely
with confidence on your paternal goodness for a
participation in the protection and religious liber
ty which are enjoyed by the rest of your Ma
jesty's loyal subjects. By this means we shaU
be enabled to manifest in an exemplary manner

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY- .V >^ >i87
i'''
-tiiat: attach ment to your Royal person apd family,
which we can truly say is founded on a sense of
duty, and confirmed by the warmest gratitude.
"These sentiments of loyalty and affection to
the best of Princes, we shall make it our constant
'Study to inculcate on the minds of those who ad-
¦?here to our ministry ; and your Majesty may be
assured of their good dispositions to promote the
; public peace and prosperity, by yielding an uni
form and cheerful Obedience to your Majesty's
sacred iauthority.
" That the great God, by whom Kings reign,
may take your Majesty under the peculiar care
i of his watchful Providence, may guard you from
every danger and preserve you long in health
and happiness as a blessing to the British nation,
and a comfort to your own illustrious house, is,
and ever shall be, the ardent prayer of us,
" Your Majesty's most faithful and obedient
'subjects, the Protestant Bishops in Scotland,
and the Clergy of their Communion."
" Signed for ourselves, and in behalf of the
"Clergy of our respective dioceses, by"
&c. &c.
Bishop Skinner having been elected Primus
in December I788, in consequence of Bishop
KUgour's resignation of that ofiice, accompanied
the above address with a letter to Mr Dundas,
thanking him, in the most cordial manner, for
the attention he had already paid to the case of

88 ANNALS OF 1789.
the Scottish Episcopalians, and earnestly request
ing a continuation of his friendly ofiices.
" We cannot," (the Bishop writes,) " but flat
ter ourselves, that this is a most promising sea
son for obtaining the object of our humble wshes,
which is, only to be put on an equal footing of
protection and reUgious liberty with the other
Dissenters from the Scottish establishment, par
ticularly with those whp have their orders from
the Church of England. We presume that ; this
concession on the part of Government cannot
give the least offence to the candid and liberal
minded of any profession ; and it shall always be
our study to cultivate the good opinion of our
fellow subjects of every persuasion."
The address having been presented in the
usual manner. Lord Sydney did the Bishops the
honour to notify to them that his Majesty was
pleased to receive it most graciously. A draught
of a Bill of relief having been no^ prepared by
Bishop Skinner, at Mr Dundas's.special desire, ijt
was forwarded to him at his seat near Edinburgh.
But this most active servant of the Crown, having
been unexpectedly summoned to London before
he could give his opinion fully on the nature and
language ofthe proposed BiU, it was the opinion
of many, the warmest and best friends to its
enactment, that nothing effectual would be done
by either branch ofthe Legislature, without the
personal appearance of one or more agents ori
tJie spot, if not to conduct the business jn its dif-

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 89
ferent stages of progression, yet to act as promp
ters to those who were qualified for the under
taking ; and, by being constantly at hand, to solve
any difficulties that might be started, and, at
the same time, prevent the measure from being
lost sight of.
Among those who honoured the Scottish Bi
shops with this salutary advice was a worthy,
and, at that period, most inteUigent member of
the House of Commons, George Dempster, Esq.
of Dunnichen, in the county of Forfar, who, from
the sincerity of regard, which he continued to
manifest throughout the business, informed the
Primus^ that unless a member of administration
would positively pledge himself to introduce in
to Parliament the Bill for repealing the penal
statutes by which the whole Episcopalians were
so aggrieved, and to carry it through all its
stages, it would be absolutely necessary for some
of the Bishops to repair to London, there to ap
pear as loyal subjects, claiming a just and reason
able relief, not only for themselves, but for the
society to which they belonged, The propriety
of adopting this advice was, at the very time,
rendered more obvious, if possible, by the disco
very of some unfair (to call it by the gentlest
name) representations of the religious tenets of
Scottish Episcopalians. Those English ordained
clergymen, who, being Scotchmen by birth and
parentage, had procured orders with no other
view but that of opposing Scottish Episcopacy,

90 ASrtJALs iOF 1789.
became very much alarmed at the favourable re
ception given, by aill ranks of men in Scotland,
'to the cause and claims of the ChurPh of their
forefathers ! And Dr Bagot, Bishop ctf ; Norwich,
bad been particularly applied to, to thwart, as far
as possible, any measures that might be tiken
•by the Scottish Episcopal Clergy for their relief.
The applicants Went even the length of stating,
1that the Scottish Bishops, not satisfied with the
prospect of obtaining liberty for themselves,
(wished, nay proposed, to have those clergy sttb-
'jected to their authority, by ac't of Parliament,
who officiated, or .might hereaifter officiate in this
'country by virtue of orders from an English or
an Irish Bishop. On what ground such an inju-
'rious report could have been raised, the Annalist
'cannot possibly imagine. But having'been not
-^only raised, but actually communicated to the
venerable English prelate above-named, Bishc^
Skinner, after shewing the draught ofthe intenfi-
•ed BiU'Of relief to the late Dr Beattie of Aber
deen, =the intimate friend of Bishop Porteous of
London, requested that the Doctor would unde
ceive his 'Lordship, as one of the most respecta
ble of his order, on this head, and assure hira,
" that though the Scottish Bishops and their
Clergy heartUy wished for union, founded on
principle, among aUthe Episcopalians in Scot
land, yet had they not the most distant idea of
endeavouring to promote it by the interposition
of civil authority ; nothing being more absurd

•17^9. SCOTTISH EPrCOPACY. ^l
or illibieral than 'the very thought of depriving
others of that liberty of conscience which they
were so desirous of procuring for themselves."
DriBejlttie, expressing himself perfectly pleas
ed, not only with the principle. of the biU, but
with the language in which it was framed, un
dertook 'to mention the matter to the Bishop of
London, and to inform him, at the same time,
that as some ofthe Scottish Bishops were on the
eve of setting out for London, they would, on
their arrival at the seat of Government, have
•the honour of waiting on the Archbishops and
Bishops of England individually, and would give
them a full and fair account ofthe reUgious prin
ciples, as 'well as political hardships, of their hum
ble Church.
Immediately after Easter 1789, ^and when the
nation at large was feXhibiting transports of joy
on account of fthe King?s happy recovery, the Bi
shops, :Skinner' of Aberdeen, Abernethy Drum
mond of Ediuburgh, and Stradhan of Brechin,
set out for London, furnished with ithe most am
ple recommendations from all and sundry, in the
different districts. of Scotland, who had friends or
relatives members ofthe British Legislature.
Those which were afforded by nobleman and
gentlemen of the Episcopal persuasion, the rea
der wiU not doubt, were framed in terms ofthe
most friendly and favourable description. Nor
were the recommendations given by members
of the Scottish estabUshment less honourable to

92 ANNALS OF 1789.
themselves, than to-thepartijes more immediately
interested. In proof of this, the Annalist cannot
forbear recording the following letter to a noble
man of parliamentary eminence, the Lord Vis
count Stormont,. from a distinguished member of
the Courts of Session and Justiciary in Scotland, the
late Hon. Alexander Murray, Lord Henderland,

LETTER X.
LORD HENDERLAND TO LORD VISCOUNT STORMONT.
« EdinbHrgh, 21st April 1789,
" The Gentlemen who will wait upon your
Lordship with this are Mr Abernethy and Mr Skin
ner, Bishops ofthe Ancient Episcopal Church of
Scotland. Theygo to London to obtain a repeal (rf
the disqualifications imposed by act of Parliament
upon persons of that persuasion in certain cir
cumstances, and wiU, witl^ your Lordship's per
mission, explain more fully to you the nature of
their business. ,
They, as well as all of their order that I know
of in Scotland, are men of irreproachable cha
racter and exemplary conduct ; and as they desir
ed a letter of introduction to your Lordship, who
receives with so much politeness every person en
gaged in public concerns, I thought you would
excuse my presumption in giving it. I have stat
ed what I believe to be a fair testimony in their

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 93
favoui^i As to the propriety of the measure, I
leave others to decide upon it."
In farther submitting to the reader's notice
the interesting progress of the Bill of Relief to
*' Pastors, Ministers, and Lay Persons ofthe Epis
copal Communion in Scotland," it would be pre
sumption in the author of these pages, when in
possession of a regular journal of the whole pro
cedure in his venerable father's handwriting, (and
which, in proof of its authenticity, Bishop Skinjier
has ordered his executor to place among the ar
chives of the Church,) to seek for more satisfac
tory documents, or to attempt the use of more
perspicuous language than the Bishop's own.
That some slight abridgment will be had re
course to, the reader must be fully aware, other
wise this work would swell out far beyond the li
mits prescribed to it; but as all facts and circum
stances which may, in the judgment of the An
nalist of Scottish Episcopacy, seem interesting
to his readers, will fall to be stated in, as nearly
as possible, the words of Bishop Skinner's own
manuscripts, - for abridgment only does the com
piler of these Annals hold himself responsible.
<' Weleft .Edinburgh on the 20th of April,
and arriving in London on the 24th, addressed
a card to the Lord Advocate of Scotland,, inform
ing his Lordship, in compliance with Mr Dundas
the treasurer of the navy's instructions, of the

94 ANNALS OF 1789.
purpose of our journey to London, and express
ing our anxiety to have the honour of waiting up
on him as soon as convenient. Our request was
very speedily granted; and, after entering on bu
siness, his Lordship interrogated us, 'Whether
* the Established Church of Scotland was disposed,
* as far as- we had heard, to make any opposition)
•io our relief?' To this our answer being that, * asj
far as we had access to know, we had no appre-i
hensions of hostility from that quarter,' his Lord-
shipi said, ' he believed it to be very true, and^
hoped there would be none from any quarter.'*
The interview at this time concluded with his>
Lordship's promising, when wehad consulted the
English Bishops, that he Would lay a state of our
case before the Lord Ch ancellor. Having learned
that a plan was in agitation for authorising, by a
clause in our BiU, some English or Irish Bishop
to perform Episcopal offices in Scotland, a scheme
for the support of schism and division, which we
were sensible must have originated in Scotland,
and been recommended to th© ' attention of the
* So far,- in fact, from opposing, it will be seen in the sequel
that the leading men of the Established Church' in Scotlapd
were most anxious for the success of their Episcopalian breth
ren's application. In proof of this, Mrs Skinner informs the
Bishop by letter, dated Aberdeen, May 30, 1789, that, in
his thanksgiving Sermon for the King's recovery. Principal
Campbell mentioned the appUcation to Government for repeal
of the penal, statutes, and said that his Majesty's countenance
to that measure would add to the many good things he had
done in the course of his reign.

1789* SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 95
English. Cbuccb by very unfair and Ul-founded
representations, we resolved to write to the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, and to give his Grace a fair
and candid account of these points, which we had
most reason to fear bad been thus misrepresented.
Lest, however, our letter should not have been
couched in proper Archiepiscopal form, as my
worthy friend the Vicar of Epsom was to intro
duce us to two of the soundest Churchmen of
whom England has to boast, the Rev. WiUiam
Jones of Nayland, and William Stevens,, Esq.
treasurer to. Queen Anne's Bounty, we were an
xious to have their approbatioiuof the; letter, pre
vious to its. being forwarded to Lambeth. The
letter having been approved by those warm and
zeaj©us friends, was transmitted to his Grace ac-
coxdiBgly,"

LETTER XL
THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS IN LONDON TO HIS GRACE
THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY.
" May it please your Grace, London, May 1. 1789.
" We had the honour of addressing your Grace
about a year ago from Aberdeen in Scotland,
when we formed the resolution of testifying in a
legal manner our attachment to his Majesty's
person and Government. And we are now come

96 "i ANNALS OF 1789.
to England to solicit a repeal of those penal sta
tutes under which the Church in which we pre
side has so long suffered.
" With this view, it was our intention to sub-
rait our case to your Grace, to the Archbishop of
York, and the other Right Rev. Prelates of the
Church of England; but having brought a letter
from a friend in Scotland to the Lord Bishop of
Worcester, his Lordship has kindly hinted to us
the propriety of giving your Grace a full expla
nation of our business, as the best means of com
municating it to the other Bishops. < This, we
hope wUl plead our apology with his Grace of
York and their Lordships for not immediately
addressing ourselves to them.
Our case, your Grace will readily perceive, is
very different from that both of the Ehglish Dis-.
senters and ofthe Scottish Roman Catholics, with
which some affect to compare it«
" Tbey are both restrained on account of
their religious Creed, which continues the same ;
whereas the restraints laid upon the Episcopal
Church in Scotland were judged necessary only
for crushing the political disaffection ascribed to
the Clergy and Lay members of Ihat Church,
which political disaffection is now entirely done
away. " Wherefore may we humbly hope to enjoy
in dommon with his Majesty's other loyal sub
jects, the benefits of his mUd and equitable Go-
vernment, especially as we ask no more than to

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 97
be put on an equal footing, in the article of tole
ration, with the other Protestant Dissenters from
the Scottish establishment.
• - •' Such, indeed, is our confidence in his Md-
jesty's goodness and in the justice of his Piirlia-
ment, that we are fully persuaded our request
will not be refused, particularly if we shall be
so happy as to obtain your Grace's powerful sup
port, with that of the! Archbishop of York, and
the other Bishops of the Church of England, lo
whom, we have no doubt, your Grace will do us
the honour of recommending our cause.
" We have only further to add, that having, since
we came to England, joined in the public devo
tions of the English Church, we hereby declare
ourselves to be in full communion with that
Church. The Book of Common Prayer, we be^
lieve, in our hearts, to be the best composed Li
turgy in the world. The Morning and Evening
Service, as read in that Book, we constantly make
use of, and the offices of Matrimony,- Baptism,
Confirmation, &c. as occasion offers ; and though
we generally use the Scottish Communion Of
fice, nearly as authorised by Charles I. and in
serted in the Book of Common Prayer for the
Church of Scotland, yet, so far are we from mak
ing this usage a condition of Pommunion, that
our own Clergy have a discretionary power to
use which of th^ two offices they please, and some
pf them do actuaUy make use of the English Of
fice.

98 "- ANNALS OF 1789.
" Having reason to believe that our practice
in these matters has been misrepresented, we
have deemed it necessary to trouble your Grace
with this short account of it, which, when ho
noured with a personal interview, we shall, with
your Grace's permission, enlarge in a manner, we
flatter ourselves, to your Grace's satisfaction.
" Our business is evidently of the greatest im
portance to the support of Episcopacy in Scot
land, and thereby to the interest of that which
we hold to be true religion ; which interests,' we
are confident, are so dear to your Grace, that we
have the best ground to hope for your protec
tion on this occasion.
" We shall be happy to know when we may-
have the honour of waiting on your Grace. Andi
weare, with the most profound respect and es^
teem," &c.
" A few days after receipt of this letter, we
had a message from the Archbishop, desiring to
see us. We went to Lambeth accordingly, at the
hour appointed, and were received with every.
mark of respect, his Grace apologising to us for
not answering our letter of last year, as well as
for now sending us a verbal invitation by Mr
Jones. His inquiries after our situation, were,.
as might be expected, very particular ; to aU of
which we returned such plain and candid an
swers, as seemed to give the satisfaction wished
for. ' The pressure of ecclesiastical business,'

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 99
however, he told us, was at that time so great,
and the intended motion in favour of the English
Dissenters so completely engrossed the attention
of the Episcopal Bench, that, until it was discus
sed, they could not take our business into their
consideration ; but as soon as that matter was
disposed of, the Bishops would meet for the pur
pose of considering our case, and ' he should then
' desire the honour of seeing us again.'
" In the meanwhile, the Bishop of St David's,
Dr Horsely, having been waited on by mj'^self
and colleagues, entered on the discussion of our
claims with all his characteristic keenness, tak
ing notes of our answers to all his queries, and
happy to find that we differed from the Church
of England in no essential point of doctrine or
discipline ; for ' whatever,' said he, ' might
' have been your religious tenets, as your political
' disaffection is removed, I think you entitled to
* toleration, as far as you ask it. But perhaps it
* may facilitate your business to let it be known,
• as I am now competent to do, that you do not
* essentially differ from our Church.'
" The Earls of Braedalbane and Fife, the Lords
Stormont, Kinnaird, &c. &c. did us the honour
to call for us and proffer us their services, as
soon as we had drawn up a memorial of our case,
which they could put into the hands of their re
spective friends, in and out of administration.
The Bishop of Norwich, Dr Bagpt, received us
with a great deal of mild civUity. He had tbe
• g2I

100 ANNALS Of lyggi.
A
Ecclesiastical History of Scotland, lately publish
ed, on his table, and inimediately turned to the
passages which referred to our situation. He
talked very properly ofthe reasonableness of our
request, but was of opinion, that the state ofthe
qualified Clergy of the Episcopal Communion in
Scotland was to be considered. ' It was proper,'
he said, ' to hear what might be urged in their
* behalf; for which purpose time and serious
' consideration would be required, such as might
• prevent bur business being brought to an isSue
• this session. At any rate, he was sure that the
' Bishops of England would do nothing with a
* view either to oppress us or to countenance di-
* vision, if at all to be avoided ; aUd much,' con
cluded he, • will depend on the opinion of the
* Archbishop, who has been at great pains to in-
' form himself of your situation and that of the
* English ordained Clergy in Scotland ; of nei-
* ther of which, till within thesp few years, the
' English Bishops hardly knew any thing.'
" Having again had a long discussion with the
Lord Advocate for Scotland, he recommended
Us to lose no time in drawing out a state of- our
case, giving a historical detail of the statutes of
which we complained, and the relief which we
deemed necessary, in order that Mr Pitt and the
Lord Chancellor might be rightly inforffie'S.
And, on our mentioning Mr J, Allan Park,
a worthy young Barrister, io whom we had been
recommended, as a fit person to take charge of

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 101
our matters, his Lordship .cordially approved of
our choice, and bid us desire Mr Park to call on
him for information, if he needed any, and to
bring him, (the Advocate,) a scroll of the paper
before a clean copy was made out ; and the soon
er the better, as his Lordship must set out for
Scotland in a week.
" After some little alterations in the scroll ofthe
case drawn up by Mr Park, the Lord- Advocate
and the Treasurer ofthe Navy, (who is well known
to have acted as Minister for Scotland,) sanction
ed the printing of it ; the latter informing Bishop
Skinner, that ' if the Archbishop did not send to
' him in the course of two or three days, he (Mr
• Dundas) would write to his Grace, and desire
^ an interview, as he knew Mr Pitt would do no-
' thing in matters Ecclesiastical without consult-
• ing the Archbishop,' "
" Case of the Episcopal Clergy in Scotland,
and ofthe Laity of their Communion.
*' It is a fact weU known, that the Bishops of
Scotland, who were deprived of their sees at the
time of the Revolution, continued to exercise
their Episcopal functions, and to ordain ministers
for supplying the vacant congregations of their
persuasion ; which was so far from giving offence
to Government, that it was even deemed ne
cessary to afford the Scotch Episcopal Cler
gy the aid of the law, to protect them in the

102 , ANNALS OP 1789.
exercise of divine WOTship, from any disturbance,
to \^hieh they might be exposed, from the igno
rance or misguided zeal of those who happened
to entertain diflferent opinions in religion.
" Accordingly, in the tenth of Queen Anne *,
an act passed, declaring it lawful fer those of the
Episcopal communion in Scotland, to meet and
assemble, for the exercise of divine worship, to
_be performed after their own manner, by Pastors
ordained by a Protestant Bishop, and who are
not established Ministers of any Church or pa
rish, and to use in their Congregations the Liturgy
ofthe Church of England, if they think fit, with
out any let, hindrance, or disturbance from any
person whatsoever. — The next section provides,
that none shall presume to exercise the functions
qf a Pastor in the said Episcopd meetings, ex
cept such as shall have received holy orders
from the hands of a Protestant Bishop ; and
every person called upon to be a Pastor or Mi
nister of any Episcopal Congregation, before he
takes upon him to officiate, shall register his let
ters of orders at the general or quarter-sessions.
The rest of the act is employed in stating the
oaths to be taken by such Pastors or Ministers,
in describing their powers, declaring it to be free
and lawful for them, not only to pray and preach
in the Episcopal Congregations, but to adminis
ter the sacraments, and marry ; and also requir
ing them to pray for the Queen and Rpyal Fami
ly, in express words. * 10 Anne, Chap. vii.

1789. SCOTTISH episcopacy. lOS
" It is here worthy of observation, that at the
time of passing this act, it was universally ^un
derstood to mean, by the words ' Protestant Bi-
• shops,' the deprived Bishops and their succes
sors ; for it must be acknowledged as an histori
cal fact, that almost every Minister, who then
took the benefit of the act of Queen Anne,
bad received his orders from no other than one
of the deprived Bishops or their successors.
" Many of the Episcopal Clergy then living,
who did not think themselves at liberty to com
ply with the terms, could not claim nor avail
themselves of the full benefit of the statute : And
as an attempt was made to disturb the Govern
ment, soon after the accession of George the
First, it was thought proper to lay further re
straints on those who had not complied with the
statute of Queen Anne.
" Accordingly it is enacted*, that no person
shall perform any part of divine service in any
Episcopal Meeting-house, where nine persons or
more shaU be present, besides those of the house
hold, or supply the place of Pastor in any Epis
copal Congregation, except such as thall pray
for the King and Royal Family, in express words,
and shaU take the oaths to Government, a certi
ficate of his doing which he must obtain from the
clerk of the court where such oaths are adminis
tered. * 5 Geo. I. Chap. xxix. Sect. 3.

104 ANNALS OF 1789.
" In the subsequent reign, when a further at
tempt was made by the exiled famUy, it was con
ceived, whether rightly or not it is now immate
rial to enquire, that much of the disaffection to
the Government proceeded from the toleration
allowed to those places of worship, the Pastors of
which had not duly qualified themselves accord
ing to the act of Queen Anne. Very severe re
gulations were therefore thought necessary to be
adopted, which it is the object of the present ap
plication to Parliament to repeal. — It was en
acted*, that the Sheriffs should return lists qf
all Episcopal assemblies, that the Pastors should
produce certificates of their having qualified,
and should pray for the King, &c. otherwise
their Meeting-houses were to be shut up, and
the proprietor to give security of L.lOO not to •
let them again for the same uses : That unqua
lified Pastors officiating, should, for the first of
fence, be imprisoned for six months; for the
second, be transported for life, and if they
returned from transportation, should suffer im
prisonment for life. Tjie statute likewise inflicts
the penalty of five pounds, or six months impri
sonment, on every one attending suph Meeting
house,, and not giving information ; and in the
following section declares, that no letters of or
ders shall be deemed sufficient, or admitted to
be registered, but such as .have been given bf
* 19 Geo. II. Chap, xxxviii. Sect. 1. &c.

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 105
some Bishop of the Church of England or Ire
land, or if they are, such registration shall be
void. — The act then prpceeds to the disqualifi
cations of those resorting to Episcopal unquali*
fied meetings, by declaring*, that any Peer who
has been twice present at such place of worship,
within one year preceding the election, shall be
incapable of being electied, or of voting in the
election of the Sixteen Peers : That any person
so offending shall be incapable of being elected,
or of voting in the election of a member of Par
liament, a magistrate or counsellor for boroughs,
or deacon of crafts, or collector or clerk of the
land-tax or supply ; and also, that any person.
Peer, or Commoner, holding any office, civil or
military, shall ipso facto forfeit the same, and
shall be incapable of holding any office, ' civil or
military, for the space of one year.
" Such is the summary of those laws underwhich
both Clergy and Laity of the Episcopal Commu
nion in Scotland at present labour. While sus
picions prevailed against them, it was in vain to
think of obtaining relief; and while attempts were
making in behalf of the exiled family, it was out
of their power to remove those suspicions. All
they could do was to conduct themselves in such
a quiet and inoffensive manner, as might convince
Government that there was no danger to be apr
prehended, and nq necessity for putting those se
vere laws in execution; Even the terms in which
* This clause explained by 21 Geo. II. Ch. xxxiv. Sect. IS.

106 ; .ANNALS OF I789.
the laws were conceived afforded reason to hope,
that a time might come when they might safely
be erased from the Statute-book. Causes ofa ci
vil nature alone produced these disabUities; but
a continued oppression of those whose religious
tenets and doctrines are, in the strictest sense,
the doctrines and tenets ofthe Church of Eng.
land, never could be intended. It is well known
that instead ot exciting and fomenting a spirit of
disaffection, the Scottish Episcopal Clergy have
invariably employed themselves in vindicating the
fundamental truths of our holy faith, in recom
mending the great duties ofthe Christian life, and
in enforcing those obligations and virtues which
tend to the quiet, peace, and comfort of society ;
for the truth of which they can safely appeal,
jiot only to the effects their labours have produced
on the lives and conversations of those committed
to their care, but also to those of the Established
Church of Scotland, who have been daily witnes
ses of their conduct.
^ The period is now happUy arrived which has
put an end to all poUtical distinctions, and united,
in the acknowlegment of a mild, gracious, and
beloved Sovereign, all his subjects of every deno
mination. Those of the Scottish Episcopal
Church have, for a considerable time past, offer
ed up their public prayers in terms of the statute
of Queen Anne, for the King by name, for the
Queen, and for all tbe Royal Family ; and this
open and unfeigned proof of their loyalty his Ma-

1789. SCOTTISH episcopacy. 107
jesty has been pleased most graciously to accept.
The restraints under which they at present la
bour are prejudicial to the interests of religion,
by imposing peculiar hardships on a respectable
body of men, both Clergy and Laity, by reducing
them to a state of political insignificancy, and
preventing them from employing their talents in
the support and service ofa Government to which
they have given, and are ready to give all other
marks of attachment.
"Whether the laws in question at the time they
passed were politic or not, it is, on the present
occasion, unnecessary to inquire. It is enough
that the cause for passing them is evidently re
moved. The mischief, whatever it was, now no
longer continues, and therefore the necessity for
providing against it ceases of course. It never
can be the object of the Legislature, by a conti
nuance of these disqualifying acts, when there
are now no Episcopal meetings held contrary to
tbe spirit and intention of the law, to prevent
persons who are attached to Government, and
who are respectable both by their rank and for-
tune, from attending the worship, of God in a way
agreeable to their consciences, and conformable
to the principles ofthe Church of England. His
Majesty having graciously accepted of the late
proof of their loyalty, it is hoped that every
branch of the Legislature will view the subject in
the same favourable light,and remove every odious
mark of distinction, by putting aU the Protestant

108 ANNALS Of 1789;
Episcopal Dissenters from the Scottish establish
ment, in the article of toleration, on an equal foot-
ingk They are far from wishing to encroach on
the rights of the establishment in -. either part of
the united kingdom. All they presume to request
is, the protection and indulgence granted to
those of the Episcopal Communion by the act
pf Queen Anne, and which, since the 1 9th of
Geo. II. have been restricted to the communion
of those pastors who have their orders from an
English or an Irish Bishop. This restriction be
ing no longer necessary, they humbly pray that
it may now give place to the original design pf
the statute of Queen A.nne, and that the I^egis^-,
l9,ture will be pleased so to adjust the provisionsT;
of that act, particularly that part of the oaths
which seems to have a retrospective view, to the
circumstances of the Scottish Episcopal Clergy,
that they may be able to enjoy the benefit of it,
and at the same time to express their attachment
to his Majesty's person and Government in a sin
cere and conscientious manner,"
After detaUing the means used to give this pa
per the necessary publicity, and the difficultiei
which he and his colleagues had to encounter, in
so framing thejr Bill as that the wished for relief
might be obtained, and yet no expressions be
used yvhich might excite jealousy and opposition,'
Bishop Skinner's journal narrates, that " on Mon
day the 15th of June, Mr Dundas, the Treasurer

1789. SCOTTISH episcopacy, 109
of the Navy, moved for leave to bring in a BUl,
which motion was seconded by Mr Dempster, who
informed us, that not only did every person in the
House listen to the motion with apparent satis
faction, but that when Sir Harry Houghton was
Voted into the chair, he was heard to say, he ne
ver took it with greater pleasure than on this
same occasion.
" On the day of the second reading of the
Bill, however, we were for the first time inform
ed, that the Lord Chancellor, with the Attorney
and Solicitor-General, was complaining that nei
ther he nor they knew any thing ofthe Bill ; for
which reason Mr Dundas moved for the printing
of it, requesting, in the mean time, that we would
send each of them a written copy. This we did
immediately, accompanied with letters of apolo
gy for the unintentional mistake into which we
had fallen. LETTER Xlt
THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS IN LONDON TO LORD CHAN
CELLOR THURLOW.
" We had the honour of addressing your Lord
ship some weeks ago, and of enclosing in our let-
, ter the case, of the Scottish Episcopal Clergy.
We presumed also to take the same liberty when
we transmitted to ypur Lordship a copy of the first
Bill intended for our rehef. Finding, however, that

no ANNALS OF 17&9.
some alterations were thought necessary, to ob
viate every cause of offence to the Establishment
in Scotland, we would have done ourselves the
honour of sending your Lordship a copy of the
second BUl, had it not been, as we are assured,
ailtogether unexceptionable, and therefore not
likely, we imagined, to be disapproved of by your
Lordship. •' For this reason, and knowing your Lordship
to be much engaged with a multiplicity of busi
ness, we naturally thought, that to have given
your Lordship what appeared to us unnecessary
trouble, would have been blameworthy.
" But, understanding that the Archbishop of
Canterbury desires to see Mr Dundas before the
Bill proceeds any farther, and that your Lordship,
with the Attorney and Solicitor General, . ought
to have been informed of the nature of the BiU
as it now stands ; if there has been any want of
attention on our part, we would be most happy
to atone for it, if we knew how. Men in our de
pendent circumstances, your Lordship may be
heve, would be glad to wait upon the lowest clerk
in office, could it advance the cause in which we
are engaged, and therefore cannot be suspected
of any intentional neglect of duty to persons of
such weight and influence as his Majesty's At
torney and Solicitor-General, far less of any such
conduct towards your Lordship.
" May we therefore presume to hope, thatyouf
Lordship wUl be so condescending as to forgive

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. Ill
any error into which we may have undesignedly
fallen, and to grant your powerful support to the
BUl, a copy of which is here enclosed, when it
shall come before the House of Peers."
"-85, Whitcombe Street, June 20. 1789."
" The Attorney- General, (Sir- Archibald Mac
donald*) and the" Solicitor-General, (Sir John
Scott, now Lord Eldon,) were very easUy recon
cUed, and had the condescension to say, that,
as they considered no blame imputable to us, so
we should meet with no opposition from them.
This emboldened us to address the Archbishop
on the head, and to inform him of the fact, add
ing, ' that we would be happy indeed to be as
• sure ofthe Lord Chancellor's forgiveness, which
* we cannot but flatter ourselves, from what we
' have heard of his Lordship's humanity and love
' of justice, your Grace's favourable interposition
* in our behalf will have the effect of procuring
' us. We have used the freedom to enclose a
' copy of the Bill, as printed by order of the
* House of Commons. And hoping that your
* Grace will excuse this trouble,, we have the
* honour to be,' &c. &c.
" Next day his Grace condescended to do us
the honour of caUing on us, and told us, that he
came in consequence of our letter, to satisfy us
that he, had no new objection to our Bill ; but,
said he, * I have certainly heard some doubts
* started by Lay Peers, as to the propriety of the

112 ANNALS m 1789;
' measui-e; and beg to know when the BiU may be
* expected to be brought into the Upper House.'
" On receiving this information, although un
able to give his Grace an explicit answer, we
wrote cards, by Mr Dundas's de'sire, to the Lords
Camden, Bathurst, Loughborough, and Kenyoni
and enclosing for these Noblemen copies of our
BiU, solicited their supports During all this dis
cussion our Bill was passing through the House
of Commons, without one dissentient voice ;
and on Friday the 29th June, was read the third
time, passed, and ordered to the House of LOrds^
where it was presented by Mr Dundas, and, on
motion by the Earl of Hopetoun, was read the
first time.
" This introduction gave us hopes, that there
was no serious opposition intended on the part of
the Lord Chancellor. A few days after, how
ever, we learned from undoubted authority, that
this great man was sti<|l adverse to the measure,
and said, ' it was most indecently brought for-
' ward.' " This information we lost not a moment in
communicating to his Grace the Archbishop, and
to all the Scottish Peers in town, viz. the Lords
Braedalbane, Hopetoun, GaUoway, Stormont,
and Kinnaird, requesting the support of the
Archbishops and the Bench of Bishops, as well
as ofthe Lords above-named, our countrymen^
on the second reading of our Bill, as a measure
Which their Lordships well knew eould.give just

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 113
offence to no party in Scotland, and least of all to
the EstabUshed Chur'ch. To the Earl of Hope
toun, a zealous member of the, Scottish establish
ment, we were peculiarly indebted, both for at
tention and advice ; who, though ready to move
the second reading of our Bill, purposely delayed
it for some days, in hopes that we might yet have
interest enough to get the Chancellor's opposi
tion conquered.
" Should that be found impossible, (as the se
quel shews,) there was one expedient, we thought,
worthy of trial, viz. to propose not legal tolera
tion, but connivance simply. This expedient,
therefore, we resolved to adopt, and with that
view wrote to, the Lord Chancellor, previously
submitting our letter, however, to Mr Dundas's
perusal, and begging that he would favour us
with his opinion how we ought to proceed. The
letter itself and Mr Dundas's very friendly reply
are here recorded.

LETTER XIIL
THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS IN LONDON TO LORD CHAN
CELLOR THURLOW.
" My Lord,
" Since we had the honour of sending your
Lordship a, copy ofthe BiU for granting relief to
the Ministers and Lay-members of the Episcopal
H

114 Annals or 1789.
Communion in Scotland, Ave have heard,'^ with •
much concern, that your Lordship objects to the
oath inserted in the BUl, in place ofthe oath 'of
Abjuration. We therefore beg leave to state to
your Lordship the reasons on which that conces
sion was requested on our part, as well as agreed
to by the Lord Advocate for Scotland, and other
servants of the Crown.
" Wp do not. My Lord, pretend to disguise
the political scruples which so long prevented
the Members of our Society from testifying their
allegiance to the present Government. But no
sooner was the cause of that unhappy disaffection
removed* than we cheerfully came forward, and
avowed our sincere attachment to his Majesty's
person and Government, and our determined re
solution to manifest that attachment in the most
open and unequivocal manner. At the same
time, as we dare not profess to have been loyal
before we actually were so, and as the oath of Ab
juration has an evident retrospect, and can be
taken with safety only by those who nev^r be
lieved the rights which it disclaims, we acknow
ledge that we cannot venture upon it without in
volving ourselves in the guilt of perjury,' a hard
ship which^ we humbly trust, the British Legis
lature, will never impose upon us.
" It is now our^earnest desire, and wUI b?
henceforth our constant study, to approve our
selves faithful and loyal subjects, in the fullest
sense of the expression ; but, to be so, we con-

17^9. SCOTTISH EI^ISPOPACY. 115
ceive it necessary that we act an honest and Con
scientious part, otherwise no government Pan
have any confidence in us.
" We are told that the Roman Catholic^, on
account of their religious scruples, have been in
dulged with a new oath of Supremacy ; and we
cannot but hopd, that, for a simUar reason, your
Lordship wUl view Pur Case in a like favourable
light, and permit our BiU to pass through the
House of Peers, with the same indulgence which
it has experienced in the HoUse oT Commons.
Or, if your Lordship is of opinion, that, without'
taking all the oaths prescribed by law, we ai*e
fiot entitled to legal toleration, we shall be satis
fied with that connivance which is extended to a
numerous body of Scottish Dissenters, of whom
no oaths of any kind are required ; and only beg
to have those acts repealed which at |)reserit hang
over our heads, and deprive us of that freedom of
worshijjping God, as conscience directs, which
all other loyal subjects in the British dominions
do enjoyi i
" Should your Lordship think p'roper to adopt
this mode of granting us relief, we have only to
request that the Bill'may not be rejected, but re
mitted, with amendments, to the House of Com
mons, and thus be prepared for the Royal assent
as soon aS possible.
" Fear of being tedioiis. My Lord, has pre
vented us frpm expressing ourselves so fully, or
so clearly, as we could have wished. May ws
h2

Il6 ANNALS^ OF ' 1789-
therefore presume to request the honour of wait
ing on your Lordship, if any doubts should still
remain concerning the commutation ofthe oath,
or any ot^her clause pf the BUl."
" Duke Street, York Buildings,
3d July 1789."
LETTER XIV.
" 4th July 17S9.
" Gentlemen, " I have just now, (half-past 9,) received your
letter. I see no objection to your sending your
letter to the ChanceUor, but I do not promise
you any probable hopes from it. I can give you
no advice as to your conduct in the House of
Lords, nor can I advise you how to obviate
objections which I do not understand, nor
could have conceived that they could have been
made ! Lord Hopetoun, however, wUl be able to
inform you upon these points better than I can
do. I was surprised to hear that the ChanceUor
had quoted the Lord Advocate's name. If the
Lord Advocate had been here, I should have
considered him as perhaps the most proper per-
soi} to move the Bill. I certainly did not under
stand from. him, that a BiU, proposed upon the
ground of the present Bill, would have met with
Objection from the quarter you suggest-
" Do precisely what you shall think best for
your own success. I am perfectly ready now, or

1789. SCOTTISH El'ISCOPACY. 117
in any future Session, to maintain your caiise, for
I think it the cause of justice and humanity."
" On Monday, July 6th, we waited on Lord
Hopetoun by invitation, from whom we learned,
that our letter to the Lord Chancellor was too
late for answering our present purpose ; as Lord
Kinnaird having that very day proposed that our
Bill should be read the second time, the Chancel
lor moved that it should be adjourned to the 29th
of September. To acquiesce in this, without a
division, Lord Hopetoun considered preferable
to running the risk of a trial of strength, when
the ChanceUor might have been induced to speak
on the subject, and thus do the cause irreparable
injury. The good Earl, after hinting to us some
modes of future procedure, assured us that we
might depend on his continued support and as
sistance. To the Bishop of Bangor, Dr Warren,
as one who was said to be more in Lord Thur
low's confidence than any other of the English
Bench, we failed not to represent our case in as
strong language as we could ; — ' that there could
* be no Bishops without the King's authority*,'
we remarked to his Lordship, ' was an assertion
* by one who professed himself a member of an
* Episcopal Church, which not a little surprised us.
'-Were this the case, the Apostolic power of Con-
* The avowal of this sentiment by the Chancelloi' of Eng
land, must have excited, and did excite, the surprise of others
besides the humble representatives of Scottish Episcopalians.

lis ANNALS OF

secrating Bishops must have been lost as soon
as obtained ; hence, there is, at this day, not
one Bishop in the whole Christian world. It is
well known. My Lord, that the Church of Eng
land, from the murder of Charles the First to-
the restoration of his son, was covered with as
dark a cloud as ever overshadowed her unfor
tunate Sister Church in Scotland. Nay, had Ri
chard Cromwell been as ambitious and as able a
man as his father, Oliver, her misery might have
been as great and as lasting as that of the Scot
tish Church has been. But we thank God it
was not sp. We bless the Almighty, that the
Church of England was restored ; and we pray
to God she may not only subsist, but flourish in
purity and peace tUl time shall be no more !
Yet, for argument's sake, My Lord, let us sup
pose that the Church of England had not been
restored, but had subsisted under persecution,
as our Church has done, to the present day,
would your Lordship, — would any English Pre
late have admitted that the Church of England
had no Bishops ? And would not the Bishops
have thought it hard, upon their acknowledg
ing the civil powers, to be denied the liberty of
worshipping God in their accustomed forms, as
well as the right of spiritual jurisdiction over
the people who adhered to their Communion?
Yet this is all that we presume to ask ; and
certainly it is what, ih this age of liberality,
wUl not, nay, cannot be denied us ! Wherefprci,

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 119
¦ we do a;gain beg leave to propose a friendly
• meeting with your Lordship on the subject of
• this letter ; since we have hopes, that on hear-
' ing a just representation of our case, your Lord-
' ship wUl have the goodness to endeavour to sof-
* ten the Lord Chancellor, and to procure for
' our cause that generous treatment in the House
' of Lords with which it has been honoured in
'the House of Commons.
' The Scottish members of both Houses know
* how generally acceptable our success wUl be in
• our own country. And, when we inform your
• Lordship, that there are many gentlemen in
' Scotland who have taken all the oaths to Go-
' vernment, and have distinguished themselves
' in the service of their country, who, notwith-
• standing, are restrained from praying for the
* ' King, whom they have faithfully served, in our
• religious assemblies, without forfeiting very es-
* sential privileges, and are obUged either to join
' in other worship which they do not approve, or
' go to no place of worship at all. We need say
' no more to point out to your Lordship, whose
' principles on the subject ofthe Church are rp-
* presented to us as strictly correct, the unhappy
' effects of these political restraints, and the pro-
' priety of removing them as speedily as possible,*
" To this communication we received, the same
day on which it was written, the following re
ply :—

120 ANNALS OF 1789.
LETTER XV. ;
tHE BISHOP OF BANGOR TO THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS.
Great G eorge Street, 6th July 1 789.
" Right Reverend Sirs,
" On my, returning from the House of Lords
this afternoon, I was favoured'with your letter.
I have had some conversation with the Chancel
lor on this business, but I do npt precisely know
what his Lordship's opinion is ; and, if I did, I
would not mention it, not having authority so
to do.
" I need not tell you that the farther conside
ration ofthe Bill was, on motion this afternoon,
postponed till the 29th of September ; and, if
you should be advised to make another attempt,
and an opportunity should offer itself for me to
declare my sentiments publicly^ you will find me
the same firm friend to the Church as I have
been represented to be ; and I think myself very
much obliged to those who made such honour
able mention of me.
" In the present state of this business, I must
beg leave to decline the conference you propose ;
and am, &c,
" Before leaving London, we addressed a let
ter of thanks to the Archbishop of Canterbury,
for his Grace's kindness and condescension."

1789* SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 121

LETTER XVL
THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS TO HIS GRACE THE ARCH
BISHOP OF CANTERBURY. London, July 8, 1789.
" May it please your Grace,
" The Scottish Episcopal Clergy's Bill being
postponed until the 29th September, our disap-
pointment, severely as it is felt, has not rendered
us insensible of your Grace's kindness and con
descension, for which we beg leave to offer our
grateful acknowledgments, and to ask the honour *
of your Grace's commands for Scotland, for
which we intend, God wiUing, to set out to-mor
row morning.
" It would ill become us, when writing to a
Prelate of such distinguished worth and judg
ment, to offer one word in recommendation of a
business which is self-recommended to every
friend of religion and humanity.
" We are willing to flatter ourselves with the
hope, that our ignorance of the proper mode of
application to great personages individually, or
to administration collectively, wiU not finaUy
prejudice the cause of so many thousands of his
Majesty's loyal subjects, who earnestly crave le
gal toleration in return for unequivocal fidelity.
In their names we beg leave to request your

122 ANNALS OF 1789.
Grace's powerful support ; and have the honour
to remain,' &c.
" The three Bishops," continues Bishop Skin
ner's narrative, " returned from London about
the middle of July '1789. And, though they
had the satisfaction to find their conduct approv
ed in all Synodical meetings of the Clergy, and
by the generality of the. Laity^ yet were they
sorry to learn that an attempt had been made,
by means of a printed address, to circulate un
generous suspicions of their having taken too
much upon them in their late undertakfng, and
to t denounce them publicly, as having proved
themselves wholly unfit for conducting the busi
ness in a proper manner. It was soon discover*
ed," adds the Bishop, '? that the author of this
address was George Monck Berkeley, Esq. son
of the Rev. Dr. Berkeley, Prebendary of Canter
bury, &c. who, though he had resided some little
time in Scotland, had certainly very little oppor
tunity of knowing the general sentiments of the
Scottish Episcopal Church on the. present occa
sion," and who, the Annalist apprehends, must
have been actuated byother motives than the os
tensible one of " interest in the welfare of that .
religious Society in which he hopes to die !" —
Of this the Address wUl at once convince the
reader.

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 123
/
" To the Clerical and Lay-Members of the
Episcopal Communion in Scotland.
" Rev. Sirs and Gentlemen,
" Presuming that by this time you are aU suffix
ciently informed with respect to the steps that
have been taken by your Bishops to procure a
repeal of the Penal Laws, and that you are also
acquainted with the total faUure of their under
taking ; I shall only trespass on your attention,
whilst I suggest the propriety of a second appli
cation to Parliament, and propose to your consi
deration a Plan of Procedure, of which the expe
diency will, I doubt not, be sufficiently apparent,
to require little or no assistance from argument.
" The plan for which I wish to procure your
sanction, is as follows : — That each of the two
orders I have now the honour to address, should
elect a representati\>e, to superintend on its be
half the next application to Parliament, for a re
peal of those laws which it is no longer the inte
rest of any man to enforce.
*' To direct the attention of the inferior Cler- •
gy to the preservation of their own rights, as
connected with that Church to which their ser
vices are devoted, would have appeared to pie
\yholly unnecessary, had I not witnessed their
supineness on the late occasion.
f That the Bishops undertook their embassy
without the concurrence ofthe Clergy and Laity

124 ANNALS OF 1789.
over whom they preside ; that they constituted
themselves sole and absolute Governors of the
Church in Scotland ; that they concerted mea
sures for the relief of that Church, without tbe
advice or approbation ofthe inferior Clergy, who,
with themselves, were equally interested in the
success of these measures ; and, that they have
plainly evinced their utter incapacity to execute
their own plans, — are facts I need not call to
your recollection. — But as a man much interest
ed in the welfare of that Religious Society in
which he hopes to die, I think it a duty incum
bent on me, to suggest to you the necessity of
preventing a second encroachment on yoUr pri
vileges, and of attempting, in concurrence with
your Prelates, by a proper and respectful appli
cation to Parliament, to procure for that Church,
of which you are at once members and guardians,
the protection of a Government whose authority
it acknowledges, and whose lenity it has long ex
perienced. " Do not, Gentlemen, however, suppose, that,
to lessen the respect due \o the Episcopal cha
racter, or to circumscribe the authority of the
Bishops by improper limits, is the object propos
ed by the present Address. Such is by no means
the case ; but when any authority, however ve
nerable, presumes to invade the rights of others,
it is the duty of those whose liberties are endan
gered to defend that blessing, for which an equi
valent has never yet been discovered.

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 125
" Let me, therefore, Reverend Sirs and Gen
tlemen, entreat you, without delay to elect, each
of you, a Representative who may attend such
Bishops as may be disposed to go upon a second
embassy to London ; for if you reject this mea
sure, errors, similar to those which have already
disappointed your hopes, may again frustrate any
exertions that may be made in your favour, and
you may for ever lose that relief which the pre
sent Government so readUy affords to all its suf
fering subjects. This advice will, I fear, lose
much weight, as coming from the pen of an ano
nymous writer ; and I should certainly subscribe
my name, were I vain enough to suppose it could
in the least infiuence those to whom it is addres
sed. 1 have the honour to remain," &c.
" A LAY MEMBER OF THE EPISCOPAL
CHURCH IN SCOTLAND."
The Primus had previously meant to assemble
a Convention of the Church, to be composed of
all the Clergy, with a Lay-delegate or delegates
from every Congregation, that he might lay be
fore them the whole of his and the other Bishops'
procedure during their stay in London ; and the
above paper determined him to assemble it with
out delay.
The CoUege of Bishops having readily agreed
to this proposal, intimation was given by the Pri
mus to every Clergyman in the communion of
the Scottish Episcopal Church, that, on " Wed-

126 ANNALS OF . 1789.
nesday, the lith day of November next, at ele
ven o'clock in the forenoon, a general meeting of
the Bishops and Clergy of that Church was to be
holden at the village of Laurencekirk, in the
county of Kincardine, for the purpose of taking
into consideration the present state of our appli
cation to Government for a repeal of the penal
laws, and requiring them also to assemble the
principal members of their respective Congrep?
tions, and that for the purpose of nominating
and appointing some person or persons belong
ing to each to attend such meeting as delegate:
or delegates from the laity pf the Episcopal
Communion ; failing which appointment, the
Clergyman of each Congregation, or his proxry,
(if he shaU find personal attendance very incon-
venienty) will be considered as representing his
flock, in order that the meeting may be as much
as possible a representation of the whole Epis*-
copal Church."
The Convention took place accordingly, and,
having been as respectably and numerously at
tended as circumstances would admit, it was
opened by the Primus delivering the following
address : —
" Gentlemen, " As I had the honour of being the immedi
ate and active instrument in calling this meeting,
I am very happy to see such a numerous and re
spectable Convention. The laudable motive

I'j'SQ. SCOTTISH EtiSCOfACY. 127
which has brought you hither from the several
parts of our Church, with which you are respec
tively connected, wUl, I hope, equally appear
from the cordial manner in which you will enter
On the business of the meeting, and from the
unanimity with which it Will be conducted* I
need not take up your time in recommending
this to your particular attention, as you must all
be sensible how much the ' success of our mea
sures depends on that union of sentiment with
which they are concerted, and the generous sup
port to which they wiU be thereby entitled from
the whole community represented in this assem
bly. I have only to add, that as the object
which the convention has chiefly in view is to he
considered as ofa civil or temporal nature, not
immediately connected with any thing purely
ecclesiastical, in other words, with any thing
which regards the doctrine, worship, or discip
line of the Church ; for this reason, looking upon
the present as a Convention of persons aggrieved
by certain political restrictions, and assembled
for the purpose of procuring a redress of these
grievances, I see no necessity for our proceed
ing according to Ecclesiastical rule, or the Can
ons of that Church to which we belong. On the
contrary, I think it my duty to declare, as I here
by, in the most solemn manner, do declare, be
fore all who are here present, that this is no Sy
nod or Assembly, purely Ecclesiastical, nor to
be considered as a precedent for any such here--

12S ANNALS OF 1789.
after in the Scottish Episcopal Church. . I there
fore claim no right frpm my office or character,
to preside in it. It was necessary that some per
son should call you together, — shpuld appoint the
time and place of your meeting, and signify tbe
object of it. That task my situation in the
Church naturally assigned to rae j but having
thus far discharged my duty, I have now only to
propose, that, in the j^rsif place. You proceed
to chgpse a Preses and Clerk ; and, in the second
plape, Tp lay down a few general rules for car
rying on the business of the meeting with suqh
order and regularity as become the purpose and
design of it"
Bishop Skinner having been unanimously cho
sen Preses, and the Rev. Roger Aitkin of Aber
deen clerk, the Convention resolved: " That
every Clerical member shall have a vote for him
self, and for evcKy proxy produced by him, whe
ther granted by a Clergyman or a Congregation :
and. That every Lay-meniber-or members shall
have one vote for the Congregation which he
or they may represent : And where there is no
Lay representative from any Congregation, the
Clergyman who has the charge of it, or his proxy,
shaU be considered the representative, and have
the vote accordingly. But every Clergyman, be
the number of his charges what they may, shall
be supposed to have but one Such charge, ; and
tberefore but one vote for it."
From the foregoing resolution, it was found
that no fewer than eighty-four votes were pre-

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 129
sent, or duly represented in the Convention be
fore the business commenced, which was done by
the Clerk putting the question, * Is it the plea-
• sure ofthe Convention that the pj-oper business
• of it be now opened from the chair ?' This being
answered in the affirmative, the Primus, as chair
man, spoke as follows : — v
" In compliance. Gentlemen, with ypur de
sire, I must, first of all, refer to the intimation
which was circulated in name of the Bishops,
from which it appears, that this Convention was
called, and is now holden * for the purpose of
• taking into consideration the present state of
' an application to Government for a repeal of
* the penal laws.* This necessarily implies that
an application has been made, and is now pend
ing ; so that our present business leads us to en
quire into the nature of this application^ the man
ner in which it has been conducted, the probable
consequences of it, and the best method of car
rying it on, so as to render it finally successful.
These appear to me to be the general outlines of
that important business for which we are now as
sembled ; and iflthis arrangement is carefully at
tended to, it will, I hope, enable us to proceed
in a methodical manner, and to bring our busi
ness to an amicable and happy conclusion. With
regard to the nature of the application which has,
been already made to Government, and the man
ner in which it has been conducted, as it fell to
my lot to have an active hand in it, being one of

ISO ANNALS O* 1789.
the three principal agents in tbe cause, it will no
doubt be expected from me, in the absence of one,
of those Gentlemen, and with concurrence of the
other now present, that I should give this Con
vention a full detail of the part which we have
acted, of the motives which led us so to act, and
of the result of our actions. Such an account I
am now ready to render, in as clear and concise
a manner as the nature ofthe subject will admit,
and wuth all the accuracy and fidelity which, my
memory, or rather my materials, shaU enable me
to do. Before, however, entering on my narra
tive, I must be permitted to claim a strict depen
dence on the honour, the prudence, and the good
sense of the Gentlemen who are members of this
Convention. Remarks will necessarily be made
on the, sentiments and behaviour of persons high
in office, or respectable ^ in character and rank,
which it would be very imprudent to publish to
the world, or even to be repeating too freely in
promiscuous companies, and where no good end
is likely to result. In this respect, therefore,
proper caution and reserve are so necessary, (mose
especially in our situation,) that I hope you yfill
excuse the Uberty which I have taken in recom
mending to you their strict observance. I, shall
trespass no farther on your patience by this pre
amble, than to mention, that in the narrative
which I am about to submit, to you, you wUl find
frequent reference made to letters, cards, or
other vouchers, the ' originals, or copies of the

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY*. 131
whole, or greater part of which, being now on
the table, if it be the wish of any Gentleman to
peruse any of them, or to move that any of them
be read at full length when referred to, the wish
shall on my part be cheerfully complied with,
either at the immediate time of reference, or
when the narrative is concluded, as shall tP the
general sense of the Convention appear to be
most agreeable."
The reader having had Bishop Skinner's nar
rative already submitted to his perusal, is doubt
less of opinion, that it was not only sufficiently
minute, but sufficiently satisfactory, and that all
was done which men in the situation and circum
stances of Bishops Skinner, Abernethy Drum
mond, and Strachan, could have done to effect
the object which they took in hand. As this,
however, constituted the leading charge against
them in the printed " Address to the Clerical
and Lay Members of their Communion," it
seems incumbent on the Annalist to put the read
er in possession of the Primus' defence of him
self and colleagues, as forming the introductory
part of his. narrative : —
" In managing the affairs of any community,
unless some persons take the lead, either by vir
tue of their office, or from motives of peculiar
generosity, we seldom see any great efforts made
for the public good. In a religious society, it
may justly be expected that the ministers of reli
gion will step forward as the leading persons ;
I 2

132 ANNALS OF 1789,
and in an Fpiscopal Church, such as ours, I hope
that, without being suspected of unduly magniJ.
fying my office, I may say, that the chief lead and
direction must be supposed to rest with the Bish
ops. On this delicate point, however, let me
not be misunderstood. I am well aware, that in
the management of such a business as that for
which we are now assembled, though the Bishops
may, from their more responsible situation, find
themselves obliged to be the first movers, yet
they ought not to go forward, they cannot indeed,
with any propriety, go forward in any such under
taking, without the support of those who are equal
ly interested in the issue of it. Impressed, as I
have all along been, with this sentiment, and ear
nestly desirous to shew its operation on every part
of my conduct, it gave me great concern to be de
prived of the means of practising it, at the very
time when both duty and inclination called upon
me so to doi Yet such was the situation of things
at the period to which I am now looking back, that
it was not in my power, nor in the power of my
colleagues, to take any other measures, than those
which the spur of the occasion prompted. The
month of March last being the time when Parlia
ment may have been said to have recovered from
the shpck produced by his Majesty's dangerous
indisposition, mycoUeagues and myself were daily
reminded, from all quarters of the kingdom, that
now was our time to apply to Government for a
redre^ of our grievances, while our compliance

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 133
was fresh in the minds of the people, and when
the nation was all in good humour. And had
we neglected an opportunity which appeared so
very favourable to our wishes, we, the Bishops,
had certainly'incurred no small degree of blame
and reproach, for our remissness and inattention
to the interests of our society. But in the month
of March this year, when such a Convention as
the present would have proved a measure of first
rate expediency, there was such a fall of snow on
the ground, as to render the roads well nigh im
passable in most districts of Scotland ; and before
the weather was tolerably settled, and the roads fit
for travelling, the Easter holidays were at hand, a
season, we all know, which admits notof Clergymen
travelling to any distance from home, yet the week
preceding passion-week, orpassion-week itself, was
the very time when such a meeting as the present
could have answered any good purpose, as thegene-
ral opinion was, that the last Session of Parliament
would not have lasted above a month or six weeks
after the Easter holidays, and many reports pre
vaUed that it would have ended sooner. In such
a state of uncertainty, had it been otherwise con
venient to call a general meeting ofthe Church,
it is far from probable that any decisive resolu
tion would have been the result of it. Both
Clergy and Laity were then too much in thp dark
to know precisely what path would have been
most proper for them to pursue ; and at our first
outset to have stumbled into a wrong course,

13 i ANNALS OF 178 j.
might have been of very burtful Consequences.
Besides, as a Convention of this nature must make
some little noise in the country, and be talked of
in all parts of the kingdom where there are mem
bers of our communion, it was difficult to say
what construction might have been put upon it,
and to what reports it might have given rise, had
it been assembled at the time when I and my
colleagues, at the desire of the other members Of
the Scottish Episcopate, set off for the seat of
Government. The case is very different now
indeed ; our cause has been gradually brought
into pubUc view ; it has been treated with be
coming respect, and honoured with friendly sup
port by some of the first characters in the nation.
It has even received the sanction, the unanimous
sanction, of one of the branches of the British
Legislature. And, under these circumstances,
we need no longer doubt of the propriety of our
meeting here, as a Convention, to deliberate on a
subject which was so honourably introduced, and
so candidly attended to in the House of his Ma
jesty's faithful Commons. Nay, our very meet
ing, (though for another purpose,) having been
recommended by one of the principal officers of
the Crown as a proper measure ; it will not, we
may now hope, be branded as too bold or too
presumptuous for persons in our political situa
tion, while the mouths of our enemies, if not shut
by the countenance which we have received, wiU
not be opened half so wide as they would- have

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 135
been, six months ago. For my own part, there
fore, I freely own, that I should not have attend
ed a meeting of this nature in April last, with the
same courage, and the same confidence in its pro
priety, which I this day feel. I should have met
you then. Gentlemen, with many doubts bang-
ing on my mind with respect to the prudence of
our conduct, and been afraid that in trusting to
the ' harmlessness ofthe dove,' we had lost sight
of the • wisdom of the serpent.'
"Let it not, however, be supposed, that in the
midst of so much doubt and diffidence, as to the
propriety of a public general meeting, the bene
fits of it were wholly overlooked even by my col
leagues or myself. Though I could not convene,
at that season of the year, the Clergy of my own
diOcese, I took the opportunity of a few of them
being met together at Aberdeen, and laid before
them the proposal of an immediate application
to Government, by three ofthe Bishops going to
London for the purpose. Of which measure they
not only heartily approved, but promised to pro
cure, and did procure, introductory letters from
Gentlemen of weight and influence in their re
spective neighbourhoods. With the same view,
I wrote to all the other Clergy of the diocese of
Aberdeen, who I knew had opportunities of that
kind, and had the pleasure to find them all equal
ly active and zealous in what I recommended to
them. To Bishop Macfarlane I applied, for the
same brotherly support from him and his Clergy ;

136 , ANNALS OF 1789.
and to Mr Skene at Forfar,, as Dean of the. dio
cese of Dunkeld for the like assistance, and had
most satisfactory and favourable returns from
both. To the same great object I had no reason
to doubt but the two Bishops who were to ac
company me to London were equally attentive ;
ao that we were really honoured with the most
ample recommendations to members of both
bouses of Parliament ; and, being chiefly from
members of our own communion, the obvious in
ference was, that they not only thought themselves
interested in the success of our application, but
that they also considered the Scottish Epispopal
Laity, as well as Clergy, sufficiently represented
by those who had undertaken to conduct their
cause. I
*' But be in this what may, I will not. Gen- •
tlemen, on this occasion, dissemble my opinion
that the Bishops of a Church ' so circumstanced
as ours is, may, "in the act of soliciting any favour
or indulgence, be considered as virtually repre
senting those, whether Clergy or Laity, whp are
to share in that favour or indulgence. I ground
not this ppinion, however, on the plea of Epis
copal authority, but on- the faith of that paternal
care, that tender and affectionate concern for the
welfare of its members, which may well be looked
for in the chief rulers of every society in which
an union of interests is the surest basis of recipro
cal confidence.
i* Were the Protestant Bishops in Scotland dis-

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 137
tinguished by any outward appendages of worldly
honour and dignity which nfight tempt them
first to court promotion to the Episcopate, and
afterwards to claim an undue authority in the
exercise of it ; or had they separate interests to
pursue, unconnected with the interests of those
for whom they are bound ' to watch,' there
might be some reason for regarding the whole,
and evejy individual part of their official proce
dure, with a jealous eye. But assuredly those
men ' must be afraid, where no fear is,' who can
entertain the least apprehension of Ecclesiasti
cal tyranny on the part of such poor, untitled,
unendowed, and unprotected Prelates, as now
constitute the Episcopate in Scotland. So far
from harbouring the most distant idea of invad
ing the privileges of those with whom we are
spiritually connected, we were most anxious for
an opportunity of shewing how ardently we wish
ed to befriend and do them all the good in our
power. Had we wished to make a merit of this
then, had we waited until we had been courted
ahd importuned to exert our abilities such as they
were ; then we should not have moved one single
step without a delegated power, conferred with
all the absurd formalities of those motley con
ventions so well suited to the levelling spirit of
the age. But seeking no more formal commis
sion or delegation than what our office gave us,
we needed no prompting beyond what our own
incUnation afforded, and, with hearts devoted to
the interests of that Church in which we hav©

' 138 ANNALS or 1789.
the honour to serve, we voluntarily ei^agedin
the laudable design of effecting her relief from
the pains and penalties of law, by which, for half
a century, she haS been aggrieved ; and the pro
cess ¦ and issue of our labours shaU now very
f briefly be laid before you."
No sooner had the Primus concluded his nar
rative, than it was, on motion, resolved, that he,
as Preses of the Convention, do leave the chair ;
and that the Convention, With Bishop Macfar
lane, as Chairman, do form itself into a Commit
tee for taking into consideration the proceedings
communicated by Bishop Skinner. This being
cordially agreed to, it was moved by the Rev.
Roger Aitkin, and seconded by the Rev. John
Allan, — ^That
" The Convention, having taken the proceed
ings of the Bishops into consideration, do consi
der the same to have appeared, at the time, the
^most proper steps that could have been taken for
procuring, the proposed relief ; that though the
measures which they adopted were not attended
with the desired success, the disappointment did ,
not arise from any misconduct on their parts,
but from causes which persons in their situation
could not be supposed to foresee, and therefore
could not guard against ; and That, therefore,
the thanks of the Convention be given to the
Bishops, for the zeal, alacrity, and indefatigable
diligence with which they attempted the reUef of
this Church."

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY 139
" The motion being unanimously agreed to,
the Rev. R. Aitkin, J. AUan, and G. Glpig, with
John Niven Esq., were ordered to prepare an ad
dress of thanks, in terms of the motion, and to
report the same at next sederunt." Having so
reported, and the address being agreed to. Bishop
Macfarlane was requested to communicate the
same to the Bishops Skinner, Abernethy Drum
mond, and Strachan, by letter under his hand,
in manner following : —
" To the Right Reverend the Bishops, &c.
" Bishop Skinner having this day read a nar
rative of the proceedings of the three Bishops
who went to London for the purpose of solicit
ing a repeal of the penal laws, and being desir
ed by the Convention to leave the chair, into
which I was immediately voted, the Convention
resolved itself into a Committee, and voted the
thanks of the meeting to those Bishops who had
distinguished themselves with so much zeal in
the important cause which they had undertaken.
" I am therefore desired. Right Reverend Sirs,
to request your Reverences' acceptance of their
thanks for the able and upright manner, in which
you exerted yourselves in so arduous an enter
prise ; and it gives me pleasure to subscribe, in
their name and my own, a vote which so hearti
ly meets my approbation.
•* Andrew Macfarlane,
" Bishop of Ross and Moray.'^
" Laurencekirk, November 11. 1789.

140 annals of 1789.
It was next resolved, that the Convention
should name a Committee, with full powers to
manage and carry on the measures still held ne
cessary for obtaining a repeal of the, penal sta
tutes ; which Committee should consist of three
^ishops, three Presbyters, and three Lay-per
sons ; the senior Bisliop to be Preses, and allow
ed to call meetings with consent of two-thirds of
the Committee.
They were also to choose a Secretary ; and, if
they found it expedient to send agents to Lon
don, these agents were to be chosen from among
themselves, and to be styled, '' Delegates from
the Committee of the Convention of the Scot-
tish Episcopal Church." The persons named by
the Convention for this Committee, were, —
The Right Rev. John Skinner, Bishop of Aberdeen.
Wm. Abernethy Drummond, Bishop
of'Edinburgh.
John Strachan, Bishop of Brechin.
The Rev. John Allan, Edinburgh.
George Gleig, Stirling.
Roger Aitkin, Aberdeen.
John Patullo, of Balhouffie, Esq. Commissary of
St Andrews.
John Stirling, ^sq. of Kippendavie, near Stirling.
John Niven, Esq. of Thornton and Peebles, near
Arbroath.
On the second day ofthe Convention, Novem
ber the 12th, they took into their consideration
the state ofthe charitable funds belonging to the
Scottish Episcopal Church ; finding that, by bank^

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 141
ruptcies and otherwise, they had of late much
decreased, and that no distribution had been
made during the last twelve months, to indigent
clergymen and widows as usual, the Convention
made choice of the following five Bishops, viz.
Skinner, KUgour, Macfarlane, Abernethy Drum
mond, and Strachan, as trustees for managing
these funds, and did immediately execute in their
favour a deed of election upon stamped parch
ment, empowering them, and those named by
them as their successors in office, to do whatso
ever was necessary for discharging the trust com
mitted to them, as more particularly expressed
in the minutes of this sederunt, and subject to
such rules and restrictions as this or any other
Convention should think proper to frame for the
security and increase of said funds, and to ensure
an equitable distribution from them for the pur
poses to which they were originally appropriated.
The thanks of the Convention having been
voted to the Preses " for the able and candid
manner in which he had conducted the business
ofthe meeting," as also to the Clerk for his im
portant services, it was forthwith dissolved ; the
Preses and Clerk subscribing the minutes, from
which the above account of its proceedings is
faithfuUy extracted. Nor can the Annalist for
bear from here recording an instance of pure
and disinterested friendship to the cause of Scot
tish Episcopacy, and of zeal for its prosperity,—
such as may be equalled, but never was and ne-

142 ANNALS OF 1789.
ver will be surpassed. Three ofthe invaluable per^
sonal friends whom Bishop Skinner had been for
tunate eriough to acquire during his stay in Loib-
don, now informed him, that such was the inte
rest which they felt in the repeal bf the penal
statutes, and such their anxiety tp see the sound
and orthodox Episcopacy of Scotland alike re
spected as it was respectable, " they had formed
themselves into a Committee of Correspondence
with the Committee appointed in Scotland by the
Laurencekirk Convention, and had determined
to meet once a-week, or as often as occasion
might require, for the communication of intelli
gence, and to deliberate on the most proper steps
to be taken for the speedy reUef of a Church
they so much venerated."
Two of these Gentlemen are yet alive, and to
mention their 'names is enough to satisfy such of
the readers of these Annals as may have heard of
thera only by ' the hearing of the ear,' that as
men of professional talents and acquirements, o£
unimpeachable integrity, fidelity, and worth, of
sound reUgious and political principles, they
have, at this day, no superiors in Church or
State, — ^the Honourable Sir James Allan Park,
one ofthe Judgesun his Majesty's Court of Com
mon Pleas, and the Rev. GeOrge Gaskin, D. D.
Secretary to the London Society for Promoting
Christian Knowledge, &c. The third Gentleman,
WUliam Stevens, Esq. Treasurer to Queen Anne's -
Bounty to the Clergy of J^gland, lives only in

1789. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 143
the good name which he had secured to himself
by his never ceasing endeavours " to adorn the
doctrine of God, his Saviour, in all things ;" and
the reader may be assured that this name will be
come extinct in the Annals of Scottish Episcopa
cy, only when that Episcopacy, like time itself,
shall be no more !
The following letter to Bishop Skinner, from
the near relative and beloved friend of Mr Ste
vens, the amiable and accomplished Bishop Home,
then Dean of Canterbury, may serve to shew
how happy the Episcopal Church in Scotland
might deem itself in such a patron.

LETTER XVIL
THE DEAN OF CANTERBURY TO BISHOP SKINNEB.
Deanry, Canterbury, Dec. 15, 1789.
" It gives me great pleasure to hear that the
Convention went off so well, and that all is har
mony amongst you.
" When I consider that last session of Parlia
ment you had not one opponent in the Com
mons, and only one among the Lords, I am rea
dy to hope, if that one be gained, (and unless he
can you may all sit still,) the business might be
done without the trouble and expence of a dele
gacy coming to London. But you may say, who
can gain him? I should imagine either the Arch-

141< ANNALS or 1790.
bishop or the Bishop of Bangor the most likely
to do it ; or, at least, after trial, to inform you
whether he is to be gained or not. If he is, it
might not perh^ips be necessary for an appUca
tion to be made again to the members of ParUa
ment individually, &c. which is a tedious and la-
¦ borious work. All this I write on supposition
that there is no opposition stirred up on fresh
grounds, of which you will get intelUgence if
there should be any thing ofthe kind on foot.
•' I am glad you have b^gard from my friend
and kinsman, Mr Stevens, who knows the trim
of the times as well as any man. He has cer
tainly had conversation with the Archbishop on
the subject, and therefore 1 do not think it im
probable his Grace may have chosen to com
municate through him any advice he may have
thought useful upon the occasion,— and a better
adviser you cannot have.
" As to the point of law, how you should pro-
ceed, or whom you should send, &c. you must be
yourselves the best judges. BeUeve me," &c.
" George Horne."
1790.] The first act ofthe Committee was, withi
the . approbation of their respected co-adjutors
above named, to transmit letters to the Lord
ChanceUor, and to the Attorney and Solicitor.
General, apologizing for any impropriety or ne-
gleet whicli might have happened in the mode
of appUcation last year, and requestmg the power-

1790. ' SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 145
ful support of these great officers of the Crown,
in carrying the repealing Bill thrPugh the pre
sent Session of Parliament. These letters being
despatched early in January 1790, the manner in
which they were delivered, and the reception
which they met with, will appear by the follow
ing extract of a letter to Bishop Skinner, dated
London, January the 28th.
*• Your Committee agreed, that instead of de
livering your general letters in person, they should
be sent, accompanied by a card, to each of the
great men, that they might have an opportunity
of considering the contents, and of conferring
together. I have since endeavoured to see the
Attorney- General, but in vain, as he is indispos
ed. I had a short conversation, however, with
the Solicitor yesterday, and he said he had not
seen the Chancellor, (who, I know, has been con
fined for ten days ;) that he himself was a warm
friend to the CJergy, and particularly to those of
the Episcopal Church ; but he feared that, on ac
count of the Dissenters, we had come at a bad
time. He, however, declined giving any opinion
as to the part he meant to take, until he had seen
the Lord Advocate's letter, and conferred with
the Attorney-General. Thus at present the mat
ter stands as to them ; but I am happy to give
you better accounts from Dr Gaskin, who, by the
burry of business, is himself prevented from writ
ing for a few days, ¦> K

146 , ANNALS OP 179a
J
" The good Doctor waited on the, Bishop of
Bangor, who received him with much kindness,
and confessed hiinself friendly to your cause.
He cheerfully undertook to deliver, in person,
your general letter to the Chancellor, and said,
that he would, from time to time, communicate
with Dr Gaskin, upon the steps most proper to
be taken. But he was most decidedly of opin
ion, that your business must be postponed to
that of the Dissenters ; as he is satisfied, that one
main ground of your former miscarriage was,
that the nature of your demand, and the descrip
tion of persons you were of, were not fully un
derstood. " His Lordship has also promised to consider
the point, whether the BiU should be introduced
in the Upper or Lower house, and to let us
know. And, as he has been sb good as to intro
duce our cause to the Chancellor's notice, I
think we should be determined by his opinion,
Ofthe same mind with the Bishop of Bangor, as
to time, is the Bishop of Salisbury ; with whom
Dr Gaskin has also done you much service."
Early in the year 1790, Lord Gardenston, at
that time one of the Judges ofthe Court of Ses
sion in Scotland, wrote the foUowing laconic but
interesting letter to the Lord Chancellor, in fa
vour of the Scottish Episcopal Clergy ; and that,
as far as is known to the AnnaUst, of his own ac
cord, without the solicitation of any one.

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 147

LETTER XVIII.
LORD GARDENSTON TO LORD THURLOW.
Edinburgh, January 20, 1790.
" My Lord ChanceUor,
" As one of the Judges in Scotland, and as I
had an occasion of being acquainted with you
when at London, many years ago, in the great
Douglas' cause, I take the liberty (I ara sure
with a good intention, and I hope without im
propriety,) to offer, for your Lordship's conside
ration, my humble testimony in favour pf the
Episcopal Clergy in this country.
" Though bred a Presbyterian, I have ever
revered the order and decency of the Episcopal
Church. In doctrine they are soundly Protes
tant. Their principles in regard to Government
are now reformed, and not less loyal than ours.
I am so much convinced that this measure will
be a public good, that I have resolved to endow
and establish, at my private expence, an Episco
pal Chapel in my vUlage of Laurencekirk, now in
a remarkably flourishing progress.
" I flatter myself your Lordship will receive
this address with indulgence ; and I haVe the ho
nour to be, &c.
" Francis Garden."

148 ANNALS OP 1790.
Bishop Skinner was informed, by letters from
London, of date the 3d of February, that the
Attorney-General entered very fully into the sub
ject ofthe Bill of Repeal, proving himself to be
well verged in the history of the Scotch Episco
pal Church, and the points upon which its spirit
ual authority depended. In the learned Gentle
man's opinion, the blunder committed last year
had no connection with Parliamentary etiquette;
but as the Scottish Episcopalians came, confess
ing themselves delinquents, and that they were
willing torenounpe, and had renounced their er-
rorsj the matter should have been first debated
in the Cabinet ; that the ostensible servants of
Government, as a body, and not individually,
might have been satisfied that their professions.'
were sincere. Instead of which, the first officer
ofthe Crown was not consulted, but the Bill of
Relief was introduced as a private matter.
The Attorney-General was much, pleased that
the ChanceUor had been written to by Lord
Gardenston ; and also that the Bishop of Bangor
had undertaken to introduce the Committee's
letter and cause to the Chancellor's notice. And
he was quite sure,, that when, the BiU was under
stood, there would not be a man to oppose the
prayer of the petition, it was so very reasonable
and just. For his part, he Was a warm and zeal
ous friend to it, and would do every thing in his
power to assist. He was also convinced, that no
more could be required of the Episcopal Clergy

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 149
in Scotland, than to swear allegiance for the time
fo come, without any retrospect whatever.
" It is universally agreed," added Bishop
Skinner's correspondent, " that the business must
be postponed to the Dissenters BUl; for even the
Bishop of St David's, (Bishop Horsley) who is
a warm friend to the cause, told Dr Gaskin the
other day; that ' your BiU must not be received
' untU that is disposed of Indeed it is not to be
expected that the Church of England wiU go to
the field to assist an ally, when she herself is at
tacked in her own fortress.
. About this time, it appears, that Bishop Aber
nethy Drummond, having had an interview with
the Lord Advocate, found him of the same mind
with the Attorney-General. He wished that the
BUl of Repeal should not be pushed during this
Session, lest, by stirring up the opposition ofthe
Dissenters, the success of it might be endanger
ed for ever ; adding, moreover, as a reason for
delaying it another year, that the last session of
a Parliament was always timid, the first ofa new
one as constantly bold and confident.
. Bishop 5kinner finding matters in this" criti
cal situation, and anxious to have the opinions of
the other members ofthe Committee, thought it
necessary to call ^ meeting Pf thera, and, as Pre
ses and Convener, appointed the sarae to be hold
en at Perth on the 24th day of February. Be
fore the meeting, however, took place, he re
ceived a letter from Dr Gaskin, mentioning very

150 ANNALS OF 1790.
fuUy his late correspondence with the Bishop of
Bangor, and giving the foUowing additional in
formation. " Last Thursday I was again with the Bishop,
when he told me that he had delivered your let
ter to the Chancellor, who did not seem to un
derstand the matter, but that he (the Bishop)
meant to confer with him again. The Chancel
lor mentioned to the Bishop his having received
a letter from Lord Gardenston. The Bishop de
sired to see again your printed case, which, though
perhaps in his possession, he could not find.
Fortunately, I was in possession ofa copy, which
I told his Lordship I would send to him next
day ; when I sent it, I wrote to him that we had
it in contemplation to reprint the sheet, and that
if his Lordship.would be so good as suggest any
alteration, it would be attended to.
" This morning it was returned to me by the
Bishop, with a letter, in which is the foUowing
clause : — ' I have returned the case of the Epis-
• copal Clergy in Scotland, and after perusing it
' with care and attention, I am of opinion that it
' ought to be reprinted as it now stands, and this
* should be done without any farther delay.'
" Accordingly, it is gone to press, and a con
siderable impression will be struck off, which, at
a proper time, we shall cause to be conveyed in
to proper hands. The Dissenters application for
the Test Repeal coming on in the same Session is
an awkward thing ; for though there is no man-

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 151
ner of similitude in the two cases, there are many
persons, both in and out of Parliament, who will
not give themselves even a little trouble to ex
amine the difference. This made the Attorney-
General start the idea of postponing it, tiU next
year, but it wiU be best to follow the advice -of
the Bishop of Bangor and the Chancellor, if the
latter can be had. On the whole, your little
Committee think that things augur weU."
On the 24th of February, in consequence of
the appointment of their Chairman, the great
Committee met at Perth. Members present.
Bishop Skinner, the Reverend Messrs AUan,
Gleig, and Aitkin, (appointed Secretary,) John
Stirling of Kippendavie, and John Niven of
Peebles, Esquires. Bishop Strachan and Mr
Patullo sending valid excuses, yet cordially ap
proving of the resolutions formed, of which the
following statement is extracted from the mi
nutes. " The Preses gave the Committee a detail of
an extensive correspondence which he had held
on the subject of the proposed act of Repeal, par
ticularly with Dr George (laskin, James AUan
Park, and William Stevens, Esquires, all ofthe
City of London. The Committee having con
sidered that correspondence, and heard each
others sentiments on the present state of the
affairs of this Church, were unanimously of opin
ion, that an application should be made in the
present Session of Parliament, for obtaining re-

152 ANNALS OP 1790.
dress of the grievances complained of; and that
as the Session may soon be at an end, and much
influence may be necessary for ensuring success,
it was resolved that the application should be
made without delay, and the assistance of such
persons or bodies requested, as were most likely
to promote the business. ? -,
" With that view, the Committee resolved to
draw up and transmit to each ofthe Universities
of Oxford and Cambridge, a letter soliciting their
support, together with a copy ofthe case which
had bepn printed fPr the information ofthe mem
bers of both houses of Parliament, that they might
see the state of the Church, and the nature of
the relief of which she stood* so much in need.
Agreeably to this resolution, letters both in
English and in Latin were written and sub
scribed by all the* members present, and trans
mitted to the Reverend Dr Horne, then Dean
of Canterbury, and President of Magdalene Col
lege, for the University of Oxford, and to the
Reverend Dr Farraer, for the University of Cam
bridge.¦ " The Committee further considering that Dr.
Gaskin, Messrs Stevens and Park, had exerted
themselves with much zeal on behalf of this
Church, and had generously offered to meet at
stated times in London, as a Committee of cor
respondence with the Scottish Committee, for
carrying on the intended application to Parlia
ment, resolved that the thanks ofthe Committee

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 153
be given to those worthy Gentlemen, and that
they be authorised to meet and act as before
mentioned." A letter to this effect was im
mediately written and siibscribed ; while it was
resolved, " that on account of the great distance
from each other, at which the members of the
Committee lived, the Preses and Secretary should
be empowered, and were empowered accordingly,
to correspond in their name with the London
Committee, and to take such steps for bringing
the proposed repeal to an issue, as might con
duce to the general interests of religion in this
part of the united kingdom, and be consistent
with the constitution and dignity of the Episco
pal Church in Scotland."
On his return from the meeting at Perth, Bish
op Skinner received a letter, informing hira that
the Archbishop having been waited on at his own
request, and having had explained to hira every
thing that had been done since the Scottish
Bishops had been at Lambeth, his Grace was not .
only very much satisfied with the steps that had
been taken, but hoped and trusted that the Bill
would now succeed, being in a very proper train.
" The Archbishop,*' concludes the letter, " sees
no necessity for any of your brethren taking a
journey to London, as detention in town might
be tedious and expensive ; at the same time, he
is of opinion that the Bill ought to be brought
forward this Session of ParUament, not only on

154» ANNALS OF 1790.
account of the poor Clergy who are injured by
the delay, but for the sake, of those people who
at present go to no Church at all, and whose
morals are consequently injured. I am sure that
this opinion must give you, as it gave me, very
great pleasure.
About a fortnight ago, a letter arrived from Dr
Gaskin, dated March the 6th, informing Bishop
Skinner that a meeting of the little Sub- commit
tee had just been held, and that they had been
honoured with a visit from Sir William Dolben,
one ofthe members forthe University of Oxfordi
who assures us of his disposition to render you
all the service in his power. The letter from
Perth (continues the good Doctor,) came to hand,
and in the name of my two colleagues, as well as
in my own name, I am authorised to assure you,
and do assure you, of the alacrity with which we
are all engaged in the cause of the Scottish Epis
copal Church, and of the hope which we enter
tain, that, through the divine blessing, our efforts
wiU not be in vain. No explicit reply has yet
been had from the ChanceUor, but from circum
stances we are led to conclude that he wiU not
stand out in opposition to your most reasonable
requests. If we cannot get Sir Archibald Mac
donald to introduce the Bill, nor any other law
yer, we have reason to believe that Sir WUliam
Dolben wUl do it ; but it is Sir WiUiam's opinion,
that the introduction would more fitly come from
a professional man.

1790. ¦ SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 155
" We are of opinion that it wiU not be advisa
ble just now to trouble the EngUsh Universities,
and therefore Mr Stevens has written to Dean
Horne, as I have to Dr Farmer, requesting them
to suspend the communication of their papers,
until they hear from us again on the subject.
Since receipt of your letter, I have not had an
opportunity of seeing the Bishop of Bangor, as he
is gone to Bath, whence, however, he will return
in the course of a few days.
" In the Bill a clause will certainly be intro
duced against receiving your letters of orders
as qualifications for English preferment ; but, it
will be such a clause as shall cast no more slur
upon the spirituality of your character than the
clause in the American Episcopal Bill does upon
the spiritual character of the American Bishops."
Immediately on receipt of this intelUgence,
Bishop Skinner communicated it to the other
members of the Committee ; and being of opi
nion that no time was to be lost in adverting to
the proposal mentioned in the above paragraph,
he drew up a representation on behalf of the
Committee, setting forth, that " having taken
into their serioiis consideration a proposal for in
serting a clause in the Repealing BiU, whereby
no letters of orders granted by the Scottish Bi
shops shall be admitted as qualifications for pre
ferment in the Church of England, and being
apprehensive that such a clause, if expressed in
general terms, without any reference to the ex-

156 ANNALS OF 1790,
pedieney of it, or any discretionary power left to
the proper judges of that expediency, might even
tually prove very hurtful to the cause of Episco
pacy in Scotland, they thought it their duty to
suggest, with all becoming deference to the
judgment of others, what appeared to them the
probable consequences of it, and to propose the
following clause as sufficiently answering the end
which the proposers of the clause had in view,
and at the same time preserving such strict can
dour and equity towards the Scottish Episcopal
Church as implied not the least doubt of the va-
lidity of its orders :— -
* And be it enacted, by the authority afore-
' said, that no Pastor or Minister of the Episco-
' pal Communion irt that part of Great Britain
• called Scotland, although ordained by a Protes-
' tant Bishop, -and according to the form of or-
' dination of Deacons and Priests in the Church
' of England, as required by law, shall be there-
,* by entitled to induction' into any benefice
' within that realm, unless it shall appear expe-
* dient to the Bishop of the diocese within which
' such benefice Ues: Nor-shaU a presentation to
' any benefice, or a call or invitation from any
? Congregation in Scotland, to be its pastor, be
' deemed a legal title for qualifying any person
' to receive letters of orders from an English Bi-
' shop. Provided always, that nothing herein
« enacted shaU disqualify any^Pastor or Minister

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 157
' ordained as aforesaid, from being a Chaplain in
• his Majesty's army or navy.'
The representation, of which the above is the
substance, was signed by the Preses and Secreta
ry, and transmitted to Dr Gaskin on the 18th
March I79O, with a request that he would take
the most proper method of coraraunicating the
contents, and of enforcing the purpose of it. Dr
Gaskin' s reply, dated March .26, is as follows : —

LETTER XIX.
dr GASKIN TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" On the day of receiving your favour of the
18th inst. I wrote a letter to Bishop A. Drum
mond, in reply to one I had received from him ;
and because I could not then write also to you,
I requested hira to acknowledge for me receipt
of yours, enclosing the representation signed by
yourself and Mr Aitkin.
" It happened that I had an immediate oppor
tunity of shewing your'ietter and representation
to the Bishop of St Davids, of whom you may be
assured, thathe is your hearty well-wisher, and that
he has precisely the same views of your spiritual
character, as Bishops ofthe One Catholic Church
of Christ, as you have yourselves, and will not
only rejoice to see the penal statutes removed.

158 ANNALS OF 1790.
but will also use his best endeavours to remove
them. I requested his Lordship to take the pa
pers home with him, and favour me with his
judgment of the clause framed by you, and of
the reasons on which you had framed it. His
Lordship the day after sent for me to confer up
on the matter, and to dine with him. I went for
these purposes yesterday, when the Bishop gave
me his full and undisguised opinion that such a
clause as you had framed was inadmissible, and
that if every Bishop on the English Bench would
give his consent to the introduction thereof, stiU
he was confident it would not pass the Houses of
ParUament. The King, his Lordship observed,
is, in a certain sense, the Head of the Church,
and without his permission our Bishops are not
to consecrate any Bishop, nor is any British sub
ject, obtaining the Episcopal character without
the King's permission, so far to be acknowledg
ed a Bishop as that his Episcopal acts shall have
a civil effect in the Established Church of Eng
land. It does not follow, that because the same
regard is not paid to the letters of orders of a
Protestant Bishop in Scotland as to those of a
Popish Bishop abroad, therefore the vaUdity of
the former, in a spiritual or ecclesiastical sense,
is in the least degree a doubtful point. But the
fact is, that considering the Regal Supremacy in
Britain, our Bishops think that they cannot in
troduce into their Church persons admitted to
holy orders by a Bishop in Great Britain, to

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 159
whose consecration, the Kipg in virtue of his
supremaccy, had not given his consent.
" There are Bishops of the Popish persuasion
in England, and no doubt in Scotland, of whose
valid Episcopacy no more doubt is to be enter
tained than of your Episcopacy, or of the Epis
copacy ofthe EngUsh Bench. But the letters of
orders of one of these Bishops would not have
the same effect towards an English institution as
those of a foreign Popish Bishop; and, in this
view you are supposed to stand in the same pre
dicament as do the Popish Bishops who are Bri
tish subjects.
" By an act ofthe Legislature, Episcopal go
vernment in Scotland is done away, at least as
far as the- Legislative acts of man can do it away ;
and since the passing of that act the King of
Great Britain has not given his permission, his
conge, for the Consecration of any Scottish Bi
shop. The King of Great Britain, therefore, as
King, knows nothing of any such Bishops ; and
our Bishops must not be allowed to give a civU
effect in the Church of England to their letters
of orders. Hence, the whole difficulty with re
spect to introducing in the Bill such a clause as
you have framed, arises from the peculiar nature of
our Ecclesiastical constitution. If, of their own ac
cord, any three English Bishopswere to consecrate
me, I shouldcertainly be vested with the real Epis
copal character, and you would give all the effect
in your power to my Episcopal acts; but the Eng-

160 ANNALS OF 1790.
lish Bishops would not be authorised to admit
letters of orders granted by me as legal qualifica
tions to institution. Such, on the main, is, I be
lieve, the judgment of the Prelate whom I have
consulted respecting your clause, and it is his
opinion that I need not produce it more public^
ly. I shall wait, however, your direPtion. Mr
Park is not yet returned from the circuit, and
for a few days I have had no opportunity of see
ing Mr Stevens. As soon as the Bishop of Ban
gor returns from Bath, I shall wait upon his
Lordship on your concerns. The ChanceUor
bas not yet been sufficiently explicit, but there,
is a quarter from which we shortly expect to
hear his sentiments. You are not to wonder at
the appearance of tardiness, and I am sure you
will not attribute it to negligence on the part of
your London agents. We have done what was
- in our power ; and, on the whole, I augurate
well as to the event. I requested Bishop A.
Drummond to transmit to you a copy of the
clause which we had framed, to which the good
Bishop Horsley has suggested an excellent addi'^
tion ; but whether the whole or any part of it wiU
be accepted, we cannot yet teU : —
' And be it further enacted. That a presenta;-
' tion to any benefice, or a call or invitation from
' any Congregation in Scotland to be its Pastor
* or Minister, shaUnotbe deemed a legal title for-
' qualifying any person to receive holyorders from'

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. l6l
' any Archbishop or Bishop in the Church of
* England;' " P. S. — ^You have been informed, I believe,
that I had a very pleasant reception from the
Lord Advocate, and that he promised to do your
Church all possible service as to expediting the
business." To this most interesting communication. Bish
op Skinner was induced, on the 5th of AprU, to
make the following reply.

Letter xx.
niSHOP SKINNER TO DR. GASKIN.
" I had just finished and sent off my last letter
to Mr Park, ofthe 31st of March, when the post
brought me your favour of the 26th, the contents
of which made me regret that I had not received
it a day sooner, as, in that case, I might have
been prevented from giving unnecessary trouble,
where it is both my duty and my wish to be as
little troublesome as possible.
" I need not, however, take up your time inf
making repeated apologies for thus adding more
and more labour to the task which you and your
colleagues have so generously imposed upon your
selves, as, knowing that I represent and act for a
suffering community, you wUl readily excuse my

162 ANNALS OF 1790,
doing all in my power to obtain as complete and
effectual a redress x)f their grievances, as theis
peculiar circumstances wUl admit.
" I see the force and propriety of that train of
reasoning which, you have so correctly detailed
from the conference you liad the honour to hold
with the venerable Bishop Horsley, on the subject
of my last letter and representation. I am <veU
convinced that his Lordship's views of the pure
Episcopal character, are as just and accurate as
his friendship to our cause has been hearty and.
uniform, ever since he was made acquainted with
it. A mind bold and discerning like his Lord
ship's, can easily distinguish between those spirit
ual powers, which a valid Episcopacy necessarily
•implies, and that civil effect tp these powers
which a temporal establishment only can grant.
But, alas I the bulk of mankind are so poorly en-
dpwed with this discriminating faculty, that they
will not be able tp perceive the distinction ; so
that where the civil effect is peremptorily re
fused, they wiU be apt to suspect that the spirit
ual power is at least tacitly denied.
<' It is this unhappy tendency, which the wprid
daily exhibits, to confound things in their real;
natures perfectly distinct, that alarms our fears
on the present occasion, and makes us entertain
such apprehensions from the proposed clause in
our Repealing BUl absolutely incapacitating us
from officiating in the Church of England?
" The great diffieylty in attempting to remove

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 163
the cause of these apprehensions arises, as you
justly observe, from the peculiar nature of your
Ecclesiastical constitution. But as that consti
tution is already so weU denned, and firmly estab
lished by statutes well known to all concerned,
might it not have been expected that no new act,
or clause of an act, would have been necessary
to eiiplain or ratify what has been long sufficiently
understood, and duly observed by those whose
business is to provide * ne quid detriment! Eccle-
* sia capiat.' Had this matter been permitted to
remain sub silentio, as was happily intended by
the last year's Bill, in our favour, we shpuld have
been perfectly easy under the supposed incapa
city of'our Clergy to hold livings in the Church
of England, because our adversaries would have
had no new handle against us ; and it was on this
footing that the Archbishop himself, as'we were
told, wished the matter to rest, fully satisfied that
the Legislature had provided sufficiently already
against any encroachments on the rights and
privileges ofthe Chiu-ch of England, and desirous
of casting no slur on our orders as to their spi
ritual effect in Scotland ; though unrecognised by
the law of the land, these orders could have no
civil effect in England. Happy had it been for
us, and for the cause of Scottish Episcopacy, if
his Grace's opinion had preva.iled ; as in that case
no suspicions could have been entertained of the
English Bishops being unfavourable to the spirit
ual powers of the Scottish Episcopal Church.
L 2

164 ANNALS OF 1790.
And had, any Scottish ordained Clergyman been
so ambitious as to aspire after a presentation to
a living or cure of souls in England, the Bishop
in whose diocese the living or cure was situated,
might very properly have sdid, * I make no doubt
' of the spiritual authority of the Scottish Bish-
* ops in their own Church, but as the law neither
' of England nor of Scotland recognizes any Such
• Bishops, their orders cannot be sustained as legal
* qualifications for institution here, nor have any
' civil effect within the Church of England^
" Such an ^mswer would have settled the busi
ness immediately, and would have prevented any
further attempts of a like kind. We are far from
thinking it unreasonable that the patrimony, of
the Church of England should be effectually se
cured to her own sons. We beg leave only to
request of her venerable fathers that this security
may be preserved in such a form as throws, not
even a shadow of doubt on the validity of our or
ders, nor interposes any legal obstacle to com
munion in things spiritual, between the two
Ghurehes. •'We are well convinced that those Worthy
Prelates whom you have consulted on this tender
subject, have paid the most friendly attention to
it ; as a proof of which, I am happy in acknow
ledging the favourable addition which has been
suggested to the clause, of which ypu send me a
copy. Yet the candid and equitable design of
that addition might be evaded, (and often I fear

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, ' 165
would be evaded,) by our candidates for English
orders procuring a title from some ofthe Clergy
in the northern dioceses of England, and by their
being ordained within such dioceses upon this
legal title. To procure this title, and afterwards
to quit the cure on which it was founded, for a
Chapel in Scotland, might in certain cases be at
tended with trouble. But it is a sort of trouble
which an enterprising young man would cheer
fully undergo, rather than accept of such orders
as malice working upon ignorance might repre
sent as of no vaUdity. To prevent such abuses,
therefore, equally hurtful to the cause of Episco
pacy in both parts of the kingdom, would be an
object worthy of the piety, prudence, and good
sense of the English hierarchy ; and to their su
perior judgment and penetration, must we refer
the determination of this Weighty and important
matter. It has been suggested to me, that a di
rect application to some of their Lordships, par
ticularly to the Bishops of Bangor and St Davids,
might be of great use. But, for my own part, I
think it more prudent to commit the manage
ment of the business to you, and our other zea
lous friends. This letter, if you think proper,
may be shewn to such of the Bishops as shall
honour you with a conference on the subject, or
perhaps greater justice may be done to the con
tents of it by using your own arguments, if not
by putting mine in a proper dress. In a word,
having already intrusted the whole of this busi-

166 ANNALS OF 1799-
ness, (which, however simple in itself, seems now
to be entangled in consequential difficulties,) to
the care of our London Committee, on whose
zeal and activity we have the utmost reason to
rely, I have only, in the name of all concerned,
to entreat that you will do with us and for us
the best that is in your power, and not allow our
troublesome animadversions to abate your assi
duity in our behalf, or interrupt the progress Of
the main design, • A repeal of the penal laws.'
" This is the principal object of our present
solicitude, and, after the assurances of support
which you haVe received, and the hopes which,
in consequence of these assurances, you so kind
ly cherish, we cannot but flatter ourselves that
the present ParUament will do something for us.
A second disappointment would undoubtedly
make people suspect that there is still some ground
for Government to be dissatisfied with us ; and
such a suspicion, if we have enemies, (as who, or
where are they that have not ?) would certain
ly give them a great advantage against us. With
respect to the new clause in our Bill, which
doubtless has excited fears of future harm, we
have lifted up our voice against it, in a modest,
and, I trust, inoffensive manner. If we cannot
be heard, there is no help ; we must here submit
to the wUlof our earthly superiors, and confide
the care of the Church, and every faithfu'l por
tion of it, to- its Almighty Head, our Heavenly

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY 16?
Sovereign, in humble expectation that he wUl
• make all things work together for good to them
• who' sincerely * love' and seek to please him.
In name of all concerned, I have the honour to
be," &c.
Before this letter could have reached Dr Gas
kin, Bishop Skinner received

LETTER XXI.
DR GASKIN TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" Anxious to communicate to you all the in
formation respecting the concerns ofyour Cburch
in my power, I embrace the earliest opportunity
of writing to inform you, that I have this morn-
ing( April the Sth) had a long conference with the
Bishop of Bangor, on the subject ofyour Bill. His
Lordship, who, you may be assured, is your very
hearty friend, sees your hierarchy in its true point
of view, and is for having it as explicitly acknow
ledged as to its inherent spiritual power, as is that
of the American Bishops. He even commissions
me to assure you of this ; so that I do hope, after
all, that we shall get every thing, excepting an
aUowance of your actual ministrations in the
Church of England. The clause here enclosed
was framed by his Lordship last year, and he in
tended to introduce it, in case the Bill had been

l68 ANNALS OF 1790:
suffered to go on. This is what he now recom
mends ; and if it be suffered to pass, there wUl
evidently be a clear Parliamentary recognition of
your spiritual character, i^lthough your ministra
tions are confined to the other side of the Tyveed.
If we can obtain this, it will be more than I ex
pected a few days ago. The Lord Advocate is
unfortunately gone to Bath, but he will return
very soon. I shall, immediately on his return,
wait upon him again, and on the suggestion of
his Grace of Canterbury, desire him, without de
lay, to go in person to the Lord Chancellor and
Mr Pitt. After this, two of the Bishops have
explicitly assured me, that they have no doubt of
their being able to convince his Lordship of the
fltness of granting our request.
" The Bishop of Bangor does not think Par
liament so near its dissolution as somp people do ;
. and if so, we may still haye sufficient time for our
purpose. God, we confidently trust, is with us ;
therefore let us not be cast down, but humbly
jhope all things will go well."
The clause mentioned in the above, as framed
by the Bishop of Bangor, runs thus : " Provided
also, and be it hereby declared, that no person pr
persons, admitted to the order' of deacpn or of
priest, by any Bishop pr Bishops so consecrated,
shall be thereby enabled to exercise his or their
respective office, or offices, within any of his Ma
jesty'? dominions, except Scotland aforesaid,' jn

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 16^
the manner herein before declared." The words
being very little varied from a simUar clause in
the act passed anno 1786, by which certain per
sons were permitted to be consecrated for the
Episcopal Church in America, and which express
ly disqualifies all such Bishops, or the persons
consecrated or ordained by them, from exercis
ing their office within any part of his Majesty's
dominions. And the enactment may be further
illustrated by what daily occurs in both the army
and navy of Great Britain, when a man, though
duly promoted tothe rank of a General or of an
Admiral, &c. is permitted, by the Commander
in chief, or Board of Admiralty, to exercise the
functions of his office in the East or West Indies,
or in such and such foreign parts only.
Yet even a clause of this restrictive nature was
not likely to nieet with assent, as appeare^'by ,

LETTER XXIL
DR GASKIN TO BISHOP SKINNER.
London, Apri] 22, 1 790.
'5 I acknowledge receipt of your letter, dated
April the 13th, and am truly sorry to inform you,
that your suggestion respecting the Bishop of
Bangor's original clause was right. We have beerj
obliged to abandon it; and what are the precise
terms ii^ which the. clause is now to be framed, I

170 ANNALS OF 179a
do not certainly know, though I expect to hear
in the course of this day or to-morrow.
" The Bishop of St David's is stUl anxious for
the introduction of his addition, depriving our
Clergy of the power of holding any cure or chapel
in Scotland. On this account be is desirous of
being furnished with instances of persons being
ordained by English Bishops, in order to officiate
in Scotland. The day before yesterday I wrote
to Bishop Aberiiethy Drummond on the subject,
and desired him to send his answer by return of
post. You may also be able to give us informa
tion of the same sort, and we request you will
favour us with it witbout delay.
" Mr Jones of Nayland has been in town, and
bas had a long, interesting, and satisfactory con*
ference with the Archbishop on the subject of
your BiU ; and Mr Stevens, having just left me,
is gone where be will meet his Grace, so that the
next letters you receive wUl, I trust, be brimful
of good news, at least they will contain impor
tant information. You may be assured that we
act in your business in perfect unison, and are
all three equally zealous in pursuing the best
means in our power, and in such a way as shall
be most likely to secure the end.
" May God give success to our labours, and
grant to every part of his church the blessings of
peace and prosperity,'*
Of the same date with the foregoing. Bishop

1790. SCOTTISH epIscOpacy, 171
Skinner received information that the Lord Ad
vocate for Scotland, having arrived in London on
the evening ofthe ISth of April, had, the day after
a conversation in the House of Lords, with Lord
Chancellor Thurlow, on the Scottish Episcopal
Bill, the result of which was, that the Chancellor
would think of what had passed for a day or two,
and let his Lordship know his sentiments. Two
objections, it appeared, had arisen in Lord Thur
low's fifiind ; the first was, that the Scottish Bish
ops derive their authority from the Pretender ;
the second, that they were desirous of acquiring
temporal ecclesiastical jurisdiction, by legislative
sanction. The London Committee rejoiced to
find these the only serious objections in this great
man's mind ; because, say they, " an instant df
time will now set him right ;" and then add, "we
have written three letters, — to the Archbishop of
Canterbury, to the Bishops of Bangor and St
David's, stating the Chancellor's objections, and
requesting their immediate assistance, so that we
trust a few days now will determine the event of
this cause."
In reply to Dr Gaskin's letter, intimating the
Bishop of St David's desire to be furnished with
instances of persons being actually ordained by
English Bishops " in order to officiate in Scot
land," Bishop Skinner writes as follows :— r

172 annals of 1790.
' LETTER XXIII.
BISHOP SKINNER TO DR GASKIN.
i. Aberdeen, April 29, 1790.
- " I wish it were in my power to give such ex
plicit information on this head as might lead to
iartber inquiry into the manifest irregularity of
that scheme which has been productive of so
much unhappy division among the Episcopalians
in Scotland. . ,. ;
" That within the last forty or fifty» years a
considerable number of candidates for holy or-
.ders have gone from this country, and obtained
jordination in England, with no other view but
that of officiating in chapels in Scotland, is a
fact well known in every corner of this coun
try. On what titles they were ordained, or whe
ther they produced a call or obligation for a cer
tain living from the Congregations which they
^vere to serve, it is impossible for me to say.
But the following instances consist with my own
knowledge, and have happened since I entered
into the Church.
" In the year 1763 I was collated by Bishop
Gerard, then Bishop of this diocese, to the charge
of an Episcopal Congregation in the parish of
Ellon. A year or two after I was settled, two
gentlemen of the neighbourhood wished to have
a qualified Clergyman set up in opposition to my

1790, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 175
ministry. With this view they- agreed with ' a
Mr Blake, then a Presbyterian schoolmaster,
who proceeded to London, and was certainly
ordained by the Archbishop of Canterbury of
that day*.
" Tl^is Gentleman having found the encou
ragement inadequate in a country village, was
speedily Removed, by the interest of some friends,
to a small Chapel in Aberdeen, where he now
resides ; and, if report speaks true, has shewn
liimself decidedly inimical to our Bill. Much
about the sarae tirae a simUar attempt was made
to oppose a brother Clergyman of mine in the
parish of Lonmay in Aberdeenshire, by a Mr
Bruce, Who also got orders purposely in Eng
land ; but from what Bishop 1 cannot say. His
endeavours in the country proving also abortive,
he left his situation there abruptly, and now of
ficiates in what is called the English Chapel of
Arbroath, in the county of Forfar, About the
year 1770, a Mr Laing, in the little town of Pe
terhead, irt the county of Aberdeen, was actual
ly ordained in Peterhead, where Bishop KUgour,
the Bishop ofthe diocese, had his'p'astoral charge,
by Dr Trail, Bishop of Down and Connor in
Ireland, then travelling for his amusement. And
about six or seven years ago, a Mr Stephen was
recommended by the Countess of Errol, and or
dained by the Archbishop of Canterbury to suc-
* Dr Seeker became Archbishop of Canterbury in Apri!
1758, and died in 17 QS.~- Annalist.

174 ANNALS ot 1790,
ceed a Mr Mason, whom the Countess had
brought from, England on her marriage with the
late Lord Errol. This gentleman now officiates
in the parish of Cruden, Aberdeenshire, in a
Chapel opposed to the Scottish Episcopal Cler
gyman*. Other instances there certainly are- of
persons being ordained in England for the pur
pose of officiating as Episcopal Clergymen in
Scotland., I have particularised the above, be.r
cause they have occurred in my own tirae, and
ip that part of our Church with which I am more
immediately connected. When my colleague,
Bishpp A. Drummond, shall have furnished yon
with his list, I hope you wiU have it in your
power to satisfy his Lordship of St Davids, that
the additional clause which he has proposed may
be productive of the happiest consequences to
the cause of Episcopacy in this country. With
regard to the progress of our main business,
though it is not very pleasant to lie under impu
tations which are owing entirely to ignorance,
yet I feel myself somewhat relieved by hearing
that the opposition of a certain great man is
* It did not then occur to Bishop Skinner that Dr Moore,
*in ordaining Mr Stephen, required no title beyond thatof
domestic Chaiplain to the Earl of Errol; while it is but do
ing justice to Mr Laing of Peterhead, as well as to Mr Stephen
of Cruden, (,although» both are now in the silent grave,)
to state that they both united themselves and flocks to the
Scottish Episcopal Church, and entered with heart and hand
on promoting the general union of Episcopalians in Scotland,
as will be shewn in the sequel. — Annalist.

179Q* SCOTTISH EPISCOfACY. 17^
founded on objections which can be so very
easily removed* The Scottish Bishops can all
take God and a good conscience to witness, that
their authority has no more connection with ' the
* Pretender,' than has the authority of the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, or that of the Lord Chan*-
cellor himself! And as to their desiring any
temporal, jurisdiction in their Ecclesiastical ca
pacity, it is what you.know they have repeatedly
and solemnly disclaimed in every stage of the
business now in agitation.
Bishop Abernethy Drummond having, about
this period, been requested, by a gentleman be
longing to the established Church of Scotland,
to consecrate a burying-ground on his property ;
and having sent the Bishop of Carlisle, Dr Dou
glas, a copy of the form of Consecration which
be made use of, received from his Lordship the
foUowing answer ; —

LETTER XXIV.
THE BISHOP OF CARLISLE TO BISHOP ABERNETHY
DRUMMOND.
" I was favoured with yours of the lith, en
closing your very excellent form of consecrat
ing a burying-ground,
" Were it known among us in this part of the

176 ANNALS Of 1790.
island, how liberally the Scottish Presbyterians
think about their own Episcopalians, your BiU
would meet with fewer obstructions.
" I put lately into the hands of the Archbishop
of Canterbury, a letter from Dr .Campbell of
Aberdeen, in which he laments to rae the fate of
your last year's application, andbears the strong
est testimony, that the granting the indulgence
you have petitioned for, will, so far from giving
offence, be highly agreeable to those ofthe esta
blishment in Scotland. You will understand
from your agents here what are [the Chancellor's
objections to your BiU. Endeavours, I make no
doubt, will be used by the Archbishop, and others
of our Bench, to rectify his misapprehensions,
and I heartily wish those endeavours may be ef
fectual." On receiving the infprmation contained in this
letter, Dr CampbelFs good offices having been
purely voluntary, and therefore the more grati
fying. Bishop Skinner waited On him, and, in
name of the whole Bishops ai!d Clergy of the
Scottish Episcopal Church, gave the Doctor most
hearty thanks for the friendly part which he haid
acted, in conveying to the Bishop of Carlisle
such a favourable testimony in their behalf.
But the testimony of friends Was, at the time; of
no avail. A letter from Dr Gaskin arrived, the
c6mmencement of which augured what the sequel
would be.

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 177
LETTER XXV.
DR GASKIN TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" It is with most painful reluctance that I sit
down to communicate to you, as from your Lon
don Committee, the contents of a letter from the
Lord Advocate tp Mr Park. I will transcribe
the whole of it, and afterwards subjoin some ob
servations.
SackviUe Street, April 30, 1790.
" Dear Sir,
*' I am to blame in having been so long in an
swering your letters. But I wished to see the
Attorney-General, with whom I have at last met,
and conversed on the subject.
: ' " With every wish to forward the cause ofyour
cUents, if I may so term them, we both at last
concurred in the inexpediency of urging the re
peal this Session ; and, I am satisfied, on good
grounds. It is impossible for me to go again to
the ChanceUor, even supposing my ideas to have
been different froni those I have just now stated,
unless his Lordship was to send for me, and hint
at a desire of being farther informed on the bu
siness. - ^ ^
•' I beg therefore that you would communicate
to Dr Gaskin, and the other gentlpmen concern
ed in London, that tbpy may intimate tp their
M

178 ANNALS OF 1790.
friends in Scotland, the inexpediency, as well as
the impossibUity, of bringing their case at present
under the consideration of Parliament, I am,
&c. « R. Dundas."
" To Mr Pari?."
" You wiU, I presume, with us, consider this
as a final damper to all our hopes and expecta
tions this Session j and I am persuaded you would
counsel us to say, • God's will be done.' One
consolation, which at present we experiencie, is,
that every step which seemed likely to promote
the accomplishment of our wishes, has been in
dustriously pursued, and nothing, I am persuad
ed, has been done to injure you. Another con
solation is, that at this instant you stand on bet
ter ground than at any former period. Nothing
has occurred which can induce you to entertain
a doubt of success with the new Parliament ; and
-very many particulars conspire, all encouraging
us to renew our application next winter, with
cheerful confidence that it will not be renewed
in vain.
" Your church is now better known on this
side the Tweed than it has been for many years
past. The spiritual character of yourself, and
your worthy colleagues, is most explicitly recog
nised by the Prelates of our Bench ; and I am
persuaded they are most willingly ready to lend
their helping hand towards the accomphshment

1790. SCOTTISH episcopacy. 179
ofyour wishes. The business, however, they all
agree, must be considered as a State measure,
and without the Great Officers of State, nothing
ean be done. Of their concurrence next Session
no doubt is to be entertained ; and the Lord Advo
cate himself assured me, that he wguld then be
in Parliament, and would think it his .duty to
bring forward your BUl.
" On such considerations as these, in addition
to the justice of your cause, andthe firm belief
that ' God is with us,' we are not in the least dis
pirited, although for the present we are disap
pointed. ** I hope no material injury from the delay will
befal any part of your comraunity, but that the
same gracious Providence, which, during the pe
riod of a long and gloomy winter, has kindly
watched over the shepherds and your sheepfold,
wUl continue to you protection from without and
grace from within. I need not at this time add
more than that, if it please God to continue life
and health to Mr Park, Mr Stevens, and myself,
until the time of renewing the business come
round again, we shall be most cheerfuUy ready
to be employed in whatever way the Committee
of Delegates ofthe Scotch Episcopal Church shall
judge fit.
" I must trouble you to communicate the sub
stance of this letter, with our respectful compli
ments tothe rest ofthe Committee of Delegates;

180 annals of 1790.
and be assured that I am, with inviolable attach
ment to your cause and to yourself, yours," &c.
Iiondon, May 3. 1790.
In addition to the information and friendly
suggestions, conveyed in the above letter, the
very next post brought Bishop Skinner a short
note from Dr Gaskin, in these words : —
" This moraent the enclosed reached me. It
wiU give you some comfort, and therefore I put
you to the expence of postage. Communicate
its contents to your brethren.
" The Bishop of St David's has at last spoken
to the Chancellor, but he found hira so extreme
ly uninformed upon the business, that he says it
will take him too much time to make him under
stand it, to give us any reasonable hope of suc
cess this Session. The Bishop says, that the
Chancellor expressed a desire to hear him further
upon the matter in private, but begged he would
defer the interview till the Spanish business is a
little blown over.
" The Bishop designs to breakfast with the
Chancellor on Saturday the 15th instant, when
he will enter fully into the subject, and he thinks
be shaU be able so thoroughly to possess him with
the merits of the cause, as to enable us to begin
early in the ensuing Session. And, indeed, when
I Consider the abiUty of our advocate, and the

i790; sco'irTiSH episcopac*. 1§1
anxious zeal which he has displayed in the cause
of Scottish Episcopacy, we have every thing to
hope. The Bishop added, that he meant also, a
day or two before he goes to the Chancellor, to
have half an hour's conversation with Mr Park,
that he may be certain he is master ofthe subject.
He desired me likewise to say from him, by way
of comfort to our friends in Scotland, that there
is no doubt of, their ultimate success ; that their
cause, and their rights as a sacred body, are bet
ter understood in England than ever ; and that
if the Bill^is put off, it is not from a doubt of the
propriety of, their request, but to be irhputed
rather to the urgency of public affairs, which
had hitherto prevented the Chancellor from giv
ing their Bill that attention which it is necessary
for hira to do before it can pass into a law.
" This is most clearly my own opinion of the
Scottish Episcopal Church, which I think, (and
I know that you agree with me,) has already
greatly emerged, even without any BiU, from
that obscurity in which it has been involved^
and from that oppression under which it has so
Ipng-and so unjustly laboured. Were it nothing
else, the countenance it has received from, and
the zeal which has been displayed by,' some ofthe
most learned and distinguished Prelates of our
Bench, entitle her already to hold up her head,
as a very distinguished and venerable branch of
the Church of Christ."

182 , ANNALS OF 1790.
As soon as possible after receiving the above
friendly communications. Bishop Skinner ac
quainted the other Members of tbe Committee
With their contents. AU j oined in regretting this
unlucky delay in the business entrusted to their
management. At the same time they felt no
small satisfaction in^ reflecting, that no part of
their own conduct, or of the conduct of their
highly valued friends, could be charged as the
cause of this repeated disappointment. On the
18th of August this year, the Diocesan Synod of
Aberdeen having met, the Bishop laid before his
Clergy an account of the several steps which had
been taken during the last Session of Parliament
for obtaining the relief so ardently desired ;
when the Clergy unanimously approved of the
conduct of their Delegates, and thanked the
Committee for their zeal and assiduity, recom
mending to thetn at the same time to solicit the
aid of well disposed Noblemen and Gentlemen,
particularly the support and countenance of the
Right Honourable tbe Earl of Kellie,* of whose
* Archibald Erskine, die sevenlJi Earl of Kellie, who died
jn the 62d year of his age, anno 1797. A nobleman, of
whom, in a short Memoir of his life", it is justly said, that
" being himself a member of the Scottish Episcopal Church,
and having long' regretted the restraints which were laid up
on her worship, it vas chiefly owing to his unwearied exer
tions, that, in 1792, those restraints were removed by Act of
Parliament." See " A Short Account of Lord Kellie'i Life
and Opinions," by J)r Gleig of Stirling, \

1790. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 183
zeal in the cause of Scottish Episcopacy the Cler
gy of this Church could not but be highly sensi
ble. The Members ofthe Synod also ordered their
Clerk to transmit an extract of their proceedings,
signed by their Dean, to the Deans of the other
Dioceses of the Church, to be by them laid be
fore their brethren of the priesthood, for their
consideration and concurrence. In consequence
of this resolution, the Church was unanimous in
expressing the full confidence which it continued
to have in the Committee of Delegates, cordially
thanking them for past exertions, and requesting
them to continue to use their best endeavours in
forwarding the important trust to which they
were appointed.
In September 1790, Mr Park paid a visit to
Scotiand, and having spent some days in Aber
deen, Bishop Skinner had an opportunity of con
versing with him on the subject which had so
long in a manner engrossed the Bishop's whole
thoughts. The result was, the strongest assur
ance on the worthy Barrister's part, that as soon
as the new Parliament should be ready to enter
on business, he, and his zealous feUow-agents,
would renew their applications to those who had
influence with people in power,. and have the Bill
introduced as early in the Session as possible.
While in Edinburgh, Mr Park was introduced to
Principal Robertson, who gave him full power
and authority to use his narae, (and his narae
will ever be had in honour, both in the Establish-

18* - ANNALS .OF 1790.
ed Church of Scotiand and out of its pale,) on
every occasion where it was likely to promote
the present views of his Episcopalian country
men ; " it being his decided opinion, that the,
Episcopalians in Scotland were well entitled to the
^relief they claim, — an opinion which he would,
if thought to have any weight, express to such
of the English Bishops as were known to him."
Testimony of the sarae kind was also repeated to
Bishop Skinner, personally, by Dr Campbell of
Aberdeen, a man of no less celebrity in the Scot
tish Establishment than the Historian of Charles
the V. The Doctor, of set purpose, called on the
Bishop, and wished to know, whether there was
any thing farther for him to say to the Bishop of
Carlisle, which might satisfy his Lordship, and,
through him, the bench of Bishops at large,
that the very suspicion of the measure of Repeal
of the Penal Statutes proving offensive to the
'EstabUshed Church of Sjcotland . was wholly
groundless. . • '?
The new Parliament met this year in the month
of November, to settle the business of the Spa
nish convention, which, with some other national
concerns, occupied their whole attention until
Christmas, when they adjourned to the beginning
of February 1791. As Bishop Skinner, however,
drew up with his own hand, and printed, " A
Narrative of the Proceedings relating to a BiU
(actually) passed into a law, and entitied, ' An
• Aet for granting relief to Pastors, Ministern,

1791- SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 185
' and Lay-persons of the Episcopal Communion
* in Scotland,' " the Annalist of Scottish Episco
pacy having already put the reader in full posses
sion of every objection to the measure whiclr^was
started, as well as of the convincing arguments
by which those objections were repelled, thinks
himself in duty bound to confine his account of
the future procedure of the Bill to the words of
the printed Narrative, which at the tirae was pro
nounced, by all concerned, a raost correct and
faithful detail of every fact and circumstance
interesting either to the Scottish Episcopalians
or to the public at large.
1791 .] " During the Christmas recess, it was
suggested to our Comraittee, that it might be pro
per for them to address the English Bishops, and
solicit their good offices in obtaining relief to the
EpiscopaUans in Scotland. Letters were, there
fore, immediately written to the twP Archbish
ops, and to all the other Prelates of the Church
of England, requesting the honour of their Lord
ships powerful interest and support to the ap
plication which was meant to be renewed, and
in whatever way they should think most con
ducive to its success* Among the answers which
came to these letters, it was particularly- men
tioned by Dr Douglas, , the Bishop of Carlisle,
that he had, some time last year, forwarded to
the Archbishop pf Canterbury, letters from Prin
cipal Robertson of Edinburgh, and Principal

186 ANNALS OF 1791.
Campbell of Abeudeen, recommending, in tihe
raost liberal terms, the cause of the Scottish
Episcopalians, whose relief they had reason to
thiffk \yould be generally agreeable to the Church
of Scotland. About the same time our friends
in London informed us, that a conference bad
been obtained with the Lord ChanceUor on the
subject of our application, and a new BiU was to
be framed in such terms as might be supposed to
meet his Lordship's ideas. But owing to repeated
delays, arising from unforeseen causes, it was
again too late in the Session before this Bill could
be properly introduced into Parliament; and
from the accounts of their proceedings which
were transmitted by the London Coramittee, it
was abundantly evident, that nothing had been
omitted on their part, which was likely to en
sure a favourable issue to the business entrusted
to them. Every wise arid prudent measure had
been industriously pursued by these faithful
agents, who stiU promised a continuance of their
services, as long as they should be necessary, or
acceptable to those concerned.
" t)epending on these friendly assurances, the
Preses of the Scottish Committee renewed his
solicitations for an early and vigorous attention
to the relief of the EpiscopaUans in Seotliand, as
soon as the Parliament should meet in 1792. He
also took occasion to mention to the London
Committee, a proposal which had been suggested

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 187
by one of bis colleagues*, of procuring from
some ofthe Royal Boroughs petitions to Parlia
ment in favour ofa Repeal ofthe Penal Laws, and
exhibiting siich a public mark of their approba
tion of this measure as might shew the expedien
cy of it in a very satisfactory light. It was also
proposed that application should be made to
some ofthe Counties for the same purpose, espe-.
cially to those in which the principles and con
duct of the Episcopal Clergy and their hearers
were best known. The consequence was, that,
in a few weeks, petitions were transmitted to
both houses of Parliament from the Counties of
Stirling, Forfar, Kincardine, Aberdeen,andBanff;
and from the Boroughs of Forfar, Brechin, Ar
broath, Montrose, Inverbervie, Aberdeen, Banff,
Forres, Nairn, and Dingwall, praying that
such relief might be extended to those of the
Episcopal Communion in Scotland as should
seem expedient to the wisdom of the British Le
gislature. At the same time, the Lord Provost
of Edinburgh very obligingly acquainted tbe
pubUc, that by the authority, and in the name of
the Magistrates and Council, he had earnestly
entreated the city's representative, Mr Dundas,
, to' give our Bill all the support and countenance
in his power. Letters were written to the same
purpose by the Freeholders of Moray, and the
Magistrates and Council of the Boroughs of El-
* Bishop Macfarlane at Invemess.

188 ANNALS Olf - 1791/
gin and Inverness, to their respective represen
tatives in Parliament. The petitions from the
above mentioned Counties andBoroughs, intended
for the House of Lords, were transmitted to the'
Earl of Kellie, one pf the Sixteen Peers for Scot
land, who was known tP have exerted his in
fluence for some tirae past In promoting the ob
ject of these applications. '
" Matters being thus prepared for introducing
our Bill into Parliament with some probabihty
of success, it was intimated as the opinion of our
friends in London, that one ofthe Scottish Com
mittee ought to be there, to attend the progress
of the BiU through both Houses ; and application
being made to Bishop Skinner for that purpose,
he received a Delegation, signed by the other
members of the Comniittee, empowering him to
act in their names, and to take such measures as
he might find expedient, and most likely to ob
tain the end in view. On his arrival in London,
he was informed by our agents there of the steps
which had been taken for bringing our Bill into
Parliament, and was particularly pleased to learn
that Lord Grenville had promised to support it
in the House of Lords, and to settle with Mr
Secretary Dundas into which ofthe two Houses
it should be first introduced. Finding .things in
this train, he was chiefly employed for two or
three weeks in recommending the object of the
BUl to the attention of some of the most distin
guished members in both Houses of Parliament.

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 189
He took an early opportunity of paying his re
spects to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and was
happy to find his Grace very friendly to the de
sign of the Bill. He felt the sarae satisfaction in
conversing with some of the other Bishops, and
particularly with the Bishop of St David's, who
had been at uncommon pains to make himself
master ofthe subject, and of whatever related to
the situation of the Scottish Episcopal Church.
For some time past, his Lordship had been con
certing measures with the Earl of Kellie for
bringing our business forward, and the favoura
ble reception it met with in the House of Peers
was chiefly owing to the good offices of these two
noble Lords, who had been long and zealously
endeavouring to set the matter in a true light,
and to remove those prejudices and mistaken ap
prehensions, which some had entertained con
cerning it.
" At last, on Monday the 2d of AprU, the Earl
of Kellie presented the several petitions from
the Counties and Boroughs of Scotland above
mentioned, and moved for leave to bring in a Bill
agreeably to the prayer of these petitions. Two
days after, the Bill was read a first time, without
any appearance of opposition on the part of tlie
ChanceUor, who only observed, that some altera
tions would be necessary. It was alio ordered
to be printed, and laid on the table at the meet
ing of the House after the Easter holidays, when
the Lords would be summoned, and a day named

190 ANNALS OF 1791.
for the second reading. During the recess, how
ever. Bishop Skinner learned, that the Lord
Chancellor had been mentioning such difficulties
about the Bill as were not likely to be easily re
moved, and the first day on which the House of
Lords met, a conversation was held on the sub-
ject, in the course of which the Chancellor went
over all his former ground of opposition, and
particularly insisted, that, without a clause re
quiring the registration of orders, all sorts of
people, even such as the Blacksmith of Gretna
Green, might assume the character of Episcopal
Ministers, and in that character, if once tolerated,
might celebrate marriages, and do other irregular
acts. To this the Bishop of St David's replied,
that the Scottish Episcopal Clergy would very
gladly register their orders, if the law would per
mit them ; but the same act which required it,
likewise declared it to be null and void ; by
which means these Clergy were precluded from
the very possibility of qualifying themselves in a
legal manner, and so laid under a species of per
secution, to which the mildness of the British
Government had never exposed any other class
of its subjects. The Chancellor seemed also in
clined to say something disagreeable about what
he called the connections of our Clergy with the
Pretender, and had his doubts whether the Estab
lished Church of Scotiand approved of our being
put on an equal footing with the other Scottish
Dissenters.

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 191
On the first of these ppints the Bishop of St
David's desired Bishop Skinner to state in writ
ing the fact as it reaUy stood, with regard to some
consecrations which had taken place in our
. Church, soon after the ¦ death of the deprived
Bishop of Edinburgh. And to remove all doubts
about the other matter, he thought the best way
would be, to apply for a repetition of the former
assurances given by Principals Robertson and
Campbell. Such application was no sooner made,
than these assurances were renewed in the most
friendly manner, with the addition of a letter to
the Bishop of Salisbury from Dr Gerard of Old
Aberdeen, bearing the same liberal testimony to
the good wishes of the Established Church in
our favour.
"As to the other objection arising from the sup
position that the successors of the deprived Bish
ops not only held a correspondence with the ex
iled family, but even acknowledged a dependence
on it in the exercise of their spiritual authority,
and were invested with the Episcopal character
in consequence of a recom raendation from the
Pretender, — our delegate found no difficulty in
asserting that this was true only with respect to
a very few of our Bishops at a very distant period,
and that it could not be justly charged against
the present Bishops, who never had any connec
tion with, or dependence on the exiled family,
either in obtaining or exercising their spiritual

192 ANNALS OF 1791.
functions *. Th,e authority with which they ^re
invested is not derived from any source thatc^m
in the least affect the safety of the State, or the
security of the Government under whichthey live;
and they can so far comply with the oath of Su
premacy as to " testify and declare, that no for
eign Prince, Prelate, State, or Potentate, hath, or
ought tp have any jurisdiction, power, superiority,
pre-eminence, or authority, ecclesiastical or spi
ritual, within this Realm."
" To this declaration our delegate added, on the
part of our Bishops, a solemn disavowal of any
pretensions to legal or temporal jurisdiction :
The authority of our Clergy, he affirmed to be
entirely ofa spiritual nature, such as is necessary
to the preaching of God's word, and the adminis
tration of his sacraments, and which can never in^

* On the death of the B.ishop of Edinburgh, who survived
the other ejected Prelates till the year 1720, it was proposed
by a few of the Episcopal Clergy, that the same dependence
should be acknowledged, and the same respect and submission
paid to the exiled family, in matters of Ecclesiastical concern^
which had been customary in the times of legal establish
ment. And on this plan a few promotions soon after took
place, in consfequence of recommendations from the exiled
Prince. But it quickly appeared, that this scheme did not
meet with the approbation ofthe Clergy in general, who con
sidered it not only as dang^ous, but in every respect impro
per ; and in a few years afterwards, all- attempts to revive it
were for the future prohibited by certain regulations, which
have eVer since been regarded as the standard of disciphne in
the Scottish Episcopal Church. ,

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 193
terfere with the civil rights ofthe establishment.
" All," said he, " which we presume to request
of the British Legislature, is a share of that tolera
tion, which others so freely enjoy, and the liber
ty of worshipping God, in conformity with the
religious principles of that Churcb to which we
belong ; principles than which, corresponding as
they do with those of the Church of England,
none can be more favourable to his Majesty's
Government, or fo the peace and happiness of
societyi" This was the view in which Bishop Skinner en
deavoured to represent the principles of our
Church ; and he had the satisfaction to find that
they were seen in this just and proper light by
many distinguished characters in the Church of
England. The Bishop of St. Davids was so well
convinced of the propriety of granting us com
plete toleration, that he assured Lord Kellie, if "
it was judged advisable to push the second read
ing of our Bill at all events, he would come pre
pared to speak in its favour, and to combat all
the arguments which could po.ssibly be urged
against it. With regard to the clause which was
proposed, requiring the registration of our Cler
gy's orders, the Earl of Guildford observed, that,
upon the general principle of toleration, there
did not seera to be any necessity for inquiring
into the nature of our orders, more than those
of other dissenters; since it was of no conse
quence to the state what these orders were, or

194 ANNALS OF 1791.
whence derived, if our religion was friendly to
Government, and such as deserved to be tolerated.
The Lords Kinnoul and Stormont were both of
the same opinion, and saw no necessity for re
quiring the registration of our Clergy's orders,
or that they should accept of such orders as
could legaUy be registered. This appeared to
them the more unreasonabloj as no English or
Irish Bishop could ordain a man, without what
is called a title, and no such tide could be ob
tained from Scotland. But to remove all objec
tions arising from the iUegal nature of a Scottish
Episcopacy, it was thought that our Clergy might
be described as " dissenters from the Establish
ed Church of Scotiand, who style themselves
Episcopal Clergy ;" and under that description it
was presumed that no good reason could be as
signed for denying us the same toleration which
was enjoyed by aU other Protestant dissenters in
Scotland. Confiding, therefore, in the reasonableness of
our requests, and anxiously desirpus that our
cause might obtain a fair hearing. Lord Kellie
moved the second reading of our BUl to be on
Wednesday, the second, of May, and that the
Lords might be summoned for that purpose. A
considerable number bf the Peers attended the
bouse that day, and some had, intended to vote
by proxy in support of the Bill. The Archbish
ops of Canterbury and York were both present,
as were also the Bishops of London, Durham,

179L Scottish episcopacy. 195
Salisbury, St. Davids, Oxford, Bangor, and Car
lisle. The Earl of Elgin moved the second read
ing of the BiU, and, in a short but very sensible
speech, stated the principle of it to the House,
and the merits of those wbom it was intended to
relieve. His Lordship observed, that by the
10th of Queen Anne, the Pastors and Ministers
of the Episcopal Communion in Scotland were
made liable to very severe penalties,' on proof of
having omitted to pray for the Queen, and for
other instances of non-conformity. Additional
penalties were imposed by the 5th of George I.
and the 19th and Slst of George IL, the design
of all which was to check the disaffection which
was known to prevail at that time among the
Episcopalians in Scotland.' But this design, he was
happy to say, was now sufficiently accomplished.
At present, and indeed for several years past, his
Lordship said, the Episcopalians in Scotland had
given proofs of their being as zealously attached
to the Sovereign on the Throne, and his family,
and as firm in their aUegiance, as any other class
of his Majesty's subjects ; and therefore he could
not but hope that their Lordships would con
sider them as justly entitled to the relief which
^the present Bill provided, and which he would
not have moved for, if he had not thought it a
matter both of justice and expediency.
The Lord Chancellor then left the Woolsack,
and began with declaring, that he would not ob
ject to the principle of this Bill, but he wished
N 2

-hi.'eti^!aiBi-i&t!ii^l0iBa

196 annals of ' 1791.
and thought it his duty to make some observa
tions on it. He then proceeded to take an ex
tensive view of the^subject, and entered into a
variety of reasoning on the nature of a church
establishment, and the general principles of toler
ation ; from which he inferred, that no Sect ought
to be tolerated but those whose principles were
found to be such as deserved, and might safely
be indulged with toleration. Those, he said,
who imagined that any church could become the
established church of a country, merely by the
truth of its doctrines, or the force, of its argu
ments, were mistaken, and contradicted by all
history, and aU experience, t-et the doctrines
be ever so pure, and the arguments ever so irre
fragable, they could not make her the establish
ed church, unless she was poUtically recognised
as such, and supported by the government ofthe
country. This support consisted chiefly in pro
viding plentiful and corapetent incomes for her
pastors ; and the distinction he now alluded to
was clearly visible in the case of Scotiand, and
England, in each of which countries the Esta
blished Church was different from the other.
Presbytery being that supported in Scotland, and
Episcopacy in England. In stating the nature
of an establishraent, he endeavoured to shew,
that it was absolutely necessary to the preserva
tion of the Christian religion ; and though he did
not pretend to be deeply versed in ecclesiasti-
.cal history, he was imjpressed with a notion, that,

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 197
before the tirae of Constantine, it was not the
practice of the Church to pray for kings, which
he supposed was the raodel that had been pro
posed for the iraitation of the Scottish Episcopa
lians, But they should have remembered, that
ever since the days of Constantine, such prayers
bad been deemed an essential part of public wor
ship, and prescribed as such in all countries pro
fessing the Christian religion, , Having stated
this, his Lordship proceeded to take notice of
the statutes which enacted penalties against the
Episcopalians in Scotiand, mentioning the 10th
of Queen Anne, and the 19th and 21st of George
II. He said he was far from defending the se
verities of those .statutes. Let the poUtical rea
sons have been what they might, he thought the
penalties much sharper than even the circum
stances of those tiraes could justify ; and, there
fore he could feel no disinclination wha,tever in
granting the relief that was necessary, provided
it was given under proper regulations ; for he was
far frora wishing to harass any Sect of Christians
on account pf their religion, much less those who
professed to be ofthe Episcopal persuasion, since
he himself was rather an Episcopalian. His
Lordship then discussed what he took to have
been the meaning of the Legislature in respect to
the ordination of Episcopalian Pastors in Scot
land. He again referred to Queen Anne's act
of toleration, quoting with sorae emphasis the
words, ' Pastors ordained by a Protestant Bishop,'

198 ANNALS OF 1791.
from which he inferred, that to have been regui
larly ordained by some Protestant Bishojp, (who,
in his opinion, could be no other than an English
or an Irish Bishop) and to have their ordination
registered in the public registers, was meant to
pe understood as essential in point of form, and
indispensable in substance. Hp dwelt for some
time on this head, and contended for the neces
sity of a due attention to this part of the statute,
as a test that these Pastors embraced and taught
doctrines consonant to the principles of Christi
anity, and doctrines fit to be tolerated. In the
course of his speech he recapitulated the condi
tions under which, by the existing statutes, the
Episcopalians of Scotiand were tolerated at pre
sent, and argued much on the necessity of their
Pastors being able to establish the validity of their
ordination; instarfcing the two solemnities of
Baptism and Marriage as solemnities which they
could not perform unless they were legally or
dained. After repeating his favourable incli
nations towards the Episcopalians of Scotland,
professing himself to speak as an humble member
of the Established Church of this country, and
consequently as an individual who wished to treat
those persons who were the objects of this BUl,
with that degree of respect and decency which
became men in every situation ; and after con
sidering and arguing upon the whole of their
case, his Lordship closed his speech with remark
ing, that as their principles of religion were not

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY'. 199
sufficiently known, or at least no public evidence \,
was given what they were, or how far they de
served that indulgence which was intended by
this BUU he did not think it would be prudent to
grant it on such a broad, unlimited footing, as it
might open a door to many similar applications,
and create much unnecessary trouble to the Le
gislature. Lord Stormont then rose, and began with as
suring their Lordships, that as there was no ques
tion before them, he was conscious it would ill
become him to detain the House long. What
ever fell from the mouth of the noble and learn
ed Lord, he said, had so much weight on the
minds of noble Lords in that House, and with so
much justice, that he begged to speak a few words
in reply to some parts ofthe speech ofthe noble
and learned Lord, and also shortly and simply to
explain the principle on which he thought it his
duty to support this Bill. His Lordship then
proceeded to detail the grounds on which the
penalties had been imposed that the present Bill
went to repeal. When the statute of Queen
Anne passed, their Lordships, he said, would re
collect that the- circumstances of the times were
peculiar. Those of the Episcopal Communion
in Scotland were then known to be disaffected to
the Government of the country from motives of
conscience, not thinking themselves at liberty to
withdraw their allegiance frora the heir of the
abdicated sovereign. On those persons, there-

200 ' ANNALS OP 179 1'.
fore, and on them only, it was that the statute
was intended to attach. The case, however, at
present was totally different. There now existed
no such description of persons as those who were
the objects of that act. The Scottish Episcopa
lians of the present day were well affected to the
Government' of their country, and prayed for his
Majesty and the Royal Family, as formallyi and
as sincerely as those in England did. ^ With res
pect to what the noble and learned Lord had
said concerning toleration, Lord Stormont de-.
clared, he did not think it necessaiy to discuss
that point, or to state his opinion on the subject.
The noble and learned Lord, he observed, had
said, that toleration ought to be extended to those
persons only who were known to profess some
principles of religion consonant to the doctrines
of Christianity. It wasj however, his Lordship
remarked, a circumstance rather strpng in favour
ofthe objects ofthe present BiU, that the mem
bers of the Established Church of Scotland wishr
ed them to be relieved from the penalties in ques
tion, which, although certainly sharper than ne- '
cessary under the present circumstances of the
times, were perhaps justifiable at that period of
our history when they were first imposed. In
Scotland, his Lordship said, he should no doubt
be deemed-a dissenter ; yet he could not but feel
sorae degree of national pride on- observing the
liberal sentiments which the Established Church
pf Scotland had manifested pn this occasion.

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. iSOl
With regard to what the noble and learned Lord
had said respecting the necessity of every Epis
copaUan Pastor being able to prove that he had
been regularly ordained by a Protestant Bishop
of England or Ireland, Lord Stormont said, he
must beg leave to differ entirely frora his Lord
ship. If their Lordships would but attend for a
moment, they would see that in many cases it
was in its nature utterly impossible. If Episco
palian Pastors were men of conscience, as he hop
ed they were, they could not submit to repeive a
second ordination. And if they did, he would
only ask how the case would stand in the eyes of
their congregations. Their hearers might justly
tell thera, " You have passed upon us these twen
ty or thirty years, for what you are not. You
have preached to us, and we have listened to you;
but we now at last find, that before this time you
never were duly qualified." Besides, if these
Episcopalian Pastors were to apply to a Bishop
of England or Ireland, where would they get a
title ? If an Episcopalian candidate for orders
were to say, " My friends in Scotland will pro
cure a meeting house for me, and provide for my
support,"— would any of the learned Prelates
opposite to me, said Lord Stormont, pointing to
the Bench, deem that a corapetent title ? Most
certainly not.
With regard to what the noble and learned
Lord had said respecting marriage, it was well
known, that in Scotland marriage was considered

202 ANNALS br 1791,
merely as a civU contract, as appeared from the
frequent reports of what was transacted at Gret-
na Green, a place where he had some concern ;
and if a Counsel were at their Lordships bar, and
attempted to bring a witness to prove that mar
riage was any thing else than what he had now
stated it, he was persuaded the noble and learn*
ed Lord on the Woolsack, would immediately
think it his duty to stop hina. The vaUdity of
an Episcopalian Pastor's ordination, his Lordship
contended, was totally out of the question. In
jbonsidering the principle ofthe present BUl, th&^
House had nothing to do with it ; and if he held
in his hand the book written by Father Courayer,
some few pages of which he had once read, he
declared he would not resort to the volume for a
single argument in support of the doctrine he
was then maintaining. The sole, and, as he had
before stated it, the simple point on which rested
the claim of the Episcopalians of Scotland to the
reUef which the Bill would give, was, that when the
penalties complained of were imposed, they were
clearly meant to attach on persons who were disaf
fected to the existing government of the country,
and to thePrinPe upon the throne, whereas the pre
sent EpiscopaUans, both Pastors an d Laymen, were
persons of a totally different description. There
was no occasion, his Lordship said, for him to go
back to the reign of Constantine to prove what
Episcopacy was ; and therefore, after apologizing
to their Lordships for having detained them so

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 203
long, he would conclude with declaring that it
appeared to him an irrefragable argument in fa
vour of the present Bill, that the Episcopalians
of Scotland had exactly and precisel}* the same
claims on the indulgence of the Legislature, as
those of the dissenters in this part of the king
dom from the Established Church of England.
Lord Stormont was followed by the Bishop of
St Davids, of whose speech on this occasion, a
friend who was in the house has favoured us with
the following correct statement.
" My Lords,
" I am happy to perceive, that in the senti
ments which I have to deliver to your Lordships
upon the present subject of discussion, I shall
not have the misfortune to differ very widely, in
any thing that essentially regards the principle
of the Bill, from the noble and learned Lord
upon the Woolsack. My Lords, a wide difference
from him I should call a misfortune, because it
would necessarily produce in me a degree of
mistrust of my own judgment, which would con
siderably abate the satisfaction which otherwise
I might feel in following what still might be the
firm and full conviction of my own mind. Ne
vertheless, my Lords, in any question like this,
in which the interest of religion, the public weal,
and the credit ofthe Legislature, might be con
cerned, a question of justice and mercy towards
a suffering part of the family of Christ, it would

204* ANNALS OF ' 1791.
ill become me to be concluded in the vote that I
should give, upon any authority but that of my
own conviction ; and it might not less misbecome
me to oppose, a high authority by a sUent vote,
withou^stating to your Lordships the grounds
on which my contrary conviction stood. My
Lords, the principle of this bill has_ been so
clearly stated by the noble Earr*,^ who moved
the second reading, and so well illustrated by the
noble Viscount f, who spoke last, that it is un
necessary to dwell upon it. The object of the
Bill is to relieve certain dissenters from the Es
tablished Churcb of Scotland, weU affected to
bis present Majesty and the Protestant succes
sion, from the penalties of disaffection imposed
by former laws. My Lordsi the hardship under
which they labour consists not in the severity of
these penalties. Disaffection in former times,
was generally among persons of their religious
persuasion, though not necessarily connected
with their religion. And of the measures bf se-
yerity that might be necessary for those times,
the Legislatures of those tiraes were the judges.
But, my Lords,, the hardship is, that the present
generation being converted from the disaffection
of their ancestors, and retaining only their re
ligious principles, cannot, by any thing they can
do, by any security that they can give for their
good conduct and submission to Government,
secure themselves against the penalties of disaf-
* Lord iSIgin. + Lord Stormont.

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 205
fection. As cordiaUy attached as any of us to
the existing Government, praying in their reli
gious assemblies for his Majesty King George
and the Royal Family by narae, in the terms in
which we of the Church of England in our own
Liturgy pray for them, and taking the oaths that
we all take, still they are liable. Clergy and Laity,
to all the penalties ofthe 19th of George II.
" My Lords, the good policy of this BUl of
Relief is not at all connected with any question
about the antiquity of the practice of praying for
.Sovereigns, - From what fell from the noble and
learned Lord, I think there must be a mistake
upon that point. His Lordship must have re
ceived some, misinformation. My Lords, I caui.
not believe that these Episcopalians ever alleged
the example of the ages before Constantine in
justification of their omission, in former tiraes, of
praying for the King by narae. Prayers for So
vereigns is one ofthe very oldest parts of Christian
worship. These Episcopalians must very well
know, that the precept of praying for Kings, and
all that are in authority, is SCO years older than
Constantine, and that it was the constant prac
tice ofthe earliest Christians to pray even for the
Princes that persecuted them. My Lords, their
omission of praying for the King by name, was
owing to their notions about indefeasible heredi
tary right, which would not suffer thera to re
nounce the family to which their allegiance had
ence been sworn, nor to adopt the principles of

206 ANNALS OF 1791.
the Revolution. The omission was not defended
by any pretended example of antiquity. It stood
upon no better ground than that of gross and
avowed disaffection. But, my Lords, the exam
ple of the ages before Constantine must have
been alleged to a very different purpose. It has
been alleged by these Episcopalians to justify
their claims to an Episcopacy, and to explain
what sort of Episcopacy that is, which they claim.
My Lords, it is not my wish to lead the House
into the perplexities of that theological discussion;
I shall comprise what I find necessary to say
upon it in very few words.
"My Lords, these Episcopalians take a distinc
tion, and it is a just distinction, between a purely
spiritual, and a political Episcopacy. A political
Episcopacy belongs to an established ChurPh,
and has no existence out of in establishment.
This sort of Episcopacy was necessarily unknown
in the world, before the time of Constantine. But
in all the preceding ages there was a pure spirit
ual Episcopacy, an order of men set apart to in
spect and manage the spiritual affairs of the
Church, as a society in itself totally unconnected
with civil government. Now, my Lords, these
Scottish Episcopalians think, that when their
Church was cast off by the State at the Revolu
tion, their Church in this discarded divided state
reverted to that which had been the condition
of every Church in Christendom before the
establishment of Christianity in the Roman Em-

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 207
pire by Constantine the Great ; that, losing all
their political capacity; they retained, however,
the authority of the pure spiritual Episcopacy
within the Church itself; and that is the sort of
Episcopacy to which they now pretend. I, my
Lords, as a Churchman, have some respect for
that pretension, but I have no wish to lead the
House into a discussion about it. The merits of
the Bill rest not on the validity of that Episco-*
pacy in any sense. In what sense the Bishops
of this Church of Scottish Episcopalians may be
Bishops, whether they are Bishops in any sense,
is not the question. What the validity of their
ordinations may be, is not the question. The
single question is. Are these Scottish Episcopalians
good subjects ; and do they hold religious prin
ciples, in the emphatic language ofthe noble and
learned Lord on the Woolsack, " Fit to be to
lerated ?" That is to say, are they good subjects,
and do they agree with us in the fundamentals
of Christianity ? For these are the religious prin
ciples " fit to be tolerated." If they can satisfy
us upon these, points, the Legislature is not at all
concerned in the question ofthe spiritual validity
of their orders. My Lords, consider only how
we deal with Protestant dissenters , here in Eng
land. For aU that I would wish for our Scot
tish brethren is, that they, as dissenters from tbe
Established Church of Scotland, should be put
upon the same footing with the Protestant dis
senters from the Church of England. My Lords,

-208 ' ^ ANNALS OF 179U
by the Toleration A.ct ofthe 1st of WilHara and
Mary, a Pastor ofa Congregation of Protestan);
dissenters must enter the place and situation of
bis Meeting-house; he must give in his own
name and place of abode ; he must take the oaths
to Government, and he mustshew that he agrees
with us in the fundamentals ofthe Christian re
ligion; and by the terms of that statute, which is
the narrowest of all the present schemes of tolera
tion, he must however testify his agreement with
us in the general principles of Protestantisin,
"This he does by subscribing a great many ofthe
S9 Articles. My Lords, when the dissenting
Minister has complied with these conditions, he
is never asked, no one has authority to ask him.
Sir, how comes it that you caU yourself a Cler
gyman ? What are your orders ? By whom were
you ordained ? By what ritual ? He has given
the security which all good subjects give for his
loyalty to Government ; he professes religious .
principles, " fit to be tolerated ;" that's enough.
He is admitted without farther enquiry to all the
benefits of toleration. Now, my Lords, here are
a set of dissenters from the EstabUshed Church
of Scotland, good subjects, and holding religious
principles very " fit to be tolerated:" For the
cause of their dissent from the Established Church
of Scotland is their very near agreement with
the Established Church of England; and they
approach your. Lordships with this modest re
quest, that they may not be more hardly dealt

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 209
with, ttian Protestants of various denominations
difiering more widely from both establishments.
My Lords, one thing that fell from the noble
and learned Lord on the Woolsack struck upon
my mind very forcibly, as deserving, I mean, a
serious consideration. His Lordship gave it as
his opinion* that it would be for the credit of
Episcopacy in Scotland, that their Congregations
should' be supplied with Ministers (according to
the intention of the 19th of the late King,) or
dained by Bishops ofthe English or Irish Church.
The noble and learned Lord, if I took his argu*
ment aright, supposed that the statute passed in
favour of the Scottish Episcopalians in the 10th
of Queen Anne would bear him out in that
opinion. That statute made it " free and law
ful for all those of tbe Episcopal Comraunion in
that part of Great Britain called Scotland, to
meet and assemble for the exercise of divine
worship, to be performed after their own man
ner, by Pastors ordained by a Protestant Bishop."
The noble and learned Lord conceives that un
der the latitude of this expression, a " Protestant
Bishop," the statute meant indeed to tolerate
the ejected Bishops, and the Clergy immediately
ordained by them, but not to extend the tolera
tion to the succession* My Lords, I must take
the liberty to differ from the noble and learned
Lord upon the construction of this statute
of Queen Anne. I think it was the inten
tion of the statute to extend its toleration be-

210 ANNALS OF 1791.
yond the ejected Bishops themselves tP the
whole suceession. For I find, my Lords, that of
the thirteen Bishpps of Scotland ejected at the
Revolution, (the dioceses were in all fourteen^
but it happened that one see was vacant when
the Revolution took place, thirteen Bishops there
fore were ejected ; now of these thirteen) seven
certainly, probably eight, were dead before the
10th of Queen Anne, and a ninth was out of the
kingdom, for he fled with the abdicated king.
At the time, therefore, when this act was passed,
no more than four of the*ejected Bishops were
alive, and within the kingdom, and four new con
secrations had taken place, tWo in the 4th of
Queen Anne, and two more in the Sth. At the
time, therefore, when this act was passed, the-
Scottish Episcpacy consisted of an equal number
of the original Bishops and the succession, four
of each ; and if it was the intention of the act,
as the noble and learned Lprd has argued, to
confine the toleration to the ejected Bishops, and
exclude the succession, I can only say, my Lords,
that tbe framers of that statute did their business
not quite so well as businesfj of that sort was used
to be done in those times.
" My Lords, with respect to the interests of
Episcopacy in Scotland, rtiy opinion is unfortu*
nately the very reverse of that of the noble and
learned Lord. The credit of Episcopacy will
never be advanced by the scheme of supplying
the Episcoffalian Congregations in Scotland with

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY 211
pastors of our ordination j and for this reason, my
Lords, that it would be an imperfect crippled
Episcopacy that would be thus upheld in Scot
land. When a Clergyman ordained by one of us
settles as a Pastor of a Congregation in Scotland,
he is out of the reach of our authority. We have
no authoi,"ity there ; we can have no authority
there ; the Legislature can give us no authority
there. The attempt to introduce any thing of
an authorised political Episcopacy in Scotland
would be a direct infringement of the Union. My
Lords, as to the notion that Clergymen should be
originally ordained by us to the Ministry in Scot
land, I agree with the noble Viscount, that the
thing would be contrary to all rule and order. -
No Bishop, who knows what he does, ordains
without a titie, and a title must be a nomination
to some thing certain in the diocese of the Bi
shop that ordains. My Lords, an appointment to
an Episcopal Congregation in Scotland is no more
a title to me, or to any Bishop of the English
Bench, or any Bishop of the Irish Bench, than
an appointment to a Church in Mesopotamia.
" My Lords, with respect to Marriages, I agree
with the noble and learned Lord on the Wool
sack, that if this BiU should pass, the Episcopa
lians will be authorised to marry in their meet
ing-houses by the 10th of Queen Anne. But,.my
Lords, I see no inconvenience that can arise from
this. It will open no door to clandestine marri
ages. For, though they wUl be authorised to
o S

212 ANNALS OF 1791.
marry, they will not be authorised to marry o-
therwise than in conformity to the regulations of
the 10th of Queen Anne ; that is to say, they can
marry those only whose banns have been regu
larly published, not only in the meeting-houses
where the marriage is to be solemnized, ' but in
the kirks of the parishes where the parties are
resident. But, ray Lords, I go farther; I say
that this Bill will give them no authority with ¦
respect to marriages, but what they do already
enjoy and exercise. My Lords, the fact is, that
these Episcopalians do now solemnize marriages
every day. They solemnize marriages legally*
They solemnize marriages under the express co
vert and sanction of the persecuting statutes.
And, these marriages so solemnized by them,— ¦
my Lords, in what I am going to assert, I stand
in the judgment of noble Lords, to whom the
laws of Scotland are more accurately known than
they may be supposed to be to me : — But, my
Lords, I say these marriages solemnized by these
Episcopalians, are good and vaUd by the laws of
Scotland. [Here the Scottish Lords aUgave a nod of as-
, sent.] " And, ray Lords, the ground of my assertion is
this. Our marriage act extends not to Scotiand.
Therefore, by the law and usage of Scotland, it
is not necessary that any should be present at a
wedding except the parties themselves (that's two)
the man who is to act as father, and give the

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 213
bride away, (that's three,) and the clefrgyman, or
pretended clergyman, who is to perform the ce
remony, (that's four.) Now, my Lords, by the
express permission ofthe 19th of the late King, _
which I call the persecuting statute, four persons
may assemble for the celebration of any religious
rites, for the meeting is not illegal unless five be
present, . over and above the members of the fa
mily, if the place of assembly be a house inhabi
ted by a family, or five, if the place of assembly
be a house not inhabited by a family. My Lords,
these are my notions upon the points that have
been agitated. I shaU not go into points that
have not been brought forward in objection,
though I am prepared to meet any other objec-
tion^that might be moved ; but I ara sensible
that I have already taken up too ranch of your
Lordships' time, and I fear rather irregularly,
when in fact no express question is before the
House. I am aware that the Bill must receive
amendraents in the Coraraittee, and perhaps ad
ditions, but the principle of the Bill has my en
tire approbation."
The Earl of Kinnoul (Lord Hay) made a short
speech in favour of the BiU, and delivered his
sentiments with much emphasis and energy. He
described the merabers of the Scottish Episcopal
Church as a decent,' quiet, respectable body of
people, who, in the most trying "tiraes, had al
ways behaved in a very becoraing and exemplary
manner, and were therefore well entitled to every

214 ANNALS OF 1791,
indulgenciS which the Legislature could shew
them.. Whatever amendments might be propos
ed, he could see no good ground for any objec
tion to the principle of the present BiU, and de-
clared himself to be thoroughly convinced that a
marked distinction of Legislative liberality ought
ever to attach to the Established Church of ei-
ther part of the kingdom.
As soon as Lord Kinnoul sat down, the ques
tion was put and carried without a division, that
the Bill should be read a second time, and go in
to a Committee of the whole House on Wednes
day next. In the mean time, it was intimated
to Bishop Skinner by the Bishop of St Davids,
and the Earls of KeUie, Elgin, and Fife, who had
all taken a very active part in forwarding the
Bill, that the only thing which the Lord Chan
cellor now insisted on, was the necessity; of re
quiring' from our Clergy sorae public declaration
of their religious principles, by which it might
be known that they came as near as was said to
those of the Church of England. With this view,
he thought that subscription to the Thirty-nine
Articles ought to be required, as the best and on
ly means of shewing, in a I^al manner, what our
religious principles were, and that our Church
was really such a society as deserved to be toler
ated. On this head, the Bishop of St Davids
observed, that he saw the justice and propriety
of the Lord Chancellor's remarks, since, except
ing what was implied in calling ourselves Epis-

1791. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 215
copal, which any Sect might do, we seemed to be,
at least in the eye ofthe law, a non-descript body,
and as such, on the Chancellor's principles, not
entitled to , the full benefit of toleration. He
therefore thought, if our clergy could do it, it
would be right in thera to comply with this re
quisition ; and on the supposition of such com
pliance, he had no doubt but our business would
go on smoothly, and without any farther opposi
tion. To all this, the substance of Bishop Skinner's
reply was, that he believed the Scotch Episcopal
Clergy, or at least a great majority of them, had
no objection to the general doctrine of the Thirty-
nine Articles, although they might not altoge
ther approve of some particular expressions made
use of in them ; and that the most disagreeable
part of the clause requiring subscription would
be, the obliging Sfcottish Clergy to subscribe
them as the " Articles of the Church of Eng
land," since the Scottish Episcopal Church was
no part of the Church of England, and could not,
either in strictness of principle, or propriety of
language, be included in it. On this head he re
ceived for answer, that it was only the general
doctrine of the several articles to which the sub
scription was required even in England ; that
many expressions in them might no doubt be al
tered for the better, but as those concerned would
not agree about these alterations, perhaps it was
as well to let the words remain as they are ; that

2l6 ANNALS OF 1791,
there could b;e no hardship or impropriety in our
Clergy subscribing them as "^ Articles of the
Church of England," after theylhad professed that
their principles were the same as hers in aU the
fundamental doctrines of religion, and that they
wished to be considered as in communion with
ber, fpr , subscription was doing that only in a
more solemn and legal raanner. On these grounds
it was argued, that the clause requiring subscrip
tion was not only just and reasonable in itself,
but might be attended with consequenpes very
advantageous to the Scottish Episcopal Church,
as it would serve to distinguish the members of
that Church from the many upstart sects of disr
senters, whose principles are conformable to. no
known standard- Jn this view it seemed to meet
the approbation of our London Committee, and
pf all thpse friends to our cause on whpse good
offices the success of our BUl depended.
Another clause, which now came to be taken
into serious consideration, \yas that whereby the
Scottish Episcopal Qergy "wferp to be restricted
from taking any benefice, curacy, or other spirit
ual promotion, within that part of Great Britain
cgiWed England, the. dominion of Wales, pr town
of Berwi9k upon Tweed." A restriction which
was considered as absolutely necessary for pre- -
serving to her own Clergy the civil rights and
revenues of the Church of England ; and was so
far frora implying any doubt of the spiritual vali
dity pf the prdprsi conferred in the Scottish Epis^

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 217
copal Church, that the necessity of the clause
arose wholly from the belief and acknowledgment
of that validity. So reasoned the advocates for
this restriction. " If," said they, " the Bishops
pf England were not well convinced of the re
gard which is due to Episcopal Ordination, there
would be no occasion for providing against the
inconvenience that might ensue frora a number
pf Clergy so ordained in Scotland, applying for
institution in the Church of England, A simUar
inconvenience was foreseen when the act passed
to empower the Archbishops of Canterbury or
York to consecrate Bishops for North America ;
and therefore a provision was made in that act,
that no Bishops so consecrated, nor any Priests
or Deacons ordained by them, or their successors,
should be thereby enabled to exercise their res-
pective offices within his Majesty's dominions,"
The purpose of the restricting clause being
thus defined, it was prepared accordingly, as
well as the clause requiring subscription to the
Thirty-nine Articles, But when the Comraittee
met, as ordered, on Wednesday the 9th of May,
they got no farther through the Bill, than to the
end of the clause respecting the Laity, which
Lord Grenville was of opinion ought to be alter
ed, and said he wouldJiave a proper amendment
prepared before the next meeting of the Com-
mittee, which \yas therefore adjourned to Tuesday
the 15th of May.
On that day, as soon as the Committee met»

218 ANNALS OF 1792.
Lord GrenviUe went over the heads of the BUl,
explaining, as he proceeded, the reasons of the
alterations which had been made in it ; and
when -be came to the restricting clause above
mentioned, the Earl of Radnor objected to it,
and sai4 " he saw no good reason for refusing
that to Clergy ordained by a Protestant Bishop,
which was granted to Popish Priests." The
Bishop of St. David*s repUed to this objection,
and pointed out the distinction between a spirit*
ual and legal Episcopacy, and the reasons why
such Popish Priests as had been ordained by
Bishops legally established in foreign countries,
were admitted, on renouncing the errors of Po
pery, to institution in England. An addition
yras also proposed to the restricting clause, where
by it is provided, " that no Episcopal Pastor or
Minister in Scotland, who has not been ordained
by some Bishop of the Church of England, or of
Ireland, shall be capable of officiating in any
Church or Chapel in England, where the Liturgy
of the Established Church is used :" which ad
dition was said to be intended merely to prevent
an evasion of the former part ofthe clause, by
persons pretending only to officiate occasionally,
when they were really employed as Curates, and
perhaps paid for acting in that capacity. No
part ofthe clause was supposed to operate to the
prejudice of the Scottish Episcopacy, in regard
to its purely spiritual effects ; and our Clergy's.
subscribing the Thirty-nine Articles would be
looked upon as a public testimony ofthe mutual

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 219
communion which subsisted between the two
Churches. Next day the BUl was reported, and ordered
to be printed with the amendments : and after
being read a third time, and ordered to be car
ried to the House of Commons, it was received
there on Friday the 25th of May, read a first
time, and ordered to be printed. But when the
daiy came for the second reading, the Speaker
said, *' he thought it his duty to state to tbe
House, that the Bill containing certain money
clauses, which made it inconsistent with the pri
vileges of that House to receive it from the
Lords, he was under the necessity of moving
that it should be thrown out ; at the same time
observing, that another might be immediately
moved for, on behalf of the parties concerned."
This was done accordingly by the Right Ho
nourable Henry Dundas; on which Mr Charles
Fox got up, and said, *' he did not rise to make
any opposition to the design of this measure,
but merely to take notice of the partiality of it,
and how ready the present administration was to
grant that relief to a peculiar description of dis
senters in Scotland, which had been denied to
those in England, whose cause he had lately been
pleading ;"— alluding to a motion which he had
made a few days before, in favour of the Unitarian
dissenters. In reply to this, Mr Dundas observ
ed, " that the Bill which he now moved for, as
weU as one of a simUar tendency which he had

220 ANNALS OF 1792.
brought forward three years ago, was intended
to reUeve a class of dissenters who laboured un
der grievances not known to those whom the
Right Honourable Gentleman had aUuded to in
England ; as the latter might have any sort of
Ministers they thought proper, whereas the for
mer were subjected to heavy penalties because
theit Pastors could not obtain a license from an
English or Irish Bishop." Mr Fpx only answer
ed, " that the same objection which had been
made to his motion, as brO'ught forward at an
improper time, he thought might with equal jus
tice be appUed to that ofthe Right Honourable
Secrietary." However, the motion was imme
diately agreed to ; and Mr Dundas and Sir James
St Clair Erskine were ordered to prepare and
bring in the BUl. On Friday the 1st of June it
was read a first and second time in the House of
Commons. Next day it was comraitted and re
ported ; and on the Tuesday after was read a
third tirae, passed, and carried to the House of
Lords, where it went through the several read
ings again in the usual manner, no alteration
having been made in it, and received the royal
assent on Friday the 15th of June, being the last
day of the Session.
The preamble lo this Act runs in these terms :
" Whereas, by several Acts of Parliament now in
force, disabUities, forfeitures, and penalties haye
been imposed in certain cases upon persons fre
quenting, resorting to, or officiating in, certain

179S. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.
Episcopal Chapels and Meeting-houses in Scot*
land: " And whereas there is sufficient reason to be
lieve, that the Pastors, Ministers,' and Laity of
the Episcopal Comraunion in Scotland, are now
well attached to his Majesty's person, faraily,
and governraent :
" And whereas it is just and reasonable that
such of thera as are willing in a proper' manner
to manifest such attachment, should receive relief
with respect to certain disabilities, forfeitures,
and penalties, in the said acts mentioned : May
it therefore please your Majesty, that it may be
enacted, and be it enacted by the King's Most
Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent ofthe Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and
Commons, in this present Parliament assembled,
and by the authority of the same, that so much
of an Act p^assed in the 10th year of the reign of
her late Majesty Queen Anne, entitled, an Act
to prevent the disturbing those of the Episcopal
Comraunion, &c. and also so much of an Act
passed in the 5th year ofthe reign of his late Ma
jesty King George the First, entitled, an Act for
making more effectual the laws, &c. and also so
much of an Act passed in the 19th year of the
reign of his late Majesty King George the Second,
entitled, an Act more effectually to prohibit and
prevent, &c. and also so much of an Act passed
in the 21st year ofthe reign of his late Majesty
King George the Second, entitled, an Act to

222 ANNALS OF 1792.
amend, and enforce, &c.as relate to the imposing
any. penalties, forfeitures, or disabilities on any
person or persons, for, or on account of, his or
their frequenting or resorting to any Episcopal
Chapel or Meeting house in Scotland, or any per
son or persons, for, or on account of his or their
officiating at any such Chapel or Meeting-house,
shall be, and the same are hereby repealed."
The Act tben provides and enacts, that every
such Pastor or Minister shall take and subscribe
the Oaths in the usual manner, and shall dso, at
the sarae time and place, subscribe a declaration
of his assent to the Thirty-nine Articles of the
Church of England, and produce certificates frora
the proper officer, of his having so quaUfied him
self^ to the Clerk ofthe shire, stewartry or borough,
where his Meeting-house is situated, that he may
make proper entries of the same, and also de
liver two attested copies of such certificates, one
to be fixed on the outside ofthe Meeting-house
where the said Pastor or Minister officiates, and
the other in some conspicuous place within such
meeting-house ; and every such Pastor or Minis
ter offending in any of the premises, shall, for the
first offence, being lawfully convicted thereof,
forfeit the sum of twenty pounds SterUng, and
for the second offence shall be declared incapable
of officiating during the space of three years.
It also provides and enacts, that every such
Pastor or Minister shaU, as often as he shaU of
ficiate in any Episcopal Chapel or Meeting-house,

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 223
at some time during the exercise of divine ser
vice, pray for the King*s most Excellent Majesty
by name, his heirs and successors, and for all
the Royal Family, as directed in the Liturgy of
the Church of England ; and every such per*
son neglecting so to do, shall on lawful conviction
thereof, for the first offence, forfeit the sum of
twenty pounds Sterling, and for the second of
fence shaU be declared incapable of officiating
during the space of three years ; and any such
Pastor or Minister offending in any of the pre
mises before mentioned, shaU be incapable of
voting in any election of a member of Parliament,
or ofa Magistrate or Counsellor for boroughs, or
of a Deacon of Crafts within burgh, or of a Col
lector or Clerk of the Land-Tax or Supply j and
every assembly of persons for religious worship,
in any such Episcopal Chapel or Meeting-house,
shall be held with doors not locked, barred, bolt
ed, or otherwise fastened, during such assembly.
It further provides and enacts, that no such Pas
tor, or Minister of any order, shall be capable of
taking any Benefice, Curacy, or Spiritual Pro
motion, within that part of Great Britain called
England, the dominion of Wales, or town of Ber
wick upon Tweed, or of officiating in any Church
or Chapel within the same, where the Liturgy of
the Church of England, as now by law establish
ed, is used, unless he shall have been lawfully or
dained by some Bishop of the Church of Eng
land or of Ireland.

AtTNALs ole 1792.
The act having thus provided and enacted all
that is necessary to manifest the loyalty of the
Scottish Episcopal Clergy, and to prevent their
encroaching on the civil rights and revenue of
the Church of England, proceeds next to declare
what is necessary to be observed and attended to
by the Laity of the Episcopal Communion in
Scotland. It therefore provides and enacts, that
if any person at any time after six months, to be
reckoned from and after the first day of July
1792, shall be present twice in the sarae year at
divine service in any Episcopal Chapel or Meet*
ing-house in Scotland, whereof the Pastor or
Minister shall not pray in express words for his
Majesty by name, his heirs and successors, and
for all the Royal Faraily, in the raanner before
directed, every person so present shall, on lawful^
conviction therepf, for the first offence forfeit
the sura of five pounds Sterling, and shall suffer
imprisonraent for the space of six months, unless
or until the same be paid, and for the second, or
any subsequent offence, shall suffer imprispnment
for the space of two years frora the date of such
conviction ; but every prosecution for any offence
comraitted against this act shall be coraraenced
within the space of twelve months after such
offence committed, and not afterwards.
It further enacts, that no Peer of Scotland,
shall be capable of being elected one ofthe Six
teen Peers to sit and vote in the House of Peers
in the Parliament of Great Britain, or of voting

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 225
in the eleetioii of any of the said Sixteen Peers,
who shall at any time after six months, to be
reckoned from and after the said first day of
July, be present twice in the same year at divine
service in any Episcopal Chapel or Meeting-house
as aforesaid, whereof the Pastor or Minister shall
not pray, in express words, for his Majesty by
name, for his Majesty's heirs and successors, and
for all the Royal Family, in the raanner before
directed. And it shall be corapetent for any Peer
of Scotland present at the election of the said
Sixteen Peers, or of any of thera, to make this" ob
jection, and to prove the same by a witness or
witnesses upon oath, or by referring it to the oath
of the peer so objected to ; which oath the Lord
Clerk Register, or either ofthe two Clerks of Ses
sion, appointed by him to officiate iri his name
at such election of Sixteen Peers, or of ahy of
them, is hereby empowered to administer. And
in case the same shall be proved, or the Pepr so
objected to shall admit the fact, or refuse to de
pose concerning it, he shall be, and is hereby
disqualified from, and rendered incapable of vo
ting, or being chosen at any such election, as
aforesaid ; but such admission, or confession up
on oath or otherwise, so made at such meeting
assembled for any such election, shall not be made
use of, or given in evidence against any such Peer
upon any prosecution for any penalty inflicted
by this or any former act of Parliament.
It further enacts, that no person shaU be capa^
f

226 ANNALS OF 179$.
^ble of being elected, or of voting in any election
of a member of Parliament for any shire or bo
rough in that part of Great Britain called Scot
land, or of being elected, or voting in the elec^
tion of a Magistrate or CounseUor for Boroughs,
or Deacon of Crafts within Burgh, or of a Col*'
lector or Clerk of the Land Tax or Supply, who
shall at any time after six months, to be reckoned
from and after the first day of July aforesaid, be
present twice in the same year at divine service in
any Episcopal Chapel or Meeting house, asafoFe*
said, whereof the Pastor or Minister shall not pray
in express words for his M^esty by name, for his
Majesty's heirs and successors, and for aU the
Royal Faraily, in the manner before directed.
And it shall be competent for any candidate or
member ofthe meeting, assen^bled for any such
iclection, to make this objection, and to prove the
same by a witness, or witnesses, upon oath,, or
by referring it to , the oath of the person objec
ted to, whicb oath the preses or clerk of such
meeting is hereby empowered to administer.
And in case the sarae shaU be proved, or tbe
person so objected' to shall adrait the fact, or re
fuse to depose concerning it, he shall be, and is
hereby disqualified frora, ^nd rendered incapable
of voting, or being chosen at any such election
as aforesaid,; but such admission or confession
upon oath, or otherwise, so made at such meet
ing assembled for such election, shall not be inade
use of, or given in evidence against any such per-

1792, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACYi 227
son, upon any prosecution for any penalty inflic
ted by this, or any former act of Parliament.
And the act concludes witlrforther enacting, that
this act shall be deemed, adjudged, and taken tp
be a pubUc act, and shall be judicially taken no
tice of as such by all Judges, Justices, and other
persons whomsoever, without specially pleading
the same.
When we compare this act with that passed in
the 10th of Queen Anne, generally known by
the name of Queen Anne's Toleration, and
which is still in force, so far as it tends to pro
tect those of the Episcopal Communion in Scot
land, we find that the same penalty of twenty
pounds Sterling, contained in the 10th of Queen
Anne, is stiU to be imposed on tho^e Pastors or
Ministers of the Episcopal Comraunion in Scot
land who neglect to pray for the King and Royal
Family in the raanner directed ; and that this is
all which their hearers, or the Laity of their Com
munion, have now to attend to, is evident frpm
those clauses of this act above recited, which re
late to the persons who attend divine service in
Episcopal Chapels or Meeting-houses, For in
stead of requiring the registration of letters of
orders, and a certificate pf the Pastor or Minis
ter's having taken the oaths, and his name and
place of abode, and the place where his meeting
is to be held, as was required by the 19th of
George II., those clauses mention nothing more
as incumbent on the Laity, than that they take
p's

228 ANNALS OF 1792.
care " not to be present twice in the same year
at divine service in any Episcopal Chapel or
Meeting-house in Scotiand whereof the P'astor
or Minister shall not pray in express words for his
Majesty by name, his heirs and successors, and
for all the Royal Family, in the manner before
directed.". The reason of this alteration of the law is .obvi-
oiis, and discovers itself in that part of the pre-
amble to the present act, which affirms, " that
there is sufficient reason to believe that the Pas
tors, Ministers, and Laity bf the Episcopal Com
munion in Scotland are now well attached to his
Majesty's person, family, and government." The
most pubUc and proper manner in which such
Pastors or Ministers can manifest this dutiful at
tachment, is by praying for the King and Royal
Family as the law prescribes ; and, therefore, to
this alone the attention ofthe Laity is very just
ly and properly directed. Where this is omitted,
the law presumes that an essential mark of loy
alty is neglected, and so puts the Laity on their
guard against countenancing such neglect. But
to have involved thera in the consequences of
any other omission on the part of the officiating
Pastor or Minister, would have been unrea
sonable and oppressive, since in many instances
they might not have it in their power to kiiow
whether, or how far such omission had taken
place. ' To the books appointed for keeping lists
or registers of Episcopal Chapels, they might of-

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 229
ten find it difficult to procure access ; and they
have no right to demand a certificate of any par
ticular registration, since the law directs that on
ly two copies, attested by the clerk of court,
shall be delivered. And though these two copies
are to be fixed, one on or near the dpor, and the
other in sorae conspicuous place within'the Meet
ing-house, yet no provision is made that they
shall always tbere remain, in spite of the weather
and other accidents ; neither can it be supposed,
that every person who frequents, or happens to
be present in any such Chapel or Meeting-house,
will inquire or observe whether such copies have
been, and continue to be so fixed. But every
person present may easily know whether the King
and Royal Faraily have been prayed for as the
law directs ; and should even this be oraitted, no
penalty is incurred till the person has been twice
present in the sarae year where such omission
has taken place. On the whole, it is abundantly
evident, that the law, as it now stands, respecting
Episcopal Chapels or Meeting-houses in Scotland,
holds out complete relief to those who attend
divine service in such Chapels where his Majes
ty King George and the Royal Family are duly
prayed for. May such prayers be graciously
heard at the throne of Heaven, and devoutly
joined in by the merabers ofthe Scottish Episco
pal Church, restored as they now are to the pos
session of those civil rights and privUeges, of
which they have been deprived for the last forty-
six years.

230 ANNALS OF 179^.
Generous and disinterested as were the inde^
fatigable zeal and assiduity of the Rev. Dr Gas
kin, Messrs Park and Stevens, in forwarding the
views of the whole body of Scottish Epis(wpaH-
ans, their representative, Bishop Skinner, did not
leave the British Metropolis without bestowing,
on each of these revered friends, some little tok
en of his constituents' gratitude, esteem, and res-
' pect. A polished, vase-shaped. Silver Cup and
Cover, with a rich engraved border, was present*
ed to each ofthe two former, with the foUowing
inscription : —
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN SCOTLANI),
BELIEVED FROM PENAt STATUTES,
OFFEHS THIS HUMBLE TESTIMONY
OF SINCEflE GRATITUDE,
TO
THE RET". GEORGE GASKIN, D.t>.
Ta COMMEMORATE HIS KIND AND IMPORTANT SERVICES ,
TOWARDS THE OHTAINING OF THAT RELIEF.
JUNE 11, I792w
Mr Stevens, being a bachelor, preferred a lit
erary token of regard ; Bishop Skinner, therefore,
presented this invaluable man with a copy of
?• Bruckeri Historia Critica Philosophise," &c.
neatly bot{nd in six quartp volumes, with a simi
lar inscription to that on the cups ; and on June
the 12th, taking leave of these wpithy, friends,
set out for Scotland.
The good Treasurer to Queen Anne's Bounty,

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 231
classing himself with his brethren of the London
Committee, writes thus to Bishop Skinner : "We
are much flattered by the quick sense which you
and tbe Committee of Delegates in Scotland en
tertain of our friendship,'though we do notfeel our
pretensions very strong, as all we did was as lit
tle as could well be done, and you had the fairest
claim to every attention paid either to your" cause
or to yourself."
The letter written by good Dr Gaskin, in re
turn to the Bishop's note accompanying the cup
presented to hira, is well worthy of a place in
these Annals ; bespeaking, as it does bespeal?,
sentiments on the subject of the Scottish' Epis
copal Church which cannot fail to be most grate
ful to her friends to hear.

LETTER XXVI.
DB GASKIN TO BISHOP SKINNER,
Islington, June 15, 1792.
•' I acknowledge receipt of your very friendly
and affectionate letter, accompanying an elegant
silver cup, as a present to me from the Commit
tee of the Scottish Episcopal Church, for what
you are pleased to deem services in the business
ofyour late application to Parliament.
" The attention given by n^e to ySur concerns,
during the progrsss of the BUJ, originated alto-

an:^als of 1792.
gether in an attachment tp those principles of
primitive Christianity so steadily adhered to by
your Church, and which should ever jinite toge
ther the mepibers of the sheepfold of Christ, J
rejoice that your effort? for the repeal of the Pe
nal Statutes have not been fruitless, though it
would have afforded me much greater satisfaction
to h3,ve sepn the Bill, in all respect? such as we
5vished it to be.
.'* The oppprtunijty of entertaining under my
roof the Bishop pf Aberdeen, which this brisiness
afforded roe,* I repkpn, among the most honouraT-
ble and pleasant circunist^nces of my life. I dp-
sireyou to present my thanjks to the Committee
fpr their kindly accepting my poor services, and
fpr the manner in which jqn hayp been pleased
to signify their acceptance of them. I shaU pre-,
serve the cup with great yeneration, and endea
vour that it may continue to be preserved when
I shall be removed hence.
" May the Great Head ofthe Church ever at
tend with his Grace and Holy Spirit your sacre4
ministrations ; and when separated from the
Church militant, may we meet together in- her
triumphant state I J beg ypu to accept ypurself
* By special invitation. Bishop Skinner lodged in this highly
respected Clergyman's house, during his stay in London In
I7d2 ; and continued through life to speak of Dr and Mrs'
Gaskin's attentions. to bim in away ^hich never failed to mark
the lively sense he entertained of their unmerited hospitality
jjfid kindness. ,,

179^. - SCOTTISH EPI&COPACY. 235
my best respects, and to present the same to the
other .Prelates of your Communion. Pray re
member me and my household in your prayers,
and be assured that I shall ever remain," &c.
On the 4th of July 1792, Bishop Skinner being
now restored to his faraily and flock, received a
letter from three members of the Comraittee of
Delegates, viz : Messrs Gleig, Aitkin, and Niven,
mentioning that, as the business was now hap
pily concluded, for which the Committee had
been appointed, it appeared to them extremely
expedient, that the measures which had been
adopted should be reported to a Convention of
the whole Church similar to that with which their
powers originated ; and also that a sum for defray
ing the expence which had been necessarily in
curred, should be raised, either by public collec
tion or private contribution, as to the Clergy
should seem meet. In compliance with this sug-^
gestion, and well convinced of its expediency.
Bishop Skinner desired Mr Aitkin, as Secretary,
to intimate by letters circular, addressed to all
the Clergy in the. Church, that a general Conven
tion was to be holden at Laurencekirk, Kincar
dineshire, on Wednesday the 22d day of August
next for the purposes : " First, Of receiving
their Committee's Report of the Proceedings a-^
dopted in carrying through the Act of Repeal.
Secondly, Of deliberating on an address to his
Majesty. And, lastiy, Of devising a plan for

4S4 ANNAiS OF 1792.
establishing a Fund for the support ofthe Widowf
and ChUdren of Episcopal Clergymtn in Scot*
land. You are requested also," continues the cir*
cular, " to cause your congregation choose a de
legate to represent them in the Convention for
the purposes aforesaid, sending with him' a certi
ficate under your own hand of his appointment,
or, instead of such delegate, to empower you aA
their prOxy to act in their name,
" And as the applications to Parliament bav^
been attended with considerable expence, it has
been judged most eqtiitable and expedient to raise
d, sum for defraying the sarae by pubUc collection
or private contribution, in the different congre
gations throughout the Church, previous to the
meeting of the Convention, when it is hoped that
you will bring with you, or send tp the Conven-*
tion the sum or sums which your Congregatiort
shaU be pleased to contribute for the pjurpose
aforesaid ; the overplus, (if any) after paying the
expence incurred, tobe employed for the general
advantage of -the Church, in the manner the Con
vention shall direct."
In the mean while; letters of thanks were drawn
up by Bishop Skinner, signed by the whole mem
bers ofthe Coraraittee, and addressed to the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, the Bishops of Salisbury,
(formerly Cariisle,) and St. Davids, the Earls of
KeUie, Elgin, Kinnoul, and Fife, the Lord^ Stor
mont and GrenvUle, and to Mr Secretary Dun
das, for their good offices in promoting the sues

1793. scoTTi8« BMsdOPACY, SS5
cess of the last application to Pariiament. To
these letters repUes were made By the Lprd*
Fife, Stormont, amd GrenvUle, and by the Bishop
of St Davidsi The Earl of Fife * bearstestimony
to the character and good condufit of the Clergy
of the Episcopal Church in Seotlandv which me
rits a place in her Annals.
" I am old enough, (writes Ms Lordstlipv) to
remember the restraimng and penM liaws sAiPe
the 1745. It is but doing justice to your
Church to repeat here, what I said in pulfdic-,-vi2f.
that your attachment to your principlfes Was al-
ways^ honourable' and disinterested, conformmg
yourselves to- the law of the land with a conduct
so regular as never to give offence. I am conff-
dent our present gracious Sovereign and the Con
stitution itself have the addition of respectable
friends, and that the Church and State are bene
fited by your union. I flatter myself the event
wiU alike promote the comfort and satisfaction of
your Society."
" Lord Viscount Stormont t teUs bishop Skin
ner, that he thought it his duty to give all the lit-
tle.support in his power to so just a cause ; and
most heartily do I rejoice in your success, being
fully convinced ofyour loyalty to his Majesty, of
your attachment to the constitution ofyour coun
try, and ofthe zeal with which you wiU constant
ly endeavour to inspire those sentiments into the
* Jaifles, uncle to the present Eari— ^rtnafei. ¦ ^
t Father of the present Earl of Mansfield.

S36 ANNALS OF 1793.
breast of others, and to diffuse, through every part
of the kingdom to which^your influence extends,
a love of order, a reverence for the laws, and a
grateful and lively sense of the numberless bless
ings which we enjoy." Lord Grenville begs to
assure the Clergy and Laity of the Scottish Epis
copal Church, that he " feels very sensibly flat
tered by the obliging expressions of their letter to
him, and that no one is more firmly persuaded
than himself of the sentiments of loyalty to the
King, and attachment to the constitution, and
good order of the country, by which that respec
table body is aniipated." While the language of
Bishop Horsley is inall respects the language of
a churchman.

LETTER XXVII.
" To the Right Reverend and Reverend the
Representatives of the Clergy and Laity
of the Scottish Episcopal Chukch.
London, August 9, 1792.
" Right Reverend Fathers,
and Reverend Brethren,
" My absence from London was the occasion
that your letter of the 14th ult. came but a few
days since to my hands,, and has not been sooner
acknowledged. Ever since it came to my know
ledge that the merciful ^providence of God had

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 2S7
preserved to the presen^ day, though in a state
of great afiliction, a remnant of the old Episco
pal Church of Scotland, I felt the deepest con
cern in their sufferings, and the most earnest de
sire that they might obtain relief from the ex
treme severity of penal laws, which political con
siderations could no longer justify.
" I heartUy return thanks to God fpr the mer
cy which he has extended to that part of his fa
mUy, and more particularly that he has vouch
safed to make me, in some degree, the instrument
of it.
" With the most earnest prayers for your hap
piness bPth in time and in eternity, I remain, &c.
" Samuel St. Davids."
It is the opinion of the learned Historian of the
Scottish EpisPopal Church, that the introduction
of English ordained Clergy into Scotland, which
at first took place with a view to brotherly assis
tance, has conduced more than avowed enmity
would have done to depress that Episcopacy,
which, waving political scruples, the English
Bishops have at all times acknowledged to be or
thodox and valid *. In consequence of the Act
of Parliament passed on the 3d of March J 712,
and so well known in Scotland under the name
ofthe 10th of Queen Annfe, which Act required
all Scottish Pastors ordained by a Protestant Bish
op, not only to produce their letters of orders be-
* Skinner's Eccles. History, Vol. II. p. «78.

«S8 ANNALS OF Ijdi.
fore thp Justices of the Peace at their Quaiter-
sessions, but to talfe and subscribe the oaths of
allegiance, assurance, and abjuration ; and every
lime that they officiated in their places of worship
so protepted, to pray in express words for her
Most Sacred Majesty Queen Anne, and the Most
Excellent Princess Sophia, Duchess Dowager of
Hanover, ^nd all the Royal faroUy, under the
penalty of L.^0 for the first offence, and for thp
second of forfeiting the benefit of this Act, and
being declared incapable of officiating as Pastor
of any Episcopal congregation for the space of
three years. In consequence of this act, with
whiph their well known political principles pre-
v^ented the ^Scottish ordained Episcopal Clergy at
large from coraplying, one or two English ordain
ed Clergymen were, at that early period, intro
duced into Congrpgations, the leading members
of whiph were actually Magistrates under thp
Hanoverian Government. But the terms and
copditipns on which their introduction into Scot
land was at the time understood to take place,
may be learned frora the following letter in the
Annalist's possession, dated Forfar, August 4th,
1717, 3i.nd addressed to " The Right Reverend
my Lord Bishop of Edinburgh," who from the
period pf the revolution was clothed with the
vicarious power of Scottish Metropolitan.
" May it please your Lordship,
" The people of pur town and Pountry about,

SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 239
being generaUy averse from joining 'the Presby
terian worship, and having been so long deprived
of the benefit of public worship performed by an
Episcopal Minister, that they begin to find the
dismal effects of it, both among their children
and those of a greater age. And seeing that the
Government hath shut up us, who are their own
Ministers, under such circumstances, (which grow
still worse and worse,) that they can have no rea
sonable expectation of being relieved by us ip
that particular, our Magistrates, together with
some Gentlemen in the neighbourhood, (though
every way well affected, yet) have resolved to call
a raan who is quaUfied according to law, and set
up a Meeting-house in this town ; only they want
your Lordships permission, without which I can
not give my countenance unto it ; and which, if
they had, I doubt not but that they would obUge
the Gentleman whom they call both to under
take and to apt in subserviency to my ministry in
this Congregation ;* whereas, on the other h^pd,
if I shaU go about to oppose them, (they are ^o
bent and firmly resolved upon the thing,) it will
cause a woful schism among us.
" Wherefore have I despatched an express with
this line unto your Lordship, not only informing
you, (accprding to my duty,) but also humbly
entieating your Lordship, that you maybe pleas-
* Mr Small was Minister of the Town a»4 Parish «>f For
far, and ejected at the Eevoktion.

240 ANNALS OF 179*.
ed to consider it as a matter of the grea;test im
portance with respect to this place, and accord
ingly to grant us your favourable answer. ¦ For
though I cannot partake of their worship, but
must still continue to worship God in my own
house as before, yet if your Lordship wUl per
mit me to give countenance to their Meeting
house, the schism may be prevented, all things
may be done in subordination to my ministry,
and'we may be kept in unity among ourselves.
" I have presumed to write the foregoing lines
unto your Lordship ; and if you shall thin"k fit
that I come and speak with you farther upon that
affair, you shall be, God willing, very readily- at
tended by," &c. " Al. Small."
As no such appointment took place in Forfar,
it is evident that the good people, at whose in
stance Mr Small's application was made, readily
acquiesced in the reasons which Bishop Rose
would naturally iassign for his non-compliance
with their dutiful request. In fact, such appoint
ments were generally discountenanced, until
the memorable year 17418, when it was enacted
that " No letters of orders not granted by some
Bishop ofthe Church of England or Ireland, shall,
from and after the 29th September of that year,
be sufficient to qualify any Pastor or Minister of
any Episcopal meeting in Scotland, whether the
same were registered before Or after the 1st Sep-

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. SU
temberl746; and that every such registration,
whether made before or since, shall be null and
void." The 10th of Queen Anne was evidently de
signed for the protection and preservation of an
Episcopal Church in Scotland, though no longer
the Established Church in that part of the Brit
ish dominions. But the above enactment had
no other end in view but to cut up Scottish Epis
copacy, root and branch ; or to sow the seeds of
a schism, which to this day do reraain partially
uneradicated. For the fact is, as stated by our
Ecclesiastical Historian, that taking advantage
of the difficulties, which, under the invidious title
of Nonjurors, Scottish ordained Clergymen had
now to struggle with, and eagerly embracing the
conditional qualification, by means of English or
Irish ordination, which this act imposed, young
Scottish students, who felt themselves at a loss
for other occupation, repaired to England, and,
after receiving orders,, on the recommendations
by which they were accompanied, returned to
their native land,* and then hesitated not to en
ter on the functions of Episcopal Clergymen, in
open and avowed hostiUty to the resident Bishop
pr Bishops of the cities or dioceses in which they
established themselves, regardless alike of thpir
own and the peoples duty to walk by Apostolical
canon, and " obey those who had the rule over
them, and submit themselves."
* Skinner's Eccles. Hist. Vol. II. p. 671.
Q

242 ANNALS OF 1792.
Immediately on the passing of the act repeal
ing all tbe Penal Statutes, one of those 'English
ordained Scotchmen, the _Rev. Charles Cordiner,
of Banff, whose letters of orders were granted by
Dr Newton, Bishop of Bristol, in 1 769, for the office
of Deacon, and by Dr TraU, of Down and Con
nor, in the town of Arbroath, for the office of
Priest, in 1770, united himself and congregation
to the Diocese of Aberdeen, having become sen
sible ofthe anomalous state, in which, as an Epis
copal Clergyman, he had placed himself* The
union was solemnized on, Sunday, July 15th,
179s2i; the Scottish Episcopal Clergyman in Banfl^
and Author of these Annals, becoming Mr Cor-
diner's colleague, and both Congregations being
accommodated in the chapel of the latter. No
man could have acted with more heartfelt good
will to the cause than Mr Cordiner acted during
the two years which he survived the measure of
Union. On the morning after which, he thus
gives vent to his feelings : —

LETTER XXVIIL
THE REV. CHARLES CORDINER TO BISHOP SKlNNEB.
Banff, July 16. 1792.
" To the pleasure of divine service, it was a
very additional satisfaction, to have your imme
diate authority for commencing yesterday our

1792. ¦ SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 243
joint imnistry in St Andrew's Chapel. It seem
ed to be a festival of very general satisfaction and
joy. Your son, I understand, writes you by this
post ; to him, therefore, I refer the pleasing task
of narrating particulars. The foUowing post will
probably convey to your hands the Articles of
Union, regularly subscribed"; and I have only to
express ray acquiescence in the proposal of tak
ing public notice of the union. It is certainly
right. Whether the Earl of Fife, Lord Lieuten
ant of the County, witnessing and countenancing
our first service in the sanctuary ? Whether the
Chapel having been considered as in some de
gree under his patronage ? And whether you
would choose to quote the sentiments of any Bish
op in England, in favour of such union ? These,
and such like considerations, I entirely leave to
your superior judgraent, and trust to your care, — '
that as the union itself is equally respectable and
praiseworthy, so the terms in which it is announc
ed to the Public, wUl be equally creditable to
all concerned.
" Your pastoral affection, good wishes, and
friendly regards, I receive with due gratitude and
devotion. And I ara," &c.
His noble Patron, the Earl of Fife, having pre
sented Mr Cordiner with a copy of his letter to
Bishop Skinner, (quoted in p. 235 above,)and hav
ing authorised him to publish it in the Aberdeen
q2

244 ' ANNALS OF 1792.
newspaper, Mr C. writes again to the Bishop,
(July g5th) mentioning this circumstance, and
enclosing the letter given by his Lordship, with
some additional matter of his own, and thus con
cludes : " Whatever in the intermediate para
graph you think superfluous or wrong, I know
you will cancel, and it is my duty to acquiesce
in your determination, — to all the world besides
I would wish to defend the whole. I laboured
to express the state of the case in language that
would most concUiate my other brethrens notice.
To those of thera whora I raost esteemed, I have
¦v^ritten of ray baving taken the lead in a union
which I equally delight in as an evangelical duty,
as in knowing it would be highly acceptable to
administration. , " As my esteemed colleague and I have not
yet met our Constituents on the subject of repre-'
sentation at the ensuing convention, I shall only
at present add, that you may rest assured of my
most hearty concurrence to every measure, and
all possible aid to every council, in which the
good of the Episcopal Comraunity in Scotland is
concerned. I am," &c.
And to his memory it is but justice to sky, that
the good man acted Up, in all respects, to his pro
fessions ; extending to his colleague the right
hand of fellowship, with a cordiality which re
quires no better evidence on the part of the An
nalist, than simply to inform the reader, that,

1792. SCOTTISH EPiscor'Acy. 245
from the hour of their union, they never differed
on any one topic conneoted with their profession ;
Mr Cordiner regularly administering the Sacra
ment of the Lord's Supper by the form appointed
for the use of the Episcopal Church in Scotland.
True, he had been reared in the bosom of that
Church, and accustomed in early youth to this
priinitive formulary ; but being, at perfect liberty
to retain the office to which, as a Clergyraan, he
bad been accustomed for the space of twenty-
two years, his conformity with " the authorized
service of the Episcopal Church in the adminis
tration of the Holy Sacrament," (see Canon XV.)
was no less grateful to his youthful colleague, than
to his Bishop and the Church at large.
On the 22d of August the Convention met at
Laurencekirk, in terras of the order given, when
Bishop Skinner having been chosen Preses, and
the Rev, Roger Aitkin, Clerk, the intended bu
siness was forthwith entered on, the Bishop de
claring, as formerly, that the Convention being
merely of a civU nature, it was to be considered
as no precedent for a Synod or Assembly purely
Ecclesiastical. A full report of the proceedings
ofthe Comraittee having been, in the first place,
read to- the Meeting, Bishop Skinner deemed it
his duty to address the Convention at some length,
obviating every objection which parties, not on
the spot, were not slack to raise against the pro
visions of the Bill; particularly that restrictive
clause which precludes Scottish ordained Clergy-

246 ANNALS OF 1792,
men from holding livings in the Church of Eng
land, " For my own part," said the Primus, " I
am at a loss to determine, whether we have. Or
have not, reason to complain of it. Time wUl
shew how it is' likely to operate, and I would fain
hope that there is as much probability of its be
ing friendly, as of its being prejudicial to the in
terests of our Church, so long as our Church is
considered in its true.light, viz. as a Society Which
has no other object but the promotion of true re*
ligion, and which, therefore, ought to have none
else for its Ministers but those who expect theif
i-eward in a better country even than England,
and from a Master whose kingdom is not of thi«
world. But whatever opinion may be entertained
with respect to this restriction, or whether we
are pleasM or displeased with it, I foel no besita-
t;ion in affirming, that we had not the most dis
tant chance, at the time, of escaping it; because
it did not briginate in the humour or caprice of
any single member of Administration, but in the
decided judgment of a body of men, who thought
it their duty, in their legislative capacity, to se
cure the temporal emoluments of the Church of
England, as far as they can be secured, to her
own Clergy, and to them only. With respect to
the imposition of the oaths, the whole oaths, froth
first tolast, we honestly and fearlessly avowed our
^nconquerable objection to that part of them
which has a retrospective view, and which would
require us to abjure, as mere pretended rights,

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 247
what, in the opinion of the Church to which we
belong, did once really and truly exist ; although
having now, in our opinion, entirely ceased, they
no longer stand in the way of our fealty and alle
giance to tbe reigning Prince.
" Free as we now are to profess our loyalty and
;unqualified submission to the illustrious faraily on
the throne, and that in a raanner the most sincere
and unequivocal, we did fondly flatter ourselves,
that the Legislature of a country like Britain,
would require no more of us than an oath of al
legiance ; and that in our case, as in the case of
other British subjects, they would liberally dis
pense with that particular oath, which they so
well knew we could do no other, as honest men,
than conscientiously refuse. And this, I doubt
not, they might and would have done, had not
• an enemy done this,' had not bur adversaries,
(for no men are without thera,) laid hold of this '
very circumstance to justify an opposition whichj
though secretly, yet, alas! successfully, they have
been from the date of our compliance systemati
cally carrying on. Our candour, our honesty, in
avowing our scruples, and our repeated applica
tion for a commutation of the Governraent oaths,
as far as we were concerned, were, I suspect, the
means of iraboldening our eneraies in their ma
chinations against us ; enabling thera to lead, as
it were, a proof in the eyes of thera who knew us
not, of our stUl retaining a little of what they
would call ' the old leaven,' — a tincture of former

448 ANNALS OF 1792.
disaffection. And hence would they insinuate,
that to trust us with greater -liberty than what
we formeriy enjoyed from the lenity of Govern
ment simply, would be dangerous and improper.
Here it was that our opposers took their firmest
ground ; and here it was that the Lord Chancel
lor of England fixed his foot, — that, the highest
OfficeV of the Crown intrenched himself in such
a manner, that, after various attempts to dislodge
him, it was found necessary to drop all thoughts
ofa commutation of the oaths, and to propose a
Bill, drawn up with such scrupulous attention to
the ideas of the noble Lord on the Woolsack,
that every man in office to whom it was shewn
approved of it, and declared they could see no
good reason why it should not pass into a law.
. ^' Still, however, did this great man's opposi
tion to us continue, assuming various hues, so
• that, when to one friend he would seem to have
relented, and would express himself ' almost per-
^ suaded that our requests were reasonable,' in
conference with another he would recur to aU
his former objections, and be as stiff and inflexi
ble as he had ever been. This, Gentlemen, I
trust, is abundantly evident from the documents
now before you,
" And it is a circumstance, to which I wish
you particularly to £|,ttend, affording, as it does,
proof positive, that it was in vain for your Com
mittee to think of gaining over such a man as
Lord Chancellor Thurlow, by length of time and

1792, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 249
repeated applications ; for the longer our busi
ness remained in suspense, the more opportuni
ties were offered to our designing adversaries of
turning these delays to our prejudice, and, in
the same proportion that our difficulties multi
pUed, their confidence increased, gathering fresh
strength frora every defeat which we experienced.
Still it may be said, that the probability of Lord
Thurlow's retiring frora office was a circumstance
worthy of regard, and the nearer that this event
seemed to approach, we ought to have the more
patiently waited for it. But, be it observed, our
Bill had been moved, and the merits of it fully-
discussed before there was a probabUity of the
Chancellor's resignation. His objections had all
been heard, his alterations, as well as those sug
gested by Lord Grenville, had been all proposed,
nay had been all agreed to, and the Bill wanted
nothing but a third reading, a matter of mere
form. To have abandoned it at that time, (in
expectation of an event, which, though it did
speedily ensue, was not to have been depended
on,) after Administration itself may be said to have
bestowed so much pains upon it, would confess
edly have been a very rash and imprudjent step,
nothing shoift of trifling with the supreme tri
bunal of our country. Such levity and fickleness
every other consideration apart, would have dis
gusted our friends, and, tp a certainty, encouraged
our enemies. Thus, on the one side, the risk was
imminent, on the other, the advantage to be gain?

250 ANNALS OF 1792.
ed, doubtful ; but had no doubt attended it, it
was neither of magnitude, nor of importance suf
ficient to have justified our withdrawing the Bill,
and delaying its enactment to a more convenient
season. Besides, I may appeal to the greater por
tion pf the members of this very Convention,
whether it has not been the general and unchang
ed language of the whole body of Scottish Epis
copal Clergy, from the moraent they were aware
of opposition to the terms of relief which the first
Bill held out, that if the Laity of our Communion
were exempted frora pains and penalties, and left
free to attend on our ministrations without dis
qualification of any sort, we would, one and all he
satisfied, and trust, as we have hitherto done, to
the mildness of the executive government for dis
countenancing aU attempts to turn the existing
laws against us.
" Now, by the present Act, short as it comes of
what at one period we were led to anticipate, the
Laity are not only fully relieved, fully empower
ed to give the wished for continuance to, and at
tendance on our ministrations ; but the Clergy
themselves are placed in a far more eligible situa
tion. R^usal to take the oaths by the statutes
complained of, was for the first offence to be pun
ished with 6ix months imprisonment ; for the se
cond, banishment or imprisonraent for life. By
the present statute, a fine of L.20 is imposed for
the first offence, and for the second the Clergy
man shall be declared incapable pf officiating for

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. S5l
the space of three years. In regard to these penj
alties, therefore, we are literally brought back to
the same situation in which Queen Anne's to
leration would have placed us, had np subsequent
Acts been passed against us ; and it has been con
tended that we bad no right to expect any great
er indulgence. But there is a clause in the new
Act, to which the Act of Queen Anne has not
even an allusion, the clause which enforces our
subscription of the Thirty-nine Articles of the
Church of England. The fact is, the Articles of
the English Church seem to have been consider
ed by the British Senate as that confessional of
Christian dofctrine, which, being best entitled to
establishment in England, is most ' fit to be to-
* lerated' in Scotland ; and we having professed
ourselves in comraunion with the Church of Eng
land, there really appears to me no hardship in
our Clergy being required, as the law directs, to
acknowledge, that the Articles of that Church
• are agreeable to the word of God ;' and all the
inconvenience or apparent impropriety which
some raay be disposed to ascribe to the Ecclesias
tical anoraaly of one Church being required,
whether her Clergy will or not, to subscribe
the Articles of another, may be prevented by the
Episcopal Church in Scotland, (having at present
no Confessional but what the Creeds in the Book
of Comraon Prayer contain,) adopting the Arti
cles of the Church of England in like manner
with the Liturgy of that Church as her own, and

252 ANNALS OF 1792.
requiring all future candidates for holy orders
as such, ex animo, to subscribe thera. This is a
matter, which, as it deserves serious consideration, -
shall, I trust, in no long tirae receive it, inasmuch
as in these days of endless innovation, the Bish
ops and Clergy of this Church must see the ne
cessity of ' contending earnestly,' and of provid
ing wisely, for the soleran profession of that faith
once delivered to the saints, and which unless we
' hold fast without wavering,' aU the freedom we
can enjoy- wiU be of little consequence either to
our comfort here or happiness hereafter. Acts
of Parliament raay exalt or they may depress us
in the opinion of the world, according to the
fashion of the times, or according to the light in
which religion is viewed through the medium of
worldly politics. But, like its great original, the
' truth as it is in Jesus' admits of * no variable-
' ness, neither shadow of turning ;' it is the ' same
' yesterday, to-day, and for ever ;' the faith of-
Christ being that impregnable Rock on which his
Church is so firmly founded as to defy the gates
of heU, and aU the batteries which sin and Satan
can raise against it.
" WhUe we ' hold faith and a good conscience,'.
while our determination is never to quit these
weapons of our heavenly warfare, we need be
in no fear of fines and forfeitures, or any worldly
loss that can befal us. To comply with the laws
pf our beloved country, as far as we conscientious
ly can, wiU be aUke our duty and our pride ; and

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 253
even where we cannot yield an active, it wiU be,
I doubt not, our boast to yield a passive obe
dience. These are the principles by which, through
evil report and good report, we have hitherto been
distinguished ; and in a calm and steady adher
ence to these principles, let us be prepared sub
missively to meet the enactments of that law,
which, being entitled * An Act for granting reUef
• to Pastors and Ministers ofthe Episcopal Cora-
' munion in Scotland' can never be meant to ag
grieve them.
The time will surely come when oaths of ab
juration shall be wiped from the statute book,
and when we shall be enabled to shew that our
principles, so far frora leading us to infringe the
law, are its best security and defence. In the
mean time, should any person be found so worth
less as to act the part of an officious informer,
and should ' deliver us to the Judge, and the
* Judge to the Officer,' we raay then, with gpod
reason coraplain of legal oppression, and, on an
hurable representation ofthe oppression, hope to
obtain frora the lenity and wisdom of the British
Government the wished for redress. Nay, 'if
' rendering unto Caesar the things that are Cse
sar's, and unto God the things that are Gods,' the
favour of our earthly Sovereign and those in au
thority under him should be denied us, we have
still to trust in the mercy and protection of our
Heavenly Master, of hira who is King of kings,
and Lord of lords, — of Him, who is head over
all men and over aU things unto his Church, and

254 ANNALS OF 179S.
who has promised to make all things work to
gether for good to them who truly love and de
voutly serve him. -
" In justice to myself, and to those associated
with me in the management of our late Pariia-
mentary applications, I have only. Gentlemen,
farther to observe, that in every stage of them,
whatever our hands or our heads found necessary
to be done ' we did it with our might,' with all
the zeal, talent, and energy of which we were
possessed, and with a single eye to the interests
of our society. Should any member of this Con
vention wish for farther information on any ind^.^
vidual part ofthe procedure, he will find me both
ready and willing to comply as far as in ray power
with his wish ; since to unite the hearts and excite
the interest of both Clergy and Laity in promot
ing the peace and prosperity ofthe Scottish E-
piscopal Church, having been through life my
chief occupation, will be at death my chief, my
heart-cheering consolation."
Having finished the report and the above ad
dress, the Preses, Bishop Skinner, on motion to
that eflect, left the chair, when the Convention,
forming itself into a general Committee, (the
Very Rev, Patrick Rose, Dean of Brechin, Chair-*
man,) unanimously approved of what had been
done ; and having appointed a Sub-committee to
draw up a minute of thanks to the Committee of
Delegates and its Preses, the foUowing minute
was given in, and afterwards subscribed in due
form by the Chairman.

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 255
" 4-t Laurencekirk, 22d August 1792. — A Ge
neral Convention of the Scottish Episcopal Church
having, at the request of the Preses of the Com
mittee of Delegates, met at this place to hear Re
port of the proceedings pf said Committee ap
pointed by the Convention' of 1789, for obtaining
a Repeal of the Penal Laws, and having heard a
narrative of that Committee's prpceedings from
the day of its appointment to the obtaining of
the object intrusted to its care, resolve unani
mously, " Imo, That the Committee of Delegates has
conducted itself with great diligence and pru
dence in the arduous task of procuring a repeal
of those Penal Statutes by which the Scottish
Episcopal Church was long afflicted.
"2rfo, That no part of its conduct was more ju
dicious than the appointment of its Right Rever
end Preses to the office of Delegate, to superin
tend the business in London.
" 8tio, That the said Delegate exerted himself
to the utmost in discharge of his duty, and ob
tained the best BUl which, in the present cir
cumstances, could be expected ; and therefore the
Convention returns its best thanks to the Com
mittee in general, and to the Right Reverend
Preses, for the rectitude of their conduct in that
important trust committed to them ; and request
that their vote of thanks may be kept in the ar
chives of the Church as a testimony to after ages.
" Pat. Rose, Preses,"

256 ANNALS .OF 1792.
" The Convention, after a short adjoum'ment,
proceeded to enquire what steps -had been taken,
agreeably to the circular letter sent to the Clergy
to raise money for the purpose of defraying the
expence of the late Act of Parliament, when it
appeared that the contributions already made,
amounted to L.S05, Os. 9d. ; and a state ofthe ex--
pence being produced by Bishop Skinner, amount
ing to L.2 18, 12s,, the sarae was immediately
paid to hira. A balance of L.91 , 8s, 9d. remain
ing to be disposed of as the Convention should
determine,' it was, after some discussion, unani
mously agreed that the above sum should be de
posited in the hands of the Primus, to be by him
laid out at interest for behoof of the Widows and
Children of the Clergy ; but on this condition
only, *' that the Congregations, or at least a
majority of them which have not already con
tributed, shall yet consent to do so, otherwise
the foresaid balance shall be returned to the Con
gregations which have contributed in proportion
to the respective suras advanced by each. This
resolution the Clerk of Convention was enjoined
to comraunicate to those concerned, and after
receiving their sentimenjis, they empower him to
lay the same before the Primus, who is instruct
ed, in case the outstaufiing Congregations, or ma
jority of them, do not contribute, to divide the ba
lance iUi raanner above directed ; or in the event
of their contributing, jointiy with his Right Re
verend coUeagues to apply it to the purpose of

1792. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 257
forming and estabUshiqgafund, as aforesaid, and
such as to thera and the Clergy of their respec^
tive districts shall seem most likely to render
the fund permanent and efficient."
The balance was then deposited in Bishop
Skinner's hands, and the Convention broke up.
On the 20th of September 1792, the CoUege of
Bishops met at Stonehaven, in the county of Kin-
cardihe ; and, in consequence of a regular deed
of election, transmitted to the Primus by the
Dean of Dunkeld, they proceeded to the conse
cration of the Bishop elect, the Rev. Jonathan
Watson of Laurencekirk, and granted him letters
of collation to the charge of the diocese of Dun
keld,* vice the Right Rev. Charles Rose, Bishop
of Dunblane, who died in April 1791, and to, whom
no Successor in the see of Dunblane has beenjudg-
ed necessary, the Clergy of that Diocese being
attached either to Dunkeld or Edinburgh, as lo
cal situation required. The consecration being
over, the Bishops Skinner, Macfarlane, Aber
nethy Drummond, Strachan, arid Watson, form
ed themselves into an Episcopal Synod, when,
* It does not appear from the account of consecrations giv
en in Skinner's Eccles. History, that the sees of Dunkeld and
Dunblane were really distinct sees from the death of Bishops
Gillan and Rattray; foi- (p. 654) it is said Bishop Alexander
was consecrated " to supply the vacancy," on Bishop Rattray's
death, in the see of Dunkeld ; whereas, in the AppendiXj (p.
696.) Bishop Charles Rose is said to have been appointed Bish
op of Dunblane in room of Bishdp Alexander. '
R

258 ANNALS OF 1792.
taking into their consideration the propriety of
addressing the King on the late Proclamation,*
and the Priraus having produced and read the
form of an address, it was unanimously approved
of; and both the address and a letter to Mr Sec
retary Dundas were signed by all thp Bishops,
and transmitted by next day's post to Lopdon.
Before this Synod was dissolved. Bishop Skin
ner submitted to the consideration of his Right
R,everend CoUeagues, the propriety of interest
ing the Clergy of their respective dioceses in se
veral measures which the Synod had agreed upon
as matters of paramount importanpe to , the
progressive prosperity of the Church, and the
success of their ministry. But, as these mea
sures, ultimately led to the subscription of the
Thirty-nine Articles of religion of the English
Church in the year 1804, and to the new code
of Canons enacted in the year 1811, it is unne
cessary, the Annalist conceives, to swell his vo
lume by the discussion of them here.
He therefore proceeds to the very satisfactory
reply from Mr Secretary Dundas, with which, on
tbe 2d of October 1792, Bishop Skinner was hon
oured ; for after expressing the " great satisfac
tion he had in informing the Bishops in Scotland
that his Majesty was pleased to receive their adr
dress in th^ most gracious manner, the writer
adds : —
¦» Proclamation for the preventing of tumultuous meeting?
and seditious writings, issued May 21. 1792.

1793. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 259
•^ I feel particularly flattered that any part of
my conduct with regard to your concerns has
been satisfactory to you. I can, with great troth,
assure you, that no one is more sensible of the
proofs of loyalty to the King, and attachment to
the constitution, and good order of the country,
which ^^[aVe been shewn by that respectable body
the Bishops and Clergy of the Scottish Episcopal
Church. I am," &c. " Henry Dundas."
The Diocesan Synod of Aberdeen having met
by appointment of the Bishop on the 7th of No
vember 1792, the attention ofthe Clergy was di
rected to the new Act of Pariiament, as their Dio
cesan wished them to come to sorae resolution
on the subject, which might be entered in their
minutes, and communicated to the other districts
of the ChurPh. Their resolution was as foUows :
" At a Diocesan Synod, holden at Aberdeen on
the 7th of November 1792, the Bishop and^Clergy
of this Diocese, finding, that on taking the Act
of Parliament lately passed for ^ the relief of this
Church into consideration, they cannot, consis
tently with the pi'inciples which they, have ever
espoused, take and subscribe all the oaths requir
ed by that Act, by which means they are pre
cluded from an opportunity of giving their pub
lic assent tp the truth of the Thirty-ninp Arti
cles of religion received in the Church pf Eng
land, and which, from their brotherly affection to

260 ANNALS OF-^ 1792.
that Church .they are much inclined to give, they
think themselves called upon to declare, in this
Synodical manner, that they wUI, on all proper
occasions, testify to the world in general, and to
the members of this Church in particular, that
though various opinions may be, and always have
been entertained in the interpretation of some of
thosee Articles, yet they consider the doctrines
proposed in the same to be agreeable to the word
of God*."
With a view to the measures which the Bish
ops in Synod had agreed upon, as of paramount
interest to the cause of Scottish Episcopacy, the
Bishop of Aberdeen, after submitting then> to his
Glefgy, and recommending them as fit objects of
immediate study, " hoped that they would com
municate to hira in writing whatever thoughts
might occur to them, regarding ' the outward
' profession ofthe faith in this Church, the cele-
• bration of pUbfic worship, the exercise of disci-
' pline, the catechetical instruction of youth, and
• the performing the various occasional offices of
• religion,' so that aU things might be done, not on
ly ' decently and in order,'' but with as much sim
plicity of manner and uniformity of practice as
possible." After this the Clergy having request-
* Tenderly alive, as Mr Skinner of Longside ever shewed
himself, to the peace ofthe Church and the unanimity of her
Clergy, and being unable at that inclement season to attend
this Synod, he addressed his brethren of the Diocese of Aber-
deen, in the Latin verses, which the reader will find in the
Appendix, No. L

1793, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 26l
ed their Ordinary to make the proper acknow
ledgment to the Society for promoting Chris
tian Knowledge in London, for their late hand
some donation of Books of Comraon Prayer, the
Synod was, in due forra, dissolved.
1793.] It was'at this time remarked, as a singular
coincidence, that the French revolution should
have burst forth one hundred years exactly from
the date of the revolution which, in 1688, took
place in Great Britain. And that, at the very
period, when Frenchmen were ready to have,
once inore, embroiled this happy land in civil
war, it should have so happened that the last re
maining branch ofthe house of Stuart, who could
dispute the succession of the reigning: family,
should have been most providentially removed
by death, and thus the 'whole British nation left
to obey the dictates of conscience, and, with one
heart and one soul, vigorously to repel the as
saults of every foreign foe. From the moment
that the account of the demise of Charles Ed
ward, better known by the title of the young Pre
tender, reached Scotland, from that moraent, as
bas been already shewn, Jacobitism became like
a dead man, out of mind; every tongue was eager
to swear fealty and allegiance to the House of
Brunswick, and every arm to protect and defend
the Constitution of Great Britain, as by law esta
blished. With a foresight, for which the iUustrious mini-

262 ANNALS or 1793.
ster ofthe Crown, the Right Hon. WUliam Pitt,
was, happUy for this country, famed, ParUament
was Palled together at an earlier period than usu
al after the vacation in summer 1792, when mea
sures being taken for putting the kingdom into a
state of defence, the French Convention thought
proper to consider these measures as indications
of hostility towards them, and, in the beginning
of 1793, declared war against Britain. In con
sequence of this alarming step, the design of
which was completely developed in the cor res*
pondence then carrying on between the revolu
tionary demoniacs of France, and certain socie
ties of deluded individuals, lately affiUated in dif
ferent parts of this kingdom, the friends of the
altar and the throne, all who " feared God and
honoured the king," sprung forward with public
testimonies of thpir deep-rooted attachnient to
both, and of their innate abhorrence of the level
ling principles now so artfully disseminated. A-
mong these lovers of order, not " of confusion and
every evil work," the Bishops and Clergy of the
Episcopal Comraunion in Scotland quickly ap
peared. Declarations of loyalty were published
-by the Dioceses of Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Ross
and Moray, Dunkeld, Dunblane, and Fife, aU
vying with each other in expressions of hones^r
indignation at the conduct of France, and of their
determination to resist and oppose her contamin
ating principles to the utmost of their power.
The declaration ofthe Bishop and Clergy ofthe

1793. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 263
Diocese of Aberdeen, may be taken as a speci
men of the matter and manner of the rest.

*' Declaration of the Bishop and Clergy ofthe
Scottish Episcopal Church, within the
Diocese of Aberdeen.
" The Bishop and Scottish Episcopal Clergy of
the Diocese of Aberdeen, duly sensible of the
blessings which they enjoy under the mild and
equitable Government of this country^ think it
their duty, at the present juncture, to testify in
the most public manner their grateful and invio
lable attachment to the King and Constitution of
Great Britain ; a king, whose care and Jiap-
piness it has ever been to govern agreeably to the
laws, and a constitution which has stood the test
of ages, and is admirably calculated for securing
to his Majesty's subjects all that is desirable of
civil and religious liberty.
" Impressed with these sentiments, and consi
dering it as an obligation arising from their pro
fessional character, as well as from the regard
which they owe to the welfare of their country,
the Bishop and Clergy above mentioned will make
it their constant study to cpunteract the insidious
operation of all seditious and inflammatory publi
cations, tending to alienate the affections of the
people from the Government by which they are
so equally protected, and to make them unhappy
and discontented with their situation. Justly a-.

264* ANNALS OF 1793.
larmed at the dissemination of principles which
have such a dangerous tendency, they wiU never
cease to inculcate on those who attend their mi
nistrations, the genuine doctrines of that pure
^nd unde^led reUgion which teachpth men * to
' render unto all their dups;'— • fo remember that
• rulers are not a terror to good works but to the
evil ;'|and, therefore, that it is as much the interest
as it is the duty of Christians to • honour and obey
' the King, and all that are in authority under
' him,' " And whereas his Majesty has been gracious.
ly pleased, by his royal proclamation, and for cer
tain wise and pious purposes therein mentioned,
to appoint a public fast to be observed, through
out Scotland, on Thursday the 18th of April next
ensuing, the Bishop, with the approbation of his
Clergy, thinks it incurabent on him to recom
mend a Suitable observance of this religious ap
pointment to the several Congregations within the
Diocese ; most earnestly exhorting and request
ing them to assemble themselves devoutly and
reverently on that day, for the public worship of
the Almighty God ; for deprecating, in the most
fervent manner, the calamities which the sins of
this nation deserve, and humbly iraploring his
rnerciful protection .of the British Empire from
the principles as well as from the power of that
deluded people, with whom this country is now
engaged in a just and necessary war,
?' John Skinner, Bishop."
" Aberdeen, March 25. 1793."

1793. SCOTTISH episcopacy. 265
' Nor did these declarations of the Bishops and
Clergy, combined wjtb pulpit addresses of the
most zealous description, fail to produce the
desired effect, on this as well as on every subse
quent occasion. In fact, than Jacobite and Jaco
bin, no terms can possibly convey meanings more
heterogeneous. Hence the long suspected Scot
tish Episcopalian, confirmed in his professions of
well merited fidelity and regard to the Brunswick
line, by the same undeviating zeal for the legiti
mate succession of the throne, as for that of the
priesthood, was never, during the arduous and
long protracted contest, found in one instance
guilty of sedition, or misderaeanour of any sort,
or even accused of such malepractices. On the
contraiy, the forraer adherents of the house of
Stuart, nicknaraed Nonjurors, uniforraly Swelled
the ranks of every loyal association throughout
the kingdom.
Desirable, however, as was the promotion of so
cial and political union in our, at that time, dis
tracted country, eeclessiastical unity and concord
was the measure which the Scottish Episcopate had
most at heart. The thoughts of the Priraus may
be said to have been wholly bent towards healing
the unseemly schism which political expediency
had ceased to render justifiable in-the sight of
men, and which, in God's sight could never,
Bishop Skinner thought, be justified.
The great object was to get the English ordained
Clergy in the metropolis of Scotland, and their

266 ANNALS OP 1793.
Congregations, to set an example of sound church
principles to those in the other towns and dis
tricts of Scotland, the whole body of such Clergy
amounting then in number to about a hjtlf of the
regular Scottish Episcopal Clergy.
It naturally occurred to Bishop Skinner, that,
as objections might yet be started to the mea
sure, by reason of the non-compliance of him
self and brethren with the Uteral enactments of
the Legislature, so far as concerned the state
oaths, a door should be opened by the venerable
Bishop Abernethy Drummond's resignation of
the Diocese of Edinburgh, into the hands of some
zealous and well affected Clergyman of the Eng
lish Church, who might be prevaUed on to come
to Scotland, and, being there invesited with tbe.
Episcopal character, might take charge of the
Edinburgh Diocese. His colleagues, together
with the Clergy of Scottish ordination in the
metropolis, approving highly of the measure,
and no less of the exceUent individual whom
the Priraus had in view, a correspondence
was immediately opened on the interesting sub
ject. Bishop Abemethy Drummond, with a
a zeal and humbleness of mind, which would have
done honour to any Prelate of any age, assured
Bishop Skinner, in a letter, dated March 13th,
1793, that he " most cheerfully adopted the plan
which he and Bishop Watson proposed, and would
immediately resign in favour of the worthy Vicar
of Epsom, if he should be so good as accept the

1793, ¦ SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 26?

J

see of Edinburgh." And the worthy Vicar hira-
self, after a visit to Edinburgh, and a reception
there, which, to use his own words, " was highly
flattering and favourable," told the Priraus
also, " As for myself, God is ray witness, I have
much at heart the furtherance of his glory, and
the welfare of his Church. If these are promo
ted, it is very iraraaterial whether it be by rae or
not, I can have no worldly interest in view,
wherefore do I request and charge you to suffer
no undue partiality for me, however flattering
and grateful that partiality raay in other respects
be to rae, to influence your judgraent. The gra.
tifying of such feelings neither is, nor ought to
be, beneath our notice ; but, in the present in
stance, much higher considerations demand our
attention, " I add only, that if Providence sees fit to send
me on this great errand, it shall be the business
of my life to prqy for the grace of God to ena
ble me to do my duty in so peculiarly arduous a
station. With the warmest sentiments of piety
and affection, I earnestly recomraend his Church,
and his Ministers in your portion of it, to his pro
tection and blessing.* And I remain," &c.
* The reader has already been introduced to this venerable
and veneratedname. More ample notice of it will be taken
when the Annalist shall have to record his removal from this
world and its_ vanities. In tlie mean time, >to shew that Mr
Boucher was a maji who was well fitted for the situation in
tended for him in Scotland, he was not only at one time thought

268 ANNALS OF 1793.
Seldom, however, do political and ecclesiasti
cal expediency unite interests, or concur in the
same design ; and so it happened here. " Do the
heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain
thing?" instantlydo consequences ensue "against
the Lord, and against his anointed ;" in other
words, religion suffers. ThuS, an alarm being
spread, that " the scheme in agitation was to in
troduce Bishops into Scotland with the sanction
of Governraent, and on such legal footing as
to entitle them to] some legal jurisdiction," 'Mr
Boucher would no longer permit the measure to
be proceeded in. And as the Vestry of the Cow-
gate Chapel in Edinburgh had shewn a deep and
laudable interest in the success of the measure,
until the above absurd, alarm had gone abroad, it
was finally abandoned, as will appear from

LETTER XXIX,
BISHOP SKINNEB TO SIR WILLIAM FORBES, BART.
" That the proposal of bringing Mr Boucher
to Edinburgh, as the instrument of uniting the
two orders of EpiscopaUans, who have been so
long kept asunder, should have given any offence,
or cause of alarm, can be accounted for in no
\,of for the Bishoprick of Nova Scotia, to which Dr Inglis was
appointed, but the Archbishop was pressed hard to obtain hira
for Canada. '

1793. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 269
other way than by supposing that the whole af
fair must have been grossly misrepresented. The
introduction of Bishops into Scotland, with any
legal claim to temporal jurisdiction, God knows,
was as far from the object in view, as it is from my
view to claim a right to the revenues of the Bish
oprick of Aberdeen, or to the jurisdiction attach
ed to those revenues ; nothing more being intend
ed than to unite the Episcopalians in Edinburgh
under one Bishop, who was in all respects to be
on the sarae footing, as you know, with his bre
thren in Scotland, deriving his spiritual authori
ty frora the sarae source, and exercising it in the
same limited manner as they now do, over those
who choose to acknowledge it, and over those
only. I have perused, with great attention, your
letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and can
not but admire the very candid and proper man
ner in which you stated to his Grace the situa
tion of those of the Episcopal persuasion in this
country. The very good and favourable terms
in which you have had the goodness to mention
the Scottish Bishops/deserve ray particular notice,
and cannot fail to make a deep and lasting im
pression on our minds. May our heavenly Master
pour down his richest blessings on you and yours,
and enable us, his unworthy servants, to act up to
the character which you have been pleased to
give of us. The cause which we have all .so much
at heart is now in such ,good hands, and wiU, we
doubt not, on your part be so properly attended

S70 ANNALS OF 1795.
to, that we have only to wish and pray for suc-
Pess to your laudable endeavours, whenever the
tirae shall come for exerting them, without incur
ring any such danger as is now apprehended.
But when that happy period wUl arrive is best
known to him who knoweth all things, and has
not only times and seasons, but the hearts of men,
in his bands. The spirit of seditious disaffection,
whicb a short time ago threatened to break out
into acts of open violence, has received that sea
sonable and salutary check, which was the ear
nest wish of every friend to social Order and good
government. The clamours of the unthinking
crowd are at present drowned in the noise of war,
and all the political theories of Our reformers
haVe given way to the more important considera
tions of our national danger. How far the re
turn of peace may operate on the minds Of the
discontented, and set thera once more agog in
search of pretended grievances, it is not easy for
human fbresight to conjecture. Fain would I
hope, that the laudable end in view, by the pro-
ptTsed union in Edinburgh, would never again be
so far misrepresented and mistaken, as to give the
least cause of offence, or ground of alarm, to any
person of common sense, whether belonging to the
Establishment or to the most zealous Sectaries.
I shall long to hear of any circumstance that may
prove favourable to the cause of that happy un
ion, while I fervently pray, that the God of unity
and peace may bless and prober your good de-

1793. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 271
signs, and finally crown them with that success
which may tend to his glory and the happiness of
aU concerned."
In the year 1793, a most beneficial act having
passed the British Legislature for the encourage
ment of Friendly Societies, it immediately oc
curred to the Bishop and Clergy ofthe Diocese of
Aberdeen, that application ought to be made to
have the benefits of that Act extended to the
Scottish Episcopal Clergy, their Widows and Or
phans, and indigent members; the Convention
of 1792, having sanctioned the formation ofa
permanent and efficient fund for their relief, and
applied the balance of money raised for discharg
ing the expence ofthe Act of Repeal ofthe Pe
nal Statutes, to the establishraent of such a fund.
For this purpose, the Reverend Roger Aitkin;
Clerk to the Diocese, was, at the auturanal Sy
nod of 1793, erapowered by the Bishpp and his
brethren of the Diocese to subrait the matter to
the other Bishops and Clergy throughout the
Church, who with one or two exceptions, having
cordially approved ofthe measure, Mr Aitkin was
further instructed to lose no time in drawing up
the necessary Articles and Rules, and circulat
ing them for the correction and approbation of
those who were to join the " Scottish Episcopal
Friendly Society." A draught of Articles or
Rules was prepared accordingly, and having been
printed, it was duly forwarded to all concerned.

273 ANNALS OF 17^3.
"with a, notification from Bishop Skinner, as Pri
mus, that a general meeting of such Bishops and
Clergy as had a desire to become members of
the Society, would be holden at Aberdeen, on
the 19th of November 1793, for the purpose of
sanctioning the said Articles in terms of law.
The meeting took place on the day appointed,
when, having unanimously formed themselves in
to a Friendly iSociety in terms ofthe Act of Par
liament, and having deliberated on the Articles
or Rules drawn Hip for its government, these rules,
after having undergone sorae slight alterations,
were ordered to be fairly written Out, and being
signed by the Preses and Clerk, to be bythem
presented to his Majesty's Justices of the Peace
for the County of Aberdeen, for confirmation as
the law directs. Being confirmed accordingly on
the l6th of November 1793, the Society has since
that period continued to fl-ourish beyond what
the most sanguine of its institutors could have
anticipated. From the sum of L.IO annuaUy to
the widows of deceased members, and tbe sum
.i^f L,100 to the orphan family, (if no widow ex
isted,) the annuity of each widow is now increas
ed to L.20, and the sum given to an orphan fa-
• mily L.200, notwithstanding that the individ
ual merabers of the Society have nev^r been as
sessed in a sum above L,2 yearly, and that only
for the space of ten years from their admission.
The liberality of Lay contributions, at the time
of commencement, and the admirable manage-

1794. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 273
ment under which the Scottish Episcopal Friendly
Society has been for twenty-four years conducted,
are gratefully acknowledged as the causes which
have led to this beneficial result.
1794.] The Brief drawn up by Bishop Skinner,
and subscribed by the College of Bishops, and
which, in terms of an order to that effect, was read
by the Clergy severally frora their pulpits, on the
fourth or fifth Sunday in Lent, 1794, will shew
the reader of these Annals the mode which was
adopted for establishing the funds of the Society,
the stock of which, now available to all the pur
poses of it, amounts to nearly L.7OOO.
" A Brief from the Bishops ofthe Scotch Epis
copal Church, to be read by the Clergy of
that Church, in their several Congregations,
on the 4ith or 5th Sunday in Lent.
" When the adorable Redeemer of mankind
appeared upon earth, as God manifest in the flesh,
he was graciously pleased to found and estabUsh
a Church, or society of faithful people, which was
tp be supported and governed by Such means and
instruments as he had appointed for that purpose.
Great and manifold are the blessings which the
Christian world derives from this divine iiistitu- ,
tion. Wonderful are the methods by which it
has been preserved amidst the fall of empires, and
maintained its ground under the various revolu-
s

27^ annals of 1794.
tions of the kingdoms of this world. Sometimes,
upheld by the arm of flesh, it has gloried in the
support of a civil establishment, and been able to
allure men into its service, by holding out tempo
ral emoluments as the immediate reward of their
labours. Butoften has it experienced a different
fate ; and, divested of all worldly honours, and
human appendages, been confined to the simple
exercise of its spiritual powers, and obUged to de
pend, for the subsistence of its ministers, on the
voluntary donations of those who adhered to their
ministrations. To such a state of poverty and
dependance was the national Church of this coun
try reduced by that change of government which
took plafce in this kingdom towards the close of
the last century. The part which tbe Bishops
and Clergy of the Church of Scotland acted on
that memorable occasipn is weU known, and the
effects of it were long and severely felt. The
distressed situation of the ejected Clergy, many
of whom were driven to the utmost extremity of
want, could not faU to excite the compassion of
well-disposed Christians, especially of those who
were inclined to consider thera as suffering for
the sake of a good conscience. Araong such per
sons applications for their relief were proposed,
and carried on with considerable success. Pub
lic contributions were made in various places, and
donations received from private hands, forthe
support of the suffering Clergy of the Episcopal
Church of Scotiand. Nor was the aid of this

1794. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. §7^
charity confined solely to those who had been de
prived of their livings by the abolition of Episco
pacy ; it was with equal propriety extended not
only tb their widows and families, but also to their
successors in office, many of whom, from a varie
ty of causes, were found to stand in equal need
of this charitable assistance. A conscientious
regard for that form of eeclessiastical government,
whichthey believed to be of Apostolic institution,
produced a succession of respectable candidates
for the holy ministry ; but the zeal and abUities,
wherewith they discharged the duties of their sa
cred function, were not always sufficient to pro
cure such a decent subsistence as is necessary to
the support of the clerical character. It was to
supply this want, as well as to hold out some
small but permanent relief to the widows and
orphans of such ofthe Clergy as died in indigent
circumstances, that the plan of a charitable fund
was first suggested ; and what part of the mo
nies collected for that purpose could be spar
ed from immediate distribution, was put into the
hands of such persons as were thought most pro
per to be intrusted with the management of it.
Under their administration, this fund continued
to be feebly supported by a few occasional dona
tions, and small but regular collections in the city
of Edinburgh, which is the only place that has
contributed to it for many years past. But yield
ing to the necessity of the times, and influenced
by various motives, the persons to whora the care

276 ANNALS* OF 1794.
of it was committed, have allowed it to be almost
totally exhausted ; and all that remains of it can
afford but a scanty provision to the widows of
those who were formerly benefited by it. The
poorer Clergy are already deprived of its assistance,
and no future widows or orphans can expect any
relief from it. What was provided by the bounty
of former benefactors is now brought to an end ;
and were no other spring of beneficence to be
^ opened, sparingly would the waters of worldly
comfort be dispensed to the. servants of religion
in that part of the Christian Church to which we
belong. But the same Lord * who gave the word,
* and sent the preachers' who were to publish it;
He also is * a Father of the fatherless, and defend-
' eth the cayse of the widows.' Their ' cruise of
' oil, supplied as it has hitherto been, he will not
' suffer to fail, nor allow their barrel of meal to
'waste,' till his providence point out some other
mode of relief. Trusting to the continuance of
his divine protection, and relying on that care
and kindness of their heavenly Master whichthey
have so long experienced, the Bishops and Cler
gy of that small portion which yet remains of the
Episcopal Church of Scotland, have digpsted a
Schenie for the support of that Church, and the
decent subsistence of its Clergy, and their fami
lies, which they humbly subrait to the considera
tion of those who continue stedfast in its com
munion. WiUing to take the benefit of a law,
which has been lately enacted for the encour-

1794. scoTTispi EPiscopAcy. 277
agement of Friendly Societies, they have formed
themselves into one of these, and adopted such
regulations for raising and managing a charitable
fund, as have received that civil sanction which
the law prescribes, and will entitle them to its
protectiqn. By these regulations they have a-
greed, that every member of this Society shall
contribute annually the sum of Forty Shillings,
besides sorae small casual additions from those
whpse families are likely to be benefited by the
-• fund. Even these contributions, regularly paid,
and prudently managed, would no doubt, in pro
cess of time, produce such a stock as would be
fuUy adequate to the object of this charitable in
stitution. But it is obvious that a long, very
long period of years would be necessary for that
purpose ; and, in the mean time, the claims of
many destitute widows and helpless families might
become very urgent, and demand from the feel
ings, if not from the equity of the Society, that
immediate relief, which, if too early, and too li
berally dispensed, would soon reduce its funds to
nothing, and leave the whole work to be begun
anew. This was a discouraging prospect, and
admitted of no other alternative, but either to
give up the attempt as desperate, or to think of
sorae other expedient, whereby it might be pos
sible to avoid the danger that threatened so lau
dable an undertaking. It was suggested, that the
lay members of the Spottish Episcopal Church
had never shown themselves averse from any

278 ANNALS OF 1794.
scheme that was likely to do credit to the charac
ter, and promote the increase of that Church.
Many of them had embraced and adhered to her
communion in the most trying times, and when
their worldly interest was in Hanger of being af
fected by an avowal of their principles. They
had struggled with her through evil report and
good report, without being ashamed of her pover-
ty, or allured from her sacred services by the pros
pect of enjoying greater freedom, and making a
gain of godliness. To them, as her most natural
friends and supporters, who had stood by her in
the day of her greatest humiUation, and would
not now desert her when she seemed to rise a
little frora her forraer depression ; to them, it was
proposed, that application should be made, and to
them, do We, her ptesent governors and guardi
ans, -now address ourselves, with full confidence
in the purity of our own intentions, and in the
kind and compassionate disposition with which
iive trust you will receive this our application.
Though various considerations give us ground to
hope that you will take in good part what we are
now recomraending, yet you may be assured it is
with regret we find Purselves obliged to lay this
representation before you. We cannot but be
sensible of the many public burdens, which the
exigences of the state, and the calls of humanity,
as well as the support of religion, have laid upon
you. It is therefore with reluctance that we pro
pose what some raay consider as a needless addi-

1794. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 279
tion to these burdens. But a sense of the duty
which we owe to the station wherein Providence
has placed us, PorapeUs us to use whatever means
are most likely to promote the welfare, and for
ward the laudable purposes of the Society with
which we are connected. It is with this view
that we find ourselves caUed upon to propose an
annual collection from the several Congregations
of our Church, which, with the yearly cobtribu-
tions from the Clergy, wiU it is hoped, in a few
years, enable the Society to open their funds for
the relief of those who are the objects of this
charitable institution. The periods at which the
distributions will commence, and bear to be in
creased, without endangering the permanency of
the fund, are marked out by the regulations of
the Society, copies of which are in the hands of
our Clergy, and raay be seen by those who wiU
take the trouble to peruse thera. You may be
lieve, it is not intended that these annual collec
tions^ should be continued any longer than the
funds may appear to require their necessary assis
tance, — and till then, we trust, that the piety and
good sense of those to whom we now apply will
not wish them to be discontinued. In this con
fidence we have desired our Clergy to intiraate to
their several congregations, that this yearly col
lection is to be raade on the last Sunday in Lent,
or, in such Congregations as have not the benefit
of pubUc worship that day, on sorae other Sun
day or holiday as near it as possible, that so the

280 ANNALS OF 1794.
collections may all be given in, with the contri
butions from the Clergy, to the treasurer of thi6
Society before the first day of May every year,
*' Having now laid before you a short account
of the scheme which has been adopted for the
support of an Episcopal Church in this country, a
scheme suggested by prudence, sanctioned by re
ligion, ai}d which, we trust, will be favoured by
the blessing of Heaven, and the friendly aid of
all those who wish well to the cause of Episco-
pacy^in this part of the kingdom,— looking up to
you, our dearly beloved in Christ, - as its firmest
friends and most natural supporters, we have
only to add our fervent prayers to the throne of
grace, that the Almighty Author of every gpod
and perfect gift would inspire your hearts with a
just sense of his great and undeserved goodness,
and graciously accept of every small acknow
ledgment of it, which you are enabled to make.
We are far from presuming to determine what
may be the success pf this applic£^tioni or how
far your bounty ought to extend" on tbe present
occasion. Though we are wilUng to hope, that
other less necessary articles of expenditure may
be a little retrenched, and that amidst a variety
of such charitable demands, something may still
be spared for the laudable purpose which we are
now recommending, yet we wish no person's ge
nerosity to exceed his ability ; we would rather-
incline /to say, with the blessed Apostle of the
Gentiles, * Let every man give according as he

1794. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 281 I
' purposeth in his heart ; not grudgingly, or of ne-
' cessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver :' And
as ' he js able to make his grace abound towards
* you, that ye having sufficiency in all things, may
' abound to every good work,' so it shall be the
daily subject of our prayers, that ' He who mi-
'nistereth seed to the sower, and bread to the
* eater, may both minister bread for your food,
' multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits
• of your righteousness,' Thus shall the adminis
tration of this charitable service, as the same
Apostle describes it, not only ' supply the wants
of those' whom we have pointed out as the ob
jects of it, but be productive also of ' many
• thanksgivings to God, and supplications in your
* behalf,' whilst, by this proof of your Christian
liberality, they are excited to glorify God, * for
* your professed subjection unto the gospel of
• Christ,' and for your kind and beneficent atten
tion to the Widows, Orphans, and indigent mem
bers of the Scotch Episcopal Friendly Society.
May their petitions in your behalf be graciously
received at the throne of mercy, and procure
for you the blessings of that ' godliness, which
* has the promise of the life that now is, and of
• that which is_to come,' which will make you
happy in time, and crown you with joy to all
eternity, -—
John Skinner, Bishop of Aberdeen. ^^
Andrew Macfarlane, Bishop of Ross and Moray.
William Abernethy Drummond, Bishop of Edinburgh.
William Strachan, Bishop of Brechin.
Jonathan Watson, Bishop of Dunkeld.

•282 ANNALS OF 179,5.
1 795.] On the 29th of October 1 795, bis Ma
jesty, on his way to Westminster, to open the
Session of Parliament, being most grossly insult-
fid and abused by a daring and tumultuous mob,
the Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal Church
in Scotland, to mark their attachment to the sa
cred person of the British Monarch, as well as
their detestation of the seditious associations and
treasonable publications, to which this heinous
outrage was ascribed, transmitted an address to
tbe Throne, in whieh, after deprecating from the
heart " those wild licentious principles, which
are not more hostile to his Majesty's Crown and
dignity, than to the peace and prosperity of the
British empire," they conclude thus : " Con
vinced of the danger tb which our country is ex
posed, from the seditious combinations of evil-
minded persons, we rely on the wisdom ofyour
Majesty's Parliament for adopting such measures
as may tend to the safety of your Royal person,
and to the order and good government of your
kingdoms ; for promoting •which desirable ends,
as far as lies in our power, we shall continue, (as
we have hitherto done with effect,) to impress
upon the minds of those who adhere to our minis
try the purest principles of loyalty to your Ma
jesty, and submission to the laws." '
This address," the Right Hon, Henry Dundas
did the Episcopal Church in Scptland the honour
to present ; Bishop Skinner, assuring this intrepid
friend of his country,, of Jiis cwn, his coUeagues,

1796. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 283
and their Clergy's " earnest desire to promote,
as far as lies in their power, the salutary inten
tion of those wise and prudent measures which
Government is adopting for the better preserva
tion of his Majesty's person and authority, and
thereby securing more and more the happiness
of the kingdom."
1796.] In the year 1796. the Bishop of Ross
and Moray having strenuously urged the expe
diency of appointing a Bishop coadjutor to him
in his widely extended district, the Clergy of
that district did, with their Bishop's approbation,
duly elect the Reverend Alexander Jolly, at Fra-
serbui-gh, in the county and diocese of Aber
deen, as a fit person to fiU that important office.
For a variety of reasons. Bishop Skinner, as Pri
mus, thought it incumbent on him to dissent from
the expediency of this measure at the particular
time when it was submitted to hira for his sanc
tion and concurrence. To the learning, the piety,
and strictly clerical deportment ofthe coadjutor
elect, he bore ample testiraony ; but, as the suc
cession was then sufficiently strong, and as, in his
view of things, additional Clergyraen were raore
wanted in the Highlands of Scotland than the
aid of an additional and non-resident Bishop,
who, though, in raost respects, eminently quali
fied for the office, was confessedly ignorant ofthe
Gaelic language, the Primus refused to sanction
the choice of the Clergy of Ross and Moray, or

284 ANNALS OF 1800.
to give his concurrence to the present promotion
of a coadjutor to Bishop Macfarlane,
In the estimation of the other members of the
Episcopal College, the theological acquirements
and primitive manners ofthe Bishop-elect sufficed
to counterbalance the arguments adduced by
Bishop Skinner. Hence, Bishop Abernethy Drum
mond having been appointed to fix the day of
Consecration, and to preside in the Primus' stead,
Mr Jolly was, on the 24th day of June 1796, duly
invested with the Episcopal character, in Bishop
Strachan's Chapel, Dundee, by the Right Re
verend Bishops Macfarlane, Abernethy Drum-
mond,^^ and Strachan.
Men, like Bishop Skinner, whose opposition to
the measures of brethren in office priginate in a
sense of duty, without any selfish or sinister ob
jects, cherish no resentments. Tp his colleagues
individually, as well as collectively, the right hand
of fellowship was speedily extended ; and as no
raan experienced through Bishop Skinner's life
more of his brotherly regard than the present
Bishop of Moray *, so did no man more cordially
lament the loss sustained by himself and the
Church at large, in the Primus' sudden demise,
than that venerable Prelate.
1800.] His Majesty having, on the 15th of May
1800, attended Drury-Lane Theatre, a maniac of
* Bishop Jolly never officiated as a coadjutor. The Dio
ceses of Ross and Moray were, after his promotion, disjoined,
and Moray consigned to his Episcopal care.

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. S85
the name of Hadfield stood up, and deliberately
fired a pistol into the royal box, but providen
tially missed his mark. Addresses of congratu
lation, on an escape so grateful to the nation at
large, being transmitted by all public bodies
throughout the kingdom, the Bishops and Clergy
ofthe Scottish Episcopal Church dutifully em
braced the opportunity of testifying their unshak
en loyalty, and their determination to " perse
vere in impressing on the minds of those who ad
here to their ministry, a just sense of what they
in duty owe to the Prince whom God has set over
thera, and in gratitude to one of the best Sove
reigns, whom the King of kings has vouchsafed
to a highly favoured people."
1801 .3 In the year 1801, a little work issued
from the press, under the special patronage of
Bishop Skinner, and with the approbation of his
Right Reverend Colleagues, which had the effect
not only of edifying the Scottish Episcopalian
himself, but of raaking the doctrine and discipline
ofthe Church to which he belongs better under
stood, and consequently raore highly valued. It
is entitled, " A Layraan's Account of his Faith
andPractice, as a Member ofthe Episcopal Church
in Scotland, published with the approbation of
the Bishops of that Church ; to which are added
some Forms of Prayer, &c., with a Letter from the
Reverend Charles Daubeny to a Scottish Noble
man on the subject of Ecclesiastical Unity."

286 ANNALS OF 1801.
Hitherto it had been more than insinuated by
strangers, and, it is to be feared, believed by
sorae, not the least respectable raembers ofthe
Scottish Episcopal Communion itself, that the dis
tinguishing tenets of that Society were purely
political, according to its creed, " The stancher
Jacobite, the better Christian," The account
given by this sound and zealous Layman, of the
only faith and practice which merited the appro
bation of his Ecclesiastical superiors, speaks avery
different language. " With the doctrines ofthe
Church of England," says he, " as laid down in
her public Creeds, and in other parts of her sa
cred service, the principles of the Scottish Epis
copalians wiU be found exactly to correspond.'*
" It is not because the Scottish Establishment
is founded upon, and took its rise from a differ
ent system of politics from that which distinguish
ed the former establishment, the Episcopal Church,
from which our Clergy derive their orders; neither
is it only because the mode of worship, adopted
in consequence of that change, differs so widely
from all the venerable forms of antiquity, and is
so destitute of the fuUness, fitness, and extensive
energy of our liturgical service : But the princi
pal and most affecting cause of our maintaining a
separate communion from that, which in this part
of Britain has the law and the majority on its side;
is the unhappy breach it has made in the chain of
succession which leads up to the Apostles and to
Christ J and that woful ,4efect in the mission of

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 287
its ministers which, we fear, must affect the pu
rity of its worship, and the validity of its sacra
ments. For this reason, though otherwise well-
disposed to promote the peace of our country,
and ready to unite with the raembers of the esta
blishment in every measure recoraraended by go
vernment for securing the public safety, we hope
to be excused for continuing to differ from them
in matters of ecclesiastical polity, and for adher
ing to that pure and primitive Episcopacy, which
we believe to be of divine institution, and there
fore not to be annulled and abrogated, with re
gard to its spiritual effects, by any human laws.*"
* " Layman's Account,'' &c. 1st edit. p. 94, 95. A second
edition of this valuable little work being called for. Bishop
Skinner lived to carry it through the press ; and the Annalist
particularly recommends it to every father of a family, or guar
dian of youth, of the Episcopal persuasion in Scotland. It
may be had of the publishers, Brown and Company of Aber
deen, or of their friends in the trade. Nor can the author of
these pages omit noticing a work from Bishop Skinner's pen,
which though long out of print, (being published in the year
1786, ) was for several years the Bishop's text book in catechis
ing the youth of his congregation, viz. "A Course of Lectures
delivered on the six Sundays in Lent, to a Congregation of the
Episcopal Church in Scotland," &c. &c. To those who possess
the Work, it cannot fail to be grateful to peruse the following
testimonial in its favour, from a raan of such approved skill and
discernment as the late incomparable Bishop of Norwich, Dr
George Horne :  Canterlury, Aug. 2, 1786.
Dear Sir, — By favour of Mr Boucher I have received a co
py ofyour very valuable Lectures, for which be pleased to ac
cept my heartiest Uiauks. They are written with equal judg-

288 SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 1801.
It is doubtful whether any act of Bishop Skin
ner's official life afforded him more heartfelt gra
tification than the interest which he took in the
success of this little volume, and the unqualified
approbation which all into whose hands it fell be
stowed upon it,
~ From the little knowledge to be gleaned in'
England ofa church so subjugated and depressed
as, for a whole century, the Episcopal Church in
Scotland had been, it was a doubtful point whe
ther the religious principles of that Church were
" fit to be tolerated," at the passing of the BiU
of Relief, in the mind of the highest legal
authority. What then were Bishop Skinner's
feelings of joy, when, on the publication of
the " Account" of the Scottish Episcopalians
"Faith and Practice," (sanctioned as its title
page bears, by himself and the other merabers of
the Scottish Episcopate,) he received letters from
men whose names, could the Annalist take upon
him to publish them, would, at this moraent, be
found gracing the senate, the bar, and the pulpit,
ment and piety, in that plain and perspicuous style best adapted
to the subjec); and to the audience. I am much flattered by
hearing that any writings of mine have obtained^the approbation
of so learned, primitive, and venerable a set" of men as I have
reason to account the Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal
Church in Scotland to be. The present afflicted state o'f that
.Church has often of late engaged my thoughts; and I cannot
but hope that the time may not be far distant when, some poli
tical difficulties being renjoved out of the way, better and more
comfortable days will dawn upon it. I am yours, &c,
" Geo, Horne."

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 289
all acknowledging the extreme satisfaction which
the Scottish layman's production had afforded
them. ¦
" A book it is," says one letter, " which ought to
be in every one's hand, and therefore I much wish
it had but half its title, or rather that another edi
tion could be printed omitting that part of the
title and of the book which concerns only the
Scottish Church, I think it then would not only
sell, but do much good in England. I am great
ly pleased with it. What a rare layman 1"
" How highly do I prize," are the words of a-
nother letter from England, " the valuable pre
sent you have sent me ; valuable, not for its cost
liness, but for the sieasonable instruction it con
tains, for the clearness of the reasoning, and for
the satisfaction afforded on many deep and diffi
cult questions, at present, alas ! either generally
spoken against, or else neglected, as too insigni
ficant to deserve investigation. Much are all
sound Churchmen here indebted to your vene
rable body, for maintaining those primitive opi
nions, which too many in this country rather dis
countenance than encourage."
" You are pleased to speak of your venerable
comraunity as an humble part of the Church of
Christ. You want, indeed, the ' gorgeous appa-
* rei,' — ' the clothing of wrought gold,' but I am
fully satisfied that, in the internal purity, which
most exalts a church, if ' weighed against you
« in the balance, we should be found wanting.'

290 ANNALS OF 1801.
Whatever ' glory' of this kind may attain, to us,
it will be ' no longer glorious' when brought in
to comparison with you, by * reason of the glory
which expelleth.'
" These are sentiments which I have entertain
ed for many years, before I had the happiness of
being personally known to you ; and I cannot
help expressing my gratitude. Right Rev. Sir, to
you, in return for your grateful acknowledgments
of my friendly regard towards a Church which
rather reflects honour oh those who honour it,
than derives any thing from their estimation."
" I esteem myself greatly obliged to you," says
the inestimable WiUiam Stevens; Esq. * " for the
little tract transmitted me by the Wadhamist,"
(Bishop Skinner's son William, who completed
his education at Wadham College, Oxford, under
Mr Stevens's valuable patronage.) " I think it the
* When the learned Dr Douglas, late Bishop of Salisbury,
preached before the Society for Propagating the Gospel in Fo
reign Parts, a meeting which Mr Stevens constantly attended,
and of which in his latter years he was one of the auditors, when
the other Bishops were thanking his Lordship fbt his discourse,
Mr Stevens humbly, but politely, offered his tribute of thanks.
The Bishop expressed himself much gratified ; and, turning tb
the other Pifelates, said, " Here is a man who, though not a
Bishop, won\d have been thought worthy of that character in
the first and purest ages of the Church." And upon a similar
occasion Bishop Horsley, who was not given to flattery, said,
" Mr Stevens, a compliment from you upon such a subject is of
no inconsiderable value."— See Memoirs of Wijliam Stevens,
Esq. p. 21.

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 291
very neatest, prettiest thing I ever saw, and its
usefulness not confined to the Scottish Episcopal
Church. You sent a few copies to the Riving-
tons, in case of any Scotchman calling for it ; but
you should have sent some in case of any English
men, calling for it, whicn is likely to be the fact,
and indeed has been, for there are none of them
left ; and Mr Rivington desired me to mention to
you when I wrote, that he requested to have a
parcel of them as early as might be,"
When Bishop Skinner applied to the learned
author ofthe " Guide to the Church," Mr Arch
deacon Daubeny, for permission to annex his un
answerable letter to the late Earl of Kinnoul, (on
the subject of separate Episcopalian Chapels in
Scotland,) to the "Layman's Account," &c.
that stanch friend to the Church of England re
plied, that, as " nothing certainly afforded sa
tisfaction to his raind equal to the considera
tion of being thought worthy to promote, in
any degree, the cause of Christ's Church, wher
ever it may be situated, it would be^ a deser
tion of principle in hira to object to the accora-
plishment of Bishop Skinner's wishes on this sub
ject. At the same tirae," he adds, " you wUl
permit me to say, that I feel myself honoured
that my sentiments, relative to the present unhap
py schisra prevaUing among Episcopalians in
Scotland, should meet with so distinguished ap
probation," And when the little work had reach-

292 ANNALS OF 1801.
-ed his hand, the Archdeacon fails not to express
himself in language which may suffice the Anna
list, in the way of eulogium, and the reader in
the way of stimulus, if the Scottish layman's
" Account of his faith and practice, as a member
of the 'Episcopal Church," be not famiUar to him.
LETTER XXX.
THE REV C. DAUBENY TO BISHOP SKINNER.
Bath, Oct. 26, 1801.
*' I have to acknowledge the receipt ofyour pub
lication, which reached my hands two days since.
The Layman's Account of himself I have perus
ed with much satisfaction ; so much, that I did
not la;y it down , until I had completely finished it.
The picture which he has given of the Scottish
Episcopal Church is a primitive one, and worthy
to be copied after. I trust that it will make the
Scottish Church better known than it is at pre
sent; the more it is known the better. Your
publication, therefore, cannot be too widely cir
culated. "I hope the letter to the Earl of Kinnoul, which
you have honoured with a place in your little
valuable book*, wiU be read by our Bishops,
* This letter Bishop Skinner omitted in the 2d edition,
substituting the Canons of the Scottish Episcopal Church in

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 29S
and thafit will raake them think on what they can
do, with propriety, for a sister Church. With re
spect to the laity in Scotland, I flatter myself
they want only to be directed right on this sub
ject, to go right ; and if the separating clergy are
honest and conscientious men, and will take the
trouble to make themselves acquainted with the
constitution of the Church of which they profess
themselves to be ministers, they cannot long per-*
sistin schism.
" I pray God that, both for the sake of them
selves and their flocks, they may see this subject
in the important light in which it ought to be
seen, for the welfare of thp Church".
" What you will, I flatter myself, be glad to hear,
I have received a most grateful public testimony
of acknowledgment from the convocation" of the
Episcopal Church in Connecticut, in the narae of
the Bishop and Clergy, conveyed in a handsome
letter from the Rev. John Bowden, D.D. Princi
pal of the Episcopal Academy in that State, ex
pressing their full approbation of " the Guide to
the Church," and informing me that it is the set
tled determination of the Academy that it shall be
made a standard book for all the candidates for
holy orders. May the divine blessing attend it."
its stead. He wished, if possible, to have the schism qpm-
pletely healed ; but when out of 22 chapels in a state of sepa-
tion, 15 had united themselves, he thought.it expedient to
drop every sort of public ap^al, and leave to time to effect,
in its silent progress, what has withstood the 'force of argu
ment drawn from sources human and divine.

294i ANNALS OF 1801.
After a lapse pf nine years from the date of the
Episcopal union in Banff, the year 1801 produ
ced another in a country parish of Aberdeenshire,
the parish of Cruden, where the noble family of
Errol haye their seat, Slains castle.
On his marriage with Miss Carr of Etall, in,
Northumberland, the father ofthe present Earl
of Errol had been instrumental in settling an Eng
lish ordained Clergyman in the Episcopal Con
gregation of the parish in which he- resided ; but
not being able to reconcUe the whole people to
that measure, there still continued a" little flock"
in communion with the Scottish Episcopal Church.
It chanced, however, that the Clergyman of Scot
tish ordination received, in the year 1801, an ap
pointment to another charge, on which the good
people addressed the following artless account of
their situation to the noble Lord ofthe manor.

LETTER XXXI.
THE SCOTTISH EPISCOPALIANS IN CRUDEN TO THE
EARL OF ERROL.
" My Lord,
" The Reverend John Gleig, present Pastor
of 'tlje Scottish Episcopal Congregation, Wood- ,
head, having accepted of a call to the Episcopal
Chapel at New Pitsligo, under the patronage of
the respectable Baronet, Sir William Forbes,

1801. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 205
proprietor ofthe village, thereby leaves his charge
in this parish vacant ; hence do we, for ourselves,
and in behalf of the remanent members of our
Congregation, presume to address your Lordship
in our present situation. The principle on whicb
we iidhere to the Scottish Episcopal Comraunion
is, that we conceive it to be the duty of an Epis
copal Congregation to live in subraission to a
Bishop, and in coraraunion with that very Bishop
within whose bounds such Congregation is si
tuated. . This is a principle which we hold to be
tbe bond of Christian unity, recognized by pri
mitive practice and universal usage, in .which,
moreover, we agree with the venerable Bishops
and other respectable dignitaries of the Churcb
of England, ^t this day ; nor do we perceive, be
sides this, any essential difference between us and
the other Episcopal Congregation in which the
Reverend Mr Stephen officiates as Pastor.
" The unblemished manners and Clergyman-
like behaviour of the last mentioned gentleraan,
obtain the esteem of all who know him ; and, on
our principles candidly stated above, we would
willingly unite ourselves to hira as our Pastor,
and render him all dutiful respect, submission,
and support. And such compliance on his part is
not without a precedent ; a respectable Congre
gation in the town of Banff, having some year^
ago united themselves to the Scottish Episcopal
Church, with the sanction, and under the patron
age of the Earl of Fife, Lord Lieutenant ofthe

296 ANNALS OF 1801.
County of Banff, and other respectable gentle
men. " The respect which we entertain for your
Lordship, and the connection that has subsisted
betypeen many of us and your Lordship's noble
ancestors, and which still subsists - between your
Lordship and ourselves, has induced us to make
this address to you. It would give us pleasure
to worship, without the sacrifice of principle, in
that assembly of vphich your Lordship is so illus
trious a member,
" We have only to entreat from your Lord
ship's goodness, that whatever the result of this
application may be, your Lordship will believe us,
when we assure you, it proceeds from the pur
est motives, and frora our desire to promote
love and concord araong people living in our
neighbourhood, and comely order and unity in
the Church of God. We are," &c.
"Signed by the Managers and Vestry-men,
Woodhead, Cruden,"? eight in number^"
4th Sept. 1801. 5 "
With that urbanity and condescension which
'characterise the Earl of Errol, his Lordship re
ceived the above address, and told the good peo
ple, that if the measure to which they so proper
ly called his attention, met the approbation of
Mr Stephen,' and of those clerical friends in Eng
land whom his Lordship thought it his duty to
consult, he should be most happy in acceding to

1802. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 297
their wishes, " as the best thing that could be
done by bpth congregations." . And under such
distinguished auspices, the raatter was not long in
its progress towards consuraraation. The noble
Earl having received advice from England, (and
such advice as, doubtless from his Lordship's con
nection with the then Primate, Dr Moore, was de
cisive on the subjectj) lost not a moraent in satis
fying Mr Stephen ofthepropriety of the measure
of union, which took place accordingly on the
13th of December 1801.
1802.] The definitive treaty of peace with
France having been ratified early in the year
1802, the Bishops and Clergy of the Scottish
Episcopal Church, in unison with every public
body in the realm, had the honour of approach
ing the Throne, with the most sincere acknow-
ledgraents of his Majesty's paternal wisdora and
goodness, so signally displayed in his readiness to
put a stop to the miseries of War, and to conclude
a struggle the most arduous that- ever was main
tained, for the preservation of social order and
the prevention of , anarchy, confusion, and every
evil work. " Penetrated," say they, " with the
most lively gratitude for the blessings which our
couptry enjoys under your Majesty's mild and
happy Government, we shall ever persevere in
recomraending tlje sarae becoming sentiments to
those who adhere to our ministry, and shall con
tinue our most strenupus endeavours to impress

f9S ANNALS 01^ 1802.
on their minds a just regard to those sound and
salutary principles bf our holy religion, frpm the
influence of which is derived the only security
for the maintenance of public peace and nation
al happiness,*" Having been transmitted to tho
* This address from the Episcopal phurch in Scotland, on the
peace of Amiens ISOSj brings to the Annalist's mind a similar
address of the Episcopal Clergy of the diocese of Aberdeen,
on the peace of Utrecht, 1713. — " presented by Dr James
and Dr George Garden, attended by Mr Dongworth, Mr Gray,
and Mr Greenshields, managers ofthe charitable contribu
tions for dispersing Common'Pr^yer-books among the" poor
people in Scotland; and introduced by the Eight Hon. the
Earl of JMarr, one of Her Majesty's principal Secretaries of .
State," — an address which recent circumstances render "wor
thy of the reader s notice. Ever since the publication of the
historical noyel, entitled " Tales of my Landlord," the peri
odical press in Scotland has teemed with abuse of the author,
for giving, to the conduct of the Scottish, Covenanters, its tru&
and appropriate colouring ; and much pains have been taken
to convip.ee the young and credulous part of the Scottish com
munity that the events narrated in the " Talesj" &c. have
neither fact, nor the semblance of fact, for their foundation!.
The Annalist of Scottish Episcopacy bas no intention of en
tering the lists with Covenant framers, or Covenant favourers ;
he would only submit the language of an address delivered to
Queen Anne, in person, and in the hearing of the whole British
Court, as affording ample corroboration of the sufferings of the
Episcopal Church in Scotland, at the hands of " that' fa
natical and irreclaimable party," (they are the words of the
Duke of Queensberry, his Majesty's High Commissioner for
Scotland, on opening the Scottish Parliament, March 28,
1685,) " who had brought the people's rights and liberties to
the brink of ruin and disgrace, and who were not more rebels
against the king than eneraies to mankind."

1802. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 299
Right Hon. Henry Addington, then Premier,
with a request, that, in his official capacity, he
would lay it at the foot ofthe Throne, that Gen
tleman lost no time in informing Bishop Skinner,
" May it please your most sacred Majesty, —
" Peace is so universal a blessing, so pleasing to the God
of peace, so beneficial to mankind, and in particular to us
who live in this part of Britain, whom the length and burden
of the war and other misfortunes have brought very low, that
we should be wanting to our interests, as well as duty, if,
after public, solemn, and religious thanksgivings to Almighty
God in our Churches and Meeting-houses, we did not return
our most humble and hearty thanks to your Majesty, who,
under God, has been the great and glorious instrument of re
storing it to us, in defiance of all the bold and restless at
tempts of those who delight in war.
" "We do, with the same thankful hearts, acknowledge the
great freedom we now enjoy, not only in the exercise of our
pastoral care over a willing people, but also in the use of the
Liturgy of the Church of England, which we have ever looked
upon as the stay and bulwark of the Reformation. But give
us leave. Madam, to mix our joy with some allay, when we
look back on the desolation of our Church, how that the an
cient and apostolic order thereof is abolished, — how some hun
dreds of our brethren were turned out of their livings by law
less force and tumult, — others by ways illegal and j.inprece-
dented, and most of them reduced to a -starving condition,
though there was a proper fund for their^ubsistence, to which
they might lay claim ; — and how much loss the Church sus
tains through the want of divinity professors of the Episcopal
persuasion, for trainings up youth in orthodox and loyal prin
ciples, " We are confident that your Majesty, who has so much at
heart the welfare of all your people, will, (now that you are
free from the noise and tumult of war, ) be graciously pleased
to look unto these matters, and give such relief, as you, in

ANNALS OF .1803.
through Lord Pelham, that his Majesty ," was
pleased to receive the very dutiful and loyal ad
dress of the Bishops and Clergy ofthe Scottish
Episcopal Church, in the most gracious raanner."
I8O3.3 Like the calm which ushers in the de
solating thunder storm, twelve months of treach
erous peace had scarcely elap.ejed, when the smiles
of the consular governraent of France were ex*
changed for frowns ; and nought was heard
throughout the British dorainions, but the din of
renewed preparation for war ! To the ambassa
dors of " the Prince of Peace," warfare of any
sort must ever prove a source of deep humilia
tion and regret; since its recurrence, apart
from the rapine and bloodshed which war occa
sions, shews, that mankind cling to the sin which
most easily besets thera, and fondly cherish those
" lusts, which, warring in their merabers," pro
duce, according , to the decision of Holy writ,
your royal wisdom, shall think fit. Whatever misrepresenta
tions rnay have been ma'de of us by our enemies, on purpose
to obstruct your royal bounty, and, lessen your favour to us,
we take this opportunity, with great subraission, to assure your
Majesty, that, in all our devotions, as well as in the use of the
-Liturgy, we offer up our prayers to God to bless your Majes
ty's person and government, and to prolong your sacred life ;
and when, full of years, you shall change thi^ fading fo*- an
immortal crown, that your royal diadem may fall upon the
head of a Protestant successor, is the sincere wish and fervent
prayer of, May it please your Majesty, <Src. &c.
" Which address her Majesty received very graciously."

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. SOI
" all wars and fightings araong" individuals, as
well as ampng states and kingdoras.
Yet as, in coramon with every other well af
fected meraber of the comraunity. Bishop Skin
ner, in bis heart, believed that " the fraternal
embrace" of revolutionary France was more like
ly to contaminate the principles, and undermine
the morals of Britons, than were her hostile
threats ^p endanger their liberties and laws, no
sooner were those threats put in execution, and
" the British host went forth again to the battle,"
than the Bishops and Clergy ofthe Scottish Epis
copal Church hastened to give the customary
evidence to their King and Country of thei/heart-
felt regard for both, the Primus transmitting to
the Right Hon, Charles Yorke, an hurable address
to that effect, the gracious reception of which was
duly announced by that statesraan ; nor must the
reader iraagine that the' zeal and sound patriot
ism of the Scottish Bishops and their Clergy ex
tended no farther, at this raost eventful period,
than to a few words of courtly address.
Eager to display the interest which he took in
the preservation and prosperity of his beloved
country. Bishop Skinner, with the approbation of
his Right Reverend Colleagues, fraraed an ad
dress from himself and the other Bishops to the
Laity of the Episcopal Communion in Scotland,
which, being printed and circulated throughout
the Church, was ordered "to be read" by the
whole body of officiating Clergymen " after di-

302 ANNALS OF 1803.
vine service, in their several Congregations on the
first Sunday after they shall have received the
same." Being a document alike creditable to the loy
alty and sound discretion of the late Primus of
the Scottish Episcopate, as illustrative of the live
ly interest in the success of the war taken by
Bishop Skinner's fellow-labourers in the ministry
ofthe long-depressed Episcopal Church in Scot
land, the Address is here submitted to the rea
der's perusal.
" Dearly Beloved in Christ !
" The relation which we bear to that part of
the Christian Church, of which you have the hap
piness to be members, will be admitted, we trust,
as an apology for our addressing you on the pre
sent occasion. Your respective Pastors have fre
quent opportunities of recalling to your attention
the benefits you. enjoy, and the obligations you
are laid uhder, as merabers of the mystical body
of Christ, as fellow-subjects of that kingdom of
grace which he came into the world to establish,
and feUow-sharers of all its spiritual privileges.
But there is another relation in which you stand,
not only to one another, but to all that live under
the same civil government ; — a relation, not so
important indeed as the other, but of no less corn-
sequence to your temporal pe^ce and safety, than
the other is to your eternal happiness ; and that
is, the relation of fellow-citizen upon earth, inha-

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. SOS
biting the same country, owing aUegiance to the
same sovereign, subject to thesame laws, par
taking of the sarae rights and privileges, and
mutuallj/engaged for the defence and preserva
tion of all that is near and dear to you in this
world. It is, therefore, in this character that we
now presume to address you ; as enjoying all the
advantages which arise from the excellency of
our civil constitution of governraent, the free
course of its laws, the regular administration of
justice, and all the other privileges which have
long been esteemed the glory of this happy
island, and, through the divine goodness, are at
present its principal support under all the out
ward pressures that bear so hard upon it. It has
been often observed, that a long and uninter
rupted enjoyment of blessings is too apt to extin
guish in our minds that gratitude towards the
Author of them, which it ought to cherish and
invigorate. And those wise and wholesome
laws which secure to us the possession of our
lives and properties, and which preserve peace
and tranquillity in our borders, are the less re
garded, because the courts in which they are ad
ministered are well known to be regularly held,
and open to all complainers. But very different
would be our feelings and our sentiments, had
we ever learned from sad experience what it was
to see government unhinged, to want the pro
tection of regal power, aiyl the due administra
tion of justice by those to whom a portion of

304* ANNALS OF \ >» 1803*
that power is' delegated * for the punishment of
* evil-doers, and the praise of them that do well.'
How thankful then should we be, that we live
in a country where these privileges are yet hap
pily enjoyed, and these benefits duly and re-
'gularly dispensed; where,* though the guUty
may sometimes escape, the qinocent very rarely
suffer, and where the rigour of justice, when
the case can possibly admit of such lenity, is al
ways tempered with mercy, by the clemency of
a Sovereign, who, through the whole course of
his reign, has shewn the most dnxious desire to
promote the happiness, and reign in the hearts
and affections of his people ! These are advan
tages, which ought to be always duly valued, and
constantly kept in view by those who' are happy
in the possession of them. But the estimation
in which they are justly held, ought to .strike us
with peculiar force, at a time when we are threat
ened with the total loss of them, and hear of such
preparations raaking for tbe invasion of our coun
try, as can have no other object in view, but to
strip us of all our enjoyments, to destroy our
King, overturn our government, and introduce
such a scene of anarchy and confusion, of extor
tion and rapine, of murder and massacre, as can
hardly be paraUeled even in those unhappy
countries which have already faUen a prey to
that devouring monster, who has now turned his
whole fury against this envied land, and threat
ens to " swallow us up quick, so wrathfuUy is he

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 305
displeased at us." It is because Britain alone,
of all the nations of Europe, has dared to set
bounds to this mighty oppressor, that he is now
bursting with rage against us, calling together his
impious legions to pollute our shores, and driv
ing them on to the fcloody conflict by the hopes
of such spoil and pmnder as, he knows, will sti
mulate their brutal vengeance, and make them
worthy of such a ferpcious leader. It is thus that
the tyrant of France is proudly employed, forg
ing the chains with which he hopes to bind the
Sons of Britain to his throne, and force them to
acknowledge his usurped dominion. Because
the people over whom he sways his imperious
sceptre have assumed the power of raaking laws
to all other countries, and fixing boundaries,
which their constitution declares to be unaltera
ble, therefore obeisance must every where be
made to the arbitrary decrees of the " great na
tion," and all must fall down and worship the de
testable image of military despotism which that
nation hath set up. It was in a situation of si
mUar distress and danger that God's ancient,
people were admonished not to be afraid of the
utmost force and fury of their enemies, but to
remember the Lord, who is great and terrible,
• and fight for their brethren, their sons and their
* daughters, their wives and their houses.** Thus
were they encouraged to withstand the tyranny
ofthe heathen, the enemies of God's truth, and
* Nehemiah iv. 14.

306 ANNALS OF 1803. J
the oppressors of his people. And hence we may
justly infer, that the taking lip arras can never
be more proper or necessaiy than in defence of
all that is valuaible to us on this earth; of
our King and our Country, our famiUes and
friends, our liberties and llpes, and what ought
still to be higher iu our estimation, our holy and
venerable religion, given unto us by the mercy
of God, and not to be wrested from us by the
cruelty of man. For the preservation of all these,
our countrymen haye at this time come forward
with a spirit that does them honour, and with
such ardour in the common cause as deserves the
thanks of every friend to truth, order, and good
government. " Those that belong to our commtmion, we
therefore earnestly exhort to shew the same
zeal and promptitude in the offer of such ser
vices as our Sovereign may be pleased to accept,
not doubting of their ardent desire to co-operate
with their feUow-subjects in forwarding every
measure which his Majesty shaU think proper to
adopt for the defence of the country and the se
curity of his people. For, though the safety of
a nation must ever depend on the protection of
Almighty God, (and that protection ought to be
devoutly implored in the vvay that he has pres:
cribed for that purpose,) yet it is equally certain,
that the people must exert tbemselves in their
own defence, and it is the duty of every one to
bring forward his just proportion of aid in the

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 307
general cause, both in the way of personal serr
vice, and by such pcfcuniary contribution as his
situation may enable hira to afford, for support
ing that imraense load of expence which raust
be necessarily incurred through every depart
ment of government on the present alarming oc
casion. " As the danger which now threatens the unit
ed kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland is singu
lar in its nature and magnitude, and far beyond
any that has been experienced for many years
past, so the means of repelling it are not to be
measured by those of any former contest. They
must be such as are suited to the present awful
struggle ; and when aU is at stake which ought
to be dearest to the heart of man, it is not easy
to calculate the extent of every particular sacri
fice which must be made for the general good.
In seasons of such public and national danger, all
ranks of people must be exposed to losses and
disappointments. The desire of their eyes must
frequently be taken from them ; and those repeat
ed and daily increasing contributions, which the
exigencies of the state require, ought to put them
in mind of the fleeting and transitory nature of
all worldly treasures, which, if not torn from them
by a furious and enraged enemy, must yet be li-
beraUy parted with to afford the means of prp-
tecting their lives and the remainder of their pro
perty frora such outrageous violences At tiraes
like these, people must not expect to go on in the
u 2

SOS ANNALS OF 1808.
way of accumulating and increasing their for
tunes. When all is in immfnent danger, the pre
servation of a Tsmall portion becomes a matter of
serious concern ; atid no British subject, who
knows the value of that character, and the privi
leges connected with it, will think any hardship
or expence too great to be encountered^ if by
these he can contribute tO the preservation of his
Pobntry frotn the woful effects of that proud,
vindictive, brutal spirit, which has wrought so
much misery and mischief to many ofthe neigh
bouring nations.
" These are reflections on the present state of
our national concerns, which we have thought it
our duty to submit thus briefiy to the considera
tion of alFwho profess to be of the Episcopal
persuasion in this part of the kingdom. The
Church in which we have the honour to serve,
has been long distinguished by the purest prin
ciples of loyalty and attachment to kingly power.
The particular changes which have taken place
in the outward situation of things, have made
no alteration in that general train of sentiment
which has ever influenced the conduct of the
Bishops and Clergy of this Church, We are in
no shape connected with this or that political
party, but always ready to support the measures
of every administration which tend to promote
•the safety, honour, and welfare, of our Sove-
* reign andhis dominions.' From the King dr his
ministers, however desirous we may be of their

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 309
favour and countenance, we have little raore to
expect than that general benefit of peace and
protection which all his subjects so happily en
joy, under his raild and equitable governraent.
We are, therefore, actuated by no selfish mo
tives, and cannot possibly have any object in
y'lew, but that which is presented to us by a
sense of duty and a regard to conscience ; a re
gard to that fixed invariable rule laid down by
our holy religion, which requires us to ' render
* to all their dues, tribute to whom tribute is due,
• custom to wbom custom, fear to whom fear, fio-
' nour to whom honour,' Thus blended with the
grand system of Christian obedience, these are
matters of no small concern both to our tempo
ral and eternal welfare. As such, it is the busi*
ness of the ministers of the gospel to represent
them in their proper light, and shew the necessi
ty of a constant attention to that beautiful plan
of civil subordination which has been established
by God, and for that reason ought to be revered
by man.
" Feeling the force of these sentiments, imbib
ed from the sacred source of all political as well as
religious knowledge, we have thought it our du
ty to transmit an humble and becoming address,
to be presented to his Majesty in name of our
selves and ofthe Clergy of our comraunion, and
which we have been assured by the Principal Se
cretary of State for the home department, his
Majesty has been pleased to receive in the most

310 ANNALS OF 1803.
gracious manner. The address is here subjoined,
to be read in your presence, as an additional
proof of our anxious desire to promote by every
means in our power, what we have been now re
commending to your generous and truly patrio
tic support, the authority of our King, the digni-
^ ty of his crown, and the safety, peace, and pros
perity of his people," *
tJnto the King's Most Excellent Majesty, the
humble Address of the Bishops and Clergy
of the Scotch Episcopal Chuhch.
" Most Gracious Sovereign !*
" At a period like the present, when every part
¦of the British erapire is threatened with danger,
more or less imminent, according to its local si
tuation, and other circumstances, which may
serve to provoke the avarice or ambition of a ra
pacious, proud, and insolent enemy : We, your
Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the
Bishops and Clergy of the Scotch Episcopal
Church, consider ourselves bound to request
your royal permission to approach the Throne,
with those renewed assurances of the raost in-
lyolable attachraent to your Majesty's sacred
person and governraent, which so well become
our character as Christian Pastors, and are no
less conducive to our honour and interest as Bri
tish subjects.
" Although we cannot faU to be duly sensible

1803. SCOTTISH episcopacy. 311
bo^ much it accords with our profession as mi
nisters pf'the gospel of peace, to study the things
that tend to secure this invaluable blessing, yet
when it can no longer be preserved but by a sur
render of our privUeges as an independent na
tion, and a most debasing submission to ihe
repeated encroachments of that hostUe power,
whose progress has been every where raarkeJ
with devastation and misery : in these circura-
stances, we cannot but applaud the wisdom, and
admire the energy which have been so powerful
ly exerted in resisting such unprovoked aggres
sion, and defending all that is truly valuable in
this world.
" Impressed with these sentiments respecting
the awful contest in which our country is enga
ged, we humbly beg leave to express t)ur warm
est approbation of the loyalty, zeal, and public
spirit which are now so eminently conspicuous in
all parts of yqur Maje^y's dorainions ; and our
earnest and ardent wishes to proraote such laud
able exertions for the general safety, by inspir
ing the minds of those who adhere to our minis
try "with the most conscientious regard for your
Majesty's sacred authority, founded on those ve
nerable principles of our holy religion, which af
ford the only ground for public virtue and na
tional happiness, , ,
" That the high and mighty Being, who is
' King of kings, and Lord of lords, the onlyRu-
• lei'j' and therefore the surest guard, ' of princes,*

312 ANNALS OF 1803.
may continue to take our beloved Sovereign un
der his gracious care and protection ; may so di
rect the councils and strengthen the hands of Go
vernment, as to enable your Majesty to * van-
* quish and overcorae all your enemies,' as it is*
the voice of our public supplications to the Throne
of Heaven, so shall it ever be the private, un
feigned wish and prayer of, may it please your
Majesty,' &c.
" Signed by us the Bishops, for ourselves,
and in narae of the Clergy of our respec
tive districts,
" John Skinner, in Aberdeen,
William Abernethy Drummond, Hawthornden,
Jonathan Watson, at Laurencekirk.
Andrew Macfarlane, in Inverness.
John Strachan, in Dundee,
Alexander Jolly, in Fraserburgh-
«' Aberdeen,^ September 19. 1803."
. Ofthe interest which the late ornament ofthe
Scottish establishment. Principal Campbell of
Aberdeen, took in the relief of the Scottish Epis
copal Church from penal statutes, the Annalist
has sufficientiy apprised his readers. The learned
Principal had the gpodness, unsolicited by any
one, to correspond with Bishop Douglas, first pf
Carlisle and latterly of Salisbury, on thp subject,
while this exceUent Prelate, as wUl appear from
the following letter to Bishop Skinner, justly con-

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 313
§idered the cordial approbation and assent ofthe
Principals of the Universities of Edinburgh and
Aberdeen, as, at the time, highly in favour of the
Bill of Repeal.

LETTER XXXIL
THE BISHOP OF CARLISLE TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" Windsor Castle, February 23, 1791.
" I had the honour of your's of the 9th, and
beg leave to assure you, that your application to
Parliament will meet with my hearty support ; I
wish my interest were as powerful as ray inclina
tions are sincere. Every opportunity I erabrace
of endeavouring to correct the prejudices and
mistakes which have hitherto retarded your suc
cess. Dr Robertson of Edinburgh having, in the
most liberal manner, recoraraended your cause to
me, I have forwarded his letter to the Archbishop
of Canterbury, to whom I gave a copy of what
Principal Campbell last year had written to me
on the subject.
•' I cannot but hope that their testimony will
be of real use. I am at present much afflicted
with flying gout, which makes writing inconve
nient, so that I can Only add, with great truth,
that I am," &c.
" P. S, I write to Principal Campbell by this
post." ;

314 ANNALS OF 1803,
On the passing of the BiU, Bishop Skinner
^ waited on his learned townsman, and gratefully
acknowledged the friendly part' which he had
acted towards the long depressed Episcopacy of
Scotland, in recomraending the raeasure of relief
frora penal statutes " as reasonable in itself, and
as generally agreeable to the established Church
of Scotland."
How then could it fail greatly to astonish Bish
op Skinner, his colleagues, and the Scottish Epis
copal Clergy at large to find, on the publication
of their generous benefactors, " Lectures on Ec
clesiastical History" shortly , after the author's
death, that at the very period when he was in cor
respondence with an English Prelate in favour
of his Episcopalian countrymen. Principal Camp-
• beU was holding up those very Episcopalians to
the ridicule and contempt of the theological
students in the University of Aberdeen, to whom,
in his official capacity of Theological Professor,
his lectures were addressed ; telling them, that not
only the polity of the Church of Engliand seems
to have been devised for the express purpose of
rendering the clerical character odious, and the
discipline contemptible *, but that as " no ax
iom in philosophy is more indisputable than that
' quod nuUibi est, non est,' the ordination of our
present Scottish Episcopal Clergy is solely from
Presbyters ; for it is aUowed that those men who
came under the hands of Bishop Rose of Edin- ,
* Lectures on Ecclesiastical History, Vol, I, p. 74'. '

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 315
' burgh had been regularly admitted Ministers or
Presbyters in particular congregations before the
Revolution ; and to that first ordination, I main
tain that their farcical consecration by Dr Rose
and others, when they were solemnly raade the
depositories of no deposite, commanded to be di
ligent in doing no work, vigilant in the oversight
of no flock, assiduous in teaching and governing
po people, and presiding in no church, added
nothing at all *."
No sooner had the book which contains the
above insidious aspersions reached the> sister
kingdom, than the venerable Archdeacon of Sa.-
rum thus characterizes it.

LETTER XXXIIL
MR DAUBENY TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" North Bradley, Trowbridge, Aug. 19, 1801.
" I do not hesitate to call Dr Campbell's late
wprk the most hostile, the most illiberal, and
the raost unsupported attack tbSt has perhaps
ever been raade on the Episcopacy of the church
of Christ"^, vvhile his attack on the Episcopacy of
the church in Scotland, added to the nptorious
falseness of the writer's stateraent, is, me judice,
marked with a superlative degree of meanness !
I have a publication coming forward, in the pre-
lirainary discourse to which, some strictures on
* See-Lectures on Ecclesiastical History, Yol. I. 3.55, S56.

316 ANNALS 01* 1803.
the Doctor's Ecclesiastical Lectures will be
found, for the information of the younger Cler-
gy*. The subject of the Scottish Church I
have purposely passed over with a slight re
mark, because I conclude it cannot possibly es
cape without due animadversion frora some
Scotclwpen, And I flatter myself, that I am not
mistaken iri placing that pen in your own hand.
Sorry am I to think, that, at the commencement
of the 1 9tb century, we should have to confute
arguments, whicb, for the most part, have re
ceived their decided answers two hundred years
ago. Our consolation is, that the founder of the
Church has promised to be with it to the end of
time ; consequently, though schism, which is the
work of the devil, may appear to increase, it will
not be permitted ultimately to prevail."
Previously to receipt of. the above letter. Bi
shop Skinner had it in contemplation to vindicate
the church over whicb be presided from the post
humous malevolence of one who had in his life
time, and in her extremity, treated her with so
much unlooked for benevolence ! And Mr Dau-
beny's remarks confirmed him in his resolution.
* See Mr Daubeny's highly valued " Discourses on the
Connection between the Old and New Testament, considered
as two parts of the same Divine Revelation, &c., accompanied
with a Preliminary Discourse, respectfully addressed to the
younger Clergy," &c. ;-^-a, work which ought to be in the hands
of every one whose office it is ' ia meekness to instruct those
' who oppose themsglvfcs'.'

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 317
He published, in 1803, his learned work, " Primi
tive Truth and Order" vindicated from modern mis
representation, with a defence of Episcopacy, par
ticularly that of Scotland, against an attack made
on it by the late Dr Campbell of Aberdeen, in
his Lectures on Ecclesiastical History, and a con
cluding Address to the Episcdpaliansof Scotiand."
" That the validity of our diyine commission
has been called in question, in a manner which
surely we did not provoke, and frOm a quarter
whence we could hardly have expected' to meet
with such severe, such unhandsome treatment, is
a fact," observes the author, " which cannot be
doubted by any one who reads with attention
those parts of Dr CarapbeU's Lectures on Eccle
siastical History which are particularly levelled
against the Episcopacy of Scotland, and who, at
the same tirae, is acquainted with the history of
that Episcopacy for at least a century past, and
knows how little foundation there was for such a
violent and unexpected attack.
" From this consideration, it may perhaps be
inferred, that the weapons- of an adversary, so in
cautiously aimed, might have been allowed to
spend their force, and fall harmless to the ground.
It may, no doubt, be thought a needless waste
both of time and labour to employ them in re
futation of arguments, which, like aU those that
have ever been produced- against Episcopacy in
general, have been so often refuted ; or even to
take so much pains in defending our own Epis-

318 ANNALS OF 1803.
copacy in particular from an attack which has
nothing but" its novelty arid perhaps the character
of its author to support it. With respect to the
former, we have said all that is necessary tp shew
how little strength there is in it ; in regard to the
latter, we could wish to say nothing, because we
are well aware, how much might well be thought
due to it *."
To those readers who are in possession of Bi
shop Skinner's Vindication, &c,-it is unnecessary
to say a word in coraraendation of it ; while to
those who neither possess, nor have had an op
portunity of perusing the wprk, in order to excite
the desire to peruse, if not to possess it, it may suf
fice to say, that the Bishop " establishes," to use,
his own words, " the following plain and impor
tant facts, as matters of undoubted certainty,
and worthy of the most serious consideration,
" First, that the Christian religion, being, like
its divine' Authpr, ' the same yesterday, to-day,
• and for ever,' ought to be received and em
braced as it is represented and held out in the
Scriptures of truth, without adding thereto, or
diminishing therefrom,
" Secondly, That the Church of Christ, in
. which his religion is received and embraced, is
that spiritual society in which the ministration
of holy things is committed to the three distinct
orders of Bishops, Priests, and Deacons, deriving
* Primitive Truth, &c. p. 418. 44'9. to be had of- the Pub-i
Ushers of these; Annals. ,"

1808. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 319
their authority from the Apostles, as the Apos
tles derived their commission from Christ. And,
" Lastly, That a part of this holy, catholic,
and apostolic Church, though deprived of the
support of civil establishraent, does still exist in
Scotland, under the narae of ' The Scotch Epis-
* copal Church ;' whose doctrine, discipline, and
worship, as happily agreeing with the doctrine^
discipline, and worship of the first and purest
ages of Christianity, ought to be steadily adhered
to by all who profess to be of the Episcopal com
munion in this part ofthe united kingdom."
The work is dedicated to the late Sir William
Forbes, of Pitsligo, Baronet, the simple announce
ment of whose venerated name is, in the estima
tion of every contemporary Scotchman, as well
as of every Englishman who has visited the
Scottish BoetropoUs, enough to convey associations
of private worth and public spirit, of unimpeach
able honour, integrity, and liberality in business ;
of urbanity, gentlemanlike deportment, and con
descension in social life, rarely to be raet with
in one and the same individual.
Should the reader of these Annals wish for a
character of Bishop Skinner's Answer to Dr Camp
bell, he is referred to two of the periodical publi
cations ofthe day, — the British Critic and Anti-
jacobin Reviews, — which do ample justice to its
merits. To the Bishop hiraself) however, and
the Church in which he served^ it was far raore
grateful to find, that the book met with thp un-

320 ia* ANNALS oy 1805.
qualified .approbation of those great and good
men in England, who, so far from harbouring
a thought of Scottish Episcopacy congenial with
Dr Campbell, were instrumental, under the great
Shepherd and Bishop of souls, in raising it to
the distinguished place which it now holds in the
Christian world. Let the foUowing quotations
from one or two letters suffice as a specimen of
what others contain. " I should not be satisfied
with myself," says the writer of one letter, " if I
did not declare what I both think and feel, viz.
that the Church of England is under infinite
obligations for your general defence of Episco
pacy, which you have argued with Such clearness
and perspiduity, and which you have supported
by such high, authorities ; that you have for ever
placed it, (where it must undoubtedly be placed
by all who will consider the subject,) upon the
sarae rock, where Christianity will ever be se
cure, even against the gates of hell. As to the
depressed part of Christ's church, over which
you, so happUy for its interests, preside, you
have in this work proved your strong attach
ment ; you have here greatly surpassed all your
former services, and have demonstratively shewed
the wisdora of those pious raen, who, at so early
a period of your life, called you to tbe Primat-
ship of this littie Church." — " Your address = to
the English EpiscopaUans is conceived in such
mild and holy pastoral terms, accompanied at
the same tirae with such powerful and persuasiw

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 3^1
arguments, and withal such a just sense of the
importance ofyour high comraission, that I can
not but feel the most sanguine hopes that your
labours will be attended with the desired suc
cess. Throughout the whole of your work, I
have admired the great moderation and Christian
temper which you have displayed, — eyen when
goaded by much illiberality in your adversary ;
but you have proved, that even in the midst of
controversy you never can forget that Christian
charity which is the end ofthe coraraandment."
It was natural for the iraraediate partizans of
the celebrated author of " the Dissertation on
Miracles," &c. &c. to treat Bishop Skinner, and
his defence of his high calling, with a latitude of
abuse, despite, and contempt, worthy of the de
nomination which they exultingly assumed, —
" Whigs ofthe old stamp *." But the Annalist
can assert on authority, which he holds to be un
questionable, — the authority of a worthy Histo-,
rian ofthe established Church of Scotland, — that
a Principal and Professor of Theology, in a
Scotch University not many miles from the river
Ta.}% " having read Primitive Truth and Order,
&c. with great care, pronounced it to be the best
defence of Episcopacy in the English language, .
and more than a sufficient refutation of Dr
Campbell"
* See Presbytesrian Letters, addressed to Bishop Skinner
of Aberdeen, by Patrick Mitchell, D.D. Minister of Kemnay,
A-berdeenshire.

322 ANNALS OF 1803.
" Be contented," said the learned Vicar of
Epsom to the author, " be contented, as you weU
may, to stand or fall with the work before me ;
in my opinion, the best, the most spirited, ani
mated, and correct of any thing I have ever
seen from your pen." While, to sum up the
subject, another English Clergyman of equal
learning, piety, and talents, after informing Bi
shop Skinner that " his refutation of Professor
Campbell was raost satisfactory," proceeds to say,
" I cannot but think, that the Scotch as well as
the English Church has reason to rejoice that
his Lectures were pubUshed, as it has provoked
a discussion which cannot fail to render both
a very essential service. Those of our own
household, I proraise myself, mu.st yield to the
aflfectionate persuasiveness of your concluding
address, I know this' to be the wish nearest
your heart, and I hope and trust that you will
see of the travail ofyour soul, and will be satis
fied ; for, in charity, I cannot allow myself to
entertain even a surmise, that my brethren wiU
sin against conviction, which I am sure they will
do, if they still refuse to acknowledge you as their
Ecclesiastical superior, and thus to heal that
most unnatural breach, which, that it was aUowed
one moraent to exist, is one of the many exam
ples furnished in the present day of human in
consistency," And so it happened that, during the year 1803,
Bishop Skinner did " see of his soul's travail,"

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 3^3
and had the satisfaction to admit into the bosom
ofthe Spottish Episcopal Church the English or
dained Clergymen in the towns of Peterhead and
Stonehaven, the Reverend Dr Laing of Peter
head signing the articles of union in behalf of
himself and Congregation on the 'iyth of June,
and the Reverend Dr Mptness pf Stonehaven on
the 15th of December 1803,
The latter gentleman had been ordained by
the Bishop of Durham in the year 1752 ; and con
sidering him as his spiritual adviser, he deemed
it proper to consult the worthy Prelate who nov?
fills that See, when he received this short but most
satisfactory reply :— r*.
" Auckland Castle, September 21, 1803,
?• Reverend Sir,
" The fundamental principles ofthe Episcopal
Churches of England and Scotland are the same.
While the Scottish Bishops were attached to the
bouse of Stuart, and refused to take the oaths to
the Princes of the Brunswick family, there could
be no union between the Churches ; since they
have renounced their former political' opinions,
the separation founded on those opinions should
no longer subsist, t am, &c, « S. DUNELM."
Peterhead being in the diocese of Aberdeen,
Bishop Skinner, on receiving the vouchers of Dr
Laing's union, faUed not to congratulate him and
xg

324 ANNALS OF 1803.
his people on the happy event. He received the
foUowing reply, evincing at once the comfort
and satisfaction which the writer received from
the step which he and his flock had lately taken.

LETTER XXXIV.
tHE EEV. DR. LAING TO BISHOP SKINNER,
« Peterhead, July 27, 1803.
" Most heartily do I thank you for your kind
congratulation on our union with the ancient
Christian Church of our Country, and for your
good wishes and prayers for our comfort in this
measure. Of our ever finding comfort in it, I
have no doubt, from the applause of my own
.mind that grows stronger on reilectipn, frora the
great apparent satisfaction of both the Congrega
tions in this plape, as well as from the expressed
approbation of various wise and good persons in
other places, and particularly that of Sir William
Forbes of Pitsligo, whose piety and goodness must
shew his judgment and approbatipqi to be highly
valuable. So highly was Sir William pleased with
the measure, that he took the trouble to call on
me three times before I saw him, and twice more
after I had seen him. He told me the particular
cause of his earnestness at that time was not only
to express his sincere jpy and approbation, but
also to inquire by what means and arguments I

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 325
had prevailed on a Congregation once so averse
from the measure of union. I told him all my
proceedings, and mentioned to him what papers
I had put into my people's hands. He entreated
a reading of every thing that had been written on
the occasion, and next day told me he came first
to return the papers with thanks and approbation,
and then to ask leave to carry thera with him to
Edinburgh, where he hoped to dp good with
them. " The meeting of our Clergy on the 24th of
August, I propose, if alive and able, duly to at
tend. That is usuaUy a busy season with me in
my profession as a medical man, on account of
the number of strangers who visit this place in
search of health ; but were it much more incon
venient than it will be, I could not think of ask
ing leave of absence frora the first opportunity
of seeing friends whora I shall love and esteem.
?' With most respectful good wishes to you.
Sir, and begging leave to comraend myself tp
your benediction, I remain," &c,
1 804,3 To communicate union among Chris-
tiaps, professing, as the Episcopalians in Scotland
do verily profess, f one faith, one Lord, one bap
tism," having been longthe supreme wish ofBishop
Skinner's heart, of which the reader has had am
ple evidence, scarce a post now arrived in Aber
deen without bringing some proposal, some query
tp the Bishop's ear, and scarce a post departed

^26 ANJJALS OF 1804.
Avithout a ready acquiescence on the Bishop's
part, if the proposal was reasonable, without a
solution ofthe query, if the query was capable of
solution. At such a period, however, it waswith
griefunfeigned that the Primus of the Scottish
Church received intimation pf the sudden demise
of his highly regarded friend and feUow-labourer
in the work pf Scottish Episcopal union, the
Reverend Jonathan Boucher, Vicar of Epsom,
Surry, who was suddenly cut off" in May 1804.
His sufferings in America, on account of his re
Ugious and political principles, cannot faU to ex
cite the lively interest of those who have perused
his valuable work, published in 1797, viz. " A
view ofthe causes and consequences of the A*
merican-Revolution,in thirteen discourses, preach
ed in North America, between the years 1763
and 1775," These sermons are inscribed, by a
well written manly dedication, to General Wash
ington, whom Mr Boucher states to have been
at one time his neighbour and friend ; but he
adds, in a truly Christian spirit, " the unhappy
dispute which terminated in the disunion of our
respective countries also broke off our personal
connection ; but I never was more than your po
litical enemy, and every sentiment even of po
litical aniraosity has on my part long ago sub
sided." The AnnaUst of Scottish Episcopacy conceives
that he would be doing his subject injustice,
were he to withhold from his readers, the foUowing

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 327
" burst of true Christian loyalty," as the bio
grapher of Mr Stevens well denorainates it, — of
loyalty so very congenial to the political princi
ples which have ever distinguished the Episco
pal Church in Scotland, — that Mr Boucher's re
gard for that Church need not be wondered at.
" Sincerely do I wish it were not now necessary
to crave your indulgence for a few rainutes long
er, — it shall be but a few,-r-to speak of rayself. If
I ara to credit some surmises, which have been
kindly whispered in ray ear, (and I am proud
thus publicly to acknowledge, that it is to a man
whose political tenets are the opposite of mine that
I owe this information, coramunicated no doubt
from motives of good will and humanity,) that
unless I will forbear to prays for the King, you
are to hear rae neither pray nor preach any long
er. No intiraation could possibly have been less
welcome to me. Distressing, however, as the
dilerama confessedly is, it is not oi^e that either
requires or wUl admit of a moment's hesitation.
Entertaining all due respect for my ordination
vows, I am firm in ray resolution, whilst I pray
in public at all, to cpnfprm to the unmutilated
Uturgy of ray Church ; and, reverencing the in
junction of an apostle, I will continue to pray for
the King and aU that are in authority under him,
and IwiUdo so, not only because I ara so com
manded, but that, as the apostle adds, we may
Pontinue to lead quiet and peaceable lives, in all
godliness and honesty. Inclinatipn, as weU as

328 ANNALS OF 1804.
duty, confirms me in this purpose. As long as
I live, therefore, yea, whilst I have my being,
will I, with Zadoc the Priest and Nathan the
Prophet, proclaim, " God SAVE the King *."
Although, since the tirae of Mr Boucher's pro
posed elevation to the Edinburgh episcopate, a
situation which he would have filled both useful
ly and honourably, union araong the Episcopa
lians of that capital had often been the subject
of conversation ; it had hitherto been treated with
so much prejudice on both sides that the true
nature of the thing had been laraentably raisre-
presented. It chanced, however, that so long
back as 1793, when the matter was first agitated,
a most respectable member of the vestry of the
Cowgate chapel, after having in vain exerted
himself to promote the laudable measure, was
constrained to leave that chapel, frora convic
tion of its anomalous state, and join himself
and faraily to the Congregation of Bishop Aber
nethy Druraraond. Yet, zealous according to
knowledge, did this worthy^layraan continue to
exert himself in the promotion ofa raeasure, of
his depp-rooted regard for which he had given
such exemplary proof, never letting any oppor
tunity sUp, by which he could impress upon the
minds, whether of clergy or laity belonging to
the separate communion, the strange state in
* Farewell Sermon, preached in Maryland, 1775; p. 587;
•f Boucher's Thirteen Discourses, &c.

3804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 329
which, as Episcopalians, their separation from
the regular Episcopal Church of the country un-
questipnably placed them.
Of date the 24th May 1804, Bishop Skinner re
ceived frora this highly respected individual the
following most interesting communications : —

LETTER XXXV.
DE. SPENS TO BISHOP SKINNER,
" I take the liberty, at the request of an inti
mate friend, to transmit, for your perusal, a let
ter from him to me on a raost serious subject, in
which we are very sincerely interested ; and your
Reverence's well known zeal in the cause will
readily exeose this freedora in a stranger.
" Not being able, from age and infirmities, to
take such an active part as my inclination would
lead me to take, or as the subject might require, I
have requested a clerical friend, the Rev. Mr
Walker, yery zealous in the cause, to forward
this to ypu ; and when it is convenient, ^nd you
are pleased to honour me with a reply, my ad
dress is, Dr Spens, Edinburgh."
The letter thus transmitted was from an ami
able young layman ; and, doing him lasting ho
nour, it b here recorded.

330 ANNALS OF 1804.

\

" Edinburgh, May 19, 1804.
*• My dear Sir,
" I know I shall gain your full attention, when
I inform you, that I write this on the subject of
the Episcopal union, and as a most sincere and
decided friend to that measure. I have of late
applied ray mind to the study of the question as
attentively as possible, and the result is, ray per
fect conviction that the union is most desirable,
and that our Episcopal Congregations, while dis
united, are in an irregular and uncomfortable
state. " I am happy, too, to think, that the difficul
ties attending the union are not likely to be
great when the question is fully and fairly con
sidered ; and my object in addressing you is, to
point out one that, I am much inclined to think,
can be easily removed.
?' The doubts of those who hesitate, can only
be founded on the nonconformity of the mem
bers of the Scottish Episcopal Church. So far
as that nonconformity is purely civil, it relates
to the oath of allegiance, which no candid man
can doubt the readiness of the Scottish Episcopal
Churchmen to take, if separately proffered ; and
the oath of abjuration, which no candid raan can
blarae these Churchraen, (their circurastances
considered,) for refusing to take. These points
pf nonconformity, therefore, 1 lay out of my
view, " There is another point of nonconformity,

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 231
however, which, as to the Legislatiire, is civil,
but as to English Priests is also spiritual, I mean
the Thirty-nine Articles which the act of 1792 re
quires to be assented to by Scottish Episcopal
churchraen, in order to give them the benefits
of toleration. For want of this, it is thought by
some, that the Scottish Episcopal Church is ex
ceptionable ; first, as having no confessional,
and, secondly, as not acknowledging the King's
supremacy, as thereby declared in the 37th ar
ticle, " I ara far frora thinking this a radical objec
tion myself; but if it be likely to prove a stumb
ling-block to any, or if the removal of it be like
ly to facilitate the object in view, as I really
think it would, you, I am sure, will concur with
me in wishing it removed. Now, to me, it ap
pears that this would be an easy matter. I would
have been convinced, had I never read the ve
nerable Bishop Skinner's excellent * Vindication,'
that the Episcopal Church in Scotland, emanat
ing frora that of England, whatever are its pow
ers, as a national and particular church, pould
have no objection to admit all these articles as
just, reasonable, and useful, for avoiding uncer
tainties and, doubts. But the Bishop's work puts
it beyond a doubt, I need not refer you to
what he says at page 479, where his objection is
naturally arid easily drawn frora this point ofcon-
forraity, being so linked with the others that
the compliance with it is thereby rendered im-

332 ANNALS OF 180t.
possible. So I think it as to all civil effects.
But if the Scotch Bishops were to adopt these
articles, with the trifling variations requisite fpr
Scotiand instead of England, as belonging to
their Church, to sign them as such, and to re
quire the signature of them at ordinations, &c. I
do think it would materially affect some opinions
worthy of attention. Can you suggest this to
Bishop Skinner? — as coming from one who wishes
well to so good a cause, and would be disposed
to treat, with all possible caution, any comrauni-
eatipn which you might be authorized to make
to him. I am," &c.
Dr N, Spens.
In the passage of Bishop Skinner's " Vindica
tion," to which this excellent letter refers, the
author had said truly, that, " to subscribe a de
claration of their (the Scottish Episcopal Clergy)
assent to the Thirty -nine Articles ofthe Church of
England, was a requisition with whicb they sure
ly cannot refuse to comply from any objection to
the general doctrine of these Articlies, since they
are ready, on every occasion, to testify their be
ing in comraunion with the Church of England,
and subscribing her articles is only doing that in
a more solemn and legal manner. It would,
therefore," adds the Bishop, " tend greatly to fa-
cilitalJiB our obedience to this part of the statute
(of 1792,) if raeans could be contrived to receive
eur compliance with it in a manner distinct from

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. S3S
the other qualifications which the law prescribes."
The means being now, in sorae measure, pointed
out. Bishop Skinner eagerly embraced the op
portunity afforded him, in the month of August
following, of submitting to the Clergy of his dio
cese, at their Synodical Meeting, what he con
ceived to be the only possible way of complying
with the suggestion in the letter addressed to
Dr Spens, viz. the convoking the whole Bishops
and Clergy of the Scotch Episcopal Church, for
the express purpose of adopting, as the Confes
sional of that Church, the Thirty-nine Articles of
the Church of England, and of subscribing to the
same accordingly.
Hence, no sooner did the Aberdeen Clergy
signify their entire concurrence in this plan, than
the Bishop writes thus, (of date 30th August
1804,) to one of the English ordained Clergy in
Edinburgh, friendly to the measure of union :
" I took the opportunity of a late Synodical
Meeting of the Clergy of this diocese, to lay be
fore them my opinion respecting the measure of
subscription ot the Thirty-nine Articles j a mea
sure which has been so strongly recoraraended to
us. The result of our deliberation was, that the
matter should be forthwith submitted to the se
rious and solemn consideration of the whole
Church. In consequence, therefore, of what was
thus earnestly requested by the Clergy under my
inspection, I have suggested to my Righf Reve
rend Colleagues the propriety of our holding a

334 ANNALS OF 1804.
General Meeting of all the Bishops and Clergy of
this Church wbo.may be able to attend it, for the
purpose of exhibiting such a public testimony of
our agreement in doctrine and discipline with the
Church of England as may satisfy the Clergy
of that Church, presently officiating in Scotiand,
that they may safely and consistently join them
selves to our comraunion, and become part of
the still existing remnant of the Old Episcopal,
and once established Church of this country."
His_ venerable colleagues concurring in . the
wishes of their Primus and his Clergy, a circular
letter was imraediately transmitted to every Pas
tor and Minister of the Scotch Episcopal Church,
in terras as follow : — « Aberdeen, Sept. U, 1804.
" Rev, Sir,
" By authority of the Right ReV, the Bishops
ofthe Church in Scotland, I have to acquaint you,
that a General Meeting of thera and their Clergy is
to be holden in the Chapel of the vUlage of Lau
rencekirk, on Wednesday' the 24th day of Octo
ber, at 10 o'clock in the forenoon. The purpose
of this meeting being, in the most solemn man
ner, to exhibit a pubUc testimony of our confor
mity in doctrine and discipline with the Church
of England, and thereby to remove every re
maining obstacle to the union of the Episcopa
lians fn Scotiand, it' k hoped that no Clergyman
of our comraunion wiU, without cause the most
urgent, withhold his attendance.

1804. SCOTTISH. EPISCOPACY, $35
" The Bishops are the more anxious that the
meeting be .duly attended, lest the unnecessary
absence of any of their Clergy should be consi
dered as unfavourable to the design for which
they are summoned, especially by those of the
English Clergy officiating in Scotland, who have
expressed, in the strongest terms, their approba
tion of a measure which proniises to be highly
conducive to the interests of Episcopacy, and
the support of the church in this part of the
kingdom, " Comraending you to God's grace and direc
tion, I am, &c. " John Skinner,
" Senior Bishop and Primus."
Bishop Skinner having forwarded a copy of
this summons, for the satisfaction of the friends
of union in Edinburgh, he received a reply from
the Clergyman to whom ^the intimation of the
meeting at Laurencekirk was given, whicb does
equal honour to the head and heart of the writer.

LETTER XXXVL
THE REV. DR SANDFORD TO BISHOP SKINNEB.
" Edinburgh, Sept. 18, 1804.
" I am happy to find by the tenor of the cir
cular letter to your clergy, that more clergy of

336 ANNALS OF 1804.
the Church of England than myself have ex
pressed themselves strongly in favour ,of the mea
sure of union. It is pleasant to be supported by
my brethren in this good cause ; particularly so
to rae, who have communicated hitherto only
with Mr A. and with him I have not been able
to discuss the subject ofyour proposed subscrip
tion to the Thirty -nine Articles ofthe Church of
England, on account of the present very distress
ing state of his health As an individual, I have
fairly -and openly stated to you my opinion, from
which I cannot imagine that I shaU have any
reason to retract ; namely, that if this testimony
of your agreement with the Church of England
be given in the solemn way which you propose,
and our Thirty-nine Articles be thus made the
permanent confessional of the Scotch Episcopal
Church, there can be no objection to our union ;
nay, on the contrary, that our continuing in se
paration from you, cannot be justified on any
grounds which will bear the scrutiny of sound
ecclesiastical principles. Thus, Right Rev. Sir,
is ray decided judgraent formed, as you know,
after much serious and deliberate examination.
And this opinion you are at liberty to express
as mine, if it can be of any use on the present
Occasion. But, at the same tirae, I entreat you
to consider that I speak only as an individual.
I ara not authorized to speak for my brethren.
I have not as yet raade known my decision, and
the reasons upon which 1 have founded it, t®

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 33*7
those in whose spiritual welfare I am most con-
Perned, and who, I hope and trust, will act with
me. Of this solitary opinion I surrender the use
to your good sense, discretion, and friendship.
The tirae is approaching, I trust, when I shall be
able to say more ; but, at present, I presume the
object ofyour Convocation is raerely to give this
desirable testimony of your agreement with us,
in the hopes of that favourable result which
may justly be expected from such a declaration
on your part. When you have done this, I know
what I shall esteem it, in conscience, ray duty to
do ; and you of the Episcopal Church in Scot
land, whatever be the consequence, may say, li-
heravimus animas nostras."
On receipt of this the Primus immediately
made the following reply.

LETTER XXXVIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO DR SANDFORD,
" Aberdeen, Sept. 25. 1804-
" It is with very great satisfaction that I ob
serve what you have written, and written so em
phatically, on the subject of our proposed sub
scription of the Thirty-nine Articles, and of our
adopting them as the public and permanent con
fessional of our Church ; after which, you think
that there can be no objection to the so much
desired union. Y

338 ANNALS OF 1804.
" This, you say, is your ' decided judgment ;'
but you wish me to consider it as the judgment
of an individual only. To this wish I shall cer
tainly think it my duty to attend, and that the
more cheerfully on account of the vveight which
must bp aUowed to the judgment of such an in
dividual, — one who has given to the subject in
hand the most serious and impartial examination,
and been at pains to divest himself of every pre
judice which mighten tangle his view of it. He
who now sees it in this light, must be well qua
lified to represent it fairly to others, and I can
not but hope that due regard will be shewn to
his representation.
" As our Clergy are now naturally turning
their thoughts to the subject of the Thirty-nine
Articles, sorae of thera have suggested the pro
priety of a little alteration, particularly in the
seventeenth article, to free it from the absurd
Calvinistic sense which some of its subscribers
in England are daily forcing upon it. But, I fear,
that to subscribe the Articles in any amended
form, might be considered as not subst^ribing
thjem at all ; and, therefore, any observations
made with a view of illustrating the true sense
of them had better, in my opinion, be thrown
into a preamble to our form of subscription ; and
something of this kind seems peculiarly necessa
ry with regard to the thirty-fifth, thirty-sixth, and
thirty- seventh articles, which are all peculiar to
the Church of England, and therefore when sub-

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 339
scribed by us, can be considered only as articles
of union, whereby we express our approbation,
of what that Church has intended by them.
" I am just now preparing a discourse on the
subject of the Articles, from 2 Timothy i. 13.
iwhich I mean, God willing, to deliver as an in
troduction to the business of our meeting ; and
in which I shall endeavour to enforce the neces
sity of our ' holding forth St Paul's form of sound
* words, in the faith and love which he so pow-
* erfully recommends ; that is, with a firm faith
* in Christ, and a true Christian love to all the
* members of his mystical body.' In that love I
beseech you, my dear Sir, to believe that I have
a most fervent desire to co-operate with you, in
the pious and good work which is now engaging
your zeal and attentioHi May God enable you
to bring it to a happy conclusion, and bless you
evermore with his favour and loving kindness.
I shall be longing to hear again from you, and
have much more to say than I can write at pre
sent. It will always, however, give me pleasure
to say/with how much affection, esteem, and re
gard I am, and I trust in God shall ever be," &c.
On the eve ofthe Convocation, and when every
thing had been arranged between Bishop Skin
ner and his colleagues for conducting the im
portant business which they had in hand, he was
honoured witha communication from Edinburgh,
couched in language which, as it shewed the un-
Y 2

340 ANNALS OF 18®4.
precedehted interest taken by the highly valued
writer iri the welfare ^f our Church, had the ef
fect of instantly inducing the Primus to abandon
his intended preamble to the Articles, and, in
, coramon with the whole body of Bishops and
Clergy, to admire the modesty, exemplary zeal,
and profound judgment^ which dictated the con
tents of this interesting comraunication.
LETTER XXXVIIL
SIR WILLIAM FORBES, BART. TO BISIlPP SKINNER,
«' Edinburgh, 21st Oct8t)er 1804.
*' After a long tour in England, I arrived at
horae last night. This morning I have had the
pleasure of an interview with my very worthy.
friend Dr Sandford ; and it afforded me no ordi-
nary satisfaction to find his sentiments as strong
as ever in favour ofthe object we have so. much
at heart, an union of all ofthe Episcopal persua
sion in this country with the Episcopal Church in
Scotland. " In conformity with your wish, the Doctor.,
put into my hands your ample communication of
the 9th curt, on the subject of the Scottish
Church's adoption of the Thirty-nine Articles of
the Church" of England, in order to supply the
want ofa confessional, and I request your accep
tance of my grateful thanks for the honour you
do me, by \\ishing that 1 should see the pream-

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 341
ble *; which you think it may be necessary to pre
fix to your subscription of these Articles. I have
read the preamble, as well as the King's declara
tion prefixed to the Thirty-nine Articles, with all
possible attention. I have also had a good deal
bf conversation with Dr Sandford on this, head ;
and, as I perceive you are to hold a Convocation
at Laurencekirk next Wednesday on that sub
ject, I do not lose a day to communicate to you
what has occurred to me on this very important
point. " With regard to adopting the Thirty- nine Ar
ticles of the Church of England as a confession
al for the Episcopal Church in Scotland, I hope
I need not use many words to convince you that
I hold the honour and the dignity of our nation
al Church as high as any one can possibly do. I
know the Episcopal Church in this land to be in
dependent of, and equal to, any Church upon earth.
God forbid also that L should ever think of her
Bishops and Clergy subscribing Articles, which
in their hearts they do not approve. After hav
ing heard, however, what Dr Sandford said on
the head, I cannot but agree with hira in strongly
expressing my hope that your proposed preamble
may not be insisted on. It were the height of
presumption in me to think myself capable of
entering into the reasons for forming this opinion ;
nor is it at all necessary, because Dr. Sandford
tells me that he has fully explained himself on
* For this intended preamble, see Appendix, No. IL

342 ANNALS OF 1804.
the subject to Mr Walker, who is to be present
at the Convocation at Laurencekirk. I may„
however, merely go so far as to say, after read
ing over your preamble with all ppssible attention,
that although the purpose you had in view when
you drew it up be no doubt extremely laudable,
viz, the preventing any misconception ofthe seur
timents boldpn by the Episcopal Church in Scot
land in regard to certain of the Articlesj and al-
thpugh I do myself most cordially assent to every
word of what you have written, yet I doubt whe
ther that preamble, or indeed any preamble, could
be made to answer the purpose you have in view.
For I am afraid it is not within the compass of
human language, or in the power of human intel
lect, (in our present state of imperfeetion,) tp
frame an interpretation of such abstruse and dif
ficult points of theology, which shall not be liable
to objections of some sort or other ; because what
appears clear tp you* and to me at this moment,
may not be so to others. And even in the lapse
of time, human language itself becomes subject
to unavoidable and imperceptible changes, as has
happened, I verily believe, in the case of the
Thirty-nine Articles, Vide Dean Tucker on the
Quinquarticular Controversy.
" Perhaps, therefore, it will be best, (if you
feel that you can do it,) that the Articles be sub
scribed agreeably to the Act 1792, as they stand
in the service-book of the Church of England,
and prefaced as they therp are with the royal de-

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 343
claration; every subscriber explaining them to
himself, according to what seems most consonant
to the word of God, and according (as I believe)
to the practice in England, which I find will be
most agreeable to sorae of the Englisb ordained
Clergymen here, who in that manner did them
selves subscribe the Articles.
" But I beg pardon ; I feel that I am getting
out of myidepth, and that all which is necessary
for me to do is to refer you to the communica
tions that have passed between Mr Walker and
Dr Sandford on the subject. Requesting your
forgiveness for this long intrusion, and making
offer of my most respectful compliraents to those
fathers of the venerable Episcopacy of Scotland
to whom I have the honour of being known,
I remain, with much respect, regard, and es
teem," &c. &c.
" P.S. I shall wait with no ordinary anxiety
for the result of your deliberations in Convoca
tion next Wednesday."
As, through the uncommon accuracy and ar
rangement of the late venerable Primus, the
Annalist of Scottish Episcopacy has been en
abled thus far to carry on his narrative by the
most authentic documents, establishing the true
and unvarnished state of things as they occurred,
his purpose is to proceed by the same rule, and
sedulously to abstain from thrusting in either a.
sentiment or a word of his own, so long as he

344 ANNALS Of * 1804.
can, in the words of Bishop Skinnei', and of his
correspondents, put the reader in possession of
the different facts and circumstances which he
has undertaken to comraunicate. Apology is
certainly due, and, being due, is most humbly
and respectfully proffered, for thus subjecting
the hasty epistolary productions of the parties to
the public eye. But, in so doing, the Annalist
of the Scottish Episcopal Church throws himself
upon the clemency of her friends, and of the
friends of those with whose correspondence such
liberties are used ; for, being aware, that what
the Biographer of Bishpp Skinner is solicitous to
publish is truth, they must know that truth is
only to be sought for and acquired in the holo
graph productions of those who were iraraediate
actors with the Bishon in the scenes recorded.
A.
Hiraself a meraber of the Laurencekirk Convo
cation of 1804, the Annalist might here, if any
where, introduce his own statement of facts, and
his own view of measures ; but he forbears, anti
proceeds tb give, in Bishop Skinner's own words,
the history of his adoption of the Confessional
of the Church of England by her humble sister
Church in Scotland, The account is taken from
the Bishop's Journal of Transactions in the Scot
tish Episcopal Church during his administration,
and which the reader has been already informed,
the author of the Journal ordered to be preserv
ed among the archives of that Church.
' " In consequence of the/ summons issued by

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. Sl5

authority of the Bishops, there assembled at Lau
rencekirk, on the 21th of October 1«04, four Bi
shops, viz. Bishop Skinner, Bishop Macfarlane,
Bishop Watson, and Bishop Jolly, (the other
two, Bishop Abernethy Drummond and Bishop
Strachan being prevented from attending by old
age and infirmity,) and, ' together with these
Prelates, thirty-oight Presbyters, and two Dea
cons. They convened in the chapel at ten
o'clock, A.M, when the raorning-service was read
by Bishop Watson, as pastor ofthe Congregation
of Laurencekirk. After which the business of
the meeting was opened, in a discourse delivered
from the pulpit by Bishop Skinner ; which dis
course the Convocation afterwards required the
Bishop to print with all convenient speed, in or
der that it might be circulated by the Clergy for
the satisfaction of their people. No sooner had
the lay-members of the Congregation been dis
missed, than the meeting was solemnly pronoun
ced, by the Priraus, A Convocation ofthe Bishops
and Clergy of the Episcopal Church in Scotland,
regiilarly called for the purpose mentioned in the
intimation issued by the Bishops ; which purpose
was now to be entered upon with all the solemnity
due to the great and acknowledged importance
of it. The other Bishops having severally deliver
ed their opinions on the subject before thera,' in
terms most affectionately expressive of their anx
ious wishes for the satisfaction of the Clergy, and
for the accomplishment ofthe object they had in

346 ANNALS OF ' 1804.

view. Bishop Jolly made an address to the Con
vocation.* *' The Clergy were thea invited by the Pri
mus, as preses, ex officio, to declare their senti
ments in regard to the measure now proposed to
them J and if any of them had come prepared
to speak on the subject to which their attention
had been directed, they were assured by the Bi
shops that they would meet with a most patient
hearing, and their remarks with the most serious
consideration, there being nothing farther from
the intention of their ecclesiastical governors
than the imposing on the consciences of their
Cler^ any thing that did not meet with their
own fuU consent and hearty approbation.
*' On receiving this assurance, the Rev. Mr Skin
ner at Forfar requested permission to cpiote some
authorities, which he had been at pains to collect
from a few of the most approved writers of the
Churcb of England, -tending to shew, (and tbey
certaii\ly do shew in the most satisfactory man
ner,) that the Thirty-nine Articles of religion,
now adopted as the Confessional of this Church,
are neither Calvinistic, Antinomian, nor Pela
gian, but in all points agreeable to the revealed
word and wiU of God.
*' Having finished the reading of the extracts
which he held in his hand, Mr Skinner said :
* Impressed as I ara with the force of these opi-
* See Appendix, No. III.

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 347
* nions and arguments, which I have had the ho-
' nour of stating to this venerable audience, I"
' do now willingly, and, ex animo, consent to the
* adoption of the Articles of the United Church
' of England and Ireland, as the articles of re-
• ligion of the Churcb to which I belong ; ac-
* knowledging all and every one of them to be,
'¦ in my opinion, agreeable to the word of GotiJ
' For, after mature investigation, I find, that, to
* the Calvinist, the Articles declare tbe doctrine
• of universal redemgption ; to the Pelagian, they
* assert the existence of original or birth-sin;
' to the Antinomian they declare that good
? works are a sine qua non of salvation, though
* not the meritorious cause of it. To the Latitu-
* dinarian they avow, that ' they are to be accur-
' sed who presume to say, that every man shall
* be saved by the law or sect which he profes-
' seth, so that he be diligent to frame his life ac-
* cording to that law and the light of nature ;'
' while they teach the Romanist, that ' we are
' accounted righteous before God only for the
* merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ'
' by faith, and neither for our own works or de-
' servings, nor for the supererogatory works of
* saints.' " The question being now put, whether the
rest of the Clergy present agreed in this' senti
ment? After a few desultory remarks made by
some on the manifest expediency ofthe raeasure,
they all, according to seniority, answered in the

S48 ANNALS OF 1804.
affirraative ; and declared their readiness to snb-
scribe the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of
England in the forra and raanner required by the
Act of Toleration, passed anno 1792, entitied,
' An Act for granting relief to Pastors, Minis-
*i ters, and Lay-peFsons ofthe Episcopal Coramu-
' nion in Scotland. '
. " A large sheet of vellura having beenprovid-
ed for the occasion, the following preamble was
drawn up and engrossed iipon it : — ' We, the Bi
shops and Clergy of the Episcopal Church in Scot
land, assembled in a Convocation holden at Lau
rencekirk; in the. county of Kincardine, on the
24th day of October, in the year of our Lord
1804 ; having taken into our serious consideration
the obligation which we lie under, to provide, as
far as we are able, for the preservation of truth,
unity, and concord, in that small portion of the
Church committed to our charge; and having ob
served with regret, that, owing to the confusions
of the tiraes, and the various difficulties which the
Episcopacy of Scotland had to encounter, even
when established by law, no public Confession of
Faith has been prescribed, or handed down to us,
who have thought it our duty to adhere to that
ecclesiastical constitution, which we believe to be
truly apostolical ; — under these circumstances,
a-re unanimously Pf opinion, that it would be
highly expedient to exhibit some public testi
mony of our agreement in doctrine and disci
pline with the united Church of" England and

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 349
Ireland, as by law established, and, for that pur
pose, to give a solemn declaration of our asSent
to her Thirty-nine Articles of Religion! in the
words and form of subscription required by the
act of the 32d of his present Majesty, entitled
' An Act for granting relief to Ministers, Pas-
• tors, and Lay Persons of the Episcopal Commu-
' nion in Scotland,*
" Resolved, therefore, as we now are, by the
grace of Almighty God, to adopt these Articles
as the public test or standard of the religious
principles of our Church : —
" We, whose names are underwritten, the Bi
shops and Pastors of Congregations ofthe Epis
copal Communion in Scotland, meeting for divine
worship at the several places annexed to our re
spective names, do, wiUingly and ex animo, sub
scribe to the book of Articles of religion agreed
upon by the Archbisfeops and Bishops of both
provinces of the realm, of England, and the Cler
gy thereof, in the convocation holden at London
in the year of our Lord 1562; and we do ac
knowledge all and every the Articles therein
contained, being in number Thirty-nine, besides
the ratification, to be agreeable to the word of
God. And we, the subscribing Bishops, have
also resolved in future to require, from all candi
dates for holy orders in our Church, previously.
to their being ©tdained; a simUar. subscription.'
•' The Bishops and Clergy present immediate
ly subscribed, according to seniority, on this sheet

350 ANNALS OF 1804.
of vellum, which was committed to the Primus'
charge, to be by him lodged for preservation in
the Ecclesiastical chest at Aberdeen, and for the
purpose of receiving the subscription of the other
Bishops and Clergy that are or may be consecra
ted or ordained in the Scotch Episcopal Church.
" The measure of adoption and subscription
being thus cordiaUy and happily accomplished,
all that remained was to communicate, in the
most respectful raanner, the procedure of the
Convocation to the Archbishops and Bishops of
the 'United Church of England and Ireland ;—
which communication the Primus was requested
to make as soon as convenient. He accordingly
lost no time after the dissolution of the Cpnvo-
cation, in addressing by letter, of which a copy
is here inserted, each of the Archbishops and
Bishops of England, including the Bishop of
Spdor and Man, and the Archbishop of Armagh,
as Primate of the Church in Ireland : —
" My Lord,
" The Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal
Church in Scotland, having lately held a Gene
ral Meeting for the purpose of exhibiting a pub
lic testiraony of their conformity in doctrine and
discipline jwith the United Church pf England
and Ireland, they unanimously resolved to give a
solemn declaration of their assent to her Thirty-
nine Articles of Religion ; which was done ac
cordingly in the form or words of the subscrip-

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 351
tion required by the Act in the 32d of his present
Majesty, entitled, • An act for granting relief
? to Pastors, Ministers, and Lay Persons of the
' Episcopal Communion in Scotland ;* the Bi
shops having also signed a resolution to require
from^ aU candidates for holy orders, in their
Church, a similar subscription.
" A measure so expressive of our earnest de
sire to promote the true knowledge and salutary
influence of those religious principles by which
the United Church of England and Ireland is so
happily distinguished, we deemed it our duty to
comraunicate, in the most respectful manner, to
the Prelates of that Church ; and as senior Bi
shop of our small society, I was requested to make
this dutiful communication of the sentiments en
tertained by those with whom I am officially con
nected. " In their name, therefore, and with the most
profound respect and yeneration for your Lord
ship's exalted character. I have the honour to
be," &c.
..^' The Hon. Dr Lindsay, Bishop of Kildare,
having been in Scotland, his native country, at
the time ofthe Convocation, the Primus wrote
also to his Lordship, and soon after to all the
other Prelates of the Church of Ireland. To
these letters, returns in due time arrived, from
the Bishops of Winchester, London, Salisbury,
Worcester, Ely, Ppterborough, Chester, Chiches-

352 ANNALS OF 1804.
ter, Carlisle, Bristol, Gloucester, Exeter, Bangor,
and Llandaff, in England ; and from the Arch
bishop of Dublin, and the Bishops of Kildare,
KiUala, Ossory, Clonfert, and Dromore in Ire
land, — ^all expressing sentiments of the most
friendly regard for the Episcopal Church in Scot
land, and for her prosperity."
The Bishop of Salisbury, Dr Douglas,, says,
*' I flatter myself it will have, very happy conse
quences, and be the means of inducing all the
Ministers of Episcopal Congregations in Scot
land to acknowledge and submit to the jurisdic
tion of the Scotch Bishops."
The B shop of Ely, Dr Yorke, after mention-,
ing receipt ofBishop Skinner's letter, adds: " It
wUl, I doubt not, be productive of great satisfac
tion to ray brethren, as it iS .to rayself, to be pos
sessed of so decisive, so authentic a testimonial
of such perfect harmony of sentiments, as is
expressed in it, between the two Episcopal
churches. With my earnest prayers for our mu
tual prosperity, I subscribe rayself, with great
sincerity and respect, your faithful brother," &c.
The Bishop of Winchester, Dr Nortlj, writes
thus : — " I am honoured by your valuable com-
munidation concerning the Episcopal Church in
Scotland. I have ever retained a high respect
for that Church, for the very respectable cha
racter of its Clergy, and for your own in parti
cular. Every increase of union in the Christian
church is matter of great satisfaction to me, and.

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 353
as such, I receive very sensible pleasure frora
the intelligence conveyed to rae in your letter.
I beg you to accept of ray thanks for it, and to
be assured thai; I reraain, with the highest re
spect," &c.
The Bishop of Chester, Dr Majendie, after
mentioning the comraunication raade to him,
concludes thus : " It wiU doubtiess prove highly
gratifying to every Prelate ofthe United Church
of England and Ireland, to be assured of the de
claration of conforraity to her excellent doc
trines and form of discipline, from so venerable
a body of men, and to learn that a similar de
claration will be required of those who may here
after become candidates among you for holy or
ders. I have the honour to subscribe myself,
your obliged and affectionate brother," &c.
The Bishop of Gloucester, Dr Huntingford,
baving expressed his anxiety for maintaining
unity in the church catholic, adds as follows :
*' The resolution which you have kindly impart
ed to me, passed, as it is, by a body whom I ho
nour and revere, appears to rae well calculated
for rendering more firm the United Church of
England and Ireland. Your conforraity to its
doctrine and discipline will be the occasion of
disserain ating, raore widely, opinions favourable
, to its principles and practice, — the operation pf
which will be, more extensive attachment.
" I request you to thank my Right Reverend

S5-it ANNALS OF 1804.
brethren in Scotland for this judicious and pious
act of consideration towards our estabUshed
Church ; and allow me to say, I was particularly
gratified in receiving the comraunication from
you, whose narae and writings had before conci
liated ray esteem. I ara," &c,.
The Bishop of Exeter, Dr Fisher, writes, that
he " feels a high degiree of satisfaction from the
late declaration ofthe Bishops and Clergy ofthe
Episcopal Church in Scotland, being clearly of
opinion that the interests of that Church will be
greatly proraoted thereby."
The Bishop of Carlisle, now Archbishop of
York, Dr Vernon, " sincerely hopes that the
measure which the Episcopal Church in Scotland
has adopted, will be productive of all the advan
tages which raay fairly be expected frora it."
The Bishop of Peterborough, Dr Madan, con
siders it "as an event which cannot fail to com
fort and gladden the heart of eyery well-wisher
and cordial friend to the Christian cause,"
The Bishop of Bristol, Dr Pelham, " takes the
first opportunity, after receipt of. his letter, of
assuring Bishop Skinner, how much satisfaction
he received in perusing its contents, by giving
him that proof of unanimity, which he trusts no
thing will interrupt" — subscribing hiraself " the
Bishop's affectionate brother,"
The letter of Dr Buckner, Bishop of Chiches
ter, the Annalist gives entire : —

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 555

LETTER XXXIX.
THE BISHOP OP CHICHESTER TO BISHOP SKINNEfe.
^ " Chichester House, Nov, 20. 1804.
" Reverend Brother,
" I sincerely participjtte in the satisfaction
which the Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal
Church in Scotland express, at the closer con
nection they have formed with the United
Church of England and Ireland, by adopting
our established formulary of faith ; and I hope
and trust, that a work which has apparently taken
twelve years to accomplish, will prove of essen
tial service to the general interests of true reli
gion in this kingdpm.
" Tu aOTiS CTOtyfi icLviri, — ro ctUTo fgoHTi' are apos-
tolical directions; and while we agree in ar
ticles of belief, may we all harmonize in moral
Conduct, and be av/^-^vxa in brotherly love.
" With real respect for your venerable frater-
bity, I am," &Ci

In addition to theSe endearing testimonies of
brotherly regard from English Prelates of ac*
knowledged worth, piety, and learning, the an
swers returned by the Irish Bishops speak a lan
guage equally grateful to the Scottish Episcopate.
The Lord Viscount Somerton, Archbishop of
Dublin, expresses very great Sa,tisfaction on
hearing ofa " circumstance which cannot fail to"
z2

556 ANiJALs OF 1804.
proraote the true 'knowledge, and salutary influ
ence, of those religious principles which are now
held in comraon by the Churches of England,
„ Scotland, and Ireland."
The Bishop pf Clonfert, Dr Beresford, ob
serves, that " conforraity in doctrine and disci
pline with the United Church of England and
Ireland, so publicly testified by the Episcopal
Church in Scotland, must be to us a source of
much congi'atulation ; and the very marked and
respectful manner in which the information has
been comrauhicated, has, I ara persuaded, made
no unacceptable impression."
" In respect to myself, with the profoundest
respect and truest brotherly affection towards you
and the venerable body of which, on this occa
sion, you are the worthy and distinguished prolo
cutor, I have the honour to be," &c, &c.
The Bishop of KiUala, Dr Stock, is " thankful
to the divine goodness, that an end is at last put
to a separation between two reformed Churches
agreed in all essential articles of faith, and dif
fering only in political opinions of inferior and
transitory importance. Whoever," adds he, " has
studied the history of Scotiand at the period of
the Revolution in 1688, will see, with deep re
gret, how easy it would have been, with due ma-
nageraent and Christian teihper on the part of
the principal actors of the times, to have main
tained that country in as close agreemen,t with
England in Church-government as in civil,"

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 357
The letter of the Bishop of Kildare, Dr Lind
say, breathes so much the spirit of a Scotchman,
that the Annalist trusts his Lordship will pardon
him for gratifying the friends of Spottish Epispo*
pacy with the whole of it.
LETTER XL.
THE BISHOP OF KILDARE TO BISHOP SKINNEB.
" Dublin, Dec. 28, 1804..
'.* Right Rev, Sir,
" Your letter of the 19th November, much as
it flattered my feelings as your countryman and
as a member of a family * formerly in intimate
connection with'your portion of the Church, gave
rae, at the same time. Some uneasiness; for I
was apprehensive that you intended to limit your
comraunication in these parts to his Grace the
Lord Primate of all Ireland and myself; thereby
addressing each of us separately frpm the Unit
ed Church of England and Ireland.
" The circular letter, which has since been
distributed to the Prelates of this part of the
united kingdom, and, as far as I can judge at
•present, with abundant gratulation, has removed
this uneasiness ; and, with grateful thanks to you.
Right Reverend Sir, and tc the rest of the Bi
shops and Clergy of the Episcopal Church in
Scptland for the early communication of your
* The family of Balcarras,

358 ANNALS op 1804.
resolutions with which I have been honoured, I
beg permission to rejoice in an event which esta
blishes the entire union, and secures the consist
ency of the united Churches of England, Scot
land, and Ireland.
" With sentiments pf thp raost sincere respect
for you, the senior Bishop of our npw happily
reunited Church in Scotland, I have the honour
to remain," &c.
The measure of subscription of the Articles
being thus harmoniously accomplished, and most
cordially approved by the English and Irish
hierarchy, one naturally looks for the gopd effepts
prophesied to result from it ; and closely indeed
did they follow the Laurencekirk Convocation,
sinpe not a month elapsed frora that date, when
an English ordaiiied Clergyraan in the city of
Edinburgh, w4iose mental and moral endownients
made hira an acquisition to any Church, having
pompletely prepared himself and his flock for this
important part of Christian duty, addressed the
following most agreeable tidings to the Scottish
Primus : — LETTER XLI.
¦ REV, dr. sandford to BISHOP SKINNER.
" Edinburgh, Nov. 19, 1804.
f I consider this as one of the happiest days of

1804. SCOTTISH IJPISCOPACV, 359
my life. 1 have to day, in presence of the Rev.
Mr Walker and the Rev. Mr Adam, subscribed
the Articles which unite me and my flock to your
venerable Church, 1 am exceedingly glad to tell
you, that my little paper has been received with
the greatest good-will.* Not a dissenting voice
have I heard. Those of ray subscribers and hear
ers with whora I have conversed, and from whom
I have received letters upon the occasion, have,
with one voice, approved of our union. I hope
every thing is done as you would wish, and that
I may now be considered as one ofyour Clergy,
and as such receive your licence to my charge.
I wait with sorae irapatience your acceptance of
my subscription. And am," &c.
To this interesting communication the reader
will not entertain a doubt, that the return made
by Bishop Skinner was alike satisfactory as it was
speedy ; and that the commencement of Episco
pal union in the Scottish metropolis wals raatter
of general gratulation araong all the friends of
Ecclcsiastical tenets and concord on this side of
the Tweed,
Eventful as the year 1804, (now drawing to
wards its closej had proved to the Episcopacy
* For this unanswerable paper, containing the motives which
determined the writer's conduct, and v/hich was drawn up in
order to satisfy his people of the benefits to be derived from an
union 'with the Scotch Episcopal Cliurch, see Appendix,
No. IV. where the Articles of Union will also be found. No. V.

360 - ANNALS OP 1804.
of Scotland, and occupied, as throughout, the
Primus' thoughts had been with the transactions
of the year, he received no sraall gratification
from the last letter which this year brought him
from England on the subject of union, inasmuch
as it spoke a hinguage level to every capacity, and
not to be gainsaid by any man who professes him
self an Episcopalian,
The amiable Bishop Porteous, to whora, as Bish
op of London, the British Colonies, and, at one
period, the English ordained Clergy in Scotland,
looked with diocesan respect and submission, had,
in his letter to Bishop Skinner, of date Novem
ber 12, 1804, simply expressed himself thus : —
" I am very well pleased to find that you and
your brethren have raade a declaration of your
assent to the Thirty-nine Articles of religion of
the Church of England, and beg leave to return
you my thanks for the comraunication of the
measure so expressive of your earnest desire to
promote the trueknowledge and salutary influence
of those religious principles by which the united
Church of England and Ireland is so happUy dis
tinguished," But in the following letter addres
sed to Bishop Skinner by his Lordship's doraes-
tic chaplain and near relative, the worthy Prelate
speaks his sentiraents on the subject of Scottish
Episcopal union in a manner as authoritative as
circumstances would permit.

1804. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 36l
LETTER XLIL
'rev. EDWARD HODGSON TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" Fulham Palace, Dec. 10, 1804.
" I cannot forbear expressing to you how hap
py I have been raade by hearing frora the Bishops
of Londou aud Lincoln, that the Scottish Episco
palians have publicly assented to the Thirty-nine
Articles of our Church. Many happy effects, I
trust, wUl flow frora this measure ; and first and
foremost, that which you have felt such a laudable
anxiety to bring about, from the tirae I first had
the pleasure of being known to you* viz. the un
ion of the two bodies ofEpiscopalians resident in
Scotland. My good patron shewed rae, some few
weeks back, a letter which he had written to Sir
William Forbes of Edinburgh, the principal topic
of which I was perfectly foreign to this business,
but he afterwards mentions and gives his senti
ments fully respecting the union, sentiraents so
very different from those which, in your quarter,
his Lordship has been represented to entertain on
the subject, that I requested he would permit me
to copy what he said, that I might comraunicate
it to you. His Lordship kindly coraplied, and I
give you the extract as follows : —
•' In the mean whUe, I wiU say a fe\fr words
respecting Dr Sandford's letter which you enclos
ed, and which contains a very concise and able

362 ANNALS OF 1804.
statement ofthe unfortunate difference subsist
ing between the Scottish Episcopal Clergy and
tbe English Clergy settled in Scotland, I have
no hesitation in saying, that as the Scottish Bish
ops have now made a declaration of their assent
to the Thirty-nine Articles ofthe Church of Eng
land, and offer the English Clergy the use of
their own Eucharistical Liturgy, there seems to be
no reasonable objection to an union of those twp
bodies ; and I am persuaded that such an union
would conduce greatly to the interests of religion
in that part of the united kingdom, because it
would restore what is extremely wanted there,
the benefit of Episcopal superintendence,— the
benefit of a licensed Clergy, — the apostolical
rite of Confirmation, — and the consecration of
their places of public worship, — which things are
all plainly necessary to constitute and preserve a
regular Episcopal Church.
" The union, therefore, of the English and
Scottish Episcopal Clergy, appears to me a de
sirable object. But as it can only be effected
by the full and free consent of both parties,' as
neither the one nor the other can possibly be
forced into it, the only raeans that can or ought
to be used to bring it about, are arguraent, per
suasion, Christian charity, and Christian forbear
ance ; abstaining carefuUy from all harsh language
and invidious names, which tend only to irritate
and provoke, and to widen the breach instead of
healing it."

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 363
" Such are the sentiraents ofthe Bishop of Lon
don, which I think ypu will be gratified to hear.
Bearing in raind the pleasant raanner in which I
spent the holidays at Aberdeen, Christmas 1801,
I beg to be kindly remembered to all your family ;
and wishing the Christmas 1804 may be equaUy
joyous, I am," &c.
1805^.3 The year 1805 coraraenced no less
auspiciously than the preceding year had con
cluded. The friends of union raultiplied every
where, and gladdened the hearts of its zealous
promoters in England as well as in Scotland.
Congratulatory letters were poured in on Bishop
Skinner from each side of the Tweed, on the suc
cess of his labours, and on the rapid progress of
Ecclesiastical unity and order,now to receive such
jadditional sanction and support, as made their
speedy consummation, in the Scottish metropo
lis, a matter no longer of doubt but of certainty.
On the 26th of February 1805, a regular deed
was drawn up by the trustees and vestrymen of
the English Episcopal Chapel in Edinburgh, ori
ginally founded by the Right Hon. Lord Chief
Baron Smith, acknowledging the Episcopal
Church in Scotland to be a pure and primitive
part ofthe orthodox church of Christ, and bind
ing the subscribers to pay that spiritual obedi
ence to the Episcopacy of Scotland, which the
members of Episcopal Congregations owe to their
spiritual superiors. Before, however, submitting

364 ANNALS OF 1805.
this valuable document to the reader's perusal,
the Annalist would .be wanting in duty to de
parted worth, and to the best lay friend whom
the Scottish Episcopal Church, (amongst all the
sons which she had brought forth,) had for a
century seen, were he to orait noticing a corres
pondence re-opened on the I5th of February
1805, between the late Sir Williain Forbes, Bart.
and the venerable administrator of the eofclesias- '
ticai law in England, on the subject of the last
remaining obstacle in the way of union, yiz.
" whether English ordained Clergymen in Scot
land, by uniting with the Scottish Bishops,
rendered themselves incapable of church pre
ferment in England ; or, in the event of holding
such preferment at the time of their union, whe
ther they endangered its continuanpe by such a
measure ?" The worthy Baronet, after entering
minutely into some individual cases, which ren
dered hira particularly anxious for a -favourable
solution of the 'above queries, concludes his letter
thus : " I owe many apologies for this long intru
sion, but the very great condescension with which
you were pleased to receive my last letter, on this
important and serious subject, emboldens me
to trespass on your tirae, as I ara extreraely
anxious that you should be rightly informed of
the true state of the matter, for I think it very
likely that the new Archbishop may wish to con-j
fer with you on this head.
" Indeed I could even wish, to presume one

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. '305
i step farther on your goodness, by taking the li
berty of asking your advice, in what shape the
Vestry of oiy Chapel, who^have the sole manage
ment of its temporal concerns, as well as the no
mination > of the Clergymen officiating, might
have the means Of arriving at the knowledge of
the sentiments of the new Priraate on the raea
sure of union among the Episcopalians in Scot
land. We were thinkuig whether it would be
deemed too great presumption on our part, if we
were to state to his Grace, ina short memoir, the
situation of the English ordained Clergy in this
country, with a view of learning in what light
they will be considered by the Church of Eng
land on their joining in communion, while they
remain in Scotland, with the Scotch Bishops —
saving that obedience which those who do hold
livings in Scotland, owe to their English dioce
sans ; and with a reservation of the same obedi
ence, should they afterwards obtain any prefer
ment on the other side of the Tweed, to the
holding of- which, it is hoped, that such union
would be no bar. May I hope that, when you
have a leisure moraent; if any such you ever have
frora your numerous and iraportant avocations^
you wiU honour rae with a few words on this in
teresting subject."
As seven months elapsed before the eminent
legal authority, to whom these interrogatories
were put, could satisfactorily reply to them, the
reader wiU be at no loss in perceiving the reason

366 ANNALS OF 1805.
why the Vestrymen of, the Cowgate chapel, and
its junior Clergyman, had piously submitted
tbpmselves to the spiritual jurisdiction of the
Scottish Episcopate, before the senior Clergy
man, although approving of the measure with
equal cordiality, found himself at liberty to do
the same. Hence the Annalist, bound, as he is,
to pay the most scrupulous attention to dates,
is obliged to record their respective submissions
at different periods ; and, first of all, to insert the
deed transmitted by the Trustees and Vestrymen
of the Cowgate Chapel to the Primus ofthe Epis
copal College in Scotland, as their interim dio
cesan, — Bishop Abernethy Drummond havings
some short time before, resigned the see of Edin
burgh for that of Glasgow.

*' To the Right Reverend Bishop John Skinner,
Primus of the Episcopal Church in Scotland.
" Right Reverend Sir,
" We, Sir William Nairne of Duusinnan, Bart.
one of the Senators of the College of Justice, and
one of the Lords Commissioners of Justiciary,—*
Alexander Fraser Tytler of Woodhouselee, one
of the Senators of the CoUege of Justice, — Sir
WiUiam Forbes of Pitsligo, Bart.— R. E. Phi
lips, Esq. one of the Commissioners of his Ma
jesty's Customs for Scotiand, — John Smyth, Esq.
of Balharryj-'Robert Jamieson, Writer to the

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 367
Signet,— 'and John Hutton, Superintendent of
Water for the City of Edinburgh, Trustees and
Vestrymen of the English Episcopal Chapel in
Edinburgh, originaUy founded by the Right Hon,
John Smith, late Lord Chief Baron of his Majes
ty's Court of Exchequer in Scotland, being desi
rous of uniting ourselves in comraunion with the
venerable reraains of the ancient Episcopal Church
of Scotland, of whose Bishops the succession has
been continued without interruption by you.
Right Reverend Sir, and your brethren, ever since
she ceased to be the national Church of Scotland.
We therefore do hereby declare for ourselves, that
we acknowledge the Episcopal Church in Scot
land to be a pure and primitive part of the Or
thodox Church of Christ, of which we are desir
ous of being held to be members. And we, for
ourselves, do hereby prpmise to pay that spirit
ual obedience to you. Right Reverend Sir, ^nd
your brethren, which the merabers of any Chris
tian Congregation owe to their spiritual superiors;
saving always the respect which we owe to the
national Church of this part of the united king
dom as by law established, and whose rights, as
far as temporal matters are concerned, we are
bound, as good subjects to acknowledge; andre-
serving to ourselyes the exclusive use, as long as
we shall choose, of the Litui'gy or Service-book as
used at present in the Church of England.
" We most fervently pray for the preservation

368 ANNALS OF 1805.
and prosperity of the ancient Episcopal Church
of Scotland. And we remain," &c;
(Sighed) " Wm. Nairne,
Alex. Fraser Tytler,
William Forbes,
K. E. Philips,
John Smyth,
Robert Jamieson,
John Hutton.
« Jldinburgh, 26th February 1805."
. The above interesting paper being transmitted
by Sir William Forbes to Bishop Skinner, ac
companied with a most friendly letter from the
Baronet himself, and containing sentiraents not
more grateful to the Bishop to hear, than ther
terras in which the deed of submission was framed,
appeared to hira appropriate and judicibus. He,
on the 7th March 1805, addressed a letter to Sir
WilUara in return, of which the following is a -
transcript.
LETTER XLIIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO SIR WM. FORBES, BART.
•' By your raost agreeable and obliging com
munication now before me, I observe, with heart
felt satisfaction, the progress that has been made
in the pious and good work which has so long oc
cupied yOur attention. My mind is also deeply
impressed with a just sense of the honour done
me, by the condescending manner in ?vhich you

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 369
have been pleased to express the sentiments en
tertained of ray conduct in this affair, by the
worthy raerabers of the Vestry ofyour thapel to
whom I beg leave, by your means, to offer my
very sincere and respectful acknowledgments,
" The same returns of gratitude 1 may take
upon me to present in name of all the Bishops
and Clergy with whom I am officially connected,
sensible as they must be of the great advantage
which the Episcopacy of Scotland cannot fail to
derive frora the countenance of gentlemen of
such distinguished station and character.
" The cordial manner in which these gentle
men have borne testiraony to the purity of the
Scottish Episcopal Church, and declared their
good wishes for its preservation and prosperity,
may be expected to produce the happiest effects
in exciting the Clergy of that Church to use their
utmost endeavours for accomplishing the object
of the pious wishes of yourself and friends. As
far as ray feeble efforts can be of any use iri pro
moting that object, you may depend on their
being faithfully employed in whatever way shall be
thought raost likely to render Scottish Episcopa
cy both permanent and prosperous.
" As you give me full Uberty to make the best
use I can of the valuable paper intrusted to my
care, I shall esteem it ray duty to do every jus
tice to its good intention, and much good I Jrust
may be expected frora it, more indeed than from
any thing of th^ kind which has happened to our
A a

370 ANNALS OF 1805.
Church since it was reduced fo its present situa
tion. Yet who can account for the force of pre
judice, or say with certainty that good will al
ways follow even where the best examples lead
the way.
." I am much obliged to you for sending me a
copy of your excellent letter to Sir William Scott, " *
which, I would fain hope will have the desired
effect in procuring from the highest authority
such an opinion on the points submitted to con
sideration, as will satisfyjMr A  and others on
the sarae footing with him, of their perfect safety
in uniting, whUe they reside in Scotland, with our
Church.' " The saving clause towards the end of your
declaration bears a Jvery proper testimony in
deed to the respect that is due frora all good
subjects to the national estabUshnient, whose
'teraporal rights ought undoubtedly to be acknow
ledged, and are never called in question by those
of the Episcopal persuasion.
" I again entreat, that you will do me the fa
vour of assuring the gentlemen of your Vestry of
the raost perfect esteera and regard w,hich I en
tertain for them, and of my fervent prayers to
Almighty God for their comfort and happiness ,
both here and hereafter ; while, with every sen
timent of grateful attachment to yourself, dear
Sir, I have the honour to be," &c.
At this period there was ho junior clergyman

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. Slfl
in the collegiate charge of the Cowgate Episco
pal Congregation in Edinburgh. In the follow
ing month, however. Bishop Skinner was ap
prized, by his truly zealous correspondent Sir
William Forbes, that " the Rev. Robert More-
head, an English ordained clergyraan, at present
pastor of the Episcopal Chapel at Leith, having
resolved to submit to the spiritual authority of the
Scottish Bishops, had been elected by the Vestry
ofthe Cowgate Chapel to be their junior Clergy
man. You wiU, therefore," adds the good Ba
ronet, '• give directions to Dr Sandford, or to
any of your Clergy here, to receive, from Mr
Morehead a similar declaration to that which was
subscribed by Dr Sandford. I most heartily con
gratulate both you and myself on this pleasing,
event, because, I trust, it will be productive of
farther accessions to our Church." To this agree
able information, it was repUed by Bishop Skin
ner, that Sir William's kind comraunication com
ing to the Bishop's hand on Easter morning,
added greatly to the comforts of that happy day ;
that although the Bishop had no opportunity of
hearing any thing farther of Mr Morehead than
his settiement at Leith, he had the greatest con-
fidence in the choice of such exceUent judges as
the very respectable raerabers of the Cowgate
Vestry ; and that he would, with much pleasure,
write to Dr Sandford on the subject, and request
that he would be sp good as comraune with Mr
Morehead in re^rd to the proper manner of tes-
A a2

372 ANNALS OF 1805.
tifying his union with the Scotch Episcopal
Church, by such a declaration as the Doctor him
self subscribed for that purpose.
Accordingly, on the 30lh of April 1805, the
foUowing declaration,' subjoined in the declarant's
own handwriting to a copy of the Articles of
Union, framed by the Bishops of the Scottish
Episcopal Church, was transmitted by Dr Sand
ford to Bishop Skinner : — " At Edinburgh, the
30th day of April 1805, I Robert Morehead, or
dained Deacon by the Lord Bishop of Salisbury,^
and Priest by the Lord Bishop of Salisbury, do
hereby testify and declare my entire approbation
and acceptance of the foregoing Articles as terms
of union with the Scottish Episcopal Church, and
oblige rayself to comply with and fulfil the same
with all sincerity and diligence. In testimony
whereof, I have written and subscribed this my
acceptance and obligation, to be delivered into
the hands of the Right Reverend John Skinner,
Priraus of the Episcopal College, as my diocesan
and ecclesiastical superior during the present va
cancy ofthe diocese of Edinburgh ; before these
witnesses, the Rev. Dr Sandford and the Rev.
Alexander Allan, both Clergymen of the said
diocese, specially called for the purpose.
" Robt. Morehead."
Ever eager to testify the happiness -which such
tidings imparted, the Priraus allowed not a post
to leave Aberdeen, after receipt of the above,

1805. SCOTTISH episcopacy. 173
without conveying to the very respectable Cler
gyman, whose"signature is here affixed, the sense
he entertained of his laudable conduct.

LETTER XLIV,
BISHOP SKINNER TO THE REV. ROBERT MOREHEAD.
« Aberdeen, May 4-, 1805. ^
" I have this day had the pleasure of a letter
frora Dr Sandford, enclosing your subscription of
our Articles of Union, and an attested copy of
your letters of orders ; both of which I have re
ceived with very great satisfaction, as a testimony
of your laudaible regard for the raaintenance of
ecclesiastical unity and order. I have also been
informed by Sir William Forbes ofyour having
been elected by the Vestry of the Chapel to
which he belongs, to be their junior Clergyraan;
which election I have no doiibt will be highly a-
greeable to all the members of our Episcopal Col
lege, as well as to the person who shall be after
wards appointed to the particular charge of the
diocese of Edinburgh.
" In the mean time, as respresenting your dio
cesan, and in name of my Right Re.verend CoL
leagues, I most heartily wish ypu all success in
your ministry, and fervently pray that God may
bless your labours to his own glory, and to the
comfort and edification of the people comrait
ted to your charge. I comraend you most sin-

374) ANNALS OF 1805.
cerely to the 'guidance and direction of God's
holy spirit. And 1 am," &c.
It was deemed by the Primus, and the Episco
pal College in Scotland at large, not a little sur
prising, that the stanch and zealous friend of
Scottish Episcopacy, the learned Bishop Hors
ley, did not, along with his Right Reverend bre
thren of the English Bench, pay the wishedfor
regard to the comraunication ^ade to him ofthe
proceedings of the Laurencekirk Convocation.
The following letter contains an ample apology
for his silence at that period ; and shews that the
interest which he had the goodness to take in
the measure of Episcopal union remained unim
paired,
LETTER XLV.
BISHOP HORSLEY TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" York Place, March 28, 1805.
" I have to make . ray apologies to you for
hot having sooner acknowledged the satisfaction
which I received frora your excellent work upon
Primitive Truth and Order, which I read raore
than once with the greatest pleasure; and I thank
you very earnestly for so valuable a present. I
must account for some apparent neglect in other
instances, which, however, has been only appa
rent.

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 375
", I received, with the greatest satisfaction,
your notificatiop of the union which has taken
place in Edinburgh and elsewhere ; a raeasure
which wipe's off frora the English Clergy the ira-
putation of schisra, araisprision of schisra at least;
and I hope wiU be of great advantage to the in
terests of Episcopacy in Scotland, and of the
Christian religion in general. But at the time
that I received it, my mind was too much dis
tracted with the, distressed situation of rayfaraUy
to write upon any subject.*
" Another piatter, in which I may seera raore
unpardonable, is, ^hat I have yet done nothing
in the business you comraitted to rae about the
expence of the law-suit. The fact is, that I was
out of town when I received the application. My
physicians having sent rae to the sea-side to re
cover frora the effects of a vehement bUious fe
ver, which came upon rae in the spring, and left
me indeed for a long time very Ul qualified for
business. But had I been in perfect health, I felt
that nothing could be done at that season, while
I was out of town myself, and all the Bishops dis
persed, " I think sorae circurastances that have lately
happened are raore favourable to the application
than an earlier period would have been ; and
when the circumstances of ray faraily perrait me
to appear again in public, I shall try what c^n
* Mrs Horsley was then on her death-bed, and but just a-
live, ¦when the good Bishop -wrote the above.-7-ANNALisT,

376 "^ ANNALS OF 1805.
be done, I reraain, my dear Sir, your affection
ate brother," &c.
The nature pf the lawsuit, to which Bishop
Horsleyalludes, and the consequent application
to him, which he treats with such characteristic
benevolence, the reader wUl best comprehend by
being at once put in possession of the statement,
drawn up by the parties aggrieved, and laid be
fore the woiihy Bishop of St Asaph and other
friends of Scottish Episcopacy, on both sides of
the Tweed,
" Your Lordship requires not to be informed,
that there exists in Scotland a body of individuals
which composes the sraall remnant of what was
the Established Church of this part of the unit
ed kingdora before the Revolution in 1688, and
between which and the Church of England there
is a perfect coincidence in doctrine, discipline,
and worship. Soon after the Revolution, such
merabers of the deprived Church as favoured
that event, and preserved their attachment to
Episcopalian principles, formed themselves, in
several places, into congregations, and invited
Clergymen frora England or Ireland to be their
pastors, as their attendance on their forraer pas
tors had becorae exceedingly dangerous, for well ,
known political reasons.
" By this means two distinct bodies of Episco
paUans were formed in Scptland ; the one coU'

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 377 •
aisting of the Congregations of the deprived and
ijonjuring Church ; the other of the Congrega
tions aUuded to, who gave to their places of pub
lic worship the natae of EngUsh Chapels. Since
the deprived Episcopal Church of Scotiand ceas
ed to be non-jurant, several of those English
Chapels have been re-united to her Comraunion.
A re-union of this nature took place a few years
ago between the Scottish and English Chapels in
the town of Banff,* with the consent and appro^
bation of all parties concerned, one solitary indi
vidual excepted. Captain David Curaraing, of his
Majesty's marine service, residing in Banff.
" This gentleman contended, that the coali
tion of the two Chapels had been productive of
an abandonraent of the principles in support of
which the EngUsh Chapel had been erected ; and,
in proof of this allegation, insisted, that the Scot
tish Bishops are no bishops, because they preside
over a Church which wants the sanction of civil
establishment ; that the Episcopal Church in
Scotland denies the King's supremacy, because
she teaches that the Church of Christ is, in its
own nature, a society independent on every earth
ly power ; that she retains the Popish doctrines
of purgatory and transubstantiation, because, in
her Coraraunion-office, she commemorates the
faithful departed, and prays that the Eucharistic
elements may becorae, what the Redeemer called
them, ' his body and his blood,' in representation
* See above, page 242.

378 ANNALS OP 1805.
and in efficacy ; and that she excludes aU, except
her own members, frora the hope of salvation ;
because one of her Clergy printed some extracts
from the Archdeacon of Sarura's * Guide,' with
the view of evincing the Apostolic institution of
the Episcopal regimen.
" When Captain Curaraing saw, that he could
make no impression on the members ofthe unit
ed chapels, by these strange and unfounded asser
tions, he raised a process, in order to procure, by
the sentence ofthe tribunals of justice, that dis
solution of their union which he despaired of ac
complishing by any thing which he could urge
against it. The cause being brought before the
Lord Ordinary of the Court of Session, was de
cided in favour ofthe members ofthe united Cha
pels, the defenders, owing in part to the friendly
support which it received frora the abilities of
Robert Dundas, of Arniston,|Esq., then Lord Ad
vocate for Scotland," now Lord Chief Baron of
his Majesty's Exchequer.
, " But although, in this novel and unprece
dented contest. Captain Cumraing's opposers
have prevailed, yet has their victory been attend
ed with a great accuraulation of expense in law
charges, &c. now forming a sum not less than two
hundred pounds Sterling !
" This sum, the members ofthe united Chapels
feel to be a load of debt which they are perfectly
unable to discharge from their very Umited funds,
before scarcely adequate to afford a decent main-

1805 SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 379
tenance to their pastor, — Hence, frora your Lord
ships well known attachraent to thpse pure and
primitive principles, which distinguish their poor
reduced Church in comraon with that in which
your Lordship so ably fills the high station of a
spiritual father, do the Pastor and managers of
the united Chapels in Banff rely on your friendly ,
exertions in procuring thera a little pecuniary aid
in their present distressing and singular case;
and they shall ever pray," &c.
No sooner did the circurastancesof the worthy
Bishop of St Asaph's faraily perrait hira to attend
to the terms of this artless petition, than he actu
aUy became a beggar, (and a most successful beg
gar) in their behalf; as will appear frora the fol
lowing statement, furnished by himself, and ad
dressed to Bishop Skinner, as Bishop of the dio
cese in which the persecuted Chapel of Banff-is
situated.

LETTER XLVI,
BISHOP HORSLEY TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" Palace, St Asaph, Oct. 28, 1805.
" I ought, long since, to have acknowledged
the kindness of the letters I received frora you
under ray great affliction ; and I pught to have
inforraed you what has been done in the business
committed to me. I am ashamed to say, that the

380 ANNALS OP 1805.
complicated misfortunes which have fallen upon
me this summer have quite broken my spirits,
and made me indolent and averse to business, in
an extreme degree. The paper which I enclose
contains an account of the suras collected by rae
for the benefit of ' the United Episcopal Chapels
* in Banff,' the whole ^araounting to L.l 89, lOs.)
is placed with Messrs Hammersley and Compa
ny, and stands in their books in the name of ' the
' United Episcopal Chapels in Banff'.' This L.l 89,
10s. is in addition to L.61, 15s,* sent by some of

* « The 'Bishop of London had sent

L.IO 10

0

Bishop bf Durham,

-

10 10

0

Bishop -of Winchester,

-

10 10

0

Bishop of Worcester,

-

5 5

0

Bishop of Oxford,

-

5 0

0

Bishop of Bangor,

-

S 0

0

Bishop of Salisbury,

-

7 5 0

0

Bishop of Gloucester,

-

5 0

0

Bishop of St. David's,

-

5 0

0

L.61 15

0

" The whole sum collected from the English and Irish
Bishops, is therefore L.25I 5s,, of which L.189 10s. is lying
at Hamraersley's ; and I now send you a letter to those gen
tlemen, which I think will be a sufficient authority to them to
pay the money to your order.'' The form of a subscription
paper, which Bishop Horsley presented to his Episcopal bre
thren, was thus worded : — " Subscriptions forenablingthemem-
bers of the united English and Scottish Chapels in Banff to de
fray the charges of the prosecution carried on against them
before the Supreme Court with a view to dissolve tKcir union,
as detailed in their address on the subject to the Lord Bishoji
of St. Asaph.

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. SSl
the Bishops through Other hands before my ap
plication, which was retarded by the dismal cir
curastances of ray family,
" I applied to none but Bishops, for I thought
that a raore general application would be neither
for your credit nor our own, I shall not think of

SuBscmisEKs.

The Archbishop of Canterbury,

L.25 0

0

The Lord Primate of Ireland,

20 0

0

The Archbishop of Dublin,

- 15 0

0

The Archbisiiop of York,

20 0

0

Bishop of Winchester, 2d Sub.

10 10

0

Bishop of L n.o'n,

10 10

0

Bishop of Roh ster,

5 5

0

Bishop of Peterborough,

¦ 5 0

0

Bishop of Chester,

5 5

0

Bishop of Litchfield,

10 0

0

Bishop of St. Asaph,

10 10

0

Bishop of Chichester,

5 5

0

Bishop of Bath and Wales,

5 5

0

Bishop of Worcester, 2d Sub.

10 10

0

Bishop of Salisbury, 2d Sub.

10 10

0

Bishop of Carlisle,

5 5

0

Bishop of Hereford^

5 5

0

Bishop of Ely,

10 10

0
—L.189 10 0

The amount in all, from English and
Irish Archbishops and Bishops, L.251 5 0
Private individuals, and Clergymen,
chiefly in England. 43 0 0
L.294 5 0
'Expences of process, L.192 15 5) j ot^ i>r a
liitideiits, - 78 1 7/ 1^-270 17 0
Balance L.23 , S Q

382 ANNALS OF 1805.
going to London before the middle of January,,
if so soon. TUl that time letters will find rae here.
It will give rae great pleasure to hear of your
good health and Mrs Skinner's, to whora I beg to
be. kindly reraembered. I reraain, my dear Sir,
your affectionate brother," &c.
Such an act of truly disinterested zeal and
friendship on the part ofa Prelate, whose private
distresses and public avocations were, at that im
mediate juncture, so multifarious, unquestionably
merited the heartfelt acknowledgments of the
parties concerned, and\ they were speedily con
veyed to the benevolent Bishop of St Asaph by
Bishop Skinner,
" May it please your Lordship,
" We, the Pastor and Vestrymen, or Mana
gers, of St Andrew's Chapel in Banff, humbly
beg leave to approach your Lordship, to say,
that we have received by the hands of ouf Bi
shop, the Right Rev, John Skinner at Aberdeen,
the sum of L.189, 10s, collected by your Lord
ship, towards the relief of this united Chapel.
When we stated our singularly distressing case
to your Lordship, we placed great reliance on
your friendly exertions on account of your Lord
ship's well known attachment to those pure and
primitive principles, which distinguish our pooif_
reduced church, in common with that in which
your Lordship fills the high station of a spiritual

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. S83
father. Your Lordship's exertions, as well as the
success of them, have far exceeded our most san
guine expectations ; and, while we must ever ve
nerate a Church, whose Prelates know and exer
cise so well the duty of Christian sympathy, we
request your Lordship to accept our raost grate
ful thanks, as having been the chief instruraent
of extricating us from our embarrassraents, by
means of the munificent donation of your Lord
ship and your brethren of the United Church.
The inestimable benefit thus conferred on us,
will ever live in the grateful remembrance of
those who have now the honour of addressing
your Lordship ; and, in order that the knowledge
of it raay be handed down to our successors in
office, and to the raerabers of this Chapel, for
succeeding ages, we have entered on our records
the subscriptions obtained by your Lordship, — a
particular list of which has been conveyed to us
by the worthy Bishop of this diocese. And if it
shall please the Supreme head of the Churchy to
bless the Chapel with future increase and suc
cess, the members of it, on reference to that re
cord, hereafter will know to whom, after the
shock which this Chapel had singly tosustain, (in
consequence of its having taken the lead in pro
moting Church union), they owe this, the second
foundation of their prosperity.
" Perrait us then to offer our fervent prayers,
that your Lordship may be long preservedan or
nament and a blessing to the Church, as weU as

S84 ANNALS OF 1805.
a benefactor to all its faithful members, among
whom we beg leave to be considered, with all hu
mUity, and with sentiments of the highest re
spect and gratitude, your Lordship's much obliged
and devoted humble servants,
(Signed) " James Milne, Presbyter.
Stewart SotjTER, James Imlach,
Aech Young, ' Gjeo. Imlach,
Jas. Reid, Gilbert Bannerman.
John Sim, Alex. Wrigijt, .
Rob. Reid, Will. Bruce, ', '''
James Sim, ' '"J *
IVfanagers."
This most becoming acknowledgment of Bi
shop Horsley's munificent exertions, from the
good people in Banff, was transmitted by their
Bishop to his Lordship, with the following letter
from himself:-^
LETTER XLVIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO BISHOP HORSLEY.
" My Lord, ,
" Haying received from the Pastor and Mana
gers of the Episcopal Chapel in Banff, a letter of
thanks addressed to your Lordship, for the very
generous and seasonable donation which you
were the means of procuring for them, I have now
the honour of transmitting the sarae to your
Lordship, with the repeated assurance of the jusfe

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 385
sense I must ever entertain of the favour there
by conferred upon myself, as well as upon one of
the Congregations with which I am officially con
nected. " It will, I hope, give no offence to your Lord
ship, that the good people whom you have so sin
gularly obliged, have adopted the method which
they have taken the liberty to mention, of pre
serving- the meraory of what they owe to those
highly distinguished and venerable Prelates,
whose syrapathy and kindness have been so hu
manely exercised on this peculiarly distressing
occasion. " By no act of that exalted body, of which
your Lordship is so iUustrious a meraber, could
the true spirit of Christian charity and condes
cension have been more signally manifested,
than in the readiness which they have shewn to
pity and supply the necessities of a sraall, ob
scure, yet very deserving portion of that great
mystical body to which we all have thp happiness
to belong. May the United Church of England
and Ireland be ever preserved as a pure and
prosperous part of that body, and raay her go
vernors be Va praise in the earth,' to all genera*
tions. " My son here,vWho is also your Lordship's
son in the church, begs leave to be reraerabered
to you with the most sincere respect and. venera
tion ; and, with my fervent prayers to the God
of all consolation, that the blessings and comforts
s £

386 ANNALS OP 1805.
of his Spirit may be ever with you, I shall at all
times feel myself happy in having the honour to
be, my Lord, your Lordship's much obliged and
most faithful servant," &c.
During the summer of 1805, a Rev. Gentleman,
designating himself ** Alexander Grant, D.D. mi
nister of the English Episcopal Congregation at
Dundee," stept forth as the very champion of
separation, and published what he was pleased to
call " An Apology for continuing in the Com
munion of the Church of England." For thus
" appearing publicly in defence of himself and of
his brethren, officiating in Scotland in virtue," as
he terms it, " of ordination by English or Irish
Bishops," the learned Doctor assigns the following
motives : " 1. As a Minister of the Church esta
blished in England, however obscure or inconsi
derable I may be, I cannot suffer to, pass without
contradiction the assertion, that that Church is one
and the same v^ith another, from which I know she
differs widely both in principle and in practice.
2d, I wish to clear myself and my brethren from
a charge so dishonourable to our order and our
character, as unreasonable obstinacy. And, 3d,
To inform the unlearned part of those who attend
our ministrations, and' especiaUy my own congre
gation, of the essential difference there is be
tween the two churches, and guard thera against
the insinuations of those who hg,ve of late been
so industrious to persuade them that no such dif-.
ference exists."

^.805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 387
The sequel, however, of this fampus apology of
Dr Alexander Grant, shewed that the title was a
false one ; the apology being, not for " continu
ing in the Church of England," but for refusing
to join in communion with the Episcopal Church
in Scotland.
Now, that such an apology, nay, all apology
for separation, was, by the Church of England
herself, deemed inadmissible, no stronger proof
needs be adduced than the letters contained
from page 35'^ to page 363 of these Annals ; yet
a stronger proof does stand adduced in the names
subscribed to the Banff subscription paper. The
apology of Captain David Curaraing for institut
ing a legal suit against the Managers of St An
drews Chapel in the town of Banff, v^as, that, in
his estiraation, that Chapel, when united to the
Scottish Episcopal Church, ceased to be in com
munion with the Church of England, and for the
very reasons which Dr Grant adduces. Yet the
Church of England herself, by the act and deed
of her two Archbishops, and of nearly all her
Right Reverend Prelates, says the contrary, and
most liberally affords the means of successfully
repelling the attempt made before the Supreme
Court of Judicature in Scotland to dissolve the
union between the English and Scottish Chapels
in the town of Banff, which had been duly con
summated. Nor is this all : The Annalist of Scot
tish Episcopacy trusts, that the reader will have
as much pleasure in now perusing, as he has in
B B 2

388 ANNALS OF 1805.
recording the reply given by the eminent law
yer who now presides in the Supreme Ecclesias
tical Court of England, to the queries of the
worthy Baronet Sir William Forbes, as already
submitted to the reader's notice ; and which re
ply sets controversy on the subject at rest for
ever. LETTER XLVIIL
SIR WILLIAM SCOTT TO SIR WILLIAM FORBES.
" Earley Court, Reading, Sept. 8. 1805.

<(

I ought, in the first place, to apologize to
you for not having answered your obliging letter
before, and I have no sufiicient apology to make.
It is no apology to say, that the matter of your
letter, though weighty in itself, did not require
immediate despatch on my part, and rather in
deed made some delay unavoidable, by desiring
me to comraunicate with the new Archbishop,
whenever his numerous avocations and duties
would perrait his attention to be called to such a
subject. May I venture to add, that ray^ own
tirae has been most peculiarly engaged this spring
by my own official business, which pressed upon
me daily, in various shapes, to say nothing of
parliamentary attendance, which has not only
been laborious, but very painful in its nature,
from the spirit and temper of the session. I have,
however, had the Contents of your letter con-

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 889
stantly in my raind ; and coming down here, a-
bout three weeks ago, to enjoy a little retirement,
I brought it with me, as one material part of an
arrear of business which remained undischarged.
" You may be assured, that the new Archbi
shop feels all the sentiments of affection and re
spect for the Episcopal Church in Scotland, which,
you know, his lamented predecessor entertained,
and will be ready to express it on all occasions,
I should be extremely happy in the opportunity
of introducing you to his acquaintance when
business calls you to London. You will find him
animated with the sarae spirit. His opinion con
curs with mine, that a minister of the Church of
England can incur no disability in England by
communicating with the sister Church, if that
can be called a sister which, by the late acts of
your respectable coraraunity, is becorae alraost
identically the sarae. It is quite impossible
that any impropriety, either legal or (as far
as I may be allowed to judge) theological, can
attach to an entire conformity to the Protestant
Episcopal Church in Scotland, during a Clergy
man's residence in that country. It is surpris
ing how such a notion could have found its way
into the minds of men in your country, as that the
English Bishops aspired to any authority there..
All that friendly and kind coramunication with
our Episcopal brethren in Scotland can give,
they may always comraand from the English
Bishops. But authority or jurisdiction in Peru,

390 ANNALS OF 1805.
is not more out of their thoughts than in Scot
land. They have all due respect for the Esta
blished Church, acknowledge its increasing good
offices to the Church of England, and are very
ready to make a comraon cause against the fana
tical eneraies of establishraents in both countries."
Notwithstanding, however, that the contents
of the above letter^ were made known to Dr
Grant of Dundee, by the writer of these Annals,
the Doctor presented the whole Bench of Bishops
with copies of his redoubtable apology. The re
plies which he received, the Doctor carefully con
cealed. But one, viz. the reply made by that sound
Churchman, and intrepid friend of Scotch Epis
copacy, — the venerable Bishop of St Asaph, — the
writer took special care that the apologist of
' separation should not conceal, as the following
communication to Bishop Skinner will shew,
LETTER XLIX.
BISHOP HORSLEY TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" St Asaph, Nov. 11, 1805.
" I have receiyed 4 letter from a Dr Alexan
der Grant, who styles himself Minister of the
English Episcopal Congregation at Dundee, ac
companying a copy of a printed tract, dissuading
frora an union of the EngUsh Clergy in Scotland
with the Scottish Bishops. He teUs me, in his
letter, that he has distributpd a certain number

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 391
of copies of this tract gratis among his own con
gregation, and that the rest of the impression will
be annexed to a third volume of sermons now in
the press. Enclosed: I send you a copy of a let
ter which I despatch by this post, in answer to
his addressed to me ; of which letter of mine, you
are at liberty to raake use, in any way in which
it may be useful. I remain, my dear Sir, your af
fectionate brother." " St Asaph, Nov. 11, 1805.
" Reverend Sir,
" It has long been my opinion, and very well
known I believe to be my opinion, that the laity
in Scotland of the Episcopal persuasion, if they
understand the genuine principles of Episcopacy
which they profess, ought, in the present state of
things, to resort to the ministry of their indige
nous pastors. And the Clergymen, of English
or Irish ordination, exercising their functions in
Scotland, without uniting with the Scottish Bi
shops, are, in ray judgraent, doing nothing better
than keeping alive a schism. I find nothing in your
tract to alter my mind upon these points. You
are in a very great mistake in supposing that the
' dissenters in England are required to subscribe
* any one of our Articles, previous to their cha-
• pels being licensed.'
" I send a copy of this letter to Bishop Skin^
ner at Aberdeen. I am," &c.
Had the reverend apologist of separation
beea that ardent friend to truth, and to the

392 ¦ ANNALS OF 1805;
Church of England, which he professed himself
to be, would not these authorities have swayed
him from his purpose of " continuing" in a state'
of schism, as well as of annexing his tract, on
the imaginary differences between the Episcopal
Churches of England and Scotland, to his third
vplurap of Serraons ? But, regardless of the au
thority of the Church in which he obtained his
orders, his prejudices proyed theraselves superior
even to Archiepiscopal decision, — that the two
churches were " no, longer sister churches, but al
most identically the sarae ;" so that he not only per
sisted in rendering his Apology co-existent with
his Sermons, but lived and died in the faith of its
unanswerable validity. The effects of his gross
misrepresentations reraain with the little fiock,
which, previously to his demise, he forsook in
Dundee ; for they remain in a state of separa
tion frora the Scottish Episcopal Church, and
frora the rainistry of an English Prebendary, to
whora, for several years, the charge ofthe Scotch
Episcopal Congregation in Dundee has been
committed, and who, by his talents, has doubled
their numbers. But on tbe Episcopahans of Leith,
who had the benefit of the Apologist's " ghostly
counsel'', a short peripd befofe his death, " like
the morning cloud," that counsel " hath passed
away ;'' in proof of which, these good people have
been long since so completely united to the
Scottish Episcopal Church, tiiat their Clergy-
pifin, who is an ornament to his professiop, is of .

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 393
Scottish ordination. Nor can it faU to give the
inquisitive reader further satisfaction on this
head, to be informed,' that, on receipt of Dr
Grant's letter, accompanying his apology, &c.
the Bishop of Rochester, Dr Dampier, knowing
that an acquaintance of his own had for many
years taken a lively interest in the Episcopal
Church of Scotland, applied to hira for inforraa-
tion on the subject of the reverend Dr's accusa
tions. This gentleman immediately apprized
Bishop Skinner of the application, and that he
had committed the case to one, who, besides be
ing completely versed in all the points on which
the ' Apology' hinged, had the advantage of being
sufficiently near the Bishop's residence to en
able him to hold personal conversation with his
Lordship, and the result justified the propriety
of the procedure,
" On caUing just now" says he, " on the Bishop
of R, at yourdesire, he putDr Grant's pamphletin-
to my hand, and asked me if I could give him any
information on the subject. I told hiin I could
give a very short and satisfactory answer to the
whole, viz. that, ' admitting the charges which
• the apology contained to be what the Apologist
' represented them, efery English orcI*.ined Cler-
' gyraan, who joined the coraraunion ofthe Scot-
' tish Episcopal Church, had his option to use
' the En>^lish Eucharistical Liturgy, if he prefer-
* rpd it.' The. Bishop said, he thought it a suffi
cient answer; and added, that he observed ' Dr

594i ANNALS OF 1805,
' Grant mixed with his complaint another of a
' personal nature, namely, that they (the Scottish
' Episcopalians) were drawing away his Congre-
• gation from him, which he did not like; though
* he concluded his letter, by saying, that he
* knew some at least of the Scottish Bishops, (Bi-
' shop Skinner in particular,) to be most respect-
' able men.'"
HappUy for the cause of Episcopal union in
Scotland, the decisive language of the Primate
and Prelates of the Church of England was not
treated by all its clerical members, exercising
the pastoral office in Scotland, with the same
nonchalance as it was by Dr Grant.
LETTER L.
SIR WILLIAM FORBES TO BISHOP SKINNER.
t
" Edinburgh, Nov. 16, 1805.
•' I have the happiness to inform you, that the
letter which I had the honour to receive from
Sir WUUam Scott, has proved completely satis-
factory to Mr Alison, who, I beUeve, writes to
you himself along with this, respecting the mode
of subraib^ion to your spiritual authority. To
himself, therefore, I beg leave to refer you on
that head. I cannot, however, but congratulate
myself on the completion of the union of our
Congregation with the Episcopal Church in
Scotland ; a measure in which I feel tbe utmost

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 395
satisfaction. As soon as the necessary form of
Mr Alison's subscription is gone througb, you
can make such use of this circumstance as, in
your opinion, may prove raost advantageous to
our Church.
" It gave me much pleasure, indeed, to hear of
the very handsome donations by the Archbishop
of Canterbury and Bishops at large, for the use of
the Chapel at Banff, the manner of conferring
which obligation adds greatly to its value. I shall
take an opportunity of expressing to Sir WiUiam
Scott the sense which you. Right Rev. Sir, and
the other friends of Episcopacy in this country,
entertain, of this mark of attention on the part of
his Grace the Lord Primate, and other Bishops,
towards the Episcopal Church in Scotland. And,
in the mean time, I am most respectfully and tru
ly yours," &c.
Mr Alison's letter, as a contrast to the Apolo
gy of " the Minister of the EngUsh Episcopal
Congregation at Dundee," is worthy of a place
in these pages, and cannot fail to gratify every
Scottish Episcopalian. LETTER LI.
THE REV. ARCHIBALD ALISON TO BISHOP SKINNER;
" Bruntsfield Links, November 16. 1805.
" I flatter myself, that, frora the correspon
dence of our invaluable friend, Sir WUliam For-

S96 ANNALS OF • 1805.
bes, you have been acquainted with the circum
stances which have hitherto prevented me from
accepting those terms of union which the Epis- -
copal Church in Scotland has so charitably and
so liberallyproposed to the Clergy of the Church
of England officiating in Scotland. ' I rejoice to
find, that the opinion of the Archbishop of Can
terbury, (as transmitted to Sir William Forbes
by Sir William Scott,) now relieves me from those
difficulties, and enables rae to give my assent to
a' union, which is not more consonant to ray sense
of duty than to the feelings of my heart. I have,
therefore, to request, that you would have the
goodnessiito transmit to me the proper form of
submission for my signature, and to express
whatever else you may wish, to render that sig
nature efficient and respectable.
'• I must presume stUl farther to avail myself
of this opportunity to testify ray long and pro
found respect for that Church to which I now
solicit to be united; to join my prayers to yours,
that this union may be conducive to the great
epds which we have all in view ; and to request
you. Right Rev. Sir, to accept individually of
those sentiments of respect and esteem with
which I have the honour to be," &P.
After receipt of the above most gratifying com
munication. Bishop Skinner lost not a moment in
ijiaking the wished-.for reply.

1805. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, .397
LETTER LIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO THE REV, ARCHIBALD ALISON.
" Aberdeen, November 18. 1805.
" The measures which have been lately adopt
ed by the very respectable Vestry of your Cha
pel, for promoting the cause of Episcopal union
in this part of the kingdom, could not fail to af
ford the greatest satisfaction to all who have tru
ly at heart the accompUshraent of so desirable an
object. Nothing could exceed the zeal and activi
ty with which this happy object has been unremit
tingly pursued by the worthy Baronet, whom you
so justly designate ' our invaluable friend.' His
judicious and seasonable application to Sir WUUam
Scott has been the means of procuring frora the
venerable Priraate at Larabeth an opinion so fa
vourable to the wishes of the real friends of Epis
copacy in Scotland, as can never cease to impress
on their minds sentiraents ofthe raost profound
respect for such a distinguished character. The
gratitude excited in our breasts by his Grace's con
descension on this occasion, receives no sraall addi
tion from the pleasing consideration of its having
removed the difficulties ofyour peculiar situation,
and thereby enabled you to follow the dictates of
your own good sense and piety, ia desiring to be
united with what stUl remains, (in a state, I trust,
of primitive purity,) ofthe old Episcopal Church
of this country.

398 ANNALS OP 1805.
" In giving effect to that laudable desire, whiph
your letter before me so fuUy expresses, I cannot
but feel most sincere satisfaction ; and, agreeably'
to your request, I have the pleasure of sending
you a copy of the articles of union which have
been used on similar occasions, and which either
Dr Sandford or Mr Morehead wUl have the
goodness, I hope, to transcribe for your subscrip
tion, in the forra proposed, and both of thera sign
their names as witnesses to it.
" This, \yith an attested copy of your letters
of orders, both as Deacon and Priest, is all the
form that we have thought necessary to be re
quired in such cases ; and happy shall I be, in re
ceiving these testimonies, of sUch a respectable
accession to our Clerical body.
" Allow rae now, my dear Sir, to offer you
my hearty thanks for the pious and good wishes
with which your letter concludes, expressed in
terms so honourable to the Church with which I
am connected, and no less friendly to me, as an
individual member of it.
" With my fervent prayers to the throne of
grace, that ouf God and Redeemer may bless
and direct you in all things, and give you still
unceasing peace and comfort in the step which
you are now taking, I beg leave to subscribe my
self, with very great esteem and regard. Reverend •
and dear Sir, your most affectionate brother," &c.
Accordingly, on the Sith day of November

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 399
1805, the Articles of Union with the Scottish
Episcopal Church were duly subscribed [before
the witnesses above naraed, by the present senior
Clergyman of what has been so long denominated
the Cowgate * Episcopal Chapel in Edinburgh, —
a man of the fifst rate professional respectabiUty,
and whose writings on various subjects have secur
ed him an exalted place in the republic of letters.
Episcopal union being now complete in the
city of Edinburgh, (with the exception of a Mr
Vincent, who, in the year 1805, was pastor of St
George's Chapel t,) the Primus and his venera
ble colleagues deferred no longer to issue their
mandate to the united Scottish and English or
dained Clergy of that diocese, empowering them
to elect a Bishop for the vacant see ; the forward
ing of which deed to the Dean of Edinburgh, the
present Primus ofthe Episcopal College, conclud
ed the business ofthe eventful year 1805.
1806.] In his letter lo Sir William Forbes, (of
date March 7th 1805, and partly quoted above in
page 3d9 & 370,) Bishop Skinner thus adverts to
the object of the mandate now issued.
" There is at present no matter of Ecclesiasti
cal concern which 1 believe my colleagues as well
* This designation, ho'wever, exists no longer. The Cow
gate Chapel has been parted with ; and St Paul's, York Placej
is now the cure served by Messrs Alison and Morehead.
f Mr V. was succeeded by Mr Shannan, whose union took
place at thc sarae time with his settlement in Edinburgh.

400 ANNALS OF ISO64
as myself have more at heart than to see a sound,
well inforraed, and respectable Clergyman at the
head of the Diocese of Edinburgh, By our Can
on s, the raatter raust be referred to the choice of
the Clergy ofthe Diocese, and tlie Bishops have
only a negative should an improper person, in
their opinion be chosen ; yet I humbly hope, that
on their part every thing will be done to procure
to our Church in Edinburgh a respectable Dio
cesan, and to our Episcopal CoUege the accession
of a pious, learned, and dignified member."
In this hope, now that theUlergy were authori
tatively required to elect a Bishop, the Primus
was not disappointed. On the contrary, the 15th
of January 1806 being the day of election, it was
with the utmost satisfaction that, on the 17th day
of that month. Bishop Skinner received intelli
gence frora Edinburgh, not raerely ofthe perfect
unanimity with which the choice of the Clergy
was directed to their present excellent Diocesan,
but ofthe sense which the English ordained mera
bers ofthe meeting entertained of the unaspiring
views of their Scottish brethren, and ofthe can
did and generous liberality of their present con
duct. For, in the very sarae packet which brought
to Aberdeen the deed of election, was contained
the foUowing most interesting paper.
" Edinburgh, 15th Jan. 1806.
" At this first meeting of the United Episcopal
Churches in the diocese of Edinburgh, assembled

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 40l
for the election of a Bishop, We, the undersign
ed, ministers of the Church of England, desire
leave to record the following our unanimous re
solutions : —
" Istj That however well we are convinced of
the merits and qualifications of the Rev. Gen
tleraan who has this day been elected Bishop of
this diocese, we are, at this tirae, deeply sensible "
of the c£lndid and generous liberality which has
induced the Presbyters of the Church in Scot
land, in the present circurastances, lo propose
unanimously to concur in the election of a Cler
gyman of English ordination. And,
" 2d,. That while we consider this raeasure as
a happy oraen of the stability of that union of the
Episcopal Churches, which has been recoraraend
ed to us, not only by our own sense of duty, but
by the highest authorities in the Church of Eng*
land, we feel it, at the sarae time,, incumbent
Upon us to express, in the most lasting manner
in oUr power, the sense we entertain of the cha
ritable and enlightened spirit which has animated
the raerabers of the Church in Scotiand, in this,
and in every raeasure by which that union has
been accomplished.
(Signed) " Henry Lloyd, D.D. Minister of Leith*.
AftCHiBALD Aliswn, L.L.B. Senior Mi*
nister of the Cowgate Chapel.
Robert Morehead, A.M. Junior Mini
ster ofthe Cowgate Chapel." I
* Dr Lloyd, Regius Professor of Hebrew in the University
c c

402 ANNALS 01^ 180&.
In addition to this most honourable testimony
of fraternal regard, on the part ofthe united Pres>-
byters of the diocese of Edinburgh, it was very
grateful to Bishop Skinner's feelings' to receive, of
the same date with the above, the following let
ter from Sir William Forbes, no less characteris
tic of the often experienced benignity of that la
mented, because devoted friend . of union, than
¦containing evidence the most ample of his cheer
ful concurrence in the Edinburgh Clergy's -choice.
LETTER LIIL
SIR WILLIAM FOftBES, BART. TO BISHOP SKlNNER.
" Edmburgh, Jan. IS, 1806,
" With my whole heart do I congratulate you,
as weU as myself, on the happy election this day
of a Bishop of Edinburgh, of the most primitive
and exemplary character, to whose conscientious
sense of dtity, and to whose steady perseverance
in what be believed to be the conduct which he
ought to pursue, I do verily believe we owe the
happy union that has taken place among all those
who are attached to Episcopal principles, and
of Cambridge, baving accepted, for a short period, the charge '
ofthe (formerly English) Episcopal Chapel in Leith, applied to
the Bishop of Lincoln for directions in the matter of union with
the Scotch Episcopal Church. His. Lordship's answer was
most explicit. He very strongly recommended him " to go into
the nnion." The Rev. Mr Routledge of Glasgow, and his re-

1806. st;oTTisH KPrscoPACY. 40S
which I cannot doubt will in no long tirae be
come universal all over Scotland. After the
election, I saw a declaration by the clergymen
of our chapel on ibe head, the perusal of which
cannot but be very agreeable to you. Right Re
verend' Sir, and your brethren of the" Scottish
Episcopate, as containing a very strong proof,
if any such were wanting, that the whole mea-
siure of the union, and consequent election, is a
matter of duty only, as, indeed, from what other
motive but principle could it flow ?
" I pray God Almighty to grant his blessing
on what has been done towards the good of hi»
Church, on which may his spirit ever rest I and
comraending myself to your prayers, I ever am,"
&c.*
speetable fiock, about the same period, united themselves ; as
did the Rev. Mr Fenwick of Perth ; though, strange to s^y,
his successor in that charge has made no sucTi overture I A
circumstance which points out the necessity of the Vestrymen
or Managers, if not the Congregation at large, sanctioning the
submission of their Clergyman, and their applying for such
Episcopal acts as mark their respect for the office of a Bi
shop ; otherwise union is merely nominal, E^nd ceases on the re
moval ofthe Clergyman, who, while he did his duty, was at no
pains to instruct his people how to do theirs,
• This letter, and several others written at the same period,
the worthy Baronet penned with his left hand, having in a tour
.through the North of Scotland, in summer 1805, met with aa
. accident which rendered his right hand and arm useless for
many months. But no personal inconvenience did he put in
competition with what he conceived to be his duty. OJ
that others would look to and follow his bright example !
c C 2 .

404* ' ANNALS OF 1806.
On receiving the above welcome tidings, and
the Bishop-elect's acceptance of the unanimotis
sufirages of his diocesan brethren, the Primus
lost no time in procuring his Colleague's assent
to the promotion of Dr Sandford. Having fixed
the tirae and place of the consecration, the ofiice
was duly perforraed, in presence of a crowded
congregation of Clergy and laity, in Bishop Stra
chan's chapel at Dundee, on the 9tb of February
(being Sexagesima Sunday) 1806, by the Right
Reverend Bishops Skinner, Watson, and Jolly.
A most appropriate sermon was preached by the
Rev. James Walker of Edinburgh, from Titus
ii. 15.* And, on the pipus solemnity being con
cluded, the Priraus, with an energy and feeling
which sensibly affected the whole auditory, thus
addressed his new mad*? Colleague : —
" Right Rev.' and my dearly beloved Brother,
" Having now finished the part which I have
been called to perform in the sacred service of
this day, anxious as 1 am to address a few words
to you by way of suitable conclusion, I can hard
ly find language adequate to my feelings on such
an occasion,— -feehngs by no means peculiar to
myself, but which, 1 well know, are impressed
with equal ardour on the minds of those who
.* On the requisition of the Bishops present, this discourse
was published, and has met with merited commendation from
all whose commendation could be grateful to the worthy au-
' thor. >

J - 'j'.y.

1806, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, . 405
have all along acted with myself, in the measures
which have so happily led to the solemnity, in
which we have now been engaged,
" In an hurable dependance on the Almigh
ty aid, and merciful acceptance of Him who is
* King and Head over aU things to his Church,
* God blessed for ever,' we have been discharg
ing one of the most essential parts of that im
portant trust comraitted to us in our Episcopal
character ; and He who sees the heart, and
searches its inraost thoughts, knows with what
sincerity of intention, with what ardent zeal for
the glory of his narae and the good of his church,
we have united our weak, imperfect, but raost
fervent desires, and willing endeavours, for the
accoraplishment of those pious and blessed pur
poses. Relying for the suceess of all our labours
on our divine Master's promise tp his Apostles,
• to be with them to the very end of the world,'
we, having received in due succession-, of their
ministry, have been encouraged' to do what a
wise and good Providence has put it in our power
to do, for continuing the sarae apostolical succes
sion in that small, and, for a long time, depress
ed portion of Christ's Church with which we are
more imraediately connected. Under all the
stages of its 4epression, and through all the Vari
ous difficulties which it has had to encounter,
the Episcopal succession has, blessed: be God 1
been duly and regularly preserved ; by which
means, our little Zion has been supported undef

4^ ANNALS OF 1806.
its distinguishing character, as the venerable re
mains of the old Episcopal and once EstabUshed
Church of Scotland. Hence, wben some of our
Episcopal order have reached almost the limits
of old age, and others are considerably advanced
in years, or not so strong in bodily constitution
as might be wished, it became highly expedient
to give the Episcopal CoUege in Scotiand addi
tional strength, more especially when, as on the
present emergency, an opening appeared for the
aiteiissioia of a new member, whose appoint
ment, besides requirimg on our part the most re
spectful attention, had the strongest claims to
our serious consideration. This, I have no doubt,
wUl readily be acknowledged to have been the
case of the diocese of Edinbui^h since the late
most respectable accession to our communion,
both of Clergy and laity in that city. Consider
ed still as the capital, or most conspicuous place
in North Britain, some estimate may be formed
of the general state of Episcdpacy throughotit
this pairt of the umited kingdom, from the situa
tion, rank, or character bf tbe inhabitants of
Edinburgb who profess to be of the Episcopal
persuasion. And ofthe Clergy at large belong
ing to our Church, it is not to be doubted that
atrarigersi particularly such strangers as come
from the southem part of the island, wUl be apt
to judge from what tihey see or bear of the Cler
gy resident in the Scottish metropoUs : while the
profession of Epdaeopacy, necessarily implying

180$. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 407
conpection with and subordination to a Bishop —
he, who in that character presides among Clergy
so respectable, as a pastoral charge in the chief
city of Scotland announces, ought himself to be
a person highly respected and known, by all whom
it may concern, to possess th^ qualifications re
quisite for such a dignified ^nd important sta
tion. " With what sincerity of heart, therefore, may
we hail the solemnity of this day, as affording,
on aU and each of these accounts, ample cause of
congratulation ;-?^congratulation ofiered, first of
all, to you my beloved brother in Christ, as th©
principal instrument in that good work which
God has this day called us to perform ; and con
gratulation to that particular body of Clergy
whom you are henceforth to take under your
Episcopal charge ; and who are here most properly
represented by the Reverend Presbyter, whose
discourse from the pulpit, prepared at your de
sire^ we have listened to with aU the satisfaction
which a subject so aptly cbosen could irapart, and
with aU the delight which the judicious, clear,
and pertinent manner in which it was handled
could excite. Nor can I refrain, my Right Re
verend colleagues, from extending ray congratu
lations to you, on the acquisition to our sacked
order of one so worthy of the ofiice to which
you have assisted in proraoting him, and so justr
ly entitled to the best thanks, the warnjest appro-
l^ation, the most coiirdial support* that we can

408 ANNALS OT I8O6.
gfye him in return for his giving ' himself to the
work of our ministiy, and to the cultivation of
the sarae humble portion of oiir Lord's vineyard
in which we have been appointed to labour ; —
thus making our little national Church his own,
and agreeing to co-operate With us, as we are
ever disposed to co-operate with each other, in
promoting its best and truest interests.
" Nay, I would congratulate the whole Scotch
Episcopal Church, in its laity as well as in its .
Clergy, (represented, as I may be allowed to hold
them represented, by the respectable body of
Clergy and people now before me,) on the happy
event of this day,»— an event no less singular than,
I trust, it wiU be fSISnd auspicious ; being the
first of the kind which our Church has witnessed
since deprived of the benefit of civil establish
ment, and therefore, I hope, to be considered as
a presage of increasing union and communion
with the Episcopal Church in the other parts pf
the British empire, whicbis still blessed (and long
may the United Church of England and Ireland
be blessed) with the full enjoyment of that benefit.
" It is only, however, in professing the sarae
faith, by using the sarae Liturgy, and by subscrib
ing the same articles of religion ;-T-it is only in
adhering, as far as circurastances %ill permit, to
the sarae forra of government and discipline, by
which, as a pure Protestant Episcopal Church,
the United Church of England and Ireland is
adorned, that we can hope or pray to be unite4

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY, 409
with that Church. And, as in these respects
the estabUshed Church of England and Ireland
deigns to own us as a sister church, it is incum
bent on me to acknowledge, that none of her
sons have contributed more sincerely and effec
tually to bring about this happy state of harmony
and concord than the beloved brother whora we
this day constitute a Bishop of the Scottish, as
he had forraerly been a Deacon and Priest of the
English Church.
" To his unwearied endeavours for perfecting
tbe good work of true ecclesiastical union, as far
as we of this Church are concerned, I rayself
could bear the raost araple testimony, were it pro
per to mention or to make any appeal to the cor
respondence which, in consequence of my office,
I have had the honour to maintain on this inter
esting subject, and with no raan raore to my
heartfelt satisfaction than with Dr Sandford. Yet
sraall and inconsiderable is the weight of my evi
dence in his favour,, compared with that of a gen
tleman, who, residing in the sarae city, has long
been his intimate friend and acquaintance, and
who, were I at liberty to name hira, would be ac
knowledged by all who now hear me, to be raost
worthy of our confidence and regard. By this
distinguished character, a letter was addressed to
rae on the very day of Dr Sandford's election to
the Ofiice with which he has now been duly in
vested ; frora which letter I crave permission to
read the foUowing short but comprehensive para-

410 ANNALS oy J806.
graph : • With my whole heart do I congratulate
* you, as well as myself, on the happy electieaj
* this day of a Bishop of Edinburgh, of the most
* primitive and exemplary charadtery to whose
• conscientious sense of duty, and to whose steady
* perseverance in what he beUeved to be the con^
* duct he ought to pursue, I do verily believe we
* owe the happy union that bas " taken place
* amongst all those who are attached to Episco-
* pal principles, and which, I cannot doubt, will,
* in no long time, become universal all over Scot-
* land.' With such testimony, and from the
heart and hand that gave it, I may now close the
feeble attempt that has been made to assign the
cause of those unusual congratulations which
have accompanied, and ought to accompany, the
happy occasion of our present meeting. And,
baving thus far discharged the duty, which no
thing, but the exigencies of a Church so unsup
ported as ours could have devolved on me, I shall
yet take tbe liberty of adding a few brief remarks
on the nature and design of that sacred trust,
which bas this day been consigned into the hands
of our now Right Reverend brptber, who, after
whatibasbeen already said, and considering that I
speak from upwards of twenty years experience,
will not, I humbly hope, t^ke amiss the freedom
I am aboat to use, or ascribe my presumption to
any other motive than a heartfelt zeal for the
good of Scottish Episcopacy, and for the incjeas.-
ing credit and character of those who are intrust*
ed with its support.

1809. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 411
" The trust which has now, my dear Sir, been
comraitted to you by the imposition of our hands,
is, you are well aware, termed in the admirable
office, of Consecration, ' the office and work of a
• Bishop in the Church of God.* The former of
these terras evidently points to that official autho
rity which can be conveyed only by a valid com
mission ; while the latter term shews, that the ex
ercise of that authority partakes of the nature of
a work or labour, such as raust be considered
wholly incompatible with the indulgence of sloth
or indolence. Thus the Church has taken special
care to put the newly consecrated Bishop in re
membrance, that;- according to St Paul's advice
to Timothy, he ought to * stir up,' in other words,
to exercise and keep in motion and activity, the
grace, the x'^?"'fi^> or gift of authority, confer
red on him by the solemn imposition of authoriz
ed hands ; — that is, not to allow the power, the
ability of being useful, which he has received, to
sleep or slumber, but to keep it awake by con
stant exertion, by every suitable effort of profes
sional zeal and diligence. And if, by such un
wearied zeal, and attention to the duties of his
sacred function, the man of God should at last be
rendered incapable of labour ; should he be worn
out, as it were, in the service of his heavenly
Master, let him console himself with the language
of a pious Prelate of the Church of England,
who hesitated not to say, that, in such a service,
* it was better to wear out, than to rust out.'

412 ANNALS OF 1806.
" But, in discharging the office and work ofa
Bishop in God's Church, the manner in which
the office is to be duly exercised, and the means
by which we may hope to render the work suc
cessful, ought also to be carefully attended to, as
they are pointed out for our direction, * first by
the Apostle, and after him by the Church, in the
words which immediately follow those that I have
just quoted: 'For God hath not given us the
* spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and sober-
* ness.' " Another Apostle, you know, tells us, ' that
' every good gift, and every perfect gift is from
'above;' but such is not' the spirit of fear ;'
that cowardly, timid, timcrserving disposition, by
giving way to which, even those who serve at the
altar of God may be tempted to sacrifice to the
world, and to popular opinion, rather than suffer
from a steady adherence to truth and righteous
ness, forgetting that, in all such cases, the ' friend-
' ship of the world is enmity with God.' May it
never be said, that any' Minister, much more any
Bishop of our Church, has been so unmindful of
his duty, so possessed and influenced by the spi
rit of worldly fear, as to turn his back on the
standard of heaven, and^y from ' the good fight
of faith.' Not to combat this, spirit, which never
can proceed from him who came into the world
that he might overcorae the world, and keep it
in subjection, must be a lasting reproach to those,
* See the Consecration Office in the Book of Common Prayer,

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 413
(if justly laid to their charge,) who have the ho
nour to serve more imraediately under their great
Captain's banner, and to whora, we are assured,
he is ready to give ' the spirit of power,' — of
J)ower to resist the eneray, of power to deny
ourselves, as well as power to instruct and admo
nish those committed to our charge.
" This inward, spiritual, and, (if I raay be al
lowed the expression,) ecclesiastical power, we
hurably trust is, notwithstanding aU the outward
worldly deprivations which our Church has suf
fered, still continued with us. And were those who
adhere to our coraraunion and fellowship always
impressed, as they ought to be, with a just sense
of our possessing this precious powerful gift of
God, we should have no cause to regret the want
of any of those powers and privileges derived
frbm the state which are held in such high esti
mation here below ; and yet are, in reality, no
farther valuable than as the means of advancing
more successfully the honour of God, and pro
moting the true Christian edification of his faith
ful people. It is for effecting this blessed pur
pose, as far as flesh and blood can effect it, that
God has also given us * the spirit of love;' be-
, cause the exercise of power ought always to be
tempered with love,^the love of God shed a-
broad in the heart, and thence expanding its re
freshing fruits of love to man for God's sake.
For thus, and thus only it is, that, in ^our cir
cumstances, we can expect to enjoy the approba-

414 ANNALS OF 1806.
tion and support of those who adhere to our mi
nistry, and hope to ' be highly esteemed by them
* in love for our work's sake.*
" So small, in fact, is our power as to any
worldly considerations, that it is to the love of
our people, their love of our principles, and satis
faction in our conduct, that we raust look forthe
wholesome eflfeets of our spiritual authority, —
* the power that worketh in us to the edifying of
* the Church in love,' Nor shall the gifts cff ' the
• Spirit of power and of love' be ever found in
effectual in promoting the great purposes ft«r
which they are bestowed, provided that we have
added to them, in terms Of the Apostle's decla
ration, ' the spirit of soberness,' that is, a sober,
sound, and well-regulated mind; a spirit which,
as it permits not the mind of the possessor to be
hardened by unrelenting power, so does it restrain
it from being too much weakened by fond and
indulgent love. The man of God, who thinks
soberly of himself, as every man is required to
think, wUl be equally preserved frora pride in the
exercise of his power, as from partiality in the
expressions of his love. To the former our situ
ations in life hold out, indeed, few tenaptations.
So far are we from possessing powers which we
can proudly exercise, that we are daily exposed
to have our authority called in question, spiritual'
as it is ; in which case it tecoraes matter of 'seri
ous consideration, whether it may not oftentimes
be more prudent tO' wave our right to the inter-

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 415
position of authority, than to run the risque of
exposing, it to scorn and contempt.
" Where the balance hangs even between two
opposite claims, it is not easy to decide into which
scale the preponderating weight ought to be
thrown ; and tiiis, I have no hesitation in^saying,
constitutes the chief difficulty, I might have cal
led it the chief discouragement, with which a
Bishop, a governor, in a Church like ours, has to
struggle ; and for which, therefiare, he should en
deavour to be, as much as he can, prepared. In
those national Churches, which are not only esta
blished by law, but actually incorporated with the
state, where the Episcopal character is dignified
with splendid titles, and supported by liberal en
dowments, nay, fortified, at all points, with can
ons and statutes, civil and ecclesiastical ; there the'
Bishop's authority is perfectly secure, for there
every infringement of it, every resistance of the
l^al rights ofthe Church, brings down upon the
guilty head some punishment or other, suited to
the nature ofthe offence.
But different, indeed, becomes the case where
the same Church, (in all fhings essential to the
constitution of the Church) is reduced to the
situation in which this Church has, for more than a
century, been placed ; divested of all support from
the civU power, and thus brought back to the
purely primitive footing, on which the Church of
Christ was originally established. There it is
that tim Bishop's authority takes hold ofthe con-

416 ANNALS OF 1806.
/
science ortly, having no more worldly- fortune, or
worldly infiuence to support it, than what .may,
and does, fall to the share of any other clergy
man. In these circurastances, which are precise
ly those which we experience, if there are any
hopes of preserving a true, regular, and valid E-
piscopacy, worthy of these venerable marks of
distinction, • it , must be by strengthening the
hands of those whose office it is to continue the
Episcopal succession, and by holding out such
encouragement as may induce men of respectable;
character and attainments to undertake such a
weighty charge.
" Canonical obedience, as we term it, seems,
in the opinion of raany, tobe a terra of doubtful,
and, at best, undefined signification, and wiU al
ways affiard matter of dispute, when the precise
letter of the canon is not marked out as the boun
dary of a Clergyman's duty, beyond which he is
not to advance on any occasion whatever, , Such
a constrained, such a" formal shew of obedience,
may be thought sufiicient where the laws of the
state interpose their aid, if necessary, and where
there may be other inferior motives than the glo
ry of God and the good of souls to incite men
to desire as well as accept 'the office of a Bi^
• shop,' But as there is nothing of that kind to
be raet with in the Episcopal Church of this, land,
neither the po.-isession nor the prospect of any
'•great emoluraent or advantage in this world, the
inference, I think, is plain and obvious, and can*

J806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 417
not possibly escape our notice, tbati, in this coun
try, the only way in which the Episcopal charac*
ter can be rigbtfuUy maintained and supported
in the exercise of that authority which is abso
lutely necessary to usefulness, is, ,by securing to
it the filial confidence, the affectionate regard of
those, both Clergy and laity, who profess to be
of the Episcopal comraunion, and who, in conse
quence of that profession, believe the Bishop to
be an essential part of every pure, apostolical,
and rightly constituted Church.
*' Far be it from me' thus to speak from the
unworthy desire of magnifying my offipe, beyond
that which is due to it. I have not so learned
Christ. Conscious though I be, that, from many
infirmities, the Episcopal character daily suffers
reproach in my own person, duty requires me to
say, that it is a character which cannot fail to at-
tract respect, bad as the world is, in proportion to
the fidelity with which its duties are discharged.
And mankind are convinced, that as no sinister
object should lead to the desire of it, so every pre
paration should be made for sustaining it with be
coming fortitude and zeal. Of such preparation
on your part, my beloved brother, we have been
furnished with the most satisfactory evidence,
and have, ' therefore, solid ground to hppe, that,
in faithfully discharging the duties of ypur sacred
office, you will thereby secure to yourself the
obedience and veneration of those who are im-
piediately under your charge, and ensure to the

418 ANNALS OF I8O6,
Episcop£ll Church in Scotland such increasing re
spect, credit, and advantage, as the friends of
that venerable Society will nattirally expect from
one of yoor education, character, and attain- -
ments condescending to hold such a distinguish
ed and important station within its pale. . .
" For the comfort and edification, therefore,
of our little Zion, let our united efforts and most
fervent prayers be ever sincerely offered to the
Throne of Grace, there to be presented for ac
ceptance by the Great High Priest of our profes
sion, theShepberd and Bishop of souls. And O!
that he may now look down in mercy, from the
right hand of the Majesty on High, on the hum
ble endeavours of his servants here below, for the
advancement of his glory and the salvation of
his people 1 May he correct whatever is amiss,
and supply whatever is deficient, in our present
sincere, though imperfect services ; and so effec
tually bless and sanctify the work of our minis
try^ that the Church in which we are appointed
to serve, and the souls for whom we are bound
to watch, may enjoy all the comforts of hia truth
and peace in this worldj and, in the world to
come, all the blessings of his glorious and life-giv
ing presence 1"
It having been recommended to the Primus,
by the venerable Bishop of St Asaph, to communi
cate to the Prelates of the Church of England
the progress-made, and making, in the happy work
of Episcopal union in Scotland, and the advance-

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 419
ment to the Scottish Episcopate of one of the
EngUsh ordained Clergymen in charge of a con
gregation in Scotland, Bishop Skinner addressed
the following circular letter to the Archbishops
and Bishops of the English Church, and to the
Archbishops of Armagh and Dublin, in Ireland.
LETTER LIV.
" Aberdeen^ March 16, 1806.
" My Lord Archbishop,
" The exalted station which your Grace so
worthily holds in the united Church of England
and Ireland gives rae ground to hope, that, you
wUl not be off'ended at the freedom which I now
use, in laying before your Grace a very brief ac- .
count of the state of Episcopacy, and the pro
gress of what may be termed Episcopal union, in
this part of the united kingdom. The Congrega
tions which compose all that remains of the old
established Church of Scotland, are at present
about sixty in number, and are suppUed by fifty
Clergymen ordained by the Scottish Bishops ; a
few of these congregations being at this time va
cant, either by the recent death of their former
Pastors, or through want of ability to make suffi
cient provision for supporting the pastoral cha
racter in a suitable and decent manner. A few
years ago there were about twenty-four congre
gations in Scotland in a state of separation from
the Scottish Episcopal Church, and supplied by
» d2

4lW- ANNALS OF 1806,
Clergymen of English or Irish ordination, with
no other Episcopal connection than what their or^
dination, and the use ofthe EngUsh Liturgy; af
forded. Thirteen of these congregations have of
late joined the communion of the Scottish Epis
copal Church, sensible of the anproaloo^ state iij
which, as Episcopalians, their being in communion
with no Bishop placed them, viz. Two in the city
of Edinburgh, and one in each of the foUowing
plac«s: — Leith, Kelso, Glasgow, Stirling, Perth,
Arbroath, Stonehaven, Cruden, Peterhead, Banif,
and Elgin. Of the other eleven Epi^cpp^l con-
gregatiOTis stiU in a state of separation, there i$
one in Edinbur^ Miisselbiurgh, Haddington,
Dundee, Dunkeld, Brechin, MotitrmSf Aberdeen,
(two dergy,) Gld Deer, Ayr, and Dnmfrip?.*
" On the wjycde,; it appears tijftt thirteen Cler
gymen, ordained by Engii^h or Irish 3i^hops^
now form a part of the ministry of the Stipttisb
Episcopal Cburch ; and it may be hoped tbat-tiif
other .f lev en wjH, sooner or later, see the prp^
* In 1818, the (|!$>ngcegations fionNjauing iq a sitatg pif ;sepe-
ration are reduced to five only of the above list, viz. Dundee,
Brechin, Montrose, AJ)«dfien, and Old Deer. Dunkeld is ex
tinct  Kelso and Perth having changed their Clergy, are re
turned to a state of disunion ; and, since the death of Dr Car
ter, there has been no Episcopal Clergyman in the town of
Ayr. St George's Chapel in Edinburgh has long been united^
and Musselburgh, Haddington, and Dumfries for some time.
True " the great body of the constituent members ofthe con
gregation of St Paul's Chapel, Aberdeen," have given the pab*
li£ to know I^at they >< ilisappr^re vf the measure of uniffV

1$06. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. - 421
priety of adopting the same salutary measure.
As an encouragefiient to this we have lately, my
Lord, had the happiness of making a very respec
table addition to the number of our Bishops, by
the consecration of Dr Sandford, of Christ Church
Cdftege, Oxford* an Englisb Clergyman in the
city of Edinburgh, of most exemplary character,
and who, I trnst, will prove a blessing and an or
nament to our Church,
" I beg leave to take this oppofttmity of pre
senting my grateful thanks for your Grace's kind
benefaction tb the Episcopal chapel in Ban£P, as
belonging to the diocese with which I am officially
connected ; -and requesting forgiveness of the li
berty which I have taken in thus addressing your
Lordship, and humbly offering up my fervent
prayers to Almighty God for the prosperity of
the united Church of England and Ireland, IhaVe
the honour to be, with the ^lighest respect and
veneration," &c.
In Bishop Horsley's reply to the above, as ad
dressed to him, dated a few weeks after receipt
<^f it, be expresses the " highest satisfaction at
the progress of union in Scotland."
with the Scottish Episcopal Churph, being fir^nly resolved to
continue attached to the Chtirch of England as formerly."
But as no one can read these Annals and not see thait the
Church 6f England recognised no such att aditiAentj unless in
a state of union with her sister Church in Scotland, the Anna
list doubts not, as their Clergy are friendly to the measure,
but that, in a little time, all the Episcopalians ia Aberdeen
shall be one fold under one shepherd.

422 ANNALS' OF 1806.
LETTER LV.
BISHOP HORSLEY TO BISHOP SJCINNEB.
" I am persuaded that nothing can be more
for the interest of religion in this island, — no
thing more for the credit of both parties, and par
ticularly of the Clergy of English and Irish ordi
nation ; and I have perhaps some personal satis
faction in finding the opinion which I gave many
years since to our worthy friend. Bishop Aber
nethy Drummond, confirmed by this event, ' that
* the business of union would certainly do itselii
* if he was not too much in a hurry to drive it
* on.* Nothing can give me greater satisfaction,
than that, my son, whUe in a state of separation
from me, should be thought worthy to have the
care of one of your congregations committed to
him. The employment wUl be respectl^ble, though
the profit should be small ; and I am confident,
tha,t he would himself prefer employment with
out any profit, to ^ state of absolute inactivity.
It would be a great consolation to me, indeed,
could I think that God, in his mercy, had made
him the humble instrument in the furtherance of
so great and good a work as that of healing the
unseemly divisions amopg the Episcopalians of
Scotiand." As a farther specimen of the very favourable

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 423
reception which Bishop Skinner's communica
tion met with in England, the replies received
from the excellent Bishop bf London, Dr Por
teous, and the venerable Dr Madan, Bishop of
Peterborough, are also worthy ofa place in these
Annals, ', LETTER LVL
BISHOP PORTEOUS TO BtSHOP SKINNER.
« London, March 17, 1806.
"Right Reverend Sir,
*' Having always been a friend to the union of
the English and Spottish Episcopal Clergy in
Scotland, it gives rae pleasure to find that it has
of late fhade so great a progress. I long since
told my friend. Sir William Forbes, that, by de
grees, with a little patience and forbearance, and
njild and gentie persuasion, it would assuredly
be brought about. Dr Sandford i is certainly a
great acquisition tO your Church ; and there ap
pears to me little doubt, but that, with such an
accession, your object wUl in due time be com
pletely accpn^plished. I am," &c,
LETTER LVIL
BISHOP MADAN TO BISHOP SKINNER.
<f Palace, Peterborough, March 19, 1806.
" Right Reverend Sir,
"Please to accept my earliest and warmest

4S4 ANNALS. 01' 1S06.
thanks for your kind communication ofthe rapid
progress of Episcopal union in Scotland. It mus>t
rgoide and comfort the heart of every sincere
friend to the Christian cause. I make no doubt
but that this, bas been, in a material degree, ow
ing to your own great and pious exertions, fbr
which God will bless you in his good time. , Most
cordially do I unite with you in fervent prayer
to Almighty God for the prosperity of the unit
ed Church of England and Ireland ; and, let me
also add, for the still further progress and pros-
perity of Episcopal union in your part of Great
Britain. I have the honour to he, with much
true repect and admiration of your character,
" Sf»- Peterbro'."
Tbe Bishop of Salisbury, Dr Douglas, enters
ftilly into the measure of the union, and tells Bi-
shoj) Skinner, that " even had he been able soon
er to have answered his letter, he thought it pru
dent to wait till he' could have a conversation with
the Archbishop of Canterbury, to whom (says
be) I paid a visit yesterday (May 7th) at Lam
beth. He expressed himself with the.same friend
ly sentiments whiph, I entertaib with regard to
tbe Episcopal Church in Scotland, and wished
that the Clergymen whp officiate in your part of
the island, and who have been ordained in Eng
land, woald submit to your jurisdiction,* in
* To strengthen, M" possible, the Archbishop's ' wi^h' for
union, the Annalist conceive that it is a duty wfiicih he owes

1806.- SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 4^5
A stepj which he was glad so many had already
taken, and which he thought would be farther
Assisted by the consecration of Dr Sandford."
The letter containing this valuable informa
tion, the worthy Prelate (hiraself a native of Scot-
knd) concludes in these Very friendly termsr—
•* I hope no more young men will be sent from
England to serve, as ministers, to your chapels ; ^
but if any should be invited, and induced to go
to Scotland, I make no doubt but they wiU be
advised by any of our Bench, who raay know of
their intention^ not to refuse acknowledging the
jurisdiction of bur brethren the Scottish Bishops."
As, among the last letters, if not the very last
letter, which Bishop Skinner bad the honour of
receiving from the indefatigable friend of S<J0t-
tish Episcopacy, the late Sir WUliam Forbes <yf
PitsUga, the Annalist is induced to gtAtify the
to the outstainding Clergy of English ordination in Scotland,
to apprise .them, that were any of them to be presented to a
living Or livings in fiiigland, he would posftivieiy beTe/uSed
itMtkutioin to the charge or charges, without a testitoonial
from two Clergymen in fiall communion with tbe Bishop in
Scotland, in whose diocese he may have resided for tbe. last
three years, and that testimonial counter-signed by the Bi
shop himself. The case actually happened, when Mr D. taie
of St Paul's chapel, Aberdeen, received ptesentatioa to th«
Ihing which he now holds in tbe diocese of Yorl:. That geo-
tleitian, though h^ never united withi Bishop Skinner, was ob
liged to apply to that Prelate for a testimonial, who, altliough
the applicant's conduct was the more inexcusable, in that hie
had been baptized and educated in the Scotch Episcopal
Church, readily granted the tesfig^onial in the form reqfmwd'.

426 ANNALS OF >, 1806.
reader with the following. It contains an incen
tive to union which must go to the heart of
every parent or guardian, professing himself an
Episcopalian, and prompt him, for his offspring's
sake, (if from no other motive,) to maintain invio
late Episcopal union, should, he be happy enough
to enjoy it, or, should the case be otherwise, to
(*' seek diligently tiU he find it."
LETTER LVIIL
SIR WILLIAM FORBES, BART. TO BISHOP SKINNER.
« Edinburgh, April 5, 1806.
*' It is a considerable time since I received the
honour ofyour very obliging letter, which I have
too long delayed to answer. Latterly, indeed, I
have purposely let it alone, in the view of the
confirmation, which Bishop Sandford had given
notice that he intended to hold in our Chapel (the
Cowgate) this day sennight, and which 1 wished
to be able to tell you I had witnessed. Yoii have no
doubt been informed by some of your corres
pondents here that it took place accordingly ;
and, I must say, I never was present at a niore
solemn, a more agreeable, or a more impressive
service. It could not but be very edifying to
every seriously disposed person, to see our Cha
pel, which, I believe, is the largest in this coun
try, filled with a numerous congregation of the
Upper ranks of life, aiid upwards of a .hundred

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 427
young persons confirmed, who not only com
ported themselves with the utmost decorum, but
seemed, as well as many of their parents, to be
very much affected with the ceremony, and who,
I hope, shall be the better for it to the end of
their lives. Three of my own young people were
of the number ; the elder part of my family hav
ing been confirmed by the Bishop of Man, A^hen
he passed through Edinburgh a good many years
ago. But, hereafter, thank God, we sball have
no need of foreign aid !
'' Having occasion now and then to exchange
a letter with the Bishop of London, on the sub
ject of the life of Dr Beattie, on which I am now
employed, and in which he is kind enough to
take sorae interest, I lately, in writing to the
good Bishop, introduced the subject of Dr Sand
ford's consecration. What he says in answer to
that part of my letter, is short, but very satisfac
tory. ' I congratulate you on thie union of the
'^Scotch and English Episcopal clergy. It will
'tend to promote harmony and cohcor^, and the
' general interests of reUgion.'
" I thank you for your kind inquiry about my
arm ; I am now able to use it in writing, as you
see, which is a great comfort to me. I remain,
with much respect, regard, and estejem,. Right
Rev. and Dear Sir, &c.''

Nor did this great and good man's interest
in tbe cause of Scottish Episcopacy expend it-

'*

22S ANNALS OF 1806.
self in words only. It was no part of his char
acter to ? sacrifice unto the Lord of that which
cost him nothing.' No sooner was it suggested
to him by one, nearly allied to bis amiable family
by marriage, that an attempt ought to be made to
raise a fund for making some smaU addition to
the incomes of tbe Bishops in Scotland, and for
relieving the wants of the most necessitous
of their clergy, than Sir William Forbes en
tered, with heart and hand, on the beneficent
scheme ; giving no less a sum, from his own
private funds, than L.400. In order, the more
e^ffectually tw secure success to ' this work
and laboM of love," a ** Memoir" was drawn
Bp in 1806, " respecting the present state
of tbe Episcopal Church in Scotland, and respect-
folly submitted to the consideration of the No
bUity and Gentry of that Communion." This
endearing monnment of zeal and sincerity in their
Christian profession, on the part of the Institu
tors of the Episcopal fond in Scotland, the An
nalist is proud to record, * injuturam rei memoti-
am.' * While deeming the following account of
the pioos scheme, extracted from the Honourable
Mr Justice Park's valuable " Memoirs of William
StevenSr Esq.", more calculated to excite the in
terest of bis readers at large, and to call forth the
contributions of the wealthy and benevolent, than
any statement which he could give, the AnnaUst
ardently solicits the public attention to it.
*? I have been the more difitiscy in this aei-
* See Appendix No. VI.

I806> SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 4*9
count," (the account of the progiess of union a-
mong Scottish Episcopalians,) " because it must
be a matter of great curiosity to the student in
Jlcclesiastical History ; because Mr Stevens was
continually consulted upon the measures pro
per to be adopted, (and, he wns laborious and in
defatigable in his consideration and correspon
dence on the subject ;) and, because this very un
ion led to StiU further exertions of this good man's
benevolence, both in his per^nal labours and pe
cuniary bounty, for the comfort and happiness of
the members of that body.
" Delightful as it was to all good men, who feel
how joyful it is for brethren to dwell together in
unity, to behold such a schism so nearly healed j
yet it was matter of great lamentation to the
laity to see their Bishops^and Pastors, who are not
excelled by any clergy in piety and learning, and
exemplary behaviour, unable to support that de
cent rank in society to Tvbich they are so well
entitled, and which is so necessary to give weight
to their chai'aeters, and eflfect to their public mi
nistrations. Inasmuch, therefore, as all income
arisiiii; from the state was cut down at the Revo-
lutioo, these reverend persons. Bishops as well
as Priests, had nothing to rely on biit the emolu-
aaents arising from their Congregations, which
were often so limited in number, and in such nar
row circumstances, that the stipends of many of
these pious and exemplary men did not exceed
the wages of a common day-labourer. It could

430 ANNALS OF 1806,
not, therefore, but be matter of regret to every
well disposed Christian, indeed to every feeUng
heart, tP see those who had had a liberal educa
tion, and who filled the distinguishing station,
(whatever the worldling may think) of ambassa
dors of their blessed master, with such pitiful in
comes. " It w^s also a cii'cumstance worthy of remem
brance, that not a complaint of tbe narrowness
of their pecuniary means ever escaped from the
lips of these excellent men; but they proceeded^
through evil report and good report, in hunger
and thirst, faithfully and Contentedly discharging
all the duties of their sacred caUing. It seemed,
therefore, upon the removal of the penal laws,
and upon this union" (the union in Edinburgh)
" being effected, that to make some improvement
in their worldly circumstances was an object well
deserving of attention. It therefore occurred to
some valuable members of the Episcopal persua
sion at Edinburgh, in the foremost rank of whom
stood the late great, because the good. Sir Wil
liam Forbes, to form a fund for making a mode
rate aj|dition to the incomes of all the Bishops
and most necessitous ofthe inferior Clergy.*
* " This subscription was to be entirely ofa private nature.
It included no application to Governihent, nor any idea of the
slightest codnectioQ between the Episcopal Church of Scot
land and the State. With regard to the Established Presby
terian Church, its most conspicuous members are well known
to be raen of most enlightened minds, who knew too well the
merits of the Episcopal Clergy, and their obscurity also, with-

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 431
" Accordingly, the Duke and Duchess of Buc*
eleugh, and Sir William Forbes, set the subscrip*
tion on foot in Scotland, by large contributions ;
and the latter being about to be removed, for the
reward of his virtues, to a better world, added;
to his original subscription of L.2U0, a legacy of
L.200 more. No sooner was this most laudable
plan coraraenced in that country to which it
more particularly applied; than the friends of
Episcopacy in England, desirous to db every
thing in their power to forward the pious designs
of those in Scotland, in favour of this long de
pressed, though pure portion of the Christian
Church, imraediately forraed theraselves into a
Coramittee, in order to coUect subscriptions, to
suggest plans, and, in short, to co-operate with
the Scottish Managers, in every way in which
their services, for so good a cause, ipight be re
quired. This Committee originally consisted of
James Allan Park, Esq- the Chairman ; the very
Rev. Gerard Andrews, Dean of Canterbury ; the
Rev. Dr Gaskin ; WiUiam Stevens, Esq. ; the
Rev. Robert Hodgson, Rector of St George's,
Hanover Square ; John Bowdler, Esq. of Hfeyes ;
and John Richardson, Esq. And it will be ob-
out power or influencBj to entertain any jealousy of them. In-
dfeed, it is but justice to say; that upon occasion of this sub
scription being set on foot, as well as of the application to Par
liament for relief to those of the Episcopal persuasioh, the
most ready consent to, and approbation of both measures,
were afibrded by some of the moyt eminent members ef the
establishraent in Scotland."

4$^ ANNALS OF 1806.
served, that of them, three were of the old Com
mittee for procuring the repeal of the penal sta
tutes. This Committee, jointly and individually,
were most anxiously sedulous in the discharge of
this voluntary trust; and Mr Stevens himself was
widefatigable in endeavouring to procure sub-
jipriptions. But that he might not be supposed
to attempt at influencing others to do what he
had no intention of doing himself, his purse was
ready and open, as usu^,!, upon this occasion ;
and he was himself the firs,t EngUsh subscriber of
L-lOO; and he had before his death, (which hap-
' pened in two or three months after that of Sir
WUliam Forbe*, of whom and Mr SteveiMi it
VMght he said, ' they were lovely in their lives,
* and i^ their deaths were not long divided,') the
ffttisfectipn of seeing that tl^^is work of faith,—
this labour of Christian benevolence, — was meet
ing witha degree of encouragement worthy of
its importance in the scalp of humanity and cha
rity*." '* " Notwithstanding all the exertions of the Coij^roittees id
both amntf^es, and notwitbstandnig the liberal donations of
many o| the dignified Clergymen in England, and a vast body
ofthe laity, yet the funds have only 'enabled the Maoagers to
coUect L.lOO per annum to the Bishop residing in Edinburgh ;
L.QO per annum t9 the Primus, and L.50 to eifTcb ofthe other
Bish<^s ; L.15 to 8 very few, apd L.IO also to a very few of
tbe inferior Clergy." €ucb was the state in 1812, when the
Memoirs of Mr Stevens were published, and such is the state
ip 1817 — Annalist,
« But the Committees in both countries do noi remit theif
zed and ardour. They attribute mucb ef tbe backwardness

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 433
Bishop Skinner having, in the month of Au
gust this year, met his Clergy in regular Diocesah
Synod, and having delivered a Charge to them in
the usual manner, he had the satisfaction to find
that the subject of the charge was considered by
his Clergy, as so peculiarly suited to the then state
of the Episcopal Church in Scotland, that they
unanimously requested hira to publish it.
to subscribe which they discover, to the situation of the Scot
tish Episcopal Clergy not being known, and if known, not un
derstood ; and, to the very quiet and unobtrusive manner in
which the subscription has been, and must be, carried on.
They still trust and earnestly hope, that the great, the rich,
and the virtuous part of the community, will enable them- to
, do much more for those who stand in so near a relation to
the Founder of our holy faith ; and they rely confidently, at
least that all those who stand in the same relation to him in
the Church of England, and who have the means, will recol
lect, that though the outward splendour and territorial pos
sessions of Scottish Episcopacy are no more, yet in soundness
of doctrine, in solidity of learning, and in innocence of life,
her Clergy are still a burning and shining light, amidst a
crooked and perverse generation ; and although, by the sure
word of prophecy, the gates of hell shall not prevail against
the Church of God, yet, in the inscrutable dispensations of
Providence, it may hereafter be asked, ' where is the Church
' of England ?' as we now say, ' where is the Episcopal
¦ Church of Scotland ?' Let them consider these things and
act accordingly. — See a Sermon of Bishop Horsley."
Another edition of the interesting Memoirs from whichthis
extract is taken, being called for in 1815, the benevolent au
thor, after paying every expense of printing, publishing, &c.
gave the whole produce of the sale to the fu^d for which he
pleads so irresistibly.
E E '

434 ANNALS o? 1806.
The fact was, that the Bishop had reason to
su,spect that there were, among the junior Clergy
of Scottish ordination, sorae, . whpse ambition it
was to be considered as Clergymen of the Church
of England, and who, if they had not already
a,bandoned the use ofthe Eucharistical service of
the Scottish Church, were ready so to do,— for no
Other reason but that it was Scottish ! After
therefore giving a brief history of the measure of
union in Edinburgh, of the consecration of the
new Bishop of thai diocese, and of the patriotic
reasons (were there no other,) for Scottish Epis
copal Clergymen adhering* to the use " of that
venerable badge of distinction, so well known in
this part of the kingdora, under the title of the
Scottish Communion Office," the author of the
charge suras up his subject in these words : " By
the very act of toleration, the Clergy ordained
among us are expressly declared incapable of
takini^ any benefice, curacy, or spiritual promo
tion within the Church of England as by law
established ; they are therefore, to all intents and
purposes, to be considered solely and entirely
Scotch Episcppal Clergy. Assuming the appear
ance pf another eharacter, and wishing to pass
as ordained in England, by a strict observance of
all the forms prescribed by the English ritual, ¦
can serve only to expose them to ridicule, as af
fecting to disown the Church to which they pro
perly belong, and shewing themselves, as it were>
ashamed of their connection with it.' What else

1806, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 433
can be said of that silly affectation, which, if al
lowed to prevail in the rainds of our Clergy,
might tempt them to relinquish the use of our
truly primitive Comraunion Office, — for no other
reason but because it is Scotch, and has been
found fault with by some, who either know no
thing about iti or are evidently prejudiced against
it. It is with extreme reluctance that I have
touched on this unpleasant subject; but compelled,
as I feel myself, by a sense of duty, thus to state
my opinion to the Clergy with whom I am more
immediately connectedj it is in the pleasing hope
that all of them, whether of Scotch or English or
dination, will see the propriety of not abandoning
any religious rite or practice, pn such light
grounds as mere levity of principle, or a mean
compliance with the fashionable taste of the
times." Besides the Clergy of the diocese of Aberdeen,
to whom the charge was officially addressed, it
chanced that three members ofthe Episcopal Col
lege were Bishop Skinner's auditors on that occa
sion, — Bishop Macfarlane of Ross, Bishop Watson
of Dunkeld, and Bishop JoUy of Moray. These
Prelates being in Aberdeen, in consequence of
the Triennial General Meeting of the members of
the Scotch Episcopal Friendljj Society, the charge
may be considered as speaking the sentiraents of
a majority of the Scottish Prelates ; inasrauch as
Bishop Skinner announces in the printed preface,
that " his three Right Reverend colleagues, who
E E 2

436 ANNALS OF 1806.
were present at the delivery of it, had the good
ness tp express their approbation of it in the
warmest terms of brotherly kindness."
, This eventful year, (1806,) however, now dra\y-
ing towards its close, was not permitted to pass
away, without its full share of calamity and afflic
tion. Were the reader asked, to what public
characters on either side of the Tweed the Scot
tish Episcopalian considered hiraself to be most
indebted ? the answer, without hesitation, would
be,-^'^ to the Right Rev. Samuel Hordey, Lord
Bishop of St Asaph, in England, — and to Sir
William Forbes of Pitsligo, Bart, in Scotland."
Yet, to the deep regret of every friend of truth
and virtue, and to the grief inexpressible of the
Bishops, the Clergy, and lay members- of the
Episcopal Church in Scotland, both of these illus
trious men were snatched away by death from this
sublunary world, ere the year 1 806 had reached
its eijd. The venerable pastor of Longside, then
in his 86th year, endeavoured, in some Latin
verses, to give vent to the sorrow which agitated
the breasts of himself, his spiritual fathers and
brethren, on the mournful tidings reaching their
ears. Of Bishop Horsley, he sums up the well
earned fame in language too indelibly engraven
on every Scottish Episcopalian's heart to be for
gotten : —
" Cambria maesta, dole tantum tibi lumen ademptum !
Patronum ablatum, Scotia maesta, dole !
Dum cplitur pietas, et amor divinus honesti) - '

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 437
Dum retinet primam Scotia nostra fidem,
Praesulis Ho^sleii famamque, et juris amorem,
Semper honorabit Scotica turma Patrum *."
Equally just and impressive, the verses on Sir
William Forbes, wUl ever be had in equal regard.
They were transmitted to the heir of his virtues,
as well as of his title and fortune, by Bishop Skin
ner, in the following artless and affecting note.
LETTER LIX,
BISHOP SKINNEB TO SIR WILLIAM FORBES, BART.
" Aberdeen, Dec. 9. 1806.
" Having already taken the liberty of present
ing to you, with much sincerity, my heartfelt
condolence and sympathy on a late mournful
event, I again presume to trouble you with a
small testiraony of respect frora an aged friend of
mine, who, like many others, feels deeply on the
present occasion. The person to whom I allude
having long been an ardent admirer of the cha
racter, of your late worthy father, has attempted
to do justice to it iq a few Latin verses, which I
now enclose. May I hope that you wUl not be
oifended at the freedom v;hich I have used in
thus laying before you a small specimen of my
father's genius, now in his 86th year, and stiU
holding the charge of the Episcopal longrega-
tion in Longside, to which he was appointed six?
ty-four years ago.
f Skinner'? Theological Works, Vol, IJI. p. 8g.

438 ANNALS OF ' 1806.
" Requesting your acceptance of my fervent
wishes for the blessing of heaven, and every com
fort on earth to you and your family, I have the
honour to be, with the highest esteem and re
gard," &c.
The yerses themselves, strictly speaking, are
foreign to the Annalist's purpose, but that rea
der's heart must be of a nature foreign to the
heart ofa Scotchman, who can be offended at their
introduction here. IN OBITUM
GULlELMl FORBES,
BAEONETTI DE PITSLIGO.

Dum sacrata pius lacryrtias super ossa profundo,
Maerori ignoscas, lector amicBi meo :
Ne tibi displiceat talem, quod.ploret, ademptum,
, Maerente populo maesta camaena virum ! . , ,
Charus eras meritoque mihi, Gulielrae verende.
Propter et exlsmplum semptr amande mihi !
Te constans, inter cives terrena gerentem
Ornabat purae Relligionis amor.
Te sensit gaudens Ecclesia nostra benignum,
Laudat et auxilii pignova larga tui !
Td regi et legi, patriaeque Deoque fidelis.
Absque dolo simplex, absque timore pius.
Munificus, prudens, tu semper amcenus et almus, .
Divitibus monitor, pauperibusque pater !
Talem te genuisse virum, Caledonia, gaude !
Tali da lacrymas nunc spoliata viro !
Tu, quoque, siifgentis plebs grata et prospera villae
Patronum extinctum pectore et ore dole !*

. * On his estate of Pitsligo the late Sir William Forbes esta
blished a village -, from respect to the staff, and the villagers

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 4S9
At tu, qui tantis succedis laudibus Haeres,
Arvaque nunc proprio jure paterna tenes,
Vive diu, multos felix et laetus in annos.
Par famd et meritis, par pietate Patri."
The last letter in the hand writing of Bishop
Horsley which reached Scotland (letters, it may
be, to his own son excepted,) dated June l7,
1806, was addressed to the Rev. Mr Skinner of
Forfar, and contained the following grateful in
telligence, that, " with respect to the compara
tive merit ofthe two comraunion offices fbr Eng
land and Scotland, he (the Bishop) had no scruple
in declaring that he thought the Scottish office
more conformable to the primitive models, and in
his private judgment more edifying than the Eng
lish office now in use, insomuch that, if he (Bi
shop Horsley) were at liberty to foUow his own
private judgment, he would himself use the Scot
tish office in preference."
The last act of Sir WUliam Forbes's pen was
equally characteristic of his deep rooted regard
for the prosperity of tiiat Church whose distin
guishing ornament is her Eucharistic service. " I
have scarcely courage," Bishop Sandford tells
Bishop Skinner, in his letter announcing Sir Wil
liam's death, " I have scarcely courage to speak
ofthe established religion, he founded a Chapel of Ease, which
he liberally endowed : — from respect to the Church of which
he was a meraber, he, at the sarae time, erected an Episcopal
Chapel, the Clergyman of which he amply provided for.

440 ANNALS OF 1806.
of the loss which we have lately suffered, and a
loss never to be repaired. I cannot, without e-
motion, think of the valuable man who has been
taken frora us, and revolve in ray mind the last
solemn interview I had with him, 1 know, my
excellent Sir, that you will join ^ me in lamen- ,
tation for ourselves, for, in this case, indeed, it is
only for ourselves that we do lament. ,, I do not
know whether I told Mr John Skinner, that the
last time this good man signed his name was to a
paper in the service of our humble Church."
The paper bore an additional donation of L.200
to the Scottish Episcopal Fund ; for which, may
the pious donor's soul be rewarded a hundred^
fold in the day of the Lord Jesus !
Although, as already noticed, the Charge deli
vered by Bishop Skinner to his Clergy in the
month of August 1806, was deemed by all who
beard it, Prelates as well as Priests, so peculiarly
seasonable as to be printed at their unanimous
and express desire; yet, in the southern districts
ofthe Church, no small alarm was excited on the
publication of the Charge, at the foUowing inti
mation, which, along with Bishop Horsley's let
ter to Dr Grant, (see p, 391 above) the Primus
thought proper to append, in forra of a note, to
page 26 of his Charge. " A Clergyman of the
diocese of Dunkeld intends to publish, in a few
months hence, a new edition ofthe Scotch Com
munion Office, with a prefatory discourse on the;
doctrine of the Eucharistic sacrifice laid down

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 441
in that office, and shewn to accord, in every re
spect, with the doctrine of the united Church of
England and Ireland ; containing also a complete
illustration of the whole office, after the manner
of Wheatley, Shepherd, &c. and a collation of all
the communion offices that have been used in
Great Britain since the Reformation, as drawn
up by the then Lord Bishop of St Davids, now
of St Asaph." '
To those who were not aware that the author's
design was to obviate controversy, and to prevent,
in all time coming, men of equal ignorance and
prejudice with Dr Alexander Grant, from belying
the principles and practices of Scotch Episcopa
lians, this alarm was by no means unnatural.
They dreaded the recurrence of the same divi
sions, the same party spirit, which, at an early
period after the Revolution, disgraced, in its agi
tation of the same subject, the Scotch Episcopal
Church. And they were afraid lest any thing
should drop frora the illustrator's pen, which
should even but insinuate that the sacrament of
the Lord's Supper was not duly administered by
the office for the holy coraraunion, according to
the present use of the Church of England *. No
* The Annalist is aware, that one very formidable objection
to union among the Episcopalians in Scotland has been foun
ded on the permission granted to the English ordained Cler
gymen, to retain the use ofthe English Eucharistical service ;
J)y which, say the objectors, two forms or Liturgies are permit-
):ed in one Church ; so that division still prevails. Tb this obo

446 ANNALS OF 1806.
sooner was Bishop Skinner apprised of these
alarms, than, in a letter to the Bishop' of Edin
burgh, he proceeded thusto justify the undertak
ing, and the intimation of it, as annexed to his
printed charge. LETTER LX.
BISHOP SKINNER TO BISHOP SANDFORD.
" Aberdeen, Dec. 16. 1806.
" I must now, in compliance with the wish
you have expressed to that purpose, take some
jection it has been briefly, yet unanswerably, replied : I dp,
not see why the slight variations in the Scottish and English
qlEces for the holy Commuqion should occasion any breach of
unity between! such members of the Church as may prefer
either one or'the other ; or, why the vise of either of them may
not safely be left to the discretion of the Ministers. Even in
the English Communion ofiice, the Church has left to the dis
cretion of the oflBciating Clergyman^ the choice of two diffe
rent prayers for the King, tyyo exhortations, and, two prayers
in the Post-communion ; besides a similar licence in otheif
parts of her ritual. Suppose, then, that the Episcopal Church
in Scotland were to think fil; to print both the Scottish and
English Communion ofKces in her Book of Common Prayer,
and to prefix a Rubric, authorizing the Minister to use either
at his discretion,— what harm or inconvenience would arise ?
Indeed, allowing, (what the Church of England — see Article
XXXIV — contends for,) that " every national Church has a
right to frame its own ritual," such a concession as the Scot
tish Bishops have granted to the English ordained Clergy and
their Congregations, does much credit to their eonciliatiag
and moderate disposition.

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 443
notice of the principal subject of your former
letter, to which I will frankly own I did not in
tend to make a reply so soon,-r-being unwilling
to give you needless trouble in regard to a mat
ter about which, I am sorry to say, we are not
likely to agree in opinion ; although the differ
ence of sentiment, I am sure, proceeds from the
best of motives, and ought not therefore to inter
rupt our friendly correspondence. The officious,
and, as you seem to think, alarming note at
page 26, of my lately printed Charge, has excited
fears or apprehensions on your part, which, had
they in any shape occurred to me, would have
niade me sooner have put my hand into the fire
than write such a note, or encourage the propo
sal to which it alludes,
" For the last twenty years of my life, I have had
occasion to take an active part in all the public
measures which have had for their object the
quiet, credit, and support of the Scottish Epis>-
copal Cburch ; and, as far as I am able to judge,
from comparing the present state of this Church
with what it was at the coraraencement of the
period I have raentioned, I cannot find that it has
been in the least injured, but rather considerably
benefited, by the steps which have been taken to
promote its peace, and, at the same tirae, preserve
its piirity.
" It is hard, then, that I should now be suspect
ed of giving any countenance to imprudent and
precipitate measures, when arrived at a time of

444 ANNALS OF I8O6,
life which generally cures men of a propensity
to be too forward or rash in their designs. But
though thus, I trust, happily guarded against the
folly pf exposing our poor un^otected Society
to any danger that may be avoided, consistently
with our profession and our principles, I yet feel
impressed upon my mind such a firm unshalvcn
regard to those principles, as will not allow rae to
shrink from what duty prescribes, in requiring a
public avowal, both of the doctrine and practice,
by which our Church has been hitherto distiur
guished, in the most essential and important part
of her Uturgical service. It is for me the more
necessary to stand forward, either personally or
by my nearest connections, in defence of what is
peculiar to the Scotch Episcopacy, because, in
some ofthe measures in which I have been prin
cipally concerned, such as that which took plac(jt
at Laurencekirk in October 1804, and at Dundee
in February last, it has been inferred, that 1 was
disposed, with the tacit consent of my colleagues,
to let matters go on in such a way as might gradu
ally remove every vestige of our Scottish original,
and make us iippear as a branch cut ofi^, Hke tliE^t of
America and the West Indies, from the English
Church. Among those, who still retain an atr
tachntient to us, as the remains of a distinct and
National Church, I know it is insinuated, ' that
since Bishop Skinner has been its senior Bishop,^
* things haye begun to assume a different ap^
? piparance ; and, by so zealously promoting unipij

1806. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 445
' with the English clergy in this country, and
'even procuring one of his sons to be educated
* and ordained in England, and then settled as his
' own assistant, it would look as if he were inclin-
' ed to obliterate every mark of distinction, and
• make us forget that we have any thing of our
• own that belongs to a Church, Bishops, Clergy,
' or sacred offices, but that we must get all from
' England 1'
" In short, my dear Sir, I ara so thoroughly
convinced, of the propriety of what is intended,
and which I hope wUl be executed in the most
Jnoffensive, and unexceptionable raanner, that un
less all my other colleagues as well as yourself put
a direct negative on the proposal, which, as far as
I have yet learned, is by no raeans their intention,
r shall certainly consider it as my duty to give
every assistance in my power to a design so lau
dable in itself, and so likely, as I see it, to do
good instead of evil ; good to those whose good
is most desirable, and evil only in their eyes who
are disposed to speak evil ofthe way of truth.
" From the plain, the honest, and free manner,
in which I have now delivered my sentiraents on
this, to me most interesting subject, you will see,
that I am far from being displeased at the free
dom with which you have treated it in your let
ters both to my son and me ; I rather feel my
self much obliged to you for giving rae an oppor
tunity of stating my opinion in return with e-
qual plainness, but with the most sincere and

446 ANNALS OF 1807-
humble deference. Your local situation and
mine are so diff'erent in many respects, that it is
no wonder if we view, in different lights, many ot
the things by which we are immediately affected.
But it shaU ever be my study to concUiate ybur
esteem and good opinion, which, on your part,
I am sure, wUl never be withholden while you
believe me acting to the best of ray judgraent,
and in the way that my conscience directs,"
&c. &c.
1807.] The remoyal, " during the preceding
year, of such men and such friends as Bishop
Horsley and Sir William Forbes was, to Bishop
Skinner, and the cause nearest his heart, — a loss
which could only be surpassed by the bodily dis
solution of three other individuals on earth, viz.
the wife of his bosom ; the intrepid champion of
Scottish Episcopacy, as Bishop Skinner's revered
father may well be termed ; aud the late Wil
liam Stevens, Esq. treasurer to Queen AnUe's
Bounty ; a raan who, from the hour in which he
first heard of an Episcopal Church in Scotland,
viz. the period of Bishop Seabury's consecration,
had exerted every faculty of his mind to promote
her interests, and every disposition of his bene
volent heart to befriend her senior Bishop and
his family. Yet, during the year 1807, did the
All-wise Disposer of events see fit to remove frora
thjs militant state these worthies, and the Scot
tish Primus' dearest relatives and friends y — friends

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 447
by whose removal, so very sensibly were his feel
ings wounded, that although, in every part of
duty, the Bishop's outward exertions were the
same, and ' the spirit of the man' appeared • to
' sustain his infirmities,' yet his inward thoughts,
and state of dejection at his vacant hours, shew
ed that ' a wounded spirit' was more than even he
could ' bear.'
For an account of Mr Stevens, who, of the
thr^e lamented friends, was the first summoned
frora this earthly stage, the reader is referred to a
Memoir of his life, drawn up by his bosom friend,
the Hon. Mr Justice .Park, than which modern
Biography is not likely soon to furnish any thing
more interesting, whether we have an eye to the
matter or the manner.
The last letter which this excellent man wrote
to Bishop Skinner, dated 14th May 1806, is here
submitted to the reader's notice as a proof of his
unwearied zeal in doing good, as well as afford
ing a specimen of the extreme humility and self-
abasement with which all his extensive chari
ties were performed. LETTER LXL
WILLIAM STEVENS, ESQ. TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" London, MayvH. 1806.
" I wrote to you sometime since, after a shame
ful neglect of a letter received from you ; and I

448 ANNALS OF 1807.
mentioned, that as the time drew near for remit
ting an annual contribution to the Fund for the
relief of the poor Episcopal Clergy in Scotland,
their Widows and Orphans, it was probable I
might once more be the instrument for that pur
pose, which I had much doubted when I wrote
before ; and I now write to authorize you to
draw on me for the same sura as last year." (L.26,
of which he himself contributed L.IO, 10s.)
" You are very good tp interest yourself so
much in my favour, which is more than I deserve.
I have no pretensions to the usefulness you speak
of, being at best a raost unprofitable servant. I
feel ho satisfaction in the recollection of the past,
and consequently no great comfort in the pros
pect of the future. In short, I seem neither fit
to live, nor fit to die. My friends have no rea
son to fear ray reraoval out of sight. I shall
not be missed, go when I will. The vacancy
will soon be filled up, and, it is to be hoped, bet
ter supplied, as it cannot easily be worse.
" Your account ofyour triennial visitation last
summer is very pleasing. I don't wonder that
you had some times warm work of it, which pro
bably was increased, and the fatigue of it also,
by your being oblig^ to use expedition. Your
Sees not having the ^ame means as ours, makes
attention to expense necessary; this is a pity,
and we have only to pray for better times. But if
your Church is poor, you have the comfortable
reflection that it is pure, and perhaps it is not
the less pure for being poor.

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 449
" I am obliged to you for mentioning your vi
sit to your good old father. I am glad to thinkj
that his mental faculties should be so strong in
his 86th year, and that he should be passing away
the evening of his days with so much Christian
tranquUlity and cheerfulness. I have had the
satisfaction to hear of you at different times from
different quarters, and I ara now in possession of
your last letter to Mr Bowdler, which he put in
to my hands the other day at Nobody's club,
where nineteen merabers asserabled, and passed
an agreeable day. *
" It is comfortable to see yoiir ecclesiastical
matters going on so favourably, and I congratu
late you on the accession of Dr Sandford to your
venerable bench. I think you may be succeed
ing, if not so well as you could wish, at least as .
well as you could expect ; and I flatter myself, you, :
in no long time, may look for an entire end being
put to your schism. It is pleasing to think that
Dr Grant's business is settled without his doiiig
any serious mischief. I dont know thatT have.
any thing to comraunicate in the literary way, or
* It occurred to the gentlemen who were the chief associ
ates of Mr Stevens, " to institute," saysKis biographer, " a
cTub in honour of their revered and much admired friend, which
should be denominated Nobody's Club, in conformity to the
name which his humility had induced him to assume^ when he
collected his various pamphlets into a volume. He entitled
them'OjiS£;ios"Ejy«,i. e.the Works of Nobody; and, by the appel- '
lation of Nobody, he was ever after known among his friends."
F P

450 ANNALS Of ISO7.
that I have any thing farther to say, than that,
relying on your prayers, I, ara what you are no
stranger to, with cordial regards to all the mem
bers of your famUy, known and unknown, your
obliged and faithful servant, W. S."
This extraordinary man, whether we regardchim
as a private Christian or as a learned theologian j
as a citizen of London, or as having his itohnivjx*,
bis citizenship in heaven, had always hoped that
his death might not be lingering. And all who-
knew hira were assured, that however sudden it
might be, with him it could not be unprepared,' —
which his biographer rightly presumes to be the
true meaning of the word " sudden," as applied
to death, in a petition of the Litany. But so
uncomraonly affecting, and, as the Annalist con
siders it, " good to the use of edifying," is the
account of Mr Stevens' demise, given in bis ho
nourable friend's Memoir of him, that he hopes
to be pardoned for inserting it in the Annals of
that Episcopacy, to the support of which, besides
expense of thought and bodily labour, this excel
lent man was, in one way or other, a pecuniary
contributor of many hundred pounds.
" On Friday the 6th of February 1807, Mr
Stevens spent the whole morning at home, chief
ly in company with his friend, Mr Bowdler, who
says, that his conversation was animated, lively,
and very much like what it ever was with a
friend he so tenderly loved, and whose sentiments

1807. SbOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 45l
were so much in unison with his Own. These
two friends were to dine together, at Mr Rich-
drdson^s, King^s-road. His coachman, who had
always been remarkable for his punctuality, and
had frequently received the commendations of
his master on that account, was, on this day,
happily artd providentially, a great deal after his
time ; and Mr SteyenS had put on his great-coat,
in order to be ready; but, just as he was step
ping into his carriage, he was seized with a pairt
in his chesti Mr Bowdler asked the cause of his
. sudden emotion, — he answered calmly, ' Nothing
but death.'
*' He was attended immediately by two phf-
sicians, and he was bled ; and, though restless at
times, be, upon the whole, slept quietly. Mr
Bowdler, who never quittdd him till -a late hour,
relates an anecdote which proves, that the same
religious spirit, and the same ready obedience
to God's will, which pervaded every thought,
word, and action, from his earliest youth, con
tinued to operate upon him even to the latest
hioment of his existence. After the stroke of
death above - mentioned, feeling (I suppose,)
that he was dying, he refused the medicines
which the physiciatls had prescribed ; and I,"
Says Mr Bowdler, " was desired to prevail upoti
him to take them, which I did with the usu
al argument,—' but do it to oblige me ;' but in
Vain, for he still refused. At last I was going to
to say, « It is your duty to God, to da what yon
' can to preserve your life.' But when I had ut-

4<52 ANNALS OF 1807.

tered only the six first words, he seized the cup,
and drank it to the dregs; and, laying hold of
my hand," adds Mr Bowdler, " said, with great
earnestness several times, ' my dear friend, my
' dear friend !' as if wishing to express, not only
his affectionate regard to this excellently good
man, but his gratitudefor recalling him to his
duty to God at that moraent, when our excellent
Liturgy, in most impassioned language, in the bu
rial service, teaches us to pray, — that God will
not suffer us at our last hour, for any pains of
de^th, to fall from him.
" Not long before he expired, Mr Bowdler
asked hira, after he waked from a calm sleep,
whether he should repeat a prayer ; the dying
Christian assented. Mr Bowdler repeated the
Collect, from the order for the visitation of the
sick, beginning with these words : ' O Lord look
' down from heaven,' &c. ;— when he had said,
* give him comfort and sure confidence in thee,*
Mr Stevens said very calmly and. distinctly; —
* Araen 1' But as he did not repeat it at the end
of the Collect, it is presumed his mind was, ex
hausted. When the clock struck three, in the
morning, he said to the servant, ' My time is
come 1 — Oh, dear good God 1' and fell asleep
without a struggle or a groan."
One short month from the day on which, this
invaluable friend and correspondent .was with
drawn, and Bishop Skinner had to mourn his own
fate as a widower. Mrs Skinner, as has been no-

c

1807. SCOTTIS H EPISCOPACY. 45S
ticed in the introductory Memoir, died on ^he
4th of March I8O7. His feelings on that event,
and others of a like nature, he faUed not to com
municate to his friends, as ample apology for his
epistolary sUence. But no sooner did he resume
his pen, than, in the following reply to the ten
der sympathy expressed by one of his most re
spected correspondents, the Bishop found it ex-'
pedient to recur to the alarming note appended
to his printed Charge of 1806. * '
LETTER LXII.
BISHOP SKINNER TO A FRIEND.
« Aberdeen, May 14, 1807.
*' Your very kind and affectionate letter of the
26th March was a cordial to my drooping spirits,
pouring balm into my wounded heart, while, on
tlie one side, holding out the raost pleasing good
wUl to our little Zion, and, on the other, the ten
derest syrapathy-for my distressed situation. ' It
is a comraon saying in this country, that ' a green
%wound is half healed ;' iraplying, that only one
half of the anguish is at first felt ; and I can bear
melancholy evidenceto the truth ofthe observa
tion. Were the case otherwise, I should not have
been so long in acknowledging the favour ofyour
last obliging communication, with all the agree
able intelligence which it contained. But ray
* See above, p. 44<0.

454 ANNAJ-S OF 1807,
mind is still in such a state of depression, from
the unexpected shocks it has had to sustain, as to
be hardly capable pf raising itself to any exer
tions beyond what the calls of duty necessarily
require. In such a weak and languid condition,
it is no wonder if I be apt to feel the weight of
^ny reflections on my conduct, which^ from the
consciousness of acting to the best of my judg
ment, and from the purest motives, would other,,
wise have fallen lighter upon me.
" I am led into this train of thought, by part
of a most affectionate letter I lately received froin
'pur excellent friend ********, yfho has stiU the
goodness of heart to attend to the concerns of
our poor Church. That part of his letter to which
I allude, was sugg0Sted by a person whom he
calls a .most warm and zealous friend to our
Church, and who urged, what no doubt appear
ed to him very strong reasons, for deferring the^
publication of a little work, in which my son at
Forfar Ijas been for sorae time engaged, respect
ing the doctrine and practice of our Church in
the article of her Eucharistic service ; a work
which I took the opportunity of announcing tq
the public about eight months ago, in a note at
p. 26 of my printed Charge, That Charge has.
found its way into England, and, from the most
laudable motives on your part, has been put into
the hands of sorae of the most dignified charac
ters of the English Church. A pledge has thus
|)een given, (if ^e may adopt the political Ian-

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 45S
guage of the day,) that such a little work would
ere now have made its appearance, and no harm,
as far as I have heard, has been done by the in
timation of it.
" That any alarm should be raised by nbtifying
such an intention on my son's part, must surely
be owing to some strange misconception of what
is intended to be laid before the public. On
which account, as soon as my son was informed
of what was stated in ***** *'s most friendly
letter, he felt it to be his duty, with all becoming
deference to the judgment of others, to give some
short account of Ids plan and design, and, witb
that view, took the liberty of addressing a letter
to our dear friend, which you either have seen,
or, I presume, may see, and thence judge for
yourself whether any danger is to be apprehend
ed from what he has undertaken in defence of
our misrepresented principles. Those of our good
friends in England, who have chanced to hear of
Dr Grant's little pamphlet, are abundantly sen
sible what mischief it has done to our cause, for
the reason, which you very properly assign, that
many of his readers wiU take for granted what
he has asserted, apd inquire no farther into the
"truth of it.
" With a view, therefore, to make this inquiry
as little troublesome as possible, my son has en
deavoured to compress his materials into a nar
row compass, exhibiting a very clear, though
concise proof, tba^t oiu- doctrin^ on the subjept

456 ANNALS OF 1807.
of the Eucharist is • one and the same' with the
doctrine of the Church of England ; and that our
practical adherence to that doctrine, and to the
purest primitive |brms, is sanctioned by the Li
turgy, by the Articles, by the HoraUies and Ca
nons, as well as, by the writings of the best and
truest sons of that Church. Many of these have
laraented the defects which evidently appear in
the outward form of her Communion-service, and
would have been glad to have seen these defects
remedied by the joint concurrence of civil and
ecclesiastical authority. But as we have nought
to do with civil authority, and therefore have no
other sanction to any pf our- ofiices but what is
purely ecclesiastical our Bishops would have
much, to account for, did they neglect any favour
able, ojroortunity of settling these matters on a,
proper basis.
"It. would, in me, be particularly blamable
not to use my utmost endeavours to get things
brought as nearly as possible to fixed principles
before the days of my allotment come to an end.
The measure of union- which, as in duty bound,
I have been so anxious to promote, has, no dqubt,
its advantages, and may they he daily more and
more experienced ! but, I fear, it has its disad
vantages also ; and unless both the one and the
other be properly understood aiid duly weighed,
we shall find it difficult to fix the bounds by
which union ought to be circumscribed, or to
say, in imitation of our pious Monairch, with re-

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 457
spect to concessions in favour of our Roraan Ca
tholic countrymen, ' Thus far we will go, but no
' farther.' " With my best thanks for your truly kind
and Christian wishes in my behalf, and my fervent
prayers to the throne of grace for all that is good
to you and yours, I remain, in much sincerity
and grateful] aff'ection, my dear Sir, your much
obliged," &c. '
The worthy friend to whom Bishop Skinner
thus appealed in vindication of himself and of
the much-drOaded illustration of the Scottish
Coramunion-office, (which, be it observed, had
been in the printer's hands before any alarm was
excited,) being of the sarae opinion with the
gentleraan who first had the goodness topcom-
municate the alarm, that this little work was
likely to prove injurious to the success of the
Episcopal Fund, nay, was likely, instead of fix
ing principles, to produce an intemperate disa
greement about principles ; the Bishop conclud
ed the painful discussion in manner following ; —
LETTER LXIIL
BISHOP SKINNER TO * * *.
" Aberdeen, June 23, 1807.
" Ever since I had the honour of your acquain
tance, and the pleasure of writing to you, I was

458 A-NNALS OF 1807*
never so much at a loss what to write or how to
express myself as on the present occasion. Both
your Jast letters are now before me ; and, after
having read them over and over in much pain
and anxiety, and with aU the attention which the
subject so justly claims, I stiU feel it very diffi
cult to account for the change of sentinient which
seems to have taken place respecting my charac
ter and condnct, even among those whose good
opinion I have long been zealous to cultivate,
and never suspected that I could have so sadly
and suddenly forfeited all future right to it.
" Applying, with all humility, the Scriptural
remark on a rauch greater injury, I may surely
say, of what has so unexpectedly happened to
myself, * An enemy hath done this.' But who
this enemy is, or what can be the motive for thus
endeavouring to deprive rae of one of tbe great
est comforts which now remiain to support my
declining years, it is hardly possible for rae tp
conceive. " It is a circumstance well known, that a party
has been formed for bringing our hurable Church
tp what they would call ' complete conformity,'
with the Church of Engl^ ; even in those very-
points, as to which many of the most sound apd
serious divines of that Church would have been
happy in the liberty which We enjoy, to make our
ritual perfectiy agreeable to the purest standards
of the primitive Church.
1' Y^t a privilege so happily preserved to i^

1807' SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 459
amidst all our deprivations, there are amongst
us those who would tamely renounce, for the sake
of affecting a ,sUly imitation, not of the purity
;Sind excellence, but of what may be considered
the faults and defects of the English Ecclesias
tical system, because that system happens to be
supported, and all its imperfections covered, by l^
strong legal establishment. But as this is not the
means by which we can hope to see our perma
nence secured to our poor unprotected Church,
the consequence is obvious, that if we are to be
subjected to all the restraints imposed by civil
establishment, without enjoying any of its bene
fits, and must neither act, nor write, nqr speak,
but in the way that the state is pleased to permit
the established Bishops and Clergy of England
to do, it will soon be all over with any thing' like
an Episcopal Church in Scotland, and the gene
ration that succeeds its present members will be
astonished to perceive, that hardly a vestige re
mains of what they may have heard was the faith
of their forefathers.
" This is the only fear which at present lies
heavy on my dejected mind ; not the fear of
hurting our temporal interest, or losing the coun
tenance of this or of the other great man, be he
Peer or Prelate ; but the fear of off'ending our
great Master in heaven, by sacrificing any part of
that which we are constrained to allow is ' God's
' truth,' to our little worldly schemes, and of thus
losing the favour and protection of Hira, who is
' King and head oyer all things to his Church.'

460 ANNALS OF 1,807.
" It was under the force of this apprehension,
that Hast year addressed the Clergy of this Dio^
cese, in terms whiph were approved ¦ by them,
and sanctioned by the Bishops who were present,
and at whose desire my son undertook this little
work, which I then thought it my duty to an
nounce to the public ; and which I ara stiU bound
to patronise hy every means in my power, were
it only for the sake of maintaining that consis
tency which my character and station require, as
necessary to render my ofiice any way useful to
the Church with which I am officially connected.
" On this account, and for vindicating both
my son and rayself, in particular, as well as the
Church in general to which we belong, it is but
doing an act of justice to all concerned to let the
work speak for itself, at least in this part of Scot
land, where a due regard to ray character is yet
of some consequence to the credit of the Scottish
Episcopate. To press this mode of vindication
is also the more incumbent on my part, because
one-half of the work, if not mone, was actually
thrown off frora the press before any mention
was made of those objections which have appear
ed so formidable to some rainds; and to have
stopped its publication, by arresting the printer's
progress, would have implied, that the subject-
matter was littie short of treason, or something
that deserved to be checked at any expense. At
the same tirae you raay rest assured, that without
your and Mr *******'s approbation, no publica-

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 46 1
tion ofthe work shall take place in England. And
I still hope, that neither you nor he will be offend
ed at the liberty I have taken in sending you and
him a copy of it, that, being able fairly and can
didly to judge for yourselves, you may the more
easily repel the false and invidious prejudgment
of others. This, I am sure, you will be ready to
do, with that kind and disinterested friendship
which I have so happily experienced frora you
both, on raany occasions. And I reraain, dear
Sir, in all sincerity of affection," &c. &c.
The stipulation here entered into was, on Bi
shop Skinner's part, strictly observed. His son's
little work, which the Bishops who attended Dr
Sandford's consecration, having spent two days
,with Mr Skinner in Forfar, urged hira to under
take, as the best mode of answering the cavils bf
Dr Grant, was never advertised for sale south of
the Tay. In fact, as neither emolument nor fame
was the object of the Ulustrator of the Scottish
Comraunion ofiice, his only disappointment was,
that the antidote was not permitted to attend on
the bane. The purpose of Dr Grant's apology
for continuing (as, by a strange lapsus, he termed
itji) " in the Communion of the Church of Eng
land,*' in a country where the Church of England
professes to have no Communion, but what the
Episcopal Church in Scotiand affords, was to
shew, that the Church of England was decidedly
wrong in believing that the Episcopal Church in
Scotland was no longer a sister Church, but one

462 ANNALS OF I8O7.
and the same. The Doctor knew better ; there
was an " essential diff*erence between them ;"
and this essential difference he asserts, as proven
by a reference to the Scottish Communion oflice.
The sole purpose of Mr Skinner's publication
was to refute this daring calumny, and shew, by
an illustration of that ofiice, after tbe manner of
Wheatley, Shepherd, and other learned ritual
ists, that ** although the Episcopal Church in
Scotland agrees with the first compilers of the
reformed Liturgy of the Church of England^
and has, in proof of that agreement, taken the'
Liturgy of Edward the VL as a model in fram
ing her Communion office," (as did the Right
Reverend Prelates of the English Church, to
whom his Majesty King Charles I. intrusted
the compiling of the Bbok of Common Prayer
for Scotiand at large, and as the American Bi
shops did when they compUed the Liturgy used
in their Cluirch,) yet, that still the doctrine of
the ' two Churches is essentially the same, inas
much as the present Church of England, in
complete contradiction of Dr Grant's assevera
tions, affirms, that she " is fully persuaded in
her judgment, and here professes it to the world,
that the Book" of Common Prayer, (and there
fore the Communion office, from which the Scot
tish office is taken,) " as it stood before esta-
blished by law, does not contain in it anything
contrary to the word of God, or to sound doc
trine, or which a 'godly man may not, with *

1S07. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 46^
good conscxence, use and subrait unto, or which
is not fairly defensible against any that shall op^
pose the same, *" &c.
This ' fair defence* was the task which his ec-
desiastical superiors assigned to Mr Skinner ; and
neither they nor the defender himself ever con
templated any objections to the work as likely
to impede the measure of union, or to offend, in
the most distant way, the Clergy of EngUsh or
dination who had united with the Scottish Epis
copal Churcb. Nay, to use Bishop Skinner's
Words in a letter to Bishop Sandford, of date
g6th August l,807j " They naturaUy thought
that a more suitable mark of respect could hard
ly be paid, than by shewing, in this public man
ner, that the pastors of those congregations in
Scotland, who, though thily professed themselves
Episcopalians, were not hitherto Scottish Epis
copalians, had, in uniting themselves tothe Scot
tish Episcopate, not departed in the leiast from
the prihciples of the Church to which they ori
ginally belonged ; since, even the Scottish Com
munion oflice, though differing somewhat in its
form and order from that to which they had
* See Preface to the Book of Common Prayer ef the Church
of England ; in direct opposition to which, the man who apo
logized for continuing in her Communion, declares, that there
are things in the first reformed Liturgy of England, " which'
are not conformable to the principles of the Church of Eng
land" now a-days. " Nor am I acquainted with any authority
that ought to make me adopt them."— Apology, p. 6.

464 ANNALS OF 1807.
been accustomed, yet contains nothing that is
contrary to, or dissonant from that which is real
ly the doctrine of the established office for the
holy Comraunion in the Church of England,
the Scottish office only expressing in raore fuU,
direct, and appropriate terms, that doctrine which
the other leaves to be, gathered and inferred from
the general sense and meaning of the English
ritual." , ,
No one who has perused the little volume, but
has pronounced the author's success to be com
plete, " in fairly defending the practice of his
Church against any that have opposed, or shall
hereafter oppose the same*." ^
" It has convinced rae," said one every way
competent to decide on the merits of the under
taking, "_and, Idare^y, wiU convince every
unprejudiced raind, that there is no doctrine of
the Scottish Episcopal Church that is not per
fectly agreeable to the doctrine of the Church of
England ; and, if the Clergy, of the latter were
at liberty to choose, many of them would pro
bably prefer, as I should do, the office for the
holy Comraunion adopted in Scotland, to that
used in England t."
* See the Antijacobin Review for September 1817, in which
ample extracts from the work are given.
f Bishop Horsley, (as has been already noted, p. 439.) hesi- .
tated not to express this opinion : " Were I at liberty to fol
low my own private judgment^ I would myself use the Scot
tish office in preferenoe (to the English.) The alterations

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY.

46

. In fact, let his prejudices and predUections be
what they may, no person ever attempted to caU
in question any pari of the contents of the little
volume ; it was simply objected, that " the tirae
was peculiarly uE^ropitious for such a publica
tion" And, to this obgection. Bishop Skinner
naturally enough replied :*—
" If -the present tiiptie b^ pecuUarly unpropi
tious for the publication in question, is there any
ground to hope that this pecuUarity wiU soon
cease, and a raore propitious time be found?
¦ ShaU we be able to shew the truth of our Eucha
ristic doctrine in a more favourable view when it
has been totally lost sight of, or when men's minds
' have been completely blinded against it ? Will
the ignorance that now prevails, in regard to the
true nature of our altar service, be combated with
more success when it has been allowed time to
increase in strength, and to derive support from
long continuance? Or, will a captious humour,
or unreasonable prejudice, be as easily set aside
by giving it full^cope to work its way, as when
its progress is checked, by shewing that there
which were made in the Communion service, as it stood in the
first book of Edwal-d VI. Were, in my opinion, much for the
worse ; nevertheless, I think our present office very good ;
our form of Consecration of tne Efements is sufficient; I
mean, that the elements are consecrated by it, and made 'the
body and blood of Christ, in the sense in which our Lord,
liipiself said the bread and wine were his body and-blood."
. See the letterat large, in " lUi^tration," &c. p. 151,

466 AMNALS OF 1807.
was never any cause for its being, cherished, or
even suffered to arise ?— -Ignorance was never yet
expelled but by means of instrttction ; nor will
even the silliest prejudice die away, whUe pains,
are taken to keep it alive, by allowing only one
side of the questmn to appear, or shutting tbe
other carefully out of sight.
" Reflecting on all these symptoms of indiffer
ence about matters, which we, ofthe purely prirair
tive Scottish Church, are led to regard as of very
great importance, it is no wonder if, with much
concern, we see ground to suspect that the princi
ples now entertained by many professing ,to be of
tbe Church of England, are very different indeed
from what are really the principles of that Churcb
as established at the Reformation from Popery.
What else can be said bf such a writer as Dr Grant
of Dundee, and many others, equally ignorant of,
or disafifected to, the real doctrine ofthe Churcli
in which tbey received their orders? Viewing such
conduct in its proper light, we cannot fail to see
tbe necessity of applying, as a guard against it,
the apostolical precept, " to be instant in season
and out of season ;" nor are we aware of any
mistake in such appUcation, bj cpnsidering that
season to be the most proper for enforOing the
regard due to any important truth or practice,
when it is evidently exposed to the danger of
being gradually overlooked and disregarded. '
" But I have done, and shall never trouble my
friends with a word more on this delicate and dis-

1807. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 467
tressing subject. It is an honour mucb greater
than any which I had ever a right to expect, that,
in this instance, I have been enabled to bear my
testimony to "the truth as it is in Jesus," and to the
mode of worship by which I believe that truth to
be most clearly exhibited at the Christian altar ;
and not I only, but every man who understands a-
right the Eucharistical doctrine set forth in Holy
Scripture, and professed by the soundest Divines
of the English Church *."
* As, in the year 1811, it was canonically enacted in Ml
Ecclesiastical Synod, that " the Scotch Communion Office,
having been justly considered, is still to be considered, as the
authorized service of the Scotch Episcopal Church, in the
a^inistration of the holy sacrament of the Lord's Supper,"
(see canon xy.) ; to which enactment four Clergymen of the
Church of England and Ireland, resident in Scotland, and men
of established proffissional learning and reputation, were par
ties, — ^it is not, he trusts, too much for the Annalist to,< hope,
that the " Illustration" of that office, as drawn up by him in
1807, may now n^eet with the wished.-fer attention from all
who prgifess themselves Scottish Episcopalians.
Doubtless, inquiry into a subject of such vital importance
as to have required canonical enactment, is the duty of every
one, whether Clergyman or Layman, who believes the Epis
copacy of Scqtland to be a true and valid Episciopacy ; inas-
nuich as, thou^ peri^nission to use the English Eucharistical
.service be most ptoperly granted to such Clergy and their
.^Congregations as, before uniting themselves to the Scottish
Episcopate, had adopted that form of administering the Lord's
Supper, yet is this permission granted in the f^ill belief that
the unity of the Spirit is still held ifl the bond of peace ; and
that the great commemoratory oblation by which the death of
Christ is, under the Gcospel, equally " shei^n forth till he
G G 2

468 AiiiJALS 0*' ' 180«.'
1808.] -During the year 1808, the only event of
sufficient importance to be, submitted to the read
er's notice, are, the death ofthe Right Rev. Jona
than Watson, Bishop(of Dunkeld; the appointment
ofa successor to him in the person of the present
Bishop, the Right Rev. Patrick Torry of Peter
head ; and the elevation ofthe Right Rev.
George Gleig, L.L.D. of Stirling, to the see of
Brechin, in virtue of the resignation of Bishop
Strachan of Dundee, whose advanced age, and
consequent infirmities,^ unfitted him forthe charge
of that diocese.
Although cut off ih the prirae of life, (an. cetat.
47.) yet did Bishop Watson's death proceed from
as complete prostration of strength, and as much
from bodily imbeciUty, as if he had reached thiat
period of human life when all is labour and sor
row 1 The Bishop was a native of Banffshire,
and, like most of his contemporaries of the dio
cese of Aberdeen, had been trained to the mi
nistry of the Scotch Episcopal ChUrch,'^ by the
venerable pastor of Longside, the father of
bis friend and patron Bishop Skinner. His clas
sical and theological acquirements did honour ¦>
to his master, and shewed that he hiraself was a
diUgent and successful student. Though raised
come," as it was foreshewn under the law ; that this oblation,
under its approved symbols of bread and wine, is still present
ed unto Gi^d, and afterwards partaken of by the humble anil
devflut Communicant.'
The tvork may he had qf ihe PubUshers of- these Annals.

1803. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 469
(to the Episcopate in earlier life than usual, this
exceUent inan's deportment was marked by some
thing SO decorous in society, and by a mien, a
yoice, and manner so attractive in the immediate
discharge of his sacred ofiice, as to comraand
the respect of all who knew hira, or who witness
ed the performance of his official duties ; and, as
he lived universally esteemed, he died universally
regretted. In the year 1791, Mr Watson was translat
ed from, the charge of the Scottish Episcopal
Congregation in the town of Banff, to that in the
village of Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, on the
noraination of Lord Gardenston, who,, though
bred a Presbyterian, (as he told Lord Chancellor
Thurlow,*) was pleased, from the high sense
which he entertained of the characters of Scot
tish Episcopalian Clergyraen in general, to en
dow, in his vUlage of Laurencekirk, a living for a
a Clergyman of the Episcopal communion, of
;which Mr Watson was the first incumbent. Whe
ther his Lordship bethought hiraself, with the
poet, that a village-preacher naust be " passing
rich with forty pounds a-year,". the Annalist
knoweth riot ; but so it was, that this was the pre
cise sum which hevallotted as the amount of his
village-preacher's money-stipend. But. the addi
tional items of forty bolls of oatraeal, acorafort-
able parsonage-house, with a garden, and three
acres of the best land in the vicinity of the vil-
* See his letter to the Chancellor, above, page H7-,

4?0 ANNALS Of 1808.
lage, — these items were considered as suflScient to
make a Scottish Bishop ' passing rich,' and suffi
cient to make a new proprietor hazard an action
at law for their' reduction. Thus it happened,
that the worthy Bishop had to encounter, at the
very time of his lamented dissolution, a keenly
agitated question before the Court of Session,
\yhetber or not Lord Gardenston's deed of en
dowment was so technically and legally correct,
as to constitute the stipend, &c. of the Scottish
Episcopal Clergyman, a permanentjburden on the
estate of Johnston, in the county of Kincardine.
It chanced; that on the death ofthe venerable
Lord of the Manor, his heir sold those lands of
which the village of Laurencekirk forms a jpart.
The purchaser instantly stopped the good Bishdp
Watson's stipend and allowauces, because he
would riot grant receipts, bearing that the pay
ments raade by him, were in no way to be consis
dered as precluding the proprietor of the lands
of Johnston from challenging the rights of his
(Bishop Watson's) successor. Hence the mat
ter being brought in due form before tbe Su?
preme Cpuft, Lord Gardenston's deed of perpe
tual endownjent was confirmed ; and, although
the Bishop lived not to see the issue, the Lau
rencekirk ' viUage-preacher's ' forty pounds per
annum, &c. were declared to be as valid and last
ing as the donor intended, and as the law of the
land could make them.
Bishop Watson being the youngest man in the

l$06. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 47 1
l^fecofpal College, his colleagues, two of whom
atlihe time of his death had far passed their 80th
yiear, were most anxious to have the vacant see
fiUed up with all convenient speed. As soon,
therefore, as respect for their deceased brother
admitted of.a mandate being issued for the elec
tion of a successor, the Clergy of Dunkeld, thus
canonically empowered, met at the viUage of
Alyth, in Perthshire, for that purpose. Two
Clergymen were put in nomination, when the
senior in office as well as in years, the Rev. Dr
Gleig, on -being apprized of the intention of his
friends in the diocese to vote for him, recom
mended to them to make tbe election unanimous
in favour of his brother-presbyter, the Rev. Pa
trick Torry ^ who being elected accordingly, and
approved by the Episcopal CoUege, was, on tbe
nth October 1808, consecrated at Aberdeen by
tile Bishops Skinner, Macfarlane, and Jolly, and
canonically appointed to fill tbe vacant see.
Equally eager, as their brethren in the neigh-
• bouring diocese, to have the Episcopal succession
still farther strengthened, the Clergy of the dio
cese of Brechin, in consequence of the superan;-
nuated state of their Ordinary, having appUed
for a mandate to elect a successor to Bishop
Strachan, had this application granted : When*
having met at Montrose, on the 27th September
1^08, they unanimously tendered their suffrages
to the Rev. Dr Gleig of StirUng, and intimated
the same to the Primus in the usual form. On

47® ANNALS Of ' 1808.
receipt ofthe intimation, Bishop Skinner address
ed the foUowing note to the person pn whora the
Clei'gy of the diocese of Brechin had fixed their
choice.

LETTER LXIV.
MSnOP SKINNER TO THE EEV. DR GLEICf'.
f Aberdeen, Sept. 29, 1808.
" In consequence of a mandate frora the Col
lege of Bishops, granted at the desire of the
Clergy of Brechin, I have this day received a
letter, signed by sorae of these Clergy, yi?. Messrs
Somerville, Jolly, Nicoll, Milne, Horsley, Cush-,
ijie, Murray, with, a proxy to Mr Som ervUle from,
Mr Garden in Stonehaven, all unanimously vot
ing for you as a proper person to fill the see of
Brechin ; and earnestly requesting thevenerable,
members pf the Episcopal College to proceed,
with dll convenient despatch, to your consecra
tion. The Bishops, I believe, arc all abundantly
sensible ofthe necessity ofa speedy accession of
strength to the present weak state of our Col
lege ; but, before I intiraate to thera the issue of
the Brechin flection, it seems very desirably, in
order to prevent unnecessarytrouble, that I should
know your sentiments, with regard to this raatter,
and whether you are inclined to accept of the of
fice to which you have been thus elected.
" In hope that the reaoluti,ori> whatever it be.

1808. ^ SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 475
Tiyhich you shall think proper to adopt, wHl-sbew
your sincere desire to see ' the things which* make
for peace' happily accompUshed, and^commendr
ing you to the blessed Spirit of Truth and Peace,
I remain, with much regard," &c. &c.
To this, address Dr Gleig replied, that he " was
at the disposal of the Bishops^" that " if a ma
jority of the College should be of opinion that it
was his duty to accept, or thatMt would contri
bute tb tne good of the Church for him to ac
cept the ofiice to which he was canonically elect
ed, he would accept, and did accept it." The
Priraus, on receipt of this communication, lost
no time in making known to Dr Gleig the terms
on which his acceptance, and consequent eleva
tion to the Scottish Episcopate, would meet with
concurrence and approbation on the part of the
College of Bishops,, as unanimous and sincere as
was his election to the oflice of their Bishop u-
naniraous and sincere on the part of the/ Clergy
^f jPrechin. * - '
LETTER LXV.
BISHOP SKINNER TO THE SAME.
" Aberdeen, October 13, 1808.
" I have received your letter of the 2d cur-.
rent, a,nd also a copy of that which you wrote to.
the PriBsbyters of the Diocese of Brechin, on the.

474 ANNALS OP 1808.
subject of their late election. When we, as a body,
subscribed our assent to the Thirty-nitte Articles
ofthe Church of England, and when the Bishops
afterwards admitted into their College a Presby
ter of English ordination, on his own terms, and
without stipulating for any preference to the
Scottish ritual, we certainly went as far as we
could safely go in the way of concession, and for
the sake of drawing more closely tp us those few,
Clergy from England, who had united theraselves
to our Church. But surely, it is now time that
we look to the preservation of what is pure and
primitive in that Church, whose constitution and
character have been entrusted with us.
" With a view to the faithful discharge of this
sacred trust, I have had some conference with
my two colleagues, the Bishops of Ross and Mo
ray, who have been with me for two days past,
on an occasion which rather brought us unex
pectedly together. The former (Bishop Macfar-
lane)^having come this length with a son return
ing to Oxford for his education, it chanced that
the deed of election from the Clergy of Dunkeld
arrived at the same time. I thought it a pity to
put Bishop Macfarlane to the trouble of return
ing to this place, for tbe consecration of the per
son elected, and therefore wrote immediately to
Bishop Jolly, who -very readily came up hither
on Monday, and brought Mr Torry along with
him, whose consecration took place in my cha
pel yesterday with ail due solemnity.

t

1808, SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 475
" Having this favourable" opportunity of com
municating our sentiments to each other, and af
ter fully discussing the subject of our delibera
tions, Mr Torry, animated by the same spirit
which pervaded all our proceedings, gave in to
us the foUowing declaration, written and sub
scribed by himself, viz.—
\' * I,, the undersigned, do hereby voluntarily,
and ex animo, declare, being now about to be
* promoted, by the mercy of God, to a seat in the
* Episcopal College of the Church of Scotland,
• that, when promoted to the Episcopate, I wiU
• co-operate with my eoUeagufes in supporting a
* steady adherence to the truths and doctrines, by
* which our Church has been so happily distin-
* guished, and particularly to the doctrine ofthe
' Holy Eucharist, as laid down in our excellent
* Communion ofiice ; the use of which I will
* strenuously recommend, by my own practice,
* and by every other means in ray power. In tes-
• timony whereof, I have signed this deckratioui
'at Aberdeen, on the 12th day of October, in
* the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hun-
' dred and eight, as witness my hand.— -Pat.
• Torry.' " Having now such a plain rule before us, and
so Satisfactory a precedent fbr our future pro-
cjeedings, I am detei'mined, with God's help, to
abide by it, in any future promotion, at least of
a Scottish ordained Presbyter, that may take
place in our church. If you, then, can sincere-

476 1 ANNALS OF 1808.
ly and conscientiously' emit a declaration similar
to that above quoted, which we have receiyed
frora the now Bishop' of Dunkeld, you may rest
assured, that I belong to no party, be it ever so
powerful, that would stand in the way of your
promotion ; and, as you tell me so frankly and
honestly how much you would be pleksed to have
my support on the present occasion, I can, with
equal frankness and sincerity declare to you, that
my weak support, (for weak at best it must be,)
shall never be wanting to him who does what he
can to support the cause, through all its parts, of
what. I believe to be true Christianity. ******•«
" Wishing, as I do wish, to shew myself at all
times. Rev. Sir, your affectionate Brother, and
very faithful humble servant," kc.
' To this interestirig communication from. the
senior Bishop and Priraus of the Scottish Church,
the following most:- satisfactory reply was, ii^
eours^ of post, despatched frora Stirling :—•
LETTER LXVL
REV. DR GLEIG TO BISHOP SKINN^K. -
« Stiriing, October 17. 1808.
" Your letter ofthe 13th was put into ray hands
"yesterday as I was stepping out of ray house to
go to chapel. I have read it again and again with
'great attention, and, surely, I may add, witbcon-

I808v. SCOiTISH EPISCOPACY. 477
siderable pleasure ; for -the condition which you
propose binds me to nothing but what 1 have
uniformly practised ever since I was a Clergy
man, and what I should be strongly inclined to
practise were my exceUent Diocesan to forbid
me to do so ; for I am as much attached to the
Scottish Communion- office as you. Right Rev.
Sir, can, be, and, I have reason to think, on the
very same principles. Let me, however, do justice
to Bishop Sandford, and to>all my Other friends,
who have wished for my promotion to the Epis
copal "Bench, on the present occasion. I am, in
deed, the only Clergyraan within the diocese of
Edinburgh who adrainisters the Lord's Supper
by the Scottish Coraraunion office ; but I am not
the only one who perceives its superiority over
the English form ; for that is perceived by the
Bishop hiraself, who, had he been able to corae
to Stirling this auturan, would have adraitted, in
my Chapel, a young man into Deacons' orders,
and there raade use of our form,. Nay, to my
certain knowledge, he expressed his disapproba
tion ofthe conduct of one Clergyman, who some^
tirae ago laid aside the use of the Scottish for
the English forra ; and was really grieved that
any man should have done so, without necessity,
who was under his jurisdiction.
" I ara, therefore, perfectly ready to subscribe,'
and deUver to you a declaration, similar to that
which has been, deUvered to you by.Blshop Tor
ry, and to do so, whether I am . promoted to the

478 ANNALS OP 1808.
Episcopal Bench or not ; but, I trust, that I shall
be left at liberty to recommend the oflSce by those
means in my power, which appear to my own
judgment best adapted to the end intended.
Controversy does not appear to me well adapted
to this end, unless it be managed with great de
licacy indeed , but I have found no difficulty iii
rec )nciling, by private conversation, all those
who have joined my Congregation, whether from
England or from schismatical congregations in
Scotland, to the use of the Scottish oflSce, and
even to make them see the preference of it to
their own. My Congregation is at least doubled
since I came to Stirling ; and there is not a mem
ber of it more partial to our office than some la
dies of consequence and excellent education, who
were born in England. Tbe same means which
had so good ,an effect on them I wiU employ,
whether priest or bishop, upon others, varying my
mode of address according to circumstances and
to tbe tempers of my hearers ; but public contro
versy I will never directly employ, nor wUl 1 en
courage it in others. # * » *
With real regard, I am. Right Rev. Sir, your
dutiful Son," &c.
This letter being, deemed satisfactory, Sunday
the 30th of October was fixed for the time, and
St Andrew's Chapel, Aberdeen, for the place of
consecration, when the office was duly perform
ed by the Bishops Skinner, Jolly, and Torry. The

I^O^.IO. SCOTTISH KPISCOPACY. 479
consecration sermon having been preached by
thieRev. Heneage Horsley, M.A. Prebendary of
St Asaph, &c. &c. who, with a zeal in the cause
of Scottish Episcopacy, inherited from his excel
lent father, " sought" (to use his own words in a
letter tothe Bishop-elect of Brechin) " this hap
py opportunity of delivering the sentiments of
Bishop Horsley, (by the mouth of his son,) re
garding the nature of the Episcopal functions,
^nd ofthe conduct of those Clergy who, though
Episcopally ordained, choose to officiate in con-
Ipmpt of the Episcopal authority.'' *
1809 £>nd 1810.J With the exception of the
i deaths of Bishops Abernethy Drummond and
^achan, which took place within six months of
each other, (the former on the 27th of August
1809, the latter on the 28th of January 1810,) and
of a loyal address from the Scottish Episcopate,
on bis Majesty's having attained the 50th year
of his reign, neither of these years was produc
tive of any ecclesiastical event likely to excite
the reader's interest.
Bishop Abernethy was descended from the fa
mily of Abernethy of Saltoun, in Banffshire; Bi
shop Strachan from that of Strachan of Thorn
ton, in Kincardineshire, now represented by the
gaUant Admiral Sir Richard Strachan; and, hav
ing spent their lives in the strictest amity, and
* At the request ofthe College of Bishops, this sermon was
printed.

4S0 ANNAL^ OF 1809-lOi
friendship, in their deaths they were not far divid-*
ed. They were elevated to the Episcopate'* on the
sarae day, the g6th of September 1787, the one
as Bishop toadjutor to the other ; but no sooner
was Bishop Abernethy Drummond elected to the
see of Edinburgh, where he had his pastoral
charge, an ^yept Which speedily took'place after
his consecration,, than Bishop Strachan was duly
appointed to the see of Brechin,' of which the
Scottish Episcopal Congregation of Dundee forms
a most respectable part.
Bishop Abernethy having married the heiress
of Hawthornden, in the vicinity of Edinburgh^
had, in Consequence of that donnectioh, the sir-
name of Drummond attachisd to his naine. His
only -child, a daughter, as well as his lady, prede
ceased him many years. Bishop Strachan lived and
died a bachelor ; and both hadcompleted their 89th
year. Well stored with professional knowledge, the
mind of the one^wds yet ofa frarae but Ul suited
to the useful adaptation of that knowledge td
tirae, place, and circumstances ; hence, his ad
dresses, whether frora the press or frora the' pul
pit, failed, for themost part, to produce the ef
fects which the good, the zealous, arid the bene
volent Bishop Abernethy Drummond himself
uniforraly wished thera to produce.
As if conscious of inferior talent and acquire
ments, though equally^ well affected to the cause
of Scottish Episcopacy with his beloved friend,
* See note to p. 68j above*

1809-1O* SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 481
the Bi^op of Edinburgh, Bishop Strachan look
ed for success in his ministry and ^iscopate to
a liespectable exterior, and to the winning arts
of affabiUty, courtesy, and gentlemanly address.
Thus, notwithstanding their long protracted in
timacy and friendship, these Scottish Prelates
may be said to have had nought in common but
lieir profession, and the time allotted here be
low for the exercise of it. And as, ere that time
expired, the exigencies of ibe Church had re
quired their places to be filled by men in the
vigour of life, these good men, having set their
house in order, had nought to do but sing their
" nunc dimittis," and " depart in .peace."
In obedience to an order of his Majesty's Most
Honourable Privy Council, issued on the 27tb
of September 1809, the Bishops and Clergy of
the Episcopal Communion in Scotland having,
on the day appointed, offered up their public
. prayers and thanksgiving to Almighty God for
the protection afforded the King's Most Sacred
Majesty, during a long and arduous reign, also
itl^ougbt it their indispensable duty to approach
the throne with an address of heartfelt loyalty
and congratulation on the uncommon event of
his Majesty's ' entering on the 50th year of his
auspicious reign ! This address they had the ho
nour of transmitting to the Earl of Liverpool, at
that time one of his Majesty's principal Secreta
ries of State, who beipg just succeeded in the
home department by the Right Honourable Ri-
H H

,482 ANNALS OF > 1809-10.
chard Ryder, the address was by him duly pre
sented, and received in the most gracious raanner.
If the Annalist mistakes not, the order of Coun
cU above noticed was the first which assumed
the forra, which has since been used in drawing
up all simUar orders, viz. that of distinguishing
the Clergy ofthe Episcopal Communion in Scot
land by name, whereas all other dissenters from
the national establishment are passed by unnotic
ed ; " It is this day ordered by the Lords of his
Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, that
every Minister and Preacher, as well of the Esta
blished Church in that part ofthe united kingdom
called Scotland, as that of the Episcopal Com
munion, protected and allowed by an act pas
sed in the 10th year of her late Majesty Queen
Anne, cap. 7- entitled an Act to prevent the
disturbing of those of the Episcopal Comraunion,
&c. &c. do, at sorae tirae, during the exercise of
Divine Service in such respective Church,
Congregation, or Assembly, on the Sunday next
ensuing the €5th day of October next, being the
day on which his Majesty began bis happy reign,
put up their prayers and thanksgiving to Al
mighty God, for the protection afforded the
King's Majesty during a long and arduous reign.'*
Although, as already remarked, theyear^ 1809
and 1810 were unproductive of anjt other event
particularly interesting to the cause of Scottish
Episcopacy, the union, (it raay be,) ofthe Rev.
WiUiam Smith of Musselburgh and his most re-

1809-10. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 488
'Speetable flock excepted ; yet does the corres
pondence during the latter end of those years, as
found among Bishop Skinner's papers, point out
the causes which induced the Primus and his
coUeagues to hold the Ecclesiastical Synod at A-
berdeen in the year 1811, for framing and enact
ing the code of Canons which now form the rule
of discipline in the Scottish Episcopal Church.
- It is well known that the introduction of the
English book of Common Prayer into Scotland
took place, at no earlier period than the reign of
Queen Anne ; and that its introduction Was ac
quiesced in from the facUity with which thex
book was procured by the people, whereas the
Scottish Prayer Book, from the ravages commit
ted on it, and from its having been suppressed
by legal authority in 1637, had, in a manner, be
come extinct. From thfe periodtof its introduc
tion, however, most of the Bishops arid Clergy
in Scotland had been in the use of not unfre
quent verbal alterations in reading the English
Service. And for the continuation of siich al-
Tterations, no raan could have been a more zea
lous stickler than was Bishop Skinner ; he hav
ing ha,d not only the example and sanction of his
own venerable father, in fraraing his opinion as
well as practice, but the example of the Bishops,
Alexander and Gerard,— men for whora he ever
ientertained the greatest filial reverence. ^
It happened that Bishop Gleig, in the course
of his priaiary visitation of the diocese of Bre-
H H 2 -

V
484 ANNALS OP 1809-19.
chin, in the month of August 1809, assembled
his Clergy at Stonehaven, and delivered to them
a charge, which the whole Clergy who heard it,
as well as the parties to whom it was immediately
addressed, requested the Bishop to publish with
all convenient speed. The charge was printed
accordingly, and, although, as will be now
shewn, it elicited some sharp remonstrances at
the time, not merely between the Primus of the
Episcopal College and the author of the charge,
but between the former and the writer of these
Annals ; yet did the issue prove the justness of
the foUowing portrait of the late Primus, drawn
by a Clergyman, who, having had much interest
ing and iraportant correspondence with him,
'could well ^estimate his character, and appre
ciate his conduct.
" The late Primus,'' writes the Rev. James
Walker, " was considered by those who were
prejudiced against, and did not know him, as
narrow-minded, harsh, and bigoted. I can tes
tify distinctly, and I feel great pleasure ih testi
fying, that in all my intercourse with him, (though
we often differed very materially in opinion,) those
rprejudices were very unjust ; and that he is fully
entitied, by a reCerencSe to the great facts of his
administration, (while I was best acquainted with
him,) to the reputation ofa good and candid man,
who was wiUing to yield, for the sake of peaefe
and union, many particular view's which he
might have retained without reproach. I f\eed

1809^10. ' seoTTrsH episcopacy. 485
not remind you" (the Annalist) " ofthe very im
portant Synod held at Aberdeen in 1811, of
which you were a iriember. I recollect that pe
riod with serious satisfaction, and I know that
your father's conduct on that occasion made a
deep impression on those Clergy who previously
knew hira very partially and only by bearsay.
His kind and easy hxispitality as our landlord ;
the ability and accuracy with which he prepared
the matter of our deliberations ; his impartial
conduct as President of our asserably ; and the
readiness with which he yielded those points,
which we, from the south, thought most necessa
ry for general conciliation,-.— stand strongly in my
recoUection, and are certainly worthy of special
consideration in the estimate of your father's
character." When the reader has perused the following
correspondence, and afterwards remarks, with the
Author of the letter, of which the above is
an extractj how quietly and becomingly Bishop
Skinner, for the sake of peace and union, yielded
those " particular views which he inight haye re-^
tained without reproach," not only will the cor
rectness of Mr Walker's portrait of him be ac-
ijaowledged, but the Annalist is convinced that
^very sound and serious Scotch Episcopalian
wiU join him, in fervently praying, that the suc
cessors of the late senior Bishop and Primus, to
the end of time, may in this respect take him for
their example.

486 ANNALS OP 1810.
LETTER LXVII.
BISHOP SKINNEB TO BISHOP GLEI6.
f
" Aberdeen, Jan. 3. 1810.
" I hope you wUl have the goodness to excuse
my weakness, in wishing that some of the re
marks contained in your Charge, though perhaps
proper enough for being laid before your Clergy
in private, had yet been vrithheld frora the pub-
»lic eye; which, in many instances, is but to©
ready to view us in an unfavourable light.
" Of these our eneraies, some will not be sorry
to hear, ' that our Church has been more than
V* once brought to the brink of ruin by party
• spirit Terraenting among her ministers ; and
' what has happened may happen again.'
" Other parts of the charge seem to have been
framed with a particular view to its appearance
on the south side of the Tweed, as intimating an
entire conforraity, in every the minutest article,
to the English Rubrics Such is the intiraation
given in p. 17, that our Priraus, when he was in
London, &c. ' soleranly assured his friends, that
* we adhere strictly to the English forms in every
• thing, except the administration of the Lord's
* Supper.' Now, the only assurance I ever gave,
which could be so interpreted, was the putting
my narae, at Bishop Horsley's desire, to what he
had prepared as a preface to his GoUation of the
Communion Offices, &c. wherein it is mention-

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 487
ed, that the Liturgy now in use araong the Scotch
Episcopalians is precisely the same with the pre
sent Common Prayer- book of the Established
Church of England, except in the Communion'
o^fiBe. '* Tljis paper, I told the Bishop, I raight very
' safely sign, as we certainly had no other Liturgy
in use araong us, for our daily service, but the
English Prayer-book, although there were sevCf
ral instances in which we did not, arid could not,
with propriety, adhere strictly to the English ru-.
brics, or to the ipsissima verba of all the oflices j
and I mentioned particularly our using the term.
pastors instead of curates, and some other such
like Uttle variations. Of every thing of this kind,
however, you seem wholly to disapprove, and
therefore wish your Clergy to raake use of ^1 the
English oflSces, without additions, dirainiitions,
or improvements of any kind ; where, by putting
the word ¦' improvements" in italics, you would
appear to lay us under restrictions, to which, I
believe, no Church situated as ours is, was ever
Subjected, " Of my sentiments on this subject I have
never yet seen any cause to be ashamed, and
therefore have felt no desire to conceal them.
As a proof of this, I "also published a Charge a
few years ago (1806), plainly intimating my opi
nion of these matters, and now take . the Uberty
of sending you a copy of it ; not with any view
of bringing you over to my way of thinking, but

488 ANNALS 01" 1810,
merely to shew ypu what my thoughts are, and
therefore what my regret must be, in observing
so strong a tendency to bind us down to a slav
ish resemblance ofthe Church of England in all
but one point, where we can never hope for any
simUarity, — tiie splendour of her estabUshment !
* ¥t it * * *
" Be so good as accept the- sincerity of my
intentions as some apology for the warmth of my
expressions ; and, whatever you may think ofthe
hints which I have suggested, be assured of the
cordial warmth with which I shall ever reraain,"
kc. &c.

,, LETTER LXVIir. -
B-ISHOP GLEIG TO BISHOP SKINNER.
" Stirling, January 15, 1810.
" I received your letter of the third instant,
together with your Charge, &c. * ¦* • • * - *-
There was not the smallest occaision for an apo
logy for' your remarks on my Charge. I could
make as ttiany on yours, and support them per
haps with as' cogent reasons ; but I deprecate
every thing like controversy between us, which,
as Johnson somewhere observes, though it may
find men friends seldom leaves them so ; and I
do think it of importance, not so much to our
selves, as tothe Church, that we continue friends.
Let me, therefore, only state the principles and

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 489
I'
•iBJOtives wbich guided me in the few points on
which you remark, and then drop the subject for
ever. I adrait that the words, to the ' brink of
* ruin' are strong ; ?ind I wish that they had been
less so ; but I reaUy cannot admit that the whole
of what is said on the baleful effects of party
spirit, beginning (p. 28.) with the words, ' I can-
* not, however, dismiss you now,' and ending, (p.
31.) wj(th, ' the officious counsels of any stranger,'
can lessen us in the estimation either of friends
or foes.
" There never was a Church since the days
of the Apostles, and never will be till the miUe-
niura, totally free from party spirit; and, to
have held up ours as perfect in that respect,
, would, I apprehend, have both exposed her and
her panegyrist to contempt and ridicule. I might,
indeed, have omitted the subject altogether ; but,
in that case, the Charge would have wanted that
which, not in my opinion only, but in the opini-
¦on of much abler and less partial judges, is by
far the most valuable thing in it. At your sug-
; gestion I struck out or changed that clause in
the manuscript which mentioned • a party spirit
* fomenting among us just now;' a clause, by the
way, for which your son thanked me, even with
tears in his eyes, and squeezed my hand in a
manner that indicated gratitude which I can ne
ver forget*. You are so completely mistaken
* The Annalist heard this excellent Charge delivered at
Stonehaven ; and not oply cordially thanked the author, but

490 ANNALS OF 1810.
when you suppose, that any part of the Charge
was framed with a vi^w to its appearance on the
south side ofthe Tweed, that I assure you there
is not in England a copy for sale. I transmitted
eight copies to England — one to the Archbi
shop, one to the Bi hop of London, and one to
the Vicechancellor of Oxford, the remainder to
private friends ; and besides these, I do not be
lieve that there is a copy to be found on the
south side of the Tweed. The Charge has not
been even published. Printed indeed it was, at
the request of the Clergy, but not a copy more
was thrown off than was necessary to defray the
expense of printing ; and all these copies, ex
cept the few presents that I made, have been, I
hope, sold by my friends. That I am desirous
to enforte, in the diocese of Brechin, uniformity
in reading the service of the Church, is indeed
most true ; but that desire proceeds from no
particular partiality to the Church of England,
or from a vain hope to equal her in any thing
but piety and sound principles ; and I beg yoii
to be assured, that though I hope to ^ive fron^
time to time such instrtfctions to the Clergy un
der iny inspection, as to my own unbiassed judg
ment appear requisite or expedient, I will never
readily joined the Clergy ofthe diocese of Brechin in request
ing Bishop Gleig to publish it. Party spirit in any man i^
odious, in a Clergyman it is sinful ; hence, through a Clerical
life of 28 years, it has been most studiously guarded against
by the person who is thus compelled to speak of himself.

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 491
interfere with the Clergy of other dioceses, far
less attempt ' to lay my colleagues under re-
* strictions.* " I am perfectly convinced in my own mind,
and have been so these thirty years, that nothing
has done so rauch injury to our Church as the
useless alterations which are made by many of
the Clergy in the daily service ; but you seem to
be of a different opinion, and have undoubtedly
the sarae right to regulate your conduct by your
conviction, that I have to regulate my conduct
by mine. Were these alterations the same in
every Chapel, or were they made upon any prin
ciple that could regulate the cpnduct of a stran
ger when occasionally doing the duty of his bro-;
ther, something, (I certainly think not much,)*
might be said for them ; but as every man in
my diocese varied the form according to his
own judgment or caprice, I found that I could
not officiate for sorae of ray own Clergy, without
either shewing the people that he and I think
differently of our forms of prayer, or taking a
lesson from him how to read, before going in the
morning into the Chapel ! To such a length was
this (to me most unaccountable) rage for innova
tion carried in some of the Chapels of the diocese,
that I was assured that the very coraraunion ser
vice was interpolated with long prayers, ¦ which,
frora the specimens of them, repeated by different
people to rae, surely were unworthy of a place in
that solemn service ; and to put a stop to such

492 AKNALS OF ISlei
an absurd and pernicious practice, I wrote, on my
coming from my consecration, the letter which I
now enclose to you, and which, I trust, has pro- '
duced the desired effect.
" There was no mention made in the original
charge, of these innovations, but a bare reference
to the pastoral letter, if I may so call it ; but the
Clergy so earnestiy requested the publication of
the letter, together with the charge, that I agreed
to incorporate the one with the other. Had I
thought that your sentiments on this subject are'
different from mine, or that your declaration,
prefixed to Bishop Horsley's collation of tbe '
Coiiiniunion Offices, could admit pf any other
§ense than that in which I understood it, I cer
tainly would not have introduced your narae,
either -into the Letter or into the Charge; but
your own candour will admit that my mistake
was natural, when you look to the preface, in
which you declare, ' that the Liturgy now in use
' among the Scotch Episcopalians, is precisely
'the same with the present Common Pr^er-
* book,' &c. And I am sure that the sarae caui
dour will induce you to forgive an offence so
perfectly unintentional.-rl bad almost said, so
unavoidable. " You and I have often pleaded the cause of
.catholic unity, and I hope we shall both do so
again ; but I do not see how we can do it with
any effect, among the peopjle at large, if we set,
i know npt what kind of patriotism, in opposi-

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 493
tion to uniformity in prayer, or even uniformity
of dress. The people at large make not nice dis
tinctions ; and I see not why we may not adopt
the daily service of the English Church verbatim,
and even the decent habits of her Clergy, to
shew the people th9,t we are in full coraraunion
with her; as well as St Paul circuracised Ti
mothy, and purified himself in the temple, to
shew that he was in full communion with the
church at Jerusalem.
" These, however, are only my sentiments,
and I have no desire to irapose them on any
-other person. I have stated thera at sorae lengtii
to you, because I should be sorry to lose your
good opinion ; though I must lose it, if you in
sist, as I ara sure you will never do, on ray adopt
ing all your opinions, and being guided in every
tiling by your example. Our responsibility is
awful ; indeed, so awful, that 1 have sometiraes
deeply repented that i took it upon me ; but as I
have taken it on me, my conduct must be direct
ed by what appears to myself right and expe
dient, for by that I shall be judged. With best
wishes to, &c. I am with true respect. Right
Reverend and dear Sir, your affectionate bro
ther," &c.
To this admirable letter the Primus made no
direct reply ; but having alluded to the contents
of it in his correspondence with his son at Forfar,
whom he ever treated with all the confidence, all
" the charities of father, son, and brother," he

494 ANNALS OF 1810.
(the Annalist) frOm a conviction that the zeal
.for liturgical uniformity, displayed by, Bishdp
Gleig, was " a zeal according to knowledge,"
was induced to address his revered father, in
terras of filial, as well as of friendly earnestness,
such as he is terapted to submit to the reader's
perusal. '
The Annalist is aw^re, that those Who, on per
usal, may deem the following letter arrogant and
presumptuous, even in a son to write to his fa
ther, much more in a hurable Presbyter to write
to the. senior Bishop and Priraus of his Church,
will deera it tenfold raore arrogant and presump
tuous to introduce it here. But mindful of his
blessed Master's declaration, " He that loveth
father or mother more than me, is not worthy of
me," the Annalist is eager to prove, that he is no
party-man, as well as to shew thathis work is not
one continued eulogium on the administration of
Bishop Skinner, who, being a man of like pas
sions, like infirmities with others, was liable to
error ; though, as the sequel shews, not so perti«
naciously obstinate as those who persist in their
errors, to the very last.
LETTER LXIX.
ilEt. JOHN SKINNER TO BISHOP SKINNER.
« Inchgarth, Feb. 6. 1810.
" On the subject of your late correspondence
with the Bishop of Brechin, I would fain say a few

,1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 495
words, although ignorant of the precise terriis in
which that correspondence is couched. You will
see from the conclusion of Bishop Gleig's letter to
me, thathe alludes to sorae charge brought against
him, (but whether from your quarter or not, I
cannot say,-) of his wishing to push hiraself befpre
his colleagues. Pity it were that you and he,
who are both disposed to act, and not tO sleep at
your posts, should not act cordially and in unison.
" With an eye to this, you will forgive rae for
saying, that neither of you, in my hurable opi-
vnion, ought to touch on those Uttle incidental to
pics of debate, or raodes of diocesan arrange
ment, to which the different habits and predilec
tions of your respective Uves raay have attached
you. For I am clear, that on the general principle
of ecclesiastical rule and discipline, you are a-
greed. His attachment to the ipsissima verba of
the Liturgy, proceeds, as does both your attach
raent and mine to Liturgical forms in general,
from the decency, the order, and unanimity
which it ensures to public devotion ; and, believe
me, if power be given to a Bishop Jo deviate,
there is no security but that, sorae day or other,
the sarae power will be clairaed by a Priest and a
Deacon. Have not complaints been made to you
by sorae of your own Clergy on this very score ?
You, therefore, my dearest father, (I write from
the most heartfelt conviction that I write the
words ' of truth and soberness,' at the reading
©f which, I trust, you wiU not be offended,) you.

496 ANNALS OF '' 1810.
therefore, my dearest father, ought not to stickle
for these improvements, as you suppose them, to
which, from tirae immemorial, you have been ac
customed ; since, admitting that you should one
¦day be able to convince others that they are im
provements,, (of which I for one despair,) yet are
they by no means of consequence sufficient to
authorize us to find fault, much less to quarrel
with other churchmen because they neither do
adopt, nor do approve of them.
" The supreme wish of my heart is, to see the
authority of our own Church bearing rule in
every thought, word, and deed, which, in our
clerical characters, we breathe, or utter, or per
form 1 Hence would I gladly submit to the de
cision of a Synod, a General Convention, for
settling these important points, and every other
branch of ecclesiastical discipline, although the
decision of that Synod or Convention did not, in
every respect, accord with my private opinions
or public practice. The errors of my superiors,
those who are over me in the Lord, will never
be imputed to me, whose duty is imphcit obe
dience. Even General CouncUs have erred ; but
it would require another Athanasius to arise and
convince me, that the orders of a General Coun
cU -of the Ch'urch, of which I ara a member, were
not binding on me, in like manner as the acts
of the British Parliament are binding on me, as a
British subject.
" The liberty of either acting or thinking free-

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 497
ly, in my profession as a Clergyman, is a liberty
for which I shall never contend, being satisfied,
that private judgment, in both Clergy and laity,
has done more mischief in the Christian World,
and therefore in the Christian Church, than any
other invention ofthe great enemy of souls. For
give me, my beloved father, for saying, that you
do not apply your wonted powers of just discrimi
nation and candid investigation to the sulyect
under discussion.
" The Episcopal Church in Scotland is either,
Uke all other Episcopal Churches, attached, by
undeviating principle, to the use ofa Liturgy, or
she is not. To ensure the regular use of a Litur
gy, no Church has ever yet been able, but'B}' lay
ing down rules to that effect, known by the name
of Rubrics. It is not enough for me to know,
that hitherto the Church to which I belong has
receiyed no injury, by having a certain tacit,
though undefined right of private judgment vest
ed in her Bishops and Clergy, — a right of deviat
ing frora the English Book of Connraon Prayer,
the only Liturgy now in daily use among us. Au
thoritatively admit and sanction this right, and. li-
, turgical conformity, with all ecclesiastical ' de-
' cency and order,' may, for aught we know, be
subverted in a moraent. , We are coraraanded, by
ApostoUcal canon, ' All to speak the same thing ;
' aU to be of the sarae mind,' &c. But how,, as a.
body, is the Church to comply with these injunc
tions, if not by express liturgical forms, and Ru
brics, no less express, to enforce the use of them ?
It

498 ANSTALS OP 1810.
" Were 1 placed in such a responsible situa^
tion as that of a Bishop in the Church of God,
impressed as I am with the imperious necessity
of having Liturgical uniformity. Clerical vest
ments, Synodical meetings. Diocesan visitations,
&c. regulated beyond all after risk of neglect or
deviation, T would not rest until an ecclesiastical
Synod or Convocation should be holden for the
purpose of canonically settling all these points of
Church discipline. It would never enter into ray
head to anticipate, much less to prejudge the
part ray Colleagues raight take on such occasion.
Neither would I be kept back from urging such
a measure, because I had reason to dread that
my own particular sentiments on such interest
ing topics of discussion might not be adopt
ed, nor such rubrics, such canons framed, as
embraced my private practice.
" St Paul, after his conversion, was as hostUe to
strict uniformity and compliance with the disci
pline of the Church of Jerusalem, as any one of
our Communion can be to strict uniformity and
compliance with the Rubrics and Ritual \of the
Church of England. Yet, when the Apostle of
the Gentiles found, that the sentiraents of Jaraes
and the Elders were not to be altered or brought
to suit his own sentiments, he hesitated not to
comply with their requisition, although they had
no, power to enforce compUance, merely for the
Church's sake. What the majority of the Epis
copal College, in Synod assembled, may find ex-

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 499
pedient to enact, ought therefore to constitute
the rule of conViuct, for the minority, as well as
for one and all of the inferior Clergy ; for, un
less it can be pleaded that a Clergyraan once
made a Bishop, in our Church, is exerapted
from all authority but that of the great Bishop
of Souls, (which would make the Scottish Epis
copal Church anomalous as a Church,) the ma
jority of the Bishops have a right to expect com
pliance with their decisions by those of their
own order, in like manner as by the other two
orders of Ecclesiastics.
This alone constitutes the metropolitical au
thority for which I plead, and to which I am so
very desirous of submitting the present lament
able dilemraa in which we seera to be involved j
not only with respect to Liturgical uniforraity,
but to Clerical vestments, &c. In my subordi
nate situation, I can only lament that things
should be so undefined as they at present are.
I have no means of remedy within my reach j
you, my dear Sir, certainly have. You can bring
the matter to an iraraediate issue. You can as
semble the parties who have the power of deci
sion ; and may now see, from the explanation
given, what my meaning was when I used the
terms * stickle for your own private improve-
' ments,' viz. that should the majority of your
colleagues, regularly met in Synod or Convoca
tion, decide against the slight deviations which
you are in the habit of practising, I (were I in
I Ig

500 ANNALS OF 1810..
your situation,) should not hesitate one moment
in abandoning my practice, and 'conforming in
all things to Synodical decision .
" Having thus explained rayself, as you desir
ed, I have done with the subject. Never shall I re
cur to it, unless at your own solicitation. The raore
I read, the raore I reflect on Christian unity and
order, the raore I raust deprecate every thing
having but the serablance of division. Give rae
what the great High Priest of our profession
prayed for, on the very eve of sacrificing his pre
cious body and blood in our behalf, and I would
give the whole body of my own private opinions
• to be burned.' The ambassador for Christ, in the
discharge of his embassy, ought, like the ambas
sadors of earthly sovereigns, implicitly to adhere
to his instructions, and not to rest until every
part of his duty were so defined to him, that,
.like the soldier in the day of battle, he had only
to obey.
" But I hear you say, with these principles of
implicit submission you would need to be aware
of the soundness of their creed; to whora the
labour of thinking for you was coraraitted. Un
questionably I would ; and, for this very rejison
it is, that, in all matters of professional duty and
discipline, I should wish to confide in no indivi
dual superior. The King of Great Britain has
no wUl of his own ; neither ought any individual
Bishop in the Church of Christ ! The King raust,
in aU things, conduct himself by the laws, which

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 501
the great Council of the Nation is called toge
ther for the purpose of fraraing and promulgat
ing. In like manner, would I have the great
Council of the Church to which I belong, to
frame articles of faith and canons of discipline, so
teplicit and precise, that being henceforth reliev
ed from all private responsibility, all individual
doubting and distrust, mine raight indeed be
come the ' Post of honour,' inasrauch as I should
then have only to shew how fearlessly, how intre
pidly, I could raaintain the charge assigned rae.
" Nay, as we are now situated, without sorae
such public and authoritative enactments, how
shall the people of our Coraraunion ever know
what is perraitted to be inserted in the daily ser
vice ofthe Church, and what is not perraitted I
They have at present no raeans of ascertaining
the lengths to which a private Clergyraan, or
even the Bishop hiraself, raay go in deviating
from the printed forms before them. Hence
the state of uncertainty in which, on this very
point, both the Laity and Clergy theraselves are
left, is to rae laraentable ; and what is more,
most inconsistent with our professions of strict
attachment to set forms of prayer.
" Should ypu, however, continue to hold a dif
ferent opinion frora that which 1 have now at such
length iraparted as ray opinion, the deference
which I owe to your judgment shall, at all tiraes,
prevent rae from proclaiming to others our con
trariety of sentiment, and from attaching myself tot

§Q<^ ANNALS OP 1^10.
any party or individual who may be disposed to set
theraselves or himself in avowed hostility to you.
No ! if I cannot see things exactly as my beloved
father sees them, he will forgive, and he ought to
forgive me ; but I cannot hope for his forgiveness
were I ever to act in direct and open hostiUty
to one, who has ever been more tha,n a father
both to me and mine,
" With fiUal love and duty, the most sincere
and heartfelt, believe me to be," ^c. §fc,
LETTER LXX,
PISHOP SKINNER IN ANSWER.
•' Berrybank, February 24, 1810,
" With respect, my dear John, to the contents
ofyour long and elaborate epistle of the 6th in
stant, and to the Ecclesiastical Synod, or Conven
tion which it is your wish to see assembled for
the ptirpose of estabUshing ^ general rule of con
duct, for all and sundry within the pale of our
Church, it would not be by a majority of votes
that any such code of discipUne would be held as
decided, but by a majority of what would be tri
umphantly termed, ' the inost respectable and
• acknowledged talents.'
" It is of no consequence- to me whether you
advocate th^ cause of conformity with the Engf
lish Rubrics, merely because they are English,
pr not ; because I ^m as pertain as I can be of

1810. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 50S
any fact supported by experience and observa
tion, that to adhere to such conforraity, if strict
ly enjoined, (and, without the utmost rigour of
strictness, it avaUs nought to your plan,) would,
in many instances, be absolutely impossible, and,
in some cases would be perfectly absurd and ri
diculous. I am well aware, and happy in the
knowledge of the fact, that, (as you observe,;
the Episcopal Churcb in Scotland is attached, —
unalterably attached, to a Liturgy. Yet, not as
essential to the being of such a Church, for, even
when established by law, she had no formal Li
turgy, and, since she lost herestablishraent, has
never been able to appoint any other than a dis-?
cretionary use of the English Liturgy, in which
the Clergy of every diocese raust be supposed ta
act by the authority of their respective Bishops,
which, you know, was the case in the primitive
Church, when, in the same state as that in which
our Church now stands, destitute of every thing
like civU estabUshment. The Clergy are now, as
they then were, accountable to their several Bi
shops, as every Bishop among us is accountable
to our Episcopal College, for his preserving the
analogy of faith.
" There raay be a zeal without prudence, as
well as without knowledge ; and in either case,
more harm than good must follow. If people wiU
not look forward to probable and almost certain
consequences, however strongly their Zea.1 may
operate, there is evidently a want of judgment

504 ANNALS OF I8IO.
and foresight in being guided by it, and such, I
doubt not, would be the character of yours.
" As to the case which you quote to me, it
would have been strange if St Paul had not com
plied with what was recoraraended by St James
and his Clergy, when they could say, (as is clear
frora one part of the business referred to,) it
* seeraed good to<the Holy Ghost' that he should
do so. And could the raajority of our Convoca
tion say so, with equal truth, who could doubt
the obligation lying on the rest of the raembers
to comply with what was thus divinely appoint
ed ! But as, in our case, it would be difficult to
persuade either side of the house that the Other
had a divine right to enforce its decision, even
though the raajority, the consequence raust be a
flagrant rupture, instead of a closer union ; an
increase of division instead of putting an end to
it. " But it is always the way with visionary re-
forraers to act frora their opinion of what raan^.
kind ought to be, and not frora what they really
are. I must, therefore, decline all further discus
sion of this subject, unless it corae frora another
quarter} You have a Bishop of your own, wiUing,
I hope, to hear, and capable to judge of what
you have to say on the subject ; and you would
need to be cautious in appealing to me, as able,
in my official capacity, ' to bring the matter to an
* issue,' lest. you thereby confirm a jealousy, per-
baps aheady excjted, that another is, in fact, th§

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 505
senior Prelate, and that I ara only the late vener
able Scottish Priraus, — Bishop Skinner ! With,
my blessing, however, I am, and always will be,
your most affectionate," &c.
1811. 3 Although, at the time of its being
written, this letter evidently shews Bishop Skin
ner to have been averse to the mleasure of an Ec
clesiastical Synod, as the raode best calculated for
settling the point at issue in the above correspon
dence, as weU as every other branch of disci
pline and uniforraity in the Scottish Episcopal
Church, twelve raonths had scarcely elapsed
before his raind, ever devoted to the interests of
that Church, began to view the raeasure in a
more favourable light. Hence, having first broach
ed the subject to the senior merabers of the Epis
copal CoUege, and obtained their hearty concur
rence, he was induced thus to notice to Bishop
Sandford the want of a regular systera of canoni
cal discipline, in that portion of the Church of
Christ in which they rautually served.

, LETTER LXXL

BISHOP SKINNER TO BISHOP SANDFORD.
X
" Aberdeen, Feb. 22. 1811.
" Destitute of all support from the State, and
unaided by any civil sanction in the exercise of
its spiritual authority, the Scottish Episcopate

506 ANNALS OF 1811.
must, under God, depend entirely for its preser
vation and purity on the maintenance of the Apo
stolical rule, * Let all things be donfe decently,
' and in order;' and on those primitive principles,
which, in its earliest infancy, gave growth and
vigour to the Christian cause. During those tur
bulent periods of our national history, in which
our ecclesiastical rulers were alternately agitated,
with the hopes of gaining, or the fears of losing
the support of civil establishment, we need not
wonder that little was done in the way of form
ing any thing like a regular system of canonical
discipline. " At an early period of theveign of Charles I.
an attempt was made to give the Church of Scot
land a set of canons and constitutions, similar to
those which had been drawn up and sanctioned
in the preceding reign, for the Church of Eng
land. But that feeble attempt, as well as the in
troduction of a Liturgy, was completely frustrat
ed by the disastrous fate of Charles ; and even
the restoration of his son did not much mend the
matter ; as, during the whole of his reign, and
the short period of his brother's, the attention of
the Governraent seeras to have been wholly ta
ken up with raaking provision for the outward
peace of the kingdom, rather than for the inter
nal order and unity of the Church.
" At last, the Revolution gave a final blow to
the legal established Episcopacy of Scotland ;
and, for several years after that unfortunate era,

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 507
our Bishops had enough to do in keeping up a
pure Episcopal succession, till it should be seen
what, in the course of Providence, raight be far
ther effected towards the preservation, though
not of an established, yet of a purely priraitive
Church, in this part of the united kingdora. For
this purpose a few canons were drawn up and
sanctioned in 1743 ; which, though very^well cal
culated to answer the purposes for which they
were intended, are yet far from exhibiting any
thing like a complete code of ecclesiastical disci
pline, even for our small society.
*' The English canons are, in general, inappli
cable to our situation, and of the whole (141 in
number) there are not above four or five that
could, even with some alterations, be adopted
and enforced araong us. It is surely tirae, there
fore, now that we are fuUy tolerated, but with
out the smaUest prospect of ever being raore than
tolerated, that we should turn our attention to
the raeans which Providence has put in our power
of making the best of our situation, and render
ing it as conducive as we possibly can, to the
great and good design for which our Church has
been so happily preserved,— so signally support-
edj-^even the glory of its Almighty Protector,
and the comfort and edification of his faithful
people." * » • * *
Bishop Sandford, in common with the other
pembers pf the Episcopal CoUege, having signi*

508 ANNALS OF 18 1 L
fied his cordial assent to the Priraus' suggestion,
it reraained only to fix the tirae and the place
most proper for holding an Ecclesiastical Synod,
and enacting such a code of discipline for the
future regiraen of the Scottish Episcopal Churcb,
as the Synod should, in its wisdora, frarae and
approve. The city of Aberdeen being ultiraately
fixed on as the most convenient place of meeting,
and the 1 9th day of June as the most eligible
time, the College of Bishops had still to deter^
mine who should compose the Synod,— the whole
body of Episcopal Clergy in Scotland, or only a
delegated part ? For obyious reasons, the Bishops
decided in favour ofa delegation ; when, of date
March 29, 1811, the following summons was is
sued by the Priraus to the Clergy of his diocese,
and addressed to their Dean, the Rev. WiUiam
Sangster, Lonmay, Aberdeenshire :—
LETTER LXXIL
(CIRCULAR.)
" Rev. and dear Sir,
" The Episcopal Church in Scotland having
long felt the want of a proper systera of canoni
cal regulations, suited to its peculiar situation,'
the College of Bishops, anxious to get this de
fect supplied, have resolved, through God's as
sistance, to hold a general Ecclesiastical Synod
for that purpose, in the city of Aberdeen, on
Wednesday the 19th day of June next. The Sy-

ISll. SCOTTISH' EPISCOPACY. 509
nod is to consist of all the Bishops and Deans of
their respective dioceses, with an additional re
presentative of the Clergy frora each of the said
dioceses which contains raore than four presby
ters ; such representative being elected by the
Clergy, and their election approved by the Bishop
ofthe diocese. .^
" You are therefore hereby directed to call a
meeting ofthe Clergy of this diocese, as soon as
it can conveniently be holden after Easter, for
the purpose of electing an additioniil delegate,
who, with yourself as Dean, pay duly attend,
and represent the said Clergy in the Synod ; —
having previously received frora thera such. in
structions to that effect, as they raay think suitable
to this very important and soleran occasion.
When the meeting is over, you will intimate the,
result of it to me ; and any farther information
which you raay wish to receive on the subject, I
shall be ready to give. Meantirae coramending
you and your brethren most sincerely to the di
vine direction, I ever ara, &c. " John Skinner."
On the day appointed for the Synod, Bishop
Skinner had the satisfaction of raeeting all his
Episcopal brethren, together with the Deans of
Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Brechin, and Dunkeld
(those of Ross and Moray being prevented by in
disposition) ; and, as delegates from their respec
tive dioceses, the Rev. Archibald x'\lison of Edin-

510 ANNALS OF 1811.
burgh, from the diocese of Edinburgh, — the
Rev. John Cruickshank of Turriff, from the dio
cese of Aberdeen, — the Rev. Heneage Horsley
of Dundee, from the diocese of Brechin, — and
the Rev. John Skinner of Forfar, from the dio
cese of Dunkeld.
Having taken the chair ex officio as Primus,
Bishop Skinner, after solemn prayer to God, that
" he would be graciously pleased tp sanctify, with
his blessing, the work for which his commissioned
servants were now assembled in his holy presence,
and that he would make his unerring word the
guide of all their proceedings, and the gracious
influence of his enlightening Spirit their never-
failing source of support and direction," — thus
addressed his Right Reverend colleagues : —
" My Right Reverend Brethren, — Having with
your consent and approbation fulfilled my duty,
in calling this venerable assembly for the import
ant purpose now to come under our devout con
sideration, I must beg leave to observe, that as
there is only one meraber of the Scottish Episco
pate now alive,*, who-had a vote in electing me to
the office of Primus, if you have any wish or de
sire to appoint another of your College to that of
fice, and will have the goodness to intimate that
wish, I am both ready and wUling to resign the
station which, unworthily indeed, but to the best
of my poor abUity, I have held for so long a pe-
* Bishop Macfarlaae.

/
1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 511
riod. I therefore, in all humility, wait your an
swer to this my proffered resignation."
The Bishops having, with one voice, assured
Bishop Skinner that they cordially approved of
him as the Primus of their venerable College,
and had no wish or desire to place any other
member of that body in the office, which he had
long filled so honourably to himself, and so use
fully to the Church at large ; he went on to say, —
" Being therefore continued in the office, of
which you have in such flattering terms been
pleased to decline the acceptance of ray tendered
resignation, 1 have now a most soleran duty to
perform : * In the narae of the Holy and Undi-
* vided Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,' I
declare this Ecclesiastical Assembly, which has
been duly constituted and sanctified by soleran
prayer, to be a regular National Synod of the
Episcopal Church in Scotland, called for the pur
pose of establishing a Code of Canonical Regula
tions, suited to the peculiar situation of this
Church ; and such as, by the blessing of God,
may tend to preserve, within its venerable pale,
all the good effects of apostolical order, and of
sound and salutary discipline. To which end,
may He, who is King and Head over all things
to his Church, be graciously pleased so to unite
our hearts, direct our thoughts, and sanctify and
bless our deliberations, ' to the use of edifying,'
that, by proraoting, as much as' in us lies, the
peace, the order, and the unity of the Episcopal

\
512 ANNALS OF ' 181 1.
Church in this land, we may be the hurable in
struments of advancing the honour of our Re
deemer's narae and his word, and thereby of
giving' • Glory to the Father, to the Son, and to
• the Holy Ghost ; as it was in the beginning, is
'now, and ever shall be, world without end.
'Araen." The Coramissions of the several Deans and
Delegates being strictly exarained, the Primus
thus addressed himself to thera : " My Reverend
brethren, — the Presbyters of the Church, here
present,— you are, I trust, well aware, that the
Bishops being the proper administrators of the
discipline of the Church, are to be considered as
the constituent raerabers of every Ecclesiastical
Synod ; but the Deans ofthe several districts, and
those other Presbyters of the Church who have
been dul/elected to represent their diocesan bre
thren on this occasion, and who in that capacity
have, been invited to take their place in this Sy
nod, are to have the privUege assigned to thera
by forraer canons, and by the practice of this
Church ; that is, they are to be allowed to rea
son and to debate,' to propose and to give their
opinions freely, on all those matters of discipline
and canonical regulation, now to come under our
consideration, though not to give any such deci
sive voice as Bishops only have a right to pro
nounce. . - s
'' In the exercise of this privilege, which your
Bishops are most happy m feeling' themselves, by

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 5 IS
the practice of the Church in the purest ages,
empowered to concede tp you, if, during the dis
cussion ofthe several points of order and discipline
on which you are met to deliberate, you shall feel
desirous of permission to agitate any question by
yourselves, I have tp inform you, that another
apartment is already allotted for this purpose, to
which you are at liberty to retire as often as you
may judge proper. And, if you deem it more like
ly to expedite our business, that the result of
your deliberations be delivered to us by a
chairraan or prploputor, you have only to make
chpice of one pf ypur number to act in that capa
city ; when ypu may be assured, that we shall
not only listen tp his repprts with the utmost at
tention, but be happy iu giving our sanction to
every proposition of yours, which (as far as we
may be able to judge) shall have for its object
the true Christian edification of the people cora
raitted to our charge, — an object only to be ef
fected, in nay humble estin^ation, by a steady ad
herence to those good and approved principles,
by which our humble Church has been hitherto
sp happily distinguished.
" Regarding these sound and orthodox princi
ples, as the source of that purely spiritual autho
rity, which the Episcopal Church in Scotland pos
sesses for regulating its internal order and econo
my, and without the most distant approach to
any interference with the external polity, whether
civil or ecclesiastical, of our country, it wUl, I
K K

514 ANNALS OF 1811.
presume, be judged necessary to introduce our
proposed Code of Canonical Regulations, by some
thing in the way of preamble,— pointing out the
original constitution of the Christian Church ;
whence, as the stream frora the fountain, will na
turally flow all those legitiraate preservatives of
pure apostolical regiraen and order, over which
it is our duty to watch, and which it becoraes us,
as ranch as in us lies, strictly to guard and main
tain. " In consequence of the epistolary correspon
dence which I have been officially called i/pon to
hold with my brethren of the Episcopate on this
subject, I have endeavoured to sketch out such
a preamble as appeared to me to be expressive,
^like of their sentiments as of my own. This
sketch I shall, with your permission, now take
the liberty of reading^to the Synod in detail ;
and afterwards, if thought necessary, paragraph
by paragraph, in order that you may be the bet
ter judges, not only of the matter introduced,
but of the manner in which it is introduced, and
thus have an opportunity of proposing whatever
alterations and amendments maybe deemed pro
per." The preamble being read in detail, the Clergy
of the second order withdrew to the chamber
provided for them, where they drew up the fol
lowing minute : —
"At Aberdeen, this 19th day of June 1811

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 515
years, the Deans and Representatives of the se
veral dioceses of the Episcopal Church in Scot
land having met in a separate chamber, by the
authority of the Right Reverend the Bishops of
the said Church, did then and there unanimous
ly elect the Very Reverend James Walker, Dean
of the diocese of Edinburgh, as their prolocutor,
and the Reverend William Skinner of Aberdeen,
as their clerk.
" Before the Deans and Representatives retir
ed to their separate chambei", they heard the Pri
mus deliberately read the introduction or pre
amble, proposed for the Code of Ecclesiastical
Laws, to be determined upon and enacted in the
present Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church ;
ofthe general tenor of which they instruct their
prolocutor to state to the chamber of Bishops,
that they do unaniraously approve."
In this systeraatic and business-like raanner,
were the Canons ofthe Scottish Episcopal Church
fraraed and enacted. The raerabers of the se
cond chamber regularly took their seats in the
chamber of the Bishops, when a canon was ei
ther passed into a law, or proposed to be so pass
ed. In the latter case, their clerk being duly fur
nished with a copy of the proposed canon, the
Deans and other Representatives of the Priest
hood repaired to their own chamber, and having
passed their judgraent upon the language as well
as on the subject-matter of it, instructed their
prolocutor to state their sentiments to the cham-
K K S

516 ANNALS OF 1811.
ber of Bishops, who invariably received his state
ments with the most respectful attention, and
hesitated not to acknowledge theraselves much
indebted to the sound knowledge and discretion
with which amendments were frequently suggest
ed, not only in the terms, but in thp tenor of the
several canons.
Nor can the Annalist forbear froni recording
the tribute of heart- felt gratitude with which
the Synod in general, and the merabers of the se
cond charaber in particular, evinced their sense
of the distinguished services rendered the Scot
tish Episcopal Church on this occasion, by the
Prebendaries of Sarum and St Asaph, the Rev.
Messrs Alison and Horsley, who not only ac
cepted of the comraission of delegates from the
dioceses of Edinburgh and Brechin, but also
shewed a zeal and ardour in supporting the inte
rests of the humble Episcopacy of, Scotland, not
surpassed by any member ofthe Episcopate itself.
In proof of this, it deserves to be noticed, that
they were actuaUy the fraraers of the 15th Scot
tish Canon ; ih which, although permission is li
berally granted " to retain the use of the English
Coraraunion Office in all Congregations where
the said Office had been previously in use, the
"Scottish Office is considered as the authorized
service of the Episcopal Church in the adraini
stration of the Sacraraent of the Lord's Supper,"
and " tb be used in all consecrations of Bi
shops ;" every Bishop, " when consecrated, giv-

1811. SCOTTISH FJISCOPACY. 5l7
ing his full assent to it, as being sound in itself,
and of priraary authority in Scotland ;" and
binding hiraself " not to permit its being laid a-
side, where now used, but by authority of the
College of Bishops." *.''*' ' '¦"¦''¦
For two complete days were the members of this
important Synod occupied in the business of it ;
whUe, being desirous that a raeasure of so rauch
importance as a new code of discipline fpr the
Scottish Episcopal Church, should be respectfully
communicated to the Archbishops and Bishops of
the united Church of England and Ireland, the Pri
mus was requested to make this dutiful corarauni-
cation with all convenient speed, after the dissolu
tion of the Synod, and the printing of the Canons.
Of date early in Septeraber 181 1, Bishop Skin
ner therefore presented the whole English and
Irish hierarchy with a copy of " the Code of Ca
nons for the Episcopal Church in Scotland," ac-
eompauied with the following : —
LETTER LXX in.
(circular)
« Aberdfeen, Sept. 4, 1811.
My Lord,
" The Episcopal Church in Scotland having
* See the whole Code of Canons in the Appendix, No. VIJ.
and Canon 16. in particular, by which all alterations and inser
tions in the Morning and Evening Service of the Church are
prohibited, and a strict adherence to the words of tlie EngUsh
Liturgy enjoined.

518 ANNALS OF 1811.
long felt the want of a proper system of Canoni
cal Regulations suited to its peculiar Situation,
an Ecclesiastical Synod, for supplying this de
fect, was lately holden in this city.
" The Synod consisted of the six Bishops, witb
a proper number of Representatives of the infe
rior Clergy ; who, having directed our code of
Canons to be printed, were anxious also that a
measure of such importance to the good order
and discipline of our small society should be
coraraunicated, in the most respectful raanner, to
the Archbishops and Bishops of the united Church
of England and Ireland.
" Being, in my official character, requested to
make this dutiful comraunication, I do it with
the more satisfaction, in that I hurably hope those
venerable Prelates will find nothing in our Cano
nical Regulations, (of which a copy is herewith
transraitted to your Lordship,) but what, by the
blessing of God, shall tend to support that sys
tera of religious faith and ecclesiastical regiraen
and order, by which we desire to be considered
as in the strictest comraunion with that distin
guished branch of the Apostolical succession,
from which Scotland has derived its pure and
priraitive Episcopacy.
" Offering up my fervent prayers to God for
every blessing, spiritual and temporal, to the unit
ed. Church in which your Lordship holds a most
dignified station, I have the honour to be, with
profound respect iand yeneration, my Lord, your

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 519
Lordship's most obedient and devoted humble
servant," &c.
The Prelates who honoured the Scottish Pri
mus with a reply to the above coramunication,
were the Bishops of Sarum, of Peterborough, of
Carlisle, of Sodor and Man, of Cork and Ross,
bf Leighlin and Ferns, and of Cloyne. . Their
letters breathe the most fervent regard for the
Scotch Episcopal Church, and indi\-idually speak
the sentiments of the good Bishop of Cloyne,
Dr Bennet, who, after thanking Bishop Skinner
and his Right Reverend Brethren for the Canons
of their national church, adds, " I have always
highly esteemed the Christian piety and honour
able independence of the Episcopal Church in
Scotland, and earnestly pra}% that, under the
.guidance of her excellent Prelates, she may con
tinue that purity of doctrine, for which she has
been so long, and deservedly celebrated."
The above necessary and important work of
framing, enacting, and promulgating a Code of Ca»
nons for the Episcopal Church in Scotiand, being
accomplished, and pastors and people happily fur
nished with articles of faith, and rules of disci
pline accordant in every respect with Scriptural
authority and primitive usage. Bishop Skinner's
anxious mind enjoyed a solace, a relief, and satis
faction, which the world can neither give nor
take away ; but of which those only are capable
of partaking, the supreme desire of whose heart
it is to do God and his Church service, and who.

520 ANNALS OF 1811.
like the late Scottish Primus, having through
life endeavoured to make full proof of their mi
nistry, are perraitted to feel, that He who is
Head over all things to his Church, " has pros
pered the work of their hands upon them, — nay,
that God has prospered their handywork."
When the office of Primus Scotise Episcopus,
was conferred upon Bishop Skinner, in his 44th
year, he had every thing to encounter which
could render the situation irksOrae,' and the du
ties of it arduous. Did he look to his venerable
colleagues in the Scottish Episcopate ? He saw
hiraself, with one exception *, surrounded by
men much his superiors in years, and who, being
avowedly tenacious of their own opinions on
most points of ecclesiastical and political import
ance, were not likely to be Swayed by him, or
brought to support and sanction his measures.
Did he cast an eye to the Clergy of the Epis
copal Church in Scotland ? He beheld a class of
men justly commendable for their passive virtues,
for their inoffensive and exemplary moral deport
ment, and for their meek endurance of a life of
poverty, neglect, and not unfrequent scorn ! but
men, with very few exceptions, unskilled in every
other art but the art of suffering for conscience
sake, and therefore unfit to contribute to the
rescue of themselves and ofthe Church in which
tliey served, — from the pains and penalties of law,
and from the obloquy which attended them. Or,
* .Bishop Macfarlane of Ross.

1811. ¦ SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 521
did the Bishop direct his view to the laity of
the Episcopal coraraunion in Scotland ? He saw
considerations of state policy constraining the
class of landed proprietors, whether Peers or
Commoners, and nearly all of the Episcopal per
suasion in public stations, to turn their backs upon
the altar of their native church, that they might
support the throne of their native land. He saW
many of the youth of both sexes ashamed of
being seen in the place of worship, nick- naraed
the " Nonjurant Meeting-house," and frequented
only by their pious grandrabthers ; and, in the
southern districts of Scotland, raore especially,
he saw the labouring class of Episcopalians fast
withdrawing themselves from the Church of their
fathers, by reason of their ignorance of any other
distinction but the hitherto ostensible distinc-
tion of non-submission to the House of Bruns
wick. These were prospects appalling enough to the
eye of any sifigle individual, let his rank, his in
fluence, and his talents, have been what they
may ; and therefore, raore than enough to appal
a man in Bishop Skinner's sphere of life, who
ranked no higher than a non-juring Clergyman,
whose influence extended no farther than the
waUs of his own humble dwelling, and whose ta
lents, such as they were, had hitherto been whol
ly devoted to professional study and professional
duty. But appalled as he was at the prospects
before hira, the Bishop justly considered, that if

522 ANNALS OF 1811.
no attempt at relief was made, extinction of the
formerly established Church of Scotland, and of
its regular Episcopacy, was inevitable. Humble,
therefore, as were his personal powers and pre
tensions, no time was to be lost, and he resolved
accordingly. Happily for himself and the Church at large.
Bishop Skinner, . during no less a period than
twenty-six years of his Episcopate, was blessed
with the powerful support, counsel, and advice
of his revered fathe|' ; — a raan, who, although his
lot was cast in one of the raost obscure parts of
the British empire, was possessed of talents
which would have done credit to any station in
the Church of God ; of professional acquirements
equal, if not superior, to any contemporary Scot
tish Episcopalian ; and, of such other mental re
sources as at once enabled hira to baffle and de
feat every atterapt, raade to counteract the raea-
sures deeraed necessary by his son and hiraself,
for the speedy relief of the sadly depressed Epis
copacy of Scotland. In proofof which, Mr Skinner
readily outargued the arguraentative,-^outwitted
the tribe of witlings, — and failed not to outstrip
those in the knowledge of ecclesiastical antiquity
who buckled on the arraour of the priraitive Fa
thers, whether for the purpose of assault or of
defence. In short, the fact is well known in
Scotland, and his son, the Bishop, never atterapt-
ed to conceal it, that in all his measures for the
Church's relief and prosperity, (the late import-

1811. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 523
ant Synod excepted,) he was, under God, raore
indebted to the head, the heart, and the hand of
his own father, the venerable Pastor of Longside,
Aberdeenshire, than to any other feUow-labour-
er in his great Master's vineyard.
The measure of giving a valid Protestant Epis
copacy to the State of Connecticut in North A-
merica, which has been already shewn to have
rescued the Bishops and Clergy of the Churcb
in Scotland from a state of oblivion, resembling
that ofthe grave, was no sooner proposed to Bi
shop Skinner, and the proposal communicated to
his fatber, than the good man became its zea
lous advocate and supporter. The Bishops
Kilgour and Petrie, (raen of the greatest pri
vate worth, but alike tiraid in disposition, as at
that period they had becorae infirra in body,) he
stiraulated to corapliance by arguraents which
eventually proved irresistible, while his own son,
who would modestly have declined the active
part which he was constrained to take, he en
couraged to the work with a zeal equally ardent,
but raore according to knowledge, than the zeal
exhibited by the patrons of modern Christian
Missions, who unfortunately, in their ardour to
propagate the * Apostles' doctrine' in foreign
parts, forget the necessity of conjoining with it
' the Apostles' fellowship,' notwithstanding that
a stedfast continuance in both is as much the
duty ofthe disciples of Jesus now, as it was eigh
teen hundred years ago.

524 annAlS of 181 ii,
Froni the date of Bishop Seabury's Consecra
tion, to the present time, it has bieeb the pur
pose and wish of the Annalist tO shew to the
friends of Scottish Episcopacy; and to the pub
lic at large, not only every thing that waS done
by the late venerable Prinius, but almost every
thing that Was penned by him in the Chiirch'is
behalf. With the measures, . the views, the opi
nions of olhei: members of the Episcopal College^
so far as they were undiscovered to Bishop Skin
ner, the Annalist has stiidiOusly ayoided all con
cern. He writes the Annals of Bishop Skinner's
Episcopslte and administration solely ; and should
it unforttlnately happen that he has not written
them inoffensively, (although offence was not in
all his thoughts,) he has the satisfaction to think
and to know that he has written thera conscien
tiously and faithfully as they presented them
selves. Doubtless, discussions are introducedi Which,
had Bishop Skinner's son not considered himself
bound to act a strictly candid and conscientious
part, might have been omitted. But ' Annals'
necessarUy implying a faithful detail of the his
torical occurrences and transactions of each par
ticular year, and the care apd accuracy with
which the late Primus of the Scottish Churcl^j.
annually treasured up his correspondence on Ec
clesiastical subjects, as well as every other Eccle
siastical document, shewing, that he at least
wished them to be preserved ; — his son and exe-

1811-16. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 525
cutor, whose duty it becoraes to transmit that
correspondence and those docuraents to posteri
ty, raight weU have dreaded detection had he,
when he undertook the present work, wUfuUy or
tiraidly concealed any discussion in which he found
written evidence of his father's heartfelt interest ;
or, had he garbled and niutilated documents to
¦yphich Bishop Skinner was known to attach im
portance, in order to suit the views, the "predilec
tions, and the opinions of other raen.
In the words, therefore, of the exceUent bio
grapher of Bishop Horne, the biographer of Bi
shop Skinner is proud to say : " I have brought
this good raan to his end, through the labours
and studies of his life, in all which his exaraple
may be attended with some happy effect on those
who shall raake theraselves acquainted with his
history. In writing it, I have not perraitted my
self to consider what suppressions or alterations
woiUd have rendered it more agreeable to some
people, into whose hands it may fall. As truth
will generally succeed best in the end, I have
made the story such as I found it. I have con
cealed nothing out of fear, — I have added no
thing out of malice, and must now comrait what
I have written to that variety of judgraent which
all ray other writings have raet with."
1811-16.] Frora the year 1811 to the year 1816,
when Bishop Skinner was suddenly cut off by
death, no Ecclesiastical event took place i a the Scot-

526 ANNALS OF I8II-I6.
tish Episcopal Church of interest sufficient to be
here recorded. And, with respect to Political
events, it seems only proper to remark, that no
part of the British public haUed, with greater
delight, the success of the Peninsular war, and
the final overthrow of Napoleon Bonaparte and
his dynasty, than did the Episcopalians in Scot
land, Bishops, Clergy, and Laity ; of which they
failed not to give the most convincing demon
strations. The very last act of Bishop Skinner's
administration as Priraus or President of the E-
piscopal College in Scotland, was the forwarding
a Congratulatory Address to the Prince Regent
on the raarriage of his ever¦'to•be-laraented^daugh-
ter with the araiable Leopold of Saxe Cobourg ;
which Address the Bishop, with his own hand,
put in the post-office the morning preceding his
dissolution, — ^little aware of what a day was to
bring forth to himself, or that in fifteen short
months the nation's ecstatic joys should be turn
ed to ' lamentation, and mourning, and woe,' and
that the language of gratulation on the beloved
Princfess's nuptials should be changed into ad
dresses of condolence, grief, and disappointment
on her untimely demise, — syrapathetic, heartfelt,
and unfeigned ! O, happy for man is his igno
rance of futurity I Were it otherwise, the tor
tures ofthe rack would be preferable to the men
tal tortures, which he would be often doomed
tp endure ! ,
And now, the Annalist, having brought his la-

1811-16. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 527
hours to a close, cannot, he conceives, do the cause
of Scottish Episcopacy more substantial justice
than by presenting his readers with a portrait of
it, as drawn by two distinguished members of the
University of Oxford ; the one of whora did fill
for raany years, raost worthily, while the other
is now filling, with corresponding celebrity, the
President's chair of Magdalene College.
In the interesting Meraoirs of Bishop Horne,
it is recorded, that " A Clergyraan of Scotland,
who had received English ordination, applied to
the Bishop, wishing to be considered as under
the jurisdiction of sorae English Prelate, — that
is, in effect, to be independent of the Bishops of
Scotland in their own country : but he gave no
countenance to the proposal, and aidvised the
person who made it quietly to acknowledge the
Bishop of the .diocese in which he lived, who, he
knew, would be ready to receive him into com
munion, and require nothing of him but what
was necessary to maintain the order and unity
of a Christian Church ; assuring him, at the
safne time, that if he were a private Clergyman
himself, he should be glad to be under the au
thority of such a Bishop."
And in proof of the sincerity with which the
advice was given, the good Bishop's learned bio
grapher, Mr Jones, further states, that " from
the present circurastances of its priraitive ortho
doxy, piety, poverty, and depressed state, he,
(Bishop Horne,) had such an opinion of the

528 AijiirAr^s of J8 11-16.
Scottish Episcopal Church, as to think, that if
the great Apostle of the Gentiles were upon
earth, audit were put to his choice, with what
denoraination of Christians he would corarauni-
cate, the preference would prpbably be given tp
the Episcopalians of Scotland, as inpst like to
the people he had been used to.*-'
In the year 1814, the learned and venerable Dr
Routh, President of Magdalene CpUege, publish
ed his learned work, " Reliquiae Sacras, sive Auo-
torum fere jam perditorura, secundi tertiique sas-
culi fragraenta, quae supersunt. Accedunt Episi-
tolsc Synodic^ et Canonicae, Nicaeno Concilio an-
tiquiores." Which interesting collection is thus .
inscribed :-r- -_ ¦
" PATRIBUS IN CHRISTO ABMODUM
REVERENDIS,
VIRISQUE OPTIMIS AC VENERABILIBUS,
EPISCOPIS ET PRESBYTERIS
ECCLESIA SCOTICA EPISCOPALIS,
doctis, piis, orthodoxis,
Martinus Josephus Routh
paternitati dignationique eorum
D. D. D."
Nor does the learned author pmit his reasons
for singling out the Bishops and Clergy of the
Scottish Episcopal Church, personally unknown
to him, as the objects of suph veneration and re
gard. To the above inscription, and in Latin ofthe
* See Jones' Life, of Bishop Horne, p. 151.

1811-16. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. 529
most classical purity, an address is annexed, in '
which he tells them, that, ' enjoying, as they do
enjoy, the praise of maintaining the manners of
Christian 'antiquity, joined to the Catholic faith
and to the discipline ofthe Apostles, he, the Au
thor did, on this account, present them with
" Aurea haac priraorura saeculorum scripta,''
literally, "these golden written productions ofthe
first ages ;" that, ' though fragments merely, and
picked up frora a general shipwreck, the raerao-
rials only of what the Church was in her then
humble and depressed state; he yet considers
thera the raore fit to be presented to those whose
lot it is to be placed even in less prosperous cir
cumstances than was the priraitive Church itself:'
— that ' though he laraents to see the Scottish Bish
ops and Clergy deprived of civil establishraent, of
.secular dignities and honours; this deprivation
in his opinion affords not subject of regret equal
to that which afflicts the raind versed in Christian
antiquity, when it beholds a people of such re
nown as the people of Scotland, and withal so
justly faraed for the respect which they shew to
religion, torn from their pristine hierarchy, and
placed in a state of schisra frora Episcopal Cora
raunion ;' that stUl, ' it is tp himself matter of joy
unspeakable, to have it in his power to congra
tulate his Episcopal brethren in Scotland on
possessing the privilege (which of right belongs
to all mankind, the privilege) of exercising, their
ministry in peace ; which privilege, (he adds) as it
L L

530 ANNALS OF 1811-16,
can never be violated but by acts of heinous
atrocity, he trusts, now that our country has
emerged from the agitating waves of civil discord,
will be rendered to the Scottish Episcopalians
both stable and permanent ;' that ' he remembers
well with what patriotic fidelity and devotion they
conducted themselves in the hour of trial, never
allowing their tempers to be ruffled, by reason of
the neglect cast upon their hurable petitions for
relief frora penal statutes, or by reason ofthe very
precarious footing on which they were at one time
perraitted to rainister in holy things.' And so
very appropriate is the peroration of Dr Routh'ii
address, that the Annalist of Scottish Episcopacy
cannot forbear from adopting it in conclusion of
bis own labours, and cordially joining the pious
and learned author, in the sentiraents of good
wUl, as well as in the other sentiments which his
eloquent, chaste, and nervous language confessed
ly breathes.
" Vivite igitur, sicut soletis, ambitu partium
reraoti ; et Deum, omnibus temporibus, sperate
propitium, ' in pace praemium, qui virtus in bel^
lo.' Faustum oraen accipite, Communionem
potissimura vestrara voluit esse eeclesiae Novo-
AngUcae matricem, suraraus iUe ecclesiarum pas
tor et dorainus, Dominus et Deus noster Jpsus
Christus. " Magnura certe, claruraque Divinae benevo-
lentiae indiciura. Quo etiam provisum est, ut
cui genti vos ipsi successionem vestrara sacer-

1811-16. SCOTTISH EPISCOPACY. ^ 531
dotalem debetis, in ejus progenie parem referatis
gratiam, et ipsi eraineatis nequaquara rainirai in
psincipibus Juda^.
, " Valete," et illud mihi ignoscite, me, tenuem
et obscurum horainera, curas vestras atque labo
res intetpellasse. Immo vero, siquid ardentissimo
meo, a prima aetate, erga vos studio sit conceden-
dum, vos, etiam atque etiam rogo, ut irapertiatur
mihi benedictio a vobis, Reverendissimi Episco
pi, et ut Memores sitis mei, in precibus vestris,
VenerabUes Presbyteri ; quas pluriraura apud
Deura valere, piis omnibus firmissime persuasum
est.
** Dabam Oxonii
Paternitati vestrje
Addictissimus."

The Author's distance firom the press, end his consequent inability to see
Any of the proof sheets, will, he hurably hopes, satisfactorily account for typo-
graphical'errors, as well as for errors in punctuation, l% c. The latter he can
not now take upon him to correct , the most essential of Xhefo-rmer are mark
ed in the fallowing list of ERRATA.
Page 19, line 12, for'17G0,' read '1768.'
' 27,  16, — ' a' burying-place, r. 'or.'
65, line 12, — ' inconu.' t. • inconnu.'
71,  22, — ' coTisecrate,' r. ' consecrati.'
91,  26, — 'nobleman,' r. 'noble men.'
154,  7, — 'ago,' I. 'prior to recent ofthe ahivt.'
25o, 22, — ' comtimumce,' t -countenance.'
. 260, for Appendix, 'No. J.' i.''No VIII.
269, line 21, for very good.' i. ' very kind.'
281, for' William Strachan,' r. ' JbA» Strachan.'
296, line 17, for ' our' r. ' one.'
302, last line, for ' citizen,' r. ' c^izens.'
320, last line but one, for ' holy, r. 'truly.'
325, line 23, for ' communicate,' r. ' conmrttmate.'
333,  13, dele 'to.'
339,  9, for forth,' r. 'fast.'
34*,  23,— 'Ms,'T. ' tlie.'
559,-  22,— ' tenets,' r
375,  5, — 'o' misprision,:
424, last line, dele ' in.'
468 first line, for ' event,' r. ' events.'
iTZ,  8, for 'some,' I. 'seven.'
496,  16,— 'a; I. 'or.'

APPENDIX.

CONTENTS OF APPENDIX.

I.— List qf Bishops qf the Episcopal Church in Scotland
from the year 1705 to the year 1818, .... Page 533,
II. — Proposed Preamble tothe Thirty-nine Articles 'whin
subscribed at Laurencehirh,  539
III  Bishop Jolly's Address to the Convocation,  543
IV. — Bishop Sandford's Address to his Congregation on his
Union ixiith ihe Scottish Episcopal Church, .... 550
V. — Articles qf Union,  553
YI.'— Memoir relative to ihe Scottish Episcopal Fund, . . . 555
Yll.'— Code of Canons qf the Episcopal Church in Scotland, 560
VIII. — Address, in Latin, by the Rev. Joh-n Skinner qf Lin
shart, to his Brethren qfthe Diocese of Aberdeen, . 561

APPENDIX.

No. I.

List of Bishops of the Episcopal Church in
Scotland from the year I705 to the year 1818.
The following I<ist of Consecrations, with their dates, and the
names ofthe Consecrators, as extracted from their Ecclesiasti
cal Register, will give a clear and distinct view of the Episco
pal succession in Scotland since tlie I^eroluticn, as far as the
present Bishops are concerned,
January 25, 1705.-— Mr John Saoe, formerly one of the
Ministers of Glasgow, and Mr John Fullarton, formerly
Minister of Paisley, were consecrated at Edinburgh, by John
Paterson, Archbishop of Glasgow, Alexander Rose, Bishop of
Edinburgh, and Robert Douglas, Bishop of Dunblane.*
Bishop Sage died zn 171 1 • — Bishop Fullarton succeeded Bishop
Rose, as Bishop of Edinburgh, in 1720, and aied in 1727.
AprU^, 1709. — Mr Jo^N Falconar, minister at Cairnbee,
and Mr Henry Christie, minister at Kinross, were<;onsecrat-
* Archbishop Paterson, Bishop Rose, and Bishop Douglas, with the other
Bishops of Scotland, were deprived at the Revolution by the Civil Power, be
cause Episcopacy had beea voted aa insupportable grievance by tke S«ottiA
Convention.

534 APPENDIX.
ed at Dundee, by Bishop Rose of Edinburgh, Bishop Douglas
of Dunblane, and Bishop Sage. — Bishop Christie died in 1718, ^
and Bishop Falconar in 1723.
August 25, 171 1  The Hon. Archibald Campbell, who
had been long in Priest's orders, and resided mostly in Lon
don, was consecrated at Dundee, by Bishop Rose of Edin
burgh, Bishop Douglas of Dunblane, and Bishop Falconar. He
was elected Bishop of Aberdeen in 1721 , which charge he re
signed in 1724 — and died June 16, 1744.
February 24, 1712  Mr James Gaodehar, formerly Mi
nister at . Kilmaurs, was. consecrated at London by Bishop
Hickes, * Bishop Falconar, and Bishop Campbell. He was ap
pointed Bishop of Aberdeen in 1724, and 'died in February
1733. October 22, 1718. — Mr Arthur Millar, formerly Minister
at Inveresk, and Mr William Irvine, formerly Minister at
Kirkmichael in Carriek, were consecrated at Edinburgh, by
Bishop Rose of Edinburgh, Bishop Fullarton, and Bisliop Fal
conar. Bishop Irmne died November 9, 1725. Bishop Millar
succeded Bishop Fullarton as Bishop of Edinburgh, and Pri-
¦mus,\ and died October 9, 1727-.
After the death of Bishop Rose of Edinburgh, which hap
pened March 20, 1720,
* Dr George Hickes, formerly Dean of Worcester, was consecrated in the
Bishop of Peterborough's Chapel, in thc parish of Enfield, Febrnary 23, 1693,
by Dr WilUam Lloyd, Bishop of Norwich, Dr Francis Turner, Bishop of Ely,
and Dr Thomas White, Bishop of Peterborough. Dr Lloyd, Dr Turner, and
Dr White, were three of the English Bishops who were deprived, at the Re
volution, by the civil power, for not swearing allegiance to William III. They
were also three of the seven Bishops who had been sent to- the Tower by
James II , for refusing to order an illegal proclamation to be read in their Dio.
ceses. f Anciently, no Bishop in Scotland had the title oi Archbishop, but one of
them had a precedency, under the title of Prim-as Scotiw Episcopus. In con
sequence of the Revolution, alter the death of Bishop Hose of Edinburgh, the
Scottish Bishops reassumed the.old form, one of thera being elected Primm,
with power of conyocating and prfesiding, according to theii" canons made iu
1743.

APPENDIX. 535
October 17, 1722. — Mr Andrew Cant, formerly one ofthe
Ministers of Edinburgh, and Mr David Freebairn, formerly
Minister of Dunning, were consecrated at Edinburgh, by Bi*
shop Fullarton, Primus, Bishop Millar, and Bishop Irvine. Bi
shop Cant died in 1728. Bishop Freebairn was elected Primus
in 1731, afterwards Bishop of Edinburgh, and died in 1739.
. June 4, 1727. — Dr Thomas Rattray, of CraighaU, wae
consecrated at Edinburgh by Bishop Gadderar, Bishop Millar,
and Bishop' Cant. He was appointed Bishop of Dunkeld, suc
ceeded Bishop Freebairn as Primus, and died May 12, 1743.
June 18, 1727. — Mr William Dunbar, formerly Minister*
^ Cruden, and Mr Robert Keith, Presbyter in Edinburgh,
were consecrated at Edinburgh, by Bishop Gadderar, Bishop
Millar, and Bishop Rattray. Bishop Dunbar was first appoint
ed, Bishop of Moray, and afterwards of Aberdeen, on the death
of Bishop Gadderar in 1733. He died in 1746. Bishop Keitl*
was first appointed Bishop of Caithness, afterwards of Fife.
He was elected Primus after the death of Bishop Rattray, and
died in January 1756.
Jitne 24, 1735 — Mr Robert White, Presbyter at Cupar in
Fife, was consecrated at Carsebank, near Forfar, by Bishop
Rattray, Bishop Dunbar, and Bishop Keith. — He was appoint
ed Bishop of Dunblane, succeeded Bishop Keith as Primus,
and died in August 1761.
September 10, 1741 — Mr William Falconar, Presbyter
at Forres, was consecrated at Alloa, by Bishop Rattray, Pri
mus, Bishop Keith, and Bishop White. He was first appointed
Bishop of Caithness, afterwards of Moray ; succeeded Bishop
White as Primus, and died in 1784.
October 4, 1742 — Mr James Rait, Presbyter at Dundee,
was consecrated at Edinburgh, by Bishop Rattray, Primus,
Bishop Keith, and Bishop White. He was appointed Bishop
of Brechin, and died in 1777.
, August 19, 1743 — Mr John Alexander, Presbyter at Al-
* Those Clergymen who, in consequence of the Revolution, were deprived
»f their parishes, are in this list called ministers: And those who had not
Iseea Parish-Ministers, under the civil establishment are called Presbyters.

556 APPENDtX.
loa, was consecrated at Edinburgh, by Bishop Keith, Primus,
Bishop White, ]^ishop Falconar, and Bishop Rait. He was ap
pointed Bishop of Dunkeld, apd died in 1776.
July 17, 1747. — Mr Andrew Gerard, Presbyter in Aber
deen, was consecrated at Cupar in Fife, by Bishop White (h».
ving commission fronj Bishop Keith, the Primus, for that ef
fect) Bishop Falconar, Bishop Rait, and Bishop Alexander.
He was appointed Bishop of Aberdeen, and died in QtHober.
1767. - ,
Ju7ie 24, 1762. — Mr Robert Forbes, Presbyter in Leith,
was consecrated at Forfar by Bishop Falconar, Primus, Bishop
Alexander, and Bishop Gerard. He was appointed Bisl?op of
Ross and Caithness, and died in 1776.
September 21, 1768.-^Mr Robert ^ilgoue, Presbyter in
Peterhead, wis consecrated, at Cupar in Fife, by Bishop Fal
conar, Primus, Bishop Rait, and Bishop Alexander. He was
appointed Bishop of Aberdeen, succeeded Bishop Falconar as
Primus, in 1784, and died March 22, 1790.
August 24, 1774  Mr Charles Rose, Presbyter at Down,
was consecrated at Forfar, by Bishop Falconar, Primus, Bishop
Rait, and Bishop Forbes. He was first appointed Bishop of
Dunblane, afterwards of Dunkeld, and died in April 1791.
, June 27, 1776  Mr Arthur Petrie, Presbyter at Mickle
foUa in Fyvie, was consecrated at Dundee, by Bishop Falconar,
Primus, Bishpp Rait, Bishop Kilgour, and Bishop Rose. He
was fir§t appointed coadjutor to Bishop Falconar, whom he af
terwards succeeded as Bishop of Moray, and died April 19,
1787. September 25, 1782. — Mr John Skinner, Presbytjer in A-
berdeen, was consecrated in the Chapel at Luthermuir, by
Bishop Kilgour, Primus, Bishop Rose, and Bishop Petrie. He
was appointed coadjutor to Bishop Kilgour, on whose resigna
tion he succeeded to the charge of the Diocese of Aberdeen,
in October 1786, and was elected Primus in December 1788.
March 7, 1787. — Mr Andrew Macfarlane, Presbyter in
Inverness, was consecrated at Peterhead, by Bishop Kilgour,
Primus, Bishop Petrie, and Bishop Skinneiv He was appoint-

APPENDIX. 537
ed coadjutor to Bishop Petrie, whom he succeeded soon after
as Bishop of Ross and Moray.
September 26, 1787 — Dr William Abernethy Drum
mond, one of the Presbyters of Edinburgh, and Mr John
Strachan, Presbyter in Dundee, were consecrated at Peter
head, by Bishop Kilgour, Primus, Bishop Skinner, and Bishop
Macfarlane. Bishop Abernethy Drummond was first appoint
ed Bishop of Brechin, afterwards of Edinburgh, which having
also resigned, he died Bishop of Glasgow. Bishop Strachan
succeeded him as Bishop of Brediin.
September 20, 1792. — Mr Jonathan Watson, Presbyter at
Laurencekirk, was consecrated at Stonehaven, by Bishop Skin-
jier. Primus, Bishop Mac&rlane, Bishop Abernethy Drum
mond, and Bishop Strachan. He was appointed Bishop of
Djinkeld, that Diocese being vacant by the deatli of Bishop
Rose. Juiie 24, 1796.— Mr Alexander Jolly, Presbyter at Fra
serburgh, was consecrated at Dundee, by Bishop Abernethy
Drummond, Bishop Macfarlane, and Bishop Strachan. He was
appointed coadjutor to Bishop Macfarlane, on whose resigna
tion, he succeeded soon after to the charge of the Eiiocese of
Moray. February 9, 1806  •'Daniel Sandford, D. D. Presbyter
in Edinburgh, was consecrated at Dundee, by Bishop Skinner,
Primus, Bishop Watson, and Bishop Jolly. He was appointed
Bishop of Edinburgh, that Diocese being vacant by the resig
nation ofBishop Abernethy Drummond.
October 12, 1808 — Mr Patrick Torry, Presbyter in Pe
terhead, was consecrated at Aberdeen, by Bishop Skinner,
Primus, Bishop Macfarlane, and Bishop Jolly. He was ap
pointed Bishop of Dunkeld, that Diocese being vacant by the
death of Bishop Watson.
October ZO, 1808.— George Gleig, L.L.D. Presbyter in
Stirling, was consecrated at Aberdeen, by Bishop Skinner,
Primus, Bishop Jolly, and Bishop Torry. He was appointed
Bishop of Brechin, Bishop Strachan, from advanced age, and
consequent mental imbecility, being unequal to the duties of

53S APPENDIX.
tbe Episcopal oflSce  N. B. Bishop Gleig was elected Primus,
on Bishop Skinner's death, in 1816.
October 27, 1816. — Mr William Skinner, Presbyter in
Aberdeen, was consecrated at Stirling by Bishop Gleig, Pri
mus, Bishop Jolly, Bishop Sandford, and Bishop Torry. He
was appointed Bishop of Aberdeen, that Diocese being vacant
by the death ofthe former i?nMMS, Bishop Skinner, t
Though tbe districts into which the Scottish Bishops have
divided their Church, are not exactly accordiiag to the limits of
the Dioceses under the legal establishment of Episcopacy, yet
they still retain the names by which they were of old distin
guished, with the exception of St Andrews. Every Dio
cesan Bishop has 'his distinct charge, and without assum
ing any other local jurisdiction than what was acknow
ledged in the primitive Church for the first three centuries,
may as properly be denominated Bisliop of the place or charge
assigned to hira, as St James has always been called Bishop of
Jeriisalem, Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, or Cyprian, Bishop of
Carthage. On this footing the Episcopal College in Scotland
consists at present of the following members : —
Dr Gleig, Bishop o{ Brechin, Primus.
Mr Andrew Macfarlane, Bishop oF Ross.
Mr Alexander Jolly, Bishop of Moray.
Dr Sandford, Bishop of Edinburgh.
Mr Patrick Torry, Bishop o( Dunkeld.
Mr William Skinner, Bishop of Aberdeen.
t A few more Presbyters havc been consecrated Bishops in Scotland, since
the Revolution ; but as they had no hand in canying on the Episcopal suc-
cessiMi, it was thought unnecessary, in making out this list, to mention their
consecrations.

APPENDIX. 539
No. II.
Proposed Preamble to the Thirty-nine Articles,
when subscribed at Laurencekirk.
We the Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal Church in Scot
land, assembled in a Convocation holden at Laurencekirk in
the county of Kincardine, on the 24th day' of October in the
year of our Lord 1804, having taken into our serious consider
ation the obligations we lie under to provide, as far as we are
able, for the preservation of truth, unity, and concord, in that
small portion of the Church of Christ committed to our charge ;
and having observed, with regret, that, owing to the confusions
of the times, and the various diflSculties which the Episcopacy
of Scotland had to encounter, even when established by law,
no public Confession of Faith has been prescribed or handed
down to us, who have thought it our duty to adhere to that Ec
clesiastical constitution which we believe to be truly Apostoli
cal; under these circumstances, we are unanimously of opinion,
that it would be highly expedient to exhibit some public testi
mony of our agreement in doctrine and discipline with the Es
tablished Church of England ; and, for that purpose, to give a
solemn declaration of our assent to her Thirty-nine Articles of
Religion, in the form and manner of subscription required by
the act of the 32d of his present Majesty, intitlea, ¦ an " Act
for granting Relief to Pastors, Ministers, and Lay-persons of
the Episcopal Communion in Scotland.''
• Resolved, therefore, as we now are, by the grace of Almigh
ty God, to adopt these Articles as the public test or standard
of the religious principles of our Church, so far as they are ap
plicable to its present situation, we deem it our bounden duty,
from a conscientious regard to the truth as it is in Christ, to of
fer a few observations on the doctrine ofthe 17th and 25th, and
the peculiar design of the 35th, 36th, and 37th Articles.
I. With regard to the doctrine of the 17th Article, on the sub-
ject of Predestination and Election, it is with extreme concern
that we perceive the great diversity of opinion which has long

540 APPENDIX.
prevailed, and still does prevail, even among the Clergy of the
Church of England, with respect to the true and genuine sense
' of this Article ; some contending, very strenuously, that it ought
to be understood in the rigorous, exclilsive, Calvihistical sense,
as establishing the doctrine bf absolute election and reproba-
bation ; and others, shewing, with much more clearness of evi
dence, that this is not the sense which the Church of England
has ever attached to it. f o tbis latter opinion we do readily
assent; and being well assured from Holy Scripture of the
eternal purpose or promise of redehiptioB, according to which
God sent his Son to be " the propitiation for the sins of the whole
world," ( 1 John ii. 2i) ; and " Jesus Christ gave himself a ran-
rom for all," (1 Tim. ii.6.) ; we receive the doctrine of Predes
tination as consistent with and agreeable to this most gracious
and general scheme of salvation, which we believe to be uni
versal in the intention, however partial the wickedness of man
kind inay render it in the application. Under the impression of
this belief, as we must not, on the one hand, attempt to widen
the way that leadeth unto life, which Christ has declared to be
" narrow," (Matt. vii. 14.) so neither can we think, on the other
hand, of limiting the extent of his merit, or the objects of his
mercy, and especially of .justifying such presumptuous limita
tion, by the authority of an eternal, but unrevealed decree of
exclusion. When, therefore, we find the Church of England
avoiding the ihention of the term Reprobation, and guarding
her general belief of Predestination with a warning 'to " the cu
rious and carnal against a dangerous downfal," — <^from having
it continually before their eyes/' we heartily embrace the very
just and apjJropriate conclusion of this Article, that " we must
receive God's promises in such wise as they be generally set
forth to us in Holy Scripture ; and in our doings, that will of
God is to be followed which we have expressly declared unta
us in the word of God." And no part of his will is more clear
ly revealed in that word, than that " God will (BiXet, is will
ing to) have all men to be saved, and to come to the know
ledge of the truth. (1 Tim. ii. 4.) With such express declara
tions ofthe divine will, it is therefore the duty of Christians tp
be fully satisfied, without seeldng to be wise " above that which

APPENDIX. 541
iS written," or plunging into the mysterious depths of the dc
crees of heaven, but always remembering that distinction so
plainly laid down in these words of inspired wisdom : " The sa
cred things belong unto the Lord our God, but those things
which are revealed belong unto us, and to our children for ever,
that we may do all the words of this law." — Deut. xxix. 29.
IL We have to remark, that in the Twenty fifth Article it
is very truly declared, that " there are two Sacraments ordain
ed of Christ our Lord in the Gospel, that is to say, Baptism
and the Supper of the Lord." And it is equally certain, that
" those five commonly called Sacraments" in the Church of
Rome, " are not to be counted as such, since they have not the
like nature of Sacraments with Baptism and the Lord's Supper,
havihg not any visible sign or ceremony ordained of God." Yet
we know that in the Church of England, as well as in the
Church to which we belong. Confirmation is acknowledged and
reverently used as an Apostolic ordinance ; and in one of the
prayers appointed for the administration of it, the laying on of
the Bishop's hands, " after the example of the holy Apostles,"
is declared to be for " certifying" tlie persons confirmed " by
tliis. sign" of God's " favour and gracious goodness towardft
them ;" which plainly shews, that what is said, in this Article,
of Confirmation " having no visible sign ordained of God," is
not meant to detract in the least from the regard that is due to
this triily primitive and venerable rite ; or to insinuate that it
is one of those " which have grown ofthe corrupt following of
the Apostles," but only to prove that it is not to be considered
as a sacraraent, in the strict and proper sense of that word, as
applied to those distinguished means of grace and salvation in
stituted by Christ himself, — Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
It is still, however, tobe received as a sacred ordinance, institut
ed by the Apostles for blessing and sanctifying the members of
Christ's body by the gift ofthe Holy Spirit, the benefit of which
is frequently alluded to in Scripture as the " sealing of Chris
tians ;" a benefit which we cannot but suppose to be of very
great consequence, when we find St Paul, in one of his Epis
tles, mentioning it next to Baptism, among the fundamental
" principles of the doctrine of Christ." — Heb. vi. 1. 2.

542 APPENDIX.
III. We have, farther, to observe, that the Thirty -fifth Article^
intitled, Of the Homilies; the Thirty-sixth, Ofthe Consecration
of Bishops and Ministers ; andthe Thirty-seventh, Ofthe Civil
Magistrates, are all peculiar to the religious establishment of
England, and, with respect to other National Churches, ought to
be considered merely as articles of union, by assenting to which,
in the form of subscription, they testify their approbation of
what has been done for establishing order and uniformity in the
Church of England. This appears to be the only sense in which
these three Articles can be subscribed by the Clergy of other
Churches ; and where they contain any reference to " Edward
the Sixth," to " Elizabeth our Queen,"andto "this realm of Eng
land," it is evident that every such reference admits of no direct
application to the state of our Church in Scotland, and there
fore the subscription required from us, can imply no more than
our assenting to what is thus expressed as a thing right and pro
per in the realm of England, and so far as it can be applied to
our situation in Scotland. The form of consecrating Bishops,
and of ordaining Priests and Deacons, referred to in the'Thir-
ty-sixth Article, has always been used in our Church, since it
was deprived of legal establishment, with no other variation
than what our circumstances necessarily require. And as to the
Thirty-seventh Article, which treats of the supremacy of the
Chief Magistrate, it has ever been the doctrine of our Church,
aswell as of the Church of England, that the King's Majesty,
having the chief power in every part of his dominions, has a
right to " rule all estates and degrees committed to his charge
by God, whether they be ecclesiastical or temporal, and to
restrain with the civil sword the stubborn and evil doers." T«
this doctrine we do stedfastly adhere, and never fail, as in du
ty bound, to recommend a conscientious submission to the
King, and those that are put in authority under him, for whom
also we do not cease to offer up our fervent supplications and
prayers to God's divine Majesty, that so " we may lead qiliet
and peaceable lives in all godliness and honesty ;" in that
•' honesty," which implies a decent and proper behaviour in the
sjate of life to which God has called us ; and in that " godli-

APPENDIX. 543
ness which is profitable unto all things, having promise of the
life that now is, and of that which is to come," — 1 Tim. ii. 2. &
iv. 8.
These observations we have thought proper to commit to
writing, as explanatory, not only of what we judge to be the
true sense and meaning of the Seventeenth Article, and of that
part of the Twenty-fifth which refers to the rite of Confirma
tion, but also of the nature and design of those Articles, which
being peculiar to the Church of England, can be applied to our
situation, only so far as existing circumstances will admit of the
application. And, with these explanations thus prefixed to our.
subscriptions, we do freely and voluntarily subscribe a declara
tion of our assent to the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of
England, as contained in the act passed in the 1 3th year of the
reign of Queen Elizabeth, in the words following : (We the
subscribing Bishops having also resolved in future to require
from all candidates for holy orders in our Church, previous to
their being ordained, a similar subscription in the same words,)
videlicet. We, whose names are underwritten, Pastors of Con
gregations of persons in the Episcopal Communion in Scot
land, meeting for diyine worship at the several places annexed
to our respective names, do willingly, and ex animo subscribe
to the Book of Articles of Religion agreed upon by the Arch
bishops and Bishops of both provinces of the realm of England,
and the whole Clergy thereof, in the Convocation holden at
London in the year of our Lord one thousand five hundred and
sixty-two ; and we do acknowledge all and every the Articles
therein contained, being in number Thirty-nine, besides the Ra
tification, to be agreeable to the word of God.
No. III.
' Bishop Jolly's Address to the Convocation.
After the other Bishops had severally declared their opi
nions on the subject before them, and, with all becoming re-
M M

544 APPENDIX.
gard to the sentiraents of the Clergy, expressed the sincere sa
tisfaction which they could not fail to derive from an unani
mous resolution to subscribe the Thirty-nine Articles of the
Church of England, Bishop Jolly, ofthe diocese of Moray, de
livered an Address, to the following effect ; —
" Our attention, my brethren, on this solemn occasion, is
forcibly arrested by these affecting words of St Paul to the Co
rinthians,* ' Now, I beseech you, brethren, by the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and
that there be no divisions among you, but that ye be perfectly
joined together in the same mind and in the sarae judgment.'
This divine admonition, though it leaves room for mutual for
bearance in points of less importance and doubtful disputation,
(as may be inferred from other passages of St Paul's Epistles,)
yet plainly establishes the necessity of concord and unanimity
in all the great articles of faith and religion ; and if the profes
sors, much more are the preachers of Christianity, bound to
such consent and agreement. ' The form of doctrine,' — ' the
form of sound words,' we are accordingly charged to • hold
fast in faith and love.' Such forms we find recorded by the
most early ecclesiastical writers, particularly by Irenseus and
TertuUian, in the age next to the Apostles. Afterwards, when
the vain imaginations of men corrupted the simplicity of the
« truth as it is in Jesus,' the Church was obliged to counteract
the poison by antidotes suited to the several errors as they a-
rose. Hence confessions and formularies of faith came to be
multiplied and enlarged, dilated in words, but the same in sub
stance as at first delivered to the saints.
" When the dismal night of Romish error and delusion be
gan to be dispelled by the dawn of Reformation, access was not
at first, and in all places, so easy as could have been wished, to
'those early monuments wbich would have most clearly detect
ed and exposed the innovations and corruptions whereby the
primitive faith and practice had been so grossly adulterated,
and happily furnished the uniform standard of doctrine and
discipline, stampt with antiquity, universality, and consent, the
« 1 Cor. i. 10.

APPENDIX. 545
safe and golden rule of reformation. DiflFerent confessions were
drawn up in different countries ; and it is rather wonderful, that
amidst such variety, so much harmony prevailed as we find.*
" The Church of England has been justly called the Bulwark
of the Reformation ; and her superior strength and beauty con
sist in her wise regard to primitive antiquity, whereby she
threw off the adventitious morbid matter which burdened her
constitution, and returned to her early health and vigour. Her
first reformed admirable Liturgy, composed (as an act of Par
liament expresses it) ' by the aid of the Holy Ghost,' spoke
her sense of religion in the most solemn manner before God ;
and she coidd not be supposed to hold out a different doctrine
to men in her Articles, the same persons being the framers of
both. The first draught of those articles of religion was drawn
by the great Archbishop Cranmer, assisted by the primitively-
learned Ridley, in the year 1551, and after passing from hand
to hand among the Bishops for their correction, came before
the Royal Council in the end of the following year, was return
ed to the Archbishop for his last revisal, and passed the Convo
cation. These Articles, forty-two in number, were published
in Latin and English in the year 1553*.
" The Marian persecution drove many ofthe English divines
abroad ; and it is matter of regret, rather than of wonder, that
upon the return of peace they brought some foreign doctrine
home with them. When the Church reviewed her Articles in
the year 1562, she prudently contrived, by retrenching some,
and making alterations in the frame of others, suited to the
state of things at that time, to admit a general subscription of
persons agreeing in the mam, and forbearing one another in
love, that they might ' endeavour to keep tbe unity of the
' spirit in the bond of peace.' These Articles, agreed upon ii»
the Convocation of 1562, were first emitted in Latin only, and
there was no authentic English translation of them till the year
1571, when they were again reviewed by the Convocation,
* Vide. " Corpus et Syntagma Confessionnm," and " The Harmony of CoB-
fesions." t See them in Sparrow's Colleetion, p. 39.

546 APPENDIX.
brought to their present form, and published authoritatively
both in Latin and English.
" In the following century, when an unhappy pharisaic lea
ven spread to an alarming degree, we find, by the King's De
claration first published in 1628, and still prefixed to the Arti
cles, that the dissentients all appealed to them as favouring
their different Opinions. The royal declaration plainly tended
to repress the extravagance of the Calvinists ; and it is \ye\l .
known that Archbishop Laud, and other divines in the greatest
favour with King Charles, were far from being inclined to the
sentiments of Geneva, or the Synod of Dort, or the bare sacra-
mentarian doctrine of the Lord's supper. They, therefore,
must have understood the Articles, and subscribed them, ac
cording to the belief of their first framers, who regarded Me-
lancthon more than Calvin. At that time Bishop Montague
maintained their anticalvinistic sense in his Appeal, as Dr Hey
iin did afterwards in his Quinquarticular History : and in the
present day, araong others, Mr Daubeny, now Archdeacon of
Salisbury, has most satisfactorily cleared them frora the false
glosses of modern Calvinists, in his excellent ^york, intituled,
Vindicice Ecclesice Anglicancs *.
* ' It is well known,' says Mr Daubeny, ' that the Declaration prefixed
' to the Articles, confining all who subscribe them to the plain, literal, and
* grammatical sense, was obtained by the influence of Archbishop Laud.
' But Laud and his associates were accused by the Calvinists, of departing
' from the true sense of the Articles, to which, says Burnet, it was answered
' by them, that they took the Aiticles in their literal and grammatical sense,
¦ and to support this, that Declaration was set forth. The conclusion, then,
' appears as evident as that two and two make four, that at the time that
' this Declaration was set forth, the Calvinists themselves did not consider the
i' plain, literal, and grammatical sense of the Articles compatible with the inter-
' pretation which they annexed to them ; for, had this been the case, Bishop
• Laud, who was known to be the chief spring in the business, instead of be-
' coming the object of their accusation on this occasion, would have been en-
' titled to their highest regard, for having thus contribute^ so essentially to tho
< confirmation cf the Calvinistic cause. Instead of this, however, the Calvinistic
> divines of that period petitioned against the Declaration, stating, that a re-
' sttstiat was laid upon tkein for preaching the saving doctrines of' God's bt^

APPENDIX. 547
<' From the writings of Archbishop Cranmer, and others
his contemporaries, it has been proved, that the expressions in
the Articles, which Calvinistic divines lay hold of, and misin
terpret, do not, in their original meaning, favour their peculi
ar tenets. The ' Institution and Erudition of a Christian Man,'
with the ' Reformatio Legum, ' &c. drawn up by those first re
formers, explain and amplify here and there what is more
condensed and less perspicuous in the Articles : and happily
we too in Scotland have of late got our authentic Institution of
a Christian Man, in a little book, called, ' A Layman's Ac
count of his Faith and Practice as a Member of the Episcopal
Church in Scotland ; published with the approbation of the
Bishops of that Church.' In adopting, therefore, the Articles
of the united Church of England and Ireland, as the Articles
of our Church, we must be candidly understood as taking them
m unison with that book, and not thinking any expressions,
with regard to the Lord's Supper, in the least inimical to our
practice at the altar, in the use of the Scottish Communion Of
fice ; in which we are supported by the first reformed Liturgy
of England, not to look back to all the ancient Liturgies which
prevailed long before the corruptions of popery had a being.
Sorae of the greatest divines of the Church of England, Poinet,
Andrews, Laud, Heyiin, Mede, Taylor, Bull, John.'son, and
raany others, have asserted and maintained the doctrine which
in that office is reduced to practice. Yet these divines did all
' grace in election and predestination ; therefore, it is most obvious, that the
' plam, Uteral, and grammatical sense of the Articles ofthe Church of England,
' did not, in the opinion of the Calvinists of that period, contain the saving
' doctrines of free grace in election and predestination, according to the Cal-
' vinistic interpretation ' Very justly, then, was it observed by one of the
' Clergy present at our meeting, that ' if the disciple of Calvin holds to the
' literal' and grammatical sense of the Articles as the anchor of his soul, he
' has been clearly convicted of leaning only to a broken reed, instead of an
' anchor sure and stedfast: for prejudiceitself must yield to facts, as facts
' are stubborn things ;' and, in addition to those now produced, we are inform
ed by a contemporary writer, that Calvin's offer of assistance in conducting
the Reformation in England, was rejected by Cranmer; ' for,' says Heylio,
' fhe Archbishop knew the man.'

548 APPENDIX.
subscribe the Thirty-nine Articles, and must therefore have un
derstood them consistently with their belief of the Commemo
rative Sacrifice of the Holy Eucharist, using the present Litur
gy of the Church of England as comprehending it. Our sub
scribing them in Scotland cannot then be justly interpreted as
an inconsistency with it, since our belief is diametrically oppo
site to the corrupt sacrifice of the mass, which, with all the other
errors and corruptions of the Church of Rome, none more hearti
ly renounce and detest than we in Scotland do, with safety al
ways to those truly catholic primitive doctrines and practices,
whereof these errors and novelties are the corruption. The
term corruption implies a subject once sound, and error implies
original truth, from which it is a deviation. This distinction the
Church of England, in her blessed reformation, carefiflly ob
served. , Her practice of confirmation may be taken as an ex
ample. *' Confirmation, by the laying on of Episcopal hands, is
plamly warranted by the doctrine and practice of the Apostles,
and was religiously and universally continued and kept up by
the primitive Church. But the Church of Rome, in her degene
rate state, justled out the laying on of hands, and exalted the
chrism, which bad been before used only as a decent, mutable
ceremony, into the place of it. The Church of England, there
fore, while she retains and soleranly uses, with fervent prayer
to God, (as does her poor sister in Scotland,) the certifying
sign of, the laying on of hands, after the example of the holy
Apostles, yet, in her twenty-fifth Article of religion,' condemns
the corruption of that example by the church of Rome, which
makes the chrism the outward visible sign of a sacrament, rais
ing it to the same level with the elements in Baptism and the
Lord's Supper, thus too truly making void a divine institution'
by human tradition. Let any one compare the two oflBces of
England and of Rome, and he will clearly see what is here
briefly, and therefore perhaps unintelligibly stated. Instead of
" Confirmo te Chrismate Salutis- in Nomine Patris," &c. as it is
in the Pontificate Romanum, it was in the first reformed Prayer-
book of England, more pointedly staring the usurping ceremo-

APPENDIX. 549
ny in the face than at present, < I lay mine hands upon thee,
in the name of the Father,' &c. In the prayer, after all are
confirmed, the Pontificale reads, ' Prcesta ut eorum corda, quo
rum frontes sacro Chrismate delinivimus,' &c. In the English
Liturgy, it is, ' We make our humble supplications unto Thee,
for these tliy servants, upon whom (after the example of thy
holy Apostles) we have now laid our hands,' &c. The latter is
the following, or true imitation of the Apostles ; the former is
the corrupt following of the Apostles, which the Twenty-fifth
Article censures. The learned Mr Daubeny, in his work above
referred to, agrees with those who acknowledge, that s6me of
the Articles ' might have been better expressed,' and that
' though an admirable, yet they are an improvable form of
sound words.' Much more might we in Scotland claim our
right of expressing that true sense of them, which he, and other
worthy churchmen, have so fully evinced in words less liable
to be misunderstood. But, instead of a new form, we adopt
and embrace theirs, out of our love and desire of unity and con
cord ; that, being of one heart and mind in our one Lord Jesus
Christ, we may, as with one mouth, all speak the same thing, to
die glory of God, and our mutual edification.
" I shall, therefore, detain you no longer, my brethren, than
by quoting a caution from two writers on this subject, which
seems very suitable to the present occasion : — ' In matters of
' subscription,' says Dr Bennet, (in his Directions for studying
the Articles,) ' a man ought to take effectual care that he deals
' openly and fairly ; that he does not trifle with sacred obliga-
' tions, and play with settled impositions, and thereby give his
' conscience either such a wrench as may often make his heart
< ache, or such a loose as may debauch it in other instances.' —
< A good man,' says Dr Conybeare (in an excellent sermon on
Subscription to Articles) will be ' cautious but not subtle ; he
' will first examine with impartiality and care, and then £ub-
* scribe with sincerity and plainness."

550 APPENDIX. No. IV.
Bishop Sandford's Address to his Congregation,
on his Union with the Scottish Episcopal
Church. '
The bishops and Ciergy of the Episcopal Church of Scot
land having, at a Convention held at Laurencekirk, in the coun
ty of Kincardine, on the 24th day of October last, solemnly
subscribed the Thirty-nine Articles of the United Church of
England and Ireland ; and havihg, by this act, given the' most
decisive and satisfactory testimony of their agreeinent with that
church in doctrine and discipline, there remains no possible ob
jection to the Union of the two Episcopalian parties in this
kingdom, and to the submission of the English Clergy here to
the spiritual authority bf the Scottish Bishops.
As an Episcopal Clergyman officiating in this country, I think
it my duty, under these circumstances, to ma&e this submission,'
in order that the Congregation attending my ministry, may en
joy the advantages and the regularity arising from the superin
tendence of a Bishop, of which we have been hitherto deprived.
That' my Congregation may be satisfied of the propriety of
the motives vifhiclrhave determined my conduct in this matter,
and of the benefits which they will derive from the Union of
our establishment with the Scottish Episcopal Church, I beg
leave to submit to them the following considerations :-—
1. That the establishments of the English Chapels, in their
present situation, are extremely imperfect and anomalous. Our
Clergy, in the first place, officiate without the license of the
Bishop in whose diocese they reside ; an irregularity only to be
/justified by circurastances of the most unavoidable necessity.*
Our youth have no opportunity of being confirmed, and are there
fore admitted to the Holy Communion without this edifying and
Apostolical preparation; an omission very greatly to be lamented.
Our places of worship are not consecrated ; and, in one word,
* See the 23d Artiele, and the Offices of Ordination of Deacon and Priest

appendix. 551
our establishments possess nothing of the becoming order and
regularity which flow from the spiritual government of a Bishop.
We are Episcopalians depending on no Ecclesiastical Superior,
which is almost a contradiction in terms ; far the Prelates of
the Church of England can exercise no authority in Scotland.
These circumstances have, for a considerable period, given pain
to many serious and reflecting persons ; and indeed no faithful
member of the Church of England can look upon them as
things indifferent. Every well-informed Churchman knows how
jndispensible it is to our comfort and edification, as an Episco
palian society, that these deficiencies should be supplied, and
these irregularities corrected.
2. The submission of the English Clergy to the spiritual su
perintendence of the Scottish Bishops, is the easy and obvious
remedy of the anomalies of our situation. This remedy is now
placed within our reach, and that we shaU act wisely and pious
ly by embracing it, will be evident to anv one who considers,
S. That the Episcopal Church of Scotland is a ' true' Churcb,
' in the which the pure word of God is preached, and the Sa-
' craments are administered, according to Christ's ordinance.'*
The doctrines of this Church are the same with those of the
united Church of England and Ireland ; the Bishops and Cler
gy of the Episcopal Church of Scotland subscribing the same
Articles of Religion. The Scottish Bishops are true Bishops
ofthe Church of Christ, and their Apostolical Successionis the
same with that of the Bishops of the Church of England ; for
the present governors of the Scottish Episcopal Church derive
their authority in a direct succession from those Scottish Bish
ops who were consecrated by the Prelates of the Church of
England at Westminster, 15th December 1661.
4. That the political perplexities which, in former times, oc
casioned the introduction of the English Clergy into this coun
try, and the separation of our Chapels from the communion of
the Episcopal Church of Scotland, have long been at an end,
and the objections to our Union, which might have been urged
on that score, entirely taken away.
* See 25A Article of Religion.

552 APPENDIX.
5. That the continuance of our separation is therefore wholly
causeless, considered in every point of view. But causeless se
paration from a pure Church, is the sin of schism ; an offence,
of which it is impossible that any pious and enlightened Chris
tian can think lightly. " It is contrary to Christian unity, to
separate ourselves from a church which follows the doctrines
and ordinances of Christ and his Apostles, and answers every
good purpose of Christian worship and Christian fellowship." *
6. That while our establishments, by an union with the Epis
copal Church of this country, acquire the consistency and re
gularity of which they have long so manifestly stood in need,
we retain the same Liturgy of the Church of England which
we have been accustomed to use, and the temporal regulations
oi our Chapels remain as they were. By this junction of our
communion with' the venerable Church which w^as once the
established Church ofthe land, eyery thing will be amended in
our situation which was irregular, and nothing altered bnt what
was wrong.
7- Lastly, Let it be considered, that by the submission of our
Clergy to the Scottish Bishops, we strengthen, instead of wea
ken our connexion with the Church of England ; for the
Church of England, as a pure branch of the Universal Church
of Christ, is in communion wilh the Episcopal Church of Scot
land, also a pure branch of the Universal Church ;+ and every
English Clergyraan, who would be faithful to the principles
which he professed at his ordination, must therefore necessari
ly acknowledge the authority of the Scottish Bishops while he
resides within the jurisdiction of their communion.
I have studied this important siibject for a considerable
• See " A Short Catechism" by the Right Rev. Thomas Bni^ess, liord Bi
shop of St David's.
t By calling the Church of Christ universal, we ' mean,' (says the leamed
Bishop of St David's, in the Catechism above cited,) " that the Church is not
limited to any particular nation or people, but comprehends all Christian Con
gregations in which the word of God is preached, and the sacraments are du
ly administered by persons rightly ordained : and that these congregations,
however distant or numerous, are one by community of faith and ordinances."

APPENDIX. 553
length of time with the utmost attention. I shall be happy to
converse with any of my Congregation,, who may wish to know,
in greater detail, the reasons upon which 1 have formed my
judgment on a question no less interesting to them than to my
self. But, it is my serious and settled conviction, that it is on
ly by my submission to the Primus of the Episcopal College,
the Bishop of Aberdeen, (who, during the present vacancy of
the diocese of Edinburgh, is my Diocesan,) that I can satisfy
my own conscience ; that I can act agreeably to the awful re
sponsibility which I bear as a minister of the gospel of our
blessed Lord and Saviour ; or discharge my duty towards those
for whose spiritual welfare I am bound, by the strongest obli
gations, to be solicitous.
Daniel Sandford.
Edinburgh, J '
Nov. 1.180^. $
No. V.
Articles of Union proposed by the Right
Rev. the Bishops of the Scottish Episcopal
Church, to those Clergymen who officiate in
Scotland, by virtue of Ordination from an
English or an Irish Bishop.
As an union of all those who profess to be of the Episcopal
persuasion in Scotland, appears to be a measure extremely de
sirable, and calculated to promote the interests of true religion,
the Right Reverend the Bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church
do invite and exhort all those Clergymen in Scotlaud, who have
received ordination from English or Irish Bishops, and the people
attending their ministrations, to become pastors and members of
that pure and primitive part of the Christian Church, of which
the Bishops in Scotland are the regular governors : With a view
to the attainment of which desirable end, the said Bishops pro
pose the following Articles of Union, as the conditions on which

554 APPENDIX.
they are ready to receive the above-mentioned Clergy into a
holy and Christian fellowship, and to acknowledge them as Pas
tors, and the people who shall be committed to their charge^
and duly and regularly adhere to their ministrations as members
of the Scottish Episcopal Church.
I. Every such Clergyraan shall exhibit to the Bishop of the
diocese or district in which he is settled, or, in case of a vacan
cy, to the Primus of the Episcopal College, his Letters of Or
ders, or a duly attested copy thereof, that so their authenticity
and validity being ascertained, they may be entered in the dio
cesan hook or register kept for that purpose.
II. Every such Clergyman shall declare his hearty and un
feigned assent to the whole doctrine of the gospel, as revealed
and set forth in the Holy Scriptures : And shall farther acknow
ledge, that the Scottish Ej.dscopal Church, of which tbe Bi
shops in Scotland are the ^gular governors, is a pure and or
thodox par: of the Universal Christian Church.
HI. Every such Clergyman shall be at liberty to use in his
own Congregation the Liturgy of the Church of England, as
well in the administration of the sacrament of the Lord's SUp.*
per as in all the other offices of the Church.
IV. Every such Clergyman, when collated to any pastoral
charge,, shall promise, with God's assistance, faithfully and con
scientiously to perform the duties thereof, promoting and main
taining, according to his power, peace, quietness, and Chris
tian charity, and studying, in a particular manner, to advance,
by his example and doctrine, the spiritual welfare and comfort
of that portion of the flock of Christ among which he is called
to exercise his ministry.
V. Every such Clergyman shall own and acknowledge, as his
spiritual governor, under Christ, the Bishop of the diocese or
district in which he is settled, and shall pay and perform to the
said Bishop all such canonical obedience as is usually paid by
the Clergy of the Scottish Episcopal Church, or by the Clergy
of the united Church of England and Ireland to their respec
tive diocesans, saving and excepting only such obedience as
those Clergymen who do or may hold spiritual preferment ia

APPENDIX. 555
England or Ireland, owe to the Bishops in whose dioceses in
those parts of the united kingdom they do or may hold such
preferment. VI. Every such Clergyman, who shall approve and accept
of the foregoing articles as terms of agreement and union with
the Scottish Episcopal Church, shall testify his approbatiou and
acceptance of the same in manner following, viz. : —
" At . the  day of  I  ordained Dea
con by the Lord Bishop of  and Priest by the Lord
Bishop of  do hereby testify and declare my entire
approbation and acceptance of the foregoing articles as terms
of union with the Scottish Episcopal Church, and oblige my
self to comply with and fulfil the same with all sincerity and
diligence. In testimony whereof, I have written and subscrib
ed this my acceptance and obligation, to be delivered into
the hands ofthe Right Rev,  Bishop of  — as my
diocesan and ecclesiastical superior, before these witnesses,
the Rev  and the Rev  both Clergymen of the
jsaid diocese, specially called for thgt purpose,"

No. VI.
Memoir respecting the Present State of the Epis
copal Church in Scotland; respectfully sub
mitted to the consideration of the Nobility and
Gentry of that Communion.
Previous to the year 1688, Episcopacy was the established
form of Church Government in Scotland as well as in England ;
but the same Convention of Estates which transferred the Crown
to William and Mary, abolished Episcopacy, and substituted
Presbytery as the established form bf Church government in
Scotland ; and this has reraained to the present day. At that
time the Episcopal Church in Scotland consisted of fourteen

356 APPENDIX.
Bishops, including the two Archbishops, and about nine hun
dred Clergy. Both descriptions of Clergy were ordered, by act
of Parliament, either to conform to the new Government, or to
quit their livings. All the Bishops, and by far the greater num
ber of the Inferior Clergy, refusing to take the oaths to the new
Government, were compelled to relinquish their livings, in
which Presbyterian Ministers were in general placed.
Although the Episcopal Clergy were thus expelled from their
parochial cures, they almost universally continued to ofiiciate
privately to such as were disposed to attend their ministrations,
notwithstanding severe penal laws were made to prevent them :
And the Bishops, although their order was abolished as a con
stituent part of the state, still retaining that spiritual authority
in the Church which is inherent in the nature of their office,
took care, as vacancies happened, to preserve their succession,
by new and regular Consecrations. They did not, indeed, at
tempt to keep up the same number as before the Revolution, nor
continue the division ofthe country into the same Dioceses, as
there was no occasion for any such accuracy, by reason of the
diminution which their Clergy and their Congregations had
suffered, owing to the discouragements they laboured under.
They have also dropped the distinction of Arch- Bishops, now
only making use of the title of Primus, who being elected by
the members of the Episcopal College, is invested thereby with
the authority of caUing and presiding in such meetings as may
be necessary for regulating the affairs of their spiritual com
munity. The Episcopal Church in Scotland has thus continued to
exist from that time till the present, notwithstanding the penal
statutes, to the operation of which her Clergy as well as Laity
were subjected. Those statutes, however, which pressed so
severely upon thera, were repealed in the year 1792 by the
mildness of his present Majesty's Government. From the Re
volution downwards, the Bishops and Clergy of the Episcopal
Church have continued to struggle, meekly and in silence, un
der all the pressure of poverty, subsisting solely on the scanty
and precarious income arising from their respective Congrega-

APPENDIX. 557
tions : and surely nothing but a sense of duty could have made
them submit to so hard and uncomfortable a lot. While the
penal statutes existed in all their rigour, men of seriously dis
posed minds of the Episcopal persuasion, who were unwilling to
subject themselves to the consequences of opposing the law,
which prohibited their attendance on the meeting houses of the
nonjuring Clergy, had recourse, for providing against this, to
a device of so irregular and anomalous a nature as could only
be justified by the singularity and hardship of the case. They
invited Clergymen, ordained by English or Irish Bishops, to
open Congregations for carrying on the worship of God in
Edinburgh, and several other places in Scotland, according to
the usage of the Cburch of England. Those Congregations,
however, were subject to several material disadvantages. The
Clergymen, to be sure, had received Episcopal ordination, and
therefore could regularly administer the sacraments of the
Church ; but their Congregations were deprived of the saluta
ry rite of Confirmation, and the Clergymen themselves were
under no sort of Episcopal subjection or authority whatever.
When the penal laws were repealed, the Scottish Bishops
addressed a pastoral letter to the English and Irish ordained
Clergy, officiating in Scotland, by which they invited them,
and offered to receive themand their Congregations into the
Scottish Episcopal Comraunion. Those Clergymen replied,
among other things, that although the Episcopal Church in
Scotland had all along declared, that their doctrine was the
very same ^ith that of the Church of England, yet as they had
no Confessional, they had no proof to exhibit that such was
the case.
In order to remove this difiSculty, the Scottish Bishops held
a Convocation of their Church about two years ago, (in October
1804,) at which it was resolved unanimously to adopt and sub
scribe the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, as
their Confessional, and to use them as such in all time coming ;
the Bishops entering it in their diocesan register as an esta
blished rule not to confer orders on any one who shall not sub
scribe those Articles in the same manner: Thus giving the

56S Appendix.
strongest proof in their power of their entire agreement in doc
trine with the Church of England.
As soon as this measure was made known to the English-
ordained Clergy officiating in Scotland, several of the most
respectable of their number, with their Congregations both in
Edinburgh and other parts of Scotland, most readily acceded
to the Union proposed, by putting themselves under the spi
ritual authority of the Scottish Bishops, saving that spiritual
obedience which those English-ordained Clergy, who hold Ec
clesiastical preferments in England, owe to their diocesans
within whose dioceses the preferment may lie. The happy ef
fects of this measure have been, that those Congregations, in
stead of standing on the irregular footing above described, now
feel themselves in the comfortable situation of composing a
part of a regular Episcopal Church, pure and perfect in the
completest sense of the words. Another singular advantage
arising from the measure has been, that the pious and worthy
Prelate who has presided for many years over the Diocese of
Edinburgh, being now upwards of fourscore years of age, and
having requested permission to resign his Episcopal functions,
one of the English ordained Clergy newly united with the
Scottish Church, a person of most exemplary character for
piety and learning, has been elected and consecrated to the
spiritual office of a Bishop, with the charge of the Diocese of
Edinburgh. Since his promotion to that situation we have
had the happiness of witnessing his holding a Confirmation ;
which was attended by upwards of an hundred young persons,
several of them of families of the first distinction in this coun
try, who, as well as such of their parents as were present on
the occasion, seemed to enter thoroughly into the merit and
value ofthe rite thus administered.
In this comfortable state, at which the Congregations of the
Episcopal Church in Scotland have so lately arrived, it is at
the same time matter of great grief to the Laity, to see their
Bishops and Pastors unable to support tljat decent rank in so
ciety to which, by their piety and learning, as well as modest
inoffensive behaviour, they are so justly entitled, and which is

APPENDIX, £59
necessary to give weight to their characters, and effect to their
public ministrations. The Bishop in Edinburgh, particularly,
who is placed in a somewhat more conspicuous point of view>
and by consequence subjected to some more expence than his
brethren, must, unavoidably, have many difficulties of that na
ture to struggle with. The number ofthe Bishops is six, and that
of the inferior Clergy over the whole of Scotland amounts on
ly to about fifty, many of whom, and one at least of the Bi
shops, preside over Congregations, so very limited in point of
number, and in such narrow circumstances, that the emolu
ments arising from them scarcely exceed the wages of a day-
labourer. To see gentlemen, who have had a liberal, and, in al
most every case, an university education, with such pitiful ap
pointments, must be matter of sincere regret to every well-dis
posed and thinking Christian. To make some improveraent,
therefore, on their situations, seems to be an object highly
deserving of attention. It cannot be denied that it is a duty
incumbent upon the Laity to provide for the decent support of
their Clergy. The laws of the land have wisely enforced this
on the great body of the community in favour of the Esta
blished Presbyterian Church ; and the mild spirit of religious
toleration, which forms so amiable and conspicuous a part of
our happy civil constitution, leaves all Sects of Christians at
full liberty to contribute voluntarily to the maintenance of their
Clergy. It must also be recorded to their credit, that no com
plaint of the narrowness of their situations has ever escaped the
Episcopal Clergy in Scotland ; and they have gone on in the
discharge of their duty contentedly, struggling with all the
hardships above alluded to. It has, therefore, occurred to some
persons of that persuasion in Edinburgh, that it were desirable
to form a fund for making a moderate addition to the incomes
of the Bishops and most necessitous of the inferior Clergy.
The plan is entirely ofa private nature. It includes, no appli
cation to Government, nor any idea of the slightest connection
between the Episcopal Church in Scotland and the State. It
can, therefore, excite no jealousy in the minds of any set of
men, nor give any cause of offence to others, how different so-
«ver their religious sentiments may be : And with regard to the
N N

560 appendix;
Established Presbyterian Church, its most conspicuous mem«
bers in particular, are well known to be men possessing too li
beral sentiments, to entertain any jealousy of so very small a
number of obscure individuals, without power and without in
fluence, as compose the whole body of Episcopal Clergy now
existing in Scotland. All that is proposed, is, to make personal
applications to such friends of Episcopacy as may be supposed
willing to contribute. The money thus subscribed to be vest
ed in trustees chosen by the contributors, and by them laid out
in Government securities, or on mortgages on'landed estates.
The interest to be under the management of the trustees, and
lo be by them divided into such annual stipends as tbe extent
of the fund and the exigencies of tbe cases sball require.
It havJng been suggested, that it would be more convenient
to many to contribute a small sum annually to the promotion
of this charitable work, inst«ad of one large donation, the ma
nagers beg leave to state that such annual contributions will be
most gratefully accepted.
Any sums contributed, however moderate, will be thankfully
received by the Managers of the Fund, and may be paid to Sir
William Forbes, J. Hunter and Co. bankers in Edinburgh ;
Messrs Hoare, bankers, Fleet Street ; Messrs J. C . Beresford
and Company, bankers, Dublin ; or to Colin Mackenzie, Esq.
one of the principal clerks of Session, at Edinburgh, who has
been chosen Secretary and Treasurer of the Fund.
No. VII.
The Code of Canons of the Episcopal Church
in Scotland, drawn up, and enacted, by an
Ecclesiastical Synod holden for that purpose,
at Aberdeen, on the 19th and 20th days of
June, in the year 1811.
It had been determined upon to print the Canons in this
place ; but the Volume having swelled beyond the limits origi-.
nally intended, and the Canons having been printed separately.
sorae years ago, and sold by Messrs Brown and Co. Aber
deen,— it has been deemed inexpedient to reprint them here.

APPENDIX. SGI

No. VIII.

Address, by the Rev. John Skinner of Linshart,
to his Brethren of the Diocese of Aberdeen.

Vos mihi conjuncti Venerando nomine Fratres,
Me queis devinctuni rautuus urit amor,
(Quam vobis mitto, solito, vos, more, Salutem
Accipite, et Precibus Corda adhibete meis !
Me nunc rure tenet seclusum, infirma Senectus,
Nee mihi dat vestrutiji ducere, ut ante, chorum ;
Hsec summum mihi fert, meritumque absentia Luctura,
Quantus sit luctus, dicere charta nequit.
At mea vobiscum est, Mentis Concordia sanae,
Spiritus et supplet, quod Caro pigra negat.
Non audet dubias mea tangere Musa querelas,
Quaerere nee quanta, aut cur data, causa cupit.
Hanc tamen antique Suadelam ignoscite Fratri,
Nee pia maturi spernite vota Senis.
Per Superos oro, per amandse Viscera Matris,
Per sanctae laudem, et vincula chara Fidei,
Per quicquid valeant pereuntis gaudia Vitae,
Per quicquid Pretii Vita perennis habet,
Nulla sit in Vestro Rixa aut discordia coetu ;
Nulla sacrum rumpat Lis animosa Jugum !
Redditur externura, post pondera dura, Levamen :
0 1 maneant intus Pax et araoena Quies !
Concedant Fratres quantum concedere fas est,
Quod non sit licitum, cedere nemo roget ;
Pace nihil raelius sine Labe aut Crimine culta,
Pacis amatores spondet amare Deus !
Multa Ego, dum juvenis, per nubila tempora passuS,
N N 2

562 APPENDIX.
Ante diu vobis, quam datus ordo sacer ;
Nunc fractus senio, priscisque laboribus impar, '
Extremes vellem Laetus habere Dies.
Hoc precor, hoc saltem, vos, O ! concedite Fratres,
Adsit jam fracto, Pax rediviva, Seni ,
Pacis et ipse Deus, Pacem qui datque, jubetque,
Det vobis Pacis Gaudia plena suae !
Vobis in Christo devotissimus,
N^SrSalm] JOA. SKINNER.
Anno .^tatis Septuagesimo Secundo,
Ministerii sacri Quinquagesimo Primo.

Ad Presbyteros Diceceseosl
Abredonensis in Synodo>-
Congregatos, Aberdoniae.J

INDEX
TO THE LETTERS.

Letter page.
I. Bishop Skinner to Dr Chandler, - - - 42
II. Dr Chandler to Bishop Skinner, - . . 44,
III. Bishop Skinner to the Rev. Jonathan Boucher, 48
IV. Rev. Jonathan Boucher to Bishop Skinner, - 51
V. Bishop Skinner to Mr Bouchef, - - - - 55
— From a dignified English Clergyman to Bishop
Kilgour, . . -  60
VI. Bishop Seabury to Bishop Skinner, - - - 65
VII. Bishop Skinner to Bishop Seabury, - - 67
VIII, The Protestant Bishops in Scotland to Lord
Sydney,  79
IX. Lord Sydney to Bishop Abernethy Druraraond, 83
X. Lord Henderland to Lord Viscount Stormont, 92
XI. The Scottish Bishops in London to the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, - - - . - 95
XII. Do. to Lord Chancellor Thurlow, - - - 109
XIII. From the same to the same, - - - - 1 13
XIV. The Right Honourable Henry Dundas to the
Scottish Bishops, - -- - - -11®
XV. The Bishop of Bangor to the Scottish Bishops, 120
XVI. The Scottish Bishops to his Grace the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, . - - 121
XVII. The Dean pf Canterbiiry, Dr Horne, to Bishop
Skinner, - - - - - - -- 143
XVIII. Lord Gardenston to Lord Thurlow, - - 147
XIX. Dr Gaskin to Bishop Skinner, ... 157
XX. Bishop Skinner to Dr Gaskin, - - - 161
XXI. Dr Gaskin to Bishop Skinner, - - - 167
XXII. From the same to the same, - - - - 169

56A

index.

Letter XXIII. XXIV. XXV.
XX VL
XXVII.
XXVIII. XXIX. XXX.
XXXI.
XXXII.
XXXIII. xxxrv. xxxv.
XXXVL
XXXVII.
XXXVIII. XXXIX. XL.
XLI.
XLII.
XLIII. XLIV. XLV.
XLVI.
XLVIL
xLvrii. XLIX. L.
LI.
LII.
LIII. LIV. LV.

PAGE.
Bishop Skinner to Dr Gaskin, ''- . . 172
The Bishop of Carlisle to Bishop Abernethy

Drummond, - - - - - - - 175
Dr Gaskin to Bishop Skinner, - - - 177
The same to the same, - - - . 231
Bishop Horsley to the Scottish RepreselitB-
tives, ------ 236
The Rev. Charles Cordiner to Bishop Skinner, 242
Bishop Skinner to Sir William Forbes, Bart. 268
The Rev. C. Daubeny to Bishop Skinner, 292
The Scottish Episcopalians in Cruden to the
Earl of Errol,  294
The Bishop of Carlisle to Bishop Skinner, 313
The Rev. C. Daubeny to Bishop Skinner, 315
The Rev. Dr Laing to Bishop Skinner, - 324
Dr N. Spens to Bishop "Skinner, - 329
The Rev. Dr Sandford to Bishop Skinner, 335
Bishop Skinner to Dr Sandford, - - 337
Sir William Forbes to Bishop Skinner, - 340
The Bishop of Chichester to Bishop Skinner, 355
The Honourable the Bishop of Kildare to
Bishop Skinner, _ . . . 357
Dr Sandford to Bishop Skinner, - - 358
Rev. Edward Hodgson to Bishop Skinner, 361
Bishop Skinner to Sir William Forbes, - 368
Bishop Skinner to the Rev. Robert Morehead, 373
Bishop Horsley to Bishop Skinner, - 374
Bishop Horsley to Bishop Skinner, - 379
Bishop Skinner to Bishop Horsley, - 3f)4
Sir William Scott to Sir William Forbes, 38^
Bishop Horsley to Bishop Skinner, - 390
Sir William Forbes to Bishop Skinner, - 394
Rev. A. Alison to Bishop Skinner, - 395
Bishop Skinner to Rev. Archibald Alison, 397
Sir William Forbes to Bishop Skinner, - 402
Bishop Skinner to Archbishop of Canterbury, 419
Bishop Horsley to Bishop Skinner, - 422

index.

565

Lettek page.
LVI. Bishop Porteous to Bishop Skinner, « 423
LVII. Bishop Madan to Bishop- Skinner, - ib.
LVIIL Sir William Forbes to Bisliop Skinner, - 426
LIX. Bishop Skinner to Sir William Forbes, - 437
LX. Bishop Skinner to Bishop Sandford, - 442
LXL William Stevens, Esq. to Bishop Skinner, 447
LXII. Bishop Skinner to a Friend, - - 453
LXIII. Bishop Skinner to * * * - - - 457
LXIV. Bishop Skinner to tlie Rev. Dr Gleig, - 472
LXV. From the same to the same, . - . 473
LXVI. Dr Gleig to Bishop Skinner, - - 476
LXVn. Bishop Skinner to Bishop Gleig, - - 486
:|;/XVIII. Bishop Gleig to Bishop Skinner, - - 488
LXIX. Rev. John Skinner to Bishop Skinner, - 494
LXX. Bishop Skinner in answer, - - 502
LXXI. Bishop Skinner to Bishop Sandford, - 505
LXXn. Circular to the Dean of Aberdeen, - 508
LXXIII. Do. to the Arehbishops and Bishops, &c. 517

INDEX
TO THE SEVERAL YEARS.

PA&E.
1788 — Extends from page 73 to page 85.
Meeting of Bishops at Aberdeen, - - . 74,
Death of the Count of Albany, - - - . 75
Nonconformity of Mr 5rot««, - - . _ 77
Order for nominal prayers for the King and Royal Fa
mily, ...... 78
Communication of that measure to Government, - 79
Also to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, - 81

566 INDEX. PAGE.
1788 — Party formed in Edinburgh complaining of the Bi
shops' conduct, -------82
His Majesty's great satisfaction with that conduct, - 84
His alarming indisposition prevents any direct applica
tion to Parliament, -.-.-. 85
1789 — From page 85 to page 144..
Address to his Majesty on his recovery, - - 85
Bishop Skinner accompanies it with a letter to Mr Dundas, 87
Bill of relief prepared by Bishop Stoner, - - 88
Mr Dempster recommends that some of the Bishops
should proceed to London, - - - . - 89
Bishop of Norwich instigated to thwart the repeal of the
Penal Laws, - - - - - 90
The draught of the Bill shewn to Dr Beattie for Bishop
Porteou^ information, - - - ib.
Bishops Skinner, Aber. Drummond, and Strachan, set off
for London, ----- 91
They are recommended hy Lord Henderland to Lord
Stormont, - - ... 92
Bishop Skinners Journal of Proceedings commences, 93
Established Church in Scotland not hostile to the repeal, 94
The Bishops lay their situation, &c. before the Arch
bishop of Canterbury, - - - - 95
T" hey are honoured with a message from his Grace, 98
They wait on Bishop Horsley, - - - 99
They are waited on by Scottish Peers, - - - 99
They wait on Dr Bagot, Bishop of Norwich, - ib.
The Lord Advocate recommends to them the drawing
up a historical case, &c. . - , IQO
The Case as drawn up, . _ - . lOl
The Bill moved in Parliament by Mr Dundas, seconded
by Mr Dempster, . . . _ 109
The Bill raoved to be printed on account of complaints
made by Lord Thurlow, - - - ib.
His Lordship written ,to, - - - ib.
The Bill transmitted to the Archbishop of Canterbury, 111

INDEX. 567
PAGE.
1789  His Grace visits the Bishops, - - 111
The Bill read a third time in the Commons and passed,
and read a first tirae in the Lords, - - - 112
The Chancellor continues adverse to the measure, ib.
He is addressed by the Bishops, - - 113
Mr Dundas confesses the Chancellor's objections are
unintelligible to him, - - ¦• - 116
Lord Kinnaird moves the second reading of the Bill —
The Chancellor's adjournment, - - 117
The case represented to the Bishop of Bangor, - 117
He declines a conference, ... 120
The Bishops thank the Archbishop for his attentions, 121
They return from London, - - - 122
An attempt made by a printed address to denounce
their conduct, ... - - ib.
The address recorded, - - - 123
Convention summoned' at Laurencekirk, - 126
Bishop Skinner's address to the Convention, - - ib.
They elect a preses and clerk, - - - 128
The business ofthe Convention opened from the chair, 129
Bisliop Skinner refutes the charges in the printed address, 131
The Convention thank the Bishops for their zeal, alac
rity, and diligence, when in London, - - 138
They are addressed by Bishop Macfarlane to that pur
pose, - ---.-. 139
The Convention nominates a Committee for carrying on
the measure of repeal, ... 14Q
The Convention makes choice of Trustees for the chari
table Funds of the Church, ... 141
It is dissolved, ----- ib.
The London Committee agreed to carry on a corres
pondence with the Committee in Scotland, - 142
Bishop Skinner is addressed by the venerable Dean of
Canterbury, .... . . 14,3
J790 — From page 144 to page 185.
The Committee transmit letters to the Lord Chancellor
»nd to the Attorney and Solictor-General, . 144

368 INDEX. PAGE.
1790  The manner in which they are received, - 145
Lord Gardenston interests himself with the ChanceUor, 147
C&yise of failure last year explained by the Attorney-
General, , - - - - - 148
He is convinced that an oath of allegiance is sufficient 149
Bishop SItinner calls a meeting of the Scottish Commit
tee at Perth, ... - ib.
The Case of the Episcopalians in Scotland reprinted at
the desire ofthe Bishop of Bangor, - - 150
The Committee, being met at Perth, is unanimous for
an immediate renewal of the measure of repeal of the
penal statutes, .... 151
The Committee addresses the Universities of Oxford
and Cambridge, - - - - 152
The Preses and Secretary are empowered to correspond
with the London Committee, - - 153
The Archbishop is satisfied with the steps taken, - ib.
He sees no necessity for a delegation to London, - ib.
Sir WiUiam Dolben tenders his aid, - - 154
A Clause proposed in the Bill restricting Scottish or
ders to Scotland, .... x^^
Communicated by Bishop Skinner to the Committee,
who remonstrate, .... ib.
Dr Gaskin communicates Bishop Horsley's opinion on
the subject, - - - - - 157
Bishop Horsley suggests an addition to the clause, 160
Bishop Skinner's sentiments of it to Dr Gaskin, - 161
Bishop Horsley is anxious for instances of persons pur
posely ordained in England to officiate in Scotland, 170
The Chancellor's objections stated, - - 171
Bishop Skinner gives instances of persons cnrdained in
England, for no other purpose but officiating in Scotland 172
He obviates Lord Thurlou's objections by an express
disavowal of them - - - - 175
The Bishop of Carlisle gives Principal Campbell's senti
ments of the repeal, &c. •¦ - - 176

INDEX.

569

PAGE.
1790.  For which Bishop Skinner thanks the Principal, 176
The repealing Bill postponed for another session, - 177
The Diocesan Synod of Aberdeen approves of the con
duct of the Comraittee, - - - 182
Mr Park visits Scotland, - - - - 183
Principal Robertson empowers him to use his name as
friendly to repeal, . . - - 184
1791  From page 185 to page 186, although, by mistake
ofthe printer, the running title 1791, is carried on to
page 216.
The English Bishops addressed, and their interest soli
cited, - - . . - 185
Letters from Principals Robertson and CampbeU to the
Bishop of Carlisle, in favour of the Bill, - - ib.
Conference obtained with the Lord Chancellor, - 186
Bill again too late for this session, - - - 186
1792  From page 187 to page 261.
Addresses from the counties and royal boroughs in
Scotland in favour of a repeal - - 187
One' of the Scottish Committee required in London, —
Bishop Skinner the delegate commissioned - 188
The Earl of Kellie presents the petitions from Scotland,
and moves the Bill, .... 189 '
The Chancellor objects, unless registration of orders is
enforced, - - - - - 190
His other objections about the Pretender, &c. all refuted, 191
Dr Horsley ready to combat every argument against
the Bill,  193
The Earls of Guilford and Kinnoul, with Lord Stormont,
see no necessity for registering orders, - 194
The second reading moved for the second of May, - ib.
The names of Bishops present on the occasipn, - ib.
The speech ofthe mover of the Bill, the Earl of Elgin, 195
The speech of Lord Thurlow, - - - ib.
The speech of Lord iS^onBOBf, - - - 199
The speech of Bishop Horsley, - - _ 203
The speech of the Earl of iSwMoa?, - - 213
Subscription to the Thirty-nine Articles required - 214
The Clergy restricted from enjoying English benefices 216

570 INDEX. page;
1792.  Earl of Radnor adverse to the clause - 218
An addition proposed to the restricting clause, - ib.
The Bill repoirted, and ordered to be printed, with amend
ments, - . - - - - 219
Found by the Commons to be a money bill, and thrown
out, ..... 219
Speech of Mr Fox on the occasion, - - ib.
Replied to by Mr Dundas, ... ib.
A new bill brought in, and read a first and second tirae, ib.
The bill passed with the royal assent, - ib.
Heads of the Bill recorded . . - ?21
Pieces of plate, &c. presented to the London Committee, 230
Letter from Dr Gaskin in reply, - - 231
Bishop Skinner's return to Aberdeen, and the consequent
application to him for a Convention of the Church, 233
Convention summoned to meet at Laurencekirk, - ib.
Letters of thanks from the Committee to the friends of
the Bill of Repeal, - - - - 234
The replies recorded, ... 235
Introduction of English ordained Clergy into Scotland
accounted for, . . _ ggs
Application to the Lord Bishop of Edinburgh for such
a Clergyraan in the town of Forfar, - 239
Union in Banff between the English and Scottish Cha
pels consuramated, ... 242
Convention meets at Laurencekirk, August 22, - 245
Bishop Skinner addresses that bodj' on the subject of the
Bill of Repeal, and its enactments, . 246 — 254
The Convention unanimously approves of the conduct of
the Committee, and of its delegate, - 255
Account of contributions to defray the expence of the
Bill, ..... 256
The College of Bishops raeet at Stonehaven for the con
secration of Bishop fFa!!.sora, &c. - - 257
Mr Dundas, (Lord Melville,) expresses his conviction of
the loyalty, &c. of the Bishops and Clergy of the
Scottish Episcopal Church, - . 259

INDEX. 571
PAGE.
1792— The Diocesan Synod of Aberdeen give their public
assent to the truth of the 39 Articles of the Church
of England, - - - - 259
They thank the Society for promoting Christian Know
ledge, in London, for their donation of Prayer Books, 261
1793— From p. 261, to 273.
War being declared by France against Britain, — the Bi
shops and Clergy publish declarations of loyalty, &c. 262
That of the Diocese of Aberdeen recorded, - 263
Ecclesiastical unity and concord most interesting to the
Primus and the Scottish Episcopate, - - 265
Mr Boucher, Vicar of Epsom, proposed as Bishop of
Edinburgh, - _ . . . 266
The proposal abandoned on account of unfounded alarm, 268
The Friendly Society Act passed, and the Scottish Epis
copal Friendly Society founded, - - 271
Its flourishing condition, ... 272
1794.— From p. 273 to p. 282.
Mode of establishing its funds, and Brief by the Bishops, 273
1795. — His Majesty addressed in consequence of insults of
fered him, 29th October 1795, - - - 282
1796. — A Co-adjutor proposed in the diocese of Ross and
Moray, ..... 283
Bishop Skinner, as Prinius, adverse to the measure, ib.
Bishop Jolly consecrated at Dundee, 24th June, - 284
The right hand of fellowship speedily extended to him
by Bishop Skinner, ... 284
1800 — An address of congratulation to his Majesty on his
escape from the shot of Hadfield's pistol, . 285
1801.— From p. 285 to 297.
Layman's ' Account of his Faith and Practice,' edited
by Bishop Skinner, - • - - ib.
Nature and effects of that admirable little work, - 286
Character of it, as drawn by men of approved sound
irrinciples, .... 289—294
Union in the country parish of Cruden, Aberdeenshire, 294
Application to the Earl of Errol to this effect, - 295

572 INDEX. PAGE.
1801 — His Lordship's conduct, decidedly in favour of the
measure, ..... 297
1802— From p. 297 to 300.
Definitive treaty of peace being ratified, the Scottish Bi
shops address the Throne, - - ib.
In a note — the address of the Episcopal Clergy of the
Diocese of Aberdeen to Queen Anney on the peace of'
Utrecht, - - - - - 298
1803  From p. 300 to 325.
Renewal of the war, and consequent conduct of the
Scottish Episcopalians, - - 301 — 312
The liberal conduct of the Principals, — Robertson of
Edinburgh, and Campbell of Aberdeen, on occasion of
the repeal of the Penal Statutes, - - 313
Principal Campbell's ' Lectures on Ecclesiastical His- ¦
tory' — illiberal in the extreme, - - - 314
Mr Daubeny's strictures on these Lectures, - 315
Bishop Skinner's work, — ' Primitive Truth and Order,'
in answer to the Lectures, - - - 317
Character given of that work, - - 320— •322
Union in the-towns of Peterhead and Stonehaven effect-ed 323
Of which the Bishop of Durham approves, - ib.
Dr Laing of Peterhead returns Bishop Skinner thanks
for his congratulations, - * - - - 324
1S04  Frora 326 to 363.
Death of Mr Boucher, - - - 326
His loyalty in America congenial with that of Scottish
Episcopalians, ..-.,. 327
Measure of union in Edinburgh revived, - - 329
Dr N. Spens communicates the sentiments of an amiable
young Layman on the subject, - - - 330
Passage of Bishop Skinner's ' Primitive Truth and Order,'
witb these sentiments, - ,- - - - 332
A Convocation of the whole Clerical Members of the Scot
tish Episcopal Church determined on, as the only
mode of carrying the Layman's suggestions into effect, 333
Circular letter for assembling the said convocation, SSt

KSDEX.

57s

PAGE.
1804 — Dr Sandford's resolution in consequence, . 335
Bishop Skinner's view ofthe 39 Articles comn unicated to
Dr Sandford, - - - . . . ggg
Interesting communication from Sir William Forbes on
the subject,  34,0
Account ofthe convocation^and the mode of conducting
the subscription of the 39 Articles, . 344  3,50
The measure communicated to the Archbishops and Bi
shops of England,  3S0
And to the Honourable Dr Lindsay, Bishop of Kildare
in Ireland, with the whole Irish Bench, - - 351
Returns to this comraunication, . - 352 — 358
Dr Sandford's union in consequence, . ., . 359
The Bishop of London, Dr Porteous' high approbation
of this union, - - .... ggi
1805  -From 363 to 399.
The Trustees and Vestry-men ofthe Cowgate, Chapel 'ul
Edinburgh unite themselves, .... 363
Sir William Forbes corresponds with Sir William Scott
on the subject, .... . - 364
The Deed of the Trustees, &-c. of the Cowgate Chapel
recorded, ....... 366
Bishop Skinner acknowledges receipt, &c. &c. - 368
Mr Morehead's settlement in Edinburgh, and consequent
union, ..... 57I
Bishop Skinner addresses that gentleman, - S7S
Bishop Horsley's great satisfaction on the Edinburgh
union ----- 3/4
Nature of the lawsuit regarding the Banff Chapel, as
communicated to Bishop Horsley, - - 376
Bishop Horsley's exertions towards defraying the ex-
pence of that suit, ... - 379
Amount of contributions by the English Bench, - 381
The cordial thanks of the parties concerned transmitted
to Bishop Horsley, ... 383
Bishop Skinners private gratitude to that Prelate and
his venerable Colleagues, - - - S^*

57'* INDEX. pags;
1805 — Dr Grant's apology for continuing a schismatic 386
That apology of a piece with Captain Cumming's legal
process, ..... 357
Sir William Scott's opinion of union diametrically oppo
site to Dr Grant's, .... 389
Bishop Horsley chastises the Apologist of Separation, &c. 391
Yet he lives and dies a separatist, - - 392
Dr Dampier, bishop of Rochester's account of Dr Grant's
letter to hira, .... 394,
Sir William Scott's judgment completely satisfactory to
Mr Alison, .... 394,
His letter to Bishop Skinner, a counterpart to the Apo
logy for Separation, - ... 395
Bishop Skinner's cordial approbation of Mr Alison's •
conduct, _ - . . _ 397
Mandate issued for the election of a Bishop for the dio
cese of Edinburgh, - - _ 399
1806— From p. 399 to 446. ,
Bishop Skinner' s\\evf of the subject communicated to
Sir William Forbes, - ... 4.0O
Bishop Sandford's unanimous election, - ib.
Interesting paper subscribed by the English ordained
members of the diocese on that occasion . 401
Congratulations from Sir William Forbes on the choice
of the Clergy,- - . . 402
Consecration takes place on the 9th February at Dundee, 404
Bishop Skinner's address to his new colleague, 404—418
Progress of union in 1806, ... 420
Bishop Horsley's " highest satisfaction'' at this progress, 421
Bishop Porteo-us thinks Dr Sandford a great acquisition, 423
Bishop Madan prays for the further progress of Episco
pal union in Scotland, ... 424
Bishop Douglas gives his own and the Archbishop's opi
nion of that union, - - - > ib.
And hopes that no more young men will be sent from
England to serve in Scotland, - - 425
Sir William Forbes's account of Bishop Sandford's first
Confirmation, .... 426

INDEX. 575
PAGE.
1806.— The Episcopal Fund established,— to which Sir
William contributes L.400, - - 428
Account of its origin, &c. &c. - - 429
Bishop Skinner meets his Clergy and delivers a Charge,
which they request him to print, - - 433
Account of that Charge, - . 434
Deaths of Bishop Horsley and of Sir William Forbes, 436
, Mr Skinner's Verses on the latter, . . 438
Bishop Horsley's sentiments of the Scottish Comraunion
Office, - - " . - 439
Alarm excited by Bishop Skinner's printed Charge, &c. 440
Bishop Skinner obviates it by Letter, - . 442
1807— frora p. 446 to 468.
Deaths of Mrs Skinner, Mr Skinner, Longside, and- Mr
Stevens, - - - - 446
Account of Mr Stevens and his demise, - - 450
Bishop Skinner recurs to his printed Charge, and to the
Note announcing his Son's Illustration of the Scottish
Communion Office, - - - - 454
The alarm respecting that Work principaUy felt by
Friends to the increase ofthe Scottish Episcopal Fund, 457
The purpose of the Work stated, - - 461
Its success pronounced complete, - - 464
But the time of its publication deemed unpropitious, 465
This objection refuted by Bishop Skinner, - • 466
1808— From p. 468 to 479.
Death of Bishop Watson, and account of that excellent
man,^ - ....
His Successor nominated, . - - 471
The Rev. Dr Gleig elected to the Diocese of Brechin, ib.
Bishop Skinner addresses the Bishop-Elect, - 472
Dr Gleig replies, .... 475
The Declaration, as subscribed by Bishop Torry, pro-
posed to Dr Gleig, , . - . 475
He accepts the Episcopal office by subscribing it, - 477
His Consecration, and Mr Horsley's Sermon, - 479

468

576 INDEX. FACE.
1809 and 1810— From p. 479 to p. 505.
Deaths of Bishop Abernethy Drummond and Strachan, 479
Account of these Prelates, - - - 480
Thanksgiving on his Majesty's entering on the 50th year
of his reign, ... 481
Addressed by the Scottish Bishops, - - ib.
Clergy of the Scottish Episcopal Church first noticed in
Orders of Council^ - - - - 482
Union at Musselburgh, ' - - - ib.
Correspondence during the years 1809 and 1810 leads
to the framing of a Code of Canons in 1811, - 483
Bishop Gleig's primary Charge, - - 484
Character of Bishop Skinner, by the Rev. James Walker, 484
Correctness of that Character ^exemplified, - 485
Bishop Skinner ^discusses the point of Liturgical Uni
formity with Bishop Gleig, - - ' - 486
Bishop Gleig justifies his opinions, - - 488
And is justified by the Annalist, ... 494
Bishop Skinner is not satisfied with the mode of justi
fication, - - - - - 502
1811. — He views the measure of a Council, or Episcopal
Synod, more favourably, ... 505
And proposes it to his Colleagues, - - ib.
He accounts to Bishop Sanclfordfor the want ofa proper
Code of Discipline, . , . - - 506
Bishop Sandford, with the other Members of the Col
lege, agrees to an immediate Enactment, - 508
The Synod fixed, and Merabers who should compose it, ib.
The mode of conducting its business, &c. &c. record
ed, - - - - 509—517
The hierarchy of the United Church of England and
Ireland presented with the Canons, when printed, 517
Names of the Prelates who returned answers to Bishop
Skinner s\e'i\.ex, .... 519
The conclusion of Bishop Skinner's labours in the ge
neral cause of Scottish Episcopacy, - . ib.

INDEX. 577PAGE.
1811.-16 — The difficulties which surrounded him, when
appointed Primus, - ... 520
The powerful support, &c. afforded him by his revered
Father, - - - : - - 522
The Annalist disdains all interference with the measures,
&c. of other Members of the Episcopal College, 524
And concludes in the Language of the Biographer of
Bishop Horne, . . - . 525
Whose character of Scottish Episcopacy, with that of
the present President of Magdalene College, Oxford,
sums up the Annals.

THE END.

Printed by John Moir,
Edinburgh, 1818.

WORKS

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