IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (AAT-3) k A ^/ /. ^ ^ 1.0 I.I ■^ Ki 12.2 lU lit 14.0 |2.0 lUi III u I 6" 1.6 Hiotographic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STMET WEBSTER, r^,V. 143^9 (716) S7!i-4S03 ■itfl A i^. CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Technical and Bibliographic Notaa/Notaa tochniquas at bibliographiquaa Tl to Tha Inatituta haa attamptad to obtain tha boat original copy availabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy which may ba bibiiographieaiiy uniqua. which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproduction. or which may significantly changa tha uaual mathod of filming, ara chackad baiow. □ Colourad covara/ Couvartura da coulaur pn Covara damagad/ Couvartura andommagAa □ Covara raatorad and/or laminatad/ Couvartura raatauria at/ou palliculAa □ Covar titia miaaing/ La D D D n D titra da couvartura manqua Colourad mapa/ Cartaa gtographiquaa wt coulaur Colourad inic (i.a. othar than blua or black)/ Encra da coulaur (i.a. autra qua blaua ou noira) Colourad plataa and/or illuatrationa/ Planchaa at/ou illuatrationa un coulaur □ Bound with othar matarial/ RalM avae d'autraa doeumanta D Tight binding may cauaa shadowa or distortion along intarior margin/ Laroliura sarria paut cauaar da I'ombra ou do la distorsion !• long do la marga intiriouro Blank laavaa addad during raatoration may appaar within tha taxt. Whanavar poaaibia. thasa hava baan omittad from filming/ II aa paut qua cartainaa pagaa blanchaa ajoutias lors d'una raatauratlon apparaiaaant dana la taxta, maia, lorsqua caia 4tait poaaibia. caa pagaa n'ont paa «ti filmAaa. Additional comments:/ Commantairaa supplAmantairas; L'Inatitut a microfiimA la mailiaur axamplaire qu'il lui a AtA possibia da la procurer. Lm details da cat axamplaira qui sont paut-Atra uniques du point da vue bibiiographique. qui pauvent modifier una image reproduite. ou qui peuvent exiger une modification dana la mAthoda normale de filmege sont indiquto d-dessous. rn Colourad pagaa/ Q Pagaa da coulaur Pagaa damaged/ Pages endommagAes Pages reatored and/oi Pages reatauriea at/ou peiliculAea Pagee discoloured, stained or f oxei Pagaa dAcoioriea. tachatAes ou piquAes Pagaa detached/ Pagaa dAtachAes Showthroughy Transparence Quality of prir QualitA inAgale de I'impreasion Includea supplementary materii Comprend du matAriel supplAmentaira Only edition available/ Seule Adition diaponibia nn Pagaa damaged/ r~1 Pages reatored and/or laminated/ ry\ Pagee discoloured, stained or foxed/ nn Pagaa detached/ r~y\ Showthrough/ r~n Quality of print varies/ r~n Includes supplementary material/ rn Only edition available/ Pagaa wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc.. have been ref timed to ensure the best possible image/ Lea pagee totalement ou partiellement obscurcies par un feuiilet d'errata. une peiure, etc.. ont AtA filmAes A nouveau da fa^on A obtanir la meiiieure image possible. Tl pc of fil Oi be th si( ot fir si( or Tl sh Tl w M t be rij rei m( This item in filmed at the reduction ratio cheeked below/ Ce documunt est flic -.A au taux de rAduction indiquA ci-deaaous. 10X 14X 18X 22X 2SX 30X y 12X 1IX 20X 24X 28X 32X The copy filmed here he* been reproduced thenkt to the generoeity of: National Library of Canada L'exemplaire filmA fut reproduit grice h la ginArotit* de: BibliothAque nationale du Canada The images appearing here are the best quality possible considering the condition and legibility of the original copy and in keeping with the filming contract specifications. Original copies in printed paper covers are filmed beginning with the front cover and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, or the back cover when appropriate. All other original copies are filmed beginning on the first page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impression. Les images suivantes ont 4tA reproduites avec le plus grand soin, compte tenu de la condition at de la nettetA de I'exemplaire filmA, et en conformity avec les conditions du contrat de filmage. Les exemplaires originaux dont la couverture en papier est imprimte sent filmte en commenpant par le premier plat et en terminant soit par la dernlAre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illustration, soit par le second plat, salon le cas. Tous les autres exemplaires originaux sont filmAs en commenpant par la premlAre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illustration et en terminant par la dernlAre page qui comporte une telle empreinte. The last recorded frame on each microfiche shall contain the symbol —^>( meaning "CON- TINUED "), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever applies. Un des symboles suivants apparaftra sur la dernlAre image de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbols -^ signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbols V signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre filmte A des taux de rMuction diff Arents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul clichA, il est filmA A partir de Tangle supArieur gauche, de gauche h droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nAcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 "f^V^ 'it' '7^ " • " < I mmmmmmmmm I, -. ' "ii^.,...^ . . ^ '^^ i^MriPIMRMlHEi^^ '^ JM^^^ -'^^^Mjjr » ^f^ ^^KM *• m - ''^^^1 1^ I L ''"^^1 IHii* fl w^ ,^^^H ^^tesT^**"-- ^ .!&»?/■ •'. '■»«. H R^4- '■ - J^^l T .■/•■i BB^^» * »^^^^^H ^HBr^b '^^^^al i^P '' *BI^^^^^^^^ ^^P^^^, fJiBf i^fe • i^^n^^* ' i^^^gJ^^^H K. JHr >^j ^^Br.^^ , H^^^.^ -.^S^^^l ^^^^^K .^^^^^^^^^Lta. ti vj^i^^^l ^B^i't ^ '^'^^S^B^H fi' '^Be^!^ ^^^BB^§^c • :^^H^^| • ■ . t*/^ -M ^ ^^^Mf:\ ■ *^^^|h|^H^9^^^| ^^i^R?^^it'''C«^,^^^^H ^^^^^Ql^t . ' ty^^BH^^^^^^^^^I ^H^^^M^^^H ^^HP^t '' . ''^mS^Km / \ '^ , ■ 'f l^>" " -."^^^^^M '^^-l- ■ ' ' K' ? t y^ ; ; .( 1 H k ''^^^^^^^^K 1 r" ^^^^H^^& "" •>.^^^H p^ i, ^'v^^SHflSsoB ^> ' -vv'i^^l^^l w. ^ ^lii; . :!^,. ■!.*---»-■";?■ .HB^H • • • :'\ . -'♦i"5 '^'^^S^^?^'*, , •' ^' ^ \ s v' THE IN WITH THE BOOK )R 7 MEMOIRS OF cSoHu Ross OF Brucefield; ?^NNH ROSS. Tr..iqi\:fiea u^y -jft'o/d above alt t.)\y j\an\er ;*-,;U«; . • . T|j«i a,raKi5 wirliererh,, tlje fiowef : ' '-f -^m Ga4 ;!hal; sriM forever." ---Tit.'; Iv.'S-iVJivTO, ONT. «v R. G McLran, 32AN'I>34 Lombard St. .897. -^^*&ife!tsiaetoi «*** »'' " '' '«'™ A YAU ^^.i^^ Co^ /.-.^'-i^. l^-# / 4^ •X '^-^yj<: />Ti^y-^ A: /• / ^''"^ ^U(y / ^ ..^^^' / w THE M MAN WITH THE BOOK OR MEMOIRS OF 'John Ross of Brucefield." T BY flNNH RCSS. "Tl^oti nast magnified ttiy v/ord above all tl)y i^anie " " All flesn is grass : . . . tlie grass v/itlieretl), tl^e flower fadetn, but ttie v^ord of our God sl^all sta^d forever " TORONTO, ONT. Printed by R. G. McLean, 32 and 34 Lombard St. 1897. ijm^ ■'If' » < *F Bi6S2Z5 f ■ PREFACE. This little book is not a biography. It is only an attempt to preserve a memory that is blessed, and to extend an influence that has been for good. It has been executed in the midst of uncommon difficulties. The fact that it has been brought to completion confirms the hope with which it was started, that ** The Lord hath need of it." This I know, that to those who want to find faults it will not be difficult to dis- cover them ; but of this, too, I am fully persuaded, that those who want the inspiration of contact with one to whom God was a reality and prayer a power, and the Word of God the living link between earth and Heaven, can scarcely go through this volume without finding touches here and there that will make them glad. There are two causes for regret — that so many precious things have been lost because no one has gathered them, and that those here given have largely had to reach the page through the unaided memory, and the necessarily imper- fect wording of another. This must be remembered in reading, particularly if anything written should seem to have a sting as well as an edge. With the chapters touching the Headship of Jesus Christ and His Second IV PREFACE. i i Coming, peculiar pains have been taken to give Mr. Ross's views as he held them, and, as far as possible, as he expressed them. Most of the statements are given, not merely from a general recollection of his views, but from special recollections of actual conversations. Where this was the case, much . of his own wording has, I am satisfied, been consciously and unconsciously reproduced, as some who knew him best will readily recognize. Though these chapters may occasion the most fault finding, they will, I am persuaded, be the most prized, as containing truths not often met with and sorely needed. If, in any measure, this little book is "meet for the Master's use," it shall, in that measure, prove a power for good ; if not, it might better never have been written. •* Commit thy works to the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established." ANNA ROSS. Clinton, Ont., April 15th, 1897. CONTENTS. Chapter. Page. I. His Boyhood 5 II. D AWNINGS OF THE BETTER LlFE ... 1 7 III. A Chapter in Church History ... 30 IV. A Student and Student Missionary 47 V. Brucefield 60 VI. The Union of 1861 74 VII. The King's Messenger 90 VIII. The Guiding Eye and the Hearing Ear 105 IX. Studies and Recreations 121 X. The Union of 1875 136 XI. Division in Brucefield ...... 154 XII. Home Life and Happy Talks. . . . 168 XIII. London, Huron and Bruce Railway . 182 XIV. The Second Coming of Christ . . . 195 XV. Sunset Lights and Shadows . . . . 212 XVI. Closing History of Mr. Ross's Congregation 235 XVII. Anecdotes 238 XVIII. Echoes of Past Utterances .... 246 1 1 ■ INTRODUCTION. T was a keen Canadian winter morning. A tall man in a racoon-skin coat and a rounded beavf*r cap, stood ready, valise in hand, to board the train even now slackening toward the station, the moment it came to a stand. While the wheels were still turnin.«r, a short, sl;^,iit, elderly gentleman, with the white hair and withered face of age, but the a tiir movements of a ^oy of thirteen opened the car-door, and, before the would-be traveller had time to .set his foot upon the step, sprang lightly to the platform. There was an instant greeting, in which the cordial hand-shake was prolonged while a few sentences of rapid explanation were interchanged. The elder gentleman had intended to pay a brotherly visit, and now there could be only a few seconds between them, for trains have always made it a point of honor to spend no unnecessary time at Brucefield. A business-like "All aboard!" The train moved, and the conductor was in the act of springing on — *' Who-o-a ! " rang out in a stentorian voice of authority. The signal was instantly given for delay, but the con- ductor, angry with himself for paying any heed to such a word, faced the tall traveller with the question — " Do you think my train is a team of horses that it should stop for you like that ? " A parting word to the disappointed friend, a gently spoken word to the annoyed conductor, and the tall traveller, with an appreciative, comical look in his blue eyes, mounted the steps and entered. He placed his valise in the first empty seat, and deliberately took up his position beside it. The thoughtful eyes, out of which n ! il !h i' i I I f, Si \ \ » 2 . THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. the comical look had entirely passed away, made a survey of the various fellow-passeng-ers, but did not linger in ^ inspection. Almost immediately a well-worn Bible bound in soft black leather was drawn from his pocket, and hand and eyes were soon busy with its contents. A mother and child at the extreme end of the car, soon began to attract general attention. The child, a boy between three and four years of age, was evidently accustomed to rule his mother. He issued orders so per- emptorily, and resented delay in obedience so vocifer- ously that the mother was sorely put to the blush, and the rest of the passengers were both amused and annoyed. My little lord, waxing more and more unreasonable, an- nounced his determination to open the car-door and stand out on the platform, for he '* wanted to see the man turn the wheels round." The mother, full of fears for her darling, forbade,' but in vain. Then she pleaded, but still in vain. The young potentate had made up his mind, and began twisting at the door-handle, loudly demanding of his mother to help him, for his little hand was not strong enough to turn it. At this moment the tall man rose from his seat. He fixed his eye upon the spoiled child, and moved slowly towards him, pouring out at the same time a continuous stream of unintelligible denunciation, getting wilder and louder until he was only a few feet from the young hero. The child stood spellbound, with the door knob still in his hand ; but the color left his cheek, and his eyes grew large with surprise and terror. The stream of denun- ciation stayed. The tall man stood and gazed on the child in perfect silence for about thirty seconds, then turned leisurely round, and with a perfectly grave face, but fun shining out of his eyes, went back to his seat, while the car resounded with laughter and applause, and the horrified child took refuge in its mother's arms, not to be heard any more during the journey. But the leather-bound Bible quickly engrosses his attention again. He who "giveth to every man sever- ally as He will," has chosen to give to this man a method of communion with Himself quite different from ordinary INTRODUCTION. methods. In apt passages upon which his eye falls while turning the leaves of his Bible, he is constantly receiving direct messages from his Lord. Where there might be uncertainty a reduplication is given in a second or third text containing and emphasizing the same thought. The rapt attention of the student need be no mystery; it is the sheep hearing the voice of the shep- herd, the soldier listening to the voice of his commander, the friend hearkening to the voice of the "Friend that sticketh closer than a brother." After a time the turning of the leaves stopped. The book lay open at the passage recognized as the special message for the present. With his finger on the words he leaned over the seat in front and addressed a rough- looking man who occupied it. " Will you listen to this word ?" he said, *' and see if there is not a message in it for you ? * My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.' Now the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to you in these words. If you are one of His sheep you will hear His voice, and you will follow Him. He is a good master. If you give yourself to Him He would not part with you for a thousand worlds." The rough-looking man looked furtively up into the speaker's face, — *' If you knew what business I follow," he said, "you would not speak to me like that." " It does not matter what you are," was the reply. ** His voice is calling to you in that verse that I have read to you. You know that He is speaking to you now. It would be well for you to hear, and put your hand in His at once." ** I am a tavern-keeper," was the answer, as though that settled the matter. *' That makes no difference. The Lord is speaking to you just as you are. Answer Him as the child Samuel did, 'Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth.'" *' But if I were to give up the tavern I don't know what else I could do." '* I do not ask you to give up the tavern," was the mmi 1 1 I I I 1 ' 4 • , THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. surprising- rejoinder. "AH I ask is that you will listen to the voice that is now calling you. Listen to it, answer it. Keep on listening and doing what He tells you to do. If He lets you stay in the tavern, then stay there ; but if He tells you to leave it. He will go before you and lead you the right way out of it and into some- thing else." The brakeman passed through the car, calling out the name of the next station. The rough-looking man rose, picking up a hand-bag at his feet. He turned and looked seriously into the kind eyes regarding him with the solicitude of •' one bearing precious seed." The two men clasped hands and parted. Whether the seed sown germinated or not may never be known till "the day shall declare it." But the tall traveller was acting upon his orders, — "In the morning sow thy 'seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand, for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether both shall be alike good." Dear reader, "The Man With the Book" has been introduced to you. r'\. THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. CHAPTER I. HIS BOYHOOD. |OHN ROSS was born in Dornoch, the county town of Sutherlandshire, on the i ith of Novem- ber, 1821. Hewas the firstborn, and round him clustered many tender hopes which, in the years to come, were not to be disappointed. He in- herited no title to broad lands or social rank, for it was the humble home of a Scottish farmer that was glad- dened by the advent of the blue-eyed boy. But in a godly ancestry, with all the natural and spiritual benefits flowing from it, he had a more precious possession, one that the world can neither give nor take away. Something of the character of these god-fearing progenitors may be gathered from an incident recorded of his great grandfather, who was a blacksmith. A farmer had brought a span of horses to be shod. He was in a hurry, and before the work was completed was impatient to be off, saying, **That will do; that will do." "Man," replied the old hero, "man, it worCt do. I'm doing it for eternity." John's grandfather, George McKay, son of this worthy, and following the same trade, was also a man of note as an advanced Christian, and of a strong and most interesting character. "The men," in a Highland community, were the experienced Christians who were able to "speak to the question " in the great Friday gathering at communions, or to lead in prayer, or to explain the spiritual difficulties of inquirers. George McKay was not only one of "The men," his ordinary . \, •\ 1 1' \X I I i \ * I ^« « 6 ' THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. title was Duine Righ-lochan, TAe Man of King-lochan. T/ie Man of any locality among us is usually the great, specially rich or influential man. But so decidedly did the things of God occupy the uppermost place through- out those Highland parishes that, with them. The Man was the one, blacksmith or laird, who was pre-eminent in the knowledge and service of God. This godly grandfather had a share all his own in laying the foundations of the boy's character. John's mother was a remarkable person. She in- herited much of the piety and peculiar ability of his father and grandfather. The description of the wise woman in Proverbs might almost be rewritten as a description of her. Wonderful stories are told of her skill in "working willingly with her hands." "She opened her mouth with wisdom, and in her tongue was the law of kindnesp. " It was a large-hearted kindness, accompanied by a quick sort of wit that could lodge an arrow in the heart of an evil-speaker with a very short word. Her delight was to " stretch out her hands to the poor " and needy, and actions which some regarded as extravagances of benevolence have been recorded of her. The characters of both father and mother have been preserved in a remark meant to be criticism rather than praise : " Bessie Ross would give away her last loaf, and David would never say her nay." His father was a man of deeds rather than words, physically powerful, and strong in principle and purpose. Thoroughness characterized all he did, and the most unwearying diligence. A neighbor in the new land, who took some pride in his own early rising, laid his com- plaint in the following terms : " Let me get up as early as I will, David Ross's axe is aye ahead of me." Some- thing of his energy may be gathered from the fact that, when over eighty years of age, he set out to walk from Embro to Kincardine, a distance of nearly one hundred miles. He made the journey as he intended, with only a few stopping-places by the way. John's mother acted upon the proverb: "Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare k-i HIS BOYHOOD. for his crying." When punishment was necessary, it was her habit to pull a little switch from the heather broom with which to administer it. One of his earliest recollections was of seeing- his mother turn to that broom in the corner, and begin to pull at a bit of the heather. He could remember distinctly the thoughts that ran swiftly through his brain : " How shall I stop mother? It's no use telling her it will hurt. It's no use crying ; I've tried that before." But a bright idea flashed in upon the perplexed mind. " Mother," he said, as she tugged still at the tough switch, "you will soon use the broom up, if you go on like this." The shrewd child had made a point, though not quite the one intended. The tugging at the switch lost its energy, and his mother's sides began to shake with suppressed laughter. A moment more, and she turned her back on the broom and let the laugh ring out. The little boy knew he was safe for that time. John McKay, afterwards a respected citizen of Kincardine, Ont., was for many years our hero's boon companion. At one time the two boys were for days very earnestly engaged in constructing a little mill. The mill required a dam to be thrown across the rattlipg Highland stream, by whose side the mill stood. The work went on steadily and rapidly until it came suddenly to a complete stand for want of timber. This was very perplexing. Giving up the enterprise was not to be thought of ; but where would they get some sticks ? Had they been among the forests of Canada, no such difficulty would have existed. But they were then in Scotland, where trees are the wealthy man's pride and every stick has a market value. Again a bright idea shed light upon the difficulty. There was a sheep shed at the end of the fold, which evidently was of no use whatever. The two little lads agreed that the sheep were not now ever brought up into the fold, let alone penned up in the shed. It was plain (while summer's sun was shining) that the shed had outlived its usefulness, and there was splendid t i 8 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. timber in its roof. Why not pull it down ? No sooner said than done. The two boys were up in a twinkling, and the sods and thatch were flying in all directions. It was well for the sheep that not many minutes of this work went on till it was descried from the cottages, and such a hue and cry was raised that, at its first note, the young marauders scrambled down from the roof and ran away, never to return to that enterprise. Another boyish plan they had, which made a deeper impression upon John Ross's memory. Away up on the mountain there was a huge stone. So high was it, and leaning so much out from the mountain side that it was for some time an object of fear. " What if it should smash over just when I was below it," was the thought with which its possible pathway would be crossed. But there was a fascination about that stone. The grandeur of the roll it would make down the mountain if once started took iieep hold of his imagination. The two companions talked the matter over with some of the other boys. They were all agreed that the stone should be started. But there was one serious obstacle. Directly on the path along which the boulder must crash stood a little cottage inhabited by the grandmother of one of the boys. It would not do to hurt that old woman. But one day she was noticed shutting her door and taking the path that led to her son's house some distance away. Now was the time ! The rest of the boys were quickly summoned, and the matter put before them by the seven-year-old orator somewhat in this shape, — *• The old woman is out of her house and safe. If the stone were to go now there would be no danger of doing her any harm, and as for the house, would it not be the best thing that could happen her to have it smashed ? It is not a very nice thing for a poor feeble old woman to be living alone. She would be far more com- fortable if she were living with her son." Her grand- son, who was one of the party, was appealed to for his opinion, and quite approved of the idea. HIS BOYHOOD. All were agreed. A crow-bar was obtained, and a spade, and operations commenced at once. Very care- fully at first they tried to pry the rock up from behind, afraid lest it might yield too suddenly and carry them with it. Gentle hints were found to be of no use, and soon they were digging and pryingand tugging away with might and main. The boulder did not move. A rest was taken and the situation discussed. It was a genuine council of war. A further manful attack was decided on and resolutely made. But the grim old rock, which was really an out-jutting shoulder of the mountain itself, did not even laugh at their scratches, but conducted itself exactly as if they were not there. The discomfited heroes had to pick up their tools and turn their faces homewards with at least one lesson on their own feeble- ness and the " strength of the hills" which **is His also." When John was eight years old the family came out to Canada. A heavy storm overtook them at sea. The memory of that experience lived vividly in the boy's mind. The thought of shipwreck in the midst of such a night of darkness and tempest was one to tax the faith of the strong men and women on board. But it was not a panic-stricken crowd that thronged the tossing vessel. The fear of God was among them, and where that is strong other fears do not take the same hold. Echoes of that night of anxiety and godly converse have sounded down through the intervening years. The children had been put to bed, but John could not sleep. The thought of perishing in those seething waters, — going down into their depths, being tossed .ind then swallowed up by them — would not go out of his head. But along with that came two other thoughts — God rules these winds and waters and God hears Prayer. The child is the father of the man. The boy of eight did just what the man of twenty, forty or sixty would have done. He began to lift up his heart in prayer to God, but with the heart went the voice as well, for he prayed with all his might "John," said his mother, "John, you must be quiet." ** Oh, mother," he rephed, "must I not cry loud to God to save us?" 'W mlam I I ifi! lO THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. "Then they cried unto God in their trouble, and He brought them out of their distresses. Then were they glad because they were quiet ; so He brought them into their desired haven." They reached Canada in safety, and made their home in the township of West Zorra, in Oxford county, Ontario, forming part of that remarkable settlement that has given many men of influence to the present generation. It may be understood from the character of those men who took possession of the hills and levels and beautiful rolling land around Embro that the church and the school would not merely follow them ; it was neces- sary that these institutions should go with them. Very early they were formed into a congregation, and the Rev. Donald McKenzie, whose memory Mr. Ross al- ways delighted to ,honor, was chosen as their minister. They must have been excellent stock, those High- landers of Ross and Sutherland. Soon was laid low a generation of forest trees, and there rose up in place a generation of scholars and men of might. Up to the year 1894 thirty-eight young men from amongst them have studied for the ministry, probably quite as many for medicine, and a goodly number more in other pro- fessions appear in circles of influence throughout the Dominion. What is the secret of so much ambition and power ? Mr. Ross regarded it as a peculiar seal to Mr. McKenzie's ministry thj^t so many of his young men rose up to offer themselves for the work of the Lord. Much of their early literary training he did himself, giving them lessons in the classics when they could not at the time have made their way to the grammar schools. But a further explanation is to be found in the class of settlers themselves, for Mr. McKenzie had prepared material with which to work. Nearly all the families about Embro were from those godly communities so richly blessed during the early years of this century under Dr. McDonald of Ferintosh, Mr. Kennedy of Dingwall, and men of like peculiar spiritual gifts. HIS BOYHOOD. II •* Times of refreshing-" had visited them — times to be remembered. God had set His eye upon those Highland settlements in the old land, so soon to be scattered by the great landowners. He prepared them for a blessed scattering by first filling- them with His own salvation. Then, when many little farms were put together to form great sheep farms, and the old tenants had to seek new homes in a strange land, they carried with them a fer- vent piety and large knowledge of the word of God which constituted them men of thought and principle and power. It need be no matter of surprise when the sons of such men rise up and step into the highest places in the land. But to go back to the little boy of eight, who had *' cried loud to God to save them" when in the midst of the storm. His first exploit on American soil was a very questionable one in the eyes of those gocd Scotch housewives. Before reaching their final port, they touched — probably at Newfoundland, and tarried there a whole day. .Some of the women went ashore with their pots to do a little washing. John Ross and his companion got leave to accompany them, and spent some delightful hours investigating the peculiarities of this new world. A snake crossed their path, and the valiant pair succeeded in dealing him blows enough to mangle his body and terminate his career. Their glory in the achievement knew no bounds. John Ross picked up the mutilated snake on the end of his stick, swung it around his head and sent it flying through the air. The uncanny creature dropped into one of the precious household pots, and the consternation, not only of the owner, but of all the band of women there, was entirely out of proportion with the extent of the damage done. That pot was emptied and scoured, and " filled and emptied again, as though the poor little dead snake had been a ceremonially 'unclean thing, and the boy that hurled it fell under wrath in keeping with the horror his act had occasioned. His doings in the Zorra home were quite in line with the above. Among the things that his careful father 11 w r I i ' 12 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. had bought before venturing into the wild woods was a rather large parcel of gunpowder. Most of this hung on the wall in a shining powder-horn. But the horn would not hold the whole of it, and John knew where, above the cupboard, still in the paper parcel, the remainder had been put. That paper parcel was an object of much interest to this Highland boy. One day, when alone in the house, he climbed up to it, opened a little hole in one corner, and allowed about a thimbleful to run through into a small paper funnel of his own making. Quickly the parcel was put back into its place, the top of the funnel doubled up over its contents, and the whole thrust into his pocket. Then down he came again, excited and afraid, for his con- science was not quite easy. He showed his prize to John McKay, and the two boys made wondrous experiments by themselves in the woods. The laying of trains, the management of the fire and the achieving of real explosions made them as happy and' important as if they had been blasting mountains. All this was too delightful, not to be ventured again. Another and another tiny parcel of powder was secretly obtained from the same store until, to John's regret, there was very little of it left. Pondering the situation, wondering whether he should venture to take any more, he suddenly decided upon one bold and final exploit. Snatching the whole parcel, with all that was in it, he crowded it into his pocket and ran away. The play must come to an end soon now anyway. Why not have one grand exhibition and be done with it ? John McKay was ready for anything. They went this time farther into the woods than usual, lest the noise of the final explosion should attract attention. They piled the whole of the remaifting powder in a por- tentous heap, laid their train, arranged their tow, and struck the flint and steel for a spark. The tow caught fire, and the train began to turn in the desired direction. But, whatever was the reason, it's action was slow — HIS BOYHOOD. 13 too slow for the eager Celtic nature looking on. John. Ross stretched himself at full length upon the ground and breathed just one good blow-ow, to help it along. The instantaneous roar that followed he never forgot. That one breath had wafted a spark from the smoulder- ing train to the heap of powder, and the pile went off like the firing of a cannon. The remarkable thing was that this inexperienced gunner escaped without injury from the very dangerous experiment, though his face at the moment was not many inches from the powder. The force of the explosion had gone in another direc- tion. Not even his hair was singed. But his heart quaked. The terrible danger from which he had been protected, even while he knew he was doing wrong, made a deep impression upon him. ** I rather think," he said, in telling the story, "that explosion is the secret of the dislike I have always had to playing with firearms, and I have never tried to overcome it." John was a vigorous lad, and joined in the athletic sports of his schoolboy days with the same vehemence with which he gave himself to weightier interests in later days. Shinty was especially glorious. His clear eye and strong, steady hand enabled him to excel in that sport, and his ardor in its pursuit was not to be cooled either by sore shins or the breaking of a front tooth by the careless throwing of the wooden ball. ** When a boy," he said, '* my shins were scarcely ever free from wounds. To this day they are marked all over with old scars. Tokens of many a hard fought game. " But as he grew a little older, books began to claim attention as well as games. Once he found what treasures of thought and knowledge were stored away in them, he bent his energies in that direction. Buying books at that time was not to be thought of. But many of these emigrant homes possessed a few choice volumes ; and by judiciously drawing upon these stores, he seldom was without reading matter. But when was he to get time to read them ? When school was over in those I .! .11 i I : 14 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. early days, work was expected of everyone big enough to help. The evenings were very short, and all must go ^ to bed at the appointed hour. It was a tight place for an eager student. On one occasion he had borrowed a copy of Shakes- peare's Tempest, When bedtime came he was not half done, and it was desperately hard to leave the book and go off to sleep. Indeed, sleep would not come. He lay with his eyes wide open, and his busy brain following the story and reaching out to its completion. At last the even breathing of all around assured him that sleep had taken hold of everyone but himself. Mow was the time ! He would take another little peep at the book. Softly he rose, uncovered the coals, laid on a few sticks of the kindling set ready for the morning's fire, and sat down on the warm brick hearth with his book. Stick after stick* of the kindling was added, until the whole morning's store was gone. The light waxed dim. Nearer and nearer went the head that the glow of the coals might fall on the page. His head got very hot. Reaching up to the pin on the wall, he snatched from it his Scotch bonnet, and donned it for protection. Now there could be peace ! and soon he was lost to every- thing except the charm of the play. Heat that broke in through the spell made him suddenly clap his hand on his bonnet. A hole was burnt through it, and was quickly getting bigger and bigger. Here was trouble. He extinguished the fire, and examined the extent of the damage. The hole was large enough to put a teacup through it — hopelessly large for concealment. Well he knew that much worse than the heather switch would be his portion if the mattev were discovered. So he rolled up the bonnet in a tight ball, and hid it in a hole between the logs of the house. Then he crept back to bed, feel- ing very unhappy. The dead coals and missing kindling in the morning led to trouble enough, but no one asked after the bonnet. As the weather was warm, he sped off to school with a bare head, and nothing was noticed. When the cold, autumn days came, it was impossible to go bare headed HIS BOYHOOD. 15 any longer. Carefully was the dama,^ed article drawn from its hiding place, straightened out, and carried judi- ciously in hand until out of sight ot home. ••It was remarkable," he would say, "how well mannered I suddenly became. No sooner did my father appear, or any of my superiors come in sight, than the bonnet was reverently taken off, and carried properly in hand while they were in the company." The boy who could get so much absorbed in the unreal world of the poets, was sometimes a serious perplexity to his most thrifty and energetic father. While his hands were at his work, his mind was still busy with his books. One winter < » ening the cattle had been tethered in the stable, but not yet fed. As John came in from school, he was told to feed and bed them. Obediently he went at once, but, forgetting his orders, and feeling, not thinking, that it was morning instead of evening, he unloosed them all and turned them out into the barn- ' yard. The preceding incidents show plainly that John Ross was a boy full of life and fun and ambition. Whether it was a hard mathematical problem or a school fight, a game of shinty or a tough debate, he was always ready, and whatever he did he did with all his might. He who in manhood's prime began to be known as the Man with the Book, was not, in his early days, one of those quiet and thoughtful lads, whose story makes other boys feel that they were made of different stuff from themselves. He was felt by his companions to be •* a boy every inch of him," and one with real and serious faults besides. The Captain who took and drilled this fiery young Highlander into "a good soldier of Jesus Christ," is seeking for recruits now, dear young reader. I would net ask you to try to be a Christian if our Captain were dead, for you could never make yourself into anything like a real Christian if you tried forever. But He is not dead. He is living and risen, and sitting at the right hand of Power. Not only is He risen. He is very soon coming back again to enlist an army for r' |i ii j! ■ \ i b.^ 1 i. i! ■ 1 \ i ill i6 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Himself that shall in very deed conquer this old rebellious world to His sway. Indeed, He may be gathering up His recruits for that grand conflict and victory even now. Dear young reader, you have only one life to live — one chance to take sides in this great battle of the universe. Do you not want to join the winning side ? For Christ's side is going towin, and that most gloriously, even in this world. If you want to be His, just tell him so, for he is hunting recruits. Look up in His face and say to Him, ** Lord, be thou my Captain," and then take up as the keynote of your daily life Paul's question, " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ? " Probably the first thing He may give you to do will be work you do not like, as He gave to Paul some severe study over his own sinfulness and helplessness and blindness. Do not be discouraged. That is often the very first part of His dn'//. Only keep dlose to Him with the question, "Lord, what wilt thou have me — poor, sinful, useless me — to do ? " and He will lead and drill you wonderfully, as He did the Highland boy of whom you have been reading. ellious ing up , nnow. » live — of the r side ? riously, tell him ace and en take Liestion, ably the you do over his Do not ■t of His "Lord, me — to y, as He reading. r u>- CHAPTER H. DAVVNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. R. ROSS seldom spoke of his own inner experi- ences, except as they might be interwoven with some precious word of Scripture, or as they came out incidentally when talking of something else. It is, therefore, impossible to trace closely his pathway across that "very wide field" lying between the City of Destruction and the Wicket Gate. A few glimpses can be caught, but rather of those that helped to start him on the pilgrim's life than of himself or his own doings in the earlier stages of the journey. The God to whom he cried aloud in the storm at sea was a great reality to him all through those youthful days. He would often forget, as other boys do, and run on his own road full of the trifles of the day, yet in the midst of his sports, and fishing and studies the great question of eternity would often come up for con- sideration. This boy knew that life is short. The early death of a schoolfellow from scarlet fever b»-ought the reality and certain cy and possible nearness of death vividly home to his }Oung heart. "What must I do to be saved?" was a question often asked in the dark, quiet hours of the night. Yet John Ross did not turn his back definitely on the City of Destruction. The fear of God reigned in his early home. His grandfather and great grandfather, like Christian of old, "pilgrims of note," drew his young enthusiasm strongly out to a pilgrim's life. He wished himself one of their company, yet he lingered still about tho City of Destruction. When the rebellion broke out in 1837 he was nearly 1 " THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. !i i. sixteen. His parents saw with anxiety that the eye of their eldest born was turned towards the camp. They knew the nature they had to deal with, and laid their plans accordingly. "John," said his father one day, '* I think you may go back to school again for a while." That was enough. Back to school he went, and the camp was forgotten. Who was his teacher ? What an important matter to a boy just shaping for eternity! He was a young divinity student, with the bloom of the Scottish heather still upon his cheek. Short of stature, with a long <^ace and kindly, intelligent eyes, and with a wealth of the most exuberantly curly brown hair that ever crisped to northern mists and breezes. *' I never knew anyone," Mr. Ross once said, "who came so close to my idea of what a divinity student should be as Mr. Lachlan McPherson in those days. It was his habit occasionally to have a close, serious talk with his scholars. In one of these talks his subject was Attendance at the House of God. He said that he had noticed us Sabbath after Sabbath in that respect ; that, though some of us were regularly in our places there, others were absent oftener than he could understand, unless there were dangerous carelessness on the subject. He continued somewhat in this strain : What God may yet do for those of you who are careless about His house, no one may tell ; but this much I can tell : The fear of God is not yet in your hearts. Go on as you are doing, and you will go through life ' having no hope, and without God in the world.' But of you who are serious and careful to be in your places every Sabbath day, I will say this : Of you I have a strong hope that God will yet show Himself and His salvation to you, and * make you joyful in His house of prayer.' " ** As a family," Mr. Ross went on, " we were regu- larly at church ; but in those early days it was not always easy to have dress and hat and boots just as young people think suitable for appearing among others. I knew as he spoke that I had allowed these things DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. to influence me more than I should in deciding' whether to go out on Sabbath or not. I saw then that I had been risking eternity for a bit of pride. That was a good talk for me. " Why was it ** a good talk ?" Because it was /aid to heart. It was *' a wise reprover upon an obedient ear." May it not be that here was the definite turning of his back upon the City of Destruction, and setting his face to the way of the pilgrim ? He was some time in getting across the "very wide field," but thenceforth he began to be known as one "inquiring the way to Zion with his face thitherward." " What manner of man " was this young school teacher, whose serious talk was so much blessed to his scholar ? What manner of boy was he ? Lachlan McPherson as a boy will reveal the secret springs in the life of Lachlan McPherson as a man. When he was a child of nine the family was moving from one part of Scotland to another. While spending a night at an inn his mother was taken suddenly and alarmingly ill. In the morning hope for her life was almost gone. The awfulness of the sorrow with which he was threatened entered into the boy's soul. What could he do ? He could not give up his mother. So he crept, child as he was, into a quiet closet in that roadside inn, and, throw- ing himself down on the floor, pleaded with God for mercy. He told God He could do anything. He could save his dear mother if He only would. He urgently asked Him to spare her life, and, growing bolder, he pleaded that she should be left with him for forty years fHore!" "God heard my prayer," recorded the man of seventy. "He raised up my mother and gave her back to me for the forty years I asked, and added several more. Many a time since I have thought of his good- ness." On one occasion, while he was in company with several young people, the conversation turned upon the wisdom of reading the Bible through from beginning to end. ! I I 1 20 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Mr. McPherson did not express any dogmatic opinion, but said he would tell how it was with himself. ** When I was a boy at school," he said, ** several of us agreed to start at the beginning of the Bible and see who would keep at it the longest, — especially who would persevere till he reached the end of the book. We began, and the thought of not being beaten kept me to our purpose until I had read through the Levitical law and into Joshua. After that, interest itself carried me on, so that I had no disposition to stop. One after another the rest dropped out. Before long I was the only one left. By the time I had finished I was more eager to begin it again than I had been to start it at first. The Bible stories gained interest every time they were read, and when through it the second time I began at the beginning again. "I think I may say," he added, not solemnly, but gladly and tenderly, "that God made Himself known to me first in that continuous reading of His own word." Admiring intercourse with such a young teacher as this may help to account for the steady set Biblewards which John Ross's religion had from the beginning to the end. Unlike many young disciples, the boy John Ross did not attempt to keep his interest in the things of God a profound secret. He had the courage to go with his difficulties to those fitted to give him instruction, and so the foundation of his religious character and know- ledge were laid deep and broad. His special, chosen counsellor during all those early years of concern was one of the elders of the Embro congregation, Mr. Alex- ander Murray. A rare man was he, with a powerful mind and a profound knowledge of scripture. He had, besides, what is, perhaps, rarer than these, that sympathetic kindliness which attracts the young. The friendship between these two was very beautiful and strong. '* Often," the elder man said, years after, "often I used to mentally set before me John Ross and my own four boys, and wonder which of the five I loved the most. But I could never tell." DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. 21 Many a time the schoolboy would go over to his friend's home carrying his Bible. Before the talk began the two would kneel down together and seek the guid- ance of Him who alone "teacheth to profit." Then the boy brought out his difficulty, and the man showed the broad teaching of Scripture upon it. One night in harvest time, Mr. Murray, as was often the case when the weather was exceedingly warm, had gone to sleep in the barn among the fragrant fresh hay. He awok j with the first streak of light, and found, to his surprise and pleasure, that he was not alone. John Ross was sleeping at his side and the Bible lay between them. The lad had come over in the evening for one of their talks. Finding the lights out in the house, and guessing that he would find the man he wanted among the hay, he had climbed into the loft, hoping that sleep had not yet claimed him. Disappointed in this, he lay down by his friend, with the book between them, ready for the talk as soon as morning light should wake them. As the boy became a man, and the man became a student, the friendship only waxed closer and stronger. Very frequently, as years and diligence added to the knowledge of the younger man, conversation took the form of argument. Up to the time of entering college, though he delighted in doing his best to meet the argu- ments of his friend, yet he constantly felt his own inferi- ority as to grasp of the subjects and breadth of know- ledge. " It was not until after my first year in college," he said, "when I got hold of Jonathan Edwards, that I began to find myself able to cope with him." A touching evidence of the strength of the affection between these two was given not many years ago. Mr. Murray was a very old man, approaching ninety years of age. His powerful mind was losing its grasp of many things and would often get completely astray as to the chronology of events and even the identity of persons. His son, Dr. Murray, of Kincardine, visited him shortly before his death, and, though he often called him by his own name and recognized him per- 22 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. fectly, he quite as often called him John Ross, and spoke to him as his young friend of early days. Mr. Ross knew of his failing health, and became very desirous of seeing once more the friend to whom he owed so much. When he was ushered into the room, the old man rose, took his hand in both of his, and said with deep feeling — **The Lord bless you, John Ross, for showing me this kindness in my old age." Then they sat down, and had a few hours of happy converse. The clear intellect of former times came back again. They went over "all the way the Lord had led them," and "took sweet counsel together" as of old. They sat down to the table and had tea, and up to the final handshake the happy intercourse continued. But scarcely had the dearly beloved Timothy turned from his door when the old man tottered to his bed. There he lay almost without a word for about a week, and then passed away to be " forever with the Lord." The strong feeling and unwonted mental exercise of those bright hours of converse were too much for the failing physical frame. It was not a fiery chariot, but a chariot of purest love and joy that was sent to summon him from earth. During these days of early religious anxiety, a com- munion was held at Embro. For the benefit of those who are not acquainted with the methods of these old Highland communions, it may be well to explain a little. The celebration of the ordi- nance on Sabbath is preceded by three days of religious services, and followed by Monday as a day of thanks- giving. The P'riday meeting is the most characteristic of these extra services. It is devoted especially to prayer, and to a general discussion calculated to help Christians in the work of self-examination. The public discussion is called "speaking to the question." After eason of prayer and singing, one of the ministers re- i nests that someone in the congregation shall suggest a i^a .s<;.ge of Scripture that may open the discussion. Usually one of "the men" — the old established elders iRl. DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. 23 of repute — rises and gives a text containing- some test or pre-eminent marks of the true Christian, and briefly opens it up to the best of his ability. Others follow, each giving his own views or experience, and seeking to shed light on the subject. This is the people's service, and the ministers as much as possible leave it to them. Sometimes interesting and helpful views of truth are re- ceived from unexpected quarters. At the Friday service of the communion mentioned, the preliminary exercises had been gone through, the time for the discussion had come, and the request had been made that someone should open the question. The usual few minutes of waiting were slowly ticking them- selves away, for those old Highlanders were never in unseemly haste to put themselves to the front. Sud- denly to the amazement of all, a stripling rose from amongst the people and proposed a text. The old people listened with breathless attention while the lad gave forth the verse, and in a very few words made plain the point in it that needed elucidation. He was at the time deeply interested in the subject of discussion, and was not afraid, youth though he was, to stand up in the presence of the most august assembly he had ever known, and ask the question upon which he was searching for light. "From that day," my informant writes, "John was a marked man, and was expected to do something great " There was another whose special mission to this young pilgrim was not helping him out of the Slough of Despond, but keeping him from any expectation of help from a residence in the town of Morality. He was a young minister recently out from Scotland, Mr. Allan, afterwards of North Easthope. Very brothers these two men became in later years, but at this time they were far apart. Mr. Allan occasionally preached in Mr. McKenzie's pulpit. " Many a night you kept me awake," Mr. Ross said to him years afterward. "The arrows from your bow went r1?ht home, and thev were so barbed that it was • • • impossible to draw them out again. Once after service. 24 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. as I was watching' you coming" clown from the pulpit, and one and another of the congregation speaking and shaking hands with you, my own internal comment was, *' I would as soon shake hands with the //(,'///«/>/^. " From the facts already given it will easily be under- stood that John Ross had no trouble in shaking off worldly companions. As soon as he began to "show his colors" as a recruit for Christ's army, these all drop- ped away from him of their own accord. " I was an old man when I was a boy," he said in later life, "and now I am a boy when I am an old man." The word of God was his companion. Not only was it read but studied. Not only studied, but large portions of it committed to memory, that every clause and phrase might be mastered, and that it might also be ready for thought when no books were at hand. On one occasion he was prevented from going to church. As soon as the rest of the family had gone and he was left in quietness, he took his Bible and seriously went to work to master the Epistle to the Hebrews. If memory has preserved the story correctly, the whole of it was "hid in his heart" by the time the churchgoers had returned. At another time he learned tht one hun- dred and nineteenth Psalm in the same way. This was not merely an occasional thing. He was constantly at it till the whole field of Scripture was his own. This early, whole-hearted study of the Word of God was sowing seed in seed time, and it yielded to the stu- dent a rich and abundant harvest in after days. It is enough to make one's heart ache to see young Christians and Sabbath scholars spending their one seedtime sow- ing nothing better in their memories than pretty Sab- bath school stories. Dear young people, do you want to be strong, living, growing Christians ? Go to work now, using your precious Sabbath hours and week day leisure storing heart and memory with chapter after chapter of the Word of God. As you study it lift up your heart in the prayer, " Open thou mine eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." Study and pray, pray and study, and boldly put into practice DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. 25 what you find, and see what the results will be. That word so studied was to John Ross a **lamp to his feet and a light to his path," and "the joy and rejoicing of his heart" all the days of his life. But when and how did he definitely pass from death unto life ? When and how was he *' delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the Kingdom of God's dear Son ? " The only time so far as known, when he spoke directly on that point, was in a very interesting letter written a year or two before his death. The anti-Roman strain of the letter is really the heart of it. It was called forth by the fear that thefriend to whom it was addressed, had been led to take a dangerously superficial view of the difference between Christ and Anti-Christ. His own experience is characteristically given, not for its own sake, but to help in bringing out into strong relief tiie truth he is seeking to explain and impress. " If I am born again," he writes, " my spiritual birth took the most pronounced anti-Roman form. I first fled from God and the Gospel, to which my heart refused to bow, though I was still believing it. I fled on down to dark despair, and for years refused to leave that loathsome dungeon. At last in my dungeon or den, God gave me a sight of myself, which made me feel that there was not an eye among all God's creatures that could endure to turn one look on such a man. With this sense of overwhelming shame at its height, I sprang over at one bound to God for covering, saying, — ' If thou wilt not look on me, no creature can.' That one leap changed my relation and attitude towards the universe. I fled from all God's creatures to Himself as my hiding place. Freedom from human — say rather creature — authority, in all matters concerning God and my soul, is one characteristic of my spiritual liberty to this day, and it had its birth in that leap. If I allow the church to put hand or foot into that domain, I make the church an idol there and then If the church lays claim to such a dominion, she sets herself up to be the most fearful idol ever set up under the sun. There is 26 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Rome for you ! Look at her ! I leaped over her and away from her, among the rest of created things, when I made the Eternal my refuge. " Look at me again and say, what would Roman works have done for me in my position when about to take that leap ? I have no words to describe or convey my sense of the mockery done to the poor soul — the snare laid before him — the affront done to God, and the blindness of those who lead and those who follow in that whole great business of work which Rome is carrying on. It is better to spring over to Him who is * in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.'" Such is his own account of the manner of his pass- ing from death unto life. His experience as given above, is evidently the root out of which sprang many of his remarkable utterances. The hope of utter iiopelessness ! The power of utter helplessness ! The necessity of the hopelessness in order to the hope ! of the realized helplessness in order to effective junction with the Source of the "power that worketh in us ! " This is pre-eminently the *' secret of the Lord " which is "with them that fear Him." The experimental knowledge of this is what makes the differ- ence between a Christian life of constant failure and one c'f joyful communion and conquest. Paul knew it when he sang, — " When I am weak, then am I strong." He did not look at weakness and infirmity as disqualifica- tions, but only as giving larger opportunity for Christ to show His own strength. Paul preached it when he said, — " Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God." But the fulness of joy and power in the second clause can be apprehended only by those who have dis- covered the actual reality of the first. It is "all plain to him that understandeth." To such the following utterances will be full of interest. And may it be that some who have not caught the great double truth before may get a first glimpse as they now read. While quite a young man he spoke impressively to his hearers at one of his mission stations. "You will DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. 27 not receive Christ while there is one tvhite spot on you."* These searching words have been echoing in that place ever since. They were recently communicated to the writer by t)ne of his hearers. Many years later, at a prayer meeting, he unravelled the perplexities of an inquirer by one short sentence, as deeply true as it is striking : " * Blessed are the pure in heart' The pure in heart is the one who sees himself to be utterly impute.'^ He made his meaning plainer by a homely, but most apt illustration. "A slovenly woman," he said, "cannot see dirt. But put a tidy woman into a dirty house, and she feels and is distressed with every spot that is about her. That is because she has a clean heart.^' Several times since has this been passed on to some of God's precious ones, much cast down at their own unworthiness. Tears have started with the quick revul- sion of feeling to see, in their own painful consciousness of vileness, a God-given proof of purity of heart in His sight. On one occasion Mr. Ross was impressed with a similar thought uttered by an old man "speaking to the question." " Ever since the Lord took me in hand, I have been sore vexed at my sins. They were so great and so many, and my good deeds were so few and so small. But lately I have come to see it differently. I see now that I am a/l sin, and I have no good deeds at all. I can do nothing now but let myself alone and take hold of the name of the King — ' The Lord our Righteous ness.' The Lord our righteousness? But that is enough." *' When I heard him speak," the listener remarked, *' I thought of the law to the priest about the leper. M *ThouRh the above statement is generally true, it is not universally so. There are some who are drawn by the loveliness of Jesus Christ to receive and rest upon Him, who, in the first instance, know very little of the plague of their own heart. This is frequently the case with those who believe on Him as little children. Let not these be troubled that the Good Shepherd leads them by a different and a gentler way than others. aS THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ■ I, .1 If the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall pro- nounce him clean. It is all turned white ; he is clean. I looked at the old Christian, and said to myself: 'You are not long for this world. You are about ripe for Heaven now.' ** I was back at the next communion. He was not there. I asked after him, and found that he had been called away to behold • the King in His beauty.' " He referred in illustration of the same idea to a con- versation with an old Highlander, who was once asked: '* Were you ever perfectly happy?" **Yes," he replied, "the first time it was made plain to me that the burden of my salvation /ay entirely upon the Lord." In listening to a story like the one above, the hearer was not apt to miss the point. Mr. Ross was speaking what he experimenjtally understood, and the words, as he uttered them, had a significance that they might not have had in the lips of another. This same experimental significance of words, often heard in vain, is illustrated in the following fact men- tioned by one of the most gifted and spiritual of the members of his Brucefield congregation. ** I had walked for years in doubt and trouble, for I could not find how to come acceptably to Christ. One Sabbath Mr. Ross simply read out the verse : * No man can come to me except the Father, which hath sent me, draw him.' " "Then," she said, "I saw it plainly. I could not even do that myself, and God knew I could <-;ot. He had to do the whole. That was a great resting-place for me, and I have never lost the liberty I got then, just looking to God to do the whole." How was it that this word simply read out by his voice could have such power to bring liberty to a soul in bondage ? Was it not because the special truth that was in it had entered into his own soul, making him, as far as it was concerned, " meet for the Master's use?' Then the Spirit of Christ could use him in passing the power of that truth on to the soul of another. DAWNINGS OF THE BETTER LIFE. 29 One other instance may be given in which man's utter lack and God's aboundinpf fulness came out in strong relief. He had been reading Dr. John Duncan's exposition of the New Covenant, which he deeply enjoyed. He commented on it in the following strain, — " The Covenant of Grace is all promise. In it God undertakes to do the whole. All we have to do, at every turn, is to keep at Him with the prayer, ' Do as thou hast said.' That \s taking hold of His covenant. This is why the New Covenant exactly fits our need, for it comes to those who have no righteousness, no power, *no good thing.' " " Sweet on His faithfulness to rest, Whose love can never end, Sweet on the Covenant of Grace For all things io de^Qnd. Sweei in the confidence of faith To trust His firm decrees. Sweet to lie passive in His hands. And know no will but His." 1 I i \ .' / CHAPTER III, A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. .! i m '] PECULIAR set of events, during- these years of youth and early manhood, was working- loyalty to Jesus Christ as king- into the warp and woof of John Ross's religious life. The Ten Years' Conflict which preceded the Disruption in Scotland was now veiging to the crisis. As the contest went on it was watched with the most intense and intelli- g-ent interest by the Synod of the Presbyterian Church in Canada in connection with the Church of Scotland, to which body the congregation in Embro belonged. Mr. McKenzie, with whom Mr. Ross was taking classical lessons at the time, was deeply interested, and teacher and pupil watched together as the different phases of the struggle were developed. There was, indeed, at the time a very great deal of general interest and information on the subject throughout the whole country. It is a sorrowful fact that very few of the young people of Canada have any correct knowledge either of the facts of the Disruption or the principles involved in it. But John Ross's life cann jt be intelligently followed without a knowledge of both of these. It may be well, therefore, to give here a short account of the whole matter, though that takes us a long way back, back as far as the Reformation. The history of the Ten- Years' Conflict, stretching from 1833 to 1843, is often spoken of as the history ot the Disruption. But the beginning of the " Conflict" dates further back than that. In the year 1556, some years before the Reformation really took possession of A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 3> Scotland, Knox was laboring a few months in his native land. One knotty problem was perplexing Protestant consciences at the time in many a cottage and castle: Is it lawful to attend the celebration of the mass ? It was anxiously propounded to the great Reformer. " It is nowise lawful in a Christian to present himself before that idol," was the unhesitating answer. There is the clear ring of spiritual loyalty in it. No compromise, no serving of two masters. That is the important part. That is the beginning of the "Conflict." If there must not be two masters in the Church of Scotland, who is to be her ^'■one master V "Jesus Christ himself, as He speaks in His own word." That was the answer of the Reformer. " The king is head of the Church," announced Heniy VIII of England, and arrogated to himself the title and the rights appertaining thereto. In distinct contrast with that, the Reformers of Scotland proclaimed from the beginning that Jesus Christ and He alone is Head of the Reformed Church of Scotland. Neither were they empty protestations in the mouths of these men. In every item they watched and prayed and labored to make the word of the Head the rule of the Church. It was a practical and positive Headship they claimed for Jesus Christ. It was not the queen that was consulted in arranging the worship and doctrine of the Church, nor the nobles, nor tradition, nor inclination. With the utmost prayerfulness and diligence t' .y consulted Jesus Christ himself, and out of His word they drew the con- stitution, doctrine and worship ol the Church of Scotland. Kings and queens and Act-^ of Parliament some- times sanctioned but oftener r-^Pired the work of the Reformers. Still, through all opposition, through in- justice and persecution, througli attempted bribery and real deceit and intrigue, the fixed purpose of the Church, acting through her General Assembly, was ever to keep for Jesus Christ, and fot Him alone, the posi- tion of Head of the Church of Scotland, Suresy I'iis is most reasonable. If the Church is His body and that is what Scripture asserts. He must be he; Herd, or there is marvellous monstrosity somowheie If'Iri mmm 32 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ii I i f \ James I. of Eng-land resorted to all the devices that cunning, linked with high-handed presumption, could contrive that he might insert some subversive, man- made contrivances (bishops especially) among the simple and beautiful machinery of the Scottish Church. He saw quite clearly that, if he could once establish his bishops, they would soon gain power to control the clergy, and the clergy would guide the people, then he would have his own hand on the helm, and that was precisely what he wanted — not Jesus Christ, but King James, was to be Head of the Church of Scotland. He was met by the prolonged and intense resistance of the very heart of the Scottish nation. It is thrilling to read the story of the struggle in " McCrie's Life of Andrew Melville." "There were giants in the earth in those days." In the end, by? most unscrupulously thinning out the leaders, James partially accomplished his purpose. He effectually accomplished a purpose larger and far nobler than his own. He began to educate the Scottish people to understand the conflict between the two kings, each claiming the right to rule the Church of Scotland. King James or King Jesus, which should guide the consciences of Scotchmen? By his senseless and aggravating inter- ferences, James taught Scotchmen to understand their own position and to prize it. No king but Christ Him- self shall tell us how to regulate the affairs of His own house. Christ and He a/one is Head of the Church of Scotland. Charles followed his father, and carried his mad interferences further still, till Jennie Geddes threw her stool at the dean and the whole nation was stirred to its depth to say : " We will have no king over our kirk but Jesus Christ Himself." Then they bound themselves as individuals and as a nation to stand by the simplicity and purity of the faith and discipline laid down by the Reformers. The world looked on in wonder to see noblemen and tradesmen, laborers and lairds, vieing with each other in signing the Solemn League and Covenant, in which each signer pledged A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 33 i that could ^ m an- il inple . He Sii his 3l the len he it was ; King d. istance rjrilUng Life of iarth in out the je. He r nobler \ people js, each King sciences g inter- id their st Him- iis own urch of is mad rew her irred to ver our bound and by ine laid on in lers and I Solemn [pledged himself and his all in support of tl.e Crown Rights of the Redeemer. Loyalty is a beautiful thing ; it is a marvellously powerful principle. When Christianity develops in the shape of loyalty to Christ as King, it puts on its highest istrength and appears in its most beautiful garments. Whole-hearted loyalty to Jesus Christ is the highest type of Christianity. It is the type that shall yet subdue the whole world to the Redeemer's sway. It is pre- eminently the type of Scottish religion in its best days. It wat loyalty to Christ as King that devised the C"''en;'-nt and signed it, and stood to it — stood to it r • li nj, enthusiasm and obstinacy that few nations or ndi'/iduals know how to combine. You often see entlmsiasm, and oftener still obstinacy ; but in combina- tion they are rare. And Charles had to yield and let them have their way, Charles had to abandon his purpose, but God accomplished His. He had given another and a deeper lesson to the Church and to the world — Christ, and He alone, must be Head of the Church. Thirty years later, and another Stuart king sat on the throne of England. Charles the Second, light and flippant in everything else, was strongly determined in this : to red"-^" the Church of Scotland from its simple allegiance to i Lord Jesus Christ. Martyr blood flowed like vater and money was extorted by hundreds of thousyMi.!^: o'^ pounds. Charles only partially accom- plished li..s pu - ise, but again God accomplished His. The leson thir c.n\^ had been so written out in letters of blood that it never could be forgotten : Christ, and He alone, at any cost, must be Head of the Church of Scotland. The world looked on and wondered, for most people could not understand why Scotchmen would rather die than attend the ministry of the curates. But they knew it was for tht rights of the Lord Jesus Christ that they were suf^:i•in^^f. The spirit in which they met death in such a ca'isc i^; .-^ctn in one who had fallen on the moor under his iU::t.h- wound. Rising for a moment from a 3 •nr ■1 'I 1 ! 1 ' ' I i ! 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ' i ' i i i i! 1 j 1 i i ; i i 1 ; ij 1 I ; ; l! 1 , ; \ • i ' i i ■ ji if L i !' 34 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. pool of his own blood, he cried in a voice that has since echoed down the ag"es : "Though every hair on my head were a life, I would give them all for the Crown Rights of my Redeemer ! " James the Second followed for a terrible three years, and then came the Revolution. No more royal inter- ference. The Church of Scotland was legally established in her double right — her right to receive her maintenance from the Crown, and, along with it, her infinitely more precious right to take i r laws as a Church only from Christ, her King and H» ' Though legally free u >' In the possession of her rights, the Church of Scotian^ rose from the years of persecution in a terribly crippled condition for the exer- cise of them. The flower of her ministry were all swept away, perished among the i8,ooo sufferers for the Crown Rights of Jesus Christ. Her pulpits were filled with half-hearted or positively antagonistic men, and they, with their elders, must constitute her General Assembly, through which alone she could authoritatively act. There were no trained, godly students ready to step into the vacancies as they should occur. The out- look was dark ; but the heart of the people was generally true, and steadily the Church worked up towards efficiency as the years went by. Patronage was abolished, so that each congregation, as it became vacant, was left free to choose its own pastor, and to a considerable extent men of the right stamp were chosen. Left thus in the simple exercise of their legal rights, the people of Scotland in one generation would have filled the General Assembly with men as loyal to Christ as the sole Head of the Church as they were themselves. For a few years this process went on. Then came the Union of England and Scotland in 1707. The then established rights of the Church of Scotland were solemnly guaranteed to her by the articles of union. But how was faith kept in this respect ? As Professor Gregg puts it in his short and valuable history : '* In violation of these articles, an Act was ^ A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 35 rushed through the British Parliament in 171 2 restoring^ patronage, and virtually placing the appointment of ministe* . in the hands of the Government, of noblemen, and oiner parties or persons who might have no sym- pathy with the Church. Against this invasion of its liberties and violation of national faith the Church long protested, but protested in vain." Bolingbroke, who introduced the bill, was a pro- fessed iniidel. He did not pretend that, in transferring the right of choosing ministers from the God-fearing people of Scotland to the godless Government and worldly nobility, he was at all seeking to advance the cause of Christ. Everybody knew that the reintroduc- tion of patronage was a direct violation of the articles of union to which the national faith had been pledged only five years before. But it put a vast amount of power into the hands of the new patrons, and the Scot- tish representation in the British Parliament was exceed- ingly small, so, with less opposition than should have been expected, the bill was rushed through and became law. Bolingbroke accomplished his purpose. What was God's purpose ? One thing was certainly accomplished — Christ's loyal people in Scotland passed through a time of testing far more severe than even the times of persecution. Pulpits were now chiefly filled by men of the world, and the people had no power to prevent it. The reign of '* moderatism " began, and the darkest cloud the Reformed Church of Scotland had known, set- tled down upon her. The Church as an Assembly soon ceased altogether to contend for the rights of Jesus Christ, and gave itself rather with right goodwill to censuring and hindering those whose hearts were set upon the advance of Christ's real kingdom. During the early years of the century an old book, '* The Marrow of Modern Divinity," was largely circu- ated in Scotland, and began to fill many corners of the land with the fragrance of the doctrines of grace. Now these docvrines were not in repute among the generation of worldly ministers forming the mass of the Genera! 36 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Assembly in those days. • Anything in the shape of a strong, living Christianity savored too much of the old Covenanters, and was misunderstood and looked upon with a jealous eye. The book was brought up before the Ecclesiastical bar, was tried, found guilty and con- demned as a fanatical and dangerous production, and one that ought to be discountenanced in every possible way. Twelve of the most Godly ministers of the Church appeared before the Assembly and strongly "repre- sented " the real character of the book, and of the doc- trines of grace therein taught, and urged the reversing of the sentence pronounced against it. After much vexatious opposition, thi twelve Representers were dismissed from the bar of the Assembly with rebukes and admonition, and narrowly escaped deposition as favorers of dangerous d ctrin^s. In 1732 the Etangeiical minority in the Assembly to the number of more than forty ministers, presented an address asking for redress of grievances. They were supported by a petition signed by hundreds of elders and private Christians, earnestly asking action in the same direction. Both ministers and laymen were refused even a hearing, and the Assembly proceeded to act directly in the face of their requests. The decided opposition o( the minority roused the Assembly to personal action against them, and four of their leaders, of whom Ebenezer Erskine was chief, were first suspended from the office of the ministry, and afterwards deposed. It was not now king or bishop or parliament that was fighting against the Crown Rights of Jesus Christ. It was the corrupted General Assembly herself. She pushed out of her midst the most valiant soldiers that were left, and then settled down to exactly a century of worldliness and stagnation. The deposed men, separated from the Church of their fathers, protested that an unjust sentence could not ex- clude them from the office of the ministry, that they would still feed the flock of God as He might open doors for them. The four formed themselves in what they called the Associate Presbytery, and began at once to act as a properly constituted body. A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 37 Thus originated the Church of the Secession, which, during the dark century between 1733 and 1833 grew and multiplied, and held high the light of life among a "people that sat in darkness," till its ministers were numbered by hundreds, both in Scotland and England, and later in the Colonies and mission fields as well. Much '* gold, silver and precious stones " were built by these builders upon the one foundation, while " wood, hay and stubble " were the order of the day in the Mother Church. They were a people who knew much about self- denial. Excluded from the Establishment, they had no means of support but the voluntary offerings of their attached, but often humble congregations, who had not been trained thus to support their ministers as we are now. This state of matters developed much self-^'cnial on the part of both ministers and people. But self- denial is excellent Christian gymnastics, and the Seces- sion throve amazingly on it. That which at first was regarded as a disability, was soon found to be a source of power, and like Paul, they learned to glory in their infirmity that the power of Christ might rest upon them. All this was right and proper. They found the volun- tary method a good method. Very good. They found, as years went on, and its effects on all parties began to be tested, that the voluntary method is the best method. Better still. It was a grand discovery, and one for which the world should thank them. But they went further, and began to announce with more and more boldness that the voluntary method is the only rif!;ht method for the support of Christ's cause. Had they rested in opinion no serious harm might have been done. But the instinct of the Caledonian mind is to go deep down past mere opinion, and find an everlasting principle at bottom — a principle which shall make the opinion, not only right, but necessarily and exclusively right, and all opposers, not only wrong, but necessarily and radically wrong. The principle they evolved to prove their position was a new view of Christ's mediatorial office and claims. I ^! 38 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. !! 11 ■t l.if, i - J Christ, they said, does most assuredly claim to be the Head of the Church, but He does not claim to be Head of the nations. He certainly claims the allegiance and service of king's and magistrates as individiiixls^ but He asks nothing from them as kings and magistrates but the honest performance of their duties towards their fellow- men, diligently securing to all classes and individuals their rights as members of society. Not only does a king or magistrate owe no official duty to Jesus Christ or His cause, he has no right to use the powers of his office to advance that cause. For a civil ruler to endow a church is wrong, and for a church to accept endowment is another wrong. This was materially different from the teachings of the Reformers, they had stoutly maintained not oi.ly the Headship of Christ over the Church, but also the glorious Headship of Christ over the nations. They maintained in terms that gave no uncertain sound, that it is the bounden duty of the Christian ruler of a Christian nation to endow and sustain the Church of Christ within it, wherever the circumstances are such as to make such a step advisable, and yet a still higher duty for him to leave the Church absolutely free from all control in mat- ters spiritual. The Reformers taught that kings should be " nursing fathers and queens nursing mothers " to the Church whenever it needed such nursing. The Secession maintained that no such nursing was ever admissible at all. This is what has been termed Voluntaryism. It holds high Christ's Kingship over the Church, but it robs Him of His Kingship over the nations — robs Him, except in a modified sense, of a title which He surely claims, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. There were several divisions and subdivisions, unions and reunions among these Seceders, till at last they became, about the middle of this century, the United Presbyterian Church, a Church almost identical in doc- trine and discipline with the old Church of the Reformers, were it not for this one significant departure touching the Headship of Christ over the nations, or.Voluntaryism, A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 39 3 the Head ^ ; and It He jt the ;llow- iduals loes a Christ of his sndow ivment ngs of k.ly the lorious itained is the iristian ; within :e such him to in mat- should :rs" to The Ls ever holds )s Him Lcept in [claims, unions >t they I United 1 in doc- )rmers, )uching laryism. Nearly a century passed away, and God seemed to have forgotten to be gracious to the poor, shackled Church of Scotland. But it was not so. His time was drawing near. Thomas Chalmers, a "moderate" young minister, who cared more about winning distinction in mathema- tics than about winning souls to Christ, was brought in a very interesting way to know the Gospel as the "power of God unto salvation." He at once began to preach it and two young men were led to Christ by that first sermon. Soon the voice that was stirring the dry bones in the little village of Kilmany, was transferred to Edin- burgh. The Power that descended in the day of Pente- cost was in him, and life flowed from his lips and radiated from his pen. The genius of the man made way for the simplicity of the Gospel among the rich and cultured, and the simplicity of the man made way for him, and for it into the hearts and homes of the very poorest. After that, first in St. Andrews and then in Edinburgh itself he was called to the professor's chair. There, with the young men clustering about htm in one long enthusiasm, he magnified Christ among them. Another man of might was doing much the same work in the same spirit. Dr. Andrew Thompson, of St. George's, Edinburgh. Largely through the influence communicated by means of these two men, a spring-time visited the long- forsaken Church of Scotland. Signs of life were every- where. Whether God converted the " Moderate" min- isters as he did young Chalmers, or converted the god- less patrons so that they chose godly ministers, or so drew the young students to Himself that it became hard for the patrons to find a worldly one, I do not know. But the "Moderate" majority in the Assembly that had so long ruled for darkness and death began to find its numbers diminishing. The godly minority that, during the darkest days, had been lifting up a voice for the King, saw its numbers increasing. In 1833 the Evan- gelicals were in the 'majority, and could now manage the aff"airs of Christ's Kingdom in His interest and under His guidance. 4^ THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. 1! ! ■i i But it is not wise to make too many changes at once. What should they seek first to set right ? One of the most grievous things during all these years of Moderatism had been the setting over congre- gations by the mere will of the patron, men nowise fitted for the office and utterly distasteful to the people. For many years the Moderate majority had made no effort to mitigate or abolish the evil. Indeed, they rather rejoiced to have it so, for it was through the working of this very law that most of them had obtained their positions. The only thorough cure was to appeal to Parliament, and get the unjust law of patronage repealed. Those who know anything of the difficulty of interfering with *' vested rights" know something of the opposition and delay that might be looked for before anything could be gained in that quarter. How many years or decades of years would pass' before the conscience of the British Parliament would be moved ? Who could tell ? Could anything be done in the meantime in the way of mitigating the evil ? They could not, till the law was changed, interfere wi'^h the right of the patron to choose and present the minister. But they could empower the Christian people, by a sufficient majority, to decline the minister presented, leaving it still to the patron to choose another. A law putting this power into the hands of the Christian people was passed by the General Assembly of 1834. It was called the Veto Act, because though it could not give the people the power of choice in the matter of their minister, it gave them, in certain circum- stances, the power to veto the choice of the patron. Professor Gregg gives the following account of the noted case of Auchterarder : " A few months after the passage of the Veto Act, the parish of Auchterarder became vacant, and the Earl of Kinnoul, who was the patron of the parish, nomin- ated Mr. Young to the charge. A call to Mr. Young was prepared to be signed by the parishioners, but only three persons, one of whom was the patron's factor, and a non-resident, signed it, On the other hand, out of I (il A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 41 350 male heads of families who were members of the congregation, 287 appeared before the Presbytery and recorded their opposition to the settlement of Mr. Young. The Presbytery refused to sustain the call, and their refusal was sustained by the superior courts, the Synod and the General Assembly. Regarding them- selves as robbed of their rights, the patron and his nom- inee appealed to the judges of the Court of Session, who by a majority of eight to five, decided that the Presbytery had acted in violation of the law of the land, and par- ticularly of the act of 1712." Mr. Young now demanded that the Presbytery should proceed to settle him as minister over the people that had so unanimously declined his services. The case came before the Assembly, \\hich decided that, though the civil courts had a right to deal with the stipend and church property as they might deem fit, they had neither right nor power to require the Church to settle an un- suitable minister over an unwilling people. Let them give Mr. Young the salary and manse if they chose. He could not occupy the pulpit or take the position of min- ister of the parish. They also empowered the Presby- tery to appeal from the Court of Session to the House of Lords. But their appeal was dismissed by the House of Lords, and the finding of the Court of Session was declared to be law. Mr. Young now enjoyed the stipend, but he was not content. He claimed that he must be settled over the parish as its minister. This the Presby- tery refused to do, and the case was again carried before the Court of Session. That court again decided against the Church, and required the Presbytery to proceed at once with the settlement of Mr. Young, prohibiting at the same time the placing of any other minister over the parish, even though he should be sustained by the vol- untary offerings of the people. Thus the old Church of Scotland, awakened from her long lethargy, "putting on her strength, shaking herself frcm the dust," and going to do her King's work in the King's name, was met by the Court of Session and told she was to do exactly what as the handmaid of v . 49 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. I r I ;l Christ she knew she oiig^ht not to do, and forbidden to do the very thing her real Kinj*- required her to do. It was the old issue up again, who is the head of the Church of Scotland ? Case after case arose all through those years of con- flict, and the eves of the civilized world looked on with the deepest interest. Mr. McKenzie, of Embro, sympathized intensely with the Church in her determination, in matters spiritual, to acknowledge no authority but that of Christ himself. And the young school teacher who watched with him for all the most recent news from the battlefield did so with the soul of a soldier. Every beat of his enthusi- astic young heart responded to the old Scotch battle- cry. The Crown ki,i:;hts of Our Redeemer. Then came the final action of the House of Lords in rejecting the C^laim of Rights. This rejection left nothing to the contending ministers but either meekly to obey the civil ruler to the neglect of the rights of Christ, or still to hold up the rights of Christ and step out of the Established Church. ^ The answer of the Government was received in January, 1843. The Assembly met on the i8th of May. What would be the result then ? How many of the ministers would prove true to their principles? How many of them, for conscience sake, would leave the Establishment — churches and manses, and stipends anJ all — that they might be free to obey Christ, and Christ aione, in all matters spiritual ? " I venture to assert, from pretty accurate informa- tion," said Dr. Cumming, of London, " that less than one hundred will cover the whole secession. . . . But I am not satisfied that any will secede." *' Mark my words," wrote one of the best-informed and most sagacious citizens of Edinburgh, " mark my words, not forty of them will go out." The young school teacher in Canada was watching, with breathless interest, an exhibition of faithfulness sufficient to convince the world that Jesus Christ is Still Head of the true Church of Scotland. Judging by A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 43 his habits in later life, we may well imag-ine the voice of that younj^ Hij^hlaiuler sounding up to Heaven cliirinj;^ those weeks of suspense, seeking '• grace •^Mflicient " for the brothers so put to the test. * " The clay of trial at last arrived. ... So early in the morning as between four and five o'clock the doors of the church in which the Assembly was to convene opened to admit those who hastened to take up the most favorable positions, in which they were content to remain for nine weary hours. "Then the hour of trial came. After the solemn opening prayer, Dr. Welsh, the retiring Moderator, rose and read a Protest, closing with the words : 'This our enforced separation from an Establishment which we loved and prized, through interference with con- science, the dishonor done to Christ's Crown, and the rejection of His sole and supreme authority as King in His Church.' Having finished the reading of this otest. Dr. Welsh laid it upon the table, turned and ^ed respectfully to the Commissioner, left the chair, and proceeded along the aisle to the door of the church. Dr. Chalmers had been standing immediately on his left. He looked vacant and abstracted while the Protest was being read ; but Dr. Welsh's movement awakened him from his reverie. Seizing eagerly upon his hat, he hurried after him with all the air of one impatient to be gone. Mr. Campbell (of Menzie), Dr. Gordon, Dr. Macdonald and Dr. Macfarlane followed him. The effect upon the audience was overwhelming. At first a cheer burst from the galleries, but it was almost instantly and spontaneously restrained. It was felt by all to be an expression of feeling unsuited to the occasion ; it was checked, in many cases, by an emotion too deep for any other utterance than the fall of sad and silent tears. The whole audience was now standing, gazing in stillness upon the scene. Man after man, row after row, moved on along the aisle, till the benches on the left, usually so crowded, showed scarce an occupant. * Memoirs of Thos. Chalmers, Vol. IV., page 332. I 'I 'S 1 111 L ' I If ! :i, I li ;l i ii I 1!! i I i fill 44 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. More than 400 ministers, and a still larg^er number of elders, had withdrawn." And so the Free Church was born. When the news of the Disruption had come to Canadian shores by the slow progress of the sailing vessel, the meeting of Synod, which was to take place in July, was close at hand. That Synod, with the news of the noble conduct of the Free Church brethren warm in their hearts, sent them stirring resolutions of sym- pathy and approval. This they had done throughout the struggle, encouraging the Church to maintain the conflict. Was there any need for a Disruption in Canada ? None took place in Nova Scotia ? How did they avoid it ? The designation of the Synod there was : The Synod of Nova Scotia, /*«' connexion 7vtth the Church of Scotland. At its meeting in 1844 it resolved almost unanimously to drop the clause, in connexion with the Church of Scot- landf and the connexion which it declared, and to sub- stitute another, so that the name should read. The Synod of Nova Scotia, adhering to the Westtninster Standards. In this way the Synod of Nova Scotia stood distinctly on its own feet, and the controversy scarcely touched them. The circumstances of the Canadian Church were essentially the same, and could have been met in the same way. The Evangelical party, at the meeting of Synod in 1844, were urgently desirous that this course should be pursued. But the majority refused to do so. The very body that, during the struggle, had repeatedly encouraged the Evangelical party in Scotland to main- tain the conflict at all costs, decided by a majority of fifty-six to forty to keep connexion with what was left of the Church of Scotland, and to retain the clause in its name which declared that connexion. Those in sympathy with the Free Church felt that, in retaining that name and the connexion it declared, they were sanctioning the action of the Church of Scot- land, refusing to lift a clear testimony as to the Head- A CHAPTER IN CHURCH HISTORY. 45 ship of Christ over the Church, and virtually receding from the solemn declaration already given of attachment to the great principle for which the Free Church party had been contending. On the loth of July, the day after the vote was taken, the minority entered their Dissent to the action of the Synod and withdrew to a separate building, to constitute themselves into the Synod of the Presby- terian Church of Canada, commonly spoken of as the Free Church of Canada. It looks easy on paper ; but tbe Disruption in Canada, as to self-denial, meant much the same as it did in Scotland. The ministers who, for conscience sake, signed that Dissent and withdrew from the Synod in connexion with the Church of Scotland, knew that they thereby risked their churches, manses and salaries. Some of them were required, in very grievous circum- tances, to yield al' up, though some (Mr. McKenzie was one), from the unanimous adherence of their congrega- tions, were spared that trial. But their new college, in whose behalf some of these men had labored hard and denied themselves much, had to be left behind. And all interest in Government endowments were lost. But they gained more than they lost. They gained the right to put in the forefront of their testimony the glorious fact of the Headship of Christ over His own Church. Alongside of that, in shining letters, they put a testimony to the twin truth, the Headship of our Lord Jesus Christ over the nations, for they would have it distinctly understood that, though looking now for support to the voluntary offerings of the people, they were not, on that account, going to leap downwards into Voluntaryism. And thus, poor in this world's goods, but glorying in their King, they set their faces to their work. And did not the King smile upon them and bless them, and signally use them? For many years there were tokens of His prospering hand, that made glad the hearts of those who had borne loss for His sake. Was it without a providential purpose that God 46 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. cause*^ :iius a lesson on the Headship of Christ to be written deep in the early history of the Presbyterian Church in Canada? There is an impression abroad that the whole matter is a '* dead issue " now ; but the his- torian of the struggles culminating in the Millennial victory may take a different view. These were formative facts in connexion with John Ross's character and history. Without a knowledge of them neither character nor history could be intelligently surveyed. 1} \ ;:.(! t . /■••s^s CHAPTER IV. A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. HE newly-formed Synod of the (Free) Presbyter- ian Church in Canada acted with great unan- imity and decision. Though they left behind them, in many cases, churches, manses, and salaries, they carried with them a large proportion of the people, and the enthusiasm of a victorious army was throughout their ranks. With finances, church-building and reorganizing all on their hands, they did not forget that vital matter if their cause was to grow, a college. From July to November was a short time in which to organize and equip a theological seminary, but zeal never says '*I can't," and the 5th of November, 1844, saw the college hall opened. "The place of meeting was a room in the house of Professor Esson, James Street, Toronto, Its furniture is described as consisting of a long deal table, two wooden benches, a few chairs and a range of shelves containing Mr. Esson's library and some books kindly lent by clergymen and other friends for the use of the students." There were fourteen young men in attendance the first session, several of whom entered college then for the first time, but a large proportion were from Queen's. Though the old church party held the college building and equipments, it could not hold the students. Nearly all the members of their theological classes cast in their lot with the Free Church, and presented themselves at the opening of the modest new college on James Street. The young Zorra school teacher did not begin his college course till the next year, 1845. As the group of T r . THE MAN WITH .THE BOOK. I i new students, on the day of the re-opening, came for- ward to enter their names on the college register, that of John Black, afterwards so well known in connection with Kildonan, Manitoba, was given in first and that of John Ross came second. The impression Mr. Ross made on others during his college life is beautifully put by Professor McLaren: — "The present writer entered college two years later, and well remembers the powerful impression made by Mr. Ross's strong personality upon his fellow-students. He did not parade his religion. He spoke comparatively little of his religious feelings and experiences, but no one could come into close contact with him without learning something of his deep spirituality and profound earnestness. He was very natural and unconventional in his style of dealing with religious matters. His reli- gion was not a garment put on, but a life which mani- fested itself, and his character was so transparent and the currents of his religious, nature so strong, that the spirit which reigned in him was visible to all around him." Another friend writes of the same period : *' I first became acquainted with Mr. Ross at Knox College in the autumn of 1845. *' He was at once marked as a man of no ordinary character. His favorite theologian was Jonathan Edwards, and he seemed to revel in the deep and often awful mysteries which Edwards, above all men of modern times, seemed to have the power to unfold. "Trained in the school of Zorra, he early imbibed the deep piety of Rosshire and Sutherlandshire, one point of which was that young people should not at an age so common at the present time, approach the com- munion table. In consequence, though he was regarded in Zorra as a young man of deep piety, he did not unite in the communion of the church till he came to college, when he united at the same communion with myself, under Dr. Burns. I happened to be in the room with some others when Dr. Burns and Mr. Ross were con- versing upon the subject of membership, and I shall A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 49 never forget what took place at that time, or how Dr. Burns was impressed with the knowledge and deep spiritual experience of the young man who yet had great difficulty in overcoming his deep-rooted impression of the awful sacredness of the communion. *' When at college he was quite an explorer in the dark places of Toronto, and a frequent visitor at the hospitals. He took special pleasure when he could use the Gaelic, which was, he always contended, next to the Hebrew, the most powerful language for religious work. "One day he came back from the hospital in great glee. He had found a patient by the name of John Shaw, whom I afterwards knew better as a member of my own congregation. John was deeply concerned for his soul. He had the worst English I ever knew, but revelled in the Gaelic. "The first time Mr. Ross met him was by accident. He had been visiting the hospital, and an attendant told him that there was one man there whom nobody could understand. Mr. Ross settled the difficulty : the un- known tongue was the Gaelic. He spent a long time with Shaw, and told me on his return how delighted the poor man was to meet with one who could speak to him * in the original.' After that Shaw did not want a coun- sellor and friend." Another dear friend and fellow-student writes : — "I cannot say that in college we were intimate chums ; he was a senior while I was a junior. I felt he was my superior in every sense, and felt such, — I was going to say, respect for him, but 'respect' is not suffi- ciently strong to express my feelings towaird him. I revered him, and my reverence was so deep as to make me very backward in approaching him. But in the providence of God, when we became co-presbyters, and workers together in our pastoral and mission fields, my backwardness disappeared, for his warm heart and ster- ling principles and character drew me very near to him." " When I entered college," said another college mate, " Mr. Ross was one of the senior students, and on 4 I i ' ?iil '" \" I ! illll 'i i if! !i I I li II r;l i I ' 1 ill 5P THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. that account, as well as on account of his quickly esti- mated character, was at once regarded with profound respect. A few days afterwards I met him at a corner of a street. I instantly took off my hat, greeting" him with much the same respect I would have paid to the Principal himself. His thoughtful countenance gave no sign of recognition, and he passed on a distance of some yards. Then he suddenly removed his hat with every mark of respect, turned and bowed, saying : — " How do you do, Mr. McLaren ?" Entirely engrossed in his own meditations, the greet- ing of his young fellow student, though distinctly appre- hended by eyes and ears, failed to win the attention of the soul until several seconds had elapsed, and so its recognition was ludicrously tardy. The power o^ mental concentration, which is one secret of pre-eminent success, was developed in Mr. Ross to a very high degree. Consequently difficulties were a delight to him. If his mind took hold of a per- plexity his whole nature bent itself with the intensest eagerness to compass and master it in every detail. It was no hardship to him to hold on. The hardship was to relax for a moment until the object sought was attained. As a student he yielded too much to this fascination of intellectual conquest, yielded to it to the disregard of ordinary and valuable rules. Midnight was nothing to him. Indeed, the hours when everybody else was asleep and all was quiet were by far the prefer- able hours of study for him. A consequence of this hurtful habit is chronicled by one who was well acquainted with him at this time : — " When Mr. Ross was on hand for breakfast, we knew he had stayed up all night. When he did not stay up all night, he never was in time for breakfast. But at all times John Ross was sure to be in time for prayers. " "During his college course," writes Dr. McLaren again, " Mr. Ross took a very high place as a student. He was a thinker, but his thinking did not always run very closely in the lines of his class work, and he would ML, \ \ A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 51 not have distinguished himself in cramming for a modern examination. Even in his ordinary class work he always took a good place ; but it was as a profound and original thinker, who had a peculiarly clear grasp of divine truth, that he became specially known both to professors and students. He Was pre-eminently a theologian. Like many men of genius, he had not the habits of study which would have enabled him to do full justice to his powers ; but his strong personality impressed all who knew him with the conviction that he was no ordinary man." *' Mr. Ross's gifts were such," writes another friend, " that he could start to Toronto with little more money than would pay his fare and depend on prizes, etc., for the expenses of the college term." He entered into his studies with all the enthusiasm of his earnest nature, and yet, as suggested above, it was quite as often the books in the library as the lectures of the professors which got the concentrated attention that cannot be given to two things at once. He regretted in after life that he had not more com- pletely allowed his mental activities to be directed into the ordinary lines of college instruction. But his intel- lectual appetite was strong, and books — especially such as taxed and stimulated thought — were to him an intense delight. The habit of diligently gathering intellectual stores from the book shelves was one that Principal Willis frequently and strongly urged upon his students to cul- tivate. It was a regret to him that some of the young men wore very slack in following his advice in this direction. But between him and the Zorra student there were strong links of sympathy — this, one of the strongest. He knew Mr. Ross to be an earnest student in many lines outside the college course. One day the dignified Principal looked into the library. He saw a young man up on the step-ladder, poring over a book, evidently too much interested to think of getting down and making himself comfortable. This little display of enthusiasm pleased him, but he I ■ Ml I " . i; : y ' ^ I i !i I! ii' I iiUu. ./' Tf /^ 5? THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. turned quietly and left the room, unwilling" to disturb the reader. Some hours later he came back. What was his interest to see the same student in the same position, still poring over the same book. His appreciation could not be restrained any longer. Addressing him by name, he spoke a few words of paternal commendation. John Ross, for it was he, began to back down the ladder with the book still open in his hand. When he reached the floor he turned without a word of response and presented the book, still open, to the eyes of the benignant Principal, who read with a somewhat peculiar change of countenance the title of the book — " Ifotv to Choose a Wife/" There was strong sympathy between these two. To the last Mr. Ros^ cherished the memory of Principal Willis. ** Never," he said, '* did schoolboy answer the dinner- bell with more alacrity than I did the bell that sum- moned me to Principal Willis' class." A fellow-student came in one evening and asked leave to read over his class exercise. It was freely given. Mr. Ross was a keen critic. The faults of the composition were honestly laid bare, and the student went away saying, *' I'll write it over again." The next evening he came back with a fresh paper, or rather the old one remodelled and rewritten. But the critic went at it again, not savagely, but with painful frankness, and again the student left the room saying, a little more sorrowfully this time, " I think I'll write it over again." Soon he came back once more ; but, as he entered the room, he announced in an energetic tone : ** But, remember, I am not going to write it over again." The hitherto merciless critic, feeling that to find fault now would be to do harm, allowed the production to pass without further adverse criticism. And this to the last was his manner of doing his own literary work. A paper for the public prints or an important letter would be written over and over again. A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 53 All the spare time for weeks has been taken up with the writing of a single letter, and a pile of rejected copies, inches high, would gather up at the side of the desk before one that quite expressed his ideas was produced. Deeply Mr. Ross enjoyed the college training throughout its whole course. But He who leaves it to no mere college to equip His chosen ministers was sending another powerful spiritual teacher to give him some of the higher drill for the spiritual warfare. In August, 1844, W. C. Burns, a young minister who had already been signally used of God in the revivals preceding the Disruption in Scotland, took passage in the good ship Mary for Montreal. He em- barked for Canada in answer to urgent invitations from the Christian people ow this side the water. It was September, 1845, before Mr. Burns made his way to Toronto. His uncle, Dr. Burns of Knox College, made an appointment for him to preach on the very day of his arrival at a place near the city bearing the memorable name of Hog's Hollow. Though he arrived on the day on which he was expected, he was not early enough to meet the appointment made for him, and a young min'ster, Mr. Wallace, kindly con- sented to take the service. Two of the students — Mr. John Black, afterwards of Kildonan, and Mr. John Scott, afterwards of London-^ went to meet him on his arrival and conduct him to the college. He was introduced to the assembled students. His grave and serious deportment impressed some of the young men deeply. He told them he had no special message for them, and therefore would give no address; but, if they wished, he would read to them a passage from the Word of God. Mr. Ross afterwards spoke of that first meeting with Mr. Burns as a peculiar experience. " I have heard him speak many times," he said, '* sometimes very powerfully and sometimes not so, but I never got so much from him as when he simply read the Word of God. The truths he had himself been taught by the Spirit of God shone out of the words as he read them, more clearly to me than when he tried to expound them." 54 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. . ''•' \ I I i I flj While reading- the passaj^^e of Scripture chosen, his tongue was loosed to speak freely and most impressively on several of the points in it. The service produced a deep impression among the young men. In the evening Mr. Wallace, who had previously taken his appointment at Hog's Hollow, reported him- self to welcome the young Scotchman. As the two clasped hands, Mr. Burns said : '* Brother, you have been preaching for me. Let us now kneel down together and ask God's blessing upon the message you delivered. " There was a fascination to Mr. Ross about the deeply spiritual services and conversation of William Burns. He was much in the evangelist's company, and watched to be present whenever possible, at any meeting where he was expected. The friendship between them was not unlike that between John Knox and the gracious Wishart, and ready indeed would the young Highlander have been to have carried the sword in his friend's defence, if that had been needful. He spent several months in Montreal while Burns was working in and about the city, con- stantly frequenting his services ; and more than once he stood at his side while stones and mud were madly hurled at them both. On one occasion Burns had been cut over the eye by a too well-directed missile. Mr. Ross called the next day to see him. The evangelist made light of the circumstance, saying : " The one important thing is that we go out tn the name of the Lord. " "As he spoke the words," Mr. Ross said, years after- wards, as he narrated the incident, " I saw as I had never seen before the mighty significance of the expres- sion, to go out * in the name of the Lord.'' " "And as Mr. Ross was speaking the words," said the friend who reported the above, *' I saw as I had never seen before the power of the expression. It was just at the time of Lord Napier's being sent out to Abyssinia to demand the prisoners in the name of the Queen. That incident flashed in along with the words Mr. Ross had spoken, and I saw that, as the whole ;lv! i n ^m iujjn xt ' 11.11- iJ ! i. y , ' - ' ASTUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 55 power of the British Empire was at the back of the man who went out in the name of the Queen, even so the whole omnipotence of the Godhead is at the back of ^he man who jjoes out in the name of the Lord." The same thought thus caujjht from the Spirit-taufjht lips of the wounded evangelist, appeared at a somewhat different angle on another occasion. A brother minister was giving to Mr. Ross his out- line for a proposed sermon on the subject of David's exultant run to meet Goliath. He announced as his third head, "The stripling's equipment for meeting the giant — five smooth stones and a sling — rather small — but he went out in the name of the Lord,'''' "Yes," responded Mr. Ross, with a Celtic gesture of enthusiasm, " and that is a weak thing you strike in the name of the Lord^ " I have never preached that sermon since," said the friend to whom these words were spoken, " without giving that masterly sentence from Mr. Ross. And re- member," he added, " I gave the right man credit for it every time." But it is not always easy to give the " right man credit." How much of the deeper spiritual insight which Mr. Ross enjoyed in handling the word of God, was owing to hallowed intercourse with this young Scotch- man who walked so very near his Master, who may tell ? This much is clear. He had an honorable share in fitting the young Canadian student for the work the Master had for him to do. In these early days, as now, the summer months of the students, between the College sessions, were utilized among the mission fields. Though Mr. Ross was nearly twenty-four years of age when he entered College, his face and figure, from his student habits and his extremely fair complexion, re- tained the youthful, almost boyish appearance. Very early in his College course he was sent for the summer to a mission field where the Gaelic was in great demand. One prayer meeting held among these people yields our first glimpse of him as a missionary. r^ I fl II J , .'I 5^> THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. The subject chosen for the Scripture lesson was the close of the Sermon on the Mount, especially the verses about the man who built the house upon the sand. In preparing for the service the younjj missionary laid his text before him, and thought out his address on this line. ** What are the sandy foundations on which / am most tempted to build?" He knew that, "as in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man," and concluded that if, in the Wght of his own temptations, he should open up the passajje, he would not be drawing the bow at a venture, but would, in all probability, be making" straight for the joints and marrow of the souls that were to gather before him. There was a good meeting, and amongst the rest, there came a rather conspicuous figure, an old elder whose name was John. Though scarcely yet acquainted with this old man, 'Mr. Ross had heard of him as one whose temper was touchy, and who needed to be dealt with judiciously The address was given along the lines of preparation. The young preacher felt that John paid critical attention. He did not gather whether the impression made was favorable or otherwise, but, according to his pre- arranged plan, for he was anxious to do whatever could be properly done to lead the old man to a kindly disposi- tion towards himself, he asked at the close of the address — " Will Mr. John , please lead us in prayer? " He was not prepared for the tirade that followed. John rose, but it was something like a scold that was poured out in the shape of a prayer. The old High- lander had taken the searching exposition of the young preacher as a succession of barbed arrows directed wit- tingly against himself. He seemed to have imagined that the occasion of that discourse was information re- ceived of his own peculiar infirmities, and, though he did not disclaim them, and was willing, on the whole, to take a humble place before God on account of them, he felt it hard to be thus publicly rebuked by so young a man. A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 57 •* And how is this thus?" he be^-an, adclressinjj the Ahni^-hty, "that a^ed Eli is aj^-ain rebuked by whey- faced Samuel ? " This orijjinal word-painting" of his own youthful appearance helped to secure for the scene and all its de- tails a permanent place in the missionary's memory. During the summer of 1848 or 1849 Mr. Ross did missionary work in and around Bradford. The impres- sion left upon some of his hearers there has proved deep and strong. The writer lately had the pleasure of spend- ing" an evening" with one of them, an old man of over eighty-five years of age. It was delightful to see how the enthusiasm of youth would return as he told of this prayer meeting and that Sabbath service. One peculi- arity of these recollections struck me as he talked. Though few of the remarks of the preacher had been preserved in memory, in every case the text stood out distinctlv. The power of the sermon was seen, not in tlnit it lived itself, but in that it had been made effectual to the indelible writing of the text in the heart and mind of the hearers. He recalled also a prayer-meeting in which the close of the eighth chapter of Proverbs was the passage ex- pounded. The young preacher explained that the Christ of the New Testament is the Wisdom of Proverbs. In passing from verse to verse he showed that it is Jesus Himself who is the speaker, asserting His fellowship with Jehovah, and Sonship as well. But the word which lingered most lovingly with the white-haired pilgrim who was recalling these things was this sentence : '*My del-o-hts were with the sons of men." cannot tell you now what he said, but that word he opened up to us, and it was good." " here were a few good men amongst us in those days, lie went on, *' and they all set much store by Mr. Ross." Then, as though accounting for this unanimous par- tiality on the pa t of those "good men," he quoted this verse with accompanying anecdote : " ' Of aloes, myrrh and cassia A smell thy garments had.' A' I' I li'^: I 'M'A >^ I i ''ill l'' III : '^' 'II • 1"'. 'J- 1 :i; : ";!l ilL 5$ I THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ' ♦« * Do you think,' said one of our old worthies, * that the child of God has no nose that he should not be able to smell the savor of the Lord's garments upon those who are much in His company ? ' " Then he went on to tell of another prayer meeting in which the first chapter of I. John was commented on. **You should have heard him," he said, "opening up that word, * That which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and our hands have handled of the Word of Life — that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us.' " The following are some striking utterances, most of which were communicated in writing : To those who kick against God's rule, and want to manage themselves and the world according to their owi"! ideas, he said : ** Vou would wrest the sceptre out of your Maker's hands. But you would not hold the reins long till you would be glad to restore them." A friend told him on one occasion : " Some of the Bradford people were angry at what you said to-day." "I am glad to see them get angry," he answered. ** It is the non-caring Gallioes that are the more hope- less cases." While urging sinners by the terrors and doom of the Day of Judgment to seek refuge now in a crucified Saviour, he said : **God is awful in His mercy, out of His treasury sending thunder and lightning to do us good. What will He be in His ivrath /" ** I had asked a neighbor," explained my informant, "if it is in a sinner's own power to believe. * Can you pluck the sun down to earth ? ' was his answer. One day I told Mr. Ross the answer I had received, and asked him if it conveyed the truth. He replied in this way : * To such an inquiry I would say. The sin of unbelief is an inexcusable sin, for it makes God out to be a liar, and then it is the prolific mother of all other sins. Still the gift of faith is by, to, through and for A STUDENT AND STUDENT MISSIONARY. 59 Jesus. Then, upward look, however distressed at your own unbelief. 'Look unto me,' the Lord has said, • and be ye saved.'' " "As I wrote these words to you," sa;d the ag'ed Christian who had penned them, ** the truth of them shined in upon me as it never did before — that I am just to look to ]esus /or faifk and everything else, and that Jesus will do the 7vhole I " The time came, in the spring of 1850, when the last college exercise was written and the last examination passed. The student, as a student, stepped for the last time out of the college building, ready now to go out among the people and *' tell them all the words of this life." He afterwards described his sensations in one short sentence : "Then," he said, ** I danced a jig on the college green, for now I could be off to my work." The church at that time required of her young ministers that one year at least must be given to the mission fields before settling over any congregation. This was the work above all others that Mr. Ross loved best. He had hitherto enjoyed refreshing tastes of it between the college sessions ; but now, without hin- drance or delay, he could give himself wholly to it. TTT ! i'- III I I ! S ■111 I ; :^i . i I CHAPTER V. BRUCEFIELD. few years ago a burly farmer was standing on the platform of a railway car as the train was steaming slowly out of Brucefield station. The conductor eyed him good naturedly, as he was evidently looking for something. ♦ "Where is the town?" inquired the good farmer, still searching across the country for something he could not find. " Humph ! there is no town," replied the conductor, " but that's Brucefield," pointing with his thumb over his shoulder, "You can see it now we're past the station." *' You don't say ! I've heard so much about Bruce- field I thought it was something to look at," replied the farmer in a disappointed tone, and retreated to his seat. Brucefield is a quiet, tidy little place, clustering about the crossing of two main thoroughfares, the London Road and the Bayfield Road. Its chief import- ance is that it is the centre of a thriving, energetic settlement in one of Canada's choicest agricultural sec- tions. Because of its central position in the county and the excellent roads leading up to it, it hat. enjoyed a celebrity out of proportion with its size fron^ the hold- ing there of important county meetings, and also the great annual county show of stock and implements. But Brucefield's real title to consideration lies in the class of people settled in and around it. A few choice families represented England and the north of Ireland. There were also a good many Lowland Scotch of the best type, but the larger proportion were godly High- landers, some of whom in the first instance had no BRUCEFIELD. 6i English whatever, and many others felt to the end that English was a foreign tongue. Altogether they were a God-fearing community who, in those early days of straitness and difficulty, '* forsook not the assembling of themselves together." It was a touching exhibition of faithfulness in this respect when Gaelic-speaking men and women attended seriously the preaching of the Word of God in a language they could not understand, and attempted to join in singing the praises of the God they loved in words that conveyed no meaning to their ears. One good woman, recently out from the High- lands, said to her husband on their way home from the English service, while the tears were running down her cheeks : — "And am I never more to hear the Word of God preached in my own tongue ?" The question went to his heart, and the result was that, though they had already taken up land, they threw up their claim and moved to another district, where they were within reach of Gaelic preaching. Rev. Wm. Graham, a missionary recently out from Scotland, was the first Free Church minister under whom the Brucefield people were gathered as a congre- gation. He had accepted a call from the congregation of Egmondville, a village about six miles further east, and Brucefield was added to his charge as a station. This arrangement was very satisfactory, for the Bruce- field people did not yet feel able to maintain a minister by themselves, and they were much pleased at securing the regular services of a man of God and an excellent preacher. Though he had not the Gaelic, and that was a great sorrow to some, yet Gaelic preaching was some- thing they scarcely dared look for, especially in those days when the harvest was so grfeat and the laborers of any description were so very few. But soon the Egmondville people became anxious to have the whole time of their minister for themselves, and steps were taken to carry this wish into eflfect. The people of Brucefield were at first deeply disappointed at losing a minister whose services they had highly prized. T' m ill 62 J THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. l! 1 ' \ \i ■■'\ \'\ ; t f A I •■!'■ But they did not yield to discouragement. There was enterprise among-st them, and it was not long until they were taking energetic measures to secure a minister for themselves. As there were so many Gaelic-speaking people amongst them, they were particularly anxious for one who could preach in that language as well as in English. Mr. McKenzie of Embro, moderator of Presbytery at the time, was communicated with on the subject, but his answer was that the demand for such services was so great, and those who could render them were so few, that he could not encourage them to hope for success in that matter. About a mile north of Brucefield, on the only hill for miles along the London road, there had settled a godly and energetic Higjilander, Mr. Neil Ross. He was personally acquainted with Mr. Lachlan McPherson, now a Free Church minister settled in the township of Williams not far from London. In the early autumn of 1850 Mr. Neil Ross was down at London on business. While there he heard that the communion was to be dispensed at Lobo, only a few miles from the church where Mr. McPherson preached. He decided to tvait and attend the services. He drove over early and had a little conversation with his friend before the service commenced. To the genuine Highlander's question as to what Gaelic minis- ters were expected to take part, Mr. McPherson replied, — "There is a young man with us, one John Ross. He is a gifted man, the son of his grandfather, George McKay, of Embro, Duine Righ-lochan." The stranger took his seat in the church. He watched with keen interest for a first glimpse of the young Gaelic minister, whose name he had just heard for the first time. In a few minutes a rather tall, fair, youthful-looking man entered and passed up into the pulpit. He conducted the opening services with unusual seriousness, and then gave out his text, Isaiah liii. 12, "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide his spoil with the strong : because BRUCEFIELD. 63 he hath poured out his soul unto death, and he was numbered with the transg^ressors ; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession f-^r the transgressors." The stranger listened with the intensest interest. He marked the text. ** Well, young man," he said within himself, ** if you can handle that text, you'll do." But he did handle the text, and the listener's heart was drawn with a love and appreciation that waxed ever warmer as the years swept by to the young man who could so speak of Jesus Christ. As he was moving slowly out of the church, he heard Mr. McPherson's voice in conversation with another voice he at once recognized as that of the young min- ister : — " How do you expect to get to Kincardine ?" "I can walk if there is no other way," was the reply, "only it will take a good deal of time." ** There is a man here to-day down from the Huron tract," Mr. McPherson said, ** I know you can get up with him if you wish, and that would take you more than half way." Mr. Neil Ross now turned around and addressed Mr. McPherson, and those who understand his generous nature will know with what heart the words were spoken. "I will drive Mr. Ross as far as my place and farther, if he will ride with me." During the long drive which followed a personal friendship was begun which never knew a break, not even a ruffle. The Brucefield people at once acted with energy. Mr. McKenzie was again communicated with, and, over- riding difficulties that stood in the way, they succeeded in securing two precious Sabbaths from the young Gaelic preacher as he was passing southward, after fulfilling his Kincardine appointment. In the spring of the next year, 1851, they again secured his services for six weeks, and at the end of that time they were ready to extend a "call." THE PRCPERTY OF SCARBORO PUBLIC LI3;-^ARY. 64 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ii III Mr. Allan of North Easthope moderated in the "call," — Mr. Allan, the young Scotch minister whose arrows in years gone by had kept the Zorra boy awake at night — of whom that same boy had thought, " I would as soon shake hands with the lightning." Many a hearty hand- shake was between them in subsequent years, with all the real brotherliness that ?. handshake is meant to imply. Mr. George Walker, one of Brucefield's elders, was appointed to carry the call to London and lay it before the Presbytery. When he had done so he found, with some anxiety, that another call, one from Aldboro', was before that body as well as the one from Brucefield. " It cost Mr. Ross anxious thought and prayer before he could make sure which was the call he was to follow. There were strong reasons in favor of each, and some specially weighty 6nes that told in favor of Aldboro'. The thought that finally overbalanced all opposing reasons and brought him to decision was this : " Brucefield will be an open door to the mission fields in the north." So Mr. Walker carried home the glad news that their minister was to be set over the congregation in a few weeks — on the 25th of the September following. Those who know anything about the deep delight of godly Highlanders rn the preaching of God's Word in their own tongue can have some measure of sympathy with the joy and expectancy of the Brucefield people. The day of the ordination and induction was a point of eager anticipation. None were more glad and humbly grateful than Mr. and Mrs. Neil Ross up on the hill. But a sorrowful surprise awaited the good couple. Shortly before the day appointed Mr. Neil Ross received an official summons from Goderich to report himself at the Court House on the morning of the 25th of Septem- ber, that he might act on the jury required on that day. Here was a dilemma for a Highlander. He could not be at Goderich and Brucefield both at the same time. The law imperatively required his prompt appearance at Goderich. His whole man — spiritual, national, social — clamored to be at Brucefield. What could be done ! iliLn, BRIJCEFIELD. He went up to Goderich the day before, and sought an interview with the sheriff. This considerate officer did not make light of the case. He thought over it a little. *' No doubt," he said, ** you would like to be at the ordination of your minister. Wait till the Court opens to-morrow morning. If the jury is pretty numerous, you might take your chance and slip. It might be all right." Thi,s he did, and to his great satisfaction he found that the jury was full without him. He "slipped," according to the suggestion of the considerate sheriff, and hastened over the twenty miles between Goderich and Brucefield, to attend the ordination and induction of their young Gaelic minister, John Ross. Mr. McKenzie, of Embro, was present and preached the sermon on the text, "We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may he of God." And then was formed the bond between pastor and people which must have been first formed and registered in heaven, for it stood tests which would surely have broken any links of mere earthly origin. For thirty-five years the young man who entered that day into a covenant of the Lord with his flock was known wherever he went as John Ross of Brucefield, and as John Ross of Brucefield he filially laid down his armor and passed out of sight. Mr. Ross's views and feelings concerning this very peculiar bond were entirely different from those that usually find expression in these days. The overruling consideration that determined which *'call" to accept was not the amount of salary nor the smallness of the labor involved ; it was the opportunity one field offered for more abundant and arduous labors. When, the spring following his ordination, his beloved young wife ** fell asleep," and friends were very anxious to remove the body to the family burying-place in Zorra. Some of his Brucefield people came to ask his wishes in the matter. His answer was : " I have come to live among you, and I intend to i**- I' '1 i "1, Ml" li • "1. 1,1 .:M i i 1 '!'' ■"■ j 1 ■■it,'' ,,,, iif I hi 1^1 66 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. die among" you: That body must lie Aere." It was accordingly buried in the middle of the little church- yard which lay a few yards from the manse door. When, twenty years later, he received a most urgent ** call " from the historic congregation of Indian Lands, Glengarry, he was for a while a great deal perplexed as to the path of duty. Some special features of the case made him question for a time if it might not, after all, be a call from the Master. It was not for long, how- ever. He positively declined to go, saying to a friend, as he told of his decision, " It seems to me I love the sinners about Brucefield better than the saints anywhere else." They were not a particularly amiable class of sinners either that drew his heart so strongly at the time. The special individuals present in his mind were a number of godless lads that for a while seemed to have agreed together to annoy him in small ways. Some of these very young men, a few years later, watched with grateful eagerness on a dying bed for the visits of the Man with the Book. The love he cherished for his people was most beau- tifully reciprocated by them. In ways so many and so unusual that only genuine love could have devised them, they testified that love throughout the thirty-five years that he was with them ; and through the ten years that have passed since, it has blossomed perhaps even more freely than before. One thing he was particularly grate- ful for, they never hindered him in the missionary work upon which his heart was set. If supply for his pulpit could be obtained, it was obtained ; but if not, his elders were always ready and willing to conduct a prayer meet- ing in his absence. *' One blessing," Mr. Ross said, near the close of his life, *' one blessing God has given me ever since I came to Brucefield, and for which I cannot thank him too much, is a harmonious and helpful eldership. When I see the trouble some of our best ministers have from that quarter, I cannot but rejoice in this peculiar blessing." It was not an ordinary band of elders that gathered around the young minister of Brucefield. At the begin- ning there were five. !i • [PU ««fT BRUCEFIELD. 67 Mr. George Walker was a born leader of men, with a large heart, a clear understanding, a singularly correct judgment, and most felicitous powers of expression. A more powerful ally could hardly be imagined, and all his powers and all his resources were ever held ready when his minister needed either them or him. Many a time Mr. Ross thanked God from the bottom of his heart for Mr. Walker's ready and efficient friendship. Mr. Hugh Mustard was one of " The Men " of the Highlands, and a rare specimen of the same. During Disruption days in Scotland, when Free Church ministers were not always within reach, the people did not go away without spiritual bread if he opened to them the Word of God. It was said of him by one who knew him well in Canada, '* You cannot be long in Hugh Mustard's com- pany till the conversation will turn to things of Christ." His short and simple counsel to one who told him of the temptations of the great adversary, was given in these words, " Meet him with Christ." Toward the close of his life he had been sitting quietly thinking one evening. Suddenly he rose full of a thought. "Christ does the whole," he said with emphasis, " and yet, blessed be His name. He speaks as though we did it." When, in the quiet of the Communion Sabbath morning, this spiritual Christian opened the book and spoke briefly on some passage to the waiting people, they were words of "weight that fell from his lips. Upon one such occasion he gave them one of Christ's parting promises, spoken on that memorable night of the first communion. " I will see you again, and your hearts shall rejoice." He gave it as a word of cheer to those whose hearts were out after their absent Lord, and as a word of searching to those who "love not our Lord Jesus Christ." It may easily be understood that such an elder was a continual blessing. Mr. Robert Carnochan was the sweet singer of the congregation. His voice was singularly rich and clear, T 68 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. i'lii with a spiritual ring- in it that could not be mistaken. He always knew how to adapt tunes to words, and sang with a sweetness and solemnity that could be felt, and yet with a power that easily carried the whole congreg^a- tion. His very countenance, and tall, dignified figure, were an influence for good, for he evidently completely forgot himself, and his whole being was filled with the thought to which he was giving most musical utterance. As to personal character he was mild, judicious, firm and .full of the sort of lovingkindness that is described in the 13th chapter of I. Corinthians. ** Why did you call your boy Robert?" I asked once of a father who had just given that name to his first- born son. '* I called him after Mr. Carnochan ; " was the signi- ficant answer, "^nd I did it because I thoug^ht I could not name him after a better man." Mr. Angus Gordon did not remain long with Bruce- field, as a congregation w'as soon after formed in Clinton, where he lived. But he left a fragrant memory with the people among whom he had worshipped ; and his benignant, serious countenance and helpful presence were much missed. Something of his gracious character can be seen to this day in the countenance and conduct of some of his great grandchildren, marking them out as different from their fellows. Mr. John McQueen was the fifth. He was a worthy man, well known for his sterling qualities and steady friendships ; but he died many years before Mr. Ross. In later years Mr. George Forrest was added to the Brucefield eldership. He was a man of like character with the rest, always holding up his minister's hands and making i'\e things of the Kingdom the first concern. Each name on the list proved cause for an additional note in Mr. Ross's song of gratitude for " this peculiar blessing from God, a harmonious and helpful session." i ! The following extracts from one of Mr. Ross' note- books will let the reader into some of the secrets of this young minister's life, especially his conversational BRUCKFIIilLD. 69 method of studying the Scriptures and his own estimate of the work committed to his hands— of the power by whicli it was to be done and the spirit in which it must be prosecuted. "Meeting" this morning- the two blind men who cried to him for light, I cried for light for myself, and was met by the words, * And why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I command you?' Another turn of the pages, and there was the story of blind Bartimeus, who asked that he might receive his sight. Again I asked light for myself, and then was met by the words, ' Many will say unto me in that day. Lord, Lord, etc., etc., to whom He will answer, Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity.' " Let me, therefore, see that I attend to the words and do what He saith — read and preach what He bids me read and preach, 1^0 where He bids me go, shun what He bids me shun, put away what He bids me put away, and study what He bids me study." The next entry is evidently a meditation on paper, meant for his own improvement, not an outline of the sermon. " Peter and Andrew casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. And He saith unto them, ' I'ollow me, and I will make you fishers of men,' and they straightway left their net and followed Him." (Matthew 18-20.) IV FISHERS OF MEN. " Those who become in this sense ' fishers of men' are made such by Jesus Christ. But, ist, He makes those who become ' fishers of men ' first followers of Himself. 2nd, they become ' fishers of men ' in answer to His own call. Without the direct work of Christ in Him to that end, no man in His sense o( the words can become a ' fisher of men.' He must be made by Christ a follower of Himself, and he must be called by Christ himself to the work. "It is Christ alone who can give him men to be caught, for none are caught or can be caught but those r^T"[p! Mil; li'i.r ; 1.1 Ml f II !l||!ii I'll I ■ .,(1. ■ ■ I . n, • w • ■ i ' li ''? : :i 70 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. whom He has redeemed by His blood, and whom He in due time calls by His gospel. •* It is Christ alone who can recover them out of another sort of net in which they are entangled, even the snare of the Devil, by whom they are taken captive at his will. •* Again it is Christ alone who can give the wisdom and skill necessary to be used with men in order that they may be caught. *' 'Then opened He their understandings that they might understand the Scriptures.' This is necessary in order to be 'fishers of men.' "The servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle to all men, patient, in meekness instructing them that oppose themselves. This is also quite necessary in order to become a 'fisher of men.' " The 'fisher of men' must be a man of faith — faith in the Word of God, that one jot or one tittle of it cannot pass away, and faith in the power of Christ such as the Centurion had when he said, ' Say in a word and my servant shall be healed.' " He must exhibit the grace of the gospel and the mercy of God as illustrated in the parable of the prodigal son. There are loops in the gospel woven by the Holy Spirit on very purpose to catch sinners in, and let us take heed that we do not unravel them and spoil the net. A whole row of such loops is to be found in those Scriptures in which particular sinners, or sinners guilty of particular sins, are brought into immediate contact with Christ and His grace. Such a one is that in Romans xiii. : 13, 14, ' Not in rioting and drunkenness, but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.' Here the man who is rioting and drunken is called upon to put on Christ, and put off these. ' Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit.' These are loops in the Gospel net in which to catch drunkards even in their drunkenness. " Seeing it is by the Gospel men are caught, the ' fisher of men ' must in his own spirit exhibit the spirit of the Gospel, and he must know the Gospel and preach it in its simplicity and purity. 'k BRUCKFIKLD. 71 " Seein{^ it is the Holy Ghost who catcheth men by the Gospel, the 'fisher of men ' must be full of the Holy Ghost, and be led by Him. ** Seeing the Cross of Christ is an offence to the carnal mind, the ' fisher of men ' must see to it that he ' gives no offence in anything, that the ministry be not blamed.'" There are hints in the above, especially for those who may be just putting their "hand to the plow," hints which, if laid to heart, will lead to much watch- ing, much prayer, much of the humbleness to which Ciod'giveth grace, of the emptiness which affords room for God's fulness, and of the weakness in which God's strength is made perfect. The next extract is an ainplification of a sentence of Paul's, and is again meant probably for his own benefit as a minister of the Gospel rather than for that of any congregation. " ' I am sure that when I come unto you I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ.' " I St. He meant to come to them as a preacher and teacher of the Gospel of Christ, to make it known to them in its fulness. He was not going to them as a preacher and teacher of the law or of the legal dispen- sation, nor as a teacher of morality, nor as a lecturer on Grecian or Roman literature or philosophy, nor as a politician, nor in pursuit of any worldly business. As at Corinth, so in Rome, he determined ' not to know anything among them but Jesus Christ and Him crucified.' " 2nd. Neither did he intend to teach and preach to them a mutilated Gospel — the Gospel stripped of anything that belongs to it, but the Gospel in its fulness; not something sound about the Gospel, but to preach the Gospel itself directly ; not a Gospel text here and there opened up and taught, but the Gospel itself in its glorious fulness ; facts and doctrines and fruits. "3rd. The fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ. Not the Gospel as a theory, or as the principal part of theology, or as a matter of speculative know- r! ti^ r i^ > 7B THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. l:il led^e; but the Gospel as that which carries in it to men a fulness of needed blessing. He was coming to them as a man entrusted with abundant supplies of provision for a famishing city, or of sure medicine for a plague- stricken district, or as bearing the King's pardon for a community of condemned men. The fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ comprehends a great deal. Who can set forth all that these words cover ? Pardon, reconciliation, liberty, holiness : or, (as we have it in the Catechism) effectual calling, justification, adoption, sanctification, and the several benefits which in this life accompany these, together with all that are matters of assured hope for the world to come. To come in the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ was not simply to come to speak to them of these blessings, bu^ so to preach those blessings to them that they might possess them in their fulness, each one for himself, so to preach the Gospel to them that they might be blessed with the fulness of its blessings, ' to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved.' "4th. To come to them in the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ was to come to them infallibly sure of the truth and certainty of the Gospel. His own knowledge of it and faith in it were of the most decisive character, and he preached it with no uncertain sound, not with vagueness and doubt, but as the Word of God, the Gospel of Christ, who is the Truth, the Way and the Life. " 5th. Sure also of the errand on which this Gospel is sent into the world, viz., to open the eyes of men, to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they might receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among them who are sanctified by faith that is in Christ. The errand of the Gospel is to convey to men all the blessings with which it is fraught. " 6th. Sure also that the Gospel must prosper in the thing whereto God has sent it. It is not to return to Him void. It must do its work. The power and faitli- BRUCEFIELD. 'n fulness of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost are pledged for Its complete success, and for the final salvation of everyone who rests in it and its provisions. " h. V'^ ^.K°''^ ^^'i'' ^''^" '^^P'^'^ *■•*«'" Mr. Ross's unstudied note book w,th scarce y even a verbal alteration. Had They bee,, pre" ToflH h P"''':'^^^'"" by the hand that penned then at fiS they' uould have been written and rewritten until thev exacHv expressed the very shade of thou,,ht intended But ^ does ndt seen, r.ght for a,iy other hand to attempt such revis io . '•' 'H i ('|l:''''! . I CHAPTER VI. THE UNION OF 1861. i 1 si a "HE early months of Mr. Ross's ministry in Brucefield were clouded by the shadow of death steadily darkening down upon his home. His sweet young wife, to whom he had been deeply attached almost from boyhood, died the February after his settlement, and left, as he said twenty years later, an " utter desolation " behind. His sister. Miss Jane Ross, came nobly to his help in these circum- stances, and was a tower of strength to him for many years until her own health somewhat ;.;ave way. His Vi/ork during those early years in Brucefield was broken, according to his heart's desire, by frequent missionary tours in the Northern counties. It was also very constantly and pleasantly varied by faithful attendance at Church Courts. He enjo3'ed with no common zest intercourse with brother ministers, and ticking his own share in the debates that then occupied their attention. One special subject of debate all through those early years, from 1851 to 1861, and one in which Mr. Ross took a somewhat important part, was the proposed union between the (Free) Presbyterian Church in Canada and the United Presbyterian Church in Canada. Every year, as regularly as the Synod met, the subject occupied an important place in their deliberations. That the reader may be prepared to take an intelligent interest in the matter, it may be well to go back a little, and make plain the antecedents and character of the United Presbyterian Church with whom it was proposed to enter into union. THE UNION OF 1861. r-^- Thore who read with interest the chapter on Church History, will remember that the Free Church was not the first secession from the Church of Scotland. The cluster of godly men rallying round Ebenezer Erskine in 1733 stood on exactly the same ground as the Free Church 1 10 years later. They, like their brethren of the later date, had contended earnestly within the Church for the rights of Jesus Christ and His people, until that Church could bear them no longer and thrust them out. Then they '* strengthened their hands in God " and contended as earnestly outside of the Church for the self-same ob- jects, finding themselves freed thenceforth from many of their former difficulties. During the dark century that followed, they were abundantly used and blessed of God in feeding His scattered sheep, many of whom had othtrv. re been left "fainting, and scattered abroad, sheep having no shepherd." Indefatigable laborers were these, under whatever name they wrought. First they were known as the Secession, later, as the Asso- ciate Synod ; and later still, from the year 1847, as the United Presbyterian Church. Diligence and self-denial — ^lengthening the cords and strengthening the stakes — characterized them wherever they went. These were not the men to leave the co'onies without care. Early in the century missionaries were sent from this energetic body of Christians to minister to the emigrants then leaving the shores of the Old World in great numbers for the dark forest lands of Canada. In 1844, at the time of the Canadian Disruption, their Missionary Synod, as it was called, numbered twenty-two ministers, while the roll of the newly formed (Free) Presbyterian Synod contained the names of twenty-three. Here then, after the Disruption, were two bodies of Presbyterians, alike in origin, a'ike in faith, alike in Church government, alike in everything (except one thing) — why should not these two unite and work together for their Lord, instead of forming all over the land rival camps ? Before that question could be decided, the nature and importance of the one thing on which they differed would need to be understood. Ui ^nii^ r 11 r m '^ i' f ! '■ ' ■ « r 76 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. 1 :'l :i There was no difference between them regarding- Christ's Headship over the Church. They enthusiasti- cally agreed in honoring Jesus Christ as the sole Head of His Church, in condemning the civil ruler who, on any pretext wliatever, interferes with the spiritual jurisdic- tion of Christ's Kingdom, and in as strongly condemn- ing the church that shall, on any pretext whatever, allow such interference. But the P'ree Church as enthusiastically held, with John Knox and his fellows, that Christ is also God's appointed Head over the nations, and that, consequently, the Christian ruler of a Christian nation owes it to Jesus Christ to use His power as a civil ruler in the interest of the Kingdom of Christ, as far as such exercise of His power can be of service to that cause. They believed that the serious word of counsel given at the close of the 2nd Psalm to the kings and judges of the earth is given to them as kings, not merely as individuals. They held that the duty there imperatively laid upon kings is, loyally to yield their official poiver to the King God has set over Zion. The practical issues of this view of the duties oi the civil ruler bear especially in four directions : ist. It lays a solemn duty upon nations and their rulers, publicly and nationally to do homage to God, and to Jesus Christ wliom He hath appointed mediatorial King. This recognition should appear in the very constitution of the state, and manifest itself in the appointment and honorable observance of days of public, national thanks- giving or humiliation, according to God's providential dealings with the nation. 2nd. It justifies the state, in proper circumstances, in taking public funds for the maintenance of religion, and the Church in receiving such assistance, always providing that no infringement of spiritual privilege is made by the one or allowed by the other. 3rd. It lays it as a duty upon the Christian ruler of a Christian country to protect the Sabbath by law, and not to leave it to the slow growth of a Christian public opinion to establish a universal Sabbath rest. 4th. It requires the ruler, especially if he assumes the responsibility of general education, to see that Scripture ;«li» THE UNION OF 1861, 77 r- knowledge shall be given along with secular knowledge — teaching not dogma but Scripture— ^o that not one child educated in the Public Schools should fail of an adequate knowledge of God as communicated through Scripture narrative in Scripture words. The United Presbyterian Church, not in the days of its founders, but especially since the dawning of the present century, have practically repudiated this doctrine of the Headship of Christ over the nations, and all its bearings upon the duties of the civil ruler. They pro- ceed upon the principle that Jesus Christ claims no alle- giance whatever from nations as n?itions. nor from the civil ruler as such. That,ai a man, the magistrate is bound to serve the Lord, but, as a m/er, his whole duty consists in guarding the natural rights of his subjects, leaving it to the Church alone to advance Christ's cause throughout the nation and the world. They maintained : ist. That national, constitutional recognition of God is out of place, and that the appointment by the Governor of days of thanksgiving or humiliation is an interference with the duty of the Church. 2nd. That it is always and necessarily wrong for the magistrate to endow or assist the Church, and equally wrong for the Church to accept such endowment or assistance, even though left free in matters spiritual. 3rd. That the Sabbath as the Lord's Day is no concern of the magistrate ; but that as a day of rest, known to be beneficial to man, he may, if the majority desire it, protect it by law. 4th. That in no circumstances whatever has the civil ruler a right to do anything towards the religious instruction of the children of the land. That matter must be left entirely to the Church. It will be seen that in this whole field of truth and duty, full of practical issues, the two churches were diametrically opposed. Nevertheless, negotiations for union were entered into immediately. Though the differences stated above were felt on all sides to constitute a most serious diffi- culty in the way, yet they had so much in common, and the hurtful effects of continued separation were so mani- m 'I ^'1 , It it f r 1 i * 1 !i . > t ji ; 1 i 1 t 1 i 1 - lis ;l « t « !|! ! '.: !■ ■ :,li i-l 1 ;«' i ' il; 78 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. fest and so serious, that there was a strong wish on both sides to come to an agreement. Toward this end, in 1845, a union committee was appointed by each of the Synods. These committees met, year after year, each seeking : 1st. To modify the opinions of the other, that there might be a nearer approach to real unanimity on the subject of difference ; and 2nd. (when that was found to be hopeless. ) To con- struct such a document as a basis of union as would give adequate expression to the views of each and yet give no vital offence to either. The negotiations continued during sixteen years, and at length a basis of union was drawn up which, whether satisfactory or other'vise, was almost unanimously accepted by both churches For several years Mr. Ross was a member of the union committee appointed by the Synod of the Free Church. Throughout the negotiations he was anxious to advance the cause of union. Some of his warmest ministerial friends belonged to the United Presbyterian body, and very beautifully they dwelt together and worked together in unity. He deeply respected the founders of the Secession, and their century of heroic labor, where- by they had earned an honorable title long before the Free Church as a body had even buckled on its armor. He appreciated the character of the men occupying their pulpits, and of the people occupying their pews, and he was ready to do anything that rightly lay in his power to clear away the hindrances to union. But he was also deeply anxious to prevent any concession that would neutralize the ringing testimony given by the Free Church to the Headship of Christ over the nations. But the fact of the matter was, as he saw very clearly later, that the securing of such a union apart from compromise somewhere, was an impossibility. The one party believed in special duties as owing by the civil ruler to Jesus Christ as mediatorial King. The other party frankly and continuously disbelieved in these. The attempt to produce a basis that would satisfy both Churches was an attempt to produce an ambiguity which should mean one thing to one party and another thing to the other. THP: union of i86i. 79 At the last meeting- of the union committees, when the wording of the preamble was finally arranged, a seemingly slig^ht change was proposed by the United Presbyterian Committee. It-was only the introduction of a short clause, or the modification of one already there, and no serious alteration of meaning seemed to result from allowing* il. After a little discussion, the Free Church party yielded the point, Mr. Ross among the rest, though he was conscious of a vague feeling of unrest' in connection with it. It was not until he had retired for the night, and was lying quietly awake thinking over the matter, that the full significance of the change flashed upon him. So vivid was his impression of having made a blunder which must be rectified at once that, from an instantaneous impulse, he sprang out of bed, as though he could and must by some energetic action set it right again. He saw that the slight change seriously affected the' integrity of the Fourth Article of the Union Basis, which it had been the special care of the Free Church Committee to conserve in full strength throughout the negotiations. The following are the Preamble and Basis of Union finally agreed upon between the two Synods : " The Presbyterian Church in Canada and the United Presbyterian Church in Canada, believing that it would be for the glory of God and for the advancement of the cause of Christ in the land that they should unite ar.'l form one Church, do hereby agree to unite on the fol- lowing basis, to be subscribed by the moderators of their respecti'/e Synods in their names and behalf, declaring at the same time that no inference from the fourth article of said basis is held to be legitimate, which asserts that the civil magistrate^has the right to prescribe the faith of the Church or to interfere with the freedom of her ecclesiastical action ; further, that unanimity of sentiment is not required in regard to the practical applications of the principle embodied in the said fourth article, and that whatever differences of sentiment may arise on these subjects, all action in reference thereto shall be regulated by, and be subject li ,4. III WW !'! So THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Jli! i, i'! to, the recognized principles of Presbyterian Church order : "I. Of Holy Scripture. That the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, being the inspired Word of God, are the supreme and infallible rule of faith and life. *' H. Of the Subordinate Standards. That the West- minster Confession of Faith, with the Larger and Shorter Catechisms, are received by this Church as her Subordinate Standards. But whereas certain sections of said Confession of Faith, which treat of the power and duty of the civil magistrate, have been objected to as teaching- principles adverse both to the right of private judgment in religious matters and to the pre- rogative which Christ has vested in His Church, it is to be understood : — . *' I. That no interpretation or reception of these sections is required by this Church which would inter- fere with the fullest forbearance as to any difference of opinion which may prevail on the question of the endow- ment of the Church by the State. "2. That no interpretation or reception of these sections is required by this Church which would accord to the State any authority to violate the liberty of con- science and right of private judgment which are asserted in Chapter XX., Sec. 2, of the Confession, and in accordance with the statements of which this Church holds that every person ought to be at full liberty to search the Scriptures for himself, and to follow out what he conscientiously believes to be the teaching of Scripture, without let or hindrance, provided that no one be allowed, under the pretext of following the dic- tates of conscience to interfere with the peace and good order of society. " 3. That no interpretation or reception of these sections is required by this Church which would admit of any interference on the part of the State with the spiritual independence of the Church, as set forth in Chapter XXX. of the Confession. "HI. Of the Headship of Christ over the Church. That the Lord Jesus Christ is the only King and Head of His THE UNION OF 1861. 81 r- »gr That >f His Church ; that He has made her free from all external or secular authority in the administration of her affairs, anc^ that she is bound to assert and defend this liberty to the utmost, and ought not to enter into such engagements with any party as would be, prejudicial thereto. "IV. Of the Headship of Christ over the Nations, and the Duty of the Civil Magistrate. That the Lord Jesus Christ, as Mediator, is invested with universal sovereignty, and is therefore King of Nations ; and that all men, in every capacity and relation, are bound to obey His will as revealed in His Word ; and par- ticularly that the Civil Magistrate (including in that term all who are in any way concerned in the legislative or administrative action of the State) is bound to regu- late his official procedure, as well as his personal conduct, by the revealed will of Christ. " V. Of Church Government'. That the system of polity established in the Westminster Form of Presby- terian Church Government, in so far as it declares plurality of Elders for each congregation, the official equality of Presbyters, without any officers in the Church superior to said Presbyters, and the unity of the Church in a due subordination of a smaller part to a larger, and of a larger to the whole, is the government of the Church, and is, in the features of it herein set forth, believed by this Church to be founded on, and agreeable to, the Word of God. "VI. That the ordinances of worship shall be administered in this Church as they have heretofore been, by the respective bodies of which it is composed, in a general accordance with the directions contained in the Westminster Directory of Worship." The above document is a study. The fourth article expresses the doctrine of the Headship of Christ over the Nations in terms explicit enough and strong enough to satisfy the Free Churchman ; but that same article in the Preamble is so qualified and guarded that the Voluntary need experience no inconvenience by it. The Westminster Confession, in treating of the duties of the Civil Magistrate, asserts or implies the doctrine of the 6 'm m 83 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. A \h J i '1° ;. M liii ll^ifl Headship of Christ over the Nations, and, in Article H., the Confession is accepted as a subordinate Standard for the whole Church, but under-sections i, 2, 3 so modify all these statements of the Confession that they mean, to a Voluntary, just what he wishes them to mean. On the 6th of June, 1861 , the union was consummated between the (Free) Presbyterian Church in Canada and the United Presbyterian Church in Canada. The united body took the name of the Canada Presbyterian Church. Dr. John Bayne, of Gait, and a small party with him, had all along firmly opposed union upon any basis but one stating in clear terms the whole truth and the un- modified truth, as held by the P'ree Church, on the Headship of Christ over the nations. Within a few months of the consummation of the union, the great man fell in the harness, and so his powerful voice was not heard on the day of union. His absence was sorely felt by the few who sympathized with him, and may have been one reason of the smallness of the number that were ready, " having done all to stand " when the day of trial came. Only Mr. Ross's early friend, Mr. Lachlan McPherson, of Williams, and a handful of people in the county of Bruce, stood firmly against the union by refusing to enter into it. Mr. Ross did not stand out against it. He had been one of the active men about its formation. But his heart was ill at ease on the subject. ♦• The days that followed the union of '61," he said, years afterward, " were t-^rrible days to me. The majesty and supreme importance of the Kingship of Jesus Christ began so to shine into my soul as to make my very flesh tremble. "One day on horseback I took out my book and my eyes fell upon that pasrage, * until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ : which in his times he shall show, the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord ot lords ; who only hath immortality, dwelling in light which no man can approach unto ; whom no man hath seen nor can see : to whom be honor and power everlnsiing. Amen.' The very words seemed to shine V L ■ill m THK UNION OF 1861. 83 and [Ig of how, and like the face of Moses. My eyes could not help looking at them, and I shut the book. My mind was full of this thought. The glory shining in these words is the glory with which God has clothed the Kingship of His Son, and yet men will cut and pare and trim it off to suit the notions of their fellowmen. *' As the Church went on on the crest of the union wave, ready in a few years to do anything that was con- venient with the kingship of the King, I was drawn back farther and farther from the position taken in '61, so that extended concession from me in that matter was an impossibility, — except by such a deed as that of Judas." His part in the matter was a bitter thing to him, and the inner conflicts of those days were written plainly on his countenance, though few understood the cause. It was early in the year 1862, just after the consum- mation of the union, while his mind was deeply exercised upon the subject, that the writer first caught a glimpse of his face. There was a tea meeting in the Bayfield Road chapel, over which my father was minister, and Mr. Logic, of Rodgerville, was one of the speakers expected. The tea was nearly over when he appeared, and with him as he walked up to the walled platform where the ministers sat was a tall, fair, very serious-looking man. As soon as the stranger was fairly seated among his brethren he turned around with a sort of exploring look, and I saw his countenance. The sadness, the settled sadness, that lay in his blue eyes touched my childish heart with a great pity, and well do I remember asking God in prayer that night to put forth His own power to comfort that very sorrowful minister. "As one whom his mother comforteth, so'^ did the Lord comfort him, though some who knew him during the few following years of unrest might not feel the apt- ness of the quotation. How does a wise and loving mother comfort a child who has sinned against her, and who has been brought to see and own the wrong that he has done ? She will draw the child away from his ill I'll ■)1 ^> IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I ■so "^^ M^H ■^ Kii |2.2 L25 III 1.4 1.6 ^^ V Hiotogra{iiic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRieT WHSTfR.N.Y. 14SM (716) *7^-««03 MM , I 84 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. sports, and even from his ordinary lessons, into closer communion with herself. In seeking to comfort she will be very careful not to weaken his sense of the sinful- ness of his sin, or to give him the impression that the sin is less in her eyes than it is in his. Yet she will seek with all a mother's tenderest skill to shine into that child's heart the love and forgiveness that are yearning for safe and wise expression. Then the distinctive peculiarity of the comfort a mother gives is, that she makes herse/fth^ comfort. It is not what she does or what she gives that satisfies the heart of her child ; it is what she is — what she is to him — in her overflowing love and strong appropriation. So the Lord comforted his servant during the years that followed this first union. He led him deeply to see the sin and danger of the course which he, along with the rest of the Church, had been running with inexcus- able heedlessness. Deeper and deeper that lesson was pressed home till his soul was often ready humbly to say : " I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned ag^c'nst Him." But along with these bitter lessons there was much tender drawing into closer communion with Himself. A characteristic incident occurred about this time showing the trouble of spirit and the directness of inter- course between him and his Master. A dark presence seemed to himself to be with him wherever he went, and his soul was harassed. His experience bore some resemblance to that of John Bunyan as described in Grace Abounding, and depicted in Christian's journey through the Vailey of the Shadow of Death. Thoughts that did not spring from his own brain distressed his spirit and refused to be dismissed. But through all the confusion one refrain would come up — not constantly, but at intervals — " I will put my hook in his nose, and my bridle in his lips, and turn him about by the way that he came." For days the discord continued, and still the word oi power, ever and anon, kept ringing through the chambers of his soul : " I will put my hook in his nose. \. THE UNION OF 1861, 8s and my bridle in his lips, and turn him about by the way that he came." At last, in a sort of impatience, he took up the words and threw them back, saying-, "/*«/ thy hook in his nose, and thy bridle in his lips." That moment the dark presence vanished, and his spirit was calm again. Though in very different circumstances, yet it was David over again, *' Do as thou hast said." Through those years the conversational method of handling the Bible passed from an occasional to almost a continual thing with him. He looked up to God for a word, and then in the passage to which his finger turned he would find a special message in reply. If there was some uncertainty, another turn of the leaves would give a reduplication of the messag^e, and then he was satisfied that he had the very thought that his Lord wished him to ponder or to use. In this way, while turning over the leaves of his Bible, a real conversation took place between him and his Master, and he lived much in close companionship with an unseen friend. One afternoon about this time he was preparing for a journey by train. He looked up for a word while dress- ing, and the one upon which hiseyefell was this: ''Who- soever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." *' ' Ashamed of me and of my wordSy^ " he thought. " Does the Lord mean that to be ashamed of His words is to be ashamed of Him ? Would I be ashamed to enter the car this afternoon in Christ's company ? Per- haps not. Would I be ashamed to read His words to my fellow-passengers ? I think I would. ' Of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.' Let me escape that at whatever cost. " From that day he began his wayside reading of the Word of God. Many a straight message fell from the skies into ears that could not choose but listen, and sometipies into hearts that answered, " I will arise and go to my Father." ^yw %i :€ cts to nothing. He maketh the judges of the earth i;s e ity. Yea they shall not be planted; yea they shall not beyow n ; yea theirstock shall not take root intheearth: and He shall blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.' THE GUIDING EYE AND HEARING EAR. 117 *' The directness and fullness of the answer startled me. 'Now,' I said, *! have Louis Napoleon under that, and all I have to do is to keep him there." Mr. Neil Ross, in speaking of the circumstance, added a few interesting touches. ** In the times of war," he said, *' Mr. Ross used to feel the bloodshed and wickedness and suffering very keenly. I had been a good deal with him during the time of the Crimean war, and the Indian mutiny, and American war. I knew how the news of these things troubled him. *' I was in Brucefield when the news came of the breaking out of the Franco-Prussian war. I met Mr. Ross on the street and he spoke to me about it, but he seemed so cheerful that I was surprised. I asked him how it was that he was in such good spirits. ** He replied, * I am not afraid of Louis Napoleon. For many months I have had him under a text, and he cannot stir out of that. * He shall be brought to nothing. The Lord shall blow upon him, and he shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take him away as stubble.' Now watch him. You will find that Louis Napoleon has lost his strength." The utter and rapid collapse of the power and plans of the French Emperor which, during the few weeks fol- lowing so perplexed and surprised the world, neither perplexed nor surprised Mr. Ross. With grim satisfac- tion he held him down under that text and watched him as he withered and was carried away out of his place like stubble. Years later, when the news came in of the death of the young Prince Imperial, killed in Zululand by savages. Mr. Ross seemed much touched. ♦* My text has been fulfilled," he said, ** to the bitter end. * He has not been planted ; yea, he has not been sown ; yea, his stock has not taken root in the earth.* Not one word has failed." One evening, a good many years afterwards, Mr. Ross had just received his Globe. It contained an inti- mation of the wholesale desecration of the Sabbath in ifc i I Ii ii8 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. connection with the building* of the Canadian Pacific Railway* His spirit was stirred within him. " That sort of work," he said, " must be visited from Heaven," and then he added with the emphasis of one announcing facts, not merely detailing probabilities. '* It shall not be long until that very line shall carry soldiers, and army stores, and dead and wounded men, in vindication of God's broken Sabbath law." It was only a few months until what he announced was literally fulfilled under the eyes of the whole Dominion during the Riel rebellion. But how few would connect the two things as he did ! What are the national judgments that, on the same account, are ever since gathering up against us, higher and higher for every year that tlje patience of the Lord waits for re- pentance which does not come ? How many strong young lives will be cut down like the grass of the field, because of the Sabbath desecration which howls un- blushingly and continuously in the ears of legislators and Christian congregations, and yet awakens scarcely a whisper of opposition ? Instead of opposition minis- ters and even missionaries have taken the Sabbath trains, and then announced in the public prints that they have done so, while church courts and church papers have looked on in silence, and issued no authoritative reprimand. Young men who were hopeful Sabbath scholars sell them tickets, and justify themselves in hand- ing over their Sabbaths to a company, because these men in black coats and white neckties pay them for doing it. They can see no moral difference (and who can ?) between the man who runs the Sabbath train and the man who takes it. Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. " It is time for Thee, Lord, to work, for they have made void Thy law." A similar extract from a note-book bears date, Saturday, September 14th, 1872. ** I see by the papers that the three Emperors are met in Berlin. Made the matter this morning a matter of prayer, lest their counsel should be to the injury of the peace of the world and to the hurt of the Lord's cause. Put in petitions for trans- THE GUIDING EYE AND HEARING EAR. 119 ferringthe rule of the world to His own Son, to whom He has given the dominion over the whole earth." The significance of these petitions in Mr. Ross's mouth will be better understood when his views of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ shall have passed before the reader. Some idea of his estimate of the power of prayer, and of the relation he saw between prayer and the written word, may be gained from the following passage from a sermon on the text, ** Remember the word unto thy servant upon which thou hast caused me to hope." "Here is one who is face to face with God, pleading for the fulfilment of some word of promise on which his heart has leaned. See the strength of his position as he puts it before God, * Remember the word,' that is, God's own word, we have strong ground even with an honor- able man when we can say to him, ' Remember your word.' Then what is the strength of this position before the God who has * magnified His word above all His name?' the God who counts unbelief the sorest affront that can be offered to Him, and who honors faith above every other virtue ? " But the position becomes stronger when we reflect that the word upon which this heart has rested is one that has been sent out of God on purpose that it might catch hopes. In grasping it and leaning all his weight upon it he is putting it to the very use for which it was sent out into the world. The drowning man who catches at the rope flung out to him puts it to its legitimate use, and has a right to expect responsive action from those who sent it to him in his peril. So the sinner in laying holH upon God's word and hoping upon it is doing with it exactly what God intended to be done, and has accordingly strong hold upon His faithfulness to fulfil the hopes that His word has raised, and that the word was meant to raise. ** But the position becomes stronger still. * Remem- ber thy word — upon which thou hast caused me to hope. ' Not only is it God's own word that has been trusted, and a word of His that was meant to be trusted ; it was further the putting forth of His own power that drew I20 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. the trembling heart out to grasp the word, to rest on it and to hope on it. •• Will the God of infinite faithfulness turn a deaf ear to the soul that comes with such a plea ? ' Remember thy word — remember the word that was cast out on purpose to be trusted by just such helpless souls as mine — remember the word that thou thyself didst cause and enable me to trust.' Will God neglect that plea? What do you think of it ? Will He fail to respond to such pleading as this?" (Then stretching out his arms over his head in a manner peculiar to himself, the preacher answered his own question) " It is ete-e-ernally im-poss-ible. Pleading soul, wrestling with God for the fulfilment of His own word, wrestle with a glad heart. You have an irresistible plea. God will ' magnify His word above all His' name.' " CHAPTER IX. STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. R. ROSS was a student all his life. He did not leave his academic studies within the walls of the college. He found geometry particularly fascinating. Sometimes in later life he would spend the. spare time of weeks in untiring application to the working out of deductions. He must have done the same in earlier years, judging from an account given of a journey from Brucefield to Kincardine made on horse- back. Before starting he had been working at a deduc- tion which so far had baffled him. Much of the time spent in his horse's company, as they went together through the leafy re .ds, where clearings were rather the exception than the rule, his mind was occupied with the conditions laid down for the working out of that problem, but he failed to command the position. Matters could not be left thus ; so, during the homeward journey, his brain again laid siege to the fortress. While jogging along on his sturdy gray, going over the conditions given for the hundredth time, he got the key to the difficulty, and was as happy as one who has verily taken a city. But the languages were his especial delight. Latin, Hebrew, Greek, Arabic, Syriac, German and Italian all engaged his attention in turn. There are also French books in his library that would indicate that it, too, had a share in his interest. He possessed an Arabic grammar, a small, thin volume, which cost him $ii ; and, a few months before his death, he bought a hand- some new Greek lexicon, costing $12, because his old one was in such fine type that it taxed his eyes. A few 122 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. years earlier he had ordered a set of German text-books, and, after some preliminary study of the peculiarities of the lani^uag'e, he read Luther's New Testament with ever growing delight, from beginning to end. But it was Hebrew that roused the most enthusiasm and got the largest share of attention. He committed many passages of the Hebrew Bible to memory, and his favorite time for doing so was while flying around the country behind a little black pony of his own rearing. This little animal, even to gray hairs, rejoiced in the juvenile name of "Coltie." It was the impression of some among his people that this same Coltie was often running away when his master was entirely oblivious of the fact, being absorbed in acquiring every jot and tittle of some favorite psalm, or in chanting one already learned in strains modulated according to the character of the poetry. It is quite as probable that, instead of being oblivious to Coltie's unnecessary speed, he was in sympathy with it, especially when following in song the dramatic magnificence of the i8th Psalm or some other of kindred character. A peep at the Hebrew enthusiast is obtained in ah incident kindly given by Dr. McDonald. They were driving in company as they often did. Dr. M. as usual, in front, Mr. Ross's horse following, and his master buried deep in his Hebrew Bible, They came to a toll- gate near Exeter, and expected to pass through it free, as ministers were entitled to do. But the toll-keeper was a stranger, and demanded of the foremost traveller his certificate. Both ministers, being very wel] known for miles around, had become careless abou', carrying their certificates, and neither of them had any to show. Mr. Ross being behind, but understanding there was difficulty, jumped out of his cutter, Bible in hand, and asked what was the matter. **The gate-keeper wants our certificates," replied his brother minister. *^ Here is my certificate," was the prompt response, holding his open Hebrew Bible up in the man's view. Whether it was the book, or the tone, or the attitude that produced the impression, history does not state ; but the keeper STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 123 or made no further objection, and the two ministers passed on. He was quite as ready to use his knowledge of Hebrew to testify for Christ as his knowledge of Gaelic. "On one occasion in Montreal," writes a friend, "he entered a Jewish Synagogue and met the venerable and learned Rabbi. After some general conversation he took advantage of the opportunity, being instant in season and out of season, to treat his new acquaintance to several instructive pieces of Hebrew exegesis in Isaiah and the Psalms of David, citing passages in the original, and dwelling forcibly on the Messianic utter- ances of the several writers." He also made excellent use of his linguistic ability in drawing to himself a small class of young school teachers, to whom he gave weekly lessons, first in Hebrew, then in Latin, and afterwards in Greek. There were only two of them at the beginning, and they, after mastering the preliminaries, read through the Pentateuch, took parts of other books, and com- mitted a psalm or two to memory. When they com- menced the Latin, two or three others joined the class. They went through the whole of Caesar, parts of Virgil, Horace and Cornelius Nepos. They next studied Greek. But the class began to get smaller. One promising young man named David Stoddard died, and another moved to a distance. They did not go far with this language, but mastered the grammar sufficiently to read a little of the New Testament. For the greater part of ten years they met steadily at the manse every Friday evening when Mr. Ross was at home. This class was a source of much pleasure and benefit to him. He enjoyed meeting with young people when there was some healthful common bond of fellowship. The enthusiasm and progress of his volunteer scholars were calculated to give satisfaction to any teacher. Then the opportunity it gave him, after the lesson was finished, to talk over Bible subjects in which he was interested, and in which he wished to interest them, was sometimes strikingly employed. I ill 124 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. He called one day at the house of one of these young men, and found him studying in his Hebrew Bible the second chapter of Daniel where Nebuchadnezzar is about to slay the wise men of Babylon because of their inability to repeat to him his forgotten dream. Mr. Ross listened with interest to the reader as he worked out the narrative from the Hebrew story, and the " great image," with head of gold and toes part of iron and part of clay, stood slowly but distinctly out before them. While listening, a thought flashed across Mr. Ross's mind, and he gave it forth in all its freshness as soon as the reader came to a pause. " Robert," he said, '* you are a teacher. What would you think if you were to enter a room where a class was undergoing review in universal history, and you saw the teacher go up to the board and give the following lesson ? "'Children, I am going to give you a diagram which will enable you to carry away a complete outline of the history of the civilized world down to our own times.' " Then he drew the figure of a man on the board, marking it off by lines across the neck, below the breast and at the knees, so dividing it into four parts, and said, pointing to the head of his figure : '* * Remember, this head, which we shall call gold, represents the first great monarchy of which history takes much account ; that is, the Babylonian. *' ' Below the liead you have the two arms uniting with the trunk. This second division of our image you may think of as glittering silver. The right arm will stand for Persia, led by Cyrus, and the left for Media under Darius. The two unite to overthrow the Baby- lonian power, and together form this solid silver breast, which we shall call the Medo-Persian Empire, and which,' for nearly two hundred years, swayed the sceptre it had wrested from the hands of Babylon. ** 'This third portion of our image you see begins with the remaining part of the solid trunk, and then . t STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 125 then divides into the two this^hs. Think of it as fiery, bur- nished brass. In this solid part we have Alexander the Great, who, at the head of his small Greek army, completely subdued and superseded the colossal Medo- Persian Empire. With the death of Alexander the united empire of Greece ends, but Greek dominion con- tinues, especially in the two most important of the four parts into which it was divided. In the two thighs we see the kingdoms of Syria and Eg-ypt. This brazen third division shall stand for the great, all-conquering power of Greece, strong at first under Alexander, but divided through the greater part of its time. *' ' Last we have the strong, sinewy legs. We shall regard them as made of iron, the most cruel of all the metals. These iron legs shall stand for the Roman power, which swept the civilized world and pushed its roads and its iron sway far out into hitherto barbarous regions. As there are two legs, the Roman Empire had two capitals, Rr me and Constantinople, each the metro- polis of its own division of the empire. " ' But we are not done yet. Do you see these ten toes into which the iron legs finally subdivide ? These shall stand for the modern kingdoms into which the Empire of Rome is now divided. Though their number has not at all times been the same, yet they are often spoken of as the ten European Kingdoms. These are not iron like the legs, but partl''^ he: riud partly clay. There is Roman strength thtoujfhout them all, but seriously mixed with base and wtiikening elements.' " • Robert, if you heard a te? chf r so summarize the facts and divisions of universal liistory, and saw him so set them out before the very eye > and imaginations of his pupils, would you not say that he was a master of his subject) ' The young man was too inte'ligent a teacher to re- frain from a hearty affirm? tive to this question. " And yet," Mr. Ross continued, " all this is done in the Word of God before the history its"// had an exist" uce, while the world was but newly resting under tb'.t 'nit ai dynasty. What hand could have drawn tlit't ' fi-^at >. li m ;> 126 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. imag^e ' in the Book of Daniel but the hand of Him who * sees the end from the beginnings ? ' " The argument was conclusive to one capable of ap- preciating the thoroughness of the knowledge necessar) for such a masterly synopsis. The same idea was afterwards given to his people from the pulpit. Many years later a member of the con- gregation told the writer that the "great image" ii: Daniel, as a demonstration of the Divine inspiration of Scripture had taken a strong hold upon her reason. "Sometimes," she said, "I have been distressed with infidel thoughts. How can I be sure that the Bible is the word of God after all ? When these thoughts have come, the ' great image ' in Daniel has given me a con- clusive argument when I was too weak to find another. How could any but the all-seeing God Himself have so foretold the history of the world down to our own times ? If God speaks in Daniel, He speaks in all the rest." Another characteristic little incident has been pre- served in connection with these memory lessons. It was at one of the ordinary meetings on Friday evening, and during the Hebrew period. The young man who had been found reading Nebuchadnezzar's dream was now going over part of the week's lesson. He mispro- nounced a word. Mr. Ross corrected him. He slowly pronounced it again,. giving each letter and mark its full value ; but he was still wrong. *' Robert," said his teacher, *' you read it as if there were a daghesh there. Now you see there is no daghesh." '* But, Mr. Ross, there is a daghesh," replied the scholar emphatically, " and that is why I pronounced it as I did." The teacher, positive that a daghesh in the circum- stances could not be there, looked over his shoulder at the page. Sure enough, there was the daghesh, looking up in all its black littleness into the face of the man who knew that no daghesh had a right to be there. There was a moment's pause, and then, with infinite amuse- ment shining out of his eyes, he blew upon the page. Behold ! Robert's daghesh was lifted on the wings of I ^' / - STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 127 that wind, and was seen no more. Those who enjoy parables may easily find one here. It will readily be understood by those who have thought intelligently upon the nature and limitations of niind, that one given to such absorbed concentr'^tion as was common with Mr. Ross, must have times of relax- ation. Actual recreation of some sort was as necessary to him as his daily bread. His studies in the languages were ♦^pken up rather as recreation than as work, but it was quiie -;ommon with him to throw aside all forms of I.nc' '^cti al toil, and simply relax. His sources of '"iiaseii; r t were as numerous as the objects and subjects 1 1" which the world is full. He seemed to have the power of finding interest in anything that might happen to catch his attention. But very often there was some special line to which, for the time, he devoted all his leisure hours. In his early ministerial life he became quite an enthu- siast about bees. He watched them, studied them, and handled them, with an ever-deepening interest. His friend Dr. McDonald kept bees also, and he has related an experience which they had together. '* One time I had a hive which was not working right. I col'.I lot tell what was the matter. The bees id hang around the front of the hive, I thought if anybody could tell what Mr. Ross could. I drove down to m, and without any coaxing he was ready -n a momeut and was with me. He sat down in front of the hive for about ten minutes. Then he said, * They have no queen, and they will not work without one ' To get a queen for that hive Mr. Ross regarded as a right and proper thing to do, so we got our kit to- gether and set off. It did not take us long to locate a tree in Stanley in which there were wild bees. We soon cut it down, and it broke just where the hive had its honey, a;>d some of the bees got into the mud that was under th j : cc. !n a moment Mr. Ross had his hand- kerchief 011. liid spread over the mud ; some mud and sr le bees were rolled up in it and we were off for would come <■: i. and do nc*^- mg was the na i : Brucefieia foi ' k') 128 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Clinton in a great hurry. The handkerchief was care- fully opened on my study table. The queen was there, but apparently dead. There were six other bees with the queen. Two of them first cleaned the royal body of the mud. Then two others fixed the scales of her body. The next two did something else to her, but we could not tell what. When they had finished the queen got up and shook herself. Mr. Poss grabbed her and put her into the hive, and wha, i deliffhted man he was when he saw the bees quietinr and going to work at once." The same kind friend continues . ' For a long time Mr. Ross devoted a great deal of time to studying the nature of the vine, and applying the knowledge he gathered to the raising of grapes. He was very gener- ous with the fruit Vi^hen he succeeded in having a good crop. Every year as the time of grape-gathering drew near he used to invite his clerical brethren to Brucefield, and such of them as were able to accept the invitation spent a day that lived as a refreshing memory long afterwards. Mr. Ross was as pleased as the rest of us when he saw how we relished his grapes. **On one occasion he was coming to Clinton to give me his annual invitation, and to prove that the grapes were ready he picked a large basketful of the best and started. But on the way he met some boys and some friends. They were allowed to eat the grapes, but the stems they were requested to put back into the basket. When he reached the Clinton manse, he had a basket full of stems, but not a grape. ' Here,' he said, ' you can see my good intentions when I left home, and you can imagine what a feast you would have had if I had been able to carry them out. ' '* Mr. Ross was an enthusiast, only the word of God regulated his enthusiasm. Anything which was of a social, mirthful nature, and which the Bible did not con- demn, would engage his whole energy as much as mat- ters of more serious importance. "One evening he and Dr. Ure met in my house in Clinton. He had spent the day studying his Greek and STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 129 Hebrew Bible, and Dr. Ure had been engaged for hours in learning "le Gaelic, so as to be of use to his Gaelic parishione \3. After tea we proposed a lighter exercise, and proceeded to play a game. Mr. Ross became as usual absorbed. The same concentration of heart and mind which he had exercised all day was continued now only in another direction. His enthusiasm inspired Dr. Ure and myself, and we were brought to consciousness of what we were doing only by seeing the morning lignt come streaming in at the windows. '* Some may conclude that Mr. Ross was a dreamer and not a practical man. Those persons would have learned their mistake if they could have watched Mr. Ross and Mr. John Kay, then of Gait, now of Detroit, making the first breakfast ever made in the Clinton manse. Mr. Kay boasted that few could make better toast than himself, but Mr. Ross declared he could make a better cup of tea than any woman he ever saw. The writer has had many a cup of tea of his brewing, and can aver that it had always three good qualities, it was hot, it was black and it was strong. Jokingly he used to say that he never allowed his sister who was keeping house for him to see the leaves that remained in the pot after he was done." A constant source of amusement for years was the little black "Coltie" mentioned already. One of his earlier experiences with this spirited and somewhat indulged young animal is thus graphically described by an eye-witness. " One day, going up from Thames Road to Clinton to attend a meeting of Presbytery, I called to see if Mr. Ross was going, and found him at the stable when I drove up, harnessing * Coltie ' and making ready to start. " This * Coltie ' was a young, horse of his own raising and training, and a most wayward, intractable brute he was, but a constant source of amusement and entertainment to Mr. Ross, who would tell with great delight the scurvy tricks the ill-trained animal would play him. I I \ if If 130 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ({ 1.1: Having- got the cutter out, and all into it that he wanted to take with him, he was ready to put the horse into the shafts. Every preparation had to be made before he was attached to the cutter, because he had not been trained to wait his master's pleasure as to starting, but claimed the privilege of starting exactly when it suited himself, whether his master was ready or not. Mr. Ross met wilfulness with discretion, and got everything ready beforehand. Of course it never occurred to him to compel 'Coltie' to wait his master's pleasure. ** All being ready, M*-. Ross proposed that we should go in and have prayer before we started, and that ' Coltie ' might cat with comfort while we prayed he removed the bit from b s .MOuth. This was alto- gether unnecessary, as the little animal was rolling fat, and did not know what hunger meant. ** Having- had prayer we came out. I got my horse ready, and Mr. Ross brought ' Coltie ' out and put him in the shafts. Having fastened the last strap, he watched his chance, nimbly sprang into the cutter, and grabbed the reins. ' Coltie ' was off in a moment like a shot out of a shovel. I was afraid the cutter would be wrecked on the gate-post, but it escaped, and * Coltie ' reached the road. The snow was badly drifted, and the pitch-holes were many and deep, so that fast driving was out of the question. But * Coltie ' was in a hurry that morning, and continued up the road on the gallop. I followed as fast as I dared, expecting every moment to see Mr. Ross land on his head in a snowbank. But with admirable skill and courage he stuck to the ship in a very rough sea. ' Coltie ' continued on the full run till he reached the village fully a mile away, and pulled up of his own accord at the Post Office, his usual stopping-place. " Some men came out and asked Mr. Ross what was his hurry. He explained that he had never seen ' Coltie ' so headstrong and hard-mouthed. * I tugged and pulled at him,' he said, 'with all ni}^ might; I talked and scolded and stormed, but he paid no atten- tion at all. ' STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 131 and like iwould and badly ;p, so But tinued t as I 5 land e skill h sea. ed the what ■ seen ugged rht ; I atten- '* * No wonder,' cried a bystander; 'look here.' And sure enough there was the bit, away back under ' Coltie's' chin, Mr. Ross having forgotten to put it in his mouth again before we started. '* Then Mr. Ross took out his Bible, and read as it opened to him, in Psalms xxxii., 9 : *Be ye not as the horse or as the mule, which have no understanding ; whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come nigh unto thee.' " It has been with some hesitation that the last little paragraph has been inserted. To those unacquainted with Mr. Ross and his habit of keeping in touch with the word of God at every step, the transition from the comical to the scripture text is almost too sharp. But the picture it contains is drawn from life, and is .00 illustrative to be omitted. In thus aptly meeting the most trivial events of his daily life with a word out of His own book, God seems to have been training him to watch for and understand the special messages he was to receive and deliver in more serious circumstances. Coltie was quite a character ; and as he was, for the last twenty years intimately associated with Mr. Ross and much of his work, it may not be out of place to give a few more recollections concerning him. The name of Coltie's mother was Kate. For some years the two inhabited, not only the same stable but the same stall, Mr. Ross counting first upon the maternal love of the older animal as a guarantee for fair play, and upon the filial instincts of the younger ns a like guar- antee, when Coltie had grown big enough to take care of himself. Coltie never laid any complaints concerning his mother's selfishness ; but after a while Mr. Ross began to realize that something was wrong with Kate. With a glimmer of suspicion that Coltie's filial instincts might not be proving an adequate safeguard in the matter of eatables, he thought he would play detective and see how the young animal was behaving. He fed both horses and shut up the stable as usual, taking the pre- caution to have an eye-hole ready for use after the door was closed. His respect for Coltie and his filial instincts f i ■:' !? I ' 132 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. sensibly fell when he saw him promptly place himself cornerwise in front of his own box of fodder, and boldly insert his nose into his mother's. She, poor animal, too well trained to the inevitable to resist, or to attempt reci- procity in the matter, simply stood back until he had eaten what he wanted of her portion, and had to be content with gathering" up what he had left, while he was luxuriating in his own still overflowing supply. Coltie had to learn after that that loss of liberty is the result of refusal to be guided by proper principle, for he lost his old place in the large stall, and had to submit to a halter besides. There are seven miles between the old Brucefield manse and the Bayfield Road church, where Mr. Chiniquy was advertised to lecture. Mr. Ross drove him over. It was a bitterly cold day, and the French- man's blood was somewhat chilled by the time they reached my father's door. He drew up to the fire, rubbed his hands before it, exclaiming against the long cold drive. Mr. Ross was walking up and down the room, eyeing Mr. Chiniquy with fun lurking in every feature of his face. Then he turned to my father, as if to defend himself from implied reproaches. " Mr. Duncan," he said, " I have an old horse and a young one. Before we left home I asked Mr. Chiniquy which of the two I should take. I told him that if he chose the young one I would undertake that he should have a fast drive, in which he would have no time to feel cold, only that I could not, in that case, quite guarantee his bones. But if he preferred the old one I would guarantee a perfectly safe ride, not a shadow of risk to his bones, only it would certainly be very slow. Now, he chose the old horse, and of course he has had a long, slow drive. But that is not my fault. I gave him his choice." Coltie was not the only creature that afforded him hearty and healthful amusement. Cats and dogs, hens and turtle-doves, tame rabbits and wild squirrels were all interesting in their turn. He made persistent efforts one summer to cultivate the acquaintance of an alert STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. 133 red squirrel that played around and about the manse, bold yet exceedingly watchful. His first step was to lead him, by trains of corn judiciously laid, to venture into the study. This was done first while Mr. Ross was out, but before long the bright-eyed little visitor would cautiously enter even when he was present. With one eye ever fixed on the silent man seemingly absorbed in his book, he would pick up the nearest grain, pack it into his cheek, and, measuring the distance to the next, as well as the distance between himself and the door, he would cautiously make for it, ever ready, upon the slightest movement to dart back and disappear. The little fellow was finally outwitted on this point by a judicious use of a broom, by means of which the door was suddenly shut while Mr. Ross still kept his seat. No unfair use was made of this advantage, however, and after a while the little prisoner was allowed to go out. So, bit by bit, the acquaintance grew, until there was a sudden and complete cessation of its visits. Mr. Ross always feared that its increase of confidence had led to its destruction, not from perfidy on his part, but on the part of the family cat, which, treacherously oblivious of the white flag that had been held out to the little visitor, had in all probability put a sudden and complete termi- nation to the interesting negotiations. On one occasion even a poor, half-starved mouse was not beneath his tender ministrations. He had been preaching for my father. At the close of the service he did not come down till the people were nearly all away, and then he had something lying on the back of his hand which seemed to be regarded with considerable in- terest. It was a poor, half-grown mouse, and he was stroking its shiny little back with one finger. " It is a church mouse," he said, " and you know they are never very well off. " After holding it a little in his hand and letting it feel the warmth of the summer sun, he laid it down on the corner stone of the church which was quite warm to the touch from the sunshine. That same afternoon, after he had bidden us good- *■ m 134 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. I, ^:,-: bye and was just passing" out of the door, a well-grown kitten which was a household pet, walked boldly past him. He at once stooped down and caught Biddy by a front paw. The kitten objected, but that did not matter. *' Kitty must dance," he said, and commenced to assist her, by means of the paw which he held, to what would have been quite a well-conducted dance had poor Biddy resigned herself meekly to her part of the per- formance. After teasing kitty and children too for a few seconds, for no such liberties had ever been taken with that aristocratic tortoise shell cat before, he dropped her paw saying, *' Ah, Kitty, you are not well trained, I see." Then looking up at the circle around him, he added : "You should see my dog and cat at home. They know how to dance. But the dog likes the dancing better than Kitty does." His own saying about himself, *' I was an old man when I was a boy, and now I am a boy when I am an old man," was illustrated in multitudes of ways. A g"ame of croquet, checkers or chess would win his delighted interest as if he were indeed a boy — or even a child's puzzle with a slate and pencil. There was a word game played by the young people, in which he was particularly enthusiastic and successful. From a number of random letters scattered on the table a word was to be manufactured in thirty seconds, each player having the chance in turn. The one who first could show a list of ten words won the game. Where the most of the fun was found was in capturing-, or, as it was usually termed, " stealing*," words from a danger- ously successful rival. Any word in an enemy's list could be taken from him if, by adding one letter or more and possibly rearranging, a new word could be formed. Plurals did not count. On one occasion a rival player was rejoicing in having put together the rather un- common word, lemon. He was imprudently guilty of obstreperous rejoicing because of its supposed safety, from the impossibility of transforming it into any other word. But at the next turn the rejoicing was turned STUDIES AND RECREATIONS. »35 into groans. By simply adding the letter s and rearrang- ing, Mr. Ross demanded lemon that it might appear in his own list as, in the circumstances, the rather incon- gruous word solemn. There was a Hght-heartedness and a whole-hearted- ness about his merriment that meant a heart at peace and a mind at ease, elements signally lacking in much of the merry-making of this sin-burdened and care- burdened world. There was as much difference between Mr. Ross's laugh and the noisy jocularity that usually goes by the name of "fun," as between the "merry heart that doeth good lik ; a medicine " and the " crack- ling of thorns under a pot." And yet this is the man of whom it has been written : '* My youthful remembrance of him is the deep solemnity of countenance with which he used to come up the aisle, hat in hand, and ascend the pulpit steps. He usually came on foot those days, but turned not to right or to left to speak to any before the service. After that was over he would shake hands and perhaps speak with any whom he might meet. His silent hand-shake always left a serious impression on my young mind. I some- how felt that he was praying." * 1 % I I ' il IH' f CHAPTER X. THE UNION OF 1875. HE history of the Church formed by the union of 1861 is one of incessant activity. New colleges were founded and the old more thoroughly equipped. The work of Home Missions was taken hold of with something" of the grasp of the statesinan. French Evangelization began to be regarded by the united Church as another weighty responsibility, and shouldered as such, while God showed His approval of their offered service by giving them more work of this sort than they had intended in laying the Kankakee Mission upon their care. With the offer and acceptance of George L. Mackay (now Dr. Mackay, of Formosa) to be their first agent in the strictly foreign field, was commenced the most pro- nounced response to Christ's parting word of command, "Go ye into all the world." In all this forward move- ment Mr. Ross took a deep interest and an active part. When Mr. Chiniquy, of Kankakee, applied to be taken under the care of the Canada Presbyterian Church, some of the Canadian brethren seemed to be a little afraid of such an ally. Though sympathizing with him in his war with Rome, they felt somewhat uneasy at the possible financial demands that might result from too close connection with one in mortal combat with so mighty and unscrupulous a foe at? the Man of Sin. Someone proposed that he should he admitted into ecclesiastical fellowship, and so given the sanction of their authority and the benefit of their counsel, but that only on the condition that he should expect no financial support. The motion, though not finally ^■^1 THli: UNION OF 187: 137 carried, was'itrong'ly and somewhat pertinaciously sup- ported. Mr. Chiniquy, knowing the situation better ■^ any uninitiated Protestant could know it, naturally .wit the reverse of cheerful at the prospect of ecclesias- tical connection limited by such a stipulation. Mr. Ross crossed the room and shook hands with him. *' Mr. Chiniquy," he said, " they are talking- of doing- what they cannot do. I ask you now to come to Brucefield any time you will and tell my people about your work, and they can give you as much money as they like, and any minister here who sympathizes with you has a right to give you a like invitation." It was a hearty word when a hearty word was needed. Though the proposed restriction was not laid upon him, Mr. Chiniquy was not slow in availing him- self of the invitation given. When George L. Mackay spent a few months pre- •s to his first departure visiting some of the w. ..gregations seeking to interest them in the new mission to China, Brucefield presented to him a cordially opened door. Mr. Ross was much interested in the young missionary, and afterwards stated the impression he then received in one significant sentence : " I formed a favorable opinion of his fitness for the work from one special feature. He did not seem to be conscious of any self-sacrifice in devoting himself to the work nor feel that he was doing anything great." That this sentence might be more clearly understood the writer has felt tempted to elaborate it a little — not adding, only developing. But it is probably better to give the words just as they were uttered, leaving it to those whom they may concern to weigh them for them- selves. They may prove a light in a dark place to some young Christian seeking to decide as to his fitness for the foreign field. This is a serious matter. Along with the prayer that fitted laborers should be sent out into the field, there surel}- should be the almost equally important prayer that unfit laborers may be kept back. One keenly conscious of self-sacrifice has scarcely closed heartily with a Royal call. To such an one, the sacrifice would be to stay at home. i n .«. ■:-.■■ f 138 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Though deeply interested in all forms of,the Church's work, from the year 1870, there was another subject which demanded from Mr. Ross a deeper interest still. At that time a proposal was seriously made to seek some basis on which the four great Presbyterian Churches of the Dominion could uniti into one grand body. There were, as it will be remembered, two divisions in Ontario — the Canada Presbyterian Church and the Synod of the Presbyterian Church in Canada in connection with the Church of Scotland. There were two more in the Lower Provinces that corresponded with these almost perfectly in history and attitude, viz., the Synod of the Presbyterian Church of the Lower Provinces and the Synod of the Maritime Provinces in connection with the Church of Scotland. After the experience preceding the union of 1861, Mr. Ross utterly disapproved of any attempt to form a basis for the union of these four Churches, for it could be done only by dropping out completely any hearty testimony to the Headship of Jesus Christ. As he anticipated, the proposals made were practically these. From the Synods in connection with the Church of Scotland to the other two : •* If you will drop out of your basis any explicit mention of the Headship of Christ over His Church, we will drop our connection with the Church of Scotland." Or, what is nearer the truth, for the proposal came rather from what we may call the hitherto testifying Churches : •' If you will drop your connection with the Church of Scotland, we will drop all special testimony to the Kingship of our King." In the new basis proposed, the old 3rd article, containing the hearty testimony of both the uniting Churches to the Headship of Christ over the Church, was dropped out altogether, as it was distasteful to the Synods in connection with the Church of Scotland, and the old 4th article, containing a real though sadly modified testimony to the Headship of Christ over the nations, shared the same fate ; it, too, disappeared -V X THE UNION OF 1875. 139 altogether. What could the Free Church have meant by haggling over that article for sixteen years before the first union, and then, seemingly without even a motive, dropping it out completely ? During the first years of the negotiations, there was a strong party of old Free Churchmen, who could not consider it their duty, to gain any object whatever, to drop all explicit testimony to the Headship of Jesus Christ over His Church. They could not ^t first forget that that was the very banner around which their Church in the day of her espousals had been gathered, and that to maintain it she had felt herself summoned to assume a separate existence. They were troubled also at the entire blotting out of the 4th article, and with it all testimony to the Headship of Christ over the nations. But when at last a parenthetical clause speaking of Christ as " Head of the Church, and Head over all things to the Church " was inserted in the preamble to the basis, nearly all either expressed themselves as reasonably satisfied or made up their minds to leave their dissatisfaction unexpressed. But Mr. Ross was not satisfied. Dearly as he loved unity, and a proper massing of Christ's forces for the gaining of His ends, the King and His Kingship were infinitely more in his eyes than any apparently important strategic advantages. It was during the summer of 1874 that the writer was privileged to become a sharer of his home life. As his mind at the time was often occupied with the proposed union and the basis upon which it was to be formed, the early recollections of the time we spent together are full of eager discussions of the subject. ** What are the distinguishing characteristics of the three reformations — that of Germany, Geneva, and Scotland?" he asked one day, pausing in his walk up and down the room. It was absolutely necessary to confess ignorance, and, considering the animated countenance with which the question had been put, it was rather agreeable to require enlightenment. X ^1 ^1 f i- 1, lift t-\' / i 140 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. " In Germany," he answered, Christ was lifted up as 4 Priest, in Geneva as Prophet, and in Scotland as King. TAaf is the glory of Scotland. She has not only believed in Jesus Christ as the all-sufficient Sacrifice and Advocate tor each individual soul, nor rested in Him merely as the all-sufficient Instructor, revealing the whole will of God for ecclesiastical as well as individual guidance, but besides these two she has had a fuller revelation of the glory of Jesus Christ : she has seen Him as her King. Germany struck the key-note of the Reformation, and preached faith, faith in the adequate work of the Great High Priest. Geneva added to the faith of Germany the knowledge that comes from careful attention to the instructions of the * Prophet like unto Moses.' But Scotland added to the faith of the one and the knowledge of the other, loyalty to a personal and glorious King. Hers was a mighty step in advance." The idea was new to me, and delightfully significant. It seemed, and it was, an opening door into treasuries of hope and power. That the following conversations may be intelligible to the ordinary reader it seems necessary to give in full the basis and preamble which they discuss : PREAMBLE AND BASIS OF UNION. Preamble: The Presbyterian Church of Canada in connection with the Church of Scotland, the Canada Presbyterian Church, the Presbyterian Church of the Lower Provinces, and the Presbyterian Church of the Maritim(; Provinces in connection with the Church of Scotland, holding the same doctrine, government and discipline, believing that it would be for the glory of God and the advancement of the cause of Christ, that they should unite and thus form one Presbyterian Church in the Dominion, to be called the " Presbyterian Church in Canada," independent of all other churches in its jurisdiction, and under authority to Christ alone, the Head of the Church, and Head over all things to the Church, agree to unite on the following basis, to be subscribed by the moderators of the respective Churches in their name and in their behalf. THE UNION OF 1875. 141 Basis: I. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testa- ment, being" the word of God, are the only infallible rule of faith and manners. II. The Westminster Confession of Faith shall form the subordinate standard of this Church ; the Larger and Shorter Catechisms shall be adopted by the Church, and appointed to be used for the instruction of the people, it being distinctly understood that nothing* con- tained in the aforesaid Confession or Catechisms regard- ing the power and duty of the Civil Magistrate, shall be held to sanction any principles or views inconsistent with full liberty of conscience in matters of religion. III. The government and worship of this church shall be in accordance with the recognized principles and practice of Presbyterian churches, as laid down gener- ally in the Form of '* Presbyterian Church Government" and '* The Directory of the Public Worship of God." Along with the Basis there are seven "Accompany- ing Resolutions," which scarcely need to be given in full, though with the second, touching modes of worship, Mr. Ross was entirely dissatisfied, seeing it sanctions all "practices presently followed by congregations." These seven resolutions are concerning I. Relations to other churches. II. Modes of worship. III. Fund for widows and orphans of ministers. IV. Collegiate institutions. V. Legislation with regard to rights of property. VI. Home and foreign missionary operations VII. Government grants to denominational colleges. That the reader may be able intelligently to enjoy the conversations that follow, he should now turn back to the basis of '61 given in Chapter VI. Let him read carefully the third article of that old basis, realize its importance in view of historical facts, and then see if he can find it or any substitute for it in the new. Next let him study the fourth article, and remember the import- ance that was attached to it before the first union, and the sixteen years delay it occasioned, and then let him see if he can find any vestige of it left in the new docu- mim t :; ii 142 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ment. Having ascertained for himself what is omitted in the present basis, he will be able to follow with more interest the discussions in connection. On one occasion Mr. F., a dear friend from a dis- tance, was spending a few hours with us. He strongly approved of the union, had evidently paid little attention to the difficulties which lay in its way or the manner in which they had been overcome, but gave it as his opinion that the basis was " all right." ** Granting in the meantime," said Mr. Ross, *' that it is all right in what it contains, will you, an old Free Churchman, say it is *all right' in what it omits ?" Mr. F., being a Scotchman, did not give a decided answer. "The Pharisees paid tithes of mint and anise and cummin. A/i right I Jesus did not fault them for doing so. But they omitted the weightier matters. Even though everything in the basis i^ * all right,' that does not prove that these right things are not mere mint and anise and cummin alongside of the ' weightier matters' that are still left out." "What do you consider the weightier matters?" replied Mr. F., presently. "They have put in the Bible after a fashion, the Westminster Confession and the Presbyterian Form of Church Government. All very good. But they have left out the King I And they have done so, not by acci- dent, but to gain an end ; they have done so because they could not secure the union without it ; they have done so because any special mention of Him was dis- tasteful to some of the parties that were to be conciliated. Mr. F., how does it look?" The champion for the basis did not seem to feel entirely comfortable, but intimated the impossibility of putting everything into a document of that sort. " Mr. F.," replied Mr. Ross with great emphasis, "they cannot put everything in, but they need not put the most important of all matters out. You must remember that special testimony to Jesus Christ as King was the very essence of our existence as the Free M THE UNION OF 1875. r 143 Church. To this end were we born, and for this cause came we, as a church, into the world, that we might hear witness unto the truths and to this transcendent truth, the kingship of our King. The world had no need of the Free Church except to vindicate that truth that had been trampled under foot. The 3rd Article of the old basis has continued that unequivocal testimony as regards His Headship over the Church, since the first union. But it is now put out of the basis altogether, and put out to please those who positively and with reason dislike any such special testimony. How does it look ? You do not tell me," with some amusement, " that it is in the preamble. No, I think you are as wise not to plead that. Some of us feel that there might be more respect to the King in leaving Him out altogether than in merely furnishing Him a corner in the porch." "You are looking at it one way," replied Mr. F., "and I am looking at it in another. I cannot make that seem right as you have explained it. But this is what I look at. Christ prayed for unity among His people. The divisions of the Protestant Church are a blot upon her character and a hindrance to her work. Whether I can see my way around your objections or not, I am glad of the union." " But will the union so formed constitute the sort of oneness for which Christ prayed? '7 148 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. at the stake rather than give up the Word of God as their guide. Christ as Priest has had His witnesses, who sealed their testimony with their blood, refusing to honor any sacrifice but His, or to approach God through any mediator but Himself. Christ as King over His own church has had His cloud of witnesses, when Scotchmen would cry with their dying breath, 'Though every hair on my head were a life, I would give them all for the crown rights of my Redeemer.' Jesus Christ as King over the nations has yet to ue vindicated. That will be the last pre-millennial conflict, when the Lord shall send out of Zion the rod of His strength and rule in the midst of His enemies. But our Zion has just taken the rod of His strength, which is His sceptre, and decided that it is of no practical importance in these modern times. It is the case of the Scribes and Pharisees over again. This is the stone which God's accredited builders are again rejecting, but it shall yet be made the head of the corner." One morning at breakfast Mr. Ross mentioned the Lati ■; epigram upon the Church of England on account of which Andrew Melville was indicted before James I. upon the novel charge of scandalum mngnatum. It was necessary in frankness to confess ignorance of Andrew Melville and the whole galaxy of interests associated with his name. He did not attempt enlightenment at that time, but, during the forenoon, he came out of his study with a brown-backed book, McCrie's Life of Melville, open in his hand. He sat down in a rocking chair and read aloud from the pages of that fascinating biography. The two figures, uncle and nephew, opposite in nature, but most harmonious in disposition and aim, became living heroes and almost personal friends as scene after scene of their soldier-like life passed in . review. For ministers, in order to be faithful to Christ as King, had to ' endure hardness' in those days ' as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.' That book was read afterwards with the deepest interest, and became a first text-book upon the place God has purposefully given, in the history of the Reformed Church of Scotland, to the Royal Rights of Jesus Christ. THE UNION OF 1875. 149 the From the bejjinnnig' of the neg-otiations for this new union Mr. Ross knew that he could not enter it. As he expressed it himself, '* Further concessions on the sub- ject of Christ's Kinjfship have become Impossible to me except by such an act as that of Judas." The prospect before him had in it some very painful features, but he never seemed to falter in his purpose, unless by the hopeful symptom of a heart-searching- solicitude that he might falter. Perhaps there was no element in the prospect that he felt more keenly than the separation that would necessarily be made between him and the happy intercourse he had been accustomed to enjoy with his ministerial brethren. It was life to him to meet with the Presbytery, and to take his part in the eager con- verse and discussion at Synods and Assemblies. One bright winter afternoon he came out of his study with the larg-e Bible open in his hand. " Will you look at this ?" he said, pointings with his finger, as he laid the book before me, to part of the blessing- pronounced by Jacob upon his son Joseph, " Blessings — on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren." Then he explained its significance. ** I was thinking," he said, "rather sadly about the changes that would follow upon my staying out of the union next summer. I was thinking especially about my brethren, and the separation there would be between them and me by my refusing to go with them. I looked up to Him for a word of comfort or guidance, and this is what He gave me at once, 'Blessings — upon the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.' Can He not with His word fit into the very thoughts of the heart?" There was certainly no sorrow left on the counten- ance. The joy of the direct message was shining there. One of the '* blessings" that came upon the head of him who was soon to be ecclesiastically separated from his brethren, was the unbroken love and unshaken confid- ence of those very brethren whom he was ready for Christ's sake to give up. No longer at church courts, I '50 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. but often in the old manse itself and on railway trains and at communions he enjoyed the happiest intercourse with his former friends. Thoug-h he looked upon every minister in the united church as participant in a great wrong, the large-hearted charity with which he regarded them is manifest in the following words addressed to me some months later. "It may be that those men would have been as wrong in attempting to take my position as I would have been in attempting to take theirs. It is not for us to judge another man's servant." Mr. Ross attended the Assembly for the last time June, 1875, when it met in Montreal for the consumma- tion of the union. It was a testing time, but it was met with a glad heart and a cheerful countenance, because his way had been made so very clear to him that he knew exactly what his Master wanted him to do. That being settled, other considerations were entirely secondary, and could even be allowed to drop out of sight, they were so small in comparison. A suggestive glimpse into his mind at the time is obtained from an incident related by his elder, Mr. Forrest, who had also set his face to hold to the posi- tion taken against the union. They met in the street one day in Montreal, and Mr. Forrest turned and accompanied him a little distance. *' Mr. Ross," he said, "I have been a great deal troubled with this thought — Some will think I am setting up to be better than other people." Mr. Ross turned and looked him frankly in the eyes, saying : " Once in the history of our Lord there was only one in all the world to confess Christ, and he was ix thief . Will that help you any?" ** In the early part of Tuesday, the 15th of June, 1875, the Supreme Courts of the four negotiating Churches met, separately, for the last time in different churches in the city of Montreal. Each adopted a resolution to repair to Victoria Hall, and there to con- summate the union. In this place, accordingly, the General Assembly of the Canada Presbyterian Church, the two Synods in connection with the Church of Scot- .... mm- THE UNION OF 1875. >5i / land and Ihe Synod of the Lower Provinces assembled at 1 1 a.m."* The union was celebrated amidst decorations and congratulations; but John Ross was not amongst them. He had sat in the General Assemblies of earth for the last time. Before parting from his brethren he entered his dissent from their action, read his reasons and laid the document on the table, signed by other three names besides his own. The following is a copy of the paper: "dissent. *' Whereas the General Assembly has resolved and recorded its resolution to repair forthwith to the Vic- toria Hall for the purpose of consummating the union with the other negotiating Churches, and has declared that the united Church should be considered identical with the Canada Presbyterian Church, and shall possess the same authority, rights, privileges and benefits to which this Church is now entitled, and has, moreover, empowered the Moderator to sign in its name the Preamble and Basis of Union, and also the resolutions adopted in connection therewith, and thus to ratify the Act of Union : and whereas there are found in said basis and resolutions matters which cannot, in our view, be sanctioned by the Church without betraying the integrity and interests of the truth of God and the purity of His worship, We, therefore, crave leave to enter our Dissent, in our own name and in behalf of all who may adhere to us, and do declare and testify t'>x^ we ire neither bound by, nor responsible for, the Avi ertin complained of, and offer the following good and -sufficient reasons, with others of a like kind here- tofo gi^iven in, as the grounds of our Dissent, viz.: ' 1st. Because of the resolutions regarding modes of worship we cannot enter into union without pledging ourselves, for all time to come, to allow the Organ in all congregatir is now following that mode of celebrating the praises ot God in public worship, and to allow, in Dr. Gregg's " Short History," p. 193. 152 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ' ■,. J. 1 ' ' 'if- ii V like manner, all other practices as to modes of worship presently followed by congreg^ations, irrespective of the agreement or disagreement of such modes of worship with our views of what the Word of God and the standards of the Church require. " 2nd. Because said basis does not recognize, as our present basis does, the Larger and Shorter Cate- chisms as parts of the standards of the Church, but assigns to them a place of secondary importance, which cannot fail to deprive them of much of the weight which, for many generations past, they have most justly possessed in the eyes of the Church. Taking into con- sideration the unquestioned and generally-acknowledged influence which those symbols of our faith have, through the blessing of God, exercised upon the moral and doctrinal tone of the Church, as also on her spiritual life, and taking into consideration with this a manifest restlessness on the part of the present generation, with a strong tendency to' depart from the ancient landmarks by which the Church has hitherto been guided, the change thus effected cannot, seeing that there has been no just reason assigned for it, be viewed otherwise than as unwarranted and dangerous to the spiritual prosperity of the Church. "3rd. Because, by the decision now come to, the Church enters into union upon a basis which is exceed- ingly defective and unsatisfactory in reference to the main questions, viz., the Headship of Christ, both as regards His Church and the nations of the world. As regards the former, namely, His Headship over t he Church, it is entirely omitted from the body of the basis, where its supreme importance entitled it to be, and is only met with incidentally in the preamble, without any apparent intention. This is the more remarkable when it is remembered that the Headship of Christ, in certain of its more immediate applications, was the main question at issue between the negotiating parties. Secondly, the preamble of the basis represents this Church as holding the same doctrine, government and discipline with the Church of Scotland, and, conse- '^1 h but THE UNION OF 1875. »53 quently, as holding the doctrine of the Headship in the same sense and view in which it has been held by her that is, the Church of Scotland, throughout the whole period since the Disruption in Scotland. We thus profess ourselves to have come to hold the doctrine in the same way in which the Church of Scotland holds it and, consequently, to have abandoned our former view of It, which is known, all the world over, to have been totally different from the view held and acted upon by her Agam, as to anything definite concerning Christ's Headl ship over the nations, it may be said that it is now dropped altogether, and this is the more noticeable when It IS remembered what importance was attached to It in forming the existing union. Moreover, the terms in \yhich the subordinate standards are qualified in the basis now adopted render their teaching on this subject to be of uncertain authority. (Signed) Lachlan McPherson. George Forrest. John Ross. Donald Fraser. CHAPTER XJ. DIVISION IX BRUCEFIELD. O the great union was consummated, and just two ministers and their two elders entered a dissent, choosing rather to stay outside than to make their home in a structure planted upon a basis which they could not regard as solid rock. Mr. McPherson, the teacher years ago in the Embro school, and John Ross his pupil, now stood side by side in testi- mony against the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Each was supported by his elder. Would they be supported by their congregations ? That was yet to be seen. In order to understand Mr. McPherson's position, it will be necessary to go back a little. He, alone among his ministerial brethren, had utterly repudiated the union of 1861. His people, on the whole, heartily stood by him in the position taken ; and for many years the minister and congregation of East Williams maintained their protesting isolation. So deeply was Mr. McPher- son loved and respected by his brethren, that they per- sistently refused to accept his separation from them as final. They kept his name constantly upon the roll of the Presbytery, rendered him and his congregation any service that was in their power, and used every means that brotherly kindness could suggest to make it easy for him to change his mind and still come in amongst them. His opinion of the wrong done even in the first union basis never changed ; but the disheartenmenf so natural to one standing alone, the discouragement that often comes with feebleness of health and a want of complete unanimity among his people, together with the kindly and continuous action of his brother ministers. DIVISION IN BRUCEFIELD. 155 finally overcame his resolution, and both he and his con- gregation came back lo the Presbytery some years before the union of 1875. He was a man of a sensitive spirit and a tender conscience, and he afterwards bitterly re- gretted what he considered criminal cowardice and un- faithfulness. So deeply did he feel his inconsistency, that he regarded himself unfit to stand as a witness for the King the second time. It was not till the very last, when his spirit was stirred within him for the affront offered to his Lord in the new basis, and the almost utter absence of testimony against it, that he rose to the oc- casion, in his weakness and brokenness of spirit, to offer himself again as a witness on His side. In Mr. Ross's note book, dated June i8th, 1875, there is a touching little entry relating,- to the journey home from that memorable Assembly in Montreal. " While in Toronto Station, Mr. McPherson sitting at my side, I met the text — ' If two of you shall agree on earth touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.' We agreed to ask our pepple to be given to t\\e Lord and to us, in His name and for His sake." That was an important matter for these two minis- ters. Would their people sustain their action ? Mr. McPherson 's congregation had already experienced the disabilities of an isolated position ; would they be will- ing to face them again ? Mr. Ross's people were scarcely able to measure the situation ; would their convictions on the subject so momentous in his eyes, be sufficient to give them courage to assume such unknown respon- sibilities ? There was another matter still, which, though to Mr. Ross an occasion of heartfelt gladness, constituted an additional and serious element in the situation. A little daughter, his first-born, was ready to welcome him back to his home. That home he knew might pass from him and his in a few weeks in consequence of the action just taken. If his congregation decided to remain with him, all things might continue through his life-time without any material change. But if a majority of his people ; ■■)'■'■ 156 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. 'p59 from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up together. I the Lord have created it.' //« /^^ Z^*/-^ who says this. " It was a sore trial to a minister who loved his people. In the comfort thus given and taken the reality of the sorrow can be felt. Henceforth there were to be two camps in Brucefield formed out of the one, with all the accom- panying testings of spirit and temper unavoidable in the circumstances. Then his attitude was not really understood by some members of the Presbytery. This can plainly be inferred from the greeting of one minister, a kind, personal friend, but who, having been brought up in the Old Kirk, was scarcely in a position to appreciate his action. He met Mr. Ross that morning with the remarkable greeting, somewhat jocularly rendered : •' Art thou he that troubleth Israel?" But he was not prepared for the electric fl^h with which the answer was returned : " /have not troubled Israel, but thou and thy father'' s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and followed Baalim." Every word of Elijah's answer Mr. Ross saw to apply, and he gave it in the tone and the spirit of a veritable Elijah. The joke lost its intended point, and found another that was quite unexpected. . His brethren, too, were very urgent upon him to reconsider his decision, renounce his protest and join with them again. Their pleadings were keenly felt and hard to resist, not because of the strength of argument, but because of the reality of brotherly love which they expressed. To one who had pressed the point with much goodwill and tact, he replied, and it was the line of his answer to them all : '* I would gladly go with you, but you have laid a snare before me. To avoid that snare I must stand where I am. You have left me, and I dare not follow." But what made that meeting almost irritating to Mr. Ross was the tone of commiseration that pervaded most i6o THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. u \m i of the speeches of his brethren. They had come to sanction the division of his people and organize another congregation in Brucefield. It was painful work, but it was work that, in the circumstances, must be done. Regret was in order. But the pity, and anxiety for him and his family that continually came up along with the regret, at last became too much for him. In response to some particularly oppressive expression of sympathy he sprang to his feet, and delivered himself to this effect : •• There is no need of so much anxiety about me and my family. While I was in Montreal, before I took the final stand, I received a guarantee of support that puts want out of the question. One who was once poor but is now very rich assumed responsibility for me and mine, so that, as regards that matter, I am independent of churches and congregations as long as I live and longer." After that there was a more careful avoidance of any- thing in the shape of pity. When the meeting was over, two of the ministers were discussing what had taken place. '* Who do you think it would be," asked one of the other, '* that undertook for the support of Mr. Ross and his family ? " ** Why, of course," replied the other, almost testily, •• it was the Lord. Don't you understand ? " The amusement and delight of the simple-minded brother, who had allowed himself to be misled by Mr. Ross's business-like way of stating the case, knew no bounds. Mr. Ross's attitude towards the new congregation almost immediately formed, was entirely characteristic. When they asked the use of the church until their own should be ready, it was promptly granted. There were eighteen acres of land in connection with the old church property. When they asked a part of this for the use of their minister, that, too, was allowed them at little more than a nominal rent. In this kindly and judicious treatment of the new congregation, his elders stood steadily by him. But when the new minister came, and I proposed that we should call. DIVISION IN BRUCEFIELD. i6i the and ation istic. own were lurch e use little cious itood , and " No," he replied, *' I am not going to call. That in my case would- be hollow courtesy. A call means a welcome. I cannot honestly say that I welcome another minister in Brucefield, and I shall not pretend to do so. We shall meet in ordinary course at funerals and in other ways, and he shall know that he has a friend in me if he wants one. But I shall not call." The result of his honest way of dealing with his young brother was a friendship that showed itself in the end to be deep and true. Before very long the two ministers were helping each other in their harvest like two old neighbors ; and some years later the younger man paid a delicate tribute to the memory of his friend by giving to his first-born son the name of John Ross. Very early in the history of the Union congregation an Auxiliary of the Women's Foreign Missionary Society was formed in connection with it. I was urgently invited to join them and give what help I could. But Mr. Ross did not approve. *' If we want to walk in peace with those who have left us," he said, ** we must be careful not to try to walk too close. There are too many causes of friction among us to make it safe, human nature being what it is, to risk unnecessary irritations. It will be wiser, for a while at least, to keep ourselves a good deal to ourselves." The Christian wisdom which guided this decision has appeared to me more and more admirable as years have brought experience. One peculiar blessing preserved to Mr. Ross during those years in which he " Dared to be a Daniel, Dared to stand alone, Dared to have a purpose firm, and Dared to make it known," was an unbroken eldership. Had one dropped out, he would have been sorely missed. But they stood by his side, good men and true, George Walker, Robert Car- nochan and George Forrest, with even a closer attach- ment than before. So, with a really brotherly eldership, II !i:l: 162 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. and a congregfation out of which every discordant, dis- satisfied element had withdrawn, his last twelve years were full of peace and quiet prosperity beyond what he had ever known in his earlier days. He had asked his people of the Lord, and they were g"iven to him in a closer sympathy than ever. Then he was not left quite alone even as to ecclesi- astical fellowship. Mr. McPherson's taking the position with him was a most precious alleviation of what would otherwise have been very painful isolation. Two cordial comrades have much more than double the strength and courage of one. The Master in this case acted upon the plan adopted when the disciples first went out to preach. They were sent two and two. Mr. Ross was not alone; Mr. McPherson stood with him. Brucefield congrega- tion was not albne ; East Williams congregation shared the position with them ; for Mr. McPherson's people had again sustained their pastor in his protest. So the peti- tion agreed on in Toronto Station was granted as re- garded both. The enthusiastic sympathy and co-operation of Mr. Allan, formerly of North Easthope, w-as an important accession of strength to the two friends. His strong personality, cheerful, racy conversation and effective preaching were all at their service whenever they were needed, and many an ample draft was made upon his good-will. The following extracts from Mr. Ross's note book of the December immediately following the division of his congregation can scarcely fail to be interesting. The first bear/ date Tuesday, Dec. 21st, 1875. Its tone will be understood if it is remembered that the pain of recent events was still unhealed, and that the subse- quent history of that half of the congregation remaining with him was as yet unknown. Would the actual seri- ous curtailment be followed by a slow and disheartening dwindling ? Many expected this, and Mr. Ross was too honest to himself and the circumstances not to face the possibility or possibilities of pain which the situation DIVISION IN BRUCEFIELD. 163 involved. It was for him to "behave, and quiet him- self, as a child that is weaned of his mother." So cheer- ful was his daily countenance at the time that I had really no idea then of the deep searchings of heart through which he was passing. He usually sat up late ; and then, with his note book and his Bible and his God, he fought the good fight of faith and won the peace that passeth understanding resulting inevitably from casting all the care on Him who careth. Tuesday, Dec. 21st, 1875. Met just now Jer. x., 23, 24, " O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps," with Isa. xl., 27, "Why sayest thou, O Jacob, my way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God." Why is the Lord putting this verse in Jeremiah so much before me ? Because of its continual coming I preached from it only a few Sabbaths ago, and yet it continues to meet me. I St. Because it is difficult for me to learn the lesson that my way is not in myself, that it is not in me to direct my steps. 2nd. Because God is dealing with me and is going to deal with me in ways which I do not like. The way of my choosing and the way which He chooses for me are not the same, and this text teaches me to acquiesce in His will regarding the way in which He is leading me. This text rebukes a fretting and murmuring spirit and teacheth submission to God. While I continue to see things in my way which trouble me, it is fitting that I should say to God, " O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." "My way is not hid from the Lord, and my judg- ment is not passed over from my God." He has warned me of all the things that have happened to me, and has not withholden from me His counsel and direction and comforts in connection with them. He sees my way. It lies open before Him, and He knows fully how to bring me out of all these troubles. But though my way THE PROPERTY OF SCARBORO PUBLIC L13RARY. If 164 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. be not hid from the Lord, it is hidden to myself— covered with darkness. How lony thinjjs are to con- tinue thus I do not know. Whether a turn for the better shall come in the future 1 do not know. Whether yet greater darkness and difficulties may yet be sent I do not know. My way is hidden from myself, but it is not hid from the Lord. He has turned his own eyes upon it, and has taken it into consideration to make it a matter of care to Himself. ** Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him." Dated Wednesday, Dec. 29, 1875, there is a rough draft of a sermon which gives a good idea of the sort of truth that was particularly sweet to his own soul. Jer. III., 17 : "At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord ; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem ; neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north." I. There is in these words a promise of a vast union. This union is threefold. I St. The breach between Judah and Israel shall be healed. 2nd. The separation and enmity between the differ- ent Gentile nations shall be lost in a common interest in Jerusalem and the name of the Lord. ** All nations shall be gathered together to Jerusalem to the name of the Lord." 3rd. The hatred between Jew and Gentile shall be ended. There shall be a union of all Israel and all the nations, a vast union, such an one as the world has never yet seen, but such an one as shall certainly become a fact in the world, for God has promised it. II. Consider the leading characteristics of that union. ist. In it the name of the Lord is the bond of union and the object of worship. 2nd. This union is a covenant of holiness : " They shall no more walk after the imagination of their evil heart." DIVISION IN BRUCEFIELD. 1^5 3rd. The throne of the Lord identified with Jerusalem, is the centre of this vast union. "Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord." What is meant by this extraordinary title which shall be given to Jerusalem at that time — " the throne of the Lord ?" a. That Jerusalem shall in that day own the Lord as her King-. b. That she shall glory in the Lord as her King. In her eyes then His throne shall be lifted up — it shall be more important than all the universe besides. c. That she shall own the laws of her King as her laws. d. That in her not only the King's laws but the King's spirit shall be reigning. e. That the power of throne shall be manifested in her and for her. Here it is promised in this word of prophecy that Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, and the actual state of matters in Christ's Zion shall yet correspond to the prophetic name given. A time is coming when in very deed Jerusalem shall be to Him a throne. What is a throne? It is a seat from which He issues His royal laws and orders, rewards and punish- ments. The throne is for the King, for Himself alone, and for Him as King. It exists not for any other at all, but for the King Himself. 1. Think of the honor thus put upon Jerusalem. 2. Think of the power. 3. Think of the holiness. 4. Think of her nearness of access to Him when she becomes His throne. Ready answer for prayer. 5. Think of her safety, security and peace. 6. Think of her riches, grace and happiness. 7. Think of the power she will then have to attract and draw all to her when she becomes known as the throne of the Lord. Why does she now attract so feebly ? Because she has forgotten her King. Let us now test by the marks which the text fur- nishes the character of the unions which are taking i r i66 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. place between the branches of the visible Church, and particularly the union which has just taken place between the different bodies of Presbyterians in our land. Does it gco in the direction of exalting the throne of the Lord, or in the opposite direction ? (The exclusion of the Kingship from the Basis and the modification of the Confession wherever it spoke plainly on the subject is here again explained, and thus the recent union is proved to be of a different character completely from the one in the text.) Let us now examine how Jerusalem becomes the throne of the Lord. The Lord chooses her for His throne, takes her for His throne, fits her lo answer to Him all the purposes of a throne. From her He rules the world. '* The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion." It is not the throne that rules, but the King. The Lord has then taken to Him His great power and has reigned. His Kingdom has come. (The next, dated nine days later, is interesting in itself, and as a specimen of Mr. Ross's method of handling texts. The personal touch at its close makes it appropriate in this connection, as well as the time in which it was written.) Jan. 7th, 1876. — Met before retiring Song 7 : 9, "The roof of thy mouth like the best wine for my beloved, causing the lips of those that are asleep to speak." When this is the case, the tongue of the sucking child will not " cleave to the roof of his mouth." The roof of the mouth compared to the "best wine for my beloved " is a form of speech not easy to be understood. ist. The best wine is pleasant and inviting to the taste. He who drinks it will desire to drink it again. 2nd. The best wine is reviving. It will so gladden the heart that the " lips of those who are asleep will speak." 3rd. Strengthening speech may be compared to the best wine. The word in season, the word that comforts, revives, cheers and fills with the Holy Spirit truly ^X.-^.^ DIVISION IN BRUCEFIELD. 167 answers to this description, and the roof of that mouth from which such words flow may be spoken of as in these words of the Song : " The roof of thy mouth like the best wine for my beloved." In order to answer to this description the mouth — 1st. Must be linked with a regenerated soul. The throat of sinners is ** an open sepulchre." Their mouth is full of "cursing and bitterness;" "cursing, fraud, deceit, mischief and vanity." Such a mouth cannot answer to the description given in the Song. A man must become a new creature before it can be said of him : " The roof of thy mouth is like the best wine for my beloved." 2nd. In order to answer to this description the mouth must also be devoted to the Lord Himself, especially given to Him as an instrument to be used at His will. 3rd. The Word of God must be in the mouth as the word of open witness-bearing, as the word of praise and prayer. 4th. The mouth that declares the salvation of Christ for the conversion of sinners, and the comfort and quickening of Christians, is to Him "as the best wine." 5th. The Holy Ghost must be dwelling in the man and speaking by him in order that " the roof of his mouth may be like the bc^t wine for my beloved." Met the above wliiie ii^y heart was full of sharp feelings towards individucJ opponents here. Well, the roof of the mouth i:i»a is framing angry words against those who hate vi is not like the best wine for my beloved. It is a mouth that needs to be " held in with bit and bridle." m i WW CHAPTER XII. HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. HOSE who knew Mr. Ros-? only with the sol- emnity of the Sabbath service on his spirit, or with the seriousness of a commissioned mes- senger of Heaven on his countenance, did not know him fully. Some natures are as many-sided as a polished diamond, each side with a flash of its own : and a complete character must have as many shades as a rainbow. Let us suppose that the soul, in its highest exercises, has all its tints blended into the white light of spiritual life ; yet it is very delightful to come in contact with the same soul when a more partial display of its prismatic colouring gives shades entirely unlike the white, but each beautiful, and each a component part of the perfect whole. To know Mr. Ross in his many- sidedness you would need to accept one of the cordial invitations he delighted in extending, ana spend a week with him in his own home. He had a keen sense of the comical, and often gave an unexpected turn to the conversation by a mere word. On one occasion I was eagerly seeking to prove the importance of an important matter. With every sail set and under a powerful breeze of enthusiasm I was bearing down upon my object. The seriousness with which he listened added eagerness to my eloquence, for I read by his face that I had caught his attention and was probably carrying his judgment. When the point was reached where he should have expressed his agree- ment, he answered with all the heartiness of complete conviction : " Mamma, it is perfectly plain that the country will never be right till you are sent to Parliament." • / • < / 1 HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. 169 Let any enthusiastic woman imagine the cold-water bath such a speech must constitute. There was plenty of fun in the answer, but not a trace of that undertone of contempt that would have made it painful. A similar turn was once given at a Synod in Hamil- ton. A prominent member of the Court was proposing some plan that did not at all commend itself to Mr. Ross's judgment. It involved a deputation, which was to be sent on the ist of April to wait on some party or parties. At mention of the date, Mr. Ross interjected, in a voice that could be distinctly heard, " Say the second of April.' The laugh that greeted this covert expression of opinion was, for a few seconds, inexpli- cable to the mystified speaker, who could see nothing to occasion it either in his own utterances or in the proposed cbm^;.'' of date. H •;; occasional waste of time as it uSed to appear, was for some years a complete puzzle to me. When tired of study, he would fasten upon anything that hap- pened to catch his attention, and give himself up to it for hours. Knowing how deeply many of his people appreciated a visit, I was very anxious that he should gratify them as much as possible, carrying his influence into the very heart of their homes, as it had occasionally been my privilege to see him do. But sometimes when he had an afternoon free he would spend it doing some- thing that did not seem to be important at all. On one occasion especially, he had taken up an arithmetical puzzle — so to arrange the figures from i to 25 in a square marked off into twenty-five smaller squares, that each row of figures should add to the same amount. When I saw the head and hand, capable of such precious work, wearying themselves hour after hour on what was of so, little profit, I felt sorry and disappointed. As that thought clearly defined itself, another entirely unsought, took shape just as distinctly. Clause by clause it added itself until I was surprised, humbled and grateful. This was the word that was sent to check the natural but pre- sumptuous criticism I had been making. " Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own mi MM :jf ■i'l 111- 170 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up; for God is able to make him stand." "O Lord, -thou under- is thou hast searched me and known me- standesl my thoughts afar off." Around the manse stood a few beautiful forest trees, and in the fields behind were groups of elms and maples, varied with butternut, birch and wild cherry. They gave an air to the place that was unique, in this land of clear fields and simply patches or strips of forest. There was a touch of character in the continued existence of these trees, which, like the rest of the first giant crop on Canadian soil, had been doomed to the log heap. When Mr. Ross first took up his residence in the old log manse, the predecessor of the ample brick cottage of more recent days, most of the nine acres surround- ing it was unbroken bush, like many of the farms in the neighborhood. He went out one morning with his axe, which he could use with an old backwoodman's effec- tiveness, to do the ** underbrushing," that is, the pre- liminary clearing away of the smaller trees, in order to the systematic levelling of the heavy timber afterwards. It must have been spring time, for his eye marked in tree after tree a newly built bird's nest. He could not chop these down, and upset the domestic plans of so many little lovers. The woodman spared each tree so tenanted, and, as many of them as were able to survive the burning of the log heaps afterwards piled through- out the little field, lived to flaunt ever more stately and beautiful thanks to the kind heart that had cared for the sorrows of the little birds. A memorable household delight was ours directly in consequence of this act of mercy to the birds. Ten of the trees so spared were sugar maples. Though small at first, twenty-five or thirty years of unimpeded growth in the clearing had made them large and strong. As soon as the practiced eye of the sugar maker detected prospect of a good "run" of sap, the gouge and ten spiles were secured, ten dishes of some sort were ab- stracted from the household supply, and the trees were tapped in presence of every child big enough to follow HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. 171 their leader through the softening snow with or without a burden. It was fairyland to the children when the sap began to run and the boiling commenced. Mr. Ross was up to every trick of the trade, and could clarify and sugar off the daintiest of sweets in a way to be excelled by none. One season he made ten pounds of sugar, and another twelve quart jars were filled with syrup. Often it did not amount to more than a bit of delightful sport for Papn and the little ones. There is one peculiarly happy memory connected with these maple trees. When Dr. MacKay, of For- mosa, was home on his first furlough in company with his wife, they spent several days with us. Mrs. MacKay had never seen a " sugaring off," and Mr. Ross was in his element in exhibiting the whole process, while the missionary vv^as as interested as either of them in every step of progress made. As master of ceremonies, Mr. Ross handled ladle, snow and twig, and dealt out his sweets in their ever changing degree of sugary consist- ency to his delighted guests, while children of varying sizes occupied less prominent positions, sure to share bountifully also in the dainties going around. These are scenes that must spring up to memory amongst us when- ever the spring sun produces the conditions of air and earth inseparably associated with the tapping of the beautiful maples around the old manse. Up to the time of the division of the congregation, after which he felt that the honor of his Lord was in- volved In the proper management of finances, he was almost thoughtless as regarded outlay. In his personal habits he was extremely economical. In little things he guarded carefully against unnecessary expense ; but wherever his generosity was appealed to, or any of his pet pursuits were concerned, he delighted in spending freely. To give the writer's experience during the first six months will reveal, probably, extremes in this direc- tion. Early in the autumn an agent for a nursery called, with his book of beautiful pictures, and a valise of jars full of specimens of the fruit to be grown by his trees and vines. Before Mr. Ross knew what he was doing, I if' i 172 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ; 'tis J 1 i^i! I'M hi he had given an order, mostly for pear trees and grape vines, to the extent of $25. He Vt^as a little surprised when a paper was handed to him with the items and amount ; but he made no changes. About six weeks later a peddler came with a pack of rather high class dry goods. In a very few minutes goods were bought to the value of $38 — a beautiful shawl at $25, and enough black cloth for an every day suit for himself. Before the goods were quite repacked, another peddler came in, wanting to sell a set of springs that were to cost $5. Mr. Ross was entertaining him favorably by the time the other was ready to leave. No. i nodded com- placently to No. 2 as he went away, remarking with a brotherly smile, "This is a good place for peddlers. No. 2 was also made happy by an order before he left the house. It could not have been many days afterward that a mysterious parcel came home from Seaforih. It was a suggestive pasteboard box, and proved to be charged with a $50 set of mink furs bought the night before ; and no persuasion could prevail upon him to take them back again. But in later years this tendency to lavish generosity was usually limited to more modest exhibitions. His manner with little children was usually very happy. He never lost the heart of a boy, and so was often able to strike a chord to which young natures could vibrate, and the downright genuineness of his own beliefs enabled him to pass them on in such a way that children were predisposed to accept them. Dur- ing my first winter in Brucefield, a lady friend spent some weeks with us. She had with her a little daugh- ter, a child of six, with large, earnest, dark eyes and a sensitive nature. While they were with us, Mr. Ross was called upon to attend a funeral. That evening, after little Maggie had gone to sleep, the mother was telling with regret of the nervous shrinking the child evinced towards death and everything associated with it. "I am very sorry," she said, "she has so early learned to be afraid of death." Mr. Ross had brought his paper from the office on • >- HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. •173 his way home, and was now apparently buried in its columns. But it was often noticed that, however deeply absorbed in what he was reading, if a remark was made in the room that touched anything of interest, he always heard it. He looked up at once and asked the mother : "Have you ever taught her about the resurrection?" "Why, no," she replied, evidently seeing at once the importance of the omission, " I never thought of that." The next day he called the child to him, and the two had quite an interested conversation. The mother told us afterwards Maggie's own report of it. They were lying awake in the morning, when the child put her arm over her mother's neck, saying, " Mamma, do you know about the resurrection ? " " What is that? " replied the mother evasively. "It's just like this," replied the little girl. "You know when you used to put me to sleep in your arms — that is just like dying, to the people that love Jesus. Then when you put me in bed — that is just like putting the body in the grave. But when you call me in the morning and say, ' Maggie, get up,' and I jump up like this," suiting the action to the word, "that is just like the resurrection. For Jesus is coming again, and He will wake all the dead people up, and they will jump up just like that." " I do believe," said the mother humbly, " that her terror of death has melted away before the thought of the resurrection, and death being only a sleep out of which Jesus himself will wake us up." It will be noticed that only a part of the joyful truth about the death of a Christian comes out in little Maggie's account. The parting of the soul and body, and the blissful dwelling of the soul in the presence of the Lord while the body rests in the grave, does not appear at all. Possibly the child reported only part of what had been taught her, giving, as many an older person does, the thought that had met her own need, and letting the rest slip. But quite as likely the part she reported was the only part her teacher gave her at ' m w j 174 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. i\< ■\i- ■ I, i *:i-sH- ■ H the time, leaving the communication of further truth to a further lesson. His own little daughter, Bessie, was early instructed in the doctrine of the resurrection. One Sabbath, when still almost a baby, she heard the word ** Resurrection " uttered from the pulpit in the midst of the discourse. The child's attention was instantly caught. She felt now that her father was addressing herself, and she listened for some minutes, watching for more. But the reality of the hope of the resurrection in the heart of the little child led to one very sorrowful scene. When Bessie was three and a-half years old, a little gray rabbit was given her as a Christmas box. Her stocking was almost filled with sundries, and then, just before she came bounding out to inspect her treasures, the rabbit was placed at the top, with its head and erect ears showing over the edge. None of her other presents could compare with this, that would nestle into her neck or play about with her on the carpet with all the fascination of young life like her own. It lived till the bright spring sunshine was coaxing the thorn hedge into leaf, and then, one morning, dear little " Bunny" was found in its own cosy corner quite dead. After breakfast, she went out with her father to lay the loved playfellow out of sight. It was truly pathetic. It was Bessie's first sorrow. After the rabbit had been laid in its grave on the homeward side of the thorn hedge, and gently covered with the warm spring earth, the little girl lifted her tear-dimmed eyes to her father's face and said, with hope shining through the sorrow, *' But Bunny will rise again. Papa. He will rise again at the resurrection ?" He was too genuine to allow the child to believe a lie, but too tender to spoil the hope without pain. It was left to a deeper sorrow than she then deemed possible, even the removal of that precious father out of her sight, to teach her the unutterable restfulness of the sure hope of a resurrection in Christ. It might be supposed that so intent a student as Mr. Ross would find the restless activity of the little children almost unbearable. But that was not the iJii,U , ■: HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. »75 case. It was comparatively seldom that their noise seemed to disturb him. He made large room for them, and took perpetual pleasure in their company. Then he kept up to the end his habits of midnight study, so that he had his own special time when all was quiet. Saturday, also, he usually claimed to be free from inter- ruption, though exception was often made in favor of the youngest, who, when old enough to play indepen- dently, was often allowed into the study, to pile books or arrange blocks, with an occasional play with Papa as a change. In conversation he was extremely interesting, though it was not in every direction he was willing to be drawn out. I asked him one day his opinion of a certain prominent man in the church. He gave it cordially, and with such evident intuition of character and graphic, artistic touch, that I was delighted. It was not long until his opinion of another was asked*. That, too, was given. But when a third was suggested, he answered promptly : ** Why do you ask my opinion of these men? You lead me into danger in doing so. I am not at liberty to speak evil of my brolner, and an honest analysis of character often necessitates the notice of things that are not good. I think we had better talk of something else. " His * ' Book " he always found particu- larly sharp on anything approaching evil speaking, and had consequently learned to be very careful in his watch over his own tongue. Further to illustrate this trait in his character, it may be well to recall an anecdote that belongs to an earlier date. After a meeting of Presbytery, he and several other ministers were taking tea together. Some poor absent brother was the subject of conversation, and un- kind things, and things the reverse of commendatory, were freely said. In the midst, who should be shown into the room but the unconscious subject of the talk. Now Mr. Ross had not joined in the evil speaking ; but his conscience rebuked him for not having rebuked the rest. It also . led him to administer the rebuke still, though late, in a somewhat appalling manner. He M za^^z 'fi- ll ,'■ 1 M w 176 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. broke the momentary pause that naturally resulted from the circumstances by addressing" the new comer : *' Mr. ," he said, *' do you know what we have been saying about you ? We have just been saying- that you are so-and-so, and so-and-so, and so-and-so," enumerating- some of the different faults that had been predicated of him. This rather embarrassing communication was judici- ously met by the party addressed. '* Well," he said, meditatively, "perhaps you have come too near the truth." The 6th and 7th verses of the 6th of Deuteronomy were taken literally and practically into his daily life. "These words shall be in thine heart, and thou shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." His happiest talks were those directly oil the word of God. When he got a deeper insight into some text, it was his delight to talk the matter over with those who sat around his own table. Many a precious bit of exposition he left behind him in this way. We had been singing at family worship a part of the 91st Psalm. When the service was over he turned to me and asked : "Can you explain to me how that Psalm is con- structed ? " Now I knew it was a structure every stone of which was a gem of kin with the twelve stones forming the foundations of the New Jerusalem ; but I had never looked for a plan according to which they had been laid. "The whole Psalm," he said, " divides itself natur- ally into three parts, two of them very short but very important. The first two verses stand distinct from the rest of the Psalm and distinct from each other. The first verse is God's own advertisement of one safe hiding-place in this world of trouble and confusion. * He that iwelletb in the secret place of the Most High sha!' abide under the shadow of the Almighty.' The I'C' n;^ v,3r3e is the satisfied response of the individual ,.; ■ I t' HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. 177 soul to God's advertisement. * I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge, my fortress, my God, in Him will I trust.' The rest of the Psalm is made up of God's assurances of absolute and minute safe-keeping* to the individual soul that so answers His advertisement. Read the whole Psalm over, dividing it in that way ; be sure you take up the second verse as your own, and see the power that each verse that follows then has for yourself." This explanation of the structure of the Psalm has often reminded me of advertising letters sent out by pushing business houses. They first explain to you the advantages to be derived from dealing with them. Next they supply you with a printed letter, putting the very words into your hand they are anxious to receive from you. Sometimes an envelope ready addressed and even stamped is enclosed, so that you have nothing to do but to sign your name to the letter furnished, and mail it. At such pains has God been in indicting this 91st Psalm. He presses upon your attention the ad- vantages to be gained by accepting as your own His ** secret place " of refuge. Next He furnishes you with the very words of the answer He is waiting to receive. All that is wanted is that you sign your name, as it were, and breathe the message up to Heaven. Then you can go on reading as your own the already published answer verse by verse. On another occasion Mr. Ross asked the question : "Can you show the connection between the two parts of the 89th Psalm, and the significance of their being placed in the order in which you find them ?" Such questions are puzzling to those who have studied the Psalms only for the finding of precious single verses, and have neglected to watch for their scope or structure. Having professed inability to give an opinion, we were asked to look over it and see if we could form one. When the subject was brought up again later in the evening, we were better prepared to enter into it, having studied the Psalm, and noticed with interest the com- plete transition at the 38th verse. We found the first IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 11.25 ■ii|2£ 129 2f lii "" ilUU 14 u^ ^ ^> ^j> Hiotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIH STRKCT WIBSTIR,N,Y. 14SeC/ (716) 87^-4S03 '^ MM Is ■i 178 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. /• thirty-seven verses one continuous song of joyful confi- dence in God's promises and faithfulness, and the last fourteen an expostulatory statement of actual facts as completely contradictory of the promises as stubborn facts could possibly be. It is impossible in this case, to recall Mr. Ross's words, or even the line of thought along which he led us to the point he had in view. All that is entirely gone from memory. But the thought to which he did lead is still beautifully plain. He made us understand that this is constructed to be the special Psalm to meet a special experience. It is fitted to the case of those who have embraced God's promises, rested in them, counted on them, and yet find on actual experience^ that they are not fulfilled. '• This is a test," he said, " to which most of God's people are put .at one time or another. Some matter concerning which they had joyfully trusted God^^ in His promises, instead of going right, goes entirely wrong. Then they are liable to be oppressed with a double sor- row, not only the failure of their hopes, but, worse still, the seeming unfaithfulness of their God, and that in what had been a matter of special confidence between them. " Let such an one take up the 89th Psalm. Let him sing of God's faithfulness and power and promises until his heart is full of them. Then he can tell God of the actual facts, so contradictory of the promises, and finish up with the last verse. * Blessed be the Lord for ever- more. Amen, and amen.' ** This is trusting God in the face ol facts. Abraham did so when called to ofter up Isaac. Though by God's own command the boy's blood was to be shed, and his body to be consumed on the altar, yet he held on to the Lord's promise. ' In Isaac shall thy seed be called.' * Accounting that God was able even to raise him from the dead.' That was a thing unknown in human history before, but Abraham's faith staggered not even at that. To him God's everlasting promise was surer than deaih itself. If one must go down, it would have to be death ; \ HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. 179 the promise could not fail. This is the same faith Jesus asked of Jairus. Death had snatched away the child that the Lord had undertaken to cure. * Fear not, believe only,' was Christ's word to him. Facts were against faith for Jairus, but he was told to hold on to faith and let facts go. This is the faith that honors God and that He will honor." I have since thought in this connection of a mother whose only son was lost at sea, leaving no token behind that he had yielded himself to his Saviour. She had no human testimony that the boy was saved, bijt she steadily maintained: ** I have God's promises that I trusted for him from a child. Human testimony may deceive ; apparent conversions may prove false ; but these promises cannot fail." Is not this the same God- honoring faith ? His Sabbath morning discourses were usually care- fully stiidied, though the text was sometimes changed at the last minute, if authoritative guidance to another text was given. But the afternoon addressed were often not premeditated at all, except as he had already, at one time or another, carefully thought over nearly every passage in the Bible. In such circum- stances he sometimes got light upon the word he was handling while speaking that came with delightful freshness to himself. One afternoon he had taken the "faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief." When he came home to take a hurried tea before the 2vening meeting, he was full of a thought that had come to him while seeking to apply the last clause, "of whom I am chief." He spoke of it as "The personal use Paul makes of the faithful saying." " Has the Lord come to save sinners ? Then I am a sinner, and chief of them." He claims promptly his position in the class Christ came to save. He evidently had much enjoyed pressing upon the people to follow Paul's example, and claim their place in the same class: "God be merciful to me a sinner" Sind. then to remembe«" that these were exactly the people Jesus came to save. ) 'IjJMi'^V i8o THE MAN WITH THE BOOK i 'i He was much pleased at another time with the con» fession of a dying girl in whom he had taken a deep interest. She had been for many weeks in great distress of mind, knowing that death was near, and she had no sure hope. The word that at last became an anchor to her soul was this : ♦* For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. " ** I saw hope for me in that verse," she said. '* I am lost. I have known it for months. But Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, and that means me. Now I am just trusting Him to do what He came to do." A' similar thought, was thrown out in connection with the thirty-first verse of the fifth chapter of Acts : '* Him hath God exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel and remission of sins." "Jesus Christ has been 'exalted of the Father' to do a certain \vork. May He not be trusted to do that which He has been exalted of the Father on purpose to accomplish? He is God's commissioned and advertised agent* for the doing of this work. Whosoever needs 'repentance and remission of sins,' let him apply to Jesus Christ." On one occasion I was in much perplexity. It was a matter of right and wrong, but so involved that I could not determine which was which. At last I explained the matter to Mr. Ross, expecting definite counsel that should end perplexity. He saw at once the seriousness of the situation. But, to my dis- appointment, he declined to give a definite opinion, though giving something instead which I knew he con- sidered better than fallible human counsel : *' In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths." Now it so happened that this was the very verse that I had been longing to lay hold of, but it hung too high, and I answered : " I cannot claim that verse, for there is a condition in it. I know that in all my ways I do not acknowledge Him, though I wish I did. So you see I cannot claim the promise." He paused a moment before answering — not as if he HOME LIFE AND HAPPY TALKS. i8i did not know what to say, but as though thinking how to put it in the simplest way. '* You cannot get it that way," he said, " but try it this way. In this one matter acknowledge him by call- ing upon Him to be your wisdom, and then in this one matter claim the promise and rest upon it. In the next matter, acknowledge Him, and in that, too, rest upon Him that He will be as good as His word. In all mat- ters acknowledge Him, and in all matters He will direct your paths Your way of putting it would stop any mouth from speaking of that promise tb God, and that shows it cannot be the right view, for He gave the promise to be brought back to Himself and claimed." It was very simple, but it put a sure word of promise within reach, a word that pledged guidance out of any labyrinth of perplexity. There are some promises peculiarly sweet when trusted in the dark. This is one of them* Many flashes of thought and spiritual insight were received in daily intercourse with him. Some of them, like the foregoing, stand out distinctly as forever associ- ated with his memory. Others have been forgotten, and many others have been received into the general stock of intellectual possessions without any dis inct memory associated to indicate from whence they originally came. These may be perpetuated in their influence upon other lives, but no eye but one can trace them back to The Man With the Book, or past him again to other lives still from which his received inspiration. J i tf i'l TT CHAPTER XIII. nil In LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. V~ -ti 'g^niURING the summer of 1875 ^ railway was laid Snj between London and Wingham. Railway ^iiQ companies and shareholders were thinking only of dividends and probabilities of traffic ; but, influenced by these worldly considerations, they laid down their track in the very position which con- stituted it a veritable Heaven-sent highway between East Williams at the south, Brucefield in the middle, and the two little companies of still-protesting Christians in the northern townships of Ashfield and Kincardine. It will be remembered that, in 1861, when the union was formed between the (Free) Presbyterian Church and the United Presbyterian Church, Mr. McPhersonand his congregation were not the only parties which protested against the union basis as fatally defective on the sub- ject of the Headship of Christ over the nations. Two little companies of Free Churchmen in those northern townships joined in the protest, and refused to have any- thing to do with churches or ministers which had become party to the union covenant. For the fourteen j'^ears intervening between the first union and the second, these men had maintained their testimony unflinchingly. There was no compromise in their attitude. They carried their protest out to its legitimate length. They were witnesses for the King, but witnesses with no voice in church courts. They could make their testimony felt only by action, but this action gave no uncertain sound. Not only did they withdraw from communing with the Canada Presby- terian Church ; they withdrew from attendance at public LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 183 worship, and even went without the administering of baptism amongst them, because there was not one min- ister in all the land from whom they felt at liberty to receive it. Yet they remembered the word which is a law of the Kingdom, ** Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is ; but ex- horting one another, and so much the more as ye see the day approaching." In each township a little meet- inghouse was erected, and regular service conducted on the Lord's Day. One truly godly young man, a Mr. McDougall, who had been laboring in that region as a catechist, was strongly in sympathy and was of much service to them ; and one of their own number, an elder, Mr. Donald McKenzie, was also greatly blessed in opening up to them the Word of God. They edified one another, and "in their patience possessed their souls," bearing reproach and misunderstanding as their fore- fathers had been called to bear persecution and death ** for the honor of their King." There have been many ill-natured or foolishly light remarks passed about bigotry and blind obstinacy in connection with this and other like instances of the simple steadfastness of the few in opposition to the many. But what is ridiculed as blind obstinacy in one generation is often lauded as faithfulness to advanced princ'nle in the next. It may be, before another genera- tion has passed away, it will be acknowledged that these men and women stood faithful in their testimony to Jesus Christ as King, because the King Himself took pains to strengthen them with might by His Spirit in the inner man on purpose to the bearing of this testi- mony. In His inscrutable management of the history of the world. He was going to allow His own people to ** profane His crown by casting it to the ground," but, out of respect to Himself, He would not do that without raising up witnesses to testify to the dignity of the crown that was being so used. Men smiled at the pertinacity of these witnesses, and called it obstinacy. But it was really more like the fire Christian saw in the house of the Interpreter, which burned brighter and I :■ , 11 li I 1 1 184 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. brighter, though constantly deluged with water. The secret of the continuous flame was discovered when they led the wondering Christian round so that he could see One steadily, though unobserved, pouring in oil from behind. When, at the consummation of the union of 1875, two ministers refused to enter, the interest of these two little congregations in the north may easily be imagined. Were they at last to be relieved in their position of reproach and utter isolation ? Were they again to have the privileges of communion and baptism without the necessity of sanctioning the union basis that had dis- honored their King ? These two ministers had both entered the first union, where the tampering with the King's kingship began. Would they now repudiate only the further defects of the last basis ? If that were all, then no help could come through them. Or, would they repudiate as well the attitude towards the Head- ship in the union of 1861, and take up anew the whole- hearted testimony gloried in by the Free Church at first ? In a matter of such serious moment there must be no hastily-formed conclusions. Early in 1876 the new railway commenced running daily trains, just in time for the journeyings north and south that were to continue without cessation during the next eleven years. Mr. McPherson, Mr. Allan and Mr. Ross, with their elders, had already constituted themselves into a regular Presbytery, competent to take ecclesiastical action in proper form. This little Presby- tery was appointed to meet in the Brucefield manse, April 1 2th, 1876. It met accordingly, and delegates were in attendance from the northern congregations. These were received heartily into fellowship. A com- munion was arranged to be held amongst them in the following June, and a Sabbath was to be given them once a month by one of the ministers, alternating between the two congregations. There was no Brucefield ear present to hear the joy expressed when the three northern delegates reached home and told their good news ; but echoes of it were LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 185 . The when : could il from still vibrating when, years afterwards, the writer spent a few days amongst them. " That communion waa a great time, "said one good, motherly woman. " We baked till we had a barrelful of bread beforehand, and laid out the lofts in the barn for visitors, so that we could put up as many as should come." It was the care over those congregations that made the new railway of such special importance in the circumstances. At first Mr. McPherson took his share of this additional work. But he was an old man, never very robust, and now getting decidedly feeble, and very soon the monthly journeyings came to be left entirely to Mr. Ross. Once a month, on the appointed day, he first put his congregation and household on the care of Him who careth. Then, with a light heart, he went to speak the words of the King among those who set much store by the King and all that pertained to Him. He took much pleasure in this work ; but it was not without difficulties that made him realize the feebleness of human resources, and the need of constant supplies of wisdom and spiritual power. A position of isolation is a position of peculiar temptation. It tends to narrow- ness while it develops intensity. In such a position it is only by walking constantly in the Master's company and watching broadly for His commands, that we can be kept from the pendulum swing — going as far wrong in one direction as those we are condemning have gone in another. For the sake of those whose consciences were so excessively tender concerning any- thing that might be construed into a sanctioning of the United Church, Mr. Ross thought it right to deny him- self privileges of brotherly fellowship to an extent which his own judgment of the situation would not have rendered necessary. But what he gave to them in gentle consideration they gave back to him in grateful appreci- ation. He remarked on one occasion the difference it makes to the s.oul of a preacher when he is attempting to feed those that are hungry or merely to feast those rji I i 1 86 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. that are full. The one sort of work exhilarates while the other exhausts. It was the exhilarating work he had to do in the north. ^ Another interest belongs to these northern journeys. It was at the funeral of one of his young men in Kin- cardine that his attention was first turned to the religious services of the Freemasons. According to custom, he had the Rrst place. When he had finished, the Masons went through their exercises. During their prayer, which was read from a service book, Mr. Ross felt in his spirit that this was an approach to God without a Mediator. He watched narrowly the concluding part of the prayer, which confirmed his impression. As soon as it was finished he addressed the chaplain : ** May I ask if the Masons draw near to God in their own name and righteousness, or in the name and right- eousness of Jesus Christ ? " *' I have read the whole service," replied the party addressed. " Then am I to understand that the Masons present themselves as worshippers before God without a Mediator ? " *' Our Order dates back before the Christian Era, and no changes have been introduced into our service on account of subsequent events." ** Then," said Mr. Ross, in a voice to be heard at the outskirts of the crowd, "what I have to say is, — Let all men beware of the Masons. It is as much as a man's life is worth — it is as much as his soul is worth — to come before God in his own name or in any other name than that of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christians, hear what the Lord Himself hath said. ' Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed, when He cometh with the glory of His Father and with the holy angels.' " After that he felt strongly on the subject. The impiousness of men who have named the name of Christ and call Him Master and Lord, identifying themselves with such unchristian worship, deeply stirred his spirit LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 187 — so deeply that, in fencing- the tables afterwards he has warned Masons that, except as they see and confess and forsake this sin they may be afraid to present themselves at the table of the Lord. This whole matter was the occasion of considerable dissatisfaction in some quarters, but it was easier to characterize his action unnecessary fault-finding than to disprove his position. There were journeys to the south as well as to the north. More especially was this the case when, about the year 1883, Mr. McPherson's failing health made it necessary for him to resign his charge, ^nd seek in rest, and a sojourn among his native hills for some measure of recovery from the feebleness that had come upon him. At the call of Mr. Donald Fraser, one of the elders who had stood steadily at Mr. McPherson's side through all difficulties, Mr. Ross attended the congregational meeting held to decide the action of the people now left without an under-shepherd. Should they apply to Presbytery to be taken in upon the basis against which they had so long protested ? or should they maintain their protest still and remain as they were ? The result of the meeting was that a majority decided to enter the union, but a hearty and compact minority determined still to maintain their protest. With a speed which nothing but genuine zeal could explain, a neat new church was built and equipped, and a modest congregation, by their regular meeting outside the United Church, per- petuated the testimony that dishonor had been done to the rights of Jesus Christ. God has need of witnesses, and He knows how to raise them up, and how to hold them up, and He knows, too, how to terminate the testi- mony when it has done the work intended. The fact is, if His people would only realize it. He knows how to manage everything ; and it is simply lack of faith in His guiding that makes so many blunders to appear in the record even of His own. There was loyalty to Christ in the action of the minority, and there were tokens of His gracious pres- ence amongst them. It was not long before Mr. Fraser was laid on his deathbed. Several times Mr. Ross went f 1 88 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. down to see him, and on one of these occasions the sick man said to him : — ** My sky is full of stars." Then he added in a way to give gladness to one who considered no honor higher than that of being the King's messenger, **The stars are the texts you have been preaching from lately, and they shine upon me with the light of Heaven." After spending many months in Scotland in a vain search for health, Mr. McPherson came home to endure a long and weary illness at Ailsa Craig, within reach of his beloved people. The most careful and judicious nursing often could not ease his pain, or give the rest the pain and weariness craved. Toward the end of the protracted trial he longed exceedingly for release. But, with the tenacity of life often noticed in those who have never enjoyed robust physical health, the jaded spirit was not allowed to quit the wasted body. During Mr. Ross's last visit to him, having been speaking almost com- plainingly of the refusal of the dying body to quit its hold upon the immortal spirit, he looked up with a gleam of his old quiet humor and cheerful faith to say : ** He who put this soul into the body will know how and when to take it out again." Is not this a quieting view of death ? " My times are in thy hand ; • ' My God, I wish them there : , , ' My life, my soul, my all I leave Entirely to thy care." An entry in Mr. Ross's- journal dated April ist, 1886, runs as follows : "Returned to-day from Ailsa Craig. Mr. McPherson departed this life on the 29th of March, and was buried yesterday in Nairn Cemetery. He was in his 73rd year. The funeral was large, old and serious people predomi- nating. Mr. McMillan from London, Mr. Ferguson, for- merly of Lobo, Mr. Anderson of Nairn and myself, were the ministers present. Mr. Forrest and his wife and Neil Ross were down from Brucefield. Mr. McMillan led in the first prayer, and Mr. Anderson in the last. I LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 189 spoke from John xx., 17 : * Go to my brethibii and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God.' •• Read at the grave, Isa. lx., 19, 20, ♦ The sun shall no more be thy light by day ; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee ; but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself ; for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.' * Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?' ' I press toward the mark for the pr^ze of the high calling of God in Chtist Jesus.' * Behold, He cometh with clouds, and ev y eye shall see Him, and they also who pi?rced Him ; ^nd all kindreds of the *'hi th shall wail because of Him ! 'Cast thou thy burden on the Lotd, And He shall thee sustain.' " Anyone familiar with the manner in which God spoke to Mr. Ross in the special texts to which his fingers turned cannot fail to appreciate the complete message that thus came to him as his beloved brother was buried out of his sight. It is not a mere cluster of appropriate texts : it is the development of a thought. Even the parting injunction is not a transition. It was to him a most tender touch of apt sympathy, standing now, as he did, quite alone as a protesting minister. Mr. Allan had been called away before. When he came home he mentioned, with grateful pleasure, the satisfy- ing portion given him at Mr. McPherson's grave. We did not know it then, but less than twelve months more and his course, too, was to be completed. After Mr. McPherson's death, Mr. Ross was led to seek the co-operation of an aged minister, Rev. Robert McKay, formerly of Shakespeare, who had taken strong ground against the basis of 1861. His services were highly appreciated by the dissenting congregation in East Williams ; and he, at much self-sacrifice, has nobly ministered to them ever since, i'n the midst of the infirmities of uncommon old age. I'l IF r 190 •!. THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. 1/ ■ ' ij \\ I There is another matter of great importance to Mr. Ross connected with the London, Huron and Bruce Railway. It was in the month of February, 1882, that a train was run past Brucefield on the Sabbath. Though ill- pleased at such a desecration, Mr. Ross did not take action upon it until, on the next Sabbath, at nearly the same hour, it went up again. Though he was at the time in the midst of public worship, his attention was caught, as well as that of the whole congregation, by the whistle and roar with which it thundered past the village. He paused at once in the service, and then appealed to the congregation. '* What are you going to do," he said, ** in vindica- tion of God's right to His own day ? Are you going to allow the railwaA^ to fling defiance in God's face at your very doors ? iVhat are you going to do ?" The appeal entered as an arrow into the heart of one of Mr. Ross's elders, Mr. Forrest. As soon as Monday morning gave him an opportunity he began to inves- tigate what action could be taken. It was still early in the day when he came down to the manse to take counsel with his minister upon a plan of operations. It was agreed that there must be a public meeting called, to which the general Christian public should be invited, and all the neighboring ministers, that the situation might be carefully discussed and unitedly met. When the meeting gathered, and had been properly constituted, Mr. Ross stated the case as it appeared to him, and the matter was ready for discussion or sug- gestion. One of the neighboring ministers made an irrelevant speech. The sum of it was the littleness of Brucefield and the bigness of the giant with which she was attempting to measure herself. One flash of George Walker's wit settled that speech, and the meeting took up the subject right earnestly. Mr. McMillan, a Christian magistrate in whose opinion all present had the utmost confidence, explained the defect in the law as it now stands, making it illegal to interfere with a train in its course, even though its employees would be r W LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 191 otherwise open to arrest as guilty of a breach of the Sabbath law. He read the statutes on the subject and made it quite plain that, though the Sabbath law is the law of the land, yet there are railway laws which inter- fere with the action of the Sabbath law in the case of employees at work on a train in its course. He also explained that, such being the case, any attempt to arrest the men working on a train, as it passed through Brucefield, would lead to heavy damages and defeat instead of victory. Such being the present state of the law, it was unanimously agreed that steps must be taken at once to petition Parliament to change it. There was no time to be lost. The latest date at which petitions would be received for the session of Parliament then sitting was very near. A form of petition was promptly drawn out, and a letter to accompany it, and Mr. Ross went at once to Seaforth to have them printed by thousands. Then our house for days was turned into a sort of post office establishment. Mr. Forrest and other friends kindly came in to help, for there were addresses to write, parcels to do up, and last, though scarcely least, innumerable stamps to put on. In a remarkably short space of time the forms of petition were off to the ministers all over Canada, along with the following letter : Seaforth, March 7th, 1882. Dear Sir, — If you approve of the object of the accompanying petition, will you please take such steps as you may deem best to get as many signatures attached thereto as pos- sible, and forward the same to the Member of the House of Commons who represents your constituency. It is desirable that the matter be before the House of Com- mons as soon as possible. Yours respectfully, A. D. McDonald, JOHN ROSS. ■I r^ « ;!! ! I r 192 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. The printing and postage, amounting to $32, he quietly and characteristically paid himself ; worked earnestly in our own locality for a numerous signature ; by letter and personal calls, acted as he was able upon ministers at various points along the line ; and then watched for results. One thing certainly followed. A third train made its trip on the third Sabbath, but that was the last for years. It may scarcely seem proven that the stopping of the train was the consequence of the agitation emanating from Brucefield, and yet it would scarcely be faith to question it. Prayer was made without ceasing unto God concerning this thing, and it was answered. Whether God answered the Brucefield prayers by means of the Brucefield efforts, or apart from these, does not matter very much. But the fact is clear. So soon as Zion really grappled with the monster, the monster, for a time at least, became still. It was not till the Sabbath before Mr. Ross's death that a train was again run through Brucefield on the Lord's Day. The next week at the same hour, it again went up, and a third time a week later. Mr. Ross was not now here to do as he had done before ; but those in sympathy with him did what they could. Letters were sent to the Globe and local papers, and a legal query to the London Advertiser. The latter asked what power the law allowed the Christian public in arresting railway employees as violating the law against Sabbath labor. The answer was given in the legal column, and stated, that no arrest could be made while the train was on its course ; but, before leaving its starting point, railway hands could be arrested like any other workmen if found violating the law concerning Sabbath labor. The Sab- bath train ceased to run, and as far as known to me has never since been put on. May it not be that railway companies are like children, quick to detect the difference between a wish to stop them and a purpose to do so. It is obvious to those dealing with children, how gloriously they will override mere wishes, however vehemently or angrily expressed. II LONDON, HURON AND BRUCE RAILWAY. 193 But when they detect the tone of purpose, there is a change of tactics. Purpose is an unknown quantity, and, unless the temptation is strong, most are unwilling to run counter to it. Railway companies do know that it only requires purpose on the part of the Christian population of the land to close their Sabbath traffic for- ever. But the Christian Church has no purpose in the matter, and even wishes on the subject are weakening. What will she say to her Lord when He makes enquiry after the blood of the thousands of employees who could have been protected in their Sabbaths, who should have been protected in their Sabbaths, but who were not ? While the people are " busy here and there," building beautiful churches and playing heavenly music, behold, the young men are gone ! slipped soul and body under the wheels of the Sabbath trains. It may not be out of place to close this chapter with a charge left by my own father to his children and their descendants. It will then be seen that Mr. Ross's children have a double hereditary interest in the precious Sabbath Day. "Let them regard it." Perhaps there are other Christian parents who may catch the idea and leave a like solemn " bequest of love" behind them, that the blessed authoritative Sabbath slip not entirely out of our land. " For those I love, my children and their sons And daug^hters, and for theirs again, as long As they shall find a place on earth, I wish, I earnestly desire, that they may own,* And keep, and honor, and abide in thee, Thou Day of Heaven — thou minister of good ! Be this their Heritage — this their Entail — Their great distinction this — their glory this ! This is my will this my bequest of love ! Let them regard it. If those lines should meet Their eyes when I am silent in the dust, O let them ponder well my words — my prayer. My oft-repeated prayer for them, and turn To Sabbath sanctity and Sabbath law. Let them forsake what else they may, but not The Day of Rest, or its congenial Truth. The earth is all before them. Let them go Where hope or fancy points ; but let them not »3 194 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Forg^et the Day that leads to bliss on high I In poverty or riches, grief or joy, In honor or obscurity, in town Or country, still let them revere the Day Of sanctity and sacred thought ! 'Twill prove Their shelter from the blandishments of time. Nor less their strength beneath its certain ills. O ye who bear my name to other years — Ye loved ones, listen ! disregard not one Who fain would see you all in garments pure And beautiful beyond the stars ! Attend And hear me ! for I would repeat my wish In token of my urgency : it is, That you may know in truth the King Most High, And dwell amid the lessons of the Day That lifts the heart to Him. il ■ ■jf CHAPTER XIV. i THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. N the following conversation, given wholly from memory, and which embodies indeed the sub- stance of more than one conversation, Mr. Ross is made to give, as far as possible in his own way, his views of the Second Coming of Christ. The special conversation referred to was commenced by a young friend asking him if he favored the pre- millennial or the post-millennial theory. "Many years ago," he said, '* my mind was much taken up with the subject. I examined every passage I could find in the Old Testament or the New bearing upon it, and made them out into two lists, ranged one against the other — those seeming to favor the pre- millennial idea, and those that told the other way. Yet in view of the whole my judgment inclined strongly against the pre-millennialists, though there was one verse in their favor that I was not then able to explain — the one in II. Thessalonians that speaks of the end of the * Man of Sin,' 'Whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.' "But the more I have thought of the subject, the more I have become dissatisfied with both the ordinary views. The post-millennial theory makes much of the Bible meaningless, and takes the ring of cheer out of Christ's parting words, ' Surely I come quickly.' The pre-millennial idea of a visible coming at that time in the clouds of heaven, and reigning in person in Jerusalem surrounded by His risen saints, springs, I think, from a confusion of ideas — a mixing of two Ill |i 1 196 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. things that ought to be kept distinct. Let me explain my meaning." The speaker, as was often the case when deeply interested, had been walking up and down the room talking eagerly to his attentive listener. Now he paused beside the table and laid his finger significantly upon three successive points in its. surface. ** I find," he said, ** in carefully studying the Word of God, not merely two, but ^/tree distinct * comings ' of the Son of Man. ** His First Coming," laying his finger again upon the first point in the tablecloth, " was foretold as a time of humiliation, suffering and death. *' But there is a Second Coming," laying his finger upon a second spot, "which is foretold with marvellous fulness, and in a great variety of passages. It is the coming which immediately precedes the Millennium. Concerning Him at this Second Coming it is announced that * He shall smite all nations with the sword that proceedeth out of His mouth ;' that He shall 'consume' Antichrist * with the spirit of His mouth, and destroy him with the brightness of His coming;' that under His leadership ' the kingdom, and dominion and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven ' shall be given to the * people of the saints of the Most High.' Then shall the earth be 'covered with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.' Then shall the ' law go forth out of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.' Then the Bible shall be the world's statute-book, and the Sermon on the Mount the handbook of common law. This is Christ's Second Coming. This is when the ' stone cut out of the mountain without hands ' shall ' smite the image upon his feet, which are of iron and clay, and break them in pieces ' — when the ten kingdoms of modern Europe shall become ' like the chaff of the summer threshing floor, and the wind shall carry them away, that no place shall be found for them,' but the stone that did it ' shall become a great mountain and fill the whole earth.' This is the Second Coming of '01 I THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 197 Christ, of which the Bible is full and for which we are all to watch. ** But," he added with energy, " there is a Third Coming, a coming to judgment, ' in the clouds of heaven,' * with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God,' when the 'dead in Christ shall rise first' and shall * meet the Lord in the air,' to be immediately joined by the saints then living, when all shall be gathered before the great white throne, that the books may be opened, and all judged according to their works. That is His third or final coming. ** Now the Jews, in watching for Christ's first com- ing, made their mistake by losing sight of the lowly and sorrowfully significant predictions that described that first coming, and fastening their eye entirely upon the glorious promises concerning the victorious Second Coming. The pre-millennialists, as it seems to me, make the similar mistake of reading into these promises of the second the peculiar features that belong only to the third or final coming. But the mass of post-millennialites have lost the Second Coming altogether. The young questioner had listened with the deepest interest. "Then in what sense," he asked* **do you expect Him to come the second time?" The animated walk up and down the room recom- menced as Mr. Ross replied : **Not this time in the literal, visible sense. He will come as He came last time, in such a way that the Church itself, except those few who may be watching, shall not know Him. You will find this Second Coming given in vision in the 19th of Rev.: 'And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war." If you study the whole passage I think you will be satisfied that this rider is not the Lord Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven, to gather his saints to a personal meeting in the air ; but it is Christ going forth to conquer this old rebellious world to Himself. Christ as the Word of God^ with the igS THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. sharp sword proceeding out of His mouth. The day is coming, and it is not far off, when to those who are watching He shall so shine into His own word, and His glory shall so shine out of it, that that word shall be to them as though their visible Lord was walking at their side — yes, more than that. It only needs that a very small percentage of His professed followers should be awakened to the fact that the word of God is the Word of God, that every command in it is a command of God, every promise a promise of our infinitely faithful God, every threat a threat of the living God who cannot lie and cannot fail, to put such power into them that nothing shall be impossible unto them. It only needs that a very small percentage of His people should spend one week under the full force of the word so realized, and the results in the Church and in the world would be tremendous. But let Him who is in His own person the Word of God put Himself at the head of those upon whom He has so aiade His word to shine out, and lead them on to definite conflict with the Church and with the world, and there would be such conflict and such victory as was never dreamed of before. "I know," he added, "something of what I am talking about. The power the Word of God has at times over my own soul is, I believe, a foretaste of that which is coming soon in full force, to those who are watching, and ready to follow Him who rides forth with the sharp sword proceeding out of His mouth. '* And do you think," enquired his friend, " that the conflict will be with the Church as well as with the world?" ** When Christ came the first time," was the answer, ** He came unto His own and His own received Him not." Unless I am much mistaken, when He comes the second time the Church will be just as unprepared as it was eighteen hundred years ago. Jesus Christ Himself almost indicates as much when he asks the question "When the Son of Man cometh shall he find faith on the earth?" Christians generally will not know Him, will not like Him, and will most certainly fight against THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 199 Him. A remnant will be filled with His Word and Spirit as never, except in the rarest instances, has been the case before ; but they will be counted bands of enthusiasts, hypocrites or fools. But they will really be bands of heroes, every one of them such as David was when he ran to meet Goliath. They will then do in earnest what every one of us should be doing now. They will be doing the will of God in earth as it is done in heaven. ** But what do you think would the Churches do with such men? Tell me," he said, facing round upon his listener, with a countenance full of amusement as well as earnestness, " What would your big congre- gation at home do with a dozen such men ? If, during this next week, twelve men amongst you should be so filled with the Word and Spirit of Christ, that their words and actions were all such as though Christ Him- self were living and acting in every one of them ; if, by example and direct appeal, they kept pressing home upon fellow-Christians that nothing short of this living out the principles and spirit of Jesus Christ could be called Christianity at all, and if the sharp sword accompanied both word and example, making them tell upon the ioints and marrow — what would be the effect upon the con- gregation ? " ** I do not know what the effect would be," replied the young man somewhat meditatively, "but," he added with some emphasis, **I believe they would be ex- ceedingly unpopular." ** Unpopular ? The Churches as they are now would never put up with such men in their midst. The whole Church would soon be broken to pieces and ready to be whirled away with the rest of the great image, 'like the chaff of the j?ummer threshing floor.' The genuine elements in all the Churches would soon gather round those Spirit filled men and become like them, while the remainder would either become openly infidel, or continue as the emptiest shells without even the sem- blance of a kernel. "Yet what have these twelve men done? Neither 200 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. more nor less than this : They have, in terms of the 2nd Psalm, ' Rissed the Son.' They have yielded them* selves to Him in loving and entire surrender, in yielding- themselves to His now illuminated word in implicit faith and unreserved obedience. They are simply accepting the position of members of Christ's body, which certainly implies yielding to the most minute control of Him who undoubtedly is or ought to be the Head of His own body. They are simply, but actually, living out the doc- trine of the Headship of Christ over His oivn Church. Do you know ? " he added with great animation, '* that the principles which produced the Disruption are the very principles which, as things appear to me, shall intro- duce the Millennium ? " "That is a very interesting idea, and gives dignity to the contendings of the Church of Scotland that I never suspected before. But, you speak of principles. The Headship of Christ over the Church, that is one. What is the other ? " *• The Headship of Christ over the nations,^' with emphasis. '* These are the two principles for which the true Church of Scotland has contended all through her history, and these are the two principles which shall not only introduce but maintain the Kingdom of Christ in its Millennial glory all through to the end. Look at the 19th of Revelation. You will find them both there, and both in such a very prominent position that they are given as the two published names of the Divine Rider. His name is called The Word of God. In going forth to do battle under that name. He certainly goes to bring a people under positive and unreserved subjection to the Word of God, and that is simply asserting and establishing His own absolute Headship over them. But He has another conspicuous name. * He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written A7«,? of Kings and Lord of Lords.* In going forth to do battle under that name, He certainly goes to bring kings and their kingdoms under positive and unreserved subjection to Himself, and to Himself as The Word of God. And so real is their sub- jection in the end, that He shall ' rule them with a rod A II THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 201 1 19th both of iron.' If that is not asserting- His Headship over the nations and winning it too, what is it ? You can catch His tone towards the king of the earth in the gracious but authoritative counsel given to them in the 2nd Psalm, ' Be wise now therefore, O ye kings, be instructed ye judges of the earth, serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son lest He be angry and ye perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little.' But according to the prophetical pictures, no large proportion of the kings take this kindly counsel. At least there are many who do not. In the i loth Psalm the Lord is represented as striking through kings in the day of His wrath, and in Revelation the birds are in- vited to feast upon the flesh of kings and the flesh of captains. It must be either submit or perish that day." "Then you think that Christ's people, under the invisible but actual Headship of Christ Himself, shall literally * take the kingdom, and dominion and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven?' — that they shall assert and establish His right to control,, not His Church only, but the whole world, according to the laws laid down in the Word of God ? " *' That is it exactly. And it is quite possible that it shall be done according to established constitutional principles. Two things will probably go on together: I St. The most tremendous political * confusion and bloodshed, signs enough of which have for years been showing themselves ; and 2nd. The quickening, con- solidation and marvellous growth of that inner Church scattered all throughout the present visible Church — the actual gathering together of those * armies of heaven ' on ' white horses ' going out after the august Rider, who is their Leader. Now, remember these two forces will be at work together, death and destruction, making awful havoc of human life on the one side, and a present though invisible Lord developing beauty and power and numbers on the other. *'Take your own city. Fasten your eyes on it, and watch the necessary consequences of the continued action of these two forces. Soon * the people of saints 2oa THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. of the Most High ' would be in the majority, and, once there, what would they do ? Would they not quickly fill all the municipal offices not merely with respectable, moral men, but with men after God's own heart? From the mayor down to the policemen paradinjj the streets the uppermost thought of each officer would be how, in the wisest and most effectual way, he could rid the city of every temptation to iniquity, and bring all its institu- tions and inhabitants up to the closest accord with the Word of God. Let these two forces work on through the whole world, and you see what the necessary con- sequences would be, and without anything we call a miracle, excepting this, the complete subjection of Christ's people to His Word. ** But it will be a time of tremendous conflict. The Devil will fight ifor every inch of ground. The victory will be gained simply because * greater is He that is with us than he that is with them.' It will again be a trial of strength between the Son of God and the god of this world." " I see. Once Jesus Christ is established as actual Head over His own Church, that Church, under His leadership, shall have purpose and power enough, per- haps by the ordinary machinery of constitutional govern- ment, to establish Him as King of all the kings and governments of 'the world?" "Yes. The whole Millennium springs from the Church being brought actually to yield to the Headship of Christ over herself; and it culminates and continues by the world being brought, by means of that now loyal Church, actually to submit to the Headship of Christ over the nations." There was a pause of some minutes, during which both were thinking. The silence was broken by the questioner. "What do you understand by the first resurrection, Revelation xx. : 4, 5, 6 ?" "That passage stumbled me for some time, and I am not prepared to pronounce dogmatically upon it yet. This is the only explanation I can offer. I will not say THH SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 203 it satisfies me ; still, it comes much nearer to that than the view held by the pre-millennialists. " During- that thousand years Christ will be actual King- over the whole earth, King of its kings as well as over His own Church. Hut He will govern -not visibly in His own person, but by means of some constitutional government in each country. Whether the chief magis- trate in any given kingdom be a king or a president will not matter ; he will really execute the duties of a lieutenant-governor under the Lord Jesus Christ. The office of legislators will be to work out the principles laid down in the \'/ord of God to the special circum- stances of the peoj e over whom they are appointed ; the work of judges, to apply the laws so made to special cases. Who, during the thousand years, shall occupy these ' thrones of judgment ?' Men in the very spirit and power of the apostles themselves. The heroes and martyrs of old shall all, as it were, come back again, not now to be the ' oflFscouring of the earth,' but to be the leaders of the people, to * live and reign with Christ a thousand years.' A Martin Luther shall again, but effectually th's time, rein in the Germans to do the will o*" God 'as it is done in heaven.' A John Calvin shall be chief magistrate in France, and mould that whole nation as he never was able to control Geneva. A John Knox shall take the reins of the British Empire, if it outlasts the earthquakes of the pre- ceding years, and work out the constitution of the ideal Church of Christ, with no Queen Mary to fight against him. Queen Mary shall remain in her grave. 'The rest of the dead live not again till the thousand years are fulfilled.' "But I see," he added, "that you cannot quite accept this ?" "I cannot say that it quite satisfies me. The words are so explicit." '* Let me give you a parallel instance, and it may help you to see that there is reasonableness in the view and precedent for it. " You know the promise in the last of Malachi, ''■fr ! m m " I : IB r 1 '^l ii^ I li- ffl ' H ll' ■nil '' has not been altered. 220 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. <■■ r It next day. His every word and action that Sabbath day, his determination to rise and go to the house of prayer, his disappointment when prevented, his tenderness throughout, the peculiar spirituality of many of his words and expressions, and the continuance of that deeply serious look in his eyes, are all in keeping v^'ith the conviction that he felt himself to be but a few steps from another world. Yet he had been up and dressed and going about all day, and he conducted fannly worship before retiring for the night. The Psalm he gave out was the forty-first ; but he significantly began the singing at the last verse of the preceding Psalm, the fortieth, thus marking that verse with peculiar emphasis as an expression of his own feeling : " I'm poor and needy, yet the Lord Of me a care doth take ; Thou art my help and Saviour, O God, no tarrying make." The passages he directed us to read were : John xxi. : from the nineteenth verse to the end; Acts i. : 8-11, Acts II. : 24-3 1 , and Acts vii. : 55 and 56. The significance of these passages as they must have appeared to him is now so plain that I cannot help wondering at my own blindness in seeing nothing of it at the time. The first opens with the words, "This spake He, signifying by what death He should glorify God " The second gives Christ's ascension, and the message of the two men in white apparel, telling that He should so come again in like manner as they had seen Him go into heaven. The third speaks of the flesh of the Lord Jesus resting in the grave in hope, and seeing no corruption — the hope crowned by the triumphant resurrection. The fourth gives Stephen's vision into the open heaven, and his sight of the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. At the close of worship he said to me : " Do you remember how, two or three times during the past week I have read to people at my bedside, ' Let all my saints together be unto me gathered.' When SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 221 God sends me that word He means to gather some of His own to Himself. It may be me." He meant to prepare me for what he felt was coming; but my eye was not looking that way, and I refused to be afraid ; I felt sure he was getting better. He ate with much relish a supper of porridge and milk. When eating it he looked up brightly and said : " You see God is fulfilling to me the words we have been singing, ' And in his sickness sore, O Lord, thou ai' his bed wilt turn.' That means sick bed mercies." I w^as not an hour after when the pain in the side R'~^ in again with such violence that none of the remedies b'.tlierto used seemed to have the least power to subdue it. About two o'clock in the morning we sent again for the doctor. While waiting for his coming I said : "Papa, did you ever suffer like this before?" He answered : "I never knew that I could suffer like this before, and so I never was afraid of it." After that night of terrible pain, Monday was spent in a long, almost unbroken sleep. Towards evening he awoke, spent and feverish. Several friends, learning that his case was now very serious, gathered in. As the nip-hi advanced, he asked that family worship should be corctv , ' in his presence. He took the Bible him- self, ^pone . it, and handed it to Mr. Benjamin Higgins, as'c iii." H'm to read. It was the 19th of Rev., from the 1 1 th •. ' s" — the vision of Christ as the Word of God iding • "' Ht ^he head of the armies of heaven, to put forth His inliiennial power and subdue the world to Himself. Mr. George Walker and Mr. John McDonald, tried and trusted friends, stayed with us during the night, which was spent in restlessness and wandering. Soon after the Tuesday morning broke, bright and spring- like, the restlessness and wandering both ceased, but a dk pressing labor for breath began. Breathing was such an elTo I jr.d speech evidently so difficult that conversa- tion • 1.S cut of the question, but every now and then a sentence would be pronounced or words of prayer heard. ii' 222 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. fr ; so that we could to some extent mark his footsteps as he *' walked through the valley of the shadow of death." About ten o'clock he repeated the text, "Be still and know that I am God." Then turning" his head to Mr. Forrest, who was at his bedside, he said, " Didn't I use to preach that to you ?" The unspoken per- sonal application evidently was, "I have preached it; now it is for me to do it — to be still and know that He is God." A little later he said tc '^^ « vnie friend, " I have not spoken in secret, in a dai^; nace of the earth" — but either from failure of memory c "•■om want of breath for so long- a speech, he left the verse unfinished, and con- tinued, *' ' Cast thy burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain thee.' This is true for official duty as well as for personal salvation." The verse he had meant to give was this, '* I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth ; I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain." I was standing by his pillow, and he said, *' To God the Lord belongeth the whole earth." My answer did not satisfy him, for he turned a quick look into my face and said, '* Why don't yon take hold of that?" I did not see his point at the time, and he did not feel able to explain. But I have since been much touched in look- ing up the expression to find that the one coming nearest to it is this, ** For thy Maker is thine husband, the Lord of hosts is His name ; and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel : the God of the whole earth shall He be called." So suddenly and unexpectedly had death come upon us that the children had scarcely began to be afraid till that morning. Bessie's heart was sinking. To him she had always clung with a remarkable attachment, and he had the tenderest sympathy with her. She felt as if he must not ^o^ he could not ^o^ she could never let him go. After seeking feebly to comfort her I went back to his room, eager for a message from him. After sitting a little in silence, timid to break in upon thoughts that I felt were going out to a present God, SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 223 I took his hand and said, ** Papa, Bessie's heart is breaki-^. Can you give me a message for her?" He did I .c answer for some seconds. I almost thought he was not going to answer, when he said distinctly, as a message to his sorrowing little daughter, "Blessed be the glory of the Lord from this place," and added after a slight pause, ** * I will never leave thee, I will never forsake thee."' To Anna he gave part of Solomon's charg'w to his son. " Keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother ; bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck." As the words impress me, it was not his own commandment, nor mine, that he charged upon the he^rt of his child. It was a blessing similar to that put by Jacob upon the two sons of Joseph. "The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads." He was passing on, with the love and authority of a dying father, the Word that had ** redeemed him from all evil " to be her constant com- panion and guide through life. His third little daughter he took by the hand, and, looking at her with his heart in his eyes, said to her, " O my little daughter, Maggie, seek the Lord Jesus Christ; and remember that He hai poiver to draw your heart quite over to Himself.'''' His little boy David would come occasionally into the room, look his wonder at Papa and the tokens of sorrow around, and then go quietly out again. On one of these occasions his father's eyes followed him and his lips murmured the words I was so glad to hear. " O God, make him strong, and spare him, and make him strong to do much work for Christ in the world." A little after that I heard his voice in whispered prayer, but could not catch all the words: ** O Lord, — my house — never leave them, never forsake them. The Messing of the Lord maketh rich, and He addeth no sorrow with it. Never let them become vain, for that will bi :ng Thy wrath upon them for that sin. Give them to hold fast to Thy promises," and later, •' — bear ^ ': ',:.; m n ' li i ! J 224 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. with me — every breath — disquiet them as little as may be," and again, '*Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil and canst not look on iniquity," and ag"ain — "Christ the King." So eagerly was I watching for every word, that I fear my watchfulness had troubled him, for after that he used the Gaelic, and so got once more into his closet and shut the door behind him. Little Ellie, the baby, came in, as she often had done through his illness, and stood at the bedside. He held' out his hand and grasped the little hand and wrist. " O little Ellie," he said, " and so Papa is to go away and leave you all." The child still stayed. His eyes sought mine, and I understood their message. He had a little parcel of conversatic n ozr \^^qs on the bureau from which she had often been supplied before. I arose and gave her one. She showed it as usual to her father, and he, knowing the matter of interest, said in something of his old way: "What's on it ? " When I had read to her the words she went away well pleased. Even then, with eternity full in view, he could think for the innocent amusement of his little playfellow. Several of his dear people, stricken with the common sorrow that was falling upon us all, came in for one brief, parting word. To each he gave a text. As one of these entered the room, he took her hand with the old cordial grasp and said in his old way: "Are you well?" His next word was : "This is a special call to me from the Lord. Be making ready. • Fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold on eternal life.' "• Shortly after this, he was lying back on his pillows with his eyes closed. His breath was very heavy and short, and the sentence came almost by jerks : "I am now come — to the point — when a man is fit — for nothing in the world — but to glorify God hy dy ins; to Him." It is sweet to connect this expression with the first verse we had read at worship on Sabbath evening. " This spake He signifying by what death he should glorify God." It seemed to me then, and it does yet, the most satisfying way to put death that I had ever heard. It II ■ It SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 225 as may han to iji^ain — , that I that he Dset and ad done He held" ;t. " O way and s sought d a little m which ind gave , and he, ng of his id to her lien, with innocent common for one As one with the Are you ecial call Mght the pillows eavy and " I am nothing im." It irst verse '« This 1 glorify the most eard. It was just the thought to strengthen him, drawn as it was from God's own Word. Toward the end I was standing watching the terribly labored breathing, and fearing with a dread which must be felt to be understood, the pains and dying struggles that might yet intervene before the *' silver cord would be loosed." " The prayer of the destitute," went up to heaven in these words, " Father, into Thy hand I com- mit his spirit, and his every dying breath." Right down from heaven came a thought that never could have originated in my own heart — "And He loves him a thousand times more than I do." This illustration of what I had just done followed swift as a flash. It was as though some one whose heart yearned over my own little Ellie should lift her up and place her tend?rly in my arms and say, ** Be very careful that no hurt touches her." Sucji an injunction, I knew, though entirely un- necessary, would be kindly received and most carefully carried out. I saw at once that what was so precious in my eyes was far more precious in His, and would be managed in the very best way. A great calm came into my heart instead of the dread. His death-song was part of the last verse of the one hundred and thirty-eighth Psalm. He motioned for his glasses, and, having adjusted them, I gave him a large printed Psalm book. He opened it and read out the words : " Surely that which concerneth me The Lord will perfect make." The peculiar, glad voice in which he rang out the word "perfect" I can never forget. Then he glanced up into my face and added: '■''Perfect^ mamma; thafs it" Twice after that, with some interval between, he re- peated the words, the last time not long before his power of speech ceased. That last time he added some words which I did not fully catch, but which referred to the making perfect again even of the body that was now being taken down. Those familiar with him in prayer can scarcely have failed to notice how often he used the expression, as though it comprehended much that he 15 ^;i anr 226 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. wanted to ask, "Perfect that which concerneth us," and it was one of God's beautiful love-tokens that He gave him this word to rest upon just then. The last words that I can distinctly recall were given in a manner peculiarly his own, and in a voice more like his usual than almost any of the labored expressions that had preceded it: '■'■ Alan^s righteousness! human righteousness ! to go into that Presence ! The best of it \s ghastly, deathly, like himself." The last breath was drawn about seven o'clock in the evening, and, graciously for those about his bedside, there was neither a groan nor a twitch of a muscle. He literally "fell asleep in Jesus." " Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints." What is precious in His eyes may justly be precious in ours, and it may not be out of place thus to speak of the details. Had his experiences been more of the joyful and triumphant kind I would have had more scruples about exhibiting them, for these have always been the exception, and are more likely to discourage the weak and timid than to cheer them. But his is the death of one who loved his home and grieved to leave it, who loved his work and would gladly stay and do it, who felt that the burdens he was leaving behind were too heavy for the shoulders upon which they were to fall, and of one, moreover, who realized his own utter unworthiness, and the glorious holiness of the God into whose presence he was about to enter, as comparatively few ever seem to do, and yet he was enabled ** to behave and quiet himself as a child that is weaned of his mother ; his soul was like a weaned child," before the simple word of the Lord, '* Be still, and know that I am God." It was no ecstasy of heavenly glory that 'gave him courage to meet the last enemy — only two lines of a psalm, but they were enough. In death, as in life, the Word of God was sufficient. It was such a simple experience, that of a little child before his father — to submit to God's appointment and to rest upon His promise. The effect upon my own heart has II SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 227 been so quieting and cheering, I would gladly be the means of extending the blessed influence to others. That was a wonderful evening, after all had been done that could be done, and the friends, stricken mourners like ourselves, had withdrawn. I went into a room where two of the little girls had been put to bed. One was asleep, but the other was wide awake, with her eyes full of quiet tears, looking up to the ceiling. As I entered the room, she sprang up in bed, her little face radiant with joy. She threw her arms around my neck while the tears rained down her cheeks, and she said, "O mamma, I was just thinking how happy papa is now." Was ever sweeter comfort given ? Yes, better still was in store. As I lay down that night, thinking what had come upon us, this thought came powerfully into my soul : '* God has taken away the father from our house to-night, but He undertakes Himself to occupy the place He has thus made empty. Can I think that the household or any member of it shall ever be the poorer for the change ? " And so, accepting God as our household resting-place, I fell asleep. In no other matters have I realized the preciousness of this household resting-place as in guidance in per- plexity, and in the control and management of the children. When in difficulty as to the control and proper guidance of the six strong-willed, energetic children left upon my care, this thought has been a tower of strength to me. If their father were here, I could draw upon him to the fullest extent for the management of these children. His resources, being finite, might not always prove adequate, but all he had would be at my disposal. He who has taken the father's place to this household has infinite resources of love and wisdom and power, and all his resources, by the terms of the arrangement, are at my disposal. When cast down and disquieted with faults that were too strong for me, this has been an abundantly satisfying song, ** Why art thou cast down, O my soul, and why art thou disquieted within me ? Hope thou in t' % 228 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His counten- ance." This too, has transformed fears into confidence. *' Fear not, for I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon the dry ground ; I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thy oflFspring-." But perhaps there is no other verse that has given a better hold than this: *' Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle-tree ; and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." It is a low place to take, but it is a position of power, to point to one of our children and say: •* Here is a thorn. Lord ; let me have the fir-tree, that it may be to thee for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." Most gladly would I comfort others with the comfort wherewith I have, .in answer to the many, many prayers that went up for Mr. Ross's family, been comforted of God." The Word of God is wonderful in its power to fit and satisfy every craving of the human heart. None know this better than those who have been made desolate by bereavement. During the first week after Mr. Ross was taken from our midst, one thought often fell upon me with a chill. I knew the dear friend who had gone from our midst had gone to be " with Christ, which is far better." I could rejoice in his joy and thank God for it. But through all that sometimes a little chill — jealous feeling — would come up : *' He will be so taken up with the glories of heaven that the little Brucefield home he used to love so much may be less in his eyes than it used to be." I could be patient to lose his visible presence, but to lose the old place in his heart — that was more than I could give up, even to heaven, without pain. There was no disposition to find fault that it should be so. Indeed, I could not see very well how it could be anything else. But the thought gave a dreary feeling of being left behind. I do not remember praying about this feeling. It was scarcely, perhaps, well enough defined for that. There was certainly no expectation of comfort in the SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 229 matter : it was left among the " all things " that surely work for good, and that would be understood later, but not now. One morning that first week we were reading at family worship, following the course that had been started while Mr. Ross was with us. The chapter we had was the second of 1. Thessalonians. As we read the seventeenth verse, some words in it flashed through my soul in a way that startled me : " Being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart" I saw at once in them what I had not been even looking for, a perfect answer to my chilling thought. They came to me as a complete de.«, ription of Mr. Ross's real attitude towards the little home of which he had been the centre : " Being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in hearth There is no argument in this— no proof whatever. To many it may seem nothing more than coincidence. To me it was the Spirit of God using the Word of God to comfort with solid truth. I would lovingly pass it on, again "comforting others with the comfort where- with I have been comforted of God." I see it plainly now. Nearness to the Lord Jesus makes us love our friends more, not less. What, then, must be the effect of dwelling in His presence. But another trouble took deeper hold still. So sud- denly had death come that there had been no opportunity for a parting talk. Precious parting words had been received that last sad day, but there were some things my heart ached to say that I could not mention then. As time passed, the desire for one more half-hour with htm became stronger, not weaker : sometimes it came with a force that made me almost afraid. When this yearning was at its height, a sweet thougtit took possession of me : "I cannot speak to Mr. Ross, but I can speak to the Lord Jesus Christ, and tell Him all I want to say. Mr. Ross is right in His preset ce. If He pleases He can pass my messages on, and, if not, it is all right." I kneeled down and told Him all. I did not ask Him to deliver the messages, but simply to do with them exactly as He thought best. 33© THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. I !' When I rose to my feet the burden was entirely gone, and it has never come back any more. Whether my messages were delivered or not I do not know, and do not wish to know. They were given into the heart of a living Friend who would do the very best thing with them, and /Aa/ is enough. For some time I felt as if this was too sacred a matter to be mentioned. But the comfort given to my own soul has been so sweet that it has not seemed fair to keep it all to myself. If, through the pages of this book, it may bring living comfort home to others by leading them to "pour out their heart" before the Lord, then blessing and praise shall be the result. He "fell asleep" on Tuesday, the 8th of March. The funeral was on the following Thursday. The com- pany that gathered to pay the last tribute of respect was unprecedentedly large. Eleven ministers, represent- ing the Baptist and Methodist bodies as well as the Presbyterian, were present, and several others after- wards expressed regret that word had not reached them in time. The most vivid recollection I have of the touching services of that day is in connection with the singing of the closing verses of the ninetieth Psalm. Every word was satisfying, but my heart went up most of all in the last two lines : *' Our handy-works establish thou, Establish them each one." It was his handy-works I was praying for, that they might' be accepted and established before Him, especially the costly testimony he had borne to the kingship of the King. The end of the story is not yet written, and no hand can write it but the hand of Him who sees the end from the beginning, and sees as well ^ the precious. Heaven-wrought links by which that beginning and end are effectually connected. The body was laid in the old centre plot in the little graveyard close to the manse. It was placed alongside of the dust concerning which he had said years before : " I have come to live in Brucelield, and I intend to n SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. 231 die in Brucefield. That body must lie here." His pur- pose in the matter was fulfilled to the letter. A beautiful granite monument marks the spot, erected by his sorrowing congregation, assisted by friends who, unasked, sent in their oflFerings for the purpose. It bears this simple inscription : , JOHN ROSS, MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL IN BRUCEFIELD FOR 35 YEARS. . He fell asleep March 8th, i8S^, Ag-ed6s. HIS DEATH-SONG. " Surely that which concerneth me The Lord will perfect make." Below that is the nineteenth verse of the twenty-sixth of Isaiah, written as he loved to read it, dropping out two of the italicised words, and counting it the very voice of the risen Redeemer : "Thy dead men shall live; my dead body shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust ; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead." The following document, received a few days after Mr. Ross's death, was gratefully appreciated at the time, and is of permanent value : ** At the usual Saturday Conference of the Professors and students of Knox College, held on the 1 2th day of March, 1887, attention having been called to the death of the Rev. John Ross, Brucefield, the following resolution was a3« THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. ];t 1 I U' M unanimously adopted and ordered to be transmitted to his widow and family as expressive of the sentiments of the Conference, viz.: " Whereas it has pleased the Great Head of the Church to call to Himself the Rev. John Ross, of Brucefield, an honored alumnus of Knox College, this Conference of Professors and students desire to record their sense of the loss which they and the Church have sustained by his removal. •* His generous spirit, his high gifts and attainments, and his earnest and singularly elevated personal piety, have secured for his name a place of special honor in the College where he studied, and indeed in the estima- tion of all who knew him. It is matter of peculiar thankfulness, at this hour, for the Conference to know that while diversity of opinion, in reference to an important ecclesiastical movement, prevented their brother from continuing to walk in outward fellowship with his early associates, this diversity was never allowed either to weaken the ties which bound him in Christian love to his brethren or to cast a cloud over the esteem, confidence and love which they cherished towards him. Indeed the many important ecclesiastical discussions in which he took a conspicuous part seemed to endear him to brethren from whom he diffored. For he possessed the gift, granted only to a few of the great and good, of eliminating from controversies those personal elements which tend to embitter, and of lifting dis- cussions up into a region where all feel that they are dealing solely with questions of principle. "This Conference, while they bow submissively to the will of their Heavenly Father, who has seen fit to call their departed brother from a life of varied usefulness on earth to the higher service of the upper sanctuary, desire to tender to his widow and family their cordial sympathy with them under their severe bereavement, and they pray that the God of all grace may pour into their hearts the rich consolations of the Gospel and give them to experience the fulfilment of the precious promises made to them in His Word, ' SUNSET LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. n 233 *' In the name and on behalf of the Conference of the Professors and students of Knox College. " (Signed) Wm. Caven, Wm. Gregg, Wm. McLaren, R. G. Thompson, C. Gordon, J. McD. Duncan. ♦♦Toronto, 15th March, 1887." It may not be out of place to g-ive extracts from a few of the many private letters received at the same time : ♦♦ For your husband I have always entertained the highest esteem and respect. Indeed no one could know him well who did not admire and love him for his Christian worth, his stern and loyal adherence to principle, and his kindly affection towards all, and especially to those who were of the household of faith." ♦♦ During the earlier years of my ministry we were thrown much together ; and I learned both to love and reverence him. His grasp of Divine truth and the nobility of his character always deeply impressed me. . His unexpected removal brings back the past to me very vividly, and I feel that I have sustained a personal loss. He was a friend whom I could trust as I could few others." ♦♦ I had long known Mr. Ross, even while he was a student. Some years ago, a good many now, he, on several occasions, spent some days under our roof, when the children were young. He manifested a great interest in them ; and they were very fond of him, sometimes going out to the woods with him. All who knew him loved him, and respected — I might say revered — him, as indeed a man of God." ♦♦ In common with all who had the privilege of know- ing Mr. Ross, I had marked his profound and constant I ril r 234 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. iH r sense of the divine presence, his entire consecration to the service of God, his devotion to truth and courage in its defence, his unselfishness and unworldliness and his love of the brethren. Faithfully has he served his Lord and Saviour in all the days of his ministry, and now he is with Christ, which is far better. He will ever be remembered with veneration and love by his brethren in the ministry, and to many others to whom he has spoker God's message. To have enjoyed for so many years the services of one who lived so near to God, and to whom the things of the kingdom were living realities was, indeed, a high privilege and a great responsibility, and we cannot doubt that many will call him blessed in that day." The following is a touching little testimony, perfectly in keeping with all his ways : *' We all have very pleasant recollections of Mr. Ross's last visit to the North Easthope manse. He held my h^and in bidding good-bye, and his last words were, '* ' Seek Him more and more.' " The next is from Dr. Mackay, of Formosa : *' I was so glad to read about the Lord's faithful and brave servant. Truly he died as he lived. I cannot put on paper my admiration for him. Though we did not correspond, I never, never forgot him and our sweet visit with you all when in Canada." Perhaps I may be excused for adding a more public testimony from the same hand. It appears in that spirit- stirring book, '* From Far Formosa," in an account of the farewell meeting in Woodstock in 1881. The closing sentence shows the generous estimation of a friend indeed. '♦ When I think of that farewell meeting, there stand out against the background of loving memory the form and features of Oxford's greatest son, the late Rev. John Ross, of Brucefield, whose life of faith was to me an inspiration, and whose labor of love the Canadian Church ought not to forget." I! I'-f II CHAPTER XVI. CLOSING HISTORY OF MR. ROSS's CONGREGATION. |T is important to state what has become of the congregation that sustained Mr. Ross so heartily in his protest. Many expected that, as soon as he was gone, they would place themselves in the hands of the Presbytery. But there was scarcely a thought in that direction. For seven years they continued to maintain their distinct, though unobtrusive, protest, and then, by a congregational vote, they decided to disband, and thus terminate, but not vitiate, their peculiar testimony. There was an attempt made to lead them instead, to apply as a congre- gation for admission into the Presbytery. This, it was felt by most, would have been to have repudiated by one act the position held so long at such cost — it would have been a repetition of the very fault of which they had held the Free Church guilty, and against which they had been thus protesting. She came out of the Church of Scot- land that she might testify unequivocally to the King- ship of her King. "That generation had not passed away," when she dropped her peculiar testimony in order to join hands with the very party who had, in her eyes, been guilty of repudiating the sole Kingship of that King. Neither had there been, in the meantime, even a semblance of a repudiation of that repudiation. For the Brucefield congregation, after maintaining their testimony for twenty years against the Union basis, sud- denly to drop that testimony in order to join hands with the very party against whose unfaithfulness they had been protesting, that party having, in the meantime, in no sense repudiated the action complained of, would lii ,1 .7 236 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. have been to do exactly what th6y had during those twenty years been condemning- in others. While proposals of this sort were under considera- tion, tny own mind was much perplexed. There seemed to be no counsellor amongst us that could make clear what was the right thing to do. To my own opinions, not principles, I had learned to attach small importance having seen more than once that my own ideas of duty were not identical with what was afte.wards clearly real- ized to be Divine guidance. At the close of a Sabbath service, several of the managers stayed to receive informa- tion I had been commissioned to obtain. We all felt our need of a sure counsellor. If only Mr. Ross could have come in amongst us and told us what to do, what a relief it would have been ! I walked home sadly, feel- ing, perhaps more than I would have dared to express, as if the little flock had been forgotten, fearing lest it had in any way alienated its Shepherd. It was a bright afternoon in early spring, and the sunshine beaming about the old manse door is vivid in memory yet. As my foot touched the threshhold, a verse recently committed to memory by the children sounded through my soul with the quieting power of Christ's " Pea<:e^ be still " to the waters of the Sea of Galilee. *' Counsel is mine, and sound 7visdom ; lam understanding; / have strength." Was it foolhardy to accept the Counsellor who so offered Him- self, to count upon His guidance of the little flock? and to thank Him now for the guidance given as His own ? When, soon after, the other method was made plain to us, that of voluntarily disbanding, and so, as a con- gregation to die protesting, most of the people appreci- ated the difference at once — the difference between simply terminating a given form of testimony, and repudiating it. By a large majority this action was decided upon, not hastily, but most deliberately, the thing was done. Each member was thus left free to seek church con- nection where he thought best, as he would upon removing to another locality, carrying, if he chose, his protest with him. Though a large majority of the congregation were I! CLOSING HISTORY. 237 hearty in this action, a small minority was anxious to continue the old protest in the old way. A few of these have not yet soug^ht connection with the united church, but quietly maintain their outstanding protest to the present time, meeting- for worship every Lord's Day. Some are inclined to despise such persistency, calling it obstinacy. But if men understood better the serious- ness of the interests involved, and the way God Him,- self guides and strengthens individual witnesses when He needs them, they would be slow to entertain such thoughts. Some who thus still maintain their out- standing protest may be inclined to condemn the majority who took a different course. That would be a mistake too. God may have had need of the public protest made by the disbanding of the congregation as truly as of the more private one they still maintain. The only safety is that each should take orders direct from the Captain of the Lord's hosts. The only rule regarding each other is the one laid down in the 14th of Romans : •* Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not ; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth ; for God hath received him. Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up, for God is able to make him stand." ' I i . CHAPTER XVII. ANECDOTES. HESE Anecdotes have failed to find an appro- priate setting in the body of the book, but they contain too many characteristic touches to be left unused, and it has been thought well to give them as an additional chapter. A DOOMED POT OF SUGAR. As a lad John Ross was an adept at sugar-making, and was early trusted to carry through the whole pro- cess, even to the critical clarifying and ** sugaring off." He was in the bush one day, boiling with all skill and diligence, for there was a heavy "run." In his eager- ness to keep up with the liberality of the trees, he kept filling fresh sap into his kettle longer than was wise, and so wds thrown quite late before he could get the day's boiling down to the required thickness. As the syrup got richer, of course it could not stand so furious a heat as before ; and yet the eager boy, in his desire to get through, could not resist the temptation to pile up the fire and hasten as far as possible the longed for home going. Every time the heat rose too high, the syrup rose too high also and began to pour over into the fire. Modera- tion must rule and the heat be lessened, till impatience again worked up the fire past the proper point, and a repetition of the former experience was the result. Several times this happened, and at last, when he saw the provoking syrup rising again, he let both his temper and his tongue loose, and hurled out an imprecation at the whole potful of molasses, consigning it to destruc- tion. The moment the fiery speech was out of his :t! It ANECDOTES. 239 mouth his heart smote him, and something within said to him that his word was taken, and to destruction by some route or other that whole day's boiling would go. Thoroughly sobered now, he slowly and patientiy did his best to finish the work properly — let it have its time, stored it carefully in a tested basket, covered it securely from any chance cow, and went home with a weight on his heart. That, he knew, was righteously doomed syrup, and his impious word had doomed it. Money would not have hired him the next day to go out and do the ** sugaring off ; " some other hand than his might finish the work that he had begun. He found some imperative duty demanding him elsewhere, and somebody else went out to the sugar bush. When the bucket was uncovered, behold ! it was empty! A leak mended with tallow had been in its bottom. Though the tallow successfully resisted the cold sap with which the bucket had been carefully tested, the boiling syrup made short work of it ; and, quicker than the boy guessed, his word was taken up, and the whole day's boiling leaked out and was soaked into the earth from which it came. To John Ross as a boy God was a present God, and right and wrong were realities. CREATED BY HIM AND FOR HIM. Thirty years later John Ross, not now of Zorra, but of Brucefield, was making a special study of the first ciiapter of Colossians, where Paul speaks of God the Favher having ** delivered us from the power of dark- nes*', and translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son. " Then, as is common with Paul, at the mention of ihat name, he seems to get in a glow with love to it, and the following verses are full of Christ — the love and efficacy of His redemption, the dignity of His person, the complexity of His glory and power as Creator of all things. Then he crowns this section of his thought with the comprehensive statement, "All things were created by Him and for Him." Mr. Ross had been following Paul's enthusiasm with sympathetic eagerness, and when he came to this mmmm ■MHI 240 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. universal statement it thrilled him with a new and delightful thought: "Then /was created /or Ifim.** A further thought brought him to his feet as though in response to an electric touch, and he swung his arm over his head as he pronounced the words aloud : ** Then let me de^for — //I'm /" Anyone knowing Mr. Ross will readily understand the power those two thoughts, coming as they did, would exert within him. The dignity of creation ! created^for— Jesus Christ I The rush and joy of recon- secration ! Then let me be^for— Jesus Christ ! "Who- soever will " let him drink at this blessed fountain. All have an equal right here, for "a// things were created by Him and for Him." A WISE 1 REPROVER UPON AN OBEDIENT EAR. If Mr. Ross was ready to read a rebuke to others from the open page of his Book, he was quite as ready to read one to himself. An instance exhibiting this is given by a brother minister : "On one occasion we Presbytery to visit certain small house crowded with spoke rather slightingly of the large number of children. Nothing was said by me in reply. Some time after Mr. Ross said, with his Bijjle open in his hand : * I spoke hastily and very wrongly of the children, for which I am rebuked. Listen to what God says about it,' and he read Psalm cxxvii.: 3 and to the end, * Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is His reward. As arrows are in the hand of the mighty man, so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them : they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.' " A similar case springs to my own memory. He had made an appointment to call on a young couple, that he might have conversation with them in reference to the baptism of their little daughter. The afternoon brought one of winter's furious storms, and the road to the were both appointed by districts. We entered a little children. Mr. Ross ,[ : ANECDOTES. 241 home expecting him was one which very rapidly filled up with drifts. Contrary to his custom, Mr. Ross decided that the weather was sufficient to justify his staying- at home. Before settling down to his work for the afternoon he opened his Book, as was his wont, looking for a word from the Master. His eye fell upon the testimony borne to Paul and Barnabas in the letter of the apostles and elders sent to the Gentile Christians at Antioch, •* Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." He caught the contrast in a moment. Paul and Barnabas had hazarded their lives for the Lord and His work ; he had shrunk from the winter's wind. The effect upon him was that of the touch of a spur upon a spirited horse. A few minutes saw him ready for the road and off like a soldier at the word of command, not to hazard life — that was not threatened — but ready most loyally to give up comfort or self-will at the summons of the King. ALL FLESH IS GRASS. In circumstances peculiarly appropriate, though as usual he was himself entirely ignorant of the circum- stances and their appropriateness, he turned to a lady who entered the parlor and asked her the question : ** If you were out in a meadow, and saw all the grass bending toward you, would you be very much elated?" Not yet guessing what was coming, though knowing very well there was something behind the question, she answered simply : " No, I do not think I would." ** Suppose you looked again, and saw all the grass bending away from you, would you be very much discouraged?" Again she answered, though this time with an inkling of his meaning : " No, I don't think I would at all." *• * All flesh is grass,' " he continued, evidently giving what had been the subject of his meditations in his walk up and down t^he parlpr, " What i§ the sen^e gf beings n i V w i 1 1 M (i 1 f (f .! ! t A'i ll !:i Mil t ! ,' li i:| 242 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. lifted up when men are pleased with you, or cast down when they turn their backs on you ? * All flesh is grass, and the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away, but the word of the Lord abideth forever.' " ,1 IN CONVERSATION WITH A PRIEST. On one occasion Mr. Ross was travelling by boat in company with several other ministers and a Roman Catholic priest. A good deal of talk was going on, but he was in one of his meditative moods, and for some time did not join in it. A Methodist minister and the priest got into a somewhat wandering conversation that had a controversial strain in it. The priest was not long in dealing the favorite blow, asking how it could be, if Protestantism was right, that it could be divided into so many different sects, each one of which was certain that itself had the truth and all the others were in error. "The Protestant denominations are one at heart," replied the minister, "they differ only in non-essen- tials." *' Would you be kind enough to give me a list of the non-essentials ?" asked the priest. The minister was more generous than in naming the non-essentials. When he had presented the long list the priest enquired if he thought all the different sects or their leaders would subscribe to each item of the list as being non-essential ? " No," replied the minister, *' I do not think they would." " Well, well," cried the priest triumphantly, ** would you now give me the essentials ?" This brought Mr. Ross to his feet. Holding the Bible above his head, he answered the priest's question, **The whole Bible is essential." ** The whole Bible !" answered the priest sneeringly, ''Th&ivhole Bible r *' Yes," said Mr. Ross, " the whole Bible." And then he carried the war into the enemy's camp by two well- aimed questions. theological n ANECDOTES. 243 ** You have stated that the Roman Catholic Church is now and always has been one and undivided. How do you account for the different ecclesiastical orders, from the wealthy Sulpician to the g^rasping Jesuit ? You have also stated that the differences among- Protestants have been the fruitful source of infidelity. In what country or countries of Europe, will you tell me, has infidelity made the greatest headway?" These questions were put strongly, but not irritat- ingly, and they were not pushed. The priest was not ready with his answers, and did not seem anxious to continue the argument with this new opponent. The subject was dropped, and the talk became general. When in the evening they reached their port, and all were preparing to leave the vessel, the priest came near and touched Mr. Ross's arm, and asked for a little further conversation. What was the special line of the talk that followed I do not know ; but at its close, instead of being irritated, the priest was so pleased and interested that he asked Mr. Ross in the most cordial way to come with him and be his guest for the night. This was not possible in the circumstances, but it shows the spirit in which the two men parted. ! BENEFIT OF A BLACK NECKTIE. When Mr. Ross came home after Sabbath evening service, he was always in his happiest conversational humor. The exhilaration of the day's work was still upon him. He did not want to read, unless it was to pick up the Pilgrim's Progress which was often upon the table, and read and talk over John Bunyan's happy hits and strong Christian common sense ; but that was simply conversation with a progressively suggestive theme. More frequently he would stretch himself out upon the sofa and give himself up to a chat. During one of those happy Sabbath evenings some link of asso- ciation recalled a scene of the past : "That reminds me," he said, " of a conversation I once had in the cars. I had on a black necktie, and without it I doubt if I could have accomplished my pur- 244 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. :| »i! pose. The young man sitting in the same seat with me was engaged in looking after the telegraph machines along the road. We talked about his early life and home and friends. He was not very communicative ; most of the talking was on my side ; but he seemed inclined to humor my fancy, and give me briefly any information I asked. " * Boys have great appetites,' I remarked, when the way had opened for it. •* * Yes, they have,' he replied with some emphasis. " 'You knew what it was to be hungry when dinner time came then ?' •* * Yes, I did,' he answered. " * Your father never offered you a stone instead of bread when you came in hungry, did he ?' " He shook his head, muttered * no,' and turned again to his paper. '* The conversation now went in quite another direc- tion, but after remarks passing back and forward for some time, I thought I saw my chance. ** * Your early home was near the sea ?' I.i.s0id. ** * Yes,' he answered, ' close by it.' *' * Fish would be no dainty with you then ?' *' • No, but it was very good.' ** 'Good for a hungry boy,' I said, * and you would not have thanked your father if he had offered you a serpent instead of fish when you came in to dinner, would you ? ' •* ' I shouldn't think I would,' he replied. ' "Again the conversation turned directly to some- thing else, but, after rambling about awhile, the egg and the scorpion came in too. I had been talking in an ordinary tone, but as soon as his answer was given to that, I spoke out solemnly, • If ye then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ?' ** It was a complete surprise. He started visibly at the first word, but neither spoke after that for some miles ; then he looked up. i. M ANECDOTES. 245 " 'You took me that time,' he said, 'you took me by a hair.' "'There is something in it worth attending to,' I replied, and then rose and joined another group. Soon after he left the car with a very serious face." *' You never heard of him again ?" I inquired. •* No, never. In such circumstances you must be content to sow. 'One soweth and another reapeth. » u 1 ■» V, f:.' CHAPTER XVIII. ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. ** The only glorious thing about sin is the infinite wrath of God against it. " At a funeral. — ** Who can measure the sinfulness of sin ? Do you want to try to measure it ? Look, then, at death. Look at the reign of death all down the ages, at the sickness and suffering and unutterable misery, the war and famine and jealousy and wrong that have made this world's history one long drawn-out woe — all that, and all that is yet to come, and all that eternity shall contain, are but the legitimate consequences of one sin, and that a sin the world would count a very trivial one. Who can measure the exceeding sinfulness of sin or weigh out its just penalty?" "They talk of the Messianic Psalms. The Psalms are all Messianic. We have a Messianic Bible." Preaching on Christ's power to subdue all things to Himself, he crowned a list of the things He is able to subdue, with this word, given with a tender expressive- ness that went from the heart to the heart : " He is able to subdue you" At a revival meeting. — *' This meeting reminds me of an apple tree in spring. It is covered with blossoms, and everyone of them looks fresh and beautiful. But before the summer is over how many little apples will ANECDOTES. )l 247 wither and fall off, and never be heard of in harvest at all. Which of us here to-night shall be like those little apples, withering and dropping off within the next few months ? Only the grip of the Lord jesus Christ can hold you up from that fate. Take up the prayer, * Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe.' " At a prayer meeting. — ** Cursed be the deceiver that hath in his flock a male, and voweth and sacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing." First it was shown that he comes under this curse who has youth to offer to God, and yet purposeth in his heart to offer only the dregs of his life. He, too, comes under the same curse who has powers of mind and body, influence among men, wealth or any other good gift, and yet offers to God only the smallest share of each that may satisfy his conscience, keeping the strength of them all for himself and for the world. *• Cursed be the deceiver." The subject was continued in words somewhat like the following : ** But these, though coming within the range of the text, are not its first meaning. That goes deeper. * Cursed be the deceiver that hath in his flock a male, and voweth and sacrificeth a corrupt thing.' 'That hath in his flock a male ' — a * male without blemish ' — the sacrifice appointed of God, acceptable to Him because appointed, appointed because fitly representing Him who is called the ' Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.' Cursed was the Israelite who had in his flock the male without blemish legally representing Christ and yet offered to God in sacrifice anything else, be it in his own eyes worse or better. The same curse comes down upon every Gospel hearer now who has in his possession the knowledge of the Lamb slain on Calvary — a sacrifice perfect, sufficient, accepted — and yet who dares to come into God's presence with any other plea whatsoever. Abel's sacri- fice was accepted because it was the one God had appointed, and it was appointed because it could 248 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. represent a dying* Redeemer ; Cain's was rejected, not because it was poor of its kind (there is not a word of that), but because it was not the appointed bloody sacrifice — because there could have been no smelling" of a sweet savor had its smoke gone up to Heaven. God has Himself given to us the very sacrifice He wants us to bring back to Him when we seek to draw near. He who makes mention of that sacrifice, and of that only, may come with boldness to the throne of grace. But he who brings any other whatsoever as a propitiation for sin or a ground of acceptance comes right under the thunder of this verse : ' Cursed be the deceiver who hath in his flock a male, and voweth and sacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing.'" Addressing* very briefly the Sabbath School, he spoke of the testimony given to Jesus Christ at His baptism by the voice of the Father Himself. "Hear," he said, "God's testimony to the Saviour whom He was making a free gift to this world of sinners: 'This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.' What are you thinking about this free gift? What is the answer you are sending back to heaven about Him ? Here is the answer the Father is watching to hear from every one of us : ' This is my beloved Saviour in whom I am well pleased.' Can you say it? Will you say it ? He is God's free gift to the world. If you will have Him as your Saviour, take up God's words and send them back to Him. This is my beloved Saviour in whom I am well pleased. Then," he a-Jded with emphasis, *' God and you are at one ; you have come to an agreement about the most important matter in the universe ; you are both well pleased with the Son of God ; there is peace between you." It made a deep impression on me at the time, as presenting a wide open door for quick, responsive faith. The voice from the Father : This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. The voice from whosoever will : This is my beloved Saviour in whom I am well pleased. ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. ).! 249 * In similar circumstances he was speaking- of Rom. 10: 8. **The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart." "The question is, how shall we reach out to Jesus Christ so as to get hold of Him for our own salvation? Shall we go up to heaven after Him and bring Him down again ? Shall we go down into the grave after Him and bring Him up again? You know we can do neither the one nor the other. What shall we do then that we may lay hold of Jesus Christ and His salvation ? The answer is short and simple. *T^e word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart.' Take hold of Christ's word and you have Himself. And the word is near. It is so near that it is in your very mouth. Sabbath School children, if you are not saved it will be because you have so little heart to receive Jesus Christ that you have refused to swallow the word of life that He has caused to be put into your very mouth." He was visiting an aged man for whose Christian character he had a deep respect, though he had never yet applied for admission at the Lord's table. Finding him alone, Mr. Ross felt he had a good opportunity for a personal conversation. '* Mr. ," he said, " what is your hope for eternity?" He was not prepared for the prompt and sorrowful answer : '* Mr. Ross, I have no hope." His questioner was surprised and distressed. He sought earnestly to lead him to a child-like faith in Him who came to seek and to save the lost and ruined and hopeless. Every effort was met with a confession of inability and total helplessness. " Mr. Ross," he said at last, " I can do nothing. I cannot repent of myself, I cannot believe of myself. I can do nothing but look to Him." The minister caught at the word. "All right," he replied, " that is all I want you to do. Only take care that what God has joined together you do not put asunder. * Look unto me and be ye saved.' That is the ,^y " ".»• K , 250 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. W h t ■it way the Lord has put it. The Wook' and salvation have been bound up together by .His own hand, and published in His Word as g'oing' in company. You can do nothing- but ' look to Him ' and hope in His published Word of salvation to all who look." At a prayer meeting. — The subject was the earlier part of the nth of Heb. When the i6th verse was reached, " But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly ; wheiefore God is not ashamed to be called their God ; for He hath prepared for them a city." The question was asked, ** Why is God not ashamed to be called their God ?" The answer was given somewhat as follows : *• Because He hath prepared for them a city ; He hath prepared for them the very thing His promises had led them to hope for. If He had failed to do so, He would be ashamed to be called their God. But He is not ashamed, and never will be ashamed, to be called the God of any who build their hopes upon His promises. He has already prepared for every such hope a fulfil- ment ' exceeding abundant above what we ask or think.'" His New Year's text on one occasion was the word from Jeremiah, *' Yea, I have loved thee with an ever- lasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee." He spoke strongly upon the mighty *' Yea " with which the message begins. " God's message to you this morning is, * Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love.' Why does He say Yea ? Did anybody say Nay ? He knows the guilty, unbelieving human heart ; and the stubborn nay that sounds up from its sinful depths whenever such a marvellous message of heavenly love asks for admission. ' I have loved thee,' God whispers. * Nay, thou art angry with me,' is the answer He gets. How shall He word the message so as to win for it admission ? He will begin it with His own mighty Yea, that the miser- able human nay may wither in its presence ; then the ANECDOTES. 251 word of everlasting love shall enter unhindered carrying life and joy and holy power aHng with it." At the last communion over which Mr. Ross presided in Brucefield, he took as his text while fencing the table the startling word in I. Corinthians, *' If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maran- atha." He spoke strongly of the Lord's Table as spread only for those who love the L< rd Jesus Christ. It is not for His enemies, nor for the indiflFerent, but only for those who own Him as their King and Friend and Redeemer, and who love Him accordingly. All such were made welcome to the Table of the Lord, but all others were given as their portion, Anathema Maranatha. Seriously and unhesitatingly the point was pressed home. Then he paused, and in an altered tone addressed the people. '* Perhaps," he said, *' I have been troub- ling some of you whom the Lord does not wish me to trouble. Do you love the Lord or not ? That is a point you find it difficult to settle. You blush to call the feeble affection you entertain towards Him by any such name as love. Is any one of you mourning at the present moment because your heart is so cold to Him who loved you to the death and beyond it ? Let me tell you this for your comfort. The heart that grieves over its own coldness toward the Lord has sotne appreciation of Him. It is only the soul that sees Him to be worthy of much love that mourns over its own littleness of love. ' Bless- ed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.' Take courage, poor, humbled sor.i. Thank God, not for the feebleness of your own love, but for the know- ledge He has already given you of His well-beloved Son. Take courage. Drink deeper of His infinite love to you, and yours will flow out to Him in response, * Eat, O friends ; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.' " It was Thursday evening. He had come in on the evening train, and attended the prayer meeting before coming home. He looked tired, whico was not usual '•-, 252 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. with him ; but, when he had given out his subject, he spoke with effect. The passage was H. Samuel xxiii. 1-5 — "the last words of David." The way he opened up the 5th verse was very beautiful and suggestive. '* Although my house be not so with God ; yet Ke hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure ; for this is all my salvation and all my desire, although He make it not to grow." He spoke of the covenant made, when God had given to David a promise, '* I will build thee an house ; " and he had sealed it with the appropriating words of faith, " Do as thou hast said." He spoke of the glory of that covenant, the Son of David of New Testament times being in reality the sum and substance of it. He spoke of the assured certainty of it as sung in the 89th Psalm. God Himself referring to it under these terms, " I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David." But the special thought brought out was David's deep satisfaction in the covenant — his evident heart-rest in that covenant, in spite of two very serious discouragements. The covenant was one that guaranteed to him un- imaginable glory — spiritual power and holiness — not as an individual, but as the founder of a house. When, as an old man, he now looks round upon his house, he does not find fulfilled in it these covenant glories. ** Although my house be not so with God ; yet He hath made with me a covenant — this is all my salvation and all my de- sire." David evidently expresses dissatisfaction at the actual state of his house. But, in spite of unsatisfactory facts, his heart revels in the everlasting covenant itself. But there was another discouraging point. David's covenant, he knew, like Esau's birthright, was yet for a long while to come. But this knowledge had an entirely different effect upon him from what it had upon Esau. That covenant he saw to be a seed — a marvellous, heavenly seed, charged with power and blessing for the people of Israel and the whole human race. So inestim- ably precious did that mighty seed appear in his eyes that i:i ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. 253 he sang of it one thousand years before it began to germinate. •' This is all my salvation and all my desire, although He make it not to growy The lesson conveyed was the appropriateness of exultant faith in God's bare covenant, even while its pro- mises seem to lie as dead as seeds that have not begun to germinate, and seem also to be flatly contradicted by actual experience at every turn. Faith, in the teeth of facts, ** Though He slay me (me, whom He has promised to save), yet will I trust in Him." A powerful sermon was preached during the summer of '84, upon the first nine verses of the 2nd chapter of Haggai. No notes of it can be found among his books, so the outline can only be given from memory. The subject was : God's charge to the feeble builders of the second temple. I St. There was the seemingly discouraging reference to the temple of former days, '* This house in her first glory," and the humbling comparison between King Solomon's work and theirs. 2nd. There was God's triple charge in spite of dis- couragements, to **be strong and work," — the charge to all classes — to the civil ruler, to the priest, and to the people. But the strength of the sermon lay in the third division, devoted to the five encouragements given to the consciously feeble builders : I St. Though few in number and scanty in resources, they are assured that that is not adequate cause for discouragement, for *'/«/;/ with you, saith the Lord of Hosts.^^ Jesus Christ gives the same mighty assurance to the feeblest Christian worker now : *' Lo, / am tvith you, even to the end of the world. " 2nd. " My Spirit remaineth with you : fear ye not,'''' An Old Testament foreshadowing of the full glory of New Testament times. God's own judgment, which makes no mistakes, decides that the presence with them of His Spirit is adequate reason for the dismissal of all their fears, Hovyr much more shall Christian workers r 254 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. V ;! P now cast fear to the winds, enriched with the Pentecostal fulness of the Comforter's presence and power. 3rd. Though Solomon's Temple was so filled at its dedication with the visible glory of the Lord that the priests had to withdraw from the overwhelming efful- gence, God assures His builders that greater honor than ' even this shall be given to the humble work of their hands. "The Desire of all nations shall come," the man Christ Jesus shall tread these courts. But the Desire of all nations has come. '* Strengthen ye the weak hands and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart : Be strong ; fear not." 4th. But what of all these hopes and promises if means with which to execute the work should actually not be forthcoming? A band of captives with heavy taxes to pay could not expect to command wealth enough for the work. "The silver is mine and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of Hosts." That one text makes short work of financial difficulties, if builders are doing God's work at God's call and in God's name. 5th. " In this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of Hosts." Christ's finished salvation was proclaimed and believed in the courts of the very house these builders were now being encouraged to build. The Gospel of Christ, published by the power of the Spirit of Christ, was the fulfilling of this final promise : " In this place will I give peace." B«.it temple or cathedral has no monopoly of this crowning glory. Wherever the Gospel is proclaimed in its purity and received in its simplicity, of that spot, whether it be a seat at the side of a well or a shanty in the backwoods, God hath said : " In this place will I give peace." Be strong and work is God's charge to His little flock of real workers now, for God the Father is with you, God the Holy Ghost is with you, and God the Son is with you. The silver and the gold and all supplies requisite to the work are the property of the Triune God at whose call you undertake it, and the God-given result of your work shall be peace — " peace with God," the peace of God, the "peace that passeth under- standing." ANECDOTES. 255 A few weeks before his removal from our midst Mr. Ross preached upon the text : "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask,- and He shall give him life for him that sinneth not unto death. There is a sin unto death ; I do not say that he shall pray for it." I have searched in vain for notes of this sermon. Its outline has slipped out of memory, but some of the thoughts brought out can never be forgotten. The sermon might be entitled, God's rule of conduct relative to my brother's sin. Wherever God has laid down a rule ; it is a Christian's duty and wisdom to find out what it is, and carefully to regulate his conduct by it. Christian, take heed ! God has laid down a rule to guide us in this very serious matter. He has told us exactly what to do when we see our brother falling into sin. Notice, first, 7vkaif God's ru/e is not : I St. It is not to pass the matter by as no business of mine. We are our brother's keepers. Our own skirts are not clear of sin if we fail to do what in us lies to help iur brother out of sin. 2nd. // is not to set ourselves to pull the mote out of our brother's eye while a beam is in our own eye. Though my brother's sin is just cause of concern, it is not the first cause of concern. Though the power of Christ in me ought to be helpful to my brother's mote, it will prove utterly powerless in that direction unless it is first proving successful in regard to my own beam. 3rd. It is not to talk of my brother's sin to some one else. True, Christ-like "charity covereth a multitude of sins " — covers them from human eyes, but spreads them out in intercessory prayer before Divine Eyes that "cannot look on iniquity " but have searched out a plan whereby it can be put away. But what is God's one rule of conduct when we see our brother sinning? It is simply this : Tell God about it. The rule is given in three short words of one syllable each : " Let Him ask" Tell God about it, pour out your heart before 256 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. Hi: Him, and take hold o( His promise given in connection. For with the command God has linked a promise. •* Let him ask, and Ht shall give him life for him that sinneth.^' Special attention was drawn to the first "///w " con- tained in the terms of the promise. It is as though the life promised is to be given, not directly to the sinner, but to the party praying, for the sinner. Terms are not arranged by chance in the Word of God. Does not this indicate that, in praying for sinners we may expect the answer first in fresh supplies oi appropriate grace in our own souls, fitting us to become a fountain of life to the soul for which we pray. " He shall give him life for him that sinneth." Unwillingness to accept this blessed position of a channel may absolutely hinder the answer to our prayer. Where is fault-finding, where is evil speaking, where is discouragement, if God's rule is taken as the rule of life in this matter ? What about a sin which appears so indicative of utter hardness of heart that we cannot help counting it indeed a sin unto death ? Mercifully, the imperative command is relaxed in that case. •* There is a sin unto death. I do not say that he shall pray for it?" This exception tells in two directions, ist. It relieves the conscience from the duty of prayer in cases where prayer is felt to be hopeless. 2nd. The fact that we are distinctly relieved from the duty of intercessory prayer in cases of this sort, reveals more plainly than it could otherwise have been done, how imperatively that duty is laid upon us in all ordinary cases. Are we forbidden to pray in these seemingly hopeless cases? No^ at all. We are free to pray for sinners of the darkest dye, as Jesus Himself did for His murderers. This exception does nothing more than relieve us from the necessity of considering it an imperative duty. What are the causes of the wide-spread unfaithful- ness concerning this rule? I St. Actual ignorance of the existence of such a command. We need David's charge to Solomon con- M ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. 257 stantly sounded in our ears : " Keep and seek for all the commands of the Lord your God." It is needful, not only carefully to keep the commands that we do know, but also to seek for the commands we have heretofore missed. 2nd. But perhaps even a larger share of the blame must be laid to our God-dishonoring unbelief. Those who frankly believe the promise linked with it will learii to delight in the command. (The following extracts from his note book may be given as further examples of Mr. Ross's habit of think- ing on paper :) Monday, December 20th, 1875. — Met now in two Bibles Luke xii. 37 : '* Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when He cometh, shall find watching. Verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them." A word of counsel and warning and encouragement to me. To be found watching is of all things in the world the most unlikely in my case. To be found sleep- ing is of all things the most likely; and how dangerous! It is quite sure if the Lord Himself will not awake me and keep me awake, set me to watch and keep me watching, that I shall be found asleep. Think of the honor He shall put upon those servants whom He shall find watching. I St. He shall gird Himself that He may serve them. 2nd. He shall make them sit down to meat that He may serve them. 3rd. He shall come forth Himself and serve them. The Master will show His approval of their conduct,, and His delight in His faithful and vigilant servants by His now serving them and honoring them, as the most distinguished guests are honored by him who extends- the most courteous hospitality. What is it to be found watching? I St. It is to be found awake. 2nd. It is to be found sober. 17 2^8 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK I m 3rd. It is to be found attentive to the matter concern- ing which they are to watch. If they forget, they are not watching ; if they neglect they are not watching ; if their mind is taken up with other things they are not watch- ing. It will not do for the night watchman to have other work in hand. 4th. Self-denial is necessary in order to watchfulness. 5th. A serious apprehension of the importance of the matters entrusted to us is necessary in order to adequate watchfulness. 6th. A careful avoidance of the close companionship of those who are not watching is very important if we would be found watching. The society of the world is a great enemy of watchfulness. What are the circumstances that make watching necessary ? I St. The presence of active enemies calls for watch- fulness. This is emphatically our case. and. The possession of something exceedingly pre- cious, and of which we may be deprived, calls for watch- fulness. This also is our case. 3rd. The approach of an important event, demand- ing careful preparation, and yet unknown as to date, calls for watchfulness. This belongs to our case. 4th. When a distinguished person is coming, and yet the time of His arrival is kept from us, we need to watch that we may be found ready at whatever time He may come. This, too, is our case. " What I say unto you, I say unto all, IVatcA." Friday, December 31st, 1875. — "Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant." With this I had a word I have often met and greatly need as most suitable to my case. Psalm xxxi. 20 : ** Thou shalt hide them in the secret of Thy presence from the pride of man ; Thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. Blessed be God, for He hath showed me His marvellous kindness in a strong city." The pride of man and the strife of tongues are hard J ' Mil ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. 259 to bear. They can go very far and do much harm, and disturb a man's peace greatly. Sad are the complain- ings in this same Psalm of what the Psalmist himself suffered from these causes. Pride rouses to envy, oppo- sition, hatred, contempt. Pride sets the tongue loose to rail, mock and fling "sharp and bitter words." Pride gives rise to suspicion and evil surmisings ; it is cruel and unrelenting. It is not easy for a man in a public position, and especially for a witness for God, to find a hiding place from the pride of man and from the strife of tongues. Where can he find it? Not in the world, unless he come to terms with the world and keep silence, abandoning his testimony. Man is a child of pride and the strife of tongues will rage. While men have power to use the tongue they cannot keep silence toward those who bear witness for God in their midst. But for those who fear God there is a hiding place, a pavilion in which He keeps them secretly from the strife of tongues, and that, too, the best place a man was ever in ; that place is the ** secret of His presence " I St. This is spoken to the glory and praise of God, that He takes under His own protection those who fear Him when they are surrounded by the pride of man and the strife of tongues. 2nd. This is spoken for the comfort and direction of His people when they are in such circumstances. Let them remember that there is a hiding-place for them. Let them not retaliate and meet the proud with pride, and the strife of tongues with striving with the tongue, but let them cast their burden on the Lord, and betake themselves to their hiding-place, even " the secret of His presence." How blind and how foolish the man who, instead of betaking himself to the Refuge, plunges into strife and contention. The One who hides them is the Lord, and the place of hiding is the secret of His presence — the secret place where He is manifest, where He is Himself dwelling. He hides them with Himself by bringing them near Himself, before His very eye, guarded by His own ■^^;: 200 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. It- peculiar care, lest the pride of man and the strife of tongues should prevail to their hurt. When there is danger abroad, a father will not trust his loved children out of his sight. He must have them at home under his own eye lest any hurt them ; and it is thus that the Lord hides His people. They are safe with him. They are not in reality exposed to the onsets of their enemies. They are hid, and hid in the secret of His presence. All that the pride of man attempts to do to them is done in the secret of His presence, while His very eye is guarding them. Can you not trust that Eye with your complete keeping and perfect safety ? Your adversaries are all before His face while He is hiding you in the secret of His presence. What does this promise imply? ist. It puts in a strong light the danger His people are in from the pride of man and the scrife of tongues. The care which God takes of them by hiding them implies danger. 2nd. It implies that He will allow the pride of man to act and the strife of tongues to rage against His people. If He meant to stop at once the work of pride and strife, there would be no need of His hiding them. It is from pride awake and working, and stirring itself it may be mightily, that He hides. 3rd. Though He will allow the pride of man to work and put itself to great cost and labor in opposition and persecution, yet the promise implies complete safety in the midst of it all. He against whom the pride of man is spending itself is hidden — hidden in " the secret of His presence." Pride will be baffled and disappointed. The Lord laughs at him. The Lord is wise and skilful in all He does ; He cannot be outwitted. What God hides the most diligent search cannot find. 4th. The promise implies close fellowship with God. While the pride of man is working and the strife of tongues is raging they are hid, hid in the secret of His presence. Not in a wilderness, but in the presence of Him who was never a wilderness to His people. Hid in the most honorable place. Hid where peace is reign- % ECHOES OF PAST UTTERANCES. 261 ingf while the strife of tongues is raging. How often the experience of the martyrs of Jesus has illustrated these facts ! Twelve o'clock, Jan. ist, 1876. — In writing the name of the year^ the last figure must now be changed. Met just now, *' In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them." So ends that entry. The first text givon him in the early morning of that new year set God's seal upon the meditations of the last hours of the old year, and, satis- fied^ he laid down his pen. Later in the day he took it up again and wrote. Saturday, Jan. ist; 1876. — " Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me." The assurance of this will make trouble light, and will inspire us with courage to meet it. The Lord is not only with him in trouble, but reviving him in it ; so that he does not faint nor sink, but renews his strength instead. The outward man perishing, the new man renewed day by day ; trouble on the one hand consum- ing, He on the other reviving. The reviving power is greater than the consuming power. If the trouble is met by an equal power or measure of reviving, then no damage is sustained. If the reviving power is meted out in larger measure I'^an the trouble, then there is positive gain. It was a wintei evening. The house was quiet, Mr. Ross came out of his study with his Bible open in his hand. " What do you think is the meaning of this verse ?" he said, and he read to me Rev. iii. 12, '* Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out ; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God ; and I will write upon him my new name." *' I am afraid I have never tried to find its meaning," 262 THE MAN WITH THE BOOK. !«•; I replied. " But I have been vaguely conscious in read- injr the verse, that the prospect of being a stationary pillar is not one naturally attractive." " If you think of the custom of ancient conquerors, you will understand it at once," he replied, " and I have been enjoying- working the thought out. When a Roman emperor achieved some great victory or won an important campaign, not only v/as there a triumphal procession on his return, displaying the trophies of his conquest, but, that the greatness of his exploits should be held in everlasting remembrance, on several occasions a memorial pillar was erected in the capital. Tiiis pillar was called by his own name, and on it were inscribed the story of his achievements. *' ' Him that overcometli will I make a pillar in the temple of my God." One that ' overcometh " in the con- flict of this life Christ counts so transcendent an exhibi- tion of what the power of God can do that he is to have a permanent place in His capital as an everlasting monu- ment of the glory of God. '* ' I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, and I will write upon him my new name.' Notice, it is not the man's own name that is inscribed upon his forehead, nor is it the greatness of his own deeds that is to be kept in remem- brance by his everlasting presence in heaven. It is the * name of God, and the name of I he citv of God, and Chris fs own new name.'' Do you see the Trinity there ? and each person of the Trinitv as manifested in the work of salva- tion ?" '* Three very important inferences can be drawn from this figure. *' I St. Conquerors did not put up memorial pillars for their lesser exploits. It was only when they had done something pre-eminently glorious that they took that step. Consequently, when God speaks of placing anyone as a monumental pillar in His own capital, it is because He looks upon him as a pre-eminent exhibition of His own power and glory. "2nd. If he that overcometh is to have a conspicuous \ll FXHOKS OF PAST UTTHRANCKS. 263 and permanent place in heaven as a memorial of God's marvellous power and g"lory, it is evident that it must have been God's power and not his own that enabled him to overcome. God is not one to take the i^lory when another does the work. If He takes the j^lory of the victory, it is simply because Mis power and that alone secured it. "3rd. If we are thus to become everlastinj^ memo- rials of God's power and J4"lory, it is absolutely necessary that we forever renounce our own sjtren^th, and bej^in to make abundant and continuous drafts upon His power and resources. It is plain we can never become monuments of God's power but by freely and exclusively drawing' upon it. "The very thought of becoming a memorial pillar to ♦he glory of God sets in the very strongest light the ■,rr;p rtance and necessity of utterly renouncing hope in our own strength ; and it constitutes a perfect cluster of arguments for drawl g freely and fully and most con- fidently upon the power and resources of Him who is forever to receive all the glory of our victory. ' Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever, Amen.' " A few months after his death, an old letter back caught my attention among his papers. It bore a few jottings on the text : "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth." I St. Christ's chosen word in speaking of a Christian's death was referred to, " Lazarus skepe/h." The beautiful appropriateness of it was explained. 2nd. The pronoun "our," in the connection, was shown to be a very significant one. Lazarus was at the moment a dead man lying in his grave ; but Jesus still speaks of him as *'