minister towards a Presbyterian people. While he quite agreed with Mr Macnaughtan that it would be a most unfortunate thing if the Caffre Mission, or any other Mission, should be allowed to fall away, still he maintained that it was for the people to manifest their desire in a practical way, with respect to this and every other undertaking of the Church; and if they put the means in Mr Tweedie's hands, he was sure that no one would more rejoice to apply them in the proper direction.

Mr J. F. MACFARLAN supported the idea of putting the Caffre Mission upon one year's probation.

Dr CANDLISH moved the following resolution on the subject:

"The Assembly approve generally of the Report, and record their thanks to the Committee, who are hereby reappointed,-Mr Tweedie, Convener. And in reference to that part of the Report which sets forth the short-coming for some years past, of the revenue as compared with the expenditure,-the Assembly being decidedly of opinion that a curtailment of this Church's missionary operations, by the abandonment of some portion of the field occupied, unless the said short-coming be fully made up, must be the inevitable result. And yet, having confidence, under God, in the zeal and liberality of the people, agree to reserve, in the mean time, the point which has thus been painfully raised, with a fixed conviction that, in any event, this Assembly must act upon the principle of simply administering the funds placed at their disposal from year to year by the congregations of this Church." The motion was carried unanimously.

Some conversation then took place as to the proper time for taking up the overture on the Sabbath Observance question, after which the Assembly adjourned.

FRIDAY, MAY 26. 1848.

Report of Select Committee on Sustentation Fund-Speeches of Mr Hay, Mr Mitchell, Mr M Crichton, Dr Buchanan, Mr Ogilvie, Mr Brodie, Dr Cunningham, Mr Dewar, and Dr Candlish-Report of Home Mission Committee-Speeches of Dr Begg, Mr Sommerville and Dr Mackay-Report of Gaelic Committee-Speech of Dr Candlish, Mr Campbell and Mr Gibson-Report of Committee on Sites-Speeches of Mr Hog, and Dr Candlish.

The Assembly met this day at twelve o'clock, after having been two hours engaged in private conference, and was constituted with devotional exercises.

Dr CANDLISH intimated that one or two letters from Churches in America had been received during the course of the year. He did not think it would be necessary to read them to the Assembly, but begged to move that they be remitted to a Committee, in order that replies might be drawn up to them if that was deemed necessary.-Agreed.

REPORT OF SELECT COMMITTEE ON SUSTENTATION FUND.

Dr P. M'FARLAN having laid on the table the Report of the Select Committee on the subject of the Sustentation Fund,

The Clerk read Overtures on the subject from the Synod of Merse and Teviotdale, and the Presbytery of Selkirk.

Mr HAY of Whiterigg (elder), said,-You have just heard the overture read which I have had the honour to present at the Presbytery of Selkirk and at the Synod of Merse and Teviotdate. At the first, it was agreed to with only one dissentient voice; at the latter it was carried by a majority of almost two to one; and I trust, after the mature deliberation which is due to this important subject, and which I am sure will be given to it by this Assembly, that you will agree with me that there is an absolute necessity for adjusting and more equally distributing the funds of the Church. I shall not do much more than give you some facts which I have drawn from the statement issued after last Assembly; but before doing so, allow me to say that I thoroughly agreed,—that I cordially concurred,-in every thing which fell the other night from the reverend Convener of the Sustentation

*See Appendix.

Fund and from Professor Miller, and I hold the same opinion as they expressed that night, that the pulpit is the legitimate place from which the minister ought to teach the people their duty to the Church and to its Fund; for I maintain that the Sustentation Fund is the main stay of the Free, Church of Scotland; and it is for the enlarging and strengthening of that Fund that I am here this day, as well as for the bettering of the ministers throughout this Church. There is a class in our Church who are denominated the one-and-half men. I consider this altogether an unjust thing; for every minister ought to be upon the same footing. No sooner is he ordained, than assuredly he ought to be put upon the status of a minister in every respect, and not left to a temptation which may lead him to be unfaithful to the Church and unfaithful to his flock. (Hear, hear.) It has been stated in the overture, that at the time of the Disruption all the ministers adhering to the principles of the Free Church gave up whatever was derivable to them as ambassadors for Christ, and by so doing became entitled, one with another, to fair and just distribution out of the funds collected for the maintenance of the headship of Christ. So far I am sure you will agree with me was the case at the time of the Disruption, at that time when, as protesting members in another Assembly, we laid our protest on the table, and went forth free,-free from the civil courts,-free from all the ills of patronage,-and came here, marshalled under the blue canopy of Heaven,-under the banner of the Lord of Hosts, side by side, and heart with heart; and we here constituted ourselves a Free Assembly of the Church of the living God. On that day it was no doubt an easier matter for the elder to leave the Church of his fathers than it was for the minister, though both made a sacrifice. But, Sir, at the moment when the minister left the Assembly of the Established Church, he naturally left his home, the means of his family's subsistence, his all, and he threw himself unreservedly upon the right principles of the people of Scotland, and his trust was in his God; and I would ask you, was there a man that day, in coming down these streets, who had it in his heart to wish himself to be placed in better circumstances as to worldly means than the man on whose arm he was probably leaning? No, Sir, I am quite sure that every man considered himself in a like condition,-hand was joined with hand in sympathy, and during the whole course of that Assembly, was there but the one proposal of a General Fund out of which every minister was to receive his entire stipend, according, as the act of Assembly states, "to certain rules which will require to be fully considered, and submitted, when matured, to another Assembly."-(Act 10th, branch 3d.) I heard no other proposal; I know of none. But I know that at the Glasgow Assembly, held six months after, the pledge which was made at the first Assembly was disregarded. There was, it may be said, a violation of the treaty of union; the bond of brotherhood was broken. A rancorous sore was formed, which has preyed, and will prey, upon the vitals of the Church, and which cannot be healed until every son of hers be placed upon the broad basis of equality. At that Assembly it was enacted that "The ordinary collections at church doors shall be administered by the deacons of the congregations (after deducting feu-duties, &c. &c.), in increasing the stipend of the minister." Then and there, Sir, I consider was given a death-blow to the Free Church of Scotland, then only in its infancy,then were riven asunder the ties of brotherhood, then was made a separate wall between those who ministered to the rich, and those who carried the tidings of salvation to the poor; and, I would ask, should such be the case? Is the ambassador for Christ in a poor locality not equally entitled with him who labours in a richer to the same recompense? Most assuredly he is. But, do not mistake me, for I do not mean to argue that all are entitled to a like sum. Proportionally they are; but according to the district I hold that the stipends ought to rise or fall. But let these be paid out of one Fund, and not have the funds of the Church, as at present, distributed in an unjust and unrighteous manner; for it can be nothing else than this when we see ministers supplemented in sums nearly twice as large as they send in to the Sustentation Fund of the Church. I hold in my hand the Statement of last year, which has revealed to me very strange things. I have discovered that the supplements of ministers in the Church, taking this average of the different Presbyteries, range from about 11s. 44d. to about £129. Surely this will open the eyes of the members of our congregations to the iniquity of the thing,-to say that while one man is only getting his £120

from the Sustentation Fund, without a single farthing of supplement, another man is drawing his £120 also, and over and above that, his supplement of £300,―aye, his £390. And this is not overdrawn; I only state facts, which I can easily prove; and to give you a few names of churches doing so, I may state that Newington sends in to the Sustentation Fund £196, and supplements its minister with £300. Sustentation Fund. Supplementary Fund.

Newington,

£190

£300

Gaelic,

Of these churches I think it may be said, as of the Church in Sardis, that they have a name to live, while in reality they are dead. Sir, I know something of the spirit in which these churches supplement their ministers. They make them in a great measure their idol, and give their offerings to him, and not to God. And, Sir, I would say, in the words of the late M'Cheyne, " Ministers are but the poll: to the brazen serpent the people ought to look." So should every minister say to his flock, Give your gift to God and his cause, and not unto me. But there are other instances where the supplements are nearly as large as the sums sent in to the Sustentation Fund, as the following examples will show :-

and so on.

It is needless giving you more than thesc, which are quite sufficient to show what sums are given by Deacons' Courts as supplements; while their contributions to the Sustentation Fund of the Church are in many cases less, and in many not much more. Surely there is something materially wrong here. Those congregations which are doing so are maintaining self, and not the cause of Christ, in the land. They are virtually saying, We will uphold our house, our minister, though the others have no house to preach in,- -scarce a crust of bread or a cup of cold water to subsist on. Remember, Sir, that by this act of theirs, they are lessening the means of extension in the Church, for the burden falls not upon those in the richer districts, but upon the poorer, and the poorest feel it the most. But, Sir, various are the ways in which the funds of the Church are disposed of; various are the ways in

CC

which the great Sustaining Fund is diminished; and, Sir, I may state that I as highly disapprove of supplements to laymen as I do to the clergy; and we have the case of our Inspector of Associations supplemented in the matter of £200. I understood that he was engaged to fill his situation for £300, and, by the public accounts the other night, I find that he now is in receipt of £500. I wish to know,-I demand to know, how this is,-why he should have a larger income than our talented reverend Principal. Sir, I find that the Inspector has £50 more than the Principal, and no man will tell me that the Principal has not by far the most responsible and onerous duties to perform. Surely this is not right. But to return: I do not hesitate to say, that unless you erase the name of Supplement from the statute-book,-unless you have only one great Sustaining Fund-the broad basis on which the Free Church took its stand will be lessened, the tie which it holds over the people will be loosened, a separation among its members will take place, and it will go down, from being the noblest Church in the world, to a mere sectarian one. But let us look for better things-let us hope for better days. Sir, there are some noble examples in our Church whose conduct it would be well were it more imitated,—I mean those who remit their church-door collections to the Sustentation Fund, and who receive no supplement. I take it for granted, as I have no means of knowing to the contrary, that from principle they refuse a supplement. In the Presbytery of Edinburgh we have one man standing forth alone, the minister of Newhaven; and if I have not dreamt it, surely I heard that he entirely disapproves of supplements, and had proposed a scheme for the consideration of the Church some year or two ago. I may be wrong; but it strikes me forcibly that such was the case. Along with him, we have seventy ministers who receive no supplement, but remit their collections to the Sustentation Fund. I give them credit for their noble conduct; and I trust the day is not far distant, when they will be joined by many others, who, seeing the impolicy of the present system, will devise such means as will rightly tend to the distributing of the funds of the Church. Sir, I am grieved to find that some of my friends are opposed to the view I take in this matter, and that one with whom I walked here on the day of our constitution,- -one whom I highly respect, whose talents I admire, and whom I have looked up to for counsel,-Sir, I say, that it grieves me to the heart to find that he takes up a different side,-that we, as it were, are now tak ing different roads, for he overtures the Assembly in favour of supplements, and I oppose them; but, Sir, as duty calls us different ways, I trust that I shall be enabled to do my duty as conscience dictates. I fully expect that some friend of mine will tell you that I am not made of the true blue Presbyterian stuff,-that I am a fool and a despot in bringing this matter forward,—that I have no right to put my hand into his or any other man's pocket. Sir, I would remind him that with himself I have stood the brunt of the battle, that I have fought in the battle of patronage, -that I signed the Claim of Rights and Protest, that with him I came here on the day of the Disruption,-that I now stand in my place in this house to do my duties to the Free Church,-to do my duties to myself,-that I have no right and no wish to put my hand into any man's pocket; all I wish is, that the people be taught the principles of the Free Church, and that from principle they give for its support. And, Sir, I was much struck this morning, when on opening the Word of God, my eye rested upon the verses where it is mentioned of the rich and the poor casting their offerings into the treasury; and it struck me forcibly that the case of the poor congregations who were enabled to send in so little into our treasury might put in, as in the case of the widow's mite, by far a more acceptable offering in the sight of their Lord and Master than the large offerings from the wealthy localities. But, Sir, there is still a point on which I have not as yet touched, and that is, the false argument which has been so often brought forward about the inability of the Church to legislate upon this matter of supplements. I have already stated that the Glasgow Assembly legislated upon this very matter, and passed the act then and there; and this Assembly is as competent to repeal that act as the Glasgow Assembly was to pass it; but, Sir, that is not my wish; all I ask is, that this matter be taken under your mature and serious consideration, and that you send it down to Presbyteries for their deliberation, and that they be instructed to give a deliverance regarding it to the next General Assembly of the Church. I shall therefore move,

"The General Assembly having considered these overtures, and being deeply

impressed with the great importance of maintaining the prosperity, and of securing a fair and just distribution, of the Sustentation Fund, are of opinion that the subject is one with regard to which the mind of the Church at large ought without delay to be ascertained; and more particularly, as the discretionary power at present exercised by Deacons' Courts of supplementing the stipends of their own ministers out of the collections raised at the church doors is thought to be injurious to the Sustentation Fund aforesaid, and to be at variance with the principle on which it was originally established; and as it therefore seems desirable that supplements should be discontinued, and a great common fund formed out of which every minister of this Church shall receive his entire stipend, according to a plan which shall at the same time make due provision for the special circumstances incident to the locality in which he has been appointed to labour,-the General Assembly resolve to embody in an overture, and to transmit to Presbyteries for their careful and deliberate investigation, the various schemes for the accomplishment of this end that have been brought under the notice of the Select Committee, along with one suggested in a tract entitled, 'The Sustentation Fund no Failure,' and at present widely circulated throughout the Church; and the General Assembly resolve to appoint a Committee to frame such an overture, and to bring it up for consideration at a future diet of this Assembly."

more

Mr MITCHELL of Philiphaugh,-Moderator, It gives me very peculiar pleasure indeed to second the motion now brought forward and laid upon your table by my friend Mr Hay,-amotion which certainly appears to me interwoven with the very vitality of the Free Church. I am well aware the mere utterance of such a sentiment as this may call down upon me the ridicule of those who affect a spirituality far too high to connect the prosperity of a Church with its mere secularities. Be it so. Such individuals, I think, might forbear their scorn, as they are certainly laid under no slender obligation to the person who adventures to adjust for them a secondary, a secular, and disagreeable duty, and thereby leave them time ample for discharging aright, and following out, their holier and more important avocations. Upon this point, it is comfortable to have the sympathy and the able defence of such truly illustrious men as those who spoke so ably in the Assembly on the evening of the bringing up of the Report of the Sustentation Committee. The excellent and worthy Convener of that Committee himself cannot afford to treat the subject at all as a secular one, and therefore has little sympathy with the high sentimentality of those who do. Yea, Sir, with what emphasis did he speak, and how rapturously did this Assembly applaud the statement, when he declared it to be the duty of the ministers to take the subject of the Sustentation Fund to the pulpit, and to take it upon the Lord's day too. Dr Miller certainly followed in his wake. If I remember aright, he said he almost could venture to gage the conversions that are taking place in congregations by the amount of their contributions to the Sustentation Fund. And the other two gentlemen heartily endorsed these sentiments under the deafening applause of this Assembly. And certainly, following in the wake of these worthies of our Church, I may well bear up under whatever derision I may possibly be assailed with in giving_utterance to the sentiments now referred to. In seconding this motion, I trust I shall be pardoned by the honourable mover of it, and forgiven by the Assembly, should I, in the few observations I have now to offer, possibly revert to the able position he has taken up and maintained in the field of argument, whilst bringing the subject under our consideration, and the clear and circumstantial evidence he has produced to the Assembly as selected from its own authorised document, in proof of the particular grievance of which he and I alike complain, and which, I humbly think, fully justifies us in calling upon the Assembly, and, through it, the Church at large, to consider the propriety of abandoning that part of our system which authorises supplementary payments, of adjusting the Sustentation Fund upon a proper footing, or rather of merging these two great leading but jarring Funds into one, and the same to be denominated the Central or Pastoral Fund, and out of which the entire stipend of our ministers shall hereafter be paid, according to a certain fixed and unalterable principle of circumstantial equality. Upon this point it is likewise comfortable to know that, singular indeed as our views have been represented to be, we do not stand alone. In an article, somewhat lengthy, which appeared in the columns of the lead