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"Go  9  71  I.  2  6  9  h 

angtry 


1834-1906 


History  of  the  Church  in 
Eastern  Canada  and 
Newfound land 


HISTORY  OF 

THE  CHUKCH  IN  EASTERN  CANADA 
AND  NEWFOUNDLAND. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2010  with  funding  from 

Allen  County  Public  Library  Genealogy  Center 


http://www.archive.org/details/historyofchurchiOOIang 


Colonial    Cfjurcfj   histories. 


HISTOEY 

OF   THE 

CHUKCH  IN  EASTEKN  CANADA 

AND  NEWFOUNDLAND. 

BY 

EEV.  J.  LANGTRY,  M.A.,  D.C.L., 

RECTOR  OF  S.  LUKE'S,  TORONTO,  A^D  PROLOCUTOR  OF  THE  PROVINCIAL 
SYNOD  OF  CANADA. 

WITH  MAP. 

PUBLISHED  UNDER  THE  DIRECTION  OF  THE  TRACT  COMMITTEE. 

SOCIETY  FOR  PROMOTING  CHRISTIAN  KNOWLEDGE. 

LONDON  :  NORTHUMBERLAND  AVENUE,  W.C.  ; 

43,  queen  victoria   street,  e.c  ; 

Brighton:  135,  north  street. 

New  York:    SOCIETY'S  AGENTS. 

1892. 


BRITISH   NORTH  AMERICA. 


Colonial   ffiinircij  Histories. 


HISTOBY 

OF   THE 

CHUECH  IN  EASTERN  CANADA 

AND  NEWFOUNDLAND. 

BY 

REV.  J.  LANGTRT,  M.A.,  D.C.L., 

RECTOR  OF  S.  LUKE'S,  TORONTO,  AND  PROLOCUTOR  OF  THE  PROVINCIAL 
SYNOD  OF  CANADA. 

WITH  MAP. 

PUBLISHED  UNDER  THE  DIRECTION  OF  THE  TRACT  COMMITTEE. 

SOCIETY  FOE  PEOMOTTNG  CHEISTIAN  KNOWLEDGE. 

LONDON  :  NORTHUMBERLAND  AVENUE,  W.C.  ; 

43,  queen   victoria    street,   e.c.  ; 

Brighton  :  135,  north  street. 

New  York:    SOCIETY'S  AGENTS. 

1892. 


Richard  Clay  &  Sons,  Limited, 
London  &  Bungay. 


PREFACE. 


The  writer  of  this  volume  has  felt  himself  under 
very  hampering  constraint  in  the  attempt  to  produce 
a  History  of  the  ten  Eastern  Dioceses  of  Canada,  in  a 
volume  not  exceeding  256  pages.  Fluency  of  style 
and  freedom  of  treatment  have  necessarily  been 
excluded.  The  attractive  feature  of  biographical 
illustration  had,  in  the  main,  to  be  passed  by,  and 
the  bare  narrative  of  events  adhered  to.  This  of 
course  deprives  the  volume  of  that  heroic  interest 
which  the  history  of  the  pioneer  days  of  the  Church's 
life  in  Canada  ought  to  possess.  Enough,  how- 
ever, has  perhaps  been  said  to  awaken  interest  in 
the  subject,  and  to  direct  the  attention  of  those 
who  have  more  leisure  and  more  ability  for  such 
writing,  to  fields  where  abundant  material  may  be 
found.  And  yet  the  writer  has  been  made  painfully 
aware  of  the  little  regard  with  which  the  records  of 
these  toilsome  years  have  generally  been  treated. 
Most  of  the  Dioceses  have  no  record  of  their  past 
history,  except  such  as  may  be  painfully  gathered 
from  Bishops'  Charges,  Synod  and  Church  Society 
Reports.  The  only  record  the  writer  has  been  able 
to  find  of  many  of  the  noble  men  who  have  toiled  in 
the  hard  places  of  the  field,  is  their  surviving  work. 
Not  a  scrap  written  of  which  any  trace  could  be 
found.  This  speaks  well  for  the  men  who  have 
thought  so  humbly  of  themselves  and  their  doings ; 
but  it  has  inflicted  great  loss  upon  the  Church. 
Nothing,  the  writer  is  persuaded,  would  more  stimulate 


men  to  heroic  action  in  the  present  time,  than  the 
simple  record  of  the  self-denials  and  toils  of  many  of 
those  who  first  planted  the  Cross  in  these  western 
wilds. 

One  benefit  that  may  be  hoped  for,  from  this 
imperfect  sketch  of  our  history,  is  the  recovery  of 
much  that  has  been  lost,  and  the  enlargement  and 
correction  of  not  a  few  of  the  imperfect  records  which 
this  volume  contains. 

The  writer  wishes  to  express  his  special  obligation 
to  his  Lordship  the  Bishop  of  Newfoundland,  to  the 
Rev.  W.  Pilot,  B.D.,  and  the  Rev.  W.  Hall  of  New- 
foundland, for  the  ready  and  abundant  help  which 
they  have  supplied.  He  is  also  under  special  obliga- 
tion to  the  Yen.  Archdeacon  Roe  of  Quebec,  who 
kindly  and  carefully  reviewed  the  history  of  Quebec. 

The  Bev.  Dr.  Partridge  of  Halifax,  Dr.  Alexander 
of  Fredericton,  Dr.  Hodgins  and  Dr.  Scadding  of 
Toronto,  have  supplied  him  with  many  valuable 
books  and  documents.  The  narratives  of  their 
respective  Dioceses,  written  for  the  jubilee  of  Bishop 
Strachan's  consecration,  by  the  Rev.  Canon  Paterson 
(of  Huron),  the  Rev.  A.  Spencer  (of  Ontario),  the 
Rev.  Canon  Read  (of  Niagara),  and  the  Right 
Reverend  Dr.  Sullivan  (Bishop  of  Algoma),  and  Dr. 
J.  G.  Hodgins  of  Toronto,  have  been  freely  used. 
The  life  of  Bishop  Stewart,  by  the  S.  P.  C.  K. ;  of 
Bishop  Mountain,  by  his  son ;  of  Bishop  Strachan  by 
Bishop  Bethune ;  of  the  Three  Bishops,  by  Fennings 
Taylor ;  of  Bishop  Feild,  by  Mr.  Tucker ;  and  the 
works  written  by  the  Rev.  D.  Aikins,  Mr.  H.  Lees, 
and  the  Rev.  Ernest  Hawkins,  together  with  Mr. 
A.  "W.  Eaton's  book  just  published,  have  been  care- 
fully studied  and  eviscerated.  To  all  these  gentlemen, 
and  many  others  not  named,  the  writer  acknowledges 
his  great  obligations. 

J.  L. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.  INTRODUCTION       ...                 ...  ...  ...  9 

II.  THE    FOUNDING    OF    THE    FIRST   COLONIAL   BIS- 
HOPRIC           ...                 ...  ...  ...  25 

III.  THE   DIOCESE   OF   QUEBEC   ...  ...  ...  39 

IV.  NEWFOUNDLAND...                 ...  ...  ...  71 

V.  THE   DIOCESE   OF   TORONTO  ...  ...  117 

VI.  THE   DIOCESE    OF   FREDERICTON  ...  ...  156 

VII.  THE   DIOCESE   OF   MONTREAL  ...  ...  177 

VIII.  THE   DIOCESE   OF   HURON    ...  ...  ...  201 

IX.  THE   DIOCESE   OF   ONTARIO  ...  ...  218 

X.  ALGOMA                     ...                 ...  ...  ...  236 

XI.  DIOCESE   OF   NIAGARA           ...  ...  ...  245 


HISTORY   OF 

THE  CHUECH  IN  EASTERN  CANADA 
AND  NEWFOUNDLAND. 


CHAPTER   I. 

INTRODUCTION. 

As  the  result  of  the  capture  of  Quebec  by  General 
Wolfe,  France  ceded  to  England,  at  the  Treaty  of 
Paris.  1763.  the  whole  of  North  America  lying  to  the 
north  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains.  The  boundary 
in  the  west  between  the  British  possessions  thus 
gained,  and  the  province  of  Louisiana  ceded  by  the 
same  treaty  to  Spain,  was  never  determined,  and 
nobody  at  that  time  thought  it  worth  determining. 
The  territory  was  regarded  as  an  impenetrable  wilder- 
ness,' of  no  use,  except  as  a  covert  for  fur-bearing 
animals.  Thirteen  years  later,  by  the  revolution  of 
the  thirteen  Atlantic  States,  England  lost  the  whole 
territory  lying ~to~the  west  of  the  provinces  of  New 
Brunswick  and  Quebec,  and  to  the  south  of  the  St. 
Lawrence,  Lakes  Ontario  and  Erie,  and  all  the 
territory  west  of  the  Detroit  River,  lying  to  the 
south  of  the  45th  parallel  of  latitude. 

The  country  that  was  left  to  England  was  not 
regarded  by  either  side  as  being  of  any  great  value. 


10  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Subsequent  events  have,  however,  proved  how  utterly- 
mistaken  the  men  of  that  time  were,  both  as  to  the 
extent  and  importance  of  the  country.  It  is  not  easy 
for  Englishmen,  or  indeed  for  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  as  is  being  constantly  manifested,  to  take  in 
the  extent  and  productiveness  of  this  great  land 
known  as  British  North  America.  It  is  almost 
speaking  in  an  unknown  tongue  to  tell  the  inhabitants 
of  a  sea-girt  isle  of  a  few  hundred  miles  in  extent  that 
there  is  a  railway  running  almost  in  a  straight  line  due 
west  from  one  ocean  to  the  other,  3668  miles  in  length, 
wholly  within  British  territory  ;  and  that  to  the  north 
and  south  of  that  line  there  lies  a  territory  varying 
from  200  to  800  miles  in  depth  of  as  fertile  and 
productive  land  as  is  to  be  found  anywhere  under 
the  sun.  The  general  impression  about  the  country 
in  Europe  is  that,  however  great  it  may  be  in  extent, 
it  is  yet  a  land  of  perpetual  ice  and  snow,  in  which 
civilized  men  will  always  find  it  difficult  to  live.  The 
absurdity  of  this  notion  will  be  apparent  at  once,  if 
we  recall  the  fact  that  almost  the  whole  of  this  land 
lies  in  a  latitude  south  of  that  of  Edinburgh,  while 
the  latitude  of  Amherstburgh,  the  most  southerly 
Canadian  town,  is  almost  identical  with  that  of  Rome. 
The  latitude  of  Toronto  is  somewhat  south  of  that  of 
Florence  ;  while  Winnipeg  is  in  the  same  latitude  as 
Paris.  It  is  true  that  the  heat  in  summer  and  the 
cold  in  winter  are  very  much  greater  in  America 
than  in  the  same  latitudes  in  Europe,  but  the  mean 
temperature  is  almost  the  same  ;  and  those  who  have 
had  experience  of  the  climate  of  England  and  of 
Canada,  will  almost  without  exception  give  the 
preference  to  Canada,  as  the  extremes  of  heat  and 
cold  in  a  bright  dry  climate  are  more  endurable  than 
the  winter  rains  and  chilly  east  winds  of  England. 

The  loss  of  the  United  States  was  for  a  long  time 
regarded  as  being  practically  the  loss  of  the  British 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  11 

possessions  in  North  America.  The  land  was  looked 
upon  as  pretty  well  useless  for  purposes  of  settlement, 
and  so  in  after  years  British  statesmen  gave  away 
a  territory  as  large  as  all  Europe,  west  of  Russia, 
without  any  compensation  or  constraint,  in  mere 
contempt  for  what  they  regarded  as  a  worthless 
country.  This  feeling  so  widespread  at  first  has 
lasted  down  to  our  own  time,  and  accounts  in  no 
small  measure  for  the  fact,  that  British  capital  and 
British  subjects  flow  with  an  ever-increasing  volume 
into  the  United  States,  and  develop  the  resources  of 
that  alien  land,  while  the  far  more  productive  soil, 
richer  mineral  resources,  and  more  extensive  timber 
lands  of  Canada,  have  been  left  unreclaimed  for  lack 
of  money  and  men  to  develope  them. 

After  the  conquest  of  Canada,  this  feeling  was 
so  universal  that  no  English  settlements  of  any 
importance  were  effected  till  after  the  end  of  the 
revolutionary  war.  Then  large  numbers  of  those 
who  had  settled  in  the  thirteen  colonies,  and  who 
remained  loyal  to  the  British  Crown  during  that 
struggle,  emigrated  to  Nova  Scotia  and  Canada. 
Bands  of  these  United  Empire  Loyalists,  as  they  have 
been  called,  moved  from  the  different  States  into  the 
British  territory  lying  nearest  to  them  ;  and  thus  con- 
siderable TJ.  E.  settlements  were  formed  in  Nova  Scotia, 
New  Brunswick,  and  in  Upper  and  Lower  Canada. 
Perhaps  the  largest  settlements  were  formed  in  the 
Eastern  Provinces,  as  they  were  accessible  by  sea, 
while  Canadian  lands  could  only  be  reached  by  long 
journeys  through  the  almost  roadless  forests. 

It  has  been  maintained  in  modern  times,  that  these 
self-expatriated  heroes  acted  under  altogether  mis- 
taken notions  of  their  duty,  and  that  their  action  has 
been  stripped  of  all  its  high  significance  and  nobility 
by  the  indefensible  motives  which  dictated  it. 

It  is,  however,  certain  that  they  did  not  act  in 


12  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

obedience  to  any  mere  sentiment.  They  were  inspired 
no  doubt  with  enthusiastic  loyalty  to  the  Crown  and 
realm  of  England ;  and  for  that  loyalty,  as  the 
violence  of  the  Revolution  increased,  they  were 
proscribed  and  banished,  their  property  confiscated, 
and  in  some  cases  even  their  lives  endangered.  They 
had  no  choice  but  to  emigrate,  or  violate  their  con- 
science and  their  oath;  and  so  vast  multitudes  of  men, 
women,  and  children  abandoned  all  their  worldly 
goods,  possessions  and  interests,  and  set  out  to  carve 
out  for  themselves  a  new  home  in  this  unknown  land. 
We  would  therefore  only  say  in  answer  to  this  shallow 
and  disloyal  philosophizing,  that  even  if  they  may  have 
been  mistaken  in  their  convictions,  they  yet  acted  in 
obedience  to  noble  and  self-sacrificing  sentiments, 
and  nothing  can  ever  rob  their  conduct  of  its  heroism 
and  glory.  No  land  under  the  sun  has  had  a  nobler 
race  of  progenitors  than  our  own  Canadian  realm. 
No  race  ever  began  with  a  set  of  men  of  higher 
principles,  or  of  more  inflexible  adherence  to  right- 
eousness and  truth. 

No  class  perhaps  fared  so  badly  in  the  Revolution 
as  the  clergy  of  the  Church.  That  they  were  the 
upholders  on  this  continent  of  an  Institution  that  in 
England  was  part  and  parcel  of  the  State,  was  of 
itself  sufficient  to  make  them  the  objects  of  suspicion  ; 
but  it  was  also  true  that  in  the  beginning  of  the 
conflict,  they  almost,  without  exception,  espoused  the 
British  cause.  In  most  cases  they  held  on  to  their 
parishes  as  long  as  they  were  permitted,  or  found  it 
at  all  safe  to  do  so.  Their  sufferings  were  in  many 
cases  most  severe.  They  were  mobbed,  whipped, 
shot  at,  imprisoned,  fined,  and  banished.  Their  pro- 
perty was  confiscated  or  wantonly  destroyed ;  their 
services  disturbed,  their  altars  defiled,  their  churches 
wrecked,  and  their  writings  burned ;  some  of  them  died 
of  poverty  and  exposure.     The  Rev.  Dr.  Carver  writes 


EASTERN    CANADA   AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  13 

to  the  Society  from  Halifax,  that  he  and  several 
other  clergymen  had  been  obliged  to  leave  Boston  at 
a  moment's  -warning,  with  the  loss  of  all  their  property. 
The  Rev.  Dr._Byles  came  to  Halifax  with  five  mother- 
less children,  and  for  a  time  was  deprived  of  all 
means  of  support.  "The  Rev.  Jacob  Bailey  writes 
that  for  three  years  past  he  had  undergone  the  most 
severe  and  cruel  treatment.  He  was  seized  by  the 
Committee,  and  after  being  treated  with  the  utmost 
abuse,  was  ordered  to  appear  before  the  General 
Court  at  a  distance  of  180  miles,  in  the  midst  of 
winter.  On  his  way  to  preach  and  baptize,  he  was 
[  assaulted  by  a  violent  armed  mob,  who  stripped  him 
naked  in  search  of  papers.  He  was  then  confined  a 
close  prisoner  to  his  house  for  many  weeks.  .  .  At  last 
he  escaped  in  the  night,  and  wandered  about  Maine, 
New  Hampshire,  and  Massachusetts,  and  was  perse- 
cuted by  the  Sheriff  for  not  taking  the  oath  of 
abjuration ;  and  when  at  last  he  and  his  family  were 
able  to  escape  to  Halifax,  they  were  destitute  of 
money,  and  had  not  clothing  enough  to  cover  them." 
And  so  the  story  goes  on.  (The  Rev.  A.  W.  Eaton, 
just  published.) 


NOVA    SCOTIA. 

The  province  of  Nova  Scotia  was  formally  ceded  to 
the  British  Crown  by  France  in  the  year  1713.,  The 
inhabitants  were  all  French  Roman  Catholics  for  a 
long  time  after  the  cession.  Gradually,  however,  a 
few  English  residents  settled  at  Annapolis  Royal, 
where  a  military  chaplain  was  occasionally  stationed  ; 
but  there  was  no  regular  mission  of  the  Church  of 
England  till  1749.  In  that  year  the  EDglish  Govern- 
ment determined  to  found  six  townships  in  Nova 
Scotia  for  English  settlers,  and  a  letter  was  addressed 


14  HISTORY   OP   THE   CHURCH    IN 

by  the  Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Planta- 
tions to  the  S.  P.  Gr.,  notifying  them  of  his  Majesty's 
intentions  to  set  apart  a  spot  for  the  erection  of  a 
church  in  each  of  the  proposed  townships ;  and 
further,  that  400  acres  of  land  adjacent  thereto  would 
be  granted  in  perpetuity  to  a  minister  and  his 
successors,  and  200  acres  in  like  manner  to  a  school- 
master. They  were  further  notified  that  each 
clergyman  sent  out  with  the  persons  who  were  to 
form  the  first  settlement  should  receive  a  personal 
grant  of  200  acres  for  himself  and  his  heirs;  and 
each  school-master  100  acres,  and  30  acres  additional 
for  every  person  of  which  his  family  should  consist ; 
and  further,  that  they  should  be  subsisted  during 
their  passage,  and  for  twelve  months  after  their 
arrival,  and  furnished  with  arms  and  material  for 
husbandry,  building  their  houses,  &c,  in  a  like 
manner  as  the  other  settlers.  They  also  inform  the 
Society  that  all  the  inhabitants  (except  the  garrison 
at  Annapolis),  amounting  to  20,000,  are  French 
Roman  Catholics,  and  they  suggest  that  some  of  the 
ministers  and  school-masters  be  able  to  speak  French, 
with  a  view  to  propagating  the  Protestant  religion 
among  the  French  settlers  and  their  children.1 

This  was  an  exceedingly  liberal  offer  from  the 
Crown.  The  Society  at  once  resolved  to  send  six 
clergymen,  and  as  many  school-masters,  as  soon  as  the 

1  In  1755,  the  Acadians,  that  is  the  French  settlers  in  the 
country,  because  of  their  persistent  disloyalty,  were  deported 
from  the  country  and  distributed  among  the  English  plantations. 
A  proclamation  was  issued  offering  their  lands  to  New  England 
settlers.  Many  people  of  good  family  and  means  accepted  the 
invitation.  These  were  almost  without  exception  Congrega- 
tionalists  ;  most  of  them,  or  their  descendants,  turned  Baptists 
— the  explanation  of  the  large  Baptist  population  of  to-day. 

The  proclamation  with  regard  to  the  depopulated  lands  was 
circulated  in  Germany  and  Switzerland.  Its  liberal  offers  to 
settlers  accounts  for  the  large  German  immigration  of  this  time. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  15 

settlements  were  formed ;  and  they  concluded  by 
urging  the  Government  to  set  apart  land  for  the 
support  of  a  bishop  of  the  Church  of  England.  The 
JRe^TVilliam^Tjittx ancl  tlie  Eev-  Mr-  Anwell  were 
the  first  missionaries  sent  out  with  the  first  settlers 
to  Halifax  in  1749.  Mr.  Tutty  had  to  officiate  under 
the  trees  until  the  first  church,  St.  Paul's,  was  erected 
and  opened  on  the  2nd  of  Sept.,  1750.  Five  hundred 
Protestants  of  the  Confession  of  Augsburg  had 
recently  arrived  in  Halifax.  In  a  body  they  attached 
themselves  to  the  Church  of  England,  and  were 
received  to  Communion;  so  that  in  1752  more  than 
one-half  of  the  entire  population  belonged  to  the 
Church,  and  there  were  now  over  600  communicants, 
where  two  years  ago  there  was  not  one. 

The  Rev.  John  Breynton  was  sent  out  the  next 
year  to  minister,  according  to  the  agreement,  to  the 
settlers  in  the  townships.  He  soon  established  a 
school  in  which  we  are  told  there  were  50  orphans, 
besides  other  children.  Mr.  Tutty  died  in  the  next 
year,  and  when  his  successor,  Mr.  E.  T.  Wood 
(formerly  of  New  Jersey),  was  removed  to  Annapolis, 
Mr.  Breynton  became  Rector  of  Halifax,  which  had 
now  grown  to  be  a  town  of  between  five  and  six 
thousand  inhabitants.  The  French  priests  were  about 
this  time  withdrawn,  and  Mr.  Breynton  set  himself 
to  provide  for  the  religious  instruction  and  care  of 
the  Indians  who  had  been  gathered  into  the  Roman 
Church,  but  were  now  left  to  themselves.  He  also 
mastered  the  German  language,  so  as  to  be  able  to 
minister,  in  their  own  tongue,  to  his  parishioners  of 
that  nationality.  He  mentions  in  one  of  his  reports 
to  the  Society  that  he  had  ministered  the  Lord's 
Supper  to  five  hundred  men  of  Baron  cle  Seiltz' 
Hessian  regiment,  whose  exemplary  and  regular 
behaviour,  he  says,  "  did  them  great  honour."  At 
the  solicitations  of  the  leading  men  of  the  province, 


16  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  honorary  degree  of  D.D.  was  conferred  on  Mr. 
Breynton  by  the  University  of  Cambridge. 

A  Dissenter  who  had  been  reconciled  to  the  Church 
speaks  of  him  as  a  man  who  had  deservedly  gained 
the  good- will  and  esteem  of  men  df-all  ranks  and 
persuasions,  and  as  preaching  with  an  eloquence  of 
language  and  delivery  far  beyond  anything  he  had 
ever  heard  in  America. 

Another  distinguished  missionary  of  these  pioneer 
days  was  the  Rev.  John  Baptiste  Moreau,  formerly 
,  a  Roman  Catholic  priest.  Prior  of  the  Abbey  of  St. 
Matthew  at  Brest.  He  had  been  received  into  the 
Communion  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  was 
appointed  to  minister  to  his  own  countrymen.  He 
officiated  for  the  first  time  on  the  9th  of  Sept.,  1750, 
in  the  French  tongue.  The  German  contingent  above 
described  were  placed  under  his  care,  and  so  he 
reports  himself  as  having  a  congregation  of  800 
grown  persons  and  200  children.  In  the  year  1753 
almost  the  whole  German  population  removed  from 
Halifax  to  Lunenburg,  and  Mr.  Moreau  accompanied 
what  was"  byiar  thelarger  portion  of  his  flock.  A 
terrible  mortality  had  befallen  these  people  before 
their  removal.  In  two  years  Mr.  Moreau  reports 
that  jbhree-f ourths  of  his  entire  congregation  had  died. 
He  continued  his  arduous  labours,  mnnsterihg"Tn 
three  languages  to  his  congregation,  and  extending 
his  care  to  the  Indians,  several  of  whose  children 
he  baptized.  In  the  year  1770  death  called  him 
away  from  his  ministry  of  great  anxiety,  and 
abundant  blessings. 

The  Rev.  Paulus  Bryzelius,  a  Lutheran  minister, 
who  had  been  ordained  by  the  Bishop~of~L"ondon,  was 
put  in  charge  of  the  German  mission  at  Lunenburg. 
His  brief  ministry  of  about  five  years  in  all  had  been 
very  successful.  He  reports  129  children  as  having 
been  baptized  by  himself;  40  young  people  are  re- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  17 

ported  as  having  been  brought  by  him  to  communion 
on  one  Easter  Sunday ;  and  on  the  next,  over 
30.  There  were  201  communicants  in  his  mission 
when  his  last  report  was  made.  In  1771  a  consid- 
erable body  of  the  Germans  separated  themselves  from 
the  Church  and  erected  fVlvjpisfr  ppr|  r.ntheran 
meeting-hocuses.  They  applied  to  Dr.  Muhlinburg, 
the  President  of  the  Lutheran  Synod  of  Philadelphia, 
to  send  them  a  minister,  but  that  gentleman  dis- 
couraged their  design,  and  urged  them  to  continue  in 
the  Church,  as  best  able  to  provide  for  their  spiritual 
needs.  Por  this  the  Corresponding  Committee  of 
the  S.  P.  G.  sent  Dr.  Muhlinburg  a  vote  of  thanks, 
and  a  request  that  he  would  send  them  a  school- 
master qualified  to  assist  Mr.  Bryzelius  in  his  work 
among  the  Germans.  The  Rev.  Peter  de  la  Roche 
was  in  charge  of  Lunenburg  in  1773;  he  was  a 
zealous  and  hard-working  clergyman,  his  position  was 
rendered  very  difficult  by  the  vexatious  national 
jealousies  that  existed  in  his  congregation.  He  at 
once  addressed  himself  to  the  study  of  German,  and 
by  the  year  1775  was  enabled  to  officiate  in  three 
different  languages.  During  the  American  War  he 
was  frequently  reduced  to  great  extremities  by  the 
scarcity  of  provisions,  and  the  small  assistance  he 
received  from  the  people. 

The  Rev.  Thomas  Wood  was  one  of  the  most  active 
of  these  early  missionaries.  He  went  on  a  journey 
of  exploration  into  the  interior  of  Nova  Scotia  as 
early  as  1762.  He  says  he  was  cheerfully  welcomed  by 
the  inhabitants,  and  mentions  a  fact  which  shows 
that  the  old  Gallican  clergy  had  not  yet  begun  to 
learn  the  ways  of  their  modern  Ultramontane  suc- 
cessors. He  tells  us  that  during  an  illness  of  several 
weeks  he  constantly  attended  the  Abbe  Maillard,  the 
Roman  Catholic  Vicar-General  of  Quebec,  and  at  his 
request,  the    day  before  he  died,  read    for   him  the 


18  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Office  for  the  Visitation  of  the  Sick  in  presence  of  many 
of  the  French,  and  that  then  he  buried  him,  using  the 
Burial  Service  of  the  Church  of  Eogland  in  French. 
After  a  short  interval  Mr.  Wood  was  removed  from 
Halifax  to  Annapolis.  While  there,  he  applied  him- 
self to  the  study  of  the  Micmae  language,  and  was 
enabled  injj^fiji^to  publish  the  first  volume  of  his 
Grammar,  and  a  translation  of  the  Creed  and  the 
Lord's  Prayer  in  that  language.  He  frequently 
ministered  to  the  Indians  in  their  own  tongue.  On 
one  occasion  he  was  conducting  such  a  service  in  St. 
Paul's  Church,  Halifax,  the  Governor  and  many  of 
the  principal  inhabitants  being  present,  when  a  Chief 
came  forward,  and  kneeling  down  prayed  for  the 
prosperity  of  the  province,  and  the  blessing  of 
Almighty  God  on  the  King,  the  Royal  Family,  and 
the  Governor.  Mr.  Wood  explained  his  prayer  in 
English  to  the  congregation.  When  the  service  was 
ended,  the  Indians  returned  thanks  for  the  oppor- 
tunity they  had  had  of  hearing  the  prayers  said  in 
their  own  language.  Mr.  Wood  acquired  great  in- 
fluence over  them,  and  this  was  greatly  increased  by 
the  Abbe  Maillard's  confidence  manifested  towards 
him  before  his  death.  He  was  frequently  sent  for 
both  by  the  Indians  and  the  French  to  baptize  their 
children  and  visit  their  sick.  It  would  seem,  however, 
that  his  efforts  on  behalf  of  the  Indians  were  not 
properly  supported.  No  mention  is  made  of  the 
appointment  of  any  missionary  after  his  death  to 
carry  on  the  work  so  ably  begun,  and  so  the  Indians 
at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  had  entirely 
relapsed  into  the  Roman  Communion,  to  which  they 
still  almost  without  exception  adhere. 

Mr.  Wood  remained  permanently  stationed  at 
Annapolis  till  his  death  in  1778.  He  lived  in 
harmony  with  the  members  of  the  various  denomin- 
ations j  the   greater  part  of   the   Dissenters  in   his 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  19 

mission  attending  his  ministrations.  In  1771  the 
inhabitants  of  the  townships  invited  a  missionary 
from  Massachusetts  to  come  and  settle  among  them. 
In  their  letter  they  stated  that  most  of  them  had 
been  educated  and  brought  up  in  the  Congregational 
way  of  worship,  and  therefore  should  have  chosen  to 
have  a  minister  of  that  form  of  worship,  but  that  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Wood,  by  his  preaching  and  performing  the 
other  offices  of  his  holy  function  occasionally  amongst 
them,  had  removed  former  prejudices  that  they  had 
against  the  form  of  worship  of  the  Church  of  England, 
and  had  won  them  to  a  good  opinion  thereof,  inas- 
much as  he  had  removed  all  their  scruples  of  receiving 
the  Holy  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper  in  that  form 
of  administering  it;  at  least  they  said,  "many  of  us 
are  now  communicants  with  him,  and  we  trust  and 
believe  more  will  soon  be  added." 

In  addition  to  the  missionary  journeys  above  re- 
ferred to,  Mr.  Wood,  at  the  request  of  the  Governor, 
had  in  1769  made  a  missionary  tour  into  New  Bruns- 
wick, among  the  settlements  along  the  St.  John  river. 
This  was  fourteen  years  before  the  arrival  of  the 
Loyalists  at  Parrtown  or  St.  John,  and  so  Mr.  "Wood 
found  but  very  few  English-speaking  people  in  the 
province.  The  population  consisted  for  the  most  part 
of  French  and  Indians.  In  his  report  to  the  S.  P.  G. 
of  his  journey,  Mr.  Wood  tells  us  that  he  made  his 
way  up  the  river  to  the  Indian  village  of  Okpaak,  the 
farthest  settlement,  situated  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
St.  John  river,  about  six  miles  above  the  present  site 
of  Fr&derid;on.  On  his  way  up  to  St.  John  he  per- 
formed service  both  in  English  and  Indian,  but 
found  that  most  of  the  children  had  been  baptized 
by  the  Roman  priests.  At  Maugerville  he  had  a 
congregation  of  over  two  hundred  persons,  but 
most  of  them  were  Dissenters,  who  had  moved  in 
from  the  United  States,  and  had  a  minister  of  their 


20  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

own   among   them.     Mr.   "Wood    baptized    only   one 
person. 

He,  however,  expresses  the  conviction  that  if  a 
missionary. of  prudence  were  sent  to  labour  among 
them,  their  prejudices  against  the  Church  could  soon 
be  overcome.  He  also  expresses  the  conviction  that 
if  a  young  man  could  be  appointed  missionary  at 
Gagetown,  Bruton,  and  Maugerville,  who  could  speak 
the  Micmac  language,jxll_t  he  tribes  of  this  place  would 
soon  become  Protestants;  that  is,  provided,  as  he 
complacently  adds,  that  no  Romanish  priest  was 
allowed  to  be  among  them.  The  Indians  had  received 
him  with  great  kindness,  and  joined  reverently  in  the 
service  which  he  conducted  among  them  in  their  own 
language.  He  was  a  hard-working  missionary  and  a 
great  scholar.  After  a  laborious  and  successful 
ministry  of  over  thirty  years  in  New  Jersey  and 
Nova  Scotia,  he  died  at  Annapolis  in  1778. 

The  Rev.  Joseph  Bennett  was  first  appointed  a 
travelling  missionary,  with  head-quarters  at  Fort 
Edward  (now  Windsor),  in  Jan.  1763.  He  reported 
his  mission  in  prosperous  condition  in  1769.  The 
prejudices  of  the  Dissenters  were  beginning  to  wear 
off,  and  his  hearers  at  Windsor  and  Falmouth  had 
doubled  their  number  within  two  years.  In  1775  he 
was  appointed  travelling  missionary  on  the  coast  of 
Nova  Scotia,  there  being  several  thousand  inhabit- 
ants now  settled  along  the  Atlantic  shore.  Mr. 
Bennett  continued  his  itinerant  labours  for  a  number 
of  years,  exposing  himself  frequently  to  the  most 
distressing  hardships,  having  to  pass  through  track- 
less woods  and  ford  dangerous  rivers  in  order  to  reach 
many  of  his  stations.  Year  after  year  he  penetrated 
the  numerous  bays  and  harbours  on  the  Atlantic 
coast  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  those  of  the  Gulf  shore. 
On  one  occasion  his  schooner  was  wrecked  and  became 
a  total  loss.     On  another  he  was  lost  all  night  in 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  21 

the  woods,  which  were  still  infested  with  wolves  and 
bears. 

The  American  Declaration  of  Independence  was 
made  in  1776,  and  then  the  settlement  of  the  land 
by  refugees  began  in  good  earnest.  Many  crossed 
the  border  at  once  on  the  conclusion  of  the  war.  In 
1783  large  numbers  of  these  exiles  arrived  at  St. 
John  (then  called  Parrtown),  and  among  them  were 
several  clergymen.  The  S.  P.  G.  undertook  to  pro- 
vide for  them,  and  in  this  work  the  Society  was  ably 
assisted  by  the  Government.  Dr.  Cook,  who  had 
laboured  at  Shrewsbury,  New  Jersey,  was  appointed 
to  St.  John,  and  Dr.  Bardsley,  formerly  a  missionary 
at  Poughkeepsie,  to  Maugerville.  Dr.  Cook  seems  to 
have  been  a  leading  man  among  the  missionary  clergy 
of  that  time.  He  had  received  an  English  University 
training,  and  had  no  little  colonial  experience.  He 
had  been  a  missionary  in  New  Jersey  before  the 
breaking  out  of  the  war,  and  being  obliged  to  go  to 
England  on  some  matter  of  business,  never  returned 
to  the  United  States.  In  1785  he  was  appointed 
missionary  to  New  Brunswick ;  he  spent  two  labori- 
ous weeks  in  reaching  his  destination  at  St.  John, 
which  was  two  hundz*ed  miles  from  Halifax  by  the 
circuitous  road  he  had  then  to  travel.  He  was 
received  with  great  kindness  by  his  congregation, 
whom  he  describes  as  very  indulgent.  Some  time 
before  his  arrival,  a  wooden  house,  36  X  28  feet  in 
dimensions,  had  been  purchased  and  roughly  fitted  up 
for  a  church.  It  was  still  very  unfinished  and  incon- 
venient. Under  Dr.  Cook's  energetic  directions  it 
was  soon  made  fairly  suitable  as  a  house  of  prayer, 
or  rather  perhaps  of  preaching,  as  one  of  the  chief 
parts  of  the  new  equipment  was  the  erection  of  a 
gallery.  It  was  used  as  the  church  of  the  town  until 
1791.  Dr.  Cook  took  a  long  missionary  tour  to  St. 
Andrew's,  which  was  already  a  town  of  two  hundred 


22  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

houses,  and  to  other  more  remote  settlements ;  and 
as  no  missionary  was  resident  within  reach,  Dr. 
Cook  baptized  sixty  children  on  bis  first  visit,  and 
twelve  more  before  his  return.  Owing  to  severe 
weather  his  journey  was  greatly  impeded.  He  had  a 
rough  and  perilous  passage,  for  he  could  only  then 
travel  by  water. 

Church  matters  were  now  favourably  progressing 
in  St.  John,  and  before  long  a  considerable  con- 
gregation was  collected,  fifty  of  whom  were  com- 
municants. The  seat  of  Government  was  removed 
from  St.  John  to  Fredericton,  and  Dr.  Cook  was  also 
removed.  In  writing  to  the  Society,  he  congratulates 
himself  on  having  left  his  successor  in  possession  of 
a  decent,  well-furnished  church,  with  a  very  respect- 
able and  well-behaved  congregation.  In  Fredericton 
he  conducted  the  services  of  the  Church  in  the 
King's  provision  store,  which  seems  to  have  been  used 
as  a  sort  of  public  hall,  all  sorts  of  gatherings  being  held 
in  it.  Fredericton  was  very  small,  and  the  people  very 
poor,  the  congregation  seldom  exceeding  one  hundred. 
With  the  aid  of  the  S.  P.  G.,  the  Government,  and 
Governor  Carlton,  Dr.  Cook  set  about  the  erection 
of  a  church,  which  was  finished  in  1  790.  He  lived 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  from  that  on  which 
his  church  was  situated,  and  returning  to  his  home 
with  his  son,  in  a  bark  canoe,  on  a  stormy  night  on 
the  23rd  of  May,  1795,  they  were  upset,  and  both 
father  and  son  were  drowned.  Bishop  Inglis  reports, 
that  "  never  was  a  minister  of  the  gospel  more  beloved 
and  esteemed,  or  more  universally  lamented  in  his 
death.  All  the  respectable  people,  not  only  of  his 
parish,  but  of  the  neighbouring  country,  went  into 
deep  mourning  on  this  melancholy  occasion." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Eagleson,  formerly  a  Presbyterian 
minister,  had  been  lately  ordained  by  the  Bishop  of 
London,  and  was  appointed  in  1769  to  the  mission 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  23 


of  Fort  Cumberland.  In  1778  the  garrison  of  this 
place  was  besieged  and  captured  by  an  American 
Revolutionary  force.  Mr.  Eagleson  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  carried  away  to  New  England.  After 
six  months'  imprisonment  he  effected  his  escape  and 
returned  to  his  mission,  where  he  continued  to 
labour  till  1778  or  1779.  In  the  mean  time  he  made 
a  missionary  tour  through  the  Island  of  ,St.  John, 
now  called  ^-ince^Ejlward^S- Island,  and  preached  to 
the  few  settlers  in  most  of  the  places  where  im- 
portant parishes  have  since  grown  up.  He  seems 
to  have  been  the  first  clergyman  that  visited  that 
island ;  he  describes  the  people  as  being  overjoyed 
at  his  coming. 

This  fairly  ends  the  history  of  the  Non-Episcopal 
period  of  the  Church  of  England  in  Canada.  Though 
it  had  accomplished  great  things,  it  was  still  but 
a  feeble  plant.  The  American  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence was  made  in  177fi,  and  several  years  after 
this  date  there  were  only  eight  clergymen  in  Nova 
Scotia,  and  only  two  in  New-  Brunswick ;  while  in 
Canada  there  was  not  one.  In  1786,  the  year  before 
Bishop  Inglis'  appointment,  these  had  increased  to 
ten  in  Nova  Scotia  and  six  in  New  Brunswick,  two 
in  Newfoundland,  two  in  Canada,  and  onein^Cape 

Br^toju. 

One  of  the  first  steps  of  the  Nova  Scotia  Legis- 
lature, by  an  Act  passed  in  the  thjrty^nd^_year__ 
of  George_  11.^,  was  the  establishment  of  religious 
worship  according  to  the  Liturgy  of  the  Church, 
established  by  the  laws  of  England.  This  was 
declared  to  be  the  fixed  mode  of  worship  in  the 
province ;  and  the  place  where  such  Liturgy  should 
be  used,  should  be  respected  and  known  by  the  name 
of  The  Church  of  England,  as  by  law  established. 
Ministers  were  by  the  same  Act  required  to  produce 
testimonials  from  the   Bishop  of   London,  to  assent 


24  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

to  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  to  subscribe  to  the 
orders  and  constitutions  of  the  Church,  and  the  laws 
established  in  it.  The  Governor  was  directed  to 
induct  the  minister  into  any  parish  that  should  make 
presentation  of  him.  The  Governor  and  Council 
were  empowered  to  suspend  and  silence  any  other 
persons  assuming  the  functions  of  ministers  of  the 
Church  of  England.  The  second  clause  of  this  Act 
declared  all  Protestant  Dissenters,  and  subsequently 
all  Roman  Catholics,  to  be  free  to  erect  their  own 
places  of  worship,  appoint  their  own  ministers,  and 
be  free  from  all  rates  and  taxes  for  the  support  of 
the  Established  Church  of  England.  This  Act  has 
left  its  mark  upon  the  Church  in  the  Maritime 
Provinces  to  the  present  time ;  for  while  in  all  the 
Dioceses  of  Canada,  the  Bishop  exercises  the  entire 
patronage,  except  when  the  same  has  been  provided 
for  by  some  private  arrangement,  in  Nova  Scotia 
and  New  Brunswick  the  entire  patronage  is  in  the 
hands  of  the  parishioners. 

The  custom  that  was  established  in  the  formation 
of  the  six  townships  of  Nova  Scotia  with  regard  to 
the  grant  of  400  acres  of  land  for  the  endowment  of 
a  church,  and  200  for  a  school-master,  was  extended  to 
the  whole  country,  including  New  Brunswick,  during 
the  first  years  of  its  settlement.  Many  of  these 
lands  have  been  brought  under  cultivation,  and 
have  become  valuable  glebes. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  25 


CHAPTER  IT. 

THE    FOUNDING    OF    THE    FIRST    COLONIAL    BISHOPRIC. 

The  establishment  of  the  Episcopate  in  America 
had  been  the  subject  of  anxious  desire  both  in  the 
colonies  and  in  the  Mother  Church,  long  before  the 
breaking  out  of  the  American  Revolution.  More 
than  a  hundred  years  before  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  Charles  II.  had  nominated  Dr.  Murray 
to  the  Bishopric  of  Virginia,  but  under  the  Erastian 
influences  of  that  period,  some  unexplained  reasons 
of  State  were  allowed  to  prevent  his  consecration. 
And  so  we  find  that  the  colonists,  supported  by  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  petitioned 
for  the  appointment  of  a  bishop  in  1715  :  the  grant- 
ing of  this  petition,  which  it  will  be  observed  was 
addressed,  not  to  the  Archbishop  or  the  Bishops  of 
England,  but  to  the  Crown,  was  prevented,  it  is 
supposed,  by  Sir  Robert  Walpole's  opposition  to  the 
clergy,  whom  he  suspected  of  favouring  the  Stuart 
family.  In  response  to  repeated  appeals  from 
America,  two  clergymen,  Talbot  and  Walton,  were 
consecrated  by  the  Non-juring  Bishops  and  set  out 
for  America ;  they  were,  however,  prevented  by  the 
British  Government  of  that  day  from  exercising 
their  functions,  and  so  the  Church  in  America  was 
left  for  more  than  a  hundred  years  without  a 
bishop,  i.  e.  until  seven  years  after  the  Declaration  of 
Independence.     Dr.  Seabury  was  consecrated  in  1784 


26  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

by  the  ^cotch^Eishops.  Five  years  later  Drs.  White 
and  Provost  were  consecrated  by  the  two  English 
Archbishops  of  those  days.  The  establishment  of 
the  Bishopric  of  Nova  Scotia  had  been  resolved  on 
in  1784;  and  Dr.  Chandler,  who  before  the  breaking 
ont  of  the  Revolution  was  Rector  of  Elizabethtown 
in  New  Jersey,  was  nominated  by  the  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  to  whom  he  had  become  favourably 
known  during  his  residence  in  England,  as  the  first 
colonial  bishop ;  but  owing  to  ill-health  Dr.  Chandler 
was  obliged  to  decline  the  offer.  The  Archbishop 
wrote  to  him,  expressing  his  appreciation  of  his 
character,  and  his  sympathy  with  him  in  his  afflic- 
tion ;  he  also  asked  him  to  recommend  to  him  a 
suitable  person  to  occupy  the  position  which  he  was 
obliged  to  decline. 

THE    FIRST    BISHOP. 

The  result  was  that  Dr.  Charles  Inglis,  who  had 
been  Rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York,  during 
the  progress  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  was  chosen, 
and  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia,  at 
Lambeth,  on  Sunday  the  12th  of  August,  1787,  by 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  assisted  by  the  Bishops 
of  Rochester  and  Chester.  He  arrived  at  Halifax 
on  the  16th  of  October,  1787,  the  first  Colonial 
Bishop  of  the  Church  of  England. 

Dr.  Inglis  was  the  third  sou  of  the  Rev.  Archibald 
Inglis,  of  Glen  and  Kilcarrin,  Ireland,  where  he  was 
born  in  1734.  His  father,  grandfather,  and  great- 
grandfather had  all  been  clergymen.  His  father 
had  a  limited  income,  and  a  large  family ;  and  so 
the  future  bishop,  without  any  idea  as  yet  of  the 
high  office  to  which  he  was  to  be  called,  came  to 
America  while  still  young,  and  engaged  for  some 
time  in  school-teaching.     Afterwards,  when  he  deter- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  27 

mined  to  devote  himself  to  the  sacred  ministry,  he 
had,  like  all  young  men  of  that  period  who  were 
seeking  Holy  Orders,  to  return  to  England  for 
examination  and  ordination.  He  was  first  appointed 
missionary  at  Dover,  in  the  province  of  Delaware, 
and  had  the  usual  experience  of  backwoods'  mission- 
aries in  the  extent  and  roughness  of  the  territory 
in  which  he  was  appointed  to  labour.  After  six  years' 
toil  in  this  hard  field,  he  was  appointed  Assistant- 
Rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York,  in  1765,  and 
in  1777  he  was  appointed  Rector  of  this  same  church  ; 
while  in  1787,  as  has  been  already  stated,  he  was 
appointed  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia.  His  Diocese 
embraced  the  whole  of  Nova  Scotia,  Upper  and 
Lower  Canada,  New  Brunswick,  Prince  Edward's 
Island,  Newfoundland,  and  Bermuda ;  or  in  other 
words,  he  was  made  Bishop  of  the  whole  of  British 
North  America.  He  had  at  first  only  ten  clergy 
in  Nova  Scotia,  six  in  New  Brunswick,  and  six  in  the 
rest  of  his  Diocese  to  carry  on  the  work  in  this  vast 
territory.  He  worked  diligently  in  the  discharge  of 
the  duties  of  his  office,  and  the  work  grew  under 
his  administration.  He  no  doubt  confined  his  labours 
for  the  most  part  to  Nova  Scotia,  where  the  principal 
settlements  were  made  at  first.  These  settlements 
were  generally  confined,  both  in  Nova  Scotia  and 
New  Brunswick,  to  the  coast  and  river-banks. 
Farm  settlements  were  gradually  extended  inland, 
as  new  bands  of  emigrants  from  the  old  world  or 
exiles  from  the  United  States  arrived.  The  difficulty 
of  supplying  these  ever-expanding  settlements  with 
the  ministrations  of  religion  was  very  great,  and 
the  work  of  supervision  and  direction  was  constantly 
increasing. 

Bishop  Inglis  did  not  reach  his  Diocese  after  his 
consecration  till  the  close  of  the  navigation  in  1787, 
and  yet  in  the  summer  of  1792  he  made  his  second 


28  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

visitation  of  New  Brunswick.  He  was  a  man  of 
cheery,  hopeful  disposition,  and  his  report  on  the 
condition  of  the  Church  is  altogether  encouraging. 
The  diligent  and  exemplary  conduct  of  the  mission- 
aries had  won,  he  tells  us,  the  respect  and  confidence 
of  the  people.  As  a  result,  their  congregations  were 
flourishing,  their  communicants  were  increasing, 
churches  were  being  built,  and  constant  applications 
for  the  appointment  of  missionaries  in  new  districts 
were  being  received.  The  Bishop  adjusted  many 
difficulties  in  connection  with  the  land  grants  that 
had  been  made  to  the  Church,  and  settled  the  trusts 
of  parishes  and  missions  during  this  journey.  He 
was  ably  sustained  by  Governor  Carleton,  who  was 
a  devout  man,  and  did  all  he  could,  by  example  and 
precept,  to  promote  the  interests  of  religion.  Four 
new  churches  were  consecrated,  and  777  persons  con- 
firmed by  the  Bishop  during  this  visitation  of  the 
Province  of  New  Brunswick.  In  1798  we  find  the 
Bishop  again  at  Fredericton  ■  while  there  he  visited 
a  school  that  had  been  established  for  black  people, 
under  the  directions  of  the  Rector,  Rev.  Mr.  Pigeon. 
The  Bishop  obtained  from  the  Association  of  Dr. 
Bray  an  allowance  of  ten  shillings  a  year  towards 
the  education  of  each  black  child.  There  is  no 
record  of  any  visit  ever  having  been  paid  by  Bishop 
Inglis  to  Canada,  Newfoundland,  or  Bermuda.  That, 
however,  does  not  involve  such  neglect  of  these 
remote  and  almost  inaccessible  parts  of  his  Diocese 
as  seems  at  first  to  be  implied.  For  in  the  first 
place,  settlements  were  not  made  so  early  in  these 
provinces  as  in  the  more  accessible  regions  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  New  Brunswick.  Then  it  was  only  the 
brief  space  of  five  years  till  Bishop  Inglis  was  relieved 
of  the  responsibility  of  the  greater  part  of  his  vast 
Diocese,  by  the  formation,  in  1793,  of  the  Diocese  of 
Quebec,  embracing  at  first  the  whole  of  Canada. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  29 

Bishop  Inglis  died  in  Halifax  on  the  24th  of  Feb., 
1816,  in  the  eighty-second  year  of  his  age.  He  had 
been  fifty-eight  years  in  the  sacred  ministry,  twenty- 
nine  of  which  had  elapsed  since  his  consecration  to 
the  Episcopate.  His  son  John  became  third  Bishop 
of  Nova  Scotia,  and  his  eldest  daughter  the  wife  of 
Chief  Justice  Halliburton,  the  author  of  the  widely 
known  Sam  Slick. 

On  the  death  of  Bishop  Inglis,  an  incident  occurred 
which  shows  how  completely  the  Church  and  State 
were  at  that  time  identified  in  the  minds  of  men.  Dr. 
Stanser,  Bector  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Halifax,  had  for 
some  time  held  the  position  of  Chaplain  to  the  House 
of  Assembly.  The  House  was  in  session  when  Bishop 
Inglis  died,  and  by  a  unanimous  vote  they  recom- 
mended tothe  Crown  the  appointment  of  their  Chaplain 
as  second  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia.  He  was  accordingly 
appointed,  and  proceeded  to  England  for  consecration 
in  the  autumn  of  1816.  The  health  of  the  new 
Bishop  was,  however,  so  delicate,  that  after  holding 
his  first  visitation  and  ordination,  which  he  conducted 
with  extreme  difficulty,  he  was  ordered  to  return  to 
England  for  medical  treatment.  Year  after  year  was 
spent  in  the  vain  hope  of  his  recovery,  but  he  never 
saw  his  Diocese  again;  and  finally  in  1824  he  resigned 
the  Bishoprick,  and  died  a  few  years  afterwards  in 
England.  The  Church  in  this  widely  and  rapidly 
expanding  Diocese  had  been  practically  without  a 
bishop  for  eight  years ;  and  apart  from  the  loss  which 
she  sustained  from  the  lack  of  the  Episcopal  offices 
of  Ordination  and  Confirmation,  she  was  sorely  im- 
peded in  her  work  by  the  lack  of  that  Episcopal 
supervision  and  direction  which  are  essential  to  her 
vigorous  expansion  and  strength. 

The  Bight  Bev.  John  Inglis,  D.D.,  son  of  the  first 
Bishop,  was  chosen  third  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia  on 
the  resignation  of  Dr.  Stanser.     He  had  been  chosen 


30  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

as  Dr.  Stanser's  successor  in  the  Eectorship  of  St. 
Paul's,  Halifax,  and  now  he  was  called  to  the  higher 
office  which  his  resignation  left  vacant.  He  was  a 
man  of  impressive  presence  and  courtly  manners. 
He  was  consecrated  in  London  in  1825,  and  returned 
to  Halifax  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year.  The 
original  Diocese  of  Nova  Scotia,  as  has  been  narrated, 
was  reduced  to  less  than  one-fourth  of  its  original 
territorial  extent  by  the  formation,  in  1793,  of  the 
Diocese  of  Quebec.  It  was  still,  however,  of  enormous 
extent,  embracing  the  Provinces  of  Nova  Scotia,  New 
Brunswick,  Newfoundland,  and  Bermuda.  The  new 
Bishop  saw  the  need  of  a  better  organization,  and  at 
once  divided  his  vast  jurisdiction  into  four  Arch- 
deaconries, each  embracing  one  of  the  divisions  above- 
named.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Best  was  appointed  Archdeacon 
of  New  Brunswick ;  the  Rev.  Dr.  Willis  of  Nova 
Scotia  ;  the  Rev.  George  Coster  of  Newfoundland ; 
and  the  Rev.  A.  G.  Spencer  of  Bermuda.  In  his  first 
visitation  of  his  Diocese  in  1826,  Bishop  Inglis  con- 
firmed 4367  persons,  and  consecrated  44  churches. 
He  endeavoured  after  this  to  visit  each  Archdeaconry 
every  third  year.  In  1827,  availing  himself  of  the 
facilities  of  the  well-manned  boats  of  a  ship  of  war, 
he  visited  the  out  harbours  of  Newfoundland,  and  so 
was  enabled  by  personal  observation  to  acquire  a 
knowledge  of  the  most  remote  and  destitute  stations 
of  the  Church.  He  had  the  year  before  visited 
Bermuda,  where,  he  tells  us,  he  was  received  with 
every  possible  mark  of  respect,  no  bishop  having  ever 
before  been  in  that  colony.  He  found  the  island 
divided  into  nine  parishes,  each  provided  with  a 
church  and  small  glebe.  During  his  stay  he  confirmed 
1200  persons,  of  whom  100  were  blacks. 

The  whole  period  extending  from  1825  to  1838 
was  marked  by  rapid  strides  in  the  progress  of  the 
Church  throughout  the  whole  Diocese.     The  clergy  had 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  31 

in  five  years  been  nearly  doubled,  vacant  missions  filled 
up  and  new  ones  established,  congregations  organized, 
and  churches  built  and  in  progress  in  every  direction. 
The  Bishop  was  unceasing  in  his  visitations,  and  the 
reports  sent  in  by  many  of  the  missionaries  exhibit 
such  minute  and  satisfactory  details  as  could  only  be 
obtained  in  a  faithful  discharge  of  their  duty.  The 
temporalities  of  the  Church  were,  however,  assailed  in 
every  direction,  and  the  clergy  in  poor  districts  forced 
to  endure  many  privations,  consequent  on  the  reduc- 
tion of  their  incomes  ;  yet  this  was  a  time  of  revival 
in  the  Church  throughout  many  parts  of  the  Diocese. 
A  spirit  of  godliness  and  earnest  desire  for  the 
salvation  of  souls  pervades  the  missionary  corre- 
spondence of  this  period. 

Between  May  and  £ept.  in  1842  the  Bishop  con- 
secrated twenty-one  churches  in  the  Archdeaconry 
of  New  Brunswick.  He  reports,  "  that  the  state  of 
things  here,  though  not  free  from  difficulties,  was 
never  before  so  prosperous  as  at  that  time.  I  have  been 
called  upon,"  he  says,  "  to  perform  Episcopal  acts  for 
the  first  time  in  no  less  than  twenty-two  places, 
separated  from  each  other  by  hundreds  of  miles,  in 
all  of  which  new  churches  have  been  completed  or 
are  in  progress.  He  paid  a  last  visit  to  this  portion 
of  his  Diocese  in  the  autumn  of  1843,  when  he  held 
confirmations  at  twelve  different  places  on  the  eastern 
coast,  and  consecrated  several  churches  and  burial- 
grounds.  In  discharge  of  this  duty  he  travelled  6436 
miles.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  work  of  such 
a  Diocese,  even  after  the  separation  of  Newfoundland, 
was  felt  to  be  too  onerous  for  one  man.  Strenuous 
efforts  were  therefore  made  to  have  New  Brunswick 
formed  into  a  separate  Diocese.  This  was  accom- 
plished two  years  later,  in  1845,  when  the  Rev. 
John  Medley  was  appointed  to  the  charge  of  the  new 
Diocese. 


32  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Bishop  Inglis  was  now  well  advanced  in  years,  and 
was  glad  to  confine  himself  to  the  Province  of  Nova 
Scotia,  as  his  Diocese  was  still  equal  in  territorial 
extent  to  one-half  of  England.  For  five  years  more 
he  continued  in  the  diligent  discharge  of  his  duty ; 
and  after  a  brief  illness  departed  this  life  at  Halifax 
in  the  seventy-third  year  of  his  age,  and  in  the 
twenty-sixth  of  his  Episcopate,  venerated  and  beloved 
by  the  people  amongst  whom  he  had  lived  and  laboured 
so  long. 


THE    FOURTH    BISHOP    OF    NOVA    SCOTIA. 

Bishop  Binney  was  born  at  Sydney  in  the  Island 
of'  Cape  gretpn,  on  Aug.  12tW  l»lg-  His  father, 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Binney,  was  tor  many  years  Rector  of 
this  parish,  but  had  for  some  time  been  living  in 
England.  It  is  said  that  the  Bishopric  of  Nova 
Scotia  was  first  offered  to  Dr.  Binney  on  account  of 
his  knowledge  of  the  country.  He,  however,  declined 
the  honour  because  of  his  advanced  age,  but  suggested 
his  son,  a  young  man  who  had  taken  a  first-class 
degree  at  Oxford,  and  had  lately  been  a  chosen  Fellow 
of  Worcester  College.  After  due  consideration  and 
inquiry  as  to  his  qualifications,  the  suggestion  was 
acted  upon,  and  the  Rev.  Hibbert  Binney  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  Crown  as  the  successor  to  Bishop 
John  Inglis,  and  as  fourth  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia. 
No  wiser  appointment  could  have  been  made.  Though 
educated  in  England,  Dr.  Binney  was  a  native  of  the 
country  ;  he  had  spent  the  first  nineteen  years  of  his 
life  among  its  people  ;  he  understood  their  sentiments 
and  ways  of  life ;  his  family  traditions  were  inter- 
woven with  Nova  Scotian  history.  His  great-grand- 
father, the  Hon.  Jonathan  Binney,  lived  at  Hull  near 
Boston,  and  removed  to  Halifax  in  the  early  years  of 
its  history.     His  relatives  were  all  in  the  land,  and 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  33 

he  himself  afterwards  married  a  daughter  of  Judge 
Bliss,  one  of  the  oldest  and  most  influential  families 
of  Halifax.  In  scholarship  Bishop  Binney  ranked 
with  the  foremost  men  of  his  time.  In  natural 
ability  he  had  few  equals,  while  by  connections  with, 
and,  one  may  say,  inherited  knowledge  of,  the  people, 
one  so  qualified  for  the  position  to  which  he  was 
called  could  hardly  have  been  found.  He  was  con- 
secrated in  Lambeth  Chapel  on  the  festival  of  the 
Annunciation  in  1851,  by  Archbishop  Sumner,  as- 
sisted by  Bishops  Bloomfield,  Wilberf orce,  and  Gilbert. 

The  new  Bishop  arrived  in  his  Diocese  on  July  21st, 
1851,  and  preached  the  following  Sunday  in  St.  Paul's 
Church.  He  inaugurated  his  work  in  the  Diocese  by 
an  ordination  held  in  Halifax,  at  which  six  deacons 
and  one  priest  were  admitted  to  their  sacred  offices. 
He  next  set  to  work  to  provide  for  the  neglected 
poor  of  the  city ;  and  at  his  own  risk,  as  well  as  largely 
at  his  own  expense,  he  opened  among  them  what 
was  known  as  the  Bishop's  Chapel,  Salem.  This  after- 
wards grew  into  the  brick  building  known  as  Trinity 
Church,  the  erection  of  which  was  largely  due  to  the 
liberality  of  the  Bishop  and  his  friends.  Following 
the  example  of  his  predecessor,  he  selected  St.  Paul's 
as  his  pro-cathedral.  Troubles,  however,  soon  arose. 
He  had  called  the  attention  of  the  Diocese  to  the 
inconvenience  of  using  the  academic  gown  for  preach- 
ing, and  to  the  disobedience  to  the  requirements  of 
the  rubrics  involved  in  placing  the  elements  of  the 
Blessed  Sacrament  on  the  Lord's  Table  before  the 
beginning  of  the  Office.  This  raised  a  storm  of 
opposition,  wThich  was  led  by  the  clergy  of  St.  Paul's. 
The  Bishop,  therefore,  determined  to  remove  his  chair 
to  St.  Luke's  Church,  which  being  enlarged  by  the 
erection  of  a  suitable  chancel,  was  made  the  pro- 
cathedral  of  the  Diocese. 

The  due  maintenance  of  the  clergy  of  his  Diocese 

c 


34  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

was  always  foremost  in  the  Bishop's  thoughts.  The 
Diocesan  Church  Society,  aiming  at  the  same  objects 
as  the  S.  P.  G.,  had  been  fourteen  years  in  existence 
before  his  arrival.  Its  income  at  the  time  was  2884 
dollars.  In  the  last  year  of  his  life  it  had  risen  to 
9707  dollars.  Upon  this  Society  the  Bishop  grafted 
a  fund  for  the  widows  and  orphans  of  deceased 
clergymen,  the  superannuation  fund  for  the  relief  of 
aged  and  infirm  clergy,  and  the  church  endowment 
fund.  This  latter  now  pays  about  7000  dollars  a 
year  towards  the  objects  for  which  it  was  founded. 
The  widows  and  orphans'  funds  pay  the  pension  of 
twelve  widows,  while  the  superannuation  fund  has 
already  a  sufficient  endowment  to  meet  all  claims 
that  are  likely  to  be  made  upon  it. 

The  clergy  of  the  Diocese  increased  during  Bishop 
Binney's  Episcopate  from  sixty  to  somewhat  over  a 
hundred.  Not  more  than  ten  of  those  who  were  on 
the  active  staff  of  the  Diocese  when  he  came,  were 
living  at  his  death ;  so  the  tide  rolls  on. 

The  establishment  of  Synods  was  going  on  apace 
in  the  Canadian  Church  when  Bishop  Binney  arrived. 
His  attention  was  necessarily  called  to  the  subject, 
and  in  February  1854  he  spoke  publicly  of  the  necessity 
of  a  Synod  in  which  bishop,  clergy,  and  laity  should 
have  a  voice.  His  scheme  was  stoutly  opposed ;  but 
the  form  of  Diocesan  Synod  which  Bishop  Strachan 
first  introduced  at  Toronto  was  established  in  Nova 
Scotia  as  in  all  other  Canadian  Dioceses. 

Of  the  increase  in  churches  in  this  Diocese,  of  the 
improvement  in  the  architectural  arrangements  and 
ritual  solemnity  of  these  churches,  it  is  impossible 
adequately  to  speak ;  and  the  present  generation 
have  no  idea  of  all  Bishop  Binney  did,  endured,  and 
gave,  to  bring  about  these  beneficial  changes. 

He  was  diligent  and  unremitting  in  his  visitations 
of  his  extensive,  rugged,  and   unreclaimed   Diocese, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  35 

and  it  is  quite  impossible  for  those  who  travel  in  these 
days  of  railways  and  luxuriously  equipped  steamers  to 
realize  how  laborious  these  journeys  in  waggons  and 
fishing  craft  and  coasting  vessels  necessarily  were. 
Even  yet,  in  many  parts  of  the  Diocese,  the  roads  are 
rough  and  difficult  to  travel,  in  all  but  the  finest 
weather.  The  Bishop,  however,  never  either  spared 
himself  or  complained. 

In  the  matter  of  duty,  the  Bishop  reminded  men 
of  the  Iron  Duke.  He  neither  spared  himself  nor 
others.  He  would  say  just  what  he  felt  to  be  his 
duty,  and  if  his  words  did  cut,  it  was  not  from  any 
unkindness  of  nature  or  hardness  of  heart.  He  had 
the  most  overpowering  sense  of  his  own  responsibility 
as  Chief  Pastor  of  the  Diocese,  and  of  the  responsi- 
bilities of  the  clergy  under  him.  These  he  deter- 
mined should,  as  far  as  in  him  lay,  be  realized,  and 
so  he  was  an  inflexible  Superior  and  disciplinarian ; 
but  with  all  this  he  was  a  man  of  kindly  and  generous 
nature.  His  tenderness  to  the  afflicted,  his  playful 
affectionateness  towards  little  children,  and  his  kind- 
ness to  his  clergy,  manifested  often  not  only  by  his 
earnest  and  affectionate  counsel,  but  by  pecuniary 
and  ready  help,  have  secured  for  him  an  abiding-place 
in  the  affections  of  the  people  amongst  whom  he 
lived  so  long. 

Two  objects  apart  from  his  Diocesan  labours 
especially  engaged  the  Bishop's  attention.  The  one 
was  the  erection  of  a  suitable  cathedral  for  the 
Diocese,  and  the  other,  the  success  of  King's  College, 
Windsor,  the  Church  University  of  the  Maritime 
Provinces. 

A  magnificent  site  for  a  cathedral  had  long  ago 
been  given  by  Judge  Bliss.  Plans  had  been  obtained 
from  Mr.  G.  E.  Street,  the  celebrated  English  archi- 
tect, and  ten  thousand  dollars  were  promised  if  work 
were  begun  within   a  certain  time.     As   this  could 


36  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

not  be  accomplished,  the  Bishop,  drawing  upon  his 
own  resources,  undertook  the  erection  of  a  building, 
which  might  afterwards  be  used  as  a  Chapter-house 
and  Synod  Hall,  but  in  the  meantime  as  a  Bishop's 
Chapel,  where  a  congregation  might  be  gathered  for 
a  future  cathedral.  No  actual  steps  seem,  however, 
to  have  been  taken  towards  the  realization  of  this 
object  until  the  year  of  the  Centenary  Celebration 
of  this,  the  first  Colonial  Diocese.  Vigorous  efforts 
were,  at  that  time,  initiated  to  realize  the  life-long 
desire  of  Bishop  Binney  ;  but  before  any  material 
progress  had  been  made,  the  good  Bishop  was  called 
away.  It  is  probable  that  his  eloquent  and  popular 
successor,  if  his  health  be  restored,  will  accomplish 
the  design  so  long  and  earnestly  cherished.  King's 
College,  Windsor,  was  a  Royal  foundation,  established 
on  the  same  basis  and  about  the  same  time  as  King's 
College,  FrederictoD,  and  King's  College,  Toronto.  It 
is  the  only  one  of  the  three  of  which  the  Church  still 
has  control ;  the  other  two  have  long  ago  been  secu- 
larized. And  Windsor,  in  spite  of  its  considerable 
endowments,  has  had  but  a  feeble  and  precarious 
existence.  Bishop  Binney,  who  was  Visitor,  did  much 
to  strengthen  and  enlarge  the  University  ;  his  self- 
denying  labours  on  its  behalf  are  known  to  all. 
Through  him  his  father's  name  is  for  ever  connected 
with  the  College.  Large  gifts  from  his  mother,  sister, 
and  uncle,  have  also  contributed  to  make  the  name 
of  Binney  foremost  among  the  benefactors  of  Windsor, 
and  his  own  name  will  be  commemorated  by  a  beauti- 
ful stained  glass  window  in  the  chapel  of  the  College. 
The  Bishop  also  bent  his  earnest  efforts  to  the 
establishment  of  a  school  or  college  in  which  the 
daughters  of  the  Church  might  be  trained.  Two 
institutions,  St.  Margaret's  Hall  and  Girton  House, 
established  successively  for  the  attainment  of  that 
end,   though  successful  for  a  time,  yet,  through  de- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  37 

fective  management,  failed.  Since  the  Bishop's  death, 
another  institution  of  the  same  kind  has  been  started, 
mainly  by  the  efforts  of  Professor  Hind,  and  is 
giving  every  promise  of  permanent  success. 

Bishop  Binney,  after  a  long  and  laborious  Episco- 
pate, died  in  the  city  of  New  York,  whither  he  hud 
gone  for  medical  treatment,  on  the  30th  April,  1887. 

The  city  of  Halifax,  in  which  he  had  lived  so  long, 
manifested  its  affectionate  regard  for  him  by  the 
vast  concourse  that  gathered  at  his  funeral. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Partridge  spoke  of  him  as  a  prelate  of 
most  powerful  mind,  perfect  administrative  capacity, 
and  childlike  kindness  of  heart.  Prom  the  first 
moment  of  his  arrival  in  the  land,  he  had  to  experi- 
ence the  most  bitter  opposition  from  most  of  those 
from  whom  he  should  have  received  support.  He 
steadily  fought  his  way  through  hostile  forces,  till 
after  many  years  he  placed  the  Church  in  this  Province 
ahead  of  other  Dioceses  in  faith  and  good  works. 
When  all  men  were  against  him,  he  fought  the  battle 
of  the  Church  to  such  good  purpose,  that  now  three- 
fourths  of  the  Diocese  reflects  his  views,  which  are 
themselves  the  reflection  of  the  doctrinal  statements 
of  the  Church  of  England.  A  considerable  interreg- 
num followed  the  death  of  Bishop  Binney,  owing  to 
the  difficulty  of  electing  a  successor. 

The  first  choice  of  the  Synod  was  Dr.  Edgell,  the 
Chaplain-General  of  the  forces,  who  by  a  long  residence 
in  Halifax  had  won  the  hearts  of  the  whole  people. 
He,  as  had  been  feared,  after  due  consideration, 
declined  the  appointment. 

The  next  choice  was  Bishop  Perry  of  Iowa,  IT.  S., 
the  historiographer  of  the  American  Church,  and 
a  personal  friend  of  Bishop  Binney.  He  also,  after 
considerable  delay,  caused  by  some  accident  of  com- 
munication, declined  to  leave  his  wide  western  Diocese 
for  one  under  the  British  flag.     Finally,  after  nine 


38  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

months'  delay,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Courtney  of  Boston  was 
unanimously  chosen,  and  accepted  the  appointment. 

Dr.  Courtney  is  an  Englishman  by  birth  and 
education.  He  had  become  famous  throughout  the 
land  as  an  eloquent  preacher  and  a  successful  parish 
worker.  He  is  a  man  of  splendid  physique,  and  great 
powers  of  conversation,  in  addition  to  his  oratorical 
gifts.  He  at  once  became  the  idol  of  the  Diocese, 
and  if  his  health,  which  became  seriously  impaired 
about  eighteen  months  ago,  should,  in  God's  good 
providence,  be  restored,  his  episcopate  will  no  doubt 
be  crowned  with  ever-widening  influence  and  great 
success. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  39 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE    DIOCESE  OF    QUEBEC. 

Nova  Scotia,  the  first  Colonial  Diocese  of  the  English 
Church,  was  founded  in  1789.  It  embraced,  as  has 
already  been  narrated,  the  whole  of  British  North 
America,  including  Newfoundland  and  the  Bermudas. 
By  far  the  greater  part  of  this  Diocese  remained  a 
terra  incognita  to  the  first  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia. 
The  unbroken  forests  everywhere  covered  the  land, 
except  along  the  shores  of  the  sea,  and  the  banks  of 
the  great  rivers ;  so  that  it  would  have  been  exceed- 
ingly difficult  and  hazardous,  if  not  impossible,  to  pass 
by  land  from  the  Nova  Scotian  to  the  Canadian  part 
of  his  Diocese  ;  while  the  journey  by  water  would  have 
involved  a  long  sea  and  river  voyage.  The  Bishop 
was  moreover  fully  occupied  with  the  planting  and 
supervision  of  the  Church  in  Nova  Scotia  and  New 
Brunswick  ;  and  for  the  present  there  seemed  not 
much  need  for  attempting  to  extend  his  ministrations 
to  the  regions  beyond. 

The  whole  of  Canada  had  been  ceded  in  1759  to 
Great  Britain  by  France,  and  so  at  first  the  only 
settlers  were  French  Roman  Catholics.  English 
garrisons  were  established  at  sevei-al  points  in  the 
newly  acquired  territory.  These  were  provided  with 
their  own  chaplains,  who  were  supposed  to  be  quite 
sufficient  to  supply  all  needed  ministrations. 

The  straggling  settlers  who  gradually  came  in  had 


40  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

to  be  content  with  such  services  as  the  garrison 
chaplains  were  able  to  give  them.  No  action  was 
taken  in  the  mother  country  till  1780  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  .the  Church  in  this  wild  domain. 

Work  of  a  purely  missionary  character  had  not 
however  been  wholly  neglected.  In  1748,  the  Society 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  had  appointed  the 
Rev.  John  Ogilvie,  a  graduate  of  Yale  College,  as  their 
missionary  to  the  JVEoJaawk  Indians  in  the  province  of 
New  York.  Unceasing  warfare  had,  almost  from  the 
first  settlement  of  the  country,  been  carried  on 
between  the  French  colonists  in  Canada  and  the 
English  settlers  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  Constant 
forays  were  made  by  the  one  side  or  the  other,  quite 
regardless  of  the  fact  that  England  and  France  were 
living  in  peace  and  professed  amity.  But  now  the 
final  struggle  in  which  both  the  colonies  and  the 
mother  countries  were  united  (for  the  possession  of 
the  land)  broke  out.  An  expedition  was  organized 
in  the  province  of  New  York  to  attack  the  French 
posts  in  what  afterwards  became  Upper  Canada.  Nine 
hundred  and  forty  Indians  of  Mr.  Ogilvie's  Mohawk 
mission  joined  the  invading  army.  Fort  Niagara,  the 
point  of  attack,  was  soon  captured,  and  Mr. 'Ogilvie 
continued  with  the  garrison  that  was  stationed  there, 
ministering  both  to  the  Indians  and  whites.  Many  of 
the  former  embraced  the  Christian  religion,  and  were 
baptized.  In  her  work  among  the  Indians,  however, 
the  Church  of  England  was  at  a  disadvantage.  The 
Jesuits  had  before  this  time,  with  heroic  zeal,  estab- 
lished their  missions  in  every  Indian  tribe  in  Canada, 
and  away  across  the  continent  to  the  foot  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains.  They  had  also  supplied  them  with 
decent  places  of  worship.  Our  services,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  to  be  carried  on  in  kitchens  and  unfur- 
nished rooms,  if  not  in  the  open  air.  The  Indians 
were  not  slow  to  make  disparaging  reflections  upon 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  41 

a  religion  that  was  outwardly  so  mean  and  so  poorly 
equipped. 

After  the  conquest  of  Canada,  Mr.  Ogilvie  was 
stationed  at  Quebec  as  chaplain  to  the  60th  regiment, 
a  post  which  he  occupied  for  four  years.  From  a 
letter  of  his  to  the  S.  P.  G.  in  1760,  we  gather  that 
he  organized  several  congregations  in  and  about 
Quebec,  and  that  he  made  many  converts  from  the 
Churgh  of  Rorne.^  After"  his  removal,  these  flourish- 
ing  congregations  seem  to  have  been  neglected  until 
they  dwindled  away  and  disappeared.  In  1763,  he 
wrote  to  the  Society  from  Montreal,  strongly  urging 
the  establishment  of  a  mission  at  that  point ;  but 
nothing  was  done.  In  1789,  the  Rev.  Chabrand 
Delisle,  chaplain  to  the  garrison  at  Montreal,  again 
appealed  to  the  S.  P.  G.  for  help,  and  stated  that  the 
Roman  priests  were  making  use  of  the  neglected 
state  of  the  Church  of  England  services  to  persuade 
the  people  that  the  English  did  not  care  for  their 
religion,  and  would  do  nothing  for  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  their  people.  He  himself  had  no  place  of 
worship,  and  so  had  to  ask  the  people  to  go  to  the 
hospital  for  the  services  he  was  able  to  give  them. 
It  is  easy  to  see  how  many  would  shrink  from  the 
danger,  real  or  supposed,  of  contagion,  by  doing  so. 
He,  however,  reports  the  baptism  of  fifty-nine  chil- 
dren and  one  adult,  and  the  admission  of  three 
Roman  Catholics  during  the  year. 

At  the  conquest,  there  were  about  60,000  French 
Roman  Catholics  in  the  Province,  with  practically  no 
English  settlers.  By  1781,  the  English-speaking 
population  had  increased  to  6000,  and  yet  provision 
had  not  been  made  for  even  one  clergyman  of  the 
Church  of  England.  In  1782,  Colonel  Claus,  then 
stationed  at  Montreal,  became  deeply  interested  in 
the  spiritual  condition  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
country,  and  especially  of  the  Indians.    At  the  request 


42  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  the  Mohawks,  who  had  lately  removed  from  New 
York  to  Canada,  he  translated  the  Prayer-book  and 
a  Primer  into  the  Iroquois  language.  He  distributed 
about  250  of  these  among  the  Six  Nation  Indians, 
then  collected  about  Fort  Niagara.  This  resulted  in 
the  conversion  of  many  of  these  people,  who  asked  to  be 
baptized.  In  1784,  the  S.  P.  G-.  sent  the  Rev.  John 
Stuart,  formerly  a  missionary  in  the  province  of  New 
York,  to  undertake  the  charge  of  this  mission.  He 
was  shortly  afterwards  removed  to  Kingston,  but 
with  the  continued  charge  of  the  Mohawk  churches ; 
a  charge  which  he  faithfully  fulfilled  till  his  death  in 
1812.  Mr.  Stuart  is  justly  regarded  as  the  real 
father  of  the  Church  in  Canada. 

About  the  same  time  another  Loyalist  clergyman 
from  New  York,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Doty,  was  settled  at 
Sorel,  and  was  the  first  to  organize  the  Church  in 
that  part  of  Canada.  In  1787,  Mr.  Langhorn  was 
sent  out  by  the  Society  as  itinerant  missionary,  and 
was  stationed  at  Ernest  Town  in  Upper  Canada. 
In  1793,  at  the  earnest  entreaty  of  Bishop  Inglis,  of 
Nova  Scotia,  the  Diocese  of  Quebec  was  founded. 


THE    FIRST    BISHOP    OF    QUEBEC. 

Dr.  Jacob  Mountain  was  consecrated  first  Bishop 
of  Quebec,  with  jurisdiction  over  Upper  and  Lower 
Canada.  Dr.  Mountain  was  a  French  Huguenot  by 
extraction,  grandson  of  Monsieur  Jacob  de  Montaigne, 
who  purchased  and  resided  in  Thwaite  Hall  near 
Norwich.  He  was  nominated  to  the  Bishopric  of 
Quebec  by  the  younger  Pitt,  and  probably  at  the 
suggestion  of  Dr.  Tomline,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  who 
was  a  friend  of  both.  At  the  time  of  his  appoint- 
ment there  were  but  six  resident  clergymen  in  all 
Canada,  and  about  the  same  number  of  churches. 
Mr.  Delisle  assisted  by  Mr.  Tonstall  was  at  Montreal, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  43 

Mr.  LaDghorn  at  Ernest  Town,  Mr.  Addison  at 
Niagara,  Mr.  Stuart  at  Kingston,  and  Mr.  Doty  at 
Sorel.  In  1795,  two  years  after  the  Bishop's  appoint- 
ment, the  Rev.  Jehoshaphat  Mountain,  a  brother  of 
the  Bishop,  was  sent  to  Three  Rivers  as  assistant 
missionary.  Mr.  Doty  resigned,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Mr.  Rudd  from  Cornwall,  and  Mr.  (afterwards 
Bishop)  Strachan  was  ordained  by  the  Bishop  of 
Quebec,  to  take  his  place  at  Cornwall. 

In  1812,  Mr.  Stuart  died,  and  was  succeeded  in  the 
Rectory  of  Kingston  by  his  son,  the  Rev.  George  Okill 
Stuart,  then  serving  as  a  missionary  at  Little  York 
(Toronto),  and  Dr.  Strachan  was  removed  from  Corn- 
wall to  supply  his  place. 

The  work  proceeded  regularly,  but  slowly,  following 
but  not  by  any  means  keeping  pace  with  the  in- 
creasing population.  The  Bishop  gave  his  early 
attention  to  the  erection  of  a  cathedral  in  Quebec, 
which  was  completed  and  consecrated  in  1804. 

About  the  beginning  of  the  year  1800,  the  Bishop 
called  the  attention  of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation 
of  the  Gospel  to  the  fact  that  a  large  number  of 
English-speaking  people  were  settled  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Missiquoi  Bay,  and  appealed  for  help  to 
enable  him  to  provide  for  their  spiritual  needs.  The 
result  of  this  appeal  was  a  giant  of  <£50  by  the 
Society,  and  ,£100  by  the  Government,  for  the  support 
of  a  missionary  at  St.  Armand  and  Durham. 

To  this  mission  that  apostolic  and  saintly  man  the 
Hon.  and  Rev.  Charles  James  Stewart  was  appointed. 
There  was  no  church,  no  school,  no  parsonage,  and  it 
might  be  added  no  religion.  In  that  beautiful  and 
fertile  district  a  large  number  of  people  from  the 
neighbouring  States  had  settled.  These  had  brought 
with  them  very  strong  prejudices  against  everything 
British,  and  especially  against  the  English  Church. 
The  people  on  the  borders  of  the  two  countries  were 


44  HISTORY    OF   THE    CHURCH    IN 

moreover  rough  and  irreligious.  A  clergyman  had 
resided  among  them  for  some  years  before  Mr. 
Stewart's  arrival,  but  failing  to  make  any  impression 
upon  them,  he  had  left  with  his  spirits  broken. 

Mrji Stewart,  who  may  truly  be  called  the  Apostle 
of  the  eastern  townships  of  Lower  Canada,  arrived  in 
his  mission  on  a  Saturday,  and  hired  a  room  in  the 
inn  for  the  service  the  next  day.  When  the  landlord 
was  told  for  what  purpose  the  room  was  wanted,  he 
tried  hard  to  dissuade  him ;  and  warned  him  not 
only  that  no  persons  would  come,  but  that  the 
attempt  to  hold  a  service  might  lead  to  serious 
personal  risk.  "  Then  here  is  the  place  of  duty  for 
me,"  was  the  brave  reply.  In  that  unpromising 
place  he  remained.  After  a  month  the  services  were 
held  under  a  more  suitable  roof  than  that  of  the 
tavern  ;  in  the  following  year  a  church  was  built, 
and  sixty  persons  were  confirmed.  In  this  district 
Mr.  Stewart  laboured,  living  in  a  single  room  in  a 
farm-house,  boarding  with  the  family  of  the  farmer, 
and  removed  from  all  communication  with  the 
educated  society  to  which  he  had  been  accustomed. 
In  1817,  having  built  a  church  and  parsonage, 
he  resigned  his  charge  to  a  worthy  successor,  and 
took  up  new  ground  at  Hatley,  some  fifty  miles 
distant.  Here  he  manifested  the  same  evangelizing 
zeal  and  constructive  energy  which  had  changed 
St.  Armand  from  a  godless  settlement  to  a  Christian 
parish.  He  laboured  for  nine  years  in  his  new  post, 
and  met  with  the  same  amazing  success.  Again  he 
handed  his  work  over  to  another,  and  in  1819  received 
what  with  great  simplicity  he  called  his  advance- 
ment, being  made  travelling  missionary  for  the 
whole  Diocese.  In  this  capacity  he  laboured  for 
nine  years  more,  visiting  the  most  remote  parts 
of  this  vast  district,  until  in  1826  he  was  called  to 
succeed  Bishop  Mountain  as   its    chief  pastor,  with 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  45 

the  unanimous  approbation  of  the  whole  Canadian 
people. 

Dr.  Stewart  was  a  man  of  few  gifts,  personal  or 
intellectual ;  the  great  and  noted  success  of  his  min- 
istry was  due  to  the  simplicity  and  sincerity  of  his 
character,  to  his  single-minded  devotion  to  his  work ; 
and,  above  all,  to  his  secret  and  sustained  communion 
with  his  God. 

Mr.  Stewart  was  the  fifth  son  of  the  Earl  of 
Galloway^ Educated  at  Corpus  Christi  College,  he 
obtained  a  Fellowship  at  All  Souls,  and  thence  had 
taken  a  benefice  in  Huntingdonshire ;  but  he  felt 
himself  called  on  to  undertake  more  arduous  work, 
and  specially  he  desired  to  fill  some  post  for  which 
no  one  else  seemed  likely  to  volunteer.  At  first  his 
thoughts  were  turned  to  India ;  but  hearing  of  the 
great  need  of  clergy  in  Canada,  he  offered  himself  for 
service  in  this  land. 

Dr.  Stewart's  character  was  not  of  a  class  we  should 
expect  to  meet  with  in  the  days  in  which  he  lived. 
Simple  as  a  child,  devout  and  studious,  he  avoided 
all  excitement,  both  in  his  personal  religion  and  in 
his  public  ministration.  In  an  age  when  asceticism 
was  not  regarded  by  the  English  Church  as  any  part 
of  Christian  discipline,  he  led  the  life  of  an  ascetic, 
probably  without  realizing  the  fact  that  his  doing  so 
was  singular.  Luxuries  whether  in  food  or  in  furni- 
ture were  never  to  be  found  in  the  rough  Canadian 
farm-house  which  sheltered  Mm  ;  but  such  comforts 
as  were  available  he  eschewed.  On  Fridays  his  single 
meal  was  a  dish  of  potatoes,  and  he  observed  the  other 
fasts  of  the  Church  rigidly ;  neither  did  he  alter  his 
manner  of  life  when  he  became  a  bishop.  He  was 
the  possessor  of  a  small  private  fortune,  which  to- 
gether with  his  official  stipend  he  devoted,  with  the 
exception  of  what  was  needed  for  a  most  frugal 
maintenance,   to    the    advancement   of   the  Church's 


48  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    Itf 

work.  He  frequently  made  collections  among  his 
personal  friends  in  England  for  the  same  purpose, 
and  so  he  was  enabled,  with  the  aid  granted  by  the 
S.  P.  G,  to  erect  many  churches  in  the  poorer 
neighbourhoods. 

"  The  churches  of  which  he  procured  the  erection, 
the  congregations  which  he  formed,  the  happy  change 
which  he  was  often  the  instrument  of  effecting  in  the 
habits  and  heai'ts  of  the  people  "  (says  Bishop  Moun- 
tain, his  successor),  "are  the  witnesses  of  his  accept- 
ance among  them,  and  the  monuments  of  his  success." 

In  1822,  Mr.  Stewart  visited  the  Mohawk  Indians' 
mission,  and  reports  their  condition  as  lamentably  bad, 
and  the  occasional  visits  of  one  missionary  as  not 
being  sufficient  to  produce  any  deep  or  lasting  effect. 

The  descendants  of  these  Indians  are  still  living  on 
the  Grand  River  near  Brantford,  and  on  the  Bay  of 
Quinte.  Mr.  Stewart  also  visited  at  this  time  the 
Moravian  village  of  Delaware  Indians  on  the  River 
Thames,  and  reported,  "  From  the  information  I  have 
received,  I  am  persuaded  that  many  of  them  are 
serious  Christians,  and  lead  a  righteous  life."  In 
1825  he  made  a  prolonged  and  arduous  journey 
through  the  Archdeaconries  of  York  and  Kingston, 
visiting  again  the  Mohawk  churches,  and  inducing 
the  Chiefs  to  undertake  the  erection  of  a  parsonage 
for  their  missionary,  Mr.  Hough.  There  were  about 
2000  Indians  on  the  Grand  River  at  this  time,  the 
majority  of  whom  were  heathens. 

But  to  return.  In  1814,  the  Bishop  of  Quebec  set 
out  on  a  visitation  of  Upper  Canada— the  wild  west 
of  his  Diocese — and  it  is  hardly  possible  now  to 
conceive  what  that  journey  involved  in  the  way 
of  privation  and  toil ;  the  Episcopal  progress  being 
made  in  bark  canoes,  with  long  portages,  and  then 
through  woods  and  swamps  in  lumber  wagons. 

The   Bishop   had    been    twenty-one   years   in   his 


EASTEKN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  47 

Diocese,  and  yet  the  whole  staff  of  clergy  in  his  vast 
jurisdiction,  including  the  military  chaplains  and 
the  assistants  at  Montreal  and  Quebec,  had  only 
risen  to  eighteen. 

In  1816  he  visited  what  are  called  the  Eastern 
Townships,  in  the  district  lying  to  the  south  and 
east  of  Montreal,  and  towards  the  borders  of 
New  Brunswick.  In  the  same  year,  1816,  Dr. 
Strachan  of  York  (Toronto),  made  his  way  through 
the  forests  to  the  Indian  settlements  on  the  Grand 
River,  baptized  74  persons  among  them,  and  extended 
his  visits  to  the  settlements  along  Lake  Erie. 

And  so  the  work  went  on  year  after  year  without 
much  variation.  The  Church,  if  not  keeping  pace 
with  the  increase  of  population,  was  at  least  gaining 
in  strength  and  popularity.  The  Bishop  of  Quebec, 
writing  to  the  Society,  expresses  his  conviction  that 
the  circumstances  of  the  country  were  at  that  time 
particularly  favourable  to  the  extension  of  the  Church. 
The  rapid  inflow  of  population  resulting  in  the 
intermingling  of  different  religious  denominations, 
had  weakened  the  prejudices  against  the  Church,  and 
caused  the  new  settlers  everywhere  to  join  in  appeals 
to  the  Bishop  to  supply  the  spiritual  needs  of  the 
settlements.  They  expressed  an  earnest  wish  to  be 
united  to  the  Church ;  these  demands  tire  Bishop  was 
altogether  unable  to  supply.  During  his  Episcopate 
the  clergy  had  greatly  increased,  with  a  correspond- 
ing increase  of  churches,  and  yet  there  were  whole 
townships  and  stretches  of  country  rapidly  filling 
up  with  immigrants,  which  were  left  without  the 
Church's  ministrations.  Societies  were  formed  in 
both  Provinces,  and  funds  raised  for  the  building  of 
churches,  and  much  was  done  for  Church  extension. 
But  the  system  pursued  was  a  defective  one.  The 
demand  for  a  classically  educated  ministry  was  too 
inflexible,  the    habit    of   preaching  written   sermons 


48  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN" 

too  cold  and  mechanical,  &nd  too  remote  from  the 
needs  of  the  everyday  life  of  the  settlers,  while  the 
services  were  read  in  a  formal  way. 

On  the  other  hand,  Methodists,  itinerant  and  local 
preachers  were  now  swarming  over  the  land,  all  of 
them  full  of  zeal,  most  of  them  unfriendly  to  the 
Church.  And  before  the  Church  was  awakened  to 
the  true  methods  for  reaching  and  ministering  to  her 
scattered  children,  they  were  lost  to  her,  and  have 
continued  ever  since  hopelessly  embittered  against 
her. 


BISHOP    STEWART. 

Bishop  Mountain  died  in  1825,  after  a  laborious 
Episcopate  of  thirty-two  years. 

The  Hon.  and  Reverend  Dr.  Stewart,  who  by 
twenty  years  of  arduous  toil  in  widely  extended, 
itinerating  missionary  work,  had  qualified  himself 
for  the  duties  of  a  missionary  bishop,  was  chosen  to 
succeed  Bishop  Mountain  in  the  see  of  Quebec. 

Bishop  Stewart  was  the  fifth  son  of  John  Earl  of 
Galloway.  He  was  a  man  of  gentle  manners  and 
simple  piety,  who  is  spoken  of  by  his  friend  and 
successor  as  "  the  boast  and  blessing  of  the  Canadian 
Church."  Without  ostentation  or  parade,  he  had 
left  in  the  quietest  manner,  scenes  and  associations 
of  the  utmost  attractiveness  for  the  purpose  of 
converting  the  Indians  of  Canada  to  the  faith  of 
Christ,  and  of  instructing  the  more  savage  whites, 
the  trappers  and  hunters  of  the  forest,  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Christian  religion.  He  devoted  himself 
with  unremitting  earnestness  to  the  discharge  of  his 
arduous  duties. 

At  the  earliest  opportunity  he  appealed  to  the 
Society  to  renew  the  appointment  of  travelling 
missionary,    from    which    he    had    been    withdrawn. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  49 

"  It  is  not  enough,"  he  writes,  "  that  the  services  of 
the  person  who  may  be  appointed  to  fill  this  position 
should  at  all  times  be  disposable ;  he  must  possess 
an  unlimitable  acquaintance  with  the  country  and 
with  the  habits  of  the  people." 

In  1826,  Bishop  Stewart  visited  a  great  part  of 
the  two  extensive  provinces  under  his  charge,  and 
entered  into  a  close  examination  of  their  religious 
conditions.  Before  leaving  Quebec  he  confirmed  205 
people.  At  his  first  visit  to  Montreal  286  persons 
were  confirmed — many  of  them  were  advanced  in 
years.  In  Upper  Canada  the  number  confirmed  was 
about  400.  His  next  visitation  took  place  in  1828. 
He  endeavoured,  but  without  success,  to  ascertain 
the  number  of  communicants ;  no  less  than  34  of 
the  clergy  neglecting  to  return  any  answer  to  bis 
inquiries  on  this  head.  Under  Bishop  Stewart's 
administration  the  number  of  the  clergy  in  the 
whole  Diocese  had  increased  to  86  at  the  beginning 
of  the  year  1833.  Fifty  of  these  were  employed  in 
Upper  Canada,  and  36  in  Lower  Canada.  Among 
these  are  found  four  future  bishops,  viz.  G.  I. 
Mountain,  Dr.  Strachan,  A.  1ST.  Bethune,  and  B. 
Cronyn,  and  four  future  archdeacons,  viz.  A.  Palmer, 
A.  Nelles,  G.  O.  Stuart,  and  H.  Patton.  Nearly 
all  the  clergy  of  those  times  were  engaged  in  pioneer 
missionary  work.  There  were  not  more  than  four 
towns  in  the  whole  Diocese,  and  but  very  few 
villages.  The  settlers  were  scattered  through  the 
as  yet  forest-covered  land.  They  had  just  cleared 
a  few  acres  in  the  bush,  had  put  up  a  small  log- 
house  or  shanty,  and  had  a  very  hard  struggle  to 
live.  The  roads,  if  there  were  any,  were  of  the 
worst  conceivable  description ;  often  only  a  blazed 
line  through  the  forest  led  to  the  settler's  cabin. 
It  is  needless  to  say  that  in  that  cabin  the  accommo- 
dation  was   very   limited,   and    the    fare   not   very 

D 


50  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

varied  or  luxurious.  In  and  out,  among  these  brave 
unsophisticated  people,  the  clergy  went — on  horse- 
back when  they  could,  but  often  on  foot,  holding 
services  in  cabins  and  kitchens  and  barns,  and 
often  in  the  open  air.  They  were  sure  of  a  hearty 
welcome,  and  the  most  generous  hospitality  that  it 
was  possible  for  the  settlers  to  give  them.  On  the 
whole  they  were  a  courageous,  cheerful,  uncomplain- 
ing set  of  men. 

Bishop  Stewart  was  unceasing  in  his  labours,  and 
his  life  of  exposure  and  fatigue  produced  before  long 
its  natural  results.  His  health  quite  broke  down, 
so  that  he  became  unable  any  more  to  perform  the 
more  arduous  duties  of  his  office.  After  long  and 
earnest  efforts  he  succeeded  in  getting  his  friend, 
Archdeacon  Mountain,  consecrated  as  his  coadjutor, 
under  the  title  of  Bishop  of  Montreal,  and  with  the 
right  of  succession. 

In  the  summer  of  1836,  Bishop  Stewart  left  Quebec 
for  the  last  time,  with  the  forlorn  hope  that  a 
voyage  to  England  might  add  somewhat  to  his  life, 
and  enable  him  to  be  still  further  useful.  In  this 
hope,  however,  he  and  his  friends  were  disappointed. 
He  was  nothing  benefited  by  the  change.  His 
strength  gradually  failed  until  he  saak^to  rest,  at 
the  age  of  62,  on  the  13th  of  Jul^l837)  A  saint, 
unspotted  of  the  world,  fuTTo?  aTmsHieeds,  full  of 
humanity,  and  all  the  examples  of  a  virtuous  life ! 
He  died  possessed  of  no  pi*operty ;  the  whole  of 
his  private  fortune  had  been  expended  for  the  benefit 
of  the  Church.  He  laid  up  his  treasure  in  heaven, 
and  doubtless  is  finding  it  every  day  in  the  fresh 
arrival,  in  the  paradise  of  rest,  of  some  soul  brought 
to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  saved  through 
some  of  the  instrumentalities  which  his  munificence 
established  in  the  land. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  51 


THE    SECOND    BISHOP    MOUNTAIN. 

Immediately  after  his  ordination  to  the  priesthood 
in  1814,  the  Rev.  George  Jehoshaphat  Mountain  re- 
moved to  Fredericton,  to  the  Rectorship  of  which  he 
had  been  appointed  by  the  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia. 
The  failing  health  of  his  father  induced  him,  after 
a  stay  of  three  years,  to  return  to  Quebec  that  he 
might  render  him  whatever  assistance  lay  in  his 
power.  He  was  appointed  "Bishop's  Official,"  and 
began  in  Jan.  1818  as  a  simple  missionary,  and 
afterwards  continued,  as  archdeacon,  to  visit  the 
outlying  portions  of  the  Diocese.  In  1818,  he  ac- 
companied his  father  in  what  was  his  first,  and  his 
father's  last,  visitation  of  Upper  Canada.  It  was 
in  the  course  of  this  visitation  that  he  first  met  with 
Dr.  Stewart,  the  second  Bishop  of  Quebec.  They  were 
both  men  of  refined  taste,  gentle  manners,  and 
humble  minds,  and  of  deeply  devotional  character. 
They  took  to  each  other  at  once ;  and  a  tender  and 
affectionate  friendship,  which  lasted  till  the  end 
of  their  lives,  sprung  up  between  the  two  men. 
Each  seemed  only  to  desire  the  other's  elevation. 
The  only  rivalry  between  them  was  a  rivalry  of 
humility.  When  Dr.  Stewart  was  appointed  to  the 
see  of  Quebec,  he  was  unremitting  in  his  efforts  to 
obtain  as  his  assistant  his  cherished  friend,  now 
Archdeacon  Mountain.  That  friend,  however,  was 
more  than  disinclined  to  accept  the  duty,  for  his 
desire  from  first  to  last  was  to  serve  and  not  to 
rule.  He  only  yielded  when  Bishop  Stewart  declared 
that  he  would  have  no  one  else.  His  consecration 
as  coadjutor  took  place  at  Lambeth  on  the  14th  of 
Jan.,  1836,  under  the  title  of  Bishop  of  Montreal. 
On  the  12th  of  September  he  arrived  as  coadjutor  to 
Bishop  Stewart.     On  the  death  of  Dr.  Stewart  the 


bl  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

coadjutor  became  the  third  Bishop  of  the  undivided 
Diocese  of  Canada.  Twice  he  had  been  sent  to 
England  to  urge  the  authorities  there  to  divide  this 
unwieldy  Diocese ;  but  so  far  the  only  action  con- 
sented to,  was  the  appointment  of  a  coadjutor,  which 
issued  in  leaving  the  burden  of  the  Episcopal  office 
just  what  it  had  been  before  this  action  was  taken. 

Bishop  G.  J.  Mountain's  life  and  character  have 
been  portrayed  by  the  affectionate  pen  of  his  son. 
As  he  passes  before  us  in  the  halo  of  private, 
domestic,  and  public  devotion,  we  cannot  but  thank 
God  for  the  grace  which  blessed  the  past  years  of 
the  Canadian  Church  with  the  life  and  teaching  of 
one  who  was  a  saint  indeed.  From  the  first  he 
was  singularly  devout,  occupying  much  time  every 
day  in  offering  prayers  and  praises  to  God ;  but  it 
was  during  his  declining  years  that  the  simplicity 
of  his  faith  became  specially  conspicuous.  He  adopted 
the  Psalmist's  rule,  "  Seven  times  a  day  will  I  praise 
thee ;  at  midnight  also  will  I  rise  to  give  thanks 
unto  Thee,"  as  the  rule  of  his  life ;  and  for  many 
years  before  his  death  he  used  to  rise  regularly  at 
midnight  to  sing  praises  and  render  thanks  to  God. 
His  life  was  lived  with  God ;  his  demeanour  both  in 
public  and  private  prayer  was  that  of  abstracted  and 
adoring  devotion.  Three  several  times  his  fidelity 
was  put  to  the  sternest  test.  In  1832,  and  again 
in  1834,  the  cholera  beginning  at  Quebec  swept  over 
Canada.  In  the  midst  of  the  pestilence  we  see 
Archdeacon  Mountain,  as  the  commissioned  minister 
of  the  Most  High,  standing  between  tne  living  and 
the  dead — if  not  to  stay  the  plague,  at  least  to  point  the 
smitten  to  Him  who  had  taken  the  sting  from  death. 
'  Grosse  Isle,  about  thirty  miles  below  Quebec,  had 
been  set  apart  by  Government  as  the  receiving 
station  for  immigrants  who  arrived,  in  the  pest  ships, 
from    Europe    during    those    terrible    cholera   years. 


ti#r 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  53 

The  graveyard  at  the  island  was  rapidly  filled.  The 
disease  leaped  across  the  channel,  arid  having  fallen 
like  a  firebrand  in  Quebec,  it  swept  through  the 
city  like  a  leaping  flame.  In  less  than  ten  months 
3000  out  of  a  population  of  28,000  had  died..  For 
two  days,  at  the  worst  of  the  plague,  Mr.  Mountain 
buried  over  seventy-five  people  each  day ;  and  with 
this,  he  and  his  assistants  were  unceasing  in  minister- 
ing to  the  living.  A  horse  was  kept  saddled  day 
and  night  in  the  stables,  ready  to  fly  to  the  stricken 
who  lived  at  a  distance.  Frequently  both  he  and 
his  assistants  were  out  all  night,  and  on  many  days 
were  not  able  to  return  to  their  homes.  Again  in 
1847,  the  ship-fever,  that  fatal  product  of  a  famine 
in  Ireland,  was  imported  into  Canada.  The  Anglican 
clergy,  who  were  few  in  number,  with  devoted  zeal 
took  the  duty  week  about  at  Grosse  Isle ;  Bishop 
Mountain  as  he  had  now  become  taking  the  first 
week.  Most  of  the  clergy  sickened,  and  two  of  them 
died  of  the  fever.  The  greatness  and  intensity  of 
this  strain  may  be  understood  when  it  is  mentioned 
that  over  5000  interments  took  placp  a.t,  Grosse  Isle. 
during  the  summer  of_184JL-  The  misery  and  horror 
of  this  Station  are  thus  described  by  the  Bishop  in 
a  letter  to  the  Society  : — "  On  account  of  the  over- 
whelming extent  of  the  labours  thus  given  at  the 
quarantine  station,  produced  by  the  swarms  of  miser- 
able beings  poured  upon  the  shores  of  Canada  from 
Ireland,  I  have  found  it  absolutely  indispensable  to 
employ  two  clergymen  at  that  Station.  I  felt  it 
right  to  set  the  example  of  taking  a  turn  myself 
in  this  duty,  and  went  down  for  a  week.  The  scenes 
of  wretchedness,  disease,  and  death  to  be  there 
witnessed,  thickening  day  by  day,  surpass  all  descrip- 
tion. When  I  left  the  Station  there  were  almost 
1700  sick  upon  the  island;  every  building  which 
could  be  made  in  any  way  available,  the  two  churches 


54  HISTORY   OF    THE   CHURCH   IN 

included,  being  turned  into  hospitals,  together  with 
a  vast  number  of  tents,  and  almost  800  afloat  in  the 
miserable  holds  of  the  ships."  With  the  utmost 
exertion  on  the  part  of  the  authorities  it  was  a 
matter  of  impossibility  to  provide  the  necessary 
comforts  and  attendance  for  these  poor  sufferers. 
The  daily  amount  of  deaths  was  frightful.  We  had 
not,  perhaps,  above  300  Protestants  sick  out  of  this 
number ;  but  so  dispersed  on  shore  and  afloat,  and 
so  intermingled  with  Romanists  were  they,  some- 
times two  of  different  faith  in  one  bed,  that  the 
labour  of  attending  on  them  ministerially  was 
immense.  Fifteen  of  the  clergy  of  the  Diocese  of 
Quebec,  including  the  Bishop,  took  their  turn  at 
Grosse  Isle.  Most  of  them  caught  the  fever;  two 
of  them  died — the  Rev.  W.  Anderson,  who  insisted 
on  staying  six  weeks,  and  the  Rev.  W.  Morris,  who 
remained  two  weeks.  There  were,  however,  other 
points  in  the  Diocese  where  the  fever  broke  out 
and  raged ;  points  where  the  poor  immigrants,  who 
were  allowed  to  pass  on  from  Grosse  Isle,  were  taken 
down,  specially  at  Quebec,  Montreal,  and  St.  John's. 
The  resident  clergy  at  these  places  were  not  behind 
their  brethren,  the  heroes  of  Grosse  Isle,  in  their 
devotion  to  the  pest-stricken  immigrants.  Of  them 
there  died  at  Quebec  the  Rev.  W.  Chaclerton  ;  at 
Montreal,  the  Rev.  Mark  Willoughby;  and  at  St. 
John's,  the  Rev.  W.  Dawes. 

About  this  time  an  intimation  was  received  from 
the  Imperial  Government  that  the  grant  hitherto 
made  to  the  S.  P.  G.  would  shortly  be  withdrawn. 
The  danger  was  averted,  on  the  urgent  remonstrance 
of  the  Bishop,  by  the  application  of  funds  arising 
from  colonial  resources,  including  the  Clergy  Reserves, 
amounting  to  £7000  per  annum,  to  the  purposes  of 
the  Church  in  Upper  Canada  and  part  of  New 
Brunswick.     This  set  the  Society  free  to  apply  its 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  55 

grant  of  £12,855  to  the  payment  of  the  salaries 
of  existing  missionaries  in  Lower  Canada,  part  of 
New  Brunswick,  Newfoundland,  and  Prince  Edward 
Island.  In  the  Bishop's  appeal  he  says  : — "  While 
I  leave  the  clergy  under  the  veil  as  regards  the 
names,  I  can  vouch  for  such  occurrences  as  these. 
A  clergyman  in  his  circuit  of  duty  passed  twelve 
nights  in  the  open  air,  six  in  boats  upon  the  water, 
and  six  in  the  depths  of  the  trackless  forests  with 
Indian  guides.  A  deacon,  while  scarcely  fledged  for 
the  more  arduous  flights  of  duty,  has  performed 
journeys  of  120  miles  in  the  midst  of  winter  upon 
snow-shoes.  I  could  tell  how  some  of  these  poor,  ill- 
paid  servants  of  the  Gospel  have  been  worn  down 
in  strength  before  their  time,  at  remote  and  laborious 
stations.  I  could  give  many  a  history  of  persevering 
travels  in  the  ordinary  exercise  of  ministerial  duty,  in 
defiance  of  difficulties  and  accidents,  through  woods 
and  roads  almost  impassable,  and  in  all  the  severities 
of  weather ;  of  rivers  traversed  amid  masses  of 
floating  ice,  when  the  experienced  canoe-men  would 
not  proceed  without  being  urged.  I  have  known  one 
minister  to  sleep  out  of  doors  when  there  was  snow 
upon  the  ground.  I  have  known  others  to  answer 
calls  to  sick-beds,  at  the  distance  of  fifteen  or  twenty 
miles  in  the  wintry  woods,  and  others  who  have 
travelled  all  night  to  keep  a  Sunday  appointment,  after 
a  call  of  this  sort  on  the  Saturday.  But,"  he  con- 
cludes, "my  chief  object  in  all  this  confident  boasting 
of  my  brethren,  is  to  draw  some  favourable  attention 
to  the  unprovided  condition  of  many  settlements, 
which  may  not  always  comprehend  any  considerable 
number  of  settlers,  if  their  spiritual  destitution  were 
not  sufficient  plea  in  the  beginnings  of  a  great  and 
even  now  rapidly  growing  population — dependent  in 
all  human  calculation  upon  the  religious  advantages 
enjoyed  by  the  present  settlers,  for  the  moral  char- 


Ob  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

acter  which  they  will  exhibit,  the  habits  which  they 
will  cultivate,  and  the  faith  which  they  will  follow. 
The  stream,  in  all  its  progressive  magnitude,  may  be 
expected  to  preserve  the  tincture  it  receives  now." 

"The  demand,"  the  Bishop  says,  "for  the  ministra- 
tion of  the  Church  of  England  in  Canada  has  been  con- 
stantly progressive  since  the  date  of  the  conquest.  I 
am  in  possession  of  abundant  documents  to  show  that 
the  applications  to  the  Bishop  for  ministers  during 
all  this  period  have  far  exceeded  the  means  at  their 
command  to  answer  them ;  and  that  even  on  the  part 
of  religious  bodies,  not  originally  Episcopal,  there  has 
existed  in  many  instances  a  decided  disposition  to 
coalesce  with  the  Church ;  a  disposition  which  might 
have  been  influenced  to  the  happiest  advantage  for 
the  permanent  interests  of  religion  in  the  colony,  but 
for  the  frequent  inability  of  the  bishops  to  provide 
for  the  demands." 

By  the  death  of  Bishop  Stewart  the  whole  care 
of  the  Church  in  both  the  Canadas  devolved  upon 
Bishop  Mountain,  who  continued  to  be  called  Bishop 
of  Montreal,  until  the  formal  establishment  of  that 
Episcopate,  when  he  was  transferred  to  and  took  the 
title  of  Bishop  of  Quebec.  At  his  first  visitation 
of  the  Diocese  the  number  confirmed  was  the  largest 
known  in  Canada ;  and  he  states  that  the  number  of 
clergy,  inadequate  as  it  still  was  to  the  wants  of  the 
people,  had  at  least  doubled  since  the  care  of  churches, 
less  than  six  years  ago,  came  upon  his  shoulders. 


VISITS    RUPERT  S    LAND. 

In  1843,  at  the  request  of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society,  Bishop  Mountain  undertook  to  visit  their 
Indian  Missions  in  the  far-off  territory  of  the  Hudson 
Bay  Company.  The  whole  distance  involved  a  journey 
from  Montreal  of  about  2000  miles,  and  it  was  all 


EASTERN    CANADA   AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  57 

accomplished  either  in  bark  canoes,  or  on  foot.  Very- 
graphic  and  touching  is  the  Bishop's  own  account, 
in  his  letter  to  the  Society,  of  this  arduous  under- 
taking. Starting  at  Lachine,  about  nine  miles  from 
Montreal,  they  paddled  up  the  Ottawa  about  320 
miles,  then  made  their  way  by  numerous  portages 
into  Lake  Nipissing,  which  they  crossed.  Then  down 
the  French  river  into  the  Georgian  Bay  (Lake  Huron)  ; 
then  for  300  miles  they  threaded  their  way  through 
that  wonderful  Archipelago,  containing,  it  is  said, 
39,000  islands,  to  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  Thence, 
after  a  long  portage  around  the  Sault,  they  rowed 
across  the  entire  length  of  Lake  Superior  to  Fort 
William ;  thence  up  to  Kemenistiquoia ;  through 
the  Rainy  and  Wood  lakes ;  down  the  Winnipeg 
river ;  thence,  along  the  shores  of  the  stormy  Lake 
Winnipeg,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Red  River.  This  they 
reached  on  a  Saturday  long  after  dark. 

They  had  now  occupied  nearly  six  weeks  in  their 
journey ;  and  as  the  Bishop  wished  to  spend  the 
■Sunday  in  the  nearest  settlement,  they  moved  on  all 
night,  and  just  came  in  in  time  for  Morning  Prayer 
at  the  little  wooden  Indian  church  probably  where 
Winnipeg  now  stands.  The  Bishop  visited  all  the 
stations  occupied  by  the  C.  M.  S.  missionaries  except 
far.  away  Cumberland,  confirmed  846  persons,  held 
two  ordinations,  and  made  his  way  back  to  Montreal 
on  the  15  th  of  August,  having  been  incessantly 
occupied  for  three  months  in  journeying  or  visiting 
the  churches. 

In  his  letter  to  the  Church  Missionary  Society  he 
says — "It  is  impossible  that  I  can  write  to  you  after 
my  visit  without  paying  at  least  a  passing  tribute  to 
the  valuable  labours  of  those  faithful  men  whom  the 
Society  has  employed  in  the  field  of  its  extensive 
operations.  And  the  opportunity  which  was  afforded 
me  of  contrasting  the  condition  of  the  Indians  who 


58  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

are  under  their  training  and  direction  with  that  of 
the  unhappy  Indians  with  whom  I  came  in  contact 
upon  the  route,  signally  enabled  me  to  appreciate  the 
blessings  of  which  the  Society  is  the  instrument,  and 
did  indeed  yield  a  beautiful  testimony  to  the  power 
and  reality  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ."  The  report  of 
the  Bishop  on  the  needs  of  the  North-west  led  before 
long  to  the  formation  of  the  Diocese  of  Rupert's  Land, 
and  the  appointment  of  Bishop  Anderson.  That  one 
Diocese  has  since  been  divided  into  eleven,  all  but 
one  of  which  is  now  ruled  over  by  a  bishop. 

Shortly  after  his  return,  the  Bishop  yisited  Gaspe,_ 
_450  miles  below  Quebec.  He  concludes  his  account 
of  this  visitation  by  saying — "  We  go  over  a  great  deal 
of  space  to  effect  things  which  at  present  are  upon  a 
very  humble  scale.  I  have  just  travelled  228  miles  to 
visit  one  little  insulated  congregation.  The  Diocese 
consists  of  scattered,  often  feeble,  congregations,  en- 
joying but  scanty  and  imperfect  provision  in  religion  ; 
with  churches  standing  unfurnished  for  years  to- 
gether, and  sometimes  with  no  churches  at  all ;  with 
poor  missionaries  enduring  hardships  as  good  soldiers 
of  Jesus  Christ,  yet  labouring  for  a  few  here  and  a 
few  there,  so  that  all  looks  in  some  eyes  unimportant, 
Priests  and  people  alike  of  destiny  obscure.  But  are 
they  not  highly  regarded,  the  very  objects  for  Christian 
sympathy  and  help  1  For  myself,  I  cannot  but  view 
it  as  a  privilege,  for  which  the  deepest  thankfulness 
is  due,  that  I  have  been  permitted,  with  whatever 
feeble  ability,  to  follow  up  the  work  of  my  beloved 
predecessors,  and  to  go  on  enlarging  on  their  plan 
from  year  to  year,  in  such  a  field." 


BISnOP  S    COLLEGE,    LENNOXVILLE. 

To    the    earnest   and   untiring   efforts    of    Bishop 
Mountain  the  University  of  Bishop's  College  owes  its 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  59 

existence,  and  may  justly  be  considered  the  great 
achievement  of  his  life.  The  College  was  designed 
first  to  provide  all  necessary  appliances  for  the  educa- 
tion of  the  ministry  of  the  Church  of  England  in  the 
Province  of  Quebec,  and  secondly  to  offer  to  the 
country  at  large  the  blessing  of  a  sound  and  liberal 
education  based  upon  religious  principles.  The  village 
of  Lennoxville  in  the  Eastern  Townships  was  selected 
as  its  site  on  the  ground  of  its  central  position  in 
reference  to  the  English-speaking  population  of  the 
Province.  The  College  has  grown  from  small  be- 
ginnings to  be  a  large  and  influential  institution, 
with  various  Faculties  and  a  substantial  endowment. 
It  has  also  built  up,  side  by  side  with  the  University, 
a  public  school  after  the  model  of  the  great  public 
schools  of  England,  which  has  done  and  is  doing  noble 
work  for  the  education  of  the  youth  of  the  country. 
The  College  was  founded  in  1845,  and  erected  into  a 
University  by  Royal  Charter  in  1852.  The  Bishop 
himself  and  his  family  contributed  largely  to  the 
endowment,  as  did  also  the  S.  P.  G.  and  S.  P.  C.  K. 
The  two  Societies  have  always  shown  a  warm  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  the  College,  and  largely  aid  in  the 
maintenance  of  candidates  for  Holy  Orders  in  it. 

During  these  early  years  of  Bishop  Mountain's 
Episcopate  the  Diocese  prospered  greatly.  At  the 
visitation  held  in  1845  the  number  of  the  clergy  had 
risen  to  73  in  the  remaining  Diocese  of  Quebec,  and 
of  this  number  53  were  missionaries  of  the  S.  P.  G. 
In  the  spring  of  1846,  the  Bishop  confirmed  in  the 
parish  church  of  Montreal  325  persons,  the  largest 
number  ever  confirmed  by  any  bishop  in  British 
North  America  at  one  time.  The  number  confirmed 
in  the  same  year  in  the  cathedral  in  Quebec  was  218. 
During  this  visitation,  which  occupied  the  greater 
part  of  two  years,  2012  persons  were  confirmed,  and 
eleven  new  churches  consecrated. 


60  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 


THE    CLERGY    RESERVES. 

The  question  of  the  Clergy  Reserves  had  now  come 
to  the  front,  and  as  that  question  occupied  such 
a  prominent  place  in  the  politics  of  the  country,  and 
in  the  history  of  the  Church,  it  may  be  well  to  explain 
briefly  what  is  meant  by  it. 

The  Clergy  Reserves  of  Canada  were  created  by 
the  Constitutional  Act  of  1791.  Bishop  Mountain,  in 
a  letter  to  the  S.  P.  G.,  in  1836,  thus  explains  the 
matter — "The  case  of  the  Church  in  Canada,  with 
respect  to  the  formation  and  maintenance  of  its 
establishment,  is  briefly  this.  The  territory  having 
been  ceded  by  France  to  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain 
in  1759,  a  Protestant  population  by  degrees  flowed  in, 
with  the  prospect  of  course  of  continued  accession. 
Measures  were  therefore  taken  by  the  Government 
to  provide  for  the  spiritual  wants  of  this  population. 
In  1791,  when  the  two  distinct  Provinces  of  Upper 
and  Lower  Canada  were  established  by  what  is  com- 
monly called  the  Quebec  Act,  the  Royal  Instructions 
to  the  Governors  having  previously  declared  the 
Church  of  England  to  be  the  established  religion  of 
the  Colony,  to  which  Instructions  reference  is  intro- 
duced in  the  Act — a  reservation  of  one-seventh  of  all 
the  lands  in  Upper  Canada,  and  of  all  such  lands  in 
the  Lower  Provinces  as  were  not  already  occupied  by 
the  French  inhabitants,  was  made  for  the  support  of  a 
Protestant  clergy.  .  .  .  The  little  value  attached  in 
the  earlier  stages  of  British  possession  to  tracts  of  wild 
land,  and  the  hopelessness  of  obtaining  a  tenantry  upon 
the  clergy  lots  so  long  as  the  fee-simple  of  the  same 
quantity  could  be  obtained  in  the  same  way  as  free 
grants  or  for  a  trifling  consideration,  caused  the  pro- 
perty to  remain  for  a  long  time  unproductive ;  and  so 
it  was  greatly  disregarded  by  the  Government,  in  whose 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  61 

hands  the  management  of  it  resided.  In  1806,  how- 
ever, measures  were  taken  to  erect  a  Corporation  in 
each  Province  for  the  management  of  the  Reserves  ; 
but  it  was  not  till  1819  that  these  Corporations  went 
into  operation." 

About  this  time  a  controversy  arose  as  to  the 
proper  legal  construction  of  the  Act  of  1791,  and  the 
intention  of  Parliament  in  passing  it,  as  well  as  to 
the  interpretation  to  be  given  to  the  words  "Protes- 
tant clergy."  This  controversy  waxed  hotter  and 
hotter,  until  it  led  to  the  passing  of  another  Imperial 
Act  in  1840,  which  directed  that  the  Clergy  Reserves 
should  be  divided  into  six  equal  parts,  two  of  which 
were  to  be  appropriated  to  the  Church  of  England, 
and  one  to  the  Church  of  Scotland  (Presbyterian),  ^^ 
and  TKe  other  three  to  be  applied  by  the  Governor  of 
the  Province  for  the  purpose  of  public  worship  and 
religious  instruction  in  Canada.  This  settlement, 
though  acquiesced  in  by  the  two  bodies  benefited,  did 
not,  as  might  be  expected,  prove  satisfactory  to  the 
numerous  other  religious  bodies  in  the  land.  The 
secularization  of  the  Reserves  became  the  political 
question  of  the  day,  until  in  1854  the  whole  of  these 
lands  were  resumed  by  the  Government,  and  the 
income  derived  from  them  was  applied  to  purposes 
of  education  and  public  works. 

Vested  rights,  however,  were  so  far  respected,  that 
the  salaries  of  the  clergy  who  at  the  time  of  the 
secularization  were  being  paid  out  of  this  fund,  were 
continued  for  life.  Provision  was  also  made  by  which 
individual  clergy  were  allowed  to  commute  for  a  lump 
sum  on  condition  of  paying  over  this  commutation 
to  the  several  Church  Societies,  and  accepting  the 
guarantee  of  the  Church  Society  as  security  for  the 
same  in  place  of  the  Government  as  security  for  the 
annual  payment  of  their  salary.  The  clergy  of 
Canada,  with  one  exception,  came  into  this  scheme ; 


62  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

and  thus  what  are  called  "  Commutation  Funds  "  were 
established  in  the  various  Dioceses,  which  have  proved 
of  the  greatest  service  to  the  Church. 

In  1842,  long  before  the  passing  of  this  Act,  in 
order  to  call  out  and  consolidate  the  offerings  of  the 
Church  for  the  promotion  of  its  various  objects,  a 
Church  Society  was  established.  Its  special  objects 
were — (1)  The  support  of  the  clergy  and  their  widows 
and  orphans;  (2)  Promoting  Day  and  Sunday  Schools; 
(3)  Helping  candidates  for  Holy  Orders  ;  (4)  To  be  a 
Bible  and  Book  Society ;  and  (5)  To  aid  in  building 
churches,  parsonages,  &c. 

The  system  of  Church  Societies  did  excellent  service 
for  the  time  being  in  the  Colonies  ;  but  the  very  effort 
at  organization  made  the  need  of  something  more  and 
better  only  the  more  felt.  The  claims  of  Synodical 
action  were  now  being  pressed  upon  the  Church  on 
all  sides,  both  at  home  and  in  the  Colonies.  The 
wonderful  results  of  the  Conciliar  organization  of  the 
American  Church  were  ever  before  the  eyes  of  the 
Canadian  Churchmen.  An  Act  of  the  Provincial 
Legislature  was  obtained  removing  all  doubts  as  to 
the  right  of  Churchmen  to  meet  in  Synod  and  manage 
their  own  affairs.  As  soon  as  this  Act  was  passed, 
Bishop  Mountain  proceeded  to  organize  his  Diocesan 
Synod  under  it.  Great  difficulties,  however,  now 
developed  themselves.  There  had  been  for  many 
years  in  the  city  of  Quebec  a  small  but  influential 
party  of  extreme  Low  Church  views.  This  party 
had  been  a  sore  thorn  in  the  side  of  Bishop  Mountain 
from  the  first.  They  now  proceeded  to  organize 
themselves  and  agitate  with  a  view  to  secure  the 
control  of  the  Synod,  and  specially  to  exclude  from 
its  constitution  the  Episcopal  veto,  the  right  of  the 
clergy  to  a  separate  vote,  and  the  regulation  that  all 
Lay  Delegates  must  be  communicants.  The  con- 
troversy extended  over  the  years   1857 — 1860,  and 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  63 

the  bitterness  and  ferocity  with  which  it  was  carried 
on,  especially  as  against  a  man  of  the  gentleness, 
courtesy,  and  saintly  character  of  Bishop  Mountain, 
are  scarcely  conceivable  in  the  calmer  atmosphere  of 
the  present  day.  The  establishment  of  the  Synod, 
however,  largely  helped  by  their  own  violence,  killed 
this  faction.  When  the  Synod  met,  they  were  found 
to  be  in  a  very  insignificant  minority,  and  the  gener- 
osity with  which  that  minority  was  treated  by  their 
opponents  completed  the  victory. 

After  and  in  consequence  of  the  first  few  years  of 
the  working  of  the  Synod,  happier  days  ensued ;  sus- 
picion and  distrust  died  out ;  and  the  last  few  years 
of  the  saintly  Bishop's  life  were  years  of  quietness 
and  peace  and  goodness. 

At  the  Synod  of  1862,  arrangements  were  made 
for  celebrating,  on  the  2nd  of  August  following,  the 
fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  Bishop's  ordination.  On 
that  day  an  impressive  service  was  held  in  the 
cathedral.  Addresses  were  presented.  The  beautiful 
Forelay  Asylum,  or  Church  Home  for  the  aged  and 
infirm  poor,  was  dedicated  ;  and  a  sum  of  money  for 
the  purpose  of  founding  a  scholarship  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Bishop's  College,  Lennoxville,  to  be  called 
"  The  Bishop  Mountain  Jubilee  Scholarship,"  was 
placed  in  the  Bishop's  hands. 

The  University,  it  is  said,  was  regarded  by  him  as 
the  greatest  work  of  his  Episcopate.  It  was  therefore 
a  special  gratification  to  him  to  have  his  name  thus 
associated  for  ever  with  the  child  ofshis  special  affection. 
The  year  of  Jubilee  was  speedily  followed  by  the  year 
of  release.  The  rest  of  the  summer  was  spent  in 
visiting  the  coast  of  Labrador,  where  a  mission  sup- 
ported by  the  S.  P.  G-.  had  lately  been  established. 
In  this  visitation  he  had  undergone  much  hardship 
by  land  and  water,  by  which  his  vital  powers  were 
perhaps  weakened.     No  one,  however,  thought  that 


64  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  end  was  near.  He  entered  into  the  Advent  and 
Christmas  services  with  impressive  devotion  and  joy 
of  heart.  On  St.  Stephen's  Day  he  sickened  and  took 
to  his  bed.  The  apprehension  that  the  sickness  was 
unto  death  stirred  the  heart  of  the  whole  community. 
In  every  church  of  his  own  communion,  and  in  some 
of  the  Koniaii  Catholic  churches,  prayers  were  offered 
for  his  recovery.  But  it  was  not  to  be.  On  the 
Feast  of  the  Epiphany,  1863,  the  saintly  Bishop, 
whose  life  has  left  its  lasting  impress  upon  the  Church, 
gently  closed  his  eyes  in  death. 


BISHOP    WILLIAMS,    FOURTH    BISHOP    OF    QUEBEC. 

When  the  Synod  assembled  to  elect  a  successor  to 
Bishop  Mountain,  two  names  only  were  thought  of — 
the  Bev.  Armine  W.  Mountain,  son  of  the  late  Bishop, 
and  Bishop  Anderson  of  Ruperts  Land.  The  balloting 
till  late  in  the  afternoon  showed  a  large  majority  of 
the  clergy  in  favour  of  Mr.  Mountain,  and  a  small 
majority  of  the  laity  voting  for  Bishop  Anderson. 
The  Bev.  J.  W.  Williams,  who  had  taken  a  good 
degree  at  Oxford  in  1851,  and  who  had  for  some  time 
been  coming  into  note  in  the  Diocese  of  Quebec  as 
the  Beviver  and  Head  Master  of  the  Lennoxville 
Grammar  School,  had  been  chosen  to  preach  the 
sermon  at  the  opening  of  the  Synod.  That  discourse 
had  profoundly  impressed  the  whole  Synod.  And  so, 
as  the  conviction  grew  that  it  was  impossible  to  elect 
Mr.  Mountain,  the  delegates  began  to  vote  in  ever- 
increasing  numbers  for  Mr.  Williams,  until  before  the 
day  closed  he  was  duly  elected  to  fill  the  vacant  see. 

The  Bishop-elect  was  only  thirty-seven  years  old  when 
chosen ;  but  from  the  first  he  has  manifested  the  gravity 
and  wisdom  of  the  aged.  His  administration  of  the 
Diocese  has  been  eminently  successful,  and  its  pro- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  65 

gress  in  all  that  outwardly  indicates  prosperity  re- 
markable. The  Diocese,  though  of  enormous  extent, 
has  a  very  limited  English-speaking  population,  and 
only  about  25,000  of  that  population  belong  to  the 
English  Church.  The  very  smallness  of  the  English- 
speaking  population  exposes  them  to  continual  dis- 
advantage in  carrying  on  the  business  concerns  of 
the  country,  and  has  a  natural  tendency  to  still 
further  diminish  their  numbers  by  an  almost  en- 
forced emigration.  The  Diocese,  and  especially  the 
city  of  Quebec,  the  only  place  of  wealth  in  the 
Diocese,  have  lost  heavily  in  this  way  during  the 
twenty-eight  years  of  Bishop  Williams's  Episcopate. 
At  the  beginning  of  that  period  the  Diocese  had  only 
just  entered  upon  the  arduous  task  of  learning  to 
support  itself,  having  hitherto  depended  almost  ex- 
clusively on  assistance  derived  from  the  S.  P.  G. 
There  was  not  one  self-supporting  parish  in  the 
Diocese.  Bishop  Mountain  had  spent  his  income  as 
Rector  of  Quebec  in  augmenting  the  stipends  of  the 
city  clergy,  so  that  by  his  death  the  city  parishes 
lost,  and  had  to  make  good  to  the  clergy  at  once, 
3000  dollars  a  year.  Outside  the  city  of  Quebec 
there  were  then  thirty-four  missions,  the  clergy  of 
which  did  not  receive  on  the  average  100  dollars  a 
year  each  from  their  own  people ;  the  bulk  of  their 
stipend — in  many  cases  their  entire  salary — being 
derived  from  the  S.  P.  G.  The  outlook  was  a  dis- 
heartening one.  Bishop  Mountain,  a  man  so  un- 
worldly in  his  personal  character,  and  who  possessed 
opportunities  of  knowledge  of  the  subject  out  of  the 
reach  of  other  men,  speaks  of  the  prospects  of  the 
Church  in  his  Diocese,  before  this  heavy  loss  which 
his  own  death  entailed,  with  trembling  apprehension. 
Most  clearly  does  his  deliberate  judgment,  that  the 
crisis  was  one  full  of  danger  to  the  Church,  come  out 
in   the   calm    and   well-considered   words    which    he 


6Q  HISTORY   OF    THE   CHURCH    IN 

addressed  to  the  Synod  at  its  second  session  in  1860. 
"  It  cannot  be  concealed,"  lie  said,  "  that  we  have 
had,  and  have  now,  great  difficulties  to  be  faced.  We 
have  lost  the  countenance  and  recognition  of  the 
Government.  We  have  been  despoiled  of  our  patri- 
mony, and  the  great  Society  which  has  nursed  the 
Church  in  the  Colonies  has  been  carrying  out  for  some 
years  a  system  of  gradual  reduction  in  the  aid  hitherto 
extended  to  us.  Our  people  in  the  meantime  have 
become  habituated  to  live  upon  extraneous  aid,  and 
are  slow  to  learn  the  necessity  of  adequate  exertions 
and  sacrifices  of  their  own."  And  then,  after  speaking 
at  much  length  of  the  poverty  of  the  Diocese,  he 
closes  by  saying — "  The  Diocese  of  Quebec  does  not, 
humanly  speaking,  present  a  very  encouraging  aspect 
to  those  who  have  its  wants  and  interests  in  charge." 
"How  completely,"  writes  Archdeacon  Roe,  in  his 
sermon  on  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  Bishop 
Williams's  consecration,  "  how  happily  have  all  these 
dark  forebodings  been  proved  groundless  by  what  we 
witness  to-day  !  Instead  of  ruin  and  decay,  we  see 
everywhere  life,  energy,  and  progress.  The  parishes 
in  the  Eastern  Townships,  the  English-speaking  part 
of  the  Diocese,  doubled  in  number ;  the  stipends  of 
the  clergy  increased  by  one-half,  and  the  material 
equipment  of  our  Diocese  for  its  work  the  admiration 
of  the  whole  Canadian  Church ;  a  provision,  steadily 
increasing,  made  for  our  clergy  when  aged  or  infirm ; 
the  Diocese  covered  with  churches  and  parsonages, 
many  of  them  models,  most  of  them  built  under  the 
new  order ;  our  Church  University  endowed  almost 
afresh,  and  nobly  equipped  for  its  work.  For  so  poor, 
so  thinly  peopled  a  Diocese,  to  have  provided  for  itself, 
within  twenty-five  years,  almost  exclusively  out  of 
its  own  resources,  all  these  endowments,  aggregat- 
ing as  they  do  so  large  a  sum  of  money,  and  that  too 
while   in   the   midst   of    the   struggle   to   make   its 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  67 

missions  self-supporting,  is  an  achievement  I  think 
unexampled." 

These  results  Archdeacon  Eoe,  in  his  Biographical 
Sketch  of  Bishop  Williams's  Life,  attributes  almost 
exclusively  to  two  causes — the  financial  organization 
known  as  "the  Quebec  system,"  and  the  spirit  of  unity 
and  self-help  that  has  grown  up  in  the  Diocese  under 
Bishop  Williams's  administration.  The  main  features 
of  "  the  Quebec  system.  "  are — (1)  An  equitable  assess- 
ment, graded  according  to  means,  of  the  amount  to  be 
paid  by  each  mission  towards  the  stipend  of  its 
clergyman ;  (2)  The  payment  of  this  assessment,  not 
directly  to  the  clergyman,  but  to  the  Diocesan  Board 
of  Missions ;  (3)  A  simple  but  effective  means  of 
enforcing  its  regular  and  punctual  payment ;  and  (4) 
The  payment  of  the  entire  stipend  of  the  missionary 
by  the  Diocesan  Board.  "  Under  this  organization," 
writes  Dr.  Boe,  "  while  the  Diocese,  at  least  in  the 
city,  has  declined  in  wealth,  and  while  the  grant  from 
the  S.  P.  G.  has  been  reduced  from  10,000  dollars  to 
5,000  dollars,  thirteen  of  the  thirty-four  parishes 
have  become  entirely  self-supporting,  and  eleven  new 
missions  have  been  established.  The  salaries  of  the 
clergy  have  been  increased  from  £100  sterling  to  a 
graded  scale  of  from  600  to  850  dollars  per  annum, 
according  to  term  of  service.  The  Pension  Fund  for 
aged  and  infirm  clergymen  has  grown  from  nothing  at 
the  beginning  of  Dr.  Williams's  Episcopate  to  35,000 
dollars  capital  now.  And  still  more  satisfactory  is 
it,  that  the  Diocese  has  grown  in  missionary  spirit,  so 
that  out  of  this  poor  Diocese  there  was  sent  in  1888 
3500  dollars  to  help  the  general  missionary  work  of 
the  Church. 

The  system  of  Local  Endowments  mentioned  above, 
as  one  of  the  most  valuable  features  of  the  financial 
organization  of  the  Diocese  of  Quebec,  owes  its  origin 
to  the  wise  foresight  of  Bishop  Williams.     Shortly 


68  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

after  his  consecration  he  issued  an  appeal  to  the 
Diocese  urging  the  absolute  necessity  of  endowment 
to  a  Diocese  situated  as  is  that  of  Quebec,  pointing 
out  the  advantages  of  a  large  number  of  small  local 
endowments  over  a  large  Central  Fund,  and  calling 
upon  the  clergymen  and  wardens  of  every  parish  to 
begin  at  once  forming  the  nucleus  of  such  a  fund. 
This  effort  was  seconded  by  a  grant  of  £1000  from 
the  S.  P.  G.,  and  an  offer  of  a  gift  from  Mr.  Robert 
Hamilton  to  every  such  Local  Endowment  Fund  of  a 
sum  proportionate  to  the  amount  raised  on  the  spot. 
"  There  are  now,"  writes  the  Bishop,  "  thirty-six 
Local  Endowments  outside  the  city  of  Quebec,  with 
special  trusts,  of  which  thirty-four,  with  a  capital  of 
90,485  dollars,  are  the  direct  results  of  this  appeal." 

"Turning,"  says  Dr.  Roe,  "to  the  progress  of  the 
Diocese  under  Dr.  Williams  in  higher  things,  one 
feature  at  once  suggests  itself — its  religious  unity 
and  freedom  from  party  spirit.  The  two  addresses 
presented  to  the  Bishop  at  his  twenty-fifth  Anniver- 
sary Celebration,  both  of  them  drawn  up  by  laymen, 
made  reference  to  this  happy  state  of  things,  and 
traced  it  directly  to  the  Bishop's  influence.  Bishop 
Williams  is  a  man  of  commanding  presence,  and 
dignified  manners.  His  sermons  have  a  majestic 
stateliness  which  seems  to  become  well  the  Episcopal 
dignity.  He  has  won  the  unhesitating  confidence  of 
his  Diocese  in  his  justice,  judgment,  and  common 
sense.  And  his  social  influence,  growing  out  of  his 
intellectual  powers,  his  wide  literary  culture,  and  his 
unfailing  and  kindly  humour,  is  unbounded." 

The  following  were  among  the  most  prominent 
clergymen  of  the  diocese  during  this  period  : — The 
Rev.  Jasper  Hume  Nicolls,  D.D.,  nephew  and  son- 
in-law  of  Bishop  George  Mountain,  sometime  Michel 
Fellow  of  Queen's  College,  Oxford,  and  thirty-two 
years  Principal  of   Bishop's  College,  Lennoxville,  a 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  69 

fine  scholar,  a  natural  teacher,  and  a  man  of  singu- 
larly pure  and  unselfish  life.  Best  of  all  his  benefits 
to  the  Canadian  Church  was  that  he  impressed,  in  the 
case  of  all  who  could  receive  it,  the  stamp  of  his  own 
truthful  and  single-minded  character  upon  the  many- 
generations  of  young  men  whom  he  trained  for  the 
sacred  ministry ;  and  left  to  the  College  which  he 
organized  and  presided  over  so  long,  the  invaluable 
tradition  of  what  a  true  Church  of  England  man 
ought  to  be. 

He  was  followed  in  this  position  by  the  Rev. 
Joseph  A.  Lobley,  D.C.L.,  a  distinguished  graduate 
of  Cambridge,  whose  brilliant  abilities,  sound  judg- 
ment, and  splendid  gifts  of  teaching  and  discipline 
won  for  him  the  confidence  of  all  good  men,  and  the 
affectionate  regard  of  all  who  knew  him  personally. 
After  twelve  years  of  the  most  excellent  scholastic 
work  in  Canada,  he  returned  to  England,  where  he 
soon  after  died  suddenly  of  heart-failure.  Never  was 
there  a  nobler  or  a  more  unselfish  spirit,  or  a  more 
fruitful  ministry  and  life. 

What  the  Church  of  Canada  owes  to  the  Mountain 
family  is  beyond  words  to  tell.  The  two  Bishops 
Mountain  and  Jasper  Nicolls  have  been  mentioned. 
In  no  respect  falling  short  of  the  best  of  them  in 
self-denial  and  devotion  to  the  souls  of  men,  was 
Armine  W.  Mountain,  Bishop  George  Mountain's 
eldest  son.  Upon  the  whole  of  his  life  was  ever  the 
unmistakable  stamp  of  saintliness.  His  ministry 
was  nearly  equally  divided  between  Canada  and 
England,  the  first  twenty  years  being  given  to  the 
city  of  Quebec.  There  the  extreme  self-denial  of  his 
life  and  his  consuming  zeal  in  his  ministry  put  to 
shame  the  lives  of  ordinary  earnest  men.  After 
seven  years'  labour  in  the  district  of  St.  Matthew's, 
he  organized  the  parish  of  St.  Michael  outside  the 
city,    built    its    beautiful    church,    parsonage,    and 


70  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

schools,  and  laboured  in  it  for  twelve  years  so  as  to 
make  it  a  model  of  what  a  country  parish  ought  to 
be.  The  rest  of  his  life  he  spent  at  St.  Mary's,  Stoney 
Stratford,  where  at  length,  worn  out  with  his  too 
zealous  labours,  added  to  his  ascetic  life,  he  died. 
His  body  rests  by  his  saintly  father's  side  in  his  own 
parish  of  St.  Michael. 

"  The  diocese  of  Quebec,  however,"  writes  one  who 
is  competent  to  speak,  "is  more  indebted  than  to 
any  other  man  after  its  Bishops  for  its  progress  and 
prosperity,  its  unity  and  peace,  to  the  twenty-seven 
years  of  loving  and  devoted  service  of  Charles 
Hamilton,  now  Bishop  of  Niagara.  To  him  it  owes 
the  splendid  success  of  its  renowned  financial  organ- 
ization— the  Diocesan  Board ;  to  him  mainly  the 
development  out  of  its  deep  poverty  of  a  multiform 
endowment  which  puts  the  Diocese  for  all  time  beyond 
the  fear  of  financial  collapse ;  but  most  of  all  influ- 
ential upon  the  whole  Diocese  has  been  the  admirable 
organization  of  St.  Matthew's  parish,  and  his  loving 
ministry  there  for  so  many  years.  What  ought  not 
the  Church  of  Quebec  to  be,  with  a  ministry  extend- 
ing over  three-quarters  of  a  century  before  its  eyes  of 
three  such  men  as  George  Jehoshaphat  Mountain, 
Armine  Mountain  his  son,  and  the  beloved  Charles 
Hamilton  1 " 


EASTERN*   CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  71 


CHAPTER  IV. 

NEWFOUNDLAND. 

The  Diocese  was  separated  from  Nova  Scotia,  and 
formed  into  a  separate  jurisdiction  in  1839.  It 
comprises  the  whole  of  the  Island  of  Newfoundland 
and  the  adjacent  islands,  that  part  of  the  vast 
peninsula  of  Labrador  north  of  Blanc  Sablon,  and  the 
Bermuda  Islands.  The  Bishop  also  exercises  jurisdic- 
tion over  the  English  residents  in  the  French  Islands 
of  St.  Pierre  and  Miquelon.  The  area  of  Newfound- 
land is  42,200  square  miles,  and  of  the  Labrador  part 
of  the  Diocese,  160,000;  in  all  202,200  square  miles, 
exclusive  of  Bermuda,  or  80,000  square  miles  greater 
than  the  British  Isles.  The  extremities  of  the 
Diocese  are  nearly  2000  miles  apart.  The  population, 
exclusive  of  Bermuda,  was,  according  to  the  census  of 
1884,  197,235.  The  chief  industries  are  the  cod, 
seal,  and  lobster  fisheries,  in  which  one-half  of  the 
inhabitants  are  engaged.  There  are  valuable  mines 
of  copper  and  lead  worked  up  to  a  limited  extent. 
The  richest  of  these  are,  however,  on  that  part  of  the 
island  in  which  the  French  have  by  treaty  certain 
fishing  rights,  and  on  this  account  are  not  available 
as  an  industry  for  the  inhabitants. 

The  interior  of  the  island  is  only  beginning  to  be 
explored,  and  now  valuable  lands  and  extensive 
lumbering  possibilities  are  being  disclosed. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Such  exclusive  attention  has  been  devoted  to  the 
industry  of  the  sea,  that  agriculture  is  almost  neces- 
sarily in  a  backward  condition,  though  now  it  is 
rapidly  improving.  A  railroad  is  being  built  across 
the  island,  and  a  colonization  scheme  is  being  formed 
for  the  settlement  of  immigrants  along  the  fertile 
valleys.  Large  herds  of  deer  and  cariboo  are  said  to 
be  found  in  the  interior,  partridge  and  other  game 
are  plentiful,  while  every  stream  teems  with  trout, 
and  in  some  of  the  larger  ones  salmon  are  abundant. 

The  early  history  of  Newfoundland  is  full  of  interest. 
It  stands  first  in  point  of  time  of  English  colonial 
possessions.  Columbus  had  offered  his  services  to 
Henry  VII.  of  England,  as  indeed  he  had  to  several 
other  monarchs  before  they  were  accepted  by  Ferdi- 
nand of  Spain.  Henry  bitterly  regretted  the  hesita- 
tion that  had  lost  him  the  services  of  that  heroic 
discoverer ;  and  so  he  gladly  accepted  the  proffered 
services  of  John  Cabot,  a  Venetian,  and  gave  him 
a  commission  "  to  navigate  the  ocean  in  search  of  any 
countries,  provinces,  or  islands,  hitherto  unknown  to 
Christian  people,  and  to  set  up  the  King's  standard 
and  take  possession  of  the  same  as  vassals  of  the 
Crown  of  England." 

In  1497,  Cabot  with  two  ships  reached  the  shores 
of  Labrador  and  Newfoundland.  He  saTIedalong 
the  coast  for  some  distance  and  then  returned  to 
England.  In  the  following  year  he  returned,  touched 
at  Prince  Edward  Island,  and  in  the  name  of  his 
Sovereign  claimed  possession  of  the  whole  of  North 
America,  north  of  Florida.  No  permanent  settlement 
was  however,  made  in  any  part  of  this  vast  territory  ; 
and  as  late  as  1602,  we  are  informed  that  there  was 
'  not  a  European  in  all  that  vast  continent. 

The  spirit  of  adventure  and  discovery  slumbered 
for  more  than  a  century  in  England  after  the  dis- 
covery of  Newfoundland   by  Cabot.     After  a   time 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  73 

large  numbers  of  fishermen  from  the  maritime  coun- 
tries of  Western  Europe  gathered  on  the  banks  and 
bays  of  Newfoundland  year  after  year ;  but  no 
permanent  settlements  were  attempted  by  the  Euglish. 
In  fact  they  were  forbidden  by  the  Government  to 
attempt  to  make  settlements  there  ;  and  so  the  fisher- 
men who  set  out  from  the  coast  of  England  in  the 
spring,  had  to  return  when  the  winter  set  in,  and 
leave  the  island  in  possession  of  the  French  and 
Dutch  settlers.  There  was  neither  government  nor 
laws,  and  so  contentions  and  wrong-doing  were  rife 
on  every  side.  But  England  was  too  much  occupied 
with  troubles  at  home  to  give  any  attention  to  her 
shadowy  claim  of  sovereignty  over  this  far-off  island, 
her  only  colonial  possession  at  the  time.  As  soon, 
however,  as  the  Reformation  was  firmly  established, 
the  Parliament  of  England  addressed  itself  to  regu- 
lating the  fisheries  of  Newfoundland.  The  spirit  of 
enterprise  blazed  forth  afresh,  and  four  different 
charters  were  granted  by  the  Crown  to  individuals 
for  the  purpose  of  settling  the  island.  The  first 
of  these  charters  was  granted  to  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert  in  1578.  A  chaplain  was  appointed  to  the 
Admiralship  of  each  of  these  expeditions,  "that 
Morning  and  Evening  Prayer,  with  the  Common  Ser- 
vice approved  by  the  King's  majesty  and  laws  of  the 
realm,  be  read  and  said  in  every  ship  daily  by  the 
minister."  It  may  therefore  be  inferred  that  when 
Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  came  to  Newfoundland,  in 
.1583,  "with  two  good  ships  and  a  pinnace,"  he 
brought  the  required  minister  in  the  Admiral;  and 
that  the  first  celebration  of  the  Divine  Offices,  accord- 
ing to  the  Prayer-book  of  the  Church  of  England  in 
this  Western  world,  was  held  in  Newfoundland. 
Certain  it  is  that  Sir  Humphrey,  on  Sunday,  Aug.  4th, 
1583,  in  the  harbour  of  St.  John's,  made  the  first 
proclamation  of  religion  on  this  continent,  and  de- 


74  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

clared  that  in  public  exercise  it  should  be  according 
to  the  Church  of  England. 

An  earnest  spirit  of  devotion  animated  these  early- 
adventurers.  The  charters  state  that  they  were 
undertaken  chiefly  for  the  purpose  of  making  known 
"  the  faith  of  Christ,  for  the  honour  of  God,  and  in 
compassion  to  the  poor  infidels  captured  by  the 
devil."  Cabot  himself  drew  up  instructions  for  these 
merchant  adventurers  for  the  discovery  of  new 
regions,  in  which  he  directs,  that  "  no  blasphemy  of 
God  or  detestable  swearing  be  used  in  any  ship,  nor 
communications  of  obscene,  filthy  tales,  or  ungodly 
talk  to  be  suffered  in  any  ship,  to  the  provoking  of 
God's  just  wrath,  and  sword  of  vengeance."  Direc- 
tions are  given  to  the  minister  to  say  Morning  and 
Evening  Prayer  daily ;  and  Cabot  himself  prays  unto 
the  living  God  for  his  brother  mariners,  "  That  He 
might  give  them  His  grace  to  accomplish  their  charge 
to  His  glory,  and  that  His  merciful  goodness  might 
prosper  their  voyage,  and  preserve  them  from  all 
danger."  Well  would  it  have  been  for  England  and 
the  world  if  all  her  expeditions  had  been  carried  on 
in  this  spirit  ! 

Richard  Whitbourne,  a  native  of  Devonshire,  seems 
to  have  been  the  first  Englishman  that  visited  these 
shores.  He  was  a  merchant  of  good  estate,  and  had 
traded  with  most  of  the  known  nations  of  the  world. 
He  began  his  voyages  to  Newfoundland,  in  1580,  and 
was  present  in  St.  John's  harbour  when  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert  took  possession  of  the  land,  in  the  name  of 
Queen  Elizabeth.  He  suffered  greatly  from  pirates, 
and  on  his  complaint  was  commissioned  "  under  the 
great  zeal  of  the  Admiralty,  to  explore  and  to  make  in- 
quiries into  the  disorders  and  abuses  that  were  com- 
mitted yearly  upon  the  coasts."  One  hundred  and 
seventy-five  complaints  were  at  once  lodged,  from 
which  it  appears  that   the  utmost  lawlessness   and 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  75 

brutality  prevailed  throughout  the  island.  We  have 
no  record  of  the  results  of  these  inquiries,  but  Whit- 
bourne  appealed  to  King  James  to  establish  a  planta- 
tion on  a  surer  and  better  footing  than  those  of  Sir 
Humphrey  and  others.  The  King  approved  of  his 
plans,  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Archbishops  of  Canter- 
bury and  York,  and  urged  them  to  assist,  by  ordering 
collections  to  be  taken  up  in  all  parishes  of  England 
for  the  furtherance  of  the  captain's  good  endeavour, 
the  main  object  of  which  he  himself  thus  describes — 

"  It  is  most  certain  that  by  a  plantation  there,  and 
by  that  means  onely,  the  poor  unbelieving  inhabit- 
ants of  that  countrie  may  be  reduced  from  barbarisme 
to  the  knowledge  of  God  and  the  light  of  His  truth, 
and  to  a  civil  and  regular  kinde  of  life  and  govern- 
ment. This  is  a  thing  so  apparent,  that  I  neede  not 
enforce  it  any  further,  or  labour  to  stirre  up  the 
charity  of  Christians  therein,  to  give  their  furtherance 
towards  a  worke  so  pious,  every  man  knowing  that 
even  we  were  once  as  blinde  as  they  in  the  knowledge 
and  worship  of  our  Creator,  and  so  rude  and  savage 
in  our  lives  and  manners. 

"  Onely  thus  much  will  I  adde,  that  it  is  not  a 
thing  impossible,  but  that  by  means  of  those  slender 
beginnings  which  may  be  made  in  Newfoundland,  all 
the  regions  near  adjoining  thereunto  (which  between 
this  place  and  the  countries  actually  possessed  by  the 
King  of  Spaine,  and  to  the  north  of  Newfoundland, 
are  so  spacious  as  all  Europe),  may  in  time  be  fitly 
converted  to  the  true  worship  of  God." 

He  addresses  his  Majesty  as  one  whose  "  principale 
care  hath  ever  beene  the  propagation  of  the  Christian 
faith,"  and  adds,  "But  as  the  smallest  terrestrial 
action  cannot  possibly  prosper,  without  God's  Divine 
assistance  to  perfect  and  finish  it :  so  this  great  work, 
so  pious  and  noble  of  itselfe,  as  tending  to  the  propa- 
gation of  so  many  Christian  souls  to  God,  will  (by 


76  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

His  eternal  providence  and  great  mercy)  be  both 
furthered  and  blessed  in  the  attempt,  preservation 
and  establishment  thereof." 

About  this  time  the  island  began  to  bear  a  more 
settled  appearance.     Wa^taJioj1s_j\rei£^ 
t along   the   coasj^  and  roads  were  cut    througE^the' 
forests    connecting    one    settlement    with    another. 
gt.  John's  became  the_great  shipping  and  trading, 
stabonj   moreover,  the    island    became   the    earliest 
resorTo?  persecuted  religious  bodies  from  England. 
We  are  told  by  Anspach  that   several  settlements 
°i_^£i^B§-S2£e-^^he£e.-     AmTTJeFbre   long  IF" 
r~r^refugebFSir~5e5rge  Calvert,  afterwards 


f- 


^ordj^dtimgre,  who  naaTeTHnTOEurch  ofEngland 
for  the  Roman  Communion.  The  King  granted  him 
*n  1622  -a  charter  of  tWwrhnlft  island,  and  constituted 
him  and  his  heirs  absolute  lords  and  proprietors  of 
the  peninsula  formed  by  the  bays  of  Placentia  and 
Trinity.  This  he  erected  into  a  Province  which  he 
called  Avelon,  after  the  old  nam  a  of  Glastonbury  : 
because  _he  intended  it  to  be  the  seed-plot"  of 
Christianity  to  this  new~"world.  as  Avelon  waTT^^T"' 
supposed  to  have  been  to  his  native  land.  He  was 
harassed  by  accusations  made  against  him  of  har- 
bouring Jesuits,  which  was  at  that  time  a  penal 
offence ;  and  being  disappointed  in  his  expectations 
about  his  Newfoundland  plantations,  he  asked  for 
a  grant  of  land  on  the  continent  of  America.  He 
died  before  his  request  could  be  complied  with. 
The  patent  was,  however,  made  out  in  favour  of 
his  son,  Cecil,  the  second  Lord  Baltimore,  conveying 
to  nim  the  district  wnere  the  city  of  Baltimore  now 
stands.  The  son  of  this  Lord  "Baltimore  returned  to 
the  Church  of  England. 

Lord  Baltimore's  complaints,  and  the  heartrending 
accounts  of  the  land  sent  home  by  the  settlers,  had 
somewhat  prejudiced   men's   minds  against   settling 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  77 

in  the  island.  The  fisheries,  however,  went  on 
increasing  in  extent,  and  settlers  gradually  made 
homes  for  themselves  along  the  coasts.  The  first 
attempt  to  legislate  for  these  settlers  and  fishermen 
was  made  in  the  reign  of  Charles  I. 

The  Report  of  the  Commission  appointed  for  that 
purpose  is  endorsed  by  Archbishop  Laud.  It  enacts, 
amongst  other  things,  that,  "  Upon  Sundays  the  com- 
pany shall  assemble  in  meet  places  and  have  Divine 
Service,  to  be  said  by  some  of  the  masters  of  the 
ships,  or  some  others,  which  prayers  shall  be  such 
as  are  in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer."  Another 
order  was  made  in  1634,  by  Charles  I.,  at  the 
instance  of  the  Archbishop,  by  which  all  the 
members  of  the  Church  of  England  in  the  colonies, 
and  in  foreign  countries,  were  placed  under  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  Bishop  of  London ;  an  enactment 
which  has  done  more  to  delay  the  appointment  of 
bishops  in  the  colonies  than  all  other  acts  and 
ordinances  put  together. 

After  the  withdrawal  of  Lord  Baltimore,  Sir 
David  Kirke,  who  had  served  the  King  in  the 
entire  subjugation  of  Canada  to  England,  obtained 
from  Charles  I.  a  grant  of  the  whole  island  with 
the  power  of  a  Count  Palatine.  He  established 
himself  at  Ferryland,  in  the  house  built  by  Lord 
Baltimore.  He  set  himself  to  correct  the  false 
impressions  which  Lord  Baltimore  had  given  of  the 
country,  and  wrote  several  encouraging  accounts  of 
its  productiveness  and  prospects.  He  had  equal 
dislike  to  both  Roman  Catholics  and  Puritans,  and 
regularly  maintained  the  services  of  the  Church  at 
Ferryland.  During  the  ten  years'  Civil  War,  from 
1640—1650,  Sir  David  held  the  island  for  the 
King.  After  his  death  it  remained  till  1729  without 
the  least  protection,  law,  or  order.  This  caused  the 
country  to  become  the  refuge  of  all  kinds  of  criminals 


78  HISTOEY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

who  had  broken  the  laws  of  the  mother  country, 
and  the  whole  society  was  reduced  to  the  most 
terrible  condition  of  misrule  and  anarchy.  A  petition 
was  presented  by  the  inhabitants,  in  1660,  to  the 
Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantation  for  the  appointment 
of  some  local  Governor  and  magistrate,  who  should 
decide  disputes  and  prevent  disorders  among  them ; 
but  this  request  was  opposed  by  the  merchants  and 
shipowners  of  London  and  Bristol,  who  said  that 
"  the  establishment  of  a  Governor  had  always  been 
pernicious  to  the  fishery."  They  were  the  great 
monopolists  of  the  day,  and  prevented  the  reasonable 
request  of  the  inhabitants  being  complied  with.  They 
did  not  want  the  island  to  be  settled,  and  so  they 
prohibited  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  under  heavy 
penalties.  The  captains  of  fishing  vessels  were  obliged 
to  give  bonds  to  bring  back  to  England  each  year  as 
many  fishermen  as  they  carried  out.  The  erection 
of  houses  was  forbidden,  and  women  were  excluded 
from  the  island.  At  home  the  country  was  described 
as  a  barren  and  inhospitable  rock ;  and  on  one 
occasion  the  ruthless  decree  went  forth  to  burn  the 
houses  of  all  who  durst  settle  upon  its  shores ;  and 
had  it  not  been  for  the  timely  intervention  of  Sir 
Leolyne  Jenkins,  who  secured  the  reversal  of  the 
decree  by  representing  the  advantages  the  French 
would  derive  from  the  total  abandonment  of  the 
island,  Newfoundland  would,  in  all  probability,  have 
become  a  French  instead  of  an  English  colony. 
These  barbarous  enactments  seem  to  have  grown  out 
of  the  apprehension  that  if  the  people  settled  in 
the  island,  and  gave  their  attention  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  the  soil,  there  would  not  be  a  sufficient  supply 
of  fishermen  to  carry  on  the  lucrative  trade,  or  of 
trained  seamen  to  man  the  British  Navy,  the 
ascendancy  of  which  was  essential  to  the  safety  of 
the  rapidly  expanding  trade  of  England. 


EASTERN   CANADA   AND   NEWFOUNDLAND.  79 

In  spite,  however,  of  these  prohibitions,  settlements 
increased,  and  fierce  rivalry  sprang  up  between 
England  and  France  for  the  possession  of  this 
Eldorado  of  the  Sea. 

The  trade  of  the  country  was  remitting  to  the 
mother  country  a  million  sterling  annually.  Crude 
laws  for  the  government  of  the  fishery  were  adminis- 
tered by  fishing  admirals  (the  first  skipper  arriving 
from  England  to  a  part  of  Newfoundland  was  admiral 
for  that  season),  by  whom  justice  was  sold  almost 
openly  to  the  highest  bidder,  and  even  commanders 
of  the  warships,  sent  here  for  protection  of  the 
fishery,  were  not  free  from  the  same  impeachment. 

The  closing  of  the  fishery  was  the  signal  for 
freedom  from  all  restraint,  and  those  who  made  this 
their  permanent  home  abandoned  themselves  to  all 
kinds  of  "  profligacy,  idleness,  robbery,  and  piracy." 
It  would  be  an  endless  task,  and  by  no  means 
profitable,  to  follow  for  many  years  the  squabbles 
and  disputes  for  power — might  being  right — among 
a  people  who  were,  to  use  the  words  of  an  eye- 
witness, "the  offscouring  of  the  Kingdom  of  England 
and  Ireland,  and  who  had  found  in  this  island  a 
sanctuary  and  place  of  refuge  from  their  crimes." 
A  French  missionary  writing  of  them  in  1699  says — 
"They  have  not  a  single  minister  among  them, 
though  more  than  twenty  of  them  (the  settlements) 
are  larger  than  Placentia.  They  do  not  know  what 
religion  they  belong  to."  To  the  same  purport  were 
representations  made  to  the  home  authorities,  and 
in  that  same  year  I  find  an  Order  in  Council  was 
made  "  for  keeping  the  people  living  there  in  Chris- 
tianity, by  sending  a  chaplain  in  the  convoy  ships  "  ; 
but  such  was  the  apathy  and  indifference  of  the 
times,  that  no  effort  was  made  to  give  it  effect. 

The  spiritual  and  temporal  rulers  at  home  were 
alike   careless.     The   Church  was   sleeping,  and  the 


80  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

plague-spots  were  allowed  to  grow  and  fester.  Some 
few  God-fearing  captains  from  the  West  of  England, 
affected  by  the  miserable  condition  of  their  fellow- 
countrymen  in  the  island,  petitioned  the  Government, 
"That  a  sufficient  number  of  ministers  should  be 
sent  to  the  principal  harbours,  and  that  they  might 
be  paid  from  England."  The  Bishop  of  London,  as 
Ordinary  of  the  plantations,  was  also  appealed  to ; 
but  all  their  entreaties  produced  no  result,  and  the 
degraded  fisher-folk  were  left  uncared  for,  destined 
to  forget  the  faint  rudiments  of  Christianity  which 
they  had  brought  with  them  across  the  seas.  The 
darkest  hour  is  always  before  the  dawn.  The  bright 
beams  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  were  soon  to  be 
seen  rising  over  the  distant  horizon,  and  Newfound- 
land was  to  be  gladdened  by  the  services  of  a  clergy- 
man bold  and  zealous  enough  to  cast  in  his  lot  with 
a  people  of  such  a  character.  His  name  was  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Jackson,  who  had  for  some  time  before 
held  the  position  of  chaplain  to  the  convoy  ships. 
In  this  way  he  became  acquainted  with  the  country 
and  the  people  ;  and  in  1697  he  was  persuaded  by 
the  planters  and  adventurers  to  abandon  that  position, 
and  settle  down  to  the  laborious  life  of  a  clergyman 
in  Newfoundland.  To  this  arrangement  he  had  the 
consent  of  the  Bishop  of  London.  Nothing  but 
earnest  devotion,  and  compassion  for  perishing  men, 
could  have  induced  him  to  abandon  his  prospects  of 
promotion  in  the  service,  and  to  accept  a  position 
among  such  a  people  and  in  such  a  time,  with  the 
sole  guarantee  of  £50  sterling  a-year,  and  that  to 
continue  for  three  years  only.  Mr.  Jackson  soon 
succeeded  in  procuring,  by  the  aid  of  the  traders,  the 
erection  of  a  church,  which  was  called  handsome. 
This,  however,  stood  but  a  short  time.  The  struggle 
between  the  French  and  English  for  the  possession 
of  the  island  was  then  at  its  heisrht.     The  French 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  81 

made  frequent  havoc  of  the  property  of  the  English 
people  in  all  the  harbours  of  the  island.  In  1705 
they  attacked  and  burned  St.  John's  with  its  new 
church,  though  they  were  not  able  to  capture  the 
fort  and  the  garrison.  The  French  were  soon  driven 
away,  and  a  new  church  was  at  once  erected  near 
to  and  under  the  protection  of  the  Fort,  without  any 
outside  assistance.  Through  the  partial  failure  of 
the  fisheries,  Mr.  Jackson's  stipend  was  not  paid, 
and  he  would  have  been  compelled  to  abandon  his 
mission  had  not  the  S.  P.  0.  K.,  on  the  representa- 
tions of  Dr.  Bray,  its  founder,  come  to  the  rescue, 
and  secured  Mr.  Jackson  in  his  promised  £50  for 
three  years.  He  had  the  whole  island  for  his  parish, 
and  carried  on  service  as  frequently  as  he  could  in 
all  the  English  settlements.  Dr.  Bray  reported, 
"  That  there  were  constantly  in  the  several  bays  of 
the  island  7000  people,  and  in  summer  about  17,000 
souls.  The  inhabitants  were  poor  and  unable  to 
support  a  minister ;  drunkenness  seems  to  have  been 
the  besetting  sin  of  the  times,  and  caused  more 
suffering  to  the  poor  settlers  than  the  plundering  of 
the  French.  This  was  followed  by  riot  and  robbery 
unparalleled  in  the  whole  Christian  world."  Long 
neglect  had  hardened  the  hearts  of  the  people. 
Among  these  Mr.  Jackson  strove  hard  to  fan  the 
dying  sparks  of  religion  into  a  flame.  In  all  his 
efforts  he  was  assisted  by  Commodore  Graydon, 
the  only  one  of  the  Commodores  sent  to  the  island 
to  regulate  the  trade  and  fisheries,  who  took  any 
pains  to  do  the  country  any  justice,  or  to  establish 
religion.  Mr.  Jackson  incurred  the  wrath  of  Major 
Lloyd,  the  chief  personage  in  the  island,  who  had 
distinguished  himself  by  expelling  the  French  from 
all  the  positions  they  had  occupied.  Mr.  Jackson 
rebuked  him  for  his  cruel  exactions  from  the  people, 
and   for  his  contemptuous  disregard   of   the  Lord's 


Oil  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Day  and  all  religious  ordinances.  By  his  representa- 
tions Lloyd  was  degraded  from  his  position  of 
supreme  authority,  and  made  subject  to  the  Commo- 
dore. This  awakened  such  a  storm  of  persecution 
that  Mr.  Jackson  resigned,  and  returned  to  England 
in  1760.  For  nine  years  he  had  manfully  and  fear- 
lessly discharged  his  duties,  amid  losses  irreparable, 
toil  unrequited,  and  hardships  inconceivable.  In 
the  years  succeeding  Mr.  Jackson's  withdrawal,  the 
records  of  the  Church's  work  are  very  meagre.  The 
Rev.  Jacob  Eice  was  about  this  time  sent  out  by 
the  Bishop  of  London,  but  it  does  not  appear  for 
what  work  he  was  designated. 

The  inhabitants  of  Trinity  Bay  petitioned  in  1791 
that  a  missionary  might  be  sent  to  work  among 
them.  They  promised  to  build  a  church,  and  con- 
tribute towards  the  missionary's  support.  In  answer 
to  this  appeal  the  Eev.  Eobert  Killpatrick  was  sent 
out  by  the  S.  E.  C,  with  a  salary  of  £30  per  annum. 
Before  long  he  removed  to  New  York;  but  in  1736 
he  returned  to  Trinity.  Bay,  to  be  heartily  welcomed 
by  a  large  congregation,  amongst  whom  he  minis- 
tered till  his  death  in  1741.  He  reported  his  average 
congregation  at  Trinity  as  250  in  summer,  and  that 
at  Old  Eerlican  at  200.  Four  years  earlier  the  Eev. 
Henry  Jones  had  been  settled  at  Bonavista,  where 
he  reports  a  flourishing  congregation,  with  increasing 
communicants.  He  established  a  school  at  Bonavista 
in  1726,  and  had  nearly  completed  his  church  in 
1730.  He  was  engaged  for  twenty-five  years  in 
missionary  labour  in  Newfoundland. 

The  Bey^Mr.  Beaseley,  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin, 
was  appointed"  resident  missionary  at  St.  John's 
about  the  year  1745,  where  he  had  crowded  congre- 
gations. He  also  ministered  to  the  residents  of  the 
contiguous  out-harbours.  He  was  removed  to  South 
Carolina  in   1750,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  Eev. 


CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  83 


Edward  Languian  of  Balliol,  Oxford.  The  Church 
seems  to  have  greatly  run  down,  as  he  reports  only- 
forty  families  as  belonging  to  the  Church  of  England 
in  St.  John's,  and  of  these  only  thirty  were  commu- 
nicants. In  1790,  he  visited  Placentia . JBay,  and 
baptized  fifty  persons,  nearly  all  adults.    The  majority 

?f  the  residents  in  the  out-harbours  were  Roman 
•atholics.  Mr.  Langman  was  a  laborious  missionary. 
His  allowance  from  the  Society  was  only  £50  per 
annum.  He  reports  the  gratuities  received  from 
his  flock  as  being  inconsiderable,  and  says  that  he 
had  to  go  and  beg  from  them  as  a  poor  man  would 
for  alms ;  and  yet  he  stuck  to  his  post  without 
flinching,  till  his  death,  in  1783.  He  was  succeeded 
by  the  Eev.  John  Price,  of  whose  life  and  labours 
no  record  has  been  obtained.  Jn  1768,  the  Eev. 
Lawrence  Coughlin,  who  was,  .one 'of  Wesley's  lay 
preachers,  and  for  three  years  previously  had  been 
residing  among  the  inhabitants  of  Harbour  Grace 
and  Carbonear,  was  ordained  by  the  Bishop  of 
London,  and  appointed  a  missionary  of  the  Society. 
He  preached  in  Irish,  and  many  Eoman  Catholics 
attended  his  services.  He  reports  an  average  of 
from  150  to  200  communicants.  He  organized  the 
religious  members  of  his  congregation  into  classes 
after  the  plan  of  Wesley ;  In  1765,  the  Eev.  James 
Balfour  was  appointed  missionary  at  Trinity  Bay, 
with  the  out-harbours  of  Old  and  New  Perlican  and 
Bjmavista._  After  nine  years*  labour  here,  he  was 
removed  to  the  more  important  station  of  Harbour 
■Grace,.  _.the  population  of  which  he  reports  as 
consisting  of  4462  Protestants  and  1306  Eoman 
Catholics,  the  number  of  communicants  at  almost 
200.  He  was  succeeded  in  the  mission  of  Trinity 
Bay  by  the  Eev.  John  Clinch,  who  laboured  there 
for  many  years. 

A  petition  was   presented  to  the  Society  by  the 


HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

inhabitants  of  Placentia  for  the  appointment  of  a 
/  clergyman,  in  which  they  pledge  themselves  to  con- 
tribute to  his  support. 

His  Eoyal  Highness  Prince  William  Jgenry,  after- 
wards King  William  1_X*  was  then  in  command 
of  a  ship  of  war  on  that  station.  He  contributed 
liberally  towards  the  erection  of  a  church,  and  pre- 
sented them  with  a  silver  communion  service,  which 
they  still  show  with  pride. 

The  condition  of  Newfoundland  at  the  period 
treated  of  in  the  foregoing  pages  presented  dangers 
and  discouragements  to  missionary  enterprise  far 
surpassing  any  difficulties  experienced  by  the  mes- 
senger of  the  Cross  in  that  country  or  any  other 
portion  of  British  America  at  the  present  day.  The 
population  of  the  island  was  of  a  much  more  fluctu- 
ating character  than  at  present ;  it  consisted  of  a 
few  thousands,  principally  poor  fishermen,  thinly 
scattered  among  the  innumerable  bays  and  harbours 
of  more  than  a  thousand  miles  of  northern  seaboard, 
inaccessible  except  by  water,  on  account  of  the  rough 
face  of  the  land  and  the  absence  of  roads.  The 
missionaries  were  compelled  to  travel  great  distances 
by  water,  passing  around  by  headlands  and  promon- 
tories in  open  boats  and  small  fishing-vessels  in 
order  to  reach  the  scattered  stations  under  their 
spiritual  care,  and  exposed  to  the  swell  of  the 
wide  Atlantic.  On  shore  they  had  no  better  ac- 
commodation than  the  fishermen's  huts  (dens  they 
often  were)  afforded.  The  fare  was  of  the  plainest 
kind  and  rudest  character.  In  addition  to  these 
hardships  many  of  these  men  had  to  subsist  upon 
the  £30  to  c£40,  all  that  the  Society  for  the  Propaga- 
tion of  the  Gospel,  then  in  its  infancy,  could  afford 
to  give  them. 

In  1798,  the  Society  having  regard  to  the  labours 
and  dangerous  duties  of  these  missionaries,  increased 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  85 

their  stipends  in  proportion  to  the  situation  and 
the  circumstances  of  each  station.  During  this  period 
the  Church  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  held  her 
own.  There  had  been  no  increase  in  the  number  of 
missionaries  for  ten  or  twelve  years,  and  for  a  great 
part  of  that  time  there  were  but  three  resident 
clergymen  in  the  island.  In  1817,  the  salaries  were 
increased  by  the  Society  to  £200  per  annum. 

The  island,  as  has  been  narrated,  formed  part  of 
the  Diocese  of  Nova  Scotia  ;  but  although  two  bishops 
of  that  Diocese  had  passed  to  their  rest,  the  islanders 
had  been  left  without  any  Episcopal  supervision  or 
help.  In  1827,  Bishop  John  Inglis  visited  New- 
foundland, and  found  600  communicants,  twenty 
three  school-masters,  and  ten  clergymen. 

BISHOP    SPENCER. 

In  1839,  Newfoundland  and  Bermuda  were  formed 
into  a  separate  Diocese,  and  the  Bev.  Aubrey  S. 
Spencer,  who  came  out  as  a  missionary  to  Newfound- 
land in  1819,  but  who  was  Archdeacon  of  Bermuda 
at  the  time  of  the  foundation  of  the  new  see,  was 
consecrated  its  first  bishop. 

"  At  my  consecration,"  says  Bishop  Spencer,  "  to 
the  see  of  Newfoundland,  I  found  only  eight  clergy- 
men of  the  Church  of  England  in  the  whole  colony ; 
the  Church  itself  in  a  most  disorganized  and  dis- 
pirited condition ;  the  schools  languishing,  many  of 
them  broken  up.  The  clergy  of  Newfoundland  are 
maintained  mainly  by  the  noble  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Lands  ;  but  the 
people  are  called  on  by  the  Bishop  to  provide  a  house 
and  a  small  stipend,  according  to  their  respective 
means,  for  their  several  missionaries." 

The  Bishop  set  himself  at  once  to  establish  a 
Theological  Institution  for  training  young  men  for 


86  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  ministry.  He  also  divided  his  Diocese  into  three 
Rural  Deaneries — Avelon,  Trinity,  and  Bermuda.  In 
his  letter  to  the  S.  P.  G-.,  1841,  he  says— "  In  the 
course  of  my  visitation  during  the  present  year,  I 
have  travelled  by  land  and  by  water  1188  miles, 
visited  thirty-five  stations,  confirmed  1136  persons, 
consecrated  six  churches,  organized  or  assisted  in  the 
building  of  twenty-one  new  churches,  ordained  two 
priests  and  eight  deacons,  and  founded  or  restored 
more  than  twenty  clay  schools  or  Sunday  schools." 

Bishop  Spencer  laid  the  foundation  of  the  cathedral 
in  St.  John's,  and  after  an  earnest  and  active 
Episcopate  of  four  years  in  this  Diocese,  he  was 
transferred  to  Jamaica  in  1843.  He  wrote  the 
following  memorandum  to  guide  the  authorities  of 
the  Mother  Church  in  selecting  his  successor — 

"The  missionary  in  Newfoundland  has  certainly 
great  hardships  to  endure,  and  more  difficult  obstacles 
to  surmount,  than  those  which  await  the  messenger 
of  the  Gospel  in  New  Zealand  or  India,  or  perhaps  in 
any  field  of  labour  yet  opened  to  the  known  world. 
He  must  have  strength  of  constitution  to  support 
him  under  a  climate  as  rigorous  as  that  of  Iceland ;  a 
stomach  insensible  to  the  attacks  of  sea-sickness ; 
pedestrian  powers  beyond  those  of  an  Irish  gossoon ; 
and  an  ability  to  rest  occasionally  on  the  bed  of  a 
fisherman,  or  the  hard  boards  in  a  woodman's  tilt. 
With  these  physical  capabilities  he  must  combine  a 
patient  temper,  an  energetic  spirit,  a  facility  to  adapt 
his  speech  to  the  lowest  grade  of  intellect,  a  ready 
power  of  explaining  and  illustrating  the  leading 
doctrines  of  the  Gospel  and  the  Church  to  the  earnest 
though  dull  and  ill-formed  inquirer,  and  a  thorough 
preparation  for  controversy  with  the  Romanist, 
together  with  the  discretion  and  charity  which  will 
induce  him  to  live  as  far  as  may  be  possible  at  peace 
with  all  men." 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  81 

The  see  remained  vacant  till  April  1844,  when  the 
Rev.  Edward  Feild,  of  Queen's  College,  Oxford,  and 
at  that  time  Rector  of  English  Bicknor,  was  conse- 
crated, and  proceeded  immediately  to  take  charge 
of  his  Diocese.  Those  who  have  read  Mr.  Tucker' s_ 
charming  Life  of  Bishop  Feild,  will  see  that  the  second 
Bishop  fulfilled  all  the  requirements  which  the  first 
Bishop  indicated  as  being  demanded  for  the  effective 
discharge  of  that  office.  Indeed  in  some  respects  he 
went  far  beyond  them.  His  whole  life  was  penetrated 
with  a  profound  devotion,  humility,  and  simplicity, 
which,  though  not  enumerated  in  his  predecessor's 
catalogue  of  needs,  yet  contributed  more  than  all  the 
rest  to  the  reverent  affection  in  which  he  was  held, 
and  to  the  great  success  with  which  his  Episcopate 
was  crowned. 

"  If  there  is  one  man's  character  and  memory 
which  I  revere  more  than  another's,"  writes  the  Rev. 
Ed.  Coleridge,  "  it  is  that  of  the  guileless  saint  (Bishop 
Eeild)  who  has  just  ended  his  earthly  labours.  I 
shall  never  forget  the  impression  which  his  sincerity 
made  on  us  all.  Undaunted  in  spirit,  clear  in  his 
convictions  and  sense  of  duty,  he  never  hesitated  as 
to  his  actions,  and  this  not  from  any  impulsive 
temper,  but  from  a  habit  of  instinctively  and  promptly 
following  what  his  conscience  told  him  was  his  duty. 
Full  of  the  spirit  of  his  Mother  Church,  and 
thoroughly  trained  in  her  discipline  and  laws,  he 
simply  followed  this  Divine  leading.  I  suppose  he 
never  thought  for  a  moment  of  paring  down  or 
adjusting  the  faith  or  practice  of  the  Church  to 
conciliate  the  world  or  to  satisfy  the  unbeliever." 
The  result  was  that  before  long  he  had  gained  the 
respect  and  affection  of  all  good  men. 

"The  secret,"  writes  a  friendly  observer,  "lay  in 
the  conviction,  that  in  striving  after  the  glory  of  his 
Master  and  the  good  of   his  fellows,   that  man  had 


88  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

forgotten  his  own  self  and  his  own  pleasure,  and  had 
chosen  a  pathway  of  stern  and  constant  self-denial." 

He  was  consecrated  at  Lambeth,  on  the  28th  of 
April,  1844  ;  and  on  the  4th  of  July  following  he 
landed  at  St.  John's  amidst  signs  of  welcome  which 
overpowered  him. 

Before  setting  out  on  an  inspection  of  his  Diocese, 
he  set  to  work  at  once  to  improve  the  spiritual 
condition  of  St.  John's.  He  instituted  daily  Morning 
Prayer  in  St.  Thomas'  Church,  and  announced  his 
intention  to  have  daily  Evensong  also  as  soon  as 
possible.  This  soon  became  the  rule  of  the  Diocese, 
ever  since  diligently  observed.  He  removed  the 
pulpit  and  desk,  which  obscured  the  altar,  and  made 
such  other  alterations  as  might,  in  his  own  language, 
"  exhibit  to  the  clergy  the  proper  arrangement  of 
a  church." 

He  found  the  theological  seminary  which  his 
predecessor  had  established  occupying  poor  wooden 
buildings,  with  only  ten  students.  These  lived  in 
lodging-houses  without  any  supervision.  He  required 
them  to  attend  daily  prayers,  and  had  them  instructed 
in  Church  music,  that  they  might  be  able  to  lead  the 
services  of  the  Church.  The  Rev.  R.  Eden,  afterwards 
Primus  of  Scotland,  at  that  time  Rector  of  Leigh  in 
Essex,  presented  his  friend,  the  Bishop  elect,  with  a 
church  ship,  a  brig  of  eighty  tons,  that  he  might  be 
able  to  visit  the  various  parts  of  his  practically  mari- 
time Diocese.  She  was  found  to  be  too  unwieldy, 
and  with  Mr.  Eden's  consent  was  exchanged  for  a 
more  manageable  vessel.  The  Bishop  did  not  reach 
St.  John's  until  the  4th  July,  but  before  winter  set 
in  he  had  visited  most  of  the  settlements  on  the 
island. 

The  Bermuda  Islands,  a  group  of  coral  reefs  about 
twenty-five  miles  in  length,  by  not  more  than  three 
or   four  in   width,   lying    1200   miles   south-east   of 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  69 

Newfoundland,  were  part  of  the  Diocese  over  which 
Bishop  Feild  had  to  preside.  He  strongly  and  fre- 
quently protested  against  this  arrangement,  and 
offered  to  give  up  half  his  income  to  have  his  Diocese 
divided. 

He  visited  these  islands  during  the  first  winter  of 
his  Episcopate,  and  thereafter  every  alternate  winter. 
To  most  people  it  would  have  been  a  delightful 
retreat  to  leave  the  fog  and  frost  of  Newfoundland 
for  this  sunny,  balmy  clime.  But  Bishop  Feild's 
whole  soul  was  so  in  his  work  that  he  always  chafed 
under  the  loss  of  time  in  making  the  long  voyage, 
and  the  long  absence  from  the  centre  of  his  work. 
His  sojourn  in  the  islands  seldom  lasted  more  than 
ten  weeks ;  his  visits  therefore  exposed  him  to  two 
voyages  of  an  especially  dangerous  character,  at  the 
very  worst  seasons  of  the  year. 

On  his  return  to  Newfoundland  in  the  spring  of 
1845,  he  made  a  thorough  visitation  of  the  island. 
"  He  was  received  with  all  the  tokens  of  welcome 
usual  among  seafaring  people ;  flags  were  hoisted, 
and  guns  fired,  and  on  all  sides  warm  greetings  were 
given." 

The  churches  that  had  been  built  on  the  island 
were  not  only  pewed  churches,  but  had  freehold  pews, 
which  were  bought  and  sold  as  private  property. 
The  Bishop's  great  personal  influence  is  manifest  in 
the  fact,  that  in  his  first  visit  he  persuaded  the 
people  to  surrender  their  private  rights,  give  up  their 
pews,  and  make  their  buildings  over  to  him  in  trust 
for  the  perpetual  use  of  the  inhabitants. 

In  St.  George's  Bay,  the  farthest  point  of  his  trip 
to  the  south,  he  found  what  recalled  the  happy  home 
he  had  left  in  the  valley  of  the  "Wye — church  and 
mission-house  and  school  all  grouped  together  in  the 
sunny  bay,  with  a  staff  of  two  priests  and  a  deacon, 
working  amongst  a  people  who  only  a  few  years  ago 


90  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

had  never  seen  a  clergyman.  As  he  wound  his  way- 
back,  the  Bishop  came  upon  coves  and  settlements, 
whose  inhabitants  were  seventy  miles  from  the  nearest 
clergyman.  He  found  traces  of  Archdeacon  "Wix's 
visit  of  ten  years  before,  the  people  repeating  the 
prayers  which  he  had  taught  them,  and  showing  the 
Bibles  and  Prayer-books  which  he  had  given  them. 
In  some  places  he  found  spiritual  life  sustained  by 
the  piety  of  the  resident  agent  of  the  merchants, 
who  conducted  the  service  of  the  Church  in  his  house 
every  Sunday,  and  welcomed  all  who  would  join  him. 
But  the  lack  of  religious  instruction,  and  of  the 
means  of  grace,  was  upon  the  whole  distressing. 
Thousands  of  Church  people  were  scattered  along  the 
coast,  literally  as  sheep  without  a  shepherd.  Between 
St.  Ceorge's .  Bay  and  Placentia,  a  distance  of  over 
400  miles,  there  was  only  one  clergyman.  The  Bishop 
says  he  was  constantly  solicited,  even  with  tears,  to 
provide  some  remedy  or  relief  for  this  wretched 
destitution  of  all  Christian  privileges  and  means  of 
grace.  He  was  absent  on  this  trip  for  over  three 
months.  In  every  place  he  himself  visited  the  sick, 
baptized,  instructed,  and  confirmed  the  people. 

On  his  return  he  writes  to  his  friends  at  home — 
"  Can  you  by  any  possibility  find  any  men  who,  for 
the  love  of  souls  and  Christ's  sake,  will  come  over 
and  help  us  in  this  most  forlorn  and  forsaken  colony  ? 
I  have  visited  thousands  who  have  not  seen  a  clergy- 
man for  two,  three,  five,  twelve  years,  and  I  can  say, 
simply  and  sincerely  desiring  to  be  instructed,  and 
to  hold  the  truth  in  righteousness." 

To  obviate  the  evils  of  Congregationalism,  Bishop 
Feild  insisted  upon  every  parish  and  mission  con- 
tributing to  a  central  fund ;  and  he  constantly 
endeavoured,  in  spite  of  increasing  opposition,  to  make 
the  pledge  to  contribute  to  this  central  fund  the  test 
of   Church  membership,  and  of  the  right  to  receive 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  91 

the  ministrations  of  the  clergy.  "We  can  only  wonder 
at  the  courage  of  the  man,  who,  after  a  little  more 
than  one  year's  acquaintance  with  his  people,  made 
these  sweeping  changes. 

The  need  of  additional  clergy  pressed  so  sorely 
upon  the  Bishop,  that  he  offered  to  give  up  the  £500 
contributed  towards  his  stipend  by  the  S.  P.  G.,  if  by 
so  doing  five  clergymen  could  be  sent  over  to  help 
him.  And  yet  he  never  sought  to  beguile  men  to 
come  to  his  assistance  by  drawing  bright  pictures. 
He  insisted  on  the  healthiness  of  the  climate,  and  the 
blessedness  of  enduring  hardships  for  Christ's  sake. 
He  told  those  inquiring  that  a  mere  maintenance 
was  all  he  could  offer;  £150  a  year,  bread  and  fish, 
without  the  possibility  of  obtaining  fresh  meat  or 
fresh  butter  for  a  good  part  of  the  year,  or  beer  or 
wine  at  any  time  ;  and  yet  he  wrote — "  I  am  not 
without  hope  of  men  devoting  themselves  to  mission- 
ary work,  with  no  prospect  but  food  and  raiment ; 
willing,  nay,  rejoicing  to  be  put  into  positions  of 
difficulty  and  privation  for  Christ's  sake  and  His 
Church.  I  presume  to  think  that  some  ardent  spirits 
will  be  found  ready  to  spend  and  be  spent  both  here 
and  elsewhere." 

In  the  second  year  of-  his  Episcopate  the  principal 
church  of  St.  John's  and  a  large  part  of  the  city  were 
destroyed  by  fire.  The  Bishop,  on  his  return  from  the 
northern  parts  of  the  island,  was  urged  to  visit 
England  to  solicit  contributions  for  the  erection  of  a 
new  church.  After  a  little  hesitation  he  determined 
to  go,  put  the  little  mission-ship,  the  Hawk,  in  readi- 
ness, and  taking  with  him  an  invalided  clergyman,  two 
divinity  students,  and  two  other  persons,  he  set  sail, 
and  on  the  6th  of  October,  after  a  stormy  and  perilous 
passage,  they  reached  England.  He  returned  to  his 
Diocese  in  1847,  and  laments  that  he  had  not  been 
able  absolutely  to  secure  the  services  of  one  clergy- 


92  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

man,  or  of  one  person  regularly  educated  for  the 
sacred  office,  while  three  priests  and  three  deacons 
were  removed  by  death  during  the  time  of  his  absence. 
One  of  these  had  ministered  in  a  Bay  where  2000 
Church  people  lived.  Time,  however,  proved  that  the 
Bishop  was  mistaken  in  his  first  estimate  of  the  effect 
of  his  appeal  for  men.  In  a  little  while,  one  clergy- 
man, one  school- master,  and  eight  candidates  for 
Holy  Orders  volunteered  for  work  in  his  Diocese. 
Some  of  these  were  trained  in  St.  Augustine's, 
Canterbury,  and  some  in  St.  John's  College,  and 
proved  efficient  helpers  in  the  mission-field.  It  has 
been  said  that  nowhere  in  the  mission-field  have  the 
clergy  been  more  patient,  more  contented,  more 
united  among  themselves,  and  more  devoted  to  their 
work  than  in  this  desolate  island.  And  though  the 
Bishop  never  suspected  it,  others  saw  that  the  inspir- 
ing and  sustaining  cause  of  this  patient  endurance, 
was  his  own  endurance  of  a  hard  and  devoted  life 
without  complaining.  Of  one  of  these  missionaries 
a  layman  writes — "  We  entered  the  cove  as  the  sun 
was  going  down ;  to  our  surprise,  from  behind  a  pine 
grove,  the  church-bell  began  to  call  us  to  prayer. 
Just  as  we  entered  the  porch  of  a  neat  wooden  edifice, 
a  thin  elderly  man,  who  had  been  tolling  his  own 
bell,  entered  the  desk  and  began  the  daily  Evening 
Prayer.  After  service,  my  friend  told  me  that  he 
was  another  blessing  brought  to  the  Church  there  by 
the  Bishop's  influence.  They  had  been  personal 
friends  and  first-class  men  at  Oxford,  and,  like  the 
Bishop,  this  man,  besides  being  the  possessor  of  ample 
private  means,  gave  up  his  living  in  England  to 
come  out  and  work  under  his  old  College  friend,  in 
this  remote  fishing  village,  practically  cut  off  from 
intercourse  with  the  great  civilized  world  beyond. 
Without  wife  or  servant,  he  lived  in  his  cottage 
Presbytery,  close  by  the  church,  being  for  the  most 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  93 

part  his  own  cook  and  housekeeper — a  true  hermit, 
caring  for  nothing  but  the  little  flock  for  whom  he 
fervently  prayed,  and  over  whom  he  watched  with 
tender  loving  care. 

Terrible  disasters  and  shipwrecks  from  the  ever- 
recurring  hurricanes  were  ever  and  anon  befalling  one 
or  other  of  the  scattered  settlements.  In  one  of  these, 
forty-five  fishermen,  living  in.  Flacentia  Bay,  lost 
their  lives  ;  and  the  Bishop  adds,  "  There  is  no  clergy- 
man there  now  to  comfort  and  instruct  the  people." 

The  Bishop  writes — "  Thousands  and  thousands  of 
the  people  have  not  seen  the  face  of  a  clergyman 
for  the  last  twelve  months.  Mr.  Bridge,  the  Rector 
of  St.  John's,  performs  four  services  every  Sunday  ; 
the  first  of  these  two  miles  away,  at  eight  o'clock. 
Mr.  Tuckwell  has  five  churches  or  parishes  under  his 
charge,  the  nearest  eight  miles  off,  and  only  a  deacon 
to  assist  him.  He  is  also  master  of  the  Collegiate 
School,  of  which  he  has  the  whole  care  and  chief 
instruction.  Last  Sunday,  starting  at  seven  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  he  drove  over  the  snow  to  his  first 
service,  eleven  miles  away,  while  Mr.  Tramlett  the 
deacon  was  off  even  earlier  on  foot  to  his  duty,  ten 
miles  away. 

The  Bishop  seems  to  have  raised  in  all  about 
£25,000  for  the  erection  of  the  cathedral,  a  very 
beautiful  structure.  He  had  misgivings  at  first 
about  spending  so  large  a  sum  on  the  material  build- 
ing. He  says — "  Even  if  we  had  the  money,  would 
it  be  right  to  spend  such  an  enormous  sum  on  the 
material  temple  while  bodies  and  souls  are  starving 
for  lack  of  necessary  food  1  St.  Wulstan  is  said  to 
have  wept  when  he  saw  the  great  pile  of  his  cathe- 
dral going  up,  because,  he  said,  they  have  left  build- 
ing temples  of  men  to  build  one  of  stones  ;  but 
surely  there  is  more  occasion  to  weep  when  we  build 
of  stone  before  we  have  built  of  men  % " 


y4  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

The  Bishop  devoted  himself  to  the  establishment 
of  a  College  and  Collegiate  School,  which  should  take 
the  place  of  the  Theological  Institute  founded  by  his 
predecessor,  and  which  might  supply  a  liberal  educa- 
tion, not  only  for  the  clergy,  but  for  such  laymen  as 
might  be  induced  to  avail  themselves  of  its  advantages. 
He  wished  the  College  to  be  called  "Queen's,"  in 
honour  of  her  Majesty  Victoria,  and  in  memory  of 
his  own  "Alma  Mater."  His  aims  were,  however, 
very  modest ;  all  he  hoped  for  in  the  way  of  a  teach- 
ing staff  for  the  institution  was  a  Provost  and  two 
resident  Fellows.  He  was  at  the  time  largely  sup- 
porting the  Theological  Institute  out  of  his  own 
income. 

Bishop  Feild  was  not  aware  in  accepting  the  Diocese 
of  Newfoundland,  that  he  was  responsible  for  the 
spiritual  oversight  of  the  coast  of  Labrador,  and  he 
greatly  shrank  from  the  additional  burden  this  would 
lay  upon  him ;  but  when  he  became  aware  that  the 
government  of  Canada,  and  consequently  the  Diocese 
of  Quebec,  ended  at  Blanc  Sablon,  and  that  the  coast 
of  Labrador  from  that  point  to  Baffin's  Bay  was 
within  the  civil  government  of  Newfoundland,  he 
hesitated  no  longer,  especially  as  it  became  apparent 
that  nobody  else  could  be  expected  to  assume  the 
charge  of  this  barren  coast.  And  so,  on  the  6th  of 
July  of  this  year,  the  Hawk,  with  the  Bishop  on 
board,  set  forth  on  her  unknown  voyage  to  explore 
that  coast.  As  companions  on  this  voyage  he  had 
the  Rev.  S.  Cunningham,  his  wife  and  child,  going  to 
take  up  their  residence  in  the  distant  mission  of 
Bruges ;  the  Bev.  Mr.  Addington,  going  to  serve  as 
deacon  and  curate  in  Fortune  Bay ;  and  the  Rev. 
Messrs.  Hoyles  and  Harvey,  together  with  Mr.  Brown, 
a  student. 

Owing  to  prevailing  head  winds,  they  had  to  put 
into  Harbour  Briton,  and  were  rejoiced  to  catch  sight 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  95 

of  the  cassocked,  contemplative  figure  of  the  Rev. 
Jacob  Mountain,  the  faithful  priest,  who  had  quitted 
the  refinement  and  pleasures  of  a  happy  home  in 
England  to  minister  to  these  poor  fishermen,  and 
watch  for  their  souls.  When  the  wind  changed  they 
at  once  set  sail,  and  took  Mr.  Mountain  with  them  to 
visit  a  part  of  his  parish,  ninety  miles  away.  It  was 
dark  when  they  entered  Bruges  Bay,  the  future  home 
of  Mr.  Cunningham  and  his  wife.  They  were  heartily 
welcomed  by  the  inhabitants,  whose  church  had  been 
closed  for  three  months.  During  this  time  the  poor 
people  had  had  great  sorrow  and  suffering  without 
any  word  of  consolation  to  sustain  them.  After  a 
voyage  of  500  miles  through  fog  and  foam,  the  ship 
entered  St.  George's  Bay,  only  to  experience  a  great 
disappointment.  The  clergyman  in  charge,  only  a 
deacon,  had  never  received  the  notice  sent  him  the 
previous  autumn  of  the  Bishop's  intended  visit.  The 
ship  carrying  that  notice  and  his  winter  supplies  had 
been  wrecked ;  and  so  in  the  spring,  being  greatly 
straightened  for  food  and  raiment,  he  had  gone,  on 
the  first  opportunity,  to  St.  John's,  and  had  passed  the 
Bishop  on  the  way ;  and  so,  though  three  years  had 
elapsed  since  the  Bishop's  last  visit,  there  could  now 
be  no  confirmation,  as  no  preparation  had  been  made  ; 
and  so  the  Ilaivk  bore  away  to  the  coast  of  Labrador, 
and  landed  first  in  the  harbour  of  Forteau,  a  place 
which  no  clergyman  had  ever  visited  before. 

Service  was  held  in  a  store,  pains  being  taken  to 
make  it  as  churchlike  as  possible]  many  were  baptized, 
and  many  couples  married.  The  winds  continued  so 
long  adverse  that  the  Hawk  could  not  get  forward, 
and  the  Bishop  made  his  way  to  the  north  in  a  small 
fishing  craft,  sleeping  on  the  unboarded  ribs  of  the 
boat.  He  writes,  however,  that  "it  was  not  the  hard 
fare  or  the  coarse  lodging  that  made  up  the  chief 
hardships  of  these  voyages.     The  dense  ignorance  of 


96  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  poor  people  so  soon  to  be  left  to  themselves  again, 
weighed  most  heavily  upon  our  spirits."  At  many- 
places,  he  says,  "  we  were  cheered  with  a  reverent 
congregation,  or  would  have  been  cheered,  but  for 
the  retrospect  and  prospect."  The  Bishop  was  deeply 
affected  by  the  neglected  condition  of  the  people 
whom  he  bad  visited.  He  addressed  pathetic  appeals 
to  the  Church  at  home  to  "  send  some  suitable  clergy- 
man to  take  the  oversight  of  these  poor  people." 
The  Bishop  of  London  was  deeply  touched  witb  the 
account  of  this  visitation,  and  seconded  the  appeal 
with  earnest  entreaty.  The  next  year  Bishop  Feild 
made  a  voyage  of  sixteen  weeks  along  these  shores, 
and  took  with  him  two  young  deacons  who  had 
volunteered  for  work  in  Labrador.  They  visited  Bay 
of  Islands,  which  the  Bishop  had  been  unable  to  reach 
on  his  previous  voyage.  On  August  2nd,  he  rowed 
nine  miles  to  visit  an  old  patriarch,  ninety  years  of 
age,  whose  bodily  strength  was  nearly  gone.  He 
welcomed  his  visitors,  and  spoke  with  pleasure  of  the 
visit  of  Archdeacon  Wix  twelve  years  ago.  He  and 
the  Bishop  were  the  only  clergymen  the  old  man  had 
seen  in  a  lifetime  of  seventy  years. 

After  a  voyage  of  six  weeks,  Forteau,  the  future 
home  of  the  Rev.  A.  Gifford  was  reached  on  the  8th 
of  August.     The  Bishop  thus  describes  the  parting — 

"Here  Mr.  Gifford  was  to  be  put  on  shore  to 
commence,  alone  and  unfriended,  his  ministerial  and 
missionary  work.  It  was  no  common  event,  no 
common  trial,  to  be  left  alone  among  utter  strangers, 
common  fishermen,  without  house  or  home,  on  the 
coast  of  Labrador,  and  no  possibility  of  escape  or 
retreat ;  no  prospect  of  seeing  a  friend,  or  even  hearing 
by  letter  from  one  for  nearly  a  year.  What  a  con- 
trast in  every  point  and  circumstance  to  my  first 
curacy  !  During  our  stay  we  had  prevailed  with  a 
fisherman  to  put  a  board  partition  across  his  sleeping- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  97 

room,  and  assign  one  part  to  Mr.  Gifford,  the  other 
half  being  kept  for  himself  and  wife.  The  meals 
would  be  taken  together  in  a  little  kitchen,  and  of 
course  could  consist  only  of  fish  and  other  Labrador 
fare.  The  change  even  from  the  accommodation  of 
the  Church  ship  was  terrible ;  but  nobly  did  Mr. 
Gifford  endure  the  trial,  and  mercifully  was  he  sup- 
ported. He  stood  on  the  shore  as  the  Church  ship 
got  under  weigh,  and  watched  her  with  emotions  which 
can  be  better  imagined  than  described,  until  she  faded 
out  of  sight  on  the  distant  horizon." 

All  the  circumstances  of  the  first  messengers 
landing  on  the  coast  of  Labrador  do  surely  show 
signs  of  Christian  daring  and  devotion  not  to  be 
mistaken  or  despised  ! 

The  Rev.  Wm,  Pilot,  B.D.,  thus  describes  the  region 
— "  Labrador-  is  ^  wot-]^  as  y^t  unexploreiLits  aspect., 
is  gloomy  and  forbidding,  it  is  destitute  of  timber,  and 
its  gpil  is  incapable  of  cultivation.  Numerous  scattered 
settlements  break  the  barren  uniformity  of  its  rugged 
coast,  but  the  roads  of  communication  between  them 
are  the  waves  in  summer,  and  the  track  of  the  hunter 
in  winter.  At  this  latter  season  the  thermometer 
often  stands  for  a  long  time  atj.5°  below  zero.  The 
settlers  along  the  entire  coast  number  about  4200, 
of  whom  about  2000  profess  allegiance  to  the  Church 
of  England.  In  the  summer  the  coast  becomes  the 
rendezvous  of  over  30,000  people,  all  engaged  in  the 
salmon  and  cod  fishing." 

When  Bishop  Feild  had  completed  his  first  voyage, 
he  steered  again  for  St.  John's,  which  he  did  not 
reach  till  the  16th  of  October.  He  and  his  party 
went  at  once  to  church  to  render  thanks  for  their 
safe  return.  The  voyaging  of  this  year  cost  the 
Bishop  nearly  £400  sterling,  though  nothing  was 
spent  that  could  be  avoided.  Tea  and  biscuit  were 
the  usual  fare ;  fresh  meat  or  butter  or  milk  or  soft 

G 


98  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

bread  were  seldom  obtainable.  The  Bishop  seems  to 
have  made  a  habit  of  visiting  these  far-off  Labrador 
missions  every  three  years  at  least.  One  of  the 
clergy  now  settled  there.  The  Eev.  H.  P.  Disney, 
touched  by  the  Bishop's  appeal  and  a  description  of 
the  work,  gave  up  his  living  in  Ireland  to  plant  the 
Church  at  Francis'  Harbour.  His  example  was 
followed  by  the  Rev.  G.  Hutchinson,  who  had  left 
his  pleasant  parsonage  at  West  Malvern  to  spend  the 
rest  of  his  life  in  lonely  Labrador.  He  died  in  his 
mission  of  Topsail  on  Oct.  5th,  1876. 

Speaking  of  his  visitation  in  1855,  the  Bishop  says 
— "  I  have  been  as  far  as  Bonney  Bay  and  the  Bay  of 
Islands,  places  not  visited  by  any  clergyman  but  by 
myself  and  my  companions  in  the  Church  ship.  I 
have  called  and  celebrated  services  at  all  the  principal 
settlements  on  the  western  and  southern  coasts ;  have 
seen  and  spent  some  days  with  all  the  clergy ;  have 
consecrated  five  new  churches  and  seven  cemeteries ; 
have  given  the  Lord's  Supper  at  fifteen,  and  confirm- 
ation at  eighteen  settlements,  sometimes  on  shore 
and  sometimes  on  the  Church  ship.  During  the  whole 
three  months  I  have  only  slept  on  shore  one  night." 

In  1856,  while  the  Bishop  was  making  arrange- 
ments for  a  voyage  along  the  coast  of  Labrador 
to  Hudson  Bay,  his  faithful  and  most  laborious 
co-worker,  Archdeacon  Bridge  died,  leaving  four 
churches  and  2000  souls  without  a  shepherd.  As 
the  Bishop  was  mourning  his  great  loss,  news  came 
that  another  of  his  clergy,  the  Be  v.  Mr.  Boland,  in 
the  discharge  of  his  duty  had  been  caught  in  an 
ice-drift  in  the  month  of  March  and  frozen  to  death. 
A  heavier  loss  was  still  in  store.  The  Rev.  Jacob 
Mountain,  the  faithful  missionary  of  Harbour  Briton, 
had  been  persuaded  to  move  to  St.  John's,  and  take 
charge  of  the  cathedral.  A  virulent  fever  was  raging 
in  the  town  at  the  time.     Mr.  Mountain,  who  was 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  99 

unsparing  in  his  ministrations  to  the  sick,  caught  it, 
and  on  the  10th  of  Oct.  passed  to  his  rest.  Mr. 
Gifford,  the  young  Labrador  hero,  had  started  for 
England  in  ill  health,  but  when  he  heard  of  the 
Bishop's  distress  he  at  once  returned  to  his  mission. 
Then  Mr.  Hutchinson  was  brought  to  St.  John's  by  a 
man-of-war  from  his  barren  Labrador  rock,  where  he 
had  spent  three  years  in  absolute  separation  from  his 
brethren  and  friends.  He  had  never  tasted  fresh 
meat  during  that  time,  and  was  greatly  broken  down 
in  health.  After  a  short  stay  at  St.  John's  his  health 
was  completely  restored,  and  he  returned  to  his 
humble  but  devoted  flock  to  spend  the  few  remaining 
years  of  his  life  in  their  service.  Mr.  Gifford  toiled 
away  in  his  lonely  home  for  over  ten  years,  and  being 
broken  down  with  rheumatism,  the  result  of  his 
continued  exposure  in  that  rigorous  climate,  he  had 
to  seek  relief  by  removing  to  a  tropical  country. 
At  this  period  (1859),  the  Bishop  gave  a  resume  of  his 
fifteen  years' work.  "Since  1846,"  he  says,  "we  estab- 
lished nine  new  missions,  four  once  served  by  school- 
masters, now  served  by  missionary  priests ;  twenty- 
five  or  twenty-six  churches  finished  and  consecrated  ; 
thirteen  parsonages  built  or  purchased ;  a  new  stone 
church  built  in  St.  John's,  with  parsonage,  and  partly 
endowed  ;  College  built,  and  partly  endowed." 

In  1857,  it  became  known  that  there  were  a  con- 
siderable number  of  English  Church  people  living  in 
White  Bay  on  the  French  coast.  The  Bishop  set  out 
as  soon  as  possible  to  see  what  could  be  done.  He 
found  a  considerable  number  of  people,  many  of  whom 
had  been  here  all  their  lives,  and  had  never  before 
seen  a  clergyman  or  heard  a  sermon.  Many  of  them 
had  been  married  by  one  of  their  number,  who  could 
read,  going  through  the  marriage  service.  They 
came  now  for  the  blessing  of  the  Church  at  the 
Bishop's  hands.     Several  children  had  been  baptized 


100  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

by  the  one  only  fisherman  in  the  neighbourhood  who 
could  read  the  Baptismal  Service.  They  were  either 
hypothetically  baptized,  or  received  into  the  Church. 
The  poor  people  seemed  to  think  that  the  validity  of 
baptism  depended  upon  the  ability  of  the  baptizer  to 
read  well.  On  one  occasion  when  the  clergyman 
asked,  "By  whom  was  this  child  baptized?"  the  answer 
was,  "  By  John  Bird,  sir,  and  a  fine  reader  he  was." 
The  Bishop  was  greatly  distressed  by  the  spiritual 
destitution  of  these  poor  people,  and  his  inability  to 
provide  for  them.  At  a  public  meeting  held  in  St. 
John's,  1863,  "he  depicted,"  says  Mr.  Pilot,  "in 
earnest  words  the  destitute  condition,  temporal  and 
spiritual,  of  the  settlers  whom  he  found  here,  but 
lamented  the  inability  of  the  Church  to  meet  the 
necessary  stipend  of  a  clergyman,  even  should  one  be 
found  willing  to  go  and  labour  among  them.  His 
words  pierced  the  heart  of  one  man  present,  who  felt 
that  the  call  had  come  to  him  to  go,  '  Here  am  I ; 
send  me.'  "  This  was  the  Rev.  Robert  Temple,  then 
for  three  years  the  missionary  at  Ferryland.  The 
story  is  soon  told.  Mr.  Temple  resigned  his  mission, 
and  content  to  be  paid  in  the  heavenly  treasure  was 
sent  to  "White  Bay,  trusting  to  the  people,  under  God, 
for  his  maintenance.  This  was  a  unique  proceeding 
at  that  time  for  Newfoundland,  though  others  have 
since  followed  in  the  same  track.  Mr.  Temple  had 
no  private  means,  but  he  felt  that  he  would  the 
more  readily  gain  the  good-will  and  affections  of  his 
new  charge  if  he  threw  himself  unreservedly  upon 
them  for  shelter,  food,  and  raiment  only ;  and  he  was 
not  mistaken.  White  Bay  joins  a  part  of  the  so- 
called  French  shore,  and  is  deeply  indented  with 
coves  and  creeks  on  both  sides.  The  mission  itself 
extends  along  the  shore  for  150  miles,  and  has  a 
population  of  800  Church  folk,  the  poorest  of  the  poor 
in  Newfoundland. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  101 

When  Mr.  Temple  arrived  among  them  in  1864, 
there  was  no  church,  school,  or  building  of  any  kind 
in  which  to  hold  service,  and  no  parsonage ;  his  home 
and  his  work  were  together.  Thirteen  years  he  spent 
among  these  simple  folk  of  White  Bay,  wearily 
plodding  over  ice  and  roadless  rocks,  rowing  boats, 
sailing  through  fog  and  sleet ;  spending  nights  and 
days  amidst  the  rocks,  stooping  to  the  commonest 
domestic  offices  for  his  flock,  dwelling  in  hovels  not 
water-tight,  bearing  hunger  and  thirst,  lack  of  raiment 
and  lack  of  friends,  with  only  the  contemplation  of 
the  Cross  to  strengthen  him,  and  the  good-will  of  his 
scattered  flock  to  encourage  him.  He  was  for  years 
a  houseless  wanderer,  carrying  with  him  wherever  he 
went  his  little  all — his  books  and  his  parchment  and 
his  cloak— and  all  this  he  endured  just  simply  as  his 
work  for  the  Master.  After  his  first  winter  he  wrote 
to  Bishop  Feild — "  You  will  not  be  svirprised  when  I 
affirm  my  determination,  under  God's  grace,  to  take 
the  mission  for  better  or  worse,  so  long  as  the  people 
desire  to  receive  me."  The  places  he  had  to  supply 
were  so  many  and  so  remote  that  he  felt  it  useless  to 
try  to  have  a  house  of  his  own.  He  either  lived  in 
the  houses  of  the  fisher-folk,  or  got  a  little  room 
erected  alongside  one  or  other  of  the  many  mission 
houses  he  got  built.  This  saved  all  the  expense  of 
housekeeping.  His  entire  income  was  about  <£25 
sterling  (120  dollars  a  year),  and  he  reports  himself 
as  quite  satisfied,  and  able  to  live  on  it.  He  says  he 
always  found  lodging  and  bed  except  when  forced  to 
encamp  in  an  uninhabited  cove,  and  to  sleep  by  a 
watch-fire.  After  he  had  been  some  years  in  the 
mission  he  selected  Western  Cove,  being  the  most 
central  point  for  work,  as  the  head-quarters  of  his 
mission.  Here  he  got  a  neat  little  church  erected,  and 
hard  by  he  built  what  was  truly  a  "  hermitage  "  for 
himself. 


102  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

By  the  assistance  of  friends  interested  in  Mr. 
Temple's  work,  a  small  decked  boat  with  a  cabin 
was  built  for  his  comfort  and  convenience.  This  was 
his  home  for  the  greater  part  of  the  year.  He  was 
now  able  to  visit  his  straggling  flock  with  greater 
frequency  and  regularity. 

In  1877,  after  thirteen  years'  voluntary  exile,  Mr. 
Temple  was  called  to  the  charge  of  the  important 
mission,  Twiling-gate.  In  the  following  year  he  was 
appointed  Rural  Dean  of  Notre  Dame  Bay,  which 
includes  White  Bay ;  and  his  official  visits  enabled 
him  every  second  year  to  see  again  the  flock  he  once 
called  his  own.  The  mantle  of  this  apostle  of  White 
Bay  has  fallen  upon  a  worthy  successor,  the  Rev.  S. 
J.  Andrews,  whose  unobtrusive  labours  bid  fair  to 
equal  those  of  his  predecessor. 

The  following  biographical  sketches,  written  by  the 
Rev.  T.  W.  Pilot,  B.D.,  and  the  Rev.  I.  Hall,  are  given 
with  no  idea  of  making  invidious  comparisons,  but 
merely  as  illustrations  of  the  heroic  self-sacrifice 
which  animates  the  clergy  of  this,  perhaps  the  hardest 
of  colonial  Dioceses.  These  records  are  not  without 
their  parallel  in  other  parts  of  Newfoundland,  nor  in- 
deed in  many  another  parish  of  the  Colonial  Church. 
Mr.  Pilot  writes  of  the  Rev.  Edward  Colley— 

"Hermitage  Bay  on  the  south  of  the  island  has 
been  the  scene  of  the  labours  of  another  pioneer  of 
the  Church,  now  grown  old  in  the  Master's  service — 
the  Rev.  Edward  Colley.  Along  its  shores  sweep 
the  mighty  Gulf  Stream,  which  here  meeting  the  cold 
waters  from  the  Arctic  regions,  raises  a  fog  blast, 
which  perpetually  broods  over  the  great  Atlantic 
Bank,  and  envelops  the  coast  with  a  thick  palpable 
cloud  of  driving  mist.  For  weeks  in  summer  the 
sun  is  hidden  from  view,  and  the  atmosphere  then 
becomes  humid  and  depressing.  The  hills  which 
surround  the  bay  often  rise  perpendicularly  out  of 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  103 

the  deepest  water  to  a  height  of  1000  feet  and 
more  ;  and  storms  violent,  sudden,  and  destructive 
often  overtake  the  wary  fisherman.  Over  3000 
people  have  settled  in  the  arms  and  coves  of  this  bay, 
and  of  these  2500  are  members  of  the  Church.  All 
depend  for  their  subsistence  upon  the  precarious 
fisheries ;  if  this  fails,  severe  suffering  ensues.  They 
are  for  the  most  part  an  innocent,  unsophisticated 
folk,  from  the  southern  counties  of  England.  Un- 
contaminated  with  the  vices  which  beset  large  centres 
of  population,  they  live  in  their  lodgments  contented 
and  happy.  Nearly  a  century  and  a  half  ago  their 
forefathers  made  these  harbours  their  homes.  A 
century  ago  a  clergyman  placed  at  Placentia  paid 
them  a  summer  visit ;  but  it  was  not  till  near  the 
middle  of  the  present  century  that  a  clergyman  was 
placed  permanently  amongst  them.  Mr.  Colley,  after 
his  ordination,  was  put  in  charge  of  Hermitage 
Mission,  which  embraced  a  coast-line  of  over  100  miles. 
The  highway  of  trade  here  is  the  sea ;  there  are  no 
roads.  He  had  no  boat  of  his  own,  and  could  only 
be  conveyed  from  cove  to  cove  by  the  fishermen's 
boats,  reeking  often  with  stale  bait  and  unsavoury 
cod.  His  flock  was  located  in  over  thirty  different 
harbours,  containing  from  two  to  twenty  families. 
"With  the  exception  of  three  shells  of  school-houses, 
there  were  no  places  for  conducting  service  except 
the  kitchens  of  the  fishermen,  gladly  lent  for  the 
purpose.  When  Mr.  Colley  visited  any  settlement, 
the  plan  adopted  was  for  the  people  of  that  cove  to 
supply  a  boat  and  crew  to  convey  him  to  his  next 
port.  The  people  of  this  station  provided  similar 
conveyance  to  the  next,  and  so  on  around  the  mission. 
On  each  succeeding  visit  a  fresh  boat  and  crew  were 
told  off.  In  this  way  Mr.  Colley  became  acquainted 
with  all  the  men  of  his  flock.  His  visits  were  always 
eagerly  looked  for,  the  wonted  hospitality  lovingly 


104  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

extended,  and  the  best  bed  the  settlement  could  boast 
of  always  ready  for  him.  In  some  places  a  prophet's 
chamber  was  added  to  the  side  of  the  house,  kept 
scrupulously  clean,  and  always  respectfully  referred 
to  as  Mr.  Colley's  room.  As  the  men  were  all  day 
absent  on  the  fishing-grounds,  the  only  opportunity 
he  had  for  assembling  them  for  service  was  after  the 
fish  had  been  settled  away  and  supper  ended.  Fisher- 
men go  to  bed  early,  and  it  was  not  to  be  wondered 
at  that,  being  tired  and  weary  with  the  labours  of 
the  day,  many  should  during  service  succumb  to 
sleep.  Mr.  Colley  resolved  to  try  a  better  plan.  He 
rose  at  dawn  with  the  men,  and  induced  them  to  join 
in  prayer  before  leaving  for  the  fishing-grounds.  By 
patient  perseverance  he  got  the  whole  population  to 
fall  in  with  his  plan,  until  it  became  a  standing  order 
in  every  harbour,  that  during  the  parson's  stay  no 
boat  should  leave  for  the  ground  until  after  Morning 
Prayer.  This  grew  into  a  general  practice  in  every 
settlement,  and  was  afterwards  supplemented  by  an 
address,  and  the  celebration  of  the  Holy  Communion. 

Later  on  he  persuaded  them  to  hold  Evensong 
before  they  retired.  This  became  a  second  order  in 
the  settlement.  It  also  became  usual  on  his  approach 
to  any  harbour  with  the  Union  Jack  flying  on  the 
boat  that  conveyed  him,  for  all  fishing-boats  to  heave 
anchor,  make  for  home,  and  get  ready  for  Evensong. 

For  thirty  years  Mr.  Colley  continued,  with  only 
one  brief  interruption,  in  his  noble  work.  His  chief 
desire  was  to  see  a  house  of  God  erected  in  each  of 
the  nine  populous  places ;  and  by  his  exertions,  aided 
by  the  willing  hands  and  gifts  of  his  flock,  he  was 
enabled  to  see  it  fulfilled  in  the  erection  of  nine 
chapel  schools  and  two  consecrated  churches.  One 
of  these  is  at  Hermitage  Cove,  the  head-quarters  of 
the  Mission,  and  was  built  by  the  liberality  of  T.  N. 
Hunt,  Esq.,  of  London.     It  is  a  beautiful  church  of 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  105 

brick,  faced  with  stone,  and  furnished  throughout 
with  oak  fittings  and  stained-glass  windows.  Here 
Mr.  Colley  always  said  Matins  at  eight  and  Evensong 
at  five,  when  at  home. 

In  each  of  the  settlements,  where  it  was  possible,  a 
man  was  appointed  to  conduct  Morning  and  Evening 
Prayer  on  Sundays  during  Mr.  Colley's  absence. 
When  he  returned,  in  1867,  there  was  hardly  a  Dis- 
senter in  the  Mission,  and  so  it  remains  to-day. 


BAY    OF    ISLANDS    AND    BONNEY    BAY. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  island,  these  two  large 
bays,  on  what  is  now  called  the  French  shore,  pierce 
the  otherwise  uniform  boldness  of  the  coast,  and 
afford  shelter  and  a  home  to  nearly  3000  people,  who 
have  emigrated  here  from  other  parts  of  the  island, 
in  the  expectation  of  finding  greater  facilities  for 
making  a  living.  In  addition  to  the  fishing,  the 
people  are  largely  engaged  in  lumbering.  Nearly 
2000  of  them  are  members  of  the  Church  of  England. 

Bishop  Feild  made  his  first  visit  to  these  parts  in 
1863,  but  it  was  not  till  ten  years  later  that  a  volun- 
teer could  be  found  to  undertake  work  in  this  newly- 
discovered  field.  This  was  the  Rev.  Ulric  Zwinglius 
Rule,  who  volunteered  under  circumstances  similar 
to  those  that  induced  Mr.  Temple  to  go  to  White 
Bay — food  and  shelter  only  from  the  people.  The 
people  were  for  the  most  part  a  poor  and  illiterate 
class,  and  were  scattered — a  handful  here  and  a  few 
more  there — in  the  numerous  coves  and  arms  that 
indent  the  bays  on  both  sides.  Mr.  Rule  had  no 
boat,  and  so  was  obliged  to  move  about  as  best  he 
could  from  cove  to  cove  by  the  chance  boat  of  a 
fisherman,  holding  a  service  at  one  time  in  a  log-hut, 
at  another  on  the  deck  of  a  crazy  boat. 

In  summer,  in  going  from  Bay  of  Islands  to  Bonney 


106  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Bay  (fifty  miles),  he  was  exposed  to  the  rough  and 
treacherous  waters  of  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence ;  and 
in  winter  he  took  long  journeys  over  wastes  and 
snow,  shod  with  mocassins  and  rackets.  No  devotee 
of  a  true  or  false  religion  ever  threw  himself  with 
greater  zeal  or  patience  into  his  work  than  did  Mr. 
Rule.  His  great  desire  was  to  form  a  brotherhood 
to  work  his  extensive  mission.  This,  from  want  of 
funds,  he  was  unable  to  do  ;  and  so,  after  ten  years 
of  pioneer  work,  be  resigned  his  charge,  having  gained 
for  himself  the  title  of  the  St.  Jerome  of  New- 
foundland. 

His  place  was  not  long  left  vacant.  God  raised  up 
one  who  was  destined  to  accomplish  great  things  for 
these  poor  people.     This  was 

THE    REV.    JAMES    CARLING, 

a  gentleman  of  rare  attainments  and  gifts,  of  exceeding 
modesty  and  unbounded  liberality.  Trained  to  the 
life  of  a  soldier,  he  became  an  officer  in  the  Royal 
Engineers,  and  while  in  the  station  of  Bermuda  was 
aide-de-camp  to  Sir  Frederick  Chapman.  He  resolved 
to  resign  his  commission  and  to  take  Holy  Orders. 
After  due  preparation  he  was  ordained  by  Bishop 
Feild,  and  became  a  noble  example  of  self-sacrifice 
and  devotion  to  his  duties.  Before  his  ordination, 
when  the  Church  Star  was  wrecked  and  lost,  Mr. 
Carling  nobly  gave  his  own  yacht,  the  Lavrock,  to 
be  the  future  Church  ship  of  Newfoundland.  At 
his  ordination  to  the  Priesthood,  in  1873,  he  was 
appointed  to  the  Bay  of  Islands  Mission.  He  at 
once  adapted  himself  to  his  new  and  lonely  life.  For 
many  months  in  the  year  he  was  cut  off  from  the 
outer  world,  and  exposed  to  hardships  and  privations 
almost  inconceivable.  He  took  the  mission  on  the 
self-supporting  principle,  working  upon  the  lines  laid 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  107 

down  by  his  predecessor.  He  was  in  journey ings 
oft,  in  perils  in  the  wilderness  and  in  perils  in  the 
sea,  tending  to  the  wants,  temporal  and  spiritual,  of 
his  new  inheritance.  He  spared  no  pains  and  relaxed 
no  effort  to  show  himself  a  soldier  able  to  endure 
hardness.  He  made  Birchy  Head  his  head-quarters, 
completing  and  beautifying  the  shell  of  a  church  that 
had  been  erected  there,  and  adding  a  school-house, 
parsonage,  and  Church  Institute.  He  soon  had,  per- 
haps, the  best-equipped  mission  station  on  the  island. 

At  John's  Beach,  ten  miles  distant  in  the  same 
bay,  another  church  was  erected,  with  school-house ; 
school-chapels  were  also  built  at  the  head  of  the  bay 
at  Summerside,  Meadows  Point,  "Woods  Island,  and 
Lack  Harbour,  all  bearing  upon  them  the  stamp  of 
a  liberal  soul  devising  liberal  things. 

Nor  was  Bonney  Bay  less  cared  for.  The  same 
active  spirit  has  been  at  work  here,  marked  by  the 
same  liberality.  Three  churches,  a  parsonage,  and 
five  school-chapels  have  been  built  by  Mr.  Carling  in 
the  numerous  coves  of  this  bay.  To  plan,  supervise, 
and  provide  funds  for  all  these  schools,  parsonages, 
and  churches  involved  no  small  amount  of  anxiety, 
self-denial,  and  toil.  To  enable  him  to  keep  up  these 
manifold  activities  Mr.  Carling  employed  a  curate, 
and  was  fortunate  in  securing  the  services  of  men 
like-minded  with  himself. 

In  1883,  having  with  infinite  toil  secured  a  small 
endowment  for  the  Bonney  Bay  Mission,  it  was 
separated  and  placed  under  the  care  of  the  Bev. 
Charles  Holland,  a  former  curate.  This  gave  Mr. 
Carling  more  time  to  attend  to  his  increasing  flock  at 
Bay  of  Islands,  but  neither  his  travels  nor  dangers 
were  diminished.  On  one  occasion,  being  overtaken 
by  a  snow-storm,  he  was  compelled  to  spend  a  night 
in  the  woods  alone,  walking  to  and  fro  over  a  given 
space  to  keep  himself  from  sleep,  which  would  have 


108  IIISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

ended  in  the  sleep  of  death.  At  another  time  walk- 
ing along  the  beach — here  the  only  highway  which 
led  from  one  settlement  to  another — he  arrived  at  a 
spot  which  was  steep  and  dangerous.  The  sea  was 
too  rough  to  go  around  the  point  near  the  edge  of  the 
rocks,  and  the  cliff  was  too  steep  to  climb  up.  Taking 
off  his  clothes  and  tying  them  up  in  a  bundle  upon 
his  head,  he  struck  out  for  a  landing-place.  The  sea 
was  rising  high ;  a  huge  wave  caught  and  carried  off 
his  clothes.  There  was  nothing  left  but  to  swim  for 
them.  He  succeeded  in  clutching  them  and  reaching 
the  desired  spot,  but  with  everything  soaked.  Such 
occurrences  were  by  no  means  uncommon  in  these 
hazardous  missions. 

In  1879,  Mr.  Carling  was  made  Rural  Dean  of  the 
Straits  of  Belle  Isle.  The  duties  of  this  new  office 
required  a  biennial  inspection,  which  involved  a 
voyage  in  a  straight  line  of  over  700  miles.  To 
enable  him  to  accomplish  this  work,  Mr.  Carling 
built  a  schooner  of  fifty-seven  tons ;  he  managed  her 
himself.  She  became  his  home,  and  was  the  mes- 
senger of  blessing  to  many  forlorn  and  scattered 
fisher-folk. 

After  sixteen  years  of  such  constant  toil  and 
perseverance,  Mr.  Carling  gave  up  the  mission  of 
Bay  of  Islands  to  prosecute  his  further  studies  at 
Oxford.  He  took  his  degree  last  year  (1890),  and  on 
his  return  to  the  island  has  been  appointed  Principal 
of  the  Theological  College  in  St.  John's.  He  did  not 
leave  Bay  of  Islands  until  he  had  made  the  same 
permanent  provision  for  the  maintenance  of  the 
services  of  the  Church  as  in  Bonney  Bay.  His  liberal 
benefactions  have  been  distributed  all  around  the 
country,  and  fortunate  is  the  Bishop  who  has  such  a 
man  in  the  ranks  of  his  clergy. 

Three    missions    of    the    Church    of    England    at 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  109 

Forteau,  at  Battle  Harbour,  and  at  Esquimau! t  Bay 
have  been  established  on  the  coast  of  Labrador.  Of 
the  last-named  place  Mr.  Pilot  writes — 

"The  initiative  in  the  work  of  providing  these 
toilers  of  the  deep  with  some  measure  of  religious 
instruction  and  of  the  means  of  grace,  was  undertaken 
by  the  clergy  of  Conception  Bay,  and  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Shears  of  Bay  Roberts  was  the  volunteer  to  carry  it 
out.  In  the  summer  of  1878  he  paid  his  first  visit 
to  these  neglected  shores,  which  involved  a  journey  of 
700  miles.  He  visited  every  cove  and  creek  for  a 
stretch  of  500  miles  in  small  boats,  often  manned  by 
himself  alone.  It  was  literally  a  voyage  of  discovery  ; 
it  had  been  an  unknown  land.  Nine  hundred  people 
were  found  who  still  clung  to  the  Church  of  their 
fathers.  They  received  Mr.  Shears  with  enthusiasm, 
and  many  followed  him  from  harbour  to  harbour,  not 
willing  to  miss  an  opportunity  they  feared  they  might 
never  have  again  of  hearing  the  Gospel  from  the  lips 
of  a  duly  commissioned  ambassador.  He  preached 
twice  every  day,  sometimes  oftener.  Here  and  there 
he  found  a  man  who  had  brought  with  him  across  the 
sea  some  rudiments  of  religious  knowledge  and  duty, 
and  who  had  been  in  the  habit  of  assembling  his 
neighbours  on  Sunday,  and  going  through  the  Church 
Service  with  them ;  but  such  cases  were  extremely 
rare.  During  the  first  season  Mr.  Shears  baptized 
157  old  and  young,  and  married  with  the  Church's 
blessing  many  couples  who  had  been  joined  together 
by  some  planter  or  trader  able  to  read. 

"For  four  years  he  continued  this  work,  finding 
ample  reward  for  his  toil  in  the  hearty  welcome  he 
everywhere  received.  This  work  in  our  most  northernly 
station  was  carried  on  under  the  present  Bishop  of 
Newfoundland." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Hall  writes  generally  of  the  work  in 
this  region — "  To  a  traveller  setting  foot  for  the  first 


110  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

time  in  Labrador  the  epithet  '  desolate '  is  a  mild 
description  of  its  appearance.  "Why  people  should 
settle  themselves  in  such  parts  may  seem  a  mystery, 
but  they  do  reside  there,  and  it  is  above  all  things 
necessary  that  the  Gospel  of  Grace  should  reach 
them.  We  can  hardly  wonder  that  the  appearance 
of  the  clergyman  amongst  such  people,  even  at  rare 
intervals,  would  be  hailed  with  delight.  To  the 
settlers  the  parson  is  everything ;  their  adviser  in 
temporal  as  well  as  spiritual  matters,  doctor,  lawyer, 
arbitrator  in  disputes,  and  in  the  best  and  truest 
sense  their  friend.  They  feel  it  and  acknowledge  it. 
Their  habits  are  simple  and  their  vices  are  few. 
Unbounded  hospitality  is  the  rule  all  along  the  shore. 
Every  traveller  puts  up  wherever  he  can  reach 
shelter,  and  food  for  man  and  dogs  is  ungrudgingly 
provided,  but  only  to  be  reciprocated  when  their  own 
turn  comes.  This  unstinted  provision  is  in  most 
cases  of  the  coarsest  and  most  simple  kind,  but  it  is 
the  best  that  can  be  afforded. 

"  Along  these  coasts  the  missionary  travels  ;  roads 
there  are  none,  nor  bridges,  except  those  provided  by 
nature  over  frozen  rivers  and  brooks.  If  a  journey 
is  taken  during  the  month  or  two  which  is  called 
summer,  it  is  to  climb-  hill  and  cross  marshes  into 
which  the  foot  sinks  deep  at  every  step,  or  to  ford 
brooks  which  by  frequently  recurring  freshets  are 
rapidly  turned  into  roaring  torrents.  If  the  journey 
be  accomplished  by  boat,  then  it  is  amidst  signal 
danger  from  fog  and  ice,  tide  and  heavy  sea.  Storms 
come  up  so  rapidly  that  at  every  season  of  the  year 
travelling  is  attended  with  danger. 

"  In  winter  the  general  mode  of  travel  is  on  snow- 
shoes,  or  with  dogs.  These  dogs  are  of  a  most  savage 
and  wolfish  kind,  and  great  is  the  danger  if  they 
scent  any  one  in  the  woods  near  by,  or  espy  him  or 
her  on  their  track.     Drivers  themselves  are  often  in 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  Ill 

danger  of  being  bitten  by  their  dogs.  As  a  rule  they 
are  only  given  one  meal,  and  will  travel  sixty  miles 
a  day  over  a  smooth  surface.  By  their  means  the 
missionary  undertakes  his  long  journeys,  up  hill  and 
down  dale,  over  jutting  precipices,  skirting  forests, 
across  frozen  bays  and  rivers. 

"  It  is  a  difficult  task  to  imagine  or  describe  such 
a  life.  The  intense  cold  often  brings  on  hunger  and 
faint i) ess,  when  to  lie  down  is  to  die.  On  arriving  at 
some  wretched  little  tilt,  fatigued  and  half  starved, 
the  clergyman  will  share  whatever  the  family  has  on 
hand.  It  may  be  a  little  weak  tea,  or,  on  a  rare 
occasion,  salt  pork,  and  dough  balls  of  flour  boiled 
with  salt  meat. 

"  Extra  beds  are  rarities,  and  a  night  on  a  locker 
with  insufficient  covering,  in  a  little  studded  house, 
where  you  can  see  the  sky  between  the  studs  where 
the  moss  has  fallen  out,  has  to  be  experienced  to  be 
understood ;  exposure  and  travel,  storm  and  drift, 
poor  living,  and  above  all,  the  awful  sense  of  isolation, 
are  enough  to  try  the  constitution  and  spirit  of  the 
bravest." 

MISSION    OF    FORTEAU. 

The  lonely  spot  in  Labrador,  where  the  Eev.  A. 
Gifford  was  left  by  Bishop  Feild,  is  now  called  Flower 
Cove  Mission,  from  the  missionary  residing  on  the 
Newfoundland  shore.  It  is  170  miles  in  extent ; 
140  miles  of  the  south  coast  of  England,  and  thirty 
miles  of  the  north  coast  of  France,  with  the  Channel 
between,  will  convey  but  a  very  inadequate  idea 
of  the  extent  of  this  cure  of  souls.  The  land  being 
so  broken  and  deeply  indented  with  bays,  and  the 
settlements  in  many  instances  being  at  the  head  of 
them,  measurement  in  miles  affords  only  an  imperfect 
idea  of  life  and  travel  on  such  a  coast.  The  mission- 
ary must  have  his  head-quarters  on  one  side  or  other 


112  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  the  Strait  of  Belle  Isle,  and  the  hardy  fisherman, 
born  to  face  drift  and  storm,  is  fain  to  acknowledge 
that  the  man  who  attempts  to  cross  these  straits  in 
open  boat  is  never  certain  that  he  shall  reach  the 
opposite  shore.  Owing  to  the  rapid  tide  the  straits 
never  freeze,  but  except  during  a  couple  of  months 
termed  summer,  innumerable  pieces  of  floating  ice 
are  born  to  and  fro  upon  the  surface.  The  climate  is 
very  fickle ;  snow-storms  and  hurricanes  of  wind  in 
winter,  and  rain-storms  in  summer  are  frequent.  To 
this  mission  the  Rev.  E.  Botwood  was  appointed  in 
1860,  as  successor  to  Mr.  Gifford. 

Mr.  Botwood  had  turned  aside  from  lucrative  pros- 
pects in  the  legal  profession  to  devote  his  life  to 
mission  work  in  perhaps  the  hardest  Diocese  in  the 
English  Church,  and  he  solicited  one  of  the  hardest 
posts  in  it.  After  considerable  hesitation,  because  of 
the  trials  he  knew  to  be  in  store  for  him,  Bishop 
Eeild  appointed  him  for  six  months  to  Forteau. 
But  at  the  expiration  of  that  time  he  begged  to  be 
continued,  and  remained  for  three  years  more,  en- 
countering with  cheerful  alacrity  the  perils  of  his 
post. 

In  1885,  the  present  Bishop  of  Newfoundland  de- 
termined to  establish  a  permanent  mission  at  the  most 
northernly  point  of  Labrador  yet  reached,  and  the 
Rev.  F.  W.  Colley  volunteered  for  the  post.  This 
seemed  to  offer  only  dangers,  hardships,  and  priva- 
tions, for  in  addition  to  the  same  cruising  in  crazy 
boats,  there  was  the  toil  of  visiting  the  settlers  in 
their  winter  quarters  up  the  bays.  These  could  only 
be  reached  by  journeys  over  barren  wastes  with  dogs. 
For  two  years  he  bravely  endured  all,  and  was  only 
induced  to  relinquish  his  post  when  enfeebled  health 
rendered  a  change  imperative.  He  was  succeeded  by 
another  volunteer,  the  Bev.  T.  P.  Quinton,  who  was 
a  man  of  iron  constitution,  and  has  proved  himself 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  113 

able  to  endure  hardness  as  a  good  soldier  of  the  Cross, 
in  the  mission  of  Charnel,  on  the  south-west  angle  of 
the  island.  He  still  holds  the  fort,  and  with  a 
courage  and  spirit  born  of  a  message  inspired,  has 
toiled  with  unabating  vigour  for  four  years.  Never 
does  he  appear  happier  than  when  careering  with  his 
team  of  clogs  over  ice  and  snow,  to  visit  the  scattered 
sheep  of  his  extensive  flock,  making  light  of  his 
hardships  and  privations.  Writing  in  May  of  his 
second  year's  residence  he  says — "  For  nearly  five 
months  I  have  been  on  the  move,  and  I  have  walked 
over  fourteen  hundred  miles,  yet  the  work  is  not  by 
any  means  disagreeable  or  of  an  unsatisfactory  nature." 
And  this  after  stating  that  the  winter  was  very  severe, 
and  that  many  a  night  they  lay  in  their  fur  bags. 
"  My  good  spirits  have  not  left  me,  and  the  bad  ones 
are  as  near  me,  I  fear,  as  ever." 

Referring  to  his  privations,  and  the  expected 
arrival  of  a  supply  of  food  by  the  first  steamer  in 
June,  he  says — "  I  can  hold  out  two  or  three  days 
more  by  liberally  watering  the  little  tea  I  have  left. 
Of  flour  I  have  sufficient  for  myself,  but  we  know  not 
when  we  are  likely  to  get  a  fresh  supply."  This  was 
after  eight  months  of  isolation,  and  yet  he  says — "  I 
have  very  little  to  frighten  me,  and  I  would  as  soon 
be  here  as  in  any  boating  mission  in  Newfoundland. 
As  regards  the  loneliness,  I  don't  mind  ;  I  have  not 
allowed  it  a  footing  in  my  thoughts,  and  as  a  conse- 
quence the  time  has  sped  rapidly  away.  But  when 
the  mail  comes  from  Newfoundland  I  shall  do  nothing 
but  read  my  letters  for  a  week." 

Referring  to  his  work  he  says — "  After  all,  how 
little  one  can  do  for  these  poor  creatures  !  In  all,  at 
the  outside,  I  can  only  visit  some  of  them  twice  in 
the  year,  and  some  of  them  hardly  that  in  some 
years."  There  are  no  churches  in  the  mission;  the 
services   are   held   in    the   settlers'    houses.       Small 

H 


114  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

school -chapels  have,  however,  lately  heen  erected  .in 
three  or  four  of  the  bays. 

Amid  such  scenes  and  perils,  and  with  a  band  of 
many  such  noble  fellow-workers,  Bishop  Feild  con- 
tinued his  labours  till  1866,  when  Bishop  Kelly  being 
appointed  coadjutor,  undertook  a  large  share  of  the 
more  difficult  and  dangerous  work.  After  this  date 
Bishop  Feild  visited  Bermuda  every  winter,  and  now 
remained  in  these  sunny  islands  for  a  much  longer 
period  than  when  he  was  alone.  He  gave  the  most 
careful  individual  attention  to  the  affairs  of  the 
Church  in  that  part  of  his  extensive  charge.  Twice 
after  Bishop  Kelly's  appointment  he  visited  the  far- 
off  missions  of  Labrador,  and  the  northern  and 
western  coasts.  Touching  stories  are  told  of  the  way 
in  which  the  Bishop,  with  the  most  brotherly  alacrity, 
supplied  the  place  of  invalided  or  worn-out  workers 
both  in  Newfoundland  and  Bermuda.  Bishop  Kelly 
was  an  eloquent  speaker,  and  an  earnest  co-worker, 
and  so  he  relieved  Bishop  Feild  of  a  large  share  of 
responsibility  and  toil. 

The  Coadjutor  was  not  so  fortunate  as  Bishop 
Feild  had  been  in  all  his  perilous  voyaging.  For 
twenty-five  years  the  Hawk  had  gone  through  fog 
and  foam,  through  frost  and  fateful  hurricane  almost 
without  a  mishap ;  but  just  at  the  end  of  her  long 
voyaging  she  was  ran  twice  upon  the  rocks,  and 
was  condemned  as  unseaworthy.  Her  place  was 
supplied,  as  above  narrated,  •  by  the  generosity  of 
Lieut.  Carling  (afterwards  the  Bev.  James  Carling). 
Before  long  this  splendidly  fitted  up  yacht  was  utterly 
wrecked,  and  Bishop  Kelly  and  his  party  were  with 
great  difficulty  saved. 

Bishop  Feild,  in  order  to  relieve  the  Bev.  J.  C. 
Harvey  of  Port-de-Grace,  who  had  to  go  to  England 
for  medical  treatment,  took  charge  of  his  parish.  It 
was  a  terribly  severe  winter.     The  Bishop  performed 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  115 

with  more  than  usual  punctuality  the  duties  of  a 
mission  that  would  have  tried  the  energies  of  a 
young  man.  The  result  was  a  very  severe  illness 
when  he  returned  to  St.  John's ;  from  this  he  never 
really  rallied.  In  the  autumn  he  again  visited  Ber- 
muda, hut  the  genial  climate  did  not  produce  the 
hoped-for  change,  and  on  June  8th,  1876,  calmly, 
and  with  no  appearance  of  pain,  his  spirit  passed 
behind  the  veil. 

Bishop  Kelly  without  election  succeeded  to  the 
see.  He  was  an  able  and  eloquent  man,  but  was 
not  adapted  to  a  maritime  Diocese  like  Newfoundland. 
He  was  a  poor  sailor,  and  never  got  over  distressing 
sea-sicknesses.  Being  persuaded  that  this  was  going 
to  permanently  hinder  and  perhaps  finally  destroy 
his  usefulness,  he  resigned  his  see  and  returned  to 
England  in  1878. 

The  appointment  of  a  successor  was  referred  to 
the  authorities  at  home,  and  the  present  Bishop,  the 
Right  Rev.  L.  Jones,  who  was  already  widely  known 
throughout  the  Church  as  a  scholar  and  successful 
parish  organizer  and  worker,  was  called  to  bear 
the  standard  which  Bishop  Feild  had  made  glorious 
as  the  symbol  of  faith  and  courage  and  self-denial 
and  loving,  persevering  energy. 

For  now  thirteen  years,  without  noise  or  com- 
plaint, he  has  made  it  his  aim  and  his  joy  to  follow 
the  example  of  his  great  predecessor.  He  is  a  man 
of  exceeding  modesty  and  gentleness,  but  of  unsparing 
energy.  He  has  won  the  hearts  of  his  clergy  and 
people,  and  is  no  doubt  laying  up  in  store  for  himself 
an  abundant  entrance  and  a  great  reward.  He  de- 
clines to  give  any  information  about  himself  and  his 
work.  He  says — "  Bishop  Feild  had  laid  the  founda- 
tions so  well,  and  had  everything  so  well  ordered, 
that  all  I  have  to  do  is  to  follow  in  his  steps  and  try 
to  realize  his  plans." 


116  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

One  of  the  foremost  of  his  clergy  writing  of  him 
says — "  He  shares  with  his  clergy  their  perilous  work, 
and  no  less  than  his  predecessor  is  enkindled  with  the 
same  spirit  of  zeal  for  his  Diocese.  Though  hampered 
for  want  of  funds,  and  beset  on  all  sides  with  cries 
of  chronic  poverty,  he  has  done  much  to  forward  the 
work  of  the  Church  in  Newfoundland.  Improvements, 
material  and  spiritual,  are  manifest  in  all  directions. 

"  His  cathedral,  enlarged  at  a  cost  of  200,000 
dollars,  as  a  memorial  of  his  predecessor,  Bishop  Feild, 
stands  unrivalled  in  this  Western  hemisphere  as  a  gem 
of  Gothic  architecture.  Churches  of  a  superior  style 
and  finish  are  fast  taking  the  place  of  the  old  un- 
sightliness  of  the  early  Newfoundland  type.  The 
clerical  staff  has  been  steadily  increasing  in  number. 
New  missions  have  been  opened,  and  curates  have 
been  provided  to  assist  in  the  large  missions  already 
established.  A  generous  response,  in  spite  of  hard 
times  and  failing  fisheries,  has  been  made  to  appeals 
for  aid  to  carry  on  the  Church  work  throughout  the 
Diocese ;  in  spite  too  of  the  fact  that  the  S.  P.  G. 
has  during  his  Episcopate  reduced  its  grant  by 
£1000  a  year." 

Newfoundland,  dependent  merely  upon  precarious 
fisheries,  must  ever  be  a  poor  Diocese,  relying  largely 
upon  the  generous  sympathy  and  help  of  the  Mother 
Church. 

We  have  devoted  to  the  history  of  the  Church  in 
this  Diocese  a  disproportionate  share  of  the  space 
allowed  us,  partly  because  of  the  thrilling  and  heroic 
incidents  with  which  it  abounds,  and  partly,  chiefly 
rather,  because  the  clergy  have  exhibited  throughout 
the  spirit  of  self-sacrifice  and  heroic  Christian  faith 
which  will  have  to  become  the  incentive  to  action  and 
the  rule  of  life  throughout  this  whole  continent,  if  the 
Church  is  ever  to  occupy  the  waste  places,  and  recover 
the  ground  which,  through  lack  of  them,  she  has  lost. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  117 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE    DIOCESE    OP    TORONTO. 

The  Diocese  of  Toronto,  embracing  the  whole  of 
Upper  Canada — the  present  Province  of  Ontario,  and 
whatever  might  be  to  the  west  of  it — was  constituted, 
in  1839,  out  of  the  Diocese  of  Quebec.  The  opera- 
tions of  the  Church  in  this  Diocese  up  to  the  time  of 
the  appointment  of  the  first  Bishop  have  therefore 
been  detailed  in  the  history  of  Quebec.  Its  history 
for  the  next  thirty  years  is  so  completely  identified 
with  the  life  of  its  first  great  Bishop,  that  it  can 
only  be  thought  of  in  connection  with  him. 

He  was  in  the  strictest  sense  its  Head-Centre,  the 
fons  et  origo  of  all  its  activities.  He  moulded  its 
doctrines,  and  he  directed  its  energies.  Nil  sine 
Episcopo  was  not  an  abstract  theory,  but  a  concrete 
necessity,  from  one  end  of  his  vast  Diocese  to  the 
other.  The  man  who  presumed  to  act  without  his 
Bishop,  much  more  to  act  against  him,  soon  found 
himself  in  the  grasp  of  the  hand  of  one  who  said, 
"  This  is  the  way  ;  walk  ye  in  it."  In  illustration  of 
this  characteristic,  the  writer  has  heard  the  Bev. 
Edmund  Baldwin,  curate  of  St.  James'  Cathedral, 
complaining  that  he  and  the  Bector,  who  were  both 
pronounced  Evangelicals,  were  very  hardly  treated. 
He  said,  "  Whenever  we  preach  any  distinctively 
Evangelical  doctrine,  the  Bishop  always  says  when 


118  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCHf    IN 

we  reach  the  vestry,  'I  will  prach'  (broad  Scotch)  'next 
Sunday.'  Then  he  was  sure  to  say  with  reference  to 
what  we  had  preached,  '  This  is  what  some  people 
think,  but  this  is  the  way  the  matter  is  to  be  under- 
stood.' And  then  he  would  proceed  to  give  the 
orthodox  Anglican  doctrine  in  a  way  that  could  not 
be  mistaken." 

Bishop  Strachan  was  a  man  born  to  rule.  Clear- 
headed, resolute,  unhesitating,  energetic,  high-tem- 
pered, he  took  the  lead  without  any  arrogant  assump- 
tion in  every  company  where  he  came.  No  man  has 
yet  arisen  amongst  us  of  such  commanding  personality, 
or  who  has  so  impressed  himself  upon  the  history  of 
the  Church  or  indeed  of  the  country.  It  is  therefore 
necessary  to  have  before  us  a  brief  outline  of  his 
history  if  we  would  study  intelligently  the  times  in 
which  he  lived. 

He  was  born  at  Aberdeen,  Scotland,  on  the  12th 
April,  1778,  of  humble  but  respectable  parents.  His 
father,  who  was  superintendent  of  a  stone-quarry, 
was  killed  at  the  age  of  fifty-two,  by  a  premature 
explosion.  He  was  a  man  of  resolute  will,  who,  living 
in  the  midst  of  Presbyterians,  was  a  persistent  Non- 
juror. His  mother  was  a  Presbyterian,  a  woman  of 
great  character  and  controlling  religious  principles. 
It  is  stated  as  a  strange  instance  of  the  survival  of 
ancient  traditions,  that  she  used  to  make  the  children 
sign  themselves  with  the  sign  of  the  Cross  before 
going  to  bed. 

The  future  Bishop  was  only  fourteen  years  old 
when  his  father  was  killed.  He  was  thrown  upon 
the  world  at  that  age  without  a  single  friend  or 
relative  capable  of  affording  him  any  assistance. 
His  mother  and  two  sisters  were  reduced  almost  to 
actual  want,  and  had  no  one  to  look  to  but  him.  He 
obtained  a  position  as  tutor,  and  carried  his  earnings 
as    he  received  them  with    a  delighted  heart  to  his 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  119 

mother.  He  was  so  successful  and  so  saving  that  we 
find  him  entered  as  a  student  at  Aberdeen  when  he 
was  only  sixteen  years  old.  The  annual  session  of 
this  University  only  lasted  five  months ;  during  the 
rest  of  the  year  he  earned  enough  by  teaching  to 
maintain  himself  at  College,  and  to  afford  such 
assistance  to  his  mother  and  sisters  as  enabled  them 
to  live.  He  graduated  in  the  regular  course,  and  then 
obtained  the  mastership  of  a  school,  which  maintained 
him  and  those  dependent  on  him  till  he  emigrated  to 
Canada.  He  became  the  intimate  friend  of  Dr. 
Chalmers,  and  through  his  influence  was  invited  to 
come  to  Canada  to  establish  a  school  under  the 
patronage  of  the  Government,  which  should  after- 
wards grow  into  a  College,  and  ultimately  into  a 
University.  He  reached  Kingston,  then  the  chief 
town  of  Upper  Canada,  in  August  1799.  only  to  meet 
with  bitter  disappointment.  The  projected  academy 
was  found  to  be  only  a  vague  theory,  which  never 
really  took  shape.  Mr.  Strachan  was  so  "beat 
down,"  as  he  expressed  it,  that  if  he  could  have 
procured  the  money  he  would  at  once  have  returned 
to  Scotland.  This  was  out  of  the  question,  and  so  he 
accepted  the  position  of  tutor  in  the  family  of  Mr. 
Richard  Cartwright.  He  became  the  friend  of  Dr. 
Stuart,  Rector  of  Kingston  and  official  of  the  Bishop 
of  Quebec  in  Upper  Canada ;  through  his  influence 
he  was  led  to  seek  for  admission  to  the  ministry,  and 
was  ordained  Deacon  by  the  Bishop  of  Quebec  on  the 
22nd  May,  1803.  He  was  at  once  appointed  to 
Cornwall.  This  was  regarded  as  an  important  and 
rising  place,  and  yet  Mr.  Strachan' s  clerical  income 
was  only  £130  per  annum,  not  enough,  as  he  stated, 
to  enable  him  to  keep  house  and  extend  the  needed 
help  to  his  loved  mother,  and  so  he  began  taking 
pupils  into  his  house,  and  thus  originated  the  famous 
Cornwall  School,  at  which  almost  every  man  of  dis- 


120  HISTOEY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

tinction  in  Upper  Canada  during  the  last  generation 
was  educated.  Dr.  Strachan,  as  he  had  now  become, 
remained  in  charge  of  his  successful  school  and  parish 
at  Cornwall  until  1812,  when  York  (Toronto)  be- 
coming vacant,  he  reluctantly  accepted  the  position, 
at  the  solicitation  of  all  the  leadiug  men  of  the 
"Western  Capital.  Amongst  the  most  urgent  of  these 
was  the  ever-to-be-honoured  Major- General  Sir  Isaac 
Brock. 

During  that  year,  and  before  Dr.  Strachan's 
removal  from  Cornwall,  the  American  Government, 
contrary  to  the  universal  expectation  of  thoughtful 
men,  declared  war  against  Ed  gland. 

The  journey  from  Cornwall  to  Toronto,  a  distance 
of  300  miles,  was  naturally  very  difficult  and  tedious, 
but  now  it  became  dangerous  as  well.  The  Americans 
soon  gained  'the  ascendancy  on  Lake  Ontario,  and  as 
the  schooner  which  carried  the  future  Bishop  and  his 
family  to  Toronto  was  crossing  the  lake,  a  sail  was 
seen  one  morning  bearing  down  upon  her.  All  on 
board  were  quite  sure  that  she  was  an  armed 
American  cruiser.  The  captain  became  very  terri- 
fied, and  went  to  consult  Dr.  Strachan  about  sur- 
rendering the  ship  at  once.  The  doctor  asked  if  he 
had  any  weapons  or  means  of  defence.  He  said, 
"  Yes  ;  we  have  a  four-pounder,  and  several  muskets 
and  swords ;  but  we  will  be  overpowered  at  once,  we 
must  surrender."  The  Bishop  said,  "  No,  we  must 
fight ;  give  me  a  sword."  The  captain  said  he  could 
not  fight.  "  Then,"  the  Bishop  said,  "  you  go  down 
below  and  take  care  of  the  ladies,  and  I  will  command 
the  ship."  The  timid  captain  gladly  acceded  to  the 
proposal,  and  Dr.  Strachan  set  to  work  to  get  all  the 
men  he  could  collect,  armed  and  ready  for  the  fight, 
when  lo !  it  was  discovered  that  she  was  not  an 
American  cruiser,  but  a  British  schooner  that  was 
bearing  down  upon  them. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  121 

"And  well  it  was  for  us,"  the  Bishop  adds  in 
detailing  the  story,  "for  the  four-pounder  was 
fastened  to  the  deck,  and  it  pointed  to  the  starboard, 
whereas  the  schooner  came  to  us  on  the  larboard 
bow." 

York  (Toronto)  was  at  this  time  a  little  town  of 
only  a  few  hundred  inhabitants.  The  houses  were 
all  of  wood,  and  of  very  unpretending  dimensions. 
Seven  years  later  the  population  did  not  exceed  1000, 
and  there  were  only  three  small  brick  houses  in  the 
place  then. 

The  land  was  shaken  and  dismayed  by  the  actual 
outbreak  of  war ;  everybody  was  downcast,  until 
General  Brock  arrived  on  the  scene.  His  presence 
acted  like  magic.  His  collected  courage  in  the 
presence  of  the  overwhelming  forces  that  the  enemy 
were  gathering  on  the  frontier  for  the  conquest  of 
the  country,  his  alertness,  his  energy,  his  promptly 
formed  and  definite  plans  of  defence,  inspired  the 
land  with  a  new  hope  and  a  determined  courage.  He 
evidently  believed  "  that  the  best  defence  was  offence," 
and  in  less  than  three  weeks  he  had  carried  his  little 
army  300  miles  through  the  woods,  surprised  and 
captured  Fort  Detroit,  scattered  the  American  army 
gathering  there,  and  was  back  again  to  face  the  foe 
gathering  on  the  Niagara  River  for  the  conquest  of 
Central  Canada.  At  the  battle  of  Queenstown  Heights 
he  fell  mortally  wounded  early  in  the  day,  but  he 
had  inspired  the  troops  with  such  fearless  courage 
and  energy  that  nothing  could  withstand  them. 
They  swept  the  greatly  superior  forces  of  the  Ameri- 
cans like  chaff  before  the  wind  over  the  Queenstown 
Heights,  and  what  was  left  of  them  out  of  tbe  country. 
Dr.  Strachan  was  not  idle.  Burning  with  love  of 
his  country,  and  full  of  indignation  at  the  unrighteous 
aggression  on  the  part  of  the  Americans,  he  was 
active   and  judicious  in  his  'counsels.     He  was  also 


122  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  chief  agent  in  starting  and  conducting  what  was 
called  "  The  Loyal  and  Patriotic  Society  of  Upper 
Canada,"  which  had  branches  all  through  the  Province, 
and  was  most  generously  supported.  Its  object  was 
to  afford  relief  to  the  wounded  of  the  militia  and 
volunteers,  to  aid  in  the  support  of  the  widows  and 
orphans  of  the  slain,  and  to  assist  the  families  of 
those  who  were  called  out  on  military  duty.  In  the 
winter  of  1814  the  funds  of  the  Society  exceeded 
£10,000,  and  an  appeal  to  the  British  nation  was 
warmly  and  liberally  met.  This  Society  is  said  to 
have  contributed  more  towards  the  defence  of  the 
country  than  many  regiments,  by  the  confidence  and 
good-will  it  inspired  amongst  the  population  at  large. 
Early  the  next  spring  the  Americans  attacked  the 
town  of  York  with  a  flotilla  of  fourteen  vessels,  and 
a  force  which  was  quite  overwhelming  in  numbers. 
After  a  brief  and  badly  conducted  defence,  the  small 
regular  army  retreated  towards  Kingston,  and  left 
the  town  and  the  militia  to  their  fate.  Further 
resistance  was  useless,  and  Dr.  Strachan  was  sent  as 
chief  of  a  deputation  of  citizens  to  arrange  with  the 
American  officers  the  terms  of  capitulation.  These 
articles  were  accepted,  but  were  disregarded  by  many 
officers  of  the  conquering  army.  Dr.  Strachan  there- 
fore demanded  to  be  taken  on  board  the  ship  where 
General  Dearborn  was.  The  Doctor  says — "  I  met 
him  coming  on  shore,  and  presented  him  with  the 
articles  of  capitulation.  He  read  them  without 
deigning  an  answer.  I  requested  him  to  let  me  know 
whether  he  would  parole  the  officers  and  men,  and 
demanded  leave  to  take  away  our  sick  and  wounded. 
He  treated  me  with  great  harshness,  and  told  me  we 
had  given  a  false  estimate  of  officers.  He  told  me  to 
keep  off,  and  not  to  follow  him,  as  he  had  business  of 
much  greater  importance  to  attend  to.  I  complained 
of  this  treatment  to  Commodore  Chauncey,  who  had 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  123 

command  of  the  flotilla,  and  declared  that  if  the 
capitulation  were  not  immediately  signed,  we  would 
not  receive  it,  and  affirmed  that  the  delay  was  a 
deception,  calculated  to  give  the  riflemen  time  to 
plunder,  and  that  after  the  town  had  been  robbed 
they  would  then  perhaps  sign  the  capitulation,  and 
tell  us  that  they  respected  private  property ;  but 
that  we  were  determined  that  they  should  not  have 
it  in  their  power  to  say  they  respected  private  pro- 
perty after  it  had  been  stolen.  Upon  saying  this 
I  broke  away."  Those  who  knew  the  Bishop  can 
picture  the  commanding  and  righteous  indignation 
with  which  it  was  done. 

;  "  Soon  after  this,"  he  says,  "  General  Dearborn 
came  into  the  room,  and  being  told  what  I  had  said, 
settled  the  matter  amicably."  He  continues,  "We 
spent  the  whole  of  Thursday  the  29th  in  removing 
the  sick  and  wounded,  and  getting  comforts  for 
them." 

On  the  following  day  the  Government  buildings 
were  set  on  fire,  contrary  to  the  articles  of  capitula- 
tion, and  the  church  was  robbed.  "  I  called  a  meeting 
of  the  judges  and  magistrates,  drew  up  a  short  note 
stating  our  grievances,  and  waited  upon  General 
Dearborn  with  it.  He  was  greatly  embarrassed,  and 
promised  everything." 

This  extract  sufficiently  exhibits  Dr.  Strachan's 
activity  and  fearless  courage,  and  explains  the  chival- 
rous regard  in  which  he  was  ever  afterwards  held. 

The  next  year  the  war  closed,  and  other  scenes 
opened. 


MCGILL    COLLEGE. 

The. Hon.  James  McGill  of  Montreal,  a  kinsman 
of  Dr.  Strachan,  bequeathed  £10,000,  together  with 
several  acres  of  land  and  a  spacious  and  substantial 


HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

'dwelling-house,  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a 
University  for  the  education  of  the  English-speaking 
youth  of  that  city  and  province.  It  was  at  first  a 
Churchjof  Engjand^^stitution,  and  so  Dr.  Strachan 
wasTamecr  a'^trustee'_oT-^hTs  munificent  bequest, 
with  an  intimation  of  Mr.  McG-ill's  desire  that  he 
should  be  the  first  Principal  of  the  College  when 
established. 

Owing  to  family  litigation  it  was  so  long  before 
the  College  could  be  started,  that  Dr.  Strachan  was 
in  such  a  position  that  he  could  not  entertain  the 
dying  request  of  his  friend. 

In  1820,^  Sir  Peregrine  Maitland  appointed  Dr. 
Strachan,  without  previous  consultation,  he  says,  to  a 
seat  in  the  Legislative  Council,  assigning  as  a  reason 
that  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  have  some  confi- 
dential person  through  whom  to  make  communica- 
tions. This  appointment  involved  some  pecuniary 
loss,  as  Dr.  Strachan  had  to  resign  the  chaplaincy  of 
the  Council.  It  no  doubt  increased  his  influence  in 
all  secular  matters,  but  it  also  brought  with  it  many 
of  the  worst  troubles  and  fiercest  assaults  which 
harassed  him  in  the  coming  years. 

There  was  at  that  time  only  one  square  wooden 
church,  66  x  60  feet,  in  Toronto.  The  communicants 
numbered  only  sixty,  the  Sunday-school  eighty ;  the 
whole  population,  however,  only  numbered  about 
1200.  The  vicious  system  of  raising  money  for  the 
building  or  enlargement  of  churches  by  selling  the 
fee-simple  of  pews  was  then  in  vogue,  and  the  church 
of  St.  James  had  lately  been  enlarged  at  the  cost  of 
£2700  on  this  principle.  The  deadening  effects  of 
this  evil  heritage  are  felt  to  this  day  in  that  con- 
gregation ;  the  proprietary  rights  then  created  are 
still  maintained.  There  was  at  this  time  but  a  mere 
sprinkling  of  clergymen  throughout  Upper  Canada, 
though  the  members  of  the  Church  bore  a  large  pro- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  125 

portion  to  the  general  population,  and  everywhere  its 
ministrations  were  very  cordially  accepted.  Neither 
the  Presbyterians  nor  the  "Roman  Catholics  had  any 
place  of  worship  in  the  town.  The  Methodists,  how- 
ever, had  a  large  chapel  and  were  very  active. 

On  going  west  from  Toronto,  the  first  clergyman 
you  came  to  was  the  Rev.  Mr.  Miller  at  Ancaster,  forty 
miles  away.  In  the  Niagara  Peninsula  there  were 
three,  viz.  at  Niagara,  Chippewa,  and  Grimsby  ;  then 
going  westward  yon  found  none  until  you  reached 
Amherstburg  and  Sandwich,  a  distance  of  over  200 
miles.  All  the  rest  of  that  vast  district,  now  com 
posing  the  Dioceses  of  Huron,  Niagara,  and  Algoma, 
was  utterly  without  the  ministration  of  the  Church. 

Then  going  eastward  from  Toronto  there  was  no 
clergyman  till  you  reached  Cobourg.  To  the  north 
of  this,  another  was  settled  at  Cavan,  then  a  blank 
until  Bellville  was  reached.  Then  Bath  and  Kingston, 
then  a  blank  to  Brockville  on  one  side  and  Perth  on 
the  other.  The  next  was  at  Williamsburg,  and  the 
last  at  Cornwall.  There  were  besides,  a  chaplain  to 
the  forces  stationed  at  Niagara,  a  chaplain  to  the 
navy  at  Kingston,  and  a  clergyman  in  charge  of  the 
Grammar  School  there ;  sixteen  in  all  to  supply  the 
needs  of  a  population  scattered  over  a  territory  larger 
than  England,  Wales,  and  Scotland. 


THE    CLERGY    RESERVE. 

The  origin  and  object  of  the  Clergy  Preserve  lands 
have  been  described  in  the  history  of  the  Diocese  of 
Quebec.  In  the  Act  constituting  the  Province  of 
Upper  Canada,  it  was  expressly  provided  that  one- 
seventh  of  all  the  land  of  the  Province  should  be 
reserved  for  the  support  and  maintenance  of  a 
Protestant  clergy. 

Fierce  disputes  before  long  arose  about  the  meaning 


126  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  the  term  "  Protestant  clergy,"  and  then  about  the 
legality  of  the  title,  or  the  right  of  the  Crown  to 
make  such  grants.  Twice  Dr.  Strachan  was  sent  to 
England  to  defend  the  rights  of  the  Church.  That 
defence  called  forth  the  most  furious  attacks  upon 
him  in  the  newspapers  of  the  day,  at  the  hustings, 
and  in  the  legislative  halls  of  the  country.  The 
most  slanderous  accusations  with  regard  both  to  his 
public  and  private  life  were  whispered  in  secret,  and 
proclaimed  upon  the  housetops.  He  made  no  reply, 
and  in  answer  to  his  friends,  who  called  upon  him  to 
vindicate  his  character  and  show  the  falsity  of  the 
accusations,  which  he  could  easily  have  done,  he  still 
replied,  "If  my  life,  lived  so  many  years  before  the 
public,  is  not  enough  to  silence  such  slanders,  then 
Avords  will  only  be  wasted.  Besides,"  he  used  to  say, 
"  such  unrestrained  abuse  is  sure  to  create  sympathy 
and  a  reaction  of  feeling  in  favour  of  one  so  un- 
justly assailed.  In  all  my  affairs  I  have  one  simple 
principle  to  guide  me,  which  is  an  honest  desire  to 
do  as  well  as  I  can,  and  leave  the  result  to  God. 
These  calumnies,  therefore,  pass  me  like  the  idle  wind, 
and  I  turn  for  them  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the 
left "  The  battle  raged  about  this  cpaestion  with 
increasing  fury,  till  it  was  finally  settled  as  already 
described  in  1854. 


THE    UNIVERSITY. 

Scarcely  less  fierce  was  the  conflict  over  the  Uni- 
versity. Dr.  Strachan  had  come,  as  we  have  seen,  to 
this  country  with  the  prospect  and  promise  of  the 
establishment  of  a  University.  His  first  disappoint- 
ment has  already  been  detailed.  It  was  followed 
by  long  years  of  hope  deferred.  In  1826,  he 
was  sent  as  a  special  envoy  to  England  to  urge  the 
immediate  establishment  of  a  Cauadian  University. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  127 

He  came  back  with  a  royal  charter  and  certain  grants 
in  money.  It  was  said  to  be  the  most  liberal  charter 
that  bad  ever  been  granted,  as  no  religious  tests  were 
required  for  matriculation  or  graduation  except  in 
divinity,  in  which  department  the  rule  of  Oxford  was 
observed ;  a  religious  basis  of  education  was  retained, 
and  the  control  of  the  institution  was  entrusted  to 
the  Established  Church  of  the  Empire.  It  was  there- 
fore enacted  that  the  seven  Professors  should  be 
members  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  the  President 
a  clergyman  of  that  Church.  Dr.  Strachan  had  in 
the  meantime  been  made  Archdeacon  of  York,  and 
the  charter  constituted  him  permanent  President  of 
the  projected  College.  This  naturally  awakened  the 
determined  opposition  of  all  who  were  not  members 
of  the  Church  of  England.  The  strife  daily  grew 
hotter,  and  resulted  in  no  action  being  taken  for  a 
long  time  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  the  charter. 
Then  Sir  John  Colborne,  on  his  arrival  as  Governor, 
questioned  the  advisability  of  establishing  this  highest 
seat  of  learning  while  the  preliminary  education  of 
the  country  was  so  defective.  He  urged  that  qualified 
pupils  for  the  curriculum  of  a  University  would  not 
be  obtained.  This  led  to  the  establishment  of  Upper 
Canada  College,  which  in  one  year  after  Sir  John's 
arrival  in  the  country,  was  in  actual  operation  with 
an  efficient  staff  of  masters.  It  became  an  immediate 
success,  and  has  retained  the  foremost  place  amongst 
Canadian  institutions  of  the  Grammar  School  type 
ever  since.  Like  the  projected  University,  it  was 
practically  a  Church  of  England  institution.  Its 
earlier  masters  were,  for  the  most  part,  members  of 
the  Church  of  England,  and  though  it  has  long  since 
been  wholly  secularized,  it  has  retained  up  to  the 
present  time  some  shadow  of  the  Church's  tradition 
in  its  daily  worship. 


128  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


THE    PLAGUE    OF  I  1832X 

The  A.siatic_cholera,  of  whose  terrors  in  Quebec  and 
Montreal  an  account  has  been  given,  reached  Toronto 
early  in  the  same  summer,  1832.  The  large  emigra- 
tion of  that  year,  amounting  to  over  50,000  people, 
passed  for  the  most  part  into  Western  Canada.  The 
distance  from  Quebec  to  Toronto  was  so  great  (600 
miles),  that  the  pittance  with  which  some  of  the 
emigrants  came  was  soon  exhausted,  and  they  reached 
Toronto,  for  the  most  part,  in  a  penniless  condition. 
"  The  terrible  disease,"  the  Bishop  writes,  "  attacked 
them  as  they  journeyed  thither ;  many  died  on  the 
way,  others  were  landed  in  various  stages  of  the 
disease,  and  many  were  seized  after  they  came 
amongst  us.  In  short,  York  became  one  general 
hospital.  We  had  a  large  building  fitted  up  for  the 
reception  of  patients,  but  the  cases  were  so  numerous 
that  many  could  not  be  conveyed  to  it,  and  remained 
at  their  own  homes  or  lodgings.  It  is  computed  that 
one-fourth  of  the  adults  of  this  town  were  attacked, 
and  that  one-twelfth  of  the  whole  population  died. 
Our  duty  brought  us  into  the  midst  of  this  calamity. 
Unfortunately  my  assistant  was  attacked  a  day  or 
two  after  the  disease  appeared  among  us,  and  became 
so  nervous  that  I  could  not  send  him  to  the  cholera 
hospital.  The  whole  therefore  fell  upon  me,  and 
often  have  I  been  in  the  malignant  ward  with  six 
or  eight  expiring  around  me.  The  foulness  of  the 
air  too  was  overpowering  at  times,  but  I  have 
always,  by  the  blessing  of  God,  found  my  nerves  equal 
to  the  occasion,  and  it  seemed  as  if  this  summer  I 
was  stronger  than  usual,  and  fully  equal  to  the 
increase  of  labour  thrown  upon  me.  The  disease  has 
now  almost  entirely  ceased,  but  it  has  left  many 
blanks  in  our  society,  and,  what  is  still  more  painful, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  129 

about  100  widows  and  400  children,  all  strangers  in 
a  strange  land,  and  dependent  upon  the  charity  of 
those  amongst  whom  the  Providence  of  God  has 
thrown  them." 

The  land  was  full-  of  the  praises  of  Archdeacon 
Strachan  for  his  wonderful  courage,  energy,  and 
kindness  during  the  continuance  of  this  terrible 
scourge.  The  inhabitants  presented  him  with  a 
grateful  address,  and  a  piece  of  plate  costing  £100, 
"as  a  memorial  of  their  respect  and  gratitude  for  his 
fearless  and  humane  devotion  to  his  pastoral  duties, 
during  seasons  of  great  danger  and  distress  from  the 
visitation  of  an  appalling  pestilence." 


THE    RECTORIES. 

The  strife  about  the  Rectories  occupies  almost  as 
prominent  a  place  in  the  annals  of  the  country  and  of 
the  Church  as  the  dispute  about  the  Clergy  Reserves. 
It  was,  in  fact,  a  part  of  the  same  discussion.  What 
were  called  the  Clergy  Reserves  were  created,  as  we 
have  seen,  by  the  reservation  of  one-seventh  of  the 
unappropriated  land  of  Upper  and  Lower  Canada,  for 
the  support  of  a  "  Protestant  Clergy."  But  as  these 
lands,  which  were  managed  by  the  Government,  were 
yielding  but  very  little  revenue  to  the  Church,  it 
was  therefore  suggested  by  Sir  John  Colborne,  the 
Governor  of  Upper  Canada,  and  concurred  in  by  the 
Imperial  Government,  that  two  Rectories  should  be 
established  in  each  township  (the  townships  averaged 
about  twelve  miles  square),  and  that  400  acres  out 
of  the  Clergy  Reserves  should  be  conveyed  to  the 
incumbents  of  these  Rectories,  to  hold  in  trust  for 
the  purpose  of  ensuring  the  future  comfort  if  not  the 
complete  maintenance  of  the  Rectors.  It  was  deter- 
mined to  establish  in  the  settled  townships  at  once 

i 


ISO  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

fifty-seven  such  Rectories.  The  actual  endowment 
however  of  forty-four  only  was  completed. 

This  appropriation  became  another  grievance,  and 
was  made  an  election  cry.  Fierce  and  long  was  the 
fight  about  the  validity  of  these  titles.  This  was 
finally  set  at  rest  by  an  appeal  to  the  Courts,  which 
pronounced  in  favour  of  the  validity,  and  secured 
thus  much  of  the  Reserves  to  the  Church  of  England. 
These  lands  are  now  administered  by  the  Synods,  and 
the  incomes  derived  from  them  are  distributed  on  a 
fixed  scale  among  the  Incumbents  of  the  several 
parishes  now  existing,  or  that  may  hereafter  be 
established,  in  the  municipalities  thus  endowed. 

Both  the  reservation  of  land  and  the  endowment 
of  Rectories  was  stopped  at  the  withdrawal  of  Sir 
John  Colborne  from  the  Government  of  the  Province. 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  SEE  OF  TORONTO. 

Dr.  Stewart,  Bishop  of  Quebec,  it  will.; be  remem- 
bered, died  in  1837,  and  Dr.  Mountain,  who  had  been 
consecrated  as  his  coadjutor  under  the  title  of  Bishop 
of  Montreal,  succeeded  to  the  charge  of  the  whole 
Diocese,  including  Upper  and  Lower  Canada.  This 
revived  the  project,  long  before  entertained,  of  dividing 
that  vast  jurisdiction,  and  constituting  each  Province 
into  a  separate  Diocese.  Sir  Francis  Head,  the 
Governor,  warmly  seconded  the  proposal ;  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  willingly  gave  his  consent.  It 
was  distinctly  announced,  however,  that  the  Home 
Government  would  not,  as  had  been  the  custom  up 
to  this  time,  provide  any  endowment  or  give  any 
pecuniary  assistance  whatever.  Archdeacon  Strachan, 
however,  who,  it  was  well  known  among  those  who 
controlled  such  appointments  at  that  time,  would  be 
selected  for  the  new  See,  informed  the  Colonial 
Secretary  that  the  matter  of   salary  need  form  no 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  131 

impediment  to  an  immediate  appointment  of  a  Bishop 
for  Upper  Canada,  as  he  would  be  content  to  remain 
in  that  respect  exactly  as  he  now  was,  till  the  per- 
plexing question  of  the  Clergy  Reserves  should  be 
settled,  when  it  would  be  in  the  power  of  Her 
Majesty's  Government  to  make  another  and  more 
satisfactory  arrangement.   ■ 

In  addressing  the  Governor,  Sir  George  Arthur, 
Feb.  20th,  1839,  the  Archdeacon  says — 

"  In  making  this  proposal  I  can  with  truth  assure 
you  that  I  am  by  no  means  insensible  to  the  propriety 
as  well  as  the  necessity  of  granting  adequate  provision 
for  the  decent  support  of  the  Episcopal  office  in  this 
rising  colony,  but  persuaded  that  the  interests  of  the 
Church  are  suffering  from  the  want  of  this  Episcopal 
superintendence,  which  has  for  some  time  been 
earnestly  desired  by  many  of  her  members,  and  unani- 
mously by  the  clergy,  I  thought  my  proposition 
might  accelerate  the  removal  of  that  want  by  a  few 
years,  and  thus  promote  in  no  small  degree  the 
salutary  influence  of  Christian  doctrine  throughout 
the  Province." 

This  proposal  opened  the  way  for  an  immediate 
appointment,  and  accordingly,  in  the  summer  of  1839, 
Archdeacon  Strachan  was  appointed  by  the  Crown, 
and  in  August  of  that  year  was  consecrated  by  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  as  first  Bishop  of  Toronto. 
At  the  same  time  the  Hon.  and  Reverend  Dr. 
Spencer  was  consecrated  the  first  Bishop  of  the 
Diocese  of  Newfoundland.  The  Bishop  of  Toronto 
reached  his  home  on  the  9th  of  Sept.,  1839,  and  was 
welcomed  with  great  joy  and  affection. 

Early  the  next  spring,  1840,  the  Bishop  began  his 
first  visitation  of  his  Diocese,  which  stretched  for 
more  than  400  miles  along  the  lake  and  river  frontage, 
and  ran  back  for  about  the  same  distance  into  the 
as  yet  unexplored  forest.     The  most  remote  mission 


132  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

was  distant  about  300  miles  from  Toronto ;  but  from 
tbe  necessity  of  diverging  in  many  cases  from  the 
main  road  to  reach  the  several  congregations,  the 
amount  of  travelling  was  very  much  increased.  From 
the  24th  of  May  till  the  end  of  Oct.  the  Bishop  was 
engaged,  with  three  intermissions  not  exceeding  ten 
days  in  all,  in  constant  travel.  Before  he  ceased  he 
had  visited  almost  every  parish  and  mission  in  his 
Diocese.  Dr.  Strachan  was  sixty-one  years  of  age 
when  he  was  consecrated,  and  yet  but  very  few  men 
in  the  vigour  of  youth  could  have  endured  the  toils 
and  the  mental  strain  of  that  five  months  of  con- 
tinuous labour,  with  health  unimpaired  and  spirits 
unbroken.  The  amount  of  travelling  was  enormous, 
not  less  than  10,000  miles.  It  was  all  performed  in 
an  open  vehicle.  The  roads  in  many  cases  were  ex- 
tremely rough,  stony  or  swampy,  with  miles  of 
"corduroy,"  or  log  bridges  over  swamps,  without 
any  covering  of  earth.  Over  these  the  carriages 
jolted  violently  and  moved  at  a  snail's  pace,  while  the 
fare  every  clay  and  the  accommodation  every  night 
were  of  the  coarsest  and  rudest  character.  These 
trials  were  of  a  bodily  nature,  but  the  mental  strain 
must  have  been  very  great.  The  Bishop  held  one, 
and  generally  two,  confirmations  every  clay.  On 
these  occasions  he  always  preached,  and  then  after 
the  confirmation  addressed  the  confirmees  at  great 
length,  giving  doctrinal  instruction  and  practical 
direction  of  a  very  detailed  character  both  to  parents 
and  to  children. 

The  Bishop  held  his  primary  visitation  in  Toronto, 
Sept.  1841  ;  there  were  then  eighty-six  clergymen  in 
the  Diocese,  nine  of  whom  had  been  ordained  by 
himself.  Among  other  topics  discussed  in  his  charge, 
he  gave  a  brief  sketch  of  the  history  of  the  Church 
in  the  Diocese.     He  said — 

"  For  many  years  after  its  first  settlement  as  the 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  133 

favourite  asylum  of  suffering  loyalty,  there  was  but 
one  clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Stuart,  within  its  extensive  limits.  Even  at  the 
commencement  of  1803,  the  Diocese  contained  only 
four  clergymen,  for  it  was  in  the  spring  of  that 
year  that  I  made  the  fifth.  In  1819,  the  clergy  of 
this  Province  had  increased  to  ten;  in  1825,  they 
had  risen  to  twenty-two  ;  in  1827,  to  thirty;  in  1833, 
to  forty-six ;  and  now  our  number  is  about  ninety. 
Still  our  spiritual  wants  are  many.  More  than  forty 
missionaries  could  at  this  moment  be  most  usefully 
employed,  and  earnest  applications  are  daily  being 
made  to  me  from  various  villages  and  townships  for 
resident  clergymen.  In  passing  through  the  Diocese 
T  beheld  the  clergy  everywhere  active  and  laborious, 
living  in  good  feeling  and  harmony  among  themselves 
and  with  their  flocks,  seeking  out  our  people  in  the 
wilderness,  forming  them  into  congregations  and 
parishes,  and  extending  on  every  side  the  foundations 
of  the  Church." 


THEOLOGICAL    COLLEGE,    COBOURG. 

There  was  such  persistent  opposition  and  conse- 
quent delay  in  carrying  out  the  life-long  aim  of 
Bishop  Strachan  for  the  establishment  of  a  University 
for  the  higher  education  of  the  clergy  and  people, 
that  it  was  determined  to  found  the  Theological 
College  at  Cobourg,  under  Dr.  A.  N.  Bethune.  At 
this  institution  about  fifty  of  the  clergy  of  that  period 
were  educated. 

KING'S    COLLEGE    UNIVERSITY. 

The  long-deferred  hopes  were,  however,  realized  at 
last,  and  Sir  Charles  Bagot,  the  newly-appointed 
Governor,  laid  the  corner-stone  of  King's  College  on 


134  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

the  3rd  April,  1842.  This  was  a  great  joy  to  the 
Bishop.  The  University  for  which  he  had  toiled  so 
long  and  endured  so  much  was  at  last  begun.  The 
joy,  however,  was  short-lived.  The  past  mutterings 
of  discontent  revived  at  once.  There  was  undisguised 
jealousy  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  this  feeling 
never  slumbered  till  it  affected  the  complete  seculariz- 
ation of  the  University  in  1848,  only  six  years  after 
its  foundation. 


THE    CHURCH    SOCIETY. 

In  less  than  a  week  after  the  foundation  of  the 
University  was  laid,  another  important  step  was 
taken  in  the  organization  of  the  Church  Society, 
which  occupied  such  a  prominent  place  in  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Church  throughout  Ontario.  For 
many  years  previous  to  this  there  were  district 
branches  of  the  S.  P.  C.  K.,  and  as  far  back  as  1829 
there  was  a  Society  established  at  Toronto,  "  for  the 
civilization  and  conversion  of  the  Indians,  aDd  for 
extending  the  ministrations  of  the  Church  among  the 
destitute  settlers  of  the  Province."  A  good  work 
was  being  accomplished  by  both  these  Societies,  but 
it  was  thought  best  to  concentrate  all  our  Church 
work  of  this  character  in  one  organization.  At  the 
summons  of  the  Bishop,  a  large  number  of  the  clergy 
and  many  of  the  most  influential  laymen  of  the 
Province  assembled  on  the  28th  April,  1842,  and 
formally  organized  the  Church  Society.  Similar 
organizations  either  had  been  or  were  soon  formed 
in  all  the  Canadian  Dioceses,  until  Ontario  led  the 
way  in  making  the  Synod  the  central  missionary 
organization  of  the  Diocese.  In  this  way  the  Church 
really  became  the  great  missionary  organization  which 
is  surely  the  true  view  of  her  character. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  125 


THE    BISHOP  S    JOURNEY. 

The  Bishop  continued  bis  yearly  confirmation  tours 
through  a  considerable  part  of  his  Diocese  till  relieved 
of  these  onerous  duties  by  the  appointment  of  a 
coadjutor.  These  tours  were  so  arranged  that  every 
parish  and  mission  was  visited  at  least  once  in  three 
years. 

In  1842,  the  Bishop  set  out  to  visit  the  most 
northernly  part  of  his  Diocese.  After  a  journey  of 
120  miles,  largely  through  the  woods,  the  party 
reached  Penetanguishene.  After  consecrating  the 
church  that  had  been  erected  here,  they  set  out  in 
canoes  for  Manitoulin  Island,  distant  about  200 
miles  by  the  course  they  took.  On  the  29th  July, 
they  encamped  on  Fox  Island  amid  pouring  rain. 
They  had  great  difficulty  in  pitching  their  tents. 
The  wind  and  rain  increased  during  the  night.  Three 
of  the  tents  were  blown  down,  and  the  inmates  had 
to  make  the  best  of  their  way,  in  their  night  clothes, 
through  the  darkness  to  some  of  the  other  tents 
which  withstood  the  storm. 

"The  encampment  on  the  following  evening," 
writes  the  Bishop,  "  was  not  a  little  picturesque. 
Nine  tents  were  pitched,  and  as  many  fires  lighted ; 
groups  gathered  around  each  fire,  and  as  the  darkness 
increased  shadows  went  flitting  from  place  to  place  ; 
while  some  of  the  men  were  seen  rolled  up  in  their 
blankets  and  sleeping  on  the  bare  rock.  The  party 
never  dined  until  they  stopped  for  the  night.  Some- 
times as  late  as  nine  o'clock,  table-cloths  were  spread 
on  the  smoothest  part  of  the  rock,  and  the  guests 
squatted  around  in  Eastern  fashion,  with  candles  or 
lanterns  to  illuminate  the  feast.  On  the  first  night 
of  the  encampment  it  was  found  that  one  of  the 
canoes   was  manned  by  converted  Indians.     Before 


136  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

going  to  rest  they  assembled  and  sang  a  hymn  in 
their  own  language,  and  recited  prayers  which  they 
had  been  taught.  There  was  something  indescribably 
touching  in  this  service  of  praise  to  God  upon  these 
lonely  rocks.  The  stillness,  wildness,  and  darkness, 
combined  with  the  sweet  and  plaintive  voices,  all 
contributed  to  the  beauty  and  solemnity  of  the  scene." 

After  holding  confirmation  at  Manitowaning,  the 
Bishop  and  his  party  left  for  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie, 
distant  about  150  miles.  They  did  not  reach  their 
destination  till  the  14th  August.  Mr.  McMurray, 
now  Archdeacon  of  Niagara,  was  at  the  time  in 
charge  of  this  remote  mission.  Fifty  candidates 
were  confirmed,  and  then  the  party  started  for 
Makinac  in  the  United  States.  Here  they  took 
steamer  for  the  village  of  Sutherland,  more  than 
300  miles  away  on  the  St.  Clair  River.  The  Bishop 
held  confirmation  at  Sandwich,  Amherstburg,  Col- 
chester, and  other  places  on  the  western  frontier,  and 
then  visited  the  Indian  mission  of  Muncy  Town, 
under  the  charge  of  the  Rev.   J.   Flood. 

"The  Indians,"  said  the  Bishop,  "assembled  in  great 
numbers ;  it  was  to  be  a  great  day,  as  the  great 
Chippewa  Chief  was  to  be  baptized  and  confirmed. 
There  were  still  many  pagan  Indians  in  this  settle- 
ment ;  these,  however,  were  all  in  the  habit  of 
attending  the  services  of  the  Church.  The  con- 
version of  the  great  Chief  was  expected  to  have  a 
favourable  effect  upon  those  who  were  still  pagans. 
The  school-house,  though  large,  could  scarcely  contain 
half  the  number  assembled,  and  they  stood  in  groups 
around  the  doors  and  windows.  After  his  baptism 
the  Chief  and  four  others  were  confirmed." 

The  Bishop  proceeded  from  thence  to  Goderich,  and 
thence  through  the  northern  part  of  his  Diocese  back 
to  Toronto,  on  the  3rd  October,  after  a  continued 
absence  of  nearly  five  months. 


EASTEKN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  137 

Year  after  year,  with  unflagging  energy,  these 
confirmation  tours  were  continued.  The  Bishop's 
journal,  which  is  very  full,  is  crowded  with  thrilling 
incidents ;  but  it  is  not  possible  within  our  limited 
space  to  give  even  an  outline  of  these.  A  few 
illustrations  taken  from  that  journal  will  be  sufficient 
to  give  a  fair  idea  of  what  these  long  journeys  in 
many  cases  implied. 

In  speaking  of  a  journey  from  Chatham  through 
the  Talbot  district,  he  says — "  We  had  not  pro- 
ceeded far  before  we  found  the  sloughs  frightful. 
Every  moment  we  expected  to  stick  fast  or  break 
clown.  A  thunderstorm  came  on,  and  the  rain  fell 
in  such  torrents  as  greatly  to  increase  the  difficulty. 
After  labouring  nine  hours  we  stuck  fast,  about  five 
o'clock,  when  witbin  hnlf  a  mile  of  Talbot  Bead. 
At  length,  taking  out  the  horses,  we  left  the  wagon, 
with  the  baggage,  in  order  to  go  to  the  nearest  house 
for  the  night,  distant  nine  miles.  By  this  time  it 
was  six  o'clock.  The  horses,  almost  killed  with 
straining  and  pulling,  could  hardly  walk.  Another 
storm  of  thunder  and  lightning  came  on,  and  the 
narrow  path  overhung  with  branches  became  suddenly 
dark,  and  we  could  see  no  path,  but  were  striking 
against  the  trees  and  one  another.  We  contiuued 
to  wander  till  nine  o'clock,  when  we  were  forced  to 
halt.  Unfortunately  we  had  no  means  of  lighting 
a  fire,  notwithstanding  the  cold  and  wet ;  and  expect- 
ing to  get  to  a  house,  we  had  nothing  to  eat  or  drink. 
There  was  no  remedy  but  to  sit  quietly  under  the 
trees  till  morning.  Till  I  fell  into  a  serious  train 
of  thought  the  time  seemed  very  long ;  but  after  I 
became  absorbed  in  meditation,  time  flew  rapidly 
and  the  cold  was  forgotten." 

Walpole  Island,  one  of  the  most  important  Indian 
stations,  seems  to  be  a  continuation  of  the  shallows 
or  flats  of  Lake  St.  Clair,  and  to  have  been  formed 


138  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

from  deposits  from  the  upper  lakes ;  the  soil  is 
altogether  alluvial,  and  the  surface  is  so  little  raised 
above  the  river  that  the  greater  portion  is  covered 
with  water  when  the  lakes  and  rivers  rise.  This 
rising  seems  to  take  place  periodically,  although  the 
exact  cycle  has  not  yet  been  ascertained.  Speaking 
of  his  visit  to  this  island  in  1845,  the  Bishop  says — 
"  We  made,  after  service,  a  hasty  dinner  with  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Keating,  and  as  it  was  by  this  time  getting 
dark  and  threatening  rain,  we  hurried  to  get  across 
to  the  main  shore.  -In  our  haste  we  did  not  perceive, 
till  we  had  cast  off  from  the  main  land  and  were 
in  the  stream,  that  our  canoe  was  too  small  for  our 
number,  and  the  water  within  an  inch  of  the  edge. 
Had  there  been  any  wind  we  should  have  been  in  the 
greatest  danger ;  but  blessed  be  God,  by  using  every 
precaution,  and  maintaining  a  careful  balance,  we 
got  over  safely.  As  there  was  no  sort  of  accommoda- 
tion whatever  where  we  had  left  our  horses,  we  were 
obliged  to  push  on,  in  the  hope  of  reaching  an  inn 
a  few  miles  further  up  the  river  St.  Clair.  By  this 
time  it  was  growing  dark,  and  before  we  had  pro- 
ceeded half  a  mile  the  rain  came  on  in  torrents,  and 
the  thunder  and  lightning  were  so  terrific  that  the 
horses  trembled  and  could  scarcely  keep  their  legs. 
The  darkness  also  became  so  great  that  except  from 
the  flashes  of  lightning  we  were  unable  to  see  the 
road.  Having  crept  forward  about  a  mile  and  a 
half,  the  storm  continuing  without  intermission,  we 
descried,  from  a  friendly  flash  of  lightning,  a  farm- 
house, and  happy  were  the  party  when  I  consented 
to  stay  there  for  the  night.  It  was  now  late,  for 
we  had  consumed  much  time  in  making  this  short 
journey,  and  the  inmates  of  the  house  were  all  sound 
asleep.  After  knocking  for  some  time  they  at  length 
opened  the  door  and  let  us  in.  We  stated  our 
distress,  and   the  causes  which  had  led  to  our  d's- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  139 

turbing  them,  which  indeed  were  sufficiently  visible 
from  our  miserable  and  drowned  appearance,  and  on 
hearing  our  story  they  received  us  kindly,  and  did 
all  in  their  power  to  make  us  comfortable." 

This,  however,  was  nothing  compared  with  the 
difficulties  encountered  on  another  occasion  in  a 
journey  from  Owen  Sound  to  Guelph.  The  Bishop 
had  reached  the  Sound  by  steamer  from  Manitoulin 
Island.  He  says — "We  found  the  road  very  rough, 
and  getting  worse  as  we  proceeded.  It  ran  along  a 
stony  ridge  to  avoid  the  low  and  marshy  places  on 
either  side,  and  what  with  large  stones,  deep  crevices 
between  them,  roots  of  trees,  and  deep  holes,  the 
shaking  of  the  wagon  became  intolerable.  After 
confirming  at  two  places,  the  latter  thirteen  miles 
from  Owen  Sound,  we  left  for  Edge's  at  half-past 
four,  and  though  scarcely  nine  miles  off,  with  little 
hope  of  getting  there,  as  the  road  was  becoming  more 
and  more  impracticable.  After  bounding  from  stone 
to  stone,  the  rain  meanwhile  falling  in  torrents,  and 
occasionally  getting  into  a  deep  hole  by  way  of 
variety,  we  found  darkness  rapidly  approaching,  and 
were  glad  to  crave  shelter  for  the  night  from  Mr. 
Smith,  who  with  his  wife,  ten  sons,  and  one  daughter, 
had  taken  up  Government  land,  and  was  gradually 
clearing  a  good  farm.  We  no  doubt  put  the  family 
to  much  inconvenience;  yet  they  made  us  heartily 
welcome,  and  insisted  that  we  should  occupy  their 
beds,  such  as  they  were,  doing  all  in  their  power  to 
make  us  comfortable. 

"  We  rose  next  morning  as  soon  as  we  could  see, 
and  got  ready  for  our  journey.  A  mile  onwards 
there  was  a  very  heavy,  deep  slough,  full  of  roots 
and  loose  stones,  through  which  the  Smiths  told  us 
it  would  be  impossible  for  the  horses  to  drag  the 
wagon,  and  they  very  kindly  offered  to  accompany 
us,  and  assist  us  in  getting  over  it.     We  found  their 


uo 


HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


account  of  it  by  no  means  exaggerated,  for  we  were 
obliged  to  take  the  horses  from  the  wagon,  and 
even  then  they  plunged  so  much  that  they  were  in 
the  greatest  danger  of  sinking  over  their  heads. 
The  poor  animals,  when  they  at  length  reached  the 
firm  soil,  trembled  and  looked  much  frightened.  The 
wagon  was  dragged  through  by  the  three  Smiths, 
the  driver,  and  two  men  whom  I  had  hired  to  attend 
us  on  this  perilous  journey.  The  Smiths  returned 
home,  and  we  sent  forward  to  Edge's  to  request  that 
they  would  meet  us  with  a  yoke  of  oxen  at  a  bridge 
over  the  river  Saugeen,  which  was  said  to  be  very 
insecure,  and  at  the  further  end  of  which  was  a 
slough  much  worse  than  the  one  we  had  just  passed. 
We  soon  came  to  the  bridge,  where  we  alighted,  and 
after  examining  it,  and  carefully  mending  some  of 
the  holes,  and  then  using  great  caution,  we  got  the 
wagon  and  horses  safely  across  ;  but  they  no  sooner 
left  it  than  they  sank  so  deeply  into  the  mire  that 
we  thought  they  would  be  lost.  After  some  labour 
Ave  got  their  harness  off,  and  separated  them  from 
the  wagon  ;  and  then  on  our  cheering  them,  they 
were  roused  to  fresh  exertion,  and  at  length  we  got 
them  upon  hard  ground.  Had  it  not  been  for  the 
two  men  who  attended  us,  and  the  driver,  the  poor 
animals  would  certainly  have  been  smothered.  The 
oxen  at  last  came,  under  the  charge  of  an  inexperi- 
enced Irishman.  They  succeeded  in  dragging  the 
wagon  out,  but  almost  immediately  the  Irishman 
drove  the  oxen  between  two  trees  standing  near 
together,  and  jammed  the  wagon  in  so  tightly  that 
one  of  the  trees  had,  bp*  be  cut  down.  This  was  a 
work  of  time,  as  they  "had  no  axe,  only  a  hatchet. 
At  last  the  oxen  dragged  the  wagon  out  of  the 
swamp  to  the  foot  of  a  high  hill,  which  was  so 
slippery  and  steep  and  wet  that  the  poor  oxen  were 
put   to   their   utmost    exertion    to    reach    the    top. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  141 

This,"  the  Bishop  says,  "  was  a  severe  trial  to  us 
all,  but  it  was  useless  to  murmur ;  we  had  been 
seven  hours  getting  over  nine  miles,  and  it  was 
past  ten  when  we  reached  Edge's  house.  At  eleven  we 
had  service,  the  congregation  numbering  seventeen, 
but  only  one  person  was  presented  for  confirmation. 

"  We  proceeded  on  our  journey  at  half-past  one,  and 
had  not  proceeded  far  when  we  found  the  road  or 
path  obstructed  by  a  large  tree,  which  a  settler  had 
just  cut  down,  and  was  cutting  into  lengths.  We 
had  much  difficulty  in  getting  around  this,  and  were 
vexed  at  the  woodman's  evident  enjoyment  of  our 
perplexity.  We  thought  him  rude  and  insolent, 
but  he  had  no  such  meaning,  for  going  a  little  farther 
we  stuck  fast  in  a  mud-hole,  and  in  a  moment  we 
saw  the  chopper  running  to  our  assistance.  Luckily 
we  met  two  other  men  going  to  fish  in  the  river 
Saugeen,  who,  seeing  our  distress,  very  willingly 
offered  to  help  us.  With  these  additional  hands  we 
managed  to  relieve  the  horses  and  to  drag  the  wagon 
on  to  hard  ground.  The  two  fishermen  offered  to 
accompany  us  two  miles  further,  where  there  was 
the  worst  slough,  they  said,  upon  the  whole  road 
between  Owen  Sound  and  Fergus.  There  were 
several  bad  spots  before  we  reached  this,  the  king  of 
mild-holes,  which  it  cost  us  no  little  trouble  to  get 
over.  We  now  began  to  dread  these  sloughs,  and 
the  poor  horses  trembled  when  they  saw  one.  At 
length  we  reached  the  famous  mud-hole,  pronounced 
by  the  settlers  so  formidable.  We  made  a  halt  to 
beat  up  additional  recruits ;  oxen  were  not  to  be 
had,  nor  was  it  quite  clear  that  they  could  have  got 
through  with  the  wagon,  the  swamp  was  so  long, 
so  deep,  so  intersected  with  fallen  trees,  roots,  and 
stones.  I  held  the  horses,  and  all  the  party,  includ- 
ing the  Rev.  Mr.  Mockridge,  the  verger,  four  settlers 
whom  we  had  collected,  besides  those  who  had  come 


142  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

with  us,  went  to  work,  and  with  strong  arms  pulled 
the  wagon  through.  We  had  taken  fourteen  hours, 
including  the  service,  to  travel  seventeen  miles.  We 
did  not  reach  Mr.  Beatty's,  our  next  appointment, 
till  seven  o'clock ;  although,  in  ignorance  of  the  road, 
I  had  appointed  three  o'clock  for  service.  The 
people,  however,  judging  more  wisely  of  the  obstruc- 
tions, did  not  begin  to  assemble  till  after  six  o'clock, 
and  we  overtook  many  of  them  as  we  passed  along. 
The  service  commenced  immediately  on  our  arrival. 
There  was  a  large  congregation ;  and  I  felt  myself 
more  than  rewarded  for  all  the  difficulties  and  toil 
we  had  endured,  by  their  earnest  attention  and 
evident  emotion." 

This  is  of  course  a  description  of  one  of  the  worst 
of  the  Bishop's  unceasing  journeyings ;  but  it  gives 
a  fair  idea  of  the  not  unfrequent  toils  of  the  early 
heralds  of  the  Gospel  in  the  backwoods  of  Canada. 

Bishop  Strachan,  as  may  be  easily  inferred  from 
what  has  been  said,  was  an  eminently  practical  man. 
It  was  his  custom  after  every  ordination  to  gather 
the  newly-ordained  deacons  and  priests  into  his  study, 
and  to  give  them  a  long  lecture  on  the  practical 
duties  of  their  office.  The  writer  has  a  vivid  recol- 
lection of  that  lecture.  Two  practical  suggestions 
specially  impressed  him.  The  Bishop  said,  speaking 
in  broad  Scotch,  "  Always  shave  yourself  before  you 
come  down  in  the  morning  ;  a  clergyman  ought  always 
to  look  like  a  gentleman."  I  think  most  of  us  have 
rigidly  adhered  to  that  direction  all  our  lives.  Then 
again  he  said,  "When  you  go  into  a  house,  call  up 
the  children,  pat  them  on  the  head,  and  ask  them 
what  they  are  going  to  make  of  this  one,  and  what 
of  that ;  the  mothers  like  it."  And  the  Bishop  knew 
how  to  act  on  his  own  advice,  as  the  following 
anecdote  will  show. 

One  day,  late  in  the  fall,  he  was  making  his  way 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  143 

through  the  woods  between  Newmarket  and  Barrie. 
It  was  raining,  night  was  coming  on,  no  settler's 
habitation  was  in  sight,  when,  to  add  to  their  misery, 
the  wagon  broke  down,  and  could  not  be  got  on  any' 
further.  Dr.  Bethune,  who  was  acting  as  Bishop's 
chaplain,  was  not  a  little  alarmed  at  their  situation. 
The  Bishop  said  nothing,  but  walked  on  along  the 
bush-road  whistling.  Before  long  he  descried  a  light 
through  the  woods  and  made  for  it,  Dr.  Bethune 
following.  It  was  a  settler's  log-house.  They  rapped 
and  went  in ;  the  woman  was  ironing  near  the  door.- 
They  said  good-evening,  but  she  did  not  speak,  and 
continued  to  work  away  without  noticing  them. 
The  Bishop  told  her  of  their  calamity  and  distress, 
but  she  was  unmoved  and  said  nothing.  Dr.  Bethune 
whispered,  "  It  is  impossible  for  us  to  stay  here,  we 
must  push  on."  The  Bishop  said  nothing,  began  to 
whistle,  as  was  his  wont,  went  over  to  the  open  fire, 
and  began  to  dry  his  cap  and  clothes,  taking  no 
more  notice  of  the  woman,  who  went  on  with  her 
work.  After  a  little  while  a  little  child  came  in, 
with  a  dirty  face  and  dirty  clothes.  The  Bishop  sat 
down  and  called  the  little  one  over  to  him,  took  it 
on  his  knee,  wiped  its  face,  and  began  to  play  with 
it  with  unaffected  interest,  for  he  was  very  fond  of 
children.  The  mother  turned  round  and  said, 
"  Gentlemen,  I  suppose  you  have  not  had  your  tea," 
and  they  said  "  No,"  and  then  proceeded  to  enlarge 
upon  their  perplexity.  She  said,  "  Well,  we  have 
very  poor  accommodation,  and  I  did  not  want  you 
to  stay  here,  but  we  will  do  the  best  we  can  for  you," 
and  so  the  horses  were  brought  and  fed,  and  they 
turned  in  for  the  night. 


144  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


THE    FOUNDING    OF    TRINITY    COLLEGE. 

The  blow  long  apprehended  fell  at  last.  An  Act 
was  passed  in  1848,  changing  the  name  of  King's 
College  into  that  of  the  University  of  Toronto, 
and  so  altering  the  features  of  the  original  charter 
that  they  could  no  longer  be  recognized.  The 
institution  was  wholly  secularized.  It  was  enacted 
that  there  should  henceforth  be  no  professorship, 
lectureship,  or  teachership  of  divinity  in  this  Uni- 
versity ;  that  no  person  should  be  qualified  to  be 
appointed  by  the  Crown  to  any  seat  in  the  Senate, 
who  shall  be  a  minister,  ecclesiastic,  or  teacher, 
under  or  according  to  any  form  or  profession  of 
religious  faith  or  worship  whatsoever.  It  was  further 
enacted  that  no  religious  observance,  according  to 
the  forms  of  any  religious  denomination,  should  be 
imposed  upon  the  members  or  officers  of  the  said 
University  or  any  of  them ;  and  finally,  that  no 
religious  test  or  Qualification  whatsoever  should  be 
required  from  student,  professor,  or  fellow." 

Churchmen  generally  regarded  the  Act  as  an  insult 
to  the  Christian  religion,  and  a  trampling  upon  those 
principles  which  it  had  been  their  desire  and  en- 
deavour to  have  engrained  into  the  educational  insti- 
tutions of  the  land.  And  so,  under  the  leadership 
of  the  Bishop,  they  resolved  to  found  a  University 
of  their  own,  in  which  the  sanctifying,  moulding 
doctrines  of  the  Christian  Faith  should  be  interwoven 
with  all  secular  learning. 

The  proposal  made  by  the  Government  that  colleges 
established  by  the  different  religious  bodies  of  the 
land  should  affiliate  with  the  Toronto  University, 
leaving  all  teaching  except  theology  to  this  central 
body,  was  altogether  scouted  by  the  Bishop  and  his 
associates.       He  regarded  this  as  a  thrusting  forth 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  145 

of  Christianity.  She  might  take  up  her  abode  in 
porches  and  corners  and  alleys,  where  she  would  be 
shrouded  from  view  and  buried  from  sight  as  some- 
thing to  be  ashamed  of,  and  he  would  give  no 
countenance  to  this  insult  and  indignity  to  the  Faith 
by  which  he  lived. 

Accordingly,  in  the  month  of  January  1850,  the 
Bishop  addressed  a  strong  appeal  to  the  clergy  and 
laity  of  his  Diocese,  calling  upon  them  to  aid  by 
their  contributions  the  establishment  of  what  had 
now  become  a  necessity — -a  Church  University — and 
heading  the  subscription  list  with  a  gift  of  £1000. 
"  Let  not  then,"  he  writes  in  this  address,  "  the 
friends  and  members  of  the  Church  look  for  rest  till 
the  proper  means  are  found  for  the  religious  education 
of  her  children.  We  have  fallen  indeed  on  evil  times, 
and  the  storm  has  overtaken  us,  aggravated  by  the 
painful  reflection  that  we  have  contributed  largely, 
by  our  want  of  unity  and  consistency,  to  bring  it 
on  ourselves.  Yet  we  must  not  be  discouraged,  for 
though  the  waters  threaten  to  overwhelm  us,  we  are 
still  the  children  of  hope." 

The  Bishop  pointed  out  ways  in  which  the  neces- 
sary endowment  could  be  obtained,  by  small  grants  of 
land  and  money  on  the  part  of  the  200,000  Church 
members  then  residing  in  his  Diocese.  In  less  than 
nine  months  £25,000  were  subscribed  within  the 
Diocese  of  Toronto.  The  Bishop  then  resolved  to 
appeal  to  the  Churchmen  of  England  to  help  him. 

Accordingly,  on  the  10th  April,  1850,  at  the  age 
of  seventy-two,  he  left  for  England,  followed  to  the 
steamer  by  a  large  body  of  the  inhabitants  of  all 
classes  and  conditions,  from  the  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Province  to  the  bronzed  labourer,  and  he  set  sail 
amidst  the  cheers  and  plaudits  of  all. 

In  a  short  time  he  succeeded  in  adding  £15,000  to 
the  funds  of  the  intended  University,  and  he  came 


146  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHUECH    IN       * 

back  to  Canada  early  in  November,  determined  to 
start  it,  and  satisfied  that  he  would,  on  its  inception, 
receive  a  royal  charter.  In  this  he  was  not  disap- 
pointed, for  on  Thursday,  January  15th,  1852,  half 
the  original  design  of  Trinity  College  was  completed, 
the  royal  charter  obtained,  and  the  institution 
opened  with  a  large  number  of  students  and  a  staff 
of  very  able  Professors. 

The  endowment  of  Trinity  College  is  now  (1891), 
including  the  land  on  which  the  College  is  built  and 
the  buildings,  worth  not  less  than  800,000  dollars. 
The  building  has  been  enlarged  so  that  it  will  now 
accommodate  seventy-five  students.  It  has  twelve 
Professors  in  the  Arts  and  Divinity  departments. 
It  has  also  the  most  successful  medical  school  in  the 
Dominion,  conducted  by  twenty-two  Professors.  The 
establishment  and  success  of  this  department  is  due 
very  largely  to  the  ceaseless  energy  and  ability  of  Dr. 
Walter  Gekie,  the  Dean  of  the  Faculty. 


FOUNDATION    OF    THE    SYNOD. 

The  year  1851  was  remarkable  in  the  annals  of  the 
Canadian  Church.  In  that  year  the  first  actual  step 
in  the  establishment  of  Diocesan  Synods  was  taken. 
It  was,  however,  no  sudden  or  new  conception.  Early 
in  1832,  Dr.  Strachan,  then  Archdeacon  of  York, 
drafted  a  constitution  for  the  consideration  of  the 
Bishop  of  Quebec,  his  Diocesan. 

In  his  letter  enclosing  this  draft,  he  says — "  I  am 
quite  convinced  we  shall  never  gain  much  ground  in 
the  Province,  or  obtain  that  influence  on  public 
opinion,  or  with  the  Government,  or  with  the  Bishop 
himself,  that  we  ought  to  possess,  till  we  have  fre- 
quent Convocations,  to  consist  of  the  laity  as  well  as 
the  clergy." 

The  scheme  was  frequently  discussed  in  meetings 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  147 

of  the  clergy,  and  the  feeling  was  decidedly  in  favour 
of  Synodal  action.  Nothing,  however,  was  done  till 
1851,  when  the  Bishop  summoned  the  clergy  to  a 
meeting,  and  requested  them  to  invite  their  people 
to  select  one  or  two  members  from  each  parish  to 
accompany  them. 

In  response  to  this  summons,  124  clergymen  and 
127  laymen  assembled  at  the  Church  of  the  Holy 
Trinity,  Toronto,  on  Thursday,  May  1st,  1851.  The 
Bishop  delivered  a  charge  of  considerable  length.  On 
that  and  the  following  days,  several  grave  questions 
were  discussed,  and  resolutions  were  passed,  express- 
ing a  strong  protest  against  the  secularization  of 
the  Clergy  Reserves,  then  pending.  Another  resolu- 
tion was  adopted  in  favour  of  applying  to  the  Crown 
for  the  establishment  of  Diocesan  Synods,  to  consist 
of  laity  as  well  as  clergy.  It  was  also  resolved  to 
petition  the  Colonial  Legislature  in  favour  of  separ- 
ate Church  schools.  Such  was  the  practical  com- 
mencement of  the  Synod  of  the  Diocese  of  Toronto. 
"  This,"  as  the  Bishop  states  in  his  original  draft, 
"  was  suggested  by,  and  in  the  main  copied  from,  the 
constitutions  of  the  Diocesan  Conventions  in  the 
United  States.  It  was  the  first  Diocesan  Synod 
regularly  constituted  in  the  Colonial  Church.  It  has 
been  imitated  and  reproduced  in  every  Diocese  of 
that  Church  not  strictly  a  missionary  Diocese.  They 
all,  or  nearly  all,  have  the  same  equality  of  the  clerical 
and  lay  votes.  And  whatever  theoretical  or  traditional 
objections  may  be  urged  against  this  equality,  it  has 
worked  at  least  fairly  well.  The  laity  have,  from 
their  very  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  questions  that 
have  been  agitated  in  this  age,  proved  the  con- 
servative element,  opposing  whatever  was  called 
innovations,  even  though  they  may  be  manifest  im- 
provements, and  thus  holding  the  onward  movement, 
to  which  the  clergy  with  their  fuller  knowledge  are 


148  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

more  inclined  to  give  themselves,  in  restraint,  until 
by  the  general  diffusion  of  information  the  whole 
body  is  prepared  to  move  forward  together.  This  is 
often  very  trying  to  the  patience  of  the  clergy,  but 
it  probably  prevents  many  a  defection." 

We  have  our  Synods  everywhere  in  the  Canadian 
Church,  and  we  should  not  know  how  to  get  on 
without  them.  And  yet  Synods  have  not  accomplished 
for  the  Church  what  Bishop  Strachan  and  many 
another,  contemplating  them  from  a  theoretical  stand- 
point, had  expected  from  them.  They  are  very  apt 
to  degenerate  into  mere  technical  legislation,  or  to 
become  mere  talking  institutions,  resulting  in  endless 
resolutions  which  become  a  dead  letter  unless  some 
one  individual  consecrates  his  time  and  talents  to 
impart  to  them  living  form  and  reality.  The  fact 
comes  out,  more  and  more  clearly,  that  the  wisest 
plans  and  the  most  elaborate  legislation  will  do  but 
little  to  strengthen  or  extend  the  Church  apart  from 
individual  influence  and  energy.  It  is  only  the 
individual  influence  and  direction  of  the  Bishop,  of 
the  priest,  of  the  lay-helper,  of  the  Sunday-school 
worker  and  district  visitor  that  will  ever  accomplish 
much  for  God  and  his  Church. 


SUBDIVISION    OF    THE    DIOCESE. 

The  Bishop  of  Toronto  had  long  sought  the  sub- 
division of  his  Diocese.  He  had  planned  its  present 
subdivision  into  five  sees.  He  desired  and  expected 
that  the  Eastern  part,  with  Kingston  as  its  See  city, 
would  be  first  established.  The  Western  part,  how- 
ever, outstripped  their  brethren  in  the  East  in 
securing  an  endowment,  and  consequently  the  Diocese 
of  Huron,  which  has  now  outgrown  the  capabilities 
of  one  Bishop,  was  set  apart,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Cronyn, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  149 

then    Rector    of    London,    was    elected    as    its    first 
Bishop. 

In  1861,  the  Eastern  portion  of  the  old  Diocese  of 
Toronto  completed  the  required  endowment,  and  was 
set  off  as  a  separate  Diocese  under  the  designation 
of  the  Bishopric  of  Ontario.  The  Rev.  John  Travers 
Lewis,  the  present  Bishop  of  that  Diocese,  was  elected 
at  the  age  of  thirty-five,  and  began  his  Episcopal 
career  backed  by  the  enthusiastic  loyalty  and  high 
expectations  of  his  Diocese.  This  Diocese  too  is  now 
ripe  for  subdivision,  with  Ottawa  as  the  centre  of 
a  new  See. 


THE    ELECTION    OF    A    COADJUTOR    FOR    TORONTO. 

Bishop  Strachan  was  sixty-one  when  consecrated  ; 
he  had  now  been  twenty-seven  years  a  bishop,  and 
was  consequently  an  old  man.  His  confirmation  tours 
were  continued  with  unremitting  punctuality ;  they 
began,  however,  to  be  greatly  dreaded.  The  Bishop 
had  always  expressed  his  determination  to  die  in 
harness,  and  no  one  had  ventured  to  suggest  the 
appointment  of  an  assistant.  When,  however,  he 
made  the  proposal  himself,  the  Synod  at  once  took 
the  necessary  action,  raised  an  endowment  for  the 
See  of  Toronto  (for  Bishop  Strachan's  stipend  being 
wholly  derived  from  the  Clergy  Reserves  would  die 
with  him),  and  in  1866  proceeded  to  the  election  of  a 
coadjutor.  The  Rev.  George  Whittaker,  Provost  of 
Trinity  College,  a  man  of  great  natural  talents  and 
great  acquirements,  was  the  choice  of  a  vast  majority 
of  the  clergy.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Fuller,  afterwards  the 
first  Bishop  of  Niagara,  had  a  majority  of  the  lay 
votes,  but  after  a  prolonged  contest  the  Venerable 
Archdeacon  Bethune  was  chosen.  He  was  conse- 
crated under  the  title  of  the  Bishop  of  Niagara,  with 
the  right  of  succession  to  Toronto.     The  new  Bishop 


150  HISTOEY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

was  sixty-six  years  old  when  elected,  and  he  ruled 
the  Diocese  for  ten  years.  He  went  to  the  first  Pan- 
Anglican  Synod,  held  in  September  1867,  and  during 
his  absence  Bishop  Strachan  died  at  the  age  of 
ninety-four. 

The  coadjutor  became  Bishop  of  Toronto,  by  right 
of  succession.  He  had  been  the  pupil,  and  became  . 
the  life-long  friend  and  counsellor,  of  Bishop  Strachan, 
and  yet  no  two  men  could  be  more  unlike  than  they. 
Bishop  Strachan  was  a  man  of  war  from  his  youth, 
always  in  battle,  sturdy,  resolute,  ready  for  the  fray. 
The  ideal  of  his  life  was  that  of  a  Christian  soldier, 
standing  up  for  the  truth,  and  ready  to  die  for  it. 
The  ideal  of  Bishop  Bethune's  life,  whether  con- 
sciously or  not,  was  that  of  one  who  was  trying 
above  all  things  to  live  peaceably  with  all  men.  He 
was  a  man  of  high  intellectual  gifts,  and  of  extensive 
reading,  of  gentle  and  refined  disposition,  but  of  a 
reserved  and  unemotional  character,  unlike  his  pre- 
decessor, who  was  naturally  a  man  of  stormy  and 
masterful  temper.  Bishop  Bethune  seldom  or  never 
got  angry.  He  was  distressed  by  the  waywardness 
and  rough  tempers  of  others  ;  but  as  the  result  of  it 
all,  he  lived  an  unruffled  life.  He  might  have  been 
a  great  bishop  at  an  earlier  time  and  under  other 
circumstances,  but  he  came  to  the  throne  too  late. 
He  was  not  the  man  for  the  times  in  which  he  lived. 
Party  strife,  which  had  been  repressed  by  the  strong 
hand  of  Bishop  Strachan,  but  which  had  been  grow- 
ing in  intensity  during  the  latter  years  of  his  life, 
now  broke  out  in  its  wildest  fury.  A  sti-ong  phalanx 
of  able  laymen  of  the  extreme  Evangelical  school  set 
themselves  in  array  against  him,  and  the  gentle  aged 
Bishop  was  no  match  for  their  machinations.  The 
result  was  the  establishment,  first,  of  the  Church  Asso- 
ciation, and  then  of  Wyckliff  College,  in  direct  and 
avowed  antagonism  to  Trinity  College,  the  pride  of 


EASTEKN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  151 

Bishop  Strachan's  life.  This  institution  is  based 
upon  and  bound  by  other  doctrinal  tests  than  those 
of  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  and  the  Prayer-book.  It 
grew  out  of  a  bitter  party  spirit,  and  is  directly 
interested  in  keeping  up  the  strife,  not  only  with 
Trinity  College,  but  in  every  parish  in  the  land. 
Its  success  depends  upon  the  ability  of  its  supporters 
to  persuade  Church  people  that  all  who  differ  from  its 
narrow  system  are  conspirators  and  Romanists,  and 
so  they  set  themselves  to  exaggerate  differences  that 
do  exist,  and  to  invent  others  which  are  merely 
imaginary.  One  of  its  chief  supporters  and  promo- 
tors  says — "Wyckliff  College  is  not  answerable  to 
the  Synod — Diocesan  or  Provincial — to  the  House  of 
Bishops,  or  to  the  Church  in  its  corporate  capacity  " — 
a  position  this  which  no  institution  which  claims 
to  be  of  the  Church  of  England  and  to  train  its 
ministers  ought  in  honesty  to  attempt  to  occupy.  It 
has  become  affiliated  with  the  Toronto  University, 
and  is  meeting  with  no  little  success.  If  it  could 
only  lay  aside  its  bitter  partizan  spirit,  and  consent 
to  be  subject  to  the  rule  of  the  Church,  and  to  be 
bound  by  those  wide  limits  allowed  within  the  Church 
of  England,  it  might,  as  the  result  of  its  relationship 
to  the  Toronto  University,  become  a  useful  institution 
of  the  Church. 

Bishop  Bethune  was  punctual  and  unceasing  in  his 
visitations  of  his  Diocese  to  the  very  close  of  his 
Episcopate.  The  difficulty  and  toil  had,  however, 
become  almost  inconceivably  lightened  since  the  early 
days  of  Bishop  Strachan.  The  forests  had  long  ago 
been  cleared  away.  The  impassable  roads  had  given 
place,  on  the  principal  thoroughfares  at  least,  to  well- 
constructed  stone  and  gravel  highways.  The  settlers' 
shanties  had  been  replaced  by  stately  brick  and  stone 
houses,  the  scanty  furniture  by  luxurious  appoint- 
ments, the  spinning-wheel  by  the  piano,  and  every- 


152  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHUECH    IN 

where,  to  the  remotest  parts  of  the  Diocese,  the  land 
was  now  intersected  by  railways. 

Bishop  Bethune,  out  of  the  midst  of  a  stormy- 
Episcopate,  passed  to  the  peace  which  he  loved  on  the 
3rd  February,  1879. 

BISHOP    SWEATMAN. 

It  is  a  rule  of  all  the  regularly  constituted  Dioceses 
of  Ontario,  that  when  a  bishop  dies  or  resigns,  the 
Synod  shall  be  called  together  for  the  election  of  his 
successor  within  twenty-one  days,  the  object  evidently 
being  to  give  as  little  time  as  possible  for  party 
organization,  intrigue,  and  canvassing.  The  event 
had,  however,  in  this  case  been  foreseen  and  prepared 
for,  on  one  side  at  least,  by  a  perfect  organization, 
and  so  one  of  the  most  fiercely  contested  Episcopal 
elections  of  modern  times  ensued.  For  nine  days 
the  ballots  were  again  and  again  cast,  without  the 
variation  of  three  votes,  the  vast  majority  of  the 
clergy  voting  for  the  Venerable  George  Whittaker, 
Provost  of  Trinity  College,  and  a  small  majority  of 
the  laity  for  Dr.  Sullivan,  the  present  Bishop  of 
Algoma.  The  issue  of  this  deadlock  was  a  con- 
ference, which  resulted  in  the  almost  unanimous 
election  of  Archdeacon  Sweatman,  of  the  Diocese 
of  Huron.  Dr.  Sweatman  was  a  distinguished 
graduate  of  Cambridge,  who  was  chiefly  known  by 
being  chosen  as  the  first  Head-Master  of  Hellmuth 
College,  Diocese  of  Huron.  He  had  a  difficult  role  to 
play.  Party  spirit  ran  high.  The  Low  Churchmen, 
who  claimed  the  honour  of  his  election,  treated  him 
as  altogether  their  own,  and  insisted  upon  his  acting 
as  the  head  and  spokesman  of  their  party.  This  was 
a  very  mistaken  policy  on  their  pai-t.  The  Bishop, 
who  was  a  loyal  Churchman,  of  the  moderate  Evan- 
gelical school,  resented  such  treatment,  and  in  spite 


EASTEKN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  153 

of  ominous  words  uttered  in  his  first  charge,  set 
himself  honestly  to  work  impartially.  In  this  respect 
he  has  succeeded  as  well  perhaps  as  any  man  in  his 
difficult  position  could  succeed.  Steady  progress  is 
at  all  events  being  made  under  his  Episcopate, 
extending  now  over  a  period  of  ten  years.  The 
clergy  have  increased  during  this  time  from  116  to 
166.  Seventy-five  churches  have  been  built  and  32 
consecrated.  A  new  cathedral  of  stately  dimensions 
has  been  undertaken  by  the  Bishop,  the  choir  of 
which  is  now  nearly  completed.  A  Church  school  of 
the  collegiate  type,  for  boys,  has  been  established  in 
Toronto,  in  addition  to  that  previously  existing  at 
Port  Hope,  and  promises  to  become  a  prosperous 
institution.  Trinity  College  has  nearly  doubled  its 
strength.  Wyckliffe  has  built  a  large  and  substantial 
College,  and  is  reported  as  very  prosperous.  The 
Bishop  Strachan  Memorial  School,  for  girls,  was  never 
so  successful  as  at  the  present  time,  and  is  sending 
forth  every  year  a  large  company  of  educated  and 
instructed  Church  women.  A  nursing  sisterhood  has 
been  established  under  the  Bishop's  sanction. 

There  is  a  vast  mission  work  yet  to  be  accomplished 
in  the  Diocese,  and  as  the  Bishop  is  still  a  young 
man,  his  Episcopate  may  yet  be  crowned  with  a  glory 
surpassing  that  of  either  of  his  predecessors,  if  he 
sets  himself  to  work  to  call  forth  and  organize  the 
reserved  forces  of  the  Church  in  such  a  way  as  to 
bring  her  ministrations  within  reasonable  reach  of 
every  inhabitant  of  his  still  very  extensive  Diocese. 


THE    CLERGY. 

There  is  not  space  within  the  prescribed  limits  of 
this  record  to  give  any  detailed  account  of  the  life 
and  work  of  the  clergy  who  laboured  in  the  Diocese 
of  Toronto  during  this  prolonged  period.     Indeed  it 


154  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IS 

would  hardly  be  possible  to  do  so,  even  if  we  bad 
twice  the  space,  for  most  of  them  passed  away  without 
leaving  any  other  record  of  their  life  than  the  work 
they  had  done.  Many  of  those  who  were  stationed  in 
the  rising  towns  have  only  had  the  ever-recurring 
routine  work  of  a  settled  parish,  and  nothing  has 
occurred  in  their  lives  calling  for  special  notice.  Of 
the  missionary  clergy  one  of  the  most  noted  was  the 
Rev.  Adam  Elliot,  who  laboured  among  the  Indians 
and  as  an  itinerant  missionary  in  the  home  district. 
His  journal  is  a  marvel  of  unremitting  toil.  Month 
after  month,  year  after  year,  week-day  and  Sunday, 
be  went  from  settlement  to  settlement,  and  from 
house  to  house,  ministering  and  preaching  every  day, 
far  and  wide,  over  the  vast  territory  for  which  he 
alone  was  responsible. 

The  Rev.  H.  H.  O'Neil  carried  on  for  some  time 
the  same  widely  extended  itinerant  work  in  the  "West. 
The  Rev.  F.  L.  Osier  and  his  younger  brother  Henry 
were  among  the  diligent  missionaries  of  these  pioneer 
times.  Far  away,  60  and  100  miles,  they  rode  through 
the  forest,  preaching  in  kitchens  and  shanties  and 
barns  and  school-houses  as  they  found  opportunity, 
keeping  this  up  for  years  and  years,  until  in  more 
prosperous  times  the  people  were  able  to  provide  for 
a  resident  clergy. 

The  Revs.  S.  B.  Ardagh,  John  Fletcher,  James 
Nugent,  Ed.  Morgan,  and  earlier,  George  Hallen,  the 
saint  of  the  Canadian  Church,  and  many  others,  were 
largely  employed  in  this  pioneer  work  for  many  years 
of  their  ministry.  The  most  learned  and  influential 
clergy  of  this  time  were  the  Rev.  James  Be  van,  D.D.; 
the  Rev.  George  Whittaker,  one  of  the  most  accurate 
scholars  of  his  day ;  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Carry,  who  by 
husbanding  the  scraps  of  time  became  perhaps  the 
most  widely  read  and  accurate  theologian  in  the 
Canadian  Church.     Each  of  these  deserves  a  volume, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  155 

and  these  are  only  samples  of  the  sort  of  men  who 
planted  the  Church  in  this  land.  There  are  many  who 
are  not  inferior  to  these  of  whom  it  is  not  possible 
to  speak  particularly.  Of  my  many  able  and  devoted 
contemporaries  who  are  still  living  in  this  Diocese,  I 
have  thought  it  best  to  say  nothing  now ;  their  record 
will  be  worthy  to  be  written  when  their  work  is 
done. 


156  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


CHAPTER   VI. 

DIOCESE    OF    FREDERICTON. 

The  Province  of  New  Brunswick,  which  is  almost 
as  large  as  the  Kingdom  of  Scotland,  was  separated 
from  Nova  Scotia  and  erected  into  an  independent 
Diocese  in  1845.  This  was  before  the  days  of  Epis- 
copal election.  Its  first  Bishop,  the  Rev.  John 
Medley,  was  therefore  nominated  by  the  Crown,  and 
consecrated  at  Lambeth  on  the  4th  May,  1845.  He 
reached  his  Diocese  in  June  of  the  same  year,  and 
immediately  set  about  the  work  to  which  he  had  been 
called.  Bishop  Medley  was  a  graduate  of  Wadham 
College,  Oxford,  and  at  the  time  of  his  nomination 
was  Vicar  of  St.  Thomas,  Exeter,  and  Prebendary  of 
the  cathedral.  In  1849,  he  became  Metropolitan  of 
Canada.  He  is  to-day  the  oldest  bishop,  with  one 
exception,  in  the  Anglican  Communion.  Bishop 
Medley  is  a  second  edition  of  Bishop  Strachan.  No 
one  at  least  who  knew  Bishop  Strachan,  could  ever 
look  upon  Bishop  Medley  without  being  reminded  of 
him.  He  has,  moreover,  the  same  characteristics 
that  distinguished  the  first  Bishop  of  Toronto — a 
powerful  intellect,  quick  perception,  sound  judgment, 
prompt  and  unfaltering  decision.  Bishop  Medley  is 
a  thinner  and  perhaps  a  somewhat  shorter  man  than 
Bishop  Strachan  was.  He  has  less  of  the  masterful 
in  his  temper,  and  is  gentler  in  his  manners ;  but  in 
that  proportion  he  is  less  of  a  leader  of  men,  and  so 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  157 

more  inclined  to  let  matters  develop  themselves 
rather  than  to  develop  them  by  his  own  will  and 
energy. 

One  who  is  well  qualified  to  speak,  writes  of 
Bishop  Medley — "The  time  has  not  yet  come  for  a 
just  estimate  of  Bishop  Medley's  work  and  character. 
That  he  has  laid  broad  and  deep  the  foundations  of 
the  Church  of  England  in  this  Province  cannot  be 
denied.  Many  spots  in  New  Brunswick  which  were 
spiritually  '  waste  places '  on  his  arrival,  now  bloom 
and  blossom  as  the  rose.  He  has  ever  aimed  to 
advance  the  Church  as  a  whole,  and  to  that  end  has 
not  occupied  himself  with  the  petty  and  often  super- 
ficial activities  of  life,  but,  '  temperate  in  all  things,' 
has  done  regularly,  without  wasting  mental  or 
physical  power,  a  vast  amount  of  good  work  which 
will  remain.  Much  has  been  done  by  him  for  Church 
music,  Church  architecture,  and  for  a  better  and 
more  reverential  performance  of  public  worship. 
But  Dr.  Medley's  success  as  a  bishop  is  due  largely 
to  his  power  as  a  preacher,  to  his  exceptional  liberality, 
and  to  his  simplicity  of  life." 

Nine  years  before  the  Bishop's  consecration,  Arch- 
deacon Coster  reports — "  There  are  eighty  parishes  or 
townships  in  New  Brunswick,  and  our  ecclesiastical 
establishment  consist  of  twenty  eight  clergymen  and 
forty-three  churches  or  chapels ;  but  these  forty-three 
churches  are  all  contained  in  thirty -six  parishes, 
several  of  which  possess  more  than  one  church,  so 
that  there  are  still  forty-four  parishes  without  a 
church  at  this  time.  The  twenty-eight  clergymen 
reside  in  twenty-three  parishes,  some  of  these  parishes 
having  more  than  one  clergyman,  so  that  there  are 
fifty-seven  parishes  out  of  eighty  without  a  resident 
clergyman.  I  do  not  say  that  there  are  so  many 
without  clerical  care,  for  it  is  well  known  that  most 
of  our  clergy  have  two  or  more  parishes  under  their 


158  HISTORY   OF   THE   CHURCH   IN 

charge,  and  that  they  are  continually  obliged  to  go 
very  far  from  their  homes  in  the  performance  of 
their  duty.  But  still,"  he  adds,  "  there  are  fifty-seven 
parishes  without  a  resident  clergyman." 

Ten  years  elapsed  between  the  writing  of  this 
report  and  the  first  record  of  Bishop  Medley's  work, 
and  yet  hardly  any  progress  had  been  made.  Two 
months  after  his  arrival,  the  Bishop  began  his  visit- 
ation of  the  Diocese,  and  before  the  end  of  the  year 
he  had  visited  almost  every  parish  in  it.  He  found 
some  places  entirely  destitute,  of  the  ministrations  of 
the  Church,  and  others  very  insufficiently  provided 
with  them.  The  schools  too,  for  which  the  Church 
had  made  herself  responsible,  were  in  a  languishing 
condition.  The  fact  is,  that  while  the  population  of 
the  colony  had  been  rapidly  increasing,  the  number 
of  the  clergy  had  for  some  years  remained  almost 
stationary. 

In  June  1845,  there  were  thirty  clergymen — only 
two  more  than  in  1836 — but  the  Bishop  was  enabled 
materially  to  increase  their  number  by  ordaining  ten 
candidates,  and  so  six  new  missions  were  at  once 
organized.  This  too  was  effected  by  the  contributions 
of  the  people,  without  any  additional  demand  upon 
the  S.  P.  G. 

A  second  visitation  of  the  Diocese,  lasting  from 
June  to  the  beginning  of  September,  was  made  during 
the  year  1846.  The  Bishop  was  greatly  gratified  by 
the  respectful  attention  which  he  everywhere  received 
from  the  clergy  and  the  principal  inhabitants,  who 
conveyed  him  from  station  to  station.  He  reports 
that  he  found  the  roads  for  the  most  part  superior  to 
the  cross  roads,  and  some  of  them  equal  to  the  best 
turnpike  roads  in  England  ;  "  and  as  to  the  climate," 
he  adds,  "  as  there  exists  in  England  much  misappre- 
hension on  this  point,  it  may  be  right  to  state  that  I 
consider  it,  beyond  all  question,  a  finer  climate  than 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  159 

that  of  England.  It  is  undoubtedly  hotter  and 
colder,  inasmuch  as  in  July  our  thermometer  ranges 
from  75°  to  100°,  and  in  December,  January,  and 
February,  from  a  few  degrees  above  freezing  to  30° 
below  zero.  But,  in  the  first  place,  neither  the  heat 
nor  the  cold  are  proportionately  so  trying  as  they 
would  be  in  England,  so  that  the  chilly,  starved 
feeling  of  cold  and  wet  together,  is  almost  unknown 
here.  Then  our  sunshine  is  at  least  three  to  one  as 
compared  with  England,  the  bright  sun  giving  a 
cheerful  look  to  the  snowy  landscape." 

During  the  progress  of  the  visitation,  the  Bishop 
was  greatly  gratified  by  the  results  which  had  fol- 
lowed the  labours  of  a  missionary — the  Rev.  Thomas 
Robertson — whom  he  had  the  year  before  ordained 
and  stationed  at  Musquash.  The  people  appreciating 
his  zeal  and  activity,  speedily  erected  a  parsonage- 
house  and  subscribed  so  liberally  towards  his  main- 
tenance, that  the  S.  P.  G.  grant  was  almost  wholly 
released.  They  also  erected  two  churches  in  the 
mission.  One  Sunday  of  this  journey  was  spent  in 
the  county  of  Albert,  where,  though  the  country  was 
rich  and  nourishing,  no  clergyman  of  the  Church  had 
ever  been  stationed.  Here  the  Bishop  was  kindly 
received  by  a  Baptist  minister,  who  immediately 
circulated  notice  that  the  Bishop  would  conduct 
Divine  service  on  Sunday  next  at  Hillsborough. 
"  In  the  morning,"  says  the  Bishop,  "  though  the 
notice  was  so  short,  the  whole  country  was  in  motion, 
some  on  horseback,  some  in  wagons,  and  many  on 
foot.  Having  robed  at  a  cottage  hard  by,  we  pro- 
ceeded to  the  chapel,  where  three  hundred  people  had 
assembled,  scarcely  any  of  whom  had  ever  seen  a 
bishop  or  heard  the  Church  Service.  I  never  had  a 
more  attentive  audience.  A  few  very  zealous  Church- 
men were  there,  who,  aided  by  others  not  Churchmen, 
subscribed  £50  per  annum  towards  the  support  of  a 


160  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

missionary.  In  the  afternoon  we  just  escaped  in  the 
rear  of  a  most  terrific  thunderstorm,  and  I  held  service 
again,  where  I  feel  sure  the  sound  of  our  Liturgy  was 
heard  for  the  first  time."  In  passing  through  the 
Diocese  the  Bishop  saw  much  that  weighed  heavily 
upon  his  mind.  Some  places  he  found  entirely  des- 
titute of  the  ordinances  of  the  Church,  and  many 
more  with  opportunities  of  public  worship  occurring 
only  once  every  month  or  six  weeks  ;  while  the  clergy 
were  exhausting  themselves  in  constant  travelling 
from  station  to  station  over  a  wide  extent  of  country. 
"The  Society,"  writes  the  Bishop,  "will  judge  of  the 
destitution  that  prevailed  when  I  tell  them,  that  after 
filling  up  twelve  vacancies,  I  could  find  immediate 
and  full  employment  for  twenty  additional  clergymen, 
without  diminishing  the  labours  of  any  one  at  present 
in  Holy  Orders." 

And  not  only  were  the  people  in  these  neglected 
districts  deprived  of  the  ordinances  of  religion,  they 
were  in  many  cases  without  Bibles  and  books  of 
devotion,  and  so  condemned,  in  a  manner,  to  see 
their  children  grow  up  in  ignorance  and  indifference. 
This  is  the  condition  of  many  and  many  a  family  in 
a  new  colony,  and  such  it  must  continue  to  be,  unless 
the  Church  at  home  can  be  induced  to  look  with 
deeper  and  more  general  sympathy  on  the  wants  of 
her  suffering  members.  It  surely  is  our  fault  more 
than  theirs,  that  so  many  stray  from  the  fold  or 
are  lost  in  indifference  and  unbelief  ;  for,  says  the 
Bishop,  "wherever  an  active,  useful  clergyman  is 
placed,  the  Church  more  than  holds  her  ground." 

In  the  course  of  his  two  first  visitations  the  Bishop 
confirmed  more  than  one  hundred  candidates,  and  was 
impressed  with  their  serious  and  devout  demeanour. 

The  first  missionary  Church  Society  in  any  colony 
had  been  established  in  Fredericton  in  1836,  by  the 
influence  and  under   the   presidency  of  Archdeacon 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  161 

Coster.  Certain  Church  people  of  St.  John  held 
aloof  from  the  new  Society  until,  under  the  influence 
of  Bishop  Medley,  they  were  induced  to  take  their 
part  in  the  missionary  efforts  of  the  Church,  and 
the  result  was  the  immediate  doubling  of  the  income 
of  the  Society,  and  the  opening  up  of  some  additional 
missions. 

One  of  the  earliest  projects  to  which  the  Bishop 
devoted  his  attention  was  the  erection  of  a  cathedral. 
Shortly  after  his  arrival  he  laid  before  the  inhabitants 
a  plan  of  the  projected  building.  Much  interest  was 
expressed  in  it,  and  liberal  subscriptions  were  pro- 
mised. The  first  stone  was  solemnly  laid  on  the  15  th 
October,  1846,  by  the  Governor,  Sir  William  Cole- 
brooke,  in  the  presence  of  the  most  influential  people 
in  the  colony;  but  in  consequence  of  an  unforeseen 
difficulty  no  progress  was  made  till  the  spring  of 
1847. 

The  cathedral  was  finished  mainly  by  the  energy 
and  untiring  zeal  of  the  Bishop.  Cut  on  a  stone  in 
the  chancel  arch  may  be  seen  the  three  letters  F.  S. 
M.,  the  history  of  which  is  as  follows. 

At  a  time  when  the  Building  Fund  was  greatly 
depressed,  the  Bishop  anxious,  and  not  knowing 
where  to  look  for  the  needed  aid,  there  came  a 
letter  from  England  purporting  to  have  been  written 
by  one  of  three  sisters,  and  enclosing,  as  the  col- 
lective gift  of  the  three,  the  sum  of  £500  sterling. 
The  gift  was  accompanied  by  the  assurance  that  the 
Bishop  would  never  know  who  the  donors  were, 
and  by  the  request  that  the  initials  F.  S.  M.,  of  the 
sisters'  names  respectively,  might  be  cut  upon  any 
stone  in  the  cathedral  that  the  Bishop  might  select. 
To  this  day  it  is  wholly  unknown  by  whom  the 
money  was  contributed. 

At  another  period  of  great  financial  difficulty,  the 
Bishop,    being    in    England   collecting    money,    was 


162  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

accosted  in  the  street  by  a  young  man  claiming  to 
be  an  old  Sunday-school  pupil,  and  who  expressed 
the  wish  that  the  Bishop  would  give  him  his 
authority  to  gather  what  he  could  towards  the 
Building  Fund  of  the  cathedral  in  Fredericton. 
Armed  with  the  Bishop's  letter  he  went  to  his  work, 
the  Bishop  anticipating  little  or  nothing  from  the 
adventure.  At  the  expiration  of  about  a  year  or 
more,  having  almost  forgotten  the  occurrence,  he 
received  a  cheque  from  the  young  man  for  £1400 
sterling. 

Chief  Justice  Chipman  left  £10,000  (fifty  thousand 
dollars)  to  the  Diocesan  Church  Society,  with  the 
stipulation  that  it  should  be  invested,  and  the  annual 
income  derived  therefrom  applied  to  the  support  of 
Home  Missions.  He  also  left  £5000  (twenty-five 
thousand  dollars)  to  the  Madras  Board,  to  assist  in 
maintenance  of  schools  under  the  Madras  system, 
which  was  at  that  time  (1851)  the  chief  available 
system  for  the  education  of  the  poorer  classes,  and 
combined  with  it  a  certain  amount  of  definite  Church 
teaching.  He  also  subscribed  liberally  to  the  Bishops' 
Endowment  Fund. 


KING  S    COLLEGE. 

The  University  of  King's  College,  Fredericton, 
like  its  namesakes  at  Windsor  and  Toronto,  was 
formerly  under  the  control  of  the  Church  of 
England.  By  its  charter,  dated  the  15th  December, 
in  the  eighth  year  of  the  reign  of  King  George 
IV.,  the  Bishop  of  the  Diocese  was  made  its  visitor, 
the  Archdeacon  of  New  Brunswick  ex  officio  its 
President,  and  the  Lieut.-Governor  of  the  Province 
its  Chancellor.  The  government  of  the  College  was 
vested  in  a  council  of  nine,  composed  of  the  Chan- 
cellor, the  President,  the  Visitor,  and  seven  Professors, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  163 

being  members  of  the  Church  of  England  ;  and  in 
case  there  should  not  be  seven  Professors  in  the 
University,  the  Chancellor  was  empowered  to  fill  up 
the  council  from  among  the  graduates  of  the  College, 
being  members  of  the  Church  of  England. 

The  College  was  endowed  with  6000  acres  of 
excellent  land  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Fredericton, 
£1000  sterling  per  annum  from  the  Crown,  and 
£1000  per  annum  from  the  Colonial  Legislature. 
The  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  sup- 
ported five  or  six  scholarships  for  several  years. 

On  the  27th  March,  1845,  this  charter  was  par- 
tially repealed  by  an  Act  of  the  Colonial  Legis- 
lature. The  control  of  the  institution  was  placed 
in  the  hands  of  civil  officers  ;  all  tests  from  professors 
or  students  were  removed,  except  the  Professor  of 
Theology,  who  was  required  to  be  a  member  of  the 
Church  of  England,  and  Divine  Service  to  be  per- 
formed in  the  chapel  of  the  College  was  to  be 
according  to  the  forms  of  the  United  Church  of 
England  and  Ireland,  and  persons  taking  Divinity 
degrees  were  required  still  to  take  the  oaths  prescribed 
by  the  charter.  By  later  legislation  the  institution 
was  wholly  secularized. 

There  is  not  much  of  striking  incident  or  variety 
in  the  onward  progress  of  the  Church  during  Bishop 
Medley's  administration.  The  effort  has  been  to 
subdivide  and  to  extend,  and  there  have  been  the 
usual  appeals  both  to  the  Church  in  the  Diocese  and 
at  home  for  funds  and  for  men  to  sustain  and  extend 
the  work.  The  progress  has  been  steady  but  slow, 
and  much  still  remains  to  be  done. 

In  his  report  to  the  S.  P.  G.  in  1879,  the  Bishop 
says,  "  that  the  number  of  the  clergy  now  amounts  to 
seventy-three,  the  largest  number  yet  attained  ;  every 
vacancy  is  filled,  and  several  new  missions  have  been 
opened  during  the  past  year."     Like  all  his  brethren, 


164  HISTOEY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

he  has  to  complain  of  the  want  of  liberality  on  the 
part  of  the  laity,  as  making  Church  extension  difficult, 
if  not  impossible.  The  commercial  depression  and 
the  recent  disastrous  fire  in  St.  John,  are  referred 
to  as  accounting  in  part  for  this  deficiency  ;  but  still 
the  Bishop  feels  that  his  well-to-do  lay  people  are  not 
seconding  his  efforts  as  they  should.  He  mentions 
the  Rev.  L.  H.  Hoyt  of  Andover,  whose  parishioners 
were  largely  engaged  daring  the  winter  in  lumbering 
operations,  as  one  of  the  many  instances  of  fervent 
zeal  and  ready  adaptation  to  the  needs  of  his  position. 
Observing  how  few  men  there  were  at  church,  he 
resolved  to  follow  them  eighty  miles  away  from  his 
home,  to  their  winter  quarters.  This  effort  was 
attended  with  the  happiest  results.  The  example 
thus  set  by  a  young  man  was  soon  followed  by  others 
of  the  clergy,  and  proved  a  great  blessing  to  the 
dwellers  in  the  lone  wilderness. 

The  three  most  noteworthy  events  of  the  year  were 
—  (1)  The  consecration  of  the  largest  church  in  the 
Diocese,  Trinity,  St.  John,  which  had  been  destroyed 
by  the  great  fire  ;  (2)  the  election  of  Dr.  Kingdon 
as  Coadjutor  of  the  Diocese ;  (3)  his  own  election  as 
Metropolitan  of  Canada.  The  Diocese  was  then 
contributing  £4000  (twenty  thousand  dollars)  for  its 
missionary  work. 

Among  the  many  excellent  missions,  the  Bishop 
writes — "  Perhaps  none  excels  in  interest  that  of 
New  Denmark,  carried  on  by  the  Rev.  R.  M.  Hansen. 
The  population  is  wholly  Danish,  reinforced  every 
year  by  fresh  arrivals  from  Denmark — originally 
Lutherans  by  profession.  The  whole  number  of 
colonists  joined  the  Church  of  England,  and  became 
hearty  in  their  allegiance." 

In  a  paper  prepared  in  1881  for  the  S.  P.  G.,  the 
Metropolitan  gave  a  brief  account  of  the  progress 
of  the  Church  during  his  Episcopate.     He  says — "  I 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  165 

infer,  from  the  scanty  records  to  which  I  have  access, 
that  the  Church  of  England  in  this  Province  always 
had  to  contend  with  great  difficulties.  A  very  large 
proportion  of  the  inhabitants  were  French  Acadians, 
all  Roman  Catholics,  who  form  now  one-sixth  of  the 
population  ;  and  many  of  the  early  settlers  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Fredericton  and  elsewhere,  who 
came  from  the  United  States  before  the  Revolution, 
were  Baptists  or  Congregationalists.  I  draw  a  like 
inference  from  the  recorded  fact  that  when  Mr. 
Cook  first  settled  at  Fredericton,  the  inhabitants 
were  400  in  number,  that  only  100  went  to  church, 
which  renders  it  probable  that  many  of  those  that 
did  not  attend  were  Roman  Catholics  or  Dissenters. 
To  be  sure,  there  was  little  to  invite  them,  as  the 
service  was  held  in  the  King's  Provision  Store,  used 
for  almost  every  secular  purpose,  amongst  others  for 
balls  and  dancing-parties,  as  well  as  for  the  sale  of 
spirits.  I  think  fully  eleven  years  passed  before  a 
suitable  church  was  completed.  From  1835,  when 
Mr.  Cook  was  appointed  as  the  first  missionary  of 
New  Brunswick,  to  1845,  when  Bishop  Medley  was 
consecrated,  the  clergy  had  increased  from  one  to 
twenty-eight.  "  The  misfortune,"  he  continued,  "  has 
always  been  the  overgrown  size  of  the  missions,  and 
the  difficulty  of  supplying  every  congregation  with 
a  regular  service  once  a  week.  Our  effort  has  been 
to  divide  the  missions,  which,  sometimes  from  want 
of  men  and  sometimes  from  want  of  money,  has  been 
a  slow  process.  Thirty-eight  such  subdivisions  have 
taken  place ;  the  increase  of  the  clergy  has  been  as 
great  as  could  reasonably  have  been  expected.  I 
found  about  twenty-eight ;  there  are  now  seventy  ; 
and  there  are  hardly  any  places  occupied  by  the 
Church  in  New  Brunswick  in  which  the  church  fabric 
has  not  been  built  or  rebuilt,  or  restored  and  greatly 
improved.      The    communicants    have    steadily   and 


166  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

greatly  increased  ;  those  who  do  communicate  attend 
more  frequently,  while  those  who  are  confirmed  far 
more  generally  became  communicants  than  was 
formerly  the  case. 

"  One  reason  why  the  Church  has  not  made  as  rapid 
progress  in  this  Diocese  as  in  some  of  the  more 
western  jurisdictions,  is  found  in  the  fact  that  the 
climate  is  more  severe,  and  the  soil  less  fertile. 
Then  such  immigration  as  has  taken  place  into  New 
Brunswick  has  consisted  almost  entirely  of  Scotch 
and  Irish ;  furnishing  large  additions  to  Presby- 
terians or  various  denominations,  and  to  Eoman 
Catholics.  These,  occupying  positions  of  extreme 
antagonism,  do  not  look  with  any  favour  on  the 
middle  ground  held  by  the  Church  of  England. 
Yet,"  the  Bishop  says,  "we  hold  bur  own,  and  there 
is  no  bitterness  or  violence  of  controversy  between 
us.  The  Diocese  is  suffering  from  an  extensive  and 
continual  exodus  from  this  Province  to  the  United 
States,  as  a  result  of  the  depression  of  business,  and 
the  scarceness  of  unoccupied  productive  land.  Whole 
families  of  Church  people  are  constantly  leaving  us, 
and  do  not  return.  A  constant  stream  of  young 
men  is  passing  from  this  Province  into  the  Republic ; 
while  the  limited  immigration  comes  from  a  source 
that  brings  no  strength  to  us.  As  we  now  stand, 
every  clergyman  in  charge  of  a  mission  has  his  hands 
full.  Almost  all  have  three  services  every  Sunday, 
with  long  distances  to  travel. 

The  Coadjutor,  a  learned,  godly,  and  zealous  man, 
sustains  the  character  of  chief  missionary  rather 
than  that  of  a  governing  bishop.  In  the  laborious 
tours  that  he  has  made  in  recent  yeai^s,  he  has  come 
on  places  where  Churchmen  have  not  had  a  visit 
from  a  clergyman  for  eight  years  ;  in  one  place,  where 
a  good  lady,  who  had  never  ceased  sending  her  sub- 
scription to  the  Diocesan  Society,  had  waited  for  years, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  167 

hoping  against  hope,  and  praying  daily  for  a  clergy- 
man to  baptize  her  child.  A  beautiful  church  has 
since  been  erected  there — dedicated  to  the  memory 
of  a  saintly  pioneer,  familiarly  called  Father  Hudson. 


THE    PIONEER    CLERGY. 

Among  the  more  prominent  clergymen  who  laboured 
in  New  Brunswick  in  the  pioneer  period  of  its  his- 
tory, in  addition  to  those  whose  work  we  have  already 
described  in  the  history  of  Nova  Scotia,  may  be 
mentioned,  the  Rev.  George  Pidgeon,  an  Irishman  by 
birth,  and  a  graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin.  He 
came  to  America  as  an  ensign  in  the  Rifles,  and  at 
the  end  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  acting  under  the 
advice  of  Bishop  Inglis,  he  prepared  for  the  sacred 
ministry.  He  found  occasion  on  his  ordination  to 
endure,  in  outlying  mission  work,  the  hardness  with 
which  he  had  become  familiar  in  his  worldly  calling. 
He  was  appointed  to  the  Rectory  of  Fredericton  on 
the  death  of  Dr.  Cook,  and  afterwards,  in  1814,  he 
became  Rector  of  St.  John. 

The  Rev.  Samuel  Andrews,  the  first  Rector  of  St. 
Andrew's,  came  from  Wallingford,  Conn.,  in  the  year 
1776.  He  reports  that  on  his  arrival  at  St.  Andrew's 
he  found  a  considerable  body  of  people,  of  different 
national  extraction,  living  in  general  harmony  and 
peace,  punctual  in  attending  Divine  Service,  and 
behaving  with  propriety  and  devotion.  Great  good 
had  been  done  by  Dr.  Cook's  visit,  and  the  civil 
magistrate,  ever  since  the  town  was  settled,  had 
acted  as  lay  reader  on  Sundays,  and  set  the  people  a 
good  example.  Mr.  Andrews  states,  that  owing  to 
the  fact  that  most  of  his  people  were  for  the  present 
conforming  Presbyterians,  there  were  but  few  com- 
municants, while  the  baptisms  were  numerous.     In 


168  HISTORY   OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

1791,  he  baptized  110  persons  in  nine  months.  In 
1793,  while  visiting  a  distant  part  of  his  mission,  he 
was  invited  to  a  lonely  house,  where  he  found  a  large 
family  awaiting  him,  and  after  prolonged  instruction 
and  examination,  he  baptized  the  ancient  matron, 
eighty-two  years  of  age,  her  son  sixty,  two  grandsons, 
and  seven  great-grandchildren.  During  this  year 
Mr.  Andrews  baptized  150  persons,  though  he  had 
only  thirty-two  communicants.  He  died  in  1818,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-two.  He  had  spent  thirty  years  of 
his  life  in  missionary  work  in  New  Brunswick.  His 
salary  from  the  S.  P.  G.  was  only  £50  per  annum. 
He  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Canon  Ketchum,  who 
is  still  in  charge  of  the  parish. 

The  mission,  whose  centre  was  Kingston,  N".  B.,  was 
founded  by  the  Rev.  James  Scovil,  one  of  the  U.  E.'s. 
He  had  an  extensive  and  difficult  field  of  labour ;  the 
people  being  pioneer  settlers  had  but  very  little 
money,  and  he  could  only  build  either  church  or 
residence  by  outside  aid.  He  was  succeeded  by  his 
son,  Rev.  Elias  Scovil.  For  130  years  the  three 
Scovils  were  in  the  ministry,  and  for  ninety  years 
they  officiated  at  Kingston.  Bishop  Inglis  in  his 
reports  frequently  refers  to  the  flourishing  mission  of 
Kingston,  which  he  considered  the  Church  mission  of 
the  Province.  Archdeacon  Best  termed  it  the  key- 
stone of  the  Church  in  New  Brunswick,  and  remarked 
that  here  might  be  seen  a  church  widely  and  firmly 
established,  with  200  communicants,  ably  ruled  by  a 
learned  and  orthodox  Scovil. 

Another  of  the  refugee  clergy,  the  Rev.  Richard 
Clarke,  came  to  St.  John  in  company  with  Messrs. 
Andrews  and  Scovil,  and  was  put  in  charge  of  the 
difficult  mission  of  Gagetown.  The  settlers  were  so 
poor  that  they  could  give  him  no  assistance,  and  in 
some  way  he  managed  to  live,  with  his  wifp  and  nWpn 
children,  on  the  salary  of  .£50  granted  by  the  S.  P.  G. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  169 

He  was  twenty-five  years  Rector  of  Gagetown,  a 
patient  and  persevering  worker.  He  was  succeeded 
by  bis  son,  the  Rev.  S.  R.  Clarke. 

Woodstock  and  its  neighbourhood  was  settled  by 
Loyalists  in  1787,  and  after  a  while  they  prevailed 
upon  Mr.  Frederick  Dibblee  of  Stamford,  Connecticut, 
who  had  escaped  with  the  other  Loyalists,  to  become 
their  clergyman.  He  was  the  son  of  their  former 
Rector,  one  of  the  inflexible  Loyalists,  who  persisted  in 
using  the  English  Prayer-book,  praying  for  the  King 
long  after  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  of 
whom  the  historian  speaks  as  having  been  dragged 
through  the  mire  and  dirt  because  of  his  persistent 
loyalty.  There  is  extant  a  wise  and  loving  letter 
addressed  to  him  by  Bishop  Seabury,  entreating  him  to 
reconsider  his  position,  and  giving  reasons  for  conform- 
ing to  the  American  usage.  His  son  Frederick,  when 
chosen  by  the  people,  proceeded  to  Fredericton,  and 
thence  to  St.  John  by  canoe,  there  being  no  roads  at 
that  period.  From  St.  John  he  took  passage  by 
schooner  to  Halifax,  where  he  was  ordained  Deacon  by 
Bishop  Inglis,  in  1791.  Three  months  were  occupied 
by  Mr.  Dibblee  in  his  journey,  during  which  time  his 
family  never  heard  a  word  from  him.  The  journey  can 
now  be  accomplished  in  eight  or  ten  hours.  Mr. 
Dibblee  was  appointed  first  missionary  to  the  settlers 
on  the  river  St.  John  living  above  St.  Mary's  and 
Kingsclear.  It  was  a  hard  mission  of  great  extent  and 
difficult  of  access.  The  people  were  few  in  number,  and 
scattered  over  an  area  of  150  miles.  The  roads  were 
of  the  worst  character.  Bark  canoes  and  riding  on 
horseback  were  the  only  way  of  locomotion  in  the 
summer,  and  snow-shoes  in  the  winter.  Mr.  Dibblee 
had  taken  great  interest  in  the  Indians,  and  when  the 
Bishop  visited  his  mission  in  1792,  he  found  no  less 
than  250  families  in  and  about  Woodstock,  who 
through   Mr.    Dibblee' s   influence  were  prepared  to 


170  HISTOEY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

give  up  their  wandering  life,  and  devote  themselves 
to  the  culture  of  the  soil.  Iu  the  school  which  he 
established,  the  Indians  appeared  to  have  learnt  as 
fast  as  the  whites,  and  to  have  been  fond  of  associ- 
ating with  them.  Everything  betokened  order  and 
regularity  in  the  school,  the  whites  and  Indians 
getting  on  most  harmoniously.  Mr.  Dibblee  con- 
tinued in  charge  of  Woodstock  and  the  surrounding 
country  till  his  death,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three,  in 
May  1826. 

The  Rev.  Oliver  Arnold,  the  first  Hector  of  Sussex, 
had  a  history  not  unlike  that  of  Mr.  Dibblee.  He 
was  one  of  the  refugees,  who  was  ordained  by  Bishop 
Inglis  at  the  request  of  his  fellow-exiles.  He  too 
carried  on  a  successful  work  both  among  the  whites 
and  Indians.  The  Honourable  George  Leanord  gave 
240  acres  of  land  for  a  parson's  glebe,  and  built  at 
his  own  cost  a  school-house  80  x  30  feet,  for  the  use 
of  the  Indians  and  white  settlers.  Mr.  Arnold  lived  to 
the  age  of  seventy-nine,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son, 
the  Rev.  Horatio  Arnold,  who  worked  faithfully  and 
laboriously  till  his  death  at  the  age  of  forty-nine.  His 
wife  was  a  sister  of  Major- General  Sir  Frederick 
"Williams,  the  hero  of  Kars,  in  honour  of  whom  one 
of  the  parishes  of  King's  county  has  been  called 
Kars. 

The  church  at  Westfield  owes  its  first  beginnings 
to  Colonel  Nase,  who,  together  with  Mr.  Ward,  a 
school-master,  acted  as  lay-reader  for  many  years 
whenever  a  mission  was  without  a  resident  clergy- 
man. At  Westfield  he  held  services  in  private  houses, 
and  in  the  summer  in  a  large  barn  belonging  to  his 
friend,  the  well  known  General  John  Coffin.  It  was 
in  this  building  that  several  of  Colonel  Nase's  sons 
were  baptized  when  the  Rev.  Robert  Norris  was 
appointed  to  the  mission.  This  clergyman's  history 
was   full   of   unusual   adventure.     He  was   born  at 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  171 

Bath,  England,  in  1764.  His  parents  were  Roman 
CatliQlics,  who  sent  their  son,"  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  to~ 
R"oine,  to  be  educated  for  the  priesthood.  After 
eight  years'  residence  in  the  Eternal  City,  he  became 
Professor  at  the  English  College  of  St.  Omer.  He 
was  admitted  to  the  priesthood  in  the  Roman  Church 
at  Christmas,  1789.  It  was  while  attending  to  his 
professional  duties  at  St.  Omer,  frhat  he  began  to 
question  the  teaching  and  practices  of  the  Roman 
Church,  and  after  prolonged  and  painful  deliberation 
he  determined  to  enter  the  Anglican  Church.  With 
this  view  he  resolved  to  return  to  England ;  on  his 
way  he  Avas  accused  of  being  a  British  subject  and 
an  aristocrat.  He  was  arrested  and  thrown  into 
prison.  This  was  the  eve  of  the  Reign  of  Terror. 
He  suffered  fifteen  months'  close  and  hard  confine- 
ment, and  lived  in  daily  expectation  of  being  led 
forth,  like  so  many  of  his  confederates,  to  execution. 
He  was  not  released  until  the  downfall  of  Robespierre, 
in  1794.  He  hastened  to  England  as  speedily  as  he 
could,  and  naturally  supposed  that  his  mental  trials 
and  bodily  sufferings  were  at  an  end  ;  but  he  really 
fell  into  greater  distress  than  he  had  yet  encountered. 
All  the  members  of  his  family  were  zealous  Romanists. 
They  felt  indignant  that  one  of  their  number,  and 
he  a  priest,  should  forsake  the  faith  of  their  fathers ; 
hence  they  refused  to  receive  him ;  his  father  dis- 
inherited him,  and  he  found  himself  a  stranger  in 
his  native  land,  without  friends,  acquaintances,  or 
even  the  means  of  subsistence.  He  therefore  sought 
to  procure  a  livelihood  by  giving  instruction  in  the 
French  and  Italian  languages.  He  struggled  on  in 
this  way  for  nearly  two  years,  meeting  with  only 
partial  success,  until  Dr.  Charles  Moss,  Bishop  of 
Bath  and  Wells,  after  becoming  fully  satisfied  of  his 
learning,  religious  principles,  and  moral  character, 
recommended  him  to  the  Society  for  the  Propagation 


172  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  the  Gospel,  for  employment  as  a  missionary.  On 
the  17th  March,  1797,  Mr.  Norris  renounced  the 
errors  of  the  Church  of  Rome  in  St.  Mary  la  Bon 
church,  Cheapside,  and  was  appointed  missionary  to 
Nova  Scotia.  He  immediately  embarked  for  his  new- 
field  of  labour,  but  did  not  reach  Halifax  till  June. 
Without  pausing  to  rest,  after  his  long  and  perilous 
voyage,  he  pushed  on  to  the  newly-formed  parish  of 
Chester,  of  which  he  was  put  in  charge.  Here  he 
officiated  till  1801,  when  he  was  transferred  to  West- 
field.  This  mission  in  those  days  was  very  rough, 
the  roads  few  and  bad,  and  the  people  very  scattered. 
His  work  was  very  trying.  In  1806,  he  was  appointed 
by  Dr.  Charles  Inglis  to  the  Rectory  of  Cornwallis 
and  Horton.  Amid  the  beautiful  scenery  of  this 
pleasant  parish  he  spent  the  remaining  years  of  his 
life,  happy  in  the  discharge  of  his  spiritual  duties, 
and  in  more  temporal  comfort  than  he  had  hitherto 
enjoyed.  He  died  on  the  16th  October,  1834,  in 
the  seventy-first  year  of  his  age. 

Dr.  Skeffington  Thomson,  a  native  of  Ireland,  and 
for  some  time  a  magistrate  in  that  country,  became 
second  Rector  of  St.  Stephen's,  and  was  manifestly  one 
of  the  energetic  missionaries  of  that  period.  By  his 
exertions  six  churches  were  built  in  his  mission.  Dr. 
Thomson  was  one  of  the  small  band  of  clergy  who 
assisted  Archdeacon  Coster  in  the  formation  of  the 
Diocesan  Church  Society,  which  has  proved  such  a 
source  of  strength  in  New  Brunswick. 

The  Rev.  George  Bisset,  one  of  the  Royalist  clergy 
of  Rhode  Island,  who  suffered  great  privations  and 
indignities  for  his  principles,  was  appointed  to  the 
Rectory  of  St.  John  on  the  removal  of  Dr.  Cook,  of 
whom  we  have  already  spoken.  He  was  evidently  an 
able  and  successful  man,  and  large  congregations 
gathered  around  him.  He  laid  the  foundation  of  Old 
Trinity,  but  died  before  it  was  completed,  within  ten 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  173 

.  years  after  his  arrival  at  St.  John.  He  had  greatly 
endeared  himself  to  his  people,  who  speak  of  his  death 
"  with  the  most  heartfelt  grief,"  and  they  are  per- 
suaded that  no  Church  or  community  ever  suffered 
a  severer  misfortune  in  the  death  of  an  individual 
than  they  experienced  from  the  loss  of  this  eminent 
servant  of  Christ,  this  best  and  most  amiable  of 
men. 

The  Rgy^Di^gyigs,  who  was  elected  to  the  Rectory 
of  St.  John  in  succession  to  Mr.  Bisset,  on  the 
recommendation  of  the  Bishop,  belonged  to  a  family 
of  great  reputation  among  the  early  Puritans.  He 
himself  was  a  Congregational  minister  for  several, 
years.  The  Vestry  of  Christ  Church,  Boston,  in  1768, 
invited  him  to  become  their  minister,  and  on  his 
consenting  (whether  from  conviction  or  mere  inclin- 
ation is  not  stated),  they  paid  his  expenses  to  go  to 
England  for  Orders,  and  agreed  to  give  him  £100 
per  annum  on  his  return.  He  was  evidently  an 
enthusiastic  Loyalist,  for  on  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, he  at  once  resigned  and  removed  to  Halifax. 
After  twelve  years'  service  in  that  city,  he  was 
appointed  Mr.  Bisset's  successor,  and  moved  to  St. 
John  on  the  4th  May,  1789.  The  congregation 
wrote  to  the  S.  P.  G.,  thanking  them  for  recommend- 
ing so  efficient  a  clergyman  to  them,  and  Dr.  Byles 
reported  to  the  same  Society  that  on  his  arrival  he 
found  a  decent  house,  a  crowded  church,  and  people 
who  received  him  with  every  mark  of  good  feeling 
and  approbation.  On  Christmas  1791,  Trinity  church, 
which  had  been  in  course  of  construction  for  some 
time,  was  opened,  and  Dr.  Byles  preached  the  first 
sermon.  He  died  in  1814,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty. 

Dr.  B.  Gray,  after  having  completed  his  education 
in  England,  was  ordained  in  1796,  and  put  in  charge 
of  the  missions  a  few  miles   from  Halifax.     When 


174  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Jamaica  was  taken  from  the  Spaniards  in  the  seven- 
teenth century,  large  numbers  of  African  slaves  left 
the  plantations,  and  took  up  their  abode  in  the  moun- 
tains. They  were  a  wild,  savage  race,  called  Maroons  ; 
they  were  conquered  by  the  English,  and  500  of  them 
sent  to  Halifax.  Such  were  the  people  over  whom 
Mr.  Gray  was  first  appointed.  He  was  afterwards 
appointed  successively  to  the  Rectory  of  St.  George's 
Church,  Halifax,  and  then,  in  1825,  he  become  Rector 
of  St.  John,  N.  B.  He  was  mainly  instrumental  in 
the  erection  of  Grace  Church,  Portland,  which  he  and 
his  curate  served,  till  a  resident  clergyman  was 
appointed.  He  sustained  a  terrible  loss  in  1833.  His 
Rectory  was  burned,  his  wife  perished  in  the  flames, 
and  his  library,  perhaps  the  finest  in  the  Province, 
was  completely  destroyed.  A  subscription  of  £600 
was  made  up  and  presented  to  Dr.  Gray,  to  assist  in 
repairing  this  latter  loss.  He  died  in  1854,  in  the 
eighty-sixth  year  of  his  age  and  the  fifty-eighth  of  his 
ministry. 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  the  Rev.  T.  W.  D. 
Gray,  who  was  considered  one  of  the  ablest  divines 
of  the  Maritime  Provinces.  He  was  widely  known 
as  a  keen  debater  and  controversial  writer.  He  was 
one  of  the  first  three  Canons  appointed  by  the  Bishop 
of  Fredericton,  and  one  of  his  chaplains. 

He  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  George  Best,  who 
was  a  man  of  great  gentleness  of  character  and  un- 
affected piety.  He  was  appointed  first  Archdeacon 
of  New  Brunswick  by  Bishop  Inglis,  and  did  much 
by  his  official  visits  to  stir  up  the  energies  and  in- 
terests of  the  Church  in  the  outlying  parishes  and 
missions. 

The  Rev.  George  Coster,  a  graduate  of  St.  John's 
College,  Cambridge,  had  been  appointed  Archdeacon 
of  Newfoundland  in  1825,  and  on  the  death  of  Mr. 
Best  he  was  transferred  to  the  Rectorship  of  Freder- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  175 

icton  and  the  Archdeaconry  of  New  Brunswick. 
He  was  a  man  of  good  judgment  and  practical  ability, 
who  took  an  active  part  in  the  extension  of  the 
missions  of  the  Church. 

He,  with  his  brother,  the  Rev.  Frederick  Coster, 
for  many  years  the  efficient  secretary,  organized  and 
earnestly  promoted  the  first  Church  Society  of  the 
Canadian  Church.  One  who  knew  the  Archdeacon 
well,  speaks  of  him  as  embodying  the  idea  of  a  hero, 
a  martyr,  and  a  saint.  "  I  am  sure,"  he  says,  "  if 
not  precisely  either  of  these,  he  yet  could  have  been 
all,  had  the  circumstances  of  his  life  called  forth  his 
latent  powers.  He  was  an  English  gentleman  of  the 
old  school,  and  as  a  Churchman  was  far  in  advance 
of  his  time.  He  was  the  first  to  introduce  into  the 
Diocese  the  Church's  rule  of  Daily  Prayer,  Saints' 
day  observance,  frequent  Communion,  the  Offertory, 
the  surplice  in  preaching,  and  the  other  changes  of 
our  time  with  which  all  are  familiar.  He  exercised 
the  most  unstinted  hospitality  towards  the  clergy. 
His  home  life  was  made  happy  by  his  many  charming 
gifts  of  mind  and  manner,  added  to  his  holy  and 
self-denying  life."  Under  sore  trials  from  ill-health 
and  worldly  loss,  "  he  remained  patient,  uncomplain- 
ing, and  cheerful.  He  was  a  man  of  great  learning, 
of  wide  and  varied  reading ;  spending  many  hours 
of  every  day  in  his  study.  His  education,  refine- 
ment, and  keen  sense  of  humour,  combined  with 
his  gentle  kindness,  made  him  a  most  delightful 
companion  to  his  family  and  friends."  While  his 
gentleness,  and  active  but  unostentatious  charity 
endeared  him  to  the  whole  community  in  which  he 
lived. 

These  are  only  examples  selected  from  the  lists  of 
the  men  who  were  employed  in  the  establishment  of 
the  Church  in  this  Province. 

There  were  many   others   as  worthy  of  mention, 


176  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

who  did  their  work  earnestly  and  have  passed  to 
their  reward,  whose  life  cannot  be  even  briefly  traced 
in  this  record.  They  have  been  followed  by  more 
than  one  generation  of  men  who  have  not  proved 
themselves  unworthy  of  the  heroic  pioneers  of  their 
race  and  calling. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  177 


CHAPTER   VII. 

DIOCESE    OF    MONTREAL. 

The  Diocese  of  Montreal  was  formed  out  of  that 
of  Quebec,  in  the  year  1850,  eleven  years  after  the 
foundation  of  Toronto.  The  Rev.  Francis  Fulford, 
who  belonged  to  a  knightly  family  which  traces  its 
history  back  to  Saxon  times,  was  chosen  first  Bishop. 
He  was,  at  the  time,  minister  of  Curzon  Chapel, 
Mayfair.  He  had  previously  been  Rector  of  Trow- 
bridge, Wiltshire,  and  Croydon,  Cambridgeshire.  He 
was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Montreal  in  Westminster, 
on  the  25th  July,  1850. 

When  the  first  Anglican  Bishop  arrived  at  Quebec, 
he  was  heartily  welcomed  by  the  Gallican  Bishop, 
who,  with  a  kiss  on  both  cheeks,  expressed  the 
pleasure  he  felt  at  receiving  his  Episcopal  brother. 
"  For,"  continued  the  French  Canadian  Prelate, 
"  your  people  want  you  very  badly." 

The  Bishop  of  Montreal  did  not,  on  his  arrival, 
receive  any  such  greeting  from  his  Roman  Catholic 
brothers,  for  the  attitude  of  the  Roman  Church  was 
changing,  had  changed  already  from  the  old  Gallican 
to  the  new  Ultramontane  attitude.  It  was,  however, 
quite  as  true  now,  as  in  that  earlier  time,  that  the 
people  to  whom  the  Bishop  of  Montreal  came  needed 
him  very  greatly.  The  theological  questions  that 
had  been  agitating  the  Church  at  home  for  nearly 
twenty  years   had   long  ago   been  wafted   over  the 

M 


178  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

sea.  The  party  strife  had  been  daily  waxing  hotter, 
and  when  Bishop  Fulford  was  appointed,  there  was 
the  greatest  anxiety  on  the  one  side  and  the  other  to 
know  whether  he  was  high  or  low.  The  Bishop, 
however,  had  made  a  solemn  resolve  that  he  would 
neither  be  "  the  lion  of  a  sect,  nor  the  leader  of  a 
party."  Little  could  be  gathered  about  his  ante- 
cedents, and  he  knew  full  well  the  wisdom  of 
keeping  his  own  counsel,  and  of  saying  nothing  as 
to  his  theological  convictions,  till  duty  called  upon 
him  to  do  so.  Shortly  after  his  arrival,  a  certain 
coterie  of  the  clergy,  who  were  growing  daily  more 
anxious  as  to  what  the  Bishop's  convictions  might 
be,  appointed  one  of  their  number  to  put  the  question 
plainly  to  him.  They  chose  a  public  luncheon  given 
in  honour  of  the  Bishop,  as  the  occasion  for  this 
catechizing.  At  a  lull  in  the  conversation  the 
gentleman  appointed,  addressing  the  Bishop,  began 
rather  abruptly  by  saying  in  the  first  place,  "My 
lord,  I  shall  frankly  make  a  confe^sion  with  regard 
to  myself,  and  then  I  shall  as  frankly  ask  a  question 
with  regard  to  your  lordship.  I  am  a  low  Church- 
man, my  lord,  a  very  low  Churchman,  I  may  say," 
but  before  he  could  proceed  with  the  threatened 
question  the  Bishop  interfered — "  By  which  I  hope 

you   mean,   Mr.   ,   that  you   are  a  very  humble 

Churchman."  Then  turning  to  the  host  he  said,  "  I 
think  we  had  better  join  the  ladies." 

The  Bishop  was  enthroned  in  Christ  Church, 
Montreal,  on  the  14th  Sept.,  1850.  Immediately  there- 
after he  began  the  visitation  of  the  scattered  parishes 
of  his  extensive  Diocese,  and  by  his  free  and  friendly 
intercourse  with  the  clergy  and  their  families,  he 
won  the  hearts  of  all.  In  1852,  he  held  his  primary 
visitation,  and  delivered  his  first  charge.  There  were 
only  fifty-two  clergymen  in  his  Diocese,  and  fifty  of 
these  were  present  at  the  visitation.     The  Church, 


EASTERN   CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  179 

as  we  have  seen,  was  a  good  deal  agitated  by  the 
controversies  that  were  raging  in  England.  "The 
Gorham  case "  and  the  surplice  question  were  then 
to  the  fore,  and  were  evokiDg  not  a  little  angry 
feeling  on  the  one  side  and  the  other.  The  Bishop 
wisely  passed  them  by,  and  addressed  himself  to  the 
practical  needs  of  the  Diocese,  and  of  the  Church  at 
large.  He  had  been  but  a  short  time  in  the  country, 
and  yet  he  had  grasped  the  actual  status  of  the 
Church  with  a  clearness  which  many  distinguished 
men,  brought  up  in  the  land,  had  not  yet  attained 
to.  In  speaking  of  the  subject  in  his  charge,  he  says  — 
"  While,  spiritually,  we  are  identified  with  the  Church 
of  the  mother  country,  emanating  from  her,  using 
the  same  Liturgy,  subscribing  the  same  articles, 
blessed  with  the  same  Apostolic  ministry,  visibly 
forming  part  of  the  same  ecclesiastical  body,  and 
claiming  as  our  own  all  her  mighty  champions,  con- 
fessors, and  martyrs,  yet  in  a  political  sense,  and  as 
regards  temporalities  and  everything  that  is  under- 
stood by  legal  establishment,  or  as  conferring  special 
privileges  above  other  religious  communities,  we  are 
in  a  totally  dissimilar  situation.  We  exist  but  as  one 
of  many  religious  bodies,  consisting  of  such  persons 
as  may  voluntarily  declare  themselves  to  be  members 
of  the  Church  of  England.  There  cannot  be  the 
slightest  advantage  or  wisdom,  but  quite  the  reverse, 
in  putting  forward  claims  for  special  consideration, 
claims  which,  circumstanced  as  we  are  here,  if  they 
were  to  be  granted  to  us  to-day,  it  must  be  absolutely 
absurd  for  us  to  expect  to  maintain." 

He  further  stated  that  while  the  political  and  legal 
position  of  the  Church  here  was  essentially  different 
from  that  in  England,  and  while  we  were  thus 
deprived  of  the  administrative  power  provided  by  the 
establishment  at  home,  no  organization  adapted  to 
our  condition  here  had  yet  been  provided.    "  We  have 


180  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

been  deprived  of  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  England, 
and  we  have  as  yet  no  effectual  means  of  self-govern- 
ment." He  therefore  threw  himself  with  great 
earnestness  into  the  movement,  in  which  all  the 
Bishops  concurred,  for  the  establishment  of  Diocesan 
and  Provincial  Synods.  Toronto  had  already  led  the 
way  in  constituting  a  Synod,  consisting  of  Bishop, 
clergy,  and  laity,  and  all  the  Bishops  seem  to  have 
concurred  in  the  wisdom  of  that  constitution.  Bishop 
Fulford  writes  in  this  first  charge — "  I  most  firmly 
believe  that  a  provision  such  as  is  there  recommended 
for  the  purpose  of  supplying  sufficient  means  of  self- 
government  for  the  Church,  would  not  only  have  the 
happiest  influence  on  the  Church  at  large,  but  would 
also  strengthen  the  true  and  legitimate  influence  of 
the  Bishop,  and  cause  increased  reverence  and  respect 
for  his  office  and  authority." 

The  Bishop  of  Montreal  differed  from  his  Epis- 
copal brother  of  Toronto  in  his  aversion  to  claim  for 
the  Church  of  England  the  hereditary  rights  of  an 
establishment,  or  to  insist  upon  a  disputed  privilege. 
This  policy  was  attended  with  the  happiest  results. 
He  won  respect  from  all,  Roman  Catholics  as  well  as 
Protestants,  by  his  declaration  that  "the  Church  of 
England  in  Canada,  politically  considered,  exists  but 
as  one  of  many  religious  bodies,"  and  therefore  it 
was  that  all  denominations,  with  a  readiness  amount- 
ing almost  to  enthusiasm,  accorded  to  him  the  chief 
place  in  the  religious  and  social  community  of  Mon- 
treal, and  they  treated  his  office  with  a  respect  which 
it  had  never  received  before  from  the  general  com- 
munity.    (F.  Taylor.) 

The  common  school  question  was  another  of  the 
burning  issues  of  that  time,  and  Bishop  Fulford,  in 
the  east,  adopted  a  line  altogether  different  from 
that  pursued  by  Bishop  Strachan  in  the  west.  The 
Athanasius  of  the  west  would  not  yield  one  inch. 


EASTERN   CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  181 

He  regarded  education  as  the  development  of  the 
whole  man,  body,  soul,  and  spirit;  and  believing  that 
the  Truth  of  God  was  the  only  mould  by  which 
human  character  could  be  fashioned,  after  the  pattern 
of  the  perfect  and  pattern  Man,  he  maintained  that 
any  system  of  education  which  did  not  make  that 
truth  the  basis  of  its  work,  which  did  not  at  least 
include  it  in  its  necessary  learning,  was  an  inter- 
ference with  the  divine  plan,  and  an  insult  to  divine 
truth ;  and  so  when  no  arrangement  could  be  made 
for  teaching  even  the  generally  accepted  doctrines  of 
the  Christian  religion  in  the  public  schools,  he  de- 
manded separate  schools  for  his  own  people  in  cities 
and  towns  where  they  could  be  worked,  and  nearly 
all  the  clergy  and  a  vast  majority  of  the  laity  sup- 
ported his  policy. 

He  of  Montreal,  however,  took  another  view.  He 
felt  that  as  all  education  is  only  relatively  perfect, 
therefore  an  imperfect  education  is  better  than  no 
education  at  all.  He  saw  that  the  very  possibility 
of  having  any  education  for  a  large  number  of  people 
scattered  among  the  French  settlers,  depended  upon 
the  possibility  of  having  public  schools,  and  he  saw 
that  the  possibility  of  having  common  schools  in  a 
country  divided  by  such  manifold  forms  of  religious 
belief,  could  only  be  secured  with  difficulty  and  by 
compromise,  and  so  he  spoke  appreciatively  of  the 
difficulty  of  the  Government,  and  extended  not  only 
his  sympathy  but  his  assistance  to  those  rulers  con- 
stitutionally chosen,  who  were  probably,  he  believed, 
as  earnest  as  he  was  to  promote  the  happiness  and 
welfare  of  the  country.  "  Let  us,"  he  said,  "  in  effect 
not  embarrass,  but  rather,  if  we  may,  let  us  help  the 
Government  ;  let  us  show  our  anxiety  to  assist  in  the 
great  work  of  educating  the  people,  and  not  raise 
difficulties  or  objections  because  we  cannot  have 
everything  our  own  way."     The  utterance  of  these 


182  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    1ST 

sentiments  conciliated  the  good-will  and  respect  of 
the  Government,  and  tended  greatly  to  increase  the 
Bishop's  popularity.  Whether  they  are  consistent 
with  true  allegiance  to  the  Governor  of  all  is  a  ques- 
tion which  we  will  not  further  discuss  here. 

During  the  first  ten  years  of  the  Bishop's  minis- 
tration the  Church  population  increased  from  less 
than  a  fourth  to  more  than  a  third  of  the  entire 
non-Roman  population  of  Montreal.  Among  the 
early  plans  of  usefulness  which  he  tried  to  carry 
out,  was  the  establishment  in  Montreal  of  a  Church 
school  for  girls,  where  the  higher  branches  of 
learning  would  be  taught,  and  where  the  truths  of 
the  Faith  and  their  moral  influence  would  be  incul- 
cated and  enforced.  The  work,  as  is  usual  with  such 
enterprises,  met  with  great  disappointments  and 
hindrances,  and  did  not  become  finally  successful 
during  the  Bishop's  life. 

The  next  step  was  the  subdivision  of  Montreal  into 
parishes.  The  cathedral  was  allotted  a  certain  dis- 
trict, and  two  Canons  were  imported  and  appointed 
— the  Rev.  Henry  Martyn  Lower  and  the  Rev.  S. 
Gil  son.  They  were  able  men,  and  became  favourites 
in  the  Diocese.  The  Bishop  had  laid  himself  out,  not 
to  be  the  bishop  of  a  party,  or  the  patron  of  a  sect, 
and  so  thoroughly  did  he  shrink  from  being  such, 
that  he  was  accused  of  seeking  to  propitiate  his 
enemies,  at  the  cost  of  injustice  to  his  friends,  of 
acting  weakly  and  partially,  and  of  being  manipulated 
by  those  whose  doctrines  and  aims  were  very  different 
from  his  own.  At  all  events  the  result  of  his 
administration  was,  that  the  Diocese  at  his  death  fell 
under  the  control  of  his  theological  opponents,  who 
are  taking  good  care  that  it  shall  not  soon  fall  back 
again.  The  policy  that  has  since  been  pursued  is  the 
opposite  of  Bishop  Fulford's.  Men  of  his  school,  who 
are  in  possession  of  parishes,  are  kindly  treated,  but 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  183 

promotions  are  not  for  them,  nor  are  vacancies  or 
new  missions  supplied  by  men  who  will  continue 
their  work  in   their  way. 

Bishop  Fulford  was  throughout  his  Episcopate  very 
popular  with  the  general  public.  This  was  in  part 
the  result  of  his  just  and  generous  treatment  of  those 
who  differed  from  him,  and  in  part  the  result  of  his 
ready  sympathy  and  co-operation  with  all  movements 
and  Societies  of  benevolent,  philosophic,  scientific,  or 
useful  character.  He  was  the  frequent  and  popular 
lecturer  at  the  gatherings  of  these  institutes  and 
Societies.  When  steps  were  being  taken  to  provide 
Montreal  with  cemetery  accommodation  outside  the 
city,  Bishop  Fulford  won  great  applause  by  suggest- 
ing that  denominational  distinctions  should  not  be 
perpetuated  in  the  grave,  by  having  separate  burying- 
places,  as  at  Toronto  and  elsewhere.  As  a  result  of 
this  feeling  he  was  asked  to  consecrate,  and  did 
consecrate,  the  whole  of  the  General  Burying-ground 
at  Montreal. 

In  the  midst  of  active  preparations  to  carry 
forward  the  work  of  the  Church  throughout  the 
Diocese,  what  looked  like  a  great  calamity  befell  the 
Church  in  Montreal.  Christ's  Church,  the  cathedral 
of  the  Diocese,  was  wholly  consumed  by  fire.  This 
led  to  the  determination  to  change  the  site,  and  to 
build  a  church  which  might  worthily  be  called  the 
cathedral  of  Montreal  This  effort  absorbed  a  large 
share  of  the  Bishop's  thoughts  and  energies  for  a  long 
time.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  on  the  21st  May, 
1857,  and  the  Bishop  had  the  happiness  to  preach 
the  opening  sermon  on  Advent  Sunday,  1859.  As  is 
usual  with  such  undertakings,  the  expenditure  far 
exceeded  the  estimated  cost.  An  oppressive  debt 
was  the  consequence.  This  pressed  heavily  upon  the 
mind  of  the  Bishop,  and  upon  many  besides,  who 
with  him  were  more  immediately  responsible  for  its 


184  HISTORY   OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

contraction.  The  debt,  it  is  true,  was  unavoidably 
incurred,  but  how  to  pay  it  was  the  question.  The 
Bishop  saw  no  way  but  one  of  diminished  personal 
expenditure,  and  increased  liberality  on  the  part  of 
Churchmen.  He  himself  led  the  way  by  moving  into 
a  small  house  connected  with  the  Synod  Hall,  which 
had  been  built  for  the  official  residence  of  the  parish 
school-master.  In  this  plainly  furnished  residence 
he  lived  on  plainest  fare,  only  giving  such  entertain- 
ments as  his  official  connection  with  the  Diocese 
made  imperative,  contributing,  and  inspiring  others 
by  his  example  to  contribute,  largely  to  the  extinction 
of  the  debt  they  had  incurred.  Those  days  and 
months  and  years  of  personal  sacrifice  won  their 
reward  at  last,  for  if  we  are  rightly  informed  the 
cathedral  debt  was  paid  before  the  first  great  Bishop 
was  called  away. 

The  Bishop  of  Toronto  led  the  way,  as  we  have 
seen,  in  the  establishment  of  Diocesan  Synods.  He 
was  speedily  followed  by  the  Bishop  of  Quebec.  The 
experiments  were  deemed  sufficiently  successful  to 
warrant  the  extension  and  completion  of  the  Synodal 
system.  Accordingly,  on  the  23rd  Sept.,  1851,  five 
of  the  Bishops  of  British  North  America  assembled 
at  Quebec,  and  after  a  week's  deliberation  drew  up 
what  has  since  been  known  as  the  Declaration  of  the 
Bishops  of  British  North  America.  In  this,  after 
declaring  in  favour  of  Diocesan  Synods  as  they  now 
exist,  they  stated — "  Thirdly,  it  is  our  opinion,  that 
as  questions  will  arise  from  time  to  time  which  will 
affect  the  welfare  of  the  Church  in  these  colonies,  it 
is  desirable  that  the  Bishops,  clergy,  and  laity  should 
meet  in  council  under  a  Provincial  Metropolitan,  with 
power  to  frame  such  rules  and  regulations  for  the 
better  conduct  of  our  ecclesiastical  affairs,  as  by  the 
said  Council  might  be  deemed  expedient."  They 
further  say  upon  these  grounds — "  It  appears  to  us 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  185 

necessary  that  a  Metropolitan  should  be  appointed 
for  the  North  American  Dioceses." 

Petitions  were  at  once  presented  to  the  Imperial 
Parliament  for  the  establishment  of  such  Diocese, 
and  the  appointment  by  Letters  Patent  of  a  Metro- 
politan. The  Home  Government,  however,  for  one 
reason  or  another  deferred  action,  until  wearied  with 
waiting,  the  Church,  under  the  leadership  of  the 
Bishop  of  Toronto,  obtained  an  Act  of  the  Provincial 
Legislature,  authorizing  not  only  a  Diocesan  but  a 
General  Provincial  Synod.  The  Act  also  conferred 
power  to  appoint  a  Metropolitan.  A  majority  of  the 
Bishops,  however,  petitioned  the  Queen  to  make  the 
appointment.  These  petitions  were  graciously  re- 
ceived, and  in  1860,  Letters  Patent  were  issued, 
promoting  the  Rev.  Francis  Bulford,  Bishop  of 
Montreal,  to  the  office  of  Metropolitan  of  Canada. 

In  1861,  the  first  Provincial  Synod  of  Canada  was 
held  in  the  City  of  Montreal. 

In  1865,  the  Metropolitan  of  Canada  had  the 
privilege  of  preaching  the  opening  sermon  before  the 
General  Convention  of  the  Church  in  the  United 
States,  assembled  at  Philadelphia.  He  was  also 
asked  to  take  part  in  the  consecration  of  Bishop 
Wainwright,  and  of  his  successor,  Bishop  Potter  of 
New  York. 

These  acts  of  interlacing  authority  and  succession 
were  reciprocated,  for  Bishop  McClosky  of  Michigan 
took  part  in  the  consecration  of  Bishop  Lewis  of 
Ontario,  and  nine  months  later  the  Bight  Bev.  John 
Hopkins,  Bishop  of  Vermont,  assisted  in  the  con- 
secration of  Bishop  Williams  of  Quebec. 

About  this  time  it  was  determined  by  the  Govern- 
ment at  home,  acting  upon  the  advice  of  the  Earl  of 
Carnarvon,  not  to  issue  any  more  royal  mandates  for 
the  consecration  of  colonial  bishops.  The  Canadian 
Church  went    free,  and  from  that    day   to  this   has 


186  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

managed  her  own  affairs  according  to  her  own  will. 
It  seems  a  thing  almost  inconceivable  now,  that  the 
Church  ever  could  have  waited  upon  the  will  of  the 
State,  as  in  former  times ;  and  it  seems  almost  equally 
strange  that  the  great  men  who  guided  her  destiny 
then  did  not  break  their  fetters  long  before  the  civil 
authority  unloosed  them. 

During  the  third  Triennial  meeting  of  the  Pro- 
vincial Synod,  the  Bishop  of  Ontario  moved  an 
address  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  which  says 
— "  That  we  desire  to  represent  to  your  Grace,  that  in 
consequence  of  the  recent  decision  of  the  Privy 
Council  in  the  case  of  the  Essays  and  Reviews,  and  in 
the  case  of  the  Bishop  of  Natal,  the  minds  of  many 
members  of  the  Church  have  been  unsettled  or 
painfully  alarmed.  ...  In  order,  therefore,  to 
comfort  the  souls  of  the  faithful  and  reassure  the 
minds  of  the  wavering,  we  humbly  entreat  your 
Grace,  since  the  assembly  of  a  General  Council  of  the 
whole  Catholic  Church  is  at  present  impracticable,  to 
convene  a  National  Synod  of  the  Bishops  of  the 
Anglican  Church  at  home  and  abroad,  that  we  may 
meet  together,  and  under  the  guidance  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  take  such  counsel  and  adopt  such  measures 
as  may  be  best  fitted  to  provide  for  the  present 
distress." 

The  Archbishop  himself  was  altogether  inclined 
to  such  action  as  was  thus  asked  for  by  the  Canadian 
Church,  and  after  consultation  with  his  brethren  on 
the  Bench,  he  issued  his  mandate  summoning  the  first 
Lambeth  Conference  of  the  Anglican  Church. 

As  the  address  which  gave  rise  to  the  Conference 
emanated  from  the  Canadian  Church,  the  Metro- 
politan of  the  Province  was  naturally  expected  to 
take  a  prominent  part  in  the  organization  and 
management  of  the  Conference ;  and  right  ably  did 
the  Metropolitan  rise  to  the  duties  of  the  occasion. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  187 

His  lordship's  health  had  caused  his  friends  some 
uneasiness  before  his  departure  for  England,  and 
those  friends  were  greatly  distressed  to  find  that  the 
alarming  symptoms  had  rather  increased  than  dimin- 
ished during  his  absence.  Work  needing  Episcopal 
attention  had  naturally  accumulated,  he  therefore 
lost  no  time  in  setting  himself  with  energy  to  over- 
take it.  On  the  16th  June,  1878,  the  annual  meet- 
ing of  the  Synod  of  Montreal  began  its  session. 
The  Metropolitan  preached,  and  delivered  an  address 
of  unusual  interest  and  power.  Almost  immediately 
after  the  close  of  the  Synod  he  visited  the  Eastern 
Townships  and  attended  "The annual  Convocation  of 
the  University  of  Bishop's  College,  Lennoxville." 
The  deep  interest  which  he  had  always  taken  in  that 
important  educational  Institution  became  increas- 
ingly conspicuous  on  this  occasion,  in  which  he  spoke 
within  its  walls  for  the  last  time. 

Afterwards  his  lordship  made  a  confirmation  tour 
through  the  Deanery  of  St.  Andrew's,  and  as  we  learn 
from  the  published  sermon  of  his  chaplain,  Canon 
Loosmore,  "  spoke  to  the  candidates  who  were  pre- 
sented to  him  for  the  laying  on  of  hands  with 
unwonted  earnestness  and  fervour,  as  if  his  thoughts 
had  even  then  ceased  to  be  of  the  earth,  and  were 
the  reflection  of  the  Better  Land  to  which  he  was 
fast  hastening."      (Eennings  Taylor.) 

Ten  days  before  the  time  appointed  for  the  meeting 
of  the  Provincial  Synod,  the  Metropolitan  returned 
to  Montreal,  and  began  to  prepare  for  the  meeting 
at  which  it  was  his  duty  to  preside.  But  his  work 
was  done ;  a  sense  of  oppressive  weariness  overtook 
him,  and  he  took  to  his  bed,  to  rise  no  more.  The 
Synod  which  he  had  summoned,  assembled  and  carried 
on  its  deliberations  in  a  room  only  separated  by  a 
partition  wall  from  the  house  in  which  he,  who  had 
called   it  together,   lay   dying.     When  this    became 


188  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

known,  the  Synod,  after  earnest  prayer  had  been 
offered  by  Bishop  Bethune  for  the  dying  Metropolitan, 
adjourned.  When  it  assembled  on  the  following  day, 
the  Metropolitan's  chair  was  vacant.  At  six  o'clock 
on  the  previoiis  evening  his  soul  had  returned  to 
God  who  gave  it.  The  announcement  of  this  fact 
was  received  with  universal  expressions  of  sorrow. 
Every  class  of  the  community  gathered  at  his  burial 
to  honour  his  memory.  Among  them  many  of  the 
ministers  of  the  various  denominations  in  Montreal, 
including  the  Jews,  followed  him  to  his  rest ;  and  the 
tolling  of  the  great  bell  of  the  Anglican  Church  was 
answered  by  the  great  bell  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  of  Notre  Dame.  The  authorities  of  the  latter, 
like  their  Protestant  fellow-subjects,  paid  spontaneous 
tribute  to  the  worth  and  memory  of  Bishop  Fulford, 
who,  in  spite  of  some  mistakes,  had  established  in  the 
minds  of  his  fellow-citizens  the  conviction  that  he 
was  a  man  of  just  judgment,  wise  discretion,  and  all- 
embracing  charity. 

The  Bitual  Controversy  raged  with  no  little  bitter- 
ness during  the  closing  years  of  his  life.  It  was 
debated  with  great  warmth,  but  with  no  great  in- 
telligence, in  that  Provincial  Synod  which  was  in 
session  when  he  died.  In  his  last  charge  to  his 
Diocesan  Synod  he  thus  speaks  on  the  subject — 

"  If  there  are  excesses  on  the  part  of  the  so-called 
Ritualists,  there  are  undeniably  many  sad  deficiencies 
in  the  other  extreme.  The  Ritual  of  the  Church  of 
England,  if  faithfully  observed,  is  fully  capable, 
whether  adapted  to  the  services  of  the  noblest 
cathedral  or  minster,  or  to  the  humblest  country 
church,  of  satisfying  the  wants  and  cravings  of  all 
her  faithful  children,  without  transgressing  what  Sir 
Robert  Phillimore  remarks,  are  the  only  orders  given 
in  the  New  Testament  respecting  ritual  ;  and  they 
are  of  the  most  general  kind,  such  as  the  directions 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  189 

of  St.  Paul  to  the  Corinthians,  'Let  all  things  be 
done  decently  and  in  order.'  "  And  at  the  close  of  his 
judgment  he  says — "  The  basis  of  the  religious  estab- 
lishment in  this  realm  was,  I  am  satisfied,  intended 
by  the  constitution  and  the  law  to  be  broad  and  not 
narrow.  Within  its  walls  there  is  room  for  those 
whose  devotion  is  so  supported  by  simple  faith  and 
fervent  piety  that  they  desire  do  aid  from  external 
ceremony  or  ornament,  and  who  think  that  these 
things  degrade  and  obscure  religion,  and  for  those 
who  think,  with  Burke,  that  the  offices  of  religion 
should  be  performed,  as  all  solemn  public  acts  are  per- 
formed, in  building,  in  music,  in  decorations,  in  speech, 
in  the  dignity  of  persons  according  to  the  customs 
taught  by  their  nature  ;  that  is,  with  modest  splendour 
and  unassuming  pomp ;  who  sympathize  with  Milton 
the  Puritan,  and  say  that  these  religious  rites 

"  Dissolve  them  into  ecstacies, 
And  bring  all  heaven  before  their  eyes. " 

Bishop  Fulforcl  had  been  appointed  Metropolitan 
of  Canada  by  Letters  Patent  from  the  Crown.  Before 
his  death  the  judgment  in  the  Colenso  case  had 
decided  that  where  there  was  a  responsible  local 
government,  the  Crown  could  not  interfere  directly 
with  ecclesiastical  matters.  The  Canadian  Church 
was  thus  brought  face  to  face  with  a  difficulty  which 
she  had  not  anticipated.  She  was  declared  to  be  an 
independent  voluntary  association,  occupying,  in  the 
eyes  of  the  law,  just  the  same  position  as  any  other 
religious  body  in  the  land,  freed  from  all  connection 
with  and  control  by  the  Church  in  England,  except 
such  as  she  might  choose  to  create  by  her  own 
voluntary  action. 

This  practical  difficulty  at  once  arose.  The  Diocese 
of  Montreal  had  been  constituted  the  Metropolitan 
See  of  Canada  by  the  invalid  Letters  Patent  of  Bishop 


190  HISTORY   OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Fulford.  That  Diocese  had  also  the  same  right  as 
every  other  Diocese  to  elect  its  own  Bishop.  The 
Synod  would  naturally  elect  a  Bishop  whose  con- 
viction would  be  in  harmony  with  the  prevailing 
sentiment  of  that  Diocese,  and  when  elected,  if  the 
intention  of  the  defective  Letters  Patent  were  adhered 
to,  he  would  become  the  head  and  superior  of  the 
Episcopate  of  Canada.  After  conference  it  was 
agreed  between  the  Bishops  and  Synod  of  Montreal, 
that  the  Bishops  should  submit  to  the  Synod  the 
names  of  nominees  who,  if  elected,  would  be  accept- 
able to  them. 

In  Nov.  1868,  a  Synod  was  held,  which,  after  a 
session  of  several  days,  broke  up  without  arriving  at 
any  result.  The  religious  convictions  of  the  House  of 
Bishops  and  of  the  Diocese  of  Montreal  were  hope- 
lessly at  variance.  Another  Synod  was  convened  at 
Montreal  on  May  11th,  1868.  The  balloting  for  the 
first  few  days  only  seemed  to  disclose  the  same  dead- 
lock. Again  and  again  the  Bishops  sent  down 
the  names  of  all  the  Canadian  Bishops.  They 
unwisely,  as  it  now  seems,  made  known  their  decision 
not  to  submit  the  name  of  any  priest  of  the  Diocese 
of  Montreal.  As  a  matter  of  fact  they  did  not 
submit  the  name  of  any  priest  of  the  Canadian 
Church.  They,  however,  sent  down,  in  addition  to 
their  own  names,  the  names  of  the  Bishops  of  New- 
foundland, Grahamstown,  British  Columbia,  the 
Coadjutor  of  Newfoundland,  and  the  following  priests 
— The  Dean  of  Norwich,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hessey,  the 
Rev.  J.  P.  Cust,  the  Rev.  F.  Meyrick,  and  the  Rev. 
H.  Twells.  The  contest  centred  around  Dr.  Cronyn, 
Bishop  of  Huron,  a  decided  Evangelical,  and  the  Rev. 
F.  Meyrick.  A  number  of  ballots  were  taken,  which 
seemed  only  to  evolve  another  deadlock,  the  Bishop 
securing  a  majority  of  lay  votes,  and  the  priest  of 
clerical. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  191 

After  many  days  spent  in  the  vain  endeavour  to 
reach  a  conclusion,  the  Bishops,  on  the  motion,  it  is 
said,  of  the  Bishop  of  Ontario,  sent  down  the  name 
of  the  Rev.  Ashton  Oxenden,  Rector  of  Pluckney. 
On  the  first  hallot,  Mr.  Oxenden  was  elected  by  a 
majority  of  both  orders. 

With  genuine  expressions  of  surprise  and  humility, 
Mr.  Oxenden  accepted  the  responsible  office  to  which 
he  was  called,  and  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Montreal 
and  Metropolitan  of  Canada,  on  Sunday,  August  8th, 
1869,  in  Westminster  Abbey,  by  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury. 

The  difficulties  experienced  in  this  first  Metro- 
politan election  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  present 
system,  by  which  the  dignity  follows  the  individual 
whom  the  Bishops  may  choose  as  their  Metropolitan, 
instead  of  being  attached  to  a  particular  See  to  which 
the  Metropolitan  elect  is  transferred. 

The  new  Metropolitan  convened  bis  first  Synod  on 
June  21st,  1870.  His  primary  charge  breathes  that 
spirit  of  humble,  earnest  devotion  which  charac- 
terizes all  his  publications.  It  is  replete  with  wise 
practical  suggestions,  and  overflows  with  missionary 
zeal.  He  states  that  there  w^ere  fifty-nine  missions 
in  the  Diocese,  only  eight  of  which  were  self-sustaining. 
He  pleads  earnestly  for  the  support  and  extension  of 
this  work,  and  urges  the  Diocese  to  take  part  in  the 
great  foreign  mission  work  of  the  whole  Church. 
He  speaks  with  thankfulness  of  the  general  harmony 
of  views  existing  in  the  Diocese,  and  of  the  soundness, 
faithfulness,  and  moderation  Avhich  for  the  most  part 
marked  the  teaching  of  the  clergy.  He  calls  upon 
all  to  guard  against  running  to  extremes,  and  urges 
them,  at  the  suppression  of  individual  tastes,  to  strive 
after  as  great  union  and  uniformity  as  was  possible. 
He  said — 

"  It  is  the  policy  of  our  great  enemy  to  separate  us 


192  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

from  one  another  as  widely  as  he  can ;  it  should  be 
our  policy,  our  lioly  and  Christian  policy,  to  close 
our  ranks,  and  wage  our  warfare  side  by  side.  Our 
strength  lies  in  united  action,  and  if  God  is  pleased 
to  draw  us  nearer  together  by  the  attraction  of  a 
loving  spirit,  this  will  make  us  strong  against  our 
common  foe,  and  stronger  in  the  discharge  of  our 
spiritual  mission.  My  desire  is  to  act  not  as  the 
Bishop  of  a  section,  but  of  the  whole  Church,  and 
wherever  I  see  zeal,  earnestness,  and  devotedness  of 
heart,  I  am  disposed  to  overlook  little  differences,  in 
order  that  I  may  help  forward  the  great  work  of 
Christ." 

In  his  charge,  delivered  at  the  opening  of  the  next 
Synod,  the  Bishop  expresses  his  thankfulness  for  the 
peace  and  harmony  with  which  the  Church  has  been 
blessed  since  his  coming  amongst  them.  He  again 
urges  the  claims  of  his  missions,  the  improvement 
of  the  stipends  of  the  clergy,  the  formation  of  a 
Sustentation  Fund,  and  the  establishment  of  a  Theo- 
logical College,  for  the  special  training  of  young  men 
for  the  ministry,  under  his  own  eye.  This  has  resulted 
in  the  establishment  of  the  Montreal  Theological 
College.  He  also  strongly  condemned  the  growing 
custom  of  advertising  preachers  and  subjects  as 
being  derogatory  to  the  dignity  of  the  Gospel,  and 
subversive  of  the  true  object  of  our  gatherings  to- 
gether on  the  Lord's  day.  The  result  of  the  Bishop's 
appeal  in  behalf  of  a  Sustentation  Fund  was  stated 
in  his  next  charge  to  have  reached  £55,000  in  a 
single  year. 

Referring  to  the  recent  visit  of  Bishop  Selwyn 
of  Lichfield,  the  Metropolitan  says—"  I  cannot 
refrain  from  recording  the  fact,  that  one  of  our 
noblest  English  Bishops  has  visited  us  this  year. 
Having  spent  his  best  days  as  the  chief  pastor  of  one 
of  the  most  interesting  Churches  in  the  colonial  field. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  193 

He  came  among  us  as  a  father  and  brother,  offering 
us  his  own  warm  and  loving  sympathy,  and  stirring 
us  up  to  fresh  zeal  in  our  Master's  service." 

As  regards  the  future,  the  Bishop  says — "  I  am 
not  content  that  our  Church  should  remain  in  her 
existing  position,  I  earnestly  desire  that  her  motto 
be,  '  Upwards  and  Onwards  ' — upwards  as  regards  the 
growing  piety  and  devotedness  of  her  members,  and 
onwards  as  regards  fresh  achievements  in  the  service 
of  the  Lord.  As  a  Church  we  must  not  stand  still ; 
we  must  be  ever  growing  and  bearing  fruit ;  we  must 
show  more  real  earnestness  in  Church  work,  more 
aggressive  boldness  in  widening  the  bounds  and 
deepening  the  foundations  of  our  spiritual  fold.  We 
must  rise  up  to  the  duty  of  planting  our  faith  on 
every  foot  of  available  soil." 

The  Bishop  tells  us  that  there  were  eighty-seven 
spiritual  labourers  in  the  Diocese  when  he  was  called 
to  its  supervision — seventy-nine  in  Holy  Orders,  the 
rest  being  catechists  and  lay  readers.  In  the 
fervent,  loving,  religious,  and  encouraging  charges 
which  he  addressed  year  after  year  to  his  Synod,  he 
pleads  with  passionate  earnestness  for  the  increase  of 
the  clerical  staff,  and  as  a  means  thereto,  for  the 
increase  of  the  mission  fund.  One  scheme  after 
another  is  adopted,  and  the  result  is  generally  the 
same — a  deficiency  both  in  money  and  men.  But 
with  cheerful,  hopeful  alacrity,  he  addresses  himself 
to  the  old  themes — the  extension  of  the  clerical  staff, 
the  increase  of  the  mission  fund,  and  the  improvement 
of  clerical  incomes. 

At  length,  under  Dr.  Lobley's  vigorous  principal- 
ship  of  the  Theological  School,  a  sufficient  number  of 
men  for  all  present  needs  is  obtained,  but  still  he 
presses  on  to  the  occupation  of  new  fields.  The  spirit 
of  hopefulness  and  enterprise  seem  to  mark  the  whole 
spirit  of  the  Church  at   this   time.     In    his    eighth 

N 


194  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

annual  address  to  the  Synod,  the  Bishop  says — "  I 
see  much  that  may  well  rejoice  our  hearts,  and  call 
forth  our  tribute  of  praise.  I  may  say  with  truth 
that  the  Church  work  is  making  itself  felt,  not  only 
among  ourselves,  but  in  the  neighbouring  Dioceses." 

At  this  Synod  bje  signified  his  intention  of  being 
present  at  the  Pan-Anglican  Conference,  convened  at 
the  suggestion  of  the  Canadian  Church,  and  which 
was  summoned  to  meet  in  the  following  July.  The 
clergy  of  the  Diocese  had  during  these  eight  years 
increased  from  seventy-nine  to  ninety-nine ;  six  of 
these  were  on  the  retired  list. 

No  hint  is  given  in  the  Bishop's  charge,  or  the 
minutes  of  the  Synod,  of  its  intention  to  resign  the 
See  of  Montreal,  and  no  explanation  is  to  be  found 
in  the  records  of  the  succeeding  Synod.  The  Bishop 
transmits  from  England  an  address  to  the  Synod  to 
be  held  in  his  absence,  in  which  he  says— "Some 
preparatory  step  will  of  course  be  taken  with  refer- 
ence to  the  approaching  election  of  my  successor."  He 
concludes  by  expressing  his  thankfulness  to  the 
members  of  the  Synod  for  the  words  of  kindness 
addressed  to  him  on  taking  leave  of  those  whom  God 
had  committed  to  his  care.  And  this  is  all  the 
explanation  that  is  recorded. 

At  a  Synod  convened  on  the  16th  October,  1878, 
for  the  purpose  of  electing  a  Bishop  of  Montreal, 
Bishop  Oxenden's  formal  resignation  of  the  See  was 
read.  The  only  reason  assigned  was  the  conviction 
that  his  strength  was  no  longer  adequate  to  the  satis- 
factory discharge  of  the  onerous  duties  of  this  Diocese, 
over  which  he  had  presided  for  the  last  nine  years. 
The  Synod  was  speedily  constituted,  and  the  first 
ballot  resulted  in  the  election  of  the  present  Bishop 
of  Montreal,  the  very  Rev.  Dean  Bond. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Synod  held  on  the  17th 
June,  1872,  the  new  Bishop  delivered  a  long  and  able 


EASTERN   CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  195 

charge,  which  shows  the  eminently  practical  turn  of 
his  mind.  The  finances  of  the  Diocese  were  chronic- 
ally in  arrears ;  the  country  was  suffering  from 
serious  commercial  depression.  The  Bishop  therefore 
announced  his  determination  that  "  there  should  be 
no  further  Church  extension  until  our  finances  show 
the  prospect  of  a  sufficient  surplus  to  warrant  it. 
We  must  not,"  he  said  "  administer  a  fund  which  has 
only  a  prospective  existence."  He  therefore  refused 
to  ordain  any  new  candidates  for  the  diaconate. 
He  announced  his  determination  to  visit  the  whole 
Diocese  every  year,  and  in  spite  of  advancing  years 
he  has  steadily  adhered  to  his  plan. 

At  the  Synod  of  the  next  year,  he  announced  that 
he  had  been  able  to  take  up  the  work  of  the  Church 
extension  again,  and  had  already  in  that  year  ordained 
six  deacons  and  four  priests,  and  had  admitted  into 
the  Diocese  seven  clergymen,  and  then  he  continues — 
"I  have  very  great  pleasure  in  informing  you  that 
we  have  paid  our  debts  to  the  clergy.  I  cannot 
express  my  thankfulness  that  this  stain  on  the 
honour  of  the  Diocese  is  at  last  removed,  and  I  trust 
I  shall  not  live  to  see  the  repetition  of  so  grievous  a 
trouble." 

The  Bishop  urges  upon  the  Synod  the  speedy 
increase  of  the  Sustentation  Fund,  as  the  hope  of  their 
being  able  to  sustain  many  of  their  missions  when 
the  grants  of  the  S.  P.  G.  should,  in  a  short  time,  be 
withdrawn. 

The  Diocese  of  Montreal,  like  most  of  the  older 
Canadian  Dioceses,  had  before  this  time  attained  to 
a  fairly  settled  state  of  things,  not  unlike  the  state  of 
the  Church  in  the  old  land.  It  had,  however,  wide 
fields  still  to  be  occupied,  and  many  parishes  and 
missions  so  weak  in  numbers  and  in  material  re- 
sources as  to  be  a  cause  of  continual  anxiety.  In  his 
address  to  the  Syncd  of  1881  the  Bishop  says — "  The 


196  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

past  year  has  not  been  marked  by  great  local  events 
in  our  Church ;  our  duties  have  been  plain  and  con- 
tinuous. We  have  been  seeking  rather  to  hold  the 
ground  we  possess,  than  to  extend  our  operations." 
This  even  was  no  slight  task.  The  Synod  had  fixed 
the  minimum  salary  of  deacons  at  600  dollars  a 
year,  and  of  priests  at  800  dollars.  The  Bishop  com- 
plains that  though  commercial  prosperity  had  returned 
to  the  land,  the  liberality  of  the  members  of  the 
Church  had  not  increased.  The  rule  adopted  by  the 
Synod  as  to  minimum  stipends  had  not  been  kept, 
and  he  urges — "  It  is  neither  wise  nor  right  to  take 
advantage  of  a  clergyman's  necessities,  in  order  to 
get  from  him  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  service 
for  the  least  possible  amount  of  pay."  And  in  words 
which  it  would  be  well  for  people  generally  to  lay  to 
heart,  he  continues — "  Our  best  men  morally  and 
mentally  will  not  suffer  such  treatment  a  moment 
longer  than  they  are  obliged  to,  and  unless  constrained 
by  the  love  of  Christ,  or  by  the  circumstances  of  their 
lives,  will  leave  us  after  a  while.  I  am  constantly 
invited  to  admit  this  or  that  stranger  into  the  Diocese, 
on  the  plea  that  he  is  willing  to  accept  the  miserable 
stipend  offered,  while  our  good  and  tried  men,  our 
young  and  energetic  men,  are  allowed  to  leave,  seek- 
ing elsewhere  the  justice  denied  them  at  home." 

To  meet  this  growing  danger,  he  again  and  again 
urges  the  increase  of  the  Sustentation  Fund  and  the 
Superannuation  Fund  for  the  aged  and  infirm 
labourers. 

The  Bishop  is  a  man  of  practical  earnestness  and 
unflagging  zeal,  and  so  he  did  not  long  rest  content 
with  merely  holding  the  ground.  He  set  himself 
with  steadfast  purpose  to  extend  the  missionary 
operations  of  the  Church,  and  so  year  after  year,  in 
his  address  to  the  Synod,  he  appeals  with  unwearied 
courage  and  cheerful  hope  for  increased  contributions 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  197 

to  the  Mission  Fund.  For  a  little  while  there  is  a 
marked  improvement,  and  then  a  business  depression, 
with  its  disheartening  diminution  in  the  treasury  of 
God.  Still  the  progress  is  onward.  New  missions 
are  year  after  year  being  taken  up.  Continual  pro- 
gress, the  Bishop  says  in  his  last  charge,  is  being 
made.  Every  year  all  the  parishes  and  missions  are 
visited.  He  reports  960  persons  confirmed  during 
the  year  1890,  more  than  double  the  number  con- 
firmed during  the  first  year  of  his  Episcopate.  The 
report  of  the  Mission  Fund,  he  says  at  last,  is  quite 
satisfactory,  thanks  being  specially  due  to  the 
increased  liberality  of  the  congregation  of  St. 
George's  Church. 

The  other  great  objects  of  interest  and  anxiety 
during  all  these  years  are  the  Montreal  Theologi- 
cal College,  which  from  the  first  enlisted  Bishop 
Bond's  keenest  interest.  It  is  year  after  year  re- 
ported as  growing  in  strength,  in  numbers,  in  popu- 
larity and  usefulness.  The  Bishop  speaks  of  it  again 
and  again  as  his  right  hand  in  the  work  of  his 
Diocese.  In  his  last  address  he  says — "  I  have 
nothing  but  good  to  say  of  it.  It  is  the  mainstay  of 
the  missionary  work  of  the  Diocese." 

He  therefore  pleads  for  its  liberal  endowment.  It 
was  started  by  Bishop  Oxenden,  in  imitation,  no 
doubt,  of  the  Diocesan  Theological  Colleges  recently 
established  in  England  for  the  special  and  final  pre- 
paration of  candidates  for  the  ministry  under  the  eye 
of  their  future  Bishop.  Such  a  course  was  almost 
necessarily  forced  upon  the  English  Bishops  by  the 
mere  apology  for  a  special  preparation  supplied  in 
the  English  Universities.  The  condition  of  things  in 
the  Church  Universities  of  Canada  is  wholly  different ; 
elaborate  arrangement  being  made  by  a  large  staff  of 
trained  Professors  for  the  efficient  discharge  of  this 
work.    Bishop  Oxenden  did  not  take  in  this  difference 


198  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  conditions,  and  so  mooted  this  Theological  College 
scheme.  This  was  eagerly  espoused  by  men  who  did 
not  approve  of  the  Churchly  character  of  the  training 
given  at  Lennoxville,  and  so  the  Montreal  Theolo- 
gical College  was  stai-ted,  pledged  to  the  narrowest 
Evangelical  basis,  the  continuance  of  the  endow- 
ment being  made  dependent  upon  that  basis  being 
maintained ;  the  donor  and  his  descendants  being 
constituted  judges  of  the  fidelity  with  which  that 
condition  was  being  observed.  This  narrow  basis,  it 
was  stated  at  the  last  Provincial  Synod,  would  be 
withdrawn,  and  the  whole  foundation  handed  over 
unconditionally  to  the  Bishop  and  Synod  of  Montreal. 
The  College  soon  became  affiliated  with  McGill 
University,  an  institution  which  had  itself  been 
founded  and  endowed  by  a  Churchman,  and  intended 
for  a  Church  institution,  but  which  had  afterwards 
been  secularized.  This  University  holds  no  doubt 
the  highest  literary  place  of  any  educational  institu- 
tion in  Lower  Canada.  It  is  held  that  a  Theological 
College  in  connection  with  it,  is  far  more  fitted  to 
supply  the  needs  of  the  Diocese  than  the  Church 
University  at  Lennoxville.  It  is  no  doubt  growing 
into  a  place  of  great  influence,  and  will  probably  be 
a  great  benefit  to  the  Church  in  Montreal  in  future 
years.  As  McGill  did  not  confer  Divinity  degrees, 
powers  were  sought  from  the  local  Legislature  to 
enable  the  Theological  College  to  confer  such  degrees. 
This  was  stoutly  opposed  by  the  authorities  of  the 
Church  University,  on  the  ground  that  it  would 
multiply  and  debase  divinity  degrees.  By  the  inter- 
vention of  the  Provincial  Synod  this  dispute  has 
been  settled  by  the  establishment  of  one  board  of 
examiners  and  one  curriculum  for  all  Canada ;  the 
Metropolitan  being  made  a  University  Sole  for  the 
purpose  of  conferring  degi-ees  on  those  who  have 
passed  the  required  examinations,  and  do  not  want  to 


EASTERN    CANADA   AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  199 

go  to  either  of  the  Church  Universities  for  degrees. 
Let  us  hope  that  a  peaceful  and  prosperous  future 
may  be  in  store  for  all  the  institutions  concerned. 

The  second  object  of  Diocesan  interest  was  the 
establishment  and  efficient  working  of  the  Dunham 
Ladies'  College,  which  was  suggested  by  the  Bishop 
Strachan  School  for  Girls,  founded  in  1867  by  the 
writer  of  these  memoirs,  for  the  education  of  the 
daughters  of  the  Church.  The  Montreal  school  has 
had  a  chequered  career,  and  though  working  success- 
fully on  Church  lines  is  not  now  under  the  control  of 
the  Church. 

A  third  object  for  which  the  Bishop  frequently 
appeals  is  the  "  Church  Home  "  for  ladies  in  reduced 
circumstances.  This  is  now  in  possession  of  suitable 
property,  and  has  promise  of  a  successful  career. 

Appeal  is  frequently  made  for  the  support  of  the 
French  mission  at  Satrevois.  This  has  lately  been 
transferred  to  Montreal,  a  church  set  apart  for  its 
use,  and  a  missionary  speaking  the  French  language 
put  in  charge  of  it.  Its  success  is  still  an  experiment. 
There  are  some  in  Montreal  who  regard  it  as  a  fore- 
gone failure.  It  is  carried  on  on  exclusively  Protestant 
lines,  and  that,  it  is  held,  will  never  reach  the  French 
Roman  Catholics.  What  is  needed,  they  maintain,  is 
the  presentation  of  the  Catholic  aspects  of  the  Church 
of  England.  At  present,  however,  with  the  strong 
national  and  Roman  feeling,  there  does  not  seem 
much  prospect  of  anything  but  the  Holy  Roman 
religion  receiving  even  a  respectful  hearing. 

The  Bishop  constantly  urged  his  clergy  to  take 
pains  to  instruct  their  people  in  the  principles  of  the 
Church,  and  for  this  purpose  to  introduce  catechizing 
into  the  public  services.  Bishop  Bond  realizes  more 
fully  perhaps  than  any  other  Canadian  Bishop,  the 
character  of  an  overseer  of  the  clergy,  a  leader  and 
guide  of  the  people.     He  is  diligent,  methodical,  and 


200  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

incessant  in  his  labours.  He  is  animated  by  a  spirit 
of  unmistakable  earnestness ;  and  though  he  was  an 
old  man  when  called  to  the  Episcopal  dignity,  he  has 
done  great  things  for  the  consolidation  and  advance- 
ment of  the  Church  in  his  Diocese. 

Eeviewing,  in  1886,  the  changed  aspect  of  things 
during  the  previous  twenty-seven  years,  he  says — 
"We  have  more  than  doubled  the  number  of  our 
clergy,  we  have  more  than  doubled  the  number  of 
our  church  buildings,  and  our  Church  membership 
has  at  least  increased  in  due  proportion.  Never  was 
the  Church  of  England  in  this  Diocese  numerically 
stronger  or  outwardly  more  prosperous  than  at  the 
present  time." 

From  the  date  at  which  these  words  were  uttered, 
judging  from  the  reports,  the  progress  has  been  more 
marked  since  the  delivery  of  that  charge  than  in  the 
previous  years. 

During  the  period  of  which  we  have  been  writing, 
the  Diocese  has  been  blest  with  a  very  able  body  of 
clergy.  It  is  almost  invidious  to  mention  names : 
but  a  Diocese  that  has  mustered  on  the  roll  of  its 
preachers,  a  Balch,  a  Baldwin,  a  Carmichael,  a  Sul- 
livan, and  a  Dumoulin ;  among  its  parish  workers 
and  influential  men,  a  Thompson,  a  Looseman,  a 
Wood,  a  Norman,  a  Norton,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
Lindsays,  Davidsons,  Robinsons,  and  a  host  of  noble 
men  who  have  occupied  the  country  parishes  and 
missions,  need  not  be  ashamed  to  compare  itself  with 
the  very  foremost  Diocese  in  the  world.  It  would 
be  strange  indeed  if  the  Bishop  who  led  such  a  host 
could  not  speak  of  progress  and  prosperity. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  201 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE    DIOCESE    OF    HURON. 

This  Diocese  was  constituted  in  1857  by  the 
separation  of  the  thirteen  western  counties  of  Ontario 
from  the  Diocese  of  Toronto.  In  July  of  that  year, 
a  meeting  of  the  clergy  and  lay  delegates  resident 
within  the  proposed  Diocese  was  held  in  London, 
under  the  Presidency  of  Bishop  Strachan.  There 
were  present  forty-two  clerical  members,  and  sixty- 
nine  lay  representatives  of  the  various  parishes. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  Cronyn,  Rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church, 
London,  and  the  venerable  Dr.  Bethune,  afterwards 
Bishop  of  Toronto,  were  the  candidates  proposed,  and 
for  whom  ballots  were  cast.  Dr.  Cronyn  was  elected 
on  the  first  ballot,  by  a  narrow  majority,  and  was 
consecrated  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  the 
same  year.  This  was  the  first  instance  of  an  un- 
trammelled Episcopal  election  in  any  part  of  the 
English  Church,  for  many  generations,  and  it  was 
the  very  first  election  in  the  Canadian  Church. 

Bishop  Cronyn  was  born  at  Kilkenny,  on  the  11th 
July,  1802.  He  graduated  at  Trinity  College, 
Dublin,  in  1822,  was  ordained  priest  in  1827,  and 
came  to  Canada  in  1832.  It  is  wonderful  on  what 
small  and  apparently  accidental  occurrences  the 
whole  after  history  of  a  Church  or  a  country  depend. 
The  following  account  explains  how  Mr.  Cronyn 
came  to  settle  in  London.     His  settlement  in  London 


202  HISTORY   OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

has  greatly  affected  the  history  of  the  Church  in 
"Western  Ontai'io,  and  indeed  throughout  the  whole 
Province  ever  since. 

"  On  a  dull,  chill  November  evening,  in  the  year 
1832,  along  the  tmsh  road  which  followed  the  Indian 
trail  between  the  Niagara  and  Detroit  rivers,  just 
south  of  where  the  present  city  of  London  stands, 
there  toiled  in  a  rough  lumber-wagon  a  weary,  travel- 
stained  family  of  emigrants,  consisting  of  the  Rev. 
Benjamin  Cronyn,  then  just  thirty  years  of  age,  his 
wife,  and  two  young  children. 

"  Circumstances  and  surroundings  more  depressing 
could  hardly  be  conceived.  After  a  seven  weeks' 
voyage  in  an  ill-found  sailing-vessel  from  Dublin, 
they  had  arrived  from  Quebec,  and  were  now  pursu- 
ing their  weary  way  to  the  Township  of  Adelaide, 
to  bring  the  ministrations  of  the  Church  to  the 
settlers  there,  who  had  been  represented  to  Mr. 
Cronyn  before  leaving  home  as  numerous  and  wholly 
without  the  services  of  an  ordained  minister.  For 
days  this  solitary  wagon-load  had  jolted  along  the 
narrow,  devious  track  through  the  woods,  the  light 
of  heaven  only  reaching  them  through  the  rift  in 
the  branches  overhead,  made  by  the  newly  cut-out 
road  ;  far  from  home  and  friends,  in  the  midst  of  a 
wilderness,  strangers  in  a  strange  land,  night  falling 
fast,  and  no  apparent  shelter  near,  the  father's  heart 
was  sorely  anxious  for  his  delicate  wife  and  little 
ones.  From  a  solitary  traveller  they  happened  to 
meet,  he  inquired  whether  any  shelter  for  the  night 
was  to  be  found  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  then  for 
the  first  time  heard  of  the  village  of  '  The  Forks ' 
(London),  distant  about  two  miles  to  the  north  of 
where  they  were.  Thither  they  made  their  way,  and 
put  up  at  a  primitive  hotel,  designated  by  the  title 
of  '  the  Mansion  House.' 

"  So  utterly  worn-out  was  Mrs.  Cronyn,  that  it  was 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  203 

decided  to  rest  there  for  a  time.  The  arrival  of  a 
Church  of  England  clergyman  soon  becoming  known 
to  the  inhabitants  of  the  hamlet,  all  were  summoned 
to  service  on  Sunday  in  a  farm-building  which  served 
the  purpose  of  the  district  court-house.  The  first 
house  had  been  erected  in  London  in  1827,  just  six 
years  previous.  On  Monday  a  deputation  of  the 
inhabitants  waited  upon  Mr.  Cronyn,  begging  him 
to  remain  with  them  as  their  clergyman.  Immedi- 
ately on  this  came  entreaties  from  many  couples 
in  the  neighbourhood  to  be  married;  some  of  them 
had  long  lived  together  as  husband  and  wife,  but 
had  never  had  an  opportunity  of  marriage  by  an 
ordained  minister.  Guided  by  one  Robert  Parkinson, 
familiar  with  the  bush,  they  followed  for  days  on 
horseback  the  blazed  lines  through  the  woods,  stop- 
ping at  the  settlers'  shanties,  '  the  parson '  per- 
forming many  marriages,  and  oftentimes  uniting  the 
parents  and  baptizing  their  offspring  at  the  same 
time.  Among  the  early  settlers  in  the  township  of 
Adelaide  were  many  of  education  and  refinement, 
whose  antecedents  unfitted  them  for  the  rough  life 
in  the  bush,  consequently  great  distress  soon  pre- 
vailed amongst  them  ;  and  during  the  first  winter, 
on  one  occasion,  Mr.  Cronyn,  with  his  friend  Col. 
Curran,  started  on  foot  from  London  to  Adelaide, 
twenty-six  miles  away,  carrying  a  quarter  of  beef 
strung  on  a  pole  between  them,  for  the  relief  of  a 
friend  amongst  the  settlers  there.  For  the  first  few 
miles  they  made  light  of  the  load ;  but  it  soon  grew 
heavy,  necessitating  frequent  stoppages  for  rest. 
Night  came  on,  and  the  wolves,  numerous,  fierce,  and 
daring  in  those  days,  scenting  the  raw  beef,  howled 
uncomfortably  near.  To  add  to  their  troubles  they 
lost  the  trail  in  the  dark,  and  were  about  to  abandon 
the  beef  and  endeavour  to  retrace  their  steps  when 
they  saw  a  light,  and  making  for  it  found   it  pro- 


204  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

ceeded  from  a  chopper's  shanty,  where,  stretched  on 
the  floor,  with  feet  towards  a  huge  log  fire,  the 
choppers  slept.  They  hospitably  made  room  between 
them  for  the  tired  travellers,  who  lay  down  and 
rested  there  for  several  hours ;  but  were  again  on 
the  march  long  before  daylight,  furnished  by  the 
choppers  with  a  lantern.  This  for  a  time  showed 
them  the  trail,  and  kept  the  wolves  at  a  distance ; 
but  soon  the  lantern  went  out,  and  they  again  lost 
their  path,  and  the  wolves  howled  dangerously  near, 
when  they  were  discovered  by  some  settlers  who 
were  on  the  look-out  for  the  expected  succour. 

"  Soon  after  his  arrival  in  London,  Mr.  Crony n  was 
appointed  to  the  parish  of  London,  and  in  1836,  on 
the  creation  of  the  Rectory  of  St.  Paul's,  London, 
and  St.  John's,  London  township,  was  appointed  by 
Patent  from  the  Crown,  Rector  of  both.  The  latter 
he  resigned  in  1842,  and  that  of  St.  Paul's  in  1866. 

"  A  fearless  horseman,  he  almost  lived  in  the  saddle 
in  the  early  years  of  his  ministry,  endeavouring  to 
compass  the  work  of  his  almost  boundless  parish ; 
and  being  an  expert  swimmer  himself,  he  would,  if 
the  weather  was  not  too  cold,  boldly  swim  his  horse 
over  swollen  streams  that  crossed  his  path.  Naturally 
observant,  he  had  acquired  a  wonderful  store  of 
general  knowledge,  and  by  example  and  precept  he 
did  what  he  could  to  improve  upon  the  prevailing 
slovenly  system  of  farming ;  his  knowledge  of 
agricultural  chemistry  enabling  him  to  demonstrate 
what  could  be  gained  by  the  judicious  application  of 
manures  to  the  soil.  As  a  judge  of  live  stock  he 
had  few  equals,  and  by  his  introduction  of  pure  bred 
cattle,  sheep,  and  pigs,  he  greatly  improved  the  stock 
of  the  district,  and  added  to  his  personal  influence 
with  the  farmers.  He  had  sufficient  knowledge  of 
architecture  and  building  in  all  its  branches  to  enable 
him   to  plan  and  construct  any  ordinary  building  ; 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  205 

and  he  was  no  mean  engineer,  which  oftentimes 
proved  most  useful  in  assisting  in  the  construction 
of  bridges  in  these  early  days.  Many  times  he 
accepted  the  position  of  path-master,  in  order  to 
improve  upon  the  ordinary  mud  roads  of  the  country. 

"  The  first  St.  Paul's  Church,  London,  was  a  frame- 
building,  erected  in  1835,  and  is  thus  described  in  a 
book  published  in  1836 — '  The  Episcopal  Church,  if 
we  except  the  spire,  which  is  disproportioned  to  the 
size  of  the  tower,  is  one  of  the  finest,  and  certainly 
one  of  the  neatest,  churches  in  the  Province.' 

"  It  was  destroyed  by  fire  on  Ash  Wednesday,  1844, 
and  the  foundation-stone  of  the  present  editice  was 
laid  by  the  Eight  Eev.  Jno.  Strachan,  Bishop  of 
Toronto,  on  St.  John's  Day  of  that  year,  the  military 
turning  out  in  force,  and  the  Artillery  firing  a  salute 
of  twenty  guns.  Pending  the  completion  of  the  new 
building,  the  congregation  worshipped  in  the  old 
Mechanics'  Institute,  a  frame-building  then  standing 
on  the  Court  House  Square.  It  was  during  service 
in  this  building  on  a  Sunday,  in  April  1845,  that 
the  cry  of  '  Fire  ! '  announced  the  commencement  of 
the  great  fire,  whereby  150  houses  were  destroyed. 

"  Chief  Justice  Eobertson  (afterwards  Baronet)  was 
present ;  the  Psalms  of  the  day  were  being  read. 
The  only  exit  from  the  hall  was  by  one  rather 
narrow  staircase.  On  the  alarm  the  people  near  the 
door  began  to  go  out.  Mr.  Cronyn  kept  on  reading, 
the  Chief  Justice  responding  in  clear,  deliberate  tones, 
until  nearly  the  entire  congregation  had  quietly 
withdrawn.  Thus,  by  the  presence  of  mind  of  the 
Eector  and  the  Chief  Justice,  doubtless  a  panic  and 
probable  serious  accident  was  averted.  The  fire  had 
commenced  in  the  Eobinson  Hall,  the  principal  hotel 
at  that  time,  just  across  the  square  from  where  they 
were  at  service  at  the  time.  The  Chief  Justice's 
quarters  were  at  the  hotel,  and  his  unselfish  conduct 


206  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

in  endeavouring  to  avert  a  panic  nearly  cost  him 
his  baggage,  which  he  had  barely  time  to  secure,  and 
at  some  risk.  With  a  squad  of  Artillerymen  under 
him,  the  Eector  all  day,  until  late  into  the  night, 
worked  at  emptying  the  houses  of  their  furniture 
ahead  of  the  fire,  which  pursued  them  with  relentless 
fury,  alas  !  in  many  instances  licking  up  the  piles  of 
furniture  which  the  salvagers  thought  they  had 
left  at  a  safe  distance  from  danger.  At  nightfall  the 
Rector  reached  his  house,  utterly  tired  out,  with  his 
Sunday  suit  ruined  from  the  rough  work  in  which 
he  had  been  engaged. 

"  This  most  seriously  affected  the  progress  of  work 
very  near  the  Rector's  heart  at  that  time,  viz.  the 
rebuilding  of  his  church ;  so  many  of  his  people 
suffered  by  the  fire,  and  were  thereby  disabled  from 
contributing  to  the  building-fund,  that  work  on  the 
church  was  almost  discontinued  for  a  time.  Neverthe- 
less, the  edifice  was  brought  to  completion,  and  opened 
the  following  year. 

"  Soon  after,  Mr.  Cronyn  was  appointed  Rural  Dean 
of  all  west  of  London  to  the  Detroit  River,  no  mere 
sinecure  with  him,  for  he  exercised  an  active  super- 
vision of  all  the  churches  in  the  district."  {Contributed.) 

As  the  village  grew  into  a  town,  and  the  town 
into  a  city,  the  character  of  his  work  gradually 
changed  from  that  of  extended  itinerancy  into  the 
routine  work  of  a  settled  city  parish.  Mr.  Cronyn 
had,  however,  established  a  sort  of  patriarchal  juris- 
diction among  the  men  who  came  in  to  relieve  him, 
first  of  one  part  and  then  of  another  of  his  extended 
mission.  He  was  a  man  of  grave  yet  genial  manner?, 
overflowing  with  native  Irish  wit,  and  as  a  con- 
sequence was  very  popular  amongst  the  settlers 
everywhere. 

On  his  election  to  the  Episcopate,  he  had,  accord- 
ing to  the  traditions  of  that  time,  to  repair  to  England 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  207 

for  consecration.  Naturally  he  visited  his  "  Alma 
Mater"  in  Dublin,  and  had  the  degree  of  D.D.  con- 
ferred upon  him  jure  dignitatis. 

The  first  Synod  of  the  new  Diocese  was  held  in 
June  1858,  and  a  constitution  was  adopted,  which 
was  a  rescript  in  most  particulars  of  that  of  the 
Diocese  of  Toronto. 

The  new  Diocese  addressed  itself  at  once,  under  the 
leadership  of  its  Bishop,  to  grapple  with  the  missionary 
needs  of  the  district.  The  thirteen  counties  compos- 
ing this  Diocese  now  contains  one  hundred  and  forty- 
two  townships,  four  cities,  twelve  towns  (thirty-two 
incorporated),  and  a  large  number  of  other  villages. 
Its  eastern  boundary,  which  was  determined  by  the 
county  lines,  is  very  irregular,  and  ought  to  be 
readjusted  in  any  future  subdivision  of  Dioceses. 

When  the  Diocese  was  first  founded,  a  large  section 
of  it  lying  to  the  west  and  north  of  London — the  See 
city  —  was  only  beginning  to  be  settled.  "Whole 
townships  were  still  almost  wholly  covered  with  their 
primeval  forests,  and  the  roads  were  very  much  in 
the  condition  described  in  Bishop  Strachan's  journal 
quoted  above. 

The  writer,  whose  mission  embraced  several  town- 
ships in  the  north-eastern  part  of  this  Diocese,  had 
to  drive  through  ten  and  twelve  miles  of  unbroken 
forests  to  reach  some  of  his  stations,  and  to  travel 
stretches  of  corduroy  road  for  four  continuous  miles. 
It  is  hardly  possible  to  conceive  the  extent  and 
variety  of  the  material  improvements  that  have 
taken  place  between  those  days  and  these.  The 
forests  have  given  place  to  cleared  farms  with  waving 
orchards.  The  shanties  have  been  supplanted  by 
substantial  houses.  For  the  corduroy  has  been 
substituted  the  solid  stone  and  gravel  road.  The 
swamps  have  been  turned  into  the  richest  meadow- 
land,  and  towns  and  villages  have   grown  up  with 


208  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

surprising  rapidity  where,  a  few  years  ago,  wolves 
had  their  habitation. 

Bail  way  travelling  was  then  limited  to  the  southern 
part  of  the  Diocese,  now  the  whole  territory  is  inter- 
sected to  such  an  extent  that  there  is  scarcely  a  town 
of  any  size  that  does  not  possess  its  railway-station. 
The  milder  climate  of  this  western  section  of  the 
Province,  the  fertility  of  its  soil,  and  the  comparatively 
small  area  of  unproductive  land  within  its  bounds, 
contributed  to  its  rapid  growth  in  population  and 
wealth.  This  increase  is  easily  exhibited  in  figures. 
In  1857,  the  entire  population  of  the  Diocese  of 
Huron  was  300,000,  70,000  of  whom  were  members 
of  the  Church  of  England.  These  had  increased,  in 
1881,  to  719,900  and  118,757  respectively,  while  the 
assessed  value  of  its  property  has  become  one-third 
greater  than  that  of  the  Diocese  of  Toronto.  The 
progress  of  the  Church  has  been  at  least  as  remark- 
able. When  Dr.  Cronyn  was  consecrated,  there  were 
43  clergymen  in  the  Diocese,  but  of  these  only  40 
were  in  active  service.  The  number  of  constituted 
parishes  and  missions  was  46,  and  there  were  59 
churches  in  the  whole  Diocese.  The  regularly  organ- 
ized parishes  were  situated  in  the  southern  and 
central  counties.  The  northern  parts  of  the  Diocese 
were  almost  wholly  destitute  of  the  ministrations  of 
the  Church,  there  being  but  one  parish  —  that  of 
Owen  Sound— in  the  vast  territory  lying  between 
Stratford  and  the  Georgian  Bay.  During  the  14 
years  of  Bishop  Cronyn's  Episcopate  the  clergy  in- 
creased to  93,  the  parishes  to  88,  and  the  churches  to 
142.  This  increase  in  the  earlier  years  of  the  Diocese 
depended  mainly  upon  the  liberal  assistance  granted 
by  the  Propagation  and  Colonial  Church  and  School 
Societies.  The  Bishop  was  convinced  that  this 
assistance  would  not  be  long  continued,  and  so  he 
at  once  organized  a  Church  Society,  after  the  model 


EASTERN    CANADA   AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  209 

of  that  established  in  Toronto.  Its  chief  work  was 
to  obtain  subscriptions  from  all  the  Church  people  of 
the  Diocese  towards  the  suppoi't  of  the  missionaiy 
clergy  who  were  pushing  forward  into  the  new 
settlements.  The  Bishop  devoted  himself  to  the 
furtherance  of  this  object,  and  his  great  ability  as 
a  persuasive  speaker,  and  his  consummate  tact,  did 
much  to  advance  in  this  way  the  best  interests  of 
the  Society  he  had  founded.  He  was  the  ablest 
advocate  of  its  claims  in  his  Diocese,  and  he  went 
everywhere  preaching  and  speaking  in  its  behalf. 
The  same  difficulty  was,  however,  experienced  here 
as  in  the  older  Dioceses,  in  obtaining  the  necessary 
supplies  for  maintaining  and  extending  these  mis- 
sionary operations.  Every  charge  the  Bishop  de- 
livered teems  with  passionate  appeals  for  help  to 
uphold  and  extend  this  work.  Sometimes  there  is  a 
considerable  increase  in  the  contributions,  and  then 
a  falling  off  again,  and  then  the  unwearying  call  for 
help.  The  work,  however,  progressed  in  spite  of 
these  difficulties  and  discouragements.  Year  by  year 
the  neglected  territory  was  more  occupied,  and  the 
Church  extended,  until  the  result  above  described 
was  reached. 

The  most  notable  action  of  Bishop  Cronyn's  Epis- 
copate, and  the  one  which  has  left  the  deepest  mark 
upon  the  whole  Canadian  Church,  was  his  attitude 
and  action  with  regard  to  Trinity  College.  The 
origin  and  aim  of  that  institution  has  been  fully 
described  in  the  history  of  the  Diocese  of  Toronto. 
Bishop  Strachan  carried  the  Church  throughout  the 
country  with  him,  and  there  was  no  outspoken  oppo- 
sition ;  but  it  was  well  known  that  Mr.  Cronyn  and 
several  of  the  leading  clergy  living  in  the  western 
part  of  the  country,  never  quite  approved  of  the 
action  of  Bishop  Strachan.  They  were  more  than 
half  persuaded  that  reasonable  and  fair  terms  for  the 


210  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Church  could  be  made  with  the  Government,  and  so 
they  stood  aloof  from  the  effort  that  was  being  made 
to  found  and  endow  a  Church  University.  This  dis- 
content grew  into  whispered  suspicion  of  the  character 
of  the  theological  teaching  of  the  new  College.  And 
this  suspicion  broke  out  into  open  accusation  of  the 
unprotestant  character  of  that  teaching,  by  Bishop 
Cronyn,  not  long  after  his  consecration.  The  answer 
to  these  accusations,  by  Provost  Whittaker,  was  that 
while  the  teaching  was  characteristically  Anglican, 
it  was  yet  far  within  the  limits  permitted  by  the 
Church  of  England.  The  Bishop  and  his  followers 
had,  however,  become  thoroughly  alienated,  and  they 
determined  to  set  up  a  Theological  College  of  the 
extreme  Evangelical  type  in  London. 

Dr.  Isaac  Helmuth,  who  was  a  Jew  by  birth  and 
education,  but  who  had  embraced  the  Christian  faith 
in  1841,  was  brought  from  Lennoxville,  where  he 
was  Divinity  Professor,  to  London,  to  assist  in  this 
work,  and  was  first  made  Archdeacon,  and  then 
Dean  of  Huron.  He  was  a  man  of  plausible  manners 
and  persuasive  speech,  and  was  employed  by  Bishop 
Cronyn  in  raising  funds  for  the  new  enterprise. 
He  visited  England,  and  secured  a  sufficient  sum 
to  start  Huron  Theological  College.  He  became 
himself  the  first  Principal  of  that  institution,  and, 
being  a  man  of  great  energy  and  good  adminis- 
trative ability,  he  soon  acquired  great  influence  in 
the  Diocese. 

The  Bishop  seems  to  have  been  possessed  with  a 
consuming  fear  of  Romanism.  Every  charge  he 
delivered  during  these  years  was  surcharged  with 
warnings  against  the  insidious  spread  of  popery.  He 
was  not  only  averse  to,  but  fiercely  hostile  against, 
the  whole  Oxford  movement ;  and  every  departure 
from  the  doctrines  and  usages  with  which  the  reign 
of  Puritanism  in  the  Church  of  England  had  made 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  211 

them  familiar,  was  viewed  with  grave  if  not  with 
trembling  suspicion. 

In  1871,  the  Bishop's  health  had  so  failed  that  he 
was  obliged  to  ask  for  a  coadjutor.  In  the  election 
which  followed,  Dr.  Helmuth  was  chosen  by  a  con- 
siderable majority  over  his  opponent,  Archdeacon 
Marsh,  whose  able  management  of  the  Church 
Society  had  given  him  great  influence  throughout 
the  Diocese. 

The  state  of  Bishop  Cronyn's  health  was  such  that 
the  whole  care  of  the  Diocese  devolved  at  once  upon 
the  coadjutor.  In  less  than  a  year  Bishop  Cronyn  died, 
and  Dr.  Helmuth  became  Bishop  of  Huron  by  right  of 
succession.  He  devoted  himself  with  great  earnest- 
ness to  his  work,  and  soon  became  very  popular 
throughout  the  country.  He  found  that  there  were 
still  many  townships  unsupplied  with  the  minis- 
trations of  the  Church.  Following  the  example  of 
the  Diocese  of  Ontario,  he  secured  the  incorporation 
of  the  Synod,  and  had  the  entire  management  of 
the  Church  finances  transferred  to  that  bcdy. 

There  was  great  monetary  stringency  throughout 
the  country  from  1873  to  1878,  and  yet  Dr.  Helmuth 
was  enabled  to  report  an  increase  of  42  clergymen, 
58  churches  and  missionary  stations,  31  parsonages, 
and  5420  communicants,  during  the  12  years  of  his 
term  of  office.  Within  that  period  also  he  had 
ordained  76  deacons  and  72  priests. 

Bishop  Helmuth's  Episcopate  was,  however,  speci- 
ally distinguished  by  his  great  efforts  in  the  pro- 
motion of  Christian  education.  In  addition  to  the 
important  services  which  he  rendered  in  connection 
with  the  establishment  of  Huron  College,  he  mani- 
fested such  zeal  and  liberality  in  the  establishment  of 
the  Helmuth  Ladies'  and  Boys'  Colleges,  in  the  City 
of  London,  as  will  not  soon  be  forgotten  in  the 
Dioceee  of  Huron. 


212  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

Bishop  Helmuth  resigned  his  See,  and  retired  to 
England  in  1883.  The  Bishop  of  Algoma,  Dr. 
Sullivan,  was  almost  unanimously  chosen  to  succeed 
him ;  he  however  declined  the  election  in  fidelity  to 
his  own  missionary  Diocese. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Baldwin,  the  present  Bishop,  was 
then  elected  to  the  vacant  See.  From  his  boyhood 
Bishop  Baldwin  was  distinguished  for  earnest  devo- 
tion. He  soon  became  known  as  a  fervid  preacher. 
After  holding  several  other  important  charges  he 
was  made  Dean  of  Montreal,  and  Rector  of  Christ 
Church  Cathedral  in  that  city,  positions  which  he 
held  at  the  time  of  his  election  to  the  Episcopate. 
He  was  a  graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Toronto,  and 
had  been  ordained  both  Bishop  and  Priest  by  the 
first  Bishop  of  Huron. 

Bishop  Baldwin  entered  upon  his  work  with  all  the 
essentials  of  Diocesan  machinery  ready  to  his  hand. 
The  Diocese  is,  however,  still  far  from  being  ade- 
quately supplied  with  the  ministrations  of  the  Church, 
and  the  Bishop  with  fervid  eloquence  has  several  times 
pressed  upon  the  Synod  the  paramount  importance 
of  providing  by  increased  liberality  for  the  pressing 
needs  of  the  Church.  Nor  have  his  thrilling  appeals 
been  barren  of  results.  During  the  first  six  years  of 
his  Episcopate,  he  has  ordained  38  deacons,  and  has 
admitted  34  deacons  to  the  priesthood.  He  has 
confirmed  8268  persons,  opened  13  new  churches,  and 
consecrated  14. 

Bishop  Baldwin  is  a  man  of  guileless  life,  of  tender- 
hearted affectionateness,  and  of  fervid  piety,  of  the 
extreme  Evangelical  type.  His  people  complain  that 
he  is  not  an  administrator,  and  that  the  business  of 
the  Diocese  depends  for  its  efficient  discharge  upon 
other  heads  and  hands  than  his.  People  are,  how- 
ever, in  these  days  prone  to  find  defects  in  their 
rulers.    Perhaps  the  deficiency  is  greatly  exaggerated. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  213 

At  all  events  no  man  is  likely  to  possess  all  the 
qualities  and  graces  that  go  to  make  up  a  great 
Bishop,  and  surely  godly  earnestness  is  far  the  most 
important  of  those  gifts.  The  complaint  against 
Bishop  Baldwin's  predecessor  was  that  he  was  all 
business,  that  he  administered  too  much,  and  succeeded 
in  finessing  himself  out  of  the  Diocese.  However 
that  may  be,  the  figures  given  indicate  that  there  has 
been  substantial  progress  under  both  administrations. 
The  4683  dollars  contributed  by  the  Church  people 
of  this  Diocese  in  the  year  before  its  foundation  has 
grown  to  an  average  annual  contribution  of  14,326 
dollars. 

The  constitution  of  the  Synod  of  Huron  differs 
from  those  of  other  Dioceses,  in  that  it  has  one 
large  executive  committee,  instead  of  a  number  of 
smaller  ones  to  manage  its  affairs.  This  committee 
consists  of  60  members,  and  is  elected  annually  by 
the  Synod.  From  the  members  of  the  executive 
there  is  elected  annually  what  is  called  the  "  Main- 
tenance and  Mission  Committee,"  with  the  Bishop  as 
chairman.  It  is  the  duty  of  that  committee  to  assess 
all  the  parishes  in  the  Diocese  for  such  sums  as  they 
are  deemed  able  to  give  towards  the  support  of  their 
clergyman.  This  committee,  it  is  hoped,  will  speedily 
increase  the  number  of  self-sustaining  parishes. 
There  is  a  general  endowment  made  up  of  the 
Commutation  and  Sustentation  Funds,  and  amount- 
ing to  a  little  over  30,000  dollars  a  year.  This,  together 
with  the  annual  collections  for  missions,  constitute 
the  Maintenance  Fund,  and  are  administered  by  the 
Executive  Committee.  From  this  fund  the  clergy, 
with  the  exception  of  those  who  are  in  self-supporting 
parishes,  receive  grants  according  to  a  graduated  scale 
of  salaries  determined  by  the  period  of  active  service 
in  the  Diocese  and  the  needs  of  the  Mission. 

The  Diocese  of  Huron  has  an  Indian  population  of 


214  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

over  7000  ;  for  the  accommodation  of  these  12  churches 
have  been  erected.  There  are  three  native  Indian 
clergymen  in  the  Diocese,  while  several  of  these 
churches  are  served  by  white  clergymen. 

The  present  number  of  parishes  and  missions  in 
the  Diocese  is  225,  as  against  46  at  its  inception ; 
the  number  of  clergy  137,  in  lieu  of  40  at  the  begin- 
ning. The  number  of  churches  242,  instead  of  59 
at  first.  Total  annual  contribution  for  parochial 
objects,  134,424  dollars. 


THE    CLERGY. 

The  first  clergyman  who  laboured  within  the 
Diocese  of  Huron  was  the  Rev.  Richard  P.  Pollard, 
who  was  appointed  to  Sandwich  in  1803,  the  same 
year  that  Bishop  Strachan  was  sent  to  Cornwall. 
The  war  in  Europe  absorbed  the  attention  of  the 
mother  country,  and  the  population  of  Canada  re- 
mained stationary  till  it  and  the  American  War  of 
1812  were  ended,  and  yet  Mr.  Pollard  reported  that 
in  his  district  on  the  Thames  there  were,  in  1807, 
500  souls  without  a  minister,  church,  or  school,  while 
in  another  settlement  there  were  200  people  in  the 
same  condition.  And  these  were  only  instances  of 
the  destitution  of  settlements  that  were  being  made 
all  through  the  country. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Hough  seems  to  have  been  the  first 
clergyman  appointed  to  the  exclusive  charge  of  the 
Mohawk  Mission  near  Brantford.  Of  him  Bishop 
Stewart  writes — "  Mr.  Hough  seems  to  me  particu- 
larly suited  to  the  duties  of  this  mission.  His 
benevolent  and  gentle  disposition,  and  especially  his 
firmness  of  character,  of  which  while  at  Brantford  I 
saw  more  than  one  instance,  has  gained  for  him  the 
respect  and  attachment  of  the  Indians."  They  were 
themselves   of   the   same   opinion,  as   they  publicly 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  215 

expressed  their  gratitude  to  the  Bishop  for  sending 
them  so  good  a  clergyman,  and  they  say  that  his 
kindness  to  them  and  their  children  had  already 
produced  visibly  good  effects  upon  their  habits. 

The  other  chief  men  among  the  elder  clergy,  as  far 
as  the  writer's  memory  goes,  were  the  Venerable 
Archdeacon  Brough,  who  had  rendered  yeoman's 
service  to  the  Church  as  a  pioneer  missionary  among 
the  Indians  of  Manitoulin  Island,  amid  the  wilds  of 
East  Simcoe,  and  finally  as  missionary  in  London 
township  and  parts  adjacent. 

TheBev.  William  Bettridge,  for  many  years  Bector 
of  Woodstock,  who  had  spent  his  early  years  as  an 
officer  in  the  British  army,  was  an#  educated  and 
clever  man,  of  unusual  culture  and  courtliness  of 
manner.  He  exercised  a  wide  influence  over  the 
Church  life  of  that  day,  and  especially  amongst  the 
refined  society  which  at  that  time  had  settled  around 
Woodstock.  He  was  widely  thought  of  as  a  probable 
candidate  for  the  Episcopate. 

The  Venerable  Archdeacon  Evans,  Bector  of  Wood- 
house  and  Simcoe,  for  many  years  carried  on  hard 
and  extended  missionary  work  throughout  the  sur- 
rounding townships. 

The  Bev.  John  Flood,  for  many  years  missionary 
to  the  Muncy  Town  Indians  and  to  the  white  settlers 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Delaware,  has  left  behind 
him  the  record  of  a  devoted  life. 

The  Bev.  A.  H.  Mulholland  and  the  Bev.  J. 
El  wood,  both  afterwards  made  Archdeacons,  had 
widely  extended  fields  of  missionary  toil,  the  former 
at  Owen  Sound  and  the  country  stretching  for  sixty 
miles  around  it,  for  which  he  alone  for  long  years 
was  responsible  ;  and  the  latter  at  Goderich,  with 
responsibilities  not  much  more  limited. 

Archdeacon  Marsh,  who  had  had  his  share  of 
pioneer    work    in   the   early    days    of    his   ministry, 


216  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

proved  himself  a  master  of  organization  and  finance. 
To  his  methodical  and  persevering  efforts  the  Diocese 
of  Huron  is  indebted  for  its  endowment,  and  to  him 
more  than  to  any  one  else  it  owes  its  first  Bishop, 
and  the  stamp  of  Churchmanship  that  has  prevailed 
in  the  Diocese  ever  since. 

The  Rev.  George  Salter,  for  many  years  Rector  of 
Sarnia,  and  afterwards  of  St.  Jude's,  Brantford,  was  a 
graduate  of  Oxford,  a  dignified  and  refined  man,  who 
won  the  respect  and  affection  of  all  who  knew  him. 
He  was  a  good  preacher  and  an  earnest  worker. 
His  first  years  in  Canada  were  spent  as  a  missionary 
in  the  marshy  townships  lying  along  the  St.  Clair. 
Here  he  contracted  annually  recurring  attacks  of 
ague ;  this  brought  on  frightful  and  continuous 
neuralgia,  which  drove  him  from  his  parish,  hindered 
his  usefulness,  and  finally  brought  him  to  a  premature 
grave. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Townley,  a  friend  and  compeer  of  Mr. 
Salter's,  was  one  of  the  prominent  figures  of  the 
Church  till  the  close  of  his  long  life.  He  had  been  a 
Methodist  preacher  in  his  early  life,  but  being  led 
into  the  Church  rather  by  taste  than  conviction,  his 
reading  soon  landed  him  on  the  highest  level  of  the 
High  Churchism  of  that  day.  He  was  a  good-tempered 
and  persistent  controversialist,  who  fought  many  a 
battle  for  the  Church  in  his  day.  He  was  a  diligent 
worker  in  the  mission  and  parochial  field — a  man  of 
extensive  reading,  of  clear  convictions,  and  fearless 
courage,  his  good  temper  and  genial  hospitality 
made  his  very  foes  to  love  him. 

The  Venerable  Archdeacon  Nelles  was  one  of  the 
saintly  men  of  the  Canadian  Church,  quiet,  retiring, 
devout ;  he  spent  his  long  ministerial  life  as  a 
missionary  to  the  Mohawk  Indians  on  the  Grand 
River.  His  closing  years  were  bright  with  the 
gladness  of  an  assured  faith.     He  passed  at  an  old 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  217 

age  from  this  life  to  that  beyond  with  an  exalting 

joy- 
There  were  many  more  of  that  and  of  previous 
times — Johnson,  and  Mack,  and  Gunn,  and  Usher,  and 
Pyne,  and  Dewar,  and  Caulfield,  and  a  multitude 
more,  who  did  their  work  earnestly,  according  to 
their  convictions,  and  whose  works  do  follow  them. 
Among  the  younger  men  the  most  noted  were  a  band 
of  young  Irishmen  whom  Bishop  Cronyn  induced  to 
come  with  him  on  his  return  from  his  consecration. 
Among  these  were  the  present  Bishop  of  Algonia, 
Dr.  Sullivan  ;  the  Dean  of  Montreal ;  the  Very  Rev. 
Jas.  Carmichael ;  the  Rev.  Dr.  Dumoulin,  Rector  of 
the  Cathedral  Church  of  St.  James,  Toronto.  They 
are  all  men  of  great  natural  ability,  who  are  specially 
distinguished  for  their  elocpience  and  power  as 
preachers. 


218  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


CHAPTER   IX. 

DIOCESE    OF    ONTARIO. 

In  1862,  the  fifteen  eastern  counties  of  the  Pro- 
vince of  Ontario  were  separated  from  the  old  Diocese 
of  Toronto,  and  formed  into  the  long  contemplated 
new  Diocese  of  Ontario.  This  original  territory  was 
greatly  enlarged  in  1886  by  the  transfer  from  the 
Diocese  of  Algoma  of  the  district  of  Mpissing,  lying 
south  of  the  Matawan  River.  The  area  of  the  present 
Diocese  is  almost  exactly  one-third  that  of  England 
and  Wales,  equal  to  two-fifths  of  Ireland,  or  two-thirds 
of  Scotland.  It  contains  over  200  townships,  and 
nearly  700  villages,  hamlets,  and  post-offices,  besides 
25  incorporated  villages,  ten  towns,  and  three  cities. 
The  population  of  the  whole  Diocese  is  now  about 
500,000.  The  territory  which  it  embraces,  though 
containing  a  large  proportion  of  excellent  farming 
land,  was  not  so  fertile  nor  so  thickly  settled  as  the 
western  part  of  the  Province.  Hence  great  difficulty 
was  experienced,  and  long  delay  occasioned  in  raising 
the  necessary  Episcopal  endowment.  Bishop  Strachan 
had  always  desired  and  expected  that  the  first  slice 
to  be  cut  off  from  his  huge  Diocese  would  be  this 
eastern  portion,  but  in  this  expectation  he  was  dis- 
appointed. The  western  Diocese  of  Huron  had  out- 
stripped it.  But  now,  on  the  12th  Sept.,  1861,  the 
election  of  its  first  Bishop,  under  the  presidency  of 
Bishop  Strachan,  took  place  in  the  city  of  Kingston. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  219 

The  Rev.  John  Travers  Lewis,  a  distinguished  gradu- 
ate of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  was  elected  by  a 
practically  unanimous  vote,  in  the  thirty- fifth  year 
of  his  age. 

On  the  10th  of  September  of  that  same  year  the 
first  meeting  of  the  Provincial  Synod  of  Canada  took 
place  in  the  city  of  Montreal.  Bishop  Lewis  had  not 
yet  been  consecrated,  and  so  could  not  take  his  seat 
in  the  House  of  Bishops.  He  was,  however,  initiated 
into  the  mysteries  of  the  Upper  Chamber  by  being 
elected  Secretary  to  that  House.  Through  delay  in 
issuing  the  Royal  Letters  Patent,  which  were  still 
thought  a  necessary  preliminary,  his  consecration  did 
not  take  place  till  the  Feast  of  the  Annunciation 
in  the  following  year,  1862.  Dr.  Lewis  was  conse- 
crated in  St.  George's  Church,  Kingston,  by  the  most 
Reverend  Francis  Fulford,  Metropolitan  of  Canada, 
assisted  by  the  Bishops  of  Toronto,  Huron,  and 
Michigan,  being  the  first  Anglican  Bishop  ever  con- 
secrated in  Canada. 

The  history  of  the  Church  in  the  new  Diocese 
reaches  back  to  the  very  beginning  of  the  permanent 
settlement  of  Upper  Canada  in  1784.  The  influx  of 
the  United  Empire  Loyalists  and  the  disbanding  of 
certain  colonial  regiments,  notably  Sir  John  Johnson's 
Royal  Regiment  of  New  York,  supplied  the  Province 
with  its  first  settlers.  Of  these,  comparatively  few 
were  Church  people.  Even  so  late  as  1792,  when  the 
population  was  estimated  at  50,000,  so  competent  an 
authority  as  the  Hon.  Richard  Cartwright  thought 
himself  fully  warranted  in  asserting  "  that  in  all 
Upper  Canada  there  are  not  100  families  who  have 
been  educated  in  the  Church  of  England.  In  the 
whole  district  of  Lunenburg,  which  was  afterwards 
known  as  the  Eastern  and  Johnstown  Districts,  there 
was,"  he  says,  "one  Presbyterian  and  one  Lutheran 
minister,  but  no  clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England." 


220  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

In  the  district  of  Macklenburg,  comprising  what  were 
afterwards  called  the  Midland,  Prince  Edward,  and 
Victoria  Districts,  there  were  two  clergymen  of  the 
Church  of  England  very  much  respected,  and  some 
itinerant  Methodist  preachers,  whose  followers  were 
very  numerous ;  from  which  it  appears  that  there 
were  at  that  time  only  three  clergymen  in  all  Upper 
Canada,  two  of  whom  were  in  the  new  Diocese  of 
Ontario.  These  two  were  the  Rev.  John  Stuart  of 
Kingston,  and  the  Rev.  John  Langhorn  of  Bath,  the 
date  of  whose  arrival  was  1786  and  1787  respectively. 
Mr.  Stuart  had,  however,  made  a  brief  visit  to 
Kingston  in  1784,  in  the  regular  discharge  of  his 
duties  as  chaplain  of  the  Royal  Regiment  of  New 
York.  During  that  summer  he  had  made  a  tour 
through  all  the  settlements  of  Loyalists,  even  as  far 
as  the  Mohawk  reservation  near  Niagara  ;  and  taking 
Kingston  on  the  return  trip  to  Montreal,  he  remained 
there  some  days,  baptized  several  children,  and 
buried  one.  In  less  than  two  years  he  returned  and 
settled  permanently  at  Kingston,  thus  becoming  the 
pioneer  missionary  of  Upper  Canada.  Kingston  and 
Bath  then  are  the  two  oldest  parishes  in  Ontario. 

The  next  parish  established  was  at  Cornwall,  to 
which  on  the  removal  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Rucld,  the 
Rev.  John  Strachan  was  appointed  in  1803.  About 
1811  the  Lutheran  congregation  at  Williamsburg, 
with  its  pastor,  the  Rev.  John  G.  Weagant,  came 
over  bodily  to  the  Church,  and  this  made  the  fourth 
parish  within  the  limits  of  this  Diocese.  No  further 
progress  was  made  till  1814,  when  the  Rev.  John 
Bethune,  a  son  of  the  only  Presbyterian  minister  in 
the  district  of  Lunenburg,  was  ordained  at  Quebec, 
and  appointed  missionary  at  Elizabethtown  and 
Augusta.  '  These  were  the  only  agents  the  Church 
had  at  work  in  the  entire  Diocese  of  Ontario,  till 
after   the   war  of    1812 — 1814.     But  wherever,   all 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  221 

this  while,  non-Roman  settlements  were  found,  there 
the  Methodist  preachers,  regular  or  local,  were  at 
work,  and  were  naturally  drawing  into  their  com- 
munity those  for  whom  the  Church  was  providing 
no  ministrations  of  her  own. 

Through  the  officers  and  men  engaged  in  the  war 
of  1812,  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  moderation 
of  the  climate  became  known  in  the  Mother  Country, 
and  large  numbers  of  emigi-ants  from  the  three 
kingdoms  came  pouring  in,  so  that  in  ten  years  after 
the  war  the  population  of  Upper  Canada  had  in- 
creased to  157,930,  nearly  one-half  of  whom  were 
settled  in  the  Diocese  of  Ontario.  Yet  during  this 
period  only  four  new  parishes  were  established,  viz.  at 
Belleville,  Adolphinstown,  Prescott,  and  Perth.  On 
the  death  of  Dr.  Jacob  Mountain,  the  first  Bishop 
of  Quebec,  his  successor,  Dr.  Stewai-t,  pushed  the 
missionary  operations  of  the  Church  with  vigour, 
and  during  the  next  ten  years  established  twelve 
new  parishes  within  this  Diocese.  Nine  new  parishes 
were  added  during  the  early  years  of  Bishop  Strachan's 
Episcopate  ;  but  as  he  was  unable  to  send  a  sufficient 
number  of  men  into  the  new  and  rapidly  filling-up 
districts,  he  devised  a  scheme  to  keep  the  people 
from  losing  heart  altogether,  and  for  checking  the 
wholesale  exodus  from  the  Church  which  had  now 
been  going  on  for  so  many  years.  Into  each  of  the 
frontier  districts  he  sent  a  clergyman,  who  should 
continually  travel  from  one  place  to  another,  looking 
up,  visiting  the  church  people,  baptizing  and  cate- 
chizing their  children,  and  holding  occasional  services 
as  frequently  as  they  could.  This  system  was  ex- 
tended throughout  the  whole  vast  Diocese  of  Toronto, 
and  was  continued  for  many  years.  No  doubt  it 
did  something  to  retain  our  people ;  but  the  writer, 
whose  early  years  in  the  ministry  were  thus  employed, 
found  that  very  generally  the  establishment  of  one 


222  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

of  these  monthly,  or  bi-monthly  services  in  any 
neighbourhood  was  the  signal  for  a  concentrated 
attack  on  the  part  of  the  numerous  Methodist 
preachers.  A  revival  meeting  or  a  camp  meeting 
was  started  in  his  absence,  and  when  he  returned 
he  found  a  large  number  of  his  religiously  disposed, 
but  as  yet  uninstructed  people  gathered  into  the 
Methodist  net.  The  result,  however,  of  the  travelling 
missions  in  what  became  the  Diocese  of  Ontario  was 
the  addition  of  fifteen  new-settled  parishes  to  the 
thirty-one  existing  in  1849,  bringing  up  the  whole 
number  of  the  parishes,  within  the  limits  of  the  new 
Diocese,  to  forty-six,  as  it  stood  at  the  election  of 
the  Bishop. 

The  Synod  of  the  new  Diocese  was  summoned  at 
the  earliest  moment  after  the  Bishop's  consecration, 
and  met  on  April  9th.  The  Bishop's  primary  charge 
impressed  upon  the  Synod  the  necessity  for  immediate 
action,  as  regards  the  missionary  work  of  the  Diocese. 
He  strongly  urged  the  incorporation  of  the  Synod 
itself  as  preferable  to  the  formation  of  any  irrespon- 
sible Church  Society.  "The  vast  missionary  work 
before  us,"  he  said,  "  cannot  be  done  unless  the  whole 
Church  works  as  a  unit."  It  is  too  solemn  in  its 
greatness  to  be  thrown  by  us  on  the  precarious 
charity  of  isolated  parishes,  or  allowed  to  be  depen- 
dent upon  the  popularity  or  unpopularity  of  a 
Society.  The  Church  expects  every  parish  to  do  its 
duty.  We  need,  then,  an  organization,  which  must 
command  the  moral  support  of  every  bond  fide  Church 
member." 

The  noble  ideal  of  duty  thus  presented  to  the 
imagination  of  the  Synod  by  its  youthful  President 
could  hardly  fail  to  arouse  enthusiasm  for  its  states- 
manlike grasp  of  the  situation,  and  to  challenge 
respectful  attention.  Measures  were  at  once  taken 
for  the  incorporation  of  the  Synod.    This  was  effected 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  223 

by  the  passage  of  an  Act  of  Parliament  within  two 
months  of  the  inception  of  the  scheme.  The  wisdom 
of  this  important  step  has  long  since  been  justified, 
not  only  by  the  smooth  and  effective  working  of  the 
whole  Diocesan  machinery,  but  also  by  the  fact  that 
the  example  thus  set  by  the  Diocese  of  Ontario,  has 
since  been  followed  by  similarly  good  results  in  almost 
every  other  Canadian  Diocese.  The  Church  herself 
has  become  one  great  missionary  organization. 

It  was  also  at  the  suggestion  of  the  Bishop  that  a 
thoroughly  representative  Board  of  Diocesan  missions 
was  organized  by  the  Synod.  This,  too,  has  been 
generally  imitated  in  the  other  Dioceses.  The  Bishop 
of  Ontario  further  devised  a  scheme  of  missionaiy 
deputations,  for  the  purpose  of  holding  missionary 
meetings  in  the  several  parishes  and  congregations 
during  the  winter,  five  clergymen  being  appointed 
for  each  Rural  Deanery  by  the  Bishop,  in  annual 
succession,  for  the  purpose  of  thus  making  known 
the  pressing  needs  of  the  Church,  and  if  possible 
drawing  into  active  co-operation  in  the  missionary 
enterprises  every  member  of  the  fold.  It  is  to  the 
loss  of  the  cause  that  this  scheme  has  not  also  been 
adopted  in  all  the  Dioceses  of  the  country. 

The  total  population  of  the  Diocese  at  the  conse- 
cration of  the  first  Bishop  was  373,635,  the  rate  of 
increase  for  the  previous  twenty  years  averaged 
10,000  per  annum.  The  Church  population  in  1861 
was  81,383.  There  were  at  that  time  only  forty-six 
parishes  and  missions  within  the  whole  Diocese,  and 
six  of  these  in  the  cathedral  city  of  Kingston .  and 
its  immediate  precincts.  Eleven  were  scattered  along 
the  shores  of  Lake  Ontario  and  Bay  of  Quinte,  four 
were  established  along  the  second  range  of  townships 
north  of  this  bay.  Twelve  stretched  at  immense 
intervals  along  the  banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and 
Ottawa  Rivers.     The  remaining  thirteen  were  scat- 


224  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

tered  at  wide  intervals  through  the  western  town- 
ships. In  a  large  part  of  this  inlying  district, 
nearly  one-third  the  size  of  England,  the  Church  was 
wholly  unrepresented ;  and  yet,  within  this  territory 
it  is  estimated  there  were  settled  not  less  than  50,000 
members  of  the  Church.  Year  by  year,  while  this 
want  remained  unsupplied,  large  numbers  of  these 
were  drawn  away  to  unite  themselves  permanently 
with  some  body  of  Christians,  who  claimed  and  won 
their  allegiance  on  the  ground  that  they  were  "  sound 
Protestants,"  and  preached  the  same  Gospel.  How 
to  bring  these  thousands  within  range  of  regular 
pastoral  oversight,  and  how  to  keep  pace  with  the 
rapid  development  of  the  country,  were  the  difficult 
problems  which  the  young  Bishop  had  to  face. 

The  total  number  of  clergymen  in  the  Diocese 
at  its  formation  was  fifty-five;  but  death,  removal, 
and  infirmity  reduced  the  number  in  a  few  weeks 
after  the  Bishop's  consecration  to  forty-eight,  seven 
of  these  were  chaplains  or  curates  ;  and  one  lately 
arrived  in  the  country  was  so  aged  as  to  be  incapable 
of  effective  work.  So  that  with  forty  men,  the 
General  set  out  to  supply  the  needs  of  two  hundred 
townships  (each  about  twelve  miles  square),  and  with 
such  energy  and  efficiency  did  he  work,  that  in  two 
years,  at  the  Synod  of  1864,  he  announced  that  the 
staff  of  forty  had  increased  to  seventy-three. 

The  question  of  the  maintenance  of  the  clergy  gave 
reasonable  grounds  for  grave  anxiety.  The  help 
extended  by  the  societies  at  home,  and  by  the 
Government  in  the  struggling  days  of  the  first 
settlements  of  the  country,  was  a  great  beneficence 
at  the  time  ;  it  had,  however,  this  deleterious  effect, 
that  it  trained  the  Church  people  into  dependence 
upon  external  aid.  The  clergy,  for  the  most  part, 
did  not  ask  and  did  not  receive  any  considerable  part 
of  their  income  from  the  people ;  add  to  this,  that 


EASTERN   CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  225 

the  generation  of  clergy  now  nearly  passed  away, 
consisted  largely  of  men  possessed  of  considerable 
private  means,  for  whom  the  income  derived  from 
the  commutation  afforded  a  sufficient  stipend,  making 
them  comparatively  independent  of  the  contributions 
of  their  parishioners,  and  so  the  Church  had  little  or 
no  revenue  derived  from  the  offerings  of  the  people. 
The  vicious  system  of  selling  pews  was  then  widely 
prevalent,  and  so  when  churches  were  erected,  the 
subscriptions  to  the  building  fund  were,  in  many 
cases,  regarded  simply  as  loans  to  be  repaid  out  of 
the  sale  of  the  pews  as  soon  as  the  building  should 
be  ready  for  use.  It  will  not  be  surprising  that  in 
such  a  condition  of  things,  people  had  never  been 
awakened  to  any  true  sense  of  responsibility,  even 
with  regard  to  Diocesan  funds.  The  total  contribu- 
tions for  all  Diocesan  (as  distinct  from  local)  purposes, 
from  the  whole  territory  now  constituting  the  Diocese 
of  Ontario,  during  the  twenty  years  preceding  July 
1862,  amounted  to  only  24,580  dollars,  an  average  of 
1229  dollars  yearly.  The  average  now  from  the  same 
territory  is  35,000  dollars  a  year. 

"  The  thought  seems  scarcely  to  have  dawned  upon 
the  mind  of  the  great  mass  of  Church  people  that 
they  owed  any  duty  to  the  Church,  beyond  that  of 
receiving  her  ministrations,  and  attending  the  services 
provided  for  them.  Of  the  forty  incumbents  of 
Ontario,  at  its  inception  twenty-seven  were  in  receipt 
of  stipends  from  the  commutation  fund,  ranging  from 
£75  to  £200  per  annum.  One  was  largely  maintained 
by  a  grant  from  England.  Twelve  others  were 
receiving  from  £150  to  £250  from  the  mission  fund 
of  the  Diocese  of  Toronto.  These  grants  terminated 
six  days  after  the  Bishop's  consecration.  These 
twelve  parishes  then  stood  in  urgent  need  of  assist- 
ance from  a  Mission  Fund,  which,  as  yet,  had  no 
existence,    and    the    list    was    soon    swelled    by   the 

p 


226  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

addition  of  eleven  others,  as  they  were  one  by  one 
deprived  of  the  services  of  stipendiaries  of  the  com- 
mutation fund.  In  fact,  not  more  than  seventeen 
of  the  original  parishes  have  proved  equal  to  the 
entire  support  of  their  clergy,  without  aid  for  a 
longer  or  shorter  period  from  some  extraneous  source. 

"  Hence  a  Diocesan  Mission  Fund  became  an  urgent 
necessity,  not  only  for  opening  up  new  fields,  but 
also  for  keeping  alive  a  large  proportion  of  existing 
parishes.  Of  the  forty-six  parishes  only  nineteen 
were  provided  with  parsonages.  There  was  an  average 
of  about  three  churches  to  every  two  parishes,  or  about 
seventy  in  all,  possibly  some  four  or  five  more,  if 
some  very  temporary  log  or  frame  structures  in  a 
ruinous  condition  be  included.  Far  the  greater 
number  of  even  the  seventy  churches  were  of  a 
temporary  character,  rude  in  style,  cheap  in  material 
and  structure,  and  requiring  soon  to  be  replaced  by 
edifices  more  suitable  for  the  celebration  of  Divine 
Service  "  (Rev.  A.  Spencer). 

The  progress  made  during  the  twenty-nine  years 
that  have  elapsed  since  the  consecration  of  the  Bishop 
will  be  best  seen  by  a  comparison  of  the  state  of  the 
Diocese  then  with  its  present  condition  and  prospects. 
The  average  number  of  churches  is  now  about  two 
for  every  parish.  But  both  parishes  and  churches 
have  far  more  than  doubled,  there  being  now  115 
parishes  and  223  churches,  besides  ten  or  twelve 
mission  school-houses.  The  parsonages  have  grown 
from  twenty-two  to  eighty-two.  Several  of  the  old 
parsonages  have  also  been  rebuilt ;  while  of  the 
churches  twenty-four  have  been  rebuilt,  and  many 
others  restored  and  improved,  so  that  only  a  few  of 
the  temporary  structures  of  twenty-eight  years  ago 
now  remain.  The  rate  of  progress  has  been  for  the 
past  eighteen  years  two  new  parishes,  and  for  the 
last  nine,  three  new  parishes  a  year.    The  parsonages 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  227 

have  averaged  two,  and  the  churches  six  a  year, 
during  the  whole  period  of  Dr.  Lewis'  episcopate. 
In  addition  to  the  churches  and  chapels  regular 
services  are  now  held  in  not  less  than  sixty  school 
houses,  halls,  and  other  buildings.  Hence  in  twenty- 
eight  years  the  number  of  distinct  congregations  in 
the  Diocese  has  grown  from  about  100  to  about  282. 
This  shows  substantial  progress ;  but  there  are  still 
enormous  arrears  to  be  occupied  and  work  to  be 
done  before  the  200  townships  are  adequately  supplied 
with  the  opportunities  of  worship.  There  ought  to 
be  on  an  average,  four  churches  to  each  township, 
or  800  in  all,  so  that  not  half  the  work  of  extension 
is  yet  accomplished,  though  thirty  years  have  fled 
since  it  was  first  vigorously  taken  in  hand. 

In  his  charge  to  the  Synod  in  1883,  the  Bishop 
discussed  at  some  length  the  state  of  the  Church 
with  reference  to  the  somewhat  disheartening  revela- 
tions of  the  census  of  1881.  He  pointed  out  the  real 
cause  why  the  Church  not  only  in  the  Diocese  of 
Ontario,  but  throughout  the  whole  province,  has  not 
kept  pace  with  the  growth  of  the  population.  After 
showing  how  large  a  proportion  of  those  returning 
themselves  as  members  of  the  Church,  must  of 
necessity  be  outside  the  range  of  the  ministrations 
of  the  clergy,  how  large  a  territory  still  remained 
unoccupied  by  the  Church,  he  added,  "  There  is  room 
for  reflection  here,  and  a  trumpet  call  for  more 
missionaries,  and  larger  donations  to  our  mission 
fund."  The  Bishop  then  showed  how  little  cause 
there  was  for  surprise  at  what  the  census  revealed, 
the  result  being  what  any  one  who  knew  the  facts 
must  have  been  prepared  for. 

He  says,  "  In  the  generation  now  passing  away,  a 
very  large  number  of  the  old  settlers,  while  never 
attending  the  Church's  services,  for  the  best  of  all 
reasons — that  there  were  none  to  attend, — and  though 


228  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

attending  other  religious  services,  yet  always  called 
themselves  and  their  families  members  of  the  Church 
of  England.  That  generation  either  bas  passed  or  is 
passing  away,  and  the  rising  one,  through  our  neg- 
lect to  provide  them  with  the  ministrations  of  religion, 
had  no  hesitation  in  calling  themselves  by  the  names 
of  the  denomination  that  has  come  to  their  relief. 
But  though  the  Church  has  sustained  great  losses  in 
this  and  other  ways,  she  is  not  without  her  com- 
pensating gains.  The  lines  of  demarcation  between 
the  Church  and  the  denominations  are  more  definite 
than  they  used  to  be ;  we  have  fewer  heterogeneous 
and  fewer  nondescript  churchmen  nowadays  than  we 
used  to  have,  and  this  is  a  source  of  strength.  For 
my  part,  I  do  not  estimate  the  strength  of  a  Church 
by  its  numerical  superiority,  but  rather  by  the 
intensity  of  the  conviction  with  which  her  members 
hold  to  her  doctrines.     That  intensity  is,  thank  God, 

growing  apace Formerly  defections  from  the 

Church  were  matters  of  everyday  occurrence.  The 
tide  has  now  set  the  other  way,  five  per  cent,  of  those 
confirmed  by  me  in  the  last  twenty-one  years  were 
converts  to  the  Church,  and  very  many  of  them 
persons  of  rank  and  intelligence,  who  knew  why  they 
became  Churchmen.  Hence  when  it  is  considered 
how  large  a  number  have  been  confirmed  and  become 
communicants,  we  must  see  that  the  Diocese  has  not 
been  withovit  vitality."  This  vitality  is  abundantly 
evidenced  by  the  fact,  that  while  the  total  contribu- 
tions for  all  Diocesan  objects,  for  the  twenty  years 
previous  to  July,  1862,  amounted  to  only  24,000 
dollars,  the  total  contributions  for  the  same  objects 
during  the  next  twenty-seven  years  amounted  to 
301,526  dollars ;  and  while  the  annual  collections 
for  missions  during  the  first  three  years  of  Bishop 
Lewis'  episcopate  amounted  to  4,500  dollars,  the 
annual  collections  during  the  last  three  years  exceeds 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  229 

14,000  dollars.  Adding  to  this  the  large  sums 
raised  annually  in  each  parish  for  the  direct  support 
of  the  incumbent,  for  current  expenses,  for  local 
improvements,  Church  buildings,  &c,  we  are  able 
more  fully  to  appreciate  the  self-denying  efforts  of 
the  people  to  extend  and  establish  the  Kingdom  of 
God  among  them.  There  is  every  reason  to  feel 
encouraged  by  the  success  with  which  those  efforts 
have  been  crowned.  There  is  substantial  proof  on 
every  hand  of  the  firm  foothold  which  the  Church 
has  obtained  in  the  territory  constituting  the  Diocese 
of  Ontario,  and  especially  at  the  accelerated  growth 
which  has  marked  these  latter  years,  and  the  activity 
and  zeal  that  are  now  being  manifested  in  working 
the  parishes  and  missions  of  the  Diocese.  The  co- 
operation of  the  laity  in  the  practical  working  of  the 
Church  is  no  longer  mere  theory,  but  is  welcomed 
and  utilized  in  every  part  of  the  Diocese. 

The  Diocese  of  Ontario  does  not  contain  the  best 
land  of  the  Province,  and  the  inhabitants  are  not  as 
well  off  as  in  Toronto  or  Huron,  and  yet  the  work 
has  gone  on  perhaps  with  steadier  progress  than  in 
either  of  these  Dioceses.  The  clergy  have  all  along 
been  of  one  mind,  and  that  mind  has  been  decidedly 
of  the  moderately  high  Anglican  type.  This  has 
given  unity  to  their  plans,  and  strength  to  their 
efforts.  There  has  been  no  distracting,  weakening 
party  disputes.  And  so  while  there  have  been 
among  them  hardly  any  men  who  have  been  dis- 
tinguished above  their  fellows,  either  for  learning, 
ability,  or  zeal,  there  has  been  a  high  average  main- 
tained ;  and  so,  even  through  these  latter  years,  when 
the  Bishop,  through  growing  infirmities,  has  been 
unable  to  give  much  attention  to  his  Diocese,  the 
united  Brotherhood  standing  shoulder  to  shoulder 
has  remained  true  to  him,  and  has  carried  the 
standard   steadily   forward.      May    God   bless   them 


230  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

and  guide  them  in  the  long,  hard  struggle  that  is 
yet  before  them. 


THE    CLERGY. 

The  clergy  of  note  who  took  part  in  the  pioneer 
work  of  this  Diocese  were— the  Rev.  John  Stuart, 
born  in  the  year  1736,  in  the  State  of  Virginia. 
His  father  was  a  rigid  Presbyterian,  who  drilled  his 
children  every  Sunday  in  the  Shorter  Catechism,  and 
then  in  the  Confession.  Young  Stuart  was  repelled 
by  its  appalling  Calvinism,  and  after  examination 
made  up  his  mind  to  seek  orders  in  the  Church  of 
England.  His  father  after  a  time  reluctantly 
consented,  and  he  sailed  for  England,  as  all  men  of 
that  time  desiring  orders  had  to  do.  He  returned 
to  Philadelphia  in  the  full  orders  of  a  priest  in  1770. 
The  first  seven  years  of  his  ministerial  life  were 
spent  amongst  the  Mohawks  at  Fort  Hunter.  Then 
the  Revolutionary  War  broke  out,  and  Mr.  Stuart 
openly  avowed  his  allegiance  to  the  King.  After  a 
long  course  of  injury  and  ill-usage,  as  well  from  the 
new  authorities  as  from  the  populace,  he  escaped 
into  Canada  in  1781,  and  was  soon  afterwards 
appointed  to  the  Chaplaincy  of  a  Provincial  Regi- 
ment. Mr.  Stuart  felt  a  warm  and  affectionate 
interest  in  the  Indian  tribes,  loyalists,  and  voluntary 
exiles  like  himself,  and  now  again  brought  within 
reach  of  his  ministrations.  He  visited  their  settle- 
ments with  as  little  delay  as  possible.  In  writing  to 
the  Society  an  account  of  his  first  service  among 
them  he  says — 

■  "  I  never  felt  more  pleasing  sensations  than  on 
this  solemn  occasion.  To  see  those  affectionate 
people  from  whom  I  had  been  separated  more  than 
seven  years,  assembled  in  a  decent  commodious 
church,  erected  principally  by  themselves,  behaving 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  231 

themselves  with  the  greatest  outward  devotion  and 
becoming  gravity,  filled  my  heart  with  joy." 

Before  leaving  he  baptized  104  infants  and  five 
adults.  He  then  visited  Cataraqui  (now  Kingston) 
and  the  Bay  of  Quinte,  instructing  and  baptizing  all 
whom  he  could  reach.  Two  years  later  he  returned 
and  settled  at  Kingston,  his  mission  embracing  many 
townships,  which  he  visited  periodically. 

The  next  year,  feeling  that  he  alone  could  give  the 
newly-appointed  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia  information 
about  the  condition  of  things  in  Canada,  he  set  forth, 
in  company  with  the  Bev.  John  Langhorn,  on  a 
journey  of  over  400  miles  to  attend  the  visitation  at 
Quebec.  It  took  them  five  weeks  to  accomplish  it. 
The  next  visitation  was  in  his  own  parish  at  Kingston, 
by  Bishop  Mountain  in  1794,  when  several  Scottish 
Presbyterians  avowed  their  conformity  to  the  Church, 
and  received  confirmation  by  the  Bishop.  He  says 
there  did  not  exist  in  the  whole  parish  any  party  or 
faction  against  the  Church. 

He  made  annual  missionary  tours,  150  miles  east 
of  Kingston  to  Cornwall,  and  as  far  west  as  the 
Indian  settlement  on  the  Grand  Biver.  He  is 
described  by  one  who  knew  him  well  as  a  very  fine 
elderly  man  of  lofty  stature  and  powerful  frame, 
and  of  somewhat  stately  bearing,  as  conceiving  him- 
self the  lineal  descendant  of  the  legitimate  monarch. 

He  was  subject  to  occasional  attacks  of  gout,  and 
when  the  attacks  came  on  he  walked  into  the  lake 
and  stood  there  some  time  to  soak  his  shoes  and 
stockings,  and  then  walked  at  a  swinging  pace  until 
they  became  quite  dry.  This  he  found  an  immediate, 
safe,  and  complete  cure.  Chief-Justice  Sir  John 
Beverley  Bobinson  writes  of  Mr.  Stuart — "  He  had 
been  an  intimate  friend  of  my  father's  during  the 
five  or  six  years  that  our  family  lived  in  Kingston. 
My  father  became  indebted  to  him  in  the  course  of 


232  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

some  transactions  about  land,  and  had  given  him  a 
bond  for  the  amount.  I  well  remember  his  coming 
to  our  house  near  York,  a  short  time  after  my  father's 
early  and  sudden  death,  and  destroying  in  my 
mother's  presence  the  obligations  of  my  father, 
declaring  that  he  would  never  consent  to  receive  any 
part  of  the  amount.  Then,  as  he  was  returning,  he 
strongly  urged  my  mother  to  allow  him  to  take  me 
with  him,  that  I  might  attend  Mr.  Strachan's  school 
just  opened  at  Kingston.  I  went,  and  spent  three 
years  in  his  family,  treated  as  tenderly  and  kindly  as 
if  I  had  been  his  own  son." 

No  clergyman  could  be  more  universally  beloved 
than  he  was  by  his  own  people,  and  between  him  and 
the  members  of  other  religious  communities  there  was 
always  a  kindly  feeling.  "  I  have  seen  no  one  who 
came  so  fully  up  to  the  idea  one  is  led  to  form  of  a 
fine  old  Roman — a  man  capable  of  enduring  and 
defying  anything  in  a  good  cause,  absolutely  in- 
capable of  stooping  to  anything  in  the  least  degree 
mean  or  unworthy." 

The  Rev.  John  Langhorn,  the  second  missionary 
of  Upper  Canada,  a  Welshman,  educated  at  St.  Bees, 
arrived  at  Kingston  on  the  last  day  of  Sept.  1778. 
He  had  great  difficulty  in  reaching  his  destination. 
After  long  waiting  at  Quebec  he  was  only  able  to 
get  passage  on  a  sloop  carrying  Government  stores ; 
amongst  others  100  barrels  of  gunpowder.  No  fire 
was  allowed  on  board.  They  ran  aground  in  the 
river,  and  were  twelve  days  reaching  Montreal.  From 
Montreal  he  had  to  walk  to  Lachine,  and  thence  up 
the  river,  sometimes  on  foot,  and  sometimes  in  an 
open  boat.  The  first  night  he  slept  in  a  hay-mow, 
another  night  on  a  bare  floor  without  covering;  "an- 
other night,"  he  says,  "  I  had  my  abode  in  the  woods, 
but  I  could  not  lie  clown,  as  it  rained,"  and  thus  till 
he  reached  Kingston.      Mr.  Langhorn  was  appointed 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  233 

Missionary  on  the  Bay  of  Quinte,  where  about  1500 
people  were  living.  "  Four-fifths  of  these,"  he  says, 
"  were  dissenters  of  nine  or  ten  different  denomin- 
ations." They  were  scattered  over  a  country  of  forty 
miles  square.  He  had  about  ten  different  congre- 
gations whom  he  visited  regularly  on  foot.  He 
never  kept  a  horse;  he  used  to  sling  his  surplice  and 
necessary  outfit  in  a  knapsack  on  his  back,  and  so 
set  forth  on  foot  to  visit  his  scattered  flocks. 

For  the  first  two  years  he  had  no  other  provision 
than  the  £50  allowed  by  the  Society.  He  used  to 
call  upon  every  new  family  that  came  into  the  district, 
and  so  won  many  estranged  ones  back  to  the  Church. 
He  was  quite  indifferent  to  the  bodily  comforts  of 
bed  or  board.  On  one  occasion,  failing  to  reach  the 
house  where  he  was  accustomed  to  stop  till  after  the 
family  had  retired,  he  made  himself  a  bed  of  straw 
in  a  farm  wagon  rather  than  disturb  them,  where 
he  was  found  fast  asleep  when  they  went  to  their 
work  in  the  morning.  At  every  service  he  catechized 
the  young  and  taught  them  their  prayers  in  the  face 
of  the  congregation.  He  was  bold  in  rebuking  vice, 
and  strictly  enforced  the  discipline  of  the  Church, 
excluding  evil-livers  from  the  Communion.  He  had 
a  strong  dislike  for  all  dissenters,  Roman  and  Pro- 
testant ;  he  would  not  eat  with  their  ministers,  nor 
walk  on  the  same  side  of  the  road.  An  old  Presby- 
terian minister  living  at  Fredericksburg  had  much 
respect  for  Mr.  Langhorn's  honesty  and  earnestness, 
and  had  made  repeated  endeavours  to  be  on  brotherly 
terms  with  him,  but  his  advances  were  invariably 
repulsed.  "  One  day,"  he  says,  "  riding  on  horse- 
back, when  the  roads  were  exceedingly  bad,  and  walk- 
ing a  labour,  I  overtook  the  old  gentleman  in  a  wood, 
and  much  of  our  roads  then  lay  through  the  woods. 
He  appeared  much  exhausted  with  walking,  and  well 
might  he  be,  for  there  was  a  wall  of  trees  on  either 


234  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

side,  which  prevented  the  circulation  of  the  air,  and 
the  sun's  rays  were  pouring  down  with  great  intensity. 
Now,  thought  I,  his  reverence  is  fatigued,  and  I  will 
avail  myself  of  the  opportunity  of  making  friends 
with  him  by  offering  him  my  horse ;  so  I  rode  up 
and  addressed  him,  'Good-day  to  you,  Mr.  Langhorn.' 
He  soon  gave  me  to  understand  that  he  was  not 
obliged  to  me  for  my  salutation.  However,  I  thought 
at  all  hazards  I  would  carry  out  my  intention,  and  so 
proceeded — •'  It  is  a  very  warm  day,  sir,  and  the 
roads  are  bad,  and  you  appear  fatigued  ;  allow  me  to 
offer  you  my  horse.'  He  again  stopped,  and  eyeing 
me  very  seriously,  said,  '  Sir,  you  are  a  promoter  of 
schism  in  the  flock  of  Christ,  I  cannot  therefore  have 
any  intercourse  with  you,  much  less  accept  any 
favour  from  you.'  So  I  left  him."  No  wonder 
that  he  was  described  by  the  Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia 
as  uncouth,  and  little  acquainted  with  the  world,  but 
as  a  conscientious  and  honest  man.  Whenever  he 
entered  the  house  of  a  Churchman,  he  gave  the 
Apostolic  Benediction,  "  Peace  be  to  this  house  and 
to  all  that  dwell  in  it."  The  Dissenting  teachers 
here  used  to  take  advantage  of  his  rough  exterior 
and  want  of  fluency  of  speech  to  attack  him  on  some 
controverted  passage.  This  used  to  annoy  him  at 
first,  but  he  soon  hit  upon  a  remedy.  He  carried 
about  with  him  a  pocket  edition  of  the  Greek 
Testament,  and  when  any  preacher  attempted  to 
entrap  him  in  a  controversy,  he  would  hand  him  the 
book  and  ask  him  to  read  that  passage  in  the  original, 
and  then  when  he  could  not,  Mr.  Langhorn  would 
say,  "  You  see,  my  good  friends,  the  folly  of  listening 
to  a  teacher  who  cannot  read  the  language  in  which 
the  New  Testament  was  written."  They  soon  ceased 
attacking  him. 

For  his  health's  sake  and  to  brace  his  nerves,  he 
used  to  bathe  every  morning  in  Lake  Ontario,  and 


EASTERN"    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  235 

this  practice  he  kept  up  during  the  coldest  days  of 
winter,  even  when  the  ice  was  two  feet  thick,  and 
he  could  only  get  his  morning  bath  by  diving  through 
the  holes  which  had  been  made  for  the  purpose  of 
watering  the  cattle.  But  whatever  might  be  said  of 
his  eccentric  or  uncouth  manners,  it  was  universally 
allowed  that  he  was  a  zealous,  devoted,  humble- 
minded  missionary,  and  his  earnest  labours  have  left 
their  mark  in  many  a  life  and  home. 

It  is  not  possible  in  the  space  allowed  to  pursue 
these  biographical  records.  The  lives  of  such  pioneers 
of  the  Church  as  the  Rev.  J.  Archibold,  R.  D.  Cart- 
wright,  Salter  Mountain,  W.  Herchmer,  Paul  Shirley, 
Harris,  Campbell,  Greir,  Rogers,  Harding,  Patton, 
Bleasdale,  and  many  others  are  full  of  personal  and 
historic  interest ;  but  their  record,  as  far  as  it  may 
be  recovered,  and  that  of  the  writer's  many  able  and 
devoted  contemporaries,  must  be  left  for  some  future 
and  less  limited  history  to  detail. 


236  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 


CHAPTER   X. 


This  Diocese  was  founded  in  1873.  Prior  to  its 
creation  as  a  separate  jurisdiction,  like  Huron,  Ontario, 
and  Niagara,  it  had  formed  part  of  the  Diocese  of 
Toronto.  During  this  period  its  population  consisted 
chiefly  of  Indians.  These  were  congregated  for  the 
most  part  in  the  Christian  and  Manitoulin  Islands, 
at  Garden  River,  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  Nipigeon,  and 
Prince  Arthur's  Landing,  The  present  Archdeacon 
of  Magara,  Dr.  McMurray,  began  his  ministry  as  a 
missionary  to  the  Indians  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie  sixty 
years  ago.  The  Archdeacon  has  given  a  graphic 
description  of  his  appointment  and  journey  thither. 

"An  effort,"  he  says,  "had  been  made  to  establish 
a  society  for  the  conversion  of  the  Indians.  A  con- 
siderable sum  was  subscribed  by  the  members  of  the 
Church,  and  in  conjunction  with  assistance  rendered 
by  the  Government,  under  Sir  John  Colborne,  an 
Indian  Mission  was  determined  upon.  I  was  sent 
for  by  the  Governor,  and  informed  that  it  was  his 
intention  to  establish  missions  for  the  Indians  on  the 
north  shores  of  Lakes  Superior  and  Huron ;  that  I 
had  been  selected  for  the  work,  and  that  my  head- 
quarters were  to  be  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  I  remonstrated, 
and  told  his  Excellency  that  I  was  only  twenty-two 
years  of  age,  not  old  enough  for  orders ;  and  further, 
that  I  had  never  heard  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie.     He  sent 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  237 

ine  to  the  Surveyor-General,  with  a  request  that  he 
would  point  out  to  me  the  head-quarters  of  my 
mission.  After  a  careful  examination  of  the  then 
surveys  of  all  the  places  north  of  York,  the  Sault  (as 
it  is  now  called)  could  nowhere  be  found.  I  returned 
to  his  Excellency  with  this  report.  He  then  in- 
structed me  to  go  to  Buffalo,  and  thence  to  Detroit ; 
and  that  I  would  be  able  there  to  determine  the 
locality  of  my  future  residence.  Following  these 
instructions,  I  left  York  on  the  20th  Sept.,  1832,  with 
the  feelings  one  would  now  have  on  setting  out  for  the 
North  Pole,  and  after  a  long,  lonely  journey  I  reached 
the  Sault  on  the  20th  of  October  following — just 
one  month  on  the  passage  which  can  now  be  accom- 
plished in  thirty-six  hours."  This  was  the  first  effort 
to  establish  missions  in  the  great  North-West.  For 
six  years  Dr.  McMurray  continued  to  labour  in  this 
far-off  and  lonely  out-post. 

The  late  Archdeacon  Brough  was  another  of  the 
pioneer  missionaries  of  Algoma.  Long  before  there 
seemed  to  be  any  probability  of  a  separate  Diocese 
established  there,  he  went  as  a  missionary  to  Mani- 
touawning  in  the  Island  of  Manitoulin,  about  the 
same  time  that  Dr.  McMurray  went  to  the  Sault, 
and  laboured  among  the  bands  of  Indians  that  con- 
gregated in  that  neighbourhood.  He  afterwards 
removed  to  the  neighbourhood  of  the  present  town  of 
Orillia.  After  a  while  he  removed  to  London  Town- 
ship, and  continued  to  exercise  his  ministry  there 
till  the  close  of  his  long  life. 

He  was  succeeded  at  Manitouawning  by  the  Rev. 
Dr.  O'Meara,  who  for  twenty-one  years  lived  among 
his  Indian  congregation,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
beyond  the  bounds  of  civilization,  seldom  visiting  the 
frontier,  which  for  the  greater  part  of  this  time  could 
only  be  reached  in  summer  by  means  of  a  bark  canoe, 
and   in  winter    by  dog-sleighs  and  snow-shoes.     He 


238  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

translated  the  Prayer-Book  and  many  parts  of  the 
Bible  into  the  Ojibbawa  language,  working  on 
through  all  these  years  with  patient  cheerful  con- 
tentment. He  was  finally  appointed  to  the  Rectory 
of  Port  Hope,  where  he  lived  until  his  long  and  active 
ministry  was  terminated  by  an  almost  instantaneous 
death.  The  bands  of  Indians  to  whom  he  ministered 
so  long  have  been  for  the  most  part  scattered,  and 
there  is  hardly  a  trace  of  his  work  left  among  the 
Indians  of  the  Manitoulin  to-day. 

Dr.  O'Meara  was  succeeded  in  his  work  by  the 
Rev.  Peter  Jacobs,  a  half-breed,  a  gentle,  earnest 
man,  who  was  very  successful  in  his  work  among  his 
own  people.  He,  however,  after  a  few  years  fell  a 
prey  to  consumption,  the  dread  disease  so  fatal  to 
his  race. 

The  Rev.  James  Chance,  an  enthusiastic  English- 
man, carried  on  the  work  at  the  same  time  among  the 
Indians  of  Garden  River  and  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  He 
soon  acquired  a  knowledge  of  the  Indian  language, 
and  was  able  to  speak  to  the  people  in  their  own 
tongue,  and  so  acquired  great  influence  over  them. 
After  some  years  he  removed  to  the  Diocese  of 
Huron,  and  is  now  Rector  of  an  important  parish 
there.  No  suitable  successor  was  found  for  him  or 
for  Mr.  Jacobs,  hence  the  small  results  of  all  their 
efforts  that  remain  for  the  Church  to-day. 

Algoma  being  a  Missionary  Diocese,  its  Bishop  is 
chosen  by  the  Provincial  Synod.  When  therefore 
the  Diocese  of  Algoma  was  first  set  apart  in  1873, 
that  Synod  elected  the  Rev.  Canon  Dumoulin,  now 
Rector  of  St.  James'  Cathedral,  Toronto,  to  be  the 
first  Bishop  of  the  new  Diocese.  After  some  hesita- 
tion he  declined  the  appointment,  and  the  next  year 
the  Rev.  J.  D.  Fauquier,  incumbent  of  Zoora,  near 
Woodstock,  was  elected.  The  new  Bishop  was  a  man 
of   refined  feeling  and  courteous  manners;    humble- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  239 

minded,  devout,  full  of  faith  and  of  good  works.  He 
was  not  naturally  an  able  speaker,  but  he  devoted 
himself  with  such  simple-hearted  earnestness  to  the 
duties  of  the  office  to  which  he  was  called,  that  he 
soon  became  an  efficient  administrator,  and  won  the 
hearts  of  all  his  people  by  his  gentle,  loving  ways. 
He  had  in  a  high  degree  the  character  of  fatherliness 
about  him,  was  so  sympathetic  and  tender-hearted, 
that  few  men  have  ever  left  behind  them  a  memory 
at  once  so  loved  and  so  revered. 

During  the  eight  years  of  his  episcopate  the 
number  of  clergy  increased  from  seven  to  fourteen, 
and  that  of  church  buildings  from  nineteen  to  forty- 
two.  But  the  good  Bishop's  faith  and  patience  were 
sorely  tried  during  his  whole  episcopate  by  a  com- 
bination of  difficulties.  In  the  first  place  the  Diocese 
is  of  such  vast  extent,  stretching  along  the  shores  of 
Lakes  Huron  and  Superior,  and  away  through  the 
rocky  woodlands  to  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  a  distance 
of  not  less  than  1200  miles,  and  running  back  in  a 
limitless  way  to  Labrador  and  the  Hudson  Bay. 
The  region  is  for  the  most  part  an  unbroken  forest, 
with  scattered  bands  of  Indians  here  and  there 
throughout  its  vast  extent.  The  white  settlers  are 
gathered  for  the  most  part  at  favoured  spots  along 
the  shore  and  on  the  numerous  islands.  During  the 
episcopate  of  the  first  Bishop  there  were  no  railways 
in  the  Diocese,  now  it  is  traversed  through  its  whole 
length  by  the  C.  P.  R.,  and  the  Sault  line  runs  across 
a  large  part  of  it.  There  were  steamers  in  the 
summer  in  those  early  days,  but  as  they  did  not  touch 
at  half  the  places  the  Bishop  wished  to  reach,  he  had 
to  perform  the  greater  part  of  his  necessary  journey- 
ing, constantly  exposed  to  severe  weather  and  great 
perils,  in  an  open  boat.  Then  the  smallness  of  his 
own  income,  and  the  scantiness  of  the  funds  placed 
at  his  disposal  by  the  Church,  filled  him  with  continual 


240  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

anxiety  for  the  support  of  the  scattered  missionaries. 
Then,  again,  there  followed  him  through  all  his 
journeyings  the  sorrowful  remembrance  of  bis  suffer- 
ing wife,  a  lady  of  unusual  refinement  and  ability, 
but  who  for  the  last  twenty  years  of  her  life  was  an 
almost  helpless  invalid.  And  last,  but  not  least, 
among  his  trials,  tbe  fact  that  he  himself  was  suffer- 
ing from  a  painful  internal  disease,  of  which  no  one 
outside  his  own  family  was  ever  aware,  until,  the  close 
of  Dec.  1881,  it  almost  instantly  terminated  his 
earthly  life. 

Six  months  after  the  death  of  Bishop  Fauquier,  a 
special  meeting  of  the  Provincial  Synod  was  held  in 
Montreal,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Sullivan,  Rector  of  St. 
George's  Church  in  that  city,  being  nominated  by  the 
House  of  Bishops,  was  almost  unanimously  elected  by 
the  lower  house.  Dr.  Sullivan  was  known  far  and 
wide  as  a  man  of  great  ability  and  acquirements. 
He  stood  in  the  very  forefront  of  American  preachers, 
and  so,  as  will  be  readily  understood,  he  had  to  make 
great  sacrifices  of  income,  social  advantages,  and 
influence,  in  accepting  the  Episcopate  of  rockbound 
Algoma ;  but  without  hesitation  he  responded  to  the 
call,  and  has  devoted  himself  with  unflagging  earnest- 
ness, for  ten  years  now,  to  the  discharge  of  the  duties 
of  the  chief  shepherd  of  those  few  sheep  in  the 
wilderness.  He  says  that  wherever  he  went  he 
found  his  predecessor's  name  familiar  as  a  household 
word,  and  his  picture  hanging  on  the  walls  of 
hundreds  of  its  lowliest  log-houses. 

The  whole  population  of  the  Diocese  does  not 
exceed  85,000.  These  are  scattered  along  the  coves 
and  rivers,  and  on  a  few  of  the  more  fertile  islands. 
Settlements  are  now  being  formed  at  intervals  along 
the  railways,  and  at  mining  locations  ;  but  with  the 
exception  of  a  few  business  men  at  the  chief  centres, 
the  people  are  too  poor  to  maintain  the  Church  by 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  241 

their  own  unaided  efforts,  and  what  is  more  dis- 
heartening is,  that  there  is  not  much  prospect  of 
improvement.  The  Church  in  Algoma  will  always 
be  dependent  upon  the  sympathy  and  help  of  the 
brethren  more  favourably  situated  than  they  are. 
Manitoba  and  the  North-west  are  every  year  drawing 
away  large  numbers  of  the  farmers,  nor  can  any  one 
who  knows  the  two  countries  wonder  at  it,  or  blame 
those  who  go.  The  mineral  resources  of  the  country 
are  now  being  developed,  and  silver,  copper,  iron,  and 
nickel  are  being  found  in  such  quantities  as  to  give 
promise  of  many  flourishing  mining  towns  springing 
up  in  the  Diocese. 

During  the  first  seven  years  of  the  present  Bishop's 
episcopate,  the  clergy  had  increased  from  fourteen  to 
twenty-six,  seven  of  whom  occupied  self-supporting 
parishes,  the  others  deriving  their  stipends  from  local 
contributions,  grants  from  English  Societies,  and  the 
offerings  of  the  Canadian  Church  through  the  general 
Mission  Board.  Twenty-three  churches  have  also 
been  built  during  this  period,  the  entire  indebtedness 
on  which  would  not  amount  to  more  than  $1000. 

"  Over  and  above  the  poverty  of  the  people,"  writes 
the  Bishop,  "  one  of  our  greatest  difficulties  lies  in 
the  profound  ignorance  of  the  majority  of  our  people 
on  all  questions  of  Church  history  and  teaching. 
They  know  next  to  nothing  of  the  Church's  distinc- 
tive doctrines,  and  hence  lie  easily  open  to  the 
inducements  offered  by  other  communions  to  cast  in 
their  lot  with  them.  The  Church  in  England  is 
largely  responsible  for  this,  in  leaving  her  children  so 
unable  to  give  a  reason  for  the  faith  that  is  in 
them." 

The  organization  of  the  Diocese  is  very  simple ; 
there  is  as  yet  no  Synod,  its  place  being  taken  by  a 
triennial  council,  composed  of  the  Bishop  and  Clergy. 
The   Diocese  is   divided   into   four   rural   deaneries, 

Q 


242  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

and  also  into  two  convocations,  separated  by  the 
French  River,  thus  enabling  the  clergy  to  meet 
frequently  between  triennial  councils.  The  Bishop 
says — -"  One  of  our  greatest  helps  is  the  Algoma 
Missionary  News,  published  monthly,  and  devoted 
entirely  to  the  diffusion  of  information  as  to  work 
being  done  in  the  Diocese."  One  of  the  most  im- 
portant of  these  is  the  work  carried  on  by  the  Rev. 
F.  Wilson  in  his  Indian  homes.  There  are  two  such, 
one  for  boys  and  one  for  girls,  at  the  Sault ;  others 
have  lately  been  established  at  two  points  in  the 
North-west.  The  work  is  not  easy,  because  of  the 
wandering  habits  and  unstable  character  of  the 
Indians.  Mr.  Wilson  finds  it  hard  to  keep  uplthe 
interest  of  Church  people  in  the  older  Dioceses,  and 
to  obtain  the  necessary  funds  for  carrying  on  his 
work ;  but  through  the  coldness  and  discouragement 
of  years,  he  hopes  and  perseveres,  and  has  been 
instrumental  in  erecting  very  substantial  and  com- 
modious institutions  for  the  permanent  work  of  the 
Church. 

The  Bishop  reports  that  during  his  episcopate  the 
endowment  to  provide  a  permanent  stipend  for  the 
Bishop  has  grown  from  nothing  to  35,000  dollars.  A 
Widows'  and  Orphans'  Endowment  has  also  been 
created,  amounting  to  13,000  dollars.  They  have  also 
a  Church  and  Parsonage  Fund,  which  has  greatly  con- 
tributed to  the  extension  and  establishment  of  the 
work  in  the  Diocese.  A  superannuation  fund  for 
infirm  or  disabled  clergymen  is  a  crying  necessity. 
Common  humanity  forbids  the  cruelty  of  turning 
adrift  without  the  means  of  support  a  labourer  who 
has  spent  his  best  years,  as  well  as  his  mental  and 
physical  powers,  in  the  service  of  the  Church. 

Upon  the  Canadian  Church  the  Diocese  of  Algoma 
has,  and  must  continue  to  have,  paramount  claims. 
It  was  set  apart  as  a  separate  Diocese  by  the  Pro- 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND   NEWFOUNDLAND.  243 

vincial  Synod,  representing  the  whole  Canadian 
Church  to  be  her  first  and  special  field  of  missionary- 
operation.  No  doubt  the  great  North- west  presents 
a  more  inviting  field.  The  progress  will  be  far  more 
rapid,  the  results  more  apparent,  but  we  have  pledged 
our  faith  to  Algoma,  and  must  set  ourselves  to  pro- 
vide for  her  needs  first.  The  Diocese  has  no  doubt 
great  and  permanent  claims  upon  the  liberality  of 
the  Church  at  home ;  most  of  its  inhabitants  have 
come  directly  from  England,  and  not  from  the  older 
Dioceses  of  Canada,  as  is  the  case  in  the  North-west. 
Then  too,  as  the  vast  mineral  resources  of  this  region 
are  more  and  more  developed,  the  population  that 
will  be  gathered  there  for  the  working  of  the  mines 
will  come  almost  wholly  from  the  old  lands.  For 
them  the  Church  at  home  is  bound  in  duty  to  make 
initial  provision.  It  will  not,  however,  be  long  till 
aggregated  populations  of  this  kind  are  able  to 
establish  self-sustaining  parishes. 

Then  there  are  small  villages  on  the  islands  and 
at  the  mouths  of  rivers  which  are  never  likely  to 
become  large  enough  to  provide  for  their  own  needs, 
and  which  are  yet  too  far  separated  from  other 
similar  settlements  to  be  formed  into  one  parish. 
In  the  neighbourhood  of  most  of  these  villages  good 
land  may  yet  be  obtained  for  a  very  small  sum.  It 
would  manifestly  be  a  wise  thing  to  make  special 
efforts  to  secure  for  many  of  these  places  one  or  two 
hundred  acres  of  land  as  an  endowment.  This  could 
be  stock-farmed,  or  cultivated  with  the  aid  of  a  man, 
by  a  country  parson,  whose  duties  from  the  nature 
of  the  case  cannot  be  very  extensive.  This  would 
tend  to  give  stability  to  the  work  and  secure  for 
all  time  the  pastoral  care  of  the  Church  over  these 
scattered  and  feeble  flocks.  There  are  not  a  few  men 
in  the  older  Dioceses  who  at  mid-life  would  be  glad  of 
some  such  quiet  retreat  for  the  rest  of  their  time. 


244  HISTOEY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

There  are  many  men  both  in  England  and  in  Canada 
who  could  easily  provide  one  such  endowment,  and  so 
extend  their  beneficence  through  all  generations  to 
come.  For  the  rest  of  the  people  scattered  widely 
over  this  large  Diocese  engaged  in  lumbering,  fishing, 
and  widely-separated  farming,  the  Church  at  large 
will  in  the  main  have  to  provide. 

One  great  difficulty  the  Bishop  experiences,  is  to 
get  good  and  efficient  men  for  these  scattered  parishes 
and  widely-extended  missions,  and  a  greater  difficulty 
still  is  to  keep  them  when  he  has  got  them.  They 
and  he  alike  deserve  the  sympathy,  the  admiration, 
the  prayers,  and  the  help  of  the  whole  Church,  and 
especially  of  the  Church  in  Canada. 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  245 


CHAPTER   XI. 

DIOCESE   OP   NIAGARA. 

In  1874  it  was  determined  by  the  Synod  of  Toronto 
to  form  another  Diocese  out  of  the  six  western 
counties  of  the  remaining  Diocese  of  Toronto.  A 
committee  was  appointed  to  make  all  necessary 
arrangements  as  to  Episcopal  endowment.  This 
being  clone  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  House  of 
Bishops,  they  formally  set  apart  the  new  Diocese  on 
the  12th  February,  1875.  At  the  Episcopal  election 
held  in  Christ  Church  school-house,  Hamilton,  on 
March  1 7th  of  the  same  year,  the  Rev.  Thomas  Brock 
Fuller,  D.D.,  D.C.L.,  was  chosen  first  Bishop.  He 
was  consecrated  by  the  Metropolitan  of  Canada  on 
May  1st,  the  Festival  of  St.  Philip  and  St.  James, 
1875.  Bishop  Fuller  was  over  sixty -five  years  of  age 
when  elected ;  he  was  moreover  suffering  from  an 
incurable  bodily  infirmity  ;  but  with  surprising  energy 
and  diligence  he  devoted  himself  to  the  work  of 
the  Episcopate,  and  to  the  very  close  of  his  life 
administered  the  Diocese  with  great  energy,  wisdom, 
and  fairness.  Bishop  Fuller  was  of  Irish  origin,  being 
descended  on  his  mother's  side  from  Archbishop 
Loft  us,  one  of  the  founders  of  Trinity  College, 
Dublin,  while  on  his  father's  side  he  was  a  lineal 
descendant  of  the  Church  historian,  "  Worthy 
Master  Fuller,"  as  he  was  styled  in  his  clay.  He  was 
born  in  the  garrison  at  Kingston,  Ontario,  where  his 


246  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

father,  Major  Fuller  of  the  41st  Regiment,  was 
quartered.  The  gallant  Sir  Isaac  Brock,  after  whom 
he  was  named,  was  his  godfather. 

"Mr.  Fuller  was  educated  at  the  best  schools  then  in 
the  country,  including  that  of  Dr.  Strachan's  at  Little 
York.  His  special  preparation  for  the  ministry  was 
made  at  the  Divinity  School  at  Chamblay,  L.  C.  He 
was  admitted  to  the  Diaconate  by  Bishop  Stewart  in 
1833,  and  appointed  to  the  curacy  of  the  Church  in 
Montreal.  He  therefore  began  his  ministerial  life 
in  the  midst  of  that  terrible  scourge  of  cholera  of 
which  we  have  spoken  before.  For  many  weeks  he 
was  employed  amid  the  fearful  scenes  of  the  city  pest- 
houses  in  visiting  the  sick,  consoling  the  dying,  and 
burying  the  dead  in  their  hurriedly-made  graves.  It 
was  a  baptism  of  fire,  a  terrible  initiation  into  the 
most  heart-searching  duties  of  the  ministry"  (Arch- 
deacon Dixon). 

From  Montreal  he  was  removed,  on  his  ordination 
to  the  priesthood,  to  the  mission  of  Chatham,  on  the 
extreme  west  of  Ontario.  Here  he  laboured  alone 
for  four  years,  supplying  as  best  he  could  the  minis- 
trations of  the  Church  throughout  the  counties  of 
Lambton  and  Kent.  At  this  period  the  Church 
throughout  Canada  was  exceedingly  weak.  There 
were  only  forty  clergymen  in  the  whole  of  Upper 
Canada.  These,  for  the  most  part,  were  widely 
scattered  over  the  whole  country ;  they  only  knew  of 
each  other's  existence  by  printed  reports,  and  had  very 
little  personal  intercourse.  They  were  without  com- 
bination among  themselves,  without  any  plan  of 
operation,  and  practically  without  Episcopal  super- 
vision. From  the  Ottawa  to  Lake  Huron  there  were 
only  three  missionaries,  where  there  was  abundant 
occupation  for  a  hundred  at  least.  In  the  Newcastle 
district,  in  which  during  a  single  year  8000  English 
emigrants  had  settled,  there  was  only  one  clergyman, 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  247 

settled  at  Peterborough,  and  he  had  the  instinct  of 
an  old-fashioned  English  parish  priest,  rather  than  of 
the  backwoods  pioneer  missionary.  One  cannot  help 
feeling,  in  looking  back  at  those  opening  days  of  our 
history,  that  our  entanglements  with  the  State,  and 
dependence  upon  the  Crown  for  the  appointment  of 
Bishops,  has  wrought  us  great  and  irreparable  mischief. 
Had  half  a  dozen  of  the  best  missionaries  of  that  time 
been  consecrated  Bishops,  even  on  the  salaries  they 
had,  and  had  they  ordained  the  best  men  they  could 
find  in  each  settlement — the  men  who  afterwards  be- 
came Methodist  preachers,  such  men  as  the  apostles 
of  old  must  have  "  ordained  elders  in  every  city," — the 
state  of  the  Church  and  the  prospects  of  religion  in 
the  land  would  have  been  very  different  from  what 
they  are  to-day. 

Bishop  Fuller,  it  is  claimed,  was  the  real  originator 
of  the  Colonial  Diocesan  Constitution.  As  early  as 
1836  he  published  a  pamphlet  on  The  State  and 
Prospects  of  the  Church  in  Canada,  in  which  he 
displays  a  broad  and  -comprehensive  grasp  of  the 
whole  situation.  He  saw  clearly  the  calamities,  as 
they  were  then  regarded,  that  were  impending,  and 
which  before  long  actually  befell  the  Canadian 
Church.  The  loss  of  the  Government  grant  of  £3000 
a  year.  The  confiscation  of  the  clergy  reserves,  and 
the  secularization  of  King's  College,  the  Church 
University.  The  remedy  which  he  suggested  for 
these  perils  was  the  formation  of  Diocesan  Synods,  in 
which  he  says — "We  may  be  enabled,  together  with 
lay  delegates  from  our  parishes,  frequently  to  meet 
in  general  council.  Nothing  less  than  the  adoption  of 
a  code  of  laws  embraced  in  a  new  constitution  can 
bring  order  and  regularity  to  our  Church  ;  nothiog 
short  of  the  admission  of  the  laity  into  our  Councils 
will  give  us  strength  and  energy."  Bishop  Fuller 
then  was  the  first  clergyman  in  Canada  who  openly 


248  HISTORY    OP    THE    CHURCH    IN 

advocated  Synodical  action  on  the  lines  finally 
adopted.  Bishop  Strachan  shortly  afterwards  sub- 
mitted to  the  Church  a  somewhat  more  developed 
scheme,  but  on  the  same  lines,  aod  he  never  ceased 
to  advocate  it,  till  in  1853  he  presided  over  the  first 
Colonial  Synod  of  the  English  Church  ever  held. 
But  whether  Bishop  Strachan  merely  adopted  and 
unfolded  the  scheme  of  Mr.  Fuller,  with  which  he 
must  have  been  familiar,  or  evolved  one  out  of  his 
own  mind,  does  not  appear.  Both  the  one  and  the 
other  was  no  doubt  suggested  by  the  constitution  of 
the  Church  in  the  United  States,  of  which,  after  all, 
it  is  merely  an  adapted  receipt. 

In  1840  Mr.  Fuller  was  appointed  Rector  of  Tho- 
rold,  and  established  congregations  at  several  places 
on  the  Welland  Canal.  During  his  twenty-one  years' 
residence  in  that  parish,  he  erected  the  present 
beautiful  stone  church,  and  shortly  after  his  removal 
from  it  he  cancelled  a  debt  of  11,000  dollars,  due  for 
money  which  he  had  advanced  towards  the  erection 
of  the  church.  He  was  appointed  Rector  of  St. 
George's  Church,  Toronto,  in  1861.  The  congregation 
was  in  great  financial  embarrassment  at  the  time,  from 
which  Dr.  Fuller's  administrative  ability  succeeded  in 
relieving  it  before  long.  In  1869  he  was  appointed 
Archdeacon  of  Niagara  by  Bishop  Strachan,  and  in 
1875,  as  has  been  narrated,  was  elected  Bishop  of 
Niagara,  over  which  he  presided  wisely  and  well  till 
his  death  on  the  17th  December,  1884.  In  the  words 
of  one  of  the  obituary  notices — "  The  lesson  of  the 
life  just  ended  is  full  of  example  worthy  of  emulation. 
It  has  been  a  life  of  unceasing  work  and  constant 
striving  for  noble  ends  and  high  attainments."  Bishop 
Fuller  was  most  conscientiously  and  sincerely  attached 
to  the  Church,  her  doctrine  and  her  discipline.  He 
was  ever  against  extremes  on  the  one  side  or  the 
other,  and  by  his  conciliating  counsel  he  often  allayed 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  249 

rising  difficulties  of  this  kind.  Bishop  Fuller  was 
married  at  an  early  age  to  Miss  Street,  who  in 
addition  to  being,  in  gentleness,  goodness,  and  wisdom, 
the  very  ideal  of  a  parson's  wife,  brought  him  a  large 
fortune,  so  that  he  was  quite  able  to  live  without  his 
clerical  income  in  abundant  comfort,  but  he  never 
in  the  least  relaxed  his  energy  and  toil  in  the 
Master's  service. 


BISHOP    HAMILTON. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Synod  held  in  the  School-house 
of  Christ  Church  Cathedral,  Hamilton,  on  the  27th 
of  January,  1885,  the  Rev.  Charles  Hamilton,  D.D., 
Rector  of  St.  Matthew's  Church,  Quebec,  and  for 
some  time  Prolocutor  of  the  Provincial  Synod  of 
Canada,  Avas  chosen  to  fill  the  vacant  See.  He  was 
consecrated  at  Fredericton  by  the  Metropolitan  of 
Canada,  assisted  by  the  Bishops  of  Nova  Scotia, 
Quebec,  Maine,  Toronto,  and  the  coadjutor  of 
Fredericton,  on  the  1st  May  of  the  same  year,  and 
at  once  entered  upon1  his  duties. 

Bishop  Hamilton  is  a  Canadian  by  birth,  but  is, 
like  his  predecessor,  of  Irish  extraction.  He  was 
educated  at  University  College,  Oxford,  and  gradu- 
ated in  that  University  in  the  year  1856.  He  was 
ordained  both  Deacon  and  Priest  by  Bishop  George 
J.  Mountain,  and  soon  proved  himself  to  be  a  diligent, 
wise,  and  successful  parish  priest.  He  is  a  man  of 
dignified  and  winning  manners,  humble  -  minded, 
devout  and  energetic.  He  is  credited  with  unusual 
practical  judgment,  and  certainly  is  filled  with 
fervent  zeal  for  the  advancement  of  the  Kingdom 
of  Christ. 

The  Diocese,  though  lately  constituted,  is  not  new 
territory,  and  is  not  therefore  likely  to  expand  with 
the  rapidity  of  Huron  and  Ontario.     Its  growth  can 


250  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

only  be  by  subdivision  of  existing  parishes  and 
missions,  and  by  occupying  territory  that  was  long 
neglected.  Growth  under  such  circumstances  will 
necessarily  be  slow,  as  the  neglected  territory  has 
long  since  been  occupied  by  more  than  one  of  the 
denominations,  and  generally  all  the  more  religiously 
disposed  and  earnest  souls  have  been  gathered  into 
one  or  other  of  these,  only  the  careless  ones,  for  the 
most  part,  being  left  as  even  nominal  adherents  of 
the  Church  of  England. 

"When  the  Diocese  was  constituted  there  were  forty- 
six  parishes  and  fifty-one  licensed  clergymen  within  its 
bounds ;  since  then  fourteen  new  parishes  have  been 
constituted,  and  the  clerical  staff  has  been  increased 
by  seventeen.  During  this  period  twenty-five  new 
churches  have  been  built,  many  of  which  were  con- 
secrated at  the  time  of  opening,  while  many  others 
have  been  enlarged  and  improved.  There  are  now 
over  forty  parsonages,  many  of  which  have  been 
built  since  the  establishment  of  the  Diocese.  Hamil- 
ton, the  See  city  of  the  Diocese,  has  manifested  a  great 
revival  of  Church  life  and  activity.  This  life  has 
shown  itself  in  the  establishment  of  five  new  parishes 
and  four  new  churches.  The  Church  throughout  the 
Diocese  has  increased  at  least  proportionately  in 
strength.  In  1875  there  were  only  twenty  parishes  in 
the  Diocese  which  did  not  look  to  the  Mission  Fund 
for  assistance,  now  there  are  forty-two,  and  twenty-five 
new  stations  have  been  opened  for  public  worship. 
Over  18,000  persons  have  been  received  into  the 
Church  by  baptism,  among  whom  were  many  adults, 
and  a  large  number  of  these  had  been  brought  up 
outside  the  Church.  About  12,000  persons  have 
been  confirmed ;  the  average  number  for  the  last  four 
years  had  been  about  1000,  a  great  increase  upon  the 
earlier  years  of  Diocesan  life.  And  it  is  worthy  of 
note,  that   at  least   twenty-five   per  cent,    of   those 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  251 

confirmed  were  converts  from  the  various  denomina- 
tions. It  is  also  estimated  that  the  number  of  com- 
municants has  more  than  doubled  during  the  sixteen 
years  of  separate  Diocesan  life. 

The  Church's  ministrations  are  being  gradually  and 
steadily  extended  into  the  hitherto  neglected  places 
of  the  Diocese.  The  interest  in  missionary  -work  and 
the  contributions  for  the  support  of  the  same  are 
steadily  increasing,  while  the  sums  annually  raised 
for  the  maintenance  of  the  clergy,  the  erection  of 
new  churches,  parsonages,  and  other  Church  objects, 
are  year  by  year  becoming  larger.  In  addition  to 
these  outward  manifestations  of  revived  life,  there 
are  other  tokens  of  progress  which  are  more  reliable 
and  more  gratifying.  There  are  larger  congregations, 
more  frequent  and  more  reverent  attendance  at  Holy 
Communion,  larger  numbers  and  more  carefully  pre- 
pared candidates  for  confirmation,  and  as  a  con- 
sequence a  more  intelligent  and  instructed  Church- 
manship  spreading  throughout  the  Diocese.  It  is 
probable  that  if  the  clerical  staff  could  be  increased 
by  twenty-five  or  thirty  additional  members,  the 
Diocese  would  be  fairly  well  supplied,  and  the  minis- 
trations of  the  Church  brought  within  reasonable 
reach  of  all  the  inhabitants.  It  is  not  too  much  to 
expect  that,  under  the  earnest  and  energetic  adminis- 
tration of  the  present  Bishop  this  result  may  be 
attained,  and  steady  progress,  and  at  least  a  gradual 
recovery  of  those  who  through  neglect  have  left  the 
fold,  may  be  looked  for. 


THE    CLERGY. 

One  of  the  most  prominent  clergymen  who  laboured 
in  the  district  now  constituting  the  Diocese  of 
Niagara  was  the  Eev.  Robert  Addison,  who  laid  the 


252  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

foundation  of  the  Church  there.  He  was  a  graduate 
of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  and  displayed  such 
marked  ability,  both  in  the  classical  and  mathe- 
matical departments,  that  his  seniors  formed  great 
expectations  of  his  future  career.  Shortly  after  his 
ordination  he  applied  for  work  in  the  Colonial 
Church,  and  was  appointed,  in  1791,  to  the  mission 
of  Niagara.  His  whole  income  was  less  than  £100 
a  year,  while  his  duties  were  of  the  most  severe  and 
exhausting  kind.  "My  mission,"  he  says,  "is  very 
laborious.  I  must  either  neglect  my  duty  or  make 
a  circuit  several  times  in  the  year  of  more  than  150 
miles."  The  congregation  that  be  seems  to  have 
visited  with  the  most  satisfaction  was  that  of  the 
Mohawks  on  the  Grand  River.  In  1812  Niagara 
was  captured  by  the  invading  American  army,  and 
most  of  the  principal  inhabitants  were  sent  hundreds 
of  miles  into  the  interior  of  the  United  States  as 
prisoners  of  war.  Mi\  Addison  was  allowed  to 
remain  on  parole  in  his  own  house.  In  the  following 
year  the  town,  with  the  church,  was  burnt  down,  and 
Mr.  Addison  says  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  describe 
the  horrid  scenes  he  witnessed.  He  had  himself  been 
plundered,  made  prisoner  of  war,  and  harassed  until 
ne  was  dangerously  ill.  When  in  1814  the  Americans 
were  driven  out  of  the  country,  he  resumed  his 
regular  mission  work,  which  had  been  thus  inter- 
rupted. His  baptisms  among  the  Indians  now 
amounted  to  about  100  every  year.  After  having 
ministered  to  the  congregation  in  Niagara  for  nearly 
forty  years,  he  died  in  1829,  in  his  seventy-fifth  year, 
beloved  and  regretted  by  all.  Bishop  Strachan  says 
of  him — • 

"  He  was  a  gentleman  of  commanding  talents  and 
exquisite  wit,  whose  devoted ness  to  his  sacred  duties, 
kindness  of  manner,  and  sweet  companionship,  are 
still  sources  of  grateful  and  fond  i-emembrance.     In 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  253 

every  township  we  find  traces  of  his  ministrations 
and  endearing  recollections  of  his  affectionate  visits." 

Another  prominent  figure  was  the  present  Dean  of 
Niagara,  the  Very  Rev.  J.  Gamble  Geddes,  ordained 
in  1834.  His  whole  clerical  life  was  spent  in 
Hamilton,  to  which  he  was  sent  as  a  missionary  when 
it  was  only  a  small  village.  He  was  a  man  of  highly- 
cultured  mind,  of  dignified  and  refined  manners,  a 
gentleman  of  the  old  school,  of  earnest  faith  and 
of  devout  life ;  a  thoroughly  convinced,  reverent,  and 
devout  High  Churchman  of  the  Anglican  type. 

His  life  was  distinguished  by  methodical,  earnest, 
persevering  work.  He  was  elected  Prolocutor  of 
the  Provincial  Synod  for  the  session  held  in  1873, 
and  Dean  of  Christ  Church  Cathedral,  Hamilton,  of 
which  he  had  long  been  rector,  on  the  consecration  of 
Bishop  Fuller.  Dean  Geddes  is  now  living  in  retire- 
ment, after  a  ministry  extending  over  fifty-nine 
years,  and  is  held  in  reverent  and  loving  regard  by 
all  who  know  him. 

"With  the  Dean  has  been  associated  in  neighbourhood 
and  work  the  Venerable  Archdeacon  McMurray,  the 
school  companion  and  life -long  friend  of  Bishop 
Fuller.  Dr.  McMurray,  born  in  Ireland,  came  to 
Canada  when  a  child.  He  was  one  of  the  pupils  of 
Bishop  Strachan's  famous  school.  On  his  ordination 
at  the  age  of  twenty-three,  he  was  appointed  by  Sir 
John  Colborne,  then  Lieut.-Governor  of  Upper  Canada, 
to  establish  mission  posts  among  the  Indians  on  the 
north  shores  of  Lake  Huron,  with  head-quarters  at 
Sault  Ste.  Marie.  He  continued  for  six  years 
ministering  in  the  lone  wilderness  to  these  children 
of  the  forest,  scattered  along  the  shores  of  the  two 
lakes.  He  was  then  removed  to  the  Bectory  at 
Ancaster  and  Dundas,  where  he  remained  till  he  was 
transferred  to  his  present  charge,  the  Rectory  of 
Niagara.     Dr.  McMurray  is  a  man  of   dignified  and 


254  HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN 

winsome  manners.  At  the  founding  of  Trinity 
College  he  was  sent  to  the  United  States  to  solicit 
assistance.  In  a  short  time  he  returned  with  10,000 
dollars,  as  an  expression  of  the  sympathy  of  the 
Churchmen  of  the  Republic  for  their  brethren  in 
Canada.  He  was  employed  by  Bishop  Strachan  to 
look  after  the  interests  of  the  Church  in  1854,  when 
the  secularization  of  the  Reserves  was  in  progress. 
The  commutation  scheme,  devised  by  the  Hon.  John 
Hilliard  Cameron,  was  in  danger  of  being  rejected  by 
the  Upper  House,  and  it  was  largely  due  to  Dr. 
McMurray's  diplomatic  influence  that  it  was  finally 
adopted,  and  that  vexed  question  for  ever  settled. 
In  1864  he  was  selected  to  visit  England  in  behalf  of 
Trinity  College.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  Canadian 
clergyman  ever  so  favourably  impressed  the  English 
people  as  did  Dr.  McMurray.  Everywhere  his 
dignified  manners  and  genial  courtesy  won  for  him 
devoted  friends.  After  twelve  months  he  returned 
with  a  large  addition  to  the  endowment  fund  of 
Trinity  College.  Dr.  McMurray  has  throughout 
his  long  life  been  a  patient,  persevering  parish  priest, 
and  now  in  his  declining  years  he  enjoys  the  respect 
and  affection  of  all  who  know  him. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Atkinson,  for  a  long  time  Rector  of 
St.  Catherine's,  was  the  contemporary  and  friend  of 
these  pioneers.  He  was  a  patient,  loving  man,  who, 
though  disabled  by  an  injury  received  early  in  life, 
so  that  he  was  unable  to  walk  or  to  stand  in  the 
pulpit,  yet  held  a  large  and  intelligent  congregation 
together  by  his  eloquent  preaching  and  personal 
attractiveness.  He  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev. 
Henry  Holland,  a  devout,  gentle,  humble-minded, 
earnest  man,  who  had  done  noble  pioneer  missionary 
work  in  his  earlier  days. 

Dr.  Read,  the  present  Rector  of  Grimsby,  was  also 
distinguished  for  long  years  of  missionary  toil.     The 


EASTERN    CANADA    AND    NEWFOUNDLAND.  255 

Diocese  of  Toronto  owes  its  episcopal  endowment  to 
his  persevering  efforts. 

The  Rev.  B.  C.  Hill,  for  long  years  missionary 
on  the  Grand  River,  was  another  of  the  Church's 
laborious  pioneers.  He  used  to  walk  forty  miles, 
and  hold  five  services  on  the  Sunday.  He  was  a 
great  classical  scholar,  could  read  the  Greek  and 
Latin  authors  as  readily  as  the  English.  He  was  a 
peculiar  man,  and  used  to  be  betrayed  in  his  fervour 
into  giving  his  backwoods  hearers  a  taste  of  Latin 
and  Greek.  He  was  a  most  assiduous  worker,  holding 
services  constantly  during  the  week-days,  in  school- 
houses,  or  the  homes  of  the  people.  He  was  a 
pronounced  Evangelical,  and  as  such  he  devoted 
himself  to  preaching  the  Gospel  as  he  understood  it, 
without  taking  much  trouble  to  instruct  his  people  in 
the  distinctive  principles  of  the  Church  of  England. 
The  result  is,  that  of  his  abundant  labours  very  little 
fruit  has  been  gathered  by  the  Church  in  which  he 
toiled. 

The  two  Leemings,  Ralph  and  "William,  were 
modest,  retiring  men ;  not  much  was  heard  of  them 
in  the  public  life  of  the  Church.  They  had,  however, 
both  seen  hard  pioneer  work.  Ralph  for  many  years 
devoted  himself  to  missionary  work  among  the 
Indians. 

The  Rev.  Arthur,  afterwards  Archdeacon  Palmer, 
was  a  prominent  figure  in  the  Church  during  the 
whole  Episcopate  of  Bishops  Strachan  and  Bethune. 
He  was  an  Irishman  by  birth,  a  graduate  of  Trinity 
College,  Dublin,  a  man  of  splendid  physique  and 
majestic  bearing.  He  settled  in  the  backwoods, 
where  the  City  of  Guelph  now  stands,  and  so  he  saw 
a  great  deal  of  hard  backwoods  mission  life  during 
the  earlier  years  of  his  ministry.  He  was  an  in- 
fluential man  in  all  the  public  concerns  of  the 
Church. 


256       HISTORY    OF    THE    CHURCH    IN    EASTERN    CANADA. 

Of  the  younger  men  it  would  be  invidious  to  speak 
individually.  The  story  of  their  lives  is  not  yet 
told.  As  a  body  they  are  earnest,  loyal,  devout 
men,  who  are  quietly  and  diligently  doing  their 
Master's  work  to  the  best  of  their  judgment  and 
ability.  Their  history  will  be  written  when  their 
work  is  ended,  and  so  the  curtain  falls  upon  the 
toils  and  hopes  of  this  the  youngest  of  our  Ontario 
Dioceses. 


THE    END. 


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