Martha Spreull/Polemical

by Henry Johnston

CHAPTER XVIII.

POLEMICAL.

BOUT the time my faither became a laird through the failure o' Henry Hernbane, the country wis being torn to pieces by the controversies that led to the Disruption o' the Kirk o' Scotland. That wis an awfu' time wi' their moderates and their evangelicals, their forced settlements and their ungodly presentments. The folk were desperately in earnest, and everybody took sides and focht like mad. The pairish we belanged to wis as quarrelsome owre the great questions o' the Headship o' the kirk and spiritual independence as the lave o' the country; but it happened that for a time the main point wis a' but forgotten in view o' anither that nearly rent the ranks o' the congregation in twain, and caused an unco hub-bub.

Dr. Drumlie, oor minister, wisna in very robust health—being subject to attacks o' jaundice—so they appointed a helper and successor—ane Horace Haveral, a gey dandyish kind o' a chiel, wha had a great weakness for red stockings. Noo, the twa ruling elders o' the pairish were William M'Nab, the tallow-chandler, and Daniel Nicolson, ane o' the tobacco lords. Baith men had marriageable dochters; and as the young minister wis single, it wisna against the course o' nature that he should look round the congregation to see where he could get a guid wife.

First he keekit at Maggie M'Nab, but as tallow wis coming doon owing to the growing use o’ gas, his choice at last fell on Jeanie Nicolson, whereupon Mrs. M‘Nab took mortal offence at the minister’s red stockings. First, she stayed awa’ frae the prayer meetings ; she couldna sit there and see the red legs o’ the man danglin’ aboot durin’ the singin’ o’ the psalms. It betokened a lichtness o’ mind and heart that wisna to be brooked by a Presbyterian elder’s wife, wha wis bound to uphold the sober solemnity o’ public worship. The sicht presented, to her imagination, suggestions o’ prelacy and visions o’ the scarlet-wumman.

Her dochter got a glint o’ the red stockings too, and absented hersel’ frae the Sabbath schule. This, as ye may suppose, caused a heap o’ speculation. Mrs. M'Nab, hooever, wisna a wumman to hae a grievance and keep it to hersel’. Here were twa Christian wummen driven awa’ frae the means o’ grace, and wis it no richt and just to themselves that at least the ither elders’ wives should ken the cause?

The Bible-wumman wis invited to tea—Mrs. M'Nab wis ane o’ a committee o’ ladies that took upon themsel’s the special chairge o’ seeing that this wumman did her duty—and it wis sune made plain to her mind that red stockings were mair like the stage than the kirk, and in that licht were an offence in the eyes o’ earnest-minded, religious folk.

This body wisna lang in visiting the ither members o’ the ladies’ committee wha had dochters; and as it wis earnestly set forth that the minister wore the objectionable articles o’ dress not only in defiance o’ the solemn traditions o’ the kirk, but for the carnal purpose o’ pleasing the e’e o’ that lichtheaded quean, Jeanie Nicolson, the dissatisfaction sune took deep and dangerous root. For a time it wis confined to the women-folk, but it didna lang bide there. Tea meeting efter

tea meeting took place. The grievance grew by being talked aboot, till at last the men folk, wha were members o’ the session, had to enter the field and set the battle in array against each ither. The moderates declared the red-stocking party were interfering wi’ the richts o’ private judgment; while they, in return, quoted St. Paul’s directions to bishops—hoo they should be grave, sober-minded, avoiding onything by which they micht cause their brother to offend. Time oot o’ mind the vestments o’ Protestant ministers had been black, and ony departure frae orthodox forms and principles tended to unsettle the mind, and opened the door to strange and divisive courses. Meantime the Eev. Horace Haveral, wha had heard o’ the dissatisfaction i’ the flock, got into a bonny rage, and denounced the agitators as busy-bodies and impident bigots, wha were mair carefu’ aboot the ootside o’ the cup and platter than aboot the cleanliness o’ the inside. So he had twa or three guid flings at them ower the pulpit, but, as ye may jalouse, this didna tend to improvement. At first these discussions amongst the moderates and the red-stocking party took place at street corners and in public-hooses, but the matter wis noo carried into the Session-hoose itsel’, where they fell to high words, and there wis threatened sic a strong-handed disturbance as wis never before heard of within the four wa’s o’ a kirk.

At last Dr. Drumlie, wha wis confined wi’ a sair attack on his liver, invoked the aid o’ four members o’ the Presbytery, wha for the time laid aside there ain differences to deal wi’ this new element o’ ecclesiastical dispeace. They had an unco job. First, they had a hale week o’ prayer to solemnise the minds o’ the congregation; then they set aboot takin’ evidence, and efter an investigation, lasting the better pairt o’ three weeks, they traced the matter back to Mrs. M‘Nab and the Bible-wumman. The latter wis dismissed withoot mercy. and Mrs. M'Nab got sic steive admonishment that she gethered her skirts aboot her and went ower to the Cameronian Kirk. As a contribution to peace and compromise, the Rev. Horace Haveral changed his stockings; and before they left us, ane o’ the four ministers preached sic a powerfu’ discourse on britherly love, as bathed the hale congregation in tears. We a’ felt it wis a happy settlement o’ a disturbance that should never have taken place.^[1]

Efter that we settled doon steadily to the sterner work o’ the Disruption o’ the Kirk o’ Scotland, the which we managed within the self-same year.

1. I mind this case well—being at the time, in the first year of my Eldership. The four members of the Presbytery chosen were men famed for their prudence in dealing with disaffected congregations. The changing of the stockings, however, was looked upon, at the time as an important element in the settlement of a siccar and vexatious quarrel.—Ed.