EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN N.Z.

NZ Truth, Issue 570, 20 May 1916, Page 6

EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN N.Z.

Samuel Marsden's Successors m the Mission field Gleaned from Many Sources and Antheatic Reconb— lßl4-1852 -. Facts and Figures, Compiled by J. M, F«rd«, The Arrival of Bishop Selwya— Creation t! to Anglican Diocese Booi 6.--Chapter 3 (Continiied) Dr. Selwyn as an Athlete— An Extraordinary Swimmer — The Peychrolutio Club— The Philelt(te*~-Hif Ordinatloo— CtxraU at Windior— A Marriage Engagement.

It would ba Incorrect to «ay that the labors of Mr. Selwyn and his brother private tutors ended here, for the deficiency thus revealed, led to an infant school — an institute very -rarely found m those far back years— being built m Windsor. Mr, Selwyn was foremost m the work of building as he -was afterwards m the task of superintending and teaching 1 m th© school.- He visited newly established infant schools m London during bis vacation, and with characteristic thoroughness lost no opportunity of studying the results of other persons' experiments. He gave up the charge of Beveney and became the duly licensed curate of Windsor.* The then vicar, lived at Datchet, the living of parish he held as well as Windsor. Mr. Selwyn was, .therefore,-' practically m sole charge, for the vicar had full eonfldenco m him and left everything m bis hands. There was, however, a fly m the ointment pot The parish was m great pecuniary difficulty, just as many Australasian churches are; a debt of £3000 had been incurred by the church wardens on pulling down an old and building a new church; two and a half years had elapsed and neither principal nor interest had been paid; the creditor had obtained a mandamus from the Court of Queen's Bench, commanding th© church wardens to raise the necessary sum (£3300) by a rate on the inhabitants. A vestry meeting was summoned and assembled, with a certain degree of fitness at the workhouse, for a rate of six shillings m the £ would have impoverished the parish, . and a Royal borough at that. Alter much recrimination it was proposed to raise a subscription, not to pay the debt, but to indemnify and defend all who , might be proceeded against for refusing to pay tho rate. One proposal pointed to that accustomed remedy for sloth and parsimony, a system of pew-rents, varying from £2 2a to £5 5s per seat per annum, which, sanguine ngurlsts thought, would bring In £500. • • • Mr. Selwyn asked permission to address tho meeting an one who took a great interest m tho parish, though not a ratepayer. In calm and measured language be pointed out that tho pariah did owe £3000 to the lady who had generously lent that sum on th© BecurJty of tho rates: .that... tho. Queen's Bench was dotermlnod to enforce the payment , and that tho only question was how the sum was to be raised. He showed that) to resist tho Queen's Bench would load to suits In tho Ecclesiastical Coiirt, and then to suits m the Court of Chancery, and that this indefinite litigation would not only cost large sums of money, but would destroy all good feeling In the parish for many yeara. Ho suggested, therefore, that a vigorous effort should be made to free the parish from the burden, and he would follow up tho HupKeaUon, m order to commend It to others, by promising cheerfully to perform his duties as curate tfv>r two years without receiving any remuneration. By thus relinquishing a salary of iil&O a year | for two years he would bo able to i rcliovo the parish of a tithe of the obligation. « • • ! The offer took tbo mooting wholly [ by Kurprisv, but umtto an It wa«, Ul*s» tlnctly "as a peaco-offerlas to tit pariah" it was irre«ljUll>l<v nn»l \vi' !i< : it month the »urn of moro than £3000 t ivn» raised, the creditor giving </j». under Mr. Solwyn'a uilvie«\ ht*r'cl»lm (or inivrt «n, thus practically making a donation equal to hl« own. •* . ° The curate wan ijow In a position to curry out lib project m fur the welfare j of Windsor, find with some hop* of j success. IJo set on foot M»up-kiU'h*Mi:?. I -'I under Uu« tthailow of U»> lluynl nn>\ ; ! unciont paints or I'u.iM*' of WiiHi^o-ri | Mather**' mt'ftlnK*" nnd thono nunwroust parochial «!•»:-.« ni^ilivrm. hu>\<' t>v ■ comntun. but tls«-n f«> rar-; b>- *.'n*» ; not «atl»fl«ni with tho education Unit was given In the rnlddle-clnaa j»choole nl Windsor. s»tul he omleuvoroij to Im* j provo It by Instituting public «»•"' i luailona and giving pm«» to th* suecesKfui otmllUutr^ WMlf tlt« S'uuon^l Society was. In a tentative manner. t>rovit)i'ntc ln*J*"eUon of lht« #chijato In certain dloeeac*, be had arranged a.

complete system of inspection, and of tabulating th* results over a considerable area, of -which Windsor was the centre. • • • The collection made for wiping out the debt had left a surplus, and this was set aside as a nest-egg for a new church, which would meet the wonts of * .the growing population of Windsor and serve also as a church for the soldiers. Before Mr. Selwys** time a chaplain had always "been appointed to minister to the regiments, both cavalry and infantry, quartered m Windsor. Prayers were said m the barrack- yard or m the riding school, the men standing under arms. The nest-egg grew and soon Mr, Selwyn hoped, to see his way clear to building the church; it was expected that the War Department and Horso Guard? would contribute liberally j but Lord Hill was "a little afraid of religion among soldiers, because two majors had lately committed some acts of Insubordination m preaching, etc." MrJSelwyn suggested that their "very exuberance of zeal might be attributed to tho soldiers having bo little that was doctrinal m their own religious services. He went to Mr. Macaulay, thon Secretary at War, who thought £ 1300 a Biifflcient contribution, Selwyn wanted and hoped for £2000, because as the whole cost, including endowment, would be £6000, and the church at one of the three Sunday services would be given up to. the soldiers, it was fair that they should contribute one-third. Amongst other objections urged by Macaulay was that the time might come when tbo Queon would not reside at Windsor and when as a consequence bo many troops would not be quartered there. Selwyn said that he felt inclined to suggest to him that this was not thought of when £70,000 was spent on the stables. "'■• • ', ..• Mr. Selwyn used to toll aa anecdote of the churchwardens and himself buIng outvoted and outwitted by tho Dl«---sontera at a vestry mooting; they assembled at the proper vestry-room, which would hold a dozen people; a hundred crowded round, evidently bent on mischief; a loud voice proposed an adjournment to the »choolroom. which was at once filled; tho same voice proposed on adjournment to the Town Hall, which was niled; tho churchwardens proposed their unpaJatublo scheme, countenanced jvnd support**! by tho preaonco at least of tho curuto, and they had to walk out of tln> town hall and through the streets amidst roars of laughter, being m v minority of about 6 to 100. The Btory used to bo told by Selwyn many years afterwards, and tho great point was that all along ho did riot agree with the policy of tho churchwardens, but »« curate he felt hlm«elf bound to bo loyal to tho vicar and to tho authorities. • • • It wax a subject of comment and admiration when persons, observed tho relations of tho vicar, lU\\ ianac Gos««tt, who put everything In- Windsor Into hit* htttulg, nnd th« curate -who k<-pt himself carefully In iho background. Windsor was rapidly taking tho lend among tho parishes of tho neighborhood and when any now organisation was spoken of to the vicar In terms of praiso ho uactl to say. "It's all Selwyn'* doltu?." and Selwyn on his part referred everything: to the vlcur. Never did man more thoroughly nnd conscientiously put Into action (what ho used afterwards, as bishop, impress on <!»>•>■ eon* nnd cunu?) the 'promise of. his ordination, reverently to obey [not only 1 .the orcUtwry and other chief mlnl*U£»s of th« church [but uUoJ them to whomthe clmrse arid government over htm was committed. • a • In November. IS3S. Mr. Helwyn ai»nmine.fd hi* cnKaKetnont to the lady wh« m ISS? bociime his wl.f*. His futun- ffttlKT-Sn-!siw. Sir .1. FUcbar<fo«>n. :» jo<itf<- of the Court of Common Plwi», 'v.niy ;« country iuiu»f called The ■•.Fll--s>ori!», nwr Urny, Jt w»p a "Ibny t)l«---tnnre from J-'tun. n»< the rond i'ud iroun^

by the way of Maidenhead bridge, bit there was a ferry on the Berkshire side of, the river whjch brought the two places much nearer, to each other. On a certain night Mr. Selwyn was returning -to Eton 'at an hour much later than those kept by the ferryman; there was no difficulty m his ' punting h<mnaif across; but then — what of the owner of the punt ih the morning? What of the early passerigera coming perhaps to their work, if .the Windsor . curate, had appropriated the punt at the midnight hour? Was there no, way of combining late hours The Filberts with the rights and 'comforts of th« rorrymaii and his passengiara? U was, lam told, part of Selwyn'a nature alwayß to have nnselflsh thoughts for others; and tho present , difficulty was solved In a .way that cost him less, effort than would have been the case with most men. A modern' lieander, he, punted . 'hjntHAir, across the river, and then, having undressed, ferried himself back, made the boat fast, and swam back to his clothes, 'thus gratifying himself 'aiid caaslnie no inomvenionca to others^ • ' '. ■ \ • <To, be continued.)