OLD PETER PIPER.

Tuapeka Times, Volume I, Issue 12, 2 May 1868, Page 3

OLD PETER PIPER.

(Continued from our laat.) (To the Editor of the Tuapeka Times.) *' Well, Poter, I am ready to compare notes with any other denomination 'under the sun;' and will stake my Christain reputation (which, possibly, may not be very considerable) that the ' true blue ' is the color for a plain people. There is no gaudy show about our Church — no tinsel — no glitter : all is substantial and plain. Religion, when ' unadorned, is adorned the most.' " " I quite agree with you, Sandy, that there is no show about your Church. Yours I suppose to be a religion felt, not seen ; and were it not that you are in your place on the Sabbath day, in the Church, the world would be very little the wiser whether you had any religion or not. But how, or in what manner, we can agree about a universal church, when ministers, the public instructors, the successors of the Apostles, instead of having upon their banners, • Thus eaith the Lord,' they teach the people, ' Thus saith the Holy Catholic Church,' ' Thus saith the Convocation, the Synod, the Conference ; ' and, instead of nailing from Heaven, as the 'Lord's messenger,' they bring a message from London, Rome, or Edinburgh, or some where else. And if on the voyage of life they meet a shipwrecked brother, crying out, in the agony of his soul, ' What shall I do to be saved ? * he is met with the raercenai-y answer, by asking, like your countryman, ' What wilt ye gie us ? ' and we tell you, this is the sum and substance of very much of the religion of the day. But thera are other differences, arising out of their own private belief, or their own peculiar interpretation of the Scriptures. For instance, I bring a child to one church te be baptised ; the minister sprinkles water upon it, and it is received into the church einblamatically. I take one to another church, and that child ia ' regenerated,' and accepted into God's visible Church ; and it only wants confirmation to make it a complete Christain. Again, I take a child to another church, and horrify both the minister and congregation by my request ; and it is of no use arguing with this strange people ; for they are right, and every one else is wrong. II am told to go away ; and when the young man or woman is of age, and has already ! been baptised by the Spirit of God, they will jbe glad then to confirm what has been ratified in Heaven. Then they use such abundance of water, enough to extinguish altogether the tiny spark. Thero is another thing, too, which lam not clear upon : that is, in the matter of choosing elders, deacons, or church committee men. I find that;, in the New Testament churches, they choose such men as are 'full of the Holy Ghost.' Our modern churches choose, their officers from the wealthy of their congregations— those who are reputed • well-to-do,' and can give a large subscription to the church fund, make a long prayer, keep a smooth face, keep a steady gait in public ; Ihey may take their toddy freely when in private. Such are often to be seen occupying the 'chief seats,' or standing in conspicuous places, where they can be Been of men. These (and I have them in my mind's eye) who, if a poor member had been overtaken in a fault, occupying the position, as they did, next to the minister, with virtuous indignation would have them ' cut off' from God'a Ordinances; when, at the very game time, those whited sepulchera were importing ships' cargoes of that which they well knew was bringing rum to the souls and bodies of thousands of their fellow men. Will the Lord use such materials for the building up and the completion of His Temple?" "Oh," says Sandy, "it is all in the way of business, you know. Commerce must be carried on, Peter. So said the merchants and Government of England, when the Chinese authorities made opium a contraband article ; and we shall never do our duty, as God's vicegerents, until we lay an eternal embargo upon the ( accursed things.' Commerce can, and the day will came when it will, be much better sustained, by trading in that kind of merchandise which will be alike approved of God and our own consciences, even larger profits will accrue to the merchant by the sale of necessary articles ; and the people of these colonies would be in a more prosperous and happy conditiou were all traffic in liquor prohibited. We could then expect a blessing upon our endeavors to evangalise the world. We should then have prosperous churches ; a moral and a virtuous Christian people." "If you are not in a hurry, Sandy, I would just like to take you to have a peep at our streets." " With all my heart, Peter." So away we sauntered j and had not gone far before we heard' such a hubbub, such a cry of men, women, and children laughing, as if in ecstasy, at a poor, unfortunate dog, which had a tin can tied to its tail ; and all the dogs and juveniles in the township were after the poor unfortunate, to the infinite delight of the larger children. The poor brute, however, soon found a refuge ; and it was amusing to see the long train of virtuous dogs return from the chase, with their noses and extenuations high and stiff, as if they were the conservators of the public safety. " Well, Sandy, I have seen the day when any of those dogs would hava conBidered it an honor to ' snuff and snouk ' with that poor animal." " What is the reason, Peter, that all the dogs are against him now." " Why, Sandy, ' give a dog a bad name, and hang him.' He and that big, burly merchant dog used to be ' sac pack and thick thegither;' and now, if the poor dog meets the other ; if he makes ever such a low 'bow-wow,' the other answers merely with, a grin. And this poor delinquent only did that once which the other curs have done a hundred times ; only, the difference is, that he was caught, and had a can tied to hi 3 tail ; and the others are not caught ytt. And this is one phase of the Christian churches, and not over-drawn neither. But look- here, Sandy; what's this?" "Oh, never mind," says Sandy; " it's only a drunken fellow, taken in tow by the police ; and a dirty job they have. See, he is all over blood aud dirt. ' Poor fellow,' I hear them say, ' he has fell among thieves, been robbed, and nearly murdered.'. Eell among thieves? Let him keep batter company." " Stop, Sandy. Look over the way, yonder. Do you see thoae' two -gentlemen walking past, and" their eyes turned the* other wayP" "Yes, Peter. Who aro they?"

"They me this poor, uutuiiuuulti nun's brothers . his own flesh aud blood ; but ho has got into bad company. He was once a useful member of the Church ; and novr Beo ! his condition." " Why," says Sjmdy, " does not the *' spiritual minded' restore such a \ one?" "The spiritual minded, Sandy, are something like policemon in a street row : they are not there when wanted. The oldfaahioued spiritual minded people appear to have died out. Those were great limes for the Church, Sandy, when a brother bore another's burden ; and wh«n, if one metnbor suffered, the whole body suffered also. Those good gentlemen who have just gone past, and who have never gone astray, say ifc is of no use restoring a man who has been robbed to the privileges of the Church. He has lost Ilia all ; he is no longer of service to us ; he can no longer pay his subscription ; and if received back into the Church clothed, 03 he necessarily would be, in rags, he would affront those who ' fast twice in the week, and pay tithes of all which they possess.' But of the whereabouts of those spiritual minded members of the Church of the present day, I wjsuld like to have a little conversation with you on a future occasion." — I am, sir, &c, Old Peteb Pipbb. Wetherstones Braes, April 28, 1868.