CHARITY AND COTTON.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1797, 12 January 1884, Page 2

CHARITY AND COTTON.

TO THE KOITOB. Sir,— ln reply to the letter of "Chanty," appearing in yesterday's issue, a few facts concerning the man Cotton, " who has been doing his best to live honestly," may not be out of place. ■ Let me say at the outset that I am in a position to thoroughly substantiate the following statements :—l.: — 1. Cotton asserted he was sent out from Home to Bibhop Vaughan at Sydney, and was transferred from thence to Auckland to Bishop Luck. 2. On Bishop Luck being communicated with that gentleman denied all knowledge of such a person. Cotton stated his name to be "John Clement "Cotton," and that he had "not been a week" in New Zealand, yet a few days afterwards he is identified at the Hamilton railway station as a passenger by the Warwick, which arrived in Auckland from the Old Country neveial months ago, and as having on that vessel gone by the name of Rogeis, The person who identified him (and who did so in the presence of two witnesses, one of them a clergyman) tells mo that Cotton (or Rogers) completely denied all knowledge of his identifier, although for tlnee months the occupant of an adjoining berth on the Warwick, to my infoimant, but sometime after admitted his identity, referring to several circum&tances of the voyage. My informant is prepared to take oath to the above statements. But I am not restricted to one witness ; there are several others who can testify to the man's identity, as also to the extreme shadiness of his conduct while on the vessel. When stopping at a well-known hotel in Alexandra a few days ago, Cotton (or Rogeis) neglected to pay his bill, leaving his portmanteau, which on being opened was dircovered to be empty. If your correspondent, instead of going into heroics over a man of whom he evidently knows nothing, had written to Bishop Cowie he would have learned that the supposed martyr was simply an imposter, who had been travelling about the settlements north of, Auckland representing himself as a of the bishop, and in that role victimising people in a most shameful way. I think of all impostera one of the Peck&niffian type is the worst, one " who has stolen the livery of heaven to serve the devil in," and for truth's sake and justice's sake, and a-> a public waruing, I mention the above facts regarding one of the most plausible of the class — " John Clement Cotton." — I am, &c, One who Knows. To Awamutu, 9th January, 1884. P.S. — The above was written before the letter signed " John Dukes" reached me.