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1844 - 46
This chapter was kindly
prepared by the late Rev. Robert Bums, D.D., professor of theology in
Knox’s College, Toronto, than whom none knew the field of labour better,
or had done more to advance the work of Christ throughout its length and
breadth. It is given with only such revision as the revered author would
himself have given to it had he been spared to impart to it his final
touch. Besides him, and chiefly through him, I am indebted also to the
following friends who have assisted in furnishing the materials on which
the narrative is based, viz. Rev. Alexr. Cameron, of the Free Church,
Ardersier, formerly of Canada; Mr. Hector Macpherson, lay missionary at
St. Martin’s, Perthshire, formerly band-major of the 93d Sutherland
Highlanders; Rev. Daniel Clark, of Indian Lands, Glengarry, Canada; Mr.
Donald Catanach, of Lochiel, and his sister, Mrs. Kelly; Rev. Alexr. N.
Somerville, of Anderston Free Church, Glasgow; Sergeant Long, formerly
of the 93d, now of the Gymnasium, Glasgow; Mr. James Hosack, merchant,
Quebec; the Rev. John Clugston, formerly of that city, now of Stewarton;
Mr. William Macintosh, now of Belleville, C.W.; Rev. Farquhar M‘Rae of
Knockbain; Mrs. M‘Nider, formerly of Montreal, now of Vincent Street,
Edinburgh; Messrs. James Court, John Dougal, Thos. Allan, James Orr, R.
M'Corkle, Montreal, and Famham.
OUR North American
colonies had something like a hereditary claim on the services of Mr.
Burns. It has been the lot of two of his near relatives to be engaged
for a series of years in the service of the church in that important and
thriving province of the British crown. His uncle, Dr. George Burns, of
the Free Church at Corstorphine, was in 1817 called to be the first
minister of the Church of Scotland in the city of St. John, New
Brunswick, and, with a short interval, he laboured in that important
sphere for the period of fourteen years; while another uncle, Dr. Robert
Bums, formerly of Paisley, was for fifteen years secretary to the
Glasgow Society for sending out Ministers and Teachers to the Colonies
of British North America, and was himself for a quarter of a century
employed, first as pastor, and afterwards as theological professor, at
Toronto, in Canada West. The latter having arrived at Montreal in the
spring of 1844 as one of the first deputies of the young, fresh, and
already renowned Free Church of Scotland, the question was at once put
to him, “ Have you brought your nephew with you?” In fact, the revivals
in Scotland were more spoken of in Canada than in Scotland itself, and
the Free Church deputy carried home with him earnest commissions from
the good people of Quebec, Montreal, Kingston, Toronto, and almost
everywhere, for the presence and labours of Mr. Burns, and others of
similar spirit. Written communications to the Colonial Committee at
Edinburgh had also preceded him; and when he reached Scotland in June of
that year, he found that the proposal to visit Canada had been made to
Mr. Bums, and that proposal having been seconded by the full information
now given him, all difficulties were removed, and in the course of a few
weeks Mr. Burns embarked in the brig Mary for Montreal, a free passage
to and from Canada having been guaranteed to him by the generous
Christian proprietors of the vessel. Mr. Burns sailed from Greenock to
Montreal on the ioth August, 1844, and reached Montreal on Thursday,
September 26th, of the same year. In this connection the names of Mr.
James R. Orr, merchant in Montreal, and of Captain Kelso, the commander
and proprietor of the vessel, deserve honourable mention. With the first
of these gentlemen Mr. Burns stayed during the greater part of his
residence in Montreal;' and the names of both are associated with the
first propitious dawning of the Free Church era in Canada.
The following extracts from his journal will show the feelings with
which he approached this new sphere of labour, and the spirit in which
he entered on it:—
“In every circumstance, even to the least, I have seen infinite grace
towards me on this occasion. The ship in which I am is an excellent one.
As there is no cabin passenger but myself, I have the cabin as quiet as
my own study could be, and a state-room in which to meet with God. The
means provided for me by the Lord have so exactly met my wants, that I
go forth truly ‘without purse,’ having only two shillings remaining in
the world; and yet I am infinitely rich, ‘having nothing, and yet
possessing all things.’1 I trust I shall be enabled not only to pray
much, but also to study more deeply the divine word, and prepare more
regularly for the profitable discharge of my awful trust. ... I have got
some beginning made among the crew. To-night we had fine weather, and
met on deck for worship. It was sweet and solemn, the voice of prayer
and praise blending with the winds in the midst of the mighty deep. Oh
that I may be prepared for glorifying God fully in my body and spirit,
which are his!” On another occasion he says: “To-day we have been
becalmed, and I feel the retirement sweet. I think I can say through
grace that God’s presence or absence alone distinguishes places to me.
But ah! I am yet untried. I know but little of what is in me as yet, and
still less of the depth of his redeeming love. ... I have sometimes had
glimpses both of the depth of sin and of redeeming love; still, I will
need-very special teaching if I am to be of use in the western world. .
. .
“September 2, 1844.—This morning beautifully clear; a gentle north-east
breeze, wafting us to our desired haven, brought us in sight of American
land, after a delightful run of twenty-three days. . . . Our seasons of
divine worship have been increasingly pleasant of late, although I see
no mark of a divine work of grace in any one around me. Part of my daily
work has been to teach the ship-boys to read. One of them'is an
interesting black from Africa. Oh that my heart were enlarged in
pleading for the ingathering of all nations to Emmanuel! ”
On September 10th he reached Quebec, and in his journal we find the
following characteristic notice:—“In God’s great mercy we arrived here
yesterday, after a delightful passage of thirty-six days. As it was the
day of holy rest, I did not go ashore, but had worship on board, and
spoke on the twenty-second chapter of Revelation. In the evening I was
put on shore, and after looking a little at the aspect of the town, I
took up my position alone, and yet not alone, at the market-place, close
to the river, and began to repeat the fifty-fifth of Isaiah. A crowd of
Canadians and of British sailors soon gathered, who at first seemed mute
with astonishment, but soon showed me that the offence of the cross had
not ceased by their mocking and threatened violence. However, I got a
good opportunity of witness-bearing for God and his Christ; and when I
left them had some interesting conversation with some individuals who
followed me. When I came down again, at half-past eight, to the place
where the ship’s boat was to meet me, I got into conversation with a
company of young sailors, two of whom remembered well having heard me at
Newcastle at the quay and in the corn-market. Some of our poor soldiers
and sailors were going about intoxicated. Though it were only to reach
these two classes of degraded men, it would be to me a reward for
crossing the great ocean. Who knoweth what may be the fruit of this
evening’s testimony among the wondering crowd ! . . . I have had on
board the ship a time for solemn observation of the character and ways
of the unconverted, which I trust will be profitable. The only book I
have had with me beside the book of God is Owen on the Glory of Christ,
which I find precious indeed. I have had some seasons of great nearness
to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and have found his word
full of power and refreshment.”
On reaching Montreal he at once found himself in the midst both of new
and of old friends. The faces of the old soldiers whom he had known at
Aberdeen and at Dundee must have been a sight peculiarly pleasant to
him, and a happy omen for the future:—
“When we came into the harbour two Christian gentlemen, Mr. Orr and Mr.
M‘Kay, came on board, and before leaving my little cabin we had sweet
communion at the mercy-seat together. I live with Mr. and Mrs. Orr, a
godly couple from Greenock, in a delightful situation at the head of the
town. Truly goodness and mercy are heaped on me. . . . Before leaving
Scotland I observed that the 93d Regiment, the depot of which I laboured
among at Aberdeen in autumn, 1840, had removed from Kingston to
Montreal, and I trusted that somehow I might get in among them; but what
was my joy and wonder to be told that there were about thirty godly men
among sergeants and privates who have a hired room near the barracks in
which some of them teach a daily school for poor children gathered from
the streets, as well as a Sab-bath-school, and in which they meet for
social prayer every Friday from six to half-past eight. This is the
Sutherland regiment, of which in its early days the Rev. Ronald Bayne,
an eminent man of God—afterwards at Inverness, and then at Elgin—was
chaplain; and that enjoyed until lately the command of Colonel M‘Gregor,
a distinguished Christian officer, now at the head of the constabulary
force of Dublin. . . .
I had hardly arrived when I was told they were looking with desire to my
coming, and that they wished me to attend their prayer-meeting, and to
preach to them next Sabbath. I accordingly went last night, in company
with two pious Scotchmen. . . . When we got to the place I found such a
scene as I never before saw: a room crowded with soldiers, wives, and
children, who were met not to hear a man speak, but to wait upon
Jehovah, as their custom was. It put me in mind of the centurion of old.
I enjoyed the meeting exceedingly, speaking upon Moses at the burning
bush. One of the soldiers prayed, as well as Mr. MTntosh and myself. In
the soldier’s prayer I was struck by the petition that they might
cherish such expectations of good through my instrumentality as were
warranted by his word, and were according to his mind. They seemed all
to feel too that nothing but the presence of God himself would be of any
avail. I found it very affecting to them and me to allude to the church
of our fathers in the furnace, and to the people of Ross and Sutherland,
from among whom the regiment was at first raised. . . .
“Tuesday, September —Sabbath was a good day, sufficient to remind me of
September 22d, 1839, the day of the second communion at Kilsyth. At
half-past nine A.M. I preached on the quay, on the entry of Jesus into
Jerusalem, and his purging the temple—congregation large and fixed. At
eleven I preached in Mr. Wilks’s church (Congregational) from the words,
‘ When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord
shall lift up a standard against him.’ At half-past one P.M. I addressed
the 93d Regiment in Mr. Esson’s church—very fixed in their
attention—more so than I have seen soldiers before. At seven I again
preached in Mr. Esson’s to a full church, on ‘ If any man will come
after me/ &c., and was much aided.
“Saturday, December 14th—During the present week my work has gone on as
before, but in addition my conflicts in soul about it have been deeper
than before, and several new doors have been opened. (1.) Two hundred
and fifty of the 71st Regiment have come to the cavalry barracks, whom I
visited on Tuesday and Friday, and whom I am to see again on Tuesday, if
the Lord will. It seems very remarkable that the 93d and 71st Regiments
are the only ones whose depots I visited in Scotland, and that the whole
of the 93d and so many of the 71st should now be here. I have met with a
number of the 71 st whom I knew well in Dundee, and this prepares my way
among them. (2.) I have got liberty and more than liberty from the
commanding officer of the 89th (Irish) Regiment to meet with the men in
their schoolroom from week to week. This seemed so unlikely, as he is
said to be a Romanist, that I had given up thoughts of applying, but one
of the men in the hospital wanted me to ask a favour for him, and this
gave me an introduction. (3.) We have got most wonderfully the use of a
large room exactly opposite the French church for holding meetings in,
both in French and English—all for nothing—the owner being a friend of
the gospel—a hearer of Dr. Carruthers the Independent, whose church met
for a long time in this very place. This seems a remarkable arrangement,
as it is the very best place in the city for reaching the people.”
When the Free Church was opened at Cete Street, Montreal, the soldiers
of the 93d had a distinct service allotted to them in the afternoon. On
the arrival of Mr. Bums this service devolved on him; but besides
preaching to the entire regiment on the Sabbath, he preached twice
during the week in one of the largest rooms in the barracks; and he went
frequently to the regimental hospital to address the sick and speak to
the patients personally. Such was the high estimation in which he was
held by soldiers both of that and of other regiments and of different
denominations, that on several occasions when men of the regiment were
sick, Englishmen and Irishmen, Episcopalians and Roman Catholics, have
sent to him earnest messages soliciting his visits and his prayers. To
quote the words of Mr. Hector Macpher-son, then sergeant-major of the
band of the regiment (now a lay-missionary at St. Martin’s, Perthshire):
“I shall never forget the first sermon he preached on the first Sabbath
after his arrival. He gave out in the usual way the 32d Psalm to be
sung, and had read the first four lines, when he began to unfold the
feelings and experience of a penitent believer, in a way, to me at
least, never opened up before nor since, and which was to my afflicted
spirit as good news from a far land. It was like oil and wine to my
afflicted spirit. It was also greatly blessed to others of my
fellow-soldiers. The man of God continued to address us in much freedom
of heart and of power for three hours, concluding somewhat abruptly, but
with words which indicated a spirit of winning affection to every one:
‘I see your time is up, but I hope to have farther opportunities of
addressing you/ and solemnly pronounced the apostolic benediction.”
The many opportunities of hearing Mr. B., enjoyed by the men of the 93d
Regiment, were eagerly improved by them; and the following description
of the bearing of his preaching upon them, and which has been drawn by
one of themselves, then a non-commissioned officer, is singularly
graphic:—“I have known the Rev. W. C. B. to send this famous regiment,
these heroes of Balaclava, home to their barracks, after hearing him
preach, every man of them less or more affected; not a high word, or
breath, or whisper heard among them; each man looking more serious than
his comrade; awe-struck, dike men that dreamed they were;’ and when at
home, dismissed from parade, they could not dismiss their fears. Out of
thirty men, the subdivision of a company under my charge, living in the
same room, only five were bold enough that Sunday evening to go out to
their usual haunts; and these must go afraid, as if by stealth, their
consciences so troubled them; the other twenty-five, each with Bible in
hand, bemoaning himself. Now, looking at the whole regiment from what
took place in this one room of it, you may be able to judge of Mr. B.’s
powers as an ambassador of Christ with clear credentials! ”
While in the city of Montreal, and freely proclaiming the riches of
grace in churches, and barrack-rooms, and hospitals, Mr. Burns found the
field too narrow; and he went out to the highways, and streets, and
squares of the city which was the especial scene of his apostolic
labours. For the first two or three nights there was little opposition,
but the majority of his hearers being Roman Catholics, the priests were
made aware of what was going on and became alarmed, and violent
opposition was the issue. He never indeed used the word Popery, nor any
term directly marking the system, or calculated to give needless
offence; but his finger, it would seem, touched the sore parts of the
malady; and the effect was just as of old, when the men that turned the
world upside down were assailing the strongholds of heathen superstition
and sin. He writes in his journal:—
“Tuesday, September 27th.—Evening at seven in open air in Place d'Armes,
in the centre of the city, in front of the great Romish cathedral. The
proposal of this tried some spirits among us. When I went a considerable
number had assembled, and among them a band of the 93d. I had a fine
opportunity, and felt the power of the living God with us. Towards the
end our enemies made a commotion. The mayor of the city, a Roman
Catholic, came to stop me, but was restrained by God. As we retired
about half-past nine we were mobbed, chiefly as usual through the
excessive fears of friends seeking to guard me from violence. The mayor
offered his protection, but I said to the people in his presence,
‘No one will harm me—it is my own friends who are creating groundless
alarm. I would ask all to go quietly home, and if any one is my enemy he
will give me his arm and we will go together/ They quietly moved away. I
put my hand on my white neckcloth and moved on unknown to the multitude.
If the kingdom of Satan is to be disturbed here, this is but the shadow
of what will yet come, and then shall many be offended. . . .
“Friday, September 20th.—At half-past five in Place d’Armes, awfully
mocked and pelted, though with nothing deadly, yet got much truth
delivered both while here and after going to an adjoining street, where
a gentleman walking with me was struck on the back. While in the Place
d'Armes, one of the magistrates, evidently, I think, a Romanist, came
and ordered me to remove, threatening me with the exercise of his power
if I did not. I said I was doing no harm, and would continue, and that
he might take me to prison if he pleased; I was ready. He shrunk away
and left me to go on. I feel that standing thus in the breach, though it
may have no other effect, invigorates my own faith, lifts a testimony
honouring to God, and sets me on a high vantage-ground in preaching in
the churches. . . .
“Saturday, September 28th.—This evening I was again in the field about
six o’clock. A great number assembled, and, in contrast with the
previous night, they seemed to have ears given them to hear. This
continued for some time, but afterwards they began to throw gravel, &c.,
and to jostle me in the crowd. Little evil might have come of this, had
not some who befriended me as a Scotchman sought to save me from danger;
and thus my back being turned the crowd rushed on me, and I got away
without my hat and one of the tails of my coat containing a handkerchief
and Bible. Their enmity was so great that I believe the Bible was torn
to pieces as well as the rest, the hat only being recovered. I got into
a shop, where many who trembled for me would have had me to remain, but
I was quite above all fear, and went out again alone among the people,
and got much opportunity of declaring the truth on the way home. Surely
these displays of enmity are a token that the Prince of darkness is in
some degree afraid!”
These furious onsets are described by eye-witnesses as having been most
terrible, and as having more than once threatened serious consequences.
Thus, on one occasion, that evidently referred to in one of the above
extracts, his coat was torn, his hat was knocked off and trampled on the
ground; and his pocket-Bible, his constant companion, tom from his hand.
On the other, a stone thrown with violence inflicted a severe wound on
his cheek, and it bled freely. A few of the 93d rushed through the
crowd, and one in anxiety said, “What’s this? what’s this?” Smiling, he
replied, “Never mind, it’s only a few scars in the Master’s service.” He
was carried into the medical chamber of Dr. Macnider, near at hand, when
that beloved Christian physician skilfully sewed up the wound. He came
forth speedily as if nothing had taken place; and looking round calmly
from his reassumed position, he exclaimed in' the words of the great
apostle of the Gentiles:—“I bear in my body the marks of the Lord
Jesus.”
Another hot day of battle is thus vividly described by the Rev. William
Arnot, of the Free High Church, Edinburgh, who happened to be in
Montreal at the same time, and who himself bravely joined him on the
forlorn hope. “Once,” he writes, “I went with him to the Haymarket
Square, where he meant to preach in English. I went somewhat anxious for
his safety, with intent to help him if need should arise. A circle soon
gathered. He began to preach. More assembled outside—thicker and thicker
the girdle grew, but the roughest were outside. William and I stood
alone in the middle of the ring, hedged very closely in, but the
gentlest nearest us. Where they stood at first, they remained. No
possibility of movement. Noise and throwing of dirt increased. When he
became somewhat wearied I now and then took up the address, and the
change of voice operated a little in our favour for getting a hearing.
Once Irish voice from the outside interrupted William at one time,
shouting clear over all the din, ‘The devil’s dead.’ A great laugh
followed. When it hushed, William struck in with a plaintive voice,
tinged almost with the sarcastic, £ Ah! then, you are a poor fatherless
child! ’ This raised a laugh in his favour, and under cover of it he was
enabled to proceed for a while. We were besmeared with mud, thrown from
the outer circles, but not hurt.
“The violent opposition of the Irish, however, eventually drove him off.
He desisted, as the first missionaries did, when the persecution became
violent, and went to another city.”
At length the hostile Romanist mayor was replaced in his office by
another of different spirit—an excellent Protestant gentleman, of the
Wesleyan body, who lent the full weight of his authority and moral
support to the cause of order and of peace. Appearing seasonably at one
of the meetings where tumultuous disturbances were apprehended, he
speedily succeeded in calming the storm, and the assembly soon dispersed
without injury to any one. Thereafter he waited on Mr. Burns for
consultation on the case. As soon as he had stated the object of his
visit, said Mr. Bums, “Let us pray;” when as they knelt together he
touched the mayor on the shoulder and said, “You’ll pray.” He did pray,
asking the divine direction, and a blessing on the labours of Mr. Burns,
and left him with the single request that he would send him notice when
and where he would next preach.
The city of Montreal was only one, though perhaps the most important
scene of Mr. Burns’ Canadian labours. His mission was to the whole
dominion of Canada, which may be considered now as including, or as
designed to include, all the dependencies of the British crown in North
America. In 1844 the name embraced only two branches of one province,
Canada East and Canada West; the former being now termed the province of
Quebec, and the latter that of Ontario. Lower Canada was then, as it had
been for ages and still is, settled by French Canadians, speaking the
French language, and subject to debasing superstition and a dominant
priestcraft. The whole land groans under the tyrannical sway of perhaps
the most wealthy and powerful hierarchy under the dominion of the see of
Rome. We have no doubt that in seeing their splendid palaces, their
magnificent cathedrals, colleges, and convents; in seeing the lovely
land almost wholly “given to idolatry,” the spirit of Mr. Bums was
greatly stirred within him. Hence the interest he took, all the time he
was in Canada, in the state of the poor “habitants,” the benighted
French Canadian Roman Catholics; and hence the avidity and the success
with which, as we shall presently see, he revived his knowledge of the
French language, so as to be able, in a comparatively short space of
time, to speak intelligibly and fluently in the French tongue.
Canada West, or Ontario as it is now called, may be termed a Protestant
country, inhabited too no doubt by many Roman Catholics especially from
Ireland, and by not a few settlers from Germany and the United States;
but unquestionably the English and the Scottish elements greatly
preponderate. The leading Protestant denominations are, Episcopalians;
Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists, and Congregationalists. Of these,
the first three are each nearly equal in point of numbers, amounting to
not much less than one million in all. The population of the whole
“Dominion,” including Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, is estimated at
four millions. Prior to the era of the Disruption in 1843, the state of
our countrymen in Canada was anything but promising. The framework of a
Presbyterian church was indeed set up, and a number of pious ministers
had been from time to time sent out both by the Establishment and the
Secession; and the annals of the early Presbyterian church are adorned
with a few noble names. Generally speaking, however, the system was
cold, formal, and stiff; and spiritual religion in the line of Scottish
Presbyterianism was low. The Disruption wrought wonders for Canada. Many
pious men in the cities and in the land generally sighed for a change;
and the arrival of deputies from the Free Church in regular succession
for five years, formed quite a hew era in the religious history of the
province.
No Protestant missionary can be useful to any great extent in “Lower
Canada” who is not able to converse and to preach in the French
language; and Mr. Bums very soon felt the necessity of revising his
attainments in that direction. So successful was he in this, that he not
only addressed the “habitants” regularly in their own language, but,
seemingly with the view of acquiring still greater facility in the use
of it, he wrote a large proportion of his Canadian journal in the French
language. As a specimen of his manner of dealing with his French
auditors, and the admirable tact with which he met occasional cases of
argument and appeal, we select the following letter addressed to friends
in Scotland from a place at some distance from Montreal:— was very
nearly one when I needed very special support, and when I saw the Lord
very clearly leading me in a path that I knew not. On the second day
after I received your letter (28th March) I again left Montreal, with
the view of visiting some desolate settlements of Protestants (chiefly
Scotch and Irish) in the quarter where I still am, and also desiring to
find some opening among the poor French Canadians, who are the principal
inhabitants here and around. One of my fellow-travellers was a young
Canadian student at the French college of St. Hyacinthe, with whom I had
some conversation. He said if I were at their college they would soon
convince me that I was in error. The opening was too favourable to be
neglected, and I said that if I was in the neighbourhood I would
certainly call upon him. In consequence of this .the following Wednesday
(April 2d) I set out for Yamaska, the seat of the college. TJie thaw
here was so rapid at that time that the most of the bridges were swept
away by the breaking up of the ice, which till then, as you may suppose,
had formed so strong a covering, that the heaviest waggons could pass
and repass upon the rivers. In consequence, I found that the stage could
not proceed, and that I must either go on foot or return. I felt it my
duty to go on; and though the distance was considerable (eighteen miles)
in deep roads, I easily made it out, and reached the college on Thursday
at seven o’clock. I must also mention a circumstance which happened by
the way, which was remarkable when connected with what it led to. When I
was about half-way I was a little fatigued, and was wishing to find some
house where I might rest a little; but the houses were all French, and I
saw no appearance of a public inn. However, the Lord directed me. Beside
the road I saw a sheep which had got into a muddy ditch, and seemed to
be unable to get out. I of course laid hold of it and pulled it out,
thinking of the parable of Jesus. The people in the nearest house came
out, and we got into conversation about the lost sheep in the gospel. I
asked them if there was any house where I could refresh myself; they
invited me in with them. I told them on entering who I was; that if they
wished it I might pass on, or if otherwise, that I might speak to them
the more freely. They did not object to receive me as a Protestant and a
Scotch minister of the gospel, and when we began to converse about the
nature of my religion as compared with theirs, they were so engaged that
it was difficult to get away from them, after remaining with them a full
hour and a half. They asked me to remain during the night, as they said
that with such roads I could not reach my destination. However, as I was
obliged to return from Yamaska the following day (Friday) in order to
fulfil another engagement, I resolved to go forward, and bade them
adieu. I got easily forward, being supported by a strong sense of duty,
and by the presence, I trust, of the great Master himself, and on
arriving called for the young man I have alluded to. He seemed more
careless than before, and was evidently afraid to show to any of those
around him any mark of anxiety. He said, ‘If you wish to see any of the
priests I will let them know/ ‘No/ I replied; ‘ I have no such desire on
my own account, as I have no doubt that they are in deadly error, and
that this book (the Bible) contains the truth of God. It is for your
benefit that I am come, and if you have any desire to be instructed, you
must ask them to converse on the subject in your presence. He hesitated
at this, but said, ‘If you be here to-morrow, you may call at twelve
o’clock, when it will be more convenient than now/ I spent the night in
a French inn, and the object of my visit becoming known, occasioned
doubtless a good deal of conversation, and led in particular two
strangers to ask me to converse with them on the subject. At the hour
appointed I went to the college, and found the young man of the same
mind as before. However, he said, ‘I will go and see what the priests
say/ He returned after some time to tell me that they absolutely refused
to speak with me on these things unless I met them entirely alone.
Of course I had no wish for this, as it might have been turned to a bad
purpose; and after warning a number of the young men of the awful danger
of allowing themselves to be blindly led by those who feared the light,
I came away, and set out on my journey. These young men told me they
were not allowed to see the Bible, although not younger than seventeen.
As I came along the street in front of the French church, thinking that
I had seen the end of my visit, to my surprise I met the man in whose
house I had been the previous day, and whom some business had brought to
the village. On learning the result of my visit to the college, he said,
‘Come, we will go to the curd (parish priest) and converse with him.’ I
told him I was willing, provided he understood that it was on his
account that we went. ' He entered, and after a little returned and
invited me in. I there met three priests and a number of their poor
parishioners, and after explaining the circumstances which led to our
meeting, we had a solemn and interesting interview for some time, during
which I had an opportunity of stating some important truths which may
yet be blessed, and of bringing before them the question of their own
personal salvation. I have indeed cause to wonder at the strength given
me on this occasion, and also, that though our intercourse was
altogether in a foreign tongue, I felt scarcely more difficulty than in
English. Since that time I have been preaching among the Protestants
exclusively, although now and then I find an opportunity of meeting a
few Canadians. Their spiritual sleep is indeed deep, and such as no
power but that of God can break, even so far as to lead them to hear the
truth. Their leaders cause them to err, and the poor people love to have
it so. I have seen nothing very remarkable of a spiritual nature among
our countrymen since I came to Canada, but our meetings are often very
solemn, and during these past days I have seen as much appearance of
impression as since I came to this land. It is my intention to return
soon to Montreal for a time, and it may be that when this reaches you I
shall be attempting again to reach the multitude there in the open air,
and that in both languages. You will then see what ^need we have of your
prayers. My heart is often among you, and I do often plead for your
salvation, and the advancement of Emmanuel’s glory in you. I close these
lines with the words I spoke on here yesterday evening: ‘The grace of
God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that,
denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly in this present world; looking for that blessed
hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus
Christ, who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good
works.’
“May these glorious ends be accomplished in you and me to his name’s
glory! Commending you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able
to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them that are
sanctified, I am ever yours in the bonds of the gospel,—W. C. Burns.”
After a second visit of a few days to Quebec, where it will be
remembered he first opened his commission as a herald of the cross on
American ground, he was invited to visit Leeds and the Gaelic district
of Inverness settlements, about fifty miles from the city. It was on
this occasion he revived his knowledge of the Gaelic language, already
somewhat familiar to him from his visits to the Highlands of Perthshire;
and the raftsmen who were his fellow-voyagers on the St. Lawrence were
valuable assistants to him in this work, while he imparted to them the
rich treasures of evangelical truth. The settlers at Inverness heard
from his lips the glorious gospel in the language most familiar to them,
and the blessed results were deep and lasting. When Mr. Clark of Quebec
and Dr. Burns of Toronto visited the same place in 1863 they found a
fresh revival of religion, specially marked by distinct memorials of the
earlier labours of Mr. Burns. The visit of these gentlemen was in the
midst of harvest; but the labourers, eager to hear, found two hours at
mid-day, besides two hours in the evening, to wait on the preaching of
the Word.
In regard to the attainments of Mr. Burns in the language of the
settlers, we have been favoured with the following testimony of the Rev.
Mr. M‘Rae, of Knock-bain, one of our ablest Gaelic scholars.1 Mr. M. is
speaking of a visit to Brodick, in the Isle of Arran, in 1847, when Mr.
B. was his fellow-labourer:—“As I was always at hand to address the
people in Gaelic, he made less use of that language than otherwise he
might have done. But on one occasion he read a psalm in Gaelic, and
commented upon it, when many of the people remarked that they understood
him better than they did Mr. -, a minister who had been recently
preaching to them. On several occasions, when addressing the people in
English, he introduced Gaelic words and phrases, and pointed out their
expressiveness and beauty. For instance, speaking of the term ‘adoption]
he said, ‘In your own beautiful language it is uchd-mhachd, bosom-sonshipand
again commenting on 2 Corinthians v. 20: ‘I beseech you in Christ’s
stead,’ he said, ‘In your own language it is very striking, as uchd
Chnosd, out of Christ's bosom] as if the preacher were a voice from
Christ’s own heart inviting perishing sinners. Mr. B.’s knowledge of
Gaelic was wonderful, considering the short time he had devoted to the
study of it.” “ He pronounced the Gaelic with astonishing accuracy,
showing a mastery over the very shibboleths of the language.” “The copy
of the Gaelic Scriptures which he used he had received from a soldier in
a Highland regiment, and he manifestly regarded it as a valuable
memento.”
The following notices from an intelligent correspondent afford some
interesting glimpses of his labours elsewhere: “At Williamstown, where
the church was denied him by the minister and session, the innkeeper
readily allowed Mr. Burns to preach under his roof, to a very
respectable audience of attentive listeners. At Lochiel he stood in a
waggon by the roadside and freely proclaimed the glad tidings of
salvation, one of his hearers, against his wishes, holding an umbrella
over his head to protect him from the scorching rays of a Canadian sun.
“In the afternoon he preached in a bam, from Psalm xvii. 8, which sermon
was blessed for the conversion of one individual, who is now one of the
principal elders of the Free Church there.
“In Kenyon he preached in English, but many of the Gaelic people waited
to hear him. A pious old woman, who understood no English, was asked why
she remained. She replied, ‘I thought it would be a privilege to be
included in that dear minister’s prayers. And another thing did me good:
he seemed to dwell particularly on one word, spoken in such sweet tones,
it sent a glow to my heart—the word ‘salvation;’ what does that mean?’
“During the communion services at Indian Lands, where his labours on a
previous visit had been blessed to many, he preached for several
successive days to crowds of eager listeners, who with one accord
declared they had never heard such glorious truths. In addressing the
communicants, one of his persuasive remarks was, ‘If you cannot come in
by the saint’s door, oh! come in by the sinner’s!’ A poor idiot who had
been present remained after the congregation dispersed, and walked
around the small tent (where Mr. Burns still lingered, engaged in
prayer), several times, exclaiming, ‘You touch my heart, you touch my
heart.’ Mr. B.’s attention was attracted to him; one of the people told
him not to mind the man, he was a fool. ‘Ay, ay, one of Christ’s fools,
perhaps,’ which rebuked the man. Learning that there was a small colony
of French Canadians several miles distant, he immediately decided upon
visiting them, and having first addressed the English people of the
place, in a grist-mill, he then preached to the French quite fluently in
their own language. They listened as if spell-bound. He afterwards
conversed with them individually in fluent French, and they united in
saying, ‘He was the best priest they ever heard speaking.’”
In moving from place to place on his evangelistic tours in the country
districts, Mr.'Burns did not often avail himself of the conveyances
readily provided by friends, but if at all practicable would invariably
travel on foot, so as to avail himself of the opportunities afforded in
this way of speaking a word in season and out of season to groups of
labourers working in the fields, or any one whom he happened to meet
travelling on the highway. It is only those who have been in Canada that
can know how trying, and therefore how rare such foot travelling must
be, owing to the extremes of heat and cold, and the rude state of the
roads. When going on long journeys, and obliged to sail on the lakes, it
was his constant practice to preach on board the steamers to all who
might be disposed to hear him. On these occasions he more particularly
addressed himself to the deck passengers, usually composed of emigrants
and persons of the labouring and of the poorer classes. The calm and
peaceful surface of the expanding lakes, and the even flow of the mighty
rivers, greatly favoured such evangelistic efforts. The more intelligent
and respectable managers on such conveyances encouraged these efforts by
granting a free passage; and there cannot be a doubt that such
unrequited and humble methods of doing good have been frequently owned
by a blessing from on high. If Mr. Bums was known afterwards in China as
“the man of the book,” he was equally so known in Canada, as well as in
his native land.
The following short sketch taken from his journal may give some idea of
the variety and extent of his labours as a missionary in Canada West,
while it embraces also places visited by him within the line of East or
Lower Canada. “I have preached at St. Eustache, Lachute, St. Andrews,
Hawkesbury, L’Original, and Vankleekhill, and yesterday evening I
preached twice in French, but these meetings have not been
large.—Cornwall, Saturday, July 2 6th, 1845. In the course of these last
weeks I have preached often in English and in French, at Lochiel, Indian
Lands, Kenyon, Roxbury, Finch, Martintown, Williamstown, Lancaster, &c.
I have had nine little French meetings since the last date. In general
they were well disposed to listen to the word. Some of our English
meetings have been very large and serious; but alas! the spiritual
deadness of this country is very great. It became at last necessary for
me to bear a distinct testimony to the principles of the Free Church.
The report of the proceedings of the Assembly of that church are
interesting. Their prosperity in an external point of view is very
remarkable. May their spiritual prosperity be in proportion. There was
formerly at Martintown near this, a true minister of Jesus Christ named
Connel, who appears to have been the means of saving many souls. He died
ten years ago, but his memory is blessed, as is that of all the just.
After having preached at Cornwall, and further down on the shores of the
St. Lawrence, I crossed the Salmon river to Dundee, quite near New York
state, and from that place I preached as I went along towards Montreal,
where I arrived last Thursday; having visited on my way Fort Covington,
in New York state, La Rivibre De Loup, Lake Strove, Huntingdon, St.
Michael’s, Durham, North Georgetown. Sometimes I have been a little
encouraged, but in general spiritual religion, which alone saves the
human soul, appears to be very rare. Nevertheless I have met with some
people who seem to love the Lord. Yesterday I tried again to preach out
of doors, but with little success. They stoned and pelted me with mud,
but by the grace of God I escaped danger. One poor man in the crowd
recognized me as the person whom he had seen beaten at Dublin near the
custom-house. Although a Romanist, he appeared yesterday much disposed
to listen to the word, and his testimony in my favour will be
undoubtedly useful among his countrymen.” After a fortnight’s labour at
Bytown, now the city of Ottawa, where Mr. Wardrope, the excellent
minister there, had been recently settled, he visited Bristol, Perth,
Lanark, Dalhousie, Beckwith, Smith’s Falls, Carleton Place, St. Andrews,
Brockville, Prescott, and Kingston. At this last place he remained some
weeks, and besides supplying the Free Church there, he preached seven
times to the soldiers of the 71 st Regiment whom he had formerly seen.
The principal officer gave him liberty to do so, and this he devoutly
notices as a proof of encouragement from God. He preached also in the
country all around, particularly Gananoque, Glenburnie, and two other
places; meeting everywhere with encouragement more or less. He visited
also Cobourg, Belleville, and other places adjacent, such as
Demorestville, Picton, and Napanee. When at Kingston he received through
Dr. Begg, who had come out as a deputy from the Free Church, a letter
inviting him to visit France. The impression on his mind by this
circumstance is thus noted in his journal:—“Perhaps the Lord intends to
call me thither, to bear testimony to his truth. May his will be done!
Nevertheless, I must go to the upper part of this province; to London,
for example, and its vicinity.” He then adverts to his visits to, and
missionary labours at, Fredericksburg, Peterborough, Ottonabee, Port
Hope, Clarke, Newcastle, Toronto, Niagara, Streetsville, and Esquesing;
“preaching,” as he says, “everywhere the word of God which liveth and
endureth for ever.” “At Toronto,” he says, “I had much pleasure in
meeting with the young men who are at college preparing for the work of
the ministry. There are some among them who seem to be true Christians;
and they are all making satisfactory progress in their studies.” In the
summer of 1846 he visited a considerable portion of the western
territory, preaching at Oakville, Wellington Square, Hamilton, London,
St. Thomas, Williams, Lobo, Southwold, Dun-wich, Aldbro, Mora, Eckford,
Chatham, Amherstburgh near the boundary line, Detroit in the United
States, and Port Sarnia, meeting everywhere with encouragement. At
Amherstburgh, he preached to a congregation of blacks, formerly slaves,
who interested him much. At Sarnia he preached by means of an
interpreter to an interesting assembly of American Indians, who are
under the instructions of the Methodist missionaries; and, as might have
been expected, the meeting and exercises were very solemn and edifying.
Two months’ labours were bestowed on Imperial, Woodstock, Beechville,
Bradford, Lower Stratford, &c. In 1846 most of the places visited by Mr.
Burns in Canada West were as yet unsupplied either with Free Churches or
ministers; and his labours and varied ministrations were singularly
blessed of God, as means of uniting and quickening the members. Among
the ministers whom he found settled in those parts, we notice the names
of Messrs. Wardrope, Graham, and Macalester, all of whom often spoke of
the great refreshing and spiritual edification enjoyed by them and their
people from his visits. Of the labours also of the Free Church deputies,
particularly Dr. Bonar, Mr. Arnot, Mr. Somerville, and Mr. Munro, he
speaks with great interest. These were the ministers who had the charge
of the “Free Church” congregation at Cote Street, Montreal, during his
residence in Canada, and each of them appreciated the value of his
labours, and readily took part with him in them.
Among the varied testimonies we have received to the good effects of the
visit of Mr. Burns to Canada, one of the most valuable is that of the
Rev. Alexander Cameron of Ardersier, whose opportunities of information
were peculiarly favourable. “It was my lot,” says he, “shortly after the
return of Mr. Burns from Canada, to labour among the Highlanders of
Glengarry for some years until health failed. I found the people in a
very interesting state of mind,—many of them cherishing a tenderness of
conscience and a brokenness of spirit, and thirsting eagerly for the
Word of life. Some of all ages were in this condition, but especially
young men and young women. The crowds that congregated on the Sabbaths
at Lochiel, the most central station at which I preached, were sometimes
very great. In the district of Glengarry, where there are now seven or
eight ministers, there was then only one, Mr. Daniel Clark of Indian
Lands, and myself; consequently the people came from all quarters,
travelling five, ten, or even twenty miles and upwards. Many of them
started on the Saturday so as to be forward in time for the morning
service. The poor Roman Catholics observing all this, thought the heads
of their Protestant neighbours were turned. In one sense it was easy to
preach to these thirsty souls, for the word of God was precious in those
days. It was the same wherever I went; no matter where sermon was
intimated to be preached in any school-room or district, the place would
be crowded, even although such meetings were continued in different
places nearly the whole week, as sometimes happened in winter; and often
a few of the more ardent spirits would attend all these meetings,
travelling from place to place for this purpose. The face of things
began gradually but steadily to change. Old customs and inveterate
habits were one by one abandoned. Balls and merry-makings and New Year’s
festivals, so frequent in that country, were fast disappearing. Some of
the leaders in such things with their own hands cast their fiddles and
bagpipes into the fire; and instead of the sounds of revelry the voice
of praise and spiritual melody began to be heard in their dwellings.
Zion was meanwhile putting on her beautiful garments. Communion seasons
were now more like those in old Ferintosh than the former scanty
gatherings in the ‘backwoods.’ This state of things I ascribe chiefly
under God to the labours of Mr. Burns. Doubtless many other able and
excellent men, especially some from the Free Church at home, laboured
faithfully, and I believe successfully, in Glengarry; but the visit of
Mr. Burns in my estimation was the crowning visit, and the impression
produced by his preaching and his godly demeanour was deep, pervasive,
and abiding. The great day alone shall fully declare it.”
The following testimony in regard to the spirit of his mind when engaged
in missionary labour in the district of Glengarry is well deserving of
record. It is from the communication of a Christian minister who had
long laboured on the same spot, and although specially illustrative of
Mr. Burns’ character in connection with that locality, its leading
features are more or less reflected from all the scenes of his labours.
“ He appeared to have continually in view an impression that he should
do something for God, for his own soul, for the souls of others, and for
eternity. His conversation was that of a man of extensive information,
who knew how to apply it effectually to the best of purposes. His
disposition was amiable, his feelings were tender; combined with a clear
judgment, great firmness, caution and patience, qualities essential to
dealing properly with unreasonable persons and with difficult questions.
He did not consider that he had a warrant to proceed in any sacred duty
without a consciousness of having the divine presence. I have sometimes
seen him on this point in very great perplexity, earnestly wishing and
praying for a special message direct from Heaven, and doubtful which was
duty, to proceed or to keep silence: like Moses who prayed, * If thy
presence go not with us, carry us not up hence!”’ The following sketch
under the hand of an intelligent office-bearer of our church in
Glengarry, at whose house Mr. Burns sojourned, and by whom he was
conducted on his missionary way, may illustrate the obstacles which
stand in the way of itinerating labour in Canada, and the manner in
which they were met and conquered by Mr. Burns. “ A furious snow-storm
having come on, he was detained for a week; and the state of the roads
prevented any public meetings being held; but he improved the time by
conversing on matters pertaining to the kingdom with our household,
including farm-servants, among whom were several French Canadians. We
found him remarkably agreeable and sociable as a guest, entertaining us
with incidents relative to his labours in Ireland, and those parts of
Scotland where revivals have taken place. The recital of incidents
connected with such themes always caused his countenance to beam with a
heavenly joy. Much of his time also was spent in retirement and over his
Bible, which he often carried to the table at meal times, referring to
it whenever a pause in the conversation gave him an opportunity. Having
an appointment to preach in the Congregational chapel, Indian Lands, so
soon as the snow-storm subsided, he and I made a desperate effort to
fulfil the engagement. Taking a powerful team of horses and a strong
sleigh, we found the roads in an almost impassable state; the horses
floundering in the snow, which in some places almost hid them from our
view; and in other places they were incapable of moving forward one
step, till I got out and made a track before them. In remarking on the
state of the roads I happened to say, ‘This is awful! ’ but was
instantly checked by my dear fellow-traveller saying, Oh! my dear sir,
there is nothing awful but the wrath of God.’ Although travelling at the
rate of only one mile an hour, we arrived at our destination in due
time, where we found a goodly number assembled; and he delivered an
impressive sermon, taking for illustration things that he had noticed
along our route, such as the clearances in the forest, with the other
usual symptoms of progress in the settlements.”
References having been more than once made to the services of the
deputies from the Free Church to Canada, it may not be unsuitable to
insert the following notices from one of the friends who have
contributed materials for this chapter:—“When I arrived in Montreal, in
1842, the spiritual condition of the three congregations was deplorably
low, and, with very few exceptions, it was so throughout the country.
But I make special reference to Montreal, where there were a very
few—like the gleanings of the vintage—who were longing and waiting for
the salvation of Zion. These few were led to unite in prayer to the
exalted Head of the Church to hasten his coming by whom he would; and he
was graciously pleased to hear their cry, and send his servants. The
first was Dr. Burns of Paisley, whose first sermon was from Revelation i.
17, 18. To some this sermon was the fulfilment of the promise, ‘When the
poor and the needy seek water,’ &c. I think Dr. Bums was followed by Mr.
John Bonar (afterwards Dr. Bonar), full of love, and meekness, and
wisdom, and undaunted courage. He was pre-eminently honoured of God in
gathering and uniting the scattered sheep, and in organizing the Cote
Street congregation, and, indeed, of advancing the interests of the
church throughout the whole province. In his arrival was beautifully
seen the majestic goings forth of Him who is wonderful in counsel. Mr.
Bonar was succeeded by other eminent servants of God, whose special
mission was to supply the Cote Street congregation, which was then the
great centre of the Free Church in Canada.” Among these may be specially
noted Mr. Arnot, then of Glasgow, now of the Free High Church,
Edinburgh; Mr. Somerville of Anderston, Glasgow; Mr. Munro of Rutherglen;
Mr. Macnaughton of Paisley, now of Belfast; Mr. Buchanan of Bothwell,
now of D’Urban, S. Africa; Professor King, now of Halifax, Nova Scotia;
Mr. J. C. Burns of Kirkliston; Dr. Begg of Edinburgh; Mr. Paterson of
Tranent; the late Mr. Miller of Dundee, and afterwards of Newcastle; Mr.
Cobban of Braemar;— who, during periods more or less extended, laboured
in the cities, and occasionally in the rural districts, to the edifying
of multitudes of hearers, and to the effect of laying firm and deep the
foundations of what in its character as a “united church” may now with
perfect propriety be called the “Free Presbyterian Church of Canada.” •
Mr. Burns returned to Scotland after about two years of incessant labour
in Canada in the same vessel in which he had before sailed for the West,
arriving in Glasgow on the 15th September, 1846. He was still in
vigorous health, yet showing but too evident traces of the exhausting
and peculiarly trying scenes which he had passed through. The clear
tones of a voice of more than ordinary compass and power were gone; his
mind and spirit were worn and jaded; and he had already begun to acquire
a certain aged look which he never afterwards wholly lost. He had indeed
emphatically “endured hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ,” and
he bore the marks of it more or less to his grave.
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