ean)

meeting. With every demonstration of
feeling, and after the delivery of many
fervent addresses, the people, without a
dissentient voice, resolved, first, that Mr.
Dunean should not leave them; and sec
ondly, that they would belong to no de-
nomination, but bea free native church
though on brotherly terms with all. At
length, on Christmas day, the elders con-
ducted Mr. Dunean into the chu rch, where
a large congregation was assembled, and

having placed him in a chair in front of |

the Lord’s table, another elder advanced
up the middle aisle bearing a bible. He
paused and addressed the congregation,
and then turning to Mr. Duncan placed
the bible in his hands and with great
solemnity requested him, in the name of
the congregation, to minister to them the
word of God as heretofore. This may
not be an ordination, viewed from the
ecclesiastical stand-point, but who will
question the propriety, validity, and jus-
tice of this commission? It would be
difficult to give an exhaustive account of
the causes which led to these demon-
strations. Itmust suffice to observe the im-
portant fact that the natives had for many
years been intelligently noting the evils
of religious divisions both within and with-
out the Church of England. They had been
forced upon their attention in both those
aspects by special circumstances. The
non-administration of the Lord’s Supper
has been prominently put forward as an
objection against the work at Metlakah-
tla. He could emphatically state that it
was not the divine memorial itself that
the natives refused. There were things
connected with it which they could not
understand in the light of God’s word—
their only rule of faith. The presence of
the Lord’s table in the church is a proof
that they were only waiting till those dif-
ficulties should be removed. He would
observe, also, that the refusal of the Epis-
copal administration of this ordinance
was the act of the natives themselves. Pas-
sing to the speeches of the natives, Bish-
op Cridge would observe that they were
delivered in his presence and that of Sen:
ator Macdonald, that ‘“‘the chiefs” might
know their mind. Twenty-nine of the
elders and chief men of the village spoke
on two evenings. One chord of sorrow
at their being divided was touched by

each speaker. They are not yet inured,
as we are, to this kind of strife. One tes-
timony to Mr. Duncan’s unchanging love,
devotion and blameless course was borne
by all. They had known his work, but
not the work of those who were dividing
them. He “had gene through the fire
for the ’simsheans;’ he had ‘ walked
through blood and the smoke of guns,
following his Master.” Each expressed
decided disapprobation of the course pur-
sued by the church party, and almost
every speaker made some scriptural quo-
tation or allusion in support of his re-
marks; but each address also contained
some distinctive feature. One spoke of
their migration to Metlakahtla from their
old homes to avvid divisions, and now
they were incurring divisions again. An-
other said that there was work enough
for the churchmen to do in preaching to
the surrounding tribes, without trying to
divide the Metlakahtlans. Several’ spoke
of the evil effects of their divisions on
tribes, in that some were beginning to
“blame the work of God,” which hitherto
they had thought good; others spoke of
the evil effects on their own body.
“Their children were beginning to quar-
rel over the name of God;’ ‘Brethren
were beginning to hate one another;”
‘They were afraid to speak to their chil-
dren and their brothers.” The work
which did all this harm could not be of
God, they said. While it continued
‘‘ there could be no progress as_hereto-
fore.” One asked Mr. Macdonald to rep-
resent their case to the governor-general.
His Excellency (Earl Dufferin): when. at
Metlakahtla sume years ago had told
them ‘‘to apply to him when in any
trouble, whether from white men or In-
dians, and he would help them.” An-
other alluded to the church party opening
a store, though they had blamed Mr.
Duncan for doing so. This, he said, was
to tempt them; it was like “holding up a
flower to catch a humming bird.” God
did not so deceive them. The church
party, said another, had told them that
they were only children; ‘‘ but they, too,
were children, for they were crying to
get something which belonged to their
fellow-children.” The same party, said
another, had told them that the ‘ So-
ciety” had right and power over Metla-