THE FRASER CASE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume IV, Issue 844, 17 January 1883, Page 2

THE FRASER CASE.

The last act of the notorious Fraser case, so far as tha Chriatch arch Presbytery is concerned, was played yesterday. At the opening of the meeting the clerk read a letter from Mr Fraser, in which he stated that the position he had taken up in withdrawing from the jurisdiction of the Presbytery forbade his attendance at the meeting. He utterly and absolutely denied the truth of all the charges made against him, and added that he purposed approaching the General Assembly by petition, accompanied by a full statement of his case. The Rev. Mr Elmslie, in miking a brief statement for the prosecution, said that the charge preferred against Mr Fraser originally consisted of three parts. The last of the three they had omitted as the case went on, because of the difficulty of leading proof ; the second they omitted because the proof would have been tedious, and because the question of trust moneys would have to come up in other connections ; and ultimately they had confined themselves to the charge of undue familiarity with female servants. Here again they had eliminated a number of items referred to by witnesses and others, and confined themselves’ to the five counts complained in the libel which had just been read. The first count was based upon a fama clamosa, which arose early in last year, and which exists to the present hour. This was the charge which led to the whole case—an evil report which proved to be too well founded, and which was enough to destroy the usefulness of any minister of the gospel. The charge primo, he asked the Presbytery to notice, was not a thing of ancient date, but of the present time, and was of such a nature that for the honor of the Church they were bound to make investigation, and this investigation had led them step by §tep to the other counts contained in the libel. The charge under secundq, w’hich went three years back, involved an unavoidable inference of immorality, and the charges under tertio, quarto, and cjiiinto were supported by the most incontestable evidence—evidence which Mr Fraser could not rebut. And singularly enough it was when this evidence was laid upon the table that Mr Fraser had withdrawn from the jurisdiction of the Presbytery. If it was said that such evidence could not be rebutted, owing to the lapse of time, the same difficulty had to be overcome in the matter of

proof, and Mr Fraser’s greater knowledge of all the circumstances put the advantage on his side. Mr Blmslie concludod.by remarking that the case was a sore calamity to the Presbyterian character, and' that nothing,but a regard for the honor of 4he Church and the interests of the cause of JDhrist would have compelled 1 them t0..g6 on with it. If they had been able honorably and consistently to maintain Mr Fraser’s innocence, it would have served their interest as a body, and would have been gratifying to themselves personally to have proclaimed bis innocence to the world. Nothing but dire necessity had led them to bring the prosecution to the present painful issue.— The four counts of the accusation having been sustained, the Rev, Mr McGregor moved the following resolution;: —“That whereas certain fdrrias having arisen touching the moral character- bf the Rev. Charles Fraser, of St Andrew’s Church in the Presbytery- of Christchurch in: connection with the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand, and this Presbytery,' led to take action by the serious nature of such famns, having appointed a committee consisting of members of this Presbytery to investigate and report upon the i saqa& it was unanimously agreed, after haying heard their report, to proceed, against the said Charles Fraser by libel In strict accordance with the polity of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand’; ' abd whereas the relevancy of the libel having been sustained, and the same having been duly served on Charles Fraser,. every opportunity having been given him to bring forward rebutting evidence in his own defence, he was then summoned to appear before - the Presbytery at a given , time i and placs to answer the charges, preferred against him in the libel; and inasmuch as the said Charles Fraser having repudiated the authority of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand, tailing to appear in answer to the summons at the time and place appointed for his trial, the Presbytery thereupon proceeded to the investigation of the evidences upon which the several charges against the said Charles Fraser were based, together with rebuti ting evidences previously brought fori ward in his own defence ;and having unanimously found him guilty upon each and every count contained in the libel, it i is now moved that this Presbytery proi coed for-hwith to depose the said Charles Fraser from the office of holy ministry. ” i After some discussion, .the latterpart of the motion, beginning with the: words “having unanimously,” was carried unanimously, the motion being seconded by the Rev. Mr Burnett. The Moderator then formally read the sentence of the Presbytery deposing the Rev. Charles Fraser, and declared the charge of St. Andrews vacant.