RANDOM REMARKS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 138, 11 March 1909, Page 2

RANDOM REMARKS.

Job was a tourist. I have not the slightest doubt about it myself. Most people know no more of him than that he had patience. No one seems to have bothered about his occupation. I don't dispute his claim to patience. It is precisely this that makes me think that he was a tourist. Tourists have patience. If they did not they would not be tourists. How could person without patience wait an hour and a half for the King Country Express. They grumble and growl; but Job did too. Job was essence of patience. Those who don't believe it had better read his life. Ancient Samson is outdone by our modern Sandow, Homer by W. 8.; Solomon by Mr Jennings Judas Iscariot by certain Gov • ernment officials; and lastly Job is is outdistanced by the modern railway traveller. When saying Goodbye to a friend who is journeying on a train don't say "God Speed You." God has nothing at all to do wiih New ZealaErd railways. The railways know nothing of speed. Shake your friend by the hand and say: "I pray that God will give you patience." He can give patience" but he could not give speed to our trains. There is something lethargic about the New Zealand water. People don't like it. Trains can't hasten if driven by it. When heated it becomes a sleepy kind of steam that has no rush in it. You remember old King Lear exclaimed: "Give me that patience: patience I need." I entirely agree with him. The modern system of things calls for patience. In trains and in church the really necessary thing is patience. If I were a preacher I would beseech my congregation to be patient, to sit quiet and wait till I said something interesting. I have been only a listener so far and can truly say that if I had sufficient patience I might be able to listen to a preacher read a sermon. Poor old Job I have no doubt might have been able to spend an hour in church. I don't say he could, only that he might have been able. Now don't be shocked at the way I talk of sacred things. Does Bishop Neligan tell the truth? Yes certainly. Then I am a pagan. The good and Godly Bishop says so, and faith he does not lie. What the people of New Zealand really want is not abuse but patience. If we had patience the Bishop would never have had cause to call us pagans. We would have been in church. A man is a pagan if he does not go to church. He is a pagan if he cannot say the Lord's Prayer. Could Abraham say the Lord's Prayer? Did Solomon have more than one wife? Did Moses wander in the wilderness? Did Noah drink of the j vine? We are mote followers of Noah than of Solomon. The law won't allow it. We are not pagans. The Bishop means that we are not pagans if we attend his church. Ye gods, we want patience. Without patience we cannot understand how we can be both pagans and not pagans. It is not necessary that we should understand. The Bishop said we were pagans He was absent a long time. When he came back he so modified the word pagan that it is almost a compliment to be called one. While he was away we evidently became good, ts this his good influence. Now Job had patience and sores, and blackleg and anhtrax in his cattle. One day Lazareth picked up the crumbs under the table and licked his sores. Job must have had patience or he would have kicked him. I don't know if we are Christains or pagans. We don't have all the fun that the old Christians had. We can't expect to be sublimely happy. We are pagans. We milk on The Bishop do it. We should copy him. The cows can wait. They are the cattle oc pagans. Dont look back. Look ahead or you maj be turned into a pillar of salt and you will writhe under a glorious thirst. From this there is no relief in the King Country. We are pagans. Church has become monotonous. Job had patience. Let us bear up. ■ '