An Edinburgh Minister on Dancing.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1685, 15 April 1886, Page 3

An Edinburgh Minister on Dancing.

At a free-gardeners' meeting held &t Wavurley Hall, JK din hurgh, lately, the Rev. Alexander Webster, of St David's, Edinburgh, was present and delivered an address He aai'l he was one of those who hard a great respect for the intelligent, honest, hardworking man. He made it a principle to lift his hat to the servant girl as •well as the mistres*, especially if she was young and good-looking. ter.) He'hbpKd that there was nothing heretical m that remark. (Renewed laughter.) It was not that he had. less respect for women advanced* m years but it must be confessed that the element of youth, especially m woman, was very attractive. When one saw a fine woman who was about the age of forty, one could hardly help wishing that he could do as when he went to the bank with a £40 note i — change the article into two twenties. (Great laughter ) They had met j that evening for social recreation, and this was highly commendable. Dancing, was also to form part' of the evening's entertainment, which was right and good, provided always it was kept within proper Wounds. (Applause.) He was not one of those who considered dancing a sin and it was all nonsense to say that people must be going to the devil m that pastime. (Applause) He had danced himself at Her Majesty's gathering at Dreside, but he was now too heavy for the ejtercise (lau ght er)— -and besides members of the Presbytery were expected never to lilt their feet too high or too quickly, but to move through the world with b scorning gravity and solemnity. (Laughter.) He was not sure it would be a useful thing for members of the Presbytery to indulge m tripping what was called the light fantastic toe. (Loud laughter.) Some of them who Imd large stipends, and consequently hrcwy corporations, might not be able to exhibit all the beauties of motion — laughter) —but it might be better for them than snarling at each other, as they sometimes did at Presbytery meetings. It might also be nble to make them preach more humanely,and develop m ministers that, brotherly love which they preached about so much, but which all, iboth. priests and people, found so difficult to practice. Let them just imagine th fir respected friends, George^/ Gil fi'l'an and Dr Peddie, and their more inqdest friends Mr Maeaulay, and ProfessorKotartspn Smith, Ferguson and !.'hn£ antagonists, all dancing to the strain^ ol some Presbyterian flute or fiddle. fie thought that the perspiration produced by Buch . recreation j would purge some of them of then* bad humour, and make them of a more tolerant state of mind 1 (Laughter.) As one reine. Jy for Scotch bigotry he would suggest .more innocent recreation both for tlie clergy and the people. Let them remember that what they had the minister must have also. He would set the Presbyteries to dance occasionally. (Laughter.) He did not mean m a literal sense exactly, but he would set them to dance either literally or metaphorically, and their differences would soon be danced out ol them.-"';