MINISTERIAL PLAGIARISM.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1771, 2 August 1888, Page 4

MINISTERIAL PLAGIARISM.

A good deal of notice has been taken throughout the country of a case of alleged plagiarism, in which the accused party is the Rev. John Robertson, the junior minister of the Free Church at Stonehaven. Mr Robertson had preached and published a sermon against intemperance, which attracted a great deal of attention, but which was subsequently declared to bo gross plagiarism of a paper published by Canon Wilberforce. Ihe presbytery took up the matter, found Mr Robertson guilty, and resolved to report his conduct to the General Assembly. He himself said at the same time that he had been guilty of a “moral wrong.” The following Sunday, in his own pulpit, he withdrew this admission, saying that at the time he made it “he was so much put about that if murder had been written down instead ef moral wrong, he would have subscribed to it at the moment,” He read a protest complaining of the treatment of the presbytery as unfair, and declared that if its decision were not reversed by the General Assembly, he would leave the church. He also read a letter from Canon Wilberforce,who expressed it as his opinion that what Mr Robertson had done did not amount to plagiarism. M r Robertson was at times scarcely able to proceed from emotion, and at length had to be assisted to the vestry by several of the elders Several ladies fainted, and many other persons in the church were in tears. I may add that Mr Robertson is a young man, who has been less than three years in his charge, during which time he has filled the church, as well as a large mission hall erected by him for the fisher population. He is an eloquent preacher, but for some time advertised titles to his sermons which were of a very extraordinary character, and were by many people regarded as blasphemous. Prior to coming to Stonehaven he was assistant to the Rev. George Knight, in Aberdeen, one of the ablest preachers of the Free Church. —Correspondent of exchange.