The Late Bishop Selwyn.

Thames Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2907, 10 June 1878, Page 2

The Late Bishop Selwyn.

The Litchfield Mercury, in its notice of the death of Bishop Selwyn, has the fol* lowing :—" He was first in everything, and under his charge his diocese led the van in mission work, in confer&eees, in celebrations of every kind ; in a thousand and one ways which have for their object the social and spiritual welfare of the people. The impress of his New Zealand life was felt in an inflexible rule, in the holding a doctrine that public good must be accomplished, that spiritual food must be provided. These were the great landmarks of the Bis* hop's life, and. to accomplish these he swept away every obstacle in a way which oftentimes staggered those with whom he came in contact. He made hit palace an open house to all; it has been the meet-ing-place for everything good. His life was one continual round of work; ■ An early riser, he had done a fair day'er labor before half the world was astir. Of late years the Bishop had taken a wonderful amount of interest in the temperance cause, and we believe we are correct in | writing that for some time past he has been a total abstainer. By his death the Diocesan Temperance Organization loses a great friend and a powerful advocate, for his presence on the platform at public meetings was. a common ' occurrence, and certainly on no other subject did he speak with greater eloquence or with a heartier detestation of matter he so forcibly condemned. One felt that when he heard Bishop Selwyn conjure his hearers to fly from the ' curse of the land' as he so frequently called it, he was listening to a itan who was fully persuaded of the depths to which the abuse of this custom is dragging so many of our population. His doctrine taught his clergy to subdue private objections to the articles of the prayer book, and that by an exercise of sheer will, the Bishop maintaining that he who would not do so might be a good layman, but never ought to have entered the ministry. The Bishop was in every sense a liberal man,' for his-income was swallowed up in the discharge of his office and requisitions, and its attendant responsibilities." We may add that Mrs Selwyn, Bishop Abraham, the Revs. F. Thatcher and W. Selwyn, Sir William and Lady Martin, Miss Edith Selwyn, Mr W. Selwyn, Miss Palmer, Dr Browne, Mr Davy, and two of the female, domestics were present when the Bishop died. His Lordship passed away very peacefully. Mrs Thompson (a sister of the Bishop) was not present. The bell of the Cathedral tolled out the sad intelligence, and messages were despatched to every part of the diocese..