CHRISTIANITY AND SCHOLARSHIP IN OTAGO.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume III, Issue 126, 1 October 1875, Page 11

CHRISTIANITY AND SCHOLARSHIP IN OTAGO.

In its Summary' for Europe, 'The Otago Daily Times' published, under the heading " Religious," on "Wednesday last', the following : — " The Rev. J. Gk Patersois-, of "Waihola, delivered an interesting and instructive lecture on LtjTHEH, in the Lower Hall of St. Andrew's Church, on the 10th instant. The proceedings having been commenced with singing and prayer, the Chairman introduced the lecturer to the' audience. The rev. gentleman said he preferred to deliver his lecture without referring to any manuscript or notes — a remark whicli elicited enthusiastic applause. Referring to the convents at the time of Lutheh, he said they were ' perfect hells of iniquity,' and f guch a thing as a pious Monk was as scarce as a white

Jb this the sort of thing that is introducod by prayer in Dunedin ? So it appears. TLere was no one, it seems, to find fault wittythis coarse falsehood, uttered, "without assistnnce of any manuscript or notes," by this raw youth from "Waihola ; and a Dunedin audience sat patiently and approvingly listening to' a recent arrival- from Scotland, libeling history, caluminating meritorious institutions, and

making a laughing stock of himself and them. We are afc a loss to discover the motive of ' The Daily Times ' in publishing the Bey. J. G-. Patebson's nonsense and profanity, to Europe. Could the object of our contemporary have been to poke fun at the Presbyterian minister, and let the world know the nature of the taste, the amount of learning, and the estimate of Christianity which characterise one section, at least, of the Dunedin population. One thing, however, is certain, our contemporary has admirably succeeded in rendering the pastor of Waihola an object of wonder to every scholar and gentleman.