THE SCOTCH EPISCOPACY.
To THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR."] Edinburgh, July 17, 1866. Sir.,—In connection with your review of the Bishop of Argyll's book on " The Present State of Religion," where you say that he is the only Liberal Bishop in Scotland, I should like to be allowed to explain that if by " Liberal" is meant Bishops holding the principles of the Reformation, he does not .by any means stand alone in the North in this respect. It may not be known unto you in the South, but the fact is that the Episcopal Church of Scotland, although necessarily standing upon what is called High- Church ground in relation to the Scottish Presbyterian Establish- ment, is distinguished beyond her sister in the South in some respects by her maintenance of Protestant principles. Dr. Suther, the Bishop of Aberdeen, brought to trial and deposed one of his oldest and most respected incumbents, Mr. Cheyne, some five years ago, for doctrine on the subject of the Holy Eucharist approaching to transubstantiation, and the Bishop of Brechin was censured by the Episcopal Synod of Scotland for the same thing. In both these trials the learning of Dr. Wordsworth, Bishop of St. Andrew's, was entirely directed to the defence of Protestantism. Whether these two Bishops are Liberal in the political sense of the word I do not know,—my impression is that the first is so. No doubt we are sadly in want at this moment of courage in high places to stem the tide of Popery which is carrying off our aris- tocracy on the one hand, and of vague Liberalism, which believes that " nothing can be known," on the other.—I am, Sir, your
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