218 JOHN DUNCAN, WEAVER AND BOTANIST. 



ance, in this unwonted exercise, being such as to render the 

 suppression of risible emotion on the part of his auditors 

 extremely difficult. But John was not alone amongst his 

 brother laymen in bordering on the ludicrous in such trying 

 circumstances. One of his friends, a farmer who took a very 

 active part in Free Church affairs in Tough, remarked on 

 one occasion, when a woman was publicly rebuked in the 

 congregation, that " he never felt sorrier in his life for ony- 

 body than when the minister cam doon oot o' the poopit 

 to circumcise her," meaning, good man, to admonish her ! 



John was one of the founders, in 1844, of what was 

 called a " Church Defence Association " in Tough, to help 

 in the foundation of churches throughout the country, with 

 Charles Hunter as secretary, and himself as one of the most 

 active collectors of funds. His collecting book still exists, 

 containing about sixty names, with contributions from four- 

 pence to four shillings and sixpence a month, the highest 

 weekly sum being four shillings. John put himself down 

 for fourpence a week, his small but willing mite, offered 

 " out of his poverty," but valued as such by the Master of 

 the temple. 



John's churchism was not mere combative fervour or 

 theological dogmatism. It was based on conviction, and 

 was truly religious. When I asked him why he seceded 

 when Charles Black and others whose opinion he valued, 

 remained in the church, he replied, " Because I thought it 

 was richt, and because the best ministers gaed awa wi't." 

 He was of opinion that many more would have followed, 

 "had they no feared for the laird, frae whom they had 

 their grund." Like all over-enthusiastic men, his fault was, 

 at that time at least, that he would hardly allow that his 



