THE MANSE GARDEN. 39 



ous, abounds, of course, in glens and rivers ; and in 

 these romantic retreats are found the decent church, 

 and the peaceful looking abode of the pastor. 



Such felicity of site has often led to the sarcastic 

 observation, that the Church is too wise not to have 

 the best things to herself. But so far as the accu- 

 sation of a selfish wisdom is limited to a predilection 

 for the murmuring stream and the shade of trees, 

 without implying the guilt of aggrandizement, it may 

 be easily borne. But even this, if the charge were 

 grave, might be answered by the fact, that the sweet 

 attractions of the river have first moved the flocks to 

 feed on its green pastures, and that thither the shep- 

 herds have but followed them. It is true that the 

 church, in consequence of this attraction, is but rarely 

 central to the parish. In some districts may be 

 counted nearly a score of churches ranged along the 

 winding valley, whose stream serves to each in suc- 

 cession as the parochial boundary; and hence the 

 area of the parish is very unequally disposed around 

 its place of worship. Nevertheless, the site of the 

 kirk and manse is chosen on a far juster principle. 

 For obvious reasons, the population is crowded on 

 the valleys, and thinly scattered on the moors ; and 

 the most perfect adjustment of every claim, is to sup- 

 pose the people, with their respective distances, to 

 form a coherent substance, of which substance, the 

 centre of gravity is the proper site of the church. 

 This principle, as just in morals as in mechanics, 

 may serve to appease the remote inhabitants who 

 complain that they must travel all the breadth or all 

 the lerfgth of the parish before they reach the place 

 of worship. From the above it follows, that the 



