WE regret to record this month the death of William Macbeath, Bridge Street, Halkirk, which took place there on the 25th March. The deceased had reached the ripe age of nearly 79 years, having been born on 1st April, 1820. His native place was Berriedale in the parish of Latheron. For many years he was an inhabitant of Halkirk.
William Macbeath was well-known among friends of truth in Caithness as a humble, sincere Christian, and his removal is felt to be a real loss to the Church in that quarter. The exact time when William’s spiritual experience began we are unable to relate. This much we know that many years ago he met with a serious accident which laid him aside for a time, and that during this period he came under deep soul trouble, so much so, that he forgot all about his bodily ailments. When his family would be retiring to bed, William would start off across the hills to visit, for spiritual counsel, Donald Grant, Latheron, and David Campbell, Berriedale, two eminent worthies in those days. He cherished a great regard for the memories of these and other godly persons of the past. Of Alexander Gair he frequently spoke in terms of the highest admiration, and recounted not a few of his memorable sayings. In fact, the past in Caithness was to William surrounded with a halo of glory that nothing in the present could make up for. The persons, sayings, and teachings of the many nobles of Israel, now passed away from the county, were constant matter of contemplation and conversation with our departed friend. Nowadays people don’t want to hear about the glorious days of the past in this land. They cry, “Go back to Christ.” But they who have no love for the footsteps of the flock are not likely to be lovers of the Shepherd. William was also well acquainted with the past contentions of the Church during Reformation times, and his whole heart went with the Covenanters in their noble struggle for Christ’s crown and covenant. Their sufferings for truth and righteousness were always fresh in his memory, and he could not speak of them without deep emotion.
William was also a man of prayer. His public exercises were characterised by a deep confession of sin, a cry for mercy, and a felt need of the atoning blood of Christ, and of the new heart and right spirit. At Friday Fellowship Meetings he was also a speaker. His gifts of utterance were not his strongest feature, yet he had often something fresh and pointed to say. Before our Church was formed in 1893, William spoke out vigorously against the errors and innovations that had been introduced into the Free Church. He spoke out in such a faithful manner as to make ministers sometimes very uncomfortable in their seats. We heard of one occasion at which he referred to the Revised Version of the Bible. The revisers got no mercy. William said, he could not compare them to anything but swine entering into a garden and trampling the beautiful flowers under their feet. This may appear to some an extreme expression, but better judges than most of us are of opinion that the revisers made a poor business of their work. Of recent years William’s addresses showed an increasing spirituality of mind, as well as a growing concern for the cause of Christ in the land.
He will be much missed by our congregation in Halkirk. He was a punctual attendant at every meeting, and his place is now empty. All who knew him will also miss his warm greeting and genial kindness. To his bereaved family the loss is very great. A daughter, now laid upon a bed of weakness for the long period of 27 years, deeply mourns his removal.
A correspondent sends us some account of his last illness, an extract from which we subjoin. “Although we desired to cherish faint rays of hope for the recovery of our friend, yet these our hopes have been blasted, and now we can say, in the language of the Psalmist, ‘He shall not return unto me, but I shall go unto him.’ Through his removal from amongst us, there is a missing link in our chain, an empty seat in our gathering for prayer and worship, and the absence of a truly sincere penitent at a throne of grace, which is a sad loss to us—not only us as a congregation, but to the Church throughout the land. Few anxious seekers and contrite self-denial suppliants of his stamp are in our day. These secret wrestlers are rare, who would not remove the ancient landmarks, but loved the old paths—the footsteps of the flock—sought to walk therein, and found rest to their souls. Having been so much acquainted and associated with him in his life, and also in his last severe sufferings, I knew him better than many others, and therefore will sadly miss his exercises, intercourse, and fellowship, which I valued dearly. I greatly enjoyed being with him in his last illness. His continual cry was to pray and read and praise, especially the last, and as soon as one was done he would say, ‘Oh, go on, go on.’ It was rather rare altogether to engage in prayer, read a portion of Scripture, and sing a few verses of a suitable Psalm five or six times during the night. Amidst all the distress in his body and soul conflict to the end, it was peculiarly discernible in him a felt and humble consciousness of his own unworthiness, a penitent and contrite disposition of spirit, and a submissive, reverent reconciliation with the chastening hand of the Lord upon him. This feature was peculiarly noticeable, as he sighed often, ‘Ah, it is myself is to blame for it all,’ and on other occasions made ejaculatory cries and prayers or repeated portions of Psalms appropriate to his case, especially of the 118th Psalm. This was the Psalm he last wished to be read and sung, commencing at verse 19, ‘O set ye open unto me the gates of righteousness.’ Before a few minutes had gone—after some struggles, the emancipated spirit had departed. ‘Eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.'”