The Congo Atrocities.—It might well be deemed incredible that such a condition of atrocious cruelty should exist in a nation under the protection of civilized nations. Many letters, pamphlets and books have been written on the subject, but possibly one of the most affecting is a book published by the Religious Tract Society under the title Bokwala: the Story of a Congo Victim. Bokwala’s story of his life from his early days—days of freedom—until the cursed rubber gatherers invaded his native land, has a pathos that would move a heart of stone. It is a crying disgrace to the civilized nations—our own among others—that such a state of things should exist. That all this should exist for the purpose of quickly replenishing the coffers of European speculators shews how completely the spirit of avarice has conquered the feelings of nature.
King James and Melville.—The encounters of Andrew Melville with the King present us with some of the most dramatic incidents in ecclesiastical history. His famous speech on “the two kings” is a memorable utterance. Melville, taking the King by the sleeve, uttered a speech which royal ears were not accustomed to hear. “Sir,” he said, “as diverse times before I have told you, so now again I must tell you, there are two kings and two kingdoms in Scotland: there is King James, the head of this commonwealth, and there is Christ Jesus, the King of the Church, whose subject James the Sixth is, and of whose kingdom he is not a king, nor a lord, nor a head, but a member. Sir, those whom Christ has called and commanded to watch over His Church have power and authority from Him to govern His spiritual kingdom, both jointly and severally; the which no Christian king or prince should control and discharge, but fortify and assist. . . . Sir, when you were in your swaddling clothes, Christ Jesus reigned freely in this land in spite of all His enemies; His officers and ministers convened and assembled for the ruling and welfare of His Church, which was ever for your welfare, defence and preservation, when these same enemies were seeking your destruction and cutting off.”