The works of the Rev. William Thom, late minister ... - waughfamily.ca

LETTERS, TRACTS, l^fC,24^mid laft, as I have fald, we have n6t been altogetherunfuccefsful, nor refted in bare fpeculation. Ourpredeceflbrs, in times of perfecution, by giving prO'per information againft the puritanical party, meritedlarge donations of teinds and feus, which,. though fufpe£i:edfor many years to be invalid, are now confirmedby long prefcription. We, f^or our part, haveraifed the minimum of our hojioranums. We havemoft of us two clafles, a public and a private ; andthus, by artfully extending our ufefulnefs,(for greatis the utility of private ciafles) we obtain yearly tv/ohonorariums from each (Indent. By our large houfcs,as above, w€ have convenience to board the rich lads,,and by wifily propagating a belief that we inftruc^them in private, and take care of their morals, wehave wormed the citizens out of that lucrative trade'of boarding, and have engrolied it to ourfelves. InihiVLQ parifhes, where v/e have right to the teinds, wetriple the grafTums, and continue, or double the yearlypaym.ent at the end of every nineteen years. Inother parifhes we value the teinds, and raife very confiderable,but dill very reafonable fums. When fimpiepeople. pay us teinds, and have no tack from us,\v£ add every year a little to the fum payable, till wehave raifed it a third or a fourth more than was payableby the ancient roll ;^ but this we do chiefly when'the lands are improved, and can well bear it. Suchminifters as we are forced to pay, we, fjr their andour own good, detain their ftipendd a year, or eventwo full years, and having get intereft upon it fromthe bank, v/e divide the profits.Other miniflers wepay at lool. Scots per chaJder, inftead of the fii'rwhich v/e exact, and make by that means great proi.tevery year, fornetimes near half the value of their fllpends.After a fiipend hath been more^ than a fullyear due, if we pay more than 4 1. or 5 1. at a time,we exacl: a little by way of difcount ; and though wehave done fo for many years, v/e were never publiclyX3