152 MEMOIRS 011 PERIOD Vim there. Sir William Cockburn appeared for Simprin. And the affair was iflùed that day in a reference to the fynod in March. Dec. 31. The" affair of Etterick haying - occa.fioned various . thoughts of heart to nie at feveral times, I fet myfelf to sew the feveral fteps of Providence in it on both fides. Upon the one hand I obferve, 1. That Mr H. having" come with the call to our prefbytery, in February or March Taft, he Raid all night in my.houfe; but I' was from home. And the call was found tobe a bare prefbyterial call, without concurrence of heritors, elders, or parifh. mil. But the prefbytery having referred the aflàir of the traofinitting of the tall and reafons to the fynod in March, the whole prefbytery of Selkirk, through a miftake of the diet, was abfent from the fynod, fo there was nothing done in it ; and at our next prefbytery after, none of the prelbytery.of Selkirk appearing, at mar inftance the call was declared to be deferted and fallen from. 3. The next prefbytery after, Mr B. appears ; but his commiffron was fo informal that it was not fiiftained only our prefbytery declared, that if the prefbytery of Selkirk would afk the fÿnod's advice in this affair, against O&ober next, they would not reclaim. 4. The prefbytery of Selkirk having fo managed their bufinefs, at the Oótober fynod, that the fynod ordered the call and reafons to be tranfmitted, and appointed a committee of their number to meet with our prefbytery the fiat Tuefday of this inftant, todetermine in that- afTh it ; our prefbytery ' forgot to tranfinit the call, and reafons of tranfportation, and to fummon us indije time. 5. Being an utter {tran er to that people but by report, I thought it duty to-go. there and preach, before I would hazard the determination : but the letter I Lent toMr M. to warn the people of my coming, came not to his hand till the Saturday that I was in Etterick: 6. My entertainment there was not promifng, and I was straitened, as above narrated. 7. Our prefbytery having appointed a new diet, Viz. Dec. 12. I got the reafons of tranfportation, which feemed to me fo weak, as that it looked like a particular defign of Providence, and an infatuation ; 8. I went out of Simprin pulpit towards Etterick ; for that day I went away, I le&ured and baptized, and prefently took my horfe; and (fo to call it) I returned from Etterick to the pulpit of Simprin as above related. Q. Thurfiay, Dec. 12. the dayanew appointed for the meeting of the prefbytery and at= frflants for determiñing that affair, was a bad day.; aviolent form of fnow having come on, on the Tuefdayand Wednefday before, (whereas the diet appointed by the fynod was excellent weather), fo that it could fcarce'be thought that either purfuers or ofiftants would come; and on the Wednefday's night, finding none of them come, I began to conclude, that none of them would ap- pear; and fo that, by finch a train of providences, the Lord had foaled his defign ofmy not going to Etterick to be minifter there. Wherefore, on the morrow, before I wentaway to the prefbytery,
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