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Upon the Name of that golly, faithful and zealous Minister and

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Martyr of JESUS CHRIST, Mr. RICHARD CAMERON,

Done by a true lover of his Memory, and Owner of the honourable caufe which he fealed with his Blood.

M OST noble Cameron of Renown,
A Fame of thee fhould ne'er go down;
Since Truth with Zeal thou didft purfue,
To Zion's King loyal and true.
E v'n when the Dragon fpew'd his Flood,
R efift thou didst unto the blood;

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Ran fwiftly in thy Chriftian Race,
In Faith and Patience to that Place,
Chrift did prepare to fuch as thee,
He knew would not his ftandard flee,
A Pattern of Valour and Zeal,
Rather to fuffer than to fail 1;

Didft fhew thy felf with might and Main,

Counting that drofs, others thought gain,
A faithful Witness 'gainst all thofe,
M en of all sorts did truth oppofe;
Ev'n thou with Mofes didft efteem,
Reproaches for the God of Heav'n
On him alone thou didst rely,
Not fparing for his cause to dy.
TORFOOT. November 28th, 1740.

W. W.

A Relation of fame remarkable Paffages in the Life of Mr. DONALD CARGIL.

HESE foregoing teftimonies every where fpeaking fo ho

Thourably of the Reverend Mr. Donald Cargil as a faith

ful Minifter of Jefus Chrift: A true and full relation of his life and more especially of his miniftry, would be very neceffary to right understanding of the state of their teftimony; but by reafon that there are not in the hands of the publisher, fuch well attefted narrations thereof, as might funifh them with an exact and full history thereof, let it suffice for prefent to set down the following accounts collected by that worthy and religious gentleman, fir Robert Hamilton of Prefton, who ufhers them in with this perfonal character of Mr. Cargil Efft, (faith he) As he was of a moft holy, ftrict, and tender compofed practice and converfation, fo he was affectionate, affable and tender hearted to all he judged had any thing of the image of God in them: Sober and temperate in his diet, faying cominonly, It was well won that was won off the flesh; generous liberal and most charitable to the poor, a great hater of covetousness, a frequent vifiter of the fick, much alone, loving to be retired, but when about his master's public work; laying hold of every opportunity to edifie; in converfe ftill dropping what might minifter grace to the hearers, his very countenance was edifying to beholders; often fighing with deep groans: Preaching in season, and out of feafon, upon all hazards, ever the fame in judgment and practice.

There were feveral things remarkable in the manner of his calling to the ministry; for after he had perfected his philofophy course, at the university of St Andrews, his father, a godly and religious gentleman preffed much upon him, to study divinity, in order to fit him for the miniftry; but he through his great tenderness of fpirit, conftantly refused, telling his father, That the work of the miniftry was too great a weight "for his weak fhoulders," and requesting him to command him to any other employment he pleased. But his father still urging, he refolved to feek the mind of the Lord therein, and for that send fet apart a day of private fafting, and after long and earnest wrestling with the Lord by prayer, the iii. chap. of Ezekiel's prophefy, and chiefly these words in the first verse,"Son of

man eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Ifrael," made a strong impreffion upon his mind, fo that he durft never after refufe his father's defire, to betake himself to that study, and dedicate himself wholly to that office. And having got a call to the Barony Parish of Glasgow, divine providence order

ed it fo. that the firft text upon which the Prefbytery ordered him to preach, was in thefe very words of the ii of Ezekiel, which he had got clearness from before; whence he was the more confirmed, that he had God's call to that parith. The parish had been long vacant, by reason that two ministers of the public refolution party, viz. Mr. George Young and Mr. Hugh Blair, had ftill oppofed the fettlement of fuch godly men as had been called by the people and had practiced fecretly with the council of Glasgow, not to fuffer any to be fettled there, that might be against the public refolutions: But in reference to Mr. Cargil's call, they were by God's good providence much bound up from their wonted oppofition. Mr. Cargil perceiving the lightnefs of the people, and their unconcerned nefs under the word, was much difcouraged thereat, and refolved to res turn home, and not to accept the call, and when urged by the godly minifters, not to do it, and his reafon asked, He answered

They are a rebellious people" the minifters folicited him much to ftay. but could not prevail. At laft when his horfe was drawn, and he juft about to take journey, being in Mr. James Durhams houfe, when he had faluted feveral of the Chriftian friends that came to fee him take horse; as he was bidding farewel to a certain godly' woman, the faid to him, "Sir you have promised to preach on Thursday, and have you appointed a meal to a poor ftarving people, and will ye go away and not give it? If you do, the curfe of God will "go with you;" this fo commoved him, that he durft not go saway as he intended, and fitting down, defired her and others to pray for him: So he remained, and was fettled in that parish, where he continued to exercife bis miniftry with great fuccefs, -to the unspeakable fatisfaction of his own parish, and of all the godly who heard and knew him, till after the introduction of Prelacy, he was first put from the exercife thereof in public and likewife chafed and purfued for exercising it privately, by the >bloody violence of perfecutors.

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For upon the 29 of May, which was then confecrate to king Charles in commemoration of his happy (unhappy) restoration, he had occafion to preach in his own Church, it falling u >pon the ordinary week-day, wherein he used to preach, he faw Jan unusual throng of people come to hear him, as thinking he had preached in compliance with that folemnity, upon his entering the pulpit he faid, "We are not come here to keep this day upon the account for which others keep it. We thought 4 once to have bleffed the day, wherein the king came home, again ; but now we think, we shall have reafon to curse it. "And if any of you come here in order to the folemnizing of this day, we defire you to remove." And he enlarged

upon the unlawfulness of folemnizing it, with feveral weighty arguments. This did extremely incenfe the malignant party a gainst him; fo that being hotly purfued and fearched for, he was forced to abfcond, remaining fometimes in private houses of his parish, fometimes lying without all night among broom near by the city, yet never omitting any proper occafion of private preaching, exercifing, catechizing, vifiting families, and other minifterial duties. And after a while he returned to his Church, and preached publicly and gave the communion, not without great fear among the people, left he fhould have been taken out of the pulpit by the perfecutors. At length when the Churches were all vacated of Prefbyterians by an act of council, commonly known by the name of the act of Glasgow: Middleton fent a band of foldiers to apprehend him, who coming to the Church found him not, he having provi dentially just stepped out of the one door a minute before they came in at the other, whereupon they took the keys of the church door with them and departed. Mean time the council paft an act of confinement, banidhing him to the north, but he did not regard it, and fo being at length apprehended at Edinburgh, was brought before the council and ftrictly examined, being fignally ftrengthened to bear faithful teftimony to his mafter's honour, and his perfecuted caufe and truths. But by the interpofitions of fome perfons of quality, his own and his wife's relations he was liberate. And he returned prefently to Glasgow, and there performed all the minifterial duties as when he was in his own Church, notwithstanding the diligence of perfecutors in searching for him.

During this time, partly the great grief he conceived for the ruin of the work of God in the land, partly the toils and labours of his calling and inconveniences of his accommodation, did fo break his voice, that he could not be heard by many people together, which was a fore exercife to him, and a dif couragement to come and preach in the fields. But one day, Mr. Blackater coming to preach near Glafgow, he effayed to preach with him, and ftanding on a chair (as his ordinary was) he lectured on Ifa. xliv. 3. "I will pour water on him that is "thirfty, and floods on the dry ground," etc. The people knowing that his voice was fore broken, were very much difcourged left they should not have heard, by reafon of the great confluence, but it pleased the Lord so to loose his tongue and restore his voice to that diftinctnefs and clearness that none could readily exceed him in that refpect ever after; and not only his voice, but his fpirit was fo enlarged, and fuch a door of utterance given him, that Mr. Blackater fucceeding him, faid to the people, "Ye that have such preaching as this, have no need to

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"invite ftrangers to preach to you. Make good ufe of your "mercy." After this he continued to preach within a very little of the city, a grear multitude still attending upon and profiting by his miniftry, being wonderfully preferved in the midft of dangers; the enemies feveral times fending out fome to watch him, and catch fomething from his mouth, whereof they might accufe him Particularly one day the Arch-bishop of Glasgow fent one of his domeftic fervants to take notice what he would fay concerning the Prelates, he knowing nothing thereof, was directed of the Lord to have these words in prayer, while he was bewailing the overthrow of the work of God, "What fhall "we fay of the Prelates, the good Lord make us quite of them; "for we will never have a day to do well, till once the Lord "remove that abominable party, that has deftroyed the vine"yard of the Lord :" Which was all that the spy had to return to his mafter with.

To relate all the furprizing deliveranccs that he met with, in efcaping very narrowly from his enemies, would take much time; take only a few inftances. In the month of October 1665. they made a public fearch for him in the city; he being informed of it, took his horse and rode out of the town, and at a narrow pafs of the way, he met a good number of mufheteers, and as he paffed by them, turning into another way upon the right hand, one of them afked him, Sir, what of the clock is it? He answered, It is fix. Another of them knowing his voice, fays to his fellows, There is the man we are seeking, which he hearing, put the fpurs to the horse and escaped. He moft ufually refided for the fpace of three years and upwards, in the houfe of one Margaret Craig, a godly and honeft woman lecturing evening and morning to fuch as came to hear him, where, though they fearched frequently for him, yet divine providence fo ordered it, that at all the times he was either cafually or purposely abfent, though they managed their fearches with much clofenefs; but the Lord was fo graciously kind to him, that he left him not without fome peculiar notices of approaching hazard; (our atheistical wits perhaps will call them enthufiafms; but the fecret of the Lord is with them that fear him) as for inftance, on a certain fabbath, when he was going to Woodfide to preach, as he was about to mount his horfe, the one foot being in the stirrup, he turned about to his man, and faid, I must not go yonder to day, and within a little a party of horfe and foot, came in queft of him, and not finding the mark they aimed at, fell upon the people apprehending and imprifoning many of them. Another remarkable escape was, at a fearch purposely made for taking him in the city; they came to his chamber, and found him not, for he was providentially

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