Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 23.djvu/390

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Guthrie
382
Guthrie

its Sins and Sorrows.' He took his full share in the prolonged fight which resulted in the passing in 1853 of the 'Forbes Mackenzie Act' (a measure resisted at every step by the whole liquor interest), which gave to Scotland Sunday closing, and shortened the hours of sale on week-days. He advocated total abstinence on the grounds of Christian expediency, as a necessary measure for Great Britain at the present day. He did not hold the absolute and universal necessity of total abstinence, and he often deplored the apparent impossibility of reconciling the northern nations of Europe to the use of unadulterated wine. Mr. Gladstone, when introducing his Light Wines Bill in 1860, said, with reference to the benefits likely to come from their consumption in this country: 'I have found testimony which is entitled to great weight, coming from a man pledged by his sacred profession, eminent for his eloquence, distinguished and beloved for his virtues—Dr. Guthrie.' His writings and speeches on the temperance question were familiar to all denominations of Christians. In the Roman catholic manual entitled 'Catholic Belief,' under the heading 'Five good Reasons for Total Abstinence,' four of the reasons given are ascribed to Guthrie.

Guthrie was a voluminous writer. His 'Pleas for Ragged Schools' created so much interest that at the entreaty of the publishers he consented to the publication of his first volume of sermons, 'The Gospel in Ezekiel,' in 1855. That volume has reached a circulation of over fifty thousand, and later volumes from his pen have been scarcely less successful. He was the first editor of the 'Sunday Magazine' from 1864 till his death, and contributed many articles to 'Good Words,' at the request of his friend, Dr. Norman Macleod, its editor. His various avocations brought him into close connection with many men of eminence. Thackeray visited him at Edinburgh, and he showed him over his ragged schools. Ruskin sent him in 1853 his 'Stones of Venice,' accompanied by a letter containing the sentence, 'You must be accustomed to people getting very seriously and truly attached to you at first sight.'

Although Guthrie retired from the active work of the ministry in 1864, he remained in public life almost to the close. He also continued to enjoy his two great sources of health and recreation, angling in the highlands of Scotland and foreign travel, and was a constant supporter of the missions of the Waldensian church in Italy. He died at St. Leonards on 24 Feb. 1873. His funeral at Edinburgh was made the occasion of a great public demonstration. Many eulogies were pronounced over his grave, but none so touching as the ragged school girl's, who was overheard to say, 'He was all the father I ever knew.' In 1849 he received the degree of doctor in divinity from the university of Edinburgh; in 1862 he was made moderator of the free church general assembly; in 1865 a sum of 5,000l. was publicly presented to him, and in 1869 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

All Guthrie's works have been republished in the United States, where their circulation has been almost, if not quite, as large as in Great Britain, and some of them have been translated into French and Dutch. His principal works were: 1. ‘Pleas for Ragged Schools,’ 1847-9. 2. ‘Plea on behalf of Drunkards and against Drunkenness,’ 1851. 3. ‘Gospel in Ezekiel,’ 1856. 4. ‘The City, its Sins and Sorrows,’ 1857. 5. ‘Christ and the Inheritance of the Saints,’ 1858. 6. ‘Speaking to the Heart,’ 1862. 7. ‘The Way to Life,’ 1862. 8. ‘Man and the Gospel,’ 1865. 9. ‘The Angels' Song,’ 1865. 10. ‘The Parables,’ 1866. 11. ‘Our Father's Business,’ 1867. 12. ‘Out of Harness,’ 1867. 13. ‘Early Piety,’ 1868. 14. ‘Studies of Character from the Old Testament,’ 1868-70. 15. ‘Sundays Abroad,’ 1871.

[Autobiog. and Memoir of Thomas Guthrie, D.D. by his sons, David Kelly and Charles John Guthrie, 1874.]

C. J. G.

GUTHRIE, WILLIAM (1620–1665), Scottish presbyterian divine, was born in 1620 at Pitforthy, Forfarshire, of which his father was laird, his mother being of the house of Easter Ogle, parish of Tannadice, Forfarshire. William was the eldest of eight children; his three brothers were in the ministry; Robert died soon after license; Alexander (d. 1661) was minister of Strickathrow, Forfarshire; John, the youngest (d. 1669), minister of Tarbolton, Ayrshire, was ejected at the Restoration. William was educated at St. Andrews under his cousin James Guthrie [q. v.] Having graduated M.A. on 5 June 1638, he studied divinity under Samuel Rutherford. Before entering the ministry he assigned the estate of Pitforthy to one of his brothers. He was licensed by St. Andrews presbytery in August 1642, and became tutor to James, lord Mauchline, eldest son of John Campbell, first earl of Loudoun [q. v.], then lord high chancellor of Scotland. A sermon at Galston, Ayrshire, gained him a unanimous call to Fenwick (or New Kilmarnock), Ayrshire. James, eighth lord Boyd of Kilmarnock, patron of the parish, a strong loyalist, opposed the choice, but Guthrie was ordained at Fen-