Buchan Author:Unknown Author Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR. John Burnett Pratt was born in the year 1798, at Slacks of Cairnbanno, in the parish of New Deer. Ur. Temple, in "The Thanage of Fermart... more »yn," says he was descended from the Pratts of Mill of Ardlogie, Fyvie; but all that is known of his genealogy to the present writer is that his father's name was William Pratt and his mother's Jean Gray, and that, after her husband's death, the latter went to live at Lethenty, in Fyvie. He received the rudiments of his education at the parish school of New Deer, and went through the University curriculum at King's College, Aberdeen, graduating M.A. in 1820. In the following year, he was ordained deacon of the Scottish Episcopal Church by Bishop William Skinner, Aberdeen, and was appointed to the small cure of Stuartfield, which, ten years later, was merged in the Episcopal congregation at Old Deer. After ministering for four years to an attached and increasing flock, Mr. Pratt was, in 1825, unanimously chosen as incumbent of St. James's Church, Cruden—to the deep regret of the congregation at Stuartfield, to whom he had greatly endeared himself. He remained at Cruden till his death in 1869—that is, for the long period of 44 years. It was mainly through his exertions that money was obtained for the building (in 1843) of the present Church of St. James's, Cruden; and he and Mrs. Pratt, by a joint disposition, left 300 for the enlargement of the chancel. OfMr. Pratt's diligent, arduous, and self-denying labours at Cruden, there is no need to speak here; suffice it to say that, while he enjoyed the regard of his own congregation in no ordinary degree, he commanded the esteem of all who knew him. A proof of the estimation in which his theological learning, literary accomplishments, and professional character were held, is affor...« less