The unexpected sad tidings reached Gulgong on Monday afternoon that the incumbent of the Church of England here, the Rev. Thomas Hawkins Butcher, had died in Bathurst on the previous day. The report was so improbable that it was generally doubted; but the receipt of a telegram from the Bishop of Bathurst placed the matter beyond all doubt. The reverend gentleman left here for Bathurst about three weeks ago to consult with his lordship the bishop on matters concerning the church, intending to return in ten days; but shortly after his arrival in Bathurst news was received that he was unwell, and confined to his bed, and this illness was fated to be his last. The deceased clergyman only arrived from England in November last, having been ordained there by the Bishop of Sydney for the diocese of Bathurst. In December last he took spiritual charge of the church on this gold-field—a charge that we fear was too much for him. He discharged his duties to the sick, the dying, and the dead with unremitting attention, spending many hours daily in our bush cemetery performing the last rites for the dead. His devotion to the sick led, we think, to his mortal illness, as he was at all hours of the day and night called to visit the bedside of the sick and dying, and as many lived in habitations the most primitive, unhealthy, and not over clean, the nature of this work may be conceived. Though Mr. Butcher said he felt unwell when he left, none ever dreamt when saying good by to him that they were saying an eternal farewell.
We do earnestly hope that the death of this lamented clergyman will cause all denominations to aid cheerfully and liberally in supporting their clergyman in a manner befitting his station and his duty, and by enabling him to be comfortably housed to strengthen him physically and mentally for his arduous labours. The deceased was only twenty-seven years of age.—Gulgong Guardian.
