Mr. Battersby was a Calvinist who believed in Calvin, and his belief was grounded on earnest study of the writings of that great Reformer. Calvin was not his only commentator. He admired and was equally familiar with the writings of the Calvinistic Puritans. He never much cared to go beyond them, and he derived his characteristic excellencies from these scholars and theologians of a by-gone age. The result, in his case, was extremely interesting, for he came to share the spirit of his authorities, and, so far from making him narrow-minded, it made him tolerant and wise. Calvin himself, as a commentator on Scripture, was head and shoulders above his followers and Mr. Battersby, drawing from the fountain head, gained thereby an intelligent mastery of…