and others have to suffer in the process. To separate the Kingship from the Priesthood in our Lord's Person cannot be permissible. He did not say "All the power is given to Me in the Church," but all power in heaven and in earth." There are therefore three positions between which men must choose (1) Ultramontanism, which affirms that. Our Lord governs the State through the Church, (2) Erastianism which says He governs the Church through the State, (3) Toryism | which recognizes this rule through both as co-ordinate authorities. For the position of the High Church Radicals there is absolutely no room at all, and we may therefore confidently look to see them gradually and successively sliding into that one of these three directions which their several proclivities may determine.

The sum, then, of the whole matter is this. There are but two consistent principles in politics, Toryism and Democracy. (Conservatism and Whiggism are cross-breeds, and like all cross-breeds are barren). The difference between them is that while Democrats consider human government to be an invention of man for his own purposes and interests, Tories believe it to have been sent from heaven for the purpose of bringing man in all his different relationships under subjection to the government of God. There can be no question but that upon these principles of Toryism the English Constitution was founded, and that to them we owe the real greatness to which our country has attained, and the true liberty (as distinguished from licence) enjoyed by her people. Our opponents will hardly assert that the greatness of England was built upon their principles. They do not profess to walk in the old paths. They are men of progress, and are putting away such childish notions as Divine Government. But the old ways have never been shown not to be God's ways; the old principles have never been shown to be erroneous, nor has much been done even in the way of attempting it seriously. Such a dictum as the oft-quoted one of Lord Macaulay (applied against Divine Rule in the State) that the notion of an essentially Christian Constitution is as absurd as assentially Christian cookery can hardly be deemed serious. If it is to be so regarded it is both beyond the point, and false in fact. Beyond the point, because the ordinance of civil rule is older than Christianity, and false in fact, because a civil organization based upon the rule of Christ over mankind would be essentially Christian, and not only is possible, but has been realized more or less in all Christian lands. To compare such a principle of government with the theory of cookery is, so far as it is not simply ridiculous, wantonly profane. The Sovereign who claimed to rule by the grace of God, engaged also both virtually and actually to rule for Him, and that was a very intelligible and a thoroughly religious and Christian principle. It gave expression to the Christian duty of recognizing Him in every member of His Body, and doing every action as unto and for Him. It has been superseded in these days not by men's superior knowledge, but by their ignorance and self-sufficiency, and by the sordid self-interest of contending parties. Already the desire of gain is the great moving power of our national legislation. Our theory of politics could hardly be more godless if we boldly maintained that there is no God in the Universe-and need not be in any important respect different from what it is now. In the future there threatens in the place of righteous rule a mortal conflict of opposing interests and passions, which if not arrested, will infallibly destroy the very fabric of society in this heretofore Christian land. On an earnest reassertion and effective revival of the Tory principles of Government depends, therefore, the future well-being of this country.

We have had sent us a box of the "Waverley" pens. For rapid, and at the same time, clear writing, they surpass any kind we have hitherto used.

CONVOCATION.

CONVOCATION has, we may almost say, for the first time since its revival, already accomplished a considerable amount of substantial business in this its short preliminary Session. We are not insensible to the advantages which may ensue from discussions on the amendment of the Burial Service, on the propriety of compiling a form of Harvest Thanksgiving, and even on the terms of the Subscription by the Clergy to the Articles of Religion, and the Formularies of the Prayer Book; but it cannot be denied that a very large proportion of the proceedings of this Assembly have hitherto consisted in mere talk, and in debates on abstract propositions, which led to little or no result. Even in the famous general censure which was passed on Essays and Reviews there was an omission to particularise any passages from that of Dr. Temple, and that of Mr. Pattison, which might justify the censure-an omission which gave occasion to the enemy to blaspheme, and greatly impaired the effect of the sentence.

Now, however, things have taken a different and more practical turn. The proposed Revision of the Lectionary, of course occupied a considerable amount of attention. It is to be taken into consideration as soon as the third report of the Ritual Commissioners shall have been officially communicated; and there is reason to hope that when the new order of Lessons shall have gone through the ordeal of a thorough examination by Committees of both Houses, it will be so improved, purged, and supplemented as to be freed from those defects, both of omission and addition, which still encumber it, and to which we invited the notice of our readers a week or two since. We may here add that we have good authority for stating that the subject which is now before the Commissioners is that of the shortening, omitting, re-arranging, and supplementing the various Divine Offices, or portions of the same, and that a report on this matter may ere long be expected from them.

Another most important step, and in the right direction, too, has been taken by the Upper House in appointing a Committee, who, acting in conjunction with a Committee of the Upper House of the Province of York, are to take into consideration the propriety of a revision by competent persons of the authorised version of the Old and New Testaments. The Bishop of Oxford, in his address, minimised the evil which all know exists; but the careful student of the original versions is but too often tempted to exclaim "quousque tandem,” how much longer are we to be forced to propound as the Word of God, translations of Holy Writ which are but too plainly, false, perverted or imperfect renderings of the originals? How constantly is it the case, that the preacher when about to explain his text, is compelled to begin by declaring that the words which he has read out from the pulpit are not really Scripture but a misinterpretation of it; a course absolutely necessary, but yet tending to bring the integrity of the Bible itself into question among the uninstructed. We shall be surprised, however, if the proposed revision do not encounter a strong opposition from the sectaries and the Low Churchmen. If fairly and completely carried out, it will deprive them of the greater part of their stock in trade. Most of their favourite texts will be totally demolished, or found to support an opposite or different doctrine. The Solifidian, the Calvinist, the Baptist, those who exalt preaching above worship and sacraments, private judgment above the Church, would make faith mean nothing but a sentimental trust in God, as apart from doctrinal belief, who make so much of "imputed righteousness," who say that men are made Christians by being taught, not by being the authorised version without regarding the spirit and the baptised, and who pay a superstitious reverence to the letter of interpretation which the Church has put upon the original,

peal forth its loud strains, how all the kneeling Religious suddenly threw back their sombre cowls and spread a large white veil over their heads-a strange and startling transformation-the brilliantly lighted altar shone forth brightly in the fading twilight, the Béguines sang in shrill and unpleasing notes, which, however, added to the strangeness of the scene, and the pealing organ had a wondrous and magical effect, while every now and then some one of them would start up in prayer, extend her arms in the form of a cross, still kneeling motionless and spectre like. At the close of the Service, all resuming their black veils, one by one silently left the Church. "The Béguinage," says the author of this interesting book, "is not a Convent; it only professes to be a 'Congregation Seculière,' though under religious rule and guidance. Nevertheless, it is a village of free inhabitants, for none are bound to remain within the Society, and intercourse with friends and relatives of either sex is in no way prohibited. It is a town within a town; it stands within its own mural enclosure, and is shut in at night by its own gates, which stand open all day. Its strikingly neat and dapper little dwellings are surrounded each by its own fenced flower garden, and in the midst is their bright patch of greensward, planted round with pollard maples, trimmed box, or espaliered limes. The whole is characterized by the most exquisite neatness and shining cleanliness; the stranger need not be told it is the habitation of women, but it is that of women voluntarily retreating, not from communication with the world, but from its noise and turmoil, frivolity and emptiness, that they may pass their time in rational occupation and good-works."

66

There are different opinions as to the founder of the Beguines and the date of their origin. Some say they were founded by Sainte Beghe, Duchess of Brabant in 690, others by Lambert de Begue in 1180. At one time there were 5000 Béguines scattered over Flanders in 75 Beguinages; in 1856 they had dwindled down to about 1,600. At first the Pope disapproved of and even discountenanced them, but once under the protection and approval of the Holy See the Order proceeded in unobtrusive tranquillity, living through all political and social changes, and we find it in our own day, if unaltered in all its practices and habits, also surviving in all its vigour to transmit to us something of the history of our predecessors long passed away. In it we see an archæological relic, offering to our contemplation with photographic fidelity the tone of mind, habits of life, domestic usages, language, and even dress of those who preceded us by above a thousand years in the world's history,-for nothing has changed there! We may not inaptly regard the Béguinage as the Pompeii of Flanders, only so much the more curious and suggestive in that it is a living, breathing Pompeii, presenting to our view samples of the life of bygone generations; intelligent beings alive in a city of the living, not mute and mutilated relics in a city of the dead. It affords to women of all ranks who are either unwilling or unable to marry, a social status and a defined position, together with protection, occupation, congenial society, opportunities of usefulness and benevolence, and when needed, means of existence, combined with an amount of liberty and independence unknown in any other sequestered Order; besides which, should the members find they have mistaken their vocation, they know their vows are terminable at the end of a year, and they are under no obligation to do violence to their inclinations.'

"That the Béguinage supplies a want more or less felt in all countries is certain. Among Protestants a retreat of this description would be invaluable, while to Catholics it offers a safe and salutary middle course, and might spare many a hapless female celibate from the desperate alternative of rushing into the irrevocable extremity of Convent life, in cases where she finds it distasteful or impossible to live in the world." A Béguine's vows, which relate only to obedience and chastity-for poverty is not an obligation of

The

So respected have the Beguines been, that during all the wars, revolutions, and turmoils that have visited the Flemish towns, they have never been molested or invaded. They have not, however, been without their vicissitudes, and their annals record more than one hair-breadth escape in time of war and rebellion. During the Calvinist and iconoclastic rule in the 16th century, they alone of all religious houses escaped. Strange to say, they owed their immunity to the Butchers of Ghent. In all time of public calamity they have been the guardian angels of the sufferers-no matter to what party they might belong. During the wars of the French Empire, the services they rendered were invaluable. The sick and wounded men became their especial care, and all nationalities were forgotten in the exercise of their pious functions. In these wellremembered times of grief and trouble the practice of Christian charity, in the widest acceptation of the term, had become the sole occupation of these devoted women. community, too, has always been distinguished by its liberality, thus in 1819 and 1821, when the Government and City of Ghent wished to establish industrial workshops and manufactories, the Beguines contributed 8,000 francs, as well as a monthly subsidy of 125 florins, which they continued for eighteen months. In 1830 and 1831, when thousands of citizens were thrown out of work, the generosity of the Beguines was the admiration of the country. In 1809 and 1810, when marsh fever and typhus were mercilessly decimating the regiments quartered on the coasts, the hospitals were literally overflowing, the fever was so deadly that it required devotedness and abnegation of a rare order to undertake the nursing of the sick, for it was encountering almost certain death. The majority of the military attendants on the sick deserted their posts with the utmost cowardice, and the unfortunate soldiers were sacrificed without mercy. this critical moment the Beguines came forward. the space of six months nearly 100 of them rendered to the sick the most tender services, and when the epidemic ceased to rage, it was found that one-fourth of their number had sunk under their generous self-devotion. During the Waterloo campaign the Beguinages entirely despoiled themselves to relieve the needs of their suffering fellow-creatures. Money, linen, medicine, bedding, personal service-nothing was withheld from them. In 1832 Ghent was visited by that scourge the cholera, when their traditional benevolence was again called forth, and when the disease had abated, the Government, in recognition of the services of the Beguines, presented each with a gold medal.

At

For

The stranger is surprised to learn the variety of occupation daily carried on within the silent walls of the Beggynhof. All their garments and household linen, their curtains, blinds, and bed hangings are of their own make; besides these, articles of the same description are made in large quantities for the poor,-vestments, draperies, and altar furniture, also occupy their time and care. A great deal of pillow lace, known as Valenciennes, and a great deal of "old point are made by the nimble fingers of the Beguines. Another industry practised by them is confectionary, to which they add distilling and dispensing medicine, lotions, unguents, &c. The author gives an interesting and graphic account of his visit to the great Beguinage at Ghent and of his interview with the

Grande Dame, a fine old lady of nearly a hundred, whose funeral he subsequently attended. She had passed 70 years in the Beguinage, and knew little or nothing of what was going on in the outer world. The book concludes with an interesting memoir of Teresa Verhaeghe, a sort of Beguine Saint of great reputation in all the Beguinages. We believe this is the only work in the English language on Beguinages, it is well written, and most worthy of perusal.

We have to thank Messrs. Longmans for Thoughts on the Holy Communion, being six Sermons by the Rev. W. W. English, with a catena of Eucharistic authorities from the first to the seventeenth century. They are said to be suited for Lent, but in reality such short, plain, practical Sermons, giving definite teaching of Christian doctrine in few words, so that it may be plainly understood by every one-are most valuable at all seasons, and we cordially commend them to our readers.

THE EASTERN CHURCH AND NONCONFORMITY.

The Bishop of ELY presented a petition from a number of persons pressing earnestly upon Convocation the desirability of providing special Offices of the Church for Sundays, adapted to the necessities of the times, and advocating extempore prayer on certain occasions. He was doubtful whether that practice could be extended with safety, and he should, therefore, hesitate about giving official sanction to it. The petitioners expressed their opinion that such a course as that they recommended would tend to the reconciliation of Nonconformists to the Church, while it would also tend to promote union with the Greek Church. Those were subjects of great importance, and it was somewhat difficult to decide how to deal with them. They had amongst them at present the Archbishop of Syra, who had been present at two very interesting ceremonies, the Consecration of the Bishops of Oxford and Nottingham, and that gave the subject of union with the Greek Church a new character. The question of union with the Greek Church was, however, a very different thing from the reconciliation of Nonconformists. The Eastern Church was the ancient Church of those districts in which it was planted, and the divisions which had taken place between the Eastern and Western Churches could scarcely be said to be the fault of the Church of England. Both himself and the Bishop of Lincoln had received the Archbishop of Syra in their own houses, and had heard from him his opinion that, with the exception of his own, the Church of England was the soundest Church in Christendom, and the Archbishop stantinople. But it appeared that there were difficulties in the way of union with the Greek Church which it would take a long time to get over, especially the difficulty arising out of the Filioque and the question of baptism by immersion. With regard to the reconciliation of Nonconconformists, he thought it could not be expected that the Church should alter her Services to meet such a need, as the Nonconformists were the separatists.

had added that he would communicate that fact to the Patriarch of Con

The Bishop of GLOUCESTER said this was a very wide field for discussion, which he thought could not profitably be continued, and he, therefore, respectfully suggested that it should be deferred. The petition was then formally received.

EPISCOPAL APPOINTMENTS.

The Bishop of LINCOLN said he wished to move the following resolution :

"That a joint Committee of both Houses of Convocation be appointed to examine and report upon the laws of the Ancient Church Universal, and also the laws of the Church of England, concerning the election, confirmation, and consecration of Bishops; and that the Committee be instructed to offer such remarks and recommendations thereupon, as it may deem requisite."

He said he did not profess to disguise from their Lordships that the present motion had arisen out of recent events which had startled the Church of England, and which had caused much embarrassment. They

were at the present time in a state of great perplexity in reference to the present mode of action in reference to Episcopal appointments. The Right Reverend Prelate entered at great length into details connected with the early history, as given by Ecclesiastical writers, of Election, Confirmation, and Consecration of Bishops in the ancient Church and the Reformation. He said he was very anxious that his remarks should not apply to the Bishop of Exeter-(who, it may be remarked, was sitting by his side)-for whom he expressed an anxious hope that he might well perform his duties in the Diocese over which he had been appointed to preside.

The Bishop of GLOUCESTER and BRISTOL said he had little to add to

the speech which had been delivered by the Bishop of Lincoln; and he in reference to their Right Rev. brother the Bishop of Exeter. He (the especially agreed with the considerate words with which he had closed Bishop of Gloucester) felt sure that in taking the course he did, he had no desire to inflict pain upon any one, and he did not wish to impart anything of a personal character to the present discussion, but with regard to these very serious words, he thought they ought to be quite clear. In the first place, was the word "protest" the right word to use? He did not at all understand that his expression of not-consent was a protest at all.

The Bishop of LONDON (interposing)-I may as well state that you and the Bishop of Lichfield did not use the word "protest." The Bishops of Lincoln and Hereford did use the word.

The Bishop of GLOUCESTER and BRISTOL, in thanking the President for the remark, said he did not wish his expression of not-consent to be put in the form of a protest at all, because he was not quite clear that he was in a position to make a protest. What he considered was this, that if a man was in danger of being involved in anything he did not wish to be involved in, he was entitled distinctly to say so, lest silence should be judged to be consent. He thought, therefore, he had a right gravely to demur to the words which had been applied to the document which had emanated from himself and the Bishop of Lichfield. Those who had protested would, no doubt, be able to justify themselves. All he now wished to show was the care and consideration that had throughout been evinced by his brother of Lichfield and himself in what was probably to both of them the most painful duty of a life. He wished carefully to avoid making any comment upon his Right Rev. brother the Bishop of Exeter, but it must be said plainly that certain words might have been spoken those few words had been spoken no expressions of not-consent to the by him before his Consecration, which were anxiously waited for, and if Consecration would have been sent in. He was very anxious to clear

himself and those who acted with him from the accusations which had been made by the Bishop of Ely.

character in connection with this matter should cease. Upon the general The Bishop of LLANDAFF was of opinion that everything of a personal question of the Committee he thought there could be no objection to an inquiry, and therefore he should vote for the appointment of the

Committee.

The Bishop of ELY replied generally to the statements made in opposition to his published letter to the Bishop of London. He believed the The changes in our Bishops would always act on their consciences. Cathedrals of late had not been happy ones, yet he believed the Deans and Canons were men of high tone of character, and who might not act as all Would have them, but he believed they acted conscientiously, whether they had to elect a Bishop or any one else. The letter referred to had not been written with any unkindly intention, but simply to defend the consecrating Bishops, who had been severely attacked, and to show that they had acted conscientiously, and at the same time legally.

The Bishop of ROCHESTER, as one who had objected to the ConsecraDanbury Palace every Bishop was by general consent left free to pursue tion of the Bishop of Exeter, said that at a meeting which was held at his own course. On leaving, the Bishop of Ely said it was to be distinctly understood that any Bishop who did not send in a remonstrance secration of Dr. Temple. or some expression of feeling would be understood to consent to the con

The Bishop of ELY said he did not remember that circumstance. The Bishop of ROCHESTER said that, if he recollected rightly, the Bishop of Lincoln's protest was originally in the form of a memorial to the Archbishop of Canterbury, but as his Grace was ill, the Bishop of London strongly advised that it should not be presented. The Bishop of LONDON said that was so.

The Bishop of LICHFIELD entirely approved of the motion, because it seemed a very strange thing that in England, after so many years, they were still in an utter state of darkness in reference to Ecclesiastical discipline.

The Bishop of HEREFORD said he was compelled to signify his dissent from the Consecration, and to record his protest against it, and he justified the course he had taken.

The Bishop of ST. DAVID'S could not help feeling some repugnance to the motion, because he could not help having some apprehension as to the consequences to which it might lead.

The Bishop of LONDON then said he should make no objection to the motion, but he doubted whether it would have the result its mover thought. He had been called Judas, Pontius Pilate, Macbeth, and he and the Bishop of St. David's had been likened to Ananias and Sapphira, but which of them was Ananias and which Sapphira had not been

specified. He would only say that, if he had refused to consecrate the Bishop of Exeter under the Archbishop of Canterbury's commission he should have committed the Archbishop to an act of disobedience, and

have committed the Church and State to a contest which must have been fraught with most disastrous results.

The Bishop of WINCHESTER explained how he felt unable to take part in the ceremony of Consecration.

The PRESIDENT put the resolution, which was carried; and after transacting some routine business, the House adjourned.

LOWER HOUSE.-WEDNESDAY

The PROLOCUTOR took the chair.

THE LECTIONARY.

The Archdeacon of SALOP gave notice that he would move at the earliest moment the following resolution :

"That this House will thankfully acknowledge the great care shown in the revision of the Lectionary, put forth by the Royal Commissioners, and, agreeing that some opportunity should be allowed the Minister, under sanction of the Bishops, in the selection of Lessons to be occasionally read in the Service, and wishing in some places that authorised alterations of the English text could be printed in the margin of our Bibles, to be used at the discretion of the reader, shrinks from sweeping changes in the ancient Lessons endeared by old associations, and connected for so long a period with the worship and literature of our Church."

The PROLOCUTOR said the House would be pleased to learn that there was reason for believing that this subject of the Lectionary would be brought before Convocation.

The Rev. H. A. WOODGATE said he had prepared a gravamen on the subject, and if the matter should come before the House he would not now present it.

Dr. FRASER said that when the Report of the Commissioners came before the House he should move :

"That no change or alteration whatever be made in the Book of Common Prayer, but that the proposed Lectionary be appended to it, to be used by the leave of the Ordinary at the discretion of each Minister." DEACONS' ORDERS.

The Archdeacon of SALOP moved the following resolution:"That a dutiful request be submitted to their Lordships asking for such measures as may greatly increase the facility of admission of persons to Deacons' Orders, and at the same time insure that only those may be admitted to the higher order of Ministry in the Church who are judged to be specially competent for the office."

He said this was a subject upon which he felt very strongly, and he hoped he might find a seconder for his motion, although he had asked no one to do so. The whole system of admitting Deacons to Priests' Orders was wrong, and the examination was most unsatisfactory. Neither could he see why, after a year's probation, every Deacon should be a Priest, any more than every Priest should become a Bishop. It might be said that he wanted a two years' probation or more for the candidate, but what he asked for was not that, but a real, thorough, searching examination presided over by the Dean and Canons. If it were not so easy to get to the Priesthood, we should be far better served. He should like to see a reduction of Priests, so that there should be only one Priest to every altar. He felt that Curates in Priests' Orders were often an inducement for the head of the parish to neglect his duties. As soon as they obtained a Curate in Priests' Orders, in many cases they started off to Rome or elsewhere for a holiday, much to the detriment of parish

work.

Canon SELWYN seconded the motion.

After a long discussion the resolution was carried as follows:That a dutiful request be submitted to their Lordships the Bishops, asking for such measures as may greatly increase the facility of admission of persons to Deacons' Orders, and at the same time insure that only those may be admitted to the higher Order of Ministry in the Church who are judged to be specially competent for the office."

BISHOP TEMPLE AND ESSAYS AND REVIEWS."

The Archdeacon of EXETER said :-"I am authorised by friends of the Bishop of Exeter to make known, whether in Convocation or elsewhere, that his essay in the volume entitled Essays and Reviews will not hereafter appear in any future editions of that volume, should such be published." He (the Archdeacon) could not make a speech, nor should he attempt to do so; but he desired to express the hope that this statement would be received in a conciliatory spirit, and for his part he received it with the deepest thankfulness.

The Archdeacon of TAUNTON said that this, taken with the fact of what he had just heard, of the Upper House having agreed to the appointment of a committee on the election of Bishops, led him to desire, on his part, to cease from all opposition to the Bishop of Exeter. The Dean of Norwich, who had signed the gravamen, had put himself into his (the speaker's) hands to do what to him seemed fit in the matter, and he would ask that the gravamen should be withdrawn.

The Rev. Dr. JEBB said, as the seconder of the gravamen, he rejoiced to hear what had been said with regard to the position of the Bishop, but he held that the statement came too late. (No, no.) This should have been done before, and he could not consent to the withdrawal of the gravamen.

PROPOSED REVISION OF THE AUTHORIZED VERSION OF THE SCRIPTURES.

The Bishop of WINCHESTER rose to move a resolution, which was eventually amended and passed in the following form:

"That a Committee of both Houses be appointed, with power to confer with any Committee that may be appointed by a Convocation of the Northern Province, to report upon the desirableness of a revision of the authorised version of the Old and New Testament, whether by marginal notes or otherwise, in all those passages where plain and clear errors, whether in the Hebrew or Greek text, originally adopted by the translators, or in the translations made from the same, shall on due investigation be found to exist."

LOWER HOUSE.-THURSDAY.

The House re-assembled at eleven o'clock, the Prolocutor presiding. The Archdeacon of ELY presented a petition pressing earnestly upon the consideration of Convocation the importance of speedily providing the Church with some additional offices for Sunday, week-day, and occasional purposes, which offices were not wholly supplied by the Prayers already existing in the Book of Common Prayer.

THE IRISH CHURCH.

Canon SELWYN brought up the following gravamen :—“ "Whereas some members of Her Majesty's Privy Council advised the Crown in the last Session of Parliament to give assent to enactments proposed by themselves to the following effect:-That the Church of Ireland shall cease to be established by law; That all the property belonging to any office in the said Church shall be vested in Commissioners; That every Ecclesiastical corporation in Ireland shall be dissolved; which assent to such enactments we have strong reason for believing to be contrary to the statutes 1 William and Mary, c. 6; 6 Anne, c. 11; and therefore an invalid act, such as could not be maintained in a court of law: We, the undersigned members of the Lower House of Convocation in the Province of Canterbury, humbly pray his Grace, the President, with their Lordships, the Bishops of the Upper House, to use their best endeavours in Parliament to redress this wrong."

The remainder of the sitting was occupied on a long discussion upon Education.

UPPER HOUSE.-FRIDAY.

Their Lordships met this morning at eleven o'clock, the Bishop of London presiding.

ESSAYS AND REVIEWS.

The Bishop of EXETER said :My Lords, I wished very much to make a personal statement yesterday, which I thought due both to myself and to your Lordships, with reference to an announcement that appeared in the papers yesterday morning of an intention of my own. I was very anxious to make the statement as soon as possible, because the announcement to which I allude was capable of two very serious misconstructions, which I thought it was necessary that I should as soon as possible remove. The announcement that was made was that I did not intend on any future occasion to republish the essay which I once wrote in the "Essays and Reviews," and from the way in which it was announced it was possible that it might be supposed that this announcement was intended to be made in Convocation and with reference to the action of Convocation; and it was also possible that it might be supposed to imply some sort of expression of opinion on my part with regard to the character of the volume; and on both these points I desire to speak quite plainly. I confess that 1 should very much have preferred making no personal statement at all. I should have preferred letting that wait till hereafter, because it is almost impossible to express precisely in words that which a man feels and thinks on such a matter as this. The fact is, that a little while ago I had occasion to tell an intimate friend, a layman, of whose opinions I think very highly, that I had come to this conclusion, that I would not republish my essay. My reason for telling him was that he represented to me that he thought that the republication of it in the changed circumstances of my having become the Bishop of Exeter would have very mischievous consequences; consequences which I did not intend, and should not like; and that these changed circumstances, in his judgment, made this a fitting occasion for such an action on my part as the withdrawal of that essay from public circulation. After some consideration I told him that I did not intend to publish it, and my reasons were, that I found that this essay, or rather I should say the volume in which this essay was contained, whether with good reason or without, was a cause of very serious distress and anxiety and perplexity to a great many very good people. This distress and anxiety, such as it was, I have no doubt at all was to a very large degree what I may call contentious; it was not because they had read the book, but because they saw the alarm and discomfort which others felt who had read it-I say a very large number. I am quite certa n that this was the case with a very large number, and I should think that it was the case with the majority of those who felt any agitation on the matter. As long as there was any legal right at stake it seemed to me the clearest of all possible duties that I should not sacrifice any such right whatever either directly or indirectly. I was appealed to to take some step, or to make some declaration, on the ground of charity to others, as well as almost threatened that if I did not do so there would be such opposition made as would keep me out of the office to which I was appointed. I did not think it right to give way on either ground;