On the same occasion the immediate foundation of a Cathedral Choir school was announced. Among the compensations just referred to was the power reserved to the Archbishop to terminate the engagement of any member of the Choir at will. In the case of a monastic choir that could have been done only for reasons assigned and also for reasons commending themselves as sufficient to a monastic Superior. Nor in this connection need it be pointed out what an instrument of obstruction a "holy Rule" may become in the hands of a really determined Superior.

On the 7th of May, the Eve of the Feast of the Ascension, 1902, the Divine Office was sung for the first time by the new Cathedral choir, and now for eight years it has been sung day after day without the omission of a single sentence, and in a way which in all essentials may compare with that of any Basilica in Rome. The Cardinal's scheme has been amply realised, and in the manner he desired. There is now a College of eighteen Chaplains, by whom the complete Liturgy is celebrated in the Choir of the Cathedral every day in the year.

Westminster Cathedral, in every sense of the phrase, was built for eternity. Its future is part of the history of London; but it is not too soon to say that the wish which was nearest to the Cardinal's heart-a Live Cathedral-has already been fulfilled, and beyond his dreams, since his death. Every Sunday morning the great spaces of the Cathedral are filled with people at service after service. To have added to the architectural glories of the Empire was an incidental good; but, as Cardinal Vaughan would have said, "It is the Mass that matters."

CHAPTER XI

CHARACTERISTICS

N trying to sum up the chief characteristics of such

a life as that of Cardinal Vaughan it is impossible not to feel the essential limitations of all biography. Whatever words are used there is much that is vital to the man which, after all, must be left unexpressed. How, for instance, shall I convey to strangers any adequate idea of the constant and fatherly care with which, not only during the days of his splendid strength in Salford, but also in the failing years at Westminster, he watched over and cared for his missioners from Mill Hill? They were scattered through the wildest lands in the world-in Africa and Asia and the Isles of the Pacific. And whereever they went Herbert Vaughan's thoughts went with them. The hope of winning souls to God among the crowds of the Heathen was always close to him; it lived with him; it was his first love, and it was the last. However busy and tired and harassed he was, and amid whatever difficulties and perplexities, the thought of the work of which St. Joseph's College, Mill Hill, was the centre came back to him and always as a source of refreshment and gladness. There are heaps of letters that might be printed-but how few would read them! They are full of geographical details, of advice as to the financial

support of the missions, of inquiries as to the best place for locating stations or centres, and of suggestions as to the best way of dealing with this or that influential person-manager of a Chartered Company or important Savage. Other letters are full of inquiries and suggestions as to the possibility of training a native clergy, of the treatment of converts and of exhortations as to health, and insistence on a knowledge of medicine for all his missioners.

Spiritual advice is comparatively rare in these letters to his missioners. Perhaps he felt he was addressing men already in the fighting-line. One letter in this respect is an exception. It was addressed to a young priest, now dead, when he was about to leave Mill Hill for the Foreign Missions:

:

"MY DEAR FATHER,-Here are some memoranda : Look upon your voyage across the Ocean as an image of your passage through life. There will be nothing but a thin plank between you and Eternity. At any time a tempest or accident might bring your voyage to a sudden termination—such is life. But you are in the hands of a most loving Father who has numbered even the hairs of your head. How much more has He at heart the welfare and happiness of the soul which He created in His own image because He desired it to live with Him in Eternity! Make every day a preparation for death as though each day were to be your last. Death will not come a moment earlier than the time fixed by God because you prepare most carefully to meet it. Do not fear, therefore, to look at death and to become familiar with it. You are in the hands of a heavenly Father. Let your life, whether on board the ship or on the land,

be the life of one who will soon have to account for every thought, word, and deed. Every morning place yourself under the special protection of the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, and often renew the offering of yourself during the day. Ejaculatory prayer must become habitual. You will need to practise much patience-patience with others, patience with yourself, patience with God. Silence and an offering of trials to God is the true way to practise patience. Be much on your guard against temptations of the flesh. You are going to a land where such temptations will be numerous, and where falls may be easy. Grace alone can save you-no one, not even your own desires, can save you-only God's holy grace can do this for and in you. Your Father will not abandon you if you never abandon your Blessed Mother. Be very careful in keeping a guard over your eyes-death enters through those windows. If there be modesty in the eyes there will be modesty in the heart. Familiarity must be avoided, and a certain sacerdotal and apostolic reserve must be practised. If you would surround your heart with a wall of protection against the most insidious enemies to your soul, beg of Our Lady to protect your purity and say three 'Hail Marys' daily to her for this object. Never believe yourself to be strong or safe against such a temptation; the moment this kind of pride asserts itself take it as a warning that you may be near a fall, unless you become humble and fly from danger. Fix all your affections on our Father and our Mother in Heaven, and your affections will then become sanctified and perfect. May God bless you, my dear Father, and may He accept your generous offer of yourself to His service. May He grant you the reward of an Apostle and may your noble and

generous aspirations grow never less than they are now!

"Your devoted Father in Jesus Christ,

"HERBERT, Bishop of Salford,

Of a later period, August 14th, 1896, is the following

"MY DEAR CHILDREN,-On this Feast of the great Apostle the glad news comes to me of the departure for the Foreign Missions of three young sisters from Nazareth House. I assure you that this is a most joyful announcement. Whenever I hear of souls devoted to Our Lord's service and love giving up home and country to spend themselves in distant lands that lie in darkness, I feel as though God had given me a special consolation and an inward joy. I shall not be able to see you and bless you ere you go, but I bless you with my whole heart now and I send you the message, 'God speed you.' I shall say Mass for the three of you on Saturday next; not, indeed, that you may be, like St. John, beheaded on that day, but that you may be, like him, a bright and shining light and lamps hung in a dark place, giving light and joy to all within your influence. In the oil that is there to burn pour out all your self-love; the more completely that is burnt up, the brighter and purer will be the light. And now may God bless you all. May Mary and Joseph keep you always closely attached to Him, who is their Son, as well as the Son of God."

In another connection, but also a very "human document" illustrating the habitual attitude of the writer towards the world, is this letter to a near kinsman who had suffered a sudden reverse of fortune: "I have just received your letter telling me of the ruin you