The Henson Journals

[209]

Monday, June 8th, 1914.

The day was chilly and damp, according well with the melancholy mood in which I set out for Oxford on the saddest of errands – to attend the funeral of my dear & honoured friend, the Warden. I found the College filled with the Fellows, all showing signs of a genuine sorrow. The Sub–Warden, Simon, was doing his sad duty well: he gave up a Cabinet meeting to hasten to All Souls, as soon as the dreadful tidings of the Warden's death reached him. [Miss Anson had expressed a wish that Lang & I should take part in the service: and so I hurried out into the town, & bought a cassock, surplice, & scarf. Then I returned to the college, &] joined the Fellows in escorting the Coffin from the House to the Chapel, where Johnson read Evensong: Raleigh read S. John XIV. As a special lesson.

I had some talk with Raleigh about the vacant wardenship. The College has an extraordinarily difficult task to perform in finding a successor to Anson. His many–sided excellence makes him literally irreplaceable. Also I had a short talk with [Frank Pember]. We agreed that we could recall no fault in the Warden. Differences of opinion with him we could remember, but never a fault. It is very wonderful.

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