The Henson Journals

[181]

Good Friday, April 2nd, 1915.

242nd day

A bright, beautiful morning, but leading in a comfortless gusty day interrupted with rain showers. There was an unusually large muster of troops at the Church Parade, & accordingly papers of the service ran short. The Bishop of Jarrow gave the address in the teeth of much coughing. The service which followed occupied rather more than two hours, so that we were on duty from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. – too long for the health of the choirboys & the edification of their seniors. The congregation was very small, a fact which I incline to attribute to the superior attractions of the "Three Hours Devotions", which are arranged at two of the parish churches. At Evensong, I myself preached to a congregation which, though larger than I had expected, was really but small. My subject was "Death", & my sermon unhelpful & dreary. There was a collection for the Serbian branch of the Red Cross Society. Later I took Dicey for a walk in the banks.

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