The Henson Journals

[531]

Tuesday, December 14th, 1915.

498th day

I spent the morning in writing letters. Among others I wrote to Gilbert & Hugh Lyon. The morning brought me a cheerful letter from Thomas Yeoman, who is now again at the Front. Also I wrote to congratulate three new Honorary Canons – Macdonald, Jupp, & Collings [Colling] I walked round Houghall Wood with Logic: & attended Evensong. Gee came in after dinner, & sate talking for an hour. He made an acute observation which deserves to be noted, "Enough attention is not given by modern students of the Reformation in England to the importance of Elizabeth's injunctions. These were frequently re–issued: were read publicly in the churches: & made the basis of ecclesiastical administration". He said that Dean Kitchin had gone to Rome in order to seek there for the original copy of the Cathedral Statutes of Durham, but that he met with no success, & was probably not allowed to do much searching. But if my conjecture as to Parker's reference to the Statutes be sound, then they were never in Rome at all. I gave Gee a copy of my "War–time Sermons" as a Christmas gift.

I wrote to Watkins asking what authority he had for maintaining that honorary canons had a statutory right to officiate in the cathedral in the place of residentiary canons when occasion arose. There is nothing about this in the Victorian Statute which created Honorary Canons, and succeeding legislation had not, so far as I know, conferred this right upon them. In any case, the exercise of their statutory rights must needs be subject to the control which is vested in the Dean by the Cathedral Statutes. I have come to suspect Watkin's impressive statements about the Law. They serve his turn in the debate, & their accuracy or relevance is not inquired into!

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