The Henson Journals

[545]

Tuesday, December 21st, 1915.

505th day

The post brought me the following post–card written in an educated hand, and bearing the post–mark, 'East Grinstead':–

"Dr Inge in "Speculum Animae", page 24, describes your career in the following words. "The world belongs to those who think and act with it, who keep a finger on its pulse." "The way to be successful is to give the public exactly what it wants, and about ten per cent more of it than it expects."

The writer piously adds the date '4th Sunday in Advent'. By the same post it so happened that there came a letter from Inge, in the course of which he observes: "I liked your war sermons immensely, and hope they will be widely read."

I wrote to Sir Lewis Dibdin respecting the prompter payment of sums due to the Chapter from the Fabric fund: and to the Vicar of Bossall respecting his project for selling the glebe. Bayley came to see me, and stayed to lunch in order to see Frere, who has come here to study MSS. in our library. I have given him a room to work in. It is not inappropriate that the secularized Prior's chapel should shelter the labours of an Anglican medievalist.

Fawkes went off after breakfast. I walked with Logic: & attended Evensong. Mrs Hodgson Fowler & Hughes with his wife came in to dinner.

The evening post brought me a long letter from Dicey. He expresses himself warmly in commendation of the sermons, & then branches out into a discussion of the qar. His sentiments are vehemently anti–German. Nothing will satisfy him but the complete defeat of Germany, & the punishment of the Kaiser. But this goes beyond anything that can reasonably be accounted practicable.

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