The Henson Journals

[675]

Wednesday, February 23rd, 1916.

569th day

The post brought me from Mrs Toland a book written by her son Edward, describing his experiences of hospital work in France during the dreadful period from August 1914 to February 1915: "The Aftermath of Battle. With the Red Cross in France" by Edward D. Toland. I found this simply written diary so absorbing that I perforce read it through at a sitting. It may go with the "Diary of a French Army Chaplain" by Abbé Félix Klein. They are classics of War as seen by the non–combatant on duty.

To see one's self as others see one is said to be an edifying, if not rarely a mortifying process. Macmillan's send [sic] me this morning two small newspaper criticisms of 'War–time Sermons', which may assist me in this regard, & which certainly have no other value. The 'Middlesex County Times' heads its notice 'A Virile Preacher', & proceeds to comment thereupon. 'I shd characterise him as "A Christian Man of the World"' – Is this the same thing as 'A worldly Christian'? The writer goes on to observe that 'he shd have had a more active post than a deanery, especially in the prime of his life'. Many will agree with this: but many more considering that 'no more active post' than a bishoprick could have been found for the gentleman, will hesitate! The sermons are commended, but 'if they lack anything it is fervour, wh. our forefathers used to call "unction"' – we may add that some of them preferred to call it "enthusiasm", & to connect it with many unpleasing things from Hugh Peters to Stiggins & Pecksniff! "I can imagine," so he concludes, "one of the old Cambridge Platonists, if his lot had been in our own times, preaching such sermons as these". I should really like to believe that!

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