The Henson Journals

[670]

Saturday, April 15th, 1916.

621st day

Bright sun, but still the east wind, bad for body and soul. I received the Holy Communion at 8 a.m. Dennett celebrated. There were three commts apart from the clergy, and as many non–communicants. Of this I cannot approve, for the assumption of non–communicating attendance at the Lord's Supper seems to me an unwarrantable conception of the Sacrament: but (though I disapprove) I cannot, (and would not if I could) suppress it. A note from the Secretary of the Sherburn Trust reminded me that I failed to attend the Governors' meeting yesterday. This is very annoying, for I forgot the matter altogether.

I presided at a meeting of Chapter. We elected two Bedesmen, & promised election on the next vacancies to two more. After lunch I attended a meeting in the Music Hall convened in the interest of the movement for getting women to undertake agricultural work. Pemberton was in the Chair, & the speakers were two unmarried ladies. There was a fair attendance of women. Clarence & I walked with Logic. Mrs Caröe arrived while we were at dinner: & Caröe himself by the late train. So my house is again filled with guests.

I have been reading a very interesting & suggestive book – "The Psychology of Revolution" by Gustave le Bon. It bristles with good things e.g.

"In religious revolutions no experience can reveal to the faithful that they are deceived, since they would have to go to heaven to make the discovery. In political revolutions experience quickly demonstrates the error of a false doctrine & forces men to abandon it."

And this:

"The more we study the history of revolutions, the more we discover that they change practically nothing but the label."

These sayings are none the less true for being "hard".

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