The Henson Journals

[167]

13th Sunday after Trinity, September 2nd, 1917.

1126th day

The sun shone brightly in intervals between cloudy & dark times, & from a stormy sky. I celebrated at 8 a.m. There were about a score of communicants from whom I missed the familiar figure of George, who is now, I suppose, tossing about in the Bay, & probably very sick! Dennett is back from the holidays, & with the return of the choir, we move one more stage towards the normal. After breakfast I wrote a letter of condolence to Sir William Osler, and a letter to Harold answering his that was torpedoed & belated. I attended Mattins, & heard from Lillingston a sermon on the hackneyed text, "Are not Abanah & Pharpar etc." which reminded me overpoweringly of the oratory of Mr Chadband! Yet I suspect that the people thought ^it^ rather uncommonly fine! It is simply torture to be forced to sit & listen to the greatest & most urgent problems of this tragical time ^being^ dealt with in the pulpit as just so much good stuff for effecting a "thrill", and to know the while that the receptivity of the people, (that priceless & most precarious asset of the teacher) is being rapidly destroyed, in fact that the pitch is being spoiled in advance of the match! Lady Londonderry appeared at Evensong with the little Lord Feversham & Lady Serena Lumley, & an anaemic young man, the boy's tutor. She brought them into the Deanery, & had tea, after which I shewed them the house, library & cathedral. Then she suggested that I should return with them to Lumley to dine & sleep. This I did, not being able to find a plausible excuse for declining. The fineness of the evening shewed Lumley Castle to perfection. We mounted to the battlements, & enjoyed a noble prospect. After dinner, Lady Londonderry proposed a walk in the moon–light, & took us to a view–point at some little distance from the Castle from which the great building had a most romantic appearance. Lord Scarborough not inaptly calls this view Camelot. We had some conversation about War memorials in the Cathedral. Lady Londonderry definitely offered to give a processional cross of silver in memory of her husband, who was at one time Mayor of Durham. I told her to write to me formally.

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