The Henson Journals

[174]

Monday, September 23rd, 1918.

1510th day

A fine but chilly day. The Archdeacon of Hereford came for me, and at noon we started in the car for a little round of visitations. We visited the following:

1. Much Dewchurch, a fine church with a Jacobean pulpit, and a very fine monument to the Pye family. Here we lunched with the Vicar (Rev. E. Brooke Bradley), a strong but not very amiable looking parson, who hailed from the Gloucester Diocese.
2. St Weonard's, This is an unusually interesting church with fine wooden screens, a 14th century window, a huge old chest, a Jacobean pulpit, & a fine tower. The parson, Rev. G. H. Davis, is a Christian Socialist, at cross–purposes with his people, once a curate of Jimmy Adderley, & now more than usually sad for the loss of his son in France. I was touched by his miserable look.
3. Tretire, a squalid modern church without redeeming feature.
4. Whitchurch, a fairly interesting church. The font (Norman) very fine. The parson, Rev. D. O. Thomas, had had an American Baptist minister to preach for him at his Harvest Thanksgiving yesterday.
5. Goodrich, a squalid church. We had tea with Prebendary Seaton & his wife. He showed me a beautiful chalice presented to the Church by Dean Swift, and bearing a inscription to the effect that it had been used for private celebrations by his grandfather, Thomas Swift, who was Vicar of the parish.

I got home shortly before 7 p.m., & learned that a railway strike was imminent at Hereford. The times are out of joint.

[175]

At Goodrich a brother of Lord Knollys, lately the Vicar of Folkestone, and now a resident in Goodrich, has undertaken the office of churchwarden. He is a tall & fine–looking man, whose conversation did not bear out the promise of his appearance. I was, however, told that he had but recently lost his daughter, & this may explain his conversational ineptitude. Prebendary Seaton has been Vicar of Goodrich since 1875, a period of 43 years. He had previously been Curate of the same parish for 9 years. Thus his ministry in that place has continued for 52 years without a break. His wife told me that they observed but small change in the parish.

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