The Henson Journals

[103]

2nd Sunday in Lent, March 16th, 1919.

The post brought me a shockingly indecent book, purporting to disclose the infamies of German immorality. No doubt matters are amazingly bad in Germany, & there is much to alarm as well as to astonish in the morals of Britain. But I doubt the quality of the enthusiasm for purity which takes the form of concentrating attention on the worst forms of impurity. The old Christian reticence was safer & sounder. Before starting on my Confirmations I burned the book.

We started at 9.30 a.m. and motored to Brimfield where I first confirmed 14 candidates at Mattins, and then, after lunch, consecrated an addition to the churchyard. The Vicar, Waterfield, is an "old Westminster", & once won the pancake there! We had tea with Lord Cawley, who lives in a large and well–situated Georgian house, once inhabited by Lord Rodney, not far from Leominster. We found both his Lordship & Lady Cawley very friendly. I went to Eye and confirmed 32 candidates, of whom only 8 were boys. The parish church is unusually interesting, & there are some fine recumbent monuments of the Cornwall family. The parson, Buckle, is a cousin of the former Editor of the Times, & has been Vicar of Eye for no less than 28 years. He had once inhabited the large house hard by the church, and therein had carried on a girls' school: but now he has vacated the first, and given up the last.

---