The Henson Journals

[30]

Friday, December 1st, 1922.

I celebrated the Holy Communion in the Chapel, where the clergy of the Rural Deanery were holding a "Quiet Day".

There was quite a large luncheon party for the Mead–Falkners come over from Durham, and Lady Wrightson with two other ladies were here. Mead–Falkner told me that he had discovered an Arabic inscription on St Cuthbert's wrappings. This is, indeed, a thought, provoking discovery. He was delighted with the 12th century work in the chapel, but thought it might be later than Pudsey.

Caröe arrived in the course of the afternoon, and busied himself with the workmen. Then he sate and talked in my room. It was all pleasant enough, but it made progress in my work quite impossible. It is the incessant coming and going in the Bishop's house that makes reading, and thought, and any careful work so difficult. Here in the remoteness of Auckland Castle the difficulty is very great: what must it be like at Fulham and Lambeth? I am outcast from all the parties, & outside the range of all the societies, yet I find the incessant interruptions very disturbing, what must those Bishops experience who are party leaders & popular money–raisers for all the societies? Caröe came straight from Bishopthorpe. He said that the Archbishop of York was heartily in agreement with me respect the "Use of Monmouth". This would be valuable if it were also public!

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