The Henson Journals

[321]

Thursday, November 12th, 1925.

The bitter frost continues, and the roads are like glass. That foolish fellow, Warth, writes to ask whether he may preach in a Primitive Methodist Chapel in spite of the Vicar's objection! I told him that if the Minister's "severe illness" amounted to such urgency as would justify breaches of positive law, he might: but that otherwise he must take other considerations into his reckoning – a shifty cunning non–committal kind of episcopal letter which did me no credit to write, & could bring him no advantage to read!

Braley and his wife came to lunch. He is "up in arms" against the University, which requires the Bede College men to attend professional lectures, & fails to provide lectures of tolerable excellence! After they departed I walked round the Park, & then set forth to Stockton where I gave an address in a Primitive Methodist Chapel, which was observing its centenary. The audience consisted of about 300 persons, not half–a–dozen of whom were below 40 years of age unless appearances deceived me! The Mayor of Stockton took the Chair. After the meeting we i.e. Clayton and I returned to Auckland.

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