The Henson Journals

[33]

Saturday, December 19th, 1925.

The population of the diocese of Durham is 1,256,000. The number of scholars on the books of the Elementary Day Schools is 267,484. Of this number 205,531 are in Provided, and 61,953 are in non–provided Schools. The Diocesan Calendar gives the number of children in our Day Schools as 34,325. This leaves 27,628 children in Roman Catholic & Nonconformist schools….

Of the 267,484 children in the Elementary schools of the County the inquiry shows that 80,080 attend our Sunday schools and 187,404 children either attend Nonconformist Sunday Schools or go to no Sunday School at all……

We are justified in supposing that at least a fourth part of the children in our Elementary day Schools receive no Sunday religious education of any kind.

v. Report of the Durham Diocesan Sunday School Association, based on replies to the Enquiry made in 1923–4.

[34]

I celebrated the Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Castle at 8.15 am. The 7 candidates, Cosgrave, Clayton and myself formed the whole company. The weather had changed again during the night, and there had been a fresh snowfall. The view from the windows of Tunstall's Gallery was wintry.

The post brought me a letter from Lord Forester with the important information that the debate on the Shrewsbury Bishoprick Measure is to stand over until next February. He asked me to sign a Whip against the Measure. I wrote to assent. Moore of St Peter's, Hereford, sent me a copy of the Hereford Times in which my letter was printed, and a short leader on it contributed by himself.

Cosgrave's second address was even better that its predecessors: both were admirable.

The Bishop of Jarrow brought a certain Captain Mortimer to see me. He had been commended by Canon Goldsmith as a candidate for Holy Orders. But he is 36 years old, & knows neither Latin nor Greek. I delivered a "Charge" which I had prepared at intervals during the day. It said many true things, but was crude, discursive, and ill–balanced.

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