The Henson Journals

[318]

Monday, January 10th, 1927.

The mild, almost springlike weather continues. I spent the day in writing and despatching to the Editor of the Evening Standard an Article on "Personal Habits and Partisan Principles" inspired by the discussion in the Times, which Ponsonby inaugurated on Dec: 19th on "Men of means in the Labour Party".

Mr Vincent Harlow, the Author of "Barbados, 1625–1685" came to lunch and afterwards walked with me in the Park. He is an ingenuous young man of 28: an old Dunelmian, and an Oxford man. His service in France & Flanders deepened & strengthened his character. He spoke with intelligence & sympathy of the religious situation which the War has created. I promised to write for him to the Warden of All Souls, as he desires from the College some contribution towards the cost of publishing a history of Codrington, of which he showed me the typed MS.

I received from Jimmie Adderley a characteristic letter about Prayer Book Revision, which certainly does not carry much promise of ecclesiastical harmony. He tells me that if the Bishops "allow Reservation in the open Church in an Aumbry without any hint that they deny the real Presence, they will be in a strong position", and adds that "it is too late to stop public Reservation". He tells me that "the extreme people" are likely to take up an obstructive position:

"Supposing as I believe is likely that the extreme people say 'We will go on as we are with [the] old Prayer Book. We never asked for Revision at all'. They can easily shelter themselves under Ingram's instructions which he has been giving them for the [319] last ten years, under which almost any thing can be done. It will be very difficult, it seems to me, to upset a place, for instance, like All Saints, Margaret Street, which has probably had permission from Ingram to do all that it does."

Jimmie is a jack–ass, but he hears much, & his nonsense probably reflects that of many others. He certainly hits the nail on the head when he refers to Ingram's preposterous "instructions".

Lady Eden & Jimmie Dobbie came to dine, & witness the play. That persistent Dowager, Lady Wimborne, writes to me again about my conferring with the Duke of Marlborough on the subject of his projected "conversion" to the Church of Rome. She says that he wants to consult me: but I cannot take anybody's word for the fact save that of the Duke himself. It may well be the case that he yields to the importunity of a tiresome aunt: or it may even happen that, having already determined his course, he wishes to be able to allege that before his "conversion" he heard the Bishop of Durham, & was not shaken in his purpose. These Papists are not to be lightly trusted. They will let no chance of humiliating the Church of England pass unutilised. So caution is indispensable. Nevertheless, I do not see how I can rightly, or decently, "turn down" an appeal such as Lady W. makes. Even a Duke has a title to spiritual assistance from an English Bishop, if he desire it: and, though his character be the worst in the world, his need of such aid is only the more apparent. Yet my suspicions are as extreme as they are in this case ineradicable.

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