The Henson Journals

[219]

Tuesday, November 29th, 1927.

I finished reading through Coulton's 2nd volume of "Five Centuries of Religion", and ran over the copious Appendices. He certainly makes out his case, and leaves the fashionable fictions about Monasticism in a very tattered condition. He is extremely severe on the dishonest handling of documents by the Roman Catholick writers, of whom Cardinal Gasquet is his especial aversion. Claude Jenkins comes in for some smart strokes: and he 'deals faithfully' with some characteristically sweeping criticisms of Arthur Headlam. I suppose there is some ground for the prevailing impression that Headlam is an unfair as well as a discourteous controversialist. Certainly Coulton is precisely the man whom it is perilous to treat unfairly, for he is relentless, resentful, and (worst of all) as nearly omniscient as a mortal may be.

Mary Lyttelton sent me her Anthology, 'A Girl's Book of Verse'. I thanked her straight away.

The death of Major Vaux is reported in the Evening Paper. He was 65 years old.

I walked round the Park by myself. Everything was at its best in the stillness and sunshine. But I fear that this means Fog in London, and so the newspapers foretell.

Then I read through a wonderful little sixpenny pamphlet by Ralph on 'Protestantism', most brilliant, suggestive, sophistical, and irreligious!!