The Henson Journals

[374][sic]

Tuesday, October 8th, 1929.

I was foolish enough to write to that fanatical rag, "The Church Gazette" denying the calumnious statements of a parson called Warrington which are reproduced in its columns. The evangelicals have worked themselves into a mood of neurotic fanaticism in which nothing is too bad about the bishops to be credible. In fact the Bishops have succeeded the Jesuits in their minds.

The Archbishop of Canterbury wrote to ask me to stay at Lambeth for the Bishops' meeting. I cannot do so as I am already pledged to Lady S. I wrote to his Grace proposing that I should stay at Lambeth for the meeting of the Assembly in November, & taking occasion to express my views on the importance of getting forward with the Commission on the Relations of Church & State.

Dr Henry Peile of Satley sent us a brace of pheasants.

William writes to say that it is "definitely fixed' that his marriage is to take place at Johannesburg in November.

[375]

The evening paper reports the death of Harold Begbie. He certainly did me an ill turn , when he published an "interview" which he obtained with me in Durham Castle, really on false pretences. Nothing would induce me willingly to grant an interview to a journalist, and certainly not to a stunt–writer like Begbie.

Almost by chance I turned to Maitland's Lectures on "The Constitutional history of England' in order to clear up my mind on the Test Act. I found an admirably clear & succinct account of the Church of England.

"The provisions of the Test & Corporation Acts which were obnoxious to them (i.e. the Nonconformists) were repeated in 1828 (9 George IV.c. 17) though the work was not quite accomplished until 1868 (31 and 32 Vic. c 72): between those two dates a declaration was required of office–holders to the effect that they would not use their offices to injure or weaken the Church of England."

The Oaths Act in 1888 completed the secularisation of Parliament.

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