The Henson Journals

[124]

Wednesday, February 12th, 1930.

Pattinson and I motored to York, where I attended the meeting of Convocation. There was really no business worth transacting, and everything was over by lunch time. I moved a resolution about the persecution of Christians in Russia, and made a short & foolish speech. After lunching with the Archbishop, we returned to Auckland. Then I disposed of the morning's correspondence.

Mrs Burge had written to me asking me to assist Dr Charnwood in his preparation of a Memoir of her husband, the late Bishop of Oxford, by letting him have any letters which were worth publishing. I had to say that the Bishop's letters were always concerned with personal and immediate matters, & mostly had not been preserved. It is rather humiliating to have such a meagre collection of interesting letters, but, partly, I have played a 'lone–hand', and, partly, the practice of writing serious letters has passed away. The habit of typing letters has destroyed their literary & permanent interest.

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