ANGLICAN CHURCHES. 



9 



cils bill. Resolutions concerning the liquor 

 traffic were adopted to the effect that the htfuse 

 trusted that some legislative measure might 

 speedily be passed which should largely diminish 

 the number of places in which intoxicating 

 liquors are sold ; that it would welcome a further 

 limitation of the hours in which public houses 

 may be open on Sunday ; and that it was of the 

 opinion that there was need of some legislative 

 measure for the compulsory registration and 

 stringent control of clubs where intoxicating 

 I liquors are sold. A motion was agreed to con- 

 templating such alterations in the service of 

 prayer on the accession of the sovereign as shall 

 make it generally acceptable to the people and 

 the clergy, " by bringing it into consonance with 

 the circumstances of the empire, the needs of 

 the age. and the feelings of the Church and na- 

 tion." The report of the Committee on the In- 

 cumbents' Resignation Acts, 1871 and 1877, was 

 discussed, and a resolution was adopted respect- 

 ing it. The opinion of the house was expressed 

 that the recommendation of the committee ap- 

 pointed by the archbishops with reference to the 

 education question should be considered by the 

 two convocations before being made the basis of 

 any attempted legislation. The House of Lay- 

 men expressed the opinion that the permanent 

 augmentation of poor benefices is the best rem- 

 edy for the impoverishment of the clergy ; rec- 

 ommended that a diocesan association, similar to 

 those already existing in several dioceses, should 

 be formed in every diocese in England and 

 Wales ; the objects for which such associations 

 shall invite subscriptions to include an endowed 

 fund to increase permanently the income of 

 small benefices and a sustentation fund to assist 

 impoverished benefices by annual grants. Sev- 

 eral suggestions were made with reference to the 

 Parish Councils bill. A report was made by the 

 Committee on Christian Training in Public Ele- 

 mentary Schools concerning the operation of 

 what is called the Birmingham system, and the 

 committee was further instructed to consider and 

 report the best method of securing to the bap- 

 tized children of the Church of England who 

 attend those schools "such definite instruction 

 in the principles of the Church of England as 

 will at least satisfy the requirements of the ru- 

 bric in its Book of Common Prayer." 



The Houses of Convocation met again April 24. 

 In the upper house a report was adopted on the 

 use of hymnals in the churches, showing which 

 books stood most in favor, and revealing an 

 "overwhelming preponderance " of one particu- 

 lar compilation. It also expressed the opinion of 

 the committee that a Convocation hymnal, start- 

 ing with the absorption of the best features of 

 the three chief hymnals, would probably obtain 

 and keep the confidence of the English 'Church. 

 A report recommending an amended scale of ec- 

 clesiastical fees was adopted. Concurring with 

 the resolutions on the subject of temperance 

 passed by the lower house in January preceding, 

 the house further invited the attention of the 

 parochial clergy " to the opportunity afforded by 

 acts of Parliament, and especially by the Local 

 Government act of 1894, for the provision of 

 such permanent counteracting agencies to the 

 social attractions of the public nouses as free 

 libraries, reading rooms, recreation grounds, al- 



lotments, parish halls, and the like." Relative 

 to the movement for the disestablishment of the 

 Church in Wales, the house conveyed to the 

 bishops, clergy, and laity of the same " its assur- 

 ance of the warmest sympathy with them," and 

 the pledge of the house to dolts utmost " to re- 

 sist the attack now made upon the Church." The 

 lower house, on the report of the Committee on 

 the Relations of Church and State, declared that 

 " to sever the union between Church and state at 

 present existing in six dioceses of the province 

 of Canterbury, and to deprive in whole or in 

 part those dioceses of their ancient endowments 

 would be an act fraught with disastrous conse- 

 quences to the English nation, and would be a 

 grave injustice to those dioceses and to the whole 

 Church of England." While generally approv- 

 ing the Church Patronage bill, the house decided 

 to present a petition to Parliament for the pro- 

 vision of means, under proper safeguards, of get- 

 ting rid of incumbents " whose continuance in 

 their cures is, through their own fault or negli- 

 gence, injurious to the spiritual welfare of the 

 parish." On the presentation of the report on 

 hymnals, the house resolved " that it is inexpe- 

 dient in existing circumstances to interfere with 

 the clergy and congregations in the use of 

 hymns." The House of Laymen, concerning the 

 Welsh Disestablishment bill, "expressed its de- 

 sire to affirm " that disestablishment would be a 

 misfortune to the country, and should be op- 

 posed by loyal Churchmen as wrong in principle 

 and injurious in practice ; that piecemeal dises- 

 tablishment and disendowment such as is now 

 proposed is open to the strongest objections, and 

 ought to be resisted by the whole strength of the 

 Church of England ; and that the house pro- 

 tested against any attempt to transfer the paro- 

 chial and other endowments of the Church from 

 their sacred uses to secular purposes. 



The Convocation of York met March 29. The 

 archbishop delivered an opening address dealing 

 with the subject of lay ministration. He pointed 

 out that they had no hesitation about permitting 

 a layman to minister in schoolrooms, and to con- 

 duct services and even deliver sermons there, and 

 he advanced the proposal whether they might 

 not be allowed to minister in the parish church. 

 He asked the houses to consider how far it was 

 safe or right that persons approved by the bishop 

 should be allowed to make use of the church un- 

 der exceptional circumstances and under certain 

 restrictions. A resolution was passed in the 

 upper house to the effect that it was expedient 

 to authorize duly qualified laymen to preach in 

 consecrated buildings, but as the legality of such 

 a course had been doubted it was desirable to 

 seek the opinion of the ecclesiastical lawyers on 

 the question*. The lower house resolved that the 

 question w r as beset by so many legal difficulties 

 that it would be advisable to defer it for further 

 consideration. It further resolved that it recog- 

 nized with great thankfulness lay ministrations 

 under proper authority in unconsecrated build- 

 ings. The House of Laymen resolved that, while 

 fully recognizing the importance of extending 

 the powers existing enabling laymen to conduct 

 services, it felt that as yet it hardly possessed 

 sufficient information to enable it to recommend 

 that the authorization should be extended to 

 services in consecrated buildings. The upper 



