188 PROBLEMS OF VILLAGE LIFE 



villages in England to-day which are dis- 

 figured by some of the worst horrors of " La 

 Terre." Nevertheless, for the stains on the 

 life of our countryside, for the mental and 

 moral foulness, due to the gang-systems of 

 the past, to drink, to overcrowding, others 

 than the actual offenders must bear a large 

 share of responsibility before the judgment 

 seat of Heaven. Those who monopolized the 

 land, resisted education, set their faces like 

 flint against Temperance Reform, and refused 

 to build decent houses because they wanted 

 bigger interest than 2| per cent. though 

 kennels and stables are built at a loss men 

 and women who have talked of the rights of 

 property and forgotten its duties, it is these 

 who through the centuries have helped to put 

 stumbling blocks in the way of the poor 

 villagers and caused Christ's little ones to 

 offend. 



Here and there, it is true, we come across 

 welcome signs of a change. A feeling is 

 slowly gaining ground among Churchmen that 

 the Church suffers from its almost exclusive 

 connection with one political party and is 

 humiliated by its alliance with wealthy 

 brewers. In many parts of England the 

 clergy must recognize that the people are 

 alienated from the National Church by that 



