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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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¦ •¦• . - -- ' i : " ¦ . ; . ' . - ' ¦ ' . ¦ - . ¦¦ • . ¦ - ¦¦¦ •;¦•• , . > . ¦ . ¦ ¦ ¦ , U : l ^ : :.: !* u- << : . > .:. . ¦; ¦ . ¦ . ¦ ¦ - ¦ * ¦ ; . ! ¦> ; ' pros . lbe > . satisfaction of the reader , it maj . be noted that the paper's which ¦ wi lt " appeiir . ? utidep the above title are not only ; founded upon fact , but are literal records of facts . The -writer of the diary was , for a considerable thi *| £ . tyji , < Sur ? ite of a large' ' parish , ' in Enj ^ latid . We are committing no toceachi of private trust , it . is ohviows , from the opening words , that the fragments were intended for - publication /] Iti bas ^ - often Been said ^ leV a ^ ah , but write down his chapter of human experience j in the foreible . language -of truth let him tnake known his fe $ rn ' g $ es : ; r ln'ljhe battle he has wagec } with ignorance and selfishness , let Km exaggerate no triumph , conceal no defeat , and he will not fail to-toach human hearts . One hears men talk of eventful lives .. "y ^ hy , evefy ! life is full of eve nts . Seize upon the first wretched pauper that you meet- ~ -he could tell yoii ' tmngl whibn should inaVe your heart throb with ptty or indignation . You—strong in jirftblle ' cV Mowing the world , exalted in social jjank—*¦ would ^ q knowhjage ^ at the vilest can . claim brotherhood with the nobiest . .... t jrl !|^' % i lQm j i r the rest of this , and pass on ; to the period when the writer was preparing for ordinationk-3 ¦ r ^ ptt ; w | S inflate to be-ordamed . Honestly , in looking back to the whole series « f eVefits , I cannot divine by . what exertion of ,... nay-: own will , at any particular crisis , it could have been avoided . Of course , I might have \ fithstbod" to ^ , the " death . BiJt , " , cm the whole , I can say no more than this- — I . submitted £ o my fate . Knowing this beforehand , I trained myself into dbedieiicei I am convinced that no disciple of Ignatius Loyola has ever gone xhrougt severer discipline , in obedience to the will of his superior , and 4 t for the 3
glory of God * ' than I did , in that most painful straggle between inclination and destiny . . . Still , or perhaps . as a consequence of this , I formed the most brilliairt conceptions of my future career . I honoured , ¦ with aH ^ my soul , the office of the teacher . ' I dwelt , with extraordinary satisfaction , on the thought that some word of mine—spoken with authority- — mighfease an jkbhing heart . I wrought myself into the conviction that I bad a message to deliver , and that I could deliver it , most fitly , most beneficially , as an ordained Minister of the Church of England . I was mistaken ; and to those who , ar : e i ^ i thei same case as I was , I dedicate these fragments . I leave it to theny to decide who was in the wrong . Whafm 6 st Offends ' me in the Church of England is its glaring inconsistency . Perpetually , in the Liturgy and elsewhere , it says one thing and means or does another . Very properly , no one should be presented for ordination who is deficient in learning , or in what is called " godly conversa ^ tibu ^ V / Of the ! godl y conversation the less said the better ; but no one who has been in the habit of mixing with the Church of England clergy will venture to say : much for their general proficiency in any learning that frasthe most distant connexion with the requirements of this age . Why , then , perpetuatethe ifarce of sending out ' men to teach , who lack the very essential ^ ua ljty of ktowing what they should teach ? Pe rhaps these Oxford com-¦ j ^' s'jftflej ^^ Government is wise enough , and strong enough , to carry out what I am certain they will recommend . ' ''^ 'Wcll ^ witB rio indefinite conception of what I was about to undergo , "Well ver ' se'd Sn the subtle argunients by which menj too weak , io fade tpe real diffiouTty of the ordination service , explain it away , and thus tempt the younger clergy to play fafct and l 66 Sewith conscience—I presented myself to the bishop . I do not remember that J . was ever so deeply shocked as when if wajfced j through tha ^; noblejpa rk to the splendid old mansion that lay concealed within , its woods , I fcne , w u > all befo ^ e | -I kne-w that bishops were very jyvealthy , ; but as Ijhe member of an ancient university-r-a Church of England institution—how could I be expected to chiake in with the vile denunciations' of ^ he Radical Press , or the railings of the fierce Democracy ? On'lihat 'flayi- 'hbwever ^ the unconscious' indignation of a scotfe of years was awakt ^ diin a , i ^ om ^ nt . ' It wjis Wt ^ ho wealthy- ft eaven knows a bishop could find objects for charity that would swallow up an income tentold that of the ; ilicheatyprelater ^ 'but it was the pomp and luxury— 'the powdered flunkeys , who look down on humble curates with the scorn engendered by much wearing of purple coats—the intense conviction that , from all I knew of the man—this bishop , at least , did caro for and idolise his wealth—it was all thisy contrasted with , frie , tfyoug ] uY of the thousand beggars among -whom I was to be sent , that drove the iron into niy very soul .. . We were to be examined . I remember , with painful-distinctness , that I # as impTikotted'for tlWef hburs in a'lsmall' rbom , to answer questions which ; <* $ &jatts ^ efi ' Wjadil y by natipnal school children . Certainly I was made to w / i ^ l ^ J . «^ i ^ i&tli | t . jli ! ' wd' i > pt , th ^ n , ( npr , do , Triqw , understand the connexion bej tweew / Wi ^ ng ^ atirt prose and > teaching men the way to heaven . At all eVett ^ / I ^ Pvr tpat ^ Wfts ' n 9 t oxan ^ jlned on . subjects winch I was about to teach . But , then , the bishop and tlie examiner had never had the charge of large parishes , and perhaps they did not know what was required of us . Jjet' mo 'rtdhftt , hbwever , that this was an exceptional case . I could mention several bishops , iwh <) so manage their iinterpoura . 0 with candidates for ordination ^ that whole yeara of venation and . disappointment cannot efface the ¦ ¦
j jiiji-pteisflSdpi' ' . . , TSe , !/ ex ; ftr « ination was over- Often , during' my life . I had listened to ordination sermons . I hod been told that , " > early times , the candidate j $ ^| £$ pHq eve of his ordination in prayer and fasting . Wealthy canonB had insisted 1 on the necessity of self-denial . They had proved—on ! with how much force from the Now Testament and the example of primitive saintsthat it was only by strist subjection of the body that the soul could bo brought into a fit condition for the work of the Christian ministry . I do flo / fj ' niean that we were invited to become ascetics . Few men go bo for as thai ; .. Put , most assuredly , I have yet to learn that a luxurious banquet is the best preparative for services eo intensely solemn as those for the ordination 6 f priests and deacons . For myself , I know that I was struck with a
B ^ H ^ i ^ p ^^ Bi ^ l ^^ MJ ^ B ^^ P ^ M ^ fliM ^^ H ^^ I painful sense of unreality . I thought iheri , and I thiiik still , tihat whatever may be the custoni ' s of society , the clergy should at least en 4 eavour to practise what tHey preach . , They should give that one proof of their sincerity . They should stand forth to the world living examples of Christian virtues .. As it is , the sight of one indolent priest does away -with all the good that might be produced by a thousand sermons-.- . 1 * . * : * ... ' .. I arrived in my parish . I was now to test ; by actual experience , - the truth of theories which , as I have already said , I had forced niyself to be-. lieve . It was ; a large seaport town in a manufacturing district , and contained ' a population of several thousand 'souls . To an earnest man , entering upon a work so serious as that of a Christian teacher , the prospect V ? tt 3 kppallin-g . No language can- describe the filth , misery , and utter degradation in which a large proportion of the people were sunk . Even o , f the , rich there -were scarcely a dozen families who could bei described as belonging to the educated class . The majority of them had risen , by dint of honest industry , to the possession of considerable wealth * , they were * Sharp-sighted , clever men of business ; but their'knowledge , was Confined , to the lawsrjjf trade and commerce . Scarcely one could date the iiemniling of- ^ is food- fortune farther back than the last European war . An 4 yet a more indly-hearted , hospitable set of men it wonld be hard to find . Ifc was some time before I discovered what a depth of selfishness and narrbw-mindedn ^ Bs was concealed beneath so fair an exterioi * . . Some of these people belonged
to the class of liberal-politicians , that is , they had voted for the Pree-tr 4 < je candidate , and , » were in favour of extending the franchise to their workmen . But these were exceptions to the general rule . The . rest were obstinately convinced that Sir Robert dPeel was a traitor to his country * and , at the time of which I speak , would have willingly $ een that eminent statesman carried off to the Tower , and imprisoned for life . - Hencft ,,. they w . ere strongly Opposed to dll movements in favour of education , or any modern improvement whatever . They were profoundly convinced , ' that to promote such ohjects was to conspire against the British constitution . As for religion , it was quite enough to attend a Sunday service . There fcould be ho connexion between that and the duties of common life ^ . \
Tradesmen , mechanics , and sailors made up the rest of the population . With persons of this class I had still to make acquaintance ; but , at a glance , I saw enough to try the stoutest heart , the keenest intellect , " tJie most consummate patience . The routine of daily and'Su ' nday service / t ^ is very simple , but it was impossible to be content with that . Had a clergyman no message to deliver except to the soul ? Was it forme to witness social disorder and hesitate to proclaim the fact ? Could I hold my peace in the presence of obstinate ana wealthy ignorance ? What was Christianity worth if it had no power to' heal the ills of poverty , to speak to human hearts from a human point of view , to tell men something of the l ^ ws
that should regulate society ? I knew something of the questions which were vexing the very heart of English life . I was the appointed teacher of hundreds who would never enter the place vbere I was to speak to them . According to a common theory among churchmen , I could hold no intercourse with them except on terms which they could not accept and I w 6 uld not impose . They were used as instruments for making gold—^ slaves of slaves in this old land of freedom—and yet , though their masters would . not or could not know it , they had hearts to love and brains to think . Even more than this—they were feeling after" ghty truths , which sooner ^ or later must change the whole face of things . Could I lend them no helping hand , or would they accept the proffered aid from one . whose very office must create suspicion ? H ,
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THE SPANISH DANCERS . Fon spine reason or other tlie national . dance of Spain seems lKjver destined to acclimatise itself in England . IivTftris a troupe of , And ^ uusian Q ^ a-wazee rnay be periodically looked for ; and for half a dozen woeks in tlie spring , they ereate a periodical sensation . But in England the importation has never q [ tiitfe succeeded 5 Spaniel dancps do not go down anipng up unless they are ' ' mterftrote ^ lL v musical critics say , by dancers not Spanish , and so rendered more civilised and less characteristic . Wo cannot assign any special reason for this comparative failuroof the Iberinn Terpsychore , unless it be that to our grim countrymen , and intensely conscious countrywoftien ( Vhoso favourite dances are something between a fatigued embrace and a fashional »] lo lounge ) all those pQntor |;| ons of real feeling are an irritation , and an alfewco againBt conventional feeling . Perhaps the animalism is not sentimental enough , and thfe modesty i « too fierce . We know nofc Thg reception , howeve , of the troupe , a ] b the ft ^ ymarket )' , was enthusiastic on the first evening , . thoug h there appeared some howildermehj ; and
uncertftinty in the audience at tho meaning of the " . local colour" which the groupings and tambourines ^ ore intended to convey . We catinot say thitt wo found the personnel very attractive . The star of the' company , Seriota' ^ ina Perea , auggests too forcible , by her decisive force of manner . am ] hen'uncprMnroinisingliaughtineas that unpleasant custom of carrying a daggor in the stocking , which volatile adorors are apt , to bo reminded of In Spain . The chief male dancer looks more like the father than the lover of the jterriblo Nina ., ThoirO was a eamonoaa and a want of charm in tho selection of the figures ; wo inlsscdl ' El Ole " and tho maddening " Jota Arugonosa ; " wo who liave dwelt fro las monies , failed to recognise all the cose , tho grace , the passiqnate abandon , and the impetuous coquetry , broken by pauses of voluptuous shrinking and . repose , which are familiar to our recollections of Seville and Cadiz . Alas ! in Andalusia * youth and beauty ripen soon and wither early ! These national 4 ancea of Spain are a perfect drama of southern passion ; its wild and wayward intensity , its diadnlnnil cogjuotry , its mad oblivious scK-aacrlflce , its jealousies , lunguora , atomic , reconciliations 1 and they belong only to the children of the sun ! E . P .
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Now that we havo an interval of real auinnior weather tho public should take every advantage of it . And iu spito of all that is said about the want of public places of amusement in this country , wo arc not , uftqr all , bo badly ofl " a » is sometimes made out . For persons who wish to escape for a fow hours from tho emoko and dust of London , wo have no more pleasant reHort than Oromorno . Who would not rather dlno in tho midst of fresh air , and within hearing of pleasant music , than in a dingy codee-houao , with an ovouoy atmosphero ? H .
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' s '' ' ' > i , ' ' ' ¦ - ' ' - ¦ . ' . ¦ - ¦ ! , We 8 hm 4 d doour "atcaost to qrKjovragS tbe Beautiful , for the Useful encovirages . , ... ¦ . f \ l ' : ..:, ¦ ¦ ' . . itJself . T ^ -Go BTH ^ E . ¦
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E'L R [ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^¦^^^••¦^^^^¦¦ i ^^^^ BPBBi ^ 1 6 § 2 TH ; -te-ADE ^ . Saturday ,
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Leader (1850-1860), July 22, 1854, page 692, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2048/page/20/
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