The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1862-09-02 00:00:00

Corrtsponbnice.

fn. following appesreein our oontemporary, the
Telegram]

ST. JAMES'S CHURCH, POOLE.

film.—Your correspondent " Yams," in recount-
ing in your last week's impression the changes made
by the Rev. A. Wilkinson in the service* of St.
James'. Church, though no one can deny ths truth
of all his serious charges, yet he does not appear to
me to go fax enough in his statements, as I can recall
to mind a few other alterations that have been made
sinos the rev. gentleman's institution to the rectory,
and which, I suppose, had escaped your oorrespon-
deat's memory. I am, like him, very sorry to lose
the services of the talented and efficient choir, who
Lava now for many years conducted the choral por-
tion of the liturgy ; but as I believe some of the
other alterations are quite as objectionable to several
of tha congregation as the discontinuance of the
ohanting and intoning alluded to, I will proceed to
voint them out : Wilkinson has established
a regular monthly celebration of the Holy Com-
munion, and has altered the mode of collecting the
olms on these occasions. 2.—Be has appointed a
week day service to be hekj on Wednesday evening,
instead of in the morning. 3. —He has made several
alterations in the sittings allotting a considerable
number of pews in the gallery as free seats. —4.
He has commenced, and now nearly finished, the
building of new School-rooroa for the Sunday School
in place of the apartments they have for so many
years occupied in the church tower. s.—Re
interferes, I am informed by the Sunday School
teachers., much more in the conduct of the school
than they had previously been accustomed to,attend-
Mg personally to open and close the school ; and he
also preaches frequently in the afternoons a sermon
to the children. Other innovations have doubtlese
been noticed by acute individuals, but the above
will tend to make the catalogue more complete,
and assist the public in forming their judgment as
to whether Mr. Wilkinson is satisfactorily ;perfor-
ming his duties as rector of this ,populens and im-
portant parieb.—l am, Sir, yours obedintly,
THOROUGH.
Poole, August 25, 1862.

THE SERVICES AT ST. JAMES'S CHURCH.
Sift : It is a pity that your correspondent" Voris" cn
bad not made himself more acquainted with jade,
before he sent his letter to your paper. He inatel
QUA the intonation of the Litany on Sacrament
Sundays has been discontinued by the new rector of
Poole. If he had attended service at St. James's on
the last occasion of Holy Celebration he would hive
heard the Litany intoned, but not (as usual) chanted,
which tends to lengthen the service. In the
Hymn Book now in use at St: James's the Palma of
David occupy more than one third, and are fre-
quently sung, and no one could wish to cling to the
old-fashioned use of Tate and Brady. It is univer-
sally confessed that the change of the Sunday
evening service from 6 to half-pant is infinitely
more convenient as affording longer time between
the afternoon and evening services. We have yet
to learn that the removal of a heavy and old-
fashioned sounding board, and slaved back to the
puipit, elects the services of the church. The 6th
alteration mentioned is "Doing away with the
manilas and responses," plainly proving that
"Veins" (7) does not attend the church, or he would
hear them intoned as usual, and would not be foolish
enough to asoribe to the rector what would inevitably
deprive • clergyman of his gown. If you Wish to
bear of other "changes" effected by the rector
you may learn that in the afternoon service the
Canticles and Gloria Patti after the Psalms are now
chanted. That the alms at Holy Celebration are
now collected by the churchwardens during the
reading of the offertory sentences, instead of -being
dropped into two plates, suspended from the alter
'rails all each person approached ;—that now on
Sainte' Days and other festivals the Communion '
Berries is. read from the altar, instead of (as formerly)
the reading desk ;—that 800 seats have been made
free for the poor ; —that the Te Deum is chanted as
a rule instead of being occasionally song to • servioe ;
—that the Holy Communion is administered every
mouth and on all gm great festivals ; and that the
visible result of thee" "alteration" is a marked
increase in the congregation and in the number of
oommusionsba Those who are anxious for congre-
gational singing, will not fail to peroeive that
"plain and easy hymn tunes" are far more likely
to produce the desired effect than laboured perfor-
mances with two or three solos in each verse,
prolonging the hymns to a most wearying length—
such as are now only beard in obscure country
villages, where the krie for good church musics has
not yet penetrated. Hoping that another time
your correspondent will take more pains to prove
his right to the name of Verax.—l sun, Sir,
ONE ON THE SPOT.