The Express.
London, England, 1867-09-28 00:00:00

AN ENCYCLICAL LETTF.R.

The John Bull, which announces that an ency-
clical letter is to be issued, says :—" What the Dean of
Westminster calls an ecclesiastical' leap in the dark,'viz.,
the Anglican Synod, has been a conspicuous success. The
thankfulness first expressed in these columns at the ap-
pointment of Archbishop Longley to the see of Canterbury
has been more than realised ; and if to the lion-hearted
boldness of a Cray we owe the defence of the faith in
Africa, and to the pen of • Wilberforce the Encyclical
Letter which the Synod has issued—(the members rising
as one man to adopt it)—it is to the patience, suavity, and
gentleness of the Primate, influenced in no small degree,
we take it, by the counsels of the great Bishop Selwyn,
whose sermon on Sunday and speech in the Conference
yesterday will never be forgotten by those who heard
them, that we are indebted, under God, for the
success of this great Synod. The world has sneered
and ridiculed it, but the enthusiasm manifested
yesterday by churchmen in St. James's Hall on the appear.
ante of the Bishop of Capetown, is but • faithful represen-
tation of the feeling which animates the church at large,
and which, we trow, will be manifested unmistakably
next week at Wolverhampton. The Dean of Westminster
who, as ordinary of the Abbey, has refused its use to the
bishops for service to-day, except on terms which they
could not accept, has grievously wounded the feelings of
churchmen, and the preface to his published speech in
which he sneers at convocation or gently patronises it, and
speaks of ' two African prelates chiefly concerned in the
controversy' will not improve his position. But the at-
tempt made by him, which will no doubt be
taken up by others, to show that the proceed-
ings of convocation in the Coleus° case were
irregular and partial, utterly fails. He had better, like
tho 'Bishop of London, who did not hold up his hand
against the endorsing of the resolution when he found in
what • minority he was, accept his defeat, and resolve not
Tin to make such an egregious error as to refuse the use
o the Abbey on such an occasion. No words can express
our thankfulness that the bishops have acted with such
boldness, and the judgment delivered against Bishop
Colenao in the Supreme Court at Natal comes to hand
most opportunely at this moment, u showing that legally
his position is untenable, and that Lord Rotuifly's judg-
ment is impossible to be carried out in • colony where the
church is not established, and where her members will not
submit to bu saddled with all the disadvantages of an
establishment while enjoying none of its privileges."

THE CHURCH CONGRESS IN WOLVERHAMPTON.

Between 1,300 and 1,400 tickets were sold up to
yesterday afternoon for the Church Congress, to be held in
Wolverhampton, commencing on Tuesday next. The
list of clerical visitor now contains the following
amongst other names :—The Bishops of Oxford,
London, Ely, Lichfield, Sodor and Man, Rochester,
Argyle, St. Andrew's, Limerick, Neatb, Cape
Town, Indiana, lowa, Labann, New York, Louisiana,
Arkansas, Newfoundland (Suffragan), New Zealand, Nia-
gara, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Orange River, Perth. Ver-
mont, Ohio Illinois, Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Dunedin,
North Carolina, Christ Church (New Zealand), and Bishop
Tozer ; Deans of Norwich, York, Chester, Hereford, Chi-
cheater, and Dromore ; with Archdeacons of On-
tario, Stafford, Salop, Dorset, Ely, Colchester,
Montgomery, Leicester, St. Asaph, Nottingham, Bucks,
Berks, Taunton, Manchester, and Clive. The executive
committee continue assiduous in their attention to the
details for the comfort of the visitors. A list of lodgings
has been got out, arranged in eight divisions, according
to the leading thoroughfares. Almon every inhabitant
of position is affording hospitality, and the list
of apartments is longer than it is thought will
be required. The Agricultural Hall and the Corn
Exchange are being draped and fitted up for the uses
to which they will be respectively applied, and the prepa-
rations are rapidly approaching completion. During the
Congress, the Holy Communion will be administered in
the following churches daily:—St. Peter's, St. John's,
St. Mary's, St. James's, Christ Church (Waterloo-mad),
St. Andrew's (Whitmore Reins), Tettenhall, Penn (Tues-
day only). Daily Prayer will be said in the following
churches :—St. Peter's, St. Mary* St. James's, Christ
Church, Penn.
The excursion arrangements for Thursday are as ap-
pended:—Messrs. Brenton's carpet, dyeing, and worsted
spinning works, Kidderminster; the Earl of Dudley's
ironworks and thick coal pits, Round Oak ; Old Park Iron-
works, Wedneabury (where the Bessemer process of con-
verting iron into steel is carried on); Messrs. G. B.
Thorneycroft and Co.'s Ironworks, Wolverhampton ; and
Chillington Ironworks, Wolverhampton.
We now know of what the Third Ecclesiastical Art
Exhibition will consist. The churches, in which the
vestments are actually in use, are " much more
numerous," we are officially assured, but the Exhibition
this year is not so large as previously. This is to be ac-
counted for in various ways, but chiefly "by the dislike of
exposing of holy things used in the highest act of Christian
worship to idle or profane criticism." This drawback will,
however, be met by largely increased loans of vestments, &c.,
reedy for use in various parts of England, and exhibited
previously to their being " dedicated to the terries of the
Most High." There will be 277 articles shown ; and they
will be comprised in one or other of the five following
section. :-1. All kinds of church vestments and orna-
ments, for sale, dta. ; 2. Ancient vestments, and speci-
mens of embroidery; 3. Eucharistic plate and other
valuables ; 4. Vestments, Be., from churches and private
individuals; and 3. Miscellaneous, including pastoral
staves, processional crosses, brass rubbings, Ac. There
will be explanatory lectures daily by various priests.
Papers will be read and 'peaches made on subjects of
interest connected with the exhibition, by the Revd..
Dr. Littledale, C. J. Le Geyt, and J. E. Van:; with
Mr. W. H. Hart, F.S.A., Mr. It. Brett, and other church-
men. On the last day of the Congress, a committee meet-
ing of the promoters of the Ecclesiastical Art Exhibition
will be held, to initiate proceedings for the Exhibition of
18G8. The Exhibition of Ecclesiastical Art will be held in
the School of Art. Church plate, worth in all some 8,0001.,
will, it is expected, he shown.—Birsaingban Pod.

The congress of German naturalists, at this
moment sitting at Frankfort, has resolved to hold its next
session from the 18th to the 24th Sept., 1868, at Dresden.
About 800 persons are present at Frankfort.

The Empress of Austria is announced to be
again in an interesting condition.

A Munich letter dates that the young King of
Bavaria, accompanied by his betrothed, came to that
capital a few days back from the Chateau de Berg. After
being present at a performance of Richard Wagner's opera
of Tannhanaer his M►jesty again left with the Princess.

Victor Hugo is about to publish two volumes
treating, in poetry and prose, of the " Ideas of the Three
Revolutions." M. de Lamartine ►lso h completing a work
entitled " France et l'Avenir," teaching the grow th of
modern thought and belief to the rising generation.

On Tuesday next the new postal convention be-
tween England an! ah• Volta I States comes into opera-
tion, so far as regards printed papers .4 all kiwis and
patterns and sample. of merchandise. The part of the
convention which relates to letters, and reduoes the charge
to sixpence per halt-ounce, will not take effect till the let
of January.

The Pria papers reveal a new style of theft by
which jewellers are victimised. The professor of the in-
genious device presents himself in the shop of a dealer in
diamonds and pearls, and asks to see some small unset
stones. He is well dressed and wears coloured spectacles.
The stones are laid before him. spread on paper. Being
very near-sighted, as his glasses prove, he is obliged to
bring his eyes so near to the gems that he can pick them
up with the tip of his tongue, and he keeps them in his
mouth until out of the shop. If he fears detection, which
seldom occurs, be swallows his treasure—whenoe the slang
name of swisliow-it-raw given to this class of artists by the
thieves' fraternity. One of them was caught the other
day. The diamond merchant, put upon his guard by a
victim, said be had no small stones, but would have a large
supply the next day. A policeman was in waiting ; the
diamonds were laid out upon paper previously impregnated
with an extremely bitter drug, which, when the thief gave
his lick, acted so violently on his sense of taste, that be
was fain to reject what he had just taken. The police-
man appeared, end the swallow-it-raw was taken in the
act.

A fireman on board the United States war
steamer Shamrock, lying in Southampton Water, was
killed yesterday through getting entangled in the machi-
nery while the engines were being tried. He cannot be
buried on chore without authority from the coroner of the
district, who declines to give the necessary authority be-
cause an inquest baa not been held on the body. The
captain of the ship refuses to permit this, and if the corpse
cannot be buried on shore it will be taken to sea and
buried there.