The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-07 00:00:00

TIM SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, MAY 7, 1864,

Pulpit Oratory in the Church of England.

A CLERGYMAN'S OPINION OF IT.
The Rev. A. J. D. D'Orsey, the emir.ent elocutionist of
Cambridge, took occasion at the Church Congress at Man .
cheater to make the following rather telling remarks in re-
gard to the educational shortcomings of his fellow clergy
in the estdblishment. He said that in working out church
extension they must have competent men ; but that they
had not competent men in number and quality; that they
had not an adequate supply, and that those they had were
not always up to the mark. His business was, therefore,
briefly to represent what he conceived to be the feelings of
the laity and also of the clergy upon this question. It was
that the education at present gives to candidates preparing
for orders in the Church was not the best suited for the
wcrk they had to perform. (Hear, hear.) An ancient king
was asked what education was; and he said that educa-
tion was " learning to do that when young which a man
would have to do when old." It they applied this
test—and it was a very good one—they would find that
the education accorded was admirable as far as the pre-
limivary discipline went ; but it was a failure in regard
to professional training. (Cheers.) Let them not—he ap-
pealed to his clerical brethren especially—for a moment
misunderstand him. He valued as much as any man lite-
rary and scientific attainments; but highly as he valued
these he valued still more highly that business work which
prepared men for the great duty of shepherds, under the
Great Shepherd of all, in the work of saving souls. (Cheers.)
Again, he said, he did not undervalue scholarship; seven
years passed at a public school and three years at a univer-
sity was a foundation of granite ; but when they found that
a pretty straw shed was erected, they were not proportion-
ing the means to the end, nor balancing the education of
the future clergyman aright. (Cheers.) What was a
clergyman's business? It was not to write Greek verses,
or to solve difficult problems in mathematics. All
this was valuable and important as a preliminary, and
he would have it not a whit less than at present. But he
would build upon that preparation a distinct professional
education. (Cheers.) Much had been said about the duty
of the laity to the clergy. They would, perhaps, permit
him, though a clergyman, to speak of the duty of the
clergy to the laity. Englishmen were always willing to pay
a good price for a good article ; but they did not like paying
a good price, or any price, for an article they did not want,
or for a bad article. It was of no use telling the laity,
"Your clergyman was the senior wrangler or the first
classie of his year." The educated layman would say, "I
grant that is a high honour ; but my senior wrangler can-
not read the service fit to be heard— (cheers and laughter)—
and my senior classic"—he begged the indulgence of his
clerical brethren, but no one would hiss excepting those
whom the shoe pinched—(laughter)—"my senior
classic may possibly contract with S. P. 0. of Blooms-
bury for a weekly supply of beautifully lithographrd
sermons, and read them as his own," (Laughter.) And
why did he do this ? Because at the university he was never
directly taught to write a word of English. (Cheers.)
Again, the delivery of a sermon, supposing it to have been
written by the clergyman himself, was often so sleepy,
monotonous, dull, and inaudible, that it was quite enough
to empty the church. (Cheers and intsrruption.) He
thought he heard a few hisses, but it was well known
whence they came. (Oh, oh, and laughter.) Why was it
with the agricultural classes that dissent was so popular?
It was not that those classes were lovers of dissent, as dis-
sent. (Cheers,) But it was because they could not
hear the old rector, and could not follow the young curate.
(Applause.) It was not because they disliked to go to
church, but because they could not understand its ser-
vices. They, therefore, emptied the parish church and filled
the Salem or the Bethel next door to it. (Laughter.) The
laity had the right to demand an article that was really use-
ful. When they went to physicians they went to men of
skill and experience—to men of five years' training as phy-
sicians. They went to them not because they were Latin
or Greek scholars or mathematicians, but because they were
good physicians. (Cheers.) He wanted this argument
applied here. He did not want the three years' university
course to be diminished a day. (Hear, hear.) He did not
want this, which was most valuable and important, at all
interfered with 1 y any modification. But he asked for a
suppkmentary year or two fur the thorough training of men
in reading the service, composition and delivery of sermons,
and in everything in which they were not at present
trained.

CONDUCT OP THE PRUSSIANS IN JUTLAND.—The
following appears in the France :—" On the 27th
ult., 8,000 Prussians entered Viborg. Accounts from
Horsens state that the troops which have arrived there are
quite young soldiers, Well dressed and newly come from
Sfiesia, but their arrogance and effrontery know no bounds.
They enter the shops in parties of ten or a dozen, and lay
hold of anything that strikes their fancy without thinking
of paying. Sometimes they even add raillery to their
pillage, telling the poor shopkeepers C that the King of
Denmark will pay for what is taken.' If by chance they
find a door shut against them they break it open, and in
some houses they have even assaulted the inhabitants, when
the latter have not immediately given them what they ask
for."