The Sun.
London, England, 1869-01-27 00:00:00

CHURCH QUESTIONS.

A correspondent of the Times, in referring to
Lord Ebury's letter, expresses a strong desire to see a
reduction in the number of dogmas belogging to all
the Christian Churches. He quotes the words of
Erasmus, who advised the Pope and the prelates
of his day to " reduce the dogmas necessary
to be believed to the smallest possible number,
and on other points leave every one free to
believe what he pleases." If such advice had been
followed the writer believes that most of the great
schisms of the Church might have been avoided, am'
he holds it to be fully in accordance with the spirit of
the Apostle's teaching, who only insisted on three points
—repentance, faith in a Saviour, and a reformed life.
If universal adhesion to minor doctrines had been
indispensable, St. Paul would not have passed them
by without a word. The present age thinks it neces-
sary to believe more but to do less, and the acerbity
of modern religious controversialists is much to be
regretted.

" A Dorsetshire Incumbent," writing on a simil .r
topic, considers that the antecedents of Mr. Gladstone,
Lord Hatherley, and Sir J. D. Coleridge are suffi-
cient guarantee of their good intentions towards the
English Church. Ile believes the change in Ireland
will really strengthen the Church, arid he greatly de-
plores the mistakes made by English Churchmen.
more especially by members .of the University of
Oxford, in rejecting men like Mr. Gladstone and Sir
Roundell Palmer.

WOMAN'S DEGREES.

Camb. i' g 3 University h:s very obligingly placed
a den Tee r,,t the disrosal of t'le ladies of Enelani.
among tne subjects to be read up is French, as
found written in C orn eine, Moliere' andehateaubriand.
Amongst the works selected are "Horace," "Le verre
dEau," " Atala," and " Les Precieuses," all tales of
love, and that not always of the purest kind. The
two first-named are not perhaps so marked by what
is objectionable ; but the mysticism of " Atala" is
hardly fit for " gushing eighteen," and "Les
Precieuses " contains expressions which would shock
the more refined manners of this generation.
Altogether it is a pity that the authorities have not
made their selections with better judgment.

THE *UNIVERSITY BOAT-RACE.
If the Cantabs have abandoned the idea of pulling
this year between Mortlake and Hammersmith, it is
without knowing it. They are in full training, and
on Monday went out with Mr. J. R. Selwyn and did
good work. Mr. Willan has been coaching Oxford,
and has now taken his accustomed place of No. 4.
Mr. Darbishire, the victorious " stroke " of last year,
has been transferred from 6 to his old position.
LORD ZETLAND AND THE FREEMASONS.
Mr. Clabon -writes, with reference to Lord
Eliot's recent letter about' Lord Zetland and
the Freemasons, that Lord Eliot was right in
affirming, that the Grand Master would not permit
the proposed commemoration to partake of a personal
benefit to himself. But it has not yet been decided
what form it shall assume. Lord Eliot's proposal to
establish university scholarships in connection with
the Freehiasons' Boys' School will be considered,
together with about twenty other schemes whichhave
been. suggested.

The Press says :—" The Empress Charlotte has
been for the last two months in a calm; state, and has be -
come extremely inactive. Often she. does not get up at
all, but passes two days in bed. In consequence she is
getting extraordinarily stout. When she is urged to get
up, she almost invariably replies that as the pictures want
to run away she is obliged to watch them."

Lieutenant Nolan's instrument for measuring the
distance to inaccessible objects, for the use of coast and
field batteries, was successfully tried at ShoebuiTness, in
comparison with the usual service method of guessing
similar distances.

FOREIGN NOTES.

TIIRS.EY AND GREECE.

According to the Independance Beige, the tireek Govern-
ment is preparing to publish a memorial in defence of its
recent policy. This document, which Greece would not
lay before the Conference, as the authority of that tribunal
was not recognised, is certainly a remarkable speci-
men of its kind, provided it resembles the sketch
given in the Belgian paper. It begins by disposing
of the Turkish ultimatum, taking the last point first.
The fourth and fifth demands it treats as of no import-
ance—one of them was to the effect that Greece should
respect international law for the future ; the third is
admitted without restriction ; but the first and second are
opposed to the law of nations. Greece thinks
herself the injured party, and demands reparation
for injuries inflicted on Greek subjects. Hobart Pasha
must be brought to trial for his treatment of the Enosis.
These conditions being satisfied, Greece is ready to allow
the Cretans to return to their island, to forbid all State
officers, military or civil, to take up arms ,on behalf of the
insurgents, and to put a stop to private-ering. What
benefit the Greek Government can reason Ably expect from
this publication is by no means clear.

The Tinzes Berlin correspondent, a writer at very belli-
CO3e temperament, says that Count Stackelin rg at the
opening of the Conference announced his inability to sign
any minutes or protocol severely censuring Greece; hence
the guarded wording of the declaration. Engl4T d, too,seems
to have been solicitous that the form given to this final vote
should not contain anything that might )e taken as a
menace. In the course of the debates an imF .ortant motion
introduced by Austria and the Porte was n !jected. These
Powers desired the Conference to declare tha tin the event
of any future controversies arising between Turkey and
Greece neutrality would be observed by the rest of
Europe. The motion produced an animated di !bate, but,
other Powers being of opinion that to endorsee h would be
tantamount to handing Hellas over to the Ottomans, it
was eventually thrown out. It is now beyond don. IA that
the summary of the declaration first giveniis correct,