Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1892-09-24
wAKEmAN,s wANDERINGs.

wAKEMAN,s wANDERINGs.
A Canterbury PiIgrimage-Loiteri
with the wraithful Company OF
Chaucer,s Canterbury Tales - The
Tabard Inn at Southward-Stour
Valley and Ancient Canterbury-The
Cathedral Vast and Glittering, but
Lacking I'm Winsomeness and Re-
pose.
CANTERBURY, England, Sept. 12.
To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER
Despite the huge proportions, the beau
tiful interior and the still existing eviden-
ces of splendor in treasure and ceremoni-
al in the olden days of the cathedral at
Canterbury-frst established seat of Epis-
copal power in England, the present see of
an archbishop, primate of all England and
metropolitan-both the cathedral and city
seem to impress the visitor with an indie
Unable sense of sadness and unrest no
where else experienced in the old cathe-
dral towns of England.
This is not easily anslyzed and made
clear to others. 1t is true, however, that
at Worcester, at Exeter, at Lincoln, at
Wells, at Winchester, at Gloucester, at
Salisbury, at Litchfeld, at Chester, at
Ely, and even to some extent at the huge
and shadowy Minister of York, there Is
something so warm and sunny in the i'm
mediate surroundings, 30 deep an affection
of townsfolk for the venerable edifices is
apparent, something go hushed, reposeful
and soothing is felt in the calm of close,
cloister and church itself, that one imper-
ceptibly yields to the gentle spell and is
touched by the sweet and tender influence.
At Canterbury the entire Interpretation
of locality, history, association and struc-
tural impressiveness is different. The sea
and another land and tongue are too close
to give the cathedral and town that COM
plete and harmonious setting and environ
ment peculiar to nearly all other cathedrals
of England. Somehow there are too many
splatches of blood upon Canterbury's oony
secrsted stones to prevent a chill and
shudder as you come close to the place of
historic and dreadful tragedies, and one of
the foulest murders of the Christian era
gave this cathedral its vastest treasure and
greatest renown. The shrines of Canter
bury are of kings and prelates only. The
heart is not greatly stirred by these. The
humble shrine of old Izaak Walton warns
the human affections more to the one
venerable cathedral where the gentle an
gler lies, and the "Poet's Corner" or the
one little slab bearing the name "Chsrles
Dickens" in Westminster, holds the af
fection closer to London's abbey church
than all the tombs of kings, prelates and
saints in immeasurably more splendid
Canterbury. And the majestic and price
less dreams in stone in this glittering and
princely cathedral, while they compel an
intellectual submissiveness akin to awe,
still possess repellant grandeur rather
than that mellow and tender winsomeness
which twines every tendril of ones heart,
close as their MOSES and ivies, in and
around all other old cathe5 :als and cathe-
dral towns of England.
When Caesar with his Roman legions
crossed the straits of Dover and pushed on
to London to subjugste the entire island
save Scotland, Wales and portions of Corn
wall, he found British hamlet at a ford
of the river Stour. fifteen miles from Do
yer and fifty from London. The Ro-
mans utilized this strategic place as base
of supplies and q military station, and
gave it the name of Durovernum. After
the Romans retired from England and the
Saxon domination began, the present coun-
ty of Kent became a kingdom. Its chief
city and capital, the former Roman Durov-
ernum, was then called Cantwsrsbyrig,
and the name Canterbury of to day is sim
ply slight corruption of the city's old
Saxon title.
The manner in which Canterbury became
the seat of the Primate of the Anglican
church WAS in this vice: Pope Gregory
the Great, in 596, conceived the idea OF
Christianizing the inhabitants of England.
independent of the splendid missionary la
bors of the followers of St. Patrick in Ire
land and upon the western coasts of Scot
land, Wales and Cornwall. Augustine,
called the apostle of the English, original
ly a monk in the convent of st. Andrew
at Rome, where he was educated under
Pope Gregory, was selected to undertake
the conversion of the British.
Conditions were favorable to this mis-
sion. Ethelbert was then the fourth King
of Kent. His wife. Bertha, daughter of
Cherebert, King of France, was Chris
tian princess, and had stipulated for the
free exercise of her religion in her mar
riage contract. Her influence upon Ethel
bert was such as to assure Augustine and
his followers of hospitable reception.
Soon after Augustine's arrival King Ethel
bert not only embraced Christianity, and
caused, by royal command, the conversion
and baptism of his mobiles and people. but
also granted the city of Canterbury and
its dependencies to Augustine, who had
been invested with arohiepiscopal dignity
by Pope Gregory. The pope soon after
sent additional missionaries, and empow-
cred Augustine to constitute a bishop of
York, but this in such manner that Au-
gustine of Canterbury and each of his
successors should remain metropolitan of
all England.
Augustine died in the year 604 at Can
terbury. He was buried in the church
yard of the Augustine monastery, the ca
thedral building then not being completed.
After the cathedral was consecrsted his
body was removed to the north porch,
where it remained until 1901, when it was
placed within the cathedral. All this is
interesting, briefly traced, as 1t gives exact
data as to the origin of Episcopscy in Eng
land; shows the source and circumstances
of the creation of ecclesiastic primacy at
Canterbury, and is evidence that the origi-
| nal Canterbury cathedral, an important
portion of which is intact within the pres
ent cathedral walls, was in progress of
construction at least one thousand two
hundred and ninety years ago.
The ordinary modern pilgrimage to Can
| terbury is made over the London and
| Southeastern railway, and a pleasant one
1t is. But a far pleasanter one is to ssun-
ter over the ancient way taken by the pill
grims in those days when the shrine of ST.
| Thomas Beckett was to the pious of Eng
land what Mecca is to the followers of Ma
homet. This leads from out through
Southwark, in Surry, over into Kent and,
for about fifty miles, past the l.vender
| fields, the strawberry farms and great hop
vineyards of the most fruitful portion of
England.
Though Southwark is now merely a por-
ton of London, like Chelsea on the west,
it has many characteristic old time bits
worth studying; and any one familiar with
Chsucer will find pleasure in idlipg about
the place where stood. the old Tabard Inn.
The original Tabard Inn was burned 1876;
but another Tabard Inn, fashioned after
the hostelry of Chaucer's time, and now
itself old and picturesque enough to please
any idler among the MOSES of antiquity,
at once took its place, and is now q Mecca
to many literary pilgrims.
In the first Tabsrd Inn-as at Sudbury
Inn in Longfellow's "Tales of Wayside
| Inn" and no doubt Longfellow took Chau