Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1901-09-04
POVERTY OF ENGLISH cLERcYMEN
Many of the Benefices Said to Be Worth
Less Than S55O n Year.

Many of the Benefices Said to Be Worth
Less Than $3.50 n Year.
The lot of the clergy in the Church
of England to-day is said to be so
wretched that even younger sons have
given up the career which for so many
years was looked upon as their chief
resource. 1t may easily be understood
that this calling has ceased to appeal
to them when the fact is known that
out of about 14,000 benefices in the
church more than 1000 are worth less
than $3.50 a year, and that nearly all
Of them are decreasing in value.
About 1900 benefcies are worth only
$500 year and less than $3.50 annu-
ally is the return from 300 livings
which have been recently described as
more nearly "starvings' to the unfor-
tunates who are assigned to them. In
the diocese Of Peterborough there
are sixty-one livings that are worth
no more than $225 a year and this is
not yet the worst as there are in New
castle benefces that are valued at only
$125 year.
The wives Of the clergymen in these
parishes are, Of course, unable to en-
ploy servants, and all the drudgery of
housework falls on their shoulders.
The luxury of meat is denied to them
except on alternate days. and their
children-of whom the number is al
ways in inverse ratio to the amount
Of the living-are prepared by educa-
tion in the elementary schools, or by
the teaching their parents can give
them at odd times for their descent
to lower social sphere. These clergy
men as rule come from good coun-
try families. Their wives are from
the same class and are in few cases
fitted by their training for a life Of
drudgery and hard work.
The actual return from these livings
Is frequently much less than the
figures quoted here since their value is
dependent on the price Of corn and
this has declined until in many cases
what used to be living worth $500
is now In reality not worth more than
two-thirds of that sum.
Various exactions make life hard
for the rector who is trying to strug-
gle along on the meagre incomes men
toned here. If his predecessor hap
pened to be q man of private means
and chose to enlarge the rectory by the
addition of wings or drawing 1cooms,
the poor incumbent must keep all this
up; and the Bishops chapter, who re-
ceive fees from the rector and not
from the Bishop for their work, are
careful to see that the church and the
rectory are kept in condition. There
is thought to be no hope of improve
ment in the lot of the priest so long as
the representation Of this body is so
small in the synods of the church in
which the Bishops are represented by
eight out of ten delegates. 1t is to
this injustice that most Of the present
evil Is attributed and the remedy is
expected to come from the lack of can
didates for holy orders. They are
decreasing so rapidly in number that
it will soon be problem to find
enough to fill the vacancies made by
death. No greater evidence of the
present miseries could be found than
the fact that the over supply Of clergy
Of a few years ago threatens to be-
come memory and be followed by an
absolutely scarcity.-New York Sun.
absolute scarcity.-New York Sun. "a