The Washington herald., 1913-09-14

by REV. c. f. SMITH, DID,, ID. c. L.
London. Sept. IS.
SreoiaI to The Washington Herald.
In the City of London--in that which
| is properly the city-one is impressed
with the number of churches. They are
on every hand; not large-many of them
rather small-but grouped within an aera
of few hundred yards one will see three
or four. Standing by the Royal EX-
change, the fact was pointed out that
within two or three hundred yards of
each other we're probably nine or ten
churches: that is, of course, churches
OF England. At night the neighborhood
were they arc built, in comparison of
the living multitudes who throng il by
day. is quite deserted; and vet that word
deserted is only comparative one. With
us a down town church which is what
we would call these chuTches--wOuld i'll
a great many cases have moved to other
quarters of the city. Among the poor
there would have been no means of eN-
istenCe, and hence shey would have fol-
lowed the wealthier members up town.
In Washington there has been little Of
this comparatively, and great churches
like Epiphany have set a good example:
but in many of our cities the practice has
been to go up town. Here in London per
maps lll- SldN lllB libNtSS iliH bt'li ONtl .
done: it probably has been; but by virtue
of endowment the churches have been
able 10 stay Where palpably out Of
place by reason of the disappearance of
parishiOners. they have been removed 10
other sections. Altogether. however the
idea one gets is rather that Of suldity
and permanenCe IN the work Of the
church. which is a good bit better than
what has been so often our practice.
Nzw0#.
we are reminded at once of the fortunes
of the Welsh Church, SO called. for the
Welsh Church is nothing more or less
than four DioCeScs of the Province OF
Canterbury. There is bill now before
the British Parliament to discstablish and
also disendow this Welsh Church. There
is something peculiarly GiSCreditable
something even pitiahIC. in a great gov
ernmcnt devotinC its energies To the Grip:
ping of a church by stealing its re-
venues-for, after ALL the term Olsen
dowinS" is simply that. and nothing more
or less. It is quite true that the Welsh
Church does not represent the majority
Of the people Of Wales: nevertheless. it
is the oldest religious body there, the
history OF which is interviewer with its
people. and it has come by its endow-
ments not by any gift of the state. hut
by the gifts of its own members: and
what makes the proposed action OF the
government 50 contemplate and even
criminal is that it is not proposed to
mCte out the same measure To other re
lpious bodies which have CndOwments
toe. in many cases far in excess of the
OF the church. But unhappily,
while it Is generally confessed that the
Church Of Wales has been doing Yeo-
man service and was never more keenly
active in good works than it Is TO-DAY. and
a way today 1t has not done for years
since. it has many enemies who are bent
on overthrowing it-Chiefly political But
the government would be better advised
ii it devoted its energies TO helping every
agnCy which makes for the betterment
Of the people. The present government of
England is what is known as a radical
one. and its main business seems to be
to hold on to power at all costs and at
al sCruples.
One is forcibly struck with the part
the church has PLAYED in the Up-buildinE
OF England on going into the picture
galleries and elsewhere. Particularly is
this impressed on one in the Royal EX
change. In the interior. around the
great hall in the center Of the Royal
Exchange. there are a number Of very
large panels. each one filled with n his
toriCaI painting. I'm most of them eCClCs-
iasticaI pcrsonages are seen playing an
important part. One Of them represents
King John signing Magma Charta- 1t is
not at all the conventional picture, and