Nearly three years of hard work since the consecration of the church; single-handed work, for we are not yet in a position to maintain a curate; and, with the additional places of worship, at Kingsdown, six miles distant, and near Beaconsfield in a schoolroom. Some day these may form part of a separate parish; page 222meanwhile, I must do my best, giving them occasional Services. I am tempted at times to compare the work here with that at home; there, certainly, the disadvantages of crowded population, slums in places, much poverty and ill-health, but more clergy than we have to cope with the work. The comparison, I think, is in our favour, though I have to do the whole work of a large church like St. Mary's, much travelling, with some five sermons per week. But then, in every occupation here we work harder than is the custom at home, and no one is a penny the worse.

St. Mary's Needlework Guild, which I have already mentioned, is successfully raising funds for the debt on the Church; paying for certain portions of the fabric, such as the Chancel arch, and the stone-work of the western rose window. They have already established a wide reputation for plain and fancy work, executing orders, and holding occasional sales. The large building, lately used as a temporary Church, is now a Parish Hall, much in use for Sunday School and other work. In it we have weekly meetings of a Dorcas Society, which is thriving. It is a self-supporting rather than a charitable society. Its members pay a small weekly sum, which is doubled by the contributions of honorary members; they meet to do needlework for themselves, under the superintendence of the committee who aid them; material at wholesale prices is found for them, and they are taught to do good work. The weekly payment is strictly enforced, and no time is allowed to be wasted in talk. Each meeting is opened with hymn, prayer, and short Bible reading, by the Vicar. Once a year there is a social gathering of all members and friends, with tea, etc., and an annual bonus in kind page 223is given to the members, of material at wholesale prices, purchased by the society by means of general contributions for its work. It is succeeding well, because of its principle of not pauperizing by gifts, but of teaching self-reliance and self-help. Perhaps I should add that much depends on its good business management, which is in the hands of some of the most earnest and capable Churchwomen that any Vicar could have.

Sunday School work, too, is rapidly increasing, with good success. I am seldom absent from it, not teaching, but generally supervising the work, always taking myself the Morning School, as one large class. It certainly means work on a Sunday that one would gladly be free from, but I regard it as of all importance, especially as we can have no Church day schools; it brings one into personal contact with one's children, and with the teachers, to our great mutual advantage.

Of course, long continuance of such work begins to tell. It is now twenty-three years since I left London for Westland, and, save for the triennial meetings of General Synod, I have not had a single day's holiday. Our staff of clergy is too limited to allow for anything but an interchange of duty. There is no chance here of a month off work, with a locum tenens. So I am meditating a visit Homewards again, having the chance of someone to take charge of the parish for a year, a clergyman, recently arrived in our diocese, as Chaplain to the Bishop, the Rev. W. Winter. I have the consent of the Vestry, and I need hardly say I am looking forward keenly to the great pleasure of seeing the Old World again. Now that you have left your work at Eton, as Master, and are in your vicarage at Mapledurham, I shall hope to revisit you, page 224and talk of past days. Only those who have spent as many years as I have in a new land, which has no past, can understand what a holiday means in the Old World.

In February I attended the session of General Synod, in Dunedin. My Father, the Bishop of Christchurch, gave notice of his intention to resign the Primacy, which he had held since Bishop's Selwyn's departure in 1868, on account of his increasing years; Synod presenting him with an address, expressing the affectionate regret of the Church in New Zealand that his long and effective tenure of the office was about to terminate, having lasted over seven General Synods; and thankfulness for the prolongation of a life of such value to the Church, beyond the ordinary measure. Then followed the election of a Primate to fill the vacancy. It may interest you to know why Bishop Selwyn, and those with him, who drew up our Church Constitution, chose the title "Primate," instead of "Metropolitan" or "Archbishop." It was, I believe, because "Primus" or Primate was the title given in the earliest days of Church organization to the Bishop of Churches grouped together as a Province, who occupied the position of Presidency over them. Such a Primate had no higher spiritual authority or dignity than his fellow Bishops, but, as President of provincial Synods, and of the College of Bishops, he had certain duties committed to him, relating to matters of discipline, such as confirming episcopal elections, with no right of direct interference with the ordinary rule of another Bishop, but in certain cases of irregularity, a certain right of decision, if appealed to. He was also the executive of the Provincial Synod. It was held that though the title "Metropolitan" page 225took the place of "Primate," and later still, that of "Archbishop," "Primate" was the original title of the presiding Bishop, and, as such, was selected in the case of the Church in New Zealand. Perhaps it especially suits the Church, as in New Zealand there are four principal cities, none of which can claim the title of Metropolis. Moreover, the title Archbishop is usually connected with one special see, and city, whereas, in the New Zealand Church, the Primacy is a personal title, belonging to the Bishop who happens to be elected to the office by General Synod. If it were attached to one special see, any vacancy in that see would necessitate the newly elected Bishop being also constituted Primate.

So much for our title of Primate. In this particular election things occurred which were matters of much regret. The canon which regulates the election provides that any Bishop is eligible for the office, but there is to be no proposal of anyone as candidate. No speeches are to be made; voting is to be by ballot; any Bishop who obtains more than half the votes of each order of Bishops, Clergy and Laity, becomes the Primate. If no majority is obtained, a second, and third, ballot takes place; if no election then, the office devolves on the senior Bishop.

On this occasion there was no majority in the first and second ballots. Then Synod, in my opinion, made a grave mistake. In order to secure an election, the Bishop of Melanesia suggested, and Synod accepted, a resolution that the results of the ballot should be disclosed, with the names of the Bishops, and votes recorded for each. This, to my mind, was a violation of the spirit and letter of the canon, which was intended, by means of ballot, in the interests of the

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Bishops themselves, to keep the details of the voting secret. An election was secured, namely that of the Bishop of Wellington, but with the result that it was known that the Bishop of Nelson, the senior on the Bench, had been negatived by the representatives of his own diocese,—a most unhappy position, brought about by our own infringement of our canon. In future some alteration will be necessary in our procedure. Our methods of spiritual appointments are as yet on their trial. Whether they are an improvement on the anomalous system at Home, which seems, practically, to work so well, remains to be seen.