to love a down-easter wide-awake hat. He is a
frank, independent, educated man; has no sham in him; is liberal is
far as his means will allow; works hard; has an odd, go-ahead way
with him; cares little about bowing and scraping to people; often
passes folk (unintentionally) without nodding; and has nothing of a
polemically virulent character in his disposition. There is
something genuine, honest, gentlemanly, and unreadable in him. He
almost reminds one of Elia's inexplicable cousin. He has a special
fondness for architecture; plans, specifications, &c., have a charm
for him; he is a sort of clerical Inigo Jones; and ought to have
been an architect. He is a rather polished reader; but he holds his
teeth too tightly together, and there is a tremulousness in his
voice which makes the utterances thereof rather too unctuous. As a
preacher he is clear, calm, and methodical. His sermons, all
written, are scholarly in style cool in tone, short, and, in the
orthodox sense, practical. In their delivery he does not make much
stir, he goes on evenly and rapidly, looking little to either the
right hand or the left, broiling none, and foaming never.
Occasionally, but it is quite an exception, he forgets his sermons--
leaves them at home--and this is somewhat awkward when the mistake
is only found out just before the preaching should be gone on with.
But the company are kept serene by a little extra singing, or
something of that kind, and in the meantime a rapid rush is made to
the parsonage, and the missing manuscript is secured, conveyed to
the church either in a basket or a pocket, taken into the pulpit,
looked at rather fiercely, shook a little, and then read through.
How would it be if the manuscript could not be found? Long official
life appears to be the rule at St. James's. Mr. Wm. Relph, who died
last year, was a churchwarden at the place for 21 years; Mr.
Bannister has been in office as churchwarden for nearly as long; the
person who was beadle up to last year had officiated in that
capacity for nearly eleven years; the organist has been at the
church above 15 years; the mistress of the school belonging the
church has been at her post about as long; and the schoolmaster has
been in office 13 or 14 years. If long service speaks well for a
place, the facts we have given are creditable alike to the church
and the officials. Mr. Wilson, who gets about 300 pounds a year, is
well-respected by all; he manages to keep down unplea