In the House of Lords yesterday week the Lord Chancellor's
measure for endowing the Regius Professorship of Greek in Oxford with a Canonry was defeated by a majority of 30,-55 to 25. The Lord Chancellor chose to assume that the selection of a layman as the fittest man for the office would not naturally occur above once in live hundred times. We, however, have formerly quoted no mean authority in Oxford to show that even now it might well be expected to happen once in every two appointments,
and that the proportion of first-rate lay scholars will yet increase. The Bishop of St. David's in a very sensible speech opposed the measure on the same sound principle, that you should not remedy a temporary evil by introducing a permanent evil ; and it was obvious that all the weight of judgment in the House, though favourable to Professor Jowett, was against the measure. We regret deeply the postponement of justice to him,—but even that might be bought at too costly a price.
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