The Dean of Westminster offered the pulpit of Westminster Abbey,
for the special Advent service of last Monday, to the Bishop I -of Natal, and justified his offer in an extremely courteous and grace- ful letter of apology to the Bishop of London for even seeming to add " one fresh burden" to those which belong to the Bishop of London's "great position." His reasons are very simple. The Bishop of London has no more responsibility for the pulpit in Westminster Abbey than has the Bishop of Oxford for the pulpits of the Oxford colleges of which he is not Visitor. To Dean Stanley, who is responsible for the pulpit at Westminster, Dr. Colenso appears to be not only a regular Bishop of the English -Church, but one who has made great sacrifices for the Missionary -cause, and who, in relation to the occasion of this recent visit to England, has made a new sacrifice of a very noble kind. Under these circumstances, he thought it his duty to offer him that grate- ful recognition which it was the privilege of his office to bestow. Dean Stanley also reminds the Bishop that the sort of prejudice which ostracises the Bishop of Natal was formerly felt for Dr. Arnold, whose memory almost all the parties in the Church now honour. He anticipates a similar change in relation to the Bishop cf Natal. Dr. Jackson did not publish any answer to Dean Stanley's letter, but Dr. Colenso, with great dignity and tact, declined to accept an offer which might lead to contention. Never- theless, the Guardian of this week administers an acrimonious, but very confused rebuke to Dean Stanley for setting at defiance " Church order and authority." Dean Stanley has set no Church order at defiance. If he were under the Bishop of London, he would not have tried to ignore his authority. But in fact he is as responsible for the preaching in Westminster Abbey as Dr. Temple is for that in the diocese of Exeter, where he gave out that he should not inhibit the Bishop of Natal. If a Bishop is right in judging of his duty for himself in a larger sphere, so is an independent Dean in a smaller ; and it is not reasonably open to any one to maintain that one man should have the responsibility, while another should dictate how it is to be used. The Dean of Westminster seems to us to have discharged his -duty with his usual courage, generosity, and delicacy of feeling.
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