THE LATE BISHOP OF CHESTER.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] "Sri,—In your notice last week of our late Bishop, you spoke of him as "brought up as a Dissenter at Homerton," and after- wards "entering the Church of England." Will you kindly allow me to point out that this is an entire misrepresentation, -though a natural one, of the facts of the case? The Bishop was the son of Church people ; in fact, his father, a more than usually earnest Churchman in his day, died of a chill caught by attending a week-day service. No Dissenting element entered the family till some ten years later, when the Bishop's mother married again. But in his Churchmanship and determination -to take Holy Orders William Jacobson never faltered, either when sent, sorely against his own will, by his stepfather to Homerton, or at any other time. Few men cared less for human praise or blame of themselves ; but his reverence for the father he never knew on earth would have made it painful to the Bishop to see him represented as a Dissenter, and I trust, Sir, there- fore, that you will permit me to correct this error.
As the education our Bishop received from Nonconformists has been brought somewhat prominently into notice in every paper which has given any obituary record of him, it may be well to add that although his career at Oxford, until he became Fellow of Exeter, was an honourable struggle against great poverty (which was not all that his consistent Churchmanship cost him), that poverty had not hindered the scrupulous repay- ment of all his expenses at Homerton.
Much has been said, and most truly, by you, Sir, and others, of his caution, reserve, "detestation of controversy," and "skill in evading giving a polemical opinion." But those who knew him intimately were well aware that his character showed another side—sometimes, e.g., if the Truth he loved were really attacked, a friend blamed, or one of his clergy in danger of annoyance. Thus, although when he came to his diocese he found Hugh MacNeile regarded in general as "the great and good man" it contained, that shining light was publicly and severely told that the Holy Eucharist was no subject for discussion in the columns of a newspaper ; and a few months later the Bishop took the opportunity of his first charge to lay a very unpopular view of the Church's doctrine on that point before the Oraugemen of Liverpool. Thus, again, the writer was once present when Charles Kingsley (between whom and the Bishop a very warm friendship existed) unwisely ventured in his presence to use the word " dishonourable " in connection with John Henry Newman. Interrupting his own conversation, the Bishop hastily and indignantly contradicted him, remarked (with, I am sure, unintentional sarcasm) that he could know nothing of the man of whom he spoke ; then, his face working with emotion, left the room with the words, "No one was ever the least like Newman." And thus, at an ordination, he would silently but decidedly shield any of his candidates, however an evangelical dignitary might attack him, on "their ritualistic dress, my lord !" Thus, too, nearly forty years ago, during the wild Protestant panic that followed certain secessions to Rome, some early Church Associationists who tried to stir up strife at Etvelme could never shake his determination to retain the stone altar there,—the old farmers of that village remarking, "So long a.s he is doctor here, we don't see any harm is like to come of it."
Had our Bishop not loved truth even more than peace, could he, Sir, have "inspired the warmest friendship " in the minds of such men as mourn him now ?—I am, Sir, &c., F.
[We have the utmost pleasure in publishing this most inter- esting contribution to Bishop Jacobson's life, and need hardly say that our own mistake was due to a too hasty inference from the known facts.—En. Spectator.]
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