The Parson's Handbook. By the Rev. Percy Dearmer, M.A. (Grant
Richards. 3s. 6d.)—" A barrister of seven years' standing " is, or used to be, qualified for various appointments, , Mr. Peaxiner, as a priest of Seven years' standing, is qualified to be our instructor in Church matters, to cure us of our "lamentable confusion, law- lessness, and vulgarity." He means well always ; he sometimes gives good advice ; but we must frankly say that he is not always very wise. He builds on the " Ornaments Rubric " a huge structure of ceremony which practically would bring back our Church use to something very like what it was before the Reformation. The subject is not one to be discussed here, and we shall be content with one instance of Mr. Dearmer's method. Incense is to be used because it is mentioned by Malachi, because Zacharias was burning incense when the birth of the Baptist was announced, because it is spoken of in the Book of Revelation. Now let us see what Dean Stephens and Mr. Walter Hook say in the Church Dictionary :- " The use of incense in connexion with Christian worship is not mentioned by writers in the first three centuries of the Christian era ; in fact, there are numerous instances in which prayer is spoken of as the only incense offered to God."
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