The Home Secretary, Mr. Assheton Cross, laid the first stone
of a new church in the parish of Garston, near Liverpool, on Tues- day, and availed himself of the opportunity to deliver an earnest and sensible harangue on the duties of the laity in relation to the Church. " There were many responsibilities which rested deeply on the laity of this country." " They must remember, when talking of the responsibilities of the clergy, that there were responsibilities of the laity,—that they all, however humble their position, might have enormous influence for evil, far more than they have for good." We quite admit the responsibilities of the laity as individual members of the Church. For the Church itself, however, they can have hardly any responsibility at present. The responsibilities of the Church are almost wholly concentrated in incumbents, and those which are not left to the incumbents are left to the Bishops or to Convocation. If Mr. Cross wants to make the laity of the Church responsible for what the Church is, be should help to give the laity some practical influence over the affairs, of the Church. And this he is probably not prepared to do.
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