On Tuesday a large deputation, representing various parts of the
Empire and various Christian sects, was received by the King at Buckingham Palace and presented an Address in commemoration of the Tercentenary of the Authorised Version of the Bible. The Archbishop of Canterbury, in an historical survey of the Authorised Version, said :—
" The growth and strength of the Empire owe much to the English Bible. It has sweetened home life ; it has sot a standard of pure speech ; it has permeated literature and art ; it has helped to remove social wrongs and to ameliorate conditions of labour ; it has modified the laws of the realm and shaped the national character, and it has fostered international comity and good-will among men."
The King's reply was most happily phrased. We must quote the following admirable sentences :-
"This glorious and memorable achievement, coming like a broad light in the darkness, gave freely to the whole English-speaking people the right and the power to search for themselves for the truths and consolations of our faith, and during 300 years the multiplying millions of the English-speaking races, spreading ever more widely over the surface of the globe, have turned in their need to the grand simplicity of the Authorised Version, and have drawn upon its inexhaustible springs of wisdom, courage, and
joy."
We notice with much satisfaction the comprehensive terms in which the Archbishop of Oanterbury spoke of the Non-
conformist members of the deputation as belonging to the Christian "Church."
