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 Cornell University Library 
 BX5199.C76 H84 
 
 William Conyngham Plunket : fourth Baron 
 
 olln 
 
 3 1924 029 449 687 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of tiiis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029449687 
 
ARCHBISHOP PLUNKET 
 
 A MEMOIR 
 
WILLIAM CONYNGHAM PLUNKET 
 
 FOURTH BARON PLUNKET 
 
 AifD 
 
 SIXTY-FIRST ARCHBISHOP OF DUBLIN 
 
 A MEMOIR 
 
 BY 
 
 FEEDBRIOK DOUGLAS HOW 
 
 AUTHOR OF "bishop WALSHAM HOW: A MEMoTr" 
 " BISHOP JOHN SELWYN : A MEMOIR " ETC. 
 
 LONDON 
 ISBISTEE AND COMPANY Limited 
 
 15 & 16 TAVISTOCK STEEET COVENT GAEDBN 
 1900 
 
 3> 
 
/^ 
 
 '^f 
 
 7 Mf'P ^ I 
 
 /)^ 
 
 //5 
 
 Printed by Ballantyne, Hanson 6* Co. 
 London &' Edinburgh 
 
PREFACE 
 
 It is usually thought well that a biography should be 
 brought out wich as little delay as possible. 
 
 It is not, however, altogether to be regretted that 
 this book will not be published until nearly four years 
 after the Aichbishop's death. 
 
 During that tine it is surely not too much to hope 
 that the party bitterness which was called out by some 
 of his best known work may have given place to a 
 calmer judgment and more charitable spirit. 
 
 I have ventured to separate some of the larger 
 subjects — e.g. Education, the Disestablishment of the 
 Irish Church, &c. My reason for doing so is that 
 reference may thus be more easily made to any special 
 portion of the History of the Irish Church at this most 
 important period. 
 
 I have received a great deal of valuable help, and my 
 only regret is that, in spite of this, I have not done 
 fuller justice to the portrait of one of the noblest and 
 most lovable of Irishmen. 
 
 I cannot adequately express my gratitude for the 
 assistance given me by some of the late Archbishop's 
 
VI Preface 
 
 immediate relatives ; but I also wish to thank most 
 heartily Lord James of Hereford, the Bishop of 
 Clogher, Sir Frederick Falkiner, the Archdeacon of 
 Dublin, Principal Moore, Canon Venables, Canon 
 Meyrick, Professor Mayor, Dr. Noyes, Rev. J. Jen- 
 nings, Rev. Samuel Prenter, Rev. Rowland Scriven, 
 and Rev. T. Pulvertaft. 
 
 F. D. H. 
 
 July 1900. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 
 I. CHILDHOOD 9 
 
 II. EARLY LIFE 24 
 
 III. WEST CONNAUGHT — HIS MARRIAGE 39 
 
 IV. CANON VENABLES' VISIT TO WEST CONNAUGHT . . $8 
 
 V. DISESTABLISHMENT OF THE IRISH CHURCH ... 64 
 
 VI. DISESTABLISHMENT (CONTINUED) 80 
 
 VII. PRAYER-BOOK REVISION lOI 
 
 VIII. REUNION 113 
 
 IX. THE BISHOPRIC OF MEATH I30 
 
 X. MEATH (continued) 145 
 
 XI. HIS WORK FOR IRISH EDUCATION ^5S 
 
 XH. EDUCATIONAL WORK (CONTINUED) 17O 
 
 XIII. LORD PLUNKBT AN IRISHMAN 18I 
 
 XIV. THE SPANISH QUESTION 205 
 
 XV. THE SPANISH QUESTION (CONTINUED) .... 23O 
 
 XVI. „ „ » .... 24s 
 
 XVII. ATTEMPTED CONSECRATION OF THE MADRID CHURCH . 257 
 
viii Contents 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 
 XVIII, CONSECRATION OF SESOR CABRERA 272 
 
 XIX, THE ITALIAN REFORMED CHURCH 282 
 
 XX, THE ARCHBISHOPRIC OF DUBLIN 3O4 
 
 XXI. PARTY STRIFE IN DUBLIN 317 
 
 XXII. DOMESTIC LIFE 338 
 
 XXIII. OLD CONNAUGHT 356 
 
 XXIV. VISIT OF ARCHBISHOP BENSON — DEATH OF LORD 
 
 PLUNKET 372 
 
 INDEX 385 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 CHILDHOOD 
 
 In an unpretentious house, No. 30 Upper Fitzwilliam 
 Street, Dublin, a son and heir was born to the Hon. 
 John Plunket, Q.C., on August 26, 1828. There were 
 two elder children, both daughters, and this boy was 
 named William Conyngham after his grandfather, the 
 first Baron Plunket, of Newton in the county of 
 Cork, Lord Chancellor of Ireland and peer of the 
 United Kingdom. This child was destined to become 
 Archbishop of Dublin and to succeed to the barony. 
 
 If the surroundings of his birth were in no way 
 luxurious, for his father's income at that time allowed 
 no margin for the usual accessories of rank, a glance at 
 the family history shows that his ancestry on both 
 sides was decidedly out of the common. 
 
 In a certain sense his grandfather, the first lord, was 
 a self-made man, being the son of a dissenting minister, 
 but in O'Hart's Pedigrees a claim is made (as in the 
 case of so many Irish families) that the Plunkets 
 descend from Brian Boroimhe (Brian Boroo), 175th 
 monarch of Ireland. As a matter of fact, it seems 
 clear that all the Plunkets sprang from a John 
 Plunket, who was seated about the close of the 
 eleventh century at Bewley, or Beaulieu, Co. Louth, 
 
lo Archbishop Plunket 
 
 so that, even if the royal descent be somewhat in- 
 distinct in the hazy distance of the centuries, a long 
 and honourable line is assured. 
 
 But it is in the ancestry of his mother that so many 
 great and historical names are found. This lady was 
 Charlotte, third daughter of the Right Honourable 
 Charles Kendal Bushe, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. 
 Her mother was Anne, one of the Cramptons and a 
 descendant of John of Gaunt through his daughter 
 Joan Beaufort, who married Ralph Nevill, first Earl 
 of Westmoreland ; one of her descendants, Dorothy 
 Nevill, married Thomas, Earl of Exeter, eldest son of 
 Cecil, Lord Burghley ; and their granddaughter married 
 the second Viscount Saye and Sele, whose grand- 
 daughter, Charlotte Twistleton, married John Cramp- 
 ton and became grandmother of Anne, Lady Bushe. 
 
 Thus, too, the illustrious name of William of Wyke- 
 ham is found in the history of Lord Plunket's 
 ancestors, for a sister of this famous bishop was 
 great-grandmother of William Wykeham (otherwise 
 Perrot), whose daughter married the second Baron 
 Saye and Sele, old patent, who was slain at the battle 
 of Barnet in 1471, and was a forefather of the Viscount 
 Saye and Sele mentioned above. 
 
 With this slight reference to the extremely interest- 
 ing history of his progenitors, it is necessary to pass to 
 those who were more immediately connected with the 
 subject of this memoir, and from whom he inherited 
 many marked characteristics of both mind and 
 person, 
 
 " The old lord," as he was commonly called in the 
 family— I.e., the Lord Chancellor — was a truly remark- 
 
Childhood i i 
 
 able man. Ambitious, to some extent domineering, 
 and possessing a hasty temper not always under 
 control, he was a great orator,* a fine classical 
 scholar of the old school, and a man of great deter- 
 mination. He was badly treated by the Whigs in 
 1 841, who removed him from the Chancellorship of 
 Ireland to make room for Lord Campbell, who sat for 
 precisely one day. Lord Plunket retired in high 
 dudgeon to his country seat. Old Connaught, near 
 Bray, and burnt all his papers, which included many 
 important historical documents. After this his health 
 soon began to fail and his vigour of mind to decHne. 
 During these years of retirement William Plunket, the 
 future Archbishop, who was his eldest grandson and 
 his godson, was a good deal at Old Connaught, and a 
 great favourite with the old lord. Part of his holidays 
 was invariably spent there, and the two would sit for 
 hours capping one another's quotations. The old lord 
 had a wonderful memory, and it only required a quota- 
 tion, or an allusion to some of his favourite authors, 
 to roll back the mist that was beginning to gather 
 
 * Cf. Trevelyan's "Life of Lord Macaulay " (vol. i. p. 172), apropos 
 of Macaulay's first speech on Reform: "The names of Fox, Burke, 
 and Canning were during that evening in everybody's mouth ; and 
 Macaulay overheard with delight a knot of old members illustrating 
 their criticisms by recollections of Lord Plunket. He had reason to be 
 pleased ; for he had been thought worthy of the compliment which the 
 judgment of Parliament reserves for a supreme occasion. In 1866, on 
 the second reading of the Franchise Bill, when the crowning oration of 
 that memorable debate had come to its close amidst a tempest of 
 applause, one or two of the veterans of the lobby, forgetting Macaulay 
 on Reform — forgetting, it may be, Mr. Gladstone himself on the Con- 
 servative Budget of 1852 — pronounced amid the willing consent of a 
 younger generation that there had been nothing like it since Plunket." 
 
12 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 over his memory and to reveal the treasures that were 
 stored therein. 
 
 Some of the family still vividly remember such a 
 scene. There was the old gentleman in his accus- 
 tomed armchair in the library, and the young grandson 
 sitting with a large volume of the classics upon his 
 knee, out of which he had begun to read some 
 favourite ode. A few lines were sufficient to fire the 
 old scholar and orator's brain, and he took up page 
 after page of sonorous Latin delivered in that magical 
 voice which had commanded listening senates, and 
 which kept even his little granddaughter, who was in 
 the room, spellbound by the beauty of the sound alone, 
 for the words must have had no meaning to her 
 childish ears. Again, at other times he would recite 
 long passages from Milton and from Shakespeare ; and 
 no more sympathetic listener could he have found than 
 his grandson William. It will thus be seen that the 
 future archbishop had many opportunities of imbibing 
 some of the mental qualities of his famous grandfather. 
 
 In connection with the Lord Chancellor, an amusing 
 story must not be omitted. One of the proudest 
 memories of Old Connaught House is the visit paid 
 to it by Sir Walter Scott, and a bust of the famous 
 poet-novelist has for many years occupied a prominent 
 position there in honour of the event. The story goes 
 that during this visit to the old lord Sir Walter and a 
 large party from the house paid a visit to the ruins of 
 the Seven Churches at Glendalough, Co. Wicklow. 
 One of the most interesting spots is a cave in the 
 mountain side, commonly called " St. Kevin's Bed." 
 No visitor to the Seven Churches fails to visit this 
 
Childhood i 3 
 
 " sacred " place. The cave is very difficult to reach, 
 and Sir Walter obtained the assistance of an old 
 peasant woman to drag him up from the shore of the 
 lake to the platform of rock from which the cave is 
 entered. On returning to the boat the Lord Chan- 
 cellor asked the old woman if she knew how great a 
 man she had been assisting. " He is Sir Walter Scott, 
 the illustrious poet," said he. " Begorra, your honour," 
 she replied, " he's no poet ; he's a gentleman born and 
 bred — for, by all that's holy, hasn't he left in my hand 
 a piece of silver ? " 
 
 But it was from his mother's side that he gained his 
 best-known characteristics. Of his maternal grand- 
 father. Chief Justice Bushe, it is recorded that he was a 
 delightful companion and a notable raconteur, be- 
 sides being an eminent judge. Of all these qualities 
 William Plunket inherited a large share, but it was his 
 mother herself, of whom there is more to be said here- 
 after, whom he most closely resembled both in feature 
 and character. 
 
 His father, the Hon. John Plunket, was a man of 
 less ability than either the old lord or the future arch- 
 bishop. But for all that, the latter owed much of his 
 simple, generous disposition, his hatred of injustice, 
 and quiet tenacity of purpose, to his father's example. 
 John Plunket, it is said, may best be described as a 
 high-minded gentleman in the most literal sense of the 
 word. His tender-hearted benevolence sprang from a 
 kindliness of heart untainted by the least leaven of 
 ostentation or worldly wisdom. He ever possessed a 
 childlike faith in his Heavenly Father's goodness and 
 wisdom, and from this sprang the pure river of charity. 
 
14 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 But he was not only gentle ; he was also a thorough 
 man, and as much respected as he was beloved. He 
 had a hot hatred of meanness or petty wrong, and a 
 determination to do what he considered right which 
 often won its way more surely than any more self- 
 assertive or turbulent spirit could have done. He was 
 an able and hard-working lawyer, and held for many 
 years the post of county court judge — assistant barrister, 
 as it was then called— and also that of Crown prose- 
 cutor on the Munster circuit and in the Recorder's 
 Court. In society he was greatly appreciated, for no 
 one could be five minutes in the company of that 
 gentle unobtrusive man without being charmed by his 
 play of feature, his wealth of humour, his quaint and 
 original expressions, and the fun he took and helped 
 others to take in everything. But it was not often that 
 he could be drawn into the vortex of Dublin society, 
 with its many wits and orators of that day. He sought 
 his pleasures in his home. He could never even be 
 persuaded to join any club, but hurried back from 
 sessions, circuit, or the Four Courts, as the case might 
 be, to the delights of his family circle. 
 
 This was no matter of surprise to those who were 
 acquainted with the lady whom he made his wife. As 
 he used to be fond of telling, he wooed and won her 
 from the schoolroom, and they were married as soon 
 as she was eighteen. Here is her description, from the 
 pen of a member of the family : 
 
 " She was a beautiful, tall, fresh, Hebe-like girl, the striking 
 features of her face being the well-shaped brows and large blue 
 eyes with heavy lids, which her son the Archbishop inherited. 
 Innocence, intelligence, and sweetness were written in every line 
 
Childhood 15 
 
 of her countenance ; but even her ardent lover can scarcely 
 have imagined in his rosiest dreams the worth of the prize that 
 he had won, or guessed the strength of the pure soul that lay 
 beneath that shy and feminine exterior. . . . The words that 
 seem most fitly to describe the spirit which ever filled her 
 heart are to be found in her favourite passage from the Bible 
 (' Charity suffereth long and is kind,' &c.), which she taught to 
 all her children as soon as they could speak. Charity flooded 
 her thoughts, her looks, her gestures, her words and deeds — 
 and will not all who knew him acknowledge the reflection of 
 the same all-pervading spirit in her dearly beloved son ? " 
 
 This strong feeling of charity towards others per- 
 vaded William Plunket's whole life. His son, the 
 present Lord Plunket, in writing upon this subject, 
 says : 
 
 " He hated to hear evil imputed to others, and whenever 
 unkind or careless words were spoken about other people we 
 always wished we could stop the speaker, as we knew how they 
 were hurting my father. He had an unconscious trick of say- 
 ing, ' Hum, hum, hum,' when something was said which he 
 did not like, and this was always the signal to try to change the 
 conversation. It was not that he disliked fair criticism, but 
 only such words as he thought were not worthy." 
 
 But he inherited also much of his sense of humour 
 and joyous disposition from his mother. A few lines 
 written by him long afterwards in the course of a letter 
 to her, are the best possible proof of this : 
 
 " Who taught the eldest of her sons 
 To make innumerable puns — 
 Sometimes, alas ! most wretched ones ? 
 My mother ! 
 
 " Who makes a play on every word, 
 And cracks good jokes, the most absurd, 
 
1 6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 And yet the best I ever heard ? 
 
 My mother ! " 
 
 With such a father and such a mother at its head, it 
 is small wonder that the home in Upper Fitzwilliam 
 Street is described as ideally happy. No less than 
 fourteen children were born to them, eight daughters 
 and six sons ; and the fact of there being so many to 
 share in the love and happiness of the home seemed, 
 as it so often does, to call forth an unusual amount of 
 the spirit of unity and unselfishness. 
 
 Of this large family, William Conyngham Plunket 
 was, as has been already stated, the third child and 
 eldest son. His father's elder brother, the Bishop of 
 Tuam, had no sons, so that the birth of this boy was 
 important as supplying the heir to the peerage. On 
 this account doubtless the sponsors at his baptism 
 were his two grandfathers, the Right Hon. Lord 
 Plunket, then Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, and 
 the Right Hon. Charles Kendal Bushe, Chief Justice 
 of the King's Bench. In appearance he was highly 
 favoured by nature. A slight, upright child, with good 
 physique and a handsome face, he had those large 
 Irish blue eyes which, combined with dark hair, eye- 
 brows and eyelashes, and a fair skin, were always the 
 most striking features in his appearance. His neck 
 was long and slender, and his limbs were beautifully 
 proportioned, as was noticed by a portrait painter, who 
 took special measurements of them. He was the 
 handsomest of a handsome family, inheriting the good 
 looks of both sides of his ancestry, and in addition was 
 possessed of a voice which, even in conversation, was 
 of great beauty and constituted no small part of his 
 
Childhood i 7 
 
 3onal charm. Long years afterwards, when a 
 ner Duke of Marlborough was Lord Lieutenant of 
 and, he preached a sermon before the Duke and 
 :hess in St. Patrick's Cathedral, on which occasion 
 latter was overheard to remark, " What a handsome 
 1 ; and no brogue ! " 
 
 'he mental and spiritual characteristics which dis- 
 [uished him to the end of his life were strongly 
 •ked in his earliest childhood. From the first he 
 wed deep religious feeling, expression of which is 
 ;overed in letters to his sisters, written while still a 
 
 ; and there was also early evidence of the active 
 nted brain, unselfish tender heart, and happy genial 
 perament, which found joy in everjrthing and was 
 
 satisfied until it had shared that joy with others, 
 'ery few reminiscences of his childhood exist, but it 
 ividly remembered how nearly he lost his life when a 
 e baby boy of three or four years old. He had 
 n left in his mother's room upstairs in the high 
 Dlin house, and utilised his liberty to climb out 
 to the window-sill. There was only one low iron 
 
 between him and the street below. Fortunately, 
 
 of the opposite neighbours caught sight of the 
 s fellow, and sent across a message at once. The 
 ger was lest anyone suddenly entering the room 
 uld startle the child, in which case he would inevit- 
 T have overbalanced himself and been dashed to 
 ;es on the pavement below. It was thought best 
 his nurse to slip into the room as if she did not 
 w he was there. This she did, and quietly placed 
 
 of his favourite toys within his sight, pretending 
 lave some other business in the room. The ruse 
 
1 8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 was entirely successful. The little chap climbed back 
 into the room as easily as he had climbed out, and the 
 terrible danger was past. 
 
 This nurse was a great family institution, and no 
 picture of the home would be complete without some 
 reference to her. She was one of the old-fashioned 
 kind, whose interests were bound up in the family she 
 served, and who gave her whole heart with all its 
 wealth of love to the children whom she nursed, and in 
 whom she took as much pride as if they were her own. 
 Nurse Lynch entered the family shortly after William's 
 birth, and remained with them until her death more 
 than thirty years afterwards ; and there can be no doubt 
 that the future archbishop owed much to her early 
 care and training, while a very warm affection existed 
 to the end between herself and " Master Willie." 
 
 There was yet another figure constantly to be found 
 in that happy home, to whom special reference must 
 be made. Chief Justice Bushe passed away before his 
 daughter had long been married to Mr. Plunket, but 
 his widow survived him for many years, and during 
 that time spent most of her summers with her daughter 
 and grandchildren. When the time came round for 
 the selection of a house in the country or at the sea, 
 where the annual holiday might be spent, nothing was 
 suitable unless it contained a pleasant room for " grand- 
 mamma," and that room was invariably the favourite 
 resort of all, whether members of the family or visitors. 
 One of her granddaughters writes : 
 
 " She was the sister of the renowned Sir Philip Crampton, 
 who, besides his eminence in the medical profession, was one 
 
Childhood 19 
 
 of the best raconteurs and most brilliantly agreeable men of 
 his day. His sister was a sweet feminine repliquk of him. . . . 
 We remember her as the most honoured and welcome guest 
 in our home, popular with old and young, clever and simple ; 
 all were eager to enjoy her society, and to listen to the inex- 
 haustible stores of anecdote and witty stories which she related 
 with genuine dramatic power. She had lived through thrilling 
 times in Ireland. The rebellion of '98, the closing scenes in 
 the Irish Houses of Lords and Commons, were all fresh in her 
 memory, as were also the men of that time — Grattan, Curran, 
 Shiel, Emmet, and a crowd of others. Nor should be forgot- 
 ten her descriptions of the celebrated Kilkenny amateur 
 theatricals, in which some of her own children had taken a 
 part. All these form pictures like magic-lantern slides in 
 our memories, appearing and disappearing and melting into 
 one another. But most deep of all impressions on our hearts 
 is the remembrance of her goodness and unselfishness, her 
 keen sympathy in all our childish pleasures as well as in our 
 highest aspirations, her wise advice so tenderly given, her 
 hearty praise and encouraging smiles. Bright as yesterday is 
 the picture in our minds of that slight frail figure and pale 
 sweet face, which expressed so convincingly a sense of that 
 peace which passeth all understanding." 
 
 Truly William Plunket was blessed in the good 
 women by whom his youth was surrounded. 
 
 The Kilkenny plays to which allusion is made above 
 were famous in the eighteenth century, and were as a 
 matter of fact largely kept up by the Bushe family. 
 This dramatic instinct was fully inherited by the 
 Plunkets, and William was one of the most gifted of 
 all in this direction. His sisters remember how when 
 quite a boy he would recite and even improvise poems 
 for them, while charades and impromptu plays were 
 a recognised and frequent part of most evenings' 
 
20 Archbishop Plunkbt 
 
 entertainment. There was a back drawing-room at 30 
 Upper Fitzwilliam Street, and this was turned into a 
 theatre, where night after night every kind of dramatic 
 performance, from Indian tableaux to Shakespeare's 
 plays, was to be seen. Audience or no audience, it did 
 not matter. When the scene was ready the folding 
 doors were thrown open, and such elders as were 
 present turned sympathetically from their books or 
 work to make a "house." A pretty story is told of 
 " little Willie " when he was a very small child indeed. 
 One of these dramatic performances was about to 
 begin when he ran into the room and brought to his 
 grandmother a small piece of bright red ribbon. 
 " What is this for ? " she asked. " To look grand in 
 the audience," said the little fellow. The " audience " 
 consisted solely of his mother and grandmother, but 
 that did not matter. He thought how he could please 
 and adorn them for the occasion. One of the surviving 
 daughters of that family relates how often they heard 
 their mother say that when those folding doors were 
 opened she trembled at what might be revealed. More 
 than once her best bonnet or smartest mantle had been 
 drawn into the vortex of stage properties, and on one 
 occasion, just after the room had been newly carpeted, 
 when an Indian camp was being represented, her 
 horror may be imagined on seeing that a fire had 
 been lighted on a dust-pan (laid in the centre of the 
 stage upon the new carpet), round which the whole 
 company were dancing preparatory to stamping out 
 the fire with their moccasins ! 
 
 The most ambitious effort recorded of these theatrical 
 entertainments was a performance of three acts of 
 
Childhood 2 1 
 
 "Julius Caesar," on which occasion William Plunket 
 took the part of Brutus. Rather an amusing story is 
 told of a certain incident in the course of the play. It 
 occurred at the point where Brutus calls for a bowl of 
 wine to celebrate his newly cemented friendship with 
 Cassius. A delightful brew of negus had been pre- 
 pared for this purpose, but a son of Chief Justice 
 Doherty, who was among the audience and was a 
 noted wag, slipped behind the scenes, drank the negus, 
 and replaced it with warm water. It is reported that 
 Brutus drank off the mawkish stuff and retained his 
 dignity wonderfully well in spite of the disappoint- 
 ment. 
 
 In all probability this practice of acting and reciting 
 even before small audiences was of great advantage in 
 giving to the future archbishop that ease of manner 
 and absence of nervousness in public speaking which 
 he afterwards enjoyed. 
 
 There was another art besides that of acting which 
 he inherited from his Bushe ancestors. When quite 
 a lad he would sit down at the piano and improvise in 
 a manner as charming as it was remarkable. There 
 was one operetta composed by him when very young 
 which was a special favourite of his sisters. It was a 
 battle scene, and began with the spirited march, 
 trumpets blowing and drums beating. Then there 
 was the general's speech to the soldiers, the clash and 
 din of battle, and the song of triumph. Next followed 
 the pathetic scenes on the field after the battle: the 
 moans of the wounded, the cries of the mothers and 
 widows searching for sons and husbands who were not, 
 and the solemn funeral march. It was a remarkable 
 
2 2 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 performance for a boy, and was done entirely by ear, 
 for, strange to say, he could not read music. All 
 through his life he was fond of writing words and 
 setting them to his own music, and, though it refers to 
 a date long after his boyhood, it may not be out of 
 place to give here some lines which he sang to a tune 
 of his own, and which, as he could sing them, were 
 never listened to by anyone unmoved. The words 
 were composed in 1855, and are these : 
 
 " Take this pardon, I have sought it 
 With my tears in dark Gethsemane : 
 Take this pardon, I have bought it 
 With my Blood on Calvary. 
 When upon the Cross ye nailed me, 
 And the powers of hell assailed me. 
 When it seemed that God Himself had failed me. 
 Then I bought it with my Blood for thee ! 
 Take this pardon, I have bought it ; 
 Sinner, oh ! refuse it not from me ! " 
 
 In this connection some words written since his 
 death by one of his daughters have an especial 
 interest : 
 
 " My father was very fond of music — Handel, Beethoven, 
 Schubert ; but Mendelssohn was his favourite composer, and 
 he seemed never tired of hearing the Lieder ohne Worte. I 
 think he was particularly fond of melody in music, and some 
 ancient Irish airs which I played he very often asked for. He 
 had a perfect ear, and detected discord at once. . . . He had 
 a delightful touch on the piano, and, though latterly he did 
 play from written music, he would improvise on the piano, 
 playing different airs and wandering on from one thing to 
 another in a most delightful way. I think he had a peculiar 
 gift for making the same air sound perfectly differently accord- 
 ing to the way in which he played it. I have heard him play 
 
Childhood 23 
 
 ' The Banks of Allan Water ' first as the gayest of airs, and a 
 second time as sad and pathetic beyond words. Of course, he 
 never played with the idea of being listened to, but he would 
 often sit down to the piano when he had a few minutes to 
 spare, perhaps while waiting for the ladies to come down to 
 dinner, or when the game of whist was over and it was not 
 yet quite time for evening prayers. He had no sympathy for 
 the Wagner rage, though he immensely admired some of the 
 melodies in the Wagner operas." 
 
 From the above it appears that later in life the 
 Archbishop learnt to play from notes, though, with the 
 number of important matters which crowded his life, 
 it is wonderful how he found time to acquire the 
 knowledge. 
 
 But to return to his boyhood. There was one other 
 occupation, besides acting and music, of which he was 
 very fond. This was the constructing of various 
 small pieces of mechanism. In these labours his 
 younger brothers and sisters were allowed to help, and 
 many happy days are remembered which were spent in 
 the manufacture of a wonderful clock that was to go 
 by sand or water. There were large wheels and small 
 wheels, cogs and pulleys and nuts, and all went well 
 for a time; but the end of those particular holidays 
 came all too soon, and this work was one of the very 
 few things that William Plunket ever set himself to do 
 and did not accomplish. This tenacity of purpose was 
 a direct inheritance from the old Lord Chancellor, and 
 stood the grandson in good stead many a time in after 
 life. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 EARLY LIFE 
 
 William Plunket's earliest lessons were learnt at 
 his mother's knee. When he was able to read nicely 
 he went for a time to a day school in Dublin, and 
 afterwards to a preparatory school near Liverpool, of 
 which Mr. Rawson was headmaster. Here he just 
 missed being a schoolfellow of Mr. Gladstone, who 
 had left a short time before he arrived there. It may 
 be noticed here that in after life the Archbishop was 
 rather proud of a supposed likeness in feature (especi- 
 ally about the nose) to Mr. Gladstone ; but the resemb- 
 lance in looks, so far as it existed, was certainly more 
 flattering to the statesman than to the ecclesiastic, who 
 was one of the handsomest men of his day. 
 
 It is generally the case that a child coming from the 
 surroundings of a large family circle is better equipped 
 for school life than others, having already learnt some- 
 thing of the give and take which it is necessary to 
 practise if the first year at school is to be tolerable. 
 At the same time, the greater the happiness of the 
 home, the greater must be the wrench which accom- 
 panies a first parting, and the greater the loneliness 
 with which the little " new boy " is oppressed even in 
 the noisiest schoolroom. It was so with William 
 
Early Life 25 
 
 Plunket, and his sisters remember well his first heart- 
 broken letter to his mother, begging to be taken home 
 at once. His natural cheerfulness, however, seems to 
 have asserted itself even before he had finished writing, 
 for the letter ends with a suggestion that a tuck box 
 should be despatched to him forthwith. This incident 
 recalls the well-known " schoolboy's letter," in which 
 the writer, after informing his parents of his misery 
 and his opinion that he had got consumption, goes on 
 to say, " I do not think I shall last long ; please send me 
 some more money." 
 
 While at Mr. Rawson's school he had a second 
 narrow escape of losing his life. He was bathing 
 with several schoolfellows in apparently shallow water, 
 before any of them had learnt to swim. Unfortunately, 
 while the tide was out a large quantity of sand had 
 been dug out from one place, leaving a deep hole. 
 Into this the little fellows unsuspectingly plunged ; and 
 while several of them, including William Plunket, were 
 quite insensible when rescued, Mr. Rawson's own 
 son was unhappily drowned. A curious little story is 
 told by one of the family in connection with this event. 
 It is given here, as it will be of some interest to those 
 occupied in psychological research. 
 
 " We were spending that summer at the sea-side, and it was 
 a curious coincidence that the morning after the accident, and 
 before any tidings of it could by any possibility have reached 
 us, Nurse Lynch came into our room in great agitation and 
 told us that in the night or very early morning she had heard 
 Master Willie calling from the sea in great terror, ' I'm 
 drowning ! I'm drowning ! Oh ! save me, save me ! ' " 
 
 The sensations of his early childhood, including 
 
26 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 those of his first days at school, are told in a remark- 
 able rhyming letter written in 1848, when he was 
 away on a visit to some relations. The subject of this 
 letter is his mother, each verse ending with the 
 refrain 
 
 "... somehow or other, 
 No other boy had such a mother," 
 
 or words to that effect. A part of this letter must 
 find a place here ; some further stanzas it may be 
 necessary to quote in illustration of later events in 
 his life. The verses referring to his earlier days run as 
 follows : 
 
 "... All that night 
 These words were ringing 
 And dinging 
 Right through my head ; 
 So that after I went to bed, 
 Like some quaint dream in my puzzled brain, 
 Old days came back again, 
 And all to the song of ' Somehow or other, 
 No family has got such a mother.' 
 
 " I thought myself a little chap, 
 With my book upon my mother's lap. 
 Trying to spell 
 My ' Bagatelle,' 
 
 And learning a good pronunciation, 
 And getting on so fast 
 The verb recevoir was almost past ; 
 And why was this ? Why not, like any other brat, 
 Did I not wait till I went to school, 
 And then from Monsieur ' This ' or ' That ' 
 Learn the hard rule 
 And harder explanation ? 
 
Early Life 27 
 
 It was because, somehow or other, 
 No ' other brat ' had such a mother ! 
 
 " And still, like a dream in the puzzled brain, 
 Old days come back again ; 
 And the little chap a boy had grown, 
 And crying and alone 
 Was wandering through the dreary fields 
 That surround the school where Rawson wields 
 His stubborn rule : 
 Away from the sneers of prying boys, 
 With their uncongenial noise. 
 That boy had turned to cry. 
 For his heart was well-nigh ready to burst 
 With misery ! 
 It was for him the first 
 Sad time that home was left ; 
 He felt as if of all bereft. 
 And why was this ? Were there not some 
 Who too had for the first time left tkeir home ? 
 They did not seem to care so much, 
 And it was because they had not such 
 A home to leave. Somehow or other. 
 None of them had so good a mother ! " 
 
 There can be no doubt of William Plunket's devo- 
 tion to his home and to his mother, and no doubt of 
 the severity of the attack of home-sickness, the misery 
 of which was so keenly remembered years afterwards 
 when the above lines were written. 
 
 After leaving Mr. Rawson's school he was sent to 
 Cheltenham College, which had recently been opened, 
 and of which he was one of the earliest members. 
 Here he began at once to show the intellectual vigour 
 which he possessed, and which he inherited from his 
 
28 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 two grandfathers. Both in classics and mathematics 
 he made brilliant progress until, when he was about 
 seventeen years old, the great catastrophe of his life 
 occurred, and he completely broke down in health. 
 It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the masters, 
 of whom Dr. Dobson was then the head, were partly 
 to blame. It was a great temptation. The school was 
 on its trial. Parents all over the country were watch- 
 ing to see what sort of results would be obtained. 
 Here was an opportunity of turning out a really 
 brilliant scholar, and there can be little doubt that they 
 overworked him. He was keen about games as well 
 as work, especially about cricket, in which he delighted 
 to join to the end of his life whenever he got a chance 
 of a game with his sons and daughters, taking off his 
 coat and running with the best of them. It was 
 not that he neglected taking exercise, or anything 
 of that sort — he was never the least bit of a muff 
 — but the pressure put upon him as a growing lad 
 to make him a brilliant scholar proved too much 
 for him, and he completely broke down with a 
 nervous complaint which incapacitated him for some 
 years. 
 
 Thus, at a time when most men whose lives are worth 
 recording are just entering upon their final studies, or 
 even beginning their careers, he was an invalid, subject 
 to violent palpitations and other distressing symptoms 
 of his complaint. The doctors were fortunately able 
 to assure his relatives that there was nothing organically 
 wrong with his heart, or indeed with any of his organs, 
 and they held out hopes of his ultimate recovery — 
 hopes which were entirely justified, for when, after 
 
Early Life 29 
 
 some ten years, he regained his heaUh, the old com- 
 plaint had left him never to return. 
 
 But this is anticipating. Of his Cheltenham days 
 few records are forthcoming. Some stanzas of the 
 rhyming letter from which quotations have already 
 been made refer to this period, and are worth quoting 
 here. 
 
 " Still in the puzzled dreamy brain 
 Old days return again : 
 The boy into a lad hath sprouted, 
 And he with others is going to part 
 From Baxter's den — and all so glad about it ! 
 The packet is just about to start, 
 And it's little they care about the weather 
 (Though indeed they would stay 
 From school another day 
 In such a storm 
 Just to see whether 
 The next day it might die away). 
 But tell me why that single boy 
 Seems to feel more ecstatic joy 
 Than all the others put together. 
 Except, indeed, his brother ; — 
 I had forgot there was another, 
 And did not think of him at all. 
 But then you know he's very small — 
 Well, why are both of them so gay ? 
 Is it because in one more day 
 They will be able 
 To ' soak ' in bed a httle longer. 
 And have their tea a little stronger ? 
 Just think of that : how comfortable ! 
 And then when they get up in the morning 
 The breakfast hour scorning, 
 Instead of breaking the ice in their jug 
 
30 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 To stand upon a cosy rug 
 
 Before a roasting fire, 
 
 And ring the bell for Tom 
 
 (That's Tom the Crier*), 
 
 And say like an independent man 
 
 ' Hot water, Thomas, as quick as you can.' 
 
 What pleasant commands 
 
 To give when the hands 
 
 Have been for some time raw and chappy ! 
 
 Is this the reason they are happy ? — 
 
 The only reason ? — Why, the rest 
 
 With the same luxuries are blest. 
 
 And they don't seem to care so much. 
 
 Oh no ! They have not such 
 
 A really happy home ; 
 
 Somehow or other, 
 
 They are not blest with such a mother ! 
 
 In these doggerel lines there is a suggestion that 
 Cheltenham boys had to rough it a little in the early 
 days of the school's existence, but this did not hurt 
 William Plunket. A cousin of his, a few years his 
 junior, who lived in Cheltenham at that time, tells of his 
 coming with her own brothers to their house on half 
 holidays, and describes him as "a chubby-faced boy 
 brimming over with life and spirits, but never rough or 
 mischievous, with a bright colour in his cheeks," and 
 then goes to speak of the sad change which was caused by 
 his illness, and which completely altered his whole life. 
 
 Lord James of Hereford has most kindly supplied 
 the following valuable sketch of William Plunket from 
 a schoolfellow's point of view : 
 
 "Cheltenham College commenced its existence in 1841, 
 • The family man-servant. 
 
Early Life 31 
 
 and in 1842 William Conyngham Plunket joined it. At this 
 time many Irish boys bearing well-known names were at the 
 school. Of the Plunket family not only William, but his 
 younger brother Charles, his two cousins, Arthur and Percy 
 Bushe, grandsons of the Chief Justice, and another cousin, 
 George Doherty, a son also of a Chief Justice, were Cheltonians. 
 Coghill, afterwards Sir John Joscelyn Coghill, who married a 
 sister of the Plunkets, was also there. 
 
 "Although I was not in the same class or boarding-house 
 as William Plunket, he attracted me greatly. We had not 
 much in common. He was sedate and studious in habit, and 
 so took a high position in the first form of the College, whilst 
 I found prominence principally in the cricket-field. There, 
 however, I often had much talk with him. He tried hard to 
 become a cricketer, and I, as captain, used to put him in the 
 matches between two elevens of the school, but he was never 
 very successful. But he had much to tell that interested me 
 vastly. Even in those early days I was somewhat of a 
 politician, and I had read of Lord Plunket's fame as an orator, 
 and of his treatment by the Government of Lord Melbourne. 
 The Chancellor's deprivation of office in favour of Lord Camp- 
 bell was often referred to by his grandson in tones of burning 
 indignation. 
 
 "No doubt this connection gave William Plunket pro- 
 minence in my estimation, but I was chiefly attracted to him 
 by the peculiarly high tone of character that pervaded him. 
 He was almost stately of manner, and his language and bear- 
 ing were always beyond reproach. No coarse word ever 
 passed his lips, and, though he was full of humour and light- 
 ness of heart, yet no breach of school discipline could ever 
 be suggested against him. As he was known in later life, so 
 
 he was as a schoolboy. 
 
 * * * * * 
 
 " The last time I met Lord Plunket was when he officiated 
 at the opening of the Cheltenham College Chapel, and had, as 
 an old Cheltonian, spoken from the pulpit to the very hearts 
 of present Cheltonians. At the gathering which occurred 
 
32 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 after the ceremony I, as President of the College Council, 
 had to thank Lord Plunket for his presence and his sermon. 
 I could then truly say that we were all proud of the old 
 Cheltonian whose life had been well spent, whose duty had 
 been well done, and whose honours had been well gained. 
 And then within that old familiar playground, where more 
 than fifty years ago we had played cricket together, our last 
 words of farewell were spoken." 
 
 One of William Plunket's feats while a boy at 
 Cheltenham was the helping to start the first College 
 newspaper. It was called the The Cheltenham Tirocinia, 
 and he was the first editor. In those days there were 
 no cricket or football matches to chronicle, no gym- 
 nasium competitions, or other matters of the kind, and 
 it was a far more severe task to edit a school magazine 
 than it is at the present day. After the publication of 
 the first number (as says a writer in the Cheltonian for 
 June 1889) "his school career, so full of brilliant 
 promise, was suddenly arrested by a mysterious illness, 
 to the grief of us who loved him for his frank, generous 
 nature, his joyous spirits and high thoughts, and the 
 second number was brought out by other hands." 
 
 This second number contained two poems from his 
 pen, signed " U. U. P.," under which initials he wrote in 
 his youth. Both poems concerned the Irish famine, 
 and the last stanza of one of them is quoted later on. 
 
 The school, having as yet no chapel of their own, 
 always attended the services at Christ Church, Chelten- 
 ham, where Mr. Boyd, afterwards Dean of Exeter, 
 was the clergyman. The Rev. F. Robertson also 
 officiated at the same church, and the striking sermons 
 which he heard from both these preachers seem to 
 
Early Life t,^ 
 
 have made a great impression upon young Plunket. 
 Another notable Evangelical under whose influence he 
 came at this time was Mr. Close, Rector of Cheltenham, 
 and afterwards Dean of Carlisle. There is no doubt 
 that he had always been a singularly religious-minded 
 boy, and when, before he left school, his illness laid 
 him aside, he turned naturally to the highest sources of 
 help and comfort. The same cousin referred to above 
 remembers that before he left Cheltenham he gave to 
 her and to each of her young sisters some little 
 devotional books which he told them had been of 
 great service to himself. 
 
 The spirit in which he met this trouble, which to 
 a keen, successful boy just entering upon life must have 
 been terribly hard to bear, is shown by some lines 
 which he wrote on board the packet which was taking 
 him home. It is not necessary to quote more than the 
 last verse : 
 
 " Thus let the man reflect who braves 
 Adversity's opposing waves : 
 Short stay on earth to man is given 
 His home, his resting-place, is heaven ! 
 Let him like thee, my gallant bark, 
 Undaunted stem life's waters dark, 
 Nor fear the foam 
 
 Nor the billow's roar 
 That bears him home 
 To the heavenly shore ! " 
 
 Then followed the long years of illness. He became 
 very weak, and was for some time unable to move from 
 his armchair, except when this was exchanged for a 
 bath-chair in which he would be pulled about. Even 
 
 c 
 
34 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 after this prostration had been overcome, and he was 
 able to take more exercise, a member of the family 
 would always be with him, as it was uncertain when 
 one of the distressing nervous attacks might seize him. 
 At first sight it seems a grievous pity that he should 
 have thus been laid aside when the promise of boy- 
 hood was on the point of fulfilment, when he had 
 hoped for a brilliant career at Cambridge, and when 
 his contemporaries must needs leave him far behind in 
 the race. It would be absurd to say that he lost 
 nothing. For years he could not open a book for 
 purposes of real study. Probably his memory never 
 thoroughly recovered the strain of this long illness. 
 He used to say in later days, " I never read books, 
 because I can't remember anything," which, though 
 spoken partly in jest, was also partly the truth. 
 
 His Cheltenham education had certain results which 
 lasted all his life. His classical studies probably ac- 
 counted for his extreme fastidiousness in English 
 composition. He delighted in polishing and amending 
 his own compositions and those of his chaplains and 
 secretaries, and he would sometimes delay the publica- 
 tion of important matter that he might do this. 
 
 The mathematics he had learnt also had their influ- 
 ence, for he enjoyed "accounts," finding them no 
 trouble whatever. But beyond this he was a case of 
 " arrested educational development," a matter for pro- 
 found regret. 
 
 It was doubtless owing to this that, as says a former 
 chaplain and secretary to the Archbishop, 
 
 " he lived in the present more thoroughly than any man I 
 ever knew. He was, on the one hand, wholly devoid of the 
 
Early Life 35 
 
 historical sense (as many able men are), and had little reverence 
 for the past (in which he may be compared to the old Lord 
 Plunket, who burnt all his papers, including many historical 
 documents) : on the other hand, he openly said that his policy 
 was to let the future take care of itself, and this in spite of his 
 accomplishing work (notably in education) which will last." 
 
 There were, however, compensations in his sur- 
 roundings. The whole atmosphere in which the 
 invalid lad lived was so delightful and so cultured. 
 It has been shown what parents he had, but it was not 
 only to them that he was indebted at this time. His 
 sisters, both older and younger than himself, were 
 most of them brilliant. The Bushes as a family are 
 conversationalists of special powers, and so, says the 
 same chronicler, " as an invalid William must have 
 lived in a pleasant atmosphere, surrounded by much 
 love and gentle care, by music and good talk." But 
 all the same the loss was great. Cambridge had to be 
 given up. The political career for which he had been 
 intended was abandoned. And yet, by the mercy of 
 God, this period of weakness and suffering proved one 
 of manifest growth in grace, and when health was 
 given him once more his thoughts were centred upon 
 higher things than earthly politics, and he gave himself 
 unhesitatingly to the service of God as a minister in 
 His Church. 
 
 The years of illness were no doubt a period of 
 spiritual preparation. It is said that, all the long time 
 that he was confined to his armchair, his Bible was 
 ever at his hand on the table, and all his younger 
 brothers and sisters used to come to him for light and 
 encouragement in their spiritual and other troubles 
 
36 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 and worries. He was always the most sympathising 
 and helpful of confidants. It was in this as in every- 
 thing else in his life : he wished to share with others 
 the joys which he found in his religion, just as he 
 wished to share the brightness and the fun which he 
 found so often in the everyday things about his path. 
 He wished to take upon himself a share of the burden 
 that lay heavy upon others, just as he had found his 
 own burden made lighter by that Friend to whom he 
 had learnt to turn in the hour of trouble. 
 
 But there were other interests also which served to 
 beguile the days of weakness. He never gave up his 
 practice of writing verses, and a cousin who was with 
 him during the first year or two of his illness says : " I 
 have very distinct remembrances of him. He was 
 obliged at that time to drive always about in a wheel- 
 chair, but his spirits and good temper never altered. 
 To the last day of his Hfe he often alluded to the jokes 
 and fun we all had together, and repeated the little 
 rhymes he used to make upon us, while his happy 
 religion was as bright as ever." 
 
 He took an immense interest in the sufferers by the 
 Irish famine of 1847. Always a fervent patriot, his 
 boyish heart was deeply touched by the woes of his 
 countrymen, and, although this was during one of the 
 earlier years of his illness, he wrote several consider- 
 able poems on the subject, one of the most striking 
 being suggested by a letter which related how a poor 
 Galway man, finding no resource remaining to him by 
 which he could sustain life, stole away from his family 
 and friends, and, turning into the wild and lonely 
 mountains of the district, there died. This act, spring- 
 
Early Life 2)7 
 
 ing from a wish in the peasant's heart to spare his 
 loved ones the painful sight of his death, appealed 
 strongly to William Plunket's imagination. The seven- 
 teenth, and last, stanza of his poem thus gives his 
 estimate of the poor man's heroism. : 
 
 " Oh ! 'twas a pure and noble deed ! 
 The mailed warriors that bleed 
 
 Could do no more. 
 The world is not so full of ill, 
 But that she has her heroes still, 
 
 Though they be poor." 
 
 It was at this time, too, that he developed a taste for 
 botany. When he began to be able to move about he 
 made an excellent herbarium, and in all the busy years 
 that followed he never lost his interest in the subject, 
 though latterly it chiefly took the direction of tree- 
 growing and ornamental gardening at Old Connaught. 
 
 At the age of twenty William Plunket must therefore 
 be pictured as a tall, slender invalid, of great beauty 
 of feature, especially of eyes, though no longer 
 possessing the brilliant colouring of his boyhood. It 
 was doubtless at this time that his face when in repose 
 began to assume that expression of melancholy which 
 is observable in all portraits of him, and which was 
 absolutely misleading as to his disposition. Never was 
 there a man of a more equable and sunny nature. 
 " The cheeriest of men," " a man of superb temper," 
 "the dullest trifles of everyday life were continually 
 illuminated by the magic touch of his humour " : in 
 words such as these is he spoken of by those who 
 knew him well. It was not the general impression of 
 those who had no personal knowledge of him. To 
 
38 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 them he was the somewhat lugubrious personage of 
 the newspaper portraits, in entire harmony with the 
 narrow Evangelical which he was generally supposed 
 to be. Neither impression was correct. An Evan- 
 gelical — a strong Evangelical — he was, but never 
 narrow. The very mistakes which in the views of 
 some people he made were in reality the outcome of 
 his breadth of sympathy. When he took up any 
 uncompromisingly strict position as an extreme Low 
 Churchman, it was invariably on occasions when he 
 was acting as representative of that party, and, as he 
 stated in many letters, would not willingly lead them 
 into a course of action which he knew they would 
 disapprove, however strongly he personally might hold 
 more liberal views. He felt himself most closely in 
 sympathy with such men as Frederick Maurice, and it 
 was one of the volumes of sermons by this writer 
 which was being read to him in his last illness. 
 
^a^u^ ^^,-^(/^^iA>e^ 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 WEST CONN AUGHT— HIS MARRIAGE 
 
 Although Cambridge had been given up, yet with 
 returning health fresh plans were made for the comple- 
 tion of William Plunket's education. It was found 
 possible in a few years' time to enter him at Trinity 
 College, Dublin, where he was able to take the 
 University course while living at his own home. He 
 was not permitted to try for honours, but he took the 
 ordinary B.A. degree in 1853. 
 
 After this, four years elapsed before his complete 
 recovery enabled him to seek ordination at the hands 
 of his uncle, Lord Plunket, Bishop of Tuam, whose 
 private secretary and chaplain he became so soon as 
 he was made a deacon. In the following year he was 
 ordained priest, and became rector of the united 
 parishes of Kilmoylan and Cummer. 
 
 From this moment one of the deepest interests and 
 most absorbing works of his life may be dated. He 
 was brought into contact with the terrible ignorance 
 and superstition of the inhabitants of the wild moun- 
 tainous west country. He was horrified at the total 
 lack of knowledge of the Bible on the part of these 
 uncivilised folk, and at the terror they displayed of 
 the miraculous powers of the Roman priests. It is 
 
40 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 difficult for Englishmen, especially such as have never 
 travelled into those regions, to realise the feelings 
 which must be aroused in the heart of a young 
 enthusiastic Irish clergyman by what he sees around 
 him. 
 
 William Plunket was a great patriot. In love for 
 his country he gave way to no man. He preached, he 
 wrote, he lived as a patriot. It must, then, have been a 
 perpetual source of grief to him to see that land so 
 dear to his heart given up (as regards so large and so 
 fair a portion) to the Church of Rome, whose system 
 has sapped the independence and vitality of well-nigh 
 every nation that has yielded to her influence. But 
 more than that : particular instances of a heart- 
 breaking nature were not lacking round about his 
 uncle's house, which was at this time his home. The 
 children were frightened from attending the school by 
 threats of miraculous interference on the part of the 
 priest, and by the more practical measure of sending 
 out parties to stone and chase them, so that, as Mr. 
 Plunket says in a letter of this date, " in their fear the 
 children turn aside out of the public road, and try to 
 find their way through woods and by-paths to their 
 much-loved school." This was a school to which 
 Lord Plunket, Bishop of Tuam, was falsely accused by 
 the Roman priests of forcing his tenantry under pain 
 of eviction to send their children. "Never," says 
 Mr. Plunket, " have I heard of any instance in which 
 any tenants who expressed a conscientious objection 
 to the school were compelled to send their children 
 thither, but I have often heard of tenants who expressed 
 a conscientious approval of the school, and were 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 41 
 
 compelled to keep their children from it by the dread 
 of a fate worse than eviction — fear of that supernatural 
 power of punishment which in their ignorance and 
 superstition they supposed the priest to possess." 
 
 Of another scandalous occurrence he also writes : 
 
 " TOURMAKEADY, HOLLYMOUNT, Co. MaYO, 
 
 ''Jan. 3, 1859. 
 " Within the last week a poor man, a Scripture- 
 reader, whose kind and gentle disposition must have 
 won the esteem and love of all who knew him, has 
 
 passed away from among us. 
 
 » # # * * 
 
 " Alas I is it not too true that, assuming to himself 
 a cruel arrogance which I cannot bear to think he 
 really feels, he [the resident Roman priest], a minister 
 of that Gospel whose motto is ' Bless, and curse not,' 
 has openly vaunted that this man's death was the 
 result of his curse ; that he never passed the sick man's 
 house without leaving his malediction upon it ; and 
 that the result was to be seen in that corpse which the 
 house at length contained ? That such a cruel vaunt 
 has been made I have too much reason to believe. 
 It is, however, open to denial. . . 
 
 " But an event has occurred with reference to this 
 poor man's death which can meet with no denial. . . . 
 This event occurred just as the remains of that poor 
 man, attended by his many friends and by his poor, 
 weeping, frantic widow, were being carried past the 
 gates of that monastery where the priest in company 
 with the monks of the place resides. . . 
 
 "A number of ragged boys, collected together, it 
 
42 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 would seem, by the monks for the occasion, wer 
 stationed in the school-house, while behind these boy 
 some of the monks themselves tried, as well the; 
 might, to screen themselves from observation. Sud 
 preparations having been made, a poor man, who, a 
 I believe, himself feels no ill-will towards his Protestan 
 neighbours, but who was evidently put forward b; 
 others for the purpose, advanced towards the roadsid 
 as the solemn procession approached, and addressin; 
 one of the Scripture readers, in a tone of cruel triumpl 
 exclaimed, ' The priest has laid that man low ; which c 
 you can raise him up ? ' And upon some of th 
 mourners remonstrating against this indecent outrage 
 the boys, who had stood within the school-hous 
 grinning and chuckling at the awful speech, joined ii 
 with a strange, unseemly ribaldry, which was continue^ 
 until the funeral train had passed away from sight." 
 
 Doubtless many other similar outrages, and man 
 other evidences of ignorant superstition, could b 
 collected from William Plunket's letters of this perioc 
 But it is better not to revive too many of such sa 
 memories. After all, these things happened more tha 
 forty years ago, and surely by this time there must b 
 a little more light and a little more love, following th 
 spread of education and the better knowledge of th 
 Scriptures, even in the remotest villages of lonel 
 Connemara. That some of these shameful things shoul 
 be told is necessary, in order to show how inevitabl 
 Mr. William Plunket was moved to devote himself t 
 the cause of the Irish Church Missions, and short] 
 afterwards to start the West Connaught Endowmei 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 43 
 
 Fund, and also in order that English readers may have 
 some little notion of another aspect of the Roman 
 Church than the more or less attractive one which 
 is carefully exhibited in England. If they would know 
 what it has really done for the poor, let them try to 
 fathom the ignorance and darkness in which it has 
 kept the peasantry of Spain, Italy, and Ireland, and 
 of every country where it has obtained dominion. 
 
 It was William Plunket's knowledge and practical 
 experience of these things which partially influenced 
 him in the work he undertook, but it was still more 
 his burning desire to share with others the freedom 
 and joy of the Gospel. He had been brought up in 
 the best Evangelical school, he had come under the 
 teaching of some of the most earnest and eminent of 
 the Evangelical clergy, he had through long years 
 of suffering found healing and peace in a personal 
 and untrammelled approach to his Saviour, and it is 
 small wonder that it should have been one of his first 
 cares to assist others to share his privileges, whether 
 they were the peasantry of his beloved native land, 
 or those who in Spain, Portugal, or Italy were begin- 
 ning the struggle for freedom from the errors of 
 Rome. 
 
 In the work among the scattered inhabitants of the 
 West of Ireland he was greatly helped by friends from 
 England, as soon as the object for which he was 
 striving became generally known. Among these were 
 such well-known men as the Bishop of Rochester 
 (Wigram), who wrote a preface to a pamphlet in which 
 Mr. Plunket described the state of affairs in Connemara 
 and gave some account of the missions ; Mr. Henry 
 
44 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Hoare, the eminent banker, to whose munificence and 
 untiring energy the resuscitation of Convocation was 
 largely due ; and Canon George Venables, at that time 
 Vicar of Friezland in Yorkshire, and afterwards Vicar 
 of Great Yarmouth. Much of the information about 
 the work in the West of Ireland which follows is 
 gleaned from the diaries of the last-named gentleman, 
 who became a life-long friend of the future Arch- 
 bishop, 
 
 Mr. Plunket's pamphlet, which was practically an 
 appeal for the West Connaught Endowment Fund, 
 gives reasons for the urgency of the case. Before the 
 formation of the Society for Irish Church Missions 
 many other religious societies were labouring here and 
 there throughout the district of West Connaught. The 
 income, however, of that society being at that time 
 considerable, the whole of West Connaught was handed 
 over to its care. Unfortunately, funds became scarcer, 
 and the society was obliged to confine itself (as far as 
 West Connaught was concerned) to the district of 
 West Galway. This left West Mayo unprovided for, 
 and Mr. Plunket laid stress upon the vital importance 
 of a society which proposed (as the West Connaught 
 Endowment Society did) to come forward on behalf 
 of some of these relinquished stations at that critical 
 juncture, and to repair the breach before it was too 
 late. 
 
 Most interesting are the accounts given in this 
 pamphlet of the surroundings of the little mission 
 groups, and of their devotion and success. What 
 more striking than this story of the Church's work 
 in Clifden ? 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 45 
 
 "The owner of Clifden five-and-twenty years ago 
 lived in a beautiful place adjoining the town, in a 
 castle which overlooked the inlet of the Atlantic beside 
 which Clifden is situated. He was a strictly upright, 
 fearless, and amiable man, much beloved and respected 
 by the people ; but he was more : he was a pious and 
 consistent Christian, and it grieved his soul, day by 
 day, to see the fearful state of spiritual destitution in 
 the midst of which he lived. At last he and his 
 brother, a man of like spirit, adopted the only alterna- 
 tive which at the time seemed open to them : they 
 resolved to pray. Five-and-twenty years ago, upon 
 a Friday evening, they with three or four friends 
 established a weekly prayer-meeting. That weekly 
 prayer-meeting has never been discontinued. For ten 
 or twelve years the prayers of those few suppliants 
 went up to God, entreating Him to pour down a 
 blessing upon the surrounding neighbourhood ; and 
 yet no answer seemed to come. In God's good time, 
 however, the little cloud was seen ; by degrees the 
 heavens became full of impending blessings, and at last 
 the shower descended. And now in that same district 
 of West Galway, where five-and-twenty years ago there 
 was but this one small church, with its twenty or thirty 
 worshippers, there are now no less than twenty-five 
 congregations, ten of which meet in churches ; and 
 one of these is the large new church of Clifden, in 
 which every Sunday there is a congregation of about 
 three hundred worshippers. Truly we may say with 
 the Apostle, 'The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous 
 man availeth much,' " 
 
 Many strange stories are also told in the same 
 
46 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 booklet of the state of affairs discovered in Connemara, 
 and none stranger than the finding in a National school 
 a placard called " The General Lesson," ordered to be 
 placed there by the National Board in Ireland. One 
 of the sentences of this lesson contained the following 
 good advice : 
 
 " Many men hold erroneous doctrines ; but we ought not to 
 hate or persecute them. We ought to seek for the truth, and 
 hold fast what we are convinced is the truth ; but not to treat 
 harshly those who are in error." 
 
 It is hardly credible, but it was stated as a fact by 
 the schoolmaster, that the Roman priest crossed out 
 the words "seek for the truth, and," also the words 
 " we are convinced," and altered the word " harshly " 
 into " rashly," so that children must have taken the 
 priest's corrections to mean that they had no right to 
 think for themselves, which is an example of the usual 
 Romish attitude. 
 
 But to turn to pleasanter things. Many pictures 
 are given of the happy groups of mission workers, and 
 a charming description of the Ballyconree Orphanage 
 and the Glenowen Orphan Nursery. After speaking of 
 the singing of a Communion hymn by the girls of the 
 latter establishment, Mr. Plunket goes on to say : 
 
 " It is not the first time that the voices of these 
 Glenowen orphans have taken me by surprise. I 
 remember, one of the first times I ever visited Clifden, 
 wandering out one Sunday afternoon to the summit of 
 a little hill that overhangs the town. It was a lovely 
 day, and everything around was quiet and peaceful. 
 On the one side rose up the majestic Connemara 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 47 
 
 mountains, looking all the grander through the evening 
 haze ; on the other the ocean inlet stretched away in 
 its calm narrow channel towards the Atlantic, while 
 beneath me nestled the little town of Clifden. It was 
 just as I was enjoying in silence this glorious scene 
 that I heard, some little distance below where I stood, 
 the beautiful harmony of children's voices breaking the 
 stillness. For a few moments I listened, but did not 
 see : at last curiosity prompted me to try to solve the 
 meaning of the sounds, and after a short search I came 
 in sight of the singers — the Glenowen orphans. There 
 they were, seated together in a secluded nook of the 
 hill, and, unconscious of any eye upon them but God's, 
 were singing amongst themselves their Sabbath 
 hymns." 
 
 Here is a picture from the same pamphlet of the joy 
 of the Church people on the island of Moyrus when 
 visited by the Bishop of Rochester and Mr. Dallas, 
 accompanied by Mr. Plunket : 
 
 "We sailed away from Roundstone quay, and in 
 about half-an-hour's time the outline of the Moyrus 
 coast became distinctly visible. Another half-hour, and 
 we plainly saw the little church and school and 
 parsonage that stand beside that coast. A few minutes 
 more, and we heard the hearty cheers of the converts, 
 who had seen our sails approaching, and had rushed 
 down in a body to the shore to give us an Irish 
 welcome and help us to clamber up the slippery rocks. 
 In the schoolroom a crowd of about a hundred, young 
 and old, were collected together. Often have I been 
 present on such occasions, but never did I see more 
 
4^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 genuine 'heart' than was manifested in the counten- 
 ances of these Moyrus people. ... I feel that, in order 
 to present a perfect picture of this gathering, I must 
 tinge it with that additional glow of enthusiasm which 
 is felt by a rarely-visited people when their turn comes 
 at length — when once again they see their much-loved 
 friends amongst them." 
 
 The Bishop of Rochester, in his preface to the 
 pamphlet, alludes to another very touching circum- 
 stance — viz., that the first Irish collection for the Lan- 
 cashire Distress Fund was from the converts of Clifden. 
 Out of the abundance of their thankfulness for the 
 help they had received in the famine, and notwith- 
 standing their own deep poverty, they gave to the 
 extent of their power, and beyond their power, to 
 England's manufacturing districts. 
 
 Those who have found their way in search of scenery 
 or sport to the mountains, loughs, and rivers 'of 
 Connemara and of West Mayo, will be able to picture 
 the sort of country and sort of people for whom 
 William Plunket's earliest ministerial work was done. 
 From his own writings it is possible to gather much of 
 the persecutions, poverty, and difficulties which beset 
 the worshippers at those little mission stations, and 
 which were cheerfully and gladly borne for very thank- 
 fulness at their escape from the errors of the Romish 
 Church. But all is not told. The Bishop in his pre- 
 face speaks of the marvellous change which the mission 
 had produced in Tuam itself : the softening of manners, 
 the friendliness of demeanour between the rival 
 religionists ; the spread of the Douay Bible, the conces- 
 
West Conn aught — His Marriage 49 
 
 sion of its use to the people ; the new translation of the 
 Irish Bible coming out in numbers for their enlighten- 
 ment in that town. He referred also to the unmistak- 
 able proofs of the untamed hostility and deadly spirit 
 which he found animating Romanism in the district 
 of Ballyovic. These things Mr. Plunket passed by as 
 not being part of his more recent experiences. The 
 Bishop's comment on the whole pamphlet is that, from 
 what he himself saw and heard, it was anything but an 
 exaggeration : it was a simple and correct statement of 
 facts, and no more. This Bishop of Rochester was 
 Dr. Joseph Cotton Wigram, chiefly noted for the work 
 he did in helping to restore the due observance of 
 Ascension Day. 
 
 For further information as to the West Connaught 
 work it is necessary to turn to the diaries of Canon 
 Venables. Here we learn that he first made Mr. 
 Plunket's acquaintance at Friezland Vicarage on the 
 evening of June i, 1863, after returning from a 
 Church Congress committee meeting at Manchester, 
 Mr. Plunket, in his constant longing for the welfare 
 of the Irish Church, was looking about for some 
 member of this committee who would try to secure 
 that " the Irish Church " should form one of the 
 subjects for discussion at the forthcoming Congress. 
 Mr. Venables had written some articles in a local 
 paper on the subject of Ireland and the Irish 
 Church Missions, " which," he says, " I then thought 
 and still think very much to be applauded and sus- 
 tained." Here, then, was the very man for Mr. 
 Plunket's purpose, and a long and very anxious 
 talk entirely upon Irish Church matters began a 
 
5o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 friendship which the death of the Archbishop alone 
 terminated. 
 
 On this first occasion the opportunity of making 
 further plans was but small, for Mr, Plunket, with the 
 sisters who accompanied him, had to cross to Ireland 
 the next day. 
 
 •• Very shortly after this Mr. Plunket was married to 
 Miss Anne Lee Guinness, only daughter of Mr. 
 Benjamin Lee Guinness, who was created a baronet 
 in 1867, and by whose munificence the restoration of 
 St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin was accomplished. 
 This lady is described as a fair-haired, somewhat 
 romantic girl, and the portraits of her — especially one 
 of those on the walls of Old Connaught House — give 
 evidence of considerable beauty. 
 
 " Lady Plunket," says one who knew her well, " was light, 
 gay, cheerful, and very attractive in looks and manner, proud 
 of her husband and intensely devoted to him. She had great 
 benevolence of character, and was never wearied in service for 
 the poor and sick and unhappy. Her last illness and death 
 were, certainly in part, owing to her self-sacrificing efforts for 
 good." 
 
 This is the fitting place to mention the St. Patrick's 
 Nursing Home in Dubhn, which was, from a philan- 
 thropic point of view, one of the late Archbishop's 
 greatest works. It must be mentioned here, because it 
 owed its beginning to an effort made by Lady Plunket 
 while she was still Miss Guinness. Her father, Sir 
 Benjamin Guinness, was busy restoring St. Patrick's 
 Cathedral. This doubtless often took his daughter into 
 the immediate neighbourhood of the building, and so 
 much horrified was she at the poverty and neglect of 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 51 
 
 the district surrounding the cathedral, and so much 
 struck with the contrast between the splendour of the 
 great church and the squalor of those who dwelt 
 beneath its shadow, that she determined to establish a 
 Bible-woman to work in that special portion of Dublin. 
 To this purpose she devoted a small legacy that had 
 been left to her, and gathered some other ladies round 
 her to assist in the work. After some time an exten- 
 sion of the scheme was found absolutely necessary. 
 The Bible-woman brought in such heartrending details 
 of the sufferings she witnessed, that it was felt that a 
 district nurse ought to be at once provided. By this 
 time Miss Guinness had been married to Mr. Plunket, 
 and a great effort was made by them to set the matter 
 going. The original committee also contained the 
 names of the Hon. Isabel Plunket and Miss Thompson 
 (a most devoted lady, who gave her whole life to 
 the work), while the present Mrs. Thomas Greene 
 joined them almost from the first. . Money was soon 
 collected in sufficient quantity to provide one nurse. 
 Every day, however, showed how hopeless it was for 
 one woman to attempt to cope with a tithe of the 
 misery and suffering with which she came in contact, 
 and in 1 876 a regular nursing home was started, with 
 a superintendent and three or four nurses, according 
 as funds came in. 
 
 St. Patrick's Nursmg Home, as it was called, was 
 one of the pioneers of such institutions in Great 
 Britain, and met with the usual amount of opposition 
 which is shown to good works in a novel form. For a 
 long time people thought such a thing totally unneces- 
 sary. It had not existed " in their day," and so on. 
 
52 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Again and again the whole thing threatened to collapse 
 for want of support, but Lord Plunket's hopeful nature 
 and vigorous action never allowed others to despair, 
 and, with his bright optimism and steady pertinacity in 
 whatever he thought right, he pulled it through all its 
 troubles. 
 
 Then, again, there was the opposition of the Roman 
 Catholics, who exhibited their usual dread of pro- 
 selytism, owing to which the nurses had hard times 
 just at first. However, the benefits resulting to the 
 poor were so manifest, and experience showed so 
 plainly that no tampering with the faith of the patients 
 was ever attempted (not one single complaint of this 
 sort having been made since the foundation of the 
 work), that the opposition died away ; and not only the 
 Roman Catholic poor themselves, but often also their 
 priests, begged for the nurse's help. It should be 
 mentioned that at the outset the nurse, who began the 
 work alone, had been meant for the Protestant poor 
 only — i.e., those visited by the Bible-woman ; but it 
 was very soon felt that no distinction could be made in 
 suffering, and all appeals for help were responded to. 
 Some years afterwards another Home was started in 
 Dublin for Roman Catholic nurses, and it is pleasant 
 to record that both Homes are in perfectly friendly 
 union and work harmoniously together. 
 
 Mrs. Thomas Greene, from whose letters the above 
 information is chiefly gleaned, adds, in a letter dated 
 April 13, 1900 : 
 
 " When the Queen Victoria Jubilee Institute was founded, 
 some members of it came over here [Dublin] with the idea of 
 founding a Nurses' Home, but they found, as Mr. Rathbone 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 53 
 
 said, that we were ' working exactly on the lines desired by 
 her Majesty,' so they begged us to add to our work by making 
 the Home a training institution for giving district training to 
 those already hospital-trained nurses who were desirous of 
 taking up the work. We became affiliated to the London 
 Institute, and have trained about sixty nurses, who are chiefly 
 working in Ireland, but some in England and two in Holland. 
 I may add that I have this morning received a notice that her 
 Majesty will inspect all the Jubilee Nurses next Thursday at 
 the Viceregal Lodge. Our late Archbishop would indeed have 
 rejoiced at this." 
 
 It will be seen from the foregoing account to what 
 dimensions and to what a pitch of prosperity Arch- 
 bishop Plunket's enthusiasm and devotion brought the 
 St. Patrick's Nursing Home. His work for it never 
 ceased until his death. One of the last public func- 
 tions at which he presided was the annual meeting of 
 the Home, and when he lay upon his death-bed, on 
 the very day when the doctors had thought it right to 
 tell him how seriously ill he was, he still remembered 
 to send out and ask what had been done at a com- 
 mittee meeting of the Home which had just been held, 
 and then sent word to say that he thought some action 
 it was proposed to take would be ill-advised. It is 
 interesting to note that the work which began with the 
 compassion of one young girl, and the devotion of her 
 little legacy to the cause, has now an income of nearly 
 £,'i.'Joo per annum, and was able last year to send out 
 nurses who paid thirty-five thousand visits to the sick 
 and needy. 
 
 Immediately after his marriage, a little bit of 
 evidence is found to show Mr. William Plunket's 
 keenness for the Irish Church. The honeymoon — 
 
54 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 usually sacred from business of any kind — was not 
 over when he wrote begging Mr. Venables to meet 
 him at Chester, where they were fully occupied on the 
 evening of the one day and morning of the next in 
 discussing Irish Church affairs with a view to the 
 forthcoming Church Congress at Manchester. 
 
 Mr. Venables had succeeded in obtaining an after- 
 noon of the Congress week for the Irish Church, and 
 on Wednesday, October 14, Mr. Plunket made his first 
 important public appearance in England by reading 
 an admirable paper on the hopeful prospect of the 
 Church in Ireland. 
 
 Much correspondence then ensued, chiefly with 
 reference to the West Connaught Endowment Fund, 
 until in the April of 1864 Mr. and Mrs. Venables went 
 over to Dublin on a visit to the Plunkets. They were 
 entertained at 80 St. Stephen's Green, the house of 
 Mr. B. Guinness, and from there Mr. Venables was 
 shown many things of interest. He notes that on the 
 Sunday he was taken to the Townsend Street Mission 
 School, where he preached. 
 
 These schools interested him immensely. They 
 were a centre of work for the Irish Church missions, 
 and the services held in them on Sundays were 
 attended by many of the poorest and most ignorant 
 in DubHn. In a letter describing a service there Mr. 
 Plunket says : 
 
 "On the front benches are seated some of those 
 many friends of the mission work in Dublin who 
 daily devote their time and money and often their 
 health to work among the Roman Catholic poor. . . . 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 55 
 
 Then there are the Scripture-readers, school-masters 
 and mistresses of the Society, most of them converts 
 from Romanism. , . . Behind them there is a motley 
 group. . . . Many of these are the very poor, women 
 with infants at their breast, &c. . . Behind them again 
 there is a body of listeners who watch the preacher 
 with a sort of tremulous eagerness which marks them 
 from others. These are Roman Catholics who are 
 still inquiring after the truth. They have dropped 
 in noiselessly from the quiet little lane which com- 
 municates with the far end of the room : they have 
 stolen in the first place into that small porchway ; they 
 have listened there for a while unobserved, and at last 
 they have been impelled by interest or curiosity to 
 find their way to some of the nearest forms. I have 
 often thought of 'the searching of heart' which must 
 have been felt within that little porch. It must require 
 earnestness to enable any waverer to leave that hiding 
 place and take his seat within the house of God. 
 Lastly, to complete the picture, I must not forget the 
 two sloping galleries at the far end of the room, where 
 the children belonging t(; the Dormitories and other 
 Mission institutions are seated. . . 
 
 " As I look into their little sparkhng anxious eyes, 
 and as I remember the many instances in which not 
 only the lives but the dying beds of the little ones who 
 have been brought up in these schools have testified 
 to the reality of their faith and love, I am constrained 
 to feel that they do not form the least interesting 
 feature in the congregation." 
 
 Various meetings on behalf of the West Connaught 
 
56 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Endowment Fund were held at this time, and one 
 important one for Irish Church missions, at which 
 Mr. Henry Hoare (who came all the way from London 
 for the purpose), the Dean of Bangor, Mr. Venables, 
 and others were the speakers. 
 
 The final gathering of the series was on behalf of 
 the Additional Curates Society, the Bishop of Cork in 
 the chair. These meetings and the interest they 
 aroused are worth noting, inasmuch as they owed 
 their existence in a large measure to Mr. William 
 Plunket. After giving a description of them in his 
 diary, Mr. Venables adds, "W, C. P., the hearty, 
 humble, diligent, determined assistant and adviser in 
 all these things." 
 
 It must be remembered that at this time Mr. Plunket 
 had been a very short time in holy orders, and it is 
 remarkable to see the position given to him in the 
 Irish Church so early in life. Thus, it was he who was 
 entrusted with the arrangements for obtaining a dis- 
 cussion on the Irish Church at the Manchester Church 
 Congress, on which occasion he read a paper. Then 
 it is he who organises this series of important meetings 
 in Dublin. And all this although it was scarcely six 
 years since his ordination. There are one or two 
 matters to be considered which largely account for his 
 prominence. In the first place, his ordination had 
 been delayed, owing to his illness, until he was in his 
 thirtieth year, so that he was not a very young man at 
 this time. Secondly, he came of a family so brilliant 
 and so famous in Ireland, that that mere fact would be 
 almost sufficient to account for his position. But he 
 
West Connaught — His Marriage 57 
 
 not only came of the stock of Plunket and of Bushe, 
 but he inherited a large share of their gifts, an un- 
 swerving devotion to duty, a charm of feature and of 
 manner, a quick insight into the difficulties of a case, 
 and a personal influence over those with whom he 
 came in contact, which all marked him out as the man 
 who, if his health suffered no relapse, would take a 
 high position among the Irish ecclesiastics of the near 
 future. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 CANON VENABLES' VISIT TO WEST CONN AUGHT 
 
 Mr. Plunket was now exceedingly desirous that 
 Mr. Venables should write a pamphlet on the mission 
 work in West Connaught, and in order that he might 
 be able to do this, a second visit to Ireland was 
 planned for this same year, 1864. On August 23 Mr. 
 Venables, accompanied by some of his family, crossed 
 to Dublin, and a day or two later went on to Galway 
 in the company of Mr. Plunket, and proceeded by 
 steamboat to a small place called Ashford, twenty-six 
 miles up Lough Corrib. Here he witnessed the depar- 
 ture of some emigrants, a scene which astonished him 
 greatly, but was probably useful as a preparation for 
 attempting to understand the people among whom he 
 found himself — a race as different from the Yorkshire 
 folk of his home as can well be imagined. The 
 description of the scene shall be given in Mr. Venables' 
 own words, for it will serve as an introduction to 
 the wild and dangerous surroundings of their sub- 
 sequent expedition, and it may soften the harsh 
 judgment of the reader when he realises the strangely 
 emotional character of these West Connaught peasants. 
 Mr. Venables writes : 
 
Canon Venables' Visit 59 
 
 " As the boat left the little wharf, separating, probably for 
 ever, a large number of dear relatives and friends, the shriek 
 that went up towards heaven was to us most agonising and 
 brought much sorrow to our hearts. We lingered about for 
 half-an-hour, till the boat was out of sight, and were greatly 
 astonished at beholding the sorrowing groups speedily re- 
 covering themselves, fortifying themselves with a drop of the 
 ' craythur,' and soon becoming as happy and joyful as if their 
 loved ones had just come home. The sorrow was probably 
 as genuine as the joy that succeeded, but the rapidity of the 
 change, and the fact that these bereaved fathers and mothers 
 and friends could so quickly shake off sorrow and apparently 
 forget it, rather perplexed and certainly astonished us 
 ' Saxons.' " 
 
 Bearing in mind the curious temperament of the 
 people, the following extract from the same diary will 
 be of great interest. It must be remembered that 
 although this was the first experience of the kind which 
 Mr. Venables had encountered, yet it was of a piece 
 with very much through which William Plunket had 
 already passed and with which he was tolerably 
 familiar. Here is the account : 
 
 "I have often spoken of Tuesday, August 30, 1864, as the 
 day of my first martyrdom ! It was the day on which I first 
 experienced anything of the terrible opposition which can be 
 raised up against the Church by a little covert excitement. 
 
 "The Rev. W. C. Plunket and I agreed to drive to Ballin- 
 robe in a carriage to attend a meeting of the Hibernian Bible 
 Society. Rain fell persistently as we went, and we did not talk 
 much, being each of us wishful to think over what we should 
 say at the meeting. I was therefore unwilling to disturb him 
 as, amid the pouring rain, I observed men standing at the door 
 of their cabin or dwelling house, sometimes with pitchfork in 
 hand, and all making strange gesticulations of a rather alarming 
 
6o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 character. I thought that possibly some political election 
 might be causing a display of zeal that outran discretion, but 
 as we entered Ballinrobe the hubbub might almost be described 
 as serious and alarming. Mr. Brownrigg, the rector, awaited 
 us, and we drove into his yard, going into his house for 
 luncheon, which the scene outside hindered me from enjoying. 
 We walked to the place of meeting, a kind of town hall, amidst 
 the shouting and hooting of a rabble of perhaps 300 people, all 
 clearly ready for riot and longing for some excuse to begin. 
 About forty persons were present at the meeting. Mr. William 
 Plunket was the chief speaker, and I also spoke, and alluded 
 to the scene as one that demonstrated the need of the Bible 
 being known in Ballinrobe. The noise of yelling diminished 
 before the meeting closed, but when we came out we found 
 ourselves escorted by some police with muskets, &c., all ready 
 for active use. One thing especially struck me as we walked 
 back to the rectory along the crowded streets, headed by the 
 armed police, who were accompanied by a magistrate, a 
 Roman Catholic but a thorough gentleman, who expressed 
 his sorrow and shame that his fellow-countrymen and fellows 
 in religion should misbehave themselves. But what struck 
 me was the fact that when, owing to some trifling incident on 
 the way, I smiled at one or two of the noisy crowd, the effect 
 appeared almost magical, and by the time we reached the 
 rectory and summoned the coachman all was comparatively 
 quiet. Our departure, however, was not yet accomplished, for 
 while we had been speaking others had been working, and had 
 actually taken off one of the doors of our carriage. The pro- 
 cess of adjusting this took time, and then Mr. Plunket, Mr. 
 Cory, and I got in. The multitude, however, were not quite 
 appeased, and followed us with loud shoutings. Just as we 
 were reaching the end of Ballinrobe, which is a small town of 
 between two and three thousand inhabitants, my two com- 
 panions found that something had been left behind at the 
 rectory, and, to my dismay, left the carriage and pushed their 
 way through the mob to fetch the missing article. They left 
 the door of the carriage open. I resolved not to close it or 
 
Canon Venables' Visit 6i 
 
 show any fear, and taking out my pocket-book, I made there 
 the notes from which this is taken. Never had I such an 
 illustration of the words in Psalm xxxv. 15 : 'The very abjects 
 came together against me, making mouths at me and ceased 
 not.' Unceasing changes of the most hideous and horrible 
 grimaces were given in front of the entrance to the carriage, 
 and I prepared for a possible scufHe ; but at that moment a 
 good woman passing by said, 'He's done you no harm, let 
 him alone,' and soon after (though it seemed to me a long 
 while) my two companions returned, and getting into the 
 brougham we drove off, followed by a battering shower of 
 missiles, by which fortunately only the carriage suffered." 
 
 From this place the party appear to have gone to 
 the Hon. David Plunket's place at the head of the 
 Killeries, where the chief matter of interest as regards 
 William Plunket is that on this occasion he landed his 
 first salmon, which he rose and killed in a pool of the 
 river at the bottom of his uncle's garden. 
 
 After a short stay here, they accompanied the Bishop 
 of Tuam to several places, where new churches were 
 consecrated or foundation stones laid. In this way 
 Renoyle, Errismore, Ballinahinch (the fisherman's 
 paradise), and many other spots were visited, and it 
 is worthy of notice that every church consecrated and 
 every stone laid, every school erected and every 
 smallest mission group visited, owed either its actual 
 beginning or at all events its renewed vitality to the 
 work of William Conyngham Plunket. This fact must 
 have made him the best possible conductor of the 
 tour. 
 
 A remarkable incident occurred on Omey Island, 
 whither Mr. Venables and Mr. Plunket had driven in a 
 car across the sands at low tide to take the service 
 
62 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 on Sunday, September 4. They were aware that they 
 could not have a very long time on the island, so the 
 service consisted merely of the Litany and a sermon by 
 Mr. Plunket. Hardly, however, had he got into the 
 middle of his address when a warning shout gave 
 notice that the tide was rising rapidly. Away rushed 
 the clergy for the shore, and down across the sands 
 they ran. The car followed as quickly as possible : 
 they jumped in ; the horse fortunately took the water 
 boldly, and, though the sea was running into the car, 
 they reached the mainland in safety after a somewhat 
 anxious experience. 
 
 In the following weeks much correspondence ensued 
 between Mr. Plunket and Mr. Venables as to the forth- 
 coming Church Congress at Bristol, where again an 
 afternoon was given to a discussion on Irish Church 
 matters, which was chiefly noteworthy for a wonderful 
 speech by Dr. Magee, then Dean of Cork, and after- 
 wards Archbishop of York. On this occasion also 
 Mr. Plunket was present, and was of great service 
 to the cause he had so warmly at heart, although he 
 did not come so prominently to the front as at the 
 Manchester Congress. 
 
 Just about this time Mr. William Plunket came to 
 live entirely in Dublin, having accepted the treasurer- 
 ship of St. Patrick's Cathedral — a very suitable office, 
 since it was his father-in-law's money that was restoring 
 the edifice. This position left him free to carry on 
 much of the work in connection with the Irish Church 
 missions and West Connaught endowment. His 
 domestic cares and joys were also increased in 1864 by 
 the birth of his son and heir, the present Lord Plunket, 
 
Canon Venables' Visit 63 
 
 private secretary to the Lord- Lieutenant of Ireland. 
 Between that date and the year 1879 his family grew 
 to six, four daughters and a second son, the Rev. the 
 Hon. Benjamin J. Plunket, nowa hard-working Dublin 
 clergyman. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 DISESTABLISHMENT OF THE IRISH CHURCH 
 
 In 1866 the Bishop of Tuam died, and was suc- 
 ceeded in the barony by his brother, the Hon. John 
 Plunket, Q.C., father of the future Archbishop. From 
 this date Mr. and Mrs. William Plunket appear to have 
 been a great deal at Old Connaught, Lord Plunket's 
 country seat near Bray. 
 
 But a great crisis was at hand, and for the next few 
 years the time and attention of William Plunket were 
 largely given to endeavouring to stem the flood of 
 Disestablishment while yet there seemed time, and 
 afterwards to laying down the lines of Irish Church 
 government so as to suit her altered circumstances. 
 For such a task he was peculiarly fitted. In the first 
 place, his turn of mind was rather that of a layman 
 than of an ecclesiastic. As has been said, he had little 
 historical sense, and its absence no doubt made the 
 prospect of the change less difficult. Further, he was 
 brought up in a distinctly political atmosphere. He 
 was a born Whig. It has been said that the essence 
 of politics is compromise, and 
 
 "for compromise," says one of his former chaplains, "the 
 fourth Lord Plunket had a positive genius. A trifling instance 
 of the compromising temperament I can give. His grace 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 65 
 
 suffered much from cold. He had a bad circulation, and 
 could seldom keep his feet warm. Moreover, he had an old- 
 fashioned hatred of open windows. On the other hand, I am a 
 fresh-air fanatic. We often had to drive in cabs together, and 
 when we did of recent years it was his habit to open a little 
 bit of the top of one window and hold the strap till we got to 
 the end of our drive.'' 
 
 Again, he was a great student of human nature and a 
 very acute (though kindly) judge of his fellow men. 
 He knew to a nicety the effect his words would have 
 upon his hearers, especially when spoken in public to 
 large assemblies. He was an excellent writer of letters 
 and communications to the Press, and fully realised 
 the vast power for good and evil of the " fourth estate." 
 Being a comparatively young man, he was more easily 
 able to acclimatise himself to a new ecclesiastical con- 
 stitution, a matter of great difficulty to older men, such 
 as Archbishop Trench. 
 
 In addition to these qualities, there was the power he 
 inherited of being able with ease to seize upon the 
 chief points in a case or to digest a Blue-book, while 
 no doubt the old days of private theatricals and recita- 
 tions helped to give him confidence in stating his views 
 in the presence of a critical audience. But there were 
 higher qualifications than these. The welfare of the 
 Irish Church was intensely dear to him. He sought 
 purity therein first, and progress afterwards. If in the 
 view of some his leaning was to rather more 
 Protestantism than they approved, yet all acknow- 
 ledged that it was the honest, heartfelt conviction 
 of a prayerful, God-fearing man. Canon Venables 
 writes that the question with him never seemed 
 
66 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 to be "What will be a good thing ?" but "What is 
 right ? " 
 Again, to quote the same friend : 
 
 " Great feeling and anxiety were exhibited all through this 
 time for the welfare of the Irish Church, but accompanied by 
 a confidence that, whatever politicians might do and however 
 much she might be wronged, the Church of Ireland, even if 
 ' rebuked and chastened ' in the wise providence of God, was 
 thus dealt with because He loved her and intended great 
 things for her future. William Conyngham Plunket never 
 drooped, never doubted. His confidence was in God, and he 
 had no fear whatever, though feeling keenly and bitterly the 
 course of events." 
 
 He possessed what has been described as "an in- 
 domitable optimism," and at such a crisis as that of the 
 disestablishment of the Irish Church it was an invalu- 
 able gift. 
 
 But the dreaded blow had not actually fallen, and 
 meantime many meetings and conferences were held 
 in Ireland to avert, if possible, and, if not, to prepare 
 for the event. Chief of these were gatherings in con- 
 nection with the Dublin Church Congress of October, 
 1868, which was preceded by a " wondrous, splendid 
 extempore sermon by Magee, Dean of Cork," in 
 St. Patrick's Cathedral. Bishop Samuel Wilberforce is 
 said to have written home an account of this sermon, 
 which he described as the most wonderful he had ever 
 heard, and so grand that he hardly expected ever 
 to hear another like it. 
 
 On the Wednesday (it is a curious coincidence that 
 at each Church Congress the same day of the week 
 was given to Ireland) there was a great discussion on 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 67 
 
 Church work and Hfe in Ireland, a subject which was 
 exceedingly ably dealt with, mainly by Irish speakers. 
 Mr. William Plunket read one of the papers, which has 
 been described as very telling and well received. 
 
 What his views were on the subject of the disestab- 
 lishment of the Irish Church can best be gathered by 
 consulting certain pamphlets which he issued during 
 the year 1869. One of these is called " The Dangers 
 of Silence." The principle of the disestablishment 
 had been carried by Parliament, but Mr. Gladstone's 
 measure had not yet been promulgated. There was a 
 party in the Irish Church who thought that it would 
 be a wiser and more dignified course to wait until this 
 was done before expressmg any views as a Church on 
 the subject. It was feared by these persons that the 
 discussion of a future possible organisation of the Irish 
 Church would, by implying the probability of defeat, 
 inspire the enemy with confidence, and even aid in the 
 assault by pointing out how their object could be most 
 easily attained. Mr. WilHam Plunket was not of the 
 same opinion, as he sets out clearly in the pamphlet 
 above mentioned. He wrote : 
 
 " I have always most strenuously protested against the 
 monstrous injustice which Mr. Gladstone and his party 
 propose to inflict on the Churchmen of Ireland, and I 
 have always believed and asserted that the disadvan- 
 tages which must result to the Church from disestab- 
 lishment and disendowment are of such a nature as 
 altogether to outweigh any possible benefit which 
 might be expected to accrue from the same. Up to 
 the time of the recent elections, and the resignation 
 
68 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of the late Ministry, I not only cautiously abstained 
 from any expression of foreboding fears, but I buoyed 
 up my own heart and tried to cheer the hearts of 
 others with the hope that the nation might hsten to the 
 voice of reason and justice before it was too late. But 
 there are times when facts get the better of the most 
 sanguine hopes, and I confess that I now believe that 
 (so far at least as the elections are a mark of public 
 feeling) the verdict of the nation — an unrighteous ver- 
 dict, no doubt, against which I still protest — has been 
 given against us. I am aware that men of far greater 
 judgment and experience than I can lay claim to are of 
 opinion that the result of the elections by no means 
 implies a final verdict on the part of the people. It is, 
 I know, the conviction of many wise and able cham- 
 pions of our Church that by a vigorous appeal to the 
 good sense and fair-play of the nation we shall yet . . . 
 bring about a complete reaction in the public mind be- 
 fore a final decision can be obtained. Most earnestly do 
 I wish for such a result, and most cordially will I do what 
 I can to assist in its accomplishment. But, in perfect 
 consistency with such a wish and such a resolve, I still 
 maintain that it is no sign of a pusillanimous heart or 
 a craven spirit to accept the conclusion which common 
 sense and duty alike dictate : namely, that the danger 
 of our position is at least sufficiently grave to make it 
 reasonable for us to prepare with manliness and dignity 
 for the possible contingency of defeat. But, it may be 
 asked, cannot all this be done without any public state- 
 ment of our views ? Cannot we at least keep silence 
 till we have Mr. Gladstone's measure before us ? My 
 answer is that it is just in the very interval which must 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 69 
 
 elapse before the meeting of Parliament that silence 
 upon our parts may be specially injurious to the best 
 
 interests of the Church. 
 
 * » * * * 
 
 " I would venture to submit to the consideration of 
 my fellow-Churchmen what I believe to be the great 
 dangers of an unbroken silence : 
 
 " (i) In the first place, as regards the best method of 
 meeting the enemy's attack. Surely Churchmen gene- 
 rally have a right to be heard on this point. There are 
 some, I know, who hold it to be a duty, in the event of 
 an adverse vote, however large, to make use of every 
 device of Parliamentary warfare to obstruct the progress 
 of the measure in its further stages. 
 
 " Others are of opinion that, in the event of a large 
 majority in favour of the Government measure, the 
 friends of the Church . . . should shrink from the 
 policy of mere obstruction for obstruction's sake. 
 Such persons think that to try to maintain or prolong 
 the existence of the Church, as a State Church, against 
 the will of the nation by any unworthy acts of Parlia- 
 mentary manoeuvring, would only place the Church in 
 a false position, would injure her spiritual interests and 
 prospects, would divert and secularise the energies of 
 her clergy, and would finally result in a far more 
 unfavourable settlement of the question than might 
 have been obtained by a less obstructive policy at the 
 first. 
 
 " I am free to confess that 1 am in favour of the latter 
 view of this question. But, whatever opinion may be 
 held on the subject, surely it is a question sufficiently 
 
70 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 affecting tlie interests of the Church at large to preclude 
 the notion of its being decided without our knowledge, 
 and without an opportunity being given us to express 
 our views. And yet, if we are to know the wishes of 
 Churchmen in the event of an adverse division ... is 
 it not in the interval preceding that division that, if 
 ever, public opinion must be appealed to and elicited ? 
 Silence under such circumstances involves in my 
 opinion a very serious danger. 
 
 " (2) But secondly, as regards the expected Govern- 
 ment measure and its promoters. 
 
 « « * * * 
 
 " I am persuaded that a majority of those who have 
 a voice in the construction of the measure are not 
 influenced by any purely destructive motives, and I do 
 believe that such persons would be glad to learn, even 
 indirectly, in what way a measure could be framed which, 
 while involving the principle of disestablishment to 
 which they are pledged, might at the same time inflict 
 as little injury on the Church as the circumstances of 
 the case would permit. How are they to obtain this 
 information ? Is it from the specious counsels of those 
 whom we know to be our bitter enemies ? Is it from 
 the fanciful theories of those who know nothing about 
 it ? And yet, if those of our body who really love our 
 Church and know something about it are to maintain 
 an unbroken silence from the fear of giving hints to 
 our opponents, the result may be the introduction of a 
 Bill which, if carried, will not only effect the disestab- 
 lishment and disendowment of our Church, but will 
 effect it in the way most calculated to be disastrous 
 to her interests and unpalatable to her members. It 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 71 
 
 may be too late then to say, ' We would have wished 
 it otherwise.' 
 
 " (3) But, thirdly, let us see the effect which our 
 silence will have on the formation of public opinion 
 at large even among our friends. For, while Irish 
 Churchmen are silent, public opinion is moulding 
 itself without their intervention, and actually pro- 
 nouncing decisions as to their wishes. For example, 
 Mr. Bonamy Price, writing to the Times and speaking 
 almost as an advocate of the Irish Church, says : ' Let 
 the Irish Bishops be removed from the House of 
 Lords ; let them be reduced to two or three if neces- 
 sary ; let Deans, if so desired, be abolished ; let the 
 minimum of endowment be reserved for Protestants ; 
 but let not the Parliament perform an act unpre- 
 cedented in history- — namely, dissolve a Church, of 
 whatever kind, to atoms.' By which latter words he 
 means, let a certam amount of State connection still 
 
 be maintained. 
 
 • * * # » 
 
 " Now, as I have already said, I am not, and never 
 have been, an advocate of disestablishment so long as 
 our connection with the State can be maintained in its 
 present form. But if we are to be robbed of our State 
 endowments and our State privileges, then I say (and 
 I believe that I speak the views of most of my fellow- 
 Churchmen) let us not consent to be hampered and 
 
 endangered by a profitless State control. 
 
 ***** 
 
 " In England, where synodical action is at present 
 altogether of a clerical character, the lay element of 
 Crown supremacy may be necessary to secure a 
 
72 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 balance of parties in the government of the Church. 
 And in some of those new-born Crown dependencies, 
 where the scantiness or the weakness of the Church 
 population preclude the possibility of an efficient 
 system of self-government, the temporary guardianship 
 of State control may be of use. But in the event of 
 disestablishment, would this be the case in Ireland ? 
 Is it not admitted on all hands that under such circum- 
 stances the laity should be given their legitimate 
 share in the councils, government, and patronage of the 
 Church ? And if so, are the bishops, the clergy, and the 
 laity of Ireland so helpless and inexperienced that, if 
 robbed of their birthright and turned out of doors, 
 they must come back like children and humbly beg to 
 be at least allowed the privilege of being kept in 
 leading-strings ? I confess to a feeling of patriotic 
 pride which revolts against such a confession of utter 
 incompetency. 
 
 " The result of the late Dublin Congress, which many 
 feared might present to the world a spectacle of 
 weakness and sectarian wranglings, proves in itself 
 that Irish Churchmen can meet and deliberate and 
 give a faithful expression to their views, not only with 
 ability but with moderation, wisdom, and a large- 
 hearted brotherly kindness. 
 
 " And if State control apart from State privileges can 
 confer no advantages, let us remember the positive 
 injuries which it might inflict. 
 
 "The slightest remnant of State connection must 
 endanger the tenure by the Church of whatever 
 property in the event of disendowment she may be 
 allowed to retain. But it must do worse. It must 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 73 
 
 endanger the influence of our Church upon the mass 
 of the Irish population. If the State should do itself 
 as well as us the injustice of spoliating and humiliat- 
 ing the Church, then let the Church claim the 
 privilege of standing forth for the future as a purely 
 national Church. Let there not remain a shred of 
 State connection to give a shadow of excuse to those 
 who would still wish to describe it as an alien Church. 
 Let us remember the grand traditional associations 
 which connect themselves with the history of that 
 ancient Church of St. Patrick, St. Brigid, and St. 
 Columbkill, which we profess now to represent, and 
 let us not, if deprived of our present rightful position, 
 denationalise ourselves in the eyes of the people by 
 accepting the position of a mere subordinate appanage 
 of the English Crown. Let us claim for ourselves the 
 right to be called the Reformed Episcopal Church of 
 Ireland, in communion with, but not a mere branch or 
 dependency of, the sister Church of England. If the 
 State will leave us our present honours and our 
 present endowments, then God forbid that we should 
 seek for separation ; but if all our State privileges are 
 swept away, then let not any form of State control or 
 Crown supremacy prevent us from at once building up 
 the ruined walls of our Church on the foundations of 
 
 patriotism and nationality. 
 
 * * * * » 
 
 " 1 love my Church, and believing as I do that silence 
 at the present moment endangers her best interests, I 
 am compelled at all risks to speak, not with the pre- 
 sumptuous idea that the views of so humble an indi- 
 vidual will carry much weight, but with the earnest 
 
74 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 hope that they may elicit opinions from some more 
 competent and influential members of our Church." 
 
 The foregoing extracts from Mr. Plunket's pamphlet 
 have been quoted at some length, because they give so 
 clear a view of his position with regard to the dis- 
 establishment question. From them, too, it is plainly 
 seen that to accuse him of favouring the measure (an 
 accusation which was more than hinted at when he 
 afterwards considered the advantages of disestablish- 
 ment to outweigh the disadvantages) was entirely 
 unjustifiable. There is evidence also in these pages of 
 some of his great qualities — e.g., his clear grasp of the 
 question and equally clear exposition of his opinion, 
 his courtesy towards those who did not agree with 
 him, and, more than all, the burning patriotism with 
 which he claimed for the Irish Church the right of 
 standing forth for the future as a purely national 
 Church. 
 
 Much controversy and the perplexity of a multitude 
 of counsels was unavoidable in the crisis which arose 
 when Mr. Gladstone's Bill was brought in and passed. 
 It would take too much space to discuss all the 
 questions which arose, and to show the number of 
 occasions on which Mr. Plunket's statesmanlike dis- 
 position was of service in helping to keep the peace 
 and to solve difficulties, while the various parties in the 
 Church of Ireland were trying to come to an amicable 
 settlement as to the new constitution which had become 
 necessary. One special matter, however, must be 
 mentioned, as giving a further example of his genius. 
 The question, " Are the bishops to sit in a separate 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 75 
 
 chamber, and to vote as a separate order, in the 
 approaching synod ? " was being discussed with a 
 considerable amount of keenness if not of animus. 
 The bishops were accused by some of a merely selfish 
 desire for personal aggrandisement, while they were 
 merely seeking to maintain certain privileges of their 
 order which were in their opinion essential to the 
 well-being of the Church. On the other hand, those 
 who objected to these episcopal privileges were taunted 
 as seeking to presbyterianise the Church. The strife 
 round this point waxed very hot. Mr. Plunket came 
 forward with a suggestion, prompted partly by his 
 desire for peace, partly by his clear foresight of the 
 true interests of the Church, and partly by his innate 
 liking for compromise. He proposed, in a most able 
 pamphlet, that the bishops should not sit in a separate 
 chamber, but should vote as a separate order. 
 
 His main arguments were : First, that, for the sake of 
 that union which was at that moment so vitally im- 
 portant among Irish Churchmen, such concessions as 
 would require no abandonment of principle ought to 
 be cheerfully made by both sides. 
 
 Secondly, that such a course would not be at variance 
 with the most ancient precedents, though it might be at 
 variance with some ancient precedents. He quoted the 
 fact that in the Convocation of Canterbury the custom 
 of the clergy retiring to consult apart from the bishops 
 only dated from the fourteenth century, and in Ireland 
 was of more recent date still. Also that in the Convo- 
 cation of York the bishops and clergy deliberated in one 
 assembly. 
 
 Thirdly, that, so far from such a course lowering the 
 
76 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 position of the bishops, it would add to their dignity, 
 by making them not only rulers but, a prouder title, 
 leaders. 
 
 So much for the arguments on the one side — i.e., as 
 against those who desired a separate chamber and vote 
 for the bishops. On the other side he held that the 
 course he proposed would not enable the bishops, by 
 giving them a separate vote, to force legislation on the 
 Church. " If," he said, " the power of an absolute 
 veto be given to each of the three orders [bishops, 
 clergy, and laity], the idea of any combination 
 between the bishops and clergy to outvote the laity 
 must fall to the ground." He maintained that the vote 
 of the bishops would be a power simply as a veto and 
 not as a legislative act. Again, there were some who 
 thought that the bishops might use their veto for the 
 purpose of thwarting the clearly expressed wishes of 
 the great body of the Church — that, in fact, a majority 
 of their body might refuse to yield even in a matter of 
 mere expediency, and might use their power to defy 
 and exasperate the Church. These men said that they 
 did not look upon such a contingency as possible so 
 long as their present bishops lived. This supplied Mr. 
 Plunket with a ready answer. " If," he said, " we have 
 this confidence in our present bishops, in whose 
 appointment we have had no voice, how much more, 
 if it be possible, may we not hope to trust those whom 
 we shall choose for ourselves ? " There were some 
 who feared that to give the bishops a separate vote 
 would unduly exalt the authority of the episcopal office. 
 To such persons Mr. Plunket replied by asking what 
 they understood by the authority of a bishop. As to 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Churc?i ']'j 
 
 the question whether the bishops were either super- 
 naturally quaUfied or officially authorised to lay down 
 laws for the Church entrusted to their charge, he made 
 his own position clear by stating that he most heartily 
 endorsed the words of Hooker when he says that, 
 " till it be proved that some special law of Christ hath 
 for ever annexed unto the clergy alone the power to 
 make ecclesiastical laws, we are to hold it a thing most 
 consonant with equity and reason that no ecclesiastical 
 law be made in a Christian commonwealth without 
 the consent as well of the laity as of the clergy." But 
 he considered it absurd to suppose that the bishops, 
 when called upon to give their votes upon questions 
 affecting the welfare of the Church, should be expected 
 to take their place as units in the great mass of those 
 over whom they have been placed in charge. The 
 refusal of a separate vote would, in his opinion, be an 
 undue and unprecedented humiliation of the office, 
 calculated to bring Episcopacy into contempt and to 
 " loosen with one wanton stroke the very foundations 
 of our ancient Apostolic Church." 
 
 In the course of his arguments on this subject there 
 occurs a passage which is well worth quoting, clearly 
 setting forth his views as to the relation between the 
 Churches of England and Ireland — a matter which 
 became of great moment at a later date, when the ques- 
 tion of the consecration of Seiior Cabrera as bishop of 
 the Reformed Church in Spain was to the front. This 
 is the passage : 
 
 " For my own part, and I am sure that I speak the 
 feelings of many besides myself, I would say that. 
 
78 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 while earnestly desiring that we should remain upon 
 terms of friendly communion with our sister Church 
 in England, I do not think that the maintenance in 
 every respect of an ecclesiastical identity with that 
 Church, especially in a question of self-government, 
 is so essential to our very existence as some would seem 
 to suppose. On the contrary, I am bold to say that 
 any feeble attempts to Hnk what is called our weakness 
 on to England's strength will only lower us in the 
 eyes of Englishmen and alienate the sympathies of our 
 fellow-countrymen. To ask tremblingly at every step 
 what will English Churchmen think, what will they do, 
 what will they give, if we do not adopt such and such 
 a course, is to my mind a humiliating position for an 
 independent Church to take up. 
 
 " We have sprung up from roots of our own — we are 
 not an offshoot of the English Church ; we are not, 
 as some would represent us, ' the English Church in 
 Ireland.' We form a Church complete in herself — an 
 ancient national Church, which was in existence as an 
 Irish Church before those Anglo-Saxon times from 
 which the great Anglican Communion, with all its 
 dependencies, derives its very name. Let us, then, have 
 the courage and the wisdom to stand alone ; let us 
 cease from clutching at the apron-strings of Anglican 
 connection ; and let the word Anglicanism, as describ- 
 ing our faith and practice, be banished from our 
 vocabulary. Long may we remain on terms of the 
 most friendly and affectionate communion with the 
 English Church ; long may we treasure in our memo- 
 ries the example set to us by her sainted martyrs ; and 
 
Disestablishment' of the Irish Church 79 
 
 long may we prize the precious heritage of Protestant 
 truth which they have bequeathed to us. But, while 
 so doing, let us retain our fellowship with our English 
 sister on the basis of mutual independence, and thereby 
 shall we learn to love and respect each other all the 
 more." 
 
 At the end of this same year (1869) Mr. Plunket 
 preached a great sermon in St. Patrick's Cathedral on 
 the subject of "The Church of Ireland a National 
 Church," in which, from his first words — " My fellow- 
 Churchmen and my fellow-countrymen " — to his last 
 appeal to the Irish Church as the representative of the 
 ancient Church of St. Patrick, " Irish to her very core," 
 there breathes the same spirit of patriotism and inde- 
 pendence. He always looked forward to the day when 
 the Church of England should share the fate of that of 
 Ireland ; and in the course of this sermon he asked, 
 " Is the disestablishment of the English Church so 
 remote a contingency that it is folly to assume its 
 possibility ? And are the elements of disruption within 
 that Church so much less dangerous than those within 
 our own ? And if not, why should we lean against 
 what may shortly prove to be a tottering wall ? " 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 DISESTA BLISHMENT—[CONTIN UED) 
 
 The diaries of Canon Venables throw some additional 
 light upon the labours of Mr. Plunket during this 
 anxious period. He was the guest of the latter during 
 part of the autumn of 1869, and several of his notes 
 concerning this visit are of interest. 
 
 " On All Saints' Day," he writes, " W. C. P. and I attended 
 the consecration of a new chancel to the old church of Bray, 
 when the Archbishop (Trench) preached a very nice sermon. 
 The Archbishop seemed to me despondent. JVb^ so Plunket. 
 He may have had his times of depression and of joy, but his 
 confidence never yielded. Nor, indeed, when it came to a 
 question of yielding, did the Archbishop really flinch. Still, 
 Plunket was ever confident in the welfare of the Church, 
 whether of the West Connaught Endowment Fund, or of the 
 Irish Church Missions, or of the whole Irish Church. It 
 must have been now, I beheve, that W. C. P. held meetings 
 at Old Connaught in reference to the future of the dis- 
 established, disendowed, and partly ruined Church of Ireland. 
 .... It was at one of these anxious discussions that W. C. P. 
 and I differed strongly upon one important point, in which 
 his nobleness and simplicity shone forth strongly upon a 
 matter which he felt very important, and on which I still 
 believe that I was right. The principle, as regarded the future 
 finance of the Church, was to be that the incomes of the 
 benefices should be as much as possible equal. I took, and 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 8i 
 
 still take, a different view, and I advocated the desirability of 
 securing some ' prizes ' in the Church, if any could still exist 
 out of the wreck of confiscated endowments, or if any person 
 or persons should choose to endow one or more benefices as 
 ' prizes ' in the future. The idea was not at all favourably 
 received, and W. C. P. was almost indignant at the suggestion. 
 He considered that such benefices had done much harm, and 
 added (I well recollect his declaration), ' I would say " Thy 
 money perish with thee " to anyone proposing to obtain or 
 endow prizes in the Church.' 
 
 " His earnest determination in this and in all matters to 
 have pure simplicity, and no temptation to attract men to the 
 ministry by the influence of greed, carried all with him except 
 myself and one or two others. 
 
 ***** 
 
 " On Saturday, November 6, I left Plunket full of anxiety, 
 exceeded, however, as always, by faith and hope, and without 
 any fear that if indeed Christ seemed to be asleep in the vessel, 
 He was in the vessel, and that no doubt could exist, with His 
 presence, of the final success of the voyage. But there was 
 much to be done by human agency, and there were fine, noble. 
 Christian, Irish minds to do it. Amongst these Plunket was 
 ever prominent with undoubting faith, continuous hope, un- 
 flagging zeal, and most prayerful humility. These were in 
 my judgment his chief characteristics." 
 
 The results of the disestablishment and disendow- 
 ment of the Irish Church no doubt affected different 
 minds in different ways. Churchmen of more ad- 
 vanced years and more conservative type, such as 
 Archbishop Trench, were, as has been stated, inclined 
 to despond. Many of the Roman Catholics, who had 
 at first been elate at the prospect, were disappointed at 
 some of the results. Thus, Canon Venables writes 
 that he had a private conversation with a thorough 
 
82 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Irishman and Papist when he was gaining information 
 about Mr. Plunket's work in West Connaught, espe- 
 cially towards Sligo. This man stated that he and all 
 his folk had quite understood that with the spoliation 
 of the Irish Church would come great help to them all, 
 because there would be no tithes to pay. The indig- 
 nation was great when they found that the tithes would 
 have to be paid the same as ever, only that they would 
 no longer be given to the object to which they had 
 been originally devoted in the name of God. This 
 man even hinted that he wished the tithes, under such 
 circumstances, had not been taken from the Protestant 
 Church. Mr. William Plunket found, of course, that 
 the altered state of affairs seriously affected the interests 
 of the Irish Church missions and the West Connaught 
 Endowment Society. But he did not allow their cause 
 to be abandoned. The latter scheme was to a great 
 extent carried out, and no part of the funds raised was 
 lost to the Church. The work of the foriner society 
 has gone quietly on, and those who offer themselves 
 for instruction have been provided with teachers. If 
 the methods employed have become slightly more 
 unobtrusive, there is good reason to believe that the 
 results obtained are none the less blessed. 
 
 It may be as well at this point to look forward and 
 notice what Mr. Plunket's opinions as to disestablish- 
 ment became some years afterwards, when he had risen 
 to an eminent position in the Irish Church. Briefly it 
 may be stated that he was more than satisfied with the 
 advantages which he considered to have accrued from 
 the measure. He inherited a full measure of that 
 "charity" which was so eminent a characteristic of 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 83 
 
 both his father and his mother. To him it was worth 
 almost anything to find it possible to live and work in 
 harmony with his fellow men. He believed that the 
 new conditions of the Church of Ireland conduced 
 greatly to this end. He is reported to have said : " We 
 went through three stages after disestablishment. 
 First, nobody understood anybody else. Then we 
 came to see that there was a mixture of good and evil 
 in other men. Then that we could work with each 
 other in spite of failings." Probably no one contributed 
 more largely to this result than he, with his genial, con- 
 siderate, tactful disposition. 
 
 As time went on and he, as Archbishop of Dublin, 
 had even larger opportunities of observing the effects 
 of disestablishment, his satisfaction seems to have 
 increased. In the Western Mail for November 3, 1892, 
 there appeared a lengthy account of an interview with 
 him on the subject. The interviewer describes him as 
 most distinguished-looking, and says that 
 
 " apart from his stature, which is considerably above that of 
 most men who would be described as tall, he is endowed with 
 a remarkable stateliness of bearing which would mark him out 
 in a crowd as no ordinary man. Added to which, there is a 
 certain indefinable charm of manner in which dignity and ease 
 are so blended with kindliness that before being long in his 
 society one recognises what the bond is which so firmly unites 
 the Archbishop with his flock." 
 
 In answer to various questions as to the subject on 
 which his opinions were sought, he made the following 
 most interesting statements : 
 
 " One of the most trying features of the ordeal of 
 disestablishment was the cruel and at times malignant 
 
84 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 criticism which was brought to bear upon the Church. 
 It is not a pleasant thing to be pubHcly vivisected 
 for the sake of somebody else's good. But so 
 it was with us. It had become a pubHc necessity 
 that, as a State Church, we should be put out of 
 the way. If something were not done, Clerken- 
 well might be exploded or Manchester filled with 
 rioters ! Agitation and intimidation had accomplished 
 what modern statesmen deemed their legitimate ends. 
 They had brought England within measurable distance, 
 if not of civil war, at least of a general blow-up, and 
 they had consequently brought disestablishment 
 ' within the range of practical politics ! ' But it was 
 most important not to alarm English Churchmen, and 
 so it became necessary to show that the Irish Church 
 was exceptionally deserving of such a fate. Every 
 particle of mud in the shape of defamatory scandal 
 that could be scraped up by certain of our assailants 
 was flung at us, and some of it sticks still. . , . 
 
 " The wolves were on the track, and had to be satisfied 
 with something. The Irish Church Establishment was 
 rather overweighting the sledge, and so we were thrown 
 out with certain decent expressions of sisterly regret. 
 
 " But the wolves have not, in my opinion, done her 
 much permanent harm after all. But it might happen 
 that, having found their first morsel so palatable, they 
 will lick their lips and seek for more. [This was a 
 reference to the proposed disestablishment of the 
 Church in Wales.] 
 
 "Apart from slanderous misrepresentations, the 
 Church has suffered much damage by disestablishment. 
 The disappointed prospects of those who entered the 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 85 
 
 ministry before our disconnection from the State. 
 The miserable incomes of those who have been since 
 appointed to vacant posts. The dependence of a 
 clergyman for his stipend on the precarious and some- 
 times capricious church offerings of his people, and 
 the consequent imperilling of his independence. The 
 risk of poor and remote parishes being left without the 
 means of grace. The inadequate supply of candidates 
 for holy orders, and the danger lest those who do 
 enter the ministry should socially and intellectually 
 fall short of the standard of the past. These are evils 
 which disestablishment has of necessity brought in its 
 train. But 
 
 " (i) In the case of remote and thinly popu- 
 lated parishes two or more have been grouped 
 together . . . and I may safely say that, notwithstand- 
 ing our troubles, there is no single parish, however 
 remote, which has been left without the means of 
 grace. 
 
 " (2) The supply of candidates has not been inade- 
 quate, because by the grouping of remote parishes the 
 number required to fill the vacancies has been fewer. 
 In the first years of disestablishment the social and 
 intellectual standard of the candidates fell most 
 decidedly below the standard of the past. That, how- 
 ever, was one of the mischiefs which time has removed, 
 and for years past no candidate has been ordained 
 until he has taken his degree and obtained his divinity 
 testamur." 
 
 Now follows the most important part of the Arch- 
 bishop's statement : 
 
86 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "When I count up the advantages which have 
 followed disestablishment ; when I think of the re- 
 newed strength and vitality which our Church has 
 derived from the admission of the laity to an active 
 and responsible participation in her counsels, in the 
 disposition of her patronage, and in the financial 
 department of her work ; when I observe the spirit of 
 unity and mutual respect which has been engendered 
 by the ordeal of our common adversity, and the 
 increased loyalty and love which is being daily shown 
 to their mother Church by those who have had to 
 make some sacrifice on her behalf ; when I remember, 
 too, the freedom from agrarian complications which 
 our disconnection from all questions of tithe and tithe 
 rent-charge has brought about, and the more favourable 
 attitude as regards our influence upon the surrounding 
 population which we occupy because of our severance 
 from any State connection : when I remember all this 
 counterpoise of advantage which we enjoy in our new 
 and independent position, and when I try to hold the 
 balance evenly and weigh the losses and the gains 
 of the whole, I say boldly and without reserve that, in 
 
 my opinion at least, the gain outweighs the loss. 
 
 ****** 
 
 " But, because certain advantages have followed in 
 the train of our disestablishment, that is no reason for 
 subjecting the Church of England or even the Welsh 
 section of our sister Church to the same treatment. 
 For many of the advantages we have gained consist in 
 our extrication from certain difficulties attendant on a 
 form of agrarian and Ultramontane agitation peculiar 
 to Ireland. 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 87 
 
 " If, however, the Church in Wales is threatened, as I 
 understand her to be, I hope Welsh Churchmen will 
 not fall into the error which Irish Churchmen fell into 
 — of refusing to believe it possible that disestablish- 
 ment and disendowment would be carried into effect, 
 or refusing to make terms with the disestablishment 
 party. On the eve of disestablishment in Ireland many 
 strong Churchmen said, ' We will not watch the pro- 
 gress of the Bill ; we will not make any treaty with the 
 enemies of our Church — we will have no hand with 
 them whatever in despoiling our Church of her heritage.' 
 That was a mistake, and, but for the influence of one 
 Irish Churchman with Mr. Gladstone, the Church of 
 Ireland might have been treated even worse than it was 
 by the Act of Disestablishment.'' 
 
 This last sentence probably refers to the action of 
 Archdeacon Stopford, who, by means of Canon 
 Venables' friendship with Sir Stephen Glynne, re- 
 ceived an invitation to visit Mr. Gladstone at 
 Hawarden, where he remained several days for the 
 purpose of trying to make the spoliation Act as little 
 injurious as possible. The Archdeacon had the 
 wisdom to see that it was too late to try and save 
 the rectory houses, &c. at no sacrifice, so worked for 
 the obtaining of permission (afterwards granted) for 
 the Church to buy back her own property at a 
 moderate sum. 
 
 It may be mentioned here that, all through the 
 discussions and negotiations which were so numerous 
 in the troubled years of 1868, 1869, &c., Mr. William 
 
88 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Plunket (as he was then) worked with Archdeacon 
 Stopford in almost entire agreement as to principles, 
 policy, and doctrine. 
 
 The publication of the above opinion caused con- 
 siderable consternation among the Churchmen of 
 Wales. The Bishop of St. Asaph wrote a strong letter 
 to the Archbishop, from which it can be gathered that 
 the latter's statement was published in almost every 
 Welsh paper, and was considered likely to assist the 
 cause of the enemies of the Welsh Church. From the 
 same source it appears that the Archbishop's senti- 
 ments were opposed to those of many leading Church- 
 men in Ireland. This is not improbable, for it must 
 always be remembered that his mind was never that of 
 a mere ecclesiastic, but that his Whig training and 
 inherited legal instincts would be sure to make him view 
 disestablishment from a somewhat different standpoint 
 from that of many of his fellow-Churchmen. 
 
 One thing about the disestablishment Mr. William 
 Plunket felt keenly. The attitude of English Church- 
 men after the spoliation of the Irish Church astonished 
 and hurt him sorely. He spoke and wrote on frequent 
 occasions of what he considered the determination of 
 the great majority of the members of the Church of 
 England to remain in utter ignorance of the true state 
 and position of the Church of Ireland. His strong 
 patriotism has already been noticed, and when there 
 was added a feeling that Englishmen would not take 
 the trouble to understand the Irish standpoint and 
 surroundings, but were inclined to patronise, and in 
 the case of the extreme High Church party to insult and 
 to attempt to bully their sister Church, it is no matter 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 89 
 
 of surprise that the genial, kindly prelate showed signs 
 of occasional indignation. Especially was this the 
 case in the matter of the revision of the Prayer-book, 
 about which there will be more to say presently. 
 
 Canon Venables, his chief friend among English 
 Churchmen, writes as follows : 
 
 " He felt very keenly any attack made upon the Irish Church. 
 .... Remarks of my own in Church Bells he even sometimes 
 regarded as hardly fair towards the Church of Ireland in some 
 of her acts after disestablishment, and, while not willing to 
 allow that I was altogether wrong, I quite felt that his scathing 
 criticisms upon the frequent writings in English Church news- 
 papers against the Church of Ireland were thoroughly deserved. 
 
 " The stolid indifference towards her, after the confiscation 
 Act came into force, shown by the Church of England aston- 
 ished me greatly. I thought that the Sunday in January 187 1, 
 when it took effect, would be a day on which every church in 
 England would have sent the despoiled sister a loving offering 
 to aid her in her anguish. This was proposed, but it came to 
 nothing. I believe that the complaint made by Archbishop 
 Plunket (as he afterwards was) of the ignorance of the English 
 people touching the difficulties of the position of the sister 
 Church can alone account for the apathy with which she has 
 been treated. It may be that many would prefer to see her 
 develop rather higher Church principles than she does. But 
 if there be ground for this (which I will not wholly deny), it 
 affords no reason or excuse for the cold neglect so often 
 exhibited towards her on this side the Channel. . . . Lord 
 Plunket strove hard in every way to hinder what could become 
 a source of needless and terribly harmful disputations. His 
 wise counsels have done much, I am persuaded, in the settle- 
 ment of the constitution of the Irish Church, to prevent such 
 sad brawls and disturbances and sources of anxiety as often 
 perplex and hinder good Church work here in England." 
 
 In 1871 the third Baron Plunket died, and was 
 
90 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 succeeded by his eldest son, William Conyngham, 
 fourth baron. In this same year the latter suffered 
 from a good deal of ill-health, which fact, as well as his 
 chagrin at the treatment of his Church by Enghsh 
 writers, comes out in the following letters to Canon 
 Venables. 
 
 " Old Connaught House, Bray, 
 "May IS, 1871. 
 
 " My dear Venables, 
 
 " I have just received a copy of Church Bells with 
 your handwriting on the address, which shows me 
 that you remember an old friend who, beheve me, 
 does not forget either you or yours. 1 have had my 
 anxieties and trials and changes since I last wrote, 
 but, thank God, I and mine are well and have much 
 for which to be grateful. I do hope that you and 
 yours are also well. I have only just left my room, 
 having been laid up for nearly a fortnight with a 
 painful but not dangerous illness. The doctors say it 
 was brought on by overwork, and are very imperious 
 about my taking some rest. Having enlisted my wife 
 on their side, I suppose they will succeed. 
 
 "As to our Irish Church ; — truly you poor Anglicans, 
 if I am to judge from the Guardian, and, let me add. 
 Church Bells, do suffer from the usual impenetrable 
 ignorance of our real position, requirements, and even 
 of our actual proceedings. 
 
 " I read an article the other day in the Guardian 
 charging the Irish Church with extravagant and 
 fanatical exclusiveness because a measure was pro- 
 posed in the Synod by an individual member, which 
 the Guardian presumed to be expressive of the opinion 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 91 
 
 of the Irish Church, and yet in the very same article 
 it admitted that this measure was rejected by a 
 majority of 222 in an assembly numbering 292 ! 1 ! 
 
 "When will you English judge us fairly ? Just fancy 
 D'Israeli assuming that because another of our 
 members of Synod spoke impertinently of the Arch- 
 bishop, that therefore he (the Archbishop) was even 
 morally 'excommunicated and tabooed' amongst us. 
 Why, that member's following in the Synod amounts 
 to about twelve men in all, as was proved by a division 
 the other day, when just that number followed him 
 into the lobby. But I see it is hopeless. . . 
 
 " It is strange how Englishmen whose principal 
 characteristic is independence and self-respect, and 
 who are always abusing us for our want of self- 
 reliance, are yet so indignant with us the moment we 
 begin to act and think for ourselves, threatening us 
 with the fearful danger of alienating English sympathy 
 and severing ourselves from English union. With 
 the exception of a few good and true men like yourself, 
 I'd like to know where English sympathy is to be 
 found. Not, certainly, in your High Church members 
 of Convocation, who attended in the vast number of 
 fourteen in that assembly on the day that the question 
 of sympathy with the Irish Church was to come 
 before them ! . . . 
 
 " However, we are no children. We know very 
 
 well what we are about. . . . 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET." 
 
 The second letter, written soon afterwards, runs as 
 follows : 
 
92 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " Old Connaught House, Bray, 
 "June I, 187 1. 
 
 " My dear Venables, 
 
 Tfr Tp ^ 6ir ^ 
 
 " I must apologise for my delay in acknowledging 
 your remittance,* but since I received it many things, 
 as you know, have occurred to interrupt my corre- 
 spondence. First my father's illness and death, and 
 then my own ill-health. . . . 
 
 " Some changes will have to be made in our society 
 in order to adapt it to the altered circumstances of the 
 Church, but I trust it may yet serve for many years as 
 a channel through which help may be given to the 
 poorer districts of West Connaught, where the volun- 
 tary system could not be expected to provide for the 
 wants of the people. With kind regards to Mrs. 
 Venables and all your party, 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET." 
 
 The ignorance and misapprehension on the part of 
 English Churchmen of which Lord Plunket complains 
 in the first of these letters was the subject of a portion 
 of the address delivered by him at the Stoke Church 
 Congress in 1875. It will be remembered that on 
 three occasions before the Irish disestablishment he, 
 with others of his countrymen, had been invited to 
 address the Church Congress on the affairs of the 
 Church of Ireland. This was the first time since the 
 disestablishment that, as he said at the conclusion of 
 his address, " an Irish Churchman had been invited, in 
 
 * For West Connaught Endowment Fund. 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 93 
 
 a generous and brotherly spirit, to give information 
 respecting his Church to an English Congress." It 
 was an occasion that required all his courage, all his 
 generosity, all his " superb temper," all his eloquence ; 
 and right well did he make use of his gifts. He con- 
 cealed nothing ; he yielded nothing ; and as he stood 
 there, with all the dignity of his handsome presence 
 and all the persuasiveness of his voice and polished 
 diction, he made a profound impression upon the 
 crowd of Englishmen to whom he spoke. Some 
 portions of his paper must be quoted here, that it 
 may be clearly understood what it was that in his 
 opinion English Churchmen failed to comprehend. 
 
 After stating that so long as the two Churches of 
 England and Ireland remained as they were — the one 
 a voluntary, the other a State Church — the tie of rigid 
 uniformity must, he thought, be regarded as severed 
 beyond repair ; he pointed out that there were ties 
 which could not be drawn more closely, because they 
 were already drawn so closely as to admit of no further 
 tension. This he believed to be true of intercom- 
 munion. One of the first acts of the Irish Church 
 when separated from the State was to put on record in 
 the solemn declaration prefixed to her statutes her 
 resolve to maintain communion as before with the 
 Church of England. 
 
 He then proceeded : 
 
 " But it is vain to conceal that there is another tie 
 which has never perhaps been strained to the full, and 
 which of late years has, I fear, been allowed to become 
 even somewhat more lax. I refer to the tie of 
 sympathy. Upon this subject I would venture to 
 
94 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 speak with boldness. For, though I know that I 
 stand almost alone this day amoug the members of 
 another Church, I have such trust in the fair-play and 
 goodwill of those whom I address that I fear not to 
 lose the respect of any one here present by stating 
 frankly that which I believe in my heart to be true. 
 And with this confidence I now say unreservedly that 
 the English Church as a body has not, as it seems to 
 me, extended to her Irish sister in the hour of her sore 
 trial that amount of sympathy for which under the 
 circumstances she might have fairly looked. 
 
 "The withholding of sympathy on the part of many 
 whose good opinion Irish Churchmen would dearly 
 prize has been mainly due, as I believe, not to pre- 
 judice, still less to ill-will, but to grievous misapprehen- 
 sions as to what is really the truth concerning the 
 acts and motives of our Church. In order to tighten 
 again the loosened cords of love and thus to draw the 
 two Churches more closely together, all that is required 
 is to make the truth more widely known ; for Irish 
 Churchmen on the one hand have nothing to conceal, 
 and English Churchmen on the other will gladly learn 
 the truth, even though in so doing they should have 
 to cast many a long-cherished preconception to the 
 winds. 
 
 ^|^ y^ Tfr ifr y^ 
 
 " Well do I remember, at the time when the fate of 
 the Irish Church Establishment was still hanging in 
 the balance, what strange misapprehensions were 
 current respecting the supposed Presbyterian tenden- 
 cies of the Irish Church. . . . 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 95 
 
 " Either the order of bishops would be abolished by 
 the Irish Convention, or Irish Churchmen, no longer 
 attracted by the financial advantages of a State Church, 
 would soon leave it for the more congenial atmo- 
 sphere of non-episcopal communities. And yet the very 
 event that was to confirm these anticipations has served 
 to dispel them. Almost the first act of the General 
 Convention was to declare by unanimous consent that 
 the Church of Ireland would ever preserve inviolate 
 the three orders of the ministry ; and, so far from the 
 Church having lost ground by secessions to Presby- 
 terianism, the loss, so far as I can learn, has been 
 altogether on the other side." 
 
 He then referred to a third misapprehension already 
 mentioned — viz., that the Irish bishops would be subject 
 to disrespect. Having shown how minute was the party 
 from whom anything of the kind could be feared, he 
 added that from his perusal of various English papers 
 he could confidently affirm that bishops in Ireland met 
 on the whole with a larger amount of genuine respect 
 than bishops in England, and that the Archbishop of 
 Dublin, to whom reference had been made, in compari- 
 son with some of his brethren on the English bench 
 was reclining on a bed of roses. 
 
 A fourth misconception was the description of the 
 religion of Irish Churchmen as merely negative and 
 political Protestantism. This was refuted by the fact 
 that after the heavy blow they had sustained, mainly 
 due to their Roman Catholic enemies, they had 
 abstained in a remarkable manner from vindictive or 
 offensive recrimination. 
 
96 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Then, again, he said : 
 
 " Was it not also expected that party spirit within 
 the Church would lead to dismal results ? Was it not 
 openly predicted that the General Synod would revive 
 the dying memories of Donnybrook Fair, and repeat in 
 history the famous combat of the Kilkenny cats, whose 
 tails alone remained upon the battlefield to witness to 
 the deadHness of their strife ? And yet the English 
 Guardian, when commenting on their first General 
 Convention, took special occasion to notice as a marked 
 feature in its debates that they were almost wholly 
 free from personalities — that there was an entire 
 absence of anything like party leadership, and that 
 each question was dealt with solely on its own merits." 
 
 One other misapprehension he noticed — namely, the 
 rather selfish fear expressed by some that a flood of 
 Irish deputations would spread over all England 
 soliciting alms for an impoverished Church. So far 
 as he knew, not one such deputation had left the 
 shores of Ireland. An Enghsh committee was indeed 
 nobly engaged in an endeavour to raise funds on 
 behalf of the Irish Church, and at the request of that 
 committee some Irish Churchmen had consented (often 
 reluctantly) to plead the cause of their Church in this 
 country. Irishmen had, in a spirit of independence 
 and self-sacrifice, shown a desire to rely, with God's 
 help, upon their own efforts and their own liberality, 
 rather than upon the goodwill and long purses of their 
 friends. 
 
 After thus disposing of the various misapprehensions, 
 Lord Plunket proceeded to deal with the question of 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 97 
 
 Prayer-book revision, which is a matter that must be 
 postponed to the next chapter. 
 
 His marvellous optimism is clearly seen in the 
 hopeful spirit virith which he spoke of the clearing 
 away of misunderstandings and the more sympathetic 
 relations that might ensue between the sister Churches 
 of Ireland and England. He for his part never seems 
 to have thoroughly realised the absolutely different 
 point of view of the Churchmen of the two countries. 
 So familiar was he, from the surroundings of his daily 
 life and work, with some of the most repellent sides of 
 Roman Catholicism, that it was difficult for him to 
 understand the view of those English Churchmen who 
 entertained no fears of Rome (since they never came 
 in contact with her teaching), much less of those 
 whose sympathies were openly rather with the Church 
 of Rome than with any reformed Church, even the 
 one to which they belonged. It is not the province of 
 this memoir to examine into the question of which 
 side was more in the right, but it is clear that the 
 expectation of sympathy existing to any great extent 
 between the two Churches, the one finding her work 
 daily made difficult by the close proximity of Roman 
 influence, the other indifferent to or in some cases 
 attracted by the same influence, was almost beyond 
 hope. 
 
 Before finally disposing of the subject of disestab- 
 lishment, some remarks contributed by a former 
 chaplain of Archbishop Plunket must find a place. 
 They throw a strong light upon the remarkable influ- 
 ence he was able to bring to bear upon the various 
 opposing parties in the Church of Ireland : 
 
 G 
 
98 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " ' It is better to have built a dog-hutch than to have planned 
 a palace,' as Carlyle has told us. Lord Plunket's native power 
 for making the best of things amounted to a considerable 
 amount of constructive ability. He had much contempt for 
 destructive criticism, and a genuine admiration for a man, 
 young or old, who could originate a plan and carry it out. 
 This constructive side of his mind was shown by his love of 
 building, of planting trees, landscape gardening, &c. In 1869 
 his opportunity came with the disestablishment and disendow- 
 ment of the Church of Ireland. By birth and temperament a 
 Whig, this measure did not strike him with the horror and 
 indignation which it inspired among his Conservative contem- 
 poraries and friends. What he thought of the measure at the 
 time I can only conjecture. He lived to see that it had proved 
 an untold blessing to the Church, and to say in private that 
 disestablishment alone could restore the laity to their rightful 
 position in the government of the Church of England. How 
 the measure was received by the majority of Church people I 
 can best illustrate by a recollection of my own childhood. I 
 was a small boy at the time, and I can well remember my 
 childish and of course unexpressed exultation at the prospect 
 that I should never ' have to go to church ' again ! My uncle 
 was one of the most active of the Irish laity in his opposition 
 to the measure, and, when the blow fell, became equally active 
 in the work of reorganisation. He has told me that for three 
 years he worked without hope that the Church could possibly 
 hold together. Those dark days taught the best of our Evan- 
 gelical clergy and laity that there is such a thing as the Church. 
 . . . We have learned that we are Churchmen as well as 
 Protestants. . . . Mr. Plunket (as he then was) was a powerful 
 instrument in the great work of reconstruction. In 1869 he 
 was at the age of forty years, when a man begins to feel his 
 powers and to realise what his work must be. He had regained 
 his health. His recent marriage had given him unlooked-for 
 wealth, and all the influence which wealth gives, especially in a 
 poor country like Ireland. He was devoted to his wife and 
 his wife to him. Children were bom to him. His father and 
 
Disestablishment of the Irish Church 99 
 
 mother were still living, and he was heir to his father's title. 
 He was surrounded by much love. His numerous relatives 
 loved and respected him greatly. He had a happy childhood 
 and a godly youth to look back upon, and he was by nature 
 full of hope. Further, he had the great gift of popularity. 
 
 " By disestablishment and disendowment the ancient 
 ' aristocratic ' Church of Ireland was thrown into the melting- 
 pot — the crucible of democracy. . . . With this democracy 
 Mr. Plunket was, by his hereditary Whiggism, better prepared 
 to cope than most of his contemporaries. He had never lived 
 in a ' clerical atmosphere.' [His uncle, the Bishop of Tuam, 
 was more " secular " than most bishops, so that W. C. P.'s 
 residence with him as chaplain does not contradict this asser- 
 tion.] He had mixed much with his fellow men, and was 
 therefore better able than the majority of clergy to understand 
 their wants and aims. His convictions were Protestant, while 
 his Liberalism saved him from the bigotry of many of his 
 friends. The Protestant party had a strong majority in the 
 early Synods : the laity were nearly twice as numerous as the 
 clergy, and a lay ' High-Churchman ' was a rara avis. The 
 strength of the party lay, however, not in a few noisy fanatics 
 so much as in some of the saintly elder clergy and a knot of 
 godly laymen, chief amongst whom was the able and pious 
 lawyer. Master Brooke. On the other — the Conservative and 
 clerical — side stood, facile princeps, the scholar-poet Arch- 
 bishop Trench, wholly incapable of understanding the ' new 
 democracy,' half broken-hearted at what seemed to him the 
 downfall of the Church, and aghast at the prospect of the 
 revision of the venerable Prayer-book by such a gathering as 
 the General Synod. On the same side were the then Primate 
 (Beresford), the Bishop of Derry (Alexander), the Bishop of 
 Limerick (Graves), and others. 
 
 " Between this extreme right and the extreme left, already 
 mentioned, stood the moderates, containing, as usual, the ablest 
 intellects of all. The greatest man in the Synod was the 
 present Provost of Trinity College. . . . Another of the ablest 
 men was the Bishop of Killaloe (Fitzgerald), the friend and 
 
loo Archbishop Plunket 
 
 chaplain of Archbishop Whateley, who did more than any 
 other man to impress upon the reorganised Church of Ireland 
 the ' common-sense ' theology of his great master. ... It is 
 hardly necessary to say that it was with the moderates that 
 Mr. Plunket had most affinity. He was looked on — and 
 looked on himself — as an Evangelical, but his true rMe was that 
 of a peacemaker. . . . Then and afterwards he ' laboured for 
 peace.' He had considerable power of lucid expression, and 
 was famous for his ability in drawing up 'amendments.' . . . 
 His best work was quiet private influence as a ' go-between.' " 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 PRAYER-BOOK REVISION 
 
 One of the points round which the fiercest controversy 
 raged in the years immediately succeeding the dis- 
 establishment of the Irish Church was the proposed 
 revision of the Prayer-book. In the thick of the dis- 
 cussions Lord Plunket was ever to be found, but 
 working invariably to allay strife and avoid divisions. 
 He was strongly of opinion that the question was 
 intimately bound up with that of home reunion, a 
 cause on behalf of which he showed equal ardour. 
 He was never tired of urging concessions and com- 
 promise, and he put out more than one pamphlet 
 during the years 1871-1874 to explain his views. He 
 also published a sermon preached by him in St. 
 Patrick's Cathedral on the text, "With one mind 
 striving together for the faith of the Gospel." His 
 object was to consider how Church unity should best 
 be preserved in their crisis of difficulty and danger. 
 One of the chief points of which he treated was the 
 work of liturgical revision. It had been stated that 
 this was in itself inconsistent with the maintenance of 
 unity, especially so far as the relationship of the Irish 
 Church to that of England was concerned. In answer 
 to this he pointed out that it was not until the Synod 
 
I02 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of Cashel in 1172 (700 years after the foundation of 
 the Church of Ireland) that there was conformity in 
 all divine rites between the two Churches upon con- 
 dition that State protection should be given the Irish 
 Church in the collection of tithes and other dues. 
 This unity was further confirmed by the Act of Union 
 of 1800 ; but both the original covenant and the Parlia- 
 mentary union were dissolved by the Irish Church Act 
 which deprived the Irish Church of the protection of 
 the State. There was, therefore, no breach of an 
 existing covenant, since the terms upon which the 
 covenant was based had been abolished. He then 
 pointed out that divergence in liturgical forms had 
 never been asserted to be inconsistent with unity, 
 instancing the fact that in the Church of Rome almost 
 every province had its separate liturgy or sacramentary, 
 that in the Church of England before the Reformation 
 various dioceses (e.g., Sahsbury and Hereford) used 
 separate formularies, and that in the American Church 
 revision of the Prayer-book had taken place without 
 destroying the respect and affection of the mother 
 Church, as was witnessed by the visit of Bishop Selwyn 
 and Dean Howson to the General Convention of the 
 American Church. 
 
 A striking example of his endeavour on all occasions to 
 promote unity is found in the history of the excitement 
 caused in the Irish Church early in 1870 by what may 
 be described as the " Maberley correspondence." This 
 consisted of published letters between a Mr. Maberley 
 and the Archbishop of Dublin (Trench). The former 
 wrote to complain of a certain little book called " Short 
 Prayers, &c. for those who have but little time to pray." 
 
Prayer-book Revision 103 
 
 It had been given by some of the clergy to the younger 
 members of their flocks, and contained passages which 
 were strongly objected to by the ultra- Protestant party, 
 but which are common enough in High Church 
 manuals and were not condemned by the Archbishop. 
 The latter, for instance, expressed his opinion that the 
 reference to the real presence in the Holy Com- 
 munion did not go beyond the teaching of Hooker, 
 adding that if it had he should not approve. The 
 strife grew bitter : protests on either side were signed 
 and presented ; numberless letters were written to the 
 Press; excited meetings of partisans were held. At 
 this juncture Mr. William Plunket (as he then was) 
 interposed with an admirable letter to the Morning 
 Mail. After entreating his brother clergy to pause 
 before taking any step which would tend to precipitate 
 disunion in their Church at that most critical juncture, 
 he went on to show that the Archbishop, from his letter 
 and his reference to Hooker,* clearly did not sym- 
 pathise with the sacramentarian views condemned by 
 those who signed the protest against the book. That, 
 further, his Grace gave expression to words of large- 
 hearted sympathy with those who belonged to the 
 dissenting communities, and spoke as one who longed 
 and hoped for union. He went on to express his own 
 dislike and distrust of the manual, " but," he said, " in 
 the name of justice let us shrink from making our 
 protest in such a way as to identify with the propaga- 
 tion of fatal errors a prelate who is beloved and respected 
 
 • Hooker, v. ch. 67 (6) : " The real presence of Christ's most blessed 
 Body and Blood is not, therefore, to be sought for in the Sacrament, 
 but in^the worthy receiver of the Sacrament. ' ' 
 
I04 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 by all who know him, and who, though he may not 
 think in every respect as we do, does not (as his letter 
 clearly shows) sympathise with such extreme views as 
 those which we condemn. Further, in the name of 
 peace let us hesitate before, at the present crisis, we 
 make ourselves responsible for the disruption of our 
 
 Church If there be alterations which we think 
 
 ought to be made in our standards and formularies, 
 let the whole Church approach the subject in a calm 
 and dispassionate spirit as one united body, when the 
 right time comes." 
 
 In the General Synod of the Irish Church the 
 question had been plainly asked of its members, " Do 
 you desire revision at the present time ; or, if you do 
 not desire it for yourselves, do you think it desirable 
 for the sake of the peace and unity of the Church ? " 
 The answer was embodied in the following resolution, 
 which was unanimously passed at the close of a 
 lengthened debate. " Resolved : that, in the opinion 
 of this Synod, the time has arrived for entering upon a 
 complete revision of the formularies of the Church of 
 Ireland in a cautious and reverent spirit ; and that the 
 bishops, together with certain representative members 
 to be named by the Synod, be therefore requested to 
 consider the whole subject of revision, and report 
 upon it to the Synod of 1872." 
 
 Lord Plunket served upon the Revision Committee 
 thus formed, and expressed his opinion that, after the 
 passing of the above resolution, to withhold revision 
 would be fatal to the peace and unity of the Church of 
 Ireland. 
 
Prayer-book Revision 105 
 
 Here are his own words as to the nature of the 
 revision which he considered necessary : 
 
 " A merely superficial revision, consisting of altera- 
 tions in the Lectionary, of the abbreviation of old or 
 the introduction of new services, or of any such like 
 unimportant changes, would only exasperate those 
 whose confidence we seek to gain. On the other hand, 
 sweeping and intolerant changes might impose burdens 
 on the consciences of many for whom no course would 
 lie open but secession from a Church which they 
 would otherwise love to serve. If we are to avoid 
 so great disasters, there must be a self-sacrificing 
 resolve on all hands to make concessions for the sake 
 of the common good. He that objects to revision 
 may perhaps say, ' I am willing that matters should 
 remain as they are : I do not ask for change. These 
 formularies are dear to me, and if they be tampered 
 with I have the power of keeping aloof from such 
 a work of revolution and of remaining in the old paths 
 by simply regarding myself no longer as a member of 
 the Irish Church, but as a member of the Anglican 
 Church — a Church which may possibly soon have her 
 chapels in this land.' 
 
 " But, again, can we not imagine the case of one who 
 has long been looking forward to the possibility of 
 a thorough work of revision, and who now sees the 
 opportunity before him of purging the Prayer-book of 
 everything which seems to him to fall short of that 
 perfection which he longs for in the formularies of our 
 Church ? He feels, too, that he is one of a majority in 
 the General Synod, who, if they put forth all their 
 strength, could attain all that they themselves desired. 
 
io6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " Is not the temptation to refuse any compromise 
 a strong one ? Is there no concession demanded 
 here ? " 
 
 These words are clear evidence that Lord Plunket's 
 desire was to obtain such revision as should insure 
 unity among the members of the Church of Ireland, 
 It is, then, with some surprise that the changes which 
 he himself advocated in committee are observed. 
 These changes strike deadly blows at doctrines which 
 are of vast importance, as well as at observances which 
 are of little. In some instances, as will be noticed, he 
 seemed to think that the change proposed would leave 
 the matter indeterminate, but this will hardly be the 
 opinion of the unbiassed reader. The main alterations 
 proposed by Lord Plunket, or, if not proposed, strongly 
 advocated by him, were as follows : 
 
 (i.) The omission of what is known as the " Ornaments 
 Rubric" immediately before the Order for Morning 
 Prayer. 
 
 This Lord Plunket considered it would be their 
 " solemn duty '' to secure. 
 
 (ii.) The insertion in the Communion Service of an 
 explanation as to what is meant by " the North Side of 
 the Table," and a direction that no clergyman " should 
 kneel during the Prayer of Consecration, or bow at 
 any other time towards the Table, or make the sign of 
 the Cross, or introduce any similar novelties, either 
 symbolically dangerous or tending to assimilate our 
 services to those of the Romish Church." 
 
 As a comment on this Lord Plunket says : 
 
 " If we check the introduction of ritualistic prac- 
 
Prayer-book Revision 107 
 
 tices, we go a far way to guard against the introduction 
 of false doctrine. . . . Some weeds must be rooted up 
 if we are to get rid of them at all ; but there are others 
 which die if we cut down all that appears above the 
 ground." 
 
 There is evidence in the above proposal of the hope- 
 lessness of any sympathy between the Ritualistic party in 
 England and a party of which one of the chief spokes- 
 men thus deliberately refuses any concessions towards 
 a better understanding with the Church of Rome. 
 
 (iii.) In the Baptismal Service, to omit all such words 
 as " Seeing now . . . that this infant is regenerate," 
 and " that it hath pleased Thee to regenerate this in- 
 fant," and to substitute other forms in which the expres- 
 sion " being born again " should occur. 
 
 This was one of Lord Plunket's attempts at compro- 
 mise. He was of opinion that, as the phrase " being 
 born again " determines only that the new birth must 
 be a necessary antecedent to that continuance in God's 
 service and attainment of God's promise for which 
 prayer is made, and does not determine whether or not 
 that new birth must be antecedent to the offering up 
 of the prayer, a solution of the difficulty had been 
 found and the very question left open which he trusted 
 all would agree to leave open. 
 
 This alteration was proposed in order to give relief 
 to the minds of those who beheve that regeneration 
 may take place before, as well as in or after, the act of 
 baptism ; but the fact of making the alteration at all 
 removed it, in the minds of many, from the region of 
 compromise. 
 
io8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 (iv.) In the Service for the Ordination of Priests, to 
 alter the indicative form, " Receive the Holy Ghost," to 
 the precatory form, "Almighty God, our Heavenly 
 Father, grant unto thee the gift of the Holy Ghost," 
 and to omit the words, " whose sins thou dost forgive, 
 they are forgiven ; and whose sins thou dost retain, 
 they are retained." 
 
 Lord Plunket's definitely stated reasons for desiring 
 these changes were that they would remove certain 
 expressions which were undoubtedly the innovations 
 of mediaeval times, and would bring the office into 
 more close conformity with the primitive model ; that 
 the expressions referred to were introduced into the 
 Ordinal simultaneously with the final development of 
 the " confessional " in the Church of Rome ; and 
 thirdly, that these expressions had been made use of in 
 recent times as a vantage ground whereon to build up 
 a doctrine of absolution similar to that of the Romish 
 Church. 
 
 Fears were expressed lest the position of present 
 and future clergymen of the Church of Ireland would 
 be affected injuriously by any alteration of the Ordina- 
 tion Service. To these fears Lord Plunket replied that, 
 if any young men were afraid lest their chance of pre- 
 ferment in the Church of England would be injured, 
 let them go and get their orders from an English bishop 
 and at once take up their position in an English diocese. 
 He did not want men with a half-hearted attachment 
 to the Church of their fathers and a wistful longing for 
 better prospects in the sister Church of England. 
 
 But, apart from this, the question had been referred 
 to Mr. William Graham Brooke, the eminent barrister, 
 
Prayer-book Revision 109 
 
 who conclusively showed that all these fears as to the 
 power of an English bishop to refuse institution to an 
 Irish clergyman if ordained under the form of an 
 altered Ordinal were altogether without foundation. 
 Two letters written during the anxious days of the 
 discussions on revision show, the one Lord Plunket's 
 strong liberality of sentiment, the other his gift of 
 promoting unity in the midst of discord : 
 
 [To Lady Flunket.'] 
 
 " 4 Merrion Square North, Dublin, 
 "May II, 1876. 
 
 "We have had disappointing days in the Synod. 
 Yesterday a motion brought forward by W — D — , 
 which ought to have been carried, was defeated by a 
 small minority of the Synod ; and to-day ^ clergymen 
 and 7 laymen (as against 66 clergymen and 103 lay- 
 men) defeated an attempt which some of us were 
 making to allow a poor unbaptized infant to be buried 
 with some other burial than that of a dog 1 Oh, the 
 cruel rigidity of that sacramental system that, for the 
 sake of exalting the outward ordinance, outrages and 
 violates the heaven-born instinct that God has im- 
 planted in every breast ! I assure you I could have 
 wept to think that 51 out of 220 members of the Synod 
 should have had the power to stamp this disgrace 
 upon our Church." 
 
 [To the same.] 
 
 "4 Merrion Square North, 
 "Friday, May 12, 1876. 
 
 " The Synod is actually over 1 ! Hurrah ! ! ! I 
 
no Archbishop Plunket 
 
 managed to get a clause inserted into the Preface 
 without a division, contrary to the expectation of all, 
 this morning. It was not a matter of much import- 
 ance, but the Preface would have been maimed and 
 incomplete without it ; and all who, on each extreme 
 side, were opposed to the completion of revision were 
 bitterly hostile. However, I thought of a form of 
 words to catch all sides while I was dressing, and got 
 it printed off before 12 o'clock at the printer's, and 
 produced it in Synod ; and, wonderful to say, it was 
 passed, contrary to my own and my friends' expec- 
 tation. I know you are glad to hear of your old 
 husband's success even in a trifling matter, so I don't 
 mind reporting it to you." 
 
 One further important change Lord Plunket advo- 
 cated, both by pamphlet and by word of mouth — viz., 
 the omission of what are known as the "damnatory 
 clauses" in the Athanasian Creed. On this point he 
 probably received a good deal more sympathy from 
 members of the Church of England than on any of the 
 others. On investigating the part played by Lord 
 Plunket in this, and in many other matters in which 
 he was interested, it is impossible not to be amazed at 
 the vast number of pamphlets which he put forth. 
 The cost must have been considerable, the time and 
 labour expended upon them immense. Upon every 
 subject he took up, and in the various forms of ser- 
 mons, lectures, statements, and letters, often treating of 
 the same matter in several of these forms, he must 
 have been continually correcting proofs and for ever 
 posting his pamphlets to the various quarters of the 
 
Prayer-book Revision i i i 
 
 Christian world. After reading many of these upon 
 the revision question, with his arguments stated so 
 clearly and so cogently, and with the knowledge of the 
 work and influence that he brought to bear upon the 
 matter, it is almost a surprise to take up the Prayer- 
 book of the Church of Ireland to-day, and to find how 
 very few changes have been made from that of the 
 English Church. 
 
 There are, of course, the unimportant differences 
 demanded by the special circumstances of the country, 
 such as the insertion of the prayer for the Lord Lieu- 
 tenant. There are also to be noticed the provision of 
 an extra collect, epistle, and gospel for Christmas and 
 Easter, for use at second celebrations of the Holy 
 Communion, and many other minor matters. 
 
 But of the extremely important proposals of which 
 mention has been made hardly any were carried out. 
 The Ornaments Rubric has disappeared, and the 
 Absolution occurring in the Communion Service has 
 taken the place of that in the Visitation of the Sick, 
 and at the beginning of the Baptismal Service the 
 words, " Except a man be born again he cannot see 
 the Kingdom of God, and also saith, Except a man be 
 born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the 
 Kingdom of God," are substituted for the words in the 
 English Service, " None can enter . . . Holy Ghost," 
 though the crucial words proposed by Lord Plunket 
 for alteration, immediately after the act of baptism, 
 remain unchanged. But these are practically all. 
 Other matters were no doubt dealt with to some 
 extent in the new canons framed by the Irish Church, 
 but the revision of the actual Prayer-book resulted in 
 
112 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 less change than was expected. However, Lord 
 Plunket's object was attained. What he really wanted 
 more than anything else was unity in the Irish Church. 
 This was obtained, and has been preserved in a remark- 
 able manner, partly, no doubt, by the fact that extreme 
 ritualists were unable to accept the new canons, but 
 chiefly by the fact that the revision of the Prayer- 
 book, as well as the new canons and constitution, was 
 acceptable to the various parties of a Church which, 
 set in the midst of Romanism, is bound to be as a 
 whole a Protestant Evangelical Church. It succeeded 
 in drawing those parties nearer together, and did a 
 great deal to prove that Lord Plunket was right when 
 he urged, as he so often did, that unity and revision 
 were not incompatible. "The members of our 
 Church," he said, "will have a Prayer-book which, 
 instead of kindling contention, will serve as a common 
 bond of brotherhood." 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 REUNION 
 
 The subject of the last chapter makes it almost 
 unavoidable that Lord Plunket's efforts in the direc- 
 tion of reunion should next be considered. Although 
 some of his most important utterances and most 
 arduous work for this cause belong to a later date in 
 his career, yet, as has been seen, the longing for 
 Christian unity was very strong in him from early 
 days, and he frequently wrote and spoke in further- 
 ance thereof while he was still Precentor of St. Patrick's 
 Cathedral. 
 
 One of his reasons for taking a more cheerful view 
 of the results of disestablishment was that he believed 
 that it tended towards a closer union between the 
 Protestants of Ireland. In spite of his optimism, he 
 was never sanguine enough to look forward, as some 
 did, to a general union of all Irish Protestants. He 
 believed that the position of the Church as a State 
 Church had prevented many from joining her. He 
 believed also that the close connection which had 
 formerly existed between the Church of Ireland and 
 that of England had been a grave objection to many 
 Protestants, who had been alarmed at the ritualistic 
 tendencies of a section of the latter body. He also 
 
 H 
 
114 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 thought that many Presbyterians had been discouraged 
 from making approaches to the Church by the fact 
 that the laity had under the former state of things 
 been practically excluded from any part in her govern- 
 ment. 
 
 With the removal of these obstacles his hopes of 
 reunion were greatly increased. There was still one 
 matter which he feared. The General Convention 
 had determined that the bishops should have a leading 
 and presiding part in the General Synod which was to 
 form the legislative body of the Church in the future. 
 Would this fact deter the extreme opponents of 
 episcopacy from all thought of joining the Church even 
 under her altered circumstances ? It is interesting to 
 observe the position he took up on this point, bearing 
 in mind that he was to occupy such positions as 
 Bishop of Meath and Archbishop of Dublin in the 
 near future. In 1870 he wrote as follows : 
 
 " When I look back to the lives and writings of such 
 men as Ussher, Leighton, and Burnet, and find that 
 many of the Presbyterians of those days — even when 
 smarting under cruel wrongs happily unknown in our 
 times — were not opposed to an un-Prelatical form of 
 Episcopacy, and were ready to accede to a fixed 
 Presidency of Bishops, provided it were conjoined 
 with a system of Synodical action very much the same 
 as that which we now possess, I cannot help believing 
 that a similar readiness to sink minor differences, for 
 the sake of brotherly union amongst Protestants, must 
 exist at the present day in the minds of many moderate 
 men." 
 
Reunion i i 5 
 
 In the course of the same address he alluded to a 
 question which is of special interest at the present day, 
 when the subject of a Roman Catholic University for 
 Ireland has been so recently discussed. As might be 
 supposed, Mr. Plunket vehemently opposed any such 
 idea. His desire for unity and his liberal mind caused 
 him, however, to declare that it was the duty of Irish 
 Churchmen to show a patriotic interest in the assertion 
 of the spiritual liberties of their Roman Catholic fellow- 
 countrymen by protesting against any system of purely 
 denominational education which could place in the 
 hands of an Ultramontane hierarchy the sole control 
 over the secular teaching of the lay members of the 
 Church of Rome. For that reason he was cordially in 
 favour of admitting Romanists to Trinity College, 
 Dublin, but he adds that one of his strongest reasons 
 was the fear lest any other course should " precipitate 
 the endowment and recognition by the State of a 
 Roman Catholic institution, which, under the name of 
 a quasi-secular education, would, as he believed, and 
 as many Roman Catholic laymen believed, quench free 
 thought and poison the fountains of truth by its Ultra- 
 montane influences." 
 
 The subject of reunion was continually in his 
 thoughts and prayers, and controlled many of the 
 actions of his busy life during the years that followed. 
 It is impossible here to follow in detail all the work 
 that he performed in this direction, but, when Arch- 
 bishop of Dublin, he delivered more than one forcible 
 address on this question, to which allusion must be 
 made. 
 
 He was naturally extremely interested in the fact that 
 
ii6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 there was a simultaneous movement in England in the 
 same direction, and in a speech which he made at the 
 Dublin Christian Convention in September 1887 he 
 thus alluded to that fact : 
 
 "Many of you are doubtless acquainted with an 
 ably-conducted English paper called Church Bells, and 
 have read in it the articles published from week to week 
 by a godly layman of the English Church — Lord 
 Nelson — containing utterances on the part of Episco- 
 palians and non-Episcopalians, all of them tending in 
 the same direction, all of them expressive of a yearning 
 for further unity. Anyone who has studied these 
 articles must, I think, admit that as regards this desire 
 for unity the present age is altogether exceptional." 
 
 He then referred to the words of the Bishop of 
 Winchester (Harold Browne), who, in presiding over 
 the annual meeting of the Home Reunion Society, 
 said that the matter was " never for a day entirely out 
 of his mind." He went on to describe efforts towards 
 the same end which had been made in Australia, and 
 then asked the great meeting which he was addressing, 
 " Are the Christians of Ireland alone to sit still and fold 
 their hands?" 
 
 Fusion he believed to be impossible here below, but 
 for federation he earnestly pleaded. Finally, he made 
 use of that word which his special work for reunion 
 made famous, fraternisation. "We can all," he said, 
 " acknowledge one another as brethren even now." 
 
 A copy of this speech he forwarded to Lord Nelson, 
 receiving in reply the following letter : 
 
Reunion 117 
 
 "The Lodge, Parkstone, 
 "Oot. 23, 1887. 
 
 "My dear Lord Plunket, 
 
 "I am much obliged by a copy of your address, and 
 for your kind reference to me and to the Home Reunion 
 Society. I feel with you the importance of considering the 
 reunion of all Christians, notwithstanding the present apparent 
 impossibilities of doing anything with the Ultramontanes, and 
 I go with you entirely in all Christian courtesies towards our 
 Protestant Nonconformists. But I believe the interchange of 
 pulpits will do no real good. It will either damage our position 
 before Christendom as holding true orders, or will be a sham 
 and not really satisfy the nonconforming ministers. I thank 
 you for the material help your paper has given, and rejoice at 
 being able to reckon on your heartfelt prayers and longing for 
 reunion, whenever it may please God to bring it about. How- 
 ever long it may be of accomplishment, I cannot but feel that 
 a very great call has gone out to all of us to do more than we 
 have ever done before to secure the fulfilment of our Lord's 
 prayer for unity, and to remove the many evils and hindrances 
 caused by our present divisions. 
 
 " Yours very truly, 
 
 "NELSON." 
 
 In the following year (1888) the Lambeth Conference 
 met, and the question of reunion was referred to a 
 committee of seventeen bishops under the presidency 
 of the Bishop of Sydney (Barry). This committee 
 reported that in their opinion the time had already 
 come for some action to be taken in the matter. They 
 laid down as fundamental articles of agreement the 
 following four points : (i) The Holy Scriptures of the 
 Old and New Testament, as containing all things neces- 
 sary to salvation, (2) The Apostles' Creed as the 
 baptismal symbol, and the Nicene Creed as the suffi- 
 
ii8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 cient statement of the Christian faith. (3) The two 
 Sacraments ordained by Christ Himself. (4) The 
 Historic Episcopate, locally adapted to the varying 
 needs of the nations and peoples called of God into 
 the unity of His Church. 
 
 Lord Plunket made the report of this committee the 
 text for his remarks at the Dublin Christian Convention 
 of 1888. He rejoiced over the tokens of encourage- 
 ment which the reception of these terms of unity had 
 met with from the leading members of other denomina- 
 tions in America, and especially from an eminent 
 Presbyterian clergyman, who wrote an article on the 
 Historic Episcopate in which he congratulated the 
 Anglican Church on the concessions she was willing 
 to make on behalf of unity. 
 
 Lord Plunket was evidently much cheered by the 
 various signs of encouragement, but he reiterated his 
 opinion that fraternisation was the main point for the 
 present, and that the time for corporate reunion had 
 not come. 
 
 One of the most striking speeches he ever made 
 upon this subject was at the morning clerical meeting 
 held in the Metropolitan Hall, Dublin, in April 1890. 
 He repeated all his old arguments with renewed 
 cogency, and made a strong point of the resolutions 
 passed by the Lambeth Conference committee and by 
 the Conference itself. This speech called forth various 
 comments from leading Churchmen in England. Of 
 these the most important were an article in the Church 
 Quarterly and a private letter from Lord Nelson. The 
 writer in the Church Quarterly began by stating that 
 thanks were due to Lord Plunket for starting the 
 
Reunion 119 
 
 subject, and that, while he should be sorry to trust to 
 his (the Archbishop's) sole hands the interests of the 
 Church in a reunion congress, yet there would evi- 
 dently be room and use for his kindly and Christian 
 spirit to soften the collision between minds of more 
 definite doctrine. The writer went on to point out 
 that, while reunion with the Church of Rome seems 
 impossible save at the sacrifice of principle, it was an 
 obvious truth (which he implied that Lord Plunket 
 failed to see) that it would be a great misfortune if 
 a reunion conference included none who understood 
 and viewed with charity the religion of Rome. Again, 
 the writer did not think Lord Plunket prudent in 
 deriving comfort for those who regarded non-episcopal 
 orders as valid or half-valid from the resolution of the 
 committee of the Lambeth Conference to that effect, 
 combined with the fact that, while the report was not 
 accepted, the Conference made no declaration against 
 it. The rejection of the resolution, with the insertion 
 of the claims of the historic episcopate among the 
 necessary bases of reunion, were, in the writer's opinion, 
 as strong an intimation of its judgment as the Con- 
 ference could well have made. Something of this sort 
 was probably the conclusion to which a large portion 
 of the Church of England arrived on the subject. It is 
 noteworthy that in this case Lord Plunket made the 
 same mistake which he made in the case of the 
 Lambeth Conference's action regarding the Spanish 
 question, of which much will be said hereafter. In 
 both cases his extreme hopefulness led him to believe 
 that silence meant consent, when it was probably 
 intended to mean exactly the reverse. 
 
I20 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Lord Nelson's letter was as follows : 
 
 " Trafalgar, Salisbury, 
 "Junes,, 1890. 
 "My dear Lord, 
 
 "lam much obliged by your address on Home Re- 
 union. The only difference between us is that I could not 
 accept any reunion as complete that did not embrace the old 
 Eastern and Western Churches, and that I look to a reunion 
 with them as quite as possible as with the Protestant Non- 
 conformists. I need not say that I do not mean by reunion 
 submission to Rome's exaggerated claims, which would equally 
 exclude reunion with the Eastern Church. I have not the 
 same dread as Protestants have of what is called sacerdotalism; 
 but neither the Roman nor the Anglican priests mean by that 
 claim what they are supposed by many to mean, but would be 
 the first to denounce with the Protestant those exaggerated 
 claims which they are supposed to hold in the matter. They 
 do not deny the priesthood of the laity. They simply act on 
 our behalf, and minister to us not in their own power, but as 
 the representatives and mouthpiece of our Risen and Ascended 
 Lord. 
 
 " Yours very truly, 
 
 "NELSON." 
 
 From these letters and papers it can clearly be seen 
 that Lord Plunket was far too optimistic on the whole 
 subject. Those who were working for reunion in 
 England had in many instances set their affection on 
 reunion with Rome, and were striving so far as 
 possible to assimilate their services, &c., with those of 
 the Roman Church, while the very name " Protestant " 
 was an offence to them ; and at the same time Lord 
 Plunket and his party were striving for a Protestant 
 reunion, and fought extremely shy of any approach to 
 a good understanding with the Papacy. It is remark- 
 
Reunion 121 
 
 able to find that any real hope of reunion could be 
 based on operations which much more strongly resem- 
 bled a tug-of-war ! 
 
 In 1890 the Church Congress was held at Hull, and 
 the Archbishop of Dublin read a notable paper on this 
 same theme. It was an important occasion, and he 
 was glad to have the chance of pleading the cause he 
 had at heart before such an influential gathering. He 
 explained that, while he longed for such a change m 
 the teaching and attitude of the Church of Rome as 
 would render negotiation with her possible, he felt 
 bound to follow the example of the Lambeth Con- 
 ference and exclude for the present the possibility of 
 reunion with that Church. All the more, on this 
 account, did he feel the deep importance of first rally- 
 ing the scattered forces of Protestantism under the 
 banner of a united national Church. 
 
 He then explained what he meant by his favourite 
 expression fraternisation. He expressly stated that 
 he could not, in the absence of authority, see the 
 advantage of an interchange of pulpits, but he bore 
 witness to the excellent results which had in his experi- 
 ence been forthcoming from the meeting on a common 
 platform of ministers of various denominations when- 
 ever (as in the case of the Bible Society) this was 
 possible, and he argued that there was a hope that the 
 historic episcopate would not in the end present an 
 insuperable bar to reunion, since he invariably found 
 his office as a bishop (as distinguished from his person- 
 ality) treated with great respect by his brethren of 
 other denominations. Here once more is an instance 
 of his innate optimism. No one who ever met Lord 
 
122 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Plunket could fail in showing to him that respect and 
 regard which his winning courtesy and dignified bear- 
 ing demanded. It is to be feared that it was Lord 
 Plunket, rather than the Archbishop of Dublin, whom 
 the Nonconformists treated with such proper apprecia- 
 tion. 
 
 The main distinction between fraternisation and 
 federation he declared to be that in the former case 
 the exhibition of brotherly love is voluntary, while the 
 latter must be sanctioned by authority. The recom- 
 mendations of the Lambeth Conferences were a step 
 in the direction of federation. He expressed himself 
 as most firm on the matter of the historic episco- 
 pate, but he said that while demanding that holy 
 orders should for the future be episcopally conferred, 
 it would be fatal to demand the re-ordination of exist- 
 ing ministers who had received orders from other 
 sources. He ended by an outburst of eloquence, full 
 of hope and confidence for the future, recognising in 
 the manifestation throughout Christendom of a wide- 
 spread craving for union the very operation of the 
 all-pervading Spirit by whom the whole body of the 
 Church is sanctified and governed. 
 
 But it was not only or mainly by speeches and 
 pamphlets such as these that Lord Plunket furthered 
 the cause of reunion. He was always trying to set an 
 example of " brotherly love." While he felt strongly 
 the impossibility of drawing nearer to his Roman 
 Cathohc brethren in matters ecclesiastical, yet on 
 social occasions, or when opportunities of co-operation 
 in purely philanthropic affairs offered themselves, he 
 was more than ready to welcome them. Thus, when 
 
Reunion 123 
 
 the statue of Father Mathew was unveiled in Dublin, 
 he stood side by side with Archbishop Walsh upon the 
 temperance platform ; and a photograph of the two 
 Archbishops thus united in one common cause is in 
 existence. 
 
 One of those with whom Lord Plunket took counsel 
 on this subject of "unity" was the Rev. Jariies S. 
 Fletcher, D.D., at that time incumbent of St. Barnabas', 
 Dublin. Mr. Fletcher was one of the hon. secretaries 
 of the " United Services Committee " and other united 
 Christian work carried on in the " Christian Union 
 Buildings," in Abbey Street, Dublin. He records how 
 the Archbishop, shortly after his election to the see, 
 sent for him to Old Connaught, and in the privacy of 
 a " quiet little summer-house " questioned him as to 
 the doings of those with whom he (Mr. Fletcher) was 
 working. 
 
 There was one special point upon which Lord 
 Plunket sought to be reassured. A report had been 
 spread to the effect that any Churchman going to the 
 Christian Union meetings would be expected to leave 
 his Prayer-book behind him. Mr. Fletcher was able 
 fully to relieve the Archbishop's mind upon this point, 
 for he himself, at the request of the committee, had 
 opened one of the meetings with prayers from the 
 Prayer-book, "kneeling at the front of the platform 
 with the Prayer-book in his hands," and had been 
 warmly thanked by a Nonconformist minister who 
 was present, and who assured him that \ifhat had done 
 him most good was "the privilege of joining aloud, in 
 common with that great gathering, in the General 
 
124 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Confession and glorious Thanksgiving of the beautiful 
 Liturgy of the Church of England." 
 
 During the years in which he lived at Old Con- 
 naught he gave frequent receptions and large garden 
 parties. Of these it has been recorded that "his 
 beautiful grounds became on his reception days a 
 paradise in which the leopard walked beside the lamb. 
 While his usual invitations were to his own clergy, he 
 took care that, where opportunity offered, the largest 
 welcome should be given to the representatives of 
 other bodies of Christians and to the clergy of all 
 denominations who lived within reach." In the speech 
 which he delivered at the Hull Church Congress he 
 spoke with thankfulness of the action of the Bishop of 
 Lichfield (Maclagan) in entertaining the Noncon- 
 formist ministers of his diocese at the Palace. It was 
 a fulfilment of that dream of fraternisation which was 
 so dear to him. 
 
 The Rev. Samuel Prenter, the leader of the Presby- 
 terian community in Dublin, has recorded some 
 exceedingly interesting instances of the Archbishop's 
 efforts in the direction of a wide-hearted unity. After 
 speaking of the warm friendship which existed between 
 himself and Lord Plunket, he goes on to say : 
 
 " It was the largeness of his spirit that was his charm. 
 When Mr. D. L. Moody and the Rev. J. McNeil conducted 
 a mission in Dublin in 1 892, 1 was one of the clerical secretaries. 
 I thought that if the Archbishop would come to the hall and 
 open the mission with prayer it would be well. But I saw 
 many difficulties. The Evangelists might not like the devo- 
 tional forms which of course the Archbishop would use. The 
 Archbishop might not like to associate himself with the 
 methods of the American and Scottish Evangelists. I shrank 
 
Reunion 125 
 
 from mentioning the matter to any one, lest a false position 
 might be created if the thing did not come off. I then went 
 to Mr. Moody and laid the proposal before him in a private 
 interview. He said at once, 'The Archbishop won't come.' 
 I replied, ' But suppose he does ? ' ' Then,' said he, ' I shall 
 be delighted.' ' But what,' I said, ' about the Prayer-book ? ' 
 ' Oh ! ' he said, ' the Archbishop must use what words he 
 pleases.' 'Perhaps,' I then said, 'it would be more simple 
 to ask the Archbishop to pronounce the benediction.' ' No, 
 no,' said Mr. Moody ; ' there might be some things done upon 
 which he would not like to pronounce his benediction. If he 
 comes, he must open the mission.' 
 
 " I then went to the Palace and saw the Archbishop. I 
 put my proposal before him as delicately as I could. He said 
 at once, ' I should consider it a great honour to be associated 
 in work with such eminent servants of God.' In a few 
 minutes all was arranged. The Archbishop consented to open 
 the mission that evening, and begged me to go with him 
 privately to the meeting and introduce him to Mr. Moody. 
 
 " When the hour came he and I drove in a cab to the great 
 wooden hall in the Rotunda Gardens, and as the Archbishop's 
 stately form was seen ascending the platform, the spectacle 
 produced a wonderful impression on the vast multitude of 
 eight or ten thousand people who thronged the building. 
 The Archbishop and Mr. Moody were introduced, and the two 
 men, so different in outward appearance but really so alike in 
 heart and spirit and in devotion and love to Christ, shook 
 hands with extraordinary cordiality. Needless to say, the 
 opening devotions conducted by the Archbishop were singularly 
 appropriate and uplifting, and the whole subsequent mission 
 was the better for his presence. 
 
 " Lord Plunket was in the habit of inviting ministers of all 
 denominations to the Palace in the spring, when the General 
 Synod of his own Church met in Dublin. For long I felt that 
 this was a very generous but a very one-sided hospitality. 
 Accordingly, when the General Assembly, the supreme court of 
 my Church, met in Dublin in June 1892, I thought we ought 
 
126 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 to invite the Archbishop to a public conversazione which we 
 were to hold in the Rotunda. It fell to me to make the pro- 
 posal on both sides, and an invitation was sent to the Arch- 
 bishop, which he cordially accepted, so that at that conversa- 
 zione he was the honoured guest of our Church, and a large 
 number of his clergy followed his example. He was very 
 gracious, and mingled with the clergy of both Churches like 
 Virgil's queen — 
 
 " ' Tros Tyriusque mihi nullo discrimine agetur.' 
 
 "But in the private interview which I had with him to 
 ascertain whether he would accept our invitation he said, 
 ' Yes, I shall be proud to receive and accept your invitation, 
 but only on one condition, which is that your Assembly accept 
 an invitation from me to visit Old Connaught.' ' But, 
 your Grace, our Assembly will number at least six or eight 
 hundred members.' 'The more the better,' was his reply. 
 We accepted his invitation, and at Old Connaught there was 
 an historic gathering of the ministers of both Churches and of 
 hundreds of guests from amongst the laity of the city and 
 county of Dublin. The day was the two-hundred-and-fiftieth 
 anniversary of the formation of the first Presbytery in Ireland 
 in the ancient city of Carrickfergus, and in a most eloquent 
 address delivered by the Archbishop to his guests reference 
 was made to the event, and the hope was expressed that the 
 two sections of Irish Protestants might be drawn more closely 
 together. I never saw Lord Plunket so happy as on that day, 
 nor do I know anything that has done so much as that event 
 to sweeten Church life in Dublin, and indeed in all Ireland. 
 
 " The Archbishop was a very brave man. The following is 
 an instance of what I mean; but, to understand it, it is 
 necessary to explain that since 1874 an annual Christian Con- 
 vention has been held every autumn in Dublin, which has 
 been very largely attended, and at which representative speakers 
 from all the Churches in Great Britain and Ireland have attended. 
 When Lord Plunket became Archbishop of Dublin he was 
 asked to preside at some of the meetings of the Convention, 
 
Reunion 127 
 
 and although the proceedings were never popular with a very 
 influential school of thought among his clergy, he with charac- 
 teristic courage accepted the invitation. In the course of 
 years his figure was familiar on the Convention platform, and 
 no man was a greater favourite with the vast audience. He 
 was instrumental in drawing to the Convention from year to 
 year such speakers as Archdeacon Sinclair and others. 
 
 " One year an eminent Congregational minister from London 
 (Dr. Horton) had consented to attend as a speaker, and his 
 name appeared in the first rough draft of the programme. On 
 the committee we had a few sticklers for traditional orthodoxy, 
 and at the eleventh hour they brought extracts from Dr. 
 Horton's books which appeared to be in conflict with generally 
 accepted views of Inspiration. They insisted that Dr. Horton's 
 name should be struck off the list of speakers, and argued that 
 his views could not be made to square with the doctrinal basis 
 of the Convention. Others held that Dr. Horton could not 
 and should not be treated in so shabby a manner. Eventually 
 a compromise was effected, and the difficulties were to be 
 laid before Dr. Horton and the solution of the matter left in 
 his hands. When the secretary wrote to him he indignantly 
 withdrew from the position, and reminded the committee that 
 it was not he who sought to be a speaker at the Convention. 
 The matter got into the papers, and there were a few angry 
 letters over it. 
 
 " Lord Piunket presided at the meeting at which Dr. Horton 
 should have spoken according to the original draft of the 
 programme. No one expected that any reference would be 
 made to the awkward episode which had occurred and had 
 terminated, as was supposed. But the Archbishop took hold 
 of the subject on the public platform, narrated the facts, and 
 proceeded to comment upon them. He drew out of his pocket 
 a pamphlet on the subject of the Inspiration of the Bible which 
 he had himself written many years before, and read parallel 
 extracts from Dr. Horton's book, showing that the views of 
 the latter coincided in almost every particular with his own. 
 When his Grace had finished these extracts he drew himself 
 
128 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 up to his full height, and, trembling in every limb with in- 
 dignation, he turned upon the great audience and said, ' You 
 have compelled me to take sides, and I do not hesitate to 
 stand beside Dr. Horton in this matter. If you have driven 
 him from this platform, you should not have invited me. But 
 since you have invited me, I do not hesitate to tell you that 
 you should not have driven him away. He ought to have 
 been here, and I believe that your narrowness in excluding 
 him is not in harmony with the mind of Christ.' 
 
 " This was a bolt from heaven, which cleared the religious 
 atmosphere from that day to this. None but a brave spirit 
 could have delivered it, and, like everything Lord Plunket 
 did, it carried conviction. No bad blood was produced." 
 
 As proof, if any be needed, of the estimation in 
 which he was held by those who differed from him on 
 ecclesiastical matters, it is only necessary to glance at 
 the newspapers which were published at the time of 
 his death. His desire for unity had caused him to 
 win all hearts. A leading Roman Catholic paper thus 
 described him : 
 
 " It is just and pleasing to add that no one ever doubted 
 the transparent sincerity of the Archbishop in all these pro- 
 ceedings. It is also to be added that in controversy he 
 never forgot that he was a gentleman. . . . On public bodies 
 his relations with his Catholic colleagues were cordial. On 
 the National Board he was in favour of fair play for the 
 Christian Brothers." 
 
 On the other hand, a leading Presbyterian minister, 
 preaching on the Sunday after the Archbishop's funeral, 
 used these words : 
 
 "No frictions, irritations, misunderstandings, were ever 
 suffered to mar the sweetness of his spirit. Peace was the 
 watchword of his lips as it was the sentinel of his soul. Sadly 
 
Reunion i 29 
 
 shall we miss him. No one in our land, probably few in 
 Christendom, did more than he towards the breaking down of 
 long estrangements and the establishment of better relations 
 between his own and other Churches of the one Lord." 
 
 At his funeral there were representatives of all 
 branches of the Christian Church, the Roman Catholic 
 Archbishop of Dublin, who was unable to be present 
 in person, sending his carriage with two of his 
 chaplains to represent him. 
 
 It has been given to few dignitaries of the Church to 
 have inspired such deep affection and respect in the 
 hearts of members of other communities, and thereby 
 to advance so surely, if unobtrusively, the cause of 
 unity. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 THE BISHOPRIC OF MEATH 
 
 Very early in Lord Plunket's married life the health 
 of Lady Plunket broke down, and for many'years a 
 great deal of her time had to be spent abroad. This 
 was a sore trial to one who was as devoted to wife and 
 children as he was, and it further necessitated his 
 taking many lengthy and weary journeys, for he never 
 liked to leave his work in Ireland for very long 
 together, and he was never satisfied to be many weeks 
 without seeing for himself how Lady Plunket fared. 
 For the purposes of this biography, however, these 
 unfortunate separations have proved valuable, for it is 
 chiefly from letters written at this period that it has 
 been possible to understand to some extent that other 
 and more private side of Lord Plunket's character, 
 which many reveal more or less in the course of a 
 general correspondence, but which his-usual habit of 
 writing short letters, confined to the business in hand, 
 failed entirely to disclose. Again, his undemonstrative 
 nature, and that reserve and " aloofness " so often 
 mentioned by his friends, hid from most eyes the 
 depths of his affection and the intensity of his feelings. 
 Of this he was fully aware. In one letter to Lady 
 Plunket he speaks of one of his sons inheriting the 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 131 
 
 " Plunket reserve," and in another he signs himself 
 " Your undemonstrative but loving, &c. &c." 
 
 His handwriting was clear and elegant — a combina- 
 tion not so common as it used to be — and in the 
 letters which he wrote under unrestrained circum- 
 stances he used many quaint and original expressions. 
 Thus, he was exceedingly fond of the old English word 
 "quiddities," which the dictionary defines as "a 
 trifling nicety." " You are such a quiddity," he says 
 in one letter. Here, again, is a quaint expression for 
 one who is not quite well : " I fear you feel dingy " ; and 
 another with the same meaning : " I'm afraid you are 
 only dawny " ; while for being benefited in health he 
 has an exceedingly expressive word : " A change," he 
 says, " sometimes sprigs you up." The letters written 
 during the early years of married life, while the children 
 were still little, are full of anxious inquiries about 
 Lady Plunket's health, and mostly contain some careful 
 and touching directions as to further means of benefit- 
 ing her, or urgent pleading that she shall take proper 
 care of herself in his absence. The children, too, are 
 never forgotten. They are each one mentioned by 
 name in almost every letter, even when these are 
 written on several successive days, and the elder ones 
 are often begged to write to him. His anxiety if one 
 of them was unwell is almost pathetic to read. There 
 was an occasion, when he had run over abroad to pay 
 them a short visit, on which just before leaving he had 
 noticed a little spot upon the baby's neck. This was 
 evidently of no importance, for his inquiry about it in 
 his first few letters after returning to Ireland was 
 ignored. He could not forget it, however, and 
 
132 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 persisted in asking about it until his loving anxiety 
 was set at rest. It is little things of this sort which 
 prove the steadfastness of a father's love even more 
 perhaps than occasional acts of devotion. 
 
 There is one more matter in these letters which calls 
 for notice. As has been stated already, his health 
 became very much stronger after the serious malady 
 from which he suffered for many years had been con- 
 quered. But he does not seem to have been at this 
 time very robust. He complains continually of " cold 
 feet " and " singing in the ears," while on more than 
 one occasion he mentions having suffered from "a 
 giddy faintishness " when run down. 
 
 A letter written to his mother when he was paying 
 one of his visits to the temporary residence of Lady 
 Plunket gives an insight into the precarious state of the 
 latter's health, and also affords an interesting glimpse 
 of the famous Bonn Conference of 1875. Here it is : 
 
 " Hotel Metropole, Langen Schwalbach, 
 
 " Nassau, Germany, 
 
 "Aug. 20, 1875. 
 " Dearest Mother, 
 
 " I can't help sitting down and having another 
 chat with ' the Madre,' but on the same conditions as 
 when I last wrote — namely, that you will leave to your 
 daughters the responsibility of answering my letter. 
 It is with Annie [Lady Plunket] here, as it has been 
 everywhere else, a case of ' here we go, up up uppy, 
 and here we go, down down downy ! ' About a week 
 ago she felt that she had derived so much benefit from 
 these baths and waters that she pronounced herself 
 better than she had been since she left Ireland, and 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 133 
 
 really she did seem wonderfully well in every respect. 
 Accordingly, I ventured to run away from her for a few 
 days to Bonn, where there was being held a conference 
 between the Old Catholics and the representatives of 
 the Greek and other Churches. It was a very interest- 
 ing meeting. I do not suppose that for a thousand 
 years or more so many members of the Eastern Church 
 had congregated together in conclave with the members 
 of the Western Church, with which Communion they 
 have been since their separation on terms of such bitter 
 animosity. However, on this occasion there they were 
 — about twenty in number — two Archbishops from 
 Russia and Asia Minor, and any number of Archi- 
 mandrites, with their long robes and high hats, and 
 flowing beards and tawny skins and dark calm eyes. 
 And there also were the Alt-Catholics, including old 
 Dr. DoUinger, their most learned professor (perhaps the 
 most learned theologian in Europe), and their new 
 Bishop Reinkens (a noble and truly good man). There 
 also were representatives from the German Lutheran 
 Communion and from the American Episcopal Church, 
 and the Scotch Episcopal Church and the Church of 
 England ; and last, though not least, the good old 
 Church of Ireland, represented (badly enough, I am 
 afraid) by myself and Master Brooke. . . . 
 
 "The object of the Conference was not, as some have 
 imagined, to seek for a fusion of Churches which differ 
 so widely. This would indeed be a visionary project : 
 but our hope was to promote goodwill and to encourage 
 the intercourse of friendly thoughts, and to seek for, 
 even to a small extent, something of united worship, 
 such as the repeating together of the ' Te Deum ' and 
 
134 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 the Lord's Prayer. So far as these objects were con- 
 cerned, the Conference has certainly not been a failure. 
 It was also a good and pleasant thing, inasmuch as it 
 brought together into friendly intercourse men of very 
 diverse views within our own Church. 1 had, for 
 example, an opportunity of talking about our Irish 
 Church to Canon Liddon and Malcolm McColl (who 
 have spoken very harshly about it), and succeeded, I 
 hope, in removing some misapprehensions. . . . 
 
 " Just as I was about, on Sunday morning, to go and 
 hear a sermon from one of the Alt-Catholic preachers, 
 I got a line from A. saying that she had got a violent 
 access of her old enemy. ... I at once hurried back, 
 and found her much prostrated when I arrived that 
 evening. She has, however, thank God, made a 
 wonderful rally. . . . 
 
 " Hoping soon to see you face to face, and be able 
 to talk with the mouth instead of the pen, 
 " I remain 
 
 " Yours affectionately, 
 
 "PLUNKET." 
 
 In the following year they were at St. Moritz, and a 
 portion of a letter has been preserved in which there is 
 the first intimation of the idea that he should become a 
 bishop. Owing to his late ordination, and the fact that 
 the living which he held in West Connaught as chaplain 
 to his uncle was practically a sinecure, he had had no 
 experience of parochial work. His natural gifts, how- 
 ever, and his powers of organisation and management 
 of men, marked him out as eminently fitted for such a 
 position. Another qualification, too, he possessed. 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 135 
 
 Since the disestablishment of the Irish Church it be- 
 came a matter of some importance that the bishops 
 should have private means. These Lord Plunket 
 possessed, and his marriage with Miss Guinness had 
 brought him additional wealth. Again, there was a 
 fear lest the class of man seeking ordination would 
 after disestablishment deteriorate. It was at all events 
 some help towards preventing this that a man of Lord 
 Plunket's position should become one of the bishops 
 of the Church of Ireland. 
 
 [To his Mother.^ 
 [First sheet lost. Written from St. Moritz (?), 1876.] 
 
 " One other matter I hasten to write about to you, as 
 the first to whom I should like (next to Annie) to open 
 my mind on such a point. I mean about the vacant 
 Meath bishopric. You have perhaps seen the article 
 in the Express about it, and would like to know how it 
 all came about and how matters now stand. Well, 
 here it is : 
 
 " The day after I heard of the poor Bishop's tragical 
 end, a Meath gentleman who was staying about three 
 miles from St. Moritz called upon me and pressed upon 
 me very urgently the duty of allowing myself to be put 
 in nomination. He said that the claims of the three 
 men who are likely to be nominated would prove to 
 be in such hopeless conflict that none of them could 
 hope to be finally appointed, and that in the meantime 
 the canvassing and agitation that must ensue would 
 have a very disastrous effect. He stated that in his 
 opinion the clergy and laity generally would be in 
 favour of my appointment, and gave his reasons for 
 
136 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 thinking that it would be for the interests of the diocese 
 and the Church that I should accept the office were it 
 offered to me. I told him that, without some further 
 warrant for believing that what he said was something 
 more than the outcome of personal friendship, I could 
 not make any promise. 
 
 " Well, a day or two afterwards I got a very pressing 
 
 letter from my friend Major D , in which he 
 
 reiterated all that the other had said, giving at the same 
 time something more in the way of grounds for the 
 opinion he had formed. In this letter he asked for an 
 immediate answer, so I took a day or two to think over 
 the matter and wrote a conditional assent, at the same 
 time sending him a telegram to authorise him to act 
 (pending the receipt of my letter) in such way as he 
 might think best for the Church. Since that time I 
 have received a letter from him which certainly tends 
 to confirm me in the belief that in giving permission 
 for my nomination I have been only following what 
 seems to be a plain indication of duty, whatever the 
 ultimate result may be. 
 
 " One of the points which seems to mark out the 
 way is the fact that just at the present moment, for the 
 first time during the last few years, Annie's health seems 
 to be such as to permit of my entertaining such a 
 notion as that which I have been called upon to face. 
 
 " Again, the Meath diocese is the only one (with 
 the exception of the Archbishopric of Dublin) which I 
 could well undertake to think of just now. The diocese 
 of Meath, strangely enough, has its centre (so far as 
 practical convenience is concerned) outside of it. Its 
 Synods and Councils and Boards of Nomination are 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 137 
 
 all held in Dublin, and it would therefore be quite 
 possible and indeed most convenient (were I appointed) 
 that I should reside a great part of the year in Dublin. 
 Then, again, the Palace at Ardbraccan (a very fine and 
 comfortable house) is only two hours' rail from Dublin. 
 The diocese is in good working order and is compact, 
 so that the labour of superintendence would not be 
 excessive ; and the clergy and laity, so far as I can learn, 
 are as a whole not of a troublesome or fratricidal dis- 
 position ! Altogether, if I am to allow myself to be 
 nominated for a bishopric at all, I don't know any 
 diocese for which I should more wish to be elected. 
 In the meantime, however (although I am anxious that 
 you should be the first to be put into knowledge of how 
 matters stand), I don't like to think or say much about 
 the matter, for (as I have said to those who have asked 
 me to give my name for the purpose) my object is to 
 prevent a deadlock and avert division ; and, if it should 
 turn out that there was any opposition to my appoint- 
 ment such as would bring about an opposite result, I 
 should at once withdraw and make way for another. 
 In the interval it is well to remember, and it is com- 
 forting to think, that the issue is in the hands of One 
 who knoweth what is best. In those hands I leave 
 
 it all ! 
 
 ***** 
 
 " Your affectionate son, 
 
 "PLUNKET." 
 
 " P.S. — This will perhaps reach you on my birth- 
 day, when, as always, you will, I know, have your Willie 
 in remembrance." 
 
138 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 On December 10, 1876, he was duly consecrated 
 Bishop of Meath by the Primate at Armagh. Immedi- 
 ately after the ceremony he wrote the following letter 
 to his mother : 
 
 "The Palace, Armagh, 
 Sunday, Dec. 10, 1876. 
 
 " Dearest Mother, 
 
 " I cannot help writing one line to say that the 
 Consecration has taken place, and I am now Bishop 
 of Meath. If I have any qualifications to fit me for 
 the high ofHce upon which in God's providence I 
 have been called to enter, let me say that I owe it all, 
 under God, to what I first learned from you, and 
 therefore you shall be the first to hear of the result 
 from 
 
 " Your affectionate first-born son, 
 
 "PLUNKET meath." 
 
 The diocese over which he was thus called to pre- 
 side was not very populous. The Church people 
 numbered some ten or eleven thousand — about as 
 many as are contained in an ordinary small market- 
 town in England — and the land was largely untilled. 
 There were huge grazing farms containing fields of a 
 hundred acres or more, and the population of any 
 kind was exceedingly sparse. There were a certain 
 number of English people resident there in the winter, 
 for, as may be imagined, it is a capital hunting country. 
 The chief town in the diocese is Navan, a town which 
 looks more charming when seen from the railway 
 bridge, as it nestles on the far side of the river Boyne, 
 than it does upon closer acquaintance. The bishop's 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 139 
 
 residence at that time was the Palace, Ardbraccan, 
 though after Lord Plunket's episcopate the rectory 
 house at Ardbraccan changed its name to Bishopscourt 
 and became the home of the holders of the see, for 
 the income was so seriously diminished after the 
 disestablishment of the Irish Church that it was found 
 impossible to keep up the Palace. This latter building 
 just suited Lord and Lady Plunket, with their private 
 means and large-hearted hospitality. It was a very 
 large, fine house, with the chief portion in the centre. 
 From this on either side there extended semicircular 
 wings, each of which ended in a farther building, one 
 of these outermost portions being the " bachelors' 
 wing," where candidates for ordination were hospitably 
 housed. The grounds contained some remarkable 
 trees, especially some glorious cedars and a well- 
 known chestnut of great size, whose branches had 
 taken root and shot up at a distance into new trees. 
 Here Lord Plunket had a chance of developing his 
 taste for landscape gardening, and laid out many new 
 flower-beds, &c. ; but he chiefly delighted in the oppor- 
 tunity of entertaining his clergy and their families, 
 besides his many friends of various denominations, at 
 the vast garden parties to which the Palace grounds so 
 admirably lent themselves. 
 
 A short but graphic description of the house and the 
 hospitality of its occupiers occurs in the course of a 
 letter from a lady who stayed there. She writes : 
 
 " Of that three days' visit we paid at the Bishop's Palace at 
 Ardbraccan what remains with me is the vision of that noble 
 fagade, with window-boxes in every window filled with the 
 brightest flowers to give colour to the dull grey stone and flat 
 
140 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 architecture, and because Lord and Lady Plunket loved 
 flowers so dearly. . . . 
 
 Lord Plunket left an indelible impression. His high-bred 
 personality reflected in his beautiful face (which seemed to 
 embody the 'beauty of holiness'), his gentle courtesy and 
 kindness of heart, his tact and gentleness. . . . the memory 
 of the hospitable and gracious courtesy, which, while there was 
 no gene or restraint or fuss, made for the time ' the host's the 
 home of every guest.' 
 
 " There were twenty people staying in the house, yet from 
 the time you left your room in the morning (when you were 
 met at the head of the stairs by the housekeeper, who begged 
 to know if your room was comfortable, and if you wanted any- 
 thing) till night you felt an atmosphere of care, as if you were 
 welcome and specially thought about. One tiny example — 
 small but significant. One of the guests, on coming down in 
 the morning to the great hall where all the house assembled 
 first thing, and where Lord Plunket said prayers, remarked 
 that it was a cold morning. It was early autumn, and fires had 
 not yet been begun in the hall. Next morning there was a 
 blazing fire. The guest was equally touched and remorseful. 
 He had only made the remark ' to pass the time of day.' . . . 
 
 " Lady Plunket made a sweet and gentle hostess, and was of 
 great use to him. . . . 
 
 " Some over-zealous spirits thought that Lord Plunket erred 
 on the side of toleration to those who diflfered from him. But 
 that is scarcely counted to him for a sin now ! " 
 
 Another description of the Ardbraccan hospitality is 
 given by Lady Ferguson, who paid a visit to the Palace 
 on a memorable occasion : 
 
 " Lord and Lady Plunket, at all times given to hospitality, 
 and most successful in making their home agreeable to their 
 guests, while residing at Ardbraccan desired to entertain a 
 large party of friends, many of them distinguished as scholars, 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 141 
 
 men of letters, poets, and archaeologists. The Bishop con- 
 sulted in advance his friend Sir Samuel Ferguson, Deputy 
 Keeper of the Records of Ireland, and President of the Royal 
 Irish Academy, and asked him to undertake the guidance of 
 those interested in antiquities to the numerous remains of 
 pagan and early Christian times which abound in the County 
 Meath. For this purpose a large wagonette had been hired, 
 the Bishop reserving his own carriages for the use of clergy 
 whom he wished to take to diocesan objects of interest, 
 while Lady Plunket was to show others the scenery of the 
 district. . . . 
 
 " At the appointed date and hour the Bishop and Lady 
 Plunket met their friends at Navan station with a formidable 
 array of conveyances. The weather was beautiful, and after a 
 pleasant drive we reached the spacious house .... where 
 there was bedroom accommodation for sixty-one occupants. 
 Such a household, even for a few days, would have taxed the 
 energies of most people, but Lady Plunket was an incompar- 
 able hostess. She remembered with a tact peculiarly her own 
 the personal tastes of her guests. So cordial as well as per- 
 sonal was the welcome, that each one had the gratifying sense 
 of being individually considered. . . . 
 
 " Alas ! when we assembled the following morning the 
 weather was so hopelessly wet that it was impossible to ven- 
 ture out except in closed conveyances. Lady Plunket, owing 
 to the change of temperature, was tortured by neuralgia and 
 unable to leave her room. The Bishop and some of the clergy 
 visited churches and schools. The drawing-room was given 
 up to the young folk, and Sir Samuel Ferguson assembled the 
 literary people around a large fire in the hall. Among these 
 were Sir Francis Doyle, Professor of Poetry at Oxford, Dr. 
 Reichel, afterwards Lord Plunket's successor as Bishop of 
 Meath, and many other cultured men. . . . 
 
 " So brilliant was the talk that the hours flew by only too 
 rapidly. After dinner in the evenings the young people 
 charmed us with song or melody, or with charades which they 
 had amused themselves by rehearsing in the daytime. Lady 
 
142 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Plunket was better in the evenings, and able to be with her 
 guests. 
 
 " Each succeeding day of our visit to Ardbraccan brought the 
 same experiences. The weather continued hopelessly wet, but 
 we cared not. . . . 
 
 " All agreed that they had never before paid such a delight- 
 ful visit. ... It has been my good fortune to find myself from 
 time to time in the society of some of those who met at Ard- 
 braccan, and invariably they have reverted to that memorable 
 visit, and pronounced it to have been one of the most enjoy- 
 able experiences of life." 
 
 No stronger evidence could possibly be given of the 
 gifts of both host and hostess, who found themselves 
 with a houseful of intellectual celebrities for the space 
 of three or four uninterruptedly wet days ! 
 
 It was just at this period of Lord Plunket's life that 
 he was brought much in contact with his children, and 
 that they began to realise how deep was his love for 
 and unceasing his care of them. His reserve and 
 extreme dignity of manner made him seem at times a 
 little apart from them, and always rather unapproach- 
 able by other children. There are, however, abundant 
 signs in his letters, and evidences in the recollections 
 of his own children and others who came in contact 
 with him, that beneath this outward appearance there 
 was a heart which was full of love for children and 
 beat in sympathy with their little joys and woes. Here 
 is a word picture sketched by a guest at Ardbraccan : 
 
 " Don't you know how some sights photograph themselves 
 on your memory ? I can see him [Lord Plunket] as just after 
 prayers one morning his youngest little girl climbed on his 
 knee and put her little arms round his neck, her little face 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 143 
 
 so near his— so like his in miniature, I thought, with the 
 same sweet, half-sad expression." 
 
 His children's recollections are full of the memory 
 of the little games he played with them when they were 
 hardly out of babyhood — of the " rabbit " he made with 
 his pocket-handkerchief, of the unfailing joy in his 
 watch, which had belonged to the old lord, and could be 
 apparently taken almost to pieces, since it possessed 
 two cases, and of his delight as well as theirs in the 
 mechanical toys which he wound up for them after 
 breakfast every morning. 
 
 When they were a little older he encouraged them to 
 collect wild flowers, to study the stars, and indeed to 
 go on with any scientific or semi-scientific interest 
 which seemed to be developing in their minds. As may 
 be imagined, he was thoughtfulness itself, and his 
 children remember many acts of special consideration 
 for them. A good instance of this occurred at the time 
 of the reopening of Kildare Cathedral, when Arch- 
 bishop Benson was present and an immense crowd had 
 assembled. Lord Plunket was naturally as busy as 
 possible, seeing to all the arrangements and looking 
 after his important guests, but he did not forget to be 
 waiting at the door of the cathedral for his daughters 
 and their governess, that he might take them to good 
 seats whence they could see and hear ail that went on. 
 The following touching words are from the pen of 
 one of his children : 
 
 " I think that what I remember most about my dear father 
 was his extraordinary patience and sweetness of temper. I 
 never heard him say an impatient word, though, considering 
 his pressing duties and the interruptions which were continu- 
 
144 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 ally occurring, it would have seemed only human to have 
 been sometimes a little ruffled. Nor did I ever hear him speak 
 with the least harshness or want of feeling for any one. He 
 always seemed to see the best side of every one, no matter how 
 unattractive they might appear to others, and so much did we 
 feel the influence of this that we could not criticise any one in 
 his presence. My father never enforced his wishes upon us. 
 I think nothing would have pained him more than to have 
 been obliged to find fault ; but his influence with us was all 
 the stronger for this reason." 
 
 Principal Moore, in his paper upon the education 
 question, much of which is quoted hereafter, ends with 
 a story which finds a fitting place here while con- 
 sidering Lord Plunket's attitude towards children. He 
 says : 
 
 It is difficult in writing about education to avoid details, 
 which are nearly always dry, and which are always in danger of 
 appearing unimportant. In dealing with the great subject 
 which centres round the children, children themselves are only 
 too commonly kept in the nursery, as it were, and out of sight. 
 Let us at least conclude with one glance at the Archbishop in 
 the presence of a child. He was visiting at a country rectory, 
 and had won the confidence of the son of the house, a boy of 
 some five or six summers. The child told him how his play- 
 room was a church, and how he wanted the Bishop to come to 
 his service. There was no resisting such a plea, and the little 
 fellow led him by the hand to the room. Lord Plunket 
 could hardly have been prepared for what followed. Quite 
 innocently the boy brought him to the pulpit, and then left 
 him there, saying, ' Please p'each me a sermon.' The peti- 
 tion was not in vain. Those who were present say that for 
 that one little child he preached a children's sermon as beau- 
 tiful as any they had ever heard." 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 ME A TH—{CONTIN UED) 
 
 It is now necessary to turn to the more strictly 
 episcopal work performed by Lord Plunket as Bishop 
 of Meath. It was thought by some that he allowed 
 this work to be too greatly interrupted by his interest in 
 the Spanish Reformed Church and his journeys to 
 investigate its circumstances.* This was not an un- 
 natural conclusion to draw, but those who made these 
 complaints did not take into consideration certain facts 
 which would have gone far to mitigate the harshness 
 of their judgment. The diocese of Meath was small, 
 and there is plain evidence that Lord Plunket fulfilled 
 the duties of a bishop to the utmost. 
 
 The spirit in which he approached the episcopal 
 supervision of the diocese is clearly seen in his primary 
 charge. This opens with the following words : 
 
 " My reverend Brethren, 
 
 " The duty of addressing you collectively for the 
 first time as your Bishop brings with it a very solemn 
 sense of responsibility. In such an emergency I have 
 no resource but to look to my God for His help, and to 
 you, dear brethren, for your considerate forbearance. 
 
 * See page 232. 
 
146 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 That our Heavenly Father has power to make His 
 strength perfect in my weakness I must not doubt. 
 Nor ought I to fear the response which I may now 
 look for on your parts. For not only did you give me 
 the highest proof of your goodwill on that day when, 
 after the manner of the primitive Church, you your- 
 selves chose me as your Bishop, but ever since that 
 time — short though the interval has been — I have 
 been reassured again and again by fresh tokens of your 
 kindness and, if I may venture to say so, of your con- 
 fidence as well. May the Chief Pastor, who is our 
 common guardian and guide, so draw us together 
 daily in the bonds of mutual affection and mutual 
 trust, that we may the more effectually labour as one 
 body in the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace 
 for the accomplishment of the great work to which He 
 has called us all ! " 
 
 Lord Plunket fully realised the advantage it was to 
 him to follow a man such as Bishop Butcher, whose learn- 
 ing and industry, as well as the power he possessed of 
 winning the affections of all with whom he had to do, 
 had left the diocese in an admirable state. On entering 
 upon his duties, the new Bishop had obtained through 
 the rural deans a multitude of statistics as to the con- 
 dition of Church work, and said that all he had thus 
 heard had, with few exceptions, been of such a nature 
 as to leave upon his mind a most favourable impression of 
 the pastoral efficiency and spiritual life which manifested 
 itself on every side. Against two dangers he solemnly 
 warned his clergy in this first charge. The first was 
 that of "encouraging in any way, even by attracting 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 147 
 
 towards them first the attention and then the sym- 
 pathy of any whose notice they would have otherwise 
 escaped, the dangerous innovations of doctrine and 
 discipline by which the primitive faith has been from 
 time to time defaced or overlaid," and which the 
 Church of Ireland had in the most solemn manner 
 pledged herself to repudiate. The second was what 
 he described as a more real peril — viz., the danger 
 of infidelity, against which they had been elo- 
 quently warned in the last printed charge of his 
 predecessor. 
 
 He then turned to a subject always very near to his 
 heart — the national Church of Ireland, tracing her 
 history for fourteen hundred years, touching upon the 
 trials she had but lately sustained, and expressing his 
 conviction of her essential unity with the sister Church 
 of England. 
 
 Lastly, that more spiritual help might not be 
 found wanting in his words, he spoke of the deadness 
 of heart apt to creep over a minister of the Church 
 by reason of the seldom-broken routine of his daily 
 life, and thus exhorted his hearers : 
 
 " For my own part, I see no help for us at such a 
 season of trial but to rouse ourselves with a great effort 
 from the fatal drowsiness which may then be stealing 
 over and overpowering our souls, and to betake our- 
 selves at once into that best of all 'retreats,' the 
 presence-chamber of our Heavenly Father; and there, 
 as we find ourselves alone before our one great Con- 
 fessor and Spiritual Director — even before Him from 
 whom no secrets are hid — to compel our consciences 
 
148 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 to answer the solemn question which startled of old 
 the prophet's heart, ' What doest thou here ? ' " 
 
 This, the first charge of many delivered by Lord 
 Plunket, is a striking example of the power he pos- 
 sessed of delivering clear and well-defined matter 
 clothed in exquisite English. It is a model of what a 
 charge should be, and must have produced a most 
 favourable impression. Each portion — the personal, 
 the diocesan, the ecclesiastical, the patriotic — was per- 
 fect in its own way ; and all were gathered up towards 
 the end and raised to a spiritual level in words no less 
 beautiful than touching. 
 
 The ordinations which he held from time to time in 
 the little church at Ardbraccan will always be remem- 
 bered by those upon whom he laid his hands at these 
 times. His personal kindness to the candidates and 
 attention to their comfort while they were his guests, 
 his dignified courtesy, which did not prevent him from 
 giving them a hearty Irish welcome, and those quiet 
 private talks with each one when he knelt with them 
 in prayer and gave them his fatherly counsel, made 
 these occasions sacred memories in the heart of many 
 a clergyman. He was greatly aided in his work with 
 the candidates by Dean Reichel (who succeeded him 
 as Bishop) and Archdeacon Nugent. Indeed, both 
 here and afterwards at Dublin, where Archdeacon 
 Scott was his right hand in all such matters. Lord 
 Plunket was singularly blessed in those who helped 
 him in the examination and superintendence of those 
 who came to him seeking holy orders. 
 
 One of the matters to which he gave great attention. 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 149 
 
 and for which his personal gifts of attraction and con- 
 ,j;ihation were turned to excellent account, was the 
 influencing of parochial nominators at the time of a 
 vacancy in any living in his diocese. He was once 
 heard to say that a parish where priest and people did 
 not get on was " a heavy weight on his heart." Further, 
 there was nothing he dreaded more than the discord 
 and quarrelling which was likely to arise between the 
 friends of different candidates for a living. It has been 
 seen how he permitted himself to be nominated for the 
 See of Meath largely in order to prevent a season of 
 bitterness and unrest. At the time of an election to an 
 incumbency he invariably brought all the influence he 
 possessed to bear upon the nominators in order to 
 secure a good appointment and to promote unity. It 
 has probably been already realised by those who have 
 thus far followed his history that he was by nature 
 of a distinctly ww-ecclesiastical turn of mind; and 
 this fact caused him to have great weight with the 
 laity, and aided him in this special department of his 
 work. 
 
 One of his earliest acts as Bishop was to secure the 
 presence of Archbishop Tait and Dean Howson, who 
 both addressed a meeting of the Meath Protestant 
 Orphan Society, in which Lord Plunket took great 
 interest. It was on this occasion that the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury delighted his Irish hearers by 
 saying : 
 
 " All who remember the religious life of England in past 
 years are quite ready to acknowledge the debt which England 
 owes to Ireland, and I feel confident that in the difficulties 
 which beset the Church of Christ in this nineteenth century, 
 
150 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 whether they be difficulties of the intellect, or whether they be 
 difficulties of an exaggeration of the religious sympathies and 
 the religious feelings directed to unworthy objects, we shall 
 receive help and assistance from those in Ireland who feel for 
 all our difficulties, and who will show that if we had sympathy 
 with them in their trials, they are not less ready to have sym- 
 pathy with us and to give us that assistance which they are so 
 well able to bestow." 
 
 It will be noticed that the difficulties so accurately 
 foreshadowed for the Church of England in the above 
 words are just those against which Lord Plunket 
 warned his clergy in his primary charge. 
 
 It was not only the orphanage, or this or that special 
 cause, which received support from the Bishop of 
 Meath and Lady Plunket. The Rev. J. A. Jennings 
 (Rector of St. Mary's, Dublin) was at one time a close 
 neighbour of the Bishop at Ardbraccan, and he 
 describes how the Palace was ever open for concerts 
 and entertainments of all kinds in aid of Church 
 matters throughout the diocese. Such engagements 
 add largely to a bishop's work, and it requires a light 
 heart and one filled to the brim with unselfish loving- 
 kindness, for a man who has been at his writing-table 
 till the small hours of the morning, has snatched a few 
 hours' sleep, and has spent most of the day controlling 
 a difficult committee meeting, to view the fact with 
 complaisance and satisfaction that on his return 
 home, weary and hungry, he will find his house 
 given up to a " drawing-room meeting " or a " charity 
 bazaar." But nothing came amiss to Lord Plunket. 
 Mr. Jennings records that a huge undertaking called 
 " The Great Ardbraccan Bazaar " was a real delight 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 151 
 
 to the Bishop, who actually wrote some verses upon 
 it. 
 
 " He was," says the same friend, " a perfect glutton 
 for work. He took everything so enthusiastically, 
 threw himself heart and soul into it, championed it, 
 and piloted it through all odds." 
 
 What a charm there is in a nature such as this! 
 But what a loss of tissue! " It told in the end," says 
 Mr. Jennings, " and, I think, broke down a constitution 
 by no means robust." 
 
 The attitude of both the Bishop and Lady Plunket to 
 the clergy and their wives was one of extreme kindness, 
 and in many instances of affection. Lady Plunket is 
 described as being most " motherly " to the bride of a 
 newly-married incumbent, and, in spite of that distant 
 manner to which some have alluded. Lord Plunket 
 would put his hands on the shoulders of one of his 
 clergy, and now and again address him in words of 
 almost paternal love. 
 
 Of his personal deahng with individual souls there 
 is not much record, as indeed is the case with most 
 men whose pubhc life is as prominent as that of an 
 archbishop is bound to be, but he felt the need of 
 pastoral work greatly. He complained sometimes that 
 the eternal round of meetings and ecclesiastical func- 
 tions crowded out the more pastoral side of a bishop's 
 life. At the same time he was always ready at a 
 moment's notice to turn from whatever he might be 
 doing in order to give spiritual counsel to any who 
 sought him. His religion was always there, always 
 ready. There is a beautiful little story told of how, on 
 one occasion when there was a large evening party at 
 
152 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 his house, of which he was as usual the Ufa and soul, 
 a message was brought him that a young sailor, who 
 had been badly wounded on foreign service but had 
 recovered, was waiting to see him. He instantly left 
 the brilliantly lit drawing-room and his merry guests, 
 and going to an ante-room, where the only light was 
 such as found its way from the landing outside, wel- 
 comed the sailor lad with an affectionate greeting, and, 
 after some little talk about the dangers of his life (both 
 to body and to soul), knelt down with him and prayed, 
 ending by placing his hand upon the young man's 
 head, saying, " The Lord hath covered thy head in the 
 day of battle," and then praying earnestly that He 
 would also cover it in the hour of temptation. A few 
 minutes afterwards the Bishop was back again with his 
 guests, a smile upon his face, and once more the centre 
 of the happy throng. 
 
 He found that his confirmation work was in many 
 ways the most congenial of all his duties. This was 
 partly owing to the fact that he was thus brought into 
 contact with so many of his flock, and partly owing to 
 his innate love for children. A relative who accom- 
 panied him on several of these occasions ventured to 
 say that his addresses were very much the same every 
 time. " Ah ! " he replied, " I have often thought of 
 that, but I do not see how it can be helped. You see, 
 I gave my very best at the beginning." 
 
 His preaching was always a strong point. When 
 treasurer and precentor of St. Patrick's Cathedral his 
 sermons had formed a large part of his work, so that it 
 can be readily understood that with this experience, 
 and with his cultivated taste for composition, there 
 
The Bishopric of Meath 153 
 
 was a great charm for educated people in his 
 sermons when Bishop. But he could speak also to 
 simple folk. One day he had been asked to preach 
 both morning and evening in a certain church. At the 
 first service there was a crowded congregation of the 
 neighbouring gentry and their families, and the Bishop 
 preached a striking and scholarly sermon. In the 
 evening he had come prepared with a second discourse 
 of much the same character, but on getting up into the 
 pulpit he saw that he was face to face with a com- 
 pletely different audience. The educated people were 
 absent, and in their place were many children, 
 servants, and cottagers. The prepared sermon was 
 put away, and he spoke to them such simple, heart- 
 felt words as came readily to his lips. A young girl 
 who was present was walking home afterwards with 
 one of the Bishop's sisters, and turning to her said, 
 "Did you tell him all that 1 had told you about 
 myself ? " A striking proof of the way in which the 
 preacher's words had gone home to the hearts of his 
 hearers. 
 
 It was during the time that he was Bishop of Meath 
 that he began to give much time to two of the great 
 works which he undertook — viz., that for the cause of 
 education, and that for the Spanish, Portuguese, and 
 Italian Reformed Churches. But these are so im- 
 portant that they must be considered in separate 
 chapters. It is enough to say that the period was 
 marked by almost excessively hard work, for which 
 he was prepared from the first. Just before he went 
 there he gave evidence of this in a speech he made to 
 a monster mothers' meeting in Dublin. Speaking to 
 
154 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 the women, he said : " When you put on your apron in 
 the morning, you mean that you are going to do a 
 hard day's work. Well," holding out his apron by the 
 corner, " I have put my apron on, and I am hoping^to 
 do a hard day's work too ! " 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 HIS WORK FOR IRISH EDUCATION 
 
 Lord Plunket's work for the cause of Irish educa- 
 tion was probably the most important and most lasting 
 that he accomplished. Thanks to an exceedingly able 
 and interesting paper from the Rev. H. Kingsmill 
 Moore, Principal of the Kildare Place Training College, 
 it is possible to obtain a thorough insight into what 
 that work was. 
 
 The past history of Irish education had been a 
 stormy one. In a paper read before the National 
 Association for the Promotion of Social Science at 
 Dublin, in 1881, Sir Patrick J. Keenan gave a compre- 
 hensive sketch of the former state of educational affairs. 
 He pointed out that in 1537 an Act was passed provid- 
 ing that every archbishop or bishop should administer 
 an oath to each person taking holy orders that he 
 would keep, or cause to be kept, in his parish a school 
 for the purpose of teaching the English language. 
 From that moment throughout three centuries every 
 form of public education in Ireland was mistrusted. 
 
 In 1695 an Act of William III. decreed that no 
 person whatever of the Popish religion should publicly 
 teach school or instruct youth in learning. This Act 
 was repealed in 1732, and in the following year the 
 
156 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Protestant Charter Schools were founded. These 
 schools for nearly a century received Parliamentary 
 grants to the amount of some ;^4o,ooo per annum. 
 After they had been in existence about forty years 
 the society which controlled these schools resolved, 
 "To admit none but children of Papists, or such as 
 were in danger of being bred up Papists." This 
 provision was not annulled until 1803. These facts 
 will sufficiently explain the hopeless failure of this first 
 period of Irish education. 
 
 Then came a great change. At the beginning of 
 this century a vast educational movement arose, which 
 resulted, so far as Ireland was concerned, in the 
 establishment of the Christian Brothers at Waterford, 
 the British and Foreign School Society (1808), and the 
 National Society (181 1). The first of these was purely 
 Roman, the second was due to the efforts of the 
 followers of Lancaster, who with Dr. Bell was well 
 known as a great educational reformer, while the third 
 was started by the friends of Dr. Bell, and differed 
 from the British and Foreign Society in the fact that, 
 while that society required Bible reading without 
 comment, the National Society inculcated the truths of 
 religion according to the Established Church. 
 
 Naturally enough, the British and Foreign plan 
 appeared to commend itself most as an acceptable 
 compromise, and in 181 1 the Society for the Pro- 
 motion of the Education of the Poor in Ireland, soon 
 to be called " Kildare Place " Society, was formed on 
 the same purely undenominational lines. The result 
 was not, however, entirely satisfactory. Romanists 
 objected to Bible reading in schools ; Protestants 
 
His Work for Irish Education 157 
 
 considered the amount of religious teaching insuf- 
 ficient. 
 
 " Still," said Sir Patrick Keenan, " it was a truce, and 
 largely welcomed by eminent men on both sides." 
 The Duke of York became the patron, and described 
 the society as being " established on that liberal plan 
 which was everywhere so important, and in Ireland 
 absolutely indispensable." 
 
 One of the earliest works undertaken by the Kildare 
 Place Society was the training of teachers. It was a 
 bold policy. The income of the society was not more 
 than ;£"30o a year when they resolved to build a model 
 school and seminary for training masters. In 18 14 
 Parliament voted ;^698o for the purpose, and the 
 school was opened five years later. Thus Mr. Moore 
 is able to say that " the Church of Ireland Training 
 College enjoys the distinction of being the oldest 
 training college in the United Kingdom which con- 
 tinues to work on its original site." That it is able to 
 make this boast is in large measure due to the untiring 
 exertions of Lord Plunket, Archbishop of Dublin. 
 
 It will be best to quote largely, for the further history 
 of the work, from Mr. Moore's paper. He says : 
 
 "Lord Plunket's educational work may be said to have com- 
 menced (in earnest) upon his appointment to the See of Meath 
 in 1876. In his early days the opposition between the Church 
 Education Society * and the National Board t was acute and 
 far-reaching in its effects. . . . The environment of his younger 
 days led to a sympathy with the former which was never lost, 
 and which may have had an even exaggerated influence upon 
 
 * See below, p. 159. 
 
 t Founded by the Government in 1831, with a view to conciliating 
 the Roman Catholics. See below, p. 159. 
 
158 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 some of his opinions in after life. But though the future 
 Archbishop grew up in an atmosphere strongly impregnated 
 with Church Education Society's views, there is evidence that 
 he did not look upon the position from any narrow standpoint. 
 Speaking in after years at a memorable meeting in Armagh, he 
 summed up the attitude of his Ufe by saying, ' I have never 
 taken a prominent part in educational controversy.' The 
 reason is in all probability to be found in the sentiment [con- 
 tained in a letter from Lord Plunket to the Daily Express in 
 1882], 'What can be done to unite all reasonable men?' 
 Always anxious to find the good in every party, and so to work 
 for reconciliation instead of for the accentuation of differences, 
 he stood aside so long as reconciliation appeared unattainable, 
 waiting and watching for more promising times. His oppor- 
 tunity came at last, and when it came he so used it as to 
 terminate a controversy of fifty years with honour to all con- 
 cerned. 
 
 " The organisation which Lord Plunket selected as most likely 
 to promote the unity for which he longed was the Church of 
 Ireland Training College. 
 
 " The Kildare Place Society would probably, but for its un- 
 denominationalism, have permanently retained all the primary 
 education of Ireland. As it was, some of the great religious 
 bodies were satisfied. . . . Opposition was not long in spring- 
 ing into existence. It grew more formidable year by year, 
 until at last, in 1831, the Government grants were withdrawn, 
 and the general work of Irish education was transferred to the 
 National Board. The educational events of this year of grace 
 1 83 1 must receive a moment's careful attention, for they are 
 directly responsible for much of the educational history of the 
 century, and they gave rise in particular to the difficulties for 
 whose solution Lord Plunket's work was so effectively directed. 
 
 " The main object of the Government in withdrawing help 
 from Kildare Place and in founding the National Board was to 
 conciliate the Roman Catholics. . . . But it was one thing to 
 
His Work for Irish Education 159 
 
 tolerate Roman Catholics; quite another to make provision 
 for or even to recognise their religious views. Accordingly, 
 the National Board began with an undenominationalism as 
 absolute as that of the Kildare Place Society, and, in addition, 
 it made no provision whatever for reading the Scriptures. The 
 indignation which this departure aroused in Church circles was 
 as natural as it was vehement. . . . 
 
 " The Kildare Place Society, smarting at the slight done by 
 Government to efforts which had been wholly disinterested and 
 in no small degree successful, sought about for means of con- 
 tinuing the society by voluntary support. They fixed upon the 
 question of scriptural education, and in the strength of this 
 position made their appeal to the feeling which had been out- 
 raged by the withdrawal of the Bible from the school. The 
 effect was instantaneous. . . . The voluntary resources of the 
 society increased tenfold. For the moment it looked as if a 
 new era of prosperity had begun. . . . But the new supporters 
 who rallied round the society belonged almost without excep- 
 tion to the Episcopal Church. For them scriptural education 
 meant Church education ; nor were they prepared to devote 
 themselves to any other cause. So soon as it was recognised 
 that the Kildare Place Society (by its constitution) could lend 
 itself to no such distinctive work, the interest of Churchmen 
 flagged, . . . subscriptions rapidly fell off, and it became 
 manifest that all prospect of successful work upon the original 
 lines was at an end. It was at this juncture that the Church 
 Education Society was formed. . . . This society allowed 
 absolute freedom, not alone in the exposition of the Bible, but 
 in the introduction of the Church catechism and Church for- 
 mularies generally, and at once recommended itself to the 
 support of Churchmen everywhere. . . ." 
 
 The Kildare Place Society, being in very low water, 
 were glad to lease the whole of their premises to this 
 new society, and it was from this point that the great 
 struggle began between the National Board and the 
 
i6o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Church Education Society, a struggle which was to 
 add greatly to the difficulties of Lord Plunket's work, 
 but which brought him to the front as a peacemaker 
 and an educational legislator of the first rank. 
 
 The National Board had, of course, observed the 
 very strong feeling which had been aroused throughout 
 the whole country by the starting of the Church 
 Education Society, and exceedingly cleverly and most 
 unexpectedly began on their part to make concessions. 
 Always in favour of a certain amount of religious 
 education, they now made it plain that they meant to 
 go in for definite denominational teaching. These 
 tactics proved too strong for the other society. From 
 an immense income (;^45,ooo per annum) the Church 
 Education Society descended to a few thousands. Its 
 great subscription list dwindled to next to nothing, and 
 finally the Training College at Kildare Place, which, it 
 must be remembered, they leased from the old Kildare 
 Place Society, was found to be in financial difficulties. 
 Now to quote Mr. Moore again : 
 
 " It was at this crisis that Lord Plunket first identified him- 
 self actively with the fortunes of the college. Though never 
 prominent in educational controversy, he had always been pro- 
 foundly impressed with the importance of religious education. 
 ... To protect freedom and enlarge the scope of religious 
 education he looked upon as a work worthy of his deepest 
 thought and his most untiring exertions. He selected the 
 college for his special care because his insight told him that 
 with the prosperity of the cause of religious education the wel- 
 fare of the Training College was inseparably bound up. To 
 quote his own words, the thoughts that stirred him were ' the 
 supreme importance of maintaining religious education ' and 
 
His Work for Irish Education i6i 
 
 the determination that ' the Church of Ireland Training College 
 should be preserved.' 
 
 ***** 
 
 " When the Church Education Society reluctantly announced 
 their inability to continue the management of the Training 
 College, the General Synod determined to take up the work. 
 They entrusted it to their Board of Religious Education, by 
 whom a sub-committee was appointed for the purpose. The 
 labours of this committee began in 1878, and by the close of 
 1879 we find Lord Plunket acting as its chairman." 
 
 Probably no one else could have steered this com- 
 mittee through its many difficulties with anything like 
 the success which was attained by Lord Plunket. It 
 was an opportunity for the exercise of his gifts of 
 mediating between opposing interests and of states- 
 manship. There were the members of the old Kildare 
 Place committee to be considered. They were the legal 
 owners of the college, and were not at all inclined to ex- 
 tinguish themselves. Then there were the lessees — the 
 Church Education Society committee. They were in im- 
 mediate possession of the buildings, and their old feud 
 with the National Board made them suspicious of any 
 movement which might seem to tend towards placing 
 the College under the Board's influence. Lastly, there 
 were those members of the Church of Ireland, both 
 numerous and influential, who, disliking controversy 
 and antagonistic interests, were profoundly convinced 
 of the necessity for a training college, and were pre- 
 pared to back up whatever scheme seemed most likely 
 to succeed. As to this Mr. Moore says : 
 
 " The leadership of this third part naturally devolved upon 
 Lord Plunket. Closely associated with him were the Recorder 
 of Dublin, Sir Frederick R. Falkiner, and Mr. W. G. Brooke. 
 
 L 
 
i62 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 To their earnest and successful efforts the present flourishing 
 position of the college is due." 
 
 Just at this time the Kildare Place Training College 
 committee was obliged to announce that it was no 
 longer possible to carry on the training of both masters 
 and mistresses, and it was made known that the male 
 department would have to be closed for want of 
 funds. 
 
 This announcement was like a trumpet blast in the 
 ears of Lord Plunket. He hated retreat. His policy 
 ■was ever constructive rather than destructive. He 
 determined that this thing should never be, and as a 
 first step he wrote a stirring letter to the papers, heading 
 it with the words " Now OR Never." 
 
 He began by stating that the committee of the 
 Church of Ireland Training College had resolved at 
 their personal risk to keep the male department open 
 for another term, and to retain it permanently if 
 sufficient support were forthcoming. He then made 
 a most able and stirring appeal for that support, and 
 ended by asking for friends to come forward and offer 
 to pay the amount required for enabling a dozen — "or 
 even half-a-dozen " — male students to be trained free 
 of expense during the approaching session. He was 
 prepared to pay the fee for one student. Were there 
 any others willing to do the same ? If so, let them 
 remember it must be done now or never. 
 
 The result of this appeal was eminently satisfactory, 
 and sufficient subscriptions came in to enable the 
 committee to keep the male department open as 
 before. 
 
 Meantime a committee of members of the Church 
 
His Work for Irish Education 163 
 
 of Ireland had been formed, under Sir Frederick 
 Falkiner's presidency, to make an effort to bring Church 
 influence to bear upon the teachers of National schools, 
 and especially, if possible, to do this work through the 
 means of the Kildare Place Training College. This 
 went by the name of "the Recorder's committee," and 
 the plan which they proposed was to employ Kildare 
 Place as a residence where Church students from the 
 Marlborough Street College* might board, attending 
 the Government professors' lectures at the latter place 
 but receiving religious instruction at the former. On 
 this point Mr. Moore says : 
 
 " To this plan the committee of the college made no objec- 
 tion, provided that the management of the buildings and of 
 the students remained in their own hands. . . . Lord Plunket 
 in particular welcomed the introduction of the Marlborough 
 Street element, provided that it did not interfere with the 
 maintenance of the college on its original lines. 
 
 "In the spring of 1883 the sanction of the Synod was 
 obtained, and in the autumn of the same year the Bishop 
 himself welcomed a class of eighteen male students to their 
 new quarters." 
 
 In this same year the English system of denomina- 
 tional training colleges was extended to Ireland, and 
 the Roman Catholics at once founded two colleges, 
 one for masters and the other for mistresses. 
 
 A suggestion that a boarding-house should be estab- 
 lished for mistresses at Kildare Place was unfavourably 
 received under these new circumstances, and every- 
 thing pointed to the adoption of a denominational 
 college under Government. But, if it were to be 
 
 * Under the National Board. 
 
164 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 under Government, it must have Government schools. 
 That meant that the old model schools of Kildare 
 Place and the Church Education Society must come 
 under the control of the National Board ! Again to 
 quote Mr. Moore : 
 
 " To those who had taken an active part in the fierce war- 
 fare of the past it might well seem as if all would be lost were 
 the flag of the enemy thus planted on the citadel. The difiS- 
 culties of the situation were felt acutely by the Bishop. The 
 boarding-house system he was able to defend unhesitatingly. 
 It was, he said, a new departure, but a departure upon old 
 principles. A denominational college, on the other hand, 
 seemed to him to present immense difficulties. . . . Still, he 
 approached it (to quote his own words of advice to others) in 
 a ' large and unprejudiced spirit,' and he succeeded, in concert 
 with his fellow-workers, in striking out a plan which went far 
 towards avoiding even an appearance of a breach of continuity 
 
 with the past. 
 
 ***** 
 
 " He began to see that it ought to be possible to arrange for 
 a department, which would still carry on the work of training 
 for schools not in connection with the National Board. Thus the 
 old traditions and the continuity would be preserved. Looked 
 at in one way, the coming of the National Board to Kildare 
 Place might spell defeat. But in another, was it not victory ? 
 Did it not promise to make Kildare Place once more the 
 great educational centre ? No longer the shattered mother of 
 a dying cause, sending few teachers to few schools, but again 
 a college whose influence was as wide as the boundaries of the 
 Church. . . . The question asked by Lord Plunket, ' What 
 can be done to meet reasonable men ? ' had found an answer 
 which proved to be final and complete." 
 
 But there was still the General Synod to be faced. 
 What would this body say to the proposal ? All 
 anxiety on this point was quickly set at rest. On a 
 
His Work for Irish Education 165 
 
 motion of Mr. W. G. Brooke, the consent of the Synod 
 was obtained without a division. 
 
 Now Lord Plunket felt free to begin to act. His 
 energy and industry knew no bounds. Together with 
 the Recorder and Mr. Brooke, he devoted the greater 
 part of the summer to the work, and in company with 
 the former he visited all the more important English 
 training colleges in search of information. Finally, 
 he had an immense work to do in internal organisation 
 and renovation. There was the selection of the staff, 
 as well as the renewal and refurnishing of the buildings. 
 Mr. Moore gives a graphic description of the personal 
 attention which Lord Plunket gave to these matters : 
 
 " My own introduction to him took place on July 18, 1884, 
 under circumstances so characteristic of the man, and so ex- 
 pressive of the way he worked, as to suggest the fitness of 
 placing them in this attempt to recall his many-sided educa- 
 tional activity. 
 
 "Together with some others, I had been summoned to 
 appear before the committee which was entrusted with the 
 work of reconstruction. The Bishop was in the chair. The 
 ■charm of manner, to which all who met him testify, was at 
 once felt. It placed you at your ease, and enabled you to give 
 natural answers to the questions which he put. They were 
 ordinary questions. There was, of course, the inquiry as to 
 qualifications, but it was accompanied with a desire to discover 
 the motives which impelled the candidates to seek the work of 
 training teachers, and it led up to questions as to the means to 
 be employed if the ideal was to be attained. Such an interview, 
 even had it stood alone, would have been sufficient to stamp 
 Lord Plunket's personality indelibly upon my memory. 
 
 " Upon leaving the room I was requested to give the address 
 which would find me in the suburbs, but as I had little or no 
 expectation that the choice of the committee would fall on me, 
 
1 66 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 I took no steps to ascertain the decision. My deficiencies 
 were made good by the Bishop. When I came back late in the- 
 evening his carriage was at the door. Anxious to lose no time 
 in pushing forward the work in hand, he had stayed only for 
 a hasty dinner, and had come to initiate me forthwith into my 
 duties. Nor did my absence alter his intentions : he waited 
 till I returned, and concluded a day's work, already over-busy, 
 by unfolding in fullest detail the complicated threads of this 
 organisation in which he was engaged, and by laying down 
 definitely the Unes of work upon which he considered it 
 
 important that I should enter at once. 
 
 ***** 
 
 " There remained the task of making the necessary arrange- 
 ments for two great ceremonials within a few weeks of each 
 other — one the opening of the schools, the other the opening of 
 the college. These were the duties in which Lord Plunket 
 bore the foremost part all through the fierce heat of the 
 summer of 1884. To be close at hand, he came up from his 
 Palace at Ardbraccan and took up his residence at Maple's 
 Hotel, just opposite the college. Often he worked literally 
 from early morning far into the night. There is even a legend 
 to the effect that, after an unusually hard period of labour, he 
 might be seen taking off his episcopal coat and falling to again. 
 Certain it is that much even of the clerical work was done by 
 his own hand. The appeals were his ; the letters in the papers 
 which accompanied them were his. To every question with 
 regard to college constitution he gave his whole and undivided 
 attention. The very resolutions in which such points came 
 before the committee were generally in his handwriting. At 
 last the day for the opening of the college drew on. With it 
 the work of organisation terminated. None that were present 
 are ever likely to forget that day, though few could have 
 realised all it meant to him, the central figure, and to those 
 who had shared his confidences and his labour. Gathered in 
 the old school — the scene of so many ceremonials — a great 
 assembly awaited the consummation of the work upon which 
 the eyes of the whole Church had been fixed for months. 
 
His Work for Irish Education 167 
 
 **■**♦ 
 
 " The ceremonial itself was simple but deeply impressive. 
 With one of those touches of fine feeling which Lord Plunket 
 showed throughout, he had proposed the aged Archbishop 
 Trench as visitor of the college, and induced him to be 
 present. 
 
 " As the hour approaches, the Bishop draws aside some of 
 those who have borne the chief part in the preparation. 
 Together they kneel while he ofTers up prayer and thanks- 
 giving. Then they go to the quadrangle to receive the visitor. 
 Lord Plunket, forgetful of himself and his own prominence on 
 such a day, stands bareheaded to do honour to the venerable 
 prelate." 
 
 After a short service, the college was declared open 
 by the Archbishop in words of benediction and com- 
 mendation. Several speeches followed. That of Lord 
 Plunket contained several passages which must be 
 recorded, by reason of the insight they give into the 
 working of his mind on this vast subject of education. 
 For example, he said : 
 
 " Some might feel that, because that was a denomi- 
 national college, that was the beginning of an extension 
 of denominationalism pure and simple in education 
 throughout the land. He did not share that fear. If 
 he did, he would not take the interest he did in the 
 college, for he did not beheve that denominationalism 
 pure and simple would tend to the interest of liberal 
 education throughout the country, and might be very 
 prejudicial to the interest of members of the Church 
 
 scattered through the land. 
 
 ***** 
 
 "The present was the time in Ireland to see that 
 education should be permeated through and through 
 
i68 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 by religion. Now was the time they should bring the 
 whole influence of the Church to bear on the machinery 
 of education placed at their disposal, and the way in 
 which they could best carry out that design was by 
 supporting an institution such as the college which 
 was about to be declared open. It was a compromise 
 in the true sense of the term. Not a compromise 
 which meant abandonment of principle, but one joined 
 in by those who were willing to take something less 
 than they desired so that all might benefit the more. 
 The very name of the college suggested a compromise 
 between the Government and the Church. It was a 
 Government denominational college. Therefore he 
 hoped that they would all join in supporting an 
 institution which brought religion and education 
 together, and enabled them to go forth hand in hand 
 to do the blessed work for which God intended them." 
 
 This extract is valuable as an example of his delight 
 in compromise so long as nothing vital were yielded. 
 It was closely connected with his desire for unity and 
 fraternisation (as he called it), and was the outcome of 
 one special side of his complex character — a side which 
 tended to a seeking for good in others and a readiness 
 to subdue any spirit of obstinate pride in himself — a 
 readiness which is sadly conspicuous by its absence in 
 many ecclesiastical controversialists. 
 
 To return to Mr. Moore's paper, he says : 
 
 " As Lord Plunket had foreseen, the breach which had 
 lasted for fifty years was healed. Now that teachers for 
 Church Education schools and for National schools were seen 
 training side by side, both engaged in the same studies, whether 
 
His Work for Irish Education 169 
 
 secular or religious, it was not possible to misread the lesson 
 of unity thus taught. The bitterness of controversy died. A 
 feeling of mutual help and fellowship reigned in its stead. 
 ' Reasonable men ' were once more at one. 
 
 " In the varying stages which marked the accomplishment 
 of the work it is interesting to note the feelings which were 
 uppermost with him to whom so much of the success was due. 
 
 " Not triumph but thankfulness ruled in his heart. We have 
 seen him drawing others on the opening day to join their prayers 
 with his. At the close of the first year's work, when, as 
 manager of the college and Archbishop of Dublin, he re- 
 ceived the news of the honours which had been won in the 
 Government examinations, he lifted up his eyes with a fervent 
 ■* Laus Deo.' 
 
 " Once more, when, in April 1887, after manyand complicated 
 negotiations, the scheme for the future government of the 
 •college, passed by the Educational Endowments Commission, 
 was finally approved, and the whole of the Kildare Place site 
 and any property still held by the old Kildare Place Society 
 was transferred to the Church of Ireland Training College, the 
 Archbishop marked the occasion by opening the meeting of 
 the Board of Governors with a solemn offering up of the 
 •General Thanksgiving." 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 ED UCA TIONA L WORK—(CONTIN UED) 
 
 It remains to mention the actual buildings of the 
 Training College. Lord Plunket was always intensely 
 interested in building work. He is reported to have 
 said that had he not been an ecclesiastic he would have 
 chosen to be an architect. Such work exactly suited 
 his constructive genius. At the same time his views 
 were distinctly utilitarian. Music was his one art — 
 if a certain taste for landscape gardening be excepted ;. 
 and when the first new building (a dining-hall for the 
 female students) was proposed, he supported the plainer 
 of the two plans which were submitted. It may be 
 that the extreme ugliness of the existing buildings had 
 something to do with this. It may have seemed to him 
 out of place to put up anything that could be described 
 as artistic in contiguity with what was so utterly devoid 
 of beauty. However, upon this point he ultimately 
 gave way, and the present very pleasing hall was built,, 
 the funds being raised by a bazaar.* 
 
 * It is worth mentioning that the Archbishop was no condemner of" 
 this form of raising money. He went even further than this, and refused 
 to disapprove of raffles, whereby he greatly shocked a large number of 
 the community. The Daily Telegraph had a long leading article on the 
 subject, making fun of the Archbishop's position, as the foUovring 
 extract will show. "Lord Plunket is of opinion that raffles have a. 
 wholesome tendency to prevent men and women from risking money oil 
 
His Work for Irish Education 171 
 
 The next thing for which the Archbishop appealed 
 was a sum of money with which to erect a new wing 
 for masters. This was obtained, and an ornamental 
 building resulted. The contrast between the old and 
 new portions of the college was thus further emphasised, 
 and he took the keenest interest in an effort to make 
 the whole college more worthy. Of the various im- 
 provements and additions that were made, two, the 
 clock-tower and the cloisters, are said to have been 
 almost his own design, so exact was he in suggesting 
 and specifying what he wanted. 
 
 The dormitory accommodation still remained very 
 poor, and this he determined to remedy. Plans were 
 prepared, and in the careful examination of these Lord 
 Plunket passed the last hours he ever spent in Kildare 
 Place. 
 
 It is a fitting thing that the chief memorial to him in 
 Dublin should be the beautifying of the front of the 
 college, which has up till now presented a particularly 
 plain face to the passer-by. 
 
 Mr. Moore has added some interesting remarks upon 
 the Archbishop as a statesman. He says : 
 
 "As a peer of the realm Lord Plunket had, of course, a 
 
 chance ; and, as a proof of this, he is prepared to take a ticket in any 
 number of future lotteries, because he has never won a single prize. . . 
 Nor must the Archbishop be surprised if, after this avowal, he is over- 
 whelmed with prospectuses and circulars of ' tombolas,' ' sweeps,' 
 ' paris-mutuels,' and so forth, from all parts of the world . . and it is 
 quite within the probabilities that he will find himself being confiden- 
 tially plied with ' tips ' as to ' good things ' by the fraternity of touts." 
 As a matter of fact, Lord Plunket's refusal to condemn rafSes was just 
 one more example of his independence and determination to judge for 
 himself, rather than let his mind run in a. narrow groove, ecclesiastica 
 or otherwise. 
 
172 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 seat in the House of Lords. His duties as a bishop prevented 
 his ever being regular in attendance, but, when the suitable 
 occasion came, his political instinct never failed to show him 
 how to bring the weight of his position to bear with full effect. 
 It was generally his personal influence that he used, and it 
 was great. . . . Upon one memorable occasion he used this 
 particular influence with valuable results on behalf of the Train- 
 ing College. Towards the end of the session of 1891 Mr. 
 A. J. Balfour, then Chief Secretary for Ireland, introduced a 
 Bill for placing the denominational colleges on an equality 
 with the Government college at Marlborough Street, so far as 
 their buildings were concerned. The buildings at the latter 
 had been erected at Government expense. It was proposed 
 to refund to the colleges the sums which had been provided 
 for their buildings out of private sources. 
 
 " Scarcely was this good news known, when it was announced 
 that formidable opposition would be offered to the Bill on behalf 
 of the Northern Presbyterians. Themselves satisfied with the 
 undenominationalism of Marlborough Street, they objected to 
 the equality proposed on behalf of denominational colleges. 
 As the session was far advanced, it was manifest that the 
 situation was critical. The Archbishop accordingly determined 
 that no effort on his part should be wanting to insure the 
 safety of the Bill. He went to London specially in the middle 
 of July, and spent the rest of the month working the Press, 
 drawing up parliamentary documents, attending the House, 
 canvassing members, and interviewing the Government. The 
 amount of hard clerical and physical work which he went 
 through would be almost incredible to any one who had not 
 witnessed it. He toiled early and late, never missing an 
 opportunity of gaining a point. An incident which happened 
 at this time, though slight in itself, throws an interesting light 
 on the Archbishop's character. He was at the National Club, 
 and was deeply engaged in writing a memorandum in support 
 of the Government proposals. An old gentleman passing 
 down the opposite side of the room dropped his spectacle-case 
 and went on without missing it. The Archbishop rose, went 
 
His Work for Irish Education 173 
 
 right across the room, picked it up, and restored it to its owner. 
 However intent upon the business in which he was engaged, 
 he was never unmindful of those about him." 
 
 On the evening of July 31 of that year he wrote a 
 long letter to the chief London papers to explain the 
 reasons why he considered that even the opponents of 
 the denominational principle as applied to elementary 
 schools should support the Training Colleges (Ireland) 
 Bill. This letter was not despatched till midnight, and 
 while it was actually being set up in the various print- 
 ing offices the battle was won in Parliament, not by 
 the passing of the exact measure proposed, but by the 
 substitution of an equally favourable alternative in the 
 shape of annual grants to the colleges. 
 
 It is impossible to omit some account of the work 
 done by Lord Plunket as a member of the Board of 
 Commissioners of National Education. He accepted 
 the office of Commissioner in 1895, and was the first 
 Irish bishop who had filled the post since the days of 
 Whateley. No opposition to or criticism of his action 
 was made. There were probably three reasons for 
 this. In the first place, there was far less bitterness of 
 feeling than had existed some years before ; in the 
 second place, his winning personality made his 
 countrymen reluctant to cavil at him ; but chiefly, he 
 was greatly trusted by the Protestant party. This 
 latter fact enabled him to carry out many schemes 
 which would have been impossible otherwise ; but, as 
 will be seen immediately, the Protestants of Ireland 
 were not ready to follow him everywhere. They 
 trusted him and gave him a wonderfully free hand 
 in many matters, but now and then they altogether 
 
174 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 refused to follow where he led. This was notably the 
 case in 1896, when an attempt was made by the Com- 
 missioners so to alter the rules with regard to the 
 conscience clause as to make it possible for the Chris- 
 tian Brothers to come under the Board, This was 
 such an important question that space must be found 
 here for a short paper on the subject from the able 
 pen of Sir Frederick R. Falkiner, the Recorder of 
 Dublin : 
 
 " There was a debate in the General Synod of the Church 
 of Ireland in 1896, the year before the Archbishop died, the 
 source and course of which well exemplify the tenacity and 
 temper of his character. In 1895 he had joined the Board of 
 Commissioners of National Education, which has functions 
 similar to those of the Committee of the Privy Council in 
 England. Dr. Walsh, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of 
 Dublin, was also a member of the Board. 
 
 "The original basis of the Commissioners in 1832 was that 
 of united secular and separate religious education. . . . This 
 system, however, did not satisfy many denominationalists, and 
 -was denounced by many on both sides as 'godless,' though 
 generally accepted by the Presbyterian bodies. After some 
 years' trial the Board consented to recognise .... a modified 
 system, practically that now existing in the voluntary schools 
 in England in which the conscience clause prevails. Under 
 this system the Board had for very many years a continually 
 increasing success, until it had come to comprehend the great 
 majority of the children of the country of the elementary school 
 age. Nevertheless, there always remained a considerable 
 section in both Churches to whom the system was not sufH- 
 ciently denominational. 
 
 * * * » S:- 
 
 " The Roman Catholic Teaching Order of Christian Brothers 
 had, especially of late years, developed very high educational 
 qualities. Their training in secular knowledge was highly 
 
His Work for Irish Education 175 
 
 successful, and notwithstanding the allurements of parlia- 
 mentary grants, their strictly denominational schools were 
 filled with many children. The Church Education schools, 
 too, continued their opposition to the National system, but 
 with ever-decreasing numbers and decreasing means as the 
 Church National schools grew and prospered. In 1896 the 
 archbishops became anxious to modify the existing rules so as 
 to embrace those schools on both sides which had hitherto 
 stood aloof, so that they too might share in the Imperial grants. 
 The Roman Catholic children who would thus be included 
 were out of all proportion to the few hundreds of children in 
 the Church Education schools, but Lord Plunket, ever loyal 
 to old friends, and more especially to weak ones, was most 
 anxious to give them recognition by the Board. The Com- 
 missioners drew up a careful and tentative programme, which 
 they submitted for public consideration. This was received 
 throughout the country with a very formidable and manifold 
 opposition : by the old adherents of the original principle of 
 united secular and separate religious instruction ; by the 
 Church school managers, who were satisfied with a denomina- 
 tionalism coupled with the conscience clause ; by many who 
 feared that the proposed change would lead towards an abso- 
 lute sectarianism throughout the country ; by many even of 
 the Roman Catholic National teachers, who feared that their 
 positions or prospects would be endangered by the compre- 
 hension and increase of the Christian Brother schools. 
 
 " In 1896 the question was submitted to the Standing Com- 
 mittee of the General Synod of the Church, who, after length- 
 ened conferences, drew up a condensed and careful protest 
 against the suggested rules. At the final meeting of the Stand- 
 ing Committee for the adoption of the protest the Archbishop 
 was in the chair. He strongly opposed the protest, but found 
 himself in a minority of four against some thirty of the pro- 
 testors. Nothing daunted, when the resolution passed he 
 quietly drew from his breast a counter-protest, drawn up at 
 great length and with expanded argument, which he read to the 
 meeting. Next morning, when the report appeared in the 
 
176 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 newspapers, the terse protest of the committee, which was in a 
 few short paragraphs intended for members of the Government 
 and of Parliament, was printed with the counter-protest of the 
 Archbishop appended, and signed by the minority of four, in 
 equally large print and with all its unabbreviated reasoning, so 
 that to the casual reader it might seem to strangle the protest 
 of the majority. In this state of things the question was re- 
 mitted to a special convention of the General Synod of the 
 Church, at which the Archbishop again presided in the absence 
 of the Primate. Notwithstanding the large majority against 
 him in the Standing Committee, he still had strong hopes of per- 
 suading the Synod to support him, for two very eminent gentle- 
 men of great weight in all Irish questions, one of whom 
 was an eminent member of the Board of National Education, 
 had given him their acquiescence, and he fully and not un- 
 reasonably reckoned on their presence to support the counter- 
 protest that day. As the debate progressed it was pretty 
 evident that the general opinion was strongly with the Standing 
 Committee and opposed to the projected changes, and the 
 Archbishop from his president's chair might be seen casting 
 anxious glances at the door, seeking the presence of his two 
 right honourable friends. They were, however, both detained 
 by public duties elsewhere, and the Archbishop had to look 
 in vain — like Napoleon yearning for Grouchy's advent at 
 Waterloo. 
 
 " When Lord Plunket at last put the protest of the Standing 
 Committee, it was greeted with a roar of ' Ayes ' from every 
 quarter of the crowded Synod hall. Then to the ' Noes ' came 
 one single round ' NO^ like Aihanasius contra mundum. Per- 
 haps the pain of a defeat was never more pathetically seen than 
 on the Archbishop's face as he declared the protest carried. 
 He sat for a few moments with his chin resting upon his hand, 
 seeming lost in thought. The writer, who usually supported 
 him in all his measures in which his laymen friends took share, 
 walked up to him and, pressing his hand, said earnestly, ' Well, 
 your Grace, I was sorrowfully compelled to be against you in 
 this matter, but, whatever the result may be, or whatever any 
 
His Work for Irish Education 177 
 
 one may think, no man has ever been able to say that Plunket 
 Dublin does not stand to his guns.' His beautiful countenance 
 kindled at once, as when sunshine comes through November 
 clouds, and, taking his friend by the arm, he said, 'Well, I 
 never got such a beating in my life ! Come away ; come home 
 with me.' Not one word of reproach or chagrin towards any 
 one did he then or ever afterwards utter ; not a cold glance did 
 he cast even on those of his own clergy on whom he might 
 naturally have calculated to vote with him. The loving-kind- 
 ness, the manly recognition of the right of every one, however 
 dependent on him, to think and act according to his conscience, 
 was exhibited on this occasion by him as in every other in- 
 stance : and this characteristic would not be so worthy of our 
 love and admiration if we did not know how keenly he felt for 
 the cause he himself espoused, how utterly he believed in it, 
 and how deeply he deplored its defeat." 
 
 This must have been a truly pathetic scene. The 
 tall, slight figure of the Archbishop, now not far from 
 his seventieth year, but as upright as ever, with the 
 same Irish blue eyes and handsome features as were 
 described as characteristic of him as a boy, left abso- 
 lutely alone in that crowded assembly. He was, in a 
 certain sense, accustomed to solitariness, for he was by 
 nature a reserved man. It has been said of him that 
 "few, if any, ventured so to obtrude on his notice as 
 to draw him out or induce him to depart from the 
 ceremonious walk of an ecclesiastic of high position " ; 
 but, for all that, no one could resist him. " He would 
 win a bird off a bush," was the verdict of a well-known 
 Presbyterian friend of his ; and certain it is that on that 
 memorable occasion in the Synod, when all men were 
 against him, there was probably not one single indi- 
 vidual who did not entertain a warm personal affection 
 for him. 
 
 M 
 
178 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 There is another point to which special attention 
 must be called. The alteration in the rules for which 
 he had been contending would have worked mainly in 
 one direction — viz., towards improving the position of 
 the schools of the Christian Brothers, the most rigid 
 of all Roman Catholic educational institutions. This 
 is just an example of the liberal spirit which, in spite 
 of much apparent evidence to the contrary, pervaded 
 his mind on all subjects. The fact that he persevered 
 to the end, in spite of overwhelming opposition and 
 the desertion of his few supporters, until he was left 
 to utter his emphatic No amid a complete silence, is an 
 instance of that other quality— viz., an unswerving deter- 
 mination to keep to the path which he had marked out, 
 which is seen in the action which he took concerning 
 the Spanish Church, and which has been seen to be 
 a distinct inheritance from his grandfather, the old 
 lord. 
 
 Of his work as an Education Commissioner Mr. 
 Moore says : 
 
 " He accepted the office as a call of duty. During the years 
 he sat at the Board he laboured hard. It was his custom to 
 consult with those he trusted whenever points of difficulty 
 arose. He studied carefully beforehand the questions which 
 came up for settlement at the weekly meetings of the Board. 
 Some of the warmest testimonies to his personal influence, 
 and the respectful love which his courteous and chivalrous 
 bearing evoked, were borne by men of different creeds and 
 different politics with whom he co-operated as a Commissioner. 
 ' Life is the sweeter for his life,' was the way in which the 
 feeling at the Education Office was summed up by one of 
 the high officials." 
 
 There were also other minor works in connection 
 
His Work for Irish Education 179 
 
 with education which must not be altogether passed 
 over, as they received from him the same careful atten- 
 tion which he gave to all the duties that lay in his 
 path. Mr. Moore says : 
 
 "Formany years the School for Educating the Daughters 
 of the Irish Clergy had been conducted as a separate institu- 
 tion. The disadvantages of such an arrangement were apparent. 
 The Umited numbers of the school prohibited educational 
 strength. Its constitution promoted the disabilities inseparable 
 from a community limited to a single class. It was Lord 
 Plunket's happiness to provide for both these difficulties a 
 solution eminently satisfactory. His plan was to connect the 
 institution with the principal girls' schools under Church 
 management in the Dublin Alexandra School. For this 
 purpose the house which had formed his Dublin residence 
 before he became Archbishop was made available. It adjoins 
 the school. In this way the isolation of the daughters of the 
 clergy ceased, and they entered upon educational advantages 
 
 of the highest order. 
 
 * * » » * 
 
 " With the boys at St. Columba's College he was an especial 
 favourite. Every Easter he held a Confirmation there, and, 
 though the addresses from a schoolboy's standpoint must have 
 seemed strangely long, those who heard him always felt drawn 
 to him with affection and respect." 
 
 Such was Archbishop Plunket's educational work. 
 To those who have little interest in such matters it 
 may seem to have occupied many pages, but to those 
 who realise the importance of what he did, and the 
 grave crisis in Irish educational matters in which he 
 was called upon to take a leading part, this account will 
 appear all too brief and inadequate. 
 
 Of all his work, this was, as has been already said, 
 probably the most important and most lasting. Even 
 
i8o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 those who were in ecclesiastical matters most at vari- 
 ance with him must allow that he was obviously raised 
 up by God to bring about a reconciliation and con- 
 struct a scheme of future work, which it would have 
 been impossible for any one not endowed with his 
 special gifts to have accomplished. Here, as in the 
 case of the troubled times succeeding disestablish- 
 ment, his great personal charm, his often-quoted 
 "genius for compromise," his horror of a constructive 
 and love for a co7Jstructive policy, and his untiring 
 perseverance, all combined in the one man, made him 
 the necessary leader without whom both the Irish 
 Church and Irish Church education would have been 
 in a very different position to-day. 
 
 He was fully aware of the importance of the work. 
 A close personal friend writes : 
 
 " When his election to the Archbishopric of Dublin was 
 pending in the balance, I said to him, ' Well, at all events, 
 whatever happens, to you will always be attributed the found- 
 ing of the Church of Ireland Training College.' He rose out 
 of his armchair, stood up, and said, ' If I were given my choice 
 which I would prefer to be, Archbishop of Dublin or founder 
 of the college, I would choose to found the college ! " 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 LORD PLUNKET AN IRISHMAN 
 
 Before passing to the large and important subject of 
 Lord Plunket's work in connection with various of the 
 reformed Churches on the Continent, it may be well to 
 attempt to obtain a more complete idea of his complex 
 character. This has appeared in glimpses here and 
 there throughout the foregoing pages, but for a clear 
 understanding of what he was rather than of what he 
 did it will be well to gather up all the various evidences 
 afforded, and to form as true a picture of him as 
 possible. 
 
 To start with, he was a thorough Irishman. " For 
 good and for evil," says one who knew him intimately, 
 " he was Irish to the core." The very mixture of race 
 in him was characteristic of many of the best men 
 whom Ireland has turned out. It has been seen in the 
 early chapters of this book that, while from his grand- 
 father, the first Lord Plunket, he inherited some of the 
 characteristics of the tough Presbyterians of the north, 
 from his mother's family he got the gaiety, polish, and 
 savoir-faire of the southern Irish aristocracy. This 
 will account in great measure for some of the remark- 
 able contrasts which he presented. Only to mention a 
 few of these : is it not astonishing that a man who 
 
1 82 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 appears to have been in many ways pathetically 
 " alone," and who is so often described as having a 
 certain "aloofness" about him, should at the same 
 time have been so extraordinarily winning that none 
 could come in contact with him without finding them- 
 selves under the spell of his affectionate nature ? To 
 very few did he ever open his heart entirely : again and 
 again he walked along the path of what he believed to 
 be his duty without looking for, or at all events without 
 obtaining, much sympathy. To the members of his 
 own family he was often completely reserved as to 
 matters that were interesting him intensely ; and yet he 
 was the most loving father and brother and the most 
 delightful companion imaginable. Another remarkable 
 contrast is found in the consistent piety of his life and 
 his reluctance to speak much in the course of everyday 
 life about religious matters. This would not be so 
 remarkable were it not borne in mind that his whole 
 surroundings and tone of mind were essentially Evan- 
 gehcal. As to his sustained piety of life there is plenty 
 of evidence. In 1850 he was abroad with several 
 relations, and it is well remembered that, no matter 
 how early the start had to be for train or diligence, he 
 used invariably to rise an hour beforehand so as to 
 obtain time for his Bible-reading and prayer. At a 
 later day the following letter (unfortunately undated) 
 tells much the same story : 
 
 [To his Mother. \ 
 
 " AcHiLL Hotel, Friday evening. 
 
 "My dearest Mother, 
 
 "We left Newport this morning at ii| o'clock, 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman :83 
 
 having slept well and feeling quite fresh and ready for 
 our drive to Achill, and arrived here this afternoon, 
 having had a most delightful drive — beautiful vi^eather 
 and beautiful scenery. I feel this morning better, 
 thank God, than I have felt, I think, for some months. 
 ... As they proceed [he and his companion, Mr. 
 Richard Greene, who married a sister of the late Arch- 
 bishop] the island of Achill bursts upon their view — 
 and, and — to cut everything short — they cross the sound 
 and get into Sullivan's hotel by five : one of them is in 
 bed asleep, and the other will be, he hopes, in two or 
 three or ten minutes. 
 
 " Your most affectionatestissimus, 
 
 "W^ILLIAM." 
 
 " P.S. — I have found great changes here since I was 
 here last. Many persons gone away : many strange 
 faces in their places : one of my old friends, I am 
 sorry to say, dead. I do not speak thoughtlessly when 
 I pray that I may not lose the lesson which all this 
 should teach, ' One shall be taken and the other left.' 
 Richard and I read prayers and a chapter in the morn- 
 ing and the evening together, which binds us to one 
 another closer every day, and gives us something to 
 talk about on our journeys. Good-bye once more." 
 
 Compare this letter with that which he wrote to his 
 mother when the suggestion was made to him that he 
 should be Bishop of Meath, in which the reference to 
 the deeper aspect of the proposal is of the slightest, 
 and with the fact that those who were much about him 
 during the years of his episcopacy note his reserve in 
 
184 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 speaking about spiritual matters, and the contrast is 
 striking enough. 
 
 Then, again, it is impossible to help noticing that, 
 while romantic and sentimental, like most Irishmen, 
 and while devoted to music, in many ways he was 
 inartistic and utilitarian to a surprising degree. He 
 was fond of brilliant colours, and considered the taste 
 for more subdued and harmonious tints to be more or 
 less of " a sham," and anything not absolutely true was 
 utterly hateful to him. It will be remembered that, in 
 the case of the buildings of the Kildare Place Training 
 College, his influence went at first entirely on the 
 inartistic and utilitarian side, but that he gave way to 
 the pressure which was brought to bear. It is not 
 forgotten that he had some taste for landscape garden- 
 ing, and more will be said about this in the chapter on 
 Old Connaught, but here again he frequently displayed 
 an absence of a sense of true art. At the same time 
 he was exceedingly romantic. Much of his poetry 
 shows this, and there can be little doubt that one of 
 the great attractions which the work for the Spanish 
 Reformed Church possessed for him was just its 
 romance. His affection for mother, wife, children, 
 friends, was of a most romantic nature, finding expres- 
 sion now and then in letters, now and then in verse. 
 The imaginative appealed to him in everything. 
 Though never the least morbid, he loved sad fancies, 
 and wrote many of his most touching poems on the 
 pictures which he called up of the sufferings of the 
 peasantry in a time of famine, or the anguish of those 
 parted by the hand of death. But with all this imagina- 
 tive genius and sentiment, due to the Irish blood in him. 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 185 
 
 there was continually cropping up a vein of common 
 sense and practical determination. Yet another com- 
 plication of character must be noticed. There were 
 times when he had the true Hibernian gift of com- 
 bativeness. Once he made a cause really his own. 
 all opposition merely served to increase his tenacity 
 of purpose. He certainly did not love fighting for 
 fighting's sake — as some Irishmen do — but when he 
 was withstood by those whom he considered to have 
 no right to withstand him, and when he was thoroughly 
 in love with his undertaking, then he was nothing loth 
 to enter the lists. On some occasions his patriotism 
 had much to do with this trait. Take the Spanish 
 Reformed Church question as an example. In this 
 matter, as is well known, he was bitterly opposed by a 
 large section of the English Church, and was urged 
 by many of his brother bishops of that body to give 
 up his undertaking. Not only was he absolutely con- 
 vinced, as will be seen hereafter, that he was right, but 
 there was probably a fear lest the Church of England 
 should presume to try to dictate to her sister of Ireland ; 
 and this combination of sentiment caused him to be as 
 unbending and even combative a leader in the cause as 
 can be found in the history of any, even ecclesiastical, 
 movement. 
 
 With all this — note the contrast — he was the gentlest 
 of men, and his greatest work was invariably achieved 
 in the role of a peacemaker. It was thus that he 
 was enabled to bestow upon the Church of Ireland 
 what have been described as his two greatest 
 gifts — viz., " that kindly spirit which now exists 
 between the two chief parties in the Irish Church, 
 
1 86 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 and the reconstruction of the Irish primary school 
 system." 
 
 Of his gentleness to his fellow men examples might 
 be given which would fill a volume. No conversation 
 can be held with any who knew him personally, no 
 letter can be received that mentions his name, which 
 does not contain some words of love and gratitude 
 for the gentleness and consideration, the self-forgetful- 
 ness and generosity he had shown. 
 
 One writer remembers how, when a mere lad, he 
 first found himself in the same room with Lord 
 Plunket (then Bishop of Meath), when a large party 
 was present ; and how, being the person of least 
 importance, he was singled out by the Bishop, who 
 made a point of talking to him and preventing him 
 from feeling lonely or awkward. Another tells how he 
 had work to do for Lord Plunket, and how his mistakes 
 and shortcomings were borne with the utmost patience, 
 and he was encouraged by the gentle and generous 
 treatment to become more efficient. Yet another 
 relates how, when he was a curate in Dublin, the 
 doctors ordered him complete rest and change of 
 scene. He resigned his curacy and applied for a 
 Continental chaplaincy. His wife, in his absence, told 
 Lord Plunket, then Archbishop, what he had been 
 obliged to do. The reply was prompt : " Your 
 husband must not take a chaplaincy. I wish him to 
 have complete rest, and desire you to write and ask 
 him to ascertain how much it will cost you and him to 
 go to any place the doctors recommend for three 
 months. I shall gladly bear the expense." 
 
 The working men who served him at Old Connaught 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 187 
 
 and elsewhere bear witness that they never heard a 
 hard word from him ; and it was the same with every one 
 with whom he came in contact. His was the mildest 
 rule and his the most lenient judgment. He seemed 
 ever to have that scene before his eyes when One said, 
 "He that is without sin amongst you, let him first cast 
 a stone at her." It was an inheritance from his mother, 
 who never could bear to hear a harsh word said, but it 
 was a strange contrast to that sterner and more com- 
 bative side which has been described. 
 
 An amusing little story is told in illustration of Lord 
 Plunket's extreme dislike to ill-natured remarks, even 
 when made in jest. 
 
 He one day invited Canon A. and Canon B. to 
 occupy seats in his carriage on their return from some 
 ecclesiastical function. Canon A. in the course of 
 conversation mentioned his father, who had been a 
 Dublin clergyman, and described him as one who was 
 ever active in good works. " Ah ! " said Canon B., 
 "what a pity that Canon A. did not take after his 
 father!" Although the Archbishop did not attribute 
 malice, yet he did not like the remark, and, looking 
 away through the open window, he very quietly asked, 
 " Was Canon B.'s father a particularly courteous indi- 
 vidual ? " To which came the irrelevant but amusing 
 reply from Canon B., " Oh, your Grace, my father 
 was not a clergyman at all ! " 
 
 This complex character, and especially the sweetness 
 and winsomeness which were his in such abundance, 
 are surely to be ascribed to the fact that he was heart 
 and soul an Irishman. English people are sometimes 
 accused of a lack of appreciation of their neighbours 
 
1 88 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 across St, George's Channel. This is not altogether 
 true. They are slower to respond, slower to blaze up 
 into a flame of love or hate, and probably appear to 
 Irish minds cold and indifferent ; but, however much 
 they may disagree on grounds of religion or politics, or 
 both, it is difficult to find an Englishman who will not 
 say of his Irish friends that they have a charm and 
 brilhancy and warmth of affection which is as great a 
 wonder as it is a delight to all who know them. These 
 Lord Plunket had in full measure, as has been seen. 
 But he had some other special gifts which he owed to 
 his nationality. Here some words written by a per- 
 sonal friend will best take up the tale : 
 
 " He had the Irish power of ' making the best of things.' 
 Whether it were in the great sorrows and anxieties of a long life, 
 or in the petty vexations of daily intercourbe with men of every 
 kind, he shone as an optimist of the first water. He could 
 work with the bluntest instruments, and would put up with serious 
 personal inconvenience if he had made up his mind that a 
 man or woman was to be retained in his service. He could 
 adapt himself alike to circumstances, as seen at the time of 
 the disestablishment, as to individuals, even to ' queer sort of 
 people,' of whose failings he was well aware. [To say that a 
 man was ' a queer sort of person ' was the harshest expression 
 of which he would as a rule make use.] Again, he had the 
 negative side of this Irish virtue of adaptability. Lord Plunket 
 had a disregard and dislike of method [he was never a good man 
 of business]. ... In private life his disregard for the simplest 
 rules of health went a long way towards cutting short his 
 valuable life. . . . 
 
 " Lastly, there is one virtue of the Irish people which there 
 is no gainsaying. Alike in their physical beauty and in their 
 keen intelligence we see in God's own handwriting that they 
 are a chaste race, and have been so for countless generations. 
 
Lord Plunxet an Irishman 189 
 
 Were I asked to give the dear Archbishop's noblest, sweetest 
 trait, I should say he was the chastest, cleanest-minded man 
 I ever knew. There was a chivalry about him which rose up 
 in arms against all that was foul or base. Face to face with 
 impurity, he at once became strong. There was no touch of 
 weakness about him when he was told of certain charges against 
 a friend of his, and at once exclaimed, ' Why, he is to dine with 
 me to-night ! That man can^t dine with me ! ' And he did 
 not. This pure-mindedness and chivalry from his early youth 
 gave him considerable power both with men and with women. 
 The 'average man' was rather afraid of him, I think, and 
 largely on this ground. Women, on the other hand, were, as a 
 rule, attracted by the beautiful simplicity and perfect frankness 
 of his manner. They felt instinctively that they had a brother 
 and protector in the Archbishop. Such a man naturally made 
 a good husband, and devotion to Lady Plunket during all the 
 years of their married life is a marked trait in his career." 
 
 In connection with this beautiful quality in Lord 
 Plunket's life, a few words need to be said about the 
 work for " social purity " which he conducted. It was 
 about the year 1885 that Miss Ellice Hopkins visited 
 Dublin, and the movement was taken up warmly by 
 many of the best clergy and laity, with Lord Plunket 
 at their head. A Dubhn Association for the Promotion 
 of Social Purity was formed, and a Vigilance Com- 
 mittee appointed. Lord Plunket's exquisite personal 
 purity shone out all the more brightly amid the squalid 
 facts with which he had to deal in the course of this 
 work. Occasionally some serious scandal would arise, 
 and then his marvellous power of manipulating men 
 steered the infant association through what looked 
 like times of grave crisis. Then, again, his merciful 
 judgment of his fellow men was never more con- 
 spicuous than in his dealings with these most painful 
 
I90 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 matters. On one occasion a person accused of im- 
 morality denied his guilt, although the evidence was 
 clear and overwhelming. His accusers were furious, 
 and demanded that the wretched man should be at 
 once brought to justice. Hearing of this, the Arch- 
 bishop said, " Do try to get these men to understand 
 that after all this unfortunate man is a weak brother 
 for whom Christ died." So touchingly spoken were 
 these simple words, that one who was present and 
 heard them was unable to refrain from tears. 
 
 Add to all these things that mother-wit and love 
 of fun which have been described in earlier chapters, 
 and a picture is presented of a man attractive above 
 all others — even all other Irishmen. 
 
 And he was proud of his nationality. His patriotism 
 was one of the keynotes of his character. He felt 
 keenly for the honour of Ireland. His bitterest 
 thoughts (not very bitter even then) were for those 
 English statesmen who seemed to him to slight his 
 country. Few things affronted him more than the 
 common Irish vice of depreciating things Irish to the 
 glorifying of things English, This he regarded as one 
 of the worst forms of snobbery. Again and again, in 
 sermons and lectures and charges, and indeed on all 
 public occasions, his patriotism found voice. In 1873 
 it formed the subject of a lecture he delivered to a 
 branch of the Church of Ireland Young Men's Christian 
 Association. It has been fitly described as "instinct 
 with love of country." He began by saying : " Now, if 
 there be a nervously-minded person in this room, I 
 can well imagine him saying to himself as he hears 
 this announcement \i.e., that he was to lecture on 
 
Lord Plunk£t an Irishman 191 
 
 "Patriotism"], 'What a singularly dangerous and 
 explosive subject for a lecturer to bring before an Irish 
 audience ! ' " He proceeded to reassure any such 
 person by declaring that he would make no allusion to 
 " Home Rule " or any other equally inscrutable political 
 problem. His desire simply was to light a flame of 
 genuine patriotism in the hearts of the young men 
 present, and no more eloquent means could have been 
 taken of doing so. After appealing to their special 
 love for "Old Ireland," he touched upon her part 
 in the Imperial nationality — in an Empire on whose 
 dominions the sun never sets. Turning from this, he 
 made pathetic reference to the special spot beloved of 
 every man — his native county, his native city, or his 
 native home. From many poets he brought instances 
 of the strength of this affection, laying special stress on 
 Goldsmith's words : 
 
 " Such is the Patriot's boast where'er we roam, 
 His first best country ever is at home." 
 
 Then he warned his hearers against loving one 
 corner of their native land, and yet not loving their 
 country. " Such a love," he said, " is not patriotism — 
 it is provincialism," 
 
 From love of country he passed easily to love of that 
 country's Church. He sketched her history ; he filled 
 his hearers' minds with all the most interesting and 
 romantic accounts of persons and of places sacred 
 in the records of the Church of Ireland. He quoted 
 the names of many Irish ecclesiastics of vast influence 
 and learning on either side of the Channel. He 
 rejoiced at the staunch friendship for the Irish Church 
 
192 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of the two English Archbishops, though he could not 
 refrain from quoting some words which declared that, 
 as regards the large number of their English neigh- 
 bours, " They do not understand us — they never under- 
 stood us — and until that heaving channel which 
 frightens them from our shores has been bridged over, 
 or its troublesome waves quieted — they never will 
 understand us " : words which are true enough to-day, 
 and are a strong argument for the formation of that 
 tunnel which it is said will be one of the great engineer- 
 ing triumphs of the near future. Upon this basis 
 of patriotism he ended by appealing for unity in 
 the Church, declaring that if only Irish Churchmen 
 would show themselves to be patriots, there would be 
 a readiness to yield everything except principle for 
 the preservation of unity and peace in the Church. 
 The whole lecture, which is of considerable length, was 
 published, and is well worth studying for Lord 
 Plunket's polished style of writing as well as for the 
 stirring sentiments and pathetic allusions it contains. 
 
 Perhaps no better example of his patriotism can 
 be given than some lines which we wrote to the 
 German air Im Kuhlen Keller sitz ich : chorus, Und 
 trinke, trinke, trinke, and which he called " A Patriot's 
 Rebuke." They will also serve as a good instance 
 of his style of versifying, for many quotations from 
 which there is unfortunately not room in this volume. 
 Here are the lines : 
 
 " Ye sons of Erin ! who despise 
 The mother land that bare you, 
 Who nothing Irish love or prize, 
 Give ear : I will not spare you ! 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 193 
 
 The stranger's jeer I do not fear, 
 
 But can I pardon ever 
 Those who revile their native Isle ? 
 
 Oh ! never — ^never — never ! 
 
 That persons so refined and grand 
 
 As you are should belong to 
 This very low and vulgar land 
 
 Is sad, and very wrong, too ! 
 But 'tis too late to mend your fate, 
 
 Irish you are for ever — 
 You'll wipe that shame from off your name 
 
 Oh ! never — never — never ! 
 
 Well, then, what do you hope to win 
 
 In spite of all your labours, 
 By meanly cutting kith and kin 
 
 And courting prouder neighbours ? 
 Ah no ! dear sirs, he sadly errs 
 
 Who tries to be too clever : 
 Mark what I say, it will not pay. 
 
 Oh ! never — never — never ! 
 
 From Irish soil you love to roam, 
 
 But just let me remind you, 
 You'll nowhere find a happier home 
 
 Than what you leave behind you^! 
 The world explore from shore to shore, 
 
 'Twill be a vain endeavour ; 
 On scenes so bright you'll never light. 
 
 Oh ! never — never — never ! 
 
 Go point me out on any map 
 
 A match for green Killarney, 
 Or Kevin's Bed, or Dunlo's Gap, 
 
 Or mystic shades of Blarney, 
 Or Antrim's caves, or Shannon's waves : 
 
 Ah me ! I doubt if ever 
 
194 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 An Isle so fair was seen elsewhere : 
 Oh ! never — never — never 1 
 
 Where will you meet with lads more true, 
 
 Or where with truer lasses ? 
 Those genial hearts, those eyes of blue, 
 
 Pray tell me what surpasses ? 
 You may not grieve such joys to leave, 
 
 Or care such ties to sever. 
 But friends more kind you'll never find, 
 
 Oh ! never — never — never ! 
 
 When strutting through some larger town 
 
 Than your own native city, 
 Some bigger men you may hunt down. 
 
 And bore them — more's the pity ! 
 But 'tis not state that makes men great, 
 
 And, should you fawn for ever. 
 You'll never rise in good men's eyes. 
 
 Oh ! never — never — never ! 
 
 And now, my friends, go if you will 
 
 And visit other nations, 
 But leave your hearts in Erin still 
 
 Among your poor relations ! 
 The spot of earth that gave you birth 
 
 Resolve to love for ever, 
 And you'll repent that good intent 
 
 Oh ! never— never — never ! " 
 
 But although Lord Plunket was a true patriot — or 
 perhaps because of the reality of his patriotism — he was 
 no Home Ruler. 
 
 Early in 1893 the country was threatened with Mr. 
 Gladstone's second Home Rule Bill. The Archbishop 
 took a leading part in opposition to the proposal. He 
 corresponded with the Duke of Abercorn on the advis- 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 195 
 
 ability of sending a deputation of Irish Noncon- 
 formists to England to assist in opening the eyes of 
 the English to the feeling of a large minority of the 
 population in Ireland, and in every other way possible 
 lent his influence and gave freely of his work and of 
 his time to prevent what he felt would be an over- 
 whelming disaster to his beloved country. 
 
 On the 14th of March in that year a special meeting 
 of the General Synod was held in Dublin to frame and 
 sign a petition to Parliament against the Bill. Curiously 
 enough, the only other occasion on which it had been 
 found necessary to summon a special meeting of that 
 body had been in 1886, when Mr. Gladstone for the 
 first time introduced his Home Rule proposals. 
 
 After attending a celebration of the Holy Com- 
 munion in Christ Church Cathedral, the members 
 assembled in vast numbers in the adjoining Synod 
 Hall, where it is stated that " the scene was an impres- 
 sive one, suggesting in a solemn and forcible manner 
 that great interests were in peril, and that a deter- 
 mined struggle was about to be made to avert the 
 evil day." 
 
 Eloquent and forcible speeches were the order of 
 the day, and although Lord Plunket had to follow 
 such men as the Bishop of Derry, the Earl of Belmore, 
 the Provost of Trinity, and others, he delivered one of 
 the finest of his many oratorical efforts. Not to be 
 ranked among the most silver-tongued of his gifted 
 family, not, for instance, possessing the marvellous 
 eloquence of the old Lord Chancellor or of the present 
 Lord Rathmore, he had nevertheless inherited much 
 of the persuasive and commanding speech which 
 
196 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 belonged to his forefathers, and upon this occasion he 
 is considered to have excelled himself. When speak- 
 ing in public he was usually slow and dignified. He 
 had a little trick, which many will remember, of fidget- 
 ing all the time with a seal upon his watch, chain. 
 His delivery was often monotonous, but the extreme 
 charm of his voice rendered this less observable. He 
 took immense pains with the preparation of his 
 speeches, and usually had his headings upon a number 
 of loose slips of paper. As may be supposed, he was 
 far more at his ease with an Irish than with an English 
 audience, of whose coldness and want of sympathy he 
 frequently complained. Two things he specially dis- 
 liked when speaking : one was a clock in any promi- 
 nent position, so that people could turn and look at it ; 
 the other was the presence of reporters. Of these 
 he used to say, " They always take down the wrong 
 part of my speeches, or put a meaning into my words 
 which no one but a reporter could have discovered." 
 
 On this occasion there must have been a good many 
 of these alarming persons present, but he was speaking 
 to an Irish audience on a subject which stirred the 
 hearts of all, and he evidently forgot everything except 
 Ireland and the dangers which threatened her. The 
 motion which he rose to move was thus worded : 
 
 " That we call on all true Irish patriots, who have the welfare 
 and dignity of their native land at heart, to repudiate a measure 
 which, under semblance of Home Rule, imposes new political 
 disabilities, injurious commercial restrictions, and many condi- 
 tions at once vexatious and humiliating ; and we believe that 
 all parties in Ireland would even prefer a measure of total 
 separation, with all its risks and evils, rather than consent to 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 197 
 
 the ignominious terms of apparent independence, and actual 
 political vassalage, offered under this Bill." 
 
 The very reading of such words was enough to set a 
 hght to his patriotism, and his opening sentences were 
 full of eloquence. 
 
 " It is because jwe are patriots and because we love 
 our country that we protest with all the energy and all 
 the indignation of our nature against a Bill which, if 
 carried into effect, would inflict upon our native land 
 financial ruin, national degradation, intestine strife, and, 
 
 it may be, civil war. 
 
 ***** 
 
 " I contemplate with terror the thought of the possible 
 fratricidal strife that the introduction of such a Bill 
 might cause. At the present moment, thank God, if 
 we were only left alone, there seems to be every prospect 
 of prosperity and peace. . . . Within the last few weeks 
 I have stood upon three platforms with fellow-citizens 
 of all denominations and all political creeds — combined 
 together for the purpose of advancing some cause for 
 the benefit of our country ; and now it fills me, as I am 
 sure it does all of you, with pain and indignation to 
 think that just at this moment there should come 
 among us a statesman, whom I can only describe as a 
 political incendiary with this Bill in his hand to light 
 up the flame of division and strife in our native 
 land ! " 
 
 The whole speech is too long to quote here, but, 
 after he had exposed the " sham " nature of the Bill, 
 he made a stirring appeal to English Nonconformists 
 to put aside their purely political prejudices and to 
 
198 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 examine the measure carefully for themselves, when 
 they would see what grievous wrong it would entail 
 upon their Irish friends. 
 
 " I appeal " (he said) " earnestly to these brethren in 
 the name of justice and truth. And in default of all 
 other help, I appeal to the Almighty God of Justice, who 
 reigneth though the people be never so unquiet. We 
 have heard with our ears, and our fathers have declared 
 unto us, the noble works that Thou hast done in their 
 day and in the old time before them. O Lord, arise, 
 help us and deliver us for Thy name's sake — and 
 for Thine honour too 1 " 
 
 That this cry for help was heard and answered is 
 proved by the fate which speedily overtook Mr. Glad- 
 stone's proposals. 
 
 The Irish archbishops and bishops in this time of 
 anxiety received a resolution from the conference of 
 the bishops of the Church of Scotland. This interest- 
 ing document was found among Lord Plunket's papers, 
 and was presumably forwarded to him by the Bishop of 
 Glasgow, as there is a note from the latter pinned to 
 the formal resolution and marked "Acknowledged 
 June 6," in the same manner as most letters received 
 by Lord Plunket. The Scottish bishops sent to their 
 brethren in Ireland an expression of their sympathy 
 and grave concern in the pressing dangers with which 
 they were threatened at that juncture. All the bishops 
 of the Scottish Church signed this resolution, with 
 the exception of the Bishop of Argyll, who was absent 
 in the East. 
 
 It is worth noticing, while on this subject, that not 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 199 
 
 only did Lord Plunket take a leading part in 1893 in 
 opposing Home Rule, but that at the ordinary meeting 
 of the Synod of the Church of Ireland in the spring of 
 the previous year he also delivered a weighty speech 
 on the same subject, some words in which caused a 
 great outcry in the Roman Catholic Press. The 
 shortest way of describing the incident will be to quote 
 a passage from the Irish Catholic for Saturday, May 7, 
 1892. 
 
 " ' THE WOLVES.' 
 
 " Lord Plunket's Attack on the Catholics of Ireland. 
 
 " The following is a portion of Lord Plunket's address at the 
 opening of the Protestant General Synod. ... It will be 
 observed that the Protestant Archbishop distinctly applied the 
 title ' wolves ' to Catholics as distinguished from Protestants, 
 although he made a slight reservation in favour of some among 
 our co-religionists. He said : 
 
 " ' There are others who say that Ulstermen are about to 
 desert the rest of Ireland. They are going to organise them- 
 selves in their own province, and let their brethren in the 
 other provinces be thrown to wolves. . . . Taking the numbers 
 of our Church, there are a quarter of a million of Protestants to 
 be found in the other three provinces outside Ulster: this is 
 not an insignificant minority, to say nothing of other Protestants 
 to be found there, amongst whom I am pleased to say there is 
 a happy union ; and, besides, there are many Roman Catholics 
 who themselves have no desire to be thrown to the wolves.' " 
 
 This incident is noteworthy as showing that there 
 really was an idea mooted of a separate treatment for 
 Ulster, a complication which was scarcely credited and 
 which Lord Plunket thus forcibly condemned. 
 
 It is almost strange, after considering the brave and 
 
200 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 truly patriotic stand made by the Archbishop on the 
 Home Rule question, to find him two or three years 
 afterwards on another platform. On December 28, 
 1896, a large meeting representative of the city of 
 Dublin and the metropolitan county was held in the 
 Mansion House, Dublin, under the presidency of the 
 Lord Mayor, for the purpose of supporting the move- 
 ment to give effect to the recommendations of the 
 Royal Commission on the Financial Relations between 
 Great Britain and Ireland. Lord Plunket occupied a 
 seat on the platform, and spoke as seconder to the 
 resolution demanding special legislation to meet the 
 just financial claims of Ireland. In one respect the 
 Archbishop must have felt specially happy on the 
 occasion. Always desirous of cultivating unity and 
 friendly relations between men of opposite opinions, 
 it must have been a sincere gratification to him to find 
 himself a comrade in arms with the Lord Mayor of 
 Dublin, Mr. John Dillon, M.P., Mr. T. M. Healy, M.P., 
 Mr. T. Harrington, M.P,, Archbishop Walsh, The 
 O'Connor Don, and others, who occupied the other 
 seats upon the platform. 
 
 No doubt a certain number of Irish Unionists still 
 cherish the belief that Ireland should receive separate 
 financial treatment, but it is strange to realise that Lord 
 Plunket, the staunchest opponent of Home Rule, was 
 so far blinded by his patriotism as not to see that if 
 Ireland is not a part of the United Kingdom for one 
 purpose, she is not for another, and that by his speech 
 and influence in 1896 he was doing his best to undo 
 the effect of his words and work in 1893. 
 
 Lord Plunket always included his allegiance to the 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 201 
 
 Church of Ireland in his great-hearted patriotism, and 
 there came a time when, as Archbishop of DubHn, he 
 was consulted by the late Lord Carnarvon, at that 
 period Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, as to the designa- 
 tion of the disestablished Church. The Government 
 of the day seems to have doubted whether in official 
 documents the Irish Church ought to receive the same 
 titles, &c., as of old. Nothing could have more deeply 
 stirred the feelings of Lord Plunket and his fellow- 
 Churchmen : at the same time his " working for peace," 
 so conspicuous in almost all the vexed questions in 
 which he was engaged, is clearly shown in his reply to 
 the Lord-Lieutenant. The correspondence is of such 
 interest that it may well conclude this chapter on the 
 Archbishop as an Irishman and a patriot. 
 
 " Viceregal Lodge, Dublin, 
 ■•July 24, 1885. 
 
 " My dear Lord, 
 
 " You are aware that the official designation of the 
 disestablished Church of Ireland is a question which is forced 
 upon my consideration. I know how much feeling a decision 
 on this point must awaken, and I am sure you know also how 
 extremely reluctant I should be by any official act to give pain 
 to those with whom I have so deep a sympathy. 
 
 "At the same time I know that the question must be de- 
 cided, if not by me yet by others, and perhaps it is best in the 
 interests of all parties to arrive at an early conclusion. 
 
 " It would be a great satisfaction to me to know the feeling 
 of the Church as represented in its authoritative Synod ; but, 
 as this cannot be for some time to come, I should be very glad 
 if your Grace would give me the benefit of your opinion asso- 
 ciated with that of any whom you may call into counsel, and 
 whose judgment in such a case would command weight. 
 
 " I feel that I occupy in this matter a double position — per- 
 
202 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 sonally, as a member of your communion, officially, as the head 
 of the Irish Government ; but this letter is, as I have marked 
 it, private, though you are free to show it in confidence to any 
 whom you desire to consult. 
 
 " I remain, my dear Lord, 
 
 "Yours very faithfully, 
 
 " CARNARVON." 
 
 " Breslin's Hotel, Bray, 
 
 "July 30, 1885. 
 
 " Dear Lord Carnarvon, 
 
 " Since the receipt of your Excellency's letter of 
 the 24th I have been endeavouring to ascertain the 
 feeling of influential Churchmen on the point referred 
 to in that communication. So many of those whom I 
 should have wished to consult are absent at this season 
 from Dublin, that I have found opportunity of speaking 
 to only one or two. 
 
 " But without pushing the inquiry further, I think it 
 well, as your Excellency desires (naturally) a prompt 
 reply, to state the result so far as it goes. I cannot, of 
 course, make any authoritative statement on the part 
 of our Church, but will give you my own opinion as to 
 the present feeling of Irish Churchmen on this subject. 
 Undoubtedly the minds of men within our Church are 
 just now deeply stirred. They argue thus : 
 
 " Besides the higher claims to the present title of our 
 Church which the State may not be bound to recognise, 
 we appeal to the fact that we are designated by that 
 title in several recent Acts of Parliament, and no con- 
 trary decision on the part of those who administer 
 these Acts can override the Acts themselves. 
 
 " Moreover, in reply to a remonstrance on the part 
 
Lord Plunket an Irishman 203 
 
 of our General Synod at its last meeting, the justice of 
 our claims would seem to have been recognised by 
 State functionaries. Under these circumstances, until 
 the State rescinds its decision, or until our General 
 Synod abandons its claims, no individual members of 
 our community can be expected to sanction any depar- 
 ture from what we believe to be the law both of the 
 State and of our Church. On the contrary, we can 
 scarcely be blamed if we should feel bound to publicly 
 record our protest against such an innovation. 
 
 " In the above words I have, in my opinion, fairly 
 described the view taken of this question by the large 
 majority of Irish Churchmen at the present time. And, 
 if I might presume to offer a suggestion, it would be 
 this : that as far as possible anything of the nature of 
 a manifesto on the part either of the Church or of the 
 State should for the present be avoided. 
 
 " As regards the Church, it is plain that, in the face 
 of the action of the General Synod, no body of Church- 
 men (even should they desire it) could either formally 
 or informally sanction a reversal of the decision of that 
 Synod. At the same time it is evidently most desirable 
 to prevent anything in the form of public controversy, 
 or protest on the part of the Church in opposition to 
 what State functionaries may deem it wise or right to 
 do. 
 
 " On the other hand, as regards the State and those 
 who administer its laws, it would, I venture to think, 
 be well if whatever it may be found necessary to do 
 should be done in such a manner as to provoke the 
 minimum of public criticism. The time may come 
 when some further expression of authoritative opinion 
 
204 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 on the one side^or the other may become unavoidable, 
 but in this stage of a dying Parliament and in this 
 interval between the meetings of our Synod the 
 opportunity for anything like a satisfactory arrange- 
 ment does not seem to present itself. 
 
 " Meanwhile those on the one side or the other, who 
 
 desire the triumph of ' peace with honour ' in the 
 
 domain both of Church and State will do their best to 
 
 allay excitement and promote brotherly love. . . . 
 
 " I remain, with much respect, 
 
 " Yours faithfully, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 THE SPANISH QUESTION 
 
 The work by which Lord Plunket became best known 
 to the world at large was undoubtedly that which he 
 did on behalf of certain reformed Churches on the 
 Continent, notably that of Spain, though both Portugal 
 and Italy owe much to his labours in their cause. 
 
 It is less pleasant to record the history of this work 
 than that of many other of the Archbishop's arduous 
 undertakings. And this not because the motives which 
 actuated him were not then, as always, the highest 
 possible, and not because the measure of success which 
 he attained was necessarily limited, but because it is 
 difficult not to reopen sores which it may fairly be 
 hoped have been healed by time, and not to hold up 
 the great High Church party of the Church of England 
 to some ridicule for the extraordinary state of excite- 
 ment into which they threw themselves on the subject. 
 But this it will be necessary to mention later on. 
 
 There were several motives which each had their 
 share in bringing about the course of action upon 
 which Lord Plunket entered and to which he resolutely 
 adhered. There was, first and chiefest, his determina- 
 tion to do a work which he believed that his Master 
 gave him to do. There was, also, the fulness of his 
 
2o6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 sympathy for any who had come out from the errors 
 of the Church of Rome — a sympathy which his 
 experiences as a young man in West Connaught had 
 done much to foster. Next, there was his high 
 estimation of the office of a bishop. He felt most 
 keenly the fact that he was not merely the president of 
 a diocese, but also a bishop of the whole Church of God. 
 Added to these were two motives on a slightly lower 
 level, which both had considerable influence upon him. 
 The first of these was the romance of the thing. His 
 was the romantic disposition of a true Irishman. What 
 could more strongly appeal to this side of his character 
 than the thought of a few poverty-stricken congrega- 
 tions crying to him for help from the purlieus of the 
 ancient cities, from the scattered dwellings of the 
 mountain ranges, of that land of old and often-sung 
 romance — Spain ? 
 
 Then there was, lastly, his patriotism. It has already 
 been seen how strongly this influenced his every action. 
 It strengthened his hands with the thought that some 
 attempt was being made, on the part at least of a 
 section of the Church of England to bully and control 
 the free action of the Irish Church. 
 
 When these various motives are considered it will be 
 easier, even for those who most strongly disagree with 
 his policy, to understand and appreciate the work done 
 for the Reformed Church in Spain by the late Arch- 
 bishop of Dublin. 
 
 The first occasion on which Lord Plunket's interest 
 in Spain was awakened was in the winter of 1 86 1, when 
 he was calling upon Mr. Dallas in London, and there 
 was made acquainted with the facts concerning the 
 
The Spanish Question 207 
 
 imprisonment of Matamores, and the memorial which 
 was being got up upon the subject. 
 
 It is more than possible that he had also had his 
 feelings aroused by Borrow's fascinating book, " The 
 Bible in Spain," which was published in 1842. He 
 would there have learnt that in 1835 the less cultured 
 inhabitant of Spain and Portugal was ignorant of the 
 Scripture " even by name," that casual acquaintances 
 of the writer when travelling in those countries 
 "expressed great abhorrence of the papal system, 
 which had so long spread a darkness like that of death 
 over their unfortunate country," and that there were 
 numbers of persons anxious to seize upon any oppor- 
 tunity of obtaining the free knowledge of the Gospel 
 and of walking in the light. 
 
 Such matters would have been of the greatest 
 interest to Lord Plunket and have secured his entire 
 sympathy. But, however this may have been, it was 
 not until long afterwards that the question of assisting 
 those who had already left the Roman Church in Spain 
 became a practical matter with him. How^this arose, 
 and with what result, it may be left to Dr. Noyes, 
 chaplain to the British Embassy at Paris and a hearty 
 coadjutor with Lord Plunket in all this part of his 
 work, to tell. He writes : 
 
 " The mind of the Archbishop was much occupied with the 
 question of Church reform in Spain and Portugal for the last 
 eighteen years of his life. Although the contrary was often 
 affirmed, the subject was thrust upon rather than sought by 
 him in the first instance. Possessed by no insular spirit, or 
 narrow view of the Catholic Church, he had long been inter- 
 ested in the religious questions of the world, and especially in 
 
2o8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 those struggles after reform in the lapsed Churches of Christen- 
 dom, which have been so notable a feature of the past thirty 
 years. 
 
 " It was a large-minded utterance of his on one occasion 
 which led a clergyman in the diocese of Dublin, who had been 
 trying to stir up interest in the Spanish and Portuguese re- 
 formers, to write to his grace (then Bishop of Meath) sending 
 some information and asking for help and sympathy. The 
 following is the reply, and is the first letter which Lord Plunket 
 wrote on the subject : 
 
 " Breslin's Hotel, Brav, 
 
 " September 5, 1879. 
 
 " Dear Mr. , 
 
 " I have been away from home holding confir- 
 mations for the last three weeks, and yours of the 27th 
 has only just reached me here, where I am spending a 
 few days with Lady Plunket. I will give the most 
 careful consideration to the documents which you have 
 forwarded. They disclose a most interesting state of 
 things in Spain and Portugal, but I need not say that 
 the request which they convey is one involving ques- 
 tions of no little difficulty. However, you may be sure 
 that my sympathies are with those who make the 
 request, and if the way should not ultimately be found, 
 it will not be the fault of the will. 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET MEATH." 
 
 " The ' request ' referred to in this letter was one for the 
 transmission of the Episcopate, a good number of the reformers 
 in both countries being earnestly desirous for this form of 
 Church government, and if possible for communion with the 
 AngUcan Church. 
 
 " This first letter of the Archbishop shows how unfair was the 
 
The Spanish Question 209 
 
 statement, industriously propagated in some quarters, that the 
 movement ' originated ' with the Archbishop of DubUn. 
 
 " Other facts may also be mentioned — e.g., a society had 
 been in existence already for some ten years to procure aid for 
 those who were struggling for a purer form of faith, and, 
 although feebly supported, had accomplished much. 
 
 " Without any disparagement of a good deal of quiet and 
 even secret work which had been previously done, it may be 
 said that modern effort for Church reform in Spain dates from 
 the year 1868, when a revolution took place under the leader- 
 ship of General Prim, and a measure of religious liberty was 
 granted to the Spanish people. At this time a number of 
 reformers were in exile on the Rock of Gibraltar, waiting for 
 the dawn of a better day. The Anglo-Continental Society, 
 anxious to foster such a movement, had sent the Rev. Antonio 
 Vallespinosa, who had received some education in England, 
 and ordination by the Bishop of Gibraltar in Frant Church, 
 near Tunbridge Wells, October 25, 1865, to conduct services 
 in Spanish for the refugees. Among the exiles was one who 
 was destined to become the first bishop of the Reformed 
 Church, the Rev. Juan B. Cabrera, an ex-priest of the Church 
 of Rome. From Gibraltar Senor Cabrera, who was engaged 
 in a translation of Bishop Harold Browne's book on the 
 ' Thirty-nine Articles,' wrote a letter which contains the follow- 
 ing remarks bearing upon reform : ' I am here alone, unpro- 
 tected by any society and left to my own resources. My faith is 
 firm, and I hope that, if it be God's will that the doors of Spain 
 be soon opened to the Gospel, I may be a useful servant of 
 Christ to make known among my countrymen the false doc- 
 trines of Rome and the truth of the law of grace in its purity. 
 Meantime I carry on some correspondence with Spanish priests, 
 which I think may bring forth good fruit. ... It is my opinion 
 that our exertions ought to be specially directed to enlightening 
 the clergy, for if they are turned to the Lord they will be the 
 instruments for enlightening the masses. . . . For this reason 
 I have the greatest pleasure in being engaged on the present 
 translation.' 
 
 o 
 
2IO Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "The year 1868 at length came, and the little band of exiles 
 ' went everywhere preaching the word.' The first hint of a 
 Reformed National Church is found in a programme dated 
 June 29, 1869, in which we find the following clauses : 
 
 " ' I. This Church holds, believes, and confesses the Apos- 
 tles' Creed, the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, and that of 
 St. Athanasius, with all the doctrines contained in the Sacred 
 Scriptures and in the first four General Councils of the 
 Church. 
 
 " ' 2. This Church, holding the faith which is common to all 
 true Christian Churches, shall have its own discipline, which 
 may be altered according to the conditions of time and place.' 
 
 "There is reason to believe that the first article was due in 
 large measure to the influence of Senor Cabrera, who had but 
 a little before been engaged in the translation of Bishop Cosin's 
 ' Religion — Discipline and Rites of the English Church,' which 
 commences with a similar declaration. The document goes on 
 to appoint, ' for the present,' a Presbyterian form of discipline, 
 this being only natural when aid was chiefly given by Presby- 
 terian agencies. This fact gave rise to a good deal of contro- 
 versy later on, when some were found to say that Bishop 
 Cabrera was more a Presbyterian than a Churchman. How 
 unfair, not to say ungenerous, this charge was is pointed out 
 by Lord Plunket in a pamphlet entitled ' Senior Cabrera and 
 the Reformed Spanish Church,' published in 1894." 
 
 This pamphlet was written by the Archbishop with a 
 double object. In the first place, his sense of truth and 
 justice had been outraged by an attack made upon 
 Senor Cabrera by some members of the Presbyterian 
 body, in which they asserted that he, after having been 
 up to a certain point a Presbyterian, was tempted at 
 last by merely monetary considerations to abandon his 
 principles, and become, professedly at least, an Episco- 
 paHan. The reply to such accusations was best found 
 in the fact that Seiior Cabrera was described, at the 
 
The Spanish Question 211 
 
 beginning of his career, even by those who no longer 
 befriended him, as a man " who had sacrificed his all 
 of this world's advantages for the sake of the Gospel — a 
 man of God, filled with consuming zeal for the honour 
 of God and the inbringing of souls to Christ in his 
 native Spain." 
 
 In Lord Plunket's opinion, he was a man who had 
 never, from the date of his leaving the Church at Rome 
 been either a Presbyterian or an Episcopalian of any 
 strict type, but had been one who at no time deemed 
 either system an essential, but regarded both as sub- 
 sidiary to the higher aims he had set before himself, 
 and to whose mind questions of Church government 
 and ritual, though important in their proper place, were 
 subordinate to that one greater longing with which his 
 whole heart and soul were filled — the preaching of 
 Christ and the unifying of a purely Spanish Church. 
 
 Senor Cabrera's earliest ideal had been reformation 
 on Episcopal lines. But at first none would help him 
 except the Presbyterian Church. Afterwards the possi- 
 bility arose of adhesion to a distinctly Episcopalian 
 movement. But meantime the Presbyterians had been 
 obliged to curtail the help they had afforded him. 
 Therefore, said they, he embraced Episcopacy. A clear 
 case of the ancient fallacy, " Post hoc ergo propter hoc." 
 
 Lord Plunket's second object was to convince 
 members of the Church of Ireland that Senor Cabrera 
 was not an unfit person to be bishop of the Reformed 
 Church of Spain, some Churchmen (both Irish and 
 English) having, with doubtful taste, taken hold of the 
 Presbyterian weapon of attack and used it against 
 Cabrera for their own ends. 
 
212 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Dr. Noyes continues : 
 
 "A second manifesto laying down a basis of union and 
 reform was issued at Madrid in 187 1. As a basis of reform the 
 following propositions were accepted : 
 
 " I . Purity of doctrine as it is in the New Testament, ex- 
 cluding all additions made by Councils, Bulls, Decretals, and 
 Encyclics. 
 
 " 2. Separation and independence of Church and State. 
 
 " 3. Election of Church ofificers by universal suffrages. 
 
 " 4. Abolition of the Latin tongue in public worship, of the 
 compulsory celibacy of the clergy, and of payment for the 
 ministration of the sacraments and church services. 
 
 "5. Self-government of the Church by means of synods. 
 
 " A committee of seven priests was formed to carry out this 
 programme, and an organ entitled La Eglesia Espanola was 
 issued. These efforts, however, were merely tentative, noble 
 aspirations after reform and Christian liberty. As time went 
 on they were found to be more or less impracticable, as the 
 reformers were a mixed body — some Episcopalian, some 
 Presbyterian, some Wesleyan, and so forth. At length the 
 Episcopalian body took action for themselves, and framed a 
 petition to the Lambeth Conference of 1878 to consecrate a 
 bishop for them, who should be nominated by the Archbishop 
 of Canterbury and the Bishop of London. It was soon after 
 this that the interest of Lord Plunket was engaged on their 
 behalf; and what had passed showed clearly the need of a 
 wise and statesmanlike prelate to guide them in their efforts. 
 
 " Questions concerning the organisation of the Spanish and 
 Portuguese Reformed Church were early pressed upon Lord 
 Plunket. Bishop Riley had been consecrated by the American 
 Church, and — commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury 
 — was intending shortly to visit Spain and Portugal. 
 
 " The petition to the Lambeth Conference for the consecra- 
 tion of a bishop for the Reformed Church in Spain had been 
 passed on to the Irish bishops for consideration by the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury (Tait), and Bishop Riley proposed a visit 
 
The Spanish Question 213 
 
 to Ireland at the time when the bishops met, ready to take 
 instructions from them. Two letters of Lord Plunket's at this 
 time will be interesting. 
 
 " National Club, i Whitehall Gardens, S. W., 
 "Nov. 20, 1879. 
 
 " My dear N , 
 
 "I think it would be important that while 
 Bishop Riley is in Dublin there should be such a 
 meeting as Mr. Tugwell proposes. Whatever attitude 
 the bishops may think it right to take with reference to 
 the matter about to come before them on Thursday, it 
 is the duty of Irish Churchmen to help on the good 
 work in whatever way they can. If the bishops see 
 their way to making a conditional promise of official 
 help, as I hope they may, it will be only natural to 
 supplement that promise by a readiness to co-operate 
 in other ways ; and even should they hesitate in the 
 former respect, yet the confidence and goodwill shown 
 by this infant Church in seeking our episcopal inter- 
 vention ought to enlist our sympathies and make us 
 anxious to show that so far as we can help it we will. 
 I therefore think that Bishop Riley and Mr. Tugwell 
 should be welcomed, and their cause supported, by 
 Irish Churchmen. . . . The first thing you ought to do 
 is to call upon the Archbishop of Dublin and ask him 
 to take the chair.* The welfare of this struggling 
 Church is something which Irish Churchmen generally 
 should be asked to further according to their ability. 
 Any meeting in connection with it should be free from 
 anything of a sectional character — in fact, if it were to 
 
 * Archbishop Trench did preside at this meeting. 
 
214 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 partake of such a character, I should not wish to 
 identify myself with it. Accordingly, if the meeting is 
 to be held in Dublin, it ought to be presided over by 
 the Archbishop of Dublin ; and he is so ready to 
 support every good cause, that I am sure you have 
 only to ask him in order to obtam his consent. If his 
 Grace will preside, I will gladly attend and speak. 
 Perhaps the Provost of T.C.D. would also consent to- 
 take part. He and his wife take a large and intelligent 
 interest in Continental Church work. . . . 
 
 " Very sincerely yours, 
 
 "PLUNKET MEATH." 
 
 " 12 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, 
 ''Nov. 21, 1879. 
 
 " Dear Mr. M , 
 
 " I should be glad to have your opinion on a 
 matter that will come before the Irish bishops for their 
 consideration on Thursday next. The enclosed copy 
 of a letter which I have written to the Irish Primate 
 will explain so fully the position of affairs that I need 
 not do more than ask you kindly to read it. . . . 
 Since I wrote this letter I have seen Bishop Riley, 
 and was greatly reassured, first, by finding in him 
 a man so altogether fitted for the responsible office to 
 which, in God's providence, he has been set apart, 
 and also because I find that he quite takes the view of 
 the case which I have ventured to set forth in the 
 enclosed. In confidence, I may say that one reason 
 among others why the Spanish Church would not like 
 to receive her new orders from Mexico, or to be put 
 under the fostering care of that Church, is a reluctance 
 
The Spanish Question 215 
 
 to crave such help from what they regard as merely a 
 daughter colony of the old country. The Irish Church, 
 whose long independence in primitive times from Rome 
 resembles very much that of the Mozarabic Church, 
 does not present to them the same difficulty, . , . On 
 Thursday Bishop Riley will have an interview with the 
 Irish bishops, and I will write and let you know the 
 result. In the meantime I should be glad to have a 
 few lines from you, telling me how the matter presents 
 itself to your mind. 
 
 " I ought perhaps to say that the tone of the refor- 
 mation movement in Spain, while strongly in the 
 direction of Episcopal orders and government, is de- 
 cidedly what may be called Evangelical in its character, 
 and there is an almost certain prospect of some Presby- 
 terian and Wesleyan agencies becoming absorbed in 
 the new Church if it retains that character. It may be 
 well, therefore, that within the comprehensive limits of 
 our Anglican Communion there is a Church like the 
 Irish Church, which may have some attractions for 
 them, if not for others, in this respect. 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 ■• PLUNKET MEATH." 
 
 The letter to the Irish bishops, to which reference is 
 made above, shows that the matter at this time stood 
 thus : 
 
 (a) The Pan-Anglican Synod had appointed a stand- 
 ing committee to deal with the question, and had 
 recommended the employment of the future Bishop of 
 the Reformed Church in Mexico. 
 
 (6) Lord Plunket had written to ask the Archbishop 
 
2i6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of Canterbury whether, before the Irish bishops took 
 any action, it might not be desirable that the matter 
 should come before this standing committee ; and, if 
 so, how was this to be done ? 
 
 To this Archbishop Tait had replied that the best 
 plan would be for a communication to be sent to each 
 member of the committee desiring them to send him 
 their replies, on receipt of which he would send a 
 formal letter either to Lord Plunket or to the Primate 
 of Ireland. At the same time he thought the objection 
 which was felt in Spain to the proposal of the Pan- 
 Anglican Synod (that when a bishop had been conse- 
 crated by the American Church for Mexico, he might 
 visit and assist the Reformed Church in Spain and 
 Portugal) was possibly unreasonable. 
 
 At the end of Lord Plunket's letter he gives concise 
 reasons for wishing that the Irish Church should assist 
 in the matter, and a list of conditions which he con- 
 sidered essential before such a step could be taken. 
 He said : 
 
 " For my own part, I should, I confess, be glad if the 
 result of our inquiries were such as to encourage us to 
 comply with the request. . . . Though we might not 
 have thought it right to court a grave responsibility 
 by volunteering to offer that Church (Reformed Church 
 in Spain) our help, yet, when invited, as we have been, 
 to extend a sisterly hand in a time of difficulty, I should 
 be sorry if we could not see our way to consent. The 
 English Church, because of its State connection, 
 cannot undertake the duty. The Scottish Church has 
 already manifested its sympathy with the newly-formed 
 
The Spanish Question 217 
 
 Gallican Church of France. The American Church 
 has given its aid to the Reformed Church of Mexico. 
 It would seem, therefore, not unreasonable that the 
 Irish Church — the principal remaining Church of the 
 Anglican Communion — should be ready to show a 
 like interest in the Reformed Church of Spain and 
 
 Portugal. 
 
 * * * # # 
 
 " But, however much I might desire such a result, 
 there are certain conditions which would seem to me 
 essential if we are to take such a step. 
 
 " (a) In the first place, we should be satisfied as to 
 the genuine character of the movement in question. 
 
 "(b) The application for our intervention should 
 come to us, not merely in a memorial signed by indi- 
 vidual members (however influential) of the Reformed 
 Church, but from some representative body authorised 
 as such to speak on its behalf. 
 
 "(c) The application should have the full sanction 
 of Bishop Riley, to whom has been delegated by the 
 Pan-Anglican Conference the duty of assisting and 
 counselling the infant Church in its present difficulties. 
 
 " {d) Any response on our parts to such an invita- 
 tion should receive the approval of the Commission 
 appointed as a standing committee by the Pan- 
 Anglican Conference for dealing with such cases. 
 
 " (e) Any bishop who might be consecrated through 
 the action of our Church should have been previously 
 elected by the Reformed Church itself. 
 
 "(/) Before taking any final action the Irish House 
 of Bishops ought to communicate its intentions to the 
 General Synod of our own Church." 
 
2i8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 From the above extracts it is clear that in the 
 autumn of 1879, within a short time of his having the 
 matter brought seriously before him, Lord Plunket 
 made up his mind that it would be a good thing, if 
 possible, to help these Spanish congregations of re- 
 formers, and, having so determined, set about the work 
 with his usual energy and in a thoroughly careful and 
 statesmanlike manner. 
 
 Now to return to Dr. Noyes. He continues : 
 
 " I have stated above that the interest of the Archbishop 
 was enlisted in the movement at the end of the year 1879. 
 Early in the year 1880 a visit was paid to London for the pur- 
 pose of examining the affairs of the society which was engaged 
 in collecting funds to aid the reformers. The founder of this 
 society was the late Rev. L. S. Tugwell, who had been in 
 Spain at the time of the revolution in 1868, and had recognised 
 that a door had at length been opened in this country for the 
 spread of the Gospel. Much good work had been done, a 
 church (San Basilio) had been purchased in Seville, and 
 evangelists and teachers employed. The agents employed 
 were chiefly Spaniards, but the movement had at this time 
 more the character of a mission. It was, be it remarked, a 
 Church mission, and the first services held consisted of prayers 
 translated into Spanish from the English Prayer-book. 
 
 " Lord Plunket found, however, that the society was seriously 
 embarrassed by a large debt of some ;^3ooo, arising chiefly 
 from the fact that Mr. Tugwell had undertaken work in the 
 hope of a support in England which had not been sufficiently 
 given. Many would have felt that such a condition of things 
 was almost hopeless, but this was not the way in which the 
 Archbishop regarded it. He took up the matter with that 
 earnestness and hopefulness which so marked his character, 
 and said, ' Now, the first thing we have to do is to get rid of 
 this debt.' Collectors of money will realise what a great task 
 was undertaken in appealing for the payment of such a debt, 
 
The Spanish Question 219 
 
 but Lord Plunket was not to be refused. The Christian public 
 felt that, one so disinterested and self-sacrificing having taken 
 up the reins, there was a prospect of success ; and those who 
 sent in their gifts were not disappointed. Before many months 
 were passed the debt was wiped off and there was a balance on 
 the right side at the bank. A periodical was issued,* fresh and 
 important names were added to the committee, and the society,, 
 now called the ' Spanish and Portuguese Church Aid Society,' 
 began to take its place as a small yet recognised Church 
 society. 
 
 " Now came another important question. Lord Plunket felt 
 that, if he were to preach and speak on behalf of these 
 reformers in Spain and Portugal, he must depend not only 
 upon hearsay or published reports. All through his connec- 
 tion with this movement he was most anxious to possess the 
 very facts of the case. If the movement was small or defective 
 in some ways, he desired to know it. If there were failures, he 
 would not hide them ; if there had been exaggerations, he would 
 wish to correct them — he would tolerate no deviation from the 
 true facts of the case. He would be vexed if he found the 
 least over or under statement in figures which had been supplied 
 for his use, and he verified every one ; no detail was left with- 
 out examination. 
 
 "At length the desired opportunity came. Lord Plunket 
 went with his family to Pau for the winter of 1880-81, and 
 from thence paid his first visit to Spain." 
 
 As the Archbishop himself wrote an account of this 
 visit, some extracts may be given here from his own 
 words : 
 
 " I set forth on my journey with, I confess, a full 
 heart. Even apart from the special object which I had 
 
 * Light and Truth, with a frontispiece designed by the Hon. Miss 
 Plunket, sister of the Archbishop. Lord Plunket wrote the introduc- 
 tory article, and was a frequent contributor. 
 
■220 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 in view, the prospect of a visit to old Spain was, 
 tinder any circumstances, enough to awaken into life 
 many thoughts. That man must have a dull nature 
 who can at any time stand for the first time on the 
 shore of Biarritz and look forth on the noble range of 
 Spanish frontier mountains which bound the southern 
 curve of that bay without an instinctive longing to 
 penetrate beyond those fastnesses, and to find himself 
 in the ancient land that lies at the farther side — that 
 land so great in its historic memories — so great in its 
 deeds of glory — so great, if I may say it, even in its 
 deeds of shame. But I had something more in view 
 than this. On the evening before my start I had 
 wandered down to that shore, and as I watched those 
 mountains gradually purpled over with the mysterious 
 haze of dusk, my thoughts were busy with the present 
 and the future rather than the past. I was asking 
 myself, What has God in store for this people that 
 dwell beyond ? The great Atlantic waves were rolling 
 in at my feet, red with the sunset rays — each wave 
 coming onward majestically without one ripple or fleck 
 on its surface, until suddenly broken into sheets of 
 brilliant foam. It was like the outburst of some long 
 pent-up reserve of passionate strength. Was it to be 
 so with this nation as regarded its spiritual life ? Were 
 its inner yearnings about to break loose and find vent ? 
 Ultramontanes could no longer imprison those cravings 
 within artificial limits. How, then, were they to find 
 escape ? Was it to be in the even more cruel bondage 
 of communism and unbelief ? Or might we not hope 
 for it in the glorious liberty wherewith Christ makes 
 men and nations free ? And yet how vast such a hope. 
 
The Spanish Question 221 
 
 and how little the means at man's disposal. How wide 
 and dense the expanse of gross darkness by which the 
 land was overspread, and how few and feeble the little 
 centres of light that were here and there scarcely- 
 flickering amidst the gloom. As I thought thereon, it 
 was too hard for me — until I remembered that, though 
 
 MAN IS INDEED LITTLE, GOD IS OF A TRUTH GREAT. 
 
 "Such were the thoughts that followed me as I 
 returned home that evening, and such, too, were the 
 thoughts that, as I have already said, made my heart 
 full the next day as I started on my southward way. 
 
 " In my last letter I gave an account of the Sunday 
 which I spent in Madrid, and of the visit which I paid 
 to Seiior Cabrera's congregation. During the few 
 following days which intervened before my start for 
 Seville I endeavoured to obtain what further informa- 
 tion I could respecting the work of reform in this city» 
 This I did by making inquiries, not merely from those 
 who might be expected to take a special interest in the 
 Episcopal movement, but from others as well. Before 
 however, I part company with Senor Cabrera's little 
 flock, I have a few further incidents to recount. 
 
 " Upon the evening of Monday I was invited to 
 Cabrera's house to meet some members of the junta 
 (or select vestry) which acts on behalf of his congrega- 
 tion, and who had expressed a desire to convey to me 
 in person their thanks for my visit. There were six of 
 these gathered together to meet me — the schoolmaster, 
 an architect (employed often in the King's palace), a 
 paymaster in some public department, a well-to-do 
 shopkeeper, a house decorator, and a tailor. This 
 enumeration will convey an idea of the class of persons 
 
22 2 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 who form the chief representatives of this little Church 
 in Madrid — not men rich in this world's wealth or 
 high in earthly rank, but respectable, well-conditioned 
 members of society, whose single-minded motives have 
 stood many a severe test, are above suspicion. In my 
 conversation with them I had an opportunity of ascer- 
 taining how far the desire for Episcopal supervision 
 and for a liturgical form of worship was genuine, and 
 my mind was quite satisfied before we parted that both 
 ihey and the congregation which they represented 
 were not acting under any artificial pressure. They 
 spoke quite naturally as men of independence ; and it 
 was clear that my visit, and the message which I had 
 conveyed the evening before, had greatly cheered and 
 -encouraged them. Before we parted, Senor Cabrera 
 offered up a fervent prayer on behalf of the work and 
 ■of ourselves ; and as I saw all these men kneeling 
 around their bishop-elect, while he invoked a blessing 
 •from on high upon the members of his flock, I felt that 
 I was beholding an omen of greater things yet to 
 come. 
 
 " But I have also to tell of my visit to Sefior 
 Cabrera's schools. They are held in a room above that 
 in which the congregation meets, and when I entered I 
 found Senor Cabrera's wife and daughter engaged in 
 the work of teaching. The children were a very 
 intelligent, happy, Irish-looking set of scholars. I 
 asked them to sing me a hymn, and they sang me one 
 about the preciousness of the Bible. I spoke to them 
 through Cabrera of the unspeakable comfort that book 
 might yet be to them in the hour of trouble, proving 
 itself indeed a 
 
The Spanish Question 223 
 
 " ' Word of mercy, giving 
 Succour to the living ; 
 Word of life, supplying 
 Comfort to the dying.' 
 
 " I told them of a little child whom I had watched in 
 a Dublin mission school, singing with a strange fervour 
 that sweet hymn, ' Safe in the arms of Jesus.' I did not 
 understand her earnestness at the time, but I after- 
 wards learned that but a few days before she had 
 cheered a dying brother in his last struggle by singing 
 that hymn at his deathbed. When I told them this, 
 their dark Spanish eyes brightened and they said, ' We 
 can sing that hymn too.' And they sang it — and sang 
 it well. It is one of a number of hymns translated by 
 Cabrera, which, together with other very beautiful 
 compositions of his own, are now largely used through- 
 out the Protestant congregations of Spain. 
 
 "The boys also sang very well, and much pleased 
 me by their cheerful and trustful manner. The 
 teachers had evidently won their hearts, an important 
 step towards reaching their minds. I examined the 
 school books, and found the number on the roll in the 
 two schools to be 34 and 36 respectively. Upon this 
 occasion there were present exactly 21 in each. I 
 ought to add that a payment is required from all who 
 attend ; and when we remember that the State schools 
 and the distinctly Roman Catholic schools are free, we 
 have, I think, an important token of the reality of the 
 work in this respect. So much as regards the congre- 
 gation and schools that at present represent in Madrid 
 the Reformed Episcopal Church, for which my visit 
 ■was specially intended. It" would, however, be a great 
 
2 24 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 mistake to suppose that they supply the only token of 
 reformation life to be found in that city. Some of my 
 readers will perhaps be surprised at the manifold forms 
 in which that life has been developed, when I state 
 that, besides the congregation that has Sefior Cabrera 
 for its pastor and bishop-elect, there are five others 
 that have been gathered together, through the efforts 
 or under the auspices of the United Presbyterians of 
 Scotland, the German Lutherans, the American Bap- 
 tists, the Irish Presbyterians, and the Plymouth 
 Brethren respectively. No one of these is so large or 
 so important as that to which Cabrera ministers, but 
 some are nearly so ; and while we cannot help regret- 
 ting that they have not shaped themselves after the 
 primitive model, and must lament the appearance of 
 disunion which these many varieties of Protestantism 
 present to those who are without, we should be indeed 
 narrow-minded were we to regard these searchings, in 
 one form or another, after a purer faith than that of 
 Rome with anything short of genuine sympathy and 
 goodwill. For my own part, knowing as I do that 
 amid many diversities and, as I must believe, many 
 serious irregularities and disadvantages, Christ is 
 nevertheless preached, I therein do rejoice, yea, and 
 will rejoice. But gladly would I welcome a drawing 
 together of these scattered forces to some one centre 
 of unity upon that basis of Episcopal and liturgical 
 order which not only commends itself to me as most 
 agreeable to scriptural principles and apostolic prac- 
 tice, but which I verily believe is the only foundation 
 on which anything like a nsuonal Spanish Reformed 
 Church can be ultimately juilt up. Whether such an 
 
The Spanish Question 225 
 
 end can be looked forward to with anything like hope 
 I dare not say. I should not in any case deem it 
 either wise or right to try and prematurely compass 
 such a result by importunate arts of proselytism ; but 
 should it come about of its own accord, I have no 
 hesitation in saying that I should hail it with a thankful 
 heart. 
 
 " One thought suggests itself to me when speaking 
 of the subsidiary aids whereby the cause of God's truth 
 may be furthered in the Peninsula. I refer to the 
 want of a suitable place of worship for Senor Cabrera's 
 congregation. 
 
 "The outward form or inward fittings of God's 
 house are, I admit, of little moment as compared 
 with the character of the living Church that gathers 
 together for worship within. And, at a time when 
 funds are so sorely needed for the support of pastors 
 and teachers, it would be a grievous mistake to apply 
 money to any unnecessary building purposes. But 
 Seiior Cabrera's church is not merely unsightly and 
 inconvenient, it is almost in a state of ruin, and even 
 such as it is, it is subject to a rent of ;^i6o per annum. 
 Moreover, the central place of worship of the Reformed 
 Episcopal Church of Spain ought to be such as at 
 least not to repel the upper classes from venturing 
 within its doors. The Spanish people are proud, and 
 jealous in guarding the decorum which attaches to 
 their position, whatever it may be. Is it, then, won- 
 derful that men of good position should know so 
 little about that dilapidated room in an obscure street 
 wherein Cabrera's congregation now meets ? And if 
 they should happen to know of it, what is there to 
 
 P 
 
226 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 tempt them to enter it ? Rather is there not much to 
 deter them from doing so ? If therefore it be desir- 
 able that this reformed communion should embrace 
 all classes, if the souls of the rich be precious in its 
 sight as well as those of the poor, then its central 
 church should occupy a prominent position, and both 
 in its outward form and inward arrangement should 
 be marked by a chaste beauty befitting the solemn 
 services to be held within its walls. Yes, the Spanish 
 reformers should have in Madrid a church such as the 
 Vaudois reformers have in Turin — a building free from 
 the meretricious adjuncts of superstition and wanton 
 display, but standing forth in its simple dignity before 
 the eyes of all who throng the crowded thoroughfare, 
 an ever-present witness to a God who heareth prayer, 
 and inviting every thoughtful inquirer and every 
 curious passer-by to enter within its open doors and 
 listen to that word wherein that God has revealed 
 Himself to man." 
 
 From the above extracts it can be clearly seen what 
 pains Lord Plunket took to make himself thoroughly 
 acquainted with the state of the Spanish Reformed 
 Church in Madrid. There is also evidence of the 
 romantic feelings which filled his heart, and no doubt 
 increased his enthusiasm for the cause. 
 
 But besides these matters, there is a distinct refuta- 
 tion of the accusation often recklessly brought against 
 him, that he went to cause schism in the Roman 
 Church in Spain. It was no such thing. The con- 
 gregations had already come out of their own accord, 
 and he distinctly expresses his disapproval of any 
 " importunate arts of proselytism." 
 
The Spanish Question 227 
 
 After leaving Madrid, the Bishop visited Seville, 
 and so passed on to Lisbon, where he made the same 
 careful inspection of the Reformed Church in Por- 
 tugal. 
 
 He then returned to Madrid, where he spent some 
 further time with Senor Cabrera and his flock, before 
 returning to Pau. 
 
 It was when at Seville (where, owing to vast inunda- 
 tions, his inspection was seriously curtailed) that he 
 heard from Senor Cabrera's own mouth some interest- 
 ing details of his early experiences as an evangelist. 
 
 " On my way home Senor Cabrera described to me 
 some of his first evangelistic experiences in Seville. 
 When Queen Isabella had to flee from Spain, and a 
 constitutional republic was proclaimed, Seiiors Cabrera 
 ind Carasco and other Spanish reformers were at 
 Gibraltar — a town which had been to them a city of 
 refuge in the time of danger, very much as Geneva was 
 ■to our reformers in the time of Queen Mary. Hearing 
 of Queen Isabella's flight, they went to General Prim, 
 the President of the new republic, and asked him 
 whether it would be safe and right for them to return 
 from exile and preach the Gospel to their fellow- 
 countrymen. His answer was, ' Take your Bibles 
 under your arms, and preach when and where you 
 like.' Accordingly, they set forth on their mission. 
 Senor Cabrera was at that time in receipt of some 
 ;^3oo per annum as a teacher of languages in Gibraltar. 
 But in pursuance of a grander aim, he threw this 
 source of income up. Once before, when leaving the 
 Church of Rome, he had abandoned his means of 
 
228 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 livelihood and prospects of preferment for conscience 
 sake, and now he was ready to do the same again. 
 When he reached Seville, and looked around on the 
 multitudes that thronged the streets, many perplexing 
 thoughts disturbed his mind. He had a message to 
 declare to his fellow-countrymen. Woe was to him if 
 he did not declare it. But how was he to begin ? At 
 this juncture God made wide before him unexpectedly 
 an ' open door.' Let such of us as may ever have felt 
 the pressure of a similar responsibility take courage 
 from his example. By chance he made his way into a 
 cafe, which he pointed out to me as we passed through 
 the streets. He found in it a number of men in 
 earnest converse around one of the tables. They were 
 discussing the printed programme of the new constitu- 
 tion. It was the desire of General Prim that the prin- 
 ciples upon which the new republic was to be based 
 should be explained to the people by competent 
 lecturers, and the men around the cafe table were 
 eagerly discussing these principles, and agreeing 
 amongst themselves to give addresses severally on 
 some leading points. Senior Cabrera, having entered 
 into conversation with them, said at last, 'There is 
 one subject with which I am ready, should you approve 
 of it, to deal^the question, I mean, of religious liberty.' 
 They replied that they did not know him, but as he 
 seemed to be competent for the task, they would allot 
 to him this department of their work. Accordingly, he 
 gave notice before long of his proposed lectures, and 
 at first a very few listeners came to hear what he had 
 to say. By degrees, however, the numbers increased, 
 and repeated 'Bravos' greeted the delivery of his 
 
The Spanish Question 229 
 
 sentiments. At last, when he felt that he had the con- 
 fidence of his hearers, he made bold one day to say to 
 them : ' Fellow-countrymen, I have up till now spoken 
 to you about religious liberty in its political aspect ; 
 the time has come when I must speak to you about 
 that liberty wherewith Christ makes free.' And 
 thenceforward he preached to them Christ and Him 
 crucified. Thus does God make a way for those who 
 .desire to do His will." 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 THE SPANISH QUESTION— {CONTINUED) 
 
 In the foregoing chapter an attempt has been made to> 
 explain the history of the movement in Spain towards 
 obtaining a Reformed Church, and the action which 
 Lord Plunket took in the early stages of the matter. 
 From 1879 until the time of his death his interest and. 
 work for the Reformed Church in Spain never flagged, 
 and during all those years he bore the chief brunt of 
 the controversy which raged round the subject. 
 
 It is impossible, within the limits of this single 
 volume, to continue any detailed account of the whole 
 story. All that can be done is to select the most inter- 
 esting points and describe Lord Plunket's share in the 
 undertaking. 
 
 Very early in the day (in 1880 or 1881) the liturgy 
 of the Spanish Reformed Church was translated into 
 English, with an introduction written by Lord 
 Plunket. 
 
 As may easily be conceived, this liturgy was keenly 
 examined and discussed in England, Ireland, and 
 America. Many were loud in its praise, many raised- 
 serious objections. The chief causes of complaint 
 were certain omissions, as, for instance, the recitation, 
 of the Athanasian Creed in public worship, and the 
 
The Spanish Question 231 
 
 phrase in the Baptismal Service, " seeing that this child 
 is regenerate." 
 
 Lord Plunket received innumerable letters at this 
 time, some full of kindly encouragement, but many 
 others full cf censure, the writers, without being aware 
 of all the facts, holding him responsible for the 
 omissions. 
 
 The liturgy referred to here was the first one before 
 the revision which subsequently took place. Lord 
 Plunket felt many of the objections most keenly, but 
 he knew, better than most of his correspondents, how 
 difficult it is to arrange such things with those who 
 have revolted from the "unlawful terms of com- 
 munion " imposed by the Church of Rome. 
 
 Another grievance arose towards the beginning of 
 the controversy. Senor Cabrera had been styled 
 " Bishop-elect of Madrid." This was considered an 
 encroachment upon the rights of the Roman Church 
 in Spain, and, although a parallel can readily be found 
 in the case of titles adopted by the Roman Catholics in 
 England, yet on a question of this kind it was thought 
 well to give way. Lord Plunket, in a letter to his close 
 friend. Canon Meyrick, the founder of the Anglo- 
 Continental Society, says : 
 
 "12 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, 
 
 ''Dec. 2, 1882. 
 
 "My dear Meyrick, 
 
 * » * » * 
 
 " Cabrera has quite resolved (at my suggestion, 
 before the receipt of your letter) to drop the title of 
 Bishop of Madrid, and to adopt that of Bishop-elect of 
 
232 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 the Reformed Church in Spain. He intends to call 
 another Synod of his Church, and to submit himself 
 for re-election. . . . 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET MEATH." 
 
 It was perhaps to be foreseen that the clergy of the 
 diocese of Meath would look with some jealousy upon 
 the interest which their Bishop took in these foreign 
 Churches. It was not long before this feeling took 
 shape. Dr. Noyes says : 
 
 " There were some at home who thought that Lord Plunket 
 was giving too much time and attention to a foreign Church 
 work, to the neglect of the duties of the diocese. A dignitary 
 of the diocese of Meath, who has since passed away, wrote to 
 the Bishop on the subject. The reply, which follows, is a good 
 illustration of the ' superb temper ' which characterised Lord 
 Plunket when the provocation was not a httle trying. The 
 letter which called it forth has probably been destroyed, but 
 the reply is as follows : 
 
 " ' Maple's Hotel, 
 
 " ' Oct. 18, 1883. 
 
 " ' My dear 
 
 " ' I hasten to assure you that your letter has noi 
 made me angry with you. It is the part of a friend to 
 speak what he believes to be truth to a friend at any 
 cost, and we have been too long on terms of affection 
 one with another to feel aggrieved by frank and kindly 
 speaking. All I would ask is that you will receive 
 what I have to say in a similar spirit. 
 
 " ' You speak of two things. First, the fact of my 
 repeated absences from my diocese ; secondly, a preva- 
 lent idea that I am more interested in the affairs of 
 
The Spanish Question 233 
 
 certain foreign Churches than I am in those of my own. 
 I would wish to draw a distinction between this fact 
 and this idea. The " fact " of my repeated absences 
 is, alas ! too -true, and there is no one who deplores it 
 more than myself. It is, as you know, due to one 
 cause — a cause which intensifies its bitterness : the 
 precarious state of my wife's health. Assuming that 
 you do not include the occasions when I have attended 
 a congress, or a Lambeth meeting, or have preached a 
 University sermon, or have undertaken some similar 
 duty which all would admit to have been obligatory 
 upon me in the interests of my own Church, I do not 
 remember ever having left my diocese for any cause 
 other than the one already specified save once — namely, 
 those few weeks which I spent last winter with Seiior 
 Cabrera advocating the cause of his Church in some of 
 the other dioceses of Ireland. This I did with the 
 profound conviction that the honour of our own 
 Church in the sight of God and man was then at 
 
 stake. 
 
 « * * » » 
 
 " ' On every other occasion during the seven years of 
 my episcopate that I have left my diocese, it has been 
 because of my wife's health. . . . 
 
 " ' My absence has always increased my correspond- 
 ence, which is the hardest part of my work. It has also 
 entailed an amount of travelling (ranging from five to 
 eight thousand miles in each winter) which has been 
 very trying to my own health. It has compelled me 
 again and again to leave my wife behind me on the 
 Continent (withimore than a thousand miles between 
 us) in a most critical state of weakness and depression. 
 
234 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 It has, in fact, been anything but holiday work to me. 
 My hoHday — oh, how welcome a one ! — would have 
 been to have been allowed to stay in my own home. 
 
 '"While, however, I say all this, the fact remains that 
 there have been repeated absences, injurious of neces- 
 sity to the interests of the diocese, and for this cause, 
 far more than for any of those I have mentioned, 
 deeply deplored by myself. Again and again have I 
 been on the point of resigning my office. To do so 
 would give me the rest for which the natural man 
 craves. It would lift off a 'load of almost constant 
 anxiety, ... It would allow me to return to my 
 own dear home at Old Connaught. It would involve 
 me in no financial difficulty. Every selfish motive 
 would prompt me to do so. But, after consulting 
 friends, and debating the matter in my own mind, 
 conscience has bid me remain. Whether I shall long 
 continue of the same mind I know not. But for the 
 present I must obey that voice.' " 
 
 [The next few pages of this letter are taken up with 
 a refutation of the suggestion that he had lost interest 
 in his diocese. In the simplest language he shows 
 that in each department of the work an improvement 
 was visible, and he was not ashamed to compare the 
 state of his diocese with what it was before he came 
 to it.] 
 
 '"Only one word more. If it be thought that, 
 because of the deep interest which I feel in the work of 
 reform in other Churches, my interest in my own 
 Church is likely to falter, all I can say is that such a 
 principle would contradict every experience of the 
 past. No Church has ever shown life or prospered that 
 
The Spanish Question 235 
 
 has lacked the outgoing spirit of missionary zeal, and I 
 can truly say that if any one motive more than another 
 urges me to work, as, God helping me, I shall continue 
 to do, on behalf of such a cause as that of Spanish 
 reform, it is the interest which I feel in the honour of 
 my own Church, and the desire that by helping others 
 she may bring back into her bosom an abundant 
 blessing in return, 
 
 " ' Pray forgive the length into which J have been 
 betrayed, and take what I have said in the same affec- 
 tionate spirit which prompts my words. 
 
 " ' Yom-s as ever affectionately, 
 
 " ' PLUNKET MEATH.' " 
 
 The Synod of the Reformed Church in Spain had 
 appointed a provisional council of bishops to advise 
 and assist them. Of this body Lord Plunket was 
 one. 
 
 The need of episcopal functions in Spain and Portu- 
 gal was becoming annually more pressing. There were 
 candidates for the ministry awaiting ordination, and 
 many, both young and old, hoping for confirmation. 
 As one of the above-mentioned council, Lord Plunket 
 felt that he was called upon to give his services, and at 
 the request of these Churches he paid his second visit 
 in April 1884. 
 
 At the annual meeting of the Spanish and Portu- 
 guese Society, held in London soon after his return, 
 he gave the following account of this visit : 
 
 " Let me very briefly refer to the results of my second 
 visit to Spain and Portugal, and to the impressions left 
 by that visit upon my mind. When there I admitted 
 
^3^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 one candidate to the diaconate and three to the priest- 
 hood. I also confirmed about one hundred members 
 ■of these Churches, and consecrated a new place of 
 worship. I was able during the short time at my dis- 
 posal to visit only six out of the fifteen congregations 
 4o be found in Spain and Portugal. I had only three 
 weeks at my disposal, and you will form some idea of 
 ■the distance over which I travelled when I tell you 
 that I had to spend six nights and seven days of that 
 interval in the train. During my visit I saw at least 
 1300 members in these six congregations — that is to 
 say, an average of over 200 in each. In four of these 
 congregations the Holy Communion was administered, 
 and at the holy table there was an average attendance 
 of fifty — a far larger proportion than we should see in 
 our own churches at home. In each case I saw mani- 
 fested great earnestness and devotion, and a desire to 
 conduct everything in their poor places of worship 
 with decency and order. I heard numberless instances 
 of great personal self-sacrifice and spirituality of mind 
 among those who had joined this reformed communion. 
 I found, moreover, that a spirit of unity was manifesting 
 itself among these congregations, scattered though they 
 be throughout the Peninsula. 
 
 " I found also an increased feeling of missionary 
 responsibility. I found that these churches were 
 beginning to regard themselves as having a duty to 
 shine as lights in a dark .place. And lastly, I found 
 that openings for the exercise of this evangelistic zeal 
 were presenting themselves on every hand, and that 
 appeals from anxious inquirers were being made, pray- 
 
The Spanish Question 237 
 
 ing that the same Gospel might he preached to them 
 which had brought about such blessed results else- 
 where." 
 
 The next few years were not marked by any specially 
 important incident, but during this time Lord Plunket 
 worked hard to raise money for the wiping out of the 
 old debt. This was finally accomplished, and he found 
 himself free to put out his first appeal for new church- 
 buildings in Madrid. This appeal appeared in Light 
 and Truth for January 1888. 
 
 Very few Church dignitaries would have been willing, 
 to beg for funds with such frequency and pertinacity. 
 Many of Lord Plunket's friends were distressed at what 
 they considered " so demeaning an occupation." But 
 it was just like him. He never spared himself. He 
 knew well enough that he was likely to obtain far more 
 money for the work by his own personal pleading, and 
 he gave it, simply and humbly, with no thought of his 
 rank or fear of lowering his position. 
 
 A little incident occurred in connection with this side 
 of the Archbishop's work which is worth recording : 
 
 One of his appeals for help for Spain was sent to a 
 clergyman near Leicester who was in charge of a large 
 colliery district where there was no church. This 
 clergyman in response wrote to the Archbishop saying 
 that he thought the heathen of England required help 
 more than the reformers of Spain, at the same time 
 describing the destitute condition of his parish and the 
 means he was taking to reach the ignorant inhabitants. 
 These means he honestly described as including " vest- 
 ments" and other specialities of the ritualistic party. 
 
238 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 After a short delay he received from Lord Plunket a 
 most kind letter enclosing a cheque in aid of his work. 
 And yet some have been found to describe the Arch- 
 bishop as " narrow " ! 
 
 Seiior Cabrera had shown him a splendid site for a 
 church when he had paid his first visit to Spain seven 
 years before. But nothing had yet been done, and 
 Lord Plunket felt that the cause of the Reformed 
 Church in that country would benefit enormously by 
 the possession of a dignified place of worship. 
 
 But the whole question of the Spanish Church was 
 about to be revived in a most acute form. The year 
 1888 saw the bishops of the Anglican Communion 
 assembled for one of the great Lambeth Conferences. 
 
 It will now be well to quote the words of Dr. 
 Noyes : 
 
 " In view of the Conference, Lord Plunket had prepared 
 certain documents, which, together with a translation of the 
 liturgies, were sent through the post to all bishops of the 
 Anglican Communion throughout the world. These docu- 
 ments did much to inform the members of the Conference, and 
 to facilitate the passing of the resolutions which the report of 
 the Conference records. 
 
 " At this Conference the Archbishop (as he now was) sat 
 upon a committee which reported to the Conference as to ' Old 
 Catholics and others.' The part of that report which had the 
 special interest of the Archbishop, and in the wording of which 
 I understand that he had a large share, referred in the follow- 
 ing terms to the ' reformers of Italy, France, Spain, and 
 Portugal ' : 
 
 " ' The same remark applies with even greater force to the 
 smaller groups of brave and earnest men of the Latin races, 
 driven under somewhat similar circumstances to associate them- 
 selves in separate congregations in Italy, France, Spain, and 
 
The Spanish Question 239 
 
 Portugal. We sympathise with their efforts to free themselves 
 from the burden of unlawful communion. We have reason to 
 believe that there are many who think with them, but have not 
 seen the way to follow the outward steps which they have taken. 
 We trust that in time they may be enabled to adopt such sound 
 forms of doctrine and discipline and to secure such Catholic 
 organisation as will permit us to give them fuller recognition.' 
 
 " It should be understood that the report from which the 
 above is an extract had only the authority of the committee. 
 The Conference was only responsible for the formal resolutions 
 which followed it. Among these were the two following, which 
 were carried item. eon. : 
 
 " ' I. That, with regard to the reformers in Italy, France, 
 Spain, and Portugal, struggling to free themselves from the 
 burden of unlawful terms of communion, we trust that they 
 may be enabled to adopt such forms of doctrine and discipline 
 and to secure such Catholic organisation as will permit us to 
 give them a fuller recognition. 
 
 " ' 2. That, without desiring to interfere with the rights of 
 bishops of the Catholic Church to interfere in cases of extreme 
 necessity, we deprecate any action which does not regard 
 primitive and established principles of jurisdiction and the 
 interests of the whole Anglican Communion.' 
 
 ***** 
 
 "Two extracts from Lord Plunket's letters will show his im- 
 pressions at the time. The first, dated from London, July 9, 
 1888, is as follows : 
 
 " ' I cannot speak very hopefully of the prospects of 
 the Conference report respecting Cabrera's consecration. 
 I did my best in laying the matter before the bishops, 
 and several present told me afterwards that what I said 
 produced a favourable impression on many. But 
 though nothing was said at the time against the pro- 
 posed consecration, I can see clearly that there is a 
 
240 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 large amount of ignorance in some, prejudice in others, 
 and bitter hostility in not a few.' 
 
 "The second extract is also from London, and is dated 
 July 26, 1888, after the meeting of a sub-committee which dis- 
 cussed the matter in detail : 
 
 " ' The result of the Lambeth Conference is not yet 
 published, and I cannot therefore speak fully on the 
 subject. But though the report will no doubt fall short 
 of what we could wish, and will speak in language of 
 extreme caution (if not deprecation), it will leave it per- 
 fectly open to the Irish bishops to act with perfect freedom. 
 In some of its utterances the report will serve to help 
 us not a little.' " 
 
 Lord Plunket's extreme optimism was never so 
 clearly seen as on this occasion. He laid too much 
 stress upon the expressions of sympathy. The conclu- 
 sion at which he arrived was made known in the 
 course of his first public utterance on the subject, 
 which was made in London in August of this same 
 year. He said : 
 
 " The result of the whole matter is that it remains 
 perfectly open to any bishops of the Anglican Com- 
 munion to consecrate a bishop for the Reformed 
 Church in Spain without thereby running counter to 
 the pronouncements of the Lambeth Conference, pro- 
 vided only that they proceed with the caution demanded 
 by the gravity of such a step, and take special care that 
 there shall not be conveyed to the bishop so conse- 
 crated any such territorial title as would imply a claim 
 on his part to jurisdiction over others not belonging 
 to his own flock." 
 
The Spanish Question 241 
 
 As soon as it became generally known that this was 
 the position taken up by Lord Plunket, he received an 
 immense number of letters, some approving and others 
 condemning his conclusions. He had written a letter 
 to the Guardian stating his views, and it is interesting 
 to note that some even of his Irish brethren could not 
 agree with him, as is witnessed by the following letter 
 from Dr. Gregg, then Bishop of Cork, and afterwards 
 Primate of Ireland : 
 
 " The Palace, Cork, 
 ■•Dec. 17, 1888. 
 
 " My dear Archbishop, 
 
 " As you asked me to read your letter in the Guardian, 
 I venture to write to you on the subject ; and I hope that you 
 will allow me to say what I think, as I do not do so in a spirit 
 of controversy, but in a spirit of entire friendliness and with a 
 real desire to help the work in Spain. 
 
 " I read your letter with much interest, and from your point 
 of view I think it is a very good and perfectly fair letter, but I 
 cannot at all agree with you in the view which you take of the 
 resolutions and recommendations of the Lambeth Conference. 
 I think their plain meaning is that those who consented to 
 them will not take formal action at present. It seems to me 
 that the hope expressed about obtaining Catholic organisation 
 plainly points to some source outside the body of those who 
 consented — i.e., the Anglican Communion, strictly speaking. 
 
 " I am convinced that this is the meaning a large majority of 
 the bishops present would put upon it, and I believe a majority 
 of the clergy in Ireland and the informed laity. 
 
 " Now, if we, the Irish bishops, were to treat it as we should 
 treat an Act of Parliament which we wished to evade, I believe 
 we should excite a very strong feeling against the Irish Church 
 on the part of English Church opinion, and I believe we should 
 create a very serious division in our own Church. So that I 
 confess I look forward with apprehension to the idea of this 
 
 Q 
 
242 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 matter being pressed. I cannot see that our Church ought to 
 take this burden upon it. I do not think it would be in the 
 interest of progress in Spain for them to be so closely iden- 
 tified with us as they would be if this thing were done by us. 
 I believe it would be much better for them to look to an Old 
 Catholic source for consecration, and not to make the whole 
 Anglican Communion responsible for success or failure, as it 
 would be, and as the majority of the bishops feel that it would 
 be, if the Irish bishops were the consecrators. 
 
 " You will see, then, that I feel strongly about it. I know 
 that I am not alone in the opinion, so that I do look forward 
 with apprehension to such a difference of opinion as there 
 would be amongst us. I know well the earnest and self-sacri- 
 ficing interest you have taken in the question, and I hope you 
 will believe that others, who do not see it as you do, are really 
 anxious for the success of the work in Spain. 
 
 " I feel that in this question we are bound to give due weight 
 to the natural meaning of the Lambeth resolutions. I hope I 
 have not said anything I should not have said. I should be 
 very thankful if you could see some way of avoiding the diffi- 
 culties which I apprehend. 
 
 " I am, 
 
 " Yours very faithfully, 
 
 ■■ R. S. CORK." 
 
 The question of obtaining some other source of con- 
 secration was one that was afterwards fully considered. 
 But it seemed to Lord Plunket that the chief hope for 
 these poor Spanish reformers lay in obtaining the help 
 of the Church of Ireland, He had found the congre- 
 gations already separated by their own act from the 
 Church of Rome, and desirous of forming themselves 
 into an Episcopal Church. Believing in the necessity 
 of providing them with a bishop, and pitying and sym- 
 pathising with them from his heart, he determined to 
 
The Spanish Question 243 
 
 leave no stone unturned to obtain for them their desire, 
 in spite of the opposition of a party in the Anglican 
 Communion who might have been supposed to be the 
 very persons who would have laid most stress upon 
 the necessity of the existence in every Church of the 
 three orders of the ministry. 
 
 The letters and articles appearing in certain English 
 Church newspapers on the subject were anything but 
 creditable to their writers. High Churchmen appeared 
 to have lost their balance altogether when considering 
 the subject. It is said that a certain society, which Is 
 in the habit of printing petitions for use in the prayers 
 of its members, actually inserted one that the Arch- 
 bishop of Dublin might be foiled in his wicked purpose 
 — or words to that effect ! When, ultimately, Senor 
 Cabrera was consecrated, the English Church Union, 
 with characteristic modesty, addressed a letter of con- 
 dolence to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Toledo. 
 In this letter the signatories described themselves as 
 "representing the ancient and illustrious Church of 
 England." It is amusing to note that Cardinal Vaughan 
 sent an immediate despatch to his Spanish brother, 
 telling him that the members of the English Church 
 Union in no sense represented the ancient Church 
 of England, but were a portion of a Protestant sect 
 founded in that country. 
 
 It is good indeed to notice Lord Plunket's reception 
 of these various attacks. His letters were marked by 
 a broad, generous spirit, and contrasted with those 
 of his opponents in being completely free from bitter- 
 ness. On the occasion of the incident concerning the 
 English Church Union mentioned above he had an 
 
244 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 admirable opportunity of creating sympathy with him- 
 self. He had to preside at the meeting of his Diocesan 
 Synod. A correspondent writing about this meeting 
 says : 
 
 " Nothing could have been easier, nothing more calculated 
 to secure a perfect ovation of triumph in the Synod, than a 
 reference to this incident [Cardinal Vaughan's despatch], in 
 which the E.C.U. had been so worsted in its not over- 
 generous attack upon the Archbishop. But what happened ? 
 Simply nothing. The Archbishop did not refer to the incident 
 at all. Chivalrously straight, he could fight his own battles, 
 but disdained a mere party triumph at the instance of Rome, 
 and that, too, although he bitterly regretted that EngUsh 
 Churchmen should have acted as the members of the E.C.U. 
 did on this occasion." 
 
 These events have been recorded out of their proper 
 chronological order from a desire to treat briefly and 
 once for all this unpleasant subject. From all attacks 
 Lord Plunket came out unsullied, for he had the 
 enormous advantage of never forgetting that he was 
 both a Christian and a gentleman. 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
 THE SPANISH .QUESTION— [CONTINUED) 
 
 The Archbishop, having determined to make an 
 attempt to obtain the sympathy of the Irish bishops 
 for the memorialists of the Reformed Churches in 
 Spain and Portugal, who asked them to consecrate 
 Senor Cabrera, prepared the way by a draft resolution, 
 which he submitted to the meeting of Irish bishops 
 on February 19, 1889. This draft resolution bears 
 evidence that he fully realised the reluctance of some 
 among their number to be parties to the consecration, 
 and one of the printed copies of it is endorsed in his 
 own handwriting, "This is a tentative resolution, 
 which I have drawn up as one which I could accept 
 without a protest." 
 
 DRAFT RESOLUTION. 
 
 "That we, the Archbishops and Bishops of the 
 Church of Ireland, continue to watch with unabated 
 interest the efforts in which the memorialists are 
 engaged, and cordially appreciate their desire for that 
 further Episcopal organisation without which their 
 work of Church reform must remain incomplete. 
 
 " But, while willing to aid them so far as we legiti- 
 
246 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 mately can in securing the object which they have in 
 view, we cannot shut our eyes to the wide difference 
 of opinion which exists among the members of the 
 Anglican Communion generally, and even among our- 
 selves, concerning many serious questions to which 
 the prayer of the memorialists has given rise ; and 
 more particularly as to how far a compliance by the 
 Irish Episcopate with that prayer would be in accord 
 with the resolutions of the Lambeth Conference, to 
 which body this matter was formally submitted at our 
 instance. Nor can we ignore the grave doubts 
 entertained by some as to whether (without further 
 legislation on the part of our General Synod) the 
 consecration of a bishop for a foreign Church, and 
 the use for such a purpose of a Service differing 
 from that prescribed in our own Ordinal, is permis- 
 sible. 
 
 "Having regard to these difficulties, and to the 
 interests of peace within our own Church and the 
 Anglican Communion at large, we are compelled to 
 inform the memorialists that we cannot see our way to 
 comply with their prayer. But, while saying so, we 
 would express our hope that they may before long 
 oucceed in obtaining the aid for which they seek from 
 some source where the difficulties which embarrass us 
 do not exist ; and sincerely do we trust that they may 
 secure thereby even a larger measure of sympathy and 
 support than, in the event of our compliance, they 
 might have reason to expect." 
 
 The fact that the resolutions ultimately passed by 
 the meeting of the bishops were almost exactly those 
 
The Spanish Question 247 
 
 which Lord Plunket had thus drafted is an evidence of 
 the clearness with which he had foreseen and grasped 
 the situation. 
 
 The resolutions of the bishops concluded with the 
 following : 
 
 "The Archbishop of Dublin having intimated to us his 
 intention of shortly visiting Spain and Portugal, we hereby re- 
 quest him to convey to the memorialists the message contained 
 in the foregoing resolution." 
 
 It may be well to mention here that the hope ex 
 pressed that the memorialists would obtain the help 
 they needed from other sources was doomed to dis- 
 appointment. 
 
 In October 1889 the American bishops passed a 
 resolution forbidding the employment of Bishop Riley 
 of Mexico. That cut off one source of assistance. 
 The Old Catholics, who were also asked, and who were 
 (some of them) ready to consecrate, were ultimately 
 prevented by the terms of their agreement with the 
 Old Catholics of Holland, whose consent was necessary 
 but could never be obtained. 
 
 Immediately after the meeting of Irish bishops 
 mentioned above. Lord Plunket started for his third 
 visit to Spain, to convey the message to the re- 
 formers. 
 
 Dr. Noyes writes : 
 
 " Owing to pressing home engagements, the visit was neces- 
 sarily a short one, but it was long enough to convince the 
 Spanish Church (did they need it) that they had in Lord 
 Plunket a tried and valued friend, one who shrank from no 
 
248 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 amount of labour on their behalf, and in whose hands they 
 could safely leave the future." 
 
 One of the Archbishop's chief interests at this time 
 was the proposed new church buildings at Madrid, to 
 which reference has already been made. A letter from 
 him, written during this spring of 1889, will explain 
 how the negotiations had progressed. 
 
 [To Dr. Noyes.\ 
 
 " The Palace, Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 " April I, 1889. 
 
 " My dear Noyes, 
 
 " On Monday afternoon I received a telegram 
 from Cabrera, ' Site provisionally granted.' On the 
 following morning I received a letter written on 
 March 30, two days before the auction, in which he 
 explains that the site would be granted to the best 
 tender, but on condition of the transaction being 
 approved by the Minister of War, and that if I should 
 receive a telegram stating that it had been 'pro- 
 visionally granted,' I was to understand that it was 
 secured subject only to that approval. 
 
 " The approval (if given) would be given some days 
 after the auction. The matter therefore stands thus : 
 that the tender made by Cabrera was the highest, 
 and that the site is ours if the Minister of War 
 approves. As to whether he is likely to approve or 
 not Cabrera says nothing in his letter, and we must 
 therefore remain in suspense till I hear from him 
 again. . . . 
 
 " Yours sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
The Spanish Question 249 
 
 Not content with all that he was doing in Ireland, 
 England, and Spain itself for the cause of the reformers, 
 Lord Plunket felt that the sympathy and support of 
 the American Church were so important that he 
 arranged to go over himself and plead the cause of his 
 Spanish friends. 
 
 His berth was actually taken on board the Servia, 
 which sailed on Sept. 21, 1889, but he never went, for 
 the serious illness of Lady Plunket — the illness which 
 terminated fatally — made it impossible for him to leave 
 Ireland. 
 
 The next event of importance in connection with 
 this portion of Lord Plunket's work was the ordination 
 to the diaconate of Mr. Andrew Cassels in the private 
 chapel of the Palace, Dublin. Dr. Noyes states the 
 facts as follows : 
 
 "In July 1 89 1 Lord Plunket ordained in his private chapel 
 in Dublin the Rev. Andrew Cassels as a clergyman of the 
 Lusitanian Church. This action gave rise to extraordinary 
 excitement in Church circles. The facts are briefly these : 
 Mr. Andrew Cassels, resident in Portugal for many years and a 
 naturalised Portuguese subject [he was an Englishman by birth 
 and nephew of a former Vicar of Batley in Yorkshire], had 
 built a church near Oporto, and had there ministered as a lay- 
 man for many years. After the organisation of the Lusitanian 
 Church, upon mature reflection he decided to apply to the 
 Synod of that Church asking them to add his congregation to 
 their numbers. This was done, and application was made to 
 the Archbishop of Dublin for Mr. Cassels' ordination. As a 
 matter of convenience the ordination took place in Dublin. A 
 large number of the clergy were present, and the scene was 
 most impressive." 
 
 The extreme High Church party, "always bitterly 
 
250 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 opposed to reform from Rome," put out a circular 
 calling attention to the matter in a somewhat curious 
 manner. Their chief cause of complaint appeared to 
 be that the Archbishop had not used the form appointed 
 by the Irish Prayer-book, but they go on to say (i) that 
 the form he was supposed to have used differed but 
 little from that in the Irish Prayer-book, and (2) that 
 they did not know what the form was which he used in 
 Spain — and which, presumably, they thought he used 
 on this occasion. 
 
 The animus and the ignorance (at least as displayed 
 by some of his accusers) with which he was attacked 
 are perhaps better forgotten, but the following quota- 
 tion from a letter written by a learned Englishman on 
 the subject is worth giving : 
 
 " The charge against Lord Plunket was that he ordained a 
 Spaniard to serve in the Spanish Reformed Church, whose 
 liturgy was attacked by many who had never seen it, nor could 
 construe it even if they had it in their hands. The fact is that 
 the candidate was an Englishman [by birth] ordained to serve 
 in the Portuguese Church, against whose liturgy no objection 
 had been raised." 
 
 If many and clamorous voices were raised against 
 the Archbishop, their outcry was no less strongly con- 
 demned by many men of weight, one of the English 
 bishops describing it as "an unwarrantable attempt to 
 interfere with the liberties and independence of the 
 Irish Church." 
 
 Now once more to quote Dr. Noyes : 
 
 " As may well be supposed, after such a terrible affliction 
 
The Spanish Question 251 
 
 [the death of Lady Plunket], the Archbishop was unable for 
 some time to take so pubUc a part as before in the matter of 
 the Reformed Churches ; but he was none the less busy with 
 his pen. The year 1890 saw three remarkable appeals written 
 by him for the building fund of the new church at Madrid. 
 The first was entided ' And now why tarriest thou ? ' the second 
 ' A bow at a venture,' and the third bears a title which shows 
 the success of the two former — viz., 'At work.' The site had 
 at length been purchased [the consent of the Minister of War 
 having been obtained] for ;!^3Soo, and the workmen were now, 
 at the end of i8go, preparing the foundations. 
 
 " The laying of the first stone of the church took place in 
 March 1891, without any special demonstration, owing to the 
 state of public feeUng. ..." 
 
 The Archbishop was not present on the occasion, 
 but in the course of a number of letters written by him 
 on the subject he refers frequently to an article in a 
 leading Madrid journal, El Eco Nacional, which pleased 
 him greatly. The article, which described the cere- 
 mony of the laying of the stone, opened with the 
 words, "The triumph of liberty of conscience has 
 become at last a clearly-defined fact in our country." 
 This shows the bearing of the whole article, but its 
 concluding sentences must also be quoted. They 
 were these : 
 
 " What a beautiful contrast ! What a magnificent picture of 
 love and tolerance ! Yesterday the heretic was burnt ; to-day 
 one prays with him ! Yesterday he was hated ; to-day his hand 
 is grasped with kindness 1 Yesterday it was cursing ; to-day it 
 is blessing ! Glory to progress ! The religious frontiers have 
 disappeared ! " 
 
 The year 1892 was in its early months a period of 
 
252 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 anxiety to Lord Plunket. He had contemplated a visit 
 to Spain in February, but an attack of influenza pre- 
 vented the journey. Moreover, party feeling ran so 
 high in both England and Ireland that he thought it 
 better to wait. 
 
 "This readiness to wait," says Dr. Noyes, "and calmly to 
 bear disappointment was a marked trait in the Archbishop's 
 character. The charge was sometimes made that he acted 
 precipitately, but those who knew him best understood how 
 untrue the charge was." 
 
 An exceedingly interesting letter to Canon Meyrick 
 sets out the Archbishop's reasons for delay. He 
 says : 
 
 " The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 "Feb. 26, 1892. 
 " My dear Meyrick, 
 
 # # • * # 
 
 " For my own part, I have never for a moment 
 wavered in my belief that the Lambeth Conference not 
 only left it perfectly open to the Irish bishops to con- 
 secrate a bishop for the Spanish reformers, but that 
 by the pronouncements, both of that Conference and 
 the Conference of 1878, respecting our responsibilities 
 towards such reformers in their time of need, it really 
 imposed upon us the duty of taking such a step. My 
 loyalty to the Lambeth Conference therefore had 
 nothing to do with my refraining from the consecration 
 of a bishop. What really prevented me was the fact 
 that some of my brethren saw difficulties as regards the 
 interpretation of the Lambeth report (and other 
 
The Spanish Question 253 
 
 matters too) which / did not, and accordingly I 
 refrained from taking the step (and our Episcopate 
 collectively refrained), ' in the interests of peace and 
 unity.' 
 
 " Respecting primitive jurisdiction, I do not consider 
 these principles as opposing a bar to the consecration 
 of a bishop (any more than to the ordaining of a 
 priest) under exceptional circumstances — provided no 
 claim (such as that of Rome) is made to jurisdic- 
 tion by any bishop over those not belonging to his 
 flock. . . . 
 
 " Perhaps I may add that in a letter from the 
 Archbishop of Canterbury [Dr. Benson], written 
 to me on Oct. 29, 1888, while the action of our 
 Episcopate was still pending, he says in reference to 
 the intention of the Lambeth Assembly, ' The bishops 
 assembled were as anxious to forbear from express- 
 ing what might read like a judgment of disapproval 
 without full knowledge of detail, as they were unwill- 
 ing to have their sanction or approval invoked before- 
 hand.' This is exactly what I have assumed to be 
 their purpose. 
 
 " I am the more anxious on this point because, if ever 
 the Irish bishops should come to the conclusion that, 
 all other efforts to obtain consecration elsewhere 
 having failed, and the inconvenience of prolonging 
 my provisional intervention having become apparent, 
 the time had come for reconsidering their former 
 decision, I should not wish it to be thought that I 
 (or they) were acting either disloyally to the Lambeth 
 
2 54 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Conference or inconsistently as regards our former 
 declaration. . . . 
 
 " Yours affectionately, 
 
 " PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
 Throughout all the discussions on these matters 
 frequent reference is naturally made to the opinions of 
 the Irish Church. What these were (so far as the 
 clergy were concerned) is evident from two printed 
 documents, the first of which is dated February 1892. 
 The present Primate of Ireland, at that time Bishop of 
 Derry, had made a proposal that there should be a 
 temporary suspension of the episcopal assistance given 
 by Lord Plunket to the Reformed Churches until a 
 conference could be held with some of the bishops of 
 the Anglican Communion. This drew forth the first 
 of the two documents in the shape of a declaration 
 (published in -the Guardian, the Record, and the Rock) 
 to the following effect : 
 
 " I. That we express hereby our sympathy with the reformers 
 in Spain and Portugal who, under many exceptional difficulties, 
 are struggling to free themselves from the burden of unlawful 
 terms of communion. 
 
 " 2. That, regarding their case as having become one of ex- 
 treme necessity, and recognising the rights of bishops of the 
 Catholic Church to interpose in such cases, we do not feel 
 called upon to protest against the action contemplated by his 
 Grace the Archbishop of Dublin, who has announced his pur- 
 pose of holding ordinations on behalf of the reformers in Spain 
 and Portugal in the course of the ensuing year. 
 
 " 3. That we have received with satisfaction his Grace's 
 assurance that when carrying that purpose into effect he will 
 confine his ministrations within the hmits of those countries, 
 
The Spanish Question 255 
 
 and use during the laying on of hands the words enjoined in 
 the service of our own Church." 
 
 This declaration was signed by all but three of the 
 Irish bishops, the dissentients being the then Arch- 
 bishop of Armagh and the Bishops of Down and 
 Derry. 
 
 Of the opinion of the rest of the Irish clergy proof 
 was afterwards forthcoming by the publication of the 
 second of the two documents to which allusion was 
 made. This was not until after Sefior Cabrera's 
 consecration by Lord Plunket had taken place, but it 
 is useful to quote it here in connection with the 
 opinion of the bishops on the whole matter. 
 
 The document consisted of a protest against the 
 consecration, and was signed by as many of the Irish 
 clergy as could possibly be persuaded to put their 
 names at its foot. On examination it is found that 
 less than one-tenth of the clergy of Ireland consented 
 to sign, and no more than one-twentieth of those who 
 belonged to the united diocese of Dublin. 
 
 It may be fairly taken for granted^ that the propor- 
 tion of lay members of the Church of | Ireland who 
 objected to the course taken by the Archbishop was 
 smaller still. 
 
 So far, then, as Ireland was concerned, Lord 
 Plunket had plenty of support, though^lsome of it was 
 of a cautious character. Those members of the 
 English Church whose sympathies he had from time 
 to time enlisted contained such names as Archbishop 
 Tait, Bishop Christopher Wordsworth, Bishop Harold 
 Browne, and many others almost as well known for 
 
256 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 piety and learning ; but there always seemed to be a 
 certain half-heartedness on the part of his Enghsh 
 friends, due partly to a lack of the splendid courage 
 which he possessed, partly to the position of the 
 Church of England as a State Church, and partly to 
 the fear of increasing the clamour of the High Church 
 party. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 ATTEMPTED CONSECRATION OP THE MADRID 
 CHURCH 
 
 The buildings in Madrid were now near completion, 
 and in November 1892 Lord Plunket determined to 
 go over and consecrate the church. In view of this 
 event, he asked the Bishops of Clogher and Down to 
 associate themselves with him as a council of bishops. 
 They both accepted the duty, but the latter was pre- 
 vented at the last moment from undertaking the 
 journey. 
 
 It was hoped to make the consecration an occasion 
 of great interest and importance, and with this end in 
 view invitations had been sent to P^re Hyacinthe, 
 Count Campello (Italian Reformed Church), Rev. 
 Ugo Janni (San Remo), Dr. Noyes (Paris), Canon 
 Meyrick, and other friends. As the result of these 
 invitations a most remarkable meeting took place in 
 the middle of the night of November 30. The Bishop 
 of Clogher (Dr. Stack) gives the following graphic 
 account : 
 
 " The Archbishop and his fellow-travellers were joined on 
 their way from Valladolid to Madrid, in the middle of the 
 night, at the junction of Medina, by Pere Hyacinthe, who had 
 
 R 
 
258 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 come with Dr. Noyes from Paris, and with whom were Mr. and 
 Mrs. McCall, from Walthamstow : Count Campello and Rev. 
 Ugo Janni were also of this party. Such a meeting, at such a 
 time and place, of persons of so many different nations, yet all 
 intent upon the same great object, was a very remarkable event. 
 The variety of languages, the warmth of the greetings, the 
 kindly hand-clasps (the meaning of which needed no inter- 
 preter), the dim uncertain light, which baffled the effort to mark 
 the countenances of men so long known in their work ; all the 
 surroundings, in short, made this meeting at Medina one of 
 the most interesting occurrences of the Archbishop's journey. 
 It would not, indeed, be unsuitably called an historical event. 
 Who can tell what the future result may be ? " 
 
 It is fortunately possible to give the Archbishop's 
 own account of the visit and its results, as contained in 
 a letter which he wrote to The Times. He said : 
 
 " RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN SPAIN : A 
 BATTLE FOUGHT AND WON. 
 
 "TO THE EDITOR OF 'THE TIMES.' 
 
 " Sir, — A hard battle on behalf of religious liberty has 
 just been fought and won by the reformers of Madrid ; 
 and, as the circumstances of the case are imperfectly 
 known to some, I would ask leave to state the facts 
 which have come under my own observation. In so 
 doing I shall bring no reproach against the Spanish 
 nation — much less against the Government over which 
 Sefior Sagasta has just been called to preside, and to 
 which in this matter all credit is due. Rather will it be 
 my aim to show that the Spanish people, as a whole, 
 should not be held responsible for the misguided 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 259 
 
 intolerance of a few Ultramontane partisans. The 
 circumstances of the case are as follows : 
 
 " There is at present in Spain a small group of native 
 Protestants known as the * Reformed Spanish Church.' 
 The members of this body, while attached to Evange- 
 lical principles, have adopted an episcopal constitution 
 and a fixed liturgy based, to a great extent, on the 
 ancient Mozarabic rite. Their aim, as stated in the 
 preface to this liturgy (a translation of which can be 
 obtained through any bookseller from the publishers, 
 Messrs. Thom and Co., Dublin), is ' not to introduce a 
 new religion, but to return to the primitive purity of 
 early Christianity, disembarrassing and clearing it from 
 the thorns and noxious weeds which have been wilfully 
 sown, or from ignorance allowed to spring up in the 
 midst of it.' These reformers may, in fact, be de- 
 scribed as the ' Old Catholics ' of Spain, and as such 
 their representatives met with a cordial recognition at 
 the late Lucerne (Old Catholic) Congress. There can 
 be no doubt — I may say in passing — that their leader 
 (Sefior Cabrera) would have, long ere now, received 
 consecration from the Old Catholic bishops of Ger- 
 many and Switzerland, were it not for the intervention 
 of the Old Catholics of Holland, who withheld their 
 consent on"the ground that the clergy of the ' Reformed 
 Spanish Church ' are required to subscribe a ' declara- 
 tion of doctrine ' identical in substance with our own 
 ' Thirty-nine Articles.' This action of the Dutch Old 
 Catholics (by whom some of our ' Articles ' are, I 
 believe, considered heretical) may not cause surprise. 
 But loyal Churchmen of our own communion — 
 especially those by whom these ' Articles ' have been 
 
26o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 subscribed — will not, I hope, regard the reformers of 
 Spain with less sympathy because their application was 
 refused on such a plea. 
 
 " The adherents of this little Church are at present 
 but few in number — amounting in all to about 2500 
 souls. Their congregations are, however, widely dis- 
 tributed throughout the land, being found in Madrid, 
 Seville, Malaga, Valladolid, Salamanca, and other centres 
 of national life, and these congregations, be it remem- 
 bered, have all come into being within an interval of 
 less than five-and-twenty years. 
 
 "As regards my own relation to this Church a 
 few words are necessary. Some twelve years ago a 
 memorial was presented to the Irish bishops by these 
 reformers, asking for the consecration of their bishop- 
 elect ; and at the request of my brethren I visited 
 Spain and Portugal for the purpose of making in- 
 quiries as to the subject referred to therein. That 
 visit convinced me beyond a doubt that the move- 
 ment in question was a real one, and that it was not 
 due either to artificial pressure from without or to 
 self-interest, but to a deep-seated craving for some- 
 thing more in the shape of religious liberty and spiri- 
 tual help than had been found by these reformers 
 within the Church of Rome. The same impressions 
 were left upon my mind by two subsequent visits, 
 during the course of which, with the sanction of my 
 brethren at home, I consented, at the earnest re- 
 quest of these reformers, to discharge for them cer- 
 tain episcopal functions from which, for lack of a 
 bishop of their own, they would otherwise have been 
 debarred. 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 261 
 
 " I have thought it right to make these prehminary 
 remarks in order to show fthat, when holding out a 
 helping hand to these reformers in their hour of need, 
 my action has been neither arbitrary nor intrusive. 
 Following what I believe to be the precedents of the 
 early Christian Church, I have taken no step without 
 first consulting the prelates of my own communion, or 
 without first receiving an invitation from those among 
 whom my duties were to be performed. There are, I 
 know, some who think that in so acting I have tres- 
 passed upon the domain of the Church of Rome ; and 
 this might with more reason have been urged had I 
 intruded my episcopal offices on any flocks belonging 
 to her fold. But to represent the Church of Rome as 
 claiming exclusive jurisdiction not only over those 
 who acknowledge her sway, but over those whom 
 she has herself publicly disowned as outcasts from 
 her pale, would be to charge that Church with a 
 lack, not only of Christian charity, but of common 
 sense — a charge which she should be the first to 
 resent. In any case, such a notion has always seemed 
 to me at variance with every instinct of liberty and 
 justice, and, whether rightly or wrongly, my con- 
 science has never allowed me to give it a moment's 
 thought. 
 
 " I now pass on to the visit from which I have just 
 returned, and to the strange results which followed in 
 its train. I made that visit under special circum- 
 stances. In undertaking it I was armed by the 
 sanction of an overwhelming majority both of the 
 Episcopate and the General Synod of my own Church 
 — a sanction given with more formality and deliberation 
 
262 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 than in any prior case. I had the great satisfaction 
 of being accompanied by another Irish prelate — 
 the Bishop of Clogher. The invitation, moreover, 
 which reached me from the Spanish reformers was on 
 this occasion invested with an exceptional interest, for 
 I was asked not merely to ordain their pastors and 
 confirm their children, but also to open formally a new 
 range of buildings (including a church, schoolhouse, 
 synod-hall, and parsonage), which had just been 
 erected on a prominent site in the city of Madrid. The 
 cost of these buildings, including the purchase of the 
 site (in itself nearly ;£'40oo) and the furnishing of the 
 rooms, amounts to more than ;£■ 12,000, of which about 
 ;f 10,000 has been already raised in Great Britain and 
 Ireland. These buildings are, in fact, a gift to the 
 reformers of Madrid from the many friends here at 
 home who wish them well. The church, I may add, 
 which forms the central block, is intended as a special 
 token of sympathy from Irish Churchmen, who have 
 made themselves responsible for the whole outlay 
 (more than ;^30oo) which its erection and its fittings 
 involve. 
 
 " The prospect of opening these buildings and con- 
 secrating this church was in itself enough to give a 
 special interest to my visit, but there was yet another 
 reason. It was thought by many that such an 
 occasion might fitly serve as an opportunity for 
 gathering together some of those leading reformers 
 in other lands who were likely to sympathise with 
 their brethren in Spain. Conferences for the pur- 
 pose of such Christian union and brotherly converse 
 had been held at Grindelwald and at Lucerne ; 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 263 
 
 why not, then, at Madrid ? Accordingly, invita- 
 tions were sent to P^re Hyacinthe in France and to 
 Count Campello in Italy, and were by both gladly 
 accepted. 
 
 " Such were the circumstances which gave promise 
 of a happy reunion, in Christian fellowship, of brethren 
 who, while recognising to the full the sacred right of 
 others to worship God as their conscience might 
 dictate, did not consider it presumptuous to claim for 
 themselves a similar right, and nothing more. They 
 well knew that no pubHc demonstration was permis- 
 sible under Spanish law on the part of any religious 
 community outside the Church of Rome, and this rule 
 they were prepared loyally to observe. But the right 
 to meet within the walls of their own place of worship 
 they deemed to be inalienably theirs, and they looked 
 forward confidently to using it without let or hind- 
 rance. Meanwhile, however, others were on the alert 
 to thwart these expectations. A number of ladies in 
 high position, well known as devoted adherents of the 
 Church of Rome, waited upon the Archbishop of the 
 province, and entreated him to do what he could to 
 prevent the opening of the new church. The Ultra- 
 montane Press fulminated against all who were to be 
 represented in the proposed gathering. Pere Hya- 
 cinthe and Count Campello were denounced as ' apos- 
 tates,' and their friends of the Anglican communion as 
 ' pagans.' The opening of so attractive a church in so 
 prominent a position by Protestants was described as 
 an ' audacious ' attempt to ' desecrate ' the Catholic 
 city of Madrid. The whole thing was a ' scandal,' and 
 should on no terms be allowed. Upon the other hand. 
 
264 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 very tolerant and even friendly notices, expressing, as 
 I believe, the feelings of the vast majority of the 
 citizens, appeared in some of the Liberal papers, and 
 for a while no real obstacle seemed to block the 
 way, 
 
 " Great, therefore, was our surprise and disappoint- 
 ment when on the day preceding that fixed for our 
 opening service a message arrived from the Alcalde 
 (or ' Mayor ') saying that no such opening could be 
 allowed until the certificate of the municipal architect 
 had been first obtained. A word of explanation is 
 here necessary. 
 
 " Before a religious meeting can be held in any new 
 building two pre-requisites are demanded by the letter 
 of the law. In the first place, notice of the meeting 
 and of its object must be sent to the authorities. This 
 condition, as a rule, is rigidly exacted, and in the case 
 of the new buildings it had been duly observed. The 
 other condition is of a more formal and, in ordinary 
 cases, of a far less stringent character. It has in view 
 simply the security and habitable fitness of the building 
 from an architect's point of view, and has no relation 
 to what may take place within its walls. In cases 
 where no structural insecurity or unfitness is to be 
 apprehended this requirement becomes a mere for- 
 mality, and a visit of the inspector long after the 
 building has been opened is deemed an ample fulfil- 
 ment of its purpose. Inasmuch as the erection of the 
 new buildings in question had been superintended by 
 the architect of the King's palace, it had not been 
 deemed necessary to apply for a certificate previous to 
 the opening. It was no doubt an oversight, but it was 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 265 
 
 a pardonable one, and one which under other circum- 
 stances would never for a moment have been used for 
 obstructive purposes. But in this case it was turned 
 to that account, and everybody in Madrid, as the 
 public papers testified, knew well the motive which 
 prompted the act. 
 
 " If this had been all, however, the remedy would 
 not have been far to seek, for there was still time 
 enough to obtain the required certificate and to open 
 the church before those who had come from great 
 distances and at great inconvenience had dispersed to 
 their homes again. Application was therefore at once 
 made to the authorities, and our hopes revived. But 
 again disappointment was in store. Hour after hour, 
 day after day, passed by, and yet the application was 
 allowed to lie on the Alcalde's table, and the mere 
 technical formalities of inspection, which half-an- 
 hour would have sufficed to fulfil, were vexatiously 
 postponed. 
 
 " At last, when Saturday arrived and no answer had 
 been received, all prospect of opening the church in 
 the presence of the friends (including Pere Hyacinthe 
 and Count Campello) who had been invited to witness 
 it was abandoned, and it was resolved that the conse- 
 cration should be postponed until after my retnrn 
 from Portugal, for which I was about to start on the 
 following night, and where I purposed to spend a week 
 or ten days. 
 
 " Meanwhile we looked forward to the opportunity 
 that would be given us on the intervening Sunday for 
 meeting together in common worship before setting 
 forth on our separate journeys. True, we could not 
 
266 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 hope to assemble, as we had expected, in the new- 
 church, but we could do so in the large Synod Hall, 
 which forms a part of the new buildings, and which, 
 without any protest from the authorities, had been 
 used by the congregation as a provisional place of 
 worship for the last fourteen months. But even this 
 was not to be. 
 
 " Upon the Sunday morning a message came from 
 the Alcalde to the effect that even in this hall our 
 service should not take place, and a detachment of 
 civil guards was posted opposite the entrance to bar 
 any ingress from without. Supposing that the Alcalde 
 might have thus acted under a suspicion that it was 
 our purpose, under pretence of assembling in the 
 Synod Hall, to make our way through it into the 
 church, we despatched a messenger to assure him 
 respectfully that such was not the case, and suggesting 
 that, by placing the guards within the church, he could 
 effectually prevent any such action on our part. But 
 it was of no use. 
 
 " Looking out from the windows of the pastor's 
 residence (which forms the right-hand block of the 
 new buildings), we saw our friends one by one reach- 
 ing the entrance of the Synod Hall, and one by 
 one forbidden to pass within. Not only so. Admis- 
 sion to the pastor's house itself was prohibited, and 
 we, his guests, were informed that should we pass 
 out from beneath his roof we should not be allowed 
 to return. Finally, it was arranged that our service 
 should be held in a church kindly placed at our 
 disposal for the purpose by another reformed con- 
 gregation in Madrid, and in order to take part in 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 267 
 
 it I we, 'who were the pastor's guests, had to pack 
 up our goods and find shelter in a hotel pending 
 our start for Portugal that night. Not inaptly said 
 a friend who was waiting for us as we left the house, 
 and who accompanied us to the hotel, that he some- 
 how felt as if he were taking part in a prison-gate 
 mission ! 
 
 " As to the service which was held that afternoon in 
 the little chapel to which I have referred, I shall say 
 but little. It was a time of holy, happy communion 
 between men of different races and different Churches, 
 many of whom had dared and suffered much for con- 
 science' sake. Especially solemn was the moment 
 when, during the rite of ordination — with a view to 
 which the service was held, — there were laid upon the 
 head of the kneeling candidate the hands not only of 
 myself, my brother bishop, and an English dignitary, 
 but also those of Senor Cabrera, P^re Hyacinthe, and 
 Count Campello, representing, as they did, the three 
 great Latin races of the world, and betokening by 
 their action the unity that should exist between them 
 and us. It was enough to witness such a scene in order 
 to be assured that the coming together of such men 
 for such a service, at whatever cost or inconvenience, 
 was not in vain. ' It marks an era,' said Pere 
 Hyacinthe to me, as he grasped my hand at parting, 
 ' in the history of the Christian Church ! ' 
 
 " But to return. Refreshing beyond measure were 
 these tokens of Christian union to which I have just 
 referred. But as regards the cause of religious liberty, 
 the battle had hitherto gone against us. A change for 
 the better was now at hand. 
 
268 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "That night I and my brother bishop with two 
 companions bid good-bye to our friends from other 
 lands and started for Portugal. But before we left 
 the hotel an event occurred which gave us courage. 
 Senor Castelar, the great Spanish orator and well- 
 known foe of religious intolerance, called upon Pfere 
 Hyacinthe and asked for an interview on the following 
 day. What took place at that interview I know not. 
 But a meeting between two such men must have been 
 full of interest, and, as regards the cause of religious 
 liberty, their converse cannot have been in vain. 
 Immediately after that interview there appeared in a 
 leading Liberal journal {El Globo) an editorial article 
 protesting in temperate but firm language against what 
 had taken place. ' It is disgraceful,' said the writer, 
 ' that the Archbishop of Dublin should return to his 
 country and there bear witness to the intolerance 
 which rules here. But it is above all unjust and 
 illegal to ignore a sacred right which the Protestants 
 invoke in order freely to hold their religious services 
 under the shelter of the Constitution.' Such manifes- 
 tations of public opinion, backed up by influence 
 brought to bear upon the authorities from other 
 sources, cannot have been without some effect. But 
 God's ways are not our ways. By a strange coinci- 
 dence an unexpected event occurred, just at this 
 very crisis, which altogether altered the position of 
 affairs. 
 
 " In consequence of some financial complications 
 the Ministry of Seiior Canovas, then in power — a 
 Ministry notably subject to Ultramontane influence — 
 resigned the seals of office, and the rems of government 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 269 
 
 were transferred to Senor Sagasta, a statesman who 
 more nearly represents the aspirations of the Spanish 
 people, and in whose hands the interests of religious 
 liberty have always been comparatively safe. By the 
 time that we returned to Portugal this sudden trans- 
 formation scene had taken place ; and though, owing 
 to the hurry and confusion attending a change of 
 Ministry, no formal communication was received from 
 the authorities which would have allowed the church 
 to be opened before our departure from Madrid, the 
 question, meanwhile, was not being overlooked ; and 
 it was with feelings of unspeakable thankfulness that, 
 a few hours before our homeward start, we read in a 
 morning journal the report of a council held by the 
 new Ministry, at which, among other resolutions, it 
 was determined that no further obstruction should be 
 permitted to hinder the opening of the new church 
 and the holding of services therein. It was no doubt 
 a disappointment to me and my companions that, 
 through the Ultramontane tactics of a few narrow- 
 minded partisans, we and the friends that had joined 
 us from other lands had been debarred from taking 
 part in the opening of that church. But pending the 
 formal act of consecration, which- I trust I may be 
 spared to consummate at some future time, I have 
 licensed the building, meanwhile, for the celebra- 
 tion of divine worship and the ministration of the 
 sacraments ; and, unless some unforeseen reverse 
 should intervene, the opening of the church for 
 such holy purposes will ere long most surely take 
 place. The rights of conscience have been vindi- 
 cated. The battle for religious liberty has been 
 
270 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 fought, and, through the help of God, the battle has 
 been won ! 
 
 "The cause is a holy one, and, having gone so 
 far, I must go through to the end. Again, therefore, 
 I ask, are there not some who will liberally and 
 promptly come to my help ? I shall anxiously await 
 a response. 
 
 •• PLUNKET DUBLIN. 
 
 " The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 ''Dec. 20." 
 
 The Bishop of Clogher adds much to the picturesque- 
 ness of the scene at Madrid by the following description 
 of what he witnessed : 
 
 "On his arrival at Madrid the Archbishop found that the 
 opening and consecration of the church would not be sanc- 
 tioned by the authorities, but he was not prepared for the 
 interference with the usual service in the Synod Hall. How- 
 ever, on Sunday morning, December 4, the police took posses- 
 sion of the buildings and would not allow any one to enter. 
 The congregation and sympathising English friends assembled 
 in the street. The scene was highly amusing and characteristic. 
 One of the Archbishop's party attempted to leave the house to 
 speak to a friend in the street, and immediately the gentleman 
 in command of the police exclaimed, ' You must not venture to 
 cross this line, or I shall not permit you to return.' A friend 
 in the street called out, ' This is stupid !' and the officer became 
 greatly excited. He insisted that this word must be withdrawn. 
 However, the oflfender, who had been a resident in Spain for 
 many years, treated him with scant respect, and he became 
 suddenly quite quiet again. The scene was very ludicrous. 
 Meanwhile the Archbishop sat upstairs very much perplexed 
 and annoyed. Finally he decided to leave for an hotel, and 
 
Consecration of the Madrid Church 271 
 
 thus free himself from the hands of the police. In all this 
 matter, as indeed in every difficulty which presented itself, the 
 Archbishop showed the most remarkable self-control. It is 
 impossible to see how he could, under very trying circum- 
 stances, have acted with greater prudence. All the party were 
 thoroughly persuaded of this." 
 
CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 CONSECRATION OF SENOR CABRERA 
 
 The years 1893-94 were of great importance in the 
 history of the Spanish Reformed Church. Great efforts 
 were made by the authorities in Spain to prevent the 
 progress of the Church in Madrid. On this subject 
 Dr. Noyes says : 
 
 " Fears were often expressed by the Ultramontane party 
 with respect to the Episcopal movement, it being felt that it 
 contained elements of success which were not found in other 
 bodies of reformed Christians, especially as it was an entirely 
 native movement, aided only by a foreign Church." 
 
 An extract from one of Lord Plunket's letters to 
 Dr. Noyes gives an impression of the efforts being 
 made by some to frustrate the reformers' work. The 
 letter is dated from Dublin on January 28, 1893 : 
 
 " I have not yet heard from Cabrera as to permission 
 having been given for the opening [of the church]. 
 I advised him to remove the cross and the inscription, 
 if it would facilitate the action of the Government in 
 the matter, and am expecting to hear further from him 
 every day. Several messengers — one from the Queen's 
 Palace — have waited upon him, asking him if he would 
 sell the buildings, and offering him three times their 
 
Consecration of Senor Cabrera 273 
 
 value ! He told them that all the Ultramontanes in 
 Spain had not enough money to purchase them — that 
 they were not built to be sold, but to be used ! " 
 
 On March 17 of this year the church was at last 
 opened, and Lord Plunket was much gratified at 
 receiving the news in a letter from a civil engineer who 
 had been for many years resident in Spain and had 
 taken a deep interest in the movement for reform. 
 This gentleman said that the church was opened in 
 great order and amid a solemn awe which pervaded 
 the congregation. 
 
 Early in 1894 Lord Plunket was busily engaged in 
 preparing for the meeting of Irish bishops which took 
 place in February. It was then that the famous com- 
 munication was made by the Archbishop of Dublin, 
 the Bishop of Clogher, and the Bishop of Down, who 
 stated that, unless they were met by a formal protest 
 in the shape of a resolution passed by the bench of 
 Irish bishops or by the General Synod, they purposed, 
 God willing, to visit Spain and Portugal, and there to 
 consecrate for each of these two Churches a bishop, 
 who should have been chosen by the Synod of that 
 Church, and of whose fitness they themselves, after 
 due investigation, should be fully satisfied. They then 
 set forth the conditions on which they were prepared 
 to act : 
 
 " I. We shall require an affirmation by the Synods of these 
 Churches of guarantees similar to those which of their own 
 accord they offered in the year 1883, and which were to the 
 following effect — 
 
 " (i.) That until they shall have, in each case, three 
 
 s 
 
274 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 bishops of their own, there shall be associated with their 
 own bishop or bishops a provisional council consisting of 
 two or three bishops of the Church of Ireland ; 
 
 "(ii.) That during the same interval the Synod of each 
 Church shall be pledged — 
 
 " (a) Not to permit the election or consecration of any 
 bishop for the said Church without the written consent of 
 the provisional council of bishops ; 
 
 " (d) Not to alter or add to the doctrines, formularies, 
 or discipline of the said Church without the previous 
 approval of the provisional council ; 
 
 " (c) To submit for the examination and sanction of 
 
 the provisional council every resolution of a fundamental 
 
 character that may be proposed for adoption by a future 
 
 Synod. 
 
 " II. We shall require that an endowment fund of at least 
 
 ;^5ooo shall be guaranteed by those friends at home who may 
 
 be willing to help in the accomplishment of this good work.'' 
 
 In reply to this communication, it was proposed by 
 the Bishop of Derry, seconded by the Bishop of Cork, 
 and lost : 
 
 "That the Archbishop and bishops do not see sufficient 
 reason for departing from the spirit of their resolution of 
 February 19, 1889." 
 
 It was then proposed by the Bishop of Killaloe, 
 seconded by the Bishop of Meath, and passed — the 
 Bishops of Derry and Cork not voting : 
 
 "That, considering the length of time during which the 
 applications of the Spanish and Portuguese reformers for the 
 consecration of bishops have been before us, the difficulties 
 under which they have laboured, and the progress made during 
 that time in numbers, in the adoption of liturgical services, in 
 the building of churches, and in the forming of congregations, 
 
Consecration of Senor Cabrera 275 
 
 they would not regard it as an indefensible exercise of the 
 powers entrusted to the Episcopate if, at the request of such 
 congregations, the Archbishop of Dublin, who is intimately 
 acquainted with the history of the movement and with the 
 characters of those who are carrying it on, acting in concert 
 with two other bishops who may be willing to act with him, 
 either of the Church of Ireland or of a Church in communion 
 with the Church of Ireland, should, if he shall so deem fit, 
 proceed to Spain and Portugal and there confer episcopal 
 orders upon the two clergymen chosen in those two countries 
 respectively by the representatives of the said congregations, 
 and of whose personal fitness the consecrating bishops shall be 
 fully satisfied." 
 
 A few days afterwards Lord Plunket wrote the fol- 
 lowing letter, which gives his views of the result of 
 the bishops' meeting; 
 
 " The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 "Feb. 27, 1894. 
 
 " My dear Noyes, 
 
 * « « « « 
 
 " The result of the bishops' meeting is indeed 
 a cause of deep thankfulness to Almighty God. The 
 resolution then passed — which I may say in confi- 
 dence was drawn up by the Primate [Archbishop 
 Knox] — was no doubt somewhat guarded (almost 
 ' Gladstonian ') in its actual wording, but was suffi- 
 cient for the purpose in view. And it prevented an 
 overt protest upon the part of some who might have 
 contested it if expressed in a more definite form. 
 
 " Of course the action which I and the two other 
 bishops purpose to take remains in suspense until the 
 Synod has had an opportunity of entering a protest, 
 
276 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 should it so think fit. But though until then I cannot 
 finally announce my resolve, I do not anticipate any 
 serious opposition, certainly not such as to warrant us 
 in drawing back, A heavy broadsider from the 
 Guardian or Church Times would, I think, be rather 
 helpful than otherwise just now. . . . 
 
 " Yours sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
 The General Synod met in the following April, and 
 for two whole days debated the question. Most of the 
 men of note in the Church of Ireland took part in the 
 discussion, and Lord Plunket made one of his most 
 brilliant speeches. In the end the following resolution 
 was passed : 
 
 "That, seeing that memorials have been presented to the 
 archbishops and bishops of the Church of Ireland by two 
 organised bodies of reformers in Spain and Portugal respec- 
 tively ; and that the archbishops and bishops after full con- 
 sideration of these memorials have passed a resolution which 
 interposes no obstacle to a compliance with this request ; and 
 that the Archbishop of Dublin, the Bishop of Clogher, and 
 the Bishop of Down have expressed their readiness, under 
 certain conditions, to discharge the Episcopal duties for which 
 the memorialists have sought : 
 
 " This Synod, believing that such action belongs entirely to 
 the bishops themselves in the exercise of their Episcopal 
 powers, subject only to the laws and canons of the Church — 
 is satisfied, without expressing any opinion, to leave the matter 
 entirely in their hands." 
 
 This resolution partakes to some degree of the timid 
 character of almost all those passed (whether by the 
 Lambeth Conference or Dublin Synod) on the subject. 
 
Consecration of Senor Cabrera 277 
 
 The evident fear of the ecclesiastical " Mrs. Grundy" 
 recalls the old story of the undergraduate who watched 
 a member of another college drowning in the river, 
 but would not help him " because he had never been 
 introduced " ! So the sticklers for ecclesiastical 
 etiquette, and the timid ones who are always thinking 
 " What will so-and-so say ? " preferred to stand by and 
 watch the struggles of the reformed Churches without 
 committing themselves to a policy of assistance. Not 
 so Lord Plunket. His chivalry was thoroughly aroused: 
 he lost not a moment, now that his hands were free, in 
 preparing for the journey which he and his two 
 brother bishops were to make in the following 
 September. 
 
 The main fear now was opposition on the part 
 of the authorities in Spain. Lord Plunket, however, 
 did not think that any serious obstacles would be 
 found to exist. 
 
 " Old Conn aught House, 
 
 " Bray, Co. Wicklow, 
 
 "Sept. 6, 1894. 
 
 " My dear Noyes, 
 
 " I have heard from Cabrera again. He has 
 had an interview with the Civil Governor of Madrid 
 (by order of the Government). The Civil Governor 
 warned him against anything that could be interpreted 
 as a public manifestation, such as notice of the 
 intended consecration in the papers, &c., but said that 
 if the thing were done quietly we should be pro- 
 tected. . . . 
 
 " Yours sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
278 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 It was finally decided that the consecration of 
 Senor Cabrera should take place on Sunday, Sep- 
 tember 23, and on the previous Thursday the Arch- 
 bishop and bishops, with Dr. Noyes and other friends, 
 arrived at Madrid. The following description of the 
 ceremony is taken from Light and Truth : 
 
 " The preparation of all the necessary documents and the 
 arrangements for the solemn service on Sunday kept all engaged 
 until a late hour on the Saturday night. Great anxiety was 
 noticeable upon the faces of all. The Government had said 
 that if no public manifestation was made and no notice put 
 in the papers they would not interfere, and the fear was lest 
 some one unfriendly to the work of reform should insert some 
 notice in the Press, and give a pretext for interference, and it 
 could not be forgotten by many present that it was on the 
 Sunday morning on a former occasion that the authorities 
 closed the buildings. I am thankful, however, to state that all 
 has passed off without any hostile demonstration, and much 
 credit is due to the Spanish authorities for their determination 
 to protect the Spanish reformers in the exercise of their dearly 
 bought liberties. 
 
 " The service was fixed for ten o'clock, an hour earlier than 
 usual, as it would necessarily be longer than was customary. 
 
 " Punctually at the hour the three bishops, with Dr. Noyes 
 acting as chaplain to the Archbishop of Dublin, proceeded to 
 the vestry of the church, where they were met by the pastors 
 of the several congregations in Spain, who had come to Madrid 
 for the purpose, and also the members of the vestry. The 
 pastors, with the Rev. J. B. Cabrera, passed down the church 
 to the west door (which is still kept closed by the authorities) 
 on one side of the church, the Archbishop, bishops, and 
 chaplain proceeding down the other side of the church to 
 meet the Spanish clergy. After the presentation and reading 
 of the Act of Consecration, all proceeded to the chancel, the 
 choir and congregation singing Psalm xxiv. 
 
Consecration of Senor Cabrera 279 
 
 " After certain prayers from the ' Service for the Consecra- 
 tion of a Church ' the Act was signed, and the service for the 
 Holy Communion commenced. This service is peculiarly 
 rich and beautiful, and the parts to be sung were heartily joined 
 in by the choir and congregation. 
 
 " The Epistle was read by the Right Rev. the Bishop of 
 Clogher, and the Gospel by the Right Rev. the Bishop of 
 Down. After the Nicene Creed, a short sermon was preached 
 by the Rev. F. Palomares, from San Basilio, Seville, from St. 
 Matthew v. 14, ' Ye are the light of the world, a city that is 
 set on a hill cannot be hid.' At the conclusion he addressed 
 some earnest words to the Bishop-elect. Senor Palomares is 
 the oldest pastor in the Spanish Reformed Church, and is 
 much respected. At the close of the sermon the Bishop- 
 elect was presented to the Archbishop by the Right Revs, the 
 Bishops of Down and Clogher, and the election of Senor 
 Cabrera to the solemn office by the Synod was read by one of 
 the pastors. 
 
 "The Litany was said by the Rev. Antonio Garcia, the 
 assistant clergyman in Madrid, and at its close the Archbishop 
 took a chair at the chancel steps and put the solemn questions 
 from the service to the Bishop-elect. These questions were 
 put in English and Spanish, and answered by the Rev. J. B. 
 Cabrera in a loud voice. 
 
 " After the Bishop-elect had been robed in surplice, purple 
 and white cope, and purple stole, all having been prepared 
 from an ancient model, the three bishops laid their hands upon 
 the head of the Bishop-elect, and the first Bishop of a Re- 
 formed Church in Spain was duly consecrated. It was a 
 solemn moment, one that will never be forgotten by those who 
 witnessed it, and which evidently left a deep impression on all 
 present." 
 
 The Bishop of Clogher writes as follows : 
 
 "When in 1894 Bishop Cabrera was consecrated the cir- 
 cumstances were most trj^ing. Until the end of the service 
 
28o Archbishop Plunket 
 
 there was no certainty that the proceedings would not be in- 
 terrupted. During the whole service Senor Cabrera was 
 weighed down with the deepest emotion, which was the more 
 trying to witness since his usual bearing is that of a self-con- 
 tained, thoughtful man, in complete command of his every 
 feeling. 
 
 "After the service the scene in the vestry was wonderful. 
 The clergy fell in turn upon the Bishop's neck and wept aloud. 
 Their feelings, too, towards the Archbishop were expressed in 
 the most striking manner. The Archbishop's expression was 
 that of joy and gladness chastened by the thought of all that 
 he had suffered and surmounted in the long effort which was 
 now brought to a successful issue.'' 
 
 Dr. Noyes, in continuing the story, writes : 
 
 " After the ceremony, when we returned to the house of 
 Bishop Cabrera, the Archbishop took my hand, saying, ' Well, 
 Noyes, we have reason to thank God for this day.' We were 
 both overcome, but it was not a time for many words. One 
 felt it was indeed a making of history. 
 
 "The next morning we were all photographed in ihQ patio. 
 A medal was struck by order of the Synod to commemorate 
 the event. . . ." 
 
 However views may differ as to the action of Lord 
 Plunket, the importance of the step was at once recog- 
 nised. The news was telegraphed all over the world. 
 The Spanish papers were full of the subject, the clerical 
 (or Ultramontane) Press being bitterly opposed, while 
 the Liberal papers were jubilant at this advance 
 towards religious liberty. 
 
 It would serve no good purpose to go over in detail 
 the controversy which followed, and which lasted until 
 the Archbishop's death.* When letters kept appearing 
 
 * The five charges made against Archbishop Plunket's action were : 
 
Consecration of Senor Cabrera 281 
 
 in Church papers displaying a bitter spirit and a 
 strange want of appreciation of the real facts of the 
 case, Lord Plunket wrote : 
 
 " As you may see from the papers, I am still beset 
 with foes — ' they daily mistake my words.' I quite 
 entered into the Psalmist's feelings as I joined in that 
 complaint of his in last Sunday's Psalms." 
 
 I. Intrusion. 2. Heterodoxy. 3. Paucity of numbers. 4. Disregard 
 of Anglican opinion. 5. The non-Mozarabic character of the Prayer- 
 book when it claimed to be Mozarabic. These charges were disposed 
 of in a speech by Canon Meyrick at a meeting held in Exeter Hall on 
 March 29, 1895. The arguments were set forth at some length, and 
 were most conclusive. A full report will be found in The Foreign Church 
 Chronicle and Review for 1895, pp. 96, &c. 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE ITALIAN REFORMED CHURCH 
 
 On the subject of Lord Plunket's work for the 
 Italian reformers there is no such authority as Canon 
 Meyrick, the personal friend of the Archbishop and the 
 chief organiser of the Anglo-Continental Society. 
 
 With this society Lord Plunket was intimately 
 associated. The main difference in views between him 
 and the society was one of time. Both wished for 
 reform from inside the Roman Church if possible. Lord 
 Plunket saw the hopelessness of this sooner than other 
 people. In all other respects he worked heart and 
 soul with Canon Meyrick and his society. 
 
 Before passing to the exceedingly valuable paper 
 written by Canon Meyrick, mention must be made of 
 the labours of the late Miss Mayor, sister of Professor 
 Mayor of Cambridge, whose interest in the work for the 
 Italian reformers brought her into frequent communi- 
 cation with the Archbishop. 
 
 One or two of his letters to this lady are of special 
 interest. For instance, on the much disputed question 
 of the initiative in his work for the foreign reformers, 
 he writes on May 31, 1888 : 
 
 " We must be continually on our guard against the 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 283 
 
 supposition that we are the missionaries or the re- 
 formers. We are only helping by sympathy and 
 money those who are reforming themselves." 
 
 Then there are one or two letters as to the liturgy, in 
 which he and Canon Meyrick had suggested some 
 alterations which were not altogether to the taste of 
 Count Campello — the leader of the Italian reformers. 
 
 {To Miss May or ^ 
 
 " The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 " Oct. 29, 1891. 
 
 "... . The question is not what I myself may be 
 prepared to tolerate in the Italian liturgy. If I were 
 merely an interested spectator of the work, I should 
 perhaps trouble myself but little as to whether the 
 liturgy contained prayers for the dead or not. I 
 would continue to sympathise all the same with the 
 reformers, and to contribute towards their support. 
 And of course, if Campello will not accept our amend- 
 ments, that is the position which I shall occupy in the 
 future. But it is as chairman of your committee, and 
 as a public advocate for the cause, that I am staggered 
 by what has taken place. I should never have under- 
 taken the difficult task of organising that committee, 
 and inducing others to join it, unless I had believed from 
 Campello's distinct and often-repeated assurance that I 
 could with an honest heart appeal to men and women 
 of the Evangelical and Protestant section of our 
 Church .... on behalf of this work as one which 
 they could heartily approve. ... To conceal this 
 liturgy from them would be dishonest, and the 
 
284 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 moment they see it that moment their sympathy in the 
 movement must end, and they will justly complain 
 of having been grievously misled. I have been 
 misled. . . ." 
 
 [To Miss Mayor.] 
 
 " Old Connaught House, Bray, 
 
 "Sepf. 23, 1891. 
 
 " I write now because of an expression [in a certain 
 report] which is I fear misleading. It says ' the 
 Bishop of Salisbury is perfectly at one with Lord 
 Plunket about our liturgy.' Too glad would I be if 
 this were the case, but, though I trust that some solu- 
 tion of the present difficulty may be found, I am sorry 
 to say that the Bishop and (I fear) Campello are not 
 prepared to accept the suggestions with reference to 
 that liturgy which Canon Meyrick and myself ventured 
 to offer as essential in our opinion to its finding favour 
 with those by whom the work is at present supported." 
 
 "The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 "March 5, 1892. 
 
 " I wish much you would try to obtain for me some 
 evidence (documentary or otherwise) of the fact that 
 Canon Meyrick and myself were requested by Count 
 Campello to revise his liturgy previous to its being 
 submitted to the Bishop of Salisbury and to his Synod. 
 I know that it was in accordance with such a request 
 that we undertook the work, but I can find no record 
 in writing of how it came about." 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 285 
 
 "May 31, 1892. 
 
 " We had our interview this morning with the 
 Bishop of Salisbury, and I am thankful to say that 
 I think I see some light out of our difficulties with- 
 out abandonment of any principle on our part. 
 We are, God willing, to have a further conference 
 on the ist of July, when I trust we may be able to 
 complete that portion of the revision work — viz., the 
 ' Ordinaries ' or Communion Offices — which was under 
 our consideration to-day." 
 
 Concerning this interview with the Bishop of 
 Salisbury, a touching little incident occurred. At its 
 close the Archbishop said to Canon Meyrick, " When 
 we were discussing that point with the bishop I was 
 praying so earnestly that his heart might be moved." 
 
 The story of the work for the Italian Reformed 
 Church must now be left for Canon Meyrick to tell.. 
 He writes : 
 
 " Lord Plunket's experiences in Connemara led him to take 
 a special interest in the prospect of a reform on the Continent. 
 His attention having been caught by the result of the first 
 Conference of Bonn, held in 1874 by members of the Old 
 Catholic, Anglican, and Oriental Churches, he took care to be 
 present at the Conference of 1875. He was not yet a bishop, 
 and he did not take any very leading part in the discussions of 
 that Conference, but what he then saw and heard made an 
 impression on him which was never effaced. He learnt to love 
 and reverence Dr. von DoUinger, the president of the Con- 
 ference, and his heart burned within him at the hope and 
 prospect of embracing as brethren in the faith such noble men 
 as DoUinger, Reinkens, Reusch, Knoodt, Friedrich, Von. 
 
286 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Schulte, Herzog, as well as Kir^efF, Janyscheff, Ossinin, 
 Lycurgus, Damalas, whom, to his joy, he found not only ready 
 to protest against the errors, new and old, of Rome, but also 
 inspired with a genuine love of Christ and an earnest zeal for 
 Evangelical truth. His own words, spoken next year at the 
 Plymouth Church Congress, show how much he was moved : 
 
 " ' The Bonn Conference, regarded simply as an out- 
 going of Christian love and courage, must command 
 the sympathies of all. It was a bold thought to strike 
 aloud the half-forgotten keynote of unity in the ears 
 of a divided Christendom, and there is not one of us, I 
 feel sure, who does not honour the brave Dollinger 
 and the large-hearted Reinkens for having made the 
 noble venture, . . . 
 
 "'That which supplies the most conclusive answer 
 to all the misgivings which have troubled myself or, 
 so far as I know, perplexed others respecting the 
 expediency and practicability of the effort represented 
 by the Bonn Conference is to be found, as I believe, 
 not so much in elaborate arguments as in the realisa- 
 tion of the idea of unity pictured to us in that Con- 
 ference itself. That picture I was myself privileged to 
 witness. It is one that I can never forget. 
 
 " ' Even now, as I recall to my own mind that little 
 room in the University of Bonn, and those who were 
 gathered together there last year ; as I seem to see 
 again, conspicuous amongst all, the marvellous 
 Dollinger, that old man eloquent, with keen glance 
 and playful smile, and busy brain still aglow with 
 quenchless fire of youth ; as Reinkens too stands 
 again before me, the chosen bishop of his people, 
 with manly loving face, true reflex of the heart within, 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 287 
 
 not speaking many words, but those words always 
 wise and true ; and Lycurgus of Syra, the gentle 
 archbishop, always on the side of peace, since called 
 away to dwell where peace reigns supreme ; as I seem 
 to hear again the two lay professors of theology, 
 Ossinin of St. Petersburg and Damalas of Athens, 
 arguing their case with such rare dialectical skill and 
 true Christian temper ; and as around these central 
 figures I behold the representatives of almost every 
 leading form of Christianity, summoned together from 
 the farthest corners of the earth, Episcopalians and non- 
 Episcopalians, laymen and clerics, all taking counsel 
 together in a spirit of loving confederation and wor- 
 shipping God together in a spirit of loving inter- 
 communion ; when I remember, too, how good and 
 pleasant and profitable a thing I found it myself to 
 meet in frank and friendly intercourse brethren of my 
 own communion with whom as theologians I can 
 never expect to be mind to mind, but with whom 
 as Christians I may hope long to continue heart to 
 heart : when, I say, I recall that scene in Bonn, with 
 all its associations, a thousand otherwise formidable 
 difficulties vanish before the retrospect, as chaff 
 before the wind ; the battle of unity seems to be half 
 won, the possibility of union on a wide basis and 
 with practical results seems to me to be well-nigh 
 demonstrated by the inexorable logic of facts. Only 
 let the movement preserve in the future those compre- 
 hensive features which marked that scene in Bonn, 
 let it never allow itself to dwindle down to narrow 
 or sectarian dimensions, and it cannot come to 
 nought. Even should some untoward complications 
 
288 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 mar the prospect of the present special effort, the 
 yearning which it has awakened in many hearts will 
 not easily die out. Those who are now searching for 
 unity may fail to find the particular treasure for which 
 they dig, but if in the process of searching they break 
 up and soften the hard soil of prejudice and bigotry, 
 they will, with God's help, gain their end at last in an 
 unexpected but not less real form. Yes ! a desire for 
 unity is not something of the earth earthy ; it is a 
 reflection, even in broken and wavering image, of the 
 wish which formed our Saviour's parting prayer. In 
 one way or another it will have His blessing.' 
 
 " Italy was not represented at the Bonn Conferences. Ten 
 years before the Vatican Council was held, while German 
 theologians still thought that Roman arrogance was a thing 
 that must be endured in patience, Italy had raised the cry of 
 reform. From the northern extremity of the Peninsula to 
 the southern — in Turin, where Passaglia had headed 9000 
 priests in protesting against the temporal power and had been 
 duly excommunicated ; in Milan, where ninety-three clergy 
 had combined in what the Jesuit organ, the Civilta CattoUca, 
 called ' a scandalous, schismatical, and revolutionary society, 
 guilty of rebelling against the Pope and the Holy Roman 
 See ' ; in Bergamo, near which the patriotic old nobleman, 
 Ottavio Tasca, was exerting an active influence ; in Brescia, 
 where Canon Tiboni was pleading for the permissive use of 
 the Bible; in Florence, where Signor Bianciardi had estab- 
 lished the Esaminatore newspaper; in Rome, where Canon 
 Audisio and Monsignore Liverani were advocating reform, 
 though with bated breath ; in Naples, where the powerful 
 Society Emancipatrice had been formed, and where Cardinal 
 Andrea defied the Pope in the name of the Catholic Episcopate 
 until he was taken off by a sudden death brought about, as 
 was supposed, by poison during a visit to Rome ; in Messina, 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 289 
 
 where a society, similar in its objects to that at Naples, had 
 been instituted to restore the doctrine, discipline, and worship 
 of the Italian Church to their primitive purity — everywhere 
 there was a call for deliverance of the national Church from 
 the Papal sway. But Ricasoli had succeeded Cavour as Prime 
 Minister, and though his sympathies were with the reformers, 
 he was rather an Italian politician than a statesman or Church- 
 man. In 1866 he inaugurated a policy of reconciliation with 
 the Papacy, and permitted the Pope to nominate bishops for 
 the many vacant Italian sees.* The result was that in every 
 corner of Italy reformers had the choice put before them 
 of starvation or silent conformity. Thus it was that, when the 
 German movement took place in 1871, the Italians stood 
 sullenly aloof, as men who had made their effort and failed 
 and suffered for their attempt. The time of the second phase 
 of the Italian movement had not yet come. 
 
 " Already Lord Plunket's eyes were being turned towards 
 Italy. Dr. Nevin, the American chaplain in Rome, had been 
 at Bonn, and he invited Lord Plunket to preach one of the 
 sermons at the consecration of the new American church just 
 built in Rome, called ' St. Paul's within the Walls,' in contra- 
 distinction to the well-known basiUca, ' St. Paul's without the 
 Walls.' The consecration took place on January 25, 1876, 
 and the preachers on the occasion were the Bishop of Long 
 Island (Dr. Littlejohn), the Bishop of Peterborough (Dr. 
 Magee, afterwards Archbishop of York), the Bishop of Gibraltar 
 (Dr. Sandford), Lord Plunket (the future Bishop of Meath and 
 Archbishop of Dublin), Dr. H. C. Potter (the present Bishop 
 of New York), the Rev. Stopford Brooke (in place of Dr. 
 Howson, Dean of Chester), and Dr. Nevin (the chaplain). 
 Lord Plunket took for his subject Catholic unity, and for his 
 text 'One God and Father of AH' (Eph. iv. 6). In his 
 sermon, beginning with a description of Truth as ' a statue 
 which must be gone round about and surveyed from many 
 points of view if we are to estimate its full proportions and 
 
 * About fifty sees were vacant. 
 
290 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 appreciate its perfect loveliness,' he dwelt upon the many 
 aspects in which the great truth of the Fatherhood of God 
 may present itself to His children, and ended with an appeal 
 on behalf of ' that grand effort for reunion among the separated 
 Churches of Christendom which has found expression in the 
 recent Conferences at Bonn, and which seems worthy to cast 
 a sunset glory on the declining years of that noble theologian. 
 Dr. DoUinger, by whom mainly it has been set on foot.' . . . 
 'I believe,' he continued, 'the attempt to be in the right 
 •direction, and that it will not lack a blessing from above. It 
 has for its object the promotion of that unity within Christ's 
 Catholic Church which ought, I think, to be so dear to every 
 child of God, and therefore, as it seems to me, we ought from 
 our hearts to wish it success.' 
 
 "In 1878 Lord Plunket's attention was again drawn to the 
 Old Catholic reformation by the Lambeth Conference, which 
 he attended now as Bishop of Meath. In that Conference he 
 did not take any very active part, but his interest was deeply 
 engaged by the discussion of the position which the Anglican 
 Church should assume ' towards the Old Catholics and towards 
 other persons on the Continent of Europe who have renounced 
 their allegiance to the Church of Rome and who are desirous 
 of forming some connection with the Anglican Church, either 
 English or American.' He gladly welcomed the following 
 declaration framed by a committee of the Conference and 
 adopted by the Conference itself, the wording of which was 
 mainly due to Bishop Christopher Wordsworth : 
 
 '"The fact that a solemn protest is raised in so many 
 Churches and Christian communities throughout the world 
 against the usurpations of the See of Rome and against the 
 novel doctrines promulgated by its authority is a subject of 
 thankfulness to Almighty God. All sympathy is due from the 
 Anglican Church to the Churches and individuals protesting 
 against these errors and labouring, it may be, under special 
 difificulties from the assaults of unbelief as well as from the 
 pretensions of Rome. . . . We gladly welcome every effort 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 291 
 
 for reform upon the model of the primitive Church. We do 
 not demand a rigid uniformity. We deprecate needless 
 divisions, but to those who are drawn to us in the endeavour 
 to free themselves from the yoke of error and superstition we 
 are ready to offer all help and such privileges as may be 
 acceptable to them and are consistent with the maintenance of 
 our own principles as enunciated in our formularies.' 
 
 " At the same time he witnessed and voted for the appoint- 
 ment of a permanent committee of the Conference ' for con- 
 sideration of any definite case in which advice and assistance 
 might from time to time be sought ' by such Continental re- 
 formers, the committee to consist of the Archbishops of 
 England and Ireland, the Bishop of London, the Primus of 
 Scotland, the presiding Bishop in America, the Bishop super- 
 intending American congregations on the Continent, and the 
 Bishop of Gibraltar. The action of this committee was at a 
 later time very important for France, Spain, and Italy. 
 
 "Up to this time Lord Plunket's sympathies had been 
 impartially bestowed on the cause of Continental reform and 
 Evangelical religion, in whatever country the reformers might 
 be found. But in the year 1879 his interest was for a time 
 focussed on Spain. This arose first from the Spanish and 
 Portuguese reformers having appealed to the Irish Church in 
 case the Lambeth Conference was unwilling to provide them 
 with a bishop, and secondly from a letter addressed to him 
 by Dr. Noyes, at that time a beneficed clergyman in his 
 diocese, in which he earnestly besought him as an Irish 
 bishop to take up the cause of the Spanish and Portuguese 
 reformers. The result was that for the next seven years such 
 time and care as Lord Plunket could give to Christians out- 
 side his own diocese and country were directed mainly to the 
 Spanish Peninsula. But nevertheless he kept himself in touch 
 with the Italian and German and Swiss and Austrian and 
 French movements by means of the Anglo-Continental Society, 
 of which he was an active member, never failing to attend its 
 committee meetings. 
 
292 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "In 1886 Italy became a special object of his care, owing 
 to a personal appeal made to him by Count Henry di 
 Campello. 
 
 " In 1 88 1 Count Henry di Campello had given up his 
 canonry at St. Peter's, and had withdrawn from the Roman 
 communion, ' ceasing,' as he said, ' to be a papist in order to 
 be the more catholic by holding the primitive faith in its ful- 
 ness.' This was the signal for a second reform movement in 
 Italy, the first having been crushed by Ricasoli's policy in 1866. 
 Campello made application for spiritual support to the Anglican 
 Church, and a formal licence recognising him and authorising 
 him to act was issued to him in 1883 by Bishop Littlejohn, of 
 Long Island, in his character of a bishop of the Church of 
 God, with the solemn and warm approval of the Archbishop of 
 Canterbury acting on behalf of the committee of the Lambeth 
 Conference named above. In the same year Campello was 
 joined by Monsignore Savarese, Paolo Panzani, and Filippo 
 Cicchitti. Campello and Savarese being excommunicated by 
 the Pope, a vigorous reply to the excommunication was re- 
 turned, signed by the above four men, Savarese, Campello, 
 Panzani, and Cicchitti. But Savarese had not sufficient 
 courage and firmness for the post which he held. He began 
 to fear loss of adequate support and the starvation which 
 Signor Prota's followers in Naples had undergone in 1866. 
 He therefore began to look back to Rome. Campello 
 could no longer act with him, and, in great distress of mind, 
 came to England for advice and and help in the crisis. He 
 asked for counsel as to the conduct of his work in Italy, for 
 help in the revision of the Italian liturgy, and for support for 
 the reforming clergy. While he was in England Savarese 
 recanted and was relegated to a monastery at Naples, where he 
 may now be living, or may have passed away unnoticed. His 
 place was for a moment taken at Rome by a Monsignore 
 Renier, who soon proved himself unfit for the post. In these 
 untoward circumstances the advice given to Campello was to 
 leave Rome for the present and begin work at Arrone, in 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 293 
 
 XJmbria, where his family was well known ; he was also 
 promised help in the revision of the liturgy; for material 
 support he threw himself upon the charity of Lord Plunket. 
 Lord Plunket, having fully convinced himself of the reality of 
 the man, and having assured himself that the cause of his 
 opposition to Papal error was his love of Evangelical truth, 
 accepted his petition and took counsel with Miss M. A. Mayor 
 and others as to the measures to be adopted. Miss Mayor was 
 a pious and saintly lady, who, having been at Rome (where she 
 formed a home for English art students and taught Italian 
 models) at the time that Campello raised his protest against the 
 Papacy, eagerly embraced the cause of reform and devoted 
 herself to its advancement. She was at this time in England, 
 and was co-operating with the Anglo-Continental Society, in 
 ■connection with which she was forming a ladies' committee. 
 With her help Lord Plunket gathered together a body of 
 ladies, to which some men were added as consulters ; and so 
 there was formed an Italian Church Reform Committee, which 
 soon afterwards took the title of the Italian Church Reform 
 Association, which it still retains. Lord Plunket ■ became its 
 <:hairman and president, and it undertook the laborious task 
 of finding funds to support the reforming clergy in Italy. It 
 confined itself to this task, for Lord Plunket was of all men 
 careful not to trespass on another's sphere, and it happened 
 that about the same time, on the Bishop of Long Island giving 
 up the spiritual superintendence of the reformed congregations 
 in Italy, that superintendence was transferred by the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury (Benson), still acting for the Lambeth 
 Conference, to the Right Rev. John Wordsworth, Bishop of 
 Salisbury, who undertook the ofiSce and has since exercised it. 
 Archbishop Plunket (he was now Archbishop of Dublin) care- 
 fully preserved all his rights to the Bishop of Salisbury, and 
 himself took the lower but most necessary office of providing 
 funds. 
 
 " He showed the same delicacy in respect to the revision of 
 the Italian liturgy for the use of the reformed community. 
 
294 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 The first edition of this liturgy was prepared by Monsignore 
 Savarese, a man of considerable liturgical knowledge, from the 
 Roman missals, the funds for its publication being found by 
 the Anglo-Continental Society. But this was only a tentative 
 effort, enabling Italians, for the first time since they had been 
 a nation, to hear and follow the service for the Holy Com- 
 munion in their own language or in any language that they 
 could understand. It was intended from the first that a second 
 edition of this liturgy should be issued with corrections. 
 When Savarese fell back into Romanism and was sent off to 
 Naples by the Roman authorities, he carried with him all the 
 copies of this liturgy that he could lay hands on. The result 
 was that the proposed revision and the issue of the second 
 edition of the book became at once necessary. The first 
 person to whom Campello made application for aid in com- 
 pleting this revision was the secretary of the Anglo-Continental 
 Society, Canon Meyrick, and when the Archbishop of Dublin 
 took up the Italian cause in the way described above, a similar 
 application was made to him. In consequence the Archbishop 
 and Canon Meyrick met frequently at Old Connaught House, 
 and bestowed much labour and time on the revision of the 
 existing book and on the consideration of the forms proposed 
 by Campello for the other parts of a Book of Common Prayer. 
 But in this the Archbishop did not think his own authority to 
 be final, however much the reformers might be materially 
 beholden to him and whatever was his own position in the 
 Church. As soon as he and Canon Meyrick and Campello 
 had agreed on forms which they regarded as suitable, they were 
 presented to the Bishop of Salisbury, as the Bishop appointed 
 by the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the 
 Lambeth Conference to supervise the Italian movement, and 
 reconsidered in several meetings held in the Lollards' Tower 
 of Lambeth Palace. Then they were recommended to Cam- 
 pello, and being approved by him, they were adopted by all 
 the congregations of the community. 
 
 " Lord Plunket had no hesitation as to his duty as a bishop 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 295 
 
 of the Church of God to give help to faithful Christians in any 
 part of Christendom who were suffering persecution for truth 
 and righteousness' sake, when they summoned him to their 
 aid. He had grasped the idea of the Catholic Episcopate, as 
 expounded by Cyprian, which prevailed throughout the Church 
 until it was superseded by the Papal theory, according to which 
 every member of the Episcopal body is invested with the right 
 and duty of defending the faith and the maintainers of the 
 faith, whenever and wherever assailed — a right and duty which 
 in ordinary cases is dormant, except in the limited sphere of a 
 diocese, but which awakes into active life and has to be exer- 
 cised and performed outside that area as soon as the need for 
 it arises. Many British and Irish Churchmen had forgotten 
 this salutary rule and principle of the primitive Church, owing 
 to the isolation in which they had so long lived. Fortunately, 
 Lord Plunket had the wisdom to apprehend and the courage 
 to act upon it, and by so doing he vindicated for the AngUcan 
 bishops their rightful position in Christendom as part rulers of 
 Christ's holy Catholic Church, and not merely office-bearers in 
 a local institution, while at the same time he acted on the 
 instincts of a warm and loving heart. 
 
 " From the time that he undertook the office of president of 
 the Italian Association the Italian reformers held their place 
 in Lord Plunket's mind and affections next to those of Spain. 
 Every year he presided at the annual meeting of the asso- 
 ciation and gave an account of the progress that was being 
 made. When he took up the cause of Italian reform in 1886 
 the leaders of the movement were Count Henry di Campello 
 and his two lieutenants, and as they had lost their foothold 
 in Rome owing to Monsignore Savarese's tergiversation, they 
 had for the moment no congregations attached to them. 
 At the time of his death in 1897 there were nine congrega- 
 tions — at Arrone, Terni, Castel-di-Lago, Papigno, San Remo, 
 Ventimiglia, Dovadola, San Vito, San Angelo dei Lombardi — 
 and there were clergy (ordained by Bishop Herzog) like 
 Ugo Janni and Professor Cicchitti, who were capable of 
 
296 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 defending the platform of the National Italian Church and of 
 keeping up an able periodical as its organ, called the Labaro. 
 With the growth of the clergy and congregations the diffi- 
 culty of supporting them grew proportionately, for, with the 
 exception of the clergy, the members of the community were 
 almost all drawn from the peasant class. To meet this need, 
 the Archbishop was not content with giving largely of his own 
 substance, but he spent many weeks and months every year 
 going from place to place in England and Ireland preaching 
 sermons on their behalf, organising local committees, and 
 appointing secretaries where an interest had been awakened ; 
 and he made appeals, on behalf of Italy as well as Spain, which 
 were productive of the money needed at any critical moment 
 through the confidence that was reposed in him. 
 
 " In the year before he died, at the annual meeting of the 
 Italian Church Association, held on May 8, 1896, the Arch- 
 bishop himself gave a sketch of his action by means of that 
 association, as follows : 
 
 "'The association was formed just ten years ago, 
 and for no purpose of aggressive propagandism, but 
 rather to aid reformers who were carrying on mission 
 work among their own countrymen. The cry had 
 come from afar off, ' Come over and help us ! ' and this 
 association had felt it its duty to respond to the 
 appeal. I well remember the day when I first had an 
 interview with Count Campello. I happened to be 
 sojourning for a few days in London, and Count Cam- 
 pello called upon me unexpectedly, saying that he had 
 heard of the help given by a society of which I was 
 the president to aid the work of reform in Spain, and 
 he was very anxious to know whether it was possible 
 that that society could also take Italy under its wing. 
 I told Count Campello that it was impossible for the 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 297 
 
 Spanish and Portuguese Society to help him, but that I 
 would endeavour, with the help of the many friends 
 interested in the Italian work, to form a separate 
 association. Accordingly, in June or July of the year 
 1886 the Italian Association was formed ; and it has 
 ever since, God helping it, in the face of many dis- 
 couragements, some difficulties, and occasional criti- 
 cism, pursued its work. The association does not 
 interfere with the control of the spiritual work of 
 Count Campello's Church. Its object is to occupy the 
 humble and yet very important position of furnishing 
 means whereby he and the other reformers in Italy 
 can have their own efforts supplemented by the aid 
 which the association is able to convey. 
 
 " ' With reference to Count Campello's own work, it 
 is not altogether of an aggressive character. Count 
 Campello has not found it his duty to create a need for 
 reform ; he has found that need among his fellow- 
 -countrymen, and it has been his duty to minister to it. 
 The want was already existing, and it is now being 
 supplied. The minds of certainly the majority of the 
 Italian people are already alienated from the Church 
 ■of Rome. They have found it impossible to believe 
 the incredible dogmas that are promulgated through 
 the Vatican decrees. Their sympathies have been 
 alienated from a Church which has in a mad and 
 suicidal manner placed itself in opposition to the 
 aspirations of the people and thwarted their desires for 
 the unity of their country. The result is that the real 
 danger in Italy now is not so much a danger of 
 erroneous doctrine alone as of infidelity. Amongst 
 the; Italians, however, there are many who still long 
 
298 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 for some religion to take the place of Roman Catholi- 
 cism, which they have cast from their hearts ; and sa 
 what the reformers in Italy are now doing is to try ta 
 settle the people on the only secure foundation of 
 religion in place of that which is crumbling away 
 beneath their feet. As the result of Count Campello's 
 work there are at the present time nine congregations,, 
 besides many mission stations where there are to be 
 found groups of anxious inquirers and Bible readers,, 
 who it is expected will in course of time form for 
 themselves separate congregations.' 
 
 " On the same occasion he narrated the manner in which the 
 necessary funds were collected for the establishment of a new 
 congregation in Italy, which may serve to show how valuable 
 his superintendence of the work was. The population of the 
 village of San Vito sent a deputation to Count Henry di 
 Campello, earnestly beseeching him to send them a clergy- 
 man. But Campello had long since given up all his personal 
 income for the Gospel's sake, and he had not wherewith to 
 meet the necessary expenses. He wrote to the Italian Asso- 
 ciation, but they were already ;^2oo in debt. 
 
 " ' Just at this moment,' said the Archbishop, ' while I was in 
 the very depths of despair over the matter, I received, quite 
 unexpectedly, a letter from a godly Irish layman with a cheque- 
 enclosed for ;^2oo, to be used for the support of the work 
 either in Spain or Portugal, or for any kindred object that I 
 might think fit. Accordingly, I thought it my duty under the 
 circumstances to apply it to the work in Italy, having obtained- 
 the donor's sanction for so doing.' 
 
 " At the same time he made a special appeal, which resulted 
 in the almost immediate collection of ;^Soo more. This 
 enabled Campello to visit the district of San Vito, and oQ' 
 finding ' a craving for something more in the way of spiritual 
 nourishment than the people had hitherto been able to obtaia 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 299 
 
 within the Church of Rome,' to establish a branch of the Re- 
 formed Church there. Without Lord Plunket's aid these 
 villagers would have i;o doubt fallen back into the religious 
 indifference which, not through their own fault, characterises 
 so many Italians, who do not see their way to anything better 
 than the Papal Church, in whose claims they cannot acquiesce. 
 " San Vito and the neighbouring town of San Angelo dei Lom- 
 bardi were the last two stations occupied in the Archbishop's 
 lifetime ; the first entered upon after he had taken up the cause 
 was Arrone. The reason for selecting Arrone as the central 
 point of the work, after Rome had been lost through Monsignore 
 Savarese's unsteadiness,* was that it was situated in the midst 
 of the hereditary possessions of the Campello family. Conte 
 Enrico was well known there, and looked up to with some- 
 thing of a feudal respect. Arrone is a town of about 1200 
 people. Campello began by fitting up a room in his own house 
 for a chapel, holding about 300 persons, which was soon filled. 
 At the end of two years the first stone of a church was laid. 
 ' How the church is wanted 1 urgently wanted ! and wanted 
 now for present needs ! ' wrote Dr. Robertson in 1889. In 
 the next year, 1890, it was opened and consecrated by Bishop 
 Herzog, on September 27. ' The erection of this church has 
 been a labour of love, but it has been a labour, and for it the 
 Catholic reformers of Italy have, above all, to be grateful to the 
 Archbishop of Dublin and to Miss Mayor, who have shown an 
 extraordinary amount of zeal and perseverance in collecting 
 the necessary funds for the large expenditure involved in the 
 work.' t They had also to be thankful to Bishop Herzog for 
 the brotherly interest which made him travel from Berne to 
 consecrate the first national reformed church in Italy, and to 
 preside at the first Synod of the Church held on the occa- 
 sion of the consecration, thus identifying and, so far, welding 
 together the Latin and the Teutonic reforming movements. 
 
 * Count Henry di Campello had held services in Rome for four 
 years. 
 
 + Report of the Anglo-Continental Society for 1890. 
 
300 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Evening schools and an association of 'public assistants,' 
 numbering 192 members, to help in sick houses, were added 
 to the organisation at Arrone in 1895 ; and in 1896, at the last 
 annual meeting at which the Archbishop presided, a cheque for 
 ^400 was put into the chairman's hands by a lady for the 
 erection of a hospital in Arrone for the benefit of the neigh- 
 bourhood. This hospital has now been built. 
 
 " The first offshoot from Arrone which took root at a distant 
 spot was the congregation of San Remo. Early in 1889 Cam- 
 pello, with his young lieutenant, Ugo Janni, at that time not 
 ordained, and having before him the prospect of a successful 
 career at the bar if he chose to adopt that Ufe, proceeded to 
 San Remo on invitation, and there addressed two large meet- 
 ings held in the theatre. The result was the institution of a 
 congregation, which since that time Ugo Janni, ordained by 
 Bishop Herzog, has served, and which has thrown out two off- 
 shoots of its own at Veutimiglia and at Oneglia. The high 
 opinion entertained by the Archbishop in regard to Signor Janni 
 is shown by his having asked him, as well as Campello, to 
 Madrid in 1892, to be present with Irish, English, French, and 
 Spanish sympathisers at the proposed consecration of the 
 church in that city which is served by Bishop Cabrera. 
 Signor Janni has been Campello's right hand not only through 
 his earnest piety and his ability to speak with power, but also 
 as editor of the Labaro, the organ of the party in Italy and an 
 organ of great excellence for ability, learning, and temper. 
 Signor Janni accompanied Campello to England in 1897, and 
 spoke with great effect at the conference of the Anglo-Conti- 
 nental Society, held in the Church House, Westminster, in 
 July of that year. 
 
 " The institution of two other congregations greatly interested 
 the Archbishop — at Papigno and at Dovadola. The Papigno 
 congregation seemed to originate from a chance visit to the 
 church at Arrone made by some of the artisans living in 
 Papigno in 1895. Having for the first time heard public 
 prayer in their own language and an eloquent sermon, which 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 301 
 
 appealed both to their understanding and to their emotions, 
 they sent a message begging that they too might ' hear the 
 good news of the Gospel.' ' This,' said the Archbishop, ' is to 
 my mind a most significant fact. It bears witness to that 
 craving in the minds of those poor people for something more 
 in the way of spiritual food than they had hitherto received at 
 the hands of the Church of Rome.' Campello paid them a 
 visit, and found an earnest desire for regular ministrations. But 
 where were the funds to come from ? The Archbishop made 
 an appeal, and obtained ^^150 from Ireland and ;^ioo from 
 England. The next year he was able to announce 'that 
 Papigno has now its own pastor and its stated services, and 
 numbers no less than forty-four regular communicants, even 
 already, on its list.' 
 
 "The Dovadola congregation became attached to the 
 National Reformed Church in a still more singular manner. 
 Signor Bruni is a man who was educated in the Papal seminary 
 of Vicenza, and passed through the minor orders with a view to 
 ordination. But when he had reached the age of eighteen 
 years he found that he could not accept the doctrines of the 
 Roman Church, and he occupied himself as a secular teacher 
 for the next five years. But, dissatisfied with this life, he opened 
 his heart to Cardinal Agostino, Patriarch of Venice, and was 
 by him persuaded to renew his purpose of ordination. 
 November 4, 1886, was fixed for the ceremony, but about 
 six weeks before that date, passing an Evangelical church, he 
 went in and heard a sermon on the text, ' For by one offer- 
 ing He hath perfected for ever those that are sanctified . . . 
 there is no more offering for sin' (Heb. x. 14-18). 'My 
 eyes,' he said, 'were opened. I saw that one unrenewable 
 sacrifice had been made for sin, and here was I trying to 
 make myself a priest, so as to renew that sacrifice every 
 morning.' He hurried to the Cardinal and told him that he 
 could not be a Roman priest. The Cardinal wept over his 
 resolve, but could not change it. For the seven next months 
 he occupied himself in teaching the Bible in the Industrial. 
 
302 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Home for Boys at Venice, and then he returned to his native 
 place and began to preach. At the instigation of the parish 
 priest his father turned him out of his house, and he suffered 
 violent persecution in patience, living for a week in a hay- 
 loft reached by a ladder, which he drew up at night, and when 
 assaulted refusing to prosecute. In 1890 he attached himself 
 to the Episcopal Methodists, but, not satisfied with their status, 
 he made application to Campello, as Bishop-elect, and after 
 examination was accepted by him. In 1896 he was ordained 
 by Bishop Herzog, and his whole congregation has followed 
 his example by joining, with him, the National Catholic 
 Church. 
 
 " The Archbishop, giving in 1895 a sympathetic account of 
 the work being done at Arrone and the neighbouring villages, 
 and at Papigno and at San Remo, impressed upon his hearers 
 ' the short space in which all this had taken place.' 
 
 "' Of course,' he continued, 'it may seem to some of us a 
 weary waiting time, but by those who may hereafter have to re- 
 call the history of this work the fact that within nine or ten 
 years no less than seven organised congregations [next year he 
 was able to add two more to the list] besides mission stations, 
 have been gathered together under the leadership of such a 
 reformer as Count Campello, to my mind will be looked upon 
 as a token of very striking and rapid success.' 
 
 "A point on which the Archbishop was very anxious was the 
 establishment of a reformed Episcopate in Italy. He felt very 
 keenly ' the absolute necessity of ultimately giving to this 
 movement that Episcopal character for which it has always 
 been intended to seek — a necessity becoming more and more 
 urgent every day.' In 1893 Canon Thornton took up this 
 question with great earnestness and collected some ;^6oo, to 
 which the Archbishop undertook to add ;^ioo, and the Bishop 
 of Salisbury under certain conditions offered a similar sum. 
 On the death of the Archbishop both the Anglo-Continental 
 Society and the Italian Church Reform Association opened 
 subscriptions for the same object in memory of him, and there 
 
The Italian Reformed Church 303 
 
 has thus been collected about;^335 more. There was nothing 
 in connection with Italy nearer to the Archbishop's heart than 
 raising the fund to an amount adequate for the support of an 
 Italian bishop who should not be subject to the jurisdiction of 
 the Bishop of Rome nor be committed to Papal errors, and he 
 believed that the completion of the due organisation of a 
 Church was necessary for the success and maintenance of the 
 work of reform." 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 THE ARCHBISHOPRIC OF DUBLIN 
 
 In dealing with Lord Plunket's work as Archbishop of 
 Dublin it is a great assistance to be able to quote at 
 length a valuable paper which has been contributed by 
 Archdeacon Scott, Rector of Bray, County Wicklow, a 
 close personal friend of the Archbishop and a true 
 oculus episcopi. Of a somewhat different ecclesias- 
 tical school of thought — for he has sometimes been 
 described as the leader of the High Church party in 
 the Church of Ireland — he was absolutely faithful to 
 Lord Plunket, and, besides being the Archbishop's 
 right hand at ordination seasons and on other im- 
 portant occasions, he appreciated to the full that 
 beauty of holiness, that sweetness of disposition, and 
 that untiring zeal with which his new ecclesiastical 
 superior was endowed. 
 
 But before entering upon the Archdeacon's paper it 
 will be of interest to notice how acceptable Lord 
 Plunket's appointment proved to both the clerical and 
 lay element in Ireland. He was the obvious man for 
 the post, for many of the same reasons which fitted 
 him to undertake the Bishopric of Meath. But it is 
 not always that the " obvious man " is so universally 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 305 
 
 approved as was the new Archbishop. Here are some 
 of the letters he received on the occasion : 
 
 YFrom the Primate of Ireland (Dr. Beresford).^ 
 
 " The Palace, Armagh, 
 
 "Dec. 19, 1884. 
 "My dear Lord, 
 
 " The Bishop of Limerick having declared to me that 
 you have been elected to the Archbishopric of Dublin, I am, 
 under the directions of Dr. Ball, transmitting your name to the 
 bench of bishops in order that the necessary steps may be 
 taken to give effect to such nomination. It will then be my 
 duty to write to the Sub-Dean of Christ Church to have you 
 enthroned. 
 
 " Having given this notice officially, allow me to express 
 the gratification your election has given me, and to wish 
 you many years of a happy and useful archiepiscopate. It 
 is rather a curious coincidence that the two Irish Archbishops' 
 grandfathers were both Bushes, and very near relations. I 
 shall shortly have to ask you to aid me in the consecration of 
 your successor to the See of Meath. 
 
 " Most truly yours, 
 
 "M. G.ARMAGH." 
 
 [^From the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.^ 
 
 Private?^ 
 
 " Viceregal Lodge, Dublin, 
 
 " Jfan. 7, 1885. 
 "My dear Lord, 
 
 " As I am writing to you on business, I venture to add 
 a private note to express to you my gratification at your having 
 been selected to fill the important post in the Church which 
 Archbishop Trench so long held. 
 
 u 
 
3o6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " I have always had great admiration for the high character 
 of Dr. Trench, and for the dignity with which he carried out 
 his high functions. 
 
 " During the years when I first came to Ireland, which were 
 of such momentous import to the Church and when feeling 
 ran so very high, I had much to be grateful to him for, and 
 shall not forget his bearing towards me in society and on 
 various occasions when it was my duty to see him on public 
 business. 
 
 " I am sure that you will be a worthy successor to him, and 
 I hope you will allow me very sincerely to express my good 
 wishes to you in the responsible position to which you have 
 been called. 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 "SPENCER." 
 
 [J^rom Lord Powerscourt^ 
 
 " 65 Brook Street, W., 
 
 " Nov. 24, 1884. 
 "Mv DEAR Plunket, 
 
 " Much as I deplore the occasion when we are to lose 
 the valuable counsels of the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr. Trench, 
 I must write a line to say how much I hope that you will be 
 chosen as his successor. Any one must have admired the 
 courage and energy with which Dr. Trench steered us through 
 a most difficult and dangerous time. I respect him as much 
 as any one can, and regret most sincerely the cause which will 
 lose him to us. But at the same time I must say that, now 
 that we are a purely Irish Church, and must look out for the 
 best Irishman we can to lead us, there is no man on whom the 
 mantle would so well fall as on yourself. Your social position, 
 and the wise moderation which has been given to you, marks 
 you out as the one we wish to see as the head of the diocese of 
 DubUn. I don't wish to refer too much to the words of Dean 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 307 
 
 Swift, but I do think that ' it is a blessing to the Irish Church 
 that we still have Irishmen who will keep pure doctrine and be 
 in harmony with the feelings of Irish Protestants,' to govern the 
 aflfairs of our Church. 
 
 "Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "POWERSCOURT." 
 
 A charming letter of congratulation was also received 
 from Dr. Alexander, Bishop of Derry, now the Arch- 
 bishop of Armagh. The letter was intended for publi- 
 cation in this place, but unfortunately has been lost in 
 the post. 
 
 As will be gathered from the foregoing letters, Lord 
 Plunket had no easy task in following a man so 
 eminent and so beloved as Archbishop Trench. At 
 the same time, the complete contrast between the 
 two made comparison impossible, and the practical 
 common-sense and constructive genius of the new 
 Archbishop enabled him to complement the work of 
 his predecessor in many ways. Mr. W. G. Brooke tells 
 of Lord Plunket's touching wish to be the first to 
 inform Dr. Trench of his own election as his successor 
 in the following words : 
 
 " When his (Lord Plunket's) election to the Archbishopric 
 was declared in Synod, the writer and another warm friend 
 jumped on a car to bear him the news. He was not at home. 
 We searched the clubs, but without success. Subsequently it 
 transpired that he had gone first to his own mother to acquaint 
 her, and then to Dr. Trench, who had retired, to ask for his 
 sympathy and blessing, though generally, and during the 
 revision period in particular, he was in strong opposition to 
 the conservative policy of the Archbishop. Dr. Trench said 
 
3o8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 afterwards, ' Well, at all events, in Lord Plunket my diocese 
 has secured a Christian gentleman.' " 
 
 It was not likely perhaps that the aged ecclesiastic 
 would understand the line taken in Church matters by 
 Lord Plunket, but there were many who were fully 
 aware that his devotion and untiring zeal, his knowledge 
 of men and ready grasp of a subject, made him some- 
 thing more than merely a Christian gentleman, though 
 he was also all that those two words describe in their 
 fullest meaning. 
 
 Perfectly simply and humbly, although thoroughly 
 conscious of the great honour that had^been paid him, 
 Lord Plunket accepted the call which thus came to 
 him from the Synod of the Church of Ireland, and for 
 the remainder of his life filled not only his accustomed 
 place as an Irish nobleman and country gentleman, 
 but also the still more dignified and responsible 
 position of Archbishop of Dublin. Of the former 
 of these it will be necessary to speak in a separate 
 chapter, when describing his life at Old Connaught ; 
 of the latter Archdeacon Scott gives the following 
 account : 
 
 "The resignation of Archbishop Trench in 1884 left the 
 Southern Primacy vacant. The clearly expressed will of both 
 clergy and people in the united dioceses of Dublin, Glenda- 
 lough, and Kildare called the Bishop of Meath to assume that 
 dignity. Lord Plunket felt deeply the solemnity of the charge 
 and the difficulty of filling the place of a prelate whose emin- 
 ence in learning and literature had been sealed by a world- 
 wide reputation, and whose kindness and fatherly sympathy 
 had won for him the affection of his clergy. 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 309 
 
 " The writer will never forget a touching scene when the 
 Archbishop-elect came to receive the assurance of glad hope 
 with which Archbishop Trench saw the burden, too great for 
 his failing strength, laid upon one whose singleness of aim and 
 devotion to the cause of Christ and of His Church bespoke a 
 holy and happy fulfilment of the duties of a Primate in the 
 Bishopric of Souls. 
 
 " The interview was saddened by the tokens felt by both of 
 the shortness and feebleness of the life that was ebbing away, 
 but both were full of memories of past friendship, and of hope 
 that God, who had signified plainly His will in the choice of 
 the worker, would not fail to bestow His blessing on the work. 
 
 " Lord Plunket at the first made careful inquiry into the uses 
 of diocesan administration under his predecessor, and laid aside 
 his own methods, framed for a country diocese, to adopt, with 
 few modifications, the practices which had ruled the work in 
 Dublin since the Church had been set free from her connection 
 with the State. He made it his special study to show himself 
 the head, not of any section within the diocese, but of the 
 whole flock. He left no room for suspicion that he had 
 favourites, or that he was secretly moved in his administration 
 by any party or individuals. In his annual visitations his care 
 was to recognise all honest labour and zeal for God and for 
 the winning of souls. He did not concern himself to seek 
 ground of censure in the methods of parochial work in cures in 
 which he found that the purpose which animated the work was 
 frank, honest, and holy, and that the lines of ministration 
 adopted were not inconsistent with a generous interpretation of 
 the spirit with which he (the Archbishop) believed the laws 
 of the Church to be infused. 
 
 " Apart from the exercise of episcopal responsibility. Lord 
 Plunket held his private convictions, took pleasure in declaring 
 them, and desired to bring others to see things with his eyes. 
 
 " In earlier days, when the synodical constitution of the 
 Church of Ireland was framed, and during the debates about 
 the revision of the Prayer-book, he adhered to his own con- 
 
3IO Archbishop Plunket 
 
 scientious views, and acted independently of factious combina- 
 tions, earnestly striving to mould the Prayer-book into close 
 conformity with his own ideas. But in his office as Archbishop, 
 and in the application of the canons and rubrics to questions 
 or complaints laid before him, he loyally took his stand on the 
 law as expounded by his official advisers, and not upon his own 
 convictions as to the duties to which the clergy ought to be 
 bound. 
 
 " He would cheerfully give permission for variation or 
 shortening of the services so far as he believed his powers as 
 bishop to reach, being careful for spiritual efficiency above all 
 things, and ready rather to stretch than to tighten the limits of 
 form. 
 
 " His ready sjnnpathy with reasonable requests was shown 
 by his expenditure of time and strength in lending the weight 
 of his presence and personal co-operation to all kinds of acts 
 or ceremonies or enterprises honestly designed for the good 
 of the Church or the fostering of charitable institutions 
 or designs. His more intimate friends would have often 
 been glad to persuade him to pay more regard to prudent 
 economy of his powers of usefulness, which they longed to 
 preserve. 
 
 " Some narrower hearts were unable to understand the large 
 compass of his interest in other men's plans. Strict purists in 
 questions on the financial side of good works were startled 
 when the Archbishop openly commended the resort to bazaars, 
 including raffles, and other popular devices for gathering in 
 money. 
 
 " Zealous Churchmen, who regarded with reverence ancient 
 traditions, were pained when Lord Plunket declined to pro- 
 hibit evening Communions as a means of gathering in those 
 who had dropped out of attendance at the Lord's Supper. 
 They were not satisfied by his reply that he required that those 
 who adopted this practice should show that there were many 
 in the congregation whose attendance could not be gained by 
 any other means. 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 311 
 
 "But, while on different sides men of strong convictions 
 were dissatisfied that Lord Plunket was liberal to others whom 
 they would have repressed, all freely owned that his large heart 
 responded to all earnest endeavour, and each in turn felt that 
 he could freely bring his own plans and wishes before the 
 Archbishop, and find him cordial in the expression of his 
 approval and glad to give assistance to the utmost limits of 
 the law as he understood it. No one could fail to see his grief 
 when he felt it right to impose restrictions on any well-meant 
 plans, even when those plans were framed on lines not to his 
 personal liking. 
 
 " The largeness of his sympathies was not confined by the 
 limits of his diocesan duties, and other chapters of this book 
 tell of the extreme self-denial with which he laboured at tasks 
 undertaken for the good of the whole Church of Ireland, and 
 for the whole welfare of the country which he loved with a 
 passion of patriotism. 
 
 " The history of the foundation of the Church of Ire- 
 land Training College . . . would record how much of the 
 vital force of Lord Plunket had gone to frame the con- 
 stitution of the college, to shape its buildings, and provide 
 its funds. 
 
 " In the days of his episcopate schemes of Home Rule were 
 in the air which would have doomed Ireland, as he foresaw, 
 to financial bankruptcy, and would have made her fertile plains 
 the battleground of England's wars, and his great speech was 
 one of the most powerful and convincing of all the remon- 
 strances that burst out in that critical time from indignant and 
 patriotic hearts. 
 
 " In this sketch of Lord Plunket as Archbishop of Dublin it 
 will be enough to give some record of the manner in which his 
 episcopal duties were performed. Among these the most 
 conspicuous features were the regular course of visitations of 
 the clergy, of confirmations, and of ordinations. 
 
312 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "One marked characteristic of Lord Plunket's public 
 services was the dignity and reverence of his manner on all 
 more solemn occasions. He was childlike in his private inter- 
 course in seasons of recreation, quick to join in harmless 
 mirth and to appreciate early essays at poetry or art, but 
 he was stately and fervent in directly religious ceremonies. 
 His tall and lithe figure and his clear and tuneful voice 
 added considerable grace to his performance of religious 
 functions. 
 
 " In his visitations he disliked the ancient usage of holding 
 the court within the railings of the sanctuary, while the 
 clergy waiting their turn were tempted to enter into con- 
 versations, allowing the hum of tongues to sound through the 
 cathedral. 
 
 " Lord Plunket had his throne moved first into the eastern 
 chapel, and then into the chapter-room, where the details of 
 the work and the needs of the parishes might be more fitly dis- 
 cussed than in the more holy precincts. 
 
 " The share of the laity in the priesthood of the Church of 
 Christ was one of the features of the doctrine of the Anglican 
 Communion upon which Lord Plunket laid great stress. He 
 felt especial pleasure in the synodical work of the Church of 
 Ireland on account of the broad representative character of 
 the assemblies, and the free opportunity which he found there 
 for speaking out to the whole body of the diocese. His open- 
 ing addresses at the annual Synod were full of zest. He loved 
 to lay his thoughts bare to all, and strove to anticipate the 
 subjects likely to raise discussion, and to make plain before- 
 hand the principles which he believed to underlie the conten- 
 tions on different sides. He tried to clear the way by setting 
 aside any side issues which were needless or ill-grounded or 
 implied a misunderstanding of Church polity or the letter of 
 Church law. 
 
 " To this preference for the wider audience may be attributed 
 the rarity of his visitation charges. The Synods and the 
 visitations were held within a fortnight of one another. He 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 313 
 
 wished the whole body of the diocese to hear what he had to 
 say, and did not care to burden the clergy with repetitions. 
 He used the visitation mainly as a means of noting openly 
 new works or improved methods in the better-worked parishes, 
 and of leading on by gentle encouragement rather than by 
 rebuke those who were behindhand in the scale of work done. 
 He greatly encouraged all improvements in the dignity and 
 beauty of the churches in the dioceses. He largely increased 
 the number of churches in which the Holy Communion was 
 celebrated every week or every fortnight, and in some cases 
 even every month. He also, even in the case of the smaller 
 parishes, pressed home the importance of week-day services of 
 one kind or another in the parish church. He, further, 
 delighted to see and foster the provision of parochial halls for 
 the purposes of various good works. 
 
 " His confirmation tours were a source to Lord Plunket of 
 great interest and pleasure. As years passed it was easy to 
 trace in his addresses a growing conviction and confidence in 
 the spiritual import of that ordinance and the fulness of the 
 grace therein bestowed. He never spared himself in his loving 
 and earnest efforts to win the attention of the candidates and 
 leave in their hearts fruitful seeds of thought and deed. 
 His ordinations were marked by the dignified solemnity which 
 his voice and manner added to the impressive service. He 
 made the time of the examination of the candidates an 
 opportunity of addressing the young men at a daily office in 
 the private chapel upon the blessedness and responsibility of 
 the work to which they beUeved themselves to be called, and 
 there was always evident in these addresses the result of a 
 most careful preparation. 
 
 " Among his clergy he was a true father in God, entering 
 into their difficulties, ready to go down to the more remote 
 parishes to encourage any new parochial work, and to give the 
 weight of his personal and official influence to draw out the co- 
 operation of the people in any crisis requiring money. He 
 would take the chair at parochial meetings, and solve by his 
 
3^4 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 tactful resources misunderstandings or conflicts of ideas. In 
 these efforts, as in the conduct of the councils and the Synods, 
 he showed a singular power of gathering up by private inquiries 
 beforehand the conflicting views and interests involved in the 
 business on hand, and of marshalling them in his opening 
 words in such form as would indicate some middle course on 
 which general acquiescence might be gained. 
 
 "It is true that expectant speakers, who had prepared their 
 own statement of their arguments and ideas, sometimes felt 
 sore as they heard the chairman take up their points one by 
 one and show how they might be met, and deputations who 
 had come from a distance to state the claims of some chari- 
 table work found that the aspects of their subject on which 
 they relied for awakening interest in their appeal had all been 
 foreseen and sketched by the chairman in his opening address, 
 so that the speech which followed lost the freshness it might 
 have possessed had the points been newly suggested to the 
 minds of the audience. 
 
 " In his personal intercourse with his clergy or with aggrieved 
 laymen Lord Plunket's unfailing courtesy, patience, and con- 
 sideration for the feelings of others won for him a wide-felt 
 affection and gratitude such as few call out. Quick to give 
 credit for honest intentions, and always reluctant to blame, he 
 gradually obtained the abatement of abuses and the steady 
 growth of useful work. 
 
 " On all sides he came short of giving perfect satisfaction, 
 for his large-hearted toleration of divergent methods of work 
 seemed to champions of their own convictions to savour of 
 laxity. But he brought together men from widely separate 
 poles, and made them feel that in his sympathy with all sides 
 they found a link of union and a softening of prejudice. 
 
 " But to his own clergy Lord Plunket was not so much the 
 host as the father. When a clergyman was a prisoner in hos- 
 pital, it was the Archbishop who went to sit beside him and 
 
The Archbishopric of Dublin 315 
 
 cheer him in his lonelinesis. When a clergyman or his family 
 were in straitened circumstances, he was quick to aid out of his 
 own purse. When one who dissented from the course which 
 the Archbishop was urging in a matter of much concern to the 
 Church had striven with warmth to convince the Synod that 
 the Archbishop had been misled by erroneous counsel, and had 
 fallen into unwonted imprudence and inconsistency of action, 
 the speaker, loyal at heart to the Archbishop as well as to the 
 Church, met Lord Plunket as he left the hall and was about to 
 apologise, but was prevented from doing so by the hearty 
 greeting, ' My dear friend, you know that if you were to flay 
 me alive I could not be angry with you.' 
 
 "Most certainly, if gentleness, meekness, quickness to for- 
 give, and tenderness for the feelings of others are the qualities 
 which form a true shepherd of the flock of Christ, then the 
 dioceses over which he presided found in Lord Plunket a 
 chief pastor who cared for the flock and not for himself, 
 and were called to learn in the simplest and most win- 
 ning way to be followers of their Archbishop as he was of 
 Christ." 
 
 The above description, written by one who knew 
 Lord Plunket well and loved him much, but who did 
 not see with him in all matters, is conspicuously faith- 
 ful and graphic. It brings out his dignity, his devotion, 
 his generosity in both heart and action, his absolute 
 fairness, and his unbounded love for God and for his 
 fellow men. It is also of interest as showing that his 
 liberal-mindedness increased with increasing years, and 
 that the narrower views of one party in the Church 
 were gradually giving way to a wider appreciation of 
 Church teaching. This fact is borne out by Canon 
 Meyrick of Blickling, a close personal friend of Lord 
 Plunket, who says that, when in later years he visited 
 
3i6 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 the Archbishop in order to go through with him the 
 proposed Prayer-book for one of the foreign reformed 
 Churches, there was little sign of that extreme policy 
 which had marked his dealings with the revision of 
 the Prayer-book for the Church of Ireland in earlier 
 years. 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 PARTY STRIFE IN DUBLIN 
 
 Of recent years no diocese in England has failed to 
 know something of the troubles caused, for the most 
 part conscientiously, by members of the ritualistic 
 party. The Church of Ireland after her disestablish- 
 ment so ordered her house that a minimum of such 
 troubles were likely to happen and that a maximum of 
 unity should be secured, as happily proved the case. 
 At the same time, during the archiepiscopate of Lord 
 Plunket there were certain matters relating to this 
 vexed subject which occupied much of his time and 
 which brought out many of his finest qualities. 
 
 The most notorious of all the difficulties of this kind 
 with which he had to deal was that connected with the 
 removal of the cross at St. Bartholomew's, Dublin. 
 Canon Smith, the incumbent, was one of the most 
 " advanced " of all Lord Plunket's clergy, and the 
 trouble connected with this cross continued through 
 many of the years during which he was Archbishop. 
 
 The 36th canon of the Church of Ireland reads as 
 follows : 
 
 " There shall not be any cross, ornamental or other- 
 wise, on the Communion Table, or on the covering. 
 
3i8 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 thereof, nor shall a cross be erected or depicted on the 
 wall or other structure behind the Communion Table, 
 in any of the churches or other places of worship 
 of the Church of Ireland." 
 
 It is necessary to bear in mind the wording of this 
 canon in order to explain Lord Plunket's action in 
 condemning the cross while it stood over the Com- 
 munion Table at St. Bartholomew's, and sanctioning it 
 when moved to another position which was thought 
 by the extreme Low Church party almost equally 
 objectionable. It was just an instance of his extreme 
 care as Archbishop to administer the law as he under- 
 stood it without reference to his own private prefer- 
 ences. There was perhaps another reason which 
 strengthened his action. Had he been able and will- 
 ing (which he was not) to condemn the erection of the 
 cross altogether, it might not impossibly have led to 
 the clergy and congregation at St. Bartholomew's 
 leaving the Church of Ireland and joining the Church 
 of England, a course which Lord Plunket's statesman- 
 like mind would see that it was well to prevent if 
 possible. 
 
 The history of this matter, which formed for years a 
 burning question in the Church of Ireland, was as 
 follows : 
 
 In 1888 Canon Smith wrote to the Archbishop and 
 stated that he had been offered a cross for the Com- 
 munion Table of his church, and that he wished to 
 inform his Grace of the circumstances. In reply Lord 
 Plunket wrote : 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 319 
 
 "The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 ''Feb. 13, 1888. 
 
 " Dear Canon Smith, 
 
 " I appreciate the straightforward course you 
 have pursued in writing to me as you have done. But 
 your letter has caused me great perplexity — all the 
 greater because of the regard which, as you know, I 
 entertain towards yourself, and also because of my 
 desire in all such matters to observe the widest possible 
 rule of comprehension that the limits of the law will 
 permit. 
 
 " But is that which you now propose to do within 
 these limits ? This is a serious question. As to its 
 legality or illegality in the abstract I pronounce no 
 opinion, nor can I expect my Chancellor to do so 
 either, inasmuch as the question is one that might 
 come before us in the Diocesan Court, but I am clear 
 that the point at issue is a sufficiently doubtful one to 
 compel me, pending some authoritative decision, to 
 withhold my consent. Meanwhile, I must require you 
 under Canon 40 [which provides that no change in 
 structure, ornaments, &c., shall be made without the 
 approval of the Bishop or Ordinary] to refrain for the 
 present from introducing this brass cross among the 
 ornaments of your church to which your letter refers. 
 It will be for you to judge whether you will, or will 
 not, avail yourself of the right of appeal given under 
 the canon. You may come to the decision that the 
 object which you have in view is not sufficiently a 
 matter of conscience or importance to make such a 
 course desirable. On the other hand, you may deem 
 
320 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 it well that an authoritative decision should be sought 
 for in a friendly spirit by all concerned. All I can 
 say is that in the latter event I should not consider 
 an appeal on your part as indicating anything like 
 antagonism towards myself, and should the Diocesan 
 or (in the event of a further appeal) the higher Court 
 decide in your favour, I would, of course, readily give 
 the consent which I now feel bound to withhold. Upon 
 the other hand, should any such appeal be unsuccess- 
 ful, I have every confidence that, while reserving your 
 right to strive for the repeal of a canon which you 
 might still deem unreasonable or vexatious, you would 
 loyally obey that which for the time being was the 
 law. 
 
 " I have only to add that I have written this 
 letter with feelings of undiminished goodwill towards 
 yourself, but with a clear conviction that in the in- 
 terests of peace and order I have no other course to 
 pursue. 
 
 " Believe me yours sincerely, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
 Canon Smith at once bowed to the authority of his 
 Bishop, and it is a pleasant task to record the happy 
 relations of friendship on the one side and loyalty on 
 the other which bound the two men together through 
 the whole dispute. In this matter of obedience 
 to episcopal authority the Church of Ireland, so 
 often despised by her English sister, sets an example 
 which the latter might condescend to follow with 
 advantage. 
 
 The next letter from Lord Plunket expressed his 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 321 
 
 pleasure at the fact that Canon Smith had acceded to 
 his request, and went on to say how much pained he 
 was at standing in the way of his correspondent's 
 desire. 
 
 In the course of this same letter he contends that 
 if Canon 36 were possibly based on the fear that the 
 cross in such a position might be invested with a 
 superstitious significance or degraded to a superstitious 
 use, that fear, though possibly exaggerated, cannot be 
 attributed to disrespect for the emblem itself. He 
 then adds, "To that canon I have never myself 
 attached any great importance." That his real opinion 
 went even further may be gathered from a speech by 
 Canon Quarry, D.D., in the General Synod, 1893, in 
 the course of which he used these words : 
 
 " I cannot see why antipathies exist with regard to this 
 symbol [the cross], and I greatly regret, with his Grace of 
 Dublin, that we should have a canon which seems to throw 
 dirt upon it." 
 
 So matters seem to have remained for some little 
 time, but afterwards there was a further development. 
 At Canon Smith's request the Archbishop met him, 
 and they examined St. Bartholomew's church together, 
 and " found that there was very little space between 
 the table and the eastern wall." They then arranged 
 that the cross should be placed as far from the Com- 
 munion Table as possible ; and it was placed, with 
 Lord Plunket's concurrence, in the position hereafter 
 described. 
 
 The immediate result of this was an action brought 
 in the Diocesan Court of Dublin by a certain Colonel 
 
32 2 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Grant against the incumbent, curate, and church- 
 wardens of St. Bartholomew's, to try to obtain an 
 order for the removal of the cross. 
 
 The Archbishop presided, and the Chancellor of the 
 diocese (Dr. Ball) sat as his assessor. The other 
 members of the Court were Dr. Dickinson, Dean of 
 the Chapel Royal, and Lord Justice Fitzgibbon. This 
 Court found that : 
 
 " I. The cross mentioned was not on the Communion Table 
 or on the covering thereof, and it did not either actually or 
 apparently rest on the Communion Table. 
 
 " 2. That it stood upon a movable wooden stand which 
 rested on the floor, and that it was 6 inches distant both from 
 the Communion Table and from the reredos. 
 
 " 3. That the position occupied had been approved both by 
 the incumbent and vestry of St. Bartholomew's and by the 
 Archbishop." 
 
 The appeal was therefore dismissed. 
 
 The above finding shows that Lord Plunket had 
 given his approval to the position of the cross 
 between the altar and the reredos. When the his- 
 tory of his early years is remembered, both in the 
 Irish Church missions and in the matter of Prayer- 
 book revision, this fact will be seen to afford evidence 
 of a greater liberality of mind, as well as of his 
 earnest endeavour to make his decisions as Arch- 
 bishop in exact accordance with law and absolutely 
 impartial. 
 
 Colonel Grant, being dissatisfied with this decision, 
 appealed to the Court of General Synod, and in 
 November 1892, three months after the judgment 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 323 
 
 delivered by the Diocesan Court, he obtained a 
 decision in his favour by a majority of five to two. 
 Those who declared the position of the cross to be 
 illegal were the Bishop of Cashel and Messrs. Justices 
 Holmes, Murphy, Monroe, and Gibson. The minority 
 consisted of the Primate (Dr. Knox) and the Bishop 
 of Derry (Dr. Alexander). 
 
 After this decision the cross was removed from the 
 position it had previously occupied, and was placed in 
 front of the Communion Table. This was a course 
 that had probably never been contemplated when the 
 canon was framed, and it was certainly well within the 
 law. The Archbishop therefore gave his consent, and 
 matters might well have been allowed to settle down 
 upon this compromise. 
 
 But the more virulent members of the ultra-Protes- 
 tant section of the Church of Ireland would not let 
 things rest there. It was a source of much sorrow and 
 vexation to Lord Plunket that in the General Synod of 
 1895 a resolution was brought forward by Canon 
 O'Connor to amend Canon 36 by the following words : 
 " Nor shall any cross be erected, depicted, placed, fixed, 
 or suspended anywhere within the chancel or between 
 the Communion Table and any of the people." In the 
 course of the debate the Archbishop made the follow- 
 ing short speech : 
 
 " I did not intend to say one word, had not one 
 member of the Synod stated that the Archbishop of 
 Dublin is altogether responsible for what has taken 
 place. I rise to say that if I were placed in the same 
 position again I should adopt exactly the same line. 
 
324 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 I am not the least ashamed of what I have done, and 
 I believe I should have acted in a very autocratic and 
 intolerant manner if, when I was asked by the incum- 
 bent, with the full consent of the congregation, for 
 permission to have a cross placed in a perfectly legal 
 position, I had refused to comply with that request. 
 
 " I really do, as one who is as strongly Protestant as 
 anyone who is desirous to pass this Bill, implore the 
 members of the Synod not to vote for its passage." 
 
 It is satisfactory to record that, as he desired, the 
 Bill was thrown out by a considerable majority. 
 
 The little speech quoted above is an instance of Lord 
 Plunket's determination in carrying out any course 
 which he had assured himself was right. It is some- 
 times thought that his pertinacity and firmness were 
 all exercised on behalf of the party to which he was 
 supposed to belong, but this speech and the attacks 
 made upon him by the Protestant Defence Associa- 
 tion, to which reference is made hereafter, entirely 
 dispose of this idea. 
 
 Once more, in 1896, at the last Dublin Diocesan 
 Synod over which Lord Plunket presided, the question 
 was revived by a motion proposed by Canon Marrable, 
 who, in urging that the General Synod should be again 
 requested to take steps for the removal of the cross at 
 St. Bartholomew's, ended by the remarkable statement 
 that it was time for them to set their houses in order, 
 since the second advent of our Lord was to be expected 
 within a year and a half. Again this proposal of the 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 325 
 
 extreme Protestants was negatived by a large majority, 
 and, so far as Lord Plunket had to do with it, the 
 subject, which had been a cause of disquiet for eight 
 years, was set at rest. 
 
 During the course of this famous controversy the 
 Archbishop published his well-known pastoral, "Words 
 for Peace," which was one of his most able efforts to 
 obtain a brotherly agreement among Church people, 
 and was welcomed by lovers of peace all over the 
 world. There had been an unpleasant discussion at 
 a Diocesan Synod (over which the Archbishop had 
 been prevented from presiding by the death of Lady 
 Plunket) concerning certain alleged violations of the 
 law of the Church. Lord Plunket was desirous that 
 his whole diocese, laity as well as clergy, should hear 
 what he had to say and come under the influence, if 
 possible, of his urgent plea for peace. The pastoral in 
 question was the result of this desire, and it is such a 
 noble document and created so widespread an interest 
 that considerable extracts must be given here. He 
 said : 
 
 " As I desire now to speak in the interests of godly 
 union and concord, I know not at what better time 
 my words could be uttered than during this present 
 season, when Lenten thoughts of self-forgetfulness 
 should prepare each one of us to sacrifice much, if 
 necessary, for the sake of the common good. To 
 avoid misapprehension, let me, at the outset, say that 
 if I deem it expedient to notice the complaints made 
 
326 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 it the meeting of the Dublin Synod — complaints by 
 some of ritual innovation and by others of ritual 
 neglect — it is not because I myself consider these 
 charges or counter-charges as having in themselves 
 any very grave significance. Nor is it, on the other 
 hand, because I purpose to censure those by whom 
 these allegations were made. . . . 
 
 " It was evidently as indications of what seemed 
 to some a mischievous tendency, rather than as having 
 any great importance of their own, that the irregular- 
 ities in question were mainly alleged. . . . 
 
 " They who, on either side, have thought it their 
 duty to adopt this course are well known to me as God- 
 fearing, earnest men — impelled by no private interest 
 or personal animosity, but simply by a desire to guard 
 what they believe to be the principles on which our 
 Church is based. 
 
 " Lastly, I take no serious exception to the spirit 
 in which these respective pleas were urged. Bearing 
 in mind the measure of heat which an outspoken ex- 
 pression of conflicting opinions must of necessity 
 generate, I feel most thankful to believe that neither in 
 the Synod nor since has anything taken place whereby 
 the cause of peace and brotherly love amongst us can 
 be said to have as yet suffered any real loss. 
 
 "While thus vindicating the good name of our 
 diocese, and rejoicing that so far at least nothing 
 has taken place to bring the law into disrepute or to 
 disturb our peace, I cannot but feel that we are just 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 327 
 
 now confronted by a considerable difficulty, and 
 that, if we cannot discover some way of escape, we 
 may ere long find ourselves launched into a sea of 
 troubles. . . . 
 
 " Mutual recriminations may gradually lead on to 
 vexatious litigation, and that which is now only an 
 insignificant spark may by - and - by kindle into a 
 flame. 
 
 " Under such circumstances we have all a sacred 
 duty to discharge. Forgetting a while our differences, 
 whatever they may be, we must be united as brethren 
 in a common desire and a common effort to avert that 
 which, if not arrested, might prove a common disaster 
 to all. Trivial indeed may seem to some of us the 
 points at issue ; but for that very reason the greater 
 our fault and our shame if either through apathy or 
 ungenerous party spirit we should allow them to 
 become a source of real danger to our Church. 
 
 " What, then, is to be done ? Is there any way 
 whereby, without resort to hostile legislation, a respite 
 from this mutual distrust and aspersion could be 
 amicably brought about ? This is a serious question 
 for us all, but for myself as your Bishop it has a special 
 import. I feel bound, therefore, God helping me, to 
 face it, and will venture to suggest two courses the 
 adoption of either of which would in my opinion solve 
 the problem. 
 
 " In the first place, mutual recriminations might be 
 terminated by mutual sufferance. They who have 
 brought charges and they who have replied by counter- 
 charges might alike resolve for peace sake to tolerate 
 that of which they complain. This, I confess, was the 
 
328 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 solution for which, when first these questions were 
 raised, I fondly hoped. . . . 
 
 " Many, however, I have reason to know, would 
 regard a policy of mutual toleration as holding out no 
 promise of finality, and would therefore much prefer to 
 seek for some more permanent solution of the present 
 difficulty. 
 
 " In view of these facts, I now pass on to make my 
 second suggestion — namely, that a cessation from 
 mutual recrimination might be secured by mutual sub- 
 mission to episcopal counsel. 
 
 " By counsel I do not mean a pronouncement given 
 by the Bishop in his Diocesan Court. . . . 
 
 "Nor, again, do I mean a minatory injunction or 
 prohibition, disobedience to which would involve 
 contumacy and its attendant penalty. . . . 
 
 " What I do mean by episcopal counsel is simply an 
 extra-judicial expression of opinion on the part of the 
 Bishop, conveying advice to his clergy (and in a certain 
 sense to the lay members of his flock) as to what, in 
 his judgment, ought to be done in reference to these 
 disputed points — but not assuming that any of those 
 whom he addresses are wilfully resisting the authority 
 of the Church, and not threatening with censure any 
 who, in certain cases, might ask leave to withhold com- 
 pliance pending some more formal and decisive inter- 
 pretation of the law." 
 
 These words of the Archbishop, which form part of 
 the beginning of his pastoral, are surely such as may 
 well be read and pondered by many of those who 
 delight in posing as members of one or other of the 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 329 
 
 extreme parties in the Church. They are the words of 
 a true shepherd, full of wisdom, gentleness, and 
 guidance. 
 
 Lord Plunket then proceeded to deal in order with 
 the various complaints which had been brought to his 
 notice, mentioning first of all the burning subject of 
 the cross and the holy Table. He stated that it was 
 impossible to believe that at the present day the mere 
 presence of a cross in a church or even as an appen- 
 dage to the Communion Table could be regarded as 
 furnishing a congregation with an incentive to idolatry. 
 On the other hand, he deprecated earnestly all incon- 
 siderate taunts, saying that when those who object to a 
 cross on or behind the holy Table are described as 
 casting discredit on the emblem of our common 
 Christianity ; when the Church of Ireland, because of 
 the canon which she drew up on the subject, is held 
 up by her own sons to contempt as the only Church in 
 Christendom that is ashamed of this symbol of the 
 atonement, surely no good end was served. Such 
 reproaches he described as not only inconsiderate and 
 unbrotherlike, but as indefensible on the grounds of 
 reason or fact. 
 
 Having pointed out that the plain intention of the 
 canon was to forbid the presence of a cross on the 
 holy Table, &c., he said that in the interests of peace 
 and brotherlike union he ventured to propose a 
 solution of that problem to those who had it in their 
 power without any intervention of the law to follow 
 his advice. He was well aware that it was a solution 
 which some on both sides would find it hard to 
 accept. But he could not regard it as a solution 
 
33^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 involving a sacrifice of principle, and if it were the 
 means of averting strife it would, he thought, be well 
 worth the cost. 
 
 The solution he proposed was that the canon 
 should be interpreted in the spirit rather than in the 
 letter. The letter of the law might be interpreted as 
 forbidding a cross on any structure behind the Com- 
 munion Table (as was the case at St. Bartholomew), 
 but this would not in his opinion be according to the 
 spirit of the canon, and he pleaded that, while those 
 in favour of the existence of a cross in a church 
 should be content not to place it on any structure 
 connected with the Communion Table, those on the 
 other side should not oppose its erection elsewhere 
 within the building. 
 
 In much the same way he dealt with most of the 
 disputed points, plainly pointing out the illegality of 
 certain acts and urging with courtesy and gentleness 
 their discontinuance. 
 
 Passing to the counter-charges of neglect, he again 
 gives his counsel in most fatherly words. He strongly 
 protested against any mutilation of the Baptismal, 
 Matrimonial, or Burial Services, and more especially 
 of the Communion Office. He called attention to the 
 fourth canon, directing that services should be held on 
 holy-days as well as on Sundays. On this subject his 
 exact words must be quoted : 
 
 " It is evident that, just as daily service is contem- 
 plated by our Prayer-book as the ideal practice to be 
 observed when it can be suitably had, so it is intended 
 that, wherever no reason can be shown to the contrary, 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 331 
 
 divine service should be held on the holy-days referred 
 to above. And when I remember that in so doing an 
 opportunity is afforded to the pastor for impressing 
 upon the minds and hearts of his flock the scriptural 
 truths (derived from the teaching and example of our 
 Blessed Lord and His Apostles) which the services 
 appointed for those days are designed to recall, I 
 cannot help desiring and hoping that the ideal con- 
 templated by our Church may ere long find its fulfil- 
 ment more generally throughout the diocese than is at 
 present the case. ... I gladly take this opportunity 
 of urging upon the clergy of these churches their duty 
 in this respect." 
 
 This portion of the pastoral caused considerable 
 perturbation among the extreme Protestants, as did 
 also his clear prohibition of the practice which 
 obtained in some (though very few) churches of con- 
 suming the bread and wine which was left after Holy 
 Communion in the vestry instead of at the Communion 
 Table. 
 
 In proof of this it may be well to quote a passage 
 from a letter from the Archbishop to his elder son, the 
 present Lord Plunket : 
 
 " The Palace, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, 
 
 ^^ Feb. 21, 1890. 
 
 " I had an interview with [an extreme Low 
 
 Churchman] yesterday about ritualism. I told him 
 
332 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 that, as I had been pressed by his party to bring my 
 influence to bear on members of the ritualistic party, 
 I was drawing up a pastoral for that purpose. This 
 pleased him much. But I added that in justice I felt 
 bound to require obedience to canons all round, and 
 that in my pastoral I intended to call upon all his 
 party to keep the law as well, and I would expect him 
 and his friends to give notice of holy-days and have 
 more frequent services, &c. This alarmed him and 
 excited him very much. Nothing would ever induce 
 him to follow such injunctions ; it would cause an 
 explosion among his people, &c. &c. I pointed out 
 that he was very exacting — and properly so — as to 
 obedience to the law on the part of others, and that he 
 could scarcely refuse to obey it himself. He seemed 
 rather dumbfounded ! " 
 
 The last words of the pastoral give the thought 
 which guided his pen throughout : 
 
 " As servants of the same Master and members of 
 the same Church, we have a glorious work awaiting us 
 in this our native land, if only, united heart to heart 
 by the ties of charity — that very bond of perfectness, — 
 we rise up as one man and go forth to do it ! May 
 God enable us, in view of these common responsi- 
 bilities and our common yearnings, to draw nearer 
 together and do away with all needless divergencies. 
 It is with an earnest desire to further, in ever so small 
 a measure, this blessed result, that I have ventured to 
 write this pastoral. God grant that it may not prove 
 to have been written in vain ! " 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 333 
 
 As may well be imagined, this famous pastoral 
 brought to Lord Plunket scores of letters of congratu- 
 lation and thanks from far and wide. Of these it will 
 be sufficient to quote one : 
 
 " KiLRYMONT, St. Andrews, 
 
 "April 10, i8go. 
 
 "My dear Lord Archbishop, 
 
 " I thank you sincerely for your kind attention in send- 
 ing me a copy of your ' Words for Peace.' It is to be hoped 
 that a pastoral address so fair and so affectionate, so calm and 
 so judicious, cannot fail to produce the desired effect. It will 
 not be to the credit of the parties concerned if it is not suc- 
 cessful. 
 
 " I wish we could be equally hopeful in regard to the issue 
 of the task which your brother Archbishop of Canterbury has 
 now before him. But for many years past there has been so 
 much connivance at lawlessness in the Church of England, 
 that it may be feared the time is close at hand — if it be not 
 already come — when ' nee mala nee remedia ferre potest ' ! 
 
 " I remember with pleasure our meeting on the way to 
 Aberdeen in 1884, and it makes me feel an additional interest 
 in all you undertake ' pro Deo et Ecclesia.' 
 " I am, 
 
 " My dear Lord Archbishop, 
 
 " Yours very faithfully, 
 "C. WORDSWORTH, 
 
 "Bp. of St. Andrews." 
 
 The newspapers (English as well as Irish) of the 
 period were full of comments upon the pastoral. The 
 Irish Times considered that the clergy and laity would 
 be prepared to receive the Archbishop's admonition in 
 the spirit in which it was offered, in the interests 
 
334 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of peace and brotherly love. That this expectation 
 was not ill-founded is evidenced by a letter from Lord 
 Plunket appearing in the same issue of that paper 
 as the article upon the pastoral : 
 
 " tq the editor of the ' irish times.' 
 
 " Sir, 
 
 " It will, I am sure, be an encouragement to 
 many if I state that, in response to my pastoral, I have 
 already received communications from the one side 
 and the other leading me to hope that the special form 
 of agitation which it has been my object to avert is not 
 now likely to recur. 
 
 " That there will be from time to time controversies 
 — it may be heated controversies — respecting certain 
 debatable questions which are fairly open to discussion 
 in any really comprehensive Church, I have no doubt. 
 But as regards those alleged violations of law and that 
 prospect of litigation with which my pastoral has dealt, 
 the present difficulty is, I trust, well-nigh overpast. 
 
 " I cannot lay down my pen without recording my 
 
 obligation to those who, in deference to my counsels 
 
 and for the sake of peace, have signified to me their 
 
 readiness to make concessions calling for no little 
 
 sacrifice of feeling on their parts and not, in their 
 
 opinion, required by law. 
 
 " Yours faithfully, 
 
 " PLUNKET DUBLIN. 
 " March 28, 1890." 
 
 The Ecclesiastical Gazette, quoting the Guardian, 
 makes the following comment : 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 335 
 
 " If the Archbishop is not over-sanguine, Irish Church- 
 men have set an example of respect for episcopal authority 
 which might well be imitated on this side of St. George's 
 Channel." 
 
 While treating of these matters, which to some extent 
 disturbed the peace of the Church of Ireland, it is 
 impossible altogether to pass over the fact that Lord 
 Plunket was grievously pestered by members of the 
 Protestant Defence Association and persons of similar 
 views. The most gross example is contained in a 
 small pamphlet, for which apparently the above 
 association was not responsible, which is a reprint 
 of four articles on ritualism in the Church of Ireland 
 from the English Churchman and St. James's Chronicle. 
 The language used about the Archbishop in these 
 articles would usually be considered beneath contempt. 
 The reason for even mentioning them here is that they 
 are direct evidence of two things. First, they utterly 
 refute the idea which is so firmly rooted in the minds 
 of many English Churchmen that Lord Plunket was a 
 "narrow Evangelical." Hear what one of these 
 articles says : 
 
 " He [Lord Plunket] has ostentatiously presented himself 
 as advising, consenting, and abetting in the attempts at inno- 
 vation by the Ritualistic party ; and with equal publicity he 
 has exhibited himself as rejecting, rebufifing, and ridiculing 
 the overtures of the Protestant upholders of the law of the 
 Church." 
 
 This was, of course, utterly untrue : at the same time 
 they are not words that would ever have been written 
 
33^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 of a man who was merely a partisan of the Protestant 
 set. 
 
 The other evidence afforded by the publication of 
 these articles was of the Archbishop's meekness and 
 imperturbability of temper. Few men would have 
 condescended to notice such attacks. They drew from 
 him an exceedingly courteous letter of explanation as 
 to what had been described as an attack made by him 
 on the Protestant Defence Association. He ends his 
 letter with a reference to Mr. Fowler, then the chair- 
 man of that association, saying how fully he appre- 
 ciated Mr. Fowler's kind words, which showed that, 
 whatever he (Mr. Fowler) might have said in the heat 
 of debate, he did not share in such a misinterpretation 
 of the Archbishop's feelings as he (the Archbishop) 
 disclaimed in this letter. Thus he turned angry 
 feelings into a kindly channel, and once more did 
 what lay ready to his hand towards the promotion of 
 peace. 
 
 Considerable space has been given to these contro- 
 versial subjects, but not more than is their due, con- 
 sidering the amount of Lord Plunket's time and 
 attention which they occupied during the years in 
 which he presided over the diocese of Dublin, and 
 not more than they deserve when it is considered that 
 throughout they show clearly his absolute impartiality, 
 his skilful dealing with men, and, above all, his one 
 overruling passion for peace and unity, so far as could 
 be obtained without loss of principle. In no circum- 
 stances is it more difficult for a man to follow his 
 Master faithfully than when dealing with the prejudices 
 and heated animosities of his fellow-men, but this he 
 
Party Strife in Dublin 337 
 
 succeeded in doing by the great love for God that was 
 in his heart. A follower of the Good Shepherd, he 
 proved a tender, loving leader of his flock : when 
 reviled, he reviled not again — seeking not his own 
 things, or his own opinions, he set himself simply to 
 do his Father's will. 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 DOMESTIC LIFE 
 
 In the course of the two preceding chapters some 
 attempt has been made to notice that portion of the 
 Archbishop's hfe which had to do with his pubhc 
 capacity as head of the diocese of Dublin. Other 
 matters have fallen into their place in previous portions 
 of the book, either under the heading of " Unity " or 
 " Education " or the "Church in Spain." 
 
 It remains now to make an effort to depict the more 
 private life which he lived at the Palace in St. Stephen's 
 Gieen and at his beautiful seat, Old Connaught, on 
 the outskirts of Bray. Such a large portion of his 
 brighter and happier days, and so large a part of his 
 main interests (apart from his work), are connected with 
 this latter place, that considerable space will be given 
 hereafter to a description of this much-loved home of 
 the Plunkets. 
 
 Lord and Lady Plunket had many " homes " in the 
 course of their married life. At first, for a very short 
 time, they lived in Upper Pembroke Street, Dublin, 
 where the present Lord Plunket was born. Then they 
 had a more permanent residence in Harcourt Street, 
 and, when Bishop of Meath, besides the Palace at 
 Ardbraccan, Lord Plunket had a town house. No. 12, 
 
Domestic Life 339 
 
 Earlsfort Terrace, which is now the Clergy Daughters' 
 School. 
 
 Wherever he and Lady Plunket lived, there was a 
 glow of loving-kindness and thought for others which 
 was felt beyond the mere boundary of their dwelling. 
 One very small instance of this may suffice. It is not 
 every one who would like to have the entrance to their 
 house cumbered by the presence of street hawkers, but 
 on the high flight of steps of the Plunkets' Dublin 
 house flower-girls with their baskets were invariably to 
 be found. It was a pied-a-terre granted them by the 
 kindness of Lady Plunket. This lady's goodness of 
 heart was evident in many other ways. She never 
 forgot her friends, and in spite of her own very bad 
 health, she never lost an opportunity of doing a kind- 
 ness. Her carriages and horses, for instance, were 
 always at the disposal of those who were recovering 
 from illness or to whom a drive would be a treat, and 
 little delicacies were frequently sent, or brought by 
 her own hand, to those whom she knew to be ill or in 
 want. Just as Lord and Lady Plunket were ideal host 
 and hostess at Ardbraccan, so, when in a yet more 
 prominent and responsible position, their hospitality 
 was enlarged and their consideration for their guests 
 knew no bounds. 
 
 One correspondent writes : 
 
 "Many a poor clergyman or clergyman's wife has departed 
 from the Palace or from Old Connaught cheered by being 
 accompanied to the door by Lord Plunket, or by some other 
 simple act of thoughtful courtesy." 
 
 Another writes : 
 
34° Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " On one occasion, after discussing until long past midnight 
 some important questions, his Grace accompanied me to my 
 room, where the fire had not been lit. The Archbishop in- 
 sisted on lighting it, and did not leave the room until he had 
 fanned it into a warming flame. Then, and not till then, he 
 rose from his knees and bade me a cheery 'Good-night.' " 
 
 The family party was, as may well be imagined, 
 thoroughly affectionate and united. An Irish diocese 
 is a very different matter from a diocese in England, and, 
 while Lord Plunket would be busy at various meetings 
 or appointments in the afternoon, he was mostly able 
 to return to Old Connaught (if he was living there at 
 the time) in time to spend a portion of the evening 
 with wife and children. Then there were the occa- 
 sional days, greatly looked forward to and appreciated 
 by all, when he could take a complete holiday and give 
 himself up to the many delights of his beautiful home. 
 His mornings were almost invariably spent with his 
 chaplain in wrestling with the vast pile of correspond- 
 ence with which it never seemed possible successfully 
 to cope. And this was not the only time he gave to 
 such things, for, when all the house had gone to bed 
 except himself, he would return to his writing-table 
 and work till the early morning hours. 
 
 It was during the time of his archiepiscopate that 
 two great trials befell him. Lady Plunket was, as has 
 been said, an invalid for some years. In 1889 the 
 decay of the nerve tissues from which she had suffered 
 for so long became much more dangerous, and on 
 November 8 she passed away at Old Connaught, in the 
 beautiful bedroom which had always been hers, and 
 from the windows of which a glorious view is obtained 
 
Domestic Life 341 
 
 across the wide stretch of the park over the far trees 
 to where a belt of blue sea gleams in the distance and 
 Bray Head rears itself up towards the south. The 
 Archbishop had always been the most devoted of 
 husbands, and the blow fell upon him with terrible 
 force. The manner in which he bore this trial is an 
 example of real Christianity, and could have only been 
 possible for one whose religion was an absolute reality. 
 Fortitude in trouble has been described as one of the 
 great virtues displayed by Lord Plunket. His silent 
 courage was wonderful. There was an occasion when 
 he discovered that he had lost a very large sum of 
 money. He never for one moment allowed the 
 trouble — for trouble it was — to depress him. The in- 
 finitely greater losses of his best beloved were borne 
 nobly too. He was never of an emotional tempera- 
 ment, and his griefs were for the most part locked in 
 his own breast, but he possessed that " rebound," that 
 power of rising from his trouble to meet cheerfully the 
 duties and interests which lay in his path, which is 
 given only to those whose faith enables them to live 
 very near to the unseen world where so much of their 
 treasure is hid with God. The following brief descrip- 
 tion of Lady Plunket's death and funeral is taken from 
 a printed pamphlet containing an address delivered by 
 Canon Wynne at her funeral, with a supplemental note 
 by the Archbishop. The pamphlet is headed " A Suc- 
 courer of Many," and proceeds as follows : 
 
 "Upon Friday, November 8, 1889, after a few weeks' illness 
 — an interval marked by many alternating hopes and fears — 
 Annie Lee Plunket, the wife of Lord Plunket, Archbishop of 
 Dublin, was called to her rest. 
 
342 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " Upon the following Tuesday the funeral took place, and 
 early that morning a large number of mourners assembled at 
 Old Connaught House (near Bray), where Lady Plunket died. 
 The room in which the coffin lay was crowded with floral 
 offerings of the rarest kind, as well as with other simpler tributes 
 to the memory of one who was held by many — rich and poor 
 — in affectionate remembrance. When the cemetery at Mount 
 Jerome was reached it was found that a concourse of some five 
 thousand persons were already collected there — representing 
 members of various classes and several religious denominations 
 — and as the bier passed onwards to the chapel, preceded by 
 the students of the Church of Ireland Training College and 
 the Clergy Daughters' School, singing the beautiful hymn, ' My 
 God, my Father, while I stray,' many and deep were the ex- 
 pressions of regret and sympathy that were heard on every 
 side." 
 
 Canon Wynne in the course of his address referred 
 to the strong religious impressions which Lady Plunket 
 had received in her earliest youth from her father and 
 mother. He described how when quite a young girl 
 she held the first " mothers' meeting '' ever known in 
 Dublin, how she founded the Women's Work Asso- 
 ciation, and how generously and energetically she 
 aided the cause of the Clergy Daughters' School. 
 The very last time that Lady Plunket held a pen in 
 her hand was when she was propped up in bed to 
 enable her to endorse some cheques which been sent 
 for this school in answer to an appeal from her. 
 Canon Wynne told of two traits which were mani- 
 fested during her last illness, and which were clear 
 evidence of her love to God and to man. She never 
 wearied of Bible reading, and never ceased to delight 
 in prayer even when her weakness was most extreme. 
 
Domestic Life 343 
 
 At the same time she never failed to notice each loving 
 friend who approached her, and to thank them with 
 fond and grateful words for every little effort made to 
 minister to her comfort. 
 
 The Archbishop supplemented the above by some 
 further touching details. He wrote : 
 
 " I have before me a letter of sympathy from one of 
 Lady Plunket's oldest and dearest friends — a lady who 
 by her writings has herself done much to further the 
 cause of Christ. I speak of Miss Alcock. . . . Writing 
 to one of my family, Miss Alcock refers thus to a visit 
 which she paid to Lady Plunket scarcely more than a 
 year before her death : 
 
 " ' Most precious is the remembrance of our last meeting, 
 that one bright day little more than a year ago. 
 
 " ' You all know how she lived for Christ, but I shall always 
 remember how that day she spoke of Him, and the deep 
 earnestness with which she said that she looked upon all she 
 had as " simply gifts to be used for God." It is probable that 
 you have already heard that when she was a very young girl, 
 being prepared for confirmation by my dear father, the quiet 
 intense earnestness with which, in answer to his question, " Will 
 you live for Christ ? " she said, " I will," was the means of 
 awakening the serious thoughts of another girl in the same 
 class, who always traced her first impressions to ' that pale 
 girl's "I will!"'" 
 
 Lord Plunket then described the Bible which Lady 
 Plunket had long used, and which was marked and 
 worn and annotated in a manner which showed how 
 earnestly it had been studied. One or two entries also 
 in a daily text book were referred to by him, notably 
 one where Lady Plunket had marked the words, " All 
 
344 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye 
 shall receive," and had added the note, " Perhaps not 
 now, but hereafter, when we have gone home." Against 
 the text, "Be strong and work, for I am with thee," 
 were the pathetic words, " Not very strong, but looking 
 for His presence." 
 
 Lord Plunket then went on thus : 
 
 " I have only to add that during my dear wife's last 
 illness she had with her the ' Presence ' for which she 
 thus looked. . . . When she partook of the Holy 
 Communion a few days before her death she received 
 it with the same 'joy and peace in believing' which 
 she had always derived from that blessed ordinance. 
 Upon the afternoon of that day I spoke to her of our 
 happy morning's service, scarcely expecting that her 
 memory would be able to recall it. ' Ah ! ' she said, 
 ' that is something to look back upon ! ' " 
 
 It can easily be imagined how great must have been 
 the loss to the Archbishop of one whose love was so 
 great and whose religion was so simple and yet so 
 vital. 
 
 Lord Plunket printed a little hymn for circulation 
 among his friends, of which the title was " Thou wilt 
 give back again," and in which the leading thought is 
 his sure hope that God would restore to him his loved 
 one hereafter. There are two stanzas in this hymn 
 which teach a striking lesson and one that is often lost 
 sight of in times of grief — viz., that of gratitude for the 
 happiness already enjoyed by the goodness of God. 
 They run thus : 
 
Domestic Life 345 
 
 " E'en were this life the end, 
 Had we no hope, no heav'n. 
 Still would my praise ascend 
 For joys already given. 
 
 Yes ! for those bygone years 
 
 Of constant, cloudless love, 
 I bless Thy name, with tears — 
 
 All came from Thee above ! " 
 
 A letter which the Archbishop wrote to his elder 
 son, who had just joined the Embassy at Rome, must 
 find a place here, for it is full of reference to Lady 
 Plunket. 
 
 " Old Connaught House, Bray, 
 
 "Co. WicKLow, Ireland, 
 
 "Jan. 2, 1890. 
 
 "Dearest Willie, 
 
 " I have left myself very little time to write to-day, 
 but do not like to let any longer interval pass without 
 sending one line to wish you every happiness and 
 blessing in your new field of work that God can 
 bestow. You have been continually in my thoughts 
 since you left the old home, and my memory has been 
 travelling back over the many happy years that have 
 passed since I tramped through the snow to call the 
 doctor to Pembroke Street [where the present Lord 
 Plunket was born] some twenty-five years ago with an 
 anxious but happy heart ! All the many hopes and 
 fears and consultations and prayers with regard to your 
 future that your dear mother and myself shared since 
 that day on your behalf have been very vividly brought 
 
34^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 back ; and oh 1 how I wish she could now see the 
 reaHsation of what was, I may say, her last earthly 
 wish. , , . 
 
 " As I said to you, however, when you left us, her 
 blessing has gone with you, and her many prayers on 
 your behalf are following you day by day. And per- 
 haps she knows more about your present daily life 
 than we suspect ! I am sure you will treasure her 
 loving counsels. 
 
 " And now, dear Willie, God bless you and keep 
 you and guide you. My remaining time here will 
 not, under any circumstances, be very long, and then 
 I shall go to rejoin her who has gone before. God 
 grant that all her dear ones whom she left behind may 
 be gathered around us again in the deathless land 1 
 You will think this not a very bright letter, but I could 
 not refrain from saying what just now is uppermost in 
 a full heart ! 
 
 " Your loving father, 
 
 "PLUNKET DUBUN." 
 
 The other severe grief which came to Lord Plunket 
 occurred some years afterwards — in fact, not much 
 more than a year before his own death. This was the 
 loss of his second daughter, Mrs. Newman, whose 
 early death within six months of her marriage was a 
 terrible blow to the Archbishop. 
 
 After Lady Plunket's death the Hon. Mrs. Barton, 
 a sister of the Archbishop, came to live with him and 
 to help to superintend his household, as his four 
 
Domestic Life 347 
 
 daughters were young, and the cares and labours of 
 an Archbishop's house, with its vast hospitalities, were 
 both many and great. 
 
 The years that followed were happy ones, in spite of 
 the heavy loss sustained by the family. By far the 
 larger portion of these years was spent at Old Con- 
 naught, where undiminished hospitality was dispensed. 
 Reference has already been made, in the notes con- 
 tributed by the Rev. Samuel Prenter, to the open- 
 hearted way in which Lord Plunket entertained his 
 Nonconformist friends. There is evidence also that 
 he maintained a hearty friendship with some at least 
 of his Roman Catholic neighbours. One of these was 
 the well-known humourist, Father Healy (or Father 
 James, as his intimates called him), who was priest of 
 the parish of Little Bray, and therefore a resident in 
 the immediate vicinity of Old Connaught. The simple, 
 hearty, fun-loving priest was thoroughly appreciated 
 by Lord Plunket, and he was often a guest at the 
 Archbishop's table. Many stories are told concerning 
 this friendship. It is said that Archbishop Walsh when 
 he first became Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin 
 was a good deal more of a bigot than he has since 
 become, and was shocked to think that Father Healy 
 should be on such excellent terms with the heretical 
 Archbishop, and took occasion to speak his mind to 
 the former on the subject. But it was not easy for 
 any one — even his ecclesiastical superior — to browbeat 
 the ready priest. " Don't say that, your Grace 1 " said 
 he. " And why not ? " said Dr. Walsh. " Well, now," 
 replied Father Healy, " I have the greatest hopes of 
 convarting him ! " To any one who knew Lord 
 
34^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Plunket there was something intensely funny in this 
 excuse, and Dr. Walsh, seeing the humour of it, was 
 compelled to laugh and drop the subject. 
 
 On another occasion the two Archbishops met by 
 chance at luncheon at Lord Powerscourt's. Arch- 
 bishop Walsh was there by invitation ; Lord Plunket 
 dropped in accidentally. It was the first occasion on 
 which the two had met on a private footing, and 
 Dr. Walsh, with much savoir faire, made things easy 
 at once. " I'm glad, your Grace," said he, " to hear a 
 good account of you from your parish priest [Father 
 Healy], upon whom I have made a visitation call 
 to-day." " How is that ? " said Lord Plunket. " Well," 
 replied the other, " I happened to mention your name 
 to him, and he said, ' I haven't a word to say against 
 him : he's a decent gentleman — except, indeed, he 
 doesn't pay his dues as regularly as he should ! ' " 
 
 There is no doubt that the humour of Father Healy 
 and his friendship with both men helped to bring the 
 two Archbishops nearer than they would ever have 
 otherwise been. As a matter of fact, partly owing to 
 this, and partly to their having a mutual respect for 
 one another, they always got on extremely well together 
 on the Board of Education (where they constantly met) 
 and elsewhere. That Father Healy was on sufficiently 
 intimate terms with Lord Plunket not to mind much 
 what he said to him is instanced by a remark he made 
 on the occasion of a large gathering at Old Connaught. 
 It happened that the Archbishop's elder son had just 
 been appointed attache at Rome, and when Father 
 James came up to shake hands with Lord Plunket, he 
 horrified some of the elders who were standing by by 
 
Domestic Life 349 
 
 saying, " I congratulate your Grace on your son having 
 gone over to Rome." Needless to say, the Archbishop 
 fully enjoyed the joke. 
 
 In spite of the well-known liberal-mindedness of 
 Lord Plunket, and in spite of the fact that among his 
 most respected and faithful workpeople were to be 
 found strong Papists, there was a certain section of 
 Irishmen who could not forgive him for being a Pro- 
 testant and for being sufficiently patriotic to resist 
 Home Rule. These people were ever on the look-out 
 for an opportunity of attacking him. The fact that 
 he was the most peace-loving man in the whole 
 country, and spent himself and his means in doing 
 good, influenced them not at all. 
 
 The following instance will show the animus of 
 these men. In 1885 a certain man called Michael 
 Toole, not in Lord Plunket's regular employ, was taken 
 on as a temporary hand during a pressure of work by 
 the steward at Old Connaught. About a week after 
 his engagement he, in company with at least two 
 others in the same employ, went to Dundrum to 
 secure his vote at the Revision Court. The others 
 returned, but this man (who was a Nationalist) stayed 
 away more than two days, during which it had become 
 necessary to engage another man to do his work. 
 On his return it was impossible to dismiss the man 
 who had been taken on in his place, so he (Toole) 
 had to go. 
 
 On the strength of this the Nationalist party — or 
 some of them — made a most virulent attack on Lord 
 Plunket. The Bray National League passed a resolu- 
 tion 
 
35° Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " Condemning in the strongest terms the partisan conduct 
 of Lord Plunket, Protestant Archbishop of Dublin, in dismiss- 
 ing one of his workmen — Michael Toole — from his employment 
 for attending the Revision Court in Dundrum to secure his 
 vote, he having been objected to by the Tory party." 
 
 Now mark Lord Plunket's reply. He said : 
 
 " I have simply to say that until I saw this statement 
 in print I had no knowledge whatever of this man's 
 visit to a revision court, or of his so-called dismissal. 
 This disposes at once of the charge so far as it affects 
 myself. But, as others are concerned, I add some 
 further particulars. 
 
 " My steward and herd attended at the same time, 
 and returned after a few hours' absence to their work. 
 Had Toole done the same he would now be, as they 
 are, in my employment still. But unfortunately for 
 him, whether from choice or necessity, he was absent 
 for two days and a half. Meanwhile, work had to be 
 done, and another man was engaged to fill the gap. 
 When Toole at last reappeared, my steward could not 
 have employed him again without dismissing the man 
 who had taken his place, and as Toole had no special 
 claims above the other, my steward did not feel called 
 upon to do so. 
 
 " When I add that the man who was thus retained 
 in Toole's place had attended the same revision court 
 as Toole, and for the same purpose — namely, the secur- 
 ing of a Nationalist vote — and that he is in my employ- 
 ment now, the hoUowness of this charge against 
 
Domestic Life 351 
 
 myself and my steward will be clear to every honest 
 mind." 
 
 When it is also stated that this was by no means the 
 first occasion on which the steward had had to dis- 
 continue Toole's services owing to irregularity in 
 attendance at his work, it will be seen that a more 
 complete answer to an absurd charge could hardly 
 have been imagined. 
 
 But did his accusers wait to hear what might be 
 said on the other side ? Not they. With a beautiful 
 indifference to the most ordinary spirit of fairness, the 
 Irish National League met in Dublin and endorsed the 
 condemnation of the Bray branch, without apparently 
 any attempt to ascertain the real facts. That this was 
 so is evident from the speech made on the occasion by 
 Mr. T. M. Healy, M.P., as quoted in the Freeman's 
 Journal of September 23, 1885. He said, according to 
 the extract given, that 
 
 " The Lord Archbishop of Dublin was a man with both 
 spiritual and temporal power, and whatever the grandeur of 
 his temporal power might be, his spiritual power might at least 
 entitle him to act with charity. He [Mr. Healy] knew nothing 
 of this matter further than the report of the Bray National 
 League on Sunday last. 
 
 "Sff T^ sj& 'f* 'S" 
 
 " Lord Archbishop Plunket, if this report was true, would 
 no doubt assign some other reasons ; but whether he did so 
 or not, they could draw their own conclusions." 
 
 It is almost incredible that a responsible member 
 of Parliament should make such a confession. He 
 denounced Lord Plunket, and in the same breath 
 
352 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 owned that he knew nothing of the case beyond the 
 t'^t j^ajie statement of the Bray National League. He 
 also stated that practically nothing said on the other 
 side need affect their judgment ! 
 
 As usual, Lord Plunket's perfect courtesy and com- 
 plete self-control made his reply a pattern of the way 
 in which a Christian gentleman should meet even such 
 accusers as these. " I acquit," he said, " those who 
 brought this charge of any intentional mis-statement. 
 But had they taken the trouble — as in justice they were 
 bound to do — of making more careful inquiry, they 
 would, I think, have soon learned from those who 
 know me that I have never allowed any question of 
 politics or religion to disturb the friendly and free and 
 fair relations which should always exist between the 
 employer and the employed. " 
 
 As a matter of fact, Lord Plunket's relations with 
 those in his employ were always of the most cordial 
 nature. More than three years after his death, a 
 gentleman who was being shown over the grounds at 
 Old Connaught had a word or two of conversation 
 with several of the oldest retainers on the place. One 
 of these (a staunch Roman Catholic) could hardly 
 restrain his tears, as with a voice broken by emotion 
 he spoke of his undying memories of the Archbishop, 
 while another was scarcely less moved as he described 
 how often his old master would discuss this alteration 
 and that plan with him, " and never a wrong word in 
 all the years." 
 
 A former chaplain writes upon this subject : 
 
 " Servants often can realise the character of their employers 
 
Domestic Life 353 
 
 better than personal friends, and in this connection I may add 
 the testimony of the coachman at Old Connaught, a smart 
 little Devonshire man, who once confided to me, ' I've lived 
 
 with Lord , and I've lived with Lord and Lord , 
 
 and never lived with a " Sir " in my life, and his Grace is the 
 first gentleman I ever lived with.' " 
 
 It was the same all through Lord Plunket's life. 
 His extreme courtesy and his affectionate disposition 
 controlled his dealings with all who came into daily 
 contact with him from his earliest years. It will be 
 remembered what warm relations existed between him 
 and the old family nurse, even long after he grew up. 
 It is quite impossible, while on this subject, to omit 
 some description of an old retainer, still on the place, 
 by name Jerry Sutton. With the exception of Mr. 
 Irwin, the steward, he has probably been longer in the 
 service of the family than any one else. He is house 
 carpenter and general odd-job man, and was therefore 
 consulted by the Archbishop in most of his alterations 
 and plans about the house and grounds, and was a 
 great favourite with him and with all the family. He 
 was a sort of Irish Mrs. Malaprop, and the stories 
 told of him are innumerable. 
 
 In company with Irwin, Jerry was in the habit of 
 waiting in the passage outside the study at Old Con- 
 naught until the Archbishop could leave his corre- 
 spondence and attend to them. When he at last came 
 out, they would follow him, armed with a long line 
 and a quantity of white pegs. Lord Plunket talking to 
 them about some new path he was planning, and 
 treasuring up Jerry's quaint phraseology for repetition 
 at the dinner-table in the evening. 
 
 z 
 
354 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 Jerry is a Roman Catholic and Nationalist, but this 
 never interfered with the warm relations existing 
 between him and his master. One of the earliest stories 
 about him is with reference to his wife (for he is 
 married and has a numerous progeny). Soon after his 
 engagement Lord Plunket asked him how old his 
 intended might be. To which he replied that he 
 thought her about twenty-six or seven, but when he 
 came to ask her, he found she was over thirty. Allud- 
 ing to this, he said afterwards, " I often told her of the 
 honour I put upon her when his Grace axed me." 
 
 His children he invariably called the " items." Thus 
 he would say, " Will I send an item for some more 
 pegs ? " Once an " item " was ill, and, as there was 
 much infectious illness about, the Archbishop asked 
 him what was the matter. Jerry considers it a mark of 
 respect always to speak in the third person (just as the 
 Highlanders also do), and replied, " His Grace needn't 
 be in any dispense about the matter. The doctor said 
 there was nothing affectionate about the child, only a 
 slight dislocation of the throat." 
 
 When asked how many posts a certain fence would 
 require, he replied that " at a bird's-eye guess " it would 
 take so-and-so. 
 
 The Archbishop's many suggested improvements he 
 invariably described as "ideays," and when they met 
 with his disapproval he called them " despicuous." 
 
 In speaking of his fellow servants he always used 
 the word " subjects " ; thus, women servants were in 
 his vocabulary "famale subjects." A good instance of 
 this occurred when certain alterations were being 
 made in the golf-links in the park, and Jerry was 
 
Domestic Life 355 
 
 exhorted to see that the flags were not touched or 
 removed. To this he repHed, " There's not a subject 
 on the firrm [farm ?] but takes the greatest intherest in 
 his Grace's temporal and spiritual welfare." 
 
 He had an immense respect for the Archbishop's 
 cleverness. " I don't understand at all, at all," he 
 would say, " but his Grace will understand — when he's 
 in the dark." 
 
 Just one more example of his reckless use of the 
 English language. In carrying out some alterations 
 an old drain was discovered. Its existence puzzled 
 the Archbishop, and Jerry was summoned to give an 
 opinion. This he did by declaring his conviction that 
 the drain must be " hereditary." 
 
 It can easily be imagined how greatly Lord Plunket 
 delighted in his talks with this faithful henchman, and 
 how often he took his guests to have a chat with such 
 an original character. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 OLD CONN A UGHT 
 
 In order to realise the private life of Lord Plunket, it 
 is absolutely necessary to be able to picture his home 
 at Old Connaught. To do this is not only necessary, 
 but also delightful, for a more lovely spot it would be 
 hard to find. The house itself, a grey, rectangular 
 building, is perhaps more suggestive of comfort than 
 of beauty ; but its glorious position, looking away to 
 the sea on the one side and up to purple moorlands 
 on the other, is unsurpassed. Then the immediate sur- 
 roundings are of considerable beauty. The park, of 
 which the most is made by skilful planting — an art in 
 which Lord Plunket took especial pleasure — and the 
 ample lawns and gardens, are objects so charming and 
 interesting that no visitor to Bray should fail to ask 
 permission to see them. Inside the house there are 
 certain things of which a short description will prove 
 valuable. In the boudoir, which opens out of the 
 entrance-hall, there is a picture of Lady Plunket, done 
 in pastels, and giving a vision of a fair, blue-eyed girl 
 of great sweetness of expression. This room is con- 
 nected with the drawing-room by a conservatory, 
 which was built by Lord Plunket himself, and in which 
 he placed a beautiful white marble bath which he 
 
Old Connaught 357 
 
 brought from Italy, In the large and handsome 
 dining-room — so constantly filled with guests, and at 
 other times the scene of so many lively happy family 
 parties — two pictures attract immediate attention. One 
 is a really wonderful portrait of the first Lord Plunket, 
 by Hamilton. The other is a large full-length portrait 
 of the Archbishop in his purple coat, painted by 
 Baroness Loudon. This picture he would not allow 
 to be sent to the Academy. It is a most interesting 
 and excellent work of art. It has been suggested that 
 the Archbishop's head does not appear to be of suffi- 
 cient size to be in proportion to the rest of the figure, 
 but this may be to some extent accounted for by the 
 difficulty experienced in all full-face portraits of repre- 
 senting the depth of the head — i.e., of suggesting the 
 proportions of the head which are hidden by the face. 
 But the picture gives a wonderful idea of the handsome 
 presence and tall, dignified figure of the man as he 
 might have sat on state occasions surrounded by some 
 of his honoured guests. 
 
 It is a quick but not altogether unpleasing change to 
 find oneself in the Archbishop's study, which is hard 
 by. This is a small room, with book-shelves to the 
 ceiling set above multitudes of drawers and cupboards 
 for the reception of the papers and pamphlets which a 
 bishop needs to keep for reference. The open window 
 looks straight across the park, and there is a second 
 door leading into the secretary's room. In the centre 
 of the study stands the large leather-topped table at 
 which he wrote, and there still is the round red velvet 
 chair in which he sat so often and so late — not in the 
 purple 'coat of state occasions, but as often as not 
 
35^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 in his shirtsleeves, that he might the better cope 
 with the mass of correspondence, &c., which awaited 
 him. 
 
 He was no smoker himself, but, with his usual con- 
 sideration for others, he added a wing for his sons and 
 their friends, with a billiard-room, &c., and in this 
 portion of the house tobacco was allowed to hold full 
 sway. 
 
 Outside the house everything is full of memories of 
 the Archbishop. There are the flower-beds and paths 
 which he designed, and the gardeners will tell of the 
 hours he would spend with a long piece of string, 
 showing exactly by arranging it upon the ground how 
 he wished each turn to be made, and pointing out 
 every detail with the point of his umbrella. It is 
 worth noting, in passing, that he was a regular um- 
 brella man ; and whether he was met in Sackville 
 Street or striding about his grounds at Old Connaught, 
 he was never without his umbrella. It is a curious 
 fact that his brother. Lord Rathmore, is commonly 
 supposed not to possess such a thing ! 
 
 The Archbishop's favourite seat was at the far end 
 of the kitchen garden, looking right up the centre walk 
 some hundreds of yards in length, and bordered on 
 each side by numberless herbaceous plants. It is 
 remarkable to notice that the excellent taste displayed 
 by him in laying out grounds, planting, &c., had its 
 limits, for it is impossible not to shrink from the 
 vision of red and white brickwork, vases on brick 
 stands, &c., with which he deformed the gardens here 
 and there. His attention to detail was much com- 
 mented upon by all in his employ. The very last 
 
Old Connaught 359 
 
 thing he built was a large fruit-house, and he examined 
 into every particular of the work, requiring to know 
 the exact weight of the glass used, and so on. 
 
 One or two little stories are told about his gardening 
 and other operations. He one day sent for the gar- 
 dener to explain to him some alteration he wished 
 carried out during his absence from home. To make 
 his idea clear he drew a plan upon a convenient brick 
 wall with the point of his umbrella. On his return 
 home after some weeks' absence he was not sure that 
 exactly what he had proposed had been carried out, 
 so he hurried to the wall to examine the plan he had 
 drawn, when lo ! he discovered that a plant of ficus 
 repens had grown up and completely covered his 
 drawing. 
 
 He built the most elaborate system of fowl-houses, 
 and the younger members of the family used to tell 
 him that they supposed they were all to live in them 
 when they were evicted ! 
 
 Besides his enthusiasm for landscape gardening, 
 Lord Plunket was always fond of games when he could 
 get the time, and many a match at croquet was played 
 on the lawns of Old Connaught ; while in the park he 
 established a golf-course, in which latter pursuit he 
 greatly delighted. He became, indeed, an excellent 
 golfer for one who had taken it up so late in life, 
 and could drive a longer ball than many a younger 
 man. 
 
 Sir PYederick Falkiner, the Recorder of Dublin and 
 a close friend of the Archbishop, has been good 
 enough to contribute the following valuable informa- 
 tion about Old Connaught : 
 
360 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 "Old Connaught, the Archbishop's paternal home in County 
 Dublin, is very beautifully placed. The demesne lies on the 
 lower slopes of Shankill mountain, which rises seaward on 
 the flank of the range of the Dublin hills where they roll from 
 the Dublin plains to mingle with the Wicklow mountains in 
 the south. With Shankill for its background, the sweet vale of 
 Shanganagh spreads below to the sea, with the triple cones of 
 Killiney in the north and the bold headland of Bray Head to 
 the south projecting, like Mount Carmel, to form the lovely 
 curves of Killiney Bay. The rich valley and crescent shore 
 guarded by the half-circle of highlands well compare in like- 
 ness and in beauty with the Concha d'Oro or Golden Shell of 
 Palermo, for Bray Head is linked to the chain of the Wicklow 
 mountains by the purpled peaks of the lesser and greater 
 Sugarloaves, whose intermediate slopes and glens are filled with 
 the demesnes of Kilruddery, Charlesville, and Powerscourt, 
 the seats of Lord Meath, of Lord Monck, and Lord Powers- 
 court. From these Old Connaught is separated by the Valley 
 of Diamonds, with the stream called by Camden the riveret 
 Bray flowing through from Powerscourt waterfall to the 
 ocean. Shankill and Old Connaught are severed from the 
 Dublin hills behind by the deep cleft known as the Scalp and 
 the famous valley of Glencullen, where the Fenians rose in 
 arms in 1866. The beauty of the scene is enhanced by the 
 atmosphere of old romance, for though the valleys smile with 
 modern life, cromlechs, Druids' altars, Celtic crosses, and ruins 
 of immemorial churches are to be seen here and there by the 
 rambler. 
 
 " It was here that Lord Plunket (the first Lord Plunket), 
 when Attorney-General, built or rebuilt his home of Old 
 Connaught, making it a centre of hospitality and of the highest 
 and most cultured social gatherings of his day. Here in the 
 August of 1825 he was visited by Sir Walter Scott, with his 
 daughter Anne and Lockhart. Lockhart describes their visit 
 of three days with enthusiasm, and Sir Walter's delight with 
 his host and their excursions through the country round, and 
 
Old Connaught 361 
 
 their famous visit* to the Seven Churches of Glendalough 
 some twenty miles away — a congenial place for the spirit of 
 the Great Unknown, as he was then still, at least by courtesy, 
 regarded. The climb of the party into St. Kevin's Bed is 
 described, and the horror with which they saw Sir Walter 
 insisting on being one of them — the first lame man, his son-in- 
 law says, who ever faced that peril. 
 
 " Scott often afterwards spoke of Plunket's acquaintance as 
 one of the great acquisitions he had made in his Irish visit, 
 talking with high admiration of his acute logic and brilliant 
 eloquence. 
 
 " This visit has ever since been a prized and bright memory 
 at Old Connaught. Very lately the Archbishop spoke of it to 
 the writer, telling how in the last three months of his mother's 
 life — she died in 1885 — she had recalled the day at Glenda- 
 lough and all its incidents. She was staying at Old Connaught 
 at the time, a young affianced bride, engaged to Plunket's 
 second son, afterwards the third Lord Plunket. The Glenda- 
 lough party on their return, having dined, passed into the 
 drawing-room before sunset. Sir Walter throws his weary 
 limbs on a sofa, but not to sleep or doze, but, probably tuned 
 by the romance of round towers and gloomy lake and 
 shattered arches, he struck the note of ghost stories, which one 
 after another he poured forth in deep Scotch accents without 
 stay or forethought in the gloaming to the very entrancement 
 of the darkling room. The spell was momentarily inter- 
 rupted when the butler opened a door carrying waxlights, 
 but the Attorney-General starting up, with silent uplifted hands 
 solemnly motioned the intruder back and closed the door, and 
 the enchanter continued to pour forth his glamour till far into 
 the night. 
 
 " Again in the presence of the writer the Archbishop retold 
 this reminiscence to the Archbishop of Canterbury (Dr. 
 Benson) when staying at Old Connaught during his triumphant 
 and tragic visit to Ireland in the late summer of 1896. As he 
 
 * See p. 12. 
 
362 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 told it after dinner he seemed to act it, his fine face kindled 
 with sensitiveness of the scene. Little could it have been 
 surmised, as the two prelates conversed that day in happy 
 friendship, both apparently in the full vigour of their gracious, 
 useful lives, that in one fortnight one of them, within six months 
 both, would have become noble phantoms of the past. 
 
 " Old Connaught has high title to the epithet ' Old.' As far 
 back as Oliver Cromwell a survey of 1664 describes it as the 
 property of James Walsh, ' Irish Papist,' and that there is upon 
 it a castle thatched and the walls of the parish church, but it 
 was from time immemorial ecclesiastical property and part of 
 the rentals of the Archbishop of Dublin ; and it was a strange 
 coincidence that it should have been in our days the private 
 estate and home of our Archbishop of Dublin. The Walshes, 
 however, notwithstanding the inquisition, held on. Perhaps 
 Oliver was too busy to care to make reclamations for Episcopal 
 Churchmen, but the Walshes were there until after the Treaty 
 of Limerick in 1691, when the family abandoned it and retired 
 to France. Their title was probably one of forcible possession, 
 for they were a strong race and not easily displaced, and the 
 clans of the O'Byrnes and O'Tooles in the mountains behind 
 could always defend them from English law or parliamentary 
 authority in Dublin. But authority was invoked in 1473 
 by petition of the vicars of St. Patrick's Cathedral, stating that 
 eighty acres in the seignory of Shanganagh had been leased 
 to Edmund Walsh, who disowned their authority and would 
 pay no rent— a good precedent for the no-rent manifestoes 
 which have proved not always unsuccessful title-deeds even in 
 our modern Irish decades. 
 
 " But the Archbishop himself discovered a higher claim to 
 antiquity than the above records afford. A few years since he 
 constructed a new drive, chiefly for Lady Plunket's sake, who 
 was delicate, in order that she might enjoy full carriage exer- 
 cise without leaving the demesne. In its north-eastern angle, 
 where it is nearest the sea, there is a conical knoll rising 
 abruptly from the level, which commands a specially charming 
 
Old Connaught 365 
 
 view of land and sea, and the Archbishop wished that the new 
 drive should wind over the top of the knoll so as to include 
 this view. In excavating here in 1893 the workmen came 
 upon a treasure-trove of strange and unknown ornaments, 
 bronze, bone, and stone, pebbles and sea-shells perforated so 
 as to form necklaces, and these amongst some human skeletons 
 and the bones and tusks of the primaeval Irish pig and rem- 
 nants of goats and deer. All these were in the upper stratum 
 of the hillock, which seemed artificial : below it is of natural 
 formation, glacial, composed of yellow clay and water-worn 
 boulders. There was and is no local tradition of this place or ■ 
 any legend to suggest its meaning, and none of the relics gave 
 any hint of Christianity or Christian times. Lord Plunket 
 placed himself in communication with the Royal Society of 
 Antiquaries in Ireland, who sent to the place their veteran- 
 antiquary, Mr. Wakeman ; and he made an exhaustive inquiry 
 and search, the result of which he committed to two papers, 
 read to the Society and pubhshed with illustrations in their 
 Journal of 1894. The verdict of Mr. Wakeman was that this 
 knoll was a pagan and prehistoric sepulchral mound of what 
 is called the age of bronze, analogous to the great pagan 
 cemetery of Carrowmore, near Sligo, and one found in Croan, 
 Co. Galway, some years ago. He interprets the remnants of 
 long-nosed pigs, goats, and deer to be relics of a great funeral 
 feast, the precursor of the time-honoured Irish wake. In 
 January 1894 Lord Plunket invited the Society of Antiquaries 
 to visit the mound and compare their impressions with Mr.. 
 Wakeman's most interesting reports. Many responded, and 
 fellows, associates, and members came to Old Connaught, 
 where, after their researches had concluded, they were all 
 entertained by the Archbishop in person in Old Connaught 
 House.* 
 
 * This mound was a favourite resort of the younger members of the 
 Plunket family. There is a glorious view from it, and partly for the 
 sake of this and partly from a rage for excavating which prevailed 
 among them, and was fostered by a keenly intellectual German gover- 
 ness, they frequently held " tea picnics " there. It was no uncommon. 
 
364 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 " Lord Plunket, if ever any bishop of the Christian Church 
 did so, observed the apostolic injunction to be given to hospi- 
 tality. It needed no St. Paul to enjoin him, for hospitality 
 with him was a native characteristic. Everybody in his wide 
 circle of relatives, connections, friends, acquaintances was 
 assured of a warm Irish welcome at Old Connaught. It was 
 his custom in Lady Plunket's time to issue for the vacation 
 months cards of manifold invitation, naming three or four days 
 in August and September, at intervals, when garden parties 
 would assemble. All were invited to all of these. On these 
 gala days crowds filled the house, the lawns, the pleasure- 
 grounds, and gardens : every clergyman in his wide archdiocese, 
 which comprises all the county of Dublin, North Wicklow, and 
 nearly all Kildare, and many clergymen outside his jurisdiction 
 were asked. The black clerical garb perhaps predominated, 
 but this was duly diversified by the bright parasols, gay frocks, 
 and sweet faces of the bevies of fair women wont to illumine 
 the garden parties of Ireland. Well-spread marquees were 
 raised to receive and refresh the moving throngs, and the host 
 moved through all, making every one pleasant with a happy 
 word of welcome, the generous and genial genius of the place. 
 He often had at these gatherings the band of the Meath 
 Boys' Industrial School, for it was a principle with him as far 
 as possible to recognise and correlate the institutions within his 
 archdiocese in which he took an interest ; and the recognition 
 in this way had a most salutary influence on the boys, who 
 were proud to perform before ' the quality ' in the grounds of a 
 patron whom with good reason they knew to be their good 
 friend. 
 
 thing at luncheon, in the summer, to hear the remark, " We are going 
 to have a bone-party this afternoon." Rather an amusing incident 
 occurred on the occasion of the visit of the Archseological Society to 
 which Sir Frederick Falkiner refers. Lord Plunket had intended to 
 ask them to tea, but during luncheon a long black stream was seen 
 winding its way up the drive towards the house. There was no possi- 
 bility of providing them with luncheon, and the chaplain was sent out 
 hurriedly to head them off, direct them to the mound, and assure them 
 that tea would be ready as soon as possible. 
 
Old Connaught 365 
 
 " As Lord Plunket, both when Bishop of Meath and Arch- 
 bishop of Dublin, always attended the meetings of the Pan- 
 Anglican Synod at Lambeth, he had an extensive personal 
 acquaintance with the episcopacy of the Anglican Com- 
 munion, and he always rejoiced to see in his home any of 
 them who happened to be in Ireland, and not least those who 
 came from far. Bishop Lightfoot of Durham visited him at 
 Old Connaught. Bishop Perry of Iowa, Bishop Thornton 
 of Ballarat, Bishop Potter of New York, Bishop Davies of 
 Michigan, Bishop Whipple of Minnesota, and Bishop Tucker 
 of Uganda were also his guests at Old Connaught, and doubt- 
 less have carried into the ranches of America and Australia 
 and the depths of Africa kind memories of the Vale of Shan- 
 ganagh and their noble brother and host. 
 
 " But the Archbishop's sympathies were not limited to the 
 members of his own communion. An incident at Old Con- 
 naught eight years ago signally shows this. As the whole port 
 and bearing of Lord Plunket that day were very characteristic 
 of his personality, his attitude towards other Christian people 
 and his fellow-countrymen at large, his ample toleration of 
 those who differed from him, and his strong loyalty to his own 
 — his fervid Irish patriotism and loving pride in his own island, 
 but always in essential union with the imperial kingdom in 
 whose greatness and inherent goodness he fervently believed — 
 his ardent yearning towards the ideal of Christian reunion, 
 which was then the aspiration of many noble Christian hearts, 
 and which was ever amongst his further hopes — we venture to 
 speak of this episode in some detail. It attracted throughout 
 the country an appreciative notice far beyond its importance as 
 a successful summer festival, and added another happy memory 
 to the associations of Old Connaught which has not passed 
 away. 
 
 "In June 1892 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian 
 Church in Ireland, usually held in Belfast, where the head- 
 quarters are, was convened in Dublin. One of the chief 
 incidents of the meeting was the reception of a deputation 
 
.366 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 from the Established Church of Scotland and delegates from 
 the other Presbyterian Scottish communities. The moderator 
 of the General Assembly of the Scotch Church headed the 
 deputation. The proceedings of the day ended in an evening 
 conversazione, which included several dignitaries and members 
 ■of the Church of Ireland, and notably the Archbishop. The 
 next day, June 10, there was a great garden party at Old Con- 
 naught, given by the Archbishop in honour of the members of 
 the General Assembly and the Scottish deputies, who, with their 
 wives, daughters, and families, were specially invited by his 
 Grace. It was a magnificent summer's day, the beautiful sur- 
 roundings shone at their best, and the ftte was a splendid 
 success. Six hundred guests were invited, and most of these 
 were present. They were received at the door of Old Con- 
 naught House by the Archbishop and his sister, the Hon. 
 Mrs. Barton. Thence they passed through the drawing-room 
 and out into the pleasure-grounds, where the band of the 
 Royal Munster Fusiliers was playing and where the well-stored 
 marquees were spread. It was arranged that at five o'clock the 
 Archbishop would receive and address a word of welcome to 
 the members of the General Assembly and the gentlemen from 
 Scotland in the family dining-room. At this hour there was a 
 rush to the house. The dining-room is a large one, but it 
 •could only contain one half of the crowd who thronged to it, 
 and the other half could only swarm before the open windows 
 to see and listen. It was worth the strain. The Archbishop 
 was radiant and at his best. He began by addressing all his 
 company in words of warm welcome. It is to be remembered 
 that the General Election and Mr. Gladstone's revival of his 
 Home Rule Bill were then the topic of the day, and Ireland, 
 and especially the north, was in high agitation. Turning to 
 the Scotch guests first, he reminded them that this was not the 
 first interchange of mutual goodwill between Scotland and 
 Ireland, for he admitted that St. Patrick was a Scotsman, 
 though it would require a skilful operation to knock into his 
 head any proof that he was a Presbyterian also, and he there- 
 
Old Connaught 367 
 
 fore gladly acknowledged the obligation to Scotland of estab- 
 lishing Christianity in our native land through our patron 
 saint. He went on to say : ' I think it will interest some of 
 you here to know that the great Sir Walter Scott, the Wizard 
 of the North, who still fascinates us all in the literature of 
 fiction, some seventy years ago sat in this very room at my 
 grandfather's table, an honoured guest.' Turning to the Irish 
 General Assembly-men, he told them of a letter he had just 
 received from a Presbyterian gentleman in Dublin, saying that, 
 having heard in the newspapers of the invitation to the General 
 Assembly to Old Connaught for that day, June lo, he thought 
 it might be interesting to him — the Archbishop — to know that 
 on June lo, 1642, the first Presbytery in connection with the 
 Church of Scotland in Ireland was formed at Carrickfergus, 
 and that the day at Old Connaught would therefore be the 
 fifth jubilee of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland closing 250 
 years. The Archbishop then said : 
 
 " ' I think it is a matter of some interest bearing on 
 the progress of religious liberty and, I venture to hope, 
 brotherly love amongst Christians, that this event 
 should now be commemorated beneath the roof of 
 an Archbishop of the Prelatic Church of Ireland. I 
 think it is a symbol and something more of an evi- 
 dence of increasing unity between those who have 
 stood too long apart. Crossing the Channel, I go 
 over sometimes in the Leinster, sometimes in the 
 Munster, sometimes in the Connaught, sometimes in 
 the Ulster ; but the steamer I feel most at home in is 
 the Ireland, which is the finest of them all and the 
 safest. Well, I hope that, while we shall always be 
 very proud of our connection with the British 
 Empire, on the history of which Irishmen have 
 shed some lustre in the past, whilst we are proud of 
 
368 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 our Imperial nationality, let us never be forgetful of 
 our Irish nationality too. We may be descended from 
 different races — Danes, Celts, Saxons, Scots — but 
 nevertheless we form a combined stratum of our own, 
 and that is ' Irish ' and nothing else. So I trust that 
 this meeting between north and south is a symbol of a 
 great principle which shall underlie all our actions, 
 that, whether we be from north, south, east, or west, 
 together we shall stand or fall. But this meeting is a 
 token of a higher union — of those essential principles 
 which underlie our common faith. It was said lately, 
 by a writer in the north, that all Protestants in Ireland 
 were bound together by the twofold tie of an internal 
 affinity and a common danger. I think that puts the 
 matter plainly and in comprehensive form. I am glad 
 he did not speak of any enemy. I do not choose to 
 look on any of my fellow-countrymen as an enemy. 
 They may differ very much from us in political 
 opinions, and we may have to fight them with courage 
 and perseverance, but we never forget they are our 
 fellow-countrymen, and our hearts should be bound to 
 all who belong to the same mother-land. I have been 
 accused of describing some of my Roman Catholic 
 fellow-countrymen as wolves.* What I did say, I be- 
 lieve, was that there were many Roman Catholics in 
 Ireland who had no intention of being thrown to the 
 wolves. I will explain. There is a venerable gentle- 
 man on the other side of the Channel [Mr. Gladstone] : 
 he is a man of commanding ability, to whom, as 
 Christians, we owe much for his championship of 
 truth. I honour the man personally. I differ from 
 * See p. 199. 
 
Old Connaught 369 
 
 some of my friends, for I believe that he acts from the 
 highest motives and principles. I have knelt beside 
 him at the Communion rails j I hope to meet him in 
 the court above ; but I look upon him politically as an 
 arch-wolf of the most accomplished type, and there 
 are some here vsrho have some experience of his tender 
 mercies. Some time ago he said of our Established 
 Church that it had gone to the dogs j yes, it had fallen 
 into rapacious hands. What he meant by dogs I 
 meant by wolves. All those who know me are aware 
 I never conceal that I am an out-and-out Protestant ; 
 that I protest against what I believe, rightly or wrongly, 
 to be error of doctrine and practice in the ritual of 
 the Church of Rome ; but I hope I have never said a 
 word which could reasonably be considered calcu- 
 lated to wound the feelings of my Roman Catholic 
 fellow-countrymen. Yet I must be on my guard 
 against any who seek the downfall of things I hold 
 most dear or to bring about that which would injure 
 the welfare of the country which is dearest to my 
 heart. Therefore a meeting like this, which symbo- 
 lises the union that exists between Protestants of all 
 denominations, is most important, especially when, in 
 the presence of dangers, we intend to present a united 
 front.' " 
 
 " The latest out-of-door gathering at Old Connaught in which 
 the Archbishop shared was in the August of 1896, when a 
 company of the Boys' Brigade were encamped in the grounds 
 for ten days and nights under the command of his son, now 
 the Hon. and Rev. Benjamin Plunket. There are none per- 
 haps to whom, more than to the Archbishop and his son, is 
 due the wonderful success of this institution, which in the last 
 few years has developed into an organisation of Imperial 
 
 2 A 
 
370 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 significance in view of the great question of national defence, 
 as has been cordially testified by such authorities as Lord 
 Wolseley and our Irish Field-Marshal, the Generalissimo in 
 South Africa. The Archbishop threw himself into this move- 
 ment from the beginning, recognising its great potentialities for 
 good on high grounds both of religion and patriotism. It was 
 a delight to him to see the Brigade boys around him, at 
 their services, their exercises, and their games. There was an 
 element of youthfulness in his nature which he carried with 
 him forcibly to the end. 
 
 " The Archbishop has passed upward. Old Connaught re- 
 mains ; but the place that knew him cannot be said to know 
 him no more. For his presence still lingers there in all around 
 — in the penetralia of the home, in the gardens he loved to 
 beautify, in the cedar grove he planted, in the golf-links where 
 often and with no mean skill he played with his young people 
 and with their friends and his ; in the gallery of the avenue of 
 beeches, which was to him a sacred place, for here, as he has 
 told the writer, he was first affianced to his wife. His memory 
 lives even in the very atmosphere, and will do so abidingly, by 
 that subtle and mysterious chemistry which combines the 
 memory of the good or the great with the places they had 
 frequented during their sojourn on earth. Semper honor 
 nomenque tuum laudesque manebunt is trite, but it is true and 
 therefore appropriate of Archbishop Lord Plunket and of the 
 Old Connaught which he loved." 
 
 Before leaving the subject of Old Connaught and its 
 many reminiscences, one or two further matters of 
 minor importance (except so far as they help in filling 
 in the details of the picture) may be mentioned. 
 
 It has been said that the breakfast customs of fami- 
 lies are always characteristic and instructive. At Old 
 Connaught this meal was of a thoroughly informal, 
 genial kind, excepting for one peculiarity. In most 
 houses the family and guests drop in, as they feel in- 
 
Old Connaught 371 
 
 clined, to breakfast, but there it was the rule that all 
 should assemble in the drawing-room and await the 
 Archbishop, afterwards following him to the dining- 
 room. Family prayers (which were of some length) 
 were read after breakfast, and then all dispersed to their 
 various avocations. 
 
 On Sundays it was usual for the younger members 
 of the party to walk to Rathmichael church, about a 
 mile and a half away, down the beautiful valley of 
 Shanganagh. The elders, including the Archbishop, if 
 at home, would be driven in a brougham to Crinken 
 church, which is nearer, lying just at the foot of the 
 hill. To this church Lord Plunket was extremely 
 generous. The Hackett Memorial Hall (in memory 
 of the father of the present incumbent), the costly 
 reconstruction of the church, the satisfactory financial 
 footing of the incumbency, were all to a large extent 
 •due to his energy, taste, and munificence. In con- 
 nection with the laying out of the grounds for the 
 Memorial Hall the Rev. T. E. Hackett remembers that 
 •the Archbishop exclaimed, " If I were not what I am, I 
 would sooner be a landscape gardener than anything !" 
 Sunday afternoon and evening were usually a period 
 of rest to Lord Plunket when he could spend them at 
 Old Connaught, and after dinner there was always 
 hymn-singing in the drawing-room, Miss Plunket 
 latterly taking what had been her mother's place at the 
 piano. The Archbishop was extremely fond of hymns, 
 .and wrote a large number. His favourite on these 
 Sunday evenings was " For all Thy saints who from 
 iheir labours rest.'' 
 
CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 VISIT OF ARCHBISHOP BENSON— DEATHyp 
 LORD PLUNKET 
 
 During the last year of Lord Plunket's life occurred 
 one of the most memorable events which signalised his 
 tenure of the See of Dublin. Kildare Cathedral had 
 been beautifully restored, and the Archbishop had 
 given much time and attention to the completion of the 
 work. The dedication service was fixed for the 
 autumn of 1896, and Lord Plunket determined to try 
 to get the Archbishop of Canterbury (Dr. Benson) to 
 be present. In this attempt he was successful, and the 
 visit of the English Primate will long be remembered 
 by the sister Church of Ireland. 
 
 Archbishop and Mrs. Benson, accompanied by the 
 Rev. E. L. Ridge, domestic chaplain, arrived at Kings- 
 town on Thursday, September 17, after a terribly 
 rough crossing, and were driven straight to Old Con- 
 naught. The next day was spent in visiting Powers- 
 court, Kilruddery, and Bray, and in the evening a 
 dinner-party was given at Old Connaught in honour 
 of the illustrious visitors. 
 
 On the Saturday afternoon the Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury made his first public appearance in Ireland at a 
 meeting for the restoration fund of Kildare Cathedral, 
 
Visit of Archbishop Benson 373 
 
 under the presidency of Lord Plunket. On this 
 occasion Archbishop Benson had a tremendous re- 
 ception — the whole vast audience standing up and 
 cheering him again and again when he rose to speak. 
 
 That night there was a dinner-party at the house of 
 the Provost of Trinity College, at which were present 
 the three Archbishops (Canterbury, Armagh, and 
 Dublin), the Bishops of Meath, Ballarat, and Glasgow, 
 and other distinguished guests. 
 
 On the following Sunday all three Archbishops 
 attended Christ Church Cathedral in the morning and 
 St. Patrick's in the afternoon, at which latter service 
 the English Primate preached to a crowded congrega- 
 tion on behalf of the Cathedral at Kildare. 
 
 It is touching to note that Lord Plunket, in the 
 course of this Sunday evening, took Archbishop and 
 Mrs. Benson to visit St. Patrick's Nurses' Home, always 
 so specially connected in his mind with the memory of 
 Lady Plunket. 
 
 On the Monday the Archbishop of Dublin and Miss 
 Plunket, accompanied by their guests, dined and slept 
 at Palmerston, the residence of the Earl of Mayo, which 
 was to be their headquarters for the opening of Kildare 
 Cathedral. 
 
 This function was successfully carried out on 
 Tuesday, September 22, and Archbishop Benson 
 preached a great sermon on "Brotherly love" — a 
 subject which must have forcibly appealed to the heart 
 of his brother of Dublin, whose desire to promote 
 " fraternisation " has been mentioned more than once. 
 Lord Plunket pronounced the benediction at the close 
 of this service. 
 
374 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 The remainder of Archbishop Benson's stay at Old 
 Connaught was taken up by visits to St. Columba's 
 College (a sister school to Radley) and to various parts 
 of County Wicklow. Needless to say, Lord Plunket 
 did not forget his many neighbours and friends, who 
 were all allowed an opportunity of meeting the English 
 Primate and Mrs. Benson at one of those charming 
 garden parties to which allusion has already been made. 
 
 Before leaving Old Connaught Dr. Benson planted a 
 tree in the grounds to commemorate his visit, which 
 ended on Saturday, September 26, when Lord Plunket 
 accompanied his guests to the Dublin station, from 
 which they left for Armagh. 
 
 It came as a severe blow to the Archbishop of 
 Dublin to hear that, in the course of little more than a 
 fortnight's time, one who had so lately been his loved 
 and honoured guest had passed away suddenly in 
 Hawarden church. 
 
 He went over to England to attend the funeral, and 
 it was noticed that his demeanour told of the grief he 
 was feeling personally at the loss of the great eccle- 
 siastic whom he had but lately learnt to know so far 
 better than ever before. 
 
 But it was not long before he himself was called 
 to follow his brother Archbishop to his rest. Before 
 his last illness really began he had the joy of ordaining 
 his younger son, the Hon. B. J. Plunket, who has ever 
 since been labouring in a populous Dublin parish. 
 A letter which Lod Plunket wrote to him just before 
 the event has fortunately been preserved, and may be 
 a help to many young men who are looking forward 
 to the dedication of their lives to the ministry. 
 
Death of Lord Plunket 375 
 
 " National Club, i Whitehall Gardens, 
 
 " London, S.W. 
 
 " Dearest Ben, 
 
 * * '9|S' # ■Jit 
 
 "Your letter has gone straight home to your 
 father's heart ! God bless you, my dear boy, and make 
 you a blessing to others ! 
 
 " What you say as to your present misgivings does 
 not surprise me. Believe me that this sense of utter 
 unworthiness will only become more and more deep 
 according as the years pass on and the responsibilities 
 of the ministry are more clearly realised from day to 
 day 1 And yet, while I sympathise with you in your 
 disheartenment, how glad I am that you both feel your 
 own littleness and also look to Him who can make 
 our weakness perfect in His strength ! You have 
 indeed been much upon my heart and in my prayers 
 of late, and increasingly so as the time for the laying 
 on of my hands draws nigh. 
 
 " Oh ! what a comfort and joy to know that we 
 serve a Master who can be touched with the nature of 
 our infirmities, who remembers that though the spirit 
 is willing the flesh is often weak, and who Himself, in 
 the hour of our need, prays for us that our faith fail 
 not! 
 
 " Your loving Father, 
 
 " PLUNKET DUBLIN." 
 
 Early in 1897 Lord Plunket had an attack of 
 influenza. As has been so frequently the case with 
 others, he imagined that he was recovering more 
 rapidly than he really was. He insisted upon getting 
 
j,']^ Archbishop Plunket 
 
 up too soon ; some serious liver trouble was developed, 
 and, after but three or four weeks of severe illness, he 
 died at the Palace, Dublin, at half-past six on the 
 morning of Thursday, April i. During the first 
 portion of his illness little alarm was felt, and he 
 received visits from many friends, amongst others from 
 Lord Dufferin, whose daughter had married the Arch- 
 bishop's eldest son. But for the last few days it had 
 been seen that there could be but one end. Lord 
 Plunket was happy in being surrounded by those 
 whom he knew and loved well. His doctor was Sir 
 Philip Smyly, his brother-in-law ; and his only nurse 
 was his favourite niece. Miss Eleanor Barton, who had 
 given herself to the work of a trained nurse some time 
 before. Besides these he had, of course, the members 
 of his family and household, and there could have been 
 no jarring note of any kind in his surroundings. 
 
 It seems superfluous, and almost impertinent, to 
 attempt to describe the Archbishop's peace of mind at 
 the last. Such a life of personal religion as he had 
 led, and such a bright and loving temperament as he 
 had possessed, made it certain that for him " at even- 
 tide there should be light." And so indeed it was. 
 When he was told by Sir Philip Smyly that his disease 
 was incurable, he just said, " Well, Philip, I have a 
 Father who manages all those things for me." And 
 when at last he was informed that he was dying, his 
 words were, " I am in my Father's hands." 
 
 It is not too much to say that the news of Lord 
 Plunket's death sent a thrill not only through the 
 hearts of Irish Churchmen, but of Irishmen of all 
 denominations ; and not only was the shock felt in his 
 
Death of Lord Plunket 377 
 
 own dear country, but in England, where all who 
 knew him personally loved him, and where it may be 
 hoped that some others who had ignorantly reviled 
 him felt a sense of shame when they knew that he had 
 passed away. And not alone in the British Isles, but 
 in far-off countries where his name was a synonym for 
 loving breadth of sympathy and Christlike charity — in 
 America and yet more deeply in Spain and Portugal 
 and Italy — tears were shed at the news that the world 
 was poorer by the death of William Conynham 
 Plunket. 
 
 The descriptions in all the Dublin papers of tlie 
 funeral, which took place on the morning of Tues- 
 day, April 6, give an idea of the hold which Lord 
 Plunket had on the affections of high and low, rich 
 and poor. Churchmen, Roman Catholics, and Non- 
 conformists. 
 
 The funeral procession formed along the northern 
 side of St. Stephen's Green, and from that point all 
 the way to St. Patrick's Cathedral a line of constables 
 preserved a clear passage in the centre of the streets. 
 All the various institutions with which Lord Plunket 
 had been connected were fully represented, the whole 
 body of students from the Training College, with the 
 Rev, H. Kingsmill Moore at their head, being specially 
 prominent. No less than two hundred of the clergy 
 over whom the Archbishop had presided walked 
 immediately in front of the hearse, the other eccle- 
 siastics present (not including numberless represen- 
 tatives of other denominations) being the Primate 
 and the Bishops of Meath, Kilmore, Tuam, Down, 
 Cork, Derry, and Killaloe, the Deans of Christ Church, 
 
378 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 St. Patrick's, the Chapel Royal, Kildare, and Ossory, and 
 numerous archdeacons, canons, and other dignitaries. 
 
 The address was given by the Primate (Dr. Alexander), 
 whose beautiful words must be quoted here as a 
 fitting conclusion to the story of the life of an Arch- 
 bishop who was an ideal Christian gentleman, an 
 impersonation of genial and loving saintliness, and a 
 devoted servant of his Lord. The Primate spoke as 
 follows : 
 
 "It is over now for him and for us. Something at least is 
 over for him and for us — the long expectation, the weary 
 waiting, the anxious watching for telegrams at almost every 
 station in the country, the hopes that were excited by the 
 tidings that the beloved Archbishop was not suffering, or that 
 he slept quietly. And now on this solemn morning is there 
 not through all this awful and beautiful ceremonial a voice not 
 of this earth which says to us, ' Our friend sleepeth,' and our 
 hearts reply to it, 'Yea, Lord, he sleepeth, and he shall do 
 well now and for evermore.' 
 
 ■s * * * *- 
 
 " The sorrow and the weariness and the watching and the 
 weeping are all over now for him. What is it, then, that is not 
 over ? What is it that will never be over for us, for our children, 
 and for our Church ? What a man says is something ; what a 
 man does is more ; but what a man is, that is most, and that 
 is eternal. And now, just to begin with what is more outward, 
 laboriousness was one great characteristic of our departed 
 Archbishop. No one could have the privilege and the responsi- 
 bility of being with him without seeing how wonderfully 
 laborious he was, from meeting to meeting, from service to 
 service, from journey to journey. There has been some con- 
 troversy about one great work of his — his work in Spain. 
 But at all events no one could possibly doubt this — that his 
 knowledge of the Spanish Reformed Communion was so 
 thorough and so personal as almost to remind one of certain 
 
Death of Lord Plunket 379 
 
 chapters in St. John's Gospel. His speeches in our General 
 Synod were full and logical. He was most laborious in piling 
 the fabric of his proofs, and seemed to make it a point of con- 
 science not to leave out a brick that could be built into the 
 wall. And he possessed a quality with which he was not 
 always credited — I mean that of thinking a subject down to its 
 very foundations. For instance, in connection with the Spanish 
 work, he had to meet arguments derived from the ancient 
 canons of the Church of Christ in a happier and more un- 
 divided condition, and the principle to which he went back 
 was one which was deepest in the mind of early Christendom, 
 and which came out especially in the Arian controversy — 
 namely, that a bishop is not only the president of a diocese, 
 but also a bishop of the universal Church, responsible for 
 Christian truth everywhere. 
 
 " Again, think of what many will consider his greatest work 
 — I mean the Church of Ireland Kildare Street Training 
 College. His whole heart was in that. He has bequeathed 
 it to the Church as a precious heritage, and it was his deep 
 and intense conception of the national character of the Church 
 of Ireland that led him to that great and fruitful work, and in 
 many a distant parish the Church life is quickened through the 
 impulse given by his hand. 
 
 " Or, again, think of his being the means of bringing Arch- 
 bishop Benson over to this country. It was because, intensely 
 national as he was, deeply as he loved our own national Church, 
 he acted on the great principle of fraternity with the great 
 Anglican Communion. 
 
 " Now, a second quality which I wish to mention is this — 
 the union, and the very rare union, of intense religious con- 
 viction with a noble, a wonderful, toleration. The intensity 
 of his conviction it was impossible to overlook in the stormy 
 and occasionally fierce debates on revision in our General 
 Synod. The Archbishop offered amendments largely and 
 wisely ; he spoke often ; sometimes he struck hard, but I do 
 not think that he ever struck below the belt. Both at that 
 
380 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 time and long after — and I speak of what I know — I can 
 safely say that, if he thought that he had ever acted unjustly 
 or hardly or gone too far, he brought to the person whom he 
 thought thus injured not verbal apologies, in which he did not 
 delight, but an irresistible tenderness of manner and a chivalry 
 of kindness, which not only forgives and forgets but honours. 
 
 " He united his intense conviction with a beautiful tolera- 
 tion. It is easy to be tolerant when we are latitudinarian ; 
 easy to make a present of that which we do not value. Tolera- 
 tion is a shabby gift when it costs us nothing. But for a man 
 who loves his principles passionately to pause and try to under- 
 stand his opponent thoroughly, to shield his adversary from 
 the immoderate zeal of his own partisans — still more, to think 
 over his opponent's ideas until he finds that there is an aspect 
 of them under which they appear greatly better than at first 
 they seemed, and thus to become able to afford them hospi- 
 tality in his own soul — this is the history of good men who 
 can say, ' Grace be with all them who love our Lord Jesus in 
 sincerity.' I am happy to know that this loving spirit of the 
 Archbishop has been widely appreciated. Theie are some 
 ministers and members of other Christian Churches besides 
 our own here to-day, whose presence is a tribute to him, an 
 honour to themselves, and an honour to us. . . . 
 
 " We all miss him sorely. All who love our Church miss 
 him, not only because of his rank and of his stately bearing 
 and of his influence, but because he was, as is widely re- 
 cognised, a true patriot. He was a true philanthropist ; he was 
 a true leader ; and he takes his place — he, with that unresting 
 activity for the work of Christ, he who at times had on his 
 face that far-away look which some of us must have noticed, as 
 of one whose heart was elsewhere, — he takes his own place in 
 the long succession of that storied line of Archbishops of 
 Dublin. We think of him with King, Magee, Whately, Trench 
 — a noble Archbishop, a humble Christian, a man full of 
 sympathy for sickness, sorrow, and suffering, who stopped to 
 wash every foot that was stained with earth's dust and to 
 
Death of Lord Plunket 381 
 
 heal every foot that was stabbed with earth's thorns. His 
 trials are over : not only those which, God knows, almost every 
 day brings to prelates of our Church in her present condition, 
 but others too which come to all of us, more or less, in the 
 spelling lessons of God — and the hardest words often come 
 last. God's puzzled children sometimes cry themselves to 
 sleep. But yet they are sure that all the lesson will range 
 itself in due order, and that all will come right to them when 
 the day breaks and light streams through the shutters of the 
 grave. And what shall it be for such as he who lies in that 
 coffin ? What shall it be for him and for all the children of 
 God, and for us if we be like him in spirit ? 
 
 "What shall it be when the tears of pain, of sorrow, of 
 suffering, and trial shall melt away, as sometimes after the 
 thunderstorm in the Alps the last lines of the tempest are 
 softened into the tender depths of the silver distance ! " 
 
 The Archbishop's body was then laid to rest in the 
 cemetery at Mount Jerome beside that of Lady Plunket. 
 While this last ceremony was being performed the 
 students of the Training College sang the hymn, " For 
 ever with the Lord." To these words all who knew 
 him in life, and some perhaps who have learnt to know 
 him, however dimly, in these pages, will with reverent 
 affection say " Amen," 
 
 It is impossible to quote the numberless sermons, 
 letters, and speeches which were called forth by Lord 
 Plunket's death. The striking quality in all of them 
 was their evident sincerity. Each speaker or writer 
 was as much in earnest about him as if he had been a 
 near relation. Such was the effect produced by his 
 own sincerity and his own loving-kindness. 
 
382 Archbishop Plunket 
 
 One or two letters of more than common interest are 
 given here : 
 
 [J^rom the Primate of Ireland {Dr. Alexander) 
 to the Rev. the Hon. B.J. Flunket.'] 
 
 "St. Peter's, Drogheda, 
 
 "April I, 1897. 
 "My dear Mr. Plunket, 
 
 "It is no exaggeration to say that Ireland is full of 
 sorrow. Everywhere through this diocese people are mourn- 
 ing as for a father and friend. On and since Friday last I 
 have had prayers in every church which I have visited on 
 his behalf: everywhere intense feeling and earnestness was 
 manifested. 
 
 " The Church of Ireland has lost a saintly ruler. As I think 
 of your father's unselfish and constant work, of his loving soul 
 and devotion to his flock, I realise the terrible blank which 
 his removal leaves in our ranks. For him we can but feel the 
 fulness of peaceful hope. He sleeps in Jesus, and is deUvered 
 from the burden of the flesh. May we follow his faith, con- 
 sidering the end of his conversation ! May his dear ones find 
 comfort! With true sympathy, 
 
 "Yours, my dear Mr. Plunket, truly in Christ, 
 
 ■■WILLIAM ARMAGH." 
 
 In a letter from Dr. Welldon (Bishop of Calcutta) to 
 the same there occurs the following passage : 
 
 " Without trying to praise him [Lord Plunket] — for he has 
 risen above all human praise — may I just mention the qualities 
 which greatly impressed me in him : His simplicity, his con- 
 sistency, his courage, his strong sense of duty, his courtesy, and 
 his never-failing piety ? May you be like him ! " 
 
 Most touching of all was a letter received from a 
 Dublin curate, from which the following is an extract : 
 
Death of Lord Plunket 383 
 
 " I assure you that I think all the clergy loved the Arch- 
 bishop. There are different things which strike different 
 minds, but I never can forget how one night he took the chair 
 at a Y.M.C.A. meeting, and when we had proposed the usual 
 vote of thanks he just smiled in reply and said, ' God bless 
 you all,' not a word more before he gave the benediction ; but 
 I felt that his Grace's short informal blessing was so full of 
 real affection for us all that it was worth the whole meeting. 
 It was like our Lord, just loving people because they were 
 human beings, independently of rank, position, or anything 
 else. It made me know how noble and loving the Archbishop 
 was. . . . 
 
 " What a lesson we shall always have in his life . . . his 
 wonderful courage and perseverance . . . the courtesy with 
 which he bore all opposition, and the splendidly straight and 
 fair way in which he entered into any controversy. It was 
 all chivalrous and grand. . . . 
 
 " I do trust your loss may be lightened by the thought of 
 the thousands who are sorrowing with you and for you, and of 
 how everybody admires the great and glorious life and work 
 of the Archbishop." 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abercorn, Duke of, 194 
 
 Achill, 181 
 
 Agostino, Cardinal, 301 
 
 Alcock, Miss, 343 
 
 America, his proposed visit to, 
 249 
 
 American bishops, 247 
 
 •American Prayer-book revision, 
 102 
 
 Andrea, Cardinal, 288 
 
 Anglo-Continental Society, 209, 
 231, 282, 291 
 
 Appearance, his, at the age of 
 twenty, 37 
 
 Archbishopric of Dublin, 304 
 
 Ardbraccan, great bazaar at, 150 
 hospitality at, 139 
 palace of, 137, 139 
 
 Armagh, Archbishop Alexander 
 of, 382 
 
 funeral address by, 378 
 
 Arrone, 300 
 
 Ashford, 58 
 
 Athanasian Creed, no, 230 
 
 Attack on Lord Plunket by Na- 
 tionalist Party, 349 
 
 Audisio, Canon, 288 
 
 Balfodr, Rt. Hon. A. J., 172 
 Ball, Dr., 305, 322 
 Ballarat, Bishop Thornton of, 365 
 Ballinrobe, 59 
 
 mob at, 60 
 Ballyconree Orphanage, 46 
 Ballyovic, 49 
 Baptismal Service, 231 
 Barton, Hon. Mrs., 346, 366 
 
 Miss Eleanor, 376 
 Begging, his perseverance in, 237 
 Belmore, Earl of, 195 
 
 Beresford, Archbishop, 99, 305 
 
 Bergamo, 288 
 
 Bianciardi, Signor, 288 
 
 Biarritz, 220 
 
 " Bible in Spain, The," 207 
 
 Bible, the Douay, 48 
 
 Birth, his, 9 
 
 Bishops, fixed presidency of, 114 
 provisional council of, 235 
 to sit and vote separately, 75 
 
 Bitterness, his freedom from, 243 
 
 Bonn Conference, the, 132, 285, 
 286 
 
 Boyd, Mr., 32 
 
 Boys' Brigade, the, 369 
 
 Bray, 372 
 
 National League, 349 
 
 Brescia, 288 
 
 Bristol Church Congress, 62 
 
 British and Foreign School So- 
 ciety, 156 
 
 Brooke, Master, 99, 133 
 
 Brooke, Mr. W. G., 108, 161, 165, 
 
 307 
 Brooke, Rev. Stopford, 289 
 Browne, Bishop Harold, 255 
 Bruni, Signor, 301 
 Bushe, Chief Justice, 13 
 
 Cabrera, Sefior, 77, 209, 210, 259 
 his first opportunity in Seville, 
 
 228 
 first evangelistic experience 
 
 of, 227 
 proposed consecration of, 239 
 consecration of, 272, 278 
 Calcutta, Bishop Welldon of, 382 
 Campbell, Lord, 11 
 Campello, Count, 257, 263, 283, 
 284, 292, 296, 299 
 
 2 B 
 
386 
 
 Index 
 
 Canovas, Sefior, 268 
 
 Canterbury, Archbishop Benson 
 of. 143, 253, 293, 361, 372, 374 
 
 Carasco, Sefior, 227 
 
 Carnarvon, Earl of, 201 
 
 Carrickfergus, 367 
 
 Cashel, Synod of, 102 
 
 Cassels, Rev. Andrew, action of 
 High Church party concerning, 
 249 
 
 Castelar, Sefior, 268 
 
 Cavour, 289 
 
 Charge, his primary, 145 
 
 Charges against his action in 
 Spain, 280 
 
 Charity, his, 15 
 
 Charlesville, 360 
 
 Chastity, his, 188 
 
 Cheltenham College, 27, 30 
 
 Cheltenham Tirocinia, 32 
 
 Child, his appearance as a, 16 
 
 Children, his love for, 142 
 his love for his, 131 
 
 Christian Brothers, the, 156, 174 
 
 Christian Convention at Dublin, 
 126 
 
 Church Bills, 116 
 
 Church of Rome, not a trespasser 
 on the, 261 
 
 Church Quarterly, The, 118 
 
 Cicchitti, Filippo, 292 
 
 Civiltd Cattolica, the, 288 
 
 Clergy Daughters' School, 339, 
 342 
 
 Clergy, his relations to his, 313 
 
 Clifden, 45 
 
 Clogher, Bishop of, 257, 262, 270 
 account of Senor Cabrera's 
 consecration, 279 
 
 Close, Mr., 33 
 
 Coachman, testimony of his, 353 
 
 Commissioner of National Educa- 
 tion, Lord Plunket as a, 173, 
 178 
 
 Communicants in Spain and Por- 
 tugal, 236 
 
 Complex character, his, 181, 184 
 
 Compromise, his genius for, 64, 
 168 
 
 Conditions of helping the re- 
 formers, his, 217 
 
 Confirmations, his, 152, 313 
 
 Consecration, his, 138 
 
 Consecration in Spain, conditions 
 as to, 273 
 
 Constructive ability, his, 98 
 Cork, Bishop Gregg of, 241, 274 
 Corrib, Lough, 58 
 Crampton, Sir Philip, 18 
 Crinken church, 371 
 Cross at St. Bartholomew's, 
 correspondence about the, 
 
 319 
 on the Holy Table, the, 329 
 
 Dallas, Mr., 47, 206 
 
 Damalas, 286 
 
 Daughters of the Irish Clergy, 
 
 School for, 1 79 
 Death, his, 376 
 Derry, Bishop Alexander of, 99, 
 
 254, 274, 307, 323 
 Dickinson, Dr., 322 
 Dillon, Mr. John, M.P., 200 
 Diocesan Court, finding of, on the 
 cross at St. Bartholomew's, 
 322 
 
 Synod, meeting of, 244 
 Disappointment, his calmness 
 
 under, 252 
 Disestablishment, his satisfaction 
 with, 82, 86 
 of the Irish Church, 64 
 Dobson, Dr. 28 
 Dollinger, Dr., 133, 285, 290 
 Domestic life, his, 338 
 Dovadola, 300 
 Down, Bishop of, 257 
 Doyle, Sir Francis, 141 
 Drowning, his escape from, 25 
 Dublin Alexandra School, 179 
 Association for the Promotion 
 
 of Social Purity, 189 
 Christian Convention (1887), 
 116 
 (1888), 118 
 Church Congress, 66 
 Diocesan Synod (1896), 324 
 his administration of the Arch- 
 diocese of, 309 
 his appointment to the Arch- 
 bishopric of, 308 
 party strife in, 117 
 Women's Work Association, 
 
 342 
 Dufferin, Marquis of, 376 
 Dundrum, 349 
 Durham, Bishop Lightfoot of, 
 
 36s 
 
Index 
 
 387 
 
 Ecclesiastical Gazette, The, 334 
 Eco Nacional, El, 251 
 Education, his work for, 157 
 Irish, 155 
 
 of the Poor in Ireland, Society 
 for Promotion of, 156 
 Eglesia Espaiiola, La, 212 
 Employes, his relations with his, 
 
 352 
 English Churchman, The, 335 
 English Church Union, the, 243 
 sympathy, his disappointment 
 
 concerning, 91 
 sympathisers, half-hearted- 
 ness of his, 256 
 Episcopate, the Catholic, 295 
 Esaminatore, The, 288 
 Evangelical, his position as an, 38 
 Evening Communions, his action 
 concerning, 310 
 
 Falkiner, Sir Frederick R., 161, 
 
 163. 174. 359 
 Famine, the Irish, 36 
 Father, his, 13 
 
 Father Mathew, statue of, 123 
 Ferguson, Sir Samuel, 141 
 
 Lady, 140 
 Financial relations between Great 
 
 Britain and Ireland, 200 
 Fitzgibbon, Lord Justice, 322 
 Fletcher, Rev. J. F., 123 
 Flower-girls, 339 
 Foreign Church Chronicle and Review, 
 
 The, 281 
 Fowler, Mr., 336 
 Fraternisation, 116, 121 
 Freeman's Journal, The, 351 
 Friedrich, 285 
 Friezland Vicarage, 49 
 Funeral, his, 377 
 
 Garcia, Rev. Antonio, 279 
 General Synod, Court of, 323 
 
 (1894), resolution passed by, 
 275 
 
 to protest against Home Rule, 
 
 195 
 Generosity, his, 186 
 Gentleness, his, 186 
 Gibraltar, 227 
 
 Bishop Sandford of, 289 
 
 Gibson, Mr. Justice, 323 
 Gladstone, Mr., 24, 87, 368 
 Glendalough, Seven Churches of, 
 
 361 
 Glenowen Orphan Nursery, 46 
 Globo, El, 268 
 Glynne, Sir Stephen, 87 
 Golfer, the Archbishop as a, 359 
 Grandmother, his, 18 
 Grant, Colonel, 322 
 Greene, Mr. Richard, 183 
 
 Mrs. Thomas, 51 
 Grindelwald, 262 
 Guardian, letter to the, 241 
 Guinness, Mr. Benjamin Lee, 50 
 
 Miss Anne Lee, 50 
 
 Hackett, Rev. T. E., 371 
 Handwriting, his, 131 
 Harcourt Street, Dublin, 338 
 Harrington, Mr. T., M.P., 200 
 Healy, Mr. T., M.P., 200, 351 
 
 Father, 347 
 Hereford, Lord James of, 30 
 Herzog, Bishop, 286, 295 
 High Church party, action of the 
 
 English, 243 
 Historic Episcopate, the, 118 
 Hoare, Mr. Henry, 43, 56 
 Holland, Old Catholics of, 247 
 Holmes, Mr. Justice, 323 
 Holy days, observance of, 330 
 Home reunion, loi 
 Home Rule, 311 
 
 Bill, Mr. Gladstone's second, 
 194 
 
 his attitude on, 194 
 Hopkins, Miss EUice, 189 
 Horton, Rev. Dr., 127 
 Hospitality as Archbishop, his, 
 
 339 
 Howson, Dean, 102, 149 
 Hull Church Congress, 121 
 Hyacinthe, Pere, 257, 263, 267, 
 
 268 
 
 Ill-natured remarks, his dislike 
 
 to, 187 
 Illness, his last, 375 
 
 his long, 33 
 Influenza, 252, 375 
 Iowa, Bishop Perry of, 365 
 
388 
 
 Index 
 
 Ireland, National Church of, 147 
 Irish and English Churches, mu- 
 tual independence of, 78 
 bishops, communication to, 
 by Lord Plunket and two 
 bishops, 273 
 
 meeting of, in 1894, 273, 
 
 275 
 resolutions of, 247 
 Church, English misappre- 
 hensions about, 94 
 future finance of, 80 
 missions, 42 
 
 opinion of lay members 
 of, on the Spanish 
 question, 255 
 opinion of the clergy of, 
 on the Spanish ques- 
 tion, 254 
 title of, 201 
 traditional associations 
 
 of, 73 
 clergy, declaration from, 254 
 Prayer-book, present form of, 
 III 
 Irish Times, letter to the, 334 
 Irishman, Lord Plunket an, 181 
 Irwin, Mr., 353 
 Isabella, Queen, 227 
 Italian Association, general meet- 
 ing of, 296 
 
 Lord Plunket President 
 of, 295 
 reformed congregations, 295 
 
 jANNi, Rev. Ugo, 257, 300 
 Janyscheff, 286 
 Jennings, Rev. J. A., 150 
 Journeys, his long, 233 
 Jubilee nurses. Her Majesty's in- 
 spection of, 53 
 
 Keenan, Sir Patrick, J., 155, 157 
 Kildare Cathedral, 143 
 restoration of, 372 
 Kildare Place Society, 156, 157, 
 
 158, 159 
 Kilkenny plays, the, 19 
 Killaloe, Bishop of, 99, 274 
 Killiney Bay, 360 
 Kilmoylan and Cummer, 39 
 Kilruddery, 360, 372 
 Kireeff, 286 
 
 Knoodt, 285 
 
 Knox, Archbishop, 275, 323 
 
 Labaro, The, 300 
 Lambeth Conference (1878) com- 
 mittee on Continental re- 
 formers, 291 
 Conferences (1878, 1888), 252 
 Conference (1888), 117, 238 
 (1888), his opinion of re- 
 sult of the, 240 
 (1888), resolutions of, 239 
 Lancashire Distress Fund, 48 
 Lancaster and Bell, 156 
 Landscape gardening, his love 
 
 for, 358 
 Leicester, he helps a poor parish 
 
 in, 237 
 Lichfield, Bishop Maclagan of, 124 
 Liddon, Canon, 134 
 Li^ht and Truth, 219, 237, 278 
 Limerick, Bishop Graves of, 99 
 Lisbon, 227 
 
 Liturgy of Spanish Reformed 
 Church, 230 
 
 the Italian Reformed, 283, 
 293 
 Liverani, Monsiguore, 288 
 Lockhart, Mr., 360 
 Long Island, Bishop Littlejohn of, 
 
 289 
 Lucerne Congress, the, 259 
 Lusitanian Church, 249 
 Lycurgus, 286 
 Lynch, Nurse, 18 
 
 Maberley correspondence, the, 
 
 102 
 Macaulay, Lord, 11 
 McCall, Mr. and Mrs., 258 
 McColl, Rev. Malcolm, 134 
 McNeil, Rev. J., 124 
 Madrid, 221, 260 
 
 Alcalde of, 264, 266 
 appeal for new church at, 237 
 Bishop-elect of, 231 
 church, attempted consecra- 
 tion of, 257 
 consecration of church pro- 
 hibited, 264 
 his three appeals for new 
 
 church at, 251 
 manifesto issued at, 212 
 
Index 
 
 389 
 
 Madrid, new church buildings at, 
 248 
 opening of church at, 273 
 ordination at, 267 
 proposed church for, 225 
 purchase of site for church 
 
 at, 262 
 schools at, 222 
 site for new church at, 238 
 Magee, Dr., 62, 66 
 Malaga, 260 
 
 Manchester Church Congress, 49 
 Marlborough, Duke of, 17 
 Marlborough Street College, the, 
 
 163 
 Marrable, Canon, 324 
 Marriage, his, 50 
 Matamores, 207 
 Maurice, Mr. Frederick, 38 
 Mayor, Miss, 282, 284, 293 
 
 Professor, 282 
 Meath, Bishopric of, 130 
 
 Bishopric, first proposal con- 
 cerning, 135 
 Bishop Butcher of, 146 
 
 Reichel of, 274 
 Boys' Industrial School, 364 
 his absences from the diocese 
 
 of, 232 
 Protestant Orphan Society, 
 149 
 Mechanical taste, his, 23 
 Medina Junction, 257 
 Meetings, his chairmanship of, 314 
 Memorial from Spain and Portu- 
 gal, his draft resolution on, 245 
 Memorial to him in Dublin, 171 
 Messina, 288 
 Meyrick, Canon, 231, 252, 257, 281, 
 
 282, 285, 294, 315 
 Michigan, Bishop Davies of, 365 
 Minister of War, approval of the 
 
 Spanish, 248 
 Minnesota, Bishop Whipple of, 365 
 Monroe, Mr. Justice, 323 
 Moody, Mr. D. L., 124 
 
 meeting in Rotunda Gardens, 
 
 Moore, Principal, 144, 155 
 
 Mother, his, 14 
 
 Mothers' Meeting in Dublin, 153 
 
 Mount Jerome cemetery, 381 
 
 Moyrus, 47 
 
 Mozarabic rite, the, 259 
 
 Murphy, Mr. Justice, 323 
 
 Music, his gift of, 21, 22 
 
 Mutual submission to Episcopal 
 
 counsel, 328 
 Mutual sufferance, 327 
 
 National Club, incident at, 172 
 National Society, the, 156 
 Navan, 138 
 Nelson, Lord, 116 
 
 letters from, 117, 120 
 Nevin, Dr., 289 
 Newman, Mrs., death of, 346 
 New York, Bishop Potter of, 289, 
 
 365 
 Non-episcopal orders, validity of, 
 
 119 
 Noyes, Dr., 207, 218,238, 247,252, 
 
 257. 279. 291 
 Nugent, Archdeacon, 148 
 
 Obedience to canons required 
 
 from all, 332 
 Occasional services, mutilation of, 
 
 330 
 O'Connor, Canon, 323 
 O'Connor Don, The, 200 
 Old Catholics, 247, 290 
 Old Connaught, 11, 234, 347, 356 
 
 Archbishop Benson at, 372 
 
 breakfast at, 370 
 
 excavations at, 363 
 
 garden at, 359 
 
 home life at, 340 
 
 hospitality at, 364 
 
 hymn singing at, 371 
 
 portraits at, 357 
 
 receptions at, 124 
 Omey Island, 61 
 Oneglia, 300 
 Oporto, 249 
 Optimism, his, 97, 240 
 Ordinations, his, 313 
 Ordination, letter to candidate 
 
 for. 375 
 Ossinin, 286 
 
 Palmerston, 373 
 Palomares, Rev. F., 279 
 Pan-Anglican Synod, the, 215 
 Panzani, Paolo. 292 
 Papigno, 300 
 
390 
 
 Index 
 
 Passaglia, 288 
 
 Patriot's Rebuke, a, 192 
 
 Patriotism, his lecture on, 190 
 
 Pau, 219 
 
 Peace-maker, Lord Plunket as a, 
 100 
 
 Pedigree, 9, 10 
 
 Personal piety, his, 182 
 
 Peterborough, Bishop Magee of, 
 289 
 
 Piety, his early, 35 
 
 Plunket, first Baron, 9, 11 
 
 second Baron, death of, 64 
 third Baron, death of, 89 
 Rev. the Hon. B. J., 63, 369, 
 
 374 
 Hon, David, 61 
 Hon. Isabel, 51 
 Lady, 151 
 
 Bible of, 343 
 
 character of, 342 
 
 confirmation of, 343 
 
 death of, 340 
 
 personal description of, 
 
 50 
 funeral of, 342 
 an invalid, 130 
 the present Lord, 15, 345, 348 
 Plymouth Church Congress, 286 
 Portugal, Reformed Church in, 
 
 227 
 Powerscourt, 360, 372 
 
 Lord, 306, 348 
 Prayer-book, his proposed altera- 
 tions in the, 106 
 revision, loi 
 Preaching, his, 152 
 Prenter, Rev. Samuel, 124 
 Presbyterian General Assembly, 
 conversazione of, 126 
 reception of, at Old Con- 
 naught, 126, 365 
 Price, Mr. Bonamy, 71 
 Prim, General, 209, 227 
 Primitive jurisdiction, 253 
 Proselytism, his disapproval of 
 
 importunate, 226 
 Prota, Signer, 292 
 Protestant Defence Association, 
 
 the, 324, 335 
 Provost of Trinity College, Dublin, 
 dinner to three Archbishops, 
 
 373 
 Prudence, his, 271 
 Public speaking, his, 196 
 
 Quaint expressions, his, 131 
 Quarry, Canon, 321 
 Queen Victoria Jubilee Institute, 
 52 
 
 Raffles, his opinion of, 170 
 Rathmichael church, 371 
 Rathmore, Lord, 195, 358 
 Rawson's, Mr., school, 24 
 Real Presence, Hooker on the, 
 
 103 
 Recorder's committee, the, 163 
 Reformed Episcopate in Italy, 
 
 necessity of a, 302 
 Reichel, Dr., 141, 148 
 Reinkens, Bishop, 133, 285 
 Religious Education, Board of, 161 
 Renier, Monsignore, 292 
 Reporters, his dislike to, 196 
 Reunion, 113 
 Reunion, fundamental articles of 
 
 agreement as to, 117 
 Reusch, 285 
 Revision Committee, 104 
 
 his views as to, 105 
 Rhyming letter, 26, 29 
 Ricasoli, 289 
 Ridge, Rev. E. L., 372 
 Riley, Bishop, 212, 215, 247 
 Roberts, Lord, 370 
 Robertson, Dr., 299 
 
 Rev. F., 32 
 Rochester, IBishop Wigram of, 43, 
 
 49 
 
 Roman Catholic children, pro- 
 posed admission of, to Church- 
 aided schools, 175 
 
 University for Ireland, 115 
 
 Romantic disposition, his, 206 
 
 Rome, consecration of American 
 church at, 289 
 
 Roundstone, 47 
 
 Sacred elements, consumption of 
 
 the, 331 
 Sagasta, Senor, 258, 269 
 St. Asaph, Bishop of, 88 
 St. Columba's College, 179, 374 
 St. James's Chronicle, The, 335 
 St. Moritz, 134 
 St. Patrick, 366 
 
Index 
 
 391 
 
 St. Patrick's Cathedral, Precentor 
 of, 113 
 Treasurer of, 62 
 St. Patrick's Nurses' Home, 50, 
 
 373 
 Salamanca, 260 
 Salisbury, Bishop Wordsworth of, 
 
 284, 285, 293 
 Salmon, his first, 61 
 San Angelo dei Lombardi, 299 
 San Vito, 298 
 Savarese, Monsignore, 292 
 Schools, the Protestant Charter, 
 
 156 
 Scott, Archdeacon, 148, 304, 308 
 
 Sir Walter, 12, 360, 367 
 Scottish bishops, resolution of 
 
 sympathy from the, 198 
 Scripture reader, funeral of a, 41 
 Selwyn, Bishop, 102 
 Seville, 218, 260 
 Shanganagh, 360 
 Shankill Mountain, 360 
 " Silence, the Dangers of," 67 
 Sinclair, Archdeacon, 127 
 Smith, Canon, 317 
 Smyly, Sir Philip, 376 
 Spain, his first visit to, 219 
 second visit to, 235 
 third visit to, 247 
 (1892), visit to, 258 
 and Portugal, missionary en- 
 thusiasm in, 236 
 religious liberty in, 25S 
 Spanish and Portuguese Society, 
 meeting of, 235 
 authorities, opposition of, 277 
 question, the, 205 
 
 his first letter on the, 208 
 motives for his action in, 
 205 
 reformation, manifold forms 
 
 of the, 224 
 Reformed Church, journeys 
 on behalf of the, 145 
 Societd Emancipatrice, the, 288 
 Society of Antiquaries, visit of 
 
 the, 363 
 Solitariness, his, 177 
 Spencer, Earl, 305 
 Standing Committee, his defeat 
 
 at, 176 
 Stoke Church Congress, 92 
 Stopford, Archdeacon, 87 
 Sutton, Jerry, 353 
 
 Sydney, Bishop Barry of, 117 
 Sympathies, wideness of his, 311 
 Sympathy, letters of, 382 
 
 Tait, Archbishop, 149, 216, 255 
 Tasca, Ottavio, 288 
 Theatricals, private, 20 
 Thompson, Miss, 51 
 Tiboni, Canon, 288 
 Times, letter to the, 258 
 Toledo, Archbishop of, 243 
 Toole, Michael, 349 
 Townsend Street Mission School, 
 
 54 
 Training College, the buildings of 
 the, 170 
 Colleges, Ireland, Bill, 173 
 opening of the, 167 
 the Church of Ireland, 
 
 157 
 Trench, Archbishop, 65, 80, 81, 
 
 99, 102, 167, 305 
 Trinity College, Dublin, 39 
 
 Provost of, 99 
 Tuam, Bishop of, 16, 39 
 Tugwell, Rev. L. S., 213, 218 
 Turin, 226, 288 
 
 Uganda, Bishop Tucker of, 365 
 Ulster, proposed separate treat- 
 ment for, igg 
 Unbaptized infants, burial of, 109 
 Union, Act of, 102 
 United Services Committee, 123 
 Upper Pembroke Street, Dublin, 
 338 
 
 Valladolid, 260 
 Vallespinosa, Rev. Antonio, 209 
 Vaudois reformers, the, 226 
 Vaughan, Cardinal, 243 
 Venables, Canon George, 44, 49, 
 
 54, 58, 65, 81. 89 
 Ventimiglia, 300 
 Visitations, his, 309, 312 
 Von Schulte, 286 
 
 Wakeman, Mr., 363 
 Walsh, Archbishop, 123, 129, 174, 
 200, 347 
 
392 
 
 Index 
 
 Walsh, James, 362 
 Welsh Church, proposed disestab- 
 lishment of the, 86 
 West Connaught, influence of 
 Roman Church in, 40 
 Endowment Fund, 42, 44 
 superstition in, 39 
 Western Mail, interview in the, 
 
 83 
 
 Whately, Archbishop, 100 
 Whiggism, his hereditary, 99 
 
 Wilberforce, Bishop Samuel, 66 
 Winchester, Bishop Harold 
 
 Browne of, 116 
 Wolseley, Lord, 370 
 " Wolves, The," 199, 368 
 "Words for Peace," 323 
 Wordsworth, Bishop Charles, 333 
 
 Christopher, 255, 290 
 Wounded sailor, interview with a, 
 
 152 
 Wynne, Canon, 341