¥& J tim "3. STATISTICS AS TO THE EELIGIOUS CONDITION OF LONDON, $SMlaiitt& 6| Inquiries IN CONNEXION WITH THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND, FOB PROVIDING FOR THE SPIRITUAL WANTS OF THE METROPOLIS AND ITS SUBURBS. CONTENTS. I. Method of Inquiry. II. Statement of Detieiencies : Clergy. ! Parsonages. Cliurch-room. 1 Schools. Lay Agents. | III. Proposed Remedies. IV. General Suggestions. LONDON: KIVINGTONS, WATERLOO PLACE AND HIGH STREET, OXFORD. 1864. Price 2d., or, for distribution, 12 for Is. BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. The following extract from the Bishop of London's " Letter to the Laity of the Diocese of London,''"' will explain the principles and objects of the Fund : — " I. I propose to receive subscriptions and donations, payable eitber in one sum or through a term of years, contingent on tbe donor's life and adherence to his present intentions. " II. Such payments, if it be wished, may be made for the benefit of any specified neighbourhood in which the donor feels particu- larly interested. " III. It will be desirable that each donor should state also whether he wishes his money to go to a general fund, or to be applied s^e- cifically to any one of the following objects : — 1. Missionary Clergy or Additional Curates. (cr) To labour in the Diocese generally, under the Bishop's control. (b) Or to be confined in their operations to particular parishes. 2. Scripture Readers. 3. Mission Women. 4. Clergymen's Residences. 5. Schools. 6. Mission Rooms or School Churches. 7. Endowment of Old or New Districts. 8. Endowment of Curacies. 9. Building of Churches." Subscriptions may he paid to — Messrs. Heebies, Farquhab, &, Co., 16, Si. James's Sired ; Messrs. Hoaee & Co., 37, Fleet Slreet ; Sie Samuel Scott, Bart., & Co., 1, Cavendish Square ; Messrs. Coutts & Co., 59, Strand ; Messrs. Barnett & Co., 02, Lombard Street : The Bank oe England: or to T. Bodlet, Esq., Secretary, at the Office, 79, Pall Mall. REP011T Presented to the Executive Committee of The Bishop of London's Fund, Feb. 8th, 1864, by the Statistical Committee appointed July 27th, 1863, to prepare a Statistical Tabulated Report of the Wants of the Diocese. In conformity with the instructions under which we were appointed by the Executive Committee, we have prepared and now lay on the table a Tabulated Statement of the present religious condition of the Diocese. We have also considered by what means, and in what way, its spiritual wants may best be supplied ; and have further made some general suggestions as to the distribution of the Fund. I. METHOD OF INQUIRY. The information embodied in the Statistical Tables has Informa- been for the most part obtained by means of a paper of obtained inquiries addressed to every Incumbent in the Diocese, a copy of which paper is appended to the present Report. It may be well, however, to state briefly in this place what was the scope and character of these inquiries. They re- lated to the population, both in its amount and character, the A 2 4 HErOltT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE number of Clergy, the amount of accommodation for worship both in Churches and Mission Rooms, the additional places if any which might be used for these purposes, the amount of School accommodation of all kinds, the number of Scripture Readers, City Missionaries, Bible or Mission Women, and other Lay agents, at work in each Parish. They had also regard to the amount and character of Dissent and Romanism in each parish, and to the number of Chapels and Schools in connexion with Non-conforming bodies. In extending our inquiry to these last particulars, we were actuated by a desire to ascertain what portions of the population of the Diocese were really the most destitute of spiritual provision from the deficiency in them of all religious agencies of every kind, whether of the Church of England or of other religious bodies. It will be observed that we have made no inquiries as regards Sunday Schools. In omitting these we were in- fluenced by the twofold consideration, that wherever Day Schools already exist, there are at the same time facilities for Sunday Schools if desired, and that wherever new Schools may be built accommodation will in this way be provided for Sunday Schools also. We desire however to guard ourselves against being supposed to undervalue this great agency for religious influence, of which the Church of England has largely availed herself, and on which the Dissenting communities have bestowed a great amount of zeal and voluntary labour. The greater part of the information thus obtained finds its place in the Tables which we have prepared, but there is some part of it which it would be evidently impossible to present in a tabulated form ; it will be found, however, in the returns furnished by the various Clergy, and may prove extremely useful hereafter in dealing with individual Parishes. We would take this opportunity of expressing our thanks to the Clergy for the valuable assistance which they have ren- dered in this matter, and for the trouble which in many in- stances they have kindly taken to obtain the information which we required. Having thus explained the nature of the information which we have endeavoured to obtain, we would now proceed to uiuc. OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON S FUND. O state in what manner we have dealt with these returns in Deficiency order to estimate the present wants of the Diocese. mated. In doing this we have resolved to apply two tests, which we are well aware are far from exhaustive, but which from their simplicity and universality are we believe best adapted for the purposes of such an inquiry. These two tests are — 1. The proportion of Clergy to population. 2. The proportion of Church-room to population. The term Clergy is here intended to embrace not only Incumbents, but all Curates and Missionary Clergy. Under the head of Church-room, we have included all School Churches, Mission Rooms, and School Rooms in which Services are held. It must be evident, that without an adequate supply of Ministers of religion and Places of Public Worship, no other agencies, however valuable as preparatory to or in co-opera- tion with these, can be relied upon to produce any continuous and permanent effect upon the religious condition of the popu- lation. In connexion with these two tests, two standards have standards been adopted as necessary for the efficient working of the a opte ' Parochial System. In the first place, we assume that one Clergyman cannot i. Clergy, efficiently minister to a population of more than 2000 souls, and in this number we suppose to be included an average proportion of Dissenters, Roman Catholics, and others. In adopting this standard we have been guided by the almost uniform tenor of the evidence given before the Com- mittee of the House of Lords appointed in 1858, "to inquire into the Deficiency of means of Spiritual Instruction and Places of Divine Worship in the Metropolis 1- ' and elsewhere. Should our estimate be deemed excessive, it must be borne in mind that there will always be a certain number of Clergy- men who, from various causes, are unequal to the efficient dis- charge of their parochial duties ; and further, that the shifting character of a London population, and the constant succession of new-comers, materially add to the labour of personal visita- tion. We have no doubt that the standard thus explained A J REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE will commend itself as fair and moderate, when it is con- sidered how large an amount of pastoral work in addition to other parochial duties such a population implies, and when it is borne in mind that even those who are not professedly members of the Church of England have always a claim upon the time and attention of the parochial Clergyman*. 2. Places In the second place we assume as a basis of calculation, that " p " if the population generally were in the habit of attending public worship, the Church of England would be responsible for providing accommodation for at least 25 per cent., or one in four of the population, after making allowance for the efforts of all other religious bodies. This second standard we have adopted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Report on the Religious Condition of the Population, prepared by Mr. Horace Mann for the Registrar General, in connexion with the Census of 1851. Mr. Mann there assumes, and apparently with good reason, after making due allowance for the aged, the infirm, and the young, as well as for those who from various causes might be unable to attend Divine Worship, that about 58 per cent, of the whole population might attend if they were willing, either in Churches or Chapels, accord- ing to the religious bodies to which they belonged, and that therefore accommodation ought to be provided by the Church and by Dissenters for this number. It appears, how- ever, that in the Diocese of London little more than half this provision is made, or about 29 per cent., 18 per cent, being furnished by the Church, and 11 per cent, by Dissenters of various denominations. Supposing, then, that the whole required accommodation, that is for 58 per cent, of the population, were to be furnished in the same proportion, it is evident that about 36 per cent, ought to be provided by the Church of England, and about 22 per cent, by Dissenters of all kinds. Instead of 36 per cent, we have adopted the standard of 25 per cent., or 1 in 4; that is, * It is interesting to remark that Dr. Chalmers, who had given so much attention to this subject, had formed very nearly the same opinion. OF THE J5ISHOP OF LONDON S FUND. 7 nearly a third less than the proportion calculated by Mr. Mann as the minimum amount of Church accommodation which ought in due time to be provided by the Church of England. In making this deduction we have been influenced by the desire to put forward as moderate and practical a view as possible of the wants of the Diocese, and further by the consideration of various circumstances which tend to reduce the required amount of Church accommodation in London ; for example, the number of Churches in which more than two services are held ; the chapels attached to workhouses, hos- pitals, &c. ; and, again, the number of persons, such as do- mestic servants and others, who are not able to attend Divine Service more than once in the day. We believe, therefore, that this standard of Church-room for 1 in 4 of the population will be accepted as a very moderate estimate of the responsi- bility of the Church of England in this matter ; and we would again repeat that it is adopted, after due allowance has been made for the estimated proportion of Dissenters, Roman Catholics, Jews, &c, as well as for the aged, the infirm, and the young. In reference to these standards we would observe, that we do not for a moment propose to aim directly at making this amount of provision for the people of London. It was neces- sary to adopt some standards in order to estimate the defi- ciency of religious agency ; and we have chosen the following, not only because they are approved by persons of great expe- rience in the working of Town Parishes, but also because, for reasons which we have herein afterwards stated, we believe that this amount of provision is really desirable for the efficient pastoral care of populous parishes. These standards then being adopted, we have now to state the result of our inquiries into the present religious condition of the Diocese of London. II. STATEMENT OF DEFICIENCIES. From the returns obtained at this time, and from other sources, it appears that out of all the Parishes and Districts included in the Diocese (amounting to about 450), about 239 a 4 8 RErORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE Classifica- tion of Parishes. are already provided up to the measure of the standards here adopted. They will, therefore, for the present be left out of consideration in estimating the wants of the Diocese. The remaining 211 Parishes have been classed as follows, accord- ing to the amount of their deficiency. 1. As regards Deficiency of Clergy. One Clergyman only Class I. for 8,000 and upwards . II. „ from 6,000 to 8,000 . . III. „ 4,000 to 0,000 . . IV. „ 2,000 to 4,000 . . Not deficient in Clergy, but in Church-room Gross Population 11 Parishes. . . 228,000 14 5) 171,400 59 )) 757,500 110 )> 919,300 194 17 )> 73,800 2. As regards Deficiency of Church-room. Accommodation for less than Class I. . . . 1 in 10 . . . 58 Parishes II. ... 1 in 8 ... 27 „ III. ... 1 in G ... 42 „ IV. ... 1 in 4 ... 71 Not deficient in Church-room, ■ but in Clergy 198 13 211 211 Total . . 2,150,000 Gross Population. 744,000 324,400 412,900 009,800 58,900 Total . . 2,150,000 Among the 211 Parishes thus classified will be found the names of several which from various circumstances, such as the wealth of the inhabitants or the amount of the endow- ment, will appear quite unsuitable for assistance from the Bishop of London's Fund. But we have inserted them in their proper places, both because for the wealthier classes, quite as much as for the poorer, it is necessary that this amount of spiritual provision should exist, and also because in these parishes there is often very little accommodation OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON S FUND. if really available either for the operative classes or for the poor. The total population of these 211 deficient Parishes is about Deficiency 2,1 50,000, the number of Clergy is 582. But this number of ° f Clergy ' Clergy on the standard assumed is sufficient for the super- vision of 1,164,000 only (making allowance, as we have done, for the labours of other religious bodies) ; there remains therefore a population of very nearly 1,000,000 persons for whom a further provision of 500 Clergy would be required according to the standard assumed of one Clergyman for every 2000" of the population. We would again call atten- tion to the extreme importance of maintaining this standard, especially with a view to the necessity for personal visitation as the chief means by which it can be hoped to make any impression upon those who are careless about spiritual things. Again, in these 211 Parishes with their population of Deficiency 2,150,000, there is accommodation of all kinds provided by roonK the Church of England for 298,000. Of this accommodation about 155,000 sittings, or about one-half, are described as free, besides about 19,000, or more than 6 per cent, of the whole, provided in School Rooms, Mission Chapels, &c. But, according to the standard of 1 in 4, this total provision is no more than the Church of England ought to make for 1,192,000, leaving therefore about 960,000, or nearly 1,000,000 persons in these 21 1 Parishes, for whom, upon the standard assumed, the Church of England ought eventually to provide, either in Churches or Mission Rooms, 250,000 additional sittings. In stating this estimate of deficiency, both as regards Objections Clergy and Church-room, we are not unmindful of what might consi ere ' perhaps be urged, that a Parish deficient in both particulars may possibly be adjacent to another in which there is more than the requisite provision both of Clergy and Churches. As regards Clergy, this would practically affect the state of matters very slightly, as there would evidently be many diffi- culties in the way of a Clergyman extending his pastoral supervision beyond the bounds of his own parish. As regards a 5 Agents. 10 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE Chnrch-room, these circumstances might no doubt modify the amount of accommodation required ; but the extent of this modification would not be great, as the Parishes referred to are mostly surrounded by others as ill provided as them- selves. Having thus stated with approximate accuracy the results of our inquiry as regards the deficiency of Clergy and Places of Worship, we now proceed to state the present condition of the Diocese in respect of the other objects embraced by the Bishop of London's Fund. This we do with more diffidence, because of the difficulty of obtaining accurate information. ^ a y As regards Lay Agency. The total number of Scripture Readers employed in the Diocese in connexion with the Scripture Readers 1 Association is about 110, City Missionaries probably about 270, Bible Women about 170, and Mission Women about 50, besides 20 Lay Assistants maintained by the Church Pastoral Aid Society — making a total of about 620 paid Lay Agents in connexion with various Societies labouring in the Diocese of London. It is not easy to estimate with any great accuracy what proportion of these Lay Agents are in direct connexion with the Church of England. In this number, however, will be included the whole of the Scripture Readers, the Parochial Mission Women, and the Lay Assistants of the Pastoral Aid Society. From inquiries which the Committee have made, they believe that about one-half of the City Missionaries, and about 100 of the Bible Women, may also be reckoned under this head, making the number of 415 Lay Agents in con- nexion with the Church of England. As these are probably labouring in the poorer and more populous Parishes, of which the 211 Parishes now under consideration are mostly com- posed, and as we must allow for a considerable number of other Lay Agents not connected with any Society, it may be safely assumed that there are now at work in these deficient Parishes not fewer than 450 paid Lay Agents in connexion with the Church of England, exclusive of District Visitors and other voluntary helpers. Supposing then that for every 2000 of the population at least one paid Lay Agent, male or OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. 11 female, should be provided in addition to and in connexion with the parochial Clergy, the existing number of such Lay Agents would be sufficient for a population of 900,000 ; there remain therefore in these 211 Parishes about 1,250,000 persons, for whom this most valuable agency ought to be provided. According to this estimate, at the very least 600 additional paid Lay Agents of one kind or other would cer- tainly be required. We come now to speak of Residences for the Clergy. Parsonages It appears that of these 211 Parishes there are 92 unpro- dowments. vided with a Parsonage-house ; and of these 92 there are many of which the whole income is extremely small. We need not enlarge upon the importance of there being in every poor and populous Parish a permanent and known residence for the Incumbent, with the view of enabling him to reside among his people. Not unfrequently this end could be attained in no other way, from the total want of any house or lodging suitable for his occupation. But the provision of a Parsonage would in any case relieve his income, itself often very inadequate, from the heavy burden of the rent of a London house or lodging, and would also secure to his people the advantage of all the benefits which gather round a Clergyman's home. Lastly, as regards Schools. Schools - Partly from an accidental inaccuracy prevalent to a con- siderable extent in the returns obtained from the Clergy, and partly from the scanty amount of information to be obtained in other quarters — we are unable to produce on this subject any accurate statistical statement. We had hoped to obtain from the Privy Council, or from some of the Societies engaged in the work of education, information as to the amount of School accommodation in the Diocese ; but it appears that no returns exactly of this kind are in the possession of these bodies. On referring, however, to the Report on Education, prepared for the Registrar General, in connexion with the Census of 1851, we find certain statements, which probably remain very nearly accurate up to the present time, and of which we have therefore made use so far as they were avail- 12 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE able. The calculation there made, based upon the various ages of the population, is, that about 17 per cent, of the whole ought to be found in Schools. It appeared, however, in 1851, that throughout the County of Middlesex only 1(H per cent, were in attendance in Schools of all kinds; accommodation being provided for about 8 per cent, by the Church of England, and for 1\ per cent, by Dissenting and other bodies. It results, therefore, that in Middlesex (and we will assume also in the whole Diocese of London) there ought to have been found in Schools of all kinds 6h per cent, more of the population, equal to about 160,000 children ; and assuming that the Church of England should only provide in future, as at present, for four-fifths of the number, it follows that room for 130,000 more children ought to be found in Church of England Schools. It is, no doubt, possible that a certain number of these children could be accommodated in existing buildings, and also that some portion of them would be educated in Private Schools ; but for the most part our Parish Schools are well filled already, and in a large number of instances quite overcrowded. It may, therefore, be fairly anticipated that it would be desirable to provide increased School accommodation for not less than 100,000 children. These calculations, though somewhat vague and possibly to some extent inaccurate, may at least serve to indicate the large demand which will probably be made on the Bishop of London's Fund for assistance in providing addi- tional School accommodation. Looking at the character of the population in many of the poorer Parishes, it appears to us that some portion at least should be supplied in the form of Bagged or Industrial Schools. III. PROPOSED REMEDIES. Before proceeding to speak of the remedies to be applied, and the line of action to be adopted in reference to these deficiencies, it may be well to re-state shortly the results of OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. 13 the inquiry detailed above as regards the deficiencies dis- closed. Adopting the standards of one Clergyman to every 2000 Restate - people, and of Church accommodation for 1 in 4 of the popu- Defi- lation, it appears that 500 additional Clergy and 250,000 ciencies - sittings would be needed, in order to bring the Diocese up to the desired standard of efficiency. It is further estimated that additional Lay Agents, male or female, to the number of 600 would be necessary to complete the equipment of these popu- lous Parishes; that nearly 100 Parsonages must be built or purchased in order that each Incumbent in these Parishes may have a residence provided for him ; and, lastly, that a very considerable increase of School accommodation, probably for 100,000, is yet required to provide instruction for the children of the poor. We now proceed to the further inquiry as to the best means by which these deficiencies may be supplied. It is evident that, even if we assume that all the funds How to be required for these purposes could be at once obtained, the immediate supply of all these wants could not for obvious reasons be contemplated, as it would be almost impossible either to create all this machinery in a limited time, or to find the living agents required for its administration. We must therefore, however reluctantly, direct our attention in the first instance to some less elaborate and less costly means of accomplishing the object in view, viz. that of bringing the knowledge of Christ to those vast populations who, as the statistical statement given above abundantly proves, are at present to so great an extent beyond the reach of spiritual ministration of any kind whatever. As regards the want of Clergy, it is much to be feared Clergy. that, even were the necessary funds obtained for their support, it would be extremely difficult to find at once any large proportion of the Clergy required. We are not however without hope that one happy result of thus making known the great spiritual necessities of the Diocese may be to induce labourers to come forward to take part in this great work, and, further, to draw from the public such an amount of con- 14 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE tributions as may serve, in conjunction with the funds in the hands of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, to provide a suitable maintenance for many additional Clergy. This suitable main- tenance we feel strongly they ought in every case to have, as it is most unreasonable to expect the discharge of duties so weighty and arduous as those of the Ministry, from men weighed down with anxiety about the daily wants of them- selves and their families. La 7 The difficulty, however, would still remain of providing the whole number required ; and therefore, while fully recognizing the desirableness of largely increasing the number of Clergy, and keeping this object steadily in view, we would suggest that in order to meet this difficulty as far as possible, efforts should be made to obtain in the mean time a considerable extension of Lay Agency of various kinds in all the poorer Parishes of the Diocese. As regards paid Lay Agents, these would be supplied either in the form of Scripture Readers or Mission Women, and either in connexion with or inde- pendent of the Societies specially engaged in this work. Sugges- But we are not unmindful of the great difficulty which would be found in providing both the funds and the persons for this purpose, and would therefore suggest that an effort should be made to secure, in a much larger number of Some might instances than at present, the services of those who being Ume^ ° occu pi e d in other employments could yet give a certain por- tion of their time daily, either with or without remuneration, to the work of ministering to the poor and ignorant. We believe that not only a large number of persons might be found both able and willing to undertake this service, but also that the work done under these circumstances might be even more efficacious and healthful than where it forms the one unvaried occupation of many hours every day. It is also worthy of consideration, whether some of the intending Candidates Candidates for Holy Orders might not be willing to give for Holy .... ,. , - . Orders. their services m tins way during some months previous to Ordination. In connexion with the subject of Lay Agency we would call attention to the fact that many of the Clergy, in OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON "s FUND. 15 the observations they were invited to make in the returns with which they were furnished, have stated that they are to a large extent unnecessarily burdened with work of a secular kind which ought not to be thrown upon them, and which absorbs much of the time and attention which might otherwise be devoted to their proper pastoral and spiritual duties. We are well aware that in a large number .Voluntary of the Parishes of the Diocese District Visitors and other ie P ers - voluntary helpers are already engaged in the discharge of various parochial duties, by which means the Clergyman must no doubt to a considerable extent be relieved. It appears to us, however, very desirable that voluntary work of this kind, whether among the higher or humbler classes, should be, if possible, more distinctly recognized and adopted in connexion with the working of the Parochial System. We T heir P lace would further suggest, that, by securing in each Oongre- System. gation, in addition to the agencies referred to above, the services of certain Laymen, and by assigning to them a recognized office with definite duties, the Clergy might both receive that assistance in secular business of which they feel the need, and might to a large extent be relieved from matters by the pressure of which they are so often hindered in the discharge of their special duties, and which do not fall ex- clusively within their province. In many Parishes resident How to be Laymen would be found who might be appointed for this pur- poor pa _ pose ; and in the poorer East End districts, where such assist- rish es. ance can rarely be obtained, it would be desirable for the Clergyman to secure, through the Bishop of the Diocese, the services of such Lav men from the wealthier Parishes as had offered themselves to him for the work, in answer to his appeal in the Letter which announced the formation of this Fund. Bearing in mind the very large number of persons who are already occupied in somewhat similar work in con- nexion with the two great Societies for the relief of the Poor in the Metropolis, we cannot think that there would be any difficulty in securing such services. Such an arrangement would not only bring the sympathy and money of the higher classes to aid the isolated Clergy and congregations in the 16 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE wealthy congrega tions. poorer districts, but it might also tend in some degree to neutralize the evils arising from the daily increasing separa- tion of the West from the East. Adoption of With the same view we would venture to suggest the poor pa- t °° rishes by . adoption of another expedient which, under a slightly dif- ferent form, has already been tried in one or two instances with excellent success. We propose that some of the wealthier congregations in the Diocese, in neighbourhoods where there are scarcely any resident poor, might place them- selves each in connexion with some one of the poorest East End Parishes, regarding it for all charitable purposes as an outlying portion of their own, and making themselves respon- sible for aiding its various spiritual and temporal necessities, just as if it were really situated close to their own doors. We feel confident that through the individual local interest thus awakened a much greater amount of assistance might be obtained from the wealthier congregations, and of a better kind, than if contributions were to be solicited for some general scheme having the same objects in view. As regards Church-room, there are two objections fre- quently made which we have fully considered, and on which we would now say a few words. The first of these is the Multiplica- suggestion, that by the multiplication of Services in build- ings already existing, the expense of providing further accom- modation might in a great measure be saved. In answer to this, however, it may fairly be maintained, that for the poorer classes of the population, with their present habits, no Services would really be available except those which might be held late in the afternoon or in the evening. It might perhaps be possible in some instances to introduce another Service between the present Afternoon and Evening Ser- vices, but a multiplication of Services at an earlier hour of the day, would not really increase the provision available for the working classes. In some Parishes of the Diocese this experiment has already been made with very little Churches success. We are of opinion, however, that in one way at open for i eas fc more use might be made of existing Churches, viz. private ° o ' prayer. by adopting the suggestion made by the Bishop of London Church room. tion of Ser vices. OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. 17 in his recent Charge, that they should be left open through- out some part of the day, especially in poorer districts, in order that they may be used for the purposes of private prayer, by those who in their own overcrowded rooms have no opportunity of retirement. The second objection to which Churdies we refer is grounded upon the assertion, that there are already many Churches comparatively empty even in popu- lous districts of the Diocese. To this it may be replied, first, that there is already more than sufficient population to fill these Churches if they were disposed to attend, and that the effect of the increase of agencies provided by this Fund will be, it is hoped, to induce the people in time to occupy their places in the House of. Prayer. But further, it must be borne in mind that these Churches are only available for the population in the immediate neighbourhood, and that it is vain to expect that persons from a distance, and especially those who have little interest in spiritual things, will travel much out of their way to avail themselves of empty Churches. It is well known that the people in Shore- ditch and Spitalfields could never be brought to avail them- selves of the deserted City Churches, while New Churches City recently erected in their own districts have been almost immediately filled. We believe that we have given due weight to these and other considerations which have been brought before us in the course of our inquiry ; but we are still convinced that a considerable increase of Church-room will ultimately be needed, and especially in the poorer suburban districts of the Metropolis. It is, however, extremely difficult to lay down any rule Method of as to the manner and extent of the provision which would in app y ' the first instance be necessary to meet this deficiency. In the poorer suburban districts, with their rapidly increasing population of persons with small life-incomes, it would no doubt be necessary in many instances to aid at once in the erection of Churches. In such neighbourhoods a large pro- portion of the population have been accustomed to attend religious services in other parts of town or country from which they have migrated, but are unable to provide them for 18 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMUTE K themselves, and it would be most undesirable to leave them destitute of the means of regular public worship. But, on the other hand, in the older and poorer districts of the Diocese it will in most cases be found more wise and beneficial to Mission provide some kind of Mission Station in the first instance, where the careless and ignorant may be gathered in and instructed in Christian truth. The large measure of success which has attended efforts of this kind, and the readiness which the labouring population have shown to avail themselves of such Services, and even to contribute in a considerable degree to their support, encourage us to hope for the most beneficial results from the wide extension of this scheme. We would therefore recommend that special attention and large assistance should be given to providing places of this kind in the poorer parts of the Diocese. They will at once be required in many instances for the additional Clergy who have already been or will be provided by the agency of this Fund ; and even in other cases where the number of Clergy has not been increased, the provision of a Mission Station might promote the success of their work, and greatly add to its efficiency. By the term Mission Station we have in view a place which may be used not only for religious services, but also for Schools, either Day or Evening or Eagged, and for any other purposes, such as Lectures, Bible Classes, and Mothers 1 Meetings, which are now so frequently and with so much benefit adopted in populous Parishes. Parsonages. As regards Residences for the Clergy, we desire to recall the attention of the Executive Committee to the plan sug- gested by the Rev. C. Girdlestone in his Letter addressed to the Bishop of London at the time of the formation of the Fund, viz. that of providing in destitute Parishes a Parsonage- house with a Mission Room attached, and thus combining the social influence of a Clergyman's home, with a provision not only for Public Worship, but for other meetings and occa- sions connected with parochial work. We believe that there are Parishes in the Diocese where this scheme might be tried with excellent hopes of success. Endow- As regards Endowment, we would suggest that, looking to ment. OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON^ FUND. 19 the very large and increasing resources which are at the disposal of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for this purpose only, it would not be desirable that any great amount of the Fund should be expended in this way. But we would further recommend that, wherever it is possible, the operations of the Executive Committee should be so directed as to secure to the greatest possible extent the aid of the Ecclesiastical Corn- Ecclesiasti- •• -r it 1 • /l' • ' 1 !» 1 il Cell LOI11" missioners. It may be well to state briefly in this place the missioned. various conditions under which the Ecclesiastical Commis- sioners at present assist in the endowment of populous Parishes. 1st. The Commissioners appropriate a sum, varying in amount from year to year, to be given in grants to meet benefactions of at least an equal value. 2ndly. They are engaged in augmenting to =£300 a year the income of all parishes in which there are local claims — that is to say, in which Ecclesiastical property vested in the Com- missioners is situated, or from which any of their revenues are derived. Srdly. They are prepared to augment to ^300 a year the income of every benefice, the population of which was, by the Census of 1861, not less for this year than 8000 persons, the intention being to diminish yearly the standard of population till it reaches 4000. 4thly. They propose to appropriate annually, for the next five years, =£3000 per annum in perpetuity, for the endow- ment with £200 a year of New Churches, to which Districts shall have been legally assigned, and of which (for this year) the population shall not be less than 8000, the standard of population diminishing yearly as above. Under all these arrangements, excepting the first, the grants will be made unconditionally to Churches in public patronage ; but in the case of Churches in private patronage, on condition that one-half of the sum required be provided from non-ecclesiastical sources. 20 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE IV. GENERAL SUGGESTIONS. Economy. Local con- tributions. Buildings available for several purposes. As regards a general line of action to be adopted in dis- tributing- the Fund which may be collected, we desire to impress upon all concerned the extreme importance of its economical application. The statistics already obtained dis- close such an amount of need, that even were the Fund to be successful beyond all expectation, it would be necessary to expend it with the greatest prudence and care, in order to make any permanent impression upon the existing spiri- tual destitution. It would be a matter of great regret, if at the end of ten years the Fund should be brought to a close, without having effected a very considerable change in the present religious condition of the Diocese. With this view we would recommend that the Grants should in most cases be met by local contributions, however small ; thus, on the one hand, reducing the amount of expenditure of the Fund, and, on the other, securing the interest and co- operation of those for whose benefit the Grants have been made. In many cases it will be found that considerable sums have already been raised, requiring only the aid of a Grant from the Fund in order to secure the completion of some important work. We would further suggest, that wher- ever Grants are made tow r ards the erection of new buildings, these buildings should be made as extensively available as possible. There are already instances in the Diocese of Schools and Mission Rooms, which are occupied almost incessantly in various ways from Sunday morning till Saturday night, and it would be most desirable that new buildings should, as far as possible, be so placed and so arranged as to be employed for more than one or even for several useful pur- poses. We would further suggest that buildings already existing, such as Schools, &c, might in many cases have their usefulness greatly extended in this way. OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. 21 We would further recommend that in administering the Twofold Fund a twofold line of action should be adopted — action, ] st, That assistance should be given to deficient Parishes in answer to applications made to the Fund from the Parishes themselves ; and, 2ndly, That in some of the most deficient and destitute Parishes the Executive Committee should themselves suggest or initiate the application of remedies on the principles laid down in this Report. We are now in possession of minute details with regard to the most urgent cases included in the 2] 1 deficient Parishes. But in addition to this it would often be very desirable that some members of the Committee should personally visit the Personal localities for which grants are in contemplation, in order to committee, satisfy themselves both as to the necessities of the case, and as to the fitness of the remedies proposed. The Report which we now make abundantly shows the ne- cessity for a vast amount of new agencies and additional funds, if a great proportion of the Diocese of London is ever, by the blessing of God, to be brought under the influence of Christian teaching. It will also clearly prove that something in addition to existing Societies was urgently called for, and that a great movement on a comprehensive scale was abso- lutely required for the purpose of working off the arrears of past years within a stated period of time. At the same time Existing we would earnestly impress upon all the extreme importance must De of maintaining in their full efficiency the Societies now at maintained. work in the Diocese, which have been enabled to do so much already for the relief of Spiritual Destitution. They will still be fully occupied in supplying the current wants of the in- creasing population, to which within the next ten years Probable there will probably be an addition of very nearly 500,000 population, people, an increase which in our calculations has been designedly left out of account. Any weakening of these Societies, and the consequent withdrawal of any of their grants towards Curates, Scripture Readers, Mission AVomen, &c, would only tend to increase very greatly the amount 22 REPORT OF THE STATISTICAL COMMITTEE. of deficiency which the Bishop of London's Fund has been specially raised to supply. Much now We cannot conclude our Report without expressing the ' gratification we have felt, in the face of these disclosures as to spiritual destitution, at seeing how much is even now being done by the Clergy in these populous Parishes, often under circumstances of extreme difficulty, and how much co-opera- tion and sympathy they have been able to secure for their arduous and successful labours. We are well aware how much more might have been said, and possibly with greater accuracy, on a subject so wide and so important as that embraced in our Report, but we trust that the information which we have been able to obtain, and the suggestions which we have made, may prove of some service in the great work in which the Committee of the Bishop of London's Fund is engaged. SANDON. RADSTOCK. THOMAS W. WALLER. J. BARDSLEY. F. G. BLOM FIELD. ARTHUR CURRIE. H. HO ARE. W. D. MACLAGAN. GILES REDMAYNE. T. F. STOOKS. W. H. SMITH. HENRY HOARE, Jon;, 1 WILLIAM TOLLEMACHE, l e Hox ' ' I OECRETAK1ES. EDWARD THORNTON, Office of Bishop of London's Fund 79, Pall Mall, S.W., March 1864. SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES, ADDRESSED TO EVERY INCUMBENT IN THE DIOCESE. Deanery ..... Parish or District Incumbent I. Population : — Present amount Estimated number of Dissenters Roman Catholics Jews Increasing or decreasing Character of population. II. Clergy : — Number of Parochial Clergy . Missionary Clergy III. Churches: — Churches or Cbapels in connexion with the Church of England No. of Sittings at a rent . Number of Services on Number. Sunday. Accommodation. free and unap-~l propriated .J free and ap-^j propriated . / Total . Accommodation. Other places used for Service"! on Sunday . . . J Ditto which might be made") available if necessary .J 2i SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES. IV. Is there a Parsonage ? Number. Accommodation. V. Schools : — Schools in connexion with Church of England : Boys .... Girls .... Infants .... Schools not in connexion with Church of England : Dissenters Roman Catholics Schools Ragged or Industrial . Remarks on condition of Estimated Dissent and Romanism No. Accommodation. in the Par sh. VI. Chapels : — Dissenters . . ' Roman Catholics | VII. Scripture Readers VIII. City Missionaries . . IX. Bible or Mission Women X. Other Church agencies XI. Works proposed or in progress iu connexion with Church of England, or other religious bodies. XII. Have any sites been acquired, or could any be readily obtained, if neces- sary for additional Churches, Parsonage, or Schools ? XIII. Gross Estimated Rental of Parish or District, from Rate Book or other official source. XIV. What is your opinion as to best means of providing for the present wants of the Parish or District ? (JILI)ERT AND RIVINGTON, PRINTERS, ST. JOHN S SaUARL, LONDON. imk y%5 w^ ■M m i ~