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CHURCH CONGRESS SIDELIGHTS. An Intelligent Porter. Can you direct me to Aylestone- Toad ? I asked an intelligent-looking porter at Leicester Station on Saturday. Certainly. What part do you want ? I wish to get to the Exhibition," I re- plied. Oh, if you belong to the Church Congress come with me," continued the obliging porter, and I will take you and your luggage up in the lift." Then he proceeded to give careful and elaborate instructions. My railway friend knew all about the Congress. A good beginning I thoaght t. c" Surely Not All These? As I made my way to the Exhibition I \V,as surprised to see an ullendir.g stream of men and women going in the same direction. Surely," I said in my inno- cence, these are not all flocking to the Ecclesiastical Art Exhibition ? "No," replied a sturdy Leicester man, they are going to the great football match I might have known-but, then, I had come from London! Musical enthusiasts. Not only are the Leicester folk keen on football, but they are musical enthusiasts. Some of the church choirs—notably St. Martin's and. St. Pet--r's-will compare Tory favourably with any London parish church choir, 'and the congi egatio,;s appreciate their effort}. Further, the De Montfort Hall is crowded every Sut day evening with an appreciative audieme for the high-class musical recitals given binder the auspices of the Leiooster "Cor- poration. Bravo, Leicester! No Longer Nonconformist, It used to be said that Leicester was hopelessly Nonconformist, but I am glad to know this is no longer. true. The Church is bubbling over with life. I heard that at St. Peter's—with seating capacity for 1,200—hundreds are often turned away on Sunday evenings. This is where the Rev. W. Thompson Elliott is Vicar. The urgent need of the moment is a corporate expression of Church life in the city. With the present Bishop rn- • spiring the diocese and Mr. Elliott acti g as Pouxal Bean, I shall be surprised if this defect is not soon remedied. "mow Me, That Will Have to Go 1 A good irel., was told at the meeting for by the Rev. H. S. Woolloamoe, Head of Qjrford House., Bethnak green. A costermonget who wanted to be oortfiiUned consulted Mr. Woqlloomue coscerniBg certain important questions. i "He asked me/' said Mr. -WooUoombe,: .■Is it wrong for a converted man to' have a bob on a horse? I asked him if horse-racing did any harm ? He was forced to acknowledge that it did, end then added, with a sigh, "Blow me. that will have to go, then! Elart ..nd Art. in paf issg a warm tribute to Mr. John Hart for organising the Ecclesiastical Art Exhibition, the Bishop ot Peter borough declared This Exhibition is aA3 much an exhibition of the energy or Hart as it is an exhibition of the beauty of art." A Sad Occurrence. A distressing occurrence happened on Sunday afternoon outside the De Mont- fort Hall, where .the meeting for lads was held. Lieutenant W. H. Cross, in charge of a platoon of the K.R.R. Cadets of the Church Lads' Brigade, was about to enter the hall when he com- plained of not feelirg well. In company with his wife he remained outside ior a few minutes, when he had a seizure and passed away almost immediately. Lieu- tenant Cross was a schoolmaster, and formeilly organist at St. Barnabas' Church. Bishop s Kind Act. When the Bishop of Peterborough heard of the sad occurrence he went out and tenderly sympathised with the dis- tressed widpw, and the Bishop had her conveyed home in his motor-car, Men of Brains. You do not see a sight like this every day in Leicester," I said to a police- sergeant as the procession of olergy oame out of the. Town Hall. "No," he re- plied. I was just thinking what a lot of men of brains. they have in the Church." Good! The Vanished Moustache Out of the hundreds of clergy in the procession I think there were only three whose upper lip was adorned by, a moustache. What a change from fifteen or twenty years ago 4 Bishop's jlosit j During Congress Week the-Bishop of Peterborough is staying at Glen Parva Grange as the guest of Lady Rolleston. 's Among the other guests is the Archbishop of Dabilm, whosesplenâidpaper %,on I The Omnipotence of God was the talk, of the Congress. Lack of Hotels. Leicester is badly off for hotel accom- modation, but the Hospitality Committee were able to find hosts for most of the Congress memlbers. One lady is enter- taining no fewer than thirteen visitors. Bread-and-Milk for Supper. I One good lady, when ordering her ticket, asked that hospitality might be > found for her where she could have bread- and-milk for supper, otherwise she would not be aibile to sleep! Parable and Prophecy. By far the most effective stall in the Exhibition is that arranged by the In- dustrial Christian Fellowship, of which the Rev. P. T. R. Kirk is general direc- tor. The front screen consiists of a strik- ing canvas representing a church steeple linked on to the chimney of a huge fac- tory--a parable and a prophecy. The Old War Horse- Much amusement was caused by the Bishop of London at the men's meeting, when he described himself as an old war-horse of pre-war days. He is good for many campaigns yet, and the Bishop must not forget that there are 110 post- war days in his army. Someone Above the Devil. vVhLe the air-raids were on," said the Bishop, I was speaking to an oJd woman in the East End, and I .asked her if she was afraid. Well,' she said, yes, I aim; but I try to keep it down. They do say that there is no Gód, but I say there must be someone above 'the devil.' Part Sunlight a Reality. A notable tribute was paid by the Bishop to Lord Leverhulme for what he has done for his workers. Port Sun- light," said the Bishop, "is a reality. Lord Leverhulme is a 'top-hole'. em- ployer. He not oirtly pays his employees good wages, but he gives -them co-partner- ship in the business." Men the Germans Didn't Like. General Lord Home obviously felt somewhat shaky at the me i's meet- ing, It is an ordeal," he remarked, "to face these men-the men the I. Germans didn't like to face." "Woodbine Williet.' No one so oaptivafod the men's meeting as the Rev. G. A. Studdert-Kennedy, the popular Army chaplain, known as Woodbine Willie and the author of Hough Rhymes of a Padre. His humour was irresistible, his Irish brogue oapti- vating, and his flood of eloquence swept the audience along. But behind his address was a solid and timely message which the men were not slow to gnasp. c What Good Can I Get ? "I have sometimes asked men," said Mr. Studdert-Kennedy, why they don't go to church. The reply usually is, What good gan I get by going ? What good Why, what good did you get by joining the Army ? We Know That." It is no good telling ust," continued Mr. Studdent-Kennedy, that the clergy are mostly fools. We have known that for years. If your parson is o e of this type, make it so uncomfortable for him that he will not stay." Mrs. Davidson s Interests. Mrs. Davidson, wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury, sat on the platform at De Montford Hart on the first day, and no one followed the addresses more closely than she. Church in Sweden. After delivering his presidential ad- dress, the Bishop of Peterborough announced that there were present at the Congress delegates from the Church of Sweden, whom he most cordially wel- comed in the name of the Congress. Things That Matter. It matters much more that I lost imy temper with that man in a railway car- riage than that I missed evensong last' hight." This was one of the Rev. F. R. Barry's dicta on the things that matter in the Christian life. Lack of Manners- Many complaints were expressed about the difficulty of hearing some of the 9 addresses owing to the constant going in and out of members. The President had to .ask all to remain seated until the close of the meetings. Fatal Accident- Cycling to the Congress on Monday, the Kev. J. E. Potts, Rector of Thurcaston, was knocked down by a motor-lorry and so seriously injured that he died soon alter -adnussion to the Leicester In- firmary.

The Court at Sandringham. SANDRINGHAM welcomed the King and Queen on Tuesday, and the Court will be there till nearly the end of this month. Princess Mary accompanied their Majesties. The special train was not used for the journey, but special saloons were attached to an ordinary train. In this way the King and Queen showed their appreciation of the transport needs of the public. On the platform at the station were half a dozen Indian or- derlies. They had not before seen the King and Queen, and they were delighted when their Majesties talked with them.

The King and a Captain's Memoir. His MAJESTY THE KING has been graciously pleased to accept a copy of the Memoir of the late Captain William Howard Lister, D.S.O., M.C., R.A.M.C., written by Dr. Wialter Seton. The Memoir has been privately printed by the Medici Society, and copies are ob- tainable from the Senior Clerk, Uni-- versity College, London.

St Luke's Day Bishop. DR. EDEN, Bishop for twenty-two years of Wakefield and formerly Bishop- suffragan of Dover, was consecrated in Canterbury Cathedral by Archbishop Benson on St. Luke's Day, 1890, and will enter to-morrow the thirtieth year of his episcopate. ■.

Back to the Scenes of Youth. WINCHESTER, which was the home of; his boyhood, is the place where I) 11 Edgajr Jacob, thLA Bishop of St. Albans, will settle down after December 1. It will be remembered that Dr. Jacob's resignation of the Bishopric takes effect on that date. Dr. Jacob's father was Archdeacon and Canon of Winchester and Rector of Cnaw. ley, a village near Winchester. It is in- teresting to recall that the great screen aver the high altar of the Cathedral was restored as a memorial to Dr. Jacob's father.

Bishop of Beverley's Birthday. ON Monday last the Bishop of Bever- ley celebrated his eighty-second birthday. The Right Rev. Robert Jarratt Ct'os- diwaite was consecrated Bis, o^-suiLagan of .Beverley in York Minster in 1889. He is Rector of Bolton Percy, which position he has held since 1885. He was born at Welti gton, Somerset, and graduated at Trinity Collage, Cam- bridge, of which college he was a Fellow from 1862 to 1867. It is pleasant to know that the Bishop is in remarkably good heauth and has an extraordinary oapacity for work. He has hosts of friends, and congratulations readied him from many quarters.

Mr. Balfour again Gifford Lecturer. I SEE that the Senate of the University of Glasgow have reappointed Mr. A. J. Balfour Giffotrd Lecturer for the session of 1920-21. Mr. Balfour hopes to de- liver, his second course of lectures in the autumn of next year. It is a welcome sign that Mr. Balfour is getting back again to his philosophic and literary pur- suits. All who heard or read his last I Gifford Lectures will look forward with much pleasure to his coming lectures. There is no more forceful and convincing exponent of difficult philosophic questions than Mr. A. J. Balfour. His breadth of view, which is perhaps due to his long contact with the world of politics, is more than ordinarily marked.

Interviewing Another Bishop. LORD WILLIAM CECIL, the versatile Bishop of Exeter, who steadily refuse* to walk in old-fashioned episcopal ruts, and is one of the most homely and approach- able Bishops on the bench, has for nearly three years granted, interviews to the I clergy between 11 and 1 on Saturdays, excepting on the rare occasions when he I ie out of Exeter on that day. No ap- pointment is necessary, and if half a' dozen clergy turn up, the rule is First come, first served." On coming into the dipoese the Bishop requested.,the clergy, and their families oal'l at any time without appointment on Lady Florence Cecil and himself. Those who have taken him at his word have been heartily welcomed,

The King of Spain. SPAIN'S King and Queen are to pay a visit to London. The visit will be qui.e informal, and their Majesties will pro- bably stay at a West-e d hotel. King Alfonso will remain for a week or ten days, but the Queen will reimain a little longeiv at Kensington Palace, wleie her mother, Princess Beatrice, is now in re- sidence.

THE Treasurers of the Society for th Propagation of the 6<«-pel in For-i^i: Parte, 15, Tuftou-st: eet, W<v»tnihif.trv, S.W. 1, thankfully acknowledge the "I" ceipt of an anonymous giit of X'1,0150 to k Society's Medical Mis-sioas Fund.

I THE CBH £ 10 THE OiLSilll. 1!1.1 1 1 I I .I t I I 11 4,851 now in its Homes. i Nearly 24,000 in all rescued. ;| 3,000 Soldiers' and Sailors' children |» sheltered during the War. This' is THE RECORD of the Waifs&Strays Society which needs. I YOUR HELP. Gifts gratefully received by PREBENDARY RUDOLF. Old Town Hall, Kennington Road, London, S.E. 11. Cheques, etc., crossed and payable to "Waifs & Strays. L .a j