ANGLICAN CATHEDRAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 861, 6 July 1910, Page 6

ANGLICAN CATHEDRAL.

INTERESTING STATEMENT BY THE BISHOP. In his address to the Diocesan Synod yesterday the Anglican Bishop of Wellington (Dr. Wallis) said: —No action was taken by General Synod with regard tothis Synod's request that power be given to sell or lease the property in Alulgrave Street on' which the Bishop's former residence and the Diocesan Library now stand. Tho chief cause of this omission was the opinion which was ..shared by some of, our own representatives, that this spot, hr which, wo are now met, might be found a suitable site for our cathedral. I do not myself. agree with them. The changes which will evidently be caused to Thorndon by the reclamation of land for wharves, and by the building of two railway stations, appear to me to make it very unlikely that this part of tho city will ever be occupied by a large population. On the other hand, the site that was secured many years ago may not bo the best we could desire, but it is central, and it is, peopled by just the classes of inhabitants whom we are longing most earnestly to assemble in a large, freo, and open church. But until this question of the site is settled one way or. another, you may 'be sure that I shall not consent to any alienation of this property in Mulgrayo Street. It is plain, however, that there must be no thought of building the cathedral here until it is found possible to remove the present St. Paul's Church to another quarter. To place cathedral and parish church side by side would clearly be harmful to both; to substitute the former for the latter would be to violate one of the main purposes of our undertaking, en the faith of which many generous contributions were made. Fifteen years ago, when the population was far smaller' than it is now, we saw the church accommodation in this city to be terribly, insufficient,. and tho Cathedral Fund was started to increase it by aii entirely new building. I earnestly hope -that in the course of' next year, when the mission is over, we may •■ renew our efforts with vigour. This, the capital of New Zealand, will be almost the-only city in the province without a cathedral, when that at Dunedin has been built. This defect is a shame to our Church in Wellington, and we ought to remedy it without delay. '