CHURCH OF ENGLAND SERVICES.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume X, Issue 86, 10 April 1875, Page 2

CHURCH OF ENGLAND SERVICES.

TO THE EDITOK OP THE 'EVENING MAIL.' Siß~When a carefully worded anonymous js letteri in 'theffor.m'.of a question appears in the-, , corresponden^e r eolumn iof a newsnaper-'it is somewhat <lifficult"to judge its obj ct, of the kind of answer the writer wishes to bring out. Such a letter is that of "Paris ioner' ; in last night's issue. 'fie mayb e one of "those* who with honest indignation watch the increasing tendency of the ministers of the English Church in Nelson Diocese to re- j arrange and alter the .services .of. the Church, j as laid down in that inestimable *' inheritance | of our fathers," the Book of Common i Prayer," or he may be an agent ot those who seem s:> anxious to we in the people from the liturgy of tho Church of England, aud indoctrinate them with the American Church systems, of which we ba?e seen so much of late in the Church Messenger. I am not sufficiently read up in the subject to say if authority exists for the use or nonuse of the Te Dcum at Evening Prayer, but is it not entirely contrary to the spirit of our Prayer Book that new sentences at the opening of the service should be te^d in the pbee of those in ordinary use (which we have been taught to look upon as the Minister's credent als from the Bible for what follows) or that a composition, original or otherwise, should be substituted ior the Exhortation and ' Collects? It m«y be that Bince New Zealand has separated from the Church of *ngl*nd the Bishops and Clergy are not amenable to her Jaws, but till the General t^yn^id give us. something better than our present liturgical services, so dear tn our fath' rs and ou- selves, and in which scarcely a paiu or sorrow to whiih flesh is hdr, but finds itself recognise \ and remembered, let us potest, as membi ra of the Church ot England, against any hurr>e ) tampering with her services, or the introduction of novelties and alterations. I am, &c, Spes in Cbucem. Nelson, April 9, 1875. "PARISHIONER'S" LETTER. To the Editoii op the 'Enening Mail.' Sir— ln answer to " Parishioner's" question, I beg to state that the G-neral Synod, the governing body of the Church of England in Niw Zeabind, by resolution Session 1871, recognized ''the expediency of a certain discretion being exercised by the Bishops in sanciioning from time to time such divisions in 'he service*, and modifications in the manner of celebrating those services, as may be urgently required by the circumstances of the cl ryy or of the people." The Bishops thereupon laid before the General Synod a statement of the divisions and modifications they were willing to sanction and under what circumstances : section seven reading thus: — "If occasions and circumstances arise in which,, special services are needed but are tot now provided :— (a). Such special prayers or services should be drawn up by the Bishop of the "Dio&sc, and his sanction obtained previous .to 'their use. (b). A copy of all such special prayers and. {occndonal services as may have been use! in nny Diocese should be laid en the table of the General Synod at its triennial meeting, by the Bishop in whose Diocese' such service may have been used." lam, &c. R. J. TiioKrE. THE WOMEN OS 1 NELSON AND THEIR DETRACTORS. To the Editor of' tub ' Evjexihg Mail.' Sin — The editor "of a newspaper, as a matter of course, is not to be held responsible for the numerous and yarioug opinions expressed by Jris correspondents, but I think he should be held responsible to th<Vi public for publishing a gross insult to, the "community — especially the female portion of* it— among which his paper circulates. ' Such an insult was pe r mittcd to appear in this morning* Colonist, in the shape, <>f a letter signed " A Dweller in the Desert." The writer criticises the stj le of dress now in fashion, as he has a perfect right to do, but; to Hut ex'ent is he justified in stating:—" I went into one of your churches not 'long agojatid verily a stranger mighc heve thought' that he had falloa into a corigr«Ra'ion of ! women of tho city •< who were . sinners.' " Thi* is tlie cha/acter that is published far and -wide as applicable to the ladies of Nelson. Is there nothing in their njanners, nothing in their demeanor, nothing in their general bearing (o distinguish 'hem froni women of the town? Because their heels are a little high, or their head dress somewhat exaggerated, is their general appearance such as to convey to a t-tranger the impression that they ure common prostitutes? The wrier thinks itis.for he not only criticises their dress, but finds fault with their manner, and ep( aks of " the unblushing-effrontery they so carefully cultivate." Who is this insolent individual that ho shoud dare to muk" such insinuations against the women an i girls of Nelson, who, I venture to assert, are as raodct and hs decent in their dress and behaviour as their sisters in any part of the world. I am, &c, Nelsoxiax. [In the publication or refusal of correspondence the editor of a newspaper mut be guided entirely by his own judgment. The letter referred to above was offered to us but declined.-ED. iVJS.iI/.]

The number of children attending the district schools in the province of Canterbury during the quarter ending 30ih September, 1873, was 7695, while the number attending during the quarter ending SOlh September 1874, wns 10,136, showing an increaso of 2441. A correspondent of the Auckland Star writes :— At Te Kuiti a large, tract of land is under cultivation, they grow wheat, oatp, maize, tobacco, hops and melons in abundance. They have a large surplus stock of hops and wheat, which they intend to send for sale to Alexandra and Cambridge as Boon as there is sufficient water in the river Wnipa to allow the heavily laden canbee to go down. The whole of the country is a series of hill and dale, with some very high mountains and very extensive forestfl. Pheasants and pigs are in abundance, bo also are pigeons ; there is a fair sbow of cattle, and horses can be had at reasonable prices. A very good strong hack may be bought for £5, and inferior ones at much lees prices. There are but few sheep, and many could not exist, as the land is entirely taken up with fern and ti-tree. In the river beds iron-stone is always to be found, and only recently a very large reef of connel coal has been discovered ; there is also alluvial gold found on the downs, and altogether the country is rich in the extreme.