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LETTERS
TO MISS E. LLOYD
Ecclesfield. August 19, 1864.
MY DEAREST ELEANOR
It is with the greatest pleasure that I “sit down” and square my elbows to answer one question of your letter. The one about the Liturgical Lessons. Nothing (I find) is more difficult in this short life than to emulate John’s example—and “explain my meaning!” but I will do my best. Beloved! In the first place I am going to do what I hope will be more to your benefit than my credit! Send you my rough notes. If you begin at the first page and read straight ahead to where allusion is made to the Apocryphal Lessons, you will have my first Course, and you will see that I was working by degrees straight through the Morning Prayer. But then (like the Turnip Tom-toddies!) we found that “the Inspector was coming”—and though the class was pretty well getting up “Matins”—it knew very little about the Prayer-book—so then I took a different tack. We left off minutiae and Bible references and took to a sort of general sketch of the whole Prayer-book. For this I did not make fresh notes at the time—but when the Inspector came and I being too ill to examine them—M. did it—I wrote out in a hurry the questions and answers that follow the Apocrypha point for her benefit. My dear old Eleanor—I am such a bad hand myself—that I feel it perfectly ludicrous to attempt to help you—but here are a few results of my limited experience which are probably all wrong—but the best I have to offer!
Don’t teach all the school.
Make up a “Liturgical Class” (make a favour of it if possible) of mixed boys and girls.
Have none that cannot read.
Tell them to bring their Prayer-books with them on the “Liturgy Day.”
If any of them say they have none—let nothing induce you to supply them.
Say “Well, you must look over your neighbour, but you ought to have one for yourself—I can let you have one for 2d., so when you go home, ‘ask Papa,’ and bring me the 2d. next time.”
Never give the Prayer-book “in advance”—! (I never pressed the Prayer-books on them, or insisted on their having them. But gradually they all wanted to have them, and I used to take them with me, and they brought up their 2d.’s if they wanted any. The class is chiefly composed of Dissenters, but they never have raised any objection, and buy Prayer-books for children who never come to Church. The first prize last time was very deservedly won by the daughter of the Methodist Minister.)
