The minister of a Church such as ours is always interested in discovering the “deposit” of well-remembered sayings and stories of the various ministers and prominent laymen that have been associated with the place. There grows up in this way a kind of Rabbinical tradition; and you can often estimate the force of character in a minister by the way in which people treasure up the memories of what he said and did. Mr. White added materially to the oral tradition of Kensington. His racy sayings, his epigrams, his reminiscences, are constantly recalled and repeated. And his successor has formed a very vivid conception of that genial and delightful ministry by which Mr. White attached to himself so warmly the hearts of this congregation. But one most significant new departure must be remembered. Many are the strangers who visit us to-day who are greatly impressed with the successful blending in our service of general audible prayer, with the more individual prayer by the minister. They share with us the feeling, that to encourage an outward and audible expression of our worship is to cultivate the worshipful attitude of heart and soul. Nonconformists have too long thrown the whole burden of the service on the preacher, and not sufficiently elicited from the congregation the full expression of their feelings in prayer and praise. The new warmth that has come to our services at Allen Street, and the increased heartiness of them, is very largely due to the introduction of certain simple and comprehensive forms of worship and prayer, in which we can all unite with heart and soul. This most admirable system was initiated by Mr. White, who expressed himself as being quite willing to bear the burden of any temporary unpopularity of the change. The unpopularity was certainly never great, and has to-day given way to a very strong and general satisfaction. Resolutions are apt to read coldly,—indeed, they are apt not to be read at all,—but when, at a large meeting of the Church and congregation to say farewell to Mr. White, on the completion of his eighteen months’ ministry, the people unanimously and enthusiastically declared that “he had been honoured to become the channel of blessings which this Church would ever acknowledge and keep in memory,” every word was as hearty as it was true. On October 17th, 1889, Mr. White presided at his successor’s ordination, and said to the assembled people: “In delivering up this sacred office, I shall humbly join my prayers with yours for God’s best blessing to rest on my dear successor, and on yourselves, whom he will love the more the longer he lives among you, and the more self-denyingly he serves you.” To which that successor may be allowed to write his own emphatic declaration that it has been true. X—“TO BE CONTINUED”—THE PRESENT PASTORATE {147} [Picture: C. Silvester Horne. By kind permission of Mr. H. S. Mendelssohn]