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It is but fair to add, however, "that One medium, Mrs. Piper, has been pro- nounced by competent judges to be per- fectly honest, but this honesty does not render her revelations free from absurdi- ties. The Faculty of Memory. Telepathy may, if it exist, be an Operation involving an extended view of memory. We have not yet investigated exhaustively the faculty of memory. We know that without memory all sense impressions would be of the nature of disconnected flashes, bornd dying in the same instant. This faculty gives coherence to such impressions, and at the same time the consciousness of indi- viduality—of personality. But how- ever this may be, it is a danger to the mental sanity of the nation that neu- rotic persons should be accepted as channels between the living and the dead. The wish to believe in the perma- nence of associations, which is such a powerful factor in promoting spiritual- ism, can be met in other ways. The Christian religion offers in the apostolic doctrine of the Communion of Saints infinitely more solace to the bereaved than spiritualism can give. The Communion of Saints, however, is an article of faith that seems to, have lost its hold among reformed communi- ties to a large extent. The Church re- formers of the sixteenth century, in their dread of the abuses of purgatory, strove to erect an adamantine barrier between the living and the dead. The effect has been disastrous to that natural inclination which seeks a continuous association with the' departed, and it is no wonder that illicit efforts should be made to break through that barrier. The conception of that barrier, more: over, arises from a practical ignoring of the Paraclete, the Comforter. With- out the fellowship of the Holy Ghost we .are shut out from the spirit world." The Very Rev. the Dean of Man- chester followed with a paper that seemed more sympathetic with the spiritualistic movement, and said:- The Vogue of Spiritualism. It becomes us to consider not otnly what should be the relationship of the Christian Church to the practice of spiritualism, but also how far we may be responsible by our hesitations and timidity for the fact that spiritualism has seemed able to supply a human need which should have been met by the .Christi-an Church, with its doctrines of immortality and of the Communion of Saints. The vogue of spiritualism is per- haps not obscurely connected with the -act that it has been possible to speak of the Communion of Saints as the lost article of the Creed. Since man first began to suspect himself of immor- tality he has naturally craved for some certainty of knowledge of the life beyond the grave. It is altogether too late to dismiss the whole subject as fraud, and, as some would urge, nauseous fraud. Fraud is, of course, always a possibility, and'every careful investigator will always be on his guard, but fraud by itself cannot account for all the facts. Spiritualistic phenomena have won the assent not only of trained investigators like Myers and Hodgson, but also of expert men of science, such as Sir W. Crookes and Sir Oliver Lodge in our own country, Camille Flammarion in France, and Cesare Lombroso in Italy. Psychical Experience. Personally, I have no doubt that there is a region of psychical experience, largely, as it seems to me, morbid, which demands the most careful atten- tion of skilled investigators. From the Christian point of view, I cannot hold that the whole subject is settled by quoting passages from the Old Testament condemning those who have familiar spirits, or ordering the capital penalty in the case of a witch. There is really no good ground for inflicting the capital penalty on Sir Oliver Lodge. The heaven which appears in the communications of Mr. Stainton Moses is the heaven of the Oxford movement, whereas the heaven which is portrayed in the Raymond communications is the heaven of modern theological liberalism. The subject is far too large to be dis- cussed adequately within present limitaf tions, but I confess that, on the whole, I incline to what may be called the tele- pathic hypothesis. Conditions have Changed. H It remains to be considered whether we and our brethren of the Free Churches are not in some measure re- sponsible for the modern vogue of spiritualism by the silence we have ob- served in our public services with regard to the relations between the Church on earth and the Church beyond the veil. It is not necessary to rehearse the history of the controversy. Quite possibly our fathers, who were responsible for the Book of Common Prayer, judged rightly that the only safe and practicable policy in view of current misconceptions was the policy and practice of silence.. It is not for us to condemn them. They knew their own age better than we can know it. We, however, do not live in the sixteenth or even in the seventeenth century, but in the twentieth. Condi- tions have changed. We have as much right to judge what is good for our own age as they were justified in decreeing what was good for the age in which they lived. The practice of silence with regard to the departed was not the prac- tice of the primitive Church to which our Reformers made their appeal, and it does violence to human instinct and affection. Why should we commend our loved ones to God up to the moment they draw their last breath, and then believe ourselves to be prohibited from commending them in prayer to the Father of Spirits? Christian Ideals of Citizenship and Service. On Wednesday afternoon, in the De Montfort Hall, as part of the general subject, Christian Ideals of Citizen- ship and Service," the Bishop of Bir- mingham, in discussing The Birth- Rate," said:— The last declaration by the Bishops on the birth-rate was made, I believe, in 1914, and was consequent upon the ever-increasing decline in the birth-rate, especially in those parts of the popula- tion which could best afford to have children from the point of view of physical, intellectual and financial fit- ness. The Bishops in 1914 laid- down certain principles. First, that, duly guarded, the sexual instinct and the course of nature should be recognised as of God's ordering, and the blessing of children, be they few or many, should be welcomed. Secondly, that normally a family is an excellent result, and is to be accepted with a brave and trustful confidence. Thirdly, that exceptions to this rule are inevitable, and they call for exceptional conduct. Fourthly, I marriage is subject to conditions of reasonable and conscientious self- restraint, and this may mean in some cases that the husband shall have to live in abstinence for a considerable portion of the married life. Then the Bishops go on to say that any recourse to drugs or appliances which profess to give security against results from intercourse is wrong, and, to quote the exact words, We believe that, broadly speaking, such use is at once dangerous, demoralis- ing, and sinful.' Now, let us clear our minds once for all of the idea that restriction of births is a purely selfish action on the part of the parents. I admit that there probably are many cases, and it might not be unfair to say that they are very inexcusable cases, where selfishness on the part of either prospective parent leads to avoidance of children. But, in my own judgment, there is far greater selfishness in the uncontrolled exercise of sexual intercourse without consideration as to whether the natural result ol such intercourse can be well born and suit- ably environed after birth. The fact- that I have had a good deal of publicity on this matter has led to my receiving many letters, some of them most pathe- tic, from people anxious to do what is right and pleading pitifully sometimes for help on this subject." The Birth-Rate. Dr. Amand Routh, the well-known gynecologist, followed on The Birtli- Rate, with Special Reference to Sex Relationship," and said:- In England and Wales about 150 potential children die, per 1,000 live births, during the period of gestation. In 1917 there were 25,044 new-born children (nearly a half of those children who died in their first year of life) who died within four weeks of birth mainly from causes connected with childbirth. "Illegitimate offspring, both before and after birth, die at twice this rate for want of the care which the State should provide. Amongst the causes of these ante- natal and neo-natal deaths are two socially important conditions, which can only be dealt with efficiently by the pres- sure of public opinion which this Con- gress may help to establish. I refer to parental syphilis and alcoholism. Unfortunately, the hereditary ele- ments in germ-plasm can be affected, seriously and for several generations, by parental chronic alcoholism, leading to prematurity, and mental and physical degeneracy of the race. The Church can Help. The Church can help us to decide if the present control of the liquor traffic is sufficient. I now come to discuss my second group of causes of the declining birth- rate, viz., fewer conceptions,' i.e., decline in fertility. Sir Arthur News- holme has stated that if the birth-rate in England and Wales had been the same in 1914 as in 1876, 467,837 more children would have been Lbrn, T and that the reduction of the size of fami- lies was largely and probably chiefly in consequence of intentional restriction of child-bearing.' I" Our nation owes its position in the world to its former large families and cannot have too many children to-day, for it has to proteot and populate its colonies. As a practical alternative to artificial restriction of child-bearing, this country should be made a fit domi- cile for the children whom God gives us. Christian Ideals of Citizenship. In the Edward Wood Hall the meet- 16 ing was devoted to Christian Ideals of Citizenship," when papers were read, in co-operation with public authorities, by, Mrs; Barnett, C.B.E., and the Rev", Canon Newsom, and on the parish by the Rev. H. R. L. Sheppard, who spoke of New Ideals of Parish Work." The Rev. H. R. L. Sheppard. said:- I am clear that what is called a popular church with its perspiring vicar and its polished organisations may fail in the primary purpose of keeping men strong and busy in the, Lord's vineyard, while many a church with less apparent perspiration and but little machinery may be singularly successful. The bright, breezy, and brief business I do not believe to be any good, and I am sure the situation is not going to be saved by trombones, cinematographs, or vulgarity. I suggest as an ideal for parish work that there should be one main activity in the parish and one only, and that a Guild of Fellowship open to all who care to call themselves members of the congregation, iand with no further test. Its aim would be fellowship in Christian service, recreation, and social inter- course. The obligations incurred on admission would be a promise of attendance so far as possible at four quarterly meetings of the Guild, and a readiness to consider a request for service from the Council of the Guild. Around that Central Fellowship—con- trolled by a council elected by the members themselves—should centre all the smaller .activities that the parish rieeds--the men's and boys' clubs, the girls' guilds, the debating society, ti!he dancing and singing classes, the Scouts, the model Sunday-school, and other efforts which cater for those who are not ,as yet in the Fellowship. But this is the point. Every smaller activity should ow< a primary allegiance to the Guild of Fellowship on whose council it should b4 represented. The Usual Parish Magazine. I pass now to another iactiv-ity whid I am certain is in need of the reformer'( hand—the usual parish magazine. Whal is the matter with it? It does not bite." To begin with, I should alter the wore magazine to review. It is easier to get 'articles written for it if this is done. People like writing for monthly re- views, but they don't, alas for paxisl magazines. Parish magazines are undeI a cloud; they've had a bad run. Then 1 should change the cover. Church bells outside suggests mildness within; nor do I like to see the hours of Matins and Evensong .advertised quite' so aggres- sively before you have turned over the first page.