Page:Distinguished Churchmen.djvu/381

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THE REV. JOHN COX EDGHILL, D.D.
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in 1885, Mr Edghill was unanimously elected by both clergy and laity in Synod to be his successor. Men of all shades of opinion in the Church in Nova Scotia pressed him most earnestly to accept the Bishopric; but he felt that he dared not leave a post for which he had been so prepared, and for which he had been selected after long deliberation. The Archbishop of Canterbury strongly advised him to remain. It may be mentioned, as evidence of his devotion to his present work, that the stipend of the Bishop is £1,200 a year, and the Chaplain-General's pension £500, so that he has given the greatest proof of his own readiness to sacrifice position and money for the sake of the Army.”

On his return from Halifax, in 1875, he was stationed again at Aldershot, and seriously applied himself to the betterment of the Church in the Army as a whole, suggesting changes which aroused the keenest opposition. The man, however, was determined, and, in giving effect to his convictions, resolved to risk his position; in a word, he made it plain that unless the reforms he sought were conceded, it meant his resignation, and he said as much from the pulpit. The congregation at the iron church at Aldershot approved the Chaplain's convictions, but turned a deaf ear on his threatened resignation. In compliance with their petition, he remained in office, and the military authorities discreetly permitted him to continue to discharge his duty and carry out his purpose unhindered. From