286 EARLY REMINISCENCES Sunday—the journal lay, and where at that moment was visible a folded newspaper. The dog ran forward, snuffed at the journal, turned up its nose and returned without it to his master. The old gentleman strode on, picked up the paper, and found it was the Star, John Bright's Radical sheet, thrown there by mistake. I heard the following epigram at Mr. Blencowe's table : " Upsetting of all things, the bottom at top, Leave out all the gentry, and up with the shop. Let us banish the Nobles. The Church, too, must go. That's the Creed of John Bright, sirs, to which I say, No. But apply to the bottom of John Bright, Esquire A stout cat-o'-nine-tails of whipcord and wire, Apply it unsparingly, whacking, why then, At the top of my voice I will halloo Amen." When I returned to Hurst, I put my coloured ties in a heap on the fire and made a final end to them. All the time that I was at Hurstpierpoint there occurred rumours and alarms relative to the Rev. Arthur Wagner, vicar of S. Paul's, Brighton. He was a very wealthy man and had built S. Paul's and after I left built two other churches, one underground for the fishermen. He had designed a very lofty church, but the town authorities demurred as overshadowing and cutting off the light from a number of houses, " Well ! " said Wagner, " I'll sink my church in the ground, but have it the height I proposed, that I will." He was a peculiar man, with a peculiar voice, grossly fat, and the voice did not comport with the body. It was greatly feared lest he would go over to Rome. He never did—he died in full communion with the English Church ; but the period was one in which minds were unsettled ; the World, the Flesh, the Devil and the Law were all against the Catholic party, and hearts failed owing to the opposition and what seemed to many the hopelessness of the attempt to undo three hundred years of evil. They despaired of the English Church ; and the bishops were enough to cause despair. Nevertheless there were those who, even if alone, like Eleazar the son of Dodo, fought the Philistines when " the men of Israel had gone away." He " arose
