PRIEST’S ACTION CONDEMNED

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22111, 5 June 1937, Page 15

PRIEST’S ACTION CONDEMNED

f JUDGMENT OF CHURCH PAPER “PRETENDED SOLEMNISATION” (UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRIGHT,) (Received June 4, 9.10 p.m.) LONDON, June 4. The Rev. Anderson Jardine, who conducted a religious' ceremony at the wedding of the Duke of Windsor, is expected at Darlington tomorrow, according to the “Daily Mail.” The general opinion of the local Church officials, and of the clergyman’s parishioners, is that it was Mr Jardine’s personal affair, that it does not affect his work in the parish, and that there is no reason for a protest. Referring to Mr Jardine’s, “irresponsible action,” the “Church Times,” the recognised organ of Anglo-Catholic opinion, says in a leading article; “There is no process of law by which a clergyman wandering abroad may be prevented from saying prayers in a private house, and that is all that this pretended solemnisation amounted to.” It is pointed out that the attitude of the Church of England to the remarriage in churches of innocent parties in divorce cases was stated by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1935. The Archbishop said that “marriage is a lifelong bond, and I think we are right in saying that the marriages of persons who have spouses living should not take place in the churches.” The Bishop of Fulham (the Rt. Rev. B. S. Batty) has again issued a statement that Mr Jardine had no ecclesiastical standing in France, and no authority to act on behalf of the Anglican Church. The Bishop added: “Having registered our protests, there the matter rests.” PRIVACY DESIRED APPEAL OF DUKE AND DUCHESS “APPRECIATION OF COURTESY” LONDON, June 3. “The Duke and Duchess of Windsor wish to take this opportunity of expressing to journalists their appreciation of the courtesy which has been for the most part shown to them everywhere in unprecedented circumstances,” stated a communique issued by Mr Herman Rogers after the Duke’s wedding. “They would like it recorded that although inaccurate statements in reports seem to have been unavoidable during these months which have been so trying to all concerned, there has been evident willingness to contradict them. For the future, the Duke realises that any atmosphere of secrecy is unsatisfactory, and he will always be prepared to supply any news of importance concerning the Duchess and himself. “The Duke and Duchess at the same time, while fully understanding the difficulties, want on this day to appeal to the press of the world to give them that measure of consideration and privacy which they feel is now their due.” BY TRAIN TO AUSTRIA PRIVACY OF OLD MEDIAEVAL FORTRESS (Received June 4, 9.21 p.m.) PARIS, June 4. The Duke and Duchess of Windsor boarded the Simplon express at La Rochemijelle at 12.15 a.m. They travelled in a special coach guarded by seven detectives. A message from Klagenfurt, in | Austria, states that since early yesterday morning the steep, winding road which is the only access to Castle Wasserleonburg, where the Duke and Duchess will spend their honeymoon, has been strictly guarded by gendarmes. No stranger is permitted to invade the privacy of this mediaeval fortress which stands high on a thickly-wooded hill. RESTRAINED COMMENT IN UNITED STATES EXTENSIVE PRESS ACCOUNTS NEW YORK, June 3. The Duke of Windsor’s wedding was given the greatest prominence in the newspapers. Many newspapers gave three and four-page accounts of the ceremony. The comment is restrained.