The National Register. — London, England, 1817-09-22 00:00:00

A CHARGE, DELIVERED TO THE CLERGY OF Tug DIOCESE OF CHESTER. AT TILE VISITATION OF THAT DIOCLSE, IN JULY AND AUGUST, 1817. BY GEORGE HENRY LtW, D.D. P.P. ♦ND A.S. - - LORD BISHOP OF CHESTER. The periodical visitation of a diocese by its Bishop, is always one of much interest, to the clergy, in pa ticular, and of no slight advantage to the laity, in general : it is like the father of a large family calling around him his absent children, and after taking a re view of their conduct since he had last seen thens, de livering to them a series of rules for their .. and guidan ce , till t h e next returning* in str.;etion . i again meetin g t oget h er. The V crod of their i , ' . eation sermon which its tenets, cle a r ne c we here not ice , is • dis toished by the soundness of simplicity or - .of arrangement, and umaeeted view .. language. It commence.; with a brief . of what had been effected in the diocese since the preceding visitation for promoting the instruction of the poor, upon the principles of the Established Church. We select the following; interesting passage on this subject. " As it was my wish, on the former occasion, to place Enderyoer review that lineof duty, of whieh the timesappeared peculiarly to demand froia yon, so shall I pursue, the like plan anti objects now. I would however, previously observe, that nothing has occurred siace my last visitation, which has, hi any, this smallest degree, induced me to alter the opinions, which I then tilt myself called upon, to submit to on. On the contrary, maturer reflection, as vv:11 as subse quent events,—all have tended, more strongly to confirm them. If (hose institutions against which I guarded you, appeared unfriendly to our Ecclesiastical Establishineut at that period of time, do they, let me ask you, appear Itss so at the present? Have they become, what they professed to be, a bond of Amity and Union? Has a single doubt been satis fied, a single tear allayed? That your conviction on those very important objects coincided with my own, has been most abundantly, and satisfactorily demonstrated, by the seal and the success, with which District Committees and National Schools have been established, in ulmost every part of this diocese, Most honourable to you, most gratifying to me, is the mention, that there ale few towns, or even vil lages, throughout this large extent of country, in vs hick the poor may not, unless wanting to themselves, procure their Bible and Prayer Book, and In which their children may not enjoy the blessing of a reglions education. I say rest• gions education, because, though a tiaestion may be raised, how far it be wise or useful to communicate other kinds of instruction unto every one, and to open wide the field of sci ence, even to the very lowest classes in society, yet with re gard to the diffusion of sound religious knowledge, upon this point there can be no doubt at all. The great troths of Chris tianity can never be imprinted on the mind of youth, too early, or too deeply. Heie knowledge invariably leads to content and virtue. Here instruction cannot be misapplied— cannot, by any perversion, be made the instrument of sin." The sermon itself is comprised under three general heads, or divisions=-Ist. Necessity of preaching Sal vation through Christ alone—Lith in him to be accom panied with good works—a refutation of the Calvinistic doctrine of prelestination and election—concluded by the following dispassionate defence of the discourses of the clergy of oar church. ". It has been said, more particularly by them who are de nominated Evangelical, that the clergy of our church preach rather a system of Ethics, than a system of Divinity—that they inenleate huathenish morality, hut not the religion of Jesus Christ our Saviour. In answer, however, let me ask hither the gospel be not pure morality founded on Chi est ion principles : whether the sermon of our blessed Lord himself be not a fit model for our own. Belt, whether the charge be or be not true, with respect to the Ministets of out church at any former period of tese, yet dies it not, in any degree we believe, atta,•ll to the clergy uc the present day. They g e n tle d tlieer di-enurses co the peculiar doctrines of the Christian Leyclation. They first chew the imperfection and debase ment of goer fallen nature ;—the inefficiency of human merit, bet, throng!, redemption and grace. Thence they deduce the.necessity of faith, not forgetting at the same time to de Aare, as the manner of some is, that we_must acid to faith holiness, without which no man shall see the I ord. If this be the heathenish motalily, then Indeed the. Ministers of our Chinch must stand self-condemned. If this be not to preach Christ, then, toy reverend Brethren, both you and I, alas! have preached in sails. " In developing the causes of those various errors, which Lave, more or less, abounded in, and disgraced, every age of the Christian Church, the source of many of them may be traced to that imperfect anti prejudiced view, which has too often been taken of thescheene of Christianity. Biassed in favour of some particular system of theology, its advocates have nut coated spiritual things with spiritual—scripture n tilt scripture. On the contrary, they have deduced their conclosious,from insulated or broken passages of holy w sit. Bed this is not denting flirty vs ith such a niatiect,or with their h arise: As jets") , should we conceive the t4ne of some reorient edifice, frotn surveying its detached nod nentiiated fragment can delern.ina what the temple of the Lord is, %%libel,' ev.ainitiiteg and comparing every part of the sacred laikere. - " There are few opinions merely theoretical, against which we could have been induced to oppose 011:9elves. Most Piny also do we acknou ledge, ti z sincerity and private vir tues of very many of our Calvinistic brethren ; et still, when error leads to crime, even the mild genius of Christianity ittelf calls upon is:, to %indicate the faith once delivered to tt ‘c owl to maintain her doctsines pure and undefiled. Refigion, as it Is rendered more irrational, becomes, in the same degree, mare incredible. The records also of history, and main particularly 'he annals of our own nation, teach n th it extremes run into each wher—sthat fanaticism ends in 1:11;41:•lity, the tore e 'rent of Cvery misery and sill as we 'Hirt in points of opinion or discipline, yet b it I sr Iran 51$, 1 , 1 :Ora ove or 1 , 161111140 alight itisin•i them, who ail. 'A 1:11tiLlt tree p•lie sile established etiorcit. If ene • are fair Old ol.rn enemies. To diem all toiera tion and respect are slue. list %%lieu they who arc within, woos him, %alio saould defend the fortress, betray it, then in. deed we leek in Villa, Ecr any palliation or excuse." mdilL rATIONAL REGI Triz The c2nd head contains instructions for the proper de livery of the church service, in the course of which the I practice of the sectaries is noticed, and much of their success in Proselytism justly ascribed to that impas sioned, earecst manner of delivering their discourses which i 5 so general among them. There is so much candour and truth in the whole of what is said on this important pint, that we cannot refrain from ziiing the obnftrinn of " Incomparable as is onr liturgy great as are the be nefits re/iodine.; riots: ',S tsei ictrat of prayer, yet are these ex cell"c!'....s, somewhat coneterhatanced, by a recurrence of th':.stinie ideas and words. To have the heart therefore in the service, to worship God with the soul, anti not the lips alone, requires a continuity and fixedness of attention, which must not Ire looked for, or at least are not found, in the rte. nerality of our congregations. This devotional imperfection can only be met and overcome, by a proportionate attentive. JIM and fervour, on the part of the officiating Minister. Well aware of the temporary interest excited by au extem poraneous mode of worship, they who are nut of us, have availed themselves of this advantage to the utmost; and were we required to accouut for thut increased defection from our churches, which we cannot but acknowledge and de. plore, we should assign for it causes, not only the seal of the , seceders, and the nature of their doctrine, but also the mode in which that doctrine is delivered. Their earuest and ins passioned manner impresses the hearers with a conviction of the sincerity of the preacher : it arouses every dormant feel ing, and by a law of our nature, the moderate excitement of the passions, is intere s ting a n t i pleasing to the heart of man. To persons thus favourably prepossessed, the doctrine itself holds out the most dangerous allurements. Mysticism is al ways found to be attractive. Ignorance wonders at, awl admires, what it cannot understand. That syitem also of religion will be more readily received by too many, which requires less exertion or restraint, which opens heaven to faiths without works, and which appeals to sensible impulses, as the criterion and proof of salvat in*. These are the principle causes of that religions fanaticism now, alas ! so prevalent amongst us; and they afford an awful admonition and warning to the established clergy. Mey we profit, as we ought, by the example, before it be too late ! May we separate the good frem the evil, sad thus at length bring back our wanderers to their proper told! The came zeal in propagating, the same earnestness in preach. ing the pure doctrines of Christianity, must produce not the sante, but a still greater effect. If only we acquire that ar dor and impressiveness, which have made even error to tri umph, the cause of truth cannot but prevail. Otherwise, it' we are lukewarm and inactive, if we slumber at our posts, the very excellencies and security of an establishment, may become the cause of its danger or subversion." The 3d division is devoted entirely to a detail of the duties .of the clergymen in his cure; would to God that the excellent precepts here delivered, were the rule of conduct of every incumbent ! " Faint however (says the Bishop,) and imperfect most be the sketch which I can now draw, of the great duties of the sacerdotal character: the outline mist he filled up by your -512i,e3. To enligh►en the ignorant, to strengthen the feeble minded, to raise the fallen—in worldly atiairs to guide the inexperienced, to assist the indigent, to uphold the father less and the widow, these are employments of the first ins. portance, and these are the proper employments of the clergy. By the discharge of these, every parish priest may be a blessing to them among whom lie resides, both in time and eternity —way teach them to live with righteousness, and die in hope." THE MURDERS AT PENDLETON. --- Much diversity of opinion exists rcnpecting the innocence ot. guilt of Holder. atzti the three Ashcrofts. Ily letters and arrivals from Man eliestsr we are informed that about nine other persons have been taken up there and at other places, charged with being concerned in the above murders and robbery ; and that part of th:: stolen property has been inund in the posaession of hollie of It is said that the clergymen, Messrs, Howley, Morland, and Hemmen, arc much dirt tresied, and that they believe them innocent. Ou the day previous to the execution, they requeste d to b e a l one i n t h e Chapel of the Castle, which was pretended to he acceded to ; hit , the gaoler overheard them there request each-other to con Ens if thee knew ary thing of the murder ; they severally denied it, and prayed God to make manifest their innocence at a future day. In a case of this kind, ought not the Sheriff to have power to respite the execution until the matter is more fully investihmted by the Secretary of State and the Privy Colin. ell F—Lancaster Gazette. We think it right to add, as it may tend to relieve the public mind, that, notwithstanding their continued asseveration; of innocence, there Is scarcely any person who feels the smallest doubt of their guilt.— They have been known to be very bad characters.—Manchester Ga- ANECDOTE.—As many opulent land owners have most liberally reduced their rents, it may not be un interesting to record a fact of the late venerable and Rev. John Parkherst, author of the Lexicons, who inherited considerable estates in Northamptonshire and Surrey, as an instance of the high sense he enter tained of strict justice, and the steady resolution with which he practised it on all occasions :---One of his tenants filling behind hand in the payment of his rent, which was 5001. per annum, it was represented to his landlord that it was owing to his being over-rented.— This being believed to be the case, a new valuation was made: it was then agreed that for the future the rent should'. not he more than 4301. Justly inferring, moreover, that if the farm was then too dear, it must necessarily have been always too dear: unasked, and of his own accord, he immediately struck off 501. from the commencement of the lease, and instantly refunded all that he had received more than 4501. per annum. Some curiosity has been expressed to know why the king of Prussia assumed the name of Count Ruppin, during his travels. Ruppin is a town in the middle Mark of Brandenburg, and 32 miles from Berlin. The Counts of Ruppin thruterly held it as a lief of the Mar wares of Brandtmbu rg . But, in the be of the 16th century, rime lief having Leconte vacant by Cu death of Wichmann, Count of Lindau, Joachim I. Elector of Brandenburg, annexed the fief ta.the Mark. Oil) BAILEY. FEPT. Wednesday, the Sessions commenced before the Richt Hon. the Lord Mayor, Mr. Baron Graham, Mr. Justice ' Holroyd, and Mr. Justice }lunetteh. John Bend was indicted for stealing a ten and a twenty pound note from his grandfather, William Howard, a farmer, at Hillingdon, neat Vxbridge. The circumstances under which the prisoner was apprehended are detailed in the fol lowing narrative, which appeared in some of the daily news papers the day before the trial : In the hogiuning of last December a respectable farmer named Howard, whose age on the day of his death was 91, was murdered in his own house, within three tunes of Ux bridge. The situation of the House is peculiarly solitary, liming surrounded with trees and fronted by a large lake, where now and then a fishing boat is to be seen. The family, which were almost the only inhabitants within a very exten. si , e circuit, consisted of a venerable farmer, his graudson, and an aged female servant. The fondness of Mr. Howard for his grandson Bond, received no interruption from the moment of the Meth of the latter, who was taught to look upon the property of leis „erne Mather as his iuheritance. The old man had stock in Are Bank, the dividend of which, Bondoisually received, and paid to his grandfather. A few days previousto the nitirdcr, he had received one of these dividends, amounting to 301. in a ten and twenty pound note. On the lett of December last, Bond, on his return from sonic occupation, found his grandfather nearly dead. Near him lay a large crab stick, upon which was a quantity of blood. The old housekeeper was lying senseless on the ground. Bond immediately ran to the nearest public house and described the murder that had taken place, exhibiting all those symptons so natural to a relative of the deceased. Several repaired to the house of Mr. Howard. They examined the apartments, but 110 violence hail been done to any part. It seemed to be the act of some miscreant, who was either influenced solely by revenge, or so horror !. crock at the deed which he found necessary to perform before his object of plunder could be accomplished, as to ay from his first iatention. There was, however, one remark able circumstance which excited suspicion against the grand- son. The old man was in the habit of carrying the key of his bureau in the left pocket of his breeches. The house. keeper, was acquainted with lirs ways, and that there were private drawers in the bureau whirl) COlllt/ he known to no stranger. The old gentleman had received the 3UI. and be elitist hare deposited it in one of those•secret drawers. If the uature of the murder was revenge, the money must be in the drawer, for it was locked. The suggestion was attended to, the bureau was broken open, but no money was to be found. Every eye was fixed upon the grandson, who showed uo confusion. On the contrary, he agreed in the general opinion, that the robber must be the murderer, and that he could have been no stranger. He invited investicas time, for the sake of his own character ; and for the blood of his grandfather; lie called for a strict enquiry into the dreadful ease. He was taken before a magistrate. The housekeeper was called upon to tell what she knew. She knew nothing, but that somebody canto behind her in the kitchen, and struck her so violent a blow, that she fell sense. less on the ground, and the fright had never left her since. The person who struck her spoke, but was not seen by her. A report previously existed, that the old man had a long time ago made a will, in which he bequeathed all he was worth in the world to his grandson, but that some cirenen stances had recently occurred whicb rendered it probable I thatan alteration was meditated in the disposal cattle propel ty. It is said, that the grandson skewed much impatience Neon hearing this suspicion, and an inference tentavou: able was then drawn front his conduct at the idea of *MTN keg any disappointment. The Magistratedischarged hint; lint those who were interested believed the case to be one of the vilest in the whoie catalogue of murders. It was a siegeilar fact, that the osl mates will was afterwards found.open. Upon being react, the illtlerliallee was found to de /ohm upon his grandson, who was r ot iu possession immediately after his discharge. Bond retitrnt d to the house, buried his grand father, and tired in the same solitary place. Months roiled All, and still. no tidings of the mindere'. The agitation of Uxorielee organ to subside, when a to w days ago it was re vived with the greatest violence. A gentleman sent to the Bank two notes, one for 201. and another for 101. The Bank were not idle upon hearing of the murder. The numbers of the notes %emelt war e paid as Mr. Howard's dividend had been taken, aiol the necessary ardor for *topping them issued. 'Those very notes for 2111. a oil lii. ' , ere the notes eh had been taken out or r. Howard's burean. The directors of the Bank, with all that alacrity so lendable upon the circa sion,.traced the notes through about SO bands, and at last (mine within .three miles of Uxbridge, and found them iu the hated, of Bond. The gran d son was immediately conveyed to town. By the advice of an experienced Barrister, the bill fur the rubbery was presented to the Grand Jury at Clerkenwell; and after the examination of Is witnesses, it was found a true bill. At the Old Bailey on Wednesday, Mr. Amino opened lie plc:Him:4, and Air. Alley stated tilt ease to the Jury ; it appeared principal y to turn upon the prismier having been in the possession of a ten cud a twenty pound Bank of England, note threugh the hands of ilk grand , on, and which ware not found among the effects at the time of the murder, but subsequently tweed to the hands of the pri soner. Elisabeth Randall was the housekeeper to the deceased : she lived at Hilluigdou ; the family consisted of the deceased, herself, the !trisoner, and a young 01311 of the name of tyres, (1.1 ilie day of sitt: • o'clock ; saw Ayres that evening about six o'clock ; went to nalk the cows afterwards and bronchi home the milk ; no perswi was at tonic lint witness and the deceased ; Ayres might hive been about hall au hour out, but she is lint CC& taiii ; witness and the deceased were sitting below stairs by the fire ; he was Cicala the door and she was sideways; she lighted a candle for him to smoke his pipe by, and set it Upon the table ; it was dark, being the Ist of Derember; , he remembered hearing the door open ; either push open or wilatelt, and expecting it was the sei vault boy, she was not Sale, but thought she said," is it you Tom meaning the ACC ant boy; she had iio hat Mer spoken, or attempted to speak, oats she received a blow upon her head; she received several wows, and lost her senses ; heard a violent groan, and thought it was hum the old aentleman ; he ails iii his hist year; never '.t :lily body t. at could have given the blows t John Bond w pi isoner) did speak, last witness cannot say bow lung .er sloe received the blow; the pi isoner used to receive the ',Hey hue the deceost d ; site it .ti :eel' the piisonet pay the i. rinsed lus div lit, n Its,' whic h lit alwas paid very truly; 4114 •u gave titt motley to the old man whew, he Came MOM`; a c'lt ce;aell well 10 Coll up the 111311eV very curiously, and put it lobo his pr.eate draiNer iu the burr' tt ; he kept the key in his left band bunks pocket in a purse, 'there Le