The Statesman. — London, England, 1822-07-12 00:00:00

J. ; r 1 , 4 ?' ? „ 4, n •~~ 1 4IP 1 FOR TilE STATESMAN. ADDRESS TO THE INHABITANTS OF. STAFFORD SHIRE ON THE SUBJECT OF TYTHES. There is no subject more deserving of public atten-1 Con than the question of Tythes. It is equally int- , portant to all classes; and nothing more than a pro per tinderstandiog of it, is requisite to promote a material alteration for the better. When we Sod clergymen chasing this period of general distress to fleece their fleck by clerical exactions; it is necessary to enquire whether they have law; for we are aware they have neither reason nor jettice, on their side. There has been a curious decision upon this matter, in Niirfolk, which calls upon the tytke pagers, of , every county to make a stand; and to see that they are not spoiled of more than the law requires. I will copy the account from the •pnblic papers, and sub join a few remarks, for the further elucidation of the matter. " IMPORTANT DECISION RELATIVE TO TTTIIES. " At the last Norfolk Qoarter Sessions, held at Nor " with on the 17t1. of April, 1822. the Court came to a " most important decision OD the Poor Laws, on soap " peal by the Rev. Dr. Bulmer, Rector of Cawston, " against the Poors' Rats for that parish. The Doctor " bad been rated at 5501. per annum for the trite!, s' against which be appealed, upon the ground that it " exceeded a fourth of the assessment, upon the Wise " able property, in the parish, which be contended Was " the proportion at which tytbes should be assessed to " the poor.' rate. Tee Court DISAIISSZD THE •PPIAL, " being unanimously of opinion that there teas 119 rule " in law, for fixing a proportional assessmeot on tythes, " compared with land ; and that the only principle was " to assess all real property, according to the PRODUC. " Tier VALOR or PROFIT which it yielded. This deter " mination is important, as it recognizes a principle, " the general application of which at the present time " will necessarily be attended with the most serious re " solo, both to the Farmer and the Clergy ; upon the " LATTER of whom the chief berth's of SUPPORTING the " Pooa will now, as IN FORMER TIMES, be " THROWN. According to this principle, it is evi " dent, that at the present time the assessment upon " land ought to be nearly. nominal; and that tythes " should he assessed at their FULL AMOUNT; it be ing notorious, that no profit whatever is now afforded " from the land in general ; and that that, which the " landlord receives in the 'same If rent, is, io fact, a perteat out of the FARMER'S CAPITAL; while tythea, " being taken clear of taxes and all other expences at " tending the teasing of crops, are NEARLY ALL PILPIT.I " This decision has created a great sensation in Norfolk, " and the farmers in many places have already insisted upon a reduction of their assessments, and upon " rating the parsons to the full amount of their lythes, l " as well where they are compounded for, as when taken "in kind. The above principle was acknowledged in " its FULL EXTENT a short time since in the Court " of King's Bench ; Mr. Justice Houtovo having ex " pressly declared. that a rate on land is, in effect, a " rate on the profits of land: for where there are no 't profits, there is so beneficial occupation." 1 his DECISION may truly be called I M PORTANT and as its justice is apparent to all,let ALL who are sub ject to the payment of tytbes, see that this principle is carried into effect in all other districts. It is steers ear} that the clergy of the Church of England, who, (at a body), hare been most active in supporting every Ministerial measure, and in subjecting the people to the operation of a most GRINDING TAXATION, should bear THEIR FULL SHARE of the burthens, which they have been foremost in loading upon the s! oulders of others. And it Is of all things the most unpardonable and intolerable, that they should seek to shelter their tythes upon the charges made upon other property. Taxation, to be just, should only fall upon the profits of capital employed. When it touches the capital itself it becomes robbery; for to take from any man the means which be uses for his support, and thus to reduce him to beggary, in despite of his labour, cannot be justified by any pretended necessity, unless that necessity, implicated ALL alike; and called for a greater sacrifice. When a man, therefore, ran shew he has no profitable occupation of land, be is exempt !rem any charge upon the land; and the hurthen DIVST FALL where the benefit rests. The tythes are ALL PROFIT :—the tythe bolder is at no expense in manuring, or cultivating. He only comes to fetch away his portion ! Ile has no taxes to pay, in the labour of production ; and is clearly the only profitable holder of the land at present; which may lie said to be held in trust, for the taxes of the slate, and the tytbes of the church! Neither the landholder, nor the cultivator of the land, can obtain any intik. Therefore the maintenance of the poor mast, and should fall opon those who have the profits of the lend, which is chargeable by law with their maietenatice, as well as other burthens. But there is another reason why the church should be Imperatively called upon to maintain the poor; or at least to give up that considerable portion of the tythes which are as much the property of the poor, by the title under which the Church holds the right of collecting them, as a portion belongs to the Church. You have heard a great deal of nonsense lately about tythes being the pri vate property of the Church. The holders of such ab curd doctrines might as well tell us, that the poors' rate are the private property of the Overseers ! !—Tythes originated in this way. In the year 600 Christianity was introduced into England.lThere were then no tythes upon the laud; and the Monks, who brought over Ca tholic Christianity, brought no authority with them to demand any. Their converts endowed monasteries and churches; the care of the poor necessarily fell under the jurisdiction of the Church ; and in the " Canons of Elfric" we find the following account of the tythes (and which I beg leave to say, is corroborated by " the learned Selden " whose work on Tythes I have this moment be fore me.)—" Let the priests receive the tythes of the " people, and keep a written account of all that they " had paid them ; and divide them, in the presence of " such as fear God, according to canonical authority ! " Let them set apart the first share for the buildings • " and ornaments of the Choi-ch.—awl distribute the se " cond to the POOR and STRANGERS, with their own " hands, in mercy and humility; and reserve the third " part for themselves."—This is the ancient law of tythes ; the legal origin of the claim, and the mode of distribution, is as sacred as the right of collection. By this kV, the priest Ism a claim only to one-third for himself: he is made the collector of the whole; but he is required to distribute one-third to the " poor and stranger," and to appropriate another third to the nsaintenaace of religious edifices. 1 hie was the law! There is no pretence of " private property." A cer 'tain proportion of the produce was by law assigned to certain purposes. This proportion may be made more or less, by soy other law, is the same way as the salary of any public officer may be increased or diminished by law; and while the salary of the Monarch is under the con trout of the legislature, shall it be said, that the grants of the people to the Church cannot be interfered with by the legislature ?!! However, at p let us keep to the law, • The account appeared originally la the Stateman.—ED. ---q-T ~y THE STATESMAN aid see whether we cannot compel the Church to return ' to the law, and this will reduce the tythes two-thirds —tor since the poor and the strangers, and the main tenance of religious edifices have been very cunningly turned over to otker funds, the clergy have only a claim to one-third of the sum which they row receive ! They can Ahrie at. law trldek &idlers the whole lithe on them ! Nor can they be allowed to plead common law in their favour ; and since it is certain, that up to the period at which custom is admitted to be law, it was the custom of the clergy to divide the tithes with the poor, and to repair the religious buildings from the same fond. The poor might be occasionally de- 1 fronded of their due share; but a share they had; until the period of the reformation certainly ; and in all probability until the system of the poor laws was I devised in the reign of Elizabeth, which by dexterous contrivance, celled upon society for a provision, which already existed; and left the priest to pocket what was the property of the poor! i say lett him to do this : for it gave him no authority to do so. though this plunder of the poor was connived at: for if the priest have any ancient title to tythes, the poor have the same ancient and unrepealedtitle to one-third of their amount; which the priest is bylaw hound to "distribute in thepresence of such as fear God, according to canonical authority."— Those who call upon us to venerate our ancient institn lions, will do well to restore them to us. Any th ing in our old records which bears against public rights, or tends to sanction the spoil of public property, it eagerly quoted, and our immediate subscription is required.— But when ancient authority is in favour of the public freedom, or the public weal, it has become obsolete and old fashioned! and has ceased to be law! This is the doctrine of thc day! in fitrour of all abuses, and against all that is valuable to the public; and unless the people shew themselves far more determined to UPUOLD Taw LAW, than they have hitherto been, there will not long be left any legal benefits for them. Having Ahewn the law of tythes—as far as there is an law about them, is a very different thing from what the church would have us believe it is, it may I.e necessary to remark, that the pretended derivation of the English system of tythes from the Scriptures, is equally fallacious. The Jewish tythes, which were not a tenth of Me produce but a tenth of the " in crease" or " profits," (to speak in modern terms) were devoted to the erection of temples, the support of the widows, the orphans, the poor and the stran gers, besides defraying the expencee of Government ; for the tribe of Levi were in fact the governors, as well as the priesthood and instructors of the people. Besides which, the tribe of Levi gave up their iliterit once in the land to the other tribes, and were thus en titled to their share of the produce, independent of any service rendered to the public. lint did the Church of England ever, give up any portion of the tythes to the community! Have its members any other claim than for the services they render? What has placed them on the shoulders of the people any faster than the Catholic Church was fixed there? and did the Catholic Church ever attempt to civet at the rate the Church of England has done? Never ! What should prevent the legislature from interfering to regulate the pay of the Church according to its services ? Wheo the legislature laid violent hands upon tile property of the Catholic thurch, and transferred to the Protestant establishment, both in England and Ireland ? From what the legislature has done, we may infer what it can dot and when we read of its having taken the Crown from one individual to place it upon the head of another, it is too ridiculous to tell us it cannot restore to the poor, iv lilt it had given them from ages before usurpation and audacity , appropriated to the priesthood the fund, of which it was only the legal depositary. To enforce the prin ciple of revision and restorati to of the laws, let all who are interested, exert themselves to carry into elect, the legal decision of the Quarter Sessions of Norfolk, and the correspooding declaration of Mr. Justice Holroyd. The Clergy and the State have all the ben ficial holding of the land; and since the Church has been profuse in its panegyrics, on the late "just and neces,ary was" which has made all the tax ation necessary ; as it has always re-echoed the Ministerial cry; and eulogised the Ministerial measures; it cught in justice to feel the bnrthen of the maintenance of the innumerable poor, which those mea sures have created and multiplied thrortg/lout the corm try. This will be a just mode of returning the bitter cup to its own lips, and compelling it to take the hyssop mixed indelution and •kery, for others—l shall terl it my duty to exert myself; in order that justice may be done to all parties; and 1 trust I shall not be found alone in the discharge of one, so necasaaav and so im powntor ; and remain my fellow-countrymen, Your obedient bumble servsnt, Wolscley, July 6, 1822. C. WoLseLair. IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS, Titussimr,JuLY 11. The Westmoreland and Middles% County Hates Bills were read a third time and passed. WALLS. The LORD CHANCELLOR said that he had re ceived a note from the Marquess of Lansdowne, inform ing that be was indisposed, and requesting that he would postpone for him the second reading of the Hill for re gulating the levying of King's Silver Fines in Wales until Wednesday next. lle therefore should now noire that the Order of the Day be discharged, and be fixed for Wednesday next. —agreed to. The Charge of Pensions Bill. the Consolidated Fund Growing Produce, and the Loan Bills, were read a se cond time. The Scotch Register Offices' Bill went through a Committee. SCOTCU JCRS ea. Oa the motion of the Earl of LAUDERDALE the Scotch Jury Bill was read a second time, and the Committee fixed fur Monday next, with an understanding that tLe 'debate should then take place. IRISH GRAND JUST PRESENTMENTS. The Earl of DoNoutaimoan wished to know what day was to be bred for the third reading of the Irish Grand Jury Presentments Bill, as he bad a strong objec. lion to make against that Bill, so strong that be thought it would be impossible fur the house, after hearing it, to pass the measure. In consequence of the enormous ex pence* attending Presentmenments in Ireland, and of th.. irregular and arbitrary nature of the charges, the Commons had taken the subject up, and fired the maximum of what was to be paid for various services.— Now he had no hesitation in saying that the sums fixed by the Commons were not adequate to the services to be performed, and that those services would not be per formed. He also complained that the officers whose in terests were affected by this Bill had not bad sufficient notice given them of its introduction. I fonly three pea -1 tions bad yet been p ted against it by Clerks of the Crown, it was because they had not heard of it in time to petition the other house. lie should thank the No ble Earl opposite if he would fix a day for the third reading. ,ILS. ARR. RUA. O Rolland • I O liambre O France I Flanders - O America - - 0 Earl BATHURST mentioned Wednesday silt', which MSS agreed to, after a few words finis Lord llou.agg. The LORD CNANCKLLORpresented a petition from George Gibbs, beputy Clerk of the Connaught Circuit, against the Irish Orand Jury Presentments Bill, and ob. served, that if the assertions of the petitioner were cor rect to their full patent; it would really appear that the Bill would make it absolutely impossible for Clerks of the Crown to discharge their duties. The Earl of RODEN begged of their Lordships to pause before they passed such a Bill. The Petition was then read, and laid on the table, Adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS. At the usual boar the S took the Chair ; but finding only U Members present, adjourned the house till to-morrow. PRICE OF STOCKS. AT ( Sant Steak...... ..444 4 11pr Ct. Red 9Oll gems: Com .... —nit ent. 6 per Cents 97if New Fours 98 711 6 perCent.l797 LengAnn lop., prCt 791 lAA 6 eel Cent PDC O'CLOCK. THIS DAY- India Stock. Ditto Beads s. 11.75.551 sm. South Bat Stock., Eel South Boa Old Aso . Ex.Blll9d r .. es 4s s pm. 14001. --JAM 63 4s pm. Small tio. 41. pm. Con. tor 4e0t.... ... Lott. Tickets.. 'ill. Om MAI at& OLE. • I Diddle - - . I Waterford - 0 I O. It Jersey - 0 O Lisboa - - I O Getteabire - • Vitt ,Stattionatt. "VIII ORITI3II ITATIIIIIAN" 15 MCORP° AAAAA WITil " TIM TTTT IliSIIN." - -7- LONDON: 1/111DAT EVININO, JULY 12, 1822. STOCK XXCHANGE, TWELVE O'CLOCK. There is but little doing here at present. Console are 80ii ; Reduced, 80; for August, 811. The Ali • sister, It is understood, has been issaing Exchequer Bills, ever since the dividends hare been payable. There is not to much business doing i■ the Foreign Funds this morning as yesterday. The New and Old Prussian ars now the favourite spec ; and the Contractors are exerting all ekill in manoeuvres, in which they are expert Otmerals, and, no doubt, when the Market is sufficiently advanced, will make a good retreat with the whole of their spoils. New Prassiaa, Old Prussian Spanish Old, New Chill, 6211 793 to so. Danish Neapolitan Charleston Papers arrived this morning to the 16th of June, from which we extract the following:— The latest intelligence from respectable persons state,•that at Paraguay they are collecting a consider able number of troop.. The object of it is nut men tioned, and different opinions are entertained. By some it is said that the Dictator is fearful of internal movements, supported by a foreign Government ; by others that be meditates an attack upon the province of Corientes. At Nembuco he keeps 700 in quarters, and has b vessel, of war. All the Guard de Coast. are reisfurced. Every day that passes the Dictator augments the narrowness of his ideas; far from de cidieg further freedom of the ports and to permit a free entry and departure to speculators. We have certain information that the deputies who proceeded to the city of Cordova, to attend the meet ing of the General Congress, were preparing to depart to their booms after publishing a manifesto. The Mexican Minister, Eliyaldi, who has been for some time expected from that country, is not now ex pected before June. Some changes bad taken pl..ce in the internal concerns of the revolutionary govern ment. • COLONEL CO]IIIIING ♦ND MR. M. DliFFIC.—Tbe long expected duel between these gentlemen took place on Saturday last on the Caroline shore. Mr. Dutlie received his antagonist's ball in the aide. which lodged near the back bone; and when the intelligence came away he was in a delirious state. Thus Las termi mited an affair which lids for s.mte months occupied a considerable portion of the public attention through out the Union. Paris papers to the Mb inst. bring accounts front Constantinople. which state that the execution and sale of Greeks continue in that capital. All the Eu ropean Ambassadors had retired to their country seats, as the feast of Ramadan had begun, and all business would be suspended for several weeks. Several vessels had previously sailed to reinforce the Capitan Padre. who still remained at Scio, and wh se fleet had se verely suffered in its crews, from an epidemic disorder which had broken oat amongst them. ' The thousands of dead bodies unburied .in the shore, or floating on the sea, bad created a kind of pestilence. Baron de Rothschild left Paris on the 7th inst. for St. Peters• burg, in consequence of the intention again expressed by the Emperor Alexander to mire a considerable loan. The departure of this great capitalist, and the purpose for which he was hastening to the itossian capital, once more revived the expectations of a war between Russia and Turkey. The t(ing of Sweden has issued a decree, allowing his subjects to trade freely with the South American Sates, arid lowering the Custom duties on their merchandise and produce 'f be French journals in the service of legitimer . o, re • present the Insurgents as gaining ground in Spain. Many circumstances, however, make these representa tions appear fictitious; for among other contradictions, the " Army of the Faith," Which former accounts had swelled to three, and even five thousand men, is not computed now at more than two hundred. These pa pers contain no additional devils of the late conspi racy at Colmar, although there are accounts from that city, announcing that the Court of Assize bad opened its sittings on Cie titli inst., for the trial of the indi viduals concerned in the plot of Belton, which brake out on the first of last January. The Couttitutionnel states, that all the artillery of the " Army of the Loire," which had been deposited in the arsenals of Rochefort and la Rochelle, bad been sent in waggons to the Sanitary Cordon on the Spanish frontier. The Preach Chamber of Deputies did not take up the die. cussiou of the Budget for 1e23 on Monday, as it bad A I a I ' I y 1 : I I ' / been anticipated, bat eontinned that on the new pr , ;ect of law for forming new canals in France. Pismo' Fewim, Juic 9.—Five pet cent. Cnn•n?. opened at 91f. 65c., cloeed at 91 f. 70e.—Bank Stn 1600 E—Exchange on London, one month, 25f. 51k., three months, 25f. 30e. PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT. LAST NIGHT. Nothing is the Lords waT:l;Ekotiee, and. is eofte r place, there was we house. This enables as to pay oz the score left unsettled yesterday. ON WEDDIVIDAT NIGHT. In Tllll COSIMONS.--PClfions fa the meant; n , Cie late lamented and ill-treated Queen. The CI:Aa exttort of the Reamer:en moved that the stun 2,2851. should be granted to pay these pensions, except SWARD'S, bring more than 2001. a year. 1!- thing was agreed to without any dispute. and not!: was said worthy of our notice, except that Mr. VA*.. SITTAR7 !hought it more dignified to call Sumas a Maitre d' Hotel than to call him in plain English, !louse Steward. This would be excusable commis is a fop, just piping-hot faun Paris, part of the proceeds of his half-pay or pension still sticking in his teeth it, the rags of a stinking ragoo; but not very excotab:e in an English Minister, who, if it were fur the sale. tion of his very soul, could not pro.! source the word, in a way that a Frenchman would not laugh at.—W, are glad that this trifle (and we think it enough) has been granted to the poor Queen's seminal, and we a. ways thought that it would be dune.—One of th. parties (soon after the Queen's death) applies!, m for advice saying at the same tine, it was the inter. tion to put the case into the bandit of Seer ItoensAN• VILSON, and Meestear Moots c. We advised, all means, to pursue this plan, if the abject the patties was, to cense a wrangle in Par. Homo, and to gut no money ; but, if tie ohject was to get some mosey, by no morns to think about Seer ROBB EART or Mee:tear Mosta! Our a.. vice seems to have been followed.—The last QIIVA, besides so many other things to endear her memory t. us, has left us no charge, in comparison with that left by other Queen's. The Queen that went befvt• her has left ns about twenty dines (we believe) the sins to pay; and we think (for we have not the account Woe us) that the servants of the King's great greed:sot:a (Queen CA ROLIN e) still, to this day, cost as more char those of the late heroic Queen CanottNc, who rem .e delivered this nation from a state of such terror that made men afraid to speak upon any matter connect , with government or politics ; for which we owe Le everlasting gratitude. Sbe did more than ever tn. done before to pull down the real enemies of our free dom and happiness. She gave a tosie to the pubk voice and a turn to the public mind, which they ei. never loss. Trig MILLSTONE.--Till COOLER.-. 41111 QUIETER - Tfle PEACE-PR ESEILYA PION THlNG.—These are all see I though they are four. It is the DE BI; and now ae shall see. In the " Reduction no Ro6bcry," addresat to the Men of Kent, it is tholes bow the Debt wor:t to make this nation submit to wove ea:dins:att, e. l foreign aritiors. In oar remarks on the poor pulici: talk about the foreign slave trade, the matter or again explained. We there said, that it was the Deb! which had pulled up Lord CASTI.ERSAGteS eyelids' and made him see so clearly, that France and Amcri were taco great nations. Ws there said, in several tatlm pl aces, that noState. however feeble, would be afraid • :crony or inside us ; and that, we sboald. igree.b • tollse Abbe Raynor: prediction, go on sinking, net we exhibited to the world the proof of the troth db . , doctrine namely, that *' prosperitj," obt.ined commerce and paper-money, naturally produced decline. With preface (rather too Wag, perhaps) proceed to state, that Mr. STCART WOATLILY &stet Lord Casrtanc•utt (the Settler of the World) who thee it were true, that Portugal had added a duty lb per tent. on English woollens ; and what ‘ , l• to be dose in the matter. The Settler of Me 11% .. answered, that it wee (fete. and as to all English ;,.•••'. and that it was a contravention of Me treaty country.' Well : we shall hear the caunvus v suppoe? We shall soon see whether cur treatir. e to be thus contravened with impunity, we guess? I' ao ! Ile Settler only adds, that several remonstras , .. hare been made on the subject. What ! resioastraw•i: And several of them too! And no cannon yet! be cool, be quirt, be " peace-preservation:" 0. •: how just art thou ! The Settler said. that there e.` negotiation going ea ; and that no etiort, on the F.: of Government, would be wanting to bring it to • titiOctury conch:3Ln. And that all: N 4 re.01:1! flpri-S 4 ed enforce the fulfilment of tile controre • treaty! No appeal to, no talk of, ALIIILLeS at Park Co, eer ! Olt ! the empty, the beastly pie ce bombastical bragging ! We may I .w or Stitt see .lcAitlu; the Portuguese wilt stick to their and all the world will laugh at as. •` Lung live Boroughs," said an American Minister ; " for th, will make us the Illasters of Me Sc. !" Which ;It certainly will, if they exist but fur Avid four ye.' longer and the Debt (in its present amount) aleN wi:li them. Pools Laws. What, ag in ? More projects alter !hese laws ? A Mr. NOLAN, v. imni we ite heard of before, and who seems, ;r3:11 what the Sene' ssid, to he another Lawyer, moved for leave to bilk in a bill to " amund the laws respe,-ting the poor."- s to a,:reati ; but these amewmie ,, ta have ales in view to curtail the amount ! We rhos:* tee should, with the horrible ex ,nip-e of Indeed fore it•, Lear Lao inure aboat alterations in tile,: v eery lc..t MT.!. Indeed, Mr. NOLAN sail, 1114 t present state of Ireland was "a proof that ors " tem of poor-laws was not detrintratar to this cos " try." Why not let them alone, then ? Mr. Now does not, however, propose any thine about ntet.it" Brother Se.titl.ltee having had enough of that. • proposes, (as fur as we can gatheu) to posh south titer the Seteet Vestry, or Hampshire Parson, plat That is to say to throw more and more power its the hands of the great payers of rates and gi , .; °traria of lu.rd ; the very last person its the ivd: 3 who ought to receive an addition of power in such case. Lord CAtTLIMSACII allowed the Bill to G 7 ought in and to lie over till next Session, and dope rated all prcarsit ditcrasion. Mr. Notsax did, but ever, 1. t oat, that his object we, to " retiree fir: " Celt/ai/, in some measure, from the great ire;;' , that at present existed, and which, if allowed tor on, must ultimately destroy theliberty sod hamibo !" of the emirs." Helier* the country t W R