The Sun. — London, England, 1819-10-16 00:00:00

:n►peror (I a fel u Bois, bits, Ie coo' mil big and be stated, Suite, ~gair~, Carls- r, and 11) Oa as 00 ocked or de" )d tile otibrt it,rllo . •o!g MiS i w II icil aloft , ieoit deter I v of o ar r CO' f o,e t ingil tclica l both FOR THE SUN. DIVINE IU Fairly M r. irog it- ,Ot I S 9 d t bo jot' , t belt 14ese liitit li C • tbC foie tiO 1) 18 0:13a C~~~ )ego ( 14 thc } , e• ,r ► ►l r i o• Ch i' W' th e sir' .1 0 ,0 tll4 ill; EDITOR—From the repeated attacks made ilptm social order, political, moral, and sacred, I conceive it to he the duty of every really putrioiic Christian, however humble his talents, to stand for- Ward in defence of Dtvitie REVELATION, as the only sure basis of all our happiness either in this World or the next. In aid of this grand cause I am happy to pre sent to the well meaning, but perhaps doubting Christian, as well es to the Infidel, a short but host irrefragable proof of the Divine origin of Our Holy Faith, and that in regard' to the very first objection raised again‘t the First Chapter of GENESIS—an objection which, I must •acknow ledge, has not hitherto been very satisfactori:y answered ; not even by WAEBU.RTON,, TOWNS BENI), or the BISHOP of LANDAFF, because they could not possibly be acquainted with the facts that lead to it—but an objection which, if once Cleared up, must by its downfall give the best Support to revealed religion. Now, Sir, math the simple facts of a miracle Passing before our eves, ;it least when aided by improved telescopic powers. About thirty years ago, Dr. lIERSCIfeL 1)1)1)1i-shed to the Astronomical World his Observations upon the great Nebula, or bright Spot in OnioN ; since which, by the fairest analogies, he has given the probable size of that spot as infinitely larger than tVcll - the bounds of our Solar System. Tb' e s e observations and analogical calculations have been before the , Public for some years, and have not )net with- any contradiction. In his first observa- tions of that . Nebula be laid down two bright spots, 'which have since increased very much in size and -brilliancy, as if cor.centrating a great portion of the light scattered over that immense space ; and iu tw o Papers in the Philosophical Transactions, within these four years he has shewn, uncontra dieted, and indeed supported by the most eon , vincing proofs, that other bright spots are forming, and that the two first seen have not only acquired a relative motion, but alto a, rotatory one, and are gradually assum ing an oblate spherical shape. In short, Sir, he has abewn that new worlds are now forming, Attlll that the act of creation is actually going on before our eyes, with a regularity of progressipn 40 as to be seen, marked, and measured by 9 Ltlnv s an eye ! Now, Sir, let its suppose some future Moses, in one of th ese new woilds, were to be euab:ed to %.‘ rite a book of Genesis—let us for a moment conceive, that our Solar Syteut was a great Ne- L"la, containing all the gases into which matter 12)4 Y now be resulted, and irritnately mixed with an ii„„ m „, cpan il l of light, like the Nebula in ()lion—in short, a chaos, " without form and /`"," that is, without express shape or solidity, "--let Its suppose the SPIRIT of GOD, or his Power, limitin g over the surface of the " waters," or the fluids of which that Nebula was Cont "`e(l. Let us imagine this, and then read tile First Chapter of GENc.sts !—‘' .And GCD . "id / let !here be light, and there was light."— . " Aye, but" 'reply the objectors, " Moses does tiOt tell us, of the creation 'of the Sun and Moon ' f or several verses afterwards, nod, therefore, it Must be false to say that light could exist before the Sun vcai created, which is the source of light." Ingenious this is, I will grant ; but What be- Ines of it, now we have become acquainted with 114ttsettv•L's discoveries ? Even this short sketch, I tr ust, Sit, is Sufficient to that objection ; to which 1 will add, that if any individual who 4°ll hrs it, will only read HERSCHEL'S two, Papers, t "tPat h ug t h em w i t h t i me fi rst c h apter o f G ENESIS, il mast at once be convinced that anew crea tion t 3 forming precisely in the same Manner as oven Solar System ; that the account given by i° sas is st r ictly agreea bl e t o r ecent ly o b serve d f a c ts; and, finally, that one of these two things 1111 't have existed--either that 'Mous was pos :els" of Astronomical Telescoprs equal t o o ur est modern ones,' or that he must. have been inspired by Gon to write . that_ Which he did 4 " himself understand--the ALmtGuTY, as We See, chusing that our knowledge of Astro. 4ornY, like all other knowledge, should be pro gressive. Mr, Editor, I shan't] not fear to stake the ‘ li 'ine truth of the New Testament, independent of the fulfilment of (Yd Testament Prophecies, u pon the Progressive fulfilment of the REVELA. 11 " s i and here now we have an indobitahle 1 1) . 4)(4 of Old S cr i pture aut h en ticity—Shall we til l) " b e led ast ra y b y t h e tr ill vagaries of illiterate, °ugh impudently clever Stay-makers and Tin tiacn ? 1 ‘ 1 °! forbid it heaven—so prays, Yolll'l, IGNOTUS. roa TM. SUN. ilia. Eurroa-1 have heard, that under sain t . old Act of Parliament, made in the time of Queen ANria I believe, all the scenes in all the Theatres are to be subjected to baties upon Paper and Canvas Hangings. I am very far from question ing, at this time, the legality of the point ; though perhaps ornaments of this kind may not be exactly of the saute description as thoe which were intended by the Legislature as objects of xatiou—the permanent decoiation and comfort of dwelling•rooms ; but upon the principle of equity, and indeed disctetion, I would submit that so strict an application of the Statute old() not be altogether expedient. For while I fully allow, that the administra tors of the Revenue are bound to see it rendered as pr i oductive as the object of the Legislature cleatly intended it should, I cannot understand, tbak for the sake of encreasing tl)at productive ness, the purview of the particular Statute should be urged beyond its probable intention. And, unless its very words warrant, and even enjoin, such an interpretation, I wonld humbly submit that their application of the enactment. of the duty on paper and canvas hangings ought not to be carried beyond our dwelling•houses into our Th'eatres. It is by no weans a financier's office to discover all the possible means whereby, under the construction of the law, and in the absence of precise and positive directions, the Revenue may gain an increase. That office, a!so, 'is blended with the higher functions of a States:usu.—There are sometimes more important questions to consider than the mere increase of the Revenue; and, as money_ is not in itself the main pod, sometimes we may be bound to inquire whether a greater good should be sacrificed for it. As the duty has never been enforced, every one will concede the hardship of subjec►ing to it the scenery already painted, and certainly the old scenery which has lain fur many years ,almost, not wholly, unused. Even this should not be subjected, unless under some very precise enact ment indeed ; wherein it is recognized by nAtne. And, in the absence of enactments thus positive, I cannot persuade myself that the mischief of the measure would not more than counterbalance all its profit. Our Theatres are not so wonderfully prospe rous, that they cats afford an additional burthen. They give bread to a multitude of persons; they support the Arts, and they assist the Revenue, sufficiently already to render any diminution of their assistance a serious evil. But they are use ful, and at this time especially, in a manner still more signal. When the popular mind is upon the ferment—when the popular eve is every where ready to see, and the popular ear ready to catch an exaggerated mischief, would it he is'ise, even if the pecuni:try protii were certain and perma tit nt, would it, I say, be wise to hazard the well being of those places of amusement, which keep the people ft out 1.1.,.es of danger ?—lt is, better that a man should see a moral y, or even ti foolish Pantomime, at the Theatre, than hear .Se &dot) and 'Blasphemy in a Club-i wise. While he is amused at the one, we may be sure that he is not misled at the other. The Roman Legislators acted with this wis dom. The - Roman People, coupling patient et circenses in the same wish, looked upon their tomf and their sports withequal interest. Aud Tie truly must have a mind, n.ot only very unbend ing, but very tmintellectual, who would les4en the stock of puhli,t amusement, while it inr; . eases the chance of public tranquillity. Upon these grounds, 'Sir, earnestly wish, that the enforcement of au old and indeed dor mant impost may not be too strictly revi v ed against our NationalTheutres. SCENICUS. COLLIIIR3 AT ToLt.caoss.—Agreeably to ,adver tisement, a meeting of tite operative Colliers was held at Tolicross, on Saturday, to express their sentiments on the late proceedings . at Alanches , ter; and also to concider , the best means of ob. twining Parliamentary Reform.' The number ' present was supposed to be 2,000. After the appointing of a Chairman, various persons ha raogued the Assembly. The first spoke with great warmth against those in Manchester, who had " cruelly butchered man, woman, and etild." He said that the effnits to put down public meet ings would not succeed. " The Romans, under the ancient tyrant, TIBLUIIUS, lost their right to assemble on public questions ; but we will never cease to assemble together, and the God of Liberty will give the victory not to the, strong, but to the just. Let its, therfore, heartily unite in demanding our long-lost liberties ; and may that flame light us which blazed at Mara thon, and now burns so brightly on the plains of South America." After sever a l spee c hes e q u a lly learned, and distinguished by a poetical brilliancy little tube expected from so black an assemblage, resoltitions ;be usual sort were carried Undlii wously, and votes of thanks passed to the Chief Reformers. The Meeting then disperstd peace ably. It seems rather_strange, and not a little ridicul ous, that Mr.. VIVNENHOFF, who, by Mr. BEAN'S ;ICknOWledgCMellt, is an Actor of great abilities, should have given up his engagement at Drury lane Theatre, because Mr. I(EAN's name must appear in large letters upon the Play-hills, or that I. KEAN should insist Orin that ungraciou s dis tinction, and thereby prevent the Metropolis from possessing a first-rate Performer. Mr. Mootte, the Member-for Coventry, h as , i t seems, actually embarked in the conduct of what was originally called the Royalty Theatre, and Air. RAH is the Stage Director, as well as Chief CARLILE'S SECOND TRIAL. COLTIVr Or BENCIi, GUILDHALL, OcT. T 5. [FULL PAHTICULARS.] THE KING V. VICHARD CARLILE. The trial of this defendant, upon the second indictment, which was instituted by the Society for the SuppresSion of Vice, was fixed for this morning. It is founded upon another of those biasphetnous publications with which ihe coun ' try has recently been innudared, and of which, like Paine's Age Of Reason, a vast Dumber have obtained citculation. It is entitled, " Principles of Nature ; or a Development of the Moral Causes of Happiness or Misery among the Hu man Species. By liiihu Palmer." It was origi ginally printed in America, and reprinted by the defendant in Londan. The Author, we under stand, is blind, and dictated his impious opinions to his daughters. Out the opening of time Court this morning, there were very few persons present, and those of a very motley appearance. At a quarter atter nine,• Mr. GURNEY and the other Counsel for the prosecution, together with Mr. •Pritchard, the Secretary to the Society for tire Suppression of Vice, entered the Court. Mr. Cathie soon after made his appearance, at tended by the Officers. He brought with hint - a bag, containing various papers, and was again accompanied by persons car•r•ying a considerable number f books, among which were the and several of the works to which he haul ulre•ady referred. At half-past nine, the CHIEF JusTrca took his seat. " The King v. Car!tie" was called on, and Mr. Bellamy called over the names of those who were summoned on the Special dory. The fol lowing Gentlemen only answered to their names : John Sanderson, of Broad-street-buildin g s. John Christopher, of New Broad-street. William Linwood, of Biliiter-square. Mr. GoItNEY having prayed a Tales, the fol lowing Cominon Jurymen were called, and en tered the ht,x : Jones Niessc n t ger Chas. Letterman Benj. Denham, jun. E.iw. Proctor Chas. Grosvenor W. Young J ,, seph Wernich Wm. Bolden 1 John Robins. Mr. Carlile, before the Jury was sworn, ad dressed the Court, and said--•' Before the Jury is sworn, I beg to ewer my protest against the legal competency of this Court to try this ques tion. I believe I have the I.herty of rejecting some of the Talesmen, if I think proper." The Chief jtistice—Foi cause. Mr. Cathie—lt is the trial of a matter of The Chief Justice—lt must he for a legal etittte. Mr. Car I know one of the Talesmen to be opposed to my opinions. The Chief Justice—That is no sufficient cause. Opinions upon such a subject as thi4 ! Mr. Cariile sat down, evidently disappointed. Th e Jury ‘veie (lieu severally sworn. I Mr. Marryat then opened the. indictment, which charged the defendant, that he wickedly devising and intending 10 bring the Holy scrip tures and the Christian Religion into contempt, itid Pubikly a certain scandalous, impious, and profane libel, of and concerning the Holy Scrip tures and Christian lieligion.—The defendant had pleaded Not Guilty, and this was the issue to be tried. Mr. GURNEY said, the short deseription given of the indictment by his Learned Fr lend, was sufficient to apprise the Jury of the mature of the crime imputed to the defendant, and o f th e im portant and momentous question on which they would have to decide. The prosecution was in stituted by the Society for the Suppression of Vice--a Society which had very much benifitees the public, by prosecuting, and through prosecut ing putting down many of those licentious publi cations which could not but prove highly injurious to public morals, and especially so to•those of the rising generation. They had thought the reli gion of their country, the foundation of all its morals, not less entitled to their pretection, than its morals themselves, and therefore, when a pub lication directed against the Christian religion ap peared, and was openly and ostentatiously sold in this metropolis, in the shop of the defendant, which was named " The Temple of Reason,•and the Office of the Republican and Deist,'' they had felt themselves called upon to put down that at tack upon the Christian religion, which, if it could succeed, would take away the cement by which all the civil institutions of the country were held to gether. They had, therefore, proceeded against this and another book, and a (we bill having been found by the Grand Jury against the work which was the subject of this prosecution, it was for the Gentlemen he had the honour to addresfi to decide, whether or riot the defendant was guilty of that which lad been charged against him. The indictment imputed to him the crime of " wickedly and profanely devising and in tending to bring the Holy Scriptures and the Christian Religion into disbelief and cont e mpt." He was described to have " nola w folly and wickedly published, and cerise(' to be published, a certain scandalous, impious, blasphemous, and profane libel, of and concerning the Holy Scrip tures and the Christian Religion " He (NI r. Gurney) had now before him the book so charged ; and he would very speedily give the Jury the means of deciding whether it did not well warrant the charge made against the defendant. The de fendant had this day protested against the com• peteucy of the Court to try this question. After this he did not know what offender in future might not challenge the competency of the Court before which he might be required to answer for his actions. He did not know but those accused of theft, murder, or unnatural offences, might here after take the same course, and deny the autho• rity of the Court appointed to try there. He should be asked, he supposed, by what law the defendant was this day to be tried. He would answer, by the ancient, by the well known, and universally recog nized common law of E t ugland, by that law which existed before we had a single statute on our books, by that law wl:ich protected all our civil rights— by that law which protected our property from the hands of the thief, our houses from being invaded by the robber, our lives trout being assailed by the assassin, and our nature from being violated for the gratification of unnatural lust. Their, minder, and other crimes . were punished with death, and with lighter penalties, under that law, and had been so for ages ; and yet it would seem they were now to be told that common law was no law at all, by those who were disposed to set all laws at defiance. The book which was the Subject of this prosecution, it should seem, was not originally printed by the defendant, hot it Lad been reprinted by him, and was entitled " 'I lie l'rineiples of Nature, or a Developetnent of th a Moral Causes of tiappincss and Alisery among the Human Species." It purported to have bend written by one Min Palmer, of New York, and to have gone through several editions in Ame rica. Whether this were true, or whether it were entirely take, lie knew not, and he cared not. It was sufficient for hint that he found the de fetu'ant publishing it with his own hands, and evidently for no other purpose than that charged in the indictment. It had been his p.lintul duty to read it, and ,with the exception of that infa •mous work which had occupied the Court for some 'days, never had he met with any thing so bon ible. lie did not know but in some passages it exceeded in depravity even the work to which he had alluded. The 4th chapter was entitled " The Bible, or the Sacred Writings of the Jews and Christians;" and that no doubt tuiltt remain of the object with which it had been written, he would ;cad to the Jury th e i n t ro d uct i on to that (ihapter, in order to prose that nothing could alter or explain away the charge. He then read the following introduction to the subject of the 4th chapter : " Among all nations that have pretended to any kiad of literary improvement, there have always been found ambiti ous, designing, and fanatic men, who are impelled by one or the other of these considerations to become leaders or influ ential characters among the beings who surround them. Su periority of talents or improvemeots, commoit Med a pound of hope and strong belief, that they should succeed in an attempt of this hind. Advantage was taken of human ignorance; and the most destructive and erroneous plans were introduced and established by length of time and the force of authority. In nations not at all, or very little improved, tradition has supplied the place of sacred writings, and they have been equally time dupes of those unprnicipled chieftains who have assumed authorm v over them. Moses and Mahomet governed their followers with a rod of iron, and a 'military despotism. They were savage and ferocious amen, crafty and intriguing, and they knew how to subject to their wilt the stupid but un fortunate tolicmers, who were devoted to their views. If Jesus was more mild, benevolent, and temperate, it was be cause he had less power, and because his disposition was less cruel and resentful. His followers, when clothed with power, have not paid a very high compliment to t heir master, for tins history of their conduct evinces the most malignant designs, and the earth has been d renched in blood, to defend that. sys tem of religion, of which the meek and lowly Jesus is reputed to be the author." But tor the purpose of reviling the Scriptures and the Christian religion, be would osk if it were „ . icossible that any man could have coupled the name of one of the greatest characters that God bad sent to benefit mankind, with that of one of the greatest impostors that had ever appeared its the world, Moses with Mahontm ? Little, how ever, could the Jury expect, even from this pre paration, what was to follow. He then read the first count of the indictment, containing the al leged blasphemous matte' respecting our Saviour. The conclusion to which the 'elites came, at the close of the chap , er, was, ":hat the believers of the Bible were obliged to have recourse to his Majesty, to prove it the holy work it was asserted to he, instead of being an unmoral book.” Such was the character which this author had been pleased to throw out against the Sacred Writ logs. Painful as it was to him, to read, and as it must be to the Jury and to every religious man to hear, more of this language, he most proc i eed to read other passages charged in the indictment.—. The writer had proceeded in the same spirit, and almost in the same words of another writer, to whom he had had occasion to allude, to speak, of the mysterious incarnation of our Saviour.-- , [Hete Mr. Gurney read the passages from the work set forth in the second count, iu which the imma culate conception is spoken of in the most disgust ing terms imaginable.]—This, they were to be told, was the freedom with which the principles of the Christian religion ought to be discussed— this was the mode of examination that was to be vindicated es essentially connected with the Liberty of the Press. There was, however, an other extract that he must read, which, if possi. hie, was still worse.—[He then read the fourth count, setting forth language condemning, in the strongest and most offensive terms, the Old Tes tament, and the pi ineiples of our Savaiour ]-I.le could not forbear het e from tepeating the expressive language which had been used by one of the great est scholars that had ever lived, who, possessing all those ioquisitions which could he made in this world, added to that which was commonly called learning, the most intimate knowledge of the lan guages and manners of the East. That distin guished individual, whose life was the best com ment on his writings, and who had possessed him self of such stores of learning as perhaps no other man could ever boast beside—Sir W. Jones, had declared with his dying breath, that such was the value he attached to the Holy Scriptures, inde pendent of their Divine origin, that he consider ed them to possess more sublimity and beauty— more historical inform.ition, and mote strains of exalted eloquence, than could be found in all the other books that had ever been publish ed. This was the ppinion he had given of that Bible which had been so outrageously calumniat ed. This was the opinion of a man who could not but have weight from Iris extensive knoW ledge and unsullied virtue ; and to "testimony was 110( to be shaken by the opinions and asser tions of the present defendant, or any other igno rant infidel. He then resurAd the reading of the count, which he had not finished before, to show that Moses, Mahomet, r.ud cote Sa imtr—natilt that ought to he contrasted and not cottipare(; ) with each other, had, this wools, been lin• piously associated. Having read the- remainder of the passages - alluded to, he proceeded. The Gentlemen of the Jury would perceive that the defend int had described hilts who descended to the earth fur the redemption of man, and to preach peace and good-will to all, to be a m aderer iii principle. He would now appeal to them if he had improperly spoken of this work, when he stated that if posbible, it exceeded in iniquity another, of the Ettuocily ut which no doubt cotibi be enter. The defendant bad said the present wad,. a iinestio , n of opinion. Il a d th a t b een t h e arena in which theological combatants were to Initecd.