The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1874-04-21 00:00:00

Vorset eon* Ewen.

TUESDAY, APRIL 21. 1874.

NOTES OF THE WEEK.

The trial of the Poole election petition against
the return of Mr. Waring, Ml'., is fixed to
commence on May 4th, before Mr. Justice
, Grove. _ .

The relief afforded to tho ratepayers of Dorset
under the first budget of Sir Stafford Northcote,
will be neither small nor portant. The
county police cost 10,000/. a year, and with
half the amount paid from the Imperial exche-
quer instead of a quarter as at present, the
additional relief will be between 2,00.1. and
3,000/. a year, or about a three-farthings rate.
In the past year there were 319 pauper lunatics
in the County Asylums, at a cost of Si. 2.1. per
head per week. The Government will now pay
4s. of that stun from the Consolidated Fund,
and relieve local taxation in the county by
another 3,0001. ; so that Dorset will this year
be called upon for at least 6,000/. less than in
1873. Many persons in the county are also
interested in the abolition of the horse duty of
half-a-guinea, and every family will benefit by
the removal of the sugar duties which all round
will cheapen that breakfast-table essential by a
farthing a is, I. It is calculated that the
yearly cons ttttt ption of sugar is now about 210
po Is in every average f 'ly if four persons,
against about 60 pounds in 1810, under the era
I 'l4 _ _

The lint Salisbury Synod has now finished its
course, anl has fully justified the anticipations
of thi INC who sow thniugh the transparent
in,,,,,muln ss iif its constitution. The Bishop
aeknowled net that its practical work is infinit-
esimal ; Wu the mischief it has done is only
trifling beCanse if its imbecility. A Syn. id might
he of great advantage, if it was fairly elected,
and was perfectly free in its action : the real
feelings of the diocese might be ascertained,
, and much useful information might be afforded :
! lint all this good result is carefully guarded
against at Salisbury, and no effectual is the
manipulation that the Bishop at the close tri-
umphantly declares that he does mm, it know
whether the majority of the members are of one
way of thinking or another. In fact, he looks
upon it as an undeniable advantage that by the
amalganiation of various parties they have
learnt "that black is not so black nor white so
very white—(laughter)." Evidently when the
Synod received that imutation with laughter,
they were happily ignorant of the context :
" Ti.. nice to praise by wholesale or to blame ;
convinced that all men's motives, are the none;
A nil finds with keen discriminating sight
Black not so black, nor white so mu white.

Give me the avow•el, the ereet, the manly foe
Bela I can meet —perhaps can turn his blew ;
But ef all ebeotes, good heaven, thy wrath can mend,
Save, save, oh! save me from the candid friend."
We ce •nd CI • g's lints to the Bishop and
his Synod But, in truth, this is the great
work of the Synod, for which we foresaw it was
intended. It hoA Ma in.tioca.
dn.-, in the Diecese ; and, if any clergyman
presumes to act according to his own conscience,
he is henceforth practically elm iiiiiii unicated.
But the 'noon serious part of the matter is the
Bishop's concluding remarks, in which he practic-
ally annihilates the old Pan whial system in
favour of the Synodical. If a Clergyman and
the Churchwardens of a parish disapprove of the
Synod, the rest of the parish, or any of them,
may elect Synodsmen, without the Clergyman
or Churchwardens. Left us consider what this
means. As long as the Churchwardens are
subservient to the Bishop, and fall in with all
his crotchets, they are a most important and
respectable body ~f men : and perhaps may be
invited to the visitatiou dinner ; they are
flattered and buttered on all occas• : but if
they dare think for• themselves, or if they have
learnt to respect the opinion of their parson, and
thereby are led to differ from his Lordship, then
they are of no more importance—their authority
is to be set aside, and we shall have the Rural
Dean mking his wee into such a parish, calling
on certain parialtbmers, perhapa tradesmen a it ii
whom he deals, and persumling them to allew
themselves to be nu 11l i ll ated as Syneelsinen ; and
thaw such are representative's of the parish ; and
are, according to the um • ems vote of the
Synod, to use their influence to make the Clergy-
man have colletti, 'us in his church f"r certain
Diocesan Objects. So the Synod which optim
with words of charity, and tual love, closea
with the 11111 l senceneeut of the newt tyrannical
invasiem ef the, rights of bet h Clergy and Church-
wardens. Truly such charity reminds one of ,
that a hide existed betacen Herod and Pontius
Pilate. But his Lordship must net be surprised
if some of his i.uuiule "better his instructien."
Ile has pronounced the doom of the Par, whisd
System, and declare.' that the authority of
rarest and Churchwarden is of ii.. imp,,rtance.
We hope therefore, we have heard the last of
" want 'lv eirtesy," " i si hit., alter men's
parishes," 1 • lar charges brought against
• • tent wle, endeavour to do good oh, fryer
they have an °post •ty ; and Clergymen may
establinh and attuna meetings of the Bible
Society, and give Lectures and Gape! Addresses
alit:Defer the parishioners invite them. For
this we have to thank the Bishop, whilst at the
same time his Lordship's concluding remarks
. take from the Syne ee 1 all pretence hi be a wpm-
I; 'tentative h, sly, and it subsides into a mere
Episcopal plaything, the motto of which seems
to ne " Let us have a Synod fairly, if we eau :
but let us have a Synod."