The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-10-03 00:00:00

lweii vi

I

LECTURTI ON TTTE imsa CHURCH
AT CRADLEY.

An Tuesday eveninc lnst a lecture on the
above siblect wee delivered in the National
Sehool.room, by the Rev. Norman, and Trisb
Aercvman. who is inst now takin,,' a tour throngh
li'ngland, and delivering lectnres in favour of
the Irish Church. The lecturer wns announced
to.commenee at 7.30 p.m., but a few moments

,
after that time N. TTingley, Esq., came in and
announced that the lecturer had unfortunately
mißsed the train at, Smethwiek, and no would
be unavoidably detained for some time. Here-
upon a 'Mr. Duffield. CS.. of Quarry Bank, vo-
lunteered to deliver an fuldres.. or an attempt at
one. For nearly forty minutes he succeeded in
1111:ina to the audience. which i was at that time
rather laroe. Presently the Rays. 0. Lakeman
and G. H. Gregg entered the ro,m, mid the
Chairman. Mr. ITin,fley, called on Mr. Lakeman
to address the !netting.
In complying with this request, the rev, gen-
tleman remarked that it was the same with
regard to the Trish Church as with all other
things, flume who talked most generally knew
least. Many of those anoint the Trish Church
were tet.dly itivoquaintal with ttm real facts of

nie ease. .Havirg' -resided eleven years in Ire-
elnsiierei lie NV:I4 .o-ne minority on
the snbieet. He ileniel thlt the Trig]] people
were dip,nnti,fied with the Choreh, or thnt the

(lintel. had failed in neenmplishin.. her errand.
The Trish Chnreh mild in one sense be onn4i-
dero(l an ineiil. hot in one sense only; bat, it
ennbi not rossibly be considered an ininry. The
I..snit may he the same as b tvinc a Protestant
Kith; or Qneen to rein over Ireland. The
C ithol;es alone woild de,m it an insult. He
il not dent- that there were anomalies in the
ehnrelt rtc well as in every other charch, Dissent.
inc and others ineludol. but why en+ down the

che1:•11 entt eely on that acemmt ? Why not lop
0:r the bsklintbs, end restore the rest of the
' holy ti pnrket fie Ith. If they put down the
ehorob becllll'4E! of thesn anom,alies, it tvnttld be
lih mating nfr i rortn'q bead to rive his body.
Tf the intentions of certain men in the country
were to hi carried into effect, he slmnld prefer
disestablishment to dtsendowment. The latter.
if nerfnrmeti. will be do*nricht robbery. He
lii nit think there W:l3 one Homan Catlmlic in
ti thousand. who considered the Trish Church
i The rev speaker concluded by nal.
I ratimfin nnreflnto showino the trust and conti

injury.

tho (.atliolie'peasantry reposed in
tbo Pe,te;fint elereS• _ _

IJost at 111 s time Mr. Norma.' latticed, and
w tad with lond applause. Having ex-
, •
• • 'mw he was Ott tined, the rev. lecturer
•,, Ito say that the Irish Church was very
misapprehendo 1, it was censitlered as an
re foroi••n Atm eh, which MIS entirely false.
ids!' Church was the Chnrch of Ireland,
1.7 ha 1 lieen • r,rn time tot erred. If tlmv
a Ir. ,ver book 200 or 600 years old,
' • . find the Irish Church upon the title
St. Patrick was the founicr of the !rid'
aturch, and in tho time of this preacher two
thirds or three fourths of the people of Traland
Wcre n oninal Prot-stants: and up to the time
if llonry 11. Ireland was Protestant. and it was
the ki07.3 of Eal,'lttl who caused her to he
Citholic, This the lecturer prayed by a detailed
reference to historc. Ireland was robbed by
Henry 111, who Wis a (314!)0ii... of l'Eanon.
which was given to several of his favottrlte itm
men. The church did not enjoy one acre of
tilt stoten pronerty. Elizabeth, too, was to
Ilium in no small measnro for Ireland being so
r.Jll,;)c now. She ought to have acted towards
Irgland es she did with England. In Ireland
the prayers were in English, which was not un-
dorstmal Ity hal' of the Protestants. and so
Protestantinn was sadly injnred. With regard
to the chnrch properth, he maintained the NT-
Flnivnt Irttl no more right to deprive the Irish
tlharch of that she posseased than it had to de-
raj ve the Martinis of Hate of part of his hand-
some fortnne and say taonmoois too much for
mut, you ran lire on TO,OOO ii year very well.
The property was sacred to God, and ought not
to he touched. The church had been the means
of taming hundreds and thousands from Catho-
lieism, awl to put her down wonld be to raise up
the Cathglies immediately. There was a guest
deal of mi.:understanding shad the term " par-
ishes." Why there was one parish which was
entirely covered with a brewery. Sorb parishes,
of which there were hundreds, could not possibly
Lave a church and a clergyman to each. Why
in many of them there was not a single Protest-
ant. The lecturer then dwelt upon his own par-
ish. and said he was in favour of those who
worked hardest being paid most, and those who
did not do so much work to be p tld accordingly.
He could not tell why the disestablishment
question was raised, and he believed no one else
could say why the Irish March shonld be
stamped down. Every one who voted for the
disestablishment of the Irish Church voted for
the upholding of Roman Catholicism in Ireland
—(loud applause).

Mr. Gregg afterwards spoke. He said if the
Irish Church was disestablished, the English
Church wonld soon follow, and then what would
become of the poor people of England. They
knew very well that the church was the poor
man's church. If a man had no pence he would
not be acceptable among the Dissenters.
Mr. Homfrey spoke in favour of the Dissen•
ters. and send the Black Country would have
been heathenish hut for their endeavours. Mr.
Gregg having said that the tithes belonging to
the parish of Cradley were not enjoyed by the
clergy, he would tell them who did enjoy these
tithes. It was himself air. Homfrayt. His
grandfather purchased them a long time since,
and they had descended to him, and he meant to
stick to them. He concluded by moving a vote
of thanks to the lecturer, which was seconded
by Mr. Lakeman, and carried by a large majo-
rity.
The meeting then dispersed.