The Express.
London, England, 1848-11-17 00:00:00

and parliamentary duties as ministers quite 6444
to occupy their time, and to deprive them o
tunity and means of beim,: efficient members
commission. Then there are six common law,evett,
and ecclesiastical judges, to all of whom, mile eg
eeeksiasticaljudye4, a &miler remark is apn!ioniki
And of the eight permanent lay Comm
two are appointed by the primate. How hopdft--'
then, for the lay to contend against the clerioal-
hers of the board, who are all united, and towhee,
punctual attendance is only the °say performable/
one of their ordinary duties.
A complete reconstitution of the commission is the
first thing needful: without it all minor chime&
however useful in their tendencies, will be unman;
tive of substantial improvement; without a greater j.
fusion of popular spirit, and a better representation
of the second order of the clergy, this ecelestestbd
commission will continue to he the inefficient body it
has been—whilst properly constituted it might
come one of the most powerful agencies for good
the kingdom.
When thus we find Mr. EVELYN DENISON's**.
mittee nibbling at petty details, and overlooking
larger means of improvement, we have a rigitts
speak contemptuously of its report. Not a wend
have we in it of the manner in which the commank
has conducted the ecclesiastical part of its bides,
not a sentence is bestowed on its church policy; noti
thought is given to the prudence and judgment "A
which the property, which has already devolved tsik.
has been dispensed. We are neither told of its
nor of its outlay. The origin of the distinctioain.
tween the episcopal and common funds is not stunk
the mischief of the distinction is not explained;
and though the wasteful expenditure of the
former on episcopal palaces is condemned, tit,
condemnation is unaccompanied by any propoodu
re-unite the funds. For united they once were; sat
again separated, as Sir JAMES GRAHAM Om*
stated, by a legislative juggle played by the emu.

It is notorious that when Lord Joan Russztt
Sir GEORGE GREY came into office, they were do*
pledged to attempt the recompoeition of this eam. 4
mittee ; and that their anxiety to stand sell with t 4 • „
church has hitherto prevented them from '
filling that pledge. Bat now that a committal
of the House of Commons bu recommended raise "
changes in its constitution, an opportunity k
afforded ministers of carrying oat their origiNd
tentions. The tenure on which the commission/la
have been appointed,—viz., so long as they cowl*
themselves properly—ought not for an hated to to
allowed to override the public, interests. And whey
the object of any alteration must be the nun.
eon of the. parochial system of the church, god g
better provision for the second order of the clergym
serious opposition from the reasonable pert of the
church can be apprehended. Opposition from the mi.
reasonable portion will be an aid instead of on it.
pediment to improvement.

ROME, Novi.
Two documents have come out : one as Wane
signed (in the name of the clergy, reguhr sell
secular) by Cardinal Orioli, offering the first issid.
ment of a " benevolence" of four million dolls/lb
redeem the mortgage. of certain church prow,
which would otherwise have to be sold, and late.
mating a strong opinion as to the inalienable eln
meter of such possessions; the second is an Santa'
signed by the Pontiff, thanking them for the may,
and sanctioning the principle of mortmais. The
Cotemporaneo, on behalf of the laity, vigorously re
palates a financial arrangement by which the poll.
tical economy of the midd:e ages is sought to be
stereotyped in the Roman territory.
The state of our finances may be gathered from Os
returns of the Custom-house duties, which present
felling off, in 1846. of 54,000 dole. ; in 1847, of
72,000 dole. ; in 1848, up to this month, 500,005
dots.

One of the reasons put forth by the clerical memo
rial signed" Orioli," in favour of mortmain, is the
independence and freedom from lay control which is
thereby secured to the priesthood. A late resolutim
pawed by the synod in Dublin sets forth the beady
of being totally dependent on and subject to the om•
trot of a most ignorant laity. Uinta, hortan? when
will the line of demarcation between spiritual end
temporal things be fairly drawn ? The Castle of
Chillon, in which a Prince Bishop of Geneva left the
Calvinist Bonnivard to rot, is now the prism of
Marilley, Bishop of Geneva and Lausanne, who is
lucked up there because he won't take the disoomMue
of the Sonderbund for a fait accompli and submit to
the new order of things in Friburg.
The two Connaught bishops are lingering here
as it is supposed that the prelates who don't go the
whole hog with them will apply for a " writ of error'
d la fapn d'lrelande.
The probable elevation of the eon of Queen Ho
tense to the presidential chair of the French
has set the mercurial and restless mind of our Prim
of Canino at work to secure in any chapter dm&
dents which may turn up any vacant Italian chair d
state; for which certainly he is as much adapted se
the hero of Boulogne any day. After starring it in
Turin, where he made most bombastic speeches, be
has j
ust been repeating the mock heroic farce lathe
Goldoni Theatre at Florence with Garibaldi, Romeo,
, and other dramatis persona, to aid his canvass.

trbe Court.
The Queen, and the illustrious party assembled at
the Priory, Stanmore, honoured Harrow School with 'visit
yesterday morning, returning to the Priory to luncheon.

The General Board of Health had a meeting yester-
day at 0 cyder-hove, Whitehall, and received a deputation
from Wolverhampton, emulating of the Rev. H.S. Fletcher,
the Rev. S. B. Owen, and Mr. E. Best, surgeon, all al
Bilaton.
Lord Monteagle visited Lord J. Russell yesterday,
at Pembroke-lodge, Richmond Park.—Sir G. Grey visited
the noble lord on Wednesday.
The Ecclesiastical Commissioners for England had
a general meeting yesterday, at their office in Whitetail-
place.
Despatches were sent off yesterday evening from the
Colonial-office, for the governors of the West India Colonise.

THE QUEEN'S VISIT TO HAEIIOW SCHoot..—Yee'
terday, on bar Nisiesty's arrival at Harrow School, she is.
received by the Lead master, the Rev. Dr. Vaughan, ail
conducted to the old room, long celebrated for the may
names carved by former celebrated scholars. Amongst Wan
on the pannels to which her Majesty's notice was directed.
were them of R. Peel, Pereeval (the unfortunate stemma),
Byron (the poet). ii. Temple (Viscount raiment*, J.
Robinson (the Earl of Rpm), Altkorpe (the late lid
Spencer), Sir Wm. Jones, Haddo (now Earl of Vardaman
the late Brinsley Sheridan, Dr. Samuel Parr, the celehrOs
scholar, Ac. After investigating those records, the
Qucen and party next went to the library. Theta tha
book of the list of speeches delivered: during the mar'
skips of the late Dr. J. Drury and the Dean of Peterboroadit
—namely, from 1792; to 1828—was handed to her:11113
by the head-master, and the list of the sth July,
pointed out, in which Sir Robert Peel end the late
Byron (the poet) are included among the speakers. Its
Queen therein wrote her autograph " Victons R., Nov.lB,
1648," and Prince Albert also inscribed his num
The three class room. were next visited, Prioo
Albert asking the bend-master the course of aera-
tion pursued, and afterwards was shows the the*
books, in which the highest form (the sixth) write
their prize exercises. The Queen, in consideratiou of
her visit to the sobool, requested that the boys might have
an additional week's holiday. Her Majesty afterwards ex-
pressed a desire to visit the church, which is undergoing 1)0'
pair. The vicar, the Rev. J. W. Cunningham, was in wait
mg to receive the royal party. The great object was to*
a tomb, nowgenerally called " Byron's," because the pelt
occasionally retorted to the spot.

CHOLERA,—Yesterday the Board of Health remised
reports of fatallling new cas:s : Stepney, 3, 2 fatal; Lam-
beth, 2, 1 ; South work, 1 ; Bermoad.ey, 2 fatiL
Edinburgh, 14, 6 fatal; Leith, 10, 3 fatal; Glasgow, 2,
1 fatal ; Cramoad, 3 fatal : total new cure, 37,19 fatal.
THE POLISH BALL.—Yesterday the annum ma
and concert, in aid of the funds of the Literary Association of
the Friends of Poland, took place in the Guildhall, under the
auspices of the Lord Mayor and the Lady Mayoress, and of a
number of gentlemen distinguished for their exertions oe
behalf of the Poles, at the head of whom may be named Una
D. Stuart, M.P. The decorations of the hall were the eamo
lie at the recent civic inauguration leut. The concert, under
the direction of Mr. Lindsay Sloper, was very attractive:,
and the programme embraced the names of many Willi
native artists, including Mr. Sims Reeves, lir.
Charles Breham, and Mr. and Mrs. Weir. A
beautiful mazurka was played by M. Chopin, its
composer, who ie a Pole, and a musician of Europe's
erleht ity. The dancing in the Hall was commenced euly
and continued to a late hour. The company, as usual, com-
prising military and naval officere, citizens, West-end Wen,
end a few M.P.'s, amongst whom, Mr. Chisholm Anstey,
is
a Scotch kilt, was somewhat conspicuous. Altogether there
was an excellent attendance, and it is gratifying to be able to
vouch for the feet, that the Polish ball was ZS brilliant sad se
enoceesful this year as on any previous occasion.
IMPERIAL BRAZILIAN MINING ASSOCIATION.—•
Yesterday the half.yearly pastel meeting of this comysal