The Express.
London, England, 1853-12-21 00:00:00

VESTRY MEETING AT PADDINGTON

FOR CUURCII EXTENSION.

Yesterday a meeting of the vestry of Paddington
was held at the Vestry Hall, Harrow•road, to take into
consideration a report from she Church Committee, of
which the following is a copy : Paddington, Dec 2, 1853.
—The Church Committee beg to report, that in compliance
with the resolution of the vestry of the 2nd of August last,
they have received and considered plans for building two
additional churches in this parish, one at Craven bill, pro.
posed to be erected by the Rev. Richard Wood, and the
other in Westbourne Park-road, proposed to be erected by
Messrs. Phillips and Roy; and the committee recommend
that sums of two thousand pounds be applied by the vestry,
from the church rate, in aid of the cost of bull Ping each
of these churches, upon condition that not fewer than .500
free sittings be appropriated in each church, for the use of
the poor for ever, in positions to be approved by the vestry.
—A. M. CAMPBELL, Chairman."

About 30 members were present, and the Rev. A. 11.
CAMPBELL occupied the chair.

The notice for calling the meeting having been read,

The CHAIRMAN stated that he had received a note from
the reporter of the Daily News, desiring to be admitted on
behalf of the public. He had already told that gentleman
that be could not admit him. It bad never been usual to
admit reporters to their meetings, but he thought it right
to mention that the application had been made.

Mr. J. B. SMITH, M.P., moved that the reporter be
called in, which was seconded by CHARLES lIILL, Esq., a
magistrate, but only about half-a-dosen hands were held
up in favour of publicity.

Mr. idAttrxxxi moved the resolution proposing that
4,0001. be applied out of the church rates in aid of build-
ing one church in Westbourne-park-road, and one at
Craven-hill. lie said these churches were wanted, and
more churches would be wanted by and by. The aum
asked was enough for the present, until a more extended
plan was developed. He wished to adopt the principle of
the vestry advancing a sum of 2,0001. in aid of eacis case
where parties were willing to build a new church.
Mr. WAveox seconded the resolution.

Sir JOSHUA WALMSLET, M.P. desired with every re.
.pact for the gentlemen present to express his dissent to the
report of the committee. He believed it would be found
adverse to the feelings of a large number of the parishioners
and contrary to the real interests of the church as well as
unjust to the dissenters, who were compelled to subscribe
for building churches adverse to their own tenets. It sp.
peered to him before any large sums were expended for the
exclusive benefit of one portion of the community the
opinion of the whole pariah should be ascertained, and this
was the more necessary in consequence of the avowed
desire of the vestry to extend these grants to any party or
parties who were inclined to build churches in the parish.
However desirous individually be might be to aid
in relieving that spiritual destitution which had
been described he could not consent to do so
at the expense of those who differed with him
in their conscientious scruple.. He believed it
was a vicious principle to force others to contribute
to a church which they could not conscientiously support,
and one not at all calculated to promote that religious har-
mony we were professing to advance. He did not doubt
'the power of the vestry to dispense the sums proposed, but
he more than doubted its expediency ; and especially with-
out submitting the question to the parishioners. It has
been stated that the ecclesiastical revenues of the parish
were very large, and that had they been properly disbursed
no such spiritual destitution as bad been described
could have existed. He had been told that the
Paddington estate yielded some 20,0001. a year
to the Bishopric of London, yet he found the parish deeply
in debt for church building, and a declaration that there
was great spiritual destitution. There eras now a fresh de-
mand fur 4.0001. for two new churches, and an implied
promise that like sums would be given by the vestry to any
party who were inclined to build more churches. Surely
this ought not to be done without consulting these we re-
present, however confident we may be of its propriety. No
one doubted the ability of churchmen to sustain their own
poor. He believed they had the will, as well as the power,
and, if properly applied to, would prefer free offerings to
forced contributions from those who opposed their doctrines,
The course which had been pursued with respect to the
refusal to admit the press was, in his opinion, a mista►e,
and would tend to prejudice them in public opinion. He
submitted the following amendment That before the
vestry determine to act on the report of the church com-
mittee, which recommends the expenditure of 4,0001. for
further church extension in the parish of Paddington, that
the sense of the parishioners be taken thereon, either by
pablic meeting or by such other means as the vestry may
deem desirable for ascertaining their wishes."
Mr. KEMPSHEAD said some of the churches in the parish
had been built by prvate subscription, and he thought it
was not too much to ask for their poorer brethren that the
parish should provide church accommodation for them, and
he was prepared to say to any person building achurch who
would appropriate free sittings in it for the poor that the
pariah should subscribe a sum of 2,0001. It might be said
that the free sittings were occupied by servants, but he
thought the servants of the rich were entitled to such
sittings as well as the poor. It was objected that churches
should be built in poor districts, It had been proposed to
lay out 10,0001. in building a church on the present site of
the vesty-hall, which is situated in a part of the parish
surrounded by a poor population, but that scheme was
defeated by the opposition of the minister of St. Mary's.
A VESTRYMAN said that there were many unfounded
reports of the revenue derived by the Bishop of London
from the church property in the parish. It had been stated
that he received 20 to 30,0001. a yea,. Now, he knew that
it was no such sum ; in fact, he only received one-third of
the church revenues in the parish, and he believed it did
not exceed 10,0001. a year. The bishop had exercised the
greatest liberality; he had subscribed 3001. to several
churches that had been built in the parish, and he had no
doubt he would subscribe liberally to others.
Another VESTRYMAN said there was no ground for the
popular prejudice against the Bishop of London. It never
could be expected that he should apply all his revenue to
the building of churches. Paddington was only a small
part of his diocese ; there were many parts of it which re-
quired church accommodation for the poor more thin the;

b
1.1"' iastaam Bethnal-proem, sad therefore he might
tube robbed of say part of his income.
Nu (*Hyatt. HILL thought that the church property
.ht to twi applied to the hal:ding of churches for the
rut' and that aa there was an ample fund arising from that
soft'e to the parish, It ought to be applied to that object.
Hs Nair not join in the praises of the liberality of the
dot,p of London fir giving an occasional MN. for build-
sow church out of an immure of 10,6001. raised in the
Mr h, and oil of which ought to be spent in the parish.
Thee t. had been said, he had gives sites for acw churches,
mai. was only giving what cwt him aotlsing—be gave •
won of the church lands. He quite agreed in the
aphosdavet proposed by Sir J.ehtia Walmslay—that they
4.11:d sapend ao more money is building sew churches
without as appeal to the ratepayers.
The Cm at 11WiltIsEN said the Bishop of London hail
Issmfritid the greatest interest in promoting the building
of churches in the parish, and had liberally subscribed to
them ir had given sites for the churches. The bishop was
~,to of the pariah, and it was in Ors capacity that he was

- -
putted tntlu church revenues. lie ought, therefure, to be

i jaded of not as bishop but u rector.
Ilse Cm %MOAN wished, before they pa:weeded as a vote.
so 'seism sane wren in the statement of members. He
courreulated theta is the kindly spirit which pervaded
tbts diusesim. TM deb*. of the parch bad bees stated at
V.000.d. It was ealy hall that sum, being the balance of a
lora of 18,0001. borrowed fur buildiog churches
Ths was the w►ole debt on that account at pre-
lim, sad was paid off by a sinking fund of
9001. pH annum, so that the original debt would
be paid of in 20 years. Ile fel: there was great
hardship is lazing the dissenters of the parish, from whom
be In I always received much courtesy he bad no wish to
do so but at the same time he was not prepared to give
up the priseiple of church rates. With respect to Sirius,
Welauley's motion to cell a perish meeting, they could
not do it. They could not take the opinion of the parish
upon a church rate. They (she vestry) were the parish,
sad they had the only right to levy a rate. Resides it was
sot necessary to ask the opinion of the ratepayers ; the
perish knew what we were doing and they approve of our
proceedings—churchmen as well as dissenters ; fur formerly
be remembered when there were dissenting members of
the vestry, they absented themselves from the meeting
whets they found that they should be in a minority
Ur. J. B. Surat, NIT.. said he regretted that they had
opposed the admission of reporters because, besides it being
fitting that the parish should be made acquainted with the
proceedings of their representatives in that vestry, se well
as of their representatives in parliament, an opportunity
would hive been afforded of correcting the popular bus
pressica as it tepid* the income of the Bishop of London,
and of making known the explanations of the cha:rman.
He thought the proceedings of all public bodies should be
open to the public. With regard to the income derived by
the Bishop of London from the parish it must have been of
very recent date, fur he saw in the Times that morning,
that in 1801, the number of houses in Paddington was only
3:/7, and of inhabitants 1881. Within a short
period, therefore, since new churches were wanted,
the income had increased, and he contended that
the increase of the church property ought to have been
applied to increased church accommodation ; if this had
been dune there would have been no necessity for taxing
the parish to build new churches. It had been urged as a
plea for contributing 4,0001. to the two proposed churches
that a provision was to be made in each for the poor. The
proposed churches were, however, not to be built in a poor
part of the parish, and it was clear that it was to be rather
a provision for the servant. of the rich, than for the poor,
and be was surprised to hear one gentleman say that *sr
vents were as well entitled to the free seats as the poor.
liew he was of opinion that every man was morally end
equitably bound to support the religious community
to which he belonged, and to pay also for hie
@eremite. lie (Mr. Smith) was a dissenter; some
of his servants, however, attended the established
church, but he did not allow them to occupy the seats be-
loagiog to the poor; he paid for a pew for them in the
church. In the same manner be paid for a sitting in a
Scotch church and s Roman catholic church for two others
If churches were wanted fur the poor they ought to be built
is their neighbourhood, and the rich ought, and no doubt
would, voluntarily build them instead of taxing the parish
for that purpose. He should vote for Sir Joshua Wellies.
ley's antecdmeat. The highest court in the realm bad
recently given a most important decision regarding church
rates, and sow no church rates could be levied in any parish
is :he kingdom without the consent of a public meeting of
the ratepayers. The parish of Paddington was an deep.'
tioa ; there the vestry, and not the parishioners, could levy
what amount of church rates they pleased, but he thought
in the present state of things it would be unbecoming in the
vestry to exercise their tight of further taxing the pariah
without its knowledge or mount until parliament bad
coma to some decision on the subject, which it most
shortly do.
The Cicalas: AN then put the amendment and the original
motion to the vote, when there appeared for the amendment
3, against it 20. The original motion for granting 4,0001.
to the new churches was then put and tarried by 20 to 3.