The Express.
London, England, 1853-03-19 00:00:00

philanthropy of the noble earl, did sot think that he
had given the question as mash sensideration as was
desirable. The plan proposed was ousting a new kind of
property. By compelling proprietors of bourns to provide
iecconimedation for those whom they displaced by improve-
ments, would the same tenan's Fee put into the new
houses u those who were turned Gut ? Suppose this
standing order had existed before the building of New
Oxford-Areet, which was, before the improvements, a •Are
crowded locality, if it was necessary to find for the- A per.
sue who were displaced, not an equal quantity of seem_
nonlation to that which they hat before, but foe., times as
much—for no ono would propose to place them In the same
situation as they were before—to find that etuantity of ac-
commodation would be impossible. If therefore that
standing order hail existed a few years age, thou) improve-
ments would not have taken place. He did not think that
even a reference of the question to a committee would pro-
duce any means of getting ri a of the evil which existed.
The Earl of SHAFTES'AURY consented to withdraw
his motion, and exprererst his gratification at having ob-
tained their lordships advice on the subject, end he had
gained something by bringing it before the public, and eli-
citing an expression of approval from their lordships. He
would accept the offer of the noble earl at the head of the
government, and would move for a committee.
THE ESTABLISHED CHURCH IN AUSTRALIA.
Lard MONTEAGLE rose to present a petition from the
diocese of Sydney, en the affairs of the church in that
colony. The object of the petition was to state that
the condition of the church in the Australian colonies
had for some time past been painful and un-
satisfactory ; that doubts bad been expressed re-
specting the supremacy of the Queen, and that the pe-
titioners had observed with dismay • proposition for con-
stituting a form of church government in Australasia as
contained in a minute drawn up at a conference held
between the Bishop of Sydney and the Australasian clergy ;
that that plan was not in accordance with the opinions of
the lay members of the church is the diocese of Sydney
generally, and the petitioners protested against any system
of church government in which the bishops, clergy, and
laity were not to meet in one council, acknowledging her
Majesty as the head of the church, and the prayer of the
petition was, that the house would withhold its assent to'
any law which was at variance with the sentiments of the
petitioners. He (Lord Monteagle) could not present this
petition without expressing his desire that the church
of England and Ireland should increase in our
Australian colonies. The progress it had already made was
ono of toe most encouraging prospects with regard to those
°Monies ; but be thought there ought to be no idea of the
establiehment of a dominant and exclusively privileged
aligi Archbishop of CANTERBURY said, although
tbsess was • necessity for some legislation for the better ad-
ministration of the church in the colonies, it was a matter
both of difficulty and delicacy. It was considered to be a
matter of so much necessity by the late Bishop of Sydney,
whose loss he much deplored, that he had left the colony
lead come to England, for the sole pupase of stating his
opinions en the question. He (the Archbishop of Canter-
bury) proposed shortly to submit a measure to their lord-
ships on the subject.
The Duke of NEWCASTLE was anxious to set at rest
same alarms which had bees created by some circum-
stances which occurred m Australia last year He observed
that the strongest apprehension was expressed in the peti-
tion with regard to a supposed proposal fur the abolition of
the supremacy of the crown by some of the Australian
bishops. That was an erroneous impression, and arose from
the minute passed at • conference of the Australian bishops
some time ego. As he desired that impression to be cor-
rected, he would read a few lines from • letter which he
received from three colonial bishops who happened to be in
Itlngland, the Bishops of Quebec, Tasmania, and Caps
Town, who, in calling his attention to the necessity of legis-
lation fee the colonial church, stated in effect " that they
emphatically affirmed their attachment to the supremacy of
the sovereign in the church ; their desire to remain united
with the Church of England and Ireland, and expressed
their hope that in any measure on the subject parliament
would make provision for the maintenance of the supre-
macy of the crown and the preservation of their connexion
with the church of the mother country;" and they added
" that they send this in their own names and also on be-
half of the church in our distant colonies." He would not
now enter on what must be a premature discussion, espe-
cially after the statement of his intention to bring in a mea-
sure on the subject by the most rev. prelate, but he was
anxious to take the opportunity of setting right before the
public the views of the colonial bishops.
The Bishop of EXETER said that tha.terms of the mi-
nute of the bishops of Australia were far from indicating •
desire to interfere with the supremacy of the mown. The ob-
ject of the conference in question was stated is ap aper,he had
in his hand. It stated " that in consequence of doubts having
arisen as to whether they were prevented by the supremacy
of her Majesty; from txercisiog a power of forming them-
selves into an ecclesiastical synod ; they were resolved not
to exercise the power."
The LORD CHANCELLOR said he did not rise for the
purpose of entering into the disculaion, but he could not
allow the statemeat of the right rev. prelate, that the su-
premacy of the crown did not rest upon act of parliament,
to go abroad uncontradieted. (Hear, hear.) It did rest
upon the law of the land. What the incidents of that
supremacy were in matters of ecclesiastical, was a matter
into the discussiou of which he would not then enter, but
he thought it ought not to go forth uneontradicted that the
royal supremacy rested upon any canons or articles of the
church. (Hear, hear.)
The Bishop of EXETER said that what he stated was,
that the only authority which declared the supremacy of
the crown were the articles and canons. He was glad to
bur it nnw affirmed that the supremacy of the crown was
• part of the common law of the land.
Lord MON'l'Lli said he heard with some surprise
the doubt—now for the first time, he believed, expressed
within that house, and expressed not with any hesitation,
but with something like positive confidence, which bed
been cast by the right reverend prelate ea the supre-
macy of the Queen of England. (" No, no," from the
Bishop of Exeter.) What then did the right rev. mists
mean, by saying that the supremacy of the crows mad
not upon the law but the canons and articles of the shoroh.
Why, the canons themselves had no authority except when
confirmed by the law of the laud. The right rem•
rend prelate read a document to show that there was
no disposition amongst the bishops of Sidney to internist
with the supremacy of the crown. But then one resolution
only declared, that whereas doubts existed as to the extent
of that supremacy, in reference to synodical action, 14
would not, " 011 the present occasion," exercise thataetioa ;
thereby plainly implying that they would do so on a future
occasion. He also recommended that instructions should
be sent from the clergy to the home government, which
they hoped would be attended to. This was something la
lb. nature of • magi d'elire, directing the queen in the sago
Asia of the _persons to be appointed to the Alen
d bishop, and was an invasion of the prangs*"
Off the crown. The proceedings of the six bishops were sub
to justify the alarm and amassment of the colonists. Ho
propornd for the future ecclesiastical governmentelf Austra-
lia that there should be • provincial synod, and six diocesan
synods, and that there should be also seven conventions of
laymen for the purpose of discussing the temporal affairs of
the church. Next to faith and Christian instruction, it was
essential that a church should possess peace, and anything
better calculated to create disunion and discord than the
proceedings of these 14 different assemblies could not be
imagined. (Hear, hear.)
SLAVE TRADE (SOHAR, IN ARABIA) BILL.
The bill was read &third time sad passed.