The Express.
London, England, 1860-07-07 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS...—FRIDAY, JULY 6.
Their lorilehipe met at 5 o'clock.
JEWS ACT AMENDMENT BILL
_ .

On the motion of Lad LTlNDeuesr, this bill was men
aeoond time, and miter a conversation, in which the Jumt
Chancellor, Lord ChaLanford, and Farl Stanhope toes
the committee was Axed for Thursday next.

PRIVATE 8U811435.
Brandon's Potato, Milford Raven Railway and Dods,
nud Waveny Valley Railway Bills were severally reed a
third time and passed.

SAVOY.
The Marquis of CLANRICARDE postponed until Mae-
day next his motion relative to that portion of Savoy, the
neutrality of which had been guaranteed by the great
rowers.

DISTURBANCES AT ST. GEORGES-IN-THE-HAM
Viscount DUNGANNON, in rising to call attentioe be
the recent riots in the pariah church of St, George's-hi-the
East, more especially to those which had occurred on dr
17th and 24th June, and to ask whether any and what seer
sures were being taken by her Majesty's government her
their suppression, expressed his fear that, after the very un-
satisfactory reply which had been given on a previous even-
lag in another place to &question similar to his, he eboold
not get any satisfactory information from the noble earl who
represented her Majesty's government in that house.
He believed that if the advice of the Bishop of Loodoa
bad been taken by Mr. King he would have put an end
to these unfortunate disputes. But as Mr. King would
not give his bishop the power to act he could not do
anything in the matter. He therefore asked the govern-
ment whether this state of things was to be continued, and
not to be checked. It should be remembered that the
days ',would soon be getting shorter, and darker nights
would come on, and he felt certain that these serious arrays
would lead to loss of life, and then, perhaps, the
govern-
ment would do something to put an end to these
able proceedings. He would appeal to the government to
interfere in this matter, and stop these riots which ovelinod
week after week, and which seemed to be getting worse irs-
stead of better. (Hear.)
The Bishop of LONDON .id he wished to state to the
noble lord and to the government that this question ought
not to be trifled with any longer—(hear, hear)—because
every day it would become more and more important. He
could not agree with the noble lord that every succeeding
Sunday wag worse than the former, for from the information
which he weekly received upon the subject., he believed
that the proceedings within the church were better, or at
least not so very bad as they wore before they had become
the subject of dracundon. But that might be owing to the
presence of the police in the neighbourhood. He would
frankly state that he had received information that if it
were not for the presence of the police in the church, the
riots would he as bad as ever they were. Now,
what he wished to call attention to was this,
that so long as this house was sitting there would
be some check upon those proceedings, but these
was rapidly approaching the time of year when that
house would not be sitting, and probably the noble sad
the President of the Council would consider whether it

would be possible to go on until February nest without
large body of police being kept within the church during divine
service. It was gainful for him to speak of any church in
his diocese in such terms. There must be great blame
somewhere when a clergyman required so large a body of
police for the purpose of keeping order in his church. A.
bill was being pawed through the legislature, and when
it had become law it would provide against persons
disturbing congregations and the clergymen —in
short, if persons were guilty of brawling in
church they would be liable to be taken before
the nearest justice of the peace and be committed to
prison. He hoped it would be no long time before the bill
was in force. It had been questioned whether the
churchwardens had done their duty or not, and he believed
they had, though perhaps unwillingly ; but he wished to
point out that it was quite impossible for two
churchwardens aided by four aldermen to restrain a
mob of 4,000 people. The police were in fact indis-
re pensable at resent to aid in the services of this church.
(Hear, hear.) He wished to point out that some legislation
was necessary to punish the persons who were the cause at
these riots. The law of the' church of England as it war
at present administered left every clergyman to settle foe
himself which of certain services, within certain
limits, he would use within the church. There
was no check upon the clergy as te that part of their
responsibility. The parishioners had no power over the in-
cumbent, and all they could do was to leave their monk
church and go elsewhere. But he was glad to say there
were very few clergymen who were so utterly deed to all
good feeling as to persist in maintaining the use of services,
the result of which would be to compel their parishioner'
to leave their parish church, but the good sense. end good
feeling of the great majority of the clergy prevented them
from trifling with these persons whose souls were com-
mitted to their charge. (Hear, hear.) This matter re-
quited to be looked into, and he had caused an
inquiry to be made as to whether clergymen
could fit np their churches as they thought proper.
It was not often that clergymen desired to do so ; but if
they did, he would just observe that he bad come to the
conclusion that they had no such power as some of them
imagined ; and he had sent round a circular letter internee('
his clergy that he should require them thenceforward to
make no changes whatever in fitting up their churches with-
out first obtaining a faculty from the Bishop's Court.
(Hear, bear.) He had proposed a scheme some four month'
ago for the purpose of giving the bishops a larger power, but
the government had not thought fit to carry it into law;
and at present a clergyman could set at nought the power
and authority of the bishop. He did not think
George's-in-the-East was altogether au isolated ewe.
There were other cases in different parts of the
country ; and be thought there ought to be
some check upon the power of individuals who would
persist in outraging the feelings of the people. He should
be glad to know whether the government would take steps
under the new statute, for in case persons so miscoodneted
themselves they ought to be punished. He would also a*
the government to consider whether some plan should not
be devised by which the root of these evils might be
touched ; and whether the persons should not he punished
who caused these riots by trifling with the feelings of the
people!
lre (Hear bear.
GRANI..LB was understood to ray that
in reference to this painful subject the observations of the
noble lord opposite was not quite accurate, for nothing had
taken plias which amounted to a breach of the peace,
though there had been serious interruptions to the perform-
ance of divine serene. . . . .

Lord DUNOANNON said he referred to what took
place outaide the church.
&A GRANVILLE then read the reports' of the polies
which had been sent to the Secretary of State for the Home
Department, and which reports showed that the resorts
the newspapers were not correct. Every Sunday for some
time past there bad been inside and outside the church
seventy-three policemen—a force larger by far than ever
employed in one place except in cases of danger from the
assembling together of great numbers of persons. bo far
as putting the law as it stood into action, he did not
think the government could take any further steps
in the matter. He did not wish to say anything
which might appear to sanction these disturbances, but it
certainly was a matter for comment that a clergyman
should respire the assistance of 73 policemen to protect him
in his panels church. He thought the bishop of the diocese
should have been vested with power to put a stop to these
disturbances, but under any circumstances all must repro-
bate the proceedings of the mob. As to the power of the
right rev. prelates to deal with these individual clergymen,
he could only say that the government had considered the
scheme laid before them, and although it might have led
to some advantages, yet, on the other hand, there would be
great diiadvantagee. Upon the whole, the scheme would
not obtain the end in view.
The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH said this was really a
matter which was becoming more serious every week, and
he did not think that the government bad paid veryowit
attention to the subject. It was said these were Isolated
eases, bet whether that were so or not, it was a gross viola-
tion of the law, mid it was monstrous that the law should
give greater protection against a riot in the house of a pri-
vate individual than it afforded against the desecration of
the hone of God. (Hear, hear.) He believed there was a
want of power in the bishopsto control their clergy. The
parochial system was much praised as being the best pos-
sible, but every parish was a little state, subject only to
the suzerainty of the bishop, end it was like the
suzerainty of the sultan over the provinces of Turkey, they
were independent states. (Hear, hear.) He thought the
hest way to act with St. George's-iuthe-East would be to
close the church. It would not do to go on trifling with the
matter lon:mr, because the riots there affected all the other
churches in the neighbourhood.
The LORD CHANCELLOR mid it appeared to be sup..
by a number of persons that the government or the
io ()amen had power to make an order to shut up
e church, but neither the Queen in council nor thegovers-
recut had any authority to do that. The bishop et
the diocese was the only authority who could
make such an order, and he could not do it without the
consent of the incumbent. There must bo a change in the
law before such a power as that supposed to be in the
government could be exercised. (Hear, bear.)
After a few words in explanation irons Lord Domaine);
the subject dropped.
The Caledonian and Crinan Canals passed through
committee.
BIBLE EDUCATION IN THZ GOVERNMENT