The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-05-27 00:00:00

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Collegiate Institution. The attendance was moot numerous.
The chair was Occupied by the Rev. Dr. N'Neile, and
amongst the clergymen and gentlemeri on the platform
were the Rev. Dr. Merle D' Aubigne, the Historian of the
Reformation ; Reeds. R. Burgess, rector of Upper Chelsea ;
J. B. Lowe, W. Pollock, S. Minton, G. Read, Gardner,
Sutton, J. hlacnaught, Cowan, Gent, Bardsley, Conor, Dandy,
Marlen, Williams, Hamilton, Hirsch, Sampson, Smith, Car-
penter, Lodge, Hunt, Gilmour, Ffolliott, and White. Messrs.
R. A. Macfic, W. Jones, Statham, Webster, Williams, David
Hodson, J. B. Lloyd, H. Halheadi R,. Bickersteth, R. A.
Payne, &c, &c., The proceedings were opened with a
prayer, delivered by the Rev. J. B. Lowe.—The
chairman then proceeded to address the meeting. After
some preliminary observations he said : Your sympathies are.
now invoked on behalf of the struggling Protestants oa the
continent of Europe. You are aware tiat they are strangers to
the sweets of religious liberty which it is our privilege so largely
to enjoy in England, They are still in bondage under the
great power of the great mystic Babylon, for even in France,
where infidel liberalism had for a time snapped the Papal chain,
the links are again rivetted under an absolute despotism. You
will hear more particulars concerning these people in the
course of the evening. Ai y object at present is to make as
brief and clear a statement as I can to you of their
condition relatively with the laws of their own country.
Confining our attention to the Protestant chinches of France,
we will look at their condition, first, with reference to tho old
law of the first Napoleon, which is called the Code Napoleon.
Of that code, the 291st and three following articles bear upon
this subiect, and deprive the Protestants of France of the
power of meeting for religious worship without the express
permission of the local magistrates, prefecte or tnaires.
Well, the great emperor passed away, but the Protestant
church remained. The change in the government of France
was followed by a change in the law, with respect to the
Protestant church ; and, in the year 1830, Louis Philippe gave

what was called a constitutional charter, the fifth article of
which authorised the Protestants of France to meet for

worship, under equal protection of the law, with all other
denominations. That is, under that charter they would have
a right to call upon the executive—that is the police—to
defend them in their meeting, aed to give them protection
from insult, annoyance, er interruption. This, of itself,
had it been feirly carried out, was all that could
be desired ; but, unfortunately, al:hough the charter was eo
given, the articles I have referred to, of the Code Napoleon,
were not repealed. Then came the double action of the ado
Napoleon, and the constitutional character of Learn:, Philit,pe.
Louis Philippe disappeared from the scene. The republic
was established and paced away. The President, by universal
suffrage, took his seat, and very seen transformed himself into
an Emperor. Then came a new phase. How far the
Emperor of France was indebted to the priests of Rome for
the suffrages of the people, which placed him on the seat of
President, I shall not venture to guess. How far his support
of the Pope, since that time, has b.en a matter of gratitude for
the support of the priests, I shall not venture to guess. I
suppose there are secrets of history about this like other state
tn:tters. But certain it is that, in 1852, his Imperial Majesty,
Napoleon 111, issued a decree, bearing heed upon the Pro-
testants of France. It absolutely prohibited their meeting for
Divine worship without the express and authoritative
permission of the magistrates— sans autorization. But
the Protestants of France were not to be suppressed.
They met, obeying God rather than man. Their meetings
were interrupted ; they were prosecuted ; they were fined,
and on failure of paying the fine they were threatened with
imprisonment. Well, now a favourable change has taken
place, and the Emperor has just recently issued another decree.
What has induced the Emperor to make that change I will
not venture to define. It is possible that he, great a man as
he is, was not prepared to brave the scandal of open persecution
and imprisonment for conscience sake in the sight of all
Europe, It is possible that the justice, if not the eloquence,
of the appeal of Count Cavour, on behalf of the liberties of
Italy, may have made an impression favourable to France.
(Applause.) It is conceivable that the sounds of religious
liberty, so lately raised in England, may have caused some
little echo even in the Tuileries. (Hear, hear.) All this is
conceivable ; but what is certain is this, that just recently the
Emperor of the French has issued another decree repealing the
retrospective action of his decree of 1852 ; so that although
his suppression of Protestant worship will still bold good for the
future, yet this new decree restores the status quo of the
chapels and meetings which were held by the French Protes-
tants before 1852. Having given this outline of the
French Protestant churches, relatively with the laws of
their land, the rev, chairman continued :—As to the
details of their struggles during this period, they have
the interest of a romance. Those people have met in the
mountains, in the woods, in the dens and the caves of the
earth. They have met by stealth—they have met in faith—
they have trusted God—they have honoured His name and
His Word, still they ate exposed to much of hardship, and it
is comforting to their hearts to know that British Christians
have perfect sympathy with them. (Applause.) As to the
progress of the Protestant churches on the Continent, you will
have important details from the gentlemen who will succeed
me. You will he addressed by the Rev. Mr. Burgess, the
honorary secretary of the society, and then by our noble
Christian brother (M. D'Aubigne) who, though located as a
pastor of a little village of Switzerland, is, nevertheless, of
European, aye of American colebtily.also. (Hear, hear.) His
history of the Reformation supplies" Household Words" to the
Protestant world; and so long and wherever simple Christianity
—simple, primitive Christianity, freed from all the trammels
of man's traditions, and set forth in the full, clear, and
evangelical simplicity of the Apostolical writings—so long as
these shall animate the human heart, so long shall the recorded
character and struggles of Martin Luther, the recorded tender,
gentle, classic eloquence of Philip Melancthon, the recorded
heroism of Lefevre and Farrell, as contained in this history,
immortalise the name of Merle D'Aubigne. (The rev.
chairman resumed his seat amid the most enthusiastic applause.)
—The meeting was then addressed by the Rev. Mr. Burgess,
Rev. M. D'Aubigne, Mr. R. A. M'Fie, fee., and the pro-
ceedings were brought to a close shortly before ten o'clock.

HOPE STREET CHURCE.—The splendid new organ,
built by Messrs. Gray and Davidson. of London, for this
church, was formally opened on &today last. There was
a very full congregation, and the admiration of the in.
strument was generaL This evening the capabilities of
the new organ will be tested at a private performance of
classical music by Mr. W. T. Best, the organist of St.
George's Hall, and, no doubt, a vast number of amateurs
will be attracted there.
SUDDEN DEATH.—Last evening, Mr. Churton, the county
coroner for Cheshire, held an inquest at the Wellington-
hotel, Birkenhead, on view of the body of Samuel Day,
one of the messengers of the Liverpool Bankruptcy Court,
who expired in his gig while near the Rock Ferry. It
appeared that the deceased was returning from business
when he was suddenly taken ill and fell back in the gig.
The assistance of Mr. Goss, surgeon, was immediately
called, but he died before any aid could be tendered. Ver-
dict, " apoplexy."
CORONER'S INQun=rs.— The borough coroner held the
following inquests yesterday :—On the body of James
Thompson Anderson, who was engaged at the stores of
Messrs. Baring Brothers, Strand-street, as a cotton porter,
and who was killed on Saturday by a bale of cotton,
weighing about three cwt., falling en him by accident,
Verdict : " Accidental death."—On the body of Patrick
Gallagher, eight years of age, who resided with his parents
at 27 court, Ford-street. On Friday the boy was f
dead in the canal, but how he got into the water there was
no evidence to show. Verdict accordingly.