The Express.
London, England, 1850-07-08 00:00:00

CANADA.

Our correspondent writes as follows :
TORONTO. Jo(' 21.

Two q7.estione vitally important to Canada have
been under diactrsiou in cur Legislative Assembly shoe my
:au Inter, but on neither as yet has any decision beau anivt
at. Th, se are the clergy mattes and the tug:wrist tonere
of Lower Canada. . .

As an attempt Is being mode to appeal to the imperial
goverrinent, by an address of our Lesfiletirs Aleenalrly, to
re peal the imperial act of Hell on the Canada clergy n-
ee/vet', and as indirect influence nil be brsught to bear on
the *abject, it may be of some service to give yen a judicial
report upon the qinetion.
The Soo. J 11 Price, a member of the present cabinet,
hart moved is the Hcum of Aesemtly a serve of resolutions,
on which he proposes to found the outdrew I have alluded to.
His main argument is, that tho people of Upper Canada will
never rot satisfied until tone clergy reserves an diverted
from their present purpose, and applied to the purposes of
4er.ee al education; and that the present disposition of them
is unjust, in that the churches of England and Scotland receive
the f i en's share, which, he contends, is manor to the in-
temincs of the constitutional act tunperial) of 1,91.
To make the story inteliigible, it may be as well to say
that. under the act just alluded to, one.seventh of ell the
wild lands of the province wee set apart for the support of
it a protestant clergy." This, it was contended on the part
the church of England, was the clergy of the church of
E..iland, as being the church by law c.tablished ; and this
church enjoyed trim exclusively fcr a log time.
In 1320 en opinion w.a given by the law r deicers of the
grown that the church of Scotland had a right to a share.
This church, then, had a share. A violent agitation had, in
she meantime, been got up, and which continued to the
period of, and coded in, the rebaliion of 1837.8, and the cry
w.e against state churches and state endowment. altogether.
In li4o Lord Sydenlam procund the passing of an act in
I dm Upper Canadian puliament, making a partition of the
lands in question among the various protestant sects, end
araasferring all control over the lands from the provincial to
the imperial legislature. This gave rise to the imperial act
of 1811, which I have above alluded to, and for the repeal of
which, I believe, en application will be made by an addle,'
of the House of /vegetably. The reformers further contend
that the passage of she provincial act by Lord Sydenham was
obtained by corruption, and that it was not the voles of
Upper Canada.
On the other hand, the conservatives contend that the
*arches n-w in the erjnyment of Pee properties hove a
vested right is them ; that this was conferred by the consti-
tutional set; aced that to alienate these properties fron'the u- -
port of religious instruction c ould he an set of spoliation and
robbery. They also say that the last partition was jut, that
It ought to be regarded as a final settlement, and that the
present agitation is got up for the purpme of making poli:i
cal capital, and setting up a cry for the next election.
Mr. Lafontaine, the present atterenergeneral and rime
minister of Lower Ceneda, gave a very able exposition of 1 ie
view of the subject in the house last right. Your space will
preclude my giving you a synopsis of his speech, and! shall
thetefore only give you the substance of his siewe. In the
first place he believe. that the :ands cannot he diverted from
the support of religion without the commission of spoliation.
le the next he will endeavour to obtain an equal partition of
the property among the protestant sects. And in the next he
will endeavour to get the control over the properties
brought bask from the imperial and placed under the pro-
vincial legislature. He contends that as Lower Canada was
not consulted when the lands were tracs'erred to thy imperial
gov.rnineut, and that se she has ashare in them, she cannot
be expected to rest satisfied with an set that is unjust to her,
and in which she had no voice.
I think Mr. Lsfentalne's views will obtain, es be will be
supported by: the French Canadian member,: and I can
geareelydouht that the imperial legislature will refuse to listen
to the voices of the colossal in this matter. This being the
ease we shall have the old contention over again, and it is
Impossible to my where it may end. The Canadian conser-
vatives will try to use all sorts of influence in England
against the retraosference, if I may be permitted the use of
this word, and the reform/en to obtain it.
I have given you the peisedpal facts of the eons so far
wiebout any aommenterl. I will apprise 7" of the ,graft
of the derieion in the Aseesably when it trkse place.
This quemion Au caused the ministry much trouble; on
faccouct of diellion in the cabinet it has not been made a