The Express.
London, England, 1857-12-17 00:00:00

PUBLIC DISCUSIIION ON INS BUND47
QUAITION.

A public ffisetnaion between the National Sunday
League and the Bay. Robert Incumbent of Clarkin-
well, on the vexed Sabbath slag bean ennotound
lot advertiseemasto take place yesterday analog at Rases'
Hall, long before the boor appointed for oinimescing the die-
curios, namely, eight o'clock, all the approaches to the large
hall were choked up with • dew crowd eager for =minion,
and by half pest seven every part of the room wee filled. The
meeting was the result of a. halleage given by Mr. Maguire,
at • meeting held a short time since in Clerktnwell, and ac-
cepted by Mr. Langley, Vice-President of the Sunday
League. Strictly speaking, the contest was between the two
gentlemen named, though each was of coarse re.
laZiefor the =anion se the champion of his party.
Piropositions were agreed upon as the huts of the die-
=melon, one for last night and the other for this evening ,•
the affirmative resins on the shoulders of Mr. Larsen, and
the negative on those of Mr. Maguire. The first proposi-
tion, that which formed the subject of last night's discussion,
was, "That the oing of the public museum., gallant.,
libraries, and ger, -after divine ernes on Solway morn-
ings, would be in somadenos with the principle. of the
Christi= niligioa." la order to moors impartiality then
were two chairmen, Mr. Robert Beater on behalf of the
Magnin ppaartrty, and the Bev. Brim Powell on behalf of the
Sunday Ultima. The opposite parties were aleo pretty
equally represeated ea the pietism. Two speeches
of half
an hour's damns were delivered ash of the disputants.
Mr. LANGLEY, Ilk opining the contended that
the Sabbath now observed by Cbristleas does not rest on the
authority of Christ or his apostles end referred to Christ's
declaration that "man is pot made for the Sabbath but the
Sabbath for man," and others of a similar character, in op-
position to the stringent views of his opponents. tie also
mantels= that the authority of °easels was by no moans
clear as to the original inetitatica of the Sabbath ; that the
Jewish Sabbath was purely local sad national ; and that there
was no proof of the general obeervattes of the Chriatiaa
Sabbath earlier than the Komi centary ; end, in *raft of
the comparative lawfulness of various agile en Smithy, that-
lenged his opponent to =ow wheatmeal difference thseeiwas
between • person boiling a kettle la his owe house en Saaday
and his being employed to boil water en a railway, In order
that hundreds of persons might enjoy the fresh air of the
In re
country.
plying to thins views, Mr. Mecums taunted his
antagonist with not having =bend to his proposi-
tion, or attempted to show that the
?paining of mu-
MUMS,
ttriooA, Sc., on Sunday was accordance
principles of the Christian religion."
He alto demanded what right the Leave had to assume any
limitation to the hours of divine navies, or online by im-
plication the observance of Sunday to the morning, and
pointed out that If Mr. Langley's view were correct, than
was no authority whatever for Sunday observance, Was-
much as it meted neither on the Book of Genesis nor on
the 4th Commandment, which was said to be of strictly
local obligation, nor upon the authority of Christ and his
apiaries.
After Mr. Merlin bed concluded,
Mr. LANGLEY a spoke, and claimed Luther, Calvin,
Melaactlion, Archbishop ff'hately, end other authorities as
supporting hie views, the support of the Archbisho bet
manifested by the fact that he is a director of the ZoobgleY-
gardens of Dublin, which are open on Sunday. He also
alluded to Christ's declaration that it is " lawful to do good
on the Sabbath day," and argued that this was a juetiflostice
of the opening of national places of resort, which have a ten-
dency to enlighten the miads and elevate the Mates of the
working classes,
Mr. MAGUIRE, In reply, Cited Paley on the guidon of
the legality or nos- ity of different things, to the effect
that the being established and beneecial in its in-
fluence, It was the duty of all to abstain from acts which
tended to deetroyit as en institutiom. As regarded the origin
of the Sabbath, lie remarked with much emphasis that the
Sabbath la • fact, and that its tathateece was traceable to the
earliest periods of the Christian are, in corroboration of which
he cited a paesage from a letter of Pliny to the Emperor
Trojan ; and admitting the desirableness of Improving the
moral and physical condition of the poor, maintained that he
and those who agreed with him had done and wee doing
more to promote that object than those who =we opposed to
them on the Sunday quntion.
It baring been previously agreed that both gentleman
should speak only twice, occupying half an hoar each time,
both them stipulations were carefully =her= to, and the
meeting, which commenced at eight o'clock, terminated
about ten. The proceedings were characterised by &trim
and good temper on both sides.
The discumion this evening will have special refifithee to
the moral end social semen of the question.

THE LATE SURGICAL OPERATION ET PROPES-
COO Sy m p.—The patient whose thecae was removed in
the Edinburgh Infirmary by Professor Spore walked out of
the theatre, speechless, but grateful and happy, and hue con-
tinued well over since, being fed with a tube. He can now,
however, swallow, and on Sunday he spoke, or rather
breathed out the word •• Milk." Ile is cheerful, and gismo
every hope of thorough recovery. The operation was per-
formed In the great operating theatre, before the largest
number of spectator. probably ever In it—raedical men of all
sgea, from the student in his first year to the grey veteran
boat the Peninsula or the Crimea. These 600 spectators are
not likely won to forget that 10100-46 intense a bit of
tragedy, though in common lA, as any old Greek would
have dedred "ti purge the noel with terror and pity,"
having advantme over the classic Untidy that it ended
and for good; sad that, limb to the blessed ohlorw.
;IT fis rag doing was %nisi wad palaisaa-ssasirsas.