The Express.
London, England, 1868-03-28 00:00:00

TILE ST. ALBAN'S RITUAL CASE.

ARCHES COURT.—(THIS DAY.)
(Before Sir R. Phißimers.)
MARTIN V. MACIONOCIIII.
JUDGMENT.
This morning the Dean of Arches (Sir R. Philli-
ow) delivered judgment in this important sass, and
the court was crowded to exams to bear his lordship.
lie commenced by reviewing the character of the
Astute under which the proceedings in this ease
had been commenced, and he much regretted
that he had been deprived of the great
umtance which he should have derived from the
iudguient of the Bishop of London, if th•,ceee had been
-brought before him as • Court of Appeal. He said the
ase of Flamank v. Simpson was similar in character, and
the arguments of counsel in this case had been almost
identical with those advanced in Martin v. Mackonochie,
and therefore he should deliver one judgment for both.
A great deal had been said on both sides as to the motives
of accuser and accused, but his lordship wholly declined
to impute to Mr. Martin any unworthy motive,
and es to Mr. M•ckonochie he was • gentleman
having the charge of one of the worst districts in London,
and be had devoted himself to the dislharge of the
dales of his holy office and had endeavoured to
evangelise the almost heathen population of his parish.
BLS lordship, however, did not my that on this account
Mr. Mackonochis was entitled to conduct the services
d the church in a manner not authorised
by the law. The proceedings which had been
taken against that gentleman were of • criminal cha-
ract,r, and his lordship did not see how it would have
ben competent to have brought the charges alleged before
him in any civil form. The principal charges were four
in number—first, excessive kneeling during sacrament;
second, the use of incense ; third, the mixing of wine
and water; and fourth, the use of lighted candles
at the holy table. The main proposition on
behalf of Mr. Martin was that in effect all these were
r tea and ceremonies other than, and additional to those
procribed in, the Prayer-book and the Act of Uniformity ;
Aid Mr. Mackonoohie's answer was that the matters cont.
jlaineil of were not rites or ceremonies at all, and that if
they were either one or the other they were not at variance
with the Prayer-book or the Act of Uniformity. There was
ea doubt rites and ceremonies were sometimes used in
the sense contended for by the defendants; but on the
•hole the result of his lordship's examination of the
authorities led him to the conclusion that there was •
legal distinction between • rite and a ceremony, the
former consisting in a service expressed In words, the
latter in gestures preceding, accompanying, or following
th. utterance of those words. Applying this principle to this
raw, he was of opinion that the matters complained of
must be considered as rites and ceremonies. His lord-
ship then at great length proceeded to quote the autho-
rities as to what is the nature of a rite or a ceremony, in
otter, as he remarked, to fortify his position that the
. rations now pending before him in no way affected the
i..t ions of the church of England to the rest of the catholic
rharli, but bad reference solely to matters of detail and
order in her administration, which was • right which every
io.lependent church had at all times claimed
..n .I exercised. Having thus divested the issue
et
the case before him of th►t importance
which had been not unnaturally ascribed to it by the ex-
. feelings of both parties, his lordship proceeded to
say that he thanked God that he was not called upon to
ileehle any question of doctrine. If, indeed, the law had
e on grave a responsibility upon him he should have
rausidered it would have been right to have invoked the
aid of spiritual assessors. but fortunately no such neces-
sity bad arisen. His lordship then, at considerable
lrogth, west on to consider whether the matters charged
...dog Mr. Mackonochis being, as be had decided, rites
:,lid ceremonies, were at variance with the Book of Com-
mon Prayer and the Act of Uniformity. The mere fact
that the practices complained of were novel furnished by
ho means a complete argument that they were unlawful,
..nd little assistance on that head could be obtained in
• the question whether the acts of Mr. Maokonotibie
site contrary or not to the law. It bed been argued
that these particular practices were by necessary
i.,idie ition prohibited, inasmuch as they were connected
with the Rotuish doctrine, and had not been In use in
England since the Reformation. His lordship was of
opinion that this argument did not avail to prove that the
proctiees were illegal. The rules by which he had been
• in forming his judgment in this case were times :
That what was expressly prohibited was prohibited alto-
gether, and should not be evaded by any contrivance
under • different name or appearance,
....tallied the same end, and that whatever was expressly
ordered should not be evaded by an illusory or partial ap-
pb..iice. lu other words, there were things lawful and
lered : secondly, things unlawful and prohibited ; and
do:4ly, things neither ordered nor prohibited expressly or
by implication. His lordship then proceeded to deal with
:.ese three propositions, and concluded by declaring that the
ni.••IC of elevation pr►ctised by both defendants was illegal,
. • •c.. ate the use of incense. The charge of excessive
kneeling or prostration his lordship decided should not
1...5e been referred to him, it was • matter purely to be
de. It with by the Bishop. The use of two lighted candles,
1,i4 loldship said, was not an illegal act.
fhc delivery of the judgment occupied four hours and a
indf.

IMPROVEMENT OF THE CONDITION OF THE
41:111CULTURAL LABOURBIL-(THIS DAY.J

1 conference on this subject was held this after-
-I,on, at Willis's Room., St. James's ; Professor ROGERII
in the chair. The meeting was convened by • circular
• 'col by the General and Agricultural Labour Institute,
offices of which are at No. 18, Serjeant's-inn, Fleet-
. .

_
The following questions wore announced in the circular
for consideration :-1. What are the causes of the tin-
s aistictety condition of the agricultural labourer? 2.
Whet are the means beat calculated to improve that con-
Oaten ? :). If by the formation of a society, then, upon
'bat plan should such society be constituted, and what
steps taken to form it.
Amongst those present were the Earl of Lichfield,
Lord Northbrooke, the Hon. Auberon Herbert, Mr. Faw-
cett, M.P., Mr. Morrison,lL P., Mr. C. 8. Read, M.P., Col.
Y.P., Mr. Pollard-i'rquhart, M.P., Mr. J. C.
Vo9rtto, Professor Rogers, Mr. Rix, of the Central
Farmer's Club, Colonel Dickson, Mr. Bea/es, &c.
A letter had been received by the Secretary (Mr. A. Reid)
from Mr. W. E. Gladstone, Y.P. saying that he much re-
gretted that it would not be in his power to attend the
I:letting, the right hon, gentleman adding, "No subject
can better deserve a searching examination."
Professor Mounts, in opening the proceedings, said there
could be no doubt that the subject before the meeting
wee one of greet megnitude. Nothing was better known
then the fact that the condition of the agricultural
lbourcrs throughout the United Kingdom, except in
a few localities, was very unsatisfactory. For
e.me years past he had paid great attention to
Chic matter. If they compared the condition of
th, agricultural labourer now with his condition
hmdred years ago they would find his statement borne
by the comparison. He then entered into details in
`llPi.•.irt of this view.
Canon Gritnisseoirn then proceedei to address the
conferenee, and was doing so when our report left.

OAKS COLLIERT.—TRZ CUPOLA CLEARED.
-For the first time sines the awful explosion in December,
ban, the men were able on Thursday last to go down
the No. 1, or downcast shaft, and owns out of the
cupola shaft. To arrive at this desirable state of
affairs, nine months have been spent in oldie s%
log the workings, and in recovering seven or
eight bodies. During the week the men have got
to the cupboard near to the cupola, where a timepiece was
found, and where an old man named John Bentley, the
teller of the fires, kept a New Testament, his slogs, and
his spectacles. All these things have been brought out
safe. The clock bad stopped at five minutes pest 9,
and, beyond being dirtied, was very little worn. Th.
cupola is now ening as an u A steam fan, which is
hied at the top of the shaft, is being worked night and
riky, with a view of rendering the ventilation more 411-
cent, and filling the plan of the ordiamy fees for draw-
ing mit the gas. The workmen are at prenet engaged in
(dewing the furnace drift, and making it larger. Stain
Precautions are being taken to prevent any light., at any
Pines smoking on UN prongs's.— York Herald.

THE GOVERNMENT EDUCATION zilm.

This morning was published the draft cd the bill
presented to the House of Lords by the lend Psosident,
the object of which is to regalia* the dial ibstiem of emu
granted by parliament for siemsatary education in In-
land and Wales, and for other purposes.
This bill provides that before any handbag vast
for the erection of a new school is made, the Fame apply-
ing for the grant must show to the satiefution of the new
Secretary of State fee Education (whose Ales is to be
created by this bill) that there is in the sektioserbood
where it is proposed to establish the new asked, • wafil-
civet population of the labouring clams. =provided
with the means of education to supply the school with
'chokes ; that the character of the religiose imskuction
to be given is suitable to the bullies to be adulated ; sod
that the school is likely to be maintained la effi-
ciency. The claimants must also provide a suita-
ble site for the proposed school, and comply
with each conditions as to the tenure thereof as
the Secretary of State may think fit to require. As to
religious instruction in corinecticm with building grants,
all questions connected with the nature, amount, and
character of the religious instruction to be given
shall be decided exclusively by the persons
invested with authority by the trust deed, and
neither the Secretary of Stab nor any other person shall
have the power to interfere ; but when the proposed
school will be the only public school available for the
education of poor children in a district, and when there is
within that district any considerable number of children
for whom no more suitable means of education are likely
to be provided, and whose parents are likely to object to
the religious instruction intended to be given, or to the
religious worship intended to be used, the trust deed mast
contain a clause providing that no child resident
within ordain limits shall be excluded from the
school or deprived of any of the benefits derivable from it.
Nor shall any child be compelled to attend any Sunday
school, church, or other place of worship as a condition of
receiving instruction on the week days. Crania for the
enlargement of existing schools are only to be made
when the conditions already referred to are com-
plied with, and in canes where the right of government
inspection is secured. The Secretary of State shall issue
certificates to teachers of elementary schools, who have
passed a satisfactory examination, and who have subse-
quently acted as teachers of elementary schools, during
which time they shall be called probationary teachers, but
in the event of those certificates being cancelled they shall
' be delivered up. Thebill alsoimposse certain conditions the
fulfilment of which shall be necessary to entitle elementary
schools to grants ; and if, upon an inspector's report,
there appears to be anyepecial reason forwithholding those
' grants, they shall be withheld until • further examine-
' tion has been made by two inspectors. No grants are to
be made towards the building or fitting up of normal
1 schools ; and only for their maintenance when the Seare-
' tary of State is satisfied that the premises are suitable,
' the management satisfactory, sod the staff efficient.

The second part of the bill directs the method to be
employed for obtaining an educational atomic, and there
are various schedules attached.

"HERAPATH'S RAILWAY JOURNAL."