The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-04-16 00:00:00

in the administration of our parochial affairs. The
walls are posted with unmeaning and bigoted cards
about the influence of Romanism at the Select
Vestry. No party should have a preponderance
there, and we believe, that under present circum
stances, the ratepayers should vote for the church,
wardens list.

The local news, added to "the above may be set
down as nil.

In the foreign news there is nothing very striking
to-day •

Our Paris intelligence to day represents Louis
Napoleon as a successful mediator between Spain
and Mexico, and between Turkey and Persia, and
as endeavouring, in conjunction with the United
States, to prevent the English contest at Canton
from obstructing the commerce •of other nations.
)3etween Austria and Sardinia, too, French nego
tiation is at work in a spirit friendly to both ; and
too much importance has been attached to the.
Piedmontese camp at AleSsandria.
At the same time, the threatened strife about the'
Danish German Duchies is about to disappear, .as_
a result of Von Scheek's resignation, which has
been accepted by the King.
- As for the Neufchatel dispute, it is still ap-
parently remote from settlement, but it can never
lead-to actual war. The EurOpean protest may,
therefore, be considered as extremely pacific.
The marked success of the patriotic Roumans
in the elections now in progress in the Danubian
Principalities is confirmed from every quarter,
and must afford satisfaction -to those wlio loOk to a •
revival of the political life of nations as the best
guarantee for the future welfare of Europe.
We have, however, to notice the occurrence of
tumultuary disturbances in the Papal dotninions,
caused, it is said, by the pressure of a too onerous
taxation- •.,;: •

. .
Letters from Athens of the Bth state that the
ministry, now that it is rid of the opposition Of the
Senate, is preparing_ reforms. A. French company
is to light Athens with gas. The national fete of
the 25th March was celebrated with great pomp.
Intelligence has been received, via Marseilles,
.from Constantinople, to the 6th inst. The inves
tigation relative to the affair of the Poles who
were landed in Cireassia, has led to the conclusion
that two Pachas, Ismail and Ferhed, were impli-
cated in the affair. A maritime police has been
established in the Bosphorus against the pirates. A
body of 130 Poles have embarked for Thessaly, to
settle on Redschid Paella's property in that
country.

Her Majesty and the infant princess are doing
well.

The election .of Scotch representative peers took
place on Tuesday. TWe follOwin g peers were elected:
—The Marquis of Tweeddale, Earls of Morton,
Home,
.Strathmore, Leven, and Melville, Orkney,
Seafield, Selkirk, and Airlie, Viscount Strathallan,
Lords Grey, Sinclair, Elphinstone, Colville of
Culsop, Blantyre, and Polwarth.

THE proceedings at the Annual General Vestry
held on Tuesday, conclusively demonstrates the
expediency of a prompt settlement of that much-
vexed question—Church Rates. Two remarka-
ble speeches were delivered on the occasion : the
first by Mr. Churchwarden WOODRUFF, and the
other by Mr. Alderman DOVER. The former
gentleman advocated in strong and pointed terms
the inexpediency of levying a compulsory rate,
whilst Mr. DOVER as keenly insisted that the
parishioners were bound to keep the parish
churches in repair, and that this only could be
effectually done by leqing a compulsory rate.
He furthermore gave his reading of the law upon
the subject, which, if correct, would seem to war-
rant his view of the case. Be this as it may, the
time has come for the Legislature to take up the
matter, and devise some other " ways and means"
for securing the proper and permanent repair of
the parish churches without having recourse to a
compulsory demand upon the pockets of Dis-
senters. When we consider thelmpolicy of such
a tax, and the evils of which it is the foundation,
it will be at once admitted that there could not be
a more favourable opportunity for its abolition
than in the first Session of the new Parliament.
At the recent elections no small portion of the
membefs of the present House of Commons
pledged themselves to vote for the abolition of
Church-rates—tea pretty conclusive evidence that
although the people were bent on obtaining an
extension of the suffrage, vote by ballot, &c.,
they.had not lost sight of questions of ecclesias-
tical reform.

But apart from the inexpediency of Church-
rates, and their injustice in principle, they are
the source of considerable parish jobbing, which

should be put down. Our present Ambassador
in Greece, Sir THomAs WYSE, has written an
able and eloquent book on Educational Reform,
in the course of which, he points out the tricks

practised at Easter Vestries. Tuesday's pro-
ceedings remind us f.xcibly Of what Sir THOMAS
has written on the subject. Mr. CHARLES
WILLMER put a most awkward question to Mr.
WOODRUFF, as to the employment of paupers in
connection with parish churches; and although
the worthy churchwarden at first fenced with the

interrogatory, he was at last compelled to admit
that from a dozen to fifteen persons who are
maintained by the parish out of the poor-rates, have
been employed about the parish churches. This
is most deceptive conduct. The parishioners
refuse a Church-rate ; yet the Churchwardens,
as guardians of the poor, procure a number of
able-bodied paupers from the Workhouse, to
cleanse the Churphes. This being, as Mr.
WILLMER properly remarked, " virtually getting
out of the parishioners a compulsory rate, in
opposition to their own wish." In fact it is an
illegal act from beginning to end, nor can Mr.
WOODRUFF'S explanatiDn mend the matter one
way or the other.

Independent of this reprehensible conduct,
there is another matter which places the conduct
of the late Churchwardens in a very questionable
light, as phblic functionaries. We allude to the
fact of the non-enforcement of the collection of
the parochial rate. As now collected, it would
seem to be voluntary on the part of the rate-
payers whether the amount levied upon them
should be liquidated or not. A practice such' as
this is fraught with the most serious and danger-
ous consequences. It subjects one portion of the
community to an unjust, an unequal taxation,
thereby creating an ill-feeling among the rate-
payers, in consequence of the partiality evinced
in the collection of the rate levied. Ouce an
assessment is made, it is the duty of the parish
authorities to see that it is strictly enforced, that
every person rated pays the amount, and that,
except in very rare instances, such as absolute
poverty, there- should 'not-be' any exemptions.
This does not appear to be the policy adopted by
the late Churchwardens. According to Mr.
DovErt, their motto is, "We don't mean to go to