The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-05-20 00:00:00

r unison with his own, bet sesta' sgificultitia wo ul
occur which might prevent him briugingtbe toes-
Lion forward. That Right Non. Gentleman laving
intimated that it was not his intention to bring the
matter forward this session, the subject reverted to
luau. Thinking he would stood ho chance nest propos-
big a Cunnitittee, • to eissuidsr the expediency
of .1 commuyinti of tithe* hi Ireland, it was his bi-
teutiiiii to propose to allow jiicuitibents of parishes
to grant a lease for YI years to the parishioners,
whine lie oar induced to do from the catii:..l and
liberal udinission, last session, that a necessity ex-
.isted for eliangiug the system of the Church reve-
nue Obit country. Ile I losiT quoted the °pinhole
of l)r. 'Smith and Dr. !lull he, uvula the bail po-
hey of tithes, un:l ulso Mr. Thonsywni, who, is his
" Auu.ds or Agriculture," inentimis a quantity of
hind in England, which might have liven cultivai-
ed at itt per acre. and would have Pro-
duced amilially 10,0001. but the tithe owners would
not take less than 11.u001. for their right ; thus
tithes operand uguiest the interest of tile country,
and in Ireland the objections were still greater.—
The lion. Grotlemait then commented on the itd-
vantnges his BM would afford the Clergy, and par-
ticularly dwelt the existing method of collecting
tithes in !reknit, I! on which a greater scene of miss
chief accrued that' in any other coisutry in the world.
In !rebind it is iinpos-thle any person coold exist out-
lasts he was an occupier of land, stud thus paupers oc-
cupy land, and the elergymati is reinlered unable to
collect tithes or get legid redress; they employ a
proctor, or tithe-farmer, and they create distresses,
li every one lutist deeply deplore; the law was
oppressive Upois the ;.arisliiiiiiers, mill if the Imel-
lord was poor, he could get no redress from the
exaction or tithes. He rend part of a speech deli-
va usl one of the public meetings, which be be-
hived contained an ac:ortite view of the ease, which
stated the power of the proctors over small proprie-
tors as nearly despotic, who, if their valnation is
objected to. serve them with a citation, threaten
tii ruin them with the expense, and hold them op
to the county as disloyal men alto refuse to pay
tithes, wishing to sill•rert the estelilisheil church.
It watt well known that titre had recently Leen dis-
turhauces its the county of Berry; a liich hail been
suppressed in the wisest way poi the Lord Lieute-
nant, assisted by thee Roman Catholic Clergy,
i.lto iuducal them to assemble in place., where
debuted multitudes clelive:eil up their Arms.
and declared on their oath* that they hod been
goaded to madness by the tyranny of Isrocrorsliips.
The Honourable Member then submitted, whether
he had not made out a case tit for the consiileriition
of the - house, and having stated the had conse-
quences and inernivenieecies arisilig from the col-
lection of tithes in Ireland, hoped, if his 111!1 were
supported, they would hr at au end ; he thought it
hood a strong claim to support ; one reason which
induced him to urge the measure proposed, was its
being a good measure, likely to lead to a c autunite-
/ion ; which. however mock to be wished. he had
tbought proper to promse something wore
The Honourable !homier then touched upou the
hopolicy and injustice of tithes in general, a hich
were contrary to the lirat priumples of taxi:-
lion, tended to check the force of industry,
and wce• injonous to the cause of religioii.—
There was another toisic upon which he felt it ne-
cessary to touch, and that was the state of the
Church as by law established in Irelaiid, which. it
was well known, did not consist or above one-tenth
of the population of that country. Those best at.
quainted with the subject, estimated the nuudier
of inhabitants at not li as than five millions ; of
whom four millions were Roman Catholics; and of
the remainder, the one half at least were of the
descriptiou of Dissenters from the Established
Church; so that nine-tombs of the people were
forced to contribute to the support of the Esta-
blished Church, without any return for so doing.
That the grievanees atrmoig ant of lithe,' were, in a
great degree, the cause ul all the disturbances
which had so long mg:tilted that country, particu-
larly those winch took place eleven years ago, was
manifest, from the examination of the leaders of
that rebellion, before the Select Cnutmittee of the
Irish House of Lairds. Upon that occasion it was
asked Dr. Nl.Nevio, loot only a leader. but one of
' uckuowledged• ability and talent If tithes had
been commuted' according to the plat proposed
by Mr. Grattan. what effect it was likely to pro-
duce upon the pe.iple:." His answer was,
.• that it was a play by the adoption of which a
most powerful engine would have been taken oat
of their (the Leader's) howls." Meiji then wise
51inisters to refuse the limited measinaLsoch as he
proposed, when so much of the safety of the em-
pire might depend upon couciliating so important
a branch of it ? There was only one topic more
upon which his f, It it necessary to touch. A Right
Hon. G•mtleinaii Human, more, as an indiseemeist to
the people of Ireland to consent to the measure
un 'Lilo,' then under contemplation, had held out
in his eon mime, in a speech which lie made apon
that occasion, and which ca. printed and circus.
hated throughout (hint country bv Government.
that oust of the couientiences of shat ineovore
%%mild be. that some mole would necessurily
br nilopted by the lin penal Pielitimenr, fur
the purpose of relic sing the people from the pres-
sure of tithes, which, he admitted, were a wrist
practical evil. He would therefore conclude what
lie had to say, with warming the Ministers of the
present day, that they would do well to consider a
little the cunsequeisces of n refusal to the proposi-
tion which he hail to offer. Ile moved, "That
leave be given to bring in a Bill, to make proripum
holding ecelesiasticel benefices, and to wl,om tithes
' were piyable, to demise the war for a terui, not
exceeding twenty-our yei.rs."
Mr. PkIttEVA L. in rising to give his'inost decided
opposition to the usessure now prniveseil, felt him-
self also horrid to state his reason. for that opposi-
ties, and though lie owned he had felt himself in
some degree saver in his opiiiiirna, in the coarse of
the convereation he had with the [lnn. Gentlemao
on the subket. yet, epees th • most mature e insider-
ado,. he could give it, lie was now already of opi-
nion, that nothing radically isehelicial could he ef-
fected. He hoti oven so strong a wish on the aces-
bison as to go the leirath of preparing a Bill for the
purpose, although the, Hon. Gentleman, in all he
lied said, had oat stated how his plait was to be
carried into execution. la the courant however of his
investigation. he WI fouled such difficulties iw his
vollsit9 various sod so multiplied, as obliged him to