The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-03-26 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY,

the House to " avert the danger which threatened the Proteatae.t re-
ligion, more especially in Ireland, and to adopt such effectual
sures as it might think lit." He knew that there was no danger
either contemplated or apprehended to the Protestant religion ; but
he would take this opportunity of recommending to the Rev. and
Noble Lords not to present such petitions; he was convinced that
by not doing so, they would be touch better serving their Church,
and promoting its interests • and they would be acting more fairly
in not charging that aide of House with illiberal sentiments and
with injustice in objecting to the course the clergy had so repeatedly
taken.

The Bishop of BATH and WELLS explained. The Noble
Lord, he said, had found fault with his observation, that those wiio
opposed the petitions of the clergy had acted unjustly. But they
had charged the clergy with a want of charity, and surely this was
an unjust charge. in his (the Rev. Lord's) opinion, liberality w*
a great virtue, but far from him be liberality if he were obliged to
be tihcral at the expense of Ills religion.
Earl DUDLEY and WARD said, that the Rev. petitioners did
not appear to be aware that the Catholic Association had ceased to
exist, and it would be well if the Rev, sad Noble Lord would in.
form them of this fact.
The Bishop of BATH and WELLS felt obliged to the Noble
Ear! for his suggestion, but the clergy were ...ready aware of the
fact.

Lord KING said, that the petition alluded to--the petition from
the Clergy of the diocese of Ely—charged the Irish Laity with " a
total prostration of mind and will to the dictates of an intolerant
priesthood." Those ware very the words; he would say, as had
been said on a formeeoccasion, " I wonder where they stole them."
He would inform the House whence they stole therm It was
front a charge delivered to his clergy by the Lord Bishop of
London & that Reverend Bishop had recommended this state of
'• prostration of mind and will" as the very best state to make a
Christiaa. The petition also stated, that " the Catholics had col-
lertielednrese sums, which were at the disposed of persons who were
infl by. factious demagogues." He was enemies to know
who the peuuotterre=kaW=r ilew011" ,W" it
asp of die Noble P View tioreno Clergy
had hem charged with 2 want °felinity e let thee° redeem it now,
and state who thane •• factious demagogues" really are.
Lord CALTHORPE thought that petition+ from the Clergy
weld not in any way benefit the Church of England, as they tended
toset them in a light which was not consistent with the moderation,
the kindness, the justice, and the virtues they ordinarily exhibited
in their lives and in their creeds. With respect to the petition from
Ely, he saw inscribed on it the names of several gentlemen whom
he knew either personally or by character—of two of them he would
say, that of his own knowledge there were no where greater ene-
mies to bigotry. One of them was a gentleman of high classical
attainments ; the other was a gentleman who was one of the
greatest blessing the Church of England, and the Univer-
sity of which he was a member, ever had. It would be there-
fore unjust in their Lordships to form opinions of the characters
of those Reverend petitioners from the strong language they had
used, in consequence of the view they had taken of the sub-
ject which they considered of so much importance. He thought
there was no body of men who had so much reason to
admit the great respectability of the opponents of the Catholic
Claims as those who advocated them, and as the Catholics them-
selves. In his opinion it was nothing but the esteem so justly due'
to the similes of those who had so strenuously opposed the advo-
cates of the Catholics, that had for such a long period of time pre-
vented the Catholics from being admitted to equal rights with the
Protestants. It was nothing but the artificial splendor that those
highly distinguished irdividuals had contrived to throw around
their cause, that had induced Parliament for so many years to
termer to the Catholics the advantages they were still seeking for.
He believed that if the arguments against the Catholics had been
left to their own effects, without the aid of those who were so highly
respected for the probity of their motives, those arguments would
not have obtained attention for a single moment. It was rather to
the characters of their opponents, and not to the strength of the
arguments against them, that the Catholics owed their continuance
out of power. His object, however, in rising at the present time,
was rather of a personal nature. He had received several letters
front anonymous correspondents, expressing surprise that he had
said the Catholic religion was changed. He had beep misunder-
stood. lie had iitteeded to express his opinion that as a system of
religious NO the Catholic religion remained unchanged, but that
in its character, in the only way that Parliament would be justified
in interfering with it, as a system of faith affecting the obedience
of the laity, it was considerably altered On some future et:canon,
when the question cline more regularly before the House, he would
deliver his sentiments on this subject. He felt warmly for the in.
tercets of the Church of F. gland, and for the connection of Church
and State • but he knew that the restrictions under which the Ca-
tholics laboured opposed the must effectual barrier to the spread of
the Protest ent religion in Ireland ; and he was assured that the only
way of making converts to that religion in that country, would be
by admitting the Protestant and the Catholic to equal right.. It
wee his epinsen that petitions such am those that bad been laid on
the table were ealculaten to give the negative to the assivtien that
the country at large opposed the claims of the Catholics. This
would be seen by every one who considered the trifling number of
petitions that had been presented against them, and more especially
tie attics from whom they had emanated.
The petition was then laid on the table.
The Bishop of GLOUCESTLR presented a petition from the
Rural Peen and the Clergy of the Deanery of Gloucester against
the Catholic Claims. The Rev. and Noble Lord observed, that
the petition was worded in the most temperate terms, and on that
account he begged it might be read.—Read and laid on the table.
The Bishop of GLOUCF.ST ER then presented a similar peti-
tion from the Rim' Dean and the Clergy of Chippcn-Crampoon, in
the (home of Glrnicester—Read and laid on the table.
The Bishop of ('HESTER presented a similar peitioa from the
Dean and Chapter and the Clergy of Chester. The Noble and
Reverend Lord observed, that perhaps it might be informal to re- I
ceive in as he perceived the seal of the Death and Chapter had not
been affixed to it.
At the suggestion of the Earl of LIVERPOOL, the Noble and
Reverend feed presented It as the petition of those by whims it was
signed. He observed, that previous to it being read, he felt it
necessary to say a few words in reply to the observations of a Noble
Lord opposite, who bad deprecated the petitions if the Clergy, and
had stated them to reflect discredit on the Church of Engiand. It those
petitions did contain expressions that were not strictly justifiable, if
they had been in any degree intemperate, he thought die Clergy, as
a body, had no more right to be judged by thorn expreseiot a than i
the debates of that august house had a right to be judged by a few
indecent expressions of a Noble lend who was one of its Members, I
observations which that Noble Lord must have borrowed from a
dog-kennel. That Noble Lord had said, that lie was not disposed
to exclude the Clergy from the right which all British subjects en.
joyed—the right of petitioning. And in the name of the
Clergy, lie (the Noble and Reverend Lord) would thank him
for his courtesy ; but he would tell hint, there was another
and a better way of preventing them from sending their pe-
titions to that House. It was by taking their petitions toj
pieces, and by holding them up to the contempt of the public ;
this was the more effectual way, but this was the method that every
one ought to deprecate. He would pray their Lordships to heel
lect, that if they considered the question in a political point of view,
the clergy looked upon as a religious one, and if, in their attachment
to the relleion which their ancestors professed, and which they had
sworn to maintain, they had gone somewhat beyond the mild and
temperate course which they might have taken, it surely was not
surprising, and for 90 doing they certainly ought not to be treated
harshly. Every one knew that in questions which interested the
religious feelings of any persona, those persons were apt to manifest
their feelings somewhat warmly. Bet he wooled ceutess that he did
not look upon the petition from the clergy of Ely as an acrimonious
petition, although so mutt; had been said of the intolerance of it,
bentuse it charged the Roman Catholic Church with intolerance.
This question he would rot now discuss, but he was prepared to
show that there did exist in that Church a spirit of intolerance, and
it was notorious that in Ireland the most intolerant doctrines were
upheld in the Tont violent language. A noble Lehi opposite had
alluded to the charge of a Reverend Lord who graced the upper
benches, mid had quoted a portion of it. He tthe Bishop of Chea-
ter) remembered that charge, and remembered the: it recommended
90 the clergy a " prostration of mind and will ;" but it was a pros-
tration et nund and will to the precepts olthrinianlty—a temperate
submiseion to the mandates of the Gospel, and not such a " pros-
tration of mind and will" as the Roman Catholic Clergy recom-
mended to the laity in the doctrine of an infallible Judge. Ile
(the Reverend Bishop) did not know in what school the Noble
Lmtl (King) had learnt his polemical tactics. but lie thought this
' sois.inteemetation of the advice of the Right Rdvereed Prelate was
unworthy of *generous adversary, It was an artifice similar to the
' many which had been used by the enemies of all pure religion—he
was far hem including the Noble Lord among thetn—but it was an
artifice of wince& they had made liberal, and not always unsuccessful,
use, Religion, however, was not now to be injured by such ear-
destes, altheugh they were calculated to injure it. If such ear-
arm as had been
.that night thrown out were in cenformity with
Parliamentary usage, he thought that usage ought to be changed.
lilt were not so, he would cell upon their headships to interfere aid
protect the clergy from such attacks--a tacks which were not ju-
dicial arguments, but were unseenily and unfitly used as missiles
against a body of men who held their eats in that House by a
tenure not lass fixed or important than any Member in it—a body
of men whom their Lordships would one day or other find out, as
their sect store hart found out before them, to be deserving of re-
spect, and not meriting to be heated with contumely.
Lied Cateramten and Earl DARNLEY explained.
Lord KI NG said, that the Reverend l'relate had thought fit to
charge the Noble Lords on that side of the house—and him in par-
ticular (fur he could not help taking the observation to Innoielf)--
with a di sire to take to pieces, and to hold up to contempt, the pe-
titions that had been presented from the Clergy ; but be was sum
that neither he nor these who sat near him hind ever any seal in-
tention. The Noble and Rev. hone ,had also said that he (Lord
Kings was not a friend to the Established ( hutch of England. He
woulu say that lie was not a friend to the system of non-residents—
those non-residents who had beaten down all the orders of the thary
Council, notwithstanding the orders that had been issued foe the
annual returns of be number of resident and of nonoteident
beneficed clergymen. Of the ten or eleven thourand beneficed
eternises, there were between six and seven thousand non-re-
sidents, and rot mote than four thousand residents. He wished
that Parliament would !between:tie inquiry into the matter.