The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-05-03 00:00:00


duty incumbent upon hit% as an unworthy mem-
ber of that bench to which he particularly below
ed..• Marriage was the chief bond and social
which essentially guarded the happiness of nations..
As early as the creation, and down to the times in
which we live, marriage
.had always been respected,
as the chief cetuen tof seciety. Amongst nations of the
greatest science and refinement ; and also amongst
those the most rude and barbarous, this instinstion
would be found invoriebly adopted. Whatever
laws should be made, whatever rules should be
laid down, if 'they consequently led to the
breach of .that• contract, they would be found
inimical to the best interest of a country's wel-
rani. The law of Englaud had not • raised this
act of solemnity into a sacrament, nor was it
lowered by the same law into a mere civil agree-
ment. In considering the subject before the
House, he was led to reflect how very rare and un-
coteinon divorces were previous to the reformation;
but' in modem timAes they had increased to a very
alarming degree. amid scarcely was there a day
when he could east his eyes to the table before him
and observe it clear front bills of that description.
If we reverted to the days of ancient Rome, when
science flourished most in her empire, we'siliould
And divorces gaining ground iusidtt the decay d
doinestie happiness. We were assured by a.graels.!
Author that they married with a view to be divoriced,•l
cud that they were divorced for the purpose of
marrying agoiti. He had not 'metlistinet authority
to allege that a practice so horrible to our iniiids
and feelings, that of exposing children, had its
origin iu the frequency of divorce ; bet he would
without Hesitation declare, that the breeches of
the marriage contract have a tendency to disunite
the affections of families, and to destroy BM
tender love of parents towards their offspring. It
was a Mat roan consideration, not only in the esti-
mate of the happiness or society, but.alims in the
particular sitm;ation of their Lordships' families,
hot one of whom had scarcely preserved itself from
the inroads of this dangerous vice. He nest ad-
verteel to the Canon, Ecciesimultigel and Evangeli-
cal law upon the crime of adultery, and quoted
fin ('reek) that pas age in the New Testament,
which speaks of a man marrying a woman who had
been put away for adultery. The Right Reierend
Prelate concluded a very able and eloquent speech •
in favour of the anotiosi.
Lord gRS6PIE entered fully into all the argu-
ments of the Noble Lord opposite (Lon! Harrow-
by).
to which he very iogenicnisly replied.
fhe Loin CHANCtiLLOit addressed the Muse
in a very impressive speech on the'saine side, and
stated the ausi_;•• Which lie had long entertained on
the present question. nestle-wed from the present
proceedings in Bills of Divorce, that the present
proposition was neither singular nor contrary to the
practice of Parliament. He regretted that when
Bills of Divorce dere brought before the Haase, all
the care and all the odium were constantly thrown
upon himself and two three other Noble Lords.
Lord timti.s•iise ..,..•errad the measure pro-
posed, t: hid:, if ee.• • ii as not going far enough,
it was mile f ` üble Lords to to/Otiose such
additie! . - • as 'they considered necessary,
elm • • .• .• ~ doubt but the subject would receive
timet degree ofaßentitm, the usegnitade of it
The first question, that the proposition now •
be-
foreffient 'offesed to their 'Lordships' comisideration.
was, did'the measure. now proposed, premise to he
likely to effect *fly gelid ? It itiint. it world sere ey •
be else le their Lordships to use 01,e:rower they pot-
seised of giving it effect in the a.iy pinnate& which
.neither clashed with oar imeerfered with the Other
branch offing Legislature. it had been said thatcor-
rectioit was the object of poet-diluent. This• he de-
Med ; on time other humid, lie contended that the
sole object of punishment was, or ought to be, the
prevention of crime ; there ass no just feeling of
the haunt' mud would bear to eousider it as a
mean, of correction inercly, without considering it
as holding up mie example to deter others fiorn the
commnissiou of crime. In this point of view, there
lie considered the present measure as peculiarly
necessary for time preservation of the purity of the
manage state; as peculiarly neccsemry tier tile pur-
pose of repressing the first approtielmer of seduction,
by holding up to the view of the Victim or it, the
inevitable cousrapiences of her fall, by being irre-
trievsibly lost we society for ever. The next ques-
-I,tion for their Lordships coosideratiou was, whether
the mode profit-eel was likely to effectuate the
remedy intended? T. the ohjectious made to it, he
would answer in the manner of the Noble awl
Learned Lord who had preceded him, that if they
were not •to attempt the cure of the evil coin-
! plainest of because that evil would probably atilt
lallialtl, that mode of reasoning would apply as A
IMO Iliv.ition for neglecting all remedy in every case.
because imply whatever cure human sagacity could
devise. evil would still be round to exist. But it
had been•objected that the other House of Parliament
might defeat their Lordships' intentions by rejecting
such !rinses should contain the clause now proposed.
The mine might be suici of every bill which might
couteiii any dense to. a hich they might object.—
Would it he said theta their Lorslshipe were there-
fore to depart from the opinion they lied formed in
every ciese where the other House should differ
from them ? Each Howie certainly pressessed- the
poem, end should act in whatever manner they
might deem proper ;' and the experience of peat
times proved the happy effect resultiug from the
due exercise of that right. BeLides, iu adopting
the peesent resolution, as a standing order of their
Howe, -they still reserved to theieselvii the power
of consider mg the ease of sack as ought appear
to chum an exemption from it; although lie
was free to acknowledge he could hardly con-
ceive an case iu which such a claim should be al-
lewed. With respect tithe expense attending Lille
of divorce, . his Lordelitp considered it as out of time
question altogether ; if little of the kind were to he
muttered at all, the expense should be istioitely re-
duced ; if it were wise to reject them altogether;
no sem. however large, should render them attain-
able. Betides, it aboisld be recelleeted, that the
smallest expense at which sash a primeeeding could
be estimated, was intiintely helmet what the ;stem
majority of society could . possibl) sitstein ; he
therefore considered, that which wax a system cal-
culiited for the kw, to the totr.l excimmion of the

many, Ys radically had. Granting it, however, us
their Lorthhiri vertainly did, as a favour, they
surely had a ri;:ht to by flown what term% they
pleased, as the price of the purehave. As to the