The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-08-08 00:00:00

•

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OP CHANCERY, Lancoug's-Ing,
**away, AUGUST 7.

RELIGIOUS TOLERATION.-THE BEDFORD
CHARITY

[For rest occurred Ware in this timperiaid caw, sae this
Paper of Saturday lad ]

The SOLICITOK-GICNER4L—'s Since this ewe
was before your Lordship, the inquiries which
your lonialisp directed to he made have been done,
and 1 am h ttgty to say in a . satisfactory a manner
as not to Ir the a doubt on a single point. This
case came before your Lordship on the petition of
certain persons or the Jewish persuasion, praying
that this Court would declare that the children of
the poor inhabitants of the town of Bedford were
entitled to participate in the charity, whether Jews
or Christians. In the reign of Edward the Sixth,
a .0)0,4 was established fur the instruction of buys
in grammar. &c. I beg your Lordship will bear
in mind the time this I.titit place ; for I feel not
the least difficulty in raying, that had such at. +ap-
plication as the present been made in the time of
E.I. ird, or in the reign of Queen Elisabeth, when
Sir William Harper gave his estate for the be-
nefit of the hospital, it would not have been
sustained, for there was not a Court of Law
or Equity to that time in Great Britain, that
would have declared that Jews were entitled to re-
ceive benefit from the charity. Whatever the en-
lig:nened liberality of modern times may have
done for Jews, I nave yet to learn they are specially
tolerated by any Act of the Legislature. The
Trustees have no wish to persecute the Jews, but
only to defend the rights of the charity. By the
ancient law of the country, Jews and Infidels were
considered alien enemies. It h.id been stated to
be the law of the land by Loyd Coke, in Calvin's
case, where he held that all persons were either
*ltem or subjects, and:hat there were temporary
aliens, soul perpetwi Wain. In another part of his
Conemenlortes h. ....tee, that a Jewess could not,
on the c• nv-rsion of tier husband, claim her dowry.
The Jews of this country were sent out of it by an
Act of Edward 1., mid were not allowed to retorts
till the time of the Commonwealth ; and the.' pro.

vision was made for their return by Oliver Crom-
well. Christianity, it is well known, is inseparit.
bly connected with the State ; therefore it is utter-
ly impossible fur a Jew to claim or to participate
in this charity, especially as the exercise of his re-
bred is isicompanble with, sod contrary to, public
pot.cy. In the time of Lord Herdwicke it was de-
that this Court would not Afford it. protection
to charities solely for Jews. The question now
thra is, whether those not belonging to the Chris-
religsou cis partake of the benefits of this (+a-
rils ? lu toe 4th.tear of the rcigu of the present
Ki..g, it wee found that the 'event's.* of the (+silty
he exceeded what was required for the charity
A.l Act was accordingly passed to extend its
0i,,,,,,0„ and a sleint trustees; but there was
no pro• trio., that a Jew should he one of else trus-
ts... flw provi-iusss of that Act were repealed by
the 33d of the Kii.g. In my opinion, the first
flOrS•Olit to Ole Illflftl!,•I 00d IS, vii what monists the
*vs-JAI has been entiust,ted ? By the Act it is or-
drned to be under the jurisdict iiiii of the Warden
and Fellows of New College. 11.410 were to so-
fwroitend it, stud to give three exhibitions, of
forty !moods each, to three young meii, who
might attend such of the Universities as the
bisectors might think proper. Will it be the" said,
that Jews can clams such rehibittons ? Theo if
they c. iiiii ot claim our part of the charity, shall I
be t.•LI they should be entitled to another part?
The Vt.:owner Joseph had indeed two sons iti the
school, lost he is wrong us saying they were edu-
cated there to the usual religious manner, for at his
own request and special indulgence, the boys were
exempted from attending prayers awl Church on
SuoJat mud we a also permitted to lie absent on
Saturdays, awl other Jewish holidays. The next
thing I shall allude to is the provision of SOO!. as
a provision for m inlet's to encourage them to marry,
their ages being between 16 and 30. The trustees
were to Inert four times a year, when the can-
di were to give in their Christian and
Sionames. Their being obliged to give in their
names proved that Jews were to he ex-
cluded. and Christians only admitted. The next
thiag I have to bring your Lordship's attentiou
is thr alois houses, where the provision is, that the
mutates are to attend some place of public worship
on Sunday ; and this cannot be considered as in-
cluding Jews. for it is well known, were they to at.
tend places of Christian worship, it would be a vio-
lation of the faith howled down to them by their
forefaithers, and which they conscientiously ad.
here to. Fees were also peen to apprentices, and
here it is alleged that two sons of one of the Peti-
boilers had obtained the fees. It was true; hut
who were they appreisticed to ? I will tell 'our
Lord.hip--to their own father. It is utterly im-
possible that a Jewish child can be an apprentice to
a Christian ; for the master who employs the child
must be deprived of his services one day in every
week. It was not disputed that the Governor and
Trustres had the right to select and appoint mas-
ters fur the children. At the end of their appren-
ticeship, they were entitled, if they behaved well,
sod produced a certificate, taped by the Minister
tad Clisirchwardrus, to receive a further sum. My
Learned Friend (Sir S. Romilly) stated, this certifi.
cute was merely as to moral conduct ; but the cir-
cumstance of its being obliged to he a:gibed by the
cleigcmati, is a proof that religious conduct was
also included. It is true that the petitioner's
daughters all received the marriage portion,
and were mimed. It is toot necessary for ate to
0" itos your Lordship's time by stating all the ale-
das.t., as they insist be in your Lordship's recol-
lection. The affidavit of the Rev. Mr. Reardon,
head-noisier of the grammar school, is tin t
important, as it states the oestrus luUowrd in the
school, and that any child absent from prayers is
liatil.• to be first corrected, and then es Pelied sn'
lepetioun of the °Hester. The buys sire to be
taught first the Latin Grammar, and then the
Greek Tiestaniew. Is it then to be supposed that
Jews would allow their children to be taught the
Greek Testamelit ? In the preparatory whist.l, the
children are taught the English Bible and New
Trawasnera. wt,ii h litter was deviated from but
in the iiipt.ince of tau boys, at the desire of
*heir tinier, trot they left the school helore they
ti,lvetoct.d to the Greek ciao. This proves that the