The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-01 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT

HOUSE OF COMMONS.---This Day.
The SPEAKER took the chair at 12 o'clock.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The Belfast and Northern Counties Railway, !Bristol
and South Wales Union Railway, London and North
Western (Traffic Arrangements), and Oswestry and New-
town Railway, and other Companies (Arrangements) Bills
were read a third time and passed.
The Wandsworth-bridge Bill was read a second time.
Mr. WHITE presented a peti•ion from Brighton in
favour of the Governmeht Annuities Bill,

Mr. DISRAELI presented a petition against the Test
Abolition Bill.

THE STEAM RAMS.

Mr. J. TOLLE MACHE asked the Attlrney-General,
whether the offer to sell the Birkenhead iron-e:,--ds at the
price of £300,000 was made to the Government by the
owners, Messrs. Bravay, or by the builders, Messrs. Laird?

The ATTaItNEY-GENERAL said the cffer un-
doubtedly came from the gentlemen representing the
owners, Messrs. Bravey, no such proposal emanated from
the 'Messrs. Laird.
TEST ABOLITION BILL.
On the motion for going into committee on this bill,

➢ir. TREFUSIS moved that the house go into
committee on the bill that day six months. He
contended that by the bill an entirely new pritniple
was sought to be infused into the University of Oxford,
as persons not members of the Church of England
by it would be admitted into the governing body of the
University. He bad endeavoured to ascertain whether
there was any great feeling in favour of the measure out of
the house, but he had failed to discover that such existed.
He thought the time had come when the Universities should
take a decided course on religious matters, but if this bill
passed it would tend to make the religious teaching indis-
tinct in those establishments, and therefore he hoped a
majority of the house would support the motion for its re-
jection.

Mr. LEATH AM strongly supported the bill, as he did
not agree in the opinion that it would sever the connection
of the Church of England from the governing bodies of the
Universities. The objections brought against the bill were
by no means new, because they had been raised on previous
occasions, when the Test and Corporation Acts and Jewish
Emancipation were under the consideration of the house.
He was certain:sooner or later this bill would pass, because
it was only conferring that which was eminently the right
of those who would come within its provisions. The real
reason that had led to the strong opposition of his bill was
because it was looked upon as a concession to
non-conformity, and that whatever concession was
made to non-conformists must be a blow to the Church of
England. He could not take such a narrow and confined
view of the matter, and therefore he hoped the motion of
the hon. gentleman opposite would be rejectod.
Mr. C. CLIFFORD was in favour of the bill, as he did
not believe the effect of the measure would be to drive into
nonconformity those who might become members of the
Church. He did not sympathise with those who were of
opinion that science was opposed to religion. The argu-
ments of the hon. member for Devon he could characterise
as nothing more than antiquated fear, such as was placed
in the one who represented the church where Dryden
wrote the " Hind and the Panther." He was not afraid
that the ocean of dissent would sweep away the spires and
towers of Oxford. He therefore supported the motion for
going into committee.
Mr. MORRISON expressed his intention of supporting
the motion for going into committee.
[LEFT SITTING. 3