The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-02 00:00:00

TEST ABOLITION BILL.

On the motion for going into committee on this bill,
Mr. TREFUSIS moved that the house go inte
committee on the bill that day six months. He
contended that by the bill an entirely new principle
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 had endeavoured to ascertain whethe
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•.
tint in those establishments, and therefore ha hoped a
majority of the house would support the motion for its re-
jection.

Mr. LEATHAM 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 (Atha
Univertaies. 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 coma within its provisions. The real
reason that had led to the strong oppositiun of the bill was
because it was looked upon as a coLces.ion 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
non•conformity those who might become members of the
Church. Hi) cid 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, su,,h 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.

Sir J. NORTHCOTE contended that that principle of
the bill had not been admitted on the second reading on
the 16th of March, and foi this very good reason that the
maj ty of members were then not agreed upon the principle
of the bill. It there had not beerl a difference of opinion on
that OCCIEIOrt he should not have opposed the house now
going into committee. On this subject he thought the
Goveinment ought to have taken the initiative, or, at all
events, to have nuicrtaken the guiaance of the bill after
its second reading. He deprecated altogether this restlestt:
manlier of interfering with the universities, and of raising
questions which it would be hardly possibly to settle.
Mr. ROEBUCK objected to the use of tests altogether.
The test was a means to an end, and the end was to pro-
hibit the coming in of persons who were not members of
the Church of England. Tests were a cobweb to catch
large flies, while they caught the small ones. Gibbon and
Hume would have passed, because they did not care
whether they conformed or not, while a man of conscien-
tious feeling would be kept without the pale, because he
would not violate his conscience by conforming, while ha
conscientiously objected.
Sir W. HEATHCOTE supported the amendment.

Mr. V. SCULLY recommended that the bill should be
referred to a select committee, In the course of his speech
Mr. Scully called attention to the Nicene Creed, which he
said was not in the English Book of Common Prayer. On
being challenged by Lord Robert Cecil he said it was not
in the Prayer Book he held in his hand. Next he disputed
doctrine of the Church of England as represented in the
Athanasian Creed. Upon this he was informed that the
Athanasian Creed was taken bodily from the Roman Catho-
lic Mass Book, and then he abandoned his position altoge-
ther, amidst the merriment of the house. Being informed
by the speaker that he was wandering from the question,
the hon gentleman went into other matters, on which he
spoke without material interruption for the next twenty
minutes.

Mr MOORE supported the amendment.
Mr NEATE opposed it, and referring to a speech mad°
by Lord R. Cecil at Oxford last Saturday, denied that
good churchwarden was necessarily a Conservative.
Lord R. CEoIL defended his speech, and supported the
amendment.

with Mr.c hGaOraShCmHa
nEe
hNi
pd.denied
tthhee
liidbeenr
at it yb
idoef
oCf otnhsee ry aChurchtive
there were as many friends of the Church as on the oppo-
sition. (Hear, hear.) The Conservative party appeared,
to be anxious t 9 denationalise the Church, for only the other
day when it was decided by the highest Court that a certain,
judicial decision was to be revised, some thousands of gen-
tlemen came •forward and repudiated the judgment. The
simple principle of the bill was to abolish tests for acado.l
mical degrees, leaving all offices to be held as at present by'
Churchmen.

Mr. O. PORTESCUE as a churchman thanked Mr,
Dodson for his bill, as it relieved laymen from the bondag®
of dogmatic theology contained in the Prayer Book.. It wafti
bad enough for the clergy to be bound to make such decla-,
rations, but to impose it upon laymen he could only account
for by a fearful hardening of conscience. (Hear, hear.)
Mr HENLEY thought that the university body ought!
to be secured, and therefore opposed the committee on the
bill. •
Sir G. GREY demurred to the view that a Libersli
he had stated on the second reading of the bill he should:
could be a good Churchman, and said that upon the grounded,:
that'
into
oghcot mtombietteeeon.
feHrreedthuopuognhettL__
nowoome vote for
substantialit s going
benefit
bers of universities taking their degrees, and if th!tere,r7
be adopted he thought the bill might be well considered.
°that
Mr NEWDEGATE opposed the bill, on groundthe
teological!
it would admit into the Church men of 100
bs
e
eld the dot=
opinions, as well as of men who, whilethey held
More.l
trines, differed from the discipline of theOa
disteipline whit
over, it would call for an arbitrary Oen
he thanked God had never yet "gra the Church o
England. (Laughter.) -
Mr BOUVERIE supported the bill. He considered tC
that a layman should be asked to
an outrageous proceeding
Book of Common P !Ayer,
declare hie unfeigned assent to the d
men like themselves:
which was composed by =inspire
(Hear, hear.)
Mr. DODSON replied, explaining the principles of hit
bill.
The bongo then divided
For the amendment ......... ........ 226
Against it
Majority ...................... : . —lO
The amendment was therefore negatived.
Mr. DODSON, who brought up the numbers, stated
them so badly that there was soots difficulty in under-
standing what the decision of the house really was, until
it was more emphatically decided by the Speaker.
'lhe house went into committee on the bill, and progrerd
was immediately reported, meaning, in effect, that no pro-
gret;s at all had been made beyond he fact that on another
occasion the house may go into committee without further
discussion,

Letters from Athens c.f the 24th announce that
the Aisemhly to tiro order of the Cal, ott the
iuterpellations relative to thetramotions in the
army, and to the amnesty. At. Deligiorgy has 13,en
re-elected President. The King was to leave on the
24th for the provinces and for Corfu.
AN APPROPRIATE LIVERY.--Soma one (says
somebody.elst) asked me what livery I intended tv give my
servants. I replied that I had never thought of it. Ho said
"The auditors generally retain their family livery." "In
that case I must give them white livery," I said. "Ah I
is that the colour of your 11.01150?" "Yee, for my father •
was s miller." •