The Sun.
London, England, 1837-11-29 00:00:00

SODOR AND MAN.

Sir H. VERNEY then rose for the purpose of bringing
forward the motion of which he had given notice, for leave
to bring in a Bill to relieve the Ecclesiastical Commissioners
of England and Wales from their duty of laying before her Ma-
jesty in Council a scheme for uniting the Sees of Carlisle and
Sodor awl Man. It was a Bishop who first published a work
in the Manx language ; it was Bishop Wilson who founded
parochial schoils and parochial libraries in every parish in that
Island, and he founded that system which it was the
object of the House at present to extend to every part of that
Island. • Ile desired especially to call the attention
of the House to the vast importance of having a
Bishop resident in the Island. The present Bishop by
his exertions had procured the building of no less than
twelve places of worship, churches and chapels; and he had
founded a college containing 200 students, who were there
not merely for the purpose of being instructed in the theo-
logy of the Church, but for the purpose of receiving
the benefit of that liberal and moral education, which it was
the object of all parties in the I-louse to extend to all classes
of her Majesty's subjects. Among those two hundred
students educated at the Bishop's College in the Isle of
Man were to be found Quakers and Dissenters of every de.
scription, and fur the small salary of 81. a-year an individual
in that island could obtain a perfectly good education under
professors from the University of Cambridge. To this college
all persons were admitted without any test and the benefits of
the College had been most sensibly arid practically felt by the
inhalkants of the Island. Some individuals might object to
the existence of a Bishop in the Isle of Man, and might
think the Ecclesiastical Establishment of that island could as
well be superintended by an Archdeacon and the resident
Clergy ; but he firmly believed that no Archdeacon would
be found to make such sacrifices, and no Arch.leacon
would be able to collect such sums of money as the
Bishops had at different times been able to collect with
the most beneficent and religious objects.—( Hear, bear.)
He hoped that all parties in the House would concur in his
proposition ; for they were to bear in mind that those who had
no representatives in that House, and who depended on the
generosity of the House for an attention to their interests, had
especial claims on the attention of Hon. Members. It was pro-
posed in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners' Report, to unite the
Bishopric of Sodor and Man to the See of Carlisle. That
arrangement would in a great measure deprive the people of
the Isle of Man of all the advantages of Episcopal superin-
tendence. As Bishop of Carlisle, the Bishop would have to
attend his ,duties in Parliament ; that would cause him to
reside half the year in London, and of the remaining half-
year a great portion must be devoted to the diocese of Carlisle,
so that he could reside but a very short time in the
Isle of Man. He (Sir H. V.) knew that the lion. Gentleman
who brought the measure before the House last session would
wish to see the Bishops resident upon their dioceses, and to see
them in a situation to promote the spiritual welfare of the
people under their charge. He ( Sir H. V.) hoped that
those Gentlemen who wished that bishops should be a spiritual
benefit to their dioceses would support his proposition, and he
also trusted that Hon. Gentlemen opposite, who were so much the
friends of the Church, would assist him in retaining a Bishopric
which it was proposed to abolish. In eulogising the character
of the present Bishop, he was in no way influenced by the
consideration that the Rev. Prelate was his own relative.
But he could say, that now, at the advanced period of that
prelate's age, no object was dearer to him than the spiritual
welfare of those who were committed to his care ; and nothing
would be more consolatory to him, at the close of his life,
than to know that they would continue to enjoy under his suc-
cessor the advantages which it had been his laborious study to
extend to them.
Lord J. RUSSELL (who spoke in such a low tone that
he was nearly inaudible in the gallery) read the passage in
the Ecclesiastical Commissioners' Report, to which the mo-
tion of the Hon. Baronet applied ; and the Noble Lord said if
the Hon. Baronet had merely proposed that the income of the
Bishop of Sodor and Man, after existing interests had
been strictly preserved, should be applied to the Archdeacon
and Clergy of the Island, he (Lord J. Russell) would not
have objected to that proposal. But to the present motion
of the Hon. Baronet, which he thought quite unreasonable,
he could not give his consent.
Messengers from the Lords brought up some Bills which
their Lordships had passed.
Sir ROBERT INGLIS said that upoi the showing of
the Noble Lord himself, he had deprived himself of the right
to resist the introduction of this Bill upon the ground of
opposition which the Noble Lord had stated. The Noble
Lord said that he would not have objected to the
introduction of a Bill which had for its object the application
of the income of the Bishopric of Sodor and
Man to the spiritual benefit of the island.—( Hear.)
The question was not whether a new bishopric ought to be
created, and he for one thought that there was occasion for
many, more of them—(Laughter)—to meet the increasing
wants.of the people ; but whether they would wantonly destroy
one of the oldest bishoprics in her Majesty's dominions, a
bishopric which had produced many saints, and a bishopric,
in respect to which, France half a century ago gave instruc-
tions to her privateers not to levy contributions on the
island. Without reference to the wishes of the people,
in defiance of all principle and:expediency, it was pro-
posed to annihilate this Bishopric. He said without refer-
ence to the wishes of the people, because in the course of
last Session a petition had been presented from the island
numerously signed against this measure. Under such circum-
stances, as leave had been moved for to bring in the Bill, he
hoped that the Noble Lord would withdraw his opposition to
it, or that the House would overrule it.
Sir E. CODRINGTON would cordially support the
proposition of the Hon. Baronet, as he had on a former occa-
sion supported the motion for relieving the Bishops from
their attendance in the House of Lords, because he really
believed that it was most injurious to their charac-
ter and. usefulness as spiritual rulers to devote
so much of their time to secular and political matters. He
should be glad to see the Bishopric of Carlisle merged in that
of Sodor and Man, and on these grounds he should cordially
support the motion.
Mr. F. SHAW expressed his determination to give his best
support to the proposition of the Honourable Baronet.
Sir R. PEEL said a Commission had been appointed to in-
quire into ecclesiastical revenues and duties, with the
view to suggest such changes as might be useful. They
bad encountered considerable opposition from those
who had thought that no change should be made. They,
however, acting according to the best of their conviction,
had suggested certain reforms, and recommended their adop-
tion ; and the Hon. Gentleman opposite, two years after a Bill