The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-17 00:00:00

...--_ ......r., .
sisters He refuses, therefore, to heed the injunction.
Rightly, if he be prepared to face the consequences
which the late Bishop of LONDON induced the Lords
to force upon him, as the price of legitimatising the
marriage, from which sprung the present Duke of
BEAUFORT. Yet the Tories and Churchmen, if this
practically evil prohibition be attacked, call out,
when will you stop ? Why not repeal all these pro-
hibitions ? . _ _

It might be answer enough, surely, to an Eng-
lish House of Commons, that the rest of the droll
list is a grievance to nobody. We hear of no peti-
tions for liberty to marry our grandmothers and so
forth—and it is not the custom of Englishmen to
demand relief from lists of words which trouble
nobody. We must say, however, that we think

the whole list of prohibitions valueless; and that
we should have no kind of objection to throwing
in the fire. It consists of prohibitions of two kinds,
the foolish and the doubtful. Either we are pro-
hibited from marriage with persons with whom we
should never dream of marrying or with persons
with whom it cannot be proved that we ought not
to marry, We agree very much in principle with
Mr. MONSELL. With him and JEREMY TAYLOR
we hold that in the earlier ages of the
Christian Church, when the antagonism between
Judaism and Christianity was better understood,
there was almost general consent that the Levitical
degrees do not, by any law of GoD, bind Christians
to their observance." We might as well turn Jews
at once as appeal to the precepts of Leviticus to
guide our Legislation. Presbyterianism has much
of this kind of Judaism in it. Episcopacy imitates
Judaism more in the matter of the Hierarchy,—and
a well-paying imitation it is. Both, however, go
+4 Leviticus on this question, though Paul would
as 00,7 i have thought of subjecting Gentile Chris-
tians to circumcision, as to Leviticus.
But, Mr. MONSELL contends it is the tendency
of Christianity to refine our sentiments, and one
partus
t of
regard the refinement
th rel
ati
ohnes holds
of aistnoi
tbety ahs a
et
ui tea
ly c ho
be s.
o
jud Judaism.
is
mt o.
jectionable in regard to marriage as relatives of
consanguinity. We do not admit his view.
Christianitythe artificial
ceremonial
re m
o religionni
aol
of
characterreaitl.es a so
opposedf
d
sanguinity in man, as in the lower animals,
Now it is a physical fact that relationship of eon-
detcriorates the quality of the progeny. There is
a real reason therefore for preventing, as far as
may be, by the force of knowledge and opinion,
such marriages. Violation of this law has made
the royal races of Europe, for the more part inferior
to other men. In regard to affinity no such prin-
ciple exists in nature. All must be left to sense of
propriety—to sentiment—so far we agree with Mr.
MONSELL—what we deny, is, that such sentiments
are fit subjects for law. We do not object to them,
or to their indulgence, or to their cultivation, or to
their being taught. What we object to is, that
the law should be called in to affix penalties to the
absence of such sentiments in any particular case.
If our sentiments on the subject are as strong
as Dr. CANDLISH says they are in Scotland,
or as Mr. MONSELL says they are in Ire-
land, then law is useless. Social opinion
will do the work of law. But if there be ever so
few persons who are satisfied that the sentiment, in
the case under discussion, for instance, is absurd—
that it is contrary to nature and religion—then it is
persecution, and nothing less, for all the rest, to
force on him their religious and moral sentiments
on the subject. All things socially desirable, or
socially preferred by the many, are not fit subjects
for penal statutes ; and we have never seen it shown
yet that social opinions, on relationship of affinity
in regard to marriage, are fit subjects for penallaw.
The political ecclesiastics will find out, before
long, that they have made a great mistake. Mar-
riage law reformers would have been content with
the rectification of one practical evil in the old
Judaizing Tables which disfigure our Prayer-books.
They would have left the rest to those who delight
in Levitical ornaments to a Christian Liturgy.
Cierical obstinacy will compel an exposure of the
baselessness of the whole system. The people will
have to be taught that the Bible was meant to in-
fluence legislation, not by furnishing clauses for
penal Acts of Parliament, but by abolishing inter-
meddling and artificial prohibitions, and by soften-
ing and ameliorating our codes. " Touch not, taste
not, handle not," says Judaism, and it fills long
columns with prohibitions and comminations. Love
GOD and your neighbour, says Christianity, and dis-
penses with all the vexatious details of Leviticus.
It is too late in the day to prevent the truth from
coming out. The demand will now be to constitute
marriage a civil rite for civil purposes; as, indeed,
Archbishop WHATELEY has long proposed, leaving
all persons to use what religious service they pre-
ferred, or none at all. At the same time we must
require that Leviticus be left to the Jews, and that
the degrees of affinity and consanguinity be settled
and enforced by the social sentiments of a civilised
and Christianised community.

According to the present arrangements (writes
our Windsor correspondent) her Majesty the Queen will
leave Windsor Castle on or about the 3d of the ensuing
month, and return to Osborne, Isle of Wight.

Her Majesty contemplates visiting the Highlands
at an early period, and returning to Windsor, from )3al-
- in June:

After a stay of about a fornight at the Castle the
Queen will proceed to Osborne, and again visit Balmoral
towards the end of the season.
His Royal Highness Prince Alfred had, we be-
lieve, a slight attack of fever during his voyage. He has
grown considerably since he left England. The young
Prince is now, we are happy to say, in excellent health, all
traces of indisposition having completely vanished previous
to his arrival in this country.—Court Journal.
The civil marriage of Mlle. Adele de Rothschild
with Baron Salomon de Rothschild took place on Wednesday
at Frankfort. The religious ceremony was performed
on the following day, at the synagogue, by the great rabbi
of the Consistory of Paris. All the members of the
Rothschild family from Paris, London, and Vienna
were present. Baron James de Rothschild. of Paris, on the
occasion of the marriage of his son Solomon, has presented
2,000 fr. to the mairie of the 9th arrondissement, Paris, for
distribution to the poor. _ _ _

The Crown Princess of Prussia, it is expected,
will take her departure for the Continent the latter end of
this month.—Court Journal.

It is expected that her Mijesty will return to
Osborne the beginning of April, or soon after the departure
of the Princess Royal for Prussia.—Court Journal.
A new yacht is to be built for her Majesty; it is
to be rather larger than the Fairy.
The Duke and Duchess of Argyll have been
visiting Alfred Tennyson, the poet laureate, at his seat at
Farringford, in the Isle of Wight.
Lord Palmerston, in giving evidence before a
parliamentary railway committee last week, statetaed that he
had turned his attention very much lately o defences
of the country, and that it was most important that all the
arsenals should be connected by railway, and of similar
gauge. His lordship also stated that it was in contemplation
to make some defences on an island in the British Channel,
and that it was advisable that Portsmouth and other arsenals
should be connected with Bristol by a railway without
break of gauge. Pembroke, his lordship said in answer to
a question, was not an arsenal, it was simply a building
and refitting yard. His lordship also stated that he was in
favour of connecting all towns on the south coast by rail.
TESTIMONIAL TO MR. M'CONNELL.—A very
superb testimonial has been presented to this gentleman on
the occasion of his quitting the management of the Loco-
motive Establishment of the London and North-Western
Railway at Wolverton. After the presentation Mr. M'Con-
nell and his friends dined together in the " Queen's
Room." A universal feeling of regret at parting pre-
vailed.
SURREY THEATRE.—Mr. Benjamin Webster
having entered into a brief engagement with Messrs.
Creawick and Sheppard, the lessees of this theatre, ha
makes his first appearance this evening in his celebrated
character of Robert Laundry, in the A delphi drama of the
" Dead Heart." Illustrious Paul Bedford also accompanies
his manager,. and he too will sustain his original character
in the same drama,