The Sun.
London, England, 1853-02-17 00:00:00

neously followed. At the moment of 'the fright-
ful discovery, " the dark and rugged cliffs of
Howth" were seen but a few yards ahead, while
the doomed vessel, with unabated speed, was rush-
ing on her fate. A hurried and agitated order
to stop the engines was given ; but, unfor-
tunately, it was of no avail. She rushed
on against the fearful barrier, and her de-
struction was accomplished. The Captain was an
this time in his cabin, perfectly unconscious of
the danger. The awful crash against the rock
that stove in the bow was the first warning he re-
ceived, and thenceforward his conduct was beyond
reproach or censure. He exhibited a total disre-
gard of self, looking only to the safety of those
who were placed under his charge.
The only subsequent mistake, on the part of the
Captain, occurred through the hurry of the moment,
and his ignorance of the true state of affairs. At the
moment of collision, several persons sprung on to
the cliff, a large proportion of whom were saved.
Unfortunately, in place of remaining in that po-
sition, and thus making the best of the un-
toward transaction, the order was given to
back into deep water. The injury was greater
than Captain CHURCH had imagined, and
he sunk with The vessel of which he had
for nearly a quarter of a century been the effi-
cient Commander, but to which his temporary
apathy at length proved so fatal.
The boats were got out, but according to the
usual rule—the description of which might be
stereotyped—one boat "slipped from, the davits
into the sea," occasioning a loss of seVenteen
or eighteen lives--and " another was found
without the plugs," which, but for the presence
of mind and heroism of a mere boy, who put his
finger into the plug-hole, and kept it there,
even during a , second voyage to rescue his
fated companions, must have occasioned the loos
of those who staked their lives therein. Such
events demand inquiry. Every means to prevent
a repetition of similar calamities must be adopted.
The evil is brought to our own threshold, and a
Legislative remedy is imperatively demanded.

Just as our great National Council enters on
its work Convocation makes its bow and retires.
Good. Sham vanishes before reality. Arch-
deacons, proctors, and doctors withdraw to ob-
livion. We shall hear no more of them except
when they now and then kick up their heels at a
National School Society meeting, or at a Uni-
versity election. We may pretty confidently hope
that we shall have no more defiance of the Arch-
bishop, and no more attempts to debate business
which they have no power to transmute into real
business. We assured them last November, that
both Whigs and Tories would be equally firm in
refusing them licence to do anything whatever ;
and they now understand that it will be more
prudent in future to refrain from over much talk.
They find no sympathy even from that third class
of Cabinets which we had forgotten ; not only do
Whigs and Tories eschew them, but even a
Coalition. Government frowns on Convocations.
The game, then, is quite up.

little consolationAn will,
allowedstilllnehowever, be
them.
is something. The Address to the QUEEN
whose legislative voluntary reli •
powers glow bodies,
envies, enjoy no
the State Church
o such • •
Voluntaries • cprivilege. If the
an pay and le •
clergy can take gislate, the State
national
the fountain of national pay, and approach
.
commences with ic The Address
respectful ass
alto-
gether needless,assurance," not
after sayings
Exeter and doings
and elsewhere, "at
MAJESTY'S of loyal affection to her
throne and person .
close with equal good rep on ~, and towards the
reason, it states that they
" not onlyrecognise
but
highly prize her MAUESTY'S
undoubted supremacy
and civil." We
are happy
in all causes ecclesiastical
alto
commend the cede-
siastics. If, however, so prize the supreme
authority of the august they
did they so unanimouslyhead of the laity, why
vote down tho- proposi-
tion that the laity should form part of their
wished-for legislative Convocation? Why kick
the
laity out of the assembly, and then bow down
meekly before the impersonation of all the rights
and powers of the laity ? Surely
screw loose here. Perhaps there is a
supremacy is this zeal for
due
to the Archbishop of
WESTMINSTER, for immediately
re-
press their indignation after they
at " the Bishop
arrogating to himself the ' of ROME'S
nation," and i •
gnoring the legendary spiritual charge' of this
Britain
In ;which Church, they affi
Church of
PROVIDENCE it rill, has pleased
to preserve to this day I
in passing, y . We must,
always seriously
style of pleading DIVINE PR
protest against this
PROVIDENCE in behalf of
our party fancies. In our ears it is the worst
species of profanity. It was all very well for ec-
clesiastics, especially the dignitaries of the Church,
to
express their gratitude that
the CROWN had nullified the titular
the supremacy of
pretensions of
a rival hierarchy ; but to thank PROVIDENCE • for
what even their dear old legend-loving
FULLER is
obliged to throw overboard, isonly another mode
of saying, " The temple of the LORD are we." It
was at once irreverent, indel. t
ica e, and undignified
to foist such old Church stories into an Address to
the QUEEN.
Very proper are the gratitude for the prospe-
rity and loyal obedience of
the people, and the
of
sorrow for the loss of the Duke
WELLINGTON
•
re-
-0
and equally so the pleasure with which they '
cord the great exertions of the last 3 years for
the spiritual instruction of an • •
increasing popula-
tion, more churches being now consecrated an-
nually than were built during the whole of the
last century. In connection with " this, however,
her MAJESTY is reminded of the •
paucity of
Bishops: They are hardly more than they were
three centuries ago 1 • This must press heavily, no
doubt, on Episcopal conscience, since we know
that the property of Bishops has increased, per-
haps, twentyfold since that time. Of course they
wish it to be distributed amongst twenty times as
many bishops. It cannot be the spiritual toil
which embarrasses them, since the amount thereof
is known to be peculiarly favourable to longevity.
No, it is leasehold estates, mines, and the like
which weigh so heavily on their shoulders. Her
MAJESTY will, doubtless, refer them to Mr.
HoRSMAN and Sir BENJAMIN HALL. Probably,
also, they wished to please Lord JOHN with a
little more bishop-making.
With a beautiful and. touching glance at the
piety of PRINCE ALBERT and others,
due to their
own faithful ministrations, and efflorescing in
model lodging-houses, baths, ana wash-houses, they
approach the great theme of their Address, and
the restoration of their own deliberative and le-
They do not think it advis-
gislative functions.
able just now to ask leave to do anything, but
the respectfully apprise her MAJESTY that "legis-
y
lative assemblies are an
essential and most impor-
tan,t part of the constitution of the Reformed
Church ;" that present circumstances demand
and. improvement
their preservation , and that it
at no distant
course, they
may be advantageous to renew them
date. If they are essential, why,
of
are important. The only marvel is, how anything
in the world ever existed 150 years without one of
!—especially how it should show
its essential parts
greater life am d energy annually now than it displayed
This is strange
duringthe whole of the last century.
to us, moreover,
enough to our lay ears. Very odd
is the delaying to ask the immediate restoration of
what is " essential and most important." We more
our rulersin this
perverse lay liberals do not let off
easy them to the death for
style. We weary
"essential and important" reforms every year.
evoutly will the Cabinet pray that we may
takeDevouation.
D
a lesson from Convocation. We need not recal
our readers the arguments
to the recollection of
brought forward last No-
which we and others
comber against the demand here so modestly and
illogically Evidently the restless ones
made.
h got their quietus for tho present. They
find the QuEEN, the laity, and every variety of
Cabinet against them, and they must keep the
It is, however, amusing
peace. to notice their
consciousness of their besetting sin, and the gua-
rantee which they give that they will resist tempta-
ation. lt IS apprehended, say they to the Head
of the Church, that if your MAJESTY do permit
us to meet, and debate, and legislate, we shall
st over controverted points as to
to
so bitterly
imperil 'Christian charity, existing institutions,
and our visible unity. Why, yes ; just so. You