The Sun.
London, England, 1849-08-10 00:00:00

Victoria, c. 70, it is provided that the patronage of a
church may be assigped to any body corporate, or to
any individuals, but then the assignment must be
made prior to the consecration of the church, and the
consent of the bishop, patron, and incumbent is re-
quired. We are of opinion that these provisions may
be extended, and that additional facilities should be
given for assigning patronage in return for en-
dowment.

We are aware of the difficulties connected with the
subject of church-rates, as affecting the division of
parishes, but it appears to us, essential that we should
offer some suggestions upon it in this report, since, in
our opinion, the present state of the law is at once
vague, defective, and unjust, and forms the chief
obstacle to the establishment of a sound parochial
system.

It has been urgently represented to us, that the
law in its present state inflicts a very serious hard-
ship on the owners of property in distinct and sepa-
rate parishes and district parishes, by compelling
them for twenty years not only to provide for the
expenses of their own church, but to contribute
towards repairing the mother church. In the case of
a cbapelry district, cut off from a distinct or separate
or district parish, the grievance is still greater; for
although the inhabitants, during that period of time,
pay a double rate, viz. to the mother church and to
the distinct and separate or district parish church,
they have generally to provide for the repairs of their
own chapel also, by voluntary contributions, thus vir-
tually incurring the burden of a third rate.
The most obvious remedy would be, that every di-
vision and district should be liable to a rate for its
own church or chapel only, and for no other. Such
a rule, however, could not be immediately and uni-
versally applied:Some special provision must be found
for those cases in which there are still existing charges
on the church-rates of the whole original parish, for
the repayment of moneys borrowed for the general
ecclesiastical purposes of that parish, and also for
the cases. in which the mother church has contri-
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mother
eeperrihyduca
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ecuhdr
c;
and
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requiringprobably
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frequent
haa
yl ohe
iafnvoger
esasbftyltieaostrrno,gawoettes or voluntary contributions, towards
and extensive repairs.
We are of opinion that the Church Building Com-
missioners should be required to reconsider the boun-
daries of all divisions or subdivisions of parishes, which
have been effected under proper authority, with spe-
cial reference to the question of a just and equitable
distribution of the church-rate ; and then to recom-
mend your Majesty in Council to fix a time
when the new parish may be properly and fairly ex-
empted from the double rate, and the remaining part of
the original parish, and the new parish, or district,
severally made liable only for the repair of its own
church or chapel ; and we recommend that each
parish or district should then possess an open parish
vestry, with all the incidents, powers, and provisions
applicable to vestries of parish churches ; with separate
churchwardens, one chosen by the inhabitant rate-
payers within the particular parish or district, and the
other by the incumbent; and that the churchwardens
belonging to any new parish or district should, so far
as may be practicable, have the same power of seating
the parishioners as is possessed by the churchwardens
of old parish churches, and under such circumstances
we recommend that all select vestries formed under
the church building Acts should be abolished.
Some difficulty may arise, in cases where an en-
dowment has been left, either for the exclusive
benefit of the mother church, or for church purposes
within the parish ; and as no general rule could fairly
be applied to all such cases, it seems desirable that
power to deal with them should be given to the
Church Building Commissioners.

One of the most serious obstacles to the effectual
subdivision of parishes is found in those numerous
local Acts of Parliament which hare been construed
to exclude certain parishes from the operation of the
Church Building Acts. It appears to us that this
obstacle to church extension should be removed.
Our attention has been directed to the recent
legislation on the apportionment of parochial charities,
which it is feared will give rise to much needless and
expensive litigation. By the Act 3 George IV., c.
72, s. 11, it was provided that the Church Building
Commissioners should have power to apportion
parochial charities among the several ecclesiastical
districts, but as this power could not be conveniently
exercised by that body, it was afterwards transferred,
by the Act 8 and 9 Victoria, c. 70, s. 22, to the
Court of Chancery, which was enabled to apportion
them by a summary process. It appears to us, from
cases which have already arisen, that some further
legislation is necessary to prevent litigation and ex-
pense.
Amongst the subjects to which our attention has
been directed is that of affording increased facilities
to the inhabitants of parishes or ecclesiastical districts
towards providing themselves with suitable places of
burial ; the Act 9 and 10 Victoria, c. 68, enables
parishes or districts, with the sanction of the Church
Building Commissioners, to divide off land amongst
themselves, for separate burial-grounds' to which a
chapel for the burial service is attached, common to
each parish or district. We think that a further
power should be given for parishes and districts to
unite in purchasing land for this purpose and fencing
it off according to their respective wants, and to
defray the cost by a rate apportioned among the
several parishes and districts according to the extent
of land tssigned to each.
We intend to prosecute our inquiries, in the hope
of arriving at further practical conclusions, and ex-
pect to be able shortly to lay before your Majesty a
general view of the probable number of new parishes
and new churches required in all the dioceses of
England and Wales ; but in the mean time we have
considered it to be our duty to submit to your
Majesty the foregoing suggestions, in the full belief
that their adoption would essentially promote the
object of your Majesty's Commission, not only by
facilitating the formation of new parochial division§,
,but by giving a more completely parochial character
to the numerous districts already formed.
All which we humbly report to your Majesty.
Witness our hands and seals, this 27th day of July,
1849.

T. EBOR.
HARROWBY.
C. J. LONDON.
J. LICHFIELD.
• ASHLEY.

SIDNEY HERBERT.
E. N. BUXTON.
H. RAIKES.
JOHN SINCLAIR.
W. F. HOOK.
T. DALE.
WILLIAM COTTON.
W. WELDON CHAMPNEYS.
C. K. MURRAY.
W. WOODROOFFE.
JOSEPH HASLEGRAVE.
R. B. SEELEY.

DISTRESSING ACCIDENT.—On Thursday, the 26th
ult., Mr. John Jobson, tenant of Larrichbane and Hay-
field, Argyleshire, and lately of tho Queen's Head Hotel,
Kelso, was drowned in Loch Awe. The accident oc•
curred by Mr. Jobson unfortunately attempting to cross
a small bay, not above a hundred yards in breadth, im-
mediately in front of his own house, formed by a grassy
cape running into Loch Awe. He had been inspecting
some calves which he had grazing on the cape at the
time, and instead of returning by land, he attempted to
swim his mare across the bay to the main land. It is
supposed that the mare had either stumbled among some
loose stones immediately on entering the water, or had
come unexpectedly over one of those almost perpendi-
cular descents in the bed of the Loch, which are so
common in Loch Awe, which caused her to roll com-
pletely over in the water, and probably to come with her
whole weight on her unfortunate rider, as he never ap-
peared on the surface of the water after his first immer-
sion, and his body was not recovered until more than
half an hour had elapsed, by which time the vital spark
was entirely extinguished. Immediate and most active
measures were taken for the purpose of endeavouring to
restore animation, but in vain. This distressing accident
happened within sight and hearing of Mr. Jobson's wifa
and her three sisters, a nephew, and several of his ser-
vants. This sudden bereavement called forth much
sympathy from all classes of the inhabitants on the banks
of Loch Awe.
ANOTUER CAPTURE OF SMUGGLERS.—As a coast-
guardsman was walking in tho parish of Titchfield, on
Tuesday, a horse and cart, with two men, passed him in
a lane. Knowing one of the men to be a suspected
smuggler, the coast-guard stopped the cart, and found
36 kegs, containing 113 gallons of brandy, 45.0 over
proof. After considerable resistance the two men were
made prisoners, and conveyed with the cart and its con-
tents to Portsmouth Customhouse. This morning one
of the coast-guard at Langstone harbour, with the as-
sistance of a telescope, observed a pleasure•boat hoisting
in tubs, and chase was immediately given, and in such a
clever fa.hion, that the revenue boat was alongside before
the smugglers were aware of their coming. Fifteen tuba,
containing 46 gallons of brandy, wero found and cap-
tured. The crow, consisting of a man and his s
(Aylmers), were made prisoners, and with their boat
conveyed to the Custom-house, Portsmouth. The Royal_
Charter steam-vessel captured some time tionnede,an
released upon a bond of 500 t, has bad the
can-
celled. The Ariel yacht, captured soon after, is detained
as a seizure by the Customs.
THE IRISH POTATO CROP.—Several . accounts from
the provinces concur in stating that there is a partial
blight of the potato crop, but it is not regarded as of
I much consequence.