The Sun.
London, England, 1824-07-09 00:00:00

any benefice, or shall be nominated or appointed to any dons-'
tive, perpetual curacy, or parochial chapelry, and shall not re-
side thereon, unless such person shall do the duty of the same,
having a legal exemption from residence, or a licence to reside
out of the same or to reside out.of the parsonage or vicarage,
or other usual house of residence belonging to the same, the
Bishop or Ordinary shall appoint for the Curate, licensed to
serve such benefice, donative, or perpetual curacy, or parochial
chapelry of such non-resident incumbent, or person in his ab-
sence, such salary according to the gross annual value of the
benefice," &c. It then gives the scale of salaries, which, in
many cases, may amount to the whole value of the benefice ;
and therefore the oth section enacts, that in such case when
the Bishop or Curate appoint for a Curate a salary equal to
the whole annual value of the benefice, that such salary shall
be subject to all such and the like charges and outgoings as
may legally affect the value of such benefice. The oth relates
to where the incumbent shall serve the cure of an adjoining
parish, in which case the salary is to be regulated in this way,
that the " salary to be received by him for serving each of the
said churches or chapels shall be less by a sum not exceeding
301. per annum than the salary, which in the several cases
hereinbefore mentioned the Bishop or Ordinary is required by
the Act to appoint." So that this also applies to the case of non.
residence. The 10th section introduces for the first time the
case of an incumbent who may be resident; but it is rather
incidentally, for it says, " That in every case in which it shall
be made out to the satisfaction of the Bishop or Ordinary of
any diocese, that any incumbent or person holding any bene-
fice, donative, perpetual curacy, or parochial chapelry, is, or
has become non-resident or incapable of performing the duties
thereof, from age, sickness, or other unavoidable cause, and
that from these, or from any other special and peculiar circum.
stances of the case, great hardship and inconvenience would
arise, if the full amount of salary specified in this Act should
be allowed to the Curate, then, and in such case, it shall be
lawful for such Bishop or Ordinary to assign to the Curate any
suck salary less than the said full amount. But this provision
is also very suitable to what might be the case of a non-resi-
dent incumbent. In many cases the Act had previously fixed
the amount of salary, leaving nothing to be fixed by the Bishop.
It would appear that this tlause as to an incapacity of per-
forming the duty, might have been introduced in this sec-
tion, rather by way of caution, than to vary in any manner.
the construction of the previous clauses. Then the 11th sec-
tion manifestly relates to the scale which is given by the
7th section, and in consequence must be considered as applica-
ble to the case of a Curate of a non-resident incumbent.
The 12th also relates to the case of a non-resident Incum-
bent; tin it provides, that where the Bishop shall appoint
for the licensed Curate serving any benefice where the salary is
not less than the whole gross annual value of the same, and
where, in addition to such salary, the Curate is directed to re.
side in the parsonage or vicarage.house, that such Curate shall
be liable, during his so serving the Cure, to the same taxes
in respect of such house, &c. of which he is in the occupa-
tion, us if he had been inducted to the Benefice. The ISth
section provides for the case of a Benefice whose actual annual
income exceeds 4001., and it authorizes the assignment of a
salary to the Curate of 100!., notwithstanding the population of
such parish or place may not appear to amount to 300 persons,
and that in any parish or place where the actual annual income
shall appear as aforesaid, and where the population shall also
appear as aforesaid to amount to or exceed five hundred per.
sons, it shall be lawful for the Bishop to assign to the Curate
of such parish or place, being resident within the same,
and serving no other Cure, any larger stipend or allowance,
so that the same shall not exceed by more than 501. per
annum, the amount of the stipend or allowance here-
inbefore respectively requirtd to be assigned to such Curate."
This must be considered with reference to the 7th Section. The
14th Section Is one upon which much stress was laid in the ar-
guments at the Bar. It recites that nothing in this Act con-
tained shall authorise or empower any Bishop or Ordinary to
assign to any Curate of any person holding any Benefice, Dona.
tive, or perpetual Curacy, or Parochial Chapelry,.before the
passing of this Act, upon any such Benefice, Donative, perpe-
tual Curacy, or Parochial Chapelry, held by such person be.
fore the passing of
.this Act, and on which such person is or
shall be now resident by Licence or Exemption, or to the Curate
of any person holding any Benefice, &c., who shall duly reside
thereupon, or who shall do the duty of the same, having a legal
exemption from residence, or a Licence to reside out of the
Parsonage or Vicarage.house, or other usual house of residence,
belonging to the same, any greater stipend or allowance for the
Curate, who shall be licensed to serve for such Benefice, &c.
than is allowed by the Statutes in force, before the passing of
this Act, unless with the.consent of the person holding such
Benefice, &c." Now the cases are limited to three. lust, it
is the case of a Curate to a Benefice, held before the. passing of
the Act, and who shall be non-resident. Secondly, Atli limited
to the Curate of an Incumbent of a Benefice, who %hall duly
uhtav oitg a
the
reside thereon ; and Thirdly, to the case of a Curate of an In-
lcougnam
exemptionl mu o) nal lo himself il do
residence, thoer
licenceut of theto id
nt
rseasriee,O
same. here is a new clause, but so framed that we think it
cannot, according to any rule of sound construction, be deemed
to give a new power to the Bishop ; nor can any such inference
reasonably be drawn from it. It puts the Bishop precisely in
the same situation he was in before the passing of the Act, as to
his authority of fixing the salary of the Curate of an Incumbent.
It does not give the Bishop any power which he did not before
possess; and it would appear by a reference to the first and
seventh Section to have been introduced only by the way of
caution, as many other provisions of time same nature arc intro-
duced. The Fifteenth Section relates to agreements made by
the Incumbent and the Curate in fraud and derogation
of the provisions of the Act. The Sixteenth is a pro-
vision, that no Licence shall be granted to serve more
than two Churches in one day. The Seventeenth provides
for the case of an Incumbent, having two or more Benefices,
residing partly in one and partly in the other, which is in fact
a provision for the curate of a non-residentincumbent.
.The
Eighteenth Section relates particularly to applications for a
licence from non-residents; and it requires that the incumbent
shall state the salary which he proposes to give his curate.—
The Nineteenth Section refers to the particulars which are to be
stated from the incumbent himself, who applies for a licence
for non-residence. The other remaining sections have no ap-
plication at all to the question. Upon this review of the statute
we arc of opinion that it does not authorize the Bishop to fix
the salary of a Curate of a resident Incumbent without his con-
sent. This Statute, being all repealed by the 57th of Geo. 111.
the sections of it are now referred to, not as the law, but only
in explanation, and to assist us in the construction of the late
Act; and on an attentive perusal of the late Act, it appear*
that almost every clause of it is taken from some clause in the
former Act, with some variation of language, but which arc
very immaterial alterations. The only clause which appears to
have any reference to the present inquiry, is the 53d, which
authorizes the Bishop to appoint a Curate with a certain salary,
where it shall appear to him that the ecclesiastical duty of the
benefice is inadequately performed. The case before the Court
is not one of that description. Having commented minutely on
the clauses of the former Act, it would be wholly unnecessary
to refer to them again. But looking, at the corresponding
clauses, there is nothing we can find to authorize the Court to
think the case comes within the fifty-third section. It is no
part of our duty to pronounce any opinion as to the expediency
of giving the authority to the Bishop to say what salary should
be given to the Curate of a resident incumbent. The Legis-
lature could have given the power undoubtedly', and in certain
cases with certain restrictions they have given the power of or.
dering the salary which shall be paid to the Curate; butin this
case they have not given it. We must therefore infer that the
Legislature has hitherto thought the power would be inconve-
nient. Whether they thought that irsuch power was given the
resident incumbent might be deterred from performing the
duty, or from whatever other cause it was, we do not know. Our
judgment is given in this particular case upon its own particular
circumstances, as to the giving the Curate a greater salary than
the resident Incumbent had proposed, Our judgment is not
formed on the general question, nor from the authority of time
Bishop to entertain , a Suit for the Curate's Salary in a formal
manner accnrding to the usage. The Court abstains from giv-
ing any opinion upon time power of proceeding by monition,
with regard to the Curate of a non-resident Incumbent. Upon
the other point, as to a resident Incumbent, it may be perhapsa fit subject for the attention of the Legislature, but the
statute appears not to have given the power. No doubt, the
Right Reverend Prelate thought he was discharging his duty
according to time provisions of the Act, but we think he has
been mistaken in the application of the statute to the particu-
lar case. We, therefore, think the Rule for time prohibition
must be made absolute.

A daring robbery was committed about four
o'clock in the afternoon of Monday last, in the house of the
Right Hon. the Earl of Charleville, in Cavendish.square. The
butler having occasion to go from his pantry, where ho was
employed in preparing the plate for dinner, to the upper part
of the house, some daring thieves during his absence contrived
to pick the lock of the area gate, and crossed a long passage into
the pantry ; they carried oft' two dozen table spoons, 111 de.
sert ones, M table forks, and three plated ones. The plate
is marked with the family arms, a Moor's head set in a ducal
coronet.

The exhibition of the varieties of the straw-
berry on Tuesday, at the Rooms of the Horti-
cultural Society in Regent-street, exceeded
those of any former year. They, however, in
general lacked flavour, occasioned by so much
wet weather, and the want of sun.