The Sun.
London, England, 1840-03-17 00:00:00

CHURCH-RATES.

' 114,

The Sun of Thursday evening, in its Parlia-
mentary report, states, that Mr. Easthope gave
notice that shortly after Easter he would move to
relieve Dissenters from the payment of Church-
rates. • We rejoice to see this question taken up
by our worthy Member, and augur favourably for
its rapid progress, and ultimate, if not immediate
success, under his able management. Many quali-
fications point him out to Dissenters as a most
appropriate leader. His love of religious liberty,
his persevering energy in following up whatever he
commences, his great influence, and, above all, his
independence, will, we doubt not, rally around him all
the respectability, the earnestness, and the zeal of
the Dissenting body. We deem it no small honour
that a Member for Leicester should step forward
to conduct the armies of religious liberty to the
field. That he will be followed by numerous,
united, and determined troops we cannot permit
ourselves to doubt. Apathy has been dispelled by
the scourge of Lord John Russell—breaches have
been healed—organisation to a large extent has
been effected—Non-conformists throughout the
country are panting to move forward—they waited
but the signal, and now that signal has been given—
and unless we are greatly mistaken, they who were
two months since regarded as a valley of dry bones,
sapless, motionless, useless, will presently stand up
an exceeding great army.—Leicestershire Mercury.
A few days ago, Thos. Eastwood, Esq., a Ro-
man Catholic, appeared before the Magistrates of
Doncaster, for non-payment of Church-rues, and
after two hearings, the Magistrates admitted his ob-
jection, and declined to adjudicate, because the
Churchwarden had not demanded the rate in person.
On Monday week, Mr. T. Hill, of Dudley, a
Church-rate defaulter, appeared before the Magis
trates, accompanied by his solicitor, Mr. George
Edmonds, of Birmingham, who contended that the
rate was invalid, because the Churchwarden had
not demanded it in person. The man who was
said :o have detnanded it had died. The Magis-
trates dismissed the case.

[These decisions are, in our opinion, of great
importance. An additional instrument is thus put
into the hands of the opponents of Church-rates.
Let it be wielded unflinchingly against the " nefa-
rious exaction."]

Mrs. Hooper is not dead, as was reported, but
is alive, and playing at York.
On Wednesday a woman residing in a cottage
at Pelcombe-bridge, near Haverfordwest, imprudently kindled
a fire of wood on the floor of a room in which there was no
flue. The flame communicated with the thatch ; there being a
brisk breeze at the time, the fire caught two adjoining cottages
and one on the opposite side of the road, all of which, with the
entire furniture in them, were completely consumed.
We perceive by a notice in the last Gaze//e that
the Earl of Cardigan's regiment, the 11th Light Dragoons. is
in future to be styled " Prince Albert's Own Hussars." The
Prince will, sae suppose, after this, be shortly appointed Colonel
of this gallant regiment.
South Australian papers to October 5, and
Sydney papers to October 14, both inclusive, are received at
Deacon's Coffee-house, Walbraok ; also, New York papas to
12th February.
Letters from Mexico were received in the course
of the day by a leading house, to th:: date of the ISth of Janu-
ary, which is upwards of a fortnight later. They state that
some large convoys of treasure were on their way to the coast,
for the purpose of being forwarded to Europe. One conducla
had left the city of Mexico with a million of dollars, for Vera
I:ruz, while another, with a like amount, bad proceeded from
the interior to Tampico. The country continued tranquil, and
the mines generally arc described as in a flourishing condition.
A fact mentioned in private letters from Bombay
has created Solni, sensation in the city. It appears that on re-
ceipt of the intelligence in Bombay that her llajesty'esoGmovietrtne:i
ment had refused to pay the claims for the opium surrendered
under the guarantee of Captain Elliot, two Parsee merchants
largelysui,id i n tc
Muchrtetl in
commiserationt a ttrad ewas
felt had o thenti
e.
same
nthe
these unhappy men, who might have been still spared to their
families and society, had they known the steps since taken by
the Government to obtain redress from the Chinese.
E LOPEM EN T.—On 'Tuesday, as the young ladies
of Miss Pocock's school, at Somersharn, were taking their after-
noon walk, a gentleman drove up in a gig, and, with the assist
cc of another tnan:ran;liftedMiss E!lis,g y 0",,, lad
a
•
y ged sever -
teen, his gig, arri drat.e, off at a rapid r?..;;P, to cZt. Ives
d
Huntingdon. The. young lady is possessed of a large fortune..
The abductor is a music-master. At Huntingdon a brother of
the young licly rescued her.—Lincoln Chronicle.