The Sun.
London, England, 1847-02-10 00:00:00

lIVI PE R

A M ENT.

HOUSE OF LORDS, Feb. 9.
The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat upon the Wool-
sack at Five o'clock.
The Earl of STRADBROKE presented several pea-
tiOres against the Poor Removal Bill.
CHELSEA PENSIONER'S BILL.
This Bill went through Committee.
PAROCHIAL FUNDS.
Lord STANLEY said, he wished to r esent to their
Lordships a petition of a somewhat novel character,
though it was of no small importance, particularly as
affecting the spiritual interests of the country, but more
especially that part of it which constituted the great and
important town of Manchester. It was the petition of
the churchwardens of the parish of Manchester,
who were elected annually by the whole of the
parishioners, numbering upwards of 400,000 persons.
The petitioners complained that the parochial funds,
amountii to upwards of 5,0001. a year, were received
by the dean, and warrens of the Collegiate Church of
Manchester, although these functionaries did not
perform the duties of rectors of the parish, or had
in any way the care of the souls of the parish,
and w ere in point of fact non-residents of the district.
It wt-, a case which, to use the language of the peti-
tione,re, was likely to reflect great discredit and scandal
tipe n the Church. The towli of Manchester was origi-
naley a rectory, foundeil in the year 1251, of the
ar,nual value of 531. Bd. It continued so until the
3'ear 1451. when a collegiate church was founded,
the parish ha-.ing grown to so large an ex •
tent, and t.)-,e) funds of the existing rectory were
appropriateei by the church of the parishioners
to the 'rapport of the new collegiate church, and
by a charter granted in the 9th year of the reign of Henry
V. e'et that period the funds amounted to 250 marksa year.
F,ven at that time great complaints were made of the ap-
propriation of the funds by non-resident rectors; the same
cause of complaint remained unchecked for many years.
After the foundation of the college, and during the reign
of Queen Elizabeth, another charter was passed for the
regulation and the enforcement of rectoral residences.
In the reign of Charles I. a third charter was passed
for the same object, which charter remained in force
at the present period. It was expressly provided in
die charter that the rectors receiving the funds of the
college should be perpetua residere et victitare, the peti-
tioners in their petition had set forth the words of the
charter as perpetua residere et visitant—their Lordships
would see that the original words had even more force
than the words used by the petitioners. Under such a
charter, therefore, it would be easily seen how
well founded were the complaints of the petitioners.
At the time when the charter was granted the
salary for the warder:, was 751. per year, and of each of
the fellows 35/, wtile at present the revenues amounted
to 6,0001. Now, with all respect to the Dean and Chapter
of Manchester. he could not understand how, in the face
of the prov;.sions of the original charter, any body of men,
with coresciencious feelings and religious convictions,
and he. believed the Dean and Chapter were so influenced
that they could satisfy their consciences to receive
6,1j00/., the amount of the rectorial revenues of that
Parish. and leave the population, consisting of 400,000
individuals, without spiritual provision, except what
was afforded by the district churches. When
this provision was originally made the popu-
lation of Manchester was not more than 20,000 per-
sons, and it was now 400,000. Then, besides the col-
legiate church, there were nine otherchapels of ease where
service was performed; at present there were forty-nine
district churches, besides separate endowments, and the
clergy of these churches were paid by fees, one portion of
which went to the district churches, and the other to the
mother church. The rectorial tithes then were received
by the Dean and Chapter, and he.thought it a matter of
surprise that while the revenues were claimed the cor-
responding duties of visitation and care of souls were
not discharged, and that exemption was sought from
residence, and the other duties connected with the
spiritual care of the people. One point appeared
to him st range—that while discretion was given
to the dean and fellows to augment the salary of the
rector, 1.71. 10s. was the only salary allowed him out of
the rectorial revenues, although the whole duty, which
was so much increased, had devolved upon him.
The Dean an'fl Chapter contend that under the statute
they are exempt from the rates; that they have no cure
of souls; that they fulfil the obligation of the duties by
being mulct ls. 4d. a day in the case of their absence,
and th' At they are not bound to perform any other spiritual
dutie`4. He thought their Lordships would concur with
him that such a course of procedure was unwarranted in
lay e, and that the case was one which deserved their
Ki4ost serious attention. He could not understand why
the dean and canons, whilst they performed the colle-
giate services in the collegiate church, and received the
usual remuneration, forgot that that church
was the parochial one ; and why they were
tio make use of their corporate character to
deprive the population of the spiritual ad-
'rantage to which they considered they were entitled, in
'consequence of the 5,0001. paid to them for that purpose.
'They prayed their Lordships, before the establishment
of the see, to ascertain that there was ample security for
Ithe application of the whole rectoral income to the
efficient ecclesiastical superintendence of the parish of
Manchester.

Lord BROUGHAM said the Noble Lord had stated
a very ordinary case. The right to receive the funds,
of course, depended upon the legal construction of the
charter, and ttle evil complained of could only be re-
medied by 11.,bme legislative enactment.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE would not offer
any opiiiiion further upon the construction or the in-
tentio•J of the charter, but the petition having become
kuo'fin in Manchester, the Dean and Chapter had for-
w'srded to him a letter upon the subject, which the
'bean wished to have read to the House. (The Noble
Marquis then read the letter.) It stated that the writer
simply enjoyed the rights possessed by his predecessors,
but still he had never made any claim to them. It was
decided by the legal tribunals that the privileges were
attached to his office. Neither he nor the canons had
any authority to visit in the parish. The canons
had even, exceeded their duty in their endeavours
to improve the moral and spiritual education of
the people. He could only say, with reference to the
writer of that letter, that no person had contributed
more than he had to the advance of the great cause of
education. He regretted the absence of the reverend
prelate or the diocese, who, in consequence of indisposi.
Con, was unable to attend, or to afford any information
to their 7.:Aordships upon the subject.
Lord BROUGHAM quite concurred in the opinion
express, id by the Noble Marquis upon the talents and
abilities of the writer of that letter, his respected and
reverend friend, Rev. W. Herbert.

Lord COTTENHAM would not enter into the ques-
tion whet her the duties enjoined by the charter were
performed or not, because there was no information on
that sub :Jed. The statemeats made with regard to this
had beent very contradictory. The charter said that
peculiar duties were to be discharged ; but if these du-
ties were performed, there did not appear to be constant
residence enjoined. If they omitted to do their duty,
there was in this respect, he apprehended no distinction
between them and the other large corporations of this
country. In Henry the Eighth's time, when monaste-
ries and religious houses were dissolved, the rectories
which formed a part of them fell to the ground, and be-
came the
.property of private individuals. Others of
them r emained ecclesiastical corporations, and were in
appropriate recwries to the present time. In the neigh-
bourhood where he lived there were four contiguous
parishe,, the duties of which were discharged by a Dean
and Chapter. The revenues of each of these parishes
amountet I to na less than 8001. a year, while the salary
of the clt irgyman, who did the spiritual duty, was only
401. He was not able to say what was the amount of
the rever flies of the other parishes ; but they were, no
doubt, ir► the same proportion. The law gave the Dean
and Chr.pter that discretion, for it presumed they would
be so di: ;posed to superintend the spiritual instruction
of the IN mph. as to ron 'er any cognizance of the law un-
necessar y. They had the law on their side, and from
the best judgment he could form on the matter they
were as. 'well entitled to the tithes and rectorial revenues
as their Lordships were to their estates.

Lord CAMPBELL wished to make a single observa-
tion. 'l'here was a difference between what was called
appropri ate tithes which were held, as lawyers called it,
in lay fes!, and ecclesiastical property to which duties
were ani lexed. lie differed with his Noble Friend with
regard to' the point of residence. These duties as: en-
joined b:, the old charters made residence necessary,
and there was a penalty annexed if the duty so enjoined
was not observed. Now, that penalty supposed a duty
to be performed, the non-observance of which was
visited with the penalt). Now, it appeared to him from
the lucid statement of the Noble Lord who introduced
the subject„ that a duty was imposed and that it should
be performed. No blame, however, should be attached
he believed to the parties involved in the petition, to
whom the cause of religion and education was so much
indebted.
Lord COTTENHAM disclaimed expressing any
opinion as to whether the duties were performed or not.
lie expret:sly avoided making any reference to that.
His observations were confined to the property in a
legal point; of view.
Lord S NLEY would not presume to deal with the
legal question, but he could not, help urging upon their
Lordships that 3 and 4 Will. IV., c. 113, rated pro-
perty, like that in question, as rectorial property. What
he wished to urge upon their Lordships was, whether
the requirements of the charter were satisfied, and
whether they acted the part of good citizens, by the
way in which they performed their duties. It was for
their Lordships and the country to consider whether
this was a state of the law which ought to be considered
incapable of a remedy. Were the inhabitants of Man-
chester, and other populous places, who had levied
upon therm 5,0001. or 6,0001. a year for the purposes of
spiritual instruction, to be deprived of that spiritual
in.F.truct"ion, and to see the funds placed in the hands
of persons who did not recognise any corresponding
claim upon them, but to expand th, m as they thought
proper, and where th, y thought proper, without fu filling
the du ties for which the funds were raised, and to see
them liable, in addition, to have them taken up by
ecclesiastical commissioners, and diverted from rectorial
to chapter purposes. They were anxious to see the
matt,er properly arranged before the final establishment
of the see. They said the funds were rectorial funds,
and that they were improperly applied He was sur-
prised that they should avail themselves of a technicality
;it the ,hart-..r to evade the proper perfirmance of their
duties.

Lord BROUGHAM said that he had seen in the blue
book two letters, Which complained that Captain Wynne,
one of the superintendents of the relief rate, had im-
posed upon its funds two persons who were in the clear
receipt of 60L a•year each, as well as several other per-
s4., wim ,1-ere in easy circumstances. He had heard
from private sources, from persons who were interested
nettlicr oat.: Way or tile otht-.-. in tLe matter, laud who
only know Captain Wynne. In his public capacity, the
highest testimonies to his private. character. That