The Sun.
London, England, 1848-01-26 00:00:00

THE CASE OF THE REVEREND

DR. HAMPDEN.

QUEEN'S BENC-11-(THIS DAY)•

(Sittings in Banco before the Loan CIIIEF•JUVTICE
"Ella JII,tiCOS PATTESON, COLERIDGE, and ERLE.)
Tne QUEEN e. THE ARCIII3IB/10P or GANTERISURT.
The arguments were resumed this morning.
Dr. Animus first referred to the points urged by
him yesterday. He said he now had to contend that
the appointment of a bishop arose from his election,
the Crown confirming the said election, and that the
business of confirmation was judicial and not ministe-
terial. The statute of Henry VIII., entitled " the,
payment of first fruits to the Lord Bishop of Rome, '
vas passed in order to abolish the power of the Pope
in the appointment of bishops, and, consequently, to
abolish the enormous sums levied on the new bishops
by the Pope for bulls, briefs, and so on ; hut it did
not, he contended, prevent any opposition to the elec-
tion of a bishop. The term " cor;firination " was not
used in the part of the Statute which had reference to
presentation, and therefore he contended that inquiry
might be made into the piety or doctrine of a bishop
s., so presented for election by the Crown, in the same
Way as the bishop of a diocese might inquire into the
doctrires or character of a clerk appointed to
a living; and this might he done without violating
. the Act of Henry VIII. in the one case,
or existing Acts in• the other. The election of a
bishop was an inchoate net., and if his confirmation
did not take place, he would never be the bishop of the
diocese; he would simply be the bishop elect. Much
stress had been laid on the absolute nature of the
circler to confirm. Suppose a bishop, between his
election and confirmation, went over to the see of
- Rome—suppose a bishop, after his election, became
• insane, and were brought into the church in a strait-
waistcoat to be confirmed—could it be said that the
Commissioners appointvd to confirm would incur the
Paine and penalties of prsemunire by refusing, under
the circumstances, to do so P To contend that con-
. firmation must follow was an irrational interpretation
of the Act. @Confirmation was as much a judicial as
a spiritual act. He could see nothing in the Act to
prevent persons from appearing when they were cited
to do so ; and there were cases on record in which
opposition had. been admitted, for which the parties
admitting the opposition did not fear incurring the
pains and penalties of-praimunire. Francis Mason,
- In writing in 1625, shortly after the passing of the
Aet, said that persons were clearly entitled to appear,
and that the fact of their doing so would riot subject
the hearers to pramunire.
Lord DENMAN—Who was Francis Mason ?
• Dr: ADDAMS—He was a clergyman and preben-
dary at Westminster, and is a person generally con-
sidered of great authority. Archbishop Potter, in
his work on Church Government, though claiming
the supremacy of the Crown in all matters ecclesias-
tical—though not in the same sense as claimed
by the Attorney and Solicitor-General—con-
aidered that not only the officers of the Church,
but the people should consent to the election of a
bishop before he could be ordained. He said the
People should be called three several times, if, from
ght piety, learning, and life of the person proposed,
he was a fit and proper man to fill the vacant office.
'Raving alluded tdthe opposition of a bookseller named
Noses to the election of Bishop Montague, reported in
. Collier, he contended that the opposition would have
been received if it had been offered in due form of
law;' and Dr. Rives, an able and eminent divine,
declared that the opposition would have been valid if
It had been in writing, but as it was not, it fell to
.the ground.
Lord DENMAN inquired what authority Rives had
for saying that the grounds of opposition to a bishop
must be drawn up in writing?
Dr. Annams conceived that he inferred so from the
fact that it was usual in the Ecclesiastical Courts to
receive proceedings in writing.
Mr:' Justice ERLE also inquired what ground the
sterne authority had for saying that a locus standi
could not be obtained unless the grounds of opposi-
tion were presented in writing by a proctor?
Dr. ADDAMS said he was incorrect in this, as a
suitor might appear in persona. The Learned
Counsel then read the account of the election of
Bishop Montague, as reported by Bishop Goodwin.
Lord DaismAN said, no doubt bishops were con-
sulted on these matters but it would be important to
ascertain whether the opposition in the case of Mon-
tagne took place before or after confirmation.
Dr. ADDAMS then referred to the opposition given
to the election of the Bishop of Manchester by Mr.
Gutteridge, who was confirmed by commission. After
asking Air. Gutteridge several questions, the Chief
Commissioner finding that his exceptions were not
signed by an advocate, told him that his opposition
could not he entertained, at the same time stating
that the commissioners considered that they were
simply there for the purpose of confirming the said
Bishop, and not to hear en) grounds of opposition.
The Learned Counsel then cited the case of the end-
rient..Dr- Clarke. and, Dr. Randell, whose doctrine
being considered unsound, were not elected on account
of opposition, though the last vifras afterwards ap-
POinted Bishop of Derry, hut in this country he was
to have been Bishop of Gloucester. He hoped that
he had shown their Lordships that the busitiess of con-
firmatiun was inertly a judicial act. The fact, that
the warrant of confirmation was endorsed ." fiat con-
firmatio," was strong presumptive evidence of this;
the fact, also, that parties were cited to appear
a few days before, and in short the whole proceedings
came under the same interpretation. It these acts
were-not judicial he vvasat a lose to undentand what
were judicial proceedings. It was absurd to say that
the commissioners -had no power to hear the
grounds of opposition. Ile then recited the pro
cseedings which took place at Bow church. The
Learned Solicitor-General had said that the pro-
ceedings at the election were merely "a sham and
a shadow," hit if they were so, surely the
confirmation came under the definition. When he
expressed. himself so strongly of " shams and sha-
d_ows,' as evinced in the election, he might have gone
further with great propriety, and said that the citing
of parties to appear, and when they did appear, at
great expense to themselves, and at great pains and
trouble, being told that they could not, and yet after
that were again cited, was a " sham and a shadow"
of-the most egregious and monstrous kind.
LOrd DENMAN, having referred to the affidavit,
said—lt appears the parties say that they appeared
when they were cited to do so, that they were told
they could not appear, and that all parties who were
sited and who did not appear were judged " contu-
macious." Now it appears to me that the Learned
Solicitor-General meant that the whole of these pro-
ceedings were " shams and shadows."
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL—Oh yes, my Lord,
Very word of it.—(Laughter.)
bring
ADnems hoped the Learned Counsel would
rig.
in e Bill to abolish such useless ceremonies; or,
if they %ire to be continued, that he would bring in
a Bill fixing future confirmations for the Ist of April,
Ito that the old story. of making people April
fools might be carried' out to the letter.—(Renewed
laughter.) If he had been the counsel for the oppos-
,.in.g party in the case of the Bishop of
11..lanchester, he should first have insisted that
the appearance of the opposing party should
lyerecorded in the registrar's book, as in that case
a there 'could be eo doubt that they would have an
,Palrslal, and weld have come to this Court for a men-
u !nus. Heughton considered that the court ap-
pointed to confirm .a bishop had jurisdiction to hear
grounds of opposition, and otherauthorities agreed
with him.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL here said, as Learned
Friend had stated in his absence that hisr? com-
mission was issued by the Archbishop, he wished to
produce the original, in order to set the matter at
rest. It was directed to Dr. Burnaby, Sir John
bodpon, and Dr. Luehington, who, to use the words
oners
of. the deed, " are •-
hereby constituted our commis-
Dr. ADDAMS said he had been misinformed, but he
might takett iatotunity of saying that they had
not the
same facilities of refererce to the register
Whig Learned Friends had. When the statute
said that confirmation must take place within twenty
days,* it inferred that
was Some lawful hinderance, such sto bhe don.elluenslsesosnthethree
Part of the person to bo confirmed. as
attention of the Court to the 26 t h of eHnebrei henry
Which. •begged
dllthle
provided for the election of suffragan bishops,
and it stated that their confirmation should take
1114'7 within three months if there was no let or
11"era71eet and it could not be said in the case
before the Court that there was no let or hinderance.
(The ease was proceeding when our report left.)

I.IIOSECIITIONS.—The reveral Police-courts in the
tortropolis hare receiv,d the following directions on the
soh set prosecutions for all serious offences within
theft. respective districts:-- Da c. 30, 18 -17.
Geutloinen,—Some iinstailees having recently occurred of
prisoners churge d with serious offences being committed
for trial, and of public inconvenience experienced from
want of directions to counsel to prosecute, I am directed
hY Seen Lary Sir George Grey to desire that for the
future, in all serious cases of committals, when the
Party irjured is not bound over, or is unable to prose
cute, you will transmit as early as possible, for the in-
formation of the Secretary of State, co of all deo-
sitions taken by you therein ,same may be con-
84t. 8. M. PHILLIPPS." that the p p
sidered, and directions
given for prosecutions.—l am,
.
THE LE7TER or THE LAW.—A well-bred man
1° the words of our worthy Town Clerk, bath been dis-
covered in the debtor's
prison of Exeter. An old
4; it a certain number; of loaves for the re-
of
onepoor debtors.. This fortunate individual was the
°Troy , and as the trustees considered the provisions
the will binding,they have been stuffing him with the
p°rvisions of chait y
to the tune of the twenty-nine two
und loaves per week. The council came to the reso-
i.litieek on Wednesday, of violating the law of the land,
departing from the will of the pious donor, and
-- Western
worthy primer's allowanoe.