The Sun.
London, England, 1834-02-07 00:00:00

THE CHURCH.

Yesterday morning having been appointed by his Grace
the Archbishop of Canterbury to receive the Address of
the Clergy of England and Wales, at twelve o'clock the
following Clergy, who had previously assembled at the
house of Mr. Rivington, in Waterloo-place, proceeded to
Lambeth Palace :

Ven. James Croft, Archdeacon of Canterbury ; Dean of
Lincoln, Dr. Gordon ; Dean of Carlisle, Dr. Hodgson ; Dean
of Chichester, George Chandler, LL.D. ; Archdeacon of Lon-
don, Joseph Holden Pott, M.A. ; Archdeacon of Middlesex,
George Owen Cambridge, M.A. ; Archdeacon of Stowe, H. P.
Bayley; Archdeacon of Bedford, Dr. Bonney; Archdeacon
of Sarum, Liscombe Clarke, M.A. ; Archdeacon of Brecon,
Richard Davis ; Archdeacon of Taunton, Anthony Hamilton,
M.A. ; Archdeacon of Rochester, Walker King, M.A. ;
Archdeacon of St. Alban's, John James Watson, D.D. ;
Rev. Ashurst Turner Gilbert, D.D., Principal of Brasenose,
Oxford; Rev. Godfrey Faussett, D.D., Margaret Professor of
Divinity, Oxford; Rev. John Keble, Professor of Poetry, Ox-
ford; Rev. Christopher Wordsworth, D.D., Master of Trinity
College, Cambridge ; Rev. John Bankes Hollingworth, D.D.,
Norrisian Professor of Divinity, Cambridge; Rev. Ralph
Tatham, 8.D., Public Orator, Cambridge; Rev. I. W. Baugh,
M.A., Chancellor of Bristol, Proctor for Worcester; Rev.
W. F. Baylay, M.A., Proctor for Canterbury; Hon. and Rev.
Evelyn Boscawen, M. A., Proctor for the Chapter of Canterbury;
Rev. H. Fardell, M.A., Prebendary of Ely, Proctor for Ely ;
Rev. John Hume Spry, D.D., Proctor for London.
They were received in the library by his Grace the
Archbishop, who w.is attended by his chaplains,
When the venerable J. Croft, Archdeacon of Canter.
bury, addressed the Archbishop in the following words

. - .
" As Premier Archdeacon of England I have the high honour
of being deputed by my reverend brethren to approach your
Grace, on the present important occasion, with the address of the
Clergy of England and Wales ; nor will I, in my own person,
venture to say more than that I feel entitled thus to designate
an address, which, notwithstanding some few slight and imma-
terial variations, is in all instances substantially the same, and
has received the signatures of 6,530 ministers of our Aposto.
Beal Church."

The Archdeacon then proceeded to read the
ADDRESS.

" We, the undersigned Clergy of England and Wales, are
desirous of approaching your Grace with the expression of
our veneration for the sacred office to which, by Divine Pro
vidence, you have been called, of our respect and affection
for your personal character and virtues, and of our gratitude
for the firmness and discretion which you have evinced in a
season of peculiar difficulty and danger.
" At a time when events are daily passing before us which
mark the growth of latitudinarian sentiments, and the igno.
rance which prevails concerning the spiritual claims of the
Church, we are especially anxious to lay before your Grace the
assurance of our devoted adherence to the Apostolical doctrine
and polity of the Church over which you preside, and of which
we are Ministers ; and our deep-rooted attachment to that ye.
nerable Liturgy in which she has embodied, in the language of
ancient piety, the orthodox and primitive faith.
" And while we most earnestly deprecate that restless desire
of change which would rashly innovate in spiritual matters,
we are not less solicitous to declare our firm conviction that
should any thing, from the lapse of years or altered circum.
stances, require renewal or correction, your Grace and our
other spiritual rulers may rely upon the cheerful co-operation
and dutifkil support of the Clergy in carrying into effect any
measures that may tend to revive the discipline of ancient
limes, to strengthen the connexion between the bishops,

Clergy, and people, and to promote the purity, the efticien,.y
and the unity of the Church."

To which his Grace the Archbishop returned the fot-
lowing answer :
" Mr. Archdeacon, and my Venerable and Reverend Bre-
thren,—l receive with peculiar pleasure this expression of your
kindness towards me, and your approbation of my humble en-
deavours to do my duty ; but I feel still greater satisfaction
when I consider the object which you have principally in view,
and the good effects which may be anticipated from this pub.
lic declaration of your sentiments. If it has ever been sur-
mised that the clergy are wanting in attachment to the doctrine
and polity of our United Church ; that they have ceased to
venerate the Liturgy, are distrustful of their spiritual gover-
nors, and desirous of change, this manifestation 'of your
opinions and feelings will correct the mistake and dissipate
the hopes which may have been built on it. If, again, they
are charged with partiality for defects and corruptions, and
determined aversion to improvement from bigotry or baser
motives, such imputations are shown to be groundless by this
Address.

" I regard it as a direct contradiction of misrepresentation
and fa'sehoods of different kinds, which have been widely cir-
culated ; as an avowal of your unshaken adherence to our
National Church, its faith and its formularies ; and as a tes-
timony of your veneration for the episcopal office, and of your
cordial respect for your Bishops. By thus coming forward you
make known to the public the real dispositions of the Clergy ;
you place:their love of order and of ancient principles beyond
the reach of suspicion ; you discourage rash innovation,
without shutting the door against any improvements which
may be deemed sufficiently important to outweigh the evils in-
cidental to change.

" To myself and the other Prelates, although we have never
had reason to doubt of the affection of our brethren, this volun-
tary assurance of your co-operation will yield effective support,
and impart additional confidence. The gratifying proofs which
you on this day have afforded us, of your approval in respect to
the past, and of your reliance on our continued fulfilment of
our sacred duties, are equally calculated to allay our anxieties
and to animate our exertions. For myself, I confess that while
I am deeply impressed with a sense of our danger, and conscious
of my own infirmity, I look to the future without dismay, in
the hope that, through the blessing of Almighty God, and the
aid of his Holy Spirit, the Church may not only be preserved
from the perils which now threaten its existence,but be securely
and permanently established, with an increase of usefulness and
honour."

The Archbishop then received and returned the compli-
ments of each of the Clergy present, when they withdrew.

We understand that the addresses from some dioceses
and archdeaconiies have not yet been received, but the ag-
gregate number of signatnres wi 1 probably exceed 8,000.

CHURCH REFORM-PLURALITIES.

PARISH OF ALLHALLOWS, LOMBARD-STREET.
A vestry meetio4 was held at this parish list evening
in reference to the appointment of the Rev. Francis Ditty-

son, as rector.
Mr. Low proceeded to state the purpose for which the
meeting was convened. It was stated in the letter which
appeared in the papers that the Rev. Gentleman, who had I
recently been appointed curate of the parish, was rector of
Chislehurst, rector of Orpington, rector of Hayes, perpe•
teal curate of Downe, prebendary of Canterbury, and
sub•dean of Cariterhury, in consequence of which a gen-
tleman, from the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury, called
upon him with the view of correcting a slight mistake
that was made. It appeared that the rectory of Hayes
was in the gilt of Mr. Dawson, and he did give it away
in 1831. He was also entitled to the perpetual curacy of
Downe, and that he gave away in 1828. The law would
not allow any man to hold several livings at one time, and
therefore he gave them away nominally to take othe s
that were richer.—(Hear, hear.) He asked the gentle-
man who waited on him, whether Mr. Dawson did derive
any emoluments from two livings, and he said he could
not say. He contended that it was impossible for any
man holding a plurality of livings to do that justice to the
parish to which they were entitled.
Mr. JOHN Low was desirous of calling the attention of
the parishioners to the manner in which the late Rector
had officiated in the parish during the last 18 years. That
gentleman resided a considerable distance from town. He
was a prebend of Canterbury, and no doubt held other lu-
cra•ive engagements which deprived the parish of the op-
portunity of communicating with him, and the p rrishioners
were almost destitute of spiritual instruction. It was well
known that the parish were in the habit of contributing to
various charitable establishments, and to the public paro-
chial schools in the ward ; hut he was sorry to state that
that assistance had been withheld in consequence of the
Rector's conduct. These statements were extremely pain-
ful for him to make, but he considered it absolutely neces-
sary. When a charity sermon was about to be preeched,
the late Rector was applied to for the use of his pulpit for
the occasion, as it was consithred that some popular
preacher would draw a large congregation ; but the answer
be returned was—" No pet son shall preach in my pulpit
unless I appoint him myself." The same question had
been put to Mr. Dawson, and he said—" The regular
course for you is to fix upon some gentleman who is to
preach, and if I approve of him he shall be allowed to
preach." He therefore considered they had no reason to
hope for more from Mr. Dawson than they received from
their late Rector. Some gentlemen might approve of the
appointment, but it would be difficult to make out that
the appointment would benefit the perish. He concluded
by proposing the first resolution.
" That it is the opinion of this vestry that the object of the
Established Church should be to provide the most effectual
means for the religious instruction of the people—to attain
which object the Legislature has provided ample funds for the
support of a respectable, educated, and efficient ministry ; and
that, while the inhabitants of this parish are legally compelled
to furnish such funds, they consider they have a right to a rest.
dent minister, in order that they may enjoy that intercourse to
which they are entitled, and which is calculated to produce a
reciprocal good feeling between the minister and his parish.
ioners, and (if the minister knows and feels the importance of
the truths of religion) is so well adapted to contribute to their
religious interests."
Mr. HALWARD having seconded the resolution,
Mr. PRICKER defended the conduct of Mr. Dawson.
Mr. CLARK then rose to propose an amendment, which,
however was negatived.
Mr. TAYLOR considered that it would be unwise to
make any application to the Dean and Chapter of Canter-
bury ; for if the Dean and Chapter had zealously a•tended
to their duty, they would not have placed a person in the
situation who was unable to perform their duty.
Mr. PEWTRESS looked upon the appointment as a part
of the system that had been reprobated by the best sup-
porters of the church, and it showed that there was no
community of feeling between the heads of the church and
the people at large.
Mr. &ZITHER said there could be no doubt but that
this was a gross case, and the parishioners could not ex-
press themselves too strongly.
Mr. Deputy WESTON moved the second resolution.
" That the inhabitants of this parish have long observed the
increasing dissatisfaction of the people of England that so large
a portion of the clergy of the Established Church hold a plura.
lity of livings, who reside at a distance from them, and hold but
little intercourse with their parishioners, and consequently have
no sympathy with their wants, and take no personal interest in
their religious welfare. They take this opportunity of uniting
with their fellow.countrymen in reprobating a system so much
at variance with the well-being of the parishioners."
Mr. HAYNES seconded the resolution, and it was car-
ried without opposition.
Mr. 'f krioa felt glad the parish had come forward on
public grounds, to protest against these pluralities. The
system had existed so long that it could not be endured any
I finger. -He concluded by moving the following resolu-
tion
" That this vestry feel it their duty to express their surprise
and deep regret at the conduct of the Dean and Chapter of
Canterbury, that they should have given the rectory of this
parish to the Rev. Francis Dawson, 8.A., a gentleman who,
before his appointment to this living, was Rector of
Chislehurst, Rector of Orpington, Prebend of Canterbury,
Sub-Deacon of Canterbury, and now Rector of All-
hallows, Lombard-street; and they cannot but consider
that this very inconsiderate appointment, manifesting so little
regard for the religious welfare of the inhabitants of this pa-
rish, is an additional proof of the absolute necessity for an im-
mediate, full, and efficient reform in the Established Church of
this country, effectually to remedy the grievous evils which the
community are suffering, from the lamentable abuse of the pa-
tronage of the Church, of which this appointment furnishes a
striking example.
Mr. PEWTRESS seconded the resolution. He consi-
dered this meeting of great public importance, as
Farishioners heretofore had not interfered in the appoint-
ment of their spiritual instructors, and this would not be
the last meeting on the subject. The resolution was then
carried.
Mr. Deputy WESTON moved the next resolution, which
was that petitions, founded on the above resolutions, be
presented to the House of Lords, by Lord Durham, and
to the House of Commons, by Mr. Grote, praying that
such measures might be taken to afford the parish relief
as they in their wisdom should think fit, and praying also
fur• a full-and efficient reform in the Church establishment.
The petitions to Parliament were then signed by many
persons present, after which thanks were given to the
Chairman, and the meeting separated.

The further consideration of the case of
Gregorio Guinea, aged 46, convicted of cutting and
maiming at the last November 0:t1 Bailey Sessions, and
now under sentence of death in Newgate, took place yes-
terday before the King in Council ; when his Majesty was
graciously pleased to grant him a respite during his Royal
pleasure.

FASHIONABLE INTELLIGENCE.