The Sun.
London, England, 1833-05-09 00:00:00

AFFIRMATION OF QUAKERS.

Lord MORPETH brought forward his motion for
leave to bring in a Bill to allow the affirmation of
Quakers to be received in all cases in which oaths were
at present required to be taken. At present Quakers were
only disqualified from two offices, viz., any office under
the Crown, and from serving on juries ; he proposed that the
affirmation of Quakers be received in all cases, and
thereby they would be qualified to do that from
which they were now debarred. His Bill would also prevent
the repetition of those trifling delays which bad recently
taken place in that House, viz, on the Hon. Member for
South Durham (Mr. Pease) taking his seat, and again yes-
terday when that Hon. Member was ballotted for to serve
on an Election Committee. Looking at the question upon
general grounds, he could not see how a Legislature that
had taken away the necessity of an oath from this religious
class, in cases of life and death, could stop short from
admitting them to all the privileges and immunities of a
state, from whose imposts and support theywere not exempt;
and to which they contributed so much of industry, enter-
prise, good order, and wealth. There could be no ex-
pectation, whilst the state of the world continued any-
thing like it was at present, that the Quakers would take
a fud part in the transactions that were going on. From
the naval and military departments and services they would
continue to be excluded by their own tenets ; but there
were many other places under Government which they
were well qualified to fill, and to which they might pru-
dently aspire. He would illustrate this by relating a
circumstance which came immediately under his own
notice, connected with this subject, and which, indeed,
had first impressed his mind with the necessity
of having those disabilities removed.—(Hear, bear.)
The Noble Lord then narrated the case of an individual, a
native of Barnsley, in Yorkshire, who had been introduced
to his Lordship in consequence of his taste in literature.
This young man was in an humble walk of life, and a
vacancy occurring in the Post-office department in Barns-
ley, in consequence of a recommendation from bins (Lord
Morpeth), and a representation in favour of the individual,
signed by almost all the respectable inhabitants of Barns-
ley, his Grace the Duke of Richmond (Postmaster-General)
appointed him to the office. But it turned out that as a
Quaker he could not take the oath required to be taken
previous to his entering the office. The young man then
wrote to him, saying his objection to taking the oath bad
offended some of his friends, but he could not corn
nsit a cool deviation from what he conceived to be
his duty, without embittering every hour of his life.
He begged the pardon of the House for troubling them
with this statement, but it was only an instance of what
might occur any day in any part of the kingdom,
and he hoped the measure be was about to introduce
would have the effect of preventing its recurrence.—
He had originally confined his intentions to the point of
eligibility to office, and he had extended it more in deference
to the views of others than his own ; and as to the Quakers,
he had never beard a wish or suggestion on their part to be
allowed the privileges his measure was intended to give.
Though he took up this subject originally from a feeling
of kindness towards Quakers, he stood forward not as
their advocate, but of that which would be for the good
of the community. The Quakers were a highly useful
and sensible class of the community, and would doubtless
make excellent and intelligent jurors, and the giving them
the power to become so woul . be a sensible and agreeable
relief to those who were at present liable to serve
on juries. It appeared that there was but little doubt as t
the present state of the law upon the subject of Quakers
serving on juries; there was no doubt they were liable to
be summoned, and in some cases they bad actually been se.
There was an instance in the county of York, where a
Quaker served upon a jury at the assizes at York; and
the same man was afterwards prevented, on the ground of
his being a Quaker, from serving on a jury at the quar-
ter sessions in the same county. At the last assizes at
York, a respectable and very opulent Quaker was sum-
moned there to discharge the duty of a juror. He
applied for release on the ground of being a Quaker,
and his consequent inability to serve; his application was
distance refused,
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on the high seas. A Quaker went into the box to
serve on the jury—an objection was taken ; i‘ was over-
ruled, and the trial proceeded. The prisoner was found
guilty. On a subsequent day he was called up to receive
judgment, and his counsel made an objection to the ver
diet. He was represented to have said that he knew of
no alteration in the law! that every or any subject could
not be tried for any crime, utile:: it was on the oaths of
twelve men.—(Hear.) In the present instance, it would
appear that only eleven men had been sworn.—(Hear,
hear.) The Learned Judge proceeded tc pass Bentenc-,
and said the objection should be taken into consideration,
and it was referred to the whole of the Judges, who e-
cided the objection was good, and the trial, therefore, not