The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-25 00:00:00

THE _BOYNE HILL CONFESSIONAL.

The commissioners appointed by the Bishop of
Oxford, under the Church Discipline Act, to in-
quire into the chargesmade against the Rev. Richd.
Temple West, M.A., of Christ Church, Oxford,
curate of Boyne Hill, met yesterday at the Town
Hall, Maidenhead, to pursue the investigation. The
commissioners were Dr. Robt. Philliinore, Chan-
cellor of the Diocese of Oxford ; the Ven. Jas. Ran-
dall, M.A., archdeacon of Berkshire ; the Rev. J.
A. Leigh, vicar of Bray (the parish in which Mr.
Gresley's district is situate) and rural dean. : Mr. Chas.
Sawyer, of Heywood Lodge ; and Mr. Hebbcrt, of
Braywreth Lodge. The court was crowded by the
resident gentry and clergy of the neighbourhood.
Amongst the former were Mr. J. Walter, M.P., and
Mr. Pascoe Grenfell, M.P., by the direction of the
chancellor.
Mr. Cripps, of the Oxford circuit, instructed by
Mr. Gamber of Gray's
-inn, appeared for the com-
plainant, the Rev. John Shaw, rector of Stoke
Yogis. Mr. West was represented by Mr. J. D.
Coleridge, who was instructed by Mr. Bowland, of

Reading.
Mr. J. M. Davenport, secretlu7 to the Bishop of
Oxford, and registrar of the diocese, read the com-
mission, as follows

" Samuel, by Divine permission, Lord Bishop of
Oxford, to our beloved in Christ, Robert Joseph
Phillimore, Esq., D.C.L., Q.C., Vicar General of our
diocese ; the Venerable Archdeacon James Randall,
the Rev. James Edward A usten Leigh, rural dean,
Charles Sawyer, Esq., and John Hibbert, Esq.,
greeting :
" Whereas the Rev. Richard Temple West, a
clerk in holy orders of the United Church of England
and Ireland, and stipendiary curate of Boyne Hill,
in the county.of Berks, and within our diocese and
jurisdiction, is charged by the Rev. John Shaw,
vicar of Stoke Pogis, in the county of Buckingham,
with an offence against the laws ecclesiastical, in
having within two years hereof, in the performance
of his ministerial duty on the occasion of visiting a
certain sick person named Nancy Arnold, put impro-
per questions to her with the view of leading her to
make confession to him, as is more fully charged in a
certain requisition or complaint sent to us, a copy of
which is hereunto subjoined: and whereas, we rightly
and duly proceeding under the authority and in
conformity with the provisions of a certain act of
Parliament passed in the session holden in the third
and fourth years of the reign of her present Ma-
jesty, chapter 86, for better enforcing Church Dis-
cipline,' did on the 30th day of August last, now
past, being 14 days at least before the issuing of
this our commission, send notice under our hand to
the said Richard Temple West, that it was our in-
tention to issue a commission under our hand and
seal to you the five above-mentioned persons for
the purpose of making inquiry as to the grounds of
the aforesaid charges ; we, therefore, by virtue and
in further pursuance of the said recited act, do, on
the application of the said John Shaw, issue this
our commission to you, the said. Robert John Phil-
limore, James Randall, James Edward Austen
Leigh, Charles Sawyer, and John Hibbert, for the
purpose of making inquiry as to the ground of the
aforesaid charge, and. we do hereby authorise and
empower you to make such inquiry, and to proceed
in the execution of this commission in the manner
directed by the said act.
" Given under our hand and seal the 15th day:of
September, in the year of our Lord 1858, and
of our consecration the 13th."
The requisition or complaint referred to :
" To THE RIGHT REV. THE LORD BISHOP OF
OXFORD—

" We, the undersigned inhabitants of the parish
of Stoke, in your lordship's diocese, and communi-
cants of the Church of England, have read in the
Windsor Express newspaper of June 19, a state-
ment detailing the manner of inducing confession
as practised by the curate of Boyne Hill, and desire
to bring his conduct before your lordship's notice.
" The statement sets forth that the clergyman
went to a poor woman, who was in hourly expec-
tation of her confinement, and proceeded to ques-
tion her in a most improper manner with the view
of leading her to confession; that in going through
the commandments, he dwelt more particularly on
the seventh, and asked her whether she had ever
committed adultery ? Upon her replying No,' he
said Yes, but recollect, did you not before or
after you were married look on a man to lust after
him or for him?' According to the statement,
the poor woman was upset' by his language,
especially as the clergyman continued—' Now you
are lying there and hope to be delivered and live ;
therefore 3-ou should confess your sin, to me.' He
pursued the conversation, and inquired, Have you
ever been confirmed ?" No, sir,' she replied.
' Then remember,' said he, ' if you die you can never
enter the kingdom of Heaven ; if you live you must
receive the Holy Sacrament.' Upon her objecting
to this, through want of preparation, the curate
added, 'Then you cannot enter the kingdom of
Heaven.' The statement further sets forth that the
clergyman urged upon her, that she should not
tell her husband,' and that she was afterwards
visited by a lady calling herself Sister Ellen, and
upbraided by her for repeating the conversation,
and again advised her not to tell her husband.
" It is needless for us to specify to your lordship
the many gross improprieties of which the curate
was guilty: Allowing this account to be true, and
that he stands self-condemned by holding a conver-
sation with any woman which he desired not to be
repeated to her husband ; and as Mr. Joseph H.
Clark, of Attwood House, Maidenhead, has avowed
himself to be the writer of this account, and ready
to substantiate it, we therefore respectfully request
of your lordship to institute a full inquiry into
these charges, and, if true, censure and punish the
accused according to the authority your lordship
has by virtue of your office.
" Your requisitionists view with alarm the pro-
gress of certain Romish doctrines and practices in
the bosom of the Anglican Church, of which they
would specify, scarcely ever heard of since the days
of the Reformation, an unscriptural and unanglican
mode of confession ; and unless these practices are
checked by the firm hand of authority, they fear
that the general character of the clergy will be
lowered in the eyes of their parishioncrs,that happy,
open intercourse which now exists between both
parties be checked, and thus the clergy and laity
will he separated into two distinct bodies ; they
fear that the affection of the people of England
will gradually be withdrawn from the Church, and
that by substituting the doctrine of an unscriptu-
ral confession in the place of hearty repentance
and faith in the meritorious sacrifices of Christ on
the cross, an empty formalism will by degrees take
'the place of holiness of life and a real conversion
to the heart of God.
" J. H. Howard Vyse, lieut.-col. ; Abraham
Darby, Charles Darby, Charles 1,3-all, Wil-
liam tathrow, John Alexander Gower, M.A.,
George William Dyson, Andrew Patrick,
John G. Scotton, Robert Alfred Willi .ms,
John Shaw, vicar ; Henry Cantrell, church-
. warden ; William Cooper, churchwarden.
" Stoke Vicarage, July 14, 1838."
Dr. Phillimore (the chancellor) said this was a
proceeding instituted by virtue of a commission
from the bishop of the diocese, whose authority was
derived from the Act 3 and 4 Vic., cap. 86, which
. provided' that when there existed scandal or evil
report against a clergyman for having offended
against the laws ecclesiastical it should be lawful
for the bishop, on the application of any party com-
plaining, or if he thought fit on his own motion, to
issue a commission of five persons to make inquiry
as to the truth of such scandal or evil reports, and
the statute went on further to authorise each com-
mission to examine witnesses upon oath, and to
ascertain and advise the bishop whether or not
there were prima facie grounds for instituting fur-
' ther proceedings. The commissioners were of
opinion that the best course to pursue would he to
allow both the accuser and accused to be heard by
counsel, and in the mode of proceeding to follow
the ordinary proceeding of the courts of common
- law. That was, that the head counsel who repre-
sented the accuser, should make an opening speech
and examine his witnesses. Then that the head
counsel for the accused should reply, and, if he
thought it necessary, to call witnesses that he should
examine them, and; after having done so, should
sum up their evidence, and then that a final reply
upon the whole case should be allowed to the counsel
for the accuser. But if no witnesses were called
for the defence then there would be no reply.
Mr. Cripps said he appeared on behalf of those
on whose behalf this commission had been issued.
They were persons residing in the immediate neigh-
bourhood, who had had their attention called to
certain circumstances which they considered detri-
mental to the interests of the Church. They repre-
milted those circumstances to the bishop of the
diocese, and in consequence of their requisition the
present commission had been issued. Although he
found by the terms of the commission that the
name of Mr. Shaw alone appeared as the party
bringing the charge, it was placed there no
doubt on behalf of other requisitionists as well as
himself. These parties having made the represen-
tation to the bishop, and the commission having
issued in . consequence, were compelled to appear
in the character of prosecutors, and it would be ml-
possible for them, having thus set the matter in
motion, not to appear there to substantiate the facts
they had brought to the notice of the bishop. In
appearing there as prosecutors in the case, they
were mainly carrying out a public duty, unin-
fluenced by any private or personal feelings or any
private motives of hostility to Mr. West whatsoever
—in short, uninfluenced by any feelings other than
such as they might share with the rest of the pub-
lic He was instructed that :;the Rev. Mr. Shaw,
who was there as the prosecutor in the case, was