The Sun.
London, England, 1835-01-29 00:00:00

and that its inhabitants fully appreciated the great and
manifold advantages of an Established Church.—(Cheers.)
The feeling that had ever characterised the nobility of the
land now showed itself—it showed their fervour for religion,
and for those institutions that tended to relieve and promote
the welfare of the poorer classes.—(Hear, hear.) Large as
the contributions to promote the objects of the Society at
present were, he had reason to know that they would be
still larger, that the supplies were increasing, and that they
would, with the blessing of God, be enabled to de-
prive the poor of all excuses for not attending places of
religious worship. He would take 17 different parishes in
his diocese, and he found that out of that number only the
inhabitants of one were completely accommodated with a
place of religious worship ; 18,000 persons wanted accom-
modation ; but he was glad to see that 10,000/. was already
subscribed for the building of chapels.—(Hear) What had
been already done, not only by the high but by the middling
classes, was a pledge that they would be able to attain their
object—(Cheers)---and under the blessing of God, the pre-
sent meeting would be productive of the very best results.
Ile had long thought that the awful problem, namely the
attributing the increase of crime, to the increase of educa-
tion, might be solved by the fact that there was a want of
accommodation for the poorer classes in churches, and that,
consequently, whatever early education they might huve
received would not be followed by a religious end moral
education.—(Hear, hear, hear.) To remove such a deplo-
rable state of things was the great object of the meeting.
The Earl of DARTMOUTH proposed the first resolution.
In several of the populous districts of that county, with
which he was happy to say he was in some degree con-
nected, he perceived that the churches erected in them last
year was already producing the best effects.—(Hear, hear.)
The matter before them was a means of stopping the pro-
gress of error, since not only would it give larger accom-
modation to persons wishing to attend the churces, but it
would enable the clergy to infuse religious instruction
among the poorer classes, by disseminating the Scriptures
and proper books among them. The Noble Earl concluded
by submitting a resolution to the following effect :—" That
the meeting felt that the welfare, happiness, and religion of
the people, depended on the inhabitants of every parish
being provided with churches adequate to their wants,
wherein they might attend religious worship according to
the doctrines of the Established Church."
The Dean of LICHFIELD begged to second the resolu-
tion. It was gratifying to him to be allowed to express his
own exultation at seeing that Society promoted, not only
by the members of his own sacred profession, but by so
many influential laymen as he then saw present. He took
such a meeting—he. held such marks of zeal—as a most
undoubted and solemn pledge thee the Established Church
of England lived as it did of old in the hearts of English-
men.—(Loud cheering.) He accepted it besides as a
warning that they would receive increased support from a
higher source—that the blessings of religion would be
multiplied upon them so long as they discharged, and
discharge them they would, with the blessing of God, the
important duties they were bound to fulfil.—(Cheering.)
He need not say that the destitute state of the country ab-
solutely required tha establishment of such a society as the
present, since all present knew that the populous districts,
every day increasing in population, rendered assistance of
the kind now proposed absolutely necessary.—( Hear, hear.)
Many persons•were at present, from want of room, exclu-
ded from the churches—many were deterred from going
there, and many were furnished with a feasible excuse for
stopping away. He was confident that in a few years after
the establishment of the present Society, they would see a
very different state of things among the people at large.—
(Near, bear.) It would also have this good effect on the
country ; ip would show what we always found to be the
characteristic of Englishmen, that whenever any body of
persons came forward to do good, they were sure to be met
half-way by the ENglish people.—(Cheers.) He had one
word more to say ; some of the leading men of the Esta-
blished Church were ti,:rae, and they would testify that in
administering the power ti;ey possessed, their great aim was
to raise the population above the station they now occupied.
But in exercising that power, .heymust rely on the zeal,
feeling, and co-operation of such .individuals as those who
composed the present meeting, fo? without them they must
fail, and their efforts must remrin totally barren, unless the.
ministers of the Church should be providej in which they
could call the people together to fear, honour, and worship
God.—( Hear, hear.) In conclusion, he begged to dis-
claim that in supporting this Society, he wished tt: create
any differences, or prevent any wholesome and necessary
reforms in the Church.—{Hear, bear, hear.)
The Earl of AYLESFORD moved the following resolutlian,
"That the Society be designated The Diocesan Societv
for promoting the increase of church accommodation within&
the Diocese of Lichfield and Coventry.' That the opera-
tions of the society be directed according to circumstances'
to the providing of additional sittings in churches . and cha-
pels, to the erection of parochial chapels, or of churches,
built under the provisions of the Ist and.., 2d William
IVtb., or to the purchase of buildings which admit of
being adapted to the uses of the Established Church-
That the funds of the Society be employed solely in
aid of local contributions, and applied exclusively- to
buildings consecrated, or to be consecrated ; that aIL
donors of 1001. or upwards, or of Mt, accompanied with
an annual subscription of 101. 10s., be patrons of, the . So-
ciety ; all donors of 50/., or subscribers of 6/. annuany,
vice-patrons ; and that all present donors ,or subscribers„
to whatever amount, and all future donors of 10/., or sub-
scribers of 11. ls. annually, be members ; that the Lord:
Bishop of the diocese, for the time being, be the President
of the Society ; that the management of the affairs of the
Society be confided to a general committee ; and that dis-
trict committees be formed in each arcbdeaconry of the
diocese, the duties of which shall be to solicit and collect',
contributions, investigate local wants, and maintain a re-
gular communication with the diocese committee ; that the
general committee consist of members elected annually by
the several district committees, such committee being em-
powered to choose two, in addition to the President, the
Dean of Lichfield, the Chancellor, and four Archdeacons
of the diocese, and the treasurer and secretary of the
Society ; that the district committees be composed of not
fewer than six members,- annually elected at a general meet-
ing of sulicribers locally connected with such district, toge-
ther with a treasurer, and one or more secretaries ; that the
patrons and vice-patrons of the Society be considered
members of the general committee, and of the several
district committees with which they are locally connected ;
that the funds collected by the several district committees
be transmitted from time to time, after deducting necesary
incidental expenses, to the general treasurer of the Society,
and by him placed to the account of the Society as consti-
. tuting one common fund for the benefit of the diocese at
large ; that all applications for the Society's 'aid be made in
the first instance to the committee of the district within
which the assistance is required, and thence (if approved)
coliznunicated to the general committee for its considera-
tion tilizt the general committee meet once in each qnar-
ter, or oftemz if occasion require ; that all questions be de-
cided by a majority of the members present, the chairman
being allowed a casting vote ; and that in the consideration
of cases brought before them, respect be had primarily to
the extent end local position of the population to be pro-
vided for, to the facilities intended to be given to the :xe-
commodation of the poor, and to the economy observed in
the plans and measures proposed in each case." The re-
mainder of the resolution related only to the mode in which
the minor business of the Society. was to be managed.
The Archdeacon of SALOP seconded the resolution. He
should have excused himself from making any lengthened
observations on the subject before the meeting, were it not.
that his archdeaconry was the smallest of the diocese, and
were it not that his name was attached to the address from
Lichfield. With respect to this district, he begged to say
that he was sent thither, and that he held in his hands a
list of the names of a great many of most influential of the
nobility and gentry of the county of Salop who were fa-
vourable to the object of the meeting, and who had already-
subscribed the sum of 2,oool.—(Cheers.) He' was oblige&
to the meeting for the kind manner in which they had re-
ceived the announcement of so small a sum. It had been
stated that the general accommodation throughout that
diocese was for about one-fifth of the whole population; now
in Salop there was accommodation for two-fifths of the inha-
bitants. Nevertheless, the contributions in the county of
Salop were greater than those of that county—be meant
when their relative extent was taken into consideration ; and
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