The Sun.
London, England, 1835-12-04 00:00:00

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little better • but they fell back to the priks of yesterday.
Very little business has been done.

QUARTER TO Foun.—Five per Cents., 108 f. 40c. ; Three
per Cents., 80f. 70c. ; Five per Cents. Spanish, —; Three
per Cents. Spanish, —; Cortes, —; Coupons, 22 ; Gueb-
bards, ; Differes, 17 ; New Loan, —; Actives, 451 ;
Passives, 13k; Ducats, 98 60; Romans, 101: ; Pedros, —;
Belgians, 104; Dutch, —f. —c. ; Haytians, 375 f. r)—c. ;
Miguels, ; Brabant Bank, —; Belgian Bank, —; Con-
tinuation, —c. ; New Differes, 23.

A Public Meeting, for the purpose of raising a
subscription for the relief of the Irish Protestant
Clergy, was held yesterday at the Freemason's Tavern.
We cannot- too warmly praise the object of this
Meeting. It has emanated from the best of motives,
and, we are sure, will be successful ; for the stream
of English benevolence runs in a magnificent channel,
and an appeal to its charity is never made in vain.
As men and as Christians, the Irish Protestant Clergy,
especially the unbeneficed portion, have strong claims
on our compassion ; but while we feel for them, and
cheerfully advocate their cause, we cannot agree with
the Bishop of LONDON, that " Protestantism itself is
suffering in their persons." This is taking a
Churchman's view of the question. A dis-
passionate. man would argue otherwise. He would
say—it is not the. Establishment, but the abuses
of the Establishment, that are " suffering in the per-
sons" of the distressed Irish Clergy. They are
not the victims of " Protestantism," but of the vicious
system by which it has been so long deformed. Reli-
gion, and a rich religious institution, though they may
be considered, as they have been for ages, closely asso-
ciated, are yet two very different things, and bear two
very different meanings. There was no bloated Church
Establishment in the primitive days of the Apostles ;
no Bishops clothed in purple and fine linen, dwelling
in sumptuouS palaces, and acting in a political capa-
city in the supreme Court of Legislature; no golden
prebends ;- no non-resident pluralists ; no Deans and
Sub-Deans ; no Canons and Minor Canons ;—there
was nothing of th',s sort, when Paul preached the
Gospel at Athens ; and Luke, and Timothy,
and Peter, and John had the superintendence
of the Christian community ; yet when was reli-
gion more strictly attended to, or its" precepts more
carefully treasured up, and made the rule of conduct,
than in those unsophisticated days ? Christianity,
then, or " Protestantism," as the Bishop of LONDON
calls it, has nothing in common with a wealthy Esta-
blishment—unless, indeed, we arc to consider Mam-
mon as the head of the Church—and this being the
case, what wonder that an impoverished country like
Ireland, endeavours to fling off ;he burden of a sys-
tem at variance with the Apostolic principle, and op-
posed to all the dictates of justice and common sense ?
The good Bishop, however, cannot see -the matter in
this light. In his eyes, " Protestantism" is an affair
of pounds, shillings, and pence. He is horror-struck,
he tells us, at the idea of its " being starved out of
Ireland." But let him not be afflicted on this-
score. " Protestantism" is not to be so got rid of.
It is no rare exotic—no dainty hot-house plant; but
a healthy, robust ever-green, that blossoms on the
thinnest and most sterile soil. You may starve out
the Protestant system, but von will never starve out
the Protestant religion, so long as men have heads to-
understand, and hearts to feel, its blessings. It is in-
dependent of all sublunary aid. It is superior to all.
sublunary obstacles. It is an indestructible principle
' entwined with our very being —a law written by the
finger of GOD himself on the broad tablet of the
universe. But while we allow that religion cannot be
.injured by what man can do unto it, we are far from
saying that the Establishment is in the same enviable
predicament. This, as a mere human Institution, is
of course subject to all the laws of humanity. Where
it answers its purpose,-there it bids fair to be cndur-
' ing ; but where, as in the case of Ireland, its abuses are
more felt than its ImcfitS, there it must calculate either
on a thorough Reform, or on a very short lease of
existence. It is hard, however, that individuals should
be made to answer for the vices of a system ; and it is
upon this principle that we advocate the cause of the
distressed Irish clergy. At the same time we cannot
but bear in mind, that they never would have been re-
duced to their present destitute condition, had it not
been for the selfish, factious obstinacy of the House of
Lords. Government had foreseen their wants and
provided means for their support ; but the Tory
Lords put a Veto on all such provision ; and
have now the unblushing _hardhihood to ascribe
that to Ministers, which was the inevitable conse-
quence of their own interested policy I If any body of
men are bound more than another, by every principle
of justice, honour, and common sense, to relieve the
distress of the Irish Clergy, it is the Tory majority of
the House of Peers. But will they come forward to
do so ? We greatly doubt it ; for the loss of their
" million" at the -last elections, has made them won-
drously shhin all matters where the interests of the
pocket are concerned.

In referring to the report of the proceedings of the
Court of Aldermen, on the question of Mr. Sheriff
SALOMONS'S eligibility to serve the office of Alderman
of the Corporation of the City of London, it is by no
means our intention to cast reproach on any individual
of the Aldermanic body. Neither are we prepared to
say that the Court "of Aldermen, as now constituted,
could have legally acted otherwise than it has done on
this occasion. It is not the members of the Court, but
the system which constitutes them a corporate body—
with powers to withhold honours derived from the spon-
taneous suffrages of the people—which we repudiate.
Such only of the members are blameable as advocate
a system tantamount to a religious inquisition. The
number, however, is not great—if we may be allowed
to judge from the expressions of regret which accom-
panied the rejection of Mr. SALOMON& All ad-
mitted the personal worth, the great respectability, the
unsullied honour, and the entire fitness of the candi-
date, to discharge the duties which would devolve
upon him as a civic Magistrate. His works were unex-
ceptionable ; but he lacked faith Though the
Scriptures declare that " Faith without works is
dead," the reverse of the divine proposition is
true of the Christian Corporation of London.
Works are nothing provided there be a Parlia-
mentary modicum of true faith. JOHN WILKES,
without one Christian virtue, made an excellent Alder-
man ; but DAVID SALOMONS, though acknowledged
by the Court to be a man of blameless life, is declared
disqualified. Why? Because WILKES had his faith to
point to, and SALOMONS could only cite his works.
What matters it about a country's morals so long as its
legislative and executive Government, can make declara-
tions on the true faith of a Christian ? Of Christian
unbelief among those in high places, who make a
parade of their zeal for preserving the Christian
character of the country, we could state more than
would suit the palate of the Court of Aldermen. But
of course as—
" In the wicked there's no vice
Of which the saints have not a spice ;
And yet the thing that's pious in
The one, in di' other is a sin :
Is't not ridiculous, and nonsense,
A saint should be the slave of conscience,
That ought to be above such fancies
As far as above ordinances."

This, however, is a ticklish point ; and, perhaps, it
is hardly fair to refer to it in speaking of the act of a
body possessing no optional power. The blame, in
this case, is mainly attributable to the House of
Peers—an assembly which, taken collectively, is as