The Sun.
London, England, 1826-11-21 00:00:00

THE CONVOCATION.

The. readers of history must be fully aware that the
ginud and determined object of the Runtish Church vast
and Still is, the exercise • of unlimited nower.•• The assump4
tion of the state, the splendour, and all the regalities at=
tendant on temporal sovereiglis, the exercise of judicial and
legislative fonetions, in splritual affairs, the. doctrine of
' Church tenures, and the feudatory connection which is said
to exist between the parson or vicar of a parish and the
cesan of the district, all go upon this principle, and beer
a strong and very visible analogy to the principles npott
which the temporal sovereign exercised his rights, the doe:,
trine of feudal tenures, and the 'rights and :privileges exists
ing bet Ween the Lord and Iris vassal.
As thetefOre, in England the sununoning of Parliaments
and the, Opening of them in person, and the exercise of the
tegislatiVe functions of the King, through the medium of a
pepular, assembly, were always, from time *Memorial;
part of the regal state end splendour of the British Crown,
so, the- Archbishops of England, in like mariner, claimed
the privilege of exercising similar rights in their respeetive
dioceses, and hence arose the Convocation of the Clergy,
the Legislatiie Assembly of the Church, and the authority
front which all the Cations of the Anglican Church are said
to flow. This EceleSiastical Synod or Convocation existed
keg before the Reformation, and the rights and prerogai
rives of the King, in, respect to it, were then much the
same. as now, except, indeed, that the,power of assent and
dissent to the canons passed by the Convocation, is now
an avowed privilege of the Crown. This right was intro-
duced about the time of the Reformation, and in conse,
• quence of the declaration that the King's Mtkjesty justly
and rightly is, and ought to be, -supreme Head of the
Church of England.
• In this country there are two Convaeations, one for the
Archiepiscopal See of Citittetbury, and the other for the
Archiepiscopal See of York.
The privileges of the King, in respect of these Convex
cations are those of convening, proroguing, restraining, re•
gulating, and dissolving, those and ,all other Ecclesiastical
Synods.: „ These Synods," says Mr. justice Blackstone,
" in England, differ considerably in their coast a ittion flout
the Synods of other Christian kingdoms, those consistinit
wholly of Bishops; whereas, with us, the Convocation ti
the miniature of the Parliament, wherein cads Archbishop
presides With regal state; the upper House of Bishops re-
presents' the House of Lords, and the lower Hotise, COM•
posed of the representatives of the several dioceses at
large, and of each particular chapter therein, resembles the
House of Commons with its Knights of the Shire and
Burgesses. This constitution is said to he owing, to the
policy of Edward I.y who thereby, at one and the seine
time, let in the inferior clergy to the privilege of forming
Ecclesiastical Canons (which :before they had not), 81;1
abut introdured a method of taxing ecclesiastical benefices
by Consent of Convocations.
The two Convocations are assembled by virtue of the
King's Writs, directed to the 'two Archbishops, and it is
homed before the meeting of every new Parliament. The
two assemblies debate the same matters; but it appears
clear that each is perfectly independent of the other and
that there is no obligation to uniformity in this respect.
All deans and archdeacons are memberaof the convoca-
tion of their province, each Chapter sends one Proctoror
Representative, and the parochial clergy in each diocese
in the province of Canterbury, two. tint in York, from
the smallness of the see, each arehdeaeonry elects two proc:
tors. The Convocation of York consists of one house
only, but that of Canterbury of two. In the upper house
sit the twenty-two hiihops; and previous to the Reforms
tion, all priors and other mitred prelates, sat with them.
The lower house consists of. twenty-two deans, fifty-three
archdeacons, twenty-four proctors, for the chapters, and
• forty-four for the parochial clergy., Besides the legislative
power of making canons, the Convocation has it judicial
authority in cases of appeals in which the king is a party.
fn cononon cases such appeals would ha tt; the COMA. 4)I
' Delegates.
Tr ;,..6aktion of these Ecclesiastical Synods is o

deal wit r hereiies, seldatoi, nod 'other mere siiiritual ind
creleuilistival euusee, 'end therefore they proeeed juzig
teem diusiam <l etmonor aanetre owlesia?. As they coup

never asaetable but by thelong's writ, a they were

teatimes commanded by like writ to deal with nothing
that concerned the King's hays of the land, his .crown
and dignity, his person, his state, his council, or king-
&Mt ; and in order fully to restrain them front outatepping
the bounda of their authority, the King, not unfrequently
nornimued commissioners by writ, to sit with them, and
have cognizance of What they did.
Since the reformation, the powers of the church in
ConvoCatiOn awn:n.ll4o, have been greatly clipped, by
vir:ne of the Act 25 Henry V 111. c, 19. By that. Act,
it is expros6ly declared that such canons only already
made, which were not repugnant to the law of the land,'or
the king's prerogative, should be stecuted or deemed in
force. Besides this powerful' restraint there is another,
viz :---that no new canon can be entertained, except by
licence from the crown, and even after that licence is ob-
faMed and the canon made, the King's assent is tuteassary
to give it force. MoreetVer, even after such assent ob-
tained, it only binds the spirituality.
In the Bth .fames I.
,it was resolVed by the two Chief
Justices, and divers other justices, at, as Conunittee before
the Lords in the,salne Parliament, 011,4iiyers points, char-
(tenting the authority, of the Convocation.
I. 'Chats Convocation ,cannot tucitenthle at :their own or the
Archbishops' Convocation, without, the assent of Ate King, i,
by writ. .
IL That after their assembly they cannot rouhier together to
const.'toteany canons without list r, dil roy.
When they epos, gonfercuc,,,, conclude any rattans,, yet
they cavolvt eaveute ant, of Rwir elvos without Royal Assent.
IV. Vol' t 141101; eatecote any after Royal ;Assent, but with
these four $111441100*. r
I. That they be against the prerootOid of rite kitsg.
2. Nor agaii7o the common laws.
1. Nor against ta"tY itOnto- law., .
• 4, Nor soilsrt any ,'kttitti#9lt of the realm.
Thus restricted, the eoltroceti°l' may be said only to
for its authorityis s dwindled away, that for all
potant
useful Intrpos'eale perfectly ,4m
For any fiddler inforinatied Ws. Ittbiect beg' to
refer tin anxious enquirer to C.,bson's Codex," and
"Barn's Ecclesiastical Litw," by Tyrwhil`tf

" 1,1
a F.OFNFRACV OF TIM ...OSSTANS.—Wd Were
trinnPluied'hY nilor Martin Vasilitsch, who hail conium!bled
fo"....retebt4:.;e::tVt?7,„
it,iirell,tliwn and district of kiit.zi4. Titt;
ptnrivartetBol
mire, ciaftimeneed his wilitfiry rtia
the road he fr...p„,„ty ,040,15:iii 1,,
ithe Entprcss Catherine. On
rcl:Lting to the ,tors of his
campaigns, and never et,:aseti. 'IY,
'-place within the Met forty yft,, the that lied taken
Of the Rusidaml• " nIY Y"atii,s":*oiri iitiicalomi moral quahtits
hundred blow: with a cane witiamt etteilehat 14°Pg.eroliaZeo,ivligthw(i.
might hive escaped them by licktiowhiogiOx „roc to.l
birth ; but I wished to avoid the wearlsoment o noble
Now, if you Jive a soldier only tifty t,l7:llcw
you were .flaying hint alive !"-L. timelier roars as if
A COSSACK VILLAGE.."--" ;Altair LAViq d
our course for three days through that region 4f, imettiltliell:L.o'
beauty, we reached the summit of a mountain, we it:
held the whole face of the country bright in tile inoraiog
At a short distance below, us, a village seem& in bang careie„sly
on the mouotain's side, where the cottages, being partly fori„,,i
of etrasstiOM in the rocky surface of the mountain, so as to pre,
Ispiit only a trout, with a small portion of side.walls, to the spec-
tators, appeared, by some strange means, to adhere to the smoothh
declivity ; whilst their low, fiat roots, jotting a little beyond
nether te
steep slope of the, hill against which they. Man
rested,. looked
like utilities, than the roofs of habitable dwellings. yof
three; si~t}lulaa terraces wore now almost covered with wheat-
sheave*, which some of the village-women were employed in
spreading ahroaAl, whiter others occupied, theuctelvee in treading
out the corn;i, but the mon, whir take little share in three labours,
vat smoking irr idle groups, at the tautagUdoors. The declivity on
which the village hang thmuitappeared to Imre been the work of
art .; the mountain, in every other part, being quite precipitoua
and rugged, till it terminated is a bold promontory, whose base
W 4 Wahed by the era."--Story 0,/ a Wanderer,

SIR RICHARD BIRNIE AND THE CINQUE
PORT MAGISTRATES.

TO THE EDITOR OP THE NEW. TIMES.
Dover, Nov. 17, 1826.

SIR-To countered the slanderous reports set forth in the
.31orniny Herald-and Times, you will much oblige nie by in-
Serting the annexed hitter and answer in the New Times at your
very earliest eoavenienee.
I beg to be, Sir, your's, most obediently,
JOHN FINNIS.

(COPY.)—TO SIR R. I3IRNIE.
Dover, 16th Nov. 1826.

Stu--The severe (and in my opinion, libelous) comments
made iu the Morning Herold, of the 31st October, on the Ma-
gistracy of the Cinque Ports, arising from assertions said to have
been made by you on the late, examination of some persons charged
with the murder of en unfortunate individual at Dover, and other
offences against the Revenue Laws, as well es a report in the
Tinges of yesterday, of further remarks said also to have been
made by you on the same subject, must have attracted the atten-
tion of most persons; •and if suffered to pass unanswered, _tend to
cast altigma on the characters of several respectable individuals
that but little deserve it.

Having hail the honour to • hold the office of Chief Magistrate
of this town, when the unfortunate outrage was committed, which
ended in the ranch to be lamented murder of Quarter-master Mor-
gan, and having sat as Coroner on the inquest, I feel called on to
ask, if you have any, and what, grounds to attach those remarks
to the Illagiatrates of Dover? If not, I trust you will feel the
justice of taking measures to counteract the foul slander thus so un-
warrantably raised against several of your fellow Magistrates.—
For myself, I fearlessly challenge Sir It. Ilirnie, or any other in,
dividual, to adduce onesolitary instance wherein I have been back-
ward in siding the execution of the laws for the support of the
revenue; and assert, without fear of contradiction, that during the
time I have acted as a Magistrate, I have, upon every occasion, to
' the' utmost of my power, rendered the most prompt attention
thereto. , Requesting the favour of •an immediate reply, I have
the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient, Servant,
To Sir R. Birnie, JNO. FINNIS.

Public-Office, Bow-street, &v. &c.
P.S. It is true that the old gaol at Dover was broken open
some yeari ago, and some prisoners rescued; the facts relating to
which were, at the time, fully reported to the proper authorities ;
and had the conduct of the then Magistrates called for either re-
prehension or • punishment, there is no doubt but the Secretary of
State would have taken the necessa►y steps to have done. so.

Public Office, flow-utreet, Nov. 17, 1826.

Slit--1 have this morning received yours of the 16th hut, and

I don't hesitate to say, that I regret exceedingly that any observe.
eke)* made. by me on the conttnitment of the prisoners, brought
before me from the coast of Kent, charged with murder, and also
offences against the revenue.laws, shmild have • given rise to the
comments you so justly complain of in the Morning Herald.—
Perhaps it is scarcely necessary for me to assure you that I have
nothing to do with, or any controul over, any of the public
Papers, and therefore 410 not consider myself in any way answer.
able for the comments or observations they may make. .What fell
from me arose out of the cue, and in reply to an observation made
by the prisoner's Solicitor, and nothing was further from my
mind than to give.pail, or impute misconduct to you personally,
or to Any other respectable Ikfagistrate of the Claque Ports. The
town of Dover was not alluded to by me. The fact was, that I
believed the representations the officer made, and I only intended
to impute blame to those whose conduct I conceived merited cert.
With regard to the statements in the Times, it appears
io me to be pot much stronger than my remarks warranted. My
object was, that the officers, to get their warrants backed, should
apply to a Gentleman who was in the conuniesionof the Peace for
the county of Kent, As well as fur the jurisdiction of the (Inoue
Ports, instead of applying to a. Justicie of tier latter jurisdiction
only ; and I thought myself justified in doing so front the circum-
stances which had been represented to cue; but I again most die-

sure.

inctly disavow any intention to impute blame, to you personally,
,r misconduct to the Magistrates of the Cinque Ports generally.
I have the honour to he, Sir, your obedient Servant,
R. BIRNIE.