The Sun.
London, England, 1827-03-28 00:00:00

SPIRIT OP. TO 15t73L1C JOURNALS.

Our contempOrary of, the New Times makes
the following observations on the notice of a
motion on Monday night, by Mr. Hume, re-
specting the Church Establishment in Ireland :
"Mr. Hum. gave notice cf a motion, last night, for the
75th May, respecting the Church Establishment in Ireland.
About a fortnight ago a gentleman essayed the part of
Othello, at Drury-lane Theatre, having an unquestionable
opinion of his own abilities for the stage. He hied, and
failed. But he paid the manager for the use of his theatre
to play the fool in. Mr. Hume is just as competent to
grasp the subject be proposes to handle, as the aforesaid
gentleman was to embody Shakspeare. He mistakes
drudgery, and the power of poking into the rubbish of a
question, for philosophical inquiry and comprehensive ana-
lysis. He has that dogged quality of mind which fits him
to count the bricks in an edifice ; but he will never build
one. He is like Jedediall Buxton, the celebrated rustic cal-
culator, who, when he was taken to see Garrick play King
Lear, told the exact number of words that were in the tra-
gedy, but had nothing. else to tell. He will calculate with
tolerable accuracy perhaps, the precise amount of the re-
venues of tte Church Establishment in Ireland—how much
each Archbishop, Bishop, Dean, &c. receives; but why
they receive it, or why there is a Church in Ireland at all
~—nay, why it should not be packed up and sent to Eng-
land, along with the Vice-Regal Government itself (another
abomination in the eyes of this gifted statesman)—are mat-
ters utterly beyond his comprehension. Yet, on the 15th
of next May, we shall find him, please God, holding forth
as profoundly on all these matters, as if he studied them in
his cradle, and never thought of them since."

Considering the zeal which our contemporary
has manifested of late for freedom of inquiry in
religious matters, and the bitterness with which
he reproaches the Papists for their opposition to
it, we were prepared to expect that Mr. Hume's
motion would meet with a very different recep-
tion from him. It is happily observed by a great
English Theologian, that the difficulties in Scrip-
ture ought to raise our admiration of the Divine
wisdom, for they serve " to excite our most in-
tense study and diligence, which by this diffi-
culty is made necessary, and hereby a standing
Ministry in the Church is made necessary." Al-
lowing, then, that there are difficulties in divine
matters, which are only to be mastered by
Churchmen, and which render the services of
Churchmen indispensable, we are not aware
that the points selected by Mr. Hume
for inquiry are of the number of those
lvilich exceed the grasp of plain understand-
ings. Mr. Hume, says our contemporary,
" will calculate with tolerable accuracy, perhaps, the
precise amount of the revenues of the Church
Establishment in Ireland ; how much each Archbi-
shop, Bishop, Dean, &c. receives; but why they re-
ceive it, &c. are matters utterly beyond his compre-
hension." But it is performing no small service to
the public, to let them know " how much each
Archbishop, Bishop, Dean, &c. receives," for this
is a matter respecting which these Archbishops,
Bishops, Deans, &c. have, somehow or other, been
rather shy in affording information; and as we have
no doubt that it will be easy for our contemporary,
end for many other well-intentioned friends • of
Church and State, to state abundant reasons " why
they receive it" (supposing Mr. Humo to be here
a little deficient), the public will have the satisfac-
tion of learning from the inquiry, not only the va-
luable nature of the services performed bythe Church
Establishment of Ireland, but also that those who
perform these services are not suffered to pine in
want. Nothing contributes so much to spread dis-
satisfaction through a country as the suspicion that
those, who, by their labours, most contribute to. its
welfare, are suffering from neglect. Mr. Hunie's
services, therefore, cannot be too highly appreciated;
for he has never ceased, year after year, his exer-
tions,
even at the expence of doing violence to the
retiring modesty of the Archbishops, Bishops,Deans,
&c., to procure definite information respecting the
quantity and nature. of the Church Lands of Ireland.
It wall astonishing to see the reluctance to comply
with his wishes, which was manifested by Ministers,
who were, no doubt, from some inexplicable feeling of
illiberality, unwilling to afford the people the satisfac-
tion of knowing that the Protestant religion is so firmly
rooted in Ireland. We confess, notwithstanding the
statement in Mr.Wakefield'sbook,we should not have
believed that the Church of Ireland, besides the
Tithes—which are levied even on the potatoe-gar-
dens of the wretched cottagers—was in the actual
possession of upwards of
.one million of the best
acres of Ireland! But our contemporary will perhaps
endeavour to damp the satisfaction of the nation, by
showing, that the million acres and the Tithes are
far too small a reward for the services of the Arch-
bishops, Bishops, Deans, &c. It is not impossible,
too, but he may rip up some of the old sores, such as
the nation suffering the Cathedral of Derry, and
many other Churches, to fall into ruin, from a back-
wardness in voting the money of the public in aid of
the Church. Without at all wishing to dispute the
ability of our Contemporary to offer much better rea-
sons than Mr. Hume, why the Protestant Church in
Ireland should not be " packed up and sent to Eng-
land along with the Vice-regal Government" (for
we are ready to admit that there are people in Eng-
land who have not hesitated to question the utility
of both), we would observe in all humility, that it is
hardly becoming in a Champion of the Second Reformation,
to lay so much stress on the difficulty of deciding the point
of a fit reward for the Church, when it is so well known
that we should not have had the blessing of the first Re-
formation, bad not that point been universally deemed one
of the easiest solution. There were many points which
were long, and still are, the. subject of controversy among
Doctors ; but we are not aware that Church temporalities
ever presented any difficulty. In all the Reformed
Churches, with the exception of England, it seems to have
been taken for granted by the Rulers, that as money is the
root of all evil, the best means of securing a pious Church
was to guard against its suffering from too much of this
principle of evil. If there is one point in Scripture more
clear than another, it is that the influence of wealth is ne-
cessarily corrupting ; and this determination to pare down
the Church to the strictly necessary, was one of the first
fruits derived from a free inquiry into the Scriptures by the
great ones of the earth. Nay, this is a point which even
Catholic Sovereigns have adopted, without any impeach-
ment of their orthodoxy ; for even Italy itself has been re-
duced in Ecclesiastical matters by the fruits of the French
Revolution, the purifying effects of which are so much
admired by the Master of the Rolls, to something like the
state of the primitive Church. All writers agree that the
chief cause of the corruption of the Roman Church, before
the Reformation, was its enormous revenues. Now God
forbid that we should say the Church of Ireland is too
rich ; for we have no doubt our contemporary of The New
Times will be able to show good reasons for excepting it
from the general rule ; but still we cannot help observing,
that there is no other Church on record, in any age, in
which so large an amount of wealth is divided among so
few individuals. A reformed Church in Ireland insane a
rich Church.—Morning Chronicle.

In the discussion on the second reading of
Mr. Shadwell's Writ of Right Bill, there seemed
to be hUt one opinion as to the paramount im-
portance of simplifying the mode of conveying
real property. We were glad to hear from Mr.
Peel that he had received offers of assistance
from some of the most eminent men in the pro-
fession, and he mentioned Mr. Butler as having
made' an offer of that kind.—" Besides that
Gentleman, there were others," he said, " who
had made similar offers, and who were now,
probably, engaged in considering some well-
devised plan for the reform of our Civil Laws."
He expressed it as his opinion that the Inquiry
was of too extensive a nature to be devolved on
one individual ; and he thought he should best
consult the advantage of the public in preparing
a Special Commission, to be assisted in their in-
quiries by Gentlemen conversant with the sub-
sect. We may now, therefore, congratulate the
country on the prospect of getting rid of the
greatest evil, perhaps, with which the country is
afflicted—We are fa; from wishing to maintain,
that under any system, it is possible to get rid
of much litigation with respect to real property,

because in all cowries we observe that succes-
sions are, and have always been the grand source
of legal .contest ; but we are certain that with good
intentions it may be possible so to transfer property
inter vivot, as to afford some security to purchasers,
that their title may be depended on. We believe
England is the only country in the present day, in
-which the dread of an insecure title is felt in any
great degree. Nigh and meet deserved compli-
ments were paid by several distinguished Members
to Mr. Humphries, who first set the example among
professional men of dedicating his valuable time to
a bona fide inquiry into the means-of reforming the
Law of Real Property, and pointed out a mode by
which the reform might be carried into effect.
Professional men of eminence (said Dr. Lushing-
ton) ought to be called in to assist in the proposed
inquiries, and among these gentlemen the name of
Mr. Humphries ought especially to be remembered."
Mr. Ferguson too " thought the House and the
country owed to Mr. Humphries its warm approba-
tion for his very admirable suggestions, and the use-
ful labours which he had bestowed on this sub-
ject."—lbid.

One of our contemporaries, impatient of the
prudent and becoming reserve maintained by all
parties in Parliament, as to the actual situation
and the future arrangements of the Ministry,
throws out to the Opposition the tempting but
shadowy bait of Ministerial greatness and power,
in order to seduce them into an activity upon this
occasion, which would be in the highest degree
revolting to all the best feelings of the country,
and could not fail to bring down accumulated
disgrace and mortification upon themselves. The
notion of presenting to the present Parliamentary
Opposition the hope of being converted by any
possible combination of circumstances into an
Administration, can have been conceived only
by one who either intended toborrow friendship's
voice merely to vent his scorn, or who mingling
deadly enmity with his contempt, sought to be-
tray them, by means of a temptation the most ex-

. -
trai;agant and ridiculous, into a line of conduct
by which they would justly forfeit whatever de-
gree of public estimation they now possess.—
" They will be accused, forsooth," (says our con-
temporary), " of seeking office for themselves, if
they do not leave the intrigues of the other party
an open field for the exercise of their own selfish
manoeuvres! And why should not the Opposition
look for office ? Why are they an Opposition,
but because they are held together by a com-
munion of political principles ? And if they
wish not to procure the means of applying those
principles by getting into power, it may induce
a suspicion, that they themselves are doubtful of
their soundness." We do not stop to repel the
coarse and vulgar imputation which appears to be
cast in this passage upon the high-spirited and
honourable men who compose the present Govern- '
ment of England. If it were seriously intended, it
would stand self-refuted to the understanding of
every man who reads it, by its manifest extrava-
gance and malice. But it is not so. It forms part
of a passage which is throughout ironical, and we
therefore pass it by as a piece of intentional praise
somewhat clumsily disguised. What we think
worthy of remark and expostulation in the observa-
tions of our contemporary, is the obloquy and sar-
casm which they heap upon the Whigs. The Op-
position, whatever faults and follies we may occa-
sionally have seen reason to charge upon them, are,
we firmly believe, incapable of the folly of believing
that they include within their ranks the materials
for forming a Government ; and we hope they are
equally incapable of the crime, for such it would be,
of attempting in any season of embarrassment, if
such a season should occur, to force themselves as a
body into a position which every man among them
must confess they could not occupy without bring-
ing danger and dishonour upon the country. " Held
together by a community of political principles,"
truly. Why, it is notorious and avowed, that there

is
which the leading and active members of Opposition
are not wide as the Poles asunder. Mr. Brougham,
and those who follow him, would, if we give them
any credit for sincerity, engage the country in a war
with the whole of Continental Europe, in order to
support the extravagant principles of the Constitu-
tion of the Spanish Cortes—while Mr. Hume, and
the farthing politicians who are enlisted under his ban-
ners, would abandon the rights of Humanity, renounce
the obligations of Treaties, and make shipwreck of
the national honour, rather than incur the expence of set-
ting afloat a single transport, or encreasing the army by
the number of a corporal's guard. Lord Milton, to quote
another instance, with suicidal affectation, and Hume and
others in all the sincerity of ignorance, would ruin and
abolish British agriculture by the unrestricted admission of
foreign grain, whilst Mr. Calcraft and the more intelligent
and respectable portion of the Opposition, are only re-
strained by the consciousness of weakness, and the dread
of exposing that oppugnancy of principle which is the bane
and opprobrium of their party, from insisting upon a
higher degree of protection to British agriculture than
Ministers think necessary. This is, then, the commu-
nion of political principle which hclds the Opposition to-
gether—a communion of principle which consists in ha-
ying no single principle in common. Upon one question,
and that a question which divides Parliament and the coun-
try, the Administration also are divided ; and on aeconnt
of this single discrepancy of opinion they are everlastingly
reproached by the very psrsons who thus speak of the
communion of principle which holds the Opposition to-
gether. The injustice of the reproach cast upon Ministers
sinks into nothing when compared with the bitterness of
the sarcasm with which these blundering or 'treacherous
advocates of the Opposition assail their own political
friends. Upon one point our contemporary may rest per-
fectly qaiet. There are, we believe, none of the Opposi-
tion, notwithstanding the infinite variety of its materials,
stupid enough to follow his advice, and attempt to harass
Government upon the subject of the approaching Minis-
terial arrangements. The appearance of a disposition to
do so would be the signal fir Parliament to disperse, in
order to take away the opportunity for a most revolting
and mischievous display of selfishness and folly.-... Morning
Post.

A petition was presented by Mr. Hume, on
Monday, from certain manufacturers of Bolton-.
le-Moors, praying that the House would inter-
pose to fix a minimunt price of labour. The
petitioners attempted to support their prayer, by
observing that the House was about to fix a
minimum for food ; and Mr. Hume was of opi-
nion that the one minimum was as much re-
quired as the other. An observation of nearly
the same import was made by Mr. Hume last
night, in a criticism with which he favoured the
House, upon Mr. Secretary Canning's speech
on the Corn Resolutions. With Mr. Hume's
opinions we have no design to intermeddle, for
we cannot make them worse, and they are not
worth mending ; but we do think it a pity, that,
at this time of day, the most obscure of our
countrymen should be so destitute of common
sense, as to ask the House of Commons to
effect, what they are as little capable of as they
are of wielding the elements. All the laws that
ever were enacted cannot keep labour from falling
in price, when it is overabundant. It is, indeed
more under the dominion of the principle which
regulates price, namely, the ratio of the supply
to the demand, than anything else that is car-
ried to market. The farmer may " cast down
his garners, and build him others larger;" the
merchant may "lay him up goods for many
years ;" but the poor man must sell his labour
for what it will bring, or starve while he waits
for a better offer. As to a minimum price of
corn, no such a thing has ever been attemp-
ted or contemplated. Mr. Canning and
others have, indeed, used the word protec-
tion price ; but what means protection price ?
—Simply, such as will give to the manufac-
mer of grain, an equrl protection to that enjoyed

by other manufacturers. - When 30 per -cent,of anti
is imposed on French Silks, what is that but grtuit7,.
ing a protection price to the weaver of silks ? The
only difference is, that the manufacturer of silk has
the same protection, under all given circumstances;
and that, in certain cases, the manufacturer of grain
has no protection at all. The ratio quare of pro-
tecting duties is neither far to seek, nor difficult to
find. The taxes in Great Britain arc higher than on
the continent, and while they continue so, the ma-
nufacturers of Great Britain cannot compete with
the manufacturers of the continent, in the market of
Great Britain. This may be a very unfortunate cir-
cumstances, but it is so, to the farmer, as well as to
the merchant. With what show of justice, then,
could we pass laws, to indemnify the latter against
its consequences, and, at the same time, deny them
to the former ? It has been said, that cheap corn is
advantageous to the farmer, and so we may, with
equal truth, add, are cheap shoes to the shoemaker
—if he can manage to buy cheap leather. It will
be somewhat difficult to prove, that, if he buy dear,
as the farmer at present does, be will be much ad-
vantaged by selling cheap. Were it even possible
to show that the interests of the agricultural part of
the community were incompatible with those of the
manufacturing part, we might still entertain some
doubt of the justice of sacrificing the former to the
latter. We think the dwellers on the plains would
be fairly entitled, in such a case, to say to the dwel-
lers in the cities—" If one half of the nation must
go to the wall, why not you as well as we ?"—New
Timm

Many of the Country Papers teem with no-
tices of roads and footpaths stopped, by the order
of two Magistrates. The practice has even found
its way to the metropolis ; and we should not he
surprised if some of the Vestry Justices were to
take it into their heads some day, to stop up
Oxford-street and Piccadilly. This has become
one of the favourite freaks of the " Great Un-
paid," some of whom, we are credibly informed,
got put into the Commission by wealthy patrons,
merely to do these and other jobs. The evil
has at length become a very serious -one, and
calls loudly for correction. However, as facts
are of more value than assumptions, we wish we
could see some Member of Parliament moving
for " a return of the number of orders for stop-
ping up, diverting, or altering roads and foot-
paths, lodged with the different Clerks of the
Peace during the last seven years, with the names
of the Justices making the same." We trust that
the effect of such a return would be to induce Par-
liament either to take away the power, as one which
has been grossly perverted and abused—or, at any
rate, so to alter it as to give parties, a readier means
of opposing such projects than they at present have,
by an appeal to the Sessions. Why should not the
notices be given, and all parties called together in
the first instance, instead of being left, as they now
are, at a great expence of time and money, to undo
at the Sessions what ought never to have been done,
and which, consequently, people are deterred from
attempting? Or is it right, that what used to be
called " the King's highway," should thus be ex-
tinguished by a mere stroke of the pen of two of his
subjects, often not a little interested, remotely, per-
haps, or otherwise, in these notable stretches of
power ?—Morning Herald.