Star.
London, England, 1808-05-11 00:00:00

DEMISED HEREDITARY REVENUES OF THE CROWN.

Mr. BIDDULPH rose to make his promised Mo-
tion, relative to the Demised Hereditarf Grants of the
Crown. He wished that the opinions of the Attorney
and Solicitor General, in the year 1772, should be sub-
mitted to the Special Committee which he intended to
move for. At the beginning of the present reit,u those
Lands might have been comparatively inconsiderable,
but it would appear from the First Report of the Sur-
veyor-General of Land Revenues, on the Ist of De-
cember 1797, that those Revenues had considerably
increased, and did not at present amount to less than
.C 200,000. This sum was of too serious an amount
not to make It a question of importance that it be net
abused. The Honourable Gentleman then xert into
a long detail of the Awry and law of Crown Lands,
and strongly censured the i:eglect and abuse that too
much prevailed in the management of the great Fo-
rests of the country. He concluded with moving,
" That a Committee be appointed, to consider the 3d of his
present Majesty, respecting the Demised Revenues of the Crown
which were to be carried to and made part of the aggregate hind,
and how far they were so applied."
Mr. ROSE questioned the accuracy of some of the
Honourable Gentleman's statements, and denied that
the present amount of the Demised Crown Revenues
exceeded £350.100, out of which £170,000 or L'12,000
went-to various charges. He disapproved of a Spe-
cial Committee, and thought the Finance Committee,
of which the Honourable Gentleman Iva; a Member,
fully adequate to any desirable cbjeci the Honourable
Gentleman had in view.

btu sieertlt replied. whr:l
y e 12—Noes, 37.—Majorif

CORATIS.
Mr: P. ERCEVAL moved the recommittal
St diary, Curates Bill.
Laid PORCHESTER. argued against
the ground that while it violated the
Church; it would afford no relief to the
the Citrates themselves. The object
said, was not to.atigment the income
most wanted it ; hot io the value ,
ratiet, while the gra• number of those
holy orders were ltft preci;ely as before.
these he would be Verfecdy willing, it
(lone ; but the causes cif the poverty of
seere—arst, the poverty of the benefices
arid secondly, the great number who
holyi orders without the prospect of an)
all, except a triflins and precarious curac.
served, chit this raisin the Incomes of
would have no other effict; than that
many more than the present average nttmlaer
Into holy orders, and by that means f
the Whole would he increased rather than

Pie deprecated this sort of meddling wit,
of the Church. The Clergy were among
cluing class of country Gentlemen, who h
proved, and might again be the best asylum of iii
betty and independence.
Mr. WINDHAM agreed in the sentiments deli-
vered by the Noble Lord, and maintained that the
Right Honourable Gentleman erred in his general
view of Church establishments ; he seemed to Lave
forgOtted that the Clergy were composed of Arch.
bishops, Bishops, Deans, and all the reghlai grads.
tions of rank. By this Bill he was afraid the. House
would-go the length of considering an incumbent as
uselelt. If so, they would tend to abolish all tanks.
It seas dangerous too, he contended, to meddle with
Chuirch property, with which the Legislature had no
right to interfere. The Bill provided for a sort cf
liberality, but it was at the expellee of justice.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
denied that the Bill would go the length which the
Right Honourable Gentleman seemed to imagine.--
The greet principle of it was to provide, that the
Clergy should, beenabled to perform those great and
important ditties4hich were cast upon their partitidar
calling. - -
Doctor LAWRENCE 'expected a number of Cea.
tler,nen to support this Bill,.by their votes, the prin-
ciple of which they had formerly supported by their
arguments, but was disappointed in that respect. He
then argued against the Bill at great length, and
thought it would have, in many cases, a very harsh
operation on the Curates of the. Church, who were its
object. He objected to. the Bill, because it tended to
introduce a new established girder in the Church.
The SOLICI'T'OR-GENERAL thought the Bill
might be so modified in a Committee as to meet the
ideas of Gentlemen on all -sides of the House, and
therefore he *as surprised at so much opposition to it.
If this Bill was novel in principle it would be objet.
tionable to him. If it trenched upon private.-pro-
perty, that would be to him an insuperable objectice ;
but this had neither objectidn, but was alfill upon
the true principle of the Reformation, a measure for
supporting properly the clerical order of the Este-
, blished Church of England, and encouraging the
residence of the Clergy in those places where their
clerical functions were to be ekercised, a consideration
highly interesting to the public. Besides, in early
times, the Diocesan had power, in all cases of phut-
'icy of livings, to give, to what *vaunt be pleased, s
salary to the Curate ' • but as the law stands =preterite
by the 36th of the King, the Curate can have only .
751. a year, whether the living be worth 1001.. 2001:
3001- 5001. 10001. 20001. or even 90001 a year. So
again, is far back as Richard 11. the Bishop had
power to adjudicate to the Vicar, whose very defini-
tion was Vice-Rector, a proper aliowance out of the
income of the Rector who did not officiate in his
office.
Mr. WHITBREAD kens anxious tc sty a few
words, as he should on that occasion vote against the
opinions of those Gentlemen with whom he was in
the habit of voting. The Honourable Gentleman
here approved cf Mr. Perceval's Bill, but took occa-
sion to censure his conduct on religious subjects on
former occasions, and said that his behaviour at the
last election was calculated to throw the nation 50
years back into barbarity and ignorance. }ie,
ever, voted-fur the recommitment of the Bill.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
explained, and deprecated all allusions to party feel•
in on the I,n:sea; subject.
The question was then put on the motion of Lord
PORC RESTER—Ayes, 11 ; Noes, 94—Majority
93.—The Bill was con;equently recommitted fo:
Fri Ajown

'l'tii•; F.% EING STA IL_

I

4

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I

sisr:a the H allitte
ctritY• t 6.
co,
nmittal of
40
lag tilt Bili, di fig.___- •
le rights of dis Pr
wrat
4 o the Bill, 11/ xi
L"fofwhth6seaofenteweiid": .IFiale,.•_
re. To relieve fp
if it could be 46 1
f many of titeln iiros
ces themselves/ '-`1
lo pressed into ' ''",-:i 1,
my provision at 3"0"-..,
tracy. He ob.
fa few Curates
tat of inducing
number to en*
the poverty of
44;
hail diminiShed:
rich the property i
nong that mid:
vho had before • .....