The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-03-25 00:00:00

PETITION To THE KING,

FROM THE CLERGY OF THE CITY OF CHESTER, ON OCCASION
OF THE APPOINTMENT OF DR. HAMPDEN TO THE REGIOUS
PROFESSORSHIP OF DIVINITY, AT OXFORD.

The clergy of this city have thought it their duty to send au
address to -his Majesty, in consequence of Lord Melbourne's
late appointment of Dr. Hampden to the chair of the Regius
Professor of Divinity, in Oxford. The address was signed by
twenty-three of the clergy, and was presented to his Majesty on
Wednesday last, by Lord Kenyon, who undertook the ace
wi;h his lordship's characteristic cordiality, in all that concerns
the well-being of the church. The petition, of which the follow-
ing is a copy; was received by his Majesty in a most gracious
and flattering manner:—
To THE KING'S MOST EXCEL LENT MAJESTY.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR MAmslY,—We, the undersigned
cle4lo, of the city of Chester, beg to reproach -your Molest*
with the expression or our devoted loyalty and attachment. We
feel ourselves constrained by a sense of duty which we owe to
that branch of the Apostolical Church of Christ, which has been
set up, and hitherto (by the good Providence of God) been
preserved in this kingdom, to express to your Majesty, as the
temporal head 'of that Church. our most serious alartir at the
late appointment of Dr. Hampden to the chair of the Regius
Professor of Divinity, in the University of Oxford.• In the pub-
lished writings of Dr. Hampden, we find opinions advanced
which we cannot but regard as tending to subvert vital truths
of God's most holy word' and doctrines derived front thence,
which are embodied in the creeds and articles of the Church of
England. It is now, unhappily, too late to dwell upon the dan-
gers arising from the appointment ofone who holds such opi-
nions as Dr. Hampden, to so important a station as that of Re-
gius Professor of Divinity, in Oxford, but we cannot conceal
our grief at that advice which could recommend him to your
Majesty, as a fit person to occupy the situation which he now
fills ; nor can we disguise our painful apprehension of the effects
of advice from the same source in filling up future vacancies,
which may occur in high stations of the church. Nothing is
farther from our intention than to presume to instruct your Ma-
jesty in the disposal of Church patronage vested in the Crown;
i but n consequence of the alarm which we have just expressed,
we most respectfully,but earnestly implore your Majesty that
in disposing of such patronage, and especially in appointing to
the influential stations of bishops and dignitaries of the Church,
your Majesty will be graciously pleased to command the advice
of those archbishops and bishops of the united Church of Eng-
land and Ireland, in whose counsel your Majesty can confide.
We fervently pray that your Majesty may be enabled-by the
Gi eat Head of the Church to exercise a wise discretion and firm
determination in a matter in which the interests of true religion
are so deeply involved.—We are, Sire,
• Your Majesty's most humble and devoted subjects.

FAMILY ANTIQUITY.—In Spain old and pompous mottos are
still preserved beneath coats of arms, over the doors of houses
sometimes of the meanest appearance. [ remember one motto
in particular of the family of the I3elascos, which is blasphe-
mously ridiculous :
" Before God was God,
Or the sun shone upon the rocks.
Already was the House of Belascos noble."
These feelings of pride had, however, one g,ood effect—they _en-
couraged notions of chivalry and a sense of honour, before
Cervantes did his best to put them to the route.---Henningsen'e
Narrative.