The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-09-06 00:00:00

the misfortune to Hie where her influence is paramount.
But in tearing away the mask froth the visage of po-
pery, her adjuncts are developed. Infidels,—socinians—
dissenters—are found leaguing with her, fighting under•
her banners; and doing her bidding. The unmerciful
exposure of these allies, which the enlightened clergy of
the establishment are now making, provokes the hostility
of numbers who advocate liberal doctrines, because
they wish to see the downfal of a national church. Now
if this were to happen, popery and infidelity would tri•
umph-,-perhaps not in many of the fair districts of Eng-
land, but in hundreds of the country villages, in seques-
tered spots unknown to many, and especially in Ireland,
where force is the engine employed for the extirpation
of the protestant heretical church, and if that fails, ex-
clusive dealing, to starve it out.
How is it that in England the great body of dissenters
are found leagued with the papists, whilst in Ireland they
are ever found closely connected with the church ?
The reason is obvious. In Ireland it is with protes-
tantism a struggle for existence. Both parties are in ear-
nest. No quarter can, or ever will he given ; for the
papist echoes the war-cry of the papal church for " the
extirpation of heresy," and the protestant knows to his
cost that no faith can be kept by the papist while he sub-
mits to the bondage of his, priest, even if his promises
were ratified by the solemnity of an oath. Consequently
we find at the annual meeting of the Sunday and Daily
School Society of Belfast, a feW days ago„ at which Sir
Robert Bateson presided, that on the same platform were
seen Mr.Etnerson Tennent, the member fur the town; the
clergy of the Protestant Established Church ; Dr. Cooke,
the head and the ornament of the presbyterians of the
Ulster synod ; Dr. Bennett, a Wesleyan minister, and
others, who, although they differ on non-essential points
of doctrine, or on forms of church government, are all
agreed on this, point—viz., that popery is the great ene-
my to the spread of scriptural truth, and ought to be re •
sisted by every friend of order and liberty throughout the
land.

Such was the desire at Belfast to attend the meeting,
that the spacious room in Br:own-street was crowded to
suffocation, and an adjournment to Dr. Cooke's meeting,
house, where, after the report had been read, and several
excellent speeches had been delivered, our venerated
townsman, the reverend minister of St. Jude's, addressed
the meeting at considerable length. We have given, in
another part of our impression, an outline of his speech,
as well as of those delivered by Dr. Cooke and Mr.
Crotty. Altogether the occasion was one of surpassing in-
terest; and our report of the proceedings will be peculiatly
appropriate connexion with the solemn event which
took place yesterday in own town. The account which
we ate enabled to give of the procession of the friends
of the church, to lay the foundation of the North Schools,
will be perused with unfeigned gratification by every
sincere protestant—by every one who wishes the word
of God to be the basis of a national system of education.
We refer to this report with a feeling of exultation : we
rejoice that our good old town has afforded such a noble
exhibition of sound christianity—such a proof of sterling
attachment to our venerable church.