The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-02-28 00:00:00

ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS' BILL

In compliance with a requisition addressed by the Select
Vestry to the Churchwardens, a meeting of the ratepayers of
the parish of Liverpool was held at one o'clock yesterday,
in the Church of St. Nicholas, for the purpose of consider-
ing the propriety of petitioning the legislature against certain
provisions in the bill recently introduced into the House of
Commons by Dr. Nicol, for the amendment of ecclesiastical
emits. There was a moderate attendance of parishioners.
The Rev. JONATHAN BROOKS, Senior Rector, took the
chair.

Mr. M. D. LOWNDES, the vestry clerk, having read the
public notice convening the meeting,
Mr. Bum Err said, that in accordance with the usual plan,
the churchwardens had summoned this meeting at the request
of the Select Vestry. Neither he nor his colleague were
aware of the exact nature of the bill which the meeting were
called to take into consideration ; but perhaps the Rev.
Chairman would be kind enough to detail to the parishioners
its principal objects. He (Mr. Birkett) believed that some
parts of the bill were very desirable, whilst there were others
which it was very undesirable should become law.

•••• • .• •.• ---
The CHAIRMAN commenced•••
by stating that he believed
the Ecclesiastical Courts' Bill, now before the House of
Commons, had arisen out of the report of some com-
missioners whO had been appointed, in the year 1829, to
enquire into the state of the ecclesiastical courts of the
country, which it was believed required revision. They made
their report in the year 1832; and in it they recommended
there should be one court only (he believed there were now
nearly 400. including a number of small peculiars, which had
been found inconvenient,) in each diocese, and that every
other court necessary to be retained should be subject to
that. These courts were principally for the probate of wills :
there were, at present other duties annexed to them, not of a
very pleasant nature, which he believed the courts themselves
would be exceedingly glad to get quit of—be meant their
powers with regard to brawling, standing in white sheets,
and. so on. It would be very desirable, he believed, to get
rid of that part of the business, for it was a species of busi-
ness which did not seem to tend to any good, hut, on the
contrary, was often productive of .considerable unpleasant-
ness and evil. There could be no objection, therefore, to
these parts of the bill. There were other portions of it in

the same position, such as allowing one probate. in cases
where the property left was in different dioceses, to be suffi-
cient. It bad, certainly, been considered a hardship upon
persons who proved wills, that if the bulk of the property
left was, for instance, in Liverpool, or in the diocese of
Chester, they took out a probate for that from Chester; but
if the party died possessed of only one railway share, or pro-
perty in the funds, in the province of Canterbury, he was
obliged °o take out a second probate from there ; and as this
second probate was attended with a much heavier expense than
the Chester probate, it seemed to be a very great hardship.
The bill had been brought in by Sir John Nicol, who was
at the head of the Arches Court; but instead of carrying
out only the recommendations of the commissioners, it went
a great deal further, for it proposed measures which seemed
to the Select Vestry, and indeed to every one else, exceed-
ingly injurious and oppressive to the great mass of the
people, whether looking at the additional expense it entailed
on them, or the additional inconvenience it incurred. It

vould do away with the diocesan courts altogether, and place
very thing under the superintendence of a central court in

London ; so that all wills of above £3OO would have to be
proved there, and the wills themselves deposited there. At
present, by the wills being deposited in the court of the dio-
cese in which the person died, and where the property was,
they were accessible to every body who wanted to enquire
into them at a very trifling expense. Any person might now
40 from here to Chester and for one shilling examine any
will he pleased; but if all wills were deposited in London,
and people wished to know how any property was left, of
course a variety of expenses would be entailed upon them in
the shape of agent's charges, and the costs of search, so that
the inconvenience as well as the expense would, no doubt,
he very great. With regard to expenses, the bill provided
that the present fees of Doctors' Commons should remain
until they should be altered by the judge of the: court with
the approbation of the Privy Council. It was not very likely
that the judge of the court would ever make much alteration;
but when he read to them some of the comparative expense
of proving a will in the diocese of Chester and in the diocese
of Canterbury, they would see how it bore upon the present
question. The reverend gentleman then gave a number of
examples of the charges on a will, when one part of the pro-
perty was in Chester and the other in Canterbury, from which

it appeared that in one case £35,000 were left in Chester,
the court charges on which were £l9. Os. 5d., and £16,000
in Canterbury, the charges on which were £34. 6s. 4d., an
enormous difference. In another case £lOOO was left in Ches-
ter, on which £7.25. was charged, and £6OO in Canterbury, on
which the charges were £lB 14s. The stamps in bo t h
oces were, of course, the same, so that the great difference
which was here shown arose from the office business. Several
yther cases were mentioned, from which the reverend gentle.
man contended that it was evident these charges bore no re-
lative proportion to each other: It was a hardship, there-
fore, particularly in tbese times, when the professed princi-
ple of legislation was to bring justice home to every man's
door, and when travelling courts were to be established for
that purpose, in order that they should be put to the least
inconvenience possible in obtaining their rights, that a great
central court should be established in London, and that Lon-
don should absorb all the business of the country, much to
the inconvenience and additional expense of the parties con-
cerned. Then it was said that there was no proper place in
which to keep wills; but, he would ask, was it not as easy to
make proper places in the country as in London. And in the
case of fire, if the whole mass of wills in the country were in
London, was it not likely that more demage would be done
in the event of fire than if they were deposited in the several
dioceses. The reason of the thing was against this part
of the bill. Under these circumstances, therefore, for this
bill to pass through parliament, without the public taking
any notice of it, and knowing the great interests concerned,
it appeared to the Select Vestry that they would not be
doing their duty to the public if they did not afford to them,
an opportunity of protesting against so serious an inconve-
nience. They had, therefore, with these impressions, called
the parishioners together for the pnrpose ; and they had pre-
pared the draft of a petition, which petition did not go
against aaytbing which might be good in the bill, but only
to those parts which were likely to be injurious. At Ches-
ter, in the course of only a few hours, a similar petition had
raceived a thousand signatures, and the whole body of soli-
citors and proctors had signed it. It was also worthy of
consideration that a great number of officers of the present
courts would, in the event of the bill now before parliament
becoming law, be thrown either upon their own resources
or upon the public. There was a provision for the com-
pensation of those officers so thrown out, which. of course,
would throw considerable expense upon the public. (Hear,
hear.) An all these accounts the Select Vestry deemed it
their duty to make the parishioners acquainted with what
was going on ; and now it was for them to determine whe-
ther the bill was of that nature to require a petition from
them in opposition to it. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. R, W, HOUGHTON proposed, and Mr. MUNCASTER
seconded, a resolution to the effect that it was expedient to
petition the legislature against the bill now before the House
of Commons.
Mr. BIGHAM put some questions as to the expense of the
meeting, and the fund from which it would be paid.
The CHAIRMAN replied, that the expense would be very
moderate, and that, being for a church purpose, they would
be defrayed from the church-rates.
Mr. BIGHAM considered it an illegal expenditure.
After a short discussion of no interest, the motion wan
carried unanimously.

Mr. M. D. LOW NDES then read the draft of a petition
against the objectionable parts of the bill ; and on the
motion of Mr. BIRKETT, seconded by Mr. R. W.
HOUGHTON, the petition was adopted, to be signed by the
chairman on behalf of the meeting, and forwarded to the
members for the borough for presentation to the Commons,
and to the Bishop of Chester for presentation to the Lords.
The CHAIRMAN, in reply to a remark from Mr. BIRKETT,
mentioned that the Bishop of Chester had strong objections
to the parts of the bill, and he would oppose it.
Mr. BIGHAm inquired what was the object of government
in passing this bill ?
The CHAIRMAN believed that it was a job of Doctor's

Coriimons who were Very fond of getting everything into
their own 'hands. The country was put to more expense
in supplying the present courts, for it wait supported by the
executors of the different rules, there could be no doubt,
to be mntual sufferers by any cbouge, seeing that the charges
at Doctors Commons were enormous. The Surrogates
had had many complaints made to them of this, and they
bad been asked—" hots is it that the expense is so much

reater at Doctors Commons, than in the Court at Chester?
ges in Doctors Corn-

The only mswer was " because the char

mons for doing the work are so much heaivie

The Rea. R. DAVIES mentioned what a short time Iwo he
bad a will put into his hands for proof, both in Chester
and Canterbury. The amount in both courts was the same,
the stamp duty, consequently was the same ; but the charges
iu Chester was only £1 18s Bd., whilst that IA Canterbury
was £9 13s 4d.

The CHAIRMAN begged to state further, thlit under the
will of the late Mr. Hesketh Fleetwood, £9,000 was proved
in Chester, and £14,000 in London ; in Chester the eharge
vhilst in London it was £35.

The Itev. R. DAVIES.—It is virtually a tax upon the
country, without a single penny going into the Exchequer)
Tke Rev. R. L. TOWNSEND said that two cases had come
before him within the last few weeks. In one instance, a
will was proved in Chester for £lBOO, the expenses on which
was £3 Is.: the other was a small will of £25 in Canter-
bury, the expenses on which were between £7 and £B.
The CHAIRMAN explained that there was no clause what-
ever in the bill now before the house for removing the sur-
rogates, consequently they could not be speaking from in-
terested motives. In saying this he used the authority of
Dr. Haggard, who, in writing to Mr. Hesketh, a surrogate
i❑ Liverpool, said, (bat as far they were concerned they
would have only a chatte of masters. The inconvenience
therefore was altogether upon the public.
After a few more explanations the resolutions was passed,
and the Rector having been thanked for his conduct in the
chair, the meeting separated.

THE STEEPLE CHASE

LAST NIGHT

This event, which is termed " The Granclisi;tiOialtee-
ple Chase." comes off to-morrow at Aintree. It is fully
expected to be a well•attended affair, not only from the num-
ber of the horses entered, but also for the eclat that has
attended all previous meetings of a similar character. The
ground selected to be run over is similar to that chosen on
former years, the same " difficulties" having to be encoun-
tered and the same impediments to be surmounted. The
ditch in front of the grand stand, over which all the horses
contrived to get last year without accident, has been widened
a foot, being now thirteen feet. The depth is as before, four
feet. A four feet wall has been erected at the distance chair
in place of hurdles, which will have to be cleared in the first
round previous to taking the ditch. It is expected that
twenty horses will start. There has not been much betting.
Peter Simple, the favourite—betting sto 1. The llooton
Park Steeple Chase, which will come off' on Friday, may be
expected to be a dashing affair. The start will take place at
Storeton. • The entries will close to-morrow.

THE COURSING MEETING AT ALTCAR

commences this day, and will be a rich treat to the lovers of
the long dogs, and never was weather more propitious for the
diversion. No doubt many Altcar men will be made on the
occasion. The ceremony is simple, but, in cold weather, ra-
ther the antipodes of pleasant. We have undergone the ini-
tiation ourselves, and, therefore, speak from experience.
To he made an Altcar man is to be immersed in one of the
deep and wide ditches with which the township is intersected.
On one occasion, at a coursing meeting, the present Earl of
Sefton saw one of his tenants (Joseph Amebury, we believe)
get an unexpected ducking. " Never mind, Joseph," said
his lordship, "you are only an Altcar man made o'er again."
Fate ruled, that his lordship should, the same day, take a
cold bath in a similar manner. " Never mind," said Joseph,
who saw the mishap, " you're only an Altcar man made o'er
again."

The best road to the coursing grounds is through Aintree,
Magbull, and Lydiate ; the shortest way lies through Bootle
and Great and Little Crosby.

The following are the names of the dogs to run :
WATERLOO CUP.—Lord Stradbroke's Maximus, late
Ajax. agst. Mr. Gale's Queen; Mr. Etwell's Empress agst.
Mr. B. B. Robinsos's Rocket; Mr. Mare's Matilda
agst. Lord Eglington's Blackbird ; Mr. Slater's Sandy agst.
Mr. G. Pollock's Major; Lord Stradbroke's Mango agst.
Mr. Scott's Lady Harkaway ; Lord Eglingtnn's Stag agst.
Mr. Swan's Stork : Mr. Gibb's Slasher agst. Sir Pyers Mos-
tyn's Mariner ; Mr. G. Barge names Eau de Vie agst. Mr.
Scott's Chancellor ; Mr. A. Graham's Mavourneen agst.
Mr. Robinson's Zurich •,. Mr. Kershaw's Knight of the
Garter agst. Mr. Ball's P. P.; Mr. Hutchinson's Rubens
agst. Dr. Brown's Sportsman; Mr. Harper's Solon agst.
Mr. Mare's Marmion ; Dr. Brown's Queen Bee agst. Mr.
Barton's Ribton ; Mr. Garven's Gambler agst. Mr. Bradley's
Tyrant; Mr. Armstrong's Negro agst. Mr. Swan's Stork;
Mr. Jebb's Hotspur agast. Mr. Deakin's Distiller.
WATERLOO PURSE.—Mr. Ball's Bugle agst. Mr. Deakin's
Doctor Syntax ; Mr. Slater's Stiletto agst. Mr. Bradley's
Baron ; Mr. A. Graham's Long-iong-ago agst. Ma. Swan's
Hill Coolie ; Mr. Mare's Moonlight agst. Mr. Unsworth's
Unknown ; Mr. Garven's Garland agst. Lord Eglington's
Greysteel ; Mr. Etwell's Westwind agst. Mr. Scott's
Drainer; Mr. Pollock's Empress agst. Mr. Robinson
Whiskey ; Mr. Ridgway's Reginald agst. Lord Stadbroke s
Minerva.

NORTHERN CIRCUIT,

LANCASTER, MONDAY, February 27

The Assizes for the Northern Division of this county
commenced on Saturday last, when the commission was
opened in the evening by Mr. Baron Rolfe, who arrived in
the town about eight o'clock from London. Yesterday, his
lordship attended Divine Service in the Parish Church, at-
tended by Wm. Garnett, Esq., of Lark-hill and Quermore-
Park, and the Mayor and corporation of the town. The
prayers were read in an affective manner by the, Rev. J.
Manby, vicar, and a most eloquent sermon was preached by
the Sheriff's Chaplain, the Rev. R. Parkinson, Fellow of the
Collegiate Church, Manchester, from Matthew xxiii. 8.—
"But be ye not called Rabbi, for one is your master, even
Chriat, and 01l ye are brethren."

This morning at ten o'clock the learned Judge, accom-
panied by the high Sheriff and the usual officers, proceeded
from his lodgings to the Castle, where he took his seat in the
Crown Court, when the usual preliminaries having been gone
through,

Hie
Lordship observed that he had perused the depositions
in all the cases which would come before the Grand Jury—
at least all he was ;mare of,—and he was happy to say there
was no case likely to occupy their attention which would
present any difficulties to their minds. From the disturbed
state in which many parts of the country had been in some
months ago, he was apprehensive that there might have been
some cases to be brought before them, but such was not the
case, and he was glad to find that there was not any indict-
ment likely to be submitted to their consideration arising out
of the disturbances of last summer; and, upon looking over
the calender, he did no suppose there were more than at any
ordinary assizes. His Lordship then proceeded to remark
on one or two ordinary cases in the calender, on which he
deemed it expedient to give some general directions to the
Grand Jury, and then dismissed them to their duties.
There are, however, to be tried at the present assizes no
less than 69 persons, all charged with offences arising out of
the riots of last autumn, but in all shose cases the bills are
already found at the special commission, including one gene-
indictment charging the whole party with conspiracy. This
case is likely to be the most important to be tried during the
present assizes, as in it is included Fergus O'Connor and the
leaders of the Chartist party. The trial is likely to come on
ons Wednesday morning, and will no doubt occupy a very
considerable time. With this exception the calender only
contains about 35 prisoners, and is not important so far as
the charges are concerned.

The cases tried during during the day were quite uninter-
esting to the public generally.

INCENTIVE TO MATRIMONY.—A company of young men
at Lincoln have originated a new club. Each member pays
Is. weekly, which is placed in the savings bank. The first
of the party who marries is to receive the whole amount de-
posited, together with the interest.

GRETNA GREEN MARRIAGES.—It would appear from the
following statement of the number of marriages that were
witnessed by Mr. Robert Elliot of Gretna Green (the grand-
son of Mr. Paisley, the reputed blacksmith), from 1810 to
1839, that the Dissenters' Marriage Act has materially
diminished his business. In the twenty-nine years he mar-
ried no fewer than 744 persons. The following is the num-
ber of marriages in each year :-
1811 .. 58 1821 .. 152 1831 .. 168
1812 .. 57 1822 .. 178 ]832 .. 153
1813 .. 59 1823 .. 188 1833 .. 160
1814 .. 68 1824 .. 196 1834 .. 168
1815 .. 87 1825 .. 198 1835 .. 124
1816 89 1826 .. 187 1836 .. 98
1817 .. 98 1827 .. 188 1837 .. 55
1818 .. 109 1828 .. 186 1838 .. 46
1819 .. 121 1829 .. 180 1839 .. 42
1820 .. 124 1830 .. 179

STEAM NAVIGATION AND THE SHIPPING INTEREST.—
The metropolitan steam navigation interests find much fault
with that part of the recent speech of Sir C. Napier in which
he attributes the depressed state of the shipping interest to
the increase of steam navigation. They contend, on the
contrary, that much employment has been created by the
latter which otherwise would not have existed. For ex-
ample, the service of the lines to the Peninsula and the
Mediterranean requires about 50,000 tons of coals annually.
which must be carried by sailing vessels from Wales or New-
castle to Southampton. Then as to the interference with the
foreign trade of the merchantmen, they contend that it is
next to nothing, the steam vessels by their quickness of
transit creating the only traffic, or nearly so, in which they
engage—that is, the conveyance of fruit; and that what
business they do take from them is counterbalanced by the
conveyance of their consumption of coals.

CHINESE NOBILITY.—The nobility of China are of two
kinds, hereditary and official. The former class is not nu-
merous, nor greatly influential. It consists chiefly of the re-
lations of the Emperor, who are called Princes, and are
bound to live within the precincts of the Imperial palace.
The real nobility, or aristocracy of the country, are the man-
darins. Of these there are estimated to be, on the civil list
of the empire, not less than fourteen thousand. The man-
darins are divided into nine ranks, or pin, each of which is
indicated by a double badge—the colour of the globe on the
apex of the cap, and the embroidery on the front and back of
their official robes. The colours employed are red, blue,
crystal, white, and gold ; and these, with certain modifications
of shape, serve to distinguish what are denominated " Kew
pin," that is, " the Dine- ranks," into which all persons pos-
sessing any rank in China are divided. The nominal rank,
and of course the distinctive costume of any of the official
grades, may be purchased of the Emperor, The sum de-
manded for the distinction is, however, proportionably large.
Elowqua, for instance, the richest of the Hong merchants,
purchased his nominal rank at the enormous price of 100,000
dollars, or £20,000 sterling.

POPISH ORDINATION. —Unenquiring persons are apt to
be caught with externals; and externally there is so to
much
clatntcahytshoemexipnretlsise amsypseecltoprjenssetnitieodwb/ththeet PlPapal i
bnttwerheestthe crf
there ever was a time when the great mass of our intelligent
people in the middle walks of life so seriously required to be
made to see in in its true light the Romanists' position and
their own. Costly edifices are raised by Papal funds in every
county—inroads are being made on every side—yet no notice
taken of them. Looking at these things, but more than all
looking at their practical return to, and revival of, their thrice
refuted and exploded calumniation of the validity of our or-
ders—in undisguised contempt for which, we now observe
otußhpnrei
ttnnyi s
conferred
o an
engsl
and
clergy,
r,ni
bgnhgyy
serious
tfsohc reh rsrueemecv
valueless
bade.
jreneaedd: t i
judgmentrl
poee
objections
ssetegars renegades
fedmi
rnle
ypsahl
nothingt
yafpi
orfv principle
the
from
hosc
iephi
nopoowul
proposing
communion,
and publicly re-ordaining them to their's_and they them-
selves the while, men whose own orders, if they were not
a t this,
accused
t:orthodox
oohktnedorii
eynol being
persecution.
ac-
knowledge.
Ra.nodman
c Catholic intolerance—for
tholi c
o
wtiohnichwiltshthwuhsicahnlswsetraerdtebdy, npaamlmeleyr,_ho,,wsihsenhnogio. shown, yet,
hecoeCLa:
ourcincnhot recognise
any any real ministry of Jesus Christ in those who are ordained
in enmity to His church; and if she doesy
nia.ealliways think
it necessary to repeat the outward tormybdivinie
to have accompanied it originally."—Letter in Derbyshire
they. were
constituted, it is not that she supposes an
commission
Courier.