The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-06-23 00:00:00

**undervalue the blessings of the Reformation, but
ab.e../e redected upon the tumultuous and violent
measures of the times, he could nut discover any
thin + th-ir cothplexion or character, if the sys-
. tern were refereed to that period, to ennoble its
0rn41.1; besides, the House should bear in mitd
the cruelty, injustice, and rapine of that greateat
t) raut a all who ever sat open the throne of, RA-
Wu, whose violence and atrocities were, ih the
hands of Providence, the instruments in effecting
that reformation, the blessings of which the coun-
try was now happily enjoying. When they looked
to the spirit, and character, and forms of that tyrant's
legislation, under whose despotic sway the coos&
• tu!ional functions of Parliament were extinguished,
• and that House was compelled to vote, not accord..
lug to its own judgment, but his arbitrary instruc-
tions—when they considered that the historians
Of that period, in describing the extravagant injus-
tice of the tyrant's government, stated, that " all
those who were for the Pope were hanged, and all
• those who were against him burned"—when they
called to mind teat the Parliament had been reduced
to such an abyss of degradation as to give to his
proclamations the. force 'of law, he was persuaded
that no Honourable Member would think of refer-
ring to the reign of Henry VIII. for the source or
the precedent of perfect legislation. While they
came down still lower, through the period while
the Reformation was gaining progress and strength
to the reign of that greet Princess (Elizalietli)
whose Government Was conducted. upon principles
and with a degree of wisdom that covered the Em-
pire with glory and prosperity, they would find
that towards ,the close of that glorious reign a spirit
of persecution arose, in the progress of which, all
• the barbarities of the preceding reign were renetted
with little less teligious rancour, as if it had been
necessary tor the establishmett of the Reformation
to retaliate their Own cruelties, by inflicting them
in turn upon the sect that was overthrown. Would
Gentlemen think a period of such alternate persecu-
tion a suitable time in which to ley the origin of their
system of perfect legislation I—Would they refer
to the reign of the First Charles, whose perpetual
contests with his Parliament and People subverted
every fixed principle of legislation I—Then they
came to the Protectorate of 'Cromwell, the rule of
• whose Government was towards the Catholics a
principle of extermination. This was a period •to
which the origin of the system of perfection would,
• lie was persuaded, not be referred. Thus they
were brought down to the Revolution, that era so
much and so justly esteemed by Englishmen,*
which was referred to With so much stress, and'
quoted with such confidence upon this subject. It
was not, however, true that the origin of the system
was to be traced in the progress and character of
that glorious Revolution. It was perfectly true
that a degree of civil slavery was imposed on the
Catholics at that period, as the consequence of
their intimate connexion with the political doc-
trines of the assertions of the old Episcopalian
Establishments ; but it was equally true, that no
consideration of that nature could sanctify the
• establishment •of a degree of civil slavery which
• (ight in no State to exist ; and the disabling Sta-
tutes which had been resorted to on that occasion,
,he considered in no other light than a remnant of
that, persecution which employed the exterminating
sword It was not true however, that the system
wog referable to that period, or that the principle of
perfect legislation contended for had its origin in
that reign iu %%hid, the Revolution was. effected. It
was not till the reigns of Anne, and of the first mo-
narchs of the House of Brunswick, that the prin-
ciple
was acted upon to its fullest extent, aad the
system brought to its highest perfection, and fitted
to the • purposes of which it was capable. The
house would then see that it was not till the com.'
mencement, and early part of the last century, that
thk perfect system had grown up. The prin-
ciple of the Protectorate was extermination, that of
the Revolution confiscation.; and it was not until
aftt-r the Revolution that the systein of artificial de-
pression was established, which operated to stint the
population—to cramp the energies—to weaken the i
resources---to put do*n the great mass of the ration,
and make the objects of this artificial depression al
degraded and "
enslaved class in the empire. It was
in these three successive reigns then, that the system .
was established and brought to perfection ; and he
would ask any man, therefore, whether there was
any thing in the times or the circumstances under
which the system originated, flust could make him
think it ought to be upheld ? Let the House but look
at what was the state of the case in 1760, on the ac-'
cession of his present Majesty, before any remedial
or alleviating measures had been resorted to. They
would find, by referring to the state of the law at
• that period, that the Roman Catholic,was cut off from;
his civil rights=that a principle of tseperation was
• established between him and hiloffspring—that the'.
provisions of the law, whilst they disfranchised the
father of his civil rights, stimulated the son to de-
rive hiss of Lis inheritance. This was a state to
w hick lie was persuaded, that .no man would refer
• • fur an example of perfection; and to that state atm ;
law they must refer, ifthey were to consider the de-1
*struction of the Penal Code an infringement upon !
the established Constitution. Thus, if the system
were to be upheld as perfect, it must be referred to
'that period when it attained to maturity, and then it
be found, that iti decay had began. Other i
' systems, after having atitained to maturity, continued
'.l) perfection for some considerable portion of time ;
but this system had to date its decline from the at-'
tailuilent of its maturity, Ind may be traced to its 1
, :decay from the period of its perfectiou. If it had
• existed in perfection for any period, it could only I
I e lavePri for fourteen yeait, from the year 1700 to the
" year /771, s hen the first relaxing Statute was enact-
ed. And here he must beg leave to ask, whether tiny
• of the dig tiding Statutes had been resorted to on the
• the groued of religious tenets, or of political disagree-
thin i—Whether" thee Penal Code was intend el to
• • exclude a sect, or to parsish rebellion ? Bishop Bur-
•. net, who had written the Hist illy of the Reforma-
tion, had recorded of lQueen Elizabeth, that she was
paturally averse from persecution, and that it was not
• till the hitter years of her reign, when the prepamt•
lions of Phillip H. and the machinations of some of
her own subjects of the Roman Catholic persuasion;
menaced the overthrow of her government, that she
Gould bring herself to countenance persecution. U