The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-01-24 00:00:00

in itself, was a mere brutum fulmen, and required
to be followed up with the calling in the assist-
ance of a Civil Court. If the Legislature
thought proper to entrust Ecclesiastical Courts /
with that power which was entrusted to every !
other Court in the country, then this circuitous model
of proceeding would necessarily be at an end. When
he
saw that those Courts were principally occupied I
with the decision of causes purely civil, that they !
were completely incorporated with the judicature of
the country—when he considered that every other
Court had the power of enforcing obedience to its
min decrees, and that from the constitution of Ec-
clesiastical Courts they were reduced to what he
would call a prophane application of excommunica-
tion, that they could not even pronounce an interlo-
cutory sentence without baying recourse to it, he
certainly thought that the Legislature could not be
better employed than in providing a remedy for this
inconvenience; and should the Legislature so far
forget its ancient prejudices as to consent to this re-
medy, he had no doubt that those who presided in the
Ecclesiastical Courts would be extremely grateful fair
this interference. The number of inferior Ecclesiasti-
cal Jurisdictions was certainly very great,but if no par-
ticular charge could be brought forward against their
administration, there really appeared no reason for
going into any inquiry of the nature of the resent.
He had presided three years in a Court, to which '
appeals lay from all the inferior Ecclesiastical Juris-
dictions of the country, which amounted in all to 19,
and during the whole °Mat period there had not been
more than nine or ten appeals. He thought therefore I
be was entitled to contend, that no mal-administra-
don existed to such an extent as to require an inquiry
of the nature of the present. The Noble Lord bad
been able to produce only 12 cases, from an eiami- I
nation into all the Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions in the
West of, England; and of these 12 cases, which
were all that could be raked up in a period of 12 or!
13 years, six were for defamation, and two were
for tithes.' The result of this diligent examination
certainly would not lead him to the conclusion con-
tended for by the Noble Lord. The remedy which
that Noble Lord had proposed, he certainly could ;
by no means give his consent to. It was neither more /
nor less than inviting all dissatisfied suitors, and all!
unfortunate suitors are dissatisfied, throughout the
country, to bring forward complaints to the Corn-
mittee against the Ecclesiastical Courts; it was hunt- ,
ing for grounds of accusation against them. If the'
present mode of proceeding was inconvenient, the
remedy was rrfectly obvious, without the appoint-
ment of such Committee of Inquiry.
Mr. W. SMITH heard, with great satisfaction, the
rtatements so distinctly made by the two LNirlied
Gentlemen that night. He confessed, that when he '
Lad hoard the first part of the speech of the Right
Honourable and Learned Gentleman (Sir W. Scott),
he was not prepared for the conclusion which followed I
it. Certainly, at least, one third part of that speech
did tend to corroborate all the Noble Lord's conclu-
sions, for it confirmed his statement, that there was
something in those Courts which stood in great need
of reformation. If any of those Learned Gentlemen
were willing to bring forward a remedy, he believed
that the Noble Lord would be'perfectly willing that;
the reformation should be entrusted to theist But
by whom would a Bill be brought in ? his' Learn.
vd Friend beside him (we believe he alluded to Sir
S. Hominy) were to introduce such a Bill, so great '
was his weight In the country, notwithstanding his
want of experiedee in that particular department, he
bad no doubt it would be received with that defer-
mice siith which every thing from him would be re-
ceived ; but if the Noble Lord were to originate such
a Bill, he would be told by the opposite side of the
House, that it would be better for him to let it alone.l
If they were tc look to the Right Hon. and Learned
Gentlemen who were so peculiarly qualified to
carry through this reformation, he was afraid that!
they had already so much important business on
their hands, that it would prevent them from com-
ing forward in time with it. He remembered a
case, a peculiar hardship, which came to his know-
ledge two jeers ago. Two poor women, for a con-
tempt in an Ecclesiastical Court, had been confined
in Nottingham during eleven years. lie had been
there after nine years imprisonment, and he found'
that they possessed a very good moral character,
that they were enthusiasts, and in their principles
nearly Quaker, but differing from them in some pe-
culiarities, they we're not members of that sect. It
happened that these women bore a dislike to the mode
of solemnizing marriage prescribed by the Church ofi
Eugland. They were dragged before an Ecclesiasti-
cal Court, at the instance of some cruel malevolent,
and bigotted individuals, for living in fornication; '
and being cited by their maiden names, and refusing
to
answer to such names from a scruple of conseence
• I
they were involved in an imprisonment of 11 years,
and were at last set at liberty merely because their
persecutors were tired of harassing them any longer. !
[Here it was stated by some Member near him' that
the period of imprisonment had only been seven;
Years.] Not long ago it had been practice of presl-
tag a criminal who refused to plead, till he consented
to plead. This plot existed till at last a Judge had
thought proper to bring about a reformation, and it
was enacted, that a refusal to plead was an acknow-
Ie dgment of guilt. What did he infer from this ?
That Ecclesiastical Courts ought to act int the very
same manner, and proceed to inflict that punish-
Ineut on offenders which the offence deserved, with-
oat imprisoning for seven years in the manner which
113(1 been stated ; for If such punishment were di-
rll). awarded, the whole country would cry out
a.".
~.tinst its barbarity. If they thought the appoint-
mete of a Committee had a tendency to cast a slur •
"Ii the inferior Ecclesiastical Courts there was a
Grand Committee for Courts of Justice appointed
every year by that House. For what did that Corn-
inittee sit? He dared to . say his Noble Friend had
no objection to refer the inquiry to this Grand Coin-1
mittee. After some remarks on excommunication I
anti on the nature of the business of the Ecclesiasti-
cal Courts. be concluded with expiessing his opini-
nui that the mode of his Noble Friend was the best
that could be adopted—that all others would fail—
and that as they had never yet seen any attempts
clade by those who were best qualified to provide a
PT°Per remedy, so yo attempts would likely be made
in future by "
them, and he would therefore give his
Tote for the motion of the Noble Lord.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL went into a jus-.

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