New-York daily tribune., 1856-07-23

ostbs of allegiance which came 10 hs"' nv '"'
time Of the Popish Plot excitement, ana was Ia
corporsted into the Oath Of Abjurstion, after the
depo,iticn Of James H., to guard against Tue
cs.ui.try and Je.uitism Of the Catholics and Jac
obites by a sanction which they could hardly eSade
or interpret as meaning anything other thAn ~nA'
they accepted as Christian iai!h
Lord Lyndhurst denied that England was
Christian country in any sense that should eA'
clude al persons, Of every religious persuasion
from equal rights before the law. BE showed that
the House of Lords had cOn6rmed the constitutions
Of Goyernmen Mt of Canada, Australia, New'Aeaiand
ard the Cspe of Good Hope, all OF which admitted
Jews equally with Christians to all civil rights ana
privileges, AID he asked whether these were no'
Christian countries as we'll as EDgland' He rld''
cued the idea of there being any danger OF Ca'ho-
lie ever ascending the throne of fEngland-aithougn
il ia said there are fifty princes in Europe more
nearly allied By blood to james ii. than Queen
Vic.ors-if this o.th should be repealed, and ior
the very sufficient reason that the Catholics are
low excused fiom taking it He concluded oy
urpirp the House to initiate the liberality OF the
Sultan Of TuI KEY, who had granted full equality OF
civil rights to all his subjects without regard 20
their religion, BY virtue Of which two Christians
AID ole Jew are Low sitting at bic council taSie
as members of the Diyan.
Lords Lansdowne, Clanricarde, st. Germansand
Rsyensworth sustained the affirmative also. 1t was
s,,d that this oath had not had the effect OF keep
i,c Bolpebroke and Gibbon and multitudes of scot-
fers a. Christsnity out of Parliament, and it was
hardly fair to insist upon it merely for the purpose
of tie exclusion of men who were never in the
cont, npa.or Of the trainers of the OATH.
Earl sraphope, better known in this country ss
Lord Mshon. the historian, opposed the passage OF
the biz. on the ground that England was Chris
tisn country, and that it was not meant that Jews
.hould be permitted to sit in Parliament de
quoted DR.. Franklia's celebrated observations 10
faycr Of prayers to the old Congress, and caiis
the refusal Of that body to adopt the custom,
"s striking instance how soon, when there
"wss no religious ssnction to the meeting
g. of legislative assembly, other religious
obligations may cease to have value in the eyes
L" of the members of that assembly We do not
exactly understand whether bis Lordshlp means
that this original sin of our fathers WORKED
corruption of blood IN all thelr legisla'
tive successors, and thus accounted for
sls the ysnies of legislation which have astonshed
the despotisms of Europe Of late years. But
we can assure him that whatever crimes our Con-
cress may have committed since DR.. Franklih's
time, they are not owing to any lack OF Con-
ore ss.oDsl prayers. As long prayers were said In
both Houses on the days they passed the Fugitive
Slave Act or opened Kansas to Slavery by the
breach OF the pl GIFTED faith of the nation and all
their other enacted rascalities, az on any what
ever. Lord DungaDnOn also opposed the BILL and
in spite Of the preponderance OF argument and OF
common sense in its favor, it was rejected by
vote of 10 - 20.
Lord Stanhope was much concerned lest such
man az Tom Paine should get admission to Parlia-
ment. while he showed that there was nothing In
the nature Of oaths 10 exclude him. The word
"Cbristiau" is one of such wide signifca.ion that
ii must be very scienOus inhdel, indeed, that
could rot assume the psme for political purpose.
b. Lame unknown to the founder oithe religion,
las 10 defniteness of Specification, but every man
interprets it for himself. Bolingbroke aud Gibbon
lad no acruples in making promises on the true
faith o; Christian, and David Hume lived aud
died member Of the Kirk of Scotland. Lord
Staihope alluded to the axity with which political
odAs are regarded by men of scrupulous veracity
and honor In all other concerns. This he had re-
marked upon before in bis history, where he says it
is singular fact that men of the most scrupulOus
/, ;,& bad nj
about taking the Oaths Of Allegiance with the in-
tentiop of violating them when occasion offered.
In this speech he ssys that papers have been dis
covered which prove that Atterbury, mitred
Rochester" was in secret correspondence with
the exiled family and plotting is restoration at the
time be was sitting in the House OF Lords by vir-
tue Of this very cath. Ard so did many other
Jacobite Lords and gentlemen. So Louis PhilGpes
Peers and Deputies were under stringent oaths Of
allegiance to him. which did not hinder their turn
ing against him In February, l048. The argument
would seem to lie against the eaforcing Of
epy such oaths at all, which become
int perstiye at the very moment their binding
force is most needed. The moral of the whole
dt bate seems to be that the Jews are the beet
Christians in the United Kingdom, if denying ones
self for the sake of truth be sn evidence of that
character The honors Of the land are open to oil
the inhabitants. A Jew may be made peer if
the Queen so please, though he could not take his
seat ia the house. Jew baTOnets and knights are
not uncommon, and there is at least one Pagan who
has received the honor Of KnighthoOd, Sir Jamses.
jee Jeejeebhos, Bengal Parsee or Fire worshper
net to mention several Mobammedans who have re.