Marquis of Lansdowne: and in the same paper is reported the statement of Mr. Brownlow, that "nothing like a tenth part of the produce of the soil is raised on tithes in Ireland..... In many parishes in the county of Tipperary the tithes levied do not amount to more than one-fourteenth part of the rental, when the produce is more than double the rental, and in fourteen parishes, in the same county, the tithes do not amount to one-thirtieth part of the rental." The difference between the value of the tithe, and the sum paid on account of composition for tithes, will form a considerable" bonus on the land:" but not such a bonus as would tempt the cupidity of the Irish landlords.

If it is not intended to concede every thing to the dictation of the Irish agitators; if the opinions and recommendations of Doctor Doyle are not to supersede the law of the land; if, after the known instability of his sentiments on the peaceable and conciliating tendency of Catholic Emancipation, he is not to be the Magnus Apollo of the British Parliament; if he is not to be suffered to advise passive resistance to a credulous and misguided people, the legislation will find it expedient to proceed with caution; and the temerity of the measure for the abolition or extinction of tithes in Ireland,-a measure precipitately announced before the exhibition of even a partial report, founded on incomplete and unfinished evidence, will be restrained by the discrimination which is required in the arrangement of the details. If the true tithe is neither more nor less than one-tenth part of the produce, one acre in ten will be not more than an equivalent for the redemption of the tithes. Now is it desirable that the Clergy, in addition to the Bishops' lands, a subject of frequent debate, should be in possession of 1,200,000 acres of the cultivated surface of Ireland; or are they in a condition to hold and farm these lands to the profit of themselves and the country, and to keep the necessary homestalls and other buildings in repair? Are the landlords of Ireland prepared to give one acre out of ten, of which the rent varies from three guineas to fourteen shillings, in commutation of the tithe of ten acres, for the aggregate tithe of which the Clergyman receives but ten shillings? When the Clergyman is in possession of the highly-rented land, will he not be expected to reduce the rent? And what is to restrict the landlord from raising the rent of the land in proportion as its value is improved by the redemption of the tithe? There is no prudent or honourable man who will not coincide with the sentiments of Mr. Brownlow, when "he entreated the House and the Government to apply themselves to the consideration of the subject, with a view of proposing measures which may have a beneficial effect; but before those measures can be proposed, the deepest and most attentive inquiry ought to be instituted into the subject. When that inquiry is made, and the information which it is necessary to obtain shall be completed, then, and not till then, ought such measures to be offered to the consideration of the House. In the mean time he declared, that, as a landlord, he was not anxious to derive any benefit from the tithes; that they were sacred, he would at once admit; and neither did he, nor, as he understood, did any of the Irish landlords, claim to share in them: they were public property, and they ought to be appropriated in such a

manner as to prove most advantageous to the people from whom they were levied. If they were once lost hold of, there would be a sacrifice made of a most useful national fund; and that such hold would be speedily lost, he had not a doubt, unless some popular measure should be soon adopted for their appropriation."

By appropriation, Mr. Brownlow means a more equal distribution of the tithes and other revenues of the Church; and it is satisfactory to know, that the Primate of Ireland, whose merit is far beyond any praise which I can offer, is doing every thing that lies in his power for the restriction of pluralities: and I will venture to submit to the consideration of his Grace, how far, in the exigencies of the present crisis, it may be just and expedient to proceed to the dissolution of unions in the Irish Church, and even to the division of the large parishes; to sequestrate, on the vacancy of any benefice, one moiety of its emoluments, until a sum shall be raised adequate to the erection or purchase of a convenient house; to comprehend all church-rates under the sum paid in composition for tithe; and to levy upon all ecclesiastical benefices a certain sum per cent., for the purpose of forming a fund for the erection of churches, parsonages, and schools, and for the augmentation of the smaller Cures. Of this I am fully persuaded, that there is nothing which has a tendency to promote the efficiency and stability of the Irish Church, which the wisdom of his Grace will not approve, which his energy will not further, or to which his munificence will not contribute.

But it may be asked, is Ireland in a state for the immediate commutation of tithes? It may be desirable to promote that commutation, wherever it can be effected voluntarily and by agreement; but before any general or compulsory measure can be introduced, it will be necessary to ascertain the true value of the tithe, without the knowledge of which it will be preposterous to think of an equitable adjustment, or to determine what lands or charges or money may be received in exchange. The difficulty is not abated by the neglect of the impropriators to commute the tithes which are in their possession, and which appear to amount to one-sixth part of the whole. At least they have compounded in that proportion, and there can be little doubt, that if a permanent arrangement had been expedient, they would have availed themselves of the means in their power. It is a natural conclusion, from their neglect, that a reasonable and just commutation is not practicable or is not desirable. The following remarks are worthy of the moderation and good sense which distinguish the Archbishop of Canterbury:-" It occurred to him, that by placing the property of the Church on a more secure footing, Parliament were conferring a very great benefit, not only on the Church, but on the people of Ireland. To effect that, the first thing he would do was to introduce some measure that should make the composition for tithe universal. Three-fifths of the parishes of Ireland being now under composition, he would compel the other two-fifths to compound also. Supposing the resolutions to be agreed to, he could not conceive that any difficulty would hereafter arise, in taking into consideration a measure for making a charge upon the land to compensate the Church for the tithe that was now collected with so much difficulty, and

which was the cause of so much strife. The Church had undoubtedly as good a right to its property as any other proprietor; but if the mode of obtaining that property was found to be generally inconvenient both to the people and to the Church itself, and if a fair compensation were made for it, he could not see how he was betraying the interest of the Church, which it had been stated it was his peculiar M. duty to defend."

THE FONT.

The following Lines were suggested upon seeing, after many Years' absence, the Font at which the Author had been baptized.

To bring me to this hallow'd shrine
With pious care my parents came,
To mark me with the Christian sign;
To bless me with the Christian name.
"Twas here the sacred pledge was given;
And solemnly for me preferr'd,
The fervent prayer arose to Heaven;
Ah! may I hope that prayer was heard?
Enthron'd in majesty on high,

The Ancient of Eternal Days,
God yet regards the feeble cry,

And listens to the infant's praise.
Their souls are purchas'd with His blood,
The chosen emblems of his rest:
And dare we from His Church exclude
Those whom on earth the Saviour blest?

Lov'd, honour'd Church! His saving grace
The Lord thy God displays in thee:
I'll worship in thy holy place,

And pray for thy prosperity.

Built on His everlasting word,

Stand, as for ages thou hast stood:

Thine be the blessings of the Lord;

And blest be all who seek thy good!

E. O.

THE WESTERN LUMINARIES.

A NEW sect has lately sprung up at Plymouth, which, though not likely to produce any extensive or permanent effect on the public mind, perhaps deserves an ephemeral notice. All the leaders of this singular community were a short time since professed members of the Establishment, some of them fellows and tutors in the University, and not a few Clergymen of the Church of England. To a lay-brother, however, may be traced the origin of their society.

About two years since, the walls in the neighbourhood were placarded with texts of Scripture, supposed to refer to the immediate coming of our Lord, enforced with exhortations to prepare for the solemn event. Shortly afterwards, the attention of the public was excited by the information that the anonymous remonstrant was about to emerge from his obscurity, and to stand forth as a preacher of

righteousness in the midst of the ungodly throng attracted by the vanities of the annual fair. Accordingly, a young man, an officer in the preventive service, " delivered his testimony" to the assembled multitude. The roaring of the wild beasts, the gesticulations of the exasperated mountebanks, and the shrill cries of the apple-women, in some measure distracted the attention of the audience. But enough was heard, not only to convince them that the preacher was in earnest, but also, that nothing less than the ludicrous accompaniments of the surrounding scene, and the fantastic character of some of his speculations could have turned into burlesque many of the solemn truths he delivered.

A young Clergyman, whose recent attack upon the University had conferred upon him a transient notoriety, next presented himself to the excited Plymoutheans. The churches of his friends were as usual opened for his admission, but with a more than an usual auditory. Who would not hear and see the man that had attacked orthodoxy in its strong-holds, and held up Bishops, Priests, and Deacons, to public ridicule? In a little time, the zeal of the young reformer, increasing with his popularity, could no longer be restrained within the narrow bounds of consecrated buildings. Fairs, regattas, and racecourses, were the theatres of his most splendid exhibitions. When the periodical celebration of these revels had terminated, and he was strengthened by the coalition of a few partisans, lay and clerical, private houses, dissenting chapels, tops of coaches, extensive plains, rugged knolls, and populous streets, became in turns the scenes of these declamatory labours. "Reasons were as plenty as blackberries" for the proceedings of himself and coadjutors. The Clergyman of one parish was, in their estimation, blind or lukewarm: there then they ought to proceed to enlighten or stimulate the people. The Clergyman of another parish was every thing they could desire; and necessity was hence laid upon them to strengthen his hands and support his doctrines by their presence. Why they selected the vicinity of the Bishop's and Archdeacon's residences is unknown to the writer of this narrative, though doubtless the congregations there assembled were informed by these communicative teachers.

But their followers no less than themselves, they soon discovered, were like a rope of sand. They heard, they stared, they misunderstood, they floundered, they forgot their lessons; and as each of their instructors, like the Corinthian teachers, had " a psalm, a doctrine, a revelation, an interpretation," every subsequent application to these gifted men only rendered "confusion worse confounded."

To remedy these inconveniences, and, if possible, to establish some form of Church government, and some system of doctrine, frequent and private conferences were held among themselves, which at length terminated in hebdomadal meetings, where gifted personages, male and female, are admitted. Their deliberations, however, have not hitherto been crowned with the expected success. They are indeed all agreed that the Church of England is corrupt, and that every other denomination of Christians is not a whit purer. They have ascertained their right (and act upon it) to administer both the Sacraments. It is further supposed that they would be delighted with the privilege of performing

another function, which the laws of the land have unhappily for them. confined to the Clergy. For it is a serious case of casuistry among some of their members, whether a marriage can be lawfully celebrated by a minister of an anti-christian establishment. In short, this illadvised sect have determined rather what to condemn, than what to approve. They are still in the predicament of the man with the pick-axe, who could pull down a palace, but could not so much as build a pig-sty in its place. AN ENEMY TO CONFUSION.

LAW REPORT.

ARCHES COURT OF CANTERBURY, 1828.

CLERICAL NEGLECT, VIOLATION OF CHURCHYARD, &c. BENNETT V. BONAKER, Clerk.

THIS suit was instituted by the churchwarden of the parish of Churchhoneybourne, Worcestershire, against the Vicar and Incumbent of that parish"for and concerning his soul's health; the reformation of his manners and excesses, and more especially, for neglect of and irregularity in the performance of divine offices as Vicar of the said parish, and for indecently and irreverently digging the ground or soil of the churchyard of the said parish, and thereby disturbing the bodies of the dead buried therein, and for other irregularities and excesses."

There were twenty-seven articles; they pleaded the institution of Mr. Bonaker in May, 1817; and charged specifically neglect of, and irregularity in, the performance of Divine Service, and the public offices of the church, from the 19th of September, 1824, to the 11th of January, 1827, inclusive; but they contained no charge of a later date.*

Phillimore and Addams, in objection to the articles:-Considerable irregularities on the part of the Vicar in the performance of his clerical duties are pleaded, but much time has been allowed to elapse before the suit was

instituted; and it is not pleaded, that the offences have been repeated since the early part of 1827; nor that they are likely to be renewed. The parish would seem to be small, and the Vicar may have been prevented by illness, or by unavoidable accident. The Court will regard the offences as by gone, and presume them condoned; but if it admits the articles, it will admit them with such observations as will put an end to the suit.

Per Curiam:-Why was not the process taken out sooner?

The King's Advocate and Lushington, in support of the articles:Some time was necessarily consumed in communicating with the Chancellor of the Diocese, and in considering with him the propriety of instituting the present suit. The lapse of time is the only objection of importance; but it must be recollected that prosecutions of this nature, though conducted by individuals, are for no private interests; but ad publicam vindictam, and to assert the rights of all the parishioners. At present the Court cannot, upon bare suggestion, presume that the Vicar was prevented by illness or by accident; nor is the smallness of the parish any excuse.

The Court is bound to admit articles by a churchwarden against an incumbent for frequent irregularities in the performance of divine service, and of parochial duties, and also for his violating the church-yard: nor (the suit being commenced in April 1828, and the alleged offences being laid from September 1824, till January 1827,) is the lapse of time any bar.