The members of the Protestant Association for the protection of
Religious Liberty, had their annual meeting at the City of London Tavern on Saturday ; Lord Nugent in the chair. Dr. Brown, Mr. Burnet, Dr. Bennett, and Dr. Bowring, were the principal speakers. Dr. Brown read a letter from Dudley, describing the manner in which a church-rate had been carried in that town— In August 1834, the Churchwardens of Dudley called a Vestry nweting to make .a church-rate; the motion for so doing was, however, lost by a large majority, and an amendment for an adjournment for nine months cart ied. la the face of this, the Churchwardens summoned another Vestry at the Ti, n-hall three weeks afterwards ; and being again defeated, they proceeded to the rill, which they only allowed to be open ten hours to receive the votes of 17(00 rate-payers. An opinion was given by Dr. Lunhington that the procecda.gs were illegal ; and on the strength of this opinion the opposers of the rate had ventured into the Ecclesiastical Court; and the letter stated that the result uf this appeal was the loss of the suit, with 1,000/. costs against the pp:TH.1nm. (Cries of" Shame ! ") Dr. Brown said, he trusted the Dudley ca,e wiuld make Dissenters still more urgent in their demands on the.Legislatuie for tee abolition of this odious impost.
A resolution approving of the conduct of Ministers, mid especially of their Marriage and Registration Bills, was unaniinously carried. A Special General Court of the Proprietors of East India Steck was held on Wednesday ; when, after some discussion, it was resolved, by a majority of 56 to 25, to petition Parliament against the bill for awarding compensation to the officers formerly in the maritime service of the Company, not included in the list of those who received com- pensation under the new charter.
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