A most respectable and well-attended meeting was held at the
Castle Inn, Hampstead Heath, on Wednesday evening, to petition Parliament in favour of the Government measure for the abolition of Church-rates. No attempt was made to exclude the advocates of Church-rutes from this meeting; and accordingly, some slight opposi- tion was given to the resolutions ; which, however, were cart it'd almost unanimously. The principal speakers were Mr. Aglionby, M. P., Dr. Evans of Hampstead, Mr. Hill, Mr. Reid, and the Reverend George Kenrick. Dr. Evans professed himself a sincere friend to the Esta- blished Church Ifhe were a determined enemy of that Church—( Groansfrom two persons at Lie lower end of the room)—even if he was as great an enemy to the Church as those individuals who were now disturbing the meeting—( Chrers1— if he were as ab.urd as those individuals, be should say to the rulers of that Church, la them go on as they were ; let them give to their Archbishops and tbeir Bishops 10,0001., 15,000/. , and 20,000/. a year, and let their curates, in hundreds, lie might almost say in thou-ands, labour in poverty ; let those who did all the real work of the Church he left to starve; let theta maintain all such abuses of the Establishment, and they must insure its destruction. Those were the real friends of the Church who by timely reforms warded off the movement of the public mind, which, let them do what they would, must still go on ; and which he believed, in a short time, would not leave a fragment of the former abuses that had existed. The system of Chnrch.rates might have done in the middle ages, but it woull not do at present. (('eke of " Question !" from Mr. Brookes and others.) He hall listened a long time to one gentleman, and he hail braid from him what, it he were not Impolite, he would call rhodomon- tade; but without further noticing it, lw would just say this, that when they found the Dissenting holly giving a milLon to .tippott their own clergy smd maintain their own edilicee, those who b.longed to the Estahlislunent ought injustice and in Christian feeling to seek to relieve from the aillithinal burden which Church-rates imposed on them, Oar of !,crsonS trhei had its disturbed the meeting. here asked why Dr. Brans hal sopported Lord Henley.) With respect to Lord Henley, he lt ti suppotted that nah!,. lord on the ground that he was a Church Reformer; because he found Lord !kohl., belonging to the aristocracy, to be for a most searching and radical ref min in the Church, be had tendered to him his humble support. He was now a supporter of the Ministerial measure, because it would be the means of putting an end te, that "envy, malice, and all uncharitableness" mamas which they prayed in their Liturgy, and which he found to be fomented by the present mode of raising Church-rates. Upwards of a hundred signatures were attached to the petitiori immediately after the meeting broke up. So the Spiritual Lord who flattered himself that be had got "all the respectability" of Hamp- stead on the other side, is in a fair way of finding out his error.
A numerous Vestry meeting was held on Thursday, at the Board School-house of St. Botolph, Bishopsgate Street, to petition both
Houses of Parliament for the abolition of Church-rates ; the Re- verend Dr. Russell, the Rector, in the chair. A petition was read, purporting to be the petition of the meeting ; upon which a ballot was demanded. During the proceedings, a most angry discussion took place, and much personal language was used. After fixing the ballot for Tuesday and Wednesday next, the meeting separated.
At a meeting held in Chelsea on Thursday, a resolution was unani- mously agreed to for entering into a subscription for the relief of the
distress in the Scottish Highlands and Islands ; and a committee was appointed for carrying the object of the meeting into effect. It was stated that 86,000 persons were destitute of food, and that a subscription of 100,000/. would be necessary for their effectual relief.
The election of Directors of the East India Company, on Wednes- day, was in favour of Messrs. William Astell, William Butterworth Bayley, Russell Ellice, Richard Jenkins, Campbell Majoribanks, and John Masterman.
Mr. Palmer, of the Inner Temple, has accepted the office of Lec- turer on Law in Gresham College.
Previous page
