THE FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE CLERGY
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] - SIR,—Most of your readers know of the Act of Parliament recently passed to improve the position of the clergy. Some of them may be interested to learn to what extent the clergy hive benefited by it, or the reverse.. I have just nee eAyed from the Bounty office a demand note for payment for,six months' rates and sinking fund. It appears from this L shall lose £17.10s. a year as -a direct outcome of that Act.
A few years ago rules ,were made to facilitate the redemption of tithe. The redemption money was calculated on the value of gilt-edged securities at the date of the :application. It took two, or three years to -get the necessary papers through the Board of Agriculture. In that time there had been a substantial, appreciation of securities, as a result of-which this living Jost .permanently the annual sum of *17 .on the. tithe redeemed. This means a permanent loss to myself of £34 10. per .annuM: . celledt.my own tithe. My succeisor will not.be allow.ed.1.9
do this, but will have to pay someone else for doing what he could easily do himself. Further, he will have to pay to the pensions fund. These two items will come roughly to 00, so altogether, as the result of various Acts to improve the state of affairs, he will be short of £64 10s. per annum. Though of course he will be entitled to a pension if he lives to be 70. These figures speak for themselves.—I am, Sir, &c.,
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