weaken their general influence. I speak not of the pecuniary loss which they will sustain by the diminished number of fees (a loss which will fall most heavily upon the portion of the Clergy least able to bear it, the Clergy of large towns), and of the consequent curtailment of their means of ministering to the temporal wants of their flocks. I speak of the diminution of the occasions of friendly intercourse with the Laity, now afforded them through the medium of the various acts, religious and civil, which they are from time to time called upon to perform. They will no longer have the opportunity of showing, to the same extent, attentions and courtesies which, though trifling in themselves, are yet important, as proofs of kindly feelings and a conciliatory spirit; and can scarcely fail to have the effect of removing prejudices and softening asperities, where unhappily they exist, and of confirming those who are already favourably disposed in sentiments of affection and attachment.

If the Marriage and Registration Acts are calculated indirectly to weaken the influence of the Established Church, the measure introduced in the last Session of Parliament for the abolition of Church-rates tended directly to effect its separation from the State. In speaking to you, when we last met, of the demands

put forth by the Dissenters, I stated that, in my opinion, the principle of a Church Establishment was involved in the question of Church-rates. It will be sufficient for me to appeal, in confirmation of the correctness of this opinion, to the declarations of the Dissenters themselves. Their language, at all their public meetings, has uniformly been-Let us not distract ourselves or our supporters by pursuing a variety of objects at once; let us, for the present, direct all our efforts to the carrying of this one point; that carried, we shall have placed ourselves upon a vantage ground, from which we may assail the Establishment with the certainty of success. Do I complain of them for using this language? On the contrary, I think that we are indebted to them for their frankness. Their conduct is perfectly consistent. Believing, as they profess to believe, that the connexion between the Church and State is prejudicial to the interests of religion, they are bound, as conscientious men, to use their utmost efforts to accomplish its dissolution; and they commence with the abolition of Churchrates, because they regard it, justly in my opinion, as the step which will conduct them most certainly to the attainment of their object. Their conduct, I repeat, is perfectly consistent. But I cannot refrain from expressing my surprise at the countenance and support given to

such a measure, by men who declare themselves favourable to an Establishment, and decidedly adverse to that of which we hear so much in the present day-the Voluntary System. I question not the sincerity of the declaration, but must confess my inability to reconcile their conduct with their language; unless, when they speak of an Establishment, they mean such an Establishment of Christianity in general as existed (I know not whether it continues to exist) in the States of New England; a system, under which every member of the community is compelled to contribute towards the support of a Christian Ministry, but pays his contribution to the Minister of the congregation to which he himself belongs.

In saying that the very principle of a Church Establishment is involved in the question of Church-rates, I am aware that the authority of the late Professor Burton may be quoted against me. Great stress was laid, and justly laid, upon it in the course of the late discussions ; for never had the Church of England a more devoted Minister; his valuable life was brought to a premature close by his incessant labours in her service. It might, therefore, be fairly presumed, that a measure which received his sanction could not be injurious to the interests

C

of the Established Church.

Yet he,* in speak

ing of the demand of the Dissenters to be relieved from all exactions for the support of the Church, declared his opinion to be, "that no person who is not a member of the Church of England ought to be made to pay for the repair of the fabric, or for any of the appendages of a worship in which he takes no part." The payment of Church-rates by Dissenters ought," he adds, "to be abolished. If they feel the payment to be a grievance, it is one." Great, however, as is my respect for his memory, I must confess that his argument, if followed out to its legitimate consequences, appears to me altogether subversive of an Established Church. Is everything at once to be pronounced a grievance which the Dissenters feel to be one? They tell us, in no ambiguous terms, that they deem an Established Church a grievance; are we, therefore, prepared to abolish it? Is not the reasoning in the sentence which I have just quoted quite as conclusive against the right to make a Dissenter pay for the maintenance of the Minister, as against the right to make him pay for the repair of the fabric? He says, I am willing to pay for the support of my own Minister; but why am I compelled to pay for the support of the Ministers of a Church from

* Thoughts on the Separation of Church and State, p. 25.

which I derive no spiritual instruction? The sum which any Dissenter pays, in the shape of Church-rates, is so trifling, that to speak of the payment as a practical grievance is ridiculous. The abolition is valuable in his estimation, on account of the consequences to which it necessarily leads. The only ground on which an Established Church is defensible is this—that, it being the bounden duty of every Christian Government to provide for the religious instruction of the people, the State requires every individual, whatever his private opinions, to contribute towards the support of an Established Church, because it deems such a Church the most efficient instrument in furnishing that instruction. To relieve Dissenters from the payment of Church-rates, for the reasons assigned by Dr. Burton, is to abandon this ground; it is to admit that an Established Church, instead of promoting, is injurious to the cause of true religion.

We have been told, indeed, that the late measure was introduced with a view, not to the relief of the Dissenters in particular, but to the general promotion of religious peace, by putting an end to the heart-burnings and animosities arising out of the present system. The Established Church, it is said, far from being weakened, would be strengthened, by the

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