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Leader (1850-1860), 7th June 1851, Edition Town of 1, Page 529, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      that the greatest portion of the children of this country would be excluded from the schools of the National Society by the terms it proposed : — " He considered that if there was one thing against -which the Church of England ought to be warned more than another , it was against depending upoa any political combinations- ( ' Hear , ' and cheers . ) The reliance of the Churoh of England was from within , and her dependence was upon the right arm of her great King { Hear , hear ) ; but the Church of England , if she would be stayed upon that arm , must beware how she sold the truth for gold . ( Shouts of Oh , oh ! ' Question ! and cheers . ) If he

      had said any thing that was offensive , he would retract it —( A Voice . — ' It is offensive" ); but might he not be allowed to say so much as this : —Surely the Church of England had a truth to maintain ( hear , hear ); surely she had something which she must hold fast , at whatever cost . Had she not the teaching of the church of the apostles ? ( A Voice . —• Not of TractarianismV Cries of' Shame , shame V * Order I' and much interruption . ) He would himself be extremely ready to listen to any thing any gentleman might have to say , but he thought it was hard he was not allowed to proceed . ( Cries of 1 Question , ' and renewed interruption . )

      Order being restored , Mr . Denisonmet the interruptors by a vigorous attack . " He was not aware any body disputed that the Church of England had a teaching and a discipline . He was not aware that any English Churchman denied that that church had the apostolical succession . ( ' Question' !) He was not prepared to hear it denied that they had the creeds and the sacraments . ( Renewed cries of * Question '!)" These and none other -were the principles of the Church of England , and by those principles she must stand or fall . Mr . A . J . B . Hope , M . P ., seconded the resolution . His speech was very similar to that of Mr . Denison . The most remarkable thing he said was

      that" This great contest began in 1848 , when Prussia , where education had been carried out to a vast extent , was the very focus of danger and rebellion , and when France , which had followed the example of Prussia , was equally the scene of violence and insurrection . In the month of June , 1848 , Mr . Denison in that room called upon them , the members of a pure and reformed church , to oppose the insertion of the narrow end of that wedge which , in the countries he had mentioned , had riven society to its basis . ( ' Hear , hear ' , and ' No ' . )" Sir John Pakington , M . P ., moved an amendment . He regretted the discussion , which he thought could do nothing but harm to the sacred cause : —

      " Let the meeting remember the broad title under which the society acted ; it was ' The National Society for Promoting the Education of the Poor in the Principles of the Established Church' ( cheers and counter cheers )—but it was in the principles of the -whole Established Church —( cheers and counter cheers )—not of those who would assume to themselves the exclusive right to decide upon those principles . ( Hear , hear . ) The practical and real result of these meetings had been that a feeling had gone abroad in the country , that it was the intention of those who were now forcing this discussion upon the society to exclude the laity— ( cries of * No , no , ' which were met by much cheering )—hom all share even in the secular portion of the education of their poorer neighbours . ( 'No , no ; ' « Yes , yes . ' )"

      Allusions to the agitation on the " Papal Agression , ' ' and t . o «« the events of last winter" as a warning , were met by cries of Question . Sir John pointed to the advance of opinion in favour of secular education , and showed that only by union could they hope to maintain for the clergyman his influence over the education of the people . He should move : — " That the cause of sound religiouo instruction and the interests of the church demand at the present juncture the friendly cooperation of ( the National Society and the Committee of Council ; and this meeting , satisfied that such cooperation must be for the advantage of the National Society , as well aa of the church at large , desireB to deprecate any renewal of the agitation which has characterised tho recent meetings of the society , and to express its earnest hope that the two bodies may act cordially together . "

      Mr . Childers , M . P ., seconded the amendment . Was it not clearly the intention of Mr . Denison and his party to make management clauses which put the government of schools entirely in the hands of tho clergy ? ( "No , no ! " " Yea , yes ! " ) The lteverend S . ltobins vindicated the Committee of Council on Education , and made some remarkable statements . " He felt that tho real question at issue was whether laymen should havo their due portion of influenco in our church schools . (' No , no , ' ' Hear , hoar , ' and cheers . ) lne clauses reserved to the clergyman the entire control of all that regarded religion and morals : was it to \ m oi ail mat regarded religion and morals ; was it to be Bftid that

      for the re « t the laity were not nu competent as i , ! £ Ti for tho manft Kement of a school ? (* Hear hear , ' Oh , oh , ' < Order . ' A gentleman here rose to oruei ; but the chairman pronounced Mr . ltobins not in tue leaat out of order . ) For the rest-for the managem ent of hcuooIh , for the waj 8 and Bubject ( J of 9 e ( lJu teaching , lor dwoiplino . for oversight , for judgment of he general f j tuem , of th « master , he believed ilaymau «« iZ ? i-o hl , ulMlf - lighter and cheers ) It wa 3 said the faith was in danger . " The resolution and amendment were the * supported and opposed by various speakers , o «« gentlomau asserting that " the best uuu , tor » wore bribed ttwayby Oovcriuaout ttdvuutugoH , "

      Lord It . Grosvenor suggested an adjournment This met with no support , and Lord Harrowby continued the discussion . Warm debates like the present constituted the very difficulties which prevented the formation of a Committee in the House of Lords . " He himself thought it unjust that money should be withheld from school founders who did not agree with all the points in the management clauses—( hear , hear ); but you could not separate in public estimation the movement upon this question , from the language held

      by Mr . Denison . What had he now said ? That those who accepted the public money upon these termB were selling the Catholic faith for gold [ Cries of Hear , hear , ' l , no , ' * Yes , ' and much confusion , in the midst of which Mr . Denison rose , and called upon the noble lord to quote any words of his to this effect , and demanded whether he had expressed a wish to interfere with others , and whether all that he had asked was not that he might not be interfered with himself ?] Then what did Mr . Denison mean when he said parties were selling the Catholic faith ? ( Loud cries of Hear , hear . ' )"

      ' The Reverend G . A . Denison said he had made a general statement ; it might have been wise or unwise to make it ; he laid it down as a general principle that we were not to sell the Catholic truth for gold . ( Some laughter and cries of " Hear . " ) He was glad the sentiment was disclaimed . " The exclusive language of the movers of this question , the language held by them that they alone represented the church—( hear , hear )—and that no other principle of school management but theirs was

      consonant with church principles—( hear , hear )—their exclusive and denunciatory tone made one of the main difficulties in the way of the fair and calm consideration of this question . ( Hear , hear . ) Right or wrong , it was a fact that there was an increased jealousy of confiding the power of education solely to the clergy . ( Hear , hear . ) Then , too , in the disorganized state of parties , without a Government or an organized opposition , there was no security for the constitution or result of a committee in either House . ( Hear . )" If the question was put he should take no part .

      The Bishop of London recommended that both resolution and amendment should be negatived , when Sir John Pakington withdrew his amendment , and left to Mr . Denison the responsibility , which he " cheerfully accepted , " of dividing the meeting . On a division the resolution was negatived by a large majority , amidst loud cheers . The Reverend C . B . Dal ton , is the new member elected to the committee .

      Untitled Article

      THE EXETER SYNOD . Not only the clergy but the laity have protested against the proposed synod at Exeter . A meeting of gentlemen , small in number , but weighty by position , took place at Exeter on Saturday . Sir John Kennaway presided , and the speakers were , Mr . Palk , of Haldon-house , and Mr . M . Bere ( commissioner of the Exeter district Court of Bankruptcy ) . In the protest agreed to they declare that they " fully concur with the presbyters of their church who have publicly recorded their strong objection thereto . "

      They then state the grounds of their concurrence , which are similar to those put forward by the clergy . But , in addition , they say that they are afraid the proposed synod will present an example of resistance to the solemn decisions of the law , which , " if generally adopted , might lead to the separation of the Church from the State , " and prove " fatal" to the " existence of the monarchy" and the reformed faith throughout the world . The last clause is the most notable . They say : —

      " And we further protest , because we object to what has a tendency , on the part of the bishop or clergy , to exclude many honest and conscientious clergymen who do not concur in the bishop ' s interpretation of tho great article of the creed—one baptism for the remission of sins . "

      Untitled Article

      DEATH OF LORI ) SIIAFTESBTJttY . Cropley Ashley Cooper , the second son of the fourth Lord Shaftesbury , was born in London , at 24 , Grosvcnor-square , on the ' lint December , 17 < JH . He wan educated at Winchester , when Sydney Smith was there , and went thence to Christchurch , Oxford , not remarkable for anything in particular . In hia twenty-second year he married the daughter of the fourth Duke of Murlborough . entered thu House oi

      Commons as member for Dorchester , and Hat for that borough for twenty-one years . In 1811 he succeeded , on the death of hia brother , to the family title of Lord Shaftesbury , which took its rise with that famous man who was Sir Anthony Anhley under Cromwell , and Lord Shaftealmry under ( -hades II . The late earl wan made chairman of committees in 1811 , a post of great importance in tho IIouho of Lords , which he continued to occupy until 18 / 30 . lie died at hiu country renitlenee in Dorsetshire , on Monday morning , and ho in succeeded by Lord Ashley .

      Untitled Article

      JDtiATU OK RICHARD LALOK tiUlill ,. The death of Mr . Shuil ha » euused a profound feeling oi' grief and regret that ono who had played ho distinguished u purl should die ho comparatively young . Richard Lalor Sheil , according to a well-known biographer of tho Times , was the hou of Mr . Edmund SbxU , u merehimt in tho Spuuiah Undo , and bora ai

      Dublin in . 1794 . The Morning Chronicle says his father ' s name was Edward , and that Richard Lalor Sheil was born in 1793 . It is agreed , however , that his father , after retiring from business , and establishing himself in comfort near Waterford , again engaged in speculations which failed , and left him a poor man . The education of Young Sheil had , in the mean time , been cared for . He was first placed under the tuition of a French refugee abbe " , afterwards of an emigrant noble , thence sent to Stoneyhurst , and finally to Trinity College , Dublin . Mr . Sheil ' s early

      efforts as a public speaker ( and he began in the college and city debating clubs at eighteen ) are said by those who remember them to have been strange pieces of hyperbolic rhapsody , expressed in the most extravagantly adorned and superlative metaphor , but always containing bold , individual , and original thought , and always delivered with an enthusiasm and a headlong excitement which sometimes caused as much merriment as the evident intensity of purpose on the part of the speaker excited respect and admiration .

      Leaving Dublin and Trinity , Mr . Sheil entered himself as a student at Lincoln ' s-inn , and was in due time called to the bar . But his father ' s affairs had not prospered . The expenses attending his legal education , it was clear , must be , in great part , defrayed from some other source ; and Mr . Sheil , at this juncture , betook himself to writing for the stage . His opening tragedy was Adelaide , a piece which owed some slight and temporary success to the impassioned acting of Miss O'Neil , who befriended her young countryman . Mr . Sheil was now practising

      at the bar ; but as briefs came in but slowly , he persevered in his dramatic creations , and either before or not very long after his marriage with Miss O'Halloran , produced—at Covent Garden , we believe—not less than three tragedies—the Apostate , Bellamira , and Evadne . His gains from the stage are said to have been not less than £ 2000 ; but he did not look upon dramatic writing as a means of living . He soon found a nobler theatre opening to him , in which he himself should be no insignificant performer : —

      " In 3822 , " says the Morning Chronicle— " a year of Irish distress and famine—Mr . Sheil joined Mr . O'Connell heart and soul as an agitator for emancipation , and also for the repeal of the Union . He was now considered as one of the leaders of the popular party . His speeches were vigorous , and—considering the temper of the Government and the nation at the time—bold even to rashness . When the measure to suppress the Catholic Association of Ireland was brought in by Mr . Goulburn , in 1825—a measure ultimately carried on its third reading by a majority of 130—both Mr . O'Connell and Mr . Sheil were heard at the bar against the bill . The language used by Mr . O'Connell on this occasion was so very violent

      that the Attorney-General held him to bail ; but the indictment preferred against him was thrown out by the grand jury . Mr . Sheil ' s general success in London was not the less brilliant that he had not achieved the main object of his mission . His oratorial reputation had preceded him . Great curiosity prevailed to hear him speak , and his admirers were amply gratified . The agitator was petted and caressed by the leading members of the Whig party , and went back to Ireland not a whit dismayed by the success of Mr . Ooulburn ' s bill . The tone of the speeches in which Mr . Sheil now indulged attracted the notice of Government , and at length , after a philippic of especial violence—the subject being in the main the

      life of Wolf Tone—the Attorney-General , afterwards Lord Plunkett , was orderod to do hia duty . The trial which ensued bore a striking resemblance toother and more famous state trials . Procrastination was the game played by Mr . Shell's legal defenders—Mr . O'Connell , Mr . Holmes , and tho learned gentleman who is now Judge Perrin . Legal objections were taken—all manner of ingenious flaws were discovered—long technical discussions , and dreary delays and postponements took place—and in the interval the Liverpool Administration having gone out , and Mr . Canning having come in , the prosecution wan allowed to fall through , and the matter dropped . Meantime , however , the impending fangs

      of the law had by no meant Huiuced to keep the versatile and energetic counsellor iu check . During tho Wellington administration he was indefatigable in the work of organizing and inspiring with energy and courage Catholic Ireland . This was the most active and energetic period of his life . He harangued , wrote , laboured at the formation of country and branch associations , und was , in fact , with Mr . O'Connell , the main-spring and the active intelligence and soul of the whole movement . The agitation in its then phase culminated in the famous Clare election , ending iu tho election of Mr . O'Connell , which may be regarded as the final stand-up fight , the iaaue- of which decided the concession of Catholic Emancipation . "

      The agitation then crossed tho Channel . ' Iho yeomanry and freeholders of Kent met at i ' enenden Heath , under the Karl of WinchilseH , whither wont Cobbutl and Hunt and Sheil ; but a petition wim agreed to , praying Parliament to preserve inviolate the Protestant Constitution . Slmil waw not ; allowed to apeak ; but the next morning tho speech he meant to deliver appeared in tho papers . Ah wo all know , tko Poel and Wellington Cabinet ultimutuly yielded ; and , oh tho 6 th of March , 1829 , Mr . JPoel , in a fourhours' speech , brought iu the Catholic Relief Hill , Mr . { Sheil hooii ufterwurda propoBing aud carrying a . motion for the dissolution of the Cutholio Association , as having doim its duty nnd accoanplitihed tho end of ita being .

      Untitled Article

      Juke 7 , 1851 . ] ^ ® fj £ ULtfr&t ' X . 529

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), June 7, 1851, page 529, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1886/page/5/