§ Mr. Holfordmoved the order of the day for the third reading of the bill for incorporating the Philanthropic Society. The bill was read a third time, and, after a short adjournment of the proceedings on the third reading, in order to afford time for engrossing a clause proposed by Mr. Tierney, with a view to make the society responsible for any costs or charges that might be incurred by the parish, in case any of the persons educated in the institution should hereafter become a burthen to the parish, the clause was brought up, but opposed by Mr. Holford and Mr. Perceval, on the ground of the absurdity of such a provision, which would have the effect of subjecting the charity to repay to die parish whatever expence it might be put to by persons educated in the institution, who, though they should obtain a legal settlement, might even 40 years hence become a charge upon the parish. The clause Was negatived without a division.
§ Dr. Laurencecontended for the right of the rector to nominate, or at least to controul, the appointment of the preacher or lecturer in chapels of ease within his rectory, of which description he conceived the chapel of the Philanthropic Society to be, although annexed to a public charity: for it was not confined as a private chapel, for the mere use of the institution, but executed upon a spacious and superb scale, 858 obviously opened for a general congregation of the parishioners, and calculated to entice away the regular congregation from the parish church, with an obvious purpose of creating revenue, and of trenching upon the parochial rights of the rector. He took occasion to allude to similar chapels attached to the Asylum, Foundling Hospital, and other public charities, for similar purposes, and the attraction of fashionable and enthusiastic auditors by musical performances, and by a complete departure, on the part of the preacher, from the sober piety, and decorous manner of preaching in the established church: and the adoption of a new-fashioned dramatic style of pulpit-eloquence, addressed to the fancy and imagination, rather than to the heart or understanding, and calculated more to catch the fervor of the enthusiast by high-fraught pictures of the horrors of a death-bed, or the joys or torments of a future state, than by promulgating the truth of the Gospel, to excite to that so lemn and rational piety and devotion, which are so much the characteristics of the established church; and if parliament should be induced to countenance such a system, independant of the controul of the lawful pastor of the parish, the consequence would be, that every year numbers of those chapels would start up in every part of the metropolis and its vicinity, and the parish churches be deserted by more than half their congregations, to follow those new, LIGHTS. He could not therefore consent to so unlawful art infringement upon the rights of the regular church establishment; and he concluded, by moving an amendment, the object of which was, that the rector of St. George the Martyr should have the power of nominating to the appointment of chaplain to this chapel, or, at least, of a negative upon any appointment made without his consent, in order that he might be enabled to secure for the institution the appointment of a clergyman of the established church.
§ Mr. Holfordobserved, that the hon. and learned gent. seemed to have widely mistaken, and certainly he had widely misstated, he must presume, from misinformation, the facts of this case. This chapel Was not erected with a principal view to revenue, but was certainly built on such a scale, as to accommodate a number of other children, besides those of the institution, who could not find accommo- 859 dation in the parish church. He felt that he should be but a feeble antagonist indeed to the hon. and learned gent., if he presumed to contend with him upon ecclesiastical law; but there was one thing he would not find on his books, namely, that chapels of this sort, attached to charitable institutions, and built by charitable contributions, could, by any possibility, come under the description of chapels of ease to the parish church. Such chapels were mostly, if not entirely, of Very modern erection, and not very usual, until long after the law allowing chapels of ease was passed. This chapel was not built at the parish expence, nor was any part of the costs of its establishment charged upon the parish: consequently, it could not come under any description of a chapel of case, any more than that of the Asylum, which, however, was out of the question, because it was protected by a special act of parliament. Neither was it intended, as the hon. and learned gent. was pleased to conjecture, to be converted into a theatre for music, or dramatic eloquence, or enthusiastic rhapsody. Those who conducted that institution were as sound protestants of the established church as any of those who opposed it, and as little likely to promote schisms or innovations in the mode of public worship. It was an institution originally set on foot about eighteen years since by the charitable contributions of humane persons, for the purpose of educating the bereft orphans of convicted felons, thrown upon the world, Without protection, and of other Children, betrayed to early habits of criminality, but whose tender age rendered them fitter objects for the correction of a moral and religious education, than for the severities of the criminal law; and When it was recollected that this charity, although supported partly, and to a considerable extent, by charitable contributions, yet derived also from the industry of those children who were the objects of its protection, an average sum of not less than 1,200l. annually, he hoped it would not be considered unreasonable that the society should have the management of their own funds, and the appointment of those persons who were to be paid from those funds so long as by the appointment of such persons they sought not to trespass, upon the rights or privileges of any other persons. It Was erroneous to say, that they endeavour- 860 ed or wished to deprive any ecclesiastic of the controul he ought legally and reasonably to possess: and this would appear the more unquestionable, when it was told to the house, that at the head of their institution, and foremost in bringing forward this bill, was a protestant bishop. The society did not wish to deprive the rector of st. George the Martyr of his privilege of controul over the appointment of chaplain, or of the negative to that appointment, if it should really be an improper one, and just and reasonable cause assigned. But it was to the privilege of negative, without assigning cause, they gave resistance. No means of conciliation on their parts were left untried to compromise this matter with the rector: the society had proposed to pay him an annual stipend out of their funds to any reasonable extent, in which he should say his interests could be injured by this chapel. And what was his conduct, after taking time to consider their proposal, and giving some grounds to believe he would accept it? Why, a threat to charge them with simony for making the offer. This bill had been repeatedly postponed at the instance of that gentleman, on the promise of his preparing and offering to him (Mr. H.) two clauses, which he wished to have inserted in the bill; but the day passed by, and no such clauses were ever produced. Upon the whole, he must consider the conduct of the rector in this affair, as extremely unbecoming a protestant clergyman, whose object it should be, and whose duty it was, to promote, and not to impede the religious instruction of those children, and the success of a charity to which, however, he never contributed any thing, and which he took much pains to embarrass and obstruct, by keeping this chapel shut three years.— The question upon Dr. Laurence's amendment, was then put and negatived, and the bill read a third time, passed, and ordered to the lords.