Lords Sitting of 25 May 1819

ROMAN CATHOLICS' RELIEF BILL— DOCTRINE OF TRANSUBSTANTIATION.
Earl Greyrose to submit to their lordships a bill to relieve Roman Catholics from taking the declaratory oaths against Tran-substantiation and the Invocation of Saints. He presumed that no obstacle would be opposed to the passing of this bill, as it did not in the least interfere with any securities which some noble lords though ought to be required of the Roman Catholics. It merely affected certain dogmatic opinions, and had no reference, whatever to any question of supremacy,

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political or spiritual. Those who had most warmly opposed the motion of his noble friend near him (lord Donoughmore), had acknowledged the general good conduct of the Roman Catholics; and, confining their objections to the question of foreign supremacy, had expressed no disinclination to grant relief on any other point. He trusted therefore, that, consistently with the declarations made on that occasion, this bill would experience the general concurrence of their lordships. Its object, as he had said, was confined to points of faith, and touched in no way upon that question on which those who opposed the Catholic claims rested their objection. It tended only to relieve a respectable class of his majesty's subjects from the operation of laws, which, without even the pretence of necessity, cast an insulting stigma on their religious opinions. Their lordships were also aware, that in many instances Protestants had been very unwilling to take the oaths which it was his object to advocate. His lordship then presented a bill "for abrogating so much of the Acts of the 25th and 30th of Charles 2nd, as prescribes to all officers Civil and Military, and to Members of both Houses of Parliament, a Declaration against the' Doctrine of Transubstantiation, and the Invocation of Saints."
The Bill was read a first time.

COIN OF THE REALM—LEGAL TENDER..
The Earl of Lauderdalewas desirous that, at an early day after the recess, their lordships should have the opinion of the judges on the law relative to the coin of the realm considered as a legal tender and measure of value. The questions he wished to submit were—first, whether, after the passing of the act of 1774, the silver coinage of this country, subject to a depreciation of 20 per cent. was a legal tender by tale? Secondly, whether, under the act of the 56th of the king, chapter 68, the silver or the gold coin is the legal measure of value in this country? It was necessary that these great questions should be finally set at rest, and the public mind relieved from all uncertainty on a subject of so much interest to the country. Much depended upon what their lordships should understand to be the law with regard to the coin of the realm. If it should be decided, that the silver coin is a legal tender, that decision would have an important bearing on the measure
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which was expected to come before their lordships. He concluded by moving, that the judges be ordered to attend on Wednesday the 9th of June, and that the Lords be summoned for that day.— Ordered.