Lords Sitting of 27 February 1840

MINUTES.
Petitions presented. By the Marquess of Normanby, from one place, for the Establishment of a Rural Police.—By the Duke of Argyle, the Earls of Galloway, and Aberdeen, and the Marquess of Bute, from a number of places, against the Intrusion of Ministers into Parishes against the wish of the Parishioners.—By the Bishop of Llandaff, and the Earl of Errol, from several places, for Church Extension.—By Lord Teynham, and the Earl of Radnor, from a number of places, for a Free Pardon to Frost, Williams, and Jones.—By Lord Port, man, from the Board of Guardians of a place in Somersetshire, against the Beer Laws.

CHURCH OF SCOTLAND.
The Earl of Galloway, in presenting a petition from the town of Castle Douglas, in Scotland, against the intrusion of Ministers into non-consenting congregations, stated that the petitioners represented that the necessity of the intervention of the Legislature was imperative, and prayed the subject might be brought under the immediate consideration of Parliament. He was instructed that the petition was not only numerously, but very generally, signed by the various denominations of persons residing within the district. He did not wish in the present critical juncture of the affairs of the church of Scotland to give a premature opinion on this important question; but as, when the noble Earl on the bench behind him put a question to her Majesty's Ministers the other day with the view of eliciting the intentions of the Government in respect of it, the answer of the noble Viscount did not appear to him to be very cordially given, nor to have in it the promise of a speedy issue, he felt himself impelled to state to the House, for himself, and he believed he might state as much for every noble Lord connected with Scotland, that not a day passed that they were not receiving the most distressing representations of the fearful agitation of the public mind in

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the sister kingdom on this all engrossing topic. He had been informed that a deputation from the General Assembly had come up to London, and had been conferring with the Government. He did not know if his information was correct—he hoped it might be. At any rate, he felt it his duty earnestly to entreat the noble Viscount, as he valued the peace and good order of society in Scotland, and much more, if he valued the religious interests and welfare of the people, he entreated him not to allow another month to pass over without using his best exertions to bring this matter to a settlement. He hoped he would not be deterred by the impossibility of passing a measure which should be satisfactory to all parties, but that he would bend his mind to the subject in such a way as to commend it to the well-intentioned and enlightened portion of the community.
Petition laid on the table.