Christians' Petition against the Prosecution of Unbelievers.-This petition (inserted pp. 362-364) was presented to the House of Commons by Mr. Hume on the 1st instant, and followed by a motion on the subject. The motion was of course lost, but the petition is on the Journals, and the object of the petitioners is gained in entering their protest against promoting or avenging Christianity by civil penalties. The debate was intended to be given in the present Number, but want of room compels us to defer it to the next: it will be read with deep interest by such as consider Christianity equal to its own support and defence. Amongst the subscribers of the petition was the learned and venerable Dr. SAMUEL PARR, but unfortunately the sheets containing his name were not returned in time to be attached to the petitions.

whom concurred in paying respect to Mr. Shirreff's character and talents, and it was finally voted that it should lie on the table till the next meeting.

Secesion from the Church of Scotland. -ON Tuesday, June 17, the Presbytery of Stirling met for the purpose of receiving the resignation of the Rev. WILLIAM SHIRREFF, minister of the parish of St. Ninians, who had signified that he could no longer conscientiously continue the minister of a national and political church. His resignation was worded as follows:"To the Moderator, and other members of the Reverend the Presbytery of Stirling. Gentlemen, In the religious communion, especially when established by civil laws, of Papists, Prelatists, Presbyterians and Pædobaptists, the word of God, in fact, is not and cannot be used as the rule and only rule, to a greater or less extent, of the materials, constitution, government, discipline, doctrine, worship and obedience of the churches of Christ. Wherefore, and for other like causes, I do hereby resign my clerical charge of the parish of St. Ninians. Your acceptance of this my resignation, will oblige, Gentlemen, yours sincerely, WILLIAM SHIRREFF. Stirling, 17th June, 1823." Such a secession on the part of a gentle man that has been for thirty years a pastor in the Scottish Church, and highly esteemed by his brethren, and in no small reputation with the people as a preacher, could not fail to excite deep interest. The acceptance of the resignation was eagerly debated by the Presbytery, all of

LEGAL.

Literary Property.-In the Court of Chancery, July 22, Murray v. Dugdale, Mr. Shadwell moved for an injunction to restrain the Defendant from invading the copy-right of a poem entitled Beppo, the work of Lord Byron. The Lord Chancellor asked if there was any thing obnoxious in the book: upon Mr. Shadwell's saying there was not; his Lordship said, that if he did grant an injunction, it must be upon the supposition that there was nothing in the work of an objectionable nature. There had been a great many remarks made upon the line of conduct he had pursused with respect to questions of this nature. He was old enough to remember the refusal of the Courts to protect Dr. Priestley from the destruction of some literary property, which consisted of works proved before the Court to be of an objectionable kind. The rule laid down at that time was, that the law could give no protection to works written against the morals and religion of the country. He had then the honour to enjoy the intimacy of many dignitaries and eminent professors of the law, all of whom concurred in opinion as to the propriety of the judgment, that in the case of a work, for pirating which the lower would not allow it protection. He was courts would give no damages, this court aware of the objections taken on the other side, that the refusal of the injunction was the most effectual way of disseminating the work itself; but it must criminal jurisdiction in cases of this nabe remembered that the court had no ture, and that if the work were really be stopped here, but it must be done in criminal, the publication of it could not another way. In the next place, he did not conceive it to be his duty to alter the law, where it had been settled without question for a considerable time past. That was an opinion which he could not should think fit to alter the law itself.consent to abandon till the Legislature Mr. Shadwell here stated again that there was nothing in the book of a nature which

could prevent the protection of the court from being extended to it; aud the Lord Chancellor said, on that supposition he would allow the injunction, and he ordered that it should be served immediately.

PARLIAMENTARY.

Petition of some of the Clergy of the Diocese of Norwich in favour of the Catholic Claims, presented to the House of Commons by Mr. Coke, containing 55 signatures. The Petition of the undersigned Clergy of the Diocese of Norwich, Ministers of the Established Church, HUMBLY SHEWETH,

That we whose names are hereunto subscribed, beg leave humbly to approach your Honourable House on behalf of that very numerous body of our fellow-subjects and fellow-christians, who, though professing in common with us every fundamental article of religious faith, and acknowledging every principle of moral obligation, we yet see with compassion and regret excluded from a very important share of civil rights and privileges, on the ground of certain speculative opinions and an adherence to the spiritual authority of the see of Rome.

That without here entering into any of those political considerations which might be deemed to be less belonging to our province as clergymen, or questioning either the expediency or necessity which originally dictated the severe enactments by which such exclusion is enforced, your petitioners beg to express their unmixed satisfaction at the growing opinion, that neither the same expediency nor necessity exists at the present day for their continuance, and to record upon the following grounds their own sentiments in favour of their immediate removal.

1. That the gospel which they are ordained to preach recognizes no civil disqualifications on account of difference in religious opinions amongst Christians, but may, on the contrary, be considered in several passages strongly and pointedly to dissuade them.

2. That as the reformed churches in general, and especially the Church of England, have always rested the defence of their own separation upon the sacredness of the rights of conscience, it does not appear to your petitioners to be consistent to imitate in practice what they condemn in principle, or to visit with penalties upon others what they claim as matters of unquestionable justice for themselves.

3. That your petitioners feel fully convinced, that the penalties and restrictions enforced upon their Catholic fellow-subjects are so far from promoting the cause of Christian unanimity, or adding to the strength and security of the established religion of these realms, that their effect has been and will be, if continued, to

obstruct the former, to impair the latter, and to bind in the strongest bonds of unanimous hostility those who suffer

under them.

4. That to a free circulation of the

Scriptures, to the benefits of general education, and to their own individual exertions in their sacred calling, your petitioners look as the best means, under the blessing of God, for guarding the interest of that pure part of the Church of Christ, at whose altars they minister, and doubt not that the same intrinsic excellencies which have procured for her the attachment of the wise and good for so many generations, and carried her in triumph through so many storms, will be still more able in an age of superior light and more extended information to perpetuate her prosperity and protect her welfare.

5. Impressed with these convictions, and auxious that the last footsteps of intolerance should be shewn not to be those stamped upon the soil of our country by the ministers of its religion, your petitioners have thus ventured to implore your Honourable House not to stop short in that work of justice and mercy which has of late years been so auspiciously begun, which, as far as you have pursued it, has produced no evil, but much acknowledged good, and not one step of which they believe, even those who have so constantly opposed it, would now wish you to retrace.

6. To these sentiments and prayers, founded as your petitioners conceive in reason, sanctioned by religion and confirmed by experience, they humbly beg your Honourable House to give your solemn and mature consideration.

And your Petitioners will ever pray,

&c.

Churches in Ireland.

JULY 15.

On the motion for the third reading of the Irish Churches' Bill,

The Earl of LIVERPOOL addressed their Lordships in support of the measure, observing, at the same time, that he did not mean on this occasion, to go into any churches in Ireland. This was a meastatement of the general condition of sure of relief; and their Lordships would observe the beneficial effect of the latter

portion of the Bill; which was to reduce, in future, the parochial rates necessary fices, from 67. to 47. per cent.—an alterafor the purposes of repairing these edition of the existing law which could not fail to prove a great relief to parishes.

Lord HOLLAND protested that this was

the most extraordinary bill in its shape, the most extraordinary in its history, and, as he thought he should be able to shew their Lordships, the most extraordinary in its provisions that they had ever seen. But neither its shape, nor history, nor provisions were more extraordinary than its title. The Noble Earl was pleased to call this a bill of relief; but if their Lord. ships should be satisfied, (as he (Lord Holland) hoped to satisfy them,) that this bill of relief was intended to make a considerable number of Roman Catholic subjects pay for that which at present they were not called on by law to contribute for, the House would, perhaps, demonstrate its disinclination to countenance such a remedial measure, After all that they had heard about the state of the Protestant Church in Ireland, and the comparative numbers of Protestants and Roman Catholics in that country, he could not help thinking that it was the most whimsical plan of relief he ever heard of, to require the Roman Catholic majority to pay for the churches of the small Protestant community. For aught he knew, the measure might have some foundation in justice, or expediency, or propriety but to use a vulgar, and he believed unjust imputation, to illustrate what he meant, the way of laying it was certainly very Irish. (A laugh.) Now it was a maxim among their Lordships, that when a bill came before them with a great variety of preambles, it presented itself in a very suspicious shape. During the period in which he had sat in that House, he had seen some bills with two, three, and even as many as four preambles; but how many, in the name of wonder, did their Lordships suppose that this Bill boasted! Absolutely, no less than eight. (A laugh.) Well, this great non-descript reptile with its eight legs, having crawled on as far as a third reading in that House, was just upon the point of flying out into an Act of Parliament, when the Noble Marquis, (of Lansdown,) who was somewhat of a natural philosopher in the history of these reptiles, (laughter,) detected and prevented it. Yet even on that occasion, did any one of their Lordships know what matter this Bill contained? No, he doubted whether the Noble Earl himself was aware of its provisions, relating as they were to the greatest, the most delicate and the most ticklish principles of legisla tion on the most delicate and most ticklish subjects known to our constitution. (Hear.) Of these eight Acts of Parliament for such, in effect, the various clauses were he (Lord Holland) would briefly as possible state the nature and seeing that here were eight preambles, he

thought their Lordships would not refuse to indulge him with eight sentences about them. (4 laugh.) One of these had, indeed, the beneficial operation of reducing the parochial rate from 61. to 47. per cent.; but this pleasing draught was mixed up with some bitter ingredients indeed. The first thing which the Bill proposed to do, for example, was to take away the power of relief and forbearance, which, under the present law, it was in the breast of the Irish judges to exercise; for here it was expressly stated" that justices should not forbear to give judgment in cases where parties might have been proceeded against for non-payment of rates, unless such parties should have previously gone into the Ecclesiastical Courts." This was effectually to do away with any power of affording relief to them. The next part of the Bill related to the giving notices in Church. The Noble Earl had said, it had been found that notices given in the parish churches in Ireland were as good as no notices at all. (A laugh.) And why so? Why, their Lordships should be told-it was because there were no Protestants in those churches to hear the notices. A Noble Friend of his (Lord Holland's) had just put into his hand a letter, which was received by a clergyman in the south of Ireland, and might serve to shew what was the proportion in that part of the country of Protestants; and as his Noble Friend (the Duke of Leinster) permitted him, he would read it to the House." Dear Sir, she is unwell; therefore you need not come to-day." Now, who was intended, could their Lordships possibly imagine, by "she"? The ancient "Mother Church"? (A laugh.) No, but the mother of the sexton. (Laughter.) So that their Lordships would conclude from this, that the sexton was the only person who usually represented this congregation. There was another circumstance about the bill which appeared very whimsical, and calculated to generate a good deal of suspicion. Whoever, by the bye, had drawn out this bill, knew very well what he was about; and carelessness or oversight was the last thing in the world that he (Lord Holland) would impute to him. As far as he could understand it, there was a vast deal more meant than met the eye or ear. It provided that all persons paying rates of the nature therein described, and to which a former clause had subjected Roman Catholics, should be admitted to vote in vestry, and to all the rights consequent to the payment of such rates. But then followed the act of relief, as the Noble Earl had ventured to call it, in the next clause, providing and declaring that no