obligation of an oath. The Jew was sworn on the Old Testament, the Mahometan on the Koran, not on any thing to which his mind attached no religious importance. For himself, however, he was inclined to doubt whether the association of a religious ceremony at all with the marriage contract had always the good effect ascribed to it; and he believed, on the contrary, that in those countries, especially Catholic countries, where marriage was treated as a sacrament, it would be found that its vows were much more frequently broken than in the northern part of this kingdom, where, (as in England prior to the 26th of Geo. II.) no religious ceremony was essential to its validity. Under all these considerations, looking to the case as it stood historically, as it was in practice among the Dissenters of Ireland and Scotland, and as liberal and just policy dictated, he trusted it would be thought the petitioners would, at any rate, be considered fully entitled to the relief they sought, interfering with no principle of the policy of the country, with none of its civil regulations, with the interests or conveniences of no one. It was not a matter to be treated with levity or indifference. It was a case of conscience, to which he was fully persuaded the House would give every relief in its power. Mr. S. concluded with moving for leave to bring in a Bill to relieve certain persons Dissenting from the Church of England, from some parts of the Ceremony required by Law in the celebration of Marriages." parated: the one almost entirely civil; the other devotional, and perfectly proper perhaps for the members of the Church. Considering the many difficulties which would attend withdrawing the performance of marriage from the parish church, and the many advantages that attended, amongst other things, the use of only one register, and the regularity which ensued from the present practice, the petitioners were not inclined to seek to be exempted from the use of the service altogether, but they did object to parts of it, and it was his intention to propose the omission of those parts. He proposed that the minister, on receiving a written declaration from the parties that they or one of them was a Protestant Dissenter, should use only the parts included between the words require and charge you both," and the words "and thereto I give thee my troth." This was all that could be necessary, and thus the whole devotional service was omitted, to which, whether objectionable or not in form, it was unpleasant to a Dissenter, as such, but particularly to a Unitariau Dissenter, to conform, as it amounted to a recognition of the religious services of a Church from which he separated. This plan would leave all classes of individuals who could be interested precisely in their present situation, as far as civil objects were concerned. It went not to alter any thing, but only to select an unobjectionable part, and use it whole and entire. No additional duty would be imposed on the minister; on the contrary, he would be exempted from the painful necessity of insisting on Lord Castlereagh said he did not what was disagreeable to others. No rise to object to the introduction of reduction was proposed in the accus- the bill, but only to observe, that as tomed fees; in fact, he did not conhe was not present when the Honourceive there was any description of able Member commenced his obserperson or property that could be in- vations, and as he was not aware of jured or affected by the measure. the provisions it might contain, he Even supposing a religious ceremony must not be considered as precluded was proper to sanction the marriage from delivering his opinion on the contract, to impress upon the mind subject, when the measure should be the weight, the solemn character of immediately and fully before the the engagement into which it entered, House. surely to be productive of any beneficial effect, it ought not to be one uncongenial to the religious principles conscientiously entertained by the parties. The law acted upon these ideas when it consulted the religious creed of the parties on whom it imposed the VOL. XIV. 3 F Mr. Wilberforce observed, that he also had only heard a part of his Honourable Friend's observations, but that he perfectly acquiesced in the propriety of allowing the bill to be brought in. He could not help feeling, however, some apprehension lest the general terms in which his Hoyourable Friend had spoken of marriage as a civil contract might be misunderstood. There could be no doubt that, so far as evidence was concerned, it might be so denominated, but the institution was itself of Divine ordinance. To this institution much of the superiority of Europe over Asia and other portions of the earth, especially in social and domestic life, might be attributed. He certainly approved of the general object of the bill, and its particular provisions would be the subject of future consideration. Leave was then given to bring in the bill, and Mr. Smith and Sir James Mackintosh were appointed for that purpose. Eastern Unitarian Society. that purpose. pany upon subjects connected with the great cause of religious liberty, or of the interests, local and general, of Unitarianism; particularly Mr. Fox, Dr. T. Rees, Mr. G. Watson, Mr. Meek, Mr. Fullagar, Mr. Toms, Mr. Scargill and Mr. E. Taylor. It was highly satisfactory to see so numerous and respectable an assemblage. Colchester is a new focus; it now served to concentrate and bring into action and co-operation with the Unitarian body, individuals from Sudbury, Witham, Braintree and other places in the neighbourhood, several of whom now associated with us for the first time. Among other visitors were two Jews, who came, not to plander the Christians under pretence of conversion, but to contribute their assis tance to forward the objects of the society. Mr. Meek gave a highly interesting account of the progress and present state of Unitarianism at Colchester. It appears that every thing which threats, denunciations, even force and oppression can effect, is employed against our brethren there. They have been called upon to suffer much reproach and persecution for the cause of Christ. They find their reward in the adoption of those glorious and consolatory truths which he taught, and in the cheering views of God's character and go vernment which they have now em braced. It was resolved, that the next yearly meeting should be held at Norwich, on the last Wednesday and Thursday in June, 1820. Report of the Committee, 1819. CHRISTIAN FRIENDS, It is a source of great satisfaction to us, that the members of our society are this year called together in the county of Essex. The report of our deceased and valuable friend Mr. Winder, had very early in the exist ence of this Association attracted our attention to the state of religious opinion in Colchester and its neighbour. hood, and in the year 1814 he under took a journey into Essex, for the purpose of ascertaining whether any and what openings for the diffusion of Christianity, as it was originally preached by the apostles, might be found. In several villages, not far dis tant from this town, he was kindly received and attentively heard. In Colchester he was almost an entire stranger, and his report to us on his return was, that he had not been able to meet in that place with a single individual inclined to Unitarianism, and much less with any place in which an Unitarian missionary could be permitted to preach. We have reason, therefore, to rejoice, that in the course of a few years we see the worshipers of the one God united and associated in Colchester, and that we are enabled here to assemble our society. It is a source of additional satisfaction to us also to see, as the minister of this congregation, one of our own members, and one who was led to the adoption of his present views of Christian truth, from the preaching and conversation of our respected friend. The number of Tracts distributed this year has been two hundred and fifty-six, and the stock on hand, previous to the last order of the Committee, was six hundred and ninety, One of the tracts (the Unitarian's Appeal) has excited a controversy on the subjects in dispute between us and our Trinitarian brethren, and has especially attracted attention in this County. Excepting by the letters of Mr. Fry, formerly of Billericay, we believe the question has not been much agitated in Essex. The publication of Mr. Newton, of Witham, from the rank which he holds among our orthodox brethren, and from the well-known respectability of his character, has excited considerable attention. That such a champion could make no better defence of Trinitarianism, is rather to be imputed to the weakness of the system, than to any want of ability in its defender. That it has disappointed and dissatisfied many of his friends we have reason to know, and we trust the controversy will be productive of good, and finally issue in the promotion of Christian truth. The very fact that these local discussions, respecting the truth and scriptural evidence of our opinions, are increasing, is a certain proof of the interest and alarm which they excite. A few years since, and Unitarian publications were "few and far between," they were confined to the metropolis and one or two towns. Now, our opponents in every part of the kingdom, from the mitred prelate downwards, are calling upon the Unitarians to gird on their armour, and in no instance, within our knowledge, have we been without zealous and able defenders. This perpetual con-. flict of opinion must necessarily be beneficial to the cause of truth, and that it has aided the spread of our views of Christianity, is virtually admitted by our Trinitarian brethren, notwithstanding the affected contempt in which they hold our exertions. Nor is it by their writings alone that the Calvinistic Dissenters have attacked us. They are not content with branding us as blasphemers from the pulpit and the press, but they are endeavouring, in spite of the declaration of the Legislature in our favour, to deprive us of the rights and the endowments we possess. They are striving to make the decisions of our courts of law breathe their own intolerant and persecuting spirit. By the exertions which the Calvinistic body are making, in order to obtain a decision in their favour respecting the Meeting at Wolverhampton, they have clearly shewn their design and end. Disgraceful in every way as their conduct has been, both as men and as Protestant Dissenters, it is not sufficient for us, and for our own safety, to treat it with indifference or contempt. As an attempt is making to deprive us of our rights and our possessions, it must be resolutely met, and they must be legally maintained and defended. To this end we have seen, with much satisfaction, the establishment of a society for the defence and protection of our civil rights. Situated as we now are, such a measure is one of absolute necessity. We are no longer an obscure and almost unknown religious sect. Our opinions are not now confined to the closets of the learned, and preached with hesitation and dread. They no longer lurk in an ambiguous and guarded phraseology, but are proclaimed, as our Master and his aposties proclaimed them, upon the house-top, and promulgated with a zeal and earnestness becoming their high importance. Having entered the field, we must be prepared and armed at all points for the combat. We must oppose active . exertion, by exertions equally active, and we must learn to unite in defence of our rights and our principles. Individual efforts may do much, but those efforts concentrated, organized, regulated and combined, will do much more. From a conviction of the necessity of united exertion, have arisen, 1. Our parent Book Society, with its numerous children in the West, South, North and East. 2. Our Unitarian Fund; and now 3. Our Unitarian Association, for the Protection of our Civil Rights. All these have a claim upon us for support, and through the establishment of Fellowship Funds they may all be easily and powerfully assisted. We see, with great satis ́faction, the continual increase of these Funds, and we trust the time is not far distant when they will become universal amongst us. No congre gation is too small or too poor to establish and keep up a Fellowship Fund, and when once established, their permanence and their success certain. is We will only add, that the value and importance of correct religious opinions, and the comfort and happiness enjoyed by such as possess them, are amply sufficient to justify and encourage every honest exertion for their propagation. We have duties to perform to God and our own consciences, which are quite above and beyond the influence arising from the opinion of the world. With unprejudiced and earnest attention to the attainment of scriptural views of God and his government, with a sincere and anxious desire to form right conclusions on the great concerns of religion, boldly to avow the opinions to which our inquiries may conduct us, and to worship our Creator according to the dictates of our consciences, are rights which we ought to value, and which we should be culpable not to exercise. And if, in the discharge of what we regard as a duty, we do associate together, to endeavour, in some degree, to stem the tide of calumny, to expose bigotry, to inform the ignorant, to reprove the time when "a little one shall become Protestant Society. Mr. Wilks continued :-The attention of the Committee to Parliamentary Proceedings, affecting Dissenters, also should not be overlooked. The New Church Bill would require practical attention: as A bill had been introduced into Parlia ment, entitled The Parish Clerks' Bill. This bill was privately brought forward, and had actually been read a first and second time, and referred to a Committee, and yet being masked by a specious title, the contents were unknown, although it would have taken upwards of £10,000 annually out of the pockets of the inhabi tants of the metropolis, and imposed upon Dissenting ministers duties as unprece dented and intolerable, as they were novel and absurd. By the efforts of the officers of the Society, the evil was discoveredthe design exposed-Dissenting ministers cautioned and aroused. They met a their Library, appointed a Committee, and its rejection had been obtained. (Cheers.) Another bill, now before Parliament, required to be regarded with a still mot scrutinizing eye. It is entitled "A Bill to prevent the Misapplication of Por Rates." What title could be more spe cious or captivating? Can that bill benes: Dissenters ? Is it not a bill similar in effect to that execrated measure, which, scorner, and to hold up the simple, in the reign of Queen Anne, sought to pure and native gospel, who will have deprive the Protestant Dissenters of their any ground to censure us? Let us parental and dearest rights, in giving bi be animated to perseverance in this struction to their own children? This b good work. Let us anticipate the will enable the officers of parishes to take all children, whose parents are unable to support them, from the parental care, to seclude them in workhouses, or to remove them to a distance among strange uurses, and, of course, either to neglect their religious instruction, or to educate them in the tenets of the Established Church. On the principles of political economy, the measure was indefensible. It would rather encourage than repress a redundant and wretched population. The parents who loved their children ought not to be deprived of the objects of their love; and those who loved them not, would hail the measure as a bounty and reward. He therefore hoped, that when it should be read a second time, or be committed, some friend to humanity, some real patriot, some advocate for the rights of Dissenters and of conscience, would unmask the visage, expose the deformity, develope the baueful effects, and prevent the poor laws from becoming an additional source of civil and religious oppression to those whom they were intended to relieve. (Applause.) Since their last meeting also an attempt had been made in the name of the Universities, and of the King's printer, to prevent the circulation of all Commentaries on the Scriptures unsanctioned by them. Little wrongs men too patiently endure; but at length even the timid become desperate, Self-defence induced the booksellers to associate and to resist. From their Committee a report might be speedily expected; and every friend to scriptural knowledge and to free inquiry, must wish them success. (Cheers.) loved his children, or who honoured his God, could tranquilly submit. (Loud cheers) Under the circumstances which he had developed, he wished to inquire what measures the Dissenters should adopt? He did not hesitate to state they were too congregational and independent. They did hot sufficiently sympathize. County associations should be formed. Religious liberty should be one object of their union. By local connexions they would become better prepared for simultaneous effort, and something greater and better might be done, than merely to sit and sigh, or pass onward unconcerned. A measure to secure exemption from turnpike tolls was one object to be desired. Another object ardently to be sought was some act relieving our places of worship from the rates for the poor, and our ministers and congregations from the contumely and degradation which he had exposed. Another grand measure was, that emancipation from test and corporation laws, which, whilst they continued, remained as a brand of vassalage, an acknowledgment of inferiority, a prostitution of the sacraments of religion, to which no man who understood liberty, who respected the memory of the Nonconformists, who cherished self-esteem, who He knew that some good persons thought of liberty too much might be said. But such was not the opinion which the wisest or best men cherished, or which history confirmed. "Above all things liberty," was the exclamation of Selden. And who was Selden? An ardent youth, a warm enthusiast? Grotius said, "Selden is the honour of England." Lord Clarendon, the Tory historian, pronounced him to be a man whom it was not possible excessively to praise. And if civil liberty gives to life its value, to man his nobleness, to nations their pre-eminence, how much more dear must be religious freedom? That was the liberty which every man who deserves the name of man or Christian, should bind around his brow, and place closest to his heart. (Cheers.) Nor should trifles be disregarded. But nothing connected with principles was trifling. So reasoned the most immortal men, the benefactors of the globe. Twenty shillings was the whole amount of the ship money that Hampden refused to pay: he refused, and the Stuarts were expelled. (Cheers.) How trifling the demand for indulgences, which Luther by principle was induced to resist, and so produced the Reformation, and so relieved the world. (Cheers.) On the subjects to which he had adverted, let Dissenters then apply to Parliament; and although they may be at first rejected, yet let them renew, renew, renew, their applications, and reason and truth and religious liberty must at length prevail. (Loud cheers.) Every circumstance seems to demand speedy exertion. The nation was at peace. The persecution of the Dissenters did not decrease. Every possible means was adopted by the members of the Established Church, to increase and consolidate their power. In a recent publication, intitled, Gravamina Ecclesiæ," the Rev. Mr. Dennis, Prebendary of Exeter, protested against every concession Dissenters had obtained. If they advanced, and Dissenters still would retrograde, the distance would be greater, and relief more difficult. (Cheers.) He trusted that was a determination not hastily or imprudently adopted, and that Dissenters would meet with those, competent and willing to undertake in Parliament their cause. All must remember with affection, the ardour and the favourable zeal with which Mr. Fox devoted his great talents to the furtherance of those views. But he was lost. All too would recollect that great and good man so recently departed; and the mode of whose departure so much increased our anguish at the loss. Those who remembered how he advocated the cause of the |