GENERAL HISTORY. 



[121 



worsliip and assemblies, and per- 

 sons teaching or preaching therein. 

 He stated that in consequence of 

 certain decisions at the quarter 

 sessions, doubts had arisen as to 

 the question of quahfication ; and 

 that the object of this bill was, to 

 place the dissenters in the situation 

 in which they practically stood 

 previously to such decisions. The 

 bill was brouijht in and read. 



At the order of tiie day for the 

 third reading of this bill, July 20, 

 Mr. W. Smith congratulated the 

 house on the unanimity with which 

 it had hitherto passed, as a favour- 

 able omen of the increasing libe- 

 rality of the times. He thought 

 it would remove the practical evils 

 of which the dissenters had to com- 

 plain, although it did not recognize 

 their great principle, that the civil 

 magistrate had no riglit to interfere 

 in matters of religious opinion. 

 It removed the arbitrary discretion 

 of magistrates, and required no 

 other oath than that of allegiance. 

 As an act of toleration, it was cer- 

 tainly the most complete which 

 had hitherto been passed in this 

 country. The honourable member 

 concluded by moving a clause " to 

 continue the exemptions now en- 

 joyed by the toleration act, without 

 requiring a fresh oath." 



The Chancellor of the Exche- 

 quer concurred with the honourable, 

 gentleman in his congratulations, 

 which he was happy to consider as 

 not arising from indifference to 

 religion, since the same parliament 

 haddistinguished itself byits boun- 

 tiful regards to the established 

 church ; and he instanced in the 

 grants made to the parochial clergy, 

 and the exemption of the smaller 

 livings from the land-tax. He 

 gave the late Mr. Perceval the cre- 

 dit both of those measures and of 



the design of the present bill. He 

 alluded to an intention of the 

 honourable gentleman to have 

 brought in a bill for the protection 

 of a particular sect (the Unita- 

 rians), and was glad that he had 

 not put it into execution, for he 

 believed the persons in question 

 were in no danger of molestation, 

 and such a bill might have given 

 great offence to many well-meaning 

 persons, by exposing doctrines to 

 contumely which were generally 

 viewed with great veneration. Id 

 a future session means might be 

 devised to reconcile the respect due 

 to those doctrines with a full pro- 

 tection to the decent profession of 

 opposite opinions. 



Mr. Whitbread said, he had ex- 

 amined the bill, and found it the 

 same that he had intended to have 

 brought in, and drew the same 

 happy inferences from its silent 

 progress as his honourable friend 

 had done. He hoped this spirit 

 would continue till the great work 

 of religious freedom received its 

 final consummation. 



Mr. Smith's clause was then 

 brought up and ag-reed to, and the 

 bill was read a third time and 

 passed. 



The second reading of the bill 

 in the House of Lords was moved, 

 on July 23, by the Earl of Liver- 

 pool, who observed that the sub- 

 ject could not be properly entered 

 into without repealing certain acts 

 which remained on the statute 

 book, but which no one would 

 now think of putting in force. 

 Among these were the conventicle, 

 and the five-mile acts. The latter 

 was entirely abrogated : some parts 

 of the former were retained in 

 another shape. In order to com- 

 bine the most ample toleration with 

 the requisite securities, it was pro- 

 posed 



