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.!> ¡. EXTRACT From Observations on the Roman Catholic Question. BY THE RIGHT HP". LORD KENYOX. (Continued from our last.) The 13th of Charles I I. requires the sacra- ment to he laken before admission to offices; the 251 h excludes Dissenters from corpora lions; the 30th excludes Romanists from par- liament and offices of trust and the 5ih of Queen Anne, being on the onioll of England and Scot [lie respective churches in each as f undamental points of the union, and declares the laws, then in force for (lie pre- servation of the church, to "be immutable to the principles therefore deducibie trom these laws, and applicable to the character of the coronation oath, it may be well (o attend. These laws, excepting that of Elizabeth con cerning uniformity, were all in'contemplation of what had happened in the great rebellion or of the prohable etfeds, of the accession of James the lid. of what had occurred in his reign. As far as the policy and necessity of these laws arose from the claimant to the throne being a Roman Catholic, they do not now apply but it is net unworthy considera- tion, whether, although there is now no po- claitiiitit to the tlit-oiie, the principles which made such claimant dangerous are not dangerous in themselves. If the attachment to a popish claimant was on account of his reli- gion, (and it would be absurd to doubt it, nor is it any reflection oil the Romanists 10 believe it, for if sincere Roman Catholics they must feel such attachment), it cannot be doubted, that they, who profess these principles. would desire, by lawful means, to obtain for them selves such advantage as they hoped Tor through hiiii and how should they ontain il ? The laws of the land have required the King to be of llie Established Church ;hut, suppos- ing all olller privileges were extended L) the Romanists, it surely cannot enter into the mind of man to doubt, that they would seek this last important one, that the King should I)c a Iloiniii Cittliolic And, be it remember- ed, that it 'isI i) parliament only that the trial ■would be made. Who can doubt, then, of the extreme hazard to which the laws would be put in such a case Who can doubt tl, differ ence between a king papistically inclined, with a parliament including many Roman Catho- lics, and a protestant parliament and protes- tant counsellors. The priueiples which the dif- ferent aels of parliament and seulement at the revolution have established are these: viz. that the union of goverument, ecclesiastical and civil, is essential to the peace and happi- ness of England; that to secure such object the king must be protestant, and in commu- nion with the Church of England; and that any means leading, in probability, to the crea- tioni of a power disposed to shake the security of the church establishment must be resisted. Such were the solid principles established at the revolution-, and recognized by the act of Queen Anne, on the union with Scotland and "whatever relaxations have taken place since liave alwavabeeti admitted with a view to such principles, whether it can he justly maintained or not, that they always have sufficiently kept within them. The present most conciliatory relaxation of the principle, by the annual act of indemnity, shews the necessity of preserving the latter of the law: and the anxious wish which prevails to preserve in as light and mild a degree as possible, and not to exert it to its extent without a compulsive necessity, should completely reconcile us to the existing system, known as it is to be beneficial by long practice, and should operate strongly against the adiiiis. sion ot untried theories, holding forth, indeed, more extensive good, but fraught, for any thing their abettors can prove by the same solid test of experiment, with practical mis- chief. It must be remembered how extremely im- portant it is to maintain these principles how essential to the perpetuity of our constitution. The alteration in the coronation-oath at the time of ttie union with Scotland; the princi- IJles established at the revolution and the de- claration in the act of union, that the laws then existing for the preservation of the church were fundamental and unalterable should not be forgottens nor that it is on the grollndof being the protectors of a government essenti- ally protestant, and ou those alone, that the H ouse of Brunswick possess the Crown of this united Kingdom. And it is indeed to be won- dered at,that any professing himself attached that succession can wish to alter laws which to his duty as well as interest, it may most justly be said, to uphold. It the day of trial should ever arrive, and the motives influencing those who profess popery are called into action either by a domestic or foreign callse,-the safety of the throne and constitution will de- pend entirely on the strong ascendancy of the protestant subjects. If the principle of protes- tant union in clinycli and state were abandoned, which I insist the grafting of power, legislative or military, to the Romanists would essenti- ally destroy, it is impossible to see on what it is that any title to the throne would remain to the family of the House of Brunswick. Let those who doubt on the admissibility of the Romanists to power, seriously consider this. A consideration, and a most important one, arises as to the nature and extent of the settle- ment at the revolution in which the points of general toleration, as connected with a church- establishment, and the constitution of the go Ternment generally, were most fully contem- t, ein- plated and a more important question can hardly be brought forward, than whether the principles of establishment and toleration, as then fixed on the settlement of the crown, can retain their character, as the principles of the constitution, if the arguments advanced for the Roman Catholic claims be admitted, it should he recollected, that Roman Catholics, were, at that time, excluded from parliament, by the 30th of Charles II. and that all the ap prehensions then entertained, which arose from passing, or just passed, events, were on ac- count of a supposed attachment to Popery, on the part of the sovereign. At such a time, the feelings of parliament and the nation being so strong against the Roman Catholics, it will scaicely be argued, that any reservation, with a view to allow future favours towards them, was intended. It cannot therefore, be a stretch of assumption to contend, that, as the guards which were imposed applied to the king alone, such guards, accompanied by the consideration of the principles on which they were slated to be applied, must leave it to be concluded, hat the non-admission of Roman Catholics ill parliament was deemed to have been secured •• and it should not be forgotten, that, in these times, the apprehensions which were enter- tawed of Popery were raised by its actual principles. The great men who lived in that dark age, as it is now wished to be considered, thought that principles tended to produce cor- respondent actioils; and it was because by the actions of papists that the danger of their principles was established, that the necessary guards were provided. It is a device of the ad- vocates for the Homan Catholics to state, that religion was not the great object at the revo- lution though every thing shows I hat the es- tablishment of the Protestant religion was so and, though ail I he dangers to the liberties of the country, in truth, sprang from attempts made to violate the laws, in different instances, for the of promoting Popery. The de- claration of indulgence of James II. it i most curious to observe, brings forward all the mo- tives and arguments on which the concessions to the Roman Catholics are now urged: liberty of conscience, the great to trade, the benefit to the state from the admissibility of all persons to stations of trust, the removal of all discontents by not ielting religions dif- ferences be auy obstacle to their preferment in any way, are among the strongest motives offered in its favour but the nation then hap- pily saw, thai, however insinuating and plau- sible, such sounds and words mighl he "only delusions it then felt the value of religious principles, and considered, that a es- tablishment alone, fenced by due safeguards, could preserve the liberties of England nay, even the liherties of those very persons who were clamourously against it. It is observable, too, thatexclllsion from power was connected ivitli ic to.et-at Ioti-act; and that, the declara lion of King William, when Prince of Orange, to King James, through Fagel, the Minister at the Hague, stated the necessity, on princi- ple, of guarding an established church by the security of tests; that withoutil the establish- ment could not be considered secure; and the practice was universal. ■{To'be continued.)

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