Charles Bridges, Old Newton Vicarage, Stowmarket, Suffolk; and James B. Wildman, Esq., Chilham Castle, near Canterbury, have kindly allowed references to be made to them. Terms, One Hundred Guineas.

(19.)-WASHING.

A FAMILY who read the "Record" (!) are desirous to RECOMMEND to other families a POOR WOMAN with seven children, who takes in wASHING, but who has not enough to support her family.

For particulars apply to J. R., at No. 3, Lordship-place, Cheyney-walk, Chelsea, where references will be given to the family who insert this.

It is hard to describe the mixture of feelings with which these advertisements must be read. Feelings, indeed, too strong perhaps to be justified, will make their appearance. Disgust, contempt, and almost loathing, overpower the first impulse to laugh at the comic absurdity of the thing. Look at the saintly persons who wish for a cook who will value religious privileges, but who must thoroughly understand cooking! Look at the person who is resolved to have the doctrine of free grace in all its rich and experimental fulness preached, but is as fully resolved not to pay more than 251. per six months for this precious teaching! Look at the excellent gentleman who is quite resolved to have a good round sum of money for the next presentation, and sees no sort of harm in making his rector and vicar pay for the honour of teaching him, but at the same time will let him off a few pounds cheaper if he will but preach the true evangelical doctrine! Look at the good ladies whose principles will not let them have a dancing mistress in their school, but strongly recommend a figure mistress! They probably, poor people, are forced into these absurdities, by the absurdities of others. But what is to be said of this union of the love of gain and the pretended love of godliness, this mixing up a taste for religious privileges with a taste for good eating, this earnest desire to have the most spiritual doctrine taught, and the firm resolution to get it as cheap as possible? Do persons who so shamelessly put these things forward, who are so careless about their own characters and doings, do they never remember that their fearful advertisements must get often into the hands of scoffers, and be made a handle for turning into contempt everything, and everybody, connected with religion?

SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE.

THE following is a specimen of the language which some of the clergy of the church of England think themselves justified in using relative to the publications of the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge. It is written by the Rev. Mr. Budd, and quoted in the " Record" from the " Christian Observer." It speaks for itself, and needs no comment :

"As a consistent churchman, I should most willingly unite myself with church. men in the circulation of religious truth; and for this purpose I became a member of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, in the year 1798, almost immediately on my entering the ministry; but I was soon constrained to confess that the leading doctrine of the majority of their tracts-salvation by works was opposed to the two great accredited works which, as members of the church of England, they chiefly circulated-the Bible, and its offspring, the Common Prayer-book, the leading doctrine of which is salvation by faith. Shortly after coming to London, in 1800, I purchased the twelve volumes of the tracts of the Christian Knowledge Society, for the purpose of perusing them for circulation, and must honestly confess that I found them so unfit, in my judgment, for that purpose, that I studiously concealed them from the eyes of my family, as unsound and delusory statements of the truth of the gospel; nor would they probably have ever been drawn from their con⚫

cealment, but for a purpose which will be adverted to in the following narrative. And as my clerical sphere, in the providence of God, gradually enlarged, and I required gospel publications both for town and country, for the prisoner, the insane, &c., and the publications of our Church Tract Society appeared to me inadequate to this purpose, and I could not conscientiously circulate them; I was happy to apply to a source which in a good measure supplied my wants.

DOCUMENTS.

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL COMMISSIONERS.

Ar the Court at St. James', the 5th day of October, 1836, present, the King's Most Excellent Majesty in Council.

Whereas by an Act, passed in the last session of Parliament, intituled "An Act for carrying into effect the reports of the Commissioners appointed to consider the state of the Established Church in England and Wales, with reference to ecclesiastical duties and revenues, so far as they relate to episcopal dioceses, revenues, and patronage," reciting, amongst other things, that his Majesty was pleased, on the fourth day of February, and on the sixth day of June, in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty-five, to issue two several commissions to certain persons therein respectively named, directing them to consider the state of the several dioceses in England and Wales, with reference to the amount of their revenues, and the more equal distribution of episcopal duties, and the prevention of the necessity of attaching, by commendam, to bishopricks, benefices with cure of souls; and to consider also the state of the several cathedral and collegiate churches in England and Wales, with a view to the suggestion of such measures as might render them conducive to the efficiency of the established Church, and to devise the best mode of providing for the cure of souls, with special reference to the residence of the clergy on their respective benefices; and reciting that the said Commissioners had, in pursuance of such directions, made four several reports to his Majesty, bearing date respectively the 17th day of March, 1835, the 4th day of March, the 20th day of May, and the 24th day of June, 1836; and reciting that the said Commissioners had in their said reports, amongst other things, recommended that Commissioners should be appointed by Parliament for the purpose of preparing and laying before his Majesty in Council such schemes as should appear to them to be best adapted for carrying into effect, amongst others, the following recommendations; and that his Majesty in Council shall be empowered to make orders ratifying such schemes, and having the full force of law; and that the diocese of Oxford should be increased by the county of Buckingham, now in the diocese of Lincoln, and by the county of Berks, now in the diocese of Salisbury; and that all parishes which are locally situate in one diocese but under the jurisdiction of the bishop of another diocese should be made subject to the jurisdiction of the bishop of the diocese within which they are locally situate, and that such variations should be made in the proposed boundaries of the different dioceses as might appear advisable after more precise information respecting the circumstances of particular parishes or districts; and that none of the proposed alterations affecting the boundaries or jurisdiction of any diocese, the bishop of which was in possession on the 4th day of March, 1836, should take effect until the avoidance of the see, without the consent of such bishop; and that all the archdeaconries of England and Wales should be in the gift of the bishops of the respective dioceses in which they are situate.

It is, among other things, enacted, that the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury

for the time being, the Lord Archbishop of York, and the Lord Bishop of London for the time being, John Lord Bishop of Lincoln, James Henry Lord Bishop of Gloucester, the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, the Lord President of the Council, the Lord High Treasurer or the First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for the time being respectively, and such one of his Majesty's principal Secretaries of State as shall be for that purpose nominated by his Majesty, under his royal sign manual, (such Lord Chancellor, Lord President, Lord High Treasurer or First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Secretary of State, being respectively members of the united Church of Great Britain and Ireland,) the Right Honourable Dudley Earl of Harrowby, the Right Honourable Henry Hobhouse, and the Right Honourable Sir Herbert Jenner, Knight, should, for the purposes of the said Act, be one body politic and corporate, by the name of " the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for England," and by that name should have perpetual succession and a common seal.

And it is further enacted, that the said Commissioners should, from time to time, prepare and lay before his Majesty in Council such schemes as should appear to the said Commissioners to be best adapted for carrying into effect the therein before recited recommendations, and should in such schemes recommend and propose such measures as might, upon further inquiry, which the said Commissioners are thereby authorized to make, appear to them to be necessary for carrying such recommendations into full and perfect effect; provided always, that nothing therein contained should be construed to prevent the said Commissioners from proposing in any such scheme such modifications or variations, as to matters of detail and regulation, as should not be substantially repugnant to any or either of the said recommendations; and in particular, that it should be competent to the said Commissioners to propose in any such scheme that all parishes, churches, or chapelries which are locally situate in any diocese, but subject to any peculiar jurisdiction other than the jurisdiction of the bishop of the diocese in which the same are locally situate, shall be only subject to the jurisdiction of the bishop of the diocese within which such parishes, churches, or chapelries are locally situate.

And it is further enacted, that when any scheme, prepared under the authority of the said Act, should be approved by his Majesty in Council, it should be lawful for his Majesty in Council to issue an order or orders ratifying the same and specifying the time or times when such scheme, or the several parts thereof, should take effect, and to direct in every such order that the same should be registered by the registrar of each of the dioceses the bishops whereof might or should be in any respect affected thereby.

And it is further enacted, that every such order should, as soon as might be after the making and issuing thereof by his Majesty in Council, be inserted and published in the London Gazette.

And it is further enacted, that so soon as any such order in Council should be so registered and gazetted, it should in all respects, and as to all things therein contained, have and be of the same force and effect as if all and every part thereof were included in the said Act, any law, statute, canon, letters patent, grant, usage, or custom, to the contrary notwithstanding.

And whereas the said Commissioners, pursuant to the authority vested in them by the said Act, have duly prepared, and laid before his Majesty in Council, a scheme, bearing date the fourth day of October, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-six, in the words and figures following, that is to say :—

TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY IN COUNCIL.

We, the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for England, appointed and incorporated by an Act of Parliament passed in this present year of your Majesty's reign, intituled "An Act for carrying into effect the Reports of the Commissioners appointed to consider the state of the Established Church in England 5 c

VoL. X.—Dac. 1836.

and Wales, with reference to ecclesiastical duties and revenues, so far as they relate to episcopal, diocese, revenues, and patronage," have, in pursuance thereof, prepared, and now humbly lay before your Majesty in Council, the following scheme for carrying into effect so much of the recommendations in the said Act contained respecting the bishoprics of Oxford and Salisbury as relates to the county and archdeaconry of Berks.

We humbly recommend and propose, with the consent of the Right Rev. Thomas Bishop of Salisbury and Richard Bishop of Oxford, respectively, to such parts of this scheme as relate to their respective bishoprics, in testimony whereof they have respectively signed and sealed this scheme, that the whole county of Berks, and those parts of the county of Wilts which are insulated therein, forming together the archdeaconry of Berks and part of the diocese of Salisbury, shall be forthwith absolutely detached and dissevered from the said diocese, and shall be and become permanently annexed and united to, and included in, and form part of, the diocese of Oxford; and that the said archdeaconry, and all parishes and places, churches and chapels, within the limits thereof, and the present and every future archdeacon thereof, and all rural deans, and the whole clergy, and others your Majesty's subjects within the same, shall be forthwith exempted and released from all jurisdiction, authority, and control of the see of Salisbury, and of the present and every future bishop thereof, and shall be under and subject to the episcopal jurisdiction, authority, and control, of the present Bishop of Oxford, and his successors Bishops of Oxford, for the time being, as entirely and effectually, to all intents and purposes, as the county and archdeaconry of Oxford and the archdeacon thereof now are.

And we further recommend and propose, that the right of appointing the archdeacon of the said archdeaconry of Berks shall be vested in the Bishop of Oxford, and his successors Bishops of Oxford, for ever.

And we further recommend and propose, that nothing herein contained shall prevent us from recommending and proposing other measures relating to the bishoprics of Salisbury and Oxford, respectively, in conformity to the provisions of the said Act.

All which we humbly recommend and propose to your Majesty in Council.

DIOCESES OF SALISBURY AND EXETER.

We humbly recommend and propose, with the consent of the Right Reverend Thomas Bishop of Salisbury and Henry Bishop of Exeter, respectively, to such parts of this scheme as relate to their respective bishoprics, in testimony whereof they have respectively signed and sealed this scheme, that, except as herinafter excepted, the whole county of Dorset, and the parish of Holwell, in the county of Somerset, now forming together the archdeaconry of Dorset and part of the diocese of Bristol, the see whereof is now vacant, and the parish of Thornecomb, in the county of Devon, but insulated in the said county of Dorset, and now in the diocese of Exeter, shall be forthwith absolutely detached and dissevered from the said dioceses of Bristol and Exeter respectively, and shall be and become permanently annexed and united to, and included in, and form part of the diocese of Salisbury; and that the said parish of Thornecomb shall be included in the said archdeaconry of Dorset and within the deanery of Bridport, and that the said archdeaconry, and all parishes and places, churches and chapels, within the limits thereof, and the present and every future archdeacon thereof, and all rural deans, and the whole clergy, and others your Majesty's subjects within the same, shall be forthwith exempted and released from all jurisdiction, authority, and control, of the sees of Bristol and Exeter respectively, and shall be under and subject to the episcopal jurisdiction, authority, and control, of the said Bishop of Salisbury, and of his successors Bishops of Salisbury for the time being, as entirely and effectually, to all intents and purposes, as the archdeaconry of Salisbury and the archdeacon thereof now are.

And we further recommend and propose, with the like consent of the said Henry Bishop of Exeter, testified as aforesaid, that the parish of Stockland, in the said county of Dorset, but insulated in the said county of Devon, and now in the diocese of Bristol, shall in like manner be dissevered from the said diocese of Bristol, and form part of the said diocese of Exeter, and be included in the archdeaconry of Exeter and within the deanery of Honiton, and be subject to the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Exeter.

And we further recommend and propose that the right of appointing the archdeacon of the said archdeaconry of Dorset shall be vested in the said Bishop of Salisbury and his successors Bishops of Salisbury for ever.

And we further recommend and propose, that nothing herein contained shall prevent us from recommending and proposing other measures relating to the bishopric of Salisbury, in conformity to the provisions of the said Act.

All which we humbly recommend and propose to your Majesty in Council.

DIOCESE OF GLOUCESTER.

Whereas by a scheme, bearing even date herewith, we have recommended and proposed that the whole archdeaconry of Dorset, now forming part of the diocese of Bristol, the see whereof is now vacant, shall forthwith be separated from the said diocese, and annexed to the dioceses of Salisbury and Exeter respectively.

We now humbly recommend and propose, with the consent of the Right Reverend James Henry Bishop of Gloucester, in testimony whereof he hath signed and sealed this scheme, that the remaining part of the said diocese of Bristol shall be forthwith permanently annexed and united to the diocese of Gloucester, and that the same, when so united, shall for ever hereafter be and be called and known by the name of the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol.

And we further recommend and propose that the sees of Gloucester and Bristol shall be forthwith permanently united, and shall, when so united, be and be called, and be known by the name of the see of Gloucester and Bristol, and that the said James Henry, now Bishop of Gloucester, shall be the Bishop of the said see of Gloucester and Bristol, and shall become absolutely confirmed in the said bishopric, and, ipso facto, seised and possessed of all the property, revenues, advowsons, and patronage now belonging to the said see of Bristol and all the episcopal jurisdiction, power, and authority heretofore possessed and exercised by the Bishops of Bristol, except so far as relates to the said county and archdeaconry of Dorset, without any other act, deed, form, or proceeding whatsoever, other than such order or orders as it may please your Majesty in Council to make and issue in pursuance of this scheme, and under the authority of the said Act.

And we further recommend and propose that the said Bishop, and his successors Bishops of Gloucester and Bristol, shall be one body corporate, by the name of the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, and by that name shall have perpetual succession and a common seal, and that he and his successors shall and may by that name sue and be sued, and shall and may take and hold all lands, tithes, advowsons, tenements, and hereditaments now held by the said James Henry as Bishop of Gloucester, or so transferred as aforesaid, or which may be given or granted to him or them by your Majesty, your heirs and successors, or by any other person or persons whatsoever, and may give or grant the same, and make leases and enjoy and do all other rights and acts in respect of the same, in as full and perfect a manner as other bishops of England and Wales, but no otherwise.

And we further recommend and propose that the said James Henry, as Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, and his successors Bishops of Gloucester and Bristol, shall occupy the same seat in the cathedral church of Bristol, and shall possess and exercise the same authority and jurisdiction, ordinary and visitatorial, over the dean and chapter thereof, as has heretofore been possessed and exercised by Bishops of Bristol.