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"But lately," continued Sir John, not heeding the interruption, "my thoughts on the subject have undergone a considerable change. At the time that the Church Revenues Bill was brought before parliament, I had occasion to go somewhat deeply into the subject. The result of my inquiries was, as you know, a conviction that, recommended by men whose motives I am bound to believe the best, and whose station and private character no one can reverence and esteem more than myself, that Bill fearfully approached to sacrilege. To divert money from the purposes to which pious founders and benefactors, now with God, had appropriated it, even though it were for the promotion of religion in another way, I could not but think most unjust to those who cannot now raise their voices in behalf of their own rights, most cruel to those who very willingly spent and were spent for us, and most dangerous by way of example to future depredators, and as checking many a benevolent impulse, lest the money designed for a particular charity might hereafter be diverted into a channel which the bequeather of that money would not approve. You know very well that these were my sentiments on this subject; and, as I remember, you quite agreed with me in them."

"I did indeed," replied his son. "I see to what you are coming; but I will not interrupt you."

"Well," resumed Sir John Morley, "if this were my opinion of the diversion of funds from one religious purpose to another, what, it struck me, must

be the guilt of those, who appropriate the wealth intended for the service of the Church to their own private use? And what, it naturally followed, have I been doing as a lay rector for so many years? Have I not been, in ignorance it is true, robbing GOD, and will not all that sum be required at my hands? The more I thought, and the more I read, the more sensible did I become of the danger of such an impropriation; and I can assure you that I quite trembled as I turned page after page of Sir Henry Spelman's History of Sacrilege,' and his 'De non Temerandis Ecclesiis.' It is my earnest wish to repair, as far as I am able, the wrong I have done : and so far as concerns the past, I am determined that I will. You know that I cannot alienate the great tithes from my estate without your consent: and it is on this subject that I determined to speak to you as soon as an opportunity should offer."

"You may be quite sure, my dear father," answered his son, "that any appropriation of money which you may feel it right to make, I shall be most willing to join in, even although I were not convinced of its necessity. The consideration, however, is not new to me. I can assure you that I have no hesitation whatever in taking any step which may be necessary to carry your plan into effect. But what were the means by which you intended to make good the sums you have already received from this appropriation?"

"I will tell you," answered Sir John, "after I

have first said how much I am gratified that you are willing to act with me, not only from a regard to my feelings, but also from a sense of the danger of having any thing to do with Church property. The income arising from the impropriate tithes is £400. I have been in possession of the estate nine and twenty years. I have therefore a sum of £11,600 to The interest of this, at 4 per cent. pay at once. amounts to £4,560. Therefore, I ought to reimburse the sum of £16,160 to the Church. The question is, how to employ the money. Now, doubtless, if sacrilege had never been committed, Mr. Wallis would have been in possession of this sum. Yet, I cannot think that I should be justified in putting it into his hands. It is an unfair way, generally speaking, to allow expediency to have any influence in a matter of pure justice, so that I will not argue as to the superior advantage of devoting that sum immediately to the Church: because, if it actually belongs to Mr. Wallis, however good the purpose to which I might destine it, I should only be committing a robbery on him. But, on due consideration of the matter, I am inclined to think, that in viewing him in the light of a steward of the Church's property—as every priest ought to be viewed, though I shall now lose no time in making over to him the future income derivable from the impropriation, I shall be acting more in accordance with Church principles, by devoting the accumulated sum of past years to the immediate furtherance of the interests of the Church,

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taking care at the same time, to let it be known that I do not consider myself to be doing an act of charity, but a simple act of justice."

"And what do you then intend to employ the sum upon?" enquired Robert.

"This parish has of course the first claim upon us. Now at Ayton, we have a population of nearly seven hundred, at the distance of a full mile from the parish church; and who would be unable, if that church were filled as it ought to be, to obtain accommodation there. I propose, therefore, to build and endow a church for them. I shall endow it at first with £200 a year, hoping, if my life be spared, to be able, ere long, to add another hundred: and the £10,000 which will remain will not be at all too much for a church-though not of the largest sizeas it ought to be built."

"I am quite delighted with the plan," cried Robert; "but I want to ask one question: have you mentioned any thing of it to George?"

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No," returned Sir John: " you were the first person to be consulted in the matter, and it was due to you that I should not previously mention it."

"I sadly fear, then," replied the other, "that George will never be vicar,-rector, I should sayof Teynton. I know him well enough to be sure that he would look on the giving up the impropriation as too much resembling a provision for him, if he ever derived any advantage from it. At least he would think that others might regard it in this light."

"I hope that he would not take this view of it: I am sure the world would not; though we may very safely leave it to form its own decision on the matter, without troubling ourselves to enquire what that decision is. But in the first place, Mr. Wallis may live twenty years yet: and in the event, George can only have a life interest in the restored impropriation: so that were my object only to provide for him, I should have gone to work in rather an expensive way."

"I shall be very glad if you can make him see it so; but I am sure he will have some scruples at first."

They were now entering Ayton Park: and the conversation turned on the family who possessed it. "I am sure," said Robert, "if the father be at all like the son, you must find him a great acquisition to the Teynton society."

"It is an odd coincidence, certainly, that you should have been acquainted at college. Yes; Col. Abberley seems a very pleasant gentlemanly man, without any particularly definite view, except on politicks, and there, fortunately, the right way. Young Abberley, of whom, however, I have seen but very little, I much like; indeed, I could hardly help doing so, on account of his very warm friendship to you."

"I do not believe there is a more excellent fellow in the county, be the other who he may; and I am glad, for all our sakes, that they are settled at Ayton."

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