Bill was then ordered to be brought in for giving a proper Relief to the Petitioners, which was accordingly foon after brought in, and praffed both Houfes without any Oppofition.

The fame Day a Petition of the People called Quakers was prefented to the House, and read, fetting forth, That notwithstanding the feveral Acts of Parliament made for the more easy Recovery of Tithes, Church-Rates, Oblations, and other Ecclefiaftical Dues, in a fuminary Way, by Warrant from Juftices of the Peace; yet as the faid People confcientiously refufed the Payment thereof, they were not only liable to, but many of them had undergone grievous Sufferings by Profecution in the Exchequer, Ecclefiaftical, and other Courts, to the Imprisonment of their Perfons, and the impoverishing and Ruin of them and their Families, for fuch fmall' Sums as were recoverable by thofe Acts and therefore praying, that the House would be pleafed to take the Premifles into Confideration, and afford them fuch Relief therein, as to the House fhould feem meet.

Whereupon it was ordered, that Leave fhould be given to bring in a Bill to enlarge, amend, and render more effectual the Laws then in being, for the more easy Recovery of Tithes, Church-Rates, Oblations, and other Ecclefiaftical Dues from the 'People called Quakers, and that Mr. Glanville, Mr. Secretary at War, Mr. Henry Archer, and Mr. Hamp den, fhould prepare and bring in the fame.

The faid Bill was' accordingly prefented to the House by Mr. Glanville, on Wednesday the 17th of March, and being then read a first Time, and ordered a fecond Reading, the fame was ordered to be printed.

The Bill being thus ordered to be printed, on the 17th of March, a Petition of feveral of the Parochial

Clergy of the County of Middlefex, was prefented to the Houfe, and read on the 26th of the fame Month; which Petition alledged, that the Bill then depending in that House, to enlarge, amend, and render more effectual, &c. would as the Petitioners conceived, if paffed into a Law, be extremely prejudicial to themselves and Brethren, excluding them from the Benefit of the Laws then in being for the Recovery of Tithes and other Dues, and thereby putting the Clergy of the Established Church upon a worse Foot than the rest of his Majefty's Subjects; and therefore defired to be heard by their Counsel upon the Subject Matter of the faid Bill, before it paffed into a Law.

This Petition was ordered to lie upon the Table, until the faid Bill fhould be read a second Time; and that the Petitioners, if they thought fit, fhould be then heard by their Counsel against the faid Bill: Then it was ordered, that Counsel fhould be admitted to be heard for the Bill at the fame Time; and that the Bill fhould be read a fecond Time upon that Day fe'nnight.

Againft this Bill the following other Petitions were also presented, and all received as the first, viz.

On the fame Day, a Petition of fundry of the Clergy of the County of Wilts, in Behalf of themselves and their Brethren the Clergy of the faid County: - A Petition of the Dean and Chapter of Peterborough:

A Petition of the Clergy of Northamptonshire, in Behalf of themfelves and their Brethren: Another Petition of the Clergy of Northamptonshire, in Behalf of themselves and their Brethren: A Petition of feveral of the Parochial Clergy, in Behalf of themselves and their Brethren in the County of Effex; and a Petition of feveral of the Parochial Clergy in the County of Hertford,

Led, in Behalf of themselves and their Brethren the Clergy in the faid County.

And on the 6th, a Petition of the Clergy of the County of Suffolk: A Petition of fundry Clergymen of the County of Wilts, in Behalf of themselves and the rest of the Clergy of the faid County: Another Petition of feveral of the Clergy of the County of Wilts, in Behalf of themselves and the rest of the Clergy of the faid County: A Petition

of the Archdeacon or Winchester, and the Clergy of the County of South ampton, within the Diocese of Winchefter: A Petition of the Dean and Chapter of Chester, and others of the Clergy of that Country, in Bes half of themfélves and their Brethren:

A Petition of feveral of the Pa ochial Clergy in the County of Derby, in Behalf of themselves and their Brethren; and a Pétition of fundry of the Clergy in the County of Gloucefler, in Behalf of themselves. and the rest of the Clergy of the faid County.

All which Petitions were feverally read, and ordered to lie upon the Table, until the faid Bill fhould be read a fecond Time; and that the Pe titioners, if they thought fit, fhould be then heard by their Counsel against the faid Bill.

The fecond reading of the faid Bill having been put off to Monday the 12th of April, after reading the Order of the Day for that Purpofe, the Comfel for and against the Bill were dalled in, and the Bill being then read a fecond Time, and the feveral Petitions alove-mentioned being allo read, the Counsel for the Petitioners of the Province of Canterbury were heard, in Answer to whom the Counfel for the Bill were heard; and then the Counsel for the Petitioners of the Province of York, were heard by Way of Reply: After which the

ho Quaker or Quakers fhall be fued or profecuted, for of on Account of the fame, in any other Manner, than as before directed, or in any other Court; neither thall any fuck Tithes, Obiations, or other Ecclefiaftical Dues, Rights, Payments, or Church Rates, not exceeding the faid yearly Value of

be recoverable againft

Quakers in any other Court whatsoever, nor in any other Manner, than as by this Act is directed, tulefs the Title of fuch Tithes, be in Queftion. This Claufe, in all the Petitions pres fented by the Clergy again the Bill, was called, an excluding them from the Benefit of the Laws then in being for the Recovery of Tithes and other Dues, and thereby putting the Clergy of the established Church upon a worfe Foot than the rest of his Majesty's Subjects; therefore the faid Section was read, in order to fhew that the affigning of a proper Method for the Recovery of any Right, and exclud ing the Perfons intituled, from any other Remedy, was not a putting of fuch Perfons upon a worse Foot than

the

the rest of his Majesty's Subjects, nor was it without Precedent; for by the aforefaid Act of King Charles II. all Suits for the recovering of Church Rates of Affeffments, within the City of London, are to be brought before the Lord Mayor, or upon his Neglect to execute the Powers thereby gramed, before the Lord Chancellor, or Keeper of the Great Seal, or two Barons of the Exchequer; and, by the faid 14th Section, it is enacted, That no Court or Fudge shall hold Plea of Money due by Virtue of that Alt, other than the Perfons thereby authorized; and yet the Clergy of London never had complained, nor could complain, that they were ex oluded from the Benefit of the Laws of their Country, or that they were put-tipon a worfe Foot than the reft of his Majelly's Subjects.

After reading the aforefald Section, a Motion was made for committing the Bill, upon which there enfited a long Debate, and upon putting the Question for committing the Bill, it was, upon a Divifion, carried in the Affirmative by 221 to 84, and or dered accordingly; and after which it was refolved that the Bill should be committed to a Committee of the whole Houfe.

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On the 21st of April, the Houfe, according to Order, refolved itself into a Committee upon the faid Bill, when very great Alterations and Amendmems were made to every Claufe; and it was propofed to leave to every Perfon intimled to Tithes, an Option to fute for the Recovery of them, either before the Juftices of the Peace, as directed by that Bill, or before any of his Majesty's Courts in Westminster-ball; but as this feemed to be inconfiftent with the Preamble of the Bill, and with the Intention of the whole, it was fre mcbafly opposed, and upon the Qué frion's being pit, it was upon a Di

vifion, carried in the Negative by 202 to 96; after which they went through the Bill, and directed Col. B, (who was in the Chair) to report their Amendments, when the Houfe fhould pleafe to receive the fame.

On the goth, the faid Amendments were, according to Order, reported to the House, when they were all, with Amendments to fome of them, agreed to; and a Claufe was added, and an Amendment made, by the Houle to the Bill. Then a Motion was made for ordering it to be ingroffed, upon which there was a new Debare; but upon the Question's being put, it was upon a Divifion carried in the Affirmative by 160 to 60.

On the gd of May, a Petition of feveral of the Clergy of the County of Surry, in Behalf of themselves and Brethren, was prefented to the Houfe, and read fetting forth, that finee they had been heard by their Counfel, in Relation to the Bill then depending in the Houfe, to enlarge, amend, and render more effectual the Laws then in Being for the more easy Recovery of Tithes, Church Rates, and Oblations, and other Ecclefiaftical Dues from the People called Quakers, the Petitioners had been informed of feveral new Claufes and Provifions, that had been inferted in the faid Bill, which the Petitioners conceived to be very prejudicial to the Rights of themfelves and the other Parochial Clergy; and therefore praying, that they might be admitted to be heard by their Counfel, in Relation to the faid new. Clauses and Provifions, before they received the final Affent of that House.

This Petition was ordered to lie pon the Table, and immediately af ter, the faid Bill was read a third Time; when feveral new Amend ments were made by the Houfe to the

Bill; and then a Motion was made for pafling the Bill, against which it was alledged, That befides the many material Arguments which had been made Ufe of, or might be made Ufe of againft paffing that Bill into a Law, there was one relating to the Form, which was an unanferable Argument against its being paffed; for the Bill, which was firft brought in, had been fo thoroughly and fo entirely altered in the Committee, that it could not now be looked on as the fame Bill; even the very Title of it had been entirely alter'd in the Committee, and that Bill which was before called, A Bill to enlarge, amend, and render more effectual the Laws then in Being, &c. was upon the third reading to be called, A Bill for the more eafy Recovery of Tithes, Church-Rates, and other Ecclefiaftical Dues from the People called Quakers; which they could not but take to be a very improper Title, for in their Opinion it ought to be called, A Bill for preventing the Recovery of Tithes, or any Ecclefiaftical Dues, from the People called Quakers. That it was needlefs to examine particularly all the Alterations that had been made in the Committee, in order to fhew that the Bill then read to them was not the fame, with that which had been read a firft and fecond Time in that Houfe, it would be fufficient to take Notice of one: By the Bill as it was at firft brought in, the Jurifdiction of the Juftices of Peace was to have been confined to Tithes of a certain Value, which was certainly defigned to be Tithes of a fall Va lue; the Juftices were to order and direct the Payment, fo as the Sum ordered did not exceed but the Committee, by the Bill they had drawn up, which was then read to them, had given the Juftices an limited Jurifdiction where the Title was not in Queftion. This they faid

i

was a Power which they thought no Committee upon a Bill could take; they might perhaps have filled up the Blank with any Sum they pleased; they might have filled it up with fuch a large Sum as would have in Effect been the fame with granting the Justices an unlimited Jurisdiction; but they could not grant a general and unlimited Jurifdiction by a Bill which, when it came before them, was a Bill for granting a particular and confined Jurifdiction; and if the granting of fuch a Jurifdiction was then thought neceffary, the only Method they could take, according to the established Forms of that Houfe, was to order the Bill then before them to be withdrawn, and a new Bill to be brought in; in which Cafe, thofe who thought they might be aggrieved by any Thing in the new Bill would have an Opportunity of being heard against it, which no Man could ever have, if the Method obferved in pafling the Bill then be fore them fhould become an usual Practice; for no Man could know, whether he was to be injured by a Bill, or not, till after it had paffed through the Committee, and then it would be too late for him to apply.

To this it was answered in general, That the Bill then before them was in Effect the very fame with the Bill as it was first brought in; many of the Claufes had, indeed, been altered and amended, but the general Scope and Intention of the Bill was the very fame, and they did not think the Committee had taken any Liber, ties with the Bill but what were ufual, and fuch as they were fully intitled to take; for the Reafon of their granting an wilimited Power to Juftices of Peace with refpect ra the Value of the Tithe, was becanfe, upon mature Confideration, they found, that all Actions and Suits for Tithes, where the Title was not coll

troverted