advertise him, or such as may give him knowledge. The rules of the Holy Fathers, the decrees, ordinances, sentences, dispositions, reservations, provisions, and commandments apostolic, to my power I shall keep, and cause to be kept of others. Heretics, schismatics, and rebels to our Holy Father and his successors, I shall resist and persecute to my power. I shall come to the Synod when I am called, except I be letted by a canonical impediment. The threshold of the Apostles I shall visit yearly, personally or by my deputy. I shall not alienate or sell my possessions without the Pope's counsel. So help me God and the Holy Evangelists.

No. 3.

Oath of a Catholic Priest.

I acknowledge the Holy Catholic Apostolic Roman Church for the mother and mistress of all churches; and I promise and swear true obedience to the Bishop of Rome, Successor to St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles, and Vicar of Jesus Christ. I likewise undoubtedly receive and profess all other things delivered, defined, and declared by the sacred Canons and general Councils, and particularly by the Holy Council of Trent; and I condemn, reject, and anathematize all things contrary thereto, and all heresies which the Church has condemned, rejected and anathematized.— This true Catholic Faith, out of which there is no salvation, which at present I freely profess and sincerely hold, I do promise, vow, and swear, that I will most constantly retain and conserve invioJably, with God's help, to the end of my life; and that, as far as in me lieth, I will be careful that it is held by, taught, and preached to, my parishioners, or those, the care of whom shall belong to me in my function.

No. 4.

3d Cap. 4. Lateran Council.

All secular powers, whatever be the nature and rank of their respective offices, to be compelled to swear to exterminate from their dominions all persons denounced heretics by the Church, the moment they shall be invested with either spiritual or temporal

*The words "Heretics, &c. to my power" are said to have been omitted in the oath since 1791, and a clause added.-(Doctor Troy's Pastoral Letter. See also the foregoing remarks in this letter.)

power. If any temporal Lord shall neglect to purge his dominions of heretics, on the signification of his contumacy to the Pope, his subjects to be absolved from their allegiance, and his dominions transferred to the next Romish power, who will invade them; and all the privileges of a crusader to be conferred on such invader. Heretics, and all their protectors and favourers, to be excommunicated, to be infamous, and not admissable to any public office or council; incapable of giving testimony, of making wills of succession as heirs or representatives of any estate, of suing (but they may be sued), of being a judge in any court (if he is one, his sentence null), of being an advocate or notary (if he is one, all instruments prepared, witnessed, or executed by him, null and void). The same rule to be observed in all similar cases.

No. 5.

Qath proposed in the Catholic Bill to be taken by
persons accepting Offices.

I, A. B. do hereby declare, that I do profess the Roman Catholic Religion; and I do sincerely promise and swear that I will be faithful, and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King George the third, and bim will defend to the utmost of my power, against all conspiracies and attempts whatever, that shall be made against his person, crown, or dignity; and I will do my utmost endeavour to disclose and make known to His Majesty, his heirs and successors, all treasons and traitorous conspiracies, which may be formed against him or them; and I do faithfully promise to maintain, support and defend, to the utmost of my power, the succession, of the Crown, which succession by an Act intitled, " An Act for the further limitation of the Crown, and the better securing the rights and liberties of the subject, is and stands limited to the Princes Sophia, Electress and Duchess Dowager of Hanover, and the heirs of her body, being Prostestants; hereby utterly renouncing and abjuring any obedience or allegiance unto any other person, claiming or pretending a right to the Crown of this Realm; I do declare, that I do not believe that the Pope of Rome, or any other foreign Prince, Prelate, State, or Protentate, hath or ought to have any temporal or civil jurisdiction, power, superiority, or pre-eminence, directly or indirectly, within the Realm. I do further declare, that it is not an article of my faith, and that I do renounce, reject and abjure the opinion that Princes excommunicated by the Pope, or Council, or by the Pope and Couucil, or by

any authorithy of the See of Rome or by any authority whatsoever, may be deposed or murdered by their subjects, or any person whatsoever: I do swear, that I will defend to the utmost of my power, the settlement and arrangement of property within this Realm, as established by the laws: I do swear, that I do abjure, condemn and detest, as unchristian and impious, the principle, that it is lawful to destroy or any way injure any person whatsoever for or under the pretence of such person being an heretic: I do declare solemnly before God, that I believe that no act, in itself unjust or immoral, can ever be justified or excused by or under the pretence or colour, that it was done, either for the good of the Church, or in obedience to any ecclesiastical power whatesover: I also declare, that it is not an article of the Roman Catholic Faith, neither am I thereby required to believe or profess, that the Pope is infallible; or that I am bound to obey any order, in its own nature immoral, though

the Pope or any ecclesaistical power should issue or direct such order; but on the contrary, I hold that it would be sinful in me, to pay any respect or obedience thereto : I further declare, that I do not believe, that any sin whatsoever committed by me, can be forgiven, at the mere will of any Pope or of any Priest, or any person or persons whatsoever; but that sincere sorrow for past sins, a firm and sincere resolution to avoid future guilt, and to atone to God, are previous and indispensable requisites to establish a well-founded expectation of forgiveness; and that any person, who receives absolution without these previous requisites, so far from obtaining thereby any remission of his sins, incurs the additional guilt of violating a sacrament: I do reject and detest, as an unchristian and impious principle, that faith is not to be kept with heretics or infidels: I do hereby disclaim, disavow, and solemnly abjure any intention to subvert the present Church Establishment in its stead: I do solemnly swear, that I will not use any privilege, power or influence, which I do now or may hereafter possess, to overthrow or disturb the present Church Establishments of the United Kingdom; and that I never will by any conspiracy, contrivance, or advice whatsoever, abet others in any attempt to overthrow or disturb the same; and that I will make known to his Majesty, his heirs and successors, all' attempts, plots or conspiracies, whether at home or abroad, which shall come to my knowledge, for effecting either of these purposes: I do solemnly in the presence of God, profess, testify and

declare, that I do swear this oath and make this declaration, and every part thereof, in the plain and ordinary sense of the words, without any evasion, equivocation, or mental reservation whatever; and without any dispensation already granted by the Pope, or any other authority of the see of Rome, or any person whatever; and without thinking that I am or can be acquitted before God or man, or absolved of this declaration, or any part thereof although the Pope, or any other person or authority whatsoever, shall dispense with or annul the same, or declare that it was null and void from the beginning. So help me God.

No. 6.

Oath proposed by the Bill to be taken by every Roman Catholic Priest.

I, A. B. do swear, that I will never concur in, or consent to, the appointment or consécration af any Roman Catholic Bishop or Dean, or Vicar Apostolic, in the United Kingdom, but such as I shall conscientiously deem to be of unimpeachable loyalty and peaceable conduct: And I do swear, that I have not, and will not have any correspondence or communication with the Pope or See of Rome, or with any court or tribunal established or to be established by the Pope or See of Rome, or by the authority of the same, or with any person or persons anthorised, or pretending to be authorised, by the Pope or See of Rome, tending directly or indirectly to overthrow or disturb the Protestant Government, or the Protestant Church of Great Britain and Ireland, or the Church of Scotland, as by law established; and that I will not correspond or communicate with the Pope or See of Rome, or with any tribunal established or to be established by the Pope or See of Rome or by the authority of the same, or with any person or persons authorised, or pretending to be authorised, by the Pope or See of Rome, or with any other foreign ecclesiastical authority, on any matter or thing not purely spiritual or ecclesiastical.

Note.-It appears to me, that this clause of the oath is extremely vague, and affords no security whatever. What are those things which are purely spiritual? See Lord Ellenborough's speech, and various passages in this letter and supplement.

6.

ON THE NATIONAL DEBT, SINKING FUND, PRO✶ PERTY TAX, PEACE ESTABLISHMENT, &c.

Sir,

T

IN A SERIES OF LETTERS.

LETTER I.

It is my purpose, in what follows, to examine some questions peculiarly interesting to this country at this moment, when the accounts of a long war are to be closed, and a system is to be devised for maintaining a peace establishment and fulfilling our existing financial engagements.

The principal points, which I shall bring under review, are, first, Mr. Vansittart's Plan of Finance, in 1813, the principles of which are comprised in Stat. 53, Geo. 3, c. 35.

2d. I shall then endeavour, as far as the acounts in my possession will permit, to ascertain the amount of that annual receipt, which is comprised in the items of what is called the Consolidated Fund, together with the probable future charges thereon; in order that we may form some estimate of the sum now available for the purpose of defraying the expences of a Peace Establishment, under the heads of Navy, Army, Ordnance, and Miscellaneous Services.

3d. My next object will be to enquire what will be the most advantageous and proper measure of supplying the funds for this Peace Establishment. For it will certainly appear, that sufficient sums cannot be supplied for this purpose from all the sources of taxation now in force, after the expiration of the property and other war taxes.

The connection between the two last heads of enquiry is too obvious to need any explanation; but I

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