d be more easy to see our way out of
this little embarrassment, if some of the embarrassed had not
unfortunately, in the parliamentary debates on the Catholic Question,
laid the greatest stress upon the King's oath, applauded the sanctity
of the monarch to the skies, rejected all comments, called for the
oath in its plain meaning, and attributed the safety of the English
Church to the solemn vow made by the King at the altar to the
Archbishops of Canterbury and York.

* * * * *

"Nothing can be more ill-natured among politicians, than to look back
into Hansard's Debates, to see what has been said by particular men
upon particular occasions, and to contrast such speeches with present
opinions--and therefore I forbear to introduce some inviting passages
upon taking oaths in their plain and obvious sense, both in debates on
the Catholic Question and upon that fatal and Mezentian oath which
binds the Irish to the English Church."

The gist of all these reforms, actual and projected, was that the Bishops
were enormously increasing their own power and patronage at the expense of
the Deans and Chapters. Sydney Smith, as a member of a Chapter, protested,
and then the friends of the Bishops cried out that all such protests were
indecent, and even perilous.--

"We are told that if we agitate these questions among ourselves, we
shall have the democratic Philistines come down upon us, and sweep us
all away together. Be it so; I am quite ready to be swept away when
the time comes. Everybody has his favourite death: some delight in
apoplexy, and others prefer marasmus. ... I would infinitely rather be
crushed by democrats than, under the plea of the public good, be
mildly and blandly absorbed by Bishops."

With Bishops as a body, and allowing for some notable exceptions, Sydney
Smith seems to have had only an imperfect sympathy. He held that they could
not be trusted to deal fairly and reasonably with men, subject to their
jurisdiction, who dared to maintain independence in thought and action.--

"A good and honest Bishop (I thank God there are many who deserve that
character!) ought to suspect himself, and carefully to watch his own
heart. He is all of a sudden elevated from being a tutor, dining at an
early hour with his pupil (and occasionally, it is believed, on cold
meat), to be a spiritual