it their
warmest support are to be found many gentlemen of the highest
character for independence and for attachment to the Church, and
whose views in general politics differ from those of Her Majesty's
Government.

After this epitome of references to the proceedings of the people of
Upper Canada, through their representatives, from 1825 to 1840, on what
the Bishop terms the "rights" and "patrimony" of the Church of England,
it is needless to make more than one or two remarks on his statements
as to the influence of the union of the Canadas on the proceedings and
votes of the Legislative Assembly upon the subject. My first remark is,
that the question of the clergy reserves has not been introduced into
the present Legislative Assembly by any member, or at the solicitation
of any member, from Lower Canada. I remark, secondly, that though there
is not a Roman Catholic among the forty-two members elected for Upper
Canada; yet when a resolution was introduced into the Assembly, both at
the last and during the present session, expressing a desire to maintain
the present settlement of the clergy reserves, as provided in the Act, 3
& 4 Vic., chap. 78, only sixteen in the first instance, and thirteen in
the second, voted for it--only about one-third of the members for Upper
Canada. Should, therefore, the union of the Canadas be dissolved
to-morrow, the Bishop would be in as hopeless a minority as he was
before the union. The following remarks of a recent speech of Mr.
Lafontaine (the leader of the Roman Catholic French members of the
Assembly) will show how entirely groundless are the Bishop's imputations
upon that portion of the Assembly.

He thought the clergy reserves should be fairly divided among the
Protestant denominations, and that they should be altogether taken
out of the hands of the Government, as the only way to take them
out of the reach of agitation. He thought the rectories were vested
rights, and should not be disturbed, unless by due process of law,
if, as was pretended, they were improperly obtained. If there were
any claims in the Act of 1791 which seemed to connect the Church of
England to the State, though he did not think they did, they might
be repealed, and the Bishop of Toronto seemed to be of opinion that
that might be done. Let the appointment of the incumbents to the
rectories, too, be taken from the Government, if it were t