"of families, being members of the congregation, and in full "communion with the church, their names standing on the roll "above referred to, without the assignment of any special objec"tions, such dissents shall either be personally delivered in writ"ing by the person dissenting, or taken down from his oral "statement by the moderator or clerk of the presbytery.

"8. That if the dissents so lodged do not amount in number "to the major part of the persons standing on the roll, and if there "be no special objections remaining to be considered, the Presby"tery shall proceed to the trials and settlement, according to "the rules of the Church.

"9. That if it shall appear that dissents have been lodged by "an apparent majority of the persons on the said roll, the Pres"bytery shall adjourn the proceedings to another meeting, to "be held not less than ten days, nor more than fourteen days "thereafter.

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"10. That if the Presbytery deem it expedient, and the person presented be willing, or if he shall desire so to do, the presbytery shall appoint him to preach to the congregation in "the interval.

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11. That it shall not be competent to receive any dissents "without cause assigned, except such as shall be duly given in "at the meeting for moderating in the call, as above provided; "but it shall be competent to any person, who may have lodged "a dissent at that meeting, to withdraw such dissent at any time "before the presbytery shall have given judgment on the effect "of the dissents.

"12. That, in case the presbytery shall, at the second meet"ing appointed, find that the major part of the persons entitled "to dissent do not adhere to their dissents, or that there is not "truly a majority of such persons on the roll dissenting, they "shall sustain the call, and proceed to the trials and settlement.

13. That, in case the presbytery shall at that meeting find "that there is a majority of the persons on the roll still dissent"ing, it shall be competent to the patron or the presentee, or to "any member of the presbytery, to require all or any of the per"sons so dissenting to appear before the presbytery, or a com"mittee of their number, at a meeting' to be appointed, to take "place within ten days at furthest, at some place within the pa"rish, and there and then to declare in terms of the resolution "of the General Assembly; and if any such person shall fail to "appear, after notice shall have been duly given to him, or shall "refuse to declare in the terms required, the name of such person "shall be struck off the list of persons dissenting, and the presby66 tery shall determine whether there is still a major part dissent"ing or not, and proceed accordingly.

"14. That, if the presbytery shall find that there is at last a "major part of persons on the roll dissenting, they shall reject the "person presented, so far as regards the particular presentation, "and the occasion of that vacancy in the parish; and shall forth"with direct notice of this their determination to be given to the "patron, the presentee, and the elders of the parish.

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15. That if the patron shall give a presentation to another "person within the time limited by law, the proceedings shall "again take place in the same manner as above laid down; and so ❝on in regard to successive presentations within the time.

"16. That if no presentation shall be given within the limit"ed time, to a person from whose settlement a majority on the "roll do not dissent, the presbytery shall then present jure de

" voluto.

"17. That cases of presentation by the presbytery jure devo"luto, shall not fall under the operation of the regulations in this "and the relative act of Assembly, but shall be proceeded in ac"cording to the general laws of the Church applicable to such cases. But every person who shall have been previously re"jected, shall be considered as disqualified to be presented to that "parish on the occasion of that vacancy.

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"22. That the presbyteries of the Church shall use their ut"most endeavours to bring about harmony and unanimity in "congregations, and be at pains to avoid every thing which may "excite or encourage unreasonable exceptions in people against a "worthy person that may be proposed to be their minister." The regulations which I have not read do not affect this question.

"The General Assembly agree to transmit the above Over"ture and Regulations to presbyteries for their opinion; "and, in the meantime, without a vote, they convert the "same into an interim-act.

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"The General Assembly further declare, that cases in which "the vacancies have taken place before the rising of the present Assembly, shall not fall under the operation of "the regulations in this and the relative acts of Assembly, "but shall be proceeded in according to the general laws "of the Church."

Thus your Lordships see, that provision is made-1st, for objections, of whatever nature, being taken by the male heads of families, or any of them, to a presentee. But the objections are to be differently dealt with, according as they affect the moral character, or the doctrine of the presentee, or relate merely to his insufficiency or unfitness for the particular charge. 2d, Though no special objections can be stated to the moral character, doctrine, or fitness of the presentee for the particular charge, it is, never

theless declared, if a majority of male heads of families, merely dissent, that the presbytery shall, in respect of such dissent, reject the presentee," so far as regards the particular presentation, and "the occasion of that vacancy in the parish." 3d, If the patron do not present another person within the time required by law, from whose settlement the major part of the heads of families do not dissent, then the presbytery shall present, jure devoluto. But, lastly, when the way has been opened for the exercise of the right of presentation by the presbytery, the fundamental law of the Church," that no pastor shall be intruded on any congregation contrary to the will of the people," is put aside. Presentations by presbyteries are not to fall under its operation,-the regulations are not to apply to them, they are to be proceeded "in according to the general laws of the Church applicable to "such cases." To ordinary understandings the import of the enactment is, that the law, being a fundamental law, in no case should a pastor be intruded on a congregation contrary to the will of the people. Nevertheless, it is not a fundamental principle in the case of presentations by presbyteries jure devoluto. Of this most anomalous and inconsistent piece of legislation, your Lordships will hear more in the course of the present discussion.

The church and parish of Auchterarder became vacant on the 31st of August 1834, and on the 14th of September Lord Kinnoull issued a presentation in favour of Mr. Young. To the nature and terms of that deed I shall have particularly to refer hereafter. On the 14th of October 1834 Lord Kinnoull's agent laid the presentation in favour of Mr. Young upon the table of the presbytery, together with a certificate that his Lordship had qualified himself to exercise the right by taking the oaths to Government; a letter by Mr. Young accepting of the presentation; a certificate of his having qualified himself to accept the presentation, by taking the oaths to Government; a certificate signed by the ministers of Dundee, that Mr. Young was a licentiate of that presbytery, with an engagement to produce an extract of his license as soon as a meeting of the presbytery of Dundee could be held; and, lastly, the usual" parochial certificate,” as it is termed, by one of the ministers of Dundee, certifying "that he "had been acquainted with Mr. Young for many years; that he "has gone through a regular course of education, and was highly "applauded for his progress in the grammar school, academy, "and university; that his appearance before the presbytery was highly respectable; that he preached in the churches of Dun"dee with approbation; that he assisted my colleague, Dr. "Peters, for some time, who by indisposition is unable to testify "to merits which he often applauded; that I believe Mr. Young " is a Christian throughout in principles, sentiments, and man"ners; that his opinions are evangelical; that he is warmly

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"attached to the interests of religion, and that he will exert all "his power and influence in promoting the cause which he so "highly admires." These several documents having been read, were appointed by the presbytery of Auchterarder to lie on their table until their next meeting.

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Another meeting of presbytery was held on the 27th of October 1834, when Mr. Hope Moncrieff, on the part of the Earl of Kinnoull, produced an extract of Mr. Young's licence, with a testimonial in his favour by the presbytery of Dundee. The minutes of presbytery bear that these documents were read, and then they proceed as follows:-" The presbytery taking into consideration that the late Rev. Charles Stewart, minister of Auchterarder, "died on the 31st of August last, and that the twenty-third re"gulation of the interim-act of the late General Assembly anent "calls intimates, that all cases in which the vacancies have taken place after the rising of said Assembly, shall fall under the "operation of the regulations and relative act of Assembly anent "calls; finds, therefore, that they must proceed to fill up the "vacancy of Auchterarder according to said act and relative regulations. The presbytery also considering that all the docu"ments usually given in in cases of this kind have already been "laid on the table, along with the presentation by the Earl of "Kinnoull to Mr. Robert Young, preacher of the gospel, to be "minister of the church and parish of Auchterarder, did, in "pursuance of the first regulation of the act of Assembly "anent calls, IN SO FAR SUSTAIN THE PRESENTATION as to find "themselves prepared to appoint a day for moderating in a "call to Mr. Young." The presbytery then appointed one of their number to preach in the church of Auchterarder on the next Sabbath, and to intimate that Mr. Young would preach on Sunday the 16th, and also on Sunday the 23d of November; and farther, that the presbytery "will meet in the church of "Auchterarder on the first Tuesday of December next, (1834), "being the second Tuesday of that month, to moderate in a call "IN THE USUAL WAY to Mr. Young, to be minister of that pa"rish, the moderator to preach and preside. In all which sen"tence of the presbytery Mr. Moncrieff acquiesced, and took in"struments in the clerk's hands. From which sentence of the "presbytery, in so far as it at all sustained the presentation, "Messrs. Mackenzie and Walker dissented, on the ground that "by so doing, the presbytery did seem to homologate and approve "of patronage."

Thus your Lordships see it is instructed by the minutes of the procedure in the church court, that the pursuers, as patron and presentee, complied with every requisite both of the civil and ecclesiastical laws. The right of the patron to present to the va

cant church and parish, and the right and qualifications of Mr. Young, as a licentiate of the Church of Scotland, to accept and hold the presentation in his favour, are distinctly admitted by the presbytery, by whom the presentation was in consequence so far sustained as to warrant them in appointing a day for moderating in a call" in the usual way." The patron alone was represented at these meetings of presbytery; and so far as the proceedings went, neither he nor the absent presentee had apparently any interest to object to them. It was acknowledged that every thing which by law could be required of them had been done; and, the presentation being sustained, there were, by that deed and the relative act of the presbytery, vested in the patron and presentee, patrimonial rights and privileges which they could assert and maintain against the presbytery and all others. For, having sustained the presentation, and acknowledged the due performance of every legal requisite by the patron and presentee, the presbytery were bound to proceed with the trials of the presentee, and if they found him, by their sentence, qualified for the office of the ministry in the church and parish of Auchterarder, to induct him accordingly; or otherwise, having made trial of his qualifications, to find that he was not qualified for that office.

On the 2d of December 1834, the Presbytery again met at Auchterarder, for the purpose of moderating in a call to Mr. Young; and, after sermon by the moderator, the minutes bear that there was produced and read a call to Mr. Robert Young "to be minister of the church and parish of Auchterarder; and "an opportunity was given to the heritors, elders, heads of fami"lies, and other parishioners, to sign it. Mr. Lorimer then signed "for the Earl of Kinnoull, as patron, being his factor; and the "call was further signed by Michael Tod and Peter Clerk, "heads of families. The presbytery then proceeded, in terms of "the third regulation of the interim-act of last Assembly anent "calls, to give an opportunity to the male heads of families, being members of the congregation, and in full communion with "the church, whose names stand in the roll which has been inspected by the Presbytery, to give in special objections or dis"sents, WHEN NO SPECIAL OBJECTIONS WERE GIVEN IN. A mandate "from Mr. Robert Young, presentee to the parish of Auchterar"der, to Archibald Reid, Esq. writer in Perth, was given in, authorising him to appear as his agent in this case; which man"date having been read, was sustained. Compeared William "Thomson, session-clerk of Auchterarder, and being asked "produced a roll of male heads of families in the parish "of Auchterarder, in terms of the regulations of the act of "the last assembly anent calls. At this stage, Mr. Reid was "heard, and objected to the presbytery either receiving or