We come now to the revenues of the Deans and Chapters, Prebendaries and Canons. It appears from the Reports of the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Enquiry, that the gross annual amount (exclusive of chapter dividends, and payments out of the economy funds) received by 284 persons-dignitaries, prebendaries, and canons belonging to the chapters of the Church of Ireland-was L.152,606, 16s. 84d. Of this, above L.112,000 arises from benefices with cure of souls annexed to such dignities and prebends, and forming respectively the corps of each.

The revenues arising from benefices so annexed are also enjoyed by some of the remaining dignitaries and prebendaries who do not belong to any chapter. The amount of these cannot at present be accurately ascertained-but it is comparatively inconsiderable; and if the whole yearly revenue received by these remaining persons were added to the above-mentioned sum of L.152,660, they probably would not raise it to more than L.160,000.

We are enabled to exhibit with more accuracy that portion of these revenues which is enjoyed by those dignitaries and prebendaries, not in their mixed character of dignitary or prebendary conjoined with that of parochial minister, but which belongs strictly and peculiarly to the dignitary or prebendary, and may be regarded as the compensation for the performance of such duties as are annexed respectively to each. The gross amount of the yearly revenues of this part of the Irish Church establishment, exclusive of the incomes of the benefices with cure of souls, forming the corps of the dignities and prebends, is estimated by the Commissioners at L.40,323, 4s. 2d. Of this L.31,329, 17s. 6 d. belongs to the dignitaries and L.8,993, 6s. 74d. to the prebendaries. But in this estimate are included the revenues of the deanery of Christ's Church, Dublin, and the prebends of Glankeen, Isert-Laurence, and Athnett, which are annexed to bishoprics, and have been already included in the estimate of episcopal revenues. These amount to L.5841, 12s. 14d., and must be deducted when we estimate together the revenue of the archbishops, and bishops, and those of the other dignified clergy.

The revenues of the dignities and prebends arise in some instances from rents of lands or houses, and fines on renewals, but more commonly from the rectorial tithes or portions thereof of parishes, which were originally appropriated to their use ' and sustentation.' There are forty-two dignities and fifty-two prebends which have not any benefices with cure of souls annexed to them; and in the case of these, says the Report, where the revenues arise merely from lands or the appropriation of tithes, ' without having any spiritual duties thereunto annexed, the cure of souls is vested in the vicars of the respective parishes, thereby

6

rendering these dignities and prebends mere sinecure offices, 'save and except the duty of preaching occasionally in the ' respective cathedral churches.' If we separate the character of the dignity or prebend from the parochial ministry which, in many instances, is associated with it, we may extend to all of them the observation which seems, in the language of the Report, to be applicable only to 94 ; namely, that they are mere sinecure offices, save and except the duty of preaching occasionally in the respective cathedral churches.' But we have already seen that by the confession of the holders, in seventy-five instances they are not rescued even by this exception from the character of sinecures, and that they have annexed to them no duties what'ever.' It may be not uninteresting to ascertain what amount of yearly revenue is received by the holders of these absolute and admitted sinecures; and not only received by them in right of such offices, but received as the peculiar revenues of the offices independent of any annexation, and, as we may assume, as a remuneration for the performance of supposed duties which do not exist. From the digest of the enquiry into the revenues and patronage of all dignitaries, we learn the gross amount of the yearly revenues of the dignities on an average of three years ending 31st Dec. 1831, exclusive of the income of any benefice 'with cure which may form the corps of such dignities;' and we find that (with this qualification) of the above-mentioned admitted sinecurists

The revenues of these absolute and admitted sinecures partake largely of that irregularity which pervades every part of the Irish Church system. Their worth quoad duty, being null, is equal, whether as compared with other denominations or with their fellows of the same but not so their pecuniary value. The 'no duties' of the Dean of Raphoe obtain L.1491, 19s. per annum ; the no 'duties' of the Dean of Ross get no more than L.91. The precentorship of Lismore for its no duties' receives the annual sum of L.448, 9s. 2d.-the equally efficient precentorship of Kilfenora, receives only L.31, 12s. The revenues of the sinecure treasurerships vary from L.214, 10s. to L.66, 8s. Of the two provosts, who have neither of them as provosts any thing to do,

VOL. LXI, NO. CXXIV,

2 K

one gets L.360 per annum, the other only L.98. The Archdeacon of Meath, unencumbered with any duties, has L.723, 18s. 10d. -the equally unencumbered Archdeacon of Ardfert has only L.69, 4s. 6d. Never had sinecurists less apparent reason to be satisfied with impartiality in the distribution of good things. But the case is stronger still: it is evident, with respect to all these dignities, that the revenue of the office has no relation to the duty, and that the amount of each (when the latter has any existence) are determined by circumstances quite independent. They are distributed apparently in as complete defiance of any imaginable rule or connexion, as if blanks and prizes, duties' and no duties,' incomes of various amounts, and no incomes at all, had been drawn and assigned to each respectively by lot. The list contains every variety of anomalous collocation, from the dignity with no duties,' and L.1490, 19s. per annum, down to the archdeaconry of Armagh, on which is entailed examina'tion of candidates for orders;-attending all ordinations, conse'crations of churches, confirmations, and ordinary and triennial 'visitations through the province: preaching in the cathedral church seven times in the year, and attending meetings of the chapter,' without any exclusive revenues at all. These inequalities appear strikingly in the incomes of the Irish deans, even including the revenues of the annexed benefices with cure of souls, which form the corps of the respective deaneries. The richest (except Christ Church, which is annexed to the bishopric of Kildare) is Derry; of which the average income is L.3710; next stands Down, which is L.2815, and Ossory, L.2236. The poorest are Clonmacnois with L.73, and Ross with L.91. The majority are between L.400 and L.1000 per annum. But the deans are not dependent solely on the incomes of their deaneries and the benefices annexed. Of 33 deans, 22 hold other benefices besides those annexed, which form the corps of their respective deaneries. These are principally the poorer deaneries; but among those which do not come under that description is that of Ossory, and also of St Patrick, of which the income is L.1997. At the same time, the dean of Kilfenora, with an income of only L.482-of Ferns with L.900, and of Connor with L.965, hold no other benefices in addition to those, which constitute the corps of their respective deaneries. The whole average income, exclusive of such pluralities, received by the 33 deans (including Christ Church, and excluding the benefices annexed to the deaneries of Kilmore and Ardagh) is L.35,499. It is unnecessary to investigate the proportions which are received by the other denominations of dignities. We may here mention that the corporate revenues of the deans and chapters are very small, being only L.1042, 11s. 5d. per annum, and belonging only to two out of 30 chapters-those of Kildare and Waterford,

、

There are also subordinate ecclesiastical corporations belonging to some of the cathedral churches, called minor canonries and vicar-choralships, and which possess separate revenues. • With regard to the minor and petty canonries,' says the Report of the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Enquiry, there appear to be only two cathedral churches in which they are known to exist; namely, those of St Patrick's, Dublin, and Ardfert, the canons belonging to the cathedral church of Kildare being 'merely canons of that church, and not minor canons.

6

As

respects the corporations called vicars-choral, they are eleven in 'number, and have been founded in the cathedral churches of 'Armagh; Christ Church, Dublin; St Patrick's, Dublin; St Canice, Kilkenny; Limerick, Cashel, Lismore, Cork, Ross, 'Cloyne, and Tuam. All these corporations consist, for the 'most part, of several and distinct persons, who were incorporated 'by the names of minor canons, canons of the cathedral church of Kildare, or vicars-choral, and have been endowed (with the excep'tion of the canons of Kildare) with lands or tithes, or both, amounting to the gross sum of L.10,525, 19s. 54d., for the purpose, 'it would seem, in the case of the minor canons, of the due performance of divine service, or, in that of the vicars-choral, of 'the support and institution of the choral services within their 'cathedral churches respectively.'

6

While considering the revenues of the deans and chapters, we must not overlook a species of ecclesiastical property which is under their peculiar management, namely, the economy estates belonging to the cathedral churches. These estates exist in only sixteen out of the thirty chapters, and the aggregate of their average annual income amounts to L.11,055, 14s. 7d. The purposes to which these funds are properly applicable are the repairs of the cathedrals, the maintenance of the officers and servants belonging to them, and providing things requisite for the celebration of service. It appears that there are 30 cathedrals in all-two in Dublin, and one in each of the other dioceses, except Meath, Kilmore, and Ardagh, and that all of these are in tolerably good repair, except Armagh, Ross, Kilfenora, and Clonfert. Ten of the 30 are kept in repair by the revenues arising from the economy estates. Others are made parochial, or are parochial churches, that have been made cathedral, and have their expenses defrayed by parochial assessment, or partly by assessment and partly by contributions from the deans and chapters.

Let us now briefly recapitulate the estimates above-mentioned, in order to ascertain the whole amount, on an average of three years, ending December, 1831, of the revenues of the archbishops and bishops, and the chapters, and all other revenues connected with the cathedral service of the Established Church in Ireland.

It stands as follows::Archbishops and bishops, Corporate revenues of deans and chapters, The economy estates of cathedral churches, Revenues of the subordinate ecclesiastical corporations, such as minor-canonries, vicar-choralships, &c.,

Revenues of all dignities and prebends, exclusive of the incomes of the benefices with cure of souls, forming the corps of all such dignities and prebends, and deducting those which are annexed to Episcopal dignities,

Total,

L.151,127 12 41

1,042 11 5

11,055 14 7

10,525 19 5

34,481 12 0

L.208,233 9 11

These are the annual revenues of the Established Church in Ireland, exclusive of the incomes of parochial benefices, with cure of souls; from which source, as we have already seen, incomes to the amount of more than L.112,000 are, in addition to the preceding, possessed by the dignitaries and prebendaries of the Irish Church,

A complete statement of the incomes of parochial benefices, which is promised in the first Report of the Commissioners on Ecclesiastical Revenue and Patronage, is not yet before the public. We are, nevertheless, enabled, from the Reports already presented, and from other sources, to obtain such facts as will afford considerable insight into the temporal condition of this important part of the Establishment.

The revenues of the parochial benefices of Ireland arise mainly from two sources—glebe land and tithe. There is a third source, called minister's money, arising from a house-tax, and being a substitute for tithe, which exists only in certain city parishes. The quantity of glebe land in Ireland is 91,137 acres, of which above 87,000 acres are supposed to be profitable. Of this profitable glebe above 70,000 acres are in the province of Armagh, above 5000 in that of Dublin, 7130 in Cashel, and 1770 in Tuam. Of the parochial benefices, it is stated in Mr Erck's Ecclesiastical Register, 990 are possessed of glebe, of which 416 are in the province of Armagh, 183 in the province of Dublin, 316 in Cashel, and 76 in Tuam. This distribution gives to each of the beneficcs in the province of Armagh possessing glebe land an average of 174 profitable acres, to those of Dublin 28, to those of Cashel 22, and to those of Tuam 23. If we estimate the average annual value of glebe land at 15s. an acre, this part of the church revenues amounts to L.65,250 per annum.

A much ampler source of revenue is tithe; the amount of which we are not yet able to ascertain with perfect accuracy;