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To tell men in this situation that they were not persecuted , was to offer them the grossest of all insults . Adverting to recent events , would any man assert , that the Birmingham riots were not the effect of religious bigotry
and persecution ? Some had maintained , that the people revolted not against Dr . Priestley ' s religion , but his political opinions . Granted , for the sake of argument : but , could the publication of his sentiments be more imprudent than those of a member of the Church of England ? This ,
therefore , he maintained to be an argument in proof of the existence of persecution against the Unitarians , insomuch as the same mode of conduct adopted by two men had produced opposite effects , merely on account of the difference of their religious attachments . Having completed the statement , little more remained for him to do than to
state the particular acts which he wished to be repealed . It had been observed by some , and would perhaps be advanced that night , that as far as regards the Catholics at least , persecution was at an end , from the bill which passed lately in their favour . But here it should be
remembered , that a certain oath was required to be taken > to this oath he believed there was no objection amongst any of the Catholics 3 but were gentlemen aware , that among the poorer sort , many , from negligence and from Economy , for some of them must travel a considerable distance
before they came to a magistrate , would omit the taking of this oath ; the consequence was , that themselves and posterity were liable to all the penalties and disabilities of the ancient statutes . He then exposed the absurdity of continuing these laws after all pretext for them was at an end . He believed that if the House were to
speak out fairly , there would be less objection , on constitutional sentiments , to the admission of Catholics into it than Dissenters . For himself , he objected to neither ; but he believed that those who did object , feared more the principles of Dissenters who had , than those of Catholics who had
not , the right ofsitting in that House ; the one class were supposed to be republicans , the other were distinguishe d for an attachment to monarchy , ¦ l he truth was , that there was no just or rational objection to either ,
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and the effect of exclusion was hurtful to the community ; for a man ' s virtues and abilities were the objects wa ought to look to ; his attachment to the welfare of the country , and not his speculative opinions upon religion f
ought to entitle him to a seat in that House , or in any other office that might be serviceable to the state . Indeed , all these absurd , as well as unjust prohibitory statutes , were very destructive to the public welfare . A nd here he could not help taking notice
also of the marriage-act—an act ; to which he was radically so much an enemy , that he should , whenever he had the least encouragement , make a third attempt to obtain its repeal . He had made two , and had succeeded in that House , but had always been thwarted in the House of Lords . The
day , he hoped , would arrive , when he should have better fortune with their lordships . The marriage-act it was his wish to alter in that part which provided an exemption only for Jews and Quakers . The necessity of a more ample exemption he proved from the case of two women confined
in Nottingham Jail , for non-compliance with the provisions of the marriage-act . In short , he declared it to be his wish to extirpate heresy by the old method of fire * , not , however , by burning victims , but by burning the various noxious acts . He
observed , it was with reluctance he gave up the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts . He did so in compliance with what he must take the liberty of calling the prejudice and groundless timidity of that House ; and as he could not at once gain
complete justice , he would take it by piecemeal as well as he could . He must , by the way , be allowed to observe , that he was fully persuaded , nor had he ever heard any thing that shook his opinion , that the Test and
Corporation Acts proceeded from the very essence of persecution and injustice . He might be asked , whether he would leave any punishment whatever for the publication of ribaldry or ridicule ? To this there was no
answer necessary , as there was no law against it which he should propose to alter . The laws he meant , were against the publication of advised speaking : advised speaking , was solemn speaking ; it was what a parent said to his child—it was what
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Charles James Fox . 683
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Nov. 2, 1815, page 683, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1766/page/19/
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