order may be executed as if it were an order under this act for the payment of a sum due on account of the tithe rent-charge. "3. The court may, if satisfied that the circumstances justify it, make such order as aforesaid in respect of any future rate, either generally or during the time limited by the order. "4. The expression 'rate' in this section means a poor rate, highway rate, general district rate, borough rate, and every other rate assessed on an owner of tithe rent-charge by a public authority for public purposes; and the expression collector' means the overseer, surveyor of highways, rate collector, or other person authorised, for the time being, to collect the rate." PART VI. FABRICS AND OFFICERS OF FABRICS OF THE CHURCH. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY. It remains to consider the law applicable to the following subjects: 1. The fabric of churches and chapels, and the ground attached by consecration thereto,-apart from the questions of ornament, already treated of under the head of Liturgy and Ritual (a), and of monuments of the dead, treated of under the head of Burial (b). 2. Officers having duties connected with the fabric and the churchyards, such as 1. Churchwardens with their Assistant Sidesmen or Questmen-and in connection therewith the Law of Vestries. 2. Trustees under the Compulsory Church Rate Abolition Act, 1868. CHAPTER II. CHURCHES AND CHURCHYARDS. SECT. 1.-General Observations. 2.-Consecration of Churches. 3.-Chancel. 4.-Aisle. 5.-Churchyard. 6.-Repairs, Alterations and Faculties. 7.-Church Seat. 8.-Church Way. 9.-Church Rate. SECT. 1.-General Observations. DR. BURN observes that the ancient Saxon word is cyrce, the Origin of Danish kircke, the Belgic kercke, the Cimbric kirkia or kurk; word. probably from the Greek word Kupianov, belonging to the Lord, or Kupiou oixos, the Lord's house; so that we have lost the ancient pronunciation of the word (except in the northern parts of England and in Scotland) by softening the letters c or ch, as we have done in many cases; which letters the ancient Greeks and Romans always pronounced hard, as the letter k. The ancient manner of founding churches was, after the Ancient founders had made their application to the bishop of the diocese, manner of and had his licence, the bishop or his commissioners set up a churches. founding cross, and set forth the ground, where the church was to be built; and then the founders might proceed in the building of the church and when the church was finished, the bishop was to consecrate it, but not till it was endowed; and before, the sacraments were not to be administered in it (a). For albeit churches or chapels may be built by any of the king's subjects, yet before the law take knowledge of them to be churches or chapels, the bishop is to consecrate or dedicate the same and this is the reason, that a church or not a church, a chapel or not a chapel, shall be tried and certified by the bishop (b). It is to be borne in mind that the freehold of churches and Freehold. churchyards is in the rector or vicar, that of the chancel in the (a) Degge, pt. i. c. 12; Gibs. p. 188. (b) 3 Inst. p. 201. But incum bent has not all the lia rector. In the case of perpetual curates it is questionable whether the freehold be not in the lay impropriator (b). But the incumbent of a church, though he have the freehold, is not such an owner of the church as to be liable under the bilities of an Metropolitan Building Act, 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 122), ss. 72, 73, for the expenses incurred by a public body in removing a part of the church which was a dangerous structure within the meaning of that act (c). owner. Churches are not rateable. 3 & 4 Will. 4, c. 30. 38 & 39 Vict. c. 55. Exemption of incumbent as owner of church from new street expenses. 55 & 56 Vict. c. 57. Exemption from expenses of private Nor is a church rateable, nor is the incumbent liable as owner or occupier for rates upon it. By 3 & 4 Will. 4, c. 30, churches and chapels are exempted from the payment of poor rates. Nor is a church to be assessed either as land or building to contribute towards the making or paving of a street under the Metropolis Management Acts (d). By the Public Health Act, 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 55), s. 151, "The incumbent or minister of any church, chapel, or place appropriated to public religious worship, which is now by law exempt from rates for the relief of the poor, shall not be liable to any expenses under the last preceding section (e), as the owner or occupier of such church, chapel or place, or of any churchyard or burial-ground attached thereto, nor shall any such expenses be deemed to be a charge on such church, chapel, or other place, or on such churchyard or burial-ground, or to subject the same to distress, execution, or other legal process; and the urban authority may, if they think fit, undertake any works from the expenses of which any such incumbent or minister is hereby exempted." By the Private Street Works Act, 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c. 57), s. 16, "The incumbent, or minister, or trustee of any church, chapel or place appropriated to public religious worship, which is for the time being by law exempt from rates for the relief of street works. the poor, shall not be liable to any expenses of private street works as the owner of such church, chapel or place, or of any churchyard or burial-ground attached thereto, nor shall any such expenses be deemed to be a charge on such church, chapel or other place, or on such churchyard or burial-ground, or to subject the same to distress, execution or other legal process, but the proportion of expenses in respect of which an exemption is allowed under this section shall be borne and paid by the urban authority." Power of incumbent. It is partly a consequence of the church being the freehold of the incumbent, and partly of the law as to the use of all things connected with the church, such as the playing of the (b) Vide supra, pp. 237, 244. Reg. v. Lee, 4 Q. B. D. p. 75. (d) Angell v. Vestry of Paddington, holden rateable and the church- (e) I.e., the expenses of paving new streets not repairable by the inhabitants at large. organ (f) during service and the like, being under the control of the incumbent, that the custody of the key of the church is in him, and that the ringing of bells on all occasions is subject to his As to bells. control, and the ringing contrary to his order becomes an ecclesiastical offence; although, on the other hand, some authority in this matter is vested in the churchwardens. Thus, in Lee v. Matthews (g), Sir John Nicholl said, As to key. ". . . the minister has, in the first instance, the right to the possession of the key, and the churchwardens have only the custody of the church under him. If the minister refuses access to the church on fitting occasions, he will be set right on application and complaint to higher authorities." In Dewdney v. Good and Ford (h), the churchwarden was ordered to deliver up a duplicate key to the church which he had obtained. By Can. 88 of 1603, "The church-wardens or quest-men, Canons as to and their assistants, shall suffer no plays, feasts, banquets, bell-ringing. suppers, church-ales, temporal courts or leets, lay-juries, musters, Canon 88. or any other profane usage to be kept in the church, chapel or church-yard; neither the bells to be rung superstitiously upon holy-days or eves abrogated by the Book of Common Prayer, nor at any other times, without good cause to be allowed by the minister of the place and by themselves." Can. 111 provides that the churchwardens shall present all Canon 111. persons who, by untimely ringing of bells, do hinder the minister or preacher (i). By Can. 15, ". upon Wednesdays and Fridays, weekly, Canon 15. though they be not holy-days, the minister, at the accustomed hours of service, shall resort to the church or chapel, and warning being given to the people by tolling of a bell, shall say the Litany" (j). Can. 67. "And when any is passing out of this life, a bell Canon 67. shall be tolled, and the minister shall not then slack to do his last duty. And after the party's death (if it so fall out) there shall be rung no more but one short peal, and one other before the burial, and one other after the burial" (k). control of "Although the churchwardens may concur in directing the Opinions as to ringing or tolling of the bells on certain public and private incumbent's occasions, the incumbent nevertheless has so far the control over bells. the bells of the church, that he may prevent the churchwardens from ringing or tolling them at undue hours and without just cause. Indeed, as the freehold of the church is vested in the incumbent, there is no doubt that he has a right to the custody of the keys of the church, subject to the granting admission to (f) Vide supra, p. 765. (9) 3 Hagg. Eccl. p. 173; Perry v. Webb, Arches Court, March 18, 1876. (h) 7 Jur., N. S. 673. See Ritchings v. Cordingley, L. R., 3 Adm. & Eccl. p. 113. Vide supra, p. 237; (i) Vide supra, p. 738, for this canon in full. () Vide supra, p. 762. |