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An act of Parliament , introduced by Lord Ellenborough , waspassed in this session * making it illegal to ordain any person adeacon before he had obtained the full age of twenty-three years.I had no objection to this act, as fixing a definite time before whichorders should not be conferred. Men, indeed, differ from eachother so much in genius, ability, and disposition, that it may fre-quently happen that one man at the age of twenty may be as fitto become a deacon as another at the age of twenty-three ; andit might thence be argued, that the time of taking orders oughtto be left to the discretion of the bishop conferring them, ratherthan be fixed to any particular period. Father Paul was ordaineda priest at twenty-two years of age; and Archbishop Usher wasordained both deacon and priest before the age prescribed by thecanons; and other eminent men have met with similar indul-gence : yet the leaving matters, which may be settled by law, tomen’s discretion, (how properly soever that discretion may inparticular instances be exerted,) is in general a bad principle inlegislation.

But though I did not object to the act on account of its fixinga time before which a man could not be legally ordained a deacon,I thought it was highly objectionable on another account.

Between thirty and forty years ago, I had been much engagedin the tuition of youth in the University of Cambridge ; and fre-quently observed the great difficulty with which clergymen withsmall incomes, farmers, tradesmen, and others, in slender circum-stances, sustained the expense of their sons’ education ; and I wassensible that it was from such sort of families that the church was