The matter was taken up by Lord Sidmouth, who,
before his elevation to the peerage, had been Henry
Addington and Speaker of the House of Commons. He
was a man of honesty, industry, and good intelligence,
though probably not gifted with the highest order of
statesmanship . The Amending Act provided that every
Dissenter making a declaration against Popery and
declaring himself to be a Christian and a Protestant,
on paying sixpence for his certificate was entitled to all
the privileges granted by the Act of William and Mary
to Dissenting Ministers, and was exempted from service
in the MiUtia and in all parochial offices. Under this
Act licences to preach were obtained at quarter sessions
by persons of no education, by persons not of full age,
and as to whose moral qualifications for the office of
preacher or teacher little or nothing was known. As a



396 CHARLES MANNERS SUTTON [1805-

proof of the want of education of applicants, and
particularly of their bad spelling, a return was published
of eighteen different ways in which the words " dis-
senting minister,"" teacher,"" preacher," and" gospel "
had been misspelt by the applicants in the case of two
hundred and eighty-five licences taken out at Middlesex
Sessions :

Preacher of the Gopel,

Preacher of the Grosple,

Precher of the Gospel,

Precher of the Gospell,

Pracher of the Gospell,

Preach of the Gospell,

Precher of the Gosple,

Precher of Gospell,

Miniaster of the Gospel,

Preacher of the Ghosper,

Preacher of teacher the Gospel Bappist,

Preecher of the Gospel,

Teacher of the Geouspel of Jesus Christ,

A discenting teacher ,

Disenting teacher,

Decenting teacher,

Prashr of the Gospell,

Preicher of the Gospel.
