Page:Church courts and church rates.djvu/19

15 can no longer be parish officers in the sense in which they are so at present. I propose that all the civil functions of the present churchwardens be transferred, in small parishes, to the Overseers, and, in larger parishes, to a new officer, to be called the Parish warden. I further propose that parish meetings, called Vestries, shall no longer be held in the Church, unless with the express consent of the minister and churchwardens.

Maintaining the ancient principle of the parishioners (being churchmen), and their churchwardens being responsible for the repair of the fabric, I propose that in each Diocese there shall be appointed a Diocesan Architect to advise with the Archdeacons, when they require it, upon the condition of the fabrics within their Archdeaconries. If the churchwardens neglect to obey the admonitions of the Rural Dean it shall be competent for the Archdeacon to declare upon the amount of repairs absolutely necessary, and to determine, upon evidence, whether the parishioners are able to defray the expense of those repairs. If he shall consider that they are able to do so, he shall issue an injunction to that effect. If they fail to comply with his injunction, or refuse to raise the sum required, either by contributions or a voluntary rate, the Archdeacon may, at his discretion, depose the churchwardens and appoint certain qualified persons to assess a rate upon all the ten-pound householders in the parish, being churchmen. If the