The Press.
London, England, 1855-01-06 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

a web of corruption that threatens to strangle
the free use of parliamentary energies. The
prevalent belief in the existence of those in-
fluences, and the constant use of certain
official names in connection with a wholesale
system of secret political intrigue, will make
it requisite to examine carefully the preten-
sions of candidates for important legal func-
tions. Taking up the subject upon broad
principle, we desire that the appointment of
Mr. Dimly SEYMOUR to the Recordership of
Newcastle should be thoroughly sifted.
That Mr. HAYTER, who is not a talker him-
self, should have had such sudden partiality
for so loquacious a person as Mr. SEYMOUR
seems strange, though we can readily imagine
that the latter might have a decided predilec
tion for " the whip." Nor shall we dispute the
fact that Mr. SEYMOUR might, amongst other
judicial qualities, be blessed with a rare stock
of patience, though it is the least national of
the qualities of his native land. But, un-
luckily, Recorders have to try prisoners now
and then ; and sometimes prisoners are tried
on charges of bribery, and it would be unfor-
tunate for a puzzled spectator to look from
bar to bench, unable to decide " which is
which." As the House of Commons has
shown such laudable zeal to suppress bribery
of electors, might it not with advantage direct
its attention to a measure to prevent the bri-
bery of M.P.'s ?

MISS NIGHTINGALE AND HER
NURSES.

A CLERGYMAN, of uncompr3mising Protestant
principle, lately took occasion to warn his con-
gregation not to send their bounty to our suf-
fering soldiers in the East through Romish or
semi-Romish hands, when there existed safer
and better channels for its conveyance. The
subjoined letter from Mrs. SIDNEY HERBERT
was soon after circulated among his pa-
rishioners ; and as it was evidently written for
publicity there can be no objection to its ap-
pearance in print :-
40, Belgrave square, Dec. 9, 1854.

Madam,—By this day's post I send you a Chris-
tian Times of Friday week last, by which you will
see how cruel and unjust are the reports you mention
about Miss Nightingale and her noble work. Since
then we have sent 47 more, of which I enclose you a
list. It is melancholy to think that in Christian Eng-
land no one can undertake anything without these
most uncharitable and sectarian attacks; and, had
you not told me so, I could scarcely believe that a
clergyman of the Established Church could have
been the mouthpiece of such slander. Miss Nightin-
gale is a member of the Established Church of Eng-
land, and what is called rather Low Church ; but ever
since she went to Scutari her religious opinions and
character have been assailed on all points. One per-
son writes to upbraid us for having sent her, " under
standing she is a Unitarian," another that she is a
"Roman Catholic," and so on. It is a cruel return
to make towards one to whom all England owes so
much.

As to the charge of no Protestant nurses being
sent, the subjoined list will convince you of its fallacy.
We make no distinctions of creed; any one who
was a good and skilful nurse was accepted, provided,
of course, that we had their friends' consent, and that
in other respects, as far as we could judge, they were
of unexceptionable character. A large proportion of
the wounded being Roman Catholics, we accepted
the services of some of the Sisters of Charity from
St. Stephen's Hospital, in Dublin.
I have now told you all, and feel sure that you will
do your utmost to set these facts before those whose
minds have been disquieted by these unfair and false
accusations. I should have thought that the names
of Mr. and Mrs. Bracebridge, who accompanied and
are remaining with Miss Nightingale, would have
been sufficient guarantees of the evangelical nature of
the work, but it seems nothing can stop the stream of
sectarian bitterness.—l remain, Madam, yours very
faithfully, ELIZABETH HERBERT.
If you wish for any more numbers of the Christian
Times I can send them to you.

LIST.
First party of nurses sent out, Oct. 23.
Miss Nightingale and 38, viz. :
From St. John's-house 6

From Miss Sellon's
Selected hospital nurses
Roman Catholic Sisters of Charity lO
—3B

SATURDAY,

Second party of nurses sent out, Dec. 2.
Forty-seven, viz. :
From St John's-house

Protestant Ladies

Selected hospital nurses, Protestant '4o
Roman Catholic Sisters of Charity l5
—47
Total, 80 nurses; of whom 00 are Protestants, and 20
Roman Catholics.

We believe it to be perfectly true that Miss
NIGHTINGALE 1S wholly free from Romish ten-
dencies, and, if we are rightly informed, this
circumstance has occasioned disappointment
among certain persons in the hospital at
Scutari, who had counted on her aid to favour
the diffusion of their peculiar spiritual tenets.
We hear by a letter from Scutari, that the
operation of the nurse-system has not been
uniformly satisfactory, Miss NIGHTINGALE
having found it necessary to refrain from
availing herself of the services of five of the
White Nuns sent out. We think it
would have been much better had hospital
nurses of the best character alone been se-
lected, as though it is possible that the " Sis-
ters" from St. John's-house, from Miss Sellon's,
and from Roman Catholic Cons ents may be
equal to the discharge of their duties, yet their
employment must tend to create an uneasy
feeling in the public mind, and endanger the
success of a plan,Nvhich has so many excellent
grounds to recommend it.