The Express.
London, England, 1863-09-23 00:00:00

THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT AND THE

CATHOLIC CLERGY.

The following outrageous decree has been issued
by one of Mouraviers subordinates :
The Military Chief of the tows and district of Wilkomiers
to the Chief of Police, Major Schlykoff, sth (Nth)

Anna, 1.869. No. 667.
Having regard to the murders sad brigandage (i. e. the
pleurreetion) which are incessantly being renewed. I have
resolved to publish the following notice in the district :

(a) I attribute all these disorders to the mowed dia.
position of the catholic clergy to btigaadage and rebellion,
a disposition which is common to the whole of that clergy
from the Pope Pins IX. and his ordinal at Rome to the
lowest of the scalsaiastical sensate in the poorest church
in Lithuania. I therefore decree as follows :

- -
L Wham the brigand, (Insurgents) approach the village
the clergy shall be reminded that it ia their duty to meet
them with the cross and the gospel, not with bread and
salt, ma they have done hitherto. They should use their
persuasive powers and employ all their eloquence to pre•
vent these wretches from committing crimes. No rebels
shall be admitted into a village except by being forced to
milk over the bodies of the Fiesta
If the priests act thus, I shall hasten to report their
exploite to the Bishop of Wass and to Pope Pine IL, at
Borne, in order that these martyr priests may not have to
wait too long for their canonisation.
Such priests as do not follow my instructions to the letter
shall be wrested by my orders, brought before a council of
'war, and sunburned within 24 home. 'they shall be tried
se having taken an active pectin the insurrection.
2. The priests shall be responsible for all the murders
committed in their respective parishes, and shall answer
with their heads for all crimes that have been or will be
committed.

(6) I farther decree:
Ist. That I shall immediately *manias military adminis-
trations is the domains of such of the landowner as impose
on their peasants onerous or improper duties ; in other
words, I shall send military garrisons for the purpose of
temporarily attending to the household duties in plere of
the proprietor.
2nd. That I shall sequestrate without delay the estates
of such of the proprietors whom 1 shall recognise as in.
capable of traaescting their own affairs. I shall employ
their revenuca in the pacification of the country and the
suppression of the rebellion.
Such are the arrangements I wished to make knows as
the district whose administration has been entrusted to dw
(Signed) Colonel lIOLIJZ.

[TWOPENCE

THE ALLEGED TORTURE OP TAEPING
PRISONERS.

The Gazette of last night publishes the following
extract front a despatch of Major-General Brown, com-
manding the British troop, in China, which has been com-
municated to Lord Russell by the Secretary of State for
War :
" Various statement, having appeared in the several
journals published at Shanghai, emosnung the treatment
of rebel prinmon, and alleged torture of some few. taken at
the capture of Taitsan, I have the honour to state, that •
report was made to me by Captain Money, RA,
commanding a field force is support of the attack
on nitre, soon after his return to beell-mtartem,
of the insparialime crud treatment olmErenrimniors•
I took the report to her &Mamie ty's Consul
(Harvey) without delay, and expressed my that the
Foutal should be informed of the same, and to upon
' him to send out an order at core to all his '
command, forbidding any cruelty to be snatched apes cap-
tured prisoners • further, if say report was again made
to me of • similar nature, I would cease to act with his
troops. Lieutenant It. Coos, ILA., who hes been six years
in China, and has some knowledge of the Chimes language
sad customs, was the first who reported the eiresinistame to
Captain Murray, and the letterof the former officer, called for
by me for report, is here annexed, and details, I think, evert -
thing most clearly. I have no reason to believe otherwise
than that the Foetid is equally anxious to be as humane
as possible to his prisoners. Scene hundreds were lately cap-
tured at Quangma, and so far from being cruelly or se-
verely dealt with, have actually, to • great extent, been
incorporated by Major Gordon into his own regiment ; and
I have also asked for some to be sent down to me from
Quangesa, to be drilled with, and attached to, the batteries
of Chimes artillery gun Lamers, which are under the com-
mand of the sneer commanding Royal Artillery, who reports
them most useful sod efficient. Major Gordon was also
loot by me some fifty of these drilled gun Lamers for his
attack on Quanguan, and speaks most highly of them.
I have cos only to draw attention to ' eye witness'
statement, who would actually allow the *die to believe
that men undergoing extreme torture, such as he describes.
with various wounds, from whence issued copious streams
of blood, and ovoid not only exist from 11. a.m. till sunset,
hut then to be able to bbd out for execution, leaving one
to suppose that he was present the whole time ; whereas
the editor, in his remarks on the bishop's letter, to remove
any apprehension as to the non-influence of British officers
who were on the spot, states that the treatment the pri.
sobers were undergoing was only discovered ten minutes
before their execution. This alone, I submit, stamps the
whole statement as highly coloured and greatly exagge.
rated."