The Express.
London, England, 1847-04-23 00:00:00

THE CATHOLICS AND THE GOVERNMENT

EDUCATION PLAN.
TO Till LARL OP SHILEWMJILT.

MY I,ORD,—Thu position in which the Catholic
bishops feel themselves placed by the clec'arations of Lord
John Russell in the House of Commons seems to call upon
them to mike publicly known the couroi which they have
panned on the subject of government gran a to catholic
schools. If those statements are allowed to go forth without
explanation or contradiction, it will be naturally inferred
that the catholic prelates have neglected to urge the claims
of their poor on the consideration of gnvernaent, and have
thus. indirectly at least, sanctioned Pr countenanced their ex-
clusion from a share in tbo allotment of the sum to he voted
this year for education. After their efforts to promote the
increase of our own educational funds, by giving to the insti-
tute a new development and form, for the express purpose,
they cannot but feel indignant at seeiog the blame cast upon
them of the course pursued by government towards their
schools—a mune which they could not characterise in any
terse but such as it would be pninful to them to use. It
has, therefore, been considered by them right to place be-
fore your lordship, as president of the Catholic Institute, a
brief statement of what has really taken plate on the part of
the bishops in this important matter.
In his speech of Tuesday, Aprl 19, Lord John Ruasell
thus taro sed himself:
When it shell ham been brought before us—erien the Roman Ca-
Oak bishops shall Aar. repressed their tiers on the sntneet, then
will be the time to consider in what manner we OM (;ire the advan-
tage of any of the public grants to Roman Catholica.—(Them,
Almi *LI
Again, Lordjdorpoth, in the debate of last night, spoke aa
follows

Bat, with respect to catholic applications, the feet la, that they
lave never assumed a distinct form. /ace meorayst,itateeld, whether
the alawhe hie" a-rhy are eifing to admit our inspectionsasa matter
of mane.—Them, oprii2l.,
It is singular, indeed, that now for the first time the',
catholic bishops should bo considered as necessary co-ope-
raters of ministers in a great public measure. When other
measures, steeply affecting the re.igious interests of catholic*,
have been brought forward, it has never been suggested by
ministers that the catholic bishops ought first to be hearil.
But now that an excuse is to be framed for not giving catho-
hes their doe share in a public educational grant, the
bishops are declared to be indispensable parties to the at-
magma:ant, and the exclusion of cathoiics from participation
in its advantages is attributed to their not having come for-
ward to assist the government. But yet no intimation was
ever sent to them that such a new and unprecedented course
was expected.
The facts, however, will not bear out the statements or
insinuations of the two noble ministers. On the 10th of
February of this year a letter was addressed by Dr.
Kay Bhultleworth to the lion. C. Langdale, inquiring
what arrangements would be proposed respecting the admis-
sion of protestant children into catholic schools, in the event
of a grant being made to them by government. The answer
to this letter was deemed by the commits o of the Catholic
lastitute of sufficient importance to be delayed till it could
be prepared under the sanction of the bishops when assembled
in April. Upon their meeting, the matter was laid before
them; and on the 14th instant an answer was returned
In their name, which was transmitted to Dr. Kay Bhuttle.
worth by Mr. Langdale. To this letter Dr. Kay Shuttle-
worth replied, stating, for the first time, that the minutes of
1839 required the use of " the authorised version" in all
schools aided by government ; but indirectly acknowledging
the receipt of the bishop's letter, by stating that the answer
it=tuestions contained in it must be delayed till " their
" have reconsi tiered the whole meter of giving grants
to ailholite. It is plain, therefore, that the catholic bishops
had em the 14th inst. pot themselves into communication
with ber Msjesty's ministers on the subject of education.
Bat cut so content, they made a direct attempt to treat on
this Important subject with Lord John Ru-sell. On the 17th
Wm. addressed a note to his lordship, requesting
Min le shalt to an audience a deputation of the bishops, in
eider M stater with his lordship on the subject of edam-
lietants to catholics. The following is a copy of his
reply
..I=in Damsel promote als essepleneiis to Beefy eyelike
wee ea New softy or readying mamma et RMIRIER Wasp
ashes Ow IslnlsaMss et any mermse Mean te the obsession of
Ms all= of mithelles. Her giemetra esialsten, however,
bine Insmillsa et
Jo
minutes of the privy
memdl en Mat toll. stibbM—Deesiwusitnet. 17.
It Ney be well asked, hew Lord Jo Russell could, in
ted= parlimanit, ea the 19th of April, give it to be
that he was welting for the Catholic bishops to
stake advances to him on the suhject of educatien, when on
the 17th his lordship had virtually refused their request of
as interview on that very "object ? It may be remarked,
that when the Wesleyan conference applied for an audience
en the same 'abject, it was instantly granted to
a deputation, headed by Dr. Bowing. Have not
the catholic bishops an equal right to the same
favour ? But Lord John Russell, in the tame note
wbisi he puts off the interview (the meeting of the
blimp having in the meantime closed), intimates that there
mei no intention of doing anything immediately OR the
=of catholic education. And yet, two dais later, he
the Ream of Commons that he is waiting for the
MAW to apply ei him, is enter to set !
releher.
vbelasit the L
wseehelk Ifee=seAted that "he was ignorant
are willing to admit our in-
=as a matter et eeerse." And yet. in the note of the
of April 14, whisk was laid before the education
reeMiimillbers of the put emosell, one question was ea follows :
wren Lama Gamma mege.r2a32f,ro,se by the caddie
essinbelleal smassalmoslS he to inspect the liomaa
arlMilia. gaga* Of Mamma ...Taspecticat 1
dr Wee me= b bees sent. As to the in-
itialise se
imageetko had been made to
=lllles behalf of beg to inform your lord-
s :edam a general application, by • correspondence,
canted ea between Dr. Kay Bhuttleworth and Mr. Langdale,
dose Ng summer, a formal application was made to the
seesemsat in favour of tie Whelk schools at Blackburn
sad limaislis, la heat. These applications gave
vise le the sb.is.— eseeespeadeaco, but have not as
yet eeedeeel r 7 preedeffil reeelle.
I Wm the hewer to be, lay lord, yours very faithfully
Orbil,_ 14 TROKLII Win, Senior Vicar Apostohc.
A~sfSi.ll47.

IRELAND.
DUBLIN, Aram 21.
The last accounts from Mayo indicate some of the
difficulties with which the authorities will have to
contend, both in the working of the Temporary Relief
Act, and in the endeavour to induce the people to
till the land, I have already stated that the board of
guardians of the union of Westport, had refused to
strike a rate under the Temporary Relief Act. They
give the following reason—the workhouse at West-
port was built to contain 1,000 persons ; it contains
305 only, and until that is full they protest against
any rate for temporary relief outside doors. They
add that they have not for months refused admission
to a single applicant.
These gentlemen manifestly oppose themselves to
the spirit of the relief act. The object of that act was
to ism° aid out of doors in such a form as should
obviate the necessity of continuing the road-works, and
to stimulate the cultivation of the land by providing
that the small holders, while applying their labour to
that necessary end, should not starve. Roth those
purposes the Westport guardians seem resolved to
mar, and unhappily with great success, for there is
not in Ireland, perhaps, a single union where the pro-
gress of tillage has been so small. The guardians
are aware that the implied fact, which elute could
justify their resolution, namely, that the uncrowded
condition of the workhouse arose from the circum-
stance that there were not paupers to relieve, is less
true of the Westport union than, perhaps, of any
ether in the kingdom. Witness the official reports
before parliament, the letters of Commander Can,
end the facts stated in your own columns. How can
government deal a ith such men ? How but, in the
language of Mr. Secretary Stanley, of the Re-
lief Commission, holding them responsible to the
people and to society for the consequences ?
Another difficulty with which the government have
to deal—and I hope one confined to the county of
Mayo—is this :—The police recently received instruc-
tions to inquire (and report) into the extent of tillage in
the several counties of Ireland. As soon as they were
seen abroad on this mission in Mayo—for their object
had in some manner become knows, all colliralian
ceased, as the people expected the government would,
at the eleventh hour, come in and help those who had
not tilled their fields. The consequence has beeu that
(to use the language of the local paper) " One half
the county of Mayo is a waste."
In the north matters are managed with more pru-
dence. Cultivation there is attended to, and the re-
sults
will appear next harvest. Cavan was the most
backward county in Ulster, for all its labour was
thrown on the highways. Since the reduction the ,
change has been remarkable. A northern paper
states that as far as the eye can reach the country is
under cultivation, and that the landlords have vied
with each other in liberality to their tenants.
A remarkable trial is likely to come off in the
next after sittings in the Queen's Bench. It is an
action for libel by the Rev. Mr. Brosbie, a convert
from the catholic church, and at present a member of
a body called " The Priests' Protection Saciety,"
against the president of Maynooth College. Some
curious revelations arc likely to take place if the issue
shall go before a jury.

SCOTLA.YD.
EDINBURGH, Aram 21.
The report that the Wesleyans have given in their
adherence to the scheme, is manifesting a visible in-
fluence on the Free-church party. Dr. Cunningham,
one of the professors of divinity in the Free-church
college, and the Rev. James Begx, ono of her influen-
tial ministers, have published letters, to the effect that
the free presbytery of Edinburgh generally disap-
proved of the decision of the synod of Glasgow and
Ayr, which was adverse to the government scheme.
The Forfar, Fife, and Perthshi, e Educational Asso-
ciation held a special meeting at Dundee for the con-
sideration of the education scheme, and the result was
a petition in its favour. The association also peti-
tioned against the exclusion of the parochial school-
masters from the office of registrar.
In regard to the Scotch peer, whose case was lately
mentioned in the Express, a meeting of the ere-
diters is soon to be held in Aberdeen, and from the
preliminary investigations which have already been
made, the trustees, it is said, expect that they will be
able to pay three-fourths of the claims, and in the
event of the defaulter living for some years (his pre-
sent age is 69), the whole amount may be liquidated.
It is not correct, as some papers have reported, that
the greater portion of the estates are entailed, only a
small part are in that position.