The Express.
London, England, 1851-07-01 00:00:00

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LONDON, TUESDAY, JULY 1.

OCR columns are graced to-day by two curious
documents. One is an appeal to the piety and charity
of Italians, emanating from " The Holiness of our
Low), Pope Pius IX. exciting them to contribute
to the erection of a itoman catholic church in Lon-
don ; and the other a proclamation of the Archbishop
of FLORENCE, enforcing the petition of his mister
upon the flock committed to his care.
The cool impudence of the two dignitaries Ikon
whom these manifestoes emanate, is the first re-
fection awakened by their perusal " The Holiness
of our Lord," who will not tolerate an English pro-
testant church within the walls of his capital,
proposes to have a church of his own erected in the
very heart of the metropolis of England as if it
were the most reasonable project in the world. The
prelate who presides over the 'banish church in Tus-
cany, whence the persecution of Protestants is still
ringing in our cars, is the first to join in the illustri-
ous " beggar's petition." Both, at least indirectly,
;say the English people and government the compli-
ment of attributing to them more of Christian for-
bearance than they have shown themselves to be
animated by.
His eminence Cardinal Wiseman is eulogistically
noticed in the pontifical petition. Nevertheless it
looks as if PIO NoNo did not entirely trust him; as
if his holiness feared he had made the CARDINAL too
great a man to rely upon his gratitude. The POPE,
in fact, declares by this manifesto that he cannot rely
upon the fidelity of his hierarchy in England unless
they receive an Italian garrison among them. The
preaccted church of " St. Peter's in London," is to be
ahrays governed by a congregation of Italian secular
priests, founded at Rome, that the Roman spirit may
always influence the same." The priests of " St.
Peters, London " are, in fact, to be permanent spies
upon the conduct of the English Roman eatholics in
the interest of the Roman court.
This is but carrying on the game that has been
played by the rulers of the Romish church from the
first attempt to reform it at the Council of Constance
down to the present day. In the time of LUTHER,
and in the time of his great precursors, the necessity
of reform was admitted within the Romish church
by learned doctors and wealthy and powerful pre-
lates everywhere but in Italy. The wily tactics of
HILDEBRAND, by constituting the College of Cardi-
nals the electors and permanent council of the
Pore, had made the church of Rome a mere rotten
borough. All power was vested in the Italian
prelates ; the tribute of all kingdoms subject to the
Romish see flowed into the Roman treasury. The
Italian hierarchy saw as clearly as the more en-
lightened and patriotic of the prelates of France,
Germany, and England, the benefits that would
seam from a reform of the church ; but they also
saw that such a reform would place the clergy
beyond the Alps on a footing of equality with them-
selves. They hazarded the very existence of their
church to perpetuate their Roman close borough
system. They have only partially succeeded; even
those countries of extra-Italian Europe which have
remained in communion with the Romish church,
now withhold their tribute, as the empty Papal ex-
chequer, insufficiently replenished from Italy alone,
can tell' To bring back the times when " PETER'S
pence" flowed from every country of the western
world to Rome, is now the great aim of the
Romish court. To this end it first flattered the
English Roman catholics by affecting to give them a
more national clergy; and now it seeks to avail itself
of their gratitude by inviting their acquiescence in
the establishment of a collegiate church in London
to be "always governed by a congregation of Italian
priests, founded at Rome, that the Roman spirit may
always influence the same."
The English Romanists, lay and clerical, must be
submissive indeed, if they do not somewhat resent
the distrust of their fidelity implied in the proposal
to establish among them a church which is always
to be "influenced by the Roman spirit." But what
will the Irish Romanists say to the blunder of the
Archbishop of FLORENCE, who, with a knowledge of
history, only to be paralleled by Archbishop
LEN'S knowledge of astronomy, maintains that Great
Britain was called, before the Reformation, " the
island of the saints?" It is but scurvy gratitude to
Ireland, for its devotion to the Romish see, to
rob it of its most cherished title; and what is
worse, confer that title on the island of the haughty
Sassenagh.
" The Holiness of our lord" appeals to "the charity
of Italian believers, and the zeal of the bishops of
Italy." His confidence in the zeal of the one and the
'charity of the other does not, however, appear to be
very great. For to ensure their contributing from
all Italy the sum of 6,6001. sterling, he is obliged to
offer an enormous bribe. "His HoLisiess himself,
by his rescript to the holy congregation for
propagating the faith, dated March 9th,
1831, has granted an indulgence of one hundred
days to whomsoever shall contribute any alms to
the end." Why in the states of the church alone
there arc brigands enough to bring together 6,6001.,
and repay themselves abundantly for the outlay by
the harvest of the hundred days. Surely at such a
prise a much larger sum might be obtained, more
nipsially as it is " Italy, for whose advantage the
wok is principally undertaken."
And yet, though the Protestants of England have
nobribes of "plenary indulgences" to offer, did it rest
with us, we might be disposed to offer terms to his
Holiness to consent to his causing as many ettareirre
to be built and endowed in England as be ass tin
army in Italy to pay for the building and endowing
• provided he consents to the build and endowing
des many churches in the Papal sides as the pre-
WOMB el England can Woo mow to build and
We, Ibere.

THE Ecclesiastical Titles Bill, as amended in com-
mittee, is a shade more trenchant than ministers
appear to have wished. And for this we have to
thank nobody but the English and Irish members,
who have been most eager and indefatigable in their
opposition to it.
The policy of any considerable number of members
leaving the house in a pet has been in bad repute
ever since the Fox wings tried it. In the first place,
every body laughs at it, because every body knows
that the gentlemen marching out in dignified
dudgeon have nothing for it but to come sneaking
back in a day or two at furthest. In the second