The National Register.
London, England, 1808-07-17 00:00:00

454

L REGISTER.

JULY 17.

cannot enter into any offensive and defensive league, which
would, by a permanent and progressive system, drag him into
hostility against all those powers upon which ills Majesty may
think proper to make war ; since the Italian States, now de-
pendent upon his Majesty, can never as lid taking part in such
t; ars. His Holiness would consequently be obliged to become a
party in them by virtue of this league. Such an engagement
must begin to be acted upon by the Pope from this moment, and
aeainsf any Catholic Prince ; thus waging war agaitet him with-
out a motive. Farther, it must be waged against all dime
powers, w hether Catholic or not, who may, upon whatever
grounds, be the enemies of any La:ian Prince.
" Thus is the Head of the (hurch, accustomed as he is to rule
his estates in peace, drVen in a moment to a state •%f warfare,
offensive against hostile powers, and defensive of the othere
This engagement is too r' pugnant to :he:tiered duties of his Holi •
'less. and too injurious to the interests of religion, to be entered
into by the head of that r. ligion. His Holiness feels that it would
be a dereliction of truth, to enter into the league : he would
announce, by such a res Mitre his refusal of any accommodation
any peace with the Fin: eror, and would even declare hostilities
agaisst him. How con' dit ever be supposed, that his Holiness
should he capable of declaring war against any power ? He has
long been enduring the most h')stile treatment, and is therefore
prepared to endure the thri a erred loss of his temporal dominions.
" Heaven is witness of the purity of his Holiness's intentions,
and the world will judge if it was possible to have conceived so
extraordinary a scheme. Ataleatly•desiring to compromise, and
to be in peace with his Majesty. he manifested, in his Note
the '..2Sth of .lanuar) last, his compliance, as far as it was possi-
ble to comply ; his Majesty, however, does not practise all those
condesceusions, which he might practise towards the holy See;
he persists inflexibly in demanding what his Holiness neitl!er cal
nor will accede to, namely. in binding him to a war, and to a
perpetual and tSugressive war, uot!er the pretence of securing the
tranquillity of Ilals . What can Italy have to tear, if his Huli
ness 11041 nut enter into the proposed league ?
" Surrouneed as the Papal Dominiees are by those of his
Majesty, no rational fear could be entertained but of the Potts ;
yet his Holiness having offered to shut them during the present
war against the enemies of France, and to ;amid the coast, he
thus proposed to contribute as far as was in his power, without
betrasine his sacred duties, to the security and tranquillity of
Italy. If. in spite of all this, his Majesty shall take possession,
as he has threatened, of the Papal Dominions, respected by all,
even the most powerful monarchy, during a space of ten centu-
ries and upwards, and shall overturn the Government, his Holi-
ness wifl be unable to prevent this spoilation, and can only, in
hitter affliction of heart, lament the evil which his Jlajesty
N ill
commit in the sight of God ; trusting in whose protection, his
Holioess will remain in perfect tranquillity, enjoy ing the con-
sciousnass of not has ing brought on this disaster by imprudesre
or by obstinacy, hut :a preserve the independence of that Sove-
reignty ss him' lie ought to transmit uninjured to his succeseore
as he received it ; and to maintain in I.; integrity that conduct
may secure the universal concurrence of all Princes, 59
weessary to the welfare of religion. For this fldelits to his
eteeed ditties, his Holiness will receive consolation from the
wor is of his Divine Master, ' Blessed are they who are perseetthi
for righteousness' sake.'
" With respect to the article relating to the dismissal of the
Cardinals, his Holiness, in the complaints alleged, had no need
of examining the principle of their allegiance. Presuming on
that freedom sv hick the rights of nations allow to every man, to
live under that sky which is most congenial to him ; presuming,
an that new allegiance acquired by the domicile of many year.,
his Holiness remarks, that primitive allegiance cannot avail
against the sacred ()lineations undertaken by the Cardinals in
:he Church of ('ml, the oaths they take on receiving the purple.
and their eminent office of Councillors to the Sovereign Pontiff
in-his spiritual concerns ; and that, therefore, they cannot be
torn from his bosom.
" With resard to the cessation of the functions of the i egate,
and to his departure, his Holiness could hardly have t7i,cett:d
they would have been attrihnted to the Motives assigned in
M. Champignvss Note. His Holiness will repeat them once
more. After having tried every method to recall his Majesty to
his previous sentiments towards the Papal See, and to concert
the desired reparation of so many religious innovations; after
having endured, for such a length of time, with unsuhdued pa-
tienee, and with unalterable meekness, so many outragesewn-
and
insults; after having seen how fruitless. were all the
r
, strances urged against the hostile proceedings of the French*

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