The Sun.
London, England, 1839-07-17 00:00:00

EV,FNING EDITION.

r
I . ;I .11-ON.

GREAT CATHOLIC MEETING,

A meeting of those professing the Catholic religion
was summoned by public advertisement on Monday at the
Freemasons' Hall, for the purpose of expressing the
views of that body with regard to National Education.
This was the first public Catholic meeting of the kind,
( which has been convened in this Metropolis for some
centuries ; and the occasion naturally excited an extra-
ordinary degree of interest. The Hell was crowded
with a highly respectable audience, long before the
hour appointed for taking the Chair. The galleries and
a reserved space under the platform, were filled with an
assemblage of ladies, such as we scarcely ever remember
seeing at a meeting—for the elegance of their attire and
the beauty of their appearance. Admirable regulations
had been adopted for the preservation of order, by ail.
mitting none who had not tickets , and the object of
the meeting being to express the views of the Catholics
alone. the arrangement was certainly no more than fair.
Shortly before one o'clock, immense and reiterated
cheering announced the arrival of Mr. O'Connell, who
was shortly after fbllowed by the Hon. Charles Lang-
dale M.P., and a number of Gentlemen distinguished
for character and influence among the body to which
they belong. The platform was crowded with Roman
Catholic Clergymen, and other influential members of
their Church. On the motion of Mr. Wheble, the
Hon. C. Langdale was voted into the Chair by aecla.
oration ; and on the motion of Mr. O'Connell, Mr. Clint
was unanimously elected Secretary for the day.
The SECRETARY, at the suggestion of the Chairman,
proceeded to read letters of apology from distinguished
individuals, unable to attend. The first was from the
Rev. Dr. B tines, who expressed his gratification that
the Catholics were at length coming forward to vindi-
cate their religion from the shameful misrepresentations
which had been promulgated respecting it ; and also
expressed his hearty concurrence in the resolutions which
were to be submitted to the meeting, and which, indeed,
he 'considered as a collection of truisms—as, that educa-
tion was preferable to ignorance—that morality and re-
ligion should form an essential part of any system of
national education—that the true religion must benefit
by the education of all ranks—that the Established
Church had no right to arrogate to itself the control
of the education of those who did not belong to it—and
that the attempt to exclude the Catholics from the be-
nefits of the Government grant for education was an in-
!tepee of intolerance on the part of the Church for which
It should be ashamed. There were letters from the Earl
of Shrewsbury, who would have presided, hail he not
found it impossible to attend ; from Sir E. Vavasour
arldCootable - Maxwell, Esq. (Everingham); from A.
L.
T. Phillipps, Esq., of Grace Dieu Manor, the Hon. C.
Clifford, R. Berkeley, jun., Esq., E. Blount, Esq.,
and from the Rev. Dr. A. Scott, Vicar-Apostolic, of the
Western District of Scotland, which is as follows—ad-
dressed to the Secretary, and dated July 9 :
" The principles asserted in the resolutions are just and
applicable to every part of Great Britain : but there is
Part of Great Britain where education is conducted
in a way so hostile to Catholic principles as in the
gauntry parts of Scotland, among the poor Highlanders
Particularly.. There are belonging to my district, and
under my charge in Inverness-shire alone, about 13,000
Catholic souls. They are, with very few exceptions, of
the poorest class. They are the descendants of those
unfortunate men who joined the standard of Prince
Charles Stewart in 1745 and 1746, and IN ho were coin-
Pletely spoiled of all their worldly goods by the army of
the then Duke of Cumberland, which remained in that
part of the country long after the battle of Culloden.
shall here quote the respective populations of Catho-
nes and Protestants (or rather Presbyterians) in some
of the parishes where the Catholics reside, such as it
stood in
.the months of January and February this. year,
when
sold population was carefully taken up by the
Catholic Clergymen in these missions

Catholic Protestant
opulation. Population,
In the Island of Barra there were P 1,684
to the Islands of South Uist and 293
Benbecula, forming one parish 5,087
In Arisaig, part of the parish of
Ardnamurchan.l,2l 3
I Moidart, part of the new parish
of Acharacle, detached from
, Ardnamurchan 1,049 106
In Knoydart, part of the parish of
Glenelg
In North Morar, also part of the 943
parish of Gleneig 532
re the old parish of St. Cyril, now
part of the parish of Kilmavig... 989

10,497 2,319 " There are other missions in the same country bearing
n
ear:), the same proportions of Protestants and Catho-
lics, but which it is needless here to set down. The few
I have mentioned will be sufficient to show the
light the poor Catholics have to edt.:ation without in-
2tferina.' with their religious principles. They are so
Places I have mentioned, or elsewhere, a Catholic school-
master for the Catholic population. The few among
them who do get some education are obliged to attend
the Presbyterian schools. solely under the direction of
the Established Clergy. In the Appendix to the Fourth
Report of the Commissioners for Inquiring into the
State of Religious Education in Scotland, will be found
the regulation which the teachers of th ese schools are bound
to follow. It is the Scotch edition of the authorised Pro-
testarkt version of the Bible, which is the principal school
book. That edition contains at the end of it the Psalms,
Parapihrased in metre, such as are sung at divine service,
as part of their worship, in the Presbyterian churches,
and which the children at school are obliged to commit
to memory. It also contains some paraphrases on texts
of the New Testament, which the children are also
oblige' to learn by heart. It is not, therefore, the Bi-
ble without note or comment which is the school book
in Scotland. These, paraphrases contain anti-Catholic
doctrithe, such as the following words on the institution
of the blessed Eucharist :

And after thanks and glory given,
To him that rules in earth and heaven,
Thal symbol of his flesh he broke,
And thus to all bis followers rpoke.'
" I shall here quote two or three instances of the
!"Peative numbers of Catholic and Protestant children
In the Presbyterial; schools as they stood in the beginning
°T Februi,,,Ty last :

oest.
In Airaig Protestant school Ca
5 thslics. Pr
1 ots
K
- nt•yda rt ditto
Parish of eet. Cyril, ditto
si
I need not here quote more instances. Of course,
Protestant
are everywhere in proportion to the Catholic and
Population.
48 I can prove everything I have stated in this
etter, if thought proper, I authorise you or any other
P`erson at th meeting to make any public use of the
Information Isere given, that may be considered prudent
Or coming vv.ithin the intentions of the meeting.
" I have Cm honour to he very respectfully, Sir, your
most obediet it humble servant,
" lee ANDREW SCOTT, Vic Apostolic.'
es,,Th_e SECRI',TARY then stated that he had applied
.to
0'7,• (Irene, the Secretary to Exeter-ball—(Loud ere s
• Oh, 911")--for the use of that place ; but had rc-
ejped an ansisser informing him that the attendance of
Very
etors at the Board which next met, having been
beery seantY, the consideration of the application had
`e° adieueeed to the succeeding Board-d ty, which
vvnuld
be
Nose Ole 13th instant (Saturday), too late, of
(He , whets the meeting was for Monday morning.—
ar, hear.) Subsequently, however, he had received
4letter aslf:ing if the meeting were the Catholic one,
eertised for the 15th, and stating that if so, it would,
course', be unnecessary to bring the appli-
01,ti°n bcfore the Board.—(Loud cries of " Oh,
''.") He instantly wrote to Mr. Grano, re-
bquesting. that at least the Board would inform the
,Itholics J they might hal e
the use of the Hall in future,
ut he had received no reply.—( Hear, hear, hear.) He
mmade this c emmunication to account for there not having
een provid led a larger place to accommodate the vast
altitudes :whom he now saw crowded before him.
"(The H, Lll, indeed, was more densely filled than we
er witnessed it—hundreds were reluctantly compelled
to retire, aCter vainly endeavouring—in some cases for
°earl
Yas tisour, by every means—to obtain standing
, The Hon. CHAIRUAN, in rising to address the Meet-
leg, was rf tceived with loud and continued cheering. He
said it wa s with the utmost diffidence he presented him-
self in tl• fat important
man situation ; for when he saw so
Y ar',und him, distinguished for their abilities, and
Inuch Iset,ter qualified than himself for that station, he
?telt thatt he owed an apology to them for presuming to
eep3.. it. lie would not, however, detain them
Y any lengthened apology, from the important
question which was now brought under their con-
stideratins No subject could be more interesting
.leet"Y be ely of men, in any community, than the sub-
of f tdueetion —(Hear, hear, bear)whether our
interests in this world were considered, or our prospects
1 h the to tett• And if there was
.one community more
aoot her whom it became seriously to entertain this
1141P°rtant subject, it was the Catholic body.—(Hear,
ear')
t Ind if one class of Catholics could be dis-
,uriguished I from another, as having the most important
their, t° f, affil in respect to education, they are the Ca-
,ae of this country. (Cheers.) I trust that. in a
(--inse t/se 80 sacred as this, everything like a spirit of re-
on will be avoided, and that the subject will be
lie°ted 'ith candour, mildness, and temper.—(Cheers.)
ti:nwis°Bl, bound to acknowledge that sufficient provoca-
If ils"ad been given for adopting a very different tone :
th,"°Y W ere to imitate the example that had been set
da at a meeting not far from that place the other
-11
whie ' would
t yadopt a very different course to. that__
fe re_n ti.,ey were now pursuing. There was
this
eppeuee it
etween that meeting and the present : would
reP. sbe the true nature and character of error to
tei'sr`E're to be supported by violence, by calumny, and
11,14eentation.—(Cheers.) While on the other
peri, believed that truth was never brought home so
si,`l9tl)- to the human breast as when it was stated in
v "set Y.calmness,and charity towards their neighbours.
no eed that gentlemen upon the present occasion
•

soul' adopt 'hat tone. Raman Catholics eneld Nye
at% oi to tao gs..esous oil an oca asion iik the o.'sa t
(Great cheering.) He for one was willing to afford
pity and compassion to what he really believed to be
the misguided zeal of many of those who had I, t ered
calumnies against the Roman Catholics. He was wil-
ling to tender his forgiveness to what he was afraid he
must state to be malicious designs in others, "who ought
to know better.—(Cheers.) Ile lamented deeply the
impression that had been made upon the community at
large upon this most important subject. He must
acknowledge that a very strong feeling had been pro-
duced not only upon the subject of education itself, but
in a direct and especial manner against the Roman Ca-
tholics of this country. He lamented this because be
honoured and respected the character of the people of
England.—(Great cheering.) Their honesty and their
true simplicity rendered them peculiarly liable to 'misre-
presentations of this description. He lamented this,
but he did not apprehend it. He did not apprehend
any dangar from this to the Roman Catholic cause in
this country. It might be well for others to
say that their religion was endangered, and within a
trifle of being destroyed, but the Roman Catholic
religion fortunately was founded upon stronger grounds,
and in spite of all the efforts of its enemies, in spite of
all their calumnies and misrepresentations, whether in
this or any other country, every Catholic knew his re-
ligion was secure.—(Great cheering.) He believed
more than this. He believed that attacks of this
description, so far from being an injury to the Catholics
of England, would ultimately end in increasing their
strength.—(Great cheering.) He believed if they
looked for a moment to the past course of the history of
this country, they would find such to have been
the result of similar attempts. Could any man doubt if
the great cause of Catholic Emancipation had been
granted in the first instance, that the prejudices against
it, however great they were at first, would have re-
mained had it not been for the repeated debates and
struggles on that great question? He held that the
Society which had been established by their enemies,
which was intended to produce a new era in the Re-
formation of this country—he believed that that Society
had done more to increase the ranks of the Roman
Catholics than any measure that could be re-
ferred to in past days. He was satisfied if they
were to follow up the steps of those itinerant
orators who emanated from Exeter Hall, they would
find that numbers of Catholics had sprung up at every
step of their journey. This was a necessary consequence
of misrepresentation. It might have the effect of ex-
citing the zeal of some ignorant people, who were not
capable of distinguishing the truth ; but calumny had
always this effect. The discovery of one misrepresen-
tation led to the detection of another. He was satisfied
many people who had heard others talk of the Roman
Catholic faith had adopted it in consequence of the
attack that had been made against it by its enemies.—
(Cheers.) Such as had been the case hitherto would
be the case on the present occasion, and as a proof
of that he could not do better than appeal to the ap-
pearance of the present meeting.—(Cheers.) From
whence was it that efforts like the present arose? Why,
in consequence of the attacks that were meant to op-
press and destroy them.--(Cheers.) It was only that
day twelve months that another important Association
had been established solely for the purpose of guarding
them against the attacks of their enemies.--(Cheers.)
Similar results would arise from similar causes ; and on
the present occasion he believed, as well as in all other
cases, its rise would only appear the more beautiful and
brilliant from the mists and misrepresentations that
had obscured it.—(Cheers.) Without detaining the
meeting any longer upon this subject, he would conclude
with this observation, that as he trusted there was no-
thing in the resolutions that were about to be proposed
that could afford just offence to any individual whatever,
so lie hoped that gentlemen who were about to address
the meeting wouldall)w the same tone to pervade their
speeches, and while, as they would be justified, the
spoke with indignation of the false imputations that had
been cast upon the Catholics, while they boldly, and
manfully, and firmly upheld the truth of the principles
they professed, they would do so without any attempt
at recrimination against their enemies, who had
so often maligned them.—(Cheers.) He trusted the
present meeting would form a contrast—a most amiable
and charitable contrast, to meetings that have been called
in a Hall not very far distant from where they stood.—
(Cheers.) Trusting the observations he had made
would be kindly received by those to whom they were
addressed, and believing that a tone of impartiality
would pervade the whole discussion, he would now call
upon Mr. Jones, of Lanarth, to propose for the accept-
ance of the meeting the first resolution.—(Cheers.)
Mr. JONES on coming forward was most warmly
cheered. He had great pleasure in proposing the first
resolution, which was to the following effect :-
Ist. That, considering the manifest and manifold advantages
of education to all classes and ranks in the State, we highly ap-
prove of a Grant of Public Money out of the produce of the
public revenues for the erection of Schools, and the promotion
of knowledge amonpt the universal people.
He was quite certain that such a resolution would be
approved of by the whole meeting and carried unani-
mously.
Mr. MACARTHY seconded the resolution. If the
Chairman had accused himself of presumption in ad•
dressing a meeting like the present, with how much
greater weight and truth would that accusation apply
to him. He felt that he ought to apologize to the
meeting for addressing it, but his excuse must be the
animation he felt in the great and holy cause they were
met that day to forward. He was a stranger comparatively
among them—he came from the country—but it was
right that the voice, however still and small, should be
heard, come from what distance it might. Although
he appeared there the humble advocate of Catholicism
as connected with education, he was the Treasurer to a
Protestant establishment in the town in which he dwelt.
—(Cheering.) He felt that he laid himself open to the
charge of having done more than his duty, but living as
he did in a town where there was no chance for promul-
gating Catholicism, he thought it best to do all he could
to found an Establishment where children might edu-
cated. He succeeded in so desirable an object, and the
result had been that a school had been established for
sixty children.--(Cheers.) He had become attached to
the town, he thought it to be his duty to advance the
interests of the poor of that place, as far as
laid in his power, and education he felt was
the best means of bettering their condition.—(Cheers.)
Although he was not attached to the orthodox doctrine
himself, he considered it would be better to afford edu-
cation upon its principles to the poor than give them no
education at all, because by that means he felt convinced
the bandage would be removed from their eyes, and they
would in future times be able to judge for themselves,
and the truth of Catholicism being made open to their
minds, would find the way to their hearts. It had been
wisely stated by the Chairman that they should not
take the part of controversialists ; he would rather imi-
tate the example of the Divine Founder of their Creed,
who,when called upon by the Lawyer to declare the road
to Heaven said, " Love God above all thine-s, and your
neighbour as yourself." Thee, said they Lawyer,
" Who is that neighbour ?" The answer was,
" Not the Catholic, not the Jew, but the Good
Samaritan, who poured oil and wine into the wounds of
the afflicted," by which means he proved that he believed
the true creed, and loved his God above all things.—
j
(Cheers.) Ile would now ust when to what had
taken place in the little town in which he lived. On a
recent occasion, the Bishop of London finding a Pro-
testant establishment with a Catholic treasurer, wrote
a letter of indignation, desiring his removal ; he was
applied to to resign, and what was the answer that he
gave to that application? that his resignation should
take place only with his breath, because he considered
that had he yielded to the demand of the Bishop of
London, he should be giving furtherance to the prin-
ciples which he abhorred.—(Cheers.) A meeting was
convened, and the result was that instead of his removal
a vote of thanks was carried to him, for his zeal and
exertions in the cause of education. It was delightful
for him to be there as the advocate of education of a
universal character. In the town in which he lived he
should like to see the door of education thrown open to
the Catholic poor, hut there was no chance of it. He
had long admired Mr. O'Connell, and he was glad to
come forward on the present occasion to offer his mite
in praise of his great talent. The worthy gentleman
concluded by cordially seconding the resolution.
The CHAIRMAN then put the resolution to the meet•
ing, and declared it to be carried unanimously,
Mr. DILLON BROWNE rose, and said that he had ob-
' served with feelings of unmixed pleasure, that highly
influential and intelligent meeting, which was assembled
for what he conceived to be the most honourable pur-
pose—( Hear)—and what must be acknowledged by all
to be the first moral duty of man, to assert their reli-
gious independence.—(Cheers.) They came there for
that purpose, and that purpose alone ; they did not come
as others had come, to demand from the State any pe-
culiar privileges or Universities for themselves—they
came to assert the right of managing their own affairs.—
(Hear, hear.) They did not come for the purpose of
demanding the control over the religious education of
others, and for the purpose of demanding certain monies
taken out of the pockets of others, in right of that
control ; and above all, they did not come to make out
a title to the monies, whether they exercised the
control or not.—(Loud cheers.) They did not
come with that primitive apostolic spirit of humility
to pronounce themselves to be all that was most pure
and stainless and immaculate, while in the same spirit
of apostolic charity they pronounced their neighbours
(to be all that was unclean, spotted, and unrighteous.—
Hear, hear, hear.) They did not come for the pur-
pose of laying claims to peculiar orthodoxy and loyalty
for themselves, while they stigmatised their neighbours
with heresy,
'
infidelity, and disloyalty • to declare that
they themselves deserved
pecuroliarres
pect from mdanhas
they enjoyed peculiar favour f
their neighbours were all that wasp encet, an
hetfort
sightof unor
God
hy e
man, and unseemly in the
(Cheers.)
They assembled there that day for no such uncha-
ritable—for no such unholy purpose--they assembled
for the purpose of calmly discussing without ostentation
a sacred principle, and of meekly but firmly, and without
monopoly, assorting an inalienable right—the right
they had in religious matters to manage their own

:ante,