The Sun.
London, England, 1841-10-20 00:00:00

that such would be the case ; for though-I have described
the Irish priest as a political partisan, exercising
through his spiritual and temporal power an undue in-
fluence over his flock, I did not mean to say that such
a character was universal through the country, or to
doubt that amongst the priesthood might be found
numbers of excellent men who, though at present un-
able to resist the bad example given them by the more
turbulent of their order, would be happy to confine
themselves to the real spiritual duties of their ministry,
should circumstances permit them to do so, and who
would infinitely prefer receiving at the hand of Govern-
ment a regularly paid and sufficient stipend, to the more
irksome process of obtaining one, as they do now, by so-
licitation or threats."

We agree with the Noble Lord in supposing
that the Catholic clergy would not refuse to

accept the stipends. There never yet was a
priesthood which did not desire to be independ-
ent of their flocks, because they know that the
only diminution of their power arises from their
being obliged to levy contributions on their
votaries. Their spiritual power is wholly inde-

pendent of their incomes, and would be as great
when they were paid by the State, were
they to exert themselves, as when they were

paid by the people. To have munificent in-

- - -
comes, in addition to their spiritual influence—

to be enabled to relieve the wants of their poorer

communicants, instead of extorting fees from
them—would add the honours of opulence to the

dignity of the priesthood. If their wants
were provided for, they might become lazy,

and so lose their influence; but, as the
general run of men would not suspect them-
selves of falling into such a vice, no apprehen-
sion of losing influence from that cause could
_ _

exist, and the Catholic clergy would, we believe,
accept an income from the State, were one suffi-
ciently large offered them.
Such an opinion seems to prevail in Ireland,
where liberal politicians, who have hitherto been
much aided by the priests, obviously dread their
defection, should an offer be made by the Go-

vernment. In other Protestant States, such as
Prussia and Hanover, the Catholic clergy are

.Dilaricd by the state and if no better reason

could be assigned for not adopting the plan than
that the Catholic clergy would not accept the

stipends, it 'night with conf.•dence be intro-
duced into Parliament the first day that Parlia-

rent meets.

There is, however, one objection which Lord
ALVANLEY has overlooked, and which to us
seems stronger than those he has mentioned and
refuted. His Lordship has little acquaintance

with the people, however intimate may be his
knowledge of Clubs or of Parliament; accord-
ingly he takes no notice of the growth amongst
them of the Voluntary system, which is hostile
to the payment of any priest by the State.
At present the Voluntaries, as they are ealled,are
neither few nor powerless; the bulk of them are
Protestants, and their aversion to taking Catholic
priests into the pay of the State, and erecting
another dependent Church in Ireland, is, we
believe, insurmountable. All these are sincere
and earnest men, and no Government could
afford to increase the taxes on them, who pay
their own pastors, in order to pay the pastors a
another faith. It would be both an injury and
an insult, which would make the cup of their

grievances overflow.
Besides the Voluntaries, all the sincere Pro-
testants of the Established Church, bah in
England and Scotland, . would be decidedly
against paying the Catholic priests. They would
regard it as an abomination, and would fiercely
oppose it as a violation of their religion. The
journals of this party have already growled out
their disapprobation, and would speak in louder
tones, were Lord ALVANLEY'S project to be taken
up by any man of weight in the Administration.
We can assure all dandy politicians that there is
a growing seriousness and earnestness amongst
the people, which will insist on the principles
they embrace being carried out, and which will
not sacrifice what it conceives to be right in
order to conform to the theories of phrase-mak-
ing statesmen.
When the fierce Voluntaries (nearly ail the
Dissenters) are added to the whole of the Pres-
byterians, both in Scotland and Ireland, and to
the strongly religious and Calvinistic of the
Church of I.`tozlnd_ it will ho_ c.p_s*llLtilva t "Lhn
strongest objection to Lord ALVANLEY'S plan is,
that it is impracticable. If it. were practicab7e,
we think, speaking merely as politicians, that it
would not be desirable.
Lord ALVANLEY'S object in pr,)posing the
scheme, is to make the priests cease to be poli-
ticians, and to bring their spiritual influence on
the side of the Government. He has no doubt,
if they were well paid, that they would become
somewhat idle, and less troublesome than at
present. He probably adopts the philosophy of
HUME (we speak of Davin), and would pay the
Catholic priests in order to extinguish their
zeal. HUME'S opinion, when he lived and wrote,
was the reflection of the conduct of the English
clergy. They were then well paid, very indolent,
and troubled neither themselves nor their flocks
much about religion. But the clergy have
assumed a new character since his time ;. they
have broached new doctrines, becoMe great
sticklers for observances, and, so far as is com-
patible with the mild manners of the age, are
furious zealots. The Church has had a revival,
and at present is the guide, if it be not the mas-
ter, of the State. The exertions and lives of the
Dissenters began to seduce the flocks from the
clergy, their flesh-pots were threatened, and the
very revenues which it was supposed would lull
them into indifference, became the incentives to a
new and harrassing zeal. Avarice strengthened
bigotry and Enaticism. Hum-es doctrine, in fact,
is only true where Dissent is not rife ; and Lord
ALYANLEY, by adopting it when Dissent and
Establishments are struggling for the mastery,
has come to a very worthless conclusion.
-What, under this aspect, would be the conse-
quences of taking the Catholic priesthood into
the pay of the State ? Ere long suspicions would
arise in the minds of their flocks. Then would
appear some ambitious and, perhaps, envious
men, who did not get a share of the emoluments,
and they would encourage and strengthen the
suspicions. It would soon be said and believed
that no Catholic priest could be expected to
speak the truth whose bread depended on a Pro-
testant Government, and very soon, in spite of
excommunication, there would be in Ireland a
considerable body of Dissenters. A new set of
priests, more . zealous than the stipendiaries,
paid by voluntary contributions, would soon sup-
ply the place of those who had been bought over,
and would barrass the State like the present race.
The paid priesthood would in turn see their .sala-
lies and influence threatened, and love of worldly
pelf would strengthen their desire for spiritual
dominion. As in the case of the clergy of the
Church of England, avarice would soon inflame
wouldzeal 4rlasit:edupoafn
opt
hr oe dr uscei
tn g
of
priestsindifference,
to and
share
hare
the gifts. However much they maddened the
people, they too must be bribed or
like
that of the Emperors in Shebought off.
something Lord ALVANLEY'S policy is
decline
Rome, whose mode of buying
off ff the
baor-f
bar-
barians and takingsonne
le of them e
mior numerous
into the ser.
to
vice of the State,
only
e
hordes penetrate into the empire
bribes, and enrich themselves by its sproticles.lv its
The suffering people ;ill perceive from the
readiness of Lord ALVANLE7, in despite of the
''state of the finances," to apply the public
money to his crotchet—regarding it as a case of
such urgent necessity, that he is willing, "ap-
parently, to risk a national bankruptcy to achieve
it; suffering people will see in this conduct
how little they are thought of by Members of the
g people,
to talk with
an empty fitTopArpienrg, theHo use.lf the Exchequer were
projectover-
would be contemptible ; but
wit
encieteleerssaintyd
oaf
star vitakingn
Catholic
priests' into the pay of the State is a sad mockery
of thep ty
urgentExch
of the national sufferings. . It is, however, of a
piece with Sir Ti.- PEEL'S attention to ventilating
the Rouses of Parliament, and his attention to
the plan for the encouragemnt of the art of
painting some fifty thousand square feet of wall
by eminent artists, and with schemes. for pro=
teotiug 'the Greek Church in the East, or of
consecrating a Protestant Bishop of Jerusa-