The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-05 00:00:00

,1*- bele-fling

LONDON, MONDAY, APRIL 5, 1847.

No man in his senses would dream of giving a
shilling for the sermon recently written and published
by the Bishop of EXETER, nor even for any discourse
which he might now-a-days be disposed to indite. It
is confidently asserted that the greater portion of the
late publication will shortly be to be had in the
market at the usual price of waste paper, and that
the whole of it would have shared the same fate, had
not a few friends of the Bishop purchased some copies,
with the view of diminishing the hazard of increased
injury to his reputation, which the atrabilious Dio-
cesan has untowardly incurred by rushing into
print, and so extending the knowledge of his freak
beyond the immediate precincts of the pulpit. Had
the Prelate's friends not been exceedingly limited in
number, and very deficient in energy withal, this
benevolent scheme might have been fully carried out.
It appears, however, not only that HARRY of Exeter
has not many friends, but that some persons, who are
represented to be evilly-disposed towards him, have
actually bought sundry copies, determined that the
public should cot be ignorant of the episcopal frailties
of the Right Reverend PHILLPOTTS. But, after
all, it is not quite clear to us that these
latter purchases have been effected with the
bad intention imputed. May it not be that
the Bishop's real design has been more truly
fathomed by these parties, who have spared no pains
to give every notoriety to the sermon in question,
than by those who were, in the first instance, dis-
posed to suppress its publication altogether ? If it be
true that Bishop PUILLPOTTS feels acutely for the dis-
tresses of the Irish and Scotch—as any person of
common humanity must—and if it be also true that
the Diocesan's means have become severely restricted,
in consequence of the munificent extent to which he
has carried his eleemosynary contributions, in every
shape, ever since the acceptance of the mitre was re-
luctantly forced upon him, so much so that he
found himself unable to subscribe to the Relief Fund
in any way proportionate to his desire, or correspon-
dent to his high position—may it not very well be
that, in an indirect, but, at the same time, in a shrewd
and singular manner, he was anxious to second the
charitable effort of the Mayor of Exeter and of a
great proportion of the aristocracy of Devonshire ?
Can any one doubt that the ball, which is to come off
on the 6th inst., will be far more fully attended, by
reason of the profound diplomacy of Bishop Plum,
roTTs, than if he had never anathematised it ? and if
the Subscription Rooms should be thronged, and the re-
ceipts be unexpectedly large, to whom will the patrons
on the one hand, and the indigent and suffering on the
other, be indebted, if not to Harms- of Exeter ? May
not, then, the Mayor of Exeter be guilty of having mer-
cilessly castigated the very man who, of all others,
actually foresaw how much good he could effect by
offering himself up as a temporary victim to the
odium of the unreflecting multitude ?
Clearly, Mr. W. DENIS MooRE has not acted under
any such impression in regard to the conduct of the
Bishop ; and we freely concede that, if the Mayor was
right in the view he took of the Bishop's proceeding,
never was a sounder thrashing more meritedly, or more
masterly administered than the one he has given to
the redoubted PHILLFOTTS. We presume, indeed,
that the Mayor was bent upon making the inter-
meddling Bishop sensible of the full force of one
part of his sermon, where he has indited,—" it is
good for us that we be afflicted—it will be good for
us, that we still be made to feel what worms,
we are—what mere shadows we pursue !"—and every
one will admit that the Mayor, convinced that cucrl-
ins non
.facit mmachum, has completely effected his
purpose. But we are strongly of opinion tha't the
Mayor has not done justice to the Prelate's conduct,
and that he has altogether mistaken his motive- It is
quite true that he has palpably convicted the', illus-
trious divine of having previously sanctions 1 a ball
just as earnestly as he has denounced the forf.hcoming
one ; and it is equally true that the Bis.}lop would
have acted more in conformity with the Wmiable and
Christian-like qualities with which every minister of
religion, high and low, is supposed. to be aid-
, mated, by privately, and in due season, Undering his
advice, and stating to the promoters of the charitable
design his existing objections against it, than by
bounding off, as he did, to the pulpit currente
edam° ; but then it should be rerriembered, on the
other hand, that the Bishop is not deficient in
memory, and must therefore have, been prepared for
an assault upon the inconsistenuy of his conduct at
different times ; and again, it must be borne in mind,
that if the Bishop had quietly remonstrated with the
Mayor and his benevolent associates in the way sug-
gested, it might have led to the abandonment of the
project to which the Bishop himself was, nor is, not
really averse. Had Dean SWIFT done what 'TARRY
of Exeter has, everybody would have understood the
joke ; but as this is the first time in his life that the
Right Reverend PHILLPOTTS has ever done a face-
tious thing, no one seems inclined to give him
credit for a very artful stroke of humour.
We believe, however, that we have rightly inter-
preted the Bishop's policy, and it is no mean addition
to the discoveries of the nineteenth century to learn
that Halms- Purr.LroTTs is really a very witty man.
The Bishop may console himself with the reflection
that many who are chuckling over his prostrate con-
dition will soon perceive the " very grievous error of
their judgment," and do all in their power to miti-
gate his present sufferings. For ourselves we should
certainly rejoice at such a revolution of sentiment,
and to evince how earnestly we wish him well, we will ,
give a slight hint, calculated to be of great service to
him in future, which is—never again to attempt a
wrestle with the Mayor of Exeter.

It is with considerable pain that we have again to
direct the public attention to the objectionablf: tone
antemperate language made use of in a series of
resolutions
Catholic clergymen
adopted at a meeting of certair. Roman
last. Those reverend held
at Westport, on Tuesday
agerntilernen, whose especial duty
it is, as ministers of
the angry passions and togieeanl of peace to assuage
irritation that
might exist among the people onif whom
e th
appointed pastors, forgetful of theiorms
whomit
profes-
sion, strive to excite and madden those
and destitution render too prone to listen mt isery
such suggestions. We have already pointed ooutanty°
those persons the injurious tendency of sue h language.
how little it is calculated to attain the desired objects,
and its probable effect on many who have readily and
to the utmost of their power contributed to alleviate
the wants and mitigate the sufferings of their Irish
brethren. Vituperation and abuse is Ind a sorry re-
turn for the gigantic efforts made by all classes in
this country, from the peer to the peasant.. The Govern-