The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-11 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON,:

THE POPE AND THE PROTES.

TANTS IN ROME.
(From the Times.)
The first proceedings of the recent session were di-
rected against the encroachments of the Bishop 0: Rome
upon the national and ecclesiastical independence of
this kingdom; the last words of the same Parliament
were devoted to the practicability of Protestant worship
within the walls of Rome. The Pope treated England
as a heathen country; he abolished, as far as in him lay,
ell the historical sees of the land, created a pompous
hierarchy, sent a Cardinal to be enthroned at West-
minster, and has now decreed the erection of a new
cathedral, on a magnificent scale, in some conspicuous
part of the metropolis. The same Pope forbids alto-
gether the worship of God after the rites of the Eng.
lish Church within the walls of Rome, and condemns
our countrymen to the performance of Divine
service in a granary without the gates. At this
moment there stands a " Cathedral of St. George,"
in the borough of Southe ark; another " Cathedral of
St. Patrick" has been designed, we believe, for West-
minster; and a third "Metropolitan Church of St.
Peter " is now openly announced. To none of these
proceedings has any objection been taken by the Pro-
testant Government of England ; but, when a desire is
expressed of erecting a simple church for the use of
Englishmen sojourning at Rome, it is intimated that the
requisite permission will certainly be withheld, and that
no such design can be entertained.
The Romish churches of this kingdom are obviously
built for purposes beyond these of independent congre-
gational worship. There is already a superfluity 'of ac-
commodation, in the sense usually given to the phrase.
The edifices are designed and multiplied with a special
object of attraction, and with the evident view of ex-
tending the sphere of Romanism, to the proportionate
disparagement of other establishments. We are not as-
serting that this kind of " aggression" is unris h°te us
in principle or intolerable in practice. Within rea-
sonable bounds it is a proper duty of a religious com-
munity,
defined as s sincereity,norcanthe spiritofanpxrelesreylytfiosmr bwehiansrp
isunogoehd
when .
cvived to be the redemption of others. All we wish to
show is, that the representatives
moftore than the
the Pope in this
country are indulged in somethingmere
freedom of public worship. Though their whole system,
from the fact of its addressing itself to the external
senses, is essentially obtrusive, and though their parade
and ceremonial are offensive to the eyes and repugnant
to the traditions of Englishmen, they are not restricted
in the matter of gauds or gewgaws. They declare the
militant character of their Church,they marshal and ma-
noeuvre their forces, prepare their magazines, and con-
struct their strongholds exactly as they please, nor have
they bees checked in any thing except an experiment
which, if it was not an insidious aggression, was a piece
of empty arrogance. Yet, in the city of Rome, when
we come to request an indulgence which we so freely
grant, we are met with a direct refusal. Our
readers may, perhaps, be aware that a sum of
money has been recently collected for tho purpose
of building a place of Protestant worship accommodated
to the needs of our numerous countrymen residing or
sojourning at a city so remarkable as Rome. The exi-
gency of the case is manifest. At present, Englishmen
desirous of worshipping according to their own con-
sciences and the ritual of their country are driven
without the walls of the city, where they assemble in a
granary, destitute not only of becoming ornament but
the appliances of recognized decency. The funds are
now forthcoming for the erection of a convenient build-
ing within the precincts of the city, but, though no ap-
plication has yet been actually made to the Roman Go-
vernment, we are given very plainly to understand by
those hest acquainted with the subject that such applica-
tion would be altogether vain.
This practical contrast between Papists abroad and
Papists at home is far too instructive to be over-
looked or forgotten, There is no difficulty in com-
prehending the case. A Romanist, if he could
speak with sincerity and candour, would plainly aver
that whereas his religion was the true one and con-
ducted to salvation, it was to be promoted by all practi-
cable means; but that whereas others were false reli-
gions, and led to perdition, they were hardly to be tole-
rated without misdoing, and not to bo encouraged with-
out deadly sin. He wuuld further say that we had our
own principles, and they theirs; that, as we chose to pro-
claim toleration of creeds, it was competent to them to
avail themselves of the opportunity; but, as they recog-
nized no such liberty, we could prefer no demand in re-
turn. Each party is to act as it can. Papists in London
take the freedoms of Londoners; Protestants at Rome
must do as Rome does.

This is a fair description of the argument against us.
The reply to such pleas is, that it consists neither with
natural equity nor with the rights of man to recognise in
any mortals such an exclusive claim to divine in-
spiration and absolute infallibility. It is, of course,
a necessary consequence of religious sincerity
to conclude that other creeds are less true than
our own, and, in proportion as we maintain
the unity of such truth, we are led to seek and justify
various methods of propagation and conversion. But
here the maxim for our conduct is plainly this :—that we
have no title, as mortal men, on any pretence whatso-
ever, to assume such an authority for our own convic-
tions as would dictate compulsion towards the convic-
tions of others. We may exert our utmost endeavours
to propagate by peaceable and lawful means what we
hold to be saving doctrines, but we may do no more; we
must extend to others the consideration we claim for
ourselves, and leave the issue to an Allseeing Judge.
These are the principles by which the Romish Church
must be tried. It is the evil, as it is ulso the essence, of
that Church, not only to arrogate an exclusive posses-
sion of the truth, but to assert a right of promoting it
according to its own conceptions by any means, however
violent or unholy. Thus persecution, with all its bar-
barities, becomes a necessary tenet of Romanism. "It
is better," say the Papists, that a life should be taken
than that a tnousanti souls should bo lost." No doubt it
is; but the wickedness of the maxim consists in the
presumption that they are so qualified to pronounce on
the salvation of souls as to be invested with power over
the body.
Such is a plain exposure of the chief Romish argu-
ment, and the moral of the inquiry is obviously
that it is impossible to concede to such a faith that un-
limited toleration which, in common with other faiths,
it comes to demand. " Freedom of worship," in the
ordinary sense means nothing more than the power of
serving God according to conscience. " Freedom of
worship," in the Romish sense, moans the power of
proscribing or assaulting every other form of belief, as
circumstances may serve. It is the avowed duty of a
Papist not only to render certain service to hie Maker,
but to reject, con& mn, and if possible destroy, all who
render such service in any other manner. They them.
selves denounce toleration as the most heinous and deadly
of errors; and they theu come to us demanding to be
freely tolerated in the establishment of this intolerant
doctrine. They curse us for the very principle on the
ground of which they ask to be indulged. So aggressive
and exclusive is their spirit that, before they set up
their own hierarchy, they abolished ours as a
necessary preparation. They swept away, to the best
of their power and belief, every monument of eccle-
siastical organization itt this country; they proclaimed
a tabula rasa of all English and Welsh sees, and then
actually complained of intolerance because we would
not recognise the effigies which they set up in their
place! Cannot Lord Aberdeen see how utterly incon-
sistent it is with even the maxims of self preservation to
extend unconditional licence to a religious community
whose professed function is to treat all others as here-
tics, and all heretics as sinners to bo bodily controlled?
As regards the particular question just discussed, we
are not, of course, suggesting that a system of recipro-
city should be observed in our dealings with Rome. It
is not our duty as Protestants and Englishmen to debar
Roman Catholics from erecting churches, however offen-
sively they may refuse such a privilege in return. We
do think, however, that as circumstances stand, a direct
appeal should be made by our Government to the Court
of Rome for the permission at present so reasonably re-
quired. It would be advisable to got the practice of
Rome in this respect put upon open record in a catego-
rical answer to our demand. That the answer would be
a negative is likely enough, but this negative might be
serviceably published, and Christendom at large might
judge of the principles of a Bishop who claims the right
of organizing hierarchies in all foreign states, and forbids
the erection of a place of foreign worship in his own.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.
GREAT WESTERN.
It appears from the half-yearly statement of the re-
eeipts and payments of this company, which has just
been prepared by Messrs. Dickinson and Atkinson, the
auditors, and verified by Mr. Delvitte, tho accountant,
in anticipation of the meeting to be held at Bristol on
the 14th instant, that the expenditure during the half-
year has amounted to 162,486/ 17s. 10d., and the re-
cripts to 454,9214 7s. 2d., showing a balance upon the
half-year's revenue account of 292,4342 911. 4d.
Under the head of expenditure the following items
occur:-Maintenanee of way, stations, and works,
36.637/, ss. 5d.; locomotive account, including wages to
drivers, firemen, &c. 33,6041. 33,604/. 19s. 91; carrying account,
39,0641. O. 6d.; general charges, 19,934/, 1 ls. 6d.; Go-
vernment duty, 12,9361. Bs. 7d.; rates and taxes, 11,870/.
16s. 4d., &c.; the whole showing a per tentage on the
traffic of 35,7171. as against 40,731/. in the correspond-
jag half-year of 1850. The total traffic receipts amounted
to 438.833/. 13s. 6d., including passengers, 292,601/. 55.
2d.; carriages, horses, and dogs, 9,5521 15s. 9d.; mails,
expenses, &c., 11,4991. 7s. 4d.; merchandise, cattle, &c.,
106,6201. 12s. 10e1.; and parcels, 17.8211. 103. 7d. The
r, rosining receipts comprised 7,0501. for rent, from the
Bristol and Birmingham; 3,8631. Bs. 3d. for use of plant
by South Wales Company; and sundry small items for
interest on the cash balances, rent of property, cottages,
&c., and registration fees.
The
general stats779,n3t,9osshio.wsss.t3odta.;l
plus
seipatms uponount Ua
count of capital,
re-
ceived on debentures, loans, &e., 5,433,793/. 2s. 9d.,
giving gross total receipts of 14227,701/. Bs. The gross
payments amount to 14,084,3261. 18s., and comprise the
following items:-Amount paid to 31st December, 1849,
in respf et of Great Wo,:tern, Oxfird, Berke, and Banta,
Windsor, and other lines, and for locomotive steck,
10.407,773/. Os. Bd.; psyment:r on account of estimated
liabilities, 147,7611. 16s. 51; Oxford and Rugby Rail-
\""uy (opened to Banbury) 1,011,756/. 2s. 11d.; Wilts,
Soun-rset, and Weymouth Rail .ay (opened to Frame),
71,139/ 103. 7d.; 13irraingham and Oxford Railway,
;1(4101251. 55. 3d.; Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and
615 ,e,Y, ;Railway, 185,3031 7s. ; South Wales Railway,
Railway, 65'.465:10.0;(3(1.1..10,uce5ter and Forest of Dean Rail-
way, 29,425/. Is. 4d •
Wilts, Somerset, and Weymouth
South Devon, 232,708/. 4s. Bd.;
185,103/. 55. 7d.; Cheltenham and Oxttrd, Worce,ter,
eed Wolverhamptonoxterd Railway,
Railway,
68,557/. 163. 10d.
9; Cornwall Railway,s 12 031/. 7s. 7d;
Western Plymouth Great D0ck,9,5001.; New
15th
Locom oo -f.
tive Stock, under vote of proprietorsnow station at Pad-
"
of h
August, 1850, 25,3521. 19s. 5d.;
dingto, under similar vote of the 13th of February of,

the present year, 8,8151. Is. Altogether there is a
balance on this account of 1430374/ 10s.

The general revenue account shows a total of balances
on the credit; side of 342,0951 2s. Id., whilst the debtor
side exhibits payments to the amount of 118,765/. 9s. 7d.,
keying a disposable balance of 223,3291. 12s. 6d. The
dividend proposed is two per cent. for the half-year,
which, upon 8,212,0001. amounts to 164,240/. ; adding
to this, interest upon fixed Four and-a-Half per Cent.
stock, 9,1491. 3s. 3d.; we have a total of 173,389/. 35.3 d.,
which leaves a balance of 49,940/. 9s. 3d. to be carried
to the general revenue account.
The share capital of the company consists of
6,975,1001. consolidated stock; 69,700 17/. shares, all
called, 1,184,9301.; and 6,500 201. Windsor shares, with
8/. called, 52,0001.; making the total amount called on
which dividend is payable, 8,212,000/. Then there re-
mains the 12/. uncalled upon the 20/. Windsor shares
78,000/., making a total share capital of 8,290,000/.
The appendex contains some interesting statistics. It
appears that the total mileage travelled by locomotive
engines during the half-year ending June 30, 185],
was 975,210 miles, as against 903,508 miles in 1850, and
1,155,256 miles in 1849. The coke consumed in the last
half-year was 14,045 tons as against 13,010 tons in 1850,
and 17,414 tons in 1849. And the average cost of coke
was 20s. 6d. in 1851, 20s. in 1850, and 10s. 6d. in 1849;
the difference in consumption, therefore, will not make a
corresponding large decrease in the expense as compared
with 1849,