The Sun.
London, England, 1851-05-01 00:00:00

a moment be tortured into a revival of the obsolete
system. But does the Bill now before Parliament
bear that character ? Most decidedly not. It merely
prevents persons from assuming titles illegally con-
ferred. There is no clause prohibiting others
from addressing them by those titles, or
against the exercise of real and substantial
authority by themselves. The limitation which only
permits the Attorney-General to put the machinery
of the law in motion, would prevent any vexatious
proceedings, so that the Act would practically re-
main as we have long since described it, a mere
brutum fulmen. The Roman Catholic party, however,
would desire to drive from office a Ministry who
have adopted this moderate course, the necessary re-
sult of which would be to bring in their competitors,
who would make much more stringent pro-
visions placing the party at the mercy of
any common informer, and permitting his
deportation on a second, and his transportation on a
third conviction. The folly, the insanity of this
course has been so admirably depicted by Mr. Ser-
geant MURPHY on the hustings at Cork, that we
shall only refer to the opinions of the Learned Gen-
tleman, which we trust may be maturely considered
by the Roman Catholic party throughout the entire
kingdom before they sanction or recommend a course
that must be productive of the most injurious results
to the cause of liberality in general, but by which
they themselves will necessarily become the chief
sufferers.

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC.

We have received the Paris papers of yesterday.
The Moniteur announces that the Conservative can-
didate has been returned at the election of a member
of the Councils. General, at Chateau, Laudon, and
likewise a Conservative as Mayor, at the Vallou, in
the Sarthe.
Ihe Constitutionnel, the Dibats, and the Bulletin de
Paris, insist on the authority of the sanguinary paper,
published by the Presse, and signed "Central Com-
mittee of Resistance." More that 2,000 copies of this
incendiary manifesto have been seized in Paris, and
likewise several at Lyons, and numerous arrests made
in both cities. The Republican journals declare this
paper, in which the people are told they must strike
without mercy, and must meet resistance with fire
and sword, to be a fabrication.
The Members of the extreme Left have issued a
proclamation to the people warning them against in-
surrection and enteutes, for disturbances would serve
the purposes of those who want to upset the Consti-
tution. They promise at the same time that any at-
tampts at changing the Constitution by the Assembly
will be met with the most energetic resistance on the
part of the Opposition, and indicate pretty broadly
that in case of Parliamentary failure they will call on
the people at large and put themselves at their head.
The Constitutionnel, the Cabinet organ, opposes the
claim put forward by Government on behalfof JEROME
BONAPARTE for his arrears of pay as a general of di-
vision since the revolution.

The Patrie sap of the much-talked of conversation
which lately passed between M. DE PERSIGNY and
General CHANG ARNIER--•

" The character of the visit of M. de Persigny to
General Cheagarnier has been so strangely misrepre-
sented by certain journals that we think it a duty to give
some explanations on the subject. M. de Persigny has
made no advances either official or non-official towards
General Changarnier. He simply went to thank him
for some kind communications made by the agency of a
person known for his devotedness to the general, and
whom he had reason to believe spoke correctly. M. de
Persigny, besides, explained that his visit was purely
personal, inspired by the remembrance of old relations,
and that he had not asked any advice on the subject
either of the President of the Republic, of the Ministers,
or any one whatever. As to what took place during
that interview we think it too delicate and too contrary
to ordinary usages to publish a conversation which took
place without witnesses. What we are authorised to
affirm is that M. de Persigny never made use of the ex-
pressions against the Assembly which have been attri-
buted to him."

In the Paris Bourse public securities fell considerably.
The Five per Cents. opened at 901. 60c., and closed
at 90f. sc. The Three per Cents. closed at 551.
55c.; Orlears Railroad Snares, 822 E 50c. ; Rouen,
6121. 50c.; Havre, 2501.; Great Northern, 4661. 25e.;
Avignon, 2001.; Vierzon, 4201.; Basle, 1361. 25e.;
Bourdeaux, 398 f. 75c. ; Paris and Strasburg, 3611. 25c.;
Tours and Nantes, 272 f. 50c.
BUSINESS DONE IN FOREIGN RAILWAYS AT THE
_o LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE, APRIL 80.
of Boulogne
W 4—
ulogne and Amiens, 9% Luxembourg, 3YB—Northern
Havre, 10,/s—Sam Orleans and Bordeaux, 374—Rouen and
Sambre and Meuse, 374—Tours and Nantes, 6.

GERMANY.
M. BANLaii, the new Ambassador from Spain to
the Court of Berlin, has been admitted to an audience
by the Kits°.
The Hesse Electoral question will be settled by
HASSENPFLUG. It is believed that the German
Governments have decided on not interfering in the
matter.

Count MAuEIcB DIETRICHSTEIN has left Vienna
for Faris, on, it is said, a very important mission.

pletion, more especially when the ardour evinced by
the people in its regard was shared in by our own
beloved SOVEREIGN and by the most distinguished
among the number of her Royal contemporaries.

The long expected aggregate meeting of the Roman
Catholics of Ireland came off on Tuesday at the Ro-
tunda. The meeting was numerously and respecta-
bly attended, and some persons who have not hitherto
taken an active part in public affairs shook off the
apathy they had previously exhibited, and were among
the most active of those concerned in getting up the
movement. Although we think that the parties are en-
tirely mistaken in the conclusions at which they ar-
rived, and that they viewed the matter in an erroneous
point of view, we willingly acknowledge their per-
fect right to protest against anything which they
may for a moment suppose to be intended as an in-
sult to their religion, or an aggression on the great
and sacred principle of civil and religious freedom.
The most sincere and conscientious Roman Catholic
cannot be more firmly attached to that glorious prin-
ciple than we have been, and we may venture to add
that we have given the most unequivocal proofs of
that attachment during a long series of years, when
its advocacy was not quite so fashionable as it
now is. We were among the most uncompromising
opponents, not only of the. Roman Catholic disabilities,
but of every restriction upon any class of her
MAJESTY'S subjects, upon the professors of any creed
or sect. We have ever believed that a man's religious
opinions were matters solely between himself and
his CREATOR. If erroneous, they might be corn-
batted by fair arguments, but not by persecution.
You might convince the reason, but you could not
coerce the judgment, and if it were desired to
strengthen any sect, or to obtain converts to any
tenets, a better system could not be devised for the
purpose than unloosing the demon of intolerance
and making and enforcing penal laws in relation
thereto. We, therefore, cordially concur in the first
resolution, that " the Homan Catholics of Ireland
have an undoubted right to the same full, free, and
unrestricted religious liberty which is enjoyed by
their fellow-subjects."
But has that liberty been assailed ? Have our
Roman Catholic brethren been subjected to any re-
striction or civil disability on account of their
opinions? or has the free exercise of their religious
rites and observances been in any degree inter-
fered with ? On these points we are alto-
gether at issue with the meeting. ln place
of regarding the Ecclesiastical Titles Assumption
Bill as " a gross and intolerable violation of reli-
gious liberty," we look upon it as a just and neces-
sary vindication of the Royal prerogative and the in-
dependence of the British nation against the un-
warranted aggressions of a foreign potentate. We
altogether deny that the parcelling out of Great
Britain iato ecclesiastical districts, and the appoint-
ment of bishops with territorial titles, was an act of
merely spiritual authority. It was, to all in-
tents and purposes, one of a temporal character,
a following up of the claims that had been from time
to time put forward by successive Pontiffs, and which
bad been strenuously resisted by our ancestors before
the Reformation in the days of Catholic England. It
was a portion of the same usurpation which induced
one POPE to confer the kingdom of Ireland upon
HENRY the SECOND, and another to bestow South
America on the Monarchs of Spain and Portugal.
As such we should ourselves have resisted it, if ac-
knowledging spiritual allegiance to the Vatican, and
we had hoped that on due consideration a large
majority of our Roman Catholic brethren would
have participated in the views, which were so
clearly and distinctly put forward by Lord
BEAUMONT and others, whose opinions should be
treated with the highest respect by their co-religionists.
We can, however, make every allowance for the
feelings of irritation created by a long course of per-
secution and oppression, inducing them to offer the
most determined resistance to anything that could for