The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-17 00:00:00

1? UMOtTRED SECESSIONS

The Weekly Register says: "We have reason to belev:
that a considerable number of Anglican clergymen
determined to attend the General Council in P"e13:,13
next, and to lay their difficulties before the assenl"7e
prelates of the Universal Church. The earil,da-st
e
desire of these gentlemen is to be united with;),
see of Rome, but as yet they have scruples which
cannot overcome. That they will overcome them, '0
that they—or, at least, a great number of them—willb•
received into the Church as earnest and true Cathol1c0:11,
what we have no doubt of whatever ; for they are g°l
to the feet of the Holy Father in a spirit of prayer Alio
humiliation. Those of the number with whom well3ct,
spoken seem to find their position as Anglican
their chief difficulty. They-believe their orders to be t!'ito
:o
and that reordination would be a sacrilege, as would ''
the giving up of their sacerdotal functions, and reverting
the position of mere laymen. But all these thil/11,
we have no doubt, they will be led to see clesl.'t
at Rome, where arrangements are beim-, In3de„Aii°y
a special sub-committee to inquire into 'the va'"„.t„-,
of Anglican orders, or rather to collect such•
meats and opinions as have caused the CatlPlo
Church for three hundred years to regard e
ordinations by An dican bishops as beinc, non-valid.
ultimate result of this deputation to Rome will, no d°11"1
be an accession to the Church of some of the best :ti
most pious Anglican clergy, and many amongst the
will follow their example."

TIIE BISHOP OF CORK.

It is the fate of many great and good men to De misus;
stood ; and Dr. Gregg, Bishop of Cork, is among t,
n.
umerous martyrs to misapprehension. At a recent slee,
mg in that beautiful city, " where all the men are 1)110
and all the women virtuous," &c., his Right Reverence sc.dt
reported to have used very strong language indeed
regard to the Premier and his Irish Church 13:10
The words imputed became a subject of comment in
'be
press ; the bishop and his friends then indignaittlY
flied that such language had ever been used ; and tto
local newspapers reiterated the original charge. Who
decide between such authorities, when they cengicti;
Fortunately the reporters who took down the words
dispute have come forward to say exactly what it fl'
that cccurred ; and since one of them representBo-
Conservative paper, their testimony may be takeno
almost unimpeachable. Their explanation is malaria' 0
in its way, and does infinite credit to their good lh,
and correct appreciation of their duties. What
bishop said, they aver, was, "We hear talk of bills 1"1,-i
bills, but Bill Gladstone may go to the --With
bill." " His lordship," they add, "did not P-1
where, or to whom, and we, in our reports, did V°
attempt to supply the omission." And very properly
We only wish the judicious reticence of these adrsillio
persons had been imitated by the public here, wil°4o
their eagerness to think evil of dignities, filled The
es
had in the way they would have done if the 5143,1;1
had been, not a bishop, but a a coalheaver. `-/
reporters knew better what was due to the oral far,
of lawn sleeves than to impute anything whate'e-ht;
How could they tell for certain what was meant by the
impressive pause after the definite article ? It might 19til
been a benediction of the most apostolic character, 0t
might have been a new and colourless readily. of 331,1,°11
expression. It is quite conceivable, for instance,s ":p
a conscientious printer, recording: a quarrel btim,
two clergymen, might put the words, " see I°l
disestablished first" in the way painfully suggesr;
of less strictly professional language. W eit
cline, therefore, to give the bishop the bertha
of the doubt, and to assume that he consigned ivo
Premier to a sort of middle passage—something veil 'till
from the best fate, though, of course, short of :10
worst. Possibly Dr. Gregg thinks Mr. Gladstone,
Rob Roy, " ower good for banning, and ower bad for b'e
r.
ing ;" and modifies his imprecations accordinerlaccordinglyl3ll°o
.
after all, it does not matter much. Anybody" thie9
looks at the Premier will see that the P;cl
in which a certain witty minister of the 01311",;()
of England describes what followed an awful ecclesill'ro,
censure, passed on a luckless bird much given to testio
priation clauses, apply with tolerable closeness to po
fulminations from Cork city—" But what gave rise tilt,/
little surprise, nobody seemed one penny the Worse'
Daily Telegraph.