The Sun.
London, England, 1860-04-13 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, FidDAY EVENING, APRIL 13, 1860.

MR. BIxIGHI' AT MANCIIESTER.

MANCHESTER, THURSDAY.
A meeting of the Lancashire Reformers' Union
was held at the Free Trade Hall this evening, to
consider the question of reform Nviih especial refe-
rence to Lord John Russell's bill.
Mr. G. Wilson presided, and there were about
5,000 persons present.
After addresses :from Mr. B.tzley, M.P., Mr.
Peter Ryland, of Warrington, and Mr. Henry Ash-
worth, of Bolton, which were listened to with great
impatience,
Mr. BruGlIT rose, and was received with loud
and long-continued cheering. He said—Though it
was a holiday time both for hardworking people
and for members of Parliament, he thought it was
never inopportune for the citizens of a free country
to meet and discuss questions of public interest and
importance. We were now arrived at an interval,
or sort of half-way house in the session of Parlia-
ment; and it would be an advantageous opportunity
to survey the past, and glance at what is in store
for us in the immediate future. Looking back to
the last two months in Parliament, he was glad to
be able to say that what we beheld was highly
satisfactory; if it was not for the enormous, the
needless, and he might say the guilty, military ex-
penditure, he would have been willing to express
unmixed approbation of Mr. Gladstone's Budget.
We should probably have had a good .budget from
Mr. Gladstone even if there had been no Commer-

A letter from Geneva, dated April 9, says,—
Long before the great Powers had given any as-
surances—nay, at the moment when they seemed to
have altogether overlooked the Swiss side of the
S-tvoy question, and only expressed their feeble and
cautious indignation at the_ off-hand manner in
which the Emperor Napoleon took his "guaran-
tees"—the Swiss were determined to take up the
gauntlet thrown down by France, and, if neces-
sary, to risk the chances of a war, in -which,
at any rate in the first instance, they could
reckon on no support from any side. Such a re-
solution of a small State of scarce 2,000,000
.of people against a powerful empire, close
to its gates, must seem little short of madness in a
shrewd and positive people, as every ono knows the
Swiss to be. True, it would not have been the first
time that this little free people would have engaged
in so unequal a struggle ; but then Switzerland was
for the most part a wild and almost inaccessible
country, while now it 'is intersected in all directions

by some of the finest roads iu Europe. Then mili•
tary science was in its infancy, and a small number
of determined men were often a match for large
hosts ; while now the art of warfare makes daily
giant strides, and what seemed perfect yesterday is
antiquated to-day.

cial Treaty with France, but that treaty made it
doubly valuable. ray means of the treaty every ves•
tige of Protection had been swept from the tariff.
The Treaty would come into full operation in three
years from this time. lie believed we should find

How does it coma, then, that in spite of these
changes, which seem to deprive Switzerland of
many of the advantages which she possessed for-
merly in a defetee even against powerful foreign
enemies, this sober people should still have con-
sidered it possible to have some chances in meeting
at any rate the first onset of the great French
Empire until they could find some support from
abroad ? Where did this confidence come from ?
No doul)t, in the first instance from the conviction
that valour and love of independence is not incom-
patible with cotton mills and moneymaking, and
that, if need, there might be found Winkelrieds in
the second half of the 19th century; but this con-
viction would scarcely have been sufficient in the
face of an adversary provided with rifles and rifled
guns, had there not been some trust likewise in a
military organisation which was calculated to make
the most of this valour and love of independence.
Although others might have thought Switzerland
sufficiently protected by the cegis of neutrality, held
by all the great Powers of Europe, the Swiss them-
selves, seeing daily examples of the sad fate of small
States enclosed between powerful military nations,
thought it wise not to trust entirely to foreign pro-
tectors, but to do something likewise for them-
selves. With France and her legions on one side,
and Austria and her battalions on the other, this
would have been a hopeless task. Had Switzerland
tried to imitate the military organisation of those

the tariff of France much more liberal than the
present tariff of the United States. If we now ex-
ported 23 million pounds' worth y early to the
United States, how much should we export to France
—a country more populous and much nearer to our
shores—when we had a more liberal tariff than that
with America? How were this Budget and
Treaty received ? The Treaty was received with
marked coldness by both houses, and hotly
opposed by a large party in the Commons. They
said it was not according to precedent, and that the
chief apostle of Free Trade did not know his own
business. (Laughter.) They said the French-tariff
ought to be lower, and that it ought to come into
operation at once. Well, that was to the loss of
France. (Hear, hear.) They said it had not re-
ceived the sanction of the French Chambers, but
that it was carried into effect on the sole will of the

Emperor. If it was passed in accordance with the
French constitution, and the mode of exacting it
was sufficient for France, it ought to be sufficient
for us. They said the duties were chiefly taken off
luxuries. The truth was, we had not many articles
left except luxuries the duties on which could be
abolished. The Times said we ought to have left
the treaty to be negotiated by an experienced
diplomatist. We had diplomatists in all parts of
the world, receiving enormous salaries, yet we
should look in vain for any service done atone by
them to English industry equal to the service done
by the unpaid and inexperienced diplomatist, Mr.
Cobden. (Loud cheers.) But the true reasons
against the treaty had not been given in the House
of Commons. The Budget abolished several sources
of indirect taxation, and had tied up the military
expenditure by a tax from which hereafter there
would be no escape. Henceforth these two things
would go together. If Parliament raised the mili-
tary expenditure to 20 or 30 millions, that increase
must be defrayed by an income tax, or by an income
tax coupled with a property tax. He (Mr. Bright)
thought it a most happy thing that this result should
have been brought about. This treaty promised
peace and confidence with France, but there were
persons connected with the oligarchy and the mili-
tary service who wished for a different policy.
Out of the 125 years previous to 1815, we were
at war with France during 68 years. When the
system began our taxation amounted to two
millions. In 1815 it had reached to 72 millions,
and we had au accumulated debt of 800 millions.
All this took place under a system in which
only the "select" were allowed to vote, in which
the great aristocratic republic stood supreme,
uninterfered with by the breath of.public opinion.
The treaty concluded with France menaced this
patrimony of taxation, and hence the concealed op-
position to its being carried into effect. Besides
those questions of the budget and commercial
treaty, Parliament had been called upon to consider
the question of Parliamentary Reform. Lord John
Russell's bill must be taken for what it was, viz., a
bill for the extension of the franchise. It only re-
tnotely touched upon the redistribution of seats,
and did not comprise the bllot. The borough
voters in England Wales now on the register num-
bered 440,000, and he believed the new bill would
only add 167,000. Was that a measure likely to
give an ignorant and excited mob a preponderant •
power in all the boroaglis of England ? Jn 1832 it
was said the new voters enfranchised by the pro-
posed Reform Bill would swamp the old constitu-
ency, and the same argument was being used at_the
present time. Yet the £lO householders had never
conspired, so far as he knew, to swamp the power
of persons of property and education. Mr. White-
side, in a recent debate, had endeavoured to fright en
the house by reference to the strike of the London
builders. Now, it had never been proved that
strikes" were bad. A strike was the reserved power
in the hands of the working man. He (Mr. Bright)
would tell the working men never to surrender their
right to combine with their fellow men in support
of their interests. He believed Mr. Disraeli would
be glad to allow the present bill to pass, so that
the question of Reform should no longer obstruct
his battles with his old antagonists, the Whigs.
Others among the Tory opposition would also will-
ingly give it their support, but he feared the policy
of lukewarm Liberals. He, however, gave credit
to Government for bringing forward the measure,
and hoped they would take care it was not damaged
in its passage through the house. If it should not
be passed this session, or was much longer delayed,
he would recommend the working classes through-
out the country to appoint delegates from their
trades' unions and societies to sit permanently
in London, to act upon Parliament, and to
tell it that they did not longer intend to
be put off and trifled with and cheated of their
just expectations. (Cheers.) Mr. Blight then
drew a parallel between the present time and that
of Mr. Pitt, with regard to the Reform Bill and the
commercial treaty with France. In 1784 Mr. Pitt's
reform measure was rejected, and his commercial
treaty was got rid of by war with France. He
warned the people to see that the same course was
not adopted now. There was a party in this coun-
try who systematically endeavoured to arouse an
ill feeling against the French nation. (Hear, hear.)
The Times was following in the wake of the
Morning Advertiser, not in the same pot-valiant
style, perhaps, but with a malignity, if possible,
more satanic, trying to arouse a spirit against the
French nation. From week to week and from
month to month it published leaders, one day in-
sulting France, next day alarming Germany, and
another time exciting England. (Cheers.) He
knew what would be said in reply to this, but he
was not writing anonymously. He was an Eng-
lishman like themselves, caring nothing for the
railings of the press, but caring dearly for the
solemn interests of his country. (Hear, hear.) His
warnings were not unnecessary. He spoke not to
the Court ; for, though honest, his speech was
scarcely tuned to courtly ears. He spoke not to
the aristocracy, who, wrapt in luxury, cared not to
listen to his appeals ; but he addressed the great
body of his fellow-countrymen. In a few years
this treaty would become a bond of perpetual peace.
Stick to it. It !alight yet be wrested from their hands.
With peace, the progress of reform could not be
arrested, and political power in this land would
be transferred from a clique of families to a great
nation.

large States, she would have exhausted her finances
without ever being able to command a standing army
sufficiently numerous to oppose, even for a day,
what others might bring into the field against her.
Instead, therefore, of exhausting their strength in
an impotent rivalry, the Swiss took their own pe•
culiar condition as the basis for their military or-
ganisation.

As a free country, Switzerland had no need of
bayonets at home, and no wish to engage in offensive
wars; a standing army was, therefore, a ruinous
luxury, which would have weakened instead of
strengthening the power of defence in case of ag-
gression, against which alone military measures
were necessary. Leaving, therefore, this hobby to
its neighbours intent on annexation, Switzerland
has concentrated her efforts on a general system of
arming the whole population, and organising a mili-
tia system on a larger scale. The task was not easy,
and well might the professional soldiers of the great
military nations around scoff at the profanation-1r
the sacred mysteries of military art ; but the Swiss
would not be discouraged, and persevered. The
problem which Switzerland was thus trying to
solve was not only of vital interests for this country
itself, but for all " free and unaggressive " countries
which might be called upon to defend themselves
from annexionist neighbours ; hence it may not be
without interest for England herself. There is a
considerable analogy in many respects between the
two; both are free countries, having no need of
bayonets for home service; both are industrious,
rich countries which cannot afford to loose great
productive power in an unproductive occupation,
and aggressive wars are held in equal horror by
both countries. England, it is true, has her colonies
and foreign possessions; she is a great Power, who
has her exalted place to guard among the nations,
This will always force her to have an army disposa
ble for foreign service ; but, i n order not to make

this necessity too expensive, a cheap and efficient
system of home defence must be of interest to her.

Without pretending that a system of defence in-
rented for this country could be applied in its in-
tegrity to England, much may be learnt if the sys-
tem has succeeded here.

military organisation before it has stood the test of
It is presumptuous to judge of the efficiency of a
a campaign, yet one might be allowed to draw some
inferences on the general capability of the system
if one has before one's eyes some grounds to go
upon.

A short sketch of this organisation must precede,
in order to understand the basis of the whole system.
Every male inhabitant of Switzerland, unless phy-
sically incapacitated, forms part of the militia. This
latter forms two classes ; the first, comprising all
those from 20 to 44 years of age, are liable to Fede-
ral service, while the second, comprising those above
44 and under 20 years of age,
are only called in for
cantonal service. In cases of great necessity alone,
and with their own consent, can they be applied to
service out of their own canton. The Federal army
itself is again subdivided into two classes—the con-

tingent, compr:sing all men from 20 to 34 years of
age, and the reserve, from 34 to 44. Both the con-
tingent and the reserve keep up permanently their
organisation in battalions, companies of carabineers,
squadrons of cavalry, and batteries, with all their
officers and non-commissioned officers. The quota
of each canton in this organisation is according to
the number of inhabitants, and consequently accord-
ing to the number of men each of them can furnish.
The troops of each canton form, as it were, a body
for themselves, with their own cantonal staff. The
equipment, as well as the armament and accoutre-
ment, of the troops are at the charge of each canton,
with the difference, however, that arms are supplied
by the Federal military authorities, and that the
equipment is in some cantons procured by the indi-
vidual soldier, while in others this is done by the
cantonal authorities. The contingent of each can-
ton is called in every year for a fortnight into bar-
racks for "repetitions," the only exception to this
being made brae first category of the contingent,
the recruits who have completed their 20th year.
'1 hese lattcr must remain for six weeks in barracks,

Mr. Bright concluded amidst great cheering,
having spoken one hour and 20 minutes.
The meeting broke up immediately after.

in order to receive their first military education.
The• reserve is called together for 48 hours a-year.
Officers, as well as soldiers, as soon as they enter
the barracks are paid and subject to an ex-
tremely rigorous military code. The canton de-
frays the expenses of this yearly drill. Besides
this there are every second year for a month
or six weeks Federal concentrations of troops,
usually one or more divisions. The expense in-
curred by this concentration, as well as that re-
quired whenever the troops are called for service
out of the canton, is borne by the Federal Govern-
ment. The cantonal authorities have the right to
name their officers up to the rank of captain inclu-
sive, the higher ranks being within the sphere of
the Federal authority.

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For the concentration of this cantonal military
organization there exists a Federal Staff, which is
in permanent service and pay, and which has to
superintend the general direction of the whole sys-
tem. All officers and those named by the cantons
must pass an examination, while those wishing
to belong to the Federal Staff, as well as those be-
longing to tbQ special arms, must pass through

Pi, /OE 41D. STAMPED, 513.

...
regular course of studies. The Federal
understand the strength and weakness of
Staff
forms i
(:).T..____.fficers
at the same time a kind of war department, with a 1 their troops, they will keep to a few single move-
general direction of military matters, seeing that i meats,
ha.
troops
Ic Ifl
itnhfeey:i
ocan
ineexNcueluuttei
oanss
,Nst- ehlel
sa swai
susyt
rroe
ogium
posing such amelioration in arms and equipments-
the existing regulations are carried out, and, pro-
N4v7:ich in these days of rifles is no small advantaep
decidedly superior in the use of their arms,
'
as may become necessary.
b•
From this short sketch you may be able to judge The rifle societies have done a great deal to educate
how small the expense is which the military or-
people in this respect, and this education is taken
7
ganization of Switzerland requires in ordinary advantage of in tho formation of the army. There
times—the fortnight's pay and keep of the soldier are 1 companies of carabineers, or about 7,000,
al the best shots in a country where everyone has
and officer every year while in barracks, the pay
for one month or six weeks of a couple of divisions Only those who have
his rifle and practises.
every second year, the first outfit and arming of l'ilived themselves to be superior to the others are
the soldier, and the keeping up of a small Federal
accepted in this body, which, in its specialty, has
Staff. Equally small is the loss of time which this
no equal anywhere else. Besides this, the compa.
organization costs to the population—six weeks one nits on the wings of each battalion are chasseurs,
year, and then a fortnight ever after, except once
likewise chosen for their efficiency in the use of
or twice during the whole time of service, when theirrifles, making about 30,000 more proved marks-
called out for Federal concentrations and manoeu-
men well aware of their skill. A new rifle,
vres. There are few more industrious people than thoroughly experimented, has been procured for.
the generality of the Swiss, consequently, few more these latter. I have not seen the firing, but the
aware of the value of time. Every fire years they arm itself is as handy as the Enfield, and about the
are asked whether they wish for a change in their same weight. Here are, then, almost 40,000 men
constitution. As no objection has been raised more formidable in the use of their weapon than
against the burdens of the military service, it is probably any other army can show; the rest of the
presumeable that they are felt very little, troops have muskets in the ranks, but most of them
With this small sacrifice of time and money have rifles at home, and know how to use them, too,
Switzerland is able to put on foot in less than a as well as the bayonets which are fixed to them.
fortnight 119 battalions of infantry, 71 companies Behind the contingent and reserve are the Land-
of carabineers, 42 batteries of field artillery, 8 wehr and Landsturm, men above 44, who have
t rocket batteries, and 42 squadrons of cavalry, 1g their own rifles, which they used for years,—a not
companies of sappers and pontoniers—in all from at all despicable reserve.
110,000 to 120,000 men, provided with all the mate-
From this sketch you will see that, although weak
rial necessary for field service—a force which, in an in numbers, the Swiss in a national war of defence
would be no contemptible adversaries; above all,
extremity, might be well nigh doubled; and this
force comes into the field fully organised as an
in a country which does not admit of a simultane-
army, the battalions, squadrons, and batteries being
ous action of large masses of troops. There is
collected, even in times of peace, in brigades and altogether a great illusion in this respect, as every-
divisions, the latter comprising all arms of the see-
one might see in the last war in Italy, where
vice.
after talking of millions of men, scared— mor

That this constant readiness is not an illusion
was proved in the Neufchatel affair, where, in spite
of winter, 60,000 or 70,000 men were at Basle in 10
days. One battalion of Geneva, for instance, which
received the order to come into barracks on Friday,
had started on Monday, and was four days after on
the opposite frontier. As far, therefore, as the
quantity, readiness, and cheapness of the means of
defence are concerned, there can be little doubt
about the efficiency of the present system of military
organisation in Switzerland.
As for the quality of the soldiers thus supplied, I
should not like to speak dogmatically, having seen
only tour battalions of infantry, two of carabinecrs,
and one battery, but these troops were from various
parts of Switzerland. I have seen them manoeuvring,
I have had opportunities of judging of their physical
and moral disposition, and I have no hesitation in
saying that they are, as a body, superior in some
respects to most soldiers I have seen, equal in other
respects to most, and only inferior in a few things
to any Continental army.
At this moment we have here the 84th battalion
of Geneva, the 6th of Neufchatel, and the 58th of
Berne, besides the 10th Carabineers of the Pays do
Vaud, and the 25th battery.

y
than 300,000 met on both sides at the battle
of Solferino. These masses may ultimately
tell in a long war, and in such a one of course
2,000,000 men, however brave, could not compete
with 35,000,000 ; but, if they were forced to de-
fend themselves against a first onset, I am sure the
Swiss would be found equal to the emergency, and
people will cease to smile at their militia. Whether
they Would find a leader who would make the most
of this militia is a question on which one cannot
judge in any army until the moment comes, which
we hope is far distant.

APRIL 10.

I While the great Powers are debating within
themselves what attitude they ought to take, and
while the Swiss are waiting anxiously and impa-
tiently for their decision, and are completely pa-
ralysed by this incertitude, the French are con-
tinuing systematically to complete the annexation
of the whole of Savoy. The process they use for
this purpose reminds me very much of the spider
operating on the fly which has been thrown into
its web ; the lower extremities and the legs are
already spun in and are motionless, and it is only
in the short feelers about the head that one per-
ceives from time to time a convulsive movement.
Whenever this takes place there is a corresponding
activity in the long sharp claws of the spider, which
ends in adding another thread to its web ; every
time th..l movement of the prisoner becomes weaker
and weaker, its efforts more languid and despond-
ing ; a few moments yet and the spider can fix itself
on the head and put an end to the agony of its prey.
Indeed, this last moment is at hand. M. Laity,
once lieutenant of artillery at Strasburg, and now
Senator and Imperial Commissioner in Savoy, is
charged with the final blow. Qn Saturday last he
began his tour in the northern provinces. He
began with Annecy, went the next day to Bonne-
ville, was yesterday at Sallenches, and will be to-
day at Thonon. The municipalities and syndics,
most of them members of the deputation to the
Tuileries, did their best to prepare everything for
this triumphal procession, which may be consi-
dered as tantamount to taking possession of the
territory which has been ceded.

If any professional man, duly impregnated with
the spirit of the martinet and corporal stick, were
to see the men walking about the streets I have
no doubt he would be shocked at the unmilitary,
almost clownish appearance of the single specimens
of these popular soldiers. Not a trace of smartness,
shockingly comfortable blue capotes, indifferently
made loose trousers and easy black cloth gaiters, the
whole topped by rather ridiculous looking shakos,
would fully deserve their reprobation. They have
evidently no idea of a movement of limbs without
motion of the body, that great problem of standing
armies. They push their shakos back from their
foreheads if they feel warm, and even unbutton
their coats ; they tuck up their trousers into the
gaiters when it is muddy, and walk about like any
other mortals, but even the most prejudiced admirer
of smartness could not help being struck by the size
and squareness of these bourgeois soldiers and he
would probably sigh that the Swiss know not how
to use their splendid material. But it is only when
you see them in line that you perceive how splendid
this material is. The battalions of Berne and of
Geneva, especially, might bear in this respect a
comparison with any corps delite—nay, if strength
and endurance are taken into consideration as well
as size, an eye accustomed to judge will give them
the superiority. The great majority are men and
not boys ; this will be the impression on any one
who thinks of standing armies.
The troops under arms here have every day eight
hours' exercise in battalions from 6 till 10 a.m., and
from 2 till 6 p.m. they are fully accoutred with knap-
sacks, blankets, and even camp kettles, they have
their ammunition with them, and look at them in
the last quarter of an hour. I have looked and can
tell you that most of them had scarcely turned a
hair, which proves that they are in a better condi-
tion than most of the standing armies. Above all,
the Bernese seemed scarcely to feel that they car-
ried a weight which oppresses most other soldiers.
It is true they carried it in their own way rather,
but they moved about like people accustomed to it.
Equally well did those of Geneva stand the hard
test; rather less so those of Neufchatel, although even
these latter might give olds to any other continental
army. Something must be put, no doubt, on ac-
count of race and continual exposure at home, but
I am sure that not a little is due, likewise, to the
permission of using their muscles in a natural in-
stead of an artificial way.
What, then, my eye told me about the hardiness
and power of endurance which such unsophisticated
troops must possess was confirmed to me by ac-
counts of the Neufchatel affair. In six weeks of a
winter expedition on the frontier, with outpost
duties and marches, one of the Geneva battalions,
effeminate in comparison with the men of Uri or
Schweitz, lost two men out of 800—one was con-
sumptive before he went, and the lieut.-colonel who
was ill when he started. So much about their
physical qualities.
But will these soldiers of a day fight, these men
with wives and children at home, accustomed to
peaceful occupations—a farmer here, a banker there,
next a tailor, and beside him a greengrocer—where
is the link, the esprit de corps, to keep together
these men, where the stimulus to impel them ?
Look at those determined faces and listen to their
simple language, and you will have little doubt.
They don't fight for crosses and promotions, and
they know for what they are fighting. They don't
take a pleasure in soldiering, but consider it as a
serious business which must be done. The cause
for which they are fighting is their own, and every-
one has as much interest in it as his neighbour, and
this neighbour he knows. It is not as in standing
armies, where men from all corners are placed side
by side and must be cemented together. Here
everyone knows and lives with his neighbours, he
is under the eye of those with whom his lot is to
dwell and associate for the rest of his life. Besides
this, there is the traditional spirit of emulation and
rivalry between the different cantons, and it would
be strange if the Bernese who let himself be shot
down at Naples rather than give up his banner
with the bear would not do more to keep up that
symbol of his country in his own home.
Physical strength and endurance, personal valour
and esprit de corps are much, but they are not all
against regular troops ; there is the drilling, and
certainly in this point the Swiss troops, as far as 1
have seen them, arc inferior to regularly drilled
armies. There is not that precision in their evolu-
tions which would satisfy the eye of a connoisseur ;
but whoever saw a battlefield and did not recognize
the uselessness of those complicated movements,
which fail frequently even on the parade-ground,
and are utterly inapplicable in a real fight. But, it
the troops I have seen here are wanting in that
automaton precision, they seem to understand very
well what they are doing— a rare case in other
armies; and if, as might be hoped, the commanding

EXCOMMUNICAIION OF ITALY.

(From the Examiner.)

" St. Anthony's fire burn you; Mahomet's disease whirl
you, the squinzy choke you; botches, crickums sink you
plumb down to Pegtrantum's. The plagues of Sodom and
Gomorrah cram you with sorrow. Fire, brimstone, and
pits bottomless swallow you all alive."—Rabelais.

The long-threatened excommunication has been
launched; the Pope's red right hand, literally red
with Perugian and Roman blood, has bolted the
spiritual thunder at last, and if there be terror in it,
it is all the more terrible that it names no special
victims, but falls indiscriminately upon millions,
and blots whole States out of the book of life. All
Italy at least comes within the mischief of the exe-
cration, of which the following is the enacting
clause :

" Having invoked the light of the Holy
Spirit in private and public prayers, and
having taken the advice of the reverend bro-
thers, the Cardinals of our holy Romish Church,
we declare, in accordance with the authority
which we hold from Almighty God and the most
holy apostles, Peter and Paul, and also in accord-
ance with our own authority, all those who have taken
part in the sinful insurrection in our provinces, in
usurping, occupying, and invading them, or in
doing such deeds as we complained of in our above-
mentioned allocutions of the 20th of June and
25th of September of the last year, or those who
have perpetrated some of those acts themselves,
as well as those who have been their warranters,
supporters, helpers, counsellors, followers, as well
as those who connived at executing the above-men-
tioned deeds under whatever pretence, and in what-
ever manner, or who perpetrated them themselves,
to have taken on themselves the atonement of the
major excommunication, and religious punishment,
as they are determined in our apostolic constitution,
and by the decrees of the general councils, especi-
ally that of Trent (less. 22, chap. 11, on reforms),
and if necessary we excommunicate them again, we
anathematise them, further declaring that they are
to lose all privileges and graces and indulgence which
they enjoyed until now from our Papal predecessors,
and that they cannot in any manner be releasedot
absolved of these censures by any one except
our-
selves, or the Romish Pontiff then reigning, except at
the moment of death, but not in the event of their
recovery, when they are again subject to the above
punishment, and are unable to receive any absolu-
tion until they have retracted, revoked, annulled,
and abolished in public all they have committed,
and have brought every thing back fully and
effectively to its former state, and have given com-
plete satisfaction to the Papal Power. Therefore,
all those who in the remotest manner have par-
ticipated in those deeds, and also the successors in
their offices, are liable to such revocation, retrac-
tion, abrogation, and abolition of the above-men-
tioned sins, to do so personally, in reality, and in
truth, and to give the full satisfaction they owe to
the Holy See, and under no pretence to be released
and freed, but to always remain bound by it until
they are worthy to obtain the benefit of absolution ;
thus we declare by the present letter."
First, observe the extent of the curse, the breadth
of the Christian world blasted by his Holiness, if
there be more real fireand.brimstone in his anathema
than in its Rabelaisian or Shandean parodies. Not
merely are all excommunicated who have taken
part in the sinful insurrection in the Roman pro-
vinces, in usurping, occupying, or invading them,
but all who have been their warranters, supporters,
helpers, counsellers, followers, as well as all who
have connived at the doing of the said deeds. There
are, perhaps, not three hundred men in Italy who
are not included in this far-reaching and all-com-
prehending malediction. The Pope, by this flam-
ing instrument, expels from the Church nine-tenths
of the Catholic world, and leaves himself, indeed,
no spiritual subjects beyond the college of cardinals,
some score of priests, and perhaps hero and there
a handful of servile laymen. The curse falls upon
Napes and Venetia as heavily and sweepingly as
upon Sardinia and the Romagna. It is not merely
the " shoe," to use the quaint Scriptural expres-
sion, but the entire boot that is " cast over Edom,"
or given up to the heathen.
As a spiritual monarch, the Pope may now be
said to reign over a solitude, and one of his own
creation. He is a shepherd who has made away
with his flock. In all his pastures he can now
count only the few black sheep.
He might almost
address his Antonelli as the lover in Tibullus ad-
dresses his - mistress—" Mea turbo, in sous lociss,,