The Sun.
London, England, 1867-12-03 00:00:00

BRITONS, STRIKE HOME!

The meeting to be held in St. James's Hall on
Wednesday evening, will be a successful demon-
stration, in proportion as the English Catholic
public realizes its true position in the common-
wealth of this country. We anticipate, there-
fore, with confidence, that the tone of the speeches
to be made, and the numbers who will assemble
there, will reflect credit on us as a body. We
believe it will vindicate our character as being
not behind the age in which our lot is cast—not
unable (as says Napoleon III.) to comprehend our
epoch.
If there be one thing which has always com-
manded the respect, and elicited the sympathy of
Englishmen, it is an outspoken honesty of prin-
ciple on public occasions. Men like to know
about their fellow-men what:they really mean, how
far they personally mean what their principles seem
to pledge them to, or--as the common phrase runs
—" where to find them." When this has been
ascertained, with regard to Catholics, by plain,
unmistakable Catholic utterances, a considerable
portion of non-Catholic prejudice and antipathy
has been disarmed. For there does exist, though
most groundlessly, an impression which has made
itself felt in the popular tradition regarding the
Church, that the Catholic mind has more than its
share of arriere pensees reticence—to use the thrice-
slain Kingsley's word—economy. We are supposed
to be not a little economical and diplomatic.
Hence the floating opinion about us seems a kind of

converse of Burke's very questionable statement,
that vice loses half its evil by losing all its gross-
ness. Popery would be felt to have lost half its
evil by losing all its assumed finesse.
Various causes have combined to produce this
impression of our reticence. By no means the
If the proposed Conference:were to turn its mind
least of them is the undeniable timidity with
to the Italian Question, and fairly grapple with
which Catholic principles were at one time put
the difficulties, moral and material, which beset the
forth and advocated. Must we not go further and
say, the servility, the faint-heartedness, with which revolutionary kingdom of Italy, it would, indeed,
they have sometimes been apologised for ? No do good service to the peace of Europe. As long as
doubt, this partly arose from the necessity of Italy is on the brink of bankruptcy, as long as it
has to keep up an immense army for purposes
the case. It was inherent in the circumstances
of foreign aggression, or to hold down the se-
of the Catholic cause in England up to forty
cretly disaffected and the openly rebellious, as long
years ago. We have been almost creeping—our as it shamelessly violates public law, and outrages
morality and religion, so long shall Europe be ex-
evil-wishers would say, we have been stealing,
into something of our due position. There has
posed to constant disturbances, or to dangers like
been no such conversion of the Empire as has en-
abled us in a moment to merge from the catacombs those which it has just escaped from. Italy
below and occu the basilicas above. There has, desires to be all at once powerful and rich, to :be
py
indeed been a process more ordinary and one
like one of the Great Powers; it does not honestly
, K,
work towards this end, but it confiscates the
(apart from miraculous exertions of Divine favour)
more healthy. The public mind has gradually, possessions of others, and seizes upon foreign
and by growth of years and experience, changed territory. It acknowledges no restraining law
in this guilty pursuit. Religion, morality, law lit
its hostile attitude towards us. fetus error abiit,
and partly on positive grounds, constructively, puts aside for the time being, until it has gained its
partly by contrast of the established religion own ends. When Italy has made itself, when it
is in possessio of its urs' ies, and
fading and perishing away before the people's
of the fruits ofn a lawless andghbo immoralterritor spoliation,
eyes, the stock prejudices have been relegated to
then it desires such accomplished facts to be
the chronicles of old-world time when George 111.
was King. sanctioned and secured by religion and law. Of
In the days of the Gordon riots the meeting such a nation there is no hope. Its principles
in St. James's Hall would have been as impossible of existence, and its habitual course of action,
as in those of Titus Oates. In the days of Charles are antagonistic to order and morality. Law, in
order to have power over the minds of men, requires
Butler and his clique it would have been un-
an habitual and undeviating respect ; and re-
thought-of, if not impossible. Had a Milner
ligion, before it can be reconciled with evil-doers,
proposed it a junta of so-called Catholic laymen
insists upon repentance and restitution. Corn-
would have protested against it. But our day is
merce and industry can never thrive in a nation
not the day of Lord George, nor is it the day of
where lawlessness is the prevailing characteristic.
Charles Butler. We are as little likely to encoun-
Lawlessness leads to war abroad or Revolution
ter the cold half-belief of the one school as the
at home; and the consequence of continual aggress
frenzied fanaticism of the other. We now hear
sion and unjust wars, and of Revolution, or a
comparatively few from without, calling us idola-
perpetual fear of its outbreak, is bankruptcy.
ters. There is now hardly one within who would The Italian prefects insist upon the necessity of
have us call ourselves anything like "Protesting
coming to some immediate solution of the Italian
Catholic Dissenters." A straggling exception may
difficulty in order to save the nation. The
be found on either side to prove the rule. As a revolutionary papers confirm the reports of the
rule, the non-Catholic opinion towards us is every
day fairer. And we, in quietly assering our prefects. One paper, the Zenzero, exclaims not
only that Italy is struck down, is humiliated—the
position among our fellow-subjects—not as con-
bye-word of Europe—but that it is dead. If not
cession, but as right—are every day firmer.
dead as yet, dissolution is at hand. In the mean-
Very directly does all this bear upon our
time the rage of the revolutionary party is on the
attitude in the " Roman question." As Catholics, increase. It shows itself on every occasion ; it was
our sympathies are not limited within the four seas beaten at Mentana for the moment by the Papal
of our native land. The head and centre of our
army and the 'solAiers of:France, but it has retired
religion, in the true metropolis of our best affec- out of reach of 'French guns, and plots in secret
tions, has been suffering under the threats of a and publicly agitates for the establishment of the
crew of godless marauders. They have aimed at ißed Republic. The weakness of the Government
everything of his which constitutes public action,
and its complicity with the Garibaldian movement
political existence, and even at his personal life. is the strength of the Revolution. Its voice is
Letters from Rome, given in another column will f heard in the press, and will be raised in the
be found amply to bear out what we now say. We Chambers, and the Government yields to intimi-
are not, cannot be, indifferent to these things. dation and lets Garibaldi loose again. The walls
We should cease to be Catholics if we could be so. i of Florence are constantly covered with seditious
Charles Butler himself, were he to rise from his placards, written in manuscript. The latest was
grave, would be found wending his way to St.
James's Hall. It is very much to us whether the one proclaiming a viva for Garibaldi, and death
to Napoleon 111, and others.
Eternal City shall still be protected by the chival- In the interests of European peace and of Chris-
roux nation which at Mentara, as before it, has so
well earned its title of eldest child of the Church. tian civilisation let the Conference which is about
It is very much to us whether the faithful in Great to meet take Italy in hand, and compel Victor
Emmanuel, by the weight of the advice of united
Britain and Ireland shall send more largely than
hitherto their quota of devoted volunteers, whose Europe, to put down with a strong arm the lawless
personal character shall beseem the sacred cause bands which, owing to the encouragement they
have so long received from himself and his Go-
in which they engage. It is very much to us vernment, are now the masters in Italy. None
whether a Conference of Christian Powers shall i better than some of the Powers to be represented
be held to debate the soundest measures for up- at the Conference, can counsel the Italian Govern-
holding the centre of Christianity. And it is very j ment in the necessity in future of observing in-
,much to us, as Englishmen jealous for the honour ternational law and the faith of treaties. The evils
of our country, what part England shall take in j of keeping a large army to • hold down disaffected
these momentous European transactions. We look and ill-governed peoples may be pointed out with
out with lively interest to know whether the great propriety by some or other of the repre-
narrow-minded isolation of the times of Tudor, sentatives assembled. Again, the dangers of bank -
Stuart, and Guelph is still to hold. We ask ruptcy, after having exhausted all the ecclesiastical
whether England is to stand aloof while the rest possessions, are sure to be pointed out in such an
of the European family is swayed into emotion assembly, even if the injustice and sacrilege
and sympathy to and fro : or whether, more dis- escape the reprobation of the representatives of
creditably, we are still and ever to cast our in-
Europe.
fluence into the wrong scale ? Are we still to wear If the opinion of the Conference cannot induce
the red shirt abroad, and swear in the special Victor Emmanuel to put an end to the misgovern-
constable
at home? Shall we deify Garibaldi at ment under which Italy is fast sinking into anarchy
and let a sentence of European out-
Monte Rotondo, while we call out the troops and
lawry be bankruptcy,pronounced on the worst, the most un-
hang Fenians at Manchester ? just, and the most immoral Government in Europe.
Much may be done to answer such imminent
Unless Europe be prepared to act with vigour
questions by the meeting in St. James's Hall. It against Revolution in its head-quarters, it runs an
is an appeal to public opinion by the united ex-imminent risk of seeing mob-law overrun the
pression of our own. And as public opinion must boundaries of Italy, and plunge Europe into a
needs rule such a countr as ours, it is in fact general war of classes and of principles.— West-
carrying up our strong petition to the footstool of monster Gazette.
the Sovereign.— Westminster Gazette.

THE ITALIAN QUESTION.

[ADvEaTisksfENT.]--Henceforth no one will doubt the valuable
properties of Du Barry's health-restoring nevalento. Arabica
Invalids' and Infants' Food, since to the thousands of blessings
it has already received from Invalids whose position had been
deemed hopeless, we may now add that of hie Holiness the Pope.
whose health has been perfectly restored by it after thirty years
of unsuccessful medical treatment. We quote from the "Gazette
du Midi," July 25th :—" Rome, July 21, 1866.—" The health of
the Holy Father is excellent, especially since, abandoning all
other remedies, he has confined himself entirely to Du Barry's
Revalenta Arabic.% Food, of which he consumes a plateful
at every meal. It has pi oduced a surprisingly beneficial
effect on his health, and his Holiness cannot praise this
excellent food too highly." Wo extract a few out of
more than 68,000 cures:—Cure No. 58,216, of the Marchioness
de Brehan, of seven years' liver complaint, wasting away,
debility, nervousness, with a nervous palpitation all over, bad
digestion, constant sleeplessness, and the most intolerable ner-
vous agitation. Cure No. 1,771: Lord Stuart de Decies, Lord
Lieutenant of Waterford, of many years' dyspepsia. N 0.49,832 :
" Fifty years' indescribable agony from dyspepsia, nervousness,
asthma, cough, constipation, flatulency, spasms, sickness, and
vomiting.—Maria Joly." Cure No. 46,270: Mr. James Roberts,
of Frimley, Surrey, of 30 years' diseased lungs, spitting of blood,
liver derangement, and partial deafness Important Caution.—
Beware of the many unsavoury and more than sloppy imitations
to which, without authority, Baron Liebig's name is most auda-
ciously attached

TO THE EDITOR OF THE WESTMINSTER GAZETTE.
THE GARIBALDIANS AT MONTE
ROTONDO.

Sir,—The two accompanying letters from Rome
cannot fail to interest your readers. They contain
graphic details of late events from persons on the
spot, and they are signed by names which, were I
at liberty to publish them, would sufficiently
guarantee the opportunities possessed by till writers
to know the truth. As it is, you must please to
accept the amount of authentication afforded by
my own card, here enclosed. I have been com-
pelled to abridge them, especially that part of the
second letter which speaks of the outrages com-
mitted by the Garibaldian freebooters in the Church
of Monte Rotoudo.—l atu, sir, yours faithfully,

SACERDOS.

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soy. 12.. As you way oily imagine, we hue