The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-22 00:00:00

mon sense of the Irish people if we attempted '
to explain that which is as transparent as glass to
the public eye. It is well known that every engine
—and governments have many such at their dis-
posal—has been put in eperation to prevent signa-
tures being attached to the requisition, and to pre-
vent attendance at the meeting."
On the other hand, the .Reporter—the organ of
Liberal Romanism—deals rather irreverently with
the 11 lay bottle-holders of the venerated hierarchy,
and actually makes merry with the recent demon-
stration of its co-religionists :
" The Eleven of Ireland' will henceforth be a

title associated wth the most ludicrous ideas of ex-
travagant anticipations and boastings, ending in
most lame and impotent' failure, The O'Donoghuc
and Mr. Maguire—there is no denying the fact—
have made a mull of it! In their zeal for Catho-

licism—and their own glorification they have
placed the Roman Catholic episcopal body in Ire-
land in a painfully false position. People might
have felt astonishment, regret, humiliation even, at
some of the propositions and demands put forth in
the pastoral ; but it was impossible not to feel that
the document itself, signed by 28 Catholic archbi-
shops and bishops, and professing to represent the
unanimous opinions and resolves of the whole Irish
Catholic hierarchy, was one to which a certain
weight and importance (not to say dignity) attached.
Prona facie, it looked like the expression of the
universal Catholic opinion of the country, for the
ecclesiastical dignitaries presiding over every dio-
cese in the island had affixed to it their signatures,
and even those who disputed its authority could not
deny its ostensible claim to represent popular feel-
' ing on some very important social questions ; but,
thought Mr. Maguire and The O'Donog,hue, this
pastoral, after all, is a secondary sort of affair. The
bishops were well enough in their way, but all the
world knows that they have little weight compared
with M.P.'s—that is to say, M.P.'s of a certain class,
patriotic, virtuous, self-sacrificing, independent
Opposition' M.P.'s We must not allow these esti-
mable men to go unaided. We must give them a
helpinc, hand. Alas ! the responses to the summons
were few and tardy—while, if they were presented
to the world, it would be found that some of them
were equivocal in their expressions of adhesion.
That phrase,' factious opposition,' in the preliminary
resolution looks very suspicious, in connection with
some things that have reached our ears. Certainly,
but for the repudiation of such opposition, even the
nine M.P.'s who have signed all the seven resolu-
tions, at the chat round the fender on the loth, in
the little room at the Northumberland, would not
have done so. But, equivocal or not, the adhesions
by letter reached, we believe, 14. That, however,
was not the strength of the party—oh, no—when
the day of meeting arrived many would attend who
had not given their signatures. Such were the
words of promise to the ear. But they were vain
and deceitful words ; for when the day of meeting
came even the 14 on paper had dwindled to 11 in
the flesh. Two counties out of 32 sent both their
members ; four counties sent one each ; the Irish
boroughs were modestly represented by three, one
of the three being the great mover of the scheme,
the hon. member for Dungarvan. Such is the Par-
liamentary phalanx that offers its services to sus-
tain the pastoral of the 28 Archbishops and Bishops,
on the vital questions of education, tenant right,
and the rest. We need make no comment upon this
break down. It is a significant proof of the folly of
seeking for what is unreasonable. The Irish Catholic
body would have sustained their Bishops in any
reasonable, perhaps in many unreasonable, de-
mands. But the pastoral was too much for men of
common sense to stomach, and the less that is said
about it henceforth the better for the reputation of
its authors."
The Timescomplains that the Irish Ultramontanes
promise to do all and everything for the Pope, pro-
vided that no appeal is made to the breeches pocket.
Hitherto there seemed to be good foundation for
the complaint; but the slur has been removed, and
the chivalrous Father Daly has been the first to
come forward with a proposition to recruit the trea-
sury of the Holy Father. At the Galway meeting
on Sunday the rev. gentleman, in the course of a
long speech, said :
" He did not believe that the Holy Father needed
any material proof of their sympathy, but if he did
he was sure that they were all agreed with him
that he should have it. (Loud cries of ' Yes !') If
it should so happen that material aid should be re-
quired during his (Mr. Daly's) life, or after his
death, he should set apart a sum of £5O towards
giving that aid, if ever it should be wanted."

ELECTION INTELLIGENCE.

READING.

DECEMBER 21.
This ancient borough was unexpectedly startled
from its propriety this morning by a series of
placards announcing thi.t Mr. Ralph Benson, not-
withstanding his retirement, would once more
come forward and contest the seat rendered vacant
by the elevation of Sir H. Keating to the bench.
This fact was for the first time made public at a
meeting held the previous evening at the Great
Western Hotel, when the chairman, Mr. H. J.
Shuonds, addressed the electors in the following
clever but somewhat novel style :—He said—l am
pleased to see you here to-night, inasmuch as I
can at last tell you that a definite course of act-
ing has been decided on. I had, I believed, on a
previous occasion, satisfactorily assured you of
your own venality, and left you with the com-
fortable reflection that you were in the eyes of the
world but a very sorry lot. Seriously, gentlemen,
I was perfectly staggered with the reception I met
met with from various gentlemen, who all treated
Reading as second to Glocester or Wakefield,
stated plainly that it was a mere matter of pounds,
shillings, and pence; that they had no intention of
bidding at the auction, and that Sir F. Goldsmidt
was at liberty to purchase you together with the
rest of his estates. (Laughter.) It was in vain
that I contradicted these statements. The quiet
smile and expressive shrug were my only response,
and the more earnest the denial the blander the
smile. (Laughter.) 0 ! those quaint old city par-
lours I have made myself acquainted with the last
week. Picture to yourselves the staid and respec-
table city merchant, sitting in his armchair and
rubbing up his small stock of schoolboy Latin, bow-
ing me out as I spoke of purity with a credat
fudetts, while the twin Cheeryble in the opposition
armchair, envious of the fraternal Latin, retorted
on him with a—

" Quodcunque ostendis mihi sic incredulous odi."
(Applause.) It is useless to disguise the fact, the
world at large think that this people require a golden
calf, and they think also that no one has a better
right, both hereditary and acquired, than our hon-
ourable opponent. (Cheers.) Now, gentlemen, I
have long' earnt that the worst weapon you could
forge in an armoury was abuse of your opponent,
and I therefore bog to express my opinion publicly,
that Sir F. Goldsmidt, despite his immense wealth,
will not condescend to these means, or fight this
battle other than as becomes a gentleman. (Cheers.)
It is true, my friend the late Mayor made some
mysterious allusions the other evening; for my own
part, I decline to play the part of pot and kettle. I
shallignore the existence of the Reform Club, and
treat my respected friend's remarks this cold wea-
ther as we would the scratchings of a little idle boy
on a pane of frozen glass, and let them expire with
the breath that gave them existence. (Cheers.) So
much for the past, and now for the future. We have
determined that this unjust slur shall no longer remain
on the fair fame of our town; but as far as the Conser-
vative party are concerned, this ugly charge of cor-
ruption shall exist but as the slough of a last year's
reptile. (Applause.) We have determined, in a
word, to return Mr. Benson—(vehement cheering,
which lasted some minutes)—without a farthing of
expense to that gentleman—(loud cheers)—and
will show the world that it is possible to fight a
Reading election on a matter of principle, and that
we are not to be bought like so many sheep at a
cattle-market. (Cheers.) Mr. Simonds then went
into various details, and the meeting, after being
addressed by several other gentlemen, broke up
with three cheers for Mr. Benson.

VOLUNTEER CORPS.

CIVIL SERVICE,

The secretary to the Audit-office corps has re-
ceived, through the Lord-Lieutenant of the county,
a communication from the Secretary of State for
War stating that her Majesty has been pleased to
accept the services of the Civil Service corps, which
will rank as the 21st Middlesex. The brigade will
be formed of companies of the effective members of
the various Civil Service corps in Lindell, each
company being equipped, drilled, officered, and fully
organised by its own corps or club ; and the gene-
ral affairs of the combined force will be managed
by a council of representatives from each of the
corps furnishing companies.

ST. CLEMENT DANES.
The above corps, which now numbers upwards of
60 members, meets for the purpose of drill every
Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday evening, in e
hall or St. Clement's-inn, under a sergequt-majorth of
the Grenadier Guards, and go through the various
mameuvres in a manner most creditable to them,
considering the short time the corps has been formed.

ST. JAMES'S, WESTMINSTER.
The committee meet in the Vestry-hall, Piccadilly,
every Thursday, at four o'clock, for the despatch of
business, as well as to receive contributions and
afford any inCormation relative to the progress of
the cops. The fund now amounts to upwards of
t4OO.