The Sun.
London, England, 1845-05-14 00:00:00

first, the impression is very favourable, and leads fa,'
the belief thLt it will attain its object, and become a
useful representative of the opinions, wants, and
rights of a very large and influential portion of the
community. Though opposed to State churches and
hostile to every Parliamentary enactment which com-
pels one sect to pay for the maintaining the religion
of another by which they derive no advantage, the
writers in general display a just moderation, and
trust more to rational argument than declamation and
abuse. We regard the se as favourable syinfr
toms of the plan on which the speculation le
founded, and if they adhere to this principle
we cannot doubt its success. If we might
be permitted to give advice, we would say, maintain
your theological principles to their full extent ;
shrink not from defending them at all hazard ;
point out their truth in a way not to please a particular
party, who are already convinced, but avoid making
it an organ for one class, and try rather to influence
your opponents than flatter your friends. To make
it useful, it should abound with various matter, suited
to all tastes. Exclusiveness must be shunned as the
greatest evil, and readers of every description be
allured to read and judge. When any great question
is agitated, connected with the policy which it advo-
cates, let no pains be spared to make it prominent,
but do not thrust the same subject into every
article, merely to show that it is an Anti-State-
Church Review. In this number there is no reason
to complain of a departure from this rule. There is
sufficient variety in the selection of subjects ; they
are treated, too, without any sectarian prepossessions,
and occasionally show a liberality of sentiment cre-
ditable to Dissenters. Among others of this kind we
may mention " The Constitutional History of
Ancient Greece," Sir Edward Lytton Bulwer's
Novels, Leigh Hunt's Works, and Commercial Re-
form. Even in regard to Church matters and to the
Maynooth grant, which has caused such excitement
among the class for which we believe it is chiefly
instituted, there is a degree of calm reasoning, im-
partiality, and good sense, which cannot fail to make
a favourable impression. The writers disclaim all
offensive expressions respecting the religion of others,
refuse to join in the "No Popery" cry, and do not
pretend, as far as we have discovered, to the merit,
as some vain hypocrites do, to be the only pure and
real Christians. We extract from an article on the
" Policy of England towards Ireland," the following
sound and dispassionate remarks. In objecting to
the Alaynot.th grant the writer says :
" If we demur to this policy, we think we have said
enough to show that we are not likely to do so from any
want of sympathy with the wrongs of Ireland. We
think we see those w.ongs as clearly as any of the
g. ntlemen who are wont to make speeches about them in
Parliament, and we are greatly mistaken if we do not:
detest them quite as sincerely. It is not that we would
do less fur Ireland /Ilan Sir Robert l'eel, or Lord John'
Russell, but that we would do something more ands
better. Nor can we take exception to this policy, in the
manner of muny devout churchmen, on the ground that
there is a radical difference between Catholicism and
Protestantism—a difference of which statesmen should
be cognizant; so that while they bestow all manner of
favour on the one, they should visit the other with every-
sort of discountenance. We must confess, that we are
at a loss to understand—we will not say the religion,
but even the morality of the principle, which would tax
the Papist for the support of the Protestant religion,
and then tell him that the sole end for which he is so
taxed, is, that by the politic use of his money, as thus
obtained, his Papistry might be destroyed.—So little of
the spirt of doing as we would be done by, is there in
this principle, that it is not enough, it seems, that the
faith of the Catholic should be proscribed, but an ab-
straction must be made from his purse, that means may
not be wanting to render that proscription effectual.
The Protestant Nonconformist in this country finds it
sufficiently chafing to his temper to be in these circuin
stances in relation to our own Established Church, but
to the Roman Catholic, and especially to the Roman
Catholic of Irelan.l, this sort of grievance must be of
much greater weight. We say therefore, once for all,
that if the church-establishment principle is to be ad-
mitted, e see not any just ground on which objection
can be made to the proposed grant to Maynooth, nor
even to the endowment of the Catholic priesthood in
Ireland. In our judgment there are maxims of social
justice which have their clearness and obligation an-
terior to all our theological diffi rences' and which those
differences should never be allowed to disturb. One of
these maxims we hold to be—that if all are to be taxed,
either directly or indirectly, for the support of religion,
then all who are willing to receive from the proceeds a
that taxation in aid of religion, should be allowed to so
—and be allowed to do so in the proportion in which
they may have contributed toward that common stock."
And in another place, the main cause of all the
prevailing discontent in Ireland and the remedy are
thus pointed out
We do not blame England for perpetuating an es-
tablished church in Ireland. Nothing could be more
unreasonable than to expect that our rulers in past times
should have done otherwise. But it was not incumbent.
upon them to perpetuate such a church ; and it is the
vicious nature of that establishment, covering the whole
land, as it does, and accroaching to itself enormous
wealth without yielding any edequate return, that we
find the real secret of the effort now made to endow the'
Romanism of that country. So long as there is an en-
do ed Protestant church, it is presumed there can never
be tranquillity until there is an endowed Catholic church.
But why no!, in a spirit more consonant with the prin-
ciple and temper of the age, reduce the Irish Protestant
church to something like just and modest dimensions,
after the congregational method before adverted to ;
and having thus removed nine-tenths of the cause of ir-
ritation to the Irish mind as arising from that source,
why not pr,,ceed to make abundant provision for further
conciliation by a judicious and righteous expenditure
with a view to the general improvement of the country 7
Such a method of dealing with the case of Ireland would •
have been worthy of the wise head, and the bold heart,
but in what is now proposed we see little indication Of
either."

The article altogether is in good taste, and the
subject, with some exceptions, fairly treated ; but
while snaking these admis,ions, it must not
be forgotten that too muc:s importance is at-- e
tached to this Maynooth affair, and too little
to the host of difficulties which obstruct almost
every measure for abating Irish grievances. The
aAlition to the annual vote to Maynooth of itself is a
very small affair—it is only a drop in the bucket; and
all that can be said for it is, that it evinces on the part
of the Tory Government and a Tory House of Com-
mons a disposition to adopt a conciliatory course in
preference to the old system of coercion. We agree
cordially with the writer that the useless ecclesiasti-
cal fabric in Ireland is an intolerable grievance, and
that it ought to be abolished, or at all events modi-
fie 1 to the real wants of the Protestant population.
But the main question is—has either Peel or Russell,
or any Statesman, the power to effect such a change
at present ? Is the measure practicable ? Would the
churches of England remain quiescent ? Could the
liberal party and the Dissenters overpower the
Toxies and Conservatives, and Orangemen,backed.
bny
boththe
countries wealth and? v
o influencefear
not,o the
and fifestablishmentreess
i
of Irish grievances is not made by degrees—if;
nothing is to be done till all is done at once, the
Irish must wait many a day, and trust for justice to
the terrors of a foreign or domestic war.

THE 111ECHAA ICS' MAGAZINE.
This magazine is entirely devoted to mechanical`„
inventions ; but it is full of information likely to in-
terest
the general reader. In this number there is
an account of the " Rapid Mail Carrier—three
dred miles an hour !" some remarks on the (nnanci--.
pation of glass, and Sir R. Peel's allusion to glass pipes;
a letter on the "Invention of Steam Navigation," and
various articles on similar subjects. The illustrations
consist of '• Captain Ericsson's Screw Propeller,"
"Mr. Home's Pneumatic Instruments," "Malam's
Improvements in Purifying Coal-gas," and "Sproule's
Pile-driving Machine."