The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-04-19 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD, TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 1853.

CORRESPONDENCE.

Letters addressed to the Editor should be accompanied by the
real name and address of the writer, not for publication, but
as a guarantee of good faith ; this is indispensably requisite
in any statement of facts.
The Editor wishes it to be understood that he does not hold
himself responsible for the opinions or statements of his
correspondents.

ROMAN CATHOLICISM AND LOYALTY.

To the EDITOR of the LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

venture to address you in behalf of myself and
other members of a persecuted faith, because! have found that,
while you are one of the most powerful and consistent in
defence of your own views, you have, unlike your contempo-
raries, the fairness and the justice to listen to both sides
on all public questions, and do not refuse space in your
columns to the temperate appeals of those with whom you
do not agree. This is, perhaps, no more than I should have
a right to expect; for I have ever found that conscious weak-
ness is coupled with fear of opposition ; whereas, on the con-
trary, confidence in the strength of a good cause is accompanied
with even-handed justice and even liberality to an opponent.
As the most influential champion of your own Church, I have
repeatedly observed the fairness of your opposition to mine,
and the same remark will, I think, apply to members of the
English Church generally es distinguished from Protestant
Dissenters. While the former prove an open and honour-
able foe, the latter display all the virulence of petty spite; and
it is this fact which may perhaps account for the high position
of the Standard, which is, I believe, the only Liverpool paper
conducted by a member of the Church of England, or, at least,
who is so in practice as well as in precept. It sometimes
happens that a good cause is injured by injudicious advocacy,
and that when men are expected to be grateful, they have
more reason to exclaim, "Save me from my friends." This is
especially the case with the members of the Church of Rome,
and we who are moderate men and loyal subjects have to
endure the odium caused by the inflammatory harangues of
political partisans and violent agitators, such as were delivered
at the recent Roman Catholic soiree in the Concert-hall in
this town. Dr. Cahill and others whom I could mention
may profess the same faith, but they meet with no sympathy
from myself and thousands more in England, who adhere
to the creed in which we were brought up, hut are at the
same time devoted subjects of Queen Victoria. When Car-
dinal Wiseman was sent to establish an ecclesiastical hier-
archy in England, I viewed the movement with alarm for
the consequences, as well as disapprobation of the measure,
looking upon it as a step to enslave the souls of those whose
allegiance to Rome was purely of a spiritual character. But
the spirit of Protestantism took alarm for the permanence
of its ascendancy, and, in its zeal for resistance, condemned
all who professed the Romish faith as parties to the aggression.
That this was unjust, might be seen in the open expressions of
disapproval by his Grace the Duke of Norfolk, and other lead-
ing men both in and out of Parliament ; and I address this
letter to you now, in order to remonstrate against the too
common prejudice which would implicate all members of the
Church of Rome in the intemperate and ill.judged zeal of some
men of extreme opinions, who have of late made themselves
notorious by the extravagance of their ultra-montane opinions.
In adhering to the Romish religion, I do but follow the faith
of my fathers; and while I claim that liberty of conscience
which I am willing to concede, I am inclined to doubt the
sincerity of any man who will too readily surrender the
opinions in which he was brought up, from mere rppeals to his
reasoning faculties. My object, however, is simply to justify
myself and the many who agree with me, and I rely upon your
high character for justice and fairness to give insertion to my
letter.—l am, Sir, your obedient servant,
Liverpool, April 9, 1853. A ROMAN CATHOLIC.
P.S.—I enclose, in confidence, my card.

[This letter was crowded out last week by a press of matter.]
[Our correspondent does us no more than justice ; as our hos-
tility has always been not to individuals, but to the Romish
Church. We believe that very many of its members are of
high and honourable character, but its teaching is erroneous,
and its tenets dangerous; and, on principle, we abate none
of our hostility, notwithstanding our respect for individuals.
It is an interesting fact, that the generality of Romanist
servants prefer service with Protestant masters to those of
their own creed.—En.]

EASTHAII CHURCH.

To the EDITOR of the LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

SIR.—I am sure the parishioners of Eastham ought to be
very much obliged to you, for inserting in your valuable paper
the recent letters, calling their attention, and that of the
clerical authorities connected with the parish, to the disgrace-
ful state of their Parish Church.

Being on a visit to Eastham on Sunday last, I attended
church, and found that a charity sermon was to be preached by
a reverend gentleman I have long known, and frequently with
much pleasure beard,—the Rev. Mr. Ingham, of Rainhill, who
delivered, in his usual impressive style, a most excellent
sermon. The amount of the collection, lam afraid, would be
small, from the meagre congregation that had assembled, and
which, no doubt, world be a matter of surprise and regret to
Mr. Ingham, who was a stranger to the church. However,
when 1 brought tomy recollection the remarks of your cor-
respondent—" A Regular Churchman"—as to the present
dilapidated state of the church, its interior comforts, and free
ventilation, I must say I was not so much surprised at seeing
so bad a congregation; for a more wretched and chilly appear-
ance, for the inside of a church, can not be found, and so
unbearably cold, with the walls covered with wet, mould,
damp, dirt and dust, and a roof you could see through. I had
the curiosity to look for the three capital stoves, as mentioned
in the " Regular Churchman's" letter; I found them out by
their iron chimney pipes, not from their warmth, I assure you;
for I learnt on inquiry that they had never been lighted at all,
although one of the keenest of cold mornings, with a cutting
wind from the north, and no sun. Surely, the wealthy men of
Eastham Parish—if they do object to furnish means to put on
a new roof—are not so parsimonious as to refuse coal for the
fires. I am sure if I was either the Minister or Churchwarden,
I would see a little to the comforts of the congregation and
parishioners, and have every thing made as warm and as com-
fortable as the circumstances of the case would admit, or how
can it be expected that people will attend a church, to be
almost starved to death. lam told the Vicar is non-resident,
and that the Curate and Churchwardens say, Volo non Voleo.',
As to the Parish disputes about rates. I was told two or three
versions about that; but as talk is cheap, and having per-
sonally no interest in that affair, I know nothing of the cause,
why the Church should be in so miserable a state of dis-
comfort, or why the stoves are not lighted ;—all I can say is,
in my own Church neither one or the other would be tolerated

for one moment.—Yours, obliged,
April 15, 1853.

ARGUS.

A CATHEDRAL FOR LIVERPOOL.

To the EDITOR of the LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

Sta,—l noticed in the columns of your paper of last Tuesday
a paragrarh relative to the erection, or rather, I should say, to
the non-erection, of a Cathedral in the town of Liverpool. I
was not a little astonished that the Select Vestry of so great a
town had put their veto on a proposal, the accomplishment of
which would alike add honour to the people and ornament to
the place. And it is not to present advantage alone that we
ought to look ages yet unborn may have occasion to be grate.
fill to the noble mind that projected a scheme so grand—to the
noble hearts that concurred to carry it out. Doubtless many
obstacles intervene; but where were the glory, did they not?
It may be that the site proposed was not sufficiently suitable.
Why, then, not seek for another? It is a well-known fact that
" where there is a will there is a way," and I feel sure the day
is not far distant, when the will is to discover the way. There
are many who may allege that such an edifice is not required,
and would be great expense. Is not required ! Such, surely,
can have no knowledge of the town. Great expense!! Let such
men hide in their own bosoms their feelings about paltry pelf.
In conclusion, may I ask how is it that Liverpool can boast a
stately temple, so to speak, like St. George's Hall, raised for
the service of men, but cannot show more than an ordinary
tabernacle reared for the service of the God of men ?—I am,

Sir, yours, &c., CANTAB.
Trinity College, Cambridge, April 15, 1653.

THE COFFEE-GROWING LAND.—This afternoon we had
a glimpse of the town of Mocha, about ten miles distant.
It is built on low land, but a range of mountains rises in
the background. The famous Mocha coffee does not
grow in the vicinity of the town, but is brought from the
valleys of the interior. Hodeida, further up the coast, is
another port for its exportation, but the foreign trade of
both these places has been almost entirely destroyed by the
rise of Aden. The coffee is taken down to the latter port
in the native coasters, or by caravans from the interior,
and there shipped for Europe 'and other parts of the
world. Much of the so-called Mocha coffee, lam told,
is actually grown in Abyssinia.—Bayard Taylor.
A GERMAN'S EXPERIENCE OF AMERICA.—We ex-
tract the following from a German periodical :—" It was
the omnipotence of St. Custom that was presented to
view. A slavish submission to this authority was also re-
quired of myself. The slightest deviation from the es-
tablished order of the house, the least infringement of the
prevailing prescriptions, invariably called forth the curt
response, `That's not the custom in this country' or in
' this house,'—so that I could not get along at all without
giving up my European habits and tastes. For instance,
if I was fifteen minutes too late at a meal, St. Custom
had so thoroughly emptied the dishes that I was com-
pelled either to fast or to go to an eating-house, where
St. Custom permits:the table to keep open. Every ap-
pearance of a private inclination in our boarding-houses
was resisted by St. Custom, in the person of the inmates,
with a commendable tenacity. Every actual divarication
was opposed with genuine Anglo-Saxon obstinacy. Still
the cry We live in a free country' was always dinning
in
our ears ; but the freedom consisted in being obliged
.to
follow the prescriptions of St. Custom, if we would live
among the living. To escape the ukases of the Russian
Czars would have been child's play compared with the at-
tempt to transgress the usages of St. Custom, who, more-
over, had St. Fashion at his side as a Vice-President,
especially in concerns in which the fair sex came into play.
There were fashionable and unfashionable hours for visits,
promenades, and the like—even the side of the street on
which you must walk was rigidly determined—and every
paFt of the dress, even to the tie of the cravat, was preUr-
darned with an exactness that would have rejoiced the
heart of a German master of ceremonies of the last century.
Every violation was met with a severe frown on the brow,
That's not fashionable,' and the sinner who persisted in
the offence was denounced with a severity to which a
Papal Bull is a trifle. The man or woman who is thus
placed under the ban is avoided as a black sheep, and it
would be far better in fashionable circles to come under
the suspicion of being an infidel, than to have the reputa-
tion of habitually denying the laws of fashion.