The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1850-11-26 00:00:00

THE PAPAL AGGRESSION.

GRAND PROTESTANT DEMONSTRATION

On Wednesday at noon the town's meeting convened
by the Mayor, as announced in our last, was held (by ad-
journment from the Sessions House) in the Royal Amphi-
theatre. We need scarcely say that the proposed demon-
stration had excited the greatest public interest. An im-
pudent exhortation to the Roman Catholics of the town
was issued in the morning, calling them to go early and
pack the building " if they did not wish their rights to be
trampled upon, and their religion to be insulted." The
Sessions House was crowded, and the adjournment hav-
ing been carried. there was a rush to the Amphitheatre,
which had for some time before been well filled.
The Rev. Dr. M'Neile entered the theatre at twelve
o'clock, and was instantly recognised and loudly cheered
for a considerable time. Six Roman Catholic priests en-
tered some time after, and were received by some parties
in the meeting with loud cheering. This was answered
by louder cheers for "No Popery." The crowd gave out
a variety of sentiments, and the response was alternately
cheers, hisses, or groans. About half-past twelve, the
Mayor, John Bent, Esq., accompanied by a great num-
ber of highly-respectable gentlemen, came upon the stage
(which was previously crowded by almost all the influen-
tial gentry of the town), and was greeted with loud cheers.
The requisition having been read, the words " to defend
the prerogative of the Crown :against Papal aggression"
were followed by a tremendous burst of cheering and par-
tial confusion.

The MAYOR, as soon as order was restored, expressed
his hope that the meeting would be conducted in an or-
Itlerly and temperate spirit suited to the importance of the
.occasion. He claimed a patient hearing for all who might
address them. The Ml or then read a letter from Mr.
=Cardwell, M.P., dated Edinburgh, in which the hon.
ta ern e r expressed his concurrence in the objects of the
meeting. The letter was received with cheering. but a
voice shouted " He is done for Liverpeol." His Worship
then called upon Sir Thomas Birch to move the first reso-
lution., but the lion. baronet's absence was accounted for
by Mr. T. B. Horsfall, who came forward to supply his
.place.

LIORSFALL, on rising, was received with the loud-
.est demonstrations of satistaction and delight, which were
kept up for a considerable time. On their subsiding he
-said, he 'regretted extremely to hear from a gentleman
iriho had jest communicated the fact to him, that Sir
Thomas Birch was prevented from taking the part which'
he had promised• to take, of moving the first resolution,
by a severe attack of indisposition. His servant had just
arrived, and communicated the fact. He regretted it the
more because the duty had been consequently assigned to
lim. He could not but think it must be a source of great
gratification to the Mayor that the first public meeting
over -which he had been called upon to preside was one for
upholding the prerogative of the Crown. Whatever
might have been our differences of opinion on measures
that are past—whatever might now be our differences of
opinion on matters of state policy, or questions of local
interest—he thought at least the majority of the inhabi-
tants of this town were agreed that the recent attempt on
the part of the Bishop of Rome—(uproar, groans, hissing,
and cheers)—to claim a jurisdiction in this country was,
in the language of the Bishop of Durham, echoed by the
Premier, aed re-echoed by the people of England—(loud
cheering)—an insolent and insidious aggression—(a voice:
" No, no ;" cries of " Yes, yes," and cheering)—an ag-
gression which must and which will be resisted by the
people of England. (Loud cheers.) He cordially agreed
in the hope which the Mayor had expressed, that the
meeting would give every one that should address them a
fair and impartial hearing. (Loud applause.) And he
hoped that, whoever might address that meeting would ad-
dress it in that language of moderation which he should
endeavour to adopt in advocating the view he felt bound
to take ; for whatever might be his opinion of the aggres-
sion of any foreign potentate, he would yield to none—
(interruption)—he was saying, and he wished his Roman
Catholic friends had heard him out, that he was the last

man in that building to say anything'

unnecessarily offen-

(Cheers, and hisses.) For when a crisis arrived, and he
spoke from experience, there were among his Roman Ca-
tholic townsmen some as loyal men as any in the king-
dom. (Applause.) Having read the resolution (which
with the others and the amendments will be found in our
advertising columns) he said he knew he need not appeal
to any member of the National Chnrch to support that
resolution; because the Church of England stated in her
37th article that " the Bishop of Rome hath no jurisdiction
in this realm of England." And he was much mistaken
if the people of England would not only re-echo the as-
sertion that the Bishop of Rome has no jurisdiction in this
realm of England—(uproar, and a cry of " He has !")
but that they would say further, and that that meeting
would respond to the call, and say, by the help of God he
shall have none. (Tremendous and protracted cheering,
the greatera prt of the meeting rising and waving hats,
&c.) He could easily imagine gentlemen who did not be-
long to the National Church saying, " Very true ; I agree
with you that such are the articles of your church. I agree
with you that this aggression is contrary to the spirit of

the British Constitution. I agree with ion that it is also
centrary to the feeling and wishes of the people of Eng.
land. (" No, no," " yes, yes," and renewed interrup-

• . .
tion.) But the question comes, is it or is it not illegal?
Be need not tell them he was not a lawyer, neither had
he patience enough to wade through all the acts of Par-
liament on the subject, neither would he quote the opi-
nions of an individual, though those opinions were to his
mind clear and conclusive. But he held in his hand a
document which he believed wou'Al be acknowledged by
all legal men in the country. He spoke of a paper which
held no political opinions—a periodical called the Law
Times. That paper argued the question at great length,
and with their permission he would just read, not the
whole, which was four or five columns in length, but the
wearable, and the conclusion. The statement, he might
pl-emise, was drawn up by a body of legal

" The "we measure adopted by the Pope, for dividing this
country into different dioceses, to be under his own jurisdic-
tion, and for tlppointing an archbishop and bishops, who are
to exercise spiritual authority in these realms, has caused
many inquiries to be made respecting the present state of the
law as regards the Roman r:atholics, and more especially as
affecting the illegality of the assumption of jurisdiction in this
kingdom by a foreign potentate. It is our intention, therefore,
to present before our readers a succinct review of the different
laws which have from time to time been made relative to this
subject, with the object more especially of answering the im-
portant inquiry, how far the ancient enactments against the
authority of the Pope to jurisdiction here, and which declare
the illegality of upholding its assumption, have been affected
or abrogated by the statute of 10 Geo. 4, cap. 7, commonly
called the Roman Catholic Emancipation Act, and the late act
of 9 and 10 Vict., c. 69, entitled 'An Act to relieve her Majes-
ty's Subjects from certain Penalties and Disabilities in regard
to Religious Opinions.' "

The paper then goes on to show the state of the law
upon the subject, and concludes as follows :
" The whole question, therefore, as we have already intima-
ted, appears to resolve itself ultimately into this simple inquiry
—What is the meaning of the words authorit}, jurisdiction,
sad power contained in the statute of 1 Eliz., c. 1, and are they
sufficiently comprehensive to meet the case now under consi-
deration? In order to interpret them properly, and to be
satisfied on this point, we ought to ascertain the precise con-
dition of the affairs of this country, especially in relation to
the see of Rome, at the period when the statute referred to
passed ; and to consider for what purpose the act in question
was made, and what was the real object it was intended to
meet. From the history of the period we learn that the claim
to spiritual or ecclesiastical authority by the Pope, more espe-
cially as regarded his power to declare invalid the marriage of
of the Queen's mother with Henry the Eighth, and to excom-
municate her Majesty, was what mainly induced the passing
of this, and of the subseqtient statute. The titles of and the
words contained in the preambles to the acts of Elizabeth are
moreover of general import, and evidently refer to any injury
to the crown that might be occasioned by the exercise of spi-
ritual as well as temporal power by the Pope. especially of the
nature here alluded to. It appears to us, therefore, that the
statute of 1 Eliz., c. 1, so far as regards the particular clause
in question, is still in full force; that the words contained in
it are amply sufficient to meet the case before us; a, d that,
though the particular penalties mentioned in that act are re-
pealed by the statute 9 and 10 Vict., c. C 9, yet that the mainte-
nance of the authority, jurisdiction, and power of the Pope in
this country is still illegal, and is still punishable by law."
(The reading of this paper was interrupted by prolonged
disturbance.) Mr. Horsfall proceeded to say, that Lord
John Russell, in speaking the other day at Guildhall,
made the following remark :

" Let me add, however, one further remark. When peril
much more grave, peril much more imminent, impLnded over
this country, a wi e princess, who at that time ruled over the
country, thought fit to call to her aid all those who, whatever
their religious persuasion, were faithful to the throne and
true to the interests of their country"-

(Disturbance and loud cheers.) He would proceed to
show—(The end of the sentence lost in disturbance.)
Perhaps, if some of his Roman Catholic friends would
not listen to the lawyers, they would have no objection to
hear what the Pope said. (Great sensation.) This was,
with reference to the liberal princess who called to her
counsel every man, without reference to his religious dis.
tinction, who was faithful to the throne. The speaker
then read from a paper :
" Dated at Rome, at St. Peter's, May sth, 1570.
"The damnation and excommunication of Elizabeth, Queen
of England, and her adherents, with an addition of other pu-
nishments.

" Pius, bishop, servant of the servants of God, ad peipetuam
rei memoriam.

" He that reigneth on high, to whom is given all power in
heaven and in earth, committed one Holy Catholic and Apos-
tolic Church (out of which there is no salvation) to one alone
upon earth, namely, to Peter, the prince of the apostles, and
to Peter's successor, the Bishop of Rome, to be governed in
fulness of power. Him alone lie made prince over all people,
and all kingdoms, to pluck up, to destroy, scatter, consume,
plant, and build; that he may contain the faithful that are
knit together, with the hand or charity in the unity of the
spirit, and present them spotless and unblameable to their
Saviour. _ _

"Being therefore supported by His authority, whose plea.
sure it was to place us (though unable for so great a burden)
in this supreme throne of justice, we do, out of the fulness of
our apostolic power, declare the aforesaid Elizabeth, being a
heretic and a favourer of heretics, and her adherents in the
matters aforesaid, to have incurred the sentence of anathema,
and to be cut off from the unity of the body of Christ. And,
moreover, we do declare her to be deprived of her pretended
title to the kingdom aforesaid, and of all dominion, dignity,
and privilege whatsoever. And, also, the nobility, subjects,
and people of the said kingdom, and all others, who have in
any sort sworn unto her, to be for ever absolved from any
such oath, and all manner of duty, of dominion, allegiance,
and obedience; as we also do, by authority of these presents,
absolve them. And to deprive the same Elizabeth of her pre-
tended title to the kingdom, and all other things above said.
And we do command and interdict all and every the noblemen,
subjects, people, and others aforesaid, that they presume nor
to obey her monitions, mandates, and laws : And those who
do the contrary, we do immolate with the like sentence of
anathema."

This was an anathema against Elizabeth ; let them only
give the power to the Pope of the present day, and the
anathema would be sent forth against Queen Victoria.
(Cries of " No, no," "Yes, yes," cheers, hisses, and
tremendous confusion.) The resolution asserted further
that the aggression now made would be an infringement
of the rights aria privileges of the people. He held in
his hand an extract from a spcech made by the Rev. Mr.
Vanlieepit a Roman Catholic, at a meeting in London.
The 'speaker said, they (the Catholics) had been accused
of being enemies to the advancement of civil and religious
prcigress. 'Who, asked the speaker at London, estab-
lished trial jr jury ? Who gave to the country the twelve