The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-06-24 00:00:00

declared thermic/es taco ready thus publicly to con.
form to that pure faith, of the truth of which his ad-

monitions had brought them to the full and sincere

conviction

We point attention to this subject, not in the spirit
of vain-glorious rejoicing. It convinces not us that
the truth—ardently as it is preached, strong as it is in
itself, and certain, ultimately, to triumph—is even yet
perceptibly making head against the darkness of error.
Its subtle enemy still winds his alluring coils around
the hearts of thousands, unperceived and unnoted ;
still crawls like the adder to poison the pure well-
springs ; still blasts, like the upas tree, wherever its
dark shadow falls upon the vegetation which the faith-
ful minister of the, pure light of the Word has watered
with his tears, and vivified with his prayers. We raise
up from their spiritual and moral death a few chosen
branches—a few reflecting, thinking, reasoning chil-
dren of error ; whilst Rome allures her thousands of
the reckless, the giddy, and the thoughtless to drink
of the Lethean stream, by whose intoxicating waters
they are swept away into the depths of the darkness
in which she has raised her soul-destroying empire.
Why, it will be said, do we take this dispairing view
of our Protestant position ? Is not the grasp of Rome
upon our high places struck down ? Is not her place
amongst the noble of the land vacant ? Are not our
noblest institutions, our altars and our throne, sur-
rounded by the good and true of the Protestant faith ?
Have we clot now a Conservative administration, and
why then do we utter the notes of warning and lamen-
tation ? Reader, it is because we cannot but see a dis-
position to trust too much to our position; to be con-
tent with the strength we have secured; to stand idle
and unarm ourselves and make merry, behind the bul-
warks of our constitution, when we should be warring
in their front ! It is because we have piled our swords
and spears, and are preparing to lay aside our shields,
when Rome is mining the walls under our very feet !
Does her sleepless eye ever close? Is her arm ever
hung listless by her side ? Look around you fellow-
townsmen and answer us !
Here, within an arm's length of the walls in which
many of you worship, is rising a Nunnery. Here, a
Chapel, which in splendour will shame the noblest of
your churches. Here, in a few short years, will spring
up a College, whilst around you on both sides of the
Mersey smaller erections, dedicated to the inculcation
of the dark errors of Rome, are being planted, to en-
trap your thoughtless children—to blind and bewilder,
perhaps, yourselves. Rome treads no more amongst
you like a conqueror ; her proud foot is no longer upon
the necks of princes and peers; yet, a dark and
noisome stream, she glides on still—
" Labitur et labetur in omne voluminus cevum."
And
,shall we be told, then, that this is a time for
Protestants to hang back—for our Protestant Associa-
tions to slumber at their
,posts ? When your clergy
are assailing the enemy within his entrenchments, and
dragging human trophies—converted souls—from the
Very centre of his hosts, is this a time for you to desert
your trust—to fall back from the position which they
and you have won ? NO The lay Protestantism of
the empire must still hold fast—must still cheer on
the faithful few who fight the good fight—must still
present a phalanx, watchful and firm, and resolute to
resist attack, whether it come with the armed hand and
the defying front, or with the grasp of the false friend
and the smile of the betrayer !
Well know we the wiles of Rome—her Proteus
changes—her serpent windings—the weapons of alter-
nate blandishment and terrorism with which she works !
And, therefore, we .repeat- that the hour of incipient
triumph over her is not the hour for Protestantism to
slumber. Do we wish for converts from Rome ?
Then, Protestantism must chew itself in its strength,
for those rescued men and women to entrench themselves
amongst ! If we have brought out those rescued men
and women from a land of darkness and foulness—ii
we have broken up their friendships, and their ties of
relationship even—for with all this Rome visits her
seceding children—we must have new friendships to
offer them, new protectors to defend, and new advisers
- to cheer and sustain. For this work, we ask, what
body so well fitted as our Protestant Associations, to
which the cause of truth already owes so much, and
from whom it is destined, we trust, to receive so much

more t

We have entered upon these remarks, in connexion
with the •gratifying circumstance which immediately

called them forth, because—(why should we hesitate to
confess it ?)—we consider our Protestant Associations
the best allies of our clergy in the good work which
they are pursuing ; and because we have seen in the
former bodies of late an inertness which grieves us.
This must not be .1 We are politically, for the present
at least, as a party, in the ascendant. To the Protes-
tant Associations of Great Britain we attribute much
of the success which has attended our efforts. In Li-
verpool, we say it without hesitation, we owe nearly all
to that body ! By their aid we have shown to the em-
pire that the tie of a common faith is the only tie which
can withstand every shock which enemies or false
friends can bring against it—that all other ties are a
rope of sand ! We cannot, therefore, even the hour of
triumph, contemplate the unbinding or the weakening
)f that tie without sad misgivings of the result by which
such a calamity must be attended. To our Protestant
Associations, therefore, we say—STAND FAST ! Keep
a firm and united front against the advancing waters, whe-
ther they come like the ripple of a summer's tide, or like
the dash of the winter's torrent,—STAND FAST,—for
it will be too late to gird yourselves for the encounter
when the smiling waters have risen to your lips, or the
dark torrent has borne the trophies of past victories
and the hope of the future into the deep which yawns
to receive them!
Look around you, fellow protestants, we again pray
you, at the aspect with which popery, that humbled (f)
thing, even now confronts you. But a few days ago
its mendicant prophet—Daniel O'Connell—declared,
before assembled peers and gentlemen of England,

that HE YET HOPED TO HEAR THE SACRIFICE 0

THE MASS PERFORMED UPON THE HIGH ALTAR
OF WESTMINSTER ABBEY ! Turn from this boast
of the impostor, and contemplate, from an occurrence
detailed in another column, what manner of men they
be, by whom that SACRIFICE (!) must be performed—

by whom those venerable walls must be POLLUTE

PRESENTATION OF PLATE TO CAPTAIN COBB, OF T
SIDDONS.—The passengers of the packet-ship Siddons pre
sented to Captain E. B. Cobb, a beautiful silver pitcher
manufactured in London, and bearing a suitable inscription
for his gentlemanly and seamanlike conduct during his las
voyage from New York to this port. The plate was presente
to Captain Cobb at a dinner
.given to him at the Adelpi
Hotel. The deputation appointed to select the plate consisted
of Mr. Woolf, and Mr. Johnson, of New York, and Captain
Watson. of the British Army.
FESTIVAL CHORAL SOCIETY.—This society held its public
meeting at the Music-hall, on Tuesday evening. The room
was quite full, and intolerably hot. Handel s magnificent
oratorio of " Joshua" was performed. Mr. George Eyton,
leader ; organist, Mr. John Richardson ; principal vocalists,
Miss Leach (from Manchester), Mrs. Armstrong. Mr.
Armstrong, Mr. Richardson, Mr. Davies, and Mr. Evans,
with a full band of instrumental performers and a chorus of
180 singers. The choruses were admirably performed, es.
pecially " See the Conquering Hero Comes," which was
unanimously encored. The tine effect was, however, quite
lost, the room being unsuitable for such an immense body of
sound. Mrs. and Mr. Armstrong sang the solos allotted
to them with much feeling and taste, and the performers ap-
peared generally to give satisfaction.
DEPRESSION OF TRADE.--PUBLIC MEETING OF SHOP-
KEEPERS.—On Tuesday evening last, a meeting of shop.
keepers, retail dealers, innkeepers, and cottage owners of
Manchester, was held at the Town-hall of that town, for the
purpose of making known, as far as possible, the distress
prevailing among them, with a view of obtaining a remedy.
The chairman read letters from several shopkeepers and
retail dealers, containing comparative statements of the
receipts of the present and last year, which showed a great
falling off in the present year, as compared with 1841. Reso-
lutions were moved to the effect that the present depression
in trade is without a parallel, and that legislative interference
is indispensable for the purpose of removing that depression.
The chartists in the room then moved an amendment in
favour of the charter, which caused such confusion that the
meeting was at length dissolved without any definite termi-
nation.—[A similar meeting is, we believe, proposed to be
held in Liverpool shortly, and which we hope will be attended
with some more practical result.—En. L.S.]
CONVERSIONS FROM ROMANISM IN BIRKENHEAD.—On
Sunday last, Dr. Graham, a respectable surgeon in Birken-
head, publicly read his recantation of the errors of Roman-
ism in Holy Trinity Church. The solemn ceremony was
very impressive, and evidently produced a deep effect on the
minds of many Romanists who were present. The form of
recantation used by the Rev. J. Baylee on those occasions is
that prepared by Archbishop Wake. The rev. gentleman
announced the gratifying intelligence that three others were
prepared to recant on the following Wednesday. His church
was attended by a large number of Romanists. Two women
and one man renounced the errors of Romanism. The ser-
mon was from Jeremiah vi., xvi. v.—" Thus saith the Lord,
stand ye in the old ways, and see, and ask for the old paths,
where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find
rest
for
your souls." It was listened to with the greatest
attention,
rn i
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aiandtt with
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expressedt he
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has txhi the
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We have thus a practical proof of the value of faithful and
zealous efforts to " banish and drive away all erroneous and
strange doctrine conotrary to God's word." It must be no
small gratification
t
his controversial. Mr. Baylee thus to reap the fruits of
lectures. We heartily wish him to go pit
and prosper.