The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1871-01-17
The Question of italian Unity.

The following protest agninst the recent
action OF meeting held at St. Peters
Church on Thursday night has been
adopted by the italian Benevolent Society
of this city !:
A PROTEST OF THE ITALIANS OF RICHMOND.
The members of the italian Benevolent
Society, In behalf of themselves and the
Italians Of Richmond, desire to protest
against the resolutions adopted and ad-
very few other citizens of foreign birth, and,
we are glad to say, still fewer Americans, at
ST. Peters Church on Thursday hight, adj
verse to the cause Of Italian Unity. It is
not true, rs was the constant effort to prove,
that the question of religion is involved in
the other one Italian unity. There has been
no invasion Of the" States of the Church, y
for there are no estates of the Church" to
invade. In 1S4S the former subjects of the
Pope peacefully, and almost unanimously,
established Republic, not owned by
the Pope, nor the Church, nor by
any but the people. New to Repub-
lican Government, the people soon
fell into troubles, and Pope Plus TX.
voluntarily withdrew from Rome to Gaeta,
a Neapoitan fortress, then under the rule
of an absolute King. Unhappily, the French
Republic, then on the eve OF its first Presl-
Dental election, sought to purchase the
support of the priesthood of France, and
through them the peasantry, by restoring
the Pope, and the Roman Republic and
Roman liberty were overthr0wn. Sacer-
dotal despotism reentered Rome through
breaches battered in her walls by French
cannon, and has been upheld by French
bayonets for twenty years. The "patri-
mony Of st. Peter" the spoliation of which
is the text for the Jeremiads Of the St.
Peters meeting. was quietly given up BY
the Pope in 1S4S-if, indeed, the acres Of
Rome instead of the spiritual guidance of
the Church constituted that patrimony. 1t
is a sad mistake this blending the religion
of the Oh urch with Italian'politics. 1t Is
the mistake of ignorance and bigotry, made
still more dangerous by intelligent men,
source and mislead its victims. As good
Catholics as live in this country rejoice in
the accomplishment of the unity of Italy,
and further rejoice that the Pope, as well
as his subjects, is set free from foreign bay
onets. AS 4 temporal prince he has fallen
before the accidents that cross the path Of
all temporal power. As Spiritual Prince
he will always be enthroned in the hearts
Of believers.
The denunciation of self-government by
the people, made by some Of the speakers.
and the experiment pronounced failure,
could hardly have been relished by an au-
dience nine-tenths Of which were people
from the most tyrannical government $50
they say that the world ever saw. 1t is
from far worse government that the Ro-
mans have just come into the open air of
unity, soon we hope to be illuminated by
the rays of rising republic. It is from a
government that has ordered domiciliary
visits /; that arrested citizens in the night
and carried them before tribunal Of priests,
from which there was no appeal that kept
spies on the track of all that has kept the
ISREALITES in pent-up quarters of the city,
outside of which they dare not live on
penalty of imprisonment and all this in
the nineteenth century.
1t is not light thing for the chief officer
of an American city to denounce the sue.
cess of an enslaved people, who have just
been untettered and remitted from gov.
ernment of priests to a government of SELF
Nor is it thing that the Italians Of this
city will soon forget. In what city would
the leading official address public meeting
in denunciation Of the Irish if they had OBJ.
tanned their liberty? 1t is true that Irish
citizens are stronger in numbers than 1tal.
ians, but we are as strong in our love for
our native land, and our desire to see Italy
one country, and ruled by the choice of the
people.
" earnestly protest against the proceed.
ings of that meeting, aud we as earnestly
protest against creating among the Protest.
ants of this country the belief that the
streets and wharves and revenues Of Rome
are in any way connected with the Catholic
Church. We protest against the arrogant
assumption by the priests that Catholic
who does not regard the abolition of the
temporal power of Plus X. as an outrage
is not Catholic at all. King Victor Eman.
uel has our earnest sympathies and love
Long may he reign, and long may the Pope
remain his dutiful subject.
ISignedl A. BRAvI,
Secretary OF the Italian Benevolent Society
of Richmond"