The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1872-03-31
Treatment Of the Poor in England by Catholics
and by Protestants.

Treatment of the Poor in England by Catholics
and BY Protestauts.
We lately marked some passages for
comment in Colwell's "New Themes for
Protestant Clergy" a work of more than
ordinary thOroughuess and research, in
which the author eonvicts Protestantism of
gross aud cruel neglect of the poor. He is
staunch Protestant hmself-if our
memory serves us rightly--of the strictest
Presby terian type. He writes in the inter-
est of Professionalism, exposing. what he re-
CARDS as incidental faults, with q view to
their being corrected. His testimony,
therefore, carries with it the more weight.
We find it SO full and clear, that we pub
lish it below without farther present COM
ment:
".In ne country had the religious liber-
ality of Catholic laity been displayed on
larger scale than in England. The i'm
mense estates given to the Church were, in
a large degree, expressly bestowed for
! charitable purposes AT the period
Of the Reformation, when Henry VII; as
sumed the headship of the Church of Eng
land, all those immense estates were confis-
Gated and conferred upon the bishops and
other clergy and leaders of the reform. All
that was given to the nobility and gentry
(sacrilegiOusiy taken from the Catholic
hsa fse@ sss sa I Without
slightest regard to the trust upon which the
grants were originally made. All that was
given to the English bishops and clergy
has remained the property Of the estab-
lishment to this day. Its yearly early value is is
fifty millions of dollars. Not the slightest
regard has been paid by these bishops and
clergy, any more than the lay grantees, to
the trust under which these estates were
granted. The Catholic clergy applied a
fourth, @or even q third for the benefit OF
| Z ls,y,f Er,>so ny oil
; have retained the whole as their exclusive
, perauisite. Thus arise those enormous
revenues of the English (Episcopalian)
, bishops, which are standing reproaci. to
) Christianity, in country where mlillont
: upon millions are gfoaning in poverty
with a clear right to all the relief these
-triches affordr---- ----.
, "From it's first establishment the Eng
' lish (Episcopalan church not only appro
priated the funds of the poor, but cast thu
charge of the poor upon tue secular arm
: where it remains to this day. It would bt
4 difficult to point out any more daring ant
: fragrant disregard of Christian principles
and in all countries, has admitted TIT
8 claims of the poor, and also the obilea
I tions which those claims imposed. Th
r Protestant church of England commenced
;. it's career by seizing their estates, ant
), turning the poor out to the tender merc:a
n of the government. The Legislation 10 10
o the poor was characterized, during til
4 reign of Henry Will, by its fixing upo
y the unemployed poor the epithet of vaga
q bonds, aud by inficting the penalties {
!. whipping, cropping, branding and deaf
{, for the offence of being vagabonds. Man
e thousands acere hung in that reign Of tn
4 first head Of the English church for bein
: Uaqabonds.
10 This is no place to write :he history. {
F. the English poor, of the legislation apple
a to them, nor of the administration of I'll
,r poor-laws The whole constitute
such disgrace to the established churcl
4 and to Professionalism, as can never be adt
v quately characterized. During three Gel
< turies she has shut her eyes from beholdin
,e and shut her ears from hearing, and trtti
Of held her hands from remorinJ the roes of t.
generations of Increasing millions OF suhe
q. ing poor. She has not fed them, NJ
ID clothed them, nor visited them in sickne
n Tor in prison she has left them in char;
of the national authorities. And VIII
a. have these done in this long period VIII
n. have these devised for the poor7 Th'
on have long since reduced tho treatment
ct paupers to q system which has since be-
adopted for criminals. They have inven
n ed the poor-house, that stigma of Protes
10 antism; they have degraded the poor
30 the level of the worst criminals lin son
- respects below them and make lees human
q provisions for the poor than for them
pir thew have made cDarlty QepenuenI Oh /
' parish boundaries they have enacted
scene of protracted and bitter litigation
yer determine which parish shall be acquitt
of of the duty of relieving the poor tn
ty, spend as IN uch in efforts to cast OF the bu
ne den of q poor family as would relic
ell scores of families; they let out the Po
he by contract to the maintenance of a co
M tractor they look upon the support of t
ed poor as grievous burden, and regard 1T
nd a matter of business in which econor
nd must rule, until the lowest cost at Whl
We life can be sustained 1s iouno anu
cordingly the allowance Of the poor has &c