The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1873-02-09
IEcKY ON FRoUDEs
A SHARP CRITICISM OF THE ENGLISH Lee
Bee. - TURER.

We reproduce in this issue of the STAR,
from the New York Independent, a more
than usually Interesting article on Mr..
Froude and his Irish American lectures, from
the pen of Mr. Lecky, of the deepest
thinkers and most polished writers of the day
We call NE Intention of our readers to this
cogent and scholarly article as it we'll merits.
q careful perusal.
Among the intellectual phenomena of the
present day, one of the most emarkabe is
certainly the presence among AS of n small
but able body of literary men whose rcpug
nance to modern liberal tendencies has led
them to opinions on secular policy more fitted
to the latitude of Russia than of England,
! and on religious policy more fitted for the
Middle Ages than the nineteenth century. The
two things they hate the most are civil and
religious liberty. Freedom of speech, freedom
of the press. representative government. the
rights of nations to determine the form of gov
eminent under which they shall live, the
| rights of weak minorities TO protectian as
long as tEey do not injure their mel ghbors, the
right of every man to profess the religious be-
lief and adopt the religious worship which he
considers tho best, are in their phraseology mere
Piles of the majority should rule, and that the
scruples of the minority should be respected
are equally antipathetic to them. The whole
| tendency of modern policy in their eyes, is
a mistake, and history has to then, a certain
melancholy charm as record of religious and
political despotsms which have been weakly
banished from tue world.
| Opinions such as these, though now rare,
and we venture to think morbid eocentricities
were once supreme in Europe. The modern
school however has no sympathy with these doc
trines and it is a melancholy and, indeed, a
humiliating fact that some Of the most ardent
eulogies of the policy of destroying certain
FORMS of religion by the sword have come from
men whose opinions on these mattess are no
: torously heterodox or lax.
1t would be a mistake, however, to suppose
that there is no distinct principle Terrifying
these views. The loading doctrine of THU
school is the worship of success, as tbR suprem!
evidence of goodness. Wherever they fnt
might, there also they find right. To decid
3 whether Q haton is right in invading, disposs
tion is, whether She is able to DO It.. If she is
o the pretext she chooses is of little consequence
= Her ultimate success is her justification. She
obcying Goods law" and the weaker nation
if unable to resist effectuafiy, is immortal i
: resstngat all. The supreme law of politica
Q ethics is thus:
If Tbas he should take who has the p6wer.
q And he should keep who can"
: As Mr.. Froude expresses it in the presen
i work: The superior part has a natural RICH
=, to govern, the inferior part has natural RICH
= to be governed and a rude but adequate tee
u of superiority and inferiority is provided in til
20 relative strength of the different orders of hi
s, man beings" 1.-THE rights of nan-if snch right
Is there be-are not to liberty, but to wise dire
1t ton end control" The right to rise depend
* upon the power Of resistance" "There iG I
Or dlsputlpg against strength, nor hepplS
70 there any need to dispute; for the strengt
\, which gives a right to freedom implies Il
W presence of those qualities which insure
ne that it will he tightly used"
ut That the leading writer's of this school a
g. not only men of great genius, but also of Ell
ly nently noble and humane disp ositions, ms
r be readily conceded. The character of q WI
n ter is one thing, the principles he advOcat
Ts are quite another; and nothing which is he
80 written about the latter is intended to ca
70 y the smallest reAectioIupon the former. Oft
IL, lanu- NE "
On respect 1t appears to not only profound
rs. false in ITSELF but also as'well fitted as any
it'll the whole range of opinions to pervert (
to IAcral Judgments of men. No system can stri
mt more directly at theroot of all that is noble
It'll generous in human nature than this deif'
IA ton OF success, this worship of force as
bal ,rsal and IF ali that ;s nnsncerssful IL mai
no it the function of history to stand by the sc
o fold and curse the victims as they pass
u natural fruits have been an enthusiasm Tor