New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-03-24

the will Of Rome, and as the barbarian
had been in former times brought il
chains from the most distant province
to the republican metropolis, s.
the highest civilization appeared a
the bar of the spiritual empire bound il
the AFFECT letters of superstitious ODE
dience. With the growth of intelligence
in other countries, Rome has lost he
monopoly of spiritual adviser. Th'
Catholic Kingdoms no longer acknowledg'
her as paramount in temporal authority
Temporal and spiritual allegiance are
divided and strictly defined. Nor is sub
ject allowed to disobey his temporal sover
eign on the plea that he owes higher
earthly obligation elsewhere. Even the
States of Italy have defined these distinc-
tons, and the head of the Church has
now, We believe, no other temporal juris-
diction except over the sacred edifces and
ecclesiastical revenues within the city. OF
course there is very bitter conflict be-
tween the government of Italy and its
spiritual competitors. With this domestic
dispute we have nothing to do.
But the pursuit Of religion as business
has for a long series of centuries filed
Rome with a population connected with,
or dependent on the ceremonies of the
Church. The feast days of the saints are
SO many days of idleness and festivity,
and the various phases of divinity make
the holy objects of worship nearly as nu-
merous as under the mythology to which
it succeeded. The exhibition of relics
AID of localities celebrated in theological
or classical tradition is great source of
revenue. There is voluntary contribu-
ton made by pious people throughout the
world which is far more productive than
the .Peter's pence" ever collected under
the authority Of st. Peters deputies at the
Vatican. There will be soon a pilgrim
age organized to go to Rome, not as in the
day when these professions went on foot,
and thousands persisted by the way, but
on through tickets by rail and steamer,
with all the comforts and with all the ex-
penditures of modern travel. There has
been at an earlier period jubilee held at
Rome, which all fashionable Europe
attended. Among other sources of bust
ness profit reaped by the Holy City is the
celebration Of the carnival. 1t lays way
over our Mardi Gras, as will appear by
extracts from an American letter to the
New York Times:
1t promises to rollic through seven or eight
days of dizzy, wild hilarity. The proprie-
tors of houses on the Corso have made as
good a market as usual of their balconies,
as the number of foreigners here is quite up |
to the standard of what is called good |
season.
1t was proposed
To ge. up representation of an imperial
procession and pageant in the Coliseum.
That grand old ruin has, in recent centuries,
been the scene of all sorts of nonsensical
,arbarites and ridiculous ordinations;
,ut with the archaeological explorations
low going on in the arena there is hope
hat after this unbecoming spectacle, these
will be made an end of. 1t is too solemn a
monument to be the scene of farce. The
;orsO is the proper theatre for the monkey
ricks of the carnival, and. according to the
ecision of the municipality, to that stage
hey are still to be confined.
So the same idea of living like lazza-
oni, and subsisting on weeks extrava-
ance Of strangers, possesses the Roman
lind, that We have heard advanced else
here. 1t is a delusion. We would
sther rely on the proverbial industry of
n American village to build itself into
ty than in this foreign waste which
ives a few fortunes and leaves the re-
ainder to pauperism.
Rome has about the population of {
ird-rate American city. She has no {
her commerce than that of souls, and /
manufactures except of relics. She is q
G cold Curiosity Shop Of the world,
I'd her people make their subsistence by =
and simplifying its Anticipated
onders. I