The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1877-08-19
Maryland the Pioneer.

tuc VI
this country, which appears in recent
number of the ChurcA Journal, an EPisco-
palian paper published in New York. That
article takes the singular ground that this
idea is q popular old fable foisted upon
the public by virtue of persistent reitera-
ton and utterly devoid Of foundation. Inc
Church Journal goes on to prove, lst, that
the fact was not SO, and, 2ndly, that 1t
could not have been 30.
The proofs adduced in support OF the
former proposition are strangely chosen
for that purpose. The writer eeems to
discredit the prevalent idea that the bulk
OF the population, in the days of Lord Bal
tmore, were Catholics. Being apparently
unable to get any direct information on the
subject he guesses that Protestants must
have been in the majority, because in the
year l645 one Irgle, holding q commission
from Crom wells Parliament, drove Leon
ard Calvert out of Mary land, Calvert being
Lord Baltimore's Lieutenant Governor in
his absence. And moreover because at
the came time the Jesuit priests were ar
rested and sent to England for trial, their
hlbSluus OclbS
This kind of proof is very weak and very
strong. 1t is very weak for establishing
that Prote stants were numerically superior
to Catholics in Maryland, because if the
Province had been unanimo usly Catholic
it would not have dared, single handed, to
enter upon q contest with the British ma
ton. Bat it is very strong proof to show
Fill. 81
at that time, and how far it was from con-
ceiving the legislative system of soleration
which WAS adopted by the Maryland Leg
islaturs just four years afterwarde.
The real fact adduced by this most con-
Trajectory OF casuists is that Lord Balti-
more, through his representative, Col.
Stone, took great pains to induce . con-
siderable body of Puritans to emigrate into
Maryland. These people were settled in
Virginia where they were called Eon-con-
| formists and had been legislated against
most severely by the Episcopalian Cava-
liers of that knigbtly lard. We cannot
believe, however, that the Cavaliers did
| this by reaeon Of the religion of these Puri
! tans, but because of their other peculiari-
! ties. AT any rate Lord Baltimore and his
! Catholic colony, lad DO prejudice against
! them but were quite anxious TO have them
! as citizens e tie Province. Loid Bal;i-
3 more even embodied in h!s commission 70
I Col. Store tie absolute guA:aa;se II at they
should have liberty of conscience and
worship. They came; the! were immedj-
ate V admitted 10 suffrage On eqCa! terms
7
islAture OF Assembly convened the gusran-
ties Of Lord Baltimore were enacted into
laU:
Ths WIS IN ls4s, four years after the
sg-nts Of Protestant e. gland bad seized
Csihohc Qr,esrs in MArylA TO be imnureC
in British prisons, and while even hospi;a
Die Virginia wAs bullooxing tie nutmeg
man ufActu-ers-
Now, says our Church Journal fIienC
This was q compromise Of conhlctipt
parties IN the Assembly. The Puritan
had Al u nch to do with it as the Catholics.
E But no. The Catholics had invited tn
L PuritADs TO come and promised them reli
!. gioUt tolerance before they came.
d But thipgs dId not remain II this condi
= ton Soon ProtestAnts did attain politics
power II the State, whether by suPeEorit
II numbers or by schemlng, and thee VIII
- became Of the religious tolerance for whic
tie Church journal wishes TO give the
credIt3 1t vanished utterly. CAthoh
e were taxed TO support Protestant eierg.
I. neu, their schools were abolished, the
'e free exercise OF public worship was PT'
% vented and their participation II offs
: holding virtually prohibited. Tais W
wits Protes;autism did.
= Oar fgle1d OF the Ciurcl JgurnaI vel
-. unfairly tIIes to give tae impression TIL
II ProIestauts optrunbere Catholics = NJ
rylard when tie PQutars were !uvit,
from Virginia. This is SIMPLY 81 cu;ra
,e on truth. The colouists ucder Lord Ba
n timore landed on the shores of tie Caes
Il peAke in 1854 and, as we have seen aooE
:. the expulsion of Calvert and the jesuit
theirs took p,nce in l645, only eleven Yea