The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-03-08
The Jesuit Estates.

The Jesuits estates act that is creating
such a commotion In the Province of Quebec
has its roots, as it were, way back when
Canada was province Of the King of
France. As is well known, the Jesuit or
der began missionary work early in the New
World. The estates referred to In the act
are the estates granted to the Jesuits by the
French King and set apart for the education
Of the people. After the English conquered
Canada the Jesuits were forbidden to recruit
their order in Canada, and in consequence
the order declined until 1774, when 1t was
abolished by the Pope. When this took
place the Jesuit estates were taken posses-
sion of by the British crown. Years after
ward the Jesuits reestablished themselves
and laid claim to these confiscatei estates on
the ground thatth never rightfully escheat-
ed to the British crown. The Catholic posi-
tion Is that the lands originally granted to
the Jesuits were not the property of
the latter. but, under the canon law Of the
Catholic church. the property of the Catho-
lie church represented by the. Pope, and
therefor. that when the Jesuits were dis
solved TIE property did not rightfully 20 to
the British crown, but remained the prop
erty OF the church. This doctrine was to
some extent admitted by the British Parlia-
ment in an act passed in 1856 to the effect
that in the future the property OF the Jesuits
snail only be held by the government of
Canada In trust. and that their revenues
shall be used exclusively for the advance
ment of superior education. Last summer
the legislature of Quebec made an arrange
ment with the Jesuits by which, it has been
reported, the latter were to be paid 100000
in compromise Of their claim upon these es-
tates. This, however, does not seem to be
quite the fact. The money is to be paid to
the Pope, as the representative head of the
Catholic church, and he is to apportion it as
he sees fit among the ecclesiastical bodies of
the province of Quebec The Jesuits may
get the whole Of IL, or they may get none of
1t. The probability Is that they will get a
large portion of it. The act in question APP
pears to have passed the Quebec legislature
without much protest. The agitation now
arises over the refusal of Sir John Macdonald
to disallow it. Politics as well as religion
have something to do with the agitation.
Sir Johns refusal is being used to excite
the hostility of the Protestants- especially
the 0rangemeD-against him, in the hope of
course, of breaking down the Conservative
ministry. Theprinicpal objection made to the
measure by the Toronto Globe, the Liberal
organ in Ottawa, lies in the section of the act
that prescribes that before the measure be-
comes valid it must be accepted by the Pope,
which the Globe thinks Exhibits the Quebec
government as asking and receiving from the
Pope permission to sell the escheated es-
tates." The Globe contends that the Catho-
lie claim that the estates belong Of right to
the Catholic church is unfounded. 1t can
only be supported, the Globe thinks, on the
assumption that when Canada came under
the British crown the latter was bound to
recognize Roman ecclesiastical law, which
assumption tie Globe does not admit.