New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-02-27
POPULAR OBSERVATIONS.
KING CHARLESS CLAIM TO GLohi'

KING CHARLESS CLAIM TO GLORY
/, DEFENCE OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH COM
MEMoRATrON OF JANUARY 90
To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Cir. Tho editorial In your Sunday Issue entitled
"t,ing Charles the Martyr deplores In no measureu
terms the endeavor to honor the memory Oh 'ma'
sovereign by public commemoration III ~
delpha church. But II your writer had caieiu"y
studied the account OF the exercises ne wou'u "''o
seen that Except that Bishop Perry called a''e"''o
to King Charles's tolerant and generous treatment
-, ,ho American colonies saying THE source or the
much Wanted MARYLAND federation was no other thah
the martyr who laid his head on the o'och .''"''
than give UP the Church to his foes espec'ai care
was taken TO exclude from the occasion everything
OF political character. -,
II was not intended to commemorate Charles is
noitical career TO ndorse the divine right OF KINGS
or TO decry the American Revolution out 10 zeal
witness 70 the fact that for than 2Oo years the
English Church-of VIII oh the American was a oi"i0
and the English prayer-book-from which the
American was taken-had considered that Cnarles
was really n martyr for the cause OF the Church'
II would he strange indeed II those to whom that
Church Is and should be dearer than life Itself must
lose the right OF holding such man in honor ne
cause no was A sovereign and they were born In
America
At each step OF the contest and more especially by
such acts as Laud's execution and Bishop Ire"
that they hated the Church and the Bishops as bitter
" as thew hated the King Had Charles turned
Covenanter the Scotch would not have sold MN 10
his English enemies when he had sought their pr"tec
ton Had he been willing TO abandon his re"sious
nrincpIos the people would have forgiven his political
errors as readily as they forgave Cromwell Tor turn
ing out Paraments. The issue Is not an obsolete
ono In these DAYS OF materialism. when, In the
social the literary the POLITICAL even the religious
world. success is made the Mooch to which things
that are lovely and OF good report are 700 oiten
ruthIessy sacrificed surely no lesson is more needed
than that OF the blessings which attend cohs'ahcy
and fathfuness without regard to success
The life of Charles was a failure. He fought to de-
fend the throne which his by right, and he ana
his armies defeated He strove after justice TOT
himself and. by series OF acts more tyrahhica''
more contrary TO the precedents or 800 years more
unconstitutional than any he had himself committed
The older legislative Chamber abolished and the
House OF Commons deprived by violence OF two-hrds
OF It's members. in order that court might DC con
stuted which should be certain 10 refuse him justice;
He died in defence Of MS Church ana the nahul III
forbidden to the burial office Of that Churcn over
his mulilated body. $50,
was not The Church. whose PrImate was executed.
twelve Of whose Bishops were imprisoned more than
one-half of whose clergy were driven out or their
beneces into want and beggary. became by the
death Of one who was at once recognized as mar
ncople that within twelve years of his judicial muir
der a legally elected Parliament; restored It upon so
firm a foundation lndl INC
the Dutch Cavinlst William nor the Hanoverian
again The latter. indeed. slenced convocatlon as
the Puritans had DONE but the present reign has wit
messed restoration.
The Prayer Book. whose use, even from memory;
Charles had made penal offence, received
within twenty years Of his death its final revision
revision which that death made more instead Of less
hostile to the Puritanism which had achieved 50
great seeming victory in his execution. Whatever
lis life he did not die In vain.
Consistency unto death. when by INCONSISTENCY death
may be escaped, Is a virtue noble to-day as
$50 wears ago IL 10 be American patriot requires
thar men should cease 70 honor virtue and religious
devotion people might we'll wonder if patriotism were
not too dearly bought. DAVIS.
New-York, Feb s, 1897.