The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1853-01-18 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

CORRESPONDENCE.  Letters addressed to the Editor should be accompanied by the real name and address of the writer, not for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith ; this is indispensably requisite in any statement of facts. The Editor wishes it to be understood that he does not hold himself responsible for the opinions or statements of his correspondents.  THE MADIAI  To the EDITOR of the LIVERPOOL STANDARD,  Six,—Rome has added another victim to the long list of those whose blood she has shed for the truth of Jesus. She has added another to the " noble army of martyrs." She has sent the spirit of the sainted F. Madiai to join the kindred spirits of Cranmer, Latimer, and Ridley, whom she dismissed to Heaven in their chariots of fire.  Whether it be by fire or by torture, by lengthened imprisonment, or by deadly poison slowly administered, her guilt is the same, and " the souls beneath the altar " cry aloud to God for vengeance : Avenge, 0 Lord, thy slaughtered saints, whose bones Lie scattered on the Alpine mountains told.  How long, Sir, I would ask in the name of outraged humanity, of our common Christianity, yea, in the name of those principles of justice and charity, which even the wild savage in his wigwam holds sacred, shall England stand by and witness the cold-blooded murder of God's  people? England has a high and noble mission from above—let her take care how she fulfils the same.  There can be no doubt but that the army and navy of Great Britain would be well and honourably employed in enforcing the demands of Government for the immediate release of the weeping widow of Francesco Aladiai, and liberty for all such to leave Tuscany and depart where they may worship God according to the dictates of their conscience.  Were it a question of fisheries, or commerce, there would not be this culpable indifference. It is not long since a paltry question of this sort gave rise to serious apprehensions of war with America,—the result whereof would have been, peradventure, the lavish expenditure of the national wealth and of the nation's blood.  Let no one say that this would be an undue interference with the international arrangements of another people. As well might it be said to be an interference with individual liberty for any passer-by to prevent some ruffian from murdering his own child. True, the parent has authority over his child, but not absolute; and when the limits of that authority are violated, and the guardians of the public welfare not present to afford protection to the oppressed, then the maintenance of injured innocence devolves on any individual who may behold it.  We recognise the authority of the Grand Duke of Tuscany over his subjects, but he is himself subject to the law of justice and humanity. Tuscany is but an individual in the commonwealth of European nations.  Let Great Britain, then, call a solemn congress of the Ambassadors and Representatives of these nations and lay the circumstances of this case before them, pointing out the flagrant violation of every dictate of humanity and the danger of European liberty, civilization and advancement, if such conduct be allowed to go on unchecked ; and let her call upon them to co-operate with her in asserting and vindicating liberty of conscience. If they act with her, well ; if not, let her act alone.  Were she to stand forth as the avowed champion of oppressed humanity, and in the far nobler character of a witness of the truth of God, He would bless her, and " the fear of her, and the dread of her, would fall on all the nations of the earth." Let her not be afraid of acting on the side of right. God has given her power, and wealth, and position. Let her resolve to use them in his cause and for the promotion of his gFory, and let her back her resolves by an appeal to his written Word. We should then have no open repetition, at least, of such murders as that which has now been perpetrated on the heights of Volterra. If we still remain inactive, without some national interference, there will be too great cause to fear that, peradventure the time is not far distant when, in righteous judgment, God will permit similar scenes to be enacted in our own land.—l am, Sir, yours faithfully, W. F.