The Poole Telegram. — 1879-10-10 (Poole, Dorset, England)

DORCHESTER. Alington Hall, with its recent improvements, formed an excellent place for the gathering of the Bible Society's friends on Tuesday evening. Among those present were— Rev. T. Knipe (St. Peter's, Dorchester), Rev. Canon Reginald Smith, Rev. G. Moule, Rev. W. CoHutson B (Woodmford), Rev. J. Harrington. aptist Minister, Rev. Horace Noel, the deputation, Rev. T. Heave, Rev. G. M. Bartlett (rector of Broadmayne), Rev. H. C. G. Motsle, and. Rev. E. J. Walker. _ _  The Rev. T. K NIPE (chairman), said they all remembered the excellent address of the Rev. Handley Houle on the last occasion, and now the Rev. Horace Noel was about to speak on the Bible in France. It was not the Christianity of the New Testament that Voltaire thought with his own weak arm to overthrow, but the false Christianity of the Romish priests. (Hear, hear.) The Rev. HORACE NOEL, gave an historical account of the Gospel in France from the time of Irenceus, bishop of Lyons. The first rays of the Reformed Church shone out from Paris, and the opposition to it came also thence —from the University of Paris, which was a very neat of bigotry. Calvin, however, was a student in that university; but being persecuted he tied first to the southwest and afterwards to Geneva. Francis I. cared for none of these things, but he was stirred up to persecution, and afterwards took part insan auto dale, or Act of Faith, at which the principal people of the country assembled, and burnt heretics to death. Among them was the valet of Francis, who was hung in chains over the tire and alternately lowered into it and hoisted out, to prolong hie sufferings. The Protestants multiplied and grew the more they afflicted them, till a quarter of the kingdom had become Protestant, and in some towns the Protestant worship was celebrated in Romish churches, because there were none but Protestants in the town. About 1562 in France things looked hopeful, when unhappily persecution became fiercer under the Duke of Guise, and the ' Protestants flew to arms. From that time all went the wrong way with their. It would have been better for them had they remembered our Lord's words—" Put up thy sword into thy sheath, for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword ;" they were defeated in several engagements, and their piety, as might have been expected, decayed. She lecturer told of the Massacre of Si, Bartholomew, the king himself shooting the flying Huguenots from the windows of the Louvre. The Huguenots again flew to arms, eventually Henry of Navarre 'became the King of France, but Paris refused to have a Protestant king. At last Henri Quatre gave way, sas ing, "Paris is worth a mass." But Henri passed the Edict of Nantes, giving the Protestants certain privileges, but even then Paris would not allow Protestants a place of worship, and they had to go out to Charon ton, where a church was built capable of holding 14 000 people. The infamous Louis inflicted the horrible dragonnades upon the poor Huguenots, allowing the dragoons to do anything but murder the Hugrenots, and numbers fled the country. 3he Edict of Nantes was revoked, the great church at Charenton was pulled down, and for 102 years the Protestant religion was proscribed. In 1787, the risine tide of the Revolution brought relief under Louis