his eulogy on the departed fathers of man Catholic, Greek, and principel our church? No, no; when Mr. Protestant Churches," and written O'Connell has taken a little time for by a well-known catholic counsellor. reflection, he will discover the futili- In perusing of which I found the ty of this attempt of his to carry fa- lawyer, as usual, at variance with vour with the most prejudiced and ig- the bishops, and particularly the norant bigots that ever disgraced the bishop of this district, on a theolo name of christiauity. He will find gical subject. of no less importance that disclaiming, and renouncing, than the faith of catholics. Strange and suppressing, and addressing, will it is, that this learned gentleman produce but trifling advantages in fa- cannot rest satisfied with being at vour of emancipation. Nothing but the head of his profession, but must the most energetic and active efforts be constantly dipping his pen in of the press will have any substan- theological ink, contrary the advice tial effect in quelling the clamours of he early received, pretending to inbigotry. She must be engaged foot struct his bishops and clergy, and to foot-her intrigues must be laid either openly or under cover, to maopen—and her falsehoods exposed.—nage the whole religious concerns Her movements must be narrowly watched, and the blow which she aims for our discomfiture must not only be parried, but returned with renewed force, until the victory is complete, and she is confined to her den.

of English catholics. A short illus tration of this subject will be of use to the latter, and we sincerely hope, to the gentleman himself.

It is now near thirty years ago, that this learned lawyer adopted as his favourite symbol of belief, a treatise, which was then entitled," A short Exposition of Catholic Principles, written in the reign of Charles

WM. EUSEBIUS ANDREWS. Somers'-Town, Dec. 22, 1817. P.S. The length of the Rev. Mr. Hayes's interesting report of his mission to Rome, and of the appeal of the, in reference to God and the Irish catholics to the English protestants, leaves me no room to comment

Country." It had before been printed at much greater length, under the title of "Roman Catholic

Principles, in reference to God and the King" in which shape it contained tory doctrines, that, thirty years ago, it was thought prudent

upon the casuistical remarks of the editor of the Times on the latter cument. This writer is very sore at the able exposure of the veto in the appeal, and denies that a positive to expunge. No one could ever tell power to nominate our bishops was who was the author of the treatise, ever claimed by the English minis- though latterly, conjectures have try. The falsity of this denial is, been formed that Mr. Gother, or however, clearly manifest by the Mr. Corker, might have written it. operation of the infamous and grind. Thus much our lawyer positively ing restriction clauses of the bill of affirms, what no man in his senses 1813, which is ably elicited in the will believe, that Mr. Gother gave letter below from A Midland Ca-six editions of it in a single year! tholic Pastor," to which I beg the Leader's serious attention.

For the Orthodox Journal.

On the other hand, Mr. Gother himself, though a good moral writer, was neither an ecclesiastical nor a theological authority, and mistakes, of no small moment, can be point, MA. EDITOR, It was not till the ed out in his avowed works. Be this other day that I met with a pam-matter as it may, it appears from phlet entitled "Confessions of the Ro- the blue books, that the lawyer in

question, then secretary to the catholic committee, sent the treatise, under the first-mentioned title, to Mr. Pitt and other distinguished personages, to the number of two hundred copies, as a creed which all the catholics would subscribe, without submitting it to the judgment of any ecclesiastical authority whatsoever; and it is a fact, known to the writer of this, that the vicars apostolic, then living, highly disapproved of the measure, and of the treatise itself. The gentleman now says, that it was not he who sent the copies, but certain personages, whom he names, the members of the committee. I make no doubt but the messages accompanying the copies were sent in the names of those person ages, as each of the three quarto volumes of his blue books was signed with their names, at the same time that the writer of this can demonstrate, by letters in his possession, that the name even of a dignified ecclesiastic, a member of that committee, was affixed to one of the blue books, not only without his having perused the work, but also contrary to his expressed desire. The last edition of this treatise, if it can be called the same treatise, took place in 1813, under the title of THE FAITH OF CATHOLICS. This is the edition which our theological lawyer now patronizes in his above mentioned pamphlet of Confessions, and publishes as one of the creeds of the catholic church.

He

printed and circulated his reasons for not approving of it in a chargetok is clergy, part 2, at the same time offi cially declaring to them as follows:-"This oft-published treatise is not to be received by you or your flocks as an authentic Exposition of Roman Catholic principles, and still less as THE FAITH OF CATHO LICS." It was to oppose this sentence of his bishop that our consist ent layman (who has professed him. self to be a Midland catholic from the site of his estate) proclaimed in his pamphlet, that "The tract is a just and fair exposition of the prin ciples of the Roman catholics." It is here particularly to be observed, that this prelate did not censure the pretended orthodox symbol indistinctly, or in globo, as divines express themselves; but he assigned the motives for his sentence, and cited many of the leading proposi tions which he condemned. shewed, in particular, that A CATHOLIC CREED ought necessarily, and for ever, to be one and the same, whereas this Exposition was essentially changed in every edition of it that he had met with: its theological principles varying with the times, as much as its political principles; being now contracted to a single page, and then, by the same editor, swelled to the size of 463 pages; that it was replete with Anabaptist, Richerian, Pistoyan, and other condemned errors, each of which the prelate refuted while he Under such circumstances it was proscribed it. Finally, another to be expected that the vicars apos- principle motive on which he protolic would take notice of the work, fessed to exclude this anonymous especially as they were solicited by and still varying composition from the editor to do so. Accordingly, the rank of catholic creeds is, that the London vicar, to whom it was it contains no declaration of belief sent in manuscript, made objections in the first and essential articles of to different parts of it, which that faith, the unity and trinity of God, gentleman, instead of correcting de-and the incarnation and divinity of fended before the public. The Mid-our Saviour Jesus Christ! Thus land prelate, who did not see it till you see, Mr. Editor, that the biit was printed and circulated shop quitted his vantage-ground, throughout his district, in his turn, and gave his lay-opponent an op

portunity of engaging him hand to hand, and foot to foot, if the latter chose it; but he has never been found to have a stomach for such close quarters, and les armes blanches.

irreligious Geddes. At length, our politician found that the falsehoods in his blue-books had caused statesmen to declare against him, and that bis corruption of the pretended pledge of their honour in the Museum, the Protestation had still more incensed the committee, when, in a happy moment, had it not been so transient, he wrote thus to one of his chief opponents :- "My theological career is at an end! Hence

dy's office, and read fpere St. Jure (on the love of Christ) in peace."

Another passage in this pamphlet of confessions, leads me to exemplify my general observation on the learned gentleman's conduct, in a second instance. He complains that a cer tain venerable body of clergy, which he names, have not favoured the pub-forward I shall retire to say our Lalic with the life of the late bishop Walmsley. A great and good man he certainly was, and, next to St. It has been signified that the Augustin, who brought the catholic learned barrister's good purposes are religion to us, is entitled to the ve- of a transient nature: this appeared neration and gratitude of all true in various occurrences during the English catholics for preserving it reign of The Cisalpine Club, but among us. But whom had he chiefly was particularly proved in his conto contend with in the performance duet towards the whole prelacy of of this great work but the learned Ireland. These had unanimously gentleman? And of what must a resolved, in 1808, that it was inextrue history of the holy prelate's lat-pedient to make any change in the ter years consist, but of his indefati-discipline of their church; a resogable and successful efforts to save lution which did not sit well with the the English catholics from being plans of some English statesmen. forced by the learned gentleman to Accordingly, to break through these, subscribe themselves in a court of jus- our barrister and two or three other tice PROTESTING CATHOLIC catholic gentlemen concerted with DISSENTERS, and to take an oath, those statesmen, all on a sudden, as he which all the British, Irish, and himself tells us in a published letter, Roman prelates condemned as un- an ambiguous form of resolution, to lawful and irreligious.. How many be signed by a few English catholics elabobrate quodlibets, besides the who were to meet the next day, red-books and the blue-books, did (Feb. 1, 1810,) and then to be prenot the lawyer write for the instruc-sented to parliament, which it was tion and and correction of bishop expected the prelates would not be Walmsley in particular, as the se- able to object to, and which nevernior and dean of the episcopal col-theless imported all that they most lege? With what ridicule did he condemned. In short this busy gennot treat this great prelate's aposto-tleman, without the shadow of a conlical firmness and his repeated pre- mission, from any one individual, diction, grounded on the promise of laboured to hamper, and has actually his divine Master, that the bill hampered, all the catholic bishops, would not pass! It only yielded in clergy, and people, of the two islands sarcasm to that of his associate the by the fifth resolution and its consequences, with more serious and lasting calamities than they have suffered since the reign of Elizabeth! And what excuse does he make for this

* It will be curious to see how the gentleman will treat this business in his promised Memoirs of the English catholics.If he does not tell the truth, and the whole truth, probably others will.

presumptuous interference and dictatorship? He calls witnesses to prove that in adjusting the terms of this fatal pledge, he chose such as he thought the prelates could least object to! No body, doubts of this: but it shews at the same time our lawyer's pretension to control the decisions of bishops, and to regulate the whole business of the catholic religion in both islands.

en

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spective dioceses, could not meet on the common concern. As this bill was in readiness to be produced this year, had not lord Liverpool blasted the ground of it, and, as it will certainly be brought forward next year, if the lawyer and his protestant cooperators find an opening for it, the catholic publie ought frequently to be reminded of the outlines of it.-ACcording to these, the choice of bishops, and through them of priests, and thereby the whole detail of doctrine and practice of the catholic religion, is to be managed, not immediately by government, as had been first proposed, but by a committee of catholics, with the secretary of state, and certain other protestants, per haps the archbishop of Canterbury, at the head of them. They are to be furnished with secret service money, to the amount of 1000l. per annum in each island, besides 5007. per annum for each of the secretaries. On the other hand, this committee by the simple authority of their pre

I pass over our hero's attempt first to bully, and then, by means of a parliamentary committee, to frightone particular prelate into his plan of educating catholic children at protestant schools, a plan which he himself had long practically supported, being impatient to finish this illustration with the denouement of his ultimate scheme. Having, then, gain ed some and deceived others into the adoption of the important fifth resolution, he prepared to reduce it to practice, by means of a bill. The outlines of this were drawn so far 'back as the ministry of poor Perceval, who in his last speech on catho-sident, without judge or jury, will lie affairs, mentioned that the emancipators boasted of "having a scheme, which, however, they would not divulge for fear of its being sifted;" on which the minister asked them whether they intended to carry it through both houses in a single night? In fact, no bill of such a nature was ever kept a more profound secret, till its introduction into parliament, or more ingenuously conducted there, to prevent the possibility of opposition to it from Ireland. Its author was continually closeted with the mover of its persecuting clauses yet his supporters and pay-masters of the board, with the exception of some half dozen of them, were not permitted to see so much as a sketch of the bill, which, on the other hand, was hurried to a third reading in the commons, at the precise time when the Irish prelates, being engaged in distributing the holy oils in their reORTHOD. JOUR. VOL. V.

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have the power of sending to Botouy bay, any clergyman, who is obnoxious to them by his preaching, writing, or other ministry, under pretext that he has performed some episcopal function, without their leave, or has received a letter from some person holding authority of the pope, without having shewn it to their president. Such is the plan for emancipating catholics, which, without consulting bishops, clergy, or laity, our theological lawyer devised, in the excess of his piety, on carrying the fifth resolution in 1810, and which he reduced to the shape of a bill, with the help of two protestant statesmen in 1813! Such is the bill, for framing which certain catholic clamourers for religious liberty, returned him public thanks; at the same time, loading with public disgrace, an English subject and a catholic bishop, for having modestly

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