A REMARKABLE TRIAL.

(Concluded from p. 66.)

WHEN asked if he would appear in the Court of REASON, he seemed very unwilling so to do; but not being able to deny that God has given to man reasoning faculties, and that the Great Maker of all appeals to that reason which he has given, in such sentences as these:-"The service of God is a reasonable service."-"I speak unto wise men: judge ye what I say; he at length made his appearance, though very reluctantly, at the bar of REASON, but seemed a good deal confounded, when a very able advocate, called, SOUND UNDERSTANDING, appeared against him, and said he could hardly think the prisoner was in his right mind; for he had been heard to say, that the same body which is now in heaven, is also in many thousands of places upon the earth: in some places standing still upon the altar, and in others, being carried about the streets: in motion and not in motion, at the same time! If such things, added he, can be true, nothing can be false; but if such things cannot be true, the Church that teaches them cannot be infallible, whatever arts of puzzling sophistry may be used to prove this or any other of her doctrines. But, added he, as I wish well to so glorious a cause as that of Christianity, it is with great grief I aver, that the

VOL. IV.

prisoner at the bar has not only perverted a most important institution of the Gospel, but has, through his corrupt practices and tenets, made more infidels in the world than all other heresies or errors whatsoever: for, wherever Mass is worshipped, and the Bible unknown, there the reflecting portion of the community being prejudiced against revelation, from the montrous absurdities which they are told constitute Christianity, are apt to reject altogether the word of inspiration, and remain in the dreary regions of infidelity.

As the prisoner was now trying to make his escape, an officer from the court of TRUTH tapped him upon his shoulder, and said there was an indictment brought against him of a very grave description, which was, if possible, worse than any thing hitherto advanced against his character:-that he had not only perverted Scripture, outraged reason, and made infidels, but put a number of innocent persons to death, because they would not bow down and worship what he said was God, but which they believed to have been an idol. Some others came forward before the court of TRUTH, and said they knew instances of persons who had been led, to prevaricate, that they might escape with their lives. A celebrated princess, when asked if she believed in the doctrine of the Mass, narrowly escaped by replying:

truly noble institutions of our country are brought into contrast with the slavish and ignoble institutions of others, that we perceive the vast advantages which our mode of administering justice has over the inquisitorial tribunal of Rome, or Romish ecclesiastics.

Before we examine the charges which he had to answer at Rome before the Pontiff, it is needful to bear in mind, that the meaning attached to some of the terms is very different from the fair and ordinary meaning. Error, means Scripture truth.

A convert, is a proselyte to Rome. The conversion of the Country, means the subjecting it to the Papal tyranny and priestcraft.

Religion, is devotion to Romish ceremonies, fastings, and beads.

Heterodox heretics and schismatics, are Protestants of every sect.

To curry favour with the government, is to set one's self in opposition to the Holy See.

The awful charges which this good Bishop had to answer personally at Rome, and which took him "from his District and Colleges for more than eleven months; caused (him) many painful anxieties, and considerable vexations, and no small pecuniary loss,"-p. 17, seem to have been, that he was 66 a patron of error; an opponent to the conversion of his country; and enemy of converts; a man whose grand object was to flatter the heterodox, and to curry favour with the government."-p. 6.

It is not probable that the charges were made in these exact words, but that the Dr. has put them in the words least likely to offend Protestant ears; and should one of these letters fall into their hands, the declarations he signed at Rome in answer to these charges are so artfully separated from the charges, and so dispersed and interwoven with the text of the letter, as to prevent the detection of all that is intended in them, except by a careful and critical examination. The first charge was, "That he patronized error."-p. 5.

Under this title two distinct crimes appear to have been imputed to him. The first was, daring to oppose "two decrees of the Propaganda, Sept. 1838, issued at the request or suggestion of some parties unknown, and without the knowledge of any of the Bishops; one authorizing the regular clergy to build churches wherever they pleased, and the other granting indulgences to certain pious practices mentioned in the decree. All the Bishops understood the first as authorizing the regulars to build churches

without their consent,' they therefore, appealed against both decrees in a common letter to the Sovereign Pontiff. We were given to understand by an authoritative exposition, that it did not authorize the regulars to build without the consent of the Bishops.' The decree about indulgences we considered of less moment, and as the Holy See had refused to recall it, we all acquiesced; and from that moment it never entered into my head to make the slightest opposition to either of the decrees."--p. 8.

"To meet this charge I declared to his Holiness, That I did not in the Pastoral allude to the decrees of the Propaganda of the 29th Sept. 1838: that I fully receive the same, and consider them as the rule of my conduct; that I never thought of ridiculing those who patronize or observe them, and should consider it wrong to do so.'"-p. 9.

This lifts the veil, and shows us what abject bond slaves Papal Bishops are! Englishmen though they be, that affords them no protection from the imperious tyranny of the Italian master, to whom they have ignobly bowed their neck.

The other part of this first charge is to us very interesting, because we are expressly named, and it confirms the truth of our statements.

"If any one wish to know what I alluded to in my Pastoral when I spoke of 'practices of piety which the Church tolerates rather than approves, which good taste cannot defend, nor reason easily explain,' let him look at a book now very common in England, entitled 'The Devotion and Office of the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ, including the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Mary,' and in page 136 it is said, 'O sacred heart of Jesus, annihilate in me all that is displeasing or offensive to thy pure eye, imprint thyself like a divine seal on my heart,' &c. In another edition the sacred heart is represented as having eyes in the plural. I speak of this prayer only as not being approved by the Church, and not being in good taste."-p. 10.

He raises no objection to the unscriptural and absurd nature of this prayer, but only its bad taste and want of authority.

"In the same book is the angelical exercise, so often quoted by the Orators of Exeter Hall, in which are many passages not in good taste, nor easy to be explained." [Glossed over.]

"In sec. 1 of Devotions to the Sacred Heart of Mary it is said, 'If you have the least remains of confidence and reliance on her protection, doubt not she will carry you through her own most blessed heart in the

and was this time very much surprised to hear his companion say with a friendly smile, "Come, my good curé, talk to me a little of your religion, so that I may in the first place, thoroughly understand it. Let us sit down here," added he, pointing to a grassy bank sloping towards the Loire, "and let us chat together. It is still early, the sun has not yet reached his meridian; all is peaceful; we need not fear interruption. Tell me, then, first, according to your apostolic and Roman Catholic faith, what must I do to be saved?"

The Curate. First you must be baptized. My Lord. And how much does it cost to be baptized?

C. That depends upon the generosity of the godfather; however, the price is fixed at forty-five sous.*

M.-Well, and after baptism what must be done?

C.-The child on arriving at years of discretion, must receive the first communion. M.-And how much does it cost to partake of the first communion?

C.-That will be according to your generosity, and

M.-I am not now speaking of myself, but I ask only your current price; what do the young villagers generally give you?

C.-Alas! sometimes only a taper, which is hardly worth three francs ten sous.

M.-Well, forty-five sous for baptism and three francs ten sous for the first communion; go on. What more must be done

towards salvation? C.-To fast at the quarterly vigils, abstain from meat Friday and Saturday in every week, and during the whole of Lent.

M.-But I confess that we English people are great eaters, and particularly eaters of meat, and for my part, it would be very painful to me to fast and abstain from meat, and my health

C.-Oh! if your health is concerned, we can dispense with fasts and abstinence. I could even quote to you the example of a recent Pope, who, to reward the generosity of one of the faithful who had presented him with a tiara worth 6000 francs, granted him upon parchment, letters patent, signed, sealed, and docketted, granting the privilege of eating meat during their whole lives to him and his male descendants for ever.

M.-I don't doubt it; but I have no tiara to give. I ask what is generally given for the indulgence of eating meat during Lent? C.-A crown, worth six francs. M.-And for the fifty-two Fridays and Saturdays in proportion, is it not?

* A sous is worth a half-penny. A franc, 10d.

C.-Certainly.

M.-It is then about fifteen francs per annum, besides six francs for Lent; that makes twenty-one francs.

C.-You forget the fasts.

;

M.-You are right, let us add ten francs so then, to excuse me from fasts and abstinence, thirty-one francs. Thus forty-five sous for baptism, three francs ten sous for the first communion, thirty-one francs for fasts and abstinence. Well; what more does your church require?

C.-To go to mass every Sunday.

M.-And what does it cost to be accommodated at the mass?

C. To be comfortably seated you may hire a place in the choir for fifteen francs, or the seat-keeper will give you a chair every Sunday morning, for one sou, except at great festivals, then she will charge two or three sous.

M.-Just so on those days the faithful show more readiness to come to church, you must encourage them to come by raising the price of seats. Thus one sou every Sunday, that will come to fifty-two sous a year. I reckon ten sous for seats at solemn festivals, and this will make the sum of three francs two sous per annum. What more?

C.-You must confess at least once a year; I will give you absolution for your sins, and you will only have to perform the penance I shall impose; such as, for example, to repeat fifty Paters, and fifty Ave Marias

M.-But if, by chance, I should forget to repeat my Ave Marias and Pater Nosters, and that after a certain number of these omissions, it became impossible for me to make up all my arrears, could I not then be saved?

In that case you might still have recourse to the treasury of indulgences for the remission of such sins.

M.-And what must be put in the chest of indulgences?

C.-Money.

M.-But how much?