THE TABLET
A W eek ly N ew spaper a n d Review .
D u m VO B IS G R A TU L AM U R , AN IM O S ET IAM ADDIMUS U T IN IN CCEPTIS V E S TR IS CON S TAN TER M AN EA T IS .
From the Brief of H is Holiness to The T ablet, June 4, 1870.
Vol. 45. No. 1827. L ondon, A pril 17, 1875.
P r ice ¿d. B y P ost
[R eg i st e r e d a t t h e G e n e r a l P o s t O f f ic e a s a N ew spaper.
^Ch r o n ic l e o f t h e W e e k :—
Page
Menaces o f War—the Berlin “ Post.”— The usual Artifice.— Other Prussian Papers.— Germany and Belgium.— Questions in the House of Commons.— The “ Pall Mall Gazette ”— and the “ Times” on the German Note.— Continuance of the Controversy.— •Germany and Italy.—Austria, Italy, and the Holy See,— Petition of the Prussian Bishops.— The Reply to it.— The Old Calumny.— The Bishop of Paderborn.— Further Persecution.— Introduction of the Falck Laws into Hesse.— Notre Dame at Geneva. — Opening of the University College.—The Cardinal, &c., &c. . . 481
CONTENTS.
L e a d e r s :
Page
C orrespondence (continued) :
Page
Prussia and Europe . . . . 485 Captain Boyton . . . . . . 485 The Outrage on the Via Appia .. 486 O ur P r o t e s t a n t C on tem po r a r ie s :
Germany and England . . . . 487 R e v ie w s :
The Education Question in Alsace-
Lorraine . . .. . . . . 488 The “ Month ” for April . . . . 490 Contemporary Review . . . . 491 Literary, Artistic, & Scientific Gossip 491 P ic tu r e s :
The French Gallery . .
C o r r e s pondence :
Proceedings of the Catholic Com
mittee of 1789, &c. . .
. . 492
. . 492
The Persecution in Germany .. 493 St. Mary’s Orphanage, Black-
heath .. . . . . . . 4 9 3 Diocese of Newport and Menevia,
Ebbw Vale .. . . . . 494 Lock-out in South Wales . . . . 494 P a r l ia m en t a r y S ummary . . 494 R ome :— Letter from our own Cor
respondent . . . . . . 497 Inauguration of the Catholic
University College . . . . 499 D io c e sa n N ew s :—
Westminster . . ......................... 500 S o u t h w a r k .................................... 501
D iocesan (continued) :
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Birmingham .. . . . . . . 503 Newport and Menevia . . . . 503 Shrewsbury .. . . . . . . 503 F oreign N ews :—
Germany .. . . .. . . 503 The Petition o f the Prussian
Bishops to the Emperor, and the Reply of the Ministry . . 504
M em o randa :—
Educational. — _Catholic Poor
School Committee . . . . 504 G en e r a l N ews ......................... 505
CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK.
MENACES OF WAR—THE
BERLIN “ POST.” I
T is evident that no little irritation has been produced at Berlin by the failure of the attempt to drag Italy and Belgium into the crusade against the Church. The partisans o f Prince
Bismarck consider, or affect to consider, the disinclination of Italy to change her domestic policy, together with the interview between the Emperor o f Austria and K ing Victor Emmanuel, to be an indication o f a probable alliance o f both these Powers with France to resist or •even to attack Germany. The official Prussian press was accordingly set to work, and it began to threaten, and to talk about the imminence o f war, putting France forward as the principal aggressor in order to awaken to the utmost the fighting propensities o f the Germans. The paper chosen for this purpose was the Berlin P o s t— the usual medium for this kind of tentative menace— and on Thursday in last week it came out with an article, the effect o f which must have fully answered the intentions of its inspirers : “ Recent events,” it announced, “ have unfortunately rendered it but “ too probable that the Legislative Assembly of France, “ being afraid that the Republican majority of the next “ Chamber will eschew war, under the dangerous auspices of “ MacMahon and the Orleanist Princes is anxious to preci“ pitate a guerre de revanche, while a strong body of Royalist “ Deputies is there to profit by the results for the re-estab“ lishment of monarchy. War, accordingly, is coming on, “ though the clouds gathering on the horizon may yet be in “ dispersion. The Austrian Conservatives, aided by in“ fluential military circles, are endeavouring to turn out the “ Andrassy Cabinet with a view to take part in coming events “ in Italy. It is certain that she (Italy) wishes to make the “ Pope a tool in her hands, to use him for the exercise of “ Italian political influence all over the world. The greater “ part of the upper classes of Italy are ready to join any “ ally against Germany, whose anti-Papal attitude is con-
‘ sidered by them as anti-Italian and hostile to their national “ interests. Yet it is by no means certain that the French e' Government will be able to procure an Italian alliance just “ now. If they fail in their endeavours to do so war will “ probably be delayed. Things, however, have reached a “ pass when the German people should be better acquainted “ with the realities o f the situation. It is time to awaken 41 slumberers.”
The method adopted by the writer o f this
•the usual article is that with which Prince Bismarck has artifice, made us so familiar. A wants to knock down
B, and tells his friends that B is going to strike him. The allegation is that France is about “ to precipitate “ a guerre de revanche-," the truth which lies behind it is
New Series. V ol. XIII. No. 336.
that it does not suit Germany that the outbreak o f the future war should be delayed till France is better prepared than she is at present. As to the affectation o f alarm lest Italy should use the Pope to advance her own political interests it is o f course transparently absurd. Italy has no political interests in Germany in furthering which the Pope could be of any use to her. But it is the same rhetorical artifice over again ; Germany has tried to use Italy as a tool wherewith to overthrow the Pope, and, having failed, imme’diately charges Italy with the intention o f using the Pope as a tool to damage Germany.
The effect having been produced, the next
Prussian day another official organ, which is in more papers. every-day use— the Norddeutsche Zeitung— publishes something by way o f palliative. The article in the P o s t was not to be understood literally as though war were really at hand, but it was intended as a hint to France, whose new military law is of a disquieting character. The N a t io n a l Zeitung follows on the same track ; thinks the P o s t should have been more explicit in its language, and says that French statesmen have not fully considered the significance o f the measures which they have adopted. The K reu z Zeitung, which is anything but a Government organ, regrets that alarming rumours should be circulated by the Ministerial journals, but declares that the present state o f international politics is far from satisfactory. And the P o s t itself modifies its statements so far as to say that as long as Count Andrassy remains in office, and the good understanding between the three Northern Emperors continues to exist, there is no danger o f immediate war.
The excitement caused by the Note to
Germany Belgium has by no means subsided, and even Belgium. the Indépendance Belge— strongly anti-Catholic as it is— opined that the Government should be called upon for explanations, as it appeared that Germany has attempted, by means o f pressure, to obtain a modification o f the laws o f Belgium. (This has been since denied in Parliament by Count d’Aspremont.) The Indépendance Belge wants to know whether there is not as much patriotism in defending the rights o f weak States as in defending those o f one o f the Great Powers. But the Berlin officials are said to be profoundly dissatisfied at the reply of the Brussels Cabinet, and to be discussing the possibility of an eventual withdrawal from the guarantee o f Belgium’s neutrality. With regard to the special complaint about the proposal of the tinker Duchesne to assassinate Prince Bismarck, it is said that there is an appendix to the Belgian Note, in which it is stated that Herr von Balan, the German Minister at Brussels in 1873, was cognizant of the whole course of the investigation into the affair, and even took part in it to some extent,
