THE TABLET

A IVeekly Newspaper and Review

D um VOBIS GRATULAMUR, ANIMOS ETIAM ADDIMUS UT IN INCCEPTIS VESTRIS CONSTANTER MANEATIS.

from the B r ie f o f His Holiness Pius IX . to The Tablet, June 4, 1870.

Vol. 53. No. 2039. L ondon, M a y io , 1879.

pr.ceS(1.by post 5*4

[ R eg is t e r ed a t th e G en e r a l P ost Office a s a N ew spaper.

Page

C hronicle of th e W e e k

The French Education Bids.— The Archbishop of Paris on Christian Schools. -The New Cardinals. —The Amir of Afghanistan.—Sir Barrio Frere in the Transvaal.— Public Opinion in South Africa — Death of Mr. Bute.—Lord Salisbury on the Berlin Treaty.—The New Prince of Bulgaria.—Aleko Pasha.—The Budgets of i860 and 3879.—Criminal Code —Opening of Museums on Sundays.—The Deceased Wife’s Sister.—Dr. von Dollmger.— Breach of Promise Actions.- Volunteer Corps in Ireland.—Improvement of Artisans' Dwellings. . . . . . . . . 577

C O N T

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Peter s Pence .......................... 581

Address of the Paris “ Com­

mittee of St. Peter.” . . . . 581 L e a d e r s :

An English Freethinker upon the

French Educational Crisis . . 582 The “ Saturday Review” on Catholic Education.. . . . . 583 Mr. B u t t .......................................585 The Irish Land Act .. . . 586 Mr. Gladstone on Probability . . 586 The Failure of the Catholic Party in Italy.—II I .................... . . 587

ENTS.

R ev iew :

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The Satsuma Rebellion . . .. 589 S hort N otice ;

Dictionary of London . . . . 589 C o rrespo n d en c e :

Catholics and School Boards . . 589 Catholic Poor Schools . . . . 590 Is There to be a Catholic Party? 591 Distress in Kenmare . . . . 591 An Eirenicon of the Eighteenth

C e n t u r y .......................... . . 591 R o m e :— Letter from our own

Correspondent .......................... 593

D io cesan N ews

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Westminster.. . . . Hexham and Newcastle . Leeds.. • •• 595 . . . 596 . . 59s I r e land :—

Letter from our own spondent . .

Corre• - 597

F oreign N ews

Cyprus ........................ Russia . . . . , Germany Memoranda:

R e l i g i o u s ........................ G en e r a l N ews :

CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK.

THE FRENCH

EDUCATION

BILLS.

I

T is becoming apparent that if M.

Ferry’s Bill, with its Clause 7, is to pass, it will not become law without an expression of strong disapproval from a very large proportion of the French nation, including many who cannot be stigmatised as anti-Republicans. There can be no doubt of the Republican majority in the Councils General as at present constituted; and yet of the eightv-six Councils of departments sixteen only have expressed themselves favourable 10 M. Ferry’s proposed legislation ; six have passed to the Order of the Day, three by a very small majority, and three with reservations in favour of the liberty of instruction ; five have voted the previous question, in one case with a reservation of the question, in two cases by a majority of one, and in another by a casting vote. On the other hand thirty-three Councils General have passed resolutions condemnatory of M. Ferry’s Bill, and to these will probably have to be added that of Corsica, which has not yet met. Twenty-seven Councils General in France, and two in Algeria,— Constantine and Oran,—have not had the matter brought before them. Even the Radical journals are commenting on the inconsistency of those who would restrict the liberty of association in the name of freedom. The Council General of the Seine has passed two resolutions, one for the rigorous application of the law to non-authorised Congregations, the other in favour of complete liberty of association. And the Marseillaise very justly observes that nobody can be for liberty and arbitrary power at the same time; one may choose between them, but to approve both is the height of absurdity. What the Council of the Seine really says is this : “ I am a partisan of unrestricted liberty of association. Therefore I demand that those associations which I do not like shall be dissolved.” So also the Révolution Française criticises the Government’s consistency in prosecuting the Archbishop of Aix for speaking out as a Catholic Bishop, and itself for attacking the Catholic religion. A warm protest in defence of Mgr. Forcade has been put forth by the Catholics of the diocese of Aix, and it is hard to see how a Bishop, recognised by the" State as a Bishop, can be condemned for giving his opinion as a Bishop—that is, in a Pastoral—on a matter which undoubtedly concerns religion. And perhaps the oddest part of the affair to English eyes is this, that the Archbishop is to be prosecuted, not for attacking a law, but for giving his opinion against a Bill which has not yet become kw, Can we fancy an English Government prosecuting the Archbishop of Canterbury for a letter to his

New Series. YgL. XXI. No. 548.

clergy or his flock against a Bill about to be introduced into Parliament? The French authorities by the bye seem to have got hold of another grievance. Some English residents at Boulogne have joined in a petition against the Bill, and the British Vice-Consul has “ legalised ” or attested their signatures. Of this M. Waddington is reported to have complained to Lord Lyons, as an interference on the part of foreigners with French domestic concerns. But foreigners have, we believe,according to French law, a right of petitioning where their own interests are concerned. And it is at least very possible that these particular foreigners may be directly intorcotcd in the matter. Many of the English Catholic families resident in France are there for the express purpose of obtaining a good Catholic education for their children, and would therefore be personally affected by the destruction of the existing Catholic colleges.

The Cardinal Archbishop of Paris has ad-

t h e a r c h - dressed to the curés of his diocese an important P aris' on* ^etter on the subject of the Œuvre of Christian Ch r is t ia n schools. He points out to them the efforts schools, which are being made in various parts of France to deprive members ol Religious Congregations of any share in the teaching of the public schools, many of which have already been withdrawn from the management of the Congregations and Sisterhoods which previously had directed them, for the avowed purpose of excluding all religious instruction. In Paris the Municipal Council has gone to the length of demanding the total and immediate expulsion from the schools of all the present teachers who are members of Religious Congregations. The Minister of Education has indeed pointed out in reply to thePrefect of the Seine that the present teachers cannot be dispensed with until there are others properly qualified to take iheir places, and has hinted that there may be other objections to the simultaneous removal of all the teachers connected with the Congregations besides those founded upon convenience. There are indeed many and serious objections, and the Cardinal in his letter dwells especially on the wrong that would be sustained by the minoiity, who have failed to return to the municipal councils persons holding their opinions on the question of religious education, if they were to be altogether deprived of the services of the teachers whom they prefer in the public schools which are maintained at the expense of all alike. In Paris the majority of the Municipal Council are no doubt partisans of secular teaching,but, putting aside the consideration that they were not specially-elected on thisground, the minoiity of voters, who failed in sending to the Hotel de Ville the candidates of their choice, represent a third of the population of Paris and contribute a third part of the Communal revenue. Nothing could be more inconsistent with