SUSPICIOUS ALMOINERS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 196, 29 December 1876, Page 8

SUSPICIOUS ALMOINERS.

++ • The ' Cork Examiner' sounds a note of warning which is worth attention : — Charity is beautiful, but even it may be made hideous. There are certain societies in London which contrive to give it as ugly an aspect as it can possibly wear. They regard, a national calamity pretty much as a vulture must do a plague. When famine overtook Ireland, and the people's distress awakened the compassion of the whole world, these missionary societies availed themselves of the event to get hold of the monies that charitable people were ready to give, and devote them to purchasing the power of perverting the consciences of the Catholic poor. A movement of a suspiciously similar character is now going on, the chance of the Bulgarian atrocities being seized upon. We are solicited by circular to urge all who art disposed to contribute to the relief of the niis3rable people there to send their donations to the Secretary of the Turkish Missions' Society. We take the liberty instead of sounding a warning on the subject. Mr. Foster, who is a very cautious man, and every_ word of whose speeches on this particular subject seems to be weighed with scruples and. drachms, says : — " I would not discourage you from sending money to the society in London if you think right to do so, but I confess I have myself a little doubt as to making a missionary society the almoner for the distribution of charitable funds," Mr. Foster probably does not know as much

of these societies as we do in Ireland ; otherwise his discouragement would be more direct and outspoken ; but any one who has been familiar with the proceedings of these missionaries will pray that the wretched Bulgarians may not, in addition to their other misfortunes, have added the invasion of a swarm of these adventurers. We have no admiration whatever for Sclavic Christianity. We believe it to be of a very degraded sort. Whatever of sympathy ■we have given the Bulgarians has not been at all on account of their being Christians, but on the ground of mere humanity. Bat, whatever their faith be, we would rather they were • allow^dkto preserve it undisturbed than have it made the object of attack by such a swarm of mercenaries as we remember iv Ireland.. Such as it is, they hold it honestly, and we should nob like to see them, induced to barter it, in order to get food for themselves and children, for that " pure Gospel religion," which missionaries of the class we j remember sell along with the soup tickets they have to distribute.