'CATHOLIC CATHOLIC INTERESTS.—THE PROTESTANT PRESS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume V, Issue 258, 12 April 1878, Page 15

'CATHOLIC CATHOLIC INTERESTS.— THE PROTESTANT PRESS.

Theiie haa been considerable discussion in the Press of late as to the comparative amount of crime and immorality among Roman Catholics edticated in reh gl ous schools and others who have been educated in non-religious schools. The Otago Tunes and Auckland Evening Star have established to their own satisfaction that Father Hennebery and Dr , Moran were wrong-were under a delusion, in fact— in what they SS f i Av ™ nc ™ fßtemf Btem of mfantidde. The Otago Times has Sn^lif + Oh«O h « satisfaictiou that among Catholics, Irish Catholics in particular, there is a tar greater amount of crime than amou* Protestans or other non-Catholic classes. Granting, for argument S?o,f£ Blßb ? P ilorani loran and Father Hcnnebcry over-stated thetmth, ot had been misled as to the real number of American infanticides tt??. r d ? Ub l « hat CIC is far more te «th in their state' WW S^f frlends T of modorn seevdar civilization " could When some yeara ago I read what Hepworth Dixon wrote on the ] lo'/n C ° \ was amazed aad incredulous. I considered he was hardly justified in going so far. I have not his book at hand now, S^i^ eColeC^ anghtbesaidthe Irish Newcomers in some part* ot^New England were supplanting the native Americans, because the SLfft ££ mcd ladies ~ so many of them-could not be bothered with children, and managed so as not to have them. I myself was told by a Scotch gentleman who had resided 22 years in America, near New that there was a class of well-known female practitioners called " abortionists "in the States. We have seen only a few weeks ago an English lady, highly educated, the wife of an Anglican clergymaD, and the mother of a family, criminally convicted m London, and sentenced to a severe punishment for eireulattae a •S J!? 1 * ten y . a t n £ m , erican Physician on a subieot closely connected with that to which Father Hennebery and Dr. Moran referred. The, siveo7nuh P lKnfr dby n n *** to contain matter "*verforHWv P T^Tf y V Onestra ?ge feature in this trial struck me CoS with it, Ur ßo^! 1 / cond " cted own defence in S>^t > remarkable skill, said that anything in her pamphlet was tS % elf Wh + en «°. ra l )ared w ith some portions of those books which Government put into the hands of the youth of both aeaeTatvffiSt gtOll Sch i° o1 ' ond Sh ° was W tomake good her Jim mnl ™2 I * h f e P" pils as itn «»es into Court. Another and 1 .1 1~ ?,L?h TT bb ° ly w" lg Was fc^ at the lady was apparently, as the • Ige admitted circulating this immoral book with no evil design, h, 1 Zn < VUIV U1 ? akC - nn I Se ? Se ° f duty - Sllc Professed that from motives noKiX^r ah< S tt ° MM ToßtT oBt the Pr ° ffrcss of Popalaticm among Ifi^t n a k '!' J iy Sllch moftM alone * he supposed she could encctually prevent those frightful scenes of misery, physical and T w'- WblCh Sll ° bad - S ° ° tten beell forced t0 witness Jmong the poor Piotosi Jt 1 P^c 63 -£* m °, dCm civilka tion for you gentlemen of the ''oiviiwL» f'«- For den ?« n 1 c «^ a "cl setting his face against thcßomlr^f^ IS nr 'V imilar kind the late Venerable Head of vthHnlir J r-l C C i 1U ,^ ch was sneered at and loaded with abuse Sototent Pf « rwl 1 ?T °^ En S land - Every day we see the nfSJ • )lbhcl^ above referred to, publishing matter ovi^nr dy l mm 1 ° r 'l lor m c li S io »s tendency with apparently no "c Sttt^ m ° ne £ aUd t0 ratlfy a depraved popular writoV^ nhv- f d t^se gentlemen, editors and other Protestant Ifh ' obviollsl y re^« ule the services of a prudent spiritual director •',lhoHtv C » + C '^ P* °^} R tbe Catho & Church-one who has uuthouty to define what duty is, and to restrain the aberrations of conscience, even m the well disposed. oivn^t- ° tag ° P"-T Was V ? ry P^Pe^y reminded that there arc other ™*« besides men's religious creed which influence their moral character and that powerfully. When men, like the Irish siwSd i ■ b T for g ene i' at ion after generation, for centuries, subjected to unjust, cruel, and merciless treatment by their rulers S'X'SS? I-" mor^ characte x- degenerate in many LtS snrl P h?^ cir religion. When a people have been once demoralt^m^otnnX rJ ß^^ oo^ 1 ' 86^ m «sage, which has 'reduced tatm to penury and despair, it cannot bo expected that they will black list h«t that the Great Mass of them should exliibit so VZyoS^r^ 6 ! 35 tb , eydo in ov«ry part of ttie globe where they settle. I have observed with pleasure that the number o£ Catho! the criminal calendar in this province has of late bee£ Kradun /Tl Tw 18 l in8 l i l h ° pe %L C lonff tbat not Catholic will b! seen on that black catalogue. The influence of the Hibernian Society has I^Y n^^^^ t^^^^^^^viiioa of CatholS Herman Society. Let them therefore look to their ways. They may rest assured the ,v C , of the Protestant ancl Catholic body too arTupoJ thorn. A large, widely-extended Catholic Association like that can never stand among the mediocrities or neutrals Ihere were two virtues, which, in the darkest hour of Pi-otestant ascendency the Catholics never lost : fidelity to the Catholic Church tor hono«. Evoa cau«lia md weU-informeci PrSSt s IZit "Tho Irish Catholic Matton,' a London Protestant journalist,

the lures of vice when she had hardly sufficient clothing to conceal her charms from the gaze of the tempter." It was this very class of women, the poorest of the poor, who were under the more immediate influences of those Catholic priests whom the Protestant Press-and to their shame be it said— so many of the Protestant clergy have so f^V'^f ntedas^stunting their great power to evil purposes among the females of then- communion. There is an Anglican Ecclesiastical digmty in Auckland at this moment who has calumniated Mon S 1 fxf >gy , 1U^ is Way :~I: ~ I ma y as well S ive his n ame, Dr. Manseil, of Parnell. Of course he did it from a sense of duty. There are, I know on good authority, Catholic young women in this colony —too many— who have lost their honour, and been seduced into an openly vicious course of life. But I think I may make bold to affirm that it has been in consequence of their Protestant surroundings that SttTV a I°^ and -fl? th ° dfißto^ era °* their were not of the Catholic faith, or if they were that they belonged to the sclf-ex-commanicated class of Catholics who defy the authority of the Catholic priesthood— a class of the laity unhappily now-a-days but too numerous A portion of the Protestant Press and clergy, and some ministers of State too, may think they arc doing society a benefit by SE?ol« 7^ emi ?i " g ? IC P° Wol> of Priest! They make a great mistake. Ihey are thereby helping to undermine public morals, to andStetSto ltSOlf>and ltS authorit y° TCr b °t» Catholics p w t?f rr * ist ?? much 7 icc and crime among Catholics as well as Protestants. Much of both is never entered in any public record k?™r?n^ efOl>e anybum ™ tribunal, and will neve? be pSy vpv^l n° S ™, c l ay . a »- lv ? when everthing secret shall be openly t JSfS;«f fT nal StatlS^ S I therefor e tMnk must afford but a fal7'S test . of th 9. comparative goodness or badness of different nations If™' sections of the same nation. If Imperial Oiesar had that not C » n S B S^ B '° be 1 c ,TP iled in Judea > ifc is Id* Possible that not a single Pharisee would have appeared in that document. mn^^T, o^ ll^ 0"^0 "^* 11^ tbcso men as acl^ werTthe most hateful to God, and that many of them, in spite of their outward piety and decorous manners were less likely to enter the kingdom of heaven than even those unhappy Jewish women who scandalised their religion and their sex as they walked the streets o£ Jerusalem; and one of whom as wo all know has furnished an example of humility and penitence, and fervent piety, which will be known and held iro St-i V m ° n °? Sxnn?r-SS x nn ? r - S whcrcvci> the gospel of Christ is preached until He come again to jiulge us all. I consider it an unseemly and in judicious thing to institute invidious comparisons as to the morals of different classes of baptised Christians. They are all the followers of the same master, pX to thVSSS^ V J an(l WCaU belioVC much in coraraon - It Us the downfall of the papacy, or the violent and insane efforts of man to destroy it, which corrupted and debauched the morals of all Christendom. I could bring the testimony of the leading « Reformers " as they are called, to prove this. They admitted ancl deplored the fact that those who embraced the Reformed Faith- forthwith bocame 3^S" ch *^ ote ™- , The y had changed their creed, but their morals on!, ftl f bj ! tbe - C iangC ; TlheT I he leadin S seem to have discovered the fatal mistake they had made wlien it was too late Oao of their number very naturally said that in destroying papal power they had struck at the very root of the true « Principle of Chfetian iU •^Z C '^* dh^ n Z c i a de . moralisi^ liccSce of baUef in its room. The thing called Reformation gave a shock to men's moral and religious instincts, from which Christendom has not yet recovered and vail not soon recover. It demoralised the ruling classes in Bng land, the reformed clergy, the Press, and the mass of fhe people The Protestant Press and clergy are ever holding forth about liberty. They say little about obedience. Need we wonder at the resent licentiousness of creed and morals. piesent . John Wood, ._ Surgeon, late H.M.S.