ARCHBISHOP WALSH ON THE SITUATION.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XVI, Issue 17, 17 August 1888, Page 13

ARCHBISHOP WALSH ON THE SITUATION.

Wb have received the following (says the Dublin Freeman, June 22) from a representative of the Freeman who baa jut had the honour of a special interview with the Aicbbishop of Dublin, on his Grace's arrival in London from Borne, war readers will be happy to learn that the Archbishop is ia excellent health, and, as will be seen from the concluding passages of the interview, is full of hope for the future of Ireland:— Or. Walsh in reply to several questions said the document issued by the Holy Office was a Decree and dealt exclusively with morals. The question considered by the Holy Office was the moral lawfulness of the methods employed, and the decision was in the negative. The Church is competent to make laws on certain matters, and those laws are binding. The Circular is in no sense an exercise of the legislative authority, but simply an exposition of the natural law. Orer that law she has no control, and it is the duty ol the Pontiff to declare how that law bears on particular cases. The Archbishop would not go into the manoer in which the Circular will be enforced in the different dioceses ; he had already explained its binding f He had nothing to do with other dioceses but his own. He will first consult the bishops and then the clergy of his diocese, and will be guided by circumstances whether he will communicate these instructions to the Press. A great deal of harm has been done by the extreme anxiety of certain newspapers, and very great soreness of feeling excited in Ireland by the way the Circular was first made public. The news was first published in a Protestant newspaper hostile to the Irish, and the strong feeling which it excited amongst the Irish in England and Scotland, and its publication through such a channel, gives it a political colour as if it was directed against the Home Rule movement. If be ithe Archbishop) did not understand the facts as be did, he would feel strongly on the subject. Hasty judgments had been formed, and a grievous wrong done to the Pope. Dr. Walsh — To be candid with you, I do not at all wonder that such a feeling exists. If I did not know the facts of the case, I should feel very strongly on the subject myself. Bub the hasty judgments that have been formed on this point do a grievous wrong to the Holy Father. Take the cape even on broad general grounds. The notion that the Pope was in any way influenced by political considerations, such as you refer to, rests altogether upon the assumption that his Holiness is in some way opposed to the Irish National movement — to the movement for Home Bale, or to the movement for obtaining a full measure of justice and of protection against oppression for the tenant farmers of Ireland. Now, no assumption could be mere absolutely contrary to fact. B. — It is, I may say, univereally believed, your Grace, that many strong influences of various kinds have been brought to bear upon his Holiness within the last year or so, to lead him to take an adverse view of the Irish cause 1 Dr. Walsh— People may believe what they like, but I know what I am talking about. It is essential taat this point should be fully understood by the Irish people at home and abroad. No matter what influences may have been brought to bear upon tbe Holy Father, no matter through what channels they may hare worked, no matter how powerful they may have beea, their working has resulted in absolute failure. His Holiness understands the Irish question fully. Ha knows what is meant by the demand for Home Rule. And he knows what is meant by the demand for a full and effective measure of protection against oppression and of justice for the Irish tenants. That is to ■ay, he knows in the fullest detail what is meant by these demands as I understand them. B. — Tour Grace, it was hoped, would have an opportunity of putting these matters before his Holiness. Dr. Walsh — I had it then, and I had it in a fullness which I certainly could not have hoped for. I need hardly add that I availed myself to the fullest possible extent of tbe opportunity that was so graciously afforded me. That, in fact, was what kept me so long in Rome. The Holy Father is now in full possession of the Irish JSational programme. Having said so much, I need only add that nothing could be farther from his thoughts than any desire tj put the slightest obstacle in the way of its success. Quite tbe contrary. It is the firm conviction of his Holiness that the publication of the decree of the Hely Office, condemning, as it does, those points in the practical working of the movement on which so much hostile criticism was concentrated, will be of the most decided help in the advancement of the Irish cause. On being asked how the Circular got into tbe anti-Irish newspapers, and if it was officially sent, he said no, that the whole occurrence was painful to the Pope, and that the matter was under investigation when he laft Borne. Two persons must have been concerned—one in direct communication with tbe newspaper, tbe other an official who betrayed trust. The two persons are known, but it is difficult to prove it against them. R.— There is another matter, your Grace, that has given rise to great aoreneis of feeling— the fact that the Tablet, a paper ao peraiß-

tently hostile to the Irish movement, was selected to give an " autboritative " •xplanation of the decree. Dr. Walsh.— Oh t surely no Irish Catholic believed the Tablet in its statment that anything published by it on the decree was in any way authoritative. His Grace went on to say that the " authoritative " explanation by the Tablet seemed to have been written with a view to impose on non-Catholics. The person who wrote it evidently did not know what aa authoritative interpretation meant. He believed the Times copied it, thinking it safe coming from a Catholic paper, but any Catholic would know it was untrue. The Archbishop did not mind its marely appearing in the Tablet, but its appearing in the Times made it more gerioui. The Tablet represented the central strongbold, tbe rallying point of a large section of the mischief-makers. R.— Can nothing effective be done, your Grace, to put a stop to this irritating, mischievous intermeddling of tbe Tablet in Irish affairs ? Dr. Walsh— l trußt all will come right in time. A great deal must depend upon the English Catholics. I mean that section of the Catholic body in England 'by which the Tablet is mainly supported. B. — But how bitterly hostile those English Catholics are to us I Dr. Walsh — The pretensions of the Tablet are most audacious. It is a sad thing that in such a movement as is now in progress all over England a Catholic newspaper — even though it be Tory in the first place and Catholic only in the second—should be an obstacle in the way. It will not even let vi alone.' R. — No one, of course, would object to its publication of Irish news? Dr. Walsh— Not if it published the Irish news fairly and honestly. I cannot regard it as either fair or honest to pick out such news as suits its politics, or such as does noi tell very strongly in the opposite direction, and to publish that, to the exclusion of the most important information that is seen to be of a different complexion. What is really doing mischief and stirring op bad blood between the •atholica of the two countries is the tone of the articles, the comments made, the judgments pronounced — I may almost say the judicial sentences delivered — week after week in the editorial columos ; and the scandalous laxity of the editorial supervision in the publication of offensive letters in the portion of the paper devoted to correspondence. But I fear it ia mere waste of time to pursue this topic. I have said quite enough upon it to make it clear that the Holy dee is in no way compromised in this matter of the Tablet's " authoritative " exposition- of the decree, no' more than in the publication of the decree itself in the London daily newspapers. ft. — How unfortunate it was, your Grace, that so many things occurred to complicate the situation and to fill the minds of tbe people with suspicion 7 Dr. Walsh— Undoubtedly ; but I cannot but think that, taking the matter even in its merely personal aspect, our people ought to have shown more confidence in the Holy Father. Some things that have occurred in Ireland since the publication of the decree have given great pain: Apart altogether from the question ot authority he feels that he has been treated with mistrust. He feels and knows that be did not deserve this from Ireland. His Grace went on to say that tbe Irish should have shown confidence in his Holiness, The censures of the Church should not be lightly spoken of, and protebts should be kept out of newspapers. The Irish people should have known that the Sovereign Pontiff would willingly me his political influence, if he bad any, for the protection of our people, a people who have always been sj devotedly loyal to tha Holy See. Bat this would be tbe interference of a friendly advocate. Authority to interfere he has none. Tbe fear, then, of his interfering in our political affairs in any hostile or unfriendly sense is a mere phantom. It has come to our people as a wicked suggestion of those who are as Hostile to the faith as they are to the nationality of Ireland. Our people ought to have recognised it for what it is, and to have spurned it from them. R. — It must be remembered, your Grace, that we in Ireland had not the opportunity of knowing waat were the real sentiments of the Holy Father. Dr. Walsh — Undoubtedly ia a certain sense that is true. Clearly as they had been made manifest more than once, there was a possibility tbat they might have changed — at least in the excited state of feeling that existed in Ireland during tbe last month or so, people might easily have thought so. I took care to explain all this while I was in Rome. And now that I bave left Cardinal Moran is there. Tou can judge from what appeared in Monday's Freeman's Journal (referring to the republication of tbe interview with Cardinal fliorau which originally appeared in tbe Sydney Freeman, of May 3), that while his Eminence is in Rome Ireland will not be in want of an advocate. But he did not misunderstand me. Except in reference to those incidents of the recent agitation ia the country that seemed to imply a want of confidence in the Holy See, and even a suggestion of resistance to its authority in the matter of morals, no advocate of the Irish came ib needed in Rome. R. — Tour Grace, then sees no reason why our people should feel discouraged ? Dr. Walsh — On the contrary, I look upon the situation as most hopeful. The Irish cause is winning all along the line. The eyes of many who up to this were byj no means friendly are beginning to be opened . Lio Dot like to contemplate tbe prospect of tke present session of Parliament coming to a close without some substantial act of justice being done, or at least of something effective being done for the protection of our poor people. But, to take things at the worst, if that should happen, the coming winter will certainly be tbe last during which it will be possibly tor a heartless landlord to work ruin amongst tbe tenantry of Ireland. Thousands of tenants are now under sentence of eviction for the non-payment of impossible rents. The tenants aak only the protection of ao impartial court. If that protection is persistently denied them, they will not allow themselves to be driven out of their homes without a struggle. This will open the eyes of thousands of Englishmen, and possibly even some of our fellow-countrymen, who are as yet to be found among the supporters of the calamitous policy of coercion .