Current Topics

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIX, Issue 38, 26 June 1891, Page 1

Current Topics

AT HOME AND ABROAD.

We have heard a good deal lately, and perhaps we are destined to hear still more, of the protest made by English Freemasonry againßt the introduction of the Grand Orient of France into New Zealand. The outcry, however, has never deceived us, and, notwithstanding the protest made, we have not failed to perceive that societies having the samo objects in view, and proceeding to carry them out by the same mean?, must necessarily be branches of the 6ame system. We have, for example, secularism established in New Zealand—with the hardly disguised end of bringing about the complete stamping out of Cbiistianity among up,— and in this the leadership of the Grand Orient of France has been implicitly followed. It is, indeed, of particular significance to find that within the last few months the Grand Orient has been openly moving for further measures against the efforts of the Catholics of the country to save the faith and morals of their children. Their demand is now that every avenue to preferment in the State should be shut against the pupils of religious Echoolp. The Bulletin dv Grand Orient for December last contains a pelition >ddressed by the Ledge at Moulinstotte Deputies and Senators, and in which eucb a dimand is infisted on: 11 Seeing that Government is forced to confide public function'- to thi an of these candidates who Lave satisfied the exigencies of the public examinations, that it is consequently under the obligation of accepting us s'-rvan's of the Republic enemi aof this regime . . . no ea'aried public function shall be confLkd to any citizn who i as not made his strdits m a university eftabhehment ; no dip'uma, iio certificate of studies shall be granted to candi lates of cm ti er s« x «ho have not made tVeir studies in a uriverMty establishment, at least during the last thr p ycarH "—The 6eif-sarue denunii is made by tie Lodge— Union, Travail et Libvrtc —at Mtllau. 1h ; Grand Orient, as we see, no more than our own sec. lariats, open y stati sits truo ends, but pretends that it seeks only the gaiety of the E. public. Such pretences, however, are as old as the early persecutors t.f the Chuich. and no one can be blind to iheir mtaring. But that the Grand Orient, the declared foe of Christianity, find blmcst tbe openlyavowed advocate cf <ievil-worsbip, finds it advisab c to employ a pretence in attempting to briDg about its object, givts us further assurance as to the nature of the pleas our own secularists maks use cf. Nothing, in a word, can more clearly prove the identity of English Freemas nry with the Continental system— whatever may be its protests or whatever its denials— than tbe pa'ent fact that its influence is used, and used effectually, and by means cf the same measures and the same subteifuges, to promote the vitil object and raison d'etre ot the Gran>4 Orient of France.

AN ILLUSTRIOUS PRIU.

The news brought by the San Francisco mail to the effect tha f htr Mrjesty ihe Queen shows signs of a bnakiDg cc nsutuiion, at the prtpeut. juncture of affairs is particularly serious It could be welcome news to none of ua lhat a monaicb who had, at the very worst, filled her exalted phce with peifect respectability, had made way fur a tucctsscr who ertve picmisc ot a completely different course. Her IJajr-sty, wo any, In s always been a lady deserving ot respect, and if she bf>s filled to merit a warmer ftelinu-, we do not know lhat the fault has been entirely ber own It must not be forgotten that early in lifd the fell under a malign iniluence which unfortunately became her guiding star. Most people now admit that th> la'e Prince Consort w.s at beat what is expressively called a prig. Some litile disposition there was indeed lmmtdiately after Ins death to f«ill in with her Majesty's mood and r(cogri^e as his due a tule that was then given to him— nami Iy, that of Albert the Qcod, but the source of this was sympathy for hia nu^ust widow's grief, and the sentiment, having no solid foundation mY c merits of the deceased Prirce, p cvid evanescent. We^do cot, however, kcow that there is anything very bad to be said of Prince Albe Indeed his position was tuch as must ensure his leading at

BIBDS OP A FKATHEB.

least a moral life, even bad he been inclined towards any otbi character of the prig, we know, is not alwaya a security aga#*) morality. There wae, for example, that other prigr, his rel«fV~)Q -fa late King of the Belgians, who, notwithstanding, was a cold sensualist— as the memoir.i of Caroline Bauer have reveale^f -ffcctf-" the Princess Charlotte lived Prince Leopold, without much th Bt o himself, might also have led to the end an irreproachable life. It is, moreover, a little suggestive that Baron Stockmar, whose revolting character Caroline Bauer has exposed as well, was Prince Albert's most intimate friend, as he had been Prince Leopold's toady and pander.— And what says the old French proverb I—Dis-moi gui tii hantes etje te diral gui tv es Had her Majesty fallen into different hands we hhould probably have known her better and felt m^re lovingly towards her. It is certain that in her girlhood, and when Bhe was under the care of that excellent lady the Duchess of Kent, her feelings towards Catholicism, for examile, were favourable, and indeed, we have seen reason to believe that, as her sen'e of Prince Albert's influence has necessarily grown fainter wi»h the lapse of years, tbey have tended again to become so. The character of the prig, aod, above all, that of the prig tainted with rationalism, is far removed from Catholic proclivities. It wa« but what we should naturally have expected, for instance, that Prince Albert's sympathies were openly deuied to the two Ca'hohc nations of Europe, whose sufferings he saw and disregarded. The Irith &yd the Poles, he said, were a'ike unworthy of sympathy — admitti- g. nevertheless, that there was aßln ug similarity in their positions. Can we rtgret that the unwarrantable effoit cf a man to minded to inteifere in ihe govrrnment of the country, and to m.ke use c.f his poti'ion to do what must virtually imply a breach of his wife's coronation oitb, was met with n Mcut res stun c d the part of her Maj^ty's Minis er-<, or at least on that of votne < f them, md if only for tt i , dip m raory of Lord Pa'mers'on i.) partculu is deserving <f re'-pfct. We may rationally believe that the coLlnos with w!i*n the Qjetn h»s alwaya trea'ed her Irish subjects Ins hud i s sjur c in the rmiim influence of the Prince Contort. This belief wis very firmly held in Ireland during the P.ince'd life- iuic ; t or did his bumewha' sudden and particularly tragic deith and the grief of the Q icen tend to ob.iterata it. He prop *al raido sho tly afterwards t> erect nia btaiue in Dublin nas ncouti d. On. 1 of th-; n v\^pipcrs, the Nation, if wo recollrct might, publishrd a wi.ty caricature of the Prince's tffigy mounted behind that of King Wi ham on his horse in College-Green. And this R*etneil to kill the plan, cf which we hoard ro more. But no one in Ireland doubted that so far as ihecharacer of a very tarn 1 and pragmatical srrt of carpet-knight could be accommodated to that of a man who, with all his faults, wis a valiant eolnier, Kin^ Williim nml Pnnc j Albert were a match for one another. Under the circumstances, all we nee Ibi surpiised at is that her M ijesty has prrserve ! so much of the milk of human kindness as the pos e^ses— an Iwe cften see tokens thru she does still possess it in n i small degree. But her Majesty's death occurring just now, c r, in fact, until &uch a time as her heir t ai hi 1 an opportunity of rehabilitating himself in the public eye, and giving proof that ho wiM no f curry with him to the throne qua.ities and practices that uuki-s he lr.s be"n grossly calumniated, have disgrace 1 his less illustrious stviun, mu3t necessarily be regtrde/l as unfortunate. It would certainly tenet to lower the monaicl.y in the estimation of the people and to add another elenvnt of disturbance to the already sufficiently duturbed condition of the r. übiic mind.

A SILLY MOTION.

It is to be hoped that the snpport wnich hon. Members have given to Sir John llall'd proposil for making provision in the electoral Bill for female franchise ia h more expression of their general devotion to tbe sex, an<l is not intended by them to be taken Bnrioualy.B n rioualy. A great many civil things have been sud, and e»cn tho-c who h&ve not suppor'td tte motion have got oat of it politely. Mr Parat3, indeed sterns to stand aloro in plainly telling a plain truth. "If this became law," be s^id, "it would result in continued squabMin* between m. j n and their wives." Of course it would, if it resulted i-i anythin" more than doubling the vote of the married voter of the sterntr sex. There could hardly be a greater cause of division in nny hoiueholtM than that of direct political variance between man and wife. Tfl

picture is not a pleasant one to contemplate, in which some of the children are seen as following their father, and others of them as following their mother, and the aciid disputes of public life are partaken of in the bosom of the fumi'y. In all probability there are few cases in which husband and wife are not agreed, and would not continue agreed upon such sublets Tbe more prosaic consideration of political opinions would be introduced into love making — if, ab is promised, young ladns under ihe propo-ied circumstances gave more of their lime to the study of politic* ;— and matches no doubt would be made, for the most part, among kinired spirits. And where hugband and wife are agreed is it not sufficient that one of them should vote ? Bat, if there happened to be a difference, is it not almost too much to expect from human nature that tbe busbaad, having in his hands the guidance of his household , should not endeavour to assert hie authority. We are convinced at least that no one could expect of human nature that tbe wife holding such a power in her bands would not sharply insist upon such an a&ssartion, and to hen-pecking perhaps more than one hon. Member might owe an ignoble return. Tbe independent spinster, in fact, could alone be regarded as tbe uninfluenced female voter. Can we look upon her as a fit person to wield an influence over all-important public affairs ? Let us put politeness aside for the moment, under the forc3 of extreme pressure, and deal with the matter candidly. Who, then, is the independent spinster? The young girl between the age of 21 and another age which we will cot specify, for it ia not for us to discriminate in delica'e matters of this kind. Bat the young girl — utterly inexperienced in life, and, as is certainly the custom among young girls, capable of all kinds of vagaries and sentimental notions. And when the independent spinster was no longer a young girl, what then 1 Here, truly, is another consideration, into whose mysteries it would cot become us to enter too minutely. But is not the answer traditional 1 Surely the maiden aunt has been sufficiently long among us for us to understand her peculiarities. Our conclusion is, therefore, that where married women were concerned the franchise would be superfluous^ or mischievous, and that where unmarried women were concerned, it would be altogether improper and out of pl%ce. We sincerely hope, then, that our legislators have been lightly airing their gallantry, and that when the crucial point of making the proposal law is arrived at they will be found in the exercise of their common-senße.