THE BELGIAN CRISIS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXX, Issue 20, 15 May 1902, Page 6

THE BELGIAN CRISIS.

THE other day the Adelaide liojiMcr published an article on the troubles in Belgium and blaming the Government for exp. l!ing some Spanif-h revolutionists who were activi ly engaged in the propogation of their doctrines. The Rev. Father Louwyck, c f Georgetown, replied to the*e criticisms in a letter, a portion of which we reproduce. He wrote :—: — 'A few months ago Demblon, Fournemont, Smeets, an! Vaudervetfe openly declared in Parliament that they were going to bring the people to a revolution in order to overthrow the throne, banish the King, and proclaim a republic, based on the principles of the French Commune of 1871. They said that if necessary they would o use bloodshed. To help them in that revolt they called in some Spanish agitators. This is an old game of the Socialists ; one time they called the French petrolcme. Louise Michel, who was cleared out in the same way. Four months ago a Dutch pm-Boer went to Ghent to excite the people against England on at count of the Boer war. Again the man was cl ared out. The Government of Belgium is a Government of order and peace. They defend freedom, but that does not mean that they have to tolerate revolution, which is an attack on freedom. Would the Government of England tolerate a Belgian preaching open revolution in the streets of London, insulting the peaceful people, atta- king in the mobt vulgar language tne King and the Royal Family I Would you blame the Government for expelling such a ciimirml ' Would you say then that the Government was ill-advised/ You way that the poorer residents of the Belgian towns have certainly a grievance What grievance I Being a Belgian I have some knowledge of what is going on in the country. As a priest, I was among all classes of people, rich and poor, Catholics, Liberals, and Socialists. I left Brutsels only two years ago. I receive still the Belgian papers ; and ain^e 1884, when the present Government came into office I never heard a complaint against the Government, except from the Socialists, who want a republic. No Government in the world has done more, or even as much, as the Belgian Government, for the working man. The proep"rity of that small country is an ample proof of the wise Government of the Catholic majority. 'You say, "the Clericals owed iheir majority to the system under which certain classes of electors cast three votes against one given by the working man." As a matter of fact, the Catholics have the majority in Parliament since June 10, 1884, and never lost it since that day. Now, the system of election of that time was the

one established by the constitution of 1830 ; and there was no quesri£i l P i Un t V ° te ? £."• 18 ° 4 - How . then, can you .ay that the Clerical Party owed their majority to the system of plural vote? ? lhen, most of the working men have two votes; some have three You say that the existing system ia said to disfranchise 100,000 men, who, though having families, do not pay the statutory amount of taxes; while undue influence is given to the clerical orders by the supplementary votes. That again is wrong The existing system disfranchises only a certain class of criminals. Those who have families have all the right to vote. What you say about undue influence given to clerical orders proves misapprehension of the whole system. All those who passed a successful examination of the highest standard of education, such SL« fi , na J «» mmat . loa »t any of the approved universities or suchlike institutions, have a supplementary vote. Doctors, lawyers, engineers, and a great number of priests are among that class. I Scaipirty y h ° le bel ° ngß t0 what y° tt the *h.J°VT P !, am' an . d u with "gK of the continuous tirade of ? ft r^bnA?r^ er wh f h «ome .of the Belgian newspapers and a nf fL £*£ A * P6ople hhuea u e dlreoted a^ ainst England on account or the South African war ; but those that are guilty of that charee are just the very same revolutionists you are defending in your article, and you are attacking the Clericals who defended the English Government against those attacks. Was it not Citoyen Vandervelde the leader of the Socialists, who in the most violent language attacked the Government of Belgium for refusing to blame the actions of the English m South Africa? And was it not Mr Charles Woeste, the leader of the Clericals, who in a splendid speech defended the conduct of the Engliah ? Do you know it was at the Maison dv Peuple, the headquarters of the Socialists, that the first voice was raised against England ? Do you know that it was there also that the plot was framed to kill the Prince of Wales? Spifn 11^ 1 - 8 * Tl d}. 00 ™?*' bu * i* ruled by a good Government, who seek nothing but the welfare of the people, and who are bound to defend the national institutions. The Government have the sudport of the great majority of the Belgians.