C. DE COUX.

A. BARTELS.
D'AULB-DUMESNIL.
VlCOMTE CH. DE MONTALEM-
BERT.
J. D'ORTIGUE.
A. DE SALINIS.
DAGUERRE. [Editor.
HAREL DU TANCREL, Chief
WAILLE, Managing Editor.
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THE ENCYCLICAL AND SYLLABUS OF 1864.
IT would be an. error to suppose that the decrees of the Council of 1869-70 stood by themselves in the history of the Papacy, as a sudden manifestation of Jesuit supremacy. On the contrary, iu the Encyclical, which contains the Syllabus of propositions condemned by the Papacy, the Pope declares, that the condem- nation of these propositions forms a summary of the policy of his Pontificate ; and this is true, as respects the conduct he has pursued since his flight to Gaeta from republican Rome in 1848, and his final subordination to Jesuit direction, which ap- pears to have been consummated at that period. The convening of the Council of 1869-70, its decrees, and the proclamation of the personal infallibility of the Pope, form the climax of this policy, superinduced probably by the discovery, that the condemna- tions of the Syllabus are so extravagant, that their enforcement upon the Roman Catholic Church could not be accomplished, without the leverage, -which a further development of an obedient superstition was expected to afford.
Perhaps our readers may wish to know at a glance what the Syllabus is. The Syllabus consists of some eighty propositions on Religion, Politics, and Morality ; every one of which is now to be held by devout Roman Catholics, as condemned by an infallible authority, which is as binding on their consciences, as are the doctrines of the Bible on the consciences of others. The Syllabus treats the Papal authority as supreme. It anathematizes all the decrees of Monarchs, Parliaments, and States, which are contrary to the Papal policy therein enunciated ; and declares them to be utterly void of rightful authority. Travelling beyond this, into the sphere of opinion, it anathematizes without scruple all phases of thought not squared with its own dogmas, which it treats as antecedent.
The Dublin Review — the eminent Roman Catholic organ
which gives the Latin original and the English translation of the Encyclical and Syllabus, says of this remarkable State Paper (Dublin Review, No. VIII., p. 443) :— " We have no hesitation in
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maintaining, consistently with our article on the ' Mirari Vos,' that its (i.e., the Encyclical's) doctrinal declarations possess absolute infallibility, in virtue of the promises made by Christ to St. Peter's Chair. Indeed, to hold that the Church's infallibility is confined to her definitions of faith seems to us among the most fatal errors of the day ; nor do we see where its legitimate results can stop, short of that extreme form of Catholic unbelief which animated the late Home and Foreign Review."
This, then, is no musty document of past times. It is the latest expression of the Councils of the Church of Home, not made in haste or in heat, but calmly, after long thought, publicly, in the face of Europe.
Every Romish priest and prelate is bound by this decree, and swears to obey it, to take it as his creed, and the rule of his actions.
That no country may be deceived, that no sovereign be left ignorant, here, given in full detail, is the declared judgment of him who is the sovereign ruler of millions of minds.
1st. To his rule and laws all the nations of the world must bow.
2nd. All sovereigns hold their thrones, all people pay their allegiance, on condition that they believe the Creed of Rome, and practise its worship.
3rd. There is no religion but that of Rome, and no other faith is to be held or allowed. Liberty of conscience is prohibited. Toleration of other religions is a crime against society.
4th. All sovereigns, who are Protestants, are heretics ; and heresy is a crime for which they ought to be deposed.
5th. All free thought and free speech on religion are criminal. Liberty of the press and of worship are to be put down.
This is the Creed, and, where it has the power, the practice, of Rome.
It is impossible to conceive a document more deeply fraught with the essence of despotism.
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REMARKABLE LETTER FROM PERE LA CHAISE,
ETC.
The following is a letter from Father La Chaise, confessor to Louis XIV., to Father Peters, confessor to James II. of England, in 1688. It is from the seventh volume 4to. of the collection of manuscript papers selected from the library of Edward Haiiey, Earl of Oxford :— *
"Father La Chaise's Project for the Extirpation of Heretics, in a Letter from him to Father Peters, 1688.
" ' WORTHY FRIEND, — I received yours on the 20th of June last, and am glad to hear of your good success, and that our party gains ground so fast in England ; but, concerning the question you have put to me, " What is the best course to he taken to root out all heretics?" — I answer, there are divers ways to do that, but we must consider which, is the best to make use of in England. I am sure you are not ignorant of how many thousand heretics we have converted in France, by the power of our dragoons, in the space of one year ; having by the doctrine of those booted apostles, turned more in one month than Christ and His apostles could in ten years. This is a most excellent method, and far excels those of the great preachers and teachers that have lived since Christ's time. But I have spoken with divers fathers of our Society, who think that your king is not strong enough to accomplish his design by such kind of force; so that we cannot expect to have our work done in that manner, for the heretics are too strong in the three kingdoms ; and there- fore we must seek to convert them by fair means, before we fall upon them with fire, sword, halters, gaols, and other such-like
* See " Popery, as opposed to the Knowledge, the Morals, the Wealth, and the Liberty of Mankind," by Al. Walker, Esq. 2nd Edition. London : W. Strange, 1851 ; pp. 364—370.
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punishments ; and therefore I can give you no better advice than to begin with soft, easy means. Wheedle them by promises of profit and places of honour, till you have made them dip them- selves in treasonable actions against the laws established, and then they are bound to serve for fear. When they have done this, turn them out, and serve others so, by putting them in their places ; and by this means gain as many as you can. And for the heretics that are in places of profit and honour, turn them out, or suspend them on pretence of misbehaviour ; by which their places are forfeited, and they are subject to what judgment you please to give upon them. Then you must form a camp, that must consist of none but Catholics ; this will dishearten the heretics and cause them to conclude that all means of relief and recovery is gone. And lastly, take the short and the best way, which is, to surprise the heretics on a sudden ; and to encourage the zealous Catliolics, let them sacrifice them all, and wash their hands in their blood, which will be an acceptable offering to God. This was the method I took in France, which hath well, you see, succeeded ; but it cost me many threats and promises before I could bring it thus far ; our king being a long time very unwilling. But at last I got him on the hip ; for he had lain with his daughter-in-law, for which. I would by no means give him absolution till he had given me an instrument, under his own hand and seal, to sacrifice all the heretics in one day. Now, as soon as I had my desired commission, I appointed the day when this should be done ; and, in the meantime, made ready some thousands of letters, to be sent into all parts of France in one post-night. I was never better pleased than at that time, but the king was affected with some compassion for the Huguenots, because they had been a means to bring him to his crown and throne ; and the longer he was under it, the more sorrowful he was, often complaining, and desiring me to give him his com- mission again ; but that I would by no persuasion do ; advising him to repent of that heinous sin, and also telling him, that the trouble and horror of his spirit did not proceed from anything of evil in those things that were to be done, but from that wicked- ness that he had done ; and that he must resolve to undergo the severe burden of a troubled mind for one of them or the other ;
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and that if he would remain satisfied as it was, his sin being forgiven, there would, in a few days, be a perfect atonement made for it, and he perfectly reconciled to God again. But all this would not pacify him ; for the longer it continued the more restless he became ; and I therefore ordered him to retire to his closet, and spend his time constantly in prayer, without permitting any one to interrupt him ; — this was early in the morning, and on the evening following I was to send away all my letters. I indeed, made the more haste, for fear he should disclose it to any body, although I had given him a strict charge to keep it to himself; and the very things that I most feared, to my great sorrow, came to pass ; for just in the nick of time, the devil, who hath at all times his instruments at work, sent the Prince of Conde to the court, who asked for the king. He was told that he was in his closet, and would speak with no man. He impudently answered, "that he must and would speak with him," and so went directly to his closet ; he being a great peer, no man durst hinder him. And being come to the king, he soon perceived by his countenance that he was under some great trouble of mind, for he looked as if he had been going into the other world immediately. " Sir," said he, " what is the matter with you ?" The king at the first refused to tell him, but he pressing harder upon him, the king at last, with a sorrowful complaint, burst out, and said — " I have given Father La Chaise a commission, under my hand, to murder all the Huguenots in one day ; and this evening will the letters be despatched to all parts, by the post, for the performing it : so that there is but small time left for my Huguenot subjects to live, who have never done me any harm." Whereupon this cursed rogue answered, " Let him give you your commission again." The king said, " How shall I get it out of his hand ? For if I send to him for it, he will refuse to send it." And this devil answered, "If your majesty will give me the order, I will quickly make him return it."
" 'The king was soon persuaded, being willing to give ease to his troubled spirit, and said, " Well, go then, and break his neck, if he will not give it you." Whereupon this son of the devil went to the post-house, and asked if I had not a great number
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of letters there ? And they said, " Yes, more than I had sent in a whole year before." " Then," said the prince, " by order from the king, you must deliver them all to me;" which they durst not disobey, for they knew well enough who he was. And no sooner was he got into the post-house, and had asked these questions, than I came also in after him, to give order to the post-master to give notice to all those under him, in the several parts of the kingdom, that they should take care to deliver my letters with all speed imaginable. But I had no sooner entered the house than he gave his servants order to secure the door, and said confidently to me, " You must, by order from the king, give me the commission which you have forced from him." I told him I had it not about me, but would go and fetch it ; thinking to get from him, and so go out of town, and send the contents of those letters another time ; but he said, " You must give it up ; and if you have it not about you, send somebody to fetch it, or else never expect to go alive out of my hands ; for I have an order from the king either to bring it or break your neck, and am resolved either to carry that back to him in my hand, or else your heart's blood on the point of my sword." I would have made my escape, but he set his sword to my breast, and said, " You must give it me, or die ; therefore deliver it, or else this goes through your body."
" 'So, when I saw nothing else would do, I put my hand in my pocket and gave it him ; which he carried immediately to the king, and gave him that and all my letters, which they burned. And, all being done, the king said, now his heart was at ease. Now, how he should be eased by the devil, or so well satisfied with a false joy, I cannot tell ; but this I know, that it was a very wicked and ungodly action, as well in his majesty as in the Prince of Conde, and did not a little increase the burden and danger of his majesty's sins. I soon gave an account of this affair to several fathers of our Society, who promised to do their best to prevent the aforesaid prince's doing such another act, which was accordingly done ; for, within six days after the damned action, he was poisoned, and well he deserved it. The king also did suffer too, but in another fashion, for disclosing the design unto the prince, and hearkening unto his counsel. And
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many a time since, when I have had him at confession, I have shook hell about his ears, and made him sigh, fear, and tremble, before I would give him absolution ; nay, more than that, I have made him beg for it on his knees, before I would consent to absolve him. By this I saw that he had still an inclination to me, and was willing to be under my government ; so I set the baseness of the action before him, by telling him the whole story, and how wicked it was, and that it could not be forgiven, till he had done some good action to balance that, and expiate the crime. Whereupon, he at last asked me, what he must do ? I told him that he must root out all heretics from his kingdom. So, when he saw there was no rest for him, without doing it, he did again give them all into my power and that of our clergy, under this condition, that we would not murder them, as he had before given orders, but that we should by fair means, or force, convert them to the Catholic religion. Now, when we had got the commission, we at once put it in force ; and what the issue hath been, you very well know. But in England the work cannot be done after this manner, as you may perceive by what I have said to you ; so that I cannot give you better counsel, than to take that course in hand wherein we were so unhappily prevented ; and I doubt not, but it may have better success with you than with us.
'"I would write to you of many other things, but I fear I have already detained you too long, wherefore I will write no more at present, but that I am
" ' Your friend and servant,
" ' LA CHAISE. '"Paris, July 8th, 1688.'"
Dr. Burnet* gives a curious account of meeting Penn at the Court of the Prince of Orange, afterwards William III., to which Penn came on a private mission from James II. Burnet evidently supected that Penn was connected with the Jesuits, at that time so powerful at the Court of England. He says :
* Bishop Bui-net's "History of His Own Time," vol. i., pp. 6»3,fi94. 1724.
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" Complaints come daily over from England of all the things that the priests were everywhere throwing out. Penn, the Quaker, came over to Holland. He was a talking, vain man, who had been long in the King's favour, he being the Vice- Admiral's son. He had such an opinion of his own faculty of persuading, that he thought none could stand before it. Though he was singular in that opinion — for he had a tedious, luscious way, that was not apt to overcome a man's reason, though it might tire his patience — he undertook to persuade the Prince to come into the King's measures, and had two or three long audiences of him upon the subject. And he and I spent some hours together on it. The Prince readily consented to a toleration of Popery as well as of Dissenters, provided it were proposed and passed in Parliament ; and he promised his assistance, if there was need of it, to get it to pass. But for the Tests, he would enter into no treaty about them. He said it was a plain be- traying the security of the Protestant religion, to give them up. Nothing was left unsaid that might move him to agree to tbis in the way of interest. The King would enter into an entire confidence with him, and would put his best friends in the chief trusts. Penn undertook for this so positively, that he seemed to believe it himself, for he was a great proficient in the art of dissimulation. Many suspected that he was a concealed Papist. It is certain, he was much with Father Peter, and was particularly trusted by the Earl of Sunderland. So, though he did not pretend any commission for what he promised, yet we looked on him as a man employed. To all this the Prince answered, that no man was more for toleration in principle, than he was : he thought the conscience was only subject to God ; and as far as general toleration, even of Papists, would content the King, he would concur in it heartily. But he looked on the Tests, as such a real security, and indeed the only one, when the King was of another religion, that he would join in no counsels with those, that intended to repeal those laws, that enacted them. Penn said, the King would have all or nothing : but that, if this was once done, the King would secure the toleration by a solemn and unalterable law. To this the late repeal of the Edict of Nantes, that was declared perpetual and irrevocable, furnished
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an answer, that admitted of no reply. So Penn's negotiation witli the Prince had no effect.
" lie pressed me to go over to England, since I was in principle for toleration ; and he assured me the King would prefer me highly. I told him, since the tests must go with this toleration, I could never be for it. Among other discourses he told me one thing, that was not accomplished in the way, he had a mind I should believe it would be, but had a more surprising accomplishment. He told me a long series of predictions, which, as he said, he had from a man that pretended a commerce with Angels, who had foretold many things that were passed very punctually. But he added, that in the year 1688 there would such a change happen in the face of affairs, as would amaze all the world. And after the Eevolution, which happened that year, I asked him before much company if that was the event that was predicted. He was uneasy at the question, but did not deny what he had told me, which he understood of the full settlement of the nation upon a toleration, by which he believed all men's minds would be perfectly quieted and united."
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[TRANSLATION.]