THE TABLET

A Weekly Newspaper and Review

D u m VOBIS GRATULAMUR, ANIMOS ETIAM ADDIMÜS UT IN INCCEPTIS VESTRIS CONSTANTER MANEATIS.

From the B r ie f o f His Holiness Pius IX . to T h e T a b l e t , June 4, 1870.

Vol. 54. No. 2052. London, A ugust q, 187g.

Pr.ce sa.by post 5k>j

(Registered at the General Post Office as a N ewspaper.

C hronicle of th e W eek

Page

The Irish University Bill.— The Bill in Committee.— Mr. Matthew Arnold on the Irish University Question.— Ministers at the Mansion House.— Thanks of Parliament on Account o f the Afghan War.— The South African Question in Parliament.— The Zulu War.— Rejection of the Ferry Bill by the Committee of the Senate. — Proposed Abolition of the Concordat. — The Thiers Fêtes at 'Nancy.— Catholic Education in Belgium.—TheVacant Bishoprics. —The Cardinal Archbishop and the Roman Telegrams. — The Italian Catholics and the Political Elections.— Trial by Jury, &c. . . 161

CONTENTS.

P e t er ’s P en c e ........................... 165 JLk ad k r s :

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The Irish University Bill .. 165 “ Our Common Christianity ” . . 165 Roumania and the Jews . . . . 167 Last Sunday at Nancy . . .. 168 R ev iew s :

Lord Arundell on the Scientific

Value of Tradition . . . . 169 Mrs. Ball .. .. . . . . 169 The Light of A s i a .........................170 S hort N o t ic e s ;

Catholic Progress . . . . . . 171 Loca Patriciana . . . . . . 171 Outlines of Geology and Geolo­

gical Notes of Ireland . . .. 171 Mission of the Zambesi . . . . 172 C orrespondence :

Middle Class Education . . . . 172

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Board Schools .........................172 A Strange Suggestion . . . . 172 1 “ Catholics and Spiritualism . . 173 [ Uttoxeter .. .. . . . . 173 \ The Wapping Mission .. . . 173 Was St. Cuthbert an Irishman?.. 173 Prayers for Non-Catholic Rulers 173 “ La Trompette du C ie l” .. . . 173 : Father Secchi . . . . . . 173 The Chinese in San Francisco .. 174 ! R ome :— Letter from our own

Correspondent . . . . . . 1 7 7 I D io cesan News :—

S o u th w a rk .......................................179 Clifton . . . . . . . . 179 Hexham and Newcastle . . . . 179 Leeds.. . . . . . . . . 179 Salford .......................................179 I Shrewsbury........................................179

D iocesan N ews (continued) S cotland :

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Glasgow . . . . . . . . 179 Argyll and the Isles . . . . 179 Cardinal Newman . . .. .. 180 Cardinal Newman and the Catholic

Yonng Men’s Societies .. .. 180 Mr. Matthew Arnold on the Irish

University Question . . . . i8r I r elan d :—

Letter from our own Corre­

spondent ......................... _ 182 F oreign N ews

Germany .. .. . . . . 183 Belgium .. . . . . ... 183 Gibraltar . . . . . . . . 183 M em oranda :

S t a t i s t i c a l ........................ . . 183 G en er a l N ews : ........................... 184

CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK.

UN E X P E C T E D L Y rapid progress has been made with the Irish University Bill, to which the morning and evening sittings of Tuesday were devoted. There were several notices o f amendment to the motion for going into Committee on the Bill, but the only one proceeded with was that of Mr. P. J. Smyth, who moved that it was inexpedient to proceed with a measure of such importance at this period of the Session, and that a Royal Commission should be appointed to confer during the recess with the heads o f existing institutions as to the most satisfactory solution of the problem. Whether this plan for delay was put forward seriously or not, but little attention was bestowed upon it in the debate, which was in fact a discussion of the general principle of the Bill, and o f the effect which the Government measure is likely to have upon University education in Ireland. From first to last there was in the speeches delivered, if we except that of Mr. Courtney, no desire expressed to defeat the Bill. Whatever may be the result, it went into Committee with something like the unanimous consent of all parties in the House of Commons. The discussion developed many points of interest. Lord E. Fitzmaurice sketched out a plan which he intended to propose in Committee for incorporating the University College in College-green as a portion of the Queen’s University and establishing in it Chairs of Law, Physic, and Arts open to all collegiate or non-collegiate students on payment of the usual fees. The statement which Mr. Courtney is never tired o f repeating, that the Irish people are satisfied with the present system and require no other, drew from The O ’Conor Don an able and convincing statement, not only as to the objections entertained by Catholics to the Queen’s Colleges, but also as to the real value of the education imparted in those institutions. Dr. Playfair, who observed that although he sat on the front Opposition bench he spoke for himself alone, explained that his principal objection to the Bill was that though it would afford considerable assistant* to diocesan colleges and •schools it would not promote residential University education. Mr. Smyth’s amendment being withdrawn, the House got into Committee on the Bill before seven o’c lo ck ; but before the Speaker left the chair Mr. Fawcett made an attempt to extract from the Government an undertaking that the whole of the existing Senate of the Queen’s University should be reappointed as the Senate of the new University, a length to which the Chancellor of the Exchequer declined to go, although he said the services of the Senate of the Queen’s University entitled it to the | greatest consideration from the Government. A t the evening sitting the Bill was discussed clause by clause, and was got through with the exception of the new clauses, the consideration of which was postponed till Wednesday. Two amendments were proposed, and pressed to a division, the one, by Mr. Courtney, that the elective members of the Senate should be raised from six to eighteen; the other, by Dr. Playfair, that the Professors of the Queen’s Colleges should be Professors of the new University. Both these amendments were rejected by considerable majorities, in which the Irish members voted with the Government.

The labours of the Committee were resumed the bill in at twelve o’clock on Wednesday and by six all committee, the amendments had been disposed o f and the

Bill was ordered to be reported to the House.

The first amendment proposed was that o f Sir G. Campbell, who objected to the Bill not upon religious but on financial grounds, and he ascribed the course taken by the Government to a desire to smooth over difficulties by throwing a sop to the Irish members. The Chief Secretary for Ireland and the Chancellor o f the Exchequer pointed out in reply that whatever financial arrangements might be necessary for carrying out the proposals o f the Bill would have to be submitted, together with the scheme recommended by the Senate, to the judgment o f Parliament, which would by no means be bound to vote money for anything it might disapprove of. Mr. W. E, Forster expressed his decided preference for the mode o f meeting the grievance o f Catholics proposed by The O ’Conor Don, for which the plan o f the Government was in his opinion a clumsy substitute; but as he believed the Bill was an attempt to meet the grievance he would vote for it. After some further discussion, which turned among other things on what Mr. Forster called the “ disowned ” notion o f confining the benefits o f the University to Irish students, Sir G. Campbell withdrew his amendment. Mr. Fawcett then moved that the money required for the purposes of the University should be supplied from the fund o f the Irish Church Commissioners, strongly urging the inconvenience and risk of disturbance to Irish University education which would arise from annual wrangles in Parliament on the voting of grants. Mr. Shaw agreed in the desirability o f removing the grant from the region of party politics, and contended that there could be no more suitable application for the Church Surplus Fund, nor any which would confer more benefit upon the Irish people, than to apply it to the promotion o f education. A t the same time he thought there would be a more suitable time for discussing the matter after the Senate scheme had come before them, and the Chancellor o f the Exchequer pointed out that if Parliament, after it had approved the scheme o f the Senate, were o> opinion that the money ought to come from some fixed source, a Bill might be passed to state out o f what funds it should be provided. Mr. Fawcett did not press his amendment to a division, and the next proposed to be considered was that of Mr. Kavanagh, who moved an amend-

New S e r i e s , Vol. XXII. No. 561.