473
THE TABLET.
[Saturday, October 15, i8yo.
(says our correspondent) murdered Sergeant Bayard on entering Viterbo. He was ill or left behind when they entered, and was shot down, together with five sick Dutchmen and two gensd’armes, by the first body o f men who got into Viterbo. Our correspondent states that at a council held the day before the arrival, o f the enemy, the Cardinals were unanimous for defending the city. Cardinal Sacconi especially (whom the Times, for reasons best known to itself, cites as advising the Pope to reconciliation with Italy) expressed himself (writes our correspondent) in the most energetic and courageous manner, declaring that he should be ashamed o f being a member o f the Sacred College, if they abandoned the Pope in his heroic resolve of defending his rights.
Ge r m a n y , W e ¿1° not know what importance (if any) is n a p o l e o n , to be attached to the letter from Siegburg,
a n d published “ with all reserve ” in the J o u rn a l TIiE IorE' de B ru x e lle s , which asserts that negotiations have been opened between the German Governments and the Emperor Napoleon, with the participation o f Russia and Austria. It is proposed that if, after the capture of Paris, the reins o f power should fall into hands which do not meet with the approval o f the above-mentioned Governments, Napoleon should be brought back to Paris and the Pope restored to power in Rome. The same journal alleges that Prince Napoleon has gone to England to labour for the return o f the Emperor to Paris. Prince Napoleon, it is added, counselled K ing Victor Emmanuel to invade the Roman States. This last statement is indeed probable enough, but all we are able to say o f the others is that they want confirmation. A ll accounts agree that there is no party in France that would accept the Empire, much less as restored by Prussia. We still wait for any positive manifestations o f a Prussian policy towards the Holy See. Many on d its go about, some of which are important if true. One o f them is “ that Count Arnim, the Prussian Minister at Rome, having paid particular attentions to the Pontiff, Count Brassier de Saint Simon, the Minister residing at Florence, thought proper to telegraph to Count Bismark and ask whether Count Arnim had received special
instructions to that effect. Count Bismark replied in the following precise terms, ‘ Nothing, nothing, nothing.’ ” Another is that Venosta having enquired in what light the occupation o f Rome was viewed at Berlin, received for answer that the responsibility o f the act rested entirely on himself. An important denial is contained in the (official) Staatsanzeiger (Berlin, Oct, 8) which denies the statement that on the 7th September the K ing o f Prussia wrote to the Pope declining the Papal request for intervention. Since the letter o f the Pope o f the 22nd o f July, and his Majesty’s reply on the 30th o f that month, no correspondence whatever has taken place between the two Sovereigns. Count Beust is also reported to have declared that it is a mistake to accuse Austria o f having made common cause with Italy
It has been stated that the Princes Borghese, Massimo, Chigi, and Montefeltro have given their adhesion to the present state of things. No such person as Montefeltro exists. As for Prince Borghese, I positively assert of my own knowledge that this illustrious personage did nothing of the kind, and remains faithful to the Sovereign Pontiff. He had three sons serving in the Papal army as volunteers. It is true that he signed, as President of the Chamber of Commerce, a letter which has appeared in the newspapers. But he did this “ Ministerially” and in obedience to a majority, and he at the same time declared by h is vote that he was opposed to the letter which he signed. As for the Princes Massimo and Chigi, they have not given their adhesion to the Italian Government. The following Princes remain loyal to their Sovereign Orsini, Rospigliosi, Massimo, Darsoli, Barberini, Aldobrandini, Salviati, Torlonia, Grazioli, Mattel, Sarsina, Lancilotti, Atheri Viano, Campagnano, S. FaustinoBandini (Lord Kynnard), Roccagorga, Chigi, Altems, Duke of Gailise ; Sulmona, Duke of Sora ; Castelvecchio, Ruspoli, Duke Massimo ; Marquises Patrizi, Bourbondilmonte, Antici, Cavaletti, Teodoli, Count Macchi, Guglielmi, Capranica, Sacripanti, Ricci, Sachetti, Malatesta. Vitelleschi, Lepri, and many otherswhose names do not come to my mind. It is noteworthy that “ The Italian ” in his reply to the letter o f the Marchese simply abuses l;im, the Princes, and the Papal soldiers, but attempts nothing in refutation o f the arguments adduced.
c a r d i n a l A telegram from Rome, dated Sunday, an' Ma t t e l nounces the death of his Eminence Cardinal
r . i . r . Mattei, the President, by seniority, o f the Sacred College. H e was born at Pergola in 1792, and was created Cardinal in 1832. H e was Bishop of Ostia and Velletri, Dean o f the Sacred College, President o f the Congregations o f Ceremonies, and o f the fabric o f S. Peter’s, &c.
The Roman correspondent o f the Unità
m a n i s u m u s ” Cattolica gives the following as the literal
statement o f a person from whom he received
the information :— “ You know,” he said, “ that neither I nor my brother is a Roman, nor o f the Pontifical States, but from a far distant province. Well ; my brother came in to me with his fine ticket o f admission to vote for the Roman plebiscite. H e asked for it, they handed it to him, after they had asked his name and he had given whatever name came into his head. They neither enquired about his country nor his condition, nor whether he had undergone sentencefor any degrading crime, as the regulation says. He might be a Turk, an Albanian, an escaped galley-slave, or anything whatsoever. H e got his ticket and could vote
if he pleased. I f the Romans had all stayed at home, the committee might have got a hundred thousand votes frompeople come to act in their stead.”
Our latest advices from Rome assure us that
t h e n e w qle position o f the Holy Father is becoming
' p r e s s ! daily more untenable. Every iniquity with
which the infidel and sectarian press has de
in the annexation o f Rome. On the contrary, Austria made representations in favour o f the Pope, which, however, were not attended with any result. Austria is convinced that the independence o f the Pope is indispensable, and will neglect no means o f acting up to this view.
General Lamarmora has arrived as viceroy
l a m a r m o r a p r o tan . In his address he hopes that “ Foreign
Powers will judge equitably of the great event.”
H e evidently deprecates a j u s t judgment upon it. His appeal for the maintenance o f order and tranquillity is a plain admission that they are in great peril.
Lord Denbigh has favoured us with a letter
z o u a v e s about the Zouaves, and points out most truly
the duty o f Catholics to aid in defraying their
necessary expenses. The idea o f a great public dinner has been given up, and with it the form o f demonstration which it would have occasioned. It is to be hoped, however, that English Catholics will be afforded some public opportunity for the expression o f their appreciation o f the gallantry and Christian heroism o f those noble fellows.
t h e r o \
We have elsewhere made reference to a letter
princes^ c°mmunicated to the Times by Sir G. Bowyer
from the pen o f the Marchese Patrizi Montoro,
a Roman noble, containing important revelations as to the ludicrous dishonesty with which the plébiscite was managed °.n t ie. "n(l instant. About the Roman Princes, the letter n .>0 gives some interesting information, on one point of which we have also commented. Alluding to the letters of
An Italian” which have been given prominence to in the lv n e s duung the last fortnight, the Marchese says :—
luged the Italian cities is now published in Rome, and what the Roman journals have become it would be idle and disgusting to relate. These organs do not scruple to insert the plainest incentives to the murder o f priests, nuns, and “ reactionnaires;” infamous caricatures o f religion, o f its ministers, o f the Pope and the Holy Mother o f God, are sold everywhere, and thrust on those who turn in disgust from the places o f sale. The Tribuno is one o f the worst journals,, and contains just now a most violent series o f libels on the Comte de Résu, the excellent Director o f the Roman Railways, because several ladies, the wives o f Zouaves, Madame Jurieu de la Gravière and other “ reactionaries ” were allowed to travel safely to Cività Vecchia, and were not delivered to what the Tribuno calls the “ just indignation o f the people.” M. de Résu did not even know they were in the carriage till he got in himself, but, as a French gentleman, he was too happy to avoid all annoyance, and the party among whom were also Mgr Stonor and the Comte de Christen, Madame de Rousalibre, &c., and for this act of kindness all the Revolutionary organs are crying for his dismissal. It is plain from the tone o f disappointment o f the Revolutionary press that murder had been planned.
I f Italy wishes thoroughly to discredit herself
THE It a l i a n f o r honesty, she is going the right way to do so p o s t -o f f i c e . j n every particular. Our Roman correspondent’s letters, when directed to this office, have been constantly detained for two and three weeks at a time in Rome since the invasion began. The Roman and French postmarks prove that the delay has been in Italy and not elsewhere. We are also informed that I h e I a b l e t has been seized for three weeks at the Roman Post-office ; and that the North American College has alone in Rome received the delivery of three o f our numbers. The letters received in