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THE IRISH QUARTERLY REVIEW.

Now, here we have a rampant, virulent, conservative Town Councillor, and a clergyman of the Established Church, talking the most absurd fanaticism, and the most sublimated nonsense. They say nothing at all about the Reformatory Principle; they say nothing about the necessity for Reformatories; but they object that Protestants should be taxed to reform Catholic juvenile criminals. They forget, however, that Protestants would be taxed to support these Catholic juveniles in the poor-honse first, then in the gaol, then through the gaol, by the gaol, and from the gaol, in its associations, up to, or down to, the convict prison. In all these epochs of life and phases of crime they must be supported as Catholics, taught as Catholics, trained as Catholics, so that, viewed in any light Mr. Martin and his Reverend friend may please, the Reformatory Schools' Bill of Sergeant Deasy and of Mr. Bagwell does not make Protestants pay more towards Popery, but rather less than they pay now, and have paid for years.

We do not consider this paper as either an essay or a disquisition; our only object in its whole course was to supply matter for thought to those who feel an interest-and who does not ?-in THE ADULT And young of THE POOR-HOUSE.

ART. X.-THE CHARGE AND ITS REFUTATION.

PAPER SECOND.

1. First and Second Reports of the Royal Commissioners of the Patriotic Fund. Presented by command of Her Majesty. 2. Two letters to Lord St. Leonards on the Management of the Patriotic Fund and on the Second Report of the Royal Commissioners. By the Most Rev. Dr. Cullen. Dublin: James Duffy, Wellington-quay, Publisher to his Grace the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin.

3. Letter of the Most Reverend Dr. Cullen, on the Dangers to which the children of Catholic Soldiers are exposed in the Hibernian and other Military Schools. James Duffy, Wellington-quay, Publisher to his Grace the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin.

In a former paper we examined the charges preferred by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin with reference to the management of the Patriotic fund. In the present paper we mean to deal with the second report of the Commissioners, published mainly as a reply to His Grace's accusations. We recur to this subject in a spiritof fair play. We have laid before our readers the grounds upon which the Archbishop considered himself justified in making a very serious charge against a public body, a charge which if true is calculated to check the flow of national benevolence in the direction of similar charities by undermining confidence in the integrity of the public bodies to whom their management may be intrusted, and which if false cannot be too strongly reprobated. Is it not meet then that we should now present our readers with the Commissioners' answer, which "verified," in the words of the Report, "by the correspondence in the appendix," will enable them to form an opinion on the whole case? Would it not be most unjust to publish the accusation and withhold the defence, to exhibit the charge and suppress its refutation? We shall therefore refer to the origin of this commission, the period of which the charges were first made, and then we shall consider the refutation given by the Report of February last, verified by the correspondence in the appendix.

Actuated by a just sense of the sacred rights of those who

In

fall in their country's service, many of our fellow subjects resolved with generous benevolence to contribute "towards the succouring, educating and relieving those who by the loss of their husbands and parents in battle or by death on active service are unable to maintain or to support themselves." order to give greater efficacy and support to these benevolent intentions, it was deemed expedient that "public measures should be taken for the safe keeping and beneficial application of the several sums subscribed or which may hereafter be subscribed for the aforesaid purposes: and also for the purpose of securing such prompt and authentic information as may be required to aid the just and faithful distribution of the said several sums of money when so received." A Royal Commission was considered best adapted for the attainment of these objects. Accordingly a Royal Commission was issued. The following extract as containing the names of the commissioners, defining their power, and limiting their authority, will be sufficient for our present purpose :

"Now know ye, that we, having taken into our consideration the premises, and being earnestly desirous, in lasting memory of those who have faithfully fallen in our service, to encourage the loyal and hearty benevolence of our loving subjects, which may hereafter be directed towards the widows and orphans of the soldiers, sailors, and mariners of our forces, who may now or hereafter be serving abroad in our armies and fleets, or in services connected with our present hostili. ties and for other the several purposes herein before recited or mentioned, and reposing great trust and confidence in your fidelity, discretion, and integrity, have authorized and appointed, and do by these presents authorize and appoint you, the said Prince Albert, the said Duke of Newcastle, the said Duke of Wellington, the said Lord Seymour, the said Earl of Derby, the said Earl of Aberdeen, the said Earl of Shaftesbury, the said Earl of Hardwicke, the said Earl of Chichester, the said Earl Nelson, the said Earl Grey, the said Viscount Palmerston, the said Viscount Combermere, the said Viscount Hardinge, the said Baron Rokeby, the said Baron Colchester the said Baron Pammure, the said Baron Seaton, the said Baron St. Leonards, the said Baron Raglan, the said Sidney Herbert, the said James Lindsay, the said Sir James Robert George Graham, the said Henry Thomas Lowrey Corry, the said Edward Ellice, the said Robert Vernon Smith, the said Sir John Somerset Pakington, the said Sir Robert Throckmorton, the said Sir William Parker, the said Sir Thomas Byam Martin, the said Sir John Fox Burgoyne, the said Sir Hew Dalrymple Ross, the said Lord Mayor of our city of London, the said Joseph Hume, the said Thomas Baring, the said John Gellibrand Hubbard, the said John Wilson Patten, the said Samuel Morton Peto, the said Edward Burke Roche, the said John

Ball, to make full and diligent inquiry into the best mode of aiding the loyalty and benevolence of our loving subjects, and of ascertaining the best means by which the gifts, subscriptions and contributions of our loving subjects can be best applied, according to the generous intentions of the donor thereof, and from time to time to apply the same as you, our Commissioners, or any three or more of you, shall think fit to direct, either for the immediate relief of such special objects of destitution as may come within the meaning and purpose of such benevolence; or for any of the purposes aforesaid, to increase, extend or make additions to any of our royal, or other charitable institutions already founded for similar purposes within our United Kingdom. And further to apply, or to order and direct the application of all such moneys in such manner as to you our Com. missioners, or to any three or more of you, shall seem fit in the premises; so that you do in all things secure the most impartial and beneficent distribution of all such sums as may hereafter and from time to time be received under or by virtue of this Our Royal Commission."

It might be objected that greater regard was not had to the relative proportion of those who were likely to be applicants to this fund, so that a similar proportion might have entered into the composition of the body intrusted with its disbursment. Mr. Fishbourne in his memorandum" admits that one third of the army is composed of Roman Catholics. It is probable then that one third of the applicants for relief were Roman Catholics. The Rev. Mr. Hort says that at one period he had in his sole charge 1,040 individuals, widows and children, of which number 628 were Roman Catholics. This would seem to give a larger proportion; but assuming Capt. Fishbourne's estimate as correct it would strike us that the Catholic contingent ought to have had a fuller representation on that board by which the claims of Catholic widows and Catholic children were to be decided upon. It does seem to us strange that of forty commissioners only two were Catholics.

Could not her majesty's advisers discover a single other Catholic gentlemen fit to be associated with the Protestant members of the commission. Is it possible that we have sunk so low as to be able to furnish as our representatives in carrying out this noble charity, only Sir R. Throckmorton, Bart., and John Ball, Esq? Could there not be found one more, or was there something likely to alarm weak nerves in the mystic number three? The only solution of the difficulty we can offer is that three formed a quorum. A quorum could hold a meeting, remonstrate, protest, report, &c. This would not do, so, just for the appearance of the thing, two Catholics were put on.

Now it appears to us to be a point of the most vital impor tance that in any body on which powers affecting the rights of Catholics are conferred, and which in the course of its duties may have to deal with subjects peculiarly in their nature appertaining to Catholic doctrine and resulting from Catholic disciplinethe Catholic body should possess such an influence as to secure a proper attention to the wants and wishes of their co-religionists and a thorough investigation of any grievance of which they may complain, so that the former may not be defeated by convenient technicalities and the latter repressed by an insolent sneer.

Never perhaps was it more necessary to have a proper influence in a body than it was in that which distributed the Patriotic Fund. Had there been a fair number of Catholics included in that commision much of the ill feeling with which the acts of that body are regarded would have been avoided for the circumstances in which it originated would in all probability never have occurred. Without any impeachment of the respectability of those gentlemen who formed that commission, we do say that they know nothing about the Catholic religion, and therefore of course cannot be expected to be capable of forming an opinion on the necessity of pursuing one course rather than another, or adopting one view of a case in preference to another. For instance in the matter of education, Protestants cannot conceive why it is that Catholics object to mixed schools, and other topics of a similar character are also unknown to them; hence the necessity of having a sufficient number of Catholics associated in carrying out any work in which their co-religionists are interested.

But as it is too late to mend the matter, we shall speak of the Commissioners as they are-"Nothing extenuate nor set down aught in malice."

The appointment of Captain Fishbourne as one of the secretaries, might also reasonably be complained of. In bodies constituted similarly to the Patriotic fund, the duty, the real work of the body, devolves upon the secretaries; they receive communications and send replies, grant or refuse applications, authorize payments to certain parties, and discharge other most important functions. Now, it appears to us that a less obnoxious person might have been chosen than Fishbourne. Every one knows that his father was a magistrate of Carlow, that he was removed from the bench in consequence of a petition got up by the Roman Catholic