of a tyrannical conqueror, and the passions of men, are only instruments in his power, and that they are made use of, or cast aside at his pleasure.These evils, therefore, have been in

every corner, and stalked, with relentless fury, from boundary to boundary. Armies, like the devouring locusts mentioned in the Apocalypse, have spread themselves over every nation in Europe, ravaging and destroy-flicted by the Sovereign Ruler of the ing every thing in their way: private property has been plundered; towns and villages burnt, and the inhabitants massacred; the young and strong men torn from their homes, the aged cut down by the sword; the matron and the virgin, the wife and the daughter dragged away, and dishonoured by monsters, reeking with the blood of their dearest friends.-But who shall describe the horrors that, for so many years, have desolated the once flourishing and happy kingdoms of Europe? Suffice it to say, that death has seemed to stalk about triumphant, and unrestrained, and has seized his victims by thousands; and that misery, and sorrow, and mourning have followed close behind, and pervaded what he had spared. This empire, and this empire alone has hitherto escaped these evils. Distresses and privations of various kinds have, indeed, been experienced here: but these are nothing, when compared with the horrid ravages of internal and protracted warfare.

But, to what purpose do I dwell upon the description of these horrors? There is another subject more proper for your attention, the consideration of which will be of more service to you. Why is it that the nations of the earth have been thus severely scourged? This is the question for your consideration. Is it that there is no ruling power over us? and that it has all been the work of chance? Is it that the whole is to be attributed to the insatiable ambition of one man, or to the passions of any set of men? By no means. You know that there is an over-ruling Providence; and that there is no power, no wisdom, no justice but what proceeds from him. You know that all these things depend on his will, and that it is in his hands that the scourge is held; that the ambition

universe. But why have they been inficted? It has been on account of the sins' of men. These were the cause. Men had forsaken the ways of virtue and justice: they had given themselves up to the most abominable lusts and excesses. Their sins, like the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah, cried to hea ven for vengeance; and the phials of God's wrath were poured out upon them. Oh! the dismal consequences of sin, even in this world!—It was owing to the same cause, that the uni verse was overwhelmed by the deluge, and that every living creature, except one family, and the animals collected in the ark, was destroyed. It was owing to the same cause, that the ci ties above-mentioned, were burnt with fire from heaven; that the Son of Man, our Lord and Saviour, was crucified; that wars, famines, pestilences, and earthquake's have been employed as ministers of vengeance, and have swept off millions: and to this very same cause, and to no other, is to be attri buted those numberless, those undescribable evils, and distresses, which have ravaged the kingdoms of Europe. Wickedness had risen to its highest pitch. The mercies and forbearance of God were exhausted: and judgment without mercy upon the children of men, until his wrath be appeased by sincere repentance; or, if men do not repent, until the final dissolution of all takes place.

This is the important consideration I wish to impress on your minds. There is, likewise, another of still greater importance, which it behoves you to weigh seriously, and considerately. It is this.-If sin have brought down these heavy scourges upon the other nations of Europe, how happens it, that this nation has escaped?" Is it that our sins are less enormous, or less numerous than those of other na

tions? Or is it that the scourge is only days of paganism was wickedness more delayed? I am afraid we cannot flat-prevalent; never was the corruption of human nature more widely extended, nor more deeply rooted.- -And if we look to ourselves, what shall we behold? Shall we see nothing worthy of reproof? Shall we discover nothing that deserves chastisement from the hand of God? Ah! would to God that we possessed that assurance. But even amongst us, who cannot plead that the strict laws of the gospel were unknown to us, there is too much to be reprehended. We have too much of the spirit of the world, and too little of the spirit of piety. We are not animated as we ought to be with the love of God; nor are our actions influenced, in a due manner, by the love of our neighbour. There are to be witnessed amongst us enmities, and quarrels, swearing and drunkenness, defamation and scandals. There is a neglect of spiritual duties, and a want of repentance: there is little self-denial, and little mortification. In a word, were we all to look into ourselves, I am afraid there is hardly one, who would not discover in himself not only imperfections, but even failings sufficient to draw down upon him the severe judgments of heaven.-Oh! my beloved brethren, what motives there are for alarm in this description! It is not exaggerated: you know it is not. You daily witness it. Your or dinary complaint is, that no man is to be trusted; that all seem to have forsaken the ways of justice, and virtue ; and that a truly honest and pious character is seldom to be found.

ter ourselves, that our sins are either less enormous, or less numerous. If we cast our eyes around, what is it that we see? Wickedness in every place, and in every shape. If we look to the highest powers, we see vice undisguised, and virtue treated only as an empty sound. Oh! if we had no other cause of alarm than this, what reasons should we not have to tremble!! How often, according to Scripture history, have whole nations been chastised with the severest scourges, on account of the sins of their rulers! Read the histories of David, Solomon, &c.-Again, if we look to the higher ranks of life, the nobility and gentry, what do we see? Debauchery, and excess of almost every description; religion known only by name, and seldom, or never practised.-If we look to the middle ranks of life, our pros pect is the same: debauchery and excess; self-interest, and self-love; avarice, and ambition; pride, and vanity; treachery, and deceit; injustice, and oppression; hatred, and envy; dishonesty, and a train of other vices; with little appearance of religion, and no sense of true piety.-If we look to the lower ranks of life, the prospect blackens to our view. We see, and hear in every place, and on every occasion, drinking, swearing, and blaspheming; lying, cheating, and stealing; lust in its vilest, and impurest shapes; scandals, defamations, and slanders; animosities, hatreds, and bloodshed; vices of every kind, and abominations of every description. No; my christian friends, the reaAnd these, not only amongst men of son why this nation has hitherto esmature age, but even amongst chil- caped the ravages, to which other nadren. We hear it; we see it hourly tions have been exposed, is not bein the streets: children, who have cause our sins are less enormous, or hardly attained the use of reason, loud- less numerous than theirs. Must we, ly blaspheme the God who made them, then, say that the scourge is only deswear, curse, lie, are acquainted with layed? Are there any reasons to hope, obscenity, and discourse unblushingly that it will not be inflicted at all? Í on the lewdest subjects. Oh! how fear not. Why should we be particuplainly does this wickedness of chil-larly favoured? Our sins cry to hea dren prove the universal depravity of the human race! No, not even in the

ven for vengeance, as well as those of other nations; and what reasonable

truth to exert himself in favour of the vilified. Speaking of the acts of Buonaparte, during his reign over the French people, he says:

"No step whatever towards introducing any new regulation in the Church, Catholic or Protestant, could be taken without the approbation of the Government. All improper influence on the part of the Pope was, of course, destroyed, and the right claimed by the priesthood to levy money, at PLEASURE, upon the people, was thus annihilated; the freedom of worship and conscience was restored; and an end put to those bloody scenes, of which the whole history of religion is full, and which are always the consequence WHEN

PRIESTS ARE NOT RESTRAINED BY SALUTARY
LAWS.

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tion of Mr. Cobbett, that the French clergy, under the ancient monarchy, could draw upon the purses of their flocks whenever they thought proper. But why did he not name the principle upon which they grounded this right, and the means by which they enforced it? The truth is he can do neither the one nor the other. Equally wellfounded is the statement that 66 an end "is put to those bloody scenes, of "which the whole history of religion "is full, and which are always the consequence WHEN PRIESTS ARE NOT RESTRAINED BY SALUTARY LAWS.' ""

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Here again does Mr. Cobbett expose This paragraph is a complete tissue his total ignorance of Catholic history, of ignorance and falsehood. For, in or his utter disregard of truth.-By the first place, one of the most tyran- this assertion Mr. C. leads his readers nical acts in the reign of this despot, to suppose that the Catholic clergy and which I am convinced in a great were a set of men who claimed exempmeasure led to his overthrow, was his tion from all human controul, and cruel and unprincipled imprisonment who were under no subjection to the of the venerable and illustrious Pon- laws of the State under which they tiff, because the Holy Father would lived. This however is not the case.not consent to grant that which Mr. They are compelled by the tenets of Cobbett says was absolutely agreed to, their faith to submit to the decrees of and which he could not do without a the ruling powers in all that does not violation of his conscience, and a militate against the commands of God, breach of his pastoral functions, over to whom we owe supreme subjection. which no earthly power has any con- Consequently in no age or country troul.-As to "improper influence on have there been found better or more the part of the Pope," his Holiness loyal subjects than the Catholic clergy, never attempted to use it; and there- nor more disinterested men. Unenfore it is entirely out of the question. cumbered with families, and free from In the second place, the right said the cares of this world, their labours by Mr. C. to be claimed by the priest- are devoted to the benefit of mankind, hood to levy money at pleasure upon and their incomes to ameliorate the the people, never was in existence, nor sufferings of the destitute. While the ever was attempted to be put in force, founders of the Reformation were en and therefore it could not be annihi- deavouring to sow the seeds of " Evanlated by any act of Napoleon. It is gelical Liberty" by means of sedition out of the power of Mr. Cobbett to and rebellion, and creating civil wars produce one act of a general council, in almost every country in Europe, the or a law on the part of any one nation infalel tribes in South America were converted to Catholicity, which claim- civilized by the courageous and pious ed or granted so unlimited a right as exertions of the Jesuits, one of the that in question. What then must we most exalted orders of the Catholic think of the ignorance or malignity of clergy, and millions of souls were this man who pretends to be such a brought to the knowledge of the true lover of truth, and yet here advances God.-If to convert heathens to the so barefaced a falsehood to exaggerate true faith; if to soften and humanize the good qualities of a favourite hero? the savage nature of barbarians; if to One would suppose, from this asser-sacrifice their own lives to save the

cause can we assign,_ why vengeance | grain, that is amongst us, may, per

should not come?-Liberality to the distressed, and to the persecuted members of Jesus Christ, I acknowledge, hath abounded. But can we suppose that this liberality has been sufficient to cover that immense multitude of sins, which have been, and are daily, and hourly committed? If this liberality had been true christian charity, and accompanied with sincere repentance, every hope might have been entertained. But it has been, in most instances, accompanied with a repetition of sins, and no repentance; and of course, it has been a barren virtue, entitled to no reward, but a temporal reward. The multitude of sins still continues to cry to heaven for vengeance; and this vengeance, in all probability, is only delayed for a time, until that temporal reward is received. -But, perhaps, it will be asked; "are there not many truly virtuous 66 people in the land? The presence "of ten just men would have averted "the judgments of God from Sodom "and Gomorrah; and may we not 66 hope that the number of just men in "this nation, is sufficient to save us "from the impending storm?" That the number of just men is considerable we have every reason to hope: but that the anger of God will be restrained on account of their virtues, is more than can be looked for, with any kind of confidence. There were just men, perhaps in greater numbers than there are here, in those nations where the judgments of God have fallen with greatest violence. The Lord nevertheless went in amongst them with his fan in his hand, and gathered the good grain into his barn. He did not spare the chaff on their account. It may, and it probably will be the same with

haps, be separated from the chaff; and when both are consigned to their proper place, then the judgments of God may be inflicted on the empire at large. That something of this kind will hap pen, there is too much reason to apprehend. The spirit of indifference and irreligion has increased amongst us to an alarming degree. Divisions, and dissentions have been excited, and are growing wider and stronger; and a willingness is perceived in the administrators of the laws, to seize the opportunity, and to weaken our strength. This last is sufficiently proved by the instructions given with respect to the Catholics of Canada in the year 1811.

But what may be the nature, or the extent of the evils, to which we may be subjected, or of those which the nation at large may have to undergo, is more than man can foresee. The Almighty has it in his power to chastise many different ways. It may be that disturbances may break out in our sister island, although it is our constant prayer that the mercies of God may prevent it: it may be that these disturbances may be quelled by the overwhelming force of government; and, that, in order to prevent the same from recurring again, recourse may be had to oppressions, to confiscations, to persecutions, and slaughter.-On another side it may be, that the most numerous body of the dissenters' may rise up against the present church esta blishment; may overpower it; and then may burst upon us, for they are our most declared enemies.-When the scourge has been inflicted on us, then perhaps, the nation at large may be chastised either by civil wars, or by pestilence, or famine. The last cannot be foreseen: the first is prognostiThe number of the just will not cated by too many tokens. The minds restrain his arm. Judgment, perhaps, of men appear to be in a state of fermay begin from the house of God, and ment: the country seems to be ripe for the just may be the first to fall. It something terrible. Peace, the long was so in the beginning of these trou-wished for peace, is come, but it is blesome times, and it may be so again. come empty handed, it has brought Calamities may fall upon the Catholic none of its blessings. The people be church in these islands: the good gin to think that there is no point in

us.