NEWS OF THE WEEK.
MAYNOOTH still! Indeed there is another week of it ; tongues going as fast as power-looms, in Parliament, in town and country, and m Ireland. But in Parliament the question has taken a somewhat broader shape ; Mr. Ward's new Appropriation-clause having turned the talk upon the general subject of' the Irish Pro- testant Establishment, its maintenance, or suppression, or re- construction on a scale more commensurate with the small Pro- testant population. Mr. Ward proposes, that instead of finding money for Maynooth College out of the Consolidated Fund of the empire, it should be taken from the overgrown property of the Church without a people. Ministers stoutly adhere to the maintenance of the Church and its property inviolate ; the argu- ments on either side being such as we are all familiar with. Mr. Macaulay, who had been out of Parliament during the Appro- priation battles of Lord Melbourne's time, took this opportunity of announcing his adhesion to the doctrines then in vogue with his party ; and to signalize the occasion by a speech of power, alloyed by an infusion of party rancour,—as if the Whigs ,.hati thought that Sir Robert Peel was gaining too much credit -for his entire withdrawal from factious considerations. Mr. IVIacaulay's attack seemed to serve no end whatsoever but to lead the discussion away from practical measures to the squabbles of cabals. There were some excellent passages in it, some well-told truths ; but their sole apparent use was to embarrass and disparage a Minister whose measure had at the very same time the cordial support of the censor. If that was the intent of the sally, it was only in part successful. Sir Robert Peel did consent to try a fall with Mr. Macaulay ; and though he came off well in the encounter, it might better have been let alone. But he did not lose the laudable temper in which he has pursued his enterprise. Nothing could be handsomer than his acknowledgment of inde- pendent patriotic conduct in the Liberals who supported him with their votes under deterring threats from their constituents, or than the repeated avowal that he would not attempt to steal credit from the constant friends of the Roman Catholics. You may say that it is a cunning generosity to avow what everybody sees ; but still there is in the man's manner an earnestness, an emphasis, and an amplitude of admission, that attest his sincerity. He is accused of yielding to fear what he refused to justice ; and an un- fair use is made of his allusion to agitated Ireland and belligerent America. On reconsideration, there does not appear to be more in what he said on those heads than a distinct recognition of facts -which are patent to all, and which the statesman must take into account. He proved from a comparison of dates, that those con- siderations did not suggest the measure, but that it began in mu- tual, plain-dealing, friendly overtures between the Government and those of the Irish Catholic hierarchy who are ranged on the side of order.
As to Mr. Ward's motion, its greatest disadvantage as a theme for discussion lay in the fact that it was no more than a theme : it was an unreal abstraction, not expected, not wished to have any practical issue ; and partook of that counterfeit character whichs o much vitiated the discussions of Parliament in the latter years of the Whig regime. Success would have embarrassed its sup- porters. Mr. Ward himself is chargeable with no inconsistency or double-dealing : he had a perfect right to perform the suit and service on which the tenure of his legislatorial fame has in great part rested ; and he did it as a friend, not an enemy, of the Mi- ister"s measure : but the expediency of introducing the topic at the juncture uncture may be doubted, It imported into the con- sideration of a measure for immediate use, a much larger but vaguer and remoter question. It raised that question most in- opportunely for its own advancement. The Irish Established Church is undoubtedly, in principle, as great an evil as ever; but it does not just now press so much as it has done on the galled places of those who bear the burden. And there are peculiar difficulties at this moment in entertaining the question of a settlement. Lord John Russell, bidding higher than the rival leader in the Com- mons, shadows forth a plan for disposing of the Church : as far as we can understand him, he would have two Establishments in Ireland—he would pare down the Protestant Church to the ratio of Protestant numbers in Ireland, and he would endow the Roman Catholic Church. Lord Howick advocates a similar project ; but speaks, characteristically, with a bolder invention, jet more hesitating tone as to beginning the work. Much might be said in favour of such a plan. But what peculiar hope of carrying it out favours its introduction at this time? Have the English people advanced so far as to affirm "the endowment of Popery"? Look at the petitions. Lord John Russell would be supported by Mr. Ward, Sir Walter James and some other Liberal politicians on both sides of the House ; IAA what would the Voluntaries on his own side say, or the regular supporters of Peel, or the Ultra-Tories ? He could not obtain a majority in the House. Resort to a general election on such a question, and does it appear probable that he would obtain a majority at the poll ? Pure Voluntaryism, which the Whig leader disapproves of, might be an easier enterprise; but who can carry it, in the teeth of the whole Conservative party As Mr. Macaulay has very ably shown, the Established Church of Ireland is politically, a "bad institution"; but no party is in a condition to deal with it satisfactorily.. On the contrary, the in- troduction of the whole subject on the present occasion created dangers for the initial measure before the House and its own rejection by the large majority of 322 to 148 shows how inop- portunely it had been advanced. The discussion, indeed, was not quite wasted, for incidentally there came out a very general admission that the whole subject of the Irish Church must he taken up by Parliament in a few years. About the country, the petitioning furor continues ; still mainly limited to exclusive religious bodies. • Some signs of an opposite spirit appear here and there ; but, -unluckily, it happens that upon the whole those who approve are too content to be excited to much activity about What is small in itself though thus far making progress as they could wish. Opponents point to a remarkabld discrepancy between Mr. O'Con- nell's cordial manner of accepting the boon and the fierce con- tempt expressed by certain journals of the Young Ireland party : while one organ of the Repealers is declaring that Ireland is no longer to be subdued by "paltry favours," and denouncing Sir James Graham's " abject retractation " and "crawling apology," the other organ of Repeal "holds out both hands" to Sir James, and declares vied wee that he who does not forgive the penitent is neither a Christian nor a gentleman. Some take the fiercer writing to indicate a volcanic fire, which threatens danger, baffles O'Connell's efforts at control, and frightens the Premier into concession. We suspect it means only, that the writers have a knack of " powerful " composition, which they cannot forego; that they have committed themselves to the bad vie*. before they knew precisely which way the versatile O'Connell would turn • and that they have an eye also to making their papers spicy' for the Irish market. O'Connell, however, still ap- pears to be the leader of Repeal ; and although he talks big about further concession, he is as pacific as he has been minacious,— which is saying a good deal. What with the Catholic clergy arid O'Connell enlisted on the side of real conciliation, much has already been done to give a favourable turn to affairs in Ireland, in spite of the terrible lucubrations of some editors.
