is the subject, and moral of the piece. The ancients did this in a more simple style, and one which shows how much they valued this sort of preliminary information. For example, in one of the plays of Plautus, the person who speaks the prologue, tells you who he is, and what are those around him: My name is Mercury, this city is Thebes, this house is inhabited by Amphitryo, married to Alcmena, the daughter of Electra.' Thus you are put in possession of a great deal of very simple but useful information. Sometimes it was more explicit; for example, There was a certain old merchant in Syracuse, who had two sons, twins, so like one another, that their mother could not distinguish one from the other. This is what I heard lately related by one who knew them in their boyhood, I having never seen them myself, so do not fancy that... Now, one of the twins who lives in Syracuse, is come with his servant, to Epidamnus, to see if he can find his twin brother. This city is Epidamnus so long as this piece is acted; when another has to be performed it will become another city. Such is the style in which, in the old times, a dramatic performance was introduced. The whole plot was anticipated, and brought naïvely before the hearers, so that they knew beforehand what sort of entertainment they were going to have.

"Or if we choose to employ another similitude, and one which perhaps shows my task to be more difficult, we may say that an introductory discourse bears the same proportion to the series that will follow it, as an overture or symphony may, to a long, protracted, and varied composition of a high standard, such as an oratorio. I remember once being present at a very interesting musical entertainment, given as usual abroad, by the students of an institution in Rome; when a friend of mine, who had a better idea of the principle than of the nature of an overture, while the musicians were stringing up their instruments, and producing fearful dissonances, listened attentively for some time, and then turning to his neighbour, who was near me, observed 'I cannot say that I admire that overture very much.' The answer was, 'Why, they are only tuning their instruments.' To which he replied, Perhaps so, but one can judge from that what it will be.' But seriously, if we hear an overture commence with martial strains and the majestic movements of a march, and with an outburst of trumpets, kettle drums, and such instruments as accompany the action of an army, we know that we are going to listen to strains of warlike, and heroic, music. Whereas, if there is at the commencement, the waving of more graceful movements, and softer airs, we at once expect something more romantic or tender. But generally some of the principal airs of the piece will come like faint sketches in the varied harmonies, floating echoes strangely anticipating future distinctness of expression. The forms of melodies pass in shadows before us, like the kings in Macbeth, to start later into realities, that seize the soul which they have first

haunted. Germs graceful and concentrated, which will afterwards expand into florid completeness, breathing an air of full-blown harmonies are there, but just beginning to grow. Or the more precious gems of song are there set in golden frames, or they are like delicate textures which nature has wrought, and then at once embalmed in transparent amber. In this way it is that the preliminaries of a great musical composition come before us. But, here again, as the prologue could not have been written except by one who has already read through, and is well acquainted with every portion of the plot, so cannot a symphony be prepared except by a master mind, already retaining within itself, sounding in the ears, and swelling in the soul, all the beautiful conceptions that are to be afterwards developed, and the varieties of exquisiteharmonies which are to carry along the audience for hours in ecstasies of pleasure and delight. I pretend not to the skill and power so to interest you, or to be in possession of the means strictly to make this address an inaugural one, so as to make you more prepared, and better disposed, than you are at present to receive instruction, and enjoyment, of a virtuous and improving character, from all that you will hear in this place.

"I undertook to speak of the nature of an inaugural discourse, and all that I have said goes to one point at least, that mine must be a total failure, looking at the subject on its positive side. I must therefore content myself with a negative view, and see whether it will be in my power to inform you what an inaugural discourse ought not to be.

"Even this branch of the subject, which will occupy us the rest of the evening, requires its own short préface, or preliminary discourse. I shall therefore begin by saying, that an address of this character should not be such, as in any way to mislead the judgment, or misdirect the feelings, and that it should address itself to the intellect and the heart, in such a way as to improve both, rather than to impair or injure them."

The distinguished Lecturer then proceeds to develope the particular subject of his discourse, and to draw attention to the special position of his audience; "young men' anxious to receive important instruction on important subjects.

"There are, I believe, but two Young Men's Societies in this metropolis. The other is more extensive, counting more illustrious names than yours; one which meets in a place neither genial nor congenial, except when its heavy atmosphere is brightened by the genius of Handel or Mozart. If you look over the list of those who are to address it, or who compose it, it will be easy to judge that the spirit which guides them and that the principles which they profess, are

VOL. XXXIX.-No. LXXVIII.

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not only very different from those which we shall seek to inculcate here, but are in direct antagonism to them. I will not even tell you to look over the list of lectures that have been delivered there, or are about to be delivered, in order to satisfy yourselves on this point. I will only tell you just to note the words in which this society had the presumption the other day to address a Catholic Sovereign, the guest of our gracious Queen; and then you will easily perceive that its greatest glory consists in destroying all that we here are most sedulously engaged in building up. This society has had lately delivered to it, an inaugural address, as you are now listening to one. It came from the lips of one who occupies a high social position, who has held the most distinguished office which a subject can hold under the Crown; one who has appeared as a gifted author and as a great orator upon many occasions. Such an one when first appearing on an occasion like this, in such a field, must have been considered as greatly strengthening the hands of those of whom he constituted himself the colaborator; and as greatly intensifying the feelings of those whom he addressed; and such an appearance was undoubtedly a great honour and distinction for them. He has also been on every occasion, the professed champion of civil and religious liberty; although it has been his misfortune to have been the only individual in the United Kingdom, who has ever introduced a penal enactment against any class of Christians.

"Now, many of you will probably have heard the title of this discourse, and most interesting it is, on "The Obstacles which have retarded Moral and Political Progress;" a title at once most captivating. And you may most naturally be desirous of gaining from one who is a master in political science, the information on such a subject which you naturally would expect from him. You probably have heard something of the outline of that discourse. The object of it was to inculcate to those young men who had been known for years to belong to the ultra-anti-catholic party, who were known to have nourished, and to be constantly stimulated to, the strongest antipathies to Catholics, that nothing can be more opposed to moral and political progress than religious hatred, than persecution, than bitter controversy. Now, what more tempting than to read such principles inculcated by one so well able to give them their full force? But instead of encouraging you to seek in that quarter for information on such a subject as this, it becomes my duty, being placed here in so very similar and parallel a position, to warn you against it; and to tell you, seek not there that which will either guide your judgment aright, or direct your feelings kindly. I consider that discourse as well adapted for most painfully illustrating the negative of my subject; for showing you what an inaugural discourse ought not to be; that is, it should not be such as to mislead the intelligence of youth. Bright-eyed and open-fronted candour should be the queenly form which the

guidance of such a man should take, when walking before an army of confiding youths on the path of knowledge on the way to wisdom. and virtue. The concealment of one half of the facts on a great historical question, the reticence of what would counterbalance and completely neutralize the other half, is in itself an intellectual misguidance, a manuduction to error. It is my duty, therefore, to caution you against being so misled.

It would appear that the noble Lord has fallen into various errors, which it is not material for us to notice, except for the purpose of remarking how frequently in matters connected with Catholics even the leading intellects of the age are found to be uninformed. His Lordship had strangely fallen into the old blunder about “the Jesuits'" Newton; and in correcting that error has made a mistake of three hundred years in attributing the institution of the "Minims" to St. Francis. After referring to these mistakes, the Cardinal proceeds with the main charge against his Lordship:

"Now the noble lecturer, intending to prove that persecution, or religious oppression formed one of the greatest obstacles to moral and political progress, names four instances by which he will prove or illustrate his theme. The first of these is the ancient persecutions of Christians by the heathen emperors; and we must all agree that nothing could be more atrocious or unjust than those great persecutions. Every one will agree with all that the noble lord said concerning the constancy and fortitude of the Apostles and martyrs in giving their lives for Him who had given His life first for them. But what is the conclusion to be drawn from this part of history? I will read that drawn in the lecture. 'I need not relate to you what fearful martyrdoms, what cruel massacres followed the adoption of this principle of persecution. Far from preserving public peace, the system of punishing Christians convulsed the empire, and was so far from being successful, that it finally terminated in the establishment of Christianity.' Then it follows from this that the establishment of Christianity was the result of an obstacle to moral and political progress. I of course agree that the persecution was atrocious, and that the Roman empire was convulsed by it; but when the noble lord tells us that the result of this persecution was the establishment of Christianity, and then brings persecution forward as an obstacle to moral progress, I must conclude that he thinks the converting of the heathen empire to Christianity was a going back in its morality and its policy. If the conclusion had been, that persecution fails in its objects, or leads to results contrary to those intended, the conclusion would have been just. But here

persecution, in doing so, laid the only solid foundation of moral and political progress. Judge too, if there can be a lower view put before young men of the oppression of the Christian religion, in its very infancy, than by treating it as a mere question of political wisdom. The place from which to look at these persecutions, is a far higher ground, which, I know not why, was here neglected. The noble lord refers to the Apostles, and says, they claimed a right to speak as God urged, in spite of punishment. He had just before elicited a laugh by a passage from Dr. Johnson's life, in which he said that those who were in power had a right to persecute, and those who were persecuted had a right to suffer.' On the first part of the proposition, there is nothing to be said; but the second part is consecrated by an authority too holy to be laughed at; that is, that where there is persecution it is a right, a noble right, it is a privilege, it is the highest dignity to be enabled to suffer, and to give our life, if possible, for the vindication of the truth. The whole system of Christianity is built on this foundation. On this groundwork, its divine Author so rested the evidences of His religion, that persecution was a necessity for its very stability. However we may detest the cruelty of the persecutor, we must bow down in admiration and awe at the wonderful providence of God, which made these persecutions as necessary for the triumph. of His Church, as He made the envy of the pharisee and the sadducee, and the cruelty of the Roman soldier necessary, for His being exalted on the cross to save mankind. We look at the persecutions of the early Christians, not as mere political events, but we consider them as evidences of a mighty design, which rendered them absolutely necessary. Therefore, so far from quoting these persecutions in favour of the noble lord's proposition, we should say they tell against it; for they prove that Providence may permit persecution for the promotion, not the impeding, of the greatest possible moral and political good."

Lord John Russell produces and professes to deal with three other cases of persecution; and our readers will not be surprised to find that they are all cases of persecution of Protestants; but we think they could scarcely be prepared for the one-sided views of the noble supporter of religious liberty, which the Cardinal proceeds to develope and expose.

"All who heard that lecture would imagine, and go away with the idea, that he who spoke it knew of no other persecutions by which he could illustrate his theme, except those in which Catholics were the actors and Protestants the sufferers. Now, what I have said before comes in here; that to suppress one half of the facts, and to prevent those stated from being counter