Spanish Colonel Imprisoned for Protestantism.
Sometime ago, the Spanish authorities put in prison a young marine for his refusal to attend Mass. He was afterwards pardoned and released by the King. Similar events have taken place during the last twelvemonth in connection with an officer in the Spanish army, Colonel Juan Labrador. The Spanish Court-Martial sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment because he refused to go to the “Mass of the Holy Ghost” before acting presiding officer at a Court-Martial. It happens, however, that in May last year “the Cabinet Council at Madrid approved a measure which makes for increased Religious Toleration in the Spanish Army. Henceforth officers selected to try offences against Military Law will be absolved from the necessity of attending the Mass of the Holy Ghost before proceedings.” The result has been that on 15th January King Alfonso granted a Free Pardon to Colonel Juan Labrador. It is encouraging to observe that Spain is getting more and more out of the trammels of the Papacy.
Mr. Michael J. F. M’Carthy and Irish Home Rule.
Mr. M’Carthy in the course of a letter in which he gives his reasons for having ceased some time ago to be a Roman Catholic (see Protestant Alliance Magazine) writes, as follows, regarding Irish Home Rule:—”I believe that the Protestant corrective applied to priestly pretensions in Ireland is greatly to the benefit of my Roman Catholic fellow-countrymen, under the Union with Great Britain. I believe that the check would be destroyed if a Dublin Parliament were established, and that Ireland under Home Rule would become a hidebound and decadent place, like Quebec or the Roman Catholic districts of the Continent, a prey to political intrigues by Rome and foreign countries in England—a miserable place inhabited by superstitious Romanists, and time-serving nominal Protestants.”
Persecution of Protestants in Ireland.
The Protestant Alliance Magazine of February contains a number of notes which cast light upon the intolerant and persecuting conduct that already goes on against Protestants in Ireland—malicious proceedings that would be greatly strengthened by Home Rule. It appears that the Jesuits are desirous of having Protestant newspapers “excluded from the mails as immoral publications.” A Protestant colporteur was recently driven out of a parish in Connaught, by a mob with a priest at its head.
The Immigration Bill in America.
The Menace, of 7th February, calls special attention to this Bill, which may “come up for vote at any time” at this session of Congress. The Bill is designed with a view to apply an educational test to emigrants entering the United States, and to prevent totally illiterate people coming in. It seems that during the period of Taft’s presidency, “practically the same” Bill passed Congress and Senate, but was vetoed by President Taft at the instance of the Roman Catholic hierarchy. It is easily understood why the Roman authorities are opposed to the Bill, for hordes of their people who are quite illiterate, from Southern Europe and other Popish countries, are constantly pouring into the States, and any such test as this Bill proposes will inevitably stop the inflow of these devotees of the Roman Catholic Church, whose very ignorance of all education whatever is their peculiar excellency in the eyes of their ecclesiastical superiors. Protestants in the United States are eagerly waiting to see what President Wilson will do in this matter. Perhaps we should have said in our previous notice of The Menace, that readers must be prepared for a somewhat rough and ready form of expression with a certain lack of delicacy here and there in its columns, but still a robust and straightforward handling of the corruptions of Rome that cannot but be admired by earnest Protestants.
The Government and the Home Rule Bill.
From the tenor of the King’s Speech at the opening of Parliament on the 10th February, it was anticipated that the Government were prepared to make some concessions to their opponents on the Irish Home Rule question. Since then, the Prime Minister has intimated that he intends to bring forward some proposals with a view to meet the demands of Ulster. But whether these proposals will be satisfactory, it remains to be seen at the time we write. There is no doubt that, under the Most High, the vigorous exertions of the Ulster people have had some good effect. King George appears to be very anxious about the situation, and it is well. But our eyes must be to Him who is King of kings and Lord of lords, and is able to make of none effect the ill devices of men.
The “Protestant Observer” and the Kikuyu Controversy.
This vigorous Protestant paper makes the following among other remarks relative to said controversy:—”The Kikuyu controversy is not merely a discussion as to whether members of other Christian Churches should be admitted to Communion services celebrated by Church of England ministers; it has resolved itself into something vastly more important. It is a battle between Evangelical Protestants, who are contending for the principles of primitive Biblical Christianity, on the one side, and pro-Popish interlopers in the National Church, on the other. We rejoice that the conflict is proving itself to be a decidedly uncompromising one. The time is coming when members of the Church of England must take definite sides in this matter. They must either throw in their lot with the Romanizing conspirators or else stand up manfully for those principles which our forefathers died to maintain.”