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misconstruction which would be put on their lawful act, and the sinister suggestions by which it would be attempted to be discredited. It was said to be "an officious obtrusion :" but Elizabeth had invited it by her proclamation. It was said, "to

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convey a reproach of disloyalty upon all other "priests and catholics:" but it does not contain a word, which either expresses or intimates such a censure. It was asked, "where and when had "catholic priests, or laymen, entered into the con❝spiracies mentioned in it to have been formed against her majesty's person; and what were the

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sundry forcible attempts said in it to have been "made for invading and conquering her domi"nions? What catholics had favoured these conspiracies?"-Northumberland, it was replied, and Westmoreland, and Babington, and his associates; those also, who, to use the language of the Answer to the Memoirs of Panzani*, had deeper views than the general body of the missionaries :-who approved of the bull of Pius the fifth, and who thought the execution of it by Philip the second,— (his armada was certainly a very forcible attempt)— would have been an act of eminent justice:-those who entered into the intrigues of the Spanish fugitives:-finally, those who wrote to prove that the war against Elizabeth was just and necessary; and who sought to interrupt the lawful descent of the crown, by bringing in a catholic succession. Against these disloyal opinions, and unjustifiable practices, the document, signed by the thirteen priests, was * Page 146.

a solemn, an accurate, and an explicit protestation. It was delivered to the lords in council, and satisfied both their lordships and the queen.

Much, indeed, is it to be lamented, that it was not universally signed by all the catholic clergy and laity of England. But it was opposed by a

powerful party.

Some years after the address was signed, Dr. Champney, one of the subscribers of it, was appointed to be the confessor of the Benedictine nuns at Brussells: the appointment was opposed by the jesuits, by father Leander à Sto. Martino, whom we shall afterwards have occasion to bring before our readers, and by Mr. Winter, a secular gentleman. One ground of their objection to him was, that he had signed the address to queen Elizabeth. On this Dr. Champney laid his case before the university of Louvaine; prefixing to it a short statement of facts, in which he mentioned that, "in 1602 it was intimated to “him and others in London, that her majesty was

disposed to allow a freer exercise of their religion "to the catholics of her realms, if she could be "assured of the fealty of the catholics towards her, "without any doubt of the contrary, in consequence "of the sentence of excommunication and deposi❝tion denounced against her by Pius the fifth." He therefore requested their opinion on the lawfulness of taking the oath.

In their answer, the Louvaine divines express themselves with great moderation: they mention, that the point submitted to them wholly turned on

the question, "whether the pope had or had not "an indirect power in temporals?"-They assert, that "the affirmative of the proposition is certain; "that the negative of it is false; but not contrary "to faith; and contrary only to the common opi"nion." That, "the thirteen priests had not, by

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signing the declaration of allegiance, rendered "themselves ineligible to offices, or improper to "hold them :" that "the opinion expressed by "them was tolerated in France; that the pope had "conferred ecclesiastical dignities on some who "maintained it ;" and that "several fathers of the

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society of Jesus, who had openly professed it, "had been recognized by the other fathers of their "order." The moderation of the censure showed the progress of reason. It gave offence to the advocates of the deposing doctrine. Father Leander addressed a letter to the university of Louvaine, objecting to the terms in which their censure was expressed he assures them, that the address of the thirteen priests had highly displeased his holiness; and was condemned by the benedictines and jesuits. He refers to certain terms of pacification, which had been imposed on them by the pope in 1608, by which they were enjoined to attend to the concerns of the mission, "and to avoid all "familiarity with those, who had taken, or had "exhorted others to take, the oath to the king of "England, which had been condemned by his holiness;" among which, he intimates the address of the English priests to be virtually included.

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Numerous instances show that the court of Rome is more wise and moderate than her officious partisans often show themselves: Dr. Champney's signing the address, did not prevent the cardinal protector from appointing him, with the approbation of the holy see, to the offices of vice-president of Douay college, and professor of theology in that college; nor did Mr. Bishop's signature of the address, or his activity in procuring signatures to it, prevent the see of Rome from appointing him, as we have already mentioned, her vicar-apostolic, with ordinary jurisdiction over the catholics in England and Scotland.

CHAP. XL.

DEATH OF QUEEN ELIZABETH.

1603.

WE believe that we have stated all the principal events in this reign, which materially affected English catholics: the general result of the laws and proceedings of government against them during this long period, is thus described by a respectable writer from his own observation *.

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By colour and force of the statutes passed "against the catholics, which, being penal, and "altogether against the common law and justice

* The History of the Reformation of England, 1685, 8vo. The author of it was Charles Eyston, esq. of Old Hendred, in Berkshire.

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"of the realm, ought, de jure, to have been stricti

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juris, and not upon any occasion rigorously and "extensively enforced, as many times they never"theless were, the statists*, according to the Vandal "project aforesaid, obtained, by degrees, their long projected ends, touching the dividing of most of "the people's hearts from queen Mary of Scotland, "from her title, from her religion, and, (for her cause), from all communion in belief with the "catholic church: also, concerning the setting up "of a new and strange head of the church, or an antipope, and the abolishing of the power and "authority of the true vicar of Christ in spiritual "matters; even as they had done by the true and "lawful vicar in temporal matters, viz. queen Mary "of Scotland. The deposing of catholic and ca"nonical archbishops, bishops, prelates, and clergymen, by an oath, and a trick of state; and, in "their places, of setting up of anticatholic, and patent or statute bishops, superintendents, and "ministers. The offering of disputations, but un

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civilly demeaning the same; the abrogation of "the apostolic forms of prayers, sacraments, and "sacrifices; and in place thereof, the authorizing "new inventions for forms of common prayers and "administration of sacraments: for refusing where"of the catholics were not only removed from their places of office, credit, and dignity; but, in pro"cess of time, were made incapable of office, credit, or charge of any place of reputation in the "commonwealth, even of practising their profes-* i. e. Statesmen or politicians.

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