sensible hearts. Such a pope would not have acted towards me as you have, for he never had recourse to "excommunications," which were looked upon by him as mere scarecrows to frighten credulous men. And this naturally leads me to ask you, Most Holy Father, what you understood by the word" excommunication" and what are its effects? But the most interesting part of the business is, that you invoke the devil before you can excommunicate a person, and as his sooty highness owes no allegiance to the court of Rome, you are obliged to assume his supposed manners by howling like a wild beast and making the most frightful gesticulations. But allow me to ask you, Where is your authority for all these antics? Who authorized you to curse the entire human family? Who gave you leave to exercise the most intolerable despotism over the conscience, the opinions, and the thoughts of your fellowmen? You hesitate to answer. I will do so for you. Ignorant men! 'Who overlooked your conceits, pride, and arrogance? Ignorant men! Who countenanced your impudent claims to the keys of Paradise? Ignorant men! Who emboldened you to say that you had a separate place in heaven, and that none could go there without your leave or a passport from you? Ignorant men! Who gave you the privilege of calling yourself ambassador and vice-gerent of God? Ignorant men! Yes, Most Holy Father, ignorant and credulous men have made you what you are a puppet in the sacred drama of religion, to be scorned and avoided by the reflecting

portion of mankind. Had it not been for these ignorant men, you might have been either a gardener or vine dresser, in which capacity you would have deserved the esteem of your neighbors, whilst in your present avocation you are execrated by all who possess any claim to reason, philosophy, and honesty. I charge you, then, Most Holy Father, with being accessory to the oceans of blood which have been shed in the name of and for the extension of your cruel religion. I charge you with being a traitor to the people's rights. I charge you with an incorrigible love of power and antipathy to the prospects of future freedom. I charge you with affecting magnanimity and moderation in public, whilst you cling in secret to every vestige of power, and scruple not to promote it by treachery and violence. I charge you with having spared no pains, scrupled at no means, hesitated at no injustice, to destroy philosophy and common sense. Remember that the stern and inflexible eye of truth and reason is now on you, and that the foundations of your faith are crumbling. Be wise, then, and renounce your system of consummate hypocrisy, before the majority of your fellowmen shall have discovered the deception and retaliate on you and your fraternity with indiscriminate severity. Endeavor to lay aside pride, the insatiable desire of wealth, and the unbounded and extravagant assumption of power. My letter may appear unnecessarily harsh, but my motives are good, and as principles are of more importance than individuals, I have deemed it best to write

the truth, hoping and trusting it may not give offense."

Talleyrand's letter to Pope Pius VII is educational from every standpoint, and should be sent in pamphlet form to the young men now coming to the front, whose intelligent services to the nation are desired.

OATH OF A JESUIT PRIEST*

, A. B., now in the presence of Almighty God, the blessed Virgin Mary, the blessed Michael

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the Archangel, the blessed St. John Baptist, the holy Apostles Sts. Peter and Paul, and the saints and sacred host of heaven, and to you my ghostly father, do declare from my heart, without mental reservation, that his holiness, Pope Urban,† is Christ's vicar general, and is the true and only head of the Catholic or Universal Church throughout the earth; and that by virtue of the keys of binding and loosing, given to his holiness by my Saviour, Jesus Christ, he hath power to depose heretical kings, princes, states, commonwealths, and governments, all being illegal without his sacred confirmation, and that they safely may be destroyed. Therefore, to the utmost of my power, I shall and will defend this doctrine, and his holiness' rights and customs, against all usurpers of the heretical (or Protestant) authority whatsoever, especially against the now pretended authority and Church of England, and all adherents, in regard that they and she be usurpatory and heretical,

*The oaths of both bishops and priests here given are copied from an edition of this work published in 1854 by A. N. Sprague, No. 22 Beekman Street, New York, and the unprejudiced reader will not fail to observe how tenderly the opposing sects of Christians love one another, and with what familiarity and freedom such endearing epithets as damned," damnable," and to be damned" are used by the followers of the meek and lowly Jesus.

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†Now, 1909, it is Pope Pius X.

opposing the sacred Mother Church of Rome. I do renounce and disown any allegiance as due to any heretical king, prince, or stated, named Protestant, or obedience to any of their inferior magistrates or officers. I do further declare, that the doctrine of the Church of England, of the Calvinists, Huguenots, and of others of the name of Protestants, to be damnable, and they themselves are damned, and to be damned, that will not forsake the same. I do further declare that I will help, assist, and advise all or any of his holiness' agents in any place wherever I may be, in England or in any other territory or kingdom I shall come to, and do my utmost to extirpate the heretical Protestants' doctrine, and to destroy all their pretended powers, regal or otherwise. I do further promise and declare that notwithstanding I am dispensed with to assume any religion heretical, for the propagating of the Mother Church's interests, to keep secret and private all her agents' counsels, from time to time, as they entrust me, and not to divulge, directly or indirectly, by word, writing, or circumstances whatsoever, but to execute all that shall be proposed, given in charge, or discovered unto me, by you, my ghostly father, or any of this sacred convent. All which, I, A.B., do swear by the Blessed Trinity and blessed sacraments which I am now to receive, to perform and on my part to keep inviolable, and do call all the heavenly and glorious host of heaven to witness these my real intentions to keep this my oath. In testimony whereof, I take this most holy and