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III.

Rose, p. 106:

what "he desires in favour of our religion:" this is speaking plainly, and it is surprising that Mr. Rose should mistake the meaning of this Letter, or that if he understood it, he could have cited it to prove, that it was for the Establishment of the Catholic religion alone, that Lewis gave the largest sums to James. What James desired in favour of the Catholic religion must necessarily relate to what had been mentioned in a former part of the Letter, as the only thing remaining for the satisfaction of both monarchs, that is to say, a toleration for the Catholics, and that, the penal laws being repealed, they should have the free exercise of their religion.

In a letter, dated on the 13th of July, cited by Mr. Rose, Lewis pleased with the ample grants of the Parliament, and assuming that James will find no obstacle whatever, to the "re-establishment of the "Catholic religion when he shall be willing to un

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dertake it, after he shall have completely dissipated "the few remaining of those who have revolted,” writes "I have thought proper to have returned the funds, " which I have caused to be remitted to you to support, in case of need, the designs which this prince might be willing to form in favour of our "religion." It has been observed before that, in the correspondence of Barillon, the expression, "the Ca"tholic religion" is used occasionally to signify the

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SECTION
III.

bare" exercise" of it, and that a toleration sanctioned by law was the only establishment alluded to. The word "re-establishment" must therefore be used in the same manner, not meaning the restoration of the Catholic religion to all the exclusive privileges, and power, of an established church, but to the public exercise of its worship only. If it were possible for a doubt to remain as to the meaning of this expression, Fox, App. p. a letter of Lewis dated generally, August, 1685, would cxvi. effectually remove it. The letter is written in high spirits, upon his having received intelligence of Monmouth's execution, and he has these words, "It will "be easy to the King of England, and as useful for "the security of his reign, as for the repose of his " conscience to re-establish the exercise of the Catho.

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* This application of the word "retablir" was well known in France at the time when Barillon wrote, being found in most of Histoire de l'edit deNantes,

the edicts of pacification with the Hugonots; thus in one of Charles Vol. I. App. p.

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the Ninth, made in the year 1570, the third section runs thus:- 9.
"Ordonnons que la religion Catholique & Romaine sera remise,
" & retablie en tous les lieux," &c. " ou l'exercise d'icelle a eté
"intermis, pour y etre librement & paisiblement exercé sans aucun
"trouble ou empechement sur les peines sus-dites."
This provi

sion is confirmed in the edicts of Henry the Third in 1577, and
in the articles agreed upon in 1580, by the Duke of Anjou for the Ib. p. 19.
King, and the King of Navarre, assisted by deputies of the re-
formed religion, to be laid before the King for his approbation.
In the edict of Nantes, in 1598, complaints are mentioned, "de
ce que, l'exercise de la religion Catholique n'etoit pas universel-

X

SECTION
III.

Rose, p. 107.

Histoire de

"lic religion, which will strongly engage all those
"who make profession of it in his kingdom, to serve
"him more faithfully, and
and more submissively than
any other of his subjects."

In a letter of July 16th† Barillon describes the great dissatisfaction of the English King, and his ministers at the supplies, which had been promised at the commencement of his reign, being withheld in the pressing emergency, in which James was then placed. Sunderland is made to say, that the King his master had nothing so much at heart as to establish the Catholic religion; nor according to good sense and right reason could he have any other object, because without it he could never be in security, but always exposed to the indiscreet zeal of those, who should inflame the people. against the Catholic religion, so long as it should not be more fully established. The French expression is, “tant qu'elle ne sera pas plus pleinement etabli." Mr. Rose has translated "till it shall be completely established," and marked it with Italics, as being a material passage

pourra

"lement retabli, comme il est porté par les edits cy devant faits," l'edit.de Nantes and in the tenth section occur these words, 66 Vol. I. App. p. semblablement "le dit exercise etre etabli, & retabli en toutes les villes, & places ou il a ete etabli, ou du etre," &c.

62.

b. p. 66.

*The words are, "il sera facile au Roi d'Angleterre & aussi "utile a la surcte de son regne qu'au repos de son conscience de "retablir l'exercise de la religion Catholique," &c.

+ In Mr. Rose's work the 8th is inserted instead of the 16th, by an error, it may be presumed, of the press.

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SERCANTILE

to support his hypothesis. We might attribute to him
an improper bias in making this incorrect translation,
with much greater appearance of reason, than he has
charged Mr. Fox with acting under one, when, he
is supposed to have mistranslated a doubtful passage,
so as to weaken the argument it was intended to
support. In the present instance, the omission of the
word "more"
more" changes the sense of the passage; for
a religion, which is only partially tolerated, may be
more fully tolerated, that is some more restraints may
be removed, or privileges granted, without the toler-
ation being complete. But if a religion be established,
its exclusive rights leave its friends nothing further to
wish for, in its favour. Sunderland is stated to have
urged the French minister to explain himself, and
make it known that the King his master would ho-
nestly assist the King of England in establishing
"the Catholic religion firmly here.' These words,
which occur for the second time in this letter, must
signify as in other parts of the correspondence, estab-
lishing the free exercise of that religion, not the re-
ligion itself.

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SECTION

III.

Mr. Rose's extracts conclude with one, from a letter, Rose, p. 109. written by Lewis to Barillon, dated 26th July, which manifests the disposition of the French King, and the object of his wishes; he says you may declare plainly, that I have spared nothing to afford you

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III.

"means of assisting the King of England, when I "had reason to apprehend, that the Catholic religion, "of which he makes profession, served only for a pretext for the factious to excite great troubles in "his kingdom, and to prevent his enjoying the re

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venues, which expired on the death of the late King." The declaration, hereby authorised to be made, did not pretend that the establishment of the Catholic religion, or a toleration of it ever had been the object, for which the French King had made an offer of his treasure to James, but the security of his crown, and the enjoyment of those revenues, which his predecessor had been in the receipt of. So long therefore, and so long only, as the Catholic religion was a dangerous pretext for the factious to use, Lewis declared himself ready to disburse his money to counteract them. And after the royal revenue was settled, and the favourable disposition of the Parliament was apparent, he announced his resolution to make no ad

vances.

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James's first object was not

ligion.

From this short review of the passages in the French the Catholic re- Correspondence, which Mr. Rose has selected, it appears that he has not succeeded better by the production of them, than by his reference to James's proceedings in England, Scotland, and Ireland. They all confirm Mr. Fox's assertion, that the primary object of his reign, at least until the defeat of Monmouth, was not the Establishment of the Catholic religion, and that during

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