212 Tyrrell's " Medievalism" [1908 



though severe, is not uncharitable, and speaks of Tyrrell politely, even 

 in a friendly tone, and should have been replied to if at all in the 

 same polite spirit, but Tyrrell is needlessly aggressive. Thus, while 

 scoring in argument, he loses in effect, but the truth is both he and 

 the Cardinal are fighting a battle which neither side can possibly win, 

 and where the plain unbeliever will remain the tertium gaudcns. It is 

 inconceivable that the uncompromising attitude of what Tyrrell calls 

 Medievalism, can maintain itself for ever against the logic of science, 

 and it is equally inconceivable that scientific people will go on trying 

 to believe in a divine relation on Church lines. In his heart Father 

 Tyrrell has already lost faith in it, and must be driven into open rejec- 

 tion of Roman Catholicism just as Dollinger was, indeed much farther 

 than Dollinger, for Tyrrell is logically a materialist, no less than I am ; 

 however, the book interests me extremely. 



" 31st Aug. — Princess Helene writes telling of her travels in Somali- 

 land, where she has shot a rhinoceros. She says : ' Mon voyage m'a 

 fait un bien enorme, je n'ai qu'tin reve, retourner dans ces pays la. 

 Plus je vis, plus j'ai en horreur ce qu'on appelle la civilisation qui n'est 

 que corruption et mechancete humaine. Si je n'avais pas un mari et 

 des enfants j'irai m'etablir la-bas.' 



" 1 st Sept. — Mohammed Bedr, Egyptian President of the Islamic 

 Society of Edinburgh, came here (Newbuildings) on his way to Egypt. 

 He is a very superior young man, a disciple of Mohammed Abdu, and 

 a strong Nationalist. I asked him the truth about the Mohammedan 

 attitude in India, and he assured me that though certain leaders like 

 H'usseyn Bilgrymi and the Agha Khan supported the British regime, 

 the great mass of Indian Mohammedans were in sympathy with the 

 Hindoo Nationalists. He believes now in the revival of Asia, and the 

 maintenance of its independence against Europe. He asked my opin- 

 ion about the prospects of Constitutionalism in Egypt. I told him 

 the thing to aim at was not so much legislative power as the right of 

 the Chamber to control the executive, that is to say that the choice of 

 a Ministry should rest with them and not with the Khedive. Unless they 

 obtained this right, the other would be useless, and the Khedive will 

 at any moment be able to revoke the Constitution, with the aid of an 

 army officered by foreigners. He asked what should be their plan of 

 action? I said, 'You must get together a society of young men of 

 sufficient means to be independent of Government employment, and 

 send them round to the country towns and large villages to give lec- 

 tures, and instruct the fellahin in the duty of patriotism. When you 

 have accomplished this you will be ready at any time to take advantage 

 of circumstances to demonstrate effectively against the British Occupa- 

 tion. This had been done in Ireland, where the strength of National- 

 ism had been found in the peasantry through a propaganda of this kind. 



