414 



ITALY. 



ercise the power of the Vicar of our Lord Christ on 

 earth, and who are the pastor over the whole house 

 of Israel, find ourselves now practically wanting that 

 freedom which is absolutely indispensable to us iix 

 order to govern the Church of God, and to maintain 

 its rights ; and we feel it is our duty to issue this 

 protest, which we moreover intend to have published, 

 that it may be known, as it is proper that it should, 

 by the whole Catholic world. And, when we as- 

 sert that this freedom has been ravished and taken 

 from us, our adversaries could not reply that this 

 complaint and this declaration are without founda- 

 tion. Indeed, any one who possesses good sense 

 will understand and confess that having no longer 

 that supreme and free power, in virtue of which we 

 enjoy the right of our civil Principate in the use of 

 public means of conveyance, and m the public cir- 

 culation of letters, and, being unable to trust the 

 Government who has arrogated this power, we are 

 really deprived of the necessary and speedy way 5 as 

 well as of the free faculty of treating the aft'airs, 

 which the Vicar of Jesus Christ and the common 

 Father of the Faithful, to whom his sons so numer- 

 ously come from all parts of the world, must treat 

 and administer. This observation has again been 

 confirmed by a fact within the last few days. Persons 

 going out of our Palace of the Vatican have been 

 searched by soldiers of the new Government, who 

 wanted to know if they were not carrying something 

 under their clothes. A complaint was lodged against 

 this proceeding, and the reply was that it haci been 

 done oy mistake, and an apology was offered for it. But 

 who can ignore now easily errors of this kind can be 

 repeated, and lead to others ? Moreover, public edu- 

 cation in this august city is threatened with a very 

 serious evil. Before long the academic year will be 

 opened at the university. This establishment, which 

 has heretofore enjoyed examplary tranquillity and 

 order, although aoout twelve hundred young men 

 are there assembled, being the sole place where so 

 many Christian and honest parents can send their 

 children to be instructed without the risk of bein^ 

 corrupted ; this establishment, either on account ot 

 the false and erroneous doctrines which are now pre- 

 vailing, or on account of the animus of those who 

 have been chosen to propagate them, must fall, as 

 will be easily understood, into a state very diiferent 

 from what it was. It was made known that the laws 

 in operation in Eome should remam in their integrity 

 and inviolability after the occupation, but, in spite of 

 such declarations, the parish registers are taken 

 away by force and examined, and it is not difficult to 

 guess that such information is therein searched for 

 as will doubtless be useful to draw up conscription 

 lists, and for other ends, which are easily imagined. 

 It must be added that attacks and offences inspired 

 by the desire of vengeance and by party spirit are 

 left unpunished, and that a similar impunity is as- 

 sured to the authors of those shameful and unworthy 

 outrages with which our faithful bodies of troops, 

 who have so well deserved of society and religion, 

 have been loaded, to the great grief of all honest 

 people. Lastly, ordinances and decrees concerning 

 Church property have already shown the tendency 

 of the usurpers. Therefore, against all those things 

 already accomplished, as well as against those still 

 worse, which are imminent, we intend to protest, in 

 virtue of our supreme authority, as we now protest 

 through the present letters, by means of which we 

 let you know, beloved son, and also each of the car- 

 dinals of the Holy Eoman Church, a brief statement 

 o those particular facts, moreover reserving to our- 

 self to enter into the matter more fully elsewhere. 

 Meanwhile, let us fervently and incessantly pray Al- 

 mighty God that he will enlighten the minds of our 

 enemies, in order that they may cease loading their 

 souls with the more and more overwhelming weight 

 of ecclesiastical censures, and provoking upon them- 

 selves the terrible wrath of the living and all-seeing 

 God, whose arm nobody can shun. "We, on our 



part, pray the Divine Majesty with constancy and 

 humility, imploring also the intercession of the Im- 

 maculate Virgin and of the 1 Brother Apostles Peter 

 and Paul, and let us do so with the holy confidence 

 that we shall obtain what we ask, because the Lord 

 helps those who are in tribulation who invoke Him 

 in sincerity. Meanwhile, praying that our Lord 

 Jesus Christ may bestow peace and joy on thee, be- 

 loved son, we, trom the bottom of the heart, give 

 the Apostolic blessing. 



Given at Eome, near St. Peter's, on the 29th of Sep- 

 tember, the Feast of St. Michael the Archangel, 

 in the twenty-fifth year of our Pontificate. 



PIUS, PP. IX. 



The following was reported as the total re- 

 sult of the plebiscite in the Eoman provinces: 

 Number of votes on the lists, 167,548; number 

 who voted, 135,291 ; number who voted for 

 annexation, 133,681 ; number who voted against 

 annexation, 1,507; votes annulled, 103. The 

 population of Eome is 217,378, and that of 

 Eome and the provinces, in 1868, 723,121. 



The Pope was subsequently informed by the 

 Provisional government of France that it did 

 not insist on the September convention with 

 the purpose to enforce it, and the Marquis do 

 Bonneville, French minister to the Papal court, 

 received instructions to return to France. 



A royal decree soon announced the annexa- 

 tion of the Papal States. General La Marmora, 

 who was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of 

 the Eoman provinces, issued a proclamation on 

 his arrival at Eome, on October 13th, in which 

 he said that the plebiscitum nobly crowned the 

 national edifice. He hoped and believed that 

 the Pope, as the head of the Church, would 

 exercise his rights in perfect freedom. This 

 feeling was sacred, but the national sentiment 

 was no less sacred. He concluded by appeal- 

 ing to all to preserve order and tranquillity. 



Signer Sella, Minister of Finance, remitted 

 from Florence to the Pope 50,000 crowns, the 

 amount of his civil list for the month of Octo- 

 ber, but the Papal Minister of Finance declined 

 to receive it, and asked for the return of the 

 Peter's pence taken from the Papal Treasury 

 (see EOMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH). On taking 

 formal possession of the Papal States, King 

 Victor Emmanuel issued the following mani- 

 festo : 



In the first place, all political and lay authority of 

 the Pope and Holy See in Italy is abolished and will 

 remain so. 



2. The Pope will be entirely and completely free 

 in the exercise of the ecclesiastical rights which he 

 now possesses as supreme head of Eoman Catholicism 

 and the Church. 



3. His Holiness the Pope will continue to enjoy all 

 the honors and liberties which constitute the pre- 

 rogatives of a sovereign prince. He will dispose and 

 provide for his court as he has hitherto done to the 

 present time. 



4. A territorial immunity will be accorded to the 

 Holy See, so that, being free and independent in this 

 respect, it may, both at home and abroad, take care 

 of the interests of religion and exercise the authority 

 of the Church. 



5. All Italian and foreign prelates, cardinals, arch- 

 bishops, bishops, the members of the spiritual asso- 

 ciations and ecclesiastical orders, will enjoy an entire 

 immunity from civil interference at the place of resi- 





