what they have to teach be true or false. No persons
were more annoyed by the Mortara[1] business than the clergy, with the
exception of Antonelli. He hates and fears the man who set it on foot,
the Archbishop of Bologna, and therefore was glad to see him expose
himself, and lose all hope of the Secretaryship, but he took care to
prevent the recurrence of such a scandal. He revived an old law
prohibiting Jews from keeping Christian nurses. But he could scarcely
order restitution. According to the Church it would have been giving the
child to the Devil, and, what is worse, robbing God of him. The Pope's
piety is selfish. His great object is his own salvation. He would not
endanger that, to confer any benefit upon, or to avert any evil from
Rome; or indeed from the whole world. This makes him difficult to
negotiate with. If anything is proposed to him which his confessor
affirms to be dangerous to his soul, he listens to no arguments. As for
Mortara himself, he is a poor creature. A friend of mine went to see him
in his convent. All that he could get from him was:

'"Sono venuti i Carabinieri."

'"And what did they do to you?"

'"M' hanno portato qui."

'"What more?"

'"M' hanno dato pasticci; erano molto buoni."

'What is most teasing,' continued Ampere, 'in the Roman Government is not
so much its active oppression as its torpidity. It hates to act. An
Englishman had with great difficulty obtained permission to light Rome
with gas. He went to the Government in December, and told them that
everything was ready, and that the gas would be lighted on the 1st of
January.

'"Could you not," they answered, "put it off till April?"

'"But it is in winter," he replied; "that it is wanted. Every thing is
ready. Why should we wait?"

'"It is a new thing," they replied; "people will be frightened. It may
have consequences. At least put it off till March."

'"But they will be as much frightened in March," he replied.

'"If it must be done," they said, "as a kindness to His Holiness and to
us put it off till February."

'There is, however, one sort of oppression which even we should find it
difficult to tolerate.

'A Monsignore has a young friend without money, but an excellent Catholic
and an excellent politician, a fervid believer in the Immaculate
Conception and in the excellence of the Papal Government. He wishes to
reward such admirable opinions: but the Pope has little to give.
Monsignore looks out for some you