and exceptional crime in the Papal States, and one which excites péculiar horror when it does happen. It may be also said, that it is one to which the precautionary policy of the Government allows no kind of excuse; for the establishment of a great Foundling Hospital affords an easy opportunity of disposing of illegitimate offspring, otherwise than by assassination,as is too commonly the case in England. Upon this important question the most opposite opinions are entertained -some holding that the facility of getting rid of the shame and the burthen of maintaining the offspring of illicit connexion is an incentive and a boon to immorality; while, on the other hand, the singular infrequency of the crime of child-murder is triumphantly appealed to as the result of a policy as merciful as it is indispensable. Several of the women, then in the prison, had been condemned for periods of five and even ten years. In the infirmary ward were some elderly women, who had been detected keeping houses of bad character and ensnaring young girls to their destruction; and these venerable sinners had been each condemned to imprisonment for a period of five years. One old and rather repulsive-looking woman, who had been convicted of selling her own danghter to infamy, was undergoing a sentence of imprisonment for ten years. I mention the offence and the punishment, as indicating the vigilance and rigour of the tribunal presided over by the Cardinal Vicar, who, as the Guardian of Morals, takes cognizance of all glaring instances of their infraction. Among the other prisoners, were wives against whom charges of incontinence had been made and proved by their husbands. Considering, then, the character of many of the prisoners, it was a matter of amazement to learn with what facility they were controlled, and to see the flimsey nature of the locks by which alone the doors of the work-rooms and dormitories were fastened. I examined several of them with curiosity; and, on drawing the key from the lock of one of the principal wards I found it was just about the size of that used for an ordinary bedroom of a private house in England or Ireland. In each dormitory was placed the bed of the Nun, little more than its curtains distin guishing it from the beds of the prisoners. In one dormitory I count ed as many as twenty-eight beds. And to maintain authority over, and ensure the obedience of, their twenty-eight occupants, there was but that one Sister; unless the aid of a " guardian "one of the prisoners, raised to that rank for good conduct-might be relied on in case of necessity. But though some difficulty had been experienced in the commencement, when the institution was first handed over to the Sisters, none whatever is felt at present; for the rudeness, and even violence, of the past has altogether disappeared, and the entire of the prisoners are remarkable for their docility and ready obedience to the orders of the Nuns. The Superioress stated that there never was an attempt made to escape; and, on being asked what she could do in case a number of the prisoners determined to set themselves free, she answered, with a quiet little shrug, "There would still be no fear, for the majority, being well disposed, would at once take part with the Sisters."

In this prison it is deemed unnecessary to adopt the separate or cellular system, from the fact that one of the Nuns is always on the watch, and may at a moment obviate any inconvenience which could

ment.

arise from a number of the prisoners sleeping in the same apartIn conclusion, I may safely assert that, in all respects, this prison--in which the same industrial, literary, moral, and religious training is carried out as in the two other departments of the establishment—will stand comparison with the very best in the United Kingdom. Of itself, it is an admirable illustration of that reformatory spirit of which Pius IX. is the origin and the inspiration.

It would be tedious were we to refer more particularly to the multifarious institutious in Rome. There is no class in the community towards which the heart of the Holy Father so inclines as the criminal class. He feels that the mission which has been confided to him is the same which our blessed Redeemer assumed when He declared that He came not to call the just but sinners to repentance, and faithful to that sacred duty, Pius looses no opportunity, neglects no means, to recall those sheep who have strayed from the fold, and bring them again within its saving protection. He is, therefore, foremost amongst those desirous to promote every sort of Reformatory, and has constantly proved himself most anxious to contribute to their comfort and happiness. When Bishop Wilson was about to return to his diocese, after having paid his homage to his Holiness, the Pope thus addressed him:-"Be kind, my son, to all your flock and Hobartown, but BE KINDEST TO THE CON

DEMNED."

One word more and we shall conclude. When railways were first thought of in England, they were opposed by a large majority of the people, who ridiculed the notion of travelling by such a means, even at the rate at which it was then proposed to run. The idea that passengers could be conveyed at the rate of twenty miles per hour-which is now considered "wretchedly slow"-was then scouted as preposterous. But when Mr. Stephenson hinted that he thought he might be able to go thirty miles an hour, human nature could stand it no longer, and even the educated classes of the community declared that no person could travel at such a pace and live. A writer in" The Quarterly" of that time expresses a hope that "Parliament will, in all Railways it may sanction, limit the speed to eight or nine miles an hour, which we agree with Mr. Sylvester is as great as can be ventured on with safety." That is not long ago, yet now it is not thought too much to travel forty and fifty miles an hour. We have stated this in

order to check that absurd fashion of attributing to the Papal government a systematic hostility to material and intellectual progress.

The real cause of this backwardness is, that the resources of the Papal States are not large, nor, as yet, is the speculative enterprise of the people equal to the risk of great undertakings. Hence railways have to be constructed by foreign speculators with foreign capital. The consequence of this is, that from the inability of some and the roguery of others, concessions have been passed from hand to hand, to the indignation of the government and the disgust of the people. There is another and a more operative cause, i. e. the liability to revolution. Few would wish to invest capital in a country where by a revolution their investment might be rendered not merely valueless but costly. Here is a specimen of English consideration. A revolution is created and fostered by the English ministry-it is useless now to deny it, for even their friends admit it-in Italy, and the Italians are called "priest-ridden," because they won't embark their money in schemes which may at any moment be rendered unproductive by the agency of a ruf fian protected by the English Government. Notwithstanding all these drawbacks, railways are progressing in Italy. Pius IX. was from the first anxious to encourage the introduction of railways, and ere long, no doubt, he will have the satisfaction of beholding a vast net work of railways covering his territory.

Gaslight is another of those discoveries which, though for some time known in England, have been but recently adopted in Rome. We have heard its absence humorously accounted for, by the desire of the priests to conceal their gallantries. Poor fellows, there is no chance for them now; gas has been brought into Rome, is used in the public streets, even the Pope lights his palace with it, and pays £40 per month for the quantity he consumes. The electric telegraph has gained a position in this land of darkness, and is found very profitable, as the nett revenue for 22,383 messages sent over the line was 18,780 scudi.

We have now done. We have extracted copiously because we considered ourselves justified in so doing, in order that those who read our paper may be induced to put away from them any little prejudice they may have, and because we think that the object of the author will be

best attained by giving as extensive a circulation as possible to the statements he makes, supported as they are by facts and references which can easily be ascertained to be existent or non-existent, true or false, by those who desire to refute or substantiate the allegations of our author. Mr. Maguire has been of course at St. Peter's, and seen all the antiquities of Rome. But as these have been described by every tourist, we have no concern with them. We shall conclude then by recommending every one of our friends to read attentively, Rome, its Ruler and its Institutions, and we promise them they will derive from its perusal, pleasure and information.

Whilst writing this paper we read with surprise not unmingled with regret, a letter addressed to Mr. Maguire, and purporting to be written by His Eminence Cardinal Wiseman, in which the following passage occurs :-"I need not say that, by this work, you have nailed your colours to the mast, and become the Pope's champion, in the House as well as out of it; and I am sure you will not allow him to be vilified by any one, however lofty."

We must altogether dissent from the application of this sentence to the book or its author. When we say of a man that "he nailed his colours to the mast," we mean to convey-and every one so understands the phrase-that he has embarked in a hazardous venture, encompassed by dangers, escape from which can only be secured by the destruction of the obstacles which threaten his safety, and when finding himself unable to succeed, he has nailed his colours to the mast as a declaration that though conquered he would never surrender. This is not the case in the present instance; this is no forlorn hope-God forbid it should be. Mr. Maguire has merely recounted factsfacts as accessible to others as to him, had others the same inclination to examine them, and the same honesty in admitting their existence. We cannot induce ourselves to believe that Mr. Maguire is now more bound “not to allow the Pope to be vilified" than, from the first moment that he was capable of forming an opinion upon the subject, he was bound to defend the Pope against any unjust accusations with which he may have been assailed. Mr. Maguire is not now "the Pope's champion." He has been, is, and we trust will continue to be, what every honest man ought to be, the advocate of justice and the champion of truth.

THE

IRISH QUARTERLY REVIEW.

No. XXVIII.-JANUARY, 1858.

ART 1.-DECLINE OF PORTUGUESE POETRY.

SECOND PAPER.

1. Poezias varias de Andre Nunes da Sylva.

Lisbon: 1671.

2. Laura de Anfrisio por Manoel da Viega Tagorra. Lisbon:

1627.

3. Sonetos de Francisco de Vasconcellos Coutinho, na Fenix

renacida.

4. Varias Poezias de Antonio Telles da Sylva.

5. Rasgos Metricos, varias Poezias, de A. Antonio da Lima. Lisbon: 1642.

6. Henriqueida, pelo Conde, da Ericeyra, D Francisco X. de Menezes. Lisbon: 1741.

7. Obras di Claudio Manoel da Costa. Coimbra: 1768.

Andre Nunes da Sylva, son of Francisco Nunes da Sylva, and Marianna da Cruz, was born at Lisbon in November 1630, just ten years before the liberation of his country from the Spanish yoke. Portugal was then at a very low ebb; at home oppressed and degraded, abroad losing her power in her colonies, where her once victorious arms met with many reverses, in Ceylon, in South America, and on the coast of Africa, all by the mal-administration of her Spanish masters. During her 60 years' subjugation Portugal lost ground to such an extent, that during the two centuries that have elapsed since her deliverance, she has never been able to regain her former position. A Portuguese author (Vieyra) compared the state of Portugal under the Spanish domination to that of

* Of which we have written in our first paper, IRISH QUARTERLY REVIEW, for October 1857.

VOL. VII., NO. XXVIII.

70