The Polish peasants, who were as ignorant as their own cattle, were told by the priests that the worship of God according to the Catholic creed was forbidden in Russia, and that persons who died in that communion were refused Christian burial, and thrown out into the forests and wastes to rot or be devoured by the wolves. In order to disabuse the Poles of these ideas, the deputation of peasants of whom I have already spoken were taken to Mass in the great Romish church and also to visit the Roman Catholic burial ground. Seeing, it was hoped, would be believing. In official life both Roman Catholics and Lutherans have held high places. Curiously enough Count Nesselrode, the famous Chancellor, was a member of the Church of England, having been baptized on board a British man-of-war, and till his death he remained a faithful son of our creed. Count Creptovitch, who was formerly Minister in England, and whom I knew well, was a Roman Catholic, and held a great position. Many others could be named. But would Count Creptovitch, a devout Roman Catholic, have given the support of his great name to a Government pledged to the extirpation of his communion from any part of the Empire? The thing was absurd and incredible on the face of it. Of the third accusation brought by Pope Pius—that of the removal of the bishops—it was not difficult to dispose. The Archbishop of Warsaw and the Bishop of Vilna had been politically very troublesome—not a matter of infrequent occurrence among the soldiers of a very militant Church. They were requested to leave their sees until matters should have settled down, and they had not much to complain of. They were extricated without any loss of dignity from a very difficult position and were allowed to retain all their honours, titles and emoluments, a slight deduction being made from the latter to cover certain expenses which were a liability of their offices; and there seemed no reason to preclude their return in happier and more peaceful times once more to take possession of the charge of their flocks. The Pope’s speech was certainly injudicious and ill-timed. His Holiness had evidently been misinformed; zeal had, not for the first time in the world’s history, outrun truth. * * * * *