PERE HYACINTH. [TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR." . 1
Strt,—There are still some of us who remember Pre Hyacinthe
in his vigorous prime; who, in company with Mr. Gladstone, the Duke of Argyll, Bishop Tait, and others, listened with eager interest to his eloquent and earnest addresses in London ;: who sympathized with his efforts to promote a reformation of the Church of Rome from within on the lines of the reforina,. tion of the Church of England; and who gladly contributed, according to their means, to the annuity which the presept Dean of Ripon considerately set on foot for the needs of one who had relinquished brilliant prospects in the interests of pure religion. To these a touching letter has been lately sent by M. Paul Hyacinthe Loyson, an eminent tittdrateur in Paria, at the request of his late venerable father, from his bed of death. It contains some last farewell words which I think the readers of the Spectator may be glad to know of. I venture, therefore, to append these few extracts :— "110 Rue du Bac, Paris, Feb. 4th, 1912.
My dear English Friend,— •
From my bed, where I lie in severe sickness, I wish to convey to you personally the message of Christian brotherhood and human gratitude with which I have already ohargamy dear old friend, Dean Fremantle. I run about to enter the 86th year of my life and soon into the permanent glory of my God. I have done for my countrymen to the best of my abilities. Had I been born an Englishman, perhaps my work would have yielded more fruit for the same cause—that of liberty unsevered from faith,. fides quaerens intellect um."
Previous page
