Meeting at II. MEETING AT BERLIN. On Saturday evening, February 7, 1874, the spacious and elegant festive hall of the RathHaus (a room larger than the Guildhall in London) was closely packed with an assembly, mostly standing, which had met to respond to the resolutions of the meetings of January 27, at St. James Hall and Exeter Hall. According to the custom of such assemblies in Berlin, the Rath-Haus meeting consisted exclusively of men; and though the demand for tickets had been excessive, the cards of admission were so judiciously distributed that the assembly was fairly representative of all Germany, and in its Social position of those personal character was of the highest dignity and meeting. weight. There were present about two-thirds of the attending the members of both Parliaments-that of the Empire of Germany and that of the Kingdom of Prussia-the professors of the University, members of the Academy of Science, the magistracy of Berlin, citizens eminent in arts, in letters, and in affairs-in a word, the men of mark and influence in all the walks of life. Naturally, such an assembly was less demonstrative than the more popular gatherings in London; yet there was an enthusiastic response of 'Bravos' to every hearty word spoken for England, and there was a very warm feeling towards the kindred nation which had shown its sympathy for Germany in its Berlin. new conflict for the rights of governments and Meeting at peoples against ecclesiastical tyranny. The speeches were more studied and more strictly intellectual than some that were made at the London meetings, but these were addressed to an assembly having already settled convictions upon the whole subject, and who did not require to be either persuaded or 'roused.' The best feature of the meeting was that it was held sharply and firmly to the single purpose of a demonstration on behalf of civil government and national. independence against the pretensions of Ultramontanism. Upon this platform thousands could be rallied in Germany and in England who would take no part in a conflict between Protestantism and Romanism as systems of faith, nor in the wholesale denunciation of Popery. The best reply to the Manning meetings in London would be a reprint in full of the clear, concise, and discriminating speeches made at the meeting of Saturday evening. The first speech was by Dr. Gneist, an eminent Dr. Gneist. jurist, professor in the University of Berlin, and a member of both Parliaments. He gave a condensed epitome of the history and the law of the caseshowing that in Prussia the equality of the Protestant and Catholic confessions had been fairly and honourably maintained on the part of the Government; that on the part of Rome, the favour and freedom conceded by Prussia to the Catholic Church had been. Meeting at Dr. Dorner. abused for strengthening the Papal power against the Government, and for declaring the Church of Rome free from all obligations to the laws of the land. This policy of the Ultramontanes made it necessary for the Government, even in the interest of its Roman Catholic subjects themselves, to draw sharply the line between the temporal and the spiritual power. The laws passed for this purpose are less stringent than the restrictions upon Papal interference which have long existed in Austria and in the Catholic States of Southern Germany; yet the bishops had openly defied these laws, and had exhorted their congregations to disobey them! Dr. Gneist paid a handsome tribute to the noble history of England in her conflicts for the freedom of conscience, of faith, and of thought, against clerical domination at home or abroad; he recalled the union of England and Prussia at Waterloo, and closed with an appeal that stirred the whole assembly, 'God keep Old England! our strongest and surest ally in the contest for the civil and religious freedom of the people.' The next speaker was Dr. Dorner, professor in the University, and one of the most learned and candid of historians and theologians. He is the well-known author of the 'History of the Doctrine of the Person of Christ.' In language of much beauty and force, he showed that this was no polemical, no partisan question, between different confessions. Berlin. Amid great applause he showed that it was the Meeting at simple question, Whether the State shall be master in its own house?' He defended the supremacy of conscience against the interference of the State in the internal spiritual concerns of the Churches, but showed that no such issue is here involved. He rejoiced that England had recognised the German people as well as the Emperor as deserving of her sympathy; showed the falsity of the representation that the advocates of the new laws are the enemies of Christianity,' and demonstrated the necessity of such a living cohesion of the German. Empire as only a free spiritual life could produce. Then, in a sentence worthy of Milton for richness and stateliness, he pictured the glory of England in her union with Germany for the highest destiny of mankind. The most stirring speech of the evening was from Dr. Volk. Dr. Volk, a member of the German Parliament from Bavaria and a Catholic. He testified that for a century the very laws which Cathol. were resisting in Prussia had been in practice in Bavaria without complaint. Nine thousand Catholics had elected him to Parliament as a representative of legitimate government against the ever-grasping tyranny of Ultramontanism! At the close of this speech the following resolution was enthusiastically adopted : Meeting at Berlin. 'Members of the German Parliament, and of both houses of the Prussian Parliament, representatives of the corporation of the capital, men of science, of art, and of all professional callings, assembled in the Rath-Haus at Berlin, express to the assemblies of St. James' Hall and Exeter Hall their deep-felt thanks for their resolutions of the 27th January. This warm expression of the sympathy of England for the German Emperor and the German nation in their conflict against the policy of the Ultramontane party in the Catholic Church is a pledge that the two nations will stand firmly together in the future in the manly struggle for the civil and religious freedom of the people.' With three cheers for the Emperor the meeting adjourned.* SPEECH OF DR. GNEIST. The Chairman, Dr. Gneist, Pro-Rector of the University, M.D.R.T., M.A.H., said, - Seldom had they seen so influential a gathering assembled in the Love of free- beautiful room of the Guildhall of the capital. He countries. deemed it to be their duty to return a grateful response to the warm expression of the sympathy of dom on both We are indebted to Dr. J. P. Thompson, of Berlin, who was present at the meeting, for the above statement. |