In short, there have been so many questionable practices that the Senate felt compelled to order an inquiry. Had it not done ¢0, the opponents of the Republican regime would have had some justification for saying that the Government was afraid to enter upon the task of cleaning out this new Augean stable. It remains to be seen whether the work of the commission will resolve itself into anything more than a general whitewash of the liquidators and their associates. Probably those who have the smallest political pulls will be selected as examples for the sake of form, and the rest will be left to enjoy their spoils in peace. In the meanwhile the many aged and infirm ecclesiastics who could not expatriate themselves are ing as best they may upon charity. The law entitles them to allowances out of the money expected to accrue from the sale of their convents and monasteries, but no provision was made for payments on account pending the completion of the liquidation, and the liquidators have invariably refused to part with a centime until they had disposed of the property and knew what the assets were, Monks and nuns in vain produced proof that they had endowed their respective institutions with their entire fortunes, but this made no difference to the liquidators, They politely referred the unfortunate claimants to the Government department into which the price paid for the land and buildings will be liquidators have every interest in making the procedure drag on as long as possible so that they may go on charging their own fees. It is not unreasonable to suppose that at least another ten years will be required to close up the whole business.
Another unpleasant discovery in connexion with the financial aspect of anticlerical legislation hae just been made by the city of Paris. Under the Concordat the capital had to supply the ministers of the various officially recognized denominations with residences and keep the churches in repair in case the vestry council -failed to supply the money. This cost about ten thousand pounds s year. Under the new order of things the churches, chapels and synagogues have become the property lof the city, which i no longer bound to provide residences. The city is also
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.