Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 11.djvu/127

 1581.] THE JESUIT INVASION. rir England only, but wherever the English tongue is spoken ; and the warmth of it is felt in countries where the names of the Reformers are still held in detestation. Romanism may seem to revive, but every year cuts shorter its practical power to hurt. Its hand is dis- armed. It forgets and tries to deny the blood that rests upon it. A faith which is alive thrives by persecution. To trample on a decaying superstition wins sympathy for particular sufferers, but will not and cannot make that superstition live again. So far as it could pretend to be an innocent evangelization the mission of the Jesuits was effectively ended. Stripped of disguise, it appeared thenceforward in its true colours, and lent it- self avowedly to plots for assassination and rebellion. The courage of the Government brought the ques- tion to a decided issue, and every English t ^ 2. subject now saw distinctly that he must choose Januat 7- between his country and the Pope. Campian had not failed. Catholic disaffection had obtained shape and consistency, and attainder ceased to have terrors for the knots of determined men who regarded Elizabeth as a usurper, and the Queen of Scots as their legitimate sovereign ; but an increasing number of waverers fell off the national side, and even Catholics themselves can now command sufficient temper to understand and half defend the Jesuit prosecution. The latest of Campian's biographers says with a candour infinitely creditable to him: ' The eternal truths of Catholicism were made the vehicle for opinions about the authority of the Holy See