Early  in  April,  1880,  Manning  arrived  in  Rome,
resolved  this  time  to  bring  things  to  an  issue  and  to
expose  to  the  Holy  See  the  purely  dilatory  tactics  of  his
opponents. Bishop  Clifford,  writing  upon  the  evening  of
the  day  on  which  Manning  arrived,  says :  "  We  agreed
that  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  return  to  England  until
something  is  decided  on  the  three  chief  points — Colleges
and  Schools  and  division  of  Missions. Manning  is  to
urge  this  on  Nina  and  the  Pope."

It  may  be  asked  what  advantage  the  Jesuits  and  their
friends  expected  to  derive  from  the  policy  of  deliberate
delays  with  which  they  were  credited. In  his  diary,
under  date  May  5th,  the  Bishop  of  Clifton  writes :
"  Cardinal  Manning  then  saw  Cretoni  ;  Ballerini  had  been
with  him  yesterday. All  manner  of  excuses  for  delay ;
he  had  not  yet  finished  writing,  much  less  printing. Cre-
toni says  he  looks  for  three  chances:  (i)  Cardinal  Manning
leaving  Rome,  (2)  the  Pope's  death,  (3)  the  chapter  of
accidents."  And  that  there  was  some  method  in  their
madness  the  Bishop  goes  on  to  show : —

"  Loss  of  time  was  not  the  only  or  perhaps  the  chief
evil  from  these  delays. Reports  were  meantime  spread
both  in  private  and  by  means  of  the  public  Press  in-
jurious to  the  Bishops,  and  specially  regarding  His  Emi-


BISHOPS   AND    REGULARS  335

nence  Cardinal  Manning,  as  being  opposed  to  Regulars,
invading  their  privileges  and  grasping  their  property,
and  that  much  ill-feeling  and  much  party  feeling  was
thus  aroused  among  the  laity. Moreover,  if  we  bear
in  mind  that  ever  since  the  appointment  of  the  special
Commission  of  Cardinals  to  examine  their  case,  four  of
its  members  have  been  seriously  ill,  and  that  the  Holy
Father  himself  is  of  advanced  age,  it  must  be  acknow-
ledged that  time  forms  a  very  important  element  in
speculating  on  the  ultimate  result  of  such  a  case."

But  at  length  Ballerini's  voluminous  papers  were  all
received,  and  it  became  the  chief  anxiety  of  the  English
Bishops  to  press  the  case  to  an  issue  before  the  great
heats  again  emptied  Rome. After  a  good  deal  of  pre-
liminary skirmishing  it  was  arranged  on  the  1st  of  June
that  a  further  period  of  twenty  days  should  be  allowed
for  supplementary  papers  on  each  side. 