Genre:

Poetry, Drollery

Subjects:

Miracle, Supernaturalism, Chemistry, Experiment, Physiology, Religious Authority, Religion, Faith, Heterodoxy

    Written from the perspective of an Irish Catholic priest, who warns St Bridget that the 'Holy Church look mighty solemn and sarious' owing to The Times's suggestion of putting a 'phial' of St Januarius's blood 'on chemical trial'—a test, prompted by the alleged liquefaction of the blood of the saint on 19 September 1860, which the author considers a 'haythin iniquity'. Insists that the Roman Catholic Church wants to show 'it own' the 'clot turnin' liquid, widout foire to melt it', but that 'the miracle wanted to make sinners daunted, / Is the clot's keepin' hard, till their hard hearts have felt it'. Thinks that those 'heretics' who believe that the blood melts only because the 'priest's hand warms the phial' should be left to 'prache' and protests that 'our Saints won't have heretics put 'em on trial'.