, 1889-10-17
CARDINAL GIBBONS.
Review OF His Pastoral Letter From
a Secular Standpoint.
From the Chicago Tribunc.l

tFrom the Chicago Tribunc.l
Cardinal Gibbons of Baltimore has
issued pastoral letter on the celcbra-
ton of the one-hundrodth anniversary
of the establishment of the Catholic hicr.
archy in the United States, in which he
dwells with natural pride upon the rapid
increase of that faith in this country,
and the peaceful and pleasant relations
OF the church TO the American people.
ihere can be noaucstion that tho church
- rapidly increasing in numbers, not
rom proselytism, for where IL gains one
Protestant girl IL loses five Catholic boys
VINO become Americanized, but from the
great increase of families on the ono
hand and heavy European immigration
reinforced OF late by the French Cana
hians hians on tho other. The policy Of the
hierarchy is 70 encourage large families.
IN france different policy obtains and
there population is stationary, but here
the church aims to extend and multiply
us rapidly as possible, so as to obtain
national control at the earliest day. II
already has reached the ascendefcy in
some cities, and nearly eight of its nine
millions population live in cities and
towns.
1t is not possible to contemplate the
second statement of Cardinal Gibbons
with unmixed satisfaction. The con-
tinuance of friendly relations between
the masses Of the American people and
the Roman Catholic church m,lst de.
pend upon the manner in which that
church acts towards the Protestants of
this country, comprising the old Amer
lean element. If the church precipitates
the issue of Rome rule as against home
rule in free school matters il will in.
eyitably go to the wall, and the tendency
appears to be in that direction. The
evidences are apparent everywhere that
the bishops are using their great In
fluence and authority to withdraw
children of Catholic parents from the
American free schools to educate them
in the dogmas Of the church, for there is
no other essential distinction between
the .public schools and the parochial
schools of the church Except that the
Americans are far the best), and to I'M
Americanize them. The evidences are
also apparent that they are determined
to draw upon the public treasury for
money to support these schools and to
their maintenance. In this connection
the Saxon and Celt, printed in this city,
says: THE Catholics are asking for no
rights and privileges that they do not
possess and nave POSSESSED from the
foundation of the republic further than
a division OF the public school funds"
This is simply oourting Il contest with
Protestant Americans, and it goes with
out saying that 1t will be bitter one be.
fore Americans will allow the taxes of
the state to be used to teach the dogmas
of Rome.
II is useless to conceal any longer that
this aggressive tendency of the Roman
hierarchy in this country is not pro-
ducing pleasant impression in the
American mind, and that Cardinal Glib.
bons boasts of the rapid increase of the
church the American people read be-
tween the lines and are apprehensivc
that he is contemplating the time when
the American free school will be shat.
tered and the papal parochial school
will take its place and be maintained out
of the treasury of the state. They also
,egard with apprehension the fact that
between 30 and 05 per cent of the adher-
ents of that church, for some reason not
easily understood, always east their
votes with one political party containing
feeble minority of Americans without
regard to the issue presented, even when
1t involved the dismemberment of the
nation. This can hardly be an accident
or u coincidence. Other foreign nation
alities have never taken this position of
antagonism to the mass OF the American
people in education or politics. The lat
ter therefore cannot be expected to share
in the sweet satisfaction which Cardinal
Gibbons expresses.
The cardinal and the other high church
authorities should understand that the
American people are watching the flu
ture with anxiety and with the hope
that the issue of Rome rule VS.. homo
rule" may not be forced upon them.
They want to feel that the glory and
pride of Americans, the secular public
school system, is not endangered or as
sailed from any quarter.