The San Francisco call., 1896-02-26
FATHER YORKE
TO REV. ROSS,
The Chancellor Loses No
Time in Criticizing
His Critic.
RIDICULES HIS PROOF.
Refers to the Fact That His
Audiences Were Not Up to
Expectation.
AUTHORITIES IN ANALYSIS
The Catholic Champion Emphaticallv
Declares That the Four Mooted
Propositions Are Forgeries.

Father Yorke sends the following COM
munlcation to THE CALL:
10 ne Editor Of The Gail DEAR SIR: At
Iast the Kew. Donald NJ. Ross has relieved the
ol S ooo lat two bits a head) the multituues
nave nocked to hear him. For three months
n ne mas been chewing and masticating pspal
documents. Though often tempted 10 Ieil ali
he knew he has brayelv held bimsaIf in e.;
lehce claimed him for her own Tho only
slehs OF ms existence have been divers omin-
ouS rumoilngs, symphonic of a controversial
collc. But the days at last are fulfilled and ioi
Ross" o'eut 14u4o LUIS
The mountains are in labor and there an
pears draggle-tailed Ross"
feImlt me TO make a few remarks on the
screaming farce which DR.. Ross is now engin-
teIlhg Ihere Is no necessity of answering
his wild TRADES against me personally. The
at!eged lectures are their own best refutation
1IIe spite, vulgarity and indecency which char
scterlZe them are not unexpected. The public
knew what was coming and showed true
American common-sense by remaining AWAY
Monday night he had not 500 to hear him
10 about 200.
l have already stated that if o. Ross pro-
cuce1 anything worth noticing I would reply
through your columns ! will do so now as
briefly as 1 can
THE HISTORY OF THE CASE
Exactly three months ago D. Ross al an A P.
a meeting pretended to quote from Roman
Salhoilc publication. An unnAturalized
canadian, who devotes himself to the protec-
tlon OF our American Institutions must neces-
Sarlly be a fraud and humbug. The quota
tions which he produced demonstrated that he
was forger.
in a letter dated November 27 I challenged
the authenticity OF these quotations. I denied
tnat they could be found in any Roman Cath
ollc publies ton. l went farther, and denied
that the substance OF them was Catholic teach
1ngs ana called on Ross TO produce his proofs.
In order 10 make the matter test l offered
10 submit the evidence to three non-Catholic
lawyers: The question was one merely OF the
authentlcity OF certain documents and was,
therefore, a question with which lawyers would
be familiar.
Ross replied by executing a war dance on
the papers, accompanied by wild VIII OOPS for
a debate. I had charged him with Deliberate
ialsehood when he claimed 10 read from Roman
catholic publications.: His answer was, Let
Us argue the matter" IF he had spark OF
intelligence or grain OF decency in his com
position he would have realized that his duty
was 10 produce the Roman Catholic publica-
lions rom which he read. and TO produce them
instanter. But no considerations OF fnteIli-
Ecnce or deeency availed with Donald Ross
Hc knew he was telling an untruth and his
only concern was TO staYe of exposure as long
Hence it was that he deafened the public
with his whoops for debate. He fixed q time
Which would give him quarter of year to
prepare, and with that solicitude for the "sax-
pence which characterizes mis- kind, pro-
Cee1ed 10 PRINT tickets and to sell them.
lime and time again l stated in my letters
thst l would not debate with HIM If he
wished to produce his proofs in public and to
u
Tor nothing il was none of my business let
him know oecisively that l would not be
party to hpmbug.
Now that he comes and whines that I have
not treated him fairly he is but carrying out
the INSCRIPTIONS and insincere policy which
has marked all his actions. This tzzle at the
Metropolitan Temple was Ross own affair. He
alone is responsible for it; he has no right 10
.,iame me for the contempt which he has Ia
bored so hard 10 deserve.
This hasco at the Temple was simply money
making scheme. He and Hubbell thought they
had ito use the common but expressive term)
"struck good thing" The good sense of the
noble endeavor. The result can only be de-
scrl bed IN another slang expression as "a cold
frost"
THE JUDGES.
The scene presented as a curtain raiser On
Monday night when Mr.. Hubbell from Jackson
vile, oregon, called solemnly three times for
Mr. Foote. would be ludicrous if il were not in
sulting. / hereby apologize TO Mr.. Foote for
giving those men chan ce to use his name
Ross had already received Mr.. Foote'S answer
and knew that genteman's position. Theeere-
rnony OF calling him solemnly three times to
come and appear were doubt suggested by
the solemn appeals of the Jacksonville press
10 Mr. Hubbell 10 return and pay his debts.
When the time came for the appointment of
the judges u decide the question at issue Ross
outraged decency by selecting a fellow named
Outflow, who, in the absence of O worse
days and regularly slandered the Catholic
church. such confession Of bad case
citation. a committee waited on Ross to with
draw Quitzow's name. One of the local A. p.
\. sheets made the same demand. Tonight
Ross says that he withdrew Outflow because
OF my objections. Ross lies. l made no pro-
test against Outflow. / have not heard that
Mr. Foote did. Outflow was simply showed
into the garbage-wagon because the town could
not endure the smell.
Then Ross produced as his judge a man
named Sherman, whose foul mind ana fouier
tongue have been for many a year one of the
indispensable nuisances OF the Pacific Coast
The public of San Francisco can well judge
OF the fitness of this sherman TO act as all
bitter by the statement he made this evening"
Il would not believe a priest under OATH
Certainly the Rev. Mr.. Ross must have prayed
for bit and bride 10 bind fast sherman's jaw
when he heard that confession. 81 would not
believe priest under oath" and yet the fraud
lifted up his hand TO heaven and swore to do
justice in controyeIsy IN which a priest was
der oath" Let the statement stand on recod
as 10 the temper of Donald Ross and his un-
biased Judge.
The Monitor denominated Sherman as the
most conscienceless liar from Alaska to Terra
del fuego. Sherman gave evidence this even
ing of that journals discrimination. nave
no time, Mr. Editor, to enlarge on the matter,
but let me take up a few of his statements and
characterize them as they deserve.
FALsEHooD NO. /.
Sherman says that the Jesuits killed Abra-
ham Lincoln, This is a lie.
Sherman says Wilkes Booth received the
sacrament from Bishop Spauldlng. Aholher
lie. Sherman says Booth wore a Catholic
medal around his neck. A third lie.
Let me state here that the official records OF
the trial showed Just what was on Booths
body when he was killed. There was no medal
But there were letters from the native place OF
Donald Ross, showing that the plot was
Matched where D. Ross happened TO be born
To cut long story short, let me repeat a few
facts on which Sherman might ponder, ne
can ponder on anything except Jesults.
President Lincoln was murdered on the l4th
OF April, 1868, at the theater, by an actor
named J. Wilkes Booth, VINO entered the box,
shot the President through the head. crying;
"Sic semper tyrannis-the South Is avenged.
Nowhere in standard works, neither III the
British nor American encyclopedias, DO we
find any charge that the Catholic church had
anything to do with the foul murder.
Ihe great biography OF Lincoln by j. y. Nlco-
lay ana John Hay, in ten volumes, has not
even an ipsinuation about the charge.
Inc Official acts bearing on the entire SUD
!ect nave been published under the title, "The
Assassination of President Lincoln and the
Trial OF the Conspirators," compiled and ar
ranged by Ben Pittman, recorder TO the COM
mission. Yet in them all there is not single
charge against the Catholic church.
The murderer, J. w. Booth, was of English
descent, aud his feInliy were Episcopalians.
Herrold's whole family for at least twenty