Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-07-14

islands, but freely practice their profess
sions" therein. Why should we expect the
Vatican to pull our chestnut out OF the
fire." particularly as our commissloners at
my parlor, says the spider to the fly? IL
you don't I'll eat Spanish fly" Judge
Taft, with scant courtesy, be 1t sald asks
the Vatican to sell property which 1t does
not own, viz. Lands belonging to the
Spanish religious corporations In the Phil
ippines, to which, as he himself mas testi-
fed page 179, Senate doc. No SSl,, NOW,
I think it may be said generally, as we
said in our first report, that the title OF
the friars to those lands is. as legal
proposition, indisputable;' and to order
Spanish subjects to pack up and lncontl-
nently leave the Philippines all this. as
said by Mr.. Secretary Root, reported In
your news columns, as "a plain business
proposition" This is business with
vengeance!
The Vatican has offered, according to the
though decidedly not in form, all that oyr
government demands, save, perhaps, the
Immediate removal of the friars, to wit:To
put a stop to their alleged political agita-
ton and to cause their gradual removal, as
rapidly as their places can be flied by
priests of other nationalities. In view OF
the passage of the civil government act,
which Institutes the rule OF law IN 1he
islands with judicial appeals to the Su-
preme Court and especially in view OF the
testimony Of Judge Taft page 1lS OF the
above cited documenO. that with the es-
Establishment of civil government and the
courts the orders OF the 1rlars are ene, nn,
to go into the courts and bring suits TO collect
rents or dispossess tenants VINO nave peen
on those lands for four years without pay
ing rent might it not be sound poilcy, as
we'll as sound diplomacy, for us 10 De JUST
trif1e less exegiant in our demands
upon the Vatican? We all want the friars
to go.
(2I "The friars are hated by their former
parishioners and have been driven by them
from the scene of their former labors.
| : ssThey have not changed their religious
belef'-the witnesses against the frlars
produced before our two COMMISSIONS al
Manila-"nor do they contemplate sucn a
| thing but are asking for pastors whom they
can respect and whose work Will make fof
peace and clean living.
Under favor these alleged facts are not
in the least "incontestible," either one OF
them. nor do they SO appear IN senate
| document No 100. Save in exceptional
cases the friars are not hated by their for
mer parishioners, were not driven by them
from the scenes of their former iapors, out
by the ernissaries of the brotherhood OF
"Katipunan." membership In wmch IN
wolves enmity not merely to the friars, but
TO the Catholic Church itself; and as to the
latter part of this weird statement OF IN
contestible fact" 1t is notorious IN the
Philippines that the witnesses, let US say.
for the prosecution, produced DeIore our
commissioners in Manila, so far from not
s.ha wing changed their religious belief"
were. with practically no exceptions, mem
bers of Katipunan. The manipulation was
done by Mr. Dean G. Worcester, Frank
Bourns, Felipe Calderon and Feiipa Buen-
canine: and II any one OF the -FOUR rs
Catholic then the undersigned wants to be
a Calvinist. {. b. bhiGGS'
Member International Catholic Truth So
ciety.