The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-07-23
against the intentions of the govern
ment.


1T was rankest rashness and rankest
injustice to intimate that the govern
ment intended to proselytize in the
Philippines or to do aught to detach
the inhabitants from the Catholic faith.
TO know in the slightest degree Mr.
Roosevelt, Mr.. Root or Mr.. Taft is to
be certain that nothing of the kind
could have been thought of or could
have been tolerated. Never did there
reside in the White House a man more
fairminded and impartial in religious
matters, more resolute to give all
classes of citizens the religious rights
granted them by the constitution, and
TO protect them in those rights than
Theodore Roosevelt. During his adj
ministration it is unqualifiedly absurd
to imagine that governmental acts
could be such as to deny or impair the
religious rights of any people or tribe
over whom floats the American flag.
AS to Mr.. Taft. l quote from a let
ter which 1 received but yesterday
from a Catholic priest, living in the
archepiscopal palace in Manila, Rev.
w. D. McKinnon:
. I can assure you nothing could be
more unjust than the criticisms of Gov.
Taft appearing in some Catholic pa
pers. Gov Taft has not a particle of
bigotry in his make up. In all his acts
here l defy anyone to say he has
shown himself prejudiced in the least
CAN this does not mean that here
and there individuals concerned in one
way or another with the government
of the islands did not say or do things
unfair to Catholics What / wish to
emphasize d that such individuals, so
far as men of the kind may have
found, did not in what they were say
ing or doing represent the govern
ment and that if their wrong doing
had been duly reported to the govern
ment it would have been summary
reproved What stronger proof of
fair mindedness in the settlement of
the religious question of the Philip
pines could the administration have
given, than to respond graciously to
the wishes of the Vatican that a mes
senger from the American government
should go to Rome 10 discuss matters
directly with the Pope and his adj
visers? American Catholics should
be forever most grateful to Mr..
Roosevelt for his noble action in this
regard and should see in it the as
surance that whatever may be done
in the Philippines a. spirit of high
mindedness and Justice is sure to be
dominant inspiration other govern
ments would have gone to work in
their own way without a word being
said 20 the head of the church or
council asked from him.
'If the American government sin
cerely believed that the four landlord
religious orders of the Philippines
those that had been for centuries in
timately linked with the Span
ish regime, its agents and re-
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES an obstacle to
the pacification of the islands, why see
in this opposition to the whole church :?
as if these orders We're specifically the
church and the native priests, Jesuits.
I.azarists, Capuchins whom the gov
eminent does not disturb, did not also
represent 1t, and as If others as well
as the government. offfcials were not of
the opinion that the peace of the ISL
ands would be much enhanced by the
absence of the landlord orders?
And as to schools in the Philippines
why not, when the presence of nom
Catholic teachers is talked of, state
that out of total of 5000 teachers,
$500 are Filipino Catholics? Why not
state that Father McKinnon is a mem
Der of the school board of Manila :?
And why, when mention is
made of non-Catholic teachers. allow
the false impression to go abroad that
many of these were ministers and ac-
tive proselytizers? And why not re-
member that. by the law of the ISL
apds, clergymen who are ministers in
any place of organized congregations
may three times a week teach religion
in the schools of the place the condi-
ton that they be ministers of organ
Ized congregations virtually combining
the privilege to the Catholic priest
hood! Perhaps. ideally, something
more might be desired; but the condi-
tions within which the government is
confined must be considered: and at
least, when disadvantages to religion
are quoted, the advantages that are
allowed should also be set forth.
But. 1 repeat. the agitation l am
reproving only comes from the few
American Catholics as body trust the
government-and in the present issues
trust the Holy See and hold their souls
in peace"