The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1903-07-23

les, and the government or turkey ac-
knowledged the benefit derived. In Persia
the efforts of Leo XIII were most success
full, and in Japan he made his diplomacy
felt
The famine in Ireland in 1879 enabled Leo
XIII to take strong stand with the Irish
people and to express his belief in the ults
mate success of their efforts.
In 1884 Leo XIII convened plenary
council of the church at Baltimore. The
archbishops were summoned to Rome to
consult over the schema or outline of dis
cussion, and as a result of the council
strong ground was taken on the spread of
infidelity, and the movement to form
great Catholic university 81 the city OF
Washington was inaugurated.
The Pope and Bismarck.
The work accomplished by Leo XIII in
Germany, because of the enormous diff
culties he was forced to face, illustrated
better his exceeding ability as diplomat
than any other during his reign. The op-
position to the Catholics as formulated in
the celebrated Falk laws, so called from
the name of DIR. Falk, their author. was the
result of two movements antagonistic TO
eoch other. yet working to common end
When Plus TX called the council which put
Chlodwig Hohenlohe and DR.. Joseph Igna
titus Won Dollinger formed a party among
the Bavarian Catholics in opposition, which
eventually became that section known as
Old Catholics The distinguishing plank
in their platform, to use a phrss lich
thoroughly expresses the idea souent TO be
conveyed, was a denial of this dogma.
In point of fact this denial was y an
ovvrocc;ry, off, r,r,poo;finp m ba IL ~ o.
papacy to temporal power. 1t v le de
sire of DR.. Dollinger, who was the Lsains of
the whole movement, that the pope should
become the spiritual sovereign of the Cath
olic world. and that he should, so to speak,
modernize the theory of the papacy in ac
cordance with the change brought about by
the greater freedom of the people. On the
other hand, the Ultramontane party be
ieved it was right for the papacy to insist
more strongly than ever on all powers ever
held by it. AS we all know, the Ultramon
tame councils prevailed. and the Old Catho
lies were thrown into direct opposition.
Count Won Bismarck. in his desire to es
tablish an imperial government in Ger
many with as much absolute power as he
dared give to it. found himself face to face
with the movement going on in men s
minds in the direction Of greater freedom
He sought and found in the Catholic church
that sop which he might throw to the
growing Cerberus of the people in order to
divert their minds from what was being
done He took advantage of the Old Cath
olic movement to increase the opposition
to the papacy, and then to the Falk laws
sacrificed the interests of the Catholics who
were loyal to the pope. 1t was skillfully
done, and Pious TX was powerless
When Leo XIII was elected, he found
himself face to face with the Falk laws
then in full force. But the oppression Of
the Catholics In Germany had weakened
the hold of all religious bodies on the peo
pie, and this In turn had given strength 70
the propaganda of the socialists.
Leo XIII saw his opportunity and wrote
his encyclical letter ON socialism. Prince
Bismarck found an ally where he least ex-
pected one He was unable to refuse the
help offered, and once more the prince chan
cellor and the papacy were working side by
side From this as q starting point Leo
XIII, as the months rolled by, made adj
vance after advance until Prince Bismarck,
protesting he would not 'go to Canossa,"
found himself before the castle gates. The
Falk laws were abrogated, bit by bit, until
they disappeared, and the triumph of Leo's
diplomacy was complete.
Pope Leo's encyclical of 1891, in which he
took up the socialism of the day in Amer
lea, his action In the case OF DIR. McGlynn
Of New York and the appointment of Car
dinal Satolli to the post of papal delegate
TO America are too well remembered to
call for more than q passing mention.
Pope Leo celebrated two jubilees, the