The Irish standard., 1903-07-25

The French parliament exercised
every ingenuity to cripple and humil-
late the Catholic Church. 1t suppress
ed the so-called unauthorized" mon
astic bodies; it abolished religious
teachings i'll the public schools; it dis
missed all chaplains from the army;
and it expelled the Sisters Of Charity
from the hospitals. 1t was as intoler-
ant as had been the national Assem-.
blies during the period of the revolu-
ton. Yet, by sublime GOODNESS and
supreme tact in this anti-clerical
storm, Leo MIL contrived to keep OH
terms of friendlincss with the presi-
dent of France. He did not do this
by sending Nine. Carnot the golden
rose or giving birettas to relatives OF
those in high authority. but the day
came when the president of France
ness by personally presenting to
Mons. Roteli the cardinals bretta,
sent by the holy father Then another
master card was played. While the
stately ceremonial mentioned above
was proceeding ut the Elysee, Leo
NH directed the bishop of Orvieto to
receive King Humbert as an humble
devotee at the doors of his cathedral
in his pontifical robes-an act of
startling significance, because Orvieto
is Il city that formerly belonged to the
states of the Church. One of the first
steps toward international rehabilita.
ton, though years were required to
confirm it. was the restoration of the
Roman Catholic hierarchy in Scot
land. If courage was required to en-
ter the land of freethinkers-Fra
how much more tact was needed to
re-establish the Catholic church among
the Covenanters and on-conformists
of Scotland, for WHOM the mild ritual
of the Church of England had an
aversion! And yet Leo NIL succeed
ed there, as everywhere.
Thus in 10 years, Pope Leo XIII
raised the papacy to the position OF one
of the great powers, and gave it an
influence throughout Europe that it
had not enjoyed for three centuries!
Although the first advance was
made by Humbert, the position of the
Italian government toward the church
is unaltered. This is the tremendous
problem that Leo NH leaves to his
successor. Under the administration
of Signor Crispi the state followed
almost the lines originally laid down
by the French anti-Cericals. Through
every conceivable provocntion for an
o,Itburst of righteous Indignation the
pontitt behaved with singular dignity.
He would have nothing to do with the
rival court that, since 1870, has been
installed in the quirinal, the former
palace of the pope, taken without sllad-
ow of law or justice. Throughout the
Kingdom Italians are divided. The
adhcrents of the pope's temporal
power are legion. They are, too, the
most conservative elements Of the
population, and as they refrain in
obedience to the pope's order from ac-
tive participation in national politics,
the peril daily grows that the Social
istic and revolutionary element in the
country may obtain control of public
affairs
The king of Italy is not the inter-
national sovereign that Pope Leo NIL
made himself. The popularity of the
latter outside of Italy was greater than
that of Victor Emmanuel II or his
father Humbcrt I.
The two kings wholly lacked the in
dividuality of the late pope They
never had any ideas of progress; never
formulated any policies that would
raise the kingdom from it's poverty
and its humble place in the family Of
European nations. Consider, there
fore. what Leo Mi did for the church
they trmmplcd upon and despolcd
Having considered Leo NH as the
rr>torcr of papal influence in Europe,
it is proper to refer to the deep inter
est he has always manifested in the
progress of the United States of
America. Tho first American cardinal
was created by Plus IN, but in recog-
milton of the growth of the Roman
Catholic Church in this country Arch
bishops SatOlli and AIartinelli have
been sent here as personal representa-
tivcs of the holy see. The former was
invested with the biretta in the cathe
dral at Baltimore amid all the splen-
did cercmOnials of the Roman rite.
The American people have not for.
gotten the special courtesy shown by
Leo NIII to the men who fought I'M
der Dewey at Manila. The hope was
often expressed by the late pontiff
that the United States would offer to
mediate between England and the
Beers. in order that "the unfortunate
and wicked war might be brought to
an end" On March S of the holy
year, 1900, Leo XIII said at public
audience: "My joy would he complete
but for the fratricidal South African
war. I daily pray that President Nc
Kinley will offer the friendly media
ton of America. He would then de-
serve the thanks of the Christian