Omaha daily bee., 1906-03-25
eREATER trouble EXPECTED
Friction Following TakinE Inven'
tories Of Churches Grows Under
the New Regime.


PARIS, March A-(specisi Cab -
70 The Bee 1.-THE resistance TO IL
tories OF church property. continues
sumo q violent form. particularly in
tain parts Of the south Of France, where
II would appear to have been organized
on a large scale. IL has resulted in many
further collisions with the gendarmerie,
and in some instances in counter demon
stratlons by anti-clerical supporters Of the
separation law. At many Of the countr,
churches. especially in the region Of ,ne
Hautes Alpes. the registration officers, and
even the gendarmes. have been Obliged TO
retire before mobs which threatened them,
not only with pltchforks, eudgels and
stones, but with firearms. Barricades
have been erected outside some churches,
while in others sort of portculls has
been hung above the principal entrance. In
some cases the authorities, after forcing
an entrance have found that all the OBJ
jects OF value have been removed.
The spirit of a section Of the Catholic
clergy may be gathered from the deelara-
ton attributed by the militant Catholic
Gaulols 10 the parish priest Of Champel,
in the Haute Loire region. where the
gendarmes were obliged to use their re-
volvers in self-defense 'tf the govern
nIent persists in its determination to take
the inventories in our churches bloodshed
is certain" Tho Gaulois adds that the
sinister prediction was confirmed by MEr
Guillois, the bishop in whose see the in
cident occurred. Tho same spirit would
seem to have inspired the pastoral letter
just issued on his return from Rome by
the archbishop OF Toulouse. who says:
THE brutal and premature application nf
the separation law has alreay provoked
an explosion Of indignation. which Is the
prelude of worse trouble. You know with
what frmness we have condemned II from
the very first. proclaiming It to he a
crime against God and an iniauity toward
men"
In this connection 1t is worthy Of nnte
that several Of the Roman Catholic &C.
clesiastical authorities. including the car
dinal archbishop of Paris. expressly in
structed their clergy to content themselves
with protest and to refrain from active
resistance, and secondly. that no difficulty
whatever has occurred in taking the in
ventories in Protestant and Jewish places
Of worship. Four Of the French cardinals
have just held a meeting In the Archiepis-
copal palace TO consider measures neces-
sary for the plenary assembly of the
episcopato In connection with tho separa-
ton law The meeting was also attended
by two archbshops and two bishops form
ing a commission of inquiry. Although
the proceedings have been kept secret, the
GauloIs states that after the program Of
the coming assembly had been discussed a
kind of subcommittee was formed for the
regulation OF all details. When the pro-
gram is eventually. arranged It will be
submitted to the pope. In conclusion. it is
| declared that Cardinal Coulio appears to
be greatly opposed to the separation law.
| declaring Il schismatic. Cardinals Lecot
and Laboure are disposed TO submit to
| the law, while Cardinal Richard is In
| clined to advocate resistance All of them
| however. will be glad to submit TO the de-
cis.on Of the pope.