Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-12-11
Day in France, Mark
ing Legal Rupture Between
Church and State
SEWERS BOND OF 1000 YEARS
High and Low Ecclesiastic Officials
Prepare to Abandon Churches and
Parish Property-Disnitaries Accept
New Orders With Better Grace Than
Their Followers

! Paris, Dec 11.-This Is an historic
day for France. The struggle which
began in 1850 with the banishment of
the Jesuits ended today with a legal
rupture of bond which for practically
a thousand uninterrupted years had
united the church and state. BY refus-
ing to make the required declarations
under the public meeting law of 1881.
public Catholic worship except by
schismatic organizatiC~s tomorrow be-
comes Illegal. The scenes today in
some of the churches were extreme
ly touching. Not in years had there
been such an attendance at mass. The
and was noteworthy as indicating the
religious Indifference Of the male popu-
lation. Altho seven eighths of the in
llabitants of this city are nominally
Catholics, in no parts of the city We're
the churches crowded. The officiating
clergy read the regular offices for the
week as usual, without referring to
their illegal status tomorrow. Never
theless the depression Of Catholics
was manifest. Many women emerged
from the cathedral with their eyes
streaming with tears and fingered on
the pavement to discuss what to do
when the clergy are turned out Of their
churches.
But, on the eve of struggle, it is be-
coming more apparent that both the
government officials and the higher
ecclesiastics are resting on the advice
of the Incorporate minister of public
worship, BRAND, who announces that
'the government cannot be driven into
the trap of closing the churches and
Cardinal Richard, archbishop of Paris,
has strongly censured the placarding
of appeals to the clericals to make a
violent resistance to the law officers.
mo violence" he says. but passive
resistance to an unjust law, after ex-
hausting all protests at every step"
This is the disposition so far as the
higher cclesiastfcs are concerned, but
their followers evidently have no in
tent to submit and are preparing to
assume the roll of martyrs abandon
the churches and organize private wor-
ship.
Church Officials Prepare to Obey.
Cardinal Richard and many bishops
already have begun a removal of their
private effects from the episcopal
mansions and the clergymen are pre-
pairing to leave their rectories and move
into hired lodgings. 1t is announced
the parish priests have received many
offers of places in which to hold re-
ltgious services, but there is not the
slightest Indication that they intended
to take advantage of the sole remain
ing chance to retain their churches,
namely, by making declarations called
for by law
The government continues to present
a calm front, altho the ministers real
lie additional legislative power will be
necessary if serious trouble occurs.
The Press and the Pope.
The tone Of the republican press of
all shades, indicates that if the pope
imagines that an uncompromising at
titude will compel the French govern
ment to open negotiations with the vat
lean, he has woefully mistaken the
temper of the people, which favors
more of hostile than conciliatory at
titude The Republique Francaise says:
''The time has passed when the pope
could successfully threaten to release
French subjects from their allegiance.
Defiance Of the law will only expose
the priests to being regarded as sub
jects of foreign power, by which they
would forfeit their rights as French
men,