The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1907-01-06
PLANAT|ON OF
FRENCH TROUBLE
John FitZgIbbons Writes Timely
Article for Benefit of PalIa-
dunn Readers.
STORY IN A NUTSHELL
IN SHORT THE WHOLE FAULT
LIES IN THE FACT THATTHE
FRENCH GOVERNMENT HAS EN-
ACTED VIRTUAL LAWS.
To the Editor of the Palladium:

To the Editor of the Palladium:
The situation in France is difficult
to understand, all the more SO because
| it is a question in which the Catholic
church and the French Republic are
interested. The major portion of the
people in this country do not under
stand the why's" and wherefores" of
it all, 500 an explanation will not
come amiss at this time
France has always been regarded
as the oldest daughter of the Catholic
church and the Republic is every
where dotted with handsome churches
and ancient and modern shrines, in
Guiding the famous Lourdes. The pop
ulation of France is about 80 100000,
| in round numbers, about 81 goo, 600 of
whom are Catholics. Counting the col
onies and dependencies, there are
about 90,000,00O people.
! Republican government was estab-
| lished in 1870 and the President is
elected every seven years. There is a
chamber of Deputies numbering 5S4,
elected every four years by universal
suffrage, and in this body the legis-
lative function is vested. There is
also Senate, composed of 800 men,
bers, elected every nine years. To be
a member of this august body, man
must be forty years of age.
| All religions are equal before the
law, and any sect numbering 100000
adherants gets grant from the gov
| eminent. Only Catholics, Professionals
and Jews are at the present time en-
titled to these grants.
instruction is controlled by a Minis
ter of Education. There are about 3d.
900 public and private elementary
schools, with about 100000 pupils.
Higher education is supplied by the
State and by the Communes. There
are university faculties of five differ
ent kinds of theology, Is of law,
Z of medicine, 10 of science, Is of let
ters and % other schools.
The national debt of France is great
er than that of the United States and
Germany combined, ad is the largest
in the world.
Here in the United States. the peo-
pie at large are naturally disposed to
condemn clergymen who, by declin-
ing to comply with the request of the
government, expose themselves to
charge of rebellion against the authori-
ties of the land. But in order to I'M
derstand the refusal of the Roman
Catholic clergy of France to fulfill the
requirements of the new law of sep
aration, it must be explained that the
provisions of the statute in queSuo
demand the consent of the church and
of its ministers, that has been be-
queathed and donated them, to be
held in trust for religious and philan-
thropic purposes 1t is property which
they do not derive from the govern
ment, but from the generosity of the
pious. and of which they are merely
trustees.
Here is the story in a nutshell:
The situation created by the new
law of separation, which is the cause
of the present crisis in France, is as
if. for instance, the legislature of In
diana were to enact laws compelling
the trustees of the new Catholic cathe- |
dral at Indianapolis, under the penalty
of confiscation, to give their consent
to the alienation of all it's vast prop |
erty to other uses than those for |
which it was intended, and confer its
administration and control to the peo-
pie who might belong to rival denom-
nations or even profess atheism. 1t /
is as if the legislature of Indiana were /
to enact statute requiring the Catho-
lie church, under the penalty of the
of its property of one kind
or other to consent to the transfer OF
the management and control OF Its
sacred edifices, seminaries, rector
les, hospitals, protectories and other
and charitable institutions
to associations in which not merely
avowed foes OF Catholicism among
the protestant denominations. but al
so agnostics and scheming politicians,
Indifferent to any sort of religious be-
lief, were in the majority.
In word, the French government
has enacted virtual laws, thing
which would not be tolerated for
minute in any state in this free re-
public.
The new law requires of the church
he alienation of all its property to
boards of laymen, in the selection of
which it has virtually no voice-this
BOARD to have full and perfect control,
lot only over the funds. but even over
he religious edifices, and over the ex-
srcise of divine worship itself, indie
bending of pope. bishop and common
aw
4 he property concerned consists of
bout 10000 churches fof which less
han 500 have been built with the aid
# state or municipality and the prop
,rty accumulated by means of endow-
nents and legacies during the past
me hundred years, since the last
onfiscation of church property at the
ime of the great revolution, and .
to considerably over $780,
100000. The clergy are trustees of
his property by virtue of the condi-
ions under which it was donated and
equeathed, and their acceptance of
he new law and their transfer of this
property of the trust TO the Associa-
ions Cultuelles, would ALLEVIATE for 1
YER the estate of the church in defer +
nee to an Ubiquitous law which may
e repealed by another parliament.
The Minister OF Education, Aristide /
'riand. author and executor of this