Arizona republican., 1910-04-06

of my fellow citizens, Catholics quite
 as much as Protestants, will feel
 that l acted in the only way possible
 for an American to act; and because
 of this very fact l most earnestly
 hope that the incident will be treated
 in d matter of course way as merely
 personal: and. above all. as not war
 ranting the slightest exhibition of
 rancor or bitterness
 Among my best and closest friends
 are many Catholics The respect
 and regard of those of my fellow
 Americans who are Catholics are as
 dear to me as the respect and regard
 of those who are Protestants On
 my journey through Africa. visited
 many Catholic as well as many
 Protestant missions. I look forward
 to telling the people at home all
 that has been done by Protestants
 and Catholics alike as I saw if. in
 the field of missionary endeavor
 It would cause me a real pang to
 have anything said or done that would
 hurt or give pain to my friends.
 whatever their religious belief. But
 any merely personal considerations are of no consequence in this mat ter. The important consideration is the avoidance of harsh and bitter comment. such as may excite mis-
 trust and anger between and among good men.
 The more an American sees of other countries, the more profound must be his feelings of gratitude that in his own land there is not merely complete toleration but the heartiest good will and sympathy between sin cere and honest men of different faiths-good will and sympathy so complete that in the innumerable daily relations of our American life Catholics and Protestants meet to- gether and work together without thought of the difference of creed being even present in their minds.
 This is condition so vital to our national well being that nothing should be permitted to jeopardzs it. Bitter comment and criticism. acrimonious attack and defense are not only profitless. but harmful, and to seize upon such an incident as this as an occasion for controversy would be wholly indefensible and should be drowned upon by Catholics and Prot estants alike and by all good Amer jeans"
 And there the documentary history of the case rests After reading it two lines of thought will occur to the average American. whether he be Catholic or a Protestant:
 F'irst-He will feel glad that he is an American and lives in a country where d mans religious convictions do not dominate his actions toward his fellowmen. He will feel glad that he lives in d country where Protest ants and Catholics mingle freely as friends; where a man is an American first, and maybe holds more or less firmly to some creed or other after ward-and where only the most igno- rant and narrowly intolerant will ask at all what d mans religious belief may be He will be glad that he cant understand the rancor which marks the relations between Catholics and Protestants in some parts of the old world Above all, if he is an Protestant he will concede to the pope, as Colonel Roosevelt does, the absolute right to say whom he will receive. The holy father is not a public character He lives in seclusion, a prisoner within the r-a1Ie af hn al mt prisoner. to be sure, but nevertheless a prisoner ever since temporal power was wrested from him by the troops of the Italian government He re- ceives visitors only by special ap pointment The American Protestant will remember also. that the pope in all matters such as the Roosevelt incident. acts upon the advice of his household and not upon his own mo- ton. The papal secretary. Cardinal Merry Del Val. is the autocrat of details at the vatican The cardinal ligious matters as most orthodox ] Spaniards are. Moreover the cardi- ! nal, as d Spaniard. no doubt holds | some unpleasant recoIIections of the | American sentiment toward his coun | try which he encountered here just i prior to the spanish war-and il i would be strange indeed if he did not !! take delight in administering a 1 ,nub to the former colonel of the | Rough Riders. If any blame attaches | t is to the cardinal. and not ;o | he benevolent man who occupies the hair of st Peter.
 Second-The average American will wonder why Colonel Roosevelt thought { advisable to apply for an audi ,nce" with pope, potentate or king. However privately the colonel may wish to travel through Europe, he ,annot throw off his public charac- CT. He is looked upon there as ne of the great men of the world md his countrymen at home expect hat he will, while abroad. receive he respect due a former president They don't like the idea of former President Roosevelt having to ask the privilege of meeting any ruler