The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-04-10
FRENCH PRETENDERS
 ARE GETTING ACTIVE

Paris, April 9.-(Special. 1.-The recent
 scandals arising from the embezzlement of the money obtained through the liqui- dation of the church properties, has caused considerable activity among the many pretenders to the throne of France. Royalists and Bonapartists emphatically
 declare that the republican form of gov
 ernment is responsible for the corruption. The church, which has been snorn of It's power for many years, is making the
 most of the scandal in an effort to regain
 its lost prestige.
 The Duke of Orleans, the royalist pre-
 tender, boldly announces that the liqui-
 dators used the churchs funds to pay their mistresses. He has issued a man.
 ifesto in which he states that he is ready
 to return to Paris the minute there Is a real chance of overturning the present
 government.
 One phase of the approaching general
 election in France Is the open political campaign undertaken in the name of the
 Catholic episcopate to secure the election
 of deputies to the next chamber, either
 pledged to vote for or in sympathy with
 the interests of the church.
 Under the concordat the intervention
 of the clergy in political matters was H. legal and any influence exercised was in
 secret At the last general election in 1906, which followed the enactment of the
 separation law, the Catholics did not take definite stand, as there was still uncer- tainty whether Pope Plus x would ap-
 prove the organization of Public Worship associations, contemplated by the law. Consequently, not until this year, when the Catholic hierarchy is freed from any legal restraint. against rallying its fol- lowers politically. has it gone boldly into the political arena.
 The avowed purpose is to return a chamber of deputies which will reverse the present order of things, at least in so far as to give the church a legal status in accordance with the views of Rome.
 The agitation was initiated with the declaration of war against the teaching in the public schools, which has already
 resulted in a series of suits for damages
 by the School Teachers association
 against the bishops who signed the letter.
 Along with the campaign against the
 teaching in the schools electoral commit tees of Catholics were formed in some cases directly under the leadership of the bishops and clergy in others with the clergy only associated with the societies. Many of the priests, however. have re- trained from public participation, and a handful of bishops. notably the bishop of Nice. have publicly disapproved both the school and the political campaign Electoral literature is being published in true campaign fashion; the religious press is very active and bishops and priests in pastoral letters and from the pulpit are exhorting their followers to vote right. The language used varies perceptibly according to the religious fervor of the locality. Mgr. Willard, bishop of Antun for instance, simply adjures the faithfu to ''choose candidate who will vote ac. cording to your beliefs in religious mat. | ters." while Mgr German, after recall. ing the desire of the Pope for union oi | Catholics in the elections. admonishes them that they must obey the directions | of the church.
 In Britanny the tone of some of the bishops letters is extremely vigorous Mgr. Guerrard, Bishop of Coutances after describing France as the prey o lselfrssekin9, politicians who (e<S byl4g!n) aboi1t lsunivoroal decompoeltion, 'cta cludoe: If all the cathq1ios oS xFencl