The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1910-04-15
ROOSEVELT AND POPE
At ROME Clash
hx-pfesldent Will lot Be Re-
celved at The Vatican.
WOStVEL1 WOULD not Be LIMITED
'"'' "ooSe'elt Told Church Officials He Would
moe be Dictated to By the Pope and Spoke
Plainly About Religious Intolerance.

Rome, ItaIy.-The audience which.
was believed, ex-President Roose-
veie would have with the pope. will
Nv. occur, owing to conditions which
Inc vatican has imposed, and which
"r. ROOSEVELT refuses to accent. 10.
-Athough the definite negotiations
Ieiatlve to the audience ended be-
.ore Mr. Roosevelt left Egypt, the an
nouhcement was withheld until after
mr4 roosevelt reached Rome at the
soiicitation OF his American Catholic
Hlehos mere, who believed that in the
meantime the vatican might change
it's attitude.
One of the former presidents Amer
ican friends, who had been with him
IN Egypt, came to Rome, without, how.
ever. any authorization from Mr..
Roosevelt, and interceded with Card!-
MAJ Merry Del Val, the papal secre.
tafy. In an endeavor to avoid situa.
%ion, which, as it now stands, has
caused real sensation in Rome, al
though 1t was not entirely unexpect-
ed. But his efforts were unavailing
While at Gondokoro in February
last MIR. Roosevelt wrote to Ambassa-
dor Leishman, saying that he would
be glad of the honor of an audience
with King Victor Emmanuel and the
pope. Inc audience with the king
was promptly arranged
Before an arrangement could be
reached relative to an audience with
the pope, several kilograms were pass
ed, and the negotiations were ended
by MIR. Roosevelt refusing in any way
to he limited as to his conduct and
announcing that an audience with the
pope, under the circumstances, was
now impossible.
AS q matter of fact, Mr. Roosevelt
while declining to accept any condi.
tons in connection with his audience
with the pope, had neither directly
nor indirectly, before, during, or after
the negotiations, made or considered
,iany engagement in Rome except those
of an official character, and he &C.
tualiy entered Rome with but two
definite engagements, the audience
with the king and the dinner to be
given in his honor by the municipal
ity.
Mr.. Roosevelt particularly desires
that the incident shall be regarded by
his friends, both Catholic and Prot
estant in America, as personal, and
that it shall not give rise to an acri-
monious controversy"
1t appears that it was John Callan
OLoughlin, who was assistant Sec
rotary of state in 1909, and a great
personal friend of Mr. Roosevelt, who
came TO Rome ahead of the ROOse-
welt party and attempted to inter
cede vita Cardinal Merry Del Val.
The following semi-ofiicial version of
what transpired at that interview has
been furnished by vatican author
ity:
Cardinal Merry Del Val said to Mr..
OLoughIin:
Can you guarantee that Mr.. Roose-
welt will not visit the Methodists
here?'
J. Mr.. OLoughlin replied: Il cannot.
indeed, | believe that Mr.. Roosevelt
is just the man to go there. He will
do as he pleases."
1T is indefensible," said the papal
secretary, for any person to be asked
to he received by great parsonage
whose feelings he would be unwilling
to respect"
Cardinal Merry Del Val also re-
marked:
at is not in any sense question or
religion Mr. Roosevelt might have
gone to an Episcopalian, Presbyte-
rian or any other church, except the
Methodist, and delivered an address
there. and he would have been re-
ceiyed by the pope, even on the same
day. But could not be received
when it was suspected that after the
audience he intended to go to the
Methodist Church in Rome, which is
carving on a most offensive cam
paign of calumny and detractlon
against the pontiff."
The papal secretary even recognlz-
ed MIR. Roosevelt's right to claim the
privilege of visiting the Methodists
The day after the audience on condl-
ton that he, Merry Del Val, receive
uriyate assurances that ne would not
actually do so.
The failure to arrange an audience
between ex-President Roosevelt and
the pope has created a tremendous
stir here. as we'll as abroad, Tor over
shadow1ng the Importance or the IN
cideut in which ex-Vice President
was principal.
nYarfs DAMP n0RRERY