New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-11-24
An Italian Fortnight
OF PEASANTS AND PRlEsTs-THE PROVINCE OF
UDINE.
Copyright. 1912, by G. W. small.y.,


Mine, of course. is prejudiced eye.
1 am the child Of generations OF Puri-
tans, English and American; with
hatred Of Romanism In my bones ana
flowing in every vein. 1t was be-
queathed to me. Ny ancestors are re-
sponsible for II. However, It is not ana
could not be personal; certainly not
where all my friends and all the &C
quaintances 1 made were Roman Cath
olics. Perhaps they were the kinder TO
me because they knew what awful fate
awaits me in another world; me and
all Protestants. j see in every priest
en- Inquisitor, but I none the less ike
to meet them: II lie a discipline in
politeness To meet great Ecciesi-
astic, Bishop an Archbishop, Car
dinal, is not a discipline, but lesson.
They are men OF the world as well as
of the Church: with the grand manner
or. at least, with beautiful manner
The Church knows how to take son OF
the coil and make him. when she
! chooses, into q great gentleman. That
| is why they are never rightly played
on the French stage l saw Dc
FeTaudy as the Cardinal in CaillaVets
"Primerose. He had the subtlety, the
fnesse. and much else, hut he remained
Of the class into which he had been
born. The great Cardinal OF all was
Irving.
All which comes Of having lived Tor
fortnight in an atmosphere when
was essentially and intensely OF the
Church. I wondered how much the
Church had to do with the thrift and
Industrial energy Of this Province OF
Udine. but dared not ask my host.
What was the influence which had all
at once started this people on a new
material life and into progress un-
known before? 1t certainly was not
the Church. Mr.. GIadstone used TO say
that the true history Of England was
10 be sought in the history OF the Eng
lish Church. In Anstole Frances
"Eorme du Mall he puts a similar
sentiment into the mouth Of his Church
champion, the Able Lantaigne:
What makes the continuity OF the
p.triotic and national life Of France is
not the Kings, not the Presidents or
the Republic, not the Governors of
provinces, not the Protects, not the
officers of the Crown nor the function
aries Of the actual regime 1t IA the
Episcopste; which, from the hrst
apostles of the Gauls down to this oay'
has subsisted without interruption
without change, without diminution;
and forms, so TO speak, the solid frame
work Of the history Of France"
NJ. Anatole France is anything but
! Churchman. He writes in the spirit OF
| Voltaire. of whom he is the legitimate
# remote descendant. He puts ms
eulogy OF the Episcopate into the
mouth OF a candidate for the Eplsco-
Macy in order to reduce his pretensions
10 an absurdity. No italian Catholic
would accept il as such. Even though
Italy is going through process Of
spirItual emancipation the Italian mlnd
is still under the spell of the Churcn
and even of the Papacy. To i've mere
for a fortnight is 10 be sensible OF
new force. a new vitality, in many d.
rections, admirable as ii is new. But
from the impression Of sacerdotai lile
YOU cannot escape. II is still In the
air. breathe Il you must IT is a oe-
yout spirit, and to be respected as such'
whether YOU think 1t right or wrong.
OF all my impressions none is more
vivid than this.
The physical and social influence OF
81 ia everywhere. Within hundred
wards Of q house where | stayed are
two churches. and two campanile OF
which the bells are never long silent.
They ring at An hour so long before
daylight that / cannot tell you what
hour Il is. They ring at short intervals
all day long: sometimes one, sometimes
both together; and between the bell
ringers there Is, Judge, rivalry; as
IL devotions were the deeper In proper
ton to the noise they make about IT,
Happily, these bells are soft and full In
tone; they would be quite intolerable II
they shrieked or changed. Not far on
is a fine new church, not yet complete,
In Venetian Gothic, the work Of Vene-
.tisn architects. 1t was pointed out TO
me as one more proof Of the peasants
prosperity. They taxed themselves to
build Il; II Is their gift to God and TO
the community; and incidentally to an
Iall-absorbing ecclesiastical hunger; TO
the Church, in short; which now as
ever has a keen eye for this worlds
goods. and q financial policy which puts
it's own claims far above those OF the
individual or the family. thought
this new edifce a proof Of something
besides prosperity; Of a religious ferVor
to be respected. whatever one may
think Of the particular religion TO
which IT il dedicated. 1t is one OF
many evidences of the firm hold the
Roman Catholic dogma still has on the
minds OF this wonderful people. Chal-
llensed. shaken, diminishing, 1t Ia st'll
powerful enough to express itself far
otherwise than in stones and mortar
IT is writ large on the statute DOCK
We were discussing one day marriages
IA..-a.o Itauann and Americans, not