The menace. [volume] (Aurora, Mo.) 1911-1920, 1912-05-18
A PLEA FOR THE NUNS
the CONVENT, THE Sss SNERY THE SLAVE LABOR
AND the BRUTAs Il, &C or WOMEN ARE
GRIMES AGAIN. Sc CIVILIZATION

Some men and Roman newspapers
take special delight In calling The
Menace bad nance Any bum can do
that. n is neither smart nor gentle
manly 90 meet facts and arguments
with ''billingsgate.-
A gentleman IN Arizona has written
The Menace a letter that ~ a fair sam
pie of what the Catholic papers print.
and the answer the hierarchy makes
90 the serious charges against u. But
here is the meat Of the Arizona letter;
-Phoenix. Arizona. May ?. 1919.
REV Theo. Walker.
Aurora, Mo.
The undersigned is not a Catholic,
but your narrow-miuded. tlthy. so
called newspaper would almost make
me one.
n am an old man whose life has
been passed among all classes OF 80.
eiety and religions. Some OF the
rrandest people have met In my life
have been members OF the Catholic
church. upright, clean. honest, both IN
dealings and markedly In their home
tige.
''As for the Catholic sisters: they
are in my mind, and ! may say IN the
minds OF all real men. the angels OF
this sordid vorld. As for this new pro
Gressive state. Arizona. We pioneers
certainly know something about them.
"Your paper may possibly suit some
. kinds of ao-ealled man and women,
but IL a stencil In the nostrils OF the
rood, broad-minded men OF the great
western state OF Arizona.
1T seems 70 the writer that you
could ind some more manly way TO
tarn your living other than pandering
10 tie 'nerrow.mlnded pretudices OF
people. who have never had the chance
ID live a good. open life.
"Yours truly.
"R. f. DAVENPORT"
or course there are fine people
among the Romanists. patriotic men
and women, splendid nclghbors and
honorable citlEens-hut not because
they are Catholcs-but rather they
are Americans With patriotic environ.
ments, and have grown up In the midst
pf schools, churches, societies, civic
and political. Il would be strange,
indeed, II catholicism could spoil and
blight every one.
But Mr.. Davenport does not prove
BY this that Rome-ruled countries are
more intelligent. more prosperous,
more virtuous, more law-abiding than
Protestant countries Look at Spain
she was n first-elass nation-what Is
she now? The most striking thing In
history is the contrast between North
and South America, including Mexico.
The North. settled by Protestants. gen.
orally; the South by Romanists.
Just a little investigation will show
our correspondent what Rome does %
countries under political and ecclesias-
tical control.
But 20 the nuns and sisters OF char
fly: The Menace respects motherhood.
Il admires the purity and beauty OF
womanhood-and condemns any insti.
tuition or conditions tending to degrade
them.
when Rome denies and puts out Of
reach the God-given desire for home
and husband and children-the crown
OF motherhood-in the name Of re-
ligion. and teaches its young women
that TO be a nun is more holy than TO
be a mother. we simply say. 1T is
false" Besides. We know by the testi.
mony OF women who have left the
aseetic life that there is little or no
virtue In Il.
The segregation OF women under
convent rules is no better TO produce
morals than the segregation OF men
under military law.
Our pity is for women shut up un.
der such unnatural. immoral. and cruel
conditions. A Missouri red bird in a
cage exeites pity. God made it's wings
for the air-the tree top for its home
and the great open heavens for its