The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1914-07-18
Case Of Catholics and Ex-Mayor Nathan
Andrew Shpman in Coumbad
" Shipman in Columbiad.

SNISAUNAUGAUGAUNhUN
Just a little while ago we had in
the United States Signor Ernesto
Nathan, formerly mayor of Rome
and now commissioner from Italy to
the Panama-Paci6c Exposition, which
is to open next year in San Francisco.
Signor Nathan is by race Jew, by
birth an Englishman, and by profess
sion Free Mason of the continental
variety. All of these things may be
considered perfectly immaterial as
affecting the Italian commissioner to
America, and least of all should ex-
ception be taken to his Jewish race
or English birth. The Jewish race in
Italy does not necessarily furnish his
type; he must be judged for what he
is himself.
But it is doubtful if Ernesto Nath-
an is really Jew, except by the mere
accident of race. His brand of con-
tinental masonry bears allegiance to
the Grand Orient of France, whose
president announced "the death OF
the impostor God" saying that "the
mendacious God is now disappearing
in his turn; he passes away to join
the dust of ages with the other divin-
tiles of India, Egypt, Greece and
Rome" From this standpoint it can
hardly be said that Nathan is Jew,
for he has abandoned all the beliefs
and veneration which the Jewish PEG.
pie have held since the days of Abra-
ham.
What is more to the point is that
Ernesto Nathan is not real repre-
sentative of Italy. He is not Italian
born, but English born; he is not OF
Italian race and blood; and when we
consider that Italy has a population
of 100000 people, and that by no
stretch of the figures are there over
a million or so who profess any other
religion than Catholicism, it is evil
dent that he is a misfit in undertake
ing to represent the genius, belief and
love of the Italian people. He can
not fairly represent the government,
whose head is the Catholic king OF
the house of Savoy and of Italy.
Even these things might be forgiv-
en- and overlooked were not the per-
sonality and offensive actions and
words of Signor Nathan himself in
question. When he became Sindaco
(mayor) of Rome-and I shall tell
how later-he became from the NOM
ent he took the Office the mayor OF
the entire population of Rome. He
was not and ought not be the mayor
of a scurrilous little party, to vent his
official spite upon his opponents; but
he should have been large-hearted,
undetermined enough to represent
the entire Roman people. Imagine
one of our presidents, our governors
or our mayors, after he got in Office,
maligning and insulting all those
who were of a different political or
religious faith from him! The his
tory of the Catholic mayors of New
York, from Grace to Mitchell, the
present incumbent, shows how fair
and even-minded they can be in their
treatment of others not of their
camp. Yet out of $4,000 inhabitants
of Rome during Nathan's tenure OF
Office, fully 100000 were Catholics
and deeply attached to their Supreme
Pontiff. He made verbal war upon
the Pontiff and thereby misrepresent-
ed his constituents and fellow citi-
zens.
Now, when the army of United
Italy entered and took Rome and the
government made that city the CAPT.
tai of the kingdom, the Italian parlia-
ment passed claw of guarantees
on the 18th day of May, 1871, assur-
ing the Pope the rights of an indie
pendent ruler, just as if he were the
emperor of Germany or Austria.
Two paragraphs of this law, which is
still on the Italian statute books, are
specially pertinent.
article l. The person of the ST.
preme Pontiff is sacred and invio-
liable.
ARTICLE 2. Any attempt against
the person of the Supreme Pontiff, or
any provocation to commit the same,
are punishable with the same penal
ties as an attempt or a provocation
to commit the same against the per-
son of the king of Italy.
Public offenses and insults COM
mitted against the person of the Pom
tiff by speeches, acts or by any of the
means indicated in Article / of the
Press law, are punishable by the pen
alties set forth in Article 10 of that
law.
"Those guilty of such offenses may
be publicly prosecuted in the court OF
assizes."
This was the law when Nathan be-
came the mayor of Rome. He him
self was born in London some sixty
eight years ago, and managed to
graduate from Oxford, but without
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