The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1914-03-26
President Defends TumuIty

Many people have oxrro ssed
wonJor and surprise that Pre- =
dent Wilson. who is strict
Presbyter an. should have ch,s-
en- Joseph Tumul'y, Il r r an
Catholic, to be his confid n Ia
private secretary. Many store,
have been in circulation purport
ing to explain this selectio =.
One Of them which is being tcli
and published widely in anti
Catholic circles. is that Mr.. Tu-
multy was placed in this eXcep-
uonal position by the Catholic
influences, in return for the sup
port given by the Catholics to
the Democratic ticket so that tie
Catholics might have a trustv
asent right in the White House
to see that Catholic interes $
were not being sacrificed by the
administration.
1t is alleged that very large
number of letters and petitions
sent to President Wi son protest
ing against various Catho ic q =
lngS have been suppressed by
Secretary Tumu'ty and kept
from the eye of the Presid emf, so
that the President is kept in ig-
norance of the true state of af-
fairs. Similar stories were told
about President Taft when he
was in office.
Usually high officials ignore
a | such rumori, for to deny them
simply raises an endless contro-
versy, and no matter how often
they are denied there will al
ways be those who will persist
in believing them. However,
such a stir has been caused of
late by TIE stories in regard to
Secretary Tumultv that Presi-
dent Wilson decided it was time
to say something in refutation of
them.
The editor Of the Protestant
Magazine, in a published letter
tos he President, speaks of the
impression that prevails" to
the effect that it is practically
impossible 10 reach you" on ac-
count of Secretary Tumulty's
censorship, that the President is
being charged with favoritism to
the Catholic church" and that
there seems to be some founda-
ton" for this idea.
President Wilson ordinarily
would pay 70 attention to a letter
which on its face was an impugn-
ment of his honesty and devotion
to duty, but in this case he re-
sponded because the matter is
one which is provoking so much
talk all over the country. In his
reply he said: Il beg leave to
assure you that the impr, ssion
that any part Of my correspond
ence is withheld from me in any
circumstances by my secretary
on account of religious prediIec-
tons on his part is absurdily and
utterly false. | venture to say
that no President ever had more
frank and salts actory relations
with his secretary than | have
with mine. Mr.. Tumulty is
more prompt perhaps t. call my
attention to matters in which his
prejudice is supposed to be en-
gagged than to other matters of
relative indifference"
Secretary Tumulty pronounces
his name "Tum- ul-ti" with ac-
cent on the "Tum." Over the
country he is commonly called
"Too-mult-i," as if his name was
a play on the word "tumult. ="
Even Vice President Marshall
the other night at a public meet
ing called him 'Too-mult-i." In
Protestant and anti-Catholic c r.
cles demands are being circulated
calling on President Wilson to
dismiss his secretary. If they
only KIN wv it, this is exactly The
wrong course to pursue if thy
want to get Woodrow Wilson to
do anything. He will yield to
persuasion sometimes but TO
demands never unless he is ac-
tually forced to do so as a last ex-
tremity.