The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1915-11-29
Editor of America Says Has
Afidavits ] hat Crimes De-
MED Were Committed
PUBLISHED STATEMENT
TRUE SAYS HIERARCHY
But Whole Truth CT Terrible
Persecution Of Cath oil c
Priests and Nuns n N exico
Not Yet / old

Washington. Nov. 2s.--important
documents designed to com bat the
charge that tne Wilson admiuistra
ton -ose.fie--xttt tt--.--ft. frtt-
erai Carranza against the Catholic
CHURCH in ACCORDING Inn recognition.
and setting forth ia general way
the administration defense Of lis
Mexican policy wore made pabl1c at
the White House tUnieh
The documents consist of letters
from President %Eso. Private Secre-
tary Tunaulty and EX-Secretary OF
State Bryan. The most estrtHlng fcsi =
ture of the spondencc is an Of
faoiai statement by the Very Rev,
Antonio j. raredes. Roman Catholic
vicar general ef the archbisdapriG OF
Mexico City. embodied in Mir. 1umul-
tvs letter denying the charge Of the
Catholic clergy Ia this country that
nuns mere OUTRAGED hY -GenefAl Car
ranTa's soldierY.
The vicar generals statement NOT
only denies that nuns were violated.
but presents u LIST OF the crimes
against Catholic c.ergY which shows
that these We're by no means as wide
spread nor as uniformly tolerated by
Carfanza as had been represented Icy
ecciesiastics of the United States.
No Oai, ial Record OF Proof
type--tn his letter - James j. Me
CURE. i22 West state Street. Trenton,
" I.-t'there Is no official record of
n single proven instance Of this das-
iardiy crime ii the flies uf the state
Department. although the. eonsuls
and special agents Of the tl.iaed
States in Mexico nave diligently int
vestigatcd reported eases,
In respect To thc nuas who were
driven from :gcrsC.nS- TT -vrx
and later brought to tnis country on
a ship chartered by the United States
the unfort@ nate women who zig
ured most largely IN the reports of
outrage bgC,IoaSted through the
United States Secretary TumaltX de-
.clares that nat one If them ever told
of any of the American army officers
who cared for them during their five
months stay al Vera Cruz that such
attacks had been nade.
The Rev. Richard II E.erney. s. J i.
editor of America VINO was chairman
OF the committee from the national
convention OF the American FedeTa-
ton of Catholic Societies that pro-
tested to President Wilson and former
Secretary OF State Bryan against the
treatment or Catholics in Mexico by
the revoiutionists. wili take issue edi-
torially in has inurnal for Decem ber
! as to Mr. Tumultys statement of
facts.
Insists He Has Anidaxits.
Father Tierney says that there are
in possession of Mgr. Francis Z. Kelly,
president OF the Catholic Church EN-
tension Society. and himself. two AMI
davits declaring that sisters were oGt-
ragged. One of these afiidavits. he says,
was taken In the presence of an Amer
lean army officer who signed his name
to 1t. The priest says that he viii
withhold the name of the army Of
fcer. but IL the Presidents secretary
desires the names OF the other at
testants including six sisters he will
send them to him
As to the Trenton physicians letter
to Mr.. Tumu.ty. Father Tierney says:
THE inquiry was apparently framed
to give an opportunity for an answer
that would make the opinion OF
American Catholics to the Mexican
1evolutionists seem unreasonable II
not Fictitious, This. together with
the circumstances that Catholic in
the White House is replying to a
Catholic in Jersey concerning the
crimes committed against Catholics in
Mexico gives Mr.. Tumulty's letter an
Importance not otherwise warranted"
Although Mr.. Tumultys letter to
Or. Mcclure would seemingly show
there IL no Justification for the wide
spread criticism for the manner in
which Catholic priests and sisters
have been treated by the Carranzistas,
Father Tierney will say in America
that the spoliation Of converts and
churches, and the persecution IF
priests and sisters, have been going
on merrily in Yucatan, the last state
invaded by the Carranzistas."
"Orgy Of Murder and Lust"
All this is quite in keeping with
the revolutionary Peiiey, the editorial
will say Not since the French rev.
1sution has the world witnessed such
an orgy of murder, lust and a general
d farce of rights, human and
Divine"
DR.. McGuire's letter led the Presi-
dents secretary to write him at
length that YOU might get a some-
what different light on the situation
that you might have the adn,nistra-
tons viewpoint and Its appreciation
or all the problems and phases of the
Mexican situation, as related to the
wellbeing OF our own country
In the America editorial Father
Tierney will tell of the, afiidavits in
the possession of Mgr. Kelly and him.
self and offer to give Mr.. Tumulty
names. If he wishes them.
The second statement about the
same subject" the editorial will say
Twas sworn to by the Prioress OF
Oueretaro in the presence of the
archbishop OF New Orleans. and Mgr.
Kelly. This lady declares. under oath.
that she conversed with sisters who
have been outraged. Such positive
j evidence not only makes the gwen
negative evidence useless. but also
furnishes moral gertrude. reasonable
nroof In other words that the h0rr!d
X ssr8rnn Waa committed Nor can the
L ~ excused On the plea that