New Britain herald., 1916-02-12
GERMANY ASSAILS
 CARDINAL MERGER
Claims Primate Of Belgium Is
 Using Liberties Granted Freely FOR POLITICAL AGITATION
Alleged Activities of Prelate Place
 Teutonic Authorities in Awkward Position-Explained Why Letter to German Clergy Was not Answered.

Berlin, Feb. 12, by Wireless to Say ville.-The following statement re- garding the activities of Cardinal Mercier, primate of Belgium, who is now on visit to Rome, was made public today by the Overseas News Agency:
 '"The letter which Cardinal Mer- cier and the Belgium Bishops ad dressed to the German clergy on Nov. "A, 1915 (regarding an investigation of allegations that atrocities had been committed in Belgium, by Germans) did not reach Cardinal Won Hart mann, Archbishop of Cologne, until January 7, which explains why it has rot been answered. The general inn pression prevailing in Germany, however, is that the letter was i'm spired entirely by Cardinal Mercer, whose intransigent attitude toward the German authorities became mani fest on various occasions.
 Influential Politician.
 Before the war Cardinal Mercier was an influential Belgian politician. For example, at the time of King Leopold's death he sided publicly with tho party in favor of colonial expan-
  manding an increase in the Belgian army. After the occupation of Bel gium by German forces the cardinal preserved similar attitude, using the influence of the clergy for agitation of a purely political nature.
 "At the time of the great Anglo French offensive the cardinal ordered that in all Belgian churches in the occupied territory prayers be said for the victory of the entente forces At the same time, on St. Michael Day he published a pastoral letter con- pairing the present war with the struggle between St. Michael the patron saint of Brussels, and Lucifer, suggesting in transparent fashion that he did not compare Germany with the angel.
 No Legitimate Authority. Tn another pastoral letter the car dira1 said the Germans possessed no legitimate authority and had no claim to the esteem of Be1gians who owed affection and obedience only to their king.
 During religious ceremonials in the fall Cardinal Mercier declared to Bel g!an priests assembled in the Malines seminary that they were all obliged to cffer the greatest possible resistance to the Germans.
 No Investigation Ordered.
 "In competent German circles it is pointed out that in the appendix the letter of the Belgian clergy, inspired bv Cardinal Mercier, it is stated that an Austrian priest made investigations in Belgium which had disastrous re- suits for Germany. However, Car dinal Piffl, archbishop of Vienna, de- clares publicly and formally that he never authorized any priest to make such investigations.
 "The letter of the Belgian bishops also discusses the allegation that German soldiers attacked Belgian nuns When urged to investigate this charge Cardinal Mercier declined, on the ground that he did not wish to hurt anyone's feelings. But the bishops of Liege, Namur, Bruges and Ghent declares that no such misdeeds had come to their knowledge.
 Political Agitation.
 "AIl this corroborates the general impression that the liberties granted freely to Cardinal Mercier in the in- forests of his exalted priestly voca- purposes of political agitation, which places the German authorities in an awkward position"