The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1917-07-30
UPSET HIM

ness SnOQlQ keep his 1eeIlngS III
safety deposit box, but he leaves his
lying all around, and then sets up a
roar if anybody steps on them.
The other day the Tampa Tribune
printed something Dragging on the
Elks and the Knights of Columbus,
both of whom are spending large
amounts for our soldiers. The Star
reprinted the piece and added the
simple inquiry, what are the guard
ians of liberty doing?"
Only that and nothing more. Just
a question dictated, maybe, by in
nocent curiority. Not word against
the g. of |. nor anybody else. But it
riled Bloom, and he wrote a piece ~
pleas long, in which he first said we
was narrowminded, and second said
that the Elks were the best people on
earth, and third said that the Knights
of Columbus were good to the SOL
diers in order to inveigle them into
joining their church.
Perhaps we are narrowminded. We
don't know and don't much care.
People around here who know US bet
ter than Bloom have said that we are
excessively broadminded; that our
mind has spread out so thin it has
more holes in it than mosquito net
We know lots of Elks-they are
nearly all mighty good fellows, and
seem to get lots of pleasure out OF
helping other folks. We never noticed
them asking what Or who anybody
belonged to. We think the good
things Bloom wrote about them were
among the truest things he ever
wrote.
We don't know many. Knights OF
Columbus. Bloom, Cats and Billy
Parker to the contrary, there are not
many of them in Florida. All we know
are good men and good Americans, as
patriotic and unselfish as anybody.
There is one thing that Bloom evi
IDENTIFY doesn't know, and that is tha
the Y. M. C.. A., Protestant organi
zation, has a rest, reading and recrea
ton room at almost every army post
and that it is recognized and helped
by the government but the Knight:
of Columbus are not. We suppose HI
knows, tho'-he can scarcely be 81
ignorant as not to know-that tn,
great majority of army chaplain:
are Protestants, and all influence they
have over the men is on Protestant
lines. The government doesn't ap
point Catholic priest over any regi
ment unless it is largely or solidl!
Catholic, but there are many Catho
lies in regiments with Protestan
chaplains.
But there is one thing that Bloom
and his ilk never will understand
and that is that American soldiers ar
grown men with plenty of sense, ant
if there is theological string tied t,
any kindness offered them, they ar
smart enough to see it. If they JOIN
any church while in the army, it vii
be from conviction, and not becaus,
some organization is trying to max
their hard life in the camps NOR
bearable.
Bloom confutes his own argumen
in regard to the K. of G. He say
they arrange for the expenditure o
their own money in the camps of tn
men of their own faith, which is no
consistent with his assertion tina
their benevolences and entertainment
are to win the men out of other regi
ments into joining the Catholi
church.
Blooms mind isn't narrow-oh, nc
Il is simply thick and full of mud.
How different was the statement O
citizen of Ocala, prominent Bap
fist, at the banquet to our returning
soldiers last March, when he toll
how a southern regiment, mostl
Protestant, and a northern regiment
almost solidly Catholic, were campo
together during the Spanish-Ameri
can war, and how we'll the men go
along with each other, sharing thei
little pleasures as well as their hard
ships.
Who ever heard of the secretar
of any Y. M. c. A. reading room as
a man who came in to read or writ
what church he belonged to? An
who supposes that if a Catholic req
ment had an entertainment, or any
thing else that was good, if the me
wouldn't gladly welcome their Prot
estant comrades to share it wit
them?
If we treated our Catholic citizen
like Bloom, Cats, Billyparker an
tomwatson want US to treat them, W
would turn fifteen million of our pee
pie from loyal Americans into enem
aliens.
For our part, we are glad of ther
all, and all they do for the old f1ae