The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1917-09-11

Committee has been sent to his grace
the Right Rev. Giovanni Bonzano, apos-
tolic delegate to the United States Of
America at Washington. d. C.
To His Grace,
The Rt. Rev. Giovanni Bonzano,
Apostolic Delegate to the United States
of America.
Washington, d. c.
Your Grace:
The Polish National Defense commit
tee requests that your grace transmit
to the hands of his eminence the card
inal secretary of state Of the holy see,
its expressions of profound grief because
of the wrong done TO the rights and to
the dignity Of the Polish nation by the
apostolic letter Of his holiness, Benedict
XIV addressed TO the leaders of the
belligerent peoples.
Every liberty-and justce-loving indi-
vidual must greet with full apprecia-
tion the peremptory demand of his holi-
ness that the Germans should forth
and France, which they occupy. BY this
demand his holiness expressly rejects
the idea Of conquest and recognizes the
fact that conquest by force Of arms can
not constitute legal basis for incorpor-
ating foreign territories without the con.
sent of the people Of said territories.
Thus the indisputable right Of the Bel
gian and French nations TO the territory
inhabited by them Immediately prior to
the outbreak Of the war has been en-
phaticaly recognized by the holy see
Silent on Rights of France
The attitude of the holy see with re
gard to the provinces Of Alsace and Lo-
rraine, which were wrested from France
in 1871 is, however, not as definite, as
the apostolic letter of his holiness in dis
Greet silence passes over the imperative
necessity Of restoring these provinces
to their mother country. France.
Painful and unexpected, however, is
the attitude assumed by the holy see
with regard TO the rights Of the Polish
nation to liberty and independence. His
holiness speaks Of the Polish question in
the following words.
"The same spirit Of equity and justice
ought to be followed in the examina-
tion Of other territorial and political
questiOns----relative 49, TO territories
making a part of the ancient Kingdom
OF Poland, whose noble and historical
traditions and sufferings which il has
endured. especially during the present
war. ought TO cOnciliate the sympathies
of nations"
Thus in the opinion Of the holy see
Poland is not a nation which is fully
entitled to independent political life. His
holiness does not demand that the Ger
mans evacuate the territory OF the for
mer commonwealth OF Poland which is
almost in its entirety occupied by the
armies Of Germany and Austria-Hun-
gary. The holy see does not recognize
the sovereign rights Of the Polish nation
to its own territory but merely speaks
of sympathies Of nations which Poland
ought TO conciliate because OF the SUI.
fering She has endured According TO
the terms Of the apostolic letter. Poland
is but "a territorial and political ques
tion which should be examined" not in
its entirety but only in part The fate
Of the rest OF the parts of Poland
which his holiness excludes from the
examination remains unknown Which
Of the partitioning powers is therefore TO
have possession Of the excluded parts Of
Poland?
Makes Serious Charge
In the opinion OF the holy see the
Poles are not even entitled 10 decide
about their own fate. The apostolic
letter expressly defines the composition
Of the body which is 10 examine the
territorial questions I'm the paragraph
relating TO this subject we read as FOL.
lows
"The parties in conflict would wish to
examine them with conciliatory dis.
position, taking into Consideration, as
we said formerly, the aspirations OF
the peoples
Thus the Polish nation is supposed to
wait patiently, without participating IN
the congress OF the leaders OF the bel
ligerent nations. while these leaders de-
eide the fate Of but part" Of Poland.
II such is 10 be the supremacy Of
right" referred TO by the holy see we
can give the positive assurance that
there will not be one singt citizen OF
Poland who viii assent to such decision
made by the partitioning powers.
Different was the tenor OF addresses
directed by the predecessors Of his holi.
ness, Benedict XIV. TO the Polish nation
al the times of the latter's triumphs
over the foes OF Poland.
At the time when the Polish kings
triumphed over the German empire and
were about TO crush the rebellious and
treacherous Teutonic order Of the Cross
the holy see defending the Germans in.
sisted that they should be spared by the
Polish kings and did not shrink from
interdicting the recalcitrant Polish king
and the entire Polish nation, when the
Poles were protecting their own inter.
ests.
Clear and peremptory was also the at.
titude assumed by the holy see when Il
frustrated In the interests Of the Roman
Catholic church and 10 the disadvan.
tages OF the Polish and Of the Russian
nations, the victory OF King Stefan Ba-
tory, elected king by the Poles through
n free election, over Ivan the Terrible
ear OF Muscovy. the greatest tyrant
since Nero. BY this action OF the holy