The menace. [volume] (Aurora, Mo.) 1911-1920, 1918-05-11

necessity of seeing what the vatica>
organ now says the see sees. The
thing that was most wildly appar'
ent to the vatican seers was the nee.
essity to face about even at the risk
Of them all contracting most ludi.
crous case Of intellectual strabismus.
So the clever system of vatican con-
veniences, long in use to effect such
maneuvers-the papal editors, the
papal secretaries, private chamber
lains, legates and whatnots-was
promptly put into action and the
political seesaw was steadied to take
on some kind Of ballast to make
it appear that what had happened
really had not happened.
Along this line OF sail-trimming
to utilize the breeze created by pro-
gressives while all along engaged in
efforts purely reactionary, there ie
very marked instance that we pro-
pose to review of holy see seeing (ol
not Seeing) that belongs to the pom
tifcate of the late Leo XIII. Some
twenty years ago the Methodist
Ministers Meeting of Chicago
started a movement to bring about
religious liberty in the South
American republics, especially in
Peru, Bolivia, Eucador and Argen-
tina, and primarily the securing Of
the recognition and registering OF
Protestant marriages in the Repub-
lie Of Peru, where their legality had
hitherto been most emphatically de-
MED" Labors, extending over ten
years and involving correspondence
with prelates, statesmen and gov.
ernments all over the world, were
kept up, with the result Of bring,
ing to light more abundance of pa
pal proof of intolerance than ha:
ever been shown in any other con.
troversy Of recent years. The direct
appeal to the pope to intervene ol
exert his influence in behalf of re
ligious liberty so that Protestant
in South American lands should
have the same rights that Roman
Catholics enjoyed in the United
States, produced much general com
ment in the secular and religion
press. Some Of these editorials ant
statements are Of decided interes
at this time. 1t is well, too, whel
such profuse claims are put fort
as is done now in war times regard
ing democracy and liberty by off
cial Romanism, to be refreshed a
to what Roman Catholic dominanc
is where it controls government
right up to our own times and a
our very door, and to see how ut
terly false Rome has been in othe
! cases not altogether similar but II
volving democratic principles.
After deciding to lay the matte
before the pope a committee Of tt
meeting forwarded a letter enclo
ing resolutions to Archbishop Ir,
land. After time had elapsed an
not receiving a reply a second lie
ter was sent which, too, was ignoret
Then a letter to Monsignor Satoll
and again no notice taken. A Sc,
ond letter to Satolli, registered
brought no result. Then two le
ters, one following the other aft,
an interval, registered, were di
patched to the pope at Rome direc
but both were completely ignore,
Finally, after about a year Of futi
effort, including one ignored appe
to Cardinal Gibbons, the commits
learning that the cardinal was abo,
to visit Rome, made another a
tempt to bring their petition befol
the pope, through the cardina
Nine months thereafter, or pract
cally two years after the passage
the resolutions by the Methodi
Ministers Meeting in Chicago,
reply came to hand from Rome.
To be sure the holy see could n
see what Protestants saw in Sou
America. The committee had "
unes Of evidence showing the Pre-
estants had no rights Of freedo
] whatever in the exercise Of religi,