The Irish standard., 1919-01-04
Battles Plotted,
Foch Retired to
Pray for Victory
When Generals Were Informed Of De
tails Of Victorious Campaign
Great General Sought
Heavens Help.

hampton, .. D.: TelaLeQ an INCIDENT
concerning Marshal Foch which he
heard from a French chaplain. On the
eve of the great offensive the marshal
had called together the generals of
divisions to explain his plans for the
morrow. On taking leave of them he
said: II have now done all l can,
leave you to do the rest; now beg to
be left undisturbed for the next hour"
Soon after an urgent message came
through for the generalissimo. Mar
shall Foch could not be found at first,
until the chaplain who knew the secret
conducted the messenger to lonely
chapel where the marshal was found
on his knees in prayer.
Syrian Relief.
The Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem,
DR.. Rennie Machines, has addressed
letter to the editor of the Irish Cath
Ollie in reply to the statement that re-
ligious discrimination was shown in
the matter of relief in Palestine. The
bishops letter reads as follows:
"In your issue of August 4th you
published at the same time as letter
from Cardinal Logue an article which
asserted that the committee for the
relief of Syria and Palestine (Which
has for it's object the providing of
sustenance, as we'll as clothes and
medical treatment for those who have
/ been delivered from the tyranny of
/ the Turk has resorted to the methods
of 'proselytism,' and that women and
young girls were admitted to our work.
rooms only on condition that they at
i tended a Protestant religious service.
~ feel sure that you, as we'll as Car
dinal Logue, will be glad to know that
you have been entirely misinformed on
these two points, neither of which is
accurate.
1.-THE committee for the relief of
Syria and Palestine has been active in
Palestine for the past eighteen months,
and it has always distributed it's
grants without making any distinction
of sect or religious belief. The only
condition that has been insisted on has
been that of absolute and urgent
necessity.
| However, it is only natural that
someone should have addressed a COM
plant to Cardinal Logue, for the funds
at our disposal are very far from sup
| plying all our needs. Many applica-
| lions have to be refused, and it is quite
possible that numbers of those who
have applied to us in vain have COM
planned to their own religious leaders
that they were refused because they
did not happen to be Professionals. But
the only reason why we have sent such
people away has been either they were
not entirely destitute, or else that we
had nothing left to give to them.
"Our accounts show that the num-
Der of destitute people assisted is
nearly proportionate with the total
number of members of each Christian
Church or of each creed"
Germany's Protest.
A wireless from Berlin states that
the German Catholics have addressed
to the Pope an appeal for help against
the heavy burden of the armistice con
ditions. The manifesto points out
that insistence upon the cruel armis
tice conditions must throw the Ger
man people into the direst need, and
continues:
"The demand for the surrender OF
railway material, which is indispensa
BILE to us, prevents the carrying out OF
the traffic necessary for the victualling
of the people, who for four years have
been starving. The food supplies for
the enemy troops of occupation can
not be procured. We therefore beg
your Holiness, in the name of human
ity and of the principles of religion
of love, to intervene with the Allies
for the right of our people to live
The railway material, by the way
which is stated to be but one-fifth OF
that available in Germany, is said to
be exactly. the amount that was for
chilly seized by the German troops on
the victorious advance into occupied
, territory.
/, German Birth Rate.
Now that hostilities have ceased
T one of the most serious problems that
face the German people is the declin
; ing birth rate. At meeting of the
{ Protestant District Synod at Nindep
the question of the decline in the birth
!, rate was raised, and the following sig
nificant figures were given, which the