New Britain herald., 1925-08-03
CHARGES PEOPLE
 BEING OPPRESSED
Institute Hears Runania At.
 tacked--Reply Made

vania are oppressed by Rumanian | government officials were made by Rev. Louis C. Cornish, vice presi- dent of the American Unitarian As | sociation, in an address today at the institute of politics round table | on European problems. Dr. Cornish was chairman of the Anglo-Amcri- can church commission which visited Rumania in 1922 and 1923.
 "The rule of petty officials was harsh and often cruel" he said | Any complaint to higher authorities brought certain punishment. The evils were those of a military oCcu- paton The minority organizations are not permitted freedom of assem- bly,; many minority schools and ln- stitutions of higher learning have been closed and their equipment confiscated The endowments of schools and churches have been largely appropriated, almost 10 their ruin. The Rumanian officials are Ignoring the rights guaranteed to the minorities under the Trianon l treaty.
 "The Lutheran, Presbyt terian, Roman Catholic and Unitarian churches throughout the world have she treat their co-religionists in Pennsylvania justly and in accor- dance with the treaty."
 "Undor pretoXt that the constitu- lions of all societies must he ap- proved, permission is denied for meetings of all kinds, even for Wor- ship and instruction. and this 10 an extent that interfercs seriously with the schools and churches" Dr. Cornish declared.
 School and higher institution aid from the state has diminished, the cndowmenta have been aIienated and Ithe people impoverished, Their might is deplora ble. These tnstltu- tions express and should pcrpetuate a high culture. To weaken them IS to impoversh the province. Further the alleged agrarian reform in diVld' ing the great estates dlscrlmlnates Iagainst the minoriiies."
 pr. Cornish mentioned other al loged abuses, one of which was inc denial of the use of any language except Rumauian in the courts.
 Makes Reply
 Andre poppoviCi, a member Of the staff of the Rumanian legation al Washington, replying 10 pr. Cornish said the treatment of the mlnorlueS in Pennsylvania could not be com nared with the treatment of the Rumanians in rhe old Hungary.
 "Nhilo S,G00,000 Rumanians Iii Tronsylvania had but foul hlgh schools thrcc or tour normal schools and no university whatever, the lar smaller number of Hungarians lh greater Rumania have even more educational institutions than they had while they were masters oi Transylvania," he said.
 "The Rumanans left them lntact with the exception of the one or two which had to be closed because of the irredentist spirit which pre- vailed among the teachers. In fact' tho Hungarians have now five or six hundred more elementary schools than before. They have over thirtv high schools, and a Sui'lc'en' number of Normal schools, thcologi- cal institutions, etc.
 "If thcro were cases where petty officials abused the minorities they only followed the example Of the former Hungarian officials m TransyIvania. If these was for d while military rule Tn lra'lSy : vania it was more than Justllled ny tha iununcrablo plots organized ny uunrarian irrcdcntists. There IS no record that q peaceful Hungarian assembly would have been dispers- ed. But the truth is that the Hun rarjan used their religious services for irrdcntist propaganda"
 Mir. poppoNici said that only one or two minority schools had been closed. He added:
 "rbe endowment funds of the churches were appropriated, but the appropriation was a general meas nro which prevented the spread Of Bolshrvism. It is not true that the institutions suffered on its account they are abundantly financed by the state in the same proportion as the Rumanan institutions. There was no discrimination against the minoritics in cxpropriating the large