The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-05-21
REVISIONTSM WINS A RECRUIT
BY WILL DE KALB

MR. HILAIRE BELLOC the English essayist who
w is kept busy a professional states witness
at a Communist trial defending the Roman Catholic
Church with his suave pen, announced in his BIZ
weekly statement to the clerical press-syndicated
at regular "bg-name" rates - that he has gone
over to the ranks of the revsonists of history This
will come a shock to Rupert Hughes, w. +.
Woodward, H. G. Wells, H. w. Van Loon, and 9TH
er members of that scholastic group, familiar though
they may be with the catholic publcists opportun-
istic precocity.
"Let us rewrite history!" appeals Mr. Belloc, with
boyish enthusiasm. If he did not qualify it by at
tempting to grind his ever dull axe hberal-mind-
ed person might throw in his support with doubt
ing aye. But Mr.. Belloc makes attempt to con-
ceal the motive underlying his in Affiliate
ing with school of historians much hated and
attacked by his cassocked pagan contemporaries.
at is high time we began to react" he says.
1--WE must begin to rewrite and to reread the his
tory of our own past lie, that of the Catholic
Church-dsmal reading for the catholicN and Of
the past of Europe as whole. Catholic history IS
simply true history % for it was the Catholic
Church that made Europe. and If you read the
story of Europe England in the light of anti
catholicism, you get its whole form distorted" To
this / can only add "sicw l need not ridicule the
paragraph; its author has already done so.
With holy horror, Hilaire relates how he was
brought up on history book written by cold Frank
Bright a typical Oxford book, profoundly anti
catholic in its whole presentation of the past" If
Belocs parents had been good catholics they would
have sent him to the Jesuit University of Dublin,
where all his schoolbooks would have been strictly
kosher However, with much sadness and regret in
his wavering voice, the medieval apologst recounts
the poisoning of his mind by what consider
important thought fair, Ito the bourgeoisie) his
tory book
That Bellocs mind is poisoned, I cannot, in view
of his literary activity gainsay; but think it is
more accurate philologicaly to classify it as mar
cotized.
An analytical study of the essays written by the
British lay churchman leads to suspect that he
has never read any educational work that took its
place in the bookstalls the imprmatur of one
of the popes business agents. Belloc is very naive
in desparing his partial education, acquired by read
ing expurgated books. Education know, is pro-
cess looked upon with much fear and disdain by
those who sell the gospel the bargain counter;
yet one hardly expects an apologist clever essayst
though he may be, to speak frankly.
One easily imagine the kind of history Mr..
Beoc and his business friends would write. 1t
would be quite an orderly thing, assure you. The
story would begin some $500 years ago, for
catholic "revsionist" would consider it an honor
and duty to plagiarize Genesis. few clerical
scholars are in doubt of this point some spon-
sorng the basphemous belief that the world is
than six thousand years old. But doubt if this
would make much difference for Mr. Belloc wants
his history book to be strictly conformistic.
1t would proceed onward to 33 B. C. almost like
a popularizaton of the Old Testament-Dr. VIII
Durant of "Story of Philosophy" fame, and Bruce
Barton, the puritanic discover of The man. and The
book could be valuable assistants here-except that
the forged predictions of the prophets concerning
the coming of the Messiah might be touched up a bit,
to appear more convincing.
The scores Of minor contradictions, Of strictly
scientific and historical Importance would have to
be ironed out of course But there always Jesuit
and Dominican lackeys handy capable of the task.
And no doubt DR.. James ]. Walsh, who is always
stckler fer accuracy when it doesn't mean much,
will insist upon the Joshua fable being made to
harmonic with current astronomical theories For
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