The bulletin (Augusta, Ga.) 1920-1957, June 01, 1921, Image 4

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THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN'S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA Your particular attention is directed to the matter under the head: “Some Very Interesting Editorial Notes on State and National Affairs,” which reads as follows: The National Congress of Mothers, as sembled at Washington, April 27th, filed a plea for “missing girls.” We learn that sixty-five thousand girls disappeared from their homes last year, and nothing is known of their whereabouts. A great majority of these girls were cap tured by Catholic Priests and sentenced to slavery in the Houses of the Good Shepherd, etc. In Keiley’s establishment, at Savannah, Ga.j, there may probably be a score or more of those “missing girls.” The laws of Georgia require that Bishop Keiley’s slave pen be inspected by officers of the courts of Chatham County, but the Bishop of Savannah informs us that he gets his law from Rome, and, therefore, he can not recognize laws made in this country. The question is, Shall Bishop Keiley be permitted to continue to laugh at our laws? Catholic Priests have no right to lure innocent girls into captivity, where they be come victims of Priestly immorality. The Bishop of Savannah has no right to run a “peonage farm” within his jurisdiction.” Sixty-five thousand girls are lost in our big cities each year; they fall into traps set for them by Rome. Our laws owe them protection. Priests who are not permitted to marry, should not be allowed to capture young maidens and use them to satisfy lustful desires. You will observe that the leading article is an attack on President Harding, in which it is said that “it remains to be seen _ whether the people of this country will be blinded by the hypocricies and false pretenses of Warren, G. Harding, as they were by those of Woodrow Wil son,” and that “the Roman Catholic Church dic tates to Harding just as it dictated to Wilson.” You will note the announcement in bold faced type at the bottom of the page referring all communications to the editor, the managing editor and a staff writer to the United States Senate Office Building, Washington, D. C. We felt that the colleagues of the Junior Sen ator from Georgia would appreciate having these facts called to their attention. Sincerely yours, RICHARD REID, Publicity Director. Catholic Laymen’s Association of Georgia. (Copy of this communication to the Junior Sen ator from Georgia). MOTHERS’ CONGRESS OFFICIAL CONDEMNS LIBEL (By N. C. W. C. News Service) Washington, June 13.—Statements in an article printed in Senator Thomas E. Watson’s paper, The Sentinel, attempting to link up the National Con gress of Mothers with slanderous statements con cerning the Houses of the Good Shepherd, have aroused the indignation of officials of the Congress. The article, after mentioning that the National Congress of Mothers during their convention in Washington in April, discussed the problem of the disappearance of sixty-five thousand girls during the past year; makes the astounding allegation that: “A great majority of these girls were captured by Catholic priests and sentenced to slavery in the Houses of the Good Shepherd, etc.” Mrs. Arthur C. Watkins, National Executive Sec retary of the Congress of Mothers and Parent-Teach er Association expressed surprise and indignation when the article was brought to her attention. She characterized the insinuations as ridiculous, but ex pressed the fear that their publication might have an undesirable effect when read by an ignorant and bigoted population. She was indignant at the attempt to link up the National Congress of Mothers with the slanderous allegations, saying that there was evidently an in tention to represent the Congress as in a position which it had no intention of taking. “The allegations regarding the Houses of the Good Shepherd are, of course, too ridiculous to merit se rious discussion,” said Mrs. Watkins. “The infam ous part of the matter is the attempt to represent the National Congress of Mothers as endorsing these charges, or even as considering them seriously.” Mrs. Wafkins then declared that a considerable number of the Parent-Teacher Associations affiliated with the National Congress are parochial school units and that the national organization is anxious to secure the affiliation of more such units. The matter is being brought to the attention of other national officers of the Congress by Mrs. Wat kins and the national headquarters is taking steps to inform its affiliated organizations in Georgia of the absolute falsity of the insinuations contained in the article. GEORGIA EDITORS NOTIFIED OF ACTION OF CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA high office which the editor holds at Washing ton, his opinion of our Georgia institutions should be brought to the attention of his col leagues. We feel also that it should be brought to your attention, as it cannot help the good name of our State in addition to the talk about lynchings and peonage, to have it said and vouched for by one of our United States Sena tors that we" tolerate a white girl slave pen within our borders. Insofar as the article was aimed at Catholics, it could safely be ignored. Very much the same scandalous nonsense has been repeatedly printed in papers published by the present Editor of The Sentinel and they have always been ignored by us. We have never felt that we need defend ourselves from a man who is not honest in his (Continued on Page 9) The Publicity Bureau of the Catholic Laymen’s Association of Georgia is sending out the following letter to the Georgia editors: Dear Editor: Enclosed is a copy of a letter, the original of which has been sent to each of the United States Senators. This action was taken as a result of a meet ing of the Laymen’s Association held Sunday, June 5th, in Savannah, for the purpose of con sidering the latest diatribe of the Junior Sena tor from Georgia against the institutions of our State. While the animus of the article in the Colum bia Sentinel is cloaked in the guise of an at tack on Bishop Keiley, it is really an impeach ment of the integrity of our courts and grand juries. Our Association felt that in view of the