Newspaper Page Text
March B, 1912] T H ?
ROME'S CIRCEAN WAND OVER THE
AMERICAN PRESS.
(Continued from page 1.)
it always works up division, weakness, decay and
ruin.
Some Protestants, and certainly they are not
the wor^t of the Protestant Church, consider
the present and the future of America hopeless
in regard to Protestantism, precisely because
they see in the public press constant and very
noticeable partiality in emphasizing everything
belonging to the Roman Catholic Church and
constant disregard and even neglect in bringing
forward anything which may propagate or
strengthen Protestantism.
That such a dangerous partiality exists no
one well aware of the present conditions will
dare to question.
I myself will give in my later articles many
striking facts and a great many instances of
this partiality. In these first articles I intend
solely to explain, how and why. Catholics sue
ceed in obtaining such favorable consideration
from the public press.
The more I know the public press, the more
I am pleased with it. I only deplore the growing
tendency to exaggeration and sensationalism;
but in spite of such defects and so far as my
knowledge goes, and I believe I know a little
about the public press of several countries, I
consider the American public press, as a whole,
one of the fairest, most liberal, honest, conservative
and patriotic in the world.
The striking and visible partiality I spoke of
above, though it is a real and very deplorable
fact, can be explained, I think, without casting
any aspersion upon the press. Let my readers
see and examine some of the facts and decide
for themselves whether I am right or wrong.
We have already seen that the Roman Catholicism
advocated so much through the public press
is rather a disguised Protestantism than ? tmp
Romanism.
Moreover, the Roman Catholic Church has so
completely succetded in convincing the leading
American writers and editors of" daily papers
and scientific magazines, encyclopedias and reference
books, that no matter what the Roman
Church might have done in some other countries
about religious persecution and political plots,
in America, Roman Catholics were always the
strongest, if not the first, in advocating and proclaiming
religious freedom, mutual tolerance,
genuine and fervent patriotism.
Words like these (I quote from the "Cross
and the Flacr." an almost secret. Cathnlic hnnk
since no one can obtain it except "by subscribing
for membership, to a duly appointed representative")
: "The Roman .Catholic Church
(words of Cardinal Gibbons) first in discovery
(of America), first in the establishment of Christianity,
first in the organization of civil government,
first in proclaiming religious toleration,
first and unanimous in the support of Washington,"
are so generally believed as correct and
so widely reproduced through books, encyclopedias
and magazines, that the most truthful,
learned and conservative American writers accept
them as unquestionable facts and think that
they pay a just tribute to justice and defend
freedom and Americanism when thev ?ndnr?<>
some of the views of Cardinal Qibbons or Archbishop
Ireland.
In connection with this there is something else
worthy of notice. "When a Protestant criticises
or attacks Roman Catholic doctrines or practices
many Catohlics resent the issue and write to the
editor calling attention to the fact that such
1 conduct hinders religious freedom and impairs
fair play. On the contrary, when a Catholio
riticisoa or attacks Presbyterian ism scarcely a
tkL,...
PBESBYTBBIAN OF THE S<
voice is raised in protest; almost no one resents
the issue or calls the attention of the editor to
the unfairness of the case, and therefore the
editors get the impression that public opinion,
of which they are and always ought to be the
organs, is in tavor of not saying anything against
the Roman Catholic Church.
This fact is so important that I shall give two
incidents as illustrations, though I will not reveal
the names of the persons involved.
I was supported and even encouraged in one
of my first polemics by the editor of one of the
leading daily papers of the South. He was
truly brave, and American and an advocate of
fair play as well, a Protestant, sincere and sound
He, although convinced of the great advantages
of continuing the publication, was compelled to
stop it, not only because the Catholics threatened
him with the discredit and ruin of his paper,
but also because no leading or influential Protestant
wrote him advocating the continuing of the
polemic.
1 knew of hundreds of requests from Catholics
desiring and urging the discontinuance of the
polemic, but only one or two poor, ignorant and
sensational men wrote advocating a continuance
of it.
In the same city the editor of one of the leading
daily papers, which is considered Catholic,
was rebuked for partiality by an influential Protestant
because he failed to report one of the
lectures I delivered there. Dating from the rebuke,
every time I go to that city and preach
there, that paper, though Catholic, reports very
well my address.
Oh, if only our leading men and women would
send a note of approval or disapproval, according
to the circumstances, to the editors, they
would accomplish a great deal of good in favor
of freedom, justice and truth and easily prevent
at once the dangerous and visible partiality of
the press.
\v hat I mean is a note of encouragement when
they support a good cause, or a note calling
their attention when they do something unfair.
If Protestants are not alert and if they remain
silent, then they must not complain of the
partiality of the press, since by their careless
J M *
xicss ana snence tney contribute indirectly to
convincing the editors that there is no other opinion
to reckon with but the opinion of the Roman
Catholics.
There are yet some other means used by Catholics
in controlling the public press, of which I
shall name three. America is the country of
trusts, bosses :ind associations. I have never seen
any other nation or people where the individual
.a less when he stands by himself and where
the collectivities are more powerful than here
in America.
The Roman Catholic Church, which is well
aware of this fact, always appears as an enormous
and powerful trust, as a tremendous association.
"When a bishop, archbishop or cardinal speaks
the daily papers see and feel back of them the
Roman Catholic machine, the several millions of
Catholics who may read and approve the words
and buy the paper.
On the contrary, when a Protestant speaks
the editors see and feel rather an individual than
a collectivity, and therefore they may pay no
attention at all to his utterances. I shall speak
later of this famous and apparent unity and explain
how Protestantism can counteract the monopoly.
I state here only the fact as it appears
or is seen by the public press.
Another powerful means used skilfully by
Catholics to control the press is the existence of
socialism and anarchy in America and the fact
that such errors are spread largely among foreigners.
To every thoughtful patriot the future
)UTH (325) 11
of America is not entirely bright and hopeful;
on the contrary, it is dark, very dark, it the ioreigner
does not become educated according to
American ideals and identihed with them. And
there are many thoughtiui people who honestly
and truly believe that there is no other religious
organization better htted to do that important
and national task than the Roman Uathoiic
Church. Thereiore they believe to allow any
uniavorable criticism against the Roman Catholic
Church is to weaken her prestige and educative
power over the foreign masses. The following
words from the Outlvuk of last November
reflect, 1 believe, the current opinion of the leading
and thinking men of the country: "The
America of today is in need of that kind of help
which the Roman Catholic Church is peculiarly
prepared to impart. The principal peril of
America comes from the disorganizing forces
and from a spirit of anarchy; not from overorganized,
but from disorder and disorganization.
One of the main lessons Americans need
to hear is, reverence to constituted authority
and voluntary obedience to law." "The Roman
Catholic Church is peculiarly fitted to teach this
lesson, and those who need this teaching most
are within her influence."
When I speak about Roman Catholic education,
I hope to be able to demonstrate how wrong
and futile is the hope of preventing socialism
and anarchism bv <*ivin?r tho
? ? y D ?.?v vuuti vi Ui ctlUUUr
tion to the Roman Catholic Church.
Finally, Protestants must never forget that
the management of daily papers is first and last
and always, a business enterprise, and Catholics
are able to boycott or to threaten them with ruin
when they refuse to conduct, according to the
views of the Roman Catholic Church or the
hierarchy, matters of controversy that may arise.
I shall give later many concrete examples to
illustrate what I have just said.
Here I shall only point out that they are able
to boycott the public press not only because
many Protestants are dormant and entirely in- '
different, but because they can use Protestants
themselves.
I shall give two instances which have recently
occurred to illustrate what I mean
When I published my first open letter to exPresident
Roosevelt three years ago, it was published
in the Herald, of Mobile, Ala. The president
of the Knights of Columbus of that city
sent word to the editor of the Herald saying:
"Gentlemen, you have eight days to make a full
apology, otherwise you will lose a great deal of
business."
He did not apologize, but at the end of the
eight days five hundred dollars worth of advertising
matter was taken at once from the paper
and the advertisements of Protestants formed a
large part of it.
In the same city the Paulist Fathers conducted
a mission for Protestants or for non-Catholics
and because the pastor of one of the city churches,
a Methodist minister, tried to reply from the
Duloit to the misrenresenfatinns mo/lo ooraJnot
Protestantism, his own congregation and his own
presiding elder stood strongly and publicly
against him and he would have been driven
away from Mobile had not the Masons, to which
he belonged, supported him.
Summing up this scattered matter, my readers
see that Catholics control and monopolize the
public press, not because the press is really and
truly in their favor, but only through misrepresentations
made by the Roman Catholic
Church, and through the carelessness and indifference
of Protestantism. A few well-directed
and steady efforts will undoubtedly restore fair
play in the American press.
I hope to demonstrate this, conclusively, by
and by.