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20 THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA according to the religion and interpretation of the teacher that is not approved by the public generally. (From The Macon Telegraph, June 9th.) Atlanta Schools Have No Bible, but Lots of Jazz. “No Bible, but lots of ‘bunny hug;’ no Jesus, but jazz; no Christ, but cards; no God, but gambling a-plenty,’’ was the charge brought against Atlanta public schools Monday by Rev. Walter Anthony, pas tor of St. Mark’s Methodist Church, Atlanta. Mr. Anthony, a nephew of Rev. Bascom Anthony, of Ma con, delivered the commencement sermon at Wes leyan College. Discussing an editorial in The Atlanta Constitution on the use of the Bible in the schools, the Atlanta minister declared that card playing and modern dancing were being openly promoted in the schools, and gave instances, against the convictions of 20,000 Methodists, while Bible reading was scrupulously for bidden because of the attitude of Jews and Roman Catholics. He did not request that Bible reading be permitted, but asked that fairness be observed in dealing with all denominations. His statement, as it appeared in The Constitution, follows: “I am not here contending for the teaching of the Bible in our public schools, but surely it is permis sible to insist that if the moral and religious con victions of our Jewish and Roman Catholic friends as to the reading of the Bible are to be carefully considered and protected, then in all fairness, the convictions of the 15,000 to 20,000 Methodists and many other thousand Protestants, as relates to dancing and card playing, ought not to be utterly ignored. (From The Atlanta Constitution, June 3d.) A Dangerous Step. While the city executive committee is to be com mended for again extending the municipal elective franchise to the women of Atlanta, in dealing with two other questions of major significance that body took action for which no praise is to be given. First, it fixed July 26th as the date for holding the city primary elections at which to nominate can didates for city offices to be voted on at the regular election, which is not to be held until the first Wed nesday in December. The second error on the committee’s part is in the projection of the Bible into politics. This is probably the first instance oit record in which the Bible has been injected into a political cam paign and made an issue in a popular election. The committee made a grievous mistake when it submitted the question of the Bible’s place in the school room to be settled at the ballot box. Its action in that respect is unfortunate from every viewpoint. The public schools of Atlanta are sustained by taxpayers of every creed and denomination. To say that our school children shall be forced to accept the Bible as a part of the public school curriculum must bring up the question of what Bible is to be used. What would the Protestants of New York say if a Catholic administration should adopt a rule that the Catholic Bible had to be used in the public schools? Or, what would the Gentile citizens of a city with a Jewish administration say if the Old Testament were selected for public school use and the New Testament excluded ? Yet that is precisely what the executive committee would have us do here that is, to say, that the Catholic and Jewish children of Atlanta must listen to the reading of a version of the Scriptures which is not theirs, or else they must stay away from the pub lic schools! The idea is un-American, intolerant and indefen sible; and it has in the past been bitterly opposed by many of the strongest and most liberal-minded Prot estant ministers and lay leaders of the city. In submitting this question we believe the execu tive committee has exceeded its authority; and we know that it has thrown an apple of discord into civic affairs at a most inopportune time. After-war con ditions of unrest are bad enough without introducing this new element of discord. Talk about church and state—here’s a first step toward it that should put the people to thinking! It is worthy of note that the Association pamphlet, Catholicism and Politics, which was an expose of the National Catholic Register fake, has been printed in booklet form by the American Press of New York in their semi-monthly publication, The Catholic Mind. And The Catholic Register of Denver also printed it verbatim. A New Pamphlet Out Soon. Within the next few days the first numbers of “Catholics and the Pope,” will be in the mails. This is the long promised pamphlet dealing with the va rious phases of the papacy, infallibility, impeccability, and the like. It has been in direct preparation for about four months, but the editors have been assem bling the data for it for three years. It is quite the most pretentious booklet yet issued by the Associa tion, and its perusal is recommended to all Catholics. It answers practically every question we have been asked about the Pope in thirty-eight months. It will be sent to every member of the Association whose address we have been enabled to obtain, and to all others who will write for it. The first edition of 50,000, it is expected, will be exhausted before the annual meeting. Copy may be had upon application to the Cath olic Laymen’s Association, 107 Ninth Street, Augusta, Georgia. Three well known laymen have been given, medals of honor by the Knights of Columbus for efficient service as secretaries during the war. They are Capt. E. J. O’Connor, member of the executive committee of the Association; John F. Mulherin and Jerome Laroque, the two latter serving overseas. All three are Augustans.