Religious and National News
By Editor
Monsignor Rossetti, Papal Apostolic Delegate at Tripoli, sent the following wireless message to the pope on October 6, after the Italians had occupied the city: "For the first time since the Knights of St. John were defeated by the Turks and lost Tripoli in 1551 the cross of Christianity has been raised over this land. This time, next to the cross is the flag of Savoy." Illinois University is to dedicate a hall to Abraham Lincoln, the cost of which will be $250,000. Its object is for advanced students in languages and philosophy. What would be better still is the adoption of the principles of liberty which actuated Abraham Lincoln. There is now on foot a plan to erect a heroic statue to St. Francis in some prominent place in San Francisco. This, we presume, on the part of many of those engaged in it, is to honor the city itself; but to Roman Catholics it will mean much more than this. It will be designating San Francisco as a Catholic city, and anew devoting it to the memory of St. Francis. Strange to say (or is it strange?), this suggestion is made by Bishop William Ford Nichols, an Episcopalian bishop. Rear-Admiral Winfield Scott Schley, the well-known hero who led the squadron that destroyed Admiral Cervera's fleet, July 3, 1908, fell dead while walking on a street near Fifth Avenue, New York City, on October 2. Admiral Schley fought under Farragut in the Civil War; and while some have tried to rob him of the honors achieved in the memorable battle with Cervera's fleet, the opinion is becoming more and more general that the success of that engagement was due to his abilities. On October 10 an earthquake shock of nearly twenty-one minutes' duration was recorded by the seismograph at Lick Observatory, on Mount Hamilton, near San Jose, California. The instruments in St. Louis, Missouri, and New York City made a similar record at about the same time. They all agreed in indicating that a severe shock occurred at about 1,000 to 1,500 miles to the south or southeast. The rebellion in China, together with the accompanying rioting and threatened dangers to the missionaries who are operating in the war zone, still continues. A number of the leaders of the rebellion have recently been caught and executed by the government. But this has seemed for the time being to intensify the conflict rather than to aid in terminating it. In a Western city a spirit medium told a woman that her husband was not true to her. She told the husband of the story of the medium, and he protested his innocency and loyalty. But the wife insisted that the word of the medium should be taken above his, and so she left him. The court has granted the man a divorce on the ground of desertion. A Pomona, California, church proposes to spend $10,000 for building a gymnasium as a part of its church. And the room where the gymnasium will be held will also be used for church suppers, Boys' Brigades, military drills, etc., etc. We wonder how many souls it will save. Turkish soldiers that were driven out of Tripoli by the Italian war-ships continue to make attacks upon the city, and will not likely be put entirely to rout until the Italian troops that are being transported for the occupation of the territory reach the scene of action. Fighting between the followers of Madero and those who oppose him still continues in Mexico. It would seem that he is having about as much trouble in holding his position at the head of the government as he had in wrestling it from Diaz. The fall of Venice is predicted as the result of the deepening of her harbor. Water has filtered through under her great buildings. The doge's palace and St. Mark's Cathedral are cracking and crumbling. The trial of the McNamara brothers commenced in Los Angeles October 11, and bids fair to inject into our already complex strifes one of the greatest social issues of modern times. The first battle of the Tripolitan war was fought on the identical body of water where Antony and Cleopatra fled before Octavius in the celebrated battle of Actium. The rioting in Portugal is of such a nature that the deposed king is made to hope that he may yet see the newly established republic set aside and he be reinstated.