Until to-day we believed that Mr. Bolognesi was the best and most independent man ever placed at the head of the Italian Consulate in Chicago. Until to-day we believed him to be (after his repeated assertions), politically neutral, without any preferences of personal political ideas.

But to-day, we do not believe so. His diplomatic tact has failed him and he openly reveals himself to us and to the intelligent part of our colony as a real papist and clerical.

None of us would contest his right to open a shelter to provide beds and meals for the unfortunate in distress, who have been thrown in the street by unemployment these past months, unemployment caused by a social system which the Consul defends officially and privately.

The right which we strongly contest is that of entrusting this new benevolent institution to the Sisters of the Sacred Heart. We contest his right to use the Italian government's money, money of the people, to protect (under the appearance of beneficence) his own clerical ideals.

We contest his right to give Rome the impression that in Chicago it is possible to help the poor people only through the interference of priests, monks, or nuns.

We question the validity of the opinion that people believe that what he has done was the only thing that could be done.

Mr. Bolognesi never has openly revealed his views on public welfare, except to a few persons to whom he has expressed himself privately. And now, after an accomplished deed, he announces in the newspapers that starving Italians may have, from now on, a bowl of soup-thanks to consular-monastic charity.

How can Mr. Bolognesi say that no other way was open to him? Was it not an insult to the other existing beneficent institutions of our colony that he completely ignored them? But he has clerical sympathies and so he chose the only way possible.

Our clever Consul is perfectly free to be clerical as long as he wishes; but the most independent and intelligent Italians of Chicago will not overlook 3that provocation, and will oppose such policies with an energetic anti-clerical movement.

Our objection is not that we do not attribute the right importance to the new institution as such, but that several hundred dollars of the Italian government's money, obtained by the witty diplomatic clericalism of Mr. Bolognesi, will be used for Catholic propaganda through the medium of a bowl of soup.

We stand for the principle of the thing, but we rightfully maintain that it is time for the representative of Italy to stop using the money of the Italian government to give help to the Catholic Church, the defrauder of our colonies.

The time has arrived for anti-clerical Italians to arouse themselves, organize and fight.

The impurity of the Catholic influx to this country is becoming more insufferable and repugnant. Its everlasting insincerity is that it operates not for the good but for the purpose of extending its pestilential influence.

As an example, consider the activities here in America of the Catholic Church in establishing grammar schools in opposition to the [secular] public schools. It is certainly admirable to teach children; however, the priests perform that task not for the good of it, but as a chance for propaganda. And this our priests, in their Italo-American schools, are anti-Italians for the original sin, and anti-Americans for their daily acts.

Take notice of them in their hospitals and orphanages, in their welfare institutions; they always use the same deceitful hypocrisy. In one hand a piece of bread, and in the other hand the Crucifix; and before you can bite the piece of bread, you must kiss the Crucifix. Beautiful sentiment of charity! Was that the teaching of Christ?

It is better to starve than to bite the bait on the hook as the fish do. This is the way the free thinkers of our colony are thinking and they will try to expend all their energies to denounce the ignoble and everlasting trickery of the priests and nuns.