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Show ITALIAN WOMEN ANL ' THE GODLESS SCHOOL The decision of the Women's congress in Rome on the education question is surprising and shocking. How is it to be accounted for, considering that tjio Italian electors are strongly in favor of religious teaching in the schools, as was evident during the, recent debate in the chamber? Having read full reports re-ports of the discussion at the congress we are in no doubt as to what hap-pened. hap-pened. Catholic ladies were in evidence. They "spoke well anl defended the rights of parents and the. church with skill arid dignity. But Italian Catholics generally gen-erally were evidently unprepared for such an attack upon religion. The Socialist So-cialist and Frcethinking parties, on the other hand, had carefully arranged tleir program beforehand. They sent ladies to represent them who could address ad-dress a meeting with all the ease and readiness of the male anti-clerical era-tor, era-tor, and who were not a whit less inclined in-clined to champion every strange and uncouth theory, if only it did not countenance coun-tenance 'Christianity. , Having advocated advocat-ed Buddhist, Confucian and other ideas picked up in literary jungles, they succeeded suc-ceeded in passing by a large majority a resolution proposed by Signorina Mal-nari, Mal-nari, a Socialist lady, affirming that the instruction in the primary school should be undenominational, and , that in the secondary school religious instruction should be confined to the history of religions. re-ligions. The Catholic ladies ,vho wore present at the congress have issued a formal protest. Manifestly work lies at hand for them. In conjunct ion with the clergy they should arouse the mothers moth-ers of Italy to the danger that besets the schools of the country. |
