of the Holy See.  Congress simply refused to continue the appropriation for the American mission.  
There was question as whether or not then Pope Pius had recognized the Confederacy.  Congress had  
merely refused to continue the necessary appropriation, so that as Secretary of State Seward   
stated, "Legally, the action of congress left the mission still exixting, but without  
compensation".
 
 
 
In my opinion, the action of our government was somewhat hasty and ill-advised, was an ungenerous   
return for the good-will of the Papal See had always manifested towards our government and our  
people.  I Believe the time has now come when these diplomatic relations, thus groundlessly severed,   
should be restored.  That restoration would be a clarion call to the civilized peoples of the   
world that religious and personal liberties are inherent in our democracy.  In this connenction  
I quote the interesting language used by Mr. Chief Justice Fuller in the opinion of hte Municipality   
of Ponce v. Roman Catholic Apostolic church in Porto Rico, decided June 1, 1908: "the