Extract from a letter from Joseph P. Walshe to Frederick H. Boland (Dublin)
(Secret)

[matter omitted]
His Grace must feel assured that I have already spoken to the authorities concerned here about the predominantly Catholic character of the Irish Red Cross Society. As you will remember, I had recently a very useful opportunity of making the acquaintance of Mgr. Baldelli who is the head of the Pontificia Commissione Assistenza. I went over the whole question with him of our Government's relations with our own Red Cross and with the International body, and if he had thought that, in the past, the Irish Red Cross was a purely secular body, he certainly does not now believe that it bears any of the marks usually implied by that description, and I do not think we should mention the matter to Mgr. Tardini (just now at any rate) who, in all probability has never heard of it. The question of the Croats is in quite a different category naturally forming part of Mgr. Tardini's duties as head of Political Affairs; but, however things may have been in the past, I am very glad His Grace has raised the issue of contributing to this or some other work in which the Vatican takes a special interest through a purely Catholic group, more especially a group in which the Hierarchy would figure most prominently. I am becoming more and more convinced that the Vatican would like to see the Hierarchy taking the initiative in some such group. They seem to have the idea that, apart from the great internal social work accomplished by His Grace in the Archdiocese, about which they are well informed, there is not sufficient organised international Catholic effort as such. They would like to see us participating, as Catholics, in international effort. This idea comes, no doubt, partly from the fact that the American and the British do a good deal of work in Italy and on the Continent generally through exclusively Catholic organisations, and also, it is not uncharitable to say so, we must remember that the Holy See's own position is strengthened by work of this specific kind. I most earnestly hope that His Grace will be able to get together some organisation for taking on this group of Croat students. The Holy Father, Himself, is very much interested, I understand, and the fact that Mgr. Tardini summoned me for the particular purpose of making the request (a somewhat unusual procedure) shows that he was acting on urgent instructions from the Holy Father, as indeed, he explicitly told me.

I have to report that, while being the most favoured Catholic country with an enormous store of goodwill in Rome, the impression is quite general that we are not as prompt, qua-Catholic, as other countries to take an interest in matters promoted by the Holy See. This is an issue on which I hope to have a long talk with the Taoiseach and with His Grace in due course. We need quite a lot of organised effort to make use of our good position here, and I venture to advise that, on this occasion anyhow, His Grace and the Hierarchy will make use of the opportunity presented by the request. There is hardly any danger that these Croats would become ultimately a burden on the State; they are more likely to emigrate to America at the first opportunity, but the primary thing to remember is, that they form the subject of a special request from the Holy See, the granting of which will be of great value to both Church and State in Ireland.