Letter on the One Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of Cardinal Gibbons.

My dear Archbishop Curley:

In my radio address last November on the Maryland Tercentenary Celebration, I expressed the hope that the celebration "will also be a reminder to people throughout the United States of the great fight that Lord Baltimore made three centuries ago for religious freedom in America."

Your recent letter brings to my attention that this year Your Excellency will preside over a special celebration of the tercentenary of Maryland, which will, at the same time, commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the birth of the late James Cardinal Gibbons, Your Excellency's predecessor as Archbishop of Baltimore.

I take this occasion to couple with the hope expressed above concerning Maryland's anniversary, my tribute to Cardinal Gibbons who illustrated the hope itself. Loyal, steadfast to his own religious faith, a foremost leader in its councils, Cardinal Gibbons during his long life ever extended the gift of freedom, which he himself so highly appreciated, unto all of his fellow citizens, no matter what their religious faith might be.

Both the memory and the fruits of his gracious power and his personal charm endure and, I feel, will endure.

With the wish that every success may attend your celebration,

Very sincerely yours,

Most Reverend

Michael J. Curley,

The Archbishop of Baltimore,

Baltimore, Md.