Herrington I

In connection with Donald Beswick's letter (Sept. 5) about the Vatican's involvement in war crimes it should be noted the Vatican never severed its links with Pavelic. He died quietly of natural causes in the German Hospital in Madrid, receiving the personal benediction of Pope John XXIII at his deathbed in December 1959.

John also showed that he agreed with his predecessor's support of Stepinac by giving Stepinca the honour of a service at St Peter's in Rome, when he died in February 1960 though he wasn't a part of the Curia.

The present Pope worked in the Vatican Secretariat of State throughout the War and therefore would have known of the atrocities in Croatia and the Vatican's involvement. Despite this in the last month of Vatican II he announced to cheering bishops in an open session that he was initiating the steps to [unclear: beratify] Plus XII.