AN EXCITING TOUR

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2276, 9 October 1914, Page 6

AN EXCITING TOUR

LOCAL CLERGY IN BELGIUM ■;'■■■'ln-.the course of a letter (bearing the Dublin post-mark), written by the Rev. .Father Aloraii on August 21 to the Rev. Father Hickson, of Wellington, some ■higlily-iiiterestihg news is imparted! as .to the influence of the. war on clerical ■ nlfairs and otherwise.., Writing of the" "important Chapters of the Marist Or-' ,der,,which was, to-have been held, at Diffeft, a small town in the south-east corner,of! Belgium, the General-Superior ' (Head of-.the Order) had, 'even after : 'the invasion of Belgium; by '.the' Ger- ' mans '.- advised them, that ■ the Chapter "would be held, he evidently not- being aware, that at. that time Liege .was being .besieged and that.Luxembourg had ■ been occupied by the Germans.- It was ". an evidence of how effectually the news ■channels had been blocked. :'. i', : ■ When, this was ascertained the Gen-eral-Superior advised that- the' French ■ Government had suspended tho. law against holding clerical conferences .in /France, and that the Chapter would-be held in Lyons. The delegates,■',who included Archbishop Redwood, Deans Regnault and Holley, and the' Very Rev. Dr. Kenuedy'(of St. Patrick's College), "who had only escaped from. Paris to i. England on August 1, after a rather ex- ; citing time, left aagin for France on August 11,, and had a very slow and troublesome journey to. Paris)' which was, however, enlivened by witnessing . the British Cavalry and Highlanders disembark at Boulogne. This was a fine sight, it being particularly exhiliar'ating,to witness the welcome given to the troops by the French people. They -loft Paris at 6 p.m. one evening, and did not, reach Lyons until 2 p.m. -the 'next day—twenty hours to do a journey that usually took seven hours. The •whole way their'train was continually ..being-side-tracked, to- allow military "trains to get through. What was worse, (they could get nothing to eat. . Anyhow ,tho Chapter opened on August 11, and was proceeding'loisurely.' at time of i writing. There were threo or four Rotable; absentees. The Provincial cf 'Lyons had gone to the'front, with the local troops,' so also had tho. Rev. ; Father Poncet, of Leicester Square (London). The Rev. Father Roustan, -Vice-Provincial from Mexico, and a Frenchman, was arrested as a spy at Rodez (in the department of Aveyron), and was there cast into, prison by over- :, zealous gendarmes.'' He; however,' managed to get out after a day or two. i ~ During the whole of the previous week '(before August 21) Dublin, had been tilled with soldiers, and."trains and boats were going at all hours of the day and night. Tho.soldiers were all very self- ■; possessed, and there was a businesslike air-about them .that: impressed one favourably. All the hills round Queens- : ; town had been entrenched, and ail the VKmen and children had been ordered to leave, the islands in'the harbour. Edinburgh and tho Scottish coast was crammed with soldiers, as it was anticipated that the Germans might invade the. Kingdom from the north. - :"T)ie way in- which the Dominions overseas had come to the support of -the Mother Country has. caused" the greatest attention here," writes tho Rev. Father. "Everyone feels that the hands, of England have been strength-: . ened enormously by- the.instant generous otters of' Now .Zealand, Australia, ' and Canada'. It.must show the German ■ Emperor that England is not a mere ' 'cipher."'' The letter goes on to speak . of. .tho, occupation; of Brussels -by the Germans, and to tell of the absolute -ignorance that prevailed as to the Whereabouts of the first British Army, "which' was assumed to be behind the French along .the Mouse line.