DR. MORAN’S DISCOURSE.

Evening Star, Volume IX, Issue 2560, 2 May 1871, Page 2

DR. MORAN’S DISCOURSE.

The following is the substance of Bishop Moran’s discourse on Education, delivered in St. Joseph’s last Sunday evening : Some weeks ago I felt it my duty to direct your attention to the prosclytism of Catholic children in the Benevolent Institution, and to the anti-catholic and historically false passages in the books used in the public schools. On that occa.ion I observed that the system of public education in this province did not meet with my approval ; and 1 laid down a discipline as to the parents of children frequenting public schools, which was only natural and logical under the circircumstances. A very correct report of my discourse on that occasion was published the following week in the Otago Dai/;/ Times which criticised it the next day, I believe, in no unfair or unfriendly spirit, In a short

time, however, its tone was changed, and denunciation, loud and vehement, together with misrepresentation, usurped the place of candid and dispassionate criticism. From that time to the present, that is, during several weeks, newspapers in their editorials and anonymous writers in letters published in various public journals, have not ceased to misrepresent mo, and abused me in no measured terms. Because of this domestic affair between the Catholic Bishop and his people, the public, as represented by the newspapers, have, as it were, seized on me as if I were their property, to be disposed of according to their goodwill and pleasure, their whim or their hatred. Beasou, common sense, and decency have been for the most part either forgotten or despised. Some have abused, others misrepresented me ; in one I have been threatened ; another regards me as a fanatic : here T have been called a politician, there a patron of ignorance. Nor is this amiable warfare confined to the Otago Press; one of our distant neighbours, the Evening Pos , Wellington, of the 20th April last, has in its leader charged me with acts which neither I nor any of my priests ever did, and with words which I never uttered. And thus anti-catholic history is made. These c lumuieshave been spread abroad far and wide. The have got the start of me I have no doubt whatever, then, that denial of calumny in reference to myself will go for nothing in the minds of my assailants, and that they will continue to repeat them, in deliance of truth, decency, and honor. This, however, must not deter me from doing my duty, and continuing to denounce and reprobate the Benevolent Institution and the hooks used in the public schools. Not one of my assailants has attempted to reason, nor has anyone had the hardihood to deny my statements in reference to the Benevolent Institution and the school books, with the single exception of the Committee of this institution, which has denied the use of coercion, but untruly, as I shall soon show you. Why all this uproar ? This is a question which all reasonable men conversant with the matter must have asked themselves; and I feel assured they have. As I said, I cannot even guess, unless it be that monopolists are always touchy on the subject of the : r monopolies, and are in perpetual dread of losing them. It is singular, too, not one of my assailants has had the manliness t» put his name to his writings against me. Why this cowardice ? Are they ashamed to let the world know they are engaged in such disreputable work ? I can well understand their being ashamed. This is one of the reasons why I have not hitherto taken any notice of them, and another is, I was please!} to give them rope enough. I feel this was a vise course, and that my opponents have theredves afforded the most complete justification of my action. They are all advocates! and supporters of our public school system, and is only necessary to read what they have written to be convinced of their utter unfit* ness to conduct the education of Catholic children, or, indeed, of any children, as well as of the unfiti.ess of the system of educa* tion they patronise. I only hope none of them belong to the Senate of the new University, which, by the way, begins its curriculum with subjects fit only for ap ordinary grammar school, and which, I had imagined, had been taught in the High School. What then, I may ask in passing, do they teach in the High School? And here I may ask another question which, during my visitation, I was asked myself, and to which I was unable to give an answer. It was said to me—When thiij Pro: vince was founded, lauds were set apart for the purposes of religion and education Now, the Provincial Council is asked eich year for educational grants, \yhat has become of the proceeds of the lands get apart for education. Have they been diverted from their original purpose for the benefit of cue section of the community, to the exclusion of all the others ? or is the annual vote only a grant-in-aid of these funds ? I now ask you those questions, and you can ask your representatives—the public will be glad to know all about this matter. Though avei 3 j to entering into controversy with anonymous writers, I should nevertheless in this in-time answer my assailants seriatim, had they brought forward any arguments or said anything requiring an answer on the two subjects to which I addressed myself. I have been unable to find anything—unmean ng and antiquated bigotry excepted—deserving of serious consideration. (His Lordship here referred to the arguments of some writers as to the state of education in Catholic and other countries. He argued that France, the greatest of Catholic nations, was conspicuous for its tolerance; that in Canada, where Catholics were the bulk of the population, the greatest regard was paid to the instruction of all denominations; and that the Italian, and not the Church Government was responsible for the ignorance of the rising generation in Italy.) After denying the assertion of another writer that the works use 1 by the Christian Brothers contained gro s perversions of facts, his Lordship proceeded :—The Christian Brothers never pervert facts ; they state the literal truth clothed in beautiful language in their books, and they carefully inculcate, as the Catholic Church has always done, obedience and respect for all constituted authority. And were it not lor such teaching, the people of Ireland, most grievously wronged for centuries, persecuted for their faith, plundered, according to law, of their property, declared by thg' same law traitors if they educated childpen at home qr abroad according tp their religion, would have long since flung the British Government into the sea, or perished. Were it not for the lessons of submission to even injustice, for justice’s sake, inculcated by their Church, they would have long since emulatcd the sturdy Scotch rebels in redressing what they considered their wrongs by the sword; though they would have never followed theii example in persecuting aud coulisc iting the property of those who differed from them in religion. Here now I shall take leave, for the present, of my assailants; nor shall I be tempted, either by the violence of abuse, or the introduction by them of exti aneous topics—apparently for the purpose of calling off attention from the main question —to lose sight of the bigotry aud falsehood of the school books, and the extraordinary doings of the Benevolent Institution. Only imagine 1 there are pe ip e here who pretend, at lea- t, to be surprised I should entertain any objection to have Catholic children taught —that I, for example, their Bishop, apostolically appointed to teach them the doctrine of Christ, and guide them by word and example, am, for all that, knavish, fraudulent, superstitious, fanatical, bloodthirsty; or, that if I am not all this and more, personally, I must be an exception, and a rare one in the Episcopal order. There are men to he found

audacious enough to expect I should bow down in humble submission to such atrocity. Were I craven-hearted enough to do so I should be, indeed, not only unworthy of the office of Bishop, but even of the name of a man, I may not be able to effect a remedy of the evils 1 complain of, but this shall not deter me from protesting against them ; and I shall never cease till 1 make the history of the injustice here ring throughout the world. I will try to let the world see how the boasted cry of religious liberty here means only licence for one class tojdojas it pleases, and the denial of even-handed justice to all others. Will the Benevolent Institution it is hard to deal. There cm he no doubt whatever that Catholic children there are sent to p-ayors and religious nstructions which arc not Catholic, and that the Committee claim to have the right to ordain this state of thing 0 . Yet they have not hesitated to say, in answer to the Superintendent s letter on the subject, that Catholic children are not coerced. Does any man seriously mean to tell mo that poor little children infants and dependent —who are daily sent to non catholic prayers and instructions are not coerced? No amount of subterfuge or quibbling can extricate the Committ e from complicity in this state of things. And now Igo further, and charge that Institution with not only unjustly interfering with the religion of Catholics, but with kidnapping Catholic children for the purpose of making Protestants of them, and of setting at defiance the rights of parents over their (own offspring. I hold in my hands authenticated reports of such cases, but, not to delay you tto long, I shall read but two. The first is tie case of tie girl Higgins. Shortly afte her admission into this Institution, she was handed over by tbc authorities, and, without the consent of her father or any of her friends or relatives, to be adopted by a Protestant ; she is still with this Protestant, and is brought up in the Protestant faith. Her grandmother, Mrs Maloney, consult; d Fathar Moreau on the subject; he applied to the authorities of the Institution—to the Superintendent—even to the authorities in Wellington—and got no satisfaction. The Secretary of the Institution, writing to Father Moreau concerning this girl, says : “ There is reason to believe she is not i ow educated in the Homan Catholic faith, there is every reason to suppose that she is being taught to serve and revere her Maker ami her Saviour. ” That extract speaks for itself, it needs no comment, and it shows that the Committee arc not ashamed of their bigotry, injustice, and invasion of parental rights, and determined to set these rights at defiance ; for, speaking of the ailoj)tion of this girl, the Secretary also says:—“ The Committee, having sent the girl Higgins to Mr Putlekow, were unable to undo the adoption.” And this is coolly stated and acted on, notwith lauding tiiat the girl’s father was then, as I believe be is still, living. It appears then that this Committee, because they break a crust of bred to n edy children, feel themselves authorised to dispose Of them as if they were their lords and masters, and as if they had no parents. The other ease is that of a little boy, only seven years of age, who was sent up the country to Protestant people, to be roared by them as they pleased, without the knowledge and consent of his father, who, on making enquiry about his child, was refused ail information concerning him, This must suffice for the present, and, in conclusion, I repeat that the discipline 1 announced on a former occasion will be strictly enforced.