THE "VAGABOND" AT ABBOTSFORD.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 202, 16 February 1877, Page 11

THE "VAGABOND" AT ABBOTSFORD.

Some months ago it was our privilege to publish in these co umns testimony, borne by a tried friend of theirs, to the value of the religious orders. We were then empowered to show by quoting from the letter of an aged priest a letter which the writer had only intended for theeyes cf those who, like himself, were members of an order, that ™L 7? \ nducemeut wl Vch nuns, at least, require to recommend to them any particular sphere of labor, is that it may be made clear to them that they shall there find an aiTle fceld in which to exercise their self-sacrificing duties • and that the only fear, which is considered of sufficient tree to deter them from embarking in any special enterprise, is east they may be prevented thereby from carrying 9 out in its perfection the discipline which they find it necessary or advisable to observe, so that they may be prepared fifth. llu° erfor , m the tasks t0 which they are devotedwhether these be teaching, attendance on the sick, or any! Say^rl^^^^^^^ ° f «* ~ mstead of a venerable missionary, deld iv harness, and whose voice reaches us strengthened a hundred.foU by the witness of his life, we look to the writing of a clever and not always over-scrupulous journalist, who professes the easy philosophy of a thorough man of the worlcL Amongst gntributo™ to journalistic 3 literature at the prefent S there is none who has more deservedly made his mark than the gentleman who, under the norn deplume o f « Vagabond I " enriches the columns of the Melbourne 'Ar-us' lIL writings are anxiously looked for and read with avidity and many an editorial scissors rejoicingly clips them as a ffO d ?V °X raCl^ fc nature ' But dear-headed as g ?he 'Vagabond" may be, and of wide experience, he has not been so fortunate as to have escaped the general glamour and the meshes of prejudice have so entangled hs brain that frequently it happens his lively sentences are blurred with no-Popery utterances, and tne babble of the antt Catholic party is plainly discernible there; so that, on the whole, we cannot cla m him as a friend, but rather we may without a sacrifice of charity, rank him amongst, our foes' If, therefore, by chance anything emanates from his pen of a nature favorable to Catholic individuals or institutions we may characterise it as the testimony of an enemy and' as i Were a voluntary gift of the Egyptians. 7'7 ' The Vagabond," then, has paid a visit to the convent and asylum of the Good Shepherd at Melbourne and has in his agreeable style and pithy paragraph^ recorded a favorable impression of most things that" there Jame under his observation. His mind was turned towards the estab lishment m question by a strange incident that befeU as he was walking through the streets* one night, and SrMch with its attendant circumstances and consequences, h™dates n a manner exceedingly quaint and amusing, ana with uninteresting He had already received from Oie rev Mother, an invitation to visit the institution under her hrn .n°sK 1 ? ieh '- hOWeVer ' he bad not hitherto availed himself, but being impressed with a new interest Tn the matter, he now repaired thither. «n 1?e T137T 137 eXpe ? t0 find the conv ent doors barred on the inside, so as forcibly to prevent the egress of the inmates, or is the following J merely intended for the in formation of those who are idiotic and wicked enough sSI ?^^°^«t^«do^

convents m somewhat wider thia sounds very funnT IW. ever, bemgm and perceiving that it was possibfe for any one who should so desire it to make his or her way ou? what further came under this writer's observation. Very gladly would we avail ourselves of his own brilliant dictiW iS 1 : descn P ti ™ unimpaired, but unfortunately ft is too lengthy for our columns, and, therefore, we can but manage to give an imperfect sketch of it, w ith hZe and there an extract from the original. He finds then Tt£ and neatly furnished building of wood, ■S^OTy efi? no doubfc, as convents always are, and he tWs a seaTS the parlor to await the coming of the rev. Mother w l£ presently arrives. « The door opens and two l£ enter attired, like the portress, in long robes of white faSTS hoods and bandages of the same material. There is nftCl m dress to distinguish the Superioress from an ordinarf sister. Falling from the throat, they all wear a b?oS tell thpf^h b , and '.^ de r neathwhich incessantly tell their beads without ostentatious display. They aft WH Ung J7 d . their u neck a chaßed shaped and bearing the monogram V. J.M., which I afterwards found means • Vive Jesu et Marie V This ia rtm password of the Order, it having been founded in France SnTw c "aist, beads and an ivory cross a?e Zng Emphatically an ugly dress, one to disguise all beauties of youth, feature, or form. The age of each individual wear £ has to be guessed at." Alas, for the sentimentelkm ?hlt some folk suppose to attach to the habit of the n*n-a habit whose sole attraction consists in its associations Alter some preliminary conversation, the " Vagabond » is escorted by the Sisters over their establishment Ther pass through several room? where the work of the laundry is being earned on. " In all these rooms I see < penftent fallen wom.-n' working under the eyes and superintendence of a few nuns. Their dress is of the plainest ? any attemnt at personal adornment being apparently discouraged. They are of all ages, but the majority are old women On soma there is a settled look of despair and discontent ; they ha^a not yet found peace. Others, and especially the yount™ ones looked cheerful, happy, and contented with t£ fot Lxcept during the hour of silence, they sing at their work French chansons and Welsh odes being hlard ; for many nationalities are gathered here, and many creeds, for^S the boast of the good nuns that they open their gates freely to women of all denominations. The rev. Mother tells me they will not attempt to influence the religious faith of an? penitent, they will not press them to go to chapel, o ask them to read religious works. If they did proselytise I tor one, should hold them blameless. The falen woman rescued and reformed by Catholic hands, is likely, SS to embrace that faith." But it requires somethin? more than a mere logical sequence of events to lead a stray sheen into the fold of the Catholic Church, and for this, ncTdoubt the prayers of th© nuns are continually offered Some' further interesting details are here give£, for which how ever, we have not room, and next the party proceed ud! .taiw ."Then upstairs we marched, through rows & dormitories, spotlessly clean, and very crowded." H a room attached to each ward, one or two sisters sleep. ISVht and day the penitents are watched aud cared for." The* work rooms are then visited, and there it is discovered that all the clothes worn by its inhabitants are made in the inst - phwT'"? n res P ecti . n S, the V^tes of the establishment elicit the following information. "There are at present 136 in the asylum, some of whom have been there for many years. Last year the total number received was 244 Of these, 48 were placed in service or restored to their friends hntlL™ e j dlsch^ d fo r misconduct, or sent to the hospital, and five died. The receipts from all sources me hiding the Parliamentary grant of £950. and £2 045 realised by the penitents' labor, were £1,807. The expend diture was £5,4U0, or not £25 per capita. Over £860 was expended m building repairs, fittings, and furniture. New K!?K a - 6'6 ' IQ / a< * *l dl * . needed for the healfch ">d coLT tort of the inmates." Further details are given, relative to n e a n°. n f dlt n °^ J^T and the disci^ ne maintained in all of which wisdom and moderation are plainly evident ™fL P *T£ ra & Ff"*** thus - " B *t this discipline ia looL on Sf /n klDd WoManly B * m P a % of the ntias, who look on the- fallen ones, not as lost souls, but as strayed sheep whom it is their duty and pleasure to gather to the fold of the Good Shepherd, for fere and hereafter "Aw SttaXH^r*'* 6 ° f Him wh ° ""•"*>