The Catholic World

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXII, Issue 49, 8 December 1904, Page 27

The Catholic World

ENGLAND —A Bigoted Board.

A few months ago (writes the Liverpool correspondent of the Dublin ' Freeman's Jourtnal ') the BirKenhea,d Guardians appointed a lady superintendent oi\'ei tne pariOfjlhial oottiage homies, named Miss (Ji'osse, a daughter of the Protestant Archdeacon of Norwich, and theie was mjutual congratulation annong them that they had got a most effineni, higbly-i.ultured Protestant laidy tor tins innplortant po^t. However, some lynx-eyed Ken-si-titc saw the lady coming out of the Cath'ohc rhuron one Sunday mlorning, and immediately the Guai^dians were subjected to a severe denunciation for their conduct in handling o\ er the, management of the homes to ta ' Komainist.' 'ihe Guaidians, Imding that Miss Cros^e was a Ciathohc, which they could not have s>urmibed from her parentage, at once began to discover she was not sio efficient as tiiey had thought, and a system of petty ainmoya,n.ce was commenced wihich nitade her position unbeatable, and she had to send in her resignation, which wias accepted ' with regret ' by tbe bigoted Board. A Distinguished Franciscan.

Reports of the probable withdrawal from Rome of the Ke/v, Father David Fleming, 0.F.M., have been recently circulated, and a certain color was lent to the rumjor by the fact that Father David is at present in Kng,lia,nd. interviewed by a representative of the 'Catholic Herald ' Father David gave an emphatic denial to tins unEotunded report. ' 1 came over tio Etngland simply on a visit,' Father David said ; ' and 1 am goi^ng back to Home to continue my work as Ooneuiltor of xhe Holy Office ajud Secretary of tlhe Biblical Commission. My present woik. is in Rome, a-nid t'hare is not the slightest intention 'of nicking a change.' 11 us -attention v. as also 'directed to the statement that there is a probability of] his benng sent out as Delegate- Apostolic in jugypt and Alriabia, whe:e the presence ol an English Franciscan woul'rt be an advantage. This report Father Da\id disposes of briefly. ' 'Miere was ne\er a question of sending me out there,' he declared. 'As a matter of fact, lilie appOintment of Father Aureko de 13>uia was made ten weeks ago.' Father David was born in Killarney iln lh<s2. lie studied at St. lir&ndian's Semiinary, and af tea wards i.n Uelgium, where he was apj),oi,nted Pkjfessor ot Philosophy and Theology. Later he went to London, and founded the Franciscan Monastery at Forest Gate, becoming the first Provincial of the restored English Prownce. ll'aMiig taught Scrrpture and various branches of Uheology, he was called upon to take part in the Commission on Anglican (Jiders, and soon after proceeded to Koine, 'lhcie he was appointed (Jonslultor of the Holy Office and Definitor-Goneral of the Order. On Uhe death of the General he was elected VicarGe,ncral to the whole Orders of the Friars MUnor. Before tjiiat he had already been appointed Secretary of the Biblical Oomniisbion, and .at. the holding of both ofiices was incompatible, by the express wish of Pope Leo XHI., he retained that of Secretary tio the Biblical Commission anld renounced the light of being elected General to the whole Order. FRANCE.— The Concordat.

The ' Figaro,' Paris, states that lihe Holy Father, in order u/ar.oid any step which might aggravate the rehgioms bituation in France, will not come to a decision regardmg the appointment of Vicars-Apostolic in Constantinople and Syria, anid the creiation of a Niuicia.tjure in Pekui, as long as cortanu questions with the French (j|d* eminent aie n,ot settled. Preparing for the Worst.

His Knunqnce Ca-rdhnal Perraud, Biisho\p of Aut,un, in a. discourse addressed recently tio the clergy of his diocese united tor their spiritual retreat, is reported to have sploken ttfiius gravely :— ' This reunion is perhaps our last. Our governors defend themselves from the accusation of d-esiring a persecution erven to the shedding of blood ; but when Masonry shall judge it well to demand blood, siufEocating the last voices of humanity, they will command the chase of the priests. Gidd atone knows if tbe time is far or ne*ar, but whenever it may be, remember that your predecessors were strong before the blt**ished ot the Kevolutidn, and .prepare yourselves.' 1 Two Testimonials.

Up tio the veiy eve of the re-assemblimg of parliament, French muiistiers (says the ' Oatitoolic Times '), have been perforating through the country and everywhere saying that the Concordat will be abolished, and that tlhe blame rests on the Pope. Two proofs to the contrary, it apy are needed, after Cardinal Merny del Vat's documentary exposure of M. Combes, are at

han,d. In an audience, the Holy Father ttol'd Monsignor Tuniijaz : " 1 will do moUhing to bring on a r,u,pitiure of the Cjoncordat ; if the Government wants the rapture, we mpst not be afrjaid. The Church >of France will pass through a most sad crisis, but she will come f.ort|h from it -victorious and stronger than ever.' And in aJn imtervievv granted to M. Ollivier, he left that gentleman conM,ncad that , he would newer yield to alny threats, or (accept any arrangement Winch wauld prejudiciously aflect the rights and liberties of the Uliurch. It is therefore as l'n.sjolemt as it is ltdle- for M. Combes afl!d his followers to pretend that the blame for the existing troubles lies on the shoulders of the ilioly See. 'ihe trutii is>, that M ( 'iomibes himseli has been forced oh l>y 'his siupiporters to engage in a contest wiDh the Chsurch of which he neither sees nor heads the iss^ue. Amd this lact is prrtved by the letters of M. Waldeck-Rdus'sieau, recently published in tlhe columns ot the ' Figano ' newspaper. V\e now know that M. Combes is rather led than leads. But ho may d,o immense harm for all tihat. GERMANY.— The Late King of Saxony.

Ki^g George of Saxony, who died a^t tlhe Castle of Pelknitz on October 15, distinguished himself as a military leajder. By his handling of the Saxton brigade of cavalry, he ,did elective work in covering the Austrian retreat at K.oniggratz, ari(d smell was his efuccess as commaiider of the 12th German Army Corps at the battle of Gravelotte that on the formation of tine Army of the Meuse, under the command ot Cr,own Prince Albert, the lea(lcrsdii\p of the whole Saxon Army Oor^s was entrusted to him. Succeeding to his brother the late King AL'beoct, oil June 19, 1902, he had a difficult cole to play. Kuhng a Protestant population, he was a staunch Catholic. In his principles and his practices he was c\er loyal to Ins religion and to the Holy See. His admiratnon for the late Pope was most earnest, and when his Holiness lay on his death-bed tlhe King made it a point to >be informed of ( lns condition fnom day to day. o,ne of his sons, Prujice Max, now a Professor at t)he University of Fribourg in Switzerland, became a pucst ajnd g,ai/ncd fame in London by his zeal for the promlptiiojn of the welfare of the m,assies. The King's fidelity tio his cieed gained him not a few enemies during the struggle in wjhich the Social Democrats secured the representation of the Saxon constitugncies, but on the wliiole his uprightness, manliness, and blameless life won him the respect and esteem of his subjects. The new King, his son, is a man of soldierly habits and, at the same time, of genial mainneris. SCOTLAND.— GoIden Jubilee.

Durimg the current month the Rev. Brother Vincent, of St. Mungo's, Townhea'd, will celebrate. Ihis gpljden jubilee as a member of the Manst Under. Forty years of this period have been spent in glasgow. Temperance Crusade.

In the course of his few days' temperance crusiajde in Scotland the Rev. Father Hays aldmnnstered the total abstinence pledge to close on three thousand persons. SWITZERLAND.— Census Returns.

r l he final p,a.pers relating to the resiults of the Swiss cons u .si bring out siome interesting results. The most notable is, perhaips, the gradual decline of the preponderance ot the German-speaking cantons. In 188/0 German was the language of 713 per 1000 of the population. Now only b!JB por 1000 speak tjhat tomgue. On the other hand, the French-speaking Swiss are now 220 per 10U0, instead, of 211 per 1000 in 1880, and the Ital-lan-sipeak^ng 67, instead of 57 per 1000 — a growing obstacle to the progress of the Pan-Gerrnaniic molvement, of which it is interesting to take note. In the matter 'of rehguom Catholicism is, gaining' at the exfpensJe of Protestantism. In half a century the proportion of Protestants has fallen from 503 to 578 per 10,50, while that of Catholif s, has increased from 406 to 417 per 1000. UNITED STATES.— Bohemian Catholics.

I,n Uhicagjo there are about 110,000 Bohemians. About 75,000 of these are Catholics. The Catholic Bohemians of Chicago have at present nitoe churches. The largest of these congregations, with a Very beautiful churcjh,, f a largie school, a,^', spacious Tiarocliial bluiLding, is St. Prjocopi'us', the premier Bohemian coTigregp/tiom in the United States. It is in charge of the Bohemian Benedictflne Fathers. With every church there is connected a school. Catholics in Chicago.

Tilie present Catholic cens,us of Chicago shows that the Chicago archdiocese c,ontal\ns 1,200,000 Catholics, an increase of 2UU,uu"O since a year ago. The Catholic Population.

The latest official returns of the Catholic Church in the United States show that there are 15 Archbishops

and #2 Bishops. The number of clergy is 13 OOiO secu lar and regular, serving 11,000 ohurches. Of' children attending school there are 1,000,000, artd in the 250 oip ; hajnages Wiere are Qver 36,000 orphans Tihe to Lai Catholic population is estimated at ll.fvS/.OO'O. Eucharistic Congress.

No eivont in the histtory -of the Chinch m the linited States eiver brought togetther so many p 'lesis, prelate-, and members of the hierarchy as ttfie third General Euqhansitic Congress, whiyh was opened on September 27 with a Solemn Pontifical Mai* at St. Patrick \s Cat.hcdral, New York. The Congress continued thiee days Pope Piius >■ , in a special letter, oommcnrlod the spirit of the C/ongiess, and the message was delivered by Monsignor Faleonio, Apostolic Delegate to tihe Lnited States.