ARCHDIOCESE OF ADELAIDE

New Zealand Tablet, 14 December 1911, Page 2553

ARCHDIOCESE OF ADELAIDE

His Grace the Archbishop of Adelaide has issued his fourteenth report on the liabilities of the archdio- % cese. ‘ The facts recorded in table No. 111. (says his Grace) are of interest to the whole archdiocese. The tale they tell speaks volumes for the generosity of our people. That tale is concerned only with "the purchase of land, the erection of buildings, and the support of charitable institutions. It takes no account whatever of the maintenance of our priests (63), or the maintenance of over 300 Sisters, or 20 Brothers engaged in educational work, besides eight others laboring in the interests of religion. Nor does it take account of the expenditure of religious institutes, for which the archdiocese is not directly responsible. I make careful estimate, and my figures can be taken as substantially correct. These items have absorbed, since 1895, £325,000. For the mathematical accuracy, on the other hand, of . the figures in my tables, setting forth our expenditures on buildings and charities, I can vouch absolutely. The sums raised by our people for the 16 years reach the total of £3/3,016. Add the two figures together, and we have an aggregate raised for purposes of church and charities of £698,016. And yet we number, women and children included, within the limits of the archdiocese, only something over 40,000. We started in 1895 with •&a debt of £56,968. But we have been ever buying, ever building, and ever extending. Despite our having raised for the purchase of land, for the building of churches and schools, for the maintenance of our charitable institutions, £373,016, we were still, in March last, £55,982 in debt. The difference, however, in our position in 1895 and our position in 1911 peremptorilv forbids misgiving. We have acquired land, we have erected buildings in very many places. Against our debt our assets may be fairly set. They came to in March lastlnsured value of buildings, £268,339; assessed value of land, £33,236; estimated value of land not liable to assessment, at least £20,000; total, £321,575. The properties we hold are therefore about six times the value of our liabilities, and at the back of our assets there is the generosity of our people that is ever to be relied upon.’